#and catches her quickly whenever she gets blasted or something

[chocostrwberry]

In chocoau! I really like the idea that Chat Noir is Ladybug’s protector.

He’s there to make sure she’s safe and can protect Paris, or is just the one she can rely on and fall on when she makes a mistake. It would give Adrien a sense of purpose and the chance to prove to himself (and unconsciously Marinette) that he can be a kind person. So even though Chat Noir doesn’t have a crush on Ladybug, he’s always willing to listen to her and do as she asks just because that’s his role as the Cat miraculous holder. Maybe that’s also why he calls her “my lady”, because he sees himself as her knight!!

She trusts him to be there for her, and he trusts her to take down the akuma.

(This would also reflect in Plagg and Tikki. When Tikki gets kidnapped or is in trouble and Plagg sees, he never hesitates to help her even though it might expose himself or the other kwamis.)

[taissaswifelowkey]

dreaming

bartender afab reader and anora

it’s difficult to love someone and not being the right person for the other. you’re sure that’s how ani feels or would feel about you. but how are you so sure? can you be so sure?

let’s pretend ivan doesn’t exist here 😜🔥🔥

a/n: i cannot wait anymore and anora is coming out in six days so here’s a drabble. also if you noticed, the title is named after dreaming by blondie which was used in the trailer :) (i’m sorry, im really a fan of movies and their details) proofread but there might be typos, leave feedback if you have any and enjoy reading!!

warnings: uhhh if you know what the movie is about then you know it’s about ani’s job like everyone else in her place of work but nothing is explicitly mentioned. UMMM KISSINGGG?? mentions of legal drinking, swearing, a touch sad, gay yearning but it ends on a really hopeful note, i promise! that’s it really. and self indulgence you already knowww probably an out of character anora, i haven’t seen the movie as yet but that will be corrected soon once it releases in cinemas here ‼️‼️

it starts below the cut 🤠

Loud music was blasting through the speakers. You can still hear the faint noises of laughter and chuckles, slightly distracting you as you were only looking for the laughter of one person.

You swear it’s the only thing you’re looking forward to everytime you tend the bar. Not for the additional tips offered by clients who would pretend to act all innocent and have no idea of what they’re doing. But for her jokes, her gentle smile and her laugh that always sends a strange swirl in your abdomen. For her warm touch whenever you felt like you could handle it. It’s insane how she sends you a visceral yet pleasant shiver throughout your entire body whenever she’d rest her head on your shoulder. Her floral, white musk scent would make you completely feel dizzy. You were once on the rooftop of your tiny flat when it first happened. Ani’s hands were in yours the entire time while you talked and she wouldn’t let go. Maybe the alcohol helped you ignore how much your heart struggled to regain its normal rhythm. And her fragrance didn’t really help your situation. That’s when you knew you were entirely fucked.

You fell for people before. But not for your friends. Especially not your close friends. She was the good thing you had in life among others. Losing her was not something you’d even want to imagine, the thought making you upset. Besides, thinking about different probabilities about her catching on to your crush would always circle back to the same answer. She might be straight and this will leave an awkward gap between your friendship and you won’t be as close anymore, will look back at all the interactions you had before and paint you as a creep. Or she might not be but it will still leave an awkward taint in your relationship. Either way you needed to get over this and get over it quickly.

Blinking back your thoughts as you found yourself spiralling again, you wiped the counter with a cloth, a drunk client haven spilled drinks before while having two girls wrapped around him. You were slightly grateful for your daydreams' interruption. Letting your mind roam about Ani was like a double edged sword.

As you cleaned the surface, a voice catches your attention.

“Finally, I get to have some time for you.”

Your eyebrows rose slightly and you were about to answer the person talking to you when you noticed her playful smile and her eyes.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

It’s also insane how your brain manifests its thoughts and wonderings into reality, her presence seeming to have a powerful hold on you.

“Are you okay? You look like you’re like…drunk. Are you? Look, I wouldn’t tell anyone but doing this is pretty risky. Definitely don’t do it without me next time, though.”

Get yourself together.

“It’s just one of those days where I had to stay up cramming for a test and got three hours of sleep.”

“Oh and I thought those days were over and you’d take your sleep seriously. What happened to you putting aside caffeine and focusing on a good sleep schedule?”

“Left behind me. But it worked for a week in my defence.”

You try to laugh but the highlighter near her eyes, her perfectly applied eyeliner and her lipstick makes all your cells come alive. She’s so damn pretty.

With a disapproving look, she reaches to fix your collar.

“Do I have to babysit you or something? College is already hard as it is. I don’t need you stumbling around me.”

You already do that.

“I wouldn’t mind having an overseer.”

With a wink, you take care of an order for a client approaching the bar, missing her slight chuckle at your tease. It’s a good thing she’s not a mind reader, your brain overplaying the sentence“why the fuck would you that out loud?”

The customer follows her gaze over you but doesn’t pay any mind, sidling over to her.

“Hey…I have enough for two drinks. Or three, if you’d like.”

You visibly hurl at the sight. That was worse than what you said.

Taking a deep breath and focusing on cleaning an already clean glass, you keep a subtle glance on him. His aftershave wafts in the air and leaves an unpleasant overwhelming scent.

You hate how he looks clean, fresh. The way he has a perfect jawline. How his smooth, deep voice, almost makes you wish you could have the same traits as him.

This was getting ridiculous. You’re getting ridiculous.

Throwing the towel over your shoulder, you sigh at the relief of having customers flood the counter. A bachelor’s party. You just go on autopilot, listen to their orders and ignore their vague offensive teenage boy adjacent behaviour.

Ani’s focused on the charming man. At least, she was trying too. Sure, he was funny and looked like a formula one pilot…but was also incredibly bland. For the past thirty minutes it’s been him, him, him. She knows his name but he has no idea about hers, he didn’t even ask any questions.

While he goaded about having a mansion in The Hamptons or who knows where, she trailed back her eyes to you. You felt different. Your overall senses felt different. She didn’t felt the calm radiating energy balancing her bright one anymore. And she wasn’t joking when she asked you if you were off. For the past few weeks you looked downright exhausted. She believes that it’s because of your midterms, but she knows there’s something more to it. You have this sort of signal whenever you’d close yourself off from people. You’d get really silent, almost out of space. Then you would twist the rings you have on your fingers, one of then being a gift she got for you.

Then there were your texts. You weren’t dry or simply answering her texts for the purpose of replying but you would always be late to do so. She knows you’re busy with college and whatnot, but she also knew you well. You were hiding something from her. The dilemma she had to deal with was whether to confront you because you being somewhat closed off felt like losing you. Or should she wait until you talk to her?

Will you?

⋆｡°✩

The guy who talked her ear off didn’t even bother paying for her drinks, just his. Her best friend is acting weird. And on top of that she has a show in ten minutes. She can’t operate with a negative state of mind. And none of what was happening was of help.

She understands you and knows you need your own pace when it comes to handling certain things. But what exactly are you handling? And why were you looking like a kicked puppy but now you’re chatting and chuckling with your coworker. That or you were forcing yourself. Yeah, something is wrong. And she’s tired of this.

Completely ignoring the conversation you’re having, which by the way, must be uninteresting and forced because she knows you only really laugh those warm laugh of yours with hers, she asks if you can soon talk.

She’s still respectful of your working hours. When she could just drag you outside and beg you to tell her what is going on with you.

“My shift is over in five minutes, Ani—”

“I can take over from here. You’ve been practically hosting the patrons on me.”

Your coworker, smiles at you and moves to your position. Good.

And you’re so tired and confused you don’t even process how Ani marches over the bar, gently takes your hand and smiles at the man before leading you through the crowded room of sweating bodies until you reach a private, quieter area.

She steps in the room and mentions for you to do the same. You’re honestly surprised how you didn’t manage to faint.

“I need to know what’s your problem.”

Your eyebrows furrow at her tone, knowing she usually takes it with annoying clients or rude people who feel the need to make comments.

“What problem?”

“With me.”

She won’t waste anytime. Whatever the fuck is happening between you two has to end.

You feel your knees go wobbly so you just sit, trying to calm down your hammering heart.

“I…I have no…I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

You blurt out in one go, as if taking your time to answer the question might reduce the chance of her picking up on how out of breath you are.

She chuckles dryly, raking her hands through her hair, pacing the room.

Don’t yell. This is not the approach to take here.

“Then why the fuck are you so distant with me?”

She couldn’t control the raised volume of her voice. She quickly regretted it, seeing how you slightly jerked up.

The dim lighting concealed how your eyes were getting bleary and hid her face flushed with anger. Or sadness. Maybe a bit of both. The room felt so stuffy. You looked down at your shoes, finding the colours to be so interesting.

“Did I do something wrong?”

She whispered, barely even audible, like a ghostly breath. You’re sure you wouldn’t have heard her if it weren’t for the utter silence in the room.

And you felt bad. Plain miserable. But hiding the truth was a way to protect the both of you, right? What would she do if she found out that you were crushing, no, fucking fell in love with her and carried on like nothing ever happened—

“Right. I have my answer then. Look, I don’t know what I did wrong but…I want you to know I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I’ll try to be better from now on and so hope that I’m deserving enough of a second chance.”

She sniffs, trying to keep her breathing steady. She couldn’t lose you. Wouldn’t lose you. You’re the best thing in her life. And she hates herself for pushing you away.

She gives you another mental chance at speaking up before moving to leave.

And you let her.

Wiping the few tears she has, she swiftly leaves the room. And when you’re the only one left, you let the tears flow through your face, wanting nothing but to be honest with her, tell her how you feel, relieve yourself from the feeling of carrying what is similar to that of a burden.

Loving her doesn’t feel like one, though. It feels freeing. Weirdly enough it’s like you share the same oxygen, and a part of her cut is sure enough for you to choke.

You look down at the ring she got you from a thrift store, saying that it reminded her of you. Silver. With star design engravings.

“I don’t know why but being with you feels like I’m dreaming.”

Fighting back your nausea, you trace your fingers over the stars, remembering how she held your fingers in hers, linking them together.

You had to tell her the truth. You had to risk telling the truth. She’s deserving of it. And whatever outcome it has, not that you’re thinking of any positive ones, it will be a great relief. Even if it’s painful.

⋆｡°✩

Allowing yourself a minute to take deep breaths and gather your wordings, you slowly left the room, trudging to wait for Ani until she completes her show.

You wait for her near her trailer room, your legs still feeling weak, and slide down the door. Even though you willed your heart to calm down, you still feel this immense pressure on your chest, a slight headache and fatigue from all the overwhelming sensations. You close your eyes and try to rest.

It must not have been that long, because someone is lightly, gently shaking your shoulder. You lift your head from your crossed arms, blinking blearily at the presence of people and lights before your tired gaze lands on her.

Her warm hands are on your cheeks and you feel like you could cry anytime now, even in front of her friends who looks at you like you’re on the verge of a breakdown.

With a silent look, she asks them to leave you, one of them muttering “call me if you need anything.”

She should hate you. She doesn’t even know if she does. But you’re not exactly one of her most favourite people anymore.

That doesn’t mean that seeing you like this makes her feel a sense of victory. If anything it just adds to the shitty mess of emotions she has when it comes to you.

“Ani…”

You softly whispered, trying to get up but she presses down on your shoulders. She picks up bottle of water on the ground and opens it for you.

“Drink.”

Your eyes are puffy and red, your face completely heated. Whatever it is that is happening with you…she wants to help. If you’d let her. If only you’d let her.

Although the water did make you a little clearheaded, you still needed to a bit of space before the same thing happens again.

“Ani, I…this…”

Your head leans back at the door, your eyes closed. She’s never seen you like this. This vulnerable and lost.

She’s grateful that you’re feeling safe…or felt safe enough to be that way around her. If this is the last chance you two have of mending this weird relationship.

“Let’s go outside.”

“But…don’t you have anyone to see after?”

With a wry smile, she stands up and offers you her hand.

“My shift ended as soon as my friends told me you were passed out. Let me get our jackets, okay?”

Right. You would always leave your jackets here. Now you’re worried this would only give valuable reasons of making you look like some weird obsessive.

You wish you had something to drink.

After getting your jackets, you thank her, and walk outside the nightclub, waiting as she waves goodbye to everyone. That’s the thing. Everyone loves her. She could have anyone. Any thoughts of you and her being together for a split second is bounds enough for you to check for signs of delusions.

You lean against the wall, refusing a cigarette when she offers you one.

You don’t want to waste anymore second. The more you wait…the more the dagger will twist in your stomach. Literally. And figuratively. Because you would bleed your love out for that girl.

“You didn’t do anything wrong.”

You muttered after two minutes, your eyes trained on the sky. It was particularly starry this evening.

Ani confusedly stares at you but says nothing, waiting for you to speak.

Finally speak.

“You didn’t do to say anything hurtful to me, Ani. You never could. I would trust you with my life.”

A pause for breath.

“You apologising when you’re not in the wrong shows how much you care. And you talked about whether you deserved a second chance but that thought never crossed my mind. I’m the one who should apologise and ask you for a second chance. I’ve been acting like a complete jerk these past couple weeks. I’m sorry. That was…that was fucked up on my part.”

You twirl your star ring, and encourage your brain to spill everything that’s it’s been clogging your senses with, spill everything that you’ve been hiding.

“I don’t deserve you at all. I shouldn’t. Not with the way I’ve been feeling—”

“What have you been feeling?”

Her cigarette long finished, she took the opportunity to speak, to finally know what’s the deal between the both of you and if it will ever be resolved. She’ll do it with time and effort, even if you insist that she didn’t do anything wrong. But she won’t do it if you let things go. If you let her go.

You drop your hands and lift your eyes to hers, your ears welling with tears you could hardly make up her frame.

“I’m in love with you.”

To say she felt her guts fell to the ground would have been a complete understatement. She chuckles hesitantly, wondering if this was some kind of sick excuse, and sees nothing but. Her mouth opens and closes, her eyebrows furrowing. While you just wanted to throw up.

“You…what?”

Saying it once was difficult enough but this felt like plunging a knife through your chest.

You’re willing to spill your blood for her if this means saying goodbye. At least she’ll know how much she meant to you.

“I love you, Ani. I don’t know when I realised it but I love you. You’re always there for me, you’re kind and so gentle. You treat me like I’m worth something. And I treasure that. But…I also treasure our relationship and I understand if you think I’m some weirdo who just wanted to be friends with you because I’m attracted to women. Just tell me and I’ll stay away from you, I will get away and—”

“Stop.”

She takes a tired hand to her forehead, lightly pinching it.

Oh you have fucked up so bad—

“Are you fucking with me?”

Your eyes widen at the question before you clear your throat, trying not to cry. You can’t cry.

“No. I…I have feelings for you. I would understand if you think it’s awful.”

“Can you not say that? Why would it be awful?”

“Because you…because you don’t…”

“What, just cause you see me flirting and dating guys doesn’t mean I can’t do the same for girls?”

There’s a soft twinkle in her eyes, the same one you love to find yourself lost in.

“But…but that doesn’t mean you can like me back.”

God, how ridiculous you were.

Do you know the way you made her feel whenever you would hold a sleepover and bring her favourite things to bed just for her? Or offer a drive to and back from her place? And whenever you’d leave your sweater, her favourite sweater, in her reach, don’t you think she wished she could really hold you?

She steps closer to you, moving to wipe your tears away.

“You have no idea, do you?”

Well, to be fair…she was pretty good at hiding it. With you, however, she should have been able to pick up on the signs. Maybe then it might have been quicker.

You close your eyes, refusing to believe that any of this is real and that it’s just a lucid nightmare.

“Look at me, baby.”

She softly whispers, waiting for you to meet her gaze. She presses a kiss on the tip of your nose, loving how absolutely adorable you look.

“I love you. So much. You know when I said that being with you felt like I was dreaming? That’s how I always want to feel. I don’t want us to be apart. Ever. And for that whole thing of me rejecting you? That’s bullshit. You’d still be my best friend in any case.”

You don’t know if you can believe that.

“I would never lie to you.”

She feels her voice breaking with the intensity of emotions she’s feeling. It’s you. Every night, every day, it’s you. You feel more like a dream, really…she would fade into you if you’d allow her to.

“You love me?”

“I love you.”

“Say it again.”

Your voice is hoarse, an effort at trying to hold back your cries. You think you can see Ani’s eyes blearing too, hesitantly reaching up to wipe her tears, just like she did with yours.

“I love you.”

She wastes no time. She doesn’t want to waste anytime.

She presses her forehead against yours, grateful for your touch. The number of times she held those hands, felt them around her waist or shoulders when you’d embrace each other, can’t be at the same level as it is now. Your eyes meet, and you notice the slight darkened hue of her pupils, the sight sending a heat tumbling down your chest.

“Now, you say it.”

“I…I love you, Ani. More than you know.”

She cups your cheeks, her eyes flickering between yours.

“Don’t ever leave me again.”

“I won’t.”

“You promise?”

“I’d swear on my life for you.”

Long seconds are morphed into minutes and you can’t detach yourself from the haze you’re trapped in. Her eyes then lower to your lips before they meet yours again. This time, the painful hammering that you felt in your chest has been replaced by a fluttering sensation.

“Can I kiss you?”

Her question pangs over and over in your mind, mostly because you want to remember everything she said in the exact tone. Thinking she stepped too far, she was about to pull back and apologise when you wrapped your arms around her waist and nodded.

She chuckled, leaning to graze her lips, trailing from your cheek to your ear, tickling the skin.

“Words, baby.”

“Y-yes.”

“Yes, what?”

“Yes, I want to kiss you.”

“Good.”

She looks between your eyes, slowly leaning in to give you enough time before she captures her lips in yours. It feels like she’s living for the first time again. She’s buzzing from the softness of your lips, how they taste like your chapstick you always carried everywhere with you.

It’s slow, new, almost hesitant. But it still makes her feel warm, on top of her jacket, forgetting the evening winter air surrounding you. You break apart for a quick breath before pulling each other closer again, this time the kiss going from sweet to passionate. She softly tugs your bottom lip with her teeth, making you slightly yelp. She smiles against your lips before you switch positions and gently push her on the wall, breaking apart to kiss her jaw, her neck, careful not to leave any marks, then back to her lips. Everything is mingled. Your tastes, your breaths, your bodies, no one wants to leave anytime soon. Too drunk with desire to do anything about it.

