#accidentally suspicious behavior or power move? Your choice.

[calamity-calliope]

The New Sequence is absolutely wonderful because yes, they are doing a great job of infiltrating society, but it's frankly hilarious how blatantly un-stealthy they can be. Like sure, walking around bright-eyed in public would certainly attract attention, absolutely. But is it any better to be recognized as the people who wear sunglasses in a cave.

[skylarmoon71]

Loki Laufeyson Fanfiction (Marvel) - Chapter 2

If it's one thing you missed about having free time, its for days like this. You've spent the better part of your time not only looking after Zara, but making sure you had these powers of yours under control. Mainly to ensure you didn't accidentally hurt anyone, or yourself.

"So what do you wanna watch next?" You question.

"I heard the new season of witches came out?"

"You really like witches don't you?"

"Correction, I like magic." She'd probably like Loki then.

That menace. Just the thought of him makes you want to blast something. Preferably his face into the pavement.

"He's not here. You're not gonna let that pest ruining you're wonderful day."

You have to remind yourself about that sometimes.

A knock on your door makes your head turn.

"I'll get it!" Zara is pitching to the door before you have a chance to object.

"Who is it?" you call.

"A hot guy!" you laugh standing. She'd met Tony and Natasha, but not Steve.

You stand.

"Sometimes I wonder if you lack shame Zara."

Making your way to the door, you turn the corner. The dark haired male isn't who you expect. It's Loki of all people. And of course he's wearing a suit. A black one.

"Loki, did you finally kill someone" You gesture to the outfit. Zara is marveling at the side.

"Oh is this the guy you're always talking about? He's really cute. Why didn't you mention that? This whole time I've been trying to get you a boyfriend and you were working with this hunk and-" you cover her mouth to stop the words. Loki is wearing that stupid grin.

"You must be the famous little sister. It's a pleasure to meet you." He holds out his hand which she shakes with a smile. "The pleasure is all mine." She doesn't stick around long either.

"I'll leave you two lovebirds alone." You just direct a glare at her as she slips away.

"Quite a character she is."

"Yeah, she takes after her sister." You speak flatly. You lean against the door, and Loki tilts his head.

"Aren't you going to invite me in? Isn't that the midgardian tradition?"

"With friends and family yeah we do. I don't think you fall under either category."

"I didn't come here to argue mortal."

"Nice way to get on my good side. "

You expect him to be annoyed, maybe say something witty and disappear. You shift when you see the guilt that is conveyed in his eyes.

"I came here to apologize."

At first you think this is a trick. Loki isn't the type to admit when he's wrong. So apologizing is completely out of character for him. Naturally, you're suspicious. You look behind him for a second, then back.

"Really, you're apologizing."

"Well I don't have much of a choice now do I?"

Ah, that's Loki.

"I don't want your half ass apology." You moved to close the door, but he steps closer, halting your actions.

"Alright. " Crossing your arms you wait.

"I never meant for you to get hurt on that mission. I was wrong. I shouldn't have put you in a situation where your life would be in danger. You were right. Aside from my brother I have no one. We aren't exact on the best terms either."

"If you stop stabbing people in the back you might have better relationships."

"I don't do that." you raise a brow.

"Anymore."

Sure he didn't.

"What I mean is, it was unprofessional. I promise to be on my best behavior when you come back."

"What makes you think I'll be coming back?" Yes, his apology sounds sincere, but this is Loki. It'll be a few weeks of quiet, then he'll be back to his regular antics. Doesn't say much for your integrity if you cave so easily.

"What guarantee do I have that you won't just do the same old thing. I'm not going through that again. " He takes another step, and you're a bit taken aback at the way he's looking at you now.

"You have my word." This time, he sounds different. If you didn't know better you would think he was being honest. You bite down on your lip.

"I must be crazy to even consider this."

Loki is grinning again. "So it's a yes, you'll come back."

"Sure, what's the worst that can happen."

There's a playful twinkle, and your gut tells you you're about to find out the answer to that question. Whether you're ready or not.

"By the way, you look quite ravishing in casual wear. " You look down at your seat pants and t-shirt, cheeks flushing.

"Shut up! Unlike you flattery doesn't work on me."

He moves  more, and you lean back against the wall, flustered.

"I wasn't trying to flatter, merely stating facts."

"S-Stop flirting with me!" He grins.

"Is there a rule that prohibits partner relationships on the team?"

"As if I'd ever date you."

"Of course she'll date you!"

You send an accusatory look at Zara who  is standing behind the wall with a smile.

"Zara!!"

"What? You're single, he's single. I definitely see a spark. You know they say the ones we pretend to hate are usually the ones we like the most."

You're own sister is throwing you under the bus.

Loki still looks way to comfortable, and too close.

"You have approximately five seconds to back the hell up before you become one with the wallpaper." He backs up, still wearing a stupid smile.

He's definitely going to be a handful from here on out.

[supremeuppityone]

Written for @kcfanficweek Klaroline Fanfiction Week Day 1- All Human Fanfic Day. 

This is a follow-up to my work in A Beautiful Symmetry, Chapter 83: Part 10 - Klarosummer Bingo. Thanks for all of the asks and encouragement to write more from this world. Enjoy!

Please review here.

Part 2: Newsflash — seashell bras give me hives

         The fake pine scent coupled with musk overwhelmed her senses and made her gag. She blinked rapidly, realizing she was waking face-first on the couch. Fuck. It smelled like Damon had rubbed his Paco Rabanne-soaked ass all over it. “Easy sweetheart,” Klaus murmured unexpectedly from above.

           She looked up, wincing at the bruises she could feel along the base of her skull. Klaus’ concerned face was a bit fuzzy as she tried to focus, but once she took in the severity of his own injuries, she snapped back to reality. At least one black eye, cuts along his cheeks and forehead that looked suspiciously like the gaudy rings that bore the Salvatores’ family crest. “Klaus? Oh, my god — what did those bastards do to you?!”

           “Nothing I don’t intend to return in kind,” he answered, the coldness of his voice making her shiver.

           The Salvatores had first introduced Klaus as ‘new money business’, which Caroline had assumed meant that he was a high-level dealer, or maybe even a drug lord. She’d been careful around him, doing her best to check her curiosity whenever she saw him at the club, but she couldn’t help but wonder if he had information she could use. Especially now that it seemed the badge lying on the coffee table belonged to him.

           She was pissed at him for keeping secrets, but realized she was being a hypocrite. After all, she’d weaseled her way into Salvatore Sirens, the mermaid-themed burlesque club, under false pretenses too. It was all Bonnie’s stupid fault — her loser boyfriend got in too deep with the Salvatores and couldn’t pay them back — so she begged Caroline to get a job there and spy on the Salvatores and get evidence of their drug trafficking.

           All this time, she’d felt conflicted about her growing feelings for Klaus, worried about how to keep him out of this mess when she finally had evidence to take to the police. And it turned out that Klaus was the police. She nodded to his badge, her voice barely above a whisper as she said, “Of all the things I would’ve guessed about you, this was not one of them.”

           “You wondered about me,” he asked in an oddly hopeful tone. “I wasn’t sure how much of what you’d shown me was real.” At her affronted expression, he hastily explained, “Not that I assumed anything untoward about you or your...assets. They’re lovely.” Gray eyes widened in horror as he quickly corrected his wandering gaze, adding, “I meant that you’re lovely! All of you, that is.”

           She raised an eyebrow, not really sure what to say. Klaus rambled when he was nervous. And he wasn’t nearly as smooth as his drug lord persona he’d adopted for his undercover work. She liked this Klaus better. “You’re lovely as well.” With a teasing wink, she added, “All of you.” The throbbing of her head reminded her that this definitely was the wrong time to flirt. “Tell me you have a plan,” she muttered, careful to keep her voice low in case the Salvatores were watching them.

           “Everything will be fine, Caroline. I promise.”  

           “Well, this is just awkward. Because I’m pretty sure nothing will be fine for either of you ever again,” Damon sneered, straddling a chair off to the side while Stefan creepily sat so close to Caroline he almost was in her lap. Both brothers had dark eyes, but it was Stefan’s that she found the most disturbing. They were perfectly blank — devoid of emotion — but yet they glittered with an eerie awareness. And right now, it was directed at her.

           When Stefan began running his fingers along the top of her hand, she immediately tried to jerk it away, her flesh crawling from his touch. However, his grip was iron and she had no choice but to let him continue his silent exploration.

           “Let go of her,” Klaus snarled, struggling to break free of his bonds.

           Damon watched him struggle, an amused grin on his pale face as he said, “We’re going to play a game. I’ll ask you questions, and each time you lie, my brother with touch another part of Caroline. And she has so many pretty parts.” He cocked his dark head, his voice little more than a sleazy purr. “And just so you know, Stefan has had his eye on her for awhile. Normally, there’s a strict a hands-off policy with our girls — since it’s just not worth the payoffs or the inevitable body dumps — but your little crush on her is too convenient not to exploit.”

           Caroline sucked in a gasp, looking away from Stefan’s blank stare as he continued to weirdly massage her knuckles. Fuck — why was he licking his lips?

           Clearly noticing Stefan’s disconcerting behavior, Klaus ground out through clenched teeth, “What do you want to know?”    

           “Your badge says ‘narcotics’. So, what are you? Cop? DEA?”

           “Narcotics agent. With the DEA,” He replied tersely. His steely gaze flicked over to Stefan, who paid him no mind as he continued to toy with Caroline’s hand, running a blunt nail across her cuticles. “I answered your question — let go of her,” he seethed.

           Damon shook his head, dark eyes full of mirth as he taunted, “You answered one question. And Stefan is still only touching one of Caroline’s parts. We need to give him a freebie — trust me, you don’t want Stefan to have idle hands.”

           She hated that she shivered at Damon’s threatening words, the weight of Stefan’s empty stare making her want to scream. Her thoughts raced at what Klaus had revealed. He wasn’t a local police officer — he worked at the federal level. This meant he was even more useful to her cause than she’d realized. Plus, it meant the Feds already were onto the Salvatores’ drug operation. With a start, she remembered the tiny camera hidden among the gaudy pearls of her ridiculous seashell bra. She needed to make sure everything that happened here was caught on camera.

           She subtly shifted, arching her back to get the best possible angle. She sat very still as she focused on Damon to ensure several frames were captured before moving onto Klaus, hoping she properly catalogued all of his injuries. It was when she turned her attention to Stefan that Damon called her out with a sharp laugh, “What’s with you pointing your tits at my brother? Yeah, your rack’s pretty awesome, but you’re one crazy bitch if you think it’s going to save you.”

           “Leave her alone,” Klaus demanded, mercifully pulling focus away from her for the moment.

           His face cleared as he nodded in agreement. “Right — back to my questions. So how long have the Feds been onto us and what evidence do you guys have?”

           Stefan briefly looked away from her, seemingly interested in Klaus’ response, and she quickly considered her options. What could she use as a weapon? She couldn’t risk damaging the camera in her ridiculous bra and the sequins of her mermaid costume only would scrape skin, not break it. Her Salvatore Sirens’ outfit was just as useless as it was uncomfortable. As she shifted her hips, she jumped slightly at the press of the steel boning that was poking its way through a hole in the lining. Of course! She’d accidentally ripped a seam climbing out of the giant clamshell during her act, and there hadn’t been time to see the stage manager before she was expected to mingle with the crowd.

           With a slight nudge of her free hand, she caressed the sharp tip of the metal, slowly inching it out of the small tear in the fabric. Once it was out, she hugged it tightly between her palm and her thigh, weighing her options. While she wished she could use it to cut through Klaus’ bonds, Stefan or Damon would stop her first. She had no choice — she’d need to injure Stefan before doing anything else. Feeling slightly queasy, she sucked in a breath and then took advantage of Stefan’s uncomfortably close proximity to lean into him just enough to hide her weapon. Her unexpected move distracted him and she managed to put all of her weight behind the first blow, jamming the rigid piece of metal into his neck. He immediately bellowed, instinctively grabbing at it to yank it out, spraying blood while Damon cursed and reached for her.

           She barely avoided Damon’s clutches, shoving a still-screaming Stefan away from her to get to Klaus. However, Klaus surprised her by leaping to his feet, hands already free. He’d silently freed himself and had been biding his time. In a blinding burst of speed, he’d managed to strike down Damon with some sort of downward-slashing movement with his elbow, and delivered a powerful punch to Stefan’s jaw, causing him to crumple to the ground with a pitiful moan, his neck wound continuing to bleed.  

           A fine spray of blood had splattered across them both and the air stank of sweat; however, Caroline was certain she’d never been more turned on in her life as she stared in wonder at Klaus. Returning her heated gaze, he told her, “You jumped the gun a bit, but I do enjoy a woman who takes charge, love.”

           Before she could reply, the room suddenly swarmed with agents who secured the Salvatores and began checking Caroline and Klaus’ injuries. He grimaced a bit when one of the agents poked a bit too hard at his ribs, but continued his debriefing, glancing over at Caroline to say, “While the Salvatores destroyed the bugs I’d planted in here, at least you’ll be able to corroborate what happened.”

           Caroline nodded, blue eyes lighting up excitedly as she answered, “Plus, there’s my boob camera!”

           From the quirk of his brow and flash of his dimples, it seemed Klaus was anxious to give her evidence a thorough examination.

[dreamwritesimagines]

Don’t You Love Me? 12- ‘Cause I’m Going Numb [Steve Rogers x Reader]

A.N.: Your feedback makes me so happy and helps me write faster, please keep it coming! <3

Characters: Steve Rogers x Reader, Tony Stark x Pepper Potts, Bucky Barnes, Natasha Romanoff.

Warnings: Drinking, mentions of addiction, self destructive behavior, cussing, explicit language, mentions of sex. Read with care please. 

Summary: Secrets bring more secrets.

Word Count: 2995

Chapters: 

1         2        3        4       5        6       7         8       9        10       11  

The beautiful moodboard is made by fictionwillneverdie

Gif’s not mine!

By the time Steve got there with Natasha, you were already pretty drunk. While you were sure neither of them would approve, it wasn’t like they had any chance to disapprove. Steve could barely say two words to you before Maria came to pull him into a meeting because apparently, “Council wanted to make sure Captain America was not in danger”.

Other Avengers –including Bucky- got there in half an hour after Steve and Natasha arrived. Natasha and Tony exchanged glances before he walked your way, while you kept typing various passwords.

You could never be too careful, after all.

“Hey there,” Tony said, “Pepper was worried about you.”

“We’ve been over this Tony, tell her not to.”

“You know that’s not how it works.” Tony heaved a sigh, and leaned back to the table, “How much did you drink?”

“Not enough for this fucking conversation.”

“You really think this is a good idea?”

“Honestly man, I don’t give a fuck what is a good or a bad idea anymore.”

“When this whole thing is over, I’m dragging you to rehab.”

You looked up at him, “Oh you think this shit will ever be over?” You asked but before he could say anything else, Bucky had already stepped in.

“Could I have a word with her, Stark?”

“Great…” You mumbled as Tony walked away and you looked at Bucky for a second before turning you gaze back to computer screen, “Not that I don’t appreciate the whole intervention approach, but I’m really busy, Buck.”

“Intervention?”

“Yeah, you know-“ You scoffed “Whole drinking is bad for you shit, which no offense, but Pepper and Tony are enough for that so…”

“I was just gonna congratulate you.”

That got you distracted and you looked at him, “Hm?”

“Yeah, with Steve. It’s good to see he finally got the courage to ask you out.”

You thought for a second, “I think I was the one who asked him out. Or…basically begged him to kiss me.”

“Trust me, if I know Steve, you honestly didn’t have to beg.”

You found yourself smiling before your eyes shot up to his and you bit on your lip.

“I know what you’re doing, Barnes.”

“And what am I doing?”

“You’re making me talk about Spangles so that I will feel better and less bitter. I’m just drunk, not stupid.”

“Is it working then?” Bucky asked with a small smile and you rolled your eyes,

“You had a chance to talk to your bro?”

“I have.”

“Is he fed up already? Because I would be.”

“Fed up?” Bucky repeated, then shook his head, “Nah he’s just worried about you. You should’ve seen how fast he moved to get here to see you.”

“You do realize you’re breaking the bro code right now, hm?” You asked, “You’re supposed to keep your best friend away from danger, and I’m as dangerous as it gets.”

Bucky scoffed, “You make it sound like I could ever keep Steve away from danger. The guy tends to run towards it.”

You let out a bitter laugh, “Now to think of it, you might not have to.”

“Hm?”

You scoffed, “Captain America belongs to America, Buck. And that council that’s grilling his ass right now? Guess what they won’t allow.”

Bucky shot you a quizzical look, “What?”

“Him, being with me.”

Bucky narrowed his eyes, “I’m sorry, for a second there I thought you implied Steve obeyed anything people told him to.”

“He might not have a choice.”

“I repeat, we’re talking about Steve. He has been defying orders for about a hundred years now and you think a council will change his mind?”

You heaved a sigh and lifted the bottle but realized it was empty so you put it down again, rolling your eyes.

“There’s not much he can do if-“ You started but the small sound coming from the computer made you distracted and you turned your head.

All the passwords were entered and finally, the files were there for you to open. You dragged your fingertip on the screen at the same time Steve walked in but you forced yourself not to look his way until he took his seat.

“Okay…” You mumbled to yourself and clicked on the button so that it would be projected on the wall and walked to stand in front of your desk, still holding the tablet, “Welcome to the screening of the bad guy of the year.”

