#Tw: implied parental abuse

[allykakamatsu]

The Demon Siblings, Chapter 1.

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Rating: T

Original Characters

Chapter 1 Trigger Warnings: Parental Abuse, not shown but implied.

Story as a whole loosely based on @yusuke-of-valla Demon Fam Au.

One night, Yuna went with her Mother Ivy for a business deal, and for better or worse, that night changed her life forever.

Chapter under cut

A Contract Gone Wrong

10 years ago, Yuna:

“Alright, we’re here!,” Mom announces making me wake up from my nap as she parks the car outside of a somewhat old looking church, “Yuna sweetie it’s time to get out!”

“Ah, coming mom!” I agree trying my best to wake myself up and stay awake, easier said than done given that it’s well past my bedtime.

“Okay, let’s get a move on, don’t want to keep my client waiting.” Mom states as she takes my hand and we walk inside the church. Apparently someone wants to commission Mom for a painting but they wanted to meet up here for some reason, and because it’s late and Mom couldn’t get a babysitter because everyone’s afraid to go outside with the Demon barrier being weaker so she’s taking me along.

Still, I have my sketchbook at least and once we’re inside the church it does look very nice so I can hopefully just draw while I wait for Mom to talk to her client. But….

“Mom, are we here early?” I ask a bit confused because I can’t see anyone else in here.

Mom smiles before answering. “Don’t worry about it sweetie, they just said they’d meet me outside, you just wait in here so no demons will try to get you, okay?”

“Okay but…. Are you sure this is a good idea being here this late?” I’m sure this is just nothing, but…. Something is giving me a very bad feeling about this.

Mom smile turns somewhat aggressive as she replies. “Normally no, but this is life changing money this client is promising, it will me fine, so just stay in here and don’t cause a scene, got it?”

“Got it.” I agree making Mom nod approvingly as she goes back outside, but I can’t shake my nerves so I go and sit by the door so I can hear if something goes wrong.

“-so once you sign here and here, we have a deal.” A male voice that I don’t recognise says outside the door, and I’m assuming it’s Mom’s client.

“Ah perfect, but can I give it one more read over first?” Mom asks and I guess the man agrees cause I barely hear the crinkling of paper being passed over, and after a minute of silence I hear the sound of pen hitting paper.

“The contract is now sealed,” the man states as (I think) Mom hands the paper back, “now then- wait, that’s not your name written there.”

“Contract never said it had to be my soul that I gave up.” Mom replies sounding smug- wait soul?!Is… is Mom bargaining with a demon?!

“What-?! Oh the hells it doesn’t, damn it your majesty I though I told you to take this to Seth first to make sure there’s no loopholes,” the demon replies with exasperation, “fine, I guess a deal is still a deal, but you do know the soul has to be nearby for me to take it right?”

“Oh I know, and she’s just inside there.” Mom answers-!! Inside…. I’m the only one in here…. Is she…. No, no way…. She wouldn’t, would she?

Creaking the door open a bit to not draw any attention, I see Mom with her back to the door looking at her nails like this is boring, along with the still exasperated Demon who’s a guy with black hair, blue eyes with slitted pupils, along with cat ears, claws and double tails (a Japanese Nekomata I think if I remember from my Demon studies correctly) and wearing a fancy suit. He also looks me in the eye after a moment but instead of any anger or ‘I am going to eat you’ he just looks at me with pity.

After that the Nekomata glares at Mom like he’s trying to burn her with an eye blast. “Oh you are a monster, fine then, if this is the type of parent you are then the kid will probably be better off in the Hells anyway.” With that the demon snaps his fingers-!!

“Fire!! Fire!!,” I yelp as I’m surrounded by flames which gets Mom’s attention, “Mom help me!! Please!”

“Now Yuna, you remember that you promised you’d do anything to make me happy,” Mom tells me with a smirk on her face, “well this will make me a lot happier, so just be nice for the demons, okay?”

“H H Huh…?,” I stammer not knowing what to say as Mom walks away, “w wait, Mom-!! AGH!!!!!”

Fire fire oh god!! It’s not hurting at least but why am I surrounded by it?! Thankfully it goes away after a minute…. But I suddenly have much bigger problems because now I’m in some kind of throne made of obsidian and gold?!

What…. What’s happening….?!” I manage to ask while struggling to breathe, I don’t know if it’s because of the stress, the air, both or something else but what is going on, and if this is a dream I want to wake up!

“Child, I know this is stressful but calm down.” the Nekomata demon tells me as he rubs my back a little, and while it helps me breathe it doesn’t help my stress.

“A Are you going to eat me….?,” I ask while pinching myself and hoping this a dream but unfortunately not, “all my t teachers day demons eat people….”

“Okay first of all that’s only the flesh demons, 95% of us don’t do that,” he assures me, “and secondly, my boss who your ‘mother’ was supposed to give her soul to but gave yours instead, she’s a big softie for kids so you’ll be alright, I promise.”

“O Okay…. But…..,” I struggle to get out as now I’m starting to cry, “why… why would Mom do this…? I I was good, I I did everything right and w when I messed up I fixed it…! W Why would Mom s send me away…!”

“Because some humans are worse than any demon down here,” the demon tells me while handing me a napkin to dry my eyes with, “some people are so selfish and power hungry they’ll hurt anyone, even innocents to do it. This isn’t your fault child, alright?”

“I I guess…” I… I’m still not entirely convinced. I have to of done something wrong for Mom to do this, when she gets mad it’s always my fault. But before I can think of anything I get distracted by two pillars of fire appearing in the room and a pair of people coming out of each.

The first one has a demon woman with blonde hair, red eyes, pirate clothes and has a golden tail and matching scales on her face, and she’s accompanied by a boy slightly older than me with somewhat dark skin and neat brown hair and eyes.

The second one meanwhile has a demon man with dirty blonde hair with blue eyes, fangs, red face markings, horns and a Japanese style outfit so I’m assuming he’s an Oni, and he’s with a girl also a bit older than me with braided pale brown hair and maroon eyes.

“Ah- what?!,” the boy yelps as the two demons look confused, “w what’s going on here?! Where am I?!”

“I’m assuming the Burning Hells,” the girl replies looking freaked out but probably the calmest out of the three of us, “which isn’t good but honestly I’m surprised my Father didn’t do this sooner.”

“Okay, we’ll unpack that later,” the Oni states as he pulls over the pirate and the Nekomata, “why the hell are there kids here, the ones we were negotiating with were adults.”

“Well, I don’t know about you two,” the Nekomata explains while pulling out a piece of paper and the two kids go over to me nervously, “but the boss forgot to send the contract for loophole checking so the one who I was sent to signed her daughters soul away instead, that shy blue haired girl over there.”

“!! H Hi….” I stammer still feeling very nervous about all of this.

“Wait, they can do that?,” The pirate asks as they pull out a piece of paper and read it, “oh fuck you’re right.”

“Glad to know incompetent law makers aren’t just an earth thing.” The girl quips shocking me and the boy and the three demons laugh.

“How are you so calm about this miss, our parents sold us to hell!” The boy yelps panicked.

“It’s Ayra, Ayra George, so don’t bother with the miss thing please. And my father never gave a damn about me, and he’s power hungry as hell,” the girl replies, “so I always kinda figured it would either be I get out of the house or he’d sell me off, either to a devil or an orphanage.”

“Um…. Since we’re introducing ourselves, I I’m Yuna….,” I awkwardly introduce because I should probably at least be on good terms with the kids I’m in this mess with, “a and I’m in the opposite boat, I was always being the best I could be, and I I thought my Mom cared about me but…. I want to say I guess she didn’t but I can’t shake the feeling I did something wrong….”

“Hey, what did we say about this, don’t blame yourself child, okay?” The Nekomata reminds me and I nod even if I’m still not entirely convinced.