Until you hear remaining dancers leave and you jump. Ani laughs and you join along with her, the sounds creating a blissful harmony.

You wrap your arms around her, pressing her body closer to yours, and take a moment to breathe.

You’re sure you would give your own life if it were to kiss Ani again. It felt as good as it was in your dreams, sweet, loving, and hungry.

“When there’s something you need to tell me, tell me, alright? No more secrets from now on.”

“I will. I promise you. I’m…I’m so sorry again for not saying anything sooner.”

She softly presses kisses all over your face, before tugging on your jacket and pressing her lips against yours.

“Don’t apologise. I understand if you were afraid. I would be, too. I was…even a bit scared if I’m honest with you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. But we’re…we’re together now, right?”

You’ve never seen her this way, so uncertain. You promised yourself to never make her feel doubt again. Not like you did before.

“We’re together. I’m your girl, Ani.”

“And I’m yours.”

And one last kiss was shared before you ended up in your home, not knowing the place will morph with memories you’ve created together.

[h8ani]

Tooru Oikawa x Reader

Word Count: 2.4k (I tried)

Warnings: MDNI - semi public sex, health code violations happen, unprotected sex, quickie, oikawa has overbearing parents. you're caught, fem!reader

A/N: Here is my fic for the Help Wanted collab with @interstellar-inn It was fun writing this thank you so much for letting me join! Also a big thank you to those who proof read this for me!

Taglist: @bloodsiren @suyacho @kodzukein

Join my taglist! → here (if you've changed your username please let me know!)

The cloudless summer sky shined down bright on you as you hurried to get to work. The heat wave brought long days and even shorter nights, construction paused and everyone stayed indoors with their a/c on full blast. Unlucky for you, the small ice cream shop you worked at had no air conditioning as of three days ago and your shift just happened to be on one of the hottest days of the week. 

You shouldn’t complain, you’re grateful that you were even able to get a job just for the summer while you were back home and on break from school, plus the owners were this cute couple who welcomed you with open arms and were always so friendly towards you. You shouldn’t complain but, damn this heat. 

You were able to work five days out of the week which was also very generous given that you were part time, and it didn’t hurt that on most of the days that you worked the owner's son would stop by to help out too. Tooru Oikawa, pride and joy of his parents and one hundred percent, without a doubt, off limits. 

The second you met him you figured out pretty quickly just how overbearing his parents were about him, instantly boasting about how great he is. Apparently, he’s some hot shot volleyball player for his own college, you were able to surmise that he’s captain from the team and that his parents absolutely hate all the little fangirls he always has all over him, his mom quickly mentioning that everytime she sees a photo of him with girls falling off his arms she always comments a thumbs down emoji which you couldn’t help but laugh at the thought. 

You couldn’t overlook the quick jabs about his ex either, his mom being very vocal about how she was never good enough for their “beautiful baby boy” and his father just huffing out an unamused sigh when Oikawa somewhat defends her. You mentally noted everything, making sure to stay in their good graces while you worked alongside him. You made sure not to ask for help from him too much or kept yourself busy so you were never stagnant and just standing around him where his parents could give a questioning look or comment. As subtle as you thought you were being Oikawa saw right through it, easily catching on to how careful you were being. He thought you were cute, definitely not like the girls at his school who just threw themselves at him whenever they had the chance. It was refreshing, and during this heat he needed something to cool down and you were now his drink of choice. 

The ding of the door chimed in your ears as you walked in, the thick air from inside the store somehow feeling warmer than outside. You huffed out a sigh while walking around to the back making sure to say hello to both of the owners before stopping in your tracks, in the small section of the back of the store was a table and a few chairs meant to be an area for employee’s to take their breaks and where bags and belongings can go with a few hooks spaced out on the wall. Your eyes met with his, a small smirk taking place on his face as he watched you frozen. Your expression was cute, eyes as big as a doe’s would be while standing rigid in the doorway. “Don’t look so surprised, you’ll make me feel bad for being here,” he chuckles while leaning back in the chair, his foot popping up on his knee as he gets more comfortable. 

“You weren’t scheduled for today.” You quickly state, moving to place your bag on one of the hooks and sliding your phone out of your back pocket to place it on the charger. You turn back to find Oikawa swiveling in his chair to face you, him not even trying to hide the fact that he’s checking you out. He looked at you from head to toe, how short the shorts you wore were and the way they hugged your ass, your shirt showing just enough cleavage to know his mother would pop a blood vessel if she saw it and the slight sheen of sweat he can see due to the a/c crapping out a few days ago. The thoughts of what you’d look like panting for him crossed his mind and made his pants tighter, a small clear of your throat brought him back almost as if you already knew what he was thinking. A shameless smile crossed his lips as he stood up and passed by you without saying a word. 

~~

Thirty minutes in and you already wanted to shrivel up and die, you were using an empty envelope to fan yourself off but even then that didn’t seem to work because all you were doing was pushing more hot air into your face. At this point you were ready to jump into the ice cream display, who cares if you’d be sticky at least you’ll be cold and sticky. 

Glancing over to the empty parking lot you decide to sneak off towards the back while making sure to grab the containers for the toppings, if you’re going to sneak off might as well do a little bit of work while you’re at it. A giant walk-in freezer is your only saving grace as you tug on the heavy handle, making sure to keep it cracked as to not lock you in because as much as you like the cold you don’t want to be one with the ice cream. 

The gust of cold air as you walk-in feels as if you died and went to heaven, immediately your hands reached the hem of your shirt to fan as much air as you could, allowing your body to feel the sweet chill of the air. The subtle hum of the freezer drowning out any outside noise while you close your eyes, not noticing that the cooler door opened more allowing Oikawa to slip in while seemingly shutting it, the click of the door locking drowned out with the whir of the cooler. 

He watches you for a moment, seeing the subtle sway of your body as your shirt rises higher up on your stomach. He smiles at you, he can’t deny that the minute he met you that he thought you were attractive, you were sweet to his parents and always did more than what was asked let alone did more than what you were actually being paid for. You were smart, already catching onto how his parents were which most wouldn’t, he knew this right away because he could barely keep a conversation with you let alone get you in the same place as him, it was charming how you cared about what his parents thought of you. That’s probably going to change after he’s done with you. 

Stepping closer, closing the distance between you two, his arm snakes around your waist causing an audible gasp to escape you before getting cut off by his hand covering your mouth. Your body went rigid as you felt his breath hit your ear while a quiet ‘shh’ leaves his own lips. 

Your heart was thumping against your chest with your eyes opened wide enough that you resembled a deer caught in headlights, almost immediately your hands reach up to his own covering your mouth. You could hear the subtle click of his tongue in disapprovement as you tried tugging at his hand. 

You’ve tried keeping your distance as best as you could and ignoring just how flirtatious Oikawa has been towards you but even then this budding little crush on him couldn’t be stopped. Yes, he was attractive and yes, he might be this college athlete that you may or may not have instagram stalked on one or two occasions since working here and maybe the fact that he’s been off limits from the start made him even more enticing than he should have been but you will not fall victim to a pretty boy getting you alone.

Finally, you tug his hand down while taking in a deep breath. “Your parents-”

“Aren’t here, but they will be back.” He says as he grabs ahold of your shoulders and spins you around, your back hits the wall of the cooler, a chill running through you immediately. You catch sight of him, eyes locking to him but his line of sight went straight to your cleavage, then to your exposed stomach all the way down until they came back to your eyes. A smug smirk was planted on his face as he leaned in, hands planting themselves right by your head caging you in. “It’s your call, princess.” 

The sprouting thought of being fired the moment his parents find out hit your mind causing you to waver in answering. You needed this summer job, hell; you even liked it even if you wish you weren’t being baked alive, but still you faltered and it was obvious to you both about what was running through your mind. You wanted to, fuck, did you want to but you knew better-

“The more you contemplate this the less time we have, so push me away if you don’t want this but I need to kiss you right now.” 

Before you could even comprehend what he was saying one of his hands wrapped around the back of your neck and pulled you to him crashing his lips to yours. He was quick to press you against the wall but was surprisingly slow with the kiss, he was giving you time to push back, say no if you wanted to but it never came. After a moment he pulls away, hand still caressing the back of your nape as he looks down at you, happy to see your eyes clouded with need.

“We have to be quick.” You breathe out, a determination now setting in your eyes. He couldn’t stop the smile that was spreading once he heard you. His lips were back on yours, angling your head so he could deepen the kiss further. You open your mouth letting his tongue mold against yours as he easily pops the buttons of your shorts off, your own fingers quickly tugging his shorts down. Grabbing the underside of your thighs he lifts you up, pressing you in between him and the frozen wall of the cooler. Goosebumps erupted over your skin, the subtle cloudy air you two exhaled was the only indicator of just how cold it really was inside. 

Soon enough your panties were pulled to the side and his warm, hard cock was sliding past your entrance. The burn of the stretch was noticeable, he was big; that much you could tell. “Fuck…” You bit out, wrapping your arms tighter around his neck. 

“Sorry Princess, don’t have much time for foreplay this time.”

“This time?” Your eyebrows raised as you finally caught a glimpse at him. Suddenly the cooler seemed warmer than it was as you looked at him, cock pushed into the hilt, and that same cocky ass smirk plastered on his face. 

“I plan to have you plenty more times that aren’t breaking any health code violations.” He rocks his hips into you, a moan escapes your lips. The angle he had you in made everything feel so much deeper, every thrust he gave you made your body feel on fire, it didn’t matter how cold everything around you was. 

His lips found their way up your neck, making sure to leave wet, open mouthed kisses along the base of your throat until he found the spot behind your ear that made you visibly shiver in his arms. A quiet whine left your lips as you spoke his name, pussy clenched with every rough thrust he was giving you. 

To say he’s been waiting all Summer to get the chance to be inside you was an understatement, the moment he met you he knew he wanted to have his way with you. To have his way with you inside his parents freezer? That wasn’t his plan but he wasn’t one to be picky. 

You cursed after one particularly rough thrust of his, nails digging into his shoulders as you took every roll of his hips. He was keen on making this quick, your back soon being pulled away from the wall and quickly found yourself being laid on top of multiple boxes of what you can expect was an assortment of toppings. If an inspector came in this place would surely be shut down. 

His pace quickened as his thumb easily found your clit, rubbing in quick circular motions to help you reach your end. He was eager to cum and so were you, a flurry of curse words left your lips as you felt the knot in your stomach tightening more and more. 

“Cum for me.” He grunted, voice hoarse as he watched you under him. Oh how he wished he could’ve taken his time with you, he wanted to undress you properly, make sure you were shaking before he even put the tip in. He wanted to make you feel better than you already did. 

Pulling him closer, you bury your head in the crook of his neck muffling the sounds you were making, your walls clenched around him, your climax dragging out of you as he continued the fuck into you. A loud groan tumbled out of him, his thrusts became sloppy as he released inside of you, spilling his seed until it was spilling out. 

You both are breathing heavy, the warm breath that's being exhaled mixing with the chill of the cooler brings a new sensation around you. You don’t trust yourself to stand, the orgasm he pulled from you in such a short time sent your mind to another world that you almost missed the distinct ring of the front door being opened.

Almost.

“Just customers, too early for my parents to be back.” Oikawa states while planting a comforting kiss on your cheek. You relax back into the now dented boxes from underneath you, he leaned down; now letting his forehead rest against yours as you breathed each other in. You both bask in the afterglow of the orgasms you had until the bright light from outside is shining through, the loud screech of the cooler’s door opening and an overly dramatic gasp and shout of Oikawa’s fathers name is being shouted as you look over. 

Yeah, you can kiss this job goodbye.

network: @interstellar-inn

[penkura]

Fever Dream [2/2]

Note: Hi! This is part 2 of the request from the lovely @xxchaosjojoxx for Penguin x Reader! :) I finally got it done, I really hope you guys will like it as much as the first part! It may have gotten away from me, sometimes I don't know how to stop myself and just add more parts, that's probably why the WCI chapter of 'knowing' was almost 8k words. :')

Oh well, again, hope you all enjoy!

Part 1 here!

Taglist:

@bby-deerling | @xxchaosjojoxx

Penguin doesn’t think anything is wrong the next day, not at first anyway. He’s finally over his fever with strict orders from Law to take it easy and let others help him out, which he promises to do with the threat of toilet cleaning duty over his head, the thought of asking you or Shachi more than anyone else, especially when he goes to greet you that morning before breakfast.

Only, you give him a wide-eyed look before shouting your own ‘good morning’ and quickly walking past him, saying you’re starving and want to get breakfast right away, when Ikkaku asks what’s wrong. When your best friend sees Penguin is the reason you’ve run to the kitchen faster than she’s ever seen, Ikkaku just smiles a bit, laughing slightly.

“Oh it’s you, Penguin. Morning, happy to see you’re better!”

“Ha, thanks, Ikkaku,” before she gets past him to kitchen, Penguin grabs her wrist to stop her, “Is [Y/N] okay…? She’s never run away from me before.”

“Mm,” nodding, Ikkaku keeps grinning like a devil before Penguin lets her wrist go and she pats him on the shoulder, “She’s doing great, thanks to you.”

Ikkaku doesn’t tell him anything else, not even when Penguin tilts his head in confusion and tries to ask what she means, she just continues on to the kitchen. He follows suit shortly after, catching your eye again and giving you a smile, but it falters when you look away quickly, turning to Jean Bart and asking him something. That’s not normal for you, anytime Penguin speaks to you or gives you a smile, you always reciprocate, you have from the very beginning. When you joined the Heart Pirates you seemed so nervous about everything, Penguin made it his job to help you get comfortable, he didn’t really expect to fall in love with you over that time. He seriously thought you felt the same, that he’d be able to ask you out soon and start courting you.

But now he has to wonder what he did to make you be like this around him. A few of your crewmates notice the difference, shaking their heads at Penguin or snickering over it, especially when you finish your breakfast and take off before he can stop you. It starts to frustrate him, to the point Penguin looks at everyone still around with a frown, though some of them don’t meet his eye (granted they can’t even see his eyes but still).

“…what the hell happened?”

+!+

You don’t stay around Penguin for very long that day, if you can help it. Law paired you both up briefly to wash the dishes, Penguin being surprised when you put your headphones on and ignore him this time. Whenever you do any task together, the two of you would have a blast, chatting or swapping jokes or book recommendations, time flying by and you both feeling like you’ve gotten closer. You’ve been a Heart Pirate for five years now, there’s still so much Penguin has to learn about you he feels like, but if you won’t even talk to him now, it feels like your growing relationship, still a friendship, is starting to backslide.

And he doesn’t know why. You were fine two days ago, what happened yesterday?

“Shachi…” Penguin’s whining pulls Shachi’s focus from his task of checking supplies, Law wanting one more run to the island before you all take off. He barely looks at his lifelong friend before going back to making notes on what the ship could use extra of, since the next potential stop is weeks away from the current one.

“What’s up, Pen?”

“[Y/N]’s been ignoring or running from me all day!”

“Oh yeah?” He snickers a bit, knowing exactly why, Ikkaku had told him and Shachi may have let it slip to a few people who knew how smitten you two were with each other. He really did hope this was the push you both needed to get your relationship going.

“I can’t figure out why, and everyone keeps shaking their heads at me! Did I do something??”

“…wait, you don’t remember?” Shachi stops writing to finally look at Penguin, who shakes his head with a pout.

“No! And if someone says that one more time, I’m going to—”

“Dude, you told her you love her.”

Penguin stops ranting and rambling when Shachi says that, his eyes widening as he barely manages to get a quiet ‘huh’ out before his friend nods.

“Ikkaku said that [Y/N] told her you thought she was Ikka, and were asking how to tell her that you love her—”

“I don’t—” Penguin feels his face turning red and starts to pull his hat down over his face.

“—and then you kissed her before passing out from your fever. That’s the basic gist of it, man.”

Shachi is somewhat amused seeing Penguin fully cover his face with his hat, a bright red blush showing through what’s visible. Twenty-eight and still nervous as hell when it came to romance, no matter how times he’s flirted with other women in the past, it stopped the second he met you when you joined them. It was like a flip switched in Penguin’s brain that told him ‘she’s the one!’ and he’s been enamored with you ever since.

Not like you didn’t feel the same, he’d heard it from Ikkaku constantly. She tells him everything about what you say regarding Penguin, how much you like him back and wish you could make a move but you didn’t want to ruin your friendship in the process. A fair reason, though if you’d only known sooner how in love Penguin was, you probably wouldn’t be running from him all day. Penguin probably wouldn’t be going through such mental anguish and feeling like he’s done a terrible thing by kissing you like that.

He keeps muttering about how that was so wrong, he messed up, you must hate him now. How could you not? He probably just stole your first kiss! And without even asking if he could kiss you! That wasn’t fair to you, he just feels awful about it.

Letting him have a few minutes, Shachi eventually pats Penguin on the shoulder, giving him a smile.

“You should go sit down and talk to her. You guys need to work this out, but I doubt she’s mad at you.”

“Shach—”

“She’s probably more embarrassed than anything, based on what Ikka told me. So just go give it your best shot, Pen.”

+!+

Law pairs you up again that day to work on the crew’s laundry, something that shouldn’t take long or cause Penguin enough stress to make his fever come back. The only thing really stressing him out is the fact you still haven’t really spoken to him, except when you tell him you’re taking clothes to their respective owners. The few times you leave to do so, he tries to hype himself up and convince himself to just talk to you, see if you’re mad or if you’re willing to work things out with him.

When you come back the last time, no headphones in sight, he feels like he has a chance.

“Captain wants me to help him with something, can you finish here?”

His shoulders slump and he’s about to say that he’ll be fine, but instead Penguin shakes his head.

“No, uh, I mean, yeah I can, but…can we talk?”

You bite your lip a bit, Penguin not looking at you, and you shake your head slightly.

“What’s there to talk about? You were sick, it wasn’t on purpose.”

“But what I did was wrong, even if it was because of my fever.”

The way he sounds when he speaks almost sets you off, you almost start telling him that no it wasn’t a big deal, you have the same feelings for him. You were just shocked he returned them! Okay maybe a little embarrassed still, but that was all on you, he’s the first person you’ve ever kissed, you don’t know how to handle it yet.

“I,” you want to tell Penguin he really didn’t do anything wrong, but even though you can’t see his eyes for that hat, you feel like he’s giving you puppy dog eyes and you’re going to absolutely break down and try to kiss him if this keeps up, “I need to go!”

