#and my parents are nosy and controlling and I know they’d find a way to figure out what I was doing

[lesbianstarlightglimmer]

Yesterday at the fair I split off from my parents with my brother and we went to look at one of the buildings but then my mom decided to use find my iPhone to locate me and had the audacity to complain that her 26 (almost 27!!!) year old child doesn’t share their location like. Hello.

[spectrumed]

4. body

Do I have body issues? Well... yeah. Who doesn’t? I absolutely do not like being fat, that’s something I’d change about me. And I probably should bulk up a little, go to the gym. My diet isn’t terrible, I don’t eat any fast food, but I could still always eat healthier. More greens, less beans. But most of all, my biggest body issue is that I don’t really associate myself with my body. My mind feels disconnected from my body. The day scientists invent a way for us all to live as brains in jars on wheels, I’m there standing in line for a chance to become all cerebral. Being physical, it’s just so messy, so awkward, so uncomfortable. You feel pain, you feel embarrassment, you feel horny. Nothing good comes from having a body. If you were just a brain, you could go on thinking and calculating and just generally having a good mental time. Or you’d start feeling suffocated and trapped trying to move your limbs and realising that they have been all chopped off. Hmm… Maybe it’s more complicated than I initially thought.

I don’t understand people who enjoy physical activities. Let it be clear before we delve into this long rant of mine complaining about all things gymnastic, this is not particularly an autistic trait. In fact, there are plenty of autistic people who may excel as athletes, their drive and obsessive personality traits becoming quite useful in developing that discipline that is required to fully commit to becoming an all-star jock. Not all autistic people are reprehensible nerds. Some autistic people are actually quite sexy. Some even have abs. But that’s not me. That’s not my clan of autistic people. I like drawing maps. I like thinking about things. I like making cocktails. The only part of my physical body that I like to put strain on is my liver. Don’t make me go on a run. There isn’t an armchair in this world that I wouldn’t want to sit down in, even the ones that used to be owned by old chain-smokers that have that awful aroma that sneaks into your nostrils and makes you worry about second-hand lung cancer. Sitting is great. I like sitting. Also lying down. Lying down is good.

Am I lazy? No, I don’t think so. Maybe a little, but here’s the thing. I can’t control the things I obsess over. There’s a great deal of overlap between autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit disorder. If you’re reading this and you’re a fellow friend on the spectrum, you may have gotten diagnosed with both. One of those rare times in my life I have attended group therapy, more than half the group were diagnosed with both. I, however, am not. But seeing as the two conditions are so intertwined, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a facet of autism involves difficulties in trying to focus on something, or even trying not to focus on something too hard. If you were to judge my tenacity, my ability to keep going, based solely on how I perform during physical tasks, you’d think I was the least resolute person on the planet. But then you’ll find me, some time later, staying up until four in the morning drawing another map. A map that’s really just a different take on another map that I drew earlier, that itself was a reworked version of a previous map that I drew but didn’t like, that actually began as a second iteration of one map I drew that was actually wholly different, that was based on a map of Europe but if Denmark never existed. How many maps have you drawn Fred? Why don’t you go mind your own business, you nosy ferret.

The DSM-5 (the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. You can think of it as something akin to a bible of psychology, which is definitely an inflammatory way to refer to it, but I’m gonna go with it! Because I’m a wildcard, and that’s just how I roll,) includes this section as part of its diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder.

Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g., strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interests).

Now, I personally don’t relate to that at all. There’s nothing abnormal in my intense love for maps. The fact that maps aren’t as widely cherished as they ought to be is a fault of others, and I refuse to acknowledge that this may be a part of my character that could be perceived as quirky, or out of the ordinary. But, still, for the sake of argument, let’s presume that I can get, at times, excessively circumscribed. I’d like to say that I’ve only ever engaged in excessive circumscribing in my privacy away from onlookers, but I am afraid that I may have allowed some of my excessive circumscribing to happen in public. I definitely do apologise for that. I will try to do better in the future. But you never know when you’re about to experience some excessive circumscribing. The best you can do is keep it limited.

I don’t know how neurotypicals work. So, you don’t feel these kinds of obsessions? These moments of intense focus? These fixations? Then, you lack passion? Are you heartless? Soulless? Or are you just weak? Are you too feeble to hold steadfast working on a project all night long? To lose touch with your sense of hunger, your need for sleep, and all contact with any other human person? My fixations may come across as strange, but to me, your lack of fixations come across as bizarre. The world is endlessly fascinating. Have you never felt that compulsion to just fully immerse yourself in a topic that allows you to forget about your physical body for just that moment in time? The body cannot hold me. I wish to absorb as much information as I can. If I could astral project, by gods, I would astral project. To decouple your consciousness from your mushy brain for just that little bit, to go soaring across the landscapes, to explore the cosmos, just free of all things corporeal, that would be swell. How terrible isn’t it, when you’re deep in research, learning all about the mystical religious practices of the long-dead hierophants of the ancient world, to be drawn back into the present by the sudden need to urinate? There is something so dreadfully mundane about possessing a human body. If only we could all be celestial beings allowed to just be without the biological needs associated with having flesh and blood and bone and bladders.

I am not religious, nor am I spiritual. I do not believe that there is an immaterial world that lies above the material. I do not believe there is an astral plane. I think that one of the terrifying things about living is knowing that we do not possess such a thing as an eternal soul, that all things are temporal, and that ultimately, we have to come to terms with that. It’s not so terrible. In some ways, the temporal nature of life can be its biggest blessing. All things must pass. Sure, that does include the good times, like that vacation you spent as a child wishing that it would never end. But it also includes the bad times. The heartbreak you feel from a failed relationship. The grief you feel after the passing of a parent. The depression some of us are burdened with. Some days are worse than others. But they too will pass. One of the remarkable things about the human body is its ability to bounce back from injury. To change and evolve in ways we sometimes find unthinkable. The brain, likewise, is transformational, capable of incredible developments. We’re not fixed in stone. We’re not eternal. Which is a good thing. It is what allows recuperation and progress. I should be thankful to my body for being there, even when I’m not. After all, isn’t your body your temple?

I am able-bodied. Am I disabled? There’s naturally a lot of questions that surround how we ought to understand mental illness or neurodiversity in regards to disability. Does autism spectrum disorder count as a disability? Well, yes, it can be considered a learning disability. It is certainly something of a handicap, you are experiencing struggles that most people don’t experience. But to your average layperson, your typical dullard who spends their time watching reality TV, drinking beer, and being happy, what counts as a disability to them? Would they see me and think I was disabled? I’m not in a wheelchair. I don’t walk with a cane. Though I will occasionally “stim,” make small repetitive moments with my hands or legs, I do not exhibit any kind of physical symptoms. If I told them that I was disabled, they’d scoff and tell me that I’m just making it up for attention. They’d say I’m probably just trying to mooch off the government, scoring welfare checks while doing nothing to contribute to society. I’ve got all my limbs. I am not sickly. I am actually quite strong, due to being a big and tall man, I am able to carry quite the load. So, I have no reason to not be a fully productive member of society, right? And yet, here I am, feeling at most times utterly perplexed by anything physical. Probably because I am just lazy, right?

I don’t think laziness is a thing. What is laziness supposed to actually be? Tiredness? If a person is perpetually tired, then they’ve likely got a sleep disorder. To call them lazy would be callous. There are plenty of overworked people that get called lazy, especially by tyrannical overseers who think of their charges as mere workhorses whose only purpose in life is to toil away in the factory until the day they die. Intolerable parents who see their terminally sullen child and instead of wondering what is making them so upset decide to deride them for their lack of ambition. Are you lazy when you are procrastinating? No you are just being a tad irresponsible, maybe, deciding to skip out on chores in order to play video games or masturbate. But you’re not just doing nothing. People generally don’t enjoy doing nothing. We need something to occupy ourselves, to fill that vacuum we all feel whenever we’re just sitting still. I am someone who appears to be comfortable just sitting still, but that’s because I’ve learned, since a very young age, to entertain myself with my own thoughts. To fantasise, to daydream, to do anything I can to escape from the void that is doing absolutely nothing. Boredom, that’s terrible. Boredom is existential dread. Of all the motivations that drive humans, love, spite, jealousy, or pride, I think the need to evade boredom is one of the most prevalent. Humans would rather experience electric shocks than sit alone in a room being bored.

I am not lazy, I am merely… excessively circumscribed. For as much as this may be a specific diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder, I think it is also a common trait amongst all humans. There will always be within us a pull to do something other than the thing that we’re really supposed to be doing, that does not make us lazy, that just makes us terrified of boredom. Sure, you know that you’re supposed to mow the lawn, but that's just so dreadfully tedious, you just would rather be working on perfecting your new stand-up comedy routine. Thinking up jokes to tell on stage is so much more stimulating than cutting grass. And who cares if your lawn grows a little wild? Lawns are a scam, imposed by fascists to make us think grass in its natural state is ugly. All grass is beautiful, whether it is cut short or it is allowed to grow long. Do the thing that fulfils you. Allow yourself to become immersed in passion, to forget about those things that hold you back, the little silly things we’ve convinced ourselves is important. Stay up late, if you wish. You’re gonna kill it on open mic night, bud!

Yes, it is a problem when your obsessions grow so singular that you forget to feed yourself. When you forget personal hygiene, when you become trapped in your own apartment looking like some feral rodent caught in a cage. Like always, the key is moderation, and I know that from time to time, you may have to entertain a boring task or two. Clean your room, brush your teeth, trim your pubic hair, try to give an impression that you are taking care of yourself. If for anyone, do it for your mother. She will be happy seeing you looking like a civilised individual, wearing clean clothes and not looking malnourished. But don’t ever chastise yourself for being lazy. Laziness is a sin that we’re all guilty of, and if we’re all guilty of it, is it really a sin? Or is it just part of what it means to be a human? To be a messy creature made out of flesh and blood and bone and the occasional bladder. In the end, I’m more happy than displeased at having a body. It’d be much harder to type on a keyboard if I didn’t have fingers.

Still, I wish I wasn’t fat.

[p-artsypants]

Integrity (Part 7)

“It’s just a one or two shot,” she said. “Nothing very long.” 

She lied. She lied lied lied.

This chapter goes fast because I didn’t want to write it.

FF.net | Ao3

—

“So, how was school today?” Asked Tom. The family was gathered around the little table in the kitchen, Adrien and Marinette sitting next to each other. Sabine had made quiche, remembering that Adrien had greatly enjoyed it. So far, they were sticking to small talk, trying to avoid the inevitable reveal. It had to be natural, of course. “Mom said it was a little rough. You’re still having trouble with that Lila girl?”

“Maybe,” Marinette said as she finished her bite of quiche. “Miss Bustier had us air our grievances like adults. She said she wanted to avoid rumors and gossip, so Lila, Adrien, and I all got to state our sides of the story. And then Chloe and Nino backed us up.” 

“So, did it get solved?” Asked Sabine. 

“We don’t know,” Answered Adrien. “We didn’t stick around. There was a lot of shouting from the classroom, so…we’re just going to let our classmates decide for themselves.” 

Tom gave both of them a surprised glance. “That’s a bold move! Are you sure?”

“You can’t force someone to believe you,” said Marinette wisely. “I know from experience.” 

Sabine reached over and patted her hand. “Well, I’m proud of you. You’re learning this lesson very early in life. It does get better as you get older, but some people never outgrow petty behavior like lying. But the older you get, the more dangerous it is to lie. It has bigger consequences for those who it affects, and when you get caught.” She finished with a broad smile. “I’m glad I raised a daughter that’s above lying.”

Marinette smiled at her, before the look fell. She couldn’t have asked for a better opening, but she just wished it hadn’t made her feel so guilty. “Actually maman, papa…there’s something I need to tell you. Something we both need to tell you.”

This was it. The moment of truth. Of course, Marinette trusted her parents, and she knew they’d take it well, but she had just been hiding it for so long…

“I wanted to tell you from day one. It killed me that I couldn’t. It was for your safety, you know?”

“Honey, what are you talking about?” Sabine frowned, concern etching wrinkles around her eyes. 

“Just…don’t get mad?”

Tom and Sabine shared a look. “We’ll try.”

Marinette exhaled, and reached over to take Adrien’s hand. “Together?”

“Of course.” He smiled. 

“Okay…Tikki, spots on.”

“Plagg, Claws out.” 

The bright flash forced Tom and Sabine to look away, and when they looked back, their daughter and her classmate were replaced with the Heroes of Paris. 

Silence. It felt like minutes ticked by, as they just sat in silence. Both parents wracked their eyes over the teens, taking in every detail, making every piece fit in their minds. 

Marinette held her breath, as Adrien squeezed her hand. 

“All this time…? It was you…? Both of you?” Sabine looked absolutely horrified, as she remembered over and over, these two children taking fatal hits and falls, fighting on rooftops and cars, facing off with guns and swords. 

Her baby, on the front lines of a magical war. 

Marinette nodded, tears starting to form in her eyes. 

Suddenly, Tom was laughing. Not just a chuckle. A full on, rattle the windows, fist pounding on the table, absolute uncontrollable laugh attack. 

It startled everyone.

“What’s gotten into you, Tom?”

“When did you—“ more laughter. “When did you find out about each other? I have to know!” 

Confused, and a little unsettled, Marinette answered, “Um…he found out yesterday, and he told me today.” 

That just incited more laughter, as Tom actually fell out of his chair and landed on the floor. 

“Papa…?”

“I’m—I’m sorry, cupcake!” He tried to get a hold of himself as he kept giggling. “It’s not—It’s not that funny—!”

The other three just shared nervous glances. Did their reveal drive Tom to insanity? 

“Were—“ He wiped a tear from his eye. “Weredad! Breakfast!” He took a deep breath and tried to calm down. “I’m just thinking about that one time Marinette confessed to being in love with Chat Noir, and then he said he had to turn her down for Ladybug. But I knew Marinette had a crush on Adrien! And I got akumatized over that! That’s hilarious!”

Both of the heroes blushed. “Papa…” Said Ladybug. 

“No, no you’re right, that was an emotional day for everyone.” He held a straight face for about three seconds before he burst into giggles again.  

Although Adrien and Marinette were actually dating now, it didn’t ease the embarrassment for either of them, and they both blushed. 

But his laughter did break the tension in the room, and Marinette was able to take a steady breath. 

“Now Tom,” Sabine chastised. “Leave the kids alone. I’m sure they had a good reason for hiding their identities from each other.” 

“We did. We had to keep each other safe. If one of us fell under control of an Akuma, Hawkmoth could use that to get our identities.”

Tom’s laughter finally subsided as he got off the floor. “I’m sorry, cupcake. I didn’t mean to embarrass you. It was just—you got yourselves in such a pickle!” He retook his seat, and put his head in his hands. “Okay, now that that’s out in the open…is there a wedding in the future?”

Sabine smacked his arm. “Tom!”

“What! You know I’m a huge romantic! And an even bigger Ladynoir fan!”

“What happened to Marichat?” Asked Marinette with a wiry smile. 

“Old news. So…?”

“Well sir,” Chat began, a dusting of pink on his cheeks. “I’d like to formally ask you for permission to date your daughter—“ 

“Yes! Of course! Absolutely!” 

“—But,” Chat interrupted right back. “There’s something else we need to tell you before you make your decision.”

“We’re listening,” said Sabine, resting a hand on her overly excited husband. “Take your time.”

“Well,” began Ladybug carefully, “we’re revealing ourselves to you now because it’s safe. You’re the first civilians to know. And you’re the first civilians to know that Hawkmoth has been defeated. Chat took his and Mayura’s Miraculous.” 

Absolute joy and pride nearly burst out of both of the parents, as their smiles grew and their eyes sparkled. But before they could celebrate, Chat Noir elaborated, “It’s because of that that I’m here. My...my father is, or was, Hawkmoth. He was suspicious of me, so I had to leave.” 

All that joy was snuffed out in a second, and Marinette swore she could hear her parent’s hearts breaking. 

A clattering of chairs and Chat Noir was embraced with two pairs of arms. 

“You’re a part of our family, Adrien,” Sabine assured. “You will always have a place here with us. It’s going to be okay.” 

He didn’t cry when his father had revealed himself. He didn’t shed a single tear because of the shock. But all of the subsequent actions had built up, and now in the arms of the Dupain-Chengs, Adrien felt himself beginning to break down. 

“We got you, Kitty.” Marinette promised, the flash of light signaling her transformation. 

“Plagg, Claws In.” 

The suit faded, and all at once, Adrien let loose his tears of frustration and betrayal. Just a few tears being squeezed out of him by Marinette’s family. 

“Thank you.” He choked. “Thank you so much.”

“Of course, kiddo.” Sabine cupped his cheek. “You’re a great kid, and we owe Chat Noir a lot. We want you to be happy, and safe.” 

“Marinette is extremely lucky to have you as parents.” 

“Oh no,” Tom disagreed. “We’re horrendously annoying and nosy!” 

“Papa...” Marinette warned. 

“But cupcake! You knew when you got a boyfriend I was going to hound him relentlessly! Don’t act so surprised!” 

Sabine patted her husband. “Oh leave them alone Tom. I think we’ve all had a very stressful day. Let’s cool down with a movie, hmm?” 

“Actually...there’s still more.” 

“More?!” Both Tom and Sabine shouted. 

“It’s not as bad as the last bit,” Marinette waved her hands around. “Well...I guess that’s debatable. We need to go to Tibet.” 

“Tibet?” Parroted Sabine. “Why on earth would you need to go there?” 

“The Guardians of the Miraculous live there in a temple. Adrien and I...well, we learned why Gabriel did what he did.”

“My mother,” Adrien explained. “She’s still alive. She’s in a coma from using a broken Miraculous. He hoped that using our Miraculous would wake her up, but...” 

“It’s really risky.” Marinette continued. “We just want to see if the guardians have a better idea.” 

“I see.” Sabine breathed. “Where’s Gabriel now? Did you not call the police on him?” 

“No.” Adrien shook his head. “We took his Miraculous. He’s not able to hurt anyone anymore. And if we revive Mrs. Agreste, he won’t have a reason to either.” 

Tom and Sabine shared a skeptical look. “Are you sure? I know you’re Ladybug and Chat Noir, but...shouldn’t he face judgement for his crimes?” 

“I’m being selfish.” Adrien said softly. “I don’t want to lose my father. If I get back my mother, maybe he’ll be back to who he used to be, and we can be a family again.” 

“Oh honey,” Sabine cooed, wrapping her arms around him. “It might not happen that way.” 

“I know…but it’s worth a try, right?”

Sabine wrung her hands. “But Tibet is just so far! Plane tickets would be expensive—“

“We’re not flying. The Horse Miraculous allows the user to make a portal to any location. We’ll go and be back on Sunday night.” 

Sabine frowned. “It sounds like you’re telling, and not asking.” 

Marinette gave an uneasy smile. “This is official superhero business. I thought it would be better if we told you?”

Sabine sighed. “Yeah, I suppose it would be. If I can’t stop you, at least I can make sure you’re safe. When do you leave?”

“First thing in the morning. Tibet is six hours ahead of us, so it wouldn’t make sense to leave tonight.”

“Alright, then make sure to pack everything you need for an overnight bag. Papa and I will make sure you have plenty of snacks to take with.”

Marinette smiled. “Thanks maman! The trip is instantaneous though, we don’t need any snacks.” 

“Oh but you should offer your hosts some of our pastries! An offering of peace!”

Marinette smiled. “You’re right, of course. Thank you. Both of you. For being so cool.”

—

Later that night, Marinette was mostly asleep when Adrien’s voice pierced through the silence. “Are you still awake, My Lady?”

“Hmm-mmm.”

The floorboards groaned and then her mattress swayed as he climbed up onto her bed, leaning against the wall. “Sorry, I can’t sleep.”

She turned to face him. “I don’t blame you. Wanna talk about it?”

He laid down beside her, propping his head up on his arm. “I can’t really have my family back to normal, can I?”

“Do you want me to answer that honestly?”

“I want to be on the same page as you. You’re…you don’t have the same bias. You know what to do.” 

Marinette held her breath, knowing this would be the breaking point. The same question had come back to her over and over too. So what was the right thing to do? Hurt him? Or brush off her duty as Ladybug?”

“He needs to face justice, Adrien.” 

He hid his face in her shoulder and nodded. He knew what she would say. He knew what was right. He just didn’t want to believe it. It wasn’t fair.

It was fair, though. His father was a messed up, broken man who had done horrible things, no matter the reason, no matter how temporary. He had scars on his heart from that man that would take years to heal. 

“I don’t want you to do that alone, but I don’t know if I can be with you when you turn him in.” He breathed, sobs just at the edge of his voice. 

“Kitty, I would never expect you to turn in your own father.” 

“But I want to support you. You have so much responsibility to shoulder being the guardian and—“ 

“Adrien,” she pushed his shoulder so he would look at her. “You single-handedly defeated Hawkmoth. Please, let me take care of the clean up.” 

Hesitantly, Adrien nodded. 

“But first, let's worry about your mom, okay? One step at a time.” 

“Thank you, My Lady. I love you.” 

“I love you too, My Prince.”

—

At the break of dawn, Marinette dawned the Horse Miraculous, and along with Chat Noir, departed to Tibet. 

The temple was on top a mountain, and stepping from tepid France to frigid Tibet was a whiplash. The snow whipped around, and threatened to knock Marinette’s pastry box right out of her hands. 

But they waded through the snow to reach the massive doors of the temple, and knocked. 

The door slid open cautiously, a monk watching them with confusion.

“Hello,” Chat translated. “I’m Chat Noir, and this is my partner, Ladybug, or Pinto Rouge, we’re here to learn about the Miraculous.” 

Pinto Rouge held up the box. 

“We brought snacks!”

Still confused, the monk allowed them inside and instructed them to wait in a large lobby. The room was mostly bare, only decorated with the symbol of the Miraculous on the walls, and huge columns. 

“Welcome,” another monk finally greeted. “How can we assist you?”

Both Pinto Rouge and Chat Noir bowed in greeting, offering the pastry box to the man. 

“Tikki, Kalkki, divide.” Ladybug whispered, returning to her normal suit. 

Chat Noir translated for her, “Pardon our intrusion. My name is Ladybug, and this is my partner, Chat Noir. I don’t actually speak Mandarin, so he’ll be translating for me.” 

The monk nodded, indicating that he understood. 

“We were picked to be wielders by Wang Fu, who trained me in succession to be a guardian. He was once a student here.” 

The assembled guardians all reacted to the name, nodding, some chuckling. 

“How is Wang Fu?” One man asked. 

“They want to know about Master Fu.” Chat provided. Ladybug answered, and he translated. “He’s well. Unfortunately, he was compromised and named me as guardian, and then lost his memories. He lives with his wife in England now.” 

“He must be quite old.”

“186, last I checked.”

“Well, despite not being chosen for our order by the council, you are still a guardian of the Miraculous, and you should be trained as every one is. Where do you hail from?”

“Paris, France.” 

“All the way from Paris! Wang certainly fled as we asked. When can you start?”

“As much as I desire to start training as soon as possible, there is something we need help with first.” 

They were beckoned into a meeting hall, and sat down among the order. Tea was served, and the pastries were divided up. Then they began the story from the beginning. How Hawkmoth appeared one day, and how they were bestowed Miraculous. How they fought together for over a year against him and Mayura. And then the day of the reveal, how Adrien had come to discover his own father was behind the whole thing, and that his mother was in a magical coma from a broken Miraculous. How that night, he stole the Miraculous and returned them to the Miracle Box. 

“So you see, he doesn’t pose a threat to Paris anymore, but his wife, my mother, is still asleep. He wanted to use the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous together to wake her up.”

More nodding as their tale was considered, and then the conversed among themselves, speaking much too fast for Chat to translate completely. 

“What are they saying?”

“Some of them are doubtful she can be healed, others are doubtful they can trust us.” 

“Yikes.” 

“Drop your transformations, as a show of good intentions.” 

“They want us to de-transform, My Lady.” 

“Oh, okay. No harm in that. Tikki, Spots off.”

“Plagg, Claws in.”

The Guardians seemed much more at ease after they took off the suits. 

“I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” She reintroduced. 

“And I’m Adrien Agreste.” 

“A pleasure.” The monk bowed. “Now, we have discussed what you have said. We will need to examine this woman, Emilie, and the broken Miraculous before knowing exactly what there is to do. Our last resort would be to use the Black Cat and Ladybug, but it is very risky, and works with equivalent exchange. If your father, Gabriel, really wishes to wake her up so badly, he must decide who he wants to give up in exchange. Whether it is another loved one, or himself. He will need to keep that thought in his mind.”

Adrien explained this all to Marinette, who frowned. “Would you be able to handle that? If he decided to take her place?”

Adrien was quiet for a moment, and then admitted, “I’d have to think about it…”

“You’ve both come so far, why don’t you stay the night? We can get in a little training tomorrow before you leave. Then you can return with Emilie when you can.”

“Thank you, Master. We’d love to stay.”

—

Sunday night came quickly with all the training that had taken place. Marinette was thankful she had brought a notebook, since the monks had taught her how to read the coded Grimoire. Adrien had, of course, been there to translate all of it, so he was also being trained as a guardian. 

But now it was time to return to Paris, and time to confront Gabriel Agreste. 

It could go either way. He could be responsive to help, or he could fight the whole time. It was absolutely unpredictable.

Chat Noir and Ladybug arrived at the mansion at sunset, waiting outside the gate, gathering courage.

“You still with me, kitty?”

“I feel like I’m going to puke.” 

“I don’t doubt that. Do you want to come back later?”

He shook his head. “No, the longer we wait, the worse it’s going to be for me. I just…”

“You don’t need to explain yourself to me.” She offered him a smile. “You remember a few days ago? When I had my melt down?”

“Sure.”

“It was this feeling of hopelessness, of everything being completely out of control and the whole world resting on my shoulders. But you gave me control back. You gave me peace of mind. Now I’m here to do everything I can for you. You and me against the world, and you and me against your father.”

He clenched and unclenched his fists a few times before hugging her. Just soaking in her warmth for a while and letting her strength flow into him. 

He could do this.

He had to do this.

“Let’s go.” 

She rang the doorbell.

The camera came out, spotted them, and the gate opened without a word. 

“Out of the frying pan, and into the fire.” Chat muttered to himself. 

“He doesn’t have a Miraculous, we’re stronger than him.” She reminded him gently. 

He scoffed. “I’m not afraid of him hurting me physically.” The rest went unsaid. 

Gabriel opened the door as they approached, then beckoned them inside. He was quiet, reserved, and looked tired. He had bags under his eyes, unkempt hair, and a shadow of a beard on his face.

“Ladybug, Chat Noir, please come in.” 

“Your secretary have the day off?” Ladybug asked conversationally. 

“Nathalie and the rest of my house staff will be taking an...extended vacation.” 

Chat tried to not let his disappointment show, but he had assumed Gabriel would fire anyone he was suspicious of. He just didn’t think that included Nathalie. 

“To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Ladybug smiled as pleasantly as she could, like she was talking to any other civilian. “We’re here to help.” 

“Ah, with what, exactly?” 

“Please show us your wife, Monsieur Agreste.” 

Gabriel’s almost pleasant attitude evaporated into something akin to anger. “He told you then? My son ran his mouth?” He sneered. 

“Something like that.” 

“You have Nooroo now?” 

“And Dusuu too, yes.” 

“So what now? Have you come to gloat? To beat me up anyways? I’ve already lost everything, what more could you take from me?” 

“We’re not here to take anything,” Chat said. “We want to give back.” 

“We might have a way to save your wife.” 

The tightness Gabriel held began to subside. His fists unclenched, his brow smoothed, and the deep set frown relaxed into open mouthed awe. “You...want to help me save her?” 

“Purely for selfish reasons on my end,” Ladybug explained. “If your reason for hurting others is removed, you’re not a threat anymore, right?” 

He inhaled, his breath shuddering as he did so. “I never wanted to hurt anyone. This went on for so long, and I kept telling myself that I would quit, that it wasn’t worth it...then I would see an opportunity, and get so close again. I was obsessed, Ladybug. Can’t you see?” 

“The powers of the Miraculous can be addicting. Knowing that you were so close to being with your wife again...I don’t blame you.” 

Then Gabriel did something they were not expecting. 

He started to cry. 

“I don’t deserve this. I don’t deserve your help.” 

“You don’t.” Chat confirmed. “But your wife and son do.” 

“My son hates me. He’ll never speak to me again. And I can’t blame him for it. And my wife...once she knows what I did...this wasn’t worth it. I ruined everything.” 

“Mr. Agreste,” Ladybug spoke calmly, as he started to spiral out of control. “Let me see your wife.” 

Gabriel collected himself and turned from them, heading to the office. 

Ladybug and Chat Noir shared a look. Villain or not, Gabriel Agreste was not well, and he severely needed help. Maybe not even help they could give him. 

They followed him into his office, and up to the painting Chat had seen the other night. He typed in the code, and then they were descending in an elevator into a huge cavern. 

At the end of a bridge, there was a garden, filled with flowers and swathes of butterflies. 

In the middle of it all, was a glass coffin. 

It might have been beautiful if it wasn’t so horrid. 

Ladybug reached out to take Chat’s hand, holding it in comfort as they walked down the bridge. 

“She was using the Peacock Miraculous,” Gabriel explained. “It’s broken. It hurt her, made her sick. By time we figured out what was wrong, it was too late. She had...she had fallen asleep.” 

Chat wanted to yell at him to shut up. He had heard the whole pitiful story before, but he just found himself as silent in shock as the first time. 

“I have the grimoire too. There was a page on combining the Ladybug and Black Cat miraculous to create an amazing power, capable of granting any wish. Nooroo confirmed that it worked.” 

“We talked to the guardians about it. Yes, it would work, but not without equivalent exchange. To wake up your wife, someone else would have to take her place, perhaps you, perhaps your son. There’s no way of knowing.” 

“I could have—“ his words got caught in his throat as he fell to sit on the grass. “I could have killed Adrien. I was so concerned with bringing her back, I didn’t even think…” He pulled on his tie, ripping it away from his neck. “What have I done? What have I done?”

“Will you let us take her to Tibet? To see the Guardians?”

“My poor Adrien…I could have lost him. What did I do? I tore apart his room! I hit him! I’d never—“ He moaned as he rocked back and forth. 

Ladybug looked at Chat. “Do you want to tell him?” She asked so softly. 

“Tell me what?” Asked Gabriel, looking up desperately. “What else is there? What do I have to do? Is Adrien safe? Did you talk to him? Will you talk to him?”

Chat took a calming breath, trying not to lose it at the sight of his insane father. Then he spoke, “Plagg, Claws in.” 

Gabriel looked away at the green flash, and when he turned, his tears started again in earnest. 

“I lied to you, Father.” Adrien began, before he lost courage. “I’m the one that betrayed you. I had my kwami take your miraculous while you slept. I do want to save mom, but I had a feeling combining the Miraculous wasn’t going to work. So I went to Ladybug. She’s smart and she always has an answer. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, you just…you scared me. You’re still scaring me. I trust that you only had good things in mind but…you’ve changed. You need help, father.” 

Gabriel clamored to his feet, finding shaky steps towards his son. 

Ladybug stood at the ready, in case he became violent. 

Gabriel collapsed on Adrien, hugging him and crying and begging for forgiveness over and over. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry…” 

It wasn’t what he had in mind, but he’d take any affection he could get from the man. He hugged him back. 