“The cat guy is right,” the boy agrees, “and I might as well introduce myself as well. I’m Henry Oliver, and I…. Well, I noticed my Dad was becoming more distant lately but…. I didn’t think it was because of this, so I guess I’m in the middle of the ‘saw this coming’ spectrum? I’m sorry I just have no idea what to do right now.”

“Don’t worry kid, I think we’re all confused right now, but we’ll work something out” the Dragon assures him with a toothy grin and I see she has very sharp teeth, “oh, I’m Ryoko by the way! And those two are Akio and Mahiro respectively.”

“Greetings.” The Nekomata, Mahiro, states politely with a small bow meanwhile the Oni, Akio, awkwardly waves, I suppose he’s a bit shy. 

Before anyone else can say anything else though, the door to the throne room swings open (and me and Henry hold onto each other in panic) and in comes two people.

The first is a teenager girl with messy black hair with red tips, along with blood red eyes with black sclera, pointy ears, horns and a tail as well as a pink red and black gothic styled dress.

The second is a woman who looks very similar to the girl, but is easily the tallest person in the room, and is wearing a red, gold and black dress, pure black hair that’s long and messy, one eye covered with a gold wrap and the exposed one is bright red with black sclera, and even longer tail and horns.

“Alright, I have arrived, where are those new souls-?!,” the woman declares before spotting me Henry and a surprisingly calm Ayra and looks frustrated, “guys, why the hell are there three eight year olds here?”

“A Actually I’m seven….” I mumble hoping what Mahiro said about the boss being a sucker for kids is true.

“As for what happened boss,” Mahiro explains while handing the woman 3 pieces of paper, “there was a loophole in the contact and the signers sold their children’s souls instead of their own. This is why I told you to have Seth double check the contracts first.”

“Ugh, jackasses, and I’ll remember next time,” she groans before turning back to us, “and kids, I’m gonna explain what’s going on here. First of all, welcome to the Burning Hells, wish the circumstances were better but oh well. And before you ask no I’m not gonna take your souls or do anything to you, you’re kids and your parents swindled all of us so don’t worry about that.”

“Oh, um, thank you madam.” Henry states awkwardly.

“Just call me Aravni,” she tells us all with a smile, “now, normally I’d send you all back no problem, however your parents just sold your souls away so like hell I’m sending you back to them, so, do you have any other relatives?”

“Not that I’m aware of/Nope/I was adopted and Mom is the only person from my adopted family that I know.” Henry, Ayra and myself answer making Aravni and the other Demons in the room look at each other in concern.

“Okay, that’s out,” Aravni states after a moment as well as a bit of face wrinkling, “how about plan B, kids, how would you like to stay here instead?”

“….. What?!” All three of us ask because, yeah, what?!

“Aww, don’t freak out kids,” the teenager says cheerfully finally joining in-Agh she’s picking us up!, “things down here are great! Plus staying with Mom in particular means you get a nice house, good food, and most importantly, yours truly as a big sis.”

“Raquel calm down you’re scaring the kids!” Akio yelps as he runs over and helps us all down and is it just me or do I feel a bit dizzy.

“Aww come on Aki I was just being friendly.” Raquel replies with a toothy grin.

“Yeah well can your friendliness come with a warning next time please….” Ayra mumbles looking even more dizzy than me so we both just lean on each other while Henry just looks baffled.

“Ehe, yeah, those two are a bit much, especially together, but you get used to it.” Ryoko assures us with a wink.

“I believe we should confirm if they want to stay first before you say that Ryoko.” Mahiro chimes in making all the demons, even Aravni, pout.

“Well, I don’t know about you two,” Ayra states, “but it looks like our options are either here or an orphanage, and I’ve already been to the latter and I know it isn’t good, so unless just being down here will kill me then I guess I’ll stay.”

“Don’t worry, it’s totally safe for humans, it’s been a while but we’ve had some stay for decades before,” Aravni assures her as she and Raquel get excited, “now, what about you two?”

“Well…. If it isn’t any trouble then I suppose so?” Henry agrees albeit looking noticeably less sure then Ayra- wait why is everyone looking at me now- oh right.

“I…,” I say not knowing for sure but sighing as I realise no one will really miss me back on the surface, “I guess….”

“Alright, hi five kids!” Ryoko tells us and after the three of us look at each other awkwardly for a moment we all return it and I crack a smile despite myself. I don’t know what I did to make Mom send me here but, whether I deserved it or not, maybe I’ll avoid making those same mistakes here.

“That’s the spirit,” Aravni tells us all with a smile, “now, as much as I’d love to give you three the tour myself, me and Mahiro have to go talk to Seth, not only to get the loopholes out of these contracts, but also to make sure this get’s formalised. I’ll be back in like an hour though, promise!”

“Later Mom!,” Raquel says cheerfully as the two demons leave before smirking, “alright new siblings, we have an hour to screw around and find out until they’re done, how’s about a kitchen raid?!”

“Um, by raid, do we mean steal food or actually raid it?” Henry asks looking curious and like he’s not opposed to either option.

“We do the latter sometimes, but for now let’s stick to the former,” Akio explains with a small chuckle, “you kids need some cupcakes.”

“He’s right, and here’s your warning,” Raquel agrees before picking us up again-!!, “now let’s get going-!!”

“FIRE!!!!” Henry screams as he hides by pressing into me for dear life because Raquel has fire coming out of her back!

“Huh, oh, these are just my wings,” she explains like this is normal, “all Noble Demons get fire wings, but unless I actively want to hurt someone with them they don’t burn, promise.”

“Beautiful…” I blurt out cause now that the panics over and I’m getting a better look at the pink, yellow and red flames they do look lovely.

“And awesome.” Ayra agrees also looking impressed, and after hesitating Henry uses his free hand to phase it through the flames, and after a few times and it seemingly not hurting he smiles brightly.

“If you think that’s awesome, I got something to show you kids tomorrow,” Ryoko adds as she and Akio start running with Raquel flying after them, “now come on, let’s go!

[cryptic-underground]

Please, Not Him

Watched the mirror scene one night and got possessed to draw this. Hehe, enjoy! :))

[too-much-tma-stuff]

Finally getting help (prt 4)

Masterpost

The bats worked through the night, coordinating and researching everything that needed to be done. Distortion showed up on the camera which they assumed was Vlad trying to get in but he didn’t manage it. After he finished trying from multiple angels including somehow from directly above (well Zatana did say invisibility, intangibility, and flight were the minimal powers they should expect from creatures of the infinite realms.) He turned human again and spent a long time banging on their front door.

He tried to call the cops but commissioner Gordon called Bruce directly to get the full story then told Vlad it could be dealt with in the morning. Zatana was also coordinating people heading to Amity, a full on raid of the GIW, and the Fentons.

Batman and Superman were collecting all the information that the raid team was sending out and workshopping public statements they could sent out to the public and the government about the unacceptable things they had found and the steps the JL was taking to fix it. The government was not going to be happy they knew, with the JL ‘over-stepping’ into their business and actually getting the word out about the atrocities a branch of their government and their pet scientists had been planning. The JL needed to get out ahead of it before the narrative could be twisted against them.

It was first thing in the morning when they did a live broadcast from the watchtower with Batman, Superman, and Zatana telling the world about the parallel world existing harmlessly along side their own, and the way the government tried to exploit it. The atrocities committed under the name of the Anti-Ecto acts with the ignorance of the public as a cover.

It was at the same time that Constantine, Dick, and Cas were raiding the Fenton’s home. Of course they were armed, but so were the bats, and they were used to fighting people who were armed. It wasn’t a particularly hard fight.

A redhead was sitting wide eyed at the kitchen table. “Can’t we just have one normal day!” She suddenly snapped but she was glaring at her parents, standing up and slamming her hands on the table.  “First you send Danny away with Vlad even though you KNOW they hate each other and it’s a school day and now this! What did you do to bring the heroes down on us!?”

