#and I remember turning to my dad when I was looking at it and going 'damn. joaquin was a damn good cast for this'. SERIOUSLY. LOOKED SO

[t1red-twilight]

you remembered?

summary: dean isn’t used to celebrating his birthday.

content/warnings: gn!reader, fluff, some angst, allusions to abuse/neglect, john winchester when i catch you john winchester

notes: happy birthday dean!

word count: 1.1k

masterlist d. w. masterlist

there were a few things that you knew about dean. one, he was a night owl. two, he preferred pancakes over waffles. and three, he was not used to his birthday being remembered, let alone celebrated.

in all the time that you had known him you weren’t even told when his birthday was, at least for a while. given the constant life or death circumstances, it hadn’t crossed your mind to ask when it was or why you didn’t celebrate it. about six months ago you and sam were alone, and you remembered to ask.

sam told you what the date of his birthday was (january twenty-fourth), and the next thing he said just about made your jaw go slack. “we never really celebrated it,” he stated.

“what do you mean, you never celebrated it?”

sam pondered for a moment. “well, our dad always said that we didn’t have time for birthdays or christmas. it just wasn’t something we ever did, i guess.” you swallowed the words you wished to say. lord knows that if you spoke what you were thinking, you might get in trouble.

but sam continued. “dean celebrated my birthday with me a couple times, but our dad didn’t…take that too well. i think after a while he just forgot our birthdays.” your heart sunk. everything you learned about that man made you lean towards violence just a little bit more.

so, you took everything sam had said and you stored it in your brain for later use. eventually, his birthday approached. you figured he wouldn’t be into something super loud and big, considering that he hadn’t had a birthday celebration in what seemed to be quite a while.

two weeks before his birthday, you sat down and planned what you were going to do. you wanted something small, but nonetheless something that at least would make him feel recognized.

-

when dean woke up, he noticed that you weren’t in the bed next to him. he sat up, rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and looked around the room. you were nowhere to be seen.

he did notice, however, that the door to your shared bedroom was slightly ajar. and faintly he could hear the noise of pots and pan gently clanking in the kitchen.

he meandered out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. and there you stood, making breakfast. now you didn’t really have designated meal times; the two of you just ate whenever it seemed necessary. so the oddity of this current situation was not lost to him. “what are you doing?” he questioned.

turning, you saw him standing in the entrance in the kitchen. his shirt was ruffled and you couldn’t quite read the expression on his face. smiling, you answered. “i’m making breakfast.” his eye eyebrows slightly raised, and it seemed as if he looked a little bit shocked.

“why, though?” he followed through with his questioning. “you know, we don’t usually do stuff like this.” nothing in his tone was accusatory. if anything, the volume of his voice lowered in an unusual manner.

you turned back around to face the bacon that you were currently frying. hopefully you weren’t overstepping. maybe he just didn’t like his birthday? perhaps you shouldn’t have done anything at all.

you heard soft footsteps approach you from behind. dean’s hands moved to rest up upon your hips. slowly, he turned you around to look at him. his eyes, they looked…glassy? your brow knit together and your hands went up to hold his cheeks. his bottom lip began to quiver almost imperceptibly.

a silence filled the room. you could only hear the soft splattering of the bacon from behind you, and maybe even the soft hums of his breath as he looked at you. when you spoke, you made sure that your voice was lowered. you didn’t know if sam was here, and it was likely that dean would not want sam to overhear what was going on. “well, it’s kind of an important day. it’s pretty special.“

at this, you saw him look away briefly and blink rapidly. was he trying not to cry? you used your hands and moved his face back to face yours. “are you okay?“ you asked. oh god, you overstepped. and now, he was upset.

surprisingly, he nodded. “yes. i’m great,” he replied. you didn’t push him any further than he wanted to go.

a small, singular tear escaped from the corner of his eye. your thumb rose off his cheek and swiped it away. dean lowered his head into the crook of your shoulder, and pulled you close to him. his hands were sprawled across your back and held you ever so tightly. it looked as though his shoulders were shaking slightly, he was crying. you didn’t say anything.

you mirrored his motions, and pulled him close to you as well. you scratched his back lightly, and ran one hand through his hair. you reached behind yourself and turned the stove off to avoid any accidents. the embrace might have lasted for a few minutes or even longer, but you didn’t really know or care.

then, he spoke. his voice, though muffled, still communicated what he wanted to say clearly. “thank you for remembering,” he said. the quiver in his voice was not lost to you. how could it be that some cheap, overcooked bacon was eliciting such a response?

you kissed the part of his head that was most accessible to you and whispered back to him. “of course. it’s a special day, and you’re special to me.” he pulled away and looked at you. dean’s cheeks were damp and his lips were swollen from crying.

“no one’s ever done something like this for me i-“ a sob wracked his body and cut him off. you pulled him down to kiss you.

you hadn’t known dean for that long, one and a half, maybe two years. but in that time you really gotten close. and while you never verbally defined anything you both knew where the two of you stood.

dean kissed you back instantaneously and with such a fervor that sent a chill up your spine. you could feel the tears that slipped down his face, but didn’t mind in the slightest.

you pulled away and he kissed you once more in a pecking motion. your thumbs wiped away the tears that remained. “and i was thinking,” you started, “that we could go to the diner in town later. get some dinner and pie?”

“just you and me?” he asked, his face lighting up gently.

“yeah. just you and me.”

[yoonjae20]

Ric(hard) Fenton; Part 1

(Once again slightly inspired by @saltymarshmall0w 's prompt.)

Read on ao3.

Masterpost.

“B, didn’t you promise us as you’d tell if there was a possibility of another secret child?” Tim asks as he stares at the black haired boy, who looks like he had been to hell and back to get here, with blue eyes — because of course, they are blue —  in front of the Manor’s door. 

He can’t help but feel unnerved by the way the boy evaded their security measures and how he hasn’t said a single word since Tim opened the door even when he can see the boy’s hands tremble.

“Yes?” Bruce's voice floats from further in the Manor, his barely audible gaunt drawing near.

“Then who the hell is this?” he asks just as the man turns the corner. He freezes at the sight of the kid, literally blue screening as he takes him in. 

“Actually he’s mine,” a too chipper voice announces and Tim nearly jumps out of skin as he turns to Dick.

The young man must see both Tim and Bruce doing the mental calculations in their heads because he interrupts before they can draw the wrong conclusions.

“If Bruce can go around adopting children, I can do the same.” Then he turns to the boy. “You can come in, Danny.” 

Tim is eerily reminded of a wary, frightened cat as the boy — Danny moves inside. His steps are too silent for a mere civilian. 

Bruce and Tim share a look and Tim knows that they are both asking themselves when Dick met the boy and why he never mentioned him with how familiar he acts around him as he easily tucks him into his side. 

Although neither of them wants to accept it, Dick has changed since the one year where he disappeared without a trace. He’d told them that he was shot leading to him to lose his memories and that he only retained his memories a few days before he came back, but Tim always had a feeling the older man was not telling the whole truth, hiding it behind an easy-going smile. He didn’t speak a single word about what happened during that year, claiming he didn’t remember much of it ever since his memories returned.

Not only that, but it had become even rarer than before that any of them would meet Dick at the manor (even Jason was at the Manor more often) — and when he was present he was always studying them with an intense stare as if he was searching for something in their expressions.

“Dick,” Bruce starts but the man waves him off.

“Later,” he says. “I need to see if I have any fresh clothes for Danny.”

Dick pulls the boy away and they head up the stairs. Tim gives it a minute before he follows, nodding at Bruce, who does the same. He hears them stop in the hallway and he pauses in his steps.

“What’s going on?” Tim hears the man's question and he sneaks closer when he can’t hear the boy’s response. He subtly uses his phone’s camera to peek around the corner. 

“What about Mom and Dad?” Dick asks in a hushed whisper and Tim knits his eyebrows together — confused about who his brother is talking about.

Danny winces with a pained expression.

“The GIW got them in custody for affiliating with and aiding an ectoplasmic entity,” he explains. “You are my only chance.”

“Jazz, Sam, Tucker?” Dick almost seems desperate and when the boy just shakes his head after each name, he runs a hand through his hair and curses. 

“And you are sure we can’t go to them?”

Tim can’t help but ask himself who they are talking about that Dick’s voice is so full of disdain. Danny vehemently shakes his head, eyes squeezed together like he is remembering something painful and when he speaks his voice is shaky.

“I don’t know what to do, Ric,” he says, clutching the top of his shirt like his heart is hurting and Tim’s eyebrows climb to the top of his hairline at the unusual nickname. “I can’t- I can’t do this alone…” 

“Fuck.” Dick takes a deep breath as he hugs Danny. “Okay. Yes, of course I’m coming with you, baby ghost. Just let me grab my things and then we’ll go on our way.” 

“You will not go anywhere.” 

Bruce steps in Dick’s path before Tim can stop him and he narrows his eyes at the pair. Danny flinches away from the man and Dick steps protectively in front of the boy.

Tim knows Bruce and Dick had their rough patches in the past but never like this. Never had Dick looked at Bruce like he was a threat. 

“I’m not in the mood, B,” Dick warns sharply. 

“And I’m not about to let you go off with someone that I haven’t vetted.”

Dick lets out a bitter huff of a laugh.

“Of course that’s the only thing you would focus on.” His voice is cold. “You’ll bulldoze your way through, and prod and condemn, not caring if you hurt someone innocent in the process as long as you can justify your actions. I don’t even know why I’m surprised at this point. It’s what happened to Jason after all.”

Bruce reels back like he’s been punched. 

“Now if that is all, I have to go save the people who actually treat me like family.”

This time nobody stops Dick as he leaves the house, Danny in tow. 

“Master Bruce, Master Tim,” Alfred’s voice tears Tim out of his trance and startles Bruce who froze in his spot. “Where is Master Dick?”

Dick trembles with barely suppressed fury as he leads Danny to his car.

He wanted to believe that Bruce was better — that he wouldn’t have led the Justice League on a hunt after a child, but the longer he is back in Gotham as Richard Grayson — the longer he is around who were supposed to be his “actual” family, the more he grows unsure about that fact. There is no easy trust between them — not the steadfast determination that no matter what happens, they’ll take his side. Not like the Fentons have. (It’s been barely 2 months and he misses being Ric Fenton — misses being Jack and Maddie’s son and Jazz and Danny’s older brother.)

Bruce has contingency plans about them for fuck’s sake. And while he understands that there might be situations where they would be on other sides — the time where he and the Teen Titans had to fight their mind controlled mentors comes to mind — it’s a scary thought. For the first time since ages — since Bruce had taken Robin away from him — he feels like he is on his own. 

Back then he had turned to Clark — to Superman. He was the one who gave him the name Nightwing but Dick is plagued by the nightmares he witnessed Danny having. He doesn’t think he can look at his uncle ever the same again. 

At the same time, he doesn’t know if Danny and him can do this alone. He glances at the boy as he drives out the gates to the manor — he looks incredibly drained. He’s even paler than usual and there’s a sheen of sweat over his whole body as he leans back in his seat, breaths shallow. 

As he drives through the streets of the Bowery a sudden thought comes to his mind. He tears the steering wheel around, tearing Danny out of his doze. He blinks at Dick, eyebrows knitted together when he sees that they are still in Gotham.

“Where are we going?” he asks and Dick gives him a smile that is all teeth.

“Just a little pit stop.”

Jason and Dick don’t talk much — or to be more precise they don’t talk about the important stuff. Not about the — ‘I broke down when I heard about your death and I blame myself for not being there’ or ‘I was sure you hated me and you were glad I was gone’. They barge into each other's apartments, spar or get drunk together and cling to each other when they are sure the other isn’t awake to witness it. It’s not quite healthy — but it’s something better than when Jason was still Robin.

So when the door to one of his safe houses gets slammed open, Jason isn’t concerned. He knows Dick had been off the past few weeks and had been expecting his visit for quite a while now. 

The look in Dick’s eyes is different this time around though. It’s not quite the mix of depression coupled with anger he normally expects — it’s something stronger — righteous fury.

“I need your help,” Dick demands before Jason can question what’s going on.

Jason knits his eyebrows together. 

“What about Bruce?”

There’s a dark look in the man’s eyes for a moment before it passes and that’s the moment Jason realizes that this something more serious than the usual spats he normally has with B. 

“You are the only one I can trust with this.”

He spins around on his heels and is out of the safe house before Jason can blink. Getting a bit impatient and angry about Dick not getting straight to the point and still expecting him to follow — Jason storms out. What he doesn’t expect is the passed out half-dead kid in the passenger seat. A tinge of green enters his vision as he glares at Dick.

“What the hell is going on?”

The story Dick tells as they speed on the highway leaves Jason reeling. If the man’s tone wasn’t carefully monotone as he spoke about Ghosts and an entire town being shifted to a different dimension, Jason would have already declared that Dick finally snapped. He wants to question why he lied to the rest about losing his memories about the year he went missing, but the desperate look he sends him and the way his hands shake on the steering wheel hold him back. It’s only the boy’s quiet snores that have Jason’s volume not climbing above a hiss.

“Are you sure this all happened? That this is real?”

“I was there, Jay,” Dick’s tone leaves no arguments. “I almost watched Danny die, again — fighting Pariah Dark. I would have never forgiven myself if another of my brothers…” He gulps and shakes his head. “I was there this time. I should have made a difference and once again I was helpless”. He slams a fist against the radio, cursing when it turns on, blaring loud music. 

He quickly turns the volume down and both of them wait with bated breath as Danny stirs in his seat, before he goes limp again. Dick lets out a deep sigh.

“How do you think I felt once I realized the situation?” Dick questions. “I was in the middle of nowhere with no recollection of who I was. If the Fentons hadn’t found me-” He shakes his head. “Next I know I’m watching a kid fight fucking Ghosts twice his side and getting thrown around like a ragdoll like it’s a normal Tuesday. That shouldn’t happen Jay, it just shouldn’t.”

