#and my team lead even with her rough edges truly is also really nice and easy to talk to AND competant

[blackholelynn]

Made the decision that after I get off work this morning, I'm applying for another job that's Mon-Fri and pays more. I figure I can apply as practice with my resume and interviewing, and if they offer it to me I can cross that bridge when I get to it

Tired of feeling stuck in my circumstances and staying out of some sort of obligation...like I'm still on the fence just because I don't know if a job change would benefit me right now, but I know that I'm starting to feel like there's no way out of this job which just isn't true. Maybe just the simple act of starting a job search even if I decide in the end it's not for me will help me feel better in the position I'm in.

But I'm telling y'all if I get an offer of better wages...might say fuck it we ball and take that expeditiously because like...gurl 👀👀 I love being paid a livable amount

[yourmidnightlover]

Dreams of Iris - Chapter 1

chapter 1 - sealed with a kiss

series masterlist

spencer reid x fem!reader

series overview: when introduced by penelope, reader and spencer take on a sexual bdsm relationship. secrets are discovered as time goes by. what happens when they both try to discover who the other is within themselves?

series warnings: bdsm themes, smut (rough sex, penetrative sex, spitting, choking, cum play, fingering, oral (male and female receiving), bondage, overstimulation, edging, grinding, thigh riding, handjob, aftercare), talk about/illuding to previous abusive relationship, angst, crying. this series is 18+

chapter summary: when spencer and reader are at penelope’s birthday party, their paths cross, and they’re able to get to know each other.

chapter warnings: mostly fluff, mild sexual innuendoes

A/N: hi!! i’ve been pretty mia the past few days, i know. i’m sorry for the constant breaks i’ve been having. my mental and physical health has been slowly declining over the past month but we’re finally getting back uphill! i’ve been thinking about making this series for a while now, but never truly started it. i hope you enjoy this and the future chapters!

“i’m so sorry i’m late, pen,” you rushed out with a smile. “after i played with him, my dog wouldn’t come back inside.”

“oh, gosh it’s alright!” she assured you with a wave as if she were actively brushing it away. “anything for charlie.”

“he’s a handful, alright,” you laughed once more as you entered her apartment.

the place was decked out with color, and you expected nothing less from the dazzling woman. there were neon balloons, a few streamers, and you could see the cake she placed on the counter.

“so where’s the fiancé?” you gently nudged her shoulder.

“he’s somewhere in the kitchen making small talk,” she rolled her eyes. “even though i told him to refill the punch bowl!” she directed her gaze to where luke was talking to emily in the kitchen.

“poor guy,” you winced as he looked towards penelope, surely remembering what she had asked of him before he jumped into action and opened the fridge door.

“sorry, princess,” he chuckled as he walked towards penelope after refilling the bowl, placing a chaste peck on her cheek.

“what happened to queen, huh?” she chuckled while trying to keep a straight face on, pretending to scold the man.

“oh, you’re right,” he sighed. “you’ll always be my queen - mainly of ice, but i digress,” he laughed before turning his attention towards you. “hey, y/n. it’s so good to see you again,” he reached for a hug which you gladly embraced.

“you too, man,” you smiled before releasing him from your grasp. “how’s the almost-married life treating you?”

“it’s going amazing with this one,” the couple looked at each other with the epitome of heart eyes.

“he’s so cheesy, i know,” penny grinned with a fake scoff thrown his way.

you could only hope to find a love so enchanting one day. a love that stole your heart and mind all the while allowing you to grow as your own person with them. a love that would emphasize all the best qualities you had and helped you find your best self.

“it’s mostly just the team here, so if you’d like i could introduce you to the ones you don’t already know?”

“that’d be great, actually!” you nodded as she looped your arm into hers, beginning to lead you around the place.

“so you’ve met emily and jj, right?”

“yea, at karaoke night,” you clarified as you waved at the two of them in the kitchen where luke was once talking. “and i met rossi at one of his book signings.”

“right! i forgot you read those books,” she bit her lower lip. “tara? matt?”

“tara i also met at karaoke night, she can get pretty wild. i’m pretty sure matt was with his family that time, though,” you informed her as she approached matt and his wife, the two being very attractive.

“matt, kristy, this is y/n y/l/n, one of my best friends,” she kindly introduced you, placing a hand on your back as you smiled at the couple.

“hi, y/n,” matt extended his hand to shake. “it’s so nice to finally meet you.”

“you as well,” you replied. “i’ve heard only great things about pen’s team.”

“this one included?” kristy joked as she nudged her husband. “i’m kidding, he’s truly great. it’s so nice to meet you,” she shook your hand as well.

“alright, we have one more stop to make,” penny whispered in your ear before taking your arm in hers once more and guiding you to where spencer, as she’s shown you in pictures, was sitting on the couch.

he’s much more beautiful in person. the photos didn’t seem to do him justice, especially that jawline of his.

“spencer, this is y/n y/l/n,” he looked up from his book to greet you, his eyes going wide before he cleared his throat.

“um… hi, y/n,” he smiled. “i’m doctor rei-spencer reid, but you can call me spencer or reid or whatever you’d prefer, really,” he stumbled out.

“hi, spencer,” you nodded, extending your hand to shake. “you can call me y/n,” you joked, a soft laugh leaving the both of you as your eye contact continued.

“okay, so i believe you’ve now met the full team!” penny interrupted, giving you a pat on the back before having you sit beside spencer.

“so…” you trailed on after pen walked away. “i’m assuming it’s phd and not md.”

“oh, yes,” he laughed as he closed the book, home turning his body to face you. “i have three phd’s.”

“pen did say you were the genius of the team,” you nudged his shoulder gently.

“i uhm-garcia tends to brag a bit on her friends,” he humbly explained, trying to bite back the persistent grin.

“oh come on,” you egged him on. “it’s alright to admit when you’re above average. i mean, 3 phds? she told me how you can read like a billion words a minute and have an eidetic memory.”

“i-i mean… in a way that’s all true,” he blushed. “i can only read 20,000 words a minute.”

“you say that as if it’s still not incredibly impressive, doctor,” you compliment him, chuckling as you place your hands in your lap and begin to twiddle them.

“thank you, y/n,” he placed his hand atop your fidgeting ones, forcing your attention into himself. “so,” he cleared his throat, “penelope says that you own a bookstore?”

“i do,” you nodded. “it’s a bit quaint and homely, which is how i wanted it. i like the comfortability that comes with the place. people have told me the ambiance is soothing.”

“seems pretty accomplished,” he added. “i suppose i’ll have to stop by sometime, check it out.”

“i suppose you will,” you smiled.

there was just something that drew you to him. perhaps it was his smile, or his curly hair. or maybe it was the way he was so welcoming and comforting. the energy he gave off while simply sitting on a couch was able to calm your nerves.

it was gentle, warm, and tender. you could tell he’d been through a lot - and not just because pen had told you he’d been through a lot. the way he presented himself made it seem as though he took every day as a blessing. he made sure to make the most of every day he was given and to take chances.

and maybe he’d take a chance with you.

he, in fact, did stop by your bookstore the next day. you saw him enter on the cameras you had set up, and it was quite odd knowing he wasn’t aware of your presence.

he began by browsing the nonfiction section, eyeing some old historical books before moving to the ‘owner recommendation’ section. he pulled a couple of books from the shelf, smiling as he admired the cover. it was clear he recognized each one he pulled, as if he was the one who made the shelf in the first place.

eventually, he made his way to the front desk. he looked a bit… disappointed when he saw that you weren’t the one at the front desk. you chuckled to yourself before opening the door from your office, making your way to greet spencer yourself.

“hey, stranger,” you tapped his shoulder, hiding your hands behind your back immediately after with a sly grin.

“y/n! hi,” he smiled, the disappointment no longer comprehensible on his face as he embraced you in a hug. “i was hoping i’d run into you.”

“were you, now?” you pulled back from his arms and bit your lower lip.

“um-yea-yes. i was,” he nodded, sticking firm with his answer. “i wanted to get to know you more? i really enjoyed talking to you the other day and thought that maybe we could finish our conversation?” he raised his eyebrows, waiting for the other ball to drop.

“i would like that,” you nodded before glancing at your employee who gave you raised brows himself, two thumbs up displayed as he mouthed ‘he’s hot’ behind his back. you stifled a laugh and rolled your eyes before adding, “would you want to grab a cup of coffee? i actually have a room in the back that has all the fixin’s.”

“i think i would like that very much,” he agreed before you grabbed his hand, leading him to your office.

“have a seat,” you motioned to the couch as you made your way to the coffee station. “how do you take it?”

he bit his lip at the innuendo before answering , “sweet.”

“seems fitting,” you sighed as you placed a pod in the keurig.

you placed a couple pumps of vanilla syrup in both of the cups along with two scoops of sugar in one, only one in the other. you took one mug and put it under the stream, letting the hot liquid flow into the cup before stirring it and handing the mug to spencer, doing the same thing for your own.

“thank you,” he muttered before taking a cautious sip of the coffee. “you didn’t mention how successful your bookstore is.”

you shrugged, “i didn’t think that was really important. i mean, what really deems something as successful?”

“that’s a good way of looking at it,” he added as you took a seat beside him on the couch. “did i interrupt something when i came?” he furrowed his brows.

“no, no need to worry,” you placed a calming hand on his forearm. “nothing that i can’t do later. it’s just bills and everything.”

“right,” he smiled. “have you always wanted to open a bookstore?”

“well, i always wanted to be self employed so i guess? i just wanted to make sure i was secure since i was a little girl,” you revealed. “my dad was always out of work and my mom had to stay home to take care of us. stability was something our lives always lacked, so i knew it was a main priority for me when i would grow up.”

you didn’t expect to reveal so much of your past so soon. a part of you was ashamed of it and tried your best to keep it hidden. but you could tell that spencer would never judge you for your past like other people have.

“and you accomplished that,” the accolade made you blush, or maybe it was the way his free hand made its way to your thigh.

“so,” you sighed. “did you always want to join the bau?”

“no, not really,” he chuckled, his thumb beginning to rub circles on your skin. “when i was little i wanted to be a cowboy, but before that a magician.”

“a magician?” you giggled at the thought.

spencer in a black cape, you at his side in a sparkly purple leotard, clinging to his arm with a wide smile.

“yea! i know a bit of sleight of hand,” he added.

“i wanna see!” your eyes lit up, all wonder entering them in the most innocent, beautiful way spencer had ever seen.

“alright,” he sighed as he looked around the room. “see my hands?” you nodded eagerly. “completely empty, right?” you nodded once more as you bit your lip. “so… how did i do…” you looked at him quizzically for a brief moment, “this?!” he reached behind you and picked out a single red rose from your hair.

you reached your hand out as he presented the rose to you, placing it in your hands. you looked at the flower with admiration, as if he had just handed you the world. he hugged your hands with his own, bringing them to his lips to place the softest kiss to them. his lips felt like clouds on your skin, and you could only imagine what they would feel like elsewhere, traveling down your body and exploring your own mouth.

“that was so cool!” you decided to say, rather than displaying your own internal monologue so soon.

“thank you, thank you,” he blushed as he waved to a faux crowd. “i’ll be here as long as the owner wants me to be.”

forever, you thought.

“can you teach me?!” you asked, now sitting on your feet and nearly launching yourself on top of the poor man.

“a magician never reveals his secrets,” he rose his hands in defense.

“i want to know all of your secrets,” you said in a low, innocent voice.

“all in due time, angel,” he compromised. “all in due time.”

you shivered at the nickname, partially wondering where he had gotten it from all the while hoping he’d call you it again.

“promise?” you were now a mere inches away from the man, your thighs touching as his hand wrapped around one of them.

“promise,” he whispered as you closed the gap, he pressed his lips to yours softly, not wanting to go too far so soon.

the kiss was a seal to the promise he had made. one day, he’d let his guard down for you. one day, he’d let you knock his walls down. one day, he’d be rescued by his princess from the tall tower he had built to protect himself. one day, he would let you see how he was both the victim, and the monster.

[hypermanga]

Choices, choices (Eric x reader)

Requested by: @rachelcarroll1819​

Request: Hi can you do a imagine where the reader is the daughter of Jeanine Matthews and she is divergent and bff with four and in a relationship with Eric please and thank you.

Word Count: 1628

Warnings: Cuss words and perhaps Eric being a little OOC? ~

~~~~~~

Your mother's face was in every Chicago's screen, her scrutinizing gaze that you had gotten to know so well reached to any corner of the city, always looking out for them.

Divergents. 

To her, a threat to the faction system. To you, someone beyond who could guide humanity to a better tomorrow, one where you were not defined by your aptitudes, but the actions of your everyday life. Like it had just been before the war.

It was weird for you to disagree with your mother, but ever since the aptitude test you started to percept the world with another lense, a divergent's one; You had become what your mother despised the most, and you knew about her plans, so you decided to make the most rational decision: transfer to Dauntless. There you could prepare for whatever your mother had prepared for your kind and all the "collateral victims", as she put it. 

For what you didn't prepare was meeting who could possibly be the love of your life: he was caring and well-read in private, but displayed a brash, cold and sometimes sadistic behaviour towards Initiates. You had met him after entering Dauntless, being Max who had greeted you at the roof.

Four, your best friend since two or three when you made the bold choice of sassying Eric after he had told you for an hour long that you were not going to pass the cut "Got some fire in you" The former Abnegation boy had said, patting your back before letting Eric do whatever he was about to do. After all, he was a leader and Four was a subordinate.

As for Eric, you still weren't able to pinpoint the exact moment you fell for him: perhaps it was the time he had gone out of his way to help you improve your position to perfect your punches, or perhaps one night where he caught you doing a stroll in the night and joined you, having a long conversation,...There were so many occasions that had made you fall a little bit more for him, but you considered it more of a crush than anything else. 

As soon as Initiation had finished and you were asked to become a trainer alongside Four you couldn't be happier, but Four outdid himself telling you how he had heard Eric talking to Max about how he felt about you "Today's not April Fools I recall" "That's because it is not. Be careful, he can be dangerous" " I know how to take care of myself. Remember, I was once an Erudite like him, not some lovesick dove" 

But you fell. And hard.

Sadly all hell broke loose, as the alliance between Dauntless and Erudite stepped into the light. Tobias and you decided to escape Dauntless alongside Tris Prior, his girlfriend and Initiation acquaintance for you.  You could still remember the train that had brought you to one place you never expected to be living in. Amity: all that peace serum and smiling all day didn't sit right to you, it felt as if they wanted to evade everything bad thing that was going on around them as an excuse to not intervene. 

Johanna had been really kind (ironically) letting you stay, you would give her that, but working in the fields was not made for you. Nor cooking. Nor being happy all the damn time, which seemed to be the base point of your relationship with Tris. She seemed like a nice girl and really in love with Tobias, so you approved of their relationship. Now, for the other two companions, Peter and Caleb, you were skeptical about the first after he had gotten into a fight during lunchtime with Tris. 

It had been another tranquil morning when Dauntless trucks pulled up the path that lead to Amity, Eric leading them and ready to hunt Divergents for Jeanine. Ever since you'd escaped he had delved into his work, leaving any kind of feelings he had harboured for you during Initiation aside: he had taken interest in you at first because of your sassiness towards him as well as your closeness with Four: he had spent so many nights thinking about your determination to pass Initiation, how you laughed at the things Four said...It made him sick to say the least. But then he'd gotten the chance to become closer to you, and even though he had tried to fool himself that he was doing that to piss off Four, any fool could see he had also fallen just as hard as her.

'Falling for the boss's daughter, great fucking job Eric' He had mutered to himself in between punches 'And someone who has taken the oposite side in this conflict, you just won grand prize Eric' Punch 'She chose Four over you' Punch 'She might now see you as a soulless monster' One last punch before he broke the bag, sand spilling everywhere, making him huff in disdain.

Those same thoughts threatened to cloud his vision now, so he pushed them aside to concentrate on his task: hunting those damned Divergents. His team had gathered everyone in the dining room before he and Max decided to check for anyone hidden,starting with the stables and Johanna's office upstairs.

Just like you, he had a special disdain for Amity: problems had to be tackled,not ignored. Zooming out as Johanna greated them, he just checked her with his device to list her off before moving on to the stables.

As soon as you saw those trucks, Tris, Tobias, Caleb and you made a run for it, the three hiding in Johanna's office and you in the stables "I'll catch up with you!" You said to them, ushering them away. You blended with the shadows as best you could, for you knew if someone checked your divergence percentatge you were done.

It seemed like time was going too slow, before a figure stepped inside the stables. Eric. 'Play hide and seek with a Dauntless leader they said. It will be fun they said' you thought to yourself. Even now as your enemy, you still found him just as handsome as the first day you'd seen him.

You felt your heart stop as he walked up and down the stables, stopping just to pet some horses, which in all honesty you found adorable, before his eyes fixated in your hiding spot "I'm surprised you didn't run with the others" He smirked, grasping your arm "I'm Dauntless, I don't run from things. But I'm damn sure that I will not stay while you and my mother kill Divergents for...What purpose exactly? A system! A fucking system! You're killing innocent people who cannot be just one thing, is that a crime Eric?" He looked at you coldly, unaffected "You are a Dauntless, and an Erudite as well as I was! I'm pretty sure you can understand there's a lack of logic! What has she promised you: Fame? Honor? A high position? Nothing but empty promises bathed in blood Eric!"

As you freed from his grasp, which was lacking force, you balled your fists "Please Eric. I know you can understand...Please, don't do this" Your pleas fell short as Eric brought out the machine that analyzed your divergence percentage. You looked at him defiantly "Go on, Eric" The venom-coated way that his name left your lips made him almost flinch, but what broke his façade was the 'Divergent, 60%' that left his device.

Chuckling lowly "Checkmate" You held your arms in surrender, smiling "Get it over with. I don't want to live in a dictatorship, worse my mum's" You grabbed Eric's gun giving it to him and, slowly and steady, brought it to your heart.

He felt numb, in a crossroad: he had a mission, but there you were in your Amity's clothes as beautiful as ever, looking at him with a dim hope in your more lifeless eyes as the seconds passed.

Dropping his device, he walked past you, punching a wall "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" You knew he had quite the temper, but you knew that in this particular occasion he was not just boosting out, but battling his own demons. He kept punching the wood, blood starting to drool from his fists "Eric stop!Look at me!" He slumped on his knees in defeat"First my family, then Initiation, now this" He sniffed "Why can't anything go the way I want?" Grabbing his face in between your hands, you also dropped to your knees "Because we can't control everything, I wish I could myself..." You shrugged sadly "But our choices and attitudes can change our perspective of things, and even their consequences" "You always know what to say, now do you?" He chuckled "Well, this has brought your attention. Now you decide if it is for better or for worse" You smiled and, as he looked into your eyes, saw his decision made up "I will not give up someone who truly believes that something good can come out of me"

Now it was his turn to grab your face, approaching it to his as your lips connected in a soft kiss. It was not the kind of kiss that you would expect from Eric, all rough edges, but the from the true Eric, that boy who has felt rejected all his life and has hid all his fears behind a tough demeanor.

As you parted Eric stood up, offering you his hand which you accepted gladly "Now where to (Y/N)?"

"To the battlefield"

~~~~~~~

@imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl @beltz2016 @readsalot73 @kenzieam @captstefanbrandt @sserpente @book-boys-are-my-guilty-pleasure

MASTERLIST

REQUESTS ARE OPEN!

[vln-vibes]

Unwanted, Unreliable, Unstoppable

Yeah so this thing is crazy long so I’m dividing it into three parts. Anyways this is very self indulgent but I hope you like the content.

Summary: They were tired, they were so so tired. This fight has been going on long enough, this war was getting harder and harder to fight as the years went on but no one ever helped; Not the citizens of Paris, not the French government and certainly not the Justice League. But what is they received help from a man that was practically a myth himself; the Batman.  Is this exactly what the Miraculous Team needs or will this lead to their falling from grace?

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“I’m so tired of this!” Ladybug scratched at her head feverishly. Currently she was standing at the second most top of the Eiffel Tower with her team: Chat Noir, Ryuuko and Viperion.

“I know m’lady” Chat sighed, letting his cheerful mask take a break as he stood next to her, leaning into the railings.

“Those— Those assholes that call themselves the Justice League just keep ignoring us; it's like they just don’t give a shit about us” Viperion rolled his eyes. They had tried, time and time again, to get help from older, more experienced heroes with their situation in Paris; they were fucking teenagers thrust into an adult’s war. One they didn’t even care for anymore.

“They don’t care for Paris… Why should we?” Ryuuko spoke up, cold fury clear in her eyes. “If they cannot find the need to handle the Paris situation themselves then why must we be the ones to? No one even appreciates out efforts, its like they just want us to have everything handled”

It was true.

At first the Parisians praised the Dynamic Duo, Ladybug and Chat Noir, for stepping up and saving the city from the terrifying Akumas they had no way of handling. They even got the heroes to help out with things not in their jurisdiction; suddenly any crime, as minor or major as it could get, required their attention, any fire could not be handled by the fire department alone, schools needed the heroes to make guest appearances, they were wanted in television interviews, everyone needed to know everything about them. It was fine, for a while, they didn’t mind helping out.

Then Heroes’ Day happened.

Suddenly they were pathetic.

If they were supposed to be so strong then how come other heroes had to come to help? It had never occurred to them that they were chosen by Ladybug and Chat Noir, all they knew was that the duo was not as strong as they once believed.

After all it was just one criminal,

How hard could it be?

Sometimes, Ladybug wishes, she had just let Alya keep the stupid earrings. She was sure the girl would have taken them immediately at the time but, given her brashness and temperamental nature, she would have already lost to Hawkmoth.

Plus she didn’t blame the small kwami or even Master Fu all that much: She resented the man but still respected him very much and knew he went through the same thing as she did at an even younger age with absolutely no way out. She was aware that if she truly wanted to all she could do was just give the earrings to someone else or even hand them over. But Ladybug was stubborn and the earrings were her’s now, just like the ring was Chat’s, the choker was Ryuuko’s and the bangle was Viperion’s.

That didn’t mean this battle was theirs to fight.

“... Why don’t we leave?” Viperion asked, disturbing their silence. The trio looked at him curiously, as though he broke an unspoken rule.

“Why would we?” Ladybug responded, knowing fully well that Viperion didn’t tend to speak up unless he was certain of his words.

“Because they’re running us dry, this city is killing us” Viperion raised his voice, aware that they could already, “Adrien and Kagami are living shitty home lives with abusive assholes that want to call themselves parents. Mari, you’re being burdened with too much responsibility by that bitch Bustier and that class full of sheep! I hate seeing you all kill yourselves for people that will never appreciate it because they think they’re above it!”

At the end of his rant Viperion’s eyes were nearly glowing, his breathing a bit more rough than normal, looking away from his teammates knowing he stepped too far. “Sorry, but I don’t want my friends to die on me when I can do something to stop it”

Ryuuko, Chat Noir and Ladybug understood where he was coming from but it was like a slap on the face, a reminder of what civilian life was like for them. Ryuuko could feel the sting coming from her leg, where mother had hit with her shinai after failing to be in proper form. Chat Noir still felt the ache of having to do photoshoots all day and then staying up at night to have to do his make-up work; not that his father cared with his disregard of child labor laws. Ladybug still had some redness from bruises Alya had caused by tripping her on her way to class.

“... Okay so these are the sad gang hours” the group turned back seeing Roter Fochs land, Roi Singe and Pegasus landing behind them. The Parisians were really only aware of ‘The Core Four’ as they’d rather have some aces up their sleeves; not that the three were ready to confront the Parisian backlash just yet. They didn’t want to deal with anymore bullshit than they had to in their civilian lives.

“Is everything alright? Or is it just Life™?” Roi Singe asked, leaning onto his bo-staff next to Viperion.

“It takes 60 euroes to go to therapy but no money to say it just be like that sometimes” Roter Fochs shrugged, much to the dismay of Viperion, Roi Singe and Pegasus.

“Can you please stop joking about your mental health” Pegasus found himself groaning. A small hovering screen appeared next to him, a cowboy hat firmly attached to the top with an antenna sticking out.

“Yes studies show that LGBT youth have a higher percentage to suffer from depression, some even to the point that they𑁋”

“Thanks for the concern CowBot but, really, I’m fine; let me have my fun” Roter softly tapped the little robot. It was nice having people, well sentient beings, still concerned with his well being.

Suddenly the group tensed, their artificial ears and enhanced senses picking up a light clink, the sound of something quickly winding up followed. Two male figures landed in front of them, quickly surrounded by the Parisians. The taller one of the two quipped:

“Well aren’t you a merry bunch”

“Who are you and why are you here?” Chat Noir kept an icy cold edge to his voice, emulating how his father would talk to employees that weren’t Natalie.

“They’re not Akumas, no magic radiating off of them” Ladybug analyzed, looking closely at the duo but she couldn’t recognize them at all. The male that had spoken had a lean and relatively tall body, he couldn’t be more than four years older than her team, so around his late teens early twenties. He had long raven hair, his bangs framing his face perfectly, even in the moonlight she could tell he had a pale complexion though the black domino mask he sported helped hide most of it and his eyes. His uniform wasn’t one she recognized from any superhero from the League; black kevlar, if she had to guess, made up nearly the entirety of his suit, from his boots, pants and even gauntlets, heck she wouldn’t be surprised if his cape was bulletproof. One of the only things to bring color was his crimson chest piece, with two belts across it holding up a golden bird symbol, the same one on his canary utility belt.

“Tt, we just came here to talk” the smaller male scoffed, his posture not looking any more tense or relaxed, just attentive. His build was also lean like his taller partner though she could tell his body would be able to build more muscles with his broader shoulders. She assumed they were around the same age, his jawline defined but not to the same extent an adult’s would be. His hair seemed almost darker than that of his partner’s and was slicked back though maintaining most of its volume, a naturally tan skin was found beneath a green domino mask, much like his companion’s. His uniform was definitely more colorful, almost as if he was meant to garner attention(and boy wasn’t that concerning); black seemed to be the main color in his suit with the outer cape, pants and sleeves being that color, ruby red tunic that went beyond his belt with dandelion accents on its edges and a golden R over his heart, pine boots and gauntlets matching the shade of his mask with dandelion yellow covering the inside of his cape and hood as well as his own utility belt.

