#Where the Wild Things Are 2099

[blackcatfilmprod]

Hi Guys, I hope to explore the Fairy Tales Exhibition at Gallery of Modern Art in South Brisbane for my next Hollywood OR Bust Tour Location Vlog. Their featuring film costumes and props from Jean Cocteau’s La Belle et la Bête 1946, Jacques Demy’s Donkey Skin 1970, Jim Henson’s Labyrinth 1986, Spike Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are 2009, Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland 2010, Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror 2012, Kenneth Branagh’s Cinderella 2015 and more. So I hope I might see you there.

[moonlight-prose]

FOR THE LOVE OF DANGER

╰┈➤ #01: ONE LAST TIME

a/n: so i finally FINALLY saw the movie and even though it's really late since it came out, i'm happy to write for him at last. this is partial brain rot and a partially thought out plot that has been in the works for months. i'd heard of spidey 2099 before, but never thought i'd fall in love with him to this extent. this fic was also supposed to come out last month, but i'm always behind on everything. so i hope y'all enjoy this wild ride.

note: a massive huge fucking THANK YOU to @soulores for being the best beta reader a girl could have. seriously i couldn't have finished this without you.

dedicated to: @sunflowersteves for listening to me rant about how pretty he is and for being the first person to ever hear about this plot. thank you for being one of the best person here babes.

summary: when things go awry in your life you find yourself back at el nido - a comfort spot in the darker parts of the city - in need of peace. only to run into him.

word count: 8.5k+ (somehow???)

pairing: miguel o'hara x f!reader

warnings: EXPLICIT SO MINORS DNI, cussing, angst, alcohol consumption, one night stands, p in v sex, rough sex, cumeating if you squint, cumplay if you really really squint, my awful attempts at dirty talk, soft miguel, the start of chaos.

NEXT CHAPTER | SERIES MASTERLIST

NUEVA YORK 2099; EARTH-298

Let’s do this one last time.

My name is Miguel O’Hara… and I’m scared.

You couldn’t breathe, the speed of your heart rate nearly caused you to believe you were going into cardiac arrest. Some small part of your brain wanted to actually check. It wasn��t hard to simply waltz right into the nearest hospital. Although dealing with the disbelief on doctors and nurses faces as you asked them to check if you were dying pushed you away from the idea altogether.

Another day at a job that didn’t allow you to have anything, left you seeking out the only thing you knew would help. An old dive bar still resided in the lower part of the city—The Nest, or as the owner called it El Nido—as local folk often referred to it. Although you were more than happy to call it a safe haven.

Everything was so pristine where you worked, so perfect. But The Nest was simply a small hole in the wall that helped people find a spot to feel safe for an hour or two. You tended to avoid going there on weekdays, but seeing as how you were about to be fired from your job…you felt it was necessary.

Sighing, you hitched your bag up higher on your shoulder, the weariness from the day finally settling its weight over you. What you wouldn’t give to be asleep right now, curled up in bed. Except you couldn’t go home. Not when all that remained was the dreaded time spent waiting for tomorrow. The day they would more than likely—officially—ask you to leave.

“Sorry,” you muttered, accidentally slamming into a woman walking hand in hand with her partner. The man glared at you, the gaze enough for you to quicken your step towards your destination.

The smell of the bar was exactly the same. Ricky always loved incense, and while you claimed it would drive customers away, he somehow made it work. Letting out a calming breath, you headed right towards your stool at the bar. The worn in leather a comfort after sitting in a stiff backed office chair all day. It was partially ripped and practically ruined, but you could already feel the stress melt off your body.

“Mi florita!” Ricky shouted, handing off a drink to an older man with white hair.

“Hey Ricky—oof—” He leaned across the bar, dragged you closer, and planted a sloppy kiss on your cheek. His breath was tinged with cinnamon and a hint of mint—letting you know he’d been drinking his favorite tea all day.

Nonetheless you smiled at his kind gesture. Ricky was like the cousin you had never had, but always wanted. Standing at around six feet with tattoos going up and down his tanned arms and his hair chopped into a mess of wild curls, he was your favorite person. The one you always sought out in times of trouble, if anything just to laugh. Unfortunately he couldn’t say the same for you. He loved his boyfriend too much to put you higher up on the scale—or so he claimed.

“How’s the job?” He poured you a martini, extra dry, extra dirty. “Are you playing nice with all the fancy folk?”

You chuckled, taking a sip and letting the alcohol burn its way down. “The fancy folk are slowly driving me insane.”

“Uh oh.”

Another sip caused yet another part of your stress to fade. “I don’t understand why it’s so hard for them to give me the same leniency they offer to other employees.” You sighed, dragging a hand down your face. “I mean it won’t matter anyways tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Ricky slid a drink to the person sitting a stool away from you, taking the small amount of cash he offered.

“The day I’m probably gonna get fired.”

“What?” he exclaimed, nearly causing the glass of whiskey in front of him to spill over.

You shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. I can just…find a new place to work at. I mean there has to be other labs in need of a biochemist. Right?”

He hesitated, his eyes flickering to the bottle in his hands. “Florita…” Your stomach dropped, the severity of the situation finally dawning on you—turning your once rose hued glasses clear.

They were going to ask you to leave and because it was Alchemax, there was no other option but for you to beg for forgiveness. An act you had sworn to yourself that you’d never do. You were a good scientist. Hell you were the best in that fucking lab, yet they couldn’t see past the fact that you wanted to go your own way. To carve your own path in a company that was adamant on placing you in a box. Keeping you perfectly pristine for those on the outside—those that might wish to give you freedom.

Holding up your hand, you stopped him from saying anything else. If shit was meant to go sideways tomorrow, then so be it. You’d go out like a champion, worthy of whatever came next. Downing the remainder of your drink you slid the empty glass towards Ricky, nodding at him to fill it up. At least with that he didn’t hesitate, knowing you needed something to take the edge off—your night already taking a turn for the worst.

“Just gotta keep going,” you muttered, staring at the liquid in the hopes that it would magically fix everything.

“You got this chica.” Words that seemed empty at a time like this somehow brought a small smile to your lips.

Taking another sip you thanked him softly and watched him wander off to the other side of the bar, his eyes set on a group of men that were most likely there to buy out the bar. It happened every once in a while, but you couldn’t exactly fault them. They were here to have fun, to make an otherwise regular night memorable. They certainly weren’t here to wallow in their drinks, swallowing down their misery in the hopes of finding something good to take away.

“Shit,” you muttered when you came to the bottom of the glass again, your finger tracing the rim.

“Firing a biochemist is the stupidest thing a lab could do.”

You jumped when someone’s voice came from beside you—the man a stool away now focusing the entirety of his attention on you. Perhaps it was the vodka or the low neon lights of the bar, but you could have sworn his eyes were red. The color so striking it sent a chill down your spine—as if he was analyzing you with one simple glance. For a second you forgot he even said anything—too busy taking in his soft brown hair and strong jaw—until his lips quirked up into a grin.

One that made your heart flip in your chest, heat rising beneath your cheeks.

“Eavesdropping?” you inquired, gathering enough courage to confront him about his blatant behavior.

His lips pulled up on one side, something glimmering in his eyes that had you hooked the longer he looked at you. “Lo siento,” he said softly—his voice slightly mumbled. “Didn’t mean to. I just heard you talking about something that interests me.”

“Ah.” You glanced away to escape his penetrating stare, if for a chance to catch the breath in your lungs. “So you’re a scientist.”

Pride bloomed in your chest when he was caught off guard. His glass halfway to his mouth when the statement left your mouth. Once again that mysterious light flickered to life again, a soft chuckle leaving his lips and causing your heart to erratically beat in your chest. Taking a sip, he gently set the now empty glass back on the bar. The tension was so thick you swore you could slice it in half, heat spilling into your body.

“You’re observant.”

Shrugging, you took your own sip—the alcohol no longer burning your throat. “It wasn’t hard to figure out. What else from that conversation would interest you?”

“You.”

The words were out of his mouth before you could even finish the question, your breath catching at the sound of them. Your day had been shit. Enough to rival doomsday itself, but there you were sitting at a bar with him. A man who’s name you didn’t know. The smile spread across your lips before you could stop it, your eyes roving down his figure in an attempt to make him feel half of what he stirred in you.

“Let me buy you a drink?” you asked, pointing to his empty glass.

“I thought I was supposed to ask you that?”

Your smile widened. “Then ask me.”

For the second time that night he was caught off guard, his eyes widening slightly. The song behind you shifted, a low tune you could feel reverberating through you as he changed seats, taking the stool directly beside you. He moved silently, his thighs pressed tightly against yours as he got comfortable in the spot—his arm brushing yours.

The first thing you noticed was how warm he was—as if his body was a personal heater. But that was pushed out of your mind, replaced by the second thing. He looked at you clearly, hair falling onto his forehead slightly until you finally saw it. The actual color of his eyes. Crimson irises caught you in their hold, keeping you until he was satisfied—drinking you in, he trailed his gaze over the entirety of your body.

“Can I buy you a drink?” he murmured, his breath fanning across your face, body unconsciously leaning in.

You inhaled sharply, watching as his eyes lit up at your reaction to his proximity, his hand sliding closer until his fingers brushed against your wrist. Suddenly your shitty day was but a mere memory in the back of your mind. Entirely forgotten in favor of him. He was so large you swore he blocked everything else, filling your eyesight with nothing else but his frame. The breadth of his shoulders, the length of his torso and how he had to hunch over slightly to get close to you.

“What’s your name?” you inquired finally, your words breathy and dazed.

He grinned, hand curving around your wrist and pulling your hand towards him. “What’s yours?”

“I asked you first.”

Leaning in so close until you felt his chest brush your shoulder, his lips met your ear, sending chills down your spine. “Miguel,” he breathed, smiling at the way you practically melted into him.

For a brief moment you forgot you were sitting in the middle of a bar, people surrounding the two of you. When in fact it felt like nothing remained except you and him and the song playing behind you. Your exhale was shaky, representing the way you felt on the inside. As if he’d pulled you apart with a single word, his body heat affecting your brain—turning it to mush.

“Miguel…” Your hand curved around the front of his jacket, eyes meeting his as he moved, brushing his lips across your cheek.

“Hm?”

Something heady built in your chest, solidifying the truth you knew the second you started talking to him. You wouldn’t be leaving this bar alone. You simply hoped he was on the same page as you, but the way he hooked his arm around your waist, thighs bracketing your frame told you everything you needed to know. He was not only on the same page; he was flipping forward, reading a future that had yet to occur.

You almost wanted to ask him if he liked what he saw. If—by some odd chance—there was something more than this fiery electricity between the two of you.

“You still want that drink bebita?”

Words evaded you the longer he sat there, filling the space with nothing but him. How he smelled, how he sounded, fuck even the way his lips felt dragging against your skin as he spoke. You wanted to ask where he came from. How you’d never seen him in this bar before—your life now altered because of something so small. Simply a conversation. Yet now you couldn’t see yourself ending the night without him.

“No,” you sighed, shifting until your lips were a hairsbreadth from his. “You?”

He shook his head.

“I…” Your teeth dug into your bottom lip. “I don’t usually do this.”

Grinning, he raised your chin slightly with his knuckle, eyes catching you once more in their web, snaring you in a trap so saccharine you could taste it on your tongue. “Your pace.”

And with two simple words you were his. Captured happily in something you never wanted to be rid of. You smiled, your other hand sliding up into his hair, and finally the weight of your day lifted entirely off your shoulders. The question of whether or not he wanted to kiss you was on the tip of your tongue, but like before…he was miles ahead of you. With a small grin, he tipped your face towards his, catching your lips in a kiss you felt down to your fingertips.

He didn’t kiss you gently, languidly taking his time as if you were both here until the sun went up. No, that was nothing like what you expected. He devoured you. Stole every gasp, sound, and sigh you could have let out; his hand holding you exactly where he wanted you. Miguel kissed you like you were his only source of oxygen. And you let him. You bent to his will with ease, giving into every touch.

Whining softly, you tugged sharply on his hair when his tongue swept across your bottom lip. The taste of his drink now seeping into your mouth. You didn’t even question letting him in, desperate to know what he tasted like—what his tongue felt like licking deeply into you. Shivers ran down your spine when his hand gripped your hip tightly, pulling you closer until you sat on the very edge of the stool.

“Fuck,” he rumbled, pulling away and sliding his lips along your jaw.

“Oh…” Your breath was a sharp gasp when his fingers trailed down your throat, cupping it so quickly you could have sworn you imagined it. But the heat that spilled into your stomach told you otherwise.

His lips were heaven on your skin, nipping and licking until you were sure that certain spots would be tender tomorrow morning. You didn’t care. He could have sunk his teeth directly into your neck and you’d still ask for more. Somewhere in between talking and the tension, you lost any sense of worry. Those feelings went out the window the second he moved closer.

“I um—” Pushing at his chest, you reluctantly parted with the realization that you were still in public, and fucking against the bar would certainly make Ricky ban you for life. So he fell back, his lips swollen and spit slicked—pupils blown wide until the black began to bleed into the red. A swirl of brilliant color.

He smirked, taking in your disheveled appearance, all thanks to him. You had half a mind to drag him back to the bathroom, but the burning glare of Ricky was currently being seared into the side of your head. Without a doubt you knew it said: “You fuck in my bar you’re not coming back.” So you gathered whatever control you had over yourself and downed the remainder of your now tepid drink.

“My apartment is two blocks from here,” you began, exhaling a shaky breath as you finally took the leap for what you wanted. “We can be there in five minutes.”

Miguel nodded, yanking out his wallet and tossing down enough cash to cover not only his drinks, but yours as well. Which was your sign to grab your things. No words had to be said, because the intent was clear to the both of you. He was here to find the same relief you were—something to take his mind off of life for a little while.

Waving a quick goodbye towards Ricky, you followed Miguel out of the bar into the cool night air of the city. You were beneath the depths of the main part, where people didn’t necessarily travel to. But you’d grown up there. It remained a place where you still felt like you belonged. He didn’t say anything, he didn’t have to. Not when the intentions for the night were clear to both of you. But that didn’t stop him from reaching down and slipping your hand into his, clasping your fingers together as you walked down the street.

Such a small act of tenderness—barely noticeable to anyone walking past—but meant so much more.

“What brought you to El Nido?” you asked, leading him down the street where your apartment building resided. It wasn’t a drastic question, but you couldn’t help your curiosity.

You were a scientist after all.

He shrugged, thumb running along your knuckles. “Needed a night out.”

“Let me guess…” You turned—walking backwards the best you could—regarding him with a suspicious expression. The small smile on his lips caused your heart to thump a little faster. “You’re getting fired tomorrow too?”

For the first time that night you heard him laugh. The sound, soft and low and by all means something you wanted to hear over and over again.

“No.” He took in a breath, his crimson eyes searching the dark streets for nothing in particular—the hair on the back of his neck suddenly standing up. “I’m…trying to figure out something.”

“A problem?”

He sighed. “You could say that.”

“Well I think—”

You didn’t get to finish your sentence, his arm jerking you forward until you fell into his chest, wrapped tightly to him as a horn echoed loudly behind you. A car sped past, turning rapidly onto the street and disappearing around the corner—leaving the both of you in silence. Your breath came in quickly, eyes wide as fear ran streaked your body, turning you cold. And Miguel watched after the car, his eyes narrowed and body tensed—as if he was ready to take off after them.

That is until he felt your hands press against his chest softly, drawing his attention back to you.