Jason stays silent.

“And worst of all, I still knew how to fight,” Dick barrels on. “But no matter how much I tried to help Danny and teach him, it was useless because it wasn’t humans or even metas he was up against. How could my moves counter beings that can fly and go intangible and invisible at will?”

Jason still can’t fathom why Dick hid this from them all — but he knows enough to understand why he needs his help. 

“So what’s the plan?”

Dick shoots him a relieved smile.

“We still have 12 hours of driving ahead of us,” Dick glances at Danny. “I’m reckoning he’s gonna be out cold for at least half of it if not more. I need you to switch with me after half of the drive so I can get a power nap in, then I’ll take over again.”

“Not trusting me with the car?” Jason teases.

“Show me your drivers license and maybe I’ll reconsider.”

They start bickering, and for a moment Jason can convince himself that this is a normal road trip.

Jason’s at the wheel when the boy wakes up. Dick is out cold and despite the man’s protests Jason can drive normally if he wants to. There’s no reason the man has to over exhaust himself.

They had tossed their phones once they crossed the border to Illinois and Dick had withdrawn a couple of thousand bucks. Jason had questioned why they hadn’t done sooner if they wanted to keep Bruce off their trail, but the man told him he’s not the one he is worried about. Considering what Dick told him about the elusive GIW, Jason can harbor a guess on who he is talking about. It’s after that, that Jason wrangled him into another nap — Dick was in no condition to drive any further. 

“Ric?” Danny questions sleepily as he sits up and Jason keeps an eye on him out of the corner of his eyes.

“He’s asleep,” Jason answers and it’s only because he’s used to Damian that he blocks the instinctual kick as the boy realizes he’s not alone. 

“I can see that Dick kept you sharp” Jason huffs out a laugh. “I’m Jason, in case he didn’t mention me.”

Danny blinks at him and shifts so he is sitting cross legged. He knits his eyebrows together, clearly thinking.

“You were the pit stop?” he questions.

“Apparently.” Jason shrugs. “Great work, by the way. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Dick this pissed.”

The boy frowns, gnawing at his lips as he stares out the window.

“You’ve died too, haven't you?”

Jason suppresses his initial reaction to snap at the boy. Instead he grits his teeth as he stares straight ahead, the road blurring together. 

“And?”

“Ric shouldn’t have let you come.”

He grips the steering wheel until his knuckles are deadly white, green hazing his vision. 

“They’ll cut you open too.”

It takes the wind out of his anger and he lets out a curse. The brakes screech as he stops at the side of the road, nearly catapulting them forward with the force of it. Jason finally turns to look at Danny properly. The boy peels down his t-shirt to reveal a gnarly, ugly red Y-shaped scar as he gulps.

“Ric doesn’t know,” he says as he releases the hem of his shirt, covering the scar once more. “I haven’t told him.”

“Then why me?” Jason’s voice rises without his consent.

“Because you’ll get it,” the boy murmurs. “How it feels to die.”

The boy leans back, turning away from Jason to look at the corn field.

“How it haunts you.”

Jason wants to puke and he lets his forehead fall onto the steering wheel.

“Fuck,” he says emotionally and the boy laughs — broken and hysterical. Jason doesn’t comment on the tears streaming down Danny’s face.

Jason starts up the car again, leading the car back on the road.

“Next time Dick asks for my help, I’ll send him to hell.”

Jason hides a smile when the boy snorts at that. 

Dick comes to himself as they are about to cross the border into Amity Park. Jason and Danny are quietly talking and he wipes away a little bit of drool as he sits up. It’s dark outside and Danny directs Jason as they enter the city. He leans forward as he enters the conversation.

“You’ll think the GIW’s detectors will sense us?”

Danny glances at Jason, before he turns his attention to Dick.

“We should be fine for a few hours at least as long as I don’t have to turn ghost,” he says. “Half of the town is liminal at this point so you and Jason shouldn’t raise any alarms either. They had too many false alarms in the months since you left.”

Jason looks at Dick strangely once they park where they can hide for the night.

“Since when did you have contact with Lazarus Pits?”

“Never,” Dick retorts. “But living above a portal to the Infinite Realms for a year will do the trick.”

Jason's face scrunches up.

“Who the hell builds a portal in their own basement?” 

Both Dick and Danny snort. 

“Gotta love Mom and Dad,” the boy says as Dick nods in agreement. “Only they are insane enough.”

Dick makes a face.

“I could do without reanimated meatloaf for the rest of my life though.”

“Don’t remind me,” Danny shudders.

Jason stares at them in bafflement. 

“You do know how crazy that sounds?”

“Crazier than Ghosts?” Danny questions with a smirk and Jason pinches the bridge of his nose, shaking his head

“To give it to Mom and Dad they did stop storing samples in the fridge after we lectured them about it,” Dick adds. At Jason's aghast face he just shrugs. “They are passionate about their work.” 

“Insane, absolutely insane,” the man mutters and Dick suppresses a smile.

It had taken him a bit to get used to the Fenton's and their flavor of insanity and chaos. At first he had been worried about them being neglectful at best, but it turns out that they just needed someone to remind them when they got into “hyperfixation” mode. He and Jazz had to stage an intervention and both Maddie and Jack were embarrassed once they realized they took it too far. Dick doesn’t know who is worse — them or Tim when he’s awake for more than three days. 

He was very relieved when his initial hunch didn’t turn out to be true after Danny revealed himself as Phantom to his parents. They did a whole 180 on their research, focusing on learning about the intricacies of the Infinite Realms, their culture and even politics instead — resigning from their high positions in the GIW. That’s when the trouble really started. 

Dick hadn’t lied about getting amnesia after he was shot and it was also true that his memories had only returned — thanks to Frostbite — two months ago. But the only reason he went back to Gotham had been to get Danny help (the longer they waited the worse the situation with the GIW became) — to find out if the Justice League could be trusted. Once he heard what happened with Freakshow and the Reality Gauntlet (and had the memories to properly realize what that meant) he had been horrified. He had given himself a deadline to — if need be, confront the Justice League by the time Danny’s birthday came around and find out the truth. (He had desperately hoped that this was all a misunderstanding, but Bruce’s words still taste bitter on his tongue.)

Dick knows bringing Jason along was a risk — considering Danny’s theory that the Lazarus Pit were corrupted ectoplasm, but they need the manpower to get through the GIW’s defenses. Even if he’s scared shitless about what they’ll do to Jason when they find out just how liminal he is. He knows this is a death mission. But it doesn’t have to be for Jason.

“We need to establish some ground rules,” Dick says reluctantly and Jason narrows his eyes at the wording.

“If we get captured, I want you to save yourself, Jason.” Jason scoffs and Dick raises a hand, silencing his retort before it can come. “I’m the sole reason you got involved in the first place. Me and Danny may be willing to die for them, but I’m not letting you sacrifice yourself for something that isn’t even your problem to deal with.”

“If you think I’m gonna agree to those, you are more than stupid than I thought Dick,” Jason’s voice is scathing. “It started being my problem when you came to me for help and we drove for 12 straight hours to get there. If you say those people are your family — then they are mine as well.”

His lips perk into a smirk.

“Besides, I want to meet the people that might be even more batshit insane than B and got you to call them Mom and Dad.”

Dick flushes slightly — the Fenton’s had always insisted on him calling them Mom and Dad and he doesn’t know when the titles became genuine. Even with his memories restored, Ric Fenton feels more alive  — more loved — than Richard Grayson ever did. 

Danny just shrugs as he leans back, arms crossed behind his neck and feet rested on top of the glove box. 

“I guess I have not only two sisters but two older brothers now,” he adds cheekily. 

“Brat.” 

Jason playfully shoves Danny and Dick gapes at the fond tone in his voice. 

“How?” he stammers — they should barely know each other. “When?”

Jason tucks Danny into his side, angle a bit awkward, but grinning as he ruffles his hair.

“You missed a lot, sleeping beauty,” Jason jests and Dick groans.

“I was only asleep for 1 hour!” he bemoans. 

“Two,” Danny corrects and Dick glares at him, raising a finger.

“Don’t you two dare gang up on me!”

“This is sweet revenge for when you and Jazz teamed up against me,” Danny grins.

“We were literally trying to help you!” Dick complains, shoving Danny’s face away as the boy cackles, Jason watching on with amusement.

Dick might have to leave Ric Fenton behind for good now that his two worlds have collided, but maybe he can still be Richard “Dick” Grayson-Fenton instead.  

[venuslarkspur]

Could we get one explanation on how batsis charmed her Flings and how long they lasted or is she like Bruce. Like she can look at them and they fold

Okay I love this question and I’m here to explain 🫶

How Batsis charms her flings and how long her situationship lasted with some of them 💗

Warning: Paparazzi are low-key kind of crazy in this, mild nsfw, panic attacks, some insecurity for some characters, mentions of addiction.

Characters (paired with Batsis): Wally West, Roy Harper, Zatanna Zatara, John Constantine, Diana Prince, Hal Jordan, John Stewart.

Note: MY EXAMS ARE OVER I CAN FINALLY POST AGAIN <3 NOT PROOF READ

The Batsis Charm

- Okay so I always pictured Batsis as taking after Bruce, she turns on the Wayne family charm and deadly assassins fold. She adds some flirting and keeps up appearance, she isn’t afraid to dress alternatively either her style is ever changing.

- When Bruce first introduced her to the Justice League she was fresh out of university (pretty and clever!), she immediately enchants most of them in more ways than one.

Wally West

- These two together are a bit different, I think they both dated when they very young; teenagers. Very much puppy love.

- very healthy relationship despite how random it was, you only met through Dick. He had trouble accepting you both but did accept it.

- Very typical teenage dates like: the movies, the park, bowling etc.

- Batsis had faceless pics of them posted all over her socials.

- More Batsis coming round his for dinner then him coming to her.

- The relationship neves goes past kissing, had lots good times together though.

- The only way I see this ending is Wally struggles to be in the public eye so much with his gf, he wonders how Batsis has handled it.

- Everyone and their grandma know about this breakup when it happened, but overall ended on a good note.

Roy Harper

- These two are “she fell first but he fell harder” coded, they meet when they are both teenagers. Roy is a tiny bit older (1-2 years), starts off as unrequited love but also not really?! Batsis always loved him, these two faced the most challenges out of any of her relationships. 

- These two get more romantic as they get older (roy realising he’s got something good with this girl), Roy gets plenty threats from Jason on the daily.

- When it comes to Lian, Batsis went from dad’s friend to babysitter to stepmom to just mom. Roy remembers when Lian was very young and you just left after babysitting and he just tucked her in; he’s ready to leave for bed before Lian asks “is mommy coming again tomorrow?” His heart breaks when he realises she sees you as her mom.

- right people wrong time coded.

- Talks of giving Lian a sibling one day 💕🫶

Zatanna Zatara

- these two are the besties and or gfs forever!!

- Batsis attends all her magic shows, sometimes even becomes her assistant.

- Lots of pda, you smother her and she smothers you a lot as well.

- The media know all about you two, it’s a challenge to get away from them for a day.

- Slightly jealous type but won’t admit it, especially if one of your exes message you while you’re having one of your dates with her.

- Everyone at the JL knows they are together, whether they knew batsis liked girls or not they are surprised when you guys go public.

- Lots of Halloween couple costumes together, like magician + bunny, matching witch costumes, princess + genie, etc..

- Watch each other do your makeup, sometimes she does yours and you do hers. You brush her hair after all her magic shows.

- I love these two <3

John Constantine

- These two met by mistake, it started off as a random hookup; John didn’t even know you were the Batman’s daughter.

- When it gets revealed he makes so many comments, like “don’t want me to be your future son in law Batsy?” Shit like that.

- If you do start dating everyone would be shocked, let’s be honest these two were the most random couple ever.

- He just enjoys his time with you because he knows the day will come when you two break up so he’s just making the most of it.

- Rlly insecure no matter how serious you two get, you could be moved in together with a pet and he’d still ask “so you like me?”

- you cook him breakfast tbh, sometimes he cooks for you but you prefer to do it.

- These two are freaky asf. No more words necessary.

- You try and compare hand sizes and take pictures of you together.

- Not my favourite pairing but I still love them.

Diana Prince

- You’ve always admired her since Bruce first introduced you.

- She was the most radiant woman you’d ever seen, you fell HARD.

- Definitely Batsis’s bi/pan awakening, you’ve been chasing after her since your first day at the JL headquarters, everyone knows it.

- You’ve been on a few dates and you two regularly flirt.

- Lots of jokes (or not) about her whisking you away to Themyscira and staying there <3

- Media loves you both as well, despite the debate on whether or not you’re dating.

- The definition of “what are we?” You wonder if she’s just playing with you sometimes.

- You still respond to all her calls even if you’re on a date with someone else, she was literally all you ever wanted in your early days.

- The batfam approves of you two together 🫶

Hal Jordan

- Oh boy..these two are one of my faves.

- This relationship starts off sort of toxic?? You only hooked up with him the first time because you were mad at Bruce, AND YOUR FATHER WAS MAD.

- After he does his slut walk out of Wayne manor (in front of your brothers, sister, dad, and grandfather figure mind you) he asks when you two can meet again.

- You don’t keep things professional at headquarters so why should he? So there’s plenty of instances where his eyes wander too long over you, or when you undress him with your eyes at a meeting.

- Bruce doesn’t like it one bit, it’s actually a pregnancy scare that brings you and him together. Even though you found out your period was just late you could still be was slightly disappointed in you not being pregnant. You notice this and don’t bring it up, just invite him out for dinner sometime.

- Batsis the type of woman to pay the bill after he insists “he’s got this.”, yeah he left his wallet at home.