She had no clue who they were.

“And why should we trust you?”

“Because we don’t like the Justice League any more than you do”

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One Week Ago

“Hey B, we found something interesting while reading the League’s data” Barbara Gordon’s voice echoed in the BatCave. Currently she and Tim were doing the weekly check-in on the League, something those heroes never seemed to notice. Not that they were surprised.

“What did you find?” Bruce asked, telling Duke and Damian to take a break from combat training while he did.

“There’s an alarming amount of distress calls from France, specifically Paris, that the League has been either ignoring or not receiving” Tim showed him the graph of all the history, going back at least three years closer. It was small at first, once every two months at the beginning, once a month when the second year began, every two weeks bordering on weekly near the end of it, by the start of the third it was daily until some time three months ago they just stopped.

Well wasn’t that cause for concern?

“Can we get any audio of the calls?” Bruce’s detective side coming up as Barbara was able to bring up a few that hadn’t been automatically deleted by the Justice League’s system. The first one was the very first from three years ago, a video call.

“Uh hello!” the girl on the video said awkwardly, clearly nervous but determined to get her message out, “My name is Ladybug”

Her costume looked like it was simply made by spandex, a rather plain design of red with black spots around, a domino mask with open lenses was the only thing really concealing her identity.

“Paris has a supervillain, his name is Hawkmoth and he feeds off of negative emotions. His power can turn anyone into his enslaved champion and we- my partner and I are the only ones really fighting this. I- I know you’re all really busy saving the world and all that but- but we’re just kids! We have no experience and well, we were hoping you can send someone to help? We’ve only confronted him three times now but well, we were just pushed into this”

Bruce could feel his blood growing cold, she couldn’t have been older than thirteen when this was recorded. He knew no Leaguers went on missions to Paris for the past five years… He told them to play the next video, from two years ago.

“Hello Justice League” Ladybug still wore her simple spandex though now standing tall next to a boy with a black cat leather outfit. Behind them was a girl with a bee themed outfit, a girl with a fox themed outfit and a boy with a turtle theme.

“We just came out of this Heroes Day disaster”

“No thanks to their help” the bee girl snapped before looking away.

“Look, Hawkmoth is getting more and more dangerous. He was able to transform half of Paris into his minions, they took over Paris and nearly won”

“What is it going to take you for you guys to finally help?” the cat boy growled much to the surprise of the others.

“Chat Noir!”

“Oh please we can totally handle Hawkmoth without them; you two should be enough already. With us three helping you, defeating him should be easy, power of teamwork and all that” the fox girl waved off, much to the surprise of the turtle.

“Rena did you seriously not remember what just happened. We were compromised, we nearly let Paris fall. We’re not trained for this, not even LB and Chat, and they’ve been doing this for the past year”

“Whatever”

“What was the last transmission?” Bruce found himself asking as the cave suddenly grew silent, all eyes on the monitor as their last transmission played.

“Why are we even bothering with this?” a new male voice asked, the video was shaky before finally pointing at the Parisian streets. If you could even call what was essentially a river of water, reaching to the top of most rooftops streets anymore. Items were floating about, bodies littered around them.

“They’ll never listen, they never did” another female voice agreed, they assumed it was the girl at the corner of the screen, looking down on the streets in what could be described as pity.

“I know” Ladybug’s voice sighed from behind the camera. “But they should at least see the consequences of their actions”

“If they even bother watching these, I wouldn’t be surprised if they just delete these as soon as we send them” Chat Noir entered the screen, eyes cold and calculating.

“Paris should be thankful that Lucky Charm is able to bring them back” the male with the snake themed outfit shook his head. “This is probably the 1,000 time most of Paris died with an akuma, second with Syren”

“Super lucky” the dragon female rolled her eyes “It’s not even worth trying to save citizens since all they do is cretique us”

“And the officers; Apparently we should be able to deal with city-destroying being and protect the people at the same time while officers just stand behind the lines waiting for us to do both” Chat Noir hissed

“What's done is done. This will be our last call for the Justice League; I hope you’re all happy, knowing that you’ve forced children to grow up and fight in a man’s war. Bug Out”

“There are no records of these videos even being played, or even of these events happening as far as Parisian government records say. But there’s clearly a lot of cover up going on, most of Paris’ emergency broadcasting doesn’t make it out of its borders, heavy encouragement of tourism even though there have been complaints by the people about… akumas?” Tim reported as soon as the video finished playing.

“There’s even records of a city-funded statue being made for Ladybug and Chat Noir yet no indication of where it is or what its for” Barbara continued “This blog keeps coming up, it used to be called the Ladyblog before it switched to Fox Tea. Look at these videos”

The screens were suddenly filled with shots of these Akuma; one that froze the city over, one who controlled the weather, one who began dropping adults from the sky, Syren, Heroes’ Day… All of them had to be handled by scared children. 

“These look too real to be edited” Duke said in awe. He was very aware of his children all surrounding the screens, looking at the countless destruction of one of the major cities in the world.

And none of them had ever heard of them or these children who were forced to deal with it.

Ones who seeked out help and were never given the time of day.

“Red Robin, Robin” his two sons standing in attention “I want you to investigate the matter and offer our help; convince them that we’re on their side on not aligned with the League”

“We’re on it, Batman”

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“So you just want us to believe you found out about us and suddenly want to help?” Roter Fochs looked at the duo skeptically. 

“We wish to assist you with this whole… situation. No one has heard of Akumas or of Parisian heroes before, we concluded that it may be the government attempting to keep tourism up” the shorter male, Robin, they later learned, spoke up while keeping his hands in the air.

“Though that doesn’t excuse the League, who we know you personally sent distress messages” Red Robin echoed the message “We understand the incompetence of the League better than anyone else. Did you know they never bothered to even open most of those messages?”

Red Robin was surprised by the sudden animalistic growling coming from the group, some of their eyes glowing while others looked disappointed.

Ladybug looked hurt.

“Who do you work for?” Ryuuko  asked, curious but not letting her sword lower from its position.

“We’re Robin and Red Robin”

“Like the food chain?”

“.... Yes. Anyway we’re vigilantes sanctioned in Gotham, New Jersey in the United States; we’re both proteges of the Batman” Red Robin held back the need to roll his eyes at the monkey boy’s statement.

“Never heard of him” the French heroes turned to each other, trying to see if the name rang any bells.

“According to the internet the Batman is almost a folklore for Gotham; people claim to see him and his array of birds and bats but none could ever get clear photos” CowBot replied after a quick search.

“If the League never saw our messages then how do you know about them?” Chat Noir stared right at them, as though he’d know they were lying, which he couldn’t but Roter Fochs could and would.

“Because we’re better than the League” Robin said with the same certainty one would say the grass was green.

“Why should we believe you?” Ladybug asked skeptically, if they were so good then why didn’t they handle what the League wouldn’t? Why didn’t they just try to take over the Hawkmoth situation without their input? Why didn’t they just take down the League by themselves?

“You shouldn’t, “ Robin shrugged once more “But we’ll actually help where the League wouldn’t”

Ladybug stole a look from Chat Noir, both turning to Roter Fochs, who shook his head softly indicating the duo wasn’t lying.

“If you really want us to talk then give us the coordinates to meet with the Batman” Ladybug demanded, Robin looked outraged at the implication while Red Robin nodded.

“Alright, but how will you know if we’re lying to you?” he asked curiously, typing something in his communicator, the center of his utility belt, before handing it over to her.

“Trust me, we know when you’re lying plus we’d know when we get there” Viperion smirked, “Also you can stand down now Bunnix, MultiMouse”

The duo were not surprised to see two figures standing behind them, one male with a mouse theme and rope wrapped around his hands, and a petite girl with a bunny theme and a sharp looking umbrella pointing straight at their backs. They were just surprised that they hadn't sensed them before.

“Did you get those coordinates, Pegasus?” 

“Yes Ladybug, waiting for your signal”

“Well then birdies, we better hope you weren’t lying or you’ll find Hawkmoth won’t be your biggest problem”

“Voyage!”

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“Why don’t you guys like the League?” 

The meeting between the Bats and Team Miraculous had gone much better than any of them had expected; it had certainly helped when they found out one of their own, Agent A as they called him, was once a wielder.

They had both been surprised by the amount of members each team had: The Bats had expected Ladybug, Chat Noir, Ryuuko and Viperion; Roter Fochs, Pegasus, Roi Singe, Bunnix and MultiMouse had been a surprise.

Meanwhile Team Miraculous had only heard of whispers of Batman and many Robins, even a theory on a bat girl of sorts from their brief research; having Batman, Robin (V), Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, Signal, Batgirl, Batwoman, and Black Bat not to mention Oracle and Agent A; they had almost thought it was an ambush.

They supposed they each knew how to keep certain secrets tight.

“The Justice League, though still consisting of some of the most powerful people in this Earth, are too high and mighty; none of them really consider the consequences of their actions and are too reliant on their powers to be able to resolve all their problems. None of them have any contingency plans if their enemies find out their weaknesses and exploit them. Not a single member is a ‘normal human’”

He pulled up a hologram in the middle of the meeting table, every person who's worked with  Justice League showing up, each showing their array of powers and abilities before showing their membership status.

Batman, Green Arrow, Speedy, Robin, Artemis; Non-Members

Two Green Lanterns, Captain Marvel, Black Canary, Bumblebee, Rocket, the Atom, Blue Beetle (II), Superboy; Reserve members with clearance.

“That does seem pretty discriminatory” Viperion hummed as he thought of the people on the list, those on the Non-member list had no power or enhancement at all while those on the reserve, with the exception of Captain Marvel and Superboy, had powers or suits but the vulnerability of humans.

They weren’t considered strong enough, or maybe even reliable enough.

“We’d probably be considered in the same capacity as a Green Lantern” Pegasus concluded “Take away their ring and their powers go away”

“Which brings us to the next question” Batgirl chimed cheerfully “What is it exactly that you’re facing off against?”

“The Miraculous are ancient artifacts that lend you the powers of certain godlings named Kwami. Kwamis are the essence of concepts and ideas: The Ladybug who represents Luck and Creation, the Black Cat who represents Misfortune and Destruction and Horse who represents Transportation and Innovation are just some examples” Ryuuko explained for them

“Hawkmoth is in possession of the Butterfly Miraculous of Metamorphosis and Desire along with the Peacock of Emotion and Will” Ladybug paused briefly as she saw the look of surprise on Agent A’s face, wondering if she’d feel that way if she found out Tikki was being used for evil in the future. “Both were thought to be missing, possibly destroyed, when the last Master of the Order was able to salvage them from the attack to the Temple of Miracles. He was only a child when the Temple was attacked, thus he was able to escape without being detected by the enemy”

“If I remember correctly,” Chat Noir interrupted “I believe Master Fu said their name was “The Shadows” or I think he said they now go by𑁋”

“The League of Shadows” Nightwing softly added, the air tensing immediately.

“You know of them?” MultiMouse was weary considering the Shadows were very keen on keeping to, well, shadows. That had to mean that the Bats had confronted them.

“Intimately so” Batman growled out.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Bunnix’s brows furrowed underneath her mask, feeling as though they wouldn’t like the answer.

“The Shadows have been a pain in Gotham’s ass in the past” Batgirl explained before turning to Batman “Especially since the Demon’s Head was interested in having Batman as a Son-in Law, though his daughter is sometimes an ally”

“Batgirl!” Red Robin admonished

“Don’t forget the little demon over here” Red Hood joked, missing the look of shock in the Parisian heroes.

“Or the fact that it sometimes seems like he wants to get on Red Robin’s dick and have his babies”

“Batgirl, Red Hood that’s enough” Batwoman sternly looked at the duo.

“You’re saying Robin is related to the Shadows” the Parisian heroes in the Reserve Team looked at them suspiciously while the Core Four just patiently waited to see what the Bats would say.

“That’s in the past” Nightwing steely stated “He was born into that lifestyle, but his mother let him chose to leave and live a different life”

“We had no choice of who our parents were” Black Bat reinforced, the team taking a mental note that she was once a shadow as well.

“Noted” Chat Noir said cooly “Though you must understand our reluctance when hearing the Shadows; like we said the Shadows destroyed the temple that was meant to safeguard the Miraculous and killed off every Guardian in the process”

“It would be foolish of us to not be on guard when hearing of them being so close to us again” Ryuuko explained “Though we will give the benefit of the doubt”

And so was the beginning of their partnership.

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“You’re all skilled fighters for not having any proper training” Oracle commended, looking at the statistics of the spars they all had, by far the Core Four had the strongest stats but it wasn’t because of the others’ lack of skill.

“Thank you, Oracle” Ryuuko bowed after finishing her match with Robin, an intense sword fight having just finished. If she had truly wanted to she could have ended it by cutting Robin’s katana but she found it both dishonorable and the easy way out considering they were testing skill sets. On the other side of the room was Red Robin and Roi Singe’s fight, bo-staff against bo-staff, being monitored by Black Bat.

“Oh kwami” Ladybug whispered as she and Chat Noir were called for the next match… against Batman and Batwoman.

“This is where we die Noir”

“It’s been an honor m’lady”

The fight had been entertaining, each side coming in with an array of attacks. At first the Bats had played offensive with the Miraculous duo playing defensive, dodging Batarangs and all their little gadgets. The Bats hadn’t expected just how durable the simple looking yo-yo and staff would be or any of its features.

At some point there had been a flash bomb, Chat Noir blocking it from Ladybug and getting temporarily blinded, Batwoman had planned on attacking while he was disoriented however the attack amplified his enhanced hearing, extending his staff and tripping her in the process.

In the end the Bats had won but it had been a close victory considering the Miraculous Team had not bothered to use their special abilities during any of the fights.

As they were taking a breather, resting and getting drinks, Robin spoke up.

“How are you allowing your city to step all over you?” Team Miraculous looked at him briskly before Red Hood, of all people, continued for him.

“We’ve seen the reports and the Parisian news, they’re relying on your team of four, considering they aren’t aware of the others, to be there to solve all their problems”

“It’s okay for your people to put so much trust in you but it's gotten to the point where they expect it of you” Robin concluded.

“I’ve tried telling them” Viperion sighed, facing his group “We really should be leaving Paris to handle their own problems, we’re busy enough in civilian life and akuma fights as it is”

“How do you suppose we do that when we already face scrutiny for not dealing with Akumas fast enough?” Chat Noir asked, his tail flickering behind him.

“You could always stop patrolling in broad daylight if you don’t want to leave the city altogether” Red Robin suggested, “Hiding in the night is easier to avoid any authority or anyone trying to get interviews. Plus this way it's less predictable where you’ll be certain hours of the day”

“He does make a good point” Ladybug said, mostly to herself, before nodding “I think it's a good idea”

“You heard her team,” Chat Noir turned to face the others “All for stopping daylight patrol?”

All of them nodded in agreement, the beginning of a long list of necessary changes in their lives.

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“My father is planning a press conference to talk about his ‘concerns’ with the lack of your appearances��� Chloe rolled her eyes. A year ago, after the Heroes’ Day Disaster, she and Carapace had chosen to stand down while Rena was ultimately retired. She’d found out about Adrien when she went for a visit only for him to jump in through the window.

It was awkward between the two of them before they called for Ladybug.

She gave her neutral face of disappointment first before making a plan.

They were all aware that Lila must have been the one to start the disaster, being Volpina was the only explanation, as Ladybug confessed that Lila had a vendetta against her. Chloe also figured she must have been lying, something she had already suspected before, about being in another country considering Hawkmoth’s attacks only stayed in Paris.

Due to Chloe’s secret identity being out in the open they realized Hawkmoth wouldn’t be above targeting her family again. Thus Chloe became Ladybug’s spy.

Meanwhile in civilian life Nino was getting tired of Alya and Lila’s antics, especially the ones against his bros Adrien and Marinette. Well more against Marinette and more sexual harassment/getting together with Adrien. That’s not even touching on their newest content on the blog which was just criticizing the Miraculous Team for all their weaknesses and shortcomings, in the guise of offering “suggestions” on how to get better. 

They thought it’d be good to have an inside man, someone who could warn them of anything Lila and Alya might come up to.

They were both the secret members of Team Miraculous.

“Holy shit are you serious?” Nino exclaimed in Chloe’s room. They’d all come in secretly and by different entries to meet up in case certain nosy classmates had spotted them.

“Yep, I may or may not have threatened my father with a lawsuit against his violation of child labor laws and me not receiving my paychecks” Adrien said excitedly.

Chat Noir had made an off-hand comment on how his father had tired him out with a packed work schedule. This resulted in prodding from the mother hen known as Nightwing asking for details which ended in Chat Noir confessing that he works for his father’s company, had been homeschooled most of his life and often had a packed schedule full of extracurriculars, including up to around 12-hour work days sometimes. Turns out with that brief information Oracle informed them that his father was violating child labor laws due to the fact that he had worked more than thirty five hours a week since he was fourteen.

“Holy shit” he’d say in awe at the moment “My father is rich though… who knows if this would even go through with his influence”

“No man is truly above the law” Nightwing had given him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, “But… is everything alright in your home life?”

“I- I shouldn’t say anything that reveals my identity… '' the usually chaotic boy said solemnly, his cat ears downcast.

“Chat Noir,” the group turned to Ladybug, the one who’d help introduce her team to the life of masks and magic “Your own safety is much more important than keeping your identity safe. We both know the kind of person your father is… I’d rather you have the best options possible to face this”

“How come you’re so fast to trust us?” Robin asked, surprised but keeping a stern face.

“You do realize that she has the coordinates to this place, right?” Viperion smirked “She’s known who you are for a while and never mentioned anything. We just expect you to return the courtesy”

“That seems about right” Red Robin sighed before taking off his mask, the others of the Bat Clan following suit. Team Miraculous gave Ladybug one last look before dropping their own transformations, some of them looking familiar to the Gothamites.

“Marcus is that you my boy?” Agent A, otherwise known as the family butler, Alfred Pennyworth made his way to MultiMouse who nodded shyly. 

“I actually go by Marc now great-uncle Alfred”

“Wait what, Al has siblings?” Stephanie exclaimed, Jason was whispering for Tim to write it down in The Book.

“Yes, an older half-sister” he said with an impeccable raised brow “I would have never thought you’d follow after my footsteps Marc”

“I guess it does run in the family”

“Adrien Agreste! Like son of the fashion mongul Gabriel and late actress Emellie Grande de Venily?!” Stephanie exclaimed as soon as she focused on the blonde teen.

“Yep” was all he could find himself saying, taking comfort in Marinette’s presence next to him.

“Don’t worry Adrien,” the boy looked up to the slightly intimidating looming figure of Bruce Wayne “We’ll help you deal with your father”

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“Boys” Bruce had said as soon as he entered the living room, where the group had devolved into a video game competition. “Remember tomorrow is your monthly therapy session”

“Already?” Damian groaned, his brothers, with the exception of Dick, looking like they would rather not go.

“Timmy isn’t prepared to face his inner demons” 

“And it seems Timmy hasn’t slept in some time again, hasn’t he?” Luka teased, continuing to run his hand through Tim’s hair, the boy practically purring in response.

“You have a therapist?” Marinette asked Bruce skeptically.

“We’ve all… gone through things growing up. Alfred made me realize that we were all in need of some help”

“And do you umm… talk about your nightly activities?”

“They’re trustworthy and confidential, yes”

“Do you think you could give me their information?”

That’s how Team Miraculous found themselves on the day after another akuma attack, in a private room within Wayne Tower, each waiting their turn to see the doctor.

“You’ve been through alot Luka” the teen was lying on his back, facing the ceiling as the psychologist who worked with Bruce talked. “Losing what you’ve come to accept as your family, watching your friends die, even though you knew you could change the outcome. Doing it over and over again in order to save the city… It's not something anyone could be expected to handle, let alone a child your age”

“I… I know Dr.Quinzel. But I can’t allow myself to feel guilty over everything or even get overly emotional. If Hawkmoth found out it’d be a disaster, especially because Marinette trusted me with the miraculous… the first for her to assign full time as the Guardian…. I can’t let her down” Luka gave her a lost look, one rarely seen on the charming boy before.

“Keeping all of that inside… It could fester up and explode if you’re not careful Luka”

“So you’re telling me that you are perfectly fine with how your life at home is going, Nathaniel? Even after everything we’ve discussed”

“Look I’ve tried telling my parents they were wrong but they just keep saying I’m confused, not to mention think my art is a joke… and maybe they’re right”

“Those are important parts to who you are. Saying that would be like considering yourself a mistake… Do you feel that way Nathaniel?”

“I…”

“I think I have pretty bad taste in girls, though my friends usually call me a himbo for not really thinking things through. Maybe I should think before acting more?”

“I’ve known I was going to become Bunnix ever since I was fourteen, it was always just a matter of when. So when I was finally called to action I was so excited but… I can’t help but wonder if I’m cut out for this”

“My mother has groomed and taught me to be perfect at all I do. It was something ingrained to me since I was a child; It wasn’t until recently that I learned that is impossible to achieve. Why was mother so pertained to me being it?”

“I know I’m the smart guy but I shouldn’t be expected to have all the answers, especially for my classmates who refuse to look at evidence as it is. Seriously, if I had known they would have taken my comment about how dangerous a napkin can be as pure fact then I would have not said anything that day”

“Sometimes I feel like I’m not enough for my grandmother. She’s getting older, she’s starting to forget a lot. I help by telling her things like stories but I’m not sure how long that will last… She’s the only family I have left in Paris, I don’t want to leave my friends or boyfriend behind”

“My father has always been a distant man but ever since my mother… I’m not sure if he even sees me as his son at this point. There are some days I’m treated as nothing more than a trophy boy or a regular employee. I wonder if this would have happened regardless of my mother’s passing”

“I am Ladybug, I am also the last Guardian. But I’m just a teenager! I have a life I want to live outside of Paris… I want to be a designer, start my own brand, find love and have my own family… But Hawkmoth is in the way of all that”

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“Are you sure about this LB?” Nino asked from the terrace of Chloe’s penthouse. They’d been talking strategy when an Akuma attacked, given the chaos displayed by the news via LadyBugOut livestream, they could only assume it was another Volpina attack.

Unfortunately Volpina had a Sentimonster to help, Reality Check. A glorified 3D printer who could temporarily make Volpina’s illusions tangible and real.

It had proven to be a difficult battle, especially since Luka and Adrien had been caught up as civilians and couldn’t help Ryuuko and Ladybug. The others still had to wait for Ladybug to give the signal before they’d consider going out to help in broad daylight lest their hidden cards be revealed too soon.

In the middle of the fight the two heroines had made a strategic retreat, one the Fox Tea blogger did not hesitate to call the coward’s way out. Suddenly the two appeared at Chloe’s along with Roter Fochs. The scarlet hero had taken out two familiar boxes with extremely familiar jewelry inside. 

“I’m certain of it” she said with a determined smile, “Besides this could finally get Hawkmoth and maybe even Alya off your backs if I introduce new heroes; Of course your costumes will have to be different, as will your codenames, but I trust that you’ll know what to do”

“Hello my queen!”

“What’s up dude”

Paris was in uproar when they heard of the new heroes; Abeille and Anselm.

Abeille’s costume was much more armored than that of Queen Bee’s; the whole suit had a honey yellow bodysuit with black armor pieces, her chest piece in the shape of a bee’s face, black elbow length gloves with some honey stripes, thigh high black boots with honey kneepads. Her own mask was different from her former as it changed her eyes to royal blue like Pollen’s while being honey colored with black v shaped lines. The golden gauntlets on top of her gloves would be able to send out small shocks, capable of stunning enemies for small intervals at the time, nowhere near as potent as Venom.

Anselm’s own attire was not so different from Carapace; Anselm still kept the hoodie his predecessor did though beneath it is where the differences began. Anselm wore a pine green helmet, yellow tinted goggles on top of his red eyes, with pale thin daffodile lines going from the top to the bottom of his hood. The hoodie and his undersuit was sacramento green, bordering on black, though the majority of the suit was also armored with pine pieces like the hexagonal chest piece, shoulder, thigh, shin, knee and elbow pads. He also had much thicker gauntlets than Abeille’s along with armored gloves and reinforced sneakers.

Of course, Chloe Bourgeois and Nino Lahiffe were quickly off of the suspect list when the two were spotted separately looking for shelter amongst the Akuma attack during Fox Tea’s livestream.

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“So you’re part of the OG Team huh?” Stephanie asked as she gave a once over to the two newcomers.

“Deep undercover missions, you know how they go” Abeille scoffed, her honey blonde hair swaying along with her five black streaks around it.

“What she said. We couldn’t help as Queen Bee and Carapace anymore, compromised identities, so we helped as civilians before covering our tracks and coming back” Anselm tried to keep back Chloe’s prickly personality.

“Like what?” Cass’ appearance startled the two, though both looked like they were about to draw out their weapons.

“Well I get them intel from what’s happening in the mayor’s office that Max and Markov can’t get out from the computers, daddy is a bit of a pushover and squeals pretty easily”

“While I get intel from Fox Tea’s disastrous dude duo. I’m usually among the first to find out about anything their plotting… though I’ve had to drop that. It was getting too much for me to continue being with Alya so we broke up”

“So you kept dating Cesaire just to gather intel? Doesn’t that seem manipulative?” Duke asked from his seat on the monitor, the two Parisians looked at one another before beginning to laugh.

“Not compared to what those two are capable of”

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“Are you sure about this?”

Currently Viperion, Ladybug and Bunnix were on the Gotham rooftops, shadowing the Bats for the night. The three were honored to be trusted with the responsibility but still felt foreign in the much darker environment, literally and metaphorically.

