#Steel Locker Company

[kivaember]

it's maid day so here's 621 in a maid dress and rusty suffering

-

Every so often, Rusty would manage to convince Raven to "meet up" outside of sorties to "hang out".

The reason for the quotation marks there was that Raven didn't know that they met up to hang out. Rusty usually had to couch his requests in mission speak... and, admittedly, pay Raven afterwards to maintain the innocent deception. It was always a pittance, and Raven was under the impression that he was doing Rusty a favour by giving him a "buddy discount" (his words, not Rusty's), which made it seem like it was Raven manufacturing reasons to "meet up" by accepting clearly bogus missions for 100 COAM a piece-

Okay, this is getting complicated.

To simplify: they were both two very messed up guys who had no idea how to make friends normally, so Rusty did triple layers of subterfuge to hang out with the one person who was unrelated to the tangled hot mess that was his spy life on Rubicon, while Raven was unable to socialise outside of mission objectives and parameters.

They went on a lot of 'geographical surveys' together, is what he's saying.

It was enough to have the Vespers notice, but not exactly suspicious. From what Rusty had gleaned from Pater's sly jibes and Hawkin's poorly concealed smiles, they thought he and Raven were running off to secluded areas to have wild, passionate sex in each other's cockpits. Technically it was against company policy, but they were out on the frontiers. It was likely considered an acceptable misdemeanour to let Rusty blow off steam harmlessly - and a potential hook to sway Raven more towards an Arquebus bias.

Rusty didn't disabuse them of their assumption. It made things easier, really. He said 'I'm going on another geological survey with Raven, he requested my presence' and O'Keeffe would wave him off with 'okay just don't take all night again'. Snail would take one look at 'geological survey' and 'V.IV Rusty' and 'Raven' on the mission report and promptly lose interest - by now it was a short hand for 'V.IV is making a booty call'.

It let him take his time. He'd meet Raven, but then move on and spend a few hours elsewhere without needing to think of an excuse - because everyone would assume he was fucking Raven.

Honestly - he wished.

But no, their meetings were as chaste as things could be. They had scoped out a few good locations to meet - shielded from the wind, the snow, and allowing them to spend a few hours outside of their ACs - but they made sure to alternate them in a random pattern, just in case Balam or some enterprising independent mercenary got any ideas. Every time they met up, Rusty would bring what little he could for entertainment, a few bottles of smuggled Rubicon moonshine, and they would just... talk and chill.

...and then one meet up, Raven turned up in a dress.

-

The meeting spot they chose this time was an old yet mostly intact building situated in the shadow of a sky grid. The building was built of concrete and insulating material, the interior lukewarm compared to the frigid climes outside, and had likely been a school, once upon a time.

Rooms with desks and chairs, hallways with lockers, an old gym where the wooden floors had long since rotted and the ceiling half-caved in, and dark labratories where the chemical cabinets had been broken into, their contents long since emptied and leaving bare shelves and discoloured, empty glass jars.

It was one of their more favourite meeting spots, and Rusty had arrived first this frigid evening. He had parked STEEL HAZE outside the building, the AC sat in a low squat and partially concealed behind the multi-story building. Rusty had clambered out and trudged his way inside, makign for their usual meeting spot inside: the headmaster's office.

It was still relatively intact. An old, oaken desk that had withstood the ravages of time, a sofa where the springs had gone flat but wasn't moth-eaten, and a large window where the glass was frosted over but still intact. The carpet was stained, though, and the bookcases lining the wall were lacking books - moisture had gotten in here at some point, and the books had decayed into something mushy, but otherwise the room was serviceable for their meeting.

Rusty sat down on the sofa, resting his boots on the creaking coffee table, and stared out the window. The building sighed and creaked around him, the wind howling as it rattled the window, giving a sense of lonely isolation. Rusty just cracked open one of the moonshines he had brought with him, drinking straight from the bottle. He didn't like thinking about why Rubiconian settlements were so eerily abandoned.

He got through half the bottle by the time he heard the telltale growl and rumble of an arriving AC. His confirmation came when a data exchange request zipped to his implants, coming from Network ID: 04-23-621. Raven.

Rusty accepted it. There was no verbal communication or anything like that, and admittedly Raven was the first and only time he'd ever used his implants like this, but it was just an.. acknowledgement? Regardless, he accepted the request, Rusty felt a vague sort of 'okay', and the connection dropped as quickly as it was formed. Raven's way of saying 'hello', he supposed.

Made him wonder if there was a level of incompatibility between Old and New Gen. Rusty had heard Old Gen had a weird sort of 'telepathy' capability with each other, but no such thing existed with the New Gens. Rusty didn't know the science behind it, but Coral was well known for being able to store insane amounts of data and transporting it near-instantaneously across vast distances, whereas the 'Coral Substitute' used in New Gens could... not do that. A fact that the UEG was eternally sour over, after Arquebus had unveiled it with much fanfare.

(In fact, the 'Coral Substitute' was barely a substitute at all. The only thing it could do was successfully augment a human... to a fraction of what an Old Gen's performance was like, yes, but it was still something. The massive amount of energy, data storage, and quantum characteristics were still a work in progress)

In any case, the "telepathy" would've been useful to have, but ultimately Rusty was relieved. There were all kind of horror stories about Old Gens being susceptible to 'neural-hacks', and Rusty quite liked having complete control over his own mind and thoughts, thank you. It was the only thing he could claim to actually own in this capitalistic hellscape of a galaxy.

He continued sipping through his bottle of moonshine as he waited. It was quiet, Raven no doubt parking up STALKER beside STEEL HAZE and likely making his way up here. He was a slow walker - incredibly slow - so Rusty had all but finished the bottle by the time he heard footsteps shuffle towards the office.

Rusty felt loose and relaxed, pleasantly warm, and he slid his boots off the coffee table and set the empty bottle down on it just as the door creaked open. Tone light and slightly drawling, he looked up with a: "About time you-"

He stopped.

Raven stood in the doorway, staring at him with that bland, emotionless stare of his. That wasn't what gave Rusty pause. It was his- outfit.

"Uh, buddy. Your... clothes..." Rusty said very slowly, his gaze fixed on Raven's torso. The moonshine hadn't been that strong, had it? He knew some batches could cause hallucinogenic effects, but Rusty was Rubiconian. It'd take more than one bottle to cause that in him.

Raven looked down and plucked at said clothes, black fabric pinched between gloved fingers.

It looked cheap - the sort you'd find on the rack at a local supermarket on Earth. It was too shiny, and Rusty could see how the fabric had creased horribly from where it had been neatly folded up in its packaging, giving it the look of a crisp packet or something similar. It didn't fit right either - a bit too baggy at the chest, since Raven lacked the assets to fill it, and loose around the hips, since he barely had any. It was long at the knee too, the skirt stopping just shy of an inch above his ankle - not that it showed any skin, as Raven was still wearing his usual steel-capped combat boots, the laces loosely tied up and dangling messily.

After another few seconds of shocked staring, Rusty belatedly realised that Raven was in some fascimile of a maid outfit. The 'sexy' kind, except it was clearly for someone taller and, um, curvier than him, so it negated the 'sexy' and came across as homely instead. Either way, the effect was the same: stunning Rusty into silence.

Raven looked up, his blank expression saying he saw nothing strange about all this. He pulled at the hem of his gloves - his usual ones, black leather with steel stitched over the knuckles - before crossing his arms. The only saving grace was that he was wearing a jacket, unzipped of course, but it just clashed with the whole ensemble.

Weirdly, Rusty couldn't help but be reminded of those animated shows Pater covertly watched in the office when Snail wasn't around: anime? He was pretty sure he saw a character in one of his shows dressed like this, except it had been a female maid armed with an ancient AK-47 shooting zombies, not an AC pilot.

"Um," Rusty tried. After another pause, he cleared his throat and said: "What's with... the outfit?"

Raven just shrugged, and unfolded his arms to shuffle towards the sofa. Rusty just watched as Raven sat down on the other end... and slouched, his legs spreading. Rusty had to fight the urge to lean over and pull the hem of his skirt down from where it hitched up.

Thankfully, it at least revealled he was wearing thick, woollen stockings underneath... Raven wasn't wandering around without any form of pants, thank god.

After a pause, Raven dug into his jacket pocket and typed languidly on his communication's device: "I was told this is customary to wear on 'Maid Day'."

Rusty didn't know where to begin.

"Who- told you that?" Actually, he knew exactly where to begin. "Walter? Did- did Walter put you in that?"

He knew there was something skeevy going on between him and Raven, but to think he was forcing Raven - who had no choice but to obey him, thanks to his indentured servitude - to dress up to satisfy his desires... was he even-!?

"No." Raven gave him an odd look. "It was the men."

"The- men?"

"The men."

Rusty stared. Raven did not elaborate.

just leave it alone, Rusty, a voice that sounded a lot like Uncle muttered, just leave it alone...

He couldn't, though. Once you dumped a mystery, no matter how bizarre or comical, Rusty was compelled to peel it apart and devour it. He had to know what the fuck was up with all this.

"What men?" Rusty pressed. "Do you know how many men are on this planet? You're not narrowing it down."

Raven shrugged again, but he did, thankfully, elaborate this time: "The men Walter hires to maintain my AC. They belong to RaD."

Oh, okay. That makes se- no wait.

"So, those RaD guys put you in that dress?"

"They told me it was traditional."

"Were they wearing maid dresses?"

"Some of them."

Well, at least it wasn't a pack of perverts ganging up on the clearly very attractive yet naive Raven, Rusty thought darkly. Though, they could still be perverts. Did Walter not vet any of his hires? Then again, pickings were slim on Rubicon if you wanted neutral workers that wouldn't rob you blind the moment you had your back turned...

"Is that all they did?"

Raven just looked increasingly confused. "...is there more to this day? Did they forget to do something?"

"No, no, just..." Rusty sighed. "I wanted to make sure they hadn't done anything, uh... like, you know..."

He dithered over his words. Raven blinked guilelessly at him.

"...inappropriate," Rusty finished in a mumble.

Raven made a small noise of acknowledgement. "I see. No, they didn't sexually harrass me or anything like that. Walter would kill them."

"Ah. Um." Well, okay, maybe Raven wasn't as naive as he thought. "Well. Um. Good?"

Raven gave him a somewhat evaluating look. "Do you like it?"

"Ah?"

"The dress."

"Well, it..." Rusty faltered, then decided he needed another bottle of moonshine for this. He fished out two, handing one over to Raven while keeping the other for himself. "They clearly didn't get your size right."

"It is baggy in places."

"Uh, yeah, I noticed."

"Around the chest."

"Yeah..."

"And the hips."

Rusty coughed. "I noticed."

Raven was staring very intently at him at this point, like he was trying to telepathically convey something to him through sheer force of will, yet was coming up against the impenetrable wall that was called 'frustrating obliviousness'.

"It's basically falling off. The zip doesn't go up all the way on the back."

"Really? I can give you my jacket if you need-"

Raven cut him off with a loud, gusty sigh, and took a large swig of his moonshine. Rusty felt like he'd missed something embarrassingly obvious.

For a few moments, nothing but the howling wind could be heard. Rusty frowned as he sipped his own drink, peeking at Raven and his ill-fitting maid outfit and the general weirdness of the whole thing.

These meetings tended to go like this: they'd sit together, share a few drinks, and Raven would ask him rather strange yet innocent questions about perfectly normal things like they were incredibly alien. What was it like going to school? What was his fondest childhood memory? Had he ever pet a cat before? What was it like working in an office?

Rusty vaguely understood that Gen Fours didn't have pleasant lives in this galaxy, but those kind of questions... it made it seem like Raven had never had a normal life at all, not even a childhood. It made him uneasy to think about, but he indulged Raven all the same. He fed him a pack of lies of course, spinning a yarn about his days growing up on one of the Tau Ceti colonies, but Raven ate it up all the same. It seemed harmless, Raven's curiosity and Rusty's blatant lies.

So this? This was outside the norm. Or it could be Rusty overthinking things. It was probably some silly prank the RaD lot pulled on Raven, unaware that the pilot didn't comprehend the concept of 'social shame'. Raven also lacked social skills, and on more than on occasion accidentally said things that sounded inappropriate, but was just him either being too literal, too blunt, or just unaware of the double entrente he came out with. This was likely one of those times.

"They called this a date."

"..." Okay, well. So much for that. "Those RaD guys?"

"Yes."

Rusty lowered his bottle, resting it against his thigh. He stared straight ahead, thinking about the pointed comments of the other Vespers. It was just that, except Raven lacked social awareness. That's all.

"...this is a geographical survey."

"We're in a building drinking illegal moonshine together."

"We're surveying the interior of this building very intently," Rusty continued, not daring to let himself think this was what he was suspecting it to be. He'd told himself, from the first time he and Raven had met face-to-face and fully understanding just how lacking in agency he was, that he wouldn't dare cross a single line with him. Not like that in any case.

"I even pay you," he added belatedly. He could see Raven typing on his communication device in his periphery. "Because this is a mission."

"I assumed it to be pleasure escort pay."

Oh god. Was that what Raven had thought this was the whole time-!?

"But you don't need to pay me anymore," Raven continued while Rusty internally disintegrated out of sheer horrified mortification (and bewilderment that Raven willingly accepted such low payments he was definitely worth a hundred times what Rusty paid for pleasure escorting). "I enjoy our time together. It's mutually enjoyable. So, it's a date now. That's what the men said."

The men knew too much about Rusty and Raven's personal affairs what the fuck.

"It's okay if you're shy. I'll go as slow as you like, Rusty."

Rusty couldn't even say anything in defence of himself, mute with embarrassment and bright red from mortification. Raven turned his body slightly towards him, and gently rested a hand on his arm.

"I'm sorry if using the dress as a seduction attempt was too risque for you, though. The men said guys like you would like it, and I trusted their judgement."

The men knew too much about Rusty and Raven's personal affairs what the fuck.

"I... uhhh..." Rusty somehow managed to engage his brain. "Um, like- fine. Okay. That's okay. The dress is good. Okay."

Raven's blank expression gained a minutely baffled edge to it.

Good god he wasn't going to be able to look at anyone in the face after this. Rusty rarely misjudged a social situation, and never did he do so this disastrously. He was going to crawl into STEEL HAZE and not come out for days after this.

"I mean." Rusty forced out a sigh. "I'm- you just took me off guard. I'm. Fine with this. Date. Yup. This is a date now. If that's how we'll roll it, I'm cool with that. Cool, cool."

"Rusty. You do not sound or look cool."

"Totally cool," Rusty said tightly, his face feeling hot enough to fry an egg on it. "As a cucumber."

"It's okay, Rusty. I don't mind you being uncool."

Girl, help.

"I thought I was being slick," he suddenly said, unable to keep up the act(?) any longer. "I had it planned out, that you thought these were missions and we both had plausible deniability about the whole thing. We're not emotionally well-adjusted at all, buddy. We're supposed to be weird about this."

"I know."

"But you turned up in a maid dress."

"It is maid day."

"Why didn't you say anything about me paying you like you're a- a feelings prostitute?"

"Because we're not emotionally well-adjusted."

Rusty had no argument against that. He just admitted it, after all.

"It's okay." Raven patted his arm and then leaned back. "We've communicated now, like the men told me too. Next time, we can progress. I'd like to try hand holding."

"...okay," Rusty said, because what do you say in response to such earnestness? He was still grappling with the realisation that Raven thought he was being paid like a prostitute for the past few months.

Raven nodded, like that was that. "I was hoping you would dress up, though."

"For maid day." Rusty didn't say it as a question.

"You would look cute."

"Cute."

"And attractive. You have the waist and hips for it. In fact, this maid dress could fit you? It would be tight, though."

"Raven."

"Hold on. Let me strip."

"Raven-!"

[wrestlingisfake]

A brief history of CM Punk-AEW drama

Saw someone ask for a full recap of the Punk/AEW drama. So I spent an hour writing a decent summary, and by the time I finished they deleted the post I was trying to reblog. That's okay, I get it. But since I put in the work I'm just gonna make my own post, in case anyone else has questions.

I have tried to keep this as unbiased as possible, with a summary of the discourse at the end. If anybody needs more clarification on anything you can send me an ask.

CM Punk signed with AEW in 2021. Right away a big issue that came up was his ex-friend Colt Cabana. (Long story.) By early 2022, rumors began to swirl among the wrestlers that Punk was using his star power to get Cabana pushed out of the company. Cabana's friends in the company assumed the rumors were true and resented Punk. This came to a head in May 2022, when Adam Page referenced the rumors on live TV, in a segment with Punk. By this point Punk's relationship with Page and the Young Bucks was damaged beyond repair.

On September 4, 2022, during the post-show scrum for All Out, Punk aired his grievances with the Young Bucks (always referring to them as "the EVPs") and Adam Page. Punk clearly believed the Bucks manufactured the "Punk is trying to force Cabana out" story and leaked it to wrestling news sites to turn the locker room against Punk. Punk closed by saying that if anybody had a problem with him, he had an "open door" policy, and he'd be in his dressing room. The Bucks and fellow EVP Kenny Omega went to see him. A fight broke out. Everyone involved--even people who just tried to break it up--was suspended for a while (except Punk, who was going to be sidelined for months for a torn triceps either way).

We don't have much solid information about the September 2022 fight. Most reports I read suggest Punk and his friend Ace Steel made it physical, with Punk punching one of the Bucks (maybe both, I can't remember) and Steel throwing a chair and biting Omega. One account said the Bucks kicked the door open, unwittingly hitting Punk's dog in the face and knocking several teeth loose, which would have provoked Punk's side. It's also been suggested that since Steel's wife was in the room and in no condition to flee a potential three-on-two ambush, this could have made Steel and Punk feel they had to come out swinging. There is no footage of the fight, but there were neutral parties who witnessed it (notably including AEW's chief legal officer, Megha Parekh). Everyone involved signed NDAs and can't/won't talk about it on the record.

For the next nine months, it wasn't clear if Punk wanted to come back to AEW, or if AEW wanted to bring him back. Lots of people suggested that Punk and the three EVPs could talk it out and then make a lot of money turning it into a fake wrestling feud. But Omega and the Bucks showed no interest in talking to Punk or working with him. Ultimately Punk returned in June 2023 on a new show, Collision. The idea was that the EVPs (and anyone else who couldn't co-exist with Punk) would stay on Dynamite, and Punk would have carte blanche on Collision.

Within a couple of months, reports emerged about backstage issues involving Punk. The main one that blew up involved Jack Perry, who was always tight with the Bucks, and was typically on Dynamite, and not on Collision. Perry had vacation time scheduled and wanted to shoot an angle to explain his absence, in which HOOK would throw him into a car windshield. For some reason it didn't get done on a Dynamite taping, so arrangements were made to shoot it at a Collision taping. Everybody who thought the windshield spot with real glass was a bad idea asked Punk to talk Perry out of it. It's not clear whether Tony Khan approved the spot for Dynamite, or rescheduling it for Collision, or allowing Punk to have the last word. Ultimately the windshield spot was canceled.

On August 31, 2023, Perry wrestled Hook at All In, and they finally did the windshield spot that Punk previously nixed. Perry went out of his way to reference the earlier story, saying "You know what this is? Real glass! Go cry me a river," as if daring Punk to do something about it. After the match, Perry went behind the curtain just as Punk and Samoa Joe were getting ready for their match. By all accounts, Punk complained to Perry, Perry was like "what are you going to do about it?" and Punk decided that justified starting a fight. It was broken up very quickly, and then Punk got all hostile with Tony Khan, saying "this place is a joke and you're a clown." Punk was asked to leave, and within a week he had been terminated with cause.

The "CM Punk did nothing wrong" position, generally speaking, is that AEW is severely mismanaged, with Tony Khan allowing the Young Bucks and their friends to do a lot of dumb bullshit, leaving Punk no choice but to take matters into his own hands. Punk's enemies within AEW conspired to turn the locker room against him, and used wrestling news outlets to spread anti-Punk stories to turn the fandom against him. In any case, Punk is the biggest star AEW has ever signed (if not the biggest star AEW will ever sign), and it was bad for business to let him get so discouraged.

The "Punk screwed Punk" position, generally speaking, is that his grievances with AEW management stopped mattering whenever he resorted to physical force. His Bruiser Brody approach to throwing his weight around is backward and outdated in the 2020s (and didn't even end well for Brody in the 1980s). His assumption that the Bucks planted anti-Punk stories in the media is unfounded, and rather paranoid. He resents the EVPs for lawyering up instead of burying the hatchet, even though he feels totally justified taking the same approach with Colt Cabana. Basically, Punk thinks he can do what he likes, and anyone else who does the same against Punk's wishes is a snake, a clown, or soft.

