#and it’s like emotional and they’re all so relieved she’s alive

[sweetsaladpainterranch]

The Rival (Chapter 4)

(Summary: Alastor sought to possess one of the only does in Pentagram City for the rut season, however, you wanted a mate, not a master. But what happens when a handsome new buck shows up one day and tries to capture your attention away from the Radio Demon. Who will you choose?)

<Be aware that there are mentions of Sexual Abuse and slight gore in this chapter>

***

You could see nothing. Where once there was a seemingly paralyzed Alastor standing in front of a smirking James, there was now a swirling vortex of alive blackness that had completely overtaken the two men. You and Husk could only watch helplessly from the back porch as the fate of the duel was decided privately, but…Alastor couldn’t actually lose, right?

“Fuck, I didn’t think the boss would actually pull out the spectral tunnel!”, Husk mumbled, “ain’t seen that smoky bitch in almost a decade.”

“Guys!?”, A distraught Charlie and an irate Vaggie suddenly appeared and shouted from the back door, “WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING?? WHY IS THE SKY OVER THE HOTEL COMPLETELY BLACK?!” You thought the princess might actually have a panic attack if she didn’t start breathing as she continued to take in her back garden. She looked towards you and Husk questioningly and you shamefully replayed the morning’s events beginning with Alastor catching you making out with the newest tenant and ending with the swirling black void being the product of the buck’s fight.

“You’ve got to stop them, Charlie!”, you stepped towards the princess with imploring eyes and shook her by the shoulders, “They’re going to kill each other!”

Vaggie quickly moved your hands away so that the shaken princess could stabilize herself and hand off her red suit jacket. Rolling up the sleeves of her dress shirt and muttering something about not taking shit from other demons or some nonsense, Charlie strutted off in the direction of her hotelier’s spectral twister with a determined expression. However, before your, now demonic-looking leader, reached the terrifying shadow manifestation it disappeared completely and left only an undisturbed Alastor holding up a very tired, but otherwise unscathed, looking James.

…

A day later things had already changed dramatically at the Hazbin Hotel. Firstly, you had expected Alastor to jump at the chance that his win over James granted him and take you deep within his bayou den. However, he simply declared that he was no longer worthy of being your mate and asked for the opportunity to prove himself to you (whatever that meant), while you found yourself nearly overcome with heavy emotions.

Also, at the same time, an incredible amount of sexual frustration coursed through you from being left at the start of your heat with no one to sate you, but this could actually be what you’ve been longing for. A mate instead of a seasonal sex buddy.

Secondly, James left without a single word to you and left that same afternoon. Only taking what little he had brought with him and swiftly exiting (running) through the large front doors without looking back. He refused to answer any of the questions or affirmations Charlie hurled at him in a desperate attempt to calm her retreating tenant, but he merely offered a small apology for the trouble and a gruff “thanks” for the hospitality. You also noticed a slightly sweet, yet familiar, aroma emanating from him, though you just couldn’t place where you knew that floral scent from.

What the fuck? He could have at least given you some sort of explanation after causing so much trouble!

Who knew what Alastor could’ve meant about being “worthy”. All you could do was retire to your hotel room for the time being as you prayed that he would take pity on you and relieve this fever upon your soul. Every passing hour became worse and worse as your entire body felt like it might burn up in your bed and you felt sweat soak your nightshirt. You knew better than to either change your sheets or keep on anything but a shirt as they’ll only get dampened again by your heat’s fluids. Who knows how far into your season you were now, you had already lost track of time and could only weakly reach out for the emergency rations, that you noticed had kept restocking themselves magically at your bedside, to eat and drink enough to balance out the energy you were burning trying to conquer your lust on your own. Though, no amount of self-initiated orgasms, with or without a vibrator, helped to quench your demonic biology’s demand to be bred by a buck.

And not just any buck. YOUR BUCK.

You whimpered pitifully as your foggy mind wandered to where your mate, the one male who was strong enough to trigger your heat, went off to and cried when the thought of his slight rejection again sounded within your ears. What if he had chosen another? Not likely since you were the only doe you knew of in all of time you’d fallen into Hell, but you were exhausted, and logic wasn’t a concern as you were soon sure that he must be fucking another through her own season.

Dammit! Why was a female’s heat so much worse than a male’s?!

Both Alastor and James seemed to be at least able to stroll around their daily lives normally a few days, even a week or so, into their seasons with barely any problem. Then a depressing thought made itself known. Was it because you weren’t strong enough to control your body? Was that what Alastor thought too? Was that why James suddenly left without a word? That must be it! Your fragile mind agreed. They must be disgusted with how you were far too weak to wrangle either of them during their fight and now they knew you had become a poor, wanton slut. A fat tear slipped out of your clenched-shut eyelids as you accepted that you would be alone in this torture for however long your heat decided to drag on. The fever must have finally become too much because you were cast adrift within a fitful sleep of nightmares… and your Alastor.

…

Alastor stood tall, holding out his felled opponent’s, still beating heart, in front of his inwardly crushed face and wet eyes as the tornado of his shadows raged around them in time with his own growing fury.

“No? Well then, how about a… deal?”, the Radio Demon purred out excitedly and thought his smile might actually cut his face in half if it got any bigger. He continued with his proposal, “You see, my good man, my spectral companion picked up some rather racy gossip while he was housed within you about your human life.”

James could only express himself through pained gasps and wet grunts in response as he barely held onto consciousness through Alastor’s monologue, but pleasant memories of his past reared themselves in his mind. The sunlit days spent on his farm with his barn animals and dogs, running church bake sales with his mother-in-law, and enjoying a beer in the quiet stillness before visiting his wife and the others in the rabbit hutch. 

A cruel cackle brought his attention back to the blood-soaked present. Alastor’s voice was almost casual, “I, of all people, understand how living in the rural country provides a certain amount of privacy and how being a member of the local congregation affords the shield of social standing.” Alastor shrugged his shoulders as if he were talking to Mimsy about the good old days up top, however, he straightened himself up and squeezed the frail, pink heart in his large palm. 

With a sudden snarl, the Radio Demon morphed his expression into something absolutely frightening, even for a demon, and leaned forward in disgust once again, “I saw how you kidnapped those girls from the surrounding towns. How you raped them like the filthy animal you are and sold the children you stole from them to those traffickers.”

“Not even your own wife was safe from your perverted nature and you lowered her into the role of one of your…rabbits…once she found out the total brutality of your crimes and tried to go to the police.”, Alastor spat with extreme distaste, “I of all men belong in Hell, but I simply cannot stomach those who show no measure of respect for the fairer sex among us.”

Another tight squeeze of the reindeer’s heart calmed the deer’s ever-expanding anger towards the brute and the thought of making it into a stress ball tickled him so that he doubled over with manic laughter. Wiping a tear away from his eye, Alastor once again focused on James and the silent pleas within his victim’s eyes.

“Let’s begin, shall we?”, Alastor purred, “My proposal is that, in exchange for your life, you will feel the same pain that you caused your victims.” His voice lowered and grew colder once more, “The fate that you had planned for my darling doe when you first set your putrid eyes on her in town. To snatch her away to use for yourself and…profit on… from the other males in town.” His shadow hissed from its position amongst the other specters in the vortex at the thought of such torture having been planned for you and its master continued.

“However, you had smelled me on her but were confident in your newfound demonic abilities so you took advantage of the princess’s good graces, something you will thank her for, and decided to take your chances with whatever was awaiting you. Yet we now see how that worked out for you. HA!” Alastor’s antlers elongated as his rage once again built up at the thought of James laying a finger on your perfect skin and he held out his hand, “Either accept this deal and embrace the suffering of those women or I will simply consume your soul, and you will serve me like every other disrespectful wretch that dared to cross me.” He gestured around the void and only then did James notice the eternally wailing faces that made up the walls of the dark funnel. All howling and clawing and climbing over each other in their agony.

James inhaled with all the effort he could muster and dropped his hand as best he could into Alastor’s as a flash of bright green flashed out between them and engulfed the dying reindeer. The only sensation that James could process was the burning of his flesh that seemed to last years and he couldn’t even hear his own screams over Alastor’s victorious laughing, but, before he knew it, the agony had been replaced by an odd feeling in his core. The defeated reindeer remained on his knees as he quickly patted down his jaw and chest to make sure everything was in place and he noticed that he didn’t even have a rip in his flannel shirt nor a scratch to be found on his skin. If not for the cold sensation of the heavy chain wrapped around his thick neck, James could almost put the entire afternoon up to a bad dream.

“What did you do to me?”, he demanded shakily as Alastor roughly hauled him up to his feet by the arm and merely smiled normally, “I suggest you keep our agreement to yourself if you wish to live long enough to find out. Now!”, Clapped the Radio Demon, ”we have guests to humor.”

Alastor could feel Charlie’s demonic energy approaching his position and, after straightening up his already somehow pristine appearance, dispersed the spectral tornado and grinned widely at the incoming princess. “Charlie! Good to see you my dear!”, he began stepping forward with James in tow and slapped the reindeer’s shoulder playfully in response to Vaggie’s flying accusations of a fight.

“Merely having a productive chat, Vagatha, and we required a bit of privacy from the peanut gallery.”, he shrugged leaving Charlie to check a silent James for injuries, “After all, isn’t our fearless leader always preaching communication over confrontation? Just ask the old boy, himself, if you don’t believe me.”  Everyone looked towards James for confirmation, including Alastor over his shoulder, however, he only nodded once and quickly made his way inside the hotel. Noticeably walking a bit lopsided, the reindeer completely sidestepped you as much as he could without so much as a glance. Good. Alastor thought and he knew the beta male felt his red gaze as it burned into the back of his retreating head.

While James disappeared within the building the air suddenly felt like it was knocked out of Alastor’s chest and had to subtly stabilize himself with his cane as the heavily sweet musk of your heat finally assaulted his senses. To his delight, you seemed just as enraptured by his scent and barely acknowledged James’s leave or even Charlie and Vaggie running past you after the beaten reindeer. He could see that your face was flushed, your hands fidgeted over the constricting clothes you wore, and your breathing picked up in anticipation with each step he took in your direction. Oh, how he wished he could take his animal mind’s advice and just take you right there where you waited for him on the porch. His spoils of war so to speak.

But…that’s not how this season is going to go, Alastor told himself and tried to take a deep breath to clear the biological fog. That only made the member in his slacks twitch more aggressively, though, as he accidentally took a big gulp of your pheromones and stopped in his tracks before coming too close. You looked at him in confusion and your ears flopped over a bit when you leaned your head over in a silent question. He knew what images were flashing in your mind, but he needed to get control of this situation if anything was going to change.

“Darling, I-”, he began tensely and straightened his shoulders, “I have come to understand that I have wronged you these many seasons that you have spent by my side and I cannot stand for it to continue any longer. I cannot harm my beloved doe anymore and-“, he swallowed thickly to finish as you crept towards him slowly, “and I must admit that I no longer feel that I am worthy of your affection.”

He noticed how your ears slipped back onto your head as the realization of what he was saying churned in your mind (as best it could at the moment), however, Alastor nearly jumped you again as he took in your pouting lips while you pressed yourself against him and inhaled.

The blood was quickly leaving his head to travel south, and He was losing the battle of logic fast so he gripped your shoulders with a huff of effort and gently moved you back from him. Looking into your clouded eyes, he never felt like The Radio Demon and, rather, knew himself as simply a buck gazing towards his mate. A mate he has not treated fairly as she had him and that fact cut him to the soul, but he would redeem himself! Though, not in the way that Charlie would approve of.

Alastor, beginning to massage your slight shoulders, requested, “I’m asking for the chance to prove myself to be the superior choice for, not just this season, but for every season to come as well.” He knelt and took your hand before staring silently up into your face in suspense; knowing full well that you could simply deny him and find whomever you wanted …and he’d have to let you. Despite his misgivings, you merely nodded your head once and teared up just a bit as if you’d been waiting for his confession for years. Perhaps you had. He stood tall before you with newfound determination for his mission and promised to return to your side as soon as it was finished properly.

The Radio Demon immediately leaned forward to kiss your forehead tenderly and melted into the shadows with a vicious smile to locate his newest (unwilling) partner in crime.

***

This one is the longest chapter I've done yet, but I kinda hate it 😅 It's important because it introduces the lead into the last chapter and our motivation to root against James, but I just can't seem to like it (idk if that even makes sense lol), This is the first time I've tried to write that kind of villain story. What did you think?

-S.S.P.R.

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[chirpsythismorning]

Just remembered that Will sat on the icebox in the van for the 30 hr ride back to Hawkins

[signanothername]

yess love that you made Nightmare a lil mamas boy, like tbh, i feel like he was such a lil mama boys cause he spent all his time with her, like in my opion, no one loved their mom more then nightmare.

but life if Nim was a good mom is sorta iffy, idk, i feel like she loved Dream and Nightmare, but still neglected them. not because she didn't care, but more cause she just wasn't ready to be a mom.

but god the grief Nightmare must of felt after he killed Nim and thought he killed Dream must've been crazy. wonder if he ever wished that Nim came back alive instead of Dream. maybe said that to Dream cause he would just to be a bitch.

but yeah, would love if you talked about what you thought Nim and the twins relationship was like.