“It’ll be a good experience” Oracle said in their ears, their comms being synced to those of the Bats “And you won’t be alone, I’ll be here and so will your partners”

Right on cue Robin, Red Robin and Black Bat landed on the same rooftop. The plan was for the six to cover the patrol for the night, the others would be getting rest or doing specialty training with their abilities. It was a surprise for the Miraculous gang when it was revealed that Signal and Red Hood would be joining them as fellow trainees. Alfred and Black Canary, a metahuman who often worked together with Green Arrow in Central City, would be in charge of the training while Bruce also oversaw their progress.

Honestly they hadn’t known what surprised them more: the fact that Batman had metas on his team or that he trusted other heroes with the training of his children.

“It should be a regular night; standard mugging, gang fights and possible robberies should be all that happen tonight”

Of course that was not what happened.

As it turned out Riddler had escaped Arkham, no surprise, and had gone too long without his medication. Edward Nygma was usually a pretty tame man, if a little eccentric with his love of riddles and his brilliant mind.

He decided to hold Gotham Grand Terminal hostage.

Ladybug was decidedly trying not to panic as she saw the very obvious bombs spread across different sections of the terminal. There were too many for them to deactivate in less than three minutes and there were probably more hidden around.

“Riddle me this; What is Joan of Arc made of ?” Ladybug and Robin were the first to arrive at the scene, Viperion and Red Robin being the closest to coming as back up. Robin seemed as confused as she felt but decided to really think about it…

This was so stupid.

“Maid of Orleans” the look Robin gave her, like she just made the most foolish decision of her life, was seen spread across the faces of hostages before Riddler began to laugh.

“Why you are correct, little red” he wiped a tear from his eye “Bats would never think of something so punny like that!”

“Yeah well I’ve had a lot of experience with annoying puns”

“What’s colorful, loud and is a mess to clean up?” Ladybug’s eyes widened as he pressed the big red button on the remote control, Robin bringing Ladybug down and shielding her as the hostages began to scream.

BOOM!

“...Confetti cannons” Ladybug muttered, her whole body covered in the colorful paper pieces with glitter in the mix.

That son of a bitch!

It was April 1st.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“So what is it that we’ll be doing?” Bunnix asked as Black Bat silently leaped through the Gotham rooftops, camouflaging effortlessly with the shadows unlike her because of the white and baby blue costume she had on.

“You two will be checking up on Red Hood’s sector for the night, Crime Alley” Oracle’s voice responded for her.

“Right, so is this just a standard patrol?”

“Something like that”

Bunnix was admittedly a bit nervous about being with Black Bat, Cass didn’t really talk much and was kinda hot. Bunnix had just dutifully shadowed her, staying as quiet as she could even if she did more parkour than necessary, when they stumbled upon a drug deal. Bunnix was about to go down to smack some people around with her umbrella when Black Bat shook her head.

“One of Red Hood’s men, let’s wait to see the deal go through”

Bunnix wasn’t sure what to think as she watched the deal go down. Weren’t they supposed to be the ones to stop this from happening and not helping them? It was a bit confusing and against her moral code…

“We do this to keep the kids out of the involvement” Oracle seemed to read her mind, explaining their reasoning “Before Red Hood decided to get involved with drug trafficking Crime Alley was full of children who would be taken advantage of by dealers; whether it meant getting them addicted or becoming their messengers and delivery boys. He made it very clear to his ‘allies’ that no child from Crime Alley was getting involved in their plans again or else the deals were off. Those who tried going above him… well they’re no longer around to try and take him down”

Still that did not help ease Alix’s worries as the night continued on. Black Bat came to a sudden stop on top of a warehouse, gesturing for Bunnix to follow behind her, and climbing in through a shattered window. Inside were dozens of wooden crates, each with cameras pointed at them and only one with an open lid. Black Bat walked towards the open crate with ease, going inside and taking out three duffle bags from inside. She placed two on her, criss-crossing each other before handing the other one to a reluctant Bunnix.

The tow then headed to a hidden tunnel underneath one of the empty crates, making their way in a closed (?) Gotham sewer. It didn’t smell as disgusting as Alix imagined it would be, musky at best, though she thought that it may be due to the fact that there was no dirty sewage water there. They walked in relative ease, essentially walking for what had to be at least 15 minutes in numerous twists and turns before reaching a ladder. The two got out, Bunnix recognizing it as part of Crime Alley with how run down the area looked.

Black Bat knocked on a rusting steel door, three times, five, once and then a tap with her palm.

The door opened up, a boy no older than 12 being the ones to greet them.

“Where’s R.H?” he questioned, he looked disappointed but not alarmed, clearly he had met Black Bat before.

“Was busy. This is Bunnix, she’s helping for the night” The boy was clearly unimpressed with her but he closed the door and led them down the long hallway. She noticed the few scattered toys along the way, with some open doors showing mountains of writing supplies and even a little library.

What was this place?

“This is Red Hood’s sanctuary for the kids of Crime Alley” Black Bat whispered next to her “Batgirl and Red Hood are usually the ones to come here though all of us have come at some point.” they entered the large room showing children of all ages, some as young as infants and others looking close to early adulthood. They dropped the duffle bags in front of what she thought was the leader of the pack when Red Hood wasn’t around.

They were filled with non-perishable food, wads of money that will probably be used to provide for the group of 30 or even more for the next month, toys, books and some new clothes.

As the children gathered around, each a little dirtier than Alix remembered ever being as a child, lining up to get a new something that Red Hood got for them she couldn’t help but think;

… Maybe things were never so black and white.

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“I know it may seem frightening, even unnerving, to let go of your control but if you keep your powers bottled up it may prove to be disastrous in the future” Black Canary told the group of teens.

“With abilities bestowed to you like those of the Miraculous are left untrained then it may prove to lead to your downfall” Alfred nodded along to Dinah’s words.

“As capable as Ms.Lance and I are, we have realized that we would need further assistance to properly be able to train each of your abilities”

From one of the Batcave’s entrances they could hear the screech of tires before a slick black car parked next to the Batmobile and Hoodcycle.

“Sorry, we’re late” a red headed woman said as she stepped out of the car, her pale freckled skin slowly gaining a green tint to it as she removed her lab coat and glasses, “Selina here thought she could make a quick steal on our way here”

“Oh c’mon Pam, you know you love the rush as much as I do” a tanned woman laughed, twirling around a golden necklace with one of the biggest rubies they had ever seen in its center.

“Now, ladies; Pam-a-lamb has a class of powered kids to teach” they recognized Dr.Quinzel belatedly as she was missing her glasses and uniform. She was now wearing a much more colorful array of clothes with the consistent theme of red,black, and white. Her skin seemed paler than they remembered and her blonde hair had red tips on one side and blue on the other.

“Hey girls” Barbara came down the elevator at the same time as Stephanie and Cass, seemingly cutting their conversation when she saw the newcomers”

“Babs!” Dr.Quinzel exclaimed, making her way to the other girls after giving a quick kiss to the green skinned woman.

“Well you’re right on time Pam” Dinah sighed, cocking her hip before pointing at the newcomers “These are Dr.Pamela Isley otherwise known as the Gotham Rogue Poison Ivy, Selina Kyle a more vigilante type thief Catwoman, and, of course, you know Dr.Harleen Quinzel or as she prefers to go by Harley Quinn”

“Hey kittens” Selina waved at the group “By the way it's been too long since we girls have hung out; how’s about a Birds of Prey raid? You in?”

“Only if Oracle agrees” 

“Oh pleasepleasepleaseplease!” Stephanie and Harley’s persistent pleading could be heard immediately afterwards. A polite cough interrupted the chaos.

“As enthusiastic as you ladies are for your plans, may I remind you that we have prior plans to care for first. Namely the training”

“Sorry Alfie” Harley said, chastised, “We’ll get out of your hair. C’mon ladies!”

“...So training?” Marc asked

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“What happened to you?” was the first thing Kim laughed out as the duo stepped into the cave, leaving a trail of confetti and glitter behind. Marinette looked back at her team, unimpressed, in their own state of disarray.

Chloe, Max, Marc and Nathaniel seemed to be nursing their own cases of migraines; most likely having pushed the limits of their own new abilities which relied on mental fortitude. Chloe and Jason’s powers were the most similar to Alfred’s which involved manipulating and projecting thoughts and ideas to the people around them or to specific targets. Nathaniel was developing the power to create illusions that only his target would be allowed to see. Marc could create intangible clones of himself but could still project what they were seeing and hearing to him. Max could teleport objects a few meters away from or towards him.

Kagami, Kim, Adrien and Nino seemed the most physically exhausted. Kagami was beginning to have slight control of fire, wind and water but not yet conjuring it; given her slight burn marks, wet clothes and messy hair Marinette would guess that she still hadn’t fully grasped the manipulation aspect outside of being Ryuuko. Kim’s own face was dirty and slightly bruised and matched that of Adrien’s. Kim had begun to use his chaotic energy to make the wackiest things happen but to have the outcome he wanted while Adrien could suck the luck out of people for small intervals lest he want to have the misfortune backlash cling on him. Nino’s was more tame though he now had to focus on two things since he could now use his energy to both heal and to create a shield that encompased his body like armor.

“Oh god you guys look like messes!” Alix laughed along with Luka, the only two that looked fine as they had a fairly tame patrol with Cass and Tim.

“Next time I see Riddler remind me to throw a glitter bomb” Marinette grumbled as she made her way to the showers.

“Not before I stab him with his stupid cane” Damian growled heading for the male showers.

“So how long till Daminette guys?” Adrien asked

“Definitely before the end of the year” Duke concluded, the others not being sure if he used his power or not.

“I’ll take you up on that. I’ll bet we make more money than with Red Scales” Stephanie laughed.

“Red Scales?” Luka asked curiously before the others yelled out.

“Nothing!” 

🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫🔴⚫

“Okay how come no one warned me about that!” Jason yelled as he came out of the Cave’s entrance. The group either gave questioning or amused looks.

“Oh, so you saw that too?” Alix asked, perched from one of the sofa’s armrests.

“You assholes could have given me a heads up” he complained before groaning into a sofa “God, someone get me some bleach”

“What’s Jaybird talking about?” Dick asked, coming in from the kitchen with an array of snacks for the rowdy bunch of teeneagers.

“Oh just Timbers getting some with the big bad snake boi” Stephanie sang, causing Jason to groan and Dick to choke on his own spit.

“More like trying to eat each other’s tongue out” Nathaniel responded in disgust.

“Timmy, no!” were the words the oldest yelled out before heading into the Batcave in record time.

“Anyway,” Stephanie began “It’s time to pay up bitches. Marinette and Cass get the loot”

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“Hmm, so I guess that’s what fresh blood splatters looks like” Chat Noir said in morbid interest.

“Well it's certainly more noticeable than dried blood” Viperion nodded along, watching as Red Robin and Red Hood carried out the interrogation from a one-way mirror. There was a new gang who specialized in child trafficking, most of the kids coming from Crime Alley and therefore not getting reported to the police; luckily they had Red Hood looking out for them.

“Yes, well we are here to see how they carry out their investigation and get used to all the squeamish things” Ladybug gave a calculated look, as though she herself were in there and what she would do to get the information out of the man they captured earlier that night.

“Do you guys think this sort of thing is going too far?” MultiMouse asked curiously, he was beginning to grow a bit uncomfortable with the amount of blood the man had begun to lose. 

“I mean this asshole deserves it” Roter Fochs glared “I don’t think it's too much if it means saving all those kids”

“Standing on the edge of what is seen as a hero𑁋”

BANG

“Let’s you see all the things you can’t from the center” Ryuuko watched as the man was forcibly being held back up by Red Robin after Red Hood slammed his face on the interrogation table. 

“World is not black and white” Black Bat spoke from next to them “Many shades of gray in between; We are in the gray”

Ko-Fi

[seokmins]

Don’t - JJK

ℙ𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝟙 of Physical

"Just be careful,” Yoongi cautioned. “Don’t get caught in something you don’t want to end up in.”

“Yoongi!” Jimin exclaimed. “Our baby is growing up! He’s developing feelings - !”

【ˢᵉʳⁱᵉˢ ᴹᵃˢᵗᵉʳˡⁱˢᵗ || ᴮᵀˢ ᴹᵃˢᵗᵉʳˡⁱˢᵗ || ᴹᵃⁱⁿ ᴹᵃˢᵗᵉʳˡⁱˢᵗ】

💞 🄿🄰🄸🅁🄸🄽🄶: Jeon Jungkook x Reader  📚 🄶🄴🄽🅁🄴: Fluff, Angst (?) 🌟 🅁🄰🅃🄸🄽🄶: T 💬ⓌⒸ: 3k ⚠️ 🅆🄰🅁🄽🄸🄽🄶🅂: Swear words? Suggestiveness? Gosh idk.

💫 (っ  ◔◡◔)っɛƖ۷'ʂ ŋơɬɛʂ 💕:

I think this switches POV a few times, hope it’s not confusing 😅 I think [Y/N] is an interestingly shallow character hmmm 😆. I don’t really know names for dance moves bear with me. This is gonna lead to a series whee 🤭

“1... 2... 3. 1... 2... Oof!” A muffled curse and a hard thump sounded inside the supposed to be empty dance practice room. Jungkook frowned, it wasn’t uncommon to pass by someone as they left if they stayed a little longer through the half-hour time-slot between booking appointments. But to still hear angry counts and crashes fifteen minutes after his reserved time did not make him particularly thrilled. He hesitantly peeked his head in, the creak of the door drowned out by the on and off music now blasting as a girl once again counted out her steps.

[Y/N] came tumbling down, tripping over her two feet. Again. Sweat coated her entire body as she glared at her glistening forehead in the full-length mirror. She had tried numerous times over the past week to nail that footwork, but today was particularly rough. One more time her mind screamed even as her body ached.

“Is that the new choreo?” A gentle voice asked as she paused to reset the music back, causing her to yelp in shock. She broke out in a cold sweat as if she wasn’t already drenched enough. Primal fear coursed through her as she recognized just who was standing at the door, fit in his oversized hoodie, white baseball cap, and combat boots. Yes, Jeon flipping Jungkook in all his big-shot glory. She gulped.

“Hello.” [Y/N] bowed formally, cursing herself for looking like a bedraggled, wet rat. Of course, most people don’t look too swell during dance practice (unless they were BTS) and of course, it wasn’t as if she had never been in the same room, breathing the same air as Jungkook. After all, she shared the stage with him and the rest of the esteemed members. “Yes, I’ve been trying to perfect the footwork for next week. I’ve been practicing for... Oh my gosh - !”

Jungkook chuckled. It looked as if this was the first time she’d actually looked at the clock and he couldn’t help wonder just how long had she been here - and how long she planned to stay. “Ya know, this is the reason why there are bookings. Not just so everyone can get some practice in, but also so you don’t overwork yourself.” He hummed casually (in his angelic voice) and strode over to hand her a water bottle from his vast supply hidden in his duffel bag.

“I...Thank you.” [Y/N] murmured, grateful and shocked by his kind gesture. She’d save this water bottle forever. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cut into your practice, I totally lost track of time.” Hastily gulping some water, she made to gather her items and skedaddle out of there, but Jungkook cleared his throat, halting her.

“Hey, stay a while. You need to cool down and I need to warm up.” A chance to one-on-one cool down solely with the Jeon Jungkook. An opportunity of a lifetime. “You’re... [Y/N] right?”

[Y/N] blinked. He knew her name. “Y-yes. I’m, uh, Lee Minho’s little sister. Um, you prolly don’t remember him, he’s -”

“- a member of Stray Kids.” Jungkook interrupted, glancing a little sardonically at her as he stretched one arm over the other. “Yes, I recall, he was on the Wings tour?” [Y/N] blinked. “I can see the talent flows in the family then.”

“Uh, wow. Thanks. I’m not so sure about that. I’ve taken forever to learn these moves. Even though I helped come up with these moves, I can’t execute them perfectly yet.”

“Wait, you came up with these?”

“Oh, uh yeah - yes. I... talked with one of the choreographers and they loved my idea. I have to perfect it just right so I can be ready by the deadline or it’ll be disastrous for the comeback.” 

“That’s really impressive. Thank you. We appreciate your talent.” He said, smiling his signature bunny-tooth smile. [Y/N] blushed, even more so when she realized she had been wearing a sports bra. Having finally ‘cooled’ down, she grabbed her loose shirt and threw it back on. It didn’t help that she could feel Jungkook’s gaze on her, making her burn.

“It’s nothing, really. Um, it was nice talking to you. Really. I gotta go now. Sorry again for disturbing you.”

“No, it’s really not a problem at all.” He soothed. “Hey, maybe next time you book an appointment, let me know. Maybe we could chat more.” Jungkook waved his phone around, displaying the digital booking website for the dance practice room. “Huh, message me on KakaoTalk?” He offered.

“Oh, uh, ok. Uh yes definitely.” 

“Oh, I’m sorry. That was a little presumptuous of me.” Warm redness rapidly spread up his neck to his cheeks. For the first time during their interaction, [Y/N] smiled at him.

“No, not at all.”

“Hoseok, you know that one girl who came up with the idea for our new choreo?” As casually as he could, the maknae questioned his hyung.

“Yeah, not very well, but she’s super talented from what I hear the dance team say. She leads a lot of the practices for the rest of the backup dancers to help them learn, almost like a professional teacher and choreographer.”

“Wow, I had no idea,” Jungkook admitted. [Y/N] hadn’t told him about that during their weekly meetings. Granted she didn’t talk much about herself in general.

“Well, it’s not that uncommon. While we try to get to know all of our staff, it’s impossible to get very close because of how often they rotate in and out.” Namjoon reassured him although the two other members of the maknae line grinned knowingly at their fellow member.

“I think Jungkookie here has a little crush on [Y/N]-ie.” Jimin teased as Taehyung voiced his agreement. Jungkook felt the red hot flush make its way up to his cheeks again. It seemed to be happening more and more these days.

“No, you’re wrong. I-... how do you even know her name?” He stuttered out.

“I may or may not have looked at your phone,” Jimin smirked. “As if we haven’t noticed you’ve been sneaking around doing a lot of dance practice when we haven’t even been told the final choreo.”

“I have to keep in shape, it’s better to get a taste of some part of it so it’s easier to learn the final version.”

“Uh-huh. That was actually a good excuse.” Seokjin laughed. “But you can’t fool us. You learn the choreography practically instantaneously... and you’ve never done that before for other comebacks.”

"Just be careful,” Yoongi cautioned. “Don’t get caught in something you don’t want to end up in.”

“Yoongi!” Jimin exclaimed. “Our baby is growing up! He’s developing feelings - !”

“I’m just saying.” He shrugged.

“I’m not doing anything bad. I’m just making a new friend, besides ARMY is my one and only love.” Jungkook sulked. “Stop making a big deal out of nothing.”

His leader rubbed a hand on the maknae’s slumped shoulders. “We just want you aware of the implications. Even if you’re ‘just friends’ as you said, rumors will fly if you’re close with anyone. We just don’t want a scandal. Especially not before the comeback.”

“I know. I promise nothing will happen.”

“Hey, I heard that there’s a fun dance practice that the backup dancers run` every week and she’s leading this week’s.” Hoseok, always the amicable sunshine brightened the atmosphere. “Why don’t we all go check it out?”

“Yay!” Taehyung cheered. “We can see who Kookie’s so fascinated on!”

“Stop! She’s just a friend!” The group laughed as he pouted.

♫ Adrenaline keeps on rushing in Love the simulation we're dreaming in   Don't you agree? Don't you agree? ♫

A step. A twirl. A side-step. Arms waving. A clap. Joy filled [Y/N]’s entire being - adrenaline high as she twirled along to the beat. Dua Lipa’s husky voice boomed through the packed room, stuffy from the people’s energies as they danced. The dancer grinned wide as she stood in the front of the mirror moving her heart out alongside her peers. Each one of them had practiced the random choreo she had thought up and today they were putting it all together.

♫ Hold on just a little tighter Come on Hold on, tell me if you're ready Come on Baby, keep on dancing Let's get physical ♫

She blinked. Even as fast as she moved, the choreo was rather simple in general - muscle memory at the least. Which is why she didn’t stumble when locking direct eye contact with a pair of brown doe eyes paired with a bunny smile. What... what was he doing here, let alone them?

Yes. All seven members squeezed themselves in the back area of the practice room. While it wasn’t too uncommon for Hoseok to pop in on his way home after a practice, throw some pointers, and leave with a bright smile, seeing the star group of Big Hit threw the whole room in for a loop. However, they were professional dancers. They kept dancing - albeit a little on edge, slightly losing their previous unlimited pep during the first half of the song.

“So... [Y/N]-ie is the beauty at the front?” Jimin asked both as loudly and quietly as he could with the loud music. He nudged Jungkook out of his deep catching-her-eye with the girl moving smoothly across the room, in lead and in control. Jungkook had never truly seen her in her natural element, seemingly always so tense.

“Uh, yeah.”

“I can see why Kookie’s so fixated on her.” Taehyung acknowledged, all seven boys focusing on her also, although she didn’t notice having lost Jungkook’s stare and instead concentrating on her moves. But she could feel his presence as intense as if it was just the two of them alone.

♫ Let's get physical Physical Let's get physical Come on, phy-phy-phy-physical ♫ 

Cheers erupted as the last notes of the song faded, all rushing to give their input on each other’s moves and the choreo - and the choreographer herself. Even Hoseok went to join the masses, caught up in the excitement. Jungkook contemplated if he should join Hoseok or the others as they snuck out the door, offering praise to those they passed so as not to seem standoffish. Unsure, he chose to awkwardly linger by the door as everyone slowly filtered out. Hoseok winked at his maknae as he passed, raising his eyebrows quickly towards [Y/N]’s direction. She as well seemed to be keeping herself busy after her colleagues said goodbye almost sensing Jungkook’s hesitation to leave.

“Hey. What brought you here?”

“Hobi mentioned something about a weekly dance practice.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Wow, it was great seeing you dance.” Normally their meetups consisted of a few conversations while [Y/N] cooled down and Jungkook warmed up - quite similar to their first meeting. However, last week he encouraged her to stay and watch as he danced, yet still, knew very basic information about her and wondered if maybe he was being bothersome. Perhaps she was just entertaining him, too nice or even scared of what he might do lest she say she didn’t want to hang out with him.

“Thank you.” 

“I really liked that song, it had a great beat.”

“That was the English version. Did you know Hwasa was featured in another version?”

“No way, she’s a great vocalist.”

“She really is.” [Y/N] hummed. “Here, I can play it for you.” She turned to her phone and pulled up the song.

♫ Although we eye each other You know I’ve read your feeling Don’t you agree? Don’t you agree? ♫

“How’s the choreo for the comeback coming?”

“It’s almost there. I should have it nailed by this week.”

“I can’t wait to see the finalized result.”

Sneak peeks while [Y/N] finished up her final minutes before he announced his presence lent Jungkook a good idea of what their final concept would be. To say he was excited was an understatement. She had true talent and an insightful eye.

♫ You try to hide your feelings You don’t have time just wasting time Don’t you agree? Don’t you agree? ♫

Jungkook swallowed. Internally, he wondered if he was gonna start screaming as he listened to Hwasa’s silkiness as she voiced the lyrics. [Y/N] smiled, motioning to him. “C’mon, do you want to dance?”

♫ Who needs to go to sleep, when I’ve got you next to me? ♫ 

Pass up an opportunity to dance her? As if. With a shy grin, he accepted the challenge. This might be the first time she’d become so carefree with him and he wasn’t about to lose.

♫ Night is passing There’s no point in hiding it So come on, come on, come on Let’s get physical ♫

Regardless of the girl dancing side-by-side to him, both trying to mimic each other’s moves so they were in sync, Jungkook enjoyed dancing. He even enjoyed dancing with other people, such as his hyungs and fellow Kpop groups. But maybe he enjoyed this just a little more.

♫ Close the door of this room Just us together in this space So come on, come on, come on Let’s get physical ♫ 

If only it was just that making his heart pound. Jungkook had been around girls before. While he shied away most times, not a single one of those interactions had made him feel like this. [Y/N] put him at ease even before he officially met her. Even dancing didn’t make him feel like this. Blood and adrenaline pumped through his veins and he turned to look right into [Y/N]’s eyes. Both dancers held each other’s gaze that asked the same question - “What are you feeling right now?” The raven-haired man licked his lips nervously, stalling his movements.

“I -. Do you...?” Gosh, he felt ridiculous. But there was no denying the undercurrent, despite their hesitation, that ran between the two.

“Do I...?”

“Do you, uh, find me attractive?” Jungkook almost regretted the words as soon as they came out.

“Gosh, Jungkook. What kind of question is that?” [Y/N] laughed as he blushed profusely. “If you don’t believe the hundred thousands of ARMYs that sing your praises, I don’t know what can convince you if not that.”

He mumbled something she couldn’t catch.

“Hm?”

Brown doe eyes met hers, shyly. “You telling me what you think.”

[Y/N]’s eyes widened as she gulped. “Well. I - just proved there’s no way you’re not attractive.”

“That’s not what I meant.” He turned away from her, thinking about leaving but she cleared her throat.

“Of course I find you attractive. I mean, you’re Jeon Jungkook, Golden Maknae of BTS. I mean... it’s almost intimidating and unfair how good looking you are. And you’re nice, talented, and sweet.” Gasping more than she would be from dancing, [Y/N] shakily met him eye to eye.

♫ All night, I'll riot with you I know you got my back and you know I got you So come on, come on, come on Let's get physical Lights out, follow the noise Baby, keep on dancing like you ain't got a choice  ♫

With an unknown surge of confidence blazing through him, Jungkook latched his lips onto hers. Nerves flooded him, yet were soothed as she eagerly met his tender, yet fervent kisses. Grinning lazily as they separated for breath, he led her out of the dance practice room and they stumbled through the empty halls of the Big Hit studios to outside. The moon lit their path as [Y/N] led him to a hotel, flashing her card at the receptionist as Jungkook kissed her neck. He remained attached to her as she swiped her card into the hotel room and before he knew it they tumbled together into the crisp sheets of a bed.

“Is this what you want?” [Y/N] asked, cupping Jungkook’s cheeks as he hovered above her. 