“No, wait, please!!” Penguin grabs your arm, nearly begging you to stay, “I…I’m sorry for kissing you! But I…I love you! So please…stop running away from me.”

You’re both silent for several minutes, you still don’t look at Penguin and it makes him so much more anxious. He needed to apologize, right? That would fix it, it would fix everything. He was delusional and didn’t think that fever dream was reality, he made a mistake and kissed you without permission or knowing he was even doing it. He felt so bad about it, that’s not how it should’ve gone!

“This wasn’t…how I wanted to tell you…”

“…how did you want to tell me?”

“I…I wanted to take you on a date,” he quietly speaks, while you turn around and watch him, Penguin doesn’t lift his head to look at you, “I was going to take you out yesterday but, well, you know…”

“Yeah, I know,” the laugh you give when you respond makes Penguin finally look back to you, he’s almost shocked to see the blush on your face as you slip your hand into his and lace your fingers together, “I would’ve said yes, if you asked.”

“…yeah?”

Nodding, you let Penguin pull you closer to himself, slipping his other arm around your shoulders in a hug that you return. He’s honestly glad to hear that you’d agree to a date with him, finally deciding to ask you today.

“So…will you go out with me tomorrow? Before we leave the island.”

“I’d like nothing more, Penguin.”

“And,” he takes a breath and sets his forehead against your own, giving you a better look at his pretty blue eyes and the blush across his own face while you smile, “Can I kiss you…for real this time?”

You giggle a but and nod, wrapping your arms around his shoulders.

“To your heart’s content.”

You’ll probably have to talk about things more later, but the grin Penguin gives you before properly kissing you makes you forget about anything else you wanted to say.

At least until Law comes looking for you and has to break you apart before you two take things too far, deciding that he’s not going to be pairing you up for tasks again anytime soon. You and Penguin making out isn’t what he meant by taking it easy.

[hoe4sports]

“My heart recognized you before my mind did”

Caroline Graham Hansen x reader

A/N: No triggers. Rewritten 31st of May. You are a playing assistant coach. Basically a player with more knowledge.

The sun was blaring in the Spanish sky which caused your sweat to pour. It was particularly hot because you weee busy placing the gear you had planned to use this session for the attackers. It looked like something close to the world championship of materials. It devastatingly hot as the Spanish sun was going towards record breaking heat. The attackers came out, all of them looking as ready as ever. You had already analysed them which meant that you knew each of their weaknesses. “Fridolina, Salma and Claudia; group up to the left.  Caroline, Mariona and Bruna; group up to the right.” You ordered, and the girls split up eager to see what you had planned for today. “We are doing drills, left to right, up towards east, strike three times, across the field and return. 1-2-3, let’s go!” You yelled as the girls got into action. Caroline caused you to take special notice of her. She was taller than you, and you had read about her. You went to talent camp together as teens. You always thought that she was into girls, but she was very private. Even back then! Nonetheless, she was stunning. Her hands were large, and her rarely shown smile was contagious. 

“Alright girls, I want you to group up.” You announced after 15 mins of intensive practice. The girls fell to the grass pacing, trying to catch their breath. “Now, this feeling is what we will feel on the pitch during the last 10 minutes. We are gonna push through it. Watch me, and copy it until I call quits.” You ordered as you did a series of cordinating moves as a ran between poles and over blocks. When you finished the round, you pulled my t shirt off your tanned skin as it was once again, recording breakingly hot. Everyone started doing the exercise, and you started looking at Fridolina while making notes of what she needed support on. You turned around and catches Caroline glancing at you. “Caroline? Are there questions? Are you okay?” You said as the tall girl shook her head and started doing the exercise. You shook yournhead, and started taking notes once again. 

Later that day, you spotted her staring at you. In the cafeteria, during the pre-match meeting and during the gym session. You decided that you were over it when you and Ingrid was walking to her car, and you catched her stare again. “What’s her deal?” You asked Ingrid, and she shrugged. “I’m not too sure, she isn’t normally this awkward. “ she suggested and you brushed it off as we got into Ingrid’s car.

Over the next months, this weird thing with Caroline kept happening. You would notice her staring, but whenever you talked to her she would get all stuttery. As she was getting weirded, me and the other girls were getting closer. You were also marking my spot as a playing assistant trainer when Jonathan on multiple occasions had me be a stand in during practice. This caused you to develop a close knitted relationship to quite a few of the girls, but Ingrid, Mapi, Alexia and Lucy were of the closest. Lucy would often flirt with me, and you thought it was hilarious. Over the next 6 months, we grew closer. Like sisters, she would tease you. and you would kick her ass in practice.

After a very particularly hard practice, you were clearing the pitch for equipment as the girls had already headed home for the day. You had turned the music on full and you were listening to “Typisk norsk å være god». It was blasting out on full volume and you felt like you were having the time of your life. It was friday, and you were feeling ready for Lucy’s birthday weekend shenanigans.

“Uhm, listen, Y/F/N-“ a female voice begun but was quickly shut down by your shrieks of horror as your heart went from 50 to 180 in the span of 1 second. “GRAHAM, you scared me!” You yelled as the tall brunette was walking awkwardly towards you, almost resembling a baby giraffe.  The girl was rubbing her neck while staring into the grass. “I just, ehm, regarding, you know-“ she stuttered. “Oh my, whenever you are ready” I stated as an ironically looked at my sports watch. “Never mind” the brunette stuttered as she was turning her tall frame and walked towards the warderobe. You could see the girls staring from the tunnel, and you knew that they had put her up to this.

You sighted as you felt forced to try to catch up to her, considering your 38 cm height difference. “Caroline, wait up.” You cooed at her as you were shortening the distance by the second. You catched her as she entered the now empty team warderobe. She sat down underneath her cubby with her name and face printed on the wall with her hands rubbing her knees. You could tell that she was nervous, that made you feel flattered. “Let’s try again shall we?” You said as you sat down on the physio bench in the middle of the room, but still in front of her. She still looked down with her serious face. She always has a serious face, that’s her thing. Stone cold, hard working and dedicated. You dangled your feet on the physio bench as you pointed towards her picture on the wall. “You see that girl?” You started, as she shot a quick gaze towards where you were pointing. “I think she is hard working, dedicated, confident and very passionate.” You stated while staring at her picture in awe as a you smiled lovingly. “Now, what seems to be the issue for this hard working girl?” You repeated. “Strugglig with your right to left transitions?” You suggested. “What, no!” She stated, knowing that you knew that her transitions were always perfect.

“I just-listen Y/F/N. I’m not very good with talking to new people. But I was trying to remember where I have seen you before, because I’m confident that I have seen you but I can’t seem to-“ she said as her speech was picking up the pace. “Statoil talentleir” you smiled as you let out a small laugh. “I remember, who could ever forget those a girl with eyes like the sea during the biggest of storms?” You smiled, and she looked down again as she blushed. You could see that she was hiding a grin, and you smiled again looking back on the memory. “It was around 2012, you were 17. I was around 13. You had your stilly little hairband across your forehead and I pulled it. It smacked your forehead and you had a bright purple spot for the whole camp.” You stated as a let out a chuckle.

The thing was, that you were younger than her. She was 1995, and you were 1999. That didn’t stop you though, as you liked my women older. “Are you going to Lucy’s birthday dinner tonight?” You asked to break the silence as you realised that we were running out of time and you had no intention of missing out on a chance to party. “I’m not sure..” Caroline shyly stated, and you stood up. “Well.” You said as a reached your hand out. “I want you to come, Caz” you said as your new nickname for the tall framed girl slipped. She smiled softly “as you please, coach” she chuckled as her smile lit up the room. 

[lantanasmuttyfanfics]

Hai!! Can you do a dexven fic where Raven spot Dexter kissing Cupid on the chicks ( perharps smutty? Between dexven)

First no hate to Cupid. Not here to villainize her or throw hate at her this is just for the fic purpose

Anyway I’m a ride or die Dexven shipper and while I appreciate dex/cupid shipper Dexven is the one for meee

Hope you enjoyed and have a great dayy!!

—————————

Raven didn’t know what to expect, but it wasn’t this. Briar had organized a party for some occasion she couldn’t remember and to say it was… intense would be an understatement.

Streamers and banners lined the walls, two lines of tables filled to the brim with food and drinks, she’d even managed to get a disco ball.

“Come on Raven! We’ll be old hags by the time you get moving.” Raven listened to Apple as she pulled her further and further in the hall, leading her to Grimm knows where.

In truth she didn’t really want to be there, she had already had a full booked weekend and a party on a Monday night was not something on her bingo card.

But after all her friends urged her, saying it wouldn’t be the same without her, she’d obliged and now here she was getting dragged by Apple.

“Raven!” The two girls turned to look at Darling who was speed walking to them. They slowed down and walked in pace with a slightly panting Darling.

“Everything ok?”

“Hmm? Oh yeah Dexter asked me to tell you that he was looking for you.”

“And he couldn’t tell her himself because…?

“Oh it was in case he couldn’t find her.”

Raven felt her heart flutter a little at the mention of the one prince who made her heart swoon. Maybe it was because he was one of the only people who didn’t treat her like a monster when he first saw her or-.

“Last I know he was by the photo booth.” Raven blinked as she realized she’d been lost in thought. Heat of embarrassment made its way to her cheeks as she nodded at Darling.

“Thank you.”

She quickly walked off, a small pep in her step as she looked around. Hoping to catch a glimpse of his dark hair or blue eyes, eyes that seemed to mesmerize her.

But as she made it to the photo booth, Dexter was knower to be seen. In fact the only people near were a group of fan girls and Daring by a table.

Raven internally sighed as she made her way over. She’d figure that his brother would have seen him if he was here earlier.

“Daring?”

“-and then I unleashed my sword at the dragon-.”

“Daring.”

“-fire blasted everywhere and… oh hi Raven, what are you doing here.”

Raven gritted her teeth, she really didn’t have the patience today and Daring was testing to its limits. “Just wondering where Dexter is.”

Daring paused for a second, turning his attention to her and behind her head searching for his brother. “Sorry but I haven’t seen him.”

She quietly thanked him and walked off in further search.

—

Dexter pushed through heaps of dancing bodies as he searched for Raven. Hoping to catch a glimpse of her violet eyes or ebony hair.

Tonight was the night, he’d decided, that he would finally confess to Raven his feelings for her. It seemed the right time after spending the last few weeks together constantly.

Suddenly as he passed by the photo booth he turned his head as he thought her heard her voice. Sure enough there he found Raven talking to… to Daring.

Why did she always have to be talking to Daring? Whenever he seeked her out, surprise surprise guess who is there making her smile. Daring.

He felt agitation rise within him, felt a bitter sort of jealousy as she walked closer to his brother.

Without an other word he spun on his heel, walking straight to an open table without looking in front of him.

He heard a feminine shriek as he slammed straight into a girl. “Oh Grimm I’m so sorry- Cupid? Here let me help you up.” Cupid giggled as he offered his hand, dusting her dress off.

“It’s ok. Accident happen. Anyway why do you look so glum? Not enjoying the party?” She lead them to the table, sitting next to him on the couch.

“No… it’s just- never mind. How’s your night going Cupid.” The girl smiled, her eyes lighting up as she scooted closer her heart bursting.

“Oh it’s going alright. Although… I really want to dance.” She fluttered her lashes at Dexter hoping that the message came across loud and clear.

Sometimes boys were slow.

“Then would you care to dance?” Cupid was jumping up before he could finish his sentence, pulling him up with her and practically running to the dance floor.

Just then a slow, gentle love song from some famous singer came on. Cupid rested her cheek on Dexters shoulder, a content smile on her face.

They swayed in the music for what felt like forever for her. The atmosphere screamed romantic and the buzz inside her yelled at her to test the waters.

So Cupid lifted her head, gazing directly to a seemingly distracted Dexter as she rose to the tiptoes. She’d kiss him and see where things went from there.

Dexters eyes widened as he saw Cupid reaching up, her lips slightly puckered and her eyes fluttering closed. He didn’t want to kiss her, so in his panic he turned his head.

He didn’t want to embarrass the poor girl, clearly he was giving her mixed signals. Instead he turned his head and placed a soft kiss on her cheek.

—

Raven found Dexter pretty quickly after, it was hard to miss him when he was standing in the middle of the dance floor with Cupid, swaying to some love song.

She thought her heart couldn’t construct much more, that she couldn’t feel more jealous and remorseful as she watched them.

But then his lips met her cheek, and his kissed her.

Raven let out an unconscious gasp, her hand clutching her skirt tightly as she went to run off. Yet as she did her eyes suddenly met his own.

They stared at each other for only a second before Raven tan off, her mind dizzy and swimming with endless possibilities. Did she get it all wrong?

Did she think Dexter liked but instead she was getting mixed signals? Maybe she read into it too much. Besides they weren’t even a thing, or anything close to one.

“Raven!”

She paused in her steps, shivering as the cool air hit her bare skin. She watched as Dexter ran after her, his eyes nearly frantic.

“Wait please!”

She did. Grimm curse her she did and stayed rooted on the spot as he now stood before her, his hair softly blowing in the wind as she stared at her.

“It’s not what it looks like.”

She tilted her head, why was he even concerned with telling her this when they so clearly weren’t together.

“I don’t understand…”

“The kiss with Cupid. It’s not what it looks like.”

Dexters eyes were searching her face, no doubt for any hints of what she was feeling. Instead Raven gave him a friendly smile as she stepped forward.

“There’s nothing to explain. It’s very clear Dexter.”

“I know but-.”

“You really don’t need to. I completely understand.”

“You do! Oh thank Grimm I-.”

“We are just friends after all. So it doesn’t… matter.”

Dexter was left to gaze at where Raven once stood as she gave him a little smile and walked of.

Friends… of course they were friends.

—————————

If I had a coin for every time these two unintentionally friend zoned one an other I’d be riiicchhh

Anyway got science exams starting Monday and safe to say is that I’m going to kms because tf do you mean I already have exams

Hope you enjoyed and have a great dayy!!

[ithinkabouttzu]

Hey! I really enjoy your Band of Brothers and The Pacific writings so much! I wanted to ask if you could write something on Burgin (he’s my absolute fav and I feel he is greatly underrated)!!! I wanted to request something as well about him returning back home to Texas after the war and trying to impress a girl from his hometown that he comes across someday (whom he knew of before he left to go to the war but never really spoke to he before). She’s a bit hard to impress and is rather introverted but nothing I don’t think Burgin can’t handle haha. Thanks so much 💖

Cinnamon and Chocolate

Word count: 6.2k

Warnings: Swearing, kissing, mentions of war, mentions of burn injuries, jealousy, and drinking.

a/n: Hey friend, I hope you enjoy!! This is probably the longest thing i’ve wrote in a while, so please excuse any mistakes!! I honestly got so carried up with this oneshot lol but I love it so much! Hope you all enjoy!! (Also, please note that there are a lot of historical inaccuracies and this story is in no way disrespect to any real life veterans, this one-shot is solely based off the character in the show! Everything else is fictional! :))

(R.v. Burgin x fem reader)

Today was arguably the calmest day he’s had in years. Just him, and his best friend from back home, Chris, on the back of his pickup truck drinking two cold Coca-Colas. (which he had dearly missed the taste of.) They were downtown on a nice Saturday afternoon enjoying the nice weather. It was the most relaxed he’s felt in a while, the nice breeze patting his back made him feel at peace. A feeling he deserved after a long time from home, there weren’t any bombs blasting behind him, or heavy gunfire going off right beside his ear, instead it was quiet. He was glad to be back home.

It was only his second day back in Texas and there she was. She and a couple of her friends were walking out of a clothing store when his eyes caught a glimpse of hers. She was laughing and giggling about something that R.V. couldn’t quite catch, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of her even if he wanted to. He could have sworn she was an angel.

The sunlight was bouncing off of her skin during midday, making her bright and bubbly laughter feel radiant. It’s like he could see no one else but her, or at least until he felt his friend, Chris elbow his side hard, it was the kind of force only a friend of many years could give him.

“Like whatcha’ see, pal?” Chris said with a slight smirk that R.V. could hear in his voice. “Oh shut up. I’ve just never seen her around before.” R.V. remarked looking back at Chris. He had to know more about this girl. “Oh R.V., you’ve missed a lot while you’ve been gone”, Christopher laughed, his voice honing in on R.V. as if he told an inside joke that Burgin had no clue of. “What’s that supposed to mean?” R.V. turned back to his friend to give him a questioning glance before taking a big sip of his Coca-Cola. “Man, that’s y/n, we all went to school together?” Chris chirped enthusiastically as if he’d been waiting for Burgin to ask.

A smile now appeared on his face, one that he hadn’t shown in a while. He started to see the resemblance now, remembering your sweet smile from years ago. “She’s really grown into her looks, hasn’t she?” Chris said happily, still staring at you. R.V. rolled his eyes in response. Sure you had grown up, if that’s what Chris meant. All three of you had, but to Burgin, you hadn’t changed a bit.

He had always thought of you as beautiful, even when you yelled at him in front of the whole first grade after putting a small toad that he had found in the woods, in the classroom's dollhouse during recess. He knew how reserved and quiet you were, and to get such a heated reaction from you.. Well he was shocked, but he also felt a new feeling that he couldn’t quite grasp, one that made his heart race whenever you were near. “Do you know what she’s up to these days?” He asked Chris and quickly scolded himself for not recognizing you at first. In his defense, he had really forgotten everyone from home other than his family and Chris after a while.

Chris was an Anchor-Clanker during the war, one hell of a sailor before coming back home. It seemed like Chris had found adjusting back to civilian lifestyle very easy. It's something that R.V. couldn’t quite agree with. He knew that it would take time of course, but coming back home has been like a whole new world for him, very different from the lifestyle he’s had for these past few years.

Chris took a swig of his cola as if it were beer before replying. “I think she still lives with her ma and pa, she left to Houston to become a Gray Lady a little after you left for basic. Hell, I think she came back home only a week ago.” R.V. thought to himself after what Chris had said. Only a couple days back home, just like him.