HE ISSSS!!! He’s such a mama’s boy and it’s exactly cause he spent all his time with her

To Nightmare, his mom was also his only friend in a way, she was the only one keeping him company, and I like to think Nightmare used to talk to her a lot, about his favorite books and about Dream and about how lonely he felt

His mom was his only confidant and companion

The thing is tho? Yeah Nim was a neglectful mother, a very neglectful mother, and i’d say a horrible one even

Despite Nim’s circumstances in which she’s literally a tree, she’s alive in there and her spirit is heavily rooted in the tree, and by extension, rooted in Dream and Nightmare, she could at any time communicate with the twins, not in a telepathic way, but more in a sensory way, remember how i said Nightmare and Dream have roots that connect with everyone in the multiverse? It works the same way to an extent

Nim can communicate by sending signals to Dream and Nightmare, but instead of it being connected by soul, it’s that the twins are a direct extension of the tree, she could’ve at least made Nightmare feel safe at any point by signaling to him that she’s there, she could’ve made him feel less lonely by telling him she enjoys his company, etc

But she never did, she watched Nightmare cry and let him do so without giving him any reassurance, she cares about the twins but not enough to form any true emotional bond/connection with them, she cared in the sense of feeling a bit of pity for Nightmare’s circumstance but not feel protective of him, she made the twins last second before turning to the tree after all, to her, these are less like her children and more like assets she made to protect her cause she can’t protect herself, and the worst part? They’re replaceable to her, she can always make new guardians to protect herself if she wanted, and she even thought of doing so as she wasn’t convinced that children are strong enough to protect her, that was simply a mistake cause she made them seconds before her “death”

But Nightmare doesn’t know any of that, the only thing he knows is that his mother is there for them but simply incapable of communication, all hopeful and innocent little Nightmare knows is that his mother would burn the world down for them if she could (when in reality she wouldn’t)

And that’s all adult Nightmare knows too, he never got to know how little care Nim had for them

And oh the grief Nightmare feels for his mother weighs down so much, to the point Nightmare wishes he could turn back the clock just so he could stop himself from killing her, but he can’t, and he has to live with that

I wouldn’t say Nightmare wishes Nim came back to life instead of Dream, but he definitely wishes she comes back to life, cause in a way, turning Dream to stone wasn’t what Nightmare meant to do either, to little Nightmare? He just lost his entire family in one night, so when Dream got out of stone, part of Nightmare is beyond relieved, cause for the longest time he thought Dream was dead and had to live with that grief too

And tbh? I think even if Nightmare knew how little care Nim had for them it would eat away at him, but still wouldn’t change his love for her, know how sometimes even when the parent is neglecting or horrible, the child just can’t bring themselves to hate their parent? It’s the same thing with Nightmare, and if Nightmare knew how neglecting Nim is he’d be in even more pain and distress because he would try his hardest to hate her, cause how dare she? But Nightmare would know that he actually can’t bring himself to hate her no matter how hard he tries and it would make him so mad at himself

And y’know, I’ve been actually thinking about why Nightmare would even cut the tree down, even in his state of madness he’d still know not to cut the tree, and I like to think it’s cause the only time Nim ever communicated with the twins at all is during the Apple incident, in which she cursed both Dream’s and Nightmare’s names, she cursed Dream’s name for being too weak and naive for believing the villagers are his friends, and cursed Nightmare’s name for being exactly the demon the villagers deemed him to be, and Nightmare’s actions were instantaneous, one second Nim is screaming at the twins, the next? She’s dead

And Nightmare was just too disoriented to realize what he did untill reality set in

Nightmare and Dream still get nightmares/night terrors as the voice of their mother’s screams haunt them every damn day of their lives

Both twins have to live knowing that the last emotion (and only emotion they got to feel from their mother since they were born) was deep rooted anger and resentment :)

[damn-stark]

Chapter 38 Les

Chapter 38 of Sugar

A/N- I hope you guys like it hehe (I wrote this whilst studying for my PTCB:)

Warning- Swearing, ANGST, fludd, violence and blood, talks of DEATH, Sukuna, SPOILERS!!!! long chapter!

Pairing- Choso x Gojo!fem-reader, Suguru Geto x Gojo!fem-reader

Episode and or chapters- Chapter 253-254

(Let me know if you want to be tagged)

————

*CHOSO’S P.O.V*

There you were, frozen in time, beautiful and radiant as if you were the sun itself. Flashing a flattering smile that could make anyone fall in love with you, in designer clothes he had no idea how much they’re worth or who they’re made by, but with the eyes of a stranger.

You've mentioned multiple times how your eyes changed the day your technique was fully awakened within you and completely erased the person you once were. It happened years before he and you met so seeing a reflection of this old person is completely strange to him. Yet fascinating.

“Hey, I didn’t know she had a billboard out,” Yuji points out as he falls by Choso’s side and looks at a large billboard of you.

“It’s a birthday gift from Hakari and Kirara. They had 28 put up in some cities I don’t remember,” Choso lets him know, making Yuji mumble something he doesn’t catch because of the loud thoughts racing in his mind.

Thoughts he can’t keep inside. “Would it be selfish to say I want to forbid her from danger? Even if she is strong?”

“Hm?” Yuji hums and blinks to look away from the billboard and instead look at his older brother.

Choso slowly reaches for the image of you as he imagines it's actually you before him. “I lost two brothers already. I don’t want to lose her too.”

There’s many things Yuji can say to comfort his brother, all of which sound the same, but could all be lies. You aren’t fighting some common sorcerer, you’re fighting the King of Curses so he can’t guarantee you’re survival, but how can he just watch his only brother suffer when said brother does everything to make him feel reassured when he needs it.

“She’s strong, she’ll survive. And Sukuna has been hurt she won’t die.”

Choso presses his fingers against the cold billboard and sighs. “I look at her and all I see is my future. Since the moment I laid my eyes on her in that capsule. It was an innocent admiration then, but it flourished and now the mere thought of living my life without her horrifies me,” Choso pours his heart and relieves his mind of the tension the rushing thoughts brought.

“Yet,” he talks quieter and with an obvious lump of different emotions stuck in his throat. “I still let her fight. I still watch her and say goodbye. So would it be selfish if I kept her away from danger so I don’t lose my future and everything that’s beautiful?”

Yuji drifts his gaze back to your billboard and doesn’t hide the truth. “I’ve never loved anyone the way you love her, but yes it would be selfish. Sharing your desires and fears isn’t what’s selfish, but doing that against her will would be.”

For the first time since they came across the billboard, Choso drops his gaze and mulls over the wise thing his little brother just told him.

“You’re wise,” Choso compliments Yuji with a faint but proud smile.

Yuji, albeit, wonders if he should be offended that his brother didn’t think he was wise before or touched by such a heartwarming compliment.

“But,” Choso interjects and brings his gaze back to the image of you. “I hope you’re right.”

Yuji watches his brother and thinks back to the moment he was feeling your belly and keeping you within arm's reach. He thinks that it was such a sweet moment, and one he wants Choso to not repeat in the sense that he doesn’t want his brother to hold onto you out of fear he’ll lose you, he wants his older brother to just make more precious memories of his precious life with you.

He deserves it, Yuji thinks. Choso deserves a precious human life.

“I trust her, I know she'll fight hard to stay alive,” Yuji adds one last assuring thing before he walks to his brother to pat his shoulder before leaving the billboard behind.

Choso lingers behind though, and brings his hand down to take his phone out and watch the broadcast, hoping he’ll catch a glimpse of you. But all he’s welcomed with is more worry as all he sees is your domain still hovering above ground.

——

*YOU*

Sharp and violent winds thrash violently, constricting the ability to breathe, robbing the sense of sound with roaring gusts that pull blood out of his ears, and bringing a terrorizing darkness that could make anyone believe they're nowhere, that they are nothing until suddenly bright and hot flames erupt from the ground and tangle with the gusts of wind spinning around you and the beast enclosed with you.

Water accompanies you too, the humidity sticks to your skin and puddles around your feet. As the fire births light to the domain, you can see wet gleaming walls towering over the tornado like never-ending walls.

To any normal sorcerer or non-sorcerer, the plummet in the air pressure alone would’ve killed them, but Sukuna is no normal being, it’s why he’s the King of Curses.

“I knew you wouldn’t die,” you mumble to yourself and notice two of his hands stuck in the Hollow Wicker Basket hand sign, protecting him from your domain.

Or so he thinks it’s what will protect him. Your winds are strong, they can—could break through…Satoru’s infinity and scratch him.

“You’d be stupid to believe this would kill me,” he barks back.

You roll your eyes and put your hands on your hips to snap back. “That’s why I said I knew you wouldn’t. Whatever, can’t you feel it?” You point out the scratch mark that slashes across his cheek as gusts of wind sneak through his barrier.

One of Sukuna’s eyes drop and spot a trickle of blood running out of the scratch. Yet instead of countering, or reacting with frustration, Sukuna smirks and flashes it at you. “You know,” he drags out with that smirk still tugged on his lips. “For a woman, you really caught me by surprise. I commend you.”

Commend?

You always forget he’s ancient.

“You are not so terrible to look at it either, I’ll enjoy eating you after.”

At least he didn’t underestimate you. That’s actually surprising considering how old he is. Which actually makes this fight a little less exhilarating, you like to prove people wrong.

But oh well, you’ll still have fun. It’s been a while since you’ve used your domain, so why don’t you show off? And since you can’t use the sweet revenge of death against him, you’ll show the King of curses pain. Pain for breaking your heart and robbing what was precious to you.

Nanako, Mimiko…Satoru.

Today at this moment, in this fight, he will pay for what he did, he will pay for stealing their lives. He will feel your pain still atonginzimg your heart, and the anger coursing through your blood and casting your arms on fire born from flames burning within you.

Sukuna’s smirk widens to an amused grin, only turning his already intimidating face, actually horrifying. But you don’t let him affect you, your glare seethes with anger and heartbreak as you throw your fist up and rip the piece of the earth that he stands on to hurl it in the air on purpose.

Sukuna figures that out, but you blast off after him with one hand already reaching for his neck. He smirks and turns his arm to throw a slash at you, but this is your domain. Yours! Not his. He doesn’t have unlimited access to the elements, you do, so you drop the support of the air blasting you in the sky and let gravity pull you down to avoid being slashed.

“Tsk,” Sukuna still expresses with amusement and uses the air to make space between you while also fighting the tornado's grip aching to pull him in to tangle with its violent winds.

Nonetheless, it’s like you said, this is your domain, so you catch him off guard by bursting water through the spinning walls in the form of your giant hand, causing Sukuna’s eyes to slowly narrow as he watches how the water-made hand grows several feet high with no limitation. His eyes then drop to meet yours and he catches a cocky smirk playing on your face that ticks him off but also doesn’t fail to amuse him.

However, that amusement is all too quickly wiped off his face when the hand swings down and flings him in the tornado. You don’t fail to follow after him, knowing the winds won’t cut you, or constrict air from reaching your lungs, and your anti-domain barrier won’t shatter. Sukuna on the other hand, no matter how strong he can’t escape needing to breathe. The winds travel so fast and the air pressure runs so high that he has to heave to breathe. And that barrier?

That barrier begins to crack no matter how hard he fights to keep it up, letting you use this falter to lunge at him and manage to slap your hands on his face.

From this close Sukuna can see how glossy your eyes are, he can see the aching pain in your eyes, and the fury within the fires lit in them. If only you were strong enough to actually kill him at that moment, but you leave one thing unaccounted for; he can still slash you using his hands. All he needs is his consciousness and you didn’t take that.

Thus as your palms burn on his skin, and you begin to open your mouth to hurt your throat to blast fire out at his face, he grips onto your side.

You feel his cold hand slap on your body. When you look down you realize at that moment what he's seconds away from doing, and who he could hurt as an outcome, so you quickly let his face go, and kick him back to push yourself out of the spinning winds of the tornado before he could tear your torso apart.

When you land back on solid ground, he manages to pull himself out of the tornado's grip and lands on the ground across from you with a reaction you weren’t expecting. “Your children should be proud to have such a ferocious mother. Not every mother's rage would burn as hot.”

He’s complimenting you. He’s not looking at you with ill intent, or cursing you for getting the upper hand. It terrifies you.

“What you should know though,” he mutters with a hardening stare. “I can play with fire too.”

You nervously clench your jaw and take a step back as you choose to let the tornado go and be left surrounded by just the marvelous walls of water.

Your flames probably can’t kill him, but they can hurt him, and him not healing his demon eyes you burnt proves that.

His flames could potentially kill you depending on how hot they burn and no matter how much you protect yourself against them, but being trapped in your domain can be a good countermeasure, you have unlimited power of your elements, and you can put up a good fight! Countering him will burn up a lot more of your cursed energy, but that doesn’t matter, not with him, not now when you can taste a hopeful end. And it especially doesn’t matter with your pain.

He stands there taunting you, reminding you of all he took. How can you not give him all you got? You’re strong!

You’re not a young and helpless girl who broke a sweat lifting rocks. You’re strong, you're powerful, and you’re vengeful!

Alas, just as you prepare to counter a fire attack from him, he crouches down hastily and slaps his hand on the ground, and mutters, “Spider-web.”

Your eyes widen and just as you prepare to deflect, the ground rumbles beneath you before suddenly it all shatters, leaving you unbalanced and open.

Or so he thinks.

Just as he prepares to find a way out of your domain, the debris is blasted up by wild flames that shoot from the ground beneath you, before suddenly giant fire-made fingers grab the edge of the ground.

The debris Sukuna made finds its way to form around the fire-made hands, while other pieces fall inside the gap and form around a head that rises out of the gap, followed by a woman figure.

When the fire-made woman stands in all her glory, Sukuna notices that the figure reflects you.

Nevertheless, he still finds your gaze between the gap of the figure's legs and flashes an all too menacing glare. But you don’t let that deadly look rattle you, you harden your glare and counter his threat.

“The last person who competed with my fire died,” Sukuna’s voice echoes throughout your domain. “Let’s see how long you remain standing, Gojo.”

You choose to stop waiting and use the figure towering before you to bring a rock-wrapped fist down in an attempt to crush Sukuna. But he of course manages to hold back the giant fist with his impressive strength, using two hands, and leaving one that he can’t use to put up a barrier so he's left him vulnerable.

Thus you use the other giant hand, but first drop the rocks protecting the fire, leaving a bare and bright fire-made hand.

Without a doubt from the corner of his eyes, Sukuna catches your intentions and uses ‘Spider-Web’ again to shatter the rock layer wrapped around the fire-made hand he's holding, before hurling himself back to make distance.