“I don’t know Jazzybear!” Jack half whined as he was forced into power supressing cuffs to neutralize his minor super strength and sat down in the living room.

“I’m sure this is just a misunderstanding, don’t worry sweetie,” Maddie added, both of them were dressed in jump suits which did not help their supervillain vibes.

“it’s not a mistake mate, you’ve been messing with shit you really shouldn’t. And that portal in your basement is a fucking beacon welcoming a war. You’ve gone unchecked for too god damn long, we’re taking over things now.” Constantine told them before stalking down into the basement with Tim on his heels, Batman would be joining them as soon as they were done their press conference.

Cas stayed to watch the parents and Dick approached Jazz gently. “Hey can I talk to you in private please? It’s about your brother,” He said gently and she stiffened immediately. Looking at him in a way that made him feel like she could see straight into his soul and froze him to the spot. After a moment though she just sighed and nodded, beckoning to him to follow her upstairs, to a room that was probably Danny’s not her own. She sat on his bed and grabbed a bear that had been sitting on the edge, waving for him to sit at the desk.

“So, what do you know?” She asked with a sigh.

“Well, last night Vlad took Danny to a Wayne Gala, one of Bruce’s daughter Cas is really good with body language and clocked that something was wrong so she and one of the other kids got him away from Vlad and out of the party. I guess he really needed some adult support because he broke down and told them a lot, about the Phantom thing, the ghosts and… something you’re not going to like. But first I want you to know he’s safe, Bruce Wayne is a licensed foster parent and he’s taking good care of Danny, you can come live with them too if you want.

“We’re going to deal with the ghosts and the GIW and everything else now, I can’t promise by the end of this you won’t need somewhere else to go. I have a feeling if Batman and the Martian family have anything to say about this your parents will end up in prison for their unethical experiments.”

“As long as Danny is okay,” Jazz said firmly. “I was only staying to take care of him anyway, just get me emancipated and a scholarship for Gotham U so I can study while still being close to him I’ll be fine. I’m almost 18 as it is.”

Dick nodded, she was a smart and driven girl, she knew what she wanted, he could respect that. “Now, the thing you won’t like…” he trailed off and took a deep breath. “Danny is pregnant.”

“What!?“ Jazz blanched, gaping at him for a long minute. “That can’t be right! I mean I knew he was trans but he’s usually only interested in girls, how would he even-“ She cut off her eyes widening. “It was Vlad wasn’t it?” She gritted out with an expression the promised excruciating violence.

“Yes,” Dick said shifting awkwardly in his chair.

“Right.” Jazz said and got up, coldly calm. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be right back.” She grabbed a baseball bat from next to Danny’s bed that seemed to be glowing slightly then marched to the other side of the room, opened a cabinet and pulled out two odd looking guns. Before Dick could say much of anything she had vaulted out of the window and taking off down the street.

“Oh dear,” Dick muttered faintly before heading back downstairs. “Hey Cas can we turn on the news, some sort of local station?” He asked. Cas nodded and searched around for the remote, turning it on to find the channel was already on local news.

Vlad was already on there, talking about how it was awful Bruce Wayne had Kidnapped a local child Danial Fenton, and he could not be allowed to get away with this just because he was rich! But that didn’t last long, they watched for a few minutes before a blur of red hair and blue rushed past the camera.

“YOU TOUCHED MY BROTHER YOU CREEP!” Jazz said as she came out swinging and she must have quite the arm because her first swing sent him nearly flying off the stage. He scrambled to get up as she lunged at him again.

“Now Jasmine you’ve clearly been misinformed, I didn’t do anything-“ His muffled voice was cut off as she swung the bat again and he yelped as she hit him in the stomach.

“YOU GOT HIM PREGNANT! YOU DID THIS! YOU SHOULD BEHIND BARS NOT BEHIND A PODIUM YOU FROOTLOOP!” She shrieked as she swung again and this time he managed to dodge. The cameras following them as Jazz chased him down the street, the sound of his supplications and her shrieking fading out as they became more and more distant.

It took a frantic moment for the camera angle to switch to something else, maybe a drone, which was able to follow them down the street.

“You Don’t UNDERSTAND! I didn’t want to hurt him! I just wanted a perfect son! If he had just agreed to be my son none of this would have happened! When I knew it failed I told him to let them die!” Vlad yelled at her, though that did NOT seem to comfort Jazz at all. She had devolved into shrieking book titles like curses as she chased him with the bat and shot at him with the guns though her aim didn’t seem very good.

Well they had him admitting to it on camera now. As he watched a new actor joined the fray, a girl in a red jumpsuit holding a blaster.

“You did what to Danny!?” She demanded as she pointed the blaster at Vlad.

“Oh cheespuffs!” Vlad breathed, his eyes widening as Jazz trailed off letting who must be Red Huntress take over the chase as Vlad shouted about how he had made her! He had given her her weapons she couldn’t use them against him! Which did not seem to be stopping her.

The camera fuzzed out for just a second and then Valery was chasing a ghost with red eyes and a white outfit. Cas was laughing silently at the show and both of the Fenton parents seemed to be in shock. A few minutes later Jazz walked back in through the front door looking tired.

“Turn that off please,” she sighed as she put the bat down.

“Of course,” Cas agreed and picked up the remote again, turning off the tv. 

“Vlad didn’t actually do that, did he Jazzy?” Jack asked softly, he sounded so hurt, as if he had any fucking right!

Jazz looked at him blankly. “How many times have we tried to warn you about him? How many times has Danny told you he didn’t feel safe with Vlad? But as usual you couldn’t see past your own desires. I’m going to go see if the trenchcoat guy needs any help getting into your files,” She sighed before vanishing downstairs. 

Dick glanced at Cas, and then followed them, she would have no trouble watching the Fentons and staying quiet whereas Dick felt like he was about to explode. Batman joined them before long and between the three of them they shut the bulkheads on the portal and locked them, secured dangerous chemicals and devices, and downloaded everything they could. There were plenty of prototypes and blueprints, and stuff that could generously be called research.

It was obvious these people were geniuses but it was even more obvious that at some point they had become careless and obsessive. Half of the writing on the blueprints wasn’t legible, dangerous chemicals were not in proper containment, and the weapons were not locked up. Looking at all of this it wasn’t surprising that two of the people they had been involving in their research suffered exposure, it was a surprise more hadn’t. It was easy to tell when Bruce came down he was horrified, it was in the way he froze when he saw the lab, as if his brain was struggling to process just how irresponsible the Fenton parents had been.

“You must be Jazz, it’s nice to meet you. Danny speaks highly of you,” He finally rebooted to say when she waved at him. 

“I love my little brother, I always did the best I could to keep him safe from… all this,” Jazz said gesturing at the lab with a sigh. “I wish it had done any good.”

“You did plenty of good,” Dick put in. “Trust me, to a kid having someone care about them can make all the difference. 

“All those nights I patched him up after he came back from fighting ghosts. He healed fast but still. I can’t believe… he’s already been through so much and we knew Vlad was up to something! Ellie said she was our cousin but she looked just like him, I should have kept a closer eye on-” She cut off and shook her head. “He’s a good kid, of course if he couldn’t give the babies up, even if it would be better for them if he did. I hope he knows I’d support him either way, I hope he didn’t not tell me because he thought I’d be upset at Him.”

“I’m sure he didn’t,” Dick assured her gently. “Being a big sibling is hard, I know. But trust me you’re doing a great job, better than I did with my brothers,” he said, patting her shoulder. “You can ask him yourself later though. We have a lot to get done today to make sure he’s safe.”

She nodded stubbornly and doubled down on her work, directing them occasionally to where she knew they’d find more weapons or logs. She knew her way around the lab to a disturbing extent. 

Bruce and Dick both got a notification from Agent A saying that after a substantial sleep in Danny had woken up and was having breakfast. He seemed worried about the family but he was taking it alright, especially since he knew they were busy people. It did motivate Dick to clear things up as soon as they could so that they could get back to Danny though. The last thing he needed was More stress!

They had plenty of evidence of the Fenton parents breaking the law to call the police and have them taken away which gave them all the time they needed to strip the house. They got everything they could and decided to leave Constantine at the house to watch the portal until they could figure out how to shut it down completely without causing any damage. It seemed unstable so they didn’t want to risk it just now, especially without Danny’s input because according to Jazz Danny had made genuine connections in the Infinite Realms. 

They wrapped up this stage of the investigation before dinner after being up for about 36 hours. Of course they weren’t Done, there was still plenty to do investigating the government, how they’d gotten away with this and if they had any other nasty tricks up their sleeve. They’d have to manage any backlash from this unilateral move, and they’d have to figure out what to tell the public about Danny since Bruce would be fostering him. But all that could be done after having a family dinner with their new brother and a nap. 

part 5

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[bl0w-m3]

[swatchitt]

Sirius in the house of Black.

head-canon under the cut.

i think when Sirius returns home for the holidays he's forced to shorten his hair and be clean shaven, so he often has shaving nicks and scars. Healing charms don't work very well within the manor grounds because of the sheer amount of curse energy that the protective wards harbour, so scars are much more common among the Black brothers than you might expect from a pure-blood wizarding family.

[idiot-mushroom]

normal trip to mcdonalds

[kiwibirbkat]

Suffering

KRIS was suffering.

It was controlling them. It made their decisions. They couldn't escape It. It was always there. Even when they were in control.

SUSIE knew KRIS was suffering.

Kris acted weirdly. They were clearly depressed. And they never wore short sleeves.

They would go into this trance like state sometimes and then just flash out of it, looking panicked. Only during important events, for some reason...

And they always seemed so tired. Like they spent the entire night awake.

SUSIE didn't like their suffering.

Susie was always confused when Kris would go into that state.

And concerned when Kris flinched or winced whenever anybody touched their arm.

And upset when she had to explain to Toriel that the reason her kid was passed out in her arms was unknown to her, even if she had theories.

SUSIE wanted to help KRIS.

Susie would comfort Kris when they got out of the trance. It became their routine. Kris went into a trance, got panicked when they got out. Susie put her hand on their shoulder and would reassure them that they didn't do something bad. Kris would invite Susie to their house in thanks. Though it was confusing when they would invite her even when they didn't have a trance...

Susie never pushed about their arms. It didn't seem fair. Not when she would be a hypocrite. But she did try to cheer Kris up everyday. And sometimes it worked!

Whenever they had sleepovers, Susie always made Kris sleep. She said she needed to hug something to sleep. Kris bought it. They cuddled and they both ended up sleeping. And she would carry them home whenever they passed out in school.

But SUSIE was suffering too.

SUSIE was suffering.

Her parents never got any nicer. She ached constantly. And they never bought food for her. Her brother had already run away because of it, but they never learned their lesson.

KRIS knew SUSIE was suffering.

Kris knew something was up with Susie's home life.

She was always hurt. She claimed that it was from a fight, but nobody in the town was brave enough to fight Susie and hurt her. And she flinched whenever anybody raised their arms around her.

Susie always scratched at her arms when she was anxious. Even Kris could recognize that was unhealthy, even if they had similar tendencies.

Susie was also always hungry. Not a healthy amount of hunger. No normal hunger would drive you to eat the things she did. It was like she was never fed.

KRIS didn't like their suffering.

Kris would frown whenever Susie would come to school with a limp, or a split lip, or a black eye.

The frown deepened when they saw her eat chalk out of desperation.

Even deeper when the scratching would draw blood.

KRIS wanted to help SUSIE.

Kris always invited Susie over to their house. It was better for their mom to embarrass them in front of their friend than for Susie to be hurt.

Kris would always share their lunch with Susie. And eat the things she did to make Susie feel less out of place. And give her the bigger slice when they made pie with Toriel.

Kris always distracted Susie when the scratching got bad. Pulling her into a conversation. Giving her something to do with her hands. Challenging her to a thumb war.

But KRIS was suffering too.

[mugloversonly]

Silver over Gold

Ch 3: Kintsugi - Final

Ch.1 Ch.2 AO3

Summary:

Steve and Eddie finally talk.

Steve stood outside Eddie’s door horrified by what he heard on the other side. Eddie was sobbing and his inner omega was whining weakly. “Eddie? Baby can I come in?” He pleaded.

“Alpha?” Eddie cried softly. “Door’s locked.” His voice was fading into a whisper. “I’m sorry alpha.”

Steve didn’t think twice about ripping the door of the hinges; he'd fix it later, he just hoped Wayne would understand. His omega needed him and his alpha would stop at nothing to help him (for once he was in total agreement). The smashing of the door echoed through the whole trailer but Eddie didn’t seem to notice. He was curled up on his side in the corner of the room with his head tucked against his knees, shaking violently. Steve rushed over to him and gently swept his hair out of his face. He gasped when he saw his beautiful omega. “Oh, Eddie.” He whispered. He was paler than usual, practically translucent. His lively chocolate eyes were red rimmed and puffy, empty as they stared up at him. Steve wasn’t even sure if Eddie could see him right now.

“I’m sorry alpha.” Eddie whispered. Steve stared at him hoping for some awareness in his eyes but there still wasn’t anything. He must be speaking unconsciously.

“Sh,” Steve cooed. “I’m right here, omega. Your alpha is right here. I'm not going anywhere.” He ran his hands up and down Eddie’s arms and kissed him on the forehead. His skin was freezing to the touch and if Steve didn’t know better he’d think he just came out of Lover’s Lake.

He took him into his arms, laid them back in Eddie’s nest, and removed their shirts for skin contact, pulling the blanket over them for good measure . Steve made sure to hold the omega’s nose directly onto his scent gland. He didn’t know much about rejection sickness, but from what he learned in school one way to cure it was through comforting touch and scents. Eddie barely moved and didn’t acknowledge Steve at all. Steve was having a hard time staying calm but the whines and howling of his omega were helping him to stay focused.

H is shivering finally subsided and Eddie fell into a light haze. He pulled back from Steve and his eyes were a bit clearer. “Stevie?” He asked. At Steve’s nod he threw himself back. He didn’t deserve to be held like this. He was a bad omega. His alpha didn’t love him and it was all his fault. Steve didn’t let him get far before he was yanking him right back in. He ran his fingers through his tangled hair and nuzzled his neck. “I’m sorry Steve. I should’ ve trusted you . I'm a bad omega.” He sobbed but Steve clapped a hand over his mouth.

“You're not a bad omega Eddie. You're my omega.” Steve said. He felt more than heard Eddie’s gasp and watched as his wet eyes widened. He reached up and pulled Steve’s hand off his mouth.

“I’m still your omega?” He whispered hopeful yet terrified.

“Yes, darling.” Steve replied caressing his cheek. Eddie put his hand over Steve’s and held it there.

“You still want to be my alpha? After everything I put you through?” Steve looked deep into Eddie’s eyes and kissed him on the nose.

“You didn’t put me through anything. I will always be your alpha. Even if you decided you wanted nothing to do with me, I will be here waiting. There is nothing you could do that would drive me away. I will never leave you.” He promised. “Let me apologize now.”

“No, Steve you don’t owe me anything.” Eddie said clutching his shirt. “I was the one in the wrong.”

“No you weren’t. I was scared. I didn’t stop to consider that I was stringing you along.” He bowed his head as tears finally spilled over. “I love you, Eddie. I never want you to doubt that. I’m sorry I didn’t say it sooner. And I’m sorry the first time I said it was in an argument.” He grabbed Eddie’s face and tilted it until their lips were barely a millimeter apart. “I would never lie to you. I know why you would think that. Wayne told me. Just know, that the most important person in my life, is right here in my arms. Okay?”

“Except Robin?” He knew it was shitty, but he needed to know.

“No my lovely omega. Even more important than Robin.” He kissed him then. A quick press of lips, there and gone in mere moments. “Robin is my best friend and I won’t stop loving her or change how she and I are with each other. But you’re my future mate, and nothing is more important than you feeling secure in us.” Eddie surged forward and kissed him hard practically shoving his tongue down his throat.

“I don’t want you to stop being friends with Robin or anything like that, Stevie. It’s just…” Eddie knew he had to let Steve hear some of this from him. “The pups constantly tell me how you two were made for each other and how it’s only a matter of time for you two to mate.” Eddie looked down. “I guess, with you wanting to keep it a secret and when I ask about courting you brush it off, mix that with Dustin asking me to find out if you’re secretly dating Robin and I thought it was only a matter of time before you stopped what we had and went with her. And when I saw you two together, I thought it finally happened and you didn’t even have the decency to tell me first.” His voice broke on that last word.

“Wait a second...the pups have been saying what?!” Steve yelled out startling the omega and causing him to whimper. “Sorry.” He took a few calming breaths before asking again. “The pups have been telling you that Robin and I are secretly together?”

“Basically.” Eddie admitted.

“No wonder you didn’t believe me.” Steve scoffed. “Don’t worry my love I’ll set the record straight as soon as I can.” He snuggled Eddie closer and kissed his hair.

“You don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with Steve. Not for my sake.” He understood that it may be hard for Steve since he had only dated female omegas before. But his alpha just rolled his eyes.

“I’ll put an ad in the newspaper try me.” He laughed. “It’ll say something like: I, Steven Anthony Harrington am courting and plan to mate with the beautiful” he leaned over and nuzzled against Eddie’s scent gland causing the omega to giggle. “Wonderful, remarkable, one of a kind, Edward Wayne Munson.” He nipped lightly at his neck. “I will don’t tempt me.”

Light finally returned to Eddie’s eyes. “Thank you.” He whispered. Steve knew he was thanking him for much more but Steve didn’t want him to feel grateful that Steve treated him like a worthy partner.

“No thanks necessary. I’m not going to hide any more okay? In fact, close your eyes.” he said. When Eddie did so, he reached into his pocket to pull something out that he fastened around Eddie’s pale throat and kissed him softly. “Open.”

Eddie opened his eyes and gasped. It was the most unique courting gift he’d ever received. Pure silver because he mentioned to Steve once that it was his favorite precious metal. The pendant was a perfect copy of his warlock with small rubies creating the red lightening. As he took a closer look, he realized the neck of the guitar was actually Steve’s nail bat. It was the perfect combination of them.

His chest no longer felt tight and his nose tickled as his blood orange scent began pouring out of his scent gland. It was faint, but it was there. Steve beamed and pushed his nose to the source and took a big inhale. “Thank you, Alpha. I accept your request to court.” Eddie said in the traditional manner. He pulled away. “I’ll give you something I scented in return once it gets back to normal.” Eddie promised. Steve nodded and pulled him into another kiss. This one was more heated and while Eddie did feel better and the sickness was receding, he wasn’t ready to go very far. He leaned back slightly but stayed close so the alpha knew he was okay. “Is it alright, if we take it slow?” He couldn’t meet his eyes.

“Whatever you need.” Steve said tilting his head up. “What ever you want. It’s yours.” He said more like an oath than a promise.

“I threw away your yellow sweater. I’m sorry. I know it was your favorite.” He admitted ashamed. Steve slid away and for a second Eddie thought he was leaving, but before he could let out a single noise of protest he was getting hit in the face with soft cotton. In his hands was the best thing he'd ever seen.

“Wayne said he saw you throw it away and figured you were just upset.” Eddie smiled.

“He knows me so well.”

“I’d hope so, he is your dad and all.” Steve said. “Speaking of, I’d like to formally ask him to court you. I know you already said yes, but it’s traditional to ask an omega’s parent.” Eddie beamed.

“You really do love me, don’t you?” He asked.

“I do. I love you so much. I want to court you and mate with you. I want to see you round with my pups.” Steve replied and laid down pulling Eddie with him. “I want us to smell like one another so there’s no mistaking who we belong to.”

“How long have you had this necklace by the way?” Eddie asked the pendant clutched in his hand.

“Since right after spring break.” He admitted. At Eddie’s raised eyebrows he sheepishly said “I told you, I’ve wanted to court you for a long time.”

The two talked a bit more about their insecurities and about Eddie’s past trauma with alphas. When the alpha that hurt him came up again, Steve growled. “Give me a name.” The fire in his eyes would have scared Eddie if it was directed at him. But at the moment, it may have made him a bit slick. He’d never had an alpha want to protect him like this.

“If I tell you, can you promise you won’t do anything crazy?” Eddie asked.

“No.” Steve said. “I promised no lies.” He defended at Eddie’s snort.

“You did, you did. Okay, just promise you’ll be careful.” Steve agreed to that and motioned for Eddie to continue. “It was Tommy Hagan my first senior year.” He admitted. The scent of burning woods filled the his nostrils.

“When?” Steve growled. Had he still been friends with Tommy?

“We started courting in August. The heat we spent together was in November.”

“You were the omega he couldn’t shut up about?” Steve asked. Eddie shrugged.

“I guess. Weird that he couldn’t shut up about me when he cheated on me with Carol.” Eddie said meekly. The faint blood orange Eddie was finally emitting was turning sour and he was trying to pump out calming omega pheromones to calm Steve, but it didn’t seem to be working well due to the dull nature of it.

“Sorry, sorry.” Steve said as he willed himself to calm down. “It’s not important right now.” He stood and pulled Eddie to his feet.

“What is important is getting you checked out by a doctor. Let’s let Wayne know and we can go okay?” Steve asked. Eddie nodded and the two got dressed with some difficulty since they refused to let go of each other. Steve wore his yellow sweater so it would smell like him again and Eddie pulled on his favorite band tee. On their way out of the trailer they wrote a note for Wayne and Steve walked Eddie to the passenger side. He opened the door and kept a firm hand in Eddie’s until he was seated. Eddie watched on amused as Steve practically sprinted around the car so they could spend the least amount apart as possible.

~ ~~

At the hospital, the Doctor that saw him last time was able to see him again. “Eddie, this one could have killed you if your alpha hadn’t come when he did. To help you get back on your feet it’ll be good for the two of you to spend the next 48 to 72 hours together. Now for cases like yours we have a new type of medication that can stop rejection sickness from getting worse once it starts. I’m giving you a prescription for that. And I want you to go back to taking the preventive ones for a while.” He looked between the two men knowingly. “I’d say until you’ve mated. After that, you should be okay to stop them. But, keep the emergency one on you at all times. It could be the difference between life and death.” He said before leaving them with a nurse. She gave Eddie some fluids in an IV that were supposed to help him return to normal and then they were on their way.

“So, what now?” Eddie asked. Steve took his hand again.

“Let me take you out on the town? Then we can go back to the trailer and cuddle?” He asked. Eddie blushed and his blood orange scent finally filled the car in full force.

"I'd like that."

@v3lv3tf0x @lexirosewrites Final part!

That's a wrap on this one. But I do have plans to write some Robin POV and what Steve does the next time he sees Tommy.

[forget-meabh-not]

our dad had a stroke. So,, yeah. Not doing so great. since I’m left at home alone. With no caretakers. Yay.

I can’t bring myself to care that he had a stroke. He hurt us so bad all of our life. Does that make us a bad person ? If it does then we are fine with that.