“Yes.” Jungkook breathed, ecstasy lacing his whisper. “Is this what you want.”

She answered him with a kiss.

♫ So come on, come on, come on Let's get physical ♫ 

Jungkook groaned as he awoke to not the sun shining through his windows, but the sound of his phone vibrating. Again and again. Blinking blearily, he grabbed it and answered the call.

“Hello?” He grumbled - voice raw, body sore, and not fully awake. 

“Jungkook.” Came the stern voice of Namjoon over the phone. “Where are you?”

“I’m -” The maknae shook himself awake, glancing around, panic filling him. The silence rang awfully loud through the small hotel bedroom. Except for Namjoon’s voice calling him back to attention.

“Jungkook?”

He cleared his throat. “I’m in a hotel. I passed out.”

Namjoon was silent. “I suggest you check your messages. I’ll see you back at the dorm. Try not to get caught again.”

In the quiet of her dorm, [Y/N]’s face was illuminated by the light of her phone screen as she hastily dialed a number. Not even two rings in, the person answered.

“’ Sup, Ugly?” A familiar snide, male voice greeted.

“Is that how you answer your phone now?” She huffed.

He let out a sleepy laugh. “Only how a certain someone looks when she calls me at this hour.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

A pause. [Y/N] knew there was no point beating around the bush and got straight to the point. “I want to take you up on that offer you extended to me.”

That got his attention. It’d been several years since they last talked about the subject and what it entailed - never touching upon it again after the argument that broke out. That was the only reason he knew what she was referring to. If he wasn’t awake before, he was now.   “... Are you sure? I thought -”

“Yes. I thought there were no questions asked.”

The man on the other line hesitated. “What happened?”

“Didn’t I just say?”

“But -”

“Look,” [Y/N] interrupted. “Forget it, I-”

“No, no, no. I’m sorry. Come over. But promise we’ll talk. In person, okay?”

“In person.” She agreed. “Thank you.”

“See you soon, then?”

“Yeah. I love you.”

“Love you too.”

Breaking!  Dispatch has reported that Jeon Jungkook of BTS was seen entering a hotel with an unknown woman late last night. Big Hit has yet to comment on the situation.

💫 (っ ◔◡◔)っɛƖ۷'ʂ ŋơɬɛʂ 💕:

Physical - by Dua Lipa / Physical by Dua Lipa ft. Hwasa & Lyric videos ➡️ links will be given under the series’ masterlist. 

Hehehe another song might be added too 😉

I finished writing this at 2 am. It’s rough. I know this moved fast but O well. If anyone reads this, let me know if they want tagged in Part 2!

ezralia-writes June 2020: ♫ Physical: Don’t - Part 1 © 

[that-one-girl-behind-you]

Illicio 5/?

Part 4

Mild content warning for Gerry having a panic attack

"Right... listen, does your boyfriend know about this?"

Jon, who'd been scowling at his hand for not mutilating adequately, snaps back up to look at her like a deer in the headlights.

"My- w- who?" He stammers out, and Melanie wants to sock him on the nose. Less in a 'bash his head in' and more like when she punches Gerry on the ribs because he keeps trying to look at her phone when she's texting Georgie.

V

"Please stop finding me."

Martin makes sure no one -a very specific someone, truly- is waiting outside for him, before he walks out to hail a cab. He used to grab the bus back to his flat, but lately the thought of being trapped with all those people sends a pang of nausea right to his stomach.

The driver forgets to charge him when they get to Martin's place, but he still drops enough money to cover the fare on the backseat before climbing out. The man looks back with a start when the door opens and closes, but he doesn't see him. If he somehow did, he will forget it, Martin thinks with relief.

A stream of heavy fog flows out of the flat when he opens the door, and the inside is colder than it ought to be. Martin drops his shoes on the rack by the entrance and watches them get enveloped in the swirling mist with a curious sense of detachment.

There's not much left to eat in the kitchen, but Martin isn't hungry lately. He realizes at times, that the reflections on the windows don't show him moving around the flat like they should. That's... nice. He doesn't want to see himself either.

When he crawls under the covers it's still far too early to sleep, but when he's not conscious he doesn't have to listen to the sounds of the world going on outside his window, and the soft gray dreams are always quick to come.

Martin wakes up an indeterminate amount of time later after a series of rapid clicks by the side of his bed, and he's relieved. He shouldn't be, he knows. The Lonely's taking to him almost naturally, and he should stop fighting it. These are the terms he agreed to, and it guarantees Jon will be safe.

A quick look to the window confirms he's visible again, and he turns to look, knowing very well what he's going to fin, with a tired smile already on his lips.

"Why did I ever think you'd do what you were told for once?" Martin asks the tape recorder whirring away where it's nestled snugly on his pillow. It brings Martin hope, at least the part of him that stubbornly checks for mails and opens his messaging apps and types out texts but can never bring himself to press the send button. "Still, listening to me sleeping is a bit too much, no? There's not even anything to record. Unless I snore. Do I snore?"

A long pause.

Click.

"Hm... Good to know." Martin lifts a hand up to his face, and it seems more solid than it did before he went to sleep. The tapes do help, then. Pity. "I really- I wasn't kidding when I told him I need him to leave me alone... and I think that means you too."

Click. Brrrrr.

"Having you here is a sign he still cares about me. A-a- and I like that! But that's the problem, I shouldn't. Peter's keeping a close eye on him as it is, with this whole pissing contest with Elias. If he knows I still... the people he sends away are also a punishment for me,you know? It's always the ones I talked to last. If you ask me, the message is very clear."

The tape clicks another button sympathetically. Or maybe it just clicks, it's just a tape recorder, for God's sake.

"Is he... well? I saw one of the deliverymen in the surveillance cameras the other day. I figured it was looking for him. Can't have been to easy to see a reminder of something so awful. God knows I still can't stand the taste of canned peaches."

The surveillance cameras are pointed towards the street -why would Elias need cameras to watch someone inside the building?- so Martin had only seen the monster go out and away from view. He'd also seen Melanie and Gerard Keay go after it, so Martin's pretty sure that's done and dealt with.

Martin is still not sure how he feels about Gerard Keay.

He's seen him with Jon a few times, when he's intangible enough that others don't notice him right away. He doesn't... it's not stalking or anything, Martin doesn't follow them home or look into their trash bins, he has just happened to be there when they're there too, and they don't see him because seeing them together tends to make him even more ethereal.

Gerard is always touching Jon, little points of contact here and there that feel almost sacrilegious to Martin, who's always had this idea that Jon is averse to being touched. Maybe because Tim had always been the only one to take that freedom with him, before he stopped wanting to.

The fact that Jon doesn't seem to mind only makes it more irritating.

"It's ridiculous, isn't it?" He tells the tape. The fog's starting to come back, thicker this time. He spares a look to the window, and he still hasn't disappeared, but he can see through his silhouette. "The world is at stake and I'm here being jealous over Jon."

It does make him feel better to know he never really had a chance, if Gerard -who is certainly attractive and flashy and assertive and everything Martin is not- is an indicator of Jon's tastes. But then why does Jon keep trying to get him to come back, and why are the tapes still following him? Is it some sort of mistimed loyalty for the last member of his original team still standing?

"I... I guess it makes sense. I'm doing this for him." Martin runs a hand down his face to wipe away the cold condensation of the fog on his skin. "He has to be safe, it's the only thing that matters and... and if Gerard keeps him safe, then we're sort of working for the same goal, right?"

Click.

"Don't be ridiculous, two people are barely enough to keep Jon out of trouble," he huffs. A loud yawn catches him off guard, and Martin burrows deeper into the covers. It's never warm with the Lonely, but the softness is still comfortable. "I suggest you click off now, unless you want more snoring."

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

Helen cracks her door open just an inch. Martin's snores are soft, just like everything else about him.

She adds the tape to her collection. It's growing very nicely.

Helen closes her door with a click, and moves it to a loud, busy nightclub with bright yellow doors leading to the loos.

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

"Do you really have to do that in here?" Jon groans when he walks past the open bathroom door and sees Gerry bent over the sink, making an absolute mess of the off-white porcelain.

"Now that you mention it, no," comes Gerry's voice from under the mass of hair, and Jon scrunches his nose at the offending smell of chemicals. "I'll just go dye my hair in the Tube station loos."

Jon rolls his eyes. "There's places that do that for you, Gerry."

"I've done it myself all these years. Why stop now?" Gerry shrugs and goes to spread a glob of black dye over an already soaked lock.

"You're not even-" Jon's hand shoots forward, "-you're not even getting all the roots! One would think after this long you'd at least know how to do it effectively." It's around then that he notices his hand is clamped down on Gerry's wrist, and he freezes. Gerry touches him all the time, but maybe it's not a two way street and-

Gerry shifts a little, and then there's a blue eye looking up at Jon, almost too bright amongst all the black.

"I mean, you could help me." Gerry's voice is still amused, and he takes a half step back to move out from under their joined hands. He then straightens up to full height, splashing a Pollock on the bathroom tiles when his hair whips back. "Or else I'm going to end up making a real mess. You wouldn't want that, would you?"

"I should ask the Eye if there's some sort of... return rec- please don't touch my towels!" Jon groans. "Just get in the tub, alright?"

"I knew you'd come around. There's dye all over your hand by the way, you should be more careful with that." Gerry smirks as he climbs into the bathtub and plops down on one end.

Fixing an undead man's dyejob at four in the morning and then cleaning the entire bathroom afterwards is not exactly how he expected to not sleep tonight, but weirder things have happened, Jon decides.

He sits on the edge of the tub behind Gerry, and begins working the hair into a knot at the top of his head, like Georgie used to do when she did this. Gerard's hair is a bit coarse, probably because of the dye itself. He wonders idly if it would get softer with enough listening to Jon's voice. This texture is not bad anyways, he finds.

"Do you remember Andrea Nunis?" Jon asks as he begins to apply the dye to Gerard's roots. They're a dirty blond color, and it gets swallowed easily enough by the black.

"Uh... who?" Gerry's voice comes after a moment, and Jon can hear the confused frown in it. He disentangles another lock from the top; his grandmother was always a bit too rough with his hair -an old woman out of practice and without the energy needed to be anything other than ruthlessly effective- so he runs his fingers through Gerry's carefully to get rid of the knots. "I'm going to need more context, Jon."

"Eh? Oh." Jon snaps back to reality, and the question he just asked. "The- the woman. In Italy. You saw her in a café, and you told her to think of her-"

"Her mother," Gerry ends the sentence for him. "I remember. It's good to know she made it out."

"Was it... does it have to be a family member? A- a person?" The whole process is almost soothing in it's repetitive motions. Comb, apply, move aside. "Your anchor?"

"Not really." Gerry shrugs. His voice sounds the slightest bit drowsy, and Jon smiles. "Sometimes it's things... or thoughts? I knew a man that walked right out of the Dark because he and his wife had plans for brunch with his in-laws the next morning, and he didn't want to miss out on his father-in-law's quiche."

"... A man defeated the Dark through the power of breakfast food, is what you're saying?" It sounds as unconventional as anything else that has to do with the entities, but Jon is starting to get very tired of nothing making any sense.

"Must've been one hell of a quiche, don't you think?" Gerry's neck is bent at a weird angle as Jon tries to reach the side of his head, so Jon sits back for a second and twists until his legs rest at both sides of the tub, his knees framing Gerry's shoulders. "Why do you want to know?"

Jon has a lie prepared. He's had it for about a week when he read the statement of the man in the flooded house. He's practiced it enough that he can deliver it casually, no matter how bad a liar he is, it should be believable.

"Basira wants to-" Gerry lays his cheek on Jon's knee, and Jon flinches and sputters in surprise, his mind drawing a blank. "Sh- Daisy's in the coffin. The- the Buried, I mean. Daisy- I want to bring her back."

Gerry straightens up immediately at that -Jon has a spare second to wonder why he feels so incredibly aware of the spot on his leg where Gerry's face rested on for less than a second- and turns to look at Jon with narrowed, suspicious eyes.

"What was that?" Gerry asks, voice low and serious enough to make Jon ignore the hastily made bun at the top of his head. "Jon?"

"Basira wants to get Daisy out of the Buried," Jon parrots off his well practiced lie. "I promised her I'd find out more about anchors so she-"

"Basira would have to be incredibly stupid to try that." Gerry's eyes are still narrowed at Jon. "Climbing into the Buried willingly is as good as killing yourself. But you know that already, right?"

Jon clears his throat. "She."

"Of course. She knows that." A drop of half congealed dye is tracing a long line down the wall. Jon follows it with his gaze, until Gerry pinches at his knee. "Jon."

"I'll- I'll let her know," Jon forces out, voice strained. He looks back at Gerry after a moment. His frown has softened, replaced by something that looks more like concern. He used to catch that look on Martin too sometimes. "I-"

"You can't let Basira into the coffin, Jon," Gerry says with such intensity that Jon wonders for a moment if he actually caught his lie, because surely Gerry worrying this much about Basira would be less weird than Gerry worrying this much about him. "For real. Promise it."

"I... I'll keep her away from it." Jon's nod feels a bit robotic to him. "I'm still not done. With you- w- with your hair I mean. The- the top..."

Gerry's eyes remain on him for another long moment, before he gives his head a little shake, and turns around again. Jon moves to grab another lock of hair.

"You say Martin is trying to keep you all safe, don't you?" Gerry says, and Jon's hands freeze. "He'd be pretty bummed out if Basira died for nothing, don't you think?"

"I-"

"So let's not let anyone into the coffin. For Martin."

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

Melanie recognizes the sound of a blade sinking into flesh the moment she walks past Jon's closed door. She stops for a moment to try and identify the feelings it brings her, and she's both happy and disappointed to find curiosity as the most prominent. She opens the door after her self exploration, a bit surprised to find it unlocked.

Jon is standing hunched over his desk and gasping in pain, one hand laid flat on top of a towel that's doing a piss poor job of absorbing a small puddle of blood, and a knife held on the other one.

"What are you doing?" Melanie asks, leaning back on the door to close it.

"Oh!" Jon's head snaps up to meet her, and he drops the knife into an open drawer he pushes shut right after. "I-"

"Yeah, that makes everything much less suspicious." She rolls her eyes. "Where did all that blood come from?"

"Uh- me, actually," Jon says apologetically. The towel makes a squelching sound when he folds if over. "I'm- would you believe me if I told you I'm trying to save Daisy?"

"Has your first idea for 'help" always been bullshit surgery, or is this a new development?" Melanie crosses her arms over her chest, and begins tapping a finger against her arm. Even just being in a room with Jon is irritating. Not enraging anymore, but he's just... eugh.

"... I'm- Basira said you didn't want to see me-"

"I didn't," she shakes her head, arms still crossed. The tapping finger is now a fingernail lightly dragging -not quite scratching- against her skin.

"-But I'm- I'm very sorry Melanie," Jon says, and Melanie rolls her eyes.

"Fuck off," she mutters, and even the way Jon flinches back at her voice makes her angrier. "You 'saved' me, isn't that what you wanted? Go, team Archives."

"I... I wanted to ask you." Jon's voice is low. "To-"

"Yeah, no. The only reason Gerry was able to get me off of you was because I was fighting the anesthetic, the sleeping pills, and the bullet was already off." Melanie gives a humorless laugh. "Basira was right, the only way to do it was to betray me and effectively destroy the last space I still felt somewhat safe in. So thank you."

"Basira said you were better..."

"Basira doesn't care if I feel better, Jon." Melanie sinks her nail into the meat of her arm, and the momentary flash of pain serves to keep her grounded. "She only cares that I'm a variable she can control. My condition was good when it kept us safe, but I was becoming too volatile, and now I'm de-clawed so I'm better, according to her."

Jon looks at her with a pained expression she somehow doubts has anything to do with whatever he was doing to his hand, and sighs.

"I know you won't believe me, but I care that you feel better. Maybe it's enough to start letting go of the an-"

"Oh, shut up. Please shut up, you don't even know!" Melanie snarls, her fingernails now well and truly sunken into her arm. She takes a moment to pull them out and take a deep breath. "My whole life, Jon. My whole life I've been angry because people look at me and think they know better, think I'm not good enough, not strong enough. This anger you want me to let go of is the reason I've gotten this far, it's what has pushed me to do anything in the first place, it's-"

"M- Melanie," Jon tries, but she whips a hand up to point at him and he shuts up immediately, flinching.

"No, listen to me! Do you have any idea what it's like? Of course you don't! You were picked to run this place even though they could hardly have found anyone less qualified, probably because Elias knew anyone else would see through his bullshit right away, what do you know about being passed over because of who you are?" She snarls. The rage, it feels... not like before. Or maybe that's how it felt before India, every word letting something out instead of drawing more back in for her to stew over. Jon is listening to her every thought, and she can see the hurt on his face but at least someone is listening. "And then this- this ghost shoots me. And suddenly something inside me is telling me that this is right! That this is my power, that I can. The bullet didn't stay because of some spooky bullshit, Jon. The only reason it was able to stay in the first place is because I wanted it."

The office is silent for a moment, the only sound echoing across being Melanie's hard breathing. Jon drops on his chair suddenly, like his legs feel weak. He gives her a slow nod.

"...Shit. I- Of course. I didn't- the entities choose their own," he says, which Melanie guesses is pretty on line with what Gerry told her. The Slaughter wanted her because she had always craved the power anger gave her, so maybe the Eye chose Jon because the moron ways craved to at least have an inkling of what's going on. "But I never thought about that. I'm- I'm very sorry Melanie."

"Yes."

"Melanie-"

"So-" Melanie interrupts him, because she's not about to have a 'you and I are one' moment with Jon of all people. "Why are you trying to chop off your fingers?"

"Oh- that, I'm-" Jon looks at his right hand like it just grew out of his forearm. "I'm going into the coffin."

Melanie arches an eyebrow. "The chained up coffin with 'do not open' scratched on the top?"

"Yes I know how it sounds like, thank you." Job huffs and rolls his eyes, and Melanie has a flashback to the first time they met, when he was so skeptical about her show and she tried to rile him up about his Institute's reputation. It feels like an eternity ago. "But Daisy's in there, and I'm the only one that probably won't die if I go in after her. I just need an anchor to come back."

"And you thought a finger would be enough."

"Well... it's a part of me. It doesn't get much closer than that," Jon runs a hand through his hair. His nervousness makes him appear a little more human, at least. "But I keep healing. Hurts plenty, but they won't come off."

"Right... listen, does your boyfriend know about this?"

Jon, who'd been scowling at his hand for not mutilating adequately, snaps back up to look at her like a deer in the headlights.

"My- w- who?" He stammers out, and Melanie wants to sock him on the nose. Less in a 'bash his head in' and more like when she punches Gerry on the ribs because he keeps trying to look at her phone when she's texting Georgie.

She rolls her eyes. "There's hair dye all over your hand." Jon seems to catch on at last, because he blushes enough for it to be noticeable against his dark skin. Back when they were dating Georgie used to say he was cute when he was flustered, but to Melanie he just looks constipated. "Kudos for fixing that by the way. But back to my point, does he know? Because this sounds like the kind of brilliant plan you hatch at three in the morning before going at your hair with the kitchen scissors."

"That's... oddly specific." Jon swallows. "I- Gerry doesn't know, no. Or- he knows I was looking into anchors..."

"But?"

"... But I promised him I wouldn't go in." He admits after a moment's hesitation. "I have to though. If Daisy's alive- I can't leave her there."

Again, Melanie doesn't care about Jon at all. But people around her do for some reason, even Georgie, despite how angry she is at him right now. And leaving Daisy in the Buried... she can see where he's coming from.

"But you can't go in anyways, can't you?" She asks, stalling for time as she tries to come to a decision. Jon seems awfully sure about the anchors, and he has to know if it'll work, the Eye wouldn't let him go in if it wasn't solid. "Without cutting the finger off, you don't have anything."

Jon sighs. "I guess. Hah, this would be a lot easier if we had the bone turner. Just... reach in and get me a rib."

Oh.

That's exactly the moment Melanie remembers she never told anyone what she did to Jared Hopworth, when stabbing heart after heart wasn't enough to keep him down.

"...Melanie?" Jon asks, suspicion coloring every syllable.

"Follow me. And don't talk," she warns before marching off towards the tunnels.

Jon does keep quiet as they make their way to the bright yellow door, terribly out of place in the tunnel's faded gray walls.

"I didn't know it was living here," he says then, and Helen's echoing laugh seeps from below the door. Melanie rolls her eyes.

"She's helped us a lot," is all she says before she opens the door. She doesn't know the rules too well, because Helen can open it herself just fine at times. Maybe it's only when there's no one else to open it?

"Calling me an it doesn't do you any favors, Archivist. What are you, then?" When Helen walks out of the door her knees are backwards and her lipstick keeps changing colors. "Especially as of late?"

Jon stiffens, before he jerks his head towards Melanie. "Do you trust it? For real?"

Melanie crosses her arms, unimpressed. "Don't call her that."

"Fine," Jon rolls his eyes. "Do you trust her? She's never helped me too much."

"Helen did," Helen says, smiling. "She locked the door, did you know?"

And that seems to take Jon off guard.

"Did- did she know? What would happen to her?"

Helen's smile zigzags across her face. "Helen was sharp."

Jon doesn't seem to know what to say to that, so Melanie steps forward again.

"I do trust her. And if you want the bone turner, you'll have to trust her too," she says seriously. If Jon can't take Melanie's judgement at face value then-

"Ok," Jon mutters almost to himself. Melanie remembers the testament tape, how she and Martin and Basira listened to it together, when it looked like they might be the only ones left. Jon's adamant voice as he declares 'I choose to trust' has a haunting quality in her memory. "Right. Then- then I'll- is he in there?"

Helen nods. She looks very pleased, and Melanie smiles a little. Helen may not be human, but she's still her friend.

"Mmm... he's not something I can really digest. Too meaty, you know?" Helen gestures towards her open door. "I'll make sure you run into him."

Jon takes a deep breath to steel himself. "Ok. I'll- I'll offer to let him out. For the rib. If he tries something-"

"I suggest running," Helen coos, and Melanie gets the feeling that she finds this very amusing. "Try to find a door."

"...Yes thank you," Jon gives her the stink eye before pulling a tape recorder from his pocket. At this point Melanie's starting to believe they give him the same sense of safety the knives gave her when she was still affected by the bullet. He turns to her. "Melanie..."

"I'm not going in with you. Good luck," she says, but he shakes his head.

"No, I just… it was never the bullet," Jon says and Melanie wants to groan because of course he has to go and make it awkward. "I'm- I'm very sorry you felt that way."

"... Jon please go in before I push you."

The door closes, and Melanie sits down against the wall. Helen quite literally folds herself by her side, and they wait.

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

"Oh, he's got his bone," says Helen an hour or so later when Melanie's just started dozing off. "He's not looking too good, though".

"Ugh. Of course he had to go and get himself all fucked up. What am I going to tell Gerry?" Melanie huffs, already trying to come up with a decent lie.

Helen tilts her head to the side. Her chin points at the ceiling. "We're keeping the secret?"

Melanie shrugs once, sharply. Jon doesn't deserve her loyalty, much less after everything that's happened lately. But she believes him when he says he's doing it for Daisy, and Melanie's personal grudges probably shouldn't get in the way of people doing what's right. Even if they're very reasonable personal grudges.

"Just this once," she tells Helen after a moment. "He'll owe me."

The door opens, and Jon groans and spills out like a boneless -Melanie can't hold back a snort- mess on the tunnels' floor, holding a startlingly white rib on his hand.

"He'll owe me big time."

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

"Oh shit, you're back early," Melanie looks up from her phone like a startled deer when he walks into the Archives.

Gerry arches an eyebrow, unimpressed. "I brought ice cream, but if you're going to be like this I'll just eat it all myself," he walks past her towards Jon's office.

"He's not there. He's- taking care of some business." Melanie's voice is painfully casual, and Gerry pinches the bridge of his nose with the hand not holding his half eaten treat. Who taught these people to lie and why did they do such a piss poor job of it?

"Melanie, where's Jon?"

"Doing Archivist things."

"First off, you don't know what that is. Second off, there's not nearly enough screams for that," Gerry rolls his eyes. "Where is he?"

"He-"

"The truth this time please." Gerry throws the plastic bag on top of a desk, and turns to her only to find her with the same dazed expression. "Why are you even lying? It's not like-" his stomach drops suddenly, and Gerry feels his mouth go dry. "Ah fuck. He did it."

He doesn't even want to think about what this means for him, because he's tied to Jon somehow, and now Jon is gone. Trapped. Unable to move, unable to breathe, dirt pressing all around him but never choking him enough to die. All to save another person because that's the only way he thinks he can justify his existence.

"He did what? Gerry, you're not making-" Melanie tries to talk over him, but he needs to get the words out because they taste rotten in his mouth.

"He went into the damned coffin didn't he? He promised he wouldn't, did-"

"He didn't-" Melanie slaps a hand on the desk to get his attention, and Gerry whips around to look at her. "Jon's fine. He just wasn't feeling well, you're making a mess." Gerry looks down. The half eaten lolly's melting on his hand, and a small red puddle has formed on the desk. "Wow, déja vu," mutters Melanie to herself.

"What's happened to him then?" Gerry frowns. It's not as if a migraine would be able to drop an avatar.

"I don't really like being Seen," comes a new voice, and Gerry whips around again, this time to see the yellow door that's now the entrance to a place that is not Jon's office. "And I didn't make it easy for him."

"So you two had a row?" That would make more sense, Gerry thinks. The Spiral is hard on the Eye. "About what?"

"Keep asking. Ended very well for him," Helen says smugly. Gerry notices however, that the Distortion hasn't even cracked the door open, much less come out, so Jon must've at least gotten a few good metaphorical punches in, whatever it was that they were fighting about. He turns to Melanie.

"What happened?"

Melanie rolls her eyes. "He called her an it. Everything escalated from there," she shrugs, and Gerry guesses from the way she averts her eyes that there's something she's not telling him, but that's ok. Whatever relationship she has with the Distortion is her own business. "He's on Basira's cot, by the tunnels."

Gerry blinks. "By the what?"