Splitting the difference between these takes: Everybody should have talked this out by early 2022, before it got out of hand. Tony Khan should have gotten out in front of the the "Punk is trying to get rid of Cabana" rumors before they got online. Punk and Cabana should have come to terms on how they would co-exist as soon as Punk joined the company. Adam Page should not have bottled up his grievances until he was on live TV, and Punk should not have bottled up his resentment about that until a media scrum. Once it got past that point, and the first fight happened, Khan needed to take charge and settle it, immediately. He needed to choose, in September 2022, between keeping Punk aboard at all costs, or showing Punk who's boss at all costs. Instead, he tried to have it both ways for a year, until Punk made that impossible.

[tfyoulookingatgiuxs]

Class Fight

Steve Harrington x Soft!Reader

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘: You are a normal student at Hawkins High, but unlike others you were reserved and quiet. But lately you've been watching Steve Harrington, the most popular boy in school. You were ready to declare your love but someone had been blocking you for quite some time, and now you had enough...

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: Angst, blurb, fighting, bad language, violence, blood, bullying, bad ending, fem!reader, use of Y/N, your surname is Williams, confession rejected, crying.

𝐀/𝐍: And here is the first one-shot about Steve. Unlike Billy, I prefer Steve, so if you want more things about him, let me know! Sorry for my english, this is not my native language. Please support and reblog! hope you enjoy! (DIVIDER NOT MINE)

It was a simple day in Hawkins. Especially at Hawkins High, the school you attended. You felt happy today, in fact, very happy. Today you had a plan in mind, something you thought you would never do, confess your love!

You had fallen in love with him over a year ago. Steve Harrington. The most handsome and popular boy in school, he is implied to be a womanizer, he has had superficial relationships in the past with many girls and after his last girlfriend dumped him, Steve is now always in the company of his friends. He is very rich and you recently discovered that he does not have a good relationship with his father. He doesn't put much effort into school, he just prefers to have fun and enjoy his adolescence. You had spoken to Steve several times, he seemed to be fascinated by your way of dressing and your sweet personality. He also praised you for your intelligence. You were studious and responsible and he seemed intrigued by this detail, an example being his last girlfriend, Nancy Wheeler.

But not today. You wanted to tell him everything you felt. You were tired of this friendship of yours and wanted your relationship to turn into something more.

You opened your locker to get your literature book and admired the photos of you and Steve hanging on the small steel door. And then you saw the letter you had written to him. You smiled. I have to do it at all costs. This is my big day.

You said to yourself and then heard the bell ring.

You got the supplies and also the letter for Steve. You arrived and sat in your usual seat. Your classmate Mandy was absent so you had a large amount of space to put your stuff down, and then you saw it. Steve had come in and as soon as he saw you he smiled at you and you smiled back, blushing slightly. He sat down in front of you and you couldn't help but admire him.

"Hi Steve" whispered a girl with curly blonde hair in a bob, a pink long-sleeved blouse and a light blue skirt that reached her knees, finally white ballet flats that softened her figure.

Kelly White.

A girl the same age as Steve. Graceful, intelligent, kind and ambitious. She seems to have no flaws, but in reality she was a simple bully who made fun of others and was above all a spoiled little girl. She has had many lovers in the past and short-lasting relationships, this is due to her person. As is well understood, no one would ever want to be with a spoiled bitch, where the world revolves around her. She was Steve's friend, even though they don't spend most of their time together. But Kelly was hitting on him, getting too close, batting her long eyelashes to make people think she was a fucking saint. You knew full well that Steve would never fall in love with her. Kelly was popular, but everyone knew her wickedness, but lately Steve seemed far too pleased with her feminine and very attractive figure.

As soon as Kelly caught your eye she smirked but you ignored her. You don't know if she knew about your crush on Steve, but even if she did, you didn't care. You didn't want to fall into her trap.

In the middle of the class while the teacher wasn't looking, Steve turned to ask you for a pencil and you gave it to him "Thanks Williams" He winked at you and you turned red. The sound of something falling though caught your attention "Oops" came from Kelly's lips and she stood up to pick up the dropped pencil. You got furious when the bitch showed her ass in full view to Steve and he smiled.

Bang!

The teacher's hand slammed on the desk and ordered the student to sit down. While happy that Kelly had been scolded, you were still enraged by the disgusting act she had made in front of your lover.

She wanted to keep Harrington around her finger tight. But it wouldn't be like that.

Class was finally over and Kelly slipped out of class quickly. Steve on the other hand did the same, no longer wanting to be in Mrs. Daphne's class.

"Williams" The teacher called you. “Can you kindly give these to Kelly?” You nodded taking the papers. You went looking for the high-heeled bitch and when you found her you felt extremely hot with jealousy. She had given a kiss on Steve's tender cheek and so before doing anything else you threw her papers in the bin, so that next time she would get her first bad grade of her fucking perfect life.

You went to take refuge in the schoolyard. You wanted to cry but you couldn't, you didn't even understand the reason for this sadness. You needed some advice, but your friends were absent today, so you had no one to vent to. After a long walk you came across the phone that was outside the school, and you took a chance, dialing the home number.

You had good parents. Seriously, they always cared about you, and maybe too much. To the questions "Mom, why do I feel sad? Should I give him away or do I feel so bad?" She replied "No, no, no. Don't choke darling" her sweet tone suggested you not to get caught up in insecurities and negative thoughts. You heard mumbling and your heart filled with joy, your father intervened "Take her by the throat" the phrase at that moment began to echo in your head. The two argued for a bit and you ended the call thinking about your father's words.

You would have waited for recess to make her pay...

That's how it went.

You would have done as your father told you. You would get revenge for what she put you through. She had chosen the wrong person to ruin the day of and your eyes darkened when in the courtyard she stole the letter that was for Steve, tearing it into pieces. You lost your temper.

Her face was messed up and your hands were bloody. Her entire perfect appearance had become hideous, full of bruises, blood and mud. The people around you continued to cheer you on, no one did anything to stop the fight, they were spectators after all...no one cares who gets hurt, as long as there is entertainment everyone is good at watching and enjoying the scene.

Your hands were around her neck, your knees pressed into her arms so as not to make her move. You heard someone yell, and you looked up to see Steve's figure approaching the crowd and an adult behind them.

The teacher broke you up after you broke her. And you saw Steve, your one true love call you a monster...

You didn't have time to react, you were both sent to the principal. Kelly was very injured while you, besides your messy hair, only had a few scratches and a bloody lip.

You were both expelled, but that didn't matter to you now, your parents wouldn't have minded. You should have gone to Steve.

After you were treated in the infirmary you thanked the woman and ran to find Harrington. You found him in front of his locker with Carol and Tommy.

"Steve!" You ran to him, not caring about the looks of the two lovers behind you. He made a face that wasn't what you expected, he looked bored. Surely the earlier fight must have upset him.

"Hey..."

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened today. But I just wanted to talk to you" He shook his head "Okay" Tommy and Carol exchanged a sly look as they did so.

"I...I don't want to be friends with you anymore" you started and Steve almost looked at you speechless "I would like to be something more than just a friend. I've always liked you and I would like to stay by your side for the rest of my days" two friends behind you remained speechless, from your corny declaration to say the least "I love you Steve" your eyes shone with hope while from Tommy and Carol's mouths came an "Ohhhhh" accompanied by a giggle.

Steve fixed his quiff but his look was always bored or unconvinced "Wow...a beautiful love declaration Williams, but I'm sorry" the light of hope went out in your eyes looking at the lines of his face "Aww, Stevie don't do that, the princess might feel bad about it" said Carol "I didn't know that princesses got blood on their hands" He looked at you making you feel guilty. You hated Kelly, and half the school enjoyed seeing her face smashed into the ground, so why should he be the only one who worried about her? “Come on man, Kelly is a real bitch,” Tommy said.

"Exactly, in short, the princess did well in my opinion" Carol smiled.

"It's true" he stated looking at the two, and then looked at your stony face "But if you think that now you are better than her you are very wrong Williams" he said and then left while Tommy and Carol continued to laugh.

"We're sorry princess!" Carol shouted while her boyfriend laughed "Ohh Steve Harrington scolded a poor little girl, what a cruel man" Steve rolled his eyes as his voice became more and more distant "Come on man stop it! I'm not intrigued by hypocritical girls" Your heart broke in two.

Tears fell from your face as the laughter even though far away made you feel sick.

You came home crying with a hurt heart. Not only were you rejected, you were also made fun of.

This was the worst day of your life.

[friendlylilslime]

Shin ran a hand through his fluffy strawberry blonde hair as he wrapped up his shift at the hair salon in the heart of Tokyo. Another day, another set of hairstyles done meticulously. He sighed, feeling the weight of the day slowly lift off his shoulders as he put away his tools.

As he slipped his phone out of his pocket, a text from Emma lit up the screen.

"Drinks tonight?" it read. He hesitated, violet eyes scanning the message. Despite the tempting offer, he just wasn't in the mood, especially not with the company of someone he harbored unrequited feelings for.

Instead, his fingers tapped out a familiar number—M!y/n number. He pressed the phone to his ear, waiting for a response.

"Hey, it's me. Mind if I swing by tonight?" he said casually, his deep voice betraying none of the thoughts swirling in his mind. He needed to get his mind off of Emma... again.

"yeah come swing by, I gotta clean up at the cafe a bit so I'll be a bit late. Just let yourself into my house you have a key" M!y/n tells shin. Cleaning up around the cafe he owns.

"Cool, I'll be there," Shin replied, a hint of relief in his voice as he hung up the phone.

He glanced at the clock—the late afternoon sun streamed through the salon windows, casting long shadows across the floor. Plenty of time to kill.

Shin took a deep breath, steeling himself as thoughts of Emma flickered through his mind. He grabbed his stuff from his locker before heading out into the evening air.

The walk to M!y/n house was a familiar one. He had been over plenty of times before.

As he approached M!y/n house, Shin fished the spare key from his pocket.

He unlocked the door and stepped inside, instantly enveloped by the familiar scent of M!y/n home. It was a welcoming aroma, a mix of spices and something faintly floral that always soothed his senses.

Shin shut the door behind him with a soft click, toeing off his shoes before wandering further into the house. He made his way to the living room, plopping down on the couch and making himself comfortable.

30 minutes go by until shin hears the front door opening. "I'm home. Hopefully I didn't make you wait long shin" M!y/n says putting down his bag on the countertop walking over to the couch falling onto it.

"Just got here," Shin replied with a wave of his hand, his gaze fixed on M!y/n as he flopped down beside him. The tension in his shoulders eased slightly as M!y/n's presence filled the room.

He studied M!y/n for a moment. The weariness in his face from a long day at the cafe, yet a hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"How was work?" Shin asked, his voice laced with a casual curiosity.

Peeking up from the spot he lays M!y/n looks at shin. "Was ok. That bitch Janet came into the cafe and started speaking shit about god. Like talk about him but don't force it so much" M!y/n continues to rant about Janet while moving around to put his head in shins lap.

A smirk tugged at Shin's lips as he listened to M!y/n rant about Janet, amused by his passionate frustration.

"Sounds like you dealt with a real piece of work today," Shin replied, his hand automatically finding its way to M!y/n's hair. He chuckled at how M!y/n always managed to end up with his head on his lap, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"oh you have no idea! Like damn let me have my quiet peaceful day at work. I'm so tempted to hire a security guard or something because the amount of times this happens. Anyways how was work for you?"

Shin chuckled, his fingers resuming their familiar pattern as he played with M!y/n's hair. It was a comforting rhythm, a simple act of affection between them.

"Work was... work. Nothing out of the ordinary," he replied, a nonchalant shrug in his voice. His mind momentarily drifted to the text from Emma, the weight of his unrequited feelings for her never fully disappearing.

But here, with M!y/n, those thoughts receded, if only for a moment.

M!y/n hums. "Whatcha wanna do? Wanna chill and watch something or you wanna do something else?"

Shin considered the question, his gaze wandering to M!y/n lying comfortably in his lap. A wave of contentment washed over him.

"Let's just chill," he replied, his hand tracing a gentle path through M!y/n's hair. "I'm not in the mood to do much tonight."

His expression remained nonchalant, a mask skillfully crafted over years. But in the privacy of this moment, a hint of vulnerability flickered in his violet eyes.

"alrighty then" M!y/n sits up reaching for the remote control for the TV before laying back down to where he was before. Scrolling through Netflix to find something to watch. "Anything you want specifically? Because if not you know I'm gonna want some anime" M!y/n says with a chuckle.

"No surprise there," Shin replied with a smirk, rolling his eyes jokingly. "You always gotta have your anime fix, huh?"

He knew there was no changing M!y/n's mind once he had his mind set on anime. He shrugged, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Go for it," he said. "But you know I'm barely going to pay attention."

M!y/n glaces at shin staring at his face for a second noticing something was up. Probably about Emma again he thinks to himself. He can't help but be jealous of the girl. Yes he's known shin,Emma and itsuomi all since highschool none of them know he's not even straight. Looking back towards the TV he picks an anime he's been wanting to watch for awhile.

As the anime came on, Shin settled back against the couch, his mind wandering despite the show playing before his eyes. He was more invested in his thoughts, his emotions, and the weight of his unrequited feelings for Emma.

M!y/n's glance earlier had not gone unnoticed, and Shin felt a pang of guilt at the thought that it might be obvious what - or who - was on his mind. He tried to focus on the screen, but his thoughts continued to stray, always circling back to Emma.

M!y/n noticing shin zoning out he silently grabs his hand fidgeting with shins fingers. His ring sending a cold shiver down shins spine. "I'm to lazy to make something, what you wanna order?" M!y/n says pulling his phone out.

Shin's gaze shifted away from the screen, his thoughts momentarily interrupted by the sensation of M!y/n's cold fingers intertwined with his own. The chill from the ring helped pull him back to the present, if only for a moment.

"Order whatever," he replied, with a shrug. "I'm craving pizza, but I'm fine with anything."

He squeezed M!y/n's hand gently, a silent thank you for bringing him back from the depths of his thoughts.

"what kind of pizza do you want?" M!y/n asks tapping onto the site to order pizza. Automatically putting ice tea for a drink.

"Supreme pizza," he replied, the thought of pizza instantly making his stomach grumble.

As M!y/n placed the order for the pizza, he couldn't help but notice the ice tea. He gave him a sidelong glance.

"You always order ice tea, don't you?" Shin said, his voice tinged with amusement. "When are you going to try something different for once?"

"hey ice tea is good! Plus you know I don't like any of the other drinks they have at this place" M!y/n argues back towards shin, his voice obviously admitting a teasing undertone.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Shin retorted, unable to suppress a smirk. "You've made it abundantly clear how much you dislike soda, juice, and every other non-iced beverage in existence." He chuckled, enjoying their playful banter.

"One of these days, I'm going to get you to try something new," he teased, poking M!y/n playfully in the side.

Sticking his tongue out towards shin he checks his phone making sure the order is confirmed. "20 minutes it says until it arrives" he says putting his phone back down.

Shin's eyes flicked towards M!y/n as he confirmed the order, a faint smile on his face. The playful exchange had lifted his spirits, if only slightly. He let out a sigh, the weight of his thoughts momentarily forgotten.

"20 minutes, huh? Just enough time for me to finish zoning out," he replied, his voice tinged with dry humor.

M!y/n stares up at shin with a frown on his face. Playfully smacking shin in the face with his hand. "Stop that" M!y/n says

Shin chuckled, feigning an exaggerated pain from the playful smack. "Hey, what was that for?" he said, attempting to look offended.

He quickly dropped the act, breaking into a light laugh. "Fine, fine, I won't zone out," he agreed, unable to keep the amusement out of his eyes.

"I don't understand why you keep liking her" M!y/n says quitely looking towards the TV blocking his eyes from view with his hair

Shin paused, his smile faltering slightly at M!y/n's words. He knew exactly who 'her' was—Emma.

The casual question held an underlying hint of something more, a glimpse into M!y/n's thoughts on the matter. Shin could sense the tinge of jealousy, even if it was subtle.

He sighed, his eyes flickering from the TV to M!y/n's face, concealed behind a curtain of hair.

"It's... complicated," he replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

"you've liked her for years shin. How can you keep up with it. She never looks in your direction, she only ever goes to you to get drunk or to rant about how isoemi won't pay attention to her. You have to take care of yourself for once as well" M!y/n trails off. Admitting a sad tone to his voice. His eyes tear up but his hair still covers his eyes. Why does he have to like her so much. Damn it I'm right here. I'm here, I'm always here. He thinks off to himself desperately wanting shin to know he's there. His own words contradict itself, because he himself has loved shin for years.

Shin's features softened, his smile wavering at M!y/n's words. The raw emotion in his voice hit him like a punch in the gut.

*Damn it.*

He clenched his fists, guilt creeping in at the realization of how he'd been so oblivious. For years, he'd been so consumed by his unrequited feelings for Emma that he hadn't noticed...

"I... I know," he finally replied, his voice low. "I know, okay? But it's not that easy to just... let go."

Still looking away from shin trying to hold back his tears, M!y/n stays silent. He's not even paying attention to the TV at all. His hands still interlocked with shin, M!y/n's hand trembling.

The tremble in hands was a stark contrast to his usual confident demeanor.

Shin's heart clenched at the sight. He had never seen M!y/n like this, vulnerable and on the verge of tears.

He gently squeezed M!y/n's hand, his thumb rubbing over his knuckles in a soothing gesture.

"Hey," he said softly, his voice barely above a whisper. "Look at me."

"no" M!y/n voice cracked. Not wanting shin to see him crying.

A mix of guilt and concern washed over Shin. Seeing M!y/n like this, so unlike his usual self, stung more than he cared to admit.

He reached out, gently lifting M!y/n's chin, trying to make their eyes meet.

"Please," he insisted, his voice filled with a mixture of earnestness and tenderness that he normally kept hidden. "Look at me."

Finally making eye contact with shin. His tears very obvious to the other man staring at him. His throat tightens, His tears running down his face

Shin's heart sank at the sight of tears streaming down M!y/n's face. He looked more vulnerabe than ever, a stark contrast to his usual confident and carefree persona.

He reached up, wiping the tears away with a gentle touch, his thumb tracing a feather-like path over M!y/n's cheek.

"Please don't cry," Shin pleaded, his voice almost a whisper. "Seeing you like this... it's killing me."

"why, why do you love her so much" M!y/n says with a trembling and cracky voice. Bringing his hands to try and wipe away his tears off his face

Shin's heart squeezes at the vulnerability in M!y/n's voice, the raw pain in his question.

He hesitates for a moment, trying to find the words to explain his feelings, words that he himself has trouble understanding.

"It's... complicated," he starts, his voice barely above a whisper. "Emma and I have been friends for so long, and my feelings for her have just... grown over time."

"what about me." M!y/n says quitely, shin almost didn't catch it

Shin tenses at M!y/n's words, his body going rigid.

He had been so focused on his own feelings for Emma that he had never truly considered the impact it might have on M!y/n. They were friends, sure, but the question he just asked held so much more weight, so much more meaning.

He takes a deep breath, his heart pounding in his chest.

"What about you?" he asks, his voice wavering slightly.

M!y/n sits up facing towards shin "damnit get the hint you oblivious fool. I like you! I'm not straight ok" M!y/n says with an angry tone. Tears flowing down his face.

Shin's eyes widen in surprise. The raw emotion and confession in M!y/n's voice hit him like a punch to the gut.

He sits there, frozen, his brain struggling to process the sudden revelation.

"You... you like me?" he finally manages to sputter out, his voice barely above a whisper.

M!y/n eyes widen. Realizing he just confessed his feelings. Looking down at the floor. The doorbell rings, it's the pizza.

Quickly standing up he walks towards the door looking through the peep hole waiting for the delivery man to walk back to his car to snatch the pizza. Once the driver is back in his car he opens the door and grabs the bag with the pizza and bottle of ice tea.

Shin watches in silence as M!y/n gets the pizza, his mind still spinning from the whirlwind confession. As M!y/n returns with the pizza, he remains quiet, his usual nonchalant demeanor abandoned.

He finally breaks the silence, his voice low.

"You... you like me," he repeats, more to himself than to M!y/n.

Bring over the pizza and setting it down on the table in front of the couch. M!y/n sits on the floor in front of shin. " Yeah I do" he says quitely.

Taking the paper plates out of the bag and the ice tea as well he discards the bag off to the side. Opening the box of pizza and putting a slice on each plate, handing the other plate to shin.

Shin accepts the plate, his fingers lingering on M!y/n's longer than necessary.

He can't help but notice the change in the atmosphere; it's heavier now, the confession hanging between them like an unanswered question.

"Why..." he starts, his voice trailing off. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"you liked Emma. You loved her so much you broke yourself basically. I'm a guy as well, I don't even think you like guys. I'll just be a burden to you and bring down your reputation with your work as well" M!y/n trails off. Not facing towards shin but instead at the TV, not even paying attention to it his heartbeat sounds so loud in his ears. He's hyper aware of shin sitting behind him.

Shin's heart twists in his chest at M!y/n's words. He was so focused on his own heartache over Emma that he had missed what was right in front of him.

He leaned forward, his voice low and filled with a mixture of guilt and regret, and something else... something he couldn't quite name.

"You're not a burden," he said, almost pleading. "You could never be a burden to me. And who cares about my reputation?" He paused, his voice wavering.

Sitting there M!y/n seems a bit stunned. "You don't.. hate me?'

"Hate you?" Shin repeated back, a hint of disbelief in his voice. The thought of hating M!y/n seemed absurd to him.

He scooted closer, closing the small distance between them. He longed to touch M!y/n, to reassure him, but he felt paralyzed by the weight of the emotions in the air.

"Why would you even think that?" he asked, his voice softer, more vulnerable than usual.

Leaning back towards shin so his back is against shins legs, raising his his hands to hold onto the arms wrapped around him. "Honestly I don't know. You never seemed to be interested in me at all or into anyone for that matter. I was scared you would hate me because I liked you"

"Scared of me hating you because you like me...?" Shin repeated, his mind still reeling. his arms around M!y/n bringing him even closer.

The confession stung more than he cared to admit. All this time, he had been blissfully ignorant, focused on his own unrequited feelings for Emma, while M!y/n had been harboring his own feelings for him.

"The truth is..." Shin began, his voice low and tinged with a hint of shame. "I've been so caught up in my own feelings for Emma, I never stopped to consider... This."

He trailed off, his fingers idly tracing patterns on M!y/n's arms, the physical contact between them sending shivers down his spine.

"I know" M!y/n says quitely. "I know" he repeats

A pang of guilt twists in Shin's chest at M!y/n's words. He had been so oblivious, so oblivious to the fact that someone as amazing as M!y/n had been right there, hiding his own feelings and putting up with his one-sided pursuit of Emma.

He tightened his grip around M!y/n, the urge to pull him closer overwhelming.

"I'm a fool," he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. "A complete fool."

"you are such a fool. But you're my oblivious fool" M!y/n says with a light chuckle

Shin huffs out a laugh at M!y/n's words, the sound both humorless and self-deprecating.

"Yeah, I guess I am," he replied, his voice filled with a mix of regret and amusement.

His fingers continue to trace patterns on M!y/n's arms, the soothing motion grounding him. "Can I ask you something?" he said after a moment of silence.

M!y/n hums to acknowledge he's listening. Reaching his hand to grab shins hand as well

Shin's heart skipped a beat as M!y/n's hand wrapped around his own, their fingers intertwining. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the question he was about to ask.

"How long... have you felt like this," he started, his voice barely above a whisper. "About me, I mean."

Trying to think how long it's been really makes M!y/n realize how long it's actually been "since highschool"

Shin's eyes widen at M!y/n's response. Since highschool. All this time, M!y/n had been harboring feelings for him, silently watching him chase after Emma like a fool. A wave of guilt washes over him, a mix of regret and sorrow.

He tightened his grip on M!y/n's hand. "That long?" he asked, his voice hoarse.

"it's as long as you've liked Emma"

Shin closed his eyes, his heart heavy with the weight of the revelation. All this time... The same amount of time he's been foolishly chasing after Emma, M!y/n has been by his side, quietly nursing his own feelings for him.

He opened his eyes, looking down at their intertwined hands. "Why didn't you say anything?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"like I said I was scared. And I had hope Emma would one day like you back. You loved her so much I thought you two would be good together but she never looked your way." Trailing off his sentence he finally leans his head back looking at shin.

Shin's heart clenched at M!y/n's words. The hope... the wishful thinking that maybe one day, Emma would reciprocate his feelings. But that day never came, and all the time he's been chasing her, he had been blind to the person who truly cared for him.

He met M!y/n's gaze, his own eyes filled with a mixture of guilt and remorse. "I'm sorry," he murmured.

"so what're you going to do now that I've confessed. Are you just going to stay friends or can we try being together and go on a date?"

Shin's heart skipped a beat at M!y/n's words. The thought of being more than friends, of being together with him, sent a thrill through him that he couldn't ignore.

A soft smile tugged at the corners of his lips, his grip on M!y/n's hand tightening. "I'd... I'd like that," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I'd like to give this... us... a chance."

LITTLE ANGSTY BUT I HOPE YOY LIKE IT. Also I accidentally did the poll and idk how to remove it 😅

[artorojo]

Top 100 military movies of all time.

1. Saving Private Ryan (1998)

2. Apocalypse Now (1979)

3. Full Metal Jacket (1987)

4. Platoon (1986)

5. Black Hawk Down (2001)

6. Das Boot (1981)

7. The Thin Red Line (1998)

8. Paths of Glory (1957)

9. Hacksaw Ridge (2016)

10. 1917 (2019)

11. Dunkirk (2017)

12. Patton (1970)

13. Gallipoli (1981)

14. We Were Soldiers (2002)

15. Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

16. The Deer Hunter (1978)

17. The Hurt Locker (2008)

18. Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)

19. Zulu (1964)

20. Black Book (2006)

21. Stalingrad (1993)

22. The Battle of Algiers (1966)

23. The Longest Day (1962)

24. The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

25. Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

26. Jarhead (2005)

27. The Patriot (2000)

28. Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

29. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

30. Enemy at the Gates (2001)

31. Glory (1989)

32. The Great Escape (1963)

33. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

34. The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)

35. Lone Survivor (2013)

36. Kelly's Heroes (1970)

37. The Green Berets (1968)

38. The Alamo (1960)

39. The Messenger (2009)

40. 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016)

41. 12 Strong (2018)

42. The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

43. The Pianist (2002)

44. Rescue Dawn (2006)

45. The Beast of War (1988)

46. A Bridge Too Far (1977)

47. Behind Enemy Lines (2001)

48. Inglourious Basterds (2009)

49. The Boys in Company C (1978)

50. Red Tails (2012)

51. Battle for Haditha (2007)

52. Courage Under Fire (1996)

53. 5 Fingers (1952)

54. Company of Heroes (2013)

55. The Finest Hours (2016)

56. Windtalkers (2002)

57. Battle of the Bulge (1965)

58. The Nightingale (2018)

59. A Midnight Clear (1992)

60. Attack on the Iron Coast (1968)

61. Sergeant York (1941)

62. Empire of the Sun (1987)

63. The Pacific (2010) - Mini-series

64. The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel (1951)

65. The Pacific (2010) - Mini-series

66. Enemy at the Gates (2001)

67. The Monuments Men (2014)

68. Days of Glory (2006)

69. Fires on the Plain (1959)

70. The Steel Helmet (1951)

71. Battle of the Damned (2013)

72. Memphis Belle (1990)

73. Crimson Tide (1995)

74. Attack on the Iron Coast (1968)

75. Sergeant York (1941)

76. Empire of the Sun (1987)

77. The Pacific (2010) - Mini-series

78. The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel (1951)

79. Enemy at the Gates (2001)

80. The Monuments Men (2014)

81. Days of Glory (2006)

82. Fires on the Plain (1959)

83. The Steel Helmet (1951)

84. Battle of the Damned (2013)

85. The Longest Day (1962)

86. The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

87. M*A*S*H (1970)

88. Jarhead (2005)

89. The Patriot (2000)

90. Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

91. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

92. Glory (1989)

93. The Great Escape (1963)

94. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

95. Platoon (1986)

96. Come and See (1985)

97. Hamburger Hill (1987)

98. The Red Badge of Courage (1951)

99. Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

100. Fort Apache (1948)

[butterflyintochains]

The Price of A Mistake

From this wonderful post.

Player B almost murders someone on ice and now has to wear a collar/charm to suppress his powers. Player A has to defend them from everyone--including their own teammates. (prompt 18)

Summary: All he meant to do was protect his kid, he didn't mean it, honestly, he didn't. Kris has had to fight back his abilities for nearly twenty years, and he's gotten really good at keeping himself on a leash. Until, that is, a certain enforcer for Washington messes with the wrong player on his team.

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

On paper, hosting a game on a rare super blood moon would have been an amazing concept. What better to celebrate this auspicious night than a Pittsburgh/Washington game? A classic game between division rivals to play in PPG Paints under the gaze of a rare astral phenomenon. But, all that collapsed around their ears when Tom Wilson just had to charge Jack St.Ivany, the team's youngest defencemen, and the beloved and protected son of two living legends. One of Mario Lemieux's four remaining grandsons. Kris just snapped, he didn't mean it, he just saw red. He's sure Toronto cut the broadcast as soon as the blood came, and Wilson is off to the hospital. Now, Kris is sitting in the team's locker room, in silence, alone. Just the rushing of his blood in his ears for company, Wilson's blood still on his hands and face. He has no idea how long he's been in here, or when he'll next be allowed to see his husband and son. No one has come to see him yet, he's sure media was cancelled for tonight. Erik got Jack to the medical area before Kris jumped Wilson. Finally; Sully, Quinn, Tags, and Kyle enter. Looking equal parts furious and cautious, as though Kris is some monster who'll kill anyone in his path. And, what if he is? ''Kris, son, you did something really stupid tonight.'' Sully says.

Does he think Kris doesn't know that already? ''I know, but I did what I had to do to protect my son. Wilson was asking for it.''

Kyle says, wearing a sanctimonious face. ''Doesn't matter, Kris, you almost killed someone tonight. You are one of the four most important people on this team, and you could've killed someone.'' Yeah, no shit, the blood all over Kris' hands is enough evidence of that. He notices the steel bracelets Tags is holding, they seem to shimmer with something. ''What's with those?''

Quinn speaks up instead. ''These cuffs will keep a lid on the instincts that you gave into tonight.''

Kris scoffs, rolling his eyes. He's always protected his family, fighting for them when they couldn't do it themselves. No one had a problem when it was for his brothers and nephews, but all of a sudden he's the asshole for protecting his only son? Bullshit. ''Sully, please, my husband and our kid.''

Sully says, sounding stricter than he did before. ''You're not seeing them until you put those on.'' Kris sighs at that, obviously backed into a corner of his own making, and says. ''Fine, fuck it, cuff me.'' Tags kneels down before him to put one bracelet on each of his wrists. ''I'm sorry it came to this, Tanger.'' Tags says.

Kris just stays silent as he's released to the dressing room, he showers alone, and changes into his suit quickly. Trying not to throw up at the glares he's receiving, as if they'd have done anything different. ''Kris...'' Sid starts, positioning himself between Kris and Drew, which only angers Kris more. ''I don't wanna hear it, captain.'' He says, and goes to find his family.

They're in the medical center, dressed for the ride home. Erik crosses the room to wrap his arms around his husband, hand in his hair. Kris melts into the embrace, trying so hard not to cry. Is he still the man Erik married at that lake? ''Jag alskar dig, hjartat mitt.'' Erik says, kissing his cheek. Kris sniffles, and kisses him back. ''Je t'aime, mon amour.'' He walks over to Jack, who is sitting on an examination bed, looking no worse for wear. ''Where were you?'' Jack asks.

Kris shows them the cuffs. ''Being leashed and muzzled, mon dauphin.''

Jack looks terrified of the cuffs, who knew such simple steel bracelets could be so horrifying? ''Can you not fight anymore?'' Kris swallows a knot of tears, what kind of parent can't protect their kid? ''No, Ivy, I can't. Tags said I won't be able to get them off either.''

Erik just says, not looking too sure about the things himself. ''At least your eyes are brown again.'' Small consolation for being chained. Jack tries to brighten things up by saying. ''I'm coming home with you, I think we should all be together.''

Kris says to their kid, forever a ray of light for them. ''Guest room is all yours.''

They get home, and grab some dinner before heading to bed. It takes Kris forever to find a good position that doesn't hurt his newly burdened wrists. But, eventually, he does give into his own exhaustion.

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

Training a couple of days later is going to be rough, Kris can feel it. The trio arrive in Erik's car together. One of the later arrivals, because the universe hates them for some reason. There'll be no time to get ready to face the music, they're going into the orchestra head first. Jack gets out of the car first, followed by his dads. Erik takes Kris' hand, and squeezes it to assure him that he's not going anywhere. They head inside, and into the dressing room to get ready for morning skate. It seems like everyone else has already been and gone through here, the stick rack is almost empty. Jack grabs his sticks, and says to his dads. ''I'll see you out there.''

Erik nods, and says. ''Yeah, we'll be right behind you.'' Kris leans against the wall, unwanted panic rising in his chest. Remembering Sid shielding Drew from him that night. As though he was a wild animal on the loose. ''Erik, I can't breathe.'' Erik leaps into action, helping his husband back to his stall, the cuffs shine under his gloves. ''Okay, breathe with me, sweetheart.'' Slowly, Kris' breathing evens out. ''I can't do this... they'll all hate me now.''

Erik senses there's something Kris hasn't told him about that night, something Kris wanted to spare him and Jack from knowing. ''Why do you think that, hjartat mitt?''

Kris removes his helmet, in tears now. ''That night, when I was cuffed. Sid shielded Drew from me. He...'' Erik rubs his back, allowing him space to speak, something he guesses wasn't afforded to him that night. ''He thinks I'm violent, darling.'' Erik's heart shatters, Kris' own fucking brother thinks he's violent, won't let him near his nephews. The one other person who should understand, doesn't. ''Who knows? Maybe he's right? I'm cuffed for a reason, right?''

Erik takes a deep breath, and brings Kris' eyes to his own, he says. ''He's wrong, period. You made a mistake, and this whole thing is just unfair. I know you, Kris, I know the man I'm married to. I'd bet my whole contract that Sid and Geno would've done the same, as would I.'' Erik dries his husband's eyes. ''You, Kristopher Letang, are my wonderful husband, and I take you as you are.''

Kris asks, holding his cuffed wrists up. ''What about these?'' Erik sighs, he fucking hates the things, especially since Kris can't take them off for whatever reason. ''Look, this whole situation is horrible, but we'll learn to live with it, all three of us.''

They go to take to the ice, Erik notices the judgmental stares from the team, and he knows Kris must notice them too. But, Erik squares his shoulders for his husband, if anyone has anything to say, to any of the three of them, he's got plenty of fire in himself for his family. That cynical part of Erik feels that Kyle would've gone easier on the two forwards, if Sid had've dropped them for Rusty or Drew, no one would've cared. If Geno put Wilson in the hospital, he'd be a hero. But, they didn't, Kris did, he sacrificed everything to protect their one and only kid. And, he's now the outcast within.

After morning skate, the longest morning of Erik's life. They shower and change. Kris groaning in pain alerts Erik and Jack. ''Hjartat, are you okay?'' They kneel in front of him.

Kris catches his breath, and says. ''Just my left wrist, amour, I'm fine.'' Jack asks, scanning his face. ''Are you sure?''

Kris nods, shaking his wrist out. ''Yes, mon dauphin, I'm sure.'' Erik says to their boy. ''Jack, you and Kris go out ahead of me, I'll not be long.''

They leave for lunch, Erik sits at his stall, and looks around the room, nobody has seen his face this hardened in ages. Sid hasn't seen it since game seven in 2017, neither has Geno. It's clear to everyone that this is the Erik that has won three Norris trophies, and led his Senators through that playoffs alone on one foot. ''Alright, boys, I wasn't born yesterday, care to tell me why none of you are speaking to my husband right now?''

Sid says, as though Erik is stupid, which he isn't. ''Erik, he almost killed someone three days ago.''

Erik crosses his arms over his chest, prodding his wedding ring with his thumb. ''I know that, I was there, Wilson got what was coming to him. He's lucky I was occupied with our kid who he attacked.'' The team are surprised at how callous Erik sounds. ''Erik, come on, you can't possibly mean that.'' Lars says.

Cocking an eyebrow, Erik says, tilting his head to the side like Kris does. ''What if I do, Tiger? Gonna ask for cuffs for me next? Three years ago, I swore vows to Kris. To love him above all others, and take him as he is - come what may.''

Geno asks, for once looking intimidated by someone five inches shorter than him. ''Even if he almost kills someone?'' Erik nods, almost proud of Kris for that night. ''Yes. And, don't you two ever try to convince us you're any better, I've seen from outside and in what you're like with your three.'' With that, Erik gets up, and leaves the room to join his husband for lunch. ''Everything okay, Erik?'' Kris asks.

Erik nods, sitting with them both. ''Yeah, just had to talk with Marcus about something.'' He spares his family the grilling he just laid at the team's feet, and is all too willing to continue to lay at their feet until they understand. ''Who do we play tomorrow again?'' Jack asks.

Kris sighs, and says. ''The Rangers. And, I want you to stay clear of Rempe and Trouba, I can't protect you anymore.''

Erik nods, acknowledging the truth of this shit situation, but Jack has two dads who can do that. ''But, I can.''

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

The game against the Rangers starts slowly, no scoring until Sid fires one past Quick fifteen minutes into the first. Whatever tension there might be on this team, it has been left firmly at the door for tonight. However, Erik does notice some of the Rangers prodding at the team, almost testing Kris, knowing full well all he can do is run to the end of his leash and bark. No one knows what might happen to Kris if he somehow overrides the cuffs, but that's one science experiment Erik would rather avoid. He's convinced that wrist ache from yesterday was the cuffs. He just can't prove that. They're 1-0 up by first intermission, Kris asks Jack for some ice for his wrists. ''These things fucking hurt sometimes.'' He remarks. Not fishing for sympathy, not that he'd find it from the rest anyway. Just stating a fact.

The Rangers keep firing their little warning shots into the second period after Kreider ties it halfway through at 1-1. First Trouba tries slew footing Drew to get a rise from Kris, then Lafreniere high sticks Bunting. It doesn't work, Erik manages a powerplay goal in the chaos for 2-1. ''Thank you for that, darling, I feel sick.'' Kris says once they're back on the bench.

Erik turns to him, finally seeing how pale his husband has become, this has to be the cuffs. Erik removes his gloves, and cups Kris' face in his hands, he's not running a fever. But, he's not himself. ''Do you want me to tell Sully?''

Kris shakes his head, kissing Erik's palm. ''No, we're 2-1 up, with a period to go, I'll survive.'' Erik nods, he trusts his husband's judgement, he's got no other choice right now. They've got a roadtrip coming up down south, how long until those damned things can be removed? ''Okay, I trust you.'' He says.

The third period is chaos incarnate. Zibanejad nets a breakaway to tie it early at 2-2. Lars gets a goal on a penalty kill for 3-2. The rest of the period drags on, the Rangers still attempting to bait Kris into something. There's a scrum while the third units are on the ice, one of the Rangers trying to goad Jack into a fight, Kris gets to his feet from the bench, a blinding pain in his wrists that he has to work through. ''Jack! Ignore him, and get back here!'' Jack nods, and rejoins Kris on the bench, Erik goes to sort things out. ''Kris, your wrists.'' Jack says, horrified.

Kris looks down, at the redness on his wrists, like burn marks. ''I guess we know the consequences, mon dauphin.''

They come out of the game with a narrow 4-3 win, Kris goes straight to the medical team to have his wrists looked at after showering and changing. Erik is still in media, but Jack is with him. His burns are treated as best they can be around the cuffs. ''Can we take these things off now? I've behaved myself, haven't I? I was out of the box tonight.'' Kris pleads with Kyle.

Kyle shakes his head, it seems like he knows something Kris doesn't about those cuffs, and isn't in a mood to divulge. ''No, Kris, four days aren't enough.''

Erik furrows his brows, Jack clenches his jaw, Erik says. ''The fuck do you mean 'four days aren't enough', Kyle? The things are clearly hurting him.''

Kyle just says. ''It's growing pains, you'll get used to it.'' To the entire team's surprise, the normally kind and quiet son of the two living legends speaks up. ''Kyle, would you be so brutal about this if it was the forwards?'' Now, everyone knows just how much like Kris and Erik he is, Jack has long since detected hypocrisy on this whole thing. Forwards are celebrated for the stuff defencemen are demonized for. It's been that way since day one of hockey, and things will probably never change. ''Ivy...'' Kris warns him.

Jack shakes his head. ''No, I wanna hear an answer. Because this is bullshit.''

