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brunette-barbie4562 · 1 month ago

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Uncharted (Duff McKagan X OC fic)

Summary: Unsure of her next steps in life, Carreen Joy "CJ" Thompson finds herself taking a job working under the Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan during the Not in the Lifetime... Tour. She faces the fast-paced and foreign world of rock n' roll, touring, and groupies, as well as blossoming taboo feelings for her boss.

Trigger warnings: Sex, mentions of drug use, mentions of child abuse/neglect

March 2018

Mindy’s House / Redding, California

CJ woke up abruptly, eyes wide open and scanning her bedroom. It was Saturday morning, the clock read 8:12 A.M. She turned to see Jess lying next to her, facing away and still asleep. It had been the soundest sleep CJ had had in a long time. She always slept better with someone next to her. While she felt well rested, the abruptness in which she had awoken was odd. She was always slow to wake, unless she had had a nightmare. She slowly sat up and quickly realized what had brought her out of sleep. There was a familiar but strong and unpleasant odor permeating the room. She started to gag and got up to find the source of the smell. She pulled open her bedroom door, the stench hitting her twice as hard.

She pulled her shirt up over her nose and quickly walked to the kitchen, the sound of sizzling increasing. Michelle stood facing the stove, cooking something in a pan. She heard CJ walk in and turned to her, spatula in hand.

“Morning,” said Michelle, “Want some bacon?” She moved aside to reveal several strips of bacon cooking on the pan. CJ had never minded bacon; she’d typically eat it if it was being made but she didn’t go out of her way to have it. The smell had never affected her in the way that it was in that moment. She wanted to ask Michelle to stop cooking it and open all the windows.

“I’m good,” she said, backing away into the hallway. When she returned to her bedroom, she quickly began to open all the windows. As she was doing so, Jess sat up in the bed.

“Is that bacon?” asked Jess, picking up on the scent still wafting in from the kitchen.

“It is,” said CJ, “And the smell is killing me.”

“Baby doesn’t like bacon?”

“Apparently not,” said CJ, standing by the window to get fresh air.

“Well, get dressed and we’ll head to the diner for breakfast.” There was a small cozy diner five minutes away from Mindy’s house that she and Jess frequented back in their college days.

They got dressed to go and twenty minutes later, they were walking into the small diner. The smell of freshly brewing coffee and cinnamon rolls cleansed CJ of any leftover discomfort from the bacon scent that had nauseated her that morning. They slid into a booth in the back corner of the room.

“I won’t order anything with bacon,” said Jess with a small smile, picking up the menu. After they had ordered, CJ shrugged her jacket off in the booth and settled in.

“So, when are you gonna start your house or apartment hunt?” asked Jess. They had never finished their conversation last night before they had passed out.

“As soon as I can,” said CJ. “I figured I’d start searching around online for places up for rent. I only have so much time before it’ll become obvious,” She lightly touched her stomach. “I’ve also thought about going back to school, but I don’t think it’ll be realistic for awhile now. I can’t enroll in the fall with a newborn and there aren’t any schools around here with the program I’d need.”

“I’d say you could come stay with me,” said Jess, “There’s probably a school in Portland that has what you’re looking for. But I’m still in that little one bedroom.” CJ paused thoughtfully, thinking about her potential options.

“I have a nest egg I was gonna use for school, but I’ll need it for the baby and living expenses. If I get a place around here and stay for a year or two and continue to work, I can save up a bit more for a move and school expenses. But I’d still have to find a job that paid enough to cover daycare and living costs wherever I ended up.” said CJ. “I think I’m gonna get a second job now at night and save up faster.”

“Just don’t overdo it,” said Jess.

“I could do waitressing again, like I did in college. Tips were always great,” she said, her mind drifting to all of the restaurants with ‘help wanted’ signs in the windows of downtown Redding.

“I still think you should go after him for support, make him give you one of his houses,” said Jess. CJ zoned out as she sipped on her water, thinking back several months ago to when she and Duff stayed at his condo in Hawaii.

“I really don’t know how to pick a good one can I?” she said with a small laugh, thinking of her short but shitty list of past relationships.

“We all make mistakes,” said Jess. “Don’t punish yourself.”

“The terrible part is I still miss him, even if I don’t want to.”

May 2017

Four Seasons Hotel Ritz Lisbon

CJ looked over the small chalkboard menu of gelato that stood leaned up against the large cart, knowing that she was already going to pick chocolate. She stood behind Tate, who was placing his own order. She took her wallet out of her pocket, pulling out a few Euros to pay with.

“It’s on me,” said Tate, pulling out his own wallet. CJ awkwardly shoved her wallet back in her pocket and took her cup of chocolate gelato from the attendant. Tate looked around, in search of the others.

“Let’s go sit and wait,” said Tate, gesturing to a small park across the street. They took a seat on one of the benches. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm with a slight breeze.

“So, tell me more about yourself,” said Tate, watching her dig into her cup of gelato. “Where are you from?” She looked up at him, suddenly self-conscious about being watched by him while she ate. She was momentarily mesmerized by his bright blue eyes before speaking up.

“Redding, California,” said CJ, “What about you?”

“Pheonix, Arizona originally,” said Tate, “Then my family moved to Pittsburgh when I was a teenager, and I moved back west as an adult to LA. I’ve been living in LA for years,” said Tate.

“Hey, I spent some time in Pennsylvania as a kid,” said CJ.

“Where at?” She paused, feeling like she had overshared.

“I actually don’t remember, somewhere in the mountains,” she said. Her time in Pennsylvania had been brief, but painful. She had not met very many people there and largely had no positive connections. The majority of people that she did meet were random adults that came to the house to buy drugs. She stayed out of their way, always anticipating that they’d have poor intentions. However, there had been a couple of adults that had taken pity on her and tried to help.

The summer of 1997 was coming to a close. It was evident that school was back in. As CJ sat on a fallen tree behind her house, she watched a big yellow school bus drive by, going around the bend of the road and disappearing into the trees as it rode on. She hopped down and began to follow the thin path through the bushes that she had blazed over the time she had been living there. A chill blew through the forest, making her shiver in her thin T-shirt and shorts. She didn’t want summer to end. She wanted it to be warm all of the time, so that her bedroom would never get cold. Sometimes at night, she’d sneak downstairs and sit in front of her mother’s space heater that she kept running in her and Stephen’s bedroom.

The trail came to an end and opened up to a large creek, where she often spent her time wading barefoot or looking at the small creatures that populated the water and the surrounding flora. She looked back, her house far behind her now, no longer visible through the trees. She occasionally thought about running away. She could run all the way back to her aunt’s house in California. But it seemed like a daunting journey. She needed a car to get there and an adult to drive. It would have to be a good adult, someone who wouldn’t hurt her. And in her short life experience, those were uncommon.

CJ turned back to face the creek, waiting for her friend to emerge from the trees. A friend. Her new and only friend. A few weeks ago, CJ had come across a boy her age, playing in her creek. It shocked her into silence. She hadn’t seen or spoken to another child in a long time. Not only due to a lack of schooling, but because their house was so isolated, sitting on the side of a mountain, alongside a two-lane road in the middle of the forest. She had almost forgotten what her own voice sounded like. The boy had tried to speak to her, but she had run away.

The second time they met, she was already sitting at the creek, sticking her feet in the cool water. She didn’t run and she let him speak. His name was Dylan, he was also 8 years old, and he lived in the neighborhood on the other side of the woods. She didn’t talk back, but he had sat with her, collecting rocks from the creek-bed. After several days of this silence, with only Dylan telling her about his family, their recent move from New York, and his excitement about being in a new school, CJ finally spoke up. They became fast friends. Once Dylan had to go back to school, she had to wait for him to be back in the afternoon. They’d play for an hour before he had to go back home to start homework.

A rustling in the bushes announced Dylan’s presence as he walked out of the trees.

“Hey,” she said, “How was school?”

“It was great!” said Dylan, “We had our first gym class!” CJ was always eager to ask Dylan about school, living vicariously through him. He contrasted her in how clean he looked and his clothing was intact and washed. His skin was unblemished, whereas bruises covered hers. But he didn’t seem to care about her condition.

CJ felt secretive about Dylan, worried her mother or Stephen would catch her speaking to someone. Her mother was always so paranoid about outsiders, putting curtains in every window, afraid someone could see inside or smell the ammonia and figure out what was taking place in the basement.

CJ and Dylan did their usual afternoon activities, collecting rocks, climbing trees, attempting to build a stick fort. CJ felt disappointment set in as she realized it was almost time for Dylan to leave.

“Do you want to come eat? You can come see my house.” CJ perked up at the mention of food.

“Yes!” she said eagerly.

CJ followed him back through the woods, into unfamiliar territory, beyond where she had explored. The landscape was foreign to her, and she stayed close to Dylan, not wanting to get lost in the thick growth. Suddenly, they were out of the trees. A large three-story house with a big back deck stood before her across the manicured, green lawn. The yard had a couple of play sets and was full of toys, luxuries she had seen, but rarely been able to indulge in.

“Come on!” said Dylan, running towards the house. They climbed the stairs of the back deck and Dylan pulled open the back sliding door. They walked into a large living room area with a cathedral ceiling. There were a range of comfy looking brown leather couches sitting in front of a big television. Like the yard, there were toys laying around, culminating in one corner that appeared to be the primary designated play area. CJ was in awe at how pristine and clean everything was. The wood floors were washed and shiny. A carpet that covered part of the living room was vacuumed and vibrant with color. Several pictures hung on the wall of a happy, smiling family, Dylan with his two parents and a younger sibling. The house was an open concept, with the living room attached to the kitchen. CJ was so captivated that she didn’t see the women standing in the kitchen when they had walked in. She stood at the counter, knife in hand, in the middle of chopping vegetables up on a cutting board.

“Hey Dyl, who’s this?” She smiled warmly at CJ, but the shock was evident in her eyes. She felt the woman scan her, taking in her unwashed and battered appearance and her small skeletal frame. CJ was also looking the woman up and down. She was shorter with blonde bob-cut hair, dressed in a long-sleeved blue dress. She exuded warmth and nurturance.

“This is my new friend I told you about,” said Dylan.

“Oh, CJ! Dylan has talked about you,” she said, placing her knife down. “Would you two like a snack?”

“Ya, thanks mom!” Dylan walked over to a small child-sized table set up against the end of the island in the kitchen. CJ stood still, feeling like she was in a parallel universe. Dylan’s mother opened a cabinet and pulled out a box of goldfish crackers. She placed two strips of paper towels down, one in front of Dylan and one by the empty chair across the table. She approached CJ, a smile still on her face.

“You can come sit sweetheart, have as much as you want, it’s ok.” CJ nodded and quietly walked over to the table. There was a pile of goldfish waiting for her on her paper towel. She slowly sat down and picked one up, putting it slowly into her mouth. The salty taste was so satisfying. She held it in her mouth for a moment, savoring it before chewing and swallowing. Her hunger was awoken, and she suddenly could not get enough, quickly stuffing as many crackers as possible into her mouth.

“Do you want something more?” asked Dylan’s mother, watching her with concern. CJ nodded as she finished off the last of her crackers. Soon, Dylan’s mother was placing a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in front of her. She ate this just as enthusiastically as she had the crackers.

Dylan’s mother came and sat at the table with them, looking somewhat comical in a too small children’s chair. CJ watched her as she continued to tear off pieces of her sandwich.

“So, CJ how old are you? You look like you and Dylan are the same age.” CJ paused from eating. Instead of vocalizing, she held up her hands with eight fingers.