"The tunnels?" Melanie arches an eyebrow, like Gerry's playing dumb on purpose. "The ones under the Institute?"

"...Of course." Gerry forces through a suddenly too tight throat. "I'll- I'll go check on him."

"You forgot your loll- ugh," is all Gerry hears as he escapes the room, but he couldn't care less about the melting treat on the desk.

He walks aimlessly, trying to drown the cacophony of his thoughts with the loud sound of his steps, and he's barely aware -and vaguely thankful- that whatever tether his body was rebuilt around is pulling him toward Jon.

He shouldn't be this surprised, honestly. Gertrude... Gertrude lied about worse things. Did worse things. The entire conversation they had that evening is playing in his mind again, and Gerry feels his knees weaken as his pulse begins to race.

"Do you think they can reach us after death?"

Just when did he forget Gertrude was not his mother? How did he forget she could be just as cruel? Gerry's hands are shaking a little.

"Personally, I suspect death puts us beyond their power..."

Did she remember that moment as she mutilated his body in that American morgue? Did she even stop to think before she did it? His head feels like it's filled with crawling ants as he imagines, not for the first time, Gertrude peeling his skin off to make his page.

He lays a hand flat against the wall when the world starts wobbling a little. During the first few months in the book, Gerry had entertained the thought that Gertrude bound him out of some twisted version of love. She needed him around, they were a team, she'd burn his page when the job was done, and they'd be free together.

The fantasy only really lasted up until the hunters summoned him for the first time, and let him know they bought the book from a less than trustworthy cop that turned a blind eye to the two of them rifling through evidence for anything supernatural. Why does he feel so light-headed? He's breathing, he's breathing as fast as he can but there's no air in his lungs and they're starting to burn and-

"Gerry?" The voice is like a soothing balm, snuffing out all of Gerry's thoughts at once and leaving him only with blessed silence and the taste of the gentle concern poured into his name. He looks up -he doesn't remember when he slid down the wall- to find Jon crouching before him. "What happened?" He asks, and the words once again taste sweet with worry.

Gerry wonders if this isn't the Eye's cruelest joke yet, handing Gerry over to someone who actually cares, after the fate that befell him at the hands of his predecessor. After he's learned not to trust.

"Why's your hand all red? Your mouth- is it- oh it's sticky-" Jon's touch is clumsy when it lands first on Gerry's cherry-stained hand, then on his face. Yet another confirmation that he's not accustomed to human closeness. "You don't look good."

"You've looked better yourself." Gerry croaks, but it lacks the light teasing tone he usually gives Jon. It's... it probably wouldn't come across too well right now. "Why do you have a Flesh mark?"

Jon lips twist into a tired version of his usual, lopsided smile, as his hand curls into a fist and lays softly on Gerry's shoulder. Now that the panic attack is subsiding, the exhaustion is kicking in. "Helen has eaten some nasty things."

"You look like someone's fear bingo card," Gerry huffs. One would think Elias would take better care of his Archivist, even Gertrude never had these many close encounters and she practically looked for them.

"What's the prize?" Jon asks, his smile still tired but a bit more alive with amusement.

'You are', Gerry thinks, and at the same time he also Knows. Both certainties are puzzling enough, but he's not in the headspace to think harder about any of them. Besides, it's a bit heavy to just drop that out there. "Let's not find out. I'd rather keep you out of trouble."

"I- I picked up a statement. To read at home," Jon mumbles. Gerry chuckles a little. He doesn't remember if he ever really had something he could call home, but the little flat with the lavender-smelling couch and Jon on the coffee table feel welcoming enough. "But I think we could use it now. Both of us."

Gerry lays a heavy hand on Jon's shoulder and pulls him down, moving slowly enough that Jon can turn around before he lands, leaning half on the wall, half against Gerry's side.

"Sounds like a plan." Gerry leans his head back against the wall to look up at the old, flickering lightbulbs. He feels Jon's troubled eyes on him. An Archivist's gaze is not to be ignored, but Gerry can't bring himself to look back. It's already bad enough that he likes Jon. That he cares for him, trusts him.

Maybe being tied to Jon is not the price to pay for living again. Maybe the price is learning just all the ways Gertrude played him. Learning again and again that perhaps he did trust her after all, and that it was all for nothing. Living with the constant fear that the second time around will be just the same, and there's something in Gerry that causes people to leave.

Jon's hand lands on Gerry's knee suddenly, gracelessly. Reassuringly.

"Statement of Adam Rodak," Jon reads. His word taste of peace, and his hand squeezes around Gerry's knee. A small comfort, from someone so unused to getting them. Gerry lets his eyes fall shut and his head fall sideways to rest against Jon's. "Regarding a holiday on the countryside..."

[razorblade180]

Lasting Embers pt21: Wariness of battle

[Menagerie]

*Blake still on the phone with Yang. Sun and Ilia are in the room.*

Sun:So, what’s the situation?

Yang:Nora got attacked in the Emerald Forest by what looked like to be at least fifteen cult members. They new when to get her, what time to take out Mercury and Emerald, and also knew about Tenzen despite them being out of the fight for so long.

Ilia:Are Mercury and Emerald okay? Those two aren’t the kind to just simply go down easily.

Yang:They were ambushed and said before they could really do anything they were overwhelmed by grimm. If it wasn’t for Tenzen then this story would have a pretty horrific story. He’s the only reason we even know about the attack; the only reason we made it in time.

Blake:Where is everyone now?

Yang:We’re all at my dad’s house recuperating. Emerald wounds were bad but not life threatening while Mercury is currently bedridden. He got pretty roughed up but he’ll pull through. Nora is up and active thanks to Jaune. Tenzen however, he’s unconscious. Things got dicey for him at the very end. I’m told he’ll be fine. Everyone should pull through.

Sun:Blake, this seems to be way too coordinated to be the acts of a dying cult. Whitley, Jacquelyn, now Nora. I hate to say it but-

Blake:We missed something huge; something detrimental.

Yang:I hate to ask but it would be really nice to have you here. Ruby’s is on edge about this and frankly so am I. Weiss already said she’ll head out as quick as possible.

Blake:As much as I would love to hop on a airship right now I can’t. The festival here is in honor of my return and I have to attend; honestly everyone knowing I’m back is gonna make everything from here on out difficult for me. I’ll show up first chance I get when it’s all over though. I’m technically not in power again yet.

Sun:That role is still on me miraculously. *making a call*

Ilia:Who are you calling?

Sun:All these attacks on families yet I’ve heard nothing from Neo in Argus. It has me concerned.

Yang:Don’t you mean “text?” Last time I checked she wasn’t really chatty.

Ilia:Oh she’s pretty chatty these days. Adam’s eye wasn’t the only thing the creation relic was used for. Neo can talk and next chance you get you should tell Mercury to roll up his pants. Seemed like a fair trade for working in our organization.

Yang:I can see why you were a team leader; you’ve been busy.

Sun:Just making the most of crappy situations.

*a hologram pops up with Neo standing there waving. There’s blood on her clothes*

Neo:Sup boss, I was just about to report in actually. The Arc family was attacked yesterday.

Ilia:WHAT!?

Blake:This just keeps getting worse...

Neo:Relax, everyone is fine. Adrian had a construction job and thought one of the buildings listed seemed a bit off. He notified me about it and sure enough 45 members using it as a place to hide until they captured everyone.

Sun:Why am I hearing about this only now!?

Neo:I’ve been busy being your top operative that’s why!

Ilia:You’re ranked number three; only behind myself and Adam because you’re a bit.....of a wild card.

Neo:Regardless, I’m arguably the best around; especially with assignments like these. My report is late because I moved the entire family to a safe place on the Atlas base then made an identical copy of their house for the cult to raid with my semblances. Shit like that takes time that can’t be wasted.

Yang:*shocked* 45 members? That’s extremely excessive and more than a few stragglers.

Neo:They were all basically fodder. The only reason for their numbers so high has to because either they wanted the family captured in one fell swoop, or they thought that would be enough to stop me. I guess they might’ve feared the military being close by too.

Sun:Where are the members now?

Neo:They walked into the decoy house only for it to be an abandoned building with me inside. All of them fought their hardest but ended up the same; tortured for information and killed. Now they’re buried deep under rubble because it “just so happened” that building was set for demolition and destroyed by Adrian. Simple as that.

Blake:You tortured and killed 45 people....

Neo:infiltration and information gathering is why I’m ranked so high. Not to mention I did it all alone. I’m a wild card for sure. I’m sort of a badass.

Sun:Focus Neo, what did you learn?

Neo:Nothing important; like I said they were fodder. Given orders by some boss they don’t even know the name of. I thought they were bluffing but annoyingly they were all just pawns. Not even an actual member here looked like they could lead for a second or even the grimm using type. Now someone like that might know something of use.

Ilia:What are chances any of your assailants are still alive Yang?

Yang:Surprisingly, exactly one. He lead the attack and Jaune wanted answers to. He isn’t saying anything though; he’s been trained real well or still in too much pain from his broken legs.

Neo:I bet I could get him to sing like a bird if I had a moment with him.

Yang:More than welcome to try. Frankly I’m tired of looking at the guy and I don’t have the stomach to do what you do.

Neo:Well you might have to because unless you ship him over here I can’t leave. The Arc family is safe for now but I don’t them alone.

Ilia:They won’t be, I’ll take your spot and you can go to Atlas to catch a ride with Weiss to Vale.

Sun:Are you really okay with that? You just got back.

Ilia:Eh, this is very important. Besides, festivals were never really my scene anyways. *smiles*

Blake:I guess it’s settled then. Let’s keep everything about this between us for now. That includes Adam; I don’t want him involved in this if I could help it.

Ilia:You’re the boss. Well, former boss. *leaves* I’ll pack my things and head out.

Neo:I’m gonna go clean up. Blood takes forever to get out. *hangs up*

Sun:Sigh, this sure kills the festive mood a bit. I’m gonna triple check all set ups and just make sure everything stays peaceful for tonight. *kisses Blake and leaves*

Yang:You want to keep Adam out the loop?

Blake:You can call me soft or sentimental but I don’t want him wondering around the world more than he needs to. His family really missed him.

Yang:I know how that goes. This whole thing is gonna blow over right....?

Blake:We can only be so lucky. Be safe alright?

Yang:You too Blake, I’ll call back later. *hangs up and starts walking through her childhood home*

Despite the countless years, things remain the same. From the scuffs on the wooden floor to the photos on the wall leading to her old room.

Yang:*slowly opens the door to peak in on Tenzen.*......

Tenzen:*laying in her old bed asleep. A purple bruise across his nose and on his left cheek. Bandages across his bare chest and slightly bruised ribs*

Yujin:*sitting by his bed on the floor. Placing the bracelet he gave her back into his hand and holding it tightly* I think you need jade dragon luck more than I do right now....

Yang:Sigh.....

Jaune:*behind Yang* She’s not gonna leave his side until he wakes up you know? Hopefully it won’t take too long.

Yang:Can’t you help speed up the process a little? I mean the kid still has some pretty bad bruises.

Jaune:Tenzen’s semblance and mine don’t really compliment each other. I’ve done all I’ve can for now; natural rest is the best thing for him now.

Yang:How’s our special guest?

Jaune:See for yourself *gestures outside*

*Jericho tied against a tree as he’s propped up on the ground as the remaining friends and family of Yang rest outside*

Nora:*watching him like a hawk*......

Jericho:You know is this really necessary? *looks at his crippled legs* I couldn’t escape even if I wanted to. You worried I might almost kill you again.

Ren:Talk to her again and I’ll snap your neck.

Jericho:That would make you really bad at interrogation. I guess your mind has gotten weaker with your body.

*Before Ren gets the chance to walk over to him he’s stopped by Nora. Quelling his anger and preventing him from doing anything he’ll regret*

Jericho:Honestly both of you are a little disappointing. I thought huntsmen where supposed be honored by civilization and feared by villains. I don’t feel very afraid of-*cresent rose wraps around the tree as the blade presses against his neck*

Ruby:If you’re gonna talk then it better be about something valuable. Otherwise I’d recommend you keep quiet.

Jericho:So the Red Reaper finally speaks. I’ll admit that you are the only one that’s worth being afraid of around here. After all, you’re the only one here with nothing to lose. *smirks*

Ruby:*adds more pressure, cutting his neck slightly*

Jericho:Ooo did I strike a nerve?

Tai:Don’t let him get to you Ruby.

*Jaune and Yang finally come walking out the house. Jaune’s sword drawn and ready to strike*

Jericho:Someone looks a little-AH!!

Jaune:*stabbing his leg* I can understand a lot of things like attacking people who are actively going after you. But please explain why the hell I was just told my family was almost murdered?*digs the blade in*

Jericho:*grits teeth* Hehehe so I guess that means they screwed up the job. How *spits blood* unfortunate.

Jaune:Honestly what the hell is wrong with you bastards!? Why rope kids into this? Why go after distant relatives and people who don’t know anything about how the world really works.

Jericho:Aren’t you supposed to be the smart one? Can you truly not grasp the simple concept of our warfare? I know one of you probably gets it as clear as day. *looks at Raven*

Raven:....Sigh, it’s psychological and emotional torture. However, I’ve never known anybody to commit to that kind of tactic for over a decade.

Jericho:True but what choice do we have? You’re all too damn strong for your own good. No well we could move the way we want to when you people are at your best. So we use fear.

Ruby:*stares him down* No one here is afraid of scum like you.

Jericho:Mmmm such hate in those eyes. We aren’t trying to make you afraid of us my darling, you’re fear lies in living another day knowing things will never be the same.

Everyone:......

Jericho:Does it haunt you often? Knowing tomorrow is another day without the intimate love you once had? The mentor’s warm embrace you grew up with ripped away from you? Are you even sure how they died?

Ruby:*eyes slightly soften as she takes a step back* What are you going on about.

Jericho:It’s a simple question I know you’ve had to talk about. I bet you like to think it was as painless as possible but that’s impossible to know. The screams of your late husband as he burned alive, or maybe it was quiet gasps as he crushed by the debris of your burning home.

Ruby:Shut up.....

Jericho:Did your Uncle put up a valiant fight and almost won? Not likely, he probably screamed as the grimm ripped him apart and dragged him into his flames! Both of them wishing you were there to save them. I bet silver eyes would’ve saved them!!!

Ruby:I SAID SHUT UP!!! *she drops to her knees crying and covering her ears*

Yang and Tai:Ruby!!! *rushes to her side*

Jericho:Oh she looked so dangerous just a few minutes ago and now look at her; far from her best.

Jaune:.....

Jericho:Loved ones, children, family, and friends. It doesn’t matter how strong you are when you have these ripped from you. Knowing that you’ll never see their face again eats away at a persons mind. Awake, asleep, everyday life, or on the battlefield of war. Even just a close call messes with people’s head. *looks at Ren* ever wonder how much your wife might blame herself for your condition? Seeing you in pain everyday thinking how she should’ve been better.

Nora:*stares at the ground clenching her fist* Someone shut him up already please.....?

Jaune:*walking over to him*

Jericho:Have a said too much? Hehehe I didn’t even get started on how this involves all of your kids.

*Everyone freezes in place for a moment*

Jericho:You do everything for them, including leave them. Believeing it’s the best option to stop people like me. Praying you don’t come back home to find them dead and not even by us. Ten years is a long time, any natural disaster could’ve happened. A simple car or mugger is all it takes and next thing you know is the person you fought ten years for died seven years ago. These plans all of you make are simply the works of people clinging on to what little hope they have. Stop us all you want; when the fighting is over you gotta live with what you lost until you die and-

Yang:*picks him up and slams him against a tree. Her eyes a deep blood red* You can stop spouting all of your crap now. You’ll have plenty of time to talk later when our friend gets the information we want out of you. Then all of us can finally move on from this nightmare!

Jericho:Are you *cough* sure you want to know how many of us are left? It could be 50 or it could be 500. Do you think you can take another indefinite journey; I wonder how your daughter would feel about her mom leaving again?

Yang:.....*drops him*

Jericho:HAHAHAHA! Oooo boy! If she doesn’t hate you now then she’s definitely going to after that! So much for coming home to loved ones; if you both live long enough to see each other that is!!! HAHAHAHA- *knocked out by a punch from Jaune*

Jaune:The moment he wakes up....knock him out again. I don’t wanna hear his voice for the rest of my life. *looks around at everyone*

Ren holds a crying Nora in his arms to comfort. Both of them obviously shaken by the man’s words. Raven proceeds to hug her daughter who’s eyes still haven’t calm down her body heaving out rage and fear of the future. Then there’s Ruby, wailing and trembling on the ground until she can barely breath. Tai holds back his tears as he holds his youngest daughter close to him. The sun is finally going down but nobody seems to care. It helps hide the pain on their face. So Jaune doesn’t say anything; he just walks back upstairs to Yujin.

Jaune:*peeks through the door*.....

Yujin:*Fast asleep and still clinging to Tenzen’s hand*Zzzzzz

Jaune:*picks her up and places her in bed* sleep tight*

Yujin:*barely awake* Dad? Hey, how is everyone doing?

Jaune:They’re....they are doing just fine. Gets some rest okay? *kisses her forehead*

Yujin:Alright dad; feel bad though. Not like I’ve been doing much. *yawns* at least.....it’s almost over....*passes out*

Jaune:........*tears well up as he leaves the room* Damnit *sniff* stay strong Jaune. You have to be the strong one right now. You have to keep things-*looks at his wedding ring*.......

*he slides down the wall and just sits on the floor*

Jaune:For crying out loud *tears finally start running down his face* she’s gonna leave again isn’t she?

[peace-coast-island]

Diary of a Junebug

The Ethereal Gates of Wisdom

These past few days have been a bit of an unusual adventure. It’s one of those things I’ve been putting off for a while until the opportunity’s right. Traveling to the Ethereal Gates of Wisdom is no easy feat so it’s important to have a strategy on how to get there without getting lost.

According to Jamie, most people give up halfway because it takes too long to get there. That’s why they said only those who truly seek answers are the ones who make it to the Gates. Jamie gave me the key years ago and since then that adventure has been sitting on the back burner until a couple days ago.

The reason why I finally decided to visit the Gates is for Daisy Jane. Now that she’s been living at the campsite for a couple weeks, she’s been doing a lot of soul searching and reevaluation. The past year hasn’t been good to her so I’m glad that she’s finally found a light at the end of a long and seemingly endless tunnel.

A change of scenery can do wonders for your mind, especially if you’ve been stagnating for a while. That’s why Daisy Jane left Rosevine - because the place she once called home was suffocating her instead of letting her bloom and grow.. That’s how I felt too, as well as other friends like Emmaline, Minnie, and Robin. 

It’s not that we don’t like Rosevine, it’s just that we outgrew our little hometown. Our roots are still in Rosevine, but we’ve branched out to other places. Like flowers on a tree, we are carried away by the wind, floating and fluttering as we find our way in this vast universe. Some take root, others continue to fly freely.

Ever since Daisy Jane joined me at the camp, she’s been on a creative roll. For the past several months she was suffering the absolute worst art block along with a bunch of other problems that wore her down. After leaving home, she traveled for a bit before settling in Neptunia. The village, while it was nice, didn’t do much for her. So that’s why I suggested she move in the cabin and since then she’s made it her home.

For a while Daisy Jane has been considering opening a shop where she sells handmade crafts and stationery. I think she’s the kind of person who can pull that off because not only she’s super artsy, but she’s also organized and has the self discipline to run her own business. Unfortunately her family’s the main reason why she hasn’t started a shop yet as they don’t think it’s viable. As long as she was living under the same roof as them and not working a “real” job with income, an online business was out of the question.

Now that she’s out on her own with no parents or siblings to hound her as well as having her own space and income, Daisy Jane feels like she’s in the right headspace to design products for her potential shop. She’s been on a roll designing sticker sheets, which will be her main thing before branching out to other products like notebooks and enamel pins. Since she loves drawing florals and ephemera, Daisy Jane plans to call her store Happy Floral Mail, which I think is very fitting.

I’m not being biased, I would definitely buy Daisy Jane’s stickers. After all, she’s one of many artists I find inspiration from so why wouldn’t I want to support her?

Apparently a while ago Daisy Jane told her sister about her ideas regarding opening a shop as Mae’s in college studying digital media so she’s an expert on various programs. Mae’s a smart kid who means well but sometimes she can be a bit too much. 

Basically if Daisy Jane decided to co-run her shop with Mae, it would have failed before it even launched. The biggest issue would be creative differences because they’re basically opposites in terms of everything. It’s like telling an artist who likes to draw flowers that they have to draw cars because that’s what’s trending and if you disagree then you’re being ungrateful because you obviously don’t know what you’re talking about. 

So it’s that, plus the fact that Mae can be weirdly controlling and nosy at times. Like she’s strangely obsessed with who Daisy Jane keeps in contact with. Apparently if Daisy Jane isn’t constantly video chatting or talking on the phone or talking about socializing with someone, then she doesn’t have friends according to Mae logic. I get that Mae’s the kind of person who talks about everything - even when it’s not in her place - but she really needs to learn how to let people be.

Another thing about Mae which is pretty recent is how she sees most of Daisy Jane’s friends like me and Emmaline. Once upon a time Mae used to look up to Emmaline because she thought she was cool as she was always going on magical adventures. Now she kinda looks down on Emmaline because she doesn’t meet her definition of success. As in Emmaline never went to school so she has no degrees as well as no job or career (freelancing and odd jobs don’t count) so in Mae’s eyes, Emmaline’s a layabout.

Having grown up with Emmaline, calling her a layabout is such a misunderstanding. Being half elemental, Emmaline’s upbringing is far from ordinary. She spent her whole childhood and adolescence trying to bring her two worlds together, often putting herself in a position no one should be forced in and although she helped a lot of people, it had a detrimental effect on her mental health. Considering how Emmaline pretty much spent a good part of her life playing either peacemaker, therapist, fleeing war criminal, and diplomat - and is now finally finding footing by traveling the universe and enjoying life - to call her a layabout is an insult.

And yes, this is in response to a vague post Mae made in regards to not being on Emmaline and Minnie’s guest list for their wedding. Daisy Jane shared it to us and we all rolled our eyes collectively because yikes Mae. Like first of all, it wasn’t anything personal, it’s just that the wedding will take place while she’s studying abroad so there’s no way she was going to make it. Also, Emmaline and Minnie aren’t as close to her as they are to Daisy Jane so there’s really no reason why she should be offended at not being invited.

I’m curious as to what Mae would vague about me when she finds out where Daisy Jane’s been living. Don’t get me wrong, Mae’s a very capable girl who’s gonna be super successful but she really needs to get off her high horse. It’s understandable that she has a chip on her shoulder that pushes her to be hard working but as she’s gotten older she seems to have fallen into the mindset that if you’re not working your ass off, then you’re not worthy.

Anyway, now that Daisy Jane’s found her footing in terms of her creative spark returning and getting away from those holding her back, she feels like she’s ready to take a leap of faith. She says she still has a long way to go before opening a shop but the timing feels right. That’s why I decided to take her to the Gates - to give her the extra push she needs to bring herself one step closer to making her dream a reality.

First, we headed to the Witches Woods to retrieve the ruby key, which will lead us to a portal. Since it’s not too far from Camellia, Theda tagged along to guide us through the woods as she’s somewhat familiar with certain parts of it. The trails can be long and confusing so it’s good to have a navigator help us out. 

The deeper in the woods we go, the more dangerous it gets. The trees act as a defense system so if you’re not careful, you might get pelted by poison fruit or clawed by sharp branches. Plus there’s hostile creatures to watch out for as well, especially the giant spiders that usually come out of nowhere. Despite the seemingly harsh environment, the witches we came across are friendly and some were able to help point us in the right direction when the trees played tricks on us.

After the woods came the Floating Freeway, a well known highway for traveling through dimensions. There, Celinda joined in on the adventure as she can easily weave in and out of places easily with her powers. With her help, navigating the crowded freeway will take about half the time. 

From there, we headed to the Scattering Skies where we have to travel by magic carpet. It’s a rough ride as the winds are unpredictable so it’s important to have a pilot who’s just as reckless - meaning Celinda. And there’s also swinging swords with sharp edges floating freely about so we gotta worry about that too. Getting through the Skies and retrieving the jade key in one piece is no easy feat so if that isn’t enough to discourage you from going to the Gates, then that says a lot about your character in my opinion.

At the crossing, the jade key led us to another portal, taking us to the Floundering Forests, where we met up with Lenie. She and her parents have been exploring the forest for the past few weeks so they’re somewhat familiar with the trails. Lenie always wanted to see the Gates so it was the perfect opportunity! 

The thing about the Floundering Forests is that we need to arm ourselves with magic wands. Some areas have been overtaken by city folks who want to build factories so they’ll attack anything that moves. They’re also not the kind of people you want to get on the wrong side of so a basic sleep spell will do the trick to slip past them. Also, this forest tends to play tricks on you too so it’s important to keep track of where you’re going.

After finding the carnelian key, we headed to the Layering Lagoon, navigating by submarine piloted by Lenie. Through there, we locate the ruins of Castellana, which will lead us to the Gates. Lenie drove the sub, Celinda and I distracted lagoon monsters, Theda helped navigate, and Daisy Jane supervised everyone.

It really takes a team to get to the Gates of Ethereal Wisdom! There’s no way anyone can make it on a solo adventure, especially when confronting the currents and inhabitants of the Layering Lagoon. 

By my calculations, it took us about three days - starting from Witches Woods - to get to the Gates. If Theda, Celinda, and Lenie hadn’t tagged along I guess it’ll take me and Daisy Jane at least twice as long. It was a long trip, but it was totally worth it!

Stepping into the Ethereal Gates of Wisdom is like walking straight into a void. First you feel like you’re falling, then slowly you realize that you’re actually floating. You feel weightless like a leaf in the wind, floating freely without a care in the world. For a second I forgot that I had a physical form - and that was a trippy experience. A bit disoriented, very much exhilarated, small and alone yet wide and full - all of it crashing in on you.