Kyle just says. ''As your boss, I don't think I need to answer that. Those cuffs are there for a reason.'' With that, he leaves for his office. Sid shrugs, and says. ''Can't say I disagree with him.''

Erik rolls his eyes, and says to the captain. ''Save the pearl-clutching, captain, the boss is gone now. Your brother's wrists are in bandages now, don't make this worse.''

This roadtrip is not going to be fun, Kris can feel it as much as he can feel the pain in his wrists. Florida, Tampa, Nashville, and Dallas. Kris knows what'll happen to him if he fights the cuffs now, he knows how much this is going to hurt. And, to make it all the worse, he's stuck with it for what could be forever.

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

A couple of slow weeks pass with the cuffs. Kris' burns heal after their game against Utah. So, the bandages come off, but the burns still leave phantom pains behind them. Erik has had more than enough of this by the time they get to a game out west against his old Sharks. It's been three weeks since the incident with Wilson, Kris hasn't taken so much as a two minute penalty in ages, he's been so good since the cuffs went on. Isn't it time for them to come off by now? He has no idea how they'd go about trying to get them off, they are magic after all, but they'll try anything at this point. So, once they've landed in San Jose from a shootout loss in Vegas, Erik takes him to the Sharks training facility, and asks permission to use their gear room. Thanking God that the staff still like him from the five seasons he spent here. There must be something in this room they can use. As long as they can get in, get the things off, and get back to the team without being caught, they're golden. They decide on the table saw, go big or go home, right? But, the magic must be accounting for this, because it's like trying to jam two north poles of a magnet together. ''Fuck, how else are we meant to get them off?'' Kris asks, sitting on the table, tears in his eyes.

Erik says, feeling like such a horrible husband, he can't help him out of this. ''I don't know. When's our away game in Carolina?'' Kris pulls his phone out, and says. ''Two weeks, why?''

Taking a deep breath, Erik says. ''Well, maybe if we try again in the city where we met, it'll work? Our bond will override the cuffs, and they'll come off?''

The door opens behind them, and they hear the distinct laugh of Joe Thornton. ''Well, two Penguins in the Sharks house, here to spy on us, boys?''

Erik pleads with his old friend. ''Jumbo, please don't tell Mike or Sid why we're here. And, shut the door, please?'' Joe shuts the door behind him, and asks them. ''Alright, why are you here, then?'' Kris shows off his cuffs, to the untrained eye, they'd just look like simple silver bracelets. But, they're anything but simple. ''We're trying to get these off of me.''

Jumbo nods, looking horrified of the shimmering steel bands. ''God, those are the cuffs each team carries? How long have you had them, Kris?''

Sniffling, Kris says. ''Three weeks, and it'll be five by the time we get another chance to get them off. They've already made me throw up a few times, and burned me during our game against the Rangers.'' Joe asks them, scandalized and sympathetic, funny how a rival team member is more concerned than his own brothers, really. ''Has Kyle done nothing about this?''

Erik shakes his head, and says. ''That's what Victor asked us in Tampa, and no, he hasn't. Says it's growing pains, and Kris will just need to learn to live with it. Jack and I have been furious.'' It's now that Erik prays that their boy isn't getting hammered with questions about where they've gone. ''Jack?'' Jumbo asks.

Kris explains, getting down from the table. ''Jack St.Ivany... he's our kid, like Celebrini is for you.'' There's a silence in the room after that, Jumbo poses to them. ''Has Erik tried to get them off of you himself?''

Kris shakes his head, he'll not put his husband in danger over this, or anything else. ''No, and seeing what they're capable of, I don't think I want to risk that.''

Erik proposes an idea, which now seems like the only real way they're getting the stupid things off of him before something horrible happens. ''Maybe if we go to the spot where we first kissed in Raleigh, it'd work? Ask for the hotel room you had back then?'' Kris rakes through all of his memories of that weekend, he finally remembers the room number, Room seven. ''Sounds good to me.''

They win the game against the Sharks that night 3-2 in overtime, after post game debrief, Rusty notices Kris' nose bleeding. ''Hey, Tanger, nosebleed.'' Kris nods, and holds a towel to his nose, the cuffs are angry at him for trying to destroy them. At least they've got a plan now, one which should be air tight. It has to work, right? Going to where this whole thing began to get them off, it'll work, won't it? It has to.

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

The next two weeks pass in a blur, both of them solely focused on getting to Raleigh. Erik managed to secure their request for room seven with Kyle, Kris has no idea how, but doesn't really care too much. They're going to ground zero, and these things are coming off. He's going to be free soon. Before they leave for Raleigh, however, comes a game against the Islanders. One which they win 2-1. Kris almost faints on his way back to the dressing room, luckily Erik is there to help him back. Five weeks now, five unholy fucking weeks, and Kris has been nothing but good through all of it. Surely the things can come off now, can't they? He's learned whatever lesson he was supposed to, right? He takes it up with Sully this time, hoping for a nicer response than the cold one Kyle gave him. ''Sully, please, my husband almost fainted ten minutes ago, can't we get these cuffs off?''

Sid says, sanctimonious as he has become of late. ''As the captain of this team, I'm glad we've not had any repeats of the Wilson incident.'' Erik almost barks, if it's an argument his captain wants, he's going to get one. ''Yeah, and Wilson just got fined again yesterday, boarded one of the Minny boys, fucker deserved it.''

Tristan speaks up in defence of his godfather. ''And, look at us, Sid. Sure, we're winning, but look at the shit our rivals are trying to pull on us. We're down our only real fighter.''

Sid stands firm in his position. ''Last I checked, I outrank both of you on this team, and those cuffs are on for a reason.'' He points to the yellow C on his jersey.

That works on Tristan, but it doesn't on Erik, he flashes his wedding ring, the ring Kris put on his finger. ''And, Sid, last I checked, I outrank you in Kris' life. So, I ask again: can we remove the cuffs yet?''

Angering Erik further, all Sully says is a vague. ''I'll check with management about it.'' Which, in Erik's sixteen years of experience in this league, is always shorthand for 'no'. So, drastic times call for drastic measures, and they'll do the Raleigh plan.

They get back to the hotel from the game against the Hurricanes, and silently slip away from team dinner in the hotel restaurant. They head up to their room, and lock themselves in for the night. Erik has had an idea, he'll invoke some of his vows. Kris kneels on the bed, Erik mirrors him, and asks. ''Are you ready, hjartat?''

Kris looks near tears, more burn marks on his wrists. ''Yeah, amour, I've been ready for nearly six weeks.''

Erik runs his hand through Kris' hair to calm him down, this won't work if he's emotional like this. Once Kris is calm, Erik holds his aching wrists, gently as though he's made of china. ''I - Erik Karlsson - promise to love and protect you above all others. I take you as you are, come what may.'' He locks his hands around the cuffs, ignoring the tingling of protest, and pulls them in his direction. There's a few moments where he almost gets them off, where the flame they lit here overrides the magic in those cuffs. But, the damn things are stubborn, and won't be moved by Erik's efforts. Kris collapses into Erik's arms, breathing like he's been drowning. ''I'm sorry, sweetheart.'' Erik says, running his hands up and down his husband's back.

Kris says, voice shaking with the stress of tonight. ''Not your fault, darling. It's mine.''

Erik kisses him on the lips, they're both in tears now, the only salient idea they had has now been exhausted, and they're left with nothing. ''We'll figure this out, together, like we always do.'' Kris asks him, looking so hopeless. ''Promise me?''

Erik says, keeping his voice low even if it's just them, who knows who might be outside this room spying on them? ''I swear on our marriage.'' He promises on something no one can take from them, the one thing none of their teammates would ever understand, the one pure thing in their world. Even if things are looking dark, they've still got this, these rings, this bond.

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

Things go quiet from Kris and Erik for a while, even Jack resigns himself to one of his dads being fundamentally changed forever. The team are still doing well, but it's like there's a ticking time bomb under them everyday. One of these games isn't going to go well, they've got Boston and Washington soon, and their rivals are still trying to bait Kris into overriding the cuffs. But, he's not taken any of it, he's stopped pleading for his freedom back, he's stopped arguing against it all. Jack doesn't ask either. Even Erik has went radio silent on the matter. Geno does halfway wonder if this is all a ploy to get the cuffs off early, but all it takes is overhearing a conversation between Tags and Kyle on his way to the rink for morning skate for that thought to go out the window. ''So, do we release Letang now, or what?'' Kyle asks.

Tags says. ''Well, you're the boss, so it's up to you. Sully and Quinn say he's been perfectly behaved lately. No penalty minutes in eight weeks.''

Kyle asks the team's equipment manager. ''So, what do you think? I'm leaving this with you.''

Tags seems to hesitate for a minute, as though sitting on knowledge no one else has. ''There's one small issue, without it, I'd be glad to release him.''

Kyle presses him further. ''That being?''

Tags confesses, sounding hesitant to do so. ''The curse in the cuffs prevents them from being removed... ever.'' Geno downs his stick, and returns to the dressing room, removing his gloves and helmet. This is fucking ridiculous. ''Honey, you okay?'' Sid asks him.

Geno says, sitting down to remove his skates. ''I'm not training today, not after hearing what I heard.''

Drew asks his dad. ''What's wrong, G?'' How the hell does he begin to explain this? How does he explain that his brother is damned to the things that are hurting him? ''The magic in Kris' cuffs, he'll never be able to take them off. He's stuck with them forever.'' All of the colour drains from Sid's face, he's given Kris the hardest time since the incident, and alienated his brother-in-law and nephew in the process. All for nothing, all for something Kris is stuck with forever. ''He's stuck with them forever?''

Geno nods, Sid looks how he feels right now. ''Yeah, and there's no way to get them off.''

Rusty says, ever an optimist. ''We don't know that, there must be something we can do, we're the Penguins, right?'' Sid gives their eldest a small smile. ''That's true, Rusty, but this is ancient magic we have no wisdom about. We don't even know what'll happen if Kris overrides the cuffs.'' Though, Sid has a funny feeling they're not too far from finding out.

The Boston game goes by without much fuss, a 4-2 loss, but nothing really happens other than that. Sid and Geno still haven't apologized to Kris, they don't know how to right now, the one time he needed them, they abandoned him. Mario made the four of them promise each other never to do that, and they broke that promise. He'd never forgive them anyway. However, during the Washington game, they're 5-1 up in the second period, and on a powerplay, when a fight breaks out. Someone must have said or done something, and Erik took exception. Kris, needing to protect his husband, skates over to back them up. ''Erik!'' He shouts. A screaming pain in his entire body is the last thing he registers before everything goes dark.

The whole arena goes silent, Erik holds Kris close, blood streaming from his nose and mouth. He feels a small pulse, he's alive... just. His wrists are burned, and look as angry as Erik feels. Jack skates over, in tears. ''Kris? Erik, is he... have we...'' Jack can't begin to say what's racing through his mind. Erik shakes his head. ''No, there's a pulse.''

They rush him to the arena's medical center, it's now that Sid sees just how broken Kris has been by those cuffs. The burns on his wrists, visible veins, the weight loss. Geno notices the darkness under his eyes. Jack sits at the foot of the bed, head in his hands. Erik is still holding his hand as they treat him. ''Can you save him?'' Erik asks.

The team doctor nods. ''He needs to rest this off, we've got him stable for the time being.''

Mario strides into the room, looking furious. ''I told Kyle to get rid of those things ages ago, did he listen? No, no he didn't.'' He looks over Kris' condition. ''A relic of a bygone era. And, look where it's left us.'' He looks to Erik, and says. ''Erik, son, I need your wedding rings.''

Fatigued, stricken, but fired up, Erik shakes his head. ''No.'' They've never been parted from their rings, and Erik doesn't want to risk anything now. ''Erik, I know where your mind is right now, but there's something I can do to help him. I need your rings, or we lose him.''

Rolling his eyes, Erik removes the chains from his and Kris' necks, and hands them over. ''Our nicknames are inside the bands. Mine is in French, his is in Swedish.''

Mario says, taking the chains into his hand gently. ''I'll be back in the morning.'' He goes to Jack, and assures his grandson. ''He's not going to die, Ivy, I promise.'' Finally, he turns to Sid and Geno, not as reassuring, he says. ''You two, outside, now.''

They follow Mario outside the room, and Mario says. ''Well, care to explain why you broke the oath I had you four swear to each other?'' There is no explanation, not really, none good enough, none that justify how they've treated their brother. ''We can't.'' Geno says. Mario nods, that much is obvious. ''No, but you're staying here with him tonight, and apologizing once he's awake.'' With that, Mario leaves to do whatever he's going to do with those wedding rings.

Sid and Geno return to the medical room, and are met by angry glares from their brother-in-law and nephew. The room falls into silence that night, it's an accord if not peace. All four of them are here for the same reason, so they wait for Kris to wake up. The cuffs are still on his wrists, and nobody knows how to override them to get them off. For now, the husband, son, and brothers wait for Kris to come back to them.

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

His head hurts, not like it did for his strokes, or his concussion. But, it hurts. What happened last night? All he remembers is skating over to Erik, and then the world went dark on him. Was there a fight? Did they win? Is he alone here? He risks opening his eyes, seeing Erik's sleeping head on his stomach, he smiles to himself, and gently runs his aching fingers through his husband's soft hair. He's still cuffed, but his hands and arms are bandaged up to his elbows. Have they still not figured out how to get them off? Erik stirs under his hand, waking up, looking into his eyes. ''Hi, darling.'' Kris whispers.

Erik whispers, a tired smile on his perfect face. ''Hi, sweetheart.''

Kris asks, voice low and harsh. ''Where am I?'' Erik sits up in his seat, and kisses his temple. ''The arena's medical center.''

Oh, okay, that'd explain the white tiles on the ceiling, and the uncomfortable bed he's in. Their bedroom is much nicer than this. ''What happened last night?''

Erik says, taking a few deep breaths. ''Well, we won firstly. There was a fight, and you tried to skate in to protect me, the cuffs didn't like it, and here we are.''

Kris furrows his brows. ''We? Who's we?'' Erik hesitates for a minute, but knits their hands together. ''Jack's here, his head is on your feet, he's asleep. And... Sid and Geno are here too, Mario made them stay.'' Mario was here? Okay, cool. Kris doesn't ask any more questions, but does notice their naked fingers, Erik explains. ''Mario said he'd do something with our wedding rings to help you. He'll give them back today.'' Kris nods, and rests his aching head.

In time, Jack wakes up, and embraces one of his dads. ''Kris, I thought...'' He says, in tears.

Kris dries their boy's eyes. ''You'll never lose me, mon dauphin.'' He's not going down that easy. Sid and Geno also come around, Kris can feel the tension in his aching bones, Sid speaks up first, rubbing his hands together. ''Kris, we are so fucking sorry for the last eight weeks. We've treated you horribly, and it shouldn't have taken us this damn long to see that. You did what you felt you had to, and those things are far too harsh a punishment.''

Geno says. ''You were all right, if it was us and our kids, we'd have done the same. Kris, we broke our oath to you, and we are so sorry.'' Kris takes some deep breaths, he's come back from death again, and as angry as he's been at them, these are his brothers. ''Sid, Geno - I accept your apology, forgiveness will come later, I needed your support, and you weren't there. But, we're us, and...'' A jolt of pain from the cuffs shoots up his arms. ''Fuck, that hurt. As I was saying, I need you all to help me out of these somehow.''

Jack asks his dad. ''How are we gonna do that?'' Kris says, shifting on the bed a bit. ''When we were in Raleigh, Erik and I made an attempt to get them off, and it almost worked. So, my theory is that we can override them with love, they stop me being violent, but they can't stop anything else.''

Erik says, ready for the experiment. ''I think we can do that.'' Mario returns with their wedding rings, newly enchanted to bind them together. They put them back on, and Mario says. ''They should override the cuffs.'' He also informs Kris that he'll be sitting out at least five games.

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

Despite the forced time off, Kris doesn't just stay at home to sleep or rest off his injuries, he can't afford to anymore. He needs to be around his family as much as possible, even if he can't put his jersey on. Owen Pickering has been called up to replace Jack on the third pair, Jack has been promoted to second pair, and Erik is taking Kris' place. During training one day, Kris comes back from getting his arms treated again, and joins Quinn to run powerplay drills. His wedding ring on under his gloves. Kris notices some tiny flaws in things on the temporary unit. Too many passes, and everyone is too close together. ''Sid, Geno, Rusty - spread out a bit for me.'' Kris says, directing his brothers and nephew to fan out a bit more to canvas the zone a bit better. ''Like that?'' Rusty asks.

Kris nods, and says. ''Yeah, perfect. And, Matt, drop deeper - you're too close to Erik, Ned's vulnerable.''

Matt Grzelyck tracks backwards about five feet. ''That good, Tanger?'' Kris smiles brightly, and says. ''Perfect, much better.''

Coach Quinn asks Kris. ''Anything else, Coach Letang?'' Kris nods, and makes one final request before leaving the boys alone. ''No more than three passes to a goal.''

The new formation and tactic works like a charm. Skate ends, and everyone breaks off for showers and lunch. Kris does briefly feel dizzy, but it goes away quickly. He knows he's angering the cuffs, him feeling anything at all angers them, he knows that now. They were designed to make him completely empty. Good luck with that happening. After the boys have their gym session, Kris grabs his keys, and says. ''I'll see you in the car, darling.'' He quickly kisses Erik.

Erik says. ''Won't be long, sweetheart.'' Once it's just him, Sid, and Geno left in the room, Sid says. ''Can we discuss the plan now?'' He's had an idea for how to free Kris since his injury leave started. Geno seems ecstatic to hear this plan. ''Yes! What are we doing?''

Sid says, hoping speaking this plan doesn't fuck them up for getting it done. ''His comeback game is against Montreal, our last game against them. So, I want us to help Kris get a hattrick on his return, all three of us have to assist him.''

Erik loves this plan, they tried force, they tried finesse, and neither worked. This might just work, even if it sounds completely insane. But, he'll do anything for his husband. Besides, Kris has never scored a hattrick before, and it's high time he got one. ''I'm in, anything for his freedom.''

Geno nods, he wants his real brother back, not the one who's in pain all the time. ''Operation: Hattrick, let's do this!''

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

Those five games without Kris are torture, even if they somehow manage to win three of them. But, the Montreal game comes quickly enough for everyone's liking. The quartet walk in together, chatting among themselves, Kris has a vague sense that they know something he doesn't. But, he doesn't want to pry right now, he's just glad to be back, even if his arms are still wrapped in bandages for his own safety. They suit up for the game, and Sully does the preamble and read for the starting unit. Kris is starting with Sid, as usual. Sid, Geno, and Erik share a look among themselves as they leave the room. ''Y'know, if there's something you guys wanna tell me, feel free.'' Kris says.

Erik just laughs. ''Don't worry about anything, Kris, let us do that for you.'' That sounds vaguely terrifying, especially after all the shit Kris has been through since late October. But, Kris just leaves his worries in their hands, still certain of some kind of secret they're sitting on. But, no time for that.

The first phase of the plan kicks in midway through the first, Sid wires an assist to Kris from the corner, and Kris fires the puck past the goalie's ear to get them on the board 1-0. ''Welcome back, mon frere.'' Sid says.

Kris beams, a very slight ache in his arms, and an inkling as to where this might be going. ''Merci beaucoup.'' He takes the fist bump line, and the second unit heads up for their shift. Kris risks a look at the cuffs, seeing tiny hairline cracks in them, he blinks a few times, he must be going crazy. ''Jack, are those cracks?'' He shows them to Jack.

Jack nods, amazed at the damage to the cuffs, which suddenly don't seem so indestructible anymore. ''I think they just might be.'' Is this how he goes free from this? Scoring on his childhood team?

First intermission comes and goes. And, early in the second period, Jack nets a really lucky goal on a breakaway for 2-0. Nick Suzuki spoils the shutout a bit five minutes later for 2-1. But, near the end, Lars passes to Geno on a rush, Geno shouts. ''Kris!'' Kris takes the assist, and his second goal of the game for 3-1. The celebration is held up when Kris hears something metal hit the ice. His right wrist is free now. ''Almost free, Legend!'' Geno says. Kris picks the thirds of his right cuff up, and hands them to Tags. The left one is cracking now, but hasn't broken off entirely yet.

Second intermission comes first though. Kris shakes his right wrist out, halfway free from this whole ordeal. He's still got the left one to shake off, but he feels like a certain someone he loves so much has a plan for that. ''How do you feel, Kris?'' Sully asks him.

Kris chuckles, and says. ''Kinda like I've taken a NyQuil and drunk Red Bull at the same time, but other than that I'm fine.''

They get out for the third, which kind of meanders until one of the Habs takes a really stupid penalty, and Sully deploys the powerplay unit. Erik gets the puck right away from Sid, and says. ''All yours, hjartat!'' He passes to Kris, who winds up for the shot, and finds the back of the net. 4-1, and Kris' first ever hattrick. Just as the hats rain down, his left cuff breaks in half, and clatters to the ice. ''Erik...'' He says, breathless. Erik says. ''You're free, Kris.'' He's free, and in a bit of pain still. But, he's free. He takes the applause, and hands the remnants of the left cuff to Tags. That's the end score for the game, Kris takes his first star lap, and goes to sit down.

Sully gives the debrief, a stack of pucks in his hand. ''These pucks are for our survivor. Kris, felicitations, mon garcon. Did I say that right?'' Kris happily takes the pucks in his aching hands. ''Yeah, thank you, coach.''

After showers, changing, and media, Kris ices his arms again. The phantom pains of the cuffs will take ages to go away, but at least he's free of them now. Kyle takes the core aside, and shows them the remnants of the cuffs, proposing an idea to fix them. They're emitting a black energy, and a faint scream. They nearly killed Kris, and Kyle wants them fixed? ''No, we're not fixing them, they're getting tossed in the rivers.'' Kris says, unable to tear his eyes off the things. ''I just about died, you're never doing that to me, or anyone else, ever again, am I understood?'' He's not shouting, but somehow is even more scary like this, tranquil in his fury.

Kyle sighs, resigned to losing this argument. ''Fine, do what you want.''

Kris wraps them in a towel, and the family drive to one of the bridges in the city. Without saying a word, Kris throws the shards and towel into the inky waters of the Monongahela River. Next, he unwraps his bandages, and balls them up, tossing them in as well, letting the cold night air hit his wrists. ''No one holds me hostage again.'' He says to his family. ''This league takes me, and all who are like me, as we are.'' He takes Erik's hand, and returns to their car.

Sid asks him. ''Are we good again, Kris?''

Kris nods, placing his free hand on his brother's shoulder, the dull ache slowly abating. ''Of course we are, Sid. Thank you three for the assists.''

Geno says, a beaming smile on his face. ''We'd do it all again, Legend.''

Erik kisses his cheek, and says. ''Come on, let's get those pucks up next to your Masterton and get into bed.'' Kris can't refuse that, he gets into the car, and they all get going to their homes.

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

The PA, under Kris' leadership, manage to force all the teams to ban enchanted restraints within the fortnight, using Kris' injuries as crucial evidence for the cause. The burns and scars are slowly fading now with the help of Kris' wedding ring. They still haven't been told what the new enchantment on their wedding rings is yet, but they're both so thankful that whatever it is is working for now. The team have a few days off between roadtrips. Just in time for another full moon to come around, not a special one, just a normal one. A Hunter's Moon is due sometime into the playoffs, so all games will need extra officials. Some of the family are gathered in safety at Mario's place for dinner. Kris wonders where the shards of the cuffs have ended up, if they were swept upstream, or if they just sunk to the bottom of the river. But, an ache in his arms shuts his mind up. ''You good, Kris?'' Sid asks.

Kris places an ice pack on to his wrists. ''Yeah, I just get this God awful pain if I think of those things, it's so weird.'' He's scared it'll never go away, he's nowhere near ready to retire yet.

Mario assures him, a hand on his knee. ''It's just phantom pains, you'll be okay.''

Geno asks his brother. ''Do you want some painkillers?'' Kris shakes his head, he'd accept them if they worked. ''Nah, it's fine, Geno. I've tried that, they never work.''

Erik sits himself down next to his husband, knowing Kris needs him close at all times now. ''It's a trauma response, mon coeur, you were effectively tortured for nine weeks. It's gonna take a while for that to wear off.'' God knows he's had to hold Kris through a few nightmares lately, mostly involving himself or Jack being hurt and Kris not being able to help. They've had plenty of 3 AM wake ups with Kris' hair glued to his neck in a cold sweat. Erik's wedding ring telling him about Kris before he wakes up has been wild lately. Kris' protective instincts in Erik's ring, and Erik's healing instincts in Kris' ring has saved them lately. ''Wait, Mario, did you put our instincts into each other's rings? Is that what you did?'' Erik asks his father-in-law.

Mario smiles, happy that the ball has finally dropped. ''Yes, I did. I did the same for Sid's nurturing and Geno's mediation instincts years ago.'' That'd explain why Sid doesn't bitch at refs anymore, and how they've raised three wonderful kids.

Rusty says. ''Wait, if Kris has Erik's healing, can he heal people too now? Like Erik heals him?''

Jack says to his cousin, the leader of the grandkid quartet. ''Ooh, good question, Rusty! Kris, try it!'' Kris puts the ice pack in the bowl on the table, and looks at his hands, can these hands heal? Erik's can, and have. ''Erik, give me the ankle Cooke stepped on.'' It still pains Erik when his powers are down, so it's a good starting place. Erik removes his sock, and rests his leg across Kris' lap. The ache and scar still present nearly twelve years on. Kris takes Erik's ankle in his hands, and focuses. The knots of pain undoing themselves under his hands. ''That's all I can do for now, Erik.'' Kris says, out of breath, and needing his ice again.

Erik pulls his sock back on, and kisses him. ''That's fine, it feels better already.''

Tristan asks, curious about how this all works. ''How does all this stuff work then, Mario?''

Drew nods, and says. ''Yeah, that's what I'm wondering about actually.''

Mario just says, keeping things vague for now. ''When you four become the core, I'll tell you.'' Not if they become the core, when they become the core. But, there's something missing. Two forwards, one goalie, but only one defencemen. ''Jack's the only defencemen, though, we're missing someone.'' Sid says.

Jack shouts from the kitchen. ''I'm fine being an only child, thanks!'' Erik nods, and says. ''We're fine only having one.'' Kris can't refute that, he raised three on his own, and loves the little trio they've built together. ''Jack will carry on where we both leave off.'' Kris says.

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

They get to the second round of the playoffs against the Capitals, right back where this whole ordeal started. Rumour has it Wilson is fully healed from his injuries, and will be actually playing this game. Kris will no doubt be lingering in the enemy room like a phantom, his name banned from passing their lips to save Wilson's blushes. Sid has gradually come around to the notion that he got what was coming to him for that attack on his nephew. Kris seems to be relishing being on enemy ground, coming in dressed all in black, but for the gold of his wedding ring. Sid can't wait to see the Capitals quaking in their skates, a little bit of karma for that night. Tonight is the Hunter's Moon. So, more officials. But, thanks to the restraint ban, no one is coming out of here in cuffs. They suit up for battle, Sully comes to do the read. ''Alright. In net: Ned!'' The room cheers. ''Up front: Sid and the kids!'' The top line share a determined look. ''Up back: Grizz and Tanger!''

Noel laughs. ''Wilson's Demon! Let's fucking go!''

Kris jokes, a shit eating grin on his face. ''Oh, who? Me? Who's afraid of little old me, huh?'' The room goes silent, waiting for whatever he'll say next. ''Well, they should be. Let's get out there!''

True enough, Wilson looks like a deer caught in headlights for the entire game, even when Kris is off his shifts. Ovechkin looks totally done with his Alternate for the whole hour. The Penguins easily take the game 5-0, using the Capitals' frustration with Wilson as fuel to a shutout. Sure, it's only game one, but Kris looks like he's won the series when they're done. ''You good, Legend?'' Geno asks after media is done.

Kris is icing his right arm, those aches will probably take the rest of the year to go away completely, indeed if they ever do. ''Oh, yeah, I'm just fine, Geno. Someday you three will need to stop worrying about me, you know that, right?''

Sid laughs, helping Kris out of his skates. ''Yeah, but that day isn't today, mon frere.''

Erik jokes, pressing a kiss to his husband's lips. ''And, on my end, that day may never come. You're kinda stuck with me for life.'' Kris loves being stuck with Erik, that's just how his life was always going to go. ''That's fine by me.''

Outside, they see the Capitals getting on their bus back to the hotel, and Ovechkin looks exhausted already, dealing with Wilson's histrionics can't be fun. But, Kris did what was right to protect their one and only kid, so Wilson will have to deal with his demons from that. God knows Kris has enough of his own to be dealing with for the next little while. The pain will hopefully go away in time, he has Erik for that.

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

It just so happens that Kris' first peaceful night of sleep comes towards the end of the Washington series. Their home game seven was a tense victory 5-4 in overtime, with Kris getting the winner. Jack is staying over with them right now, the guest room is now firmly his. It's weird, waking up without having to drag himself out of nightmares, or being dragged out of nightmares, and waking up without his wrists killing him. The scars will probably never go away completely, his tattoos do an okay job at hiding them though. He's so thankful for the enchantment in his ring. Kris is the first one up this morning, he gets breakfast going. They've got a couple of days before the Eastern Final is set up, that Boston/Toronto series is still going on. Jack comes down after him. ''Morning, kid.'' Kris says.

Jack smiles, still tired from his goal yesterday. ''Morning, how are you feeling?''

Kris laughs, adding their kid to the list of people who won't stop worrying about him. ''I'll be okay, Ivy, don't stress yourself out about either of us, okay? We're not going anywhere.''

Jack says, sitting at the dining table. ''Kris, you almost died in front of me, I'm going to worry.''

Kris says, trying to assure his son. ''I know, and I understand. But, those things are gone now, and I'm not going down that easy.'' He laughs, and adds. ''And, no one else will ever be subjected to them, thanks to the PA.''

Jack nods, assured for now, but he's so much like them both, so he'll probably never let this go. ''That's good at least, Mario said they were outdated, what did he mean?''

Erik joins them, grabbing some food and coffee. ''Teams used to use them back when fights were more common and bloodier, like back in the 80s. I remember Danny finding ours back in Ottawa, he chucked them into the Rideau out of disgust.'' Kris nods, he never knew their set even existed until they were used on him. ''I thought Mario ditched ours before we came along, looks like I was wrong. Luc said Trevor Linden got rid of their set in Vancouver as soon as he was made captain.''

Jack asks, curious about that. ''What did he do with them?'' Kris shrugs, that's one thing Luc never told him before he passed, if he even knew himself. ''No idea, they're probably rotting at the bottom of the Pacific. Luc never told me anything.''

Truth be told, the defence branch of the family still have so many unanswered questions. Some for Mario, some for Bettman, some for anyone who was subjected to those cuffs in the past and survived them. How many true enforcers almost died due to those cuffs? How many were just people like Kris, paying the price of a mistake? How long had those cuffs been being used by teams to leash and muzzle unsavoury players? Do other leagues still use them? How long were the NHL teams going to continue keeping them on hand just in case?

Perhaps they don't want to know, aren't some things better left unknown? All Kris and Erik care about right now is that the future of their d-corps is solid, they know who they're leaving it all with in some far flung future. And, no matter what Jack does, he'll never need to suffer that torture. That's worth a thousand cups.

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

Happy spooky season, friends! Wanted to get my Halloween post done early so I didn't miss it entirely. I tend to miss shit like that for some reason. Found the prompt list linked above, and prompt 18 just screamed Kris/Erik at me! Haven't ever done magic realism before, so this might read a bit clunky in places. Also, because I am the way I am, Kris got cuffed for protecting his and Erik's kid. That was part of the emotional hook; Kris had never gotten in trouble for protecting anyone else, but the minute he saves his and Erik's only son, he's leashed and muzzled.

Sorry to any Caps fans, but I just really don't like Wilson at all, he's a danger to other players, and I could see him charging a rookie to anger a veteran into a fight.

Sid and Geno also don't come off very well here to begin with, but slowly come to their senses when the cuffs start making Kris suffer.

Anyway, enjoy! And, Happy Halloween (or samhain sona in Scots Gaelic)

[psychotic-nonsense]

Finally deciding to post on here again, so here's a summary of my current favorite highly-in-progress Stranger Things AU:

Vecna's Generals

A post-Season 4 timeline where the final attack on Vecna injuried him into near paralysis. To combat this, he revives the lost friends and foes of The Party, to take his powers and continue the fight in his stead. They return intact, yet cursed with the appearance of their cause of death.

While this collection of doomed soldiers are able to remain themselves for the most part, their leader is able to take control of them whenever he requires, to act out his destructive plans.

When they are free, or dormant, they are seen as "The Imprisoned".

When they are controlled, or activated, they are seen as "The Board".

Barbra Holland

Commander of the Demogorgon Legion

Physical changes ) Has taken on the aspects of a Demogorgan: taller, elongated limbs with clawed hands and feet, horribly skinny in the torso. Lower jaw can unlatch into two folds like the five-lipped face, but other facial features remain normal

Powers ) Extreme strength. Ability to smell blood - and thus detect life - from miles away. The brain of the Demogorgan hive mind

Personality when dormant ) Incredibly disturbed from her death and current situation. Limits speech and motion due to the difficulty. She tries to make friends with the rest of the group, but at first was only really close with Bob. She soon made friends with Fred through mutual connection with Nancy. Likes to listen to Eddie rant to her about how much the Party, mainly Nancy and Steve, have changed since she died, as it gives her a sense of peace

Personality when activated ) Feral, but efficient and merciful. Unable to speak. Acts and moves like any other Demogorgon

Bob Newby

Commander of the Demodog Legion

Physical changes ) Much like Barbara, he takes on the physical aspects of the Demodogs: proportional legs, clawed and elongated limbs, split lower jaw

Powers ) Incredibly fast, even when running on two legs. Enhanced hearing. Can break through most any material, ranging from wood to concrete to steel. The brain of the Demodog hive mind

Personality when dormant ) Constantly confused, but does his best to understand the situation. Feels responsible for caring for the others, even though he has a very small grasp on everything happening, since he is the only actual adult of them all. Disgusted with what he’s been turned into. Despite his changes, he enjoys talking with Eddie about the Byers family he knew from before he died

Personality when activated ) Once again, very similar to Barbra and the creatures he commands. Runs on four legs, and only extends onto two when necessary

Billy Hargrove

Right hand to the Mind Flayer

Physical changes ) Two additional pairs of arms formed from Mind Flayer smoke extend from his torso. The hole in his chest contains a small swirling mass of smoke. Veins pronounced in black and eyes bloodshot, similar to the locker room scene in Season 3

Powers ) Able to possess other beings by inserting the Mind Flayer smoke into their bodies. Can manipulate the smoke around him into whatever he requires. Can communicate directly with the Mind Flayer, and is able to prohibit the Mind Flayer from invading his mind, though only when dormant and for short periods of time

Personality when dormant ) Terrified at the fact that he’s somewhat being used as a vessel once again. Attempting to be nicer towards the others who suffer his same fate, if only to find some saving grace in those alongside him. Has found himself to enjoy Patrick’s company, though he couldn't care less to talk to many of the others, especially Jason. Has a minor understanding of their situation, and tries to find a way to free himself from the Mind Flayer’s influence once again. Desperately wants to find Max and the Party, to apologize and fix what he left broken

Personality when activated ) Acts the same as he did when first possessed by the Mind Flayer. Has an intense god complex, and sees everyone in Hawkins as pawns for him to play with

The Sacrifices

Vecna’s right hand men, and the symbolic leaders of The Board. Because of this and an odd sense of humor?, Fred has assigned them each chess-related titles.

Physical changes ) Due to the manner of their deaths, they each have intense flexibility, with fully rotatable limbs and a detachable jaw. Empty, bleeding eye sockets. Worsened sight, though there is no explanation as to how they can see at all. They’re all separate from Vecna’s overall hive mind, controlled only by the man himself

Powers) Due to the nature of Vecna’s killing, he still holds the abilities of the Hawkins Lab children, three of which he has passed on to The Sacrifices. Each of them have telekinesis, alongside a personal power.

Chrissy Cunningham

- The Bishop

- Personal Power) Can create highly realistic illusions, to the point where the subject's brain perceives touch. Her personal power is the strongest of the other Sacrifices

- Personality when dormant) Tries way too hard to remain positive, when their situation leaves her terrified. Knowing both Jason and Eddie died and joined her in this place just makes it worse. She sticks with Eddie most of the time out of comfort, since Jason scares her after she found out what he did in light of her death

Fred Benson

- The Rook

- Personal Power) Can “sight jump”, able to see through the eyes of another person. He cannot hear or control the person during this, however. He's seen as the weakest of The Sacrifices

- Personality when dormant) In spite of his own fear, he attempts to find a meaning or an out to their state. Though he understands its dangerous, ever since discovering his powers, he's been using them to discreetly check on The Party for those of The Imprisoned who were their friends

Patrick McKinney

- The Knight

- Personal Power) Can affect another person’s feelings, able to change or intensify them. His telekinesis is the strongest of The Sacrifices

- Personality when dormant) In a similar boat to Chrissy, but stands by Jason since he still doesn’t fully trust Eddie. However, he does feel some guilt over hunting Eddie after seeing Chrissy's reaction to the knowledge

Personality when activated ) Each of The Sacrifices share one mind and personality. They much prefer to take advantage of their new bodily functions, and remain in horribly contorted poses just for the horror. Have an odd sort of playfulness, and believe they’re owed something from the people of Hawkins considering their status in life and in Vecna’s service

Eddie Munson

Commander of the Demobat Legion

Physical changes ) Has taken on some aspects of the Demobats, though it's more subtle than Barbara's and Bob's. Large grey Demobat wings extend from his back. Sharp fangs and claws. A long prehensile tail that can split apart, much like that of a Demobat's. Dark sunken eyes with a white pupil, with black discoloration in his fingertips and around his eyes; it's unknown why he is the only one to have this affliction

Powers ) Vecna took pity when he revived Eddie, since he believed they had once lived similar lives. Thus, he gave Eddie the powers of a Hawkins Lab child; telekinesis, and the ability to translate emotion into destruction (anger = exploding anything in his vicinity, fear/sadness/pain = compressing objects into tight balls that burst on contact, happiness = melting objects through touch). Wings allow for flight. Eyes grant him enhanced night vision. The brain of the Demobat hive mind

Personality when dormant ) Considering he fought Vecna alongside the Party, he ends up knowing the most about their situation and becomes an impromptu leader of The Imprisoned. While most of the others either don't trust him or know him, they understand that he’s their best bet. Nevertheless, he’s still absolutely terrified, and clings to Chrissy out of a similar comfort that she has towards him. He likes talking with Bob and Barbra, since they provide a small connection to the Party. He’s mostly indifferent to Fred, Billy, and Patrick, though he feels bad for how they've come to this situation. He still despises Jason, now even more so after finding out Jason and his friends attacked Lucas, Max, and Erica. The two constantly have arguments and fights, made more deadly from their new appearances. Still, he doesn't stop wanting to fight against Vecna, desperately hoping to reach Dustin and the others while keeping everyone out of danger

Personality when activated ) Has the most control over his activated self. He acts much like his DM persona, smug and taunting and insistent. Refuses to touch ground, constantly flying

Jason Carver

Guardian of the Gates

Physical changes ) His torso is split in two, the halves still controllable and barely held together with Upside Down vines. The center of the halves house a mini Gate, constantly glowing red. Eyes turned a dull white in color, similar to Vecna

Powers ) Has the ability to travel between Gates and the Upside Down through the Gate in his stomach, essentially teleporting. Can also create new Gates and control the vines of the Upside Down

Personality when dormant ) Still very angry and untrusting, but it’s more to maintain some normalcy for himself. Despite everything saying otherwise, he still believes that Eddie had a hand in Vecna’s uprising and Chrissy's death. However, he does wish to return to normal, so he permits some trust into Eddie. He’s happy to see Chrissy and Patrick back, though it’s not exactly returned. Mostly he's just lonely and scared, and craves the ignorance they all had before

Personality when activated ) Ruthless and silent. His abilities allow him to be everywhere at once, so he uses that innate fear to his advantage

Max Mayfield

The Power Source / The Victim of Hawkins

Physical changes) The least affected visibly, but she no longer has a body. Slightly transparent, and is unable to interact with others in reality; in a word, ghost-like

Powers) Able to mimic Vecna’s curse, which is the only way she can interact with anyone. Can infiltrate the dreams of those she chooses, but not for long

Purpose) She was taken by Vecna after being killed, but with her body still functioning, she’s able to remain conscious inside his mind. Only remains alive due to being Vecna's only source of energy, and is the only reason he remains alive. Most of The Imprisoned and The Party are unaware of her existence for a long time, until she finds a way to contact them properly and act as a spy to take Vecna down from the inside

[raisindave]

[Chapter 30] Seeing the World Through Ballistic-Tinted Glasses

Content Warning: Descriptions of violence and death.