He studied her face as she walked down the street with her friends, noticing how she used her hands exaggeratedly to explain something to the other girls with her. It was only a matter of time until she got swept up by some other soldier coming back home, or at least that’s what he thought. He didn’t realize how much he felt the void of female presence until he saw you. His heart fluttered when you glanced his way, your smile sent him butterflies all over his body. This was his chance to make a move before it was too late. He couldn’t think about anything else other than getting closer to you.

Before he could announce to Chris what he was going to do, his body was already off of the truck, setting his cola aside and walking across the street towards you and your friends, not taking the time to wait until the cars near the crosswalk were gone. It’s like his body worked faster than his mind, like he was doing only what felt right in the moment. He wasn’t exactly sure what he was going to say or do when he got to you, but he couldn’t pass up the chance to talk to you either way.

“Where are you going?!” He could hear Chris in the background, but he didn’t have time to answer. His heart was racing, and his pulse was getting quicker with each step closer towards you. A smile appeared on his face once he made it to you and your friends, and with a long breath and a questioning stare from the girls you had with you, he finally spoke up. “Can I ask you a question?” He felt nervous waiting for your response. The silence was almost deafening. All of your friends looked at you waiting for a reply. “Yes, R.V, it is, right?” You gave him a response that he was hoping for, your sweet voice filling his ears making his cheeks a small shade of red.

He felt even more nervous being this close to you, now he had gotten to see all of the little features on your face that he couldn’t while he was on the truck. He was too focused looking at you to think of anything else, a common reoccurrence. “I,-“ He paused, thinking about what he should say, before coming to a conclusion. “How are you so beautiful?” He said breathlessly. He felt embarrassment almost immediately. He put his hand over his mouth in regret and moved his hand down to his chin smoothly to make him look in shock. His inside thoughts had finally come out and spoke for themself. Before he knew it, there was an eruption of laughter between you and your friends. He took his hand and rubbed behind his neck in an attempt to cover his embarrassment. What came over him suddenly to make him say that? “That was a good one, R.V.!” You said with a giggle.

If making a fool out of himself made you smile, then he was more than happy to be foolish. He laughed along with you very awkwardly in an attempt to seem unfazed, like it was a joke in the first place. “I’ll see you around” You smiled softly before heading off with your friends, leaving him. He waved you a goodbye, one that you couldn’t see because your back facing him, before walking back to Chris. Who was now sitting at the end of the truck and dangling his feet off of the end, looking amused.

When R.V. made it to the truck, Chris started clapping. “I think you’re a real ace at talking to broads, pal!” Chris started breaking out into laughter before Burgin could admit to his defeat. “It’s okay, I’ll find a chance to talk to her again. Alone hopefully.” He said to Chris with confidence, although his inner feelings were quite different. He grabbed his cola and scooted himself back onto the truck so he was sitting next to Chris. He huffed in disappointment and slumped down slightly, drinking the last bit of his cola. “You’ll get ‘em next time” Chris replied a little more seriously after seeing a somber look take over R.V’s face. “Yeah, next time for sure.”

2 weeks later

“Are you ready, boys?!” R.V. heard his mother shout from downstairs, still waiting for R.V. and his father. The urgency in her voice was making him button up his coat even faster than his previous speed.

Of course his father’s workplace would have their huge yearly party right around the time that he came back home, and to be completely honest, he was dreading it. The empty conversations with little to no life in them, the awkward stares after being gone for so long, and it didn’t help that his parents were making him wear his dress blues, although it was a social cocktail party with high formality, he was worried he would stick out like a sore thumb.

He could already see his future. Having to answer questions upon questions from women and men, overwhelming him to find the right and appropriate answers. He let out a big sigh, calming his brain for the events ahead. The thought alone overwhelmed him. He already wanted this party to be over before it had even begun.

Just a slip on of his white gloves and he was done getting ready. He couldn’t delay going downstairs any longer. R.V’s father opened his door slowly, right on cue as if he somehow felt R.V.’s hesitance. “Are ya’ ready, son?” R.V. 's dad said as peered through the door. He was in his Sunday best, with a black suit and tie of course. “Yeah, I'm ready.” R.V. replied with a shake of his head. His father could tell his nervousness just by the expression on R.V.’s face. “You got this son, it’ll be nothing” His father replied, giving him a sweet smile and a pat on the back that gave him somewhat of a relief. They both walked out of his room and started down the steps. “Hey, you might even find someone there.” He said going down the steps quicker than R.V. did, putting him behind his father. He thought about what his dad said for a second, stopping right at the last step. What if you happened to be there by some chance?

“You look great, honey. I’m so proud.” His mother said, causing him to break out of his thoughts. Both his ma and pa were waiting for him by the door so that they could be on their way to the party. “Thanks ma, glad to be back.” He replied with a close lipped smile as he got stepped down from the last step. His mother hugged him tightly before he could say anything else. He quickly accepted the hug and hugged her back softly.