I still can’t put into words how exactly I feel after stepping out of the Gates. I feel certain yet uncertain at the same time - like I have a better idea of what I want but I also realize how little I actually know about things. Something’s changed, that I know for sure, but whatever it is, I can’t quite put my finger on it yet.

[razieltwelve]

Prodigy (Final Rose AU Snippet)

Ruby did her best to tune out the whispers. Having one prodigy in the family was remarkable enough. Having two was downright ridiculous. Her lips twitched. If only people knew. Her other siblings were every bit as talented as her and Averia, but her parents had always been content to let them progress at their own rate. It was why they had agreed to let Diana be accelerated through Beacon whereas Jessica was likely to adopt a more normal pace.

It wasn’t about talent. Jessica was more than good enough to be accelerated to. However, Jessica’s friends - her future teammates - weren’t ready to be accelerated, and their parents weren’t going to force her to leave them behind. Teammates were family in all but blood. Breaking up great teams before they could really even form would not turn out well for anybody.

“You’re getting your own team too, you know,” Averia murmured as they made their way toward the hall for the welcoming ceremony.

“Did Diana tell you that?” Ruby asked. “Or is that another prediction from Saviour?”

“Diana helps our Aunt Vanille run team compatibility simulations.” Averia lowered her voice. “She may also have hacked the database to find out what the teams are.”

“Doesn’t Aunt Vanille do security for that database though?” Ruby’s brows furrowed. Diana was phenomenal, but their Aunt Vanille was one of the few people who could potentially keep her out of a system she wanted to get into.

“Diana got in through Atlas’s database. Beacon is locked up tight, but Atlas handles its own cyber-security.”

“But Uncle Hope is no slouch,” Ruby countered. “He should be able to keep that database secure.”

“You can thank internal Atlas politics for Uncle Hope not being in charge of that. Diana found out, which is why she was confident of getting in.” Averia’s lips twitched. “So… do you want to know who you’ve got?”

“No.” Ruby grinned. “I want it to be a surprise.” She paused. “Unless my team is awful. Please, tell me they’re not awful.”

“Oh… I think you’ll find your team interesting, and you’ll have at least one familiar face to help you get started.”

“Well, that’s a relief.” Ruby’s eyes narrowed. “Is it Claire? Or maybe’s it’s Trajan. How about -”

“I thought you wanted it to be a surprise?” Averia ruffled Ruby’s hair. “Don’t worry. I think you’ll like your team.” She paused. “And you might want to buy some tuna before you meet them.”

“Tuna?”

Averia shrugged. “I don’t know why you’d need tuna, but Diana was pretty firm on it being a good idea.”

“Hmm… I wonder why she didn’t tell me about this,” Ruby mused.

“Probably because she finds the idea of me advising you to buy tuna amusing.”

“Probably.”

X     X     X

Ruby tried not to stare at the very, very pretty heiress. “Uh… hi.”

“Good morning.” Weiss extended her hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Ruby. I am Weiss Schnee.”

“I know.” Ruby’s brain finally caught up to her mouth. “I mean… it’s a pleasure to meet you too, Weiss.” She shook the heiress’s hand and took careful note of what she observed. As Tifa Mom was so fond of saying, people’s hands always told a story. Weiss might have delicate-looking hands, but there was a wiry strength to them that spoke of experience in handling a weapon, and the calluses on her hands could only have come from many, many hours of practice. “It’s good to have you on the team.”

“I must say, I was a little disappointed to not be leading my own team, but in light of the circumstances, I can understand why you were chosen.” Weiss chuckled. “As impressive as my pedigree might be, I think you have the edge since your parents are certainly quite prominent.”

Ruby scratched the back of her head. “Yeah. They’re pretty famous.” That was a massive, massive understatement. Tifa Mom was probably the least famous of her parents, and she was still super famous. Summer Mom, Lightning Mom, and Fang Mom were all like… super mega famous. “But I’m kind of hoping they didn’t just pick me because of my family, you know.”

“Ah, relax.” Yang threw one arm around Ruby and pulled her into an impromptu headlock, and Ruby tried very hard not to think about how her face was being pressed into Yang’s chest. And it was a really, really nice chest. “Ruby here got the second highest score on the tactics and strategy portion of the exam.”

“Oh? Who else was in the top three?” Weiss asked.

Yang let go of Ruby and then lifted her up like a trophy. Ruby’s eye twitched. She might not be as short as Diana, but it was kind of galling to be waved around like a trophy although Yang somehow had a way of making the whole experienced pleasant. The blonde was just so warm and affectionate. “First place was Averia. No surprise there. Pyrrha Nikos came in third. Ruby had her beat by half a point.”

“And Averia was ten points ahead of me,” Ruby countered, squirming free and doing her best to channel Averia’s glare. To her dismay, Yang just smirked back. They both knew that Ruby was awful at intimidation unless she was truly angry, and she couldn’t really remember the last time she’d gotten truly angry at Yang. “So I’ve still got a long way to go.”

Weiss smiled and extended her hand to Yang as well. “It would be remiss of me not to formally greet you as well, Yang Xiao Long - gah!”

“Forget the handshake,” Yang said, tugging Weiss into a headlock. “We’re teammates now.”

Ruby bit back a laugh as Weiss struggled briefly before realising the futility of it. Yang might not be as fast as Ruby, but Dust she was strong. Weiss had also seemingly realised that being in a headlock put her right next to Yang’s bust. “Don’t worry, Weiss. You’ll get used to it. Yang is just, well, Yang.”

“Yep.” Yang let go of Weiss. “By the way… has anyone seen our fourth member? We were supposed to meet at this training ground, but she hasn’t shown up yet.”

“Hmm…” Weiss’s brows furrowed. “Could she have gotten lost? Beacon Senior Academy does have a lot of training grounds, and this is the first day of school.”

“I don’t know,” Ruby said. “But I brought tuna.”

Yang tilted her head to one side. “Why would you need tuna?”

Ruby shrugged. “Diana told Averia to tell me to bring tuna.” She made a face. “It’s Diana. She says a lot of crazy stuff, but she’s basically always right.” 

“But tuna?” Weiss pressed. “What does tuna have to do with anything?” “Like I said, I don’t know.” Ruby took out the can of tuna and put it on the ground. “Hmm… nothing’s happening.”

“Maybe you should open it,” Yang said. 

“Sure, why not?” Ruby laughed. “Maybe opening it will magically summon our teammate somehow.” She opened the can of tuna, and barely five seconds passed before someone hopped out of the tree next to them. In an instant, she and Yang had already moved to intercept them. Ruby had never worked with Weiss before but given the Schnee family’s reputation for doing extremely extravagant things involving Dust and Glyphs, it was probably safe to guess the other girl was a heavy hitter who could drop the hammer while Ruby and Yang covered her. 

However, Ruby screeched to a halt as she took in the appearance of the person who had dropped out of the tree. Her first impression was to try not to gawk. Did Beacon have like some kind of attractiveness criteria because so far all the girls she’d seen had been gorgeous? If Yang was more the tall and busty type and Weiss was the elegant and petite type, the dark-haired girl in front of them was somewhere in between, athletic and graceful but not nearly as delicate in appearance as Weiss. 

“Is that tuna?” the girl asked.

Ruby blinked. “Yes. Yes, it is.”

“And you just opened the can and put it on the ground?”

“Uh… yeah.”

“Why?”

“I don’t actually know,” Ruby said. “But… are you our teammate?”

The dark-haired girl’s lips twitched, and she sketched them a rough bow. “Blake Belladonna.” Her eyes drifted over them. “And you would be Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long, and Weiss Schnee.”

“Technically, my full name would be Oerba Yun Ruby Rose-Lockhart-Farron but, yeah, Ruby Rose is kind of easier to say.”

"That’s quite a mouthful,” Blake drawled. “I can see why you just go by Ruby Rose.”

Ruby giggled. “When I was younger I tried to change it to Ruby Awesome, but my parents said no.”

“Ruby Awesome?” Weiss asked. “Really?”

“Yeah… because I was awesome,” Ruby replied.  “I… see.” Weiss evidently couldn’t if her tone of voice was anything to go by. She glanced at Blake and then extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Blake.”

It took a moment for Blake to shake Weiss’s hand. Ruby took note of it. Was Blake just not big on physical contact or was there something else there? She couldn’t be sure, but she could have sworn Blake’s expression had tightened ever so slightly when she’d seen Weiss.

“Am I going to shake your hand too?” Blake asked Yang.

“Nope.” Blake was promptly introduced to the greatness that was a Yang headlock. “Handshakes are boring.”

“So… we’re team RWBY, huh?” Blake looked at each of them, and Ruby had the distinct feeling Blake was taking their measure. Hopefully, she measured up. 

“Yep.” Ruby smiled. “And we’re going to be the best team ever!”

X     X     X

“So…” Vanille murmured. “Are you spying on your sisters again?”

Diana glanced away from the holographic display. “Mostly Ruby. Averia should be fine. She’s got Elsa, Claire, and Jahne. She’s known Elsa and Jahne for years, and Claire is our cousin. Ruby’s got Yang, but she’s not really familiar with Blake or Weiss. At the least the tuna trick worked.”

“Like mother like daughter,” Vanille said. “Have you got eyes on Team JNPR?”

“Yeah. I think Jaune is doing his best to not throw up in panic about being made leader. He’s managed to succeed so far.”

“Good for him. Pyrrha took it well though.”

“She did, but everything I’ve been able to find out about her suggests that she really is just super nice, sweet, and kind despite being almost as much of a killer robot as Averia.”

“Meh. Maybe she’s got better software installed.”

“Maybe.”

X     X     X

Author’s Notes

This is another snippet set in the Summer/Lightning/Fang/Tifa AU. Probably the biggest change for Ruby in this AU is that everyone - absolutely everyone - will know who she is since not only is Summer still alive but she also never gets crippled by the Grimm in this AU. Given how much Ruby looks like Summer, her fellow students are going to put two and two together. There will be a huge amount of pressure on her to live up to her parents’ standards, just like there is for Averia, but Ruby is two years younger.

On the other hand, it does make some things easier. Weiss would normally be more aggravated about not being leader, but she knows who Ruby is, so she can’t exactly get upset by that. If anything, she’s pleased because being on a team with Ruby is a very, very favourable outcome for her. From a purely pragmatic point of view, being on the same team as Ruby is fantastic since teammates generally becomes close friends and allies (or possibly even more).

Ruby’s response to Yang is also very different than in canon because they aren’t sisters. Moreover, although they get along great and consider themselves close friends, Yang was raised in Patch whereas Ruby was raised in Vale. As a result, Ruby is not oblivious to the fact that Yang is a very attractive person in more ways than one.

And then there’s Blake.

In this AU, the White Fang is generally more peaceful because the last time they stepped out of line, they got smacked down so hard they never forgot about it. This is largely due to one of the establishments the more militant White Fang attacking in the past being a hotel owned by Tifa. She took exception to their attack on the hotel, and Lightning, Summer, and Fang were similarly unimpressed. Things after that did not get well for the White Fang.

As a result, this Blake is less filled with regret over being a former terrorist and although wary of Weiss is less hostile to begin with. She has, however, left home in a bid to carve out her own identity, so she doesn’t have to live in the shadows of her parents who rule over Menagerie. Yes, she basically is a princess, so both Ruby and Averia have got one on their teams. Of course, Elsa also doubles as an air conditioner, but Blake can make clones, so it’s not a total loss.

You can find me on fanfiction.net, AO3, and Amazon.

Definitely check out my Amazon stuff if you enjoy my sense of humour.

[mister-lucky-bunny]

New Adventures From The World of Twelve

Hey guys! New fanfiction, and this time it’s Wakfu related! While not featuring any of the characters from the TV show, I wanted to do the formula of “One Adventure a Day” with a few OCs! I may post pictures of them later, but for now here’s chapter one. Let me know what you think and please enjoy!

Description:  After a Iop woman gets separated from her patrol unit, she vows to go find them again, with the help of a new friend. The question is, what will the two of them encounter on their expedition?

New Adventures From The World of Twelve

Chapter 1: The Hidden City

The World of Twelve. A massive, seemingly endless world of potential adventures, always changing, and constantly growing. Despite the biggest nations of the World still being as populated and busy as they ever were, the little towns and even smaller villages kept changing and growing as well. New ones formed and old ones died, as time is a slave to no creature.

Among these places, one city was grown from the top of a mountain, hidden away by numerous trees, large enough to make Sadida himself proud. The mountain peak itself was quite large, if flat. It was fortunate, because this laid out easy ground work for buildings and people to reside. It would take a lot of time, but in the end, the village itself became self sufficient, not requiring the assistance of any other nation or town. Deceptively bigger than it looks, there are not any living souls from any other town that has come to visit in many many years.

To those who live in this isolated place, it is known simply as "The Hidden City". It has become an unspoken rule between all citizens that no one was to leave the premise of the mountain. Not only would it be dangerous, seeing as how the forest was home to many creatures, but if they were to meet anyone else, they would undoubtedly give away the location of the city, therefore sullying the land with outsiders. The ruler of the city was quite xenophobic, and by spreading his own beliefs onto the other citizens, it quickly became a common mindset. Some would call it brainwashing, in a sense, but others would merely call it paranoia.

Thankfully, this mindset wouldn't truly affect everyone, and for the most part, history of the World of Twelve was still taught in the school. The life in the city lived on as peacefully as it could, living on it's own style of economy. Kamas were used, sure, but not always necessary. Sometimes, if two people knew each other, they were bound to do a simple trade, or even receive whatever they were buying for free. Life went on in the city as it always would, with everything else around them doing the same. Nothing special, nothing incredibly new or ground breaking. Just the same old city.

At least, until one day when someone discovered the Hidden City.

_______________________________________________

Iops are not renowned for their intelligence. That was a common fact. Their bravery and courage is unending, though, always wanting to prove their honor out on the battlefield. While being incredibly skilled in battle, it should definitely be known to not provide one with a map, as more often than not, they will end up lost, unable to even know how to decipher it.

That was how Faetard, a tall, nicely toned, turquoise haired Iop, ended up. As she trudged along the forest ground, her eyes never wandered from the map she held in front of her. Of course, she had no idea that she was holding it upside down, but her peripheral vision kept her from bumping into any rocks or limbs or trees that were in her way. Either that or she was just lucky and oblivious. Faetard was part of a group of Iop patrollers, who were out roaming around the country side to look for any trouble that could be brewing. She was part of of a group of four others, all of whom were as well trained as she was (and as intelligent, given her race).

It wouldn't be until she finally pulled her somewhat vacant gaze away from the map, looking around in confusion. With an exasperated sigh and a shake of her head, she moved her hands to her hips, clucking her tongue in disappointment. "Man, I really can't count on those guys, can I?" She said aloud to herself, lisping her words a bit (getting your front teeth knocked out while fighting will do that) as she continued on her trail, her large chest puffed out in pride. "Not that I should be surprised, I suppose. They always end up lost whenever I take charge," She rambled on, keeping her pace up. Despite the heavy forestation of the area, she could still tell from the small amount of light dwindling away from between the leaves that night would soon fall, and she had to find someplace to rest.

The mountain she was moving up was quite steep, however, and didn't allow even the smallest bit of flat land for her to lay down on. Faetard kept climbing, not wanting to spend another night sleeping on a rock. They weren't comfortable. Not only that, but it tended to make her brushed back, clover styled hair messy. It took a long time to get it to stand straight out like that! Even though she was tall and exceptionally strong, the Iop wasn't a fan of roughing it outdoors when she didn't need to. It didn't help that, despite wearing thin, standard patrolling clothing. She also had to drag around heavy metal boots, as well as metal elbow and shoulder armor. She kept her metal gauntlets on as well, which she was just barely keeping up due to how tired she was beginning to feel. As her fists swung down to her sides, she began to slow, groaning a bit. "The outdoor sucks," She complained, stopping for a little break on the mountain.

Faetard wouldn't give up, though. It wasn't the Iop way to just give up. With a loud rumble from her stomach, she looked down and rubbed it, groaning. "Don't worry, old friend, I know there has to be something to eat around here." She kept climbing, gripping the rocks in front of her with her feet to keep herself from tumbling back down. "If only the rest of my team was here... and if I hadn't eaten all our supplies a few hours ago." Her knees shook with each step she took, almost ready to fall under her own weight, rapidly starting to grow weak from hunger and exhaustion.

The smell of something rather delicious gave her a burst of energy, her eyes quickly darting up the mountain she was climbing. Sure, it was very large, and the trees that often got in her way didn't help with navigating, but she knew the smell of fish! Or was it beef? Maybe even Gobball? Whatever the case, the Iop quickly hurried up the mountain, her stomach gurgling loudly as more thoughts of food entered her mind. Where there's food, there's an inn!

Faetard continued up the mountain until she finally reached the peak. Her hands quickly pulled herself up over the rocky edge, and she gained her footing. Thankfully, she was finally on flat ground, so long as she didn't lose her balance and fall backwards. Her eyes widened upon seeing a large, thriving city hidden away on top of the mountain, surrounded by a thick forest. The sun was starting to set, the dull glow of orange slowly making way for the heavy veil of dark blue, welcoming the stars and the moon in the sky to the city. From what she could see, there were still a few people walking around, although none had taken any notice to her for the time being.

Rather than worry about that, she continued on the trail to find where the heavenly smell of food was coming from. She would need a fully belly before she could find her unit, anyways. That and a good nights' sleep. And then a big breakfast.

__________________________________________

"Pair of sevens." Came the voice of the Pandawan tavern keeper, Maxie. For what seemed to be the fifth time this month, he was playing a game of cards to make a certain regular of his finally pay for a meal. The only downside was that said regular was an Ecaflip. Relying solely on their own fate and luck, Ecaflips never turn down an opportunity to gamble. Especially when it lead to getting something for free.

Malucard, while not particularly talented, was exceptionally lucky at games. While not surprising, he had somewhat of a reputation for bringing bad luck to any other opponent that dared to try and best him at gambling. The Ecaflip himself was slender and tall, though his grey, stripped coat was quite long, making him look fluffy. His black hair, while quite long, was kept back in a braided ponytail. The Ecaflip wore simple, if shabby, looking clothing, keeping four pouches around his waist. He also had one of his fangs hanging out in a bit of a snaggletooth on the right side of his mouth. His yellow eyes were bright, visible even through the dim light of the tavern.

With his tail still as a board behind him and his face as neutral as he could keep it, Malucard flipped down his hand. "Two eights. I win." A grunt of annoyance came from the Pandawa as the Ecaflip took a sip from his drink, leaning back in his chair.

"Jeez, I never learn my lesson, huh?" Maxie mused, getting up from his seat after taking a long drink from his own tankard, quickly emptying it. "I swear, though, one of these days I'll beat ya in a game, Malucard."

The cat gave a shrug, using his hands to reshuffle the cards back into the deck. "Maybe. Until then, I'll go ahead and take that free meal, if you please," He replied, flashing a small smirk up at him. With another small grumble of irritation, the tavern keeper walked back to behind the counter looking into the kitchen.

"Hey, get me a fried fish special-" Maxie was cut off suddenly, the entire atmosphere of the tavern quickly becoming quiet and tense. It wouldn't be a surprise that everyone's attention was now on the Amazonian Iop woman who just burst through the door. Numerous eyes were in confused fright of the large woman, who was walking right to an empty spot at the bar, oblivious to the looks she was receiving. From the way they were looking at her, they must've never seen a Iop before!

In fact, the Hidden City was actually exempt from having a few races, Iops being one of them. This one was quite a spectacle, too. While the most common looks she received were unwelcome, wary glances, a couple others looked her over with a look of fascination. Mostly towards her body, since she decided to show off quite a bit of it. Malucard himself was quite wary. This girl was definitely an outsider, and a very strong looking one at that. He himself was tall, standing at around six feet. But this Iop stood at least one head taller than him, around six feet, seven inches, if he had to guess. With those large muscles, she looked like a force to be reckoned with.

A bit of her threatening look was cut down slightly as she placed an order, speaking with a noticeable lisp. "Hey, keeper! I'll take the biggest meal you provide, along with a drink to match!" Faetard ordered eagerly, still quite oblivious to the fact that she had just made the whole atmosphere awkward. Maxie raised an eyebrow to the Iop, a small grimace forming on his face. Money was money, however... if she paid. He turned back to the kitchen, murmuring an order of something called "The Warrior's Platter".

While she waited for her meal, Faetard looked around the whole tavern, a big dopey grin on her face. It certainly was as typical as taverns went, but still, any place she hadn't been to was an adventure to her, no matter how small it was! As Maxie set down a glass of ale in front of her, she quickly took it and drank a big gulp from it.

It wouldn't be long until the Iop received her food, having it delivered to her as Malucard got his. Faetard immediately began to dig into the large platter of meat before her, chewing loudly and even grunting as she pulled off strips of flesh from the bone. "So... who might you be?" Maxie asked bluntly, curious of this large, imposing outsider. The Ecaflip ate his own dinner, keeping an ear shifted towards the conversation. He was quite certain that a few others were doing the same.

Looking up from her dinner, her mouth still full of food, she began talking. "I am Faetard, Head Scout of the Iop Army!" Naturally, food would spray from her mouth, making a bit of a mess on the counter, as well as Maxie's face. With an displeased look, he wiped the mess off of his face. He would tell her off about acting in such crude table manners, but in a Iop's case, this kind of behavior probably was good manners.

"I see..." Maxie murmured, eyeing her over as she continued to chow down. He knew better to hold his tongue and not upset her with too much sarcasm (not that she'd catch it anyways). Still, how she ended up in their city when they've never even seen an outsider before was somewhat suspicious. "You know, we've never had an outsider visit this city before. Not many folks take kindly to them..." He trailed off cryptically.

At this point, Fae managed to stop eating for a second, her mouth still full of food she turned and looked around at the small audience she unknowingly created. Many people were still staring at her in shock and curiosity, though plenty of them had scowls of displeasure on their faces. They figured the faster that this Iop left their city, the better. Malucard wasn't one of these people, though he was still puzzled by her presence.

Faetard swallowed her large mouthful and turned back to Maxie, smiling as big as ever. "Well that's a shame! Must get pretty boring when you don't get to see anything new from time to time," She replied, taking another big bite from a roast leg of Gobball. "Pretty neat city, though, I gotta say. If I could find the rest of my patrol unit, I'd be able to show them, too!" Some of the people started to murmur to themselves. The one thing that they most certainly did not want was this Iop-Brain showing their city off to more outsiders.

What caught Fae's attention, though, was the light scoff of someone who wasn't the tavern keeper. While Maxie did roll his eyes and shake his head in disbelief of the stupidity of this girl, Malucard had taken the opportunity to voice a thought in his mind. "If they're nearby, the wildlife would've gotten to 'em first..." He trailed off, taking a sip from his drink. She had turned his head to him, somehow managing to hear him.

Faetard gave the first semblance of a frown, looking quite prideful as she straightened up (an action that was lessened due to the fact that she had food covering her face). "I'm pretty sure a Iop patrol unit can handle a bit of wild animals," She huffed. "Besides, it's not like I came across anything anyways. It was quite peaceful."

At this, Malucard raised an eyebrow, looking puzzled. 'That's odd,' He'd think to himself. 'Boowolves roam around the woods at night, and lots of them. If she didn't see any, then something must've scared them away. Something big.'

Maxie was also voicing this towards the Iop. "Nothing? No Boowolves, feral Bow-Wows, not even a Piwi?" Faetard scrunched up her face as she began trying to remember her journey. Rocks, trees, more trees, the mountains, the smell of food, the eating of the food...

"Uhhm... nope. Nothing," She said finally with a shrug. "Is that a bad thing or something?"

The large Pandawa crossed his arms, looking quite serious. "Possibly. If you couldn't see anything out there, then something must've scared everything away."

A sudden movement of her chair being pushed back as she stood up, her large height being reaffirmed by everyone nearby as terrifying. With one fist against her hip and the other up in the air, threatening to punch a hole in the ceiling, she began speaking in a very important tone. "Fear not! I, Faetard, will vanquish this beast, wherever it may be! No evil creature will continue living as long as I'm around!" In a haste, the Iop woman turned and ran out of the tavern, her large boots shaking the entire foundation of the tavern.

Malucard stood up out of his own chair, an eyebrow raised as he watched her walk back into the woods. At night. "What th- you'll get eaten alive out there! There's no way you can take on anything that dangerous when you can't see!" A few other patrons looked in his direction now. Maxie did as well, a small grin growing on his face, an eyebrow raised. When Faetard didn't do anything to acknowledge him or even turn around, he groaned and adjusted his pouches, quickly pulling on a cloak that hung on the back of his chair and following after her, against his better judgment.

The Pandawa stayed put, unable to pull his own eyes away from the door. He wanted to find it strange that Malucard was willing to do something like follow a complete stranger out into the woods at night, but he knew better. The Ecaflip was always like that. With a sigh, he poured himself another drink. Right as the drink touched his lips, his eyes shot open, quickly slamming the drink down. This startled a few patrons even more, though this didn't stop him from shouting, "Damned Ogrest, she didn't pay!"

_____________________________________

Despite the fact that she was having trouble seeing a lot, Faetard kept walking around, her eyes to the ground below her. While she would indeed run into a few trees from time to time, she truly believed she was onto something! After all, these foot prints she discovered were quite large, most likely from something heavy. Smart too, from the looks of it. After all, these prints went in a circle. Most likely to throw her off it's trail. Clever...

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw two bright yellow lights. Eyeballs! This had to be the creature, no doubt about it! With a loud yell that would give away any stealthy advantage she had, she leaped towards the source of the yellow eyes. "Prepare to fight, beast!" She hollered, quickly body slamming the thing into the ground. As she began to wrestle with it, she began to wonder how something so skinny and bony could scare off a bunch of creatures.

It wasn't until she heard the choke of the thing underneath her body that she realized this most certainly wasn't the beast. "Ghhk! Gerroff..!" The dark colored Ecaflip gasped out. He was scrambling and scratching at the ground, trying to pull himself out from underneath this heavy Iop.