“T-Thank you,” you gasped, trying to calm the adrenaline that rushed through you.

There was no mistaking what would have happened if he hadn’t pulled you close; if his reflexes hadn’t kicked in so quickly. You wanted to ask him how he did it. How he knew the car was coming, but the words were trapped in the back of your throat. The shock had started to flood your system. His hand cupped your cheek, thumb running along your jaw in a soothing motion that seemed to slow the panic filtering through your body. You wondered if he even knew he was doing it—the touch yet another reflex to slow the racing of your heart.

To bring you back down to Earth.

“Okay?” he murmured, his eyes tracing the curve of your face, watching your eyelids flutter for a moment as you met his gaze once more.

You nodded, lightly gripping his wrist simply for the sake of comfort. “I’m okay.”

The night was no doubt effectively altered. Not necessarily ruined, but you couldn’t go on the way you were before. No teasing words, no light conversation. Instead you walked in silence. His hand clasped in yours and guard up in case of something else happening until you reached your place.

You were surprised to find that you enjoyed the silence while you walked. As if Miguel offered you a sense of safety and comfort you never had before; your body responding differently than you expected. Sure, you were attracted to him, but you couldn’t deny the pull you felt towards him when it came to this. To needing safety in the midst of possible danger.

“This is me,” you said, pulling out your key from your pocket—the hallway light dim and nearly extinguished. You had to remember to speak to the building manager about it tomorrow.

He grinned slightly, waiting patiently for the door to swing open with a soft creak as you entered. While you wouldn't call your small and rather overpriced apartment perfect, it felt more like a home than even he expected it to be. A small kitchen gave way into a bigger living room. Your record player was placed on top of an aged wooden table—piles of books stacked haphazardly through the place.

Miguel eyed the various plants you’d managed to keep alive—each of them pointed towards the one large window on the opposite wall. A place where sunlight no doubt streamed in on early mornings.

He originally believed it would look modern; more like the outside city and world as a whole. Yet your home resembled something old. A place that stood still against the ravages of time—as if it were merely a museum and he was there to admire its antiques.

“I know it’s not much.” You shifted a small pile of clean clothes off the chair, moving it towards an empty laundry basket in the hallway.

“It’s nice,” he said, and he actually meant it. “Es acogedor.”

You could see the truth in his eyes, the flicker of something familiar coming through the crimson. As if he’d known a life like this once. You wanted to ask him. See if he’d tell you more than just his name—perhaps why his eyes were that color—but you knew tonight wasn’t about making this more than it was. In reality you both needed this. No strings, no commitment. Merely two people looking to release themselves from the heaviness of the day.

He turned, catching you staring blatantly at him. “You want me to make you a drink?”

The question threw you off and your expression must have given you away—his lips curling into a grin. “I thought I was supposed to ask you that?”

Heat curled low in your stomach, spreading with every step he took until the tips of his shoes met yours. He bent down, hand curling around the nape of your neck, fingers digging in slightly. Chills spread down your spine, goosebumps rising along your arms, and for a brief moment you wanted to live in this. To remain oblivious to everything happening around you.

Everything except him.

He brought his lips closer, his breath washing across your cheek. “So ask me,” he breathed.

“Do you want me to—”

Cutting you off he dragged you closer, practically hauling you up to his chest as his lips covered yours. It sent your mind reeling, your hands digging into his hair as if on instinct. As if you knew exactly what he wanted. As if…you’d done this before. Something intoxicating built up in your body, turning your brain foggy when his hands slid down, cupping your ass and dragging a moan from your throat.

He met your sound with one of his own—a ragged grunt that came from low in his chest. The echo of it reverberating through your body. You knew what this was. What it wouldn’t become. Yet you couldn’t stop the longing in your heart—the yearning that refused to be locked away in your mind. You wondered what it would be like if this was more. Would it always feel this…electric?

Something pulled you together and you couldn’t determine what it was. Except at that moment you couldn’t even determine your own name.

His tongue swept in your mouth, shoving all your thoughts aside and bringing forth something new. A feeling so strong you found yourself grasping for him tighter, pulling him closer as he licked deeply into you—tasting the alcohol on your tongue.

“Bedroom,” you gasped, yanking on the strands of his hair and earning another delicious grunt.

“Donde—”

“Down the hall.”

Stumbling back you felt his hand hitch your leg over his hip, nearly dragging you with him. Yet you could hardly complain. You were pretty sure that if he let you go you’d go falling to the ground from his touch alone. He moved your head where he wanted, lips slotting over yours and spit nearly trailing down your chin. A rush of slick poured into your panties, your nails scratching along his scalp as he nearly hit the wall, pressing you against it and hitching your other leg up.

“Fuck.”

You tried to tell him that you needed more, that you wanted him inside of you, but all that came out was a breathy moan. His hips grinded into yours, a soft moan being pressed to the shell of your ear, and that alone nudged you towards something earth-shattering.

His lips slid back along yours, hands grasping for any skin he could reach as you practically shoved your hips against his. The desperation practically seeped into the air—permeating your tongue with its cloying flavor. Words were exchanged for moans, tender moments now shifting into something quicker and faster. You wanted to feel him against you as fast as humanly possible, but Miguel was eager to remain here. Holding you up against the wall and kissing you until you ran out of oxygen.

“So I take it that’s a no on the drink?” you breathed, smiling at the small frustrated sound echoed in the back of his throat.

“Cállate,” he grunted, hiking you up and grinning at the yelp that was muffled into his mouth.

Wrapping your arms around his neck, you felt him begin to move—heading towards your bedroom. The door remained open from earlier and you thanked yourself for making sure to keep the place tidy before leaving for work today. Before you could detach yourself from him and lead him to your bed, he turned and sat down. Taking you with him until you were sprawled on his lap.

“Tú eres hermoso,” you mumbled against his lips, watching in delight as his expression shifted. Surprise spreading across his chiseled features.

“I’m supposed to say that to you,” he replied, a small grin playing on his lips.

You shrugged, pressing your lips to his jaw. “Guess we’re doing tonight backwards.”

He chuckled, sliding his hands beneath your shirt until it was clear that he wanted it off. You complied with ease. Allowing him to drop the fabric to the floor as his eyes fell to your chest, taking in the pretty lace of your bra. The crimson you’d come to admire darkened to something you’d call a burgundy—lust clouding his gaze. He wanted to take you apart. To see the inner workings of your body—your mind. Anything he could get his hands on. And you’d let him.

There was no doubt that Miguel had gotten beneath your skin in such a short amount of time. He filled your home with a feeling you hadn’t had before. Something tangible and real. Something you wanted to keep.

“Guapísima,” he murmured, hands cupping your breasts, thumbs brushing over the spot where your nipples poked through the fabric. A soft jolt rolled down your spine at the feeling.

Warmth clung to your chest, filling you to the brim with a sensation you’d only had once before in your life. Only this was different. This didn’t feel new or like you were just discovering it. No, this felt familiar. As if it had been hiding away in your heart, biding its time until you crossed his path—until you found one another. You wanted to wrap yourself in it, sink into its comfort, and you wondered if he felt it too.

The strange way all of this felt right.

Like coming home after being away for so long.

“Miguel,” you gasped when his mouth trailed down to your chest. The heat of his lips sticking to your already burning skin—his tongue trailing along the tops of your breasts.

He pulled down the fabric, taking your nipple into his mouth—practically lighting up on the inside when you cried out softly. Your hand dug into his hair, tugging on the strands as he scraped his teeth against you. Drawing out every sound he could find hidden in the depths of your chest. Your hips ground against him, clit pulsing with a need that would only be satiated by his touch.

For a moment you worried that he wouldn’t continue his path. That he’d ignore the way you were practically panting for him—the pleas falling from your lips with ease. But then his hand dipped beneath your waistband, fingers trailing along the edge of your panties. Your eyes nearly rolled back, hips canting up as you tried to get him to go further—to release you of this agony. But he held still. Entirely focused on driving you to the very brink of insanity; continuing the path with his teeth and tongue along your chest until the skin was tender.

“Impatient are we?” he mused, nose brushing against your jaw—the grin prominent in his voice.

You huffed, gripping tightly onto his hair and dragging his head up. “A tease are we?”

A moan ripped from his throat, his hips jolting up into yours at the slight sting of pain that bloomed in his head. His eyes were heavy, mouth parted as he took in a deep breath, and you could have sworn that you’d never see a prettier sight again. He looked at you as one would a statue in a museum. Tracing the curves and dips of your body with eyes that resembled the color of blood. Eyes that would never leave your mind again.

His tongue swept across his bottom lip, teeth protruding outwards slightly and you had half a mind to ask him about it. To question how exactly he had fangs, but your desire won out on the logical part of your mind. Leaning forward you licked your tongue along them, feeling how he shivered beneath your touch—how his body sang a tune you could match.

“Careful,” he rumbled, his hand pressing against your back and bringing you even closer. “I might bite.”

You smiled, sliding your palms beneath the collar of his shirt, the hot skin beneath warming your cold fingers instantly. “Sounds like a promise to me.”

“I’m not good with promises.” He let you pull his shirt up, raising his arms and helping where you couldn’t reach.

Even you couldn’t deny there was something so domestic about this. How he carefully shifted you so that you were now pressed into the mattress. His large frame looming over you—hair falling into his eyes as he looked down. It felt natural; the fluid movements were almost instinctive. Like your bodies knew what to do before you could even comprehend anything happening. You wanted to blame the alcohol—or hell perhaps it was the lust that was making you slightly lose it—but you saw it beneath the surface of his slightly guarded expression.

He felt it too.

Perhaps even more.

“Come here,” you breathed, cupping the back of his neck and bringing his lips back where they belonged—where they felt the most right.

You felt his hands fall to the waistband of your pants, popping open the button and you were quick to raise your hips, helping him push them down. There was a swiftness to his movements. Like he knew what you wanted before you did—something telling him that you were ready to keep going. But that would be scientifically impossible. No one could predict things that way. Yet you couldn’t help but go back to the color of his eyes—the fangs that now scraped along your throat and down your shoulder.

He seemed to be a scientific marvel. Something unknown.

“Your tur—oh—” Your head fell back, lips falling open when his hand dipped even lower, fingers sliding into your soaked panties.

A groan echoed in the room, his lips finding yours again as he gathered the slick that pooled at your entrance and dragged it back to your clit. Setting a slow and maddening pace that had you grasping for his shoulders. Your nails pricked the skin so hard you knew there would be marks later. He pressed down, sparks scorching your body, and grinned at your reaction. How your eyes squeezed shut, leg kicking out and hips pushing into his hand.

“So wet for me.” He sunk one finger into you, tearing a whine from your throat.

“Mig—” The breath caught in your lungs. “I want—fuck—please…”

He shushed you gently, lips sliding against yours messily as he worked you open, slipping another finger into you with ease. “I know amorcito. I’ve gotta open you up for me.”

Something pulled at your stomach, tightening slowly as he continued to pump his fingers into you—the wet squelch of your slick echoing in the room. You knew you were dripping down his hand, that he was able to slip in a third finger as he went. But that didn’t mean he would stop. No Miguel had become hooked on the sounds coming from your lips—the moans that you didn’t try to stifle. He curled his fingers and struck against the spongy part of your walls that made you practically curl up into him.

A surprised cry fell from your lips, eyes flying open to see his lips curl into a small grin, before he doubled down. Shifting the angle, he made sure to press the pads of his fingers in the same spot each time, his thumb swiping along your clit. And you felt that building pressure shift. It clawed its way up your throat, settling in your chest as he murmured soft words of praise.

“Dámelo,” he breathed against your lips. “Give it to me bebita.”

As if your body was following his request, you shattered. A choked cry of his name was swallowed by his kiss, his tongue licking deeply into your mouth—fingers rapidly moving to prolong your pleasure. It was too much, yet not enough. The hunger—the desire—screamed in your chest, begging for him to keep going, for this to be more than just one night. Yet you couldn’t speak.

You gulped in air, legs shaking when the pleasure slowly began to fade into a slight pain. But Miguel wasn’t done. He was far from it. Your heart pounded in your chest when he slipped his fingers into his mouth, moaning at the taste of your release—the shiny stickiness on his palm letting you know how wet you really were.

“Sabes deliciosa,” he murmured, pressing his tongue back into your mouth and sharing the taste of you.

Your hand fell to his pants, pulling at the buckle of his belt as he shifted—making room between your legs to lay over you. His hand pressing into the mattress above your head. The all encompassing feeling of him surrounded you; pressed you into the small haven he created with his body. Keeping you from the rest of the world as you lost yourselves in each other.

“Your belt is being difficult,” you huffed, head falling back against the pillow.

He laughed, opening it with ease and effectively earning a glare from you.

Miguel had to admit there was an ease to being around you. The weight he usually felt hanging atop his shoulders had been lifted—his mind suddenly clearer and mood better. He wanted to figure out why that was, but you were looking at him with a gaze that caused his heart to stutter. The urge to remain close to you seemed to overtake every other thought that ran through his mind. He rid himself of his pants, helping you pull down the lacy fabric—his lips sliding along your inner calf as he did so.

The light touch of your palm grasping on his hand brought his gaze back up—your small smirk rendering him speechless. Miguel had only been this way a few times in his life. All instances he could count on one hand, but this—you—were bringing out an emotion he would have rather kept locked away. Nervousness.

Leaning up on your elbows, you met him halfway, your arm going around his shoulders as he leaned down to kiss you. It was by all means…sweet. The passion remained, lingering beneath the surface and searing through your veins, but something else took over. A feeling he wanted to keep.

“Since we’re doing this backwards,” you whispered, brushing your lips against his and cupping his cheek.

Locking your leg around his hip, you used the leverage of his surprise to send him into the mattress, your hands falling to his chest as you perched yourself in his lap. Your lips formed around a smile when he grunted. The feeling of your bare pussy now spread along his cock—your slick dripping down and coating his length—was divine.

“Mierda.” His hands grasped your hips, grinding you forward a bit until the head of cock brushed your clit, ripping a gasp from your chest.

“F-fuck—” Your head fell forward, teeth digging into your lip.

“You’re gonna fuck me amorcito?” he asked, a flash of something dangerous echoing in his eyes. “Gonna ride me?”

You nodded, mouth falling open when he pressed against your entrance. Whatever comment you had died in the back of your throat when he began to sink into you—a slight sting of pain streaking up your spine as you took him slowly. He wasn’t kidding about needing to open you up, but still it was a stretch. A soft whisper of praise echoed in your ear, his thumb circling your clit to counteract the pain. Even still you dug your nails into his chest, no doubt leaving marks that would bruise later on.

“You can take it,” he murmured, thumb curling around your chin. “You can take it like a good girl.”

A whine caught in your throat, your hips canting down with each small thrust until you were seated in his lap again. His cock filling you completely—the stuffed sensation nearly too much for you. Miguel leaned up, catching your lips in a soft kiss; giving you time to adjust. Yet you felt the sharp need of desire work its way through your body, begging for you to keep going, to take everything he would give you.

“How do you feel?” He pulled at your bottom lip with his thumb, his other hand cupping your ass.

“F-Full,” you whimpered.

“Go ahead,” he said softly, allowing you to lift yourself off his cock slowly—slick coating him down to the coarse hair at his base.

The pace was lazy, barely even there, and he watched. His eyes tracked each movement you made, each time your hips shifted forward to change the angle. He burned the image of you fucking yourself on his cock into his brain—watching as you did exactly what you said you were going do. Ride him.

Scraping your nails down his stomach, you heard him groan, his hips thrusting up slightly and forcing a cry from your throat. You wanted more. Wanted to feel him fuck you into the mattress, but the familiar pressure was already forming again. Building in your stomach with each stunted thrust—the head of his cock brushing against the spot he’d found earlier.

“I’m—” Your head fell back, hips shifting forward to catch it perfectly—eyes squeezing shut. “‘M gonna—o-oh…”

“That’s it,” he rasped, guiding your hips and slamming you down onto him with a strength that made you sob, your hands grasping for any part of him you could reach. “Cum on my cock amorcito. Wanna see you—ah fuck—”

Your hips stuttered, eyes rolling back as the wave crashed over you, nearly pulling you under. A cry echoed in the room, your walls clamping down, and for a moment you felt nothing but bliss. You went blind with it, your body tipping forward into him as he continued to move you in short thrusts, dragging it on even more. Miguel grunted against your throat, sitting up fully and holding you close as you rode out your release, your body practically falling limp against him.

Eventually you felt yourself come back, your hands dragging through his hair as he placed kisses up and down your neck, arms tightening around you. Your legs barely worked, head still fuzzy with the intensity of your orgasm. But the desire still remained, stroking the fire slowly until it once again began to seep through your system. Warming your body.

He was still hard, throbbing against your fluttering walls. That alone caused you to moan softly, your hips shifting down and lips pressing against his jaw. 

“You didn’t finish,” you murmured, nails scraping against the back of his neck. The small goosebumps that appeared had a lazy smile curling on your lips.

He ached for that sweet release, wanted to flip you over and chase it, but he didn’t want to leave. At least not yet. There was something about taking his time with you that called to the part of him that had always wanted more. A part he’d crushed over and over again. Claiming it wasn’t necessary. There was no room in his life for that irritating emotion people referred to as love—no space in his heart.

Until a space began to slowly open up. He could barely find it, barely even see the small gash you’d made in the armor around his heart. But he’d discover it eventually.

“I want to see you cum,” you said softly, eyes glimmering with need.

“Bebita—”

Licking along his bottom lip you felt his cock twitch, his fingers digging into the flesh of your ass a little harder. “Want to feel it, Miguel. Need it.”

“Shit.” He felt the breath get punched from his lungs, your words sending a streak of heat down his spine. “Yeah? You want it that bad?”

You nodded, lifting yourself on shaky legs only to drop back down, impaling yourself on his cock. He spit out another broken curse, his head falling back briefly before you were tossed back—your body slamming against the mattress. You yelped, eyes going wide when he shifted over you, body covering yours in a way that had a haze settling in your mind. He grinned, fangs digging into his bottom lip as he spread your thighs—hooking them over his forearms and nearly bending you in half.

“All you had to do was ask,” he purred, guiding himself back into your dripping pussy and sinking in with ease.

Gasping, you clawed at his shoulders when he hit so much deeper, the angle changing everything. You wanted to shout his name, to tell him how good it felt, but he’d already started to pull back, shoving himself into you with a strength that sent you up the bed. A ragged sound was pulled from your chest, eyes rolling back when he brushed against that spot so much easier—grinding against it in a way that had your body going numb with pleasure.

“Look at you taking me so well,” he muttered, curling over your body and sending your knees up near your head.

“O-Oh…god!”

“Cosita linda.” His body was tense, teeth baring as he continued to pound into you at a pace that built your release so quick it burned through you. “Pretty fucking thing. Letting me fuck you like this. Perfecta—”

You cried out, nails breaking the skin of his back—leaving deep marks. Tears streamed down your temples, spit falling down your chin when he leaned in to kiss you. He was everywhere. His scent permeated your senses, taste now permanently etched on your tongue, and yet that still wasn’t enough. There was something about him that made you want to crack open your heart and give it to him. Offer yourself up entirely in the hopes he’d accept. He surrounded you, filled your entire being with nothing but him, and you loved it.

Your body went taut, eyes flying open to see him staring down where you were connected, how his cock disappeared into your leaking pussy.

He smiled, hands digging into your hips so tight it sparked a delicious pain when you sobbed incoherently. “I can feel you.” His breath stuttered when your walls clamped down—brows pulling tight and mouth falling open in a silent shout. “That’s it. C’mon—” He gasped, fingers falling to your aching clit and circling it quickly. “Cum on my fucking cock. Soak me.”

This time the release wasn’t built steadily to give you time to prepare. You could barely breathe, your lungs screaming for some small amount of air. Yet your body seemed to be solely focused on one thing. A broken shout of his name left your lips, echoing in the room, combining sinfully with the sound of skin against skin and your slick. His thumb found your clit, pinching it between his fingers and something in you broke.

It slammed into you unexpectedly, dragging out a loud keening wail—white flashing behind your tightly closed eyes as it rushed through you. Flooded every sense you had until all you could comprehend was him chasing his own release. He fucked into you with short stunted thrusts until he fell forward, his lips colliding with yours—a ragged cry being pressed into your mouth.

He spurted into your already dripping pussy, filling you deliciously and sending another flicker of warmth down to the tips of your fingers. His chest heaved, lips swollen and eyes dazed, and you wanted to solidify the sight in your mind. Except the reality of what this was would eventually come crashing back down. Reminding you that he was not yours to have. That you were simply two passing stars in a tangled web of this universe, meant to part ways.

He let your legs fall back to the bed, slipping out of you with a hiss before he flopped onto his back, dragging you with him. His cum dripped down your inner thigh, smearing against the skin. But for now you let it happen. Content to remain right there, feeling his chest rise and fall as he attempted to catch his breath. His fingers traced lightly along your spine, line after line until you realized what it was that he was drawing.

A web.

Or at least…that’s what it felt like.

“I don’t think I can move,” you mumbled, smiling into his skin when he laughed—the sound low and rough.

“That’s a good thing I hope,” he replied, glancing down at you—eyes tracing the curve of your hip and breast that pressed into his side.

You placed a kiss on his shoulder, hand splaying across his stomach. “Definitely.”

Silence enveloped the both of you like a comfortable blanket, filling the space with a soft feeling. It lulled you into a state of peace. Sleep nearly overtaking you. Yet you fought against it. Too busy taking in what he looked like—attempting to commit him to memory lest you never see him again. You wanted him burned into your brain, each memory tattooed into place permanently. But that’s not how life went.

This wasn’t a fairytale, and he wasn’t yours.

So you settled against his body, soaking in the warmth he emanated and allowed your eyes to flutter shut. His breath came in slower, arm curling around you as he fell asleep gradually—his heart a steady thrum in his chest. An echo that allowed sleep to drag you beneath the surface, giving way to something peaceful.

The loud angry beep of your alarm clock jolted you awake, your eyes flying open and body aching as you sat up quickly. There was a mess of blankets on your floor, obviously kicked off in the middle of the night. It seemed that with the heat of the outside world and his body, you were content to sleep with a thin sheet wrapped around you. Yet where you expected to find clothes left haphazardly around the room, you found nothing.

Your clothes that had been stripped off now lay in a pile on your chair, shoes placed by the end of your bed. Last night was clear to you now. The all consuming bliss, the way he had felt buried inside of you—how he had touched you. And while you understood it was merely a one night stand. You couldn’t stop the disappointment from seeping into your chest.

The sight of him completely erased from your apartment put a damper on an otherwise good morning.

Sighing, you swung yourself into a sitting position at the end of your bed. A throbbing headache began to spread along your skull. No doubt the cause of waking up too fast. Either that or the alcohol had actually decided to give you a bitch of a hangover. You’d have to figure that out later. The reminder of what the day held for you flickered bright and blaring in your mind—killing whatever joy you had left in your chest.

“Fuck,” you spit, dropping your head in your hands as you finally settled on one conclusion. You were about to be fired.

You had about an hour before you had to rush out the door. Giving you enough time to find out how to stop the delicious ache in between your thighs from going away. The echo of the outside world drifted up through your somehow open window and you raised your eyes, gazing at the spot where he had been only a few hours ago.

Only to catch sight of a glass of water placed on your nightstand—a ripped piece of paper beneath it. You practically lunged for it, hands carefully sliding the paper out and eyes tracing the messy scribble of what you assumed to be his writing. The message was short. Direct. It could barely even be considered sweet, but you saw the tenderness through the short sentence—the care in his action of leaving you with something to remember him by.

I had a lot of fun.

So we can do things the right way next time.

— Miguel

Beneath the message a phone number was scrawled, as if he’d been hesitant to even put it there in the first place. But it seemed that you weren’t the only one to feel that strange connection. That lingering sensation of familiarity whenever you thought about him. There was something to uncover between you. Perhaps the something more that you were aching for last night.

You had no clue.

Yet that didn’t stop you from grabbing your phone and inputting the numbers carefully. Glancing back at each one to make sure that the message wouldn’t disappear before your very eyes. You typed his name at the top, smiling at the contact before sticking a web right beside it. The memory of what he’d traced along your skin coming back to you.

A thrill of joy went through your body, lips pulling up into a wide smile as you pressed the button to send a text. While it may have been too soon—perhaps a bit fast if you were looking at it properly—the warmth in your chest won the battle in the end. 

How could something that felt this right be messed up with speed?

How could it go wrong?

[netisinfin8ty]

HUGE ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE SPOILERS BELOW

Ok, I know a lot of people discussing about Across the Spider-Verse tend to focus on that ending (because WHAT AN ending) but I’m honestly more focused on a certain Hispanic vampire spidery boi because I’ve got a wild-ass theory concerning him. check this out ready 

THESE TWO AREN’T THE SAME PERSON

All the evidence I have is the trilogy's subtext and the two’s vibes but I SWEAR THIS COULD BE PROVEN CORRECT IN BEYOND THE SPIDER-VERSE

While both ITSPV!Miguel and ATSP!Miguel tend to get frustrated pretty quickly, some things about their personality don’t quite match up. ITSPV!Miguel seems a lot more snarky and comical (”I know what It looks like...” “Oh, here we go...” “The Multiverse didn’t collapse!” “Oh, cool!” “Great story.”) but meanwhile, ATSP!Miguel is a lot more deadpan and aloof - even Peter B. calls him out (”You know, you’re the only Spider-Man I know who isn’t funny; we’re supposed to be funny!). ITSPV!Miguel is surprisingly a lot calmer when concerning the multiverse’s structural integrity, but ATSP!Miguel is a lot more controlling and cold; he also seems like he could lose his shit at any second compared to ITSPV!Miguel. He even says it himself (”...all this time, I have been the only one HOLDING IT ALL TOGETHER!”) ATSP!Miguel is completely ruthless and can be a total monster at some points, but ITSPV!Miguel doesn’t seem to have that same fury

also, correct me if I’m wrong; ATSP!Miguel says that one of the first times he hopped dimensions was when he was trying to find the one where he was finally happy but we know that ain’t the case because of ITSPV!Miguel

maybe that part didn’t happen

BUT GOING BACK TO THE THEORY I also believe this twist is plausible due to these movies underlying theme of two versions of the same person. we got Peter B. and Peter and their two retrospective Mary Janes, and now Miles and his Earth-42 counterpart (which can I just add was that MCU!Prowler Donald Glover Miles interaction foreshadowing in a way? I'm gonna say yes), so it wouldn’t be that out of left field if in Beyond we got two Miguels

but the only thing left here is how this ties into the third Miguel; the one who was killed. was ITSPV!Miguel and that Miguel the same person? ATSP!Miguel didn’t imply that he was also Spider-Man but he didn’t deny it either. how did he convince the rest of the Spider-Society that he was the ‘real’ Miguel? are they all different people? how has ITSPV!Miguel not noticed a second version of himself by now? did ATSP!Miguel ACTUALLY kill him and straight-up fibbed about someone else killing him? he does seem like having the vibe of a man keeping a lot of shit in the closet; look at how he says that any universe that disrupts ‘canon’ dies and look at Earth-42, 1610 and 65. how does Hobie relate to all of this??? so many questions...

The obvious answer to this riddle is obvious; ITSPV!Miguel just got a redesign for ATSP. That post-credits scene started production late into ITSP’s release date so they just used the regular Spider-Man model and dropped 2099′s day of the dead-ass-luchador-ass textures on it. I mean look at Lyla’s lip sync they weren’t even trying

BUT STILL. If they can make the fucking BAGEL DUDE into a cosmic-level threat, if they can ret-con a one-off background gag into Mile’s nemesis, I swear the production staff could be mad enough to say ‘these two aren’t the same guy’ as well

All i’m saying is, it’s gonna be a tedious next 9 months 

[rmoonstoner]

***

Poisoned Empanadas

***

Pairing:

Moon Knight (Jake Lockley) x Spider!fem!reader

Spider-Man 2099 (Miguel O'Hara) x Spider!fem!reader

***

18+

Warnings:

Violence, strong language, mentions of death, mentions of depression, sexual themes, someone gets hurt

***

Summary:

A wild Miguel appears once again!

***

Chapter 5 - Pizza Rolls

Yes. I said it. Pizza rolls to me are just little pizza filled Empanadas. My favorite kind are the big Great Value bag of them. Let me tell you about the homemade pizza rolls I made recently. I got puff pastry, then filled them with cream cheese and extra old aged cheddar, diced dry aged salami, diced habaneros, diced onions, homemade garlic pizza sauce, and then close them up, cover in garlic butter, sprinkle with parmesan, and bake on parchment paper for 15-25 min on 350.

***

Another week had rolled on by since that very explicit dream and you hadn't run into Miguel at all. Even when you outright asked the criminals on whether or not they had seen a jacked up Spider-Man, they genuinely looked confused and terrified that there was yet another Spider-Man, and this one was bigger than any of the others. It almost made you question his existence, had the wizard not kept asking if you had seen him again?

Every.

Damned.

Night.

You nearly lost hope on running into him. Maybe he found his way back to where he came from? Maybe he had to leave the city to find the thing he needed in order to do so?

Either way, you managed to get out to patrol for an entire seven days without seeing any sign of him. Perhaps he was busy, which was good. It was getting old being asked the same question every night. At least Peter had the decency to not ask about Miguel while in Stephen's presence. That would just trigger the doctor into playfully teasing you about it.

Thankfully, he hadn't asked about Miguel at all for today, come to think of it. Stephen had said Peter was there when he opened up a viewing orb to see where you were. Maybe Peter's little magic caffeine fit made him forget? Oh, who were you kidding, he aced his finals, so of course he'd remember seeing Miguel in the orb.

"Hey! Nice to see you!" Peter called out as you flipped yourself over the ledge to see only him at the meeting point. He was just packing up Gwen's bag that she had left the previous night.

"Hi! How are you?" You greeted him as he handed you a protein bar.

"Doing good. Since I did so well on my reports, I got a few recommendations from some of the professors. I showed them to Stephen, and told him I want to get my engineering and chemistry certification."

"So you plan on getting a doctorate?"

"Yes! I hope it makes Stephen proud. It's not the same kind of doctor, and it's more what Tony would have wanted-" Peter rambled a bit and you placed a hand to his shoulder.

"Stephen is proud of you. He'd be proud of you no matter what subject you pick. He would be proud even if you failed, because you tried so hard. You don't give up when it gets rough. He knows how much Tony meant to you and Tony wasn't one to stop achieving his dreams when he failed at something. You and Stephen share that drive, and it'll take you far." You said with a bright smile.

It wasn't a lie, because Strange talked about the boy a lot. He always asked how he was doing after a patrol, and he would be the one to do most of the first aid on the team. If he ever had to help Peter with an injury, the man would fuss while patching the boy up. Stephen would even be constantly mentioning how proud Tony would have been, had he been around to see Peter's achievements. The doctor almost sounded like a sweet old grandmother affectionately referring to her grandchild when he spoke of Peter.

"Thank you. That feels good hearing that from you." Peter replied as he cracked a grin.

"So… Does this mean I have to call you Doctor Parker? Or Doctor Spider-Man? Oooh! I know! How about Spider-Doctor?" You gently teased him. Peter burst out laughing while shaking his head.

"Absolutely not! It will be Doctor Parker, and then just the same old, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man." He chuckled with a wink.

"Ah, good. Though… What about Doctor Webs?!" You gave a laugh back as you tried to picture it. He laughed and shook his head. The both of you got ready to head out, suiting up fully and slinging away into the night as you kept roasting Peter on the names he could use.

***

Most of the night was pretty calm. There was a fender bender pretty early on and a guy needed to be pulled from the wreckage, so Peter had helped. You didn't have much to offer in assistance, so you sat perched up on a shopping market roof to watch him while you called an ambulance. When all was said and done, you left to go seek out other problem areas that might need some help. The small police scanner Peter had built into his wrist watch sure did help a lot, and it reminded you of Miguel's watch.

Another occurrence was a man being held at knife point by a local drunk. Peter and you managed to talk the guy down and check him into a local drop-in center for outreach help. From there, everything was good. Nothing was off, which was great. It was so great that you and Peter stopped for a bite to eat on top of Stark Tower. About half way through your sandwich, Peter's watch and phone went off. He picked it up to check and his face fell.

"What's wrong, Peter?"

"There's been a breach in the Stark Tower security systems." He grumbled as he jammed the rest of his food into his mouth and chewed vigorously. You huffed and opened your sandwich and hurriedly removed the good bits, shoving them into your mouth and discarding the bread and other bits you didn't enjoy much. You both chewed in silence as you wiped your faces and hands.

"What? But we are sitting on the building..?" You asked with a confused face as you opened a soda to wash your mouth out, then handed it over to Peter so he could do the same.

"Yeah… I suppose we should go check it out, then?" He suggested. How could you say no?

Since Peter already had official security clearance, it was easy to get inside. You followed him in and down to the lower levels. He didn't bother to creep about. He acted like he owned the place, which he kind of did now that Tony was gone. Peter glanced at his watch a few times.

"Looks like the disturbance is in the vaults." Peter announced as he pointed to another stairwell. His tech was telling him the breach was in the power core reactor vault on the main floor. It was separated from the one that powered the building, and that was underground.

Peter directed you to the stairwell and down the center of the spiral stairs. He chose to use a web rope, while you descended with a disk of light. Once at the main floor, Peter quietly peeked down a hallway and motioned for you to follow. You darkened your suit and dimmed the lights in the hallway slowly, while Peter made his way towards the vault room.

There was a clatter of sorts the closer you got. Peter was a bit nervous, his spider senses no doubt going insane as he twitched at any noise. Yours, however, wasn't going off at all. You thought that was odd, considering the threatening nature of the noises that you were hearing. Scraping and clanking to be specific could be heard, followed by what sounded like drawers and doors opening and closing rapidly. The occasional crash of glass tinking against glass could be heard as well.

Peter stopped at the door, a weak light coming from inside. You could hear someone grumbling to someone. A man, talking to a woman. Peter was opening the door as you realized the voices sounded familiar, and before you could tell him to wait, Peter was zipping inside to confront the individuals.

"I'd stop that if I were you. Mr. Stark might be gone, but this building is still owned by his associates." Peter said as he clung to the roof in front of a large storage room door. The noises suddenly stopped and a growl erupted from the room.

"Spidey, uh, maybe we should be careful-" You started to say, when a large metal box was hurled at him. Thankfully, Peter managed to smack it away in time.

"Not one for talking, huh? Are you the strong silent type?" Peter said as he fired off a warning shot into the storage room. A small crash could be heard as a bunch of things fell to the ground and scattered all over the floor and out the door. You hid in the shadows and got closer to the door as Peter dropped down and darted into the room after the noise.

"Friday! Spidey needs the rest of the backup lights off!" You called out. The noises suddenly stopped as that familiar voice went 'huh?' And a second later, and the lights went out.

A scuffle occurred. You could hear Peter get hit and grunt as he came flying out of the room and hit the wall on the other side of the room. You gasped when it registered. You heard the distinct sound of bone breaking and Peter hissing in pain.

There was another crash, so you turned and stepped into the storage room, seeing a dark figure smash a window and climb up into it. The moon light hit his form just right, and you could tell immediately that it was Miguel. He turned to look back at you, tilted his head, then jumped. You looked back at Peter, seeing he was getting up and rubbing his neck.

You had a choice. Stay and help Peter, or chase Miguel.

"Get that jerk, Galaxy-Spider!" Peter shouted as he huffed while leaning against the wall. His arm looked like it was bent the wrong way, and his voice was dripping with pain.

That fucking dick broke your friend's arm!

You saw red, and then in an instant, you were across the room, handing Peter your bag for anything he would need, before running to and jumping from the window that Miguel had escaped from.

As you hit the night air, you looked around, catching a glimpse of Miguel zipping up a web to the roof of the building you just left. You scowled and hissed as you summoned a circle of light and stepped on it. You braced yourself and sent it straight upwards towards Miguel.

When he turned his head to check if he had gotten away, he recoiled in surprise when he saw that you were only meters behind him.

He reached out and shot a web to the next building over and kicked away from the tower. He used the momentum of the sudden change in trajectory to rocket himself away. He was fast, like ridiculously fast for a large hulking mass of muscle. It made sense, Jake was slightly smaller, but the cabbie was pretty fucking fast. So, of course Miguel, with the same setup, would be faster since he was a Spider.

Right?

"Get your ass back here!" You demanded as you aimed at him and shot off a web. He managed to twist himself out of the way. In doing so, he landed against the building and sprang away from it to go to another across the street.

"Fucker! I swear to the Gods, if you make me chase you, I am not going to be a happy girl!" You called out while making a series of glowing lights appear to get to him. He had gained a fair distance, now being three blocks away.

You could do this. You had chased far worse things than Miguel. This should be easy for you.

One blob at time, but surprisingly quickly as you hopped, skipped, and jumped your way to the fleeing Spider. You gave chase for over ten minutes, drawing you far away from the Stark Tower and the Sanctum. You hauled ass and pushed yourself to catch up with him, each breath coming out in a rush.

Closer.

Closer.

Closer…

Your lungs were burning and your muscles were aching with the effort to get to him. You were angry and upset that he had hurt your friend, and had the audacity to break and enter the building that belonged to said friend. You had an idea of what he was looking for, and you even offered to help him, yet here you were, chasing a potential thief that refused any help.

When Miguel looked back, you were almost able to grab at his ankle. The panic was evident in his body language, and in that split second, he shot you in the face with his webs.

Everything went dark and you stumbled while trying to pull the web from your face. You lost your footing, slipping and falling off the light. A strangled squeak came from you as your head smacked against another gob of light. Dizziness filled you as you kept falling. The ground would soon meet you and you were sure it would hurt and do some major damage.

A whoosh of air hit your ears as you were suddenly grabbed and sent flying. It took a moment to realize you weren't falling, but now were being carried while swinging in the air. Large muscular arms held you tightly against a well sculpted torso. The heat from the man was radiating nicely and it felt safe and warm, even though a few moments ago you wanted to punch him in his stupid face. A few moments later, and Miguel was setting you down gently, but he didn't let go. He was holding on in an effort to avoid you lashing out at him as he removed the webs from your face.

Well, you didn't lash out. You stayed still while trying to control your breathing. Your mask was taken off and when you looked up, Miguel had already discarded his on roof you were on. He held a look of concern as he inspected your head, finding a bump, but otherwise everything was fine.

"You gave me a scare, there. You weren't supposed to fall."

"Well you weren't supposed to commit a felony by breaking and entering Stark Tower, then I am pretty sure you broke my friend's arm!" You snapped at him and Miguel let go of you and took a step back.

"I broke his shocking arm!?" He seemed surprised and his face melted into remorse.

"I am sorry. He was trying to stop me from getting the information I needed, and he shot a web at Lyla. She's all I have left. I didn't mean to hurt him. I'm still getting used to these powers." He stammered as he showed you the lack of pockets and anything on his person, but the watch. You sighed, but still had to ask.

"Did you steal anything?"

"No! Well, uh, just the information I needed. I swear, I didn't take any of those glowing core things." He said and turned around.

"See? And no, I didn't put anything up there." He indicated to his rear, and it drew a small laugh from you. You cleared your throat and stood up.

"Well, you need to come back with me. Tell P- Tell Spidey that you're sorry and that you didn't mean to cause any harm, though you clearly did, you big brute. If you don't, the wizard will make your life really fucking hard." You scolded him and pointed back towards the tower. Miguel frowned as he looked down and sighed.

"Fine. I'm sorry I ran."

"Good! Now I'll just shoot him a text and let him know I am on the way back with you." You muttered while going for your pack. You froze when you remembered handing it to Peter.

"Ah, shit. I can't. I forgot I left my bag with him. Well, you're gonna just have to watch your back while we go."

***

By the time you got back to the tower, Peter had already called Stephen in. You could tell they were there because there was a warm orange glow of the portals he was so fond of. You had to check and make sure Miguel didn't just fuck off, which, thankfully, he didn't.

As you approached, you could see Stephen bent over Peter. He was fixing up his arm with magic and making sure Peter was alright when the lad sat up and pointed at you and Miguel.

"That's the guy!" Peter said as he jostled forward a bit and winced. Stephen smacked him lightly on the shoulder.

"Stay still. The last thing we need is you distracting me while I am trying to set the bone back into place!"

"But, Stephen, the guy that broke my arm is right there!" Peter argued with a whine.

"Settle down. I know he's there. I can clearly see him." Stephen said as he twisted Peter's arm suddenly. A loud crack was heard, and Peter gasped and almost threw up.

"But you're not even facing him…" Peter protested quietly. Stephen huffed and pointed up to his forehead and Peter went quiet. He didn't bother asking how he could still see Miguel, when that eye wasn't even facing him. He knew it was magic and left it at that.

"Heya, doc. I found the guy. Brought him back. He's willing to apologize and explain himself." You said as you motioned to Miguel, then to Peter.

"Good. I look forward to hearing about why he's caused such a fuss." Stephen stood there looking at everyone with his arms crossed. He looked mad and annoyed. Of course he'd be.

Miguel was nervous. He was shifting from one foot to the other as he looked at Peter.

"I, uh… I am sorry for breaking your arm. I… I am also sorry for breaking into this building." He glanced at Peter, then at Stephen, before his eyes landed on you.

"Okay. Cool. Apology accepted. Now, please enlighten me as to why you broke into my building?" Peter asked while Stephen started using magic to speed up the healing process.

"Your building?"

"Yes. This is my building."

"So that makes you Peter Parker, then." Miguel said as he motioned to the room around him.

"The man that Tony Stark left all his technology and businesses to. Wow. That's wild. You're so young." Miguel looked at you and huffed.

"You could have told me that, you know. I wouldn't have broken in here if I knew that this place belonged to your friend." Miguel complained and rubbed his face.

"You're a dick. I offered to ask my friends for help, but nooo, you said you wanted to do it all by yourself!" You said and threw both hands over to Peter. Peter was perfectly fine by now, Stephen's spell having worked its magic and fixed what Miguel had broken.

"I said I could have asked, and yet, you declined and ended up hurting my friend. I think you owe me an apology as well Miguel!"

"You're right. I'm sorry. I should have asked for help. I should have accepted your offer."

"Okay. Enough of this garbage. Can we go back to the Sanctum? I really need to finish this book I borrowed from Wong." Stephen spoke up and started walking through the portal.

"You're not going to punish me?" Miguel had a look of surprise on his face.

"No. That's for Peter and her to decide. I have enough shit to deal with already. Besides, you're a Spider-Folk. That's their jurisdiction." Stephen announced and then he went straight to sit at his desk with his book.

"Let's get going. You know how much he hates waiting." Peter whispered to you.

You nodded and looked at Miguel, curling your finger in a silent command to follow. Miguel hung his head in frustration as he followed on through. Once inside the library, the portal closed up behind you. Peter was the first to fling his mask off and flop into one of the arm chairs by the fireplace. You took yours off as you sat in the love seat and laid across it.

Miguel awkwardly looked at the other leather chair and sat down. From this angle he could see everyone, and he noticed the wizard's third eye was staring at him through the reflection of the mirror up on the wall beside him. That was unnerving, so he turned to look at Peter. The boy gave him an obnoxious smile as he looked Miguel over.

"That's a weird choice in a suit. You look like you're wearing a child's costume. I can see some of the seams are ripping." Peter quipped and you giggled.

"Look, my outfit was poorly planned in the time that I had." Miguel huffed and rolled his eyes as he relaxed into the chair.

He was spread eagle with the way he sat, and your eyes wandered down. Just a peek, right? What could it hurt?

"Hey, doc! Can ya fix up his ugly suit?" Peter glanced at you as he called out to Stephen.

You looked away as you blushed, Miguel eyeing you carefully as he crossed one leg over the other. Stephen grumbled and flicked his hands towards Miguel, and his suit resized and darkened with textures that weren't there before. Strange went right back to reading, but he was eavesdropping, ready to spring into action should Miguel blow his top.

Miguel's reaction was an undignified squeak and a grunt as the new suit formed around him. He stared at the gloves, noting the rubber like pads on the fingertips and the slits at the tips of the fingers for his claws. He got up and went over to the mirror and gawked at himself, twisting right and left as he looked at the professional fine detailing of the fabric patterns. Miguel looked like he was wearing boot shaped socks.

He didn't know what to say as he looked at you in the reflection of the mirror. You had been staring at him, eyes looking right at his impressive looking legs, looking up to his nice tight ass, then up his back to his shoulders, and finally to his eyes. You blushed and bit your inner cheek as you smiled at him. He winked at you and then turned to thank the doctor.

Miguel explained who he was, where he was from, and when. Stephen quietly listened, while Peter kept interrupting him to make a joke or a remark about something, like if he really fell into a dumpster, or if you had pushed him. It took about an hour to explain himself in what only took ten minutes to you privately. Stephen decided Miguel wasn't a threat, and offered to let him stay, but Miguel was very adamant about having a hotel room and that he didn't wish to be a burden.

Stephen wasn't having any of it. He refused Miguel's excuses and he showed him to a room, claiming he owed his son at least one day and night of his time for the inconvenience of temporarily breaking his arm. Miguel relented and followed Stephen to the room, and you didn't hear from him all night.

***

Series Masterlist

***

Note:

Sorry Peter. Miguel is really sorry.

Please like it if you enjoyed it, leave a comment, and share! ❤️ 💙

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***

Special thanks to:

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[age-of-moonknight]

Hi! It's me again.

In light of the upcoming Ultimate Black Panther 2024 coming out in Feb, "In the wake of Ultimate Invasion", in which Khonshu and Ra are doing things and then are the bad guys.... I thought it a good theme to explore Moon Knight in alternate universes. ....To which I actually know very little about. But I bet you know stuff!