“You guys ready?” His pa said, opening the front door of their home. He unwrapped his arm from her before walking out of the door, his mother following quickly after with his father. It was going to be one interesting night for the Burgins indeed.

~~~

When they arrived he could see the gate wide open for its guests, revealing the house to his eyes where he could finally see how big it was. He didn’t think his father had that many co-workers. It was a great large venue in the middle of nowhere. Cars were parked out front in no specific order, in the grass or what small areas of gravel they could find.

The party was hosted at the old vineyard house that everyone in town loved because of its extravagant beauty. It was now used as some sort of banquet hall for the town's use. The sun was setting making the view look picturesque. Some people were outside, with the finest dresses and long glasses of champagne in their hands. Probably some sort of small talk about the weather, or about the party, And some were inside, most likely doing the same exact thing.

Their car was finally parked as they walked closer towards the house, the closer he got to the building, he could tell how big it really was. As they had finally made it onto the porch, He heard a somewhat familiar voice call out to him, “Romus, oh how nice you look! I’m glad to see you here!” He turned his head to his left to see who the commenter was. He smiled when he saw who it was. One of his old school teachers from primary school. If he had to pick, she would have been his favorite teacher out of all the years he’d ever learned. He shook his head to himself slightly at the use of his first name, no one ever really called him that except for his mother when she was mad at him, but he didn’t pay much mind to it. It was nice to see someone familiar to him in this unknown place.

“It’s nice to see you, Miss. How have you been?” he replied softly as she came closer to him. He could tell she had aged from the last time he had seen her, but she still kept her sweet smile that he remembered from when he was a little boy. It seemed as if R.V. hadn’t changed that much to her either, “You’re still sweet as apple pie! It is surely nice to see you!” She replied in her nice southern accent. He could smell a strong scent of liquor coming from her mouth as she got closer.

“It’s nice seeing you too ma’am” He chuckled slightly to himself when he saw the small amount of drink she had left in her cocktail. It was more than obvious she had gotten a little too happy at the bar before the party barely even started. "Now you have yourself a time, alright?” She said, loudly walking back to her friends and not giving him a chance to reply.

When he looked around for his parents, he could see that they had already left him and made their way inside of the big ballroom. It looked like he would have to find his way around here tonight alone. As he walked into the venue he looked around attentively, to look for his parents, (who were most likely swept away by other coworkers and friends), but to also take in the extravagance of the building first hand.

Old floral wallpapers adorned the wall, and there were big windows all around the huge room that overlooked the vineyard. He could tell that the place had been renovated heavily, as it once was a house and now had become one big ballroom. The ceiling stood high with multiple big crystal chandeliers that lit up the space. It was open and spacious for all, with the room mainly used for dancing and talking. There were poseur tables and chairs on the sides of the floor, where people ate and drank whatever the party had to offer. The catering service had a little station in the corner of the grand room that had canapes of all sorts. And there was no way he could have missed the built-in bar with stored glassware and drinks of all kinds.

R.V. could have imagined that this same room was used for similar parties years ago under different circumstances. Maybe large debutante balls that had groups playing loud classical music instead of the sweet jazz they had tonight, or maybe even a mysterious masquerade ball that had unique masks with people that talked very differently then what they do now. As his thoughts swarmed, he wasted no time taking himself to the bar.

As the time went by, the events of the party were what R.V. expected. Overwhelming. Boring. Small talk with people he barely remembered or didn’t even know, was the norm at this event for him. He didn’t expect anything different tonight. He found himself back at the bar table over and over again, hoping that there would be a new conversation each time he wandered back over there. Yet, after an hour and a half of walking around in circles and bar visits, just a small buzz later, he figured he had met just about everyone in the whole damn building.

He found himself getting more bored by the minute. That is, until his favorite song, “Pennsylvania 6-5000” Started to erupt through the room played by the lovely band.

He got up almost immediately, as if there was some magnetic force pulling him to the dance floor. Maybe it was the same force that pulled him to you on that sunny day two weeks ago.

As R.V. descended to the dance floor, he quickly noticed a familiar figure in a striking red dress across the room. His heart started to pick up speed almost immediately and he could feel his stomach jump with excitement. All he could see in that moment was you as your gaze met him in the crowd. He didn’t expect to see you here, but it changed his night almost instantaneously. You were by yourself, watching the groups of dancers in joy and swaying your body along softly with the music. He felt such a relief knowing that you were here. This was his chance to talk to you formally one-on-one and apologize for what had happened two weeks ago.

The feeling in his chest started to quicken much more when he took in detail of your dress’s design, and he would be lying if he said that looking at you in such a magnificent dress didn’t leave him a little breathless. Like the previous encounter between you two before, he didn’t waste his time making his way towards you. That is until R.V. saw him.

Him as in the guy who brought you a glass of lemonade with your coat draped over his arm, the guy who whispered something in your ear that made you giggle. He stopped his way to you abruptly. Making him accidentally displace a young couple who was dancing with quick speed. “Watch it, pal!” He heard the guy he bumped into say sharply. R.V. had heard him, but everything had started to sound distant. He looked over at you with his jaw clenched in an attempt to hide his emotions, but his eyes told no lie.

The look he gave to you was forlorn. It all made sense to him now, when you had been short with him that day. It was all because you had someone else the entire time. That feeling in his chest turned from good to sour. He needed to get away for a second, the feeling of fresh air was now becoming a need for him.

He quickly moved his way off of the dance floor and charged toward the big entry doors. Once he felt the outside air hit his face he felt relieved. R.V. hadn’t realized how much you really meant to him until he saw you swept away by someone else. He looked around and finally settled for a seat on the outside steps.

It was now dark out, and no one was outside at this point. Just him, the parked cars, and the occasional chirp of a bird. Other than that he was completely alone with his thoughts. He had made his mind up then and there. He would excuse himself from the party with a “sick stomach” and just walk home. That seemed like the best thing to do at the moment.

He wasn’t up for dancing, getting drunk at the bar, or having to act like he cared about any of the stupid stuff this party provided. He sat up from the stairs and thought about leaving without saying a word for a second. Sure his parents would worry, but if anything he could handle himself. He walked down the stairs and planted his feet on the gravel. Other thoughts rushed through his head too. They were thoughts of you, like how he felt when he heard your sweet laugh after so long, or that one time in junior high when you gave him the last answer on a science test he hadn’t studied for, even with the chance that you would have gotten in trouble too. The sound of your voice whenever you spoke, and those gentle eyes of yours…

He was now contemplating back and forth. All of these thoughts of you suddenly came rushing through his head and swamped him with the realization that he can’t let you go. His mind had made a new decision now. Instead of going home, he was going to go back inside and just try to talk to you.

R.V. took a nice long breath, making sure to steady himself before walking back into the party. The laughter and music from inside started to get closer as he walked up the small stairs to the porch and took a couple big steps towards the door. But before he could make it inside, someone bumped into him hard, making him take a step back.

He looked up to quickly realize it was you. Time seemed to stand still at that moment. It was now silent. His eyes met yours once again. Locking and not letting go. No words were spoken, just the mutual look at one another. You stared at him for what felt like an eternity. Neither of you had begun to speak or move. It’s like everything stopped for a second. R.V. 's brain started to short circuit after staring into your eyes for so long. He didn’t want to break eye contact and waited for the right time to speak up, but before he even opened his mouth, you beat him to it.

“Hey, R.V.” You sounded almost surprised to see him, especially after the way he vanished moments ago. It was obvious, you could tell he was nervous. He didn’t reply, but was silent. Maybe it was because he was waiting for you to say something else, or he just couldn’t find the right words to say. You continued before giving him a chance to speak, just as he figured out what to say. “I saw that you were walking out and just wanted to tell you that you looked nice, I also want to apologize if I hurt your feelings the last time we spoke, I meant no harm.”

He looked at you with a deep guise on his face when you apologized. He stared at you while you said it. He found it hard to read the look on your face. He spoke up, “Please don’t apologize, I didn’t mean to trouble you and your friends, but please know that I did mean what I said.” He paused before taking a leap of faith. “You’re beautiful, y/n” He could see a dark crimson creep up on your face lightly. He didn’t feel the need to take back his words like last time. His compliment to you wasn’t forced or awkward, it was soft and warm, like a hug.

“Thank you, really” You said, breaking out into a small giggle, one that he adored most. He could feel the awkward tension ease after your laughter. He now felt the time was right to take yet another leap of faith tonight. “It’s alright if you don’t want to, knowin’ you have a date and all, but would you like to dance with me?” He felt his heart pound in his chest, almost worried it would break free out of his sweaty dress blues.

He hoped that you couldn’t hear the sound of his heart beating so quickly, he didn’t want you to feel his nervousness. “I would love to.” you looked up at him with a warm smile, one that made him feel at ease. His heart slowly pumped back to its original, calmer pace.

“Just a warning though, I'm not the best dancer.” You winced, thinking of the countless times you’ve danced before. He laughed at your expression before replying, “I'm not the best dancer either.” He could remember the first time he had ever danced with a girl. He tripped over his shoe strings and felt embarrassed the entire night.

He put his left hand out as an offering, which you gladly accepted. You and him stepped back into the big room hand-in-hand. He took the lead in front of you, making way towards the dance floor. He felt butterflies in his stomach when he realized how soft your hand was, so delicate and smooth. He felt excitement take over him when he realized that you and him were finally going to share this moment together.

You and him quickly made it onto the dance floor just in time for the band to start playing a tune that R.V. recognized almost immediately, the classic, “Undecided” by Chick Webb and Ella Fitzgerald. Now this is a song he could definitely dance to.

It seemed as if R.V. couldn’t hold back his feet any longer. He took you by the hand and spun you out, only for you to dance back to him in a twist, in tune with the lively beat of the music. Look at that! You were a natural! Your footwork mixed with his almost perfectly, like cinnamon and chocolate, while you and him danced around the room. A smile erupted from his face as he watched the nervousness melt off of your body. You moved your body around at a quick pace, looking back up at him with a smile. If he wasn’t in such a groove, he probably would have tripped over his feet and made a fool of himself. He watched you dance attentively, while also still making sure to keep up with you. If only Chris had been here to watch all of this.

—

R.V. clapped with you as the music stopped. It was the third song you and him danced to of the night. With all of the excess movement you and him both felt tired. Good thing the band was taking a break right when the third song ended. “You were being humble when you commented on your dancing earlier” R.V. said with a laugh.

It was true that you could swing like no other. He was mesmerized watching you move. He felt a knot in his stomach when he realized how close he was to you the entire time that you and him danced. “I could say the same for you! You’re one good dancer” You exchanged a giggle in return.

Both of you moved off of the dance floor and found a poseur table with two barstools, a perfect seat for you two after a long time of dancing. “I’ll go get us something to drink, want anything?” He said to you as you placed a seat on one of the barstools. He felt content being the one to offer you a drink instead of someone else. “Just a Coke please!” You replied to his question softly.

He made his way to the bar, and upon his arrival asked for two Colas, which was a shock to the bartender considering that he had drank only beers up until now. “Hiya son! Having fun? I saw you dancing with a pretty gal!” R.V.’s father popped up behind him, patting his shoulder. He chuckled at what his father said. “Pretty indeed. Where’s ma?” R.V. replied back as the bartender handed him two cold sodas.

“Oh you know her, talking to some friends of hers. I just wanted to check up on you and see how you were doing. Me and your mother might leave soon, we’ve had one heck of a night” His father said with a smile. R.V. smiled too. He could already see his mom 50 feet away talking with some of the other moms there, she always enjoyed chirping to her friends, even if it was about nothing at all. “What’s her name?” His pa said, not really giving R.V. a chance to say anything else, even though he probably wouldn’t have said much at all. “Y/n”, As R.V. said that, he looked towards you. You were looking around the room and swinging your legs on the stool. He thought you looked adorable. “She looks like a nice girl. You be good to her.” “I will” R.V. replied to his father, still holding the two sodas in his hand. “See ya, pa!” R.V. got up from his seat and progressed towards you carefully. Making sure not to drop your drink or his.

Once he got to the table he handed you your drink before sitting on the other stool. You and him sipped your drinks in silence for a moment. The band had finally picked back up, and as expected, more couples piled onto the dancefloor. It was later into the night so the band had slowed to more softer, slow paced music compared to before, but it was still more than enjoyable. “Where is he? Your date?” R.V. asked you, taking his straw and swirling it around his drink.

You looked up at him before speaking. “Oh, Arthur? I wasn’t really his date” You shook your head in explanation. “We’re friends. Him and I met during the war. He had no one else to bring and he thought I could use a change of scenery.” You explained to him. It sort of made sense to R.V. now. He waited to say something until he was sure she was finished talking. “He’s already spoken for. As you can see over there” You pointed your finger to Arthur. Who was at the moment slow dancing with a pretty blonde on his chest. “He needed some extra encouragement.” You laughed, waving at Arthur, who also gave a wave back. Ohhh. R.V. finally understood now, just friends. She was here to help him talk to the girl he was dancing with now. He scolded himself for thinking otherwise earlier, even though they seemed pretty exclusive moments before.

“Oh, that’s real’ nice of you. R.V. said, taking a big sip of his drink, feeling the carbonation sizzle down his throat. “Is that why you left earlier?” You said, looking at him with an accusatory smirk. He had now been caught. R.V. felt like you could read right through him. He didn’t have to explain himself, because you already knew. “No way.” He said sarcastically, still holding a playful manner in hopes of sparking up a conversation full of banter between you two. The night had started slow, but became swift in the end. You and him, dancing, talking and laughing together, it felt perfect.

The moment felt right, so you spoke up. “R.V., do you maybe want to walk me home? It’s getting awful late and I would love to talk with you more.” You looked at him waiting for an answer. “Of course.” He replied with a toothy grin. You and him both finished your drinks and said goodbyes to the company that brought you and him here. “Pa, I’m walking my gal home. I’ll see you at the house” R.V. said to his Father who was most likely about to leave himself. “Alright, kiddo. You two be safe!”

His father smiled at you and R.V. before going back to his conversation with R.V.’s mother. He took your hand, making you feel butterflies when he did, and led you out of the big ballroom with him.

It was quiet outside other than the sound of crickets chirping and cars buzzing as they left the huge building. “My house isn’t far. I live practically next door.” You said walking down the steps with him. You and R.V. were now side by side, with your arm wrapped around his. “Really? I bet you got a pretty view from your place then.” R.V replied back with a chuckle. He could only imagine how the nice pastures out here looked from your home. “Well not really my house, it’s my parents. I used to come out here when I was a little girl, walk my way through the fields to the abandoned vineyard. I danced on the creaky wooden floors and dreamed of having a party here, in real life.” He could imagine, younger you dancing lively in the big building, behind you and him. “Well you got your dream tonight, didn’t you?” He turned his head to you to give you a big grin. You and him had now made it out of the gravel area and towards the fields, away from the old road. “I did. Thank you for having such a fun time with me.” You spoke softly. R.V. could hear the sleepiness in your voice. He would be lying if he said he didn’t feel a little tired himself. Before he knew it your head was tilted on his shoulder, taking refuge in the comforting warmth. It was quiet for a moment. Not an awkward silence, but a calm one. Neither of you felt the need to talk, just listening to the breath of one another was just as fine. “How’d you meet Arthur?” R.V. was the first one to break the silence, the random question had suddenly popped up into his head and made him wonder. “I met him at the hospital I volunteered at. He was injured badly during Pearl Harbor.” You continued, “ He was hospitalized for months and months, First at the Naval Hospital in Hawaii, and then sent to Houston. He had severe burns all over his body. When I first volunteered, I didn’t know what I was doing half the time, I was overwhelmed to say the least. He was always nice to me, like a big brother. He had already been there for so long, it seemed like he knew more than I did.” You exhaled when you finished. R.V. cleared his throat before speaking. “Oh…” R.V. trailed off, “that must have been real hard for him.” He grimaced to himself when he thought of how bad some of the burns must have been. He had witnessed it before, with some of his friends, he wouldn’t wish that type of pain on anyone. “It was. But he made it out alright after all. And now he’s dancing with a girl he could only dream of.” The way you said it, in such a positive way, gave him hope. Hope for lots of new beginnings, a fresh start. That the things he saw or did, couldn’t define him anymore. He wasn’t in the Pacific. He was home, with you, and he sensed that this was the best he had felt in forever. As you and him were talking, neither of you noticed how close your house was, finally in clear view, maybe 50 yards away. “R.V. Can I ask you a question?” You took your head off of his shoulder, only to look up at him. “How do you feel, after coming home?” R.V. thought about it for a moment. He hadn’t really had anyone ask him a question like that. He wasn’t sure what to say, so he gave a comical answer. “Better, now that I'm sleeping on a soft bed.” He said with a beam on his face. Once he gave his answer, you and him had both finally made it to your house. To R.V. It looked like a warm place. A cozy home that made you feel relaxed whenever you spent time in it. “Well, I guess this is it. Thank you for walking me home. “You said, taking him up the steps of your porch. He was now facing you with your hands holding his. R.V. didn’t want this night to end between you two. He wanted to keep talking to you. To ask you more questions, but he could tell you were already so tired, so he kept it short, “When will I be able to see you again?”

You gave him a grin that showed your teeth. “Soon, hopefully.” It was just you and him now, again facing one another in complete silence. It seemed like R.V. ran out of words, and all he could do was look at those soft lips of yours, how nice they looked… R.V. brought his hands up to you, cupping your face. He wanted to kiss you so badly, but felt hesitance. “Can I?” He said in a soft whisper. “Yes”, you replied. If he hadn’t been listening, he wouldn’t have heard you. Before you knew it, you felt his lips melt into yours slowly. He felt goosebumps as he closed the gap between you two. He wanted to savor the moment with you as best as he could. When your lips parted his, his lips moved up to your forehead, giving you a soft kiss there. The gentle gesture made you visibly blush, which made his heart beat even fast. “Goodnight.” He said, retracting his hands from your face, and placing them by his side. “Goodnight” You replied quietly, before opening the door of your home, and walking inside. When he heard the door shut fully, he started to make his way down your steps in victory. He had one hell of a night. A night he wouldn’t forget, because it was a night brought him, you.

Hope you enjoyed this again!! If you enjoyed, please like or reblog! 💗💗

[luvly-writer]

“You are my sunshine”

Part 28: In chaos, we love

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Jason Todd x Latina! Reader

Social Media Au

Warning: creepy men, domestic violence, guns, violence

Status: Finished

Author’s note: another written part, lETS GOOO

Taglist: @lorosette @milas-teapot @alecmores @addictedtothefictionalworld @izukuisbaby @graywrites5567 @unofficial-jaytodd-wife @randobeetlehouse @writing-for-the-hell-of-it

Series Masterlist:

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You could feel your chest tightening with every passing second. The panic rising little by little, suffocation you in the process. You thought the years on theraphy would have helped ease it and yet here you were, seconds away from a panic attack because of a few gun shots

Your head feels light and one gun shut more sounds and your head starts to ring. Big ass tears are running down your face and suddenly you are taken back.

A few years back:

Place: Ln residence in Puerto Rico

A young girl was in her room headphones blasting trying to drown out the sound of her fighting parent. Every day seemed like it was getting worst and she wondered when her mom would finally have enough and take them away from him…BAM! Even if she tried not to, she heard the shot and the scream that followed, he was always violent, on various occasions hitting her mom and her whenever they had escaped to her grandmas house or done something he wouldn’t particularly like, and made various threats with his guns but she never thought he would actually follow through one day. She took her phone and called her neighbor, a lovely woman that always gave her a safe space when it got bad.

“Mi niña! Escuche el tiro, están bien!?!?” Doña Santina asked full of worry

“No se doñita, yo estoy arriba, pero escuche a mi mamá gritar, llama a la policia por favor!” The girl cried out, her little heart beating a mile a second,

“No te preocupes mi princesa, mi esposo está en esas ahora, voy a llamar a tu abuelita ahora, hazme el favor y pon el teléfono a grabar por que uno nunca sabe” Doña Santina responded and hung up.

The girl put her phone on recording and placed it on her back pocket. She opened her door and rushed down the stairs. There she saw her mother in the floor, thankfully not bleeding and her father on the living room standing with the gun in his hand.

“ESO TE ENSEÑA JODIA HIJUEPUTA A CORRER A DONDE TU MAI OTRA VEZ!” Her father screamed at her mom

The girl grabbed a bat that was near and swung at him, successfully knocking to gun out of his hand.

“El hijueputa eres tú, maldito desgraciado” spat her mother out standing up and pulling the young girl towards her

“Y está malparida que se cree, te crees grande? Te crees fuertesita con el bate?” He asked, trying to intimidate her

The child just held the bat defensively towards him and glared. She prayed that the cops would be here soon.

“Debí matarte y deshacerme de ti cuando pude, jodio estorbo de mierda! LO ÚNICO QUE HAS HECHO ES ARRUINAR NUESTRAS JODIAS VIDAS!” The man yelled trying to catch the kid but the kid kept on swinging, not giving him a chance to.

Finally the cops had arrived, the red and blue lights flashing

Taking advantage that the child was distracted, the man grabbed the gun and the kid, holding her by the neck and pointed the gun at the mother who in return grabbed the bat and pointed at him. The cops bust down the door and point their guns to the man. One of them pulls the woman aside and shields her with his body

“DISPARA Y SE JODE LA NIÑIA” he screams placing the gun to the girls temple

“NO” screamed the mother, still being held by the cops, who were being careful of not agitating the man and loosing the young girls life.

The poor girl was in hysterics, every passing second it became harder for her to breathe because the man started to squeeze her by the neck, making sure to leave a mark.

It all went so quickly, a tranquilizer dart shot out from behind, successfully knocking the man out, dropping the girl who in return ran to her mother’s arms and bawled her eyes out. Both were ushered outside and lead to their family members who were waiting for them. The girl’s grandmother held them and her uncles stood in front of them as they took the son of a bitch and placed him in the cop car. The following weeks were filled with procedures and judges, who used the audio and the testimonies of both family and friends, and successfully placed her father behind bars.

BOOM BOOM BOOM

YN is snapped out of her thoughts when loud banging is heard on the door, loud banging she knew damn well was not Jason. She ran to one of the stalls and locked it, grabbing her dress and climbing on top of the toilet. She laced her hand on her mouth to muffle her cries (she didn’t even know when she started crying). And prayed that they’d leave. Unfortunately, they must have heard the ruckus and kicked the door open, searching in all the stalls till they got to hers. They kicked the door open and there she saw, three of Falcone’s men staring back at her. She knew the way that they were looking up and down at her and smirking meant nothing good. One of the grabbed her arm tightly and pull her closer to him, fucking hell she KNEW they way they were eyeing her body truly meant nothing too…

“SUÉLTAME PUÑETA” she said harshly and they just smirked at her

“Oh boss is gon’ like this one” one of the smirked and they started tugging her out of the bathroom. While they were walking back, one took her hands and tied them behind her back. They finally arrive to see the one and only Carmine Falcone speaking with Batman, Red Hood and Robin at once. Chaos had taken over the ballroom.

“Looky here boss! Look at the fine specimen we have here, and feisty too” said one of the goons proudly showing YN to Falcone. Falcone raised an amused eyebrow and began walking towards them, eyeing the girl with a predatory gaze. “We found ‘er hidden in one of the bathrooms”

The second Jason saw who was that they dragged in, his heart dropped, he felt as if it stopped beating a second time. He turned to look at Damian and Bruce, who both sported very tense shoulders.

They had been divided. Dick and Tim left to scout the area and get rid of the goons on the outside, Steph, Cass, and Duke stayed with the rest in order to not raise that much suspicion on where the Wayne’s had gone and would create a distraction for them to fight. Damian, Bruce and him had stayed at the ballroom and were in the middle of finishing his goons off when Falcone entered. He began a speech on how insulted he felt by the lack of invite and how it was time that Gotham remembered what fear tasted like again. That no one was free from it even with the Bat roaming around. And that was when they entered with her tied up. YN looked almost impecable except for her tear stained makeup and her hair that had gotten slightly messy by her trashing around. Jason could feel the rise in anger when he saw the way those men looked at his girl and he felt almost nauseous when Falcone focused his entire attention on her. The hunger and lust in his eyes was hard to ignore. Jason was about to walk towards there when he felt B place his hand on his shoulders. “Not now, Hood, we could be compromising her safety with one wrong move” he whispered and Jason backed down a little yet still stayed heavily on guard.

“My my, you have quite the looker in here. Why would anyone hide such a pretty thing like yourself?” Falcon said once he was close enough and he held your face by your chin inspecting you closely.

“Suéltame, cabron” YN hissed out glaring at him, and Falcone laughed

“An exotic catch ain’t she boss? Probably one of them immigrants too!” Said one of the goons and both Jason and Falcone glared at him

“Hush you, more respect to our prize will ya! Although,” he pulled you towards him and out of the goons hands, placing a hand on your waist and pulling you close, “you are quite feisty, do you know English, pet?” He said still inspecting you and gave you a handkerchief for you to wipe your face. Still with your hands tied, you take it and clean under your eyes. You consider moving away but the tight grip he has on your waist doesn’t falter.

Jason was seething. What could anyone do when the light of your life, the reason your heart beats, is in the hands of one of Gotham’s most dangerous men? Not only that, she was getting treated as a trophy in display, a thing. He could sense Damian raging on his side. Eyes narrowed and fist tightly closed. He heard on the comns that Dick and Tim had finished outside and were on their way to the ballroom. Not long after, both Nightwing and Red Robin bust through the window. Falcone pulled YN closer and pointed a gun to the new intruders. Seeing YN in the arms of the man made them stop dead on their tracks, they had family on the line of fire and directly on danger.

“As I was saying, before I was o so rudely interrupted, do you speak English, or will I have to teach you? Carried on Falcone and kissed her shoulder, making YN contort her face in disgust, comfort long gone. Jason had had it.

“Leave the girl alone, the issue is with us! No need to harm civilians!” Jason said, his anger making the voice changer turn his voice deeper that it normally was.

“Or what Hood? She’s not important…why should I?” Responded Falcone, with a knowing look. “What if I make a deal with you, Bats? I’ll take the girl, and you get my leave without a fight? Hmm? What d’ya think? I do need another pretty pet for my collection..”

Hearing that Damian turned alarmed to his father, “Batman, you CANT AGREE TO THAT!” he said sternly. Causing Both Tim and Dick to nod in agreement.

“No, Falcone. This ends now!”

“Hmmmm, does it? Why is the little bird so worried about a RANDOM civilian? Oh wait, this IS NO random civilian, if not the Wayne’s. We conquest! How silly of me. Well bird, how far do you think mister big bucks will go to get you back?” Falcon said with catlike grin as he squeezed YN closer. She tried to move back but his strength was overpower hers. “You know, whatever price they paid for you, I can double it plus a few nights of satisfaction, I can make you Gotham’s richest whore” he finished.

Falcone wasn’t stupid. He knew the effect she was having on Red Hood and each passing moment was more of a chance to press his buttons until he snapped. He may have not known what exactly was the connection, but there WAS a connection, and if he could only get him to bend the knee to him and turn his back on Batma-

“I. Said. Step. The. Fuck. Away. From. Her” hissed Red Hood through tight teeth and that’s when hell broke loose.

It is known that Red Hood has always been an excellent marksman, yet today, he was impeccable. Yes, he may have been using rubber bullets thanks to Bruce, but fuck if he cares! When his girl’s life is on the line, even those can be deadly. He had the three men behind Falcone on the floor in mere second and anyone who came close as well. Damian followed in his lead, trying to get closer to YN in order to free her, his patience no longer intact. Bruce, Dick and Tim made sure to fight of the rest. Finally, Damian got close enough and sliced the gun in Falcone’s hand in half, leaving him without a loaded weapon. Too busy with Damian, Falcone failed to notice Red Hood behind, until he saw his shadow and one calculated punch later he was on the floor and YN was free. A little out of lightheaded because of the tight grip Falcone had on her, YN leaned against Red Hood unintentionally, to which he cut through the restraints, picked her up bridal style, and booked it, leaving the fighting and cleaning up to Batman and the rest.

YN held unto him, and said “to the left, there are two escape rooms, one that’s probably filled with the rest and another down the hall”

When they got to the door, he let her down and Yn inserted a code she knew by heart and both entered. Jason would be damned if he left her alone again, the others could manage.

There it looked like a refreshment room, it had a few sofas, chairs and tables.

Yn paced back and forth filled with anxiety and Jason just stared at her, his back to the door.

“Ay puñeta, ay puñeta, ay puñeta, que hago ahora? Estoy sola, no se donde está nadie, perdí mi cel en el intento, no puedo llamar a Nola ni a mami ni a Jason…Jason!!!! You, Hood! You need to get back there! The Wayne’s. They are missing! You have to go and check, look for them make sure they are all safe, from Damian to Bruce to most importantly Jason, please please find them, why are you just STANDING THERE GO ON FIND THEM!!!!!” She screamed hysterically and grabbed him by his jacket.

“They are okay, specialy Jason, they are fine” he tried to reassure her but she wasn’t convinced

“No! Listen, their lives are worth million times more than mine, you should go and look for them, make sure they are safe, make sure Jason is safe please, you can leave for a moment then come back but just make sure Jason is safe!” She insisted and Jason’s heart tightened. Firstly because of her accusation that his life was worth more than hers and second because of her worry for him.

She kept on rambling, to the point where it wasn’t even understandable to him because of the speed and the fact that she was changing between Spanish and English.

He took her face in his hands and made her look at him, shutting her up for a moment.

Understanding that his helmet could be a little overwhelming after seeing her flinch a little, he took it off, going with it his gloves as well and took her face once again, “it’s fine, preciosa, ,it’s fine, they are okay, he is okay”

Hearing the term on endearment, YN looked up at him. He was only wearing his black eye mask and a spark of recognition lit up inside of her. The memory of the masquerade ball coming to mind, to be more specific, the memory of Jason with his silver mask came to mind. Her breathing started to slow down and she took his face in her hands. Finally, she whispered shakily “…Jay?”

___________________________________

<3

[love-anddeepression]

HI ECHO!!!

I’m in love with you so I’m sending in a request

Could be spicy could not be

Joel with a reader who loves using her camcorder, recording Joel making his guitars, building, christmases, parties, dinners, you name it, she loves capturing their moments together

They’re driving together in the country, on a run outside of Jackson, and she has her camera and he looks to her and just “you ever thought about using that for somethin’ a little more… intimate, peach?”

Smut. Smut in the backseat of his truck. He’s just recording how you take him, and it’s so intimate and sweet.

GOOBER HI&lt;33

so i actually don't write smut much so i decided to make this extra fluffy to compensate<33 i hope you like the ending :DD please tell me how you like it!

Three times Joel is in front of the camera and two times he's behind.

The first time he sees the camcorder recording him, he playfully shoves it out of his face and raises an exasperated eyebrow at his girl, who just smiles sweetly at him.

The second time, he finishing up with a guitar and he groans as he sees the blasted thing in his peripheral vision.

" Come on, Joel! Smile for me!" she says, laughing a little at his expression and much to his horror, he finds himself smiling widely at the camera before looking away. The sounds of delight that come from her make his lips twist again as he looks at her features that are bathed in golden sunlight.

"What?" she asks, the camera still in her hand.

He says nothing, only walks over and kisses her softly, rendering her speechless. He takes the opportunity and quickly snatched the camcorder and bolts out the door.

Later, they both laugh at the recording of his cheeky high pitched chuckle as her banshee screams echo in the background.

The third time, he's trying to make something for Ellie. And surprise, he's spectacularly failing at baking a cake.

---

His adorable huffs of annoyance make you giggle to yourself as you set the camcorder down on the counter, still recording, as you slowly approach him, caressing his shoulder first so you don't startle him, and hug him from behind as he whisks three eggs and adds them to the flour before anything else.

It's only when the camera starts beeping when she realizes she forgot is was there. By then, the two of them have made the cake and made out against the counter as well.

--

He's never been much of a dancer, before the outbreak, Tommy was the charmer, the one who loved taking girls dancing and bringing them back to his place.

Joel preferred watching. He'd always been the silent, observant older brother. Looking at every detail and aspect of everything around him. It was part of his job description as a construction worker.

That observant part of him slipped in as he shamlessly watched her dance with everyone during christmas celebrations. It's snowing, and cold, and he would be feeling miserable if it weren't for her. His darling, who found it fun to catch him off guard and record him, or who'd kiss him silly whenever she felt like it, his girl who was dancing with the girl who had become his daughter and lip syncing to whatever song was playing.

"I'm finally crazy" he thinks to himself as he goes inside the house and gets out the camcorder. But he can't help himself, he wants this moment to be preserved, so he can look at it again and remind himself why he bothered to go on.

He switches it on and begins to record.

---

This man has faced clickers, he's seen the worst humanity can offer. He's commited atrocious crimes and done much worse.

So he absolutely should not feel like getting out of the moving car and running back all the way to Jackson.

"Hon, you okay?" she asks him as he stops the vehicle near a field.

He only nods, kissing her forehead and breathing deeply as he fished into his bag to fish out her camcorder. When he finally find it, he switches it to records and sets it on the front panel so the both of them are in view.

"Joel?" she looks between him and the camera, eyebrows furrowed and lips pursed.

He breathes out.

"Baby-

"What, Joel?" she asks him again, holding his left hand.

"You know I love you right? I'v found you when I thought i might never find it again. Meeting you was how I met Ellie and now we're all a family. An unofficial family." he clears his throat, " I love you so much, darling. And I have to ask you-" he pulls someting out of his pocket. A velvet box.

"Baby, will you make our family official and marry me?"

The last thing the camcorder sees is the loud exclaim of "Yes!" and laughter before it is unceremoniously knocked from it's spot as she lunges for him and kisses him hard.

But it recorded all the sound as well. It's safe to say Ellie won't be getting that camcorder anytime soon.

[manyothermusingsofmine]

Ride or Die || Drabble

Fandom: Xmen Warnings: Stabbing injury Wordcount: 3030

Summary: Gambit and Miranda are send on a mission together so of course it goes haywire ---------------------------

It should have been an honest to god easy mission. The most simple mission of get into the weirdly haunted looking building, get the blue prints that were used to probably set up new Sentinels for obvious nefarious reasons; and get the fuck out. It should have been easy enough that sending in just Gambit and Drifting should have been fine and should have gone off without a hitch. Unfortunately it is always the missions that seem the easiest, the simplest to pull off, that have a tendency to go horribly wrong.

This one went horribly wrong when the basement that should’ve been empty was instead absolutely crawling with people who did not want Gambit and Drifting to get away with the blue prints, to which inevitably a fight broke out between the two mutants and the henchmen surrounding them. As Miranda threw another discarded chair in the basement at their opponents, trying her best to scare at least some of them off by doing her whole Poltergeist schtick, she noticed that one of them was trying to use the same chaos to their own advantage. Her blood ran cold when she actually saw what the intent was. In a split second she ran, her very quickly draw up plan being to just get in between the two men and redirect the knife that was about to be thrown Gambit's way, aimed at his spine.

Gambit was far more focused on the assailants in front of him, keeping them at a distance with his exploding cards when he heard a very distinct yelp of pain behind him. He turned on his heels, his body being the only thing catching Miranda as she stumbled backwards. Without thinking he reached around her to grab hold of the enemy wrist that was too close near her to his liking. His other free hand flew over her to deck the attacker in the face, and that combined was enough to make them let go of the knife-

Wait a minute the what.

As soon as the realization dawned upon him he swore his heart dropped, the sheer horror of it all sinking in rapidly. He shook it off, needing to find both of them a way out of this and getting her the medical attention she now needed. He quickly grabbed one of the crates that were littered around the place, charging and throwing at the enemies before doing the same to another crate and tossing that at the nearest wall to make a big enough explosion to blast a hole in the side. He picked up his friend trying to be mindful of her injury, and with long strides ran away from the building until he found a back alley they could hide away in where they wouldn't be found by their previous assailants.

"Why the hell did you do that?!"

He didn't mean to sound angry, his worry coming out a lot rougher than he intended to. He didn't even know what kind of reaction he expected out of her; maybe the same kind of light bite her words always had whenever they bantered with each other as it would be the only thing to assure him this wasn't as bad as it looked. Gambit lightly, gently, pushed her hand away as soon as it tried to reach for the handle of the blade.

"Don't touch it," his voice was softer now, as something in her panicked breathing made him aware that he had to step up and be the calm one in this situation. He couldn't expect the one with a knife sticking out of her abdomen to not freak out about the situation she was in and- damn it, they needed help; and they needed it fast. As Miranda grabbed onto his sleeve, Gambit used his free hand to activate his communication system, sending out an emergency call to Cyclops. As his mind constantly repeated the words "pick up" in a desperate plea for Scott to answer, a small sigh of relief escaped him when the call was answered.

"A distress signal? What's-"

"Ain't got time for this; I need medical back up. It's Miranda; get Shadow to the back alley south of the target location!"

"Wh-"

"Now, Scott!"And with that he disconnected the call. Gambit looked down at the hand that had a grip on his jacket's sleeve that seemed to be tightening more by the second.

"You're going to be alright," he whispered, not sure if he was trying to convince her or himself, "help's on the way."

"Remy, it hurts," his heart simply broke at the pain and panic in her voice, and Gambit shifted his position beside her so he could offer a shoulder to lean on.

"I know, I know," he reassured softly, offering his other hand for her to hold so both were occupied and wouldn't try to reach for the knife to pull it out, "just hang in there, please."

He had to do something to distract her until help arrived, surely. With both his hands occupied he couldn't exactly pull off any card tricks, so Gambit had to think of something else to keep her mind off her injury and keep her focused on him. He immediately looked her way when his mutant codename left her mouth in a pained yelp, the hand holding his jacket clinging on tighter.

"Don't leave," the scared shiver in her voice tugged on his heartstrings bad; how he wished he could just take her pain from her or heal her himself, "please."

"I ain't going anywhere, Miranda," Gambit softly reassured, "promise." She kept holding onto the sleeve of his jacket like a vice, apparently drawing some sort of comfort out of the grasp she had on the leathery fabric. Gambit didn't mind in the slightest; it wasn't like she had an actual grip on his arm underneath and Miranda seemed to focus her strength on that instead of the hand he held to stop her from reaching for the knife still embedded in her stomach.

"You must think I'm so stupid; I keep getting myself into bullshit situations like this all the fucking time," she said with a pained laugh.

"Non; practically X-men tradition at this point," Gambit said, as calm as he could will himself to be knowing that help was on the way. He thought for a moment, trying to think of something that would keep her both distracted and alert. A certain someone popped into his mind, as his red eyes flicked to Miranda, "Even on the golden team we get up to quite some nonsense. You didn't hear this from Gambit, but you should've seen Nightcrawler when he was just getting used to the teleporting."

"What, he didn't have that from the start?"

"Far as Gambit knows, non. Which made for hilarity when he tried to control it, failed, and inevitably crashed into something like a cat completely miscalculating a jump."

"Explains why the gym is littered with soft surfaces, huh?"

Gambit couldn't help but laugh at that, adjusting his pose a little as well as his grip on her hand. Thankfully her sense of humor had gotten back to her, probably due to the fact that true to his word he hadn't moved an inch out of her way. She winced slightly, green eyes flicking over to meet his; and Remy swore he could see the cogs in her head turn and debate for a moment on something she apparently wanted to say.

"What?"

Her eyes flicked away at that, meaning to point down but immediately regretting that decision as that meant looking at the weapon sticking out of her, so she rolled her eyes up to the sky instead and still seemed to debate something with herself for a moment longer.

".... I love him, Remy," her voice was barely above a whisper, soft and cushioned, "he... I-"

"I know you do, fifolet; the cards have already called your bluff on that. Besides, it don't take a gambler's eye to notice the way you light up whenever the elf’s around."

"Cards, what? ... Whatever," she muttered, her eyes averting away from him though still keeping them pointed at the sky, "I'm just.. telling you, that he and I are, well... you know."

"Together?" Gambit didn't sound surprised in the slightest, a light smile on his face as she nodded, "no surprise there either. How about I let you in on a secret, keep your mind of the whole ordeal until the cavalry gets here?” He leaned closer to her, whispering barely audible enough that she wasn’t the only one who had gone and changed the status of a friendship into a relationship; “Shadow and I are together, too.”

As he pulled away, the unimpressed look on her face made him laugh as it at least lightened the mood of the situation a little; with her just blinking once or twice while her expression remained unchanged at being told this supposed secret. “Yeah, well, duh,” she eventually responded, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes, “You and Shadow have been flirting with each other at least since I wandered onto the premise. Next time you want to let me in on a secret, tell me an actual one and not the worst openly kept secret of the entire mansion. The only surprise here is that it took you this long to make it official instead of that ‘nooo we’re just friends with benefits’ nonsense you two had going for months.”

Gambit just smirked at her, glad to see at least some of her feistiness return to her as that held promise for her healing. He looked up as he felt some kind of presence drawing near; floating far above them was Jean in one of her telepathy bubbles, Shadow just as snugly wrapped up in that same bubble with her. It took little more than a clear thought from Gambit to draw Jean's attention, the two descending in the bubble until the telepath gracefully hit the ground and discarded it.

To which Shadow immediately scrambled to get next to her friend; serious and determined as she overlooked Miranda's injury.

"Can you heal it, chère?"

"I can. I am going to need you help to get the knife out, but aside from that all I need is skin contact and some time to tell the wound to close. If we just-"

"Uhm, hello, can you two not talk like surgeons over an operation table, or, you know, like I'm not here?" Miranda protested, glaring from one to the other before she winced, "I might be in pain but can I have at least a little say in what's going to happen to me?!"

The other two looked at each other for a moment, with Gambit biting back an annoyed sigh. Miranda was so ungodly stubborn, it was frustrating. Shadow on the other hand looked at Miranda, trying to figure out exactly what she was trying to say.

"Care to explain?" she asked, while Miranda's grip on Gambit's sleeve just intensified. He could feel the pull, looking down at her hand where her knuckles turned white from the strain once more.

“… Please don’t make me let go of him while you rummage around in there,” Miranda said, “I just- I don’t like that this is even necessary, that you even need to be here to fix my dumb mistakes-“ “Hey,” Shadow replied firmly, “this is not a dumb mistake. Let me help you, okay?” Her tone and general demeanor softened a lot as Miranda nodded, with Shadow also taking a quick peek at the hand that held on to Gambit for dear life. That was definitely a request she could fulfil.

"I don't need to use your right hand anyway; keep hanging onto him with that one, alright? All I'm going to do is make contact with your arm here, and heal you from the inside out. You can watch, or look away; whichever you prefer," Shadow's voice was calm, serious; almost clinically so which did seem to ease Miranda just a tad. At least enough to let the healer do what she needed to do with Gambits assistance, trying not to flinch when Shadow rolled up one of her sleeves so she could make contact with Miranda’s arm.