- If you’re moody at headquarters, he would definitely ask you if you’ve “had your period yet?” And he’s met with a firm slap on the head, from you and Dinah.

- These two are such sillies, Bruce isn’t happy, your brothers aren’t happy, but you’re happy. So who even really cares?

John Stewart

- This is the ex bf Batsis still cries over, I don’t wanna spoil anything for my newest fic but these two nearly got married definitely. And Batsis left him at the altar.

- You two end because he decided he can’t be with someone who doesn’t know what they want. Yeah he is the one who made you realise you need to take some to reflect. You just wanted him.

- Hal Jordan literally cried when he found out you two were now a thing.

- Nobody made you feel loved, if you had a spending addiction, HE got you through it.

- Bruce trusts him, his “no dating my colleagues” rule, doesn’t apply to this man because he’s witnessed how much happier you were.

- The only mildly concerning thing was the fact you could NOT shut up about him, it’s always “John” this and “John!” That, your family are genuinely sick of hearing about your amazing love life.

- Keeps you out the media’s eye if you’re not feeling up to any paparazzi that day. He just holds your hand and keeps you next to him.

- If you ever have a panic attack because of any of the paparazzi, he will take you into a secluded spot and just place kisses on top of your head and keep you firmly pressed against him, whilst reminding you “you’re safe.”

- You had no idea what you lost. And that’s why you still cry over him.

[strid3rofthen0rth]

I rebuilt the carburetor on my ice auger yesterday, unlocking a core memory in the process.

If you've never dealt with one, a carburetor is a really complex and finicky fucker, full of little ports and flappy bits, tiny screws and needles. They all have to work in concert to mix the gas and air correctly.

There's lots of standing around turning bits of metal in your hands, pondering how the hell that is supposed to fit there. At least for me. It's one of those tedious jobs that makes me nervous because it's complicated, but they're just parts after all. Calm down, me, it's adult Lego.

It does take a while to get all the tiny bits cleaned and back where they belong, which gave my mind time to go reeling back to about 1980, when I would've been six. Grandparent's house. 4th of July.

It had to be, everyone was there, and that was the tradition. Hot dogs on the grill, those old aluminum tubing and nylon webbing lawn chairs, everyone chain smoking. The good old days.

And the men wrenching on muscle cars in the driveway, using their dad's tools before they had all their own. Dad had a dented up Cutlass 442, calf shit green. My uncle had an AMC Rebel Machine. I remember that car because it was so loud and fast and scary in the good way. How it would fling my brother and I around the backseat like ragdolls, laughing the whole time, when he let it eat.

If you look at the old advertisements for it now, they sometimes list "lap belts" as an added feature. Different times.

At some point, they were obviously working on a carburetor that day because they started trying to get me to say it. Helping me along syllable by syllable, but I couldn't get it. That's a tongue twister for a six year old.

That bothered me, so I went to the Horse Room (the bedroom upstairs with a rocking horse in it since the beginning of time, apparently) and practiced until I could get it out. My perfectionism rearing its ugly head young and early.

Later, at the picnic table lunch, when asked about it, I'm told I stood up on the bench and pronounced, proudly and carefully... Carburetor.

I don't remember that part, but I do remember the uproarious cheers from the table. Accolades from a well-earned prize.

Anyway, the ice auger runs again, after a couple hours futzing with the carburetor. We have good ice on the lakes. It's a fine winter.

Here, fishy fishy.

[milla-frenchy]

I didn't expect to get hit in the face by the first sentence but here we are (and I'm here for it anyway😌)

“Let’s see what’s so fuckin’ special about you. Why your cunt is worth more than my brother’s life,” he spits, unfortunately literally, as droplets spray. 

omg oh no. Don't touch her you fuck

You’re not even mad, because it makes you dizzy enough that you don’t really register what comes after. Maybe you would have been worried about that, but he hit you hard enough that you didn’t even remember how hard you’d been hit. 

shit. shit

He steps away to rifle back through the duffle, and when he comes back, it’s with a pair of rusted pliers. 

(I'm so fn nervous Toni, hold my hand 😭😭😭)

You can’t even really hear your own screams. There’s pain, there’s blood, there’s Mike’s sick laughter. And then there’s darkness.

I hate him. I fn hate him so fn much. I'm gonna be so fn GLAD when Joel's gonna rip him in two

Satisfied that you aren’t afraid, that you’re okay for a moment, he finishes his feast.  There’s not much left of Mike when he tosses his corpse into a corner. It smacks against the far wall and drops to the ground. His final resting place. 

jfc YES!!!!

He looks down at you, long tongue poking out to lap at your cheek before he realizes the injury is inside. He whines, and you shake your head, weaving your fingers in his fur and burying your face there. He doesn’t need words; neither of you do. He just takes you home. 

Damn I wanna cry. I was so scared for her, I'm so relieved Joel's here, but seeing that he tries to heal her and then realizes that the wound is inside is so hard to read 😥

He makes good on his promise to soothe your other wounds. He can’t quite numb your aching mind or racing heart, can’t slide his tongue over the places that shattered inside, but he can damn well remove every trace of Mike from your body.

I hate what that guy did to her. I hate it so much

“My—” and there’s something potent in his pause. Something that saps the silliness of your subject change away and dances dangerously close to serious.  “My daughter loved that shit,” he says. 

Oh wow... Oh, Joel... ��

You go to turn over again, but this time, he lets you, both of his arms cradling you in a way that makes your throat feel tacky and tight. It’s made worse by the way his eyes are bright, the flecks of green bursting through the brown like lichen in soil. 

This is so beautiful

“Will you tell me about her?” you ask, barely a whisper, afraid to break whatever is happening.  “Not… not today,” he grants, and you take it for the huge step that it is, and nod, burying your face in his chest instead and taking a deep breath of his soothing scent.

Damn I love them so much

Then, of course, you wish you hadn’t looked at all. Once you have, though, you can’t look away. You understand that Tool song now, the one from the CD your dad burned you before the world went to hell.

I don't have the reference 🥲 Which song is it?

What a chapter Toni!!! The emotions, omg. This series is so so good 🖤🖤🖤

of rage and ruin - chapter nine

chapter nine

series masterlist | prev chapter | next chapter

werewolf!alpha!Joel Miller x f!omega!reader

word count: 3.6k

summary: things take a turn for the worse.

Please read the warnings as some new important ones have been added. NOTE: this is the last time that the SA tag will be used in this story. However, the events of this chapter are important. If you decide to skip this chapter, feel free to message me and I’ll fill you in. Or message if you want specifics about the tags to decide if you want to read it.

chapter warnings: non-con, dark, dead dove do not eat, a/b/o, alpha/omega dynamics, omegaverse, captivity, canon-typical violence, genre-typical violence, horror themes, graphic violence, abuse by captors (not by either joel or reader), body horror, viewer discretion is advised, sexual assault (NOT by joel, NOT described, just implied and alluded to), p in v, torture

also on ao3

dividers by @saradika-graphics

You were wrong about Mike. About his lack of retaliation.

You were so, so wrong. 

That much is clear when you wake up.

The first sign that things aren’t quite right is that you never did get around to going to sleep last night. 

The second is that you may be buried, or something. You can’t quite move your limbs beyond wiggling your fingers and toes. And you can’t see shit. 

The third sign is that you can’t smell Joel. Not beyond what’s soaked into your skin and sweater. No, he’s very much not here. Or anywhere nearby, if the rapidly tightening feeling in your chest is any indication. 

It’s panic you can’t shake off, you know, since you can’t fucking move. 

The fluorescent overhead buzzes to life. 

“Not so brave now, are you?” The voice blows in from across the room and sinks in your gut like it’s sleeping with the fishes. 

You really, truly are in some deep shit. 

You’ve been kidnapped from your kidnappers. Honestly, what did you do in a past life to deserve this? 

He’s right about one thing. The confidence you clung to in the early days has been picked at like carrion. You’re scared. 

“I didn’t–I’m–” but something is wrong, so very, very wrong. You’re bubbling out gibberish and spit. It’s just sounds, dribbling from sloppy lips. 

He rolls his eyes. “Shut up. It ain’t gonna wear off for a while, so best just sit quietly like a good bitch.”

You’re not sure if it's the panic or whatever he’s drugged you with, but your throat is cinched, and your cheeks sting from the uncontrollable stream of tears. 

“Let’s see what’s so fuckin’ special about you. Why your cunt is worth more than my brother’s life,” he spits, unfortunately literally, as droplets spray. 

Shit. They were actual brothers. Not that it mattered; what was done was done, but you had really miscalculated this. 

His hand is on your shoulder. It’s better than where you thought he was reaching, and yet, still horrible. It’s not like you haven’t had to deal with handsy or aggressive men. It’s just… usually, you can move. Fight. Run. 

His hand is nothing like Joel’s. His fingers are short, his nails broken and edged with grime. There are scars and dry skin, like Joel, but it’s nothing like his rough grip. There’s no nick above the webbing of his thumb, no calluses on the plump pads of his fingers to remind you that you’re alive. 

Mike brushes his thumb over Joel’s bite, the thin newborn skin taut and jagged. You make a sound. You don’t hear it, not with the way your heart is beating in your eardrums, not the way every note scrapes your throat, but you grate out a sound that might have been a hiss. 

Or a growl.

His hand connects with your cheek, which does not help the dizziness stuffed between your ears.

 

You’re not even mad, because it makes you dizzy enough that you don’t really register what comes after. Maybe you would have been worried about that, but he hit you hard enough that you didn’t even remember how hard you’d been hit. 

He must know he’s on a dwindling timetable. Inevitably, by dawn, the others will return to the base with Joel in tow. Inevitably, by dawn, they’ll know. 

As if he can tell you’ve dug up a fragment of hope, he leers, taking a swig from a bottle of dirty brown liquor. “You think Jim’s gonna waste resources on finding you?” he murmurs, grimy fingers stroking your cheek. 

And just like that, with a sharp breath, you lose that hope. Because he’s right, he’s undeniably right. Jim never misses a chance to bitch about the drain you are. They don’t need you, not really. Neither does Joel, not really. 

It’s easy, after the hours that have passed, to give in to the overwhelming dread. His hand wanders as it settles in, and you twitch away from his touch.

“Guess it’s wearin’ off,” Mike muses, taking another drink. “Can’t have you puttin’ up a fight now.” His bottle clinks against the file cabinet he sets it upon as he squats to dig through a duffel bag. 

There’s nothing you can do when he ties you down. There’s nothing you can do as he grips your cheeks hard, his thumb digging into your jaw until your mouth opens. You try not to swallow the liquor he pours in, only to aspirate it instead, wheezing and sputtering to little effect. 

“Jesus. Can’t even handle a little booze,” he sneers. “Too bad. Can’t have you gettin’ too feisty, huh?” He forces more down your throat, and it burns. 

He keeps squeezing your face, peering down at your mouth. “Reckon I should teach you a lesson about biting,” he said, tapping the bottle lightly against your front teeth. A whimper of fear slips free, and he grins crookedly. 

“Yeah, you don’t like that, huh? My brother didn’t much like gettin’ bit, either.” 

He steps away to rifle back through the duffle, and when he comes back, it’s with a pair of rusted pliers. 

You can feel your body twitch, trying its very hardest. The lingering drugs and booze make your head spin and throb. Mike faded in and out of view, but made his presence very clear as he pried your jaw back open. 

He tapped each tooth with the pliers, hemming and hawing about where to start. Garbled sounds are all the protest you can muster, trying to shake your head loose of his grasp as he selects an incisor. 

The first two attempts fail, the pliers slipping free, battering you in the process. The third try, though, clamps on just right. He clumsily tugs, to no avail, before wiggling and twisting the tooth. Reluctantly, your body parts ways with it as he increases the force, plucking the loosened tooth from the gum. 

You can’t even really hear your own screams. There’s pain, there’s blood, there’s Mike’s sick laughter. And then there’s darkness.

—

It’s not the fight that wakes you. Not the gunshots, not the snarling. Everything has died down by the time you come around.

Well, not everything. Based on the sounds, you’d hazard a guess that Mike is still at least a little alive. When you look up, you’re thrilled to find out you can, that the paralysis has waned. 

Then, of course, you wish you hadn’t looked at all. Once you have, though, you can’t look away. You understand that Tool song now, the one from the CD your dad burned you before the world went to hell. 

For a moment, Joel meets your eyes, and you are the wolf, nearly. You can feel the way it burns through your veins. 

Satisfied that you aren’t afraid, that you’re okay for a moment, he finishes his feast. 

There’s not much left of Mike when he tosses his corpse into a corner. It smacks against the far wall and drops to the ground. His final resting place. 

The Wolf that is Joel, that is your alpha, that is your savior, stands on his hind legs with those unsettling inverse ankle-knee-freaky bits bent. But even crouching, he fills the room. He’s a blur, like the first time you saw him, an ink blot in the center of your vision. A wormhole absorbing all the light. What little is left reflects off his shiny body. It takes you a moment to realize his fur (or his body hair, as he insists) is soaked in blood. 

It clings to the plaque on his teeth. His hands are steeped in it, some already hardening or coagulating under the stretch of his claws. He stalks over to you, and you do not flinch from him. His claws rend the rope as if it were no more than spaghetti. You tremble uncontrollably as he helps you sit up, most of your faculties back under your control. His blood-soaked, massive paws cradle your cheeks, pulling back abruptly when you whimper. 

A growl rumbles from his chest, and he throws his head back and howls. It brings footsteps in your direction as he gathers you into his arms. You’ve never felt smaller than you do now, and it’s not just the bulk and heft of his body. He cradles you with a delicacy unbefitting his sharp, deadly nature, but it’s all the more Joel to you than the brutality you witnessed. 

The raiders filter in, just a few of them, more to control him than assist, but they reclaim Mike’s stolen supplies and pay you no mind. At least until Cheryl comes in. 

“Alive after all, huh?” she says, approaching far closer than you think she should dare. But she wiggles the remote to the shock collar as she nears, peering at you. “Still want her, pet?” she asks Joel. “She’s all used up.”

He bares his teeth and snarls, and she shrugs. “It was just an option,” she says, hand dropping from the pistol on her belt. 

You feel sick from the second brush with death in as many hours. Or maybe it’s from the bootleg booze and blood that’s been dripping down your throat. 

He looks down at you, long tongue poking out to lap at your cheek before he realizes the injury is inside. He whines, and you shake your head, weaving your fingers in his fur and burying your face there. He doesn’t need words; neither of you do. He just takes you home. 

No. Not home. You can’t let yourself accept that. But it’s been almost a year, now. Almost a year since they plucked you from that FEDRA truck and brought you to hell. 

It’s not the cell that’s home, though. It’s him. 

—

You look up at the wolf once you’re locked in, the relief of your familiar prison bubbling up like bile. The others go back to their day, the incident no more than a blip of inconvenience. Silence lingers, both of you waiting, waiting, waiting to hear the heavy thunk of the cellar’s deadbolt. 

As soon as it sounds, you break.

“You found me,” you gasp, trailing into a whimper. “You found me, you found me.” Your voice is grating, leaking from your cracked and dry throat. It hurts to talk, your jaw throbs, and you struggle around the swelling, but you can’t stem the leak.

He grips your biceps with both paws, and rolls back the shift enough to speak. “I found you,” he says firmly, letting you feel his sturdy hold on you, keeping you there and present. “I’ve got you. Okay?”

You don’t respond, still shaking and swaying a little on the spot. “You found me,” you echo, raw and dredged up from the hollow of your lungs. 

“Hey,” he growls without aggression. “ Listen to me. ” He doesn’t mean to do it. His voice drops a register, an even lower rumble than usual, and your attention snaps up to him. 

He winces. There’ll be time to apologize later, though. “I’ve got you,” he repeats steadily. “Okay?”

You nod. “Okay,” you echo in a whisper. 

“I will always find you,” he promises, eyes gone dark. “Always, little omega. You’re mine, and there’s nowhere on this godforsaken earth that they can hide you from me.” 

In any other context, it would frighten you. It should, by all means, frighten you a little. Instead, you kiss him.

It’s a mistake that sends you pulling back, gasping in pain, and all the ferocity on his face falls.

“Let me see,” he coaxes gently, cradling your jaw. He’s careful as he presses your lip to the side to get a good look. “ Jesus, ” he whispers.

You can see the guilt building up, layers upon layers from all his life. You won’t let this, won’t let you be another. “Joel—”

But he’s not having it. He bristles and narrows his eyes at you. “Would you stop tryin’ to run your mouth? You’re making it bleed.” His eyes dart over your face, stopping back on your missing tooth each time before sighing, shoulders slumping. 

“C’mon,” he grumbles, leaving no room for argument by simply picking you up and carrying you over to the bed. He settles with you straddling his lap, wincing. He looks down for only a moment. “I’ll take care of that next. Sit still ‘n be good.” 

It turns out not to be a hard order to follow. He sets about to lick your wounds, starting with your mouth. He doesn’t mean for it to turn into anything, he really doesn’t, but he’s licking inside your mouth. As his spit mixes with yours, as he laves his tongue oh-so-gently over and over, the familiar tingling starts to set in. It numbs the pain, not entirely, but the relief is enough to make you sigh softly against his mouth.

He can’t entirely be blamed as it turns into lazy kisses, tongues brushing comfort over one another, each press of lips like a mantra. I’m here, I’m here, I’m here. You’re not sure who’s reassuring who. 

It’s not going to fix it. There’s not a magical makeout session that can restore your tooth or even heal the socket. Not that quickly, anyway. But it eases the pain, and so does the way his warm hands hold you like you’re something precious. The way he groans into the kiss, the way he can’t stop reaching for every bit of you, checking meticulously to make sure nothing else was taken from you. 

He makes good on his promise to soothe your other wounds. He can’t quite numb your aching mind or racing heart, can’t slide his tongue over the places that shattered inside, but he can damn well remove every trace of Mike from your body.

He settles you down on the mattress, settles himself into the wolf, and he licks every inch of you. His long, hot tongue is just rough enough to make you feel clean. There’s no way even a cell of Mike’s skin is left behind on yours. Joel eats it all up like he did the man himself. It leaves your whole body tingling, your heart pounding in your ears, your cunt gushing by the time he sheaths himself in you. 

There’s no room left for anyone else. There’s no room for anything but you and Joel in the darkness. 

It’s too late before either of you realize he’s triggered his own rut. Your body responds beautifully, burning under his touch, following your alpha into blissful oblivion. He fusses relentlessly, worried despite his own distress and desire, not wanting you to feel trapped or forced. Not again. Never again. 

It’s a promise neither of you are sure he can keep, but both know he’ll die trying. 

It isn’t as long as your first heat, but it’s all the more intense. Your little room fills with sweat, pants and groans replacing any need for words. And it’s exactly what you need—no thoughts, no memories, no dealing with what you’ve suffered. Just Joel, just… love? No, that can’t be right. Just lust. 

His cock is insistent, pressing into you, filling the gaps he’d left behind. He doesn’t bother turning back to the man, doesn’t bother trying to pretend he’s anything but a mindless creature right now. And still, he’s so gentle. More gentle than he’s ever been. 

You didn’t have time to build a nest, but that’s okay. He doesn’t ever move from his place over your body, cocooning you, blocking everything else from sight. There’s just Joel. You’re warm and cozy and safe. 

You almost forget that you’re locked up at all. He keeps you on such a high with his deft fingers, mouth, and cock that you can’t even fathom a time when he might have to part from you. The lock of your cunt around his knot is your echo of his promise. Never again. 

—

“How much of this is even real?” you whisper in the fading light of your heat. Your hand is lazily raised, blocking out the fluorescents, but he catches it with his own, his thick fingers making room for themselves between yours. Locking you together in another way, keeping you close. 

“Couldn’t tell ya,” he says quietly, gruff voice even coarser in the way he holds back, keeping it soft in your ear. “Probably nothin’. But it’s there anyway.”

He was sure as shit right about that. This burning in your chest, the way your heart picked up as he wove your fingers together and tugged your hands down, using both your arms to hold you to his chest, your unified fist in the center. It’s not real, not really. You don’t know him. He doesn’t know you. There’s nothing for this heavy feeling to rest upon, no foundation for the feelings that should not be there. 

And yet.

The conversation is veering uncomfortably personal, of which you only have yourself to blame, but you run from it anyway. “You ever see Dawn of the Wolf? ” you ask, pushing for something unserious, something that’ll have him rolling his eyes and putting up a fuss about the W Word. 

That’s not what happens, though.

His breath catches for a second before rolling out in a soft sigh, his warm breath ruffling the hairs at the nape of your neck. “Yeah,” he admits. “My—” and there’s something potent in his pause. Something that saps the silliness of your subject change away and dances dangerously close to serious. 

“My daughter loved that shit,” he says. 

You can’t help the way your body stiffens. You want to roll over and look at him, to parse his pursed lips and warm eyes. He doesn’t let you, though, tightening his grip around your waist, fingers pressing a little more insistently in the divots between your knuckles until you settle. 

“Watched the damn movies, read the damn books, had the damn poster on her wall,” he says, something careful in his words. Like he’s trying to give this to you without giving anything up for himself. These memories he’s clutched in the recesses of his ventricles—they can’t be extracted without damaging the last soft tissue he could spare to wrap them in. 

“So, who’s team were you on?” you tease instead. 

“I didn’t give a shit,” he dismisses. A beat passes. “Why would she even have considered the wimpy blond vampire kid?”

“Oh, I see,” you say, nodding sagely. “You think the obvious choice was the tall, hairy, brooding wolf-man. I have to agree.”

“Shut up,” he grouses immediately. “It was all stupid, anyway. None of ‘em could stop whining.” 

You go to turn over again, but this time, he lets you, both of his arms cradling you in a way that makes your throat feel tacky and tight. It’s made worse by the way his eyes are bright, the flecks of green bursting through the brown like lichen in soil. 

“Never did get to see the sequel,” you say after a moment, trying to regain some sense in your brain.

He snorts. “Didn’t miss anything. I thought it couldn’t be worse than the first one but it was the stupidest two hours of my life.” 

“I can’t believe you saw Dawn of the Wolf 2, and I didn’t,” you say. A beat passes. “Will you tell me about her?” you ask, barely a whisper, afraid to break whatever is happening. 

“Not… not today,” he grants, and you take it for the huge step that it is, and nod, burying your face in his chest instead and taking a deep breath of his soothing scent. The oaky notes are easier to parse, now, much more complex. Hints of spices are there, sometimes. 

You’re getting too familiar. So much so that when the chamomile blossom of his grief leaks through, your grip on him tightens just a little, and you find yourself pressing a kiss to the thick thatch of hair beneath your cheek. 

It isn’t real, but how can it not be? How can something this intense not be real? No, it’s different. This isn’t real versus fake like something photoshopped, something on a green screen. 

This is more than that. The dotted lines that make up constellations aren’t real, but it doesn’t change the way those stars are bound together to make something unique, something breathtaking.

“I get it now,” he murmurs, breaking your existential reverie. 

“Get what?” you say, nose wrinkling.

He bumps his nose against yours, nudging at you in a way you know would involve a playful nip if he was his other self. “Why he didn’t just eat her,” he says.

You reward him with a bark of a laugh. “You’re still thinking about Dawn?” 

This time he does nip at you, catching your ear gently with very human teeth. “S’your fault,” he grumbles, and you feel it rumble through his chest. 

And yours. 

No, wait, that was your stomach. You’re suddenly starving, and with that revelation comes another, much worse one. You sit up so quickly that Joel follows suit, eyebrows raised. 

“What’s the matter?” He barks. 

“It’s the food,” you whisper. “That’s why they don’t let you share. That’s how Mike got me. It’s in the fucking food.”

He sits up, cupping your jaw. “Explain,” he growls.

“I think they’re drugging us,” you finally tell him. It’s been a haunting tug in the back of your brain, one you didn’t really want to admit to. There’s been a matching tug in your gut, the feeling of something not sitting quite right, but you couldn’t put a finger on it.

It had been twenty years since you had something like cough syrup, anyway. But that’s the feeling. The fuzzy spot between your eyes where the ground seems to swoop up, the way you move through the day underwater. 

“Fuck,” Joel whispers. But he can’t deny it makes sense. It makes too much goddamn sense. He’s been too fucking compliant, too fucked to care. He thought it was apathy borne of everything he’s been through. 

But goddamnit. He knows. He just knows you’re right.

[canirove]

Canary boy | Chapter 9

Previous chapter | Next chapter (coming out on Tuesday)

Masterlist

The plan was very simple.

Since Pedri's parents always closed the bar on Wednesdays to rest, his brother would tell them an emergency had happened and that they needed to go check it. But there would be no emergency, only Pedri waiting for them hiding behind the counter to surprise them while I filmed it all from the kitchen. 

“Pedri, can you please stop fidgeting? You are making me nervous.”

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry” he says. “It's just… I can't wait to see their reaction. I hope I don't give them a heart attack.”

“Oh, shut up” I say, hitting his arm. “Everything is gonna be fine, you'll see.”

“I hope so” he sighs. “Thank you for coming with me, Inés.”

“You're welcome. For the millionth time.”

“Sorry” he smiles before starting with the fidgeting again. “Fuck!” 

“Maybe you are the one who is gonna have a heart attack” I laugh after his phone pings.

“Not funny, Inés” he replies, sticking out his tongue. “It's Fer, they are almost here. They… ok” he says, taking a deep breath.

“Pedri… Pedri, hey” I say, taking his hands on mine. “Everything is gonna be fine. The plan will be a success and your parents are going to remember this day for the rest of their lives. And not because you gave them I heart attack” I say before he does.

“Yeah” he chuckles before taking another deep breath.

“Everything is gonna be fine. You can do this” I say, kissing his cheek before letting go of his hands and go hide in the kitchen. 

When I look back at him, he also is looking at me, a big smile on his face that makes my heart skip a beat (yes, it is all about hearts doing things today).

“Down, Pedri” I tell him, moving my hand so he hides behind the counter. 

“Yes, down. Hiding. Yes” he says before bending down and making me laugh. He looks so cute when he is nervous…

“I don't understand why you need us both for this” a female voice says, opening the bar’s door.

“You will when you see what the emergency is” Fer says.

“If it is that damned fridge again…” his dad says.

“Surprise!” Pedri says, jumping from behind the counter.

“Oh my God!” his mother yells, throwing herself at her husband and hugging him as if her life depended on it.

“Pedri?” he says.

“Hi!” he smiles, moving to where they are standing.

“Is he… Is he real?” 

“I am real, mum” he chuckles. “You can touch me if you want to be sure.”

“I… He's real” she says, caressing his face and looking at her husband. “Oh, my boy. You are real and you are here. You are here!”

“I'm here, mum” he says almost in a whisper before he hugs her, his dad and Fer joining them too.

“Shit” I say when I feel a tear rolling down my cheek. Have they made me emotional? They have. 

“But how?” Pedri's mum says when they break their embrace. “How were you able to travel? Did you win the lottery or something?”

“Almost” he chuckles. “I'm here thanks to a very special person. Inés!” he calls, turning to look at where I am hiding. “Inés, come here!”

It's time. It's time to meet his parents. It’s… bloody hell.

“Inés?”