“We’re going to find a way to save her. You don’t have to do this alone anymore.” 

“It’s all my fault. I ruin everything…I’ve hurt you so badly.” He pulled away from the hug to hold his face, squishing his cheeks slightly. “I’m so proud of you…” 

Pride. Adrien never thought he’d be worthy of his father’s pride. All his life, he had done everything right, and only now, after he had betrayed him and gone behind his back, at the reveal of fighting against him after all this time. Now he’s proud.

It was kind of a kick in the pants.

“Father…”

“You knew when to ask for help, when I didn’t. You knew I couldn’t handle this. You did the right thing…I told you before, that you were a good kid, and you’ll be a great man. I mean it. Adrien…”

And then Adrien understood what was happening. It wasn’t immediately apparent, but with his father’s face so close, he finally figured it out. 

“You’re drunk.” 

Gabriel started to sob again, grabbing hold of Adrien’s shirt and sliding to his knees. “I didn’t know what to do. I thought I had to say goodbye. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” 

“Are you really? Or are you just drunk?”  

“Don’t leave me Adrien...please, son. I love you.” 

Adrien grabbed his hands and pulled, trying to wretch him free from where he was clamped. “Why did it take alcohol to get you to say it?”

“Because I’m awful...I’m worthless, I ruin everything I touch. Everything I did was a waste! I couldn’t save her! Hundreds and thousands and millions of people were hurt because of me! How can I live with that?” 

“Adrien,” Ladybug began. “I think we should continue this conversation when he’s sober.” 

“No!” Gabriel protested. “Take her! Take her to Tibet and save her! Give Adrien back his mother! Please I beg you!” 

“Then what will happen to you?” Adrien asked, looking down on the blubbering mess that was once his indomitable father. 

“I’m going to turn myself in. I’ll live with guilt the rest of my life, but let me have some relief! Let me face judgement.” He collapsed onto his hands and knees, bowing at the feet of his son. “Let me earn your trust. Let me earn your forgiveness. Please.” 

They spent a long time in silence, Adrien coming to terms with what had to happen. 

“My lady,” he finally said. “The Horse Miraculous?” 

She handed over the glasses. 

“Plagg, Claws out.” In a flash, Chat Noir stood there, and stepped away from Gabriel over to the glass coffin. “Plagg, Kalikki, unify.” Dawning both Miraculous, Belle Noir easily opened the coffin. 

“Be careful with her! Please, I beg you Adrien! She’s done nothing wrong.” 

“I will be careful,” he spoke calmly, as he reached his arms behind her shoulders and knees. 

“Ladybug. Please escort my father to the police. I’ll take care of my mother.” 

“Of course, Chat.” 

“I’ll find you when I’m ready.” 

“Stay safe.” 

He only offered a nod of agreement, before summoning his voyage and disappearing into nothing.

[whispersafterdusk]

Lost in Time - ch 20

"Better have a good reason for dragging me out here, fellow."

The nights on this side of the river were unbearably hot, and the wind blew sand into every nook and cranny of person and building alike; Windsor could have sworn he learned in grade school that deserts were chilly at night but Eufala seemed to be different in that regard -- maybe it was the proximity to both the river and ocean, since the humidity alone was enough to make you want to die during the day.

That heat and humidity had already soured his mood by the time he'd returned to his motel room, and finding the little note jammed under his pillow hadn't done much to alleviate it; now here he was out in the middle of the desert, filling his boots with sweat, staring down the muscle-head that had left the note.

Franklin was an intimidating figure whose image was slightly undercut by the moonlight glistening on the healthy amount of sweat on top of his bald head; it was taking every ounce of self control Windsor had to not comment or laugh about it, or stare as a single bead finally ran down off the man's dome and traced a line to the lobe of his ear, then disappeared down his neck to soak into the collar of his shirt. ((Continued below cut))

"You're not one of them, are you?  Duvos soldier, I mean."

Windsor met the man's gaze and shook his head.  "Nope - just a humble bounty hunter and mercenary for hire.  What's it to you?"

Franklin folded his massive arms with a grunt and a nod.  "Figured as much.  Listen.  Xan's on the hook for some murders. He was given - "given" command of this last job," he repeated, flapping his fingers as he said it, "-and then, poof, dead commander.  Xan's rise through the ranks has always been on the backs of the dead -- loads of blood in his wake but never anything that tied him directly to anything, but this one they can't let slide on a maybe."

The man went silent then and Windsor could tell by the look on his face that he was expecting a reaction; he kept his expression blank and let the silence drag on until the meat head was clearly getting frustrated.  "Right.  And?"

"...and so I'm here to screw things up for him.  If he's discredited on something this important then no one is going to care if he disappears.  The higher ups are willing to sacrifice another chance at an AI just to get him gone."

Windsor rolled his eyes.  "I see where this is going and no thank you.  This is your bed - shit in it all you like but I'm not joining you."

Franklin's eyes narrowed.  "If Xan takes a fall so do you since you're a part of this damn group."

"I'm not an empire native and also don't give a flying rat's ass about the man or his politics -- if anyone wants to make a stink about it I've got the papers to prove I'm just a hired hand, and if they STILL don't like that I've got ways to get out of their hands.  If you want to convince one of the others that they need to save their backsides then by all means do so; I won't stand in your way or narc you out.  But leave me out of this."

Franklin growled.  "You saw 'em -- they aren't going to break ranks."

Windsor shrugged.  "Yeah, and?  What would've you done if they HAD?"

"Kidnapped the woman, dragged her back to Duvos - I've got my orders to screw this up but nothing says I can't benefit in the process.  So long as the job isn't done as ordered and Xan's embarrassed.  He stakes his reputation on his plans always going AS planned down to the letter, so-"

"Oh please, THAT'S your back up plan?  Original plan or not that would only make Xan look good!  You're as dumb as you look, as dumb as I suspected, and my answer is STILL 'no goddamn thank you.'  Mind your business and I'll mind mine."

The other simply narrowed his eyes and glared; Windsor gave it another few breaths then turned to leave.  He kept his ears trained for any approaching steps (as he half-expected the man to attack him with his back turned) but he made it back to the motel without issue, and after emptying the sand and sweat out of his boots he unclipped his dagger harness and rolled into bed.

Whatever trouble there was in paradise wasn't any of his concern; he'd been hired to help steal an AI and that was that.

Pity about Xan though...man really did have a reputation for getting things done.  Whatever methods he used aside Duvos would surely take a hit in the espionage and acquisitions department if they took Xan out of the chain of command.  Was rather interesting to hear that they were actually willing to do something about him...Duvos had some cutthroat politics and supposedly a lot of things were overlooked or praised as being ambitious but whoever that commander had been that he offed must have had parents REALLY far up the chain who had the pull to go after him.

At least Franklin's half-assed recruiting attempt had given him a fair head's up that once they'd paid for his services then Windsor should get the hell out of town and lay low.  Maybe he'd leave the meat head enough for a single drink as a parting gift -- assuming the man's own tactics didn't leave him dead at the end of all this.

----------------------------------------------

"It's not important right now."

Remington mentally sighed; they'd been trying to get the date of Eli's birthday out of her for five days now and she'd stubbornly insisted each time that they had more pressing matters to attend to.   And yes, while technically she was correct, he didn't see any harm in them knowing when to wish her a simple "happy birthday" with the rest of it coming later. It wasn't exactly an argument but whatever you wanted to call it was interrupted by a familiar wobble from his bad knee; he immediately froze -- an impressive feat considering he was partly bent over in a stretching pose, and by shifting his good leg he was able to avoid toppling over onto his head (this time).

Eli grabbed him by the shoulders and helped him straighten up, and when he turned around she was frowning down at his legs.  "Stubborn injury, isn't it?"

"Yeah.  Been like that for awhile now.  I've learned to live with it."

"If we just knew what was wrong I bet Stewart could fix it."

"Really?  Even without all the fancy technology?"

She nodded.  "Really.  I've been trying to get up to speed with Xu about what survived the years and what's been developed since everything fell apart. Kind of makes me wonder if we really NEEDED all that tech back then.  Made things easier but at its most basic a lot of surgeries are done in essentially the same way regardless of whether it was a man or machine holding the blade...  We had an old saying about reinventing the wheel and while innovation was always pushing for new heights there were a lot of things you could say we had down to an art and couldn't really change.  Can't remember the last time I'd read about a new medical advancement...and I was married to a researcher."

With Eli helping he lowered himself into the grass and rubbed gingerly at his knee; every couple of days, on top of any strength training they found the time for, Eli had him working with stretches and light exercises specifically meant to try and help that joint.  So far he'd not noticed any changes aside from being constantly sore but at this point he was willing to try just about anything as he didn't relish the idea of living the rest of his life with a leg that was always threatening to suddenly buckle if he moved wrong.  

"Still, a lot of things made life easier. Bare minimum," she went on, "I'd love to have at least one functional imaging machine.  See everything inside without having to open you up."

"How'd those work?"

"Couldn't begin to tell you, beyond trying to explain how X-rays, radioactive tracers, and magnetic imaging works which, aside from basic facts about them, is well out of my scope of knowledge. Now, if I had Darren, or Peter or Ashley here, any of them could talk themselves blue in the face explaining how any given medical instrument worked.  Stewart could explain it too if you're interested."

Peter and Ashley...if memory served those were two of the squad mates they had buried in the graveyard (they'd been keeping a close eye on those graves still) and he certainly knew who Darren was.  "I won't bother Stewart with that - he'll have his hands full when the next round of scholars shows up."

With a groan she let her head drop back, staring up into the sky.  "Don't remind me. The first group was nosy enough."

"These ones are coming from Vega 5 and ought to be more interested in the technical side of things rather than...well."

She flashed him a smile.  "Rather than wanting to study me and how folks in the Old World lived?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that.  I didn't think they were bothering you too much...were they?"

"Not...really?  It kind of depends on how you want to quantify it - they didn't ask to meet with me a lot, but when they did they had notebooks full of questions that Stewart's social and technical programming couldn't answer and it'd take me an entire day to get through them."

He frowned.  "You could have said something if they were imposing on you too much."

"I could have.  But I didn't see a point in it," she sighed.  "It was something that needed to be done."

He sat up and looked at her; compared to Arlo or the Flying Pigs he didn't really get a lot of one-on-one time with her outside of these recent stretching sessions but still even he could tell something was a bit...off with her tone.  Like she was tired, or sad (and he didn't really need to consider why).  "You've got all the time in the world to answer questions."

"Maybe.  It just seemed easier to get them out of my hair and get back to-"

"-work?" Remington jutted in.  "Doesn't seem like you focus on much else.  Is everything all right?"

She blew out a breath that trailed into a buzzing raspberry.  "Not you too."

"Me too?"

"You, and Arlo, Asher and Xu - asking if I'm all right or need anything all the time or if someone is bugging me."

"...well, friends do that, don't they?"

"They do, but not every problem or bad mood can be solved by having a friend around."

He bent his good leg so he could rest his arms on his knee, and his chin on his arms, as he gazed up at her thoughtfully.  "We just -- it's not meaning to suggest anything beyond just wanting you to know the door's open, you know?  I can ask everyone to tone it down but we're just - we care.  That's all."

She closed her eyes and, after a moment, slumped her shoulders.  "I know, and I get it, and I'm thankful for having friends around ready and willing to support and help.  But it's... It's like picking at a scab. Each time I get asked, it's picking - and if you keep picking it never closes or heals, and the scar is a million times worse.  And with what they did to Darren's grave I feel like someone took a diamond sander to the scab and ground down to the bone.  Just when I thought I was doing better.  I talk to Xu, and it helps, but each well-meaning question from everyone else is pulling scabs right now."

"All right.  I'll quietly let the others know that you'll come to US if you need something and we should stop asking.  But, I do know we do really want to know you, and be your friends, and be there.  That's why we wanted to know about your birthday -- heck, if there's any holidays you want to celebrate I know we'll figure that out too."

She rubbed her hands across her face and held them there; when she spoke her voice was muffled but Remington didn't think she sounded too upset.  "Birthdays were celebrated only on multiples of 5.  I was born on the 15th of the first Spring.  I would need to check with Stewart to make sure I've got the years right but I last remember passing my 37th birthday."

Remington nodded slowly, and smiled at her; in his mind, very briefly, he thought 'I'm older than she is' followed immediately by the realization that no, he was not, and no one in the world was older than she was.  "All right - I'm sorry if it seemed like I was badgering you on anything but I'm also glad you told me.  Do you want me to keep quiet about it?"

"Please.  At least until I hit 40."

"It's a deal.  How would you celebrate your birthday back then?"

"Gifts, an elaborate dinner.  Costume parties were popular.  I always ended up with costume parties because New Year's Dawn had just happened, which was a city-wide costume party so you'd always have something on hand you could wear.  You'd go door to door singing songs, playing games, giving gifts, dancing in the streets.  You'd stay awake as long as you could but it was expected that you'd stay awake from dawn of the last day of the year to dawn of the second day of the new year."

"That sounds an awful lot like celebrating a holiday, and not your own  birthday."

She finally dropped her hands away from her face and shrugged at him.  "That's what happened if your birthday fell on or close to a national holiday."

Remington went to stand and tested his weight on his bad leg; there were no wobbles, no twinges, no sudden shooting pains.  "Sounds like you've had 37 years of getting the short end of the stick, then."

"You learn to live with it.  Ready to keep going?"

He didn't protest the sudden change in subject; with a bit more attention and care to how he was moving his body he managed to get through the rest of the exercises without any further trouble, and though he was pretty sore when they were done he didn't mind it too much -- his next patrol would be on horseback so the joint could rest while he rode.

"We'll get there, slowly but surely," Eli said as she walked him to the gate.  "Just take it easy for the rest of the day."

"I plan to," he replied with a chuckle.  "I was actually just thinking about that." As he latched the gate behind him he could spy Selene heading home - she was just coming out through Portia's gates. "-not to rush off or anything but I better get going.  I know Selene is just wanting to pounce over party things."

"Oh I know.  She's babbled about your birthday party these last few days.  All the more reason for YOU to keep your trap shut."

Remington laughed.  "I swear on my honor your secret is safe with me.  See you later, Eli."

He hurried off and was able to dodge around Selene with a hurried 'sorry, late for my patrol' and then he was huffing and puffing up the hill toward the Corps building to collect Arrow.

When he got there though he found his saddle was missing.  That was odd.

Spacer was there however and that saddle was where it was supposed to be; Remington hurriedly scribbled a note of explanation for Arlo and left it pinned to Spacer's stable stall then saddled him and headed down the road, and wondered how the heck he'd managed to misplace a saddle. Maybe someone had moved it since they were cleaning out the back wall in preparation of replacing a few shelves that were starting to dry rot and his was the only saddle that sat near those particular shelves.   Most of what had been sitting on those shelves was currently in a jumbled pile in the corner across from there...maybe he ought to clean a bit of that up when he got back from patrol.

----------------------------------------------

He didn't mind that Remington had borrowed Spacer -- the horse liked the man well enough so Arlo knew there wouldn't be any trouble from the animal (unlike Teddy who typically wouldn't let anyone but Sam ride him).

What he DID mind though was by the time he'd found the note the missing saddle was back in its place, and after checking it over he found that a lot of the stitching had been carefully frayed with a knife so that it was highly likely that if Remington had been IN the saddle, moving quickly, and had made any sudden movements or sudden stops, the straps would have given way and dumped him off the horse.  Teddy's saddle had likewise been tampered with but not as badly as Arrow's, and Arlo was both relieved he'd discovered that before Sam went out on a ride as well as extremely anxious for Remington's safe return because he had no reason to believe that Spacer's saddle hadn't also been sabotaged.

It was really beginning to feel like whoever was causing their current problems was trying to spread them as thin as possible, as Arlo's first thought upon discovering the sabotaged saddles was "great, now we have to watch the stables."

But...no.  That was doing exactly what their spy and or vandal would want.

He still believed that the Stupid Plan idea of Eli's had merit - in fact, this was probably a result of that, assuming their spy was also their vandal - but it was time for a change in strategy.

---------------------------------------------

"Looks like we'll be up and running within two weeks then."

It had been awhile since they'd ALL been together out at the facility; they were clustered inside the tent, looking over a collection of blueprints and measurements for the security door and signal transmitters.  Eli had been shifted off her patrols and onto helping Selene get the rest of the transmitter parts made, along with the towers they'd be mounted on.  With Eli's assistance they wouldn't need to bring in another builder for the assembly (though Higgins was producing the metal struts needed for the towers) and that left Merlin and Petra in charge of assembling the power sources (a mix of hydro, wind, and power stones).

Between work on that, and Mint overseeing the project to get the door installed...two weeks.  They would need to manage for two weeks, and then they could bring their full attention down on catching their spy.   It was nice to know that the metaphorical light at the end of the tunnel wasn't something that was going to run them over.

"Do we have anything new to discuss?" Mali asked, pausing to look around at each of them in turn.

Beside him Arlo cleared his throat and Asher turned to look at him as he leaned forward to brace his hands on the little table.

"Yes, actually.  Someone sabotaged all of our saddles yesterday.  I think it's time we get a bit more aggressive - try to draw this person out into the open."

"I agree, because whoever this is uh-" Sam stopped abruptly, glancing briefly at Eli, before sighing.  "-we had some graffiti to clean up early this morning."

"About me, I'm guessing," Eli said.

Sam nodded.  "Yeah.  Nothing too nasty but basically urging you to leave town, claiming you don't belong here, that sort of thing."

"What was the graffiti made with?  Do we have any record of anyone buying paint of that color?" Remington asked.

This time she shook her head.  "It was done with charcoal - really easy to clean up, thankfully, but it doesn't point to where it came from or who had it. And of course no one saw anyone doing it AND it was all at different heights so we can't really narrow anything down."

Arlo huffed.  "Of course.  Regardless -- I worry that letting this stretch on any further will only result in someone getting seriously hurt.  It's clear our initial plan has definitely made this person more bold - just not bold enough to come close to us like they did at the tent.  I think this may be the best we're going to get so we need to come up with our plan to catch them."

Remington nodded, running a hand through his hair briefly; it was hot and stuffy in this tent with all of them inside it and Asher felt his scalp prickle in the heat just watching how Remington's hair clumped together in damp strands.  "We've set a trap once before for that rogue knight - we can always do it again."

"Well, maybe," Sam said, drawing out the last word.  "The thing is, THAT time we definitely knew what the knight was after.  There's a lot more down in the facility besides Stewart and if we set a trap it needs to be baited with whatever it is they're hoping to steal."

"It also needs to look natural - we got away with the last trap since it was in a ruins that were already falling apart.  This facility is much more preserved and it's going to be harder to set something up without it looking off," Mali added.

In the brief pause that followed that exchange Asher sat up a bit straighter.  "Well, it's common knowledge that we're expanding the clinic in town soon.  We could use that as our staging area instead since it's going to be pretty obvious that we're moving Stewart's station there."

Arlo grimaced.  "Yes, but that would be dangerous and tricky. Setting this trap would be dependent on no one else being at risk of injury -- we know this person is armed, after all, and we can't control when someone might try to trip the trap.  I don't want to put Dr. Xu or Harrison, or anyone else who might be at the clinic, in danger."

Eli lightly elbowed Asher in the ribs.  "AND I don't want Stewart's tech in danger of being damaged either -- if it breaks that's it because while I MIGHT know how to fix it it won't be as simple as heading down to the shop to pick up the right parts."

"Yeah...you're right about that part," Asher muttered.  "So it would have to be replicas, and we'd be guessing at what the spy would go for. Do you think they'd actually know what to grab if we baited them with the server stuff or basic computer pieces?"

Eli raised an eyebrow.  "Assuming they're not expecting that again? I could make something that looks genuine, important, and expensive."

Remington let out a thoughtful noise, leaning toward Eli. "How complicated would it be to do that?  I don't even know what...whatever we're talking about looks like."

"Not...TOO complicated, I don't think?  I -- hang on, wait.  Before we get too far ahead of ourselves I need to know what's common knowledge about tech these days.  Exactly how complicated and fancy I'd need to make the replicas would kind of depend on what people know or think these things look like."

They all fell silent; Asher glanced about and could see lots of thoughtful faces - he was hopeful that that meant someone had an answer, because he definitely didn't.  Technology wasn't something he studied or thought about much and he'd consider himself the last person anyone ought to be asking about Old World stuff.

Finally, Mali tipped her head back to look up toward the tent's ceiling.  "There's some common knowledge about Old World components but it's mostly regarding the things we commonly find.  Everyone knows what chipsets are, circuit boards, monitors and displays, and odds and ends that get lumped together just as 'old parts.'  We also have access to old engines of varying types that we've successfully re-created ourselves so we no longer need to rely on digging them up.  In this case... I'm not sure I have the answer.  But I know who would."

There was a brief pause then Arlo nodded.  "Ah, right.  The scholars from Vega 5 will be here soon."

Mali nodded.  "Vega 5 is full of people who have studied Living AIs, and they and Atara both have large libraries full of blueprints and books on Old World tech along with everything their museums have catalogued on display.  They'd be the ones to ask about what they would consider common knowledge."

"But would they know what's common knowledge in Duvos though?" Eli asked.

Mali shrugged.  "It's possible.  I'm not privy to everything that's been discovered through the Alliance's information networks -- the Flying Pigs are an adventuring guild who sometimes get tapped to help provide law enforcement.  I know more than most but ultimately we're not a military group so we're only told what we need to know for the tasks we're given." Eli scratched at her cheek; Asher noted that, due to the heat and sweat, the simple gesture left a pair of angry red marks across her skin  "Right...  Maybe I should go talk to Gale when we're done here -- er, assuming you aren't putting me back on patrol duty?" she added after a moment, looking to Arlo.

"No, go talk to Gale - this is important.  Afterward get back to those signal transmitters," came Arlo's answer.

"Understood."

"You sure you don't need an extra pair of hands with those things?" Asher asked then, looking between Arlo and Eli.  "At the very least I can tote and carry."

Arlo considered that for a moment, then glanced to Eli.  "Your thoughts?"

She huffed out a breath. "Carrying, sure.  But it'd just slow us down if we have to explain how to assemble.  We DO need someone to start bundling the tower pieces and that's also something you could do without much instruction needed - get the finished bits from Higgins, ensure we've got everything, sort it out into sets for assembly.  Basic stuff."

"All right -- go ahead and help them with the heavy lifting and getting the tower parts ready to transport.  Eli, once you've talked to Gale come find me in the Corps building -- Mali, if you'd like to join me for that feel free." Mali and Eli both nodded, and Arlo blew out a breath.  "I think that covers everything-"

"Hey- HEY!"

They all jumped to their feet at the shout from beyond the tent; Asher was still getting to know a lot of the townsfolk but he thought that sounded a lot like--

As he was closest to the tent flap Asher stuck his head out to see Albert sprinting toward them; when the man saw him he started waving his hands and his sprint was slowing.  Asher in turn hurried out of the tent and began running toward him, faintly aware of the sound of several pairs of feet following along behind him, and about halfway to the man Albert came to a stop entirely and doubled over with his hands on his knees, panting harshly.

"What's wrong?  What's happened?"

"Portia...ruins...cave in..." Albert was gasping as Asher came skidding to a stop beside him.  "One under...church..."

"Oh hell," Asher muttered.  He spun around as Eli, Arlo, Mali, and Remington reached them.  "Cave in at the ruins under the church."

"Was anyone hurt?" Arlo asked immediately.  Albert could only nod as he struggled to catch his breath and Arlo broke into a run again while calling orders over his shoulder.  "Asher - take Albert to the tent to catch his breath.  Remington and Eli with me."

The others went running off and Asher put a hand on Albert's shoulder.  "Sit down here in the grass, mind the marshy spots - we'll take a minute here and then we'll walk to the tent, all right?"

"I'll ask Sam to stay out here with Adam," Mali interrupted.  "After that I will join Arlo and the others in town - stay with Albert until he's recovered then escort him back to town."

"Got it," Asher replied.  Mali immediately ran back the way she'd come and Asher turned his attention back to Albert.  "Deep breaths, man, it'll be all right.  Do you know what happened?"

Albert took several more breaths; he seemed to be breathing a bit easier.  After an especially deep breath he lifted his head to look up at Asher.  "Not...a clue.  Heard a...loud noise.  Couple folks...out of the ruins, shouting...about a cave in.  Gale already there...told me to come get you all. I was closest."

Damn it... They should have had this meeting at the Corps building, not all the way out here; even as he thought that he knew that was very unfair as all their patrol routes for this morning had had them all out this way and it was quickest and easiest to gather here, but...  Well, honestly it could have been worse timing.  At least out here they'd all been in one place but had this happened at any other time of day or any other day in general they would've been spread across the countryside with only two of them in town.

"Think you can make it to the tent?  We'll get some water in you, can sit a bit, then we'll head back to Portia."

Albert nodded and straightened and the two of them began to (slowly) walk toward the Pigs's tent.  Mali was already heading back toward them and they exchanged nods as she passed and kept on going.

"What kind of loud noise did you hear?"

"Just a loud boom and a rumbling."

Asher frowned - a loud boom?  "Like...a KABOOM-kind of boom?  Like something exploded?"

"I couldn't tell you.  It was more - more of a sound that sort of hit you in the chest, more than in the ears, and one you could feel through your feet.  Our building is closest to those ruins so it's no wonder that we heard something."

"We?  You and Gust I'm guessing?"

Albert nodded.  "I went to the ruins, and Gust went for Gale.  And then Gale told me to run out here."

"How many came out of those ruins?"

"Um - I saw three folks.  Covered in dust, one of them was bloodied. They were all shaken up and just shouting 'cave in cave in' over and over."

Asher went quiet, chewing on his lower lip.  He wanted to simply believe that the ruins had partially collapsed but something nagged at him over it; the Civil Corps and the Flying Pigs both conducted regular inspections of all ruins across the Alliance of Free Cities to make sure they remained safe for public use.  There's NO WAY they would've missed a structural weakness that was so dangerous as to cause a cave in...someone on the inside had to have caused this.  A careless digger, or...

The saddles might have just been the first attempt to send a message.

---------------------------------------------

Four injured, one dead.  All in all, considering there had been eight people inside the ruins at the time of the collapse, it could have been much worse.

Still.  It was slightly guilt-inducing to feel relieved that ONLY one person had been killed -- no one was sure where she'd come from but they'd matched her description to the list of Happy Apartment hotel-based rentals so they had a name but no way to contact any next of kin, nor did they know if this Kara person had any sort of surname at all either.  It would make for a somewhat plain headstone but at least they had the first name.

Sam, along with Mali and Higgins, had worked quickly to get a makeshift door in place and the rest of the entryway to the ruins boarded up; tomorrow Dana would be traveling to Portia to help Mali investigate what had caused the collapse.  Sam had wanted to go in with them as well but she'd gotten a resounding "no" from Arlo, Mali, and Gale - all at the same time, no less.  She supposed that made sense as she wasn't a miner or builder or anyone who would know anything about structural integrity (or whatever Mali had called it), and the fewer people at risk inside for a follow up collapse, the better.

As she walked up the hill toward the Corps building it was hard to miss the silence in this half of town; Ack hadn't been at his usual spot in the plaza, there weren't any tourists or townsfolk walking about.   Even the Round Table had seemed a bit quiet when she'd passed by moments ago.

Portia had certainly had a streak of bad luck lately...  The pessimistic side of her wondered how the spy would find a way to take advantage of the chaos.

As she crested the hill she spotted a man leaning against the railing of the stairs that led down to the central plaza; he had his back to her but she recognized the coat he had on (even in this heat).

"Bob?  I thought you would've moved on by now," she called out.

The man jumped and spun around, stumbling a bit as he boot caught on an upraised stone.  "Huh!  Huh?  Well.  Yeah, maybe.  Thought I should. Been tired lately."

Sam nodded and walked over, crossing her arms and eying the man.  He was a harmless drifter and she didn't suspect anything of him but he was also somewhat regular - he arrived in the spring, left at the start of the summer season, and then came back mid-autumn.  "Something wrong?"

"Not really.  Just got a feeling.  Road might not be safe."

She frowned.  "What do you mean?"

"I remember someone telling me there was a thief around.  I don't carry valuables.  But that's not all someone could take."

"Bob... Do you think someone's trying to harm you in some way?" she asked.

The man fidgeted a bit.  "Not me.  I think?  But I've seen some ghosts.  Footprints out of thin air.  I don't want to share a road with it."

Sam stared at him.  "...where did you see these footprints?  Can you show me?"

Bob shook his head.  "Not now - been too long.  Saw them on the beach while I was stargazing.  Walking west.  Too close to where I'd pass going back south."

"How long ago was this?"

The man shrugged, then scratched at his head.  "Not sure.  I don't do so well with time anymore."

"But it was recent, at least?"

He nodded; Sam mulled that over -- it sounded like Bob had spotted their spy out in the wild.  "How about we walk together to where you saw the footprints and you tell me whatever you can remember about when you saw them and what you were doing?"

He nodded again and walked with her back down the hill.  As they passed under the gates she wondered if she shouldn't call for back up but...  Well.  She could think of a lot of reasons to do so, and the reasons not to didn't seem as convincing so as they continued down the road she gestured for them to detour toward Selene's house.  Eli ought to be in the factory helping assemble, and Asher ought to be here too.   Surely one of them could shift over to walk out to...wherever, with her and Bob.

---------------------------------------------------------

That she hadn't known Kara made it easier to look genuine when it came to keeping her expression appropriately sad-looking as they buried the woman; it was a small ceremony with a smattering of Portians present, along with the full force of the Civil Corps -- being as she didn't see them she assumed that the Flying Pigs members were out at the facility, as usual.  They seemed to never, ever leave the place unguarded and, as she'd discovered the other evening while doing some recon, there was a gigantic build project of some kind being carried out at the facility's entrance now -- if she had to guess it looked like some sort of covering, or door.  

That likely meant they were really doubling down on the security out there, and while what she was after was being moved out of the facility she was beginning to get worried -- if they sealed that place up tight that would free the Pigs up to directly watch the construction of the clinic addition and the installation of the All Source AI.  

And that would make Lily's job even harder while now also being down a team member.

After the funeral it was announced that the ruins would be closed for the time being to conduct an investigation into the cause of the collapse; that at least didn't effect any of them remaining but it ALSO carried the high risk of bringing in more outside people -- more Pigs, more nosy law-types, the possibilities were starting to pile up.

Days ago she'd been bitching about how long it was taking them to start construction; she'd seen buildings put up in a matter of days in Duvos -- how hard could one addition to an already existing building be?

Now... As much as she didn't want to disappoint Xan, they might indeed have to change their plans to have any chance of this heist succeeding.

---------------------------------------------------

They always put out the paper on the first of every month.  Always.   Without fail -- even if it meant that she and Erwa stayed up all night fixing issues with their printing press machine or working to get wording on an article juuuuust right.

The first of the month was still six days away but Gale had asked for a special edition to be produced.  It was the hardest thing Mei had ever had to write: all this...all this alarming detail on a vandal, a thief attempting to break into the medical facility in the marsh, and now the devastating discovery that the cave in two days ago had been purposely caused by tiny explosive charges.  It was such awful news that sometimes Mei found her hand shaking as she scribbled notes and drew arrows or crossed out paragraphs as she tried to get things into order both chronologically and also in a manner that flowed well for reading.

There were still a few hours to go before they needed to start printing and there was just one thing Mei wanted to get done before then but then again... It wasn't a nice subject and she didn't want to offend anyone - especially not the person she'd like to interview regarding all this.