Miranda deliberately looked away, trying to ignore the feeling of Shadow rummaging about right under her skin. She had been told the full use of Shadows power felt like two people now housed themselves in the same body, and it felt as unpleasant to her as that had sounded to her mind. Shadow encouraged the wound to heal itself while, with Gambit's aid by holding the handle with his free hand, pushing out the knife lodged in her abdomen. He watched as the wound healed itself from inside out, very gently hushing at Miranda that she was going to be alright.

Shadow seemed to take longer than she usually would healing a wound such as this, not really leaving until Miranda visibly jerked and shuddered as her body had enough of the intruder underneath her skin to which Shadow seemingly came to, back in her own body.

"Sorry about that," she said sheepishly, "I got a little bit distracted both by how your cells seem to regard me with some trepidation- and then by something fascinating; your heartbeat and breathing are really quiet. Everything functions like it should, don't worry, but it’s just.. suppressed. Like the wings of an owl. The shudder was those same cells telling me I had my fun and that I should really vacate the premise before they would make me."

"Good to know even my cells give warning shots," Miranda dryly remarked, only letting go of Gambit when she was back up on her feet, "I don't know about you two, but I really like to go home, now." As soon as her feet hit the ground around the mansion when Jean flew the whole group back, exhaustion did as well. Miranda quietly thanked Shadow, Gambit and Jean for all their help as the group dispersed. Gambit lingered for just a moment, going back for a second to whisper something to Miranda before immediately joining back up with Shadow. Shadow looked back just in time to see her friend vanish from sight, turning to Gambit with a raised eyebrow.

"I hope she's alright, I can't exactly take her fatigue from the whole ordeal away- what did you tell her?"

"Eh, just where to find a certain someone."

And the thing was, normally Miranda would go straight to her room after a day like this, curling away into the bed and just sleeping it off until morning, but she yearned for more than just the comfort of her bed. She found Kurt around the back of the mansion, exactly where Gambit said he would be: he feeding some of the cat population around the place as she flickered back into view.

"Hey.." she tried to not sound as tired as she felt, failing miserably. As soon as he turned to face her, familiar warmth and softness in the yellow hues of his eyes, her resolve gave up on her. She closed the gap between them, hiding her face in his shoulder as she wrapped her arms around his waist. Only when he wrapped his arms around her in response did the tension in her body ease up.

"Hey, Süße. You alright?" he asked softly, his tail instinctively curling around her waist as he ran his fingers through her hair.

She just shook her head slowly, pressing her face further into his shoulder to breathe in the comforting scent of woodsmoke that clung to him as her grip tightened on him.

"Rough mission?"

"You can say that again; I got stabbed."

".... What?"

It hadn't been the most tactful way of saying it, that was for sure. Miranda felt his grip on her tighten just as much as he clearly grew tense.

"Sorry, harsh way of putting it. It's fine. Gambit alerted Scott, who send Jean and Shadow. I'm already healed, now I'm just... tired."

"Okay; I would've liked it if someone had alerted me as well."

Miranda pushed herself up and out of Kurt's embrace a little, her eyebrows knitted together into a worried frown as she tried to get more clarity out of Kurt's expression. Something in his voice had been hinting to annoyance; anger even, but he seemingly shook it off with no real notion or explanation.

"You sure you're just tired?"

"Yeah..."

"Want me to take you to your room? I'm done feeding the cats anyway."

".... Yes, please."

In a heartbeat they were in her room, and Kurt let go of Miranda so she could go and freshen up a little. As soon as she returned he ushered her over to the bed, gently, pulling her back into his embrace as he ran his fingers through the thick waves of her hair. She silently took his free hand, lightly pressing it palm down against a spot on her side.

"... Is that where..?" he started softly, with Miranda just sleepily nodding while keeping his hand over the spot- as if she was trying to shield a wound that was no longer there. He very gently ran his thumb over the fabric that clothed her, a very light sigh leaving him. In the safety of his embrace it didn't take her long to sink off into a deep, dreamless rest. Kurt on the other hand couldn't get to sleep. He stared at the ceiling for a while, before his yellow eyes flicked to the side as he desperately tried to ignore the gross feeling of anger bubbling up in the very pit of his stomach. Did really no one feel the need to tell him what had happened? Scott, Jean, Gambit; either one of them could've bothered to tell him his girlfriend was hurt, right? If he had only known, he could’ve done something to help.

The more he thought about it, the less capable he was of stopping a soft, low growl from leaving him.

[houseofhurricane]

Against Nostalgia | Chapter Seven

Summary: Fifteen years after the end of the second war against Voldemort, Hermione Granger is invited to Hogwarts for a one-year appointment as the professor for History of Magic, forcing her to take a break from a successful career at the Ministry of Magic. Draco Malfoy, meanwhile, is Hogwarts’ Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. He’s a former Auror, despite the fact that he still bears the Dark Mark. Though there’s mutual distrust between them, sparks quickly fly between Hermione and Draco…sometimes literally. And although the war is long over, it doesn’t take an interest in History of Magic to see that history is intent on repeating. Between them, Hermione and Draco have the power to shatter the world they know. Or, maybe, the could make it into something new. (Imagine if they fell in love at the same time.)

Pairing: Dramione

Word Count: 7,162

Chapter Summary: A duelling lesson, a visit home, and all that follows. Or, alternately: a little banter, a little spice, a lot of angst.

Thank you to @iftheshoef1tz​ + @poisonivy206​ + Carter + Farrah + Gillian for beta reading this. You have the sharpest eyes, the best questions, and the biggest hearts. All mistakes, as always, are my own.

Thank you all for the love and support on this fic! I hope you enjoy the latest chapter 🧡

You can read Against Nostalgia on Archive of Our Own.

This time, Hermione is looking for him when he appears at the edge of the Hogwarts grounds, mugs between his hands.

“I need to beat you before I can have that, is that right?” There are shadows under her eyes after their late night in the library, but the question is eager. Instinctively, Draco feels for his wand.

“I’ve re-evaluated my abilities and decided to amend my criteria. You can have your flat white if you get close to overpowering me,” he says with a smirk.

“Bow whenever you’re ready,” she says, getting in her duelling stance. It’s improved since last week. Her feet are lighter and her wand is looser in her fingers. She wants to beat him, and if Draco hadn’t spent three years in Auror training and nearly a decade in the field, she might well do it.

Still, he keeps his wits about him as he bows, and she mirrors the gesture, bending exactly as low as he does.

Knowing Granger would anticipate a shielding spell, he’s decided to go on the offensive, wordlessly casting a stunner and following it up quickly with a freezing spell, which will only give her the impression of the kind of cold that steals the breath, not the actual harm.

She dodges each, setting up her own shield and sending a Disarming Spell around it.

He blasts through with a Jelly-Brain Jinx, just to see if it will startle her. It catches her ear, and for a moment, Hermione looks at him, goggle-eyed, before she mutters the counter-jinx and blasts him with her own stunner.

“Worried you hurt me?” she calls as he neatly dodges the blast of red light.

“I was curious about what you’d look like with jelly-brains,” he says, half his concentration on the wandless spell in his left hand, layering the magic until it nearly singes his palm.

He releases the spell while she thinks of what to say next. In an instant, her robes are on fire.

Draco is not prepared for the way he feels when Hermione’s face radiates shock and pain, and he shouts aguamenti as he barrels toward her.

“Draco—” she breathes, and then, with a flick of her wand, he’s falling to the ground, Hermione dousing the last of the flames on her robes and muttering another spell that relieves the tension around her mouth.

“I might not be an Auror,” she says primly, “but I can handle myself.”

Read the rest on AO3.

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[discet]

An AU of your AU where one of the girls starts off at Dia Mond's ship instead of Wartwood/Toad Tower/Newtopia.

God that would be so indulgent for me to write about. Fanfic based on my fanfic.

Ah well, what else am i gonna do tonight.

So on a character arc level, I actually think there isn't a bad choice among the three. I think a more fleshed out crew would have something for each of the girls.

Anne: While probably not on board with all the violence so much, but I think she'd vibe with the comradery among thieves. She'd probably have the hardest time with the life at sea bit. Also insist on various quality of life improvements including a movie night where she figures out how to project a move onto the sails. The Civil Wart Episode equivalent ends with the whole crew drawing swords on each other.

Marcy: I think Marcy would have a fucking blast as a high seas swashbuckler. Definitely longest adjustment period among the three just cause of clumsiness. Ends up with a rope tide to her waist whenever she's above deck after nearly falling overboard three times. While Marcy and Dia had a rapport in awiw, it was ultimately marred by the implicit threat to Marcy's loved ones that loomed at all times. Without that and with Marcy making improvements to the ships armaments' and general tactics, Dia and Marcy get along fabulously. Definitely kind of bummed when her electronics run out of power though.

Sasha: Probably the most interesting case study here. Dia, unlike Grime and Yunan, isn't an authority figure. She is a straight up criminal. I think Sasha would be onboard with the crew pretty quickly in the same way she took to being a luitenent naturally in canon. But rather than being a power trip, I think it would be interesting to see her have to value and work with everyone else. No idle hands on a sailing ship. Dia wouldn't be as noble or moral a compass as Yunan is in awiw or indulge Sasha's worst controlling tendencies like Grime does in Canon. She'd be really interesting middle ground between the two. A leader who does care about her crew for their own sake, but doesn't have qualms about kicking down someone in between them and their goals. I think her development there would be really fun.

I think ultimately the catch with all of these is that as a pirate ship, Dia and her crew is gonna be well away from the rest of the plot. You'd have to probably overhaul the rest of the geography of Amphibia to let a pirate ship be relevant to the plot. Though it wouldn't be hard to change things into a island chain? But yeah, I love Dia, thanks for asking about her

[merouses]

Games Mero Played, 2022 edition

Yeah the year’s ending, and among other things I’ve been wanting to practice my writing skills in general so here’s short review type things about most of the games I played this year, big and small (as long as I remember them). Not that anyone’ll read this but yeah. Might do one for books too later.

So, in no particular order:

Xenoblade 3 - This one was fun. For those who don’t know me, I’d say that Xenoblade is probably on my Top 2 favourite game series (the other being Zero Escape DO NOT GET ME STARTED ON ZERO ESCAPE), so I was, obviously, extremely excited for this one, so much so I timed my work vacation to play this game. And boy did I need those 3 weeks off, this game, as most jrpgs, took like 200h to complete, enjoyable all the way. Really the only problem to be said abt it is that the real climax of the story happens like 4/5ths into the game? And the rest feels a bit like they ran out of steam or money or time, or all of the above. A greatly dissappointing final stretch, bland final dungeon and tedious final boss kinda sour the game’s conclusion, but otherwise this really was THE rpg of the year.

Splatoon 3 - I’m don’t think I’m that big a fan of splatoon? Like, the gameplay is very fun indeed, but I guess multiplayer games in general will tire me out quickly as I get very salty very fast when I don’t win. But that aside Splatoon 3 is great! Very fun! Cute squid-octopus-kids abound! A fun single player mode that feels complete! Whenever some of my friends want to play something together I think this will be our go to game. I just wish this  ONLINE MULTIPLAYER GAME’s online wasn’t such utter garba- Connection Error, you have been disconnected

Bayonetta 3 - Oof. Thats all I can really say abt this game, unfortunately. Well, clearly not, as there’re more a big paragraph here, but ‘oof’ does capture my feelings in all. I was so so so excited for this game. I loved the previous two games (though Im faaaar from a actual avid player of them, pure platinum is just not something I have patience for, and I didn’t even beat any of the superbosses throughout the series), and I love Bayo very very much. The VA drama happenned, and yes it did dampen my hype a decent amount, but I was still excited to play the game which I did and..... yeah. This game’s just not as fun as the previous games, by far. There’s no fun Bayo backtalk, this time she just lets the  villain monologue. There are a few fun, campy setpieces as usual, but they’re surrounded by such a dour atmosphere! One of them does come close to making the game as fun as the previous ones though, the Ba’al Zebul fight  specifically (this here was THE DIVA MOMENT I wanted. But Bayo herself barely reacted or interacted with her, she just looked silently on after the fight, as she did most of the game). But then the ending happenned and it lands with as much grace as shit hits the toilet (mind you, I don’t really care about the straight thing? Sure it comes out of nowhere but it’s as plausible as anything at that point. What really bothered me was the FOUR ‘Oh we won! oh wait no’ sequences that happenned. In succession. With no payoff). And then there’s the combat, which, yeah, is much closer to the engaging fun of the previous titles’ than the story, but somehow it still didn’t click with me, though yeah keep in mind here I’m not a hardcore player of action games. It’s just... disappointing. I don’t think I’m playing the next games in the series, at least not at launch. I’ll want confirmation that the tone is back where I like it first, at least. Even though it came out years ago, I think Astral Chain takes the cake between these two.

Pokemon Legends Arceus - I didn’t expect much from this game, but in the end it was a fun, refreshing experience. I had a blast exploring Sinnoh through this past lens, even though the edges were very..... polygonal, and the gameplay and focus on just catching oodles of pokemon was like a breath of fresh air. Sure the plot was as simple as I expected, but there were enough twists there to tide me over, and the soundtrack sure helped. I did not play sword and shield, and really only played this cause I love Sinnoh so much (and cause a friend lent it to me), and it was my enjoyment of this game which led me to tentatively buy...

Pokemon Violet - I bring nothing new to the table here. These games might be the best pokemon has felt since black and white, the story (all 3 routes, really) might be basic and not that imaginative, but they’re executed more than satisfacorily, the soundtrack is great and the pokemon themselves are more than decent, barring a couple duds (bellibolt I loathe you. Pawmot you have no reason to exist). BUT yeah these games are broken to shit. Like, yes this is unexcusable. Which makes it all the more confounding WHY do I want to keep playing this game??? I just hope the next games in the series take their sweet time getting here. Please Pokemon Company, let the devs at GameFreak REST.

Dragon Quest XI Echoes of the blablabla S - I played this this year??? Wow. Anyway, a great jrpg with decent enough plot, honestly what I expected from a dragon quest game: doesn’t take itself too seriously but still manages to keep you engaged throuhout. A highlight was the final boss actually needing your party to be close to lvl 99, which is rare for jrpgs.

Touhou 18.5 100th black market - ZUN wanted to make a roguelike and he sure did it! I’m not the best at danmaku games, even though they hold a special place in my heart, but this game was so easy to cheese I managed to 100% it! Take from that what you will, but if anything this was a great continuation from what UM brought to the table.

The Gardener and the Wild Vines - A short indie puzzle-action game, plus it’s gay! I didn’t bother finishing all the challenges, just beat the story and got its collectibles, but honestly this game’s blend of fast action and puzzle elements was fun enough, even though it got a bit button mashy at times. Idk I feel like Im underselling it, it was a charming and engaging experience, clearly heartfelt, and it feels fun to play.

Boyfriend Dungeon - The only game here I just dropped like 80min in, uncerimoniously. I could just copy paste my steam review here, but tldr: ‘The romance aspect feels cheap, simultaneously needing you to engage with it but rejecting you, and that un-makes the game. Combat’s fine but nothing special’.

Bad End Theater - A cute lovely visual novel, which lets you guide the narrative through 4 characters. Small and comfy feeling! Honestly not much else to say other than I enjoyed it!

Great Ace Attourney Chronicles - Almost a remake of the first AA, but in a cool new setting and with different enough characters. Fun throughout, save for a couple of the middle cases, as usual. This game’s failings are the usual AA failings, ‘oh you know how this case will play out already?? Well prepare to slooooowly watch the characters figure it out for 5 whole hours’. I understand why it’s like this but it’s still agonizing. Other than that, man do I feel bad for the people who played this game in 2 parts in the 3ds. The first one alone really isn’t a complete experience. In this package, though, thourouly enjoyable, and an amazing OST.

Paradise Killer - this one is cheating a bit, as I completed it previously around a year ago I think? But there was a decently big content update and I replayed it in full and honestly. This game is a delight. While sure the mystery in itself isn’t anything special, the setting is so interesting. The idea of getting to explore this whole island and collect clues around the whole place is a great one, and all while listening to a STELLAR soundtrack. Do yourself a favour and play this game.

Tales of the Neon Sea - This.... was fine. An interesting, if cliche, cyberpunk setting, an interesting enough mystery... I’ll be honest this game did not stick in my mind, it’s pretty bland, even though it’s fun enough. Sadly the things I most remember about this game are that it opens with a mystery unrelated to the rest of the plot and ends with an unengaging cliffhanger that comes out of nowhere. They’re trying to set up a series, here, but it wasn’t worth it.

Touhou Dream Logical World - The first touhou danmaku fangame I played! And it’s fun enough, the aspect shift mechanic brought a lot of fun to me playing the game, as even if I was just trying to survive a whole run it made me play for a highscore. Some patterns are just bullshit though, especially on first encounter. Oh and the plot is complete nonsense, and it takes waaay too much time from playing. This made me realise that the less speech boxes before a boss, the better, at least for this type of game.

Yugioh Master Duel - I’ve watched yugioh youtubers for a couple of years now, but I still don’t play the game. I tried a bit in this, but... I lost a lot, raged, refused to engage with the gatcha system (don’t do gatcha kids) and uninstalled. As a virtual way to play the game though, its fine.

Bugsnax - I got this as soon as it came out on steam and boy was it worth it. A fun romp through a deserted island, with interesting mystery and lore thats developed just enough to wet the appetite. What really got me though were the characters, I ended the game having enjoyed pretty much everyone, everyone was surprisingly hearfelt, even through the goofy lens of the game! Oh and the snax are great, love bunger.

What the Golf - Cute puzzle game! ...honestly not much more to say. All the levels are fun to at least complete on a first go, some of the 100% challenges go above and beyond to have a fun twist on an already fun twist on golf! Some of these completion challenges though are just... trial and error, and I do not have the patience for that. All in all though, you can tell that the devs had a blast coming up with the weirdest ways to play ‘golf’, and that joy is present throughout.

Aer: Memories of Old - I got this game massively discounted and tbh thats the way it should be bought. Not that its bad per se, flying around and solving puzzles is pretty fun and engaging, even though there’s not that much to do. The big disappointment here is the plot. There’s not much of it, but that in and of itself is not bad. It sets itself up kinda like botw, in the sense that there’s a little set up and then you’re free to explore, and there are some clues as to what happenned here and there. But then the game sets up its endgame, getting into this big monolith in the middle of the map, and you do and then... its over. No boss no resolution to the mysteries, nothing to cap off the experience, there’s barely a cutscene and it ends. This is another one I played a while ago, and honestly? The bummer is that that lack of an ending is what stuck.

Moonlighter - This was a fun one, finding items in dungeons at night and selling them in the day was a great gameplay loop! I played up to the final boss, but in the end didn’t bother beating it for whatever reason. I think in the end the combat itself, while fun, didn’t scale great to the later dungeons/bosses.

Cities Skylines - City builders like this are a lot of fun, and I thought I’d get so much out of this game... but turns out I just don’t have the patience, focus and/or force of will to play these types of games for a long while. Good for what it is, and I learned a bit abt myself in the process.

Final Fantasy XIV - Yeah yeah I played the acclaimed yadda yadda free demo up to level blah blah with expansion and cheese. This game’s fun! Thoughrouly enjoyable. Just another game that I just don’t really have the patience for, turns out. I got to what I think was the end of the main plot and peaced out, but what I played was good enough. Doesn’t help no other friends of mine play it, or that my skull’ll melt if I engage in social activities through an MMO.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land - A lovely experience. I don’t know how, but I think this was the most perfect game I played this year! Just pure joy from begginning to end! And I think what really made me just... happy, from this game, was that I was perfectly content when I 100%ed it. I felt extremely satisfied with basically everything I played. Sure I could go for a few more levels or a replay now, but then, when I finished the game, I felt like everything was its perfect length. Kirby came to 3D and showed that waiting however many years for this was entirely worth it.

AI The Somnium Files: nirvanA Initiative - Uchikoshi strikes again!! And man how do I love it when he strikes. The man’s an icon, even though he’s not the director this time around. His games are iconic too! There’s not much I want so say about this game other than ‘go play it’, it’s a great mystery game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Sure the main, big twist may be a bit too... out there, and there IS an aspect of it that I dislike, but just the way every detail falls into place? I love that shit. The characters? So much fun!! The main mystery? Sure it’s not perfect, but damn is it fun to experience. Again, I love these games!!! Oh, and the completion bonus?!?!?? Oh my god. Oh my god!! What a treat!!! I was laughing to myself almost crying. You can definetly tell that this guy and the team he works with at Spike Chunsoft love the games they’re making.

I think that’s everything? Or at least most of everything. If it’s not here then damn that game was forgettable, I guess. All in all a pretty decent year! A lot of 3′s. The best game I played I think has to go to kirby, but my favourite of the year.... idk a year is a long time and I enoyed a lot of these games.

If you’re interested Im probably going to post links to all the indies here in a reblog, so check if that’s already there!

[halikyon]

Got another long one for ya! I should really organize these better.

The strikes of Fordola's curved blade cut right through the numerous apparitions before her, disrupting their cohesion and drawing their ire while M'naago launched a barrage of arrows into their ranks again and again. Between them stood O'tchakha and D'zentsa, blasting away any that dared stray too close to Fordola's flanks. Behind them all stood Ryune, steeped in the powers of the Astrologian, making sure their wounds were treated and sending blasts of malefic power whenever able.

When she had asked her partner and protégés to accompany her to investigate a disturbance at a local temple ruin, she had hoped it would be valuable experience for the young pair. What Ryune had certainly not expected was a veritable army of spirits, and certainly not Fordola, by herself, already hacking away at them while a group of children scurried away.

They had barely needed to trade a glance before jumping in to help, and, after some coordinated effort, had managed to push the flow of undead back into the darker interior rooms of the old temple. It seemed that whenever they struck one down it would simply remanifest deeper within, but at least they went down easy.

Before long, Ryune spotted a low archway in the dim light and came upon an idea. As soon as Fordola had pushed to it, Ryune stepped foward and projected a barrier that sealed the way, at least temporarily, and gave them a moment to plan.

They had to act quick. "What's happened?" Ryune's voice was strained while she maintained her focus on the barrier.

"Kids messed around where they shouldn't, pissed off the whole lot." Fordola responded quickly while trying to catch her breath. "Those runts told me one was still inside."

"Probably at the source if they're this mad." M'naago said, referring to the spirits, their undead appendages creating ripples in the barrier where they struck.

"Extract kid, appease spirits. Easy enough." Ryune had never been all that great at projection like this, and time was running out. She warned them, "Five seconds."

They made ready, Fordola taking point with O'tchakha and D'zentsa on her flanks once more. "We push through." Commanded M'naago as she moved into the protective pocket the others had formed around Ryune, "No stopping."

The others understood. Taking the spirits down wasn't doing much other than tiring themselves out. They had to get through before they got overwhelmed.

The barrier dropped. Before the ghosts could surge foward, though, a brilliant slash from Fordola carved a path foward. The duo of Monks let loose their charged Chakra on the flanks, widening the gap further.

"Forward!" M'naago cried out, impelling them to move with upmost swiftness before the gap could close, her arrows shattering into sprays of shrapnel into the banks of undead.

They surged as a unit, not stopping to fight, rather punching through the mass of spirits, shoving them aside like vines in a jungle. Through the gloom soon came a glow of light, like a lighthouse on the shore. It was right ahead, obscured by the incorproreal forms, but undeniable.

Yalm after yalm it became brighter, more distinct, and then in a rush they were upon it, a void in the swirling mass of apparitions. In the middle stood a single Elezen boy, a bright shard of something Ryune couldn't identify held high above his head.

He turned to then, eye wide with fear. "I'll drop it!" He proclaimed as the spirits seemed to get more agitated. It took a moment for him to realize they weren't here to harm him as they gathered themselves. "Wait, who are you?"

"Your rescue party." Fordola said bluntly l. "What is that?" She pointed to the bright object in his raised hands.

He hesitated, unsure, before Ryune spoke up. "If I were to guess, I'd say it was some sort of focus. Crystalline, bright, suffused with aether, and likely viewed as sacred by those resting here."

"That sounds like a recipe for a primal." M'naago pointed out.

O'tchakha and D'zentsa stood close together, regarding the dome of spirits that seemed to have grown thicker around then. It was clear they were uncomfortable here, perhaps even scared as their tacit spell continued in spite of their typical conversational nature.

Fordola turned to Ryune, "What's the plan now?"

Ryune regarded the boy for a moment before approaching slowly. "We are here to help you." She began, "My name is Ryune. Can you tell me your name?"

"H-Hauchiere." He responded, his voice shaky.

"Okay. Hauchiere, where did you find that crystal?" Ryune stopped an arm's length away and got down on a knee before him.

"Over there." He nodded to the back of the room, though it was impossible to see what exactly through the spectres. "It was in a c-cubby on a stand."

"Alright, so why haven't these guys tried to take it back?" Fordola asked.

"I told them if they touched me that I'd break it." Hauchiere admitted, "They've been circling like this ever since."

"So why not put it back?" Ryune asked gently, hoping to keep the kid calm.

"I was scared." He said, "I thought if I didn't have this thing they would come for me."

"I see, quick thinking, but only good for a stalemate." Fordola said while also approaching. "Which was exactly what you needed to buy time for help to arrive."

Ryune nodded, "Commendable, but it's our turn now." She held a hand out to him, "We will keep you safe. I'll take the artifact and placate the spirits."

The boy stared at them all for a few moments more before acquiescing, carefully lowering the focus and handing it over to Ryune. Immediately the spirits began to close in, but Ryune quickly held the item up like Hauchiere had.

"Hold it!" Her voice and actions seemed to freeze them all in their ghostly tracks. "We mean you no harm, but we will do what we must to defend ourselves." She hadn't discussed this with the others, but it seemed the best way to get them to safety. "Let them all leave and we can talk."

M'naago protested immediately, "I am not leaving you in a dark hole with a bunch of angry dead people!" She came foward, finger pointed at Ryune. "I told you you're not allowed to play hero by yourself anymore."

"It's not that." Ryune explained, "It that you are completely right. This is a recipe for a primal, and if things go wrong I'd rather not have to fight you, even if we do have the ability to cure tempering now."

"She's right, which is why I'll be staying." Fordola assured M'naago, "I can deal with it. She won't be alone in this."

"Then it would seem I am in your debt." M'naago said, already looking to gather the others to leave.

"Hardly." Fordola answered, "Just another dent in what I owe you two."

D'zentsa spoke at last, "Does this mean we're leaving?" He voice betrayed the anxiety, though Ryune was quite proud of how well they were holding it together in an environment they clearly were not fond of.

"Yes, take the boy and go, I'll deal with these spirits. When you see an opening, take it." Ryune nodded to M'naago, "I'll see you on the other side, I promise."

"I'll hold you to it." M'naago took the boy's hand and gathered the Monk girls as close to the exit as they dared. She turned back to Ryune once more, a small smirk on her face, "Not that they stand a ghost of a chance."

Ryune smiled in spite of how much it really wasn't funny at all, somehow feeling more love for her well up from within. She knew the others would be doing their best to ignore it, but Ryune couldn't help but appreciate the attempt at humor.

"So, how about it, then. Will you let them go?" Ryune asked the roiling mass around them all.

They shifted and writhed around, dark shapes obscuring most everything, before an odd chorus of voices spoke, filling the room. "You have defiled this place. The only recompense is your death. Rhalgr demands it."

"I can assure you he doesn't." Ryune said, having actually met the man. "But something tells me you don't intend to talk it out with us."

"You dare speak of Him so?" They quickened, crowding towards Ryune more and more. "You could not hope to know His will."

Fordola made ready, knowing what was likely to come, "And you do?" Her voice was condescending, meant to draw their ire as much as possible.

"We shall not stand for this!" The mass of spirits was almost completely around them alone now. "We beseech thee, Rhalgr, send us your champion to purge our tomb!"

They braced themselves as the others made a break for it, the spirits hardly paying them any mind, now. Ryune changed her focus, grabbing for her Monk stone in her pouch, attuning herself to it quickly. Bright beacons of light lit other receptacles in the walls, signifying the locations of yet more focuses like the one Ryune held.

It's weight, the lights, and the apparitions disappeared all at once, replaced by a single form in the sparce, dim light. Now that they could see where they were, they found themselves towards the back of a large, tall chamber with the figure in the middle, blocking their way out. The figure stepped foward and Ryune recognized him immediately.

"Ivon Courlfist walks among us once more I see." Ryune remarked, remembering her fight with his special self in the Temple of the Fist. This time, though, he was smaller, much more Hyur-sized, but absolutely packed with aetherial energy.

As he got closer, though, they noticed strange wisps almost trying to detach from his body, with some looking a bit like faces.

"Well, that explains where they all went." Fordola said, moving herself around into a flanking position.

"It's a miniature Zodiark." Ryune couldn't help but be in awe of what had occurred. "But who exactly is the once calling the shots in there?"

"Doesn't matter. Let's take them out, Ryune." Fordola's voice was commanding and sure, helping to refocus Ryune.

Ryune nodded, dropping down into her combat stance, and not a moment too late. The primal Courlfist dashed foward with a clap, striking at Ryune repeatedly with hand and foot. She caught and dodged his strikes, attempting to send a few back his way, but was rebuffed by hands that seemed too quick to be able to get there in time.

Fordola rushed foward to assist, sending a clear strike that should have opened any mortal from shoulder to hip, but was instead batted aside as multiple strikes connected against her armor without him even turning to engage her.

She jumped back, confused and angry to have been cast aside, before seeing what was truly occurring as her eyes finally adjusted.

"He has too many hands, Ryune!" She didn't know how else to convey what she was seeing. "He also has a face on the back of his head? I can't take him by surprise."

Her arms and legs stung from where they had absorbed the incoming strikes, but Ryune was holding her own. Now, knowing what was going on, she understood what might tip the scales.

"We go faster, overload him." Ryune said between strikes. "It's all we've got!" To suit actions to words, Ryune quickened her aether, triggering Chakra to speed her strikes like the wind.

Fordola understood. Her methods were slower and consisted of mighty strikes, so the only way for her to go faster would be to have a smaller weapon or to forgo her shield in order to bring both arms to bare on her blade. She chose the latter, tossing her shield aside, preferring to keep her blade intact.

She jumped back in to help, and the difference was immediate. Her strikes were faster and more true, undeterred by the blows against the blade by the spectral fists under the primal's control.

Ryune was connecting too, her strikes finding cracks in his defenses, blasting aetherial holes that quickly filled back up. She knew it was working, though. Every time either of them hit they took aether away, scattering it back into the environment with the force of the impacts.

It was going well until a well-aimed kick, blocked by Ryune, sent her flying back with the force of the impact. She was sent all the way into the wall many yalms behind her, but she was mindful enough to not let her head snap back when she hit. Ryune braced as she hit the floor in a crouch, expecting a rush, but instead witnessed Fordola, somehow having gotten around him, blocking his way forward.

She was taking a beating, but was giving one back just as much, slicing through hands and spectral aether attempting to block her blade. Ryune took a moment to steady herself and take stock. She could clearly see the aether of the primal starting to wane, but she couldn't be sure they had the tenacity to see it through with the beating they had already taken.

Tlshe decided it would be best to end it as quickly as possible, and she had just the technique to do it, though it was one that would drain her greatly. With the time Fordola was buying her, she took a breath, igniting a flame within, and gathered the energy she had accumulated thus far, concentrating it down into a white hot point.

Fordola couldn't hold out any longer, her body too exhausted and pained by a fight she hadn't trained for, but still she tried to hold on, her arms screaming with the continued effort. It was then that a blur rushed past.

It was hard to see when moving faster than most eyes could track, harder still in the dim tomb they found themselves in, but it was hard to miss such an imposing target even when it was only slightly larger than the average Hyur.

Ryune's first strike was head on, strong enough stop his momentum. The second came from behind, having bounced from the opposite wall, and hit him directly in the head. A third, fourth, fifth, and sixth came quickly behind, Ryune bouncing from wall to wall in quick succession. She was simply too fast to block, and too powerful to brace against. Each impact sent a painful shock through Ryune, but she continued on.

The next series used the floors and ceilings as well, keeping the primal Monk off balance and reeling. She reached the twelfth strike quickly, the one she would stop on in most any other circumstance, but her target still stood and the only two people who could stop it were already at their limits, so she continued on.

Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, the strikes hurt more in each limb every time, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen... Her fist passed right through, slamming hard into the stone floor. The pain was the worst yet, causing her to cry out, but it had been enough.

The primal had lost too much aether, no longer able to keep its form coherent under the barrage. As it faded, wisps of itself rising into the air, the collective of voices spoke once more.

"Perhaps our way let lives on, the Mad King's will left undone..." It looked somehow satisfied as it spoke.

Ryune couldn't hope to respond, her breath coming in hurried gasps while her heart beat beyond rapidly. It was all she could do to look up at it as the primal finally dispersed, all that it was returning back to the lifestream once more.

She collapsed to her knees, the effort of continuing Phantom Rush like that having taken a massive toll. She felt Fordola with her, keeping her steady with a hand on her shoulder, her voice making it through the rush of blood in her ears.

"I've got you." Fordola said, her own pain evident in her voice. "You're not going to fall on my watch."

Ryune was grateful. It wasn't like before when she could depend on Hydaelyn's aether to help bolster her. Now it all had to come from within, and she hadn't had to dig this deep in a while. Fordola kept steady watch while Ryune recovered, finally gaining control of her breathing enough to settle her body back down from its frantic state.

A few minutes later, Ryune placed her hand atop Fordola's on her shoulder. "Thank you." She said, finding her voice, "I wouldn't have been able to do it without you."

Fordola smirked, "Sure you could have. It would have just been a lot more dramatic and ended with your girlfriend carrying you to the nearest healer."

Ryune let out a small chuckle and gave her hand a squeeze before letting go. "Perhaps so, but I greatly prefer the company of capable friends and allies."

Fordola's hand slid off her shoulder as she stood. "Before I met you I would have said something about 'former enemies', but I know that's not how you work."

"Certainly not." Ryune confirmed, "You are a survivor. And I, for one, would consider you among my list of capable friends."

Fordola gave one of her rare genuine smiles, "Thanks. I think the same of you." She located her discarded shield and picked it back up. "Though we should probably head out. The others are going to be worried."

"True." Ryune made sure she was steady before making her way out with Fordola. "Do you know what it was that was angering the spirits here in the first place? We were here because we got word of a disturbance."

"Yes. It was those same kids you probably saw on the way in." Fordoal explained as they walked, the light gradually growing brighter as they neared the exit. "They had been messing around as would be 'adventurers' looking for treasure."

Ryune sighed, "That's scavenging, not adventuring. I know most people don't see or care about the difference, though."

"Either way, they took some small artifacts, basically kicking the hornets' nest as it were, before attempting this latest venture."

"You certainly are well informed." Ryune remarked.

"I was sent by a concerned mother who sent me while I was stopped in Ala Ghiri." They were almost out now, the path seeming much longer now that they were walking it rather than dashing through. "She told me all she knew. Got here just in time."

They reached the exit at last, the light momentarily blinding them as the came out. They were met immediately by the rest of the party they had sent away. Ryune could see a few adults she recognized clustered with the kids she had seen earlier not far away in the shade of a large rock. M'naago immediately rushed over and embraced Ryune, almost knocking her over.

"Easy there, I'm alright." Ryune assured her. "Much to the efforts of Fordola."

"I knew you were worth the trouble!" M'naago said half-jokingly to Fordola.

"So? What happened?" O'tchakha asked, jogging over with D'zentsa. Ryune recounted the tale, mentioning how well they had worked together and that the spirits seemed to have been put to rest as well.

"In the end they seemed to actually approve of Ryune, too." Added Fordola.

"Yes, well, I suppose showing a bunch of dead monks that their ways weren't as lost as they had feared would do that." Ryune said, still unsure about how she felt about it. On one hand she was proud to have gained such acknowledgment, but on the other was annoyed it meant so much to her after all she had been through and helped to rebuild.

"Sounds pretty amazing if you ask me." D'zentsa added. "Though we don't need dead folks to tell us you know what you're doing."

"I appreciate that, truly." Ryune said, smiling at her student. The parents and children came over last, offering their thanks as well as some Gil. Ryune tried to talk them out of it, but by the time they left for home, each membwr of the group was a few thousand Gil richer.

"Hey, Fordola, before we all head off, I wanted to tell you something." Ryune said, ready for some rest but feeling this was important.

"Alright, shoot." Fordola said.

"The way you fought in there, and they way you are as a person, both make me believe you might make for a fairly effective Dark Knight." Ryune explained. "They weild a large, two-handed sword and are considered taboo by many, but I find it a worthwhile path."

Fordola considered it for a moment before asking, "Where does this path begin?"

"Courthas, Ishhard specifically, at the local tavern. Look for a Au'Ra man named Sidurgu and his young Elezen charge, Rielle." She remembered how grumpy Sidurgu could be, adding. "If Sid gives you trouble, you can just tell him I sent you, though you may have more fun trying to crack that one."

Fordola nodded, taking it all in. "Perhaps I will, in time. I don't believe you would lead me astray, but there is much to do."

Ryune understood, though she wished Fordola would make more time for herself and her own development. "If you do, also be aware that you may meet someone along the way. I knew them as Fray. It...is not my place to speak more." Ryune didn't want to give away that aspect should it arise. It would likely be a very important part of confronting and healing from her past, and was something Ryune hoped would be very much to Fordola's benefit. "Just know they mean you no harm."

Ryune left out the second part, where she may confront a different part of the same whole. She figured it best to come naturally if it came at all, and that to warn her of it may dilute its potential to heal. Having taken the path herself and confronted all that she was within, she was certain that by Fordola taking it that she would find much the same results.

"I'm not stranger to secrets," Fordola said, "but I'll trust there's a reason." With everything settled and the day stretching on, they all reckoned it was time to head home.

"Don't be a stranger." M'naago said to Fordola as they made to leave. "Whether our home in Ala Ghanna or at the Reach, you are most welcome."

"I'll see if I can't shake loose of being Lyse's errand girl long enough to visit." Fordoal said. She remembered that the last time she was at Rhalgr's Reach was as an enemy combatant, and that she had likely cut down friends and family of residents there herself. "Though I'd prefer to visit your home if at all possible."

Ryune understood. She knew it might still be hard to feel welcome in places like that. She could relate, having been vilified by Garleans even though she only meant to help them during the latest crisis. She often had to put that out of her mind when dealing with them, as there wasn't any use wondering how many families she had ripped apart. Sometimes you simply had to let go and do what you could, something she hoped Fordola would find a way to do as well.

"Our door is always open to you." Ryune assured her. "Ala Ghanna, upper level, last house to the right."

Fordola nodded, "For now, I have a report to file and a bed calling my name." She set off uppm her own way. "I'll see you around." She waved as she walked away a few yalms before stopping to concentrate.

"Bye, be safe!" Both O'tchakha and D'zentsa said almost in unison, giggling as a result. Ryune was glad to see them returning to their usual selves. They would certainly need to talk about what went on in there, but that could wait until another time. Moments later Fordola was gone, likely back in Ala Mhigo.

"Home it is, then." Ryune said. "You two get some rest, we will be heading home directly." She said to her students, "I'll check in with you tomorrow."

They said their goodbyes and concentrated, all four looking forward to a good night's sleep

[shieldretired]

                       HE HAS THE DECENCY TO LOOK SHEEPISH. God, the last time someone chid him for his foul language was... probably Father Timothy, but he's a Man of the Church, that's different. Steve usually tries to behave whenever he's there, whereas he never holds back in his own four walls. But that's his mother, and although he's almost forty years old now (ignoring the whole time spent in the ice), he instantly feels like a small boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar. 

                       "But Ma, if someone knows what it's like to get blasted into a new century, it's me. I could have helped you better than any of their shrinks. He––ck," he catches himself before he can say hell, "I could have told them that you're tough and don't like to be mollycoddled." He rubs a hand over his face, quickly getting pulled out of his anger by her small hand on his arm. She's right. It doesn't matter at all anymore, not even that Thanos and their whole time heist seem to have something to do with her sudden appearance. Steve should enjoy it while he can. "Yeah, Ma, it's just me and Cookie here. I bought the place a couple of months ago. There's still a lot to do, but I got the time now. I'm... technically retired, I assume. There was a terrible war, even worse than the Great War, where Dad died, and I signed up for it, of course. I wanted to help. Then, I ended up in the future, and it was just... one battle after another. But now I'm done, and I'm trying to tell myself that it's alright. It still feels weird, to be honest."

Sarah's lips split into a delighted grin when Cookie flops onto the ground, a soft laugh leaving her. "He's so sweet." Her arms slip from her jacket, sliding it from her shoulders and tentatively resting it on the back of the chair before sitting down.

"Steven - Mind your language." Sarah tuts however her expression's filled with fondness as she looks over at him. "I think it's more that they were worried it'd be too much for me. They were using a gentle approach but I'd much prefer to charge right in. Don't be annoyed with them, I'm here now, aren't I?" Her hand reaches for his across the table, giving him a gentle squeeze. "Honestly? I don't understand it. Something about a multiverse and timelines and some alien man snapping his fingers." She looks down at their hands. "Don't fully believe it myself. Feels like a dream. So I'm determined to enjoy every second, just in case I wake up." Her thumb strokes across his knuckles. "Tell me more about you? Are you living here alone?"

[silky-slinky]

UNPLEASANT PAIR !

FIVE HARGREEVES X GN!READER PAIRING !

PLATONIC!LILA PITTS X GN!READER PAIRING !

WC: 422

FIVE HARGREEVES MASTERLIST !

Lila was neither an enemy nor a friend. Although you hoped to be more than just acquaintances, Five hindered whatever bond you were planning to form with her. Up until the Kugelblitz rolled around. Despite the inevitable end of the world, yet again, it made you feel much closer to the people around you, especially Lila.

While you were working in the Temps Commission, you had seen Lila around a couple of times, but of course, you were too busy to greet her. She intrigued you, getting your attention very quickly with her loud and carefree personality. A complete opposite to your partner, Five.

Five had his reasons as to hate her, while Lila had her reasons to hate him as well. While on a mission alone, The Handler instructed Five to eliminate Lila's parents. Without his knowledge, knowing that he only did his job, not thinking about what'll be the outcome of his actions.

He hated your newfound bond with Lila. You'd catch a glimpse of him rolling his eyes sassily whenever you'd talk to Lila. He'd pull you away from whatever conversation you were having with her, his hand firmly intertwined with your hands as you protested to him.

“I don't know what you see in her, Y/n.” Your head lay on his chest, his steady breathing making you sleepy. His hand was brushing through your hair, something he loved to do.

You yawned in response to the old man. “Give her a chance, Five. It's the end of the world.” Your eyes finally closed shut. Too tired to continue the conversation you've had with him many times now, and every single time, you'd say the same answers to his repetitive questions. He just couldn't understand why you'd willingly be around the loud mouth and actually enjoy it.

He loved you, that was for sure. He wouldn't have married you if he didn't, nor would he protect you from everything if he didn't. He loved you with every fiber in his body, every atom, every vein. But no matter how hard he tried to accept Lila, she was just as unbearable as her mother.

And then there he was, pulling your drunken state from Lila on the dancefloor, despite him being as equally drunk as you. Maybe even more.

“You're no fun, old man!” Lila exclaims from where she previously danced, her voice louder than the music blasting from the speakers.

You looked back at her, a few giggles erupting from your mouth as Five had a scowl on his face.

FIVE HARGREEVES MASTERLIST !

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