[sirius-duck17]

I'm thinking of writing an Orion Black centric fanfic. It's going to be set after Walburga dies. Regulus and Sirius both escaped the house but they're back at 12 Grimmauld Place for the funeral. They find a letter in a locked drawer in Orion's office. It details him apologising for what he let Walburga put them through and tells them about how he was fourteen when he was told he was to be wed to his cousin four years older than him, even if they didn't marry until they were in their twenties and both out of school. It also tells of a boyfriend that he had in Hogwarts and how he's glad that they are able to be with their loves, even if he never was able to be. (This will have wolfstar and jegulus or jegulily). It will also tell them about how he often tried to take punishments for them, which resulted in his body becoming frail (which explains why he was timid and tired looking all the time). (I'm not sure if this bit makes sense but it might make more sense when written)

It may also tell them of how his death happened and other things but I haven't decided yet.

Would anyone read this or is the world not ready for a sympathetic Orion story?

[cr1ms0n4nd-ac3]

My new Omori AU explained in 1 second:

[yuricin]

any parent who knows that their spouse/partner is abusing their kid and still defends the abuse and chooses them over their own kid should just get buried in a ditch, honestly.

you had a job as a parent to fucking protect your kid, but you betrayed them by siding with the person who hurt them, when your kid came to you for COMFORT, HELP, AND SUPPORT. you see a child being abused, and your first reaction is, "my partner is doing it, so it's fine."

you chose a shitty person over your kid's safety. this shit makes kids grow up to have trust issues, fear of abandonment, and a shit ton of other issues because their development got fucked up at a young age. all because of YOU. fuck you. you failed as a parent, and you shouldn't even be around kids in general.

[aftgficrec]

Anonymous asked: Is there any new Nicky and or/twinyard centred fics or any Kevin wymack bonding ones?

Or wymack parenting the other foxes?

Here’s part 2, Kevin bonding with Wymack under various circumstances! - S

NB: Nicky/twinyards centered fics here, parental Wymack here

also see…

Kevin & Wymack bonding here

changes by ParkeRose [Rated M, 15588 words, incomplete, last updated July 2024]

After Tetsuji Moriyama gives him up at the age of fourteen, Kevin Day goes to his father with one letter in his pocket and infinite hope in his heart.

dreams fall hard by cloudberrysoda [Rated T, 1979 words, complete, 2024]

Part 2 of human behavior (do as you please)

"You look like shit, kid." Kevin talks to his dad (and accidentally reveals too much). Set during vanilla baby. Read that first

tw: implied/referenced alcohol abuse

These Green Eyes (Hers, Yours) by maydaykevin [Rated G, 1649 words, complete, 2024]

Kevin and David share a quiet moment.

tw: implied/referenced abuse

stamps by mostly_micro (mostly_maudlin) [Rated G, 100 words, complete, 2024]

The first arrives a week after Wymack gets home.

a lot's gonna change by neverlyxox [Rated T, 7347 words, complete, 2023]

Kevin started going to therapy at the beginning of the fall semester. It hadn’t been his idea, nor was he particularly happy about it. He could barely talk to the Foxes about his issues– and when he did, he definitely wasn’t sober– so how was he supposed to talk to a total stranger about it?

tw: alcohol abuse

boiling alive (at least it's what it feels like) by redinmyveins [Rated G, 1031 words, complete, 2023]

Part 2 of by the end of the day, we only have ourselves

Kevin Day is the best, but unfortunately his immunity system isn't and he ends up with the worst flu he ever had. By the way, that's also the first time David Wymack has to deal with the feeling of caring about someone of his kids sick. More specifically, his kid. His son. Or the first time David Wymack experiences one of the first experiences of being a parent: Having to take care of your kid when he's sick.

tw: negative self talk

one is chance, two is coincidence, and three's a pattern, (but let’s stop at two, okay?) by mistyrie [Rated M, 11396 words, complete, 2023]

It's the summer after winning championships when David Wymack gets a rude wake-up call. Apparently, an old acquaintance of his has passed and left behind a son in her wake — a son who may turn out to be David's... Another Kevin, so to say - and just as he and David are starting to figure it out together. – Because if it happened once, then why wouldn't it a second time?

tw: implied/referenced child abuse, tw: implied/referenced alcohol abuse/alcoholism

loveless is no way to live by orphan_account [Rated T, 5934 words, complete, 2021]

just kevin crying, really (+ wymack trying to be a good dad)

tw: anxiety, tw: emotional isolation, tw: implied/referenced abuse, tw: emotional abuse, tw: ptsd, tw: nervous breakdown

i’m so sorry, dad by grievingfortheliving [Not Rated, 1215 words, complete, 2021, locked]

The missing scene where Wymack learns he has a son

Tapes by Marmeladeskies [Rated G, 781 words, complete, 2019]

Wymack declutters and finds an old VHS tape.

Kevin’s call to Wymack at thanksgiving by @ninyard [tumblr, 2024]

it’s such a good reason as to why i could put him on the stand. like perfect kevin day trying to explain why he’d seen a dead body and called wymack before anything else? and how that phone call went as well? what if they played it?

tw: implied/referenced rape/noncon, tw: implied/referenced murder

NB: this is on ao3 as ‘i'll call you back’ by minyard03, recced here

When team USA wins Olympic Gold for the first time… by @exy-shmexy [tumblr, 2023]

Art

like father, like son 🫶 by @deklo

wymack and lil kevin 🫶 by @deklo

Wymack and Kevin’s first Christmas by @jojen-hewitt

[4qu3er1us-punk]

one of the worst feelings is your parents not understanding.

“mom, im trans”

“i dont know about that, you dress pretty feminine”

until then i had essentially no masc clothing or anything and i was bullied for being ugly so i wore makeup. like

“mom, i think i have an eating disorder because i hate eating and am never hungry”

“is it because you wanna be skinny? do you not eat to be skinny? youre already skinny youve always been picky.”

it used to be because i thought i was fat when i was like 8 and it’s evolved into this since then but is no longer for that reason..

“mom i think im depressed. (explains symptoms of severe depression and borderline suicidal ideation but doesnt go into it or my hidden self harming because she’d be mad)”

“thats normal.”

what the fuck. also i got diagnosed so that shut her up

“mom can i go out with friends?”

“no. it doesnt matter that EVERYONE IN YOUR GRADE has had a sleepover before or gone to their friends houses or can go to a park a BLOCK AWAY from their house, their parents are crazy. besides you have to eat first its not my fault you refuse to eat”

so every parent of a high schooler in the world? and then she expects me to be PERFECT and happy but not hyper happy just not sad and mature and respectful and get straight a’s. also mom im not hungry and gave you a chance to look into it but fucking fine.

fine.

im. done.

im not gonna 💀 but im just done talking. im not talking unless im interacted with first anymore. im not doing anything other than exactly what she says anymore. i wont talk to my friends or do extracurriculars, just school. i will become a literal npc, since thats what she wants. she wont even call me her son or male terms, she rarely uses he/him and just uses they them, and on occasion calls me my preferred name rather than sis. she still calls me my deadname sometimes. she compares it to if she changed her name to lisa and i had to call her that. the difference is its not for mental health and safety and I WOULD DO IT CORRECTLY. is this toxic or am i dramatic? i just cant do it anymore.

[iciatheguardess]

Icia opens her eyes, blinking uncomfortably to the bright light around her.

She groans a little, rubbing her back as she stretches out in the hardly padded chair. Compared to how she remembers falling asleep- in a large, cozy bed with a warm comforter, wrapped in Lance's arms- she feels as if she had been sleeping on rocks.

Icia stands, cracking her back with a wince and rubbing her eyes until she can properly see around..... the sight makes her blood run cold.

A hospital.

Icia feels her stomach churn and heart race until she glances down. The floor is clean and enough for her to vaguely see her reflection.... not a single piece of ice holding her to the ground. Not a single speck of frost sparkling on her socks.

Icia relaxes just slightly. This is a dream, thank goodness. She's still disturbed and afraid, anxious as always, and she's probably frozen both Lance and at least one of the cats to the bed, but at least this all is just a dream.

Balling her fists and closing her eyes, Icia tries to wake up. If she focuses enough, she'll wake up, and maybe she'll be able to break out of the ice and get the bed dried up before Lance wakes up...

A few seconds. Nothing. A minute. Nothing. A couple more minutes, and still nothing.

Why isn't this working? Icia thinks, lips pursing in frustration. I always wake up after a few seconds, a minute at most. Come on, come on, I have to.... to...

.... wait.... why am I even here?

Good question. Icia's dreams mostly- no, always took place in either a forest, clouds, a coastal city, a house, the Kingdom, or her favorite: anywhere with her loved ones. The bright, modern hospital was none of those, and Icia found herself alone in the hall that stretched so far it faded into a haze in both directions.

There are a couple chairs along the walls, open for equipment or rolling carts or doors. Icia notes that all the doors are blocked out with blinds, and more than likely locked...

Except for the closest door. The one next to the chair she woke up in. It's wide open, to... well, a hospital room. Nothing special. Icia peers inside.... the room is somewhat dimmer than the hall, a welcome sight for her slightly strained eyes. All she can see at the moment is the window ahead of her, blinds rolled up to show the tips of empty branches against the pitch black sky.

She steps inside and peers around the corner. The room is quite a bit bigger than she expected, or maybe that's because there's nothing in the room except a single empty bed and monitor. But someone stands out among the white, blank interior.

"Starro??"

He whips around, stumbling back and crashing into the monitor. It clangs against the wall, a stray wire getting caught around part of his leg, which prompts him to jerk it forward. Before Icia knows it, Starro is on the ground with the monitor on the ground next to him, and a wire around his leg.

"Ow.... I'm- I'm okay... fuck, that hurt more than I thought it would..." Starro groans, grabbing blindly until his hand catches the wire and he throws it off. Icia kneels down in front of him, helping him stand up.

"Are you sure you're not hurt?"

"Yeah, I'm sure... just didn't expect to see you here."

Icia starts to question this 'dream' of hers. Starro seems a bit too.... real. She notes that her senses aren't hazy as they are in normal dreams. He feels real. The cold ground feels real. Everything feels real..... too real.

"I didn't expect to be here."

"Yeah.... I don't know what's going on either. But this dream, it just... it's... different."

"It feels oddly similar to being transported to the kingdom by magic, in my opinion. It all feels uncomfortably real, but not all certain either..."

"Yeah. Kinda."

Icia looks her friend up and down... Starro doesn't meet her eye, rather looking at the bed to their side. His stars, all of them, are a deep, ocean blue... a vivid hue Icia's seldom seen. It causes her worry to grow once again.

"Where are we?" She asks.

"Hospital."

Icia internally curses herself for asking such an obvious question.

"... why are we here?"

Starro remains silent for, maybe 10 seconds at most. It feels more like 10 minutes.

".... I dunno."

His voice cracks, and he visibly swallows back a cry or sob. Icia reaches forward and takes his hand, causing him to glance back in her direction.

"Starro.... what's going on...?"

"... I don't know. You're never here before."

"Before? Is... this a dream of yours? Are... is this something recurring?"

"S-sometimes...." He looks down, sniffling and trembling.

Icia takes his other hand and leans down a bit to try and meet his eyes. She doesn't know what to ask, or what to say... so she stands in silence and waits for Starro to say something else, anything else.

Eventually, he looks up at the dim-ish ceiling light, shakily sighing. "God, where do I even start...?"

"Here, let's.. take a seat and talk. Hm?" Icia motions to the bed. It looks comfortable to sit down on, considering there're no seats in the room, but Starro sinks to the ground and hugs his knees tight. Alright, that works too, I suppose... She kneels down as well.

Starro stares down at the ground, clearly trying to figure out how to say this or even start. Icia waits patiently, hands no longer holding his and rather one on his shoulder. He always does seem to do better with physical affection.

"... yeah. This is my dream.....a memory."

"Are you comfortable saying what it is...? What usually happens...?"

He swallows again. "... it varies. But it's always in this room. Sometimes, there's someone in the bed. Sometimes I'm just... just folding sheets."

Icia nods a bit.

"..... I kind of wish you could remember this place too. You weren't here, though."

".... what exactly is that supposed to mean? Starro??"

Icia stares at him, perplexed and surprised. He looks back at her with tears streaking down his stars.

"......."

".... Starro.... please- tell me what's going on.... what do you mean I wasn't there?"

"You were missing."

"Missing...??? What do you mean?"

The hospital around them suddenly changes and morphs.... as if adding water to a painting, the colors and shapes twist and contort until the room has fully changed. It's.... a meeting room?

Icia suddenly stands, looking around anxiously. Definitely some kind of meeting room... and judging by the emblem on the wall, a police meeting room.

Starro notices the room as well, holding himself tighter. This place definitely holds some bad memories....

Before Icia can ask, she hears yelling from outside. Very loud, very muffled, very angry yelling. Starro squeezes his hands over his ears, he doesn't want to hear any more.

Icia walks to the door and presses her ear against it. Curses be to the twisted non-logic of the dream world, it doesn't help the clarity of the argument.... but she does manage to catch a few sentences.

"Mia, love, please...."

"DON'T YOU 'Mia, love' ME!!! --------.... ------- GOD WILL BRING HER HOME, SAFE AND SOUND!!!"

Icia freezes. The voices sound..... oddly familiar. But from where...?

...... are they.... talking about.... me?

She looks back at Starro, who's still shaking and trying his damndest to block out the yelling. But before she can get to him, a speck of blue on the table catches her eye.

She only has to scan the picture on the file for a second before she recognizes it. She recognizes the tan skin, the bandana, the blue-and-black hair and the scar under her left eye.

The girl from the mirror room.

Her.

The screaming fades into nothing more than a hollow ringing in Icia's ears as her stomach begins aching once again and adrenaline shoots up. Why is her picture on this file? What even is this place? What does Starro know?

She exhales shakily. She has to know.

".... Starro."

He doesn't say anything or move.

"Tell me why we're here."

"......"

She starts asking more questions.

"What do you mean I'm missing?"

"....."

"Who's yelling outside?"

"...."

"What do you know that I don't?"

"..."

".... who are you?"

".."

".... who am I?"

".... Vivian...."

Icia looks back at the folder, reaching out with a trembling hand. The picture slowly slides off as she opens the page....

Only to be met with yet another picture of the same girl. And a caption.

"Vivianna Lucia Marino"

Icia stares at the girl in the picture.... if her face wasn't as horror stricken as it is, she may have confused it for a reflection.

If.... this is me.... and.... does that mean..... I'm.... Vivianna? No.... that doesn't sound right....

Vivian? Am I Vivian?

*ding*

[MEMORIES STATUS: RESTORED.]

Icia's eyes widen as the realization kicks in and she snaps back. They're no longer in the meeting room, but rather, a house. Specifically, a small and homely kitchen. Starro stands up, confused about the new location.

"...... this was our home......" Icia whispers, lips curling into a tiny smile. She drags her hands over the wood counters and checkered towels draped over the oven handle. The overhead lights flicker slightly, although it's hardly noticeable among the fake candles illuminating each corner.

She recognizes this place from some of her dreams, dreams of cleaning and laughter, and delicious food....... but also dreams of yelling. Fighting. Screaming. A defensive feeling, almost like walking on eggshells, pools through Icia's whole system.

Her fingers brush against a metal picture frame on the counter, and she picks it up.... this picture has always been blurry before. But now, it's so clear.

A family photo, on a beach seemingly. The mother of the photo stands tall and proud, with piercing eyes and a short haircut, an older man behind her. His glasses are a bit crooked, and his smile is meek.

But who Icia notices the most are the two teenagers with their mother's arms around their shoulders: an older girl and a younger boy. The girl is undoubtedly Vivian, given the blue hair and bandana... the boy looks somewhat similar, with black hair and a freckled grin so big you'd think it's his birthday.

Memories flood Icia's mind as the puzzle slowly completes itself. She looks towards Starro, unable to see the tears in his eyes through her own.

"..... I'm Vivian...."

He nods.

"And that means.... you're...."

"... Tonio.....?"

He nods again, choking on a sob. She sees a streak of yellow flash through his stars, only to be immediately washed out by deep blue.

"I've wanted to tell you for so long..."

Icia tries to keep her voice from trembling as much as her hands.

"How long have you known?"

"Since Raina..."

"Tonio, you should've told me you knew."

"I‐ I didn't know how...." He buries his face in his hands, failing to wipe away the tears pouring down his face. "I was so... fucking stuck on the idea that I'd know my sister when I saw her, but when... when the thing with Raina happened.... I heard you.... and I heard me.... and we were talking. In the real world. As Viv and Antonio.

"I knew it meant something.... and I kinda pieced it together.... but after the talk during the festival, and what I said..... I.... I couldn't bring myself to do it. Y-you've been right here the whole time Viv. You... you knew. You fucking knew, that's why you called me your brother from the start, isn't it?"

Icia's heart cracks a bit more as sobs escape Starro.

"I can't believe I didn't see it from the start, I was so stupid... this whole fucking time, the only reason I came here was to bring you home, and you were here the whole damn time-"

"Wait. Hold on a minute."

Icia sets down the picture and walks over to him, barely holding back tears. "Tonio, you came here for me...?"

Starro nods timidly.

"How long was I missing?!"

".... four years, by the time I left."

"But everything you worked for!!! The choir, the dance team, the theater, color guard, gymnastics- what about it?!"

"Ma pulled me out of it all."

"I thought Dad was funding it all, though! He had that say, not her!!!"

A few seconds of silence go by before Starro breaks down, gripping Icia's arms.

"Papa didn't make it, Viv. His heart couldn't take it. He died a couple years after you disappeared."

Icia feels her heart sink as the tears breach her eyes. She clutches her stomach with one hand and tries to hold Starro up with the other, although failing as her knees buckle and she falls to the ground. The kitchenscape around her starts to break, large black cracks tearing through the walls and cabinets.

".... Antonio, stop lying to me, no he didn't. He didn't, he didn't, he didn't, STOP LYING TO ME. PAPA IS ALIVE. HE'S WAITING FOR US, HE'S WAITING, HE'S... he's..."

Starro's sobs grow into wails as he shakes his head, unable to form words as he hugs Icia. She stares ahead blankly, tears racing down her face and soaking into Starro's fur. Her mind is numb with sudden grief, refusing to believe he's actually gone.

".... g-gone.... he's gone Vivian..."

He must be. Antonio never lied about death. And he'd certainly never lie about their father.

"..... I didn't even get to say goodbye...." She whispers, hands making their way over and around Starro. She pulls him in tighter, feeling the room grow tighter as chips and pieces of the dream fly off into oblivion.

"Everything got worse when you left for your stupid job," he cries. "I couldn't stop Ma and Dad from arguing. Not like you. She was so sure you would come back, that God would bring you home..."

Icia clenches her teeth. "Isn't that just like her..."

"She wouldn't listen. Dad wanted to stop searching after the first year. It was killing us all, and he knew it. She wouldn't listen to him. We all were fighting daily. I did everything to distract myself from you... drinks, parties, sex, all of it... that got me kicked off some teams.

"And then Dad just..... died. And Ma was so done with him by that point that she couldn't even stand my face, so she took all her anger for him out on me. She forced me out of everything else I was in. She tried sending me to some conversion camp. Tried taking all of my clothes because I wasn't enough of a man, 'just like my papa'. She did everything to try and just.... strip me of me, and replace you."

Icia can barely focus on his words, she's trying too hard to not be sick.

"... wh.... what happened next?"

"... I sent Ma to a dementia home. She tried attacking me, kept calling me by our Dad's name, and said she never wanted to see me again. And.... one of the few friends I had left told me about something I could buy from the black market. A headset. From C&A."

Icia nods.... she sees where this is going.

Starro tries to continue through painful sobs and wheezes as he struggles to catch his breath.

"I had to find you, Viv, I had to bring you home. Ma was gone. Dad was gone. You were gone. Everyone I lived for was gone, I couldn't stay around bearing the weight of not knowing where you were. If I was going to do anything with myself, I was going to find you and maybe get you home."

The walls of the kitchen and house completely rip away into the void, leaving only the floor that the two are laying on. Tile after tile, the space shrinks.

"I'm so sorry Vivian, I didn't want it to be like this, I should have stopped you from ever going to work for these monsters who took you and ripped our family apart...."

Icia pulls back from the hug and reaches forward, taking her brother's cheek and wiping some tears away. He jumps a bit, shocked, as she shakes her head sadly.

"It's not your fault, Tonio. None of this is your fault. You have nothing to apologize for..."

"..... I could have done so much more though."

"You were a child. You weren't even 15 when I went under."

"........"

She gives him a bittersweet smile as she feels the tiles directly around them start to give way.

"..... it's just us now, Viv. It's just us two. And we aren't even in the real world, we're just.... here."

".... I know."

Starro looks down at the few tiles keeping them up in the pitch black before looking at Icia again.

".... We're never going home, are we....?"

She shakes her head, tears soaking into her skirt as she smiles more.

"Oh Tonio, I don't think you get it.... there is a difference between a house and a home. A home has our family. Our friends. Our loves. Our safety. Our comfort. This is... only a house now."

He tilts his head a bit, as only 2 tiles remain.

"What do you mean....?"

Icia's smile grows bright and genuine through her tears as she squeezes his hand right before they fall.

"I mean we're already home, Tonio."

The remaining tiles fly out from underneath both people, and they start falling through the void.

Icia's panic once again sets in as she doesn't dare let Starro go. The two fall through the endless expanse, spinning, plummeting faster, and faster, and faster....

.... until Icia wakes up with a scream.

Her eyes don't need to adjust to the dark for her to see mounds and mounds of ice everywhere... it's all over Lance, all over the sheets, under Icia, it looks as if she had a proper mental breakdown just now.

Which, Icia supposes she did.

She feels her tearstained face with one hand and breaks ice off of Lance with the other... he stirs slightly, but doesn't wake up. Of course he wouldn't wake up....

That's not her concern right now though. She needs to find Starro. She doesn't care that it's the middle of their agreed upon 'nighttime', she needs to find her brother now. Knowing him, if he's woken up as well then he has the exact same idea as her.

Icia gets up and grabs her cape. The ice over her pajamas certainly doesn't help with her shivering, as she slips her feet into the first pair of shoes she sees (aka, a pair of slippers that belongs to Lance) and gets ready to leave.

She pauses before she does so however, and looks back at Lance. The majority of that ice is going to melt and make a mess.... even if more of it dries by the time he wakes up, there's no way all of this will be fully gone by the time he does.

Icia rummages around as quietly as she can for everything. A dry comforter and sheets, a hairdryer, and all the towels she can find. She sets them all on the least iced piece of furniture in the room- her vanity chair- before writing a note. Even in the dark, she knows exactly what to write.

"I'll try and be home before you wake up. If not, here is everything you may need to clean up (although hopefully, when you do, most of it will have evaporated). I had a breakdown and iced the room. I'm sorry, but I need to find Starro. If you need me, I will be with him. Ti amo, mio re. I will be home soon, take care.

Love, Icia"

Icia leaves the note open on top of the stack of towels before hurrying down the stairs, not caring to keep her footsteps quiet as she goes downstairs with a towel. She gives it to both cats (who are soaking wet from melted ice) and makes sure they're alright before finally leaving her house, closing the door, and racing towards the circus tent.

[furiousgoldfish]

Abusive parents will be like, hey why don't we make it a hobby to trigger our child's fight or flight response? Or even better, let's just have the child in hypervigilant mode at all time? Because they never know when the violence is coming??? Perfect.