"Oh whoops! Uh, sorry about that," Faetard said, quickly stumbling off of him. She then pulled him up with one hand in an effortless manner, which only dazed the already dizzied Malucard more. "Keep on your toes, though! I sense that the beast is somewhere around here."

Once he finally gathered his bearings, the Ecaflip shook his head, pulling away from her, with more success this time. "Look, you're weird, and obviously don't know where you are. But we shouldn't be out and about at night," He began explaining. "If it gets bad enough that whatever is out there attacks our city, the guards will handle it." He began to turn his body back towards the entrance, looking back at her as if encouraging her to follow. "How about you go to the guards and tell them and let them handle it instead?"

A loud laugh came from the Iop, cracking her knuckles. "What, and let them have all the fun?" Before the Ecaflip could voice his incredulous opinion on this matter, the two were interrupted by loud howling. Very loud. Neither one had no idea how big this thing was, but it sounded like it was quite close to the two. The two blinked and looked to each other. "I think it's close by," Faetard said.

"Then we need to go before it finds us!" Malucard whispered harshly, looking frightened and ready to high tail it out. Instead, Faetard gripped the Ecaflip's wrist and ran towards the source of the noise, much to his chagrin.

"I think it's the other way around! Hope you're ready for a fight," She exclaimed, already prepared to face whatever was out there. Malucard stared at her in utter disbelief. What was wrong with this girl?! He stumbled trying to keep up with her, but thankfully managed to stay on his feet for the most part.

It wouldn't be long before the two of them came across a clearing. Faetard figured that she must not have walked through it on her way up the mountain. Despite the fact that they were on a slope, the surrounded trees and plants were stomped down and torn apart, making everything look messy. Unfortunately for the both of them, the culprit of whoever deforested this part of the woods was still there, and it was standing right in front of them. Standing at an intimidating nine feet tall was something like looked like a Boowolf, but stood on it's two hind feet. It's claws were massive, about the size of Malucard's forearm. It's fur was unkempt and dirty, it's eyes glowing a bright red aura. A mixture of drool and blood dripped from it's massive maw, snarling it's large yellowed teeth.

"It's a Boowerewolf!" Malucard screamed out, his whole body shaking in fear. If it weren't for the fact that the Iop had a tight grip on his wrist, he would've ran like Hell. However, Faetard looked as determined as ever, finally letting go of him as she prepared her gauntlet armored fists.

"So, you thought you could terrorize the local wildlife and the city, huh? Time to teach you a lesson, foul creature!" Suddenly, the Iop would do a running leap towards the large creature, using her right fist to throw an incredibly painful looking jab in the Boowere's jaw. It let out a bark of pain, the force of her punch sending it a good couple of yards back. Faetard then latched herself onto the snout of the beast, continuing to beat against it's jaw with both fists. While it definitely hurt the lycan, it wasn't out of the fight just yet. It quickly gripped onto the Iop, making sure to hold her tightly so she couldn't escape. Before she could do anything, he threw her into the closest tree that was still standing, which was a few yards away. She yelled the whole time she flew, slamming directly into the tree. Dazed and knocked out for a little, she slide down to the base, not able to get up.

Malucard watched in awe and fear as the Boowerewolf made it's way over to her, taking it's time to savor cornering it's prey. It hadn't noticed the Ecaflip yet, giving him the perfect opportunity to escape and go get help. However, something was keeping him from doing just that. If he ran to get help, he was leaving this girl to get mauled. Who knew how long it would take for more help to arrive? But what could he do? He didn't even know how to fight, let alone a giant lycanthrope. He had to think of something quickly, though. Malucard gulped and felt around his pockets and pouches for something- anything- that could be of use.

He pulled out a single card from the deck he kept in his pouch. The ace of hearts. With the other hand, he reached to the ground and picked up a stone. Not big enough to do any actual damage to the Boowere, but that wasn't his goal. Giving a silent, small prayer to Ecaflip, Malucard reared his left arm back and threw the stone at the Boowerewolf's head. It smacked right against the back of it's skull, not effecting it in the slightest. The sensation would register, though, as it stopped in place and slowly turned it's head, trying to find out who, or what, just did that.

Before it could do anything about the rock throwing Ecaflip, Malucard threw the card that was in between two fingers in his left hand. With a certain flick of the wrist, and thanks to the wind being just right, the card spun and flew directly into the wolf's eye. The werewolf howled in pain, reaching up to slap a hand over it's pained eye, quickly pulling the card out and clenching it. Clearly it had hurt. Malucard couldn't help but grin a little as he managed to actually do something. His smile quickly turned into an expression of fear, though, since the Boowerewolf was now looking directly at him with it's one good eye, snarling in rage. It was obvious that it did not like that.

Fortunately for the Ecaflip, the Boowolf was distracted long enough for Faetard to regain her bearings and get back on her feet. Seeing the lycan's back turned, she took this as an opportunity to leap up and scream out, "I've got you now!" With both large, muscular legs wrapped around it's thick neck, choking it slightly, she began to bang both fists against it's head. Since she mostly aimed for the eyes, which injured and disoriented the lycan even more. It's only good eye now being punched in, Malucard was given another chance to do something.

The closest thing he had to an actual weapon was a small pocket knife. He flipped it out and hurried towards the beast. Knowing that it's ankles were uncovered and defenseless, he didn't waste time in jamming it straight into the back of his heel. The Boowerewolf roared loudly, immediately crashing down it it's knees. Malucard threw himself out of the way so that he wouldn't be tackled. Faetard kept pounding away at the Boowere's skull. Since she was still keeping it in a choke-hold as well, it was starting to waver in place, about ready to pass out. For a final move, the Iop launched herself up from the lycan's head and slammed herself back down onto him, slamming him down into the ground.

Once she climbed off, the Ecaflip quickly joined her side, looking over the now unconscious body of the lycanthrope. Both eyes were blacked and puffed out, it's heel bleeding out from an open wound, which also looked nasty. Malucard was lucky his knife was silver. The two were breathing heavily, still feeling exhilarated from their battle. Faetard smiled wide at the Ecaflip beside her. "That was awesome!" She began. "I knew that the two of us could do it, though," She giggled a bit, puffing her large chest out in pride again.

Malucard laughed a bit, still in disbelief that the two actually did manage to defeat the beast. "Yeah..! I think you did most of it though, with you and your big..." His eyes lingered over her chest for a second before he realized what he was doing. He brought them back up to her face, blushing quite red. "...fists," He finished dumbly. Faetard didn't notice this and nodded.

"Hey, you did great too!" She looked to the Boowerewolf, which lead Malucard to do the same. "So, what should we do with it now?"

"I say we tie it up. I dunno when it'll wake up, but if it does before the sun comes up, it won't be happy," The Ecaflip answered.

"Ropes aren't needed," Faetard responded, sitting herself on a nearby rock. "We'll just keep guard of it until morning. If it does wake up, we'll just whoop him again!" She smiled expectantly at him, as if waiting for him to say yes.

He sighed and rolled his eyes, too exhausted to argue with the Iop. "Very well," He sighed, sitting right next to her, resting his head in his hands.

"I'm Faetard, by the way," She greeted, extending her hand to him. Malucard raised an eyebrow at this, since he did remember her saying it back at the tavern. Of course, he had not introduced himself just yet. Since the opportunity revealed itself, he decided to go with it.

"Malucard," He replied simply, shaking her hand. He grimaced as she gripped his hand a lot tighter than she probably expected. He swears he could've heard bones crunching.

"A pleasure! What say you join me in my expedition to meet back up with my patrol group? I know that you'd be the perfect partner for me!"

The Ecaflip raised an eyebrow at this, looking into the beaming, expectant face of Faetard. On one hand, he's most likely to get killed by whatever she drags them into. He was lucky to have even survived the fight with the Boowerewolf without so much as a scratch. Not only that, he had plenty of responsibilities to attend to, and being away from the city would deprive him of them...

He sighed and shrugged, leaning forwards into his hands. "We'll see. For now, let's just make sure Fluffy here doesn't wake up anytime soon."

Accepting that as an answer, Faetard turned her attention back to the lycan as well, keeping an eye on it with someone she thought of as her new friend.

[bbparker]

Old Man (Loki Laufeyson)

Summary: Its a party and y/n needs a dance partner

A/N: I’d consider this a drabble more than anything because its so short! This was apart of my 500 follower thanks where you could request something from a prompt list!

YES I GOOGLED HOW OLD LOKI IS IN THE MCU AND MAN HE’S OLD

Requested by: @whiskeyandwashitape

Prompt:  “Do it. Take a chance, I’m begging you, you don’t want to spend your life wondering what could have been.”

Gif credit to @lokigifheaven

The party for Wanda’s birthday was massive and not at all what any of the girls had in mind when planning it. However, Tony couldn’t find a way to say sorry for the events of the Civil War other than give her everything she wanted, plus more of course (it’s Tony). So, when (y/n) arrived in a silver dress, expecting the Avengers to just have a quiet party to themselves, only to discover the whole room was packed full of people, it set her nerves on edge.

(Y/n) was fine with people but she’d given up her night of reading for this? Were they serious? Shaking her head (y/n) had tunnel vision when heading for the bar and nobody was going to stop her from getting a drink.  Except maybe a near seven foot Asgardian named Thor.  

“Oh, Thor, hello.”

“Evening, Lady (y/n)! I have been sent to escort you to the VIP section with the rest of our team members!” Thor’s voice was booming that it eve managed to overtake the music. It was like he always demanded attention. Rolling her eyes when Thor wasn’t looking, she took his arm and he led to her to a red roped section of the room. Seeing the rest of her crew helped her relax, especially since VIP wasn’t crowded like the lower floor. Tony was the first to notice her.

“(Y/n)!” He gets up and hugs her, slightly tipsy.

“Oh, sorry, didn’t think you’d recognise me with so many people here!” She said in mock surprise as he laughs lightly and nervously scratches the back of his head. She greets the other members of her team before her eyes lay upon a black-suited Loki. If he wasn’t already staring at her, she’d have let her jaw drop. As if knowing what she was thinking a devilish smile overtook his face. Turning away to engage Natalia in a conversation, (y/n) saw Thor began to engage Loki in his.

Seeing her turn to glance at Loki, Nat decided to speak up.

“You should ask him to dance.” (Y/n) turned with a flabbergasted face before looking to the crowd where they were pulling some of the most confusing and sexual moves she’d ever seen.

“I don’t think he’d be comfortable in that… I’m not even comfortable looking at it. I mean what is that?!” Pointing to a couple who were trying to breakdance and grind at the same time caused both women to frown. Nat gulps, “alright but that's not the VIP dance section. It's that way.” Nat used her hand to move your head to the opposite side, where the dancing was much slower and couples were less on the PDA. “Tony wanted to give Wanda the choice to try both since she didn’t get to grow up with these things.”

“That's nice of him…” (Y/n) trailed off as she caught Loki’s eyes, who seemed to be evaluating her. They have had many talks, about books, languages and cultures of Earth after he was imprisoned here for a while before being released to assist the Avengers. He’d done beautifully, even saving (y/n)’s ass a couple times, of course not without a cheeky comment. But it’s when Thor turned his gaze towards her that she knew they had been talking about her. Wanda, who was sitting next to Loki seemed to decide to want input and leaned over to begin whispering in his ear.

What is going on?

——

Loki’s P.O.V

As she walked into the VIP section Loki couldn’t help but admire her beauty. Her dress was silver and the green pendant adorned her neck. Sort pride shot through him as he realised she was wearing my colours and Loki couldn’t help imagining (y/n) in Asgardian garbs. While Midgardian clothes did suit her to make her look beautiful, Asgardian would make her look like a Goddess. Thor sat down next to him, finishing off his glass. “I do say, Midgardians do have a taste for good liquor. Good, but not strong enough.” Thor followed Loki’s eye-line to (y/n), and Loki himself. “Have you taken a liking to Lady (y/n)?” Flustered, Loki quickly looked thorn way, “Could you say that louder, I think one realm couldn’t hear you.” Thor all but laughed, tapping his brother on the back making Loki shoot forward slightly.

“Ahh, you’ve picked up some Earth humour, good for you!” Loki just ignored Thor and continued admiring her. (Y/n) was by far the most interesting thing at this gathering of sorts. “Ask her to dance.”

“Wh-what?”

“I see the way your eyes always follow Lady (y/n) and the way they light up when she finally engages you in topics that are within your books.”

“I do not ‘light up.’”

“Brother, your face could be used as a torch to signal Heimdall by that way it was lit up while watching Lady (Y/N).”

If Loki didn’t have as much control over his body as he does, he would be body blushing right now. Looking back at the slow dancers behind himself, then to (y/n) he began actually thinking about it. His hand placed firmly on her waist and a gentle grip on her hand. (Y/n)s body against his own, a smile only for him while they made their way across the floor. Thor turned to look at you also.

Loki suddenly felt a cool breath near his ear. “Do it. Take a chance, I’m begging you, you don’t want to spend your life wondering what could have been. Also, you might want to hurry, I’ve been stopping a guy who’s pretty persistent on (y/n) with my powers and I can’t hold him for much longer.”

Sure enough, as Loki looked over there was a man frozen in his place with two drinks in hand, looking directly at (y/n). His (y/n). Instantly standing, Loki made his way around the table to stand in front of (y/n). Nat and her conversation stop immediately, “Loki, hello.” (Y/n) says gently as she had always done with him.

“Lady (y/n)…” Shock appeared on her face, for Loki had only called her (y/n) and never a Lady like Thor consistently does. “-I was wondering if you would d the honour of allowing me to lead you through a dance…” Loki held out a palm hesitantly as if he were fearing rejection. “Of course.”

Slipping her hand gently into his, (y/n) could feel the smoothness of his palm but also some rough patches, left from scars… of what, she did not know. Loki pulled her lightly to the dance floor before holding said hand in the air with his and lightly tugging at her waist to bring her closer. (Y/n)/s other hand fell to his shoulder and they began swaying gently.

Loki obviously knew how to dance, it was a Princely requirement on Asgard given that they had feasts and dancing all the time for everything. Finish a war- Feast and dancing. Odin decided he was a good king- feast and dancing. As Loki looked down to (y/n) he quickly separated her and held her hand with his arm extended before twirling her back into him.

“I must say Loki, you’re rather good at this for someone so ancient.” (Y/n) joked. With one arm on his shoulder, her other came to rest on his chest where Loki was holding it. “Yes, you can joke all you want about my age-“ “How old are you?”

Loki hesitated, what would she think of his age? He wondered briefly. “I had 1,670 I believe this coming winter.”

“Holy shit balls, you’re old Loki!” Couples glanced at (y/n) as she accidentally yelled.

“Do you need a wheelchair?”

“What-“

“Should you even BE dancing right now?”

“(Y/n)-“

“Someone call the nursing home, we have a scapegoat!” (Y/n) yelled to nobody over her shoulder. Again the couples glanced at her and mutter of ‘weirdo’ went around. Loki only glared at them, which caused them to turn their heads away again. Nobody called her that in his presence. Moving his gaze back to (y/n) his gaze softened at her smile.

“Is my age really an issue?” Loki lightly smiled, a shocking feat for (y/n).

“I mean you are really old Loki…” He suddenly felt a little ashamed, and he hated himself for it. He was Loki, prince of Asgard and he didn’t need a mortal to-.

“Luckily I’m into older guys.”

Loki looked down to (y/n) instantly. “You-you like me?”

Leaning up lightly, (y/n) let her lips softly touch his. Not moving for a moment, she waited for a response, to see if she had read any of the signs right. Finally, he pushed lightly back. Loki’s hand came to her cheek before they separated. His hand stroked her cheek softly, looking down at her in awe.

“You truly are a remarkable creature…”

Tags (Crossed means the tag won't work)

@eliza-hamilton-helpless @purelittleblueberry @yoinkpeter @iamwarrenspeace

@fuck-my-marvel @jahanana @feelmyroarrrr @asexualmarauder @theharrisontomytom @shippingfangurl

[beefybuffybucky]

The Reunion

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x female!Reader - Avengers x female!Reader

Request: Hey Bae 😚 would you like to do an imagine where you were Buckys wife in the 40s and after he got taken by Hydra you went through the same fate. Now 70 years later they found you during a mission captured and take you to the compound. Bucky feels overly happy but fears you won't recognise him, but you do. So over the time you slowly get along with the new life and also your feelings for Buck didn't change, you just experience a more intense love life 😉 this would be great & some smut hehe -anon

Warnings: Smut/NSFW (18+) - fingering and oral (female receiving) - some language - a wee bit o’ angst

Word Count: 3.6K

A/N: College is really stressful and I’ve had such a bad mental week, it’s been great. Any ways, here’s some good ol’ smut! There’s plenty more where this came from, so I hope it’s what you were searchin’ for. Requests/asks are still open, so feel free to drop somethin’!

Bucky’s P.O.V.

Y/N. Her name was Y/N.

It’s missions that this that remind me of her. The flakes falling around us bitterly kiss my face as Steve and I trudge through endless mounds of snow, heading for the large, rusted metal door embedded in the rough stone of the mountain. This is where I was kept under HYDRA control - where my previous life has ended and this new one began.

Y/N was my comfort - she kept me grounded. We had first met during a night-out in the city. I had convinced Stevie to go to a club with me, and she was the first woman I saw when I stepped into the dim room. We spent the whole night drinking and chatting, and by the end of the night, I knew she was the one that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with - I just never knew our time together would be so short.

“Buck,” Steve’s stern voice shuts-down my thoughts. “Are you ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I sigh, gripping the machine gun in my hands tightly. Steve pulls out a small device from his pocket and attaches it to the lock on the door. A gradual beeping echoes through the frozen air and a quick, bright flash of light follows. I shield my face as bits of metal and other pieces of the lock shoot from the door. Steve grabs his shield off his back as he pulls open the door, nearly tearing it off the hinges.

“Let’s go,” Steve nods towards the entrance and disappears into the dark stairwell. The heavy smell of must and old, stale metallic air attacks my senses. Memories of the past begin to flood into my mind as we step into the elevator leading down to the lower level. The last time I was here, the Avengers had been falling apart, and I lost my arm...Again. After a while, the team was able to make-up, everything went back to normal, and I even got another arm from Tony. About a month ago, we got some word about possible HYDRA activity at the old base where I was held. Most of the team were gone on other missions, so Steve and I were assigned to the mission. The goal is to basically sweep the building and clear any suspicions about HYDRA whereabouts.

The elevator coming to a stop jolted me from my trance, and the door painstakingly creaks open, revealing a large room full of scrap metal and destroyed machinery. The only sound I could hear was a low, distant humming and our boots shufflings across the dusty cement floor. A soft, weak light being cast from across the room catches my attention and I tap Steve’s shoulder, pointing the gun towards it. His expression hardens as we cross the room and he prepares himself for what we may encounter.

Another smaller, ancient door blocks most of the light - all it takes it one quick hit from Steve’s shield to send the door flying off its hinges. The faint, yellow light radiates from a pod pushed against the wall at the other side of the room.

“Is that a…,” Steve lowers his defense as confusion softens his features.

“Another cryo-pod,” my chest tightens at my own words. I slowly walk passed Steve, my feet resistant to move at first. I sling the gun across my back as I near the pod. Thin wisps of icy air whirl from the bottom of it, and as I step up to the glass casing, I can make out the faint outline of a body. A small panel of controls is to my right, and I instinctively reach for it as my heart-rate begins to quicken.

“Bucky? What are you -”

Steve’s voice is cut off by a loud whirring sound as I hit one of the buttons on the panel, opening the containment pod. It slowly lifts, a thick stream of icy wisps cascading over the edge of the platform. The figure inside is completely still, but a faint, rhythmic heartbeat sounds out over the room. As the glass finally slides away completely, I manage to get a clear view of the figure lying dormant inside. Most of their face is covered by a mask, but it’s obviously a woman.

Stepping carefully onto the platform, I grab onto the edge of the pod for balance and cautiously reach for the mask. My hand stalls as something stings in my heart. The way her hair falls messily around her face and the softness of the skin around her closed eyes remind me of Y/N.

“Are you okay? What is it? Who is she?”

“Any more questions, Stevie?” I shoot over my shoulder. I turn my attention back to the woman and gently unclasp the mask from her face, letting it tumble to the floor. My heart stops as my chest floods with an odd mixture of fear and horror.

She looks exactly like Y/N. Everything about her features is the same.

“Y/N,” I breathe out through my teeth.

“Bucky? What’s wrong? What are you -” Steve’s voice hitches as he comes to a halt behind me. I don’t need to turn around to know that his face is twisted in confusion and fright. “It...It can’t be. She looks like -”

“Y/N,” I finish for him, my voice shaking with emotion. “It’s Y/N.”

“I still can’t believe it’s her,” Steve pants as we run down the hallway towards the elevator. About thirty seconds ago, we got word that Y/N was finally awake. After we found her, we called in for backup and Tony and Bruce met us with another jet with medical supplies to care for her. She’s been asleep for only a few days - which is better than not at all - and as soon as we got the call from Banner, I grabbed Steve and here we are, running for the nearest way down to the clinical level. My heart is bursting with excitement, but my mind is shrouded in uncertainty.

What if she doesn’t remember me?

My thought almost made me stumble over my own feet, but I managed to keep my balance as we slowed near the elevator. The ride down felt like an eternity, and when the doors finally opened again, I went running down the hall and into the lounge area in search of Banner, leaving Steve in my dust.

“Barnes,” Banner’s gentle voice calls out from behind me, I quickly whip around and jog over to where he was standing near a doorway that led into a small, dimly-lit room.

“Can I see her?” I puff, trying to peer behind him into the room, but he stands on his toes to block more of my view, resting his hands on my shoulders.

“I-I’m not too sure if that’s the -”

“Banner,” I whisper, nearly begging. “Please.”

His hands drop to his coat pockets as he chews the inside of his lip as he debates my request. His eyes dart over my shoulders, and I can only guess he’s looking at Steve in search for an answer.

“I’ll go with him,” Steve’s voice comes from behind me.

“Fine.” Banner sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. “But I can’t promise anything,” his gaze drops to his shoes as he turns to walk away towards the main desk. Steve’s heavy hand gingerly clamps down onto my shoulder as he comes to stand next to me in front of the doorway.

“You sure you can do this?” His voice is quiet but caring. I nod in response and will myself to walk into the room. A small bedside lamp is the only source of light in the room, but it’s enough to illuminate her soft, breathtaking features. Y/N is sitting on the bed, her legs dangling over the edge. The tops of her toes barely brush over the shiny floor. Her Y/H/C hair was clean and neater than it was when we found her, and her brilliantly Y/E/C eyes shone through the darkness.

“Y/N?” I tenderly whisper. She blinks at me, brows furrowing.

“J-James,” she mumbles, tears beginning to gather in the corners of her eyes. Slowly, she pushes off the bed and pads over to me, stopping about a foot away. She carefully raises a hand and brushes the pads of her fingers down my cheek, lingering over my jaw. Her touch is warm and inviting, and I instantly crave more of it.

“It...It’s really you,” a silent tear slides down her cheek as she shakily whispers.

“Yeah, doll,” I croak, attempting to hold back my own tears. “It’s really me.”

Suddenly, she throws her arms around me, burying her face in my chest as a silent sob racked through her body. A deep, raging happiness blossoms in my chest as her form presses into mine, and at this point, I can’t hold back the tears any longer.

She’s actually back - she’s back in my arms, just like how it used to be, and I couldn’t be happier.

Reader’s P.O.V.

It’s been weird trying to adjust at the compound. It’s been nearly three weeks since you were brought here, and every day has been a new adventure. The rest of the team is overly nice and welcoming, which is helpful, but this way of life is so new to you; actually being able to work with a real team rather than doing solo assassinations and missions, in general, is a big improvement, and so are the living conditions.

But the best part about being rescued and brought to the Avengers was getting to be with Bucky again. Before this, you had nearly given-up all hope of ever seeing him again. You knew he was the Winter Soldier, and most of the time, the commanders and other HYDRA operatives would try to keep you as brainwashed as possible to avoid the possibility of you or Bucking knowing that the other was being forced to work for the same organization.

When you were reunited, it felt like you could truly be alive again - it was like a breath of fresh air after being stuck inside of dirty, old room all day. You were terrified of him not remembering you, but he was worried about the same exact thing, too.

He’s been almost hesitantly distant since that day, as if he’s still scared that you’ll just wake-up one day and not remember him - he’s definitively not the same cocky, confident man you had met back in the 40’s, but that doesn’t change the fact that you love him more than anything on Earth. His hair is also longer - a lot longer than before - and a dark beard spreads across his jawline, neck, and up into his cheeks a little bit. You wish he would open up to you more, but him keeping his distance is understandable. It’s probably not easy to adjust to this sort of thing.

A soft knock on the door stirs you from your deep thinking, and you slide off your bed to answer it. You quickly throw on a large shirt to cover your body since you had only put on a pair of panties after your shower before you lost yourself in thought.

You turn the handle and open the door a few inches to see who it was.

“Hey, Bucky,” You hum, a small smile tugging at your lips.

“Can I come in?” He smiles back, but it's almost forceful.

“Yeah, of course,” you chuckle lightly and step aside, opening the door for him to enter. He walks past you and you take a second to turn around before kicking the door shut behind you.

“Please,” you motion to the bed. “Sit down, make yourself comfortable.”

“Thanks,” he mutters, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, running his hands down his thighs in the process - one of his key nervous habits.

“So,” you sigh, sinking down onto the bed next to him. “What’s on your mind, pumpkin?”

“I haven’t heard that pet name in years,” Bucky chuckles, a genuine smile playing at his lips. “I just, uh…,” he clears his throat, dropping his gaze down to his folded hands. “I need to ask you something.”

“What is it?” You fold one leg under you and lean a little closer to him. After a few long seconds of having no answer, you put a soft hand on his thigh. “You can tell me anything, Buck.”

His slowly lifts his head and looks at you, his eyes soft with love and edged with worry.

“Do you love me?” His voice nearly cracks, prompting him to gently bite his lip.