I've seen Moon Knight explored in things like Arachknight (love that outfit) and alternate timelines where he's imagined in different outfits, but what about in actual Marvel time lines like the Ultimate universe or 2099 (which he is also going to be featured in briefly).

How much has he shown up in those lines and can they even be called Moon Knight or just some guys in a Moon outfit?

Thank you so much for sending this my way, because oh ho ho this is something I'm so excited to answer! :D You hit the nail on the head though in regard to how "Moon Knight" is only sometimes our beloved system of Jake, Marc, and Steven and other times it's more of a title. Interestingly, I've noticed anecdotally that many non-616 continuities choose to invent an entirely new character as opposed to doing an alternate interpretation of our favorite guy. A majority of the time, however, they still maintain key facets of the Moon Knight mantle (devotion to Khonshu, for example, being prevalent). I'll break down the major ones (and some of my favorites) under the cut, because there are some really great ones imo. :D

Ultimates (Earth-1610)

I started here not only because you mentioned it specifically, but also because it's the non-616 continuity with the most Moon Knight material and it's possibly the closest parallel to 616's Moon Knight.

Ultimates Moon Knight appears in Ultimate Spider-Man (Vol. 1/2000), #79-80, #82-85, #107-110 and Ultimate Spider-Man Annual (Vol. 1/2006), #2.

He also makes some cameos in the Ultimate Fantastic Four (Vol. 1/2004), #52-53, Ultimate Origins (Vol. 1/2008), #5, and Cataclysm: The Ultimates' Last Stand (Vol. 1/2014), #5.

Sometimes I just think about this dude, because he's very recognizable as an analogue for 616!Marc Spector, but there are some major differences that receive frustratingly little expansion due to him only being a secondary character guest-appearing in a Spider-Man comic. One difference right off the bat is that it seems in this iteration the Marc and Steven identities are swapped, with Marc being the debonair millionaire frequently used as a cover identity and Steven as the scruffy operator.

[Ultimate Spider-Man (Vol. 1/2000), #83.]

The other big change, in my opinion at least, appears to be an attempt at more purposefully incorporating in and acknowledging the system's DID, whereas 616 pretty notoriously meandered its way through "nah, they're just cover identities" to "he contracted 'multiple identities' after doing those cover identities Too Hard" (???? Yike?) to finally landing on something a bit more understanding and respectful. The success of 1610's attempt at mental health representation probably depends upon your opinion on Brian Michael Bendis as a writer. An honest attempt was made, but it's definitely not free of the now very dated term "multiple identity disorder" or of stereotypes, with one headmate being a little girl and the whole system being threatened by an encroaching "evil" alter developed as a cover identity (which happens to be "Ronin," another wild little element of this universe) and subsequently going off the rails.

[Ultimate Spider-Man (Vol. 1/2000), #108.]

Markedly, I don't recall catching a reference to Khonshu during my read-through of these comics, which is inline with Ultimates' more "grounded" approach to characters, ig. In any case, almost all of 1610!Moon Knight's background is jampacked into a single panel (that consequently frustrates me to no end hahaha):

[Ultimate Spider-Man (Vol. 1/2000), #108.]

While some of this makes sense for Ultimates' whole deal of updating characters (Gulf War vet and Navy SEAL being more relevant to the 2000's than the very 70's background of globe-trotting mercenary selling his services to any insurgency that will pay,,,,although I shall keep my opinions on SEALs to myself asldkfij), from what I recall, however, they NEVER bring up the fact that this guy is a failed super soldier ever again? Nor the Roxxon connection??? But he (or rather Ronin) does drive a bus into Peter Parker's high school, gets domed by Kingpin's goons, survives (naturally), and is quite helpful in the case to take down Kingpin, so there's that. He's also responsible for some of my favorite panels of all time.

[Ultimate Spider-Man (Vol. 1/2000), #80.]

[Ultimate End (Vol. 1/2015), #5]

(technically that last one's from Earth-61610, a fusion of Earth-616 and Earth-1610, but it's the panel I always think about whenever trying to parse out how Ultimates and the main continuity came together hahaha)

2099

The other continuity you mentioned by name and an interesting one because apparently there are multiple continuities associated with "2099." None of them have a "Marc Spector" (may that be because he's resting in peace after dying of old age aslkdfj), but there are some other options. Something that fascinates me though, is that none of these options come from Miguel O'Hara's home continuity of Earth-928 and most of them are women.

Moon Knight of Earth-96943

I did a post on her character here and personally I think she's rather neat. She only really pops up in 2099: Manifest Destiny (Vol. 1/1998), #1, but she beats up opportunistic capitalists on the moon and tells the Watcher what's good, so again, I think she's pretty cool (and I love how all of her speech bubbles have crescent moons).

Tabitha, Moon Knight of Earth-TRN590

[Spider-Man 2099 (Vol. 3/2015), #14]

Otherwise known as Tabby (!), this "2099" Moon Knight actually got to meet Miguel and appears in Spider-Man 2099 (Vol. 3/2015), #14-16 (similarly, I expand upon her character here). She's another case of a character fairly firmly relegated to the "supporting" category, but when she does get some panel time, it's a lot of fun, as she has that pretty classic Peter David wit and a big ol' sword that she uses to exorcise a demon out of Doctor Strange (and subsequently banishes it to the moon).

[Spider-Man 2099 (Vol. 3/2015), #14]

Moon Knight of Earth-2099 (....not to be confused with Earth-928)

[Spider-Man 2099: Exodus (Vol. 1/2022), #3.]

This one is an....exceedingly interesting case, more thoroughly detailed here. After making a one panel reference to the Moon Knight temple guardian of Earth-96943 (and implying she died RIP sounds fake but okay), Spider-Man 2099: Exodus (Vol. 1/2022), #3 and Spider-Man 2099: Exodus Omega (Vol. 1/2022), #1 establishes this new Moon Knight as the leader of a new team of Avengers. But you have to watch out, because this Moon Knight is also just straight up Khonshu animating a corpse.

[Spider-Man 2099: Exodus (Vol. 1/2022), #3.]

Those times when the timeline got kind of screwy (so 616!Marc,,,,kind of????)

There are some instances where 616!Marc got caught up in those kinds of situations where everyone gets thrust into an alternate time line or a timeline that was erased for whatever reason, his involvement in which pretty much solely being due to him being an active Avenger at the time.

House of M (Earth-58163)

Marc is technically in House of M (Vol. 1/2006), #3-7, but he's only there to stand in the background of group shots wearing a fit so generic even I have worn it. BUT, however, it turns out House of M: Avengers (Vol. 1/2008), #1-5 fleshes out his character's background in this reality and explains why he gave up the iconic white threads.

[House of M: Avengers (Vol. 1/2008), #2.]

[House of M: Avengers (Vol. 1/2008), #1.]

[House of M: Avengers (Vol. 1/2008), #5.]

(imo, I mean, look I know it was the 2000's and simple/leather jacket "costumes" were in, but the reason provided was NOT good enough for putting him in the most boring fit possible, but that's just me alskdfj Further note, looks like I uuuuuh missed the House of M: Avengers comics on my initial readthrough so I shall probably loop back around to those some point soon)

Age of Ultron (Earth-61112)

Found in Avengers Assemble (Vol. 2/2012), #14AU and Age of Ultron (Vol. 1/2013), #2, #4-5, the mental health representation isn't always the greatest, but otherwise, there's a lot I'm fond of in these issues. Natasha Romanoff is much more firmly "the main character" with Marc supporting her, but you will definitely get no complaints on that on this here blog. This reality basically boils down to "Natasha and Marc are a criminally underrated duo that could probably destabilize juntas if they chose to do so" and it's great.

[Age of Ultron (Vol. 1/2013), #2.]

[Age of Ultron (Vol. 1/2013), #2.]

Other Continuities (Where Marc Actually Shows Up)

Earth-X (Earth-9997)

This one haunts me???? Because it's one of the earliest examples I can recall of really digging into the irony of a Jewish man serving an Egyptian god as well as artfully discussing that unique tension within Marc of "alive but only just/not really" AND gives Marlene some fascinating development....all within the pages of a special event the plot of which I honestly couldn't explain to you if I tried.

[Universe X (Vol. 1/2000), #6.]

But if you want to check it for yourself (and see if your reading comprehension is better than mine hahaha), this Moon Knight shows up in Universe X (Vol. 1/2000), #0, #6-7, #10-11; Paradise X Special Edition (Vol. 1/2000), #1; Paradise X (Vol. 1/2000), #0 and #11; Paradise X: Devils (Vol. 1/2000), #1; Paradise X: A (Vol. 1/2000), #1; and Paradise X: X (Vol. 1/2000), #1 (and if you're wondering, yes, I did lose a few braincells typing all that out).....but this guy does get a cool color inverse suit!

[Universe X (Vol. 1/2000), #6.]

Battleworld (Earth-51910)

Or at least, I'm pretty sure this is Marc although we only get the last name of Spector. Anyway, amidst the Beyonders’ and Doctor Doom’s shenanigans in Secret Wars Journal (Vol. 1/2015), #1, Spector here lost his faith in "Baroness Khonshu," but at least his design is dope as all get out.

Also, he's a werewolf.

[Secret Wars Journal (Vol. 1/2015), #1.]

Heroes Reborn (Earth-21798)

The "Marc Spector" who is presented in Heroes Reborn (Vol. 2/2021), #5 and #7 as the sort of Hush and Two-Face to Darkhawk's Batman frankly sort of leaves a bad taste in my mouth, as he's straight up described as a "schizo who worshipped the moon" and is generally just a violent criminal who ends up in Ravencroft (...not great in the slightest, all around honestly). Accordingly, the only redeeming quality of this alternate is the DOPE costume he gets when he ends up on this continuity's equivalent of the Dark Avengers.

[Heroes Reborn (Vol. 2/2021), #7.]

Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe Again (Earth-TRN664)

Oh goodness, please don't make me talk about this comic again; thinking about it Hurts Me. Fairly well executed but so incredibly tragic. Mr. Knight is fantastically sympathetic and a brilliant detective and it all ends horribly. If you want to read Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe Again (Vol. 1/2017), #1-3, godspeed.

[Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe Again (Vol. 1/2017), #2.]

Other Moon Knight Variants

These are some honorable mentions that I'll just have to link my posts for, because I unfortunately have pretty much hit the image limit RIP.

Mariama Spector of Earth-818

Battleworld Frank Castle as Moon Knight

And finally, since I loved the phrase you used of "just some guys in a Moon outfit," I present the ultimate "just some guy in a Moon outfit":

Friggin "Moonwing" of Earth-9602

When Moon Knight got the Amalgam comics treatment, he got mashed up with Nightwing of all characters in Bruce Wayne: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Vol. 1/1996), #1, as detailed here. Basically, they just gave Dick Grayson a past in the CIA and DID, leaving the whole moon motif a bit of a mystery.

(Amalgam Comics Trading Cards, #8.)

Naturally, there are some variants I didn't mention here. Moon Knight pops up in quite a few non-616 continuities, but most of the time he's just in the background of large group shots and/or action scenes and doesn't have any lines or contribute anything to the plot. Accordingly, I attempted to include just the iterations with the most material that were expressly from different timelines (which is why I didn't include all of the historical Moon Knights from the 2019 Moon Knight Annual or Moon Knight Ravonna who are also from Earth-616). But yeah! I hope this is of interest to someone out there or at least somewhat vaguely answered your question hahaha thanks again!

[aggravateddurian]

I have been tagged by @streetkid-named-desire to report on recent happenings.

WIP WHENEVER

Firstly, I am in the middle of like 6000 IRL things at the moment, all work related. There will be some periods of silence while things change and I get settled in. Trust me, I haven't given up, I've just got pressing real life stuff to focus on.

OC STUFF AS MENTIONED

Firstly, family trees:

The Ocampo-Gonzalez family tree as of 1 May 2079

The Foster family tree as of 1 May 2079

What does all this shit mean? Well, if I ever go back to writing long-form prose fanfiction, the story is going to focus on these two goobers in the year 2099 (it's a canon event):

Who are these goobers? These goobers are the children of Trey Marshall and Val.

Introducing my newest OCs: Chara Ocampo-Gonzalez and Lincoln Ocampo-Gonzalez, who are fraternal twins.

Chara Ocampo-Gonzalez

Chara just beat Lincoln out of the womb by about an hour, technically making her the older sibling. She inherits a lot from her father: her loyalty, her drive and her sense of family. She also inherits Trey's eyes.

Chara's going to be a Solo. She's inherited her mother's Crystaljock jacket, tendency to code-switch under pressure.

Lincoln Ocampo-Gonzalez

I'm not quite done with Lincoln's appearance yet, but I will post when it's ready. While Chara inherits a lot of her father's traits, I think that Lincoln will be more like his mother, appearance-wise, while Chara clearly takes more after Trey.

He's also going to be a netrunner, following his stepmum's footsteps (if you weren't aware, Melanie is a netrunner).

I have this cute story idea where Uncle V gives Lincoln his Samurai jacket. He says it's so 'people realise where you come from, and pick fights with people closer to your size.'

I would like to tag @olath124 and @ouroboros-hideout. I promise I will respond to your OC associations when stuff gets a little less wild.

Thanks everyone.

[taleswrittena]

@bcrninghearts​ sent "Why the shock are you still using a bow and arrow for? Upgrade your tech, seriously." Spidey 2099 to Aloy!

Alright. Strange way of talking and what exactly does he mean by upgrade her tech? Hasn’t he seen all the damn machines running around? The tribes are too scared of them, they’re not going to use them to upgrade their weapons. Besides, she prefers her bow anyway. It’s what Rost had taught her to hunt on, it has always served her well within the wilds and against all of the machines out there.

“It’s what I’m most skilled with.” She knows her strengths and they certainly lie with bow and arrow where she can shoot arrows with such precision and dismantle these things. “It gets the job done. Besides, it’s not the only weapon I have.” Granted, her other weapon is a spear, but still. “Where are you from, stranger?” 

[allycatexplainsthings]

Earth 9221 Spider-Man Interview

[Access Granted] [Log Number 1] [Date: July 22, 2023]

*~------------------------------------------------~*

"Okay, let's begin this overstuffed story again; you hear me?"

"My name is Harris Huntsman, and I am a scientist at Alchemax in quarter 92-21 with the research to learn and understand more about the people who became creatures dubbed Mutants."

"Sadly, most of our investigation is not for the public eye, yet some of our fellow researchers have fallen into this web and become these beasts. I am one of them."

"However, that does not mean they are not associated with who they became. Still, they are aware and often become into a panic frenzy, and that's where our team comes in to comprehend that transformation and find a treatment."

"But moving back to me, because of an experiment that went wrong, I was bitten by a radioactive spider named J-25 or Jeffery and began to have law-breaking effects, becoming more similar to a wolf spider or even a Huntsman Spider."

"The next day, I woke with the worse headache, experienced sudden loud noises that were precise in location and person, had a lighting reaction to things I didn't know, dubbed Spider-Sense, my hands and feet sticking to objects with great force, sharper teeth-like fangs and retractable claws."

"But the more sinister consequence had gone and still is an ongoing concern: I frequently shift in different sizes and heights, including my weight being affected too. Subject J-25 experienced this problem similarly, and due to the bite, that side effect affected me in everyday life. Regular clothing doesn't often fit me anymore and does not go with my new height, and I don't keep on expanding; I'm more to like a scale and slider and can become the size of a spider myself or a giant."