Steve kept his eyes on you while the rest of the Avengers leaned forward. You pursed your lips, then took a deep breath.

“Meet Trent von Strucker, guys.”

Steve’s head shot up and Tony frowned.

“Von Strucker as in…”

“Yeah. As in Baron Wolfgang von Strucker, one of the leaders of Hydra. You’re looking at his oldest son, apple of his eye, pride of his psycho family.” You clicked on the screen, “He- um… he was raised to take his father’s place, when the time came.  Last I heard, Baron Strucker was considering retirement so probably Trent has more power now than before. His headquarters was in-“

“I’m sorry,” Tony cut you off, “How exactly were you involved with this guy?”

“Tony…”

“It’s fine,” You told Steve, then shrugged, “He um- when I was… I don’t know, like eighteen or something, I got in way over my head and accidentally hacked a stupid government file. Needless to say, I was in serious trouble until… Until Trent found me.”

“But if you got married-“

“I didn’t know,” You shook your head fervently, “I had no idea about what HYDRA was, okay? You’re eighteen, a guy is nice to you, you think that shit is love.”

“No one is judging you, Y/N.” Natasha said slowly and you scoffed.

“Honestly Tash at this point, I’m way too fucking drunk to care about that.”

“Maybe we can do this once you’re-“

“You think I can actually talk about this asshole when I’m sober?” You asked Steve and licked your lips. “Anyway. Couple years in, I had this idea-“ You paused, “It- it doesn’t matter. I thought it’d make everyone’s lives better, but of course HYDRA always finds a way to twist good intentions. When I told Trent about it-“

“What was the idea?”

You gritted your teeth, “Doesn’t matter.” You mumbled, “I told Trent about it, and he started- acting suspicious. I don’t even know what was so suspicious about it, but something was. So I hacked him to see what his deal was and… there it was. HYDRA and all its files.”

“Hold on, all its files?”

You shrugged slightly, “I’m good at what I do. Well, I am when I’m sober and I was sober back then.”

Tony stole a look at Bruce before turning to you, “Do you still have those files?”

“Some of them.”

“I thought you said-“

“Yeah, then Trent found out I was snooping around, and then…” You paused, “Anyways-“

Steve frowned, “What happened when he found out?”

“Oh you don’t wanna know what happened then.” You chuckled bitterly, “The reason for this story time is,” You cleared your throat, “I was with him for years, and the guy- he doesn’t have any weaknesses.”

“Everyone has weaknesses.”

“Trent doesn’t, because he doesn’t love anything. There’s nothing we can use against him but HYDRA itself.”

“HYDRA itself?”

You nodded, “I spent some time with Trent’s dad, and when I hacked HYDRA, I put all the pieces together. He raised his son to be the perfect leader for the HYDRA, that’s all that ever matters to Trent. Making his old man proud.”

“I don’t want to sound insensitive, but…” Clint said, “How about- how about you?”

“Me?”

“The bastard is the creepy obsessive ex, right?”

“It’s not because he gives a shit about me.” You shook your head, “I got away, he got pissed. Simple as that.”

“There’s nothing more?”

You gulped, lying was much harder when you were drunk as hell.

“No.” You hoped your lie sounded convincing, “No there isn’t. So we can’t exactly beat him by using me-”

“No one is talking about using you.” Steve cut you off and you scoffed.

“No but that’s what I would suggest if it were someone else.” You shrugged, “It’d make perfect sense. Too bad he doesn’t care about me, so it wouldn’t work.”

Natasha clicked her tongue, “How about his father?”

“Baron Strucker? I last spotted him in Germany.”

“Maybe we could pay a visit there.”

“He never stays in one place for long, Tash. Call it paranoia.”

Tony leaned in, “So that system he was trying to get from me, it was for HYDRA?”

“Yeah. So you’re not…you’re not dealing with a greedy businessman, contrary to what he may depict himself as. You’re dealing with the future leader of HYDRA.”

“And you guys didn’t believe me when I said he looked like a Bond villain.”

“I’m sending some clips to you, along with his file.” You clicked on the screen, “A list of his allies, enemies, the people he has done business with-”

“You really have those?”

“Consider them my alimony.” You mumbled, and checked your watch, “Fury will be with you in five minutes and fill you in.”

You pulled the flashdrive back, and walked out of the room without saying anything to any of them, but as soon as you did, you heard someone pushing their chair back and running after you.

“Y/N, hold up-“ You heard Steve and he caught up with you in a second, “Wait-“

“I’m gonna smoke and you should be in the conference room. Fury doesn’t like to be-“

“Are you okay?”

You snorted and ignored the people staring at him in the hall.

“Peachy,” You said, “Fury will grill my ass about being professional if you don’t go back.”

“Y/N-“ he started but you pushed open the balcony door and put a cigarette between your lips to light it.

“Hm?”

“Talk to me.”

You exhaled the smoke and looked up at him, “What’s there to talk about, really? My psycho ex just dressed someone up as you and killed the poor bastard. What did the council tell you?”

Steve hesitated only for a moment, “It’s not important.”

“Let me guess. You don’t have our permission to-“

“I don’t ask for permission from anyone but you on that.” Steve’s voice was low and you closed your eyes, your eyelids too heavy.

“Until Trent attacks again.” You opened your eyes and huffed out the smoke, “What if he attacks you this time? I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready to see you dead-“

“Is there anything you want to give me?”

You pulled your brows together, “Head?”

“Drugs.”

“Oh, that.” You shrugged, “Didn’t buy them.”

“You didn’t?”

“If I bought drugs every time Trent threatened me, I wouldn’t have any money left.”

“Those are empty threats, you know that right?”

“I know you think they are empty threats.” You mumbled, stubbing your cigarette on the marble and turned to him, “Knife through his chest, Steve...”

Steve extended his hand to entwine his fingers with yours, and pressed your palm over his own chest silently, as if trying to assure you he would be fine. You felt his strong heartbeat under your palm and you sniffled before you wrapped your arms around his neck, pressing your body to his. He held you tight and lifted you for a second, resting his chin on top of your head while you tried to pull yourself together.

“Council has a point.” You mumbled into his chest silently, but he heard you.

“No it doesn’t.”

“Yes it does. Imagine if the roles were reversed and Bucky was seeing someone with a psycho ex.”

“Oh you should’ve seen the dames Bucky dated back then.”

A laughter you couldn’t stop escaped from your lips and you pulled back to look up at him.

“Dames?” You quoted and he looked abashed for a second.

“Girls.”

“No no no Rogers, you’re not getting off that easy. Come on, talk forties to me.” You wiped at your eyes and a look of amusement crossed Steve’s face,

“Seriously?”

“Yes!”

He raised his brows, deep in thought.

“Okay, uh…” He cleared his throat, “Bucky, he- he was on active duty with lots of dames-“

“A womanizer who slept with lots of chicks.”

“And while he wasn’t exactly doll-dizzy…”

“He wasn’t that crazy about chicks.”

“One time he was on a date with this cloud walker honey and another dame came up to him and said “Hi sugar, are you rationed?” and his date snapped her cap and they took a powder-“

“Translation?”

“He was on a date with a pretty dancer girl and another girl asked him if they were going steady, so his date got mad and they had to leave.”

You sniffled again, biting down a smile, “I’m gonna google all of these because I feel like you just made some phrases up.”

“Oh now you’re blaming me with jiggery pokery?”

“I don’t even know what that is but yes-“

“Steve?” You both snapped out of it and when you turned your head, you saw Sharon who averted her eyes kindly, “Fury wants you in the conference room.”

“Go,” You pushed him slightly, “I’m fine. I’m just gonna google all the forties shit I can find, don’t worry about me.”

“You’ll be here?”

“My apartment.”

“Y/N-“

“I’ll find an agent to escort her home, Steve.” Sharon said and you raised your brows, then shrugged.

“See? Totally fine.”

“I’ll come as soon as it’s finished.”

“Don’t worry about it Cap.” You repeated, as he walked towards the door “I’ll see you in couple of hours.”

He nodded and followed Sharon, and you took a deep breath, then made your way to your desk to get your bag.

                                             *

The strange thing about addiction?

It was a fucking domino.

You knew you shouldn’t have, you just knew, but as soon as you got out of shower and saw your red rimmed eyes in the mirror, you went to fridge and got the cheap alcohol bottle. Your nausea and dizziness were getting worse by the hour but you tried your hardest to ignore it as you downed the vodka, sitting on the floor, tears escaping your eyes as you changed the channels, but all of them showed the same footage.

Soon enough, the doorbell rang and you stumbled to the door, then looked through the peephole.

“Steve?”

“Yes?”

“Is it okay if I didn’t open the door?” You asked, small droplets of water dripping from your hair to your shirt.

“Why is that, darling?”

“I want to pull myself together first, I watched the news and-” You sniffled, “I keep crying for some reason.”

“And you don’t want me there?”

“I want you here, I just…don’t want you to see me crying.”

Steve didn’t answer for a couple of seconds and you sat down in front of the door, still holding the vodka bottle tight and you heard some shuffling on the other side of the door which made you think he had sat down on the other side as well.

“Okay then,” he said, and you heard a soft thud, as if he had leant his head to the door. You dragged your fingertips over the smooth surface of the door, swallowing thickly.

“Steve?”

“Yes?”

“What did the Council tell you?”

“That’s not important at all, Y/N.”

“But what did they tell you?” You insisted and Steve heaved a sigh.

“We’ll talk about that when you sober up, okay?”

You wiped your nose and let out a bitter laugh, “I told you though. I did, didn’t I?”

“Told me what?”

“That it’d shatter.” You muttered, still touching the surface of the door as if it’d magically let you touch Steve and he hesitated for a second.

“I’m still here doll,” his voice was soft, “Told you, nothing is shattering.”

You nodded slowly, “He started me on those, did you know?”

“Hm?”

“Trent,” You spat out his name and made a face, “When- when he found out that I found out. He tied me up and forced me to….take those.”

“Drugs?”

“Yeah.” You nodded again and sniffled, “He thought no one would believe a junkie, I guess. Or that- or that it’d make me stay. Work for HYDRA. As if there’s a drug in the world powerful enough to do that.” You wiped at your eyes, “And then I replaced it with alcohol, and now I’m-“ You tried to swallow the lump in your throat, “What if I’m replacing it again?”

“With what?”

“You know what.”

“Tell me.” Steve’s demand was soft and you licked your lips,

“What if I’m replacing it with you?” You mumbled against the door, resting your forehead on it and there was a soft noise on the other side, as if Steve was brushing his knuckles against the door.

“There’s nothing wrong with that, darling.”

“There’s everything wrong with that, Steve.” You muttered fractiously, like a stubborn child. Steve heaved a deep sigh.

“Why is it wrong?”

“Because it makes me do bad stuff,” You gulped, wiping your eyes, “You should be with someone- someone like Sharon.”

“Y/N…”

“Council would like it.”

“Council can fuck off.”

Your head snapped up and you gawked at the door, blinking dumbly.

“Did- did you just swear?” You asked incredulously, “Damn it, Tony was right, I am a bad influence…”

You heard Steve’s chuckle and you wiped your nose, smiling.

“You’ll be here in the morning too, right?”

“Mm hm. Right here.”

“Can you promise me in 40s ridiculous slang?”

“You’re nuts if you think I’m taking a powder, doll.”

You let out a small laugh and lied down on the floor, curling an arm under your head and rested your fingertips on the surface of the door, almost sure that Steve was doing the same and you closed your eyes, taking a deep breath.

“Thanks Cap.”

“Anytime, darling.”

 Chapter 13 is here! 

A.N: Now repeat after me: I’ll leave feedback because Dream loves feedback! ❤️ 😂  

Special thanks go to:  @theskytraveler @asongofmarvelanddc @thorohdamnson @girlwhoisfearless @fictionwillneverdie @lilywoood @marss-anonymous @icameforthefanfiction @pandalandalopalis @barnesrogersvstheworld @evolutionofkatep  @lostkizzy @reallyconfusednow @miss-jen-winter @dollbitxhes  @fandomcrazie @latibulemark @aikeji @dans-les-details @evanstar @thatprofessionalfangirl @minuialeth75 @leviathan-luncher @optimisticheartyouth @laffers18 @kiwngsoo @myrabbitholetoneverland @itsyaboyo @avengemebuckyy @freightcarcap @stargeek727 @kerishet  @superwolfchild-fan @fangirlbookworm @samwinchxtr @letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked @marauderskeeper @whogaveuspermission @thewhinersoldier @iamthemaskhewears @whatiswrongwithpeople @mischievous-fairy @agent-smoak @allison-rosewood-maximoff @petrashappyplace @swtltlmrvlgrl @imalittlebean  @hogwarts-and-houseplants  @danielhowellstolemycamera @zabeth716 @imaginecrushes @attorneyl  @kimmiestrawberrykiwi @local-space-ace @iwritetoavoidmyproblems @marvels-mistress @screamimalive @probablystarlord and lovely anons! Without you, I wouldn’t be able to write this, you’re amazing! <3

[satoshi-mochida]

Atlus has released new information and screenshots of Catherine: Full Body introducing Vicent’s nightmare curse, more game systems, and sub-characters Jonathan, Orlando, and Tobias.

Get the details below.

■ He who cheats receives the nightmare curse!

Vincent, who is unable to take the leap of marriage despite his girlfriend of many years being pregnant, cheats at the worst possible time. Each woman wants a “serious relationship” with him, and soon he starts having life-threatening nightmares.

—The girl you’ve been with for five years is pregnant.

—And yet, thoughtlessly, you cheated.

—A girl with an unsteady healing presence about her… Whether she is a dream or reality, the love triangle will reach an extreme.

■ Will you choose “Wild” or “Steady?” Or perhaps “A New Possibility?”

As you play, Vincent (the player) will be inquired about his values in various aspects. The ending will change depending on your responses, just like the previous game, but this time the answers have been completely redone, and the results of your responses will not only lead you to “wild” or “steady,” but also to a “third route.”

—Vincent is asked about a “new possibility” that will significantly change his future. Depending on his answer, the mysterious gauge will…

—Which future (which Catherine?) will you choose?

■ Useless men lapse into a nightmare tower full of traps.

After he cheats, Vincent starts having nightmares every night. A high tower is erected in these nightmares. And in addition to Vincent, other men in the form of sheep appear in the tower. This place seems to be a curse that has somehow taken hold on unfaithful men.

—The tower is divided into several stages, and the higher you go, the more difficult it gets.

—Various threats to Vincent appear inside the tower, including a monster that resembles his girlfriend’s face. It it said that those who reach the top of the tower “will gain everything.” How far you go will change depending on your choices.

■ Is the one who appears in your nightmares a helpful angel or a demonic pawn?

After a certain point, Rin will appear in your nightmares. While the other men have all been transformed into sheep, Rin alone remains unchanged. However, Rin seems to be able to use her skills with the piano to help Vincent and the others. But there are also those suspicious of how Rin was able to mysteriously appear…

—When in a pinch, Rin will automatically use her piano-playing to support you.

—Vincent will hear the sound of Rin’s mysterious piano, which seems to put a hold on the stage from collapsing. But what is the story behind this power…?

■ Think hard, utilize techniques, and make your way to the top.

Although called puzzles, you are really only just moving blocks around to make your way to the top of the stage. Make full use of your wits and reflexes—avoiding skillfully placed traps, using items at the right timing, and so on—to make your way to the goal.

Skill Memo

You can check your Skill Memo at save points, which contains tower-clearing strategies from the other sheep.

Use Items

Using the items that you obtain along the way is essential. Some item effects have changed from the previous game as well. Support items that can be used in the tower have also been introduced. Skillfully utilize these items to reach the goal.

■ Connect online and discover friends to share in on the suffering.

By connecting online, you can enjoy the game even more. Signs of your friends may even appear in the tower each night.

Find out the death counts and circumstances of players across the nation.

After moving from one stage to the next, your “Death Count” will be displayed on the screen. This is further broken down into “Falling Deaths” (falling off the stage), “Crushed Deaths” (being crushed by stones), and “Accidental Deaths.”

See the souls of the dead in places where death comes easy.

If you are connected online, you can see the souls of dead players in places where many players died. These souls are the mark of a tough spot.

Check the responses of the sheep who lost their way.

When moving between puzzle stages, you can check the ratio of “Confessional” answers in the form of a pie graph. If you are connected online, you can see the answer trends of Catherine: Full Body players across the nation.

■ Rin’s existence will not only influence Vincent’s future, but also the futures of others.

While it has already been announced that the existence of new character Rin in Catherine: Full Body means that the game’s variety of endings have increased, now it can be said that Rin’s existence will also affect the futures of sub-characters. Today, we will introduce Vincent’s group of friends. How will their futures change compared to the previous game? We will leave that to your imagination.

Jonathan Ariga (Johnny) (voiced by Takehito Koyasu)

“You might encounter it, you might not. That’s just how love goes.”

Vincent’s classmate from high school. He appears cool and pragmatic, but he is an idealist who believes you marry the one you are destined to be with. For that reason, he says he is “not interested in marrying” his current girlfriend. He is more concerned about Vincent’s relationship with his girlfriend Katherine.

A reliable person, Johnny had a rule in high school that he “wouldn’t go out with a girl unless I really like her.” However, is that rule still in place as an adult…?

—The truth is that there is somene other than his girlfriend that he likes… That dishonest behavior also lands Johnny in the nightmare curse.