“8-years-old! You and Dylan are the same age, but I don’t think you are in the same class. Do you go to school?” CJ shook her head, having gone back to stuffing her face.

“Where do you live?” CJ finally spoke up.

“That way,” she said, pointing in the direction of the woods.

“Who lives with you?”

“My mom,” said CJ. Her sandwich was gone, and she could feel and hear her stomach crying out for more. Dylan’s mother picked up on it.

“I’ll make you some more sandwiches to take with you, I just have to make a phone call,” she said, getting up from the chair. She walked through the kitchen and disappeared into a different room.

“Do you want to see my toys?” asked Dylan. CJ nodded and they got up from the table. She had never seen so many toys in one place and sat in awe, watching him begin to play. Dylan’s mother spent a long time in the room she had gone off to. CJ could hear her muffled voice from behind the door and thought she sounded upset. She began to become anxious that it was her presence that was upsetting. But when she came back out, she was still smiling and made CJ another sandwich. When it was time to go, CJ could see hesitation and anxiety in the woman’s eyes.

“I wish you didn’t have to leave,” she said. CJ wanted to tell her the same. She wondered if her mother would even notice her absence. She never usually did, but CJ had never stayed out past dark. With a grocery bag of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in hand, she made her way back through the woods, the setting sun casting long rays of lights across the brown ground. She had told Dylan and his mother that she’d be back to play, unaware that she would not be allowed out of the house again.

“Hey, you alright?” She heard Tate’s voice call out to her. Her mind had drifted away for a moment, back to Pennsylvania.

“Ya, sorry,” said CJ. She took another bite of her gelato, re-focusing and shifting the conversation to the present. “I live with my aunt in Redding. I graduated from California State in Sacramento a few years ago with a psychology degree. I’d like to go back to graduate school someday. Maybe after this and I’ve saved up some money.” Tate watched her for a moment longer.

“You got a boyfriend?” CJ was surprised by his forwardness and let out a laugh.

“No,” she said, “I’ve really just been focusing on myself since I graduated.” They made eye contact as he smiled at her, making her heart flutter. She looked away again to finish up the last of her gelato. Tate’s phone lit up in his hand and he opened it.

“Vanessa said to head over to the restaurant for lunch and she and other others will meet us there.”

The walk from the hotel was short but had felt long as CJ tried to quell her social anxiety about being around Vanessa, who had seemed unpleasant towards her from the moment they had met.

CJ took a seat next to Tate, hoping his close presence would make her more comfortable. Vanessa arrived ten minutes later, three other crew members in tow, one other woman and two men. Vanessa slid into the seat next to CJ while the others took seats across from her and Tate.

“CJ, you already know Vanessa, “said Tate, “This is Rachel, Seth, and Justin.”

“You’re Duff’s new assistant,” said Rachel, exchanging a quick glance with Vanessa. “I heard he brought on someone new.”

“Ya,” she said, trying to keep her nervousness from leaking into her tone.

“We’ll have to spend more time together,” said Rachel, exchanging another micro-glance with Vanessa. “There aren’t many other women employed on the team, we have to stick together.” CJ smiled and nodded in response, feeling somewhat relieved at Rachel’s words.

The waiter came to the table to take drink orders and CJ busied herself looking at the menu. She figured she’d order something light for lunch and get back to the hotel by the late afternoon to get things in order for the show the next day. As she was scanning the entrees she heard Rachel speak up to the group.

“So, what’s the tea,” she said, “what do you all got?”

“Jesus it’s a week in,” said Tate, “You guys are already starting?”

“Like you don’t enjoy it,” said Vanessa. Tate rolled his eyes. Rachel suddenly turned to CJ.

“You must really have all the info already, don’t you? Being a personal assistant and all.” She felt put on the spot.

“Info?”

“You know, gossip, about the big three.”

“The big three?”

“Axl, Slash, and Duff,” said Rachel. CJ realized they wanted her to give them dirt on the band members.

“I don’t know much,” said CJ. “Is there a lot to talk about usually?” They all began to laugh at her.

“Oh, there’s always something,” said Tate. “They may be sober and older but shit still goes on.”

“Don’t scare her,” laughed Vanessa, “You’ll shatter her image of Duff.”

“Over the last break I met somebody who used to hang around Sunset back in the day,” said Rachel. “She was a stripper and went to his house in the hills a few times, before he was married.”

“Before he was married the first, second, or third time?” asked Tate.

“After his first, before his second,” said Rachel. CJ had had no idea he had been married more than once. “She told me about how the parties would turn into wild, naked chaos by the end of the night. She ended up in his bed a few times with four or five other women. Fucking crazy. She spoke highly of him.” Rachel turned to Vanessa and continued, “But you know all about that don’t you?” Vanessa scoffed in an exaggerated and playful manner.

“I have no idea what you mean,” said Vanessa. CJ was trying to process everything that was being said, feeling incredibly uncomfortable.

“God, his last wife was bangin’,” said Tate. “Why did they split? Does anyone know?”

“’Cause of me,” said Vanessa in a loud and haughty tone, sitting up straighter and puffing herself up. Tate let out a loud laugh.

“You didn’t even know him then,” he said.

“I’m just kidding,” she waved him off “But he would’ve.” CJ just barely caught her last statement, as it was spoken in a lower tone. Suddenly, Vanessa turned towards her and said, “What do you think of him CJ?” Everyone turned to look at her.

“I uhhh…” she trailed off.

“You’re so quiet, isn’t she so quiet?” said Vanessa with a giggle. CJ’s face reddened in response to feeling pressured and she could feel Vanessa’s waiting gaze burning into her.

“He’s a nice boss,” she said.

“Awww you’re so cute,” said Vanessa condescendingly. “I think it’s so nice of Axl to just give you this summer job. It’ll be a cool little summer experience for you to tell your friends about back home.” Now CJ was certain Vanessa was being a bitch. It was also apparent that the circumstances of her being hired had spread around. She looked to Tate for some back up, hoping he would come to her aid. But he wasn’t paying attention, chatting off to the side with another crew member.

As the group continued to wait for food to be brought to the table, the conversation shifted towards Axl and his extracurricular activities during the tour. But CJ had lost focus, her mind still on Duff’s rumored escapades and her conversation with Vanessa.

CJ had lost her appetite and only nibbled at her lunch. Afterwards, the others insisted on doing some shopping. She wanted to say no but let herself be dragged along the sidewalk with the group. Her mind was still in another place when she realized Tate and the other two male crew members had wandered into a men’s clothing store, leaving her behind with Rachel and Vanessa. CJ walked behind them as they chatted.

“Ooooo, in there!” said Rachel, pointing out a store. It was a lingerie store, the windows displaying several mannequins dressed in beautiful glittering sets. The two women went inside, leaving her standing just inside the doorway of the store. She had no reason to buy any lingerie, and she didn’t have the money for it. Her first paycheck was about to hit her bank account, and she would be saving most of it rather than spending. She could justify using her work credit card for clothing, but not for underwear.

Keeping herself busy, she half-heartedly thumbed through a clearance rack that sat by the entrance. She couldn’t tune Vanessa and Rachel out as they loudly shopped further inside. She looked up to see Vanessa holding a lacy corset to her body for Rachel to see.

“Do you think he’d like this?” asked Vanessa. CJ didn’t wait to hear Rachel’s response and turned away. Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice.

“CJ?” She turned to see Duff standing out on the sidewalk.

“Oh hey,” she said. “I didn’t know you would be out and about.”

“I met Mark for lunch,” he said. He looked beyond her and in the store. “Are you here alone?”

“No,” said CJ, “I got invited to come out by Tate and some of the others.”

“Tate?”

“Ya, one of the crew guys.”

“Tate brought you to this store?”

“No,” she said, “He went off with some of the others. I’m here with Vanessa and Rachel.” She noticed that Duff had been walking in the direction of the hotel. “Are you headed back?”

“Ya,” he said.

“I’ll come back with you,” she said, relieved to have an exit.

Duff sat on the couch, watching CJ pack his things up for the show, her back turned to him. They were quiet, but his thoughts were loud as he contemplated how he was going to approach CJ about the Tweet he’d been made aware of earlier that day. Maybe she wouldn’t see it. She wasn’t on Twitter except to post on his account and it hadn’t been shared around much. Yet.

“Your friend, Vanessa, I don’t think she likes me,” said CJ.

“If she’s bothering you-” started Duff, feeling his anger spike.

“No, I can handle it,” said CJ, “It’s fine. I just wasn’t sure until today whether or not I was imagining things. But now I’m certain she doesn’t like me.”

“What’d she say?” he asked.

“It was more obvious passive aggressiveness than what she said,” said CJ.

“If you want me to say something-,” said Duff.

“No, don’t, she’ll think I went crying to you or something,” said CJ. She appeared to hesitate for a moment. “And if you two are involved I don’t want to cause any issues for you.”

“We aren’t,” said Duff, “is that what she said?”

“She insinuated something,” said CJ, with a raised eyebrow.

“She’s fucking crazy,” said Duff tensely, rubbing his face in frustration.

“Sorry,” said CJ, “It’s really none of my business.”

“You’re fine,” he said, “It’s probably good that I know what crew members are saying about me.” CJ had turned away to zip up the last bag. “It’s also good I learn some names,” said Duff. “I didn’t know Tate’s name was until today, and I’m usually pretty familiar with the crew.” He looked for her reaction. She paused what she was doing, and he could see her face slightly redden.

“He’s nice,” she said quietly with a small smile. He resisted the urge to ask her more about Tate and what else had been said at lunch. He had to try to keep some standard of professionalism with her. He flicked on the television, scanning through the channels mindlessly to occupy himself. He turned to a Spanish news channel and paused, seeing a picture of himself, Axl, Slash, Izzy, and Steven from the 1980’s. He didn’t understand what the reporter was saying in Spanish, but it was obvious she was speaking about their show tomorrow night.

“Oh! Look at you guys!” said CJ, “You were little babies!” She came and sat next to him on the couch, cracking open a soda.

“I think I’m only 23 or 24 in that picture,” said Duff, trying to search his memory to recall roughly when they had done that particular photoshoot.

“Where are the other two?”

“Hm?”

“The other two guys in the picture?”

“Oh,” he said, “Izzy and Steven.”

“They didn’t want to join you guys on tour?” asked CJ.

“Izzy prefers a quieter life,” said Duff, “We offered him a spot, but he didn’t want to re-join.” His mind went to Steven, and he cringed a little bit. He had always felt somewhat sorry for Steven, as he had never been able to pull himself completely out of the hole. Duff had heard Steven still struggled with sobriety. That, his back injury, and the messiness of the court case that had taken place had stopped Axl from extending him an invitation back into the band. Duff had felt badly about it, but it was for the best. They couldn’t have the toxicity of drugs, drama, fighting, and flakiness that had almost killed all five of them thirty years ago. It had been an atmosphere that had brought Duff to the very edge. If they brought Steven back in, Axl was sure things would fall apart again. Duff was solid in his sobriety and the key to maintaining it was to keep himself mentally and physically healthy and surrounding himself with those who stuck to that same system.

“Steven is not well enough to tour. Axl didn’t extend an invitation to him,” said Duff.

“Drugs?” said CJ.

“I think so,” said Duff somberly. “It fucking sucks.” There was a moment of silence. Duff reflected sadly on his friend’s battle with drugs. Sometimes he felt that maybe he could’ve helped Steven more. But he had been battling his own addiction at the time.

“I’m sorry,” said CJ, with a frown. “It’s a terrible disease. I’ve seen it.” She tensed up a bit, clenching her jaw before speaking in a low tone. “My mom, she was an addict. I know what it does. My aunt tried to help her for a long time.” He had not heard her mention her mother before. But he figured there had to be a reason why Mindy had been granted custody of her.

“You can only do so much,” said Duff, “They have to want it themselves.” He was almost certain that Mindy had talked about her problematic sister in his presence in the past. But it was so long ago, and he had been so gripped by drugs and alcohol himself that he couldn’t remember. There was a lot that was missing from his memory. However, he did remember the way that he and Mindy had met.

“I know she doesn’t like me, but your aunt is a wonderful person,” said Duff, with a smile. “She did like me, at first, even if my first impression wasn’t great.”

“What?” smirked CJ, “What did you do?”

“I- uh….” Duff could not bring himself to explain to CJ that he had first met Mindy with his pants down around his ankles.

August 1985

Sunset Boulevard x N Gardner St

It was an evening in July of 1985. Mindy moved quickly down the sidewalk of Sunset, a flimsy umbrella doing little to shield her from the downpouring rain. Her shit box car had refused to start, and she had decided to walk, only for the rain to start halfway through her walk. She wasn’t 100% certain where she was going. Axl had told her he and his band’s new place was at the corner of Sunset and North Gardner, at the end of a diagonal alleyway.

She finally reached the corner and took a right turn down what she hoped was the correct alley. It was long and stretched behind a big building full of different restaurants and stores, dimly illuminated only by the few streetlights in the parking lot of the Guitar Center next door. She looked down, quickly dodging around puddles. It opened into a small, fenced parking lot. There was a building in the back corner with a few storage units. All of the tall rolling garage doors were shut except for the one closest to her on the end. Despite the rain, a small crowd of people had gathered around. Some stood under an old, faded beach umbrella just outside the door that was propped up inside a large wooden cable reel that looked like it was about to rot apart.

As Mindy walked closer, she could see inside, where it was lit and dry, but also full of people. Old amps and instruments sat up against the walls on the left side of the room. There was also a wood loft towards the back of the room that stood about 6 feet high. Underneath the loft she could see Slash sitting on an old box. He looked relaxed and was hidden by his curtain of hair, playing an acoustic guitar in his lap. Mindy had met most of the band. She had known Izzy since meeting Axl and had been introduced to Slash last week after the band’s show at the Troubadour. She did not get to meet Axl’s drummer, Steven, as he had been pre-occupied with a hoard of groupies at the time. And then there was Duff. Mindy had technically met Duff. But not in the way she had wanted to. She had been horrified when she walked into one of the back rooms to grab her bag after the show and found the tall bassist bending a naked blonde over a table, fucking her hard, his pants down around his ankles.

The girl had not even noticed Mindy come in, her eyes shut, and her face contorted with gratification, letting out loud sounds of pleasure as the bassist pounded into her. Duff had heard the door open and briefly turned back to see Mindy standing there. His boyish face shone with sweat, framed by his tousled and wild bleached blonde locks. He had quickly turned back to the girl, uncaring about Mindy’s presence. She had quickly grabbed her bag and left.

Mindy could see Duff sitting up in the loft, being pawed on by two girls. Neither of which were the one she had walked in on him with. Now standing in the doorway of the storage unit, Mindy had a better look at the set up. It was a tiny place. In addition to the loft, the instruments, and the equipment, there were a few old pieces of furniture. A large coffee table covered with bottles and ash trays, two worn and mismatched couches, and a few folding chairs. There was a gross brown carpet that covered most of the floor. The loft held a small folding table and a nest of bedding. It was an absolute hovel. She hadn’t expected much when Axl told her he’d rented a small space for the band to stay and rehearse in, but this was deplorable. She didn’t even see a bathroom anywhere. The majority of the people there were women, girls she vaguely recognized from the strip clubs or bars along the strip.

“Mindy!” She heard Axl call out and he appeared from the tightly packed crowd inside, wearing nothing but basketball shorts, a lit cigarette in hand.

“Hey,” she smiled.

“Glad you could make it,” he said, “Welcome to our new place.” She walked inside, closing her umbrella.

“It’s definitely something,” said Mindy with a laugh. Axl had already poured her a drink in a solo cup. She took it gratefully and sipped, tasting jack and coke.

“Izzy and Steven left to go get some more drinks,” said Axl. Slash spotted her from his spot on the box and nodded at her in acknowledgement, still focused on his guitar. Since Mindy had come inside, Duff had scooted to the edge of the loft, swinging his long legs over the side, looking down at the crowd.

“Hey Duff!” Axl called out to him, beckoning him down. Duff hopped down and walked over. “This is my friend Mindy I was telling you about. You didn’t get to meet her at the last show.”

“Oh, we met,” said Duff, smirking.

“Ya and I’ve been trying to scrub your white ass from my memory ever since,” said Mindy. Axl looked at her, confused.

“She found me and-” he paused thoughtfully. “I think it was Natalia, busy in the backroom.” Axl understood immediately and began laughing. Mindy couldn’t help but crack a smile. Duff took a long swig of his beer before holding out his hand.

“It’s nice to actually meet you,” he said. She shook his hand firmly.

“Likewise,” she said.

“Mindy is a real one,” said Axl, “I met her at a bar last year. She’s got a mean right hook. Took some fucking asshole to the ground after he tried to fuck with me.”

“I broke my hand in the process,” said Mindy, grinning as she thought back on the night she had met Axl. “But anything for this guy.” Duff looked back and forth between the two of them curiously, his green eyes narrowed, with a smile still on his face.

“So, are you two…?” he began. Mindy knew what he was trying to ask.

“I don’t swing that way,” she said with a laugh. Duff’s eyes widened in understanding.

“Be careful, she’ll steal your girl out from under you by the end of the night,” smirked Axl. “I’ve seen it happen more than once.”

That comment prompted Mindy to scan the room, checking out the women that had gathered there. It was never very hard to find hook-ups and she was certainly not looking for anything serious. Homophobia was much rarer in L.A. It was nothing compared to what she had dealt with back home in Salt Lake City. Things were a lot easier here. She wasn’t always hiding her identity. She had kept herself largely closed off throughout high school. Nobody, including her parents, had been aware of her sexual orientation until after she had graduated and moved out. Her mother had been accepting, but it had taken her father a few months to come around. Now things were good between them

Moving to L.A. had been a world opener for Mindy. Especially since finding Axl. They had each other’s backs, and he was perhaps the most loyal friend she had ever had. Axl was an intense person in everything he did, including friendships. She was thrilled that things seemed to be coming together with his band. He deserved it. Despite the living situation, he had found a group of bandmates that he harmonized with. Hearing them play live together had solidified how much of a perfect storm the five of them were together.

“If you guys ever need a break from here for a few days, my apartment door is open.” She looked over at Duff. “Any of you, seriously. I want you guys to succeed.” Mindy knew that within the four walls of the dingy little storage unit, something special had been captured. They would be big. They were once in a lifetime. She could feel it.

#axl gnr #axl rose #guns n roses #saul hudson #80s rock #80s music #duff mckagan #duff gnr #slash gnr #izzy gnr

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thevelria · 1 year ago

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A diary from 1920 (SFW/husband!gangster!Gojo x fem!reader)

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Let me present the surprise shot which I wrote to my lovely followers. It's a lovely, sweet story about an undying love!

Warnings: mentions of war and scars.

Wordcount: 1580

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Fighting back her tears, Claire tried to organize your belongings in the attic. In the midst of dusty boxes, cobwebs and insane mess she tried to stay strong. You passed away only a few months ago. As she tried to lift an old box it suddenly burst open. After a loud thud she noticed several books wrapped into black lace cloths.

They were your diaries. Claire seemed really surprised because you never told her of ever writing a diary. The past always appeared to be vague, even mysterious. Every single time she tried to get answers you waved and smiled at her “Dear, it’s been so long since I don’t even remember.” Which was a lie of course. You did remember every single minute you spent with your husband. The way you built your family and your empire in the underground. But you two made an oath the second all the business became legal. The past needs to stay hidden.

Your granddaughter was more than eager to finally be able to dig into every secret she yearned to learn about for so long.

“The weather was freezing cold today in the market. I was afraid I would lose some of my fingers. Winters have been truly cruel in the past few years. Even if I rubbed my hands from time to time and wore my thick, fluffy gloves it didn’t help at all. I was busy warming my catty hands when a man walked up to my stand. His husky voice snapped me back to reality and suddenly I didn’t know how to react. Then I looked at him. Oh my God those eyes! Those marvelous eyes that glow in ocean blue! He asked for some veggies, nothing more. Graciously he thanked me for the service and also left me a generous tip which made me a bit suspicious. I didn’t understand how a rich man like him handles his own shopping.

London,22.11.1920.”

“In the last two weeks Saturo came to my stand every single day. He bought something I bet he didn’t even need. We chatter more and more. I find him adorable and I might even like him. Two days ago he invited me out for coffee and I accepted it without hesitation. He talked about the time he had spent in the army in WWI. During the war he served in France and lost many of his comrades. To this day he is plagued by nightmares, so he can’t sleep too much. He preferred to be buried in work. However, he didn’t reveal much about it. It’s as mysterious as if you want to keep quiet about something. He said there was a bar downtown that he owned. On the weekend he will take me there to have some fun.”

Claire read the lines at such a pace that it was hardly possible to follow what was happening. You began dating Satoru, her grandpa. And even if you were spending more and more time together you still didn’t know what your lovely man was doing. Years later, the source of the money was still shrouded in mystery, even if you were married. Those days were different. Today it is almost impossible to imagine a marriage like this. Not knowing what your husband does for a living? But back then…it was just different. You followed the rules of the society and kept your thoughts to yourself. After reading the umpteenth worn diary, the ice finally broke.

“One evening some of Satoru’s friends, or rather business associates, came over to our home. When he has guests I’m never allowed near his office room. He says he doesn’t want me to be burdened with the unpleasant troubles of business. But that day I couldn’t help my unceasing curiosity. I sneaked around and started eavesdropping. At first I thought I misheard something. They talked about gambling, weapons and late shipments. I stood there as if my body had been frozen to stone. Even if I wanted to leave I couldn’t move. Then I heard the creaking of chair legs, I knew they were about to leave the room. So I took a deep breath and walked hurriedly to our bedroom. That night I laid sleepless next to him. The next morning I gathered my courage and asked him what I had heard. I just learned that my husband was an influential man in the underground. A gangster. Satoru committed so many crimes that he could face hundreds of years in prison. Or they would just hang him. I felt sick as he kept revealing different stories about the business. After letting him finish he seemed relieved, because he finally felt free. He claimed he wanted to tell me the truth a long time ago but he was afraid I would leave him. I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t crossed my mind. In the end however, I stayed. Why? Because I love him! And nothing can separate us! Nothing!

17.10.1926”

Claire put down the diary for a second, blinking fast and trying to process what she just read. “Grandpa was a gangster? Holy shit! That’s dope.” she thought before grabbing the next book.

“Sakura was born a few weeks ago. She’s so sweet and tiny, such a lovely little princess. Satoru is already in love with his daughter. I can see the sparks in his eyes every time he lifts her up. When he hugs her or plays with her. At that time he’s not a criminal, a villain, no. Then he’s just a father who adores his child. And it’s not a lie that he’s the best husband in the world. Attentive, kind, caring and passionate. He never lets me feel like there’s something more important than Sakura or me.”

“It’s been years since he passed away and I didn’t even want to write a diary anymore. But we lived a decent life together and I want our love to get an ending. So for the last time I will write down my thoughts.