But not enough. He’s still in reach of your fire-made hands. You can hurt him again, even a little is enough.

You’ll show him pain…

And with that fueling your adrenaline, you form both of the fire-made hands into blades and quickly swing at Sukuna.

Albeit you meet his gaze between the gap of your figure's legs and don’t see him trying to counter with fire. Through the roaring of fire, you hear one word that drops your heart to your stomach.

“Dismantle.”

Sukuna flashes you a faint smirk, and as the fire blades swing, long and tall slashes formed like a net come barreling at you, bringing with them your fate with no escape or miraculous survival. And if you died now what would be the point? What have you done besides take his demon eyes?

Nothing. And you made promises, you have Satori waiting for you, you won’t let Sukuna make her an orphan.

Hence with a heavy heart, you dismantle your domain, making everything within disappear along with it, only leaving you, your opponent, and the net of slashes threatening you to meet the same fate as Kashimo.

However, you have an advantage, a gift he didn’t.

“Cursed technique; fire serpent,” you announce and throw your hands out to cast off the head of the fire-serpent that quickly blasts its deadly flames, and barely manages to protect you against the slashes that could’ve killed you, leaving you face to face against Sukuna without the advantage of your domain, but with fire standing tall between you, bringing you a menacing demeanor as you hold Sukuna’s gaze through the flames.

“Standing a little too tall?” He doesn’t ask, he says it in an almost teasing tone.

You hold his gaze even if it feels like if you stare any longer he’ll just somehow kill you.

“What is a King to a God?” You retort.

Sukuna’s head tilts slightly and his eyes snap down and quickly come back up to your face. “If only Nanako and Mimiko had your confidence. Maybe then they’d be alive.”

Nanako and Mimiko, why does he keep saying their names as if he knew them? Him? Their killer.

Why does he keep looking at you like he’s expecting something, does he want to see you over-exceed yourself? Trick you like he did moments ago when he made you believe he’d fight with his fire so you could drop your domain?

Is saying their names some game to him?

It’s not to you.

Why did he kill them? They just wanted Suguru back. Why?

You want to ask. You need to ask.

“Why?” You ask with an anger that keeps building up. “Why did you kill them? They were just girls.”

“Hm?” He hums and tilts his head with an unsatisfied look. “Why not? I was bored and they thought they could ask me for something. You should’ve taught them respect. Tsk.” He shakes his head playfully, triggering your anger to explode, making you clench your jaw, and letting tears run down your cheeks while you dig your heels on the ground, and expand your cursed energy below the ground to connect to the water flowing below.

You also remember them, Nanako, and Mimiko. Their beautiful faces, their faces when they were little girls relieved to be out of the cages they were kept in. You see their smiles and all you want is your girls back. You want your brother back.

But it’s impossible. Sukuna made it impossible to see them again and now he makes jokes out of them.

He’ll hurt…

Thus using your cursed technique, you summon water to explode out of the ground around you, whilst turning off the fire dancing in front of you, and grow the water intimidatingly big as if you had summoned a deadly tsunami.

And even if holding it up weighs you down, you spin it around you so it can grow taller behind you before you blast it at him like a crashing wave, making sure to mix chunks of the ground with it, and not waiting to see if he was hurled back or came out unscathed before you use your speed and zoom forward through the thick body of water, hoping to catch him by surprise,.

Yet when the water falls, he’s no longer where he stood, instead, mere seconds later his shadow casts on the ground, making your eyes widen whilst you spin around and swing your hand back that you bask with fire-built blades.

However, Sukuna is quick, he catches your wrist with one of his big hands, not caring if the fire burns his skin. He then stares at you with beads of water rolling down his forehead before suddenly bringing his other hand up and wrapping it around your throat.

He sees the worm cursed spirit around your neck and tries to grab it but it turns itself small before it can be caught and hides in your pocket, leaving Sukuna to focus back on you and slam you into the ground, causing you to see a glimpse of darkness that was filled with dancing stars.

“So flamboyant, just like your brother,” he sneers. “You’re starting to annoy me.”

At the mention of your brother, you find the strength to throw your legs around his arm and tilt your head down to chomp down on his hand.

“Wha—”

Before he can finish, fire comes out of your mouth, burning your throat and roasting his hand—not like he cared though because he follows by picking you up and slamming you back into the ground multiple times, hoping you’d slip and not protect yourself, but you do and counter back by using your leg and directing gusts of wind to hit him with an uppercut on his chin.

This makes him drop your throat, but you don’t have to appreciate how relieving it feels to breathe properly, you use the wind to spin up and have the upper ground. Sukuna spots you right away and doesn’t come up after you, he claps his hands together, telling you one thing; he’s gonna use Piercing blood.

Hm.

Thanks to seeing Choso do it, you clap your hands together and have fire seep out of your hands and surround them. When you catch Sukuna’s blood arrow departing from his grip, you shoot the fire-made arrow out at the same time.

Once both arrows collide the fire breaks the blood apart and now targets Sukuna, but he moves, so you quickly mirror Choso’s move by making the arrow trail after your opponent.

Sukuna evades your arrow too well though and hurls up a sharp slash that you barely avoid by snapping your head to the side. He then quickly charges at you to overwhelm you and not leave you time to think of a smart counter-measure, but…you’re no teenage kid getting the grasp of your cursed technique and every dangerous attack your world has to offer, you've been taught well, you’ve been pushed, and you learned to not be a weak link.

You can be a monster too. Your hearts hardened once too.

It’s why you collect all the wind in the sky, making thick and dark clouds that cast the city in darkness. You bring the water up that you recently used and summon out more to shoot up and twist with the cyclone of wind. The earth sitting below trembles before chunks fly up and tangle with the growing twister. Lastly, you throw your arms out and use every ounce of strength you have to create fire from within and throw it out to mix with the other spinning elements.

You said he’ll know pain. You said he’ll hurt, so even if all four elements weigh you down and burn through your energy, strength, and cursed energy, you bring down the spinning cyclone on Sukuna before he can reach you, forcing him to slam into the ground.

You then stop using the wind to your advantage on land on stable ground to feed the cyclone with a mother's rage, and a sister's grief. Tears cloud your eyes before spilling out and streaming down the curve of your cheeks. It all weighs down so much that it begins to burn your muscles and hurt your chest, but you see Sukuna shielding himself with his arms to protect himself, you see him creating a crater on the ground as the elements shove him down, you see blood spilling out of cuts that weren’t there before, and that pain numbs.

All that torments your heart numbs away. It all goes quiet except for your beating heart, you feel that thumping in your ears.

Ba-dum.

Ba-dum. Ba-dum, ba-dum…

It starts to race until everything falls deafeningly silent and a flicker of your pain reappears and grows like wildfire, spreading its agonizing flames everywhere to the point you can’t handle it anymore.

You can’t…it hurts too much. So…with a trembling lip and tears streaming down, you cry out and power the fire that burns hot, the wind that cuts sharply, the water that hits roughly, and the earth that breaks away his strength.

It’s all so mesmerizing.

But through that pain and those tears, you don’t see when he manages to find an escape. You see his blood pooled on the ground and grow proud to know you caused the King of Curses the pain you promised, but you don’t see a glimpse of him.

There’s nothing until the hairs on the back of your neck rise, and a chortle breaks through the roaring of the elements. You twist your head back and gasp when you see him above you with a wicked grin brought by you, and the slash that you catch him throw at your torso.

It would’ve killed you, it would’ve cut right through you and left pieces of you, but you manage to catch it in time and drop all the elements you were just using to focus all your power on protecting yourself.

But the slash travels fast and manages to cut you across your chest, and throws you down to the ground with all its force.

Now you expect to face death once again. Your friends after all, but your heart beats, and air travels through your lungs.

You expect darkness to follow, but even if your eyes droop the sky is clear.

It’s all clear, so you wonder through your delirium, if this is what Satoru saw, this beautiful sky before he died. Did he feel the snowflakes fall on his face like you do?

Did he think of you like you think of him now?

Probably not. Most likely not. But what did he feel at those last moments?

Peace, that he finally could stop being the strongest, that his actual moment of rest was in death? Or did he feel disappointed that he lost?

If only you could tell him he fought well, that he gave everyone an advantage by taking Sukuna’s domain, and that he made you and everyone proud.

You want to tell him, and fall like he did, but…death doesn’t come back for you.

“You were a lot of fun,” you hear Sukuna’s grating voice close by. “Really. I had fun fighting you, Gojo. But you were annoying, so I’ll have to get rid of you. Be proud though, you’re strong.”

“Fuck you,” you grimace as you fist your hands.

Sukuna scoffs in disapproval and stops before your feet.

You keep your eyes on the sky and start to think of a way to counter.

Fire?

Sure why not.

Yet just as you lift your hand and Sukuna gets ready to strike, suddenly someone’s feet land on your sides, and the gruesome sound of metal slashing flesh echoes.

You quickly blink and shift your gaze down and see Kusakabe has come in between Sukuna and you. He saved you.

“Go,” he bellows. “Before you can't. Go!”

You’d be stupid to linger behind, and even worse to stay and fight with him with the slash still across your chest because you can still fight so you can’t risk dying yet.

“You owe me for this,” Kusakabe tells you with a strain in his voice.

You drag yourself back and push yourself up even if your arms throb because of the slash on your chest.

“I’m in your debt Kusakabe,” you assure him softly.

“Heh. Hell yeah, now get out. They’ll need you.”

You hesitate leaving him to fight alone against Sukuna, but he’s right, so after one last lingering look at the man who saved your life, you run away from the scene.

You’re not even aware of how far you get because the pain is throbbing and overwhelming, it’s not until you bump into someone that you snap out of your pain-ridden stupor.

“Yuji!” You exclaim with relief.

He calls out your name in surprise and immediately finds the bleeding wound on your chest. He wants to say something, but the sight of his brother turning the corner and joining you cuts him off

“Choso,” you whisper.

Said man wastes no time—albeit he probably already knew you were hurt too by the broadcast, but he still quickly finds the gash on your chest still bleeding and fresh, and a deep crease grows in between his eyebrows while his lips fall to a long frown.

“I’m sorry,” you can’t help but say since you know watching you fight, watching you fall was one of the worst times of his life.

“You’re…okay?” He asks as if in disbelief.

You nod but he doesn’t see it before he strides over and grabs you by your shoulders to push you back against a wall and pull you down to the ground.

“Choso,” you call out, but it goes to deaf ears, you can see the panic blocking his senses. “Cho.”

Said man looks for something in his pockets, but when he doesn’t seem to find it he pulls on his vest, so you grab his wrists even if seeing him with fewer clothes will really help you heal.

“Choso, stop, stop. Take a minute and look.” You interject as you see that you have his undivided attention now. “I’m healing. I’ll be okay.”

Choso’s brown eyes gleaming with frustration and worry fall on your gash and he sees the RCT do its job and mend the deep wound Sukuna gave you.

“The babies, are they okay?” You have him focus on something else, and he immediately gets lost in that feeling written deep in his soul.

When he doesn’t feel any loss he meets your gaze and nods lightly, making you smile and bring one of his hands to your chest so he can feel the rhythm of your heart.

“I wasn’t going to fall to him,” you try to keep assuring him. “I told you.”

You cup his hand and offer him a teasing smile. “Be upset at me if that’s what you want.”

Choso swallows thickly. “You were stupid. Stupidly brave.”

You laugh softly and nod. “Chaotic techniques require risks.”

He scoffs and holds your gaze for a second to appreciate the life sparking within them and thank the stars that he wasn’t staring at dull and lifeless eyes.

“I copied some of the moves from your piercing blood,” you show off proudly. “Did you see?”

The corner of his lips flicker to a smile as he nods, but he doesn’t get to respond because he then drops his forehead on yours and cups your cheeks. “I saw you fall,” he mutters against your lips. “And my world was about to collapse. I ran here as fast as I could.”

You bring your hand up and cup his soft and warm cheek, making him lean into your touch as if he’s gone years without the feeling of your gentle touch.

“I wasn’t going to leave you,” you murmur. “Just like you're not going to leave me.”

“Never.”

A wobbly smile tugs on your lips and he mirrors it before pressing his lips on yours and taking you in for a lingering kiss he needs to just reassure himself that you in fact are alive and standing before him, that you’re not some figment of his imagination, or a pretty billboard.

“I love you,” you remind him after your close reunion with death.

“And I love you,” he doesn’t hesitate to return quickly and with deep tenderness.

You muster a soft smile and steal one last kiss from his lips before watching him sit beside you to let you finish mending your wound.

“Choso,” you call out as you have a deja vu.

“Hm?” He probes and looks at you.

You smile at your fingers on the ground and slowly slip them over his and turn your head to meet his gaze and tell him what you remember. “We were sitting like this after we decided to become allies, remember? It was after I found my daughters. Do you remember?”

Choso pulls his hand out to lay it over yours and cups your hand in his grasp instead. “Of course, I remember. I’ll remember when I turn old and can barely get out of bed.”

You chuckle and he smiles at you just because he hears you laugh.

“That’s when I knew you know,” you tell him what you haven’t told him before.

“What?” He presses curiosily.

You hold his curious gaze and share your truth. “That you had a good heart and that we were going to be great friends. I knew since that day that I didn’t want to live without you in my life.”

His lips tremble but he doesn’t let himself cry, he just offers you a wobbly smile before bringing your hand up to kiss your knuckles.

“It hurts?” He asks.

You know what he refers to but you find a moment to tease him in your sudden shift from pain to slow relief. “Falling for you? Worth all the pain.”

Choso blinks in confusion, while you notice Yuji’s annoyed reaction.

“Oh,” Choso gasps and snorts as his cheeks grow a bright shade of red. “Well, I was wondering about your gash.”

You lean your body towards him and shake your head. “It’s slowly going away. I’ll be good to go in a few minutes.”

Choso shakes his head. “No, you said when you got hurt I could pull you away. You got hurt, deeply. You can’t go back.”

“Uh,” Yuji breaks his silence.

You and Choso look up and see two shadows approaching before you see Larue and Miguel.

“Good luck with that,” Miguel announces their entrance. “You’ll have better luck raising the dead than making her sit on the bench.”

You knew they were hanging by nearby waiting if they were going to be needed, or if they could go home unscathed. But still seeing them meet up with you makes your breath hitch.

“We saw you fall,” Larue directs at you with concern painted all over his face. “And we decided that we couldn’t hide in the shadows any longer.”

You’re annoyed that they didn’t tell you about Kenjaku and everything that came with that business, but after losing your brother, and after fighting for justice for Nanako and Mimiko, seeing your family fills you with relief and bliss that you hide however.

You slowly stand up with Choso’s help and stare at them nonchalantly, making both Larue and Miguel wait for a cold shoulder or a quip. You approach them and they draw in a breath. And when you stop before them they both share a knowing look, but ultimately you close the gap with an embrace around the both of them.

“Oh,” Miguel mouths.

You lost Suguru, Nanako, and Mimiko, your brother and so many others, how can you stay mad at them when life has taken so much?

If they died today and you never get to make up you’d regret it your whole life, so with this tight embrace the grudge and that anger you had against them melts away and you’re left with a beaming grin, and bliss that you have them here with you.

“I’m not glad you guys are here,” you mutter, “but I am happy that you came.”

Larue rubs your back before you pull back to face them.

“Who is happy to be here?” Miguel remarks. “No one.”

You scoff in amusement and Larue grabs your shoulder to check on your wound.

“It seems you’re healing fine.”

“You’ll fight with us then? When it’s our time to go next?” Miguel goes off Larue’s comment.

“No,” Choso answers for you but you ignore him and answer for yourself.

“Yes. I have some fight left in me even after. I can keep him busy,” you assure them, Yuji, and Choso. “Just don't expect any more big moves.”

“But your domain must’ve taken a lot from you,” Yuji interjects. “How could you possibly still have more cursed energy right now?”

“She’s a special grade for a reason, kid,” Miguel argues. “It’s also why she can’t sit back for that reason.”

“Unless you guys have some kind of family technique I don’t see why she needs to be out there,” Choso tries to protest.

You and Larue giggle at that comment before you walk over to your husband and grab his shoulder to reassure him. “You’ll be with me this time, you can look out for me this time. Make sure we’re okay, hm? Just don’t ask me to stay behind when my family is out here risking their lives.”

Choso glances at Larue and Miguel and shoots them a warning. “Just don’t ask her to pull anything dramatic. She doesn’t have the energy for that.” He then drifts his gaze back to you and narrows his gaze to a threatening glare. “Use weapons as much as you can from now on. Leave your technique for when you really need it.”

He won’t get off your back if you don’t make any kind of agreement so you agree to give him some peace of mind. Besides leaning more towards weapons from now on is a smart idea considering you don’t know how far Sukuna wants to take this fight. You might need your technique later for something bigger.

“All right. Fine.”

Choso holds your gaze and looks as if you’re being deceitful, but when he sees that sincerity behind your eyes he lets out a relieved deep breath and shares it with soft words. “Thank you.”

You offer him a sweet smile and plant a peck on his cheek, making his lips twitch to a smile.

“You remember Larue and Miguel right?” You make sure to ask since he hasn’t had the time to really spend time with your family.

“Yes,” Choso says and steals a glimpse at them. “They were at the wedding, I remember.”

You turn to face your family to ask the same thing about Choso but Yuji then interrupts.

“Can I ask you something, Mr Larue? Are you not cold?”

You snort and cut in for him before he can respond. “No. You see those hearts on his chest? They're heat warmers.” You smirk and bounce your eyebrows before you take your phone out and continue to snicker.

“Really?” Yuji falls for it.

“No,” Larue blurts. “That joke is old.”

You chuckle. “Like you.”

“We’re the same age, but my knowledge and wise spirit do make me older than you,” he counters smugly.

You look away from your phone and look at him with a quirked brow. “The only thing you are is a know-it-all. No one likes those.”

Larue feigns a laugh and you turn around swiftly but peer over your shoulder whilst Choso turns with you, and you interject before Larue can say some witty comeback. “Careful,” you feign a pout. “Or mommy is gonna get mad.”

Choso’s eyes snap to you and his cheeks grow warm, whilst Miguel remarks.

“What the hell did you just say?”

You start walking out of the alleyway to go and help Kusakabe since you doubt he could keep Sukuna entertained for long.

“It’s a true statement I am mother,” you argue between snickers.

“I hate when you refer to yourself like that, it’s weird,” Miguel spats.

You ignore him and click on the broadcast and see just as you assumed, Kusakabe falling after being slashed.

At least he lasted a few minutes, you’ll give him props for that and not running away. Oh! And for saving your life. You owe him.

“Well,” you sigh. “Looks like we’re all up now. Larue, Miguel, you take Sukuna from above, I will go with Choso and Yuji from below.” You tell them affirmably.

“Hm,” Larue hums in comprehension, and with no need to argue, he just worries. “Be careful, you have a little one waiting for you. You’ve already been hurt.”

You stop in your tracks and turn to face them with a sad smile. “You two be careful too, we have a family dinner waiting for us after this is over to welcome the new members to our family.” You mention and glance at Yuji to let him know he’s included, and lastly look at Choso with a soft smile.

Choso eyes soften and he faintly mirrors your gentle gesture with appreciation that you included his little brother too.

“We’re fighting together,” Larue says with a slight smirk. “Like we always have, that’s a guarantee to our success. We’ll see you out there.”

You hum in agreement and watch until their figures are out of sight and all you is an empty alleyway.

Lately, life has been cruel. Maybe it’s what you deserve for all the evil you’ve done. Life is just collecting its justice, but you just hope—no pray, that you won't lose no one else.

You’ve never been a super religious person, but you know above everything else that the ones you love, cherish, and pray will live, don’t deserve that anguish. Maybe you do, you know how karma works, you recognize you’ve done bad things, but all you want from now on is for life to not be so cruel to them. Please…

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Tagged- @deniseabad1928 @secondary-character-25 @starlightanyaaa @notsaelty @d4rno @moonnime @kodzukein @yozora7154 @heijihattorisgf @elegantweirdorchest @natakina

[zeestarfishalien]

Part 13: My Bones Became a Drip

No TW for this chapter (let me know if I missed anything)

Masterpost/chapter list

Recap:

Jason spins, eyes wide and searching, landing on the glowing white haired teen and his unconscious brother draped across their arms. Even with the cape still covering Tim’s face, he knows it’s Tim.

And the teen…

oh…

The teen is Spooky, Danny. He’d recognize that funky jumpsuit anywhere and those eyes are the same Lazarus green eyes he sees on a canid face every damn day.

He’s frozen mentally. Physically he’s moving forward to check Tim’s vitals and look for any obvious signs of injury but it’s all autopilot, all things that were drilled into him so that it became second nature, so that he could function even when his emotions are running wild like they are right now. He’s furious and relieved and anxious and surprised and ecstatic and so much more nuances of the same. It’s a cyclone of vicious emotions attempting to claw their way to the surface, fighting each other for the top spot.

His instincts purr, they’re safe they’re safe family is safe , while he gets on coms with Oracle to make sure she knows they’ve got Tim and that he’s alive.

Gingerly, he takes Tim off of Spooky’s hands and hoists him onto his hip like he’s a sleeping toddler so he can free one of his hands.

He gently reaches out to ruffle hair that has the same wispy feeling as before.

“Thank you,” he says quietly. Family , his instincts say. I love you , says the odd rumbling tone that ripples out from somewhere in his chest.

Danny clicks and a similar rumble in higher pitch comes from him and somehow Jason knows that it means, I love you too. Family.

[I felt we could all use a little refresher but on to the new chapter!]

Jason wants to cry and rage at how long it takes him to notice the way Danny scratches gingerly at the skin around the collar on his neck. They’re in the bat cave waiting to hear news on Red Robin’s checkup. Danny had followed, a ghost of a thing, barely visible most of the time, and his feet had yet to touch the ground after he passed off Tim. However, he stayed with Jason. He didn’t appear nervous, but neither was he eager to explore the wonders of the world around him.

When Black Bat sent him a little wave, he perked up a little, tilting his head to the side, assessing the vigilante. He slowly raises his hand in a small wave back.

Immediately after, his hand reaches up to ever so carefully shift the collar.

“You okay, Spooky?”

Wide bright green eyes snap to Jason in some form of surprise.

He nods, but the hollow groaning sound that emanates from his body tells a different story to Jason. It says, uncomfortable, burns, powers hurt, not enough energy.

“Is that collar dampening your abilities?”

Danny opens his mouth to speak only for the syllables to catch in his apparently raw throat. Raw from smoke? The collar?

He coughs, and Jason can hear his lungs rattling on the inhale. Spooky….

The chirp from Danny speaks clearly, some, not all.

“Well fiddle sticks…let me get Z or one of the other magic guys on the phone and see if we need magic, tech, or both to get it off.”

The cracking and groaning that comes as a response is more emotion than actual words, but it gets the message mostly across. His situation isn’t urgent. The power he holds is too great for the collar to block much of. Danny shares the way that the power flows over and around the collar like it’s an annoyingly large boulder in a stream. It may block the most convenient route, but the water will still find a way to go downhill.

“Still…” he argues. “If it’s not comfortable, we should find a way to get it off.”

Danny shrugs like it’s of little importance to him. Jason knows that kind of attitude. It’s very common among the hero types.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spots Dick watching them. His brother mouths, “I can call her,” and Jason nods his assent. He already owes her one favor. Let her pay back one of her debts to Big Bird.

~•~

"Heyyyyyy Z..."

"The next words out of your mouth better not have anything to do with that mind boggling fiend of Jason’s," she rattles off bluntly.

Pressing his lips together, Dick debates how to reply, but evidently his silence is reply enough.

She sighs. "What is it this time?"

It's probably better to get straight to the point. "They've got a suppression collar on."

"What? But that's not possible. The size of the device capable of completely suppressing that spirit's powers would have to be..." she trails off as something occurs to her. "Except it's not fully suppressing their power, is it? We would have noticed that."

"Yep. Got it in two," Dick says cheerfully but his smile doesn't last. "They seem able to use most of their abilities fine, but whatever material it's made from irritates their skin now that they're back in their body."

"Good to see I'm the first to know" she cuts back sarcastically.

"You are. It all just happened tonight. They rescued RR from a warehouse fire. They've been following Hood ever since."

There's a long pause and then she sighs again.

"Is RR alright?"

"He will be. He's resting now, nothing he shouldn't be able to recover from, but he'll be down for a while," he lets warmth trickle into his voice. He appreciates her asking about Tim’s health. Not everyone makes that effort.

"Okay, well that might complicate things. If we're going based on past experience, whoever collared Spooky is probably the same person or people that put them in that wretched abomination of a coffin. Which means...tech," she ends with a sigh. "Specifically, mad scientist levels of tech. I swear I'm going to strangle whoever is behind all of this wretched spirit-tech when we find them because I don't know that I can get that collar off without it blowing up in our faces."

"How should we approach this then?"

He can hear another long drawn out sigh from Zatanna's end.

"Lemme....Let me talk to Marvel and I'll get back to you with a game plan."

"Thanks Zee!! You're the best!!"

"Fuck you, Dickwing."

She hangs up before he can quip back so he just smiles at his phone.

~•~

Jason turns his attention back to his spooky friend.

“What’s on the agenda now that you’re free?”

The spirit freezes. The temperature around him drops, too. He frowns to himself, and stormy eyes look a little lost.

“You can stay with me until you figure it out. I’d like the company. Your company specifically,” Jason offers softly.

He nearly breaks down at the look that slowly dawns on Danny’s face. It’s like Jason gave him the world in his little selfish offer. All Jason wanted was to keep his companion.

“Thank you.” The words are half garbled and sound like they had to have hurt coming out, but Jason understands them all the same, and that’s all that matters.

Black Bat sidles over with a long strip of thin cloth in her hand, some scrap of non-conductive polymer used on something or other. [reference to City pigeons bleed green?] Jason is not sure where she got it from, but she holds it out and gestures to her neck with the other hand.

Spooky drifts closer and carefully snags the hanging end of the cloth, careful not to brush his fingers against Cass.

“May I help you?” She signs, repeating it slower when Danny looks confused. Jason is about to translate when comprehension dawns on Danny’s face.

He looks to the cloth and then back to Cass before slowly nodding. He dips back down to the ground, the tips of his toes brush the floor, and replies with sign, though it’s simple and hesitant.

“You hold.” He demonstrates holding his collar up at the narrowest part of his neck.

Cass nods and replicates his action. Danny carefully eases the cloth between the bare skin on his neck and the collar. It’s a tight fit, but he manages to make it work.

Jason steps away for a brief moment, returning with a needle and thread.

“Want me to tack it in place so it doesn’t slip?”

Danny nods, but his eyes follow the needle in Jason’s hand closely. He makes sure to move slow and steady so Danny doesn’t startle or panic. It takes a few minutes to sew together three separate spots on the fabric to hold it in place on the collar, but it’s done with no fuss and no panic on anyone’s part.

Danny is more relaxed by the time Dick peeks out of the changing rooms and meanders back over.

"It's good to see you up and about Spooky. Sorry we gave you such a cold reception. We get a little single-minded when one of us is injured," Dick says amicably.

Danny shrugs but doesn’t seem interested in attempting more communication with the man. He looks dead on his feet, no pun intended.

Dick for his part, tries not to show his disappointment in being ignored.

Alfred appears in the doorway, looking pristine as always except...ah, there's a few wrinkles in his suit, and his worry lines are deeper than usual.

"Master Tim will make a full recovery given time and rest. Luckily, he avoided the worst of the smoke and was rescued before things got out of hand." He aims that last part at Danny who ducks away and flickers in and out of sight from the grateful tone.