But.  She wouldn't know if she'd be offending unless she asked.

Selene's workshop was a familiar sight - Mei had been out here a lot over the years, both before and after large city projects were announced and completed with the builder's help - so she knew better than to knock on the house's door and instead marched up to to the factory door and really gave it a good pounding.  After a few minutes the door opened and an oil-smudged Selene was framed in the doorway, and once it registered who was there Mei was offered a big, bright smile.

"Hey!  What're you doing out here?"

"Hello Selene!  I was wondering if Eli was still here?"

Selene nodded and stepped aside, gesturing with one hand toward a makeshift workbench set up perpendicular to her usual one; lined up shoulder to shoulder was Eli, Petra, and Merlin, all hurriedly working to assemble bits and doodads that Mei guessed was all meant to fit into a much bigger contraption of some kind.  

It was unusually quiet in here today as well; only a handful of the machines were running -- that must mean whatever Selene was working on either didn't need a lot of pieces or maybe it was almost complete.  She stepped inside and out of the way so Selene could close the door and then noted that the latest member of the Civil Corps, Asher, was sorting large metal struts and rods into organized piles against the far wall, moving about in short bursts and then checking off things on a clipboard he had hanging off his belt.

"I'm not interrupting something I shouldn't, am I?"

"Not really - we can spare a pair of hands for a bit."  Selene led Mei over toward Eli and the Research Center gals.  "Mei's wanting to talk to you, Eli."

The woman looked up at them (though Mei noticed her hands didn't stop what they were doing - it was kind of impressive to see her keep working without her looking at the pieces) and silently lifted an eyebrow.

"Oh - um, yes.  I was wondering if you could spare some time to give a few statements for the article we're writing for the paper?" Mei asked into the pause.

"Uh..." Eli drew the word out, returning her attention to what her hands were doing.  It seemed immediately clear that whatever her answer was going to be it would have to wait until she'd finished off this piece of...whatever it was; Mei waited patiently, and watched with a bit of curiosity, until Eli had slotted all the pieces together and tightened down all the screws.  "-all right, sure.  Let's step outside for some air."

Mei led the way outside and then followed as Eli took an abrupt turn to the western side of the factory -- there was a cluster of stools out here and they both settled on one, and Mei hurried to pull out her little notebook.

"All right - of course, if you find any of my questions upsetting it's perfectly fine not to answer.  I don't mind at all!"

Eli nodded.  "Ask away."

"How would you say the situation is currently going?"

"Which one are you referring to?"

"Let's start with the vandal.  It couldn't have been easy to see the gravestone damaged like that."

For several breaths Eli didn't answer.  Mei sat patiently with her pen poised over the blank sheet of notebook paper with her free hand pinning the loose edge down; this side of the factory was currently in the shade and the breeze was a bit strong as the wind rushed along the flat brick.  It was a nice place to sit but if she wasn't careful her notes would get scattered across the yard since not all the pages were still bound to the wire spiral.

"It wasn't, no.  It's clear whoever did it wanted their message heard, and intended it to hurt.  It did, I won't lie, but also, it really shows just how much of a coward this person is since they didn't confront me directly.  Same with all the other instances of graffiti lately -- they're not brave enough to say anything to my face.  In that context, it's a bit comical."

It took about the same amount of time for Mei to write that down as it had for Eli to say it.  "-and do you have any guesses as to who this person is?"  Eli shook her head but didn't elaborate; Mei added a little mark after the quote to remind herself of the answer.  "How about things out at the medical facility?  Has there been any further attempts to break in?"

"No, and soon there won't be any chances of a break in either.  We're installing a security door and will work toward preserving the facility as it is."

Mei had heard about the door - she wondered what it would look like when it was done.  "And do you have any opinion on the expansion at the clinic, since it's rumored that you'll be incorporating an All Source AI into the building?"

Eli blinked at her.  "Incorp- uh, maybe that definition has changed in three hundred years but we're not incorporating him into anything.   He'll be installed and be there to teach and treat, but he won't be in charge of or able to run the clinic by himself.  For one, there's no other computers or AIs for him to oversee, and secondly the building will be just a building without any tech for him to monitor either."

"Do you have any worries about how having an All Source AI teaching humans would be seen in the greater world?"

With a loud sigh Eli leaned back against the brick wall.  "I do, sort of.  I worry that zealots in your Church won't be able to look past him being a part of the Old World and try to destroy him, in which case all the knowledge he holds would be lost along with him.  Hand in hand with that I also worry about what he'd be teaching and to whom."

Mei looked up from her notes in surprise.  "You think he'd teach something bad?  Or bad people?"

"Not exactly "bad" in either case, its more I worry people will try to somehow hoard the knowledge -- even hypothetical enemies deserve the right to live disease and injury free.  I wouldn't really say there's right and wrong people to teach, but I do think there will be people out there who think they're the only ones who have a right to the knowledge, or who think some knowledge is fine but some of it should be scrubbed from history.  We even had a bit of a problem with myths and misinformation regarding certain diseases in my time and that was with an entire world's worth of knowledge available to anyone at any time."

Mei slowly nodded at that; it reminded her of an article she'd written a few years ago about the push-back of remedies coming from a doctor in Vega 5.  "So, even if people don't want to keep the knowledge to themselves there's also a question of whether some would accept it, at all."

"Exactly. I imagine there's going to be a lot of entrenched doctors scattered across the world who think their way is best and will be unwilling to change.  It'll be a bit messy in the upcoming years but I hope the overall health and life expectancy of the world goes up as the knowledge spreads -- and hopefully it'll be fairly uniform across the world, not just in small clusters due to hoarding or refusal to adapt."

With her hand cramping from how quickly she was trying to write Mei managed to get all that down in her notes; she'd gotten a little carried away as she'd only wanted a few lines to quote but this could potentially be an article all on its own.  She was just about to shut the book when a thought occurred to her. "Oh!  Right - there's been a lot of questions about the metal towers that were put up recently.  Are you able to explain what those are for?"

"You guys use telegraphs for long distance communication, right?"

Mei nodded.  "For messages that can't wait for couriers."

"Right.  So, those towers are the first of many that will hold...how to put it in simple terms...  Think of a telegraph that doesn't need wires, is more reliable and secure, and also can just send words instead of having to tap a little button and have someone translate at the other end.  We're trying it out here in Portia and maybe in the future, assuming it works and can be reliably maintained, we could extend it across the continent."

"What, really?" Mei asked, eyes widening.  "That's huge!"    

Eli was giving her an amused look and Mei realized her jaw was hanging open; she scrawled an almost unreadable note about the towers underneath the rest of it.  "Ah, um - uh, so, when will THAT project be completed?"

"It'll take some time.  Getting everything installed is the easy part.  Getting it all to work correctly will be hard."

"So...no...expected...completion date yet?" Mei asked as she wrote, glancing up from the writing to Eli, then underlining the 'no' as Eli shook her head.  "That's very exciting... Will it be something anyone could use?  Will it cost a lot?"

Eli paused, then offered a half shrug.  "Well, I guess that first answer is yes and no.  In terms of complexity anyone will be able to use it because it's not difficult at all to learn, but initially there's going to be a problem with getting parts to both maintain and expand it so there won't be a lot of the system in place for widespread use to start.  I don't have any idea on cost just yet - we're using a combination of wind, water, and power stones to start off with.  I'm relatively certain I know how much energy this will draw but won't know exact numbers until its been up and running for awhile."

"And...you're ok with this technology spreading?"

Eli snorted loudly.  "I am," she replied, placing heavy emphasis on 'I.'  "No idea about the rest of the world."

Mei hummed to herself as she put down a few more notes.  "This could be an article by itself... All right.  That was everything I had in mind for this piece.  Unless you'd like to add anything?"

"Not in particular."

"Well, thank you!" Mei said, smiling and shoving a hand toward her.   Eli shook it with a bit of a smile and then stood.  "I'll get this over to the paper and you'll be seeing it in print soon!"

Eli didn't reply beyond nodding, then led the way around the building where she went back inside while Mei headed toward the gate; she felt a bit lightheaded -- like she was floating across the grass.  The prospect of a better, more secure communications system that was instantaneous made her giddy; imagine how much faster information could travel.  Imagine how quickly a message back home could reach family...how much easier it would be to stay in touch with the Atara Post about her progress with the Portia Times.  

There were dozens of ways she could instantly imagine her life getting easier if this communication thing worked, and that was just for HER - she couldn't even clearly conceive all the ways the entire Alliance could make use of such a thing.

As she walked through the doors into the news building she managed to pull her thoughts away from the communications scoop and set herself back on track regarding the special edition Gale had asked them to put out; it didn't appear Erwa was here but that was ok - Mei could work on a rough draft and get his opinion later when he came back.

Eli hadn't been the only one she'd interviewed today so the first order of business was to quickly reread her notes and decide where to insert Eli's bit into the order she'd tentatively decided on earlier; this article needed to be a direct and firm read, with a logical flow to the information, but it couldn't have a tone to it that would cause undue alarm. People had a right to know that the cave in was actually a murder, but how to word it so that it wouldn't cause a panic in town...

And also, the more she thought about it, the less sense it made to include anything referencing the communications project.  Prior to talking to Eli she'd assumed the towers were related to the security project out at the facility but now it seemed they were unrelated to each other, and...well, if they had a vandal snooping around it wouldn't do to draw attention to something this valuable.

...yeah.  It made more sense to relegate the communications towers to its own separate article, AFTER the vandal (or murderer?  Or both?) had been taken care of.  At the very least that cut out a good amount of information she would've had to figure out how to fit onto the front page with everything else.

---------------------------------------------------

Windsor had "claimed" a small area of the Peach Plaza for his impromptu performances; a decent number of people expected him to be there in the mornings and later at night, showing off his juggling and throwing skills (a few had even donated some small straw targets for him to use so he'd changed up his routine a bit).  It may have just been a cover job but it was bringing in decent money; it was a nice little perk to the whole thing but if they didn't get moving on this theft job soon he wouldn't be able to keep playing off the "too poor to go back home" angle of his cover story.

The atmosphere in Portia seemed a bit...strange this morning.  There weren't nearly as many people moving about in the central plaza as usual, and as he went plodding up the hill passed the shops he was a bit alarmed to see a small crowd of people that WEREN'T his usual audience huddled roughly in his spot near the fountain.  As he drew closer he could see all of them clutching papers in hand, and there was a dull roar of chatter among them.  In their midst was a squat, hairy man in an orange vest and hat, and a blonde woman wearing a blue and white pointy hat; they appeared to be handing out whatever the paper was, and when he finally got close enough to the gathering he saw it was a thin newspaper with "SPECIAL EDITION" printed in big, bold letters across its top with "Portia Times" printed in slightly smaller text beneath it.

Through a gap in the crowd the hat-wearing blonde noticed him, and carefully wound her way through the group toward him with one of the papers in hand, pushed out toward him.

"Good morning, sir - would you like to read this special release of the Portia Times?  This copy is free, paid for by Portia's government."

"Uh...sure.  What seems to be the ruckus?" he replied, taking the paper and skimming the-

...oh.  Oh boy.  Well, that wasn't good.

[nelllraiser]

catakitrophe | bex & nell

LOCATION: the vural residence PARTIES: @inbextween & @nelllraiser. SUMMARY: bex arrives to meet nell for ice cream. nell has other plans.  CONTAINS: domestic abuse (mention)

Nell, though pushy, was an easy person to get along with. Bex had never imagined she’d make friends with someone who witnessed her destroying-- well, not her, but close enough-- school property, but Nell hadn’t seemed to mind. And she hadn’t told anyone, so that was really good enough for Bex at the moment. She couldn’t deny she was lonely. Her parents tried to control every aspect of her life, including which friends she socialized with, but this somehow felt like something they couldn’t, something they didn’t know about, and Bex liked that idea. She could remember all the times she’s snuck out of the house a teenager, unlocking her locked window, and scaling down two stories. Her knees had always been scraped and bruised, but her parents dismissed it because she “had always been a clumsy child”. And she’d been happy enough to let them believe that. 

There were plenty of things Bex was happy to let her parents believe that weren’t true, but having something completely secret was still new. Ever since she’d been outed, she’d felt as if everything she wanted to keep for herself was suddenly bared in front of her. But Nell was, well-- different. No one but them knew about what happened. And so, despite Nell’s pushiness and her insistence that what had happened was magic-- and maybe, just maybe a teeny, tiny eency part of her believed that-- Bex found herself at the other girl’s house, staring up at the arched roof of the cabin like home. It was such a large house, hidden back here partially in the woods, glowing with something almost other-worldly. It took her a minute to raise her fist and knock, stepping back from the door and smoothing the frills of her dress down as she waited. Fixing her hair just as the door opened. “Hi! Hello! I-- I made it! It’s me, Bex. Your house is so big, I sort of didn’t expect it. Am I late?”

Apprehensive was the best way to describe how the week had gone for Nell while she was waiting to take Bex out to ice cream. The initial excitement of meeting a new witch had somewhat quelled in the face of realizing just how badly she could fuck this up. Bex needed guidance, a steady hand to show her the path of magic, and the last time Nell had tried to teach a form of magic hadn’t exactly gone...smoothly. Regan had balked when the witch had tried to teach the banshee how to glamour, panicking when Nell had made her fake wings disappear. Then the door to instruction had been shut, and Nell was determined not to make the same mistake with Bex. Beyond that was the worry that she might be ostracizing Bex by teaching her. Surely the right thing to do would be to hand Bex over to her old coven, and into the hands of witches who’d taught literal generations— Nell being one of them. But it was plain to see that Bex already struggled with control in her life, and Nell couldn’t help but think about how her mother was still on the board the coven, no doubt eager to get her hands on any fresh and young witch that came to learn. That was a fate Nell wouldn’t wish on anyone, so it seemed it was up to her. 

Brushing her doubts away, Nell clung to the excitement of seeing Bex again, greeting the girl with an eager wave and smile. “Hey! No! You’re perfect- I just finished feeding Taki, actually. I think he’s excited to meet you.” She’d already instructed the overgrown cat to be on his best behavior, and to do his best not to let loose any fireballs or soot sneezes in the presence of their visiting witch. Nevertheless, she wanted to let Bex get acclimated first before introducing a cat with eyes of fire. “Yeah- technically it’s my sister’s house but we all live here. Both my sisters and me.” Corpsey, Bea’s reanimated corpse, had been carefully hidden away as well amongst other alarmingly magical things, but there was still a healthy air of mysticism around the home as Nell waved Bex inside. “I can show you him before we get going for ice cream if you still wanna see him.”

“You have two sisters?” Bex said, astonished and excited. She’d always wanted a sister-- or even brother. Growing up alone in that big house of her parents’ had been lonely, and all the weight of their expectations had been firmly placed on Bex’s shoulders because of it as well. She glanced around as she stepped inside and looked down at Nell with a smile. “What’s that like? Living with them? Is it nice? Are you parents not in town?” She shuffled around awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what to do with herself, when Nell offered to let her meet Taki. “Oh! Yes! I’d love to! I’d love to meet Taki. I haven’t met many cats before, actually. People mostly have dogs, and my dad never let me have any pets growing up. Or...now.” She cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her head. Why was she nervous? Well, she supposed she was sort of always anxious. She stood behind Nell and waited for her to show them off to her cat, unable to help the nerves bubbling in her stomach. 

“Yeah! There’s Bea and Luce. They’re both older than me. I think they’re out somewhere right now, though.” To be honest, Nell had specifically chosen a time that she’d known her sisters wouldn’t be present for, wanting to have Bex all to herself for the moment being. “It’s fine living with each other. I mean obviously we fight sometimes, but it’s also nice not having to tiptoe around them like you might have to do with a normal roommate. And I can get into their closets whenever I want,” Nell finished with a grin. She was built smaller than her two sisters, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t find ways to make their garments work if she really wanted to wear something of theirs. Magic was also good for temporarily resizing things if need be anyway.

The question about her parents made Nell internally wince, and she did her best to hide the tenseness that claimed her shoulders for a split second. “No, they live in White Crest. I was born here and grew up here, too.” There went Bex anxiously babbling again, but it was precious in a way that endeared Nell to her. “Don’t worry, I have a feeling Taki’s gonna like you. I’ll get him now for you.” Then she was calling the cat in a singsong voice mostly for Bex’s benefit. Normally she would have simply tugged on their mental bond to let him know he was needed, but with Bex present she was currently employing a strategy of ‘the less magic, the better’. Almost instantly, a black cat that had absolutely no right being as large as he was came down the stairs of the home, tail high in the air in a cat greeting. In truth he was an Ovinikk, a Shiba Inu sized beast, and Nell’s familiar...but Bex certainly didn’t need to know that. “Bex, this is Taki,” Nell said as she bent down to give Taki a pet. “And Taki- this is Bex.” The Ovinikk looked up at the new witch with a slow blink before settling himself on his back haunches, tail swishing curiously while he waited for Bex to make the first move.

“I always wanted a sibling,” Bex admitted, sighing fondly as Nell explained her living situation with them.It sort of sounded like an impossible dream-- living with people you didn’t have to tiptoe around. Not that Bex wasn’t grateful for all her parents had done for her, but she was finding it increasingly more difficult to hide her true self away from them. She felt...suffocated. Her throat dried up at the thought and she had to swallow hard to make it go away, concentrating back on Nell and the situation at hand. “You were? I was born here, too! And I guess technically I grew up here, but I went to a boarding school and even when I was here during the summers and holidays, my parents didn’t really let me off the grounds, so I only went into town on weekends with them or my nanny.” She realized she was rambling again and cleared her throat, giving an apologetic shrug.

“Sorry. Right. Yes! I’m ready to meet him!” She kept her eyes on Nell, trying not to be too nosy by looking around the house, but finding herself unable to quell her curiosity. The place had so many plants and art and objects hung on the walls, it was like something out of the ‘New Age Home Decor’ magazines her mom scoffed at. It was definitely a home someone who claimed to be a ‘witch’ would live in. It made Bex wonder if Nell’s sisters were also ‘witches’. But before she could think on it more, Nell was introducing her cat and Bex turned to look-- and almost jumped out of her skin, taking a large step backwards when she saw the massive black cat and its burning eyes. Wait, were they actually on fire?? A pot next to the door shattered as Bex inhaled sharply. “His-- I’m-- I’m sorry. He’s so-- big. How is he so big?” She looked at the shattered pot, then to Nell. “Are you-- is he okay? What’s wrong with his eyes?”

“Well- let me know when you’re really craving one, and you can borrow one of mine in a heartbeat. Especially if it’s when they’re annoying me,” Nell quipped with a crooked grin, her words easy. Plus it wouldn’t hurt for Bex to have more contact with witches in her future. “Really? How long were you at boarding school? That’s probably why I don’t remember you from public school or anything,” Nell mused aloud, vaguely wondering if Bex’s parents knew more about the girl’s magical prowess than she’d originally thought. Maybe that was why they’d sent the girl far away? “Sorry- I know he’s big.” The pot shattered and Nell barely flinched, though she did let a momentary grimace slip through her expression. This was only further proof that Bex was wound far too tight, a literal ticking time bomb just waiting to explode. She needed to learn how to harness her emotions before something more troublesome than a pot or computer exploded.

“It’s alright! It’s just a pot.” Her hands were open palmed and stretched in Bex’s direction, as if she were trying to make sure a skittish and wild animal would stay calm. “It’s his breed- they’re all big like that.” It wasn’t exactly a lie. “He’s perfectly happy! He’s just a very special cat.” The end of Nell’s words had a hint of a coo to them, always enjoying complimenting her familiar. Taki enjoyed it too, his whiskers twitching intelligently as he preened under his witch’s pride. “His eyes are another trait of his breed- that’s all.” Nell gave Taki a meaningful look, as if willing him to appear as non-threatening as possible. Their bond rang true as the Ovinikk flopped heavily onto his side, exposing a fluffy stomach to the pair of them. “You can pet him if you want.” The pot was still broken in the corner, and Nell wondered if this might be her chance to dip Bex into the world of magic that wasn't just breaking and destruction. “You know...you can fix the pot- if you want. It’s not hard, and it won’t hurt or anything.”

Bex stayed in her corner for a hot minute, observing the cat, and taking in Nell’s words. There were a lot of really strange animals in the world, it made sense that there were giant cats. Her eyes stayed trained on the large creature as it flopped over and slowly, she unfurled herself from the corner and took a step closer, glancing between Nell and the large cat. He looked so soft and fluffy, like velvet fur. She could remember digging her hands into a big, fluffy dog’s fur she’d met as a child once, and not wanting to let go. Only losing her grip when her mother pried her from the poor dog. “What um--” she felt her voice wavering and had to swallow again, staring wide-eyed at Taki. “What b-breed is he?” She was trying her best to stay calm, she didn’t want another pot to explode-- not that it was her doing or anything, of course it wasn’t! It was just the tension in the room, a total coincidence-- and possibly freak out the cat, or Nell. Slowly, she made her way over and bent down, still a fair distance from him, reaching out her hand to pet his back. “He’s so soft…” It almost felt strange, but if she didn’t look at his strange, glowing eyes, or the rest of his large, maned body, she could pretend he was a regular cat. Her eyes drifted back up to Nell. “I went to boarding school my whole life, until University,” she finally answered, not wanting to look back at the cat in case she had another freak out. Hands shaking, she stood back up and smoothed them down the front of her pants. “Fix the-- but I didn’t-- that’s not-- do you mean like with glue or something?”

Nell paused a moment before answering Bex’s question, realizing she was going to have to make a decision on exactly how truthful she was going to be when it came to the more magical things in her life. But the girl seemed to accept the explanation of a different breed, so perhaps Nell could test the limits a little. “He’s an Ovinikk,” Nell replied carefully, wondering if the other girl had ever heard a name such as that in her life. A part of her felt as if Bex might go home to Google it, and be apprehensive about the myths and legends she’d find. If she did, the best Nell could hope for was that Bex wouldn’t think she was insane, and still be willing to come back and learn. “He really likes his ears scratched,” she offered with a small smile, happy to see her familiar and Bex getting along. Taki stretched as Bex pet him, basking in the attention he was receiving. Initially, he hadn’t been too happy to learn of another human coming along and stealing away his witch’s attention, but if she kept petting him...perhaps she could stay. “Not with glue,” Nell began delicately, desperate not to scare off Bex. “But...fixing it like the computers were fixed. And the same way they got broken.” Maybe if she kept names out of this, it would all be a little less scary and detached— and easier to accept and explore.

“Ovinikk?” Bex repeated, raising a brow. She’d never heard of that breed before, but she hadn’t heard of a lot of breeds before. So she took the explanation at face value, and decided to look into it later. Because there was probably something weird about this breed that could be explained online, like why its eyes looked like they were on fire. She glanced back over at Nell as she bent down once again to scratch Taki’s ears as instructed. He seemed to be liking the attention, and she felt herself relaxing a little the longer she pet him. Her eyes fell on the shattered pieces of the pot as Nell started to explain. Without taking her eyes off, she tensed up a bit. “That-- that’s not possible,” she said quietly, still not looking up at Nell or down at Taki. Kept her eyes trained on the shattered remains. Could she really mend instead of break? Was that even possible? All she’d ever done her entire life was ruin and destroy. Was she really able to fix anything? “...Is it?” 

“Mhm,” Nell hummed her confirmation, trying not to linger too long on the foreign name. Hopefully Bex wouldn’t think it too strange. “That’s him.” While Bex scratched at his ears, Taki began to purr, apparently already reconsidering his bitterness of no longer being an only child if the new witch was going to give him this much attention. As Bex’s hope began to blossom before Nell’s very eyes, a stab of sympathy ran through the summoner. It was like watching a dying man chancing upon an oasis in the middle of a desert he’d been crawling for longer than he could remember, already having given up hope that he might ever find refuge. “It is possible,” Nell continued gently, still well aware that Bex was an unpredictable creature, and easily startled. “I could show you if you want. Putting them back together isn’t as easy as breaking things, but it’s definitely doable.” That just seemed to be the way of life, and magic followed a similar course. And a small pot would be the perfect place to start— small and simple. 

Bex paused her petting to look up at Nell, well aware of the pot still broken across the room. She didn’t want to admit that it had broken because of her, but it was becoming harder and harder to deny that all the strange things that happened around her were because of her. Hadn’t that been why her parents were so desperate to send her away? Strange things happened in White Crest, especially around her. Whatever it was, it wasn’t normal, and all they ever wanted was a normal child, a normal daughter. She couldn’t give them either of those things, though, could she? Slowly, she stood back up. “And you...can show me how?” she asked quietly, almost shamefully. She was tired of breaking everything-- of breaking herself, her life, her parents’ trust. She wanted to mend something. She wanted control of something in her life. Even if it wasn’t something she wanted or understood or even believed.

“I can show you how, and teach you how to do it yourself. It’s not like riding a bike or something, though. It takes focus and determination. But it’s also just as simple as wanting something, and letting yourself have it.” Nell forced herself to stop talking, worried she might lose Bex at any moment with all her hippy witchy talk. Thankfully she’d at least had a blink of experience with speaking to someone who waslearning magic later in life as opposed to being reared on it in the form of Winston. Unfortunately on the opposite hand Nell didn't have the luxury of Bex believing in magic as her childhood friend did. Nell edged closer to where the pot had broken before sitting herself in front of it, patting the floor alongside her as an invitation to Bex. “Come sit with me, and we can get you fixing things in no time.” Looking up at the girl, Nell began her first line of questioning. “So when things...break- how do you feel leading up to it?”

Wanting something and letting herself have it. Now there was something Bex knew absolutely nothing about. Because the one time she’d given in to letting herself have what she wanted, her business had been blasted around the school publicly and her parents had found out and it had been probably one of the worst days of her life. Still, she stuttered forward towards where Nell patted the ground, glancing back at Taki once, and finding herself wanting to stay with the strange cat much more than she wanted to sit on the floor next to Nell and “fix” a pot with “magic”, or whatever she was going to call it. Still...she couldn’t deny her own curiosity. Whatever had been going on around her, if Nell had a way to fix it, then Bex wanted to know. Because she wanted it to stop, she wanted to be able to fix her messes. Maybe then her parents would be proud of her. Maybe then they’d tell her she was good enough. She sat down slowly and looked over at Nell. “Umm-- usually scared o-or anxious. Or upset. Or paranoid. Or confused. Or--” she paused, frowned, “--pretty much anything but happy or excited. No, actually-- it happened when I was excited once, too. All the windows shattered in the house because I was really excited about going somewhere with my parents and then they said it was my fault so we couldn’t go anymore and they lock-- put me in my room for the rest of the day while they got the windows fixed.” A pause, as she realized she hadn’t taken a breath in a second. “Um...So, yeah. Mostly when I’m anxious, I guess?”

Nell nodded as Bex spoke, not surprised by what she was saying in the least. Magic could be triggered by most any strong emotion, but if one felt as if they were in danger, whether the threat be physical or something intangible— magic was more than ready to take to the defense of its vessel. “The problem is- you’re letting your emotions control you. People always talk about controlling emotions as if you’re supposed to dampen them down, or get rid of them entirely. But that’s not what it is when it comes to things like this. You can let yourself feel the emotions all you want, but you just can’t let them overwhelm you. You can give them a path to take, guidance through sheer will that results in you taking hold of them rather than the other way around. If you try and smother the emotions then they just get stronger, bottling up until-” Nell motioned towards the broken pot, figuring that was a good enough representation of the metaphorical bottle literally bursting open. “But you can make them work for you.” She leaned forwards to gather the bigger pieces of the pot closer together, putting them in a little pile in front of Bex. “Think of how you felt when the pot broke, and let yourself feel it again but gather it within you. And then you just...let it out. You let them out to make way for the new feelings that will come after the pot’s been fixed. You take hold of the little spark you feel when things break around you, pair it with a strong intention to fix the pot, and let the emotions power that intention. There’s no room to wonder whether the pot’s gonna be fixed or not. It just will be, and you’re gonna make it that way. The anxiety, the fear- all that stuff has to go so there’s room for what comes after, and you use those feelings to fix the pot and let the new stuff come in.”

Bex sat and listened while Nell talked. She was trying her best to absorb what Nell was saying, but a lot of it made it into her head rattled around like cymbals. She had no idea how to make sense of them, no one had ever taught her how to manage her feelings before. Pushing them down was how she managed them. But she had to try, right? If she wanted any chance at normalcy, she had to try. If she could fix her messes-- or better yet, figure out how to stop them from happening in the first place-- then she could stop worrying so much. She actually just...be normal. Or as normal as someone like her could get. Whatever was causing this-- and it surely wasn’t magic-- would be over. It had to be. 

“Okay, I-- I think I get it,” she said slowly, adjusting herself to a more comfortable position and looking down at the broken pot pieces. Closing her eyes, she tried to remember what Nell told her. She tried to recall the feeling of fear and anxiety when she first saw Taki. On how strange he had looked, on how not normal it was to have a cat that large with eyes that looked like actual fire. She felt it hiccup in her chest and than spread through her entire body, the more she thought about it. It made her fingers tingle and her tongue feel numb. She felt a rattling inside of her and tried her hardest to focus on fixing the pot. Fixing her mess. Fixing the problem she created. She felt a rush of something inside of her, like energy, like warm cocoa when you drink it on a cold night and can feel it sinking into your stomach and spreading through your body. And when she opened her eyes next-- the pot was fixed. “Oh hashem!” she exclaimed, excitement pouring out of her as she pointed at the fixed pot. “How’d that-- Did I do-- It worked!”

Had her explanation been too muddled? Or maybe it had strayed too close to the hippy dippy witch-talk that was the true root of most magic. It wasn’t Nell’s fault that the very essence of their abilities was tied so strongly to intentions, life, and its emotions. Either way, Nell was only tentatively optimistic as Bex confirmed her understanding, believing it too good to be true that her first lesson might actually stick. But as the pieces of the pot fused together in perfect conjunction, not a seam or crack to be seen on its surface— Nell’s heart soared, and wasted no time in joining Bex’s celebration. “You did it!” she exclaimed with a jubilant laugh, arms thrown over her head with exuberation. “It worked! Oh Bex- this is amazing. That was amazing! You did so well! I knew you could!” Gone was the tentative nature of her previous teachings, wild abandon taking its place as joy and pride swept aside any sense of speaking carefully so as not to scare Bex out of this whole ‘magic’ thing. There was no time for such things when the witch had done her first intentional magic! This was a momentous occasion in any witch’s life, perhaps even more important than uttering one’s first words, and Nell had been privy to the gift of guiding Bex through it and bearing witness.

Nell’s excitement made something flutter inside of Bex that she hadn’t felt in a long time-- someone was proud of her. She’d done something to make someone happy and excited and before she knew it, she was bubbling with tears. Amazing, she had said. Something she had done was amazing. And she tried not to think too hard about what it was that she had done, because now another thought was rising in her throat and oh hashem-- what had she done!? Bex’s happy tears turned into a gurgle and she dropped the pot and it shattered again and she shrieked, “I’m sorry!” And then next to them, the lamp flickered on and off, and on the shelf next to it, books fell from their spots. “I-I’m sorry! I don’t know what-- I didn’t mean to-- This isn’t real, right? This isn’t real.” She pressed her hands over her ears, too much noise. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to--” She knew it couldn’t be true, she knew it couldn’t be that easy. She always destroyed more than she fixed. That was just who she was.

The tears that fell from Bex were the very definition of bittersweet. One on hand- Nell was overjoyed that she was finally finding release, the gentle crying seeming to have something of a cathartic effect on the girl in front of her. On the other hand...it was heartbreaking to see how something so simple as fixing a pot could give Bex cause for such desperate relief. Bex deserved better than to carry around such a weight on her shoulders, a heaviness that seemingly broke her whether it was being added to in the event of a magical accident, or lifted when she managed to fix her mistakes. But just as quickly as Bex’s joy had come it seemed to shatter before Nell’s very eyes along with the pot. “No, no- it’s okay! Really, it’s alright!” Nell paid little attention the mess Bex was making, not concerned in the least when she’d be able to fix it with a simple spell. Still...Nell didn’t exactly want to encourage the destruction of the house, so she reached out to place a careful hand on Bex’s shoulder, trying to calm the girl. “What if we just go outside? My garden’s out there by my greenhouse- and we could do some meditation.” Hopefully that would calm the younger witch, and it doubled as another lesson in magical application. Not that Nell would mention that particular tidbit. “We could do dynamic meditation- that’s what I always did. I’m really shitty at sitting still so it’s like meditation where you move. Not like the boring stuff where you just sit there.” Hopefully the movement would also help to relieve Bex’s anxieties. 

Whatever had happened, Bex wanted out. Away. And Nell was offering that. She had put her hand on her shoulder and she didn’t even seem to be noticing all the stuff that was breaking again. Bex felt like her entire body was shuddering as she tried to concentrate on what Nell was saying. A garden, meditation, moving. She just nodded through her stupor, trying not to think about what had just happened here. Not about Taki and his weird eyes, or the broken pot, or the fact that she’d done something that had fixed it. And oh, if her parents knew what she’d done, what a mess she’d just made, they’d be so disappointed. She was nodding again through her shuddering and as they stood, she clung to Nell as if her life depended on it. She hated this, every moment of it. Why couldn’t she just be normal? Be good? Be right? Why couldn’t she just be what they wanted her to be? The disappointment flooded her chest and she tried her best to hold onto it and not let the energy explode out of her like her fear and her anxiety often did. “Garden is good,” she finally managed to squeak out, “I like gardens.” And it was one of the things she was allowed to like, and so a sense of calm followed the admission, and her grip on Nell’s hand loosened. She stole a small glance back towards the house and thought that, maybe, just maybe, having control wouldn’t be so bad.

[itmighthavebeenintentional]

Walk Me Home - Ch 5

Summary: Twenty-four years ago, Kimberly Harper met a boy who changed the course of her entire life before up and leaving one night. She spent years moving past the memories, building a stable, satisfying career as professor of folklore and mythology at the local university. Then the accidents start, and she’s forced to seek help among her hunter contacts. All it takes is a knock on her office door to send Kimber’s carefully built emotional walls crumbling to the ground.

Featuring: Teen Winchesters, high school romance, reunions, misunderstandings, high intensity emotional turmoil, Dean’s love of pie, Dean being adorable, Sam being adorable and maybe a bit nosy eventually, much group adorkable-ness, show-style investigation, mention of our favorite werewolf, gratuitous and obvious love of fall, DID I MENTION ROMANCE, fluff, smut, tension. 

Warnings: Show level violence, show level parental neglect (let’s not John bash, I’m just saying), show-style witchcraft, show-level mental manipulation, stalking, bit of angst, sexual content (higher than show level),swearing, general yearning

Word Count: 3777

Author’s Note: Eternal thanks to @mskathywriteswords​ , @fangirlxwritesx67​, and @cracksinthewalls​ for editing, revision, flailing, and generally knocking sense into me when I’m being stubborn. Decided to give Wednesday posting a try and also get a chapter up a little earlier to make up for lack of posting. Be prepared to brush your teeth after this one. The fluff morphed into cotton candy when I wasn’t looking. Also, be prepared, the next chapter is short, but...intense? Yes. Let’s say intense. 

Keep in Mind: There are a lot of flashbacks. I tried to write current events in present tense and flashbacks in past tense. Here’s hoping I got everything right!

Please read/heed the warnings. 18+ ONLY. 

In Case You Missed It: Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 ItMightHaveBeenIntentional’s Masterlist

Chapter 5

Kimber drifts gradually back to consciousness, feeling warmer and safer than she has in decades. She draws in a deep breath, stretching luxuriously, and then stilling suddenly. This bed is not her bed. This blanket is not her blanket. She has a brief moment of panic before she opens her eyes to find Dean’s face inches from hers, smooth and relaxed with sleep.

She’d only been able to let him go last night long enough for him to grab his own quick shower and change into sleep clothes. Then, in wordless agreement, they’d settled under the covers of her bed. They’d woven limbs together, pressed close without a word of discussion or thought of awkwardness. 

Just as she was falling asleep, she felt his cheek press against the top of her head, and he’d murmured a single question. She nodded her consent, and his lips met her forehead, just as soft and warm as she remembered. Then sleep asserted its claim.

Kimber lies still in Dean’s arms now, afraid to move and wake him. She’s never seen him this peaceful and relaxed, even back before life took more of a toll on him. With his guard down, she can finally see all the fine lines etched by a hard life spread over his features, adding depth and detail to his face. 

In the early morning light filtering through the threadbare curtains, she can just make out a sparse sprinkling of gray in his hair, and she smiles. Time may be catching up with Dean Winchester, but he is definitely not worse for wear. 

She shifts a little, freeing a hand, and he grumbles in his sleep, his arms tightening for a second before relaxing again. She strokes his hair back gently, combing her nails lightly across his scalp, and he shivers against her. 

She’s never seen him this vulnerable, this soft, even when they were younger. She has to strangle down the urge to trace his facial features with her fingertips. Whatever this is between them is strained by absence and misunderstanding but has somehow managed to survive the years. Touching him so intimately without his knowledge or consent…

No, she thinks. I want to ask him, I want him to hear him say yes. I want him to ask me to touch him.

Instead, she snuggles closer, closing her eyes and resting her face on his chest again, basking in the safety and warmth of his embrace for as long as she can. She is mortified when, five minutes later, her stomach lets out a growl so loud that it actually rouses Dean from his sleep. His arms tense as he stretches and frowns, eyebrows lowering with concern.

“You hungry or just really happy to see me?” he rumbles, his eyes closing again. She giggles, embarrassment abated. Then she becomes acutely aware of the rat’s nest that is her hair and what tastes like a truly horrific case of morning breath. She disentagles herself from his legs and rolls from his grasp, smiling to herself at his muttered protests. Snatching her previous day’s clothes, Kimber slips into the bathroom to perform whatever damage control she can manage under the circumstances. 

Thirty minutes later finds them at the diner across the parking lot, downing coffee with mutual, silent appreciation. Dean’s brother Sam is expected imminently, and Kimber has no classes or office hours today, so they are mostly ready to begin the investigation.

“We need to sweep your office and house for hex bags,” Dean says, between sips of his second cup of coffee. “Your house will take a while, so why don’t we start with your office to get it out of the way?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Kimber agrees, frowning. “I’ll know if anything is missing, out of place, or new. Maybe you and Sam could check out the spots of the other accidents?”

Dean opens his mouth to answer, then his eyes focus on something over her shoulder, and he nods a greeting. She turns to see a ridiculously tall man in a suit headed in their direction. It takes her longer than she’s proud to admit to reconcile this giant stranger with the slumped, defeated boy she last saw in the backseat of the Winchester’s car.

“Sam?”

His smile is warm, if a little hesitant, and she stands. They fumble between a hug and a handshake, finally settling on the former before seating themselves. A waitress drops off another mug for Sam, along with coffee refills all around, and they waste no time filling Sam in on the little they know and what they have planned.

“Actually, Sam,” Dean adds, glancing askance at the egg white omelette the waitress places in front of his brother, “I was thinking you could interview the victims at the hospital, see if they noticed anyone out of the ordinary or had contact with anyone that sounds like our stalker.” 

Sam nods, his mouth full, and turns questioning eyes on Kimber. She closes her eyes, pushing as much distraction from her mind as possible.

“He was...on the shorter side. I’d say I probably have an inch or so on him. Younger than me, but I don’t know by how much. I’m really bad at judging age, I’m sorry. Unshaven but not a full beard, kind of rough-looking. Really pale. He never looked me in the eyes, so I didn’t see his eye color. Dark, shaggy hair.”

She shrugs, spreading her hands in apology. “I don’t remember much else. Dark blue windbreaker? It’s been a few weeks, and I didn’t think I’d have to point him out in a line-up or anything.”

Sam shakes his head quickly, swallowing. “No, Kimber, it’s fine. That’s more to go on than we usually have. I’ll talk to the victims, see if anyone stands out in their minds. You two have a solid plan. I’ll give you a call after I visit the hospital, see what I can find out.”

He hesitates, his eyebrows knitted together. “Kimber, I know you’re under a lot of strain, but could you go over the incidents one more time so I have the basics before I go talk to them? I wouldn’t ask, but I need to know what to expect.”

She can’t repress the shudder than runs through her stomach, but she shakes it off and rolls her shoulders. This is just an information exchange. She can handle that. She may need a drink or two afterwards, but she can get through it one more time.

Sam listens attentively, his forehead wrinkled, mouth set in a thin-lipped frown as she recounts the series of accidents plaguing her department. He exchanges some sort of troubled, wordless communication with Dean before glancing down at his folded hands. After considering for a long moment, he speaks, his words measured and careful.

“It definitely sounds like someone has a grudge against your department, at least, if not you specifically. All the victims are friends or work closely with you. We don’t know if any of the other victims got a doll like yours. That’s something for my list. You sure you can’t think of any reason, anything at all, that might make someone target all of you?”

She shoves down her mounting frustration, feeling impotent and slow. If she could think of anything at all helpful, she would have shared it by now. 

“I really can’t, I’m sorry. I just don’t interact with that many people outside of the department, and we all get along fine, as far as I know. No special treatment, no recent honors anyone could be jealous of. I checked in with my hunter contacts that I’d helped out with witch cases in the last few years, even a few non-witch cases that were still open, and I got nowhere with that. I don’t know what else to tell you.”

Sam sighs, nodding before finishing the last of his coffee. “Figured it was worth asking. Okay, I’m heading out. Dean, I’ll give you a call in a few hours.”

Dean nods to Sam, and the younger Winchester excuses himself, crossing the crowded restaurant with a few long strides before disappearing out the door.

Kimber turns back to Dean, her eyes wide with shock she’s barely managed to suppress until just now. He frowns, taking in her expression, looks down to inspect his shirt, then back up, his face comically confused.

“What? Do I have food on my face?”

“What did you feed him after you left town?!” Kimber keeps her volume low but can’t keep the wonder from her voice. “Growth hormones? Steroids? Jesus, he’s over a foot taller than the last time I saw you both, and he was already thirteen then!”

Dean barks out a loud, sharp laugh that earns him a reproving glance from a passing waitress. He bites his lip, covering his mouth with his hand, only partially successful at smothering his snort. She can’t help but smile, a little embarrassed at her outburst, but still…

“No, just lots of fast food. Good, healthy, all-American diet. Almost had to get a full-time job, just keepin’ him fed and clothed. Kid grew out of shoes and jeans like nothin’ I’ve ever seen.”

There’s no mistaking the fondness in Dean’s voice, almost more paternal than brotherly. And the off-hand comment about keeping Sam clothed and fed...Kimber’s heart twinges, but she carefully keeps her face as relaxed and amused as she can.

“Ready to go?” she asks. He nods and stands, lifting the check from the table to take up to the register. He offers her a hand, an inviting smile curling one corner of his mouth, and she does her best to smother the butterflies in her stomach as her fingers slide into his.

…

“I promised Sam I’d go to opening night,” Dean said, something like an apology in his voice. “He’s only working tech, but he’s really excited. It’s been a while since we’ve stayed anywhere long enough that he could get involved like this.”

Kimber squeezed his fingers, pulling her coat closed with her other hand. The temperature had dropped over the last few days, and the evening was brisk as they walked hand-in-hand to the high school.

“Dean, are you kidding? You’re taking me to a play, dinner, and meeting your family all at once. Three birds with one date!” She skipped a little, swinging his hand with hers, flashing him her most exaggerated grin as she let her eyes go wide and kooky. He snorted, glancing away to hide his smile.

He stopped suddenly, tugging gently until she stepped closer, her expression relaxing. His knuckles slid gently down her cheekbone and under her jaw, lifting her chin. He kissed her, a sweet, chaste brush of his lips over hers that sent her pulse dancing. Her cheeks warmed under his attention, and he pressed his lips a fraction more firmly against hers before straightening.

His eyes sparkled in the light from the streetlamp overhead. “You’re ridiculous, you know that?” 

She popped up on her tiptoes to kiss him again, marveling at her own bravery as her hands clasped the sides of his face, locking him in place. Before he could recover, she grabbed his hand, tugging him into a run down the sidewalk, and they arrived at the school, breathless and laughing. 

The performance of Oklahoma! was pretty standard for high school. Simple dance sequences, fair to decent singing (for the most part), and about forty minutes longer than Kimber preferred. They waited afterwards for Sam to make his way from the lighting board, and he shyly offered his hand to Kimber, who accepted, smiling and squeezing his fingers just a little.

The three of them arrived at the diner, relieved to see most families were celebrating at the more expensive restaurants across town. Sam looked over the menu, his eyes as hungry as the growl that escaped his stomach. Kimber didn’t miss the sad look he shot Dean before closing the menu and setting it down. 

When he ordered an ice water and peanut butter sandwich, Kimber’s heart cracked. 

“Sam, it’s my treat tonight. You did a great job; Mrs. Hasker never lets eighth graders work the soundboard, so go nuts. Order whatever you want. It’s your night.” 

Sam, eyes wide with hope, glanced at Dean, who looked torn between shame and relief. Dean cleared his throat, shot a grateful smile at Kimber, then nodded at Sam. 

“You did good, kid. Go for it.”

Sam’s face brightened, and Kimber couldn’t help but mirror his expression as he ordered a strawberry milkshake, double cheeseburger, and cheese fries. Kimber discreetly jabbed Dean in his ribs, and he side-glared at her, suppressing what was very definitely not a manly squeak of surprise. 

“You, too, big brother,” she said, her eyes narrowing pointedly. His lips thinned, his expression pinched. She knew she was hitting a nerve for him; it was fine to accept dinner invitations at home, and fine for her to treat his little brother, but paying for him on a date was an entirely different matter. He visibly wrestled with the simple decision, frustration and pride warring with want.

She softened her expression, placing her hand over his clenched fist. “Please?” She mouthed. “It’s okay.” He glanced at Sam, who was happily chatting with the smiling waitress about the performance, and a reluctant smile tugged at the corners of Dean’s face. 

“Double-bacon cheeseburger, and chili fries, please.”

Dinner with the Winchester boys was a delight that Kimber never forgot. Though Dean teased his younger brother mercilessly, liberally sprinkling descriptors like “geek” and “nerd” in his comments, she saw the way his eyes would linger on Sam as the younger boy inhaled his meal between answering questions about his classes and the performance.

“Are you going to take AP classes, Sam?” Kimber asked. He seemed so keen and motivated, she couldn’t imagine he wouldn’t want to.

“I want to, but we move so much, I don’t think I could keep up with the curriculum,” he admitted, his expression falling. 

“Can I tell you a secret?” Kimber lowered her voice conspiratorially. Sam leaned a little closer, intrigued, and she smiled at his eagerness. It was like looking at a mirror of herself just a few years ago.

“Most AP classes follow the same guidelines across the country, almost week by week. Mr. Schaeffer is the AP coordinator at our school, and he’s pretty cool for a teacher. If you talk to him, explain your situation, I’ll bet he could get you copies of most of the AP curriculum, maybe even some spare textbooks, so you could keep up with it as you guys move around.”

Sam’s eyes widened, and he glanced at Dean for confirmation. Dean shrugged, affecting disinterest as he leaned back to drape an arm around Kimber’s shoulder. 

“I dunno, Sammy,” Dean drawled, “but Kimber’s the top of our class, so she’s probably got some idea what she’s talking about.” He let out an exaggerated huff of air as Kimber’s elbow connected with his side, doubling over as he pretended to fall out of the booth. 

Sam peppered Kimber and Dean with questions about their classes for the rest of the night and didn’t even have to be convinced to have an extra large slice of celebratory pie to finish the meal off.

The three of them stayed late enough at the diner that Kimber was obliged to call her parents on the pay phone in the corner to assure them that she had not, in fact, been kidnapped and left in a ditch on the side of the road. The temperature had dropped considerably, so when Kimber’s mother offered to give all three of them a ride home, Kimber accepted without thinking.

“My mom will be here in about ten minutes,” she announced as she slid back into the booth. “She’s going to give you two a lift back to the motel on our way home.”

Dean’s expression fell sharply, and Kimber’s heart sank. 

“You didn’t-”

“Thanks!” Sam said, unintentionally speaking over Dean. “It got so cold out all of a sudden. Say, do you think I should talk to Mr. Schaeffer tomorrow?”

“The sooner the better,” she said, shrugging on her coat. Sam nodded, slurping down the last of his drink and loping off to the bathroom. She glanced over at Dean, who was sitting stone-faced, a muscle twinging above his jaw.

“I didn’t mean to...I mean, I should have asked, Dean. I’m sorry.”

Dean’s eyes closed, his jaw clenching as his lips pinched tight. Kimber waited, feeling the sting of tears prick at the back of her eyes. She’d crossed some unspoken line between them, and she didn’t know what to do to fix the moment. It had been such a good night, up til then.

“I...I’m not mad...at you,” Dean finally ground out. “Just...just gimme a second.”

He scrubbed his face with both hands, then glanced back towards the bathroom before speaking. He kept his eyes on the table-top, his hands clenching and unclenching on the cheap formica.

“I’m not...used to accepting hand-outs. I can take care of Sam, Kimber, I don’t need...you didn’t...you didn’t have to.”

She opened her mouth, fully ready to defend herself, but he held up a hand. 

“I know. I know what you’re going to say. I get that it’s not a hand-out. I know you don’t...I know you aren’t lookin’ down at us. I’m not used to…”

He cleared his throat, then reached out to her, his eyes still firmly on the table-top. When he spoke, his voice was low and thick, his words measured. 

“I promise, I’m not mad at you. Can we leave it at that for now?” He turned pleading eyes in her direction, his hand palm-up on the table. Her fingers were in his before she realized she’d moved. Mouth too dry to speak, she nodded and allowed herself to be pulled up from the booth.

Sam came barreling back from the restroom then, saving them from further awkward conversation, and they bundled up against the chill. By the time Kimber’s mother arrived, Dean had relaxed enough to greet Mrs. Harper pleasantly, and when they reached the motel, he leaned up to kiss Kimber’s cheek before climbing out of the backseat with Sam in tow.

The next day at school, Dean was a little distracted, almost distant. He walked her home that afternoon in almost complete silence. They were a block from her house when she couldn’t take the tension anymore. She stopped short, biting her lip as tears stung her eyes. To her shame, her throat started to clench, choking any attempt at words. 

Dean looked back at her, concern and confusion clear on his face at her sudden stop. 

She swiped the heel of her hand across her cheeks, avoiding his gaze. “I’m sorry about last night,” she managed, less coherently than she would have liked. “I didn’t mean to...I didn’t...I’m sorry I ruined the evening.”

Dean was in front of her in an instant, thumbs wiping the tears from her face, lips pressed fiercely against her forehead. 

“No, sweetheart.” His tone was rough and resolute. “I told you I’m not mad at you. Last night was...Last night was wonderful. I haven't seen Sam that happy in a long time. It’s been a rough few months. Sam and Dad have started fighting. Dad expects a lot from him, but not the usual good grades kind of ‘a lot.’ And when Dad pushes, Sam pushes back, and I…”

He dropped his forehead to hers, and Kimber pulled in a shaking breath.

“I didn’t want to drag you into our mess. You are perfect, and Sam and I both had a great time last night. Thank you. For dinner. For making Sam so happy. For everything.” He pulled back a few inches, catching her gaze. “Please don’t apologize again.”

She nodded, unable to answer aloud. He searched her eyes until he was satisfied, then nodded.

“ ‘M gonna kiss you now, so Imma need you to hold back on the tears for a minute. People will think I’m a terrible kisser if you cry through the whole thing.”

She laughed, and he caught her off guard, pressing his lips to hers before deepening the kiss. His fingers slid into her hair, tilting her head until he found an angle to please them both. His tongue swept, feather-light, across her lower lip, and she melted.

They came back to Earth a few moments later, jolted from their universe by enthusiastic honking and shouting from a passing car full of guys from one of their classes. Kimber hid her blazing face against Dean’s neck as he nodded, grinning and waving at the other boys.

Instead of pulling away, Kimber linked her arms around his neck, shivering against a biting breeze that swept past. Dean’s arms constricted, pulling her close enough that she felt his heartbeat against her chest.

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Dean whispered, his words nearly lost in the breeze. Then he pulled away, linked his fingers through hers, and walked her home. He kissed her once more on her doorstep, holding her face between his warm, calloused palms, eyes closed. 

He rested his forehead against hers briefly before stepping back. He tried to deliver that smooth, carefree grin from their first study session and failed miserably.

“I’ll see you tonight,” he said. Then he turned, flipping up the collar of his jacket, and stuffed his hands into his pockets as he headed down the walkway. She watched him go, wanting nothing more than to run after him. The set of his shoulders, the tense bend of his neck, told her to hold her ground, though. 

Something else was eating at Dean, and she knew him well enough to know that needling him wouldn’t get him to open up. He needed space and understanding, and she would just have to sit on her frustration. He asked for so very little, the least she could do was give him some time to work through whatever was going on. She just hoped it wouldn’t take too much time for him to open up. She hated seeing him so distant and miserable. 

When Dean finally turned up that evening, he was thirty minutes late for dinner. His father glowered at the pair of them from the driver’s seat of a sleek, black muscle car, while Sam slumped, miserable, in the back. Kimber realized with cold, painful clarity that they had, in fact, no time left at all.

…

Chapter 6

[blackcatkita]

Coffee Cups and an Underwear Drawer

Book: LoveHacks

Pairing: Mark x MC (Dani)

This one-shot (which was supposed to be a ficlet but you know me) fills a request from @darley1101 and is one of my “Mark and Dani: The College Years” pieces. I hope you like it and if you do, please like, comment, or reblog! I appreciate every single note!

**********************************

“I still don’t understand why you wouldn’t let me drive, Mom. We could have made way better time and I’m the one who knows the city.” Dani pointed at the next intersection from the passenger seat of the car they’d rented to take her back to college half-way across the country. “Turn right up here.”

“Because you’re not on the rental agreement and you drive like a lunatic. You would have tried to lose your dad and brother just because you’d think it was funny.”

“No, I wouldn’t. They have all my stuff in that U-Haul.”

Her mom laughed, then checked the rear-view mirror and her blind spot before moving into the turning lane. “Tell me again why you got an apartment when the dorms are so much more affordable.” Making the turn, she watched in the mirror to make sure the truck was still behind them before speeding up. “The rent in this city is outrageous.”

“Because I’m a senior and all the cool kids are doing it,” Dani answered, watching the house numbers as they passed. Just off-campus, the entire street was lined with old Victorians rented out by Grantmore students. Dani and her roommate would occupy the third floor of one of them, complete with the attic space to do… whatever the hell people did in an attic space. Have parties, she supposed. It was gonna be awesome. “It’ll be fine, mom. I’m splitting everything with my friend Ashley. She’s in nursing school. You’d like her.”

“So because she’ll be a nurse, I’m automatically supposed to like her?”

“I mean, yeah. You’re a nurse so isn’t it like a prerequisite you like other nurses?”

“No,” her mom chuckled. “Where is this house of yours?”

“Oh, shit.” Dani turned around in her seat. “I think it’s back that way.”

“Danielle!”

“I’m just kidding!” Dani laughed. “It’s right up here. Pull up behind that white car.” Unbuckling her seatbelt as her mom stopped the car, Dani bent down to gather all the trash from their road snacks into a recycled grocery bag.

“Huh,” her mom said. “Surprise, surprise.”

“What?” Confused, Dani sat up to look out the window and felt a wide smile spread across her cheeks. There he was waiting for her; her best friend, sitting on the porch steps next to a to-go tray full of coffee cups. Her heart raced, beating two, maybe even three times faster than normal while her stomach flipped and flopped. Weird. It almost felt like she was nervous… but that can’t be it, it’s Mark. Maybe the gas station burrito she ate awhile back wasn’t such a good idea.

“Well, look at that,” her mom mused as Mark stood up and straightened his shirt. “His smile matches yours.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. We’re just friends. He’s probably just here to help me move my stuff… or something.”

“I don’t see any other friends here.” Her mom looked up and down the street before nodding in Mark’s direction. “That is not a boy waiting around to help his friend move her stuff. That is a boy excited to see the girl he loves after missing her for three months.”

“You’re delusional,” Dani laughed nervously. “He has a girlfriend.”

A slow grin appeared on her mom’s face as her eyebrow raised, giving Dani one of the many ‘mom looks’ she and her brother Alex knew so well. This one said- you think you know everything but you don’t know shit. “For now,” she said simply.

“Oh my God, stop.” With shaking hands, Dani smoothed her ponytail. “How do I look? Is my makeup ok? It isn’t all smudged and nasty, is it?”

“Why do you care so much? I thought you were just friends?”

“Ugh, forget it.” Rolling her eyes, Dani opened the car door and stepped out as the U-Haul pulled up behind them.

“I hope one of those coffees is for me!” her mom shouted as Dani slammed the door shut.

Walking up to her new home, and Mark, Dani couldn’t stop the smile on her face if she tried and when Mark met her halfway, he lifted her up in a bear hug so tight she didn’t know how she would draw her next breath. Or even if she wanted to, not if breathing meant he let her go. She pushed the silly thought from her mind as he set her down, still holding on tight. “It’s good to see you, Collins.”

“It’s hella good to see you too, Dani.” His deep voice sounded almost breathless in her ear and his hold loosened, only enough to look into her eyes and smile. “How was the drive?”

“Longer than necessary with my mom driving,” Dani laughed.

“Well, we don’t all think the speed limit is just a suggestion like you do.”

The smile on Mark’s face faded into something softer as he looked into her eyes and when his gaze shifted to her lips and back again, she distantly heard the rumble and clang of the truck’s rolling back door open; reminding her they had an audience. A very nosy but well-meaning audience who would tease her mercilessly for being in love with her best friend. Which was ridiculous, wasn’t it? Yes, of course, it was. Definitely. Nope, nothing to see here, just two friends clinging to each other on a sunny day, not weird at all. A warm flush spread across her cheeks as she let out an embarrassed giggle and stepped out of his embrace, breaking whatever spell his gorgeous blue eyes put her under. “Sorry. I umm…” she mumbled.

“I uh… I brought coffee for everyone,” Mark stammered at the same time. “It should still be hot if anyone wanted some, or whatever.” He looked away and rubbed the back of his neck, the blush on his face matching the one Dani could feel getting hotter on hers.

So he felt it too. The awkwardness, the embarrassment, the warm and fuzzy feeling in his stom… No, Dani, she told herself. It’s just Mark, your best friend, not some stupid crush so stop making it weird. She took a deep breath and smiled brightly, determined to move past… whatever was happening. “You, sir, are my hero.”

A soft, affectionate smile graced his lips as his shoulders sagged in relief. “I try.” With a tip of his head, he gestured at the porch and placed a light hand on her lower back. “Come on, I got you your favorite.”

Falling into step beside him, Dani heard her dad and brother arguing and glanced over her shoulder. Only her mom was visible, standing in the street behind the truck and shaking her head at what was going on inside. Plenty of time for Dani to drink some of her coffee then. All of it, if history was to be believed. Once those two got going it didn’t stop until Dani or her mom took control of the situation. Then they would pout for a few minutes, grumbling under their breath about why they were right before doing what they were told. She turned back around and found Mark holding out a large purple drink with an extra fat straw poked through the top. “You didn’t,” she gasped.

“I did,” he beamed proudly.

“BOBA!” Dani squealed as she took it and cradled its cold surface to her cheek. “Oh, how I’ve missed you.” She took a drink, closing her eyes in bliss as the sweet, nutty flavor hit her tongue. “Oh my god, and it’s taro too. I could kiss you for this Mark, you have no idea.”

“Geez, Dani. It’s just tea.”

“Uh-uh,” she hummed as she took another sip and shook her head. “It’s love poured into a cup and it’s everything.” While she happily chewed away at the black tapioca pearls from the bottom of her drink, the voices by the truck grew more agitated. Now take the goddamn drawers out like I told you to, she heard her dad yell. It took a moment for the meaning of his words to penetrate the boba induced euphoria fogging her brain, but once it did, her face went cold. “Oh, fuck…” she whispered, wide-eyed and slack-jawed with her straw still in her mouth. “They’re gonna find my vibrator!”

“What?” Mark choked as she thrust the cup into his hands.

Heart going overtime, breathless, and seriously regretting her life choices, Dani sprinted down the walkway. If her dad saw what his little girl had hiding in the drawer, she would die. He would die. Everybody would die. Ok, fine, she shouldn’t have relied on just burying it in her unders and put it in a box, but what if her mom unearthed it while unpacking? Not quite as bad, but still mortifying. Even worse if her mom pulled it out and said something like, ‘Oh, I like this model. Good choice, Dani’. Inquisitive or not, there were some things Dani just did not care to know and whether her mom used sex toys was definitely one of them. “Hey! Hi!” Dani shouted as she leaped from the curb and into the street.

Startled, her dad leaned away, lip curled as he looked her up and down, “The hell’s the matter with you?”

“What? Nothing. What do you mean? I’m fine,” Dani rambled, too fast for her words to be seen as anything near casual. “What are you guys talking about?”

“Dad’s bitching about the dresser being too heavy with the drawers in it,” Alex said from inside the truck. To clear the path to the source of Dani’s distress, he lifted a box marked ‘books’ from a stack of three. It was easy for him, thanks to his 6’3 frame, college football physique, and following in her father’s footsteps in the fire department. He set the box down on the other side of the truck and leaned against the open door, crossing his arms as he smirked down at her. “Nice of you and your boyfriend to tear yourselves away from each other to help, Dani.” He chuckled, as usual, thinking he’s funnier than he is as he nodded over Dani’s head. “Hey, Mark.”

“Alex, good to see you again,” Mark nodded back as he joined them, balancing the tray of coffees in one hand and taking a sip of her boba with the other.

“Hey, that’s mine!”

Mark shrugged. “Then why’d you give it to me?” He shot her a wink, then took the coffees, and her boba, over to where her parents were ‘having a discussion’ a few feet away.

“Aww, look,” her brother teased as their mom greeted Mark with a hug he could only return half-way. “He’s even in with the parents.”

Dani turned and scowled up at the stupid look on his face, hand pressed to his heart like the irritating moron he was. “Why are you even here, poop stain? Don’t you have a job you should be at or something?”

“Nope. Took a few vacation days to help my baby sister move into her first big girl apartment.” He shot her an extra-cheesy grin and pushed himself off the doorframe. “We’re gonna move as much furniture as we can first, including your stupid dresser. I’ll bring the drawers over so whoever wants to grab them can.”

“No, wait!” she shouted, scurrying up the ramp. She pushed her brother to the side and walked past him. “I’ll get them myself.”

“Whatever, psycho,” Alex mumbled. “What? Worried I’m gonna see your underwear or something? I used to change your diapers.”

“That’s impressive since you were like two when I was born.” Dani rolled her eyes as she slid out the first drawer and walked over to set it down by the door. “And yes, as a matter of fact, I don’t need you or dad seeing my panties ok?”

“Ugh,” Alex grimaced as she walked past for the second drawer. “Don’t… don’t use that word.”

“What? Panties?” she asked as she placed drawer number two on top of the first and went back for the one causing all the trouble. Mark could take the first two, and she’d take the third. Easy peasy and no one else would have to know what was hiding inside.

“Yes. It’s gross. Coming out of your little sister’s mouth, it’s gross.”

Balancing the drawer on her hip, Dani plucked out a pair of black lace panties and dangled them in Alex’s face. “Panties, panties, panties, Alex,” she laughed, chasing him to the other side of the truck. “Eww… so gross!”

“Mom!” Alex shouted, cowering in the corner as he tried to block the assault. “Dani’s shoving her underwear in my face!”

“I don’t feel bad for you,” their mom shouted back. “I seem to recall you chasing her around the house with your cup after football practice. Payback’s a bitch, Alex.”

“Ha!” Dani cheered. She got one more hit against the side of his head before he pushed her back and jumped out of the truck.

Red-faced, he pointed up at her from the ground while the rest of them laughed at the show. “I’m getting you back for that, shithead.”

“Ooh…” Dani shivered mockingly. “I’m so scared.”

“Fuck your drawers, Dani.”

“When you say drawers, do you mean…” Alex cut her off with a glare, but she raised her eyebrows and mouthed the word anyway.

Lips pressed together as he tried not to laugh, Mark handed back her still full boba and grabbed the two drawers. “I’ll take these,” he said in a pinched voice.

“Thank you, Mark,” she smiled sweetly. Not trusting her brother to not spill or spit in her drink, she placed the cup in the drawer and got a better hold with both hands. “I’ll get the doors open and stuff before we take more up, k?” she told her dad as she walked down the ramp.

“Yeah, alright,” her dad grumbled with a nod. “Don’t be putzing around up there though, we’re burnin’ daylight here.”

“We won’t, Dad,” she grinned as she and Mark passed.

“So I was gonna give Alex his coffee but I figured he might have thrown it at you,” Mark mumbled as they made their way up to the door.

“Nah,” Dani laughed. “He’s all bark and no bite but I understand your concern.” She walked up the porch steps and stopped, looking at what was hanging on doorknob then down at the drawer in her arms. “Ah, crap. I gotta get the key from the lockbox. Here.” She turned around and placed her drawer on top of the two Mark was carrying, making him grunt as the height of which brought all of her undergarments up to his chin.

“So umm… did Ashley move her stuff in yet?”

“Yeah, yesterday. Today she’s showing her sister Sienna around the city,” Dani explained as she punched in the code the landlord gave her. She glanced over her shoulder and held in a laugh at the sight of Mark, cheeks red, and trying very hard to look anywhere but at what was right under his nose. His eyes trailed down, then shot to the side as he cleared his throat and she resumed the task at hand before he could catch her watching. “Hey, what were you going to tell me earlier?” she asked as she got the key from the box and inserted it in the lock.

“What?” he croaked.

“When I ran off you were about to say something.” She pushed open the heavy wood door, turned back around and took the drawer off his hands. “What was it?”

“Oh.” One corner of his mouth twitched in a shaky half-smile as his blush grew deeper still. “I… I just wanted to say that I uh, I missed you.”

The smile she returned spread slowly across her face. “I missed you too, Mark. Like a lot.”

[stardancerluv]

A Dark and Stormy Night

Part 1 of 2

A prequel to Creative Fervor

Summary: You went out with your friends to celebrate the birthday of one of them. What you didn’t expect was fallling hard for one of the most infamous criminals in all of Gotham who is also the owner of a chic new club in Gotham.

Arthor’s Note: This has been revised & rewriten in spots!

You and your friends huddled under the overhang outside of The Luxy Star. Rain was coming down in sheets. “Why, don’t we head to The Black Mask?” You suggest.

*****

Roman smiled, “All I wanted was to have you as an ally.” He crossed his arms in front of the man hanging before him. “We didn’t need to get to this point.

The man screamed against the tape. Roman went over and grabbed the man by his hair. A smirked curled his lips. He ripped off the tape.

“Do you have something to say?”

The man pleaded. “Please, I have rethought your proposal. I have a wife...”

“Fuck that. She’ll do better without you making stupid decisions.” He chuckled, letting him go, he swung; pleads poured from the man’s mouth.

Roman, twirled his finger. “Have fun Victor, see you back at the club.”

*****

Your friends were shrugging, and hesitant. “Isn’t that owned by a psycho?” One asked.

“It’s the new hot place. It’s like we are going there for him.” You shrugged. “Nothing has been confirmed, probably just slander. Look how my name appears in the papers.” You add.

After more discussion you all finally ran over to The Black Mask club. You spotted a table in a corner, “Let’s sit over there.” You all settled in and used several of the cloth napkins to dry and freshen up.

You looked around, this place is a class act. You were taken with it. This place was so classy. You enjoyed its atmosphere more then any of the other clubs you had gone to that night.

No one came over to the table. If you all didn’t get a drinks soon, you knew they’d want to leave. You were not interested in leaving. The rain aside, you were enjoying the atmosphere and the singer was amazing.

“I’ll go and see about getting us some drinks.” You told them and quicked shuffled out of your side of the booth.

Before heading to the bar, you hit the ladies room. Your makeup was still on point, you smiled at your reflection. Your make you had not run in the rain. You were still startled by the purple hair. You shook your head, never again would you let anyone convince you to do something like that again. You missed the natural color of your hair. Winking at your reflection, you smoothed your dress.

You hesitated and glanced towards your friends, they were all still there, chatting away. They all had more to drink than you. Honestly, at this point they were alittle annoying. The bar was packed shoulder to shoulder, no wonder you still had no drinks. Then again this was most chic club in all of Gotham.

*****

Roman, smiled it was another busy Saturday night. As it should be, he mused sipping his martini. He relished the control he had over others. Seats immediately opened up, people moved out of his way as he walked around.

He twirled a finger and another martini was brought to him. “Thank you.” As he sipped at his new martini, he was relieved to have that meeting at the docks done with. It may have been entertaining but that feeling faded away as he enjoyed watching how good things were at club. In the end, he mused he much preferred allies over enemies but that was the nature of the beast if you wanted to be powerful in Gotham.

*****

Smiling, to yourself you spotted an opening at the club. Right as you were walking up to the spot, a large man backed up. It forced you to back right into the another guy. You immediately turned to apologize. “I am terribly sorry.”

Looking up from apologizing to the made you bumped up to, you came face to face with a man with the most piercing blue eyes. It took everything in you to not gasp at the sight of his chisled features with a mouth that made you want to kiss him.

“It’s alright, he was rude to not look behind him.” The man said, his voice had a timber that went right through you.

“He didn’t see me.” You shrugged, “Not many notice me since I’m so short.” Keeping eye contact with him was almost too much for you. You closed your eyes for the briefest of moments, opening then you glanced back to the bar.

This man had quite the effect on you. You felt shaken to your core. Sure you had a few drinks before getting here but not enough to let your feelings to run away from you.

You gestured to get one of the bartender’s attention. “Excuse me.” You called out.

“I don’t know how he could miss you.” He added, you flushed at his words and looking back at him you saw him smile. The sight of it made you tremble, you were not used a man having this kind of effect on you. You felt as he put a gloved hand on your bare shoulder, making your heart beat faster. “Are you ok?” You nodded. “You seem distracted.”

“I’m ok!” You said almost to loudly, flushing harder. You are driving me crazy, you mused but you turned and smiled at him. “My friends and I are sitting at that table over there and no one has come to see if we wanted anything.” Exasperation from your nervousness came pouring out of you.

“I’m sorry about that. Someone, should have come over and taken your orders.” He shook his head. “Are you having a girls night?”

You nodded. “We could all finally get together and celebrate our friend Jessica’s birthday.”

“All busy girls huh?”

You nodded. “Yeah. I am trying to start my own business from the ground floor.” You pressed your lips together. Despite him making you nervous by being the most attractive man you had ever met; he was incredibly easy to talk with. “I am not getting any help from my parents or family.” You saw him look around. You had probably bored him, you sighed. You had probably scared him off.

He turned to look back at you and nodded. “Fuck family.” Your eyes widen. “Oh, well” He looked relunctant over the sudden outburst before continuing much calmer then moments before. “But I am with you on that, I am doing the same.”

“You are? What are you doing?” You looked down. “Oh! I am sorry I shouldn’t be so nosy. But yes, it can be so hard.”

He gestured to the club. “It can be hard to run a club.”

Your heart skipp a beat when you realized that in front of you was the famous Roman Sionis. Your eyes widdened. “I..I...you have an amazing club. The place is busy, that’s probably why no one came over.” You added quickly.

He shrugged, a hint of annoyance wrinkled his mouth. “Yeah well that is no excuse. You should already have your drinks amd having a good time. With how busy I assume you are, you should be already dancing and haviny a good time.” He pressed his lips together and shook his head. “Hey!” He called out, both bartenders appeared before the two of you.

You could not really wrap your head around this. You were now convinced now that the papers were wrong about him. He really was a nice guy, they just couldn’t handle it that there was another rich guy in Gotham. That perhaps in his case was more private then Bruce.

“This girl here,” He gestured to you. “Um, how rude of me I don’t know your name.”

“Y/N, Y/N Y/LN.”

“You are going to take care of whatever, Y/N wants along with her friends. Apparently, you two have been ignoring them.”

“Oh um, we don’t want much. It’s not a huge deal.”

“None sense.” He looked at the bartender and back at you, he smiled. “And its on the house.”

“What! Mr. Sionis,” You grabbed his arm, you immediately were taken by how soft the fabric of his suit jacket was, your fingers lingered before you realized what you had done.

His lips curled into a smirk as he glanced at your hand and back at you. “Y/N call me Roman.”

“Ok.” You smiled.

They soon took your order, even suggesting anything else you all could possibly want. “We will take it to your table. You don’t have to wait for them here.”

“Thank you.” You turned to Roman, “Mr. Sionis...oooo I am sorry.” You looked down and finally let go of his arm. You looked at him through your lashes at him. “I mean Roman thank you.”

He chuckled and made a dismissive gesture, before you could continue. “It’s alright. Go, enjoy your night with your friends. Maybe we can talk again before you leave.” He smiled.

“Ok, Roman.” You’d be lying if you didn’t mind saying his name. “I’d like that.” You met his eyes one more time, before heading back to your friends. As you did, you felt like you were floating.

*****

He watched as you walked away. The way your green dress moved as you did. His stomach knotted.

He wasn’t too crazy about the purple hair but damn everything else about you was amazing. Normally, he hated it when people touched him but he liked how your delicate hand felt on his arm. Smirking, he wondered how both your hands would feel him.

He wanted to touch more of you. Perhaps, when you’d talk later he would let his hand slip to your thigh. He had images of smearing your heavy lipstick. The idea of that made his heart pick up speed. He could smear it before kissing you. Your face upturned awaiting a kiss, your warm breath on his face. It wasn’t long before he could imagine being in bed with you.

Wow the hell were you. He glanced around the club. Where the fuck was Zsasz when he needed him. He wanted to find out who you were and what exactly was the business you were starting up. He finished his martini, honestly why should he care what you did? But oddly, grimacing at the thought he did.

You looked back at him then. He smiled and held up his glass.

He watched as you sat down, looking over your friends you were a flower among weeds. You were so dynamic compared to them.

*****

What had just happened? Had you really just been chatting and getting attracted to Roman Sionis. You looked back, he held up a martini and you gave a wave.

Your friends were all a whisper, they apparently had known who he was before you did. They also thought it was funny how you appeared to be all moony over him.

Soon, all the drinks were delivered. They toasted before heading out to the dance floor. You began enjoying one of the best amaretto sours you had ever had.

Feeling, feisty you joined your friends to go and dance. You looked around as you did but you couldn’t spot him. Your heart sank when you didn’t see him.

Going back to your table you were all pleasantly surprised that there was a fresh round of drinks.

Jessica nudged you. “Your boyfriend has done good.” She teased.

You rolled, your eyes. “Oh yeah..my boyfriend...someone as hot as that.” You shook your head. “Never.”

“Oooh, so he’s really hot, huh?” Teased another friend.

“Well, did you see him?” You defended your taste.

“I’ll check right now.”

“Huh.” That’s when you saw, him approaching the table. The sight of him once again, stole your breath. He hand something in his gloved hands.

Jessica, had caught your attention as she fluffed herself. She always did that when she was about to go after someone remotely attractive. She also usually got what she wanted when it came to that. So you knew, any chance with Roman was now over.

*****

Damn, you really were the rose among a mass of ragged thorns. As he neared he saw as one attempted to make herself more appealing. He noticed getting closer that she wore a tacky sash announcing that it was her birthday. Nothing much else was all that appealing about her, she looked too fake. He could tell that her makeup was cheap and done poorly.

He noticed, you looking at him as he got closer. He enjoyed that. “Y/N ,” he said once he arrived there, he placed the bottle of champagne on the table as the waiter placed the glasses down. “And friends, on behalf of myself and The Black Mask Club, we want you all to have an amazing time celebrating here.” He held up the bottle of champagne once again. “He looked over at you and smiled. Enjoy this at your leisure and be sure to let us know when you want us to pop it for you.”

The fake one leaned over, showing ample cleavage. “Open it now, pop that bottle. I want to celebrate a little harder.”

He did not roll his eyes but he wanted too!

There were some giggles and cheers and many thank yous. He only cared about yours. “Thank you, Roman. That was very nice of you.”

“Your welcome, Y/N.” With the flair he had for most everything he did, he opened the bottle. “The Black Mask, would love for you to be our guest again in the future.”

“I’d like that.” You smiled at him.

“Fantastic.” He looked you over again, then your friends. “If you need anything holler.” Then he turned to leave. He could hear whispers but he could not understand any of them.

******

“Oh someone is on a first name basis with him.” One teased you with a raised eyebrow.

“I only just learned it at the bar when we chatted.” You defended yourself.

Jessica continued, to fluff herself. “Do you think I caught his eye?”

“Now your moony over him?” One of them asked, giggling.

“Well, Y/N is right he is hot.”

All of them erupted into giggles, except you. You finished your drink. Looking for a distraction. You spotted him, your heart lifted but then it came crashing down.

You watched as a blonde, with a gold shimmery dress with black diamonds sauntered over to him. She easily, wrapped her slender arms around his throat. A wide grin spread across his face. You looked away then. Who the hell were you kidding, you thought annoyed. “Hey, are we going to go and dance again girls?” You asked wanting to distract yourself.

*****

He went back and sat in his chair. He had to wondered what you all whispered about. He watched as they all giggled and you just sipped your drink. He debated whether he should go over, pull you to your feet and bring you out to the dance floor. That’s when he heard that obnoxious, squeaky voice. He didn’t even have to turn to it to know who it was. But he had to play nice. He didn’t want tension with that crazy clown or his off the edge girlfriend. He smiled broadly in her direction as she came over to him.

She was closer then he liked and shifted as she easily wrapped her arms around him. Swallowing, he smiled. “Why Harleen Quinzell what do we owe this pleasure?” Her perfume made his stomach lurch.

A pout formed on her ruby lips. “Joker and I are fighting.” He gently eased her arms away from around his throat. “I came here to have a good time.”

He continued to smile. “Well this is the place to have it.” He twirled a finger and one of those disgusting pink drinks she loved was brought over. “Here you go,” he handed it to her. “And if your paramour shows up, do tell him I would like a word.” He got up and smoothed his suit jacket.

“Of course, Romy.” She took a hearty sip, smiling.

Looking around, he decided to bring you to the dance floor. But he didn’t see you.

Zsass, finally appeared at your side. “It’s all done boss.” He resisted the urge to tell him on to just slide on up like that.

“Good.” He spat out, still hoping to spot you. He didn’t see you anywhere.

“Are you looking for someone, Romy?” Harley chirped.

“For a silly little girl,” he cooed softly. “You noticed. I am.”

She slid off her bar stool with a happy little sound. “Want me to check the ladies room?”

“Sure.” He said flatly. He noticed your friends were still there, maybe that’s where you wandered off too. “She has dark purple hair and a striking green dress.” He held up a hand. “Harley, don’t approach! Just come back and tell me like a good girl.”

“Ok!” She chirped and happily bounced over.

Sometime later, she caught his eye as she left the ladies. She simply shook her head no.

“There someone you want me to grab, sir?” Zsass’s eyes lit up with excitement.

“Yes! No..no.” He shook his head. That was the last thing he wanted to happen. You would probably never speak to him again.

@grandimagines @spn-obession @vintagemichelle91 @zodiyack @emyliabernstein @top-rumbelle-fan​ @rosionis​ @johallzy​ @shantellorraine @xxinvisiblexx @pooshnulooshnu @speedypartyducksuitcase @blondekel77 @saphic-susperia @drarrylov3r @i-cant-hear-you16 @deadlymistress24 @yesqueenofthelight

[trying-write-fanfics]

Shouji Mezo X Reader Remember part 10

Kirishima was one of the students who didn’t have much of a relationship built with Y/n, but he knew she had a lot going on. He also wanted to know why she bugged Bakugo so much. 

“So your father called you? Are you guys close?” Kiri asked. 

“Not really, I bet you he just found out that I wasn’t home.” Y/n told him. 

“Wait why would it take this long?”

“Campaign stuff has him traveling all the time.” Y/n said. “He’s got an image to keep.”

“Oh that’s gotta suck. Are you nervous?”

“No, he’s more chill than my mom. When I was in the hospital after Aizawa messed my shoulder up, she didn’t even go in to see me. I had no idea she was dealing with my case until he told me.” Y/n explained. 

“What! That’s insane!” Kirishima couldn’t believe it. “You don’t even know how long you’re gonna be here do you?”

“Do you? I think it’s all conditional, like till something big happens. Like I mess up or the case reopens”

“I hope nothing else bad happens, we already had that attack on the USJ.”

“You guys didn’t catch the main guy though, you think they’ll give up?” Y/b asked

“Well we’ve been preparing if he doesn’t!” Kirishima told her before she got to the front office. 

Y/n was hesitant to pick up the phone. Her and her father had to of known the call would be recorded, but what was off limits. Everything she knew was isolated, she didn’t know what information was completely public. Her dad has to know why she was here? He does have the number.

“Hi dad! You miss me?” She asked cheerfully.

“Y/n, it’s so good to hear your voice. I got home yesterday and noticed you weren’t there. I thought you were out with friends, but you never answered your phone. I was so worried. You mother filled me in.” He told her. 

“Are you upset?” She asked.

“No, no. I figured each of my kids would have a scandal  at some point.” He joked. “I could yell at you to be more careful or to stop what you’re doing, but I figured out heroes are doing that already.”

“Is mom in denial about it?”

“You’re a good kid, worrying about your parents, but we’ll be okay. I still have to tell your siblings. They’re all over the board.”

“They won’t care too much I bet. I don’t think we’re gonna watch fireworks this year.” Y/n said. 

“Ha, Ha, that’s your big concern right now?” 

“Yeah, that’s when you guys let me scream all I want.” She told him. 

“We’ll all watch fireworks again, I promise.”

“Do you think you can tell mom to send me some of her homemade painkillers? I’ve been quirk training.”

 That's when the mood of the call changed.

“Y/n I thought we told you to not use your quirk! You don’t have to listen to every single thing these people tell you! Don’t they see the side effects?”

“I have a bit of a hard time using it, sometimes it just goes off.”

“Y/n you have controlled that before. You just have to try harder to suppress it. What were you doing when we were gone and you were home alone?”

She test drived anything in the house ranging from alcohol, mislabeled medication in the cabinet, to website mixes on things to relieve pain. She thought alcohol could help because all the tv shows had drunk people drunk to “not feel anything.”

“I would try to sleep it off, but I can’t do that here.” She put in a white little lie. 

“Your mother doesn’t make drugs, don’t say such silly things. I called to check on you and you seem fine other than the teachers forcing you to use your quirk.” Was her father’s goodbye.

No “love you”, she didn’t even get to say bye. Y/n walked and saw the secretary perk up to try and pretend they didn’t witness such an awkward phone call. The gloomy cloud formed as the conversation set in. Outside the front office, she felt too far away from her dorm. She wanted to be hidden. 

 What kept her strong for so long was though she knew her parents weren’t perfect, no one was. They loved her though. They just had bad ways of showing it. The worse thing they did to her wasn’t because of a punishment, but to further their dreams and ideals. They were confident they could achieve it through their children and Y/n was their last hope. Her body wasn’t strong enough, though they failed, Y/n did too. They did their best to accommodate Y/n’s life with her body weakening. They tried to redeem themselves, to protect their daughter. 

 Students flood the halls as their classes were done for the day. She was holding the tears back. Her parents were two people who had dreams, who thought they could handle parenting and their goals at the same time, merging them. They could try again if she could manage her quirk. Find a bathroom, no one will be in there. However in the fret of looking for one, her face crashed into someone. She pulled back quickly, before realizing who it was she was already apologizing.

“Sorry….I’m so sorry I’m just-“ her voice shook as she was still looking around. 

“Are you okay?” 

Looking up, it was Shouji. Why did it have to be a class 1-A student? She already knew what her face looked like. She had so many lonely nights that she couldn’t help to look in the mirror and how her face would break into a sob. She was doing her best not to shatter yet, not in front of the school. 

“Yeah, you saw me kick Iida’s ass.” She tried proving her case.

“I thought you said you shouldn’t compare yourself to others.” 

“You got me there!” She fought against the tears harder. If she could smile they wouldn’t leak out. 

“Do you have to go back to the classroom?” He asked her.

Probably. 

“Yeah, I just figured I’d take the long way.”

“How was the phone call with your father?”

Right in the weak spot. He wasn’t playing games. Straight to the point. 

“It was good enough, you know how dads can be.”

“I didn’t think they were all the same.”

“Well he’s a normal guy nothing weird.” She told him trying to walk away. 

“You’re going the wrong way.” He told her. 

Fuck! She was going towards the bathroom. 

“Well have to pee.” She lied. 

 Going into the bathroom she found no one. It was just like when she was in school. No one goes to the bathroom at the end of the day. She took the paper towel and let her eyes tear up and flow out. She held the sobs back. If everyone wanted to be a hero and heard her cry they’d be nosy and want to know what’s wrong. Today she couldn’t rationalize her dad’s words. Maybe he was just trying to protect her, but he didn’t listen. When she went for lunch the quirk activated on her foot pushing her forward down the stairs. She had to use her hands to save herself. It wasn’t shocking to her or the family she had poor control over it, but everyone thought it was easier than it was to constantly hold back. The painkillers lessen the effects of power. Instead of bleeding, sometimes it would bruise. The breathing problems would have blood. The pills would make her more tired, but numb so of the effects. She wanted them if they were gonna make her use her quirk. 

 Looking into the mirror her eyes weren’t ass puffy, and she didn’t look too bad. No tear streaks. Y/n felt good about that at least.

“You never cease to amaze me, body!” She told herself. 

 Y/n opened the door and found Shouji there, waiting. 

“What are you doing!” She yelled at him. 

“I didn’t know if you used your quirk or not, you could have fainted in the bathroom and no one would know.” He told her. 

“What a sweet hero you are. Now I’m fine, so no more worries!” She told him. 

“I don’t know enough about you to trust you won’t faint.”

“Fine, follow me!” She yelled. She really did lose her right to privacy!

He probably used his ear hands to ease drop. He wasn’t saying much as they walked back to the classroom. The silence was the worst. Were dots being connected? Could his ears listen to her thoughts and read her mind?

“I wanna go to the grocery store so bad, I need a self care day after sitting in a classroom all day so damn much. It’s too much of a change being around so many damn people. You might feel the same having so many ears and noses! You probably get overstimulated and stuff!” Y/n rambled, hoping to throw his thoughts somewhere else. 

“Yeah it gets like that.”he said being vague as possible, only furthering her frustrations.

“How are you so chill about it! If I get slightly uncomfortable I make a scene!” Y/n said loudly.

“You tried hiding.”

“That doesn’t count! If I was with my family I’d tell them I threw up somewhere in the house and forgot where!” Y/n said. “This one time when I was like 6 since my parents were gone all the time my older brother got a dog and a cat because they didn’t notice for two years. Once they found out they couldn’t do anything because we had gotten away with it so long and we were hella responsible.” 

 “How was the phone call with your father.” Aizawa asked because they got to the class, hoping he would not have to hear more about Y/n’s secret cat as a child. 

“Oh why tell you! You’ll be listening to it anyway! And look, your gold star student escorted me all the way back here!” She pointed at Shouji. 

“Thank you Shouji.” Aizawa said. “You probably have some studying you want to get to.”

“I’ll get going.” Shouji bowed.

Y/n’s nerves were calming down as she was helping Aizawa with paper work. He had already listened to the phone call. The phone call didn’t have enough evidence that Y/n’s parents have experimented on her, and even if they did it can’t be proven how harsh it was. Testing has happened to save lives. Her family could have lessened her quirk to save her life. Doubt it, but still a possibility.  Aizawa already filled the holes in himself. The isolation tactic was to silence her from reaching out to anyone. 

“If you need something to take care of the pain, I can take you to the pharmacy or a doctor to run some tests.” Aizawa told her.

 Her general provider was a doctor who worked for her mother. The numbers couldn’t have been all real. 

“It’s fine. I’ve managed my quirk this long.”

“Poorly.”

The emotions were boiling over. Everyone has always been so quick to judge, so quick to label. Why was she being singled out? Was it because of her crimes? Everyone breaks the law sometime! Aizawa has probably made a mountain of mistakes surely!

“What do you even know? All you have is a faux file.” She growled. “My parents love me and want what’s best for me. That’s why I’ve been following your stupid rules and not escaping so they don’t have to worry anymore.”

 It was silly when she heard it out loud. Why did she commit crimes in the first place? If she cared about her parent’s concern, why then?

[ghostspideys-moved]

We’ll Have Tomorrow

Chapter Seven

A/N: We’re getting into those good Christmas and Hanukkah vibes.

Word Count: 2.6k

Pairing: Steve Harrington x OC, Jonathan x Nancy x OC (eventually)

Summary: Christmas is right around the corner, and that means it’s time for the Christmas party Steve’s parents decided to throw. Hopefully they can avoid noisy adults.

Christmas was less than five days away now. Nearly three days away to be precise. Which meant River was now stuck going to a Christmas party with Steve. She wasn't much of a party person, but, if she remembered correctly, it was mostly going to be adults. Probably friends or colleagues of his parents. 

Steve had been the one to open the door and let her in. Of course her first thought was about how huge his house was. She'd known his parents had a good amount of money, but she'd never been in a house this big before. 

He must have noticed her awestruck expression as she glanced at all the art hanging in the walls, because he laughed. 

River snapped out of her reverie and followed him up to his room. Even from here, she could hear the faint him of socializing downstairs, but it was barely noticeable. Besides, she had a bigger concern right now. 

Steve's room was hideous.

"Not to, like, insult you or anything, but what the fuck?" The wallpaper was a strange plaid pattern almost, and the curtains matched almost perfectly. It was horrible, and she was having a hard time focusing on anything but that.

"What?" Steve asked, still not catching on.

Rive snorted. "Steve, please never become an interior decorator," she pleaded.

Steve rolled his eyes and fell back on his bed. "Shut up. This is the one thing in this house I have control over."

"Then it's even worse than I thought." She laughed and took off her jacket, setting it on his desk chair. 

Admittedly, it felt a little awkward being in his room, especially given the fact that just a few days ago, she still hated him. Maybe hate was a strong word, but she hadn't liked him at all, that was for sure.

Steve probably sensed her apprehension and scooted over. "Don't worry, Matthews. I won't bite," he joked.

River rolled her eyes and hesitated before sitting next to him. She wasn’t really sure what it was, but being in his room felt weird. Because of her dad’s rules, she’d barely even interacted with a guy outside of school, so this was a first. It wasn’t bad or anything, she just didn’t really know what people did in this sort of situation.

Luckily, Steve was a lot less awkward than she was, because he seemed to have a better idea of what to do than she did.

“How about we play a game?” he asked.

Of course, River was instantly curious as to where this was going. “Uh, sure.”

He sat up a little, a huge grin on his face. By now, she’d become accustomed to feeling worried when he had that look on his face.

“Okay, we’re going to play 20 questions, which is exactly what it sounds like. I’ll ask you a question, and you have to answer truthfully. Then you ask me something, and we keep going until we hit 20 of them each,” Steve explained.

“And any question goes?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

River thought it sounded innocent enough. She nodded and let him start off with a simple question.

“What’s your favorite color?”

“Purple,” she said without hesitation. She thought for a second before asking, “Favorite movie?”

“Star Wars.”

“Which one?’

Admittedly, he hadn’t known there was more than one, but rather than owning up to that, he said, “Nope. That’s two questions, missy.”

River laughed and rolled her eyes as she let him ask his next question.

“What’s your middle name?”

“Which one?”

“Hm. American one.”

“Gwendolyn.” 

Steve was secretly hoping it’d be something a lot more embarrassing from what she could tell. 

River leaned back on her palms, chewing her lip as she thought. “Okay, what’s your biggest fear?” she asked.

Steve laughed and gave her a shocked look. “Already asking the deep questions, I see.” He paused as he seemed to be seriously considering the question. “I’ve always been pretty scared of scarecrows since I was a kid,” he admitted.

It wasn’t the answer she was expecting, but maybe that was what made it all the funnier to her. “Scarecrows?”

“Yeah. I mean, not really anymore, but they creeped me the fuck out as a kid.”

River snorted and shook her head. “Well then that doesn’t count,” she said. “What’s your biggest fear now?”

“Woah, who says it doesn’t count?”

“I do, Harrington. Now answer the question.”

Steve sighed and thought again, this time really wracking his brain for a more truthful answer. Not that he’d been lying, but he felt like that wasn’t the full truth.

“Well, if you want me to get deep or something, I guess I’m afraid that I’ll end up alone,” he said. 

Somehow, that threw her off even more than the last answer. River didn’t really think he got insecure about those things, but she supposed it happened to the best of people. 

“Dude, you’re Steve Harrington. Do you know how many girls I’ve seen swooning over you over the years?” She’d never really understood it, but at least it was the truth. Even now, when he was a lot better than just last year, she still didn’t quite know what the big fuss was.

Steve scoffed and propped himself on his elbow, turning to face her. “Things have changed for me since last year. I’m not nearly as popular as I used to be.”

She never really understood why that was so important. “So what?”

Seeing the incredulous look on his face was enough to make her laugh, which only made him roll his eyes. “What do you mean ‘so what?’ My life has been in shambles since.”

“Not really. You have friends, Harrington.” “Yeah, a bunch of twelve-year olds.”

River sighed and shook her head. Not quite what she meant, but that was her point. “Yeah, but you like them,” she said. “If you didn’t I don’t think you would have really risked your life to save them.”

“Or maybe I’m just that good,” Steve insisted. 

“Harrington, you literally almost died to save Dustin.” And her, but that wasn’t her point, so she didn’t add that in. “I may not know you too well, but I think that’s about as close to a declaration of friendship as it comes for you.”