“Coming!” I say, taking a deep breath and opening the kitchen's door. Why does this feel more daunting than playing at the Camp Nou? Like, it's just Pedri's parents! But they also are Pedri's parents and… 

“Mum, dad” he says when I make it to where they are standing, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me closer towards him. Umm…. hello? “This is Inés. Inés, these are my parents.”

“Nice to meet you” I manage to say, Pedri's hand squeezing my side as if to encourage me and tell me everything is gonna be ok. But it has probably had the opposite effect, because feeling his hand there has spread heat all over my body and…

“Nice to meet you too, Inés” his mum smiles, offering me her hand. 

“Hi” I say as I awkwardly shake it. 

“You have a lovely name.”

“Thank you.”

“I personally love it” Pedri smiles. He… ummm… what? He loves my name? 

“I think I've never met an Inés before” his dad says, also shaking my hand.

“It isn't very common, but I've been told there seem to be more little girls with this name these days” I manage to say.

“And there will be a lot more in the future, because couples will want their kids to be named after you” Pedri smiles while looking at me as if he was like… proud of me? What is going on? “Inés plays football for Barcelona's women's team, and she is one of the most promising young players.”

“You are a football player?” his dad asks me.

“I am, yes.”

“That's amazing!” he smiles.

“Is that how you met? Because of football?” his mum asks.

“We actually are classmates” I say. “Football for women doesn't fix all your problems or secures your future like can happen to men, so I wanted to have something else just in case and I kept studying.”

“Beauty and brains” Fer winks.

“And talent” Pedri adds, squeezing my side again.

“You are going to make me blush” I chuckle. Make me blush a lot more than I already am, that is.

“Just stating facts” he shrugs. “Anyway, should we celebrate that we are all here together?”

“Yes!” Fer says, walking behind the counter. “I hid this here earlier” he smirks, getting a champagne bottle and some glasses.

“You boys thought of everything, didn't you?” their mum smiles.

“We did” he says while pouring the champagne. “So, what should we toast to?” he says when he's finished and we all have our glasses. “To Pedri being back home? To his special friend making it possible?” he smirks again, looking at me. 

“To family” Pedri says.

“I like that” his mum says, raising her glass. “To family.”

“To family” we all repeat before drinking.

“Want a bit more, Inés?” Fer laughs after I drink my champagne in one go.

“Please” I nod. If I want to survive what is left of the day, and especially if Pedri is gonna keep being this touchy, cute and sweet, I'm gonna need it.

“Drink it slow, Inés. You know what can happen when you drink too fast” Pedri says, definitely remembering that first night at my apartment.

“She knows what she's doing, Pedri. She's used to drinking champagne every time Barça wins something” Fer laughs.

“You have to tell us more about your career, Inés” their dad says. “If that's ok with you.”

“Yes, of course” I smile.

“But why don't we do that while we go for a walk to the beach? There are so many places I want to show her and so little time…” Pedri says.

“And here I thought you had come to visit us” his mum says, rolling her eyes.

“I… Ummm…” he mumbles. Now he is the one blushing.

“I was just teasing you, Pedri” she laughs. “We'll have time for everything. But first, more champagne.”

“Yes, ma'am” Fer says.

“Welcome to Tenerife, Inés” she says while raising her glass, everyone else doing the same.

“Thank you” I reply as I watch them all smile and start to chat between them, Pedri's arm still around me. One that stays there when we go for that walk to the beach, his parents asking me many questions about my life and my career as a football player, while also sharing lots of anecdotes about little Pedri and making everyone laugh. Everyone but him, who just blushes or rolls his eyes.

And it keeps being there while I buy some handmade bracelets for the girls on a little stand, or when a man asks him and his dad to buy a rose for their loves, aka, me and his mum. And it continues to be there when we stop at a chiringuito to have dinner, moving from my waist to the back of my chair and sometimes caressing my shoulders or my neck, definitely making me feel things I shouldn’t be feeling while in front of this family.

But besides all that, I am feeling something else. Something new that, I'm starting to think, is happiness. A kind of happiness and pure bliss I had never experienced before because it is one you only get around a family as special and that love each other so much as Pedri's does.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

“I could go to a hotel. It's November, I'm sure they have rooms available.”

“Inés, no” Pedri's says. “You are our guest, you aren't sleeping at a hotel.”

“Then how are we going to do it?” Fer asks. 

Because we had planned how Pedri was going to surprise his parents, what we were going to do each day, the places we wanted to visit… But we hadn't thought about where I was going to be sleeping since there only are two rooms in their house: their parents', and the one he and his brother shared growing up. 

“You can always sleep on the sofa. Or with grandma” Pedri shrugs, looking at Fer.

“What have I done to deserve that?” he says. “That sofa is like a torture device, and grandma… Grandma is grandma.”

“No one is going anywhere” their mum says. “Inés will sleep on Pedri's bed, and you two will share the other one.”

“What?” they both say at the same time.

“Oh, don't look at me like that. It's not the first time you share a bed” she says. “And you both are on the small side, you'll be fine.”

“Love you too, mum” Fer replies, rolling his eyes. “But Pedri is the worst person to share a bed with. He kicks you at night, and hard. I swear he must have been a football player in another life.”

“Oh, stop complaining and go to bed already. You are opening the bar tomorrow, you have to get up early.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”

“Goodnight, grumpy cat” his mum says, kissing his cheek.

“Goodnight, mum” Fer says before kissing her back, making her giggle and me smile like an idiot. 

“Goodnight, darling” she says, now kissing Pedri's cheek.

“Night, mum” he smiles.

“And good night, Inés. If they are too annoying, please don't hesitate and kick them out of the room. You have my blessing.”

“Thank you” I chuckle. “And thank you very much for today.”

“Thank you for bringing my boy back for such a special occasion.” 

“It's nothing, I…”

“It's everything, Inés. Thank you” she smiles, giving my arm a little squeeze and somehow making me feel very emotional. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight” I say as I watch her walk away and into her room.

“Shall we?” Pedri says while gesturing towards his room, Fer already inside.

“Wait. Is there anything you should warn me about before I go in?” I ask him.

“What?”

“Yeah, like… I don't know. Posters of half naked women, embarrassing photos, dirty underwear scattered everywhere…”

“Do you really think our mother would let us have those things in our room?” he laughs.

“I… Yeah, you are right. Though the embarrassing photos…”

“She keeps those in the photo albums. She'll probably show them all to you tomorrow.”

“Oh, wonderful! That basically is why I said yes to this trip, you know? I wanted to see photos of you as a kid with ugly outfits or while sitting on the toilet when it still was too big for you. Which probably was just before you moved to Barcelona.”

“Inés!” he gasps and laughs at the same time.

“What?” I shrug.

“Don't tease me” he says, closing the space between us. 

“I'm not teasing you.” 

“Yes, you are” he says, his face suddenly too close to mine, his eyes fixed on mine. 

Why did you start this game, Inés? Why, why, why? You always lose! 

“I… ummm…” I mumble, my face already burning.

“Pedri, I'm going to… Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt” Fer says, trying really hard to hide his smile.

“You aren't” I quickly say, taking a step back.

“Yes, you aren't” Pedri says, finally looking away. “Where are you going?”

“The bathroom.”

“I think we should let Inés go first.”

“Worried she may see how bad your aim is and that you pee outside?” Fer teases him.

“I hate you” he says before walking into the room.

“Oh, c'mon. Don't be like that, Pepi. It was just a joke!” Fer says, following him.

“Wait, Pepi?” I say behind him.

“He hasn't told you about it?”

“He has not, no.”

“Pedri! I thought you liked the nickname I have for you!”

“I'm not five anymore, Fer.”

“Maybe physically, but mentally…”

“You idiot” Pedri says before pushing his brother towards the bed and starting to do something like wrestling with him, both of them laughing.

“Ok, I think I'll leave you alone with whatever that is and go to the bathroom” I chuckle while they keep trying to hit the other.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

“Fer, you are uncovering me.”

“What? You are the one who has the bed sheets all for himself!”

“I'm not” Pedri says. “Look at my feet, they are showing! I can't sleep with cold feet!”

“I can't see shit, the lights are off!” Fer says, moving on the bed and making me fear he may break it. “Happy now?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Now what's the problem? Pedri are you… are you spooning me?” Fer complains.

“I'm not.”

“Then why is your arm around me?”

“I was just looking for a comfortable position.”

“You were…”

“Ok, enough!” I say, sitting up on my bed. “You've been arguing for the past twenty minutes, and falling asleep with that background noise is impossible.”

“Sorry, Inés” Pedri says, turning on the light.

“Fuck. Was that necessary?” Fer complains again. “Also do you see how you had the bed sheets all for yourself?”

“Guys!” I say, raising my voice and stopping them before they start arguing again.

“Sorry” they both reply.

“Pedri, come here” I say, moving to one side and opening my bed.

“What?”

“Come here. You can sleep with me.” 

Will this be a huge mistake? Probably. But at least I will get some sleep. Or not. Because having him so close…

“Inés, if my mum walks in and sees us sharing the bed…”

“Goodbye to my future nephews and nieces” Fer says, earning himself a punch from Pedri. “Ouch! Sorry.”

“She doesn't have to find out. Fer is getting up before us since he has to go open the bar, so before he leaves, he'll wake you up so you can move back to that bed.”

“But Inés, are you sure you want to… you know” Pedri says, nodding towards my bed. My bed that actually is his.

“I am. I sleep in fetal position, there will be enough space for the both of us. And like your mum said, you are on the small side” I shrug.

“She's right. Go sleep with her” Fer says, literally kicking Pedri out of the bed.

“If you don't wake me up tomorrow…”

“I will, don't worry. Goodnight, little bro. Inés” he smiles before covering himself all the way up to his neck and giving his back to us.

“Inés, I can go sleep on the sofa. It actually isn't that bad and…”

“Pedri, shut up and come here.”

“Yes, ma'am” he smirks, making me feel funny things on my stomach… and a little bit lower. Just what I needed before sharing my bed with him. Getting turned on.

“Goodnight, Pedri” I say, giving my back to him just as Fer had done and curling up in my corner of the bed.

“Goodnight, Inés” he replies, turning off the light and getting in bed next to me, laying down as if he was a mummy, stiffness included. But it doesn't last too long. 

Only a couple of minutes have passed when I feel him moving, one of his knees touching the back of my legs. I try to not move, to act as if nothing has happened. But then he moves again, and I can feel his body just centimetres away from mine, his breath tickling the back of my neck. And then, his arm moves.

Even though it isn't touching me, I can feel it around my body, kind of asking for permission to do it (because it had not been touching that very same part of my body the whole afternoon, you know?). So as a way to say yes, I stretch my legs, one of my feet touching his. And I swear it takes everything in me to not gasp when his arm finally rests around my waist, his hand looking for mine, our fingers interlacing when he finds them. 

We are almost spooning, there is only one thing left to do. And that's me moving closer towards him, towards his body. But I don't have time to think about doing it or not, because he does it for me by using the arm he has around me.

Now I can feel his chest against my back, my butt against his hips, our legs looking for a comfortable position that ends up being one of mine between his, our feet kind of hugging. But the thing that is about to send me into cardiac arrest (yes, the heart issues are still going strong), is the fact that I can feel his lips on my neck. They aren't literally there, but almost. Why did I decide to braid my hair to go to bed today? Why couldn't I let it down? Though if I had, he would have probably moved it one side to not end up eating it throughout the night, and the moment his fingers had touched my neck… No. Don't think about it, Inés. Not when he is so close to you and you have no escape.

“Goodnight, Inés” he suddenly whispers, making me feel every single syllable on my skin, the heat that it spreads over my body being so intense that I'm sure he is feeling it too.

“Goodnight, Pedri” I manage to whisper back. 

Will I get to say good morning? I'll keep you updated.

[ryoshiwaah]

˖ ๋࣭݁ ⭑ Astronomy Lessons 🔭๋࣭⭑.

ᯓ🛸Warnings: a swear word, spelling mistakes and nothing else.

ᯓGenre: fluff, strangers to friends to situationship to idk.

ᯓ🔆Pairing: photographer!Minji x fem!reader

ᯓSynopsis: you're Minji's Sun, muse and best work of art.

ᯓStarring: Haerin as Minji's cousin & Hyein as your little sister.

ᯓ🛰️Word count: 2.9k

a/n: a one shot to feed you guys while we wait for my motivation to bring back Holidays, also the story is heavily inspired by 23.5 (watch it bc it's soooooo good and funny and fluffy), enjoyy!

If Minji was asked how much she loved the Sun on a scale of 0 to 10, she’d say 5, 5.5; sure it helped the plants grow, created the perfect light for photos and much more. The big star was fundamental to humans and the solar system, the whole thing was named after it too!

Spending half of her life in a darkroom thanks to her photography passion, Minji became sensitive to the sun’s light – She wore caps every day to cover her eyes, she bought so many that seeing her without one was odd, plus, she made space in her wardrobe just for them.

The photographer turned into some sort of vampire, worrying not only her poor mother but also her friends.

Though, she never got tired of, or annoyed at her Sun, you.

Minji basked into the light you emanated just by standing next to her, a warm feeling spread through her every time you got close enough for your shoulder to touch hers, or when you picked her up with your Vespa.

The scooter had a bright yellow color that reflected your personality perfectly: it was named “Sunny the third”. Lame, yes, but she found it cute.

“The third” part was added because that was your third scooter: you broke the first one by trying to race your dad’s car and ended up crashing into it, earning a 3 months grounding and a broken arm.

Sunny the second tragically died by the hands of a thief who, just like you, was a clumsy mess and crashed into a pole; the guy lit it on fire to hide the evidence but failed and burned his hand instead.

He was caught in the act and sent to jail for a week.

Let’s just say that now you guard your scooter from everyone and anyone, even the smallest insect will be “gently flicked away”.

Still, you didn’t miss the opportunity to help others, picking them up and driving them around. You were a kind soul that she couldn’t help but admire from behind her camera lens.