Jason stands and stretches with a long groan. It must have startled Danny because he blips a few feet before catching himself and drifting back close to Jason.

~•~

The brother, Red Robin, Tim... is okay. He's alive and being checked over by professionals. That's really all that matters to Danny.

He is tired though.

That's part of the reason why he doesn't give much of a response to the energetic one, Nightwing. The other part being that this one's words and actions don't match what he's actually feeling. He's clearly, at least to a ghost's senses, masking and shoving all of his emotions and problems into a box that will one day explode on him.

Sensing that sets Danny on edge. He doesn't like that false cheer, one so deeply ingrained that even Nightwing might not know it's false.

Luckily he doesn't have to attempt to summon energy to respond because the elder gentleman comes out to let them know that Tim will be okay.

His gratitude towards Danny has every part of him squirming beneath his skin. People don't just...thank him. Not before... and he certainly hasn't done much now to garner that level of acknowledgment. He has to fight to stay visible even as they're leaving. He doesn't want to worry Jason.

Previous | Next

I'm so excited to post this finally!!! It's been a rough one to wrestle with and it's definitely a little funky round the edges but I'm still happy with it.

I think there's a reference to City Pigeons Bleed Green by @clockwayswrites Go check out their stuff it's amazing!!! I could be wrong on which fic it's from but it's definitely one of Clock's works. (Lol pun intended)

As always, please let me know if there's anything confusing (sometimes I word stuff strangely and it doesn't make sense).

I am part way into the next chapter as well, but with my life how it is at the moment, who knows when I'll get it finished. Could be tomorrow, could be 6 months from now.

Next chapter is a good one which is part of what made this one so hard. I can't wait to write and show y'all the developments I have planned. I can't wait to see it myself!

Anywho, thank you so much for your support. You guys are amazing. Don't forget that.

[spooky-circuits]

JD would absolutely unintentionally overstep, but instead of it being because he's self-centered, it'd be because he's so damn relieved that seeing any of his brothers is alive he doesn't see the warning signs. Like, he might not recognize Branch at first because he's grey, but the moment he does, he is sweeping him into a hug and clinging to him. He's very gandsy, always wanting to be holding onto or be in physical contact eith Branch in some way because he's scared the moment he's put of sight or loses contact it'll turn put to be some messed up dream.

He still tends toward treating him like a baby, definitely shows off his baby pictures, much to Branch's horror and everyone else's delight. Like, they knew by this point Branch was actually quite cute, grey skin and gloomy attitude and all, and he was even more adorable as Bitty B, but they never imagine just how cute until they got the pics.

Both Creek and Poppy want a wallet sized copy of the perm.

Satin and Chenille are very much making plans for color coordination both if and when Branch regains his colors while also keeping his more practical taste in mind, of course. At this point, they're pretty sure he'll start regaining his colors again. They just aren't sure to what extent and how, and they want to be ready to make sure he's fashionable when it happened now that they know what his true coloration is.

JD will also probably apologize, albeit probably in a more offhand way than the heartfelt one Floyd gave. The guy isn't exactly the best with emotions and is a little overwhelmed by his youngest, whom he thought was dead, just showing up. I also think he'd have Rhonda, but the little lady is a bit too small to use as transport. She's still an armadillo bus puppy.

This is surprisingly spot on for what I had in mind!

Creek and Poppy both wanting baby pictures makes too much sense. Creek claims they’re for blackmail but we all know the truth.

As cute as baby Rhonda is I am hoping to use her as a set piece for having examples inside about how difficult of a time JD has been having with the search and he needs a place to store the stuff he took from the troll tree. Though him with a big backpack like in the concept art could be funny. He just has like a folding conspiracy board in there. Everyone notices the similarities to Branch.

[chicago-pd-is-weird]

Hey! I'm wondering if you can write a oneshot centered around Al, Hank and Trudy's friendship set after the events of season 5 episode 22 if Al had survived the stabbing? With the angst that comes with being stabbed, but ultimately a happy ending.

Thank you :)

Hey!! Yes! I am so glad you requested this. To be honest, I went back and watched the scene and I teared up - I miss Al so much! Ugh…

So, I fixed it for us! Here we go!

I really hope you like it! :)

Hank ran as fast as he could to catch up with Alvin’s gurney. When someone tried to stop him, he said the only thing he could, “Chicago PD.” Pushing past the security guard, he took Al’s hand. “Al. Al it’s me. You be strong - you hear me? You hang in there, Al.”

“I got this, man.”

The words from his best friend sat in Hank’s stomach like a rock. “I know.” It was all he could muster, seeing Al like this.

“I got this.”

Hank nearly wanted to burst out in tears. He tried to give some hope, for himself and Alvin. “I know. They’re gonna fix you up. You’re gonna be- You’re gonna be okay.” The stutter he hadn’t meant to have, but he was choking back his emotion to be strong for Al. Suddenly, their hands were pried apart as Al was taken into surgery. Hank couldn’t follow.

He waited outside the doors for hours. Hours and hours and hours went by. It felt like an eternity, the hope in his heart being the only thing that kept him from strangling anyone who couldn’t give him an answer.

“I’m Sergeant Voight, CPD,” he would say, over and over while showing his badge. “Detective Alvin Olisnky, is he alright?

“He went in there and hasn’t come back out.

“How is he?”

Over and over, he would ask in a different way each time. He talked to doctors, nurses, surgical staff. They all had the same answer.

“I’m sorry, sir, I’m not sure who that is,” or, “I wasn’t on that case, sorry.”

Hank paced, eventually melting against a wall to begin praying. He wasn’t a man who prayed often, but being raised Catholic, he found it to be some kind of panic response. Over and over he would ask the staff what was going on, and he would receive the same replies each time.

Eventually, the waiting became mind-numbing. He stared up at the light above him, wondering if that was the last thing Alvin laid eyes on - the lights. He was nearly brought to tears, but pulled himself back, knowing Alvin would fight. He couldn’t die. Not like this. Not for Hank.

He was pulled out of his small meditation by people passing by. He paced again, waiting, wondering, watching. Finally, another doctor came out, one he swore he saw earlier when Al was wheeled in. “Excuse me, doc, I’m Sergeant Voight, Chicago PD. Detective Alvin Olisnky. Is he alright?”

The doctor stopped and turned to Hank, then nodded. “He is being taken up to the ICU. The surgery was hard. He’s not out of the woods yet.”

“Can I see him?” The words spilled from his mouth before he even knew what he was saying. Hank was relieved to know Al was alive, but had to see for himself. It was his fault, after all.

“Talk to the nurses at the front. They’ll find the room number.” The doctor walked away.

Hank went to the elevator, moving back toward the front. He knew his entire team was waiting for news. There were ten other people in the elevator, but he barely cared. Al was alive. It took everything he had not to break into tears from relief.

When he entered the room where everyone else was, he nodded to them. “He’s in the ICU.”

Each one of them seemed to physically relax, some sinking into their chairs, and others nodding back to Hank. Hank turned to find the nurse’s station, Trudy hot on his heels. “Hank,” she said once they were around the corner, out of sight of the rest. She put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

“It’s alright, Trudy, I’m going to see him.” Hank turned to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. “It’s alright.” He sounded like he was trying to convince himself.

“I know,” she replied. “He’s my friend too, Hank. And so are you.”

Hank nodded, but didn’t say anything. He didn’t notice the tears that had escaped his eyes until Trudy wiped them from his face.

“It’s going to be alright. He survived the surgery. Olisnky is strong. Stronger than the both of us combined. Remember when he got shot in the leg and didn’t even say anything?”

For the first time in a long time, Hank cracked a small smile. “That’s Al… He never wanted to bother anybody.”

Trudy smiled softly and nodded. “Yep. He’s strong.”

“You know… You know what he said before he went in there?” Hank wiped his own face now, unable to stop the tears from flowing. He was shaking, just relieved that Al was alive. “He told me, ‘I got this, man, I’ve got this,’ you know, and all I could say is ‘I know,’ because what else am I supposed to say? And that… that was all. Then he was wheeled away.”

Trudy nodded and pulled Hank into a hug. “Al is strong,” she repeated. “He’s strong and he’ll get through this.”

Hank nodded, sniffling as he held Trudy tightly. She needed it as much as he did. They squeezed one another in a tight embrace for a long moment, something that didn’t happen often. Then, they broke away, each wiping their own face.

Trudy looked at him with a confident nod. “Let’s go see Olisnky.”

Hank nodded and both of them moved to the nurse’s station. Hank got the room number and moved quickly with Trudy to find it. When they did, they each went in as the nurse finished up taking Al’s vitals. Hank moved and sat closest to Al, by his side, taking his hand and holding it tightly in his own. The steady beep of the monitor brought back horrible memories of Camille when she was in the hospital. He could barely stand it, but took comfort in knowing that it meant Al was alive. Trudy sat in the next seat down, a hand on Hank’s back for comfort. She was also relieved to know Al was alive and in recovery.

—

Hank and Trudy took turns sitting beside Al for hours. A nurse would come in to check his vitals every so often, but had no news to share with them. Hours went by until Hank couldn’t stand it any longer. He looked at Trudy, shaking his head. “This is my fault,” he whispered.

“Hank, it’s not and you know it.”

“It is. If I hadn’t-“

Trudy shushed him. “Al would do anything for either of us. You know that. It could’ve been me, after my father was killed. Al would’ve taken the heat just the same for me.”

Hank sighed, his breath shaking. He hadn’t eaten in hours, and he hadn’t slept in weeks since they started going after Al. He looked at Al, then back to Trudy. “I was going to confess on the record tonight. If this hadn’t happened, I’d be in his place now, and he’d be home.”

“Then who would run intelligence? You do more for this city than anyone else. I’d rather have you out here than in jail.” Trudy shook her head. “I know Al feels exactly the same way. Why do you think he took the heat instead of throwing you under the bus?”

“Because he’s an idiot,” Hank replied.

“That’s not very nice,” came a ragged voice beside them. “Is that how you treat your friend who just got shanked in prison for you?”

Hank stood quickly, having never let go of Al’s hand. He squeezed it softly. “Al, dammit, you scared us.”

Trudy stood with Hank, a hand still on his back for comfort.

Al looked between the two of them. “You look like disappointed parents.”

Hank let out a breath, something of a laugh, tears brimming his eyes.

Trudy did the same, taking Al’s other hand from across the bed. “Well, Olisnky, guess I’ll have to cancel the coffin.”

“Nah, keep it,” Al replied with a small hole of his shoulders. “How old am I again?”

“You got plenty of life left in you,” Hank said, shaking his head. “Don’t even think about leaving me.”

Al looked up at them both. “I told you, man, I got this.”

[handsome-edvard]

Hot take for the Robinwest nation

I think the scene in season 1 where she gives him the puppy eyes could have been more interesting if he did stick to his firm NO. He storms off and that’s the end of that.

But what if that was just the set up?

Cut to the Robinsons scrambling to figure out how to make it work with just John’s weight in the shuttle, and Maureen is stressed but determined in her calculations, and Judy is clearly considering going with her dad when-

Enter Don West, clad in a bright orange spacesuit, swaggering into the passenger seat of the shuttle saying, “If anyone asks, I got paid for this.”

“Don?” Maureen gasps.

“A lot,” Don carries on, settling into the co-pilot station. “And if I die up there I better get a statue. My own holiday on Alpha Centauri.”

And Maureen is smiling in disbelief and John is skeptical but at a loss, and Penny and Will are relieved. Don sees all of that but he hasn’t looked at Judy. Not yet.

Thing is he didn’t see her behind him in that room when Maureen and John tried to sell him on the idea, and he told them to send him a postcard.

He’d said no because it is his life on the line too, he likes being alive, and doing the right thing does really suck.

So he doesn’t look at Judy right now as he doesn’t know what he’s going to find behind those big brown eyes that previously beseeched him to help. The ones he couldn’t stop thinking about later.

She had looked so devastated by his refusal, so vulnerable, that he is honestly not sure risking his life is enough to get her to talk to him again.

Probably for the best.

He flipped that tanker for her and he lost the money, then they lost Evan eventually. It was all for nothing. From where he’s standing, doing things for Judy doesn’t help him in any way, and that’s a problem because he can’t seem to stop. It’s entirely irrational.

He locks eyes with her later on, after various trials of his recovery time in test launches. He’s even more sluggish with each trial but it can work. They can do it. Don can’t tell what Judy is thinking and she looks away just as quickly as he does. But one thing he knows for certain is how she looks when she’s pissed and this — is not that.

Now they’re about to leave and Don needs an excuse to be near Judy one last time. Debbie clucks beside him and Don figures if he dies up there with John, he should make sure the lucky chicken is with someone else, maybe bring them a bit of extra luck like she did for him.

“I don’t want your chicken,” Judy says, when she realizes what Don has for her.

He thought she looked almost eager when he called out for her (it was endearing, really), and the way she rolls his eye at him right now is—that’s what it is.

That’s what does it for him.

The reason he’s risking even more than he already has is not because Maureen asked or because John needs someone else in the shuttle.

“And I don’t want to hurtle through space in a tin can,” Don replied, “but here we are.”

She doesn’t seem mad at him, not anymore, and that’s good enough for him. If he goes out doing something for her, it’s good enough for him.

He’s a decent person who has been dealt a bad hand and it’s still so awkward for someone like him to admit he’s a smuggler—he never liked that word—and the thing about Judy is, when she looks at him, it’s like she can see who he actually is underneath everything.

That’s why all her appeals to his better nature always succeed. It’s how the prior caught-off guard No eventually turned into a Yes.

It’s not just his life on the line, it’s her life too, and everyone else’s lives. He wants to reaffirm that he is a better man than everyone thinks, that they are past the money.

“Bye Debbie,” Don says gently.

“Don?” Judy calls after him just as he turns to leave. Her eyes are different, almost shimmering with emotion. Doing that thing from earlier but for a different reason. “Hey, try not to die up there, okay? Make sure you fight.”

There it is. Now he knows for certain they’re back on good terms. Beneath the hefty space suit, a flutter blooms in his chest.

Judy is preparing herself for the possibility that they may never see each other again. Don gives her a smile. He wants her to remember him well.

“Do my best. See you on the other side.” He winks at her and departs, hiding his own bittersweet smile.

. . .

When the shuttle explodes as it hurtles through the atmosphere Judy lets out a scream before she even knows it, and her eyes fill with tears for her Dad and for Don, because Don didn’t want to do this. She tried so hard to convince him and she thought she failed until he came back and strapped into the copilot seat.

And now he’s gone. He’s dead because of her. How can she live with that?

. . .

But then when she hears his sweetly bruised voice through the comm, thick with emotion, her eyes fill with tears again. “Are you crying?”

“No?” Don says.

“Yes you are!” Judy laughs and cries a little too, already thinking about when she’s going to see him again.

“They’re happy tears,” John confirms.

Don is so heroic. He made it. Judy is overjoyed and she can’t wait to hear his voice his person, to see the crinkles near his eyes when his smiles begin to form.

. . .

Don shuffles a few paces behind John Robinson. He knows the family is going to be all over the man, so he figures he’ll just give them some space. Although he’s been thinking about Judy he can’t let that show in front of everyone, and so when he becomes aware of her presence, Don tries his best to maneuver around everyone and maybe go see about Debbie.

But Judy pulls away from John and comes to him. Her eyes are full of admiration and pride and relief. It’s crazy how one person can make him feel like he’s a hero among men.

“Hey Doc,” Don says, watching as her arms extend. He catches her quickly, glad to see someone is happy to see him, and not just anyone — her. “That’s right Judy, I am amazing.”

Judy laughs, her arms tightening around him, basking in his warmth. “I’m glad you’re okay,” she says softly.

“Yeah. Me too.” Don pulls back to see that something is different about Judy’s demeanor — like calling her princess might do some things to her. “You good?”

Judy nods. “Never better.”

[fullofhevrt]

[ he/him, cis man ] greetings to all of our listeners! we start today’s potterwatch with a long-awaited update on mason dursley who was finally spotted alive just last night, wandering the streets of london. for those of you who haven’t tuned in before, they are a twenty seven year old muggleborn wizard who is oddly reminiscent of lips that don’t know how to lie, faint laughter lines adorning tired eyes, arms too small to hold all those you love close, sunlight breaking through the night, losing yourself in work which makes sense considering their protective, compassionate, trustworthy, arrogant, impulsive, and stubborn nature. you might know of them as the biological child of dudley and aurelia dursley, and we’re sure that their family will be relieved to hear they’re safe and sound — or at least as much as you can be, in times like this. to all our listeners, if you catch a glimpse of someone who looks a bit like that muggle alex fitzalan, that’s them. before approaching, please be aware that they’re rumored to be affiliated with the order of the phoenix, so best proceed with caution. these are dangerous times we’re living in. well, thanks for tuning in, folks. we���ll play ourselves out with not strong enough by boygenius.

It all happened so suddenly when members of the order showed up to his door, his parents were far from excited. His mother especially. His father understood better than his mother and against his wishes, convinced her to allow him to attend school. There was always a part of Mason that knew he didn't belong and now it all made sense. He didn't understand fully what it would mean to leave his muggle home for the wizard world and the risk he would have to deal with considering he was a muggleborn or that he'd end up losing his mother along the way. Mason was raised Catholic along with his younger sister Anthea and was very involved in the church growing up. He was an alter boy and even attended catechism throughout the week. Having someone come and tell Auriela that her son was a wizard was blasphemy to her. Her emotions getting the best of her and reminding Mason if he went through with it, he would not be welcomed to heaven and that she would no longer have a son. All Mason knew was if he didn't do this then he would regret it and so he went with his father's support though it wasn't much either. Due to obvious reasons, he hasn't returned to the muggle world. Attending scholomance, Mason felt like he finally belonged somewhere. He quickly found his place in Ravenclaw and was able to make friends and even joining Quidditch as a Chaser. Learning has always been his strongest quality and so it didn't really surprise him that's where home was. Though Gryffindor was a close second. It was easy to fall into place considering at the beginning it was a lot like his muggle school but regardless, Mason always excelled in whatever he put his mind to. No longer having contact with his parents, Mason decided to stay and help his cousins and friends the most he could, finding comfort and a second home with them though he misses his sister dearly. He decided to join the order of the phoenix, moving up rather quickly due to his determination and dedication. He is currently a dragon rank, proving that he has the heart and determination to help any way he can which he's engulfed himself in fully to avoid thinking too much about everything else.

He’s always been very dedicated to his career to the point that his friends often have to remind him that there is life out there besides working but it’s just easier to Mason to engulf himself with something to do. He often needs people who will pull him away from working and remind him to breathe and just try to enjoy life though this is no easy task for them, Mason feels like he doesn’t have time to be messing around. A bit of a workaholic in that way. He has a big heart and definitely always tries to keep a smile on his face because someone has to.

Fun Facts.

He was very dedicated to his studies and is always trying to learn something new. Its the only way he's been able to keep up his positivity.

Always tries to see the best in people

Rarely ever seen without a smile, has a lot of repressed anger though

A little sarcastic now and then and over protective but always means well.

He doesn’t tell many people but he tends to push his limits with his magic.

He's finally open about his bisexuality. This was something that always caused tension with his mother as she was a very devoted Catholic and part of the reason why she cut contact with him which has lead to inner conflict within Mason even years later. He is aware that he’s bisexual but there is so much internal homophobia that he is unlearning little by little.

He is very loyal to his friends and will go to the ends of the earth for them.

[lolathestoryteller]

Thanks for the ask, Anon — I’ve never written anything like this before, so please have mercy :)

(continues to nervously press „post“)

magical dreams

„Harry Potter…come to die…“ Voldemort says, his pale face showing what must be actual joy as he raises his wand directly at Harry, who looks into those blood red eyes with defiance.

He curls his fingers into fists at his sides, barely resisting the urge to draw his own wand.

There’s a moment of silence, where time itself seems to stand still, before Voldemort‘s shrill voice echoes loudly through the forbidden forest.

„Avada Kedavra!“

Harry closes his eyes as the curse rushes towards him, ready to die protecting those he loves, just like his parents had for him, years ago.

He falls into darkness, to be forever claimed by its finality…

But then—

He wakes up.

„Harry!“ Someone gasps close by. „You’re awake! Oh, thank god,“ and suddenly he’s being hugged — the only thing he sees is a curtain of blurry red hair.

Red hair? And that voice…

„Mum…?“ he whispers, pulling back from the suffocatingly tight hug. „Dad…?“ he asks, noticing the familiar man sitting in a chair beside his bed.

What’s going on? Am I dead? Is this…some sort of afterlife?

He looks around, his head spinning as he notices, much to his further confusion, where he was.

Why in the world am I in hospital?

So…he isn’t dead? But his parents…they’re here…

„You’re…alive? But—“ he blinks at them, his parents, both alive and looking very concerned. Then, suddenly, he remembers. „I fell…I was skating…on my way back from school…“ and finally, it all makes sense. „Was it all just a dream?“ he mutters, not sure whether he’s relieved, or worried he made up an entire magical bloody world in his head.

„Son, you— you’ve been in a coma for some time…“ his Dad says gently — his Dad! Harry sits up at once, reaching out instinctively to grab onto him. „Dad!“ he says, only half aware of what he‘d just heard.

His Dad immediately stands, leaning closer to hug him tightly. „I’m so glad you’re awake.“

„We both are.“

Harry lets go of his Dad to look to his left, into his Mother‘s tear filled eyes. „How long…was I out for?“ he asks quietly, allowing for her to sit down next to him, her back leaning against the headboard as she gathers him into her side.

„You hit your head pretty bad on the sidewalk as you fell…“ his Dad explains as Harry leans closer to his Mother. „The doctors said— you…were very seriously injured.“

„They had to put you into a medically induced coma,“ his Mum goes on after a moment, her voice quiet and strained with emotion.

James nods, reaching out to take Harry’s hand. „You’ve been asleep for almost two months.“

Harry startles, sitting up and staring wide eyed at his Dad. „Two months?“ he asks loudly. „That’s…“ he shakes his head in disbelief. Two months…he‘s missed two months of year ten…of his life.

At least I’m not at war with an evil maniac, he thinks.

„Are you alright, darling?“ his Mum asks gently, reaching a hand out to touch his back.

„Yeah…I think so.“ he replies, not really sure how to feel. „I just— I had the weirdest dream, you know. It all started a few days before my eleventh birthday…“

[chidoroki]

182 Days of TPN - Day 119

Chapter 119: “Encounter”

Ever since the escape, the WM pen gave Emma hope, insight and a sense of direction, so seeing her drop something she held onto so tightly now that Norman is back is kinda satisfying I guess? He checks off all those boxes for her sorta. She doesn’t ditch it completely though as we see it used later on before the GF raid.

Goes without saying but the reunion was done so much better in manga. All the emotion from Emma reflecting on their time apart hits so hard and of course seeing all the tears they’re shedding contributes to all that too. Also love how they decided to give this moment a double spread as it helps convey that there’s no longer any space between them. The only thing that would’ve made this scene better (for me) is if Emma had knocked ‘em both down to the floor. I know Norman became taller and probably a bit stronger physically since Lambda, but with the amount of speed and force Emma is putting into that hug I’m surprised he’s still standing.

At least the anime remembered his squishy cheeks.

I know this is a very touching moment but honey, why do you gotta say this so causally?? You’re sure as hell ain’t gonna get it back either!

I guess another reason why the manga handles this whole reunion better is that it includes everyone, not just Emma & Ray. Yeah the anime had the escapees see Norman later at that temple they were hiding at, but it didn’t feel the same. As much as I can appreciate the fullscore trio having their own little moment for themselves, I like seeing everyone’s reactions all at once since there’s a wide range of emotions on display here. Emma also looks so pleased with herself with how large their family has become.

I wish there were more chapters focusing on Norman’s time at Lambda. With how closely he was being watched, I can’t help but wonder how he managed to efficiently communicate with Vincent and Smee and how he orchestrated the whole escape without raising suspicions from the demons and Ratri clan working there. (remember when i said no human (on our side) has killed another? well, i forgot about this whole scheme.. so it seems norman has quite the kill count, even if those were done indirectly by an explosion.)

Few chapters ago I wondered if Hayato & Jin knew to look for the escapees based on seeing Norman’s ID or if he told them both what to look for, and though I believed the latter was the valid reason, I can’t doubt the first option now either since his number is in plain sight. I know he typically hides it when outside paradise when attacking farms and making deals with demons so perhaps that’s why I even questioned it in the first place.

Big history lesson incoming.

Favorite panel/moment:

And to absolutely no one’s surprise, of course Ray slapping the hell outta Norman is my favorite. The anime pales in comparison to the sheer amount of power and lowkey rage behind manga!Ray knocking this boy on his ass. The shock on everyone’s face is hilarious as well. At least Norman is a good sport about it.

The rest of this moment is still sweet though, like Norman quoting the letter he left Emma and seeing my boy finally break and have some tears flowing makes me wanna hug him.

To hear the boy who cursed his life and had plans to end it all come around and say he’s happy to be alive is just.. aaahh so so very important!!!!

I do like how the anime gave us a better look at his face with this line though.

And I got nothing against the panel of Emma down below (because it is adorable how she questions her sudden inclusion in the hug), but I love how relieved she is upon hearing such words from Ray.

Stupid is a term of endearment. And I wish I could say we can never let this trio be separated ever again but.. you know. Stuff happens.

[watermelonsloth]

How would your infinite tsukuyomi dream end? when did it started and how to end it? let's not consider boruto as canon but go with the end of gaiden and do you have links for other analysis which talks about this possibility

I’ll be honest, it took me longer than I care to admit to realize what you were asking. I’m hoping I can still read and you’re asking how I’d ideally write the infinite tsukuyomi working off of Gaiden and ignoring the Boruto anime/manga.

Assuming that’s what you’re asking, I have a couple of ideas:

First the Rules

Everyone was put under the genjutsu by Madara at the same time. (It doesn’t make any sense that the susanoo would block it out.)

The reason we saw team 7 fight Madara and Kaguya afterword, is because the genjutsu is designed to basically gaslight you into thinking that it’s reality. It tells you everything was just a bad dream or quickly brings whatever was bothering you to a conclusion.

The infinite tsukuyomi works on two principles: It can only reflect back whatever is in the victim’s mind, so it can’t create someone/something the victim can’t conceive of (ex. can’t create “true peace” in the mind of someone used to conflict, can’t create a world with dead people alive in the mind of someone who can no longer imagine the world with them in it). The dream continues on a linear path unless distress or suspicion is detected, in which case it will only change to relieve those feelings.

The dreams aren’t perfect. They’re based on what the person wanted at the time of it being cast and will make as few changes as possible (think of it like a computer made to find the most efficient way to keep everyone happy. it’s the ai art of dreams, except with less art theft). On top of that, it can’t recognize complicated emotions. So bittersweetness, reluctant contentment, dissatisfaction, anxiety, disappointment, etc. aren’t considered “distress” and won’t cause the dream to change.

Dreams aren’t identical with each other and dreams aren’t mixed like in Road to Ninja, but some people are able to affect the dreams to some degree.

Different people have different levels of awareness when it comes to whether or not they know they’re dreaming. Generally, the better someone is at genjutsu/spotting discrepancies in their chakra, the more likely they are to notice.

Now, What I’d Do With This

The status of everyone at the beginning:

At least a year has passed since everyone went under the genjutsu, but the Rookie 9 aren’t in their thirties like they are in Gaiden. I’m thinking they’re in their early-mind twenties.