"I created my suit so it could shift to any size I require it to be."

“Sadly, I can not control this result well, and the first time it occurred, I woke up to the size of an average child and freaked out and required major assistance. I was in my apartment and shortly called my department (Pun not intended) about the situation, not desiring to lie because people could soon discover it. It worsened as I kept shrinking more miniature to a plaything until one of my co-workers could come in and see the outcome that transpired and carry my body into further examination.”

“Docter Otto was that co-worker and knew me well adequately to support my new condition. He is an intelligent fellow who is a mutant, being a part octopus and requiring mechanical components to regulate.” 

“We also had Peter Parker, a spider mutant, and we are usually paired together to see any anonymous details on Subject J-25 and to an actual natural mutant.”

"We all quickly discover that it goes both ways as suddenly my body increased in height, which was painful when I was tiny of a doll to the size of the whole room in under two minutes. If I weren't uncomfortable with that shift, I would have laughed about their reactions. The human body should not be able to survive that change, but because of becoming a Mutant, the spider bite altered my DNA and bone structure significantly."

“I’m not your ordinary Spider-Man. I solely desire things to be ordinary again…”

“Anyways, where was I? Oh, right, the synopsis. I could not save my Uncle; I lost him to a wild Lizard Mutant. My dad died from a falling building later on as the captain of the police force, and Mom… Well, I have no one left. It took me years to discover that this was all arranged by something called ‘Canon Events.’ 

“Spiderman 2099 or Miguel O’hara did hire me into the Spider Society after dealing with anomalies from a different earth, but I despise the concept of ‘Canon Events.’ Miguel doesn’t appreciate me because I’m not Peter Parker, but it was Canon, and he had to get used to me with the unfortunate circumstance I sustained. Plus, Peter Parker was already lucky to be alive… I don’t know why my universe chose me to be the fill-in Spiderman.”

“But it’s a position I must accomplish to resume.”

“And that’s how I got here since; end of story and interview.” 

[alexracheltravel]

Island Paradise

We awoke to our first island resort. While we only had a brief stay in Koh Samui, that didn't make it any less beautiful. We enjoyed breakfast beside the beach, sipping coffee and dipping our toes into the yellow sand. Stray dogs walked beside our table. Signs told us deliberately not to feed them. We've seen a lot of wild/strays on our trip in each country we've visited.

Although we were staying in the Gulf of Thailand, our plan was not to stay on the larger island of Koh Samui, but on the more remote, secluded island of Koh Tao. The only way to get there is by ferry. We purposely checked into a hotel in Koh Samui because of its proximity to the ferry. The ferry was smooth and quick. We traversed 60km in an hour and a half, including stops. The television screens on the ferry advertised tourism in Thailand. Some of our favorites included:

-A influencer-style travelogue of a couple (westerners, possibly Australians) who spent two days in Bangkok and then in Phuket. We noticed they omitted jet-lag, getting sick, and financial concerns. We were also pretty sure they were actors. Not even a real couple.

-Some sort of "discover Thailand" series of commercials, stylized in movie commercials. The first imagined discovering Thailand as a sci-fi/horror film. It did not make us want to visit Thailand, but they were innovative.

At last, we arrived at Koh Tao, where we will ring in the new year! Our resort, Jamahkiri, is incredible. It is at the top of a hill on the south end of the island, overlooking an inlet called "Shark Bay." We have our own villa with an incredible living room with multiple couches, dining room, and full kitchen with doors that completely open onto our private deck with private infinity pool overlooking the ocean. One of the more beautiful views we could have asked for. 

We ordered an easy room service, Alex got a spicy green curry and Rachel got laarb and both got a coconut cocktail. We spent the day relaxing in our pool, reading in our covered outdoor couches, and generally relaxing. Rachel booked an in room massage for tomorrow and we both decided to call it a night early, but kept our shades open so we could see the stars from our floor to ceiling windows. 

As we reflect on 2022, which, aside from this trip, was not the best year, we decided to talk about the things we did love from this year. So, instead of our usual conversation, we decided to think about some of our favorite things from 2022. Read our rankings of our End of Year Best lists:

Movies/TV

A

1- Inu-Oh

2- Mad God

3- Cha Cha Real Smooth

4- Cyberpunk 2099

5- Neptune Frost

R

1- Severance S1

2- Heartstoppers S1

3- Sex Education S4

4- Sex Lives of College Girls S2

5- The Rings of Power S1

Books

A

1- Dilla Time

2- Life Ceremony 

3- Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands

4- Shuna's Journey 

5- It Was All a Dream: Biggie and the World that Made Him

R

1- Hook, Line, and Sinker

2- Princess Trap

3- Get a Life, Chloe Brown

4- Heart stoppers v4

5- From Blood and Ash

Albums

A

1- Kumoyo Island - Kikagaku Moyo

2- Renaissance - Beyonce

3- Hyper-Dimensional Expansion Beam - The Comet is Coming

4- Motomami - Rosalia

R

1- Renaissance - Beyonce

2- Harry's House - Harry Styles

3- Special - Lizzo

Food/Meals

Note: for fairness we're not including any meals from this trip. We'll do a final ranking of our favorite Honeytrip meals next week!

A

1- whole roasted cauliflower from Zohara in West Hartford

2- vegan burrito at Ursula 

3- pan seared soup dumplings f om Dumplings House in SF

4- An epic reast at Skewers by Miriam with Lyndsi, Alon, Leo and Vicki

5- Turkey Ramen made by Mr. Alex Moser (probably the best thing he's cooked this yr)

R

1- Pan-seared soup dumplings from Dumpling House in SF

2- whole roasted cauliflower from Zohara in West Hartford

3- turkey ramen made by Mr. Alex Moser 

4- Strawberry White Chocolate Layer Cake - Clementine

5- New Year's Charcuterie Board Upstate (might have been 12/31 but who's counting)

Honorable Mention: Dairy-free Boursin (shout out to Wine Squad for this epic discovery)

Happy new year, family and friends. Onward to year 2566 B.E.!

[eastsidemags]

Free Comic Book Day 2024

It’s everyone’s favorite time of year - FREE COMIC BOOK DAY!

And we’re pulling out all the stops this year with not one but TWO amazing local food vendors and TWO extremely talented local artists, ONE MASSIVE SALE, give-a-ways, your favorite cosplayers & characters and a few surprises!

With over 40 different titles from almost a dozen or more different publishers to choose from, the free comics are by far the most attractive part of the day. Come by early to grab some of your favorites or take the opportunity to try out a new title or publisher that you’ve been meaning to dive into! That’s what the day is REALLY about - trying new things and embracing what you love! Check out some of the awesome comics that will be available:

Next up - the SALE!

We’re offering - for ONE DAY ONLY - 20% OFF EVERYTHING in the store like:

Graphic novels

Toys

Statues

Novelty items

Select wall books and minor keys

Comic sets

Funko POPs

and more!

Items NOT included in the sale are the following items:

New comics

Dollar comics

Supplies

Cards

Artwork by local artists

We are also offering ALL BIN BACK ISSUES at 50% OFF! If it’s in a bag & board and sits in our bins, it’s 50% off! It’s that simple!

Please note: anything on hold prior to FCBD, in pull boxes or previously reserved before May 6, 2023 are NOT eligible for FCBD discounts. Fully stamped reward cards also cannot be combined with FCBD discounts.

Hmm. What’s a good pairing with a really good read? Delicious food!

East Side Mags is proud to welcome back The Beastro for the three-peat! After all the wild, rave reviews from last two years, we wanted you to know we HEAR YOU! We SEE YOU! And you’re right - The Beastro is the best private chef/caterer this side of the Hudson and he’s back with [COMING SOON]!

But what’s savory without sweet to follow! That’s where we’re proud to bring you: A Butter Life! Jenny is true perfection in her craft. This year’s theme is Cookies, Comics & the Force - Star Wars inspired cookies based on various Star Wars characters like [COMING SOON], [COMING SOON] and more! Each cookie will be individually wrapped or in a sampler box, available for purchase directly from Jenny herself!

And what would Free Comic Book Day be without beautiful art from local artists? Local legends and up-and-coming artists Ava Schrager and Paul Belliveau are going to be here sketching for customers on blank cover comics and more! Got a favorite character? Or maybe an idea of a mash-up like Winnie the Pooh crossed over with Spawn? Or a motorcycle-riding Ariel the Little Mermaid? Or how about a group of 6 or 7 chipmunks all fighting it out with lightsabers? Just talk to Ava and Paul! They’ll make it work and, most importantly, they’ll make it look SPECTACULAR on a blank cover comic!

And stick around because we’ve got give-a-ways for kids like stickers, lollipops and more. We’ll have exclusive FCBD stuff like Funko POP Vinyl X-Men #1 Comic Covers featuring Gambit, Spider-Man 2099 tin lunchboxes, Deadpool fleece blankets, Doop and Sentinel plushes and the highly-coveted Invincible Omni-Man vs Invincible Funko POP Moment figure. We’ll also have dozens of cosplayers throughout the day and you can see the likes of who have shown up in the past! This year is expected to be no different and you’ll never know (or guess) who’ll pop their heads in!

The fun starts at 9am and goes until 7pm so come hang out with us and let’s party like it’s 2023!

[hessobbingincabo]

my thoughts on the Hellfire Gala (2022) outfits, in order of their appearance in the guidebook

scarlet witch - these guidebooks always start with the bangers huh? wanda really has that “space deity” look thanks to that ombre effect, and don’t even get me started on those dashing rings and that detailed headpiece, a certified 10/10

havok - while i don’t dislike this look on alex, last year’s outfit really does outshine this one for me; not necessarily horrible, but some more interesting concepts could’ve been included to elevate the blandness of “back in black” (a wild headpiece or some whirlwind sunglasses maybe?)

spider-man - i can see the 2099 inspirations here and i couldn’t be happier for it; the glowing parts really do it for me, along with those almost sneaker-like accents on his feet and wow i can’t get enough of that spider logo - absolute win

gambit - now this is a remy design done well, and whilst last year’s black 3-piece wasn’t horrendous, it was dull, but to make up for it this year they nailed it with just enough of that gambit flair; that said, it captures his flirtiness and pizzaz perfectly, job well done - especially adore those blue accents, tying the look together flawlessly

black widow - where do i start? all those satin (lace?) sections, especially that veil, really add to that seductive mysterious femme fatale poise that nat has in heaps, the golden accents and the almost scorpion-like braid certainly certify this as an eXcellent ensemble

magik - [edit] so yeah, this outfit grew on me; maybe not as evocative as last year, this year magik’s regalia is self-contained and straight-forward in it’s influences and it definitely ends up on my “good” list at the end of the day

dr. doom - we’re back on track with this glorious doom attire; absolutely screams “royalty” and overall is certainly in my top 5 outfits from the entire gala - absolutely no gripes with any part of this design

wolverine/x-23 - while last year gave us an unimpressive one-piece dress, this year they more than made up for it, regarding every piece of laura’s styling with creativity; this “punk” look unironically has all the spunk i would expect of laura - from the heavy boots to the accent belts and (this time) very well-placed slits with a striking mask solidify this look as an exciting addition to kinney’s wardrobe

synch - contrary to above, synch’s whole “generation x”-inspired get-up really is a step back from his brilliant, simple suit from last year; nothing here stands out, all just blending in with those rainbow accents which just look tacky to me, with the zipper being the most eye-catching piece of the whole design, which puts it at a solid 3/10 (yes i know it’s his regular costume but a lot more could’ve been done as he is a full-fledged x-man now!)

iceman - now we’re talking! bobby absolutely kills it this year with a coherent ice suit, which really contrasts last year’s messy dress and wings, this time complimenting bobby’s flirtiness; on top of it all, as you know i’m a sucker for the “outfit-being-part-of-character’s-physiology” thing, and it works like a charm here

she-hulk - jen looks debonair, with a straightforward 2-piece with the loose trousers flattering her physique fabilously, masterfully contrasting her femininity and strength; not one of my absolute favorites but a worthy addition to jen’s most iconic looks - i also really love the glasses

emma frost - right on par, our queen of the gala is again rocking a white and gold dress with many cutouts, showing everyone who the absolute boss is; some of last year’s outfits actually suited her better in my opinion, but as far as formalwear goes this is yet another strong inclusion in emma’s expansive gown collection

captain america/steve rogers - steve looks undoubtedly sharp with his 40′s inspired 3-piece, in those iconic reds, whites and blues; the pinstripe was a nice idea and the cape fits him finely - a illustrious look for a distinguished man

captain america/sam wilson - sam knew what the assignment was and passed with flying colours (pun intended); nothing bad about this design, but nothing stands out that i can even comment on, but still a good look nonetheless - do like the shield design tho!

captain marvel - continuing the trend with the flag colors, carol’s absolute saving grace is her jacket, which reminds me of wanda with those space elements (which if u think about it makes more sense with carol, than with wanda but oh well), but i feel like more could’ve been done to make her stand out a with some accessories or a design on her suit; still charming tho 

cyclops - catwalk-ready and dressed to impress, this is yet another strike for scott; his gala looks always bring something fresh to his suit collection, with this year’s really swerving for that pirate look with the loose shirt and overlapping garments, possibly refrencing a certain space pirate...? my only minor complaint is that i would’ve liked to see some more colors, but maybe next year

jean grey - the mutants’ garbs are some of the strongest in the gala (as it should be), with jean taking the lead with her 3 confirmed looks, which absolutely cement the “marvel girl” pastiche vibes; even if they’re not perfect, each of jean’s get-ups has something to enjoy and while i’d like to see some 90′s or phoenix-inspired dresses, this year jean may be crowned “best-dressed” but we’ll have to wait and see (ps. i adored last year’s costume a lot, so it’ll be hard for me to say these are jean’s best gala looks but don’t quote me on that yet :)

forge - forge actually didn’t recieve a gala outfit last year and they are slightly making up for it this year with a surprisingly solid entrance; while i have to admit that i find forge as a character boring, but his suit - simple as it is, works like a charm and i can say that it is a certified top 10

iron man - tony.. who hurt you, my friend? i know for a fact that he dresses to impress, so what happened here? a fancy armor with a bowtie or a longer coat would’ve done miracles to elevate this design, but alas, we are left with crumbs... do better next year

rogue - wow... just wow. i didn’t think rogue could have a bad gala look, and well... i still think that! rogue looks absolutely breathtaking, as always and at this point i’m convinced they can’t physically can’t put rogue in a bad outfit, she would still rock it! a sure 10/10

namor - okayyy, king of atlantis, finally clothes fit for a king! last year namor showed up in his regular suit, which really bummed me as namor is NOT the guy who would underdress for an event, but now he actually put some effort in; while it is not great, as it’s literally just a fin-textured 2-piece with a trident, it’s a step in the right direction

wolverine - i actually am not sure if this is an official design, as it’s just logan dancing with jean in a regular black tuxedo, but it weirdly works; here’s hoping he actually gets a cool design, but i wouldn’t necessarily hate it if they stuck with the classics with him 