That night Satoru promised to take me to our favorite restaurant for dinner. Just the two of us. We needed some quality time together. The meal was delicious and we had so much fun. Even after all these years I was still in love with my husband. I loved all his silly jokes he told me and I laughed at them just as if I'd heard them for the first time. He seemed so proud when he made me laugh and I found him adorable.

On the way home we walked hand in hand. We chatted about sweet nothings when he took a deep breath and said he changed his mind about his job. He assured me that everything would soon be legal. He just needed some time to sort it out. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt so happy. Everything seemed perfect!

Then, out of the blue, we heard the sound of a deafening siren. Everyone started to panic on the street. We didn’t know then what we know today. For us, that was the moment World War II began…

Things really got out of hand and in a few days Satoru was saying goodbye. “Everything will be fine. I’ll be back soon.” he said. I can still hear his voice as I think about this. He tried to appear strong and calm. But he was terrified, because he knew what awaited him, since he had already survived a war. He gave me a kiss, hugged Sakura and walked out the door.

Years have passed without hearing anything from him. But I didn’t lose hope, he promised me he was coming back to me. We heard rumors that the war finally came to an end, but Satoru still didn’t appear. I was worried and desperate. I wanted my husband more than anything. One day, I remember that day clearly, someone knocked on the door in the middle of the night. And there he was, my sweet and beautiful man. He dropped all of his stuff and hugged me so tight I thought he was going to break my bones. We both cried without saying a single word. After he came in and we walked to the living room I noticed his face was covered with scars. Later I found out his whole body was covered with them. Satoru told me what happened to him, but I don’t want to write it down. I don’t want to remember the feeling his story caused me. I felt like my heart was ripped out of my chest. My husband went through hell.

With the end of the war things were getting settled down and we started to rebuild the empire. I was a partner in everything and I never asked any questions. I think it was around the birth of the twins when we finally were able to turn every business legal. From that point both of our lives changed. Happy, calm life…that’s what we had. For me Satoru was and will ever be the only one. And even if I miss him terribly I know he’s waiting for me and one day we’ll meet again. Because even death cannot tear us apart.”

Claire got to the end of the diary. There were no more notes, no more stories. She closed the book with teary eyes and placed it among the others. “I will keep your secret, grandma.” she whispered.

#jjk gojo #fanfiction #gojo x reader #gojo x y/n #jjk satoru #gojo x you #gojo satoru #gojo #jujutsu kaisen #satoru gojo #gojo fluff #jjk fluff #jjk fanfic #gangster gojo #jjk x reader #jjk x y/n #jujutsu kaisen x reader

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knywriting · 2 years ago

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Sleeping hcs {Hashira}

General sleeping hcs! Enjoy :)

Kyojuro Rengoku

Is super duper warm; let's just say you don't need to light another fire in your life to keep comfortable

You'd definitely want to keep your distance during summer however

He's very clingy and makes sure to at least have some part of him touching you

Loves being the big spoon but occasionally enjoys being the small spoon

Man definitely snores and has no idea until you bring it up

Occasionally, will mumble and cry in his sleep; but has no recollection of why when he wakes

Usually falls asleep on his right side, and refuses to budge from this position till morning

Is early to turn in (usually 10pm)

He falls asleep pretty quickly

Not a light sleeper but not a deep sleeper either, he's in the middle

Tengen Uzui

He's a comfortable source of warmth, not too hot not too cold

Despite being so muscular, he's actually quite comfortable to sleep on; although you gotta be quick to dibs a spot ( you have his wives to contend with <3 )

Will absolutely kiss everyone goodnight before laying down for the night

If you do get the privilege to be right by his side, he will 100% lay you right on top of him and slowly and gently play with your hair

He's a very quiet sleeper, he doesn't snore or toss in his sleep at all

Has a tendency to fall asleep on his back

One of the latest to go to bed, he's very much a night owl; despite how upbeat and chaotic he can be during the day he also finds tranquillity in the quiet of the dead of night and likes to collect his thoughts and reflect

He takes a decent amount of time to sleep; half an hour or so, he doesn't try and fight his exhaustion

However, because he's an extremely light sleeper he doesn't get much rest; regardless he'll lay in bed and just take in the comfort of the warmth that the blankets and his partners provide

Obanai Iguro

He's quite cold to the touch, so don't expect him to provide you with warmth

This is one of the rare times where he'll let down his guard and allow you to get close to him, he'll usually face you and hold your hand before falling asleep

He's a quiet sleeper and will occasionally will jolt himself awake; he has a lot of falling dreams and a few unpleasant past related nightmares here and there

He refuses to go to you for help however, he wants to tackle it on his own and tough it out; although he'll always check on you to make sure he didn't disturb you before going for a short walk outside to collect himself

Tends to fall asleep on his left side

Goes to bed kinda late, usually around 11pm; but stays up for an hour in bed reading or something before he attempts to sleep

He struggles to fall asleep or at least stay asleep; he tends to get stuck in his head a lot, strokes your hand gently when this happens to ground himself in a way

Sanemi Shinazugawa

He's not particularly warm or cold; just as normal as can be

He adamant on spooning you, really likes it when you compliment him by making comments on his bod (although he won't say it aloud)

Is probably the loudest hashira in terms of sleeping, he's definitely a snorer but he also suffers from regular night terrors and will wake up shouting or screaming (volume dependent)

At times like this he doesn't bother concealing his feelings and wakes you up; he needs you to reassure him and calm him down, he's usually stubborn and wouldn't bother but they're just that bad

He'll fall asleep in your arms, focussing on your scent and warmth

Isn't particularly a deep sleeper or light sleeper

Giyu Tomioka

His warmth is faint but still pleasant, he'll get flustered if you ask to get closer; although he'll still oblige albeit with a small blush and his eyes averted from you

He's usually quiet but occasionally with mumble in his sleep, good luck trying to decipher what exactly

Tends to fall asleep on his back but tosses in his sleep unknowingly

Goes to bed kinda early, around 10pm and tries to sleep asap so he can begin the next day and get to work; he enjoys having this quiet and time to himself

Takes a little while to actually fall asleep, about an hour or so; he's an overthinker (imagining himself in scenarios that could happen and how he'd react and replaying them ect)

Muichiro Tokito

His warmth is faint but comfortable, he likes it when you spoon him with his head on your chest; your heartbeat is very calming

He's usually quiet but occasionally with mumble in his sleep, you can usually make out a couple of words but out of context they make no sense;

Tends to fall asleep on his stomach, with his face squished into his pillow

Goes to bed very early, around 9pm and goes straight to bed to cuddle up with you in bed amongst the blankets

He's out in 10 minutes or less, he's very tired of life tbh and sleep is the perfect way to temporarily escape

Gyomei Himejima

Due to his size he'll lay you on his chest and caress you gently, kinda like a cat

He's completely silent when he's sleeping to the point where you wonder if he's even still breathing

Tends to fall asleep on his back

Goes to bed early, around 10pm and meditates to clear his mind and whisper a prayer

After he's meditated he's usually in a daze of sorts and will fall into a light sleep rather quickly before gradually falling into a deep slumber

Shinobu Kocho

She's not particularly warm or cold; much like Sanemi she's quite average

Adores it when you draw little shapes into her skin with your fingertips

She smiles sweetly in her sleep or with cry a little, usually from a long gone memory

Tends to fall asleep on her right side

Goes to bed early, around 10:30pm and spends half an hour or so making sure she's up to date with paperwork and that her patients are all accounted and treated

She falls asleep in a decent amount of time, thinking back to happy memories of her family or her interactions for the day

Mitsuri Kanroji

She's comfortably warm and soft, and encourages you to use her as a personal pillow <3

Adores it when you play with her hair or vice versa right before laying down

She mumbles and occasionally giggles in her sleep, usually the effect of a pleasant dream

Tends to fall asleep on her stomach, she finds the feeling of her chest and body weight squishing against the ground comforting

Goes to bed kinda early, around 10:30pm and lays staring at the ceiling reflecting on her day and hyping herself up for the next

She falls asleep really quickly, her head is filled with nothing but positive and cute things so she's naturally very relaxed and out in 10 minutes

Very deep sleeper

#hashira #mitsuri kanroji #shinobu kocho #gyomei himejima #muichiro tokito #sanemi shinazugawa #obanai iguro #tengen uzui #rengoku kyojuro #giyu tomioka #kimetsu no yaiba #demon slayer #kny #sleeping #hcs

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ladyniniane · 1 year ago

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FE OC WEEK DAY 2: Relationships

Let's discuss Maeve's relationship with Dedue and her bonds with her sister Enid and her friends Gladys, Vigdis and Amalia (yeah, more OCs)! If you've missed her introduction, you can read it here.

English isn't my first language, I hope there aren't too many errors!

@fe-oc-week

❧Dedue Molinaro - Blossoming love

Maeve first meets Dedue at Garreg Mach’s greenhouse after the battle of Gronder. She’s immediately intrigued by the beautiful flowers and decides to approach him. Maeve congratulates him. Dedue is guarded at first, especially since Maeve has the manners of a noblewoman and her lack of hostility surprises him. They nonetheless have a civil discussion.

Read their first meeting here and some scenes with them.

Maeve later sings for him and Annette around tea and some cakes that Dedue had baked. She meets him again in the greenhouse before the departure for Fhirdiad. As Maeve is nervous, Dedue offers her to tend to the flowers with him. She accepts and he gives her some petals that she promises to keep preciously.

On the road, Dedue gets wounded and Maeve visits him, soothing him after a nightmare of the Tragedy. He then asks her why she isn’t hostile towards him and warns her that being seen with him could have unpleasant consequences. Maeve answers that it is because she knows what is right and what is wrong and that she would like to keep spending time with him if he allows it.

After the capital is retaken, he takes the time to bring her some food and comfort her. They hug, relieved to be both alive. Dedue then tells Maeve how he saved Dimitri’s life and about his life after the Tragedy. The pair finds solace in eachother’s company.

During their stay in the capital, they garden together and exchange intimate secrets. Dedue tells her about the death of his family, especially of his little sister Nérine, and Maeve reveals that she is the daughter of an imperial noble.

On the way to Derdriu, they spend some time together. Dedue realizes that meeting Maeve made him desire new things. Just as when he understood that he was happy to be alive and to see the flowers in the greenhouse. He no longer wants to be just a sword and shield. As he voices his doubts, Maeve gives him words of encouragement and encourages him to seek balance. To thank her, he puts flowers in her hair and she does the same for him.

Once in Derdriu, Claude throws a party to celebrate the victory. Maeve attends with her friend and manages to steal some time alone with Dedue. A rude man insults Maeve for associating with a man of Duscur. They both drive him, but once they are alone in the garden, Dedue is upset that Maeve had to go through this. She then confesses her feelings for him. Taken aback at first, he then tells her that he loves her and promises to always take good care of her.

❧ Enid Fresnay - The lost sister

Enid is Maeve’s adoptive sister. She’s 31 during the story. A member of a rebel group in the Empire, she’s investigating Those Who Slither in the Dark and is determined to bring them down. On the surface, Enid a is proud, cynical and merciless warrior. Deep down, he’s a very vulnerable and damaged woman, battling with trauma, guilt and suicidal thoughts. Enid is also generous and caring and protects others with a chivalrous determination.

She's an orphan that Maeve’s aunt, Nemain, found in Enbarr. Enid taught Maeve how to use a knife and defend herself and Maeve taught her to sing. A shadow was looming over Enid and Maeve didn’t know what it was until her sister disappeared without a warning.

Maeve had never been able to mourn Enid properly and always wondered where she was, feeling a mix of anger, sadness and a desire to know the truth. The two sisters are ultimately reunited in Fhirdiad. Seeing Maeve during an official ceremony, Enid decides to take responsibility for her actions.

The two sisters meet and Enid reveals her secret: she was subjected to Agarthan experiments as a child and now bears a crest. She has furthermore stopped aging and now looks barely older than Maeve. She thus can't bear the thought of seeing everyone grow old and die while saying the same.

She explains that she left because she needed answers regarding what happened to her and wanted to hunt down TWSITD. She also explains that she thought that Maeve had died when their house was attacked by Cornelia’s troops and felt tremendous guilt for not being there.

Understanding what happened, Maeve forgives her sister. Enid admires the person that her sister has become and promises to not let her down again.

Read the reunion between the two sisters here!

❧ Vigdis Auber - artist and swordswoman

A swordswoman serving house Eilyn, Vigdis is one of Maeve’s close friends. Vigdis is 23 and has a regal and icy exterior. She was a dancer before the war but became a soldier, feeling that this was her true path. A sensitive woman deep down, she likes to sew and embroider and is in awe of the beauty of nature. She’s caring and loyal towards those she loves and likes teasing them.

Vigdis’ way to show her affection is to embroider things for people. She thus made Maeve's pouch. Since Vigdis traveled extensively in Fodlan and the Alliance, she likes telling Maeve about her adventures. Vigdis once danced while Maeve sang and gave her dancing lessons. She also recommends books to her friends.

Vigdis saved Maeve’s life at the beginning when she still wasn’t used to military life. Maeve admires the fact that Vigdis is always calm and composed. She doesn’t understand that Vigdis bottles everything up and suffers from this. After saving Vigdis’ life during the battle of Fhirdiad, Maeve realizes that her friend’s way of dealing with her emotions isn’t exactly better and that they are both strong in their own way.

❧ Gladys Rusla Eilyn - the ambitious lady

At 23 years old, Gladys is the current head of house Eilyn. Warm, cheerful and friendly, Gladys knows how to put people at ease. Bold, ambitious and cunning, she has many reform ideas and is determined to improve her people’s well-being. A skilled horsewoman and archer, she likes to spend time outside. She was the illegitimate daughter of the previous lord but managed to get herself legitimized.

Gladys took Maeve in while she was a refugee. Maeve was surprised because Gladys didn’t fit the idea she had of a noblewoman. Having spent fifteen years of her life among the commoners, Gladys’ manners were closer to that of a soldier. She thus observed Maeve and learned from her.

Gladys likes to listen to Maeve’s music and often plays board games with her. Though Gladys is a better tactician, Maeve managed to learn and improve. Maeve also helps Gladys prepare for important occasions, styling her hair and advising her on her choice of clothing. Overall, Gladys feels extremely protective of Maeve and cares for her.

❧ Amalia Sváfa Eilyn - the warrior mother

Amalia is Gladys’ mother. A commoner, she had an affair in her youth with Gladys’ father. She left, thinking she wasn’t good enough for him. Amalia then worked as a military cook. When Gladys went to her father’s home, she followed her.

An unassuming woman in her youth, Amalia has turned into a fierce protector and warrior. She’s always by Gladys’ side on the battlefield. She’s a mentor and a confidant for all the young women of the group and Maeve is no exception. She likes spending time with Amalia as she makes her feel safe. Amalia recognizes Maeve’s qualities and sees herself in her.

When Amalia cooks for the group, Maeve is always there to eat her honey cakes.

#fe oc week #fire emblem three houses #fe3h #fe3h ocs #fire emblem #dedue molinaro #my fe3h ocs #my ocs

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kazooiesart · 2 years ago

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revived ultimate stuff

this'll prolly be added to my au doc but just in case it isnt heres the info (feel free to send asks :]!)

the reset only affected v3. i'm unsure if this'll be changed later but for now its only v3

the reveal of ch6 isn't canon to the reset, everyone is actually who they are, no show or anything

there's probably a faint bloodstain on the floor in front of the school lol

there aren't 'ultimates,' everyone is just really good in a particular field

the hidden bookcase room is untouched, and no one is aware of it. there's extra precautions on it so no one can stumble on it, but otherwise, its looks just like it did prior to the events of the game

there is no evidence of the killing game. kokichi's room is still a mess, but it consists of random items he stole across the school, for little to no reason

everyone's ultimate room is referred to as their personal rooms, and look pretty much the same. rantaro's is the only one to look different, instead reflecting themes of travel

there are elevators across the school and a nurse's office. the elevators are for everyone's use, and at least one leads all the way up to the top floor. monokuma will always show up dressed as a nurse in the nurse's office. its a unpleasant experience for whoever entered

despite there being no killing game, there still isn't a actual school semester, nor a dating game, monokuma just lets everyone run around the school doing whatever, as long as it doesn't break any rules

the kubs still show up at random to chat, announcing themselves every time

the students don't remember where they lived, so it isn't too much of a bother that they cant leave

shuichi tends to follow kaede around, though he does do activities on his own or with kaito and maki

mainly, he still trains with the two at night

he's getting stronger

students who died during the killing game were revived with related health issues after the reset

students who bled upon death will sometimes bleed from the scars left behind, confusing them greatly

rantaro won't usually notice if he's bleeding as the pain blends in and he fails to register the feeling of blood

kokichi won't notice his back or arm bleeding for the same reason, but he will notice if his head bleeds as the blood drips into his eyes and mouth

rantaro and kokichi have memory issues

students who were culprits will become wary by those they killed/think they killed

if the victim is aware who killed them, the feeling is returned

students who were victims are wary in rooms they died in

rantaro constantly has bad headaches that range from 'somewhat manageable' to 'cannot focus at all'

rantaro's headaches usually keep him up at night so sometimes he dozes off in random places across the school (he's also often seen against a wall with his head buried in his arms)

this combined with his occasional bleeding will make it look like he's dead

kokichi enjoys lying on the floor face down when his head starts bleeding

kokichi's cane and chair has stickers on it from himself and the kubs

students tend to leave rantaro alone when they find him asleep, unless he's bleeding, to where they either wake him up, or attempt to bandage him while he's asleep

students who were culprits have nightmares about their executions. kaede will read books about music when she can't sleep due to them

kaede and miu have issues breathing and loose their breath easily

ryoma has minor headaches every now and again, alongside angie

he also immediately starts drowning in water

kirumi is just as dedicated to being a maid despite the occasional stabbing pain throughout her body

angie and tenko have neck pains, and they will notice if the scars on their necks start bleeding

kiyo and gonta are always really warm. gonta is also a target to be stung, but it doesn't make him like insects any less

kaito usually has a cold or flu, very rarely will he cough up blood

kokichi's entire body is in pain, he has scars on his back, arm, and head, and his body right below the arms will sometimes go out without warning. he also can't walk well without support, and needs something to lean on in order to stand

the kubs don't have the same associated emotions when it comes to dying pre-reset. they view each other the same as they did prior to the game starting. monosuke and monokid don't feel wary around monodam the same way kaede feels wary around rantaro

the kubs like snuggling with students should they find them sleeping around campus (though most of them wont admit it)

kokichi has been caught attempting to balance in his chair to reach things numerous times

kokichi will sometimes see gonta strangling miu if he's alone in the room with them. he'll then collapse

tsumugi was not brought back

#danganronpa #dr v3 #dr v3 spoilers #revived ultimates au #death mention #blood mention

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markwatsonsbooks · 4 months ago

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theship-thewalrus · 2 years ago

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Hii there!! Congrats on your Follower milestone!! May I request these prompts for Tywin x reader? ‚It’s just a bad dream‘ and ‚shh it’s okay I’m here?‘ I really struggle with nightmares and it would help a lot, tanksss :)

Hi anon!! Hope you like this! Nightmares suck ass and i hope this helps out in some small way <3

tywin lannister x gender neutral! reader

pretty much the ask!! also this is for the 100 follower event

word count: 739 words reading time: about 4 minutes warnings: nightmares, blood and death prompt: ❛ It’s just a bad dream ❜ & ❛ shh it’s okay I’m here ❜

Dreams were pleasant things, a time when your mind allowed you an inkling of bliss. In a dream, you could do anything, and you could have an easy life. Dreams were everything your life was not and more. They were extensions of memories and the pleasant parts of the future. But Nightmares were not pleasant, it was a time your mind tormented you during sleep. In a nightmare you could not run or escape, there was no control over what happens. You are powerless in a nightmare, allowing your mind to have power over you in the most fearful ways. Nightmares were disoriented versions of your worse memories, parts of a horrible future.

Nightmares plagued your sleep, it was a known thing amongst people. They saw the bags under your eyes, the countless times you go to the maester begging for something to help, the cries in the night when you wake. Nightmares plagued you out of sleep, they controlled all aspects of your life. You stay awake trying to run from them, but they always catch up.

Tywin knew of some of the horrors your mind conceded for you, things that seemed so outlandish in reality but you lived them every night. The man was not one who was often cursed with such unpleasant dreams, the man hardly ever dreamed. A part of him is almost thanked for it as he has seen how bad dreams affect you.

Yet there was nothing anyone could do for you. There was no way he could protect you from your mind. The maester says there is little that can be done. Only you could stop such plaguing dreams. Such a thing did not stop Tywin though, you were his partner, someone he had sworn to protect. He could not allow such things to control you, to make you fear the night.

The nightmare felt so real, you could feel the cool wind and hear the shouting subjects. You would taste blood in your mouth and smell the unwashed mass you found yourself being trampled under. Even when awake in the dark, you swore you could still feel the cold mud in your eyes and face. It always took you some time to come out of the nightmare, to realise you were no longer there but in the shared bed of Tywin and yourself. That the body next to you was not a figment of your imagination. No Nightmare was ever the same, all so different and vivid. As though you were living the various ways not only you could die but those you love as well.

Tywin was already awake, his blue eyes piercing through the darkness of the room to stare at you. Each time you woke up you needed different approaches, sometimes you wanted to be left alone, and sometimes you needed to feel the soft touch that he reserved just for you. That is why he did not move from his position, waiting for you to show him want was needed.

Your eyes were crazed and your hair a mess, the grip you had on your arms was crushing. It always upset the otherwise stone-cold man he could not help you more. In a sense it made him feel as though he failed you. Yet you never saw it that way, for time and time again he was there for you. Without fail the man was there, eyes caring and understanding.

"It's just a bad dream," His voice pulled you from the last remaining bits of your dreams. Leaving you in the real world, to try and come to terms with such dreams. Turning to face him slight tears pricked your eyes, for you were scared. The lasting effects of the nightmares you suffered at times took hours to dull, but even then it was never really gone.

Falling into his awaiting arms you allowed yourself to cry, in his arms you knew you were safe. That the horrors of both the world and your mind could not hurt you. "Shh, it's okay I'm here," Tywin's voice was soft, like the one you would use to talk to a frightened animal. Though in your state you were sure you resembled. For as long as you needed Tywin spoke sweet words, simply holding you in the night. It did not bother him if you fell back to sleep or not for he was there for you. No matter what.

#tywin lannister x reader #tywin imagines #tywin x reader #tywin lannister imagines #got imagines #got x reader #game of thrones x reader #game of thrones imagines

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hephaestuscrew · 3 years ago

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Here’s another Minkowski & Eiffel ficlet, set at the end of Need to Know. You can read it on AO3 here if you’d prefer.

By now, it's a habit so ingrained that Minkowski does it without thinking. In moments of crisis, or when she faces a difficult decision, the relevant DSSPPM tips rise to the front of her mind without conscious effort. Often, she doesn't register that she's panicking until her brain offers up extracts from the manual as a response. She knows Eiffel would mock her for this coping mechanism if he knew about it. She can easily picture the affectionate smirk that would play across his face as he'd tease her.

After she reads that Eiffel was convicted of kidnapping and child endangerment, she thinks: 874. Ignorance is bliss. Bliss is to be avoided at all times during active rotation. She wouldn't characterise her time on the Hephaestus as anything akin to bliss, but her previous ignorance of this particular information certainly felt a hell of a lot better than the knowledge of it. If she were a good Commander, she'd want to know the truth no matter how unpleasant, but right now she just wishes desperately that she could successfully obey Tip 391. Forget what you’ve been told. Preferably after you’ve done whatever we told you to do.

She hasn't been told to do anything, which means she's got to figure out the next step on her own. There are only really two choices: talk to him about it or don't. She tells herself she's going to do the former, to confront things head on. But then he apologises to her, for something so entirely trivial compared to the crime he apparently committed. And she doesn't know how to reconcile these two versions of him.

There's Eiffel, the man she's known for over two years, who just said sorry for not keeping her in the loop about developments on the station, who hates spiders and loves pizza, who talks in pop culture references and stupid jokes, who tries so hard to make her crack a smile in the midst of this nightmare, who tells her to look after herself, who always argues against hurting anyone (even those who might deserve it), who has saved her life more than once, who she knows would do whatever he could if she was in danger again. And then there's the person in that leaked file, a person who is guilty of kidnapping and child endangerment, a person she doesn't know at all.

She thinks of all the times she's thought she might lose him; that possibility felt like a gun to her own head. This is a different way of losing him, one she hadn't even known to fear. The version of him she's had in her head is being ripped away from her, not by a virus or a bomb or the dangers of space, but by the truth about his own past.

340. Protect yourself from dramatic and/or ironic twists. If something seems too good to be true, that’s because it is. This revelation is the dramatic twist to punish her for failing to follow that tip. Eiffel has never been a perfect crewmate, but she supposes it was still too good to be true, that she would have anyone on this hellscape of a station whom she could trust completely.

She trusts Hera and Lovelace, of course she does, but she has seen both of them nearly kill a man (not that she really blames them, given that it was Hilbert both times). And if Eiffel - often the sole proponent of Team What's Wrong With Handcuffs - is a kidnapper… Then perhaps there's no one within 8 lightyears whom she can totally depend upon to do the right thing.

622. Keep no secrets. You may be told lies. That one isn't completely relevant. He never actually lied to her about this. She would have known if he had; he's the worst liar she's ever met. The truth is she never asked him about his life before the mission, the same way he never asked whether she was married. Perhaps she never asked because she understood he didn't want to talk about it. Or perhaps, deep down, some part of her knew that there was something awful in his past, something she'd rather not know. But she never would have guessed this kind of awfulness. If she'd thought about it, she would have expected it was something awful that had happened to him, not something awful that he'd done. Those aren't mutually exclusive, she reminds herself.

Maybe it's a trick, or a mistake. Maybe he was wrongly convicted. She wants to hope it isn't true, but a memory that she's spent months repressing resurfaces: Hilbert asking Eiffel if he was afraid that she'd find out how he ended up on the Hephaestus. There was true fear in Eiffel's voice when he cut Hilbert off, and true shame on his face when he told Minkowski to drop it. It wasn't the response of an innocent man.

"What about you, Lieutenant? Are you going to care?" Jacobi asks. Nothing in the DSSPPM, nothing in her training, nothing she's ever experienced, can tell her how to answer that question. It’s all down to her, and a man she'd thought she knew, and a truth she wishes she didn't.

537. Trust your fellow crew members with your life.

538. But no further.

Yet another tip she didn't follow. She's trusted Eiffel not only with her life, but also with a piece of herself, of how she understands the world, of how she gets through life on the Hephaestus without falling apart. And if that piece is crumbling away, how can she not care?

#Yes its 'being emotional about Minkowski & Eiffel' hours yet again #All day every day I'm emotional about them #I think a lot about her reaction to finding out about Eiffel's jail sentence #It hits her really hard #because he matters to her so much and so she can't deal with the idea that he might not be the person she thought he was #which is why she can't bring herself to talk to him about it #Renee Minkowski #Renée Minkowski #doug eiffel #w359 #Wolf 359 #w359 spoilers #wolf 359 spoilers #w359 fic #the empty man posteth #Eiffel & Minkowski

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luimagines · 3 years ago

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Do time or the other links smoke? Or drink? Or do some kind of drugs? I mean when your out heroing you're going to get alot of traum

Something they all at least somewhat have to try and take the edg off or do they have other ways of coping? I am sorry if this sounds like an ask,i was more along the lines trying to get your speculation on the matter

Masterlist

I see what you're saying and I do think that some of them would have had bad habits in the past but yeah-

They do need some time to take the edge off and refocus themselves in the present, but how do they do that in a healthy and safe way?

Let's talk about that.

I don't think I have all the necessary tags so go forth at your own discretion.

Time

Time would have definitely had a drinking problem that would have started in his Termina days.

He's never really felt the need to drink though- he only found that it would have kept him from going crazy.

But as he got out of there and talked more to Malon (and have his supply cut off- (just because he knew where to get it in Termina doesn't mean he knows where to get it in Hyrule, (nor would they give it to him, even if he did))), I like to think that he would have had to find other ways to calm himself down and think rationally through his thoughts and desires.

It happens by accident.

He was working at Lon Lon Ranch when he needed to go chop some wood and he found the repetitive and strenuous work, soothing.

He felt good. Accomplished even.

And a little disappointed when he was finished.

But he started doing that whenever he could and it became his main way to not only blow off some steam but to also calm himself down.

It helps with his anxiety and his need to help feel useful even when nothing is really happening that would require his assistance.

Twilight

Twilight finds that manual labor actually makes his anxiety worse.

He can't really find it within himself to get lost in it because he's already programmed for that to be a part of his day to day life anyway. So his brain can still go on and on even as he gets his chores done.

Twilight finds that a secluded spot with little distraction works best.

He's never really dabbled in other ways to deal with it nor has it come to his mind.

All he knew one say was that everything was too much and that he needed to be in a different area entirely.

No people, no noise.

He likes to hang out by small creeks or by the lake and fish if he really needs an excuse to do something.

Bonus points if he can rest with one of his favorite goats nearby, but that's few and far in between.

It's less meditation and more taking in the moment and letting time slip by for a change.

No to do lists, no action, no survival, no need to be on the run.

Just breath.

Warrior

Warrior would have smoked during the war but I don’t think he’d actually tolerate it all that well. I feel like he’d be more inclined to drink away his problems but with shortages left and right, and all efforts going into the war, there just wouldn’t be enough to go around.

So he’d smoke and hate it.

But it worked in a pinch.

Afterwards, whether through Mask’s and Wind’s influence or the end of the war, he’d want to find a way to quit.

It wasn’t easy but I feel like Warrior would attempt to quit cold turkey. Just drop the habit completely and what does he do when he feels the need arise again?

It’s actually little said than done, but he paints.

It’s less with ink and paint and more so, just moving his hands and a brush around.

If he happens to have a canvas it’s better but again, not easy to come around.

So what Warrior ends up doing most of the time, is taking a brush and some homemade ink from berries and brushing it over his scars. His favorite spot is the massive burn covering his left arm left behind as a gift from the Dragon Knight.

It feels tingly and electric, static follows the brush and the muscles clench with energy from the contact but while it’s uncomfortable for a while, it’s also not entirely unpleasant and it’s soothing to watch and feel. And it grounds Warrior in the moment until he no longer feels the urge.

When the urge is gone, he still does it when he feel anxious and concerned. Late at night is typical time for him to do this, where no one would see him or his scars and judge him for it.

Sky

Sky in the beginning would have slept more than he did before.

He was already inclined to fall asleep easily before all of his trauma, but afterwards he seemed to lose motivation to continue with the idea that things would go back to normal. There was still a lot of expectation placed on his shoulders and it was frankly not something he wanted to deal with.

So he sleeps.

Now this turns into more of a problem with being able to stay awake and to stay concentrated. It’s hard for him to pay attention to anything beyond him and that won’t do, considering me still has to finish his schooling.

What Sky does more often than not to keep him tethered to the present moment is work with his hands. He’s already had the tools for wood whittling but he was never allowed to use them in class and it ends being a bigger mess sometimes than he’s willing to deal with in general.

Sky also has some small pockets of clay that he fidgets with to keep his hands moving and he can keep it under his desk so that it’s not that distracting in class.

It helps him focus and when he thinks about what he’s been through and what he plans to do next, it keeps him from getting overwhelmed.

Wild

I think Wild would have just gone silent and unmoving when he’s having a bad day.

Kind of similar to how he gets when’s trapped in a memory but for longer and he doesn’t eat or sleep. It could last days at a time. He doesn’t even move unless he’s prompted or dragged to the spot.

The lights are on but no one’s home you know.

There’s not a lot he can do when it happens. Everyone just has to wait for it to pass and hope that it passes quickly.

But Wild gets better with time to know the signs when of one of those days is coming.

It’s not much, but Wild like to hop on the back of his horse and just take off.

Feel the rushing wind on his face and through his hair. He’s a full gallop for a while until the poor horse gets tired. At that point he just goes to the nearest stable and exchanges horses to do the whole thing over again.

Sometimes, when that’s not enough, he’ll go base jumping from as high as he can get even using Revali’s Gale to get higher and free fall. Wild is pretty good at catching himself with his paraglider at the last moment and he likes to see all of Hyrule when as he reaches the ground again.

It reminds him that he’s done a lot of good, that he’s capable of doing more good and that life isn’t over just one ended.

Four

Unsurprisingly, sometimes Four gets too lost in his own for his own good.

He’s got a lot to think about and very little way to get it out.

Four would actually throw himself into his work to try and distract himself from the memories, the anxiety, and the guilt of not being enough time and time again even if he saved the day in the end.

This doesn’t help.

He gets so lost into it, in his attempt to stop thinking all together that he completely goes into autopilot and over works himself. Not in the sense that he pulls a muscle and has to take it easy or end up sore and tired and regrets it. No, no. What I mean is that he’ll keep working for days on end.

No sleep.

No food.

Little water.

No fresh air.

It ends up being a hard habit for him to break. Especially since he finds himself continuously trying to fall into a blank mindset even while he actually works to get commissions done.

So what Four has to do is find something else to do. Four more or less always has to have his hands moving, so it’s hard for him to put something down and not working on it.

He likes jigsaw puzzles, he likes to read, but he also likes to make stuff.

So in the end, when Four feel a little overwhelmed and feels himself slip into a self deprivational state, he’ll stop and goes inside his house to do a smaller project.

So he bakes, he knits, he does his puzzels. It’s enough for him to feel productive still but quick enough for him to stay present and make sure he’s still taking care of himself until the restlessness passes.

Wind

Wind doesn’t really have bad habits. He’s still young and processing his adventures.

I’m sure there’s alcohol on the pirate ship because pirates. But I don’t think he’d like it as much as some people want to write him.

Like, sure, a cup or two ain’t bad but I just can’t see Wind having a drinking problem. At least not now as everything stands.

In a few years it’s might be something he would need to be on the look out for if he’s aware enough but he was quite grasped the full implications of his position and trauma yet.

Because he’s just a kid.

He won’t know how twisted what happened to him was until he gets older and can he the age outside of his own mindset.

Wind has nightmares though and they’re ties when he gets memories that he doesn’t want to deal with at the moment- or ever again.

In the moment he thinks of his home, his grandma and his sister instead.

He thinks of his friends, both old and new.

The chain help with distracting him and he’s not above using them for the distraction when he feels that he needs one.

Wind also stretches a lot.

When he was with Warrior, he got into some of the drills they were teaching the soldiers and for some of the nimble ones, they had to start with stretches and he likes it.

So when it gets particularly bad, he throws himself through the motions and holds the poses for a bit longer than necessary.

So yoga. He does yoga.

And it centers him, it clears his head and he feels better after.

Legend

Legend screams.

Legend cries.

Legend will go on a rampage and destroy a whole forest if he’s having a particularly hard day.

Sometimes he’ll go find something big and scary just to fight it.

Blacksmithing is more a hobby for him at this point because it’s not something he can actually see himself doing in the future. It’s just to pass the time and help the day’s go by a little faster.

Legend likes to draw and when he’s tired after throwing whatever tantrum has taken over him, he’d go to a quiet spot and draw whatever he sees.

Sometimes, when he’s paying more attention to himself and he can feel himself getting frustrated and anxious, he takes a few days off.

He leaves his house and his items and goes up a mountain to think with some food, a notebook and some pencils.

He takes up map making.

Legend doesn’t think he’s any good at it, but with al the places he’s been, he tries to make a map for them by memory incase anyone he knows or will meet decides to visit.

His most carefully crafted map is of Koholint for... reasons.

It’s takes him an age and a half and he’s still not done with it, trying to get as much of it onto the paper as he can remember before he grows old and loses them entirely within his memory.

It’s a calming project he finds. He doesn’t feel sad when he does this for Marin for the people and their memory. It keeps them alive in his heart and sometimes he draws something on the map that doesn’t quite fit into his memory about the island but something tells him to keep it because it was there. Because he was only a visitor to their home.

The locals would know.

He feels good keeping them alive in some way.

It’s what she they would have wanted.

It’s what she they deserve.

She They always wanted to travel and it’s better to have a map to do so.

He takes up map making.

Hyrule

I don’t think Hyrule’s... Hyrule has a lot of these methods to go around. He wouldn’t have been exposed to drugs or alcohol simply because there’s too little people for him to interact with.

And if he was, I don’t think he’s use them as a coping mechanism simply because they would be too difficult obtain and gather to be sufficient.

I think that Hyrule would actually hang out with a Great Fairies by her pool when times got particularly rough.

There’s something about the place that resonates with him and feels calming, safe and relaxing to him.

As a bonus he’s always welcomed so he can pop in and stay for days at a time if he ever needed to.

He does not stay there for days.

But he appreciates the offer.

Hyrule doesn’t stay for more than few hours at a time because he doesn’t want to attract any monsters to his safe spots but even if the fairies don’t use any magic on him, he’s always rejuvenated afterwards and he feel like he can take on anything.

And given the world he comes from- it’s needed.

#linked universe #linkeduniverse #I know this wasn't really a request either #and I did say they were clsoed #but this was already going to get long #and it's more headcanons again #so into the queue it goes #bad habits #tw alchoholism #tw anxiety #tw smoking #tw addiction #pinky replies #pinky answers

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snacc-noir · 4 years ago

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Hello! For your prompt thing, maybe 3G? 👉👈 Please and thank you! 💜💜💜

3. “Babe! There you are!” “B-babe?”

G. Enemies AU

Adrienette I love u sm I was hoping someone would pick this combination

One of the many hair-pulling qualities of Adrien is his knack for surprises.

He’s the human (that’s still up for debate) embodiment of cold showers and other unpleasant sensations, like the moment when you run off to transform into Ladybug and the golden mop of hair and hostile glance is there—

And he’s always there, lurking in the corner of the locker room or somewhere during an akuma attack, withering at Marinette like their reoccurring inauspicious meetings are her fault;

like it’s his attempts to save the city that have been thwarted.

The audacity.

It’s the core of their not-so-friendly rivalry -- the evil reoccurring coincidence that drives Marinette (9/10 times friendly person and secretly Ladybug Marinette) insane. In fact, she doesn’t think there‘s anything left for the God-sculpted creation (he‘s hot - Insufferable, but hot. Her pride isn’t that loud) to do that can add to her ‘Why Adrien Agreste is a Nuisance’ list.

Oh, but how wrong she is.

“Babe! There you are!”

A second. A long second; a second where there’s confusion, conclusion, and confusion again. Marinette’s once-coolly leaning figure rests on the outskirts of their indoor basketball courts, hanging jaw formally chewing gum.

But now instead of watching a fanmade video about Chat Noir, she’s watching Adrien approach her with a beguiling smile (there’s no way that’s directed at her) and Miss Bustier a step shorter.

“B-babe?”

He slings an arm around her shoulders like he’s (never) done before, and she’s too frozen to react. “Sorry, I didn’t tell her we were doing this,” he tells their teacher, ignoring the gobsmacked expression to his left. “Look, Marinette, we’ve been caught.”

“Caught?!”

“Caught is right.” He construes the origin of her volume to match his sick role-play. “Miss Bustier keeps noticing us leaving together during akuma attacks and coming back at the same time from the same spots. Not to mention,” he says with a grin she had believed was saved to taunt her - then she realises that may as well be what he’s doing, “leaving for the bathroom at the same time—”

He winks.

Marinette looks up at him, disgust pulling the corner of her mouth. The confusion wears off and her thoughts sprint. Her lashes tremor at Miss Bustier as she reads her, but there’s only so much you can gage from a thin smile and clasped hands.

Then Adrien’s words catch up.

That’s her running off to be Ladybug.

That’s all her crafted lies and scheduled escapes so she can capture akuma with her dearest partner.

And Adrien’s been confronted about his tag-alongs to her escapades — and veiled it by the synthetic guise that they’re dating.

Oh he is not going there.

“Actually—”

His fingers are clipped to her waist, the soft pressure flaming her senses as he presses them in warning. She notices the way his lean figure is taped to her in their mutually loathed side-hug.

Then he re-freezes her by lowering his head, pushing back the dark lock of hair near her ear and hovering his lips in a gesture that jolts her heart up her throat. There, beside her skin, a warm, threatening whisper slices through her:

“Watch yourself. This benefits you.”

She swallows.

“Marinette, you can tell me,” Miss Bustier finally speaks. “I understand that your occasional arguments might cause a dent in your relationship. I actually confronted Adrien with my theory because I want to help you both overcome this negative tension. I know you work so well together.”

Ha!

She has no idea.

The Marinette stills. If she denies this nightmare, what’s left to make of their eerie timing in running off and coming back? How else can she explain walking out of a closet two minutes after Adrien?

Although she doesn’t understand Adrien’s reasons, there’s no way she’s about to unravel her superhero secret.

“Uh—” Marinette starts, “—Yes, I, um, we just didn’t want anyone to know. Especially since we’ve been pretty rocky since the start.”

Miss Bustier nods, a sympathetic look warming her face. She rubs Marinette’s shoulder and smiles.

“And that’s okay! I know you two have a lot of potential to make this relationship work, and I’m here for you!” Her joy blindsides her to the two grimaces before her. “You know, after I got into yoga I did a lot of training for relationship therapy for all kinds. I promise not to inform your other classmates if we can get you two sorted with some sessions.”

This—

This literally can’t get any worse.

Adrien’s grip on her waist squeezes, eliciting her to jerk a little closer in his side. They force tight smiles back at their teacher.

“That would be really great, actually. I think we need it,” Adrien says politely. “Right, babe.”

She stifles the cough. “Yeah, uh, sweetie.”

“That’s wonderful! I know it’ll be worth it. Those arguments will be gone in no time!”

Marinette squints, relapsing what on earth just happened as their teacher waltzes away. There aren’t even eyes on the other side of the court looking their way. It’s just her, Adrien, and their lack of distance.

She jumps away.

“Why’d you tell her that?!”

“Hey, I was saving your butt, too,” he snaps. “Why do you even follow me everywhere in the first place!?”

“You follow me.”

“That is not true! I have reasons for where I go!”

“Oh yeah?” She rises on her tiptoes, threatened by their height difference. “Well so do I!”

“Name one!”

“You name one!”

They fall into a terrible silence. Their jaws harden and their posture tenses. Their gazes entwine like an impossible knot.

A second. A long second.

“Whatever,” he breaks the tension, “see you at couple therapy.”

As Adrien - beautifully detested Adrien with his model walk and lean grace - struts away, Marinette sobers, clears the heat in mind, and glares him down.

She will find out his reasons. And she will prove they’re as insignificant as the way her heart swells at his attractive grin he throws her direction.

Honestly. The audacity.

#adrienette enemy au #😗#I am a sucker for enemy aus #if u can’t tell #also thanks kris for reasking xD #miraculous ladybug #adrinette #adrienette #ml fic #miraculous enemy au #enemy au #em writes #prompt me #ask #original content #kris-pines04

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beyondspaceandstars · 4 years ago

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While You Sleep

Chapter 3

Relationship: Bucky Barnes x Reader Warnings: angst, mention of violence, slow burn Summary: Soulmate!AU - Throughout life, you’re given glimpses of your soulmate through dreams. As you sleep, memories flash in your mind showing you the life your soulmate has lived. Everyone around you raves about how their soulmate reads great books or volunteers in their spare time. But you can’t relate as your dreams end up being more like nightmares. Through initial images of death and violence, you come to learn your soulmate is the Winter Soldier.

Masterlist | Series Masterlist

Okay -- that little pep talk you had given yourself was slowly dying as you walked into work the next day. Suddenly, nervousness was replacing it all, washing over you quickly.

You didn’t exactly know what to say. The extent of conversation you’d ever had with Steve was reserved to you saying “here’s your order” and he’d promptly respond with that shining smile and the most meaningful thank you.

Bringing up the fact his ex-assassin best friend was your long-lost was just not any kind of coffee shop chatter.

You were trying to ponder it during the morning rush. Mindlessly making lattes and frappes, you worked on some kind of script that could be thrown together. But your thoughts were interrupted by the bell over the door ringing. This wasn’t unusual giving it being early morning but for some reason, your eyes shot up — landing right on the man you were anticipating.

As always, he looked so casual yet so large waiting in the back of the line. Eyes wandered over him shamelessly but Steve genuinely didn’t seem to notice. He kept his forward, browsing the menu as if he ever got anything but a large black coffee. You just knew it because, well, it was the easiest order you ever served up. Like the world giving you a break.

Knowing his order brought some advantages for you. Since he was one of the few people actually ordering straight-up coffee in the morning -- the shop was quite frequented by college students and young entrepreneurs -- you simply didn’t start the coffee pot that morning. Your plan was to start it right after he ordered giving him a wait time of about thirty minutes. Possibly annoying for him, a great chance for you. He’d be forced to wait at the bar and you could chat. Chat about what, though, you still didn’t know. You couldn’t exactly dive in.

But you weren’t given much more time to plan. Steve was at the cashier before you knew it. You waited, watched as he paid, and then clicked the coffee pot on.

You walked over to the pick-up area. “Sorry,” you said. Steve turned to you. “It’s going to be a few minutes. I had to put on a new pot of coffee but you’re welcome to wait at the bar area.”

Steve gave you a small smile. “That’s fine,” he said and made his way to a stool. Your plan was rolling out perfectly. Now if you could only figure where to take it from here.

You leaned against the counter, watching the pot brew and waiting for another order to come through. Secretly you had hoped some big, ridiculous latte request would come in but so far the customers and seemed to die down. You couldn’t do much but stand across from Steve who was looking around at the decor.

The machine was about half full when you finally decided to open your mouth to at least say something -- but Steve beat you to it.

“Is everything okay?” He asked. Your eyes widened.

“Excuse me?”

“Sorry,” Steve coughed and readjusted his posture. “I just meant, you look like something is bothering you. Are you okay?”

You couldn’t do this today, you realized. Your brain suddenly went on a mission finding some lie to pop out.

“Yeah, yeah,” you dismissed his comment with a wave of your hand. “I- I Just… Didn’t sleep well last night.”

Alright. Your lie suddenly was dripping with subconscious truth. You cringed at your own words, rubbing your forehead with two fingers. This was the dumbest idea you had ever had and now you were forced to see it out as the coffee pot suddenly felt like it was brewing at half-speed.

“Oh,” Steve frowned but leaned forward, a bit intrigued. “Unpleasant dreams?”

You sighed, “You could say that.”

“Were they from…” His words trailed off unusually. The discussion of soulmates was somewhat of an accepted one. Usually, just in hopes that one could lead them to their significant other.

Steve, however, seemed leery about the subject. You were certainly in the same boat. That let you relax just ever so slightly.

“My soulmate?” You blurted out the question. Steve nodded, slowly. “Yeah, they were. He… he hasn’t seen very nice things in his lifetime.”

It felt so weird talking about Steve’s best friend while Steve most likely knew nothing about who you were referring to. It was like a giant weight in the conversation for you. You wanted to blurt it out, wanted to maybe meet your other half and just see what everything was about, see who he really is but it felt so heavy on your chest. It just wasn't right yet. You'd get a sign, you knew. Then you'd proceed but not here, not today.

Steve sighed, his gaze dropping to his hands that were resting on the counter. “No, I don’t think he has.”

Your stomach dropped. Did -- Was he -- Did he know who you were talking about? Steve no longer would meet your gaze but your eyes grew wide again in possible realization -- or... maybe you were just being absolutely paranoid. Perhaps he didn’t even say that and you misheard him --

DING. The coffee machine rang making you jump in surprise. You forgot for a second where the hell you two even were. Steve’s eyes fell on you again but you quickly turned to the coffee, refusing to let him see your blushing, flustered state.

He knew. He had to know. Or at least he guessed. But how could he know? Steve wasn’t in yesterday, he wouldn’t have witnessed your panic. Did your co-worker tell him? When the hell would she have done that? Maybe… Maybe Bucky knew… What did he know then of you? And if he did, why wasn’t he here? Steve knew you so what the fuck was happening…

Your mind was a maze. A painful, winding maze. You could feel yourself trying to make it through the thoughts and theories but nothing was working. You forced yourself to push it all down, just for the rest of your shift.

Continuing, you quickly filled Steve’s to-go cup and placed it on the counter. He didn’t take it right away, opting to stare at the cup for a second. You pretended not to notice and instead began grinding espresso beans for a latte order that came in.

“It’ll get better,” Steve said, making your motions still completely. Such a simple thing that could mean so much. Was he offering comfort? A taunt? Your brain was back at it again.

You forced yourself to look up, wanting so badly to say just one more thing, maybe even plead and confess it all, but he was already gone. You felt like crying as you went back to brewing the beans. That unmistakable, inescapable tinge of heartache filled your chest.

***

It’ll get better. Steve’s words rang in your head tauntingly as you laid in bed that night. Staring at the ceiling, you had been trying to fall asleep for over an hour now hoping this “better” Steve spoke of was right around the corner.

So far, though, no luck. Tonight’s flicks were of an older kind, thankfully still not as powerful as the more modern ones, but the images didn’t get any better. They were quick looks, sure, but violence and bodies, a horrendous combination produced horrendous results. The feelings behind it went straight to your soul.

You gave up even trying to decide what the hell this memory could’ve been from. You didn’t want to register the potential victim’s faces. You didn’t care about the scenery and whatnot.

The better had not come yet — whatever the hell that actually was which Steve had promised.

He knew something. Something very deep and useful for this situation. It was laced in his words and written on his concerned face.

Or maybe you were going crazy. The more you thought about it, the less it all made sense.

There was just that hope you were able to go off of now. That hope of “better.” That hope of fate.

Hope was your only weapon against the heart-wrenching memories flooding their way into your brain as your eyes were forced to give in, too heavy and defeated from today.

It was maybe all you had at this point and the whiplash of life was certainly throwing you a new one.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

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peach-astrology · 4 years ago

Text

Astrological events in 2021

Aquarius is in charge of 2021,so let's hope for a good change in our lives.May the next year bring you a lot of freedom,inspiration and love!

January:

1)January 10th. Mercury conjunction Saturn in Aquarius.Read contracts and documents carefully.On transactions, always think about the benefits several times and try not to invest a lot of money in a new business,there are risks of going into losses.A good time to communicate with older people(parents, grandparents or superiors).

2)January 11th. Mercury conjunction Jupiter in Aquarius.A good time for dating,socializing.Spend this day interesting and fun.

3)January 13th. Mars in Taurus square Saturn in Aquarius.These signs are fixed so you may experience changes,unexpected business problems,or physical injuries.Take care of your neck,voice and legs.

4)January 14th. Uranus in Taurus will start moving straight.Sun conjunction Pluto in Capricorn.Change,change,and change again.Everything can change here:politics,your place of residence,friends,your appearance.I can't call them bad,because Capricorn and Taurus are friends,but I can't call them good,because the Sun and Pluto are powerful bitches.

5)January 18th. Uranus in Taurus square Jupiter in Aquarius.”Day of Justice”.If your day goes badly,then later you will receive gifts from the Universe.If your day went well,then not for long:)

6)January 20th. Mars conjunction Uranus in Taurus.Aggressive day.You will feel a large amount of energy,but you will be prone to conflict.At work,there may be quarrels with superiors or financial problems.

7)January 24th. Sun conjunction Saturn in Aquarius.Great productive day.Successful completion or development of projects.A good time for studying and exams.You will achieve your goals.

February:

1)From February 1 to February 20. Mercury moves retrograde in Aquarius.Don't be surprised if old friends or people you don't remember write to you on this day.Just don't write to your ex-boyfriends/girlfriends,I beg you.

2)February 6th. Venus conjunction Saturn in Aquarius.Listen carefully to advice and criticism on this day,they will help you a lot.Be disciplined and careful in your work,otherwise there will be problems with money.

3)February 11th. Jupiter conjunction Venus in Aquarius.One of the happiest days of the year.Spend it with your loved ones.Write to your friends,call your friends,or declare your love to your crush.This day is also successful in financial matters.

4)February 13th. Retrograde Mercury conjunction Venus in Aquarius.Pleasant and slightly flirtatious communication.Good mood,quarrels end in truce and compromise.

5)February 15th. Retrograde Mercury conjunction Jupiter in Aquarius.Team work will be profitable and successful.A good day for making deals and negotiating.

6)February 23rd. Mercury will return to a straight position.On this day,some problems can be solved.Problems in communicating with people will disappear,secrets can be revealed.

March:

1)March 5th. Mercury conjunction Jupiter in Aquarius.Another day for dating,friendly and business communication.Don't miss the opportunity!

2)March 11th. Sun conjunction Neptune in Pisces.High level of fraud.Take care of your wallets,documents and jewelry.Check the information carefully and don't believe the rumors.

3)March 14th. Venus conjunction Neptune in Pisces.Romance,creativity and any expression of feelings will be useful and active on this day.Draw or listen to your favorite music.

4)March 26th. Venus conjunction the Sun in Aries.Sextile Mars is added to them,so this is a good day for dating,there is a high probability of a long-term relationship;)

5)March 30th. Mercury conjunction Neptune in Pisces.Another day of scammers.Especially don't believe phone calls.Don’t communicate with strangers and hide your precious things.

April:

1)April 23rd. Venus conjunction Uranus in Taurus.Lucky day.Successful and profitable deals and reliable partners.Work hard,but don't forget to rest.

2)April 27th. Pluto is going retrograde for a sooooo long time.Think a thousand times before you tell your secrets,carefully order from internet sites.There is a low level of fraud,but a high level of what is hidden will become obvious.

3)April 29th. Mercury conjunction Lilith in Taurus.You will receive 100% unpleasant news or information.Don't panic,but don't be surprised.

May:

1)May 1st. Sun conjunction Uranus in Taurus.Venus and Lilith in Taurus.It's a terrible day,it hasn't come yet,and I'm already unhappy.There is a high probability of breaking up relationships,friendships,and business deals.On this day,it’s better not to invest money.No luck.It’s better to sit at home and eat delicious food.

2)May 13th.Sun conjunction Lilith in Taurus.The motto of the day:"Beginners are lucky." On this day,there may be a feeling that all your efforts are in vain,but it is not so!Work and develop further and don’t pay attention.

3)From May 23 to October 11,Saturn will be retrograde in Aquarius,so people with the influence of this sign,get ready for good and bad changes.Fate has plans.

4)May 26th. Total lunar eclipse.Anxiety and uncertainty.Especially careful should be people with mental disorders or diseases.You may have nightmares.

June:

1)From June 1 to June 19,Mercury is retrograde in Gemini.There will be nostalgia for old friendships and relationships(don’t write to ex-boyfriend/girlfriend!!!),reconsider your old ideas and plans,you can comprehend new thoughts.

2)June 10th. Solar eclipse.The solar Gemini will feel it the most.Small health problems may occur in humans and animals.Bad day for surgery.

3)From June 20 to October 18,Jupiter will be retrograde.The best time to learn a foreign language,philosophy,or law.Trials are held fairly,and if not,then 100% this topic will become relevant in society.

4)June 25th. Neptune will be retrograde for a sooooo long time.Money and health are especially important during this period.If a person had even the slightest problem with them,then it would grow,and if not,then success would continue.

July:

1)July 13th.Venus conjunction Mars in Cancer.A good time for love.Meet,date,and flirt.May indicate the introduction of laws on equality between women and men(I hope)

August:

1)August 19th. Mercury conjunction Mars in Virgo.Aggressive conversations,quarrels,disagreements.Everything infuriates and irritates everyone.

2)August 20th. Uranus moves retrograde in Taurus(until 2022).It will just bring a few more important changes(such as scientific discoveries).

September:

1)From September 27 to October 18,Mercury is retrograde in Libra.The society will again raise socially important topics.We will want to reconsider the interaction between people(friendship or relationship)

October:

1)October 8th.Sun conjunction Mars in Libra.Respectful communication.If conflicts occur,they resolve calmly and logically.This day is suitable for business negotiations.

November:

1)November 19th.Partial lunar eclipse.A day to start with a clean slate.High levels of sadness and negative thoughts.Most of all, this day will be felt by solar Scorpions.

2)November 26th.The midpoint of the eclipse.It is better not to do anything serious on this day.Your expectations will not be met,there will be a lot of problems,should I continue the list?Just forget it and get some sleep.

December:

1)December 4th.Solar eclipse.Most of all,it will be felt by Solar Sagittarians.High level of political conflicts,emotional experiences.Unfavorable time for travel.

2)December 11th.Venus conjunction Pluto in Capricorn.Fickle luck,not worth the risk.Policy changes again.People in love can become very jealous of their partners.

3)December 19th.Venus becomes retrograde.Confusion in your feelings and thoughts.In society,the topics of beauty and health are raised.Again,there is a desire to return to the past relationship.

4)December 25th.Retrograde Venus conjunction Pluto in Capricorn.Themes of love are raised,ideals disappear,and many famous couples can break up.

5)December 29th.Retrograde Venus conjunction Mercury in Capricorn.The topic of politics remains relevant.Conflicts and misunderstandings with superiors.Many people will want to plan out their next year and change their job or their image.

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