Kurama didn’t break Naruto out because Kurama is under a dream of his own (they do have separate consciousnesses after all). Naruto is in blissful ignorance in a dream about being Hokage, Sasuke being in the village, the world having rebuilt itself and being a peace, him having kept his promises, etc. It would probably look very similar to the Boruto world. Kurama would probably be trapped in a dream about Naruto being happy and him and the other tailed beasts being free.

Sasuke took a while but he figured out he was under the genjutsu, probably because he isn’t used to things coming so easily to him. His dream, given when the genjutsu was cast, would have him acting as Hokage fighting for world peace and security. Despite this, he’s neglecting his “duties” to instead search the world for a way out.

Sakura was aware pretty much from the start and is in denial (Denial is a river in Egypt, Sakura! This is a dream!). Regardless of what her dream is, everything would be tinged with guilt. With the nagging question of whether she’s doing the right thing. She’s meant to be a realistic character and I think it’s very realistic to prefer fantasy over reality. Just think of all the people who use escapism (via books, movies, tv shows, video games, sleeping, etc) as a coping mechanism.

The rest of team 7 is blissfully ignorant all throughout because it either wouldn’t make sense for them to be aware or their role would be redundant. Same goes for every other character except its because their character is passable as they are or the ship has sailed and them suddenly becoming relevant at the end would be more confusing than satisfying.

One the outside, the four Hokage are still trying to break everyone out of the genjutsu while Madara is bored, watching them try and fail repeatedly. At first I can imagine them fighting each other (verbally and physically), but at this point they’ve all realized there’s no point. The Hokage are the only thing keeping Madara even marginally entertained/sane and fighting Madara only wasted the Hokage’s time. At most, they throw jabs at each other.

The Plot:

This would be very Naruto-Sasuke-Sakura centric with cut aways to the few people on the outside.

Naruto and Kurama would find out about the dream because their chakra networks are still linked so whenever they try to tap into the other’s chakra, they see glimpses of the other one’s dream.

Black Zetsu would either be an obstacle within the dreams or be reabsorbed into Madara because he isn’t really needed.

Naruto would have an arc choosing reality and choosing real people. Since he had spent much longer than Sasuke or Sakura fully believing that the dream was real, he got much more connected to the fakes inside of it (both real people that he didn’t get to interact with much in the real world and fake people his imagination/dream conjured). I think he would know very early into becoming aware that he wanted reality, so most of his arc would be him teaching/forcing himself to say goodbye. (Demon Slayer spoilers: picture the scene of Tanjiro leaving his family from the Mugen Train arc)

Sasuke would have an arc about what you want not necessarily being what you need. I think instead of him continuing with his revolution/world peace goals, he would return to his roots and instead focus on finding peace. Maybe some spreading awareness stuff, but most of his arc would have him choosing to instead focus on what he still has, maintaining what he has, and restoring whatever he can of his clan (its honor, its culture, its place in the village, etc).

Sakura would have an arc about self-acceptance. I interpret her as carrying around a lot of shame and self-blame, so I imagine her keeping herself in the genjutsu because she’s ashamed of who she is in the real world. This would have her moving forward with the newfound awareness that there’s no shame in being who you are and it’s never too late to do better.

Because I’m biased and I think it’s fitting for a story about understanding others to end with the day being saved because of understanding, I’m giving Madara a redemption arc. So, Madara would be going through team 7’s character arcs all at once. He learns to choose the real world with all its flaws over a fake utopia, he learns that finally grieving and coming to peace with all that he’s lost is what he really needs over the world peace he was chasing, and he learns to stop blaming himself for the deaths of his brother/s. His story would be full of the Hokage and him talking about why they wanted peace, their dreams to become Hokage or bring change, their experiences in war, what they’ve lost, etc. and him slowly deciding to help them free everyone.

The End:

Team 7 gets into contact with the outside somehow. Maybe one half of Kurama communicates with the other half. Maybe Madara can tweak the genjutsu but can’t break it (because that would be too easy). Maybe Tobirama makes a jutsu. Maybe Hashirama, Minato, or Naruto use sage mode to interact with the tree holding everyone. Maybe Sakura finally uses that talent for genjutsu that’s been being hyped up for the entire manga. Whichever you think makes the most sense.

So team 7 and the Hokage + Madara come up with a plan to draw a huge amplification seal around the god tree’s trunk and using that seal plus a bunch of chakra to pretty much perform the biggest genjutsu release ever. It’s not enough to break everyone out at once but it is enough to get Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura out and send a shockwave through the rest of the tree. Everyone notices that shockwave and gets suspicious. So the infinite tsukuyomi starts stretching its chakra thin trying to cover it all up. Because it’s stretched so thin (it is covering everyone on the planet), the genjutsu is weak enough to break. Some ninja, especially those good at genjutsu, start breaking themselves out. For everyone else, team 7 + Hokage + Madara is doing a race against the clock to release everyone they possible can before the infinite tsukuyomi stabilizes itself.

From here, the Hokage + Madara would either leave after everyone’s been released or after the world has gotten back on its feet after the war. I’m leaning towards the latter for two reasons: 1. Along with the symbolism of the old generations passing the torch, there would be the symbolism of generations working together for a better future. 2. Madara could pass what he knows of the Uchiha clan onto Sasuke since Sasuke would’ve been too young to remember most of his culture.

I don’t think Madara should stick around any longer than the Hokage (y’know, leaving the world in the next gen’s hands), so he’d have to die somehow even if it would be a pretty dark end. I’m thinking seppuku style.

Did I just answer an ask by basically plotting a fanfiction? Yes. This wasn’t supposed to happen, but I apparently had a lot more than “a couple of ideas”.

[vollzz]

1.What is your character's biggest fear, and how does it affect their actions and relationships? 4. What are your character's quirks or eccentricities that make them stand out from others? 9. What is your character's moral compass? What principles or values do they hold dear? For Eves

hey thank you for asking!! I will take every excuse to talk about eves :)

1- I’m going to say two fears because they’re pretty intertwined: they’re terrified of abandonment and no longer feeling loved. It’s not completely the reason Eves is the way they are, but those fears have warped them significantly over time. It’s absolutely why they are the only deity that has physical/emotional relationships with their followers. Eves also “relieves” Lovers of their service after a while partially as a defense mechanism - they can’t be abandoned if they do the abandoning first. A big part of Calliope’s struggles in their relationship is Eves’ extreme jealousy, to the point that they’ve killed someone she tried to befriend in the past out of fear that she might leave them for someone else.

They seem to be drawn to people with similar issues (although for wholly different reasons), though I can’t say they’ve done enough introspection to realize that! Calliope is no different, which is why she latches on to them so quickly/easily.

These deep-seated issues are very much related to why they despise Greylin, the lord of deities, so much, and is also why they have an estranged relationship with [???] 👀

4- First with the obvious: Eves ALWAYS stands out in any setting because they’re effectively the hottest being on the planet, and they generally let some degree of their alluring powers transcend the area around them. We see this really early on when Calliope and Eves are walking through a town and despite Eves having their hood up, practically everyone is craning their necks to look at them (they know Cal is annoyed by this, but see answer above - they NEED to know that people are interested in them at all times).

I think the other thing though is that Eves likes to express themselves through their makeup and clothing, I’d say both consciously and unconsciously. Their most precious belonging is a raven-feathered cloak of mysterious origin, and they are almost always seen wearing it EXCEPT when they plan to do/expect something gruesome. As if they don’t want to taint the cloak, almost. Makeup-wise they always wear some amount of eyeshadow/eyeliner and it often correlates with their mood. There’s a couple scenes later on in Blackflame that really show this: in one, they appear very disheveled and have smears of black makeup under their eyes as if they’d rubbed them while forgetting they wore mascara, and in another they line their eyes with a bright red shadow that mimics their fiery temper in the way that it clashes with the gold of their irises.

9- This one’s interesting, because I feel like a traditional moral compass doesn’t necessarily apply to immortal beings. My thoughts are that morality can often come from a place of wanting to make a difference, wanting to be remembered for good and help people etc, but in writing these deities I wondered what kind of morals someone would have if they knew they would ALWAYS exist. Like, if you do something horrifically awful, does it really matter when everyone who will remember you for it will be dead in 100 years? At what point do you become existentially bored and start doing random chaotic bullshit just to feel alive, you know?

So with that said, at this point in time Eves, and all of the deities, err on the side of generally neutral and self-serving, though some of them are more benevolent that others. Eves really only does things that make them feel loved and wanted, and will also do anything to get under Greylin’s skin (whether that thing is morally “good” or not). They don’t really find anything wrong with using their Lovers to satiate their needs for love and companionship, and even thinks of it as doing them a great service - in their eyes, spending time with them is a privilege that people would die for!

There is one thing, however, that they are very, very touchy about. Eves is very outspoken that their powers don’t create desire where it doesn’t exist, so if someone genuinely weren’t attracted to Eves they wouldn’t feel the pull of their alluring power. We see this when they interact with followers of other deities - their hearts/souls are taken by their vows and so they can’t feel Eves’ power anymore. So Eves has never, and will never, sleep with someone who doesn’t want to, and will absolutely murder anyone who suggests otherwise.

—

This was really fun to answer! Thanks anon :)

[irresistiibles]

i was gonna do small little starter calls and changed my mind so under the cut is a post event plotting/starter call with little bits on how everyone is doing post event! i haven’t fully decided what i’m keeping/dropping but i know i’ll drop a lot, so feel free to message me if there’s something you really want to keep, but chances are if it’s not plot or connection heavy i will wind up dropping it. if you want something transitioned or time skipped to post event just let me know! otherwise all of my characters are under the cut with some little blurbs on how they’re doing! i’ll also be using memes as a way to get some new stuff going but in the meantime feel free to like to plot or reply with who you want the starter from/for! this is a long post underneath the cut i’m so sorry

achilles (2/5) : honestly he’s a little shaken. something about it all just did not set well with him, the violence, being out of control, everything, so he’s on edge and as a result a bit of an asshole but like when is he not honestly

starters: josh washington, dream

amber (1/5) : she had a fun time! i mean it was a little more stressful than a standard sparing matching but she’s not all that mad about it. they will be going around offering cleanup help or whatever else to help with repairs though

starters: noelle

asami sato (1/5) : very glad she didn’t murder korra. very over the city being like this. honestly she’s just trying to regain some normalcy though what even does normal mean around here. is gonna deal with her stress by being a little reckless but it is what is is

starters: lettie hatter

chihiro ogino (0/5) : honestly between not going on a date and being a little head empty even at the best of times chihiro really wasn’t all that affected by any of this. sympathetic to people’s issues though and happy to listen while she’s chilling

starters: ?

ciel phantomhive (0/5) : aware again! ciel is back to his typical ways of being a condescending rude little shit. he’s a little shaken, having his pile of memories which are mostly bad forced back on him really wasn’t a vibe but he’s not expressing that and will probably just be even more difficult to deal with than ever for a little while

starters: ?

emily davis (0/5) : i already did a starter call for her when i took her but if anyone else wants one lemmie know. she’s more stressed finding out people who should be dead are here than with anything regarding valentine’s day to be honest

starters: ?

esther mckinnon (2/5) : well her mom doesn’t know who she is so that’s a big pile of stress she’s not happy about. she’s used to these things happening but usually with people she can argue with and insist that she knows them, so figuring out how to express and deal with these emotions might be a bit of a time

starters: cleo mckinnon, stitch

glinda upland (1/5) : very upset! that she killed her best friend! needs some support some people to vent to or whatever because she’s loud and emotional no matter what’s happening and this is actually something worth being loud and emotional about 

starters:  addison wells

jin ling (0/5) : very relieved he didn’t stab anyone this time. stressed about the people he knows who are now unaware but will be acting annoyed about it. the stress of having such a big fam to check in on after things like this has him mostly just tired. he needs a whole nap

starters: ?

lily evans (3/5) : event over means she now has to go on the mission of making sure all of her friends got out of there alive which is always a task and a half. she’s glad she avoided everything but damn, could the city relax? tense but will be out helping people while trying to get back to normal

starters: fleur delacour, ginny weasley, rubeus hagrid

mianmian (0/5) : somehow both embarrassed and relieved that her murder attempt didn’t work. note to self rat poison is not guaranteed to kill a person. lesson learned. she’s gonna want to be a real hermit after this nonsense so someone come forcibly drag her outside please

starters: ?

madoka kaname (1/5) : avoided being shot through the power of being an upbeat lesbian so honestly she’s feeling pretty good. will be running around trying to help with recovery in whatever ways she can and get back to normalcy as she figures out what’s going on with her and homura. happy to have some friends of any kind

starters: tifa lockhart

mob (1/5) : Stressed and upset. he was supposed to have better control of his powers and then this happened. sure, rosemary was alright but that doesn’t make them feel a lot better. also trying not to be too stressed in case that sets off more destructive powers so he’s having a rough time. trying to keep to himself and focus on improving his jogging.

starters: benjamin

nico di angelo (1/5) : glad to have control over himself again. back to his usual of trying to avoid people and figure out why people don’t die long term here. he’s so bad at socializing but please give him a friend anyway he deserves it and is nice at his core i promise

starters: t.k. strand

nie huaisang (2/5) : freshly unaware! come be his friend he’s lots of fun. busy getting his phd in art history though i think he was something boring like a business major so he could have actual money before pursing his interests. give him some drinking buddies, people he tutors, pretentious museum friends, literally whatever

starters: childe, jin guangyao, elliot alderson, lan xichen

san (0/5) : killed someone but isn’t stressing about it tbh. killing a human is a positive in her mind though they don’t love that they lost control over themselves. she needs more human friends so she can chill a little please (or a nonhuman friend who understands her confusion and distaste for the city who makes her worse whatever)

starters: ?

shang qinghua (1/5) : was fully stabbed and is currently recovering. he’s gonna be achy for a little while and avoiding potential arson accusations. yeah he did it but that’s not the point. he’ll be whining about his injury but also bored from it and wishing he could run around and do more. he’s annoying sorry.