+ bonus

(from the textless “first look” preview)

clea - full on dr. strange cosplay going on, but i have to admit - the black perfectly compliments the red cape and her hair is interesting visually, but that’s how far i’d go; it’s a glorified super hero costume and this is a private event - c’mon clea, do better (also it’s a crime that no purple was incorporated in her outfit, a crime i tell you)

bishop - so, i’m conflicted... i don’t hate it, but i don’t love it either; compared to last year this look is a godsend, but i still feel that it doesn’t capture bishop fully, like where are the futuristic elements and the iconic “M” scar?, that said it’s still a solid look and the reds really cement that “red bishop” title he’s going for

mary jane - [BIG SPOILERS AHEAD] so it was revealed that our beloved redhead is being impersonated by none other than moira herself... but she did dress exquisitely, i do have do admit; simple, but elegant

cypher - doug actually received a hellfire look, a win in my book and while it is on the uninspired side it is a step up from his boring tuxedo last year; the chains & neckpiece the are popping tho

morph - very faintly, amongst the crowd we can spot one of my favorite obscure x-men characters, benjamin deeds and he looks chic; to contrast his boyfriend he’s wearing a cyan coat, but that’s all that could be made out and i can’t wait to see him in full

hindsight - next to morph is undoubtedly his boyfriend nate; absolutely rocking that pink, to appear as a complimenting contrast to morph’s cyan; again, bias does play a slight role here, but i do want to see him in his full glory to comment more thoroughly

polaris - i was absolutely right with my predictions, polaris looks stunning and i couldn’t have expected less from the mistress of magnetism herself; a highlight of the gala for sure

sunfire - another physiological outfit, based on sunfire’s flames and obviously it’s a 10 out of 10 from me; they just know how to play around with my favorite outfit trope and i’m happy to see shiro with those black flowing lines really finishing up his explosive look off

kate pryde - i hate to confess but the red queen thing is growing on me slightly, as i don’t really see any flaws with this design; we can see very little but what we do see is very well thought out and placed, so yeah i can’t believe i’m saying this but - a good 8/10 is in order

professor x - ricocheting off of last year’s absolutely atrocious design, this year charles’ outfit was toned down and with that came coherence; again a very big step-up from last year and the biggest surprise for me - maybe another potential favorite in-the-running

shinobi shaw - the best i can say is... eh? it just looks like a rehash from last year(which wasn’t too impresive either, even if i did like it), i wish they stray from other rehashes with the major characters (which has been the case so far); benefit of the doubt, we’ll wait until we see the whole thing

mystique - so i’m not a 100% sure if that’s her, could be some obscure atlantean but due to her proximity to her wife i’d assume that’s raven; i really like this look! it’s fashionable, effortless and even if i did dig her last year “evil queen” feather gown a little more, this one is a worthy successor 

destiny - not much is visible, but from what we see, even if it’s not horrible, i wish more was done - playing around with her mask, adding flair to the helmet/head area; recognisability is important but it’s not supposed to halt creativity, and we can see it hasn’t stopped them with other characters

firestar - a surprising addition to this year’s festivities, but i love that angelica is back and even if her “outfit” is just her costume, it’s still cute and the bob really suits her <3

wolfsbane - appearing in a single panel, rahne puts all her cards on the table with a simple black suit & tie combo with gold elements; maybe a bit too simple for my liking, as more “wolf” motifs could’ve been included, but still a solid look for her imo

shaman(?) - a character that is never named, who i’m assuming is shaman, but never confirmed, sitting next to rahne at the gambling table; my boy looks stylish, even if we see just a glimpse... wish he was at least named, so i know who i’m complimenting

feilong - stylish & dapper, feilong’s appearance at the gala certainly doesn’t entail anything good; at least he himself does look dashing in his simple 3-piece, with the green accent just adding a nice contrast to his red skin

mr. fantastic - whilst reed’s design isn’t anything groundbreaking, his simple suit is really charming, with the coat giving me that “scientist” vibe that is right up the man’s alley; another hit in the right direction here

black panther - again, debatable which character is actually sitting next to emma at the poker table but all signs point to the king of wakanda; we see a slight glimpse of him, but we all know t’challa knows how to dress so yet another strong male design at the party is present

shuri - as with her brother, i am unsure if this character is actually shuri but it would make sense, no? anyways, shuri’s cream dress and gold jewelry are very nice, but c’mon the princess of wakanda wearing something so boring is just not it; give me tribal patterns, bold colours, play with hairstyles and headpieces... not a bad look, just a boring one

deadpool - a cameo from the man himself, wade appears to be donning a 1800′s inspired costume, which we see from the back; i can’t really comment on the whole thing as it’s a 1-panel thing but i guess its nice?

greycrow - boring black suit. tie. fitting for a character who i myself find uninteresting as well...

stepford cuckoos - is this a step up or down from last year, i can’t tell you... this year the sisters decided to go for the “greek handmaidens” looks and with barely any accessories, this is one of the worst designs of the gala for me... such a let-down from clones of one of the most fashionable comic characters ever

banshee - yes. just yes. banshee is again, one of the most dapper men at the gala, with him really becoming one of those male fashion staples of the x-men for me; couldn’t praise it enough, even if we barely saw any of it 

mr. sinister - why? just why wasn’t he included in the handbook? i absolutely REVERE how sinister went all “royal” this year, definite step-up from his last look (which i also enjoyed); blowing it out of the water, he showed last years’ professor x, magneto & monarch how it’s done - 10/10

gwenpool - magic school girl. absolutely on brand for gwen. just a big thumbs up from me

scout - gabi really took a page out of her sister’s book and showed up, looking hella good! another very solid addition to the hellfire gala line-up, can’t wait to see her explore her style more 

psylocke - [edit] thank god for david nakayama, as we can finally behold kwannon in her absolutely breathtaking psychic knives dress, which shoots her straight to top 5 looks from the gala

as far as designs go, these are all that are revealed to us so far, but i can’t wait to see some of last year’s mutants & some new designs for our beloved regular heroes recieve looks to update it with some new thoughts!

[hinatastinygiant]

Chapter Fifteen

Diaethria Clymena

Pairing: Haikyuu!! x Fem!Reader

previous | next | 2099

Y/N'S P.O.V.

A few minutes later, Kuroo returns empty-handed, yet still has that pie eater following him around. He looks a bit pissed, knowing I totally sent him into the store on a wild goose chase. Why, for god's sake, he must be thinking, would there ever be live crabs in a convenience store?

"Kuroo, who's your friend?" Bokuto asks once they return to the bus.

"His name's Kenma. Think it'll be alright if he stays with us for a while, Y/N? I've known him for a long time. He's trustworthy."

The other group members look at you, waiting for your answer. It's your bus so it is ultimately up to you. Kuroo got straight to the point, probably knowing that at least one person will have an objection.

"Sure, he can stay," you agree, "but only if he tells us where he got that pie I found inside. I know it was his 'cause it was still fresh!"

"There's none left," Kenma says as he looks straight at you, doing his best to show his sincerity. "I had a stash in there from awhile ago but that was the last one. It's all gone, I swear."

"Damn," you sigh. "Alright, whatever, let's go find Osamu his brother so we can get out of Monimiaceae and go back home."

The group agrees and huddles inside around the couch where Osamu turns on his new radio and flips through the channels. On one of the channels, you can hear chatter as if someone was already communicating on that line. Osamu listens carefully, his eyebrows knitting together so he can hear what's being said.

"Tsumu, where the hell -e you? You're supposed to -e back here by -ow. There wa- some group in - bus snooping --ound last night," the voice over the radio calls. Osamu's eyes darken.

"Chill out, -Na. Just get the --ck out -f there. I'll swing around --night and pick up --r stuff," a second voice replies.

"That's him," Osamu interrupts. "My brother."

"So he was at one of the places we searched," Tsukishima sighs. "How are we going to figure out which one?"

"I kind of doubt they were at the convenience store. There wouldn't be anywhere for anyone to hide," you suggest. "We were at the stadium all night so they couldn't be there. The only other large place was that high school gym. They've got to have their base somewhere in the school."

"Good thinking, Y/N. I agree," Kuroo nods. "We should go back there tonight when your brother goes to collect his stuff."

"It could be our last chance to catch them," Bokuto agrees.

"Okay then," Osamu nods. "We should stake out the school once it gets dark and wait for him to return."

"Fine with me," you smile. 

By the time the sun has set behind the surrounding trees and buildings, you've got the bus hidden behind a set of garbage containers at the back of the school. Your group is now stepping out and running around to the front to wait for Osamu's brother.

"When do you think he'll be here?" Kuroo asks aloud.

"I'm new to this whole thing but it could probably be hours from now judging by what he said. That guy's brother probably wants to wait until he's sure we aren't here," Kenma speaks up for the first time since joining.

"He's right," you add. "We could be here for awhile. Should we take turns watching and let the rest of us sleep?"

"I like the sound of that," Bokuto nods as he sits back against the brick wall surrounding the school. 

"I'll take first shift then," Osamu says, "in case he comes sooner rather than later to get his things. It's possible he might come grab his stuff and run out before we 'come back'."

"I'll stay up, too," you chime in. "Just in case."

With little hesitation from the other tired members of your group, you take your position in the dark beside Osamu, staring at the front of the school building while the others nap.

Osamu stays quiet the entire time. When you look over at him, you don't even see him blink. But about an hour into your shift, there's some noise. The sound of a motorcycle racing in your direction.

"Hear that?" Osamu asks.

"Yeah, it could be him."

Only a moment later, a black motorcycle pulls right into the bushes beside the front entrance of the school. A tall man jumps off and runs full speed into the school.

"It's him, let's go, Y/N!" Osamu calls to you as he already runs after his brother

"Come on!" you say as you shake the others. "He's here. Get up!"

"What, already?" asks Bokuto as you practically yank him up onto his feet. 

"Yes! Let's go!"

"Kenma and I will go around to the back to make sure he doesn't weasel away!" Kuroo yells as the two of them make their departure.

"I'll run ahead of you, too," Tsukishima adds. "I'll give Osamu some backup in case something goes wrong."

You nod and off goes Tsukishima, leaving you alone with Bokuto once again. You feel a bit bad since poor Bokuto still uses crutches, but in his defense, he does move pretty quickly with them. However, by the time you reach the front entrance of the school, the doors burst open with Osamu and his brother facing your direction. When the two of them see you, they both stop in their tracks.

"Please, Tsumu, I'm serious. Join us. Look. He's injured and she has no weapons on her. We aren't going to hurt you!"

"Samu, I don't care about the girl or your stupid wish for us to be reunited," the brother, Atsumu, shouts as he stares straight at you and Bokuto. "There's no way in hell I'm joining your cursed group."

You look over at Bokuto, hoping maybe he could say something to get Atsumu to agree for Osamu's sake, but he stays perfectly still. Perhaps it's better to say nothing than to get in the middle of family business. 

"Please, Tsumu. I want to find a way out of here. I came all this- we came all this way just for you!"

Atsumu scoffs as he walks up to you and Bokuto. "That true?" he asks the two of you.

"It was either that or he kills us," you smile nervously. Bokuto still remains silent.

"Hm?" Atsumu continues to press, almost breathing the same air as Bokuto who refuses to talk.

"It's true. We came all this way to find Osamu's missing brother," he finally replies, causing your nerves to settle a bit more.

"And why would the two of you care to find me?" he asks yet again.

"I already told you we were at gunpoint," you try to interrupt the awkward tension.

Atsumu glances at you for a fraction of a second before turning around and walking up to his brother. The two of them whisper for a while. You turn to Bokuto who looks almost shell-shocked, and ask, "Are you alright?"

"Fine," he nods. "I'm sorry, I don't really know what happened. I guess I know how Tsukki feels now when we get someone new in our group who we know nothing about. Kenma, at least, knows Kuroo so I can trust him but... did we ever fully trust Osamu enough to trust his brother, too?" he asks, thinking aloud.

"To be honest, he isn't my favorite. I still can't tell if he's a firefighter like he says he is, or some kind of trained assassin. Either way, if he wants his brother to stay, we don't have much of a choice in the matter," you respond.

"Think Atsumu's got a gun, too?" Bokuto then wonders as the two of you exchange a worried look.

"I hope not."

previous | next | 2099

want to join the taglist? Click here for more

Taglist: @isentsworld

[fantomcomics]

What's Out This Week? 2/9

Another week, another bumper crop of great comics to peruse!

Norse Mythology III #1 (of 6) - Neil Gaiman, P. Craig Russell & David Rubin

#1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman and Eisner Award-winning comics legend P. Craig Russell breathe new life into the ancient Norse stories by taking readers through the creation of the Nine Worlds to the epic origin and adventures of Thor, Odin, and Loki all the way to the end of life-Ragnarök. The sea giant Aegir avoids having to throw a banquet for the gods by setting Thor and Tyr off on a wild quest to find a cauldron and pitting our heroes against a multiheaded giantess, fire-breathing sea serpents, and more bizarre mythological creatures.

Hellboy & The B.P.R.D. 1957 Forgotten Lives One Shot - Mike Mignola, Chris Roberson & Stephen Green

Hellboy and Professor Trevor Bruttenholm team up for some quality father-son time at a New York potter's field where they try to unravel the mystery of a spectral being haunting the packed graveyard. Upon arrival, the two of them quickly realize there may be more things haunting the buried poor at the mass grave than meets the eye . . .

Land Of the Living Gods #1 - Isaac Mogajane & Santtos

It is said that when the world dies, the spirits of the first people will return to witness the last days of humanity. Well, the spirits have arrived, and the end is here. But not everyone has given up hope. Naledi, a teenage girl living in the deserted city once called Johannesburg, has always believed that there is a land, hidden away in time where the gods still live. And where there are gods, there are miracles. Perhaps even miracles that are big enough to save our dying planet. And so, after a lifetime of isolation, Naledi will head out into the unknown with little to hold onto but her faith - and her magical pet plant, Buyo.

Faithless III #1 (of 6) - Brian Azzarello & Maria Llovet

The final act of Azzarello and Llovet's erotic thriller masterpiece! Nine months after her mysterious disappearance, Faith suddenly drops back onto the map. While the art world debates whether her disappearance was a piece of performance art or all just a publicity stunt, Faith retreats to Louis's studio to recover from her journey into the unknown. But Ginny begins to realize that something is very much amiss with Faith. Where was she for nine months? And why does Faith suddenly seem so obsessed with Ginny's son Jacob?

Life Zero #1 - Stefano Vietti & Marco Checchetto

Where were you when the cloud arrived? Where were you when the world changed forever? Where were you when people started dying? Ablaze is proud to present Life Zero by Stefano Vietti (Dragonero) and Marco Checchetto (Daredevil, Avengers, Old Man Hawkeye, Wolverine), with colors by Andres Mossa (Wolverine, Avengers, Secret Wars 2099). At the limits between science fiction, action and horror is LIFE ZERO!

Cult Of Ikarus #1 (of 4) - Jenna Lyn Wright & Karl Slominski

Tossed out by her foster family after one-too-many rides home in the back of a cop car, Hunter packs up and sets out on a mission to find out who she is. A mysterious book - her only link to her parents - leads her to discover a covert world of magic and danger running parallel to our own. One punk rock show, two whiskeys, and three vicious vampire assassins later, Hunter's on the run from the ancient, deadly Cult of Ikarus. Hunter came looking for answers. What will become of her once she gets them?

Archie Love & Heartbreak Special - Thomas Pitilli & Various

AN ALL-NEW ROMANCE ANTHOLOGY PERFECT FOR FANS OF ARCHIE'S MODERN COMIC SERIES! Join Archie and his friends on a date night at the Riverdale carnival! First up, Betty wants to know: If Jughead was interested in dating, what would the perfect date look like? Jughead shares his POV on love while Archie and Veronica's relationship is on the rocks! Can Kevin Keller help Archie save his romance? Maybe not, since Kevin's caught up in his own romantic dilemma, and is worried about being in over his head on his own date! Who will end up together? What relationships are on the verge of collapse? Who will find true love?

5 Seconds Before The Witch Falls In Love GN - Zeniko Sumiya

A magical enemies-to-lovers yuri romcom! Solitary witch Meg likes to be mischievous and make trouble in the forest for her nemesis, Lilith the Witch Hunter. But when an altercation goes sideways, and Meg turns Lilith into a cat, a cascade of unfortunate events means witch is now responsible for saving witch-hunter! Sparks were flying between these antagonistic ladies before-what will their relationship be like after this cat-astrophe?

Whatcha snagging this week, Fantomites?

[pleasetakethis]

I was tagged by @blueeyesandpie - thank you for the tag!

rules: tag nine people you want to get to know better/catch up with, then answer these Q’s

three ships: Destiel, Spideypool, Ironstrange (but if we're talking formative ships I need to kick it back to high school when the HP books were still coming out and give a shoutout to Snarry, my first and most impactful OTP. I have a lot of nostalgic fondness for the Wild-Wild-West-esque early days of the HP fandom)

last song: Nine Inch Nails - The Only Time (Pretty Hate Machine is my favorite NIN album to play while cleaning)

"Lay my hands on Heaven and the sun and the moon and the stars While the Devil wants to fuck me in the back of his car-- Nothing quite like the feel of something new.

Maybe I'm all messed up, Maybe I'm all messed up in you."

last movie: Luca with the youngest before bed. The Matrix: Resurrections was the last movie I watched that I wanted to watch (no offense to Luca or the five thousand times I’ve seen Encanto, but I wouldn’t have made those choices).

currently craving: Paid time off work? I want a mental health break to clean and create and spend time outdoors... but I can't afford to take time off without pay. I am a cog in a corporate machine that is consuming the majority of my adult life. It fucking sucks. Also, Kettle brand pickle-flavored potato chips. Every store in my area is out and has been for weeks now. I’m assuming supply chain issues? Idk but no other pickle-flavored chip hits quite the same way.

currently reading: The Bad Guys #11: The Bad Guys in Dawn of the Underlord, courtesy of my youngest. Random parenting thing: it makes me sad to realize that without kids I wouldn't have read any of the amazing children's books I've read over the years (notably: The Secret River, Cowboy & Octopus, Good Night, Good Knight). This series is fantastic. Our local public school system has a reading program where parents and community members can volunteer to visit classes and read age appropriate books to the kids--if you don't have kids, this is an amazing way to connect with children’s books again (assuming your school system has a similar program. If not, try the local public library!). Kids will give great recommendations.

Before that: Deadpool 2099 and Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass.

Tag list below the cut: 

@the-chickenshit-oddity  @atypical-snowman  @twistedsardonic @4amprofessorbradshaw @screamingbuttgoblin @iocane @galaxylentil @melina-mellow @x-gon-give-it 

I tagged people I follow whose usernames I remembered (also: it was fun to get tagged! so I’m tagging with that same energy) but absolutely no pressure. I have the best of intentions with these things and then I get lost in the days... years... um... -looks away quickly from ask box with asks dating back to 2014 and from accounts that have vanished-

[beautifulblooms]

Characters I'm willing to write for

This list is subject to change, please do not be upset if this list changes!

Marvel

James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes

Loki Laufeyson

Pietro Maximoff

Spider-Bitches

Peter Parker (Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield)

Hobart "Hobie" Brown, Spider-Punk (Across the Spiderverse)

Miguel O'Hara, Spider-Man 2099 (Across the Spiderverse)

Gwen Stacy, Ghost Spider (Into the Spiderverse/Across the Spiderverse)

The Arcana

Asra Alnazar

Julian Devork

Count Lucio

Muriel

Legend of Zelda (Breath of the Wild/Tears of the Kingdom)

Link

Prince Sidon

Ganondorf

Tulin (platonic + TotK only)

Jujutsu Kaisen

Yuji Itadori

Gojo Satoru

Megumi Fushiguro

Sukuna

Toji Fushiguro

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

Tanjiro Kamado (platonic only)

Zenitsu Agatsuma (platonic only)

Inosuke Hashibira (platonic only)

Kyujuro Rengoku

Tengen Uzui

Giyu Tomioka

Sanemi Shinaguzawa

Muzan Kibutsuji

Stranger Things

Billy Hargrove

Steve Harrington

Eddie Munson

Peter Ballard/001

Jonathan Byers

Genshin Impact

Albedo

Arataki Itto

Diluc

Gorou

Kaeya Alberich

Thoma

Xiao

Zhongli

Alhaitham

Tighnari

Cyno

Kaedehara Kazuha

Wriothesley

Neuvillette

Razor (platonic only)

Sayu (platonic only)

Chongyun (platonic only)

Collei (platonic only)

Avatar (James Cameron)

Jake Sully

Tsu’tey

Neteyam

Tonowari

Aonung

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them/Harry Potter

Newt Scamander

Gellert Grindelwald

Remus Lupin

Sirius Black

Resident Evil

Leon S. Kennedy

Chris Redfield

Carlos Oliveira

Ethan Winters

Karl Heisenberg

CoD: MW2

König

Alejandro Vargas

Rodolfo "Rudy" Parra

Simon "Ghost" Riley

Johnny "Soap" MacTavish

Captain John Price

Valeria Garza

Farah Karim

Alex Keller

[the-werdna]

Title: Robcina Week Day 3 - Free Day

Description: Just another day after school. No new incidents in the outrealms. No upcoming exams. Perhaps the perfect day to spend some time with Lucina. She had mentioned something about wanting to go shopping. What was the worst that could happen?

Notes: Once again we delve into my Awakening Persona AU, because no one can stop me! Takes place prior to Chapters 41, 47, and 61 of Love Across Time, which are likewise set in this AU

Words: 2099

A shrill bell chimed, announcing the end of the school day.

Robin quickly scratched down the last few characters he'd been copying from the board into his notebook before standing. The notebook, his pens, pencils, and other school supplies were swiftly shunted into his open backpack a moment later. That settled, he stepped out into the hallways, blinking against the afternoon light streaming through the windows of the hallway,

Right, now I just need to decide how to spend the rest of the day, Robin thought to himself.

He had several options after all. Since it was a Tuesday, the sports club wouldn't be meeting, so that wasn't an option. He did still have the writing club he could attend or perhaps one of his part time jobs he could always attend. Studying in the library was always an option, though by this point he wasn't sure it could offer much improvement anymore, having scored top of his class the past two exams.

Perhaps now would be a good time to work on one of my "social links", Robin pondered. He sighed. He really did hate that term, at least when referring to time he spent with the many friends he'd made since coming to the town. The way Igor referred to them, as if they were simply a means as a wild card user to empower his Personas… it felt too clinical to him. Too impersonal.

That said, since Kendo club won't be meeting today either, Lucina should be free, Robin realized. She did mention something about wanting my help picking some stuff out next time she went shopping.

Making up his mind, Robin made for the front door, swapping out his school shoes for his usual pair before heading outside. Looping around to the back of the school, he found Lucina right where he expected her to be, seated on one of the benches that overlooked the plot of land maintained by the gardening club. Though not a member of the club herself, he knew that Lucina still enjoyed the peaceful spot near the flowers. Though summer was almost over and soon the garden would be empty. He couldn't help but wonder if she'd still come to the spot then.

Lucina didn't notice him at first, her gaze on the butterflies fluttering between the flowers. Only when he was a few steps away did she look up, turning to him. "Oh… Hello, Robin" Lucina greeted, standing.

"I was wondering if you would be free to hang out?" Robin asked.

"Oh, yes, of course. Actually, I was thinking of stopping by a store on my way home. Would you like to come? Of course, only if you are interested."

"Lucina has asked to spend time with you…"

"Since you have Lachesis, a Persona of the Fortune Arcana, you feel you could be closer…"

"Will you spend the afternoon with Lucina?"

"I'd be happy to. You did mention you wanted my input on some things, right?" Robin asked.

Lucina looked happy at this, nodding fiercely. "Yes, of course! Come, let us hurry then before they close!"

. . . . .

Making their way to the clothing store, the two quickly set about browsing through the racks, Robin letting Lucina take the lead.

"What do you think about these," Lucina asked, producing a skirt and blouse she'd picked.

"Well it's… certainly very you, Lucina," he said, trying to speak as politely as he could.

In truth even a fashion novice such as himself could tell the two pieces didn't remotely go together. The blouse, yellow with red polka dots, and the skirt, green and purple stripes, clashed immensely. Nor was it helped that both were possibly the brightest and most saturated pieces of clothing in the entire store, so much that they practically glowed.

"Hmmm, I suppose. Though perhaps…" setting the outfit aside, Lucina reached for another shirt. Then a jacket, and then a set of pants. "What about these?"

The pants were bright orange. The shirt was lime green with pink flowers. And the jacket was sky blue with neon yellow stripes down the arms. It honestly wasn't much better.

Robin opened his mouth to try and tell her the truth, only to stop as his gaze fell on Lucina's face. She was smiling brightly, looking happier than he'd ever seen her. Her eyes sparkled with radiant joy, her smile one of almost childlike glee. In that moment Robin knew he couldn't be the one to take that away from her.

"I think it's perfect," he told her. Somehow he even meant it, as even as he imagined her in his mind's eye wearing the garish ensemble it somehow looked great on her.

"Thank you! I'm so glad," Lucina told him, draping the clothes over an arm. "To tell the truth, I haven't been shopping for clothes like this since I was little. My mother used to take me all the time back then…" There was a brief moment where her smile faltered at the mention of her mother, but it quickly recovered. So complete was her happiness in that moment, even that memory couldn't steal it from her.

Returning the first outfit to the rack, Lucina stepped back, again looking at the clothes she picked out. "I wonder if I can find anything else that will go well with this? No, it's fine on its own. I just know it will look great with what I already own," she touched the red and blue striped scarf she alway wore. "So shall we go to the register then? There is still time before I must run off to work, and I'd like to go check one more place before-"

Lucina stopped at the sound of harsh laughter coming from nearby. There, several racks over were three girls Robin recognized from school though he did not know their names. Though he thought they were third years like Lucina.

One of the girls shielded her mouth behind her hand, whispering something to the girls. While he couldn't make out what was said, the smug way she regarded Lucina and the outfit held in her hands made it plain enough exactly what was the subject of her scorn. Snickering giggles from the other girls soon followed, taking shared amusement at whatever remark had been made at Lucina's expense.

At once Lucina's eyes seemed to glaze over slightly, growing distant as she returned the clothes to the rack. While her expression remained stoic, Robin could tell just how saddened she was.

Anger flashing, Robin turned, starting towards the girls, fully prepared to give them a piece of his mind. However before he could move more than a couple steps he was stopped by Lucina, blocking him with an outstretched hand.

"It's alright, Robin. They're not worth your time," Lucina assured him. While he caught a brief flash of appreciation in her eyes, evidently touched that he'd so quickly jump to her defense, the sadness in her voice remained.

Robin turned and watched as the girls departed the store, leaving the two of them alone.

"Why did you stop me? Their behavior was uncalled for," Robin asked.

"It's nothing I am not used to," Lucina told him solemnly. "As long as I can remember, I have often been a source of mockery among my peers. On account of how ill-adept I am when it comes to more… feminine interests, such as these. As well as my other oddities..."

Robin knew exactly what she was referring to. Lucina's mother had died of illness when she was very little, and with her father's time so often occupied with work, it had fallen to Lucina to take over much of the raising of her younger sister. Combine that with working several part time jobs to supplement their family's income taking what was left of her time, Lucina simply hadn't had time to live a normal childhood and be like other girls her age.

She looked back at the abandoned outfit and sighed. "To be entirely honest, I had hoped this would be an opportunity to learn, but I suppose it was not to be…"

Reaching out, Robin picked up the clothes from the rack, handing them back to her. When she looked at him in surprise, Robin explained, "the Lucina i know would never give up so easily. No matter what others may say."

"Robin..." Lucina trailed off, hesitantly accepting the clothes from him. Briefly their hands touched, and both of them pulled away at the contact, blushing.

"Erm, right…" Lucina turned away quickly, trying to hide her reaction. "I thank you for your kind words. Truly." She glanced back up and him sheepishly, before quickly looking down at her feet, embarrassed….

"You feel your relationship with Lucina has grown deeper…"

"The Lucina Social Link has reached level 6!"

"Your power to Create Personas of the Fortune Arcana has grown!"

"Lucina's growth of heart has affected her Persona as well…"

"Sigurd learned Light Amp!"

"Still…" Lucina at last managed to look up, glancing between him and the mismatched outfit. "Are you certain this won't seem odd for me to wear?"

Robin considered this question for a long moment. At first he considered telling her it would likely draw mockery from people like those girls, but he quickly shoved that thought aside. He remembered how happy Lucina looked before and so he made up his mind. "It doesn't matter if others think it does or not. I just know you'll look beautiful in anything you pick out."

Lucina spun back to face him, her face turning an even brighter shade of pink at his remark. "I… uh…" she stammered staring at him.

At once Robin cursed himself. Why had he said that last part? Stupid, stupid, stupid. It had just slipped out. He hadn't-

No, he told himself. That was a lie. He'd meant it, even if he hadn't intended to say it.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean-" Robin tried to say. Liar. You meant it.

"N-No, it's quite alright. Lucina glanced up at the clock on the wall of the store, seeing the time.

"I'm sorry Robin, but I need to go. My shift starts soon," she excused herself, referring to one of her night jobs as a waitress. "I'll go check out. There is no need to wait around for me"

Not even waiting for a reply, Lucina started towards the register, only to then stop, looking back. "Oh, and Robin?" she asked, her words halting and awkward. "What you said means a lot, truly. So, thank you." She bowed her head and then hurried away.

Robin watched on for a moment, then departed the store, feeling thoroughly foolish and embarrassed by what he'd said. He decided to head home for the evening.

. . . . .

Laying down on the couch in his room, Robin flipped the page through the book he was reading. At the rate he was going, he likely wouldn't finish it that evening. It will take one more night still, he thought.

He sighed, letting the open book fall over his face, covering it. He still couldn't stop thinking about earlier… about what he'd said.

Stupid, stupid, stupid, he scolded himself. Even if he'd been telling the truth, some things were better left unsaid. Even though Lucina had tried to brush it off, he was certain there would now be some new uneasiness between them. How could it not? He was living in the same house as her, and her father was his guardian for the year. Revealing how he felt, even so indirectly, could only make things more awkward…

His phone vibrated once, buzzing on the coffee-table. Lifting the book from his face, he glanced over, seeing the blinking light indicating a new message. He reached for it, then hesitated. Working up all of his considerable courage, he snatched it up and swiped the screen.

It was a message from Lucina.

"ROBIN. THANK YOU FOR SPENDING TIME WITH ME TODAY. I WOULD LOVE TO DO IT AGAIN WHEN NEXT YOU HAVE TIME."

Robin starred, rereading the message again and again, certain he'd understood it incorrectly.

She… wants to spend more time with me?! Even after I… He shook his head, unable to comprehend what was going on. Could she possibly feel like- No, that would be silly. She just wants to keep spending time as friends? Right? That's it. Unless- No, stop! Bad Robin!

Robin groaned, tossing his phone aside and again hiding his face in the book. Dammnit, this just makes things even more confusing...

He decided to stop reading and go to bed for the night.