Steve ran his fingers through his hair, thinking over what she said. River could tell he knew she was right, but whether he admitted that was a whole other question. 

“Alright, if we’re getting deep all of a sudden, I get to pry into your head a little.”

She thought that certainly seemed fair enough. Though she wasn’t sure how truthful she’d be depending on where this next question went.

He sat up now, a much more serious look on his face. “You’re like that girl...El? So, then you had to be trapped in the lab for some time, right?”

There weren’t many ways to avoid answering this one. On the one hand, she could probably lie or downplay the whole thing, but she doubted he’d buy that. If she’d learned anything, it was that Steve wasn’t stupid by any means. He wasn’t always the brightest at times, sure, but he wasn’t dumb at all, and he would never buy it if she tried to be anything but truthful.

“Well, yeah.” River shrugged and flopped back on the bed, refusing to meet his gaze just yet. “I mean, ever since I was ten. And then my brother and I...we escaped about three years after that.”

Steve seemed surprised to hear that. He nodded and gestured for her to go on.

“Um, I’m pretty sure the only reason we didn’t get caught was because my dad was trying his hardest to keep us from the scientists,” she added. “I think after not finding us for so long, they gave up searching.” That’s what she’d always assumed anyways. “That was like five years ago, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t just give up.” He nodded, still absorbing all of the information. River was just grateful he hadn’t pushed her for more. She was surprised she’d even shared that much. Then again, he’d already seen the number on her arm when she’d showed them. And he was probably just as trustworthy as the rest of the kids.

“Can I see it again?” he asked suddenly. “Your arm?”

River hesitated for a moment before pulling up her sleeve and showing him once more.

“Holy shit.” Of course, Steve had already seen it before, but that didn’t mean it didn’t still shock him. After all, he was still wrapping his head around everything Dustin told him about El.

River nodded and pulled her sleeve back down after a moment. Before he could even think to ask anything else, his mom called them down for dinner.

~

Dinner went surprisingly well. Of course, Steve and River mostly just talked to each other, not wanting to have to interact with a bunch of nosy adults. In fact, any time an adult talked to them, they seemed to think she was his girlfriend, which she thought was absurd. Of course, Steve shut that thought down quickly, not wanting her to be uncomfortable. After all, he’d really just invited her over as a friend, not wanting to be alone. 

The rest of the night, they stuck to his room, avoiding the loud group of people downstairs. 

At some point, Steve even started playing some Christmas music. And at first, she wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not, but he was singing so badly. But eventually, they sat back on his bed, relaxing and simply enjoying each other’s company. That was when she heard him singing quietly to himself, and it sounded beyond amazing.

River didn't want to say anything in case he stopped, so she was silent as she listened to him sing. Faintly, she could hear everyone downstairs, and the radio on Steve’s desk was playing quietly by now. Something about it all was soothing. This was probably the most calm she’d been in a long time, and she was trying to enjoy every second of it.

Once it was getting late, Steve drove her home so Hopper wouldn’t get worried. The flurries of snowflakes blew in the harsh breeze, making it nearly impossible to see. Maybe not the best time to be driving, but they’d certainly been in worse situations. 

Conversation was light through the whole drive, but still enjoyable. By the time they rolled into the driveway, they were both silent until Steve turned to her.

“I know we had to deal with nosy adults, but I hope you had fun,” he said. 

River smiled brightly and nodded. It hadn’t been so bad, really. And, in all honesty, she’d had more fun than she’d had in a long time. Maybe ever. 

“Yeah, I definitely did,” she responded. “Then again, I have some pretty low standards.”

Steve laughed, looking forward again as the porch light turned on, meaning Hopper was definitely up. And more than likely, he was waiting for her to come in.

River paused for a moment, her mind racing as she considered asking him something. “Christmas is coming up. Obviously.” Only five days and it would finally be here. “You don’t really like being home, so I was wondering if you wanted to spend the day with us.”

Before he could respond and possibly shoot her down, she backtracked, fumbling over her words for a moment. “I mean, I know El would get a kick out of that. She loves you so far, and I think Hopper wouldn’t say it, but he likes you, too.”

Steve laughed at how awkward she was being. She wasn’t trying to be weird about it, but the last thing she wanted was for him to think this was her flirting or something of that sort. Really, she just wanted him to have a decent Christmas, and if that meant escaping his parents, she was glad to offer an alternative.

“Yeah, I think I’ll take you up on that.” He grinned. For some reason, one she didn’t fully understand, it made her sigh in relief, feeling as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

“Good. I’ll, uh, tell Hop to expect you,” she said. “Goodnight, Harrington.”

He waved and said goodbye as she got out of the car and trekked up to the porch, quickly getting herself out of the cold.

Inside, River pulled off her boots and set them by the door so she wouldn’t track snow inside. She’d done that many times before, mostly because she forgot simple things like that every now and then.

As expected, Hopper was up, sitting in his chair while the TV played quietly, a beer in his hand. From what she could tell, Hawthorne and El must already be asleep, or at the very least in their rooms.

As soon as Hopper noticed she was home, he turned as she was walking over to join him. He let her settle on the couch before asking her anything.

“How’d your date with Harrington go?” he questioned, taking another swig of his beer. 

River rolled her eyes and glanced at the TV. “It was not a date, for starters.” He only seemed to laugh at her insistence. “And second of all, it went pretty well, actually.”

“Glad to hear it,” he said. “I sure hope he didn’t think it was a date.”

She groaned, partially embarrassed by this line of questioning. “No, not as far as I could tell. You know, I can just be friends with him, right?”

“I’m not saying you can’t, but I am saying I know how boys are.”

The whole night, she hadn’t really picked up on anything like that from Steve. He really just seemed relieved to have some actual company, which she could totally understand. 

“Steve’s changed a lot, and it continues to surprise me,” River admitted. “And trust me, if he hadn’t I don’t think I would have agreed to go. So I don’t really think anything you’re thinking of was on his mind. And I should know.”

Maybe she was still learning, but she could control her powers well enough to hear anything Steve might have been thinking. Of course, there was a certain line of privacy she never wanted to cross, so she wouldn’t have pried.

“Yeah, I know, kiddo. He’s not as bad as I expected, either.” She could tell he really meant it, and she had to agree. Steve was oddly full of surprises, and she had a feeling he wasn’t going to stop surprising her any time soon. 

River stayed in the living room for a while. She tried to relax, either of them really saying much. It was a comfortable silence, though. Neither of them needed to say much right now, so they didn’t. 

Eventually, she was growing tired, and her eyelids were growing heavy. 

Hopper pulled himself out of the chair and turned the Tv off. He ruffled her hair, a slight smile on his face. “Get some sleep, kid.”

River nodded and slowly got up, stretching her arms and legs, before dragging herself to bed. Sometimes, it was hard for her to fall asleep, but this was not one of those times. Over the last few weeks, she often found herself lying awake late at night, unable to do anything but think. 

Her life was much better than it had been not long ago, but it was hard for her to really accept that. She was afraid she’d let her guard down, and the illusion of security would break. All of this might suddenly vanish, like a beautiful dream that she would never remember if she woke up. It might slip away from her forever.

Thankfully, she felt a lot less worried this time, and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was out like a light. She couldn’t even remember having a nightmare, which was the first time she could think of that happening in a long time.

Taglist: @bravest-at-heart​ @musicalytrashpanda​ @queenofthehairharrington​

[myngxy-sue]

Heartbreak Hurts Like Hell

I was originally going to write about Sue’s envy finally giving her the motivation to confess to Lucifer but I got so caught up with what happened beforehand that I dedicated almost three days of my life writing this. Pairings: Mammon X Yuki, Lucifer X Sue maybe Word count:  3772 words Genre: Angst, hurt, comfort Warnings: Probably OOC and my character gets slightly injured. There’s also some cursing in it. The ending is probably rushed too. 

She wrote him a love note once. It wasn’t anything special. She couldn’t think of a better way to express her love for him. Perhaps it was a bit too long. Sue had a horrible habit of getting wordy when it came to her writing. But it was from the heart and she dedicated all her time and effort into writing it. She stuffed the note into her purse, assuring herself that she’d give it to Mammon when she got the chance.

Well, chances came and went, the note was forgotten about and it wasn’t until Yuki confessed to Mammon that she remembered. But it was too late. Mammon and Yuki were together.

It was a pretty generic confession, like one straight out of an anime. Their meeting place was under a cherry blossom tree of sorts. Sue happened to be there as well because she had a still life assignment for art class. Yuki had been there for quite a while, leaning on the tree, walking around it a few times and sitting right next to it, waiting. Sue had half a mind to ask what she was waiting for but she decided against it. Yuki didn’t seem to be aware that she was there too.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps, the sound of someone’s feet cutting through the grass as they ran. Sue peeped to see who it was and her heart stopped. Mammon stumbled before Yuki, scratching his head and wearing a sheepish grin on his face.Yuki helped him up.

Sue got a cold, clenching feeling inside her, somewhere between her chest and her gut. Something told her that she knew what was about to go down. She absentmindedly placed a hand on her purse, watching everything unfold.

Yuki looks down at her feet, a strong blush fading on her cheeks. She fumbled with a skirt before taking a letter out of her pocket, a pink letter bound with a red heart sticker. Sue wanted to turn away. Lord knows she desperately wanted to turn away. But she couldn’t. It was like watching a car accident take place.

Mammon’s face went blank as he eyed the letter. He takes it and promptly shoves it into an inner pocket with a smile, probably planning to show it off. They exchanged some words with each other, Yuki looking ecstatic and Mammon blushing. Then he took her in his arms and planted a kiss on her forehead.

Finally, Sue had enough.

She gathered all her things, stood up almost instantly and bolted to the school building. The clenching feeling began paining her. She tried to prevent the hot tears from accumulating but to no avail. Sue didn’t want anyone to see how hurt she was. They’d start pestering her with questions she didn’t want to answer. She slipped into class and hastily as possible and went over to her seat.

Putting all her supplies inside her desk, she rests her head down on the surface, using her arms both as support and as cover. Everyone assumed she was sleeping when she was really crying. This was all thanks to her habit of taking quick naps during school hours, particularly during breaks. She made sure to stay as still as possible and regulate her breathing.

She couldn’t believe it at first. Even if she knew all the signs, she refused to accept it at first. Yuki was a very outgoing girl despite what she tried to affirm. It was only a matter of time before she decided to make her confession. Her anxiety was never as bad as Sue’s, perhaps because she didn’t have a voice in her head constantly demeaning her. Mammon favored Yuki since she was the first between the both of them to make a pact with him.

But she didn’t get why he was only drawn to Yuki. Sue made a pact with him too and through less dubious means. She should be the one he clinged to. Leviathan forced Yuki to make a pact with Mammon for his own benefit. It didn’t make any sense.

Yuki wasn’t all that great. She was much too nosy and reckless for her own good, constantly getting herself into trouble. Sue had to save her countless times, especially from Lucifer. Yuki was childish. She cried about every little thing, she was a bit selfish, lazy, indecisive, irresponsible and maybe even stupid. Yuki was nothing but a burden.

At the same time though, Yuki was so sweet as well. Even if she was nosy, it was only because she wanted to do what she believed was right. No matter how cruel the brothers were to her, Yuki was always kind to them and believed they had some goodness to them. She was the only person who was never mean to Mammon.

Of course Mammon loved Yuki. Even with all her shortcomings, she was still better than Sue in many ways. Sue couldn’t really think about anything meaningful she had to offer. That was probably why everyone except Lucifer prefered Yuki. She was the fun, loving one. Sue was the boring mom friend.

Sue felt guilty for trying to rationalize why her friend was a bad choice. She should be happy for Yuki. She remembered all those late nights when she listened to Yuki swooning about her dream boy. Yuki saw that in Mammon so she should be glad. But no matter how hard she tried, Sue was never fully content for her friend. Her feelings for Mammon were still so strong.

Ugh, why does stuff like love and feelings have to be so difficult?

“Oi, oi! Sue-chan! Wake up!” A high-pitched voice bubbled as the owner shook Sue. “You’re not supposed to be sleeping during the day!”

Sue let out an exasperated sigh. She knew it was Yuki, not that it was hard to tell who she was to begin with. Yuki stood out for better or for worse. Reluctantly, Sue sat up, wiping her eyes in a groggy way so her friend wouldn’t suspect a thing.

“But it’s break time…” Sue grumbled.

“But Lucifer-san got mad at you for sleeping in school!” Yuki pouted, putting her hands on her hips.

“Weren’t you listening?” Sue began cleaning her glasses. They got smudged against her skin. “He was mad because I was sleeping during class. Otherwise, Lucifer has no problem with me sleeping in school.”

“Oh really?”

“Really.”

Yuki took a closer look at Sue, narrowing her eyes. Sue put back on her glasses with a straight face. Deep down, her guilt was reaching its zenith. Someone so pleasant didn’t deserve her wrath, even if it was all internal.

“Why did you wake me up anyways?” Sue huffed, acting like she didn’t see the confession.

Yuki pulled away quickly, instantly becoming bright eyed. “Oh Sue-chan, it was like a dream come true! I confessed to Mam-kun under the sakura tree and he accepted my feelings!”

And grass is green and the sky is blue! I bet you want to tell me that people die when they are killed too!

That was a stupid thought to have. Sue tapped herself on the head lightly. Yuki didn’t know she saw a good chunk of the confession. Sue knew that very well. This heartbreak was making her act weird.

“That is the sappiest thing I’ve ever heard,” Sue smiled weakly.

“But it was so magical!” Yuki swooned, spinning herself around like some sort of princess. “If you had a boyfriend, you’d understand!”

Sue felt like she got stabbed in the heart. She shouldn’t be getting so hurt over Yuki’s words but they hit a nerve. The bitter part of her was telling her that Yuki knew what was going on and she was intentionally trying to hurt her. But Sue’s rational side reminded her that even if Yuki knew, she wouldn’t be so spiteful about it. She just wanted to scream so badly.

“Why don’t you have a boyfriend, Sue-chan?” Yuki said suddenly.

Sue was taken aback. “Why would you ask something like that?”

Yuki shrugged playfully. “I just think you should’ve had a boyfriend by now. After all, you’re eighteen.”

Sue couldn’t be mad at Yuki for having that mindset. She grew up in Japan and Sue heard that there was a dating crisis there. If Yuki hadn’t been dragged to Devildom, there’d be no doubt that her parents would pressure her into finding a man to settle down with.

“I don’t know…” Sue groaned. “I don’t know anyone out there who likes me…”

“There has to be someone out there!” Yuki asserted. “There’s always someone for everyone. It’s like the saying from your country: Every…. Umm.... Every… Well… It has something to do with bread.”

“Every bread have a cheese?”

Yuki snapped her fingers. “That’s it!”

Sue chuckled softly, secretly wishing that the ground would consume her already.

“Don’t worry, Sue-chan! I will find the right man for you!” Yuki declared.

Sue gawped at Yuki before smiling and snickering, “Good luck with that.”

Yuki affirmed that she could do it before stomping off ambitiously. Sue sighed once more before putting her head down again. Now she had to deal with getting over Mammon and Yuki’s quest to match her with someone. Two things too many. And once the bell rang, Sue was going to have math with the worst teacher ever. Sue placed her hand on her purse again.

“Well, so much for that…” Sue thought to herself.

She knew at that moment that she wanted to dispose of the note. It had no use anymore and if anyone found it, she’d die of embarrassment. Throwing it in the bin was out of the question. It was so easy for someone to find it that way. Not to mention, there were some demons gutsy enough to rummage through garbage. Sue kept thinking of other ways. Even when the bell rang and classes resumed, Sue was coming up with a myriad of ideas to get rid of her note.

It went on like that until school finally finished for the day. To Sue, the day felt longer than usual. She was so desperate that she didn’t even wait for the bell. But she managed to control herself. The last thing she needed to do was piss off Lucifer.

During the walk home, Sue abruptly had an idea. She had read Little Women very recently. There were many parts of it that stuck to her. But since she wanted to dispose of her love note, the moment she thought about very much had something to do with destroying paper. She remembered when Amy burned Jo’s writing.

Of course, fire was the best way to get rid of almost anything. Paper wasn’t safe. The flames would reduce everything to ashes. All of her regrets, unrequited feelings and all would become nothing. If she played her cards wisely, it’d be like the note never existed to begin with.

She knew at once that burning the note would be the first thing she did once she returned to the House of Lamentation.

As she walked home, Sue thought about how glad she was that never bothered to give Mammon the note. She was proud that she was too shy for her own good. She had the feeling that even if she did beat Yuki to the confessing, Mammon would probably reject her. He needed someone who loved him wholly, someone who didn’t make him feel like trash. That someone, as hard as it was for Sue to admit, was Yuki.

If she saw Yuki and Mammon together, she’d turn a blind eye. She’d have to stop looking at Mammon with rose-colored lenses. He was a demon and whatever trouble he got into affected everyone to boot. Even Sue was annoyed at how Mammon would constantly get into the same problem over and over again. That and his arrogance was quite annoying.

Damn it…

Even with all that in mind, Sue’s love for Mammon was still great. She could only hope that this wouldn’t last for so long.

The walk home went without a hitch if one ignored the fact she fell into an open drain. Her ankle hurt like a bitch. In the heat of the moment, she almost used her pact to summon Mammon. Seeing him for the rest of the day was the last thing she wanted. She couldn’t summon anyone else. Making a pact with Mammon alone was a dumb idea. Well, she supposed that her ankle wasn’t that badly hurt.

Shit…

Sue rubbed her ankle once she managed to climb out. Lucifer would notice. She could pretend to her heart’s content, but he had a way of knowing. Her heart stopped. He had a way of knowing. Sue began to worry about how much he knew about her.

He probably knew about the note already. They were in the same room when she wrote it. Lucifer may have taken some cursory glances while he was working. He might’ve known that she was pretending to sleep when she was really crying. Once Lucifer even knew she had a cold before she even came to the realization. But maybe she was just over thinking. Sure, Lucifer knew many things but not everything. And what business did he have with unrequited love anyways? In all likelihood, he wouldn’t care. Lucifer had six oversized babies to look after, two humans to protect as well as copious amounts of work from Diavolo. Even if he knew, he didn’t have the time and energy to care.

Sue limped the rest of the way home, grateful that she didn’t bump into anyone she knew. She stopped at the front door. Maybe she could hide the ankle problem. It wasn’t like she didn’t try to walk normally when she hurt her foot before.

She entered.

The entrance hall was empty, much to her delight, and the fireplace was right in front of her. Sue stumbled into the living room. She didn’t even bother to check if anyone was in there.

“You’re late,” A voice said sternly.

Sue froze, jolting a bit when she accidentally applied weight to her bad leg. She turned to the source and she could feel herself trembling. Lucifer was not too far from the fireplace, lounging on a chair with a book in hand. His eyes were locked on her, that world famous scowl on his face.

“You didn’t even have any of my brothers accompany you,” Lucifer added as he stood up. He walked over to Sue. “Care to explain yourself?”

She looked up at the demon, her heart threatening to beat out of her chest. Her mouth opened slightly but not a sound came out. Lucifer let out a frustrated sigh as his face softened. He picked her up suddenly and set her down on the nearest chair.

“Even you can be troublesome…” Lucifer mumbled under his breath. He stared at her bad leg, almost cradling it in his hands. Sue didn’t know why but it was oddly comforting. It wouldn’t awaken anything within her, right?

“I fell into a drain,” Sue admitted.

Lucifer remarked, “You know you should watch your step.”

“I guess…”

“I am going to grab a few things for your ankle. I want you to stay in this exact spot. Don’t even think about getting up.”

She eyed her feet as she listened to Lucifer walking off. The sight of the swollen ankle made her cringe. Regardless, she took off her shoe and her sock to get a better look at it. It was a lot worse than she was expecting. The skin was mostly reddish with some bits of purple here and there. Sue grumbled. If she hadn’t been so caught up on the note, she would’ve watched her step.

Oh yeah, the note…

Sue pulled it out of her purse. It was folded pretty delicately. If only she could fold other things just as nicely, she thought. She opened it. Only one word in and she already couldn’t take it. She had put so much effort into it. That was one of the reasons she hated it so much. But mainly, it reminded her of the feelings she was now ashamed of. Feelings she wished that she could just get rid of on a whim. Why couldn’t it just be simple like that?

Lucifer may have told her to stay still, but she had to do what she was about to do. Sue got up, the pain from her ankle shooting up to the rest of her body. Jesus Christ, she was in pain! But she ignored it. Crumbling the note in her hands, Sue staggered over to the fireplace. The heat was quite welcoming.

She looked at the crumpled piece of paper before quite casually tossing it into the fire. Falling down to her knees, Sue watched as it was slowly consumed by the flames. A strange sense of melancholy took over. At the same time, she was strangely ecstatic. She couldn’t look away even after the note turned into ashes.

“You cannot be serious!” Lucifer exclaimed.

Sue chuckled softly as the demon paced over to her. He hoisted her up and carried her back to the chair, plopping her down on it. Lucifer gawped at her, holding her face up by the chin so she wouldn’t look away.

“I thought I’d just be able to ignore this but you've been acting strange since break,” Lucifer said. “What’s the meaning of all this?”

“Sometimes you just want to watch your regrets burn in an open fire,” Sue answered plainly. She smiled weakly but Lucifer was as stern looking as ever.

Lucifer raised a brow. “Is that all?”

“It was just a stupid story I wrote. I didn’t like it so I burned it. There’s nothing to worry about,” Sue claimed after hesitating for a moment.

The silence between them was damning. Lucifer’s eyes narrowed before he huffed.

“Sue, I believe we both know that’s a lie. I saw what you wrote and I know exactly who it's for. But if you insist on lying then please be my guest.” Sue bit her lip. She knew what she should tell him but she wasn’t sure if she wanted to. Just thinking about it brought back the pain tenfold. The tears came flooding out and her lips streamed. Lucifer was stunned.

“I feel horrible!” Sue whimpered. “Mammon likes Yuki and I don’t want to be mad at her. But I still love Mammon!”

Lucifer’s eyebrows went up ever so high in disbelief. “You have feelings for Mammon of all demons?”

“I can’t help it. I think he’s great.”

“No, he is not,” Lucifer said, shaking his head.

Sue pouted. “Don’t act like you don’t get it!”

“I really don't.”

Sue furrowed her brows, giving Lucifer the best icy stare she could manage. But she gave up and let out a sigh in defeat, pulling away from him.

“Whatever,” Sue grumbled. “That doesn’t matter right now. It’s just that… I think I might be jealous of Yuki.”

“There, there…” Lucifer comforted, patting Sue on the head. “You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.”

“But I’m jealous of my friend.”

“You shouldn’t be jealous of Yuki. You must remember that she’s the inferior one.”

Sue paused as she gawked at Lucifer. How could she say such a thing? But once she really thought about what he said, she giggled lightly. It was pretty clear that Lucifer wasn’t being serious. He smirked a bit.

“Thank you. I’ll take it to heart,” Sue assured him.

Lucifer narrowed his eyes. “I hope you are not trying to flatter me. I was worried that this may affect your academic performance.”

“Is that all?” Sue had a blank expression.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Lucifer scoffed. “Now, let’s see about that injury of yours.”

Sue watched as Lucifer tended to her ankle. The brief moment of joy from a few moments before had faded.

“I just wish I could get over it sooner,” Sue confessed.

Lucifer nodded. “I suppose such feelings are quite bothersome. But they are not easy to overcome so don’t beat yourself down if you believe it’s taking too long.”

“I wish it were that simple but…”

Lucifer looked up at the human, raising a brow.

Sue continued, “I don’t know. I just feel really bad about being jealous of Yuki.”

“Has your jealousy led to you hurting Yuki?” Lucifer inquired.

Sue shook her head.

“Have you ever thought about hurting her?”

She shook her head again.

“Then you have nothing to worry about,” Lucifer assured her. “You have a lot of self-control, something my brothers unfortunately lack.”

Sue tilted her head. “But what about you?”

Lucifer got serious real fast. “And what do you mean by that?”

Sue paused, looking at him with a blank expression again. She considered whether or not she should tell him. But before she could decide for herself, Lucifer spoke up.

“No, I don’t even want to hear it. I suggest you keep your thoughts to yourself, Sue.”

“Fine.”

She looked down at her patched up ankle, her internal pain easing up a little. Then her gaze turned to the fireplace. She wished that she could burn her feelings and move on. But all she could do was bottle them up and let it sit there until she forgot. Lucifer said she was doing a fine job, keeping it all in. That probably wasn’t the best advice. But she took it regardless.

“You should stay away from school until your ankle heals. I don’t want you hurting yourself anymore,” Lucifer advised. “I will make sure that you—”

Sue threw herself onto Lucifer all of a sudden, pulling him into an embrace. She could feel a new stream of hot tears running down her face. Lucifer eyes widened in surprise.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Lucifer bleated.

“Thank you…” Sue breathed. She hurt her ankle again.

Lucifer recovered from the shock a bit before sighing. “If you wish to thank me, just say it. This is simply unnecessary.”

Sue looked up at him and was amazed to see the demon blushing. He tried to glare at her, but it was hard to be afraid when he looked so cute. She didn’t think that she’d get him flushed so easily. Many things were running through her mind. Something told her that perhaps getting over Mammon wouldn’t be so daunting.

“You are such a strange human,” Lucifer remarked.

She shrugged. Perhaps she was. Sue began to wonder about what would happen next.

“Will you finally sit down? You’re not making this any easier.”

Well, chances came and went, the note was forgotten about and it wasn’t until Yuki confessed to Mammon that she remembered. But it was too late. Mammon and Yuki were together.

It was a pretty generic confession, like one straight out of an anime. Their meeting place was under a cherry blossom tree of sorts. Sue happened to be there as well because she had a still life assignment for art class. Yuki had been there for quite a while, leaning on the tree, walking around it a few times and sitting right next to it, waiting. Sue had half a mind to ask what she was waiting for but she decided against it. Yuki didn’t seem to be aware that she was there too.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps, the sound of someone’s feet cutting through the grass as they ran. Sue peeped to see who it was and her heart stopped. Mammon stumbled before Yuki, scratching his head and wearing a sheepish grin on his face.Yuki helped him up.

Sue got a cold, clenching feeling inside her, somewhere between her chest and her gut. Something told her that she knew what was about to go down. She absentmindedly placed a hand on her purse, watching everything unfold.

Yuki looks down at her feet, a strong blush fading on her cheeks. She fumbled with a skirt before taking a letter out of her pocket, a pink letter bound with a red heart sticker. Sue wanted to turn away. Lord knows she desperately wanted to turn away. But she couldn’t. It was like watching a car accident take place.

Mammon’s face went blank as he eyed the letter. He takes it and promptly shoves it into an inner pocket with a smile, probably planning to show it off. They exchanged some words with each other, Yuki looking ecstatic and Mammon blushing. Then he took her in his arms and planted a kiss on her forehead. Finally, Sue had enough.

She gathered all her things, stood up almost instantly and bolted to the school building. The clenching feeling began paining her. She tried to prevent the hot tears from accumulating but to no avail. Sue didn’t want anyone to see how hurt she was. They’d start pestering her with questions she didn’t want to answer. She slipped into class and hastily as possible and went over to her seat.

Putting all her supplies inside her desk, she rests her head down on the surface, using her arms both as support and as cover. Everyone assumed she was sleeping when she was really crying. This was all thanks to her habit of taking quick naps during school hours, particularly during breaks. She made sure to stay as still as possible and regulate her breathing.

She couldn’t believe it at first. Even if she knew all the signs, she refused to accept it at first. Yuki was a very outgoing girl despite what she tried to affirm. It was only a matter of time before she decided to make her confession. Her anxiety was never as bad as Sue’s, perhaps because she didn’t have a voice in her head constantly demeaning her. Mammon favored Yuki since she was the first between the both of them to make a pact with him.

But she didn’t get why he was only drawn to Yuki. Sue made a pact with him too and through less dubious means. She should be the one he clinged to. Leviathan forced Yuki to make a pact with Mammon for his own benefit. It didn’t make any sense.

Yuki wasn’t all that great. She was much too nosy and reckless for her own good, constantly getting herself into trouble. Sue had to save her countless times, especially from Lucifer. Yuki was childish. She cried about every little thing, she was a bit selfish, lazy, indecisive, irresponsible and maybe even stupid. Yuki was nothing but a burden.

At the same time though, Yuki was so sweet as well. Even if she was nosy, it was only because she wanted to do what she believed was right. No matter how cruel the brothers were to her, Yuki was always kind to them and believed they had some goodness to them. She was the only person who was never mean to Mammon. 

Of course Mammon loved Yuki. Even with all her shortcomings, she was still better than Sue in many ways. Sue couldn’t really think about anything meaningful she had to offer. That was probably why everyone except Lucifer prefered Yuki. She was the fun, loving one. Sue was the boring mom friend.

Sue felt guilty for trying to rationalize why her friend was a bad choice. She should be happy for Yuki. She remembered all those late nights when she listened to Yuki swooning about her dream boy. Yuki saw that in Mammon so she should be glad. But no matter how hard she tried, Sue was never fully content for her friend. Her feelings for Mammon were still so strong. 

Ugh, why does stuff like love and feelings have to be so difficult?

“Oi, oi! Sue-chan! Wake up!” A high-pitched voice bubbled as the owner shook Sue. “You’re not supposed to be sleeping during the day!”

Sue let out an exasperated sigh. She knew it was Yuki, not that it was hard to tell who she was to begin with. Yuki stood out for better or for worse. Reluctantly, Sue sat up, wiping her eyes in a groggy way so her friend wouldn’t suspect a thing.

“But it’s break time…” Sue grumbled. “But Lucifer-san got mad at you for sleeping in school!” Yuki pouted, putting her hands on her hips.

“Weren’t you listening?” Sue began cleaning her glasses. They got smudged against her skin. “He was mad because I was sleeping during class. Otherwise, Lucifer has no problem with me sleeping in school.” “Oh really?” “Really.”

Yuki took a closer look at Sue, narrowing her eyes. Sue put back on her glasses with a straight face. Deep down, her guilt was reaching its zenith. Someone so pleasant didn’t deserve her wrath, even if it was all internal.

“Why did you wake me up anyways?” Sue huffed, acting like she didn’t see the confession.

Yuki pulled away quickly, instantly becoming bright eyed. “Oh Sue-chan, it was like a dream come true! I confessed to Mam-kun under the sakura tree and he accepted my feelings!”

And grass is green and the sky is blue! I bet you want to tell me that people die when they are killed too!

That was a stupid thought to have. Sue tapped herself on the head lightly. Yuki didn’t know she saw a good chunk of the confession. Sue knew that very well. This heartbreak was making her act weird.

“That is the sappiest thing I’ve ever heard,” Sue smiled weakly.

“But it was so magical!” Yuki swooned, spinning herself around like some sort of princess. “If you had a boyfriend, you’d understand!”

Sue felt like she got stabbed in the heart. She shouldn’t be getting so hurt over Yuki’s words but they hit a nerve. The bitter part of her was telling her that Yuki knew what was going on and she was intentionally trying to hurt her. But Sue’s rational side reminded her that even if Yuki knew, she wouldn’t be so spiteful about it. She just wanted to scream so badly.

“Why don’t you have a boyfriend, Sue-chan?” Yuki said suddenly. Sue was taken aback. “Why would you ask something like that?” Yuki shrugged playfully. “I just think you should’ve had a boyfriend by now. After all, you’re eighteen.”

Sue couldn’t be mad at Yuki for having that mindset. She grew up in Japan and Sue heard that there was a dating crisis there. If Yuki hadn’t been dragged to Devildom, there’d be no doubt that her parents would pressure her into finding a man to settle down with. “I don’t know…” Sue groaned. “I don’t know anyone out there who likes me…” “There has to be someone out there!” Yuki asserted. “There’s always someone for everyone. It’s like the saying from your country: Every…. Umm.... Every… Well… It has something to do with bread.”

“Every bread have a cheese?” Yuki snapped her fingers. “That’s it!” Sue chuckled softly, secretly wishing that the ground would consume her already.

“Don’t worry, Sue-chan! I will find the right man for you!” Yuki declared.

Sue gawped at Yuki before smiling and snickering, “Good luck with that.”

Yuki affirmed that she could do it before stomping off ambitiously. Sue sighed once more before putting her head down again. Now she had to deal with getting over Mammon and Yuki’s quest to match her with someone. Two things too many. And once the bell rang, Sue was going to have math with the worst teacher ever. Sue placed her hand on her purse again. “Well, so much for that…” Sue thought to herself.

She knew at that moment that she wanted to dispose of the note. It had no use anymore and if anyone found it, she’d die of embarrassment. Throwing it in the bin was out of the question. It was so easy for someone to find it that way. Not to mention, there were some demons gutsy enough to rummage through garbage. Sue kept thinking of other ways. Even when the bell rang and classes resumed, Sue was coming up with a myriad of ideas to get rid of her note. It went on like that until school finally finished for the day. To Sue, the day felt longer than usual. She was so desperate that she didn’t even wait for the bell. But she managed to control herself. The last thing she needed to do was piss off Lucifer.

During the walk home, Sue abruptly had an idea. She had read Little Women very recently. There were many parts of it that stuck to her. But since she wanted to dispose of her love note, the moment she thought about very much had something to do with destroying paper. She remembered when Amy burned Jo’s writing.

Of course, fire was the best way to get rid of almost anything. Paper wasn’t safe. The flames would reduce everything to ashes. All of her regrets, unrequited feelings and all would become nothing. If she played her cards wisely, it’d be like the note never existed to begin with.

She knew at once that burning the note would be the first thing she did once she returned to the House of Lamentation.

As she walked home, Sue thought about how glad she was that never bothered to give Mammon the note. She was proud that she was too shy for her own good. She had the feeling that even if she did beat Yuki to the confessing, Mammon would probably reject her. He needed someone who loved him wholly, someone who didn’t make him feel like trash. That someone, as hard as it was for Sue to admit, was Yuki. 

If she saw Yuki and Mammon together, she’d turn a blind eye. She’d have to stop looking at Mammon with rose-colored lenses. He was a demon and whatever trouble he got into affected everyone to boot. Even Sue was annoyed at how Mammon would constantly get into the same problem over and over again. That and his arrogance was quite annoying. Damn it…

Even with all that in mind, Sue’s love for Mammon was still great. She could only hope that this wouldn’t last for so long.

The walk home went without a hitch if one ignored the fact she fell into an open drain. Her ankle hurt like a bitch. In the heat of the moment, she almost used her pact to summon Mammon. Seeing him for the rest of the day was the last thing she wanted. She couldn’t summon anyone else. Making a pact with Mammon alone was a dumb idea. Well, she supposed that her ankle wasn’t that badly hurt.

Shit… Sue rubbed her ankle once she managed to climb out. Lucifer would notice. She could pretend to her heart’s content, but he had a way of knowing. Her heart stopped. He had a way of knowing. Sue began to worry about how much he knew about her.

He probably knew about the note already. They were in the same room when she wrote it. Lucifer may have taken some cursory glances while he was working. He might’ve known that she was pretending to sleep when she was really crying. Once Lucifer even knew she had a cold before she even came to the realization.

But maybe she was just over thinking. Sure, Lucifer knew many things but not everything. And what business did he have with unrequited love anyways? In all likelihood, he wouldn’t care. Lucifer had six oversized babies to look after, two humans to protect as well as copious amounts of work from Diavolo. Even if he knew, he didn’t have the time and energy to care.

Sue limped the rest of the way home, grateful that she didn’t bump into anyone she knew. She stopped at the front door. Maybe she could hide the ankle problem. It wasn’t like she didn’t try to walk normally when she hurt her foot before. She entered.

The entrance hall was empty, much to her delight, and the fireplace was right in front of her. Sue stumbled into the living room. She didn’t even bother to check if anyone was in there.

“You’re late,” A voice said sternly.

Sue froze, jolting a bit when she accidentally applied weight to her bad leg. She turned to the source and she could feel herself trembling. Lucifer was not too far from the fireplace, lounging on a chair with a book in hand. His eyes were locked on her, that world famous scowl on his face. “You didn’t even have any of my brothers accompany you,” Lucifer added as he stood up. He walked over to Sue. “Care to explain yourself?”

She looked up at the demon, her heart threatening to beat out of her chest. Her mouth opened slightly but not a sound came out. Lucifer let out a frustrated sigh as his face softened. He picked her up suddenly and set her down on the nearest chair. “Even you can be troublesome…” Lucifer mumbled under his breath. He stared at her bad leg, almost cradling it in his hands. Sue didn’t know why but it was oddly comforting. It wouldn’t awaken anything within her, right? “I fell into a drain,” Sue admitted. Lucifer remarked, “You know you should watch your step.” “I guess…”

“I am going to grab a few things for your ankle. I want you to stay in this exact spot. Don’t even think about getting up.”

She eyed her feet as she listened to Lucifer walking off. The sight of the swollen ankle made her cringe. Regardless, she took off her shoe and her sock to get a better look at it. It was a lot worse than she was expecting. The skin was mostly reddish with some bits of purple here and there. Sue grumbled. If she hadn’t been so caught up on the note, she would’ve watched her step.

Oh yeah, the note… Sue pulled it out of her purse. It was folded pretty delicately. If only she could fold other things just as nicely, she thought. She opened it. Only one word in and she already couldn’t take it. She had put so much effort into it. That was one of the reasons she hated it so much. But mainly, it reminded her of the feelings she was now ashamed of. Feelings she wished that she could just get rid of on a whim. Why couldn’t it just be simple like that?

Lucifer may have told her to stay still, but she had to do what she was about to do. Sue got up, the pain from her ankle shooting up to the rest of her body. Jesus Christ, she was in pain! But she ignored it. Crumbling the note in her hands, Sue staggered over to the fireplace. The heat was quite welcoming.

She looked at the crumpled piece of paper before quite casually tossing it into the fire. Falling down to her knees, Sue watched as it was slowly consumed by the flames. A strange sense of melancholy took over. At the same time, she was strangely ecstatic. She couldn’t look away even after the note turned into ashes. “You cannot be serious!” Lucifer exclaimed.

Sue chuckled softly as the demon paced over to her. He hoisted her up and carried her back to the chair, plopping her down on it. Lucifer gawped at her, holding her face up by the chin so she wouldn’t look away.

“I thought I’d just be able to ignore this but you've been acting strange since break,” Lucifer said. “What’s the meaning of all this?”

“Sometimes you just want to watch your regrets burn in an open fire,” Sue answered plainly. She smiled weakly but Lucifer was as stern looking as ever.

Lucifer raised a brow. “Is that all?” “It was just a stupid story I wrote. I didn’t like it so I burned it. There’s nothing to worry about,” Sue claimed after hesitating for a moment.

The silence between them was damning. Lucifer’s eyes narrowed before he huffed. “Sue, I believe we both know that’s a lie. I saw what you wrote and I know exactly who it's for. But if you insist on lying then please be my guest.”

Sue bit her lip. She knew what she should tell him but she wasn’t sure if she wanted to. Just thinking about it brought back the pain tenfold. The tears came flooding out and her lips streamed. Lucifer was stunned.

“I feel horrible!” Sue whimpered. “Mammon likes Yuki and I don’t want to be mad at her. But I still love Mammon!” Lucifer’s eyebrows went up ever so high in disbelief. “You have feelings for Mammon of all demons?”

“I can’t help it. I think he’s great.” “No, he is not,” Lucifer said, shaking his head. Sue pouted. “Don’t act like you don’t get it!” “I really don't.” 

Sue furrowed her brows, giving Lucifer the best icy stare she could manage. But she gave up and let out a sigh in defeat, pulling away from him.

“Whatever,” Sue grumbled. “That doesn’t matter right now. It’s just that… I think I might be jealous of Yuki.”

“There, there…” Lucifer comforted, patting Sue on the head. “You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.” “But I’m jealous of my friend.”

“You shouldn’t be jealous of Yuki. You must remember that she’s the inferior one.” Sue paused as she gawked at Lucifer. How could she say such a thing? But once she really thought about what he said, she giggled lightly. It was pretty clear that Lucifer wasn’t being serious. He smirked a bit.

“Thank you. I’ll take it to heart,” Sue assured him. Lucifer narrowed his eyes. “I hope you are not trying to flatter me. I was worried that this may affect your academic performance.” “Is that all?” Sue had a blank expression. “Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Lucifer scoffed. “Now, let’s see about that injury of yours.”

Sue watched as Lucifer tended to her ankle. The brief moment of joy from a few moments before had faded. “I just wish I could get over it sooner,” Sue confessed. Lucifer nodded. “I suppose such feelings are quite bothersome. But they are not easy to overcome so don’t beat yourself down if you believe it’s taking too long.” “I wish it were that simple but…” Lucifer looked up at the human, raising a brow. Sue continued, “I don’t know. I just feel really bad about being jealous of Yuki.”

“Has your jealousy led to you hurting Yuki?” Lucifer inquired.

Sue shook her head. “Have you ever thought about hurting her?” She shook her head again. “Then you have nothing to worry about,” Lucifer assured her. “You have a lot of self-control, something my brothers unfortunately lack.” Sue tilted her head. “But what about you?” Lucifer got serious real fast. “And what do you mean by that?” Sue paused, looking at him with a blank expression again. She considered whether or not she should tell him. But before she could decide for herself, Lucifer spoke up.

“No, I don’t even want to hear it. I suggest you keep your thoughts to yourself, Sue.”

“Fine.”

She looked down at her patched up ankle, her internal pain easing up a little. Then her gaze turned to the fireplace. She wished that she could burn her feelings and move on. But all she could do was bottle them up and let it sit there until she forgot. Lucifer said she was doing a fine job, keeping it all in. That probably wasn’t the best advice. But she took it regardless.

“You should stay away from school until your ankle heals. I don’t want you hurting yourself anymore,” Lucifer advised. “I will make sure that you—”

Sue threw herself onto Lucifer all of a sudden, pulling him into an embrace. She could feel a new stream of hot tears running down her face. Lucifer eyes widened in surprise.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Lucifer bleated. “Thank you…” Sue breathed. She hurt her ankle again. Lucifer recovered from the shock a bit before sighing. “If you wish to thank me, just say it. This is simply unnecessary.” Sue looked up at him and was amazed to see the demon blushing. He tried to glare at her, but it was hard to be afraid when he looked so cute. She didn’t think that she’d get him flushed so easily. Many things were running through her mind. Something told her that perhaps getting over Mammon wouldn’t be so daunting. “You are such a strange human,” Lucifer remarked. She shrugged. Perhaps she was. Sue began to wonder about what would happen next. “Will you finally sit down? You’re not making this any easier.”

[detroitbydark]

Moonbeams and Ridinghoods Chp 2

Pairing: werewolf!haz x reader

Summary: Harrison contemplated his next move and gets support from a friend

Words: 1740

Warnings: None, safe for now my pretties.

A/N: anyone interest in a taglist? Playlist? This thing is beginning to sprawl in my head and I’d love to know what y’all think and what you like!

“If you stare at your phone any harder it’s going to explode.”

Harrison looks up from his spot sprawled on the sectional to see Tom giving him a curious look from across the room.

They’d only arrived home a few hours ago from their “boys weekend” out at the cottage and all were feeling a bit lazy. Harry and Sam had fucked off to their flat, while Tuwaine had taken up residence in their spare bedroom. Tom and Emily has been spending some “alone time” together but by the looks of his slightly rumpled appearance as he sunk into the loveseat, she’d gotten her fill.

It was always nice when the full moon fell on the weekend. They could take their time coming and going and recovering afterwards. Midweek changes were the fucking worst. Battling the bone deep exhaustion that came after a transformation while trying to be productive at work? You could fucking forget about it, worse than a hangover.

Harrison glances at the contact he’s pulled up again. “Little Red”. He can’t help but smile at the joke. Tom grumbles across the room.

“Come on, tell us what’s gotten you so obsessed over there.” Harrison rests his head back against the arm of the couch, resting a hand over his bare stomach. He lets out a soft huff before looking at the man across the way.

Tom was his best friend, had been since they were children. Their parents had run with the same pack and it was no surprise to anyone when the boys became thick as thieves or that they’d formed their own ragtag pack when they’d come of age.

“Met a girl the other night.” He finally admits, locking his phone and slipping it into his pocket. Tom raises a curious brow.

“Little bird caught your eye? Anyone we know?” Haz knows it’s a loaded question. ‘Anyone we know?’. Was she a wolf? Who does she run with? Harrison can’t help but roll his eyes. Tom was his alpha and Haz knew he wanted what was best for every member of their small ‘family’ but sometimes he was just a little too nosy for his liking.

“Naw, nothing like that. Just a girl who chatted me up at the market the other night.”

Toms brows rise into his hairline. “The night before the moon?”

“A couple nights” Haz clarifies, he feels a little uncomfortable by his friends close scrutiny. So what if he was talking about a normal human girl. He wanted to ask him why he cared so much but the explanation walks in before he can.

Tom’s girlfriend Emily had moved into the neighborhood when they were teens and it had been instant fireworks between the pair. Em was bright, outgoing, and smart as a whip. Tom had been absolutely gone on her before he’d even been able to mouth the words “I love you.”.

Of course, with dating a ‘normal’ girl came problems. There was a certain code of secrecy their parents had insisted they keep and Tom had been forced to keep Em in the dark for years. It wasn’t until she’d been attacked by a member of a rival pack, mauled badly, that Tom was able to explain what he was but by then the damage had been done. It had nearly destroyed them.

The wolf could be a curse or a blessing depending on who you asked. The Hollands and Osterfields had all inherited the trait from their ancestors. Emily had been thrust into it, infected by a bite. It had been five years and she still struggled to come to grips with her other half. Some months were good and she’d join the boys at the cottage, run and hunt by the moonlight while others, like the most recent, she’d lock herself in her bedroom for the night and refuse anyone (not even Tom admittance). It tore Tom apart and, while he hadn’t made it law, he let it be known he wasn’t keen on any of the lads bringing in outsiders.

“What are you talking about?” The brunette asks sliding into her mates lap. She’s wearing one of Toms button up shirts and and a pair of sweat shorts that say HBIC. Harrison had gotten them for her for Christmas. She was the only woman in the pack and definitely a bit coddled and spoiled by all the boys. She deserved it though, acting as a surrogate Mum and looking after the lot of them making sure they behaved like human beings and not animals (except for one day a month). She was a hell of a baker and doted on each of “her boys”.

Tom nuzzles against her neck, nipping lightly while she giggles.

“Haz met a girl.” He explains. Em’s head whips in the blonde’s direction. Tom groans knowing he’s lost her attention.

“Is she pretty? Have you taken her out yet? When can I meet her?” Harrison laughs at her rapid fire delivery.

“She’s very pretty. American.” He starts out as he hears Tom groan again.

“An American? Really?”

Emily swats him upside the head and nods for Harrison to finish answering her questions.

“I’ve haven’t exactly asked her out yet. Haven’t even called her, so I don’t think you’ll be meeting her anytime soon. If ever.” He finishes. He can see the wheels in Emily’s brains turning. It was never a good sign. She really was smarter than the whole lot of them and once she got something in her head it was nearly impossible to dissuade her.

“Well you should definitely call her.”

“And why’s that love?” Tom asks, tucking an errant wisp of hair behind her ear.

“Because, Thomas,” She starts off primly, “Harrison deserves a bit of happiness and I need at least one of these dogs to get a girlfriend I can hang around with.”

Chuckling, Tom glances at his friend. “Man, if you want to call her go ahead and do it but know your going to have to share her with Emily.”

The woman in question shoots Harrison a sly wink. Tom was the head of the pack but, when she wanted to, Em had her own bit of control over the alpha.

There was something both frustrating and relieving about being given the go ahead from Tom and Harrison wasn’t sure how he felt about it. He watches the pair snuggle closer on the couch, wolves tended to be more tactile than humans and the pair were no exception. While he enjoyed piling into the living room with his pack mates, drinking beer and playing video games after a tough day at work, he longed for what Tom and Emily shared. He wanted that connection. He wanted to find the one that completed him.

Excusing himself, Harrison pulls an old jumper on and heads out to the back garden before taking up position on a deck chair. The waning moon shines her light down on her child and Harrison takes the phone out of his pocket.

You’re developing a palate for curry. It’s something you’ve never eaten prior to coming overseas but you find yourself falling in love with the mixture of spices that leaves your tongue burning and you wanting more.

You’ve also grown incredibly sick of TV dinners and there was an Indian restaurant with great carry out on the corner of your block.

You roll your eyes. Since you’d met Harrison you had been hesitant to walk alone after dark. It was completely ridiculous, honestly. You’d only met him once but you’d taken his concern to heart. He knew more about the area and if he was concerned maybe you should be too.

You’re not sure why you’re so concerned with how the handsome blonde would feel about you doing something, you’d only met once and for such a short time. Hell, you hadn’t even called him, nor he you. He’d probably forgotten all about you.

Flipping the page of your magazine you try to concentrate on the article at hand but you just can’t get into the fashion spread and designer spotlight. You're restless and completely bored, spending all your time out of work holed up in your flat. A deep sigh escapes you as you set the carryout container on the coffee table.

Taking the overseas contract had seemed like a great way to break out of the rut you’d been in. A different country. A new set of faces. It had all seemed so easy. A bit of excitement! A whole new world! Except it wasn’t really panning out was it?

A ding from your phone has you retrieving it from the table. Your eyes go wide when you see the name.

Big Bad: are you up?

You glance at the time. It was only 8:30. Of course you were up. You can’t help but smile at the message, thinking about a reply, before you can even get a word out your phone is ringing.

“Hello?”

“I bet you didn’t think I was going to call you.” Harrison’s voice is warm like honey and you feel a smile spread across your face.

“Maybe not.” You conceded, “but here you are calling. What do I owe the pleasure?” Snuggling down into the couch you pull your knees up and into your body as you speak, the fleece blanket you’ve been using gets pulled up to your chin.

“Would you laugh if I told you I was trying to work up the nerve to call you all weekend?”

The smile on your face just won’t give up. “Would you, if I said I’d been hoping to hear from you?” The chuckle from the other end confirms your suspicion.

“Sorry for being such a div and not doing it sooner. Was out in the country for a couple of days.” The apology makes you melt. “I’ve been thinking about you.” He says and you hum quietly in response. The line gets quiet for a moment and you wonder if the calls been dropped.

“Harris-“

“Do you want to get coffee this week?”

You have to bite the inside of your cheeks as you both speak at the same time.

“I work the next couple days but I could pencil you in for Wednesday?”

“Wednesday it is!” His enthusiasm is contagious and you already find yourself looking forward to it. “Now that that’s out of the way” he continues, “how was your weekend?”

[herwildwhisper]

stats: Mar Sandoval, 31 (b. September 19th, 1988.) she/hers (cis.) species: human occupation: mountain guide

alignment: chaotic good veering on chaotic neutral.

+ resilient. loyal. affectionate. capable. perceptive. – aloof. destructive. willful. bitter. blunt.

personality

a half-dry, charming-ish sensibility. “take no shit. do harm if they push you far enough.” values honesty, even if it hurts – this does not mean she’s capable of following through personally (looking at you, Sam.) kind, but not sweet. guarded. could use a friend or five, even if she’s convinced herself she’s better off alone.

aesthetic

widow, née [REDACTED.] whiskey aunt, not wine mom. indeterminate drawl. two dozen bad coping mechanisms in a trench coat, struggling to become a person. kinder than she lets on. angrier than you think she is. looking for answers without knowing the questions. inheriting a mystery; continuing the sketchbooks. a wedding ring on a simple chain. learning to count down from a hundred when all you want is to plant your fist in someone’s face. surviving out of spite. living with loss.

history

( tw physical/verbal domestic / child abuse, self-destructive behaviour, self-harm, death of a spouse, mentions of suicide. tl;dr at the end )

BLACKROCK, MT. EARLY MARCH 2011.

For a few years, the Sandoval house has stood empty. Mrs. Sandoval passed away in 2008, and no one managed to track down her son. He left town back in ‘03, a couple years after his father died in an accident, and since then, no one in town has seen hide nor hair of him – not even his pack.

And then, eight years after Dante Sandoval left his family and home behind, his widow shows up in town.

She’s young, too young; only 22. Dark-eyed and dark-haired and dark-minded. She smiles too much, and then she smiles too little. Is the kind of woman who shows up alone at the bar. The kind of woman who tells you to fuck off if she thinks you’re getting too close, too handsy, even if you don’t agree – and very few like that. She gets a job as a mountain guide, and then they don’t see much of her. The house she inherits is left behind like a carcass, just another unpleasant memory as summer stretches on. Then snow shuts down the mountain, and she returns, much to their disappointment. She’s remained a stranger ever since.

(Towns like Blackrock don’t like strangers. Towns like Blackrock don’t like women like Mar Sandoval.)

THE PAST, NOT AS DISTANT AS SHE’D LIKE.

Her parents tried, she thinks. Tried to love her, to love each other, but the bottle won out and the damage was done, their home broken into jagged pieces. Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking; maybe they were bickering tyrants from the start, and she just didn’t want it to be true. It didn’t matter where they moved, Texas to Louisiana to Florida – same shit, different scenery. She grew up amidst screaming matches and plates shattered against the wall. Under the constant pressure, Mar fractured, too. She sharpened her edges to survive. Came home with bloody knuckles, and left for school with fresh bruises. She learned the tenets of life from people who had no business teaching it to her: to use leverage, to find meaning in whatever meagre thing you could control, to find fear as natural as breathing. To read a room the moment you walk in. To always look three moves ahead. To take the blame. Even when everything in you was screaming that it wasn’t your fault. To hate yourself for both. That if you excused it all as love, it was okay.

At school, she could be the one giving out beatings, whether they were earned or not. It wasn’t that she always started the fights, though she did that too – but she’d finish them, schoolyard scraps turning into brawling matches when Mar got involved. She was never loud, but she was always angry, rage simmering beneath her skin, a buzzcut saw waiting for an accident, looking for release. A bruise was a bruise was a bruise; it didn’t matter if she left it herself, so long as she could control how it got there, whether through someone else’s fist or her own. Her mind stirred into a constant, exhausting frenzy by thoughts she didn’t have the words for, yet: if you love me, if you love each other, why is it like this?

She left home at 19, slamming the door behind her on her way out, and she never looked back. No plan, no route. She’d never been further north than Atlanta, so it seemed like a good place to start. Got a job as a waitress, saved up every little bit she could, before she left Georgia to continue her trek north. Turned 20 in Tennessee, still no plan in sight – and then, right as she was considering her options, she met Dante.

He wasn’t her first, but he was the first one that mattered. A couple years older, from a small town in Montana, with kind eyes and a nice smile and hands that were firm but gentle. He always had a sketchbook on him; studies of the mountain trail, birds and flowers. No sudden movements. Never raised his voice. He didn’t mind her sharp edges, but before she knew it, they’d been sanded down – still present, but softer than they’d ever been, and better for it. She fell faster than she should have. So did he.

They spent the next few years working as guides on the Appalachian Trail, getting their certificates, and along the way, they got married. Began to plan their future, with a whole life ahead of them that they would share. It was Dante that taught her to be patient, that taught her love had never been – should never be – about leverage, that fear was a cruel thing to cause in someone else. And maybe she was a work in progress, but hey, Mar, so am I.

In retrospect, they both had their secrets. He would tell her about Blackrock with a fondness in his voice, and she would curb her tongue – if you love it so much, why did you leave? She shared what she could with him. Let him reassure her when she faltered, when the things she’d buried came crawling to the surface, when it felt like all the love in the world couldn’t stop her from becoming a black hole that would tear itself apart. They made it work. They were happy. Hopeful.

And then Dante died. Disappeared, technically. But they found his body a week later. Gunshot wound, weapon nearby. Coroner ruled it a suicide, despite Mar’s protests; Dante wouldn’t leave me– there was nothing wrong– why would he–

The pieces they'd mended were broken, and she was left alone with the wreckage, sharp and heavy. Dante would never have done that to her. He wouldn’t have. Couldn’t have.

She traveled west in their beat-up car, his ashes and their hiking gear secured in the back. Got her stupid, grief-ridden kicks out of asking obnoxious truckers if her husband could watch, only to let them face the urn. Laughed until she cried when they ran from the ‘crazy bitch’. Came to Blackrock with no intention of staying, only to find herself the recipient of a rickety old house full of family pictures she had no context for, heirlooms and trinkets; memories that weren’t her own, that had nothing to do with her.

And, of course, the collection of sketchbooks depicting wolves. All different sorts, snouts and pelt colours and scars, signed D. Sandoval. The torn old henley at the bottom of a chest down in the basement. The shredded remains of an old journal, the scratch marks by the kitchen door.

BLACKROCK, MT. 2019.

Lonesome, but not lonely. It’s how she likes it, she’s decided. It’s easier, that way. She’s used to it. Isn’t sure if it’s always been her nature, or if it’s just a force of habit, but she hasn’t stopped to ask herself. Mar keeps company when she feels like it, when winter gets too quiet for her taste, and as soon as the snow’s thawed, she’s gone. Just another ghost, until winter calls her back to Blackrock. She knows what it looks like – she arrives, and so do all the other strange things that haunt the town. (But she’s the only strange thing that’s been spotted near the deputy, and she knows the optics of that, too.) She hasn’t done much to improve the wide-spread impression of her. She’s pleasant enough if you haven’t tested her patience, but she remains distant; keeps most everyone at an arm’s length. It’s easier to not get attached, to not get disappointed, that way. To settle for that long life of lonesome, but not lonely.

There are answers to be found in Blackrock, if only she can find the right questions. She’s sure of it. Someone has to know what happened – why he left, why he died, why someone would kill her husband. But until she can find those questions, she observes. She adds her own sketchbooks to the pile. She takes meticulous notes of all the odd, out-of-place things she sees. And she bides her time.

So Mar Sandoval remains a stranger. Drinks her cocoa with a dash of peppermint liqueur, brings a book to the bar, doesn’t give a shit about small town nosying disguised as small town kindness. Takes up odd jobs at nearby ski centres if the money’s tight, and by summer, she is gone. None of them truly know her. None of them ever will.

tl;dr

grew up in an abusive home; has Issues as a result

certified brawler and troublemaker – currently on the mend, but not before she got a Reputation in Blackrock

met her now-departed husband after leaving home. they got married young AF 

said husband...... was from Blackrock. said husband....... was a werewolf, but Mar is (so far) unaware 

her husband disappeared and was found dead a week later. police ruled it a suicide, Mar did Not Agree

she came to Blackrock in 2011 with a car full of hiking gear and an urn strapped in, a widow at 22. inherited a house full of Weird Things, including sketchbooks filled with drawings of wolves

she had 0 intentions of staying for as long as she has, but she’s convinced the answer to her husband’s death can be found in Blackrock

knows SOMETHING’S up, but not quite what

specific pitches

(aka cherrypick what works for you from my ramblings!)

Redcedar / Teddy

I like to think that Teddy’s parents took care of Mar when she got to town, back in 2011 – maybe they took care of the Sandoval house, or knew the Sandovals?She liked them a good deal, felt grateful for their kindness and indebted to them for it, and with them gone, she sees Teddy as a young woman in a strange town that could maybe need some kindness, too. Mar’s just too awkward to fully commit to it, yet.

Basswood / Sam

It wasn’t necessarily the first reason, and it definitely isn’t the only reason, but a big part of her connection to Sam is that she hopes he could help her piece together the Dante puzzle. It’s not fair, she knows. It’s probably fucked up, asking him to help her figure out what happened to her dead husband, on account of.. whatever it is that they are. She tells herself that’s why she’s yet to really ask him for help with it. This thing between them was never meant to go this far, because now she likes Sam – and that makes her feel guilty, in more ways than one.

Blackthorn / Carson

She sees herself in Carson, sees the woman she used to be, the woman she’s done her best to bury – all fists and venom-veins, ready to set the world on fire. She doesn’t know the cause of Carson’s anger, doesn’t necessarily know Carson all that well in general, but like calls to like. Mar might be trying to reign herself in, these days, but she knows the anger she thinks she sees in Carson, the need for destruction. Pulling them out of that bar was an emotional impulse, one she doesn’t really want to acknowledge: she got cold feet right after. She’s got more on her own plate than she can handle; why did she try to take on someone else’s? That’s why she avoids them now. She has no intention of calling on whatever debt they think they owe her; in her eyes, it was almost selfish to not let nature run its course that night. Almost.

Oak / Diego & older wolves

Dante was 100% a werewolf, and I’d love to potentially plot out the older wolves of the Blackrock pack having known him, if you all are game! They wouldn’t know how much Mar knows about the pack, if she even knows anything, which I think could be a great source of ~drama – especially now that there’s a dead wolf. Diego in particular is someone I think could be cool for this, as he’d be the right age range and would have been there for long enough to have known Dante.

Ash / Romeo

Ash / Romeo is a new face, and Mar knows all-too-well what that’s like. I don’t think she’d be looking for any meaningful friendship, to start with, but I could see her potentially reaching out, just to see who they are, and maybe to let them know that there’s other out-of-towners around.

Sycamore / Eric

Much like herself, Eric doesn’t have a good reputation, though his is probably worse. Depending on his disposition, I could see them being acquaintances, even friends, united by their shared less-than-nice natures, with some drama added in thanks to their respective relations to Sam / Basswood. I also wouldn’t rule out the potential for future hunter plots, depending on where it goes!

wanted connections 

( consider these starting points! if something could work if we tweaked it a little to suit your character more, hit me up 💖 also, in the event that something is filled but you’re interested.... hit me up for that too! we can Work It Out )

witness ( Sam – multiple )

Men who won’t take no for an answer isn’t something Mar puts up with. By now, most of the culprits in town have learned their lesson, and leave her alone. In turn, Mar’s gotten better at using her words.. but back when she first came to town, there’s a good chance her anger got the best of her, resulting in someone walking away with a shiner and a split lip. (Hell, push her far enough, and it might happen now.) She’s good at brawls. MUSE B witnessed one such occasion – did they step in, or leave her to it? How do they feel about it?

ghost ( 0/2 )

MUSE B met Mar before she came to Blackrock: maybe it was years ago, down south, while she was a walking carnage, or maybe MUSE B met the two of them, Mar and Dante, leaving them to reconcile the vastly happier past Mar with the current version.

bruiser ( Raine – 1/? )

Mar and MUSE B traded literal blows a couple years back, and the fist-fight ended with no certain victor and both parties bloodied and bruised. Is there a grudging respect – or is it just a grudge?

reflection ( Lola – 1/2 )

Mar isn’t.. sweet the way some folks are, but there’s a kindness there, one that’s easy to forget what with her reputation and penchant for self-isolation. She helped MUSE B out, and asked nothing in return – maybe she let them sleep on the couch one night when things were rough, or maybe she offered company on an evening it was needed. Maybe it happened a while ago, and there’s a tentative friendship, or maybe it’s fresh!

ex-fwb ( 0/2? )

Mar arrived in 2011, self-destructive and reeling after her husband’s death. mistakes were made. good ones, but still mistakes. MUSE B and Mar had an unspoken thing for a while, before she broke it off. Are they still friends, or are things icy? How serious was it? How does MUSE B feel about the rumoured fling Mar has with the deputy?

[rumpledgoldenweaver]

A Bear In Need Of Rescue

Written for the January @a-monthly-rumbelling prompt “How on earth did you get up there?” It kind of got away from a bear in trouble but I hope you enjoy anyway! Read on my blog https://earlyrisingwriting.home.blog/2020/01/09/a-bear-in-need-of-rescue/ 

Rumple had never felt so relieved as when he pulled into the car park of the hotel, almost immediately finding a space. Switching off the engine he let out a small sigh. Gideon had fallen asleep at some point and Rumple was loath to wake him. Fishing his phone from the glove compartment, he sent Belle a text message saying they were finally here. He decided to wait for her reply instead of getting straight out of the car. He had a slight headache so a couple of minutes quiet wouldn’t hurt. Closing his eyes he gave a small thanks to the car park gods.

Maybe he could book a head massage.. maybe Belle would give him a…

Tyres squealed, an engine roared then a car screamed through the previously silent parking bays jolting both Rumple and Gideon awake.

“What the ever loving fu..”

“PAPA! You sweared! Mama won’t.. PAPA! Look!! it’s a police car!!!” Gideon bounced in his seat.

Sure enough an unmarked squad car hurtled after the first vehicle, disappearing towards the rear of the hotel.

“Your Mama takes us to all the best places Gideon.. come on m’boy, lets go find her before either of those lunatics come back”

“Gideon keep your voice down, the whole hotel doesn’t need to hear you” Belle admonished gently “I know it’s all very exciting but..”

“It was Mama it was! The police car went MEEEMAW MEEEMAW VRRROOOOOOM”

Rumple shook his head “There’s a children’s area in the grounds of the hotel, would you like to go play for a while son?”

“It’s nearly bath time” began Belle

“You really think he’s ready for a bath and bed? He’s bouncing off the walls, he napped on the way here. Let’s take him, it might tire him out”

“Can I take Bear please? Can I? Can I?”

“Okay okay” groaned Belle knowing she was already defeated “but don’t lose him”

Gideon’s over excitement at the police chase was swiftly replaced by over excitement at the play area

“IT’S A PIRATE SHIP!!! C’mon Bear we’re going to sail the seven seas and chase booty!”

Belle nearly choked “He’s going to what did he say?”

Rumple chuckled “Let’s find a bench and sit down, I’m far too old to chase after him. As long as we can see him he’ll be fine”

“Don’t need to see him, we’ll hear him”

Lucy was bored, she’d been at the play area for fifteen minutes with her doll Tinkerbell. There were other children there but they just wanted to play house. Lucy preferred adventure. She spotted a boy, slightly younger than her, chasing round, pretending to sword fight and clutching a teddy bear. Now he looked like fun.

“Hello. I’m Lucy. This is Tinkerbell, she can fly!”

Gideon stopped his sword fight “I’m Gideon. This is Bear.. he can fly too”

“Bears cannot fly”

“Yes they can. Watch!” Gideon threw Bear up into the air with all his might.

In the middle of the pirate ship was a tall mast. Near the top was a mock crows nest. It wasn’t big enough for a child, but it was big enough for a bear. Which was just as well because that’s where he landed with a soft thump.

Lucy looked in horror. Gideon stood with his mouth open “Oops”

“I can’t believe they got away” Weaver strode through the hotel reception. He needed fresh air.  

“They can’t have got far. They have the advantage of knowing the area, we don’t” reasoned Rogers “I’ve asked the local police to put out extra patrols and.. did you hear that? Sounds like a kid in trouble”

Weaver snorted “Kids are always in trouble, it’s what they do”

“Look - over there, in the play area. There’s nothing we can do about the case for the moment. Maybe if we help then the hotel might forgive us for tearing up the car park”

“Okay Batman let’s go save the day”

As is often the case with parents who’s children have got themselves into a scrape, Rumple and Belle were verging on the kind of full scale public row generally conducted through gritted teeth and harsh whispers

“I cannot climb up after him Belle, let me use mag..”

“NO. I’ll go up after him”

“Not in those heels you won’t”

“No shit Sherlock. I’ll take them off”

“And certainly not in that skirt”

“EXCUSE ME? What is wrong with my...”

“Hi” said a dark haired young man who had suddenly appeared by Belle’s side “I’m Detective Rogers and this is Detective Weaver” he indicated a surly looking older man who reminded Belle slightly of her husband “Can we help?”

“It’s our son – he’s stuck. He’s too scared to climb down”

Weaver followed her line of sight, Sure enough there was a young boy clinging on to the mast of the wooden ship “How on earth did you get up there?”

“Bear flew up here. I came to rescue him”

“Oh I see” Weaver nodded sagely “That was very brave, but now you need rescuing?”

“Yes please” whimpered the boy

“Well you’re in luck because Detective Rogers here is the best rescuer I know”

Rogers looked at Weaver “Me?”

“Yes you. Off you go”

“Right then mate, let’s get you back on dry land shall we?” Rogers smiled as he started to climb the small rungs that were set into the mast. He reached Gideon easily “Now then, where’s this errant bear? In here?” he reached into the wooden bucket and retrieved the teddy.

“Thank you” sniffed Gideon

“No problem. I’ll climb back down a little and you follow. You won’t fall, just keep going”

Slowly the two of them made their way toward the ground.

“What’s your name son?”

“Gideon”

“Nice to meet you, I’m..”

“Captain Hook!” exclaimed Gideon suddenly noticing his prosthetic “Mama! Papa! I’ve been rescued by Captain Hook!”

Weaver tried hard to contain his laughter however it exploded out of him in a coughing fit.

Belle and Rumple were mortified “I am so sorry” they both began at once.

Rogers waved it away “It’s fine honestly. If it makes the lad feel better I don’t mind at all”

Rumple handed over a business card “If there is ever anything I can help with, just call”

The two officers started to head off when Weaver’s phone rang.

“Yes” there was a pause then “When? Which direction? Okay” he snapped the device shut “They’re on the move Rogers, come on”

The Gold’s watched the men hurry off in pursuit of their quarry. Rumple presumed it must be the boy racers from the car park. Out of sheer nosiness he used his enhanced hearing to eavesdrop on their conversation. It seemed the reprobates in question were headed out of the city with the local police force giving chase. A germ of an idea took root in Rumple’s mind. Would it be so bad if he gave a helping hand?

“Are you listening to me” Belle’s voice brought him back to the present.

“Sorry.. I was just..”

“Thinking of using magic. I know that look Rumple. Why?”

“I want to help them” he’d learned the hard way about not telling his wife the truth “they got our son to safety”

“Okay.. but there’s no magic here so how can you do that?”

“I don’t need magic as such. Just the dagger” he tapped his jacket where the blade lay hidden “You take Gideon back to the room, he’s had enough excitement for one day. I promise to tell you everything when I’m done”

Belle wanted to argue, but she’d learned some hard lessons during their relationship as well so she simply nodded and did as he asked. It wouldn’t stop her from worrying though.

Rumple waited till she was out of sight then found a bench to sit on set far enough back into the gardens he wouldn’t be disturbed. He didn’t need long. He took the dagger from his jacket, closing his eyes, reaching into the very depths of his soul to give the darkness a prod.

“What can I do for you Dearie”

“Would you like a trip out?”

“Ooh lovely! Where are we going?”

“Not me. You”

“Put your foot down Heller! The cops are gaining on us”

“I’m going as fast as this heap will go. If you wanted faster you shouldda got a car with an actual engine in it instead of a hair dryer!”

“Just get us out of here and onto the main highway” Hades growled

“Hello Dearies!”

The two men shot round to see the weirdest looking man.. Was it a man? sitting on the back seat. He had wild hair, green skin and reptilian eyes.

“What the f… shit!” Heller swerved the car, across the road, to avoid rear ending the vehicle in front then back again to miss an oncoming truck. Horns blared and language flew from the other drivers in their wake.

“I don’t think much of your driving skills” the imp huffed. Waving a clawed hand he took control of the car bumping it up onto the pavement, driving straight into a large overgrown hedge. Heller and Hades made to get out but the Dark One was too quick, a snap of his fingers sent both of them to sleep. Finally he took a small pouch from his waistcoat pocket, emptying the contents – some of the more exotic mushrooms the Enchanted Forest had to offer – over the back seat then disappeared.

Weaver had just got back to his car when the phone rang again. He frowned as the officer related the details of the arrest to him.

“A what in the car? A green skinned imp… mushrooms? That explains a lot. We’re on our way. Thank you Officer Humbert”

“Say what now..?” laughed Rogers “Oh my..”

Weaver grinned “Come on Captain Hook, we’ll wrap this up and go raise a glass to our little green friend”

“Less of the little if you don’t mind Detective”

Weaver looked round in surprise “Did you hear that?”  

Worry started to gnaw it’s way from the pit of Belle’s stomach to the forefront of her mind. Almost an hour had passed since they’d left Rumple in the gardens to do who knew what using means she probably wouldn’t approve of. Gideon was sound asleep on the sofa bed, clutching Bear tightly.

Picking up her phone and putting it back down again did nothing to make it ring. Unable to settle she decided to take the towels left on the bed by housekeeping and stack them in the bathroom. In order of size. Anything to distract herself.

She had just finished reorganising the pile into a pyramid when she thought she heard something. There was a faint knocking sound coming from outside the room. She walked quickly to the door and put her ear to it

“Belle.. Belle it’s me. I can’t.. I can’t get in”

“Rumple! Hang on.. just hang on!”

She turned the lock, pulled open the door only to have her husband almost fall on top of her. He looked very pale.

“What on earth happened? Rumple? Rumple! Are you okay?”

She manoeuvred him to the bed, sitting him down before he fell again.

“So tired Belle, need to sleep..”

“I’ll get you a glass of water and then help you into..” A snore cut off the rest of the sentence. “Bed” she sighed.

At least he was there and in one piece she told herself. So much for this fun family weekend. She supposed she should get him undressed even if the sheer number of clothes he had on meant that would be no easy task. Certainly there were more agreeable circumstances to peel off the layers one by one.

Rumple wasn’t the largest of men but in such a deep sleep he was a dead weight. It took her almost twenty five minutes to complete the task. “Why” she muttered as she put his suit back in it’s bag “can you not wear jeans and a shirt? I bet it doesn’t take that detective’s wife half an hour to get his clothes off”

With her husband a little more comfy, Belle decided a glass of wine was in order. A glint of metal caught her eye, the dagger was lying on the bed next to it’s owner, almost winking at her. Before she could stop herself the blade was in her hands “Dark One I summon thee” she whispered.

Rumple turned on his side and snored even louder.

“Y’know Dearie” a familiar voice trilled behind her “of all the humans I’ve been attached to over the centuries, your husband is easily the most charming”

Belle couldn’t help but snigger “Will he be okay?”

A green skinned hand touched her shoulder “He’ll be fine. Promise”

“What did you two get up to?”

The Dark One giggled “Well Dearie, I got to drive a car, catch some rather pathetic miscreants and I may have left some of those mushrooms from the forest that you were told never to touch as a memento”

“Sounds like fun”

“Oh it was” he grinned “Now I must be going and you Dearie need to get some sleep” he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Belle felt the tingle of magic, she was now dressed in her nightie, all the lights except Gideon’s small bedside lamp had been turned off and the bed covers turned down. Rumple was underneath them. Belle couldn’t help but giggle when she realised his underwear was now on the floor. Snuggled up against his back Belle soon started to drift off.

“Love you”

“Love you too Mrs Gold”

[cielwritesshit]

We're the Kings of the Clouds - Chapter 1

Some days, Logan wondered how he ended up in situations that he disliked. And then he remembered that it was usually his parents fault. This last one was definitely theirs.

It was early May. Logan had picked up the phone, glaring as it had woken him up. He checked the time. 0525. Why was someone calling him at this ridiculous time in the morning? He’d been up until 3am the previous night, finishing up his final assessment for his master’s degree in astronomy, and he deserved to lie in until at least 9am.

He answered the phone.

Immediately, his mother’s voice filled his ear, causing him to wince as he sat up in his bed.

“Good morning mother. May I ask why you are calling this early on my first day off in about two months?” Logan reached for his glasses. The sharp voice of his mother filled his quiet room.

“Im calling to tell you that you are to return home after this year, it is time you learned how to be a proper gentleman. How else will you take over from your father when he retires? We will be expecting you home before August begins. Goodbye Logan.” A click signaled the end of the call. Logan didn’t even have chance to complain.

Sighing, Logan stretched, and got out of bed, since he wouldn’t be getting back to sleep anytime soon. He felt his bones click into place, and grabbed his dressing gown, before the cold drove him back into bed. Stumbling from exhaustion, Logan trudged into his kitchen. He only had a little apartment, so it wasn’t a particularly long walk, yet to him, it seemed to have doubled in length. Grabbing a bowl, and some milk from the fridge, Logan made himself some cereal. He started eating, pacing himself with the ticking of the clock on the wall.

Go home? Logan didn’t have much of a choice. If his parents wanted it,then he had to go home. But his heart said different things to his brain. His home was his little apartment, with its cramped rooms, fridge of food he’d bought, and nosy neighbours that truly meant well. Yes, it was small, and sure, it was half an hour away from his campus when he went on the bus, but he’d grown accustomed to life like this. He had complete control over how his day went, over what he ate, who he spoke to, when he slept. It kept him busy, and never got boring. If he went home, he’d be forced into a simple routine, never having to make choices. He hated that, but it seemed that he’d have no choice over this either.

Logan finished his breakfast and headed out, but not before deciding that if he had to stay with his parents, then he was going to make their lives utter hell to get back at them.

Which led to him arriving at 32 Greenview Place on July 31st. He’d given his keys back to his lovely landlady, with a promise that he’d try to visit her soon. He’d also sold most of his furniture, and eaten all of the crofters that was left in his kitchen, though that wasn’t a difficult task. He drove his car up onto the driveway of his parents house. Around him, the shrubbery was well kept, and topiary surrounded him, drawing the eye to the main attraction of the house. Even if he disliked the people who lived here, he had to admit that he loved what they’d done with the space in which they lived.

Logan slowed to a stop, right in front of the front steps. He turned of the engine, and with a last smile, opened his door, wiping his face of any emotion. Looking up, he saw his parents standing on the top step, looking like they’d just stepped out of a magazine. His father, Andrew Alfreds, was the head of a bank, and well-respected throughout the country. He looked very similar to his son, though everything about him seemed sharp, as if he was a rosebush. Instead of a dark button-up shirt, he wore a white one, with a two-piece suit over it. He even had a monocle, ever the classy gentleman he was. His wife, Maria, was more of the same. Her features were also sharp, with high cheekbones, and her hair pulled back into a bun, emphasising the wrinkles on her forehead.

Logan closed the door to his car, and dropped his keys into the hands of a servant who had been waiting for him to do so. Logan nodded at the man, before walking towards his parents. Andrew held his hand out, and firmly shook his hand. Logan was treated as though he was a guest, here to discuss a business deal, and was not treated as though he was a son. He got the same treatment from his mother. She didn’t even welcome him.

“Logan, Jamal will escort you to your room. I expect you to clean yourself up, then met us in the drawing room for tea. We will then discuss what will happen to you while you are here.” The butler of the household, Jamal, stepped forward, his dark eyes shining brightly. He had been working at the manor since Logan had started secondary education - high school - and was promoted to butler after Logan had been accepted into uni.

Logan followed Jamal through the mahogany front doors, and marveled at how little had changed since he had left. There were still portraits hung on the walls, and side tables still had ornate vases on them. The only thing Logan could tell had changed were the flowers, as they no longer contained cornflowers, irises, and gypsophila, but instead held dahlias and fire lilies. Jamal led him up the stairs, past paintings of families that once inhabited the manor. Logan looked, but couldn’t find his favourite. Perhaps his parents had changed some things after all.

After climbing three flights of stairs, Logan found himself outside his old bedroom. However, when he entered, he realised how much his parents had changed it. There was a queen-sized, four-poster bed sticking out into the middle of the room, with an ornate blanket on show. The windows that had once held curtains with cartoon images of space on them, now had blue velvet hanging in their place. Logan then looked up, finding that all of his glow-in-the-dark stars had been taken down. In the corner of the room was a wardrobe, and next to that was a sleek, black desk, with a simple desk lamp on it. A black chair sat under it. Logan looked down, seeing that the wooden floor had been covered with a pale gray rug, that stretched all the way under the bed. The once covered walls had been painted white, and the whole room looked very sophisticated. And as much as Logan appreciated the simplicity, it wasn’t his room. He turned back to Jamal.

“I’m aware that most of the character of your room has been removed sir. Your parents thought it was for the best. Don’t fret, us servants saved as much as we could,” Jamal started to grin. “It’ll be back to normal in no time!” Logan let out a small smile.

“Thank you Jamal. Thank you for saving it. I’m assuming that while I shower, you and some of the other students will bring up my suitcase, and everything that you managed to keep?” Logan adjusted his glasses and removed his tie. Jamal nodded.

“Excellent. Then I will go and get cleaned up.” Logan started to leave the room.

“Oh, Jamal?” Logan looked back at the man, who straightened himself to attention.

“You know that I've always hated Sir.”

“Yes bocchan.” Jamal was smiling, nostalgia lighting his eyes. Logan smiled again, before leaving the room to go and shower.

About an hour later, Logan made his way downstairs, and opened the door to another drawing room, this one set up for a tea party. However, the following conversation would be less like a party and more akin to a dictation. Logan refused to go down quietly though, and was ready to fight for some freedom. The next few hours were spent stripping Logan of any choice and forcing him to fit a schedule, that was meant to make him into the perfect gentleman. In reality, it just gave his parents complete control of him from the moment he woke up tto the moment he slept (though he was later advised (courtesy of Jamal) that he could always sneak out after curfew, and that the servants would help him with that).

The thing that Logan had to look forward to, were his piano lessons, that would happen twice a week at Madame Helen's. Each would be an hour, with half an hour to get him to and from the studio. A full hour and a half to himself. He couldn’t wait for them to start. He was to be taught by Gordon, who also taught a plethora of other instruments. Logan had been playing the piano for years, so even if he had to learn, it was something that he could enjoy.

So, as he stared at his ceiling that night, in his uncomfortable bed, he found it easier to fall asleep than he thought it would be, as he imagined all of the people he might meet at this Madame Helen’s place. At the very least, Jamal had faith in that studio.

Tag List :

@notafeeling

@nnnnikolai

@anuninspiredpoet

[waywardwboys]

A dozen roses - part four

Characters: AU!Dean Winchester, reader, OFC (original fictional characters)

Word Count: 2.6k+

Warnings: a small wound and mentions of blood (not that much actually), small fluff, small angst at the end. Family issues. 

Summary: Y/N’s has no idea who sent her flowers. Maybe it was Dean, maybe it wasn’t. Who knows. She decides to do something that she hasn’t done in a while but that might make her feel a little sad. She still has to, no matter how she is going to feel afterward. Meanwhile, Dean is so much closer than she thinks. 

A/N: okay this one is more ‘boring’ than the other ones, there’s more Y/N’s story than Dean x reader. Though there’s some cute Dean as well :) Unbeta’d. English is not my first language, so I apologize if you read any nonsense. Hope you like it! xx

Part one here, part two here, part three here.

A dozen roses masterlist.

Supernatural masterlist

Pics are not mine.

Feedback is always appreciated!

Y/N stared at the bouquet of roses, which was now in a vase, half full of water.

She had to kick Margaery and Ophelia out since they were willing to enter her house without permission, just to find out who had sent those damn flowers. When she finally closed her apartment door, leaving her nosy neighbors outside while they constantly rang the doorbell in order to get her attention, Y/N left the roses on the counter and sat down on one of the stools from the kitchen island.

She rubbed her eyes during a few seconds and stared at them. Then, she stood up, walked towards them and untied the knot of the bouquet. In doing so, her finger got pricked by a thorn. She sighed in pain, watching how a drop of blood fell down her index finger towards her nail. Y/N dropped the flowers and went to get a band-aid.

This was beyond her. She felt like she was just dreaming. That was it. Just a dream. This is not real, she constantly told to herself.

But seeing that falling drop of blood in her finger, she knew in some way that what was happening was totally real. As real as the wound in her finger was. Someone had sent her flowers, that was a fact. Someone had sent her flowers!

She ignored the slight pain she was feeling in her finger, covered now with the band-aid, and jumped down from the stool. She started to dance without any kind of control in the middle of the kitchen, jumping up and down with a smile on her face. She felt happy. After all, if there was someone in the world who had done that, it was because she was not completely alone. Here had to be somebody in her life who bothered to do something sweet for her, and just thinking about that made her feel wildly happy.

But the most important question was who had sent the flowers. Could it have been…? Dean?

No, no. No.  

She was not going to let herself drown in that thought. It was obvious that it hadn’t been Dean. She met him yesterday, for God’s sake.

Besides, she should be under no illusion. Because if she thought it had been Dean the one who had done something nice for her, but then he actually hadn’t, she’d probably collapse. She was not going to think about that, because she knew nothing good would come from it.

It hadn’t been Dean. It was impossible.

But who, then? Maybe any of her workmates? No. There was nobody who could have sent her flowers. She was not that loved. It was just nonsense.

What about her parents? Could they have sent them? She wasn’t completely sure about that, they were not the kind of parents who send flowers and gifts to their daughter. But, as Y/N had no one else to fit the profile, she decided to make a phone call. She wouldn’t answer about the roses, she would just wait for them to mention something about it. If the didn’t, then they were not the ones.

But not now. She wasn’t ready yet.

Y/N didn’t get along with her family, but still, she loved her parents with all her soul. Although their relationship was more complicated than imaginable.

She decided to put some music on since her apartment was silent now that Margaery and Ophelia had stopped ringing the doorbell, after waiting anxiously during minutes. She walked towards the music player in her living room and played a CD from The Rolling Stones.

She checked the time on her phone while Sympathy For The Devil was playing, with the phone call to her parents still on her mind.

Y/N’s father was the head of a very important company in London, England. At first, he was just an intern, but throughout the years he moved up until, after the old boss died, he was appointed the director of the business. He was very well liked in the company since he first started working. The only detail about her dad was that he wanted her daughter to be the future head of his Enterprise when she grew up.

Y/N didn’t like economics, maths, accounting and finance, nor business management. She didn’t like that, yet that was what she had majored in. Why? Because she desperately needed a job.

Her parents only paid is major in History, they were not going to pay any more. If she wanted to keep studying, it wouldn’t be thanks to their money. That’s why, while she studied History, she got a part-time job at a coffee shop where many college students went. There’s where she met a group of students who majored in accounting and finance, and they kept constantly talking about the big amount of jobs they’d get as accountants. They could even get to be big bosses, they said. Y/N didn’t want that at all, but the fact of knowing that if she studied accounting she would get a job so easily, made her want to do it.

So, when she finished studying History and searched for a job, she knew she had to study accounting so that she could find a job once and for all. Money wouldn’t be a big issue, because she had got enough during his years at the coffee shop.

The only problem was that, for her parents, she was working as a history teacher. They totally ignored she worked at a company, like her dad. But she never wanted to tell them. As they had always wanted her to work with his father, now that she worked at an american business, they would be disappointed. And disappointing her family had always been Y/N’s worst fear.

On the other hand, it never helped to have the feeling that, for her mom, everything Y/N did was never good enough. There was always something to perfect, something to improve. Anything was adjusted to her liking, so she had much more reasons not to tell her mom about her real job.

However, it wasn’t actually a big problem. They never visited her, neither she did. They just talked on the phone every few months.

Dean’s plaid flannel brought Y/N’ back to reality. It was again hanged on the hanger like last night, perfectly buttoned.

She walked towards it staring at the blue plaid. She took it and smelled it. It still had this male scent she liked so much. She resisted putting it on since Dean had only asked her to keep it, nothing more.

Y/N looked away and decided to do something productive before calling her parents, now that she had the afternoon off.

She cleaned, did the laundry and cooked dinner for one. It wasn’t how she had imagined her evening, but the nerves were killing her inside.

When she finished, still not wanting to call her family, she decided to go take out the garbage to clear her head. Maybe some fresh air would help.

Y/N opened her apartment door with the garbage bag on a hand and locked it when she came out in the hallway. Turning around, she realized that the apartment door across the hallway was wide opened. It was Mr. Stevenson’s. She heard his voice from the inside, he seemed to be talking to someone. It was strange, so she decided to take a look. Leaving the bag on the floor, she leaned out his neighbor’s door.

“Mr. Stevenson?” she said raising her voice so that he could hear her.

“Y/N? Is that you, dear?” his voice said approaching her. Mr. Stevenson showed up and smiled brightly. “Y/N, I’m so glad to see you. Look, I have something to tell you.”

Mr. Stevenson was really special. He was a widower, no kids, but one of the kindest neighbors Y/N had. He always gave her a good morning smile if they crossed over each other, or he would wink at her with a sweet look, and sometimes he knocked her door to bring her those chocolate chips cookies he made. He was almost like a dad to her.

But Y/N was about to hear an announcement that would change it all in such a very short time.

“Y/N, darling. I’m moving out.”

“What? You’re moving? But, why?” she said with a confused look.

“I got a job. But it’s in California” he clarified.

Mr. Stevenson was a painter. He loved art, it was his passion. Literature, music, and painting were his favorites. His dream had always been to get one of his paintings on an art gallery, but he had never achieved it. Until now, apparently.

“Really? Did they like your paintings?” he asked excitedly. He nodded euphorically. “Oh, I’m so happy about you, Mr. Stevenson. You’re going to succeed in California, I’m sure.”

“Oh, honey. You’re so lovely. I’ll miss you so much. Who am I going to make my chocolate cookies for now?”

“You can still send them to me, I’ll gladly accept them,” she said making him laugh. “By the way, what will happen to your apartment now?”

“I sold it to a boy. He needed a place to live desperately and I needed to sell it as soon as possible, so we both win” he said still laughing. “He seems a good guy, I think you’ll like him. He’s inside, taking a look” Mr. Stevenson pointed at his apartment and his eyebrows rose. “You could go and say hi.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mr. Stevenson. I was going to take out the garbage, I can’t leave the bag in the middle of the hallway” she chuckled. “Besides, I got like a thousand other things to do.”

“All right, darling. I’ll go say goodbye in two days.”

“Wait. Two days? That’s so soon!” the man nodded.

“You’ll have a new neighbor the same day I leave. Be nice to him” he said looking like a dad. “Make him that delicious cherry pie of yours, and protect him from the crazy ones, you know, Margaery and Ophelia. You know how they behave with the new neighbors.”

“I will, don’t worry” she smiled. “I have to go, Mr. Stevenson. Have a good night” she said stepping back to take the garbage bag again.

“Bye, dear. Take care” the man said while turning around to get back into his apartment.

Y/N smiled one more time and took the elevator to go down the street, leaving Mr. Stevenson smiling at his apartment door. When he got back in, closing the door behind him, he found his guest leaned on the wall, in a strategic place where no one could see him from the front door. His hand was on his mouth and his eyes widened as Mr. Stevenson walked towards him.

“Was that Y/N Y/L/N?” he asked.

“How do you know Y/N, kid?”

“Oh, my God.”

“What’s wrong, Dean? You okay?” Mr. Stevenson asked with a frowned look.

This guy was nice, kind, a good guy. But he was acting a bit strange. He ran his hands through his hair again and again, as if he was nervous. The poor man barely understood what was happening.

“Hey, kid, take it easy. What’s wrong?”

“Y/N lives in the apartment across the hallway,” he said then as if he couldn’t believe it yet. “Y/N lives three meters away from here.”

***

“Hello, dad.”

Y/N was sitting on the couch, lights on, covered in a warm blanket. It was late, she had had dinner, and she’d go to bed soon. Her dad had picked up the phone seconds ago, and Y/N was more and more nervous.

“Y/N, child. It’s so strange to hear from you. You haven’t called in months.”

“I miss you both,” she said.

“Yeah, sure. At least you could stop pretending like you care, couldn’t you?” her dad asked with a deep sigh. “How’s work?”

“I’m not pretending, dad. Work is fine, what about yours?” she asked pretending to be interested in the subject. If the man started talking about how good his business was, or how much the stocks in his company had increased, she’d just hang up the phone.

“As good as always. Smooth sailing. Do you want to talk to your mom? She’s cooking” he said,

“Yes, please. Thanks, dad.”

Y/N wanted to end the phone call so bad. The sooner, the better. Talking to her parents had always made her feel very nervous. She never knew what would they say, or how would they react to anything she said. Or how would they get disappointed this time.

“Y/N?”

“Hi, mom.”

“We miss you so much, darling. When will you come visit us?” her mom asked.

“I’ve got a lot of work, mom. Maybe someday” she said not looking forward to it.

“Well, alright. But you should visit us as soon as possible. Forgetting your parents is not okay, sweetie. You should talk to your boss and ask him to give you a little time off. Right?”

“No, mom. That’s not how it works.”

“Well, baby. Your father gave some days off for some of his best employees so that they could visit their families. I’ not saying your boss is lower than your dad, but maybe he should be more considerate with you.”

“But, mom…”

“Maybe he’s not the problem. Haven’t you told him that your parents live abroad? Haven’t you? How hasn’t it crossed your mind, Y/N? You have to tell him tomorrow when you first see him. Stop being shy, kid. Life is not going to treat you different just because you’re shy. You need to grow up.”

Y/N strongly shut her eyes, trying to hold every tear she wanted to shed. She hated that. She hated it when her mom treated her like that. She tried not to yell at her with all her strength. She tried not to explain to her how much she hated her right now.

Stop being shy, kid.

Stop being shy? Do you really think I want to be like that, mom? Screw you.

Why couldn’t she just be happy for her? Wasn’t she going to like a thing Y/N did? Would she have to live eternally with that behavior coming from her mom? It was insane.

“I’ve got a lot of tests to correct, mom. Bye” she said getting off the phone without even waiting for her to answer.

Y/N covered her face with her hands, trying not to cry again. She lied down on the couch and hugged the blanket which was covering her body, breathing in and breathing out.

She had never dared talk to her mom like that, she had never left her in the middle of a word. And, right now, her mom would think her behavior was not appropriate for a girl her age.

Y/N’s teary eyes rested on Dean’s flannel again.

She had promised to herself not to put it on again, not even touch it. She’ll sure end up getting it dirty or something. And when Dean knew, she’ll get mad at her. For sure. She told herself that she had to wash it to give it back the next time she saw him. But right now, she really didn’t care about that.

Y/N got up and walked towards it, then she took it and smelled it. In doing so, not knowing why, she felt a little better. Going back to the couch, she hugged it as she had done with the blanket.

And so, one more night, her tiredness beat the sadness she was feeling inside. Y/N fell fast asleep seconds later, still holding Dean’s blue flannel, the guy on her mind.

What Y/N didn’t know yet was how much things were going to change in just a few days.

@clarinette07

Dean tags: @all-will-be-well-love