starters: sha hualing, luo binghe

shi qingxuan (1/5) : fully updated memories now and is having a bit of a time with it. honestly someone be their friend and give them a distraction. not sure about all of her usual lavish activities but if you want someone to hang out with and drink really cheap wine with qingxuan is great company. despite everything he’s trying his hardest to be optimistic.

starters: xie lian

toph beifong (05) : best valentine’s day ever tbh. a little stressed and upset about hurting innocent people. toph loves to fight sure, but she is a good person at her core and wouldn’t have wanted to go that far in usual conditions. could probably use a bit of cheering up, which for toph means reckless behavior so join them for stupid decisions and fun

starters: ?

victor nikiforov (1/5) : uh man is mostly confused about what the actual fuck went down. glad he didn’t get hurt or hurt anyone but seriously what was any of that. any normal people who wanna hang and wonder what the actual fuck this city is he is your guy.

starters: yuuri katsuki

yin yu (1/5) : does not realize his boss was killed and is now unaware because he’s too awkward to just ask why he’s being weird and is just assuming the guy forgot his name!! he could really use some chill company everyone he knows is A Lot and though that balances him well after something like this he would really just like some quiet

starters: yin yu

zagreus (0/5) : honestly? had fun. he’s apologetic about anyone he tried to fight, and will just apologize if needed but he loves to spar, and this was just a more intense version of that. he’s feeling hype after everything, loves being out of the underworld, thinks mortals are fun, and is getting a really messed up idea of what the human lifestyle is like

starters: ?

zhongli (1/5) : not feeling great ngl. he killed someone, and though he’s not the type to get really distressed he still doesn’t feel good about it! gonna keep himself busy with nice meals, visiting museums, and keeping himself busy with work so feel free to give them some company!

starters: childe

[whiskeysmulti]

Haru, when she looks at Gokudera, she is often feeling a big mix of different emotions depending on the day, the situation, etc. The majority of the time, she feels happy. She adores him, and feels lucky to be with him. I do believe that as they continue to progress through their relationship, she learns to allow him to spoil her and so she will come to associate seeing him with feeling cherished. There is awe in the sense that he’s quite big within the Vongola, being a guardian and the right hand no less, and he’s a genius- so there’s also that to marvel over. One of those full-hearted feelings because she loves him so much. When they’re apart, she does miss him, but then when she glances upon him, it’s one of those moments where it’s like “I missed you way more than I thought I did, wow look at him. I can’t believe he’s mine? Don’t now how I survived being away from him until now” kinda dramatic thoughts.

Now, if she found out he had bullied Lambo or something, then obviously looking at him elicits irritation and annoyance as a feeling. That said, she still looks at him and feels love for him and all that. None of that changes, but anger and annoyance definitely pushes the other things aside for a bit and takes center stage. Will say that some of this is the same if she notices that he’s feeling down- possibly from insecurities whether it be about his illegitimacy or what. Though, her anger isn’t directed at him but at whoever made him feel this way. Still, it is a feeling that comes from her looking at him seeming hurt- so it counts for the meme. Tack on sadness from seeing him looking upset. It’s a heartaching thing to see the love of your life hurting.

If he’s physically hurt? Then obviously fear and concern are the biggest presence of the feelings she’ll feel when looking at him. She may be a smidge angry because who did it? Who hurt him? She wants to have a word. (not that anyone would let her… HUFF!) Ultimately, she’s relieved that he’s by her side again and still very much alive.

So then… for kicks- she doesn’t really like to see him fighting because she’d be concerned, BUT if he’s defending her? Like scaring off some creep? That’s hot. She likes that. Wearing his glasses? Also hot. When he’s being a bit assertive with her? Hot. I’ll throw it out there, if he comes at her from behind and she looks up at him, at just the right angle, she likes the view (lol). I’ll also admit that she likes it when he smirks, which isn’t to say she doesn’t like his smiles. She does, but i’m going with a certain topic here. Will also… casually admit, like I’ve mentioned before that Haru is an emotional bean, so if you appeal to her emotions, that’ll have an effect on her. Therefore, if he’s looking her over and looking like he’s in the mood to just throw her onto the bed, that will indeed prompt a reaction from her. All of the mentioned is a way to bring about a feeling that should be spoken about on Sundays lol. Do with that info as you will. ((OOC: for the describe how you muse feels when looking at mine meme))

Describe how your Muse feels when they look at my Muse.- no longer accepting!

.Whiskey. Yes. This guy sometimes istg intentionally gives her mixed emotions.

NGL, I honestly half expected to get a joke response with this at first akin to something like "She feels happy, until he opens his mouth."

But joking aside, this is very on point for how we've plotted their ship out and their general interactions too. We agreed at the start we liked their bickering couple vibe and went with that and the rest kind of filled itself in with chemistry as we went along. It's kind of funny to see how it progressed so quickly because the chemistry was there and everything else was plotted on discord. There's a lot that he feels when he looks at her too, which we've talked about there's those thoughts of her making a good wife one day, of how annoying it was when they were younger and he had to watch her fawn over Tsuna, the guilt he felt too knowing it wasn't gonna happen because Tsuna was his best friend so he probably already heard him talking about Kyoko, which we discussed is more evident in the manga than anime and some of those moments where he did get angry with her, usually she was going on about how she'd marry Tsuna and that can be taken as him either being sick of her talking about it, or jealous that she wants his best friend, not him. Lol, yes his bullying of Lambo is one of the fastest ways to ignite her fuse and he's thankful it doesn't change her opinion on him, because there are some girls like that. I headcanon he probably had some of his fan girls approach and then at the first sign of his temper they fled. But Haru has proven to him she can take it, she doesn't like it but she's not going to run off crying just because he's in a pissy mood that night. Agreed. She's the one who has seen him come back injured like that, she was the one who nursed him back to health in many cases. She's the one who knows just how bad his injuries are even when he's in his "tis but a scratch" denial phase. And it shows in the way she cares for him that there's something there. Because she's not obligated to stick by him while he recovers but she always has.

And I will keep that in mind lol that certain looks can get her in the mood, but as you said, that's better for a Sinday meme. Thanks for sending this one!

[aerodaltonimperial]

More please?

(have some emotional support horror blorbos)

He catches sight of her out of the corner of his eye, during a practiced fast-walk in the airport terminal en route to baggage claim. The sight trips him up, knees knocking together; one ankle slips behind his other leg and he almost tumbles forward. He stops, because he can’t figure out why she’d be sitting like she is when they’re at their final destination. She’s hunched over, arms around her torso and waist bent, hair falling over her knees in little waves.

Jack turns around, backtracks, and sits down in the seat next to her. “Hey,” he tries. It sounds about as pathetic out loud as it had in his head.

Anna doesn’t answer, but her arms tremble more, so he knows she heard him.

“Do you have checked luggage?” When she nods, he continues, “Do you want to go and get it together?”

Maybe he shouldn’t offer. Is that something exes should do? Is that something appropriate when you come out of the bitter post-break-up phase only under extreme duress, after trauma has wrapped its icy fingers around both your wrists to keep you joined, after you’ve both moved on a little, in the butterflies-in-your-stomach, gentle kisses sort of way? Fuck, Jack doesn’t know. He wishes he had a manual for this.

“Those people died,” Anna whispers, muffled a bit against her hands.

Jack doesn’t know how to respond to that, so he just gums out a simple, “Yeah,” for lack of anything better.

“They died, but we got out,” she says.

“Don’t feel bad about that,” Jack tells her, with more sharpness than he intends. “Don’t feel bad for surviving; never that.”

Anna lifts her head. Her eyes are rimmed with purple bruises and a few black streaks where her mascara has been dragged across her skin. “Why did we get to live when they didn’t?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“We shouldn’t have—”

“Anna, don’t,” he interrupts. He’s pretty sure he knows what this is; isn’t there some kind of official term for this? Don’t soldiers get this sometimes? “We just did. We’re still alive. You can’t go down that road, you can’t start doubting everything.”

“How can I not?” she asks, finally bristling, a stroke of anger in her system. “We came out of an impossible situation alive and there’s no explanation as to why.”

“Sometimes there isn’t an explanation. Sometimes things just happen.”

She goes quiet, contemplative. Jack doesn’t really know if anything he’s said can possibly help. She’s so deep in her own doubts at this point, he’s probably not the right person to pull her out. Maybe Julia can talk to her, rationalize some things. It helps to know Anna’s got someone, actually—a tiny bridge over the river of their decidedly un-amicable split. The rage he’d felt for months is gone now, glossed over by everything that put his world in a harsh perspective.

Jack stands up and holds his hand out for her. “Let’s go.”

It doesn’t feel strange when she takes it. It doesn’t even feel strange when she keeps her fingers curled in his as they make their way down to baggage claim. Maybe, they can make their own rules on this. Maybe they can be friends now, now that life’s pulled the rug out from under their feet.

He gives Anna’s hand a little squeeze, hoping he can pass a little of whatever she needs on, and is relieved when she squeezes back.

“Let’s get dinner soon,” he says.

“Together?” she asks, and he understands what she means even if the word rings deceptively simple.

“Yeah. All of us.”

++

He used to find solace in the quiet, dark corners of the backstage corridors, back before…well, before. He used to like how calm things would feel without the fluorescent overhead lights beating down on him, and now—now it’s the shadows he fears, the unknown. Hook still wants a quiet place to unwind, though, so he moves slowly through the halls that are brightly lit and ignores the tiny off-shoots he would once have crept down. The end of this hallway sports one of the industrial stairwells: good lighting, few dark patches, and easy viewing both above and below.

It’s pretty fucked up how those are the sorts of things that Hook looks for now. He pushes the door open, though, and realizes he’s not the only one. He pauses for only a split-second before moving in and settling on the top step next to Darby’s seated form.

They make it for five minutes or so before Darby sighs, stretching one leg out in front of him so his combat boot scrapes against the cement. “It’s the dark, isn’t it.”

“Yeah.” It doesn’t even make sense, really; they’d been in the woods, not the shadows, but it’s the unknown that lives in the lack of light that feels the most dangerous. It’s the possibility that escape isn’t an option any more.

And here they are, the two people from their sorry little rag-tag band that, for whatever reason, had always been the primary targets.

“You sleep?” Hook asks.

“Like shit,” Darby replies.

Misery shared, it seems. Hook loops his arms over his knees, drawing them closer. A bit of dirt has smudged across the top of his sneaker, so he wipes it clean with his thumb. “How’s your shoulder?”

“Better.”

Hook thinks it’s a lie, but he isn’t going to push it. This is weird, and it isn’t. He doesn’t really like Darby. And the problem is, he’s pretty sure Jack does.

“If you hurt him,” Hook starts, slowly, rolling each word carefully over his tongue, “they’ll never find your body.”

Darby stares at him. “Are you giving me a shovel talk?”

“I’ll hurt you way worse than those things will.”

Another lie. Darby huffs out a little laugh, toeing at the ground. “Yeah. Alright.”

“He’s a good person,” Hook says.

Darby takes a long time to respond to that. “Yeah.”

“Good talk,” Hook says. At least thinking about that weirdness helped him forget, for a few moments, about the constant need to look over his shoulder at all times he carries around now. He sighs, dragging his hands down his face. What a clusterfuck. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, I was just…well. You know. Trying to find a place. Do you want me to leave?”

“No,” Darby replies. There’s no hesitation there. He stares at his boots and draws his tongue across his lip. “You can stay.”

“Okay.”

Hook stays. They sit in almost companionable silence until they can’t put off the return any longer, and then they head back to medical together. Hook wouldn’t call them friends, but he’s pretty sure they at least aren’t enemies any longer.

And at this point, he’ll take any win he can find.

++

“I’ll just be five minutes,” Julia says, and Brody nods. He doesn’t look over again, because he’s always been good about respecting her space and wishes. Julia slips out the door, and heads down into the basement.

There’s nothing down here but the janitor’s closets and the electrical rooms. Any room will serve fine, but she’d rather be comfortable, so she picks out one of the small rooms that houses the larger floor cleaning machines. Someone has put a chair up against the wall—she sits in it, crossing her legs. The threads hum.

She leaves the lights off, so the room is black.

Then she waits.

It doesn’t take long; he’s predictable like that. The air beside her chair shimmers, the air sizzling with the energy he brings, the kind of change that most people are oblivious to.

“Have they found him?” Julia asks.

“No,” Danhausen replies. “Danhausen gave the doctor the coordinates, but they haven’t.”

It’s the answer Julia expected, but didn’t wish to receive. She sighs. “They won’t, then; not there anyway. He won’t stick around an area now crawling with personnel.”

“None of them will.”

Julia taps her fingers against her thighs. She is off-balance; she doesn’t <i>like</i> being off-balance. She has worked very hard to steady her footing, and seeing it slip away is like a punch to the gut. “That’s three, then.”

“Two out of containment, and one…that never was.”

“It wasn’t just us,” she says, quietly. Even in the dark, she fears that someone could be listening in. The walls have ears, after all. “They weren’t just after us.”

Danhausen is silent for awhile. She has pressed on a bruise, a sore spot, and he always needs time to readjust after that. “No,” he finally admits. “They weren’t.”

“This could get dangerous.”

“Isn’t it already?” he shoots back.

“We may not be able to protect them. If it comes down to it, can you do what needs to be done with 049?”

Danhausen doesn’t hesitate this time. “Danhausen will split him open from navel to nose.”

“Good.” Julia nods. “We will need everyone.”

“Can they help?” he asks.

She considers this. There is a different type of strength in the others, one that isn’t threaded as magic in their veins, but it’s strength all the same. “Yes. They may not think they can, but they will.”

A pause. And then: “Julia. How are you?”

Her arm aches. The web remains as a tattoo, left behind and slightly bumpy. In the mornings, her sight is cloudy and she cannot find the right cords. But she says, “Yes.”

“You’re not a very good liar,” he chides.

“Only around you,” she says, and smiles.