She noticed the way you went at a slow pace whenever she was with you, remembering the very first time she hopped on: tense, anxious – you name it.

Panicked screams left her lips when you speeded through the traffic, making sure to balance both of your weights.

The entire ride to school was chaos accompanied by laughter, your laughter, since Minji took her time to recover every now and then before starting to scream again until her lungs were empty.

After parking in front of the building, she immediately got off and thanked you way too many times before remembering she hadn’t introduced herself – “I’m Minji by the way, Kim Minji.”

“I never heard of you, new student?” You said after taking off your helmet, a bright smile on your face.

Your face matched your voice, sweet and adorable. Minji felt uneasy at how fast her heart was beating, it was a surprise her soul didn’t start levitating from how gorgeous you looked – gravity seemed to be pulling it down when you poked her cheek.

“Helloooo, Earth to Minji!”

“Uh- Huh? Yes. I’m new here.”

“Cool! My name is Lee Y/n, nice to meet you.”

From then on you noticed Minji being a constant presence in your life, not only in school but even in your own home: her cousin, Haerin, was a good friend of your little sister Hyein so every time they hung out, the photographer ended up tagging along.

Her parents forced her to go out, otherwise she would spend all day studying and taking pictures, which meant she locked herself in her darkroom and avoided social interaction with everyone.

Eventually things got always too girly for her, so you invited her over to your room, making the younger girls wonder what happened behind the four walls.

You spent your time watching Minji’s camera roll, gushing and praising her about the amazing photos she took; she would blush and tell you she wasn’t that good, but not so secretly loved hearing you compliment her.

The way your eyes lit up when she showed you the new photos she took, or how you would beg her to take a picture of you was hilarious.

“Oh pleaseee!” Your whine rang in her ear while she worked on the new composition, adjusting the settings of her camera.

“No, Y/n, my life already revolves much around you, stop asking.”

That made you slap the back of her head, a move that she expected since she mindlessly avoided it.

“That’s not true! We barely see each other anymore…”

“We saw each other yesterday and the day before, and the day before the day befo–”

“Okay! Okay! I get it geez.” You scoffed, bringing your knees over on the table you were sitting on, leaning against the wall behind you.

As Minji took pictures of the various objects scattered on the table, claiming that it was contemporary art, you just looked around the room of the photography club: all the artworks of the members were stuck to the wall, creating a cozy atmosphere.

Haerin’s main topic was cats, of course, your friend’s cousin was obsessed with the felines and took pictures whenever she saw one. But a few of them portrayed a girl with curly hair, smiling brightly at the camera.

Hanni’s side of the wall was funny and covered in polaroids, the dates written in red while the notes were in black, some of them were with loved ones, probably family members, some of herself and others of food.

“She could be an influencer.” You mumbled to yourself, before taking a look at Minji’s corner, skipping the other 3 columns of pictures before her.

You felt like witnessing the whole universe before you. 

There were photos of the moon, stars and constellations; Minji had connected the stars with a light blue pen and wrote the names in the corner. The only thing missing was a picture of the sun.

You knew she didn’t like being exposed to it, she had glasses because her eyes couldn’t adjust well to the light, so you guessed that was the reason why she didn’t have a photo of it.

Speaking of sunlight, the right side of your face started to feel hotter due to the light coming from the window. You closed your eyes, enjoying the warm feeling of the rays on your skin.

‘Click’

The familiar sound made you turn to Minji who was pointing the camera towards you, a faint smile making its way to her lips; you saw that expression tons of times, it was the same face she made after taking a good picture. The satisfaction etched in her eyes.

An inaudible gasp left your lips after realizing what happened: after months of begging, Minji finally took a picture of you with her camera, not her phone, her beloved camera!

You looked at the photographer with wide eyes, not knowing if you were dreaming or not.

“Minji?” You asked incredulously, as if she had grown a second head, your body shifting so it leaned closer to hers. Your faces were inches away, noses almost touching.

“Did you really just take a picture of me??”

“No.”

And then she turned back, working on her previous task.

“No? I heard the cick and you were pointing your camera at me.”

“Nope, I think being exposed to the sun kills your brain cells.”

“Wha–”

“Here.”

She interrupted you by sticking her cap on top of your head, changing the size from behind since your head was smaller than hers.

“There there…” She smiled, her dimples showing, as she patted your head. “You should be okay now.”

An exasperated sigh left your lips before you slumped back against the wall, now letting your legs loosely swing from on top of the table. You were rethinking the interaction because where on Earth did that make sense?!

Luckily for Minji, you forgot about the picture the next hour and were too bored to do anything at all, just wanting your friend to clock out from the club.

An hour later you two were out, your body feeling heavy from the sleepiness. “Note to self, never accompany Minji for club activities ever again.”

“Are you sure you can drive?”

Minji’s husky voice snapped you out of your daze. Already knowing where this was going, you reached into your pockets and tossed the taller girl your keys. She caught them with a fond smile before picking you up and sitting you on the scooter.

“I could have climbed it up myself, you know?”

Oh, how that sleepy voice made Minji feel all fuzzy and glad she was alive to hear it, a small thought made its way through her mind: what if one day she would be able to hear it every morning when she woke up… that’d be perfect.

She started humming happily while switching the cap she gave you with the helmet, securing it so it wouldn’t fall off.

“Happy?”

“Hmhm.”

“What made you happy?”

“A sleepy girl that I’m driving home.”

She said casually before thrusting forward and turning on the bike, taking off and heading to your house.

Your arms were secured around her waist and your head was resting on her back; it didn’t take long before you fell asleep, holding tighter on your gir– friend. On your friend.

“Saturn is Haerin’s favorite, I think it’s a basic answer.”

“And why’s that, my dear astronomer?”

It was a Friday night, Minji just crashed at your house like usual and you were discussing planets after staring at your ceiling for too long. It had the planets and some stars scattered around so the conversation started naturally.

“Nowadays Saturn is so mainstream, ugh, people like it for its aesthetic.”

“You’re too harsh, Y/n.”

“What? It’s your favourite planet too?”

Minji scoffed, gently pushing you away from her but you rolled towards her body, making sure that the side of your heads were touching.

“I’ll let you know that I don’t have a favourite planet… They’re just balls in space.”

“It’s like saying that your photos are just colored pieces of paper.”

Your hand wrapped around her wrist, making sure her finger was pointing up at the ceiling, towards Venus. 

“That’s Venus, Taurus’ ruling planet.” then you pointed to another one, making Minji shriek from the suddenness of the movement. “And that’s Mars, Scorpio’s ruling planet.”

You let her arm go, as it rests on the ground again. She’s silent for a few seconds, thinking of what your words meant. You talked about you two’s zodiac signs, there must be a reason.

“Uh… thank you for letting me know?”

You turned your head towards Minji, raising an eyebrow. Why was she acting like she didn’t know about the planets? Her photos were all about astronomy and space.

Plus, you didn’t spend the entire month trying to get all the names right just for her to be unaware of what you were talking about.

“You don’t get it?”

“I fear I don’t, sorry.” The look on her face turned into a sad one when she saw the hope slowly fading from your eyes, but then, a wholehearted laugh left her speechless.

All you could do was exactly that, laugh and slowly roll on the carpet as the realization hit you: all those hours studying to impress Minji were for nothing, because, apparently, the photographer barely knew what zodiac signs and ruling planets were.

“Your photos…” You began as the giggles began to quiet down, leaving you breathless and Minji scared she might have just watched you have a manic episode over heavens knows what.

“Moon phases, the constellations, the stars. I thought you knew all about astronomy.”

Then it hit Minji, it was like a lightbulb turned on in her peanut brain; she sat up and looked down at you.

“Don’t tell me you know all of this because you were trying to impress me.” 

She used the same tone a parent would use when scolding their kid, but decorated with a hint of amusement. Minji was incapable of imagining someone putting so much effort for her, but knowing that you, out of all people, did that, made her whole day and probably year.

In response you remained glued to the wooden ground, staring at the planets on your ceiling, hoping they could tell you what to do, now that your information was useless for the both of you.

“I learned all that for nothing!” You whined, your feet kicking the ground while you threw your little tantrum.

At first Minji chuckled, but then she thought about it and shook your shoulder, making you glare at her. 

“Teach me the secrets of astronomy, I want to understand, no matter how long it takes.”

The astronomy lessons went on for weeks. Even if they were only an excuse to spend more time together, Minji started learning for real, surprising you: not only she was a fast learner, but she was actually interested in the topic.

It was regenerating talking to someone who was so willing to listen, that’s why you never lost a chance to mention even the smallest detail.

You spent so much time together that Minji started to call you her Sun, while only in your mind you thought of her as your Moon; you’d stare at her hoping she would catch you and call you out on it, but instead, your best friend was always focused on the teacher.

Or, in general, something else that wasn’t you.

The probability that you and Minji weren’t aligned anymore made you doubt your own feelings towards her – You noticed it on a wednesday, while eyeing the lunch lady give out food to your sister and Haerin, the cat-like girl talked about her cousin’s birthday coming up.

Your train of thought drifted from the kimbap you were going to ask for, to the photographer, way too quickly.

“3 Kim Minji please…”

The lunch lady raised an eyebrow, already fed up with you. “You mean kimbap.”

“That’s what I said…”

With a roll of her eyes she almost tossed at you your 3 miserable kimbap and called for the next one in line. Confused but not in the mood to deal with old women, you decided to just walk away, food in your hands.

“You said my name, moron.”

The familiar voice startled you, almost making the rice rolls fall from your grip, but you weren’t so careless with food, thankfully.

“Did I– Oh shit, I did.” You blushed after recollecting yourself and your train of thoughts.

“You think about me so much it messes up your social interactions, what a loser.” 

“I overheard your cousin talking about your upcoming birthday and you popped in my mind, miss stubborn.”

“All excuses!” She grinned smugly, now getting in front of you. How she got so dangerously close you didn’t know, but damn she looked good: her hair was put up in a messy bun, while she had a jacket over her school uniform.

Her face was naturally beautiful, but what attracted your eyes were her plump lips.

Before you knew it, she pecked your forehead, stole the kimbap you started eating and ran away, leaving you in the middle of the canteen – a blushing, gay panicking mess, standing there with food in her hands.

The more time passed, the more you started to doubt your knowledge. It seemed like the Sun’s orbit changed, making it move around the now static Moon.

Your infatuation became stronger every day, and you couldn’t deny that Minji felt the same too. But when was she going to make a move, or maybe, when were you going to do something about the growing tension?

Haerin was tired of hearing her cousin ramble for hours about you, she swore Minji said your name so many times that she lost count, even of how many times she spaced out.

Things got worse when you bought the photographer a new camera for her birthday, making her promise to take more photos of you. And she did, of course she did.

If months before you had to beg her on your knees to even turn her camera towards you, now it was the complete opposite; it seemed like she had no other subject to snap photos of than you.

Of course, you thought she was just sticking to her word, her promise, but deep inside you were aware that Minji’s behaviour shifted since her birthday. None of them had the guts to confront one another, so the situation remained…questionable.

To her though, you’d become more than a simple Sun; you were art, her constant inspiration and muse, the deep feelings she nurtured for you could be seen in her photos and the dedication she put in them. 

She spent hours editing out and in anything that could make you the center of the picture, even if that meant learning how to use photoshop, she’d do it for you.

The only person that didn’t notice all of that was the protagonist of the works, you.

Only the ones stopping by for a visit could notice that Minji’s corner changed completely, displaying only certain photos, that of course were space related, carefully arranged around the best snaps she took of Y/n.

A detail, one that could blow up Minji’s aloof and careless facade, exposing her feelings to the world, was the little sentence written at the corner of the photo at the very center.

“My Sun”

Once again, the photographer found herself reconsidering her opinion about the protagonist of the solar system, seeing her reflection into the picture of the Moon that just like Earth, found herself orbiting around the Sun.

🗂️jeanzforfree masterlist

[cherrydipp]

hi guys heres my melvin dipp headcanons cuz i cant remember if i ever posted them. been accumulating them for a while now so ignore the poor quality its normally just me ranting whenever i had a thought

- originally tried out for the football but didn’t make it. instead, he joined the track team hence why ponyboy is his number 1 opp.

- brings up sergei whenever he can. “nobody even likes you melvin 😒😒” “SERGEI DOES. 😡” whenever he isn’t around he also accidentally mentions their inside jokes only to be met with pure silence while he laughs by himself… “ts wasnt even funny” “SERGEI IS THE ONYL 1 WHO GETS IT 😡😡😡😡”

- in modern day would be an ipad kid. blockblast brainrotted. bullies kids on fortnite squads gamechat. he tried to play COD but ended up crying when all the grown male adults bullied him in gamechat

- light freckles around his nose and cheeks (very few and VERY light)

- was gifted a pickup line book as a gag gift one year for his birthday… would use the cheesy lines on ace but SERIOUSLY. like hes leaning against the wall and mewwing just to say “if you were a fart, i’d clench you so hard to never let you go 😏” she stared at him in disgust.

- tagteams chet with sergei.

- more outgoing/extroverted but this isn’t necessarily a good thing.

- nevel papperman coded…

- MELVIN DIPP. i whole heartedly stand by melvin being trips younger brother. it’s the reason he tags along every now and then with the socs. seen by them sort of how steve sees ponyboy i’d assume like a tag-a-long. (Brie Leftwich is diaBOLICAL for leading people to believe melvin is chet’s little brother. that’s his OPP!)

- seth from superbad variant

- would have some weird fuck ass pet because his grandma doesn’t want fur everywhere. probably a bird or a gecko.

- melvin is actually dying to be like trip and his friends. he acts annoyed when his grandma makes him go out with trip (hands in pockets puffing out his cheeks WHY) but in reality he’s secretly excited. even if that means he’s just going to be either picked on or ignored the entire time.

- gumball waterson scream: full of voice cracks and high pitched yet hitting puberty scream

- trip when all he can see when he looks melvin is himself despite them being from different dads and looking nothijg alike. its his mannerisms and the way hes become to dependent on cigarettes to get him buzzed reminds trip of himself and alcohol 😴😴😴😴 sinilar bruises blooming over his ribs and cheeks a tell tale sign that hes been getting into fights he cant win 😴😴😴 worrying that the younger is gonna end up in the newspaper the next morning cuz hes digging himself a grave

- melvin has a lisp. he was born with it and did the public school speech classes which somewhat worked but his progress all went to waste cuz of his teeth. he had originally messed up teeth — not to bad but it was bad enough where he had to get it fixed. so when he got braces they literally FUCKED him over. being teased left and right by bob and the others, making fun of his mouth full of metal. not to mention his lisp was still lingering so it just added on. when he finally got them off, he thought he was free at last… little did he know he would have to wear a retainers at night so his teeth don’t revert back. HOWEVER. his grandma FORCES him to wear it ALL THE TIME cuz she’s so worried about all the money she put into those “pearly whites” going to waste. so he has a more noticeable lisp (than he already did because he had one growing up) because of the metal retainer. which, of course, the socs all poke fun at him for. especially when hes pissing them off.

chet: “melvin ‘thut’ the fuck up you ‘thupid’ bitch”

melvin: “😥”

- most definitely one of his weak points. he shuts up as soon as it’s mentioned and his ears/face turn red. FURROWING HIS EYEBROWS. this guy mad ash!!!

- alvin chipmunk variant

- kevin g variant

- gumball waterson variant

- xyler (cosmic earth trip) variant

- sergei and melvin = kurt and ram

- slightly fraser wrwwr coded… very very very slightly……..

- GREG HEFFLEY VARIANT.

- prefers math over reading. he doesn’t really have the attention span to sit around and read a whole novel or scan articles to find evidence. plus, the teacher’s lessons go by soooo slow. math just comes easy to him to the point where he doesn’t need to study and can still achieve a passing grade.

- his eyebrows are permanently furrowed. its so bad boy why do you always look mad as HELL. most of the time it’s pretty subtle but his go to reaction face is DISGUSTED. why are you so judgeMENTAL BOY.

- he would be team logan paul

- tends to jump/threaten greasers who are bigger than him. he thinks he’s tough — thinks he can take them all on his own without anyone’s help, but of course in the end he’s wrong. trip ends up searching around town to find him lying in the lot or in some dingey alley bruised with dried blood on his face. he doesn’t know exactly the reason why he always needs to fight. he just does. it’s an urge that he can’t sustain. maybe it’s to prove something about himself, or to relieve some stress, but glory even Melvin doesn’t know why he’s so reckless. doesn’t know why he ignored Trip’s stern demand to stay home, or why he runs into the rumble. afterward, however, trip checking on melvin after the rumble as he sleeps like peaking his head in and stuff too make sure hes alright 😴😴😴 he was the one to fix him up and tend to his wounds and had been not so silently freaking out the entire time, guilt for the situation coming out in his frustration as melvin continues to tell him he doesnt need help 😴😴😴

- sergei and melvin bromosexual they joke around like regular highschool boys.

- personally, i don’t think ace likes melvin back especially with the way tilly and melody make it out to be. it’s just like a teen boy crush (celebrity crush almost really in a sense), so he’s trying to hit her up and she just glares at him before turning away. he would definitely tell sergei about her though and how he finds her attractive.

- very set on ponyboy and melvin parallels. both on the track team, both strained relationship with their older brother, both no parents, etcetc. also both are CHRONIC smokers. but for different reasons. MELVIN IS NOT THE END OF THE CYCLE. (read dipp brothers lore in case you don’t know). sergei HATES when he smokes strictly because of the smell. it’s terrible and it always lingers on the blond’s clothing.

[simp2537]

𝓗𝓾𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓻

a/n: We start the movie with this chapter 😝. Oh my goodness how I love this fic already. I hope yall enjoy.

Word Count: 3926k

Trigger Warnings: child abuse, depression, war, war crimes, imprisonment, torture, abuse, predatory behavior, anxiety, nightmares, suicidal thoughts, death  gore, murder, teen pregnancy, drug abuse, alcohol addiction, just heavy themes all around

Chapter Three

Normal School

Y/n smiled as she raced Bella downstairs. Bella wasn’t actually racing she knew that. Being back in her childhood home made her want to jump for joy. She slammed the door open and all but ran outside to her dad’s side. 

She smiled brightly at the father and son in front of her. Jacob smiled back at her as her dad moved to speak.

“Bella, Y/n you girls remember Billy Black.” Charlie tells his daughters. Y/n nods her head with her normal bright smile. She can remember all the play dates she would have on the reservation with Jacob.

“Wow, you’re looking good.” Bella says smiling.

“Well, I’m still dancing.” Billy answered.

“You never could out dance me though.” Y/n giggles. Billy smiled at Y/n as she shook his hand. 

“I’m glad you girls are finally here. Charlie here hasn't shut up about it since you told him you were coming.” Y/n laughed softly at Charlie’s bewildered expression.

“Miss us that much daddy?” Y/n asked giggling. Charlie rolled his eyes at his young daughter and scrunched at her hair. 

“All right, keep exaggerating. I'll roll you into the mud.” Charlie amused.

“After I ram you in the ankles.” With that Billy rolled over to Charlie. The two men began to playful fight. Y/n smiled softly, she’d liked Mr. Billy. We would let her sit in his lap and read to her when Charlie would work late shifts.

“Hi I’m Jacob.” Y/n eyes widened as she saw him. He was taller now, more muscular too. When they were little he was short and scrawny. His ebony hair had grown out a bit more. She remembered him well.

It was like the universe wouldn’t let her forget, her bestest friend. Jacob Black.

“We used to make mud pies when we were all little.” He continued smiling. 

“Right, no I remember now.” Bella smiled. Y/n couldn’t hold back her grin anymore and she pounced onto him. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck as a squeezed him.

“I hated those mud pies! I would just braid flowers in both of your hairs.” Y/n laughed as she pulled away from him. A soft pink dusted over Jacob’s cheeks as she pulled away. 

“Y/N! You’re back!” Jacob chuckled not knowing what to say. 

“It’s a shame you grew so much. I can’t make fun of you about how small you are anymore.” Y/n turned to Bella with a smile. Bella shook her head softly and looked over at their fathers.

“Are they always like this?” She asked softly. 

Jacob shook his head slightly replying, “it’s getting worse with old age.” Y/n smiled again as she stared up at Jacob. He still has the small scar under his chin from when they went swimming together when it was storming. 

Y/n hadn’t realized she been staring for a while till she hear Bella squealing in excitement. She turned as Bella was moving around the red truck.

“This is perfect.” Y/n followed Bella into the car she hit Jacob with the  door. Her arm shot out catching his back and helping him back up. He turned to her staring for a few seconds. Y/n blinked and sat next to Bella with a small smile. Jacob quickly slide into the car next to her.

“Listen, you gotta double-pump the clutch when you shift, but besides that you should be good.” Jacob told Bella. Y/n watched Bella test it out quickly. 

“Do you want a ride to school or something?” Bella asked. Y/n turned to Jacob. She knew it was a long shot but maybe they could go to school with one another now.

“I go to school on the reservation.” He admitted with a smile. 

“I wish we could go to the same school.” Y/n muttered softly. 

“That’s too bad, it would’ve been nice to know one person.” Bella answered. Pouting Y/n gently hit her sister’s arm.

“What am I then?” Bella rolled her eyes. 

“You don’t count in that aspect.” Y/n scoffed softly and crossed her arms. To her sides both people laughed at her.

…………………………….

Regular human school was boring. Y/n sat next to Bella at her lunch table unamused. She’s already been asked three times if she had studied in Italy. She wasn’t sure why that’s the country everyone picked.

The cover for the academy wasn’t even in Italy, it was in Egypt. The desserts made the perfect hiding grounds for the portals to the hidden realm. She didn’t like how all the boys seemed obsessed with Bella.

They reminded her of rabbits in heat looking for a mate. She liked Erik, he seemed nice enough. Mike was fragile but a little funny. Quietly stabbing her fork through her apples coated in honey and tajín. She perked her head up at Bella’s words. 

“Who are they?” Bella asked staring out the window. Y/n’s gaze drifted to where her sister laid. Walking into the cafeteria were two pairs of boy and girl. 

“The Cullens.” Angela answered with a smile. Y/n furrowed a brow at her. Cullen? She’d sworn she’d heard the name before.

“They're Dr. and Mrs. Cullen's foster kids. They moved down here from Alaska, like a few years ago.” Jessica answered handing Y/n half of her sandwich. She smiled softly and ate it quietly.

Gods above and below how Y/n has missed a simple sandwich. With deli meat, cheese, and mayonnaise. She loved all the food she’d ever eaten but there was something nostalgic about a plain sandwich.

“They kind of keep to themselves.”

“Yeah, cause they’re all together.” Jessica added smiling like the gossip queen she was. “Like together, together. The blonde girl, that's Rosalie, and the big dark-haired guy, Emmett, they're like a thing.”

Y/n stared at them as they walked past her table. Rosalie the blonde was gorgeous beyond belief. Her hair was perfect in every way, soft, bouncy and smooth. Emmett the big dark haired boy was no different. Not an imperfection on his body. 

He was huge like a pro football player. His large hand tightly wrapped around Rosalie’s. But as they passed a stench wafted into her nose. Like the smell of a hospital completely sterile.

“I’m not even sure that legal.” Jessica whispered. 

“Jess, they’re not actually related.” Angela snipped quietly. 

“Yeah, but they live together. It's weird.” Jessica turned back to the Swan sisters. “Okay, the little dark haired girls Alice. She’s really weird, and she’s with Jasper, the blonde one who looks like he’s in pain.” Y/n watched as Alice twirled about. 

Weird wasn’t the right word. She was so pale, paler than Bella and that was an achievement. Jasper did look like he was in pain. His eyes were glassed over like some ravaged wolf. Hungry carving blood. 

They too had not visible imperfections.

As they passed her they left a new scent to her nose. It smelt like smoke, maybe a hint of smoke. It was faint, not entirely unpleasant like the two before them. It was just odd. It was familiar to her. 

“Dr. Cullen's like this foster dad/matchmaker.” Jessica amused. Y/n scoffed softly as she finished her last bite of sandwich. Jessica smiled softly at her, handing her a small package of cookies.

“Maybe he’ll adopt me.” Y/n froze for a second so small it thankfully went unnoticed. Adoption… the word sent shivers down her spine. She wasn’t ungrateful to be living with her dad and sister.

She loved them dearly, but it always made her feel uneasy. 

“Who’s he?” Bella asked staring so deeply it made her confused. There he walk, the object of Bella’s thoughts. Y/n could practically feel the way her heart began to move.

“That's Edward Cullen. He's totally gorgeous, obviously, but apparently nobody here's good enough for him.  Like I care, you know?” Jessica finished. Y/n wanted to visibly recoil. 

Edward wasn’t ugly, handsome and perfect. She hated it, she wasn’t sure why. He like all his siblings were perfect. There was something off about him though. The way his lip curled when Jessica talked about him.

As he passed her his smell was something else entirely. He smell still, like a heart that hadn’t beat in a hundred years. Completely frozen over, like ice had found its way around his heart. 

Bella stared at him too, but not like herself. She admired him for the distance. Y/n couldn’t bring herself to. 

“Seriously, like don’t waste your time.” Jessica mentioned as she saw the sister staring. 

“I wasn’t planning on it.” Bella uttered as she looked back. 

“He’s probably too old for me anyway.” As she turned back his eyes were baring directly at Bella. Edward’s gaze turned for a moment to her. His eyes were blacked with not clear distinction between iris and pupil. 

His whole family smelt, they were not human. Y/n was a skilled enough hunter to know that. They were something else entirely. Now she just needed to figure out what.

Then she would have her first real hunt as a branded hunter. 

…………………………….

Mike had graciously decided to lead the two sister to Biology together. It took him a moment to realize that Y/n was a junior with them. It seemed he’d forgotten quickly how smart she was.

“Mr. Molina.” Mike greeted as he walked to his seat. The teacher smiled at him as both Bella and Y/n walked in. Her baggy leather jacket was held in her hands as she followed. 

“The two Swans.” Mr. Molina greeted. Y/n played with her pendant dangling from her neck. She thought of Kellan as she looked over all her jewelry. He’d crafted them all himself. The pendant hung elegantly over her chest.

On instinct her and a hand wrapped around it. She clung to it for comfort. She wasn’t afraid. Fear was the mind killer. To be afraid was to let your enemies have control over you. She was not afraid. Just uneasy.

Y/n’s eyes roamed the class room till the landed on the Cullen boy. His black eyes bore into hers with an animalistic expression. His scent enveloped her senses, unchanging, unmoving, just still. 

She watched his face recoil as the fan blowed the air through her and Bella’s hair. His hand covered his nose and moth in disgust. She smelt her hair quickly, lotus flowers and honey. The same scent she always had. A hint of rose and vanilla maybe from the perfume she had worn earlier.

She smelt good, she knew that could not be the issue. As she walked to sit next to him, she studied him. His fist were tightly woven together. His jaw clenched so tight he might break a tooth.

Sitting down on the edge seat Bella sat next to Cullen boy, Edward. Her teacher , Mr. Molina gave her the books for his class with a smile. Her old instructors rarely smiled. It was a nice change. 

The two sister shared a quickly glance as Edward slid the small dish over to them. His nails scratched the desk, creating the most annoying sound. Bella poked her head towards him, his black unsettling eyes caused her to turn away. 

His stare never left the two girls. Every few minutes Y/n would look back at him, her eyes hardened to there cores. She would stare back till his eyes faltered. He was unnatural. The way he all buy jumped out of his chair moments before the bell rung. 

As he passed her quickly she felt her skin grow warm. Glancing under her jacket lo and behold her hunter marks were glowing softly. She eyes shot towards his retreating frame at an inhuman pace. 

Monster. He was a monster. That much was sure. What kind was the issue now. Changeling? Golem? Vampire? Skinwalker? What would a monster be doing in a high school of all places.

Y/n look over at Bella softly. Bella held her hands gently over her beating heart. Y/n felt the rage boiling inside of her sister. Bella’s anger often turned into tears. It never ended well for anyone who made her sister cry. 

“Well, he was an asshole.” Y/n uttered offering Bella her hand. Bella smiled faintly and took it. 

“I guess he was.” Bella murmured. Y/n giggled softly and nudged Bella’s shoulder. 

“Look at you talking smack, looks like all those years of being the horrible little sister have been paying off.” Bella scoffed and pushed her gently. 

“As if…. You were never a horrible sister.” Y/n smiled faintly. 

…………………………….

Her next class was chemistry with seniors. Although she wanted to stay with Bella, chemistry was a passion of hers. Well

More chemical experiments. The juniors had a course but it wouldn’t have been as fun. As she approached her teacher the older lady smiled almost manically. 

“Good morning, I’m Y/n Swan-“

“And you’re my newest student?” Y/n nodded with a smile. Her teacher giggled and patted her shoulder. She wore goggles on her head like a mad scientist. Y/n knew she would like her.

“I went over your transcripts from Northride Academy, very impressed. Your old chemistry teacher had many good things to say.” Y/n let her smirk widen slightly. Most of the transcripts were fake in a sense. Northride Academy was a real school, she did learn there.

It was just not all she learnt. As for her chemistry teacher, it was just Kijani. He too has an interest in the subject.

“I’m surprised you decided to continue your high school education instead of going to collage.” 

“I wanted the high school experience, even if it’s just for a few years.” Her teacher nodded softly.

“I’m Ms. Franken.” Y/n let her brows furrow.

“Like Frankenstein?” The older women nodded. 

“I’ve got a seat for you at lab four, in the corner over there with the Cullen’s.” Y/n nodded as she walked over. The two Cullens she was to seat with the gorgeous blonde and hefty brunette.

She set her bag to the side and grab her lab safety kit from Ms. Franken. It was just her luck that her teacher had an extra. Unfortunately the coat was a boys coat. It’s was rather large on her, but rolling up her sleeves would fix that issue.

She took the empty spot next to the boy and  met the blondes gaze. Her eyes were sharpe and golden. Her scent was cleared now. Roses, she smelt of roses and perhaps some moss. It was a gentle scent, kinder to her nose than Edward’s. 

To her side Emmett smelt of the forest and oddly cookie dough. It was a warm smell, something she enjoyed. But when they stood together the collective sterile smell was still present. Simply not as pronounced.

Placing a smile on her face she turned to the pair. She reached her hand out slowly. 

“I’m Y/n Swan, I’ll be your new lab partner.” The boy immediately took her hand in his. His hand engulfed her own as he shook it firmly. His hands were ice cold and then he retracted quickly. The glare from Rosalie was promising. 

“Emmet Cullen, and this is-“

“Rosalie Hale.” Her voice was perfect too. Y/n nodded with a smile. She was an enchanting creature. She wasn’t human that much was obvious. 

She glanced at her arm. Her lab coat had lifted slightly. She could she the mark of Anubis glowing on her wrist. She pulled the coat down with a smile.

More monsters. 

“I’m not totally sure what we’re ment to be working on, could you both help me?” Rosalie didn’t answer and went back to her work. Emmett smiled and noddded.

“We’re making colored fires. Simple enough.” Y/n nodded softly as she look at all the equipment at her lab. The burner before her was probably the weakest. It looked a bit worn as she suspected, when lighting the flame it was dull.

Slowly as grab her metal salts from the vials she glanced over at her lab mates. Rosalie had an annoyed look plastered on her face. The statement necklace she wore looked old, 1900’s maybe. 

“Your necklace is pretty.” The blonde’s golden eyes snapped up as she pressed her hand to the desk. Y/n breathed in deeply as she focused. The Blaze orders powers were most difficult to control.

The high emotions the high the heat. The tiny wisp of fire grew larger and she pulled her hand away. Kijani had always been specific about using her powers in the human realm. 

“Nothing noticeable, unless absolutely necessary.” 

She slipped her gloves and glasses on and she flicked her air vent on. Grabbing the strontium chloride and lithium chloride she grab the small spoon.

“Thank you.” Rosalie answered softly. Smirking Y/n dropped her metal salts onto her fire it lit up in red and a crimson pink. The two at her side stared at the strong colorful fire as she caught her teachers gaze. Ms. Franken was smiling at her.

“You’re most welcome.” Y/n added as she looked away. Under her coat she looked at her marks. They all glowed softly in a silver and gold. She had found her first hunt.

…………………………….

Climbing out of her room had been too easy. Y/n had always remembered her house to be much bigger than this. Maybe it was the fact she was small once, maybe it had just been how imposing the house had once looked. 

It didn’t matter now, she had already journeyed into the woods. Her footsteps were light as she followed by a stream. Small tadpoles flowed up the small body of water effortlessly. 

She smiled to herself as she progressed, it was so simple in this forest. It was peaceful unlike the forests in the hidden realm. No monsters were lurking around in the shadows.

Well, that she wasn’t quite sure just yet. Those Cullen’s were human. Maybe to a real human they just looked like supermodels but to Y/n, she knew better. Nothing human was that perfect. 

Humanity was perfect, that’s what made it so beautiful. That’s what humanity worthy of protection. Its imperfections made it real, not perfect but real.

The Cullens were something else internally. As her eyes looked around her she noticed the smallest of movement within the trees. They swayed softly, as if they had a life of their own. 

Smiling she lifted her hand to grasp into the warping air above her. Her sword, a black blade with a decorated handle. The metal shined in the moonlight, casting a small glow on the area around her. At its every end was the Eclipse symbols and at its hilt was a star shoot out of the curve of the crescent moon. 

Slowly she dragged its tip again the soft mud, making a small circle. She stabbed the sword into the middle with a smile. As the moon moved over the circle she took in a breath. Slowly she reached her hand out. 

A grayish sliver admitted from her hands. The circle itself began to glow. Gently symbols materialized in the air and floated around.

“๒ץ Շђє ק๏ฬєг ๏Ŧ Շђ๏Շђ, ɭєՇ ๓є รקєคк ฬเՇђ ๓ครՇєг кเןคภเ.” The glow spread till it formed her masters body. He stood with his back to her, speaking softly with another. The other he spoke to was out of her view, still she smiled anyway.

She had not been gone long but she missed her master. He’d been like another father to her at her time in the academy. When others didn’t believe in her, he always did. Her need for his approval was so great. She needed to make him proud to call her his apprentice.

Cleaning her throat she spoke, “Master Kijani?” 

He whipped around, smiling proudly at the small mirror like portal in front of him.

“Your first moon message! I’m so overjoyed you’ve decided to call upon me.” He answered standing straight. 

“Is this a bad time? I can call you tomorrow if you’re speaking with another.” She offered, her shoulders relaxed. He shook his head, his locks swaying side to side.

“No child, I was just finishing up.” His comforting gaze left her and went to his side. With a soft nod, whatever figure that was at his side left. She nodded and stepped towards the figure in front of her.

“Who was that?”

“No one, what can I help my prized student with?” He answered.

Her lip curled up slightly. Kijani had always answered every question she’d ever asked. Her brows furrowed, she could remember if he had ever denied her knowledge. Perhaps she’d simply grown spoiled, always being informed. 

“I believe I’ve found my first hunt.” She answered with a smile. Kijani’s hazel eyes perked up in interest.

“Truly? Normally it takes new hunters at the very least take a year to find a hunt.” He mumbles knowledgeably. She smiled happily, her nails biting into her skin through her excitement.

“I know! I think I’ve found some kind of changeling, or skinwalker maybe, perhaps a coven of vampires.” She exclaimed. He chuckled softly at her optimism.

“Changelings? Skinwalkers? Vampires? All in Forks, Washington?” He asked with an amused look. She nodded once more. 

“I’m not sure yet.”

“We’ll do explain then.” His calm voice grounded her chaotic happiness. Her heart beat skyrocketed as she recounted her thoughts.

“There’s this family here, they’re unnaturally perfect. They smell like a still corpse, sterile and completely unmoving when tougher. They’re cold to the touch, and seem always annoyed with humans.” Kijani nodded at her rambles softly. 

“You can get rid of Changelings then, they are always hot to the touch.” She nodded and stand in the moist moss bellow.

“Perhaps they’re vampires then, could you ask Dracula if there are any covens here in Forks?” She asked leaning her head in one elbow. He laughed softly at her words.

“Funny you should mention Dracula, Aerion is currently in Transylvania.” Her h/c brows shot up in surprise.

“Really? Wasn’t her placed in Romania?” She asked. Kijani agreed with her words softly. 

“Yes, but Dracula needed aid with Andrei, he’s ill? In a sense.” Worry took over her face. Andrei was sick…? He was the son of Dracula, born of a human mother two hundred years ago.

His father had always been protective of his only son, it made the partnership with the Hunters all the more difficult. Dracula was the only vampire they would never hunt. He aided humanity too much to be rid of. 

So by extension they could not hurt his family. Andrei was a friend to her, Dracula was often a rude in kind terms to hunters. However he had an odd softness for Y/n, she didn’t know why. Both vampires seek tame around her.

“What’s wrong with Andrei?” Her voice was laced in concern. 

“We don’t know yet, if the situation escalates, I need you in Transylvania.” Kijani answered. She frowned greatly and stood up.

“Send me now! If he needs help, let me!” She snapped. Kijani laughed gently at her emotions.

“I’ve only just sent you home, and you want to come back already.�� She scoffed softly as she walked around the glowing circle. 

“And you tell em something horrible.” She snipped back. He hummed gently at her as he watched her with gentle eyes. 

“You worry too much, Aerion can handle this alone, just as you will handle this hunt alone.” He answered. Alone… she was really alone this time. Kijani couldn’t come to her rescue if something went wrong. 

Nothing would go wrong though, she was ready. She’d found her kill, now all that was left was to do it. 

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[italyveneziano]

Obsessed with what America and England have going on in HetaOni. America's like "I keep having to watch my dad die from overusing his magic in past timelines and not knowing how to stop it is killing me inside but I'm not going to talk to him about it" and England's like "I can't seem to hold a conversation with my son without insulting him but I won't hesitate to use my dying breath to ensure I can protect him from beyond the grave"

[fluffypotatey]

My fellow zillennial. It's come to my attention that Gen Alpha is apparently making aesthetic tiktoks romanticizing 2020, like they want to be a teenager during that time??? Like no? You don't? I can't even begin to start breaking down how bad that year was in every category. McDonalds apparently now has "standards" yet another rubbish thing to add to the "college degrees make you overqualified with zero experience sorry you can't get this entry job" bucket. And Lunchables news reporters are like 30 years too late to be writing an expose on the toxic levels of metal in that.

people were dying????? we were in a state of panic and isolation???? schools were struggling with the switch to online only classes????

do we all remember the BLM protests and the tips on how to keep your face hidden and how to stay safe from getting maced???? do we remember the pushback against it??? calling on botched stats???

do we even remember the fucking US election???? how heated it got???? how much distrust republicans tried to seed into mail-in ballots?????

and then literally January of 2021, the US legislative house gets stormed in, Texas has a freeze so bad our gridlock shuts down and PEOPLE DIED FROM THE COLD WHILE EVERYONE ELSE MOCKED US FOR FREEZING!!!

2020 was not a good year. it is the furthest from a a good year, but it sure as hell emphasized a motley of issues the world had going on (tho i’m more versed in the US issues bc i live there)

[thenwethrowitonthefire]

Shout-out to everyone who survived a "fun" easter with the family

[1o1percentmilk]

if trump wins this election i am considering leaving the country

[nexus-nebulae]

another childhood bucket list item obtained: i finally have a snuggie

[the-acid-pear]

Why did my cooking dream get hijacked by my brain making a William Afton oc and au what was that about.

[daincrediblegg]

Eggie you don't understand what the sight of one Joaquin riding has been doing to my brain and like. also the way his hands are grabbing tight that cord to guide the horse? He's pulling???!!!?!!??? HARD!?!!!!!! and he does that all the time!??? and in some scenes he looks skinny in almost an artie way and this gets in my heart I will never know peace with this man I know that. we will never know peace. if we've to simp over a literal random napoleon so be it

let me say also that the italian translation Napoleone gives on itself the sense of something big because of the suffix -one okay have a nice day ily

FLAE BAE!!!! GIRL!!!! CAN WE FUCKING T A L K ABOUT HOW INSANE THIS SHIT FEELS FROM TRAILERS ALONE???

girl. I was deadass about jokerfriends reuinion over this film. feels like our vibe. back when we were going insane about joeldy and the like. like good god for real. I'm losing my mind at the thought that in a few months a good handful of us old guard joaq enjoyer folks are going to be reduced to ashes by a fucking ridley scott biopic (WHICH AGAIN. VERY FUNNY TO ME BC HE ALSO WAS A PRODUCER ON THE TERROR. BECAUSE THIS KINDA GIVES ME SIMILAR VIBES) AND I'M??? yeah man. yeah. there's a vibe here. (and god girl yeah the pULLING??? AND YEAH THAT SUFFIX IS A FUCKING SIGN MAN!!!! this will get my motor running more than folie a deux ever could. I'm so excited to dive into historical drama hell with you all once more)