You didn’t realize how much comfort you found in the locker room until it was gone, whipping open the un-barricaded steel door to meet Soap and Ghost on the other side. The lights were out, and it was a nerve-wracking void in the hallway, a consequence of lights being shot out from waves of gunfire. Flashes of green from night vision goggles before you were all the visual information you could gather now that the light from the door behind you swung shut. One of their hands on your forearm, urgently ushering you further into the darkness with a brutal grip, as you caught more distant screeching behind the door, re-applying the makeshift blockade. 

Boots crunched over glass, and an unseen wet substance your frantic mind insisted was blood. Whether it was or not was not a concern right now, as the fist around your your forearm slammed you into the wall with bruising force. More gunfire, deafening and sharp, briefly illuminating Soap’s face as he took out an enemy you have no way of seeing. To say you’re flying dark is an understatement, as even the flickering exit sign stood no chance against the AR-15s your colleagues were armed with. Total darkness was an advantage for them here, and these two were working with creeping efficiency that made you deeply thankful you were not on the other end of their rifles. 

Everything from how they communicated to how they flickered around corners to clear each branching hallway was executed with elegance and swiftness. Distant pops not coming from your current company made your neck hairs stand. You couldn’t afford to quiver or tremble. Don’t show fear. You’re cargo to these soldiers, and the best thing you can do right now is shut the fuck up and don’t move unless one of their brutal grips is urging you to. 

“Gold Eagle, can we bring Cricket out?” Soap spoke, flicking up his night vision helmet extension as you recognized that the light from the cracks under this door led to sunlight. 

“Go ahead 7-1,” Graves responded flatly. 

“Roger,” Ghost added beside you. 

Dazzling sunlight was entirely unforgiving for the lingering headache that plagued your skull. The world went from total, starless darkness to the brightest, most blinding light you’ve ever seen. You could barely even make out if your feet were on the ground in the brightness before you were breaking into a drop-dead sprint toward the thrumming engine of a helicopter whirring to life. You had about 50 meters before you were in the safety of the metal fuselage of the war machine that was actively blasting hot air with increasing pressure as you tore down the field towards it. Blinking did nothing to dissuade foggy eyes compounded by this stark sunlight from making you nearly blind. 

What you did see was in the form of auditory stimuli, hearing distant shouts and gunfire, utter chaos surrounding the turf of this battlefield. A crashing explosion made your knees buckle, feeling scratchy turf between your fingers as you were hauled to your feet again by another brutish fist around your upper arm. It felt like an earthquake, though it could have been anything at this point. Considering the chaos that swirled around you, you wouldn’t be shocked if Godzilla was making his presence known to fight as a fourth entity in this brawl. The helicopter was in view now, seeing Price and Gaz flickering M-14s around as coverfire for your approach. 

Another blast was deafeningly close. Two, maybe three more. Things were moving so fast. Before you could identify anything, you were being thrown like a sack of potatoes into the bed of the helo, feeling cold steel roll over your body as you grappled to steady itself. Your hands flurried around your bulletproof vest, frantically feeling for any weeping wounds that you’ve recently received. 

“Ghost’s been hit! Ghost WIA,” Price’s booming voice rivalled the volume of the firearms. 

Wild eyes snapped to the open door of the helo, seeing a slumped skeletal body rag-dolled over Gaz’s shoulder as Soap fired off steady covering fire to ensure enemy heads stayed down. Your blood froze in its place. An ECG would swear you’ve flatlined as Ghost was slammed onto the cold metal beside you. The remaining three barely connected their boots with the helicopter before the green turf with its proud white lines drifted away. Your cold fingers trembled uselessly as a blooming pool of deep maroon crept out of a wound you hadn’t spotted before your vision was obscured by Price. There was a dent in the lieutenant's helmet. They were speaking to him. Price was shouting something, and Soap was yelling something else over the radio in your ear. It fell on deaf ears, though, as all stimuli were flooded by an ear-splitting heartbeat pounding in your head. It was so loud that your palms clasping over your ears did nothing to mask that deafening, pummeling pulsing that tore through your muscles.

You caught a glimpse of fluttering eyelids behind that skull plate as Price reached for the medical kit Gaz had whipped over to him. Bullets pattered against the black steel beneath you. It was so much. It was all so much. You’d curled into a ball, finding solace in covering your ears despite it doing nothing to dissuade your thunderous fluttering heartbeat. If you were faster, this wouldn’t have happened. You could have gotten that USB another way. You took too long, and Ghost is dead on the ground because of it. He died, and you lived, and it’s not fair. 

They were wrapping a tourniquet around his arm, around a corpse. Tears stung in the ducts of your eyes. They won’t stop fucking shouting. They were prying off his helmet as if it would do anything. You took too long. You took too long. Those stupid fucking bone gloves tightened into a fist- rigour mortis is already kicking in. This mission was all your idea. He’d be alive if you didn’t start running your stupid mouth. He’s groaning, but it’s just one last death rattle; it’s just stale air evacuating his lungs. 

When you couldn’t take any more of the agonizing panic, you gasped for fresh air as you turned to face the sealed window of the sliding fuselage door. You were headed in the opposite direction of the base. What are they doing? The Verdansk River winded in reverse as you passed beyond an increasingly unfamiliar landscape. 

Time went by in five-minute intervals; the first two were sent in a blinding panic, watching the flurrying hands of your colleagues as they rushed to keep the precious maroon liquid inside the leaking water balloon. One minute was spent re-running every mistake that led to this, down to the second you touched foot outside that crumbling office supplies store. Another minute was spent gasping for air and flickering wild eyes out the window to see when you could escape this metal coffin. The last minute was spent in a numb emptiness, drifting in space with motionless muscles. All in silence, making yourself small and invisible in the corner of the fuselage. That cycle had repeated about five times before you felt the horrifying sensation of gravity ceasing, feeling like you were falling out of the sky. 

The top of a building swung into view, flashing lights welcoming you to an unfamiliar landing pad. You half expected to be met with another volley of bullets before you identified a blocky Red Cross emblem on the side of the limestone building. Price and Soap collaborated on carrying Ghost’s limp body just in time for the helo to connect with the hospital’s landing pad.  

“Where are we?” You croaked, sluggish muscles that might as well be stone screamed as you unfurled yourself from the tight ball you’ve made yourself into. 

“Przemyśl, Poland. We’re taking Ghost into intensive care, and you should get that looked at, too,” Gaz gestured to your lower half. 

Blinking in confusion, your chin tilted to observe whatever injury he was referring to. Lightheadedness washed over you as you saw a gaping hole in the side of your jeans, a weak stream of blood trickling down the side of a crush wound on the side of your thigh. No bone was visible, but minor split skin and creeping red veins suggested you’d sustained some sort of injury in the scuffle - likely from that detonation charge. Although your teeth were all in check, there was no doubt that a bruise was manifesting on the side of your cheek, thanks to Salt and Pepper. At least you made it out better than he did, though his loss was still no less devastating. That’s another life lost because of you. Another tally on your confirmed kill count. 

Somehow, you’re already in the stark hospital hallways, being ushered with the support of the arm of a flurrying nurse, cruising past triage with surprising ease. Your head whipped to see your teammates, though they were already walking in another direction, Price wringing his hat in his hand in a rare glimpse of his actual hair. It’s more full than you always imagined. You always thought the hat was compensating for something. Ghost was nowhere to be seen. A nurse’s intrusion into your field of view separates your attention from your departing group.

“Captain!” you shouted over your shoulder, resisting the stern guidance from the nurse. 

Price’s blue eyes swung to meet you, meeting a grim face that shocked you to your core. Gaz, too, looked despondent, though their trained expressions wouldn’t read as grave as they did to you with your knack for seeing through stern gazes. Shaky fingers fluttered to your back pocket, wrenching away from the nurse to palm the red USB under damp digits. 

“Catch,” you flung the USB over to him weakly as he strained to catch it thanks to your weak toss. 

By now, your only role was to submit to whatever these flurrying nurses were urging you to do. Maybe it’s the blazing hospital lighting, but your headache was pounding in your temples, which translated to you being acutely aware of a stinging pain around your throat. The Women’s Ward sign above you implied why Gaz and Price were hesitant to join you. On the bright side, that implied that your injuries were non-threatening. However, it also meant you’d be subjected to screaming babies in the proximity of the maternity ward, and any high-pitched noise might just make your brain explode into a pink mist. 

Latex gloves were shucking your slick skin from a shockingly filthy puffer jacket, torn clean down one side, and caked in a thick dust that created a cloud of soot as it was dropped into a plastic bag. A new pair of hands worked to cut your jeans with hooked scissors, while another set fumbled with the complex clasps that welded this thick vest to your torso. Snapping into awareness, you gingerly ushered blue latex fingers from the clasp, instead working experienced digits to undo the double-backing buckle. A woman in a white coat, noticeably different from the surrounding blue scrubs, tilted your chin to look her way. Another blinding light tore into your eye, thanks to the slender flashlight she flicked between your two eyes. It’s so goddamn bright. What you wouldn’t do to be back in that dim van again, shying away from this horrible brightness. Maybe you’ve become the vampire after all.

They continued their fussing and chattering until you eventually retired to an impossibly plush bed. Although hospitals aren’t famous for the comfort of their beds, this thing felt like a bed of moss under the trees, surrounded by butterflies and streams of dappled sunlight. Even with the IV in your arm, you’ve never found more comfort than you did in these smooth sheets. More likely than not, it’s just a stark contrast between the living conditions you’ve suffered for the last two weeks, though you refused to let that subtract from your ecstasy. The nurses assured you of no breaks or stitches, only a touch of gauze on your outer thigh and a very mild concussion. The IV welcomed Vitamin C and K into your bloodstream, vital chemicals to reduce the dreadful bruising set to mar your face, throat, and thigh in the coming days. 

“What about-” your raw voice caught in your throat thanks to manifesting wounds, “What about the man in the mask?” 

The stout nurse looked at you with creased eyebrows, stopping the notes she was writing on her clipboard like she was weighing your words in her mind. The nagging ice in your heart still persisted. She probably didn’t speak English; you’re just talking into the void. The few words of Polish you knew were useless in this context, and the phone you brought from home was probably lost forever back in that basement you spent days in. She's going to shake her head and crease her lips. Your imagination confidently created imagery of her lips mouthing the words 'I'm sorry' before she spoke.

“Man is in recovery,” she spoke with a heavy accent, gesturing with her pen to the hall, “no visitation now.” She returned to her notes, continuing her work like nothing had happened. 

Despite the frigid ice packs on your skin, tranquillity surged into your veins with a speed and intensity that no IV or injection could rival. You wanted to thank her, you wanted to kiss her, though something told you the best way to show your appreciation was to let her do her work. When she left, she dimmed the lights in your room, suggesting it was the mandated sleeping time that was imparted by the hospital. Even though you hardly felt injured, in fact, you were totally fine. You knew that was likely a consequence of the fluids in the sack above your shoulder that dribbled nutrients into your bloodstream. Sleep came easy, like it was your body’s attempt to grasp the healing period a deep sleep provided. 

You dreamt of the mission in hazy detail, feeling facts and sentences become blurred as your mind attempted to wrap around the context. Your subconscious mind was sprinting to catch up, and it invaded your unconscious mind to do so. Thoughts fell on Ghost and how certain you were that he was dead. You didn’t care because you had any love or care for him. Just sheer dread that one of Price’s elite soldiers died because of your mission. You didn’t care if he lived or died, just like he didn’t care for you. Still, it feels damn good to see him alive. Dreams swam back home to that mountaintop and that woman with her rabbits. They drifted past memories with ex-boyfriends and dumbfounded looks of friends you’ve pranked, laughter and crashing ocean waves. They even fell on Carolyn and those hazy memories with her in your youth. That one lingered the longest.  

Neck muscles burned, and scorching pain ripped you awake as you blinked past the horror of the unknown to identify yourself as being in some type of infirmary. The nurse plucked your IV out of your arm, making you winge. With steady hands, that same nurse from last night unhooked you from whatever devices kept you locked down to the bed, wordlessly preparing you to free this bed for the next patient. You’ll gladly oblige. They dressed you in matching pale pink scrubs, making you accept the lingering thought that your original clothes had been destroyed. Damn. Those were your favourite jeans. Oddly empty-handed, you met the rest of your crew patiently waiting in those standard cracked pleather chairs all hospitals seem to have. They all looked way too big for those chairs, like grown men trying to drive those Little Tikes cars. Price nodded in your direction, and the three of them rose to meet you. 

“You look like shit,” Soap spoke, sporting that same shit-eating grin he always wore whenever he was being a twat.

“So do you,” you sighed, despite his noticeably un-injured self. 

Gaz laughed, and that’s all the conformation you needed. Plastic sandals squeaked on the echoing linoleum, drawing unwanted attention with every striding step you took. You refused to let any sign of pain register on your demeanour. Maybe it’s naive, but showing any sign of weakness around these soldiers was simply not an option. Passing faces ogled you, donned with a split lip and bruised cheekbone, shuffling beside a pack of men who could each snap you in half like a glowstick. You probably looked like a case study to their wandering minds, but frankly, whatever stories they created about how you received these bruises couldn’t matter less. You all wordlessly knew exactly where you were headed. There was only one way to go through this winding labyrinth of linoleum and Polish medication advertisements. 

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Master List

[smolwritingchick]

Forced to Believe Chapter 7- The Shield's Girl

Chapter Summary: Morgan continues to manage The Shield and play her part in making sure they win their matches

Words: 2,000+

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'RAW'

The Shield are in the ring cutting another promo. "When we arrived to the WWE, we said we would bring justice to an unjust world and that's just what we've done." Ambrose said.

"Brick by brick by brick, we have torn down the wall of injustice that has been building up in this company for years. From the moment we began our crusade at Survivor Series until, well, right now, not a person that has stood in our way has been able to stop us. As a matter a fact, we changed the course of WWE we stopped Ryback for becoming WWE champion." Seth spoke.

"No one can stop the hounds of justice. Not the great one." Roman recalled.

"Not even a giant...Not a warrior..." Morgan added.

"And not even the champ." Ambrose said. "But those men, were mortal. Last week, we look at immortality right in the face, we forced injustice to the Undertaker." The crowd cheers for Taker. "Deadman, Phenom, call him whatever you want, but call him a victim. For too long The Undertaker has been justice for the WWE, generations bowed down to him, but you see, The Shield bows to no one."

"Rest in peace." Roman said the catchphrase as the titantron shows a promo about what The Shield did to The Undertaker last Friday.

"Thing is, justice doesn't care if you're undefeated at WrestleMania, doesn't care if you're the champion, justice doesn't care who you are. When your number gets called, justice strikes without warning. Without mercy." Ambrose continues.

"And John Cena, Ryback, despite The Shield's repeated lessons of justice­-" Morgan began but got cut off.

'We're a three man band!'

3MB comes out as Morgan starts to look annoyed. 

"Morgan doesn't look too happy about 3MB interrupting her." King said

"Shield, shut up." Heath spoke on the mic as the crowd cheered at his statement

"Whoa, wow." King said, taken aback.

"You think you got business with John Cena and Ryback? You got some unfinished business with 3MB tonight!" Heath continued.

"I'm sorry but did you just interrupt me?" Morgan asked in a stern voice.

"Yeah, we did. Problem?" Heath questioned, not bothered.

"I'm sorry but do you know who I am? I break faces and I don't mind breaking yours. I'm more dangerous than I was when I wasn't with The Shield. I kicked the Undertaker in the face! In the face! You can't touch this!" Morgan yelled. "...But you three are really killing my vibe so how bout you and your little boy band that isn't going anywhere, head back to the locker room before things...get a little Morganized..."

"Morganzied?" Cole asked as she earns a few cheers, while The Shield smirked at her comment.

"You see, back at TLC you did an injustice," she went on. "You messed with the Spanish announce team. Did you really think you were going to get away with it? I wanted some revenge of my own for that. I have been waiting to kick you three in the head and give you three a backfire. And...tonight may be my night."

"Are you done, sweetheart?" Heath asked 

Morgan's jaw drops. "Excuse me?"

"I don't think 3MB listened to Morgan." Cole said with amusement.

"Bad move, they'll regret it later." JBL warned

"No one wants to hear you. Now if you excuse me, I'll be getting back to these three men in the ring. Not the Philly bombshell." Heath said, ignoring her.

Morgan scoffed and dropped the mic. She was about to get out of the ring but Rollins grabbed her by the waist, holding her back. 

"Who the bloody hell do you think you are?" Drew asked. "We were mere seconds from showing Triple H exactly how we rock and roll. But no, you, The Shield decided to crash our party."

"But now, we crash your party and rock your face!" Jinder said as Rollins released Morgan once she calmed down. 

"You got to be kidding me..." JBL says as Roman looked amused.

Heath kicks the steel steps and so does Drew and 3MB surround the ring.

"This might be interesting." King looked on.

"I admire their courage." JBL bluntly said, knowing what was about to happen.

All of a sudden, Morgan grabs Heath by the hair and throws him in the ring. 

"Whoa!" King exclaimed as the crowd cheers when she gives him a quick backfire. 

The rest of 3MB were about to attack her but The Shield gang up on them and start to take control. Then, Kane's theme comes on as The Shield look alert while Kane and Daniel Bryan walk out. When Team Hell No gets in the ring, The Shield quickly leave and watch as Team Hell No fight 3MB. Daniel starts kicking 3MB and then starts throwing them out of the ring with Kane.

"Does everybody hate 3MB?" JBL asked as Daniel started doing the yes chants. "Think The Shield are gonna come back?"

"Maybe not." King replied.

Morgan tweets twice, 'Got some revenge tonight. I thank Team Hell No for helping me out. Thanks for those kicks Daniel. #IOweYou'

'That will be the #LAST time 3MB will interrupt me. Wonder who will be on my list to get #Morganized'

'Later'

During The Shield's match against Team Hell No and Cena, Daniel throws Roman out the ring as the crowd goes wild. Daniel tries to crawl toward his team to make a tag as The Shield desperately tries to get Roman back in the ring. 

"There's some panic in the team of The Shield." King said. 

Kane gets tagged in and starts to take control of Ambrose. Rollins gets in the ring, only to get his throat grabbed and thrown out the ring by Kane.

"And the numbers are in the favor of Team Hell No and John Cena." Cole looked on. Kane throws Ambrose out the ring and gets out the ring. "Oh no."

Kane takes the top off the announce table as the crowd's cheers get louder. 

"Hey! What are you doing!?" Morgan yelled, getting nervous.

"What is Kane doing here?" Cole called out

"He wants some payback for his brother." JBL noted.

"No, don't do it!" Morgan shouted as she ran toward Ambrose and Kane. The crowd was shocked by her outburst.

"Did she just defend Ambrose?!" King asked in disbelief.

"I think hell has frozen over!" JBL exclaimed.

"Look at Morgan, trying to beg for mercy." Cole said as she continued to beg Kane

"I don't think that's going to happen though."

"Don't do it, don't do it! Please! I'm sorry! We're sorry! We didn't mean to powerbomb your brother! I didn't mean to kick him in the face! We're sorry! Just don't hurt him! Please!" Morgan pleaded

"Is she trying to sweet talk Kane?" King asked.

Kane looks at her and then he grabs Ambrose into the chokeslam hold.

"No!" Morgan shouted

Rollins runs to hit Kane but Kane hits him to the floor and releases Ambrose. In the ring, Cena is talking to the ref and that gave time for Ambrose to do the DDT on him as Morgan grins.

"That's what I'm talking about!" she applauded. 

Ambrose crawls back into the ring. The ref starts counting and Kane gets back up at 9.

"Wear him out!" Seth exclaimed as he watched Ambrose take control of Kane in the ring.

"I beat your brother and I'm gonna beat you!" Ambrose yelled at Kane. 

Ambrose does the Undertaker's taunt and runs toward the ropes only to get caught in a chokeslam.

"Chokeslam!" Cole shouted. "Kane finds an opening." 

Ambrose tags Reigns while Kane tags in Cena. 

"Here comes Cena!" Cole went on as Cena started to take control.

Morgan gets on the apron. "Hey!" she yelled and then started trash talking to him. 

Cena looks amused and runs toward her, pushing the ropes she was holding on. It makes her lose her balance and grip as she begins to fall back.

"Whoa!" she shrieked, mentally preparing for the pain of the ringside mat to hit her back. 

But she ends up getting caught bridal style by Ambrose as she falls into his arms. He lets her down and releases her and Morgan slams her hands on the apron.

"Are you kidding me!?" She screamed as Cena and the crowd laughed

She tries to get back in the ring but Ambrose holds her from behind by wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Calm down, calm down," Ambrose murmured in her ear.

"Is it me or is Ambrose and Morgan really touchy." King pointed out in concern.

"Indeed they are, King." JBL replied, liking it.

"First he saves her, then she returns the favor, now this?"

"She got brainwashed by Ambrose. That's why she's acting like this." Cole declared.

"For crying out loud, she is not brainwashed. She believes in The Shield." JBL disagreed. 

Ambrose releases her and gets back on the apron as the crowd starts chanting 'Harley Quinn'

"I am not Harley Quinn!" Morgan screamed at the crowd as Cole laughed. She turns to him, pointing at him who had his reading glasses on, "This is all your fault, four eyes!" 

"What? I didn't do anything." Cole exclaimed as she went to continue watching the match.

As Morgan watches, she sees Cena preparing for his signature move. Cena looks at her and does the 'You Can't See Me' taunt, earning a glare from her. He then performs the five knuckle shuffle on Reigns. During that, Seth runs to get on the turnbuckle to deliver a cross body on Cena, only for Cena to pick him up easily.

"That is God-given strength." JBL looked on, impressed.

"Cena pulls through!" Cole exclaimed. 

Cena prepares for the Attitude Adjustment but his leg gives out and Reigns spears him for the win.

"Yes!" Morgan yelled and ran in the ring to hug Reigns. Seth ran in too, joining the hug. 

"And the winners of this match, The Shield!" Justin announced as Ambrose rolled into the ring to celebrate with his team

'Smackdown'

The titantron is darkened and the crowd can hear someone getting beat up. Ambrose picks up the camera as the crowd cheers. 

"Doesn't it just break your heart when the champ becomes the chump?" Ambrose asked.

"The so called Phenom isn't so phenomenal," Seth added.

"We broke John Cena, we broke the Undertaker, and we're gonna break the deadman's little brother next." Reigns said with confidence.

"Kane, you are so misguided. You think justice is taking vengeance on your family? That's just your head messing with you, justice is when we put the raging monster down. And that's you." Ambrose continued.

"Justice is inescapable, you can do all the running and hiding you want but sooner or later, it's gonna catch up. Now Kane, we put your brother down." Seth said.

"And I kicked your brother straight in the face as he rested in peace." Morgan spoke up, reminiscing on how good it felt to do so.

"And it could of been a whole lot worse. You don't believe? You don't believe us? But, by the end of the night, you're gonna believe."

"You're gonna believe in The Shield" Roman said and dropped the camera as the camera showed Daniel Bryan hurt.

'In The Ring'

During Dean's match against Kane, Kane hits Ambrose off the top rope. 

"Get up Dean! Get up!" Seth yelled.

Kane chokeslams Ambrose as The Shield start to get upset and worried. Morgan bangs on the mat.

"Come on Dean!" Reigns starts to throw a fit. 

Kane was about to do the tombstone piledriver but Rollins gets on the apron and Kane releases Ambrose to kick Rollins in the face. Morgan goes to check on him after he hits his face off the announce table. 

Ambrose clotheslines Kane out of the ring but gets his feet grabbed by him as he pulls him out and bounces his head off the announce table. Reigns tries to hit Kane but Kane throws him to the steel steps. 

Morgan looks shocked at the chaos and starts to back up once Kane turns his attention to her. 

"I didn't do anything, why are you looking at me?" she asked with her hands up in defense.

Later on, Ambrose rolls back in the ring and hits Kane's injured knee before taking the victory after hitting him with his finisher. Afterward, Rollins, Reigns and Ambrose hit Kane with the triple powerbomb.

"Pick em' up..." Morgan ordered as they picked Kane up for her. "I'm not sorry about what I've done to your brother. He deserved it. Just like you deserve this." she said before giving him a hard spinning kick to the face.

'Next week, Raw'

Morgan wears Black pants, black boots, a black tank top with fingerless black gloves and her hair is in a ponytail. She watches The Shield's match against The Usos and Kofi, managing them at ringside.

"Damn!" Morgan yelled in shock as she saw Seth kick one of the Usos off the apron after giving the other a scoopslam.

"Rollins with a cheap shot." Cole said. 

Kofi looks upset but the ref tells him to stay on the apron. Later on, Ambrose gets tagged in and so does Kofi as he takes control of Ambrose. Later Kofi does a crossbody on him but Reigns breaks it up. An Uso and Roman fight outside the ring and then he clotheslines them outside the ring.

"Freaking clothesline!" JBL exclaimed. "Wow!" 

Kofi was on the top rope and as Reigns distracts the ref Morgan quickly pushes Kofi off the top rope so Dean can do his finisher for the win.

Morgan shrugged. "Nothing personal..."

The Shield celebrate in the ring and have their fists out. "Believe In The Shield!" Roman yelled

"This is a dangerous, dangerous team boys." JBL announced. "This is their yard. They own it."

'Welp. #NothingPersonal WWEUsos TrueKofi #BelieveInTheShield' Morgan tweets.

'Smackdown'

During Dean's match with Daniel Bryan who has Kane at ringside, Daniel traps him into the No Lock.

"No! No!" Seth exclaimed. 

The Shield start to panic. Seth Rollins tries to get in the ring but Kane and the ref try to stop him. Meanwhile, Roman Reigns breaks up the submission. Morgan looks relieved as Kane gets attacked by Rollins and Reigns. 

"What the hell!?" She yells as Kofi runs in and attacks Ambrose. 

The ref rings for the bell as Ambrose wins by DQ. The crowd cheers for Kofi.

"Kofi getting himself some!" Cole exclaims. Then Team Hell No and Kofi fight off The Shield and throw them out the ring. Morgan helps up Ambrose.

"Are you kidding me!? He was about to win!" She yells at Kofi. Kofi's theme comes on as The Shield escape and look mad.

'Unbelievable! #Injustice! TrueKofi had no right to interfere while #MyJoker was about to win!' Morgan tweets.

'Next week, Smackdown'

Ambrose wraps his arms around Morgan's waist, standing behind her, resting his chin on her shoulder as they watch Seth and Roman's match against the Usos. 

"Ugh...they make me sick..." Cole gagged.

JBL laughed. "Not to me. I love these two."

"How can she let him touch her? After all those months of going against The Shield and slapping Ambrose. She hit him with all those chair shots, does she not remember that? He had to had done something JBL. It's like as the weeks are going by she is changing for the worst,"

"For the better, Cole. For the better. She has probably opened her eyes to see what a great man Ambrose is,"

When one of the Usos hits Rollins out the ring, Ambrose and Morgan release each other and look at the chaos. Reigns spears the other Uso to win the match. 

Afterward, the hounds of justice start attacking the fallen Uso while Morgan watches in delight. Then Kofi comes to their rescue but The Shield throws him out the ring. They start to continue their attack with the fallen Uso but then Kofi comes back in with the chair and hits Ambrose as the three male Shield members get out the ring.

Morgan shrieks and ducks from Kofi's chair shot and quickly gets out of the ring. The Shield regroup as Kofi's theme comes on. The Philly diva shakes her head and glares at Kofi as he talks trash to The Shield. 

"What you gonna do? Come on!" Kofi yelled

'Almost got #Whacked in the face by a chair. Not pretty.' Morgan tweets.

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Favorite hashtag?

#IOweYou

#Morganized

#NothingPersonal

#BelieveInTheShield

#Injustice!

#MyJoker

#Whacked

[squadron-goals]

In memory of Richthofen (by v. B.)

“Rittmeister Freiherr von Richthofen did not return.“ So reports the army report briefly and harshly. So it is! What no one dared to think of has come to pass; what every German feared with quiet dread when Richthofen's aerial victories reached the unfathomable height of eighty. The greatest fighter pilot of the war had died a hero´s death for Kaiser and fatherland. There is an unspeakable pain in the hearts of our people at the loss of this bravest of the brave. He rests in foreign soil where he has fallen. We were not able to send him three salvos of honour over the grave. Today, when the massive towers of the venerable monastery church of Wahlstatt appear, old, long-forgotten images pop up in my mind. We, Richthofen and I, wore the king's uniform at the same time and were cadets at Wahlstatt. I had just entered the corps, a cocky little guy of 10 years. Manfred Richthofen was a few grades above me, and usually a newbie like me would not have had any contact with him. But it did happen once - and in a rather rude way, but one that is a fond memory for me today. My eldest roommate was an intimate friend of Richthofen, and he often sat in our room in the evenings. But this friendship was disrupted by some reason, so that both had pax ex, as we called it. Everywhere my roommate now tried to annoy Richthofen. Carnival time was fast approaching and the parcels from home with the longed-for sweets had arrived. My roommate had had a toy jumping jack sent to him in the form of a life-sized negro, which aroused our greatest astonishment; because there were no carnival jokes or masquerades. But soon we guessed the situation. One of us was supposed to secretly hang the jumping jack on Richthofen's locker door. My blood was itching at the time, and I was looking for an opportunity to show off. The doll's bright red, grinning mouth, which reached from one ear to the other, was intended to irritate Richthofen - that was the main objective. Manfred Richthofen had namely a big, full lips, for which he was always teased by my roommate. We sat at vespers. So I snuck out of the dining room as fast as I could. With the doll he had fetched, he scurried across the company headquarters into the room where Richthofen stayed. Soon the snarling black figure was dangling from the closet door, with Richthofen's name tag hanging over his woolly head like a statement. But this was not to be without consequences. Richthofen guessed whose idea it was and then found out who did it. And in the evening, I can still see it today, the door opened. Richthofen is standing in the room, and his steel-blue eyes, which didn't mean anything good to me at the time, are looking around. Now he had discovered me. In the next moment he was standing in front of me - there was a slap on the left, there was a slap on the right - and calmly, as he had come, he left the room to the respectful silence of our comrades. It's a strange memory for me! - That was the hand that later held the steering so tight and sent eighty opponents into the depths!

[rawiswhore]

Triple H, Shawn Michaels/Jack Tripper x Fem Reader- "Give Me A Hand"

For those about to read this fanfiction, you can either choose to imagine Triple H and Shawn Michaels or Jack Tripper from "Three's Company".

Or both.

______________________________________________________________

The World Wrestling Federation's Attitude era was an era notorious for its shock value, and shock value by definition is something---such as an image or text---that provokes a sharp reaction, usually to upset or disgust, but also to surprise.

And there were many stars in the Attitude era, especially male ones, that shocked people.

Kane setting fire to people (in caskets), Mick Foley falling off of the top of a steel cage, Stone Cold Steve Austin pulling a gun out on Vince McMahon, D Generation X implying to stand naked in the ring, The Godfather playing a pimp, Ministry Undertaker crucifying and embalming people, Mark Henry admitting he lost his virginity to his sister (and saying he had sex with her 2 days before the therapy session) and Beaver Cleavage being a kid having an incestuous crush on his mother.

While there were some women in the Attitude era that did things that shocked people--either to disgust them (Mae Young flashing her elderly breasts), to upset them (Terri Runnels' miscarriage) or to surprise them (Lita's Litacanranas, Stephanie McMahon's lies), women in the Attitude era were mostly not all that shocking with a few exceptions.

Not to mention, there were a lot of male Attitude era stars that did things that were boundary pushing, like what I've mentioned.

Of course there were women in that era doing things that were boundary pushing, but some of these women were mostly relatively tame.

But you were special.

During the Attitude era, you did things that were relatively and rather shocking, and you just so happened to be a girl.

You were arguably even the most shocking woman of the Attitude era.

Sometimes, you made Stone Cold Steve Austin and the Rock look like wholesome little Boy Scouts in comparison.

You didn't do anything that was too extreme and upsetting, there were much worse moments in the Attitude era that the majority of what you did, but no doubt what you did turned a few heads.

Some of the moments you did during the Attitude era are tame by today's standards, including this aforementioned moment, but there were quite a lot of moments you did that made people's eyes pop then.

The World Wrestling Federation in the late 1990's was nearly and almost rated TV-MA partially because of you.

Not Stone Cold Steve Austin, D Generation X, Mick Foley, Kane and the Undertaker, or even Val Venis, the Pretty Mean Sisters, Jeff Jarrett's degradation of women, but you.

If it's Jack Tripper you want...

"Three's Company" was a television series that had things that were controversial and risqué in its time but are tame by today's standards, but it also had things they couldn't really get away with today.

And this moment during "Three's Company"'s run no doubt was especially racy for its time, but would arguably be tame by today.

During a "WWF New York" episode in November of 1997, you were sitting backstage in the locker room with Triple H and Shawn Michaels.

You were sitting in between Triple H and Shawn, and they were sitting down as well.

Triple H's, Shawn's and your back was in front of a white wall, and Triple H and Shawn both had their long hair hanging down and not tied back in ponytails.

On a "Three's Company" episode in the late 1970's and early 1980's, you and Jack were both sitting next to each other on the couch in his, Janet and Chrissy's iconic living room.

Jack looked sexy AF in this scene with you while you sit next to him on the couch.

There was already a lot of sexual tension with you and him during your conversation with him, and like many women on "Three's Company", you were clearly and obviously trying to seduce him.

Your eyes were looking into his eyes while you had this smirk on your face, and your head was turned sideways to look at Jack's face.

As you sat in between Triple H and Shawn, there was some sexual tension you were sharing with those 2 men, and your mouth smirked as your eyes studied up and down Triple H.

When you were talking to Triple H and Shawn/Jack, your voice sounded very sexy and seductive.

Triple H and Shawn/Jack had their thighs and legs slightly spread out as they sat down for the audience to see this.

Pretty soon, one of your hands reached out and placed on Triple H's/Jack's crotch, where your hand was cupping his clothed groin covered by his tights/slacks.

This really shocked Jack and made his eyes widen and eyebrows raise, and many people in the audience gasped whereas others laughed.

While your hand was holding Triple H's/Jack's crotch, your hand began to squeeze and caress up and down his crotch, your hand slowly stroking and sliding up and down his groin.

Triple H's eyes looked at your hand caressing his groin, his eyes were at their normal shape and not bugging out.

He had a smile on his face as you stroked his crotch.

As your hand was fondling Triple H's/Jack's private parts, you were looking at his crotch with a smirk on your face.

Shawn's eyes were staring at your hand stroking his tagteam partner's groin, and Shawn was getting jealous, wondering why you're not doing that to him.

Shawn's eyes were wide and his eyebrows raised when he saw your hand stroke Triple H's crotch, but Shawn wasn't angered or disgusted.

Your head turned where the camera filmed your sly looking facial expression and your eyes looking at Shawn as your mouth smirked, but your opposite hand reached out and cupped on Shawn's crotch, where that hand while gently gripping his groin because to stroke and caress it up and down.

Likewise, your hand cupping Shawn's crotch was fondling his clothed private parts covered by his tights.

 Shawn's eyes scrolled to your hand stroking his groin, where he was now feeling lucky.

Shawn could nearly---in a comical way---tremble as he moaned and stared at your hand stroking his genitals.

Triple H, meanwhile, had this satisfied grin as your hand was fondling up and down his clothed groin.

Shawn and Triple H (and Jack too, for that matter) are wishing your hands could slip under their tights/pants and masturbate their dicks.

In fact, they may as well say that, but didn't.

It feels just as good to have a hand stroke and fondle over clothed and covered genitals rather than barenaked private parts.

The guitar riff to Slam Jam's "We're All Together Now" began playing as your hand was caressing Triple H's and Shawn's crotches, only for the camera to fade away to something else.

This moment where you fondle Triple H's and Shawn's crotches seductively was filmed and broadcast on television for everyone to see.

There are so many male professional wrestlers whose private parts you wish you could fondle, even if their groins are covered by their tights, singlets, wrestling trunks or jeans/pants.

Hell, you even wish that you could have so many arms and hands so your hands could fondle and caress many male professional wrestler's covered and clothed groins, but sadly, you can't.

Not to mention, some of these other male wrestlers you want to fondle are in other wrestling companies, so you can't do that.

Jack was panicking, his head turning sideways back and forth to check.

He pulled himself away from you, much to your disappointment, and your facial expression changing from seductive to shock, your mouth switching from a grin and a smirk to agape in disgust.

What you did on "Three's Company"/in this  "WWF New York" moment was racy back then, but somewhat tame by today's standards, even if the WWE might be PG rated today.

Compared to other things you did in the Attitude era, this moment is really tame.

[diviyaarorain]

Safe Deposit Locker Facility: Essential Guide to Secure Storage

In today's world, where security and privacy are of utmost importance, safe deposit locker facilities offer a trusted solution for storing valuables and important documents. These facilities are designed to provide enhanced protection against theft, fire, and other risks, ensuring that your possessions remain safe and secure. This comprehensive guide explores the key aspects of safe deposit locker facilities, including their benefits, features, and how to choose the right one for your needs.

What is a Safe Deposit Locker Facility?

A safe deposit locker facility is a specialized service provided by banks or storage companies where individuals can rent secure storage units to keep their valuables. These lockers are housed within a larger vault that is protected by advanced security measures, such as reinforced steel walls, high-tech locking mechanisms, and continuous surveillance.

Benefits of Safe Deposit Locker Facilities

1. High Level of Security

Safe deposit locker facilities are equipped with state-of-the-art security features to protect your belongings. The facility typically includes advanced surveillance systems, alarm systems, and restricted access controls to ensure maximum security. The vault's robust construction further enhances the protection against unauthorized access and physical damage.

2. Protection from Environmental Hazards

In addition to safeguarding against theft, safe deposit lockers offer protection from environmental hazards such as fire, water, and natural disasters. Many facilities are designed to be fire-resistant and water-resistant, providing an added layer of security for your possessions.

3. Confidentiality and Privacy

Safe deposit lockers provide a high degree of confidentiality. Access to your locker is limited to authorized individuals only, ensuring that your valuables remain private and secure. The facility's staff typically does not have access to the contents of your locker, maintaining your privacy.

4. Flexible Access Options

Many safe deposit locker facilities offer flexible access hours, allowing you to visit and access your locker at your convenience. Some facilities provide 24/7 access, while others offer extended hours to accommodate various schedules. This flexibility ensures that you can retrieve or deposit items whenever needed.

5. Variety of Sizes and Configurations

Safe deposit lockers come in various sizes and configurations to meet different storage needs. Whether you need a small locker for important documents or a larger unit for valuable items, you can find a solution that fits your requirements. This variety ensures that you have ample space to store your belongings securely.

Choosing the Right Safe Deposit Locker Facility

Selecting the right safe deposit locker facility involves evaluating several important factors to ensure that your needs are met and your valuables are protected. Consider the following aspects when choosing a facility:

1. Location

Choose a facility that is conveniently located. The proximity to your home or office can make accessing your locker easier and more efficient. Look for facilities in safe and reputable neighborhoods to ensure added security.

2. Security Measures

Assess the security measures implemented by the facility. Look for features such as reinforced vaults, advanced locking systems, and comprehensive surveillance. The facility should have a strong reputation for maintaining high security standards.

3. Access Hours

Consider the access hours provided by the facility. If you need flexible access, choose a facility that offers extended or 24/7 access. Ensure that the facility's access hours align with your schedule and provide the convenience you require.

4. Size and Capacity

Determine the size of the locker you need based on the volume and type of items you plan to store. Safe deposit lockers come in various sizes, so select one that provides adequate space for your belongings. Ensure that the locker meets your storage requirements.

5. Cost and Fees

Review the cost and fees associated with renting a safe deposit locker. Fees may vary based on locker size and security features. Compare rates from different facilities to find a solution that fits your budget while offering the necessary level of security.

6. Reputation and Reviews

Research the reputation of the facility offering safe deposit locker services. Read customer reviews and testimonials to gauge the quality of service and security provided. A facility with positive feedback and a strong reputation is more likely to offer reliable and secure storage solutions.

Popular Safe Deposit Locker Facilities

Several reputable banks and specialized storage companies offer safe deposit locker services. Here are a few notable options:

1. State Bank of India (SBI)

SBI provides safe deposit locker services across its branches, offering various locker sizes and flexible access options. Known for its extensive network and reliable service, SBI is a popular choice for secure storage.

2. HDFC Bank

HDFC Bank offers safe deposit locker services with advanced security features and extended access hours. The bank's facilities are designed to provide maximum protection for your valuables.

3. ICICI Bank

ICICI Bank provides safe deposit lockers with high-tech security measures and a range of locker sizes. The bank's facilities are equipped to offer secure storage solutions for various needs.

4. Axis Bank

Axis Bank offers safe deposit locker services with a focus on security and customer satisfaction. The bank's facilities are equipped with modern security features and offer flexible access options.

5. Specialized Storage Companies

In addition to banks, specialized storage companies also offer safe deposit locker services. These facilities often provide custom storage solutions and additional services, such as insurance coverage for stored items.

How to Rent a Safe Deposit Locker

Renting a safe deposit locker typically involves the following steps:

1. Research and Compare

Research different safe deposit locker facilities, comparing their security features, access options, and costs. Consider facilities that align with your specific needs and preferences.

2. Visit the Facility

Schedule a visit to the facility to inspect the safe deposit lockers and assess the security measures in place. This visit will also give you an opportunity to ask questions and understand the rental process.

3. Complete the Rental Agreement

Once you have selected a facility, complete the rental agreement. This agreement will outline the terms and conditions of renting the locker, including rental fees, access rights, and security protocols.

4. Deposit Your Belongings

After finalizing the agreement, you can deposit your belongings into the safe deposit locker. Follow any guidelines provided by the facility for storing and accessing your items.

5. Maintain Access and Security

Regularly check on your locker and ensure that it remains secure. Follow any procedures provided by the facility for maintaining access and safeguarding your belongings.

Conclusion

Safe deposit locker facilities provide a secure and reliable solution for storing your most valuable items. By understanding the benefits, features, and factors to consider when choosing a facility, you can ensure that your belongings are protected and easily accessible when needed.

[miyukisu]

Getting Hot In Here .ᐟ

summary - things get hot 'n' heavy in the sauna feat. ceo!sukuna ryomen x afab reader tags - workplace smex, p*rn with a bit of plot, dom/sub dynamics, ryo is mean & rough (calls reader a bitch), power play, dirty talk, bit of edging, overstimulation, fingering, p in v, dubcon, light choking, swearing, public smex, no y/n

minors do not interact

Working at your company came with many perks, particularly the amenities in the building. You have a gym, a game room, a small theatre, and the rarely used sauna. Most of these are only made available to those in the higher positions and luckily for you, a promotion fell right in your lap.

Then, you wondered why the sauna was barely used. Did people hate the heat that much? But isn't it supposed to be relaxing? You've only tried going to a sauna once before, but knowing this company, the sauna here should be better by tenfold.

It was certainly worth checking out.

────────────

Friday was usually a peaceful day for you; one that had less work compared to every other day of the week. It was perfect for a visit to the sauna. You had the fancy black keycard in your hands as you made your way to a higher floor—a place where only a select few could even step foot in.

In many ways, you felt special. Almost like royalty.

The air felt cold on that floor. Perhaps because people rarely came here. It was so empty that the click clack of your heels echoed through the entire place. It made you highly aware of your own presence and to some extent you were nervous. Since your promotion you haven't really mingled with any of the "higher ups," so to speak.

The famed sauna was at the end of the floor. You enter and confusion immediately hits you. It was a huge room, but without any divisions. There was only one locker room and one huge sliding door, which you presumed led to the sauna itself.

Your imagination ran wild with images of your male colleagues barging in and catching you wrapped in just a towel. The thought alone made your heart race and not in a good way. Though, looking around, there didn't seem like any sign of life here.

It was just you and your nerves.

Steeling yourself, you decided you'd only be here a few minutes. And besides, the hot-shots of the company are surely at some fancier country club or whatever place they like going to.

────────────

Your hand shook a bit as you lined up the card against the scanner. At this point, there was no turning around. A towel was already wrapped around your bare form while your things were safely stuffed in one of the lockers.

All you had to do was tap the card. It shouldn't be hard.

You held your breath as you finally pressed the plastic to the scanner. A short click sound as heard and the door slowly slid open. Closing your eyes, you braced yourself as you made a small step inside.

But you quickly realized your mistake once you peeled your eyes open. You swore your heart stopped right then and there. In front of you was your boss—no, not just your boss. He was everyone's boss.

He owned the fucking company.

Sukuna Ryomen sat in front of you, legs wide open with a smirk plastered across his handsome face. If it weren't for that towel, you were sure you would have fainted on the spot.

The fact that the door closes faster than it opens made the situation even worse—for you, at least. Sukuna, on the other hand, was amused. How did a little thing like you end up here?

He was going to have fun. Of course, he did everything and anything he wanted. He was Sukuna Ryomen for crying out loud.

"Well, what do we have here?"

His voice was a lot different from when you heard him in your general assemblies in which it was slightly altered by the microphone. But it didn't change how deep and alluring his voice was.

No words escaped your lips. If he were any ordinary man you'd still be speechless anyway. He shook his head at your silence; the smirk persistent as ever.

Sukuna held out his hand and did a come hither motion. You obeyed, mostly out of fear. You had just been promoted. There was no way you'd be fired for not following such a simple instruction.

But even then, your body moved as if you were a weak little moth to a flame. Without knowing it, you were already standing right in front of him. He shamelessly eyed you from top to bottom. There was a twinkle in his eye as his gaze roamed your towel-clad body.

His large hand gently grabbed your arm, giving it a firm squeeze before trailing down to your smaller hand. He held it, almost as if to comfort you.

"Already making the most out of your promotion. I see."

"You know who I am?" you managed to croak out.

He let out velvety chuckle. "Anyone promoted to a level that can access these luxuries has to go through me. So, yes, I do know you."

That fact made you unsure of whether or not to be honored or be even more scared. His gaze was so intense that it felt hotter than the sauna itself.

"You're building up quite a sweat," he says while squeezing your hand.

If he only knew that it was mostly because of him and not the temperature. You gulped at his prolonged touch. It was only your hand, but it was enough to send your heart racing. But he was oddly kinder than how the other employees made him out to be.

Many described him as tyrannical, condescending, and overall a terrible person to be with. But he was being so uncharacteristically gentle with you right now.

But your opinion of him was soon curbed.

"How about you take that towel off?"

"Pardon?"

He lets go of your hand. "You heard what I said. Don't make me repeat myself."

The softness in his eyes were long gone—only to be replaced with an icy gaze. It wasn't a request. It was a command.

Your fingers gripped the part of the towel wedged between itself and your chest. "But what if someone comes in?"

"So? I own this fucking place. Take it off."

Your knuckles were turning white. You wanted to think this was all a bad dream, but it was very real. The temperature was enough to attest that. Even more so, his piercing gaze was enough to leave you a puddle on the floor. That or maybe you can attribute the pooling wetness to something else.

Your reluctance didn't mean a thing when he took matters into his own hands quite literally—yanking the towel off of you in one harsh move. You instinctively rushed to cover yourself up, but it was a futile attempt.

The smirk returned to his face as his eyes roamed your newfound bareness. He barely gave you time to process what was happening as he stood up, towering over you. The calming oily scent of the sauna combined with his natural musk. It wasn't completely pleasant, but it sent your head spinning.

You couldn't help but dart your gaze over to what the towel once covered. He was shameless. Not that he had anything to be embarrassed about. With that size, it was something to be proud of. In fact, he wanted you to look.

He peered down at you like you were prey in the crosshairs of a ruthless predator. There was an animalistic gleam in his eyes that was hard to ignore, especially when he has one hand tilting your chin up.

"Wasn't so hard, was it?"

You gulp down. Hard.

"Think you can follow orders now or will you still be insolent?" he adds.

They were right. He wasn't kind at all. He was lightyears away from being kind, in fact.

"I... I don't think I should—"

He cuts you off. "Should what?" His hand leaves your chin, finding its way straight to your cunt that had been slowly growing wetter the longer you stood naked in front of him. He drags his middle finger along your pussy like it was just another day for him.

"Judging by how fucking wet you are—I think you're in no position to complain," he retorts. The flat expression on his face betrayed his obscene actions.

Even though your knees buckle and you have the wind knocked out of you, he kept his fingers there—pinching and playing with your clit like it was some toy. It was his first time touching you in such a way, but it felt as if he was incredibly familiar with you and all your sweet spots. He was so good that each aching roll of the sensitive bud felt like you'd go over the edge at any time.

You bit your bottom lip, suppressing any embarrassing noises that you were likely to make. A plethora of emotions were running through you, but it was mostly a strange concoction of fear and arousal.

He hated how you stopped yourself from making a sound. How was he to know if you were feeling good? But then again—the better question was, who didn't feel good doing it with him?

He forcefully spun you around before sitting back down. A harsh slap landed on your ass without warning. You were sure that you'd keel over, but his presence was great enough to keep you frozen in place. You couldn't imagine what would happen if you decided to give up now.

"Sit." Then, another slap. You sucked in air through your teeth, trying to endure the stinging sensation.

"You must love getting slapped like a bitch if you're still standing hm? I said sit."

And so you do. Your back was met with the warmth of his chest as you were forced to lean back into him as he cupped one of your breasts. He rolled and tugged on the sensitive nub with the pads of his fingers, not caring at all if it hurt. And you finally whined.

He seemed happy about it and decided to reward you by pulling you even closer to him. His thick forearm separated your breasts while his long fingers deftly gripped your neck.

It wasn't enough to restrict airflow, of course. He wanted to hear you breathlessly moan out his name.

His other hand pushed your legs out of the way, letting them rest on top of his thighs. You didn't think that your heart could beat any faster, but it did. How could it not when you're fully exposed and facing the only entrance of the sauna? The heat wasn't exactly comforting either. But it did add to the ever growing desire that was building up between the two of you.

"Let's see how fucking drenched you are hm?"

Two fingers tease over your clit before sliding right into your warmth. "Hah, pretty fucking drenched if I do say so myself." He continues to slide the two excruciatingly long digits before taking them out and practically shoving it in your face.

"What do you think?" he asks. He taps it against your lips and you open your mouth, going with the flow. Though you weren't quite sure why. You sucked his fingers, tasting yourself. It was such a filthy scene. The thought of it alone sent a jolt down your core.

He was thrilled that you were finally doing what he wanted, taking his fingers out of your mouth and back into your pulsing cunt. "Atta girl. You learn fast, don't you? I guess that promotion didn't go to waste." Sukuna kept bullying his fingers into your cunt, curving them in such way that it dragged all the best parts of your walls.

"Yes, sir." It came out shaky, almost pathetic. But it was music to his ears. He particularly liked the way you called him 'sir'. So much so that he felt the need to reward you with soft kisses on your shoulder. The featherlight kisses contrasted his rough motions. It made his blood rush down to the place where you'd soon find yourself on.

He pulled his fingers out, leaving you to clench around nothing. It was almost disappointing how he didn't even give you reprieve. But there was more to come when he gripped your waist, hoisting you up like you weighed nothing.

Sukuna didn't even need to line it up. He was hard enough that when he sat you back down it slid right in. And it was pure ecstasy. He could tell that it was—with the way you moaned so shamelessly.

"Fuck. If I had known you had pussy this good I would have promoted you years ago. Shit." His fingers dug into your flesh, sure to leave a mark the next day. It never occurred in his mind to show an ounce of softness, especially not when he has the tightest and warmest pussy around him.

If he had fucked you dumb, you surely did something to his brain as well.

He peeled his hands off of your waist, leaning back and relaxing. Sukuna didn't have to say it, but he wanted you to move. You needed to move. Otherwise, he'd be the one pleasuring you and not the other way around.

But it was such a pathetic attempt. Your legs had gone weak minutes ago and you were so out of it. The mere sensation of his length stretching you out was enough to push you once more to climax. The pace you had set was painfully slow. He was expecting a good show, but all he became was frustrated.

Sukuna clicked his tongue. "My dick's gonna go soft. What the fuck are you even doing?"

In any other situation, being spoken to like that would've been terrible. But the harshness in his voice was undeniably arousing.

He wasted no time, hoisting you up again ever so slightly. Just enough that he could ruthlessly piston himself in and out. Whatever you were doing earlier paled in comparison to his powerful thrusts. If it weren't for his grip on your waist, you would've been sent stumbling across the room.

The sweat on your body that had built through your time in the sauna made it increasingly difficult for him to hold you up. Rather, his large hands held you up by your ass, spreading you out more for him. It should be impossible for him to go deeper, but he did. He filled you up so nicely like you were built precisely for his pleasure.

The heat of the sauna combined with the intensity of his harsh fucking made you light headed. Not a single coherent thought was left in that brain of yours. It left you moaning and mumbling about how good you were feeling. All of which served to inflate his already massive ego.

The lazy smirk on his face grew wider once he felt that all too familiar clench around his cock. You were close. So fucking close.

And to that, he made sure to never slow down. His hips continued to snap at a consistent speed that made your mouth water. With one final thrust, you came violently. For a moment, all you could see was white and an overwhelming warmth enveloped your body. You shook, but he held tightly on to you, still thrusting in a frenzy.

Instead of letting you catch your breath, he grabbed you by the shoulders, pushing you down on the wooden bench of the sauna. Overstimulated, you still somehow found it in you to whine at the sudden absence of his dick inside of you. But as they say, be careful with what you wish for.

He dragged his tip along your slit before pushing it all the way in. You had a creeping feeling that he could be rougher. And rather than be scared, you anticipated it.

"We're far from done. You hear me? Fuck. You're cleaning me up after this. Got that?"

╰ author's note this is my first time writing smut so like, it's not that great lmao

©kzyluvr do not repost/reupload/translate any of my works on other platforms

[cavefilllingcorporation]

Export Log for 6/30/2024-7/6/2024

We have officially caught up with the Anti-Project Plan, meaning that processing of the materials we have acquired will begin this week! We do have a question for you guys, which will be asked tomorrow. This question refers to something relating to the Inferno Project, and will be the first time you will be able to help the course of the company.

First, with many of our employees waiting on the Inferno Project to start, many chose to go to the Storytime dimension and help boost its productivity. We have a major announcement to make regarding that world, but as mentioned in the quarterly report, we're going to make that its own announcement. What we can say though is that we did have many exports from that world, and we can list them here (Not only that, but we can expect another export run this week as well):

51 Crates of Marble

7 Crates of Plamsa

33 Crates of Quartz

1 Crate of Feathers

3 Crates of Gravel

26 Crates of Porkchops

47 Crates of Charcoal

3 Crates of Sulfur

160 Crates' worth of materials were extracted, and then were processed. Thanks to the renewed effort for dealing with Default, we are expecting to have Warehouse clearing every week, thus increasing our efficiency. Thanks to this efficiency, we have managed to create a perimeter around the central capital, a place of commerce which contains lots of buildings, and lots of loot. Included in this perimeter were the Event Lockers, a sacred place where individuals would randomly receive goods from those above, oblivious of the suffering of their alternate selves to earn those rewards. The Lockers were gilded in gold, gemstones and valuable metals, as well as having loot inside of them. The materials also include the materials gathered from last week, which were not fully cleared last week, and thus clearing was started this week as well, including the gilded armor and weapons from the Arena. Thus there were a lot of valuable materials traded when the Warehouses were cleared.

The exported goods include:

17 Crates of Oil

3 Crates of Quartz

41 Crate of Marble

And then for the wealth that was the significant sold goods:

5 Crates of Sulfur 11.5 Crate of Gravel 30 Crates of Glass 2 Crates of Plamsa 17 Crates of Stone 4 Crate of Monster Eyes 3 Crates of Serpentine stone 1 Crate of Cursed Stone 3 Crates of Fertilizer 2 Crate of Yarn 1.5 Crates of Leather 3 Crate of Charcoal 1 Crate of Bricks 3 Crates of Coal 7.5 Crates of Copper 2 Crates of Semi-precious gemstones 2.5 Crates of valuable gemstones 1 Crate of Colbalt 3 Crates of Steel 1 Crate of Gold 1 Crate of Cursed Soil 3 Crates of Granite 15 Crates of Concrete mix 7.5 Crates of Soil 19 Crates of Magic Crystals 24 Crates of Stone 1 Crate of Ink 0.5 Crates of Feathers 1 Crate of Glue 1 Crate of Lava

Lots of diamonds were also traded, as well as precious metals. This was enough to acquire 2 dragons. We already have a large amount of dragons already, and we suspect that the wealth of the world could be worth hundreds' of dragons worth, hence the need to continue rather than just abandon the world.

Finally, there was C8H. While the team couldn't get everything they wanted to get, as by the protocol instated by the Anti-Project Plan, the team did go out and fill the warehouses with goods. Specifically, 95 Crates were scavenged and brought in. This and others will be cleared this week, as we begin working on the profits from the side projects. The idea is that this week we shall work on the Side projects, next week the profits from the Solar Isles, and then we shall go ahead and work on the Inferno Project itself.

Now onto the Side Projects. First, the Atmosphere clearing project has increased to 544 sectors cleared, making the cleared percentage 27.2%. The Archeological teams are also doing well. Finally, we finished both Summer themed events, and have acquired a ton of commissions. They include:

2 Small commission sets

170 Normal Commissions

25 Full-Sized Commissions

1 Medium commission set

24 "Timed" Commissions

And that is it for this week. This next week will be really interesting regarding the profit gaining from the Inferno Project and whatnot. We hope you are looking forward to it as much as we are.

[jingyesafe]

Fixed safe deposit box

Our products are chosen for 10.5 mm thick and sold stainless steel SUS304 import magnetic door plank. can match different types of high-precision special double lck or mechanical and electrical control variable fingerprint locks, and a variety of structures and 8 varieties of specifications of the cabinet door type for the user choice. According to the characteristics of the warehouse building blocks of the assembly tpe Warehouse 8ssembly. The body and inside box surface al the same, except for rust, phosphating 9 procedure before Ireatment, and then electrostatic spraying. ensure that never fust. The product is luxurious and beautiful and has the prize, the drill, fire, and corrosion at a sut, and easy to maintain.

[yuandmedesign]

5 INTERESTING HOME INTERIOR DESIGN STYLES VANCOUVER

Living should be fun! The best way to achieve this is to invest in home interior design in Vancouver that suits your lifestyle and attitude. Therefore, the right decoration is not only a matter of taste, but also of personalization. But which style best suits you? It’s not so easy to keep them all in mind when furnishing your dream home with style. Look at these 5 interesting home interior design styles.

Minimalism: Can it be a little less?

Minimalism home interior design in Vancouver is all about pure, exquisite functionality and aesthetics. With the art of exclusion, minimalism crowns modern lifestyles. White, black and matte gray or neutral tones predominate. The simple-looking interior with clear lines and smooth surfaces also impresses minimal design with its modesty. Between clean materials such as glass, metal and plastic, natural light guarantees dynamism and liveliness.

Industrial Style: the charm of a workshop!

Industrial home interior design in Vancouver turns spaces into optimal living spaces. Whether in a loft, an old warehouse, a factory, or workshop, elements such as exposed bricks, concrete floors and wooden beams, pipes or suspended metal lights create a raw atmosphere. Antique stainless steel lockers, vintage chairs and bare light bulbs with colorful woven cables combine perfectly. Fixtures in warm, bright shades of brass or copper help refine the mechanical industrial charm. Rustic interiors accentuate the industrial atmosphere.

Scandinavian: elegant, bright and natural

The motto of Scandinavian home interior design in Vancouver is “Keep it simple”. The interior design of the far north reflects the relaxed mood of the Scandinavians and is always simple, with clear contours and natural materials. The pleasant white, pastel and gray tones accompany the furniture made of solid fir, birch or pine wood. Illuminated by candlelight and carefully placed lamps, richly textured fabrics such as wool, leather and soft blankets create the typical Danish atmosphere. Glass and porcelain vases with prints or floral arrangements provide fresh, lively accents.

Boho Style: creative interior

Boho home interior design in Vancouver is known as hippie style. However, long before the hippies, the English bohemians escaped bourgeois monotony and pursued the unconventional with an eccentric and creative lifestyle. Vintage furniture and decorative accessories are imaginatively combined in a light-colored environment. Voluminous armchairs, embroidered cushions and printed blankets are arranged alongside hand-woven fabrics with oriental motifs, macramé wall decorations and rugs. Light, natural earth tones can be happily combined with strong colors such as orange, violet or turquoise blue.

Scandinavian design combined with Wabi-Sabi

They are 8000 kilometers away and now they are in our homes with JAPANDI style: we are talking about Scandinavia and Japan. While at first glance it seems like a daring fusion, both styles complement each other wonderfully, even with their differences. Light colors and simple shapes bring order and calm to our hectic daily lives. The Wabi-Sabi aesthetic concept is also integrated into the JAPANDI home interior design in Vancouver.

Did you like these 5 styles? The scope for creativity in interior design is massive. If you want to invest in modern home interior design in Vancouver that speaks affordability, style and elegance, kindly get in touch with YU+ME DESIGN: the finest interior design company near you.