—Johnny, who is also a friend to Katherine, is fed up with Vincent’s behavior. Is his protectivenes sof Katherine just friendship, or…?

Orlando Haddick (voiced by Hiroaki Hirata)

“Whoever you end up choosing, at least we’ll still be drinking together in the end.”

Vincent’s classmate from high school and his current co-worker. He has failed in business since he was young, which was the reason for his divorce. He has an optimistic personality, and although he says that marriage is the cemetery of life, he still seems to think about his ex-wife. However, how will his meeting Rin change that feeling…?

—Whether or not it is due to his divorce, Orlando seems to have a clear-cut philosophy of love.

—Perhaps because he and Vincent spend so much time together at work, Orlando’s advice regarding Vincent’s problems is pretty half-hearted.

Tobias Nebbins (Toby) (voiced by Kishou Taniyama)

“Ohh, so everyone has finally recognized me as a grown man!”

Johnny’s junior at work. A 23 year-old with an vague desire for marriage. He has a thing for the bar’s waitress, Erica, but is considerably lacking in skill due to his little experience with women. He is a simpled-minded and kind-hearted guy who naively admires his friends.

—Toby is a kind-hearted guy who naively admires his friends—“examples of useless adults.” Since he does not seem to have any nightmares, what is it that makes him different from Vincent and the others?

—Toby, who has a thing for older women, seems to have a crush on the bar’s waitress, Erica. While his youth means his behavior is often unreliable, will he make a bold move this time around…?

Catherine: Full Body is due out for PlayStation 4 and PS Vita on February 14, 2019 in Japan. A western release is also planned, but has yet to be dated.

View the screenshots at the gallery.

[song-birds-stuff]

ZATR smeethood friends AU

I got this idea of if Zim and Tak knew each other as smeets, and how their relationship would be different, and how much different the Tak episode would be and all.

• they met while still underground, Tak was the first Irken to compliment the intelligence Zim showed, and also the first y’all Irken to be nice to him.

• they were usually seen together with Skoodge, they were like the dream team, though said dream team usually ended up causing trouble due to Zim being... a bit of a loose canon.

• while in Invader training it was very evident that despite his skill, Zim had trouble in training, back then, he was so small, so frail, due to being Defective, his PAK was faulty, making him need regular food and sleep, and the lifestyle on Irk makes that hard with the constant military life, thus, when he was young, Zim was physically weak and relatively frail, Tak helped him modify his PAK so adrenaline would help him get through his training.

• during their Invader training, Zim, Tak, and Skoodge were all paired up together, as is the norm for Defective Irkens, during one training session, they were training late, it was Zim’s idea to make up for the lackluster performance in training that day; however, there was an incident, an explosion, the three of them were caught in the crossfire.

• there was fire and smoke everywhere, Zim got the worst of it, he nearly got torn apart and lost both his eyes, his left arm was too damaged for even his PAK to heal, and ended up getting it amputated, Tak had a few burns and some brain damage, resulting in needing the wire seen on her head.

• Zim may have been worse off, but thanks to Tak’s technology, he’d pull through, not to say the surgery and rehabilitation wasn’t tough, originally he’d have to endure three years of recovery, but he pushed himself to just one year, however painful it was; he came back to training with ocular implants as replacements for his eyes, and and new, cybernetic arm, he’s rather self-conscious about it (not that he’d ever admit it) so he kept his arm covered, not ever taking off his uniform, and ocular implants were so well made, one couldn’t tell the difference between them and a real pair of eyes.

• it wouldn’t be found out until years later, but the cause of the explosion was sabotage, and the culprit was no other than Purple, he was resentful that Tak, despite being a Defect, is top of the Irken Elite training classes, and caused the explosion as a ‘joke’ and being the only one to know he’s the one behind Zim and Tak’s injuries, which he mocked them for, Zim acted like it was fine, Purple was one of his idols, even back then, but it definitely angered Tak, Purple messed with Zim the most, taking his prosthetic and hiding it for ‘fun’ he didn’t seem to ever do it around Red, however.

• years passed, Tak was able to get to her final test to become an Irken Elite early, Zim and Skoodge were on the planet as well to see how it’d go, but that’s when Zim accidentally caused the blackout that ruined Tak’s test, at the time, Zim was stubborn and didn’t believe he should say sorry since it wasn’t something he meant to do, Zim and Tak stopped talking after that, and Tak was sent to planet; Dirt.

• years passed, Zim had interrupted the Great Assigning, and one fake mission given and a faulty SIR Unit, the oblivious Irken was off to Earth, and of course the events of the first episode happens, relatively unchanged.

• eventually though, Zim discovers something about himself while on Earth, something that just...felt right. That he, is a she, Zim comes out as a trans girl, and she experienced little problems with coming out, she didn’t need to change her disguise much, just a new wig, though in the makeup department, she went a little...overboard.

• it was such a disaster, Gaz dragged her to the bathroom to fix the butchered makeup job, mostly because it was too terrible, since then Zim went to Gaz for makeup advice.

• Dib was actually very understanding and accepting when Zim came out, changing the pronouns of his insults towards her, and being trans himself, occasionally gave her advice, which at first, made her skeptical, but eventually was appropriated.

• Zim found no need to change her name, she was still Zim and no other name fit, in her opinion, and as for her voice tone, usually with how shrieky and loud her voice is, but as she had a voice modulator, she could change her voice tone relatively easily (I think she would sound like Zim’s Spanish VA)

• in the timeline of the show, she would’ve come out, at least a few days before the events of Gir Goes Crazy And Stuff.

• when that episode happens, it’s a might...different, when Zim tries to stop GIR at the library, the behavioral modulator is destroyed, so Zim couldn’t just switch GIR back to normal.

• as a result, Zim found no other choice, but to go to Dib for help, who reluctantly agreed, seeing how dangerous GIR was stuck in Duty Mode, within a few days they made special stun guns that would give Zim just enough time to turn GIR back to normal.

• it wasn’t easy, but it worked, Zim worked on GIR as quickly as she could, and the little robot remembered nothing of the event, which Zim found thankful, the event made her really appreciate the way GIR was, she had no intention of changing him ever again, otherwise, it just wouldn’t be GIR.

• as a means of ‘research’ of how a normal human girl acts (and because GIR likes the cookies) Zim joins the Girly Rangers, but surprisingly, ends up enjoying her time there, even getting a few badges and making a few friends.

• being around her new Girly Ranger friends, it began to help Zim open up a bit, and mellow out a little, and with that, she realized the way she and Tak ended off and fell out from their friendship wasn’t right, and for the first time, felt large, horrible guilt, she ruined the life of one her best friends, and she didn’t even apologize and acted selfish and like a total jerk, now knowing better, she hopes to see Tak again, to properly apologize.

• little did she know, she’d get her chance faster than she thought; Tak came to Earth, though rather than meeting at the skool, Tak came to Zim’s house, which really caught her off guard.

• Tak took note of Zim’s new look, and complimented her on it, rather passively, despite her anger towards Zim, it was clear she held some fondness over their friendship in the past, at the least.

• seeing Tak again, it was a bit overwhelming for Zim, she hadn’t seen her in so long, and she wants to apologize for her actions, but Tak doesn’t give her the chance, Tak wouldn’t listen to a word her former friend said, and crippled the base, leaving Zim and GIR to figure out the problem on their own.

• having no other choice, Zim and GIR went to Dib’s house, by this point, they were less like enemies, and more like rivals and occasional friends, so Zim convinced Dib to listen as she explained her and Tak’s history together, and how now she realizes she shouldn’t have left things off with Tak the way they were, she needed Dib’s help, and she just hoped Tak would listen to her next they met.

• surprisingly, over the coming week, Tak did very little actual evil planning, just going about her day, which Zim of course found suspicious, yet she still wouldn’t listen, even avoided her, it seemed.

• it was a rather...tough time, it was the most vulnerable Zim’s ever felt, and it certainly showed.

• that changed one day, when while walking home (well, for Zim, it’d be going to Dib’s house since her base was still out of commission) they ran into an Airolax, the natural enemy of the Irken, extremely dangerous, they’ve hunted Irkens for eons, since before the time Irkens even used PAKs, they skinned Irkens alive, devoured their eyes, and harvested their organs like trophies, no Irken has ever faced even one and survived.

• Airolax were bird like aliens that has razor sharp teeth and talons, and were twice the size of any Tallest, and the hooks on their wings could easily cut into Irken skin better than any scalpel could, this particular Airolax attacked Zim and Dib in the middle of the street, still a ways away from the Membrane household, needless to say, Zim was visibly scared, any Irken with half a PAK would be, which immediately set Dib on edge with how rarely Zim is ever scared of something, well at least honest about being scared of something, at least.

• Zim didn’t so much as hesitate as she grabbed Dib by the arm and ran like hell, eventually resorting to using her PAK legs to move faster with the Airolax flying overhead, making an attempt to make a grab for the small Irken.

• the sharp talons were mere centimeters away from grabbing Zim by the PAK when a laser hit the Airolax in the side, the two looked to see it was Tak, she stepped in front of them, firmly in a defensive stance, her PAK legs out and poised to attack.

• the Airolax attacked relentlessly, Tak lashed with her PAK legs, and shot her lasers, that is until the Airolax spread out his wings, knocking Tak to the ground, ready to strike her eyes first.

• that’s when Zim, not wanting to lose her friend a second time, lunged at the winged beast, piercing her own PAK legs deep into its thick skin, making it screech in pain as Zim screamed insults at him “YOU KEEP YOUR FILTHY DEATH-CLAWS OFF OF HER YOU BIRD-BEAST!!!”

• the Airolax reared back, thrashing about until he slammed into a large tree, knocking the wind out of Zim, but she wasn’t through with him yet.

• As the feathery beast went to attack the two teens, Zim got to her feet, she wasn’t quite thinking straight, the hit possibly giving her a concussion, she reflexively shot out her hand in a motion to reach out to Dib and Tak, only for the Airolax to go slamming into a large boulder, it was shocking, Zim looked at her hands, and realized she’s tapped into her Irken Ability.

• for context, an Irken Ability describes a special ability or power an Irken has and eventually discovers, an example of this is Tak’s ability to hypnotize people with just a flash from her eyes, it’s surprising as Irken Abilities are relatively rare in Defects, Zim herself didn’t think she even had one, but as she found out today, her Irken Ability was psychic capabilities, in this moment; telekinesis.

• Now knowing this, Zim used her newfound telekinesis to throw the Airolax around until finally releasing him from her grip, Tak gave it several good lashes with her PAK legs, and while he was less experienced in combat, Dib grabbed a large, sharp ended tree branch and whacked the Airolax harshly in the throat, knocking the wind out of the large beast.

• with one final push, Zim picked the Airolax up with her newfound ability, and with all her might, threw him at least a few miles away, the overuse of her telekinesis having exhausted her, Zim fell to her knees, totally wiped out.

• Zim hadn’t realized it until after the battle, but in the fight, Zim’s ponytail had come loose, which she noticed as Tak helped her to her feet, arm held over the taller Irken’s shoulder, as they quickly made their way to Dib’s house.

• on the way, Zim finally got her chance to apologize to Tak like she’s been trying to for the past week, she admitted she’s been selfish and stubborn, and accident or not, she should’ve apologized in the first place, Tak is genuinely surprised at the legitimately sincere apology, the Zim she knew years ago was never one to apologize and be honest with her emotions, it would seem being on Earth gave the destructive Irken room to grow.

• Tak calls Mimi to deactivate the crippling of Zim’s base, and truthfully, though there is a part of her that’s still angry about what happened, after seeing Zim again, after so many years, seeing her laugh, smile, it makes Tak’s face heat up, and the heart component in her squeedlyspooch to skip a beat, seeing Zim just makes her...happy, and she doesn’t know why.

• unbeknownst to her, Zim felt the same way, both not knowing what the feeling is, but Dib did, and he was internally facepalming at these clueless teens.

•a few weeks passed, Zim felt like a large weight was lifted off her shoulders now that she’s apologized to Tak, true, it was the first time she actually apologized to anyone, but the point still stands.

• as time passes, Zim actually begins to gain an interest in music, GIR brought home a ukulele and curious, Zim played it, turns out she’s REALLY good, she even got out her invader diary to write her own songs, just about anything, the songs went from just simple notes to having words, the words came when she remembered the poems Tak made in class, and the lyrics just unraveled themselves.

• when they all started music class, and the home assignment was to ‘write a song about a feeling that’s hard to describe’ Zim was ecstatic! The moment she got home, she went right to writing a song, this was the first time Dib and Tak saw her interest in music and were curious about what song the usually destructive Irken would make.

• when focusing on writing a song, Zim would use her telekinesis to float around, usually upside down to help her focus, for whatever reason, when she used her telekinesis on herself, Zim didn’t tire out, she thinks it could be because she’s the source of the psychic power, thus she can float indefinitely.

• weeks passed into months, Zim got an award for her talent in both music and science, and she’d steadily gotten more popular with her music, even getting music gigs and she used her telekinesis in her shows, the humans just thought it was special effects.

• however, the day came that Zim found out about her mission being a lie, the Tallests didn’t care, they never did, and didn’t want to deal with Zim at all, but surprisingly, Zim wasn’t as upset about it as she thought she should be, maybe it’s all the time she’s spent on Earth, learning and growing, growing up, it really changed her perspective.

• the real problem was, the Tallests wanted to take the Earth, for its snacks and artillery, and that would mean, a fight to protect the Earth, the place Zim never thought she’d care about, but after a year and a half, discovering love, sharing her first kiss with Tak on this planet, Earth was her new home, and she was determined to protect it.

• to put it shortly, a war would be fought, not that most of the humans believed or cared, but Zim and Tak created their own brand of fire power, they upgraded their respective ships, made a few other ships, and prepared strong, yet lightweight armor, thankfully it wouldn’t just be the two of them, Dib was ready to defend Earth to his last stand, Gaz and Membrane would fight as well, though not for the same honorable reasons as the other three, the help was appreciated.

• it only took the Massive and it’s fleet a little less than a week to arrive, and it was to war.

• the fight was harsh, and tough, Zim’s robotic arm getting torn off in a fight, but when Tak nearly got taken out by a large ship, Zim went into a blind rage, using both her psychic power, and her own PAK weapons to mercilessly obliterate the ship, upon seeing Tak was okay, floated to her worryingly, confessing she was very worried, even when they weren’t talking, the shorter Irken was scared something would happen, and Zim wouldn’t be able to protect Tak, said Irken eased her worries, promising nothing would happen, they shared a kiss on the battlefield before getting back into the fight.

• it’s looking bad until they get support, from the Resisty, that’s when the battle is turned in their favor, they become victorious! They end up not killing the Tallests, but Zim approaches them menacingly, giving them a single warning: if they ever come near the Earth again, she will kill them herself.

• after that, things went to normal for the most part, the Resisty stayed in touch, Dib and Lard Nar became close, Zim went to her music, now with Tak, who used her poetry skills to write both poems and great stories, also using her intelligence to make incredible inventions, Dib eventually became a paranormal investigator like he wanted, Gaz would grow to become a horror game developer, and they simply, went on with their lives, relatively peacefully.

This is all I got so far, I might make a continuation at some point, if there’s something I should fix at all or any tips, please let me know!

Trans Girl Zim AU belongs to @cutiebatata

[wanderingcas]

This week: Destiel in Canon!

[Thank you, everyone, for your wonderful submissions to Week 2 of Spn Fanfic Submission Thursday!! If you want to participate in next week’s fic submissions, check out the schedule!]

Totally Platonic Bunkmates by @braezenkitty

Five times Dean and Cas had to bunk together, and one time they didn’t.

“He could be an adult about this, it really wasn’t a big deal. He’d just keep to his side of the bed and face the wall, away from Cas. It wasn’t a problem at all. So why did his stomach feel like he just ate a handful of worms?”

Teen and Up. 5.5k words. (Complete)

[Sharing a Bed, Sexually Frustrated Dean, Hurt/Comfort, First Kiss]

Silver Lining by @darkheartinthesky 

After Castiel is severely injured during a hunt, Dean and Sam have a talk. Dean realizes what it is he really wants.

Teen. 6.5k words. (Complete)

Tags: Hurt Castiel, Caretaker Dean, Sharing a Bed, Supportive Sam

I Can’t Go On Without You by @destielonfire

Something is killing couples who participated in a secret Valentine’s Day ritual, leaving Dean and Castiel with no choice but to go undercover as a couple to investigate the murders. But when the ritual uncovers some long-buried truths, will this mean the start of something new between them?

Teen. 7.7k words. (Complete)

[Fluff & Angst, Sharing a Bed, First Kiss, BAMF Cas, Fake Relationship]

Wake Up by @destielmixtape

Dean is having a mental breakdown, and Castiel is the only one who might be able to help. Can Dean let down his guard enough to let Castiel in? Can he reconcile his feelings for Cas despite his own crushing insecurity? And can Castiel fight Dean’s inner demons without losing himself in the process? Will someone, anyone, please just use their friggin’ words?

Explicit. 58.5k words. (Complete)

[Fluff & Angst, Wing Kink, Grace Sex, BAMF Cas, Angst, Smut]

A Letter to Mom, from Dean by @hetaliankilljoy

Dear mom,

It’s me, Dean. Where are you? You’re an angel now, right? I don’t care about freckles, I just want you to kiss me once more please. I’m scared, can you sing me this song, that puts me to sleep, and helps me feel better when I’m sick? I miss you, mommy!

Teen and up. 3k words. (Complete)

[Songfic, Season 1-5 spoilers, love confessions, hurt/comfort, angst]

Heartbeat by @cardinaleyes

Castielsentries is a current canon blog that posts a new entry per day and has AU days, which is what this day was. This was written at the end of season 11 when Cas did not know if Dean survived Amara’s power. Soulmates can feel each other’s heartbeats.

Teen and Up. 1.2k words. (Complete)

[Canon Compliant, Season 11 finale coda, Cas POV]

This is Real by @compulsive-baker

Castiel and Sam return to the bunker after Dean confronts Amara. Castiel keeps his promise to watch out for Sammy after Dean is gone, but he can’t take care of himself as he falls into depression. His mental health is slipping, but Dean comes back to fix his angel.

Mature. 3.3k words. (Complete)

[Canon divergent season 11 finale, Smut, Tender Love and Care]

A Photo Booth and Funnel Cake by @deanisthebeesknees

Dean and Castiel end up at a county fair during a case. Dean shows Castiel the awesomeness of photo booths and fluff ensues.

Teen and Up. 1.9k words. (Complete)

[Fluff, county fair, photo booth, funnel cake, Shipper!Sam]

untitled by @woefulcas

Cas comes back human after the events of 12.23; Dean and Cas cuddle in bed. 

General Audience. .5k words. (Complete)

[Season 12 Coda, Warning for Extreme Fluff™]

Ignorance is Bliss (Usually) by @60r3d0m

Dean and Cas have a very public deathbed confession and officially become an item. And this would totally be thrilling—except Sam gets knocked out during the fight and misses the whole damn thing.

Or, the one where everybody except Sam knows and Sam thinks Dean’s sudden newfound celibacy is a witch’s curse.

Mature. 8.2k words. (Complete)

[oblivious!Sam, jealousy, Established Relationship, Miscommunication]

Ultraviolet by @mittensmorgul

The world seemed to be settling back into a somewhat regular pattern of supernatural activity after Sam officially rescinded the British Men of Letters American visa and Cas had moved into the bunker as a full-time Winchester. What seemed like a milk run hunt goes pear-shaped when Dean becomes the latest victim of a soul-devouring curse. Breaking the curse and saving his life only lead to a bigger mystery when someone unexpected steps out of the Impala and walks right into the middle of their case.

Mature. 8k/45k words. (WIP; posting a chapter a day)

[Case fic, Human Impala, Hurt/Comfort, Sharing a Bed, First Time]

Holy, Holy, Holy by @deanirae​

There was a hell-hound gnawing at the bones of Dean’s legs, each bite a payment for Sam’s breaths. To the very end, Dean thought it was a good price. He was willing to pay. But the angel who listened had learned about the great plot of using a brave, righteous man to start a petty Apocalypse and sacrificed everything to ensure it would never begin. It was 2008 and it’s probably still Wednesday now and Cas is keeping Dean safe, away from Heaven, from Hell, from everything. Despite Castiel’s best efforts, everything remains pretty determined to either get its hands on Dean or just get him back where he allegedly belongs. But there’s at least four theories about where that is and Dean seems to be the only one who doesn’t have one. Most of the time he just feels something is amiss and he keeps wondering when it’s going to be Friday and if the purple dog is ever going to come back.

Explicit. 54k words. (Complete)

[Canon Divergent after 3.16, Angst, Unhealthy Relationships]

Warnings: Major Character Death, Uninformed Consent, Emotional Manipulation, PTSD

On The Inner Workings Of Non-Angels by @babybluecas​

The way it began couldn’t get more cliché: Dean kissing Cas in the rain as they turned their ‘goodbye’ into a bittersweet ‘see you soon.’ Three years later, Dean can hardly believe what his life has become: he’s a happy civilian, shacked up in the bunker with Cas. The whole messed up world seems to have left them alone, at last, and the worst things that ever happen to Dean are the rom-com marathons his better half tortures him with. Even Sam’s living his dream, back in law school.

A true happily ever after for all.

The problem is that those, in Dean’s experience, don’t last forever. So when Cas starts acting suspicious, with strange phone calls and daydreams and the walls of yellowed books rising around him, Dean has a full right to be worried. He’s no longer sure he could handle their perfect, little world falling apart.

But Cas, of course, says everything’s fine.

Mature. 39k words. (Complete)

[Fluff, Angst, Established relationship, Fallen!castiel, Post alt-season 9]

Forgotten Angel by @justrandomspnstuff​

Cas looked around his empty apartment remembering when he’d had a purpose, when he’d been someone. And he realized at that moment why he kept his angel blade–because it was getting harder and harder for him to convince himself that he hadn’t always been a nobody. Hadn’t always been a whore.

Explicit. 86.4k words. (WIP)

Prostitute!castiel, Slow burn, Angst, Bottom!cas

Warnings: Rape/non con, Self Harm, Drug Mention

Fives Times Dean Called Cas Sweetheart (As a Joke and the One Time He Meant It) by @profound-boning​

Delicious breakfasts, beer with dinner, countless movie marathons after Dean and Sam hooked up a television and VHS/DVD player in one of the sitting rooms, hot showers, the smell of clean laundry… Yes, Castiel definitely enjoyed a lot of little things about his new life with the Winchesters.

The chance to get closer to Dean certainly didn’t hurt.

General Audiences. 3.2k words. (Complete) [Men of Letters Bunker, Bunker Fluff, Human Cas, Miscommunication]

Then I Defy You Stars by @spearywritesstuff​

They won if you ignore what they lost. Lucifer was cast out and the Darkness departed, but they couldn’t save Cas. So Dean gave up. With the passage of time and Sam’s support, Dean makes a life for himself miles away from hunting and anything supernatural. He runs a planetarium and teaches classes on astronomy, because once, long ago, Cas told him that when the ancient heroes fell, mankind could still find them in the stars. Dean looks to the stars.

Explicit. 81.8k words. (Complete)

[Angst, Temporary Character Death, Canon Divergent after 11x18]

You Can’t Get Rid Of The Babadook (And Years Of Unresolved Sexual Tension) by @mijrake​

When the queer community accepts the Babadook as their new found icon, they accidentally create a Tulpa that starts killing homophobic people. Of course, Team Free Will rises to the occasion.

Explicit. 11.9k words. (Complete)

[Case Fic, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Bisexual Dean Winchester]

Arrow by @all-i-need-is-destiel​

In which Sam starts to act very weird all of a sudden, centering his entire attention on a certain blue-eyed angel, Dean doesn’t know what to make of this strange behavior and his own confusing feelings, Castiel just goes with the flow and Gabriel has got the time of his life.

Teen and Up. 7.1k words. (Complete)

[Friends to Lovers, Familial Love, First Kiss, Gabriel being a major douche]

helpless when the sky explodes by @envydean​

He’s been split up from his brother. Can’t even hear him, shout to him or anything. It’s like a part of him has been ripped from him and he sits in the corner of the cell, back to the wall and ass on the cold concrete floor. Food is shoved through a pass through but Dean doesn’t touch it, barely looks at it.

Mature. 5k words. (Complete)

[Suicidal thoughts, hurt/comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dark Fic]

Wardrobe Change by @phangirlpenguin​

Sam’s been jumpy around Cas ever since they defeated Amara. A wardrobe change may help, but how will it affect Dean?

General Audience. 1.6k words. (Complete)

[Fluff, Cuddling, Get-together, possible consent issues]

Hot Like Ice by @relucant​

“I… I can’t feel my toes. Or my fingertips. Is that bad?”

Dean swore under his breath. “Uh, it ain’t great, buddy. Can you move ‘em?”

Cas furrowed his brow in concentration. “I don’t know. It burns. Why does cold burn?”

“It just does, Cas.” He picked up Cas’ hand, and his fingers felt like ice. He peered at Cas’ face, and caught a tinge of blue on his lips. “Shit. OK, Cas, we might be gettin’ into territory where you think about usin’ some grace. Not on me, I always run a little hot, but you’re lookin’ like you’re gettin’ hypothermia.”

“I don’t think I can,” Cas said slowly. “There’s so little left, and I’m so cold…”

“Shit.” Dean scrubbed his hand over his face, then came to a decision. “Take off your clothes.”

Explicit. 3.8k words. (Complete)

[Fluff, First Time, Bed Sharing, Bottom Dean, Top Castiel]

A Night on the Couch by @caslikescoffeeandfreckles​

Dean and Cas get in an argument and it leads to one of them sleeping on the couch for the night.

General Audience. 1.7k words. (Complete)

[Gratuitous Fluff]

Cinnamon and Sugar by @liraelclayr007

Dean has feelings for Cas, but he is afraid to show them.

Cas has feelings for Dean, but can’t find the right words. So he decides to say it with pie.

Teen and Up. 1.3k words. (Complete)

[alternating pov, Cas bakes a pie, Cas loves Dean, Dean loves Cas]

Worthy by jad

“… you wanna what, now?” Dean asks, because he definitely didn’t hear that right.

Castiel tilts his head, a leftover tick from his angel days that Dean would be lying if he claimed to find anything but idiotically endearing. He knows this is his own fault, owing to that rather memorable moment a week ago when Cas wandered into this very same kitchen with a (fairly) legitimate question and Dean just didn’t know when to shut up.

Explicit. 15k words. (Complete)

[s9 bunker fluff, human Castiel, porn with feelings]

Blame It On Me by @coffeeandcas

Castiel has left the bunker and is trying to build a life for himself, alone, and is failing. He moves from one homeless camp to the next, struggling to find his place in the world and feeling more unwanted as every day passes. He never meets April, and with no form of identification to prove who he is, he never gets offered a job at the Gas n Sip.

Eventually, he falls in with the wrong crowd and his life takes a sudden, violent downward spiral. After months of searching, Dean and Sam manage to find him and bring him home, but at what cost?

Explicit. 44k words. (Complete)

[Human Castiel, Men of Letters Bunker, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Prostitution]

Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Drug-Induced Sex, Rape/Non-con

[phoenixgirlreviews-blog]

A Blessing In Disguise Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – New York State Of Mind

It wasn’t long before Theresa began to settle in at her new job at Crimson as she began production on her latest fashion line for the big Christmas fashion show at the Metro Court. Nina gave as much limited input on her selections for the show as much as possible, but for the most part she was greatly pleased and impressed with what Theresa had shown her thus far.

Theresa was also becoming fast friends with Lulu and Maxie, and she even found herself charmed and amused by Maxie’s bubbly but very eccentric and quirky personality.

Theresa also got along handsomely with Michael and his friends and despite of her knowing that Michael and Nelle were dating, she still couldn’t exactly deny her lingering attraction to him.

But having learned from all of the disastrous consequences that had befallen her in the past as a result of her directly trying to interfere with other people’s relationships, Theresa decided that it was best to simply leave them alone to their own devices. But that didn’t stop Nelle from trying to antagonize and harangue her every chance that she got.

One particular afternoon, Theresa was in the gym pounding and wailing furiously on a red punching bag. She was dressed in a dark green sweatshirt with a pair of black shorts and white sneakers.

Just then Nelle arrived in a gray T-shirt and a pair of green cameo pants and advanced over towards Theresa. Theresa then threw a swift side kick and then performed a spinning kick, watching the punching bag wobble just slightly.

“That’s pathetic,” Nelle scoffed as she sauntered over to the other side of the punching bag and delivered a swift and powerful right hook, causing the punching bag to flip over in Theresa’s direction only to wobble back into place.

“See? I can do way better.”

“What are you doing here?” Theresa growled; a bit miffed with Nelle for encroaching on her space.

“Everyone trains and exercises here,” Nelle shrugged as she continued delivering her punches and kicks. “What’s it to you?”

“Is this because I was accidentally flirting with your boyfriend?” Theresa retorted in a snarky tone. “I’m sorry about that, okay? That wasn’t my intention.”

“You better hope so, bitch. Michael is mine and I’m not letting anyone get in the way of our relationship,” Nelle shot back as she threw back another punch and Theresa retaliated with a powerful spinning kick.

“Wow, possessive much?” she narrowed her eyes with a scoff.

“You’re the one that was acting all thirsty over him and looking like you were gonna pounce on him any minute,” Nelle snapped.

Theresa’s body tensed up with anger as she threw a rolling kick.

“Are you seriously calling me a slut?” she snarled.

“Anyone that would purposely knock herself up just so she can trap an uber rich guy into marrying her would be what I would call a total hoe. And that fits you to a T,” Nelle smirked, delivering another sudden punch.

The punching bag rocked and bounced slightly as Theresa shivered in simmering rage, feeling extremely insulted and disgusted.

“I’m not that person anymore.”

“You say that now but I don’t believe that statement for a single minute,” Nelle declared in a haughty tone. “People like you don’t change. A snake can shed its skin but it would still be the same snake inside. Michael deserves a real woman, not a pathetic, sniveling, wimpy little coward like you.”

“Why I outta…” Theresa growled as she was right about to give Nelle a piece of her mind but then she was interrupted by a loud, male voice.

“Jeannie!”

Theresa practically sank to the floor, immediately embarrassed and mortified by the mention of her childhood name.

“Oh no… Andrew…”

“See ya,” Nelle smirked triumphantly as she walked away from her.

Just then a handsome and debonair looking man with dark brown hair and an athletic and lean build rushed over to Theresa.

“Hey, sis,” he said with a warm smile. “Glad I found you here.”

“Hey, Andrew,” Theresa gazed at him shyly. “What are you doing here?”

“I came here to see you,” Andrew replied.

“But I thought Mom and Dad said that you were still in the ISA training academy back in London,” Theresa frowned in confusion.

“Nope,” Andrew shook his head. “I’m done with all that now. I graduated a few months ago. Mom and Dad actually told me about you moving up here to Port Charles so I figured now was a good time as any to see you. And by the way, Eve’s going to come by to see you too within the next couple of days.”

“Oh no, not her too,” Theresa groaned, face-palming slowly.

If there was one person in the whole world that she couldn’t possibly stand, it was Eve. When Eve was still in Salem, she and Theresa used to clash and feud a lot, especially where it came to Eve’s teenage daughter Paige.

Theresa also did everything she could to interfere with Paige’s budding relationship with her former drug buddy J.J. Devereaux, which now that she had thought about it, she really did have some feelings for him at the time.

But after Paige died, Theresa and Eve finally reconciled and were well on their way to completely mending their relationship. But that didn’t mean that there weren’t still some occasional rough patches along the way.

“Hey, be nice, Jeannie T. She’s still our sister, like it or not,” Andrew frowned, crossing his arms sternly.

“Unfortunately,” Theresa rolled her eyes.

“Anyways,” Andrew narrowed his eyes, not taking any lip from his younger sibling. “How is life in Port Charles so far?”

“It’s going really good,” Theresa said. “I’m making a lot of new friends and there are a lot of interesting and nice people in here. And Nina is a really awesome and kickass boss too and she makes Crimson a great place to work in.”

“Would that woman I just saw you sparring with count as being amongst your new friends?” Andrew inquired.

“I don’t think so,” Theresa shook her head. “I think she may actually have it out for me all because I was accidentally flirting with her boyfriend when I even had no idea the two of them were going out together and now she thinks I may try to steal him from her.”

“Are you though?” Andrew raised his eyebrow suspiciously.

“No way, Jose,” Theresa shook her hands to and fro with a shake of her head. “Those days are long behind me.”

“If you say so,” Andrew shrugged. “Just please try to behave, Theresa. You got it good here and I’d hate to see you mess it all up all because of one dumb mistake.”

“I know, Andrew, but I don’t need you looking out for me. I’m a big girl and I can take care of myself,” Theresa insisted sternly with a defiant pout.

“Hey, what good am I if I can’t even look after my own baby sister, huh?” Andrew chuckled as he placed a loving hand on her shoulder. “I’m always going to have to worry about you. It’s my job. I’m the one who’s in charge when Mom, Dad and Eve are not around.”

Theresa smiled, instinctively understanding that her brother really meant well, despite of her constant frustration and annoyance over his overbearing and protective behavior.

“So, have you met any cute and sexy British girls while you were in London?”

“Yeah, but none that actually particularly struck my fancy,” Andrew shrugged.

“Really?” Theresa frowned, rolling her eyes. “Oh, come on, Drew. There had to be at least a couple that caught your eye.”

“I wish I could say that,” Andrew sighed dejectedly. “Sorry, Theresa; it’s just that I was so preoccupied with training that I never had much time to socialize and hang out with other people.”

“That really sucks,” Theresa retorted sullenly.

“It’s all right,” Andrew gave a reassuring smile. “I’m sure I still have plenty of time to find the One. Maybe there will be some cute girl here in Port Charles that will catch my fancy.”

“I would hope so. Maybe you’ll have better luck than I do,” Theresa grumbled.

“Hey, don’t worry, Jeannie. I’m sure you’ll find a nice, decent guy that is going to be perfect for you,” Andrew assured her.

“Well… maybe,” Theresa scoffed nonchalantly. “If I can’t find a decent, hot guy in this town I can always jump straight back into girls. I really don’t give a crap.”

“Seriously?” Andrew retorted in a perplexed tone. “Aren’t you worried about what Mom and Dad may think about that?”

Theresa then burst out into an incredulous fit of laughter. “Are you freaking kidding me, Andrew? I could care less about what our parents think about what I do in my life. I’m a grown adult. I make and own my choices. I don’t feel any shame in acknowledging them as they are.”

“All right then,” Andrew sighed, shrugging his shoulders. “Wanna grab some lunch?”

“Yeah, let’s stop at my place first so I can take a quick shower and then later we can go grab a bite to eat somewhere,” Theresa replied as she and Andrew headed out of the gym. “And while we’re at my place you are going to see your nephew, no ifs, ands or buts!”

“Okay, Jeannie!” Andrew laughed as he gave her a noogie and roped her into an embrace.

--

Later on after her lunch date with Andrew, Theresa decided to stop by at the Floating Rib to hang out and relax while Andrew stayed over at her apartment for a little while to watch over Tate. Theresa sipped slowly on a martini glass as she found herself lost in her thoughts, relieving her memories of the last several weeks.

“Hey, you’re new here, right?” the blonde woman sitting next to her inquired.

“Yeah,” Theresa answered, glancing over right at her. “I am actually. Who are you?”

“Ava. Ava Jerome,” the woman answered gruffly, taking a sip of her drink.

Theresa frowned. This woman didn’t seem overly friendly. But she wasn’t just simply going to be rude. She had to at least try to make a conversation.

“Wow, your name sounds like something a fashionita would have.”

Ava snickered, apparently being caught off guard by the strange woman’s comment.

“That’s very flattering but I’m nowhere close to being a fashionita. I actually own an art gallery.”

“Really?” Theresa’s eyes widened in astonishment. “Well that sounds very cool. I would really love to take my son there one of these days so he can learn more about art.”

Ava smirked. “You have a son, huh? What’s his name?”

Theresa beamed proudly. “His name is Tate. He’s a very sweet, adorable little boy and he’s always so adventurous and curious about things so I figured a trip to the gallery would be really beneficial for him.”

“Enjoy him while you can, Theresa. You’re going to wish he stayed little,” Ava retorted with a sharp bitterness in her voice. “I wish my Kiki was still a sweet, innocent little girl. Then I wouldn’t be having so many problems with her.”

Theresa suddenly had a very funny feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Kiki’s not into any sort of drugs or hard partying, is she?”

“Oh no!” Ava chuckled, waving off her hand. “Nothing like that. I wouldn’t allow her to be around Avery if she was.”

“Oh, so you have two daughters then?” Theresa queried.

“Yeah,” Ava mused. “I suppose Avery is roughly the same age as your Tate.”

“Cool!” Theresa grinned excitedly. “So… I guess maybe it’s okay if maybe one day our kids could have a play date together?”

“I don’t see why not,” Ava shrugged, taking another sip of her martini. “And I suppose it wouldn’t hurt for Kiki to have more friends. That way I would have way less drama with her and I get to have more me time. It’s a win-win.”

“Hello there, Theresa!” a sweet, soft Southern voice interjected as Theresa swiveled around to see Eve advancing towards her with a huge, bright grin.

“Oh no…” Theresa groaned, almost collapsing from her chair. “I forgot that Eve was coming today…”

“Come here, you sweet little scamp!” Eve cooed as she rushed over to Theresa and wrapped her in a huge, smothering embrace.

Theresa choked and gagged as she felt suffocated and trapped in her sister’s arms and was fighting to get out of her clutches.

“Eve… Y-You are squishing me…” she gasped as her face turned into varying shades of blue, purple and maroon.

“Oh my! I’m so sorry!” Eve apologized as she finally let go of her.

Theresa then bent over to catch her breath as she coughed and gasped deeply for several minutes. Then once she recovered from Eve’s vice-grip hug, she turned to face Eve with a glare.

“What the hell are you doing here? I thought that you weren’t supposed to show up for the next couple of days!”

“Well I got an early flight out here and I just couldn’t wait to see you, my little sister. How is Port Charles faring so far, my little successful fashion star?” Eve gushed excitedly.

“It’s going fine, Eve. I’m working with Nina Reeves at Crimson now; she’s my new boss,” Theresa replied.

Ava froze suddenly and pivoted around towards Theresa with a cruel sneer.

“You are working with that psychotic little witch?! Have you lost your ever loving mind?!”

“What the hell are you talking about? She’s my boss! She was the one that offered to expand my fashion line here and it’s all because of her that I can make a living in this town!” Theresa shot back indignantly.

“You got something to say to Jeannie T, you better say it to me,” Eve growled sternly, suddenly wedging herself in between the two women protectively.

“Hey, hold on, Eve; it’s totally cool,” Theresa assured her as she inched closer to Ava with a menacing glare. “What exactly are you insinuating about my boss?”

“Well, your boss is a total fruitcake,” Ava scoffed. “She was the one that stole my Avery from the womb in the first place all because she was so desperate to replace the baby that she lost eons ago while she was in a coma and it’s also because of her that I lost the great love of my love – Dr. Silas Clay.”

“Oh my God…” Theresa gasped in horror, suddenly feeling the world spinning around her as a familiar feeling of dread and terror pulsed through her veins.

Eve then saw that Theresa was about to faint and she quickly caught her in her arms just as she was about to fall to the floor.

“Come on, Jeannie. We better go.”

She then sauntered over to the counter and placed a fistful of $20 bills on it.

“Keep the change,” she said as she dragged her sister’s motionless body out of the Floating Rib.

--

It seemed like hours before Theresa finally came to and found herself lying on a couch back in her apartment with Andrew and Eve hovering over her.

“Uh what…” she mumbled as she quickly sat up, only for Andrew to forcibly lay her back down.

“Easy, Jeannie T. You had a horrible dizzy spell earlier.”

“What happened?” Theresa grumbled, closing her eyes and covering them, acting as if the mere presence of light bothered her.

“You fainted after you had a nasty confrontation with Ava Jerome about your boss Nina,” Eve explained.

Theresa then groaned and winced as flashes of memory of the encounter at the Floating Rib came back and then she experienced another sudden memory of her screaming in terror as she was grabbed in the woods and chloroformed.

“Oh my God…” she shivered, gasping and hyper-ventilating. “She couldn’t… she couldn’t possibly be that person… She couldn’t possibly be that woman that Ava was talking about… No… That can’t be her… The Nina that I know is so well put together and nice and… normal…”

She then took a couple of deep, calming breaths before she turned back to face Andrew and Eve.

“That can’t be the same woman, can it?”

“Well, a lot of people can change, Theresa,” Andrew frowned. “Who they might be 5 to 10 years ago may not be the same person they are now. Maybe you should ask Nina about it and get the real story.”

“There is also the possibility that maybe there’s a tiny bit of truth in what Ava said but it’s only her side of the story,” Eve rejoined.

“Yeah, for all we know, Ava could totally be exaggerating and making up everything she said about Nina just to get sympathy. I mean, what if she was having an affair with her husband or something?” Andrew shrugged.

“What Andrew is trying to say is that you can’t just go off on one person’s word alone. You need to hear as many sides as possible in order to get the complete truth,” Eve said.

“Yeah,” Theresa sunk into the couch, feeling horribly deflated and humiliated. “I can’t believe I actually suggested to that woman that we have play dates with our own kids together. And I can’t believe I’m still making an ass of myself by having these panic attacks in public.”

“Theresa, that isn’t your fault. What you went through with Kristen was one of the most traumatic and horrific experiences any person could possibly go through,” Andrew assured her.

“It’s perfectly understandable that you’re still having some sort of PTSD even though it’s been a couple of years. You just need to deal with it and move on with your life.”

“I know, Andrew,” Theresa sighed. “It’s just… I should’ve been over it by now. Goddammit, it’s been nearly three years. I should have gotten over it by now.”

“Nobody ever truly gets over something that horrible,” Eve shook her head sympathetically. “You know, people ask me all the time if I’ve already moved on from my darling daughter’s death.”

“It gets a little bit easier with the passage of time but I still hurt and cry and pore over the precious memories of my sweet Paigey every now and then. Trust me, Theresa. You never get over it. Don’t let anyone minimize your painful truth whether it’s been 5 years or 10 or even 20.”

Theresa then got up and gave Eve a hug. “Thanks, Eve.”

“Don’t mention it, hun,” Eve smiled as she hugged her back.

Theresa then pulled away from her and started looking around frantically. “Where’s Tate?”

“He’s in the playroom; he’s fine,” Andrew answered confidentially as Theresa quickly bolted out of the living room and disappeared into the hallway in a mad dash for her son.

Eve then glared with narrowed eyes at her little brother. “Andrew Donovan, what the hell is the matter with you?”

“What? I didn’t mean anything by it,” Andrew shrugged, not understanding why Eve was all of a sudden mad at him.

Eve shook her head. “One day, little brother, when you have your own children, you are going to know what it’s like to worry about them day and night and to be always on guard for anything that might put them in harm’s way. You will also be second-guessing every choice and decision that you make and hope and pray that it actually ends up helping them in the long run.”

She then stormed out of the room, leaving Andrew alone to contemplate his thoughts.

--

A couple of days later, Theresa was slaving over at her desk revamping some of her latest designs. She gave it a once over, erased a couple of lines, added new ones and then examined it again, shaking her head.

“No, no, no… That doesn’t look right,” she muttered.

“Hey, Theresa? You all right? You’ve been really quiet all day,” Nina asked with great concern as she approached her.

“Yeah, just trying to get some work done,” Theresa retorted brusquely as she continued to scribble and erase over her drawing.

“Uh huh,” Nina nodded as she sat down next to her. “Listen, something is obviously bothering you and I would like to know what it is.”

Theresa paused for a moment, mentally debating on whether not she should say anything to Nina. She then realized that perhaps it was better if she actually told her what was really going on.

“Um… well you see… I ran into this woman named Ava Jerome the other day at the Floating Rib and she said some very interesting things about you.”

“Like what?” Nina raised an eyebrow.

“Like you stole her baby from her womb for one thing and she also claims that you were responsible for murdering Silas Clay, the very love of her life,” Theresa explained.

“Okay… that last part is not true at all!” Nina nearly exploded in an irate voice, her eyes flashing with anger. “I did not kill Silas; my mother did!”

“Really?” Theresa started, dropping her pencil and looking right at her.

“Yeah, really! And for another thing, Silas was my husband and she was the one that was actually having an affair with him!” Nina continued to fume and seethe furiously.

“Are you serious?” Theresa gawked in disbelief.

“Yeah, I’m serious!” Nina exclaimed, letting out a big sigh and a shrug. “Okay, this whole thing happened more than 20 years ago, probably before you were even a twinkle in your dad’s eye. Silas and I were a young married couple trying to get our lives started and we were also looking forward to welcoming our first child together.”

Theresa became very quiet and serious, slowly processing and absorbing all this information in.

Nina then exhaled deeply while rubbing her temples.

“But my mother was very jealous, possibly because my father devoted a lot of love and attention towards me and that made her feel extremely resentful. So because she hated me so much, she decided that I just simply couldn’t be happy period and she ended up trying to kill me. However, her attempt failed and I ended up in a coma instead. And that’s where I spent the next 20 years of my life.”

“When I finally did wake up, I was more than 20 years older and I was no longer pregnant. And then I was told that not only was my child dead but I also couldn’t have any more kids.”

Nina shook her head, tears brimming in her eyes as she fought not to let them out.

Theresa placed a sympathetic hand on Nina.

“I’m really sorry, Nina. I mean, I thought for a long time that my mom was the devil but it turns out that I really didn’t know a damn thing at all. I mean, I had it pretty good with her compared to other people.”

“It’s all right, Theresa,” Nina smiled wistfully. “I’m just trying to move on from all of this and rebuild my life as best as I can. I mean, at least I got a good job, a loving brother, a great sister-in-law who is just amazing, a kooky aunt, a decent husband that I love, a great stepdaughter that I absolutely love as my own, and a couple of great friends.”

“Would you consider me as your friend?” Theresa frowned worriedly.

“Of course, Theresa,” Nina laughed. “You are already my friend.”

“Thanks,” Theresa smiled back. “I can see that you’re nothing like Kristen. Kristen only stole my baby because she wanted to use him as a means to get Brady back. I mean, not like I was any better in that department, but still...”

“I’m just lucky that I didn’t end up losing Tate forever to those sneaky DiMeras. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have my son in my life. I don’t think I would anything worthwhile to live for. I mean, it’s already been tough enough watching my sister grieve and mourn her slain teenage daughter Paige. I don’t want to become a sad, mopey mess like her.”

“Well, as long as you surround yourself with people that really care about you and you throw yourself into the kind of work that you really enjoy, you should be fine. Maybe you should talk to Dr. Kevin Collins if you have any concerns.”

“Hey… that’s a great idea!” Theresa beamed. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Just as Nina was about to say more, a female German accented voice called out into the room.

“Liebchen! Are you in?”

“Oh no! That’s Liesl! I’m getting the hell out of here!” Theresa panicked as she started gathering up all of her belongings frantically and was about to quickly bolt out of the room.

“Oh no, you’re not,” Nina hissed as she grabbed her arm gently and forced her to sit back down.

Theresa whined and gazed back at the door; trembling and quivering even more with pure terror with every minute that passed.

It was then that Obrecht entered the room wearing a white coat with a black blouse underneath and a pair of white pants. She also had on her long, dark raven hair hanging loosely over her shoulders with short, cropped bangs on her forehead.

The minute she laid eyes on Theresa, her lips curled into a snarl and she started marching threateningly towards her, going in for the kill.

“What is SHE doing in here?” she demanded viciously as Theresa was about to cry and break into sobs out of pure fear.

“Please don’t kill me!” she wailed as she went down on her knees and prostrated before her, shaking. “I didn’t mean to call you an old hag! I was saying stupid crap in the heat of the moment! I didn’t mean any of it, honest!”

Obrecht frowned deeply and then roughly pulled up Theresa to her feet, delivering a couple of hard slaps across the face to snap her out of her pity party attitude.

“Stop with this childish nonsense!” she scolded her sternly. “If you really want to make it up to me, you better design a good dress for me. I could use some nice party wear.”

“R-Really?” Theresa stammered, still reeling from what she had just heard.

“Of course, Aunt Liesl!” Nina assured her, placing an arm around Theresa. “She would be more than happy to do it!”

“Y-Yeah, sure,” Theresa nodded with a sheepish grin, deciding to just play along.

“Good. Do not disappoint me,” Obrecht said and she promptly stormed out of the office.

Theresa then let out a big sigh of relief, running her hands through her face.

“I can’t believe I’m still standing and not six feet underground,” she muttered.

“Oh don’t be so dramatic,” Nina scoffed, patting her back. “Aunt Liesl isn’t really all that bad. Once you get to really know her, she can be a real softie underneath that hard and tough exterior.”

“I sure hope so,” Theresa grimaced. “I really don’t want to make a huge ass of myself with this project.”

“You won’t, Theresa,” Nina informed her. “We’ll start working on that design tomorrow.”

“All right then,” Theresa nodded as she got her things into her purse and headed out the door. “See ya tomorrow.”

“See ya,” Nina waved as Theresa headed out the door.

--

The minute Theresa got home, she noticed that Andrew and Tate were sitting on the couch, watching a football game. Tate then looked up to see his mother walk in and grinned.

“Mommy, you’re home!” he cried as he rushed over to hug her.

“Hey, kiddo!” Theresa beamed as she embraced her son and pinched his cheeks. “How is my sweet little boy? Are you being good for your Uncle Andrew?”

“Yes, Mommy,” Tate nodded.

Theresa then grabbed him and picked him up in his arms as she walked over to the couch and sat next to her brother.

“So who’s winning?”

“The Bruisers,” Andrew answered with a proud smile.

“Our home team,” Theresa almost laughed.

“Yeah,” Andrew sighed.

Theresa then turned to face Andrew while Tate picked up a white IPad from the table and started playing with it.

“So… how long are you going to be staying here?”

“Just for a little while,” Andrew shrugged. “I’m thinking of heading back to London and joining the ISA for real in a couple of months.”

“Really?” Theresa frowned, a bit disappointed. She was always annoyed at how little time she actually got to spend with her big brother, and someone – or something – is always keeping him away.

“But…” Andrew interjected, interrupting her thoughts. “I don’t know. I’m not too crazy about it. I mean yeah, I would love to have some adventure and excitement and being in the ISA sounds like a whole lot of fun.”

“But I don’t really like the idea of being away from my family for too long, especially you and… Tate. I would love to be in his life more, Jeannie T. I want to be there to watch him grow up to be a great man.”

“I want to eventually settle down with someone that I love and raise a family with them. And I can’t have that if I’m always going to be away on important missions all the time, like Dad.”

Andrew shook his head, regret and sadness set in his eyes.

“I always hated that when we were both kids we only got to see Dad every once in a blue moon and maybe once every other Christmas, Thanksgiving or even Easter.”

“I know that it was extremely rough on you to not have him around as often as we both would’ve liked, but it was just as difficult for me too. He was the one person that I know that would have been able to teach me all that I ever needed to know to be a real man.”

“The time that I did get to spend with him when I was very little before you even came along – that was the best. That was the one period in my life that I actually felt safe and secure, that I was really, really happy – with both of my parents.”

Andrew then noticed that Theresa was scowling and seething and he sensed that their discussion was now bringing up even more painful childhood memories for her, and he placed a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it tenderly.

“And my life was made even better when Mom and Dad had you, because that not only meant that I had someone new to play with, but also that Eve and I had another person to protect and watch over.”

“Yeah, but Eve was never really there for me growing up. She was too busy being married to Eddie and bringing up Paige,” Theresa retorted sharply.

“Yeah, but I was there for you, Theresa,” Andrew informed her gently, pressing her head against his. “Remember when Mom was very sick for a while when we were very little and you were so scared to be alone at night?”

“You used to come into my room and climb into bed with me just so you would feel safe. You would then hug me and beg me to never leave you alone and I would tell you that as long as I was here, the monsters were never going to get you because I would always keep you safe.”

“You remembered…” Theresa sniffled, tears brimming in her eyes. “You remembered…”

Andrew then sighed deeply and closed his eyes, rubbing his temples.

“I want so badly to make Mom and Dad proud of me. I mean, my whole life has been leading up to this. I need to be the one to protect my family when our dad is no longer around. I need to be the one who is not only going to save the whole world but also keep my loved ones safe. I am Shane Donovan’s only son. It is my destiny to take up his mantle and be the savior that everyone needs.”

“But you don’t need to sacrifice your personal happiness just to satisfy Mom and Dad’s wishes. You deserve to live your own life just like everyone else,” Theresa retorted insistently.

Andrew chuckled and shook his head. “Man, Theresa, sometimes I had your spunk and gravitas. Not giving a damn what anyone else felt or thought. You’ve always been a bit of a free spirit, you know. Always doing what you wanted to do, no matter what anyone felt or thought. But that’s not me. I don’t have that luxury. I have a role to play and I must do what I was born to do.”

“Well, if you really are that certain…” Theresa frowned, not entirely comfortable with what Andrew was implying.

It was then that Andrew’s phone buzzed and he pushed a button to wake it from its sleep mode. He then saw that there was a text and opened it up.

“Oh… I better go before it gets really late.”

“Where are you going?” Theresa asked curiously.

“I just met a cute girl at Charlie’s earlier and I agreed to meet her there tonight. I’ll see you when I get back,” Andrew said as he got up from the sofa, kissed Theresa on the cheek and then kissed Tate on the forehead. Tate was now curled up on Theresa’s bosom, fast asleep with the IPad sitting on his lap.

“Good night, kiddo,” Andrew smiled as he headed out the door.

“Bye, Drew; have a good time,” Theresa hollered as she set the IPad on the table and then carried Tate to his bedroom.

“It’s time for you to go to bed, Tater Tot.”

--

By the time Andrew got to Charlie’s, the place was nearly empty except for a couple of patrons and Julian was still at the bar table wiping some glasses clean. Nelle was sitting right in front of him, a shot of tequila in hand. Andrew then approached the table and sat down next to her.

“Hey. Nelle Benson, right?”

“Yeah,” Nelle smiled politely, gulping down another shot of tequila. “You’re Andrew Donovan?”

“Yeah,” Andrew nodded and he held his finger up, prompting Julian to walk over to him. “Hey, barkeep. I would like a cold draft of beer please.”

“Coming right up,” Julian replied as he disappeared into the back to get his order.

“So what brings you here?” Nelle asked Andrew.

“Just visiting my sister and my little nephew,” Andrew replied casually. “I haven’t had a chance to meet him in person since he has been born. My parents have been emailing me pictures of him while I was in London.”

“London, huh? Do you live there?” Nelle asked; her interest piqued.

“N-No, not exactly… We did for a little while when we were kids but we haven’t been there in a long time. My father had an old manor that belonged to his family for generations,” Andrew answered. “He’s actually British and my mom’s from an old Irish Catholic family.”

“How many siblings do you have?” Nelle continued as Julian brought over Andrew’s beer and Andrew took a big sip.

“Two, actually; an older half-sister and a younger sister. My little sister was named Jeannie at birth but she goes by Theresa now. She changed her name legally the minute she got out of high school. She hated being called that for the longest time but now I don’t think she even cares anymore.”

“Jeannie,” Nelle snickered. “What a dorky name. I can’t imagine anybody in their right mind this day and age who would want a dumbass name like that.”

“Hey, it was a family name that was dearly treasured by my father,” Andrew sneered, glaring at Nelle. “It was his mother’s nickname. My sister was actually named in honor of both of our grandmothers from both sides of the family as a matter of fact; one in particular that she was very close to until she died from complications of dementia a couple of years ago. Theresa took it pretty hard when she passed away. She was in a really bad depression for quite a while.”

“Sorry to hear that, Andrew,” Nelle replied in a sympathetic voice. “I never knew my own mother growing up and she died when I was quite young. The only person I had in my whole life was my dad, but even we didn’t see eye to eye from time to time. One day we had a particularly bad argument and I was so angry at him that I decided to leave the house and never return. I haven’t spoken to him in years.”

“Well, maybe you should try to patch things up with your dad before it’s too late,” Andrew suggested. “I know that my other sister Eve is wishing every single day of her life now that she had done just that with my niece Paige.”

“She pretty much destroyed her relationship with her own daughter all because she wanted what was best for her and she would do anything it took to accomplish that, even if it meant sabotaging her romance with that Devereaux kid.”

Andrew shook his head, taking another sip of his beer and sighing deeply.

“I still don’t understand how it happened. I mean, I know that Eve was horribly depressed over the issue with her vocal cords, but Jesus… she didn’t have to go and jump into bed with a boy more than half her age and alienate her daughter in the process… I will never be able to make any sense of this mess.”

He then hung his head, gripping on his beer with his eyes stinging with unshed tears and his face quickly draining of color and turning ashen gray.

“Paige was a sweet, innocent, bright young girl – smart as a whip. She should have graduated from Stanford and become a doctor by now, not brutally murdered by a psychotic killer and buried six feet under. It’s just not fair. Not fair to my parents, not fair to Eddie and certainly not fair to Eve.”

“Come on, Andrew; enough of this pathetic maudlin talk,” Nelle rolled her eyes with a scoff as Andrew finished up his beer. “Let’s go have some fun. No need to dwell on all of this depressing stuff.”

Andrew then breathed deeply and beckoned for Julian to bring him another bottle of beer. He then turned to look at Nelle with a soft smile.

“All right then.”

“Say, you don’t happen to be Theresa’s brother, right?” Julian asked as he brought over another bottle of beer to him.

“The one and the same,” Andrew replied.

Julian then scoffed with an incredulous expression as he crossed his arms and looked right at him.

“You are aware that just the other day she actually got into a bar fight with one of my patrons?”

“Of course I’m aware,” Andrew laughed. “It’s all right, though. Theresa just has a tendency to have a short temper, that’s all.”

“Okay then. Just promise me that you’ll make sure that she doesn’t lose it with any more of my customers. I can’t afford to lose my business,” Julian informed him sternly.

“Sure thing, Mr. Jerome,” Andrew nodded.

“Anyways, it’s closing time. You two should head out now,” Julian added.

“Let’s go to my hotel room and have some more fun,” Nelle suggested as she took him by the hand and they left the bar.

--

When Andrew and Nelle got to the Metro Court, they went to another bar and began drinking even more heavily, laughing and cheering. Eventually Andrew got so drunk that he lost complete control of himself and everything became a blur.

At some point in the middle of the night, Andrew and Nelle stumbled into Nelle’s room and continued to party and drink into the wee hours of the morning. Then they danced together with Nelle in Andrew’s arms as Nelle began to strip seductively for him. Andrew then gawked at her in confusion and laughed.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“What does it look like?” Nelle smirked as she soon was wearing nothing but her underwear.

Andrew blushed and pressed his forehead against hers, smirking.

“You’re the most beautiful girl that I’ve ever seen.”

“Well, there’s a lot more where that came from, you strong, sexy man,” Nelle purred demurely with coquettish eyes as she led him to the bed and then climbed on top of him. It wasn’t long before the two began to undress and make out heavily and they soon started making love.

--

The next morning, Andrew woke up to the sound of his cell phone ringing on the night table. He then sat up quickly and picked it up, feeling his head throbbing and pounding in sheer agony.

Ugh… I’ve had way too much to drink last night…

The moment he answered, a shrill female voice started shrieking in his ear, making the pain in his head even worse.

“Andrew, where the hell are you? I’ve been waiting up for you all night. Where have you been…?”

Andrew glanced over to see if Nelle was still sleeping beside him and to his surprise the spot next to him was empty. He then inhaled sharply, willing the massive pounding in his head to go away.

“I had way too much to drink and I decided to get a hotel room to stay for the night. I didn’t want you to see me like that. I was super wasted.”

“Well, come over then and I’ll make you something to eat for breakfast; I’ll even brew some coffee,” Theresa offered.

“That sounds heavenly,” Andrew smiled weakly. “Well, see ya sis. I’ll meet you in about 15 minutes.”

“Okay,” Theresa said and then she hung up.

Andrew then went into the bathroom to take a quick, hot shower and then got ready for the day. After he got dressed, he left the hotel room and checked out in the downstairs lobby. Andrew then got into his car and drove off to Theresa’s apartment.

Nearly 20 minutes later, the doorbell rang and Theresa walked over to answer it. She was surprised to see Andrew standing in the doorway, looking very frazzled and haggard.

“Wow, you look like hell,” Theresa gawked in amazement.

This was a new side to Andrew that she had never seen before.

“Thanks,” Andrew mumbled gruffly as he entered the apartment and walked through the living room and into the kitchen, not even noticing Tate sitting in front of the T.V. watching cartoons.

Once he entered the kitchen, he sat down in front of the table and put his head down, groaning.

“So what happened last night?” Theresa asked as she went over to the counter to make some coffee from the coffee machine.

“I told you; I got horribly wasted last night and I ended up having sex with a girl I just met hours before,” Andrew grumbled, shutting his eyes tightly.

“What’s her name?” Theresa asked.

“Nelle,” Andrew groaned.

“What?!” Theresa gasped in a horrified and appalled voice. “You slept with her?! Andrew, what the hell?!”

“She was an attractive and nice looking girl. What the hell was I supposed to do, ignore her? Besides, she and Michael are already on the outs anyway. It’s not like he’s gonna care.”

“But I do,” Theresa growled as she took out the coffee pot and turned off the coffee maker so it could cool off. She then poured some coffee into a cup and brought it over to Andrew.

“You know, I have a mind to pour this all over your dumb, thick headed skull.”

“Please don’t,” Andrew moaned. “I already feel like crap as it is.”

“I hope you’re not considering going out with her again. She’s bad news, Andrew. I can’t quite figure out why, but I have this bad feeling that she is. You need to be careful. You don’t want to be stuck with her for life, trust me.”

Andrew glanced up with a small, sleepy smirk and groggy, glassy eyes.

“You know, you’re beginning to sound just like Mom.”

“That’s because I am a mom, you dork,” Theresa rolled her eyes. “Now drink your coffee and hurry up. I got errands to run.”

“All right, Miss Bossy Pants,” Andrew grumbled as he began to sip on his coffee slowly.

--

THANKSGIVING 2017

PORT CHARLES, NEW YORK

THERESA’S APARTMENT

7 P.M.

It was a little over a month later and Theresa was at the dining room table, wearing a green apron and setting up all kinds of dinnerware. She then brought out big plates of food, with one containing a big pound of turkey. The table was also covered in a nice satin white table cloth with a couple of golden stick candles already lit.

The doorbell rang and Theresa squealed as she rushed over to get the door.

“They’re here!” she shrieked and then she answered it.

The minute she opened the door, a huge group of people came filing in, with Maxie and Nathan first entering the apartment, then Liz and Franco, then Andrew and Eve, then Michael and Nelle, then Dante and Lulu, then Brad and Lucas, then Kim and Drew, then Ava, Kiki and Avery, and then Nina and Valentin.

Liz and Franco were accompanied by Cameron, Aiden and Jake, while Michael and Nelle were accompanied by Josslyn, Kim and Drew were accompanied by Oscar and Dante and Lulu brought over Rocco and Charlotte.

“Hey, everybody! Glad you all could come!” Theresa grinned as she greeted everyone with a hug and a hello.

Tate then rushed into the living room and was immediately spooked by all of the people in the apartment.

“Who are all these strange people, Mommy?”

“These are our guests, Tater Tot,” Theresa beamed, swiveling around to face her son.

“Wow, nice place you got here, Theresa,” Brad commented as he and Lucas surveyed the interior.

“Yeah, definitely looks a lot better than ours,” Lucas quipped.

“We could always invest a bit more in having some interior decorating done,” Brad suggested.

“Yeah, but let’s wait until we started our own family first,” Lucas hissed in a low whisper.

“What are you guys talking about?” Theresa asked.

“Oh, nothing!” Brad grinned nervously.

“Don’t worry, Theresa. We’ll tell everyone at the dinner table later,” Lucas reassured her.

“Hey there, Theresa,” Nina greeted Theresa as the two women hugged. “It was so nice of you to invite all of us over to your house for dinner.”

She then gestured over to Valentin, who then shook her hand. “By the way, this is my husband Valentin Cassadine.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Theresa nodded.

“Thank you for being such a gracious hostess,” Valentin smiled in a warm and charismatic manner.

“No problem,” Theresa nodded.

“I’m surprised that a beautiful and charming woman like you is currently single,” Valentin started to compliment her but he was quickly interrupted by Nina clearing her throat warningly and directing a pointed glare in his direction.

“Sorry,” Valentin apologized with a sheepish grin.

“It’s okay. That in itself is a very long and complicated story,” Theresa waved her hand graciously.

Nina then saw that Tate was cowering and hiding timidly behind Theresa’s leg and she attempted to give him a disarming smile.

“Hello there. What a cute little munchkin you are.”

“Say hi, kiddo,” Theresa gently encouraged him as Tate continued to bury his face in her leg, whimpering fearfully.

Theresa then sighed and shrugged, looking at Nina apologetically.

“Sorry, he just gets so shy sometimes.”

“No worries,” Nina waved her hand dismissively. “I’m sure he’ll say hi when he wants to.”

“Hey,” Kiki approached Theresa as she turned around to face her. “You’re Theresa Donovan, right?”

“Yeah. I take it you’re Kiki Jerome?”

“Yeah,” Kiki nodded. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Theresa.”

“Same,” Theresa replied.

“Tag! You’re it!” Jake declared as he tapped on Aiden’s shoulder and Aiden, Cameron and all of the other kids dashed off after him.

Tate just looked on sadly as he was at a loss on what to do. Then Avery approached him and tapped him on the arm, smiling sweetly at him.

“Hey, wanna play tag with us?”

Tate then hesitated for a minute before he gazed at her and nodded with a smile of his own.

“Okay.”

Then he raced off after her as he joined in with the other kids, laughing, giggling and shrieking.

An hour and a half later, when everyone had sat down together to eat and celebrate, Theresa had Andrew sit at the very end of the table so that he would be the very first person to carve up the first slice of turkey. But first she wanted to say grace.

“Okay, now I know that there might be some people in here that don’t exactly believe in this sort of thing, but this ritual is especially important to my family, so I would like everyone to hold hands together and pray.”

Everyone then bowed their heads down, held each other’s hands and got ready for Theresa to say her grace.

“Thank you, Lord, for this bountiful harvest. Thank you for giving me another full year of good health and happiness with my family and friends and thank you for allowing me to have an opportunity to make positive changes in my life. And I am especially grateful that we all get to sit here together and spend some time together in peaceful harmony as children of God. Amen.”

“Finally!” Charlotte snapped as she dug into her turkey and started stuffing her mouth.

“Charlotte!” Lulu hissed sternly.

“Oh… I didn’t know that you were religious, Theresa,” Nina quipped.

“That was for my family,” Theresa quickly explained while glancing briefly at Andrew. “I’m not actually a practicing Catholic, not since I was a kid. But ever since I had my battle with breast cancer a little over a year ago, my faith has gotten a lot stronger.”

She then narrowed her eyes, fidgeting and playing with her turkey slices and churning around her mashed potatoes and gravy absentmindedly.

“I’m just not all that crazy about going to church on a regular basis though.”

“Well, at least you’re trying and I say that’s pretty admirable,” Kim complimented her.

“Yeah, it’s pretty refreshing to see someone actually say grace on Thanksgiving or during any mealtime really. Nobody does that anymore,” Lulu retorted.

Andrew smiled and admired Brad discreetly from across the table as he and Lucas continued to whisper amongst themselves.

Maxie then took a bite of her turkey and glanced over at Nathan, exchanging a knowing glance with her husband.

“Well, I think it’s time we share some big news with everyone.”

“What is it, Maxie?” Lulu asked.

Maxie paused and then looked at Nathan again before she turned to face everyone.

“Everyone, Nathan and I are going to have a baby.”

There was a brief silence as all of the guests tried to process what they had just heard. Nina’s hands flew to her mouth and her eyes were practically filled with overjoyed tears.

“I can’t believe my baby brother is going to be a father!” she shrieked as she rushed over to hug Nathan tightly.

Lulu also flew over to embrace Maxie as the two women squealed excitedly.

“This is so exciting!” Lulu exclaimed. “When were you planning on telling us, Maxie?”

“Oh, don’t sweat it, Lulu. We’ve known for only about a week,” Maxie waved her hand casually.

Theresa suddenly became uncomfortable and skittish and she glanced around to see Andrew practically sinking into his seat, still gawking and staring at Lucas and Brad with love struck eyes.

“I got some news too,” Nelle announced, not wanting to be outdone.

Michael grimaced and gazed at Nelle uncertainly.

“Nelle, this is their moment. I don’t think we really should…”

“Michael and I are also having a baby!” Nelle blurted out as shockwaves reverberated throughout the table.

Josslyn practically dropped her fork in surprise at the news. “Wow, that’s great, Michael!”

“Guess that makes you an auntie now,” Nelle smiled as she hugged and nuzzled Michael tenderly.

Andrew suddenly felt his whole body go cold and convulse with pure revulsion as his mind was now reeling from yet another bombshell.

Nelle is having a baby with Michael? But how? That isn’t possible! She told me that she and Michael weren’t even together anymore before we hooked up. That baby can’t possibly be his… right?

Theresa also felt her stomach plummet down sharply as her heart sank at the news.

My chances of ever being with Michael have now been really shot to hell. He’s stuck with that witch for life. This can’t be good at all! Does this universe really hate me so? I’m trying… I’m really trying to be a better person! I have been for the past two years! Have all efforts been really for nothing? Am I doomed to be alone and single for the rest of my life with only my beloved son to keep me company?

She then glanced over to see Maxie and Nathan chatting away with Dante and Lulu as the two couples were gushing excitedly about the new baby.

“You two should totally be Baby West’s godparents!” Maxie grinned.

“It would really mean a lot to us if the both of you were able to play a vital role in our child’s life,” Nathan replied.

Dante then pulled him into a bro hug and patted him on the back.

“It would also mean a lot to us too, Nathan; more than anything in the world. You know we got your back.”

“Thanks, Dante,” Nathan rejoined. “Promise me to look after our child should anything happen to either one of us, all right?”

Dante and Nathan exchanged a loving embrace again and the two fist-bumped.

“You got it, Nate.”

“Lucas and I are also discussing adding a little bundle of joy to our family,” Brad added. “I mean, the details aren’t exactly finalized yet, and our lawyer hasn’t found anyone at this time that would be willing to give us her child, but when she does, we’ll let everyone know then.”

“That’s great, Lucas,” Maxie quipped. “You and Brad must be thrilled.”

“We both are,” Lucas said as he and Brad gazed into each other’s eyes lovingly, making Andrew’s heart drop sadly.

“Well, enough baby talk. Who’s ready for dessert?” Liz announced.

“Me, me, me, me!” Aiden, Jake, Cameron, Avery and Tate crowed as they all raised their hands.

“Sounds like a lot of eager McBeavers at this table,” Maxie giggled as Theresa, Andrew and Eve began serving out dessert.

After everyone had their fill, they stayed at the table for a little while longer to chat and get to know each other better. Meanwhile, the kids eventually got bored of playing tag and gathered together on the living room sofa to watch cartoons and play on the latest hand held consoles.

It was a little after 9 p.m. when everyone finally started heading home and were filing out the door.

“Thank you so much, Theresa. It was a wonderful Thanksgiving feast,” Liz informed Theresa.

“Yeah, you should do this more often. You have a knack for being a solid hostess,” Lucas added.

“Well, good luck to you two with the pregnancy and all,” Theresa said to Maxie and Nathan.

“Thanks for the well wishes, Theresa,” Maxie nodded respectfully.

“And the same goes to you, Michael,” Andrew added, shaking Michael’s hand.

“Yeah, hope to see you around, dude,” Michael nodded back, returning the handshake.

But then Nelle yanked him away from the Donovan siblings and practically dragged him out the door.

“C’mon, Michael! We gotta go!”

“Hey, Nelle, hold up!” Michael exclaimed.

When the guests were all gone, Theresa closed the door and picked up Tate in her arms.

“Come on, cub. Let’s hit the hay,” she sighed in an exhausted voice as mother and son retired for the night.

--

CHRISTMAS EVE 2017

PORT CHARLES, NEW YORK

METRO COURT BALLROOM

6 P.M.

Theresa was pacing and walking around frantically and nervously, checking off every item she had on her clipboard one by one. It was an hour before the Christmas Eve fashion show to introduce Theresa’s new fashion line for the season and she was a nervous wreck.

“Let’s see here… check, check, check…” she mumbled under her breath.

“Hey, Theresa, how are you holding up?” Maxie asked as she approached her and noticed that she was anxiously pacing around.

“Hey, slow down girl! The fashion show isn’t going anywhere!”

“I know that!” Theresa snapped indignantly. “I just need to make sure it all goes off without a hitch. This show is either going to make me or break me and I cannot screw up even once!”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Maxie reassured her calmly as she put a hand on her back and rubbed it gently. “Breathe in and out slowly. Breathe in and out slowly. Breathe in and out slowly. Just take it easy. Seriously, you’re going to make me freak out, and I absolutely cannot be under any undue amount of stress.”

“Why?” Theresa asked.

“Well, I had a really bad viral heart infection when I was a little girl and as a result I needed a transplant right away. Unfortunately I had to wait a while for a donor match to show up. Eventually that match did come, but it wasn’t what I expected or even wanted.”

Maxie’s eyes lowered sadly as she said this.

“What do you mean?” Theresa inquired.

Maxie then gazed up at her new friend, her eyes awash with misty tears.

“My cousin B.J. died in a horrible bus accident when she was only 7 years old. She was essentially brain dead when she got to the hospital but they kept her alive long enough for me to be able to receive her heart.”

“I’m so sorry,” Theresa said sympathetically as Maxie struggled to maintain her composure. “I lost someone too. I had a cousin that died in a hit and run accident many years ago and it affected my Aunt Hope for a long time. She and my uncle Bo never really got over it.”

Maxie inhaled sharply, wiping the tears away from her eyes. “The good news is that even though I don’t actually have B.J.’s heart beating inside of me anymore, her spirit still lives on. As long as I remember the good times that I had with her, she will never really die.”

Theresa nodded grimly. “I just wish that I had been a better granddaughter to my grandmother in the beginning when I first came to town. If I knew that she was going to die so soon, I wouldn’t have been so damn rotten in the first place.”

“Hey, at least you know that she loved you, right?” Maxie queried.

“I suppose so,” Theresa shrugged. “Sometimes I wonder if I’ve even done enough to make her even remotely proud of me.”

“Well, I’m sure that she is extremely proud of you and is amazed at how far you’ve come in life. I mean, I know for a fact that your fashion line is going to be the bomb!” Maxie cheered.

“You really think so?” Theresa raised an eyebrow.

“Girl, I know so!” Maxie laughed and punched her in the arm playfully.

“Let’s go, ladies; the show is about to start,” Nina announced as she beckoned the other two women to follow her.

Within an hour and a half, the fashion show was already well underway as several of the models pranced and sauntered on the catwalk, turning and pivoting coyly while showing off Theresa’s new Christmas designs. Many of them were dressed as sexy, seductive female versions of Santa Claus while some of them were dressed as adorable but pretty reindeer and elves. The techno electric music was pulsing and beating overhead with the multi-colored Christmas themed lights spinning and rotating in a very careful, deliberate and choreographed manner. Many audience members cheered and raved as the models strutted their stuff and even a couple of guys gave wolf whistles and cat calls.

“Well, I’d say that is a sign of a job well done,” Nina declared proudly, impressed by how the fashion show was playing out so far.

But just then Nelle stepped out into the catwalk, dressed in a skimpy yet sexy Santa Claus outfit that showed off her midriff along with a pair of fuzzy black boots. She then arched her eyebrow seductively as she made several different poses and cameras and cell phones flashed all over her amidst even more cheers and howls.

“That little skank…” Theresa seethed as she was right about to climb up to the catwalk and deck her in the face but Maxie grabbed her wrist to stop her.

“Hey, cool it, T. Don’t blow it; it’s your show.”

“She’s trying to sabotage it!” Theresa shot back furiously. “She clearly doesn’t like that I’m getting so much attention and she wants to divert all of it to herself! It’s not bad enough that I’m never going to be the next Mrs. Michael Corinthos Junior, but now she wants to ruin my fashion career too?!”

“Um, Michael’s dad Sonny is technically Michael Junior. His grandpa Mike is Michael Senior,” Maxie quickly explained.

“Oh…” Theresa quickly deflated, feeling like quite the fool.

Just then, Nina, Maxie and Theresa heard a familiar female laugh.

“Don’t ever change, Theresa.”

Theresa spun around to see Nicole approaching the trio and she flew over to embrace her with an ecstatic and giddy grin.

“Nicole! I can’t believe you’re here!” she shrieked as she hugged her tightly.

“Well, I figured it was time to move on,” Nicole shrugged as she hugged her back. “Besides, I can’t manage this company without you anyway, Theresa; well, technically I could, but I miss you too much to not want to.”

“Awww, you old sap,” Theresa giggled as Maxie and Nina soon joined them.

Theresa then pulled away from Nicole and gestured over to the two women.

“Nicole, these are my new friends Nina Reeves and Maxie Jones. Girls, this is Nicole Walker. She is not only my cousin-in-law but she was also my partner back when we were still running D.W. Design together in Salem and she’s also Tate’s godmother. Eric is his godfather.”

“Cool; pleasure to meet you, Nina,” Maxie replied as she shook her hand.

“It’s also a pleasure to meet you too, Nicole,” Nina added.

“I see that your fashion show is going very smoothly,” Nicole observed astutely as she watched the models on the catwalk. “Nice going, partner.”

“Yeah, aside from the fact that a certain Ms. Nelle Benson is trying to destroy my debut and make me look bad in front of potential investors and patrons,” Theresa scoffed with a side eye.

“She’s just jealous because she’s got the hots for one of the most eligible and richest bachelors in town and he’s currently dating someone who’s only been in town for a little while,” Nina whispered discreetly to Nicole out of Theresa’s earshot.

“Gotcha,” Nicole winked.

“And they’re having a baby too, so that’s really complicating things a lot,” Maxie added.

“Oh, I see,” Nicole nodded.

After the fashion show was over, Maxie, Nina, Nicole, and Theresa were leaving Crimson when a car suddenly pulled up and stopped. The front doors then opened up and Brady and Melanie stepped out, with Brady carrying Tate in his arms.

“Brady! Melanie! What are you two doing here?” Theresa gasped in surprise. “I thought you guys were still in Salem!”

“We wanted to surprise you. Brady and I decided to move out here permanently over a week ago so that we can see Tate on a more regular basis; we just went back to Salem a day early so that we could have Christmas dinner with Grandma and Victor before we left,” Melanie answered as Tate rushed over to hug his mother.

“Mommy!”

He then looked up to see that Nicole was with the group and also ran over to hug her too.

“Auntie Nicole!”

“Hey, little squirt,” Nicole smirked as she hugged him too. “Great to see you.”

“I missed you and Uncle Eric so much,” Tate beamed.

“So did I, kiddo,” Nicole smiled back.

“So uh, Theresa… Me and Brady were kind of wondering if maybe you’d like to come over to our place for Christmas? Just the four of us?”

Theresa then glanced over at the other women apprehensively and Maxie gave a thumbs up.

“Don’t worry, Theresa. We can hang out together on New Year’s Eve,” Nina reassured her.

“And Eric would also love to see you tomorrow morning anyway. So go and take up Melanie on her offer,” Nicole urged her friend.

“Are you really sure?” Theresa frowned uncertainly. “I mean, we’re not exactly friends…”

“But we’re still technically family,” Melanie interrupted her. “I’m practically Tate’s second mom anyway since he’s also with me and Brady a lot too. Besides, let’s bygones be bygones, especially for Christmas. Tater Man would also love it if he can have both of his parents together tonight.”

“All right then, if you’re sure…” Theresa said, furrowing her brow apprehensively.  

“Okay, that’s settled,” Brady clapped his hands. “Everyone let’s climb into the car and head home.”

Theresa then hugged the girls goodbye and she and Tate climbed into the car with Brady and Melanie as the four headed off to Brady and Melanie’s place to celebrate the rest of the magical evening.

--

NEW YEAR’S EVE 2017

PORT CHARLES, NEW YORK

METRO COURT BALLROOM

9 P.M.

A huge crowd of people were gathered in the Metro Court as they were busy enjoying themselves, drinking and dancing the night away. Many of them were dressed in the most elegant and lavish evening gowns and black tie suits. Several of the guests have already paired up with their significant others and were having a good time. It seemed like every single person in Port Charles had someone with them – well, everyone except for Theresa.

Theresa was busy sitting at the punch table, drinking a huge goblet of the finest red wine with her close gal pal Anne, who had also decided to move out to Port Charles a few days ago for a change of scenery.

“God, this sucks,” Theresa mumbled, staring at her goblet of wine. “It’s like I’m the only single woman here.”

“Well, that makes two of us,” Anne shrugged, taking a sip from her glass of wine. “At least we get to commiserate together.”

“What are you two ladies doing sitting here alone?” Obrecht demanded as she advanced towards the pair.

Theresa then jumped with a startled and astounded look on her face as she saw that Obrecht was wearing a dress that she had just designed for her just weeks before – a simple dark black sequined lace gown with her shoulders exposed and her hair styled in a short, layered bob.

Anne then put on an akimbo with a short, pointed glare.

“Who the hell are you?”

“And what the hell are you doing hanging around with a girl more than half your age?” Obrecht sneered.

“She’s my best friend, in case you haven’t noticed,” Theresa snapped sassily.

“Yeah, we’re like two peas in a pod,” Anne interjected.

“Lucy and Ethel.”

“Auntie Mame and Vera Charles.”

“Mulder and Scully.”

“All right, enough with these ridiculous pop culture references!” Obrecht quickly waved her hand in an exasperated tone. “I don’t have time to argue with a curly haired moppet and little Miss Minnie Mouse.”

“Hey!” Theresa growled.

“She does have a point; you do kind of sound like Minnie Mouse,” Anne snickered.

“Anne…” Theresa whined. “You’re not helping!”

“Don’t fret, meyn kleyn eyner,” Anne reassured her. “Seriously, you need to learn how to keep your cool. You’re supposed to be a professional businesswoman. It’s totally not a good look on you.”

“What the hell are you even saying?” Obrecht scoffed.

Anne rolled her eyes with a glare. “None of your damn business,” she retorted in Yiddish.

“Take a walk off the pier, you ugly old witch,” Obrecht snarled back in German.

“Up yours, bitch!” Anne spat back.

“Suck my big fat one,” Obrecht snarled cruelly.

“What the hell is going on here?!” Theresa shrieked, suddenly perplexed and bewildered by Obrecht and Anne suddenly speaking in strange tongues.

“None of your business!” Obrecht and Anne yelled shrilly at Theresa at the same time.

“Okay; jeez, whatever,” Theresa rolled her eyes, pouting with her arms crossed.

“Come on, lady; let’s not ruin this good vibe we got going here. It’s a party; we’re here to have fun,” Anne grumbled exasperatedly.

Obrecht averted her gaze sullenly with a thin line and sighed deeply.

“I suppose you’re right,” she retorted reluctantly.

“Whatever,” Anne scoffed. “I’m tired of this bitchfest already anyway. I’m going to go see if there aren’t any hot and cute guys lurking around.”

She then walked off and disappeared into the crowd.

“Oh, Anne,” Theresa shook her head. “Sometimes I wonder why I put up with her. But she has been one of the only people that has stuck by me even when I was at my absolute worst, so that’s gotta count for something.”

“You should consider yourself very lucky,” Obrecht replied coolly as she turned around and started to walk away.  

“Hey, um… Liesl?” Theresa stammered, scratching the back of her head nervously.

“What?” Obrecht scoffed, peering over her shoulder coldly.

Theresa smiled sheepishly, batting her eyes innocently. “You actually look really lovely tonight.”

Obrecht’s face remained emotionless at first but then she broke into a huge smile and her eyes shined brightly with a jovial gleam.

“You don’t look so bad yourself, young one.”

“Oh my God, this is gonna sound crazy,” Theresa giggled anxiously as she rubbed the back of her head nervously. “I-I mean, I uh… This is going to sound really, really, really weird, but um… I was wondering if maybe you would like to dance with me?”

Obrecht then broke out into an amused laugh, her eyes gazing at her with a mocking and incredulous gleam.

“Don’t be ridiculous. You can’t possibly mean it.”

“Actually I do,” Theresa insisted; her voice strong and firm with a hint of resolve in her voice.

Obrecht’s face faltered and paled and her eyes shrunk with disbelief and astonishment.

“You can’t be serious.”

“Well, you better believe it, sister,” Theresa growled determinedly as she grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the dance floor.

They soon waltzed right into the midst of the crowd as Theresa pulled her into her arms and they started to dance.

By this point a lot of people were heavily plastered and were too distracted from their mind-numbing drunkenness to notice anything strange or amiss going on. However, it did not quite escape some people’s notice.

Nina was busy slow dancing with Valentin when she saw Obrecht dancing with Theresa from the very corner of her eye.

“Um, Valentin?” Nina asked. “Is it me or is that my Aunt Liesl dancing with Theresa Donovan?”

“I guess you’re probably right,” Valentin replied as he took a quick glance at the dancing pair.

“Ah, it’s probably nothing,” Nina waved her hand dismissively with a smile. “I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about. I’m just glad that Aunt Liesl’s having fun.”

“Since when are your mom and Theresa so chummy?” Maxie asked Nathan as the married couple was also dancing.

“Beats me. Maybe Mother was actually happy with the handiwork that Theresa’s done,” Nathan shrugged nonchalantly.

“Maybe, but this whole thing still seems pretty weird,” Maxie quipped suspiciously. “I mean, last time I checked, they were practically at each other’s throats.”

“As long as Mother isn’t causing any ruckus or mayhem, I honestly don’t care what she does,” Nathan retorted off-handedly.

Theresa and Obrecht continued to slow dance together as Theresa wrapped her arms around her and looked into her eyes, blushing. Obrecht smirked and pulled her closer to her as she placed her hand on the small of her back.

Theresa stifled a giggle. “Any lower and people would be wondering what the hell is going on.”

“I don’t care,” Obrecht declared flatly.

“You seriously want to cause a major scandal here?” Theresa hissed sharply.

“Let them talk. It’s not like either of us are perfect angels,” Obrecht scoffed dismissively.

“What do you mean by that?” Theresa demanded suspiciously.

Obrecht smirked deviously. “I know all about you and your criminal past, little one. It’s not so hard to look it up.”

She then noticed the color from Theresa’s face rapidly fading and giggled.

“Don’t worry liebchen. I am not going to embarrass you in public like that.”

“Oh, okay,” Theresa laughed sheepishly. “Man, you really had me going there for a minute.”

Before long, midnight rolled around and everyone started the countdown to ring in the New Year.

“Three, two… one… Happy New Year!”

One by one, everyone shared a passionate kiss or a hug with someone next to them. Even Anne puckered her lips and attempted to kiss Scotty.

“Come here and kiss me, big boy.”

“Uh, I don’t think so, lady,” Scotty retorted brusquely and walked off.

Theresa was then taken aback when Obrecht pulled her in for a big smooch on the lips. After a few minutes, she pulled away and recoiled in shock and horror.

“What the hell was that, Liesl? People are going to see us!”

“I don’t see what the big fuss is about,” Obrecht shrugged nonchalantly, not seeing what Theresa was panicking about.

“Okay, that does it!” Theresa yelled, making a criss-cross motion. “I think that you’ve had way too much to drink and maybe it’s time I take you back home.”

“But what about your son?” Obrecht inquired.

“Eve’s babysitting him tonight. He’ll be fine,” Theresa insisted as she grabbed Obrecht and stormed out of the ballroom.

As soon as Theresa and Obrecht got back to her apartment, Theresa led Obrecht into the guest bedroom.

“Okay, this is where you are going to sleep tonight. I’ll be in my bedroom if you need me.”

She then disappeared into her bedroom and immediately changed into her nightgown. Just as she did so, the door knocked and Obrecht opened it, dressed in a simple black nightgown.

“I’m really sorry if I made you uncomfortable, Theresa,” she apologized as she entered the room. “I just got caught up in the heat of the moment.”

“It’s all right,” Theresa said as she rolled up the comforter sheets and climbed into bed. “I was just startled, that’s all. I mean, I’m not actually entirely uncomfortable with it; after all, I did experiment with a couple of girls when I was in high school but guys were always my primary M.O. It has absolutely nothing to do with you.”

“Well, I am relieved then,” Obrecht smiled as she crawled into bed with Theresa and turned on the T.V. with the remote.

The T.V. screen then showed a huge throng of people cheering and celebrating enthusiastically as a whole burst of fireworks exploded into the air right in the middle of Times Square.

“You know, I’ve always loved to watch the fireworks display at the park every New Year’s Eve when I was little and when I couldn’t go, I would always like to watch the ball come down at Times Square with my family,” Theresa explained.

“At least they love you,” Obrecht scoffed.

Theresa pivoted around to face her in confusion. “What do you mean?”

Obrecht hung her head sadly. “My parents never really gave a damn about me. All they ever cared about was their precious Magda. I was nothing more than an inconvenience to them and they felt like I would never be as wonderful or as beautiful or as perfect as her.”

Her eyes then brimmed with tears as she closed her eyes and fought hard to not let them out.

“They devoted all of their love and attention to my sister. To them she could do absolutely no wrong since she was their most prized golden child. I could never do anything right in their eyes.”

“I was a genius child prodigy who got a rare scholarship to one of the most prestigious boarding schools in the country for child geniuses and they didn’t care. I was one of the very few girls at that time who got such an honor and it was like it was merely a drop in the bucket.”

“All they ever cared about was how well Magda did in her ballet recitals and how perfect and flawless her etiquette and manners were or how she was the smartest, prettiest and loveliest girl in the room and that everyone should automatically bow down to her. And I was the one who got in the way. It was almost like I never should’ve been born.”

“I’m really sorry, Obrecht,” Theresa murmured sympathetically. “That Magda sounds like a horrible monster.”

“Yes she was, but she was also my sister. What was I supposed to do?”

“Well, you could always kill her,” Theresa suggested with a shrug.

Obrecht then let out a surprised but amused laugh. “If only it were that easy, little liebchen.”

“Believe me; I wanted to kill Andrew for a long time because he stole so much attention away from our parents. My mom and dad would act like he was so perfect, wonderful and amazing and that he was the best thing to ever happen to our family,” Theresa narrowed her eyes scornfully.  

“But with me it was almost like I was an embarrassment or a mistake that they didn’t really want to acknowledge or accept. I mean, I know now that deep down they didn’t actually believe that and that they had so many problems between them that basically spilled over into all our lives, but back then it did not feel that way.”

“The more that my parents continuously praised and gushed over Andrew, the more they scolded and chewed me out for every wrong thing that I did and they would be a lot harsher with me than they were with him when he did something wrong. Eventually it just kept building and building up and finally I couldn’t take it anymore and I started lashing out at Andrew. Our little feud then evolved into a full on sibling rivalry and it was years before we could even reach a place of mutual understanding and peace.”

“Honestly, I would rather have Andrew as my best friend and trusted confidante than spend a single minute with Eve. Trust me; she isn’t nearly as bad as your sister, but she can get pretty annoying really quickly.”

“Sounds like you have quite the family,” Obrecht chuckled.

“Yeah; I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Theresa chuckled back.

Obrecht then kissed her softly on the lips and this time Theresa didn’t fight back or hesitate. She then turned off the T.V. and the lights as she and Obrecht then lay down together and started making out heavily. It wasn’t long before they gave in to their passionate, wanton lust and found themselves in the throes of lovemaking.

[riverofmemoriesft]

. Between the Lines . 165

Lucy thought her ribs were going to break when she was tackled by an overjoyed Natsu after finally getting to Hargeon the next day. Cobra cackled as she struggled to push him off. "I can't breathe," she gasped.

"Sorry!" Natsu pulled back and happily kept a grip on her good arm. She could see his sharp onyx eyes studying her. And then he gave her his signature grin, looking exceptionally happy as he told her, "I missed you."

Lucy had to fight back the urge to snort at his behavior. "I can see that." She patted his arm gently, letting her happiness at being with him again show through the gentleness of her touch. She wouldn't say it aloud, but she'd missed him and been a little lost without her excitable partner in crime.

"Lucy!" Wendy cheered as she tackled her in a lighter hug. Lucy laughed and hugged her and then let Happy join in.

"It appears you were missed by more than just Natsu," Jellal mused with amusement, Charle standing awkwardly at his feet as people openly stared at the group. A few looked annoyed, some hateful. More than one looked excited and whispered to one another, pointing their way.

"I missed her most though!" Natsu crowed, slinging an arm around her shoulders.

"Who the hell cares who missed Blondie most?" Cobra huffed. "Can we go now?"

"Yes," Lucy reassured with a laugh. He just wanted to see Kinana. As if reading her mind, he gave her a dark look. She pretended not to notice and leaned into Natsu's side as she greeted Jellal.

They made their way out of the airport and down the street. The train station wasn't too far away, and Lucy found herself exceptionally relieved to finally be getting home. She hadn't minded taking the job that had been requested of her - it hadn't been too bad, actually. But she'd missed her boyfriend and team, and she'd found herself expecting someone to react in a way the didn't.

When they climbed on the train, Natsu looked hopefully to Wendy, but she shook her head. "I don't want it to stop working on you," she explained. "I'll do my Troia for you though, if you'd like," she offered to Cobra with a beaming smile.

"Troia…?" He squinted suspiciously at her, as if not entirely looking forward to whatever she was suggesting.

"No more motion sickness," Lucy explained with a grin. "Natsu's favorite spell."

Cobra seemed to contemplate this for a moment before reluctantly agreeing, and Wendy murmured under her breath to herself as she went to work. He watched her with a wary look, and from where she was being carried gently by Jellal, Charle scolded, "Don't overuse your magic on something so ridiculous, child."

"I'm not," Wendy promised.

Lucy turned her attention back on Natsu, furrowing her brow in thought. "Natsu," she said, and then added, "Jellal, you too…these people we went after. They lured us in, as well as Sabertooth. They were after my keys, and Yukino's, too, I think."

There was a moment in which she was stared at, and then Natsu proceeded to burst into flames. Lucy gave him a glare; just because they weren't required to keep magic hidden didn't mean that he needed to promptly light himself on fire!

Jellal was far more quiet in his response, saying slowly, "I don't know why, but it doesn't surprise me. Many people would come after the Zodiac keys, Lucy."

The blonde touched the metal lovingly. "And no one will ever touch them," she muttered darkly.

"Lucy," Wendy said, turning to glance at her. "Would you like me to look at your arm on the train?"

"I'd appreciate it a lot," Lucy said honestly. "It can wait until we get home if it needs to though."

"I'll do it on the train," Wendy hummed. "I don't get to heal broken bones often. It's good practice." Lucy gave her a long look, as if uncertain as to whether or not that was a normal thing for someone with magic that healed to be saying. But she shrugged and moved on, turning to Jellal again.

"I recommend," Jellal said, continuing their conversation. "That you make sure to go nowhere alone. You're far more powerful than you were - particularly with how you've mastered that spell of yours. But just to be safe. There are ways that people can catch you unprepared. Your magic is unlike ours. You can't just summon it with your soul just yet. You require the touch of your keys and words."

"You mean I just can't suddenly breathe fire," Lucy murmured in understanding, eyeing Natsu, who was still leaking smoke from his nostrils. She gave him a glare until he stopped. "I get it. I'll make sure that someone's with me at all times," she promised, and then beamed a thoughtful Happy dropped onto her head, lightly using his claws to stay in place. He made sure not to hurt her head too badly with them.

Natsu tugged his scarf from his mouth and then subconsciously rubbed his chest, looking off into the distance without another word, even as Lucy questioned him.

Something's wrong, he decided, but it didn't bother him so much.

At least Lucy was with him now.

Evening found Lucy happily sitting at the bar in Fairy Tail's headquarters with Natsu on one side of her and an exhausted Gray on her other. A paper was before her, a carefully handwritten report filled out, and she was just signing her name as she asked, "What's up with you, Gray?"

"Training," he moaned. "Against Erza."

Natsu flinched in sympathy, but taunted, "Not strong enough to fend her off?"

"On the contrary," Erza's voice cut in. "He managed to accidentally cut my cheek."

The trio of mages glanced up as she came over, her hands on her jean-clad hips. Indeed, a long cut stretched from her temple to her chin. "Wendy offered to heal it, but every mage likes their scars. How's your arm, Lucy?"

"Sore," she admitted, eyeing her healed arm. She flexed her hand and grimaced. "She said that they would be for a day or two though, so…"

"You'll have time to heal before the Grand Magic Games then," she said firmly, beaming. Erza's eyes glowed as she told her, "We leave soon. It'll take us a good day or so to get the entire guild there. The Council's set up people to defend Magnolia in our absence."

"Everyone's coming?" Lucy said in alarm.

"Everyone," Erza confirmed. "They've built a magically enhanced stadium for it. They're broadcasting it across Fiore on every television."

"Great." Lucy sighed. So she'd fail in front of everyone. She sucked her lower lip between her teeth and chewed on it, her dark eyes troubled. Gray noticed and squinted at her from where he'd rested his head on the bar.

"What?" he grunted. "Don't want to compete?"

Natsu whirled in his seat, his onyx eyes landing on Lucy with a sharp look. "You don't want to compete, Luce?"

Lucy flushed as Erza looked her way, too. She raked a hand through her long hair as she sat back, shaking her head. "No, I do. I'd like to try, just...I don't think I'm going to do well. There are so many other mages who would have been a better choice. I wish Master had picked someone like...you guys, who's been using magic for longer than a year."

"Lucy," Gray drawled, sitting up and speaking hastily before Natsu could launch into his speech. "Listen. You're not the strongest. We aren't either. That title belongs to someone like Gildarts, maybe even a mage in another country. Here's the thing: your potential magic is incredible, surpasses quite a few of us."

"I believe it may surpass my own abilities," Erza added. Lucy squirmed uncomfortably at the compliment.

"And the rate at which you've improved and trained over just one year is incredible," Gray continued. "Do you know how long it took me to master making one weapon with ice? Or how long it took Natsu to manipulate the fire like he does? It took Erza years to entirely master and control the magic she uses."

"What the moron is saying," Natsu cut in impatiently, "Is that you're badass and Master picked ya for a reason. And if ya lose a match, you lose it. No big deal."

"That," Gray muttered, waving awkwardly at his rival. "What he said."

Erza only smiled warmly at her.

Lucy flushed a brilliant red and tried to blink back tears, honored by what they'd said about her. "I guess," she finally managed to get out, voice thick with emotion. "Thanks. All of you."

Gray gave her a grin and ruffled her hair affectionately before going to sit with Juvia, who'd begun to hesitantly approach them. But she'd stopped with an uncertain look, her eyes wide. Erza slammed Lucy into her chest for a hug, and Lucy gave a grimace of pain that Natsu cackled at.

When Erza had gone Natsu suddenly leaned towards her, getting in her personal space. Lucy narrowed her eyes and leaned back. "What are you doing?" she demanded, and he suddenly gave a beaming grin. Aware that Mirajane was watching them, Lucy arched a brow.

"I wanna go on a date when we're in Crocus," he told her and she blinked in surprise. "And I don't want to do something like we've been doing. I want to do something else."

"We can do that," she said slowly. She thought over all of it, narrowing her eyes as she contemplated what they could do in the city she'd lived in for quite some time. She came up blank, however, and frowned. "We'll have to see what's available, 'cause-"

"There's gonna be a small festival in town," he cut in. Lucy's lips parted; he'd already looked into this! "There's gonna be food and music and stuff, so I thought we could mess around there. It's not as big as our Fantasia Parade and stuff, but…"

"That sounds like fun, Natsu, let's do it," Lucy agreed, amused with him. She reached out and tapped his nose once. "So long as you're rich self pays for it, because my money is going towards rent."

"I can pay rent for you, too," he offered, and she shot his cheekily smiling self a glare before bidding him an amused farewell so that she could go and see what Wendy wanted when the girl waved for her attention. Natsu watched her go and then grimaced, rubbing away a phantom pain in his side.

Mirajane sashayed her way over and gave him a smile as she hummed, "Plotting with Lucy, Natsu?"

"Not plotting," he huffed. "Planning."

"Good. Take Gray and Juvia with you when you go, or Erza and Jellal. Even my brother and Evergreen. I need someone to screw with and tease since I can't affect you anymore." Her lips pulled into a pout.

He rolled his onyx eyes. "Go mess with Lisanna. She's been hanging out a lot with Bickslow, hasn't she?"

She sighed heavily. "Yes, but Bickslow complains to Laxus. I don't want Laxus being grouchy." As if this was the worst thing that could happen to her, the S-Class mage slouched across the bar and pleaded, "Tell me if you think Kinana would be a good victim!"

Natsu smirked, entirely amused with this. Mostly because he wasn't on the receiving end of this. "Nah, Cobra would get too pissed off. I think ya should mess with Levy about the whole marriage thing. Or Romeo and Wendy."

Mirajane clasped her hands together happily. "You," she said with a laugh, "Are one devious person, Natsu."

Natsu beamed like some kind of innocent child. "Only 'cause I can use it against 'em later."

Cobra, who'd passed by with thoughtful look, paused to squint at him. "...hey, lady," he said, addressing Mirajane. "Have him tell you 'bout how he's being a little clingy."

Natsu whirled on the other dragon slayer, bristling. "I am not," he snapped.

"Ooh, such a response," Mirajane teased.

Natsu scowled, suddenly aggravated. He was more than grateful when someone called his name - Wendy, he realized, a troubled look on her face. He scampered over as fast as he could, blowing a streak of fire at Cobra. He ducked to avoid it, cackling to himself.

"What's up?" he huffed as he reached Wendy, shoving his hands into his jean pockets. His onyx eyes shone with annoyance.

Lucy, who was seated on a bench, looked pale, he realized, and it made him suspicious. "What's wrong?" he demanded, furious suddenly. He found himself stressed as he rubbed his chest. What the hell was going on?!

"Lucy," Wendy said hesitantly, sensing that he was ready to blow. She faltered, suddenly nervous, and that just upset him further.

He'd done nothing to make her nervous of him!

Smoke poured from his nostrils as he huffed and Lucy sighed softly. "Walk me home," she ordered more than asked. It only proceeded to make him scowl. Lucy sent Wendy to the bar to get some water and they left soon after.

"Lucy!" Natsu demanded as they made their way through Magnolia. He could feel the desperate pressure in his chest that told him something was wrong, tearing at him, trying to claw its way free.

"Remember," she said quietly, "When I asked what people knew about anti-ethernano tumors? Back before we left Hargeon for Tenrou Island?"

Not liking where this was going, he nodded.

"I'd gotten one when I was little according to Momma's diary." Lucy's voice trembled now. "When Wendy was helping with my arm, she thought there was something off. So she took a look and found one here." She tapped her side. "I just...Natsu. Compared to you guys, how much magic have I truly used?" Her voice rose a little, confusion flashing across her face.

He was stunned. Anger flooded him, but then he shoved it down, not wanting to upset her further. "You'll...you'll be okay though?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Porlyusica's going to come and help Wendy remove it within the next few days." She took a shaking breath. "I just...don't understand." She threw her hands in the air, desperate. "Why is this not happening to you and the others? You use magic so much more often than I do!"

"I don't know," he admitted, and then scowled.

But he was sure as hell determined to find out.