“Oh, baby,” your brow furrows as pity begins to pull at your heart. You bring your hand to his face, lovingly cupping his cheek, the roughness of his beard scratching your palm. “Of course I do,” you intimately whisper.

“I...I j-just…,” a muscle in his jaw twitches as he struggles to spit out what he wants to say.

“James,” you rub your thumb across his cheek lightly. “I love you. I always have,” you reassure him. “I always will.”  You lean up and ghost your lips over his, giving him a soft, tender kiss. As you slowly pull back, you let your hand drop to his chest, his heartbeat quickly thumping beneath your touch.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so distant,” he whispers near your lips. “I’m just scared of losing you.”

“I promise,” you take his metal hand with your free one. “You will never lose me again.”

His eyes cast downwards again as his jaw tightens, another look of uncertainty settling into his features.

“I...I wanna show you somethin’,” you tell him, pushing off the bed and padding over to your dresser. Pulling open the top drawer, you grab a thin necklace with a ring on it and delicately hold it in your palm, then walk back over to sit next to Bucky.

“Here,” you offer him the chain. He looks at you for a second, his gaze flicking between your palm and your face, then hesitantly takes it from your hand. As he begins to examine it, his features soften, a basically-visible wave of realization hitting him.

“T-This...It’s…,” he chokes, his head quickly snapping up to look at you. “It’s your ring. Your wedding ring.”

“Yeah, they actually let me keep it for a while before storing it away with some of my other things I had when they took me,” you explain as you scoot closer to him. “Steve found it when they found my files.”

“I can’t believe you have it,” Bucky silently gasps as he turns to you. “After all this time.”

“I never stopped thinking about you,” you confess to him. “You’re the reason I kept going.”

“I love you,” he desperately breathes as he encaptures your lips in a searing, passionate kiss. His warm, rough hand slides to your neck to deepen the kiss, his fingers running through your hair. You tug on his shirt, gently pulling him closer to you as you lay back on the bed, letting him crawl over you as he quickly tucks the necklace into his pants pocket. He briefly breaks the kiss to pull his shirt off his body, tossing it somewhere behind him. Your hands roam his body as he quickly swipes at your lower lip with his tongue. You swipe back, letting his tongue fight you for dominance. After a few hot moments, you gently bite his bottom lip, earning a low groan from him. His hand slides under the thin fabric of your shirt and the tips of his fingers brush across the bottom of your breast, the sensation of the touch leaving goose-bumps in its wake. Using your hands, you gently push him away from you, both of you panting for air as you lean on your elbow to take off your shirt, letting it fall off the side of the bed.

“Oh, fuck, doll,” Bucky moans. “You’re so beautiful.”

His head dips to the crook of your neck as his metal hand ghosts over the skin of your outer thighs up to your hips. He makes his way down your chest, biting and sucking at the sensitive skin, then stops at your breasts as he takes one of your nipples into his warm mouth. A soft moan tumbles from your lips as he massages the neglected breast, your back arching off the bed. Your hand tangles through his soft, brown locks as heat pools between your legs. Bucky pulls away and the cool air of the room attacks your sensitive nub, making you silently whine in protest.

Bucky plants warm, wet kisses down your abdomen, stopping at the hem of your panties. He dips down further and lightly kisses your inner thigh, letting his lips hover above your panties.  

“God, doll,” Bucky lowly mutters. “You’re so wet.” He presses a kiss to your fold, prompting you to faintly buck your hips to his face. “Someone’s eager,” he chuckles against you, the scruff on his face pricking at your sensitive skin.

“J-James, please,” you beg, one hand grabbing at the sheet beneath you as the other slides up your chest to pinch and toy with one of your nipples.

“Whatever you want, darlin’,” a devilish smirk tugs at the corner of his mouth and he hooks a metal finger through your panties, ripping them off in one smooth, effortless tug. He wasted no time in teasing you. His warm tongue flattens against your wet fold as he licks from your hole to your clit. He makes tight, slow circles around your clit, your hand flying to his head as your back arches once again, your moans filling the room around you. The coil in your stomach quickly began to tighten as he inserted a finger, slowly pumping it in and out of you as he continues to toy with your sensitive bud.

“O-Oh, fuck, James,” you gasp. Your hold on his hair tightens, earning a low, vibrating hum from him that sent waves of pleasure racing through you. “I-I’m so close.”

“Come for me, baby girl,” Bucky encourages. He adds another finger, setting a faster pace. A few pumps were all you needed to come all over his fingers. You nearly scream his name as you hit your high, your sense becoming overwhelmed with desire and pleasure. As you come down from your high, your eyes flutter open to see Bucky shuffling out of his pants, his bearded chin slick with your juices. He crawls back up your body, planting feathery kisses along the way.

“Good job, darlin’,” he praises in your ear, sucking at the skin near your jawline again.

“I want you to fuck me, James,” you breathlessly pant. “Please, I-I need you.”

“Anything for you, doll,” Bucky chuckles against your skin. He positions himself in front of your entrance as he passionately kisses you. “I love you, Y/N.”

“I love you, too, James,” you whisper back, cupping his face with both of your hands. He starts to push into you, his head dropping to the crook of your neck as he thrusts further into you. Both of your moans filled the air as he bottoms-out, your hands dropping to his shoulder as you adjust to his size.

“F-Fuck, doll,” Bucky groans lowly into your neck. “You’re s-so tight.”

He starts to pull back out before he thrusts back into you, his pace gradually becoming faster and faster. The coil in your stomach began to tighten again as you started to approach your second end, your walls fluttering around Bucky.

“Oh, sh-shit, darlin’,” Bucky moans a low, delectable moan. “I’m so close.” His thrusts become harder and faster as he chases his release, his thick cock twitching inside you. “I want you to come around me, doll,” he pants. His metal arm sneaks between you two and rubs at your clit, causing you to succumb to the desirable sensation once again.

The coil in your stomach snaps as your orgasm hits you like a train, Bucky’s name tumbling from your lips like a prayer. He quickly hits his own releases, his hot seed coating your walls as his delicious moans of pleasure rip through the air. After a few moments of trying to come down from your highs, Bucky pulls out and collapses next to you.

“That was -”

“Amazing,” you finish his sentence, a goofy smile playing at your lips. “Absolutely perfect.”

“Just like you,” Bucky adds, kissing your temple before rolling off the bed and walking into your bathroom. He returns with a warm washcloth and cleans you up, then hands you his shirt he was wearing earlier as he pulls on his boxers. Before climbing back into bed, he fishes something out of his pocket from his jeans on the floor. The bed dips under his weight as he climbs back into bed, pulling you close to him, your head nestled into his chest.

“I believe this belongs to you,” he murmurs, holding your ring between his fingers. You beam at him and hold up your hand, letting him slowly slide the ring onto your finger.

“A perfect fit,” you joke, tilting your head up to kiss him.

“I love you more than you could ever know,” Bucky whisper against your forehead as he pulls away from the kiss.

“I love you so much more, Bucky,” you hum, settling back into his chest.

The warmth of his body and the sense of protection that washed over you by being in his arms blanketed your mind, easing you into some of the most soundless sleep you’ve had in years. The last thought you remember is thinking about waking up in his arms, safe and sound - forever.

[amanda-teaches]

Better than a Dream

Summary: Dean gets trapped in a fantasy created by a djinn. Will the fantasy help him realize the truth about his feelings for the reader before it’s too late?

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Word Count: 3707

Warnings: A lot of fluff, Dean has to get out of the djinn dream by killing himself (because that’s how it’s done), so possible suicide trigger warning

A/N: This is for @deansdirtylittlesecretsblog Romcom Fluff Challenge. My prompt was from Leap Year. Well, when my 60 seconds came around, I realized I had everything I ever wanted, but nothing I really needed. And I think that what I need is here. And I came all this way to see if maybe you might think so too. Huge shoutout to @cyrilconnelly for betaing this for me and giving me the title and @mrsdeanfuckingwinchester for reading it over.

“Dean, these burritos are amazing! I mean, I knew you made great burgers, but I never knew you could make such amazing Mexican food!”

Dean leaned down to whisper gruffly in Y/N’s ear, his breath tickling her in the process. “I’m a man of many talents, Y/N.”

“Oh, I’m sure you are,” she whispered back suggestively, drawing a laugh out of him. They stood up and made their way over to the sink with the dishes, laughing and nudging each other as they went. When they got there, Dean reached around Y/N to grab a towel, but she got to it first and held it just out of reach, laughing as she did. He looked at her menacingly before moving in to tickle her until she doubled over with laughter and surrendered, handing him the towel.

They were so caught up in their own little world, they didn’t even notice when the sound of Dean’s ringing phone started drifting in from the other room. They also didn’t notice Sam giving in with a roll of his eyes and getting up to answer it, sighing as he did. “Man, those two couldn’t be any more obvious….”

As he left to answer the phone, Y/N and Dean finished the dishes. When they were done, they moved into the library where they found Sam waiting for them. “Hey,” he said, turning to face them. “Bobby called.”

“Oh yeah?” Y/N asked, moving away from Dean and flopping down into a chair. She curled her foot underneath her and crossed her arms across her midsection. “What’d he say?”

“You know how he took that case over in London?” Sam paused and waited for two of them to nod before continuing. “Well, apparently, it’s gone a little sideways. He might need a little help.”

Dean froze, his whole body tensing and his heart pounding. “Bobby needs help? In London?!”

“Yes,” Sam said carefully and calmly, sensing Dean’s growing panic. “But, Y/N and I can handle it. You should stay.”

“Yeah,” Y/N echoed, moving to stand by Dean’s side. She reached out and touched his arm, instantly calming his racing heartbeat. “Or, better yet, I’ll fly out there by myself and Sam can stay here too. I’m sure Bobby and I can handle whatever it is. We don’t need the whole team.”

“Yeah, okay,” Dean said. He took a deep breath. “That sounds like a good plan. You fly to London and we stay here. On the ground. Where they aren’t any planes. Yeah. Good.”

“Good,” Y/N whispered, with a smile. “I’ll go pack.”

“Okay.” Dean returned her smile as he watched her walk out of the room. He turned back to Sam, who was watching him with a smile. “What?”

“Nothing,” Sam replied with a laugh and a shake of his head.

Dean frowned and crossed his arms. “What, Sammy?”

“Nothing!” Dean’s glare deepened, pushing Sam to give in. “It’s just you and Y/N.”

“What about me and Y/N?” he growled.

“It’s just nice to see the two of you together. That’s all. You both deserve to be happy.”

Dean shook his head and raised his eyebrows in confusion. “What the hell are you talking about, Sammy?”

“Hey, you don’t have to get all defensive about it. It’s ok. I love Y/N. If the two of you want to be together….”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Dean yelled, putting his hands up in the air. “Y/N and I aren’t ‘together’. We’re just friends.”

Sam smiled knowingly. “Oh sure, Dean. So, you’re really going to pretend that that thing in the kitchen was just two friends?”

“Yes!”

Sam continued to smile as he sat down at the table in front of his laptop. “Whatever you say, Dean. But, just so you know, even though Y/N and I are best friends, she’s never acted that way with me.”

Dean opened his mouth but closed it again right away. He couldn’t argue that he didn’t have feelings for Y/N, because of course he did. How could he not? She was gorgeous. But, more than that, she was smart, caring, thoughtful, and…perfect. Y/N was perfect. Way too perfect for a guy like him.

“Sammy, nothing is going on between Y/N and me. She’s amazing, yeah, but I’m, well, I’m me.”

Sam looked up from his computer, understanding and compassion filling his eyes. “Dean…”

“Look, I tried that relationship thing once,” Dean said, his face falling. “It didn’t work out. I’m not going to risk putting Y/N through the same thing just because I’m attracted to her.”

“Dean, you’re more than just attracted to her. Besides, you deserve to be happy. You both do. Don’t you want that?”

Dean drew in a breath and let it out roughly. Then he lifted his chin with resolve. “I have everything I want, Sammy. An awesome house, great wheels, good friends, and all the beer and pie I can eat. What more could I ask for?”

He turned away before Sam could argue the point further. He and Y/N were just fine the way they were. He didn’t want or need anything more from her. He couldn’t.

But, no matter how much he told himself that, there’s was always a little voice in the back of his head that wondered if he would ever truly believe it.

Y/N had been in London for two days, and Sam and Dean were already going stir crazy without her. She had become such a big part of both of their lives over the years that it felt strange not having her around. Almost foreign. So, they did what they always did when they needed a distraction: they found a case.

“So what’re we thinking?” Dean asked, as he cruised the Impala down the road. “Vamp nest?”

Sam looked down at the papers he was holding in his hands. “No bite marks. I’m thinking more like a Djinn.”

Dean shuddered. “Those blue man group knockoffs? Seriously?” he asked, looking over at Sam for confirmation.

Sam laughed gently. “Yeah, all signs point to it.”

“Fan-freaking-tastic….” Dean grumbled. “So, we’re looking for a dark, creepy warehouse like last time?”

“Maybe, maybe not. There’s some caves outside town. The djinn could be there.”

“Back to basics. I like it,” Dean declared. He stepped a little harder on the accelerator. “Well, let’s go put that genie back in its bottle.”

Two hours later, Sam and Dean were standing just inside the cave entrance, holding silver knives dipped in lambs blood. They were facing two different tunnels, both of them leading deeper into the cave.

Dean turned to Sam and grinned. “Pick your poison, Sammy. Left or right?”

Sam gestured towards the tunnel on the left. “I’ll take this one and you can take the other one. We’ll meet back here in 20 minutes.”

Dean nodded and started towards the tunnel on the right, but he stopped and turned back when Sam called his name. “Dean? Be safe.”

Dean nodded again, more soberly this time. “You too, Sammy.”

With that last little bit of familiar reassurance, they both took off, heading down the tunnels with their knives at the ready. Dean moved more slowly, remembering what had happened last time they faced a djinn. He measured each step down the dirt-covered pathway, his eyes scanning the darkness for any threats. He had almost made it to the turn at the end of the tunnel when he heard a scream coming from back where he’d started.

“Sam!” Dean yelled. He pivoted in a half-circle to run back down the passageway, but, before he could, he was hit from the side by something strong and solid. It knocked the breath right out of him and the knife right out of his hand. Before he could recover, the figure was on him, pressing its hands to his face. He just barely made out a tattooed arm and a steady blue glow before everything went black.

Dean woke up, breathing heavily, and looked around. He was lying in a bed in what he recognized as his and Lisa’s old bedroom. “What the hell?” he whispered.

He stood up from the bed and grabbed a pair of jeans off the floor. He pulled them on before adding a Led Zeppelin t-shirt he somehow knew would be in the nearby dresser. Once he was dressed he sat down on the edge of the bed to think.

“So, the djinn gave me back my life with Lisa. Well, joke’s on him,” he muttered with determination. “I was over Lisa a long time ago. It’ll be easy to leave this ‘fantasy’ life behind.”

He made his way out the door and down the stairs. He figured that the kitchen would have some knives that would make breaking out of this dream easy. One quick stab and he’d be back in that cave with Sam. Piece of cake.

His “piece of cake” plan went out the window the second he got to the kitchen and saw the familiar figure standing behind the counter with her back to him. It wasn’t Lisa: it was Y/N.

“Y/N?” he choked out, shock overwhelming him.

She whirled around and gifted him with one of her heart-stopping smiles. “Hey, babe. About time you woke up.”

“Babe?” he asked. What the hell was going on?

A thousand scenarios were running through Dean’s head, but none of them foresaw what Y/N was going to do next: she walked right up to him and kissed him with all the passion he had only dreamt she felt for him. His knees nearly buckled.

Once he had a chance to recover, he took control. He used his whole body to push Y/N backwards, not stopping until she was pressed up against the counter. He lifted her up and onto the edge, groaning at the sexy moan she emitted. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him closer, the passion building between them until it was scorching him. He ran his hand up her thigh and under the edge of her shirt. The feel of the soft skin there against his rough hand made him groan again, deeper this time. He pushed himself closer to her, his hands moving higher, before the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him made him stop.

He reluctantly pulled away from Y/N and spun around, shocked to find Sam standing there. “Sammy?”

“Hey, Dean. Sorry to, uh, interrupt. I just need to borrow my sister-in-law for a second.”

“Oh, God, Sam, I forgot,” Y/N muttered. She turned to Dean. “I promised Sam that I’d help him with some research for his doctoral thesis. I just have to go grab the printouts.” She smoothed her hair back down and hopped off the counter, giving Dean a quick kiss. “I’ll be right back and, then, we can pick up where we left off.”

He stared after Y/N as she bounded out of the room, his mouth hanging open in surprise. Sister-in-law? He and Y/N were married?! What the HELL was going on?

Sam looked at him quizzically, taking in his expression, and laughed. “You ok, man? You’re looking at Y/N really strangely.”

Dean shook his head and hid the confusion on his face. “Uh, yeah. Just a weird morning, that’s all.”

Sam was about to probe further when Y/N came back into the room with the papers. She started to talk to Sam, giving Dean the opportunity to look a little closer at her without either of them noticing. She was stunning, even more so than usual. She had her hair swept behind her shoulder, her gorgeous smile lighting up the entire room. She looked effortlessly beautiful, carefree, and….happy.

As if she could sense his gaze, she looked over at him and winked. It was in that moment that his whole world came into focus: he was the reason she was so happy. She was smiling because of him, she was happy because of him. Because they were together, because they were married.

But, it wasn’t real. None of this was. His heart dropped. She wasn’t smiling for him. She wasn’t even real. That wasn’t his Y/N. But, that didn’t stop him for wanting to hold her close and never let her go.

A few minutes later, Sam said goodbye and left, freeing up Y/N to turn towards him. “Now, where were we?” she whispered seductively as she made her way over to him.

She reached out to him, but he grabbed her wrist, stopping her. “Y/N, wait.”

“What is it?” she asked, bringing her other hand up to draw little circles on his chest, momentarily distracting him.

He took a deep breath to will himself to focus and looked down at her. “Y/N, this is all wrong.”

She stopped drawing the circles and met his gaze, concern in her eyes. “What do you mean wrong?”

“I mean this. All of this,” he yelled, gesturing at the house around him, “it’s all wrong. None of it’s real.”

“Dean, what are you talking about?”

He took her hands and squeezed them gently. “Y/N, I know this is going to sound crazy, but this whole thing, this house, this world, none of it is real. It’s just a fantasy a djinn put me in.”

Y/N raised her eyebrows. “A djinn?”

“Yeah. It’s like a second-rate genie. An evil second-rate genie.”

“A genie?” she asked uncertainly.

“Yes. And, he created this world to trap me so that he could kill me. I’m in danger every second I stay here.”

“Okay…let’s say I believe you,” she said cautiously, pulling her hands from his. “In this world of yours, do I exist?”

“Yes. We’ve worked together for years.”

She raised her eyebrows again. “Are we married?”

“No. We’re, uh, we’re just friends.”

She put her hands on her hips. “Why?”

“Wait, what?”

“You heard me, Winchester. Why aren’t we together? We love each other, don’t we?”

Dean shook his head and ran his hands through his hair in frustration. “It’s complicated, Y/N. Our life is different there. Riskier. Our job doesn’t leave a lot of room for happy endings.”  

“Dean, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He sighed. “Look, I know it doesn’t make any sense, but I just need you to trust me.”

“Okay.”

“Y/N, please….Wait. What’d you say?”

She smiled. “I said, okay. I may not know what the heck you’re talking about, but I love you and trust you. And, if you’re in danger, I’ll do whatever I can to help you. So, how do we stop this, what’d you call it? A gin?”

A menacing voice boomed out from behind Y/N, startling both of them. “You don’t.”

Dean reacted with lightning speed, pushing Y/N behind him so his body blocked her from the man standing in the doorway. “Let me guess. You’re the djinn here to protect your little fantasy world with some cliche threats. How original.”

The man smiled darkly and walked closer. Dean slowly backed up as he advanced, guarding Y/N as he did so. “It’s more than just a simple threat, Dean. You’re not getting out of here. Besides, why would you want to? I’ve given you the perfect world.”

Dean felt Y/N’s hand touch his back, and he thought of the real Y/N, his Y/N. It gave him the push he needed and he laughed. “You think this is perfect? Ha! Somebody has an inflated opinion of themselves. That bed wasn’t even memory foam!”

The man rolled his eyes. “Stop with the deflection, Dean. You’re not going to be able to distract me with a bunch of corny one-liners.” Suddenly, a clap of thunder boomed outside, shaking the entire house. “This is my reality. I control it, not you.”

“Not for long,” Dean growled. “All I have to do is kill myself, and then you have no power.”

Panic flashed in the djinn’s eyes before he covered it back up with pride. “But, why would you want to? Here, you and Y/N can be together. You can live out your lives happily. Why would you want to give that up?”

Dean felt Y/N’s hand tighten around his shirt. “Because it’s not real. But, you’re right about one thing: my perfect life is with Y/N. My Y/N. And, I’m going to do whatever I need to do to get back to her.”

He rushed forward and tackled the djinn, throwing him against a wall and knocking him out. When he turned back around, Y/N was standing in front of him, holding a kitchen knife. Before he could question her, she held it out to him, handle first. “Take it.”

“What are you doing?”

She smiled and walked up to him, taking his hand and placing the knife in it. “I believe you now. And, if what you said is true, that means I’m not real. But there’s a real version of me out there, right?” Dean nodded. “And, you love her? Real me, I mean.” Dean nodded again, drawing a relieved smile out of her. “Then, do it. And, when you get back to your world, I want to find me. Find us. Because, I love you, Dean, and I bet real me does too.”

Dean smiled and leaned down to give her one last kiss. He could hear the djinn stirring behind him, so he knew he needed to act fast. “I love too, Y/N. I promise you that I’m not gonna waste any more time.”

With one last look into her beautiful eyes, Dean found the strength he needed to thrust the knife into his chest, plunging the world back into darkness.

When Dean came to, he was still lying in the cave’s tunnel, with the djinn standing over him. “It’s impossible,” the djinn whispered. “No one’s ever gotten out so fast.”

“Yeah?” Dean growled, propping himself up on his elbow. “Well, don’t I feel special.”

He rolled onto his stomach, using his momentum to propel himself over to where his silver knife laid, in the same place it had been knocked to in the fight. Before the djinn could stop him, he flipped up into a crouch and stabbed the knife right into the djinn’s heart, killing it instantly. He pushed the dead body away before standing up fully and wiping his hands on his jeans.

“Dean!” Sam’s frantic cry sounded from somewhere in the distance.

“Over here!”

Sam’s hurried footsteps grew closer until he finally appeared around the corner. “Dean! What happened?”

“The djinn got me.”

Sam looked him over quickly before addressing him. “Are you ok?”

“Yeah. I wasn’t under very long. But….”

“But, what?”

He grinned again. “I’m gonna need to use your computer. I’ve got a ticket I need to buy.”

Y/N was sitting on the bed in her hotel room in London, thumbing through some brochures the hotel had provided. She wasn’t particularly interested in anything she was finding, but she was bored and she had nothing better to do.

She and Bobby had wrapped up the case a few hours ago, and he had flown out right afterwards. But, there weren’t any flights back to Kansas until the morning, so she was stuck here for one more night. She had originally reveled in having a night alone without any men taking up her space, but, after ordering room service and taking a bath, she had run out of fun things to do. So, now, she was just sitting there, looking at boring brochures.

She was about to give up and turn on some trash TV when a knock sounded at her door. She wasn’t expecting anyone, so she grabbed her gun off the nightstand and cautiously approached the door. “Who is it?”

“Y/N, it’s Dean. Open up.”

“Dean?” she whispered skeptically under her breath. She stashed her gun but pulled her holy water from her pocket before she opened the door. As soon as she did, she surprised Dean by throwing holy water right into his face.

“Hey!” he yelled loudly. He sputtered and wiped the water off his face.

“Sorry,” she whispered, flashing him an apologetic smile. “But, you can never be too careful.” She opened the door wider to let him in. “What are you doing here, Dean?”

“I needed to talk to you,” he said, brushing past her and heading towards the middle of the room.

“In London? Dean, you’re afraid of flying.”

“It couldn’t wait.” He turned around and faced her, surprising her with the intensity in his gaze. “I was attacked by a djinn.”

“Wait, what?” Y/N yelled, her eyes widening. She moved closer to him. “What happened? Are you okay?!”

“I’m fine,” he said with a smile. “But, being trapped in that djinn reality made me realize something important about my life.” He reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her towards him gently. “About our life.”

She held her breath and stared up at him, her heart beating faster. “Y/N, I’m in love with you.”

“You’re…you’re what?” she stammered, completely shocked at what she had just heard. She had to grip tighter onto his hand just to stay standing.

“I’m in love with you, Y/N. Before this happened, I thought I could ignore it. I thought we’d both be better off staying friends, but I can’t ignore it anymore. When I was faced with the choice to stay in the djinn reality or leave it, I had to make a quick decision: to stay in the life I’d always wanted or to come back here to you.”

“And, you came back?”

Dean grinned. “Well, when my 60 seconds came around, I realized I had everything I ever wanted, but nothing I really needed. And I think that what I need is here. And I came all this way to see if maybe you might think so too.”

“You took a plane all the way here just to tell me that?”

“Y/N, I love you. I’d take ten planes if that’s what it took to be with you.”

Y/N smiled and moved closer to Dean, placing her hands on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him, leaning his head down towards hers. “I love you, too, Dean,” she whispered before their lips met, solidifying their commitment to each other. And, no matter how passionate his fantasy kiss with Y/N had been, it didn’t compare to this. This kiss lived up to all of Dean’s dreams. It made his legs nearly buckle all over again. Nothing could beat the real Y/N. Nothing at all.

Forevers- @hamartiamacguffin @mrsdeanfuckingwinchester @katymacsupernatural @impandagrl @cyrilconnelly @damnandriel-in-hell @impala-dreamer @castielhasthetardis @jarpadandjensenaremyheroes @shotgunintheimpala 

Dean Tags- @akshi8278

[jiminthestreets-bonesinthesheets]

Avengers: Storm

Summary: The avengers have just defