#a fly decided to land on me for a split second and then flew away? felt Ominous

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

nothing like a call from your mother to make that escapism feel extra sweet

[the-possum-writes]

can you do a marshall lee x male reader where he turns the reader into a vampire?

Vampire Bite

❥Character: Marshall Lee

❥Tags: sfw, established relationship, vampirism, comfort, male!reader

❥Synopsis: After sharing your human lifetime with Marshall Lee, you decided to take the next step in your relationship and seal the deal.

❥Taglist: @watchingfromthefloorboards @foxpearlwilder

Marshall doesn't usually walk on land, but he's making an exception today as he pushes an elderly man in a wheelchair, the sun is still shining, and he's dressed appropriately in long gloves, a sunhat, and sunglasses.

"It's a beautiful day today, not a cloud in the sky." You smile tenderly as you take in the landscape around you.

"Yeah, we're fortunate." Marshall agrees, despite how vulnerable and exposed he feels, but he repeatedly tells himself that it's a special occasion.

He drives you down a wooden walkway that has deteriorated due to time and constant salty mist, but it is still stable enough to support your weight as he floats and pushes you instead. "Whoops," he says as the wheel collides with a rock. For a split second, you jump, readjusting yourself on the chair as your wrinkly hands fix the blanket on your lap.

"Wouldn't it be easier if you flew us there?" Marshall shakes his head when you bring it up.

"It's better this way; let's not rush it." he insists.

"If you say so." You drop the subject, taking his word for it, and enjoy the birds flying in the sunlight. The wooden walkway eventually turns into a dock, and you hear ocean waves crash against the wooden pillars; your eyesight has been failing you recently, but there's no denying the cool breeze against your skin and the enormous sun resting near the horizon.

"Marshall, look! We made it just in time!" As you point to the sunset, you jolt up excitedly, your voice gave out, and you soon found yourself coughing.

"I wouldn't want you to drown in your spit after walking you all the way here, so take it easy." He gives you a gentle pat on the back.

"That'd be a real bummer. Then again, Marsh, I do appreciate you doing this for me." Even though you have a few missing teeth, you give him a huge smile as your eyes squint up.

Marshall knows this is the same guy he fell in love with and refused to let go, no matter how many human years have passed and how much you have changed over the years. This fleeting mortality, though limited, is beautiful in his eyes, just as you are. "There's nothing I wouldn't do for you," he says as he pats your shoulder. A kiss on the cheek would be more appropriate, but he doesn't want to get sunburned.

As the two of you reach the end of the dock, the vampire stops pushing your wheelchair and makes sure you're comfortable by plumping your pillow and covering you with your blanket. As he floats over your lap (to avoid hurting your legs), you extend your arms and hug him as if he were sitting on you. After that, the two of you don't say much, instead letting the sun hang loosely over the horizon as its last rays of sunlight reflect over the waves. A few minutes later, Marshall leaned into your shoulder, but when he felt your chest flutter, he turned to look at you and saw that you were quietly crying as the sun completely set.

"It's so pretty..." you mutter, sobbing softly.

"There's still time to go back," he says quietly, wiping your tears away with his cold gray fingertips.

You respond with a smile, rubbing your eyes. "I'm not changing my mind; I'm just glad to have shared my last sunset with you." With the sun gone, Marshall removed his hat and gloves to properly give you a comforting kiss on the lips, resting his forehead on yours as he says. "...I just want to give you the options I never had," he says, and you agree with him. The title of Vampire King was not something he chose, and what's to give you the opportunity to decline if you suddenly reconsidered.

But you made up your mind long ago.

"Will it hurt?" you ask, determined but nervously offering your neck to him.

"I'll try to make it quick... Like a hospital injection "He promises, softly kissing your neck.

"Glob, I hate injections." You huff, trying to relax.

"I know."

You jolt up in your seat as Marshall pierced your flesh and tried to keep you in place. Although it was quick, as Marshall said, your limbs gradually became cold, much like when your blanket fell off your bed in the winter. Sooner or later, your heart rate slows down, almost as if you're falling asleep. When you wake up, the world seems lighter; you're surprised to discover that this is because you're only a few feet off the ground, which causes you to panic. "Easy there, I got'cha!" You hear Marshall Lee's voice coming from the night sky and feel his hand grabbing your own.

Even though it's dark, you can see clearly without a light source, which is when you notice your hand's lack of wrinkles. Looking down at your body and touching your face to see how you unconsciously transformed yourself back to when you were the most comfortable in your mid 20's, no longer tired or with sore knees.

"I feel like I'm going to fly away like a balloon!" You sob, clutching Marshall like a lifeline.

Marshall's chest vibrates in laughter, securing you in his arms. "Relax, I'm a good teacher. I'll show you everything about being a vampire, for free." he winks.

"Are you sure? I'm a slow learner." you jest.

"Oh I'm sure, more than ever!"

[chimachapterbooks]

Gorilla’s Guardian - From the Activity Book Ravens and Gorillas

Ewar the Eagle sat on a tree limb. All was quiet. The Gorillas were asleep with no guard on watch. As far as Ewar could tell, anyone could walk into their compound and capture the whole tribe.

This was exactly what he had warned Gorzan about. Ewar had been helping the other tribes improve their security in case the Crocodiles or Wolves attacked. When he saw that the Gorillas had no protection in place, he couldn't believe his eyes.

"This is ridiculous!" he insisted to Gorzan. "Why, I'll bet I could sneak into your camp and take something, without any of you Gorillas ever knowing." Gorzan had just smiled. "Go ahead, brother. I'll put my favorite branch out in the middle of the compound. You try to take it, and if you can, we'll agree to any extra security you want."

Ewar had waited a few days before making his attempt, just to make sure the Gorillas guard would be down.

/ don't know why I bothered waiting, though, he said to himself. When is their guard not down?

Ewar flew straight toward the center of the compound. Just as he crossed the border, something grabbed him! It yanked him from the sky and flung him onto the dirt.

What grabbed me? Ewar thought, falntically. Was it a rope? A snake?

A Gorilla? Ewar scanned the trees, but all he saw were leaves and vines.

Hmmm, Ewar thought. That was strange. I must have snagged on a branch. I'll just keep to the ground and stay quiet for now.

Ewar crept toward the sleeping Gorillas. As long as he didn't make any noise, he was sure he could sneak in unnoticed.

Sploosh! A bucket of ice-cold water suddenly fell onto Ewar's head.

"Squawk!" he cried out. He immediately clamped a wing over his mouth.

Had he just given himself away to the Gorillas?

He stood perfectly still. A Few Gorillas snored, but none woke up.

Phew, thought Ewar. That was close. Now who threw water on me?

Again, Ewar looked up at the tree branches. But no one was there.

Well something is going on, Ewar said to himself. Maybe the Gorillas have a security system in place after all. It's time to try a new tactic.

Rather than enter the front way, Ewar decided he would go in from the back. He carefully tiptoed around to the rear of the Gorilla Compound.

Whump! Ewar tripped and landed flat on his beak! He shot back up and spun around. Sticking out of the ground was a gnarled tree root.

Ewar carefully stepped away from the tree root and started forward again.

Thump! He tripped again! He looked back and couldn't believe his eyes. A new root had sprung up in the middle of the path.

I don't know what's going on, but now I'm getting angry.

Ewar stood up and marched back to the front of the village.

Something grabbed me when I flew.Something tripped me when I walked. So now I'm going to run in, grab Gorzan's branch, and run back out. Nothing's going to stop me!

Ewar charged. But before he could even cross the border, tiny, stinging pebbles began pelting him from every side! He had to slow down to cover his eyes. The next thing he knew, a vine wrapped around his waist.

Sploosh! A second burst of freezing water splashed on his head.

"What in Chima is going on?" Ewar cried.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. The pebbles dropped.

The vine loosened. And slowly, Ewar was lowered to the ground.

The Eagle took a deep breath and opened his eyes. Gorzan was standing over him, smiling.

"See?" said Gorzan. "We have all the protection we need."

"But I don't understand," Ewar sputtered. "You were all fast asleep. Who was attacking me?"

"It wasn't us, brother," Gorzan explained. "It was nature. We take care of the plants, and they take care of us. The lasso vine kept you from flying in. The bucket flower gave you a bath, the split-second roots tripped you, and the archer plant hit you with its seeds."

Ewar shook his head in amazement. "I wouldn't have believed it, but I'm convinced. You're right... you don't need any more protection. I don't even think a Wolf Pack could get in here. The next time I want to prove someone wrong, I think I'll sneak into someplace safer... like maybe a Crocodile's mouth!"

Gorzan and Ewar both laughed.

[grapenehifics]

WIP Wednesday (3/3)

This is it; the final WIP Wednesday before Pick Up the Pieces starts going up on AO3! I am simultaneously extremely and not at all ready. ANYway, part 1 and part 2 are linked here...or you can wait eleven more weeks and read it when it shows up in the fic :D

For two whole seconds, not only their table but every table on the floor went deadly silent. Then all hell broke loose. “Why I oughta…” the Besalisk started, but didn’t have time to finish before headbutting Anakin in the gut so hard Anakin flew backwards, landing on his ass directly on top of the table next to theirs. The Besalisk and the Trandoshan had both stood up, and were reaching for his neck, hands outstretched. The Ugnaught was standing on their card table, gathering up whatever credit chips the other two had left behind in their haste to throttle Anakin.

But Anakin’s sudden arrival had also disturbed the card game that he was currently sitting on, so all four of those players wanted to pummel him, too. “Hey!” Anakin shouted as he tucked and rolled, trying to get underneath the table and out of range of flailing arms. “Don’t come for me! He’s the one who hit me!” He pointed at the Besalisk. Only one of the card players was dumb enough to fall for this, but it only took one. The Besalisk and the Trandoshan were now waylaid by four more people, and that number soon increased to eight when Anakin, who had made it under the table, quickly stood up, tossing the table off his back and over and to the side. Cards, drinks, chips, and credits went flying everywhere.

The Trandoshan, at some point, had noticed the Ugnaught, and was trying to chase them down, but was slowed by a drunken Weequay who had jumped on her back. Anakin ducked a punch from a man who looked human but was twice as tall as Anakin was, and then, while he was crouched down anyway, bit someone else on the leg and ran away before they could catch him. He grabbed an ale glass from off the ground and smashed it over someone else’s head, then grabbed another one and took a long drink before ducking yet another punch. He threw the empty glass over his shoulder, letting it fall where it would.

He’d lost sight of his original companions, by that point, but that was all right. He had a train to catch, anyway. He wove underneath the legs of a Lasat, who never paused in clobbering the human he was holding by the shirt collar, and stopped by the door.

Anakin allowed himself a moment to turn, watch, and enjoy the mayhem he had caused. There wasn’t a single patron who wasn’t engaged in some sort of brawl. Even Maz Kanata, who ran this particular dive, was busy trying to hold back an Ongree who appeared to be trying to smother a Zabrak.

“Hey, Maz!” Anakin shouted over the din, and she looked up at him, the sunlight streaming through the window glinting off her goggles.

“This better be worth it!” she shouted back, stabbing a ringed finger angrily in his direction. “You boys still owe me from last time!”

“Love you too, Maz!” Anakin called happily, then ducked to avoid a glass that hit the door frame exactly where his head had been a second before. He heard the train whistle again and decided not to push his luck (considerable though it may be). He ran outside, dodging blaster bolts, this time (the fight had apparently escalated from a brawl to a shootout, sometime in the last couple of seconds, but Anakin couldn’t help that now).

He ran through the courtyard and into the forest. It was easy to find what he was looking for, what with the way the gravtrain shuddered and shook everything in a five-klick radius around it. The shaking got worse the closer Anakin got, and by the time he could see the train the ground was shaking so badly he worried the planet’s crust might split in two beneath his feet.

“Come on, come on,” he muttered to himself, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

It was obvious why Maz wanted this damn train off her planet. There was a gash right down the middle of the forest, where employees of the Czerka Arms Corporation had felled rows upon rows of ancient trees and then left the detritus to rot where it lay. Even the trees that were still standing, on either side of the track line, were black with soot. Anakin breathed in smoke, despite the fact that he was standing on damp, almost wet, earth.

The gravtrain roared closer. The second the engine car passed Anakin, he started counting out loud to himself. “One, two, three,” he said, and then he jumped.

[aiysan2]

Chapter 9 'Going Under ' Dabi x reader

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Touya watched the tree croak and fall, the sound of its splitting bark hitting the water was ear-splitting, shocking him out of any thoughts he held. 

If this had been a normal morning and you'd been at the lake, you would've been injured heavily or dead. They needed something better than trees to hide this place otherwise you'd get hurt. He sighed, realising leaving would be a lot easier with the opening the tipped tree offered.

However, he saw something unnaturally big flying in the air, something with red wings on his back and a stupid haircut and jacket. Was that Hawks?

Had his dad sent Hawks to collect him instead of himself? No that couldn't be it, there was a fire on the tree and the festival fire was on the other side of the sect neat the inner forest. He squinted looking at the gap provided by the fallen tree and noticed heroes pouring into the community. 

Had this been another time he'd be happy that his father had finally got the time and put an effort into finding him, he'd probably be content with the outcome of running off this time, but he was a different person now. He had different wants and different needs, right now his priority was making sure you were safe.

He was sure he'd have to find you and protect you from his tyrannical father.

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

Fuck why did this have to happen to me?

You cried, your arms hooked under Maame's dragging her limp body from the forest where you found her. She hadn't responded to your calls, your cries or begging, but what you knew she needed was help.

She was a bigger woman than you and it was taking a lot to pull her through the trees, without hurting her more than she had already.

She had to have known that berry wasn't for eating, she was the one who taught you about plants. She had to have known the red pearl-like berry was poisonous and that it could kill and harm. It wasn't time to think about that, she would be fine if you just found help. 

All you need to do is find someone who can help, with a healing quirk or someone who knows how to get rid of poison in the body.

You tripped over, groaning and sniffling from stress. You couldn't lose two people at once, and you couldn't bear it. You huffed, keeping your tears in your eyes as you started again.

Imagine if you hadn't ventured deeper into the woods if you hadn't decided to clear your head, you wouldn't have found your shallow-breathing mother sprawled out on the floor and choking on her own vomit.

"Maame I promise you will be fine, I just need to get you to a doctor or healer and you will be ok," You bit your lip, straining as you dragged her once again, body taken over by fatigue. 

You sucked in a deep breath, it held there indefinitely. Your eyes went wide as you saw what was coming towards the two of you, a large fiery branch thicker than your height and longer than your cabin flew at you. 

You were stunned, a thousand questions going through your mind. Had this branch come from the acre fence, if so how did it get this far, why is it on fire, why is it coming towards me, what if it hurts Maame, is it judgement day, am I going to hell for having sex?

Your body reacted on its own, draping yourself over Maame to protect her face, skin and body. You couldn't allow any harm to reach her before it was her destined time.

You sighed when the branch landed far from the two of you, breaking the smaller trees down with its heavier weight and transferring the fire to the other trees. 

You trembled, thinking you were being shown what your punishment after death would be. Your mother, d̶e̶a̶d̶  passed out in your arms, having no escape from the forest due to the fire surrounding you and about to burn for eternity. 

It happened to your birth mother and now it was going to happen to you.

You wouldn't let the fire stop you, even if you felt choked up and two seconds away from passing out due to stress you wouldn't allow Maame to be injured. You dragged her around the branch, luckily missing the ashen debris of plants and trees and exiting the forest to the residential area.

You would've been safer in the burning forest, it looked like an all-out war.

It looked like the people of your home, your family were fighting, demons. Devilish creatures here to cause distress, wearing strange costumes, with strange gadgets on their body, their quirks in full power as they attack your family.

Couldn't they see your people were defending themselves, yet they were attacking innocent people, what about the children, the animals, our belongings? Lost to the fire, houses lost to the green-haired boy who punches and the girl who produces Satan's weaponry from her body.

Didn't they know that Leilani dreamt of training to become the best fighter the commune had ever seen, or that Iguchi was yet to ask the blue-haired boy with red eyes from the other sect to be his friend? 

They are here to destroy dreams.

The destruction caused by the one with ash blonde hair, his anger and frustration that of a jinn while he happily, pridefully attacked the fighters.

The one with wings cuts Leilani's beautiful long hair, as she defends her home from the intruders—the demon who commands animals to commit treasonous acts against their own will. 

Worst of all the ones with fire, they horrified you, they made your skin itch with hatred. One had hair of fire warning any good person not to come close otherwise she will tempt to sin. Then worst of all Shoto and Endeavour.

"Is that not the man Touya praised in his dream?" You whispered, clutching onto Maame as you thought of your next plan of action.

The two were merciless, pillaging and plundering, setting fire to homes to draw people out like barbarians. If you would say anything, it was that this man was satan himself. An anger present that you hadn't seen before, lashing residents disregarding his humanity to spread his evil.

He was the personification of evil and nemesis of all good people, malevolent forces of pure sin, and Touya was the son of such a creature.

He was larger in person and scarier to look at, fire erupting from his body constantly, to warn disbelievers of what was to come.

You thought of your responsibility, your pet, your child Amaliqah, scared in the pet sanctuary as the fighting split her ears. You thought of the nursery, the babies confused, panicked and traumatised, ears bleeding from the noise.

"We must help protect the animals and children," You told Maame, dragging her body and leaning it against a tree, promising you will come back for her, but need your hands free. 

You ran, through the twisting houses towards the animal shelter. Yet you stood confused, wondering where the shelter was if this tree branch had taken up its space. You stood, ignoring the screamers and runners and beggars and prayers, while you stared at where your frog would stay to sleep squashed under a burning branch the stench of burning skin sickening you. You hunched over, holding the floor as you vomited.

"Y/n I'm so happy I found you, look I can get us out of here, I'll use my fire to protect you and we can just run, nothing bad will come your way I promise, Y/n?" 

You shut your eyes, taking deep breaths while you stood up, trying to calm the awful, strong pounding in your chest. You felt like you were going to die, you were going to die. 

"Leave me be I need to find Maame," You whispered, running past him towards, where you left your mother. 

She was fine, you sighed, everything was intact.

"I need to get her help, she ate something and was sick, you need to help her before you help me, then we need to get the children, the fighters are busy and those with strong quirks, many are too scared to help, we need help. Oh creator, please help, please make sure Amaliqah is ok and Maame gets the help she needs...."

Touya looked at Maame and she looked, well, dead. Her skin had paled, her face had lost elasticity almost sagging and her eyes were blank and open, her mouth covered in vomit.

"Y/n she's dead." He told you as you began trying to drag her again. You didn't stop still muttering to yourself a plan on how you could save everyone there but you were dragging a dead body around like a mad woman. 

"Y/n?"

" Stop talking and help me,"

"She's dead," 

"How can she be?" You asked, successfully dragging her around aimlessly, not seeing logic in what Touya was saying.

"Look at her y/n she's dead," 

You looked down, glancing over her features properly, and let a few tears leave your lash line. Of course, you knew she was dead but you couldn't leave her, and she wasn't allowed to leave you.

"What do you want me to do, leave her so her body can be taken by the devilish flames of that man?!" You snapped, realising that you had surrounded yourself by Dabi and his poison.

"Calm down, I'm not the one who killed her,"

How could he say something so cruel? No it all made sense now, he had tempted you with the evil he shares with his father.

"Is that man your father?" You pointed at the sky, to the broad man surrounded by fire.

"Yeh," He answered, creeped out by the sudden chill in your tone.

"Of course, he gave you his fire and you hold his evil inside you,"

"Where is this coming from?" He asked, reaching his hand to you like you would do to him, he always liked it when you slid your hands over his, but you pushed him away by his chest, making him topple onto the floor.

"Do not touch me dirty child of the devil!" You spat. You shut your eyes tightly taking a deep breath as you decided to leave your mother giving her a lovely view of her home being destroyed.

"Y/n please," He whispered, sensing pure hatred from you Touya hadn't felt the grief of death and he wasn't one to be an empath but with you, he could read you like a book, and you despised him, " touch me and you'll see that I still dream of you," He offered stretching his hands out for you to take.

"You do not dream of me, you do not love me, you see me as an appendage to spread your satanic ideals, and you have tricked me to complete your tasks before calling your father that you conveniently hate. I wish for you to leave me be I do not wish to be with you."

Touya was going to cry, he could feel blood pooling in his eyes as he allowed them to fill his eyes, but he was just met with a grimace from you.

"You even cry tears from hell, you are a devilish creature, I shouldn't even be interacting with you."

"Was I devilish in my dream the one where I married you, was I so grotesque there?" He asked, almost on his way to tweak out, you couldn't dump him like his father, you were meant to be forever. He had promised himself he'd marry you as soon as you guys left, going straight to a courthouse to sign documents.

"I do not know what powers you possess, that is how jinns tempt you, they show you something you cannot refuse before taking you down to hell fire with them, and you have tricked me well. I believed you were mine, yet you were here to make me fall into the sin of lust again, so our creator can give me a just punishment just like my whore mother, you have made me a whore Dabi,"

"That's not true-"

"Oh my gosh. Dabi. How didn't I know from the start the name you've branded yourself with i knew it sounded familiar, cremation, you have come to do it to me specifically," Your jaw was slack, eyes wide as you panicked thinking it was already your time and who else could it be by if not by the one you loved.

"I promise you I'm not. You need to calm down Y/n you're just shocked, your guardian has just died you're grieving you need to sit down,"

"Stop speaking to me like that. You are an enemy of Swarga, an enemy of me leave me be."

Touya watched you walk away, he wanted to break down and cry, he wanted to scream he wanted to chase after you but he couldn't seem to move so all he did was walk away.

You would go for the children first then, you would check the animals again, check if Amaliqah is alive, or maybe it was better she was dead because her beloved lake now held a tree polluting the clear waters with soot and CO2. She wouldn't like that very much.

You wanted nothing to do with that scum. You wished you hadn't met him, then you would be content with your life here, you would've kept your hymen intact for 7 years more, and you would've been happy taking care of your sect and leading prayer.

So why were you now regretting the words you spewed to him, why did you miss your mornings by the lake and why were you thinking about all the questions you didn't get a chance to ask him?

"Hello, are you Y/n?" You turned to the direction you heard the voice, a teenager with purple hair, and tired eyes looking in your direction while he stood unaffected by the firey branch he was perching on.

" I must get the children I'm not in the mood for any conve-"

Why can't I move?

"Are you Y/n?" 

"Yes," You answered, your soul stuttering at the lack of use of your body. You feared this outsider would take advantage of your body. His quirk acting like a bodily control - truth quirk. 

"You're under arrest, come with me please."

To your surprise you followed, confusion filling your body as you walked out.

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[im-in-vin-ci-ble]

Hello~ Can I request a Mark x fem reader who’s a lot like starfire and is very Powerful close to omni man and is also an alien princess but she lives on earth and they go to the same school and she’s also a solo hero who one day sees invincible fighting off a tough villain with the teenteam but is losing so she steps in to help and he recognizes her and starts getting all nervous since he has a crush on her and then after that they introduce themselves get to know each other and eventually work they’re way up to mark confessing and she says yes :3

(If possible can it be a slow burn im a sucker for slow burn tropes and stuff 😤)

A/N: I gotchu, this bout to be a lil long 😮‍💨 making the fem!reader a little more human, figured since she’s in an actual school for humans she’d need to adapt to the humor/culture so she doesn’t get suspicious

Pairing: Mark Grayson x Fem!Reader

Rating: M, some swearing and gross monster guts

Warnings: N/A

Summary: Mark is finally joined in battle by an alien princess who has caught his attention. Turns out she goes to the same high school, and if he can throw around 150-pound monsters across the street, surely he can confess his true feelings to a girl... right?

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?!" Rex Splode yelled as he wobbled up off the ground. "We've been on this thing for hours and it only has one damn cut!"

"Calm down Rex," Atom Eve said from behind, "You're gonna get even more tired from yelling."

The two watched as Dupli-Kate attempted to distract the scaly kaiju, replicating herself second after second to give space for Invincible to hit the monster by surprise. The kaiju's screech echoed throughout the city and shook the foundations of the surrounding buildings, forcing Rex, Atom Eve and Robot to move aside and save however many civilians they could.

"Invincible," Dupli-Kate shouted, "I can't keep up much longer!"

A sonic boom overcame the surrounding noise and Invincible appeared from the clouds. Dropping in at maximum speed, the young superhero balled his hand into a fist and took a deep breath. A loud battle cry escaped his mouth but it was cut short as the kaiju's heavy arm slapped him away just in time, throwing him through destroyed buildings until he landed on the pavement.

Out of breath, dizzy, and in a serious amount of pain, Invincible laid on the broken road for a second to regain his strength. The wind softly blew down on him as he focused his sight on a contrail leading towards him, and he watched as a girl in purple land right next to him.

She bent down and held him upright, "Invincible, are you okay?"

"Mmhmm," Invincible croaked with a defeated smile, "Totally fine."

His sight reverted back to normal and the first face he saw shocked him alive. It was her. They never talked in school and he was almost sure she didn't know his real name, but here she was, basically cradling him in her arms and calling him Invincible.

So she knows who I am. At least with the suit.

"Come on, that kaiju is about to be destroy the entire city," she said, helping him get back on his feet and flying away to the seemingly unbeatable figure.

He huffed, "Stay cool, Mark. She's here to help," and he followed suit.

This marked the first time he really interacted with the new superhero; he'd only ever see her on TV or read about how she saved people on the newspaper. He'd be lying if he said he didn't find her attractive — as do most guys his age — but watching her blast the kaiju with the green bursts of energy from her hands made her only even more appealing.

Invincible regrouped with the rest of the Teen Team. "I don't know what else we can do to this thing," Atom Eve admitted.

"I do," the girl spoke up. "Distract it as best as you can but stay far away from the stomach. When I tell you to take cover, make a run for it."

Robot replied, "That seems highly dangerous."

"Let's do it," Invincible quickly replied in a high-pitched voice.

Everyone looked over at him, surprised at the sudden change in his voice and just how fast he reacted in agreement. 

"Uh, it's a good plan," he nodded, causing the girl to shoot a warm smile his way. "I definitely think we should do it... if all of you... uh, think, we should."

Exhausted and out of options, the rest of the group followed her orders and took different corners of the monster. Dupli-Kate handled one leg, Rex Splode handled the other, Robot and Atom Eve took the arms, and Invincible went back to the head. The kaiju struggled to keep its focus on just one of the heroes, and while it remained preoccupied, the girl absorbed all the energy she could muster and flew straight for the stomach.

"Take cover, now!"

Invincible and the Teen Team moved away and they watched as the flying hero's eyes opened in a bright shade of neon green, both her arms extended out as a large ball of green formed around her hands. The rays exploded right through the kaiju and it shrieked in pain as she briefly disappeared into the stomach. The kaiju lost balance and slowly fell forward as the girl, her eyes still green, appeared on the other side and harshly fell down on the ground.

The kaiju landed on the street with a loud boom and the group ran towards the girl who was now covered in parts of the kaiju's digestive system.

"Okay, that's kinda gross," Rex Splode commented, to which Dupli-Kate quickly responded, "Shut up."

Invincible dropped down on his knees and wiped the blood and guts off her face. Subtly admiring her facial features up close, he couldn't believe (and almost felt stupid) that he never recognized her despite the fact that he almost saw her everyday.

The girl groaned in agony softly shook her head, her eyes fluttering open to the sight of Invincible's dark hair, goggles and yellow mask.

"Hey, hey," he whispered, "Are you alright?"

She sat up and hissed at her injuries, holding her head with her bloody hand. "Mmhmm," she gently nodded with a half smile, her eye one still shut. "Totally fine."

---

Mark had a hard time focusing on school. His body ached from yesterday's injuries and he suffered a few bruises from literally tearing through buildings. He made his way to his locker and rested his head on the metal door, dreading the fact that he still has an entire afternoon of classes to go. Closing his eyes in hopes to quickly recharge, his moment of peace was disrupted when a shoulder rammed into his chest and several books landed right on his toe.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry," a voice exclaimed.

Mark's head snapped up at the sound of the voice. It's her. He momentarily froze and watched the girl bend down to pick up her things, and when he finally regained movement a split second later, he also bent down to help her out. He kept quiet as he tried to think of the coolest possible response to make her think that he was actually the coolest guy in school, but all he could think of was how heavenly and badass she looked yesterday.

"Thanks," she said as he handed her the book. "I hope your foot doesn't bruise."

They both stood up and he shot her a nervous smile. "T-totally fine," he replied, clearing his throat afterwards.

She crossed her brows at his response and nodded, and a look of suspicion replaced her worried demeanor.

"I'm Mark, by the way," he cleared his throat again and reached out his hand, "Grayson."

"Mark... Grayson, huh?" she responded, scanning his face as her suspicion grew. Her eyes finally landed on the hand that was waiting, and she took one last look into his eyes before deciding to shake it. "I'm Y/N," she introduced herself with a skeptical smile, feeling his sweaty palm wrapped around hers. "I'll see you around, Mark Grayson."

She walked away and Mark's eyes followed her trail as far as he could see. He quickly pulled out his phone to send a text to Eve, who was actually watching their interaction a few classrooms down.

"Mark," Eve called out as she moved towards him. “So I’m assuming...”

"You knew?” he asked her in disbelief. “Why didn't you tell me Y/N was a superhero? I just introduced myself to her as Mark Grayson and I'm almost positive she knows I'm Invincible."

"First off, it's not my secret tell," she answered with a shrug. "Second, you guys didn’t trade secrets or whatever?”

Mark shook his head in a panic, "No, but I'm guessing she also knows that I know her secret the same way I know she knows my secret." He rested his forehead on the locker door once again and groaned, "Ugh, I'm so into her, it isn't even funny. And this whole superhero thing just made it even more awkward."

Eve laughed, "Look, I'm not going to force her to tell you if she isn't up for it, but if you want, I can ask her to hang out with us later. Maybe — emphasis on maybe — my presence will make her comfortable enough to admit who she is."

"Okay, okay," he sighed, turning around to rest the back of his head. "My insides are dying."

"After the kaiju yesterday, be thankful you don't mean that in a literal sense."

---

Where in the hell is Eve?

Mark pulled out his phone for the third time in 10 minutes. Still no call or response from Eve to his text. He was getting evidently nervous; his palms were sweaty again and it felt like someone turned up the heat in Burger Mart. His left leg jerked up and down in anxiety as he stared at his phone, looking at the seconds on the clock icon tick by. If he were left alone with Y/N, he'd have no idea what to say. What does she like? Should I bring up the kaiju yesterday and praise Invincible? No, she'll just think I'm full of myself.

"Hey Mark."

He jolted and saw Y/N standing by the corner of the booth. "Hi!" he replied in that irritatingly high-pitched voice. Mark's heart began to race and the thoughts in his head ran wild. "Um... Have a seat. Sorry Eve isn't here yet, she actually hasn't answered my calls or my messages. Teenage girls, huh? What can you do?"

She crossed her brows again and chuckled, "That's fine, we can wait for Eve. But I think I'm more concerned about you."

"What do you mean?"

Y/N chuckled again, "You seem... nervous.”

He faked an obnoxiously loud laugh, “Me? Nervous?”

She watched him from across the table in silence, waiting for him to regain his composure.

When Mark couldn’t hear Y/N laughing with him, he finally shut up and shook his head. “Yeah, I am nervous, sorry,” he admitted, shutting his eyes tight. 

She giggled, “Totally fine.”

Hearing her say those two words calmed his racing heartbeat. A smile crept on his face and she reciprocated, their eyes locking for a few seconds before both their phones buzzed.

“Oh, I just got a text from Eve,” Mark said. 

“Me too.” She opened the message and began to read it out loud, “Sorry, can’t make it tonight. Something came up.”

“Have fun, you two,” he followed, his voice faltering. He placed his phone, screen down this time, back on the table and sighed, “Sorry, guess you’re stuck with me. That is, if you do want to stay and... hang out, and stuff.”

"Why wouldn’t I?” she replied, her warm smile easing Mark back into a relaxed state. “It’s nice to have a friend who...” she trailed off, “understands.”

“Understands what?” he asked.

“This thing people like us call life,” she answered. “You know, it took me a long time to acclimate here. I didn’t think I ever would, then I met friends who made this place feel like home. And home is a feeling I hadn’t felt in a really long time.”

Mark rested his elbows on the table and leaned in closer, “Well, I’m always here. You know, a-as a friend... or an acquaintance, even. I don’t, I don’t want to push it.”

Y/N giggled again, “You’re a funny man, Mark Grayson. This planet is lucky to have someone like you.” She reached out and held his hand, “And I’m even luckier to have you as a friend, or an acquaintance.” 

He felt the heat rush to his face and he could swear his heart nearly jumped out of his chest. The afternoon flew by in a hurry as they engaged in lengthy conversations, fatty fast food, and childhood stories. While Mark was open to sharing every tiny detail — down to the color of the bleachers at the park where he played little league — Y/N kept hers pretty vague, leaving out descriptions of family members and even the places where these stories happened. 

Mark’s phone buzzed again, but the vibrating pattern indicated it was a phone call. He turned the screen over and saw the unknown number; it was time to suit up.

“Shit, I’m sorry Y/N, but I need to go,” he said in a rush. “I have a... uh, an emergency.”

You couldn’t have thought of anything more specific?

“It’s cool. Um, don’t worry about it,” she said, shaking her head with her eyes glued to the vibrating phone. 

Mark’s one leg was already out the booth before he decided to finally just go for it. Sitting back down with his now quiet phone in his hands, he took a deep breath.

“Y/N, I think you’re really cool. Can I maybe, like, call you sometime, or something?”

Her lips formed into smile that extended to her eyes, and it was enough for Mark to melt a little. “Of course. Yeah, sure,” she replied in excitement and typed down her number on his phone. She handed it back, “Now you know how to reach me if you’re getting your ass whooped again.”

His mouth fell open as his shaky hands grabbed his phone. “Wait—”

She smoothly slid out of the booth, “See you later, Invincible,” she winked, “Don’t get killed today.”

---

Luckily for Mark, no one got killed today. Maybe a few wounds here and there, but nothing painful enough that will land him in the GDA hospital. After spending an hour in the shower, he finally managed to lie down on his bed and rest his body. He sank into the mattress and closed his eyes, taking in the seconds of undisturbed peace that have become rare moments since he got his powers. 

As he replayed the events of today’s fights in his head, his mind drifted off to the hours he spent with Y/N. He pulled out his phone and mustered the courage to press the dial button, and the repeating sound of the ringing was making his pulse race. 

“Hello?”

“Oh good, you didn’t die today.”

Mark chuckled and sandwiched his hand between his head and the pillow. “It wasn’t that bad today, just took a few hits,” he explained. “So listen, Y/N, I was wondering, uh—”

She cut him off, “What are you doing right now?”

“What?”

“What are you doing right now?” she repeated.

“Um, nothing, just getting some rest” he sat up and looked around. “Why?”

“If you’re not too tired, do you maybe...”

Mark smiled, “Maybe...?”

“I don’t know, sneak out? My roof is pretty comfortable.”

Silently fist pumping, he fully stood up and nodded, “Text me the address.”

Just as quietly as he exited his room via the window, he softly landed on Y/N’s roof. Swiftly flying up and greeting him, she took the place next to him and crossed her legs. 

“You’re right, your roof is pretty comfortable,” Mark said.

She chuckled at his remark then noticed a gash by his right temple. Her brows furrowed in worry, “You have a wound,” she said, making sure not to touch it.

“Don’t worry about it,” he replied, softly holding her hand and placing it back down with his. “Totally fine.”

Those words brought her some sense of comfort as her eyes softened, causing her to unconsciously squeeze his hand. Mark’s eyes widened and he looked down at their tangled fingers, frozen for a moment.

“Is this... okay with you?” he asked.

She nodded. “Wanna lie down? Since my roof is so comfortable?” she asked with a smirk.

“Sure,” Mark chuckled, removing his hand from her’s and stretching his arm out as they lied down. Y/N rested her head on his shoulder, keeping her eyes up at the stars.

“Hey Mark?”

“Yeah?”

A moment of silence.

“Thank you for coming.”

He looked down at her as she met his eyes, “You’re welcome.” 

The two shared a smile, and Mark took a deep breath as he prepared himself for the words that were about to come out of his mouth.

It’s now or never, Mark. Now or never.

“Watching you kick ass yesterday was... really a sight to see,” he began. “You’re powerful and strong, but more importantly, brave. And you’re so fucking beautiful and kind and smart and...” Mark trailed off, sighing, “I never thought I would be in this position — with you next to me in a very comfortable rooftop under the stars.”

“Mark...”

“And I really like you. Like, really, really like you.”

“Mark.”

“It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way, but I just wanted to let you know. It’s important that you know—”

“Mark,” she cut him off. “I like you too. A lot.”

He breathed a sigh of relief and covered his eyes with his free hand. “Oh thank god. Thank god!” he exclaimed.

Y/N shushed him, “You’re gonna wake up the neighborhood, Invincible.”

“Sorry,” he giggled quietly, “I got excited.”

She laughed and faced her body towards him. They locked eyes again, and Mark didn’t know if it was gravity or just the adrenaline that pushed him, but he finally leaned down and met her lips. Static ran through his body as he deepened the kiss, and he felt an excitement that was even more exhilarating than the first time he flew.

She pulled away and Mark ran his hand through her hair, resting his hand on her cheek. “How was that?” he asked.

She smiled gently and placed her hand over his, “Totally fine.”

[rattyoakenbitch]

❝𝐢𝐟 𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝❞ ─ 𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐢 𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧

i don't want your sympathy, i guess ive had it rough but you don't really care

❥ content ; gn reader, eventual fluff, angst, pining, happy ending

❥ warnings ; injury, swearing, mentions of death

❥ synopsis ; when you get badly injured during a mission, only then does levi realize the depths of his feelings for you. now the question is, is it too late?

❥ a/n ; i don't have a taglist yet so feel free to ask to get added!

You glided through the trees alongside your team, adrenaline running through your veins.

Kicking yourself off a tree, you landed your body with ease onto a lone Titan spotted in the forest below you. With a swift swing of the blade, the Titan was on the ground.

Finished, you zipped yourself back into the air, joining your team member's formation as you all flew together.

"Y/N!" Captain Levi shouted, resent dripping off of his words. Here we go again. "Do not deviate from original course! We are here to scout, not to thrill seek."

The team came to a slow. They stood on the branches, overlooking the land beneath them.

"I was not thrill seeking, sir, I was doing my job," you defended, turning to Captain Levi. Though he was shorter than you were, his cold stare and unwavering demeanor intimidated you.

"Your job is to follow my orders, brat, not go off wandering like an idiot!"

"I didn't wander, I was quick to regroup! You're just finding a reason to take your anger out on me," you retorted. "Then again, I wouldn't be surprised. Considering your height, it's no wonder you can barely contain your anger in such a small body."

As much as he wanted to push you off the tree, Levi kept his poise.

By now the team could hear you and Levi's bickering, but considering they were used to it, they decided to butt out and focus on planning the route.

"Stable duty when we get back."

And then he walked away, leaving you fuming.

As you continued with the scouting mission, you encountered too many Titans that you couldn't just brush them off. Angry and left with no choice, Levi shouted orders to forget the original plan and fight back.

Out of the corner of your eye, you spotted two Titans approaching Jean and Armin with intent. You narrowed your eyes. This was your chance. You bolted off the tree, flying fast towards the two Titans. You got your gear out, ready to slice their napes, when one of the Titans looked your way, a sick smile on its face.

"Y/N!" Armin called out in a panic as the Titan extended its arm, swiping at you like a fly. Before its hand could collide with you, you were pushed out of the way by none other than Levi.

He wrapped his arms around you securely, one underneath your bottom and his other around your back. You heard him whisper a profanity, his hot breath fanning your neck as he spoke. Though it wasn't the time or the place, you couldn't help but let your mind wander.

You were brought back to reality when Levi glided deeper into the forest, setting you down onto the ground harsher than necessary.

Totally caught off guard, your back was shoved against a tree. Levi was quick to block your exits, predicting you would try to resist.

His arms caged you between him and the tree, leaving little to no distance between your bodies. You could feel your face get hot, either out of embarrassment or his body heat mixing with yours.

"What the hell is wrong with you, brat?!" Yelled Levi, eyes wild with rage. However, something felt different about this compared to when he scolded you for separating from the group. But you couldn't quite put your finger on it.

"Me?" You scoffed. "You're the crazy psycho who stole me away and cornered me in this forest!" You pushed at his chest, successfully shoving him off of you. "I had everything under control."

"You were almost killed! I can't have reckless people on my team. I'm a captain, not a babysitter, so get your shit together or get the hell off my team."

You stood against the tree quietly, Levi's venomous words stunning you into silence. Levi continued to stare deep into your eyes, his expression never changing. However, as the seconds passed, you saw a sliver of regret in his eyes, lasting only for a mere second.

You took a deep breath, trying to choose your words carefully. "I- Just.. Why do you hate me so much?"

Levi raised a brow while you continued to speak.

"I know I'm not the best fighter. Not compared to Misaka or Eren. But what did I do to deserve so much hatred from you? Even when I'm not doing anything wrong, you look at me like I'm the most disgusting person you've seen."

Despite feeling a sting of guilt at your words, Levi put on a dismissive act. "Tch, you're being dramatic. I'm not about to discuss this with you."

Why the fuck did he say that?

"Maybe if you listened to me for two damn seconds you wouldn't get such an earful."

Why is he being such an asshole? Gods, just tell them already. Stop this bullshit.

No longer finding it in you to care, you began to raise your voice, angry tears spilling down your face. "I try my best to make you like me. I try to show you that I'm capable and strong, but you still treat me as if I'm inferior. Like my skills are nothing. Like I'm nothing."

Emotionless, Levi replied, "Because you are. Look at you. You're a crybaby. You should've stayed back." Lies. All lies.

"Ugh- well maybe you should've just let me get killed since you despise me so much!"

With that, you grab your gear and zip away as far from Levi as possible, tears blowing out of your face and into the wind.

"Hey, where are you going?!"

You ignored him as you continued to speed through the trees, searching for your team. Your friends. Anybody.

"Y/N! Look out!"

You heard Eren shout, making you spin around frantically to search for the danger.

There it was.

An Abnormal ran your way, crawling like a dog on its hands and feet.

It had been chasing the team for a while now, evident in its animalistic, hungry look.

Steadily hanging off a branch, you watch the Titan from afar, then look back at the team.

"I'll distract it! You guys go!"

They looked at you as if you had grown two extra heads.

"You'll die!" Mikasa argued. "We can take it!"

"Just go!"

The Titan started to get closer. The team looked behind you, then back at you. Though they looked ready and determined to take it down, you knew they felt as terrified as you were. Fighting Titans was just something you don't think you'll ever get used to.

"Please be careful. We're gonna find Captain Levi!"

You nodded, then turned around, watching as the Titan ran towards you, totally disregarding the rest of the team.

"You want me? Come get me."

When you decided it was close enough, you darted into the forest and soared through the trees, only narrowly missing them. The Abnormal followed you, but hit itself on the trees and destroyed many in the process.

While the Abnormal continued to run through the forest, leaves and trees blocking its direct vision of you, you took a chance and turned back, flying past the Abnormal.

You did a quick u-turn and hopped onto its back.

You got it now.

As it chased after nothing, completely unaware, you slashed the nape of its neck.

With you still on its back, the Titan went limp mid-jump, falling onto the ground hard enough to create an earthquake. Unprepared for the collision, you went flying off its body.

Instead of bracing yourself for the fall, you frantically reached for your gear in an attempt to glide back up to the trees.

Before you got the chance, your body met with the ground, a loud thud echoing from the impact.

In the distance, the rest of the team continued to fight until they got to the very last Titan. Levi, though he was the last to regroup, helped effectively take down the Titans.

It wasn't evident in his stoic expression, but he searched among his surroundings and the faces of his team for you, afraid the worst had happened. Dammit, why did he have to be such an asshole? What Levi said to you, he meant none of it. But he feared he wouldn't get the chance to tell you that. Idiot.

"Is everybody here?!" Levi shouted as his team gathered around him.

"Yeah, we're alive-"

"Wait, where's Y/N?"

The team began to search among themselves, now becoming anxious as well.

"Well, where are they? Did you not see them at all?" Levi asked in a calm tone, despite his heart beat pounding in his ears. No. He wasn't going to slip up. Not here, not now. He needed to remain strong.

Mikasa spoke up. "We last saw them when we were being chased by an Abnormal! They offered to distract it and take care of it themselves."

Levi shouted, a crack in his voice, "And you let them?!"

"Y/N is strong! One of the best fighters we have here," Eld said. "They've probably already taken it down by now."

"Then where are they?!" Levi growled, becoming more frustrated by the second.

"Hey, look!" Armin yelled, shaking his finger towards the steam in the distance. "Eld was right! Y/N did kill it after all!"

Wasting no more time, Levi commanded the team to follow him. Soon again, they were up in the trees, running your direction. They stopped as soon as they came across a clearing in the forest where the Abnormal laid lifelessly.

"Everyone! Find Y/N!"

The team split, searching the area for any sign of you.

Levi dreaded the thought of finding you like they found the Titan. No. You killed it. You had to be alive.

Levi repeated that in his head. You had to be alive.

Because if you weren't, he wouldn't know what he would do.

Your eyes shot open at the sound of panicked screams echoing around you. You pushed yourself off of the ground in a rush, only to stumble back with an agonizing scream, pain shooting up the lower half of your body.

"Fucking hell! Oh shit," you fell back on the grass defeatedly, hot tears welling in your eyes at the intense pain and aches across your whole body. "Dammit!"

You didn't know which bones were broken, where you were, if you were bleeding out. So you just laid there alone, helpless and numb. Waiting.

Just when the team was beginning to lose hope, a blood curdling scream echoed throughout the forest, easily catching the team's attention. They headed towards the source of the sound, but Levi was the first on it, already sprinting through the forest to find you.

When he did, he felt his heart drop down to his stomach. You laid in a small clearing behind some old trees and bushes, a puddle of blood beneath your body. Your uniform was torn and your 3DMG was rendered useless at this point. If not for the scream, or the fast rise and fall of your chest, he would've mistaken you for being dead.

Levi rushed to your side and got onto his knees, lifting up your body into his arms.

"Y/N? Can you hear me? Y/N?"

You coughed, wheezing and struggling to make a coherent sound. Blood dripped down the corner of your mouth as you spoke, "You were right, Captain. I never stood a chance, did I?Shoulda just stayed." You laughed pitifully.

Now Levi was angry, but not at you. "Shut up! Don't say stupid shit like that! You're going to be okay."

The team found you, stopping short at the sight of Levi holding you carefully, like a porcelain doll, ready to break.

He didn't care anymore. He didn't bother to put up a front. Not when you were like this, half dead in his arms. He pressed his forehead to yours, whispering in your ear so only you could hear.

"I can't lose you too.."

Everyone else only continued to watch the intimate scene unfold before them.

When you fell unconcious, Levi squeezed his eyes shut, trying his best to keep his composure. Why was he acting like this? Usually he would be quick to solve problems without letting his feelings get in the way. Why was he so helpless now?

He turned around, scowling at the group who just stood by idly.

"Get over here and help them, you fools!"

You hated it. You hated having to be looked after or saved like a princess in a children's storybook. You didn't want to run away anymore, or simply stand in waiting, hoping for someone to rescue you. You were done being hunted. So you joined the Scouts after years of hard work and training. If you had only thought more carefully or put your parent's advice in consideration, you wouldn't be in your current situation, regretting ever joining Levi's team. You wouldn't have ended up in the infirmary.

You passed out in Levi's arms after suffering from injuries during your fight with the Abnormal Titan, according to your friends. They came by to visit you when the medic alerted them that you had woken up from your coma.

"How long was I out for?" You winced as you massaged your still pounding head. "When did I even get here?"

"You've been unconcious for two days. We retreated to the city as Captain Levi instructed and you've been under their care since," Eren answered. He noticed your demeanor as you looked around the room and picked at your skin, a nervous habit you recently formed. "Everybody's alive, so don't you worry."

"Where are they?"

"Well, they did have to receive medical attention since they got hurt, but they're okay! They miss you, ya know?" Armin said excitedly. "We'll make sure to fill you in on everything when you're out of here."

You pursed your lips. "Speaking of which, when will I be discharged?"

"You can't exactly walk right now, but.. you should be up and ready to go within a week! Then we can go on another mission and-"

"Eren. Armin. Mikasa." Your attention was torn away from Eren, your eyes darting towards the source of the voice.

"Captain Levi!" They all exclaimed in unison.

"I would like to speak with Y/N in private." He glanced at trio, his eyes narrowing. "Out."

The three walked out, heads bowed like sad little puppies. You waved at them as they went before turning to Levi who now stood by your bed.

"What do you want?" You asked bitterly, nose scrunching up in a sneer.

"Commander Erwin informed me of your decision," he spoke softly, differing from his usual cold tone.

You huffed. "Yeah, took your advice and resigned. You won't have to worry about babysitting me anymore."

A pang of guilt shot through Levi's heart, causing him to flinch. He hoped you didn't catch that.

He remembered his own regretful words as it replayed in his head. Just like your cries and pained expression, which he was unable to simply brush off, he couldn't forget how he mistreated you. And he would never forgive himself, either. The sight of your injured body laying there, all alone. He couldn't shake the scene off his mind, no matter how hard he tried. Even in his dreams.

Evident in his eyebags that seemed to have darkened in shade, he wasn't able to get much sleep the past couple days because of it.

"I take it you hate me, then," Levi suggested, prompting you to laugh mockingly.

"Oh, no, I could never," you said, sarcasm dripping off your voice as you fake fawned over Levi. "Levi Ackerman, Humanity's Strongest.. I just adore you."

Levi hid his offended expression and ignored your antics as he continued. "I was afraid I couldn't get the chance to apologize to you. When I found you there, I.." He squeezed his eyes shut and furrowed his brows together, forcing his tears not to fall. Why now?

"Yeah, well, you fucked up. About time you feel a little heartache," you mumbled, looking around the room, anywhere but Levi.

"A little?! Look, I'm trying to apologize here!" He shouted. "Do you have no idea how fucking terrified I've been for you, you brat?!"

"No, Captain Levi, so why don't you enlighten me on how much you care?!" You huffed, crossing your arms. "Because if you did, then maybe I wouldn't be bed ridden!"

Levi's face softened at the sight of a single tear escaping your eye. He took a seat on the bed beside you and reached out to brush away your tear.

With your quick reflexes, you caught his hand and pushed it back towards him.

"Don't you dare touch me. You've done enough damage, Levi. Just go and stop wasting my time."

Just like you, he was stubborn. He stood his ground.

"I-I'm sorry."

You let out an exasperated sigh. "You must think I'm stupid. No way I'm buying that bullshit."

"You need to stop pushing me away, Y/N!"

"What is that, an order?" You taunted. "You don't get to be sorry, Levi. It's too late for that. You waited for me to almost die just to tell me that? Is that what it takes? What if I hadn't survived? What then?"

"You don't think I haven't thought about that?! That's why I'm here!"

"Yeah, and who's fault is that?"

"You should've listened to me! I was trying to protect you!"

"Well thanks a lot. Now both my kneecaps are broken and I won't be able to walk for weeks!" You shake your head. "You think just because we shared a moment while I was dying that I'm okay now? Trust me, if I had the strength, I would have slapped you then and there."

"Then why don't you now?"

"At this point, you're not even worth getting angry over. So stop giving me that pitiful look. I really prefer you shouting at me instead. At least I'm used to it." You mumble the last part, but Levi catches it easily.

"That's it then, you leave me no choice." You look at Levi curiously. "You infuriate me, brat, you really do. You're so careless and oblivious all the time, you forget to look after yourself. And I'm not ready to watch you throw away your life so irrationally from the sidelines."

"So what are you trying to tell me, Levi?"

"Tch, you're just gonna make me say it, aren't you?" He takes a deep breath. "I'm not good at this, and I hate to admit it, to you of all people. It makes me mad to see you risk your life because I care about you.. and I can't lose you. I've dealt with too much death. I'll do whatever it takes to keep you alive, even if it means dying.." Levi trails off, then scoffs and crosses his arms like a petty little child. "I said it, all right? I like you-- A lot, you stupid brat!"

You searched Levi's eyes for any trace of dishonesty. You hoped he was lying, like he had some sort of script prepared before he came to see you. But you found no lies in his eyes.

You felt your heart break. All this time when you thought Levi just really hated you, he was looking out for you.

"I.. Why didn't you just tell me?" Your voice fell apart as you spoke. "I tried so hard to make you like me back.. And it hurt because I thought you just hated my guts. I had no idea."

"I know, I was being stupid too- It shouldn't have come to this," Levi admitted. "I.. I'll let you rest now."

Levi stood up to leave, but you were quick to pull him back onto the bed with you. Without letting him react, you grabbed his face and interlocked your lips with his. All the tension in his body disappeared and he melted into the kiss, throwing his arms around you tightly like he'd lose you if he ever let go. It wasn't a soft, romantic, movie perfect kiss. It was desperate, tongue and teeth, hands wandering, disheveling the other's hair. You released all of your built up anger and resent, letting it fuel you while you aggresively fought your tongue with his, a faint taste a hint of alcohol now on your own mouth. Occasionally you'd both break the kiss for short intakes of breath and small whispers like 'don't scare me like that again' and 'I've needed this for a while now'. You couldn't help but moan, earning a grin from Levi as he continued to hungrily devour your lips. Just as things escalated, you remembered you were still in the infirmary, and anyone could walk in any minute now. You slowly pulled away, your chest heaving as you panted for breath.

Levi couldn't help but twist his lips up into a little smirk. That was new.

"Well at least you're not a bad first kisser," he spoke nonchalantly, still gasping for air. You playfully punched him in the chest.

"Quite the romantic, aren't you?" You rolled your eyes but couldn't stop yourself from smiling like an idiot. "You're not bad either, old man."

Blush spread across his cheeks.

He took your hand in his, bringing it to his swollen and raw lips and placed a small kiss on your knuckles.

"Promise me you won't leave me again?"

"Promise," you sighed blissfully. "And I guess I'll have to tell Commander Erwin about my change of plans."

"Actually," a deep voice spoke. At the door, there stood none other than Commander Erwin. "I think I already know."

[dandelionflower]

Can you keep a secret?

Chapter 1: Permanent Holders

(That au I was talking about a while ago)

Ladybug huffed a breath from her nose before throwing her yo-yo at the little box in the akuma's hand. It made contact with her wrist, and the box went flying right into awaiting claws of her partner. He shot her a wink and prepared his other hand.

"Cata-" He was cut off as a flying trash can slammed into him. The box clattered to the ground just a few feet away from the akuma.

In the split second when both Chat Noir and the akuma lunged for the box, Ladybug slung her yo-yo at the akuma, holding them tight with their arms at their sides.

"Carapace! I told you to cover Chat Noir!" She glanced over her shoulder as she shouted, catching the sheepish glance of the turtle hero, who had his shield in front of Rena Rouge, who was keeping the akuma's puzzle creature at bay.

"Sorry, dudette." He leapt in front of Chat Noir just as the akuma broke through her hold in a burst of strength. "Shelter!" The green dome surrounded the akuma and Ladybug felt some tension leave her shoulders.

"Cataclysm!" The box shattered at Chat Noir's hands, revealing the butterfly and feather hiding within. They began their escape, dancing around one another and rising to the clouds.

"Oh, no you don't." Ladybug allowed herself a fond smile at the two dangerous forms. This part was always the easiest; catch the akuma and fix everything. It was almost childlike, chasing a butterfly all over town. A corrupted butterfly controlled by a mad man. She sighed again and opened her yo-yo. "Time to de-evilize." She caught the two in one swoop, and released them both with a tap to the central spot on her weapon.

With that out of the way, she moved to the door. It had a large red and black pole keeping the doors from opening. With an experimental spin, she tossed the charm into the air with a "miraculous ladybug!"

"Nice work team!" Chat Noir smiled and held out his fist, now unaffected by the trash can that could have broken his hip.

"Yeah!" Carapace and Rena Rouge joined with gusto; Ladybug did too after a second. Her partner was safe, she was safe, Paris was safe.

As they pulled away, Chat grabbed Carapace's fist. "Carapace. You did great, but you need to listen to Ladybug the first time."

"I don't see the problem." Rena straightened, eyes flaming with that same light she used when she protected Marinette from Chloe. "He did fine; we won!"

"That's the problem. We won this time. If you don't follow the plan the first time, there might not be a next time." She glanced at Chat Noir. This was her last chance before everything changed.

She and Chat Noir had talked about their two apprentices for some time over patrol. She released her frustration and anxieties over how little the two listened to her and treated akuma battles like a game instead, and Chat Noir suggested making them permanent holders.

"Think about it. If they have the miraculous with them all the time, it'll stop being so novel, and they'll start taking it seriously. Just like you and me!" He gave her a mischievous glance. "Or have you forgotten how lax I used to be?

She giggled at the thought. "How could I ever forget, Mr. Why not flirt as I'm bleeding out?"

He winced, and placed a hand to his chest. "You wound me, my lady! I am a changed man, falling in love has made me better!"

"Right. Remember to thank your girlfriend for me."

Today was the first day since their conversation that they had managed to bring out both Carapace and Rena Rouge for battle. They had agreed that making them permanent holders would be beneficial; especially since Ladybug wouldn't need to ditch battles to grab an extra miraculous.

"But regardless, after you detransform, you don't need to give me you miraculous anymore. I'm letting you keep it."

"Really?" Rena bounced on her toes and clutched her necklace. "I get to be like you two? Does this mean I'll meet the guardian? Or know your identities? Or-"

"Babe, calm down." Carapace placed a hand on her shoulder with his trademark easy smile, but his eyes mirrored his girlfriend's excitement.

"This is on a trial period only." Ladybug emphasized. "Every night, your kwamis will visit either me, Chat Noir, or the guardian and report on your behavior outside the mask, your treatment of them, and your usage of the miraculous. You will not follow them, and if we decide after your probationary period that you aren't fit to be a permanent holder, you will return the miraculous. No questions asked. Likewise, if we decide to keep you as a permanent holder, you'll need to keep up the good behavior. Your kwamis can fill us in at any time."

Rena and Carapace nodded mutely.

Her miraculous beeped. "One more thing before I go; no using your miraculous or kwamis for personal gain. No exceptions."

With that, she nodded at Chat Noir and left through the window, swinging from building to building with a tense feeling in her gut. She landed on her bed just as she detransformed, Tikki spiralling out of the earrings and into her hands.

"Tikki, do you think I did the right thing? Making Nino and Alya permanent heroes?" Marinette opened her bag, startling for a moment at the feather and butterfly that flew out; in her haste to tell Nino and Alya about their new designation, she had forgotten to release the akuma and amok. She batted them away and grabbed Tikki's recharge cookie with her other hand.

"I think you made a good decision, Marinette." Tikki mumbled behind enormous bites. "It's rare for a ladybug and cat to be out without a team behind them. This will be a big help for all of you; in my experience, Chat Noir is right about being a permanent holder making a person mature."

"Yeah, I feel a lot more confident as Ladybug now; more like Ladybug and less like a little kid in a costume."

"So let some of that confidence go into your Marinette life too!" Cookie gone, energy returned, Tikki flew around Marinette's head in a show of support. "Take a chance!"

"On what?"

"Anything! We have the whole weekend to decide! You could even start up the online store you were thinking about!" She hovered over the computer for a moment.

Marinette glanced at it. She had a draft of the website prepared; all of the designs and commission information she wanted to be on there were ready to go. She just needed the guts to finish and submit it.

"Okay."

"Okay!" Tikki squealed and hit the enter key.

MDC designs was now in business.

"Do you think I should put my name on it after all, Tikki? So that people know who they're ordering from?"

"Probably. Also, since you've designed for famous people before, your name already has a reputation."

"Yeah..." She moved her mouse to the 'edit' button.

"Marinette!" Her father shouted from the living room. "Ms. Chamack is here with Manon!"

Right, she'd promised Nadia that she'd look after Manon while she interviewed potential interns this weekend.

"Be right down!" Tikki flew into her bag and Marinette grabbed the little box of extra dolls she'd made for Manon. Changing her website and worrying about Nino and Alya could wait.

[yurtletheturtlehenderson]

Badass || Bill Denbrough x Reader

Day 2 of Fictober

Pairing: Bill Denbrough x [gn] Reader

Requested: how about you do a bill x reader where the reader is a badass but still in the losers club???? just came up with it!!! btw love ya work and love ya!!!!

A//n: Aw thank you so much! That’s so sweet of you. Love you too darling, hope you like it 💛💛💛 and thanks for being so patient like the rest y'all 😘 [also i am in no way a badass so I’m sorry, I tried lol] edit: OKAY IM ACTUALLY SO PROUD OF THIS, HOLY CRAP?? And again, i finished and pressed saved draft 30 SECONDS before midnight, so fight me this counts lol i just had to set up the title and tags and stuff on my computer before posting. anyways, thanks for waiting for this request, i hope you enjoy this, like i said, im actually surprised at how proud of this one i am!

Fictober Prompt: “that’s the easy part”

Warnings: Blood

“ROCK WAR~!”

The next thing you knew, rocks were soaring across the stream straight for your head. Luckily for your skull, your reflexes were faster than you remembered and you managed to duck before a giant stone could knock you out.

And yet you still heard a thump?

You peek out from behind your arms, looking behind you to see Richie laying flat on his ass, his glasses askew. You winced before you caught sight of a giant rock near his foot and quickly made a grab for it.

Your glare stretches across the stream, settling on the leader of the bigoted pack. You kissed the rock as you met his eye, a devilish smirk stretching across your face as you wound up. Bowers was scrambling for ammo but you had already released. The rock found its target with a satisfying ‘thunk’ leaving Bowers on his ass clutching his bleeding nose. He pulls his hand away, gaping at the overwhelming amount of blood that had already painted his hand before locking eyes with you.

“KISS MY ASS, HENRY!” You hollered with a triumphant smile. “YOU TWISTED FUCK!”

“What the fuck?” Belch and Victor began scrambling back, looking around desperately for rocks of their own.

The Losers spared wide eyed glances your direction as they unleashed a storm of rocks on the now deeply unsettled Bowers gang. Bill was the only one who hesitated, his wide blue eyes frozen on you when you turned to give him a smirk. You had been looking for ammo and it seemed he had the perfect one. You cocked a brow, your devilish smirk still dominating your face as you gestured to the stone in his hand.

“You gonna use that, Billy Boy?”

You threw a few quick glances across the barrens making sure your weren’t gonna get hit. Luckily morale seemed to be growing scarce over there.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t completely gone.

“Ow,” Bill hissed, right hand clutching his left shoulder. “F-f-uck.”

Your head whipped around on your shoulders again to see Victor Criss’s upper lip twitching into a satisfied smile as he looked at Bill. You returned your attention to your boyfriend and the rock he held out for you.

“Let me,” you seethed.

You snatched the rock up, stomping forward with a wild glare in your eyes that was enough to intimidate the bleach blonde. Victor was already on his heels and running, but you weren’t letting him get away that easy. You threw with all your might and watched with pride as it soared through the air and hit him directly on the spine that was poking through his back. He cried out in pain as he fell to the ground, his chin meeting the very rock bed that fueled the fight.

“EAT SHIT,” You spit. “YOU LACKEY ASS FUCK!”

~~~~

“Turn it off!” Beverly cried. “TURN IT OFF!”

The projector in Bill’s garage had quickly turned into It’s stage as It put on a horrific display for you and the rest of your friends. What was just once pictures of Derry, suddenly turned into pictures of Bill’s family - you missed Georgie terribly, having grown so close with him the year before he died when you and Bill first got together. And now you were all staring death in the eyes as It manipulated the very air in the room around you. Every click of the projector put you on edge, the stroking effect and of course the child eating clown tormenting you all.

It was hard to process your own thoughts as they were quickly drowning in everyone’s screams and your own fears. You clutched Bill tightly to your side, your arms linked and your fingers stitched together. Everything was moving so incredibly fast it was near impossible to process until you realized you weren’t holding Bill’s hand anymore.

“Y-Y/n!” He cried, tugging at the back of your shirt before it slips from his grip. “Y/N!”

Mike had already unplugged the projector, that much you knew. But you were fucking desperate. You lunged for the projector, gripping it tightly as you held it high above your head. With a guttural scream, you threw it as hard as you possibly could into the cement floor. It broke instantly into several unidentifiable pieces, the room now completely dark and eerily silent.

Heaving, you finally look up to meet your friends faces. Each of them were gaping at you, an expression they seemed to always be wearing around you.

“Well,” you say finally. “I think it’s safe to say we found It.”

~~~~

“How hard is it,” you seethed, your voice growing in volume. “to NOT wander off? In a FUCKING HAUNTED HOUSE?!”

You took all your anger and fear out on the door Richie was being held in. Your elbows were practically glued to the surface while your fists and forearms repeatedly pounded on the door. First Eddie, now Richie. You swear, these idiots had to me smarter than this.

“Richie!” Bill joined your side, pounding on the door that had closed all on its own.

“RICHARD!” You pounded on the door again, your anger turning to pure fear that was now stinging your throat and eyes as tears began to well. “This is not fucking funny, open the goddamn door asshole!”

Your hand wraps around the doorknob again, and you shake the handle, jostling it around in hopes something will cave. When the door flew open, you didn’t know whether to chalk it up to luck, skill, or it was all still part of It’s torment but you didn’t care. Richie was alive, and tumbled into your and Bill’s grip.

“Richie!” You hugged the boy tightly, then pulled away with your signature glare. “WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING!?”

“N-n-no t-time,” Bill says, looking between you and Richie with determination in his eyes. “L-let’s get outta here.”

A muted thump answered before you could. You, Richie and Bill all looked to the source of the noise to see the moth-eaten mattress from earlier was now shifting by itself. It looked as if it was filled with jumping beans. A melon sized lump grew in the center before the fabric split to reveal the disheveled and muddied up head of your friend.

He smiles at your twisted expressions. “Wanna play loogie?”

Your reflexes are faster than your thought process and you run forward. Just as a strange black goo starts to spill from fake Eddie’s mouth, your leg was swinging through the air. Your left foot connected with the left side of his jaw, narrowly missing the sizzling black ink and Eddie’s head popped off his body as you put it across the room.

It sails through the air, his greasy hair catching several cobwebs as it spins. Specks of the goo go flying landing on the walls and ceiling before the small head collides with a disturbing ‘thunk’.

“What the fuck?!”

“Holy shit,”

Eddie’s head lands in the far corner of the room where it rolls back and forth on his right ear before settling. He was groaning as if all the spinning had made him dizzy. The ooze of black goo came out even faster as if he were ralphing, and it was now pooling across the floor and inching towards their feed.

“Oh, that’s fucking GROSS!” Richie looks quickly to you. “And now you made him angry!”

“At least I did something!”

“Guys,” Bill pleads. “C-come on,”

The pool of black tar is spreading fast and you and Richie don’t have to think twice to listen to Bill. You all turn on your heel, only to find three doors instead of one.

Very Scary, Scary, and Not Scary At All.

Not Scary At All was the winner, Bill and Richie quickly decide. And despite your protest that it was all clearly a trick and the doors were misnomers, they opened the Not Scary At All.

“Where’s My Shoe?”

The light was turned on to reveal the severed body of Betty Ripsom and you had promptly decided you had had more than enough.

“WHERE THE FUCK WERE HER LEGS?!” Richie cried.

“I’ve got a guess but I’m not sticking around to find out.” You growled.

You cast a glance behind you to see the tar had eaten up most of the floor, giving you little room to do what you wanted. Luckily, you didn’t need much. You took a few steps back and looked at the door in the center, your eyes settling deep into the crimson letters spelling “scary.” You were certainly glad you realized when you did that unlike the door that held Richie hostage, this one could easily be broken down from where you stood.

You sighed. “I have to do everything.”

~~~~

“WELCOME TO THE LOSERS CLUB, ASSHOLE!”

Richie’s bat swung through the air and knocked the clown back. Pennywise quickly recovered and lunged for the nearest target with a disgusting growl. You quickly scrambled for a weapon as Mike stepped up to bat. He threw the fence iron rod at the monster but it was stopped midair when It’s jaw unhinged and out came several charred arms holding it in place. More and more reached out from inside It’s throat and made a grab at Mike who was fighting back the force of all the arms.

You never happier to have been too slow to save your friend when you saw Stanley pick up one of several spare iron rods off the ground. With a brave determination, he launched forward with a fierce battle cry as his torch came down on the branch of arms that now recoiled, saving Mike. It stumbled back, the charred arms slinking back into its mouth and disappearing and Pennywise stumbles again when Richie kicks It forward and away from him. Unfortunately that brought It right to Stanley.

“Stan, watch out!” Bill cries from your side.

But it’s too late, It’s head had already changed to the same horribly contorted lady that had you had already found attacking your friend. Only this time it was still wearing It’s clown suit, and it was racing straight for Stan.

“Stan!” You cried, already running forward after him only to stop second later.

Yet again Stanley roared, striking the clown across the face with the most furious look you had ever seen on him. Despite the horrifying circumstances, you were quite proud. You quickly fell back into line, ready to fight with the others and you smiled yet again when Mike followed up Stan’s strike with a devastating blow of his own.

The small moment of victory was soon cut short - a pattern you were currently getting used to - when a pair of red tentacles-turned-crab-claws pulled Mike to the ground.

“Mike!” Eddie shrieked.

Mike was able to barrel roll to safety as as It advanced on him. The end of each gigantic claw striking the earth and narrowly missing him and you and your friends quickly followed not knowing what to do. You couldn’t watch it anymore, and you hated yourself for what you were about to do but you knew you would simply never forgive yourself if you lost Mike, or any of your friends.

For what Bill wished was the first time of the summer, he felt you leave his side as you charged headlong into danger. Another guttural scream left you as you hurled yourself onto It’s back, your iron spike in front of It’s neck, both hands on either side of the rod and you pulled as hard as you could.

Pennywise’s disturbing, maniacal laughter grew even scarier, something you didn’t think was possible as he began to suffocate. You let yourself drop back down to the ground, your grip still tight on your weapon as you used your position to pull It down to the ground. It was still laughing through chocked breathes but it had done what you hoped, and stopped, Mike had gotten to safety with the Losers.

And for one glorious moment you felt indestructible. Until you saw it shift before you’re very eyes and your eyes widened, as did the eyes of your friends and Bill. It’s complete figure changed, starting with It’s head. You and the Losers no longer saw a painted lady, a mummy, a horrible memory, an abusive father, or even a late little brother. But they saw you, their friend Y/n, cowering and crying under the iron rod that pinned you to the ground by the neck.

“Please,” It whimpered, bottom lip quivering horribly. “Please don’t. I don’t wanna die.”

The real you was staring at the sight of yourself, the real fake you that you always tried so hard to push down. You knew it was Pennywise, but it was enough to make you choke completely. You were always so confident, and you were good at sticking up for yourself and the rest of the Losers. At least that’s all they ever saw, that’s all you ever let them see. Deep down you were terrified, and much more than that you were terrified that your own fear would get in the way of protecting your loved ones.

Like now.

“Y/n?” Bill’s soft voice called out to you, breaking you from your spell.

You look down at your blubbering face, tears streaking down your cheeks as you begged yourself for mercy. Several pleas leaving your lips when finally you pulled the rod back. Your eyelids flicker open, gazing back up at you and watch your every move cowering.

“Y/n?” Ben asks.

You don’t answer, you just straighten, your demon double cowering beneath you and it only angers you more to know none of this is It’s own fear. It was yours. It was mocking you.

Which was pretty stupid, considering you still had the spike.

You bare your teeth as you summon your strength, throwing the end of the spike into the ground, going right through your throat.

~~~~

You watched with head on Bill’s shoulder as another drop of blood from your palm fell onto the grass. You were trying to think about anything but the pain, and with everything you had faced this summer, you certainly had the pick of the litter.

“It feels different now,” you say, voice quiet. “And not just cause It’s gone, ya know?”

You even hate to let yourself believe that, but for the sake of your sanity and the chance of every getting another night’s sleep you’d have to believe it. And knowing Bill as long as you did, you know he felt it too.

You pick your head up off his shoulder and look to his gaze break away from the hills in the distance to meet your eyes. For a moment he doesn’t say anything, and you know for sure he’s thinking it too. Beverly was leaving for Portland, Stan said he heard whispers from his parents that they might be moving and that was all on top of the heavy weight of your guys’ trauma that had already begun to drain everyone.

“A-a-at least we-we’ve got each o-other,”

You smiled, nudging his shoulder with your own.

“Big sap,” you chuckled.

He smiled a little, enjoying the small moment between the two of you. But it disappears when his mind returns to image that had been replaying in his mind nonstop since Neibolt. The image of your cowering form that bothered you so much. He had never seen you - the real you, that was being confronted, that is - so distraught. He gulps, gathering his strength.

“W-what made you s-see that?” He asks.

You don’t answer for a long moment, and Bill fears he’s upset you. Or confused you, but he doubts that is the case. Finally, you look up at him, and lick your lips nervously.

“I’m scared Bill,” you croaked, heart pounding wildly at the admission. “I’m always worrying about you, I’m always worrying about Richie, Mike, Eddie, Stanley, Bev, and Ben. I’m always worried something is going to happen. I’m always scared something’s gonna happen to the ones I love, and I get scared that I’m not gonna be enough to protect them.”

You take a deep breath, swallowing all the air you lost in your unintentional rant. Somewhere during your confession, your gaze broke away from Bill’s gaze and now here you were afraid to even look him in the eye.

There’s another silence that Bill finally ends after a small thoughtful moment.

“It’s okay to be scared, Y/n,” he says, pulling your eyes to him. “I-I-It’s part of being h-human.”

You bite the inside of your cheek, trying your best to banish the image of your cowardly form from your mind. Suddenly the sting of your cut didn’t hurt so bad.

You looked back into Bill’s soft eyes, and shrugged.

“I know, but it doesn’t make me feel too great either.”

He nudged you again with a charming smile.

“Well, y-you’re still a badass. Y-You’re always s-standing up for us,”

You chuckled weakly, sending him a smirk.

“That’s the easy part,” you say. “It’s looking out for myself that’s harder.”

“T-t-tell ya what?” You raise a brow at his sudden demeanor. “I’ll be t-the b-b-badass lookin out for you,”

You laughed, leaning in and giving him a lingering kiss that turned his cheeks absolutely scarlet.

You smiled when you saw this. “Thanks Billy Boy. Appreciate it. But I’d still like to work on myself a bit, ya know?”

He smiles again, this time triumphantly. “Deal.”

[ultimatetornshipper]

Steam

A lot of facts could be seen as only opinions. A lot of facts could be seen as flexible depending on one's experiences and perspectives. Facts could change and facts could be more than just the part of it that you're made aware of.

Blossom knew this.

But there was one simple fact that would remain the same for all of eternity.

Blossom Utonium hated Brick Jojo.

And he hated her.

Nothing, NOTHING would change this simple fact. They were natural enemies, opposites made to challenge and contradict one another.

It was simple.

Key word being was.

It's easier to hate and despise one another when your siblings weren't all friends and dragging the two of you along every chance they got.

It's easier to hate one another when your morals are directly clashing on a weekly basis.

Yeah, they still didn't exactly agree on a lot of moral questions but the boys aren't really evil anymore either.

But when the boys stole something the girls would fight them, take it, arrest them, they'd escape and everyone would let bygones be bygones.

By everyone she meant the blues and the greens.

She was pretty sure Brick was the only one who actively wanted to still do that stuff and Boomer and Butch just followed his lead. Or maybe Mojo still had something on them. She couldn't be sure, but the point was that they still committed crimes and that was illegal so it was their job to stop them.

And she wasn't stupid, she knew full well that she and Brick were the only ones who weren't pulling their punches and treating it all like a game.

So like she said. It was simple.

Until her sisters decided to make it complicated by befriending their rivals.

Blossom despised complicated social situations.

In any other context she could handle complicated. Fights? Sure. Science? She adored it. Books? What other kind is there?

But in group and friend dynamics? It annoyed her more than yarn catching on her nail, more than nails on a chalkboard, more than a dirty, uncleanable chalkbo-

It annoyed her a lot.

Why? Because it created situations like the one she was in right now.

Where her sisters and their counterparts were play fighting and joking around while she and Brick maimed eachother.

And it was always followed by a lecture by Bubbles on how she was too hard on him and Buttercup telling her to chill out while Brick and his stupid smug smirk would mock her and wouldn't leave her alone and how his red hair would be messy afterwads and half out of his ponytail and wisps falling into his face surrounding his gorge-

No.

She flew up to dodge a kick and landed behind him, pushing him forward so that he lost his balance.

She was fighting him right now. She couldn't think about his eyes or his pink lips forming a smug little grin and how she just wanted to kiss that stupid little smile off of his dumb face-

She froze in shock.

Kiss Brick?

Since when had that been an option?

She felt him get a hit in her stomach and her bottom collided with the ground.

She shook herself out of it. Later. She could analise... whatever this was... later.

She started getting up but suddenly he was straddling her waist and pinning her hands down above her head.

She stared at him in silence for a few seconds, because he was really close now and she could see the light freckles dancing across his nose up close and-

Bad Blossom! Now is not the time! You hate him, you despise him, he is the enemy! Stop checking out the guy you're fighting!

He smirked down at her victoriously, "At a loss for words, eh, Pinky?"

She felt him lower his guard and loosen his grip and quicker than lightning she flew out beneath him.

What in the name of Einstein was wrong with her?

She flew quickly and as high as the tallest building in Townsville, then she stopped and turned around and the handsome bastard was right there in front of her-

Wait a minute- handsome?!

Blossom needed to lie down.

Sadly, he seemed determined to keep this going.

They traded blows and each time he said something she didn't reply.

She was too busy freaking out about the fact that she had not only wanted to kiss him but also mentally referred to him as handsome and what the actual frickty frack?!

"What's wrong Bow Pink? You're awfully quiet today, afraid me and my brothers are finally gonna beat you and your sheep?" Brick taunted.

Blossom's brain with all its genius level intellect then decided that the only way to deal with whatever was happening to her heart was to stuff it in a jar and bury it deep, deep down and pretend it wasn't real.

She hated him.

He hated her.

That was a fact that couldn't and wouldn't ever change.

So she did what she did best.

She riled up Brick Jojo.

"I'm not the one here with sheep, Rock," she said mockingly.

He narrowed his eyes, throwing a punch that she quickly dodged, "Oh now she speaks?"

"You finally said something worth replying to. Though I must say, Rick, I'm disappointed, I can't believe you've been reduced to using puns," she replied, kicking his side and pulling away quick enough that he couldn't grab her leg.

"It's Brick and you know it, and don't pretend you don't pun, Pinky, we both know that's a lie," he said with a small growl in his voice. Dodging her once more.

"I still think your insult was just some good old projecting. Clearly if one of us have sheep it's you. My sisters fight of their own violation," she taunted, smirking. He grabbed her and they wrestled midair, each one gaining and then losing the upperhand.

Suddenly they pulled apart, flying in circles, eyeing one another. They were both panting, clearly out of breath.

Anyone could sense the electricity crackling through the air from a mile away. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed that her siblings and their counterparts have stopped fighting and were now eyeing their leaders wearily.

She'd deal with it later.

She turned her full attention back to the man in front of her as the silence grew sharper.

His shirt had small tears in places, his hair was all over the place and he sported a few new injuries. She was certain she was in a similar state.

"They choose to fight," he broke the silence, glaring at her, "I don't force them to do anything they don't want to. I don't control them,"

The sharp, delicate silence fell apart and she felt her temper flare. The electricity turned to fire and she launched herself at him and felt her eyes heat up.

"The only reason for that is the fact that you're too busy being controlled," she screamed.

She could almost taste his fury at her words and their fight went to a whole new level.

Neither of them held back anything as they shot lazerbeams and went for one another unlike ever before.

She pushed him against a building, trapping him. And for a moment they locked gazes and time froze. The anger and frustration and denied attraction flared between them like a wild electric cable, their faces only inches apart.

"Are either of us really in control, Pinky? Or are we all just the result of someone else's choices?" he whispered harshly as they gazed into one another's eyes.

She felt her guard lower only for a split second before he grabbed her and pushed her against the building.

"But then again," he said quietly, and she felt his breath mingle with her own, "maybe if we want control we need to take it ourselves,"

He closed the distance between them and she only felt his fire approach for a second before she reacted with her ice.

So that's the was he wanted to play this?

She deepend the kiss and poured all her hatred and love and frustration and attraction into it.

She bundled up his shirt in her hands and felt his own get tangled in her hair. She faintly heard his hat fall to the ground not too far below.

Yet she couldn't care less as she kissed him the way she'd never allowed herself to kiss anyone before for fear of their life.

But she could do this with him because he could counter her perfectly.

He really was her opposite, huh?

Then she registered the fact that the air around them was slightly more humid than before.

She ignored it though, because this was the best kiss she'd had in... well, ever, and she was not going to pull away because as soon as she did that it would be over and it wouldn't happen again because now that they knew that it didn't-

Blossom felt him pull her closer and pushed all her previous thoughts away. She'd worry later, for now she just allowed herself to disappear into the kiss.

A few minutes later she became aware of a rather large amount of water hitting her.

They pulled away from one another in search of the source.

She quickly noticed that Brick was in a similar state as her and they turned to find their siblings staring at them.

Bubbles was holding the hosepipe that was likely the source of the water and Buttercup handed Butch 20 dollars.

"Really?" Her black haired sister asked, "You couldn't have waited just three more days for your murder make out session?"

"Our what?" she asked while Brick replied with a simple, "Fuck you,"

"Actually, Brick, you've got the wrong sister, I'm Buttercup, the one you wanna fuck is in your arms, her name is Blossom," Buttercup replied slowly, in a mocking tone of voice.

The red heads turned to look at each other and when they noticed their proximity, they jumped away from one another like the other had the plague.

Brick turned to them, "I was trying to kill her!"

And Blossom followed suit, "And I was just defending myself!"

"Nothing else!" They said at the same time.

Bubbles rolled her eyes and Boomer smirked. Butch waved them away, "Don't worry we have a completely different bet for when you two will acknowledge and accept your feelings for one another,"

"Yeah, and I can still win it!" Buttercup agreed.

"Feelings? What feelings?!" Blossom screamed, "Bubbles, tell Buttercup she's being ridiculous,"

Bubbles rised an unimpressed eyebrow, "Bloss, you're both redder than Brick's cap,"

"And you just spent 10 minutes making out so much that literal steam started surrounding you," Boomer snickered.

No matter how much Blossom or Brick denied it, no one in all of Townsville believed their denial after that day.

Buttercup won the second bet.

Approximately 3 months after what was dubbed their first Murder Makeout session the two finally confessed to one another.

Those 3 months are another story entirely.

But it was this that proved to Blossom that truly no fact was concrete, facts changed and facts expanded. Facts were flexible depending on your experience and perspectives.

And the fact was that while once upon a time, maybe Blossom did hate Brick and maybe Brick did hate Blossom, things changed.

But that mutual hatred melted away into something new, something beautiful, something flexible.

Something a little bit like steam.

Authors note:

Inspired by this post

I don't plan to continue this but if someone wants to continue or expand this idea or world like tag me I'd love to read it

Thanks to @maltrashdump for coming up with this idea, I love it, hope u enjoy my version of it

Also sorry for not putting a read more thing I'm on mobile atm

[marsbutterfly]

Hey ! Can I request something ? It's an Hanji x reader imagine. This would take place after the chapter 132, you saved Hanji in extremis, brings her back safe and sound on the plane, the alliance wins the war against Eren and right after that they all come back to the Paradis Island. Hanji and her wife are lying on a field and reader think about all the events. They're finaly free, happy and living together 😌! I really like your writtings and especially the way you depicted Hanji ! Stay safe !

Note: Hell Yes. I actually wrote two versions for this story but this is the one I liked best, so I really hope you like it. It hurt me greatly to write this, but I poured my heart and soul into it.

WARNING: MANGA SPOILER!

Daydream

Summary: In which you save Hanji before she has the chance to go ahead with her suicidal charge.

AO3 Version! | Wattpad Version!

As Jean drags your body into the aircraft, you feel your throat burning from all the screaming. The pain in your lungs is unbearable but not enough to stop you.

For a split second, he loses his grip on your body and you are able to escape.

Using your gear, you find yourself taking down a colossal titan standing next to Hanji.

“Y/N??” She looks at you, fear in her eyes. Rage takes over your body as you slice the nape of yet another titan.

“How DARE you leave me!” You say before grabbing Hanji’s cloak. As you tighten your grip, the hook of your gear hits the aircraft just barely taking flight.

As she tries to struggle, you throw her body into the moving vehicle as you follow closely behind.

All eyes on you as you lay on your back, trying your best to catch your breath.

“Hanji! Y/N!” You hear Pieck’s voice echoing through the ship as you silently sit up on your elbows. Once you can get your lung movements under control you look over at Hanji, who’s sitting against the wall.

“WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING?” You yell at her. Rage and sorrow clouding your mind, all you can do is let your feelings out in the most aggressive way you can possibly think of.

From her hands to her face, you notice burns and scratches covering her skin. Hanji doesn’t move. All she can do is stare at the ceiling quietly, warm tears running down her face.

Armin extends his hand, helping you get back on your feet. No one says a word as you make your way towards Hanji.

You kneel by her side, watching as she covers her eyes with her arm. 

“I just wanted to protect everyone.” She whispers, hiccups erupting from her body.

You gently place your hand on her arm, slowly moving it out of the way so she can look at you. “And leave me behind?”

“Leave you alive.” Hanji finally looks in your eyes, you see the amount of pain she’s in.

“I would rather die with you…” You say, moving her glasses so you can treat her injuries. “Then to live without you.”

As Reiner hands you a small bowl of water, you take out a small piece of cloth that rests in your pocket to clean her burns, making sure no debris is left on her open wounds.

Hanji’s face writhes onto a pained expression. She bites down her lower lip and allows a few pain filled tears. As soon as you’re done, you wrap her wounds in the best way you can and finally, you decide to break the silence.

“I don’t care if you are the Commander or a cadet” You make sure she’s looking into your eyes before finishing your sentence, an unusually serious expression takes over your features,  “Don’t you dare try to leave me again.”

“I won’t go anywhere, I promise.” She tries to smile at you, but among the tears, a smile simply won’t appear on her lips. Instead, she flashes you a pained smirk as her bottom lip quivers.

Slowly, you start brushing your lips against hers, wanting nothing more but to feel her breath against your mouth. She pulls you close, destroying any space existing between you. Her breathing against your lips is all you wished for.

“Oi, can you two focus?.” Levi says, destroying the sweet moment between you two. Without turning your head, you flip him off. 

“Let’s come up with a plan.” You say, flashing Hanji a sad smile..

.

“We’re out of fuel” Onyonkapon screams, “I’ll crash land this plane, but please make sure you win this war!!”

The cold wind hits your face as you stand above Eren’s massive body. You hear Armin screaming his name and the others follow close behind.

Pieck and Reiner jump a few seconds after the others, giving them enough time and space to transform.

You feel your hands shaking slightly, fear going through your veins as you take a deep breath. Before you can jump, you feel Hanji’s hand wrapping around yours.

“Together?” She says, a serious but soothing expression on her face.

“Together.” You reply. You both nod and jump off the plane, praying the pilot would be ok.

As you land on top of one of the ribs, you notice the Beast Titan has appeared out of nowhere, but something was off about it.

Not only was it connected to Eren but Its fur was white, looking almost exactly as the War Hammer titan. 

You look at Hanji for a moment and you see the excitement in her face as she watches Reiner’s fight. Shaking your head, you pull her closer to the now decomposing corpse of the Beast Titan.

“No wonder he’s not putting up a fight.” Levi says, grinding his teeth, his body filled with rage.

“But how is this possible?” Hanji asks while looking at you seconds before dozens of other titans appeared. Empty eyes stare at you while they prepare to attack.

As you look around, trying to figure out where all the titans came from, you can see a small girl from the corner of your eye as she stands on Eren’s massive body, not too far away from you.

“The Founder.” You whisper as goosebumps travel through your body. Your eyes widen when a weird-looking titan comes at you, ready to swap you away.

In a second, Armin takes your place. As he pushes you, the hook of your gear gets stuck to another titan.

“ARMIN!” You scream before slicing the monster in front of you, trying to catch up to the blonde boy but your effort is useless.

“Y/N, are you all right?” Hanji asks before placing her hands around your hips. You nod but even though your legs shake slightly but you know you can’t afford to stop fighting.

“Everyone calm down!” Levi says, you can barely hear his voice with all the noises around you. “We are in no condition to make a charge here.” 

“Captain Levi.” Pieck says, her titan clinging onto one of Eren’s bones. “These enemies… they are the nine titans of times past.”

Before you can have a reaction, you feel a large hand squeezing the air out of your entire body until your vision turns black.

.

By the time you wake up, you can’t hear or feel the massive titans flattening everything in their path. Deafening screams no longer fill the air around you.

You watch the blue sky above you as you sit up. On your left lies a very injured Captain Levi. Part of his leg was bitten off and his hand bandages are covered in dried blood.

You crawl to him, gently touching his chest. You place two fingers against his jugular and feel his heart beating approximately 50 times a minute. A bit too slow, but at least he is still alive.

A figure comes towards you from your right. You shift your face, trying to see the person’s face against the sun. Her body comes crashing against yours in a tight hug. As the smell of her hair hits your nose, you wrap your arms around her neck.

“I’m so glad you are alright!” Hanji says, a few tears streaming down her face as she touches her forehead to yours.

“What happened?” You ask quietly. In the distance, you can hear Mikasa’s screams, quickly followed by Armin’s sobs. You feel every hair in your body quickly stand up as you start to realize what has happened.

“We found Eren.” Is all she needs to say. A sad expression takes over your features. Deep down, you wished for him to change his mind and find a way back to his old self, but it was nothing more than that, just a wish.

Your eyes scan the scene folding in front of you. Annie has her arms wrapped around Mikasa’s torso, tightly hugging her as the black-haired girl screams the contents of her heart out.

Jean and Reiner tend to Connie’s wounds. A pool of blood forming underneath his head as the other two boys desperately try to stop it. 

Armin simply stares at the sea, his hands covering his ears as sobs abruptly leave his body. 

Pieck hugs the two kids tightly, making sure they won’t be able to leave her grasp anytime soon. Gabi holds Falco’s hand as both of their small bodies shake in a mix of relief and trauma. 

 And lastly, your eyes wander towards the lifeless figure lying on the sand. The water hits his foot ever so lightly but enough to cause it to move. The sand trapped in his hair shines in contrast with the sun.

“What happened?” You finally work up the courage to ask. Hanji lets out a sigh, her hand moving from your skin towards her hair, placing a single loose strand behind her own ear.

“After you passed out, Annie flew in to save our asses.” She giggles, looking down before lacing your right hands on hers. “His jaw titan could fly! Can you believe that?”

A spark appears in her eyes amongst all the sadness around you. You flash her a small smirk, “I didn’t even know that was possible!”

“I didn’t either! Isn’t it amazing, though?” She raises her voice before bringing it to a low volume once again. Her features return to seriousness as she continues, “After that, Pieck destroyed the Attack Titan’s neck, forcing Eren’s body out of there.”

As Hanji speaks, you finally notice the smell of blood and smoke surrounding you. Taking your left hand to your heart, you clutch your own shirts, fighting back tears that threaten to fall against your wishes.

“How did he die?” You whisper, looking down at your legs.

“His body never recovered after Gabi shot him.” She takes a small break, trying to find the right words. “The explosion inflicted by Pieck was enough to expel his body..”

Your lips part but no words come out so she simply continues, “He was able to heal enough so he would have parts of his body back before Armin stabbed his heart.”

“The Founder?” You interrupt, suddenly remembering the small girl that watched the whole fight from afar.

“She’s gone. Somehow Eren was able to lock the Founding powers within him before dying.”

Confused, you look at her, hoping she would have any answers for you.  “But…”

“We don’t understand how yet…” her voice breaks, a mixture of pain and happiness, “but all the titans are gone.”

A gasp escapes your body. Thoughts rush through your head at light’s speed but all you can do is shove your head on the crook of her neck as you cry.

Clinging onto Hanji’s now soaked shirt, you try to breathe but air simply won’t enter your lungs. Was it pain for the loss of someone you cared about and loved deeply? Was it relief for how the monsters that have threatened you through your entire life have now disappeared? 

You look up at Hanji, her hair floating in the wind as her hand rubs your back in a soothing manner. You place your left hand on the back of her neck and pull her in for a kiss. Tears drip from your eyes onto your lips but you can’t find the strength to pull away.

As her lips leave yours, a quiet whine escapes your throat.

Once again, you focus your attention on Eren’s body. “What happens now?”

.

Sitting in a blanket, you watch as the breeze moves the newly bloomed flowers around. The sun setting behind the mountains casts an orange light above you.

From behind, you hear footsteps making their way towards you. Your lips curl into a smirk and you shift your body, putting all of your weight on your knees.

“You look beautiful.” She says before sitting beside you. You quickly change your focus to her face, taking a few seconds to admire her.

Hanji’s hair is in a messy ponytail, a few strands rest against her cheeks. She’s wearing her daily glasses instead of her old combat ones, and her skin smells like freshly used soap, meaning she finally showered. Whether it was willingly or if Levi forced her to, you don’t dare to ask.

As you adjust your dress, a blush takes over your cheeks and you can help but smile at her.

Wrapping your arm around her neck, you place a quick yet gently kiss on her lips before resting your forehead against hers.

“It’s been a year.” You whisper, your voice barely audible against the wind.

She nods, “A year of freedom.”

As you look up at the sky, you notice a few stars have begun to show up. One in particular catches your eye for it has a greater shine than the rest. Hanji quietly follows your gaze.

“They are watching over us.” She says, taking your hand towards her lips and planting a love-filled kiss on the back.

“I hope they are happy we can finally be free.” You finally find the courage to speak. “Truly, utterly, completely free.”

In a second, you let Hanji go and allow your body to fall, colliding with the grass. The green speckles tickling your skin as the aroma of the flowers hits your nose.

A sneeze escapes your body suddenly and all you can do is laugh, for you are now truly happy.

You feel Hanji’s head on your shoulder and you quickly wrap your arm around her head, quietly playing with her brown locks.

“Thank you for coming after me.” She says. You can feel her eyes piercing you, carefully watching for your reaction. The corner of your lips gently curls into a smile as you roll your eyes at her.

“I will always follow you.” You whisper, making sure no one else will be able to hear you but her, “Even if it gets me killed.”

You simply lay there, watching as the sun goes down behind the mountain. No words are needed but you can feel how calm she is with you.

Looking back on it, you realize your decision to chase after her once she got off the plane was reckless and dangerous to say the least, but if it meant spending your life with Hanji, you would do it again and again.

Your body shivers abruptly, a reminder that the cold breeze is once again taking over the atmosphere. With a smile of her own, she lifts her head up, placing a hand on your shoulder.

“Are you ready to head back?” She says, steam coming out of her mouth as the words fall from her lips.

Simply you nod, watching as a giggle leaves her body. Before standing up, you pick a small, pink flower that rests by your hand and place it on her hair. 

Planting a kiss on her cheek, you take her hand, starting to make your way towards the city.

Your comrades' sacrifices weren’t in vain. Freedom was finally a reality rather than just a dream.

With Hanji by your side, you can finally appreciate being alive and for now, that’s all you could ask for.

[3mmafr0st]

Hard to Hate Chapter 2

Fred Weasley x Reader

Word Count: 1678 Warnings: Swearing, angst, enemies to lovers, eventual smut? Taglist: @intpeach​ @aria-dne​ @allthebestmenarefictional​ Ask me if you want to get added to the list! Chapter 1, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15,

Read the Russian translation Here

The smell of cut grass permeated the air as I took a deep breath in. The moments before practice were always the best, the still static feeling in the air. Quidditch was my only escape from what plagued my mind. Suddenly I was jostled out of my state of calm by a rough hit to the shoulder by Marcus Flint. 

“Get your head in the game, Lestrange, we’re gonna need it for the match against Gryffindor.”

“Like I’m the one whose going to need it, Flint.” Everyone knew that I was the best chaser on the team, but Snape, as much as he loved me for being a Slytherin who was good at potions, he was a raging sexist. He probably had some trauma or something, but that was no excuse, and for that reason, Flint was captain. Sadly, I had to take orders from this absolute asshole. We ran drills for about an hour. I was just getting into my groove. Every drill was executed perfectly. We were going through drill number twenty-eight again, which was my favorite, as it meant Flint had to relinquish the quaffle for the first time in a while. Warrington passed it to me, and I quickly zoomed down the pitch towards the goal posts, faking twice and then throwing it right through the hoop as Flint caught the rebound. Everything was perfect and I gave Warrington a quick high five. I celebrated a little as we set ourselves up for the next drill, when all of a sudden, something struck my chest. 

The force of the bole made me lose my grip on my broom for a split second and I tilted over, plummeting out of the sky. Panic began to set in as I reached out for my broom, quickly grabbing it and flying back down to the ground, back to safety. Adrenaline was coursing through my veins, and I finally looked down at my chest to process what had happened. A splattering of red and gold paint littered the front of my uniform. I turned around to see Cassius hitting the ground, hard, and I ran over to him. He groaned, turning towards me, the same red and gold patterning splayed over his uniform. Marcus flew to the ground, being covered with paint as well. I knew immediately who it was. 

“You absolute dicks!” I screamed, looking around frantically. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as my top two suspects, along with a few others, ran towards the exit that headed to Gryffindor tower. I looked to Flint to make sure that he had Warrington, and then ran after them, abandoning my broom, wand in hand.

I was already so far behind them, but I knew exactly where they were going to be. I stormed my way up to Gryffindor tower, but came to a problem getting in, the painting that guards the entrance of their common room. It took me a minute to figure out exactly how to get her to let me in. Her singing could be heard all the way down the hall, and everyone in Hogwarts knew that flattery would get you everywhere with the Fat Lady. I walked up to the portrait and began the compliments, telling her all about how amazing her voice is, how good she sounded. 

“Well, clearly you aren’t Gryffindor but I like you, come in,” She told me. The minute I passed the portrait, the facade fell, and my fury settled. 

“Weasley, get your ass down here this instant!” I yelled, making one of the younger kids, Creevey I think, stick his fingers in his ears. I hear shuffling upstairs and it didn’t take long to see Percy Weasley, Head Boy of Gryffindor, dragging his two younger brothers down the stairs. It amazes me that the two of them are somehow related. 

“I know they did something obviously, but what happened?” 

“These two almost killed Warrington with their stupid prank!” 

“Oh come on, Lestrange, he wasn’t that high up,” Percy smacked Fred in the back of the head and looked back to me.

“I’ll be taking them back to McGonagall right away, thank you for letting me know.”

“That is not what’s going to happen here, locomota wibbly!” All three of the Weasley boys fell to the ground, as their legs failed underneath them.

“That’s it Lestrange, you’re in for it!” Percy exclaimed, his voice cracking from the sheer anger halfway through the sentence. 

“No, Weasley, I don’t think I am,” I mused, as I left the common room, shutting the door behind me. I said goodbye to the Fat Lady, before hurrying off to my own common room. 

Once I made it back, I shut the door behind me quickly, and leaned my back up against the door, just a little out of breath from sprinting down that many stairs. 

“What the hell happened to you?” Melody was sitting in the common room as always, waiting for me to come back from practice so we could study and get our homework finished. “You’re early, and a mess, so something must have happened.”

“The Weasley twins decided to grace us with their presence during practice, took Warrington right out of the sky,” Mel’s hand immediately goes to cover her mouth in shock.

“They really did that, that’s a lot coming from them.”

“Not really, it’s only a step further than what they normally do. It was only a matter of time before they pulled something as stupid as this.” The two of us laughed and talked for a little while, just like normal, with dumb contemplative questions and talking about muggle stuff. Ever since the third year, Mel has been teaching me all about the muggle world, everything out there is just so interesting and amazing. Strange, if you think about it, the daughter of the two most prolific Death Eaters known and a muggle born witch being best friends. The two of us jumped out of our seats as loud knocking and banging could be heard from the outside of the Slytherin common room. I looked around for a minute, my eyes wide. 

“Ms Lestrange, you are to come out here this instant!” The shrill, angry voice of Professor McGonagall was muffled by the stone walls. 

“What the hell did you do?” Mel’s voice was in that whisper yell that kinda made you panic a little more than you should. 

“I may have made a stop at Gryffindor tower before I came back here.” Mel smacked me in the back of the head and I couldn’t help but whisper yell a little “Ow!”

“You’re an idiot sometimes, you know that? Go and answer McGonagall, running and hiding is only going to prolong the inevitable, hell, it’ll probably make it worse.” I rolled my eyes at her, even though I knew she was right. I sighed and got up to open the door. 

“Good evening, Professor, what can I do for you?”

“My office, Ms Lestrange, immediately.”  And with that, she turned around and began to walk towards her office. I followed behind, internally panicking about the inevitable punishment that I would be getting because of what I did, not that I regretted a thing, it was totally worth it. 

The minute I stepped into the office, the fog of tension was so thick that if it was real, I wouldn’t be able to see three feet in front of me. Percy, Fred, and George all sat on the other side of McGonagall’s desk, each with their own brand of scowl. I walked over to them, but just far enough away from the brothers to feel comfortable. McGonagall walked behind the desk and sat in her chair, the same color of green velvet as her robes. 

“So does anyone want to explain to me why we’re here, or do I have to do that as well?” Her eyes were accusing, making me yearn to just walk out that door. Of course, Percy spoke up. 

“Earlier this evening, Ms Lestrange stormed into the Gryffindor common room yelling for quote “Weasley.” So by default, I thought of the twins, who are known for causing general trouble and mischief. When I came downstairs with the two, she informed me that the two knocked Cassius Warrington off his broom during a prank the twins pulled at their quidditch practice. When I told her that I would turn the two of them into you, Professor, she proceeded to hex all three of us and leave us in the common room.”

“Thank you. Mr Weasley, now, does anyone else wish to add to the information being presented?” I tried to hold my tongue, but.I couldn’t help it.

“Professor, I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but with how high up Cassius was, combined with the paint filled balloons being launched at us, the two of us both fell off of our brooms. I was quick enough to get back on and land safely, but if Cassius hadn’t landed like he did, he could have been seriously injured or worse.” Once I started the sentence, I just couldn’t stop. Fred looked as if he was going to try and say something but George gave him a look that said,’don’t you dare,’ and he stopped in his tracks. 

“Mr’s Fred and George Weasley will both be getting two weeks detention for this, and Ms Lestrange, one week, is that clear?” McGonagall said, clearly not wanting to deal with this any longer. I wanted to argue that two weeks detention was not an equal or fair punishment for near murder but I held my tongue, just wanting to leave. 

“After classes, you will all be reporting to the Transfiguration room, is that clear:” I nodded and so did the twins. The professor dismissed all of us, and I left as fast as I could, not wanting to be near them for longer than I had to. 

I guess I had five hours of the Weasley twins to look forward to tomorrow, absolutely bloody brilliant.

[chaoticminhos]

swim captain (chapter two)

pairing: bang chan x reader

genre: angst again i suppose

warnings: none

word count: 3k

a/n: chaos post consistently and not wait weeks to post a second chapter of something that shouldn’t take weeks to do challenge: failed. anyway here’s chapter two of swim captain :)

you were woken by your blaring alarm the next morning. you dragged yourself out of bed and made your way to your kitchen, breakfast was always the first morning task. you passed through the living room on the way there and jumped upon seeing minho’s sleeping form, you had forgotten he stayed the night. you walked over to him and gently shook him awake. the least you could do was be gentle with him considering that he’d only stayed the night to make you feel better.

he groaned as his eyes opened, hand flying over his face to block out the light coming from the windows.

you laughed, continuing your original journey to the kitchen after confirming that he wasn’t going to fall back asleep.

you poured yourself a bowl of cereal and took a seat at your table. it wasn’t long before minho was sitting next to you with his own bowl, the two of you eating in comfortable silence. you only spoke when you stood to go get ready for school.

it didn’t take long for you to get ready, only switching your sweatpants out for a pair of nice blue jeans and putting a shirt on under minho’s sweatshirt. you’d already decided it was yours now, you might as well put it to use right away.

you left your room to find minho sat on the couch playing on his phone. he had fixed his messy morning hair but was still wearing your brothers shirt and hoodie.. the sweatpants were replaced with the same jeans he had worn the day before.

you gestured to his pants, “do we need to stop by your place on the way to school?”

“nah,” he shrugged, “this works.”

“don’t you need to brush your teeth?”

“already did, found an extra in one of the drawers.”

you laughed. the way he helped himself to everything in your house was kinda endearing. it wasn’t just him either, most of the boys knew your house well enough to do things like that without needing to ask.

you motioned for him to stand up and he took that as his cue that it was time to leave. the drive to school was normal, consisting of the two of you singing poorly along to the songs on the radio. he parked in his usual spot in the school lot and you wrestled your bag away from you just to be difficult before handing it back and heading inside. you were having casual conversation, playfully bickering and talking about the meet that day, when someone else joined the conversation.

“y/n, minho, wait up!”

you turned to see chan lightly jogging to catch up to you and minho, falling into line and walking beside you.

your had flew to your hair, quickly brushing out any bumps that may have happened since you brushed it that morning. having been with minho for more than 5 minutes probably meant that anything taming of your hair had been undone.

“don’t you normally walk unless the weather’s bad?”

it took you a second to realize that chan was speaking to you. minho answered for you.

“i stayed at her place last night, kinda would have been weird if i didn’t give her a ride.”

you laughed a little, not noticing the look that flashed across chan’s face at minho’s comment. minho, however, was not so oblivious.

you didn’t have any reason to be looking for a weird look or a reaction out of chan. to you, it wasn’t odd or suspicious to have minho spend the night. he did it to make you feel safe, and it wasn’t any different to you than having one of your girl friends over, other than the fact that minho snored a hell of a lot louder than any of them.

but chan didn’t know that minho stayed with you because you were afraid to be alone, he only knew that you and minho had always been close and that you had spent the night together.

“oh,” chan tried to steady his voice, an uncomfortable and frustrated feeling pooling in his chest. he cleared his throat, “so, you guys ready for the meet?”

minho pouted, “yeah, i think so. i didn’t get a lot of sleep, though.”

chan felt his stomach drop, what was that supposed to mean? minho spent the night at your place and he didn’t sleep much? what kept him up for so long? he didn’t know why the idea of you and minho possibly being intimate frustrated him. probably because he saw both of you as close friends and it was weird to consider you two as a couple. yeah, that was probably it.

you laughed at your friend, your couch wasn’t that uncomfortable to sleep on.

“it’s your fault for choosing to stay the night.”

he put a hand over his heart, “what was i supposed to do, let my dear y/n cower in fear from the storm while i go home and sleep peacefully because i’m not a pussy who’s afraid of a little thunder?”

you laughed as you scolded him, slapping him on the shoulder. meanwhile, chan let out a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding in.

he had forgotten you were afraid of the thunder. he felt himself relax. he was just relieved that he wouldn’t have to deal with you and minho as a couple, you know, since minho was a flirt and had trouble staying in a relationship for too long. that was all, he just didn’t want to see you get hurt and a wedge to be shoved in the swim team friend group. he was snapped out of his head by your voice.

“chan? you good?”

he blinked his eyes as he looked at you, “yeah, yeah, i’m fine. just a little tired.” he chuckled. his eyes lingered on your face, scanning your features. had you always been this pretty?

the three of you walked through the doors and into the school and split off to go to your lockers. minho’s came before yours and chan’s, leaving you and chan to walk the rest of the way to your lockers as just the two of you.

chan’s locker was only a few lockers down from you, close enough to make conversation as you put your things into your locker.

“how about you, ready for the meet?”

he turned to you, closing his locker. his eyes scanned your figure, just now noticing the hoodie you were wearing. minho’s.

“yeah.” his answer came out with more of an edge than he had meant after having noticed the sweatshirt you had on right before the words came out his mouth.

his hand reached out to grab the fabric of the hoodie you had on, “minho’s?”

he didn’t have to ask. he knew the answer, and he didn’t know why it mattered so much to him that you admitted it. it wasn’t like you were trying to hide it.

you looked down at your shirt, “oh, yeah,” you smiled, “he gave it to me yesterday.”

chan slowly nodded. he felt his jaw clench again. wasn’t sharing hoodies something couples did? his previous worries started to creep back. just as he was about to ask if you and minho had something going on, the bell rang and you turned to head to class.

“see you!” you called as you lightly jogged in the direction of your classroom.

chan sighed, you and minho had always been close, but since when were you two this close?it wasn’t a new suspicion of chan or anyone on the team, anyone in school really, to think that the two of you had something going on, so why now was it suddenly bothering him?

chan spent the school day keeping an extra eye on you whenever minho was around, he even made a point to sit between the two of you at lunch. minho laughed when chan shoved him lightly away from the seat next to you, making no protest to get his seat back. your face flushed red when he sat his lunch down and took his seat beside you, it was obvious he had done it deliberately. normally the boys just sat in whatever seat was open, so for chan to push minho out of the seat to get it was unusual. other than that, lunch was completely normal. you and the boys joked and talked like normal, and chan yelled felix and jisung for eating cupcakes on meet day.

in no time, the day had ended and you and the boys were on a small bus on your way to the meet. being only 9 of you, you each had your own seats. minho was across the isle from you, felix in front of you, and jeongin behind you.

chan cursed himself for being the last one on the bus, meaning he couldn’t choose his seat. he normally didn’t mind, but he felt the need to sit by you that day. you know, to make sure minho wasn’t just messing with you. obviously not because he enjoyed being around you or that he thought you looked particularly stunning that day.

chan spent the bus ride half heartedly listening to conversations, mostly focusing on yours and minho’s. he shifted uncomfortably every time he heard minho call you a pet name or, chan didn’t even know if it was jokingly anymore, flirt with you. he knew it was just how minho acted, but it seemed different. maybe chan was just seeing it different, he didn’t know.

arriving at the meet, you helped the boys carry their things in and walked with them to the dressing rooms. you weren’t allowed to go in since there were other teams in the rooms as well, but nothing said you couldn’t wait for them outside.

you stood with your back against the wall next to the dressing room door, eyes trained to your phone. after about 10 minutes of waiting, you felt someone bump into you. you assumed it was one of the boys, that you had missed them exit the locker room and they were now messing with you, but when you looked up, your eyes landed on someone you’d never met before. he was a swimmer, you could tell by the robe he had on, indicating he had already changed into his meet suit and was waiting for the races to begin. he had his head turned away from you, and he was scolding his friend.

“dude, i told you not to shove, you just made me bump into someone!”

you laughed softly at the interaction. it caused the boy’s attention to fall back on you. he bowed slightly.

“i’m jaemin, sorry for bumping into you. this is chenle, he kinda shoved me into you.”

you smiled at them, “i’m y/n. and it’s okay, i’m used to it.”

jaemin chuckled, “brothers?”

“something like that.” your eyes landed on the embroidered patch on his robe. “oh, you’re from NCT?”

his smile grew, “yeah, you’ve heard of us?”

“kinda hard not to know you guys when you’re, like, our biggest rival.”

he tilted his head on confusion.

“i manage for Stray Kids.”

he nodded, mouth forming an “O” shape.

before either of you could speak again, you felt someone place a hand on the center of your back, coming to stand right beside you.

“engaging with the enemy, i see.” jisung joked, “but now we gotta go. chan wants to talk to us before the races start.”

you waved goodbye to your new friend and followed jisung to where the rest of the boys were sitting.

“obviously we aim for first, but it’s fine if we don’t get it. this meet has practically no effect on placing in nationals, so don’t stress yourselves out. stressing will only tense your muscles up, just stay relaxed and do your best.”

with that, the announcer began to call names and the races began. you watched them intently, cheering the boys along from the sides, and they deserved the support.

minho came in first in his 200m freestyle for the first time in a meet that NCT was in, besting their top swimmer by 2 full seconds, 4 seconds above his previous record. when he came up from the water and the announcer stated that he took first for that race, minho rushed out of the pool and met you on the sides, picking you up in a tight hug. chan, who was preparing for his race soon to follow minho’s, saw the interaction and swallowed hard.

chan tensed up at the sight of minho holding onto you so tightly. he had to remind himself of his own words he had said earlier; relax.

chan and the other swimmers lined up on their boards in front of their lanes and waiting for the signal to dive. as the announcer counted down, chan scanned the sidelines, finding you standing with minho and a few other of the boys that had already completed their races. your shirt was nearly a completely different color on the front from being soaked with water when minho hugged you after coming straight from the pool. he’d dried off a little now, but he still had you pressed firmly into his side with his arm around your waist and rested on your hip.

with that image, chan dove into the water.

chan was a great swimmer, he wouldn’t be captain if he wasn’t, but when he was distracted while swimming, it showed. chan swam his race and came up at the end in third place. third isn’t bad placing, but he was used to taking first or second. performing worse than usual he was in a bad mood, and that wasn’t good for anyone. chan dried himself off and threw his towel over his shoulder, making his way to join the group of you who had finished swimming already.

a chorus of “good job!” and “you did good!” was heard when chan reached the group, which he shut down with a shake of his head. chan stayed with you guys for the remainder of the races, but he barely spoke.

the last match finished and the boys headed back to the locker rooms, once again leaving you alone to wait for them. after sneaking into the restroom to take off your soaked shit and pull on minho’s hoodie instead, you propped yourself against the wall next to the locker room door and waiting for the boys to come out, just like you had at the start of the meet.

when they finally did, jisung suggested the group of you going to get ice cream to celebrate minho’s new best race time and, even though no one said it, to cheer chan up. minho beamed at the idea, and chan let out a dry chuckle. he knew he preformed bad, and he knew it was because he was frustrated with the way you and minho had been acting recently, and to be quite honest, he didn’t really want to get ice cream with you and see more of your interactions before the night ended.

before chan could deny the request, claiming he was tired and wanted to go home and rest, someone called your name.

“y/n!” jaemin jogged up to you, not even bothering to address the other boys around you. “hey, my teams heading to get a bite to eat, i was wondering if you wanted to come along?”

“oh, uh…” you turned towards your team, face flushed red, silently asking for help. before any of the boys could okay you going with jaemin or not, chan interrupted.

“she’s going out to eat with us, actually.” chan took a step closer to you and jaemin. he had surprised himself with his words. he wasn’t even planning on going before, but he suddenly felt the need to do anything to keep you from going with jaemin. he thought to himself that it must be because, although he didn’t like the idea of you and minho together, if you were a couple, he wouldn’t want some other guy to come between the two of you. chan felt frustration pool in his stomach again, unconsciously sending a glare in jaemin’s direction.

“she hangs out with us after every meet, let her miss this one time.” minho spoke.

“are you sure, min? i know your new best time is a big accomplishment for you, if you want me to celebrate with you i will.”

“nah, don’t worry about it,” he ruffled your hair. “we can get boba tomorrow to make up for it, yeah?”

you smiled at him, “okay!”

and with that, you followed jaemin back to his group. the second you were out of earshot, chan turned to minho.

“what the hell, man, you’re okay with that?”

minho furrowed his eyebrows, shrugging, “why wouldn’t i be?”

“i don’t know, maybe because your girlfriend is about to leave with a group of guys we don’t know-“

“woah, woah,” minho interrupted, “i’m sorry, girlfriend?”

chan blinked at him, “yeah, aren’t you two like, a thing?”

minho let out a loud laugh, “oh my god, i swear i have to clear this up with someone every fucking day.” he clasped his hands together in front of him, “no. she’s gorgeous and i love y/n just as much as any sane person would, but i would never do that to you.”

chan frowned. “wouldn’t do that to him?” what was that supposed to mean? regardless, chan would have expected his muscles to relax at the reassurance that you and minho weren’t and never had been together, but for some reason, the frustration stayed in his stomach, increasing when he glanced over and saw you with jaemin and his friends.

according to his previous logic, he should have been fine with you going with jaemin now. it wouldn’t affect yours and minho’s relationship since you two weren’t even in one and he didn’t have to worry about minho hurting you anymore, so why was he still frustrated?

then it hit him.

how stupid was he? the anger he felt when he saw you close with minho or when you walked away with jaemin wasn’t just him being a protective friend or not wanting you to be with someone who might hurt you, it was him not wanting you to be with anyone, unless that someone was him.

[anjuschiffer]

Amira Wayne - Chapter 21

To think this took me two weeks instead of one...oh well...

Chapter 21: Advice

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P.Tag: @theatreandcomicfreak @daminette-is-life @toodaloo-kangaroo @elijahcrevan @vixen-uchiha @nathleigh @startouchedqueen1318

Tag: @we-want-mini-mini @ramos123 @bluesimani @redscarlet95 @greatcatblaze @promiswords @fantasiame @corabeth11 @anonymously-odd @alexandriamw @officiallydarkgeek @galla02006 @maleive07 @jayjayspixiepop

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MASTERLIST | FIRST | PREV | AO3

Amira pushed Damian aside, not having a moment to yell at him before she was engaged into combat by Deathstroke yet again. 

She blocked attack after attack with her staff, having to spring off his blade at one point, connecting the end of her staff to the side of his head, cracking his eye-sore of a helmet. Just as she was about to attack again, she was pushed aside by Damian, Amira rolling and colliding with a destroyed column. 

“I told you to stay out of my way!” Damian yelled at her as he exchanged blows with Deathstroke. Metal grinded against metal as Damian drove Deathstroke into a waltz, the two exchanging attacks, using picture frames and statues in hopes of slowing the other down. 

Amira watched as frames were destroyed, faces distorted as wood flew all over the place, statues crumbling to pieces as they met a blade or the floor. 

When Deathstroke finished introducing himself earlier, Damian quickly launched himself into combat, the two quickly making a mess of the study. Not wanting them to destroy it even further, Amira extended her staff and rammed it into Deathstroke’s back, causing him to plant his face onto the wall. 

“Stay out of my fight.” Damian gritted, Amira not backing down.

“This is my fight as well. This is my home after all.” Amira bluntly stated, watching as Damian huffed at her response. “And I want him out and away from here.”

Before either could continue their argument, Deathstroke was back up and ready to go, which Damian happily continued where the two had left off.

Amira watched as Damian led Deathstroke to the entrance of the manor, even at the cost of the staircase, Tim almost launching himself into the fight before Amira held him back.

“Isn’t your arm injured?”

“Aren’t we going to help him?” Tim asked back, flinching when Amira glared at him. 

“I will be helping him. You stay here.” Amira instructed, extending the staff into its full length.

“I can still fight.”

“Not with that arm you can’t.”

“Let me-”

“Drake.” Amira sternly said, watching as Tim sunk into himself. “Remember how I told you a Robin has to be well rounded and excel in combat?” She didn’t let him respond. “They also have to know their place in a fight, so for you, it means to stay here, at the sidelines.” With that, Amira left Tim alone to provide some type of support towards Damian…

Or at least that was the plan…

Whenever she tried to help Damian, she would get attacked by him or have him collide with her. Or even worse, be his personal shield or decoy. He would then have the audacity to yell at her for interfering and for being merciful. When she would have an opportunity to take Deathstroke by surprise, Damian would get in her way and cast her aside, not caring about having wasted a perfectly good plan.

And that’s how it had been playing out for the past few minutes since then, leading to now.

“Argh!” Damian yelled out as Deathstroke had managed to knock his sword out of his hand and stab his own into Damian’s arm. 

Unsheathing his other sword, Deathstroke was about to use it to pin Damian to the wall only for Amira to catapult her way towards Damian, dropping kicking Deathstroke in the face. 

“I had it handled.” Damian told her as he pulled out the sword from his arm, the blood dripping onto the floor.

“You’re welcome.” Amira threw back, taking out the weapons in the holster she had picked up earlier, watching Deathstroke charge at her.

Deciding to meet him halfway, Amira somersaulted, kicking the hilt of his sword, causing the sword to fly elsewhere.

With a quick motion, Amira stabbed his arm with a blade before cartwheeling backwards.

Deathstroke let out a groan as he took the blade out, not expecting to have the blade pulled away from his hand, letting out a grunt as blood seeped from his palm. But just as he composed himself, he was met with consecutive hits from another rope dart, having to remain still as the force of the hits grew stronger.

Amira continued to whirl her rope, alternating hands to increase the speed and force of her hits, only for it to be deflected in the end. That’s when he noticed it wasn’t a rope dart, but instead a yo-yo.

“Is that all you got?” Deathstroke asked her. She didn’t respond, instead, she redirected her rope dart to swing under her leg, the heavy alloy yo-yo connecting with his chin, causing him to take a few steps back from the impact.

“How’s an 8-lb yo-yo to the chin feel?” Amira asked, catching the yo-yo with ease before wrapping it around the man, causing him to fall to the floor. “I have some questions for you.” She walked towards him, only for him to break free from her grasp.

She froze as he took out a gun, only managing to snap out of it when a small device attached itself to it and exploded, causing Deathstroke to drop it. Judging from its trajectory, it had to have been Tim’s doing.

That and the fact that she doubted Damian would do anything to try and defend her when his pride and ego were on the line.

However, within that second, a kunai found itself digging into Deathstroke’s eye, Amira feeling the sudden urge to retch. She watched as Damian flew past her and dug the kunai further into the eye socket, only then causing Amira to react.

“Stop it!” She yelled, pulling off Damian of Deathstroke and facing him. “You’re going to kill him!”

“He needs to be killed for trying to-”

“We still need to-” Amira grunted as she was forced into Damian, causing the two to tumble forward. 

“Squabbling while turning your back to your opponent? Not a very smart thing to do.” Deathstroke reminded them, taking out another gun and aiming it towards the two of them. While Damian tried to pry Amira off of him, he stopped when he noticed her frozen expression of fear.

Just as Damian was going to roll the two of them away, someone slammed a staff behind Deathstroke’s helmet, causing the thing to split into two.

“Tim.” Damian heard Amira whisper, watching as fear still filled her eyes. She pulled Deathstroke back when she saw him make a dash for a retreating Tim, Tim using that opportunity to drop an axe kick.

Damian watched as the two continued to fight together, Amira calculating every strike, not wasting a single swing. Damian watched as Tim dodged and danced with Amira, not a single word spoken between them as they fought Deathstroke together.

He felt like he was being casted aside...unnecessary...not needed...

As he continued to watch them fight, Damian noticed them leading Deathstroke to the center of the lobby, Damian eyeing the chandelier above them. He then noticed the other rope dart Amira had brought in with her, lying abandoned at the side of the room.

It was then that he remembered the other thing he always found himself carrying with him...

A small plan began to form in his mind, Damian quickly picking up the rope dart to start setting it up.

Tim regretted having missed Amira’s soreness from having been using her weapon for the past ten minutes, watching as her attack barely reached Deathstroke’s face. With an attack having gone to waste, the man used the opportunity to focus on Tim alone, allowing him to throw the boy in the direction he had finished jumping from.

Amira managed to grab Tim before he met the floor, not noticing the incoming attack from Deathstroke. Just as his dagger was about to reach her, something hit Deathstroke in the face, Tim noticing a black case landed at his feet.

“Over here!” Damian yelled, causing everyone to look up, watching as Damian landed perfectly square on Deathstroke’s shoulders, the boy not only wrapping his legs around the man, but also the chain of the rope dart Amira recognized as her own.

Amira watched as Damian kept Deathstroke in the hold, watching as the man was starting to find his way out of it. “Use the thing inside the case!” Damian yelled at Tim, Tim freezing when he saw what was inside.

“I-I can’t use this.” Tim whispered, turning to Amira after having read the label. “We can’t-” He watched as Amira grabbed the case and casually walked up to Deathstroke.

“Don’t worry Tim.” Amira took the needle out of the case, wondering where Damian even managed to get his hands on the venom. “We’re not killing him, just torturing him.”

Without hesitation, Amira stabbed it into a patch of exposed skin (courtesy of Damian’s sword), watching as the man screamed and grunted as he fought against the pain. “After all, we don’t kill.”

“Well said, Amira.” Tim jumped from Amira’s flinch when Bruce spoke up.

The three turned their heads to see Bruce at the doorway, an elderly man with a smile on his face next to him. While a majority of his hair was tied back, tufts of white poked a bit from the side, Amira knowing who he was the minute he saw his eyes…

So he was the man whose eyes she inherited.... 

“Father...Ra’s.” Damian addressed, tying up Deathstroke before going to them, his heart sinking a bit when Bruce walked past him and went towards Amira, not even bothering to acknowledge him.

“Are you alright, Amira?” Amira turned away from her father as he fussed over the bruises and cuts on her face. 

“I’m...fine.” She said, swatting away her father’s gentleness, only then noticing that Alfred had silently joined them. “Grandpere.”

“Amira, my child, look at yourself.” Alfred softly spoke, Amira letting him examine her face. “Lets get those cuts cleaned in the infirmary. Master Tim,” he addressed, Tim flinching when he was called. “That goes for you too. I can’t have that ghastly gash of yours infecting under my watch.”

“Yes, sir.” Tim said with a nod, going to join them when he watched the other elderly man make his way towards Deathstroke.

“To think I treated him like a son once.” Ra’s said, disappointment visible on his face. “To think I ever considered him to be my heir at one point. Never would’ve thought he would be the one to try and betray me.”

“Him?” Damian asked the question in Bruce’s mind. “He was the one who you considered worthy of succeeding you?”

“At one point, yes. But then, you came along...or rather, the two of you came along.” Ra’s said, turning slightly to see Amira’s reaction. The girl mentioned stopped in her tracks. “Two grandchildren, but only one was able to claim the throne.”

“More like only one was considered to be your heir.” Amira spoke once turning to look at Ra’s in the face. “After all, ever since you found out my mother was going to have me, you wanted me dead. Me, a mere infant.”

No one noticed the paleness in Damian’s face, the way his eyes widened upon hearing those words. 

His grandfather...wanted his sister, their own blood...dead?

“I gave your mother the opportunity to let you live.”

“You threatened her to get rid of me!” Amira yelled, remembering her mother’s retelling of Ra’s threat. 

“You, a mere infant who I could’ve easily disposed of myself. But instead, I choose to show you mercy.”

“You kept me alive to keep her in line!” 

“Be grateful, child.” Ra’s snarled, causing Amira to take a step back. “You’re the only being in the world whom I’ve shown mercy to. Because of me, you got to live and learn from your father, a skilled fighter. A great detective. If it weren’t for my generosity, you would already be de-“

“That’s enough!” Bruce sternly shouted, standing in front of Amira who’s eyes were filled with unshed tears. Alfred placed a hand on her shoulder, frowning when he found her trembling as well. “I will not allow you to speak to my daughter that way, nor anyone in my family for that matter.

You said that you came here to leave Damian in my care. To keep him safe until you found your traitor.” Bruce walked up to Ra’s, allowing Alfred to guide Amira and Tim to the infirmary. 

He motioned to the passed out Slade. “Well, now he’s taken care of, so I suggest you continue your way back to the League to ensure that it’s safe enough for Damian to go back home. After all, that was your original goal, wasn’t it?” Bruce and Ra’s stared each other down, waiting for the other to back down. 

Surprisingly, it was Ra’s who broke the contact. 

“Very well.” Ra’s huffed, looking over to Damian. “You got to see firsthand how skillful those who learn under your father are, so just imagine how much you can improve by learning under him as well. I expect you to learn everything you can during your stay. Understood?” Damian nodded. “Good.”

Without a second to spare, Ra’s disappeared into the night, Damian wondering when would be the next time they would see one another. 

—

Adrien lifted his head the minute he heard the apartment door open, hearing laughter fill the room. 

It’s been a few hours -okay it’s been seven or eight since he’s heard about any news about Marinette. Seven-ish hours of being in the dark about Marinette’s whereabouts...since then, he had been by Chloe’s side, making sure she was doing alright.  

He held back a sob, gently pulling himself away from Chloé and headed down only to not find Marinette among them. Walking into the apartment was Dick, Wally and Nino.

“Where’s Marinette?” Adrien asked, everyone’s laughter rescinding. That’s when he noticed Jason, or rather recognized him. Wasn’t he...wasn’t he...the dead Wayne?

“Freund von dir? [Friend of yours?]” Jason asked Dick, Adrien looking at Nino for clarification. He simply shrugged. 

“Nien. Favoritinnen. [No. Favorite’s.]” Dick answered back. “He’s Adrien and the one you met earlier is Nino.”

“Y el novio, cierto? [And the boyfriend, right?]” Jason asked, a grin on his face as he pointed towards Wally. Wally quirked a brow. 

“They’re not quite there yet.” 

“Seriously?”

“Yup.” 

“Gotta do something about that, don’t you think?” Jason asked, causing Dick to chuckle, confusing the others in the room. 

The shattering of a teacup was heard, everyone whipping the heads to see who dropped it. 

“Jason.” Selina whispered, slowly walking towards him, Jason hesitating to move forward. “That’s really you, isn’t it?” She placed her hand on his cheek, wiping away a stray tear on his face. 

“Yea. It’s me, Ma. It’s really me.” Jason let himself get pulled into a hug, letting Selina crush him to death...well not really, but let her hug him until she was satisfied in knowing he was still alive...and with them once again. 

Adrien’s eyes darted between Jason and Selina. Then to Dick. Then back to Jason. 

“Apparently they all know each other.” Nino spoke up, Adrien realizing he had been standing beside him for a while. “Mlle Kyle, Dick, Barbara and M.Bruce...they all know Jason. And apparently, so does Marinette.”

Adrien turned to look at Nino with wide eyes, failing to notice that Barbara had joined the reunion at that moment.  

“What?”

“Yea. Apparently they've known each other for quite some time. Heard Jason telling Dick that he had been catching up with Marinette before she went off to tell their grandfather about...him. Wonder what they meant by that.”

Nino looked at Jason, who was busy annoying a flushed faced Wally. “While their entire dynamic was odd, that wasn’t what had me confused the most.”

“So she’s not here…” Adrien told himself. “And what do you mean by ‘the most confused’?”

“You know how everyone has some type of nickname, whether it comes from a family member or friend?” Adrien nodded. “Could Marinette have another name as her nickname?”

Seeing Adrien’s confused face, Nino continued. “Marinette once told me that her friends have only ever called her two nicknames: Mimi and Baguette.

Wally and Dick call her Mimi while you call her Bugette. So then...why...why was Jason referring to Marinette by Amira when her name is Marinette?” Nino asked.

Adrien froze. 

“Nino...Are-are you sure that’s-“

“Positive.” Nino confirmed, watching as Adrien’s face morphed into a stern expression. “Dude, what-”

“Nino.” Adrien said in a low tone, causing a shiver to run down Nino’s spine. “Whatever you do, don’t tell anyone else what you just told me.”

“Dude, why-“ Adrien placed his hands on Nino’s shoulders. 

“I’m I clear? Don’t. Tell. Anyone.” Adrien enunciated, looking over at Dick ruffling Jason’s hair. “Promise me that.”

“I promise.” Nino promised, wondering what it was that Adrien had found out.

Letting Nino go, Adrien looked at the group of family and friends talking within themselves, as if forgetting about the crisis just moments ago.

Or was it more than that?

Did they trust Marinette being fine even after her kidnapping? And what about the kidnapper? Were they going to let them roam free after what they did to Marinette?

Whatever it was, Adrien knew it had to be linked with the other secrets they held...even the one he found out by complete accident...

—

It didn’t take long to get patched up. It did, however, take very long to convince Alfred and her father to let her leave the Cave, Amira having to use the excuse that she was tired to be able to retreat to her room. 

And once more, everything looked just like she had left it months ago...

She headed to the wall of photos, dragging her hands over them, until she stopped over the one she took of the Parisian night. 

It was already two in the morning in Gotham, meaning it was eight in Paris. She hoped her friends would forgive her, especially Wally. She hopes he would forgive her for scaring him like this for the second time this month. 

Which reminded her, she had yet to tell Grandpere that-

“Amira,” She quickly turned, half wondering if her grandfather could read mind, only that instead of finding Grandpere there, she saw Damian. A scowl found its way to her face.

“How dare you mock-“

“It was the only way to get your attention.” Damian cut off, joining Amira by her wall of photos. “Out of everyone here, Pennyworth is the only one who you-“

“Grandpere is Grandpere. Of course he would have my complete respect. He’s my grandfather after all.”

“Ra’s is also our grand-“ Amira’s scoff caught him off guard. 

“Ra’s is not my grandfather and in no way part of my family.” Amira felt her hands begin to shake. “What I heard from him had portrayed him in a bad light and today,” she quickly dug her nails into her arm to try and prevent herself from trembling. “Today proved those stories to be true.”

“We have his blood-“

“Blood doesn’t just make family, Damian.” Amira sternly said, looking at a new photo she hadn’t placed on her wall at all. It was taken from days ago, one where Dick was trying to engage Amira into a conversation with his other friends. Wally was there beside her, holding her hand in case it was too much for her. “And even if it did, so does trust, acknowledgement. And love.

And while I acknowledge Ra’s to be our mother’s father, our grandfather, I do not trust him. And I never will, as I will never love him either. 

After all, he never dared to acknowledge me as family, so why should I? Why should I bother to respect him when clearly, he doesn’t deserve it?”

Damian stood there, soaking in his sister’s words, because...she had a point, even if he thought it was a point that was stupidly based on emotions. “If that’s all you came to talk to me about, then I suggest you leave. I have a few things to do before I have to go elsewhere.”

“You’re leaving?” Damian asked, wondering where his sister should go at this time of day. “What about your duties as Ro-“ 

He was not expecting his sister to erupt into laughter.

“Duties? Robin?” Amira promptly shut up, weirded out by the lack of envy in herself whenever she would say the name ‘Robin’ outloud. 

“Surely it’s yours, isn’t it? You are Robin, aren’t you? After all, you are father’s-”

“Blood child.” Amira finished for him. “Sorry to say, but that alone doesn’t give you the right to the mantle.”

“Are you saying someone else is the current Robin?” Damian seethed. “Someone who isn’t Father’s blood child is the one by his side, as his successor?”

“Not successor Damian. Partner...and possible candidate towards taking over Bat-”

“Then why haven’t you taken it back Amira? Why aren’t you claiming your birth-”

“Because it is earned Damian.” Amira sternly growled. “Robin isn’t just a mantle, it's a symbol. A symbol of fear...and hope. Robin is a collection of knowledge, passed from one Robin to the next. That knowledge is passed down, refined and added to as it gets handed down.” Damian watched as Amira walked away from her wall of photos. “But what thinks you’re worthy of being handed Robin?”

“I am the better option. I’ve been trained by the League for years, mastered-”

“Mastered being a bloodthirsty and uncooperative person.” Amira finished off. “And that’s based on one fight that took longer than it should have.”

“You were getting in my way.”

“And that’s exactly why you can’t be handed Robin and why you’ll never be Batman.”

“Are you-”

“I’m only telling you the truth. Robin has to be well rounded and excel in combat. They need to know when to stay on the sidelines. They must know when to call the shots.”

“You just contradicted yourself.”

“Did I?” Amira smirked, heading for the door. “Or did you misinterpret my words?” She opened the door, wondering if she would find Grandpere in the kitchen now that she and Tim were fully mended from their injuries. “Until you understand what that means, you will never know what it means to be Robin.”

With those words, Amira left Damian behind, heading out to accomplish the mission she had before the whole fiasco with Deathstroke.

—

Finding and telling Grandpere the news wasn’t the hard part, Amira finding him in the kitchen preparing some much needed early morning snacks. However, she wasn’t prepared for the tears that came afterwards from her usually calm grandfather upon hearing the good news.

After a much needed crying session, Alfred packed some food for Amira to give to Jason, assurring her that she would tell Bruce about Jason’s return at a more appropriate time.

With that done, she headed towards the zeta tube, having finished plugging in her coordinates when she sensed Tim.

“You’re leaving.” He simply stated, looking at her bandaged hands and bandage on her face.

“Yeah.” 

“Shouldn’t you-”

“I need to go back…” Amira easily answered. “And...thank you.”

“Huh?”

“Thank you for saving me back there...I had forgotten that Gotham doesn’t operate like Paris...with the whole no magic and meta business.” Amira confessed. “Also, if you hadn’t done what you did...I could’ve been dead.”

“B-but Bruce said-”

She showed him her bare ears, a single piercing causing Tim to pale.

He had seen Ladybird’s fights, he had seen Amira take punches to the gut without a single drop of blood seeping from her mouth. He had seen her get thrown into a stone pillar and get up without a single sign of pain. She would always get up no matter how many times she was thrown down. She was indestructible...until today…

Today, she actually feared death, something that wouldn’t have crossed her mind despite her upbringing in Gotham. “You... you could have died today, couldn’t you?”

“And that’s why I thanked you, Tim.” Amira ruffled his hair, Tim not knowing how to react to her gesture. “I was wrong about you in so many ways... to think it took me this long to realize it.”

“What exactly do you mean by that?” Tim pried, getting the following as a response.

“Keep up the good work, Robin.”

Tim found himself sending those words to Dick as well as telling him that Amira was on her way back.

—

“Recognized: Ladybird B13.” An automated female voice said out loud, Amira finding herself not irritated by it unlike the previous times. 

Then again, her previous code wasn’t Ladybird but rather MDC. 

It was nice to have a code that actually belonged to her... or at least used to. 

“I’m back.” She told herself as she exited out the telephone booth, not expecting to be pulled into an embrace, feeling her eyes watering when the scent of cat hit her senses. 

“Thank god you’re safe, Amira.” Selina barely whispered, tightening her embrace. “You’re safe.”

What started with a hic soon erupted into muffled cries, Amira burying her face into Selina’s coat, only then realizing the emotions she had been holding in over the course of several hours. She tightened her hug back, her cries growing louder as she let it all out.

Talía watched as Amira and Selina reunited by the old telephone booth, letting a smile appear on her lips despite her aching heart.

“You’ve grown so much Amira. Take care and stay safe and know that I will always hold you close to my heart. Goodbye, baobei.”

NEXT

[dontmindmyshadowhunting]

Welcome to Faerieland (Fan Fic) - Chapter 8 - The Battle

This is Chapter 8 of “Welcome to Faerieland”, a sequel to my Kitty Fan Fic "To never being parted" although it can be read as a standalone story.

AO3 Link to the full story here.

*****

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Tiberius jerked his head toward the fey who was grasping frantically at the arrow stuck in his neck. “If it has hit a carotid artery as I suspect, you will bleed out in a matter of minutes, if not seconds, if you take it out.”

He turned to the prince then.

“I believe you were looking for me?”

The coldness in Tiberius’ voice sent chills down Jaime’s spine. The faerie knights remained deadly silent.

The prince tried to hold himself together, but Jaime could see that even he was affected by the uncanny sight. His voice was slightly shaking as he finally answered.

“We were. Since, as usual, you have been poking your nose in others’ business.”

The huge bird perched on Tiberius’ shoulder tipped its head toward him and Ty petted it gently with his free hand.

“You are one to talk,” he replied. “May I remind you that we are on Unseelie territory and that King Kieran is still - to date - the ruler of these lands? What led you to believe you could carry out a sentence without his knowledge?”

“I guess this will be our little secret.”

“Too late for that. The Unseelie King has been warned and soon, his army will be swarming this place.”

The prince laughed but it sounded fake.

“You are lying, Nephilim. You are all liars. When could you have done that? The King and his knights are miles away, and modern means of communication are all failing this evening.”

Ty’s pet finally spoke in a screeching, almost ear-splitting, voice.

“How dare you speak to him in this manner? You stand before the illustrious founder of IL PADRINO! Show him the respect he is owed!”

“The founder of what ?” The faerie prince was taken aback.

“IL PADRINO! The International League for the Protection and Assistance of Downworld’s Rare, Innocent, Neglected and Overlooked species.”

The faerie knights broke into a roaring, collective laughter. Some of them actually wiped tears from their eyes.

Ty turned his head toward the winged creature and whispered something. The beast nodded and glared at the faerie prince one last time before it flew away above the forest. It was fast . Faster than any bird Jaime had ever seen.

“I didn’t use modern means of communication. I have just asked baby Josephine to join her parents, who have flown ahead to warn King Kieran.”

Josephine ? That flying creature was called Josephine ? And it was a baby ? What did its parents look like? Jaime wondered.

The prince’s face fell.

“You have absolutely no idea what forces you are dealing with.”

As if on cue, the ground started to shake, the treetops began to shiver, and a swarm of demons suddenly erupted from the forest, flooding the sky in a tunnel of darkness.

They landed on the ground and scattered, surrounding the party. The faerie knights stood stunned for a few seconds, all good humour gone, before they drew their weapons and marched towards the incoming threat. They were facing danger with bravery, Jaime had to give them that.

He startled as he heard Ty’s voice whispering a single word in his ear. “Weapons!”

Jaime turned to where Dru was already retrieving an axe and several seraph blades on the floor. He moved to join her, and only realized then that he was no longer magically bound to the ground.

He grabbed a sword just in time to slice the head of a Devrak demon that had lunged at him. He heard Ty and Dru cry at the same time “Adriel” and “Muriel”, their seraph blades bursting into light and illuminating their determined faces.

The battle was on, and it was chaos.

The fey, who were not used to fighting demons seemed overwhelmed and completely disorganized. Several of them edged closer to the Shadowhunters, as if their presence and the light of their glowing blades reassured them.

Jaime realized that he had never fought alongside the Blackthorn siblings. He could not help but notice how very different their fighting styles were, even though they were brother and sister.

Tiberius had his headphones on, his expression focused, though not as if he were in combat, but rather as if he were deciding on his next move on a chess board. Every swipe of his seraph blade was calculated for maximum efficiency, sparing his muscles’ efforts. Almost every blow was a lethal one. Not a single move he made was unnecessary or redundant. He was - as Jaime suspected - a restless killing machine.

Dru, on the other hand… Dru was a show. She had torn the material of her azur dress on both sides, revealing bare legs all the way down from her upper thighs. Her movements eased, she twirled and twisted like a ballerina, cutting randomly everything that approached her. Arms, legs, claws, tentacles, horns, heads…

As she jumped on a Hydra demon’s back and used the momentum to neatly sever two of its three heads from its body in a single slicing arc of her seraph blade, Jaime saw her grin widely, showing perfect white teeth that stood out in the darkness. She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself as she detached the remaining head in a sawing motion, as if she were a lumberjack cutting wood.

Next, he saw her slide under a Raum demon, slicing both its legs in half as she did.

As the demon lay injured on the ground, she straddled it and, after having swiftly cut off its tentacles, struck its torso repeatedly with her seraph blade, as if she was pummeling plastic ducks at a fair. Ichor splattered her dress, but she didn’t seem to mind. She still had a huge grin plastered on her face.

Ugh. Jaime wasn’t sure which one was the scariest. Dru or the demons?

He turned in time to cut an Oni demon’s horned head off with a swipe of his sword, just as it was about to devour a faerie’s leg. The demon disappeared and the disgruntled faerie spluttered a thanks but Jaime had already moved on to plunge his sword through a facemelter’s chest, while silently thanking his Sure-Strike rune. He liked his face the way it was, thank you very much.

Jaime whirled toward the Blackthorns and startled as he recognized a tall blond figure huddled close to Tiberius. Somehow, during the battle, the prince had scurried for cover behind the Centurion’s back, after having decided that he was the best protector around, even more so than his own guards. Ty was generous enough to carry on as if he hadn’t noticed.

What a shameless coward, Jaime muttered under his breath.

After a little while, Dru was the commander of a little army of faerie knights. It had started with a few pieces of advice “It’s a Ravener, start by cutting off its tail… Beware of the teeth, they are poisonous!” Then, she started barking out orders “You! Your demon only has one eye! Blind it already!”

Eventually, a little crowd gathered around her and listened to the sixteen-year old Shadowhunter’s directions and orders.

Tiberius seemed oblivious, listening to his music while dispatching demon after demon at an incredible rate, the faerie prince tailing him everywhere. However, Jaime had noted Ty’s regular glances in his and Dru’s direction, probably keeping an eye on them in case they needed help.

Even though things looked a little better than when it had begun, the flow of demons was continuous and Jaime was starting to wonder if and how it would finally end. Would there be anyone left when it did? Already, he had to pay attention to avoid slipping on blood and stumbling on bodies of faeries that had started piling on the ground.

As if the situation wasn’t desperate enough, gigantic winged creatures suddenly engulfed the sky, swallowing the stars and plunging the battle scene into complete darkness. Most of them were Shinigami demons, with jaws like a white shark’s and huge black wings.

The light of the seraph blades was now the only source of light.

“Look up! They’re coming from the sky. From everywhere!” Jaime shouted.

“You know what my philosophy is, in this type of situation? It’s a demon? You have a seraph blade? Kill it.” Dru replied in an irritated voice.

Ty said nothing, but pulled out his witchlight and retrieved his crossbow. Next, he whistled and little dots of light appeared in the foliage of the surrounding trees, illuminating the plain. Were these fireflies? Jaime wondered.

He could now clearly see as several faerie knights were hauled off their feet by the giant demons, and thrown from a great height, their bodies crashing on the floor. Jaime swiftly moved to avoid a human body part - he didn’t pause to check which one - that fell exactly where he had been standing a second before. He almost gagged when he saw a Shinigami demon crush the skull of a faerie that had been running a few feet away, with its large talons.

“Why is this happening, I don’t understand. I don’t understand,” the fey prince mumbled behind Ty’s back for what seemed like the thousandth time.

“Keep quiet,” Ty replied, acknowledging him for the first time.

As he heard inhuman shrieks coming from above, Jaime whipped his head up, just in time to see a white and gold shape shoot through the sky like a cannonball, a bolt of light in the darkness.

The figure halted a few feet above them, spun and spread its gold-tipped wings wide. That’s when Jaime saw that it was wielding two glowing seraph blades. So that’s what an angel must look like, he thought, as a mixture of awe and relief washed over him. Kit. Kit had come for them. Jaime was stunned, almost blinded by the sight.

He wasn’t the only one to notice the newcomer. The flying demons turned their attention to him at once, closing in as one big cloud of swarming giant insects, creating an apocalyptic scenery. But Kit wasn’t paying attention to them. His blazing gaze was scanning the battlefield, looking for something, someone, and didn’t even pause when it passed over Jaime. His mouth was set, and there was a coldness in his face that almost didn’t look human. When Kit’s eyes finally caught what he was looking for, his shoulders relaxed visibly, and even from a distance, Jaime could see his features had rearranged into an expression of pure love as he was staring at Ty.

Ty was gazing back, and for a moment, it looked as if the two of them were having a private and silent conversation, lost in their own world, unaware they were in the middle of a battlefield. Then, the demons caught up to Kit, and he almost disappeared in a wave of black wings, talons and claws. Soon, all Jaime could see were flashes of seraph blades and of white feathers flapping furiously in an ocean of beasts.

“Jaime, look out!” Dru shouted, and Jaime whirled in time to cut the claws of a Mantid demon that was aiming at his throat.

Jaime looked up again, and saw that the flying demons that were closest to the ground were being dispatched by bolts flying from… Ty’s crossbow. Noticing the attack from the ground, three Shinigami demons separated from the others and flew toward Ty.

Ty dispatched one of them with a bolt, and Jaime grabbed an axe from the floor to throw it at another. The third one was almost on Ty, but it didn’t look like the Centurion planned to fight it. Jaime gasped as he saw Tiberius duck a talon’s swipe and haul himself on top of the beast, just as it soared up.

“What the hell , Ty! You! Give me this! before you poke someone’s eye out!” It was Dru’s voice. Jaime turned to see her confiscate a faerie knight’s bow and pull an arrow from his quiver. As she aimed at Ty’s new ride, her hair - which had escaped from her bun - and her dress rose in a gust of wind, and Jaime thought she had never looked more beautiful. A true warrior goddess.

She hesitated and Jaime understood why. The flying creature was already too high above the ground and harming it would not help Ty, who was already busy balancing himself on the beast’s back while shooting more demons in the sky with his crossbow.

Dru let out a high and desperate cry of frustration that resounded across the field, and redirected her bow toward a Vetis demon, which had caught the struggling faerie prince in its long serpentine arms. The arrow flew and lodged itself in the demon’s head. It disappeared in the blink of an eye, releasing its prey. Dru muttered “asshole” and grabbed the faerie knight’s quiver in search of more arrows.

Jaime ran among the fallen faeries in search of a range weapon to use himself. He picked up three javelins and as he gazed up, saw Ty slip from the back of his Shinigami ride and catch one of its talons, at the last minute, to keep from falling. The demon tried to shake him off and swipe at him with its other talon, but Ty was twisting and kicking. As high as they were, a fall would surely kill him. It did not look good at all.

An explosion of light suddenly illuminated the battlefield and Kit appeared out of nowhere to swipe at the Shinigami demon with one of his seraph blades. The beast recoiled and Kit caught Ty in his arms just as the latter released his grip and was about to fall to the ground. He flew toward the edge of the clearing, but was followed by a mass of flying creatures clawing at him. One of them grabbed his leg and Kit cried out in pain, but seemed to hold on to Ty even tighter, wrapping his wings closer around them.

Two enormous eagles appeared then, and attacked the demons with their gigantic beaks and claws, allowing Kit to free himself. Jaime had read about this type of fey legendary creatures originating from the Middle East, rocs or rukk in arabic, but he thought they were extinct. He had no idea what they were doing here, and least of all, why they were protecting Kit and Ty so fiercely.

****

As they landed on the ground, at the edge of the forest, Kit immediately propped Ty against a tree, checking for injuries.

“Kit, I am fine,” Ty said.

Relief speared through Kit. Ty was alright. Kit had found him and there he was, bruised and battered, his headphones askew, his clothes drenched in ichor, but alive and otherwise unharmed. He wanted to throw his arms around him and kiss him until they had to break away for breath.

Ty started coughing.

“Ty, are you sure you are okay? What’s this? Why are you coughing?”

“Nothing, just the stench of ichor. I am fine, Kit. We have to go back… Dru…”

Kit opened his mouth to answer, when he saw Ty’s face turn utterly pale, frozen in a mask of shock and horror, his gaze fixed at a point above Kit’s shoulder. He whipped his head around to see that Dru had been caught in the claws of a flying demon as well. She was twirling, struggling to free herself, although she was being held at a dangerous - deadly - height above ground. As Kit watched, she plunged her seraph blade in the demon, just as it clawed at her leg, leaving a deep - and probably poisoned - gash. It disappeared from one moment to the next, leaving Dru’s now unconscious form to fall toward the ground at great speed. Kit didn’t pause to think, he kicked on his legs with all the strength he could muster and flapped his wings as hard as he could, soaring through the sky like a shooting star, but realizing just as he did that she was too far.

He tried to swallow his terror and desperation as he flew toward her, trying to focus on anything but gaining as much speed as he could. He could not give up, even if it seemed impossible to get to Dru on time.

Another winged creature suddenly appeared out of nowhere and caught her, just a few feet from the ground. It hurtled upwards, carrying Dru gingerly, not like her previous captor had. Kit squinted and realized with a shock that it was not another demon, but a human with angel wings, just like him, although his feathers were black as night, an eerie contrast to his white blond hair. As he edged closer, he could see Marks swirling up his bare arms and torso. He had pointy ears, and Kit briefly wondered if it was Mark Blackthorn, but no. It was not the same shade of blond or even the same figure. Relief washed over him, mixed with uneasiness. Who the hell was this guy? And where was he taking Dru?

As one, the demons turned toward the newcomer and rushed to claw at his dark wings and unprotected back. He couldn’t defend himself because he was embracing Dru tightly, as if his life depended on it, protecting only her and exposing himself to the demons’ attacks. Just as Kit had done with Ty.

Kit watched in horror as the demons shrouded him, and he could no longer see past the giant big cloud made of their swarming forms. The mass hurtled toward the ground and now rose like a deadly mountain.

Kit had to do something. Dru was in the middle of that thing, with her strange protector.

He landed on the grass, folded his wings and stretched out his hands toward the horde, focusing hard on channeling the force he had used in the battle of the Imperishable Fields, when he had made the horses of the Riders of Mannan disappear. He thought about Dru. He thought about the Blackthorns at Livvy’s funeral. They could not bury another one of them.

He sensed a rush of power coming out of his chest, through his arms and toward his aim. He was blinded and surrounded by white light, and thrown back by the force of a silent explosion. He landed on his back, sliding across the ground. Oush. His back felt like grated cheese.

Kit lifted himself on his elbows and looked over the spot where the herd of demons had been a moment ago.

They had all disappeared. All that was left was a mound - or rather what looked like a small dome - made of black feathers. It was clear that the wings had been used as a shield against the demons’ onslaught. There were scratches everywhere and the dark plumage was streaked with blood.

Slowly, as if sensing the coast was clear, the giant battered wings unfolded to reveal the two figures that hurdled underneath. The blond faerie was crouched over Dru, covering her limp body with his own. He whipped his face toward Kit, who startled. Kit didn’t know what he had expected. The stony face of an angel? He looked like an ordinary boy, with strikingly sharp features and bright green eyes… and he was glowering at Kit.

He mouthed three words to Kit, before he swiftly turned his scowling face away and shot up in the air, tracing a beautiful arc in the sky, still holding Dru. He fled the battle scene at an incredible speed, disappearing behind the tree tops at the east of the clearing.

Although Kit felt utterly drained, he needed to go after him.

He was about to unfold his wings when he heard a cry of pain behind him. He whirled and found the blond faerie prince that he had met at the Pandemonium only days before standing behind him, frozen in the motion of lifting his sword, his eyes widened in surprise. From one moment to the next, he crumpled to the ground and lay there unconscious. Jaime was standing behind, holding a javelin. Kit realized it was probably the weapon he had used to knock out the prince.

“Are you okay?” Jaime asked. He seemed out of breath, and he was looking at Kit as if he was a strange creature. “That was some crazy power you just displayed.”

There was a trace of ichor on Jaime's cheek, and Kit absently wiped it with a stroke of his fingers. Jaime sucked in a breath and his cheeks flushed crimson.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“You had demon blood on your cheek.”

Jaime nodded, but he was still red in the face. What the hell was that about?

The horn of the Wild Hunt resounded across the plain, followed by the thundering sound of hooves.

Kit and Jaime both jerked their heads up to see the beautiful spectacle of Hunters tearing through the night sky like a comet.

Gwyn was leading the group, Diana straddling a glossy red bike, next to him.

Right behind them, King Kieran was riding Windspear. Mark was on the same horse, standing at the rear, and kept shooting arrows from his bow, as still and graceful as if he were on an unmoving platform. Mark looked so formidable in warrior mode, that Kit could not help but feel a bit awed.

Cristina was riding sidesaddle on another steed, throwing butterfly knives at the demons.

Thanks to Kit, there were not many demons left to dispatch and the Hunt and the King’s knights were doing it with astounding efficiency.

Kit’s gaze automatically searched for Ty, until he saw him running in their direction.

“Ty,” Kit trotted across the field toward him, drawn like a magnet, and opened his arms to embrace him.

But Ty wasn’t even looking at him, his gaze was fixed somewhere above Kit’s shoulder, over the treetops.

“We have to go after Dru. Where do you think he took her? What does he want from her?” He looked utterly panicked.

Kit swallowed hard as he stared guiltily into his boyfriend’s wide gray eyes. “I…”

That’s when the three words that the strange half-Shadowhunter half-faerie had mouthed moments before finally sunk in. Kit felt a chill run down his spine as he remembered them.

She is mine, he had said.

****

Tagging @gabtapia although you'vre already read it

[mother-shipper]

I Could Not Ask You Where You Came From

I Could Not Ask You Where You Came From:(AO3) Tired of being such a disappointment to his father, six year old Steve decides maybe it would be better for everyone if he just...disappeared. When a human appears in his forest, Billy wants him gone. But what should have been a quick ridding of a pest, soon turns into something longer, better, lovelier.

Steve ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. He didn’t care anymore. It was dark and the brush was high, the twigs and saplings cutting against his skin. The light of the moon barely broke through the canopy, and Steve could only just make out the trees around him. It was dangerous. He knew that. But… why did it even matter anymore? He wouldn’t be leaving the forest. That was the point. His feet hit the dirt, loud in the silence. All the creatures of the night had gone quiet as they always did when predators came near. Steve didn’t know how long he’d been running or how far from home he was when his foot caught on a tree root. He was sent flying forward, hitting the ground hard. He whimpered as pain rolled through him, sniffling and finally letting the tears flow. He couldn’t even run away right. He couldn’t even get kidnapped. His father was right. Steve was a disgrace and that was all he would ever be. He sat up and wiped at his nose with his sleeve. Who was he kidding? Even the fae wouldn’t take a child as useless and stupid as him. He moved to lean against the trunk of the nearest tree, pulling his knees up to his chest. His own father didn’t even want him. Steve buried his head in his folded arms and wept, the pain in his heart winning out.

When the sun went down, the forest came to life. Flowers started to glow, pinks and purples dotting the forest floor and shedding their light on everything around them. The stags wandered the tall grasses, their racks taking on the same ethereal glow. Small birds, the color of glittering jewels, flitted about. Everything came to life in a way no man had ever laid eyes upon and as the forest woke, so did her guardian. 

Billy rose from his nest, stretching his arms high above his head and his wings out so wide the feathers quivered. He rubbed at one eye and looked down from the heights of the tallest tree in the forest. Moths came to flutter about his head, playing under and around his horns. They spoke in whispers, telling him the news of the land. He laid his head on the edge of the nest and listened, eyes still heavy as he fought sleep. But there was something that snapped him awake instantly. A human. There was a human in his forest. Billy's bright blue eyes snapped open and he growled. 

"Where?"

The moths whispered to him and flitted away, winding around and down the trunk of the tree. Billy spread his wings wide, flapping them once, twice, then dropping out of the canopy. He spread his wings and let them catch him. They carried him on the wind, gliding through the trees. Mushrooms and frogs scuttled along beneath him as he flew but he wasn't looking to play. Not right now. Not with a threat in their midst. 

Billy was fast and silent. His feet touched the ground and he spotted it. It was so… puny. Billy crept closer, inspecting. It was all curled up, sniffling and crying pathetically. Billy tilted his head curiously, eyes narrowing. It could be a trap. Humans were vile, sneaky creatures. They couldn’t be trusted. But… he’d never seen such a tiny one. This didn’t look like any man he’d ever seen. Billy leaned in carefully, sniffing at it. It smelled human. Billy’s nose wrinkled in disgust. The human’s head lifted suddenly, brown eyes big and wet and startled where they fixed on him. 

“You’re a human,” he said, eyes narrowing. “But you’re so small.”

The human sniffled and wiped at its eyes. “So are you.”

Billy growled at that, puffing himself up as big as he could get, feathers fluffing up indignantly. “I’m big enough!”

The human stared at him, transfixed on his wings and his horns when it seemed to dawn on him. His face turned nervous. 

“Are you here to steal me?”

Billy snorted. “Why would I do that?”

“Because you’re a fairy.”

“Oh.” Billy didn’t know what he was talking about but this human said it so confidently that Billy didn’t want to seem stupid for not understanding. He paused. “No. Are you here to kill me?”

“No!” The human shouted. “Why would I do that?”

“Because you’re a human,” Billy sneered. 

“I… no.” The human stared at him for a moment. “I’m Steve,” he finally said. Billy didn’t answer. “If you don’t want to steal me then why are you here?” Billy folded his arms over his chest, leaning over Steve. “Do I come to your house and ask you why you’re there? No. This is my forest. You don’t belong here, so get out!”

Steve looked wounded by that and it gave Billy pause. He thought the boy might start to cry again. 

“Why are you here anyway? All the animals your kind like to murder are sleeping. You won’t find anything to hunt.” “I didn’t come to hunt,” Steve said softly. “Then why. Are. You. Here?!” Billy asked, punctuating each word with a stomp of his bare feet. “Go. Home.”

“I can’t,” Steve answered quietly. “I… they don’t want me there.”

That caught Billy off guard. Didn’t want him? “But… surely you have a mother,” he spat, “a father. A family.”

“He hates me,” Steve said, his voice small and thick with coming tears. “I make him mad all the time. And that makes my mom sad. Then they fight and it’s all my fault. So I left.”

That made Billy’s chest ache. The smell of gunpowder and burning flesh filled his nose and the angry screaming of men ringing in his ears threatened to take over and he had to shake it away. 

“Well, you can’t stay here. No humans are allowed in my forest. Not ever.” Steve sighed sadly. What was he going to do if even the fae didn’t want him? He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t even know where he was now. Billy planted his hands on his hips, shaking his head.

“You wouldn’t make it out here anyway. You should be happy I found you before the bears or the wolves.” He held out a hand for Steve. “Come on. I’ll take you back to your village.”

Steve took Billy’s hand reluctantly and let himself be pulled up. Billy’s strength surprised him as he found himself on his feet in a split second. It was as if he weighed nothing. The fairy let go of his hand and turned to survey the area. After taking stock of their situation, Billy nodded to himself. 

“Alright. This way.”

Billy took the lead and Steve followed close behind. Right before his eyes, Steve saw the forest start to transform. Reacting to the presence of its guardian, it all came alive. He stared in awe as the world around them shifted. The darkness was chased away as bluebells bloomed and cast a blue glow at their feet, lighting a path through the trees. The moss gave off a bright, fluorescent green light in speckled patterns. Fireflies started to float through the air, circling around them.

“Wow,” Steve breathed. He stopped, turning to take it all in. One of the fireflies lighted on his nose and Steve giggled. He crossed his eyes, trying to get a better look at it. “What?” Billy asked. 

“It’s so pretty,” Steve answered. “Is this what it usually looks like?”

“No.” Billy leaned down, touching one of the bluebells gently with his fingertips. It sparkled at the contact and made the softest, sweetest ringing sound Steve had ever heard. “The humans still rip the flowers up this far in. There’s way more closer to the heart.” “I wish I could see it.” 

Billy turned to Steve, looking him up and down. He took in the awed look on Steve’s face, the gentle way he scooped the firefly from his nose to cradle it carefully in his hands. 

“Come on,” he told Steve, turning off the lit path. “If you think you can keep up, that is.” 

Steve watched as the fairy took off at a run, dumbfounded for just a moment before his brain caught up.

“Hey, wait!” He followed after the winged boy, running as fast as his feet would carry him. He never took his eyes off the glistening, black plumage and yet he was suddenly gone. Steve skidded to a halt. He looked around at the darkened forest again searching for any sign of his guide. 

“Where’d you go?” He called. Steve turned in a circle and looked up into the treetops. Curling his hands around his mouth, he shouted. “Hello?”

“Shhh!”

Steve reeled around. Blue eyes stared into his, so close they nearly touched noses and Steve shrieked. He stumbled backwards, arms wheeling to try and keep balance and Billy hooked a finger in his shirt, tugging him back into balance again.

“Are you all this easily startled? And loud.”

Steve didn’t answer, just tried to catch his breath from all the running and the scare on top of that. Billy smirked. 

“Alright. I guess I’ll take it easy on you.” He turned away again and laid his palm against the bark of the nearest tree. Everything began to glow again. This time there were more colors. Pinks and purples mixed in with the blues of the bluebells. The trees glittered with their speckles of green and even the mushrooms started to give off soft light. A new pathway was lit, showing them the way to wherever this fairy boy was leading Steve. 

Steve didn’t ask questions. He followed after the other boy again, sticking closer this time. The shining eyes of owls and lizards and other night time creatures looked out at them from the trees and Steve wanted to stop. He wanted to look at them all up close. To touch them. Instead, he stayed with his guide as they moved ever forward. Billy slowed to a stop on the path, turning to face Steve. 

“Close your eyes,” he demanded. 

Steve covered his eyes obediently. Satisfied, Billy pushed Steve through the opening in the trees and out into a clearing. 

“This,” he said smugly, “is my forest.”

Steve peeked through his fingers carefully at first. He gasped and dropped his hands at once in awe of what was before him. The whole place sparkled with light. There was a pond, the fish beneath the water lighting it with their scales all glowing in different colors. The cattails waved back and forth, bathed in the light of both the water and the dragonflies that clung to them, looking like they were made of glass. Fireflies and moths floated around in the tall grass. It was the most beautiful thing Steve had ever seen. 

“Pretty,” he breathed. Billy smiled proudly.

He walked past Steve out into the lush, tall grass and flopped down into it. Fireflies clustered where the grass had curled out around him, almost like a cradle. He stretched his wings out beneath himself and sighed.

“How come it never looked like this before?” Steve asked, crouching down at the edge of the pool to look more closely at the gemstone fish gliding along beneath the surface. “The grown ups all say it’s so dark and scary out here.”

“Because,” Billy frowned. “The forest doesn’t like them. It hides from monsters.”

“But… Mr. Hopper says the monsters are in the woods. He says they eat kids like me up.”

“Well, he’s a liar,” Billy snapped, sitting up. “Humans are the monsters. They come into the forest and just take things that aren’t theirs. They cut down the trees and kill the animals and pick the flowers without even asking.” Billy curled up into a ball then, arms wrapping around his knees. “Humans ruin everything.”

Steve stared at the fairy boy, eyes wide in surprise. He had never done that. Ms. Joyce and his mom and his dad had never done that. But… Steve thought of his father. He thought of the screaming, the anger, the disappointment. His eyes turned sad and he looked down into the water, swirling his fingertip in the coolness of it as the fish circled. 

“I think my daddy’s a monster,” he nearly whispered. 

There was a silence that hung in the air between them, both lost in their thoughts which were more similar than they knew. Steve could feel the other boy next to him though he never heard him move. It was still, quiet, comfortable. Then a hand just barely nudged Steve and he tipped forward.

“Hey!” He shouted indignantly just before he fell forward and splashed into the water. It was just barely deep enough for Steve to go completely under and he surfaced, spluttering. 

“What was that fo-!” The fairy wasn’t on the bank where Steve had last seen him. 

He brushed his sopping wet hair back out of his eyes and scanned the shore, turning to find Billy only inches from him again. Only his eyes peeked above the water and they sparkled with mischief. Billy came up, cheeks big and he spit a fountain of water at Steve.

“Hey!” 

Billy laughed and Steve felt the annoyance bleed out of him. Instead, he looked at Billy, the water dripping from his blonde curls and glistening droplets clinging to his freckled face. He looked happy. Steve liked to see the boy happy. He splashed Billy back and the boy sputtered in surprise. He hadn’t expected retaliation but he took it in stride and splashed back at Steve. It turned into a water war, the two of them bobbing around the pond on their toes and aiming swipes at each other. 

They were having fun but it was still the middle of the night. The water was cold and only getting colder and Steve, being human, could only handle so much. His lips started to lose color and his teeth chattered but he still kept going, not wanting to give in to Billy. The fairy noticed though. He stopped splashing and grabbed Steve instead, pulling him onto the shore. They were both breathless but giggled happily. Billy shook himself off, water flying everywhere and making the dragonflies scatter. 

Steve curled into a ball, shivering and teeth chattering through his grin. He had never been allowed to play like this before. His father didn’t like him to associate with the commoners. He told Steve it “made them think too much of themselves.” Now that he had the chance, he didn’t want it to end. But Billy seemed to have other ideas. He sat behind Steve, not caring that he was getting all wet again and wrapped his arms around the shivering, human boy. He pulled Steve in close and curled his miraculously dry wings around them both. 

“Why didn’t you say you were cold, stupid?”

“I’m f-f-fine,” Steve tried to argue as though his chattering wouldn’t give him away. “Y-you’re j-just m-m-mad I was w-w-winning.”

“Were not,” Billy huffed.

“W-were t-t-too.”

Billy rolled his eyes. “You can’t get too cold. When things get too cold, they die.”

Steve just shrugged. “W-wouldn’t have to g-go home then.”

Billy frowned but didn’t answer, just curled tighter around Steve to warm him up. They sat together like that for a while, Steve asking questions about the forest. 

How did the plants and bugs glow like that? Could everything in the forest do it? Which tree was the tallest? Which thing was his favorite? Steve’s favorite were rabbits. Did he have any rabbit friends?

Billy listened and answered as best he could. Magic. Not everything but a lot of them. His tree was the tallest in the whole forest. He liked the luna moths the most and he was friends with everything that lived in his forest. 

“Everything?”

“Of course. It’s mine. I take care of it and I take care of them.”

Steve huddled closer. “It must be nice to have so many friends. I wish I had some.”

“You don’t have any friends?” Billy asked. Steve shook his head.

“Daddy says I’m not s’posta mingle with the commoners. He says I need kids of status to play with. But we’re the only blue bloods in the village so I’m not allowed to play with anyone else.”

“What’s a blue blood?” Billy asked, his nose wrinkling.

“I dunno,” Steve shrugged. “But dad says we’re the only ones.”

Billy huffed. Humans were so strange. 

Birds started to chirp in the trees, waking with the first lightening of the sky. It wasn’t yet sunrise but the inky darkness was starting to lift and go gray with the first signs of morning. 

“Come on,” Billy said, standing them up. “I’ll take you back now. I know a shortcut.”

A now dry and warm Steve followed after Billy reluctantly. He didn’t want to go back. He had planned on disappearing. But the forest wasn’t his home. It was Billy’s. They moved through the trees, flowers blooming up to guide them just as they had before and it wasn’t long until they reached the treeline. Just beyond the brush, Steve could see his house, still and quiet as his family and the servants slept. 

“I’m Billy,” the fairy told Steve, breaking his train of thought. He looked over but the boy was looking straight at the dirt, hands behind his back. “And… you can come and visit the forest again. If you want to.”

“Really?” Steve smiled wide.

“Yeah,” Billy told him. “You’re okay. For a human anyway. So you can come back.”

Billy brought a hand out, revealing one of the bluebells. He offered it to Steve. “Just ask the flowers. They’ll show you where to go.” 

Steve took the bluebell with a smile, holding the flower in his hands gently. 

“And make sure you give it water, okay?”

Steve nodded. “I’ll take good care of it. I promise.” 

Billy watched Steve cradle the flower he’d given him as if it was the most precious thing in the world and it made his heart flutter in his chest. 

“You better,” he answered. “And I’ll know if you don’t.”

Steve just smiled wider. “I’ll come play again soon. Promise. Bye, Billy!”

Billy watched Steve go, feeling an emptiness settle in his heart. Steve would come back. He promised. And Steve wasn’t like other humans. Billy trusted him. With a flutter of wings, Billy was gone, returning to his forest as Steve settled down in his bed.

“Are you the only thing from the story books?”

Billy tilted his head curiously at Steve. The two of them walked along the forest path, Steve doing his best to keep up with the forest guardian. 

“What are those?”

“You know,” Steve insisted, climbing over a tree root that Billy floated over with ease. “Storybooks. Once upon a time and happily ever after? Princes saving princesses, knights, all that stuff.”

Billy shook his head. “You’re so weird.”

Steve paused there, astride the root of the tree, and looked at Billy in surprise. 

“You’ve really never read a story before?”

“Reading is a human thing,” Billy sneered. “We don’t need your symbols. We tell our stories.”

Steve rolled his eyes, used to Billy’s distaste for things he deemed too human by now. He’d been coming to the forest for a few years by this point and he was still learning new things every time he wandered there.

“But are you the only one?”

“The only what?” Billy asked.

“The only magic thing. There’s fairies in the books but there’s different kinds. Big ones and small ones and mean ones and nice ones. And there’s magic animals too.” 

Billy smiled. While it was decidedly human, he couldn’t help but love Steve’s curiosity. The wonder he found in the mundane, as if every day was his first. Billy led Steve further along. He took him deeper into the forest than ever before. They pulled to a stop at the foot of the most magnificent sight to behold in such a magical place. The tree was huge. Hundreds of years undisturbed had allowed it to tower above all the others. It was so thick around it would take ten men at full arm’s length to wrap around it. Steve stood and stared up at it, awestruck.

The heart of the forest.

Billy made a gesture with his hand and one of the roots beneath Steve shuddered. Steve yelped in surprise and clung to it as it started to rise. It pulled itself up and out of the dirt, stretching higher and higher toward the canopy until it paused at the top. Cradled at the apex of the branches, safely hidden in the thick leaves, was a large bird’s nest. It was big enough to fit two adults and Steve gaped at it. 

Billy landed inside it, plopping down cross-legged in the center. 

“Come on.”

Steve hesitated. He looked over the edge of the tree root, seeing just how long the way down was which made him cling tighter. 

“Don’t be a baby,” Billy told him, rolling his eyes. “You won’t fall if you’re in the nest.”

Steve took a deep breath, closing his eyes and letting himself slide down the root until his feet hit the edge of the nest.

“There you go,” Billy told him. He reached out and tugged Steve gently backward. Once he was safely on the floor, the root began its descent back to its home in the dirt. 

“What lives here?” Steve asked, marveling at the structure that surrounded them. 

“It’s something very dangerous,” Billy said. He narrowed his eyes, curling his hands into menacing looking talons. “A beast with claws and horns.”

Steve swallowed hard, holding onto Billy. His eyes flicked around, looking for any sign of the creature.

“It’s really strong and fast,” Billy continued. “And it’s the handsomest thing in the whole forest.”

Steve snorted and shoved at Billy’s chest, laughing as he realized what Billy was doing.

“You doofus.”

“What?” Billy grinned. “You asked.”

Steve looked out over the forest from above, seeing just how far it reached. He could see for miles. Even Steve’s village was visible from their perch, the tower of the manor jutting up among the distant, simple cottages.

“You can see everything from here.” “Yeah,” Billy told him. “That’s kinda the point.”

Steve ran a hand over the lip of the construct. “It's softer than it looks. Did you build it yourself?” Billy grimaced and looked away. Steve had noticed that every so often, one of his questions would strike a nerve. Whatever it was that was upsetting him, Billy never said and Steve didn’t push. 

“Hey,” Billy said, recomposing himself with a plastered-on smile. “You wanna see something cool?”

“Yeah!”

Billy rose to his feet and moved gracefully along the ridge of the nest. He circled around to one of the thick arms of the tree. Laying his palm against the bark, he whispered something under his breath that Steve couldn’t make out but that tickled his senses. As he spoke, vines began to materialize and weave themselves along the branch. They made their way down to the nest and began to ensnare it with long, green tendrils, weaving around until the outer walls were covered in an intricate pattern. Steve watched with wide eyes as the vines settled before bursting with pink blooms. 

“Pretty!” Steve ran a finger gently over one of the velvety petals. “How do you do that?”

“Magic,” Billy answered, plopping down beside Steve again. 

Drawn by the flowers, butterflies came to surround them. They fluttered around the nest, landing on the blooms to drink their fill of nectar. Steve was completely enraptured by it all. A butterfly landed on his shoulder and Steve marveled as he heard a tiny voice in his ear. 

“The forest is the town of trees

Where they live quite at their ease,

With their neighbors at their side

Just as we in cities wide.”

 “They can talk?” Steve asked, turning to Billy.

“Sort of,” Billy answered. He leaned back on one arm. He raised the other up, held out a finger and one of them landed there, lazily flapping its wings.  “They can only repeat things they’ve heard and usually only in those funny patterns.” 

“The world is so full

of a number of things,

I’m sure we should all

be as happy as kings.”

Billy smiled softly at it. “I think it makes it easier for them to remember.”

As though the flowers were an invitation, all sorts of things began to gather around and join them in the tree top. There were lizards that glimmered like jewels darting around and clinging fast to the rough tree bark. Birds flitted around the branches above them with feathers that seemed to glow under the sun as they chirped to each other in harmonies. Mushrooms scuttled around on tiny legs, laughing and chasing each other around at their feet.

“Is it what you expected?” Billy asked.

“Better,” Steve said, cradling one of the little mushrooms in his palms where it bounced happily. "What about unicorns?" Steve asked, eyes wide and bright. 

Billy's face fell again.

“No,” he answered solemnly. "They left… when she left."

"Who?"

Billy didn't answer. He went quiet, fists clenching at his sides.

"Are you okay?"

Instead of answering, Billy stood. He took two steps back to the edge of the nest and, without a word, dropped backward and fell head first from the tree. 

“Billy!”

Steve rushed to the side and leaned out, looking for any sign of the other boy but… there was nothing. It was as if he just vanished. 

“Billy,” he said, softer this time.

There was a sudden tap on his shoulder and Steve startled, reeling quickly around. Billy was there, standing behind him as if nothing had happened and cradling something to his chest. 

“What are you-” Steve started.

Billy cautiously opened his cupped hands and a little reptilian head poked out. Its scales were a fiery orange color, its belly a bright yellow and pale, tiny horns sprouted from its head. Its blue eyes raked over Steve suspiciously before crawling out of Billy's hands. Its long, slinky body scaled Billy's arm to perch on his shoulder. A lengthy tail curled around it, leathery little wings flapping.

Steve stared at the creature, open mouthed and starry eyed.

"Is that a dragon?!"

"Her name's Max," Billy said softly. "She's the only one left so I have to keep her extra safe. Even if she's a pain sometimes."

Max snorted indignantly and nipped at his ear. Billy flicked her nose in retaliation. "Most of the time!"

Steve smiled. "I think she's pretty."

Max turned her attention to the human in their midst and tilted her head curiously at him. She was hesitant and didn’t seem to trust him, much like Billy when they first met. Seeming to decide he wasn’t worth her time, she made her way down Billy’s body again. The mushrooms surrounded her immediately and began climbing all over her in delight. They bounced and circled her, trying to coax her to play with them much to Max’s clear displeasure. She squeaked her offense and tried to nip at them but they were fast. Steve knelt down and gently shooed them away and Max took the available escape by slithering up Steve’s arm instead. From her higher perch, she gave another indignant squeak at the little creatures below. 

Steve laughed and Billy felt his heart flutter in his chest.

Steve stepped carefully through the house, mindful of the creaking boards and the rickety third stair. He didn’t need anyone waking up. It was hard enough to get time to himself these days. Father insisted he had to learn to be a gentleman and that meant more tutors than ever before. That meant sitting at a table for hours getting rapped on the knuckles for picking up the wrong fork, people constantly pushing and pulling him upright to keep his posture perfect. It meant falling asleep when he was meant to be studying the great poets and his father being even more demanding of him. Steve didn’t have a free moment during the day and he presumed that was intentional. 

He donned the dark cloak he kept tucked in the cupboard beneath the staircase, pulling the hood over his head as he carefully crept through the kitchens to the servants’ entrance. It was small and hidden and much quieter than the ornate, front entrance. It also led directly to the gardens which was the fastest route to his goal, the reason for his father’s hawklike focus on his whereabouts. Steve slipped into the darkness of the forest. 

Navigating the high brush and dense undergrowth was second nature by now. Steve didn’t deviate from his original path, heading steadily deeper until he was certain he was no longer visible to the sleeping houses of the village. When he was sure it was safe, he paused and reached into his breast pocket. From it, he pulled the beautiful, clustered bluebell. It had survived through eight whole winters, never faltering. It was Steve’s most treasured possession. Cradling it in his hands, he whispered to it.

“Take me to him.”

He watched as the flower began to glow just as it had every time before. It wasn’t long before the rest of the forest followed suit. Dormant flowers opened and luminesced and the fireflies Steve so loved came to swarm around him in a flurry of light. He smiled as they rose around him, letting them guide him along the path. Steve loved this place so desperately. He felt wanted here. He felt whole in its wild embrace. Flowers and fireflies and so many other animals came out to greet him and followed along closely. He was no longer a predator here. He was a guest. A friend. But the most important creature was still missing from the scene. 

Steve kept going, deeper and deeper until he reached the heart. Dropping his hood, Steve smiled and approached the trunk. He laid his palm against the bark reverently. The energy pulsing beneath his touch was comforting and it never failed to inspire awe in him. There was so much life here. It was home to so many things. It was the epicenter of the magic that protected this forest and all that called it home. Steve laid his forehead against it and smiled. 

“May I go up?” he asked politely. There was a rush of warmth through him. Permission. Carefully, Steve found a familiar foothold and started to climb. Hand over hand, picking around for each safe place to put his weight, Steve made his ascent. He knew this tree better than his own home by this point and the creatures of the forest surrounded him in welcome.

He was just over halfway up when his confidence betrayed him. He got careless and missed his footing. Steve slipped, his eyes wide with fear as he realized he was plummeting back to the forest floor. His stomach was in his shoes and his heart raced as branches and leaves blew past him, none of them strong enough to catch himself on. His brain finally caught up with what was happening and Steve closed his eyes and let out a terrified scream. Then everything just… stopped. There was no rushing wind, no sensation of falling. Hesitantly, Steve peeked one eye open. 

Billy smirked down at him, his eyes shining with mirth and his arms supporting all of Steve’s weight where he cradled him against his chest. He held Steve as though he weighed nothing, his otherworldly strength making the task look laughably easy. 

“That’s five,” he teased, setting Steve back on his feet on the forest floor. “You’re such a clutz.”

“That is not five,” Steve argued, his cheeks flushing pink as he pouted at Billy. “I would have been fine if I hadn’t been distracted.”

“But you were,” Billy argued smugly, “and you fell and I saved your life. For the fifth time.” “You could have just helped me up in the first place,” Steve complained.

“Where’s the fun in that?” 

Steve sighed, rolling his eyes at the fairy. Billy was taller now, Steve only just surpassing him. His blonde curls were longer, thicker and wild looking. His appearance was starting to shift as Steve’s was. Baby fat still clung to his freckled face but the rest of him was getting steadily leaner. Steve had become more lanky than lean but his body was still plump and rounded in places, belying his tender age of fourteen. 

“Well, if you’re going to be that way, maybe I’ll just keep my gift to myself,” Steve huffed.

Billy’s eyes went wide and his smug face fell.

“Wha- I-” Billy spluttered. “You can’t do that! I saved your life!”

“And then you made fun of me.”

“That’s not how presents work,” Billy pouted. “You can’t just change your mind.”

Steve gave an exaggerated sigh, a smile twitching at the corners of his mouth. 

“Fine. I guess you can still have it,” he teased.

Though he tried to seem disinterested, Steve was too good at reading Billy by now to miss the undercurrent of excitement and anticipation. He reached into his pockets, finding the cool, leather binding he was searching for. Steve pulled out one of the small poetry books his tutor had given him, offering it up for Billy. He wasn’t a big fan. Most of the time, he didn’t understand the appeal of the pretty language and imagery. Why not just say what you meant? But Billy loved it. Steve had taught him how to read long ago and the other boy could never get enough despite his initial dismissal of reading and writing as “human stuff”. Steve wondered just how excited Billy would get if he knew about libraries. 

Billy took the book in his hands, turning it over with starry eyes.

“It’s a poetry book,” Steve told him. “I know you like them and I thought maybe you could teach the butterflies some new ones.”

Billy ran his palm over the cover, feeling the dips in the leather where the letters were painted in a glittering gold. 

“Aren’t they going to notice when you come to class without it?” Billy asked.

Steve rolled his eyes. “Probably. I’ll just tell them I lost it. It’ll take at least another month to get a new copy from the bookseller so I won’t have to sit through any more poetry lessons in the meantime.”

“No,” Billy said, rolling his eyes. “Just lessons on how to eat and stand and dress and ugh! I don’t know how your kind has survived this long if you’re still learning all that.”

Steve laughed. “It’s not really learning how to do those things as much as it is learning the proper way. I have to learn how to be a gentleman.”

“That’s dumb,” Billy said, nose wrinkling. “Why can’t you just be a Steve?”

Steve felt his heart twinge at the question he’d asked himself so many times. Why couldn’t he just be him? Why wasn’t that enough? But those arguments with his father were fruitless and only widened the rift between them and left his mother upset. 

“It’s not all bad,” Steve told him instead. “Some of it I actually like. I’ve had a few dance lessons now and they’re actually enjoyable.”

Billy rolled his eyes harder, letting his head drop back and groaning dramatically.

"Why do humans have to put rules on everything?” He protested. “You don't learn dancing. You feel it."

"But sometimes the learning is the fun of it,” Steve told him. “Here. Let me show you." 

Steve stepped up to stand toe to toe with Billy, gently taking the book from his hands. Max glided over next to them, coming up to about Billy’s hip now and finally able to support her own weight with stronger, more practiced wings. She took the book from Steve and headed up the tree with it without being asked. It would go with all the other things Steve had gifted Billy, tucked away in a little hollow where it would be safe.

Billy looked flustered as Steve turned his attention back to him and took his right hand. 

“This hand goes here,” he said, guiding Billy’s hand to rest on his shoulder. 

“And this hand goes here.” He clasped Billy’s waist with his left hand, the palm fitting there like it was made to. “And…” He clasped Billy’s free hand in his, holding them up to shoulder height. 

“There,” Steve said, smiling at Billy. The boy’s whole face burned red, his blue eyes staring pointedly at Steve’s collarbone, refusing to meet his eyes. “This is stupid,” he grumbled but Steve didn’t pay it any mind. 

“It starts like this.” Steve took a careful step forward with his left foot, giving Billy time to move his own foot back. 

“Then this.” He moved his right foot forward and to the right, waiting for Billy to follow. Billy stared down, trying to keep up with Steve’s movements and pick up on the pattern.

"Don't look at your feet. Just follow my lead." 

"Why do you get to lead?" Billy protested. 

"Are you teaching me then?" 

"Alright, alright."

His feet came together, right foot back, left foot back and left, feet together and back where they started.

“See? It’s easy.” 

“I don’t know,” Billy said. “This is weird. And there’s not even any music.” “Sure there is,” Steve told him. “Just listen.”

Billy paused, straining his ears to hear but there wasn’t anything coming from the town he could pick up. 

“I think you’re hearing things.”

“Nope. It’s all right here,” Steve insisted. He started to move, counting out loud to himself in threes. 

One. The croak of a frog. Two, three. Crickets chirping. One. An owl hooted. Two, three. Doves cooed to each other in the trees. 

Billy stared at Steve in awe. He was listening to the forest. The sounds Billy knew so well he all but tuned them out by now started to jump out one by one, coming together into a beautiful symphony. Steve listened to the forest and heard it singing to them.

Billy moved with Steve, letting the human that had bonded so deeply with his forest guide him. Steve smiled encouragingly as they moved just a bit faster. “See,” he told Billy. “You’re getting it.”

Yes, Billy thought, he was. He let his wings spread out behind him, broad and strong and, with one powerful stroke, lifted them both off the ground. The rush of air swirled around them, picking up the leaves and flower petals in its pull. The fireflies followed in a brilliant display and they were surrounded by a glowing cyclone. Steve laughed brightly as he watched them but Billy’s eyes were only for Steve. When the human’s chestnut eyes met his, shining and happy, soft, he couldn’t have stopped if he wanted to. Billy pulled Steve in closer to him. Their bodies pressed together and Billy hesitantly moved in. 

His eyes slid shut and his lips pressed against Steve’s. Steve breathed in sharply, unprepared for the sudden gesture and even less prepared for the spark it sent through him but that didn’t stop him from kissing Billy right back. It was awkward and chaste, neither of them knowing what they were doing, only that it felt… right. Like Steve’s hand on Billy’s waist, it fit. 

They separated and Billy pressed his forehead to Steve’s. 

“I… that was-”

“Good,” Steve finished, hearing the uncertainty in Billy’s voice and stopping it in its tracks. “It was good.”

“Yeah?” Billy asked softly. 

“Yeah,” Steve breathed back. He smiled wide and leaned in to kiss Billy all over again.

Steve laid in the tall grass, staring up at the stars and tracing the constellations with his finger. 

“That one’s Ursa Major. The bear,” he explained. Billy snorted a laugh and pushed the hair back off Steve’s forehead, the human’s head pillowed in his lap. 

“I think you’re seeing things.”

“No, really. Look,” Steve told him, tracing the lines again. “There’s the head and the body and there’s the legs.”

“They all just look like stars to me,” Billy said, shrugging. “What took you so long today? I thought you were done with your human lessons.”

Steve rolled his eyes affectionately. “They’re fancy human lessons, thank you very much. And yes, I’m done with my lessons.” Steve paused, staring up at the sky again. “I had to help with preparations. Apparently we have guests coming. Some nobleman and his wife and daughter are coming to stay with us.”

“Don’t they have their own home,” Billy scoffed. “Why do they need yours?”

“I think dad just wants to show me off,” Steve said. “He’s always so worried about appearances. I guess now that I’m eighteen, he figures I know enough to not embarrass him and he wants to compare me to the other nobles.”

Billy frowned at that. Why should Steve be measured against other humans? As if any of them could compare to his Steve anyway. Steve was so special no other human could ever hope to measure up. More important than that was how much Steve seemed to hate so much of this high society stuff he was forced into. 

“Why don’t you just leave?”

Steve laughed. “And go where?”

“Here.”

Steve looked up at Billy in surprise and Billy stared back, cradling Steve’s cheek in his palm. 

“You could stay. Live here with me. You never have to go back to that house or those people again.” He stroked his thumb back and forth over Steve’s soft skin. “We could be together all the time. Just like this.”

Steve looked at Billy longingly. To live here and leave all of the trappings of his life behind, all the expectations, to be with Billy, sounded like a dream. But…

“My mother,” Steve said softly, his face falling. “She always tells me I’ll disappear in here. She begs me not to come because she’s afraid of losing me. I couldn’t do that to her.”

Billy frowned, turning his head away.

“I want to,” Steve told him. “You know I do. Being with you is what I look forward to every day. It’s what’s kept me going this long. But I have a responsibility to my family too.”

“They have a responsibility to you, Steve. They’re supposed to love you. The real you. Not turn you into some performing pet to entertain their friends.”

Steve’s chest ached. He knew Billy was only angry on his behalf but hearing it so bluntly from the other boy’s lips made it hit so much harder. 

“They’re humans, Steve. They won’t stop until they’ve destroyed you just like they do everything else.”

“I’m human too, y’know,” Steve said softly, stopping Billy short. “Aren’t you worried I’ll ruin this place? Ruin you?”

Billy’s brow furrowed, his lips pressing together in a thin line. “That’s not… It's different,” Billy told him. “You’re different. You’re not just a human. You’re Steve.” Billy leaned down, folding himself almost in half to touch his forehead against Steve’s. “You’re my Steve.”

Steve reached up, tangling his fingers in the wild mane of Billy’s curls. “And you’re my Billy,” Steve said softly. “That’s never going to change.” 

They stayed that way for a moment, the two of them just soaking each other in. They didn’t have much longer before Steve would have to make his way out of the forest again. He would have to return home to his family and his duties and Billy would be left to wait for his return. 

As the sky turned from black to grey, Steve and Billy said their goodbyes and Steve took the familiar path through the forest, crept through the gardens and into the stillness of his home. He came through the kitchens, tucked his cloak back into the cupboard and rounded the stairs, ready for bed.

“Did you think you got away with it?”

Steve froze, ice flowing through his veins and chilling him to the bone. James Harrington was perched at the top of the stairs, his face stony, rage simmering beneath the surface and burning behind his eyes.

“Father, I-”

“Do you think this is a game, Steven? Do you enjoy getting the whole town talking about the Harrington boy making deals with the fae?”

“I haven’t-” Steve pleaded but his father cut him off harshly once again.

“I’ve given you everything, boy, and this is your idea of gratitude? Have you any idea how much your education cost?”

Steve glared at his father, his jaw set. “I never asked for that.”

“No. Of course not. You just expect everything handed to you. You have no regard for this family or how hard I worked to make the Harrington name mean something!”

“I don’t care about titles,” Steve snapped. “I don’t care about classes or all these made up rules! Why do humans have to put rules on everything?!” 

The second it left his mouth, Steve knew he’d made a big mistake. The silence was deafening between them. His father’s face went pale, his expression horrified.

“I-I… I didn’t-”

“So it’s true,” James hissed. “You’ve seen the devil, boy.”

That made Steve angry. No one would speak about Billy that way in his presence.

“The only devils I’ve seen, father,” he spat, “are among men.”

It was quiet again, the rage in his father visibly building. He went purple with it before his arm flew out and he grabbed hold of Steve’s upper arm with a bruising grip. 

“Clearly you can’t be trusted with your own safety,” he growled. “So I’ll have to save you from yourself.”

James dragged Steve along by the arm, pulling him so forcefully Steve struggled to keep up. He tried to fight his father’s grip but the man’s hand was like iron around him. He hauled Steve up and up and up, dragging him up the stairs to the tower. At the top of the staircase, he threw Steve forcefully through the open door. Steve hit the floor and slid, his back colliding with the opposite wall.

He cradled his arm, staring at his father in anger and fear.

“The lady Buckley will be arriving in three days time,” James roared. “And when that happens, you will be wed.”

“What? You can’t-!”

“I can and I will! And until that happens, you will remain here. Perhaps you’ll come to your senses by then.” 

His father slammed the door shut and Steve’s stomach dropped when he heard the lock click. 

“No.” Steve scrambled to his feet and threw himself at the door. “No!” 

The handle wouldn’t turn no matter how much he tried. In blind fear and rage, he pounded against the heavy, wooden door over and over, screaming to be let out. They couldn’t do this to him. They couldn’t lock him in here like some prisoner. He screamed himself hoarse, desperate for his freedom, wishing he’d never left the forest and stayed with Billy like he wanted. He wished he’d stayed home.

Billy was sick with worry, pacing circles around the heart of the forest. Something was wrong. Steve hadn’t come back yesterday. Not in the light of day nor the dead of night. Steve had never just not shown up before and Billy was at a loss. He couldn’t exactly go looking. What was he meant to do? Walk the streets of the village asking if any of them had seen Steve? Billy could never bring himself to set foot on the desecrated land, the stolen forests of men. And if he was seen… It was sickening to even think about.

No. Billy could never go to Steve. But he wasn’t alone in his concern. The whole of the forest was restless. He needed answers. They all needed to know if he was safe. Billy stopped pacing and reached out a hand. A mocking bird flew down from the trees and settled on the offered perch, watching Billy intently. 

“I need you to go to the village. Listen to everything. If anything happened to Steve, they’ll be talking about it, right?”

“Listen to everything,” the bird repeated, mimicking Billy’s voice perfectly. 

“Good. Go.” 

The bird flew off, leaving Billy behind. It flitted from tree to tree, lighting on branches and making its way through the forest to the village. It was a lot of ground to cover for a little bird but she would do her best. Everywhere she saw humans together, she would land and listen. 

“That Jim is so handsome, isn’t he?” 

“I heard he used to be a knight before he came back here. Such a shame about his daughter though.”

Nothing about Steve at the laundry pool then. She took flight again. The window of the bakery was her next perch.

“I don’t know how they expect us to finish such a big cake in such a short time.”

“They’re paying us well enough to rush it. Don’t complain.”

“Still, it’s not going to be nearly as pretty as it could have been.”

Nothing here either. She took off again, this time to the town square. There were many humans gathered here, all setting up for some sort of gathering. The ladies weaving flowers into an archway were where she found what she needed.

“I hear the Buckley girl got caught in bed with her handmaiden,” one woman half whispered. “Everyone’s talking about it. They say it’s why she hasn’t been able to find a suitor back home.”

The other woman clicked her tongue and shook her head. “How unfortunate. She’s such a pretty girl too.”

“Still,” the first woman said again. “I don’t think it’s quite on the same level as our lordling. I wonder if they know what they’re signing up for. Disappearing into the woods like that and coming back ever since he was a child? It just doesn’t make sense unless he…”

“Oh yes,” the other agreed. “I heard from one of the servants that he confirmed it himself. Confessed it right to his father’s face that he made a deal with them.”

“Oh dear. I think someone ought to warn the Buckley’s, don’t you? That’s nothing to muck about with. Imagine the effect such a thing might have on their children.”

“You’d better not,” the second woman hissed. “If it gets out we blabbed to the Buckley’s and ruined this arrangement, Lord Harrington will make our lives a living hell and then throw us to the wolves.” She fastened on the last flower, wiping her hands on her apron. “Young Lord Steven will be wed tomorrow and that’s that.”

There it was. That was what she needed. 

“And that’s that,” she repeated to herself, startling the women below. 

“Oh, you nasty thing,” the first woman scolded. “Shoo! Off with you.”

She swung a rag at the mocking bird, chasing her off the archway. That was okay. She had to get back anyway. She had to report back to Billy. She made her way back through the forest just before the sun began to set. Billy was waiting, curled up in the hollow of the tree with his treasures. He had the book of poetry open, the binding of it cracking in places and worn smooth in others. Max was curled up around the rest of the trinkets from their human to protect it. Only Billy was allowed to touch the hoard. The mockingbird landed on Billy’s knee, shaking out her feathers and looking up at him.

“Well,” Billy asked, setting the book in his lap. “Did you find anything out? Is he okay?”

The mockingbird lowered her head, hesitating. 

“Young Lord Steven will be wed tomorrow and that’s that.”

Billy’s heart sank. No. That couldn’t be right. Steve wouldn’t marry someone else. He loved Billy. He said so.

“I have a responsibility to my family too.”

His stomach sank and he felt like he would be sick. His chest tightened and his vision blurred with tears. 

“I’m human too, y’know. Aren’t you worried I’ll ruin this place? Ruin you?”

Billy gasped for breath around a sob. He should have known better. You couldn’t trust humans. They take everything and leave you bleeding. He looked down at the book in his lap and the overwhelming grief was replaced with anger. How could Steve do this? How could his Steve, the one who gave him everything, who chased the loneliness away, be so heartless? How could he abandon him to loneliness all over again?

Billy roared, slamming the book shut and throwing it as hard as he could. It spiraled away through the trees, crashing somewhere out of sight. He moved to the pile of things Steve had given him. The stuffed animal, the flower crowns they made together, the toys and all the pretty rocks he found but refused to take because they belonged to the forest, every last thing was thrown from the tree. One by one, they flew from view, landing wherever they may. Billy never wanted to see them again. He never wanted to see Steve again. He never even wanted to hear his name. 

Never again would a human be allowed in his forest. Never again would anyone be allowed in his heart. 

When it was all gone, Billy stood there panting. His chest and shoulders heaved with every breath. He threw his head back, letting out a roar that echoed through the trees and rattled the ground. Everything fell silent. So painfully, deafeningly silent. He was so angry. He wanted to fight, to hurt, to take. But there was nothing left to throw. Every sign Steve had been here was gone… Steve was gone. And just like that, the anger leached out of him. It dissipated like the morning fog and all that was left was the hurt. All he had left was an empty sadness. There was a hole in his heart. Billy dropped to his knees and wept. 

He wept for what felt like an eternity. He wept until he had no tears left to give. Max curled around him, laying her big head over his shoulder to pull him close to her scaled chest. She had never seen Billy hurt like this. Nothing here did save for the trees, the last living witnesses to his first earth shattering heartbreak. Only they and Billy remembered the forest that was and the wound of losing their matriarch, Billy’s mother. Only they could see the scars it left behind.

When he was exhausted, Max carried him out of the hollow and up into the nest. He laid there in silence, draping himself over the edge and playing idly with one of the pink flowers that still decorated his home. The sun had sunk down, giving way to darkness. Billy just felt… numb. He glanced up, his eyes landing on the village and sending another spike of pain through his heart. But something gave him pause. 

The tower. There was a light in the window. Billy had never seen it lit before. He was filled with anger again. Perhaps that was Steve’s bride. She must be up late, glowing in the excitement of tomorrow and knowing she would have Steve all to herself. Billy growled. He needed to see her. He needed to know just who would presume to steal Steve away from him.

Billy got to his feet, brow furrowed and jaw set. He dropped from the tree, free falling until he came close to the canopy of the smaller trees. His wings snapped open and he pulled up sharply into a glide. He let himself coast on the air currents as he made his way silently over the woods instead of through them. Let the humans see him and heaven help any of them that had something to say about it. He approached the tower, pulling up to land on the outer sill. The gust from his wings blew the windows inward, extinguishing the lamp that had led him here so the glow of the moon was the only light pouring into the room. 

A gasp drew Billy’s attention to the corner of the room where a figure was huddled. There. This had to be her. But something didn’t feel quite right. It was no woman, he realized. He sniffed the air and picked up the familiar scent of Steve. Steve and tears. Billy stepped down off the sill, bare feet hitting the floor soundlessly. He could see Steve better now, bathed in pale blue light. He was curled in a ball, his eyes puffy and cheeks tearstained. He looked so small. So lost. In an instant, Billy was brought back to that first night in the forest and he could see clear as day the lonely little boy who’d come into his forest looking to disappear. 

Steve half laughed and half sobbed as he realized Billy was really here. He sniffed and wiped furiously at his eyes, turning to Billy with a watery smile.

“Are you here to steal me?” he asked, his voice unsteady. Billy’s heart skipped a beat.

“Are you here to steal me?”

“Why would I do that?”

Billy dropped to one knee in front of Steve, cradling his face in his hands so gently. He leaned in and kissed Steve for all he was worth, searing his claim into Steve’s very soul. Steve returned it with all the need and fear and relief that had ruled his world for the last two days. Fresh tears spilled over and as they pulled apart, Billy brushed them away.

“Forever and ever.”

Steve choked out a sob and threw himself into Billy’s arms. Billy held him tight, burying his face in Steve’s shoulder. He didn’t dare let go, lest Steve disappear all over again but he soothed him just the same. 

“I’m here,” he told him. “I’ve got you now. You’re mine. My Steve.”

“And you’re my Billy,” Steve cried. 

The sound of footsteps thudding up the stairs pulled them from the moment, reminding them they weren’t out of danger just yet. Billy growled, standing to his full height and facing the door with his wings spread wide. He dared any of them to try and lay a finger on Steve. He would kill every last one of them. 

“Billy,” Steve pleaded. “No. Please. Just get me out of here.”

Everything in him wanted to stay. He wanted to make an example of them for anyone who would ever dream to take Steve from him again. But…

“Please,” Steve breathed, leaning against Billy’s back. “I want to go home. Take me home.”

It was a plea Billy couldn’t ignore. They were nearly here. If they were going to run, they would have to act fast. Billy grabbed Steve and ran for the window. The wooden door burst open behind them, men screaming at them to halt. But Billy paid them no heed. He gripped Steve to his chest and dove through the open window, ascending steeply. 

“Steven!” a voice boomed. “Don’t you dare!”

Billy paused, turning to look at the arrogant old man that leaned out the window. The man that dared to spew threats. Billy clasped Steve to him and breathed in deep, letting out a roar that shook the very ground. All the glass in the house shattered, the sharp tones ringing through the air in resonance with the frightening sound that poured from deep in Billy’s chest. The look of fear in the man’s eyes gave Billy more satisfaction than it probably should but he couldn’t be bothered to care. He turned away, back toward the forest. Back toward home. 

“I’ve got you,” he told Steve gently. “We’ve got you.” Below them, the forest began to light up, welcoming them both in. 

“You belong to the forest now.”

Steve clung to him. “Part of the forest,” he said, his voice soft and reverent.

“That’s right. And it will always protect you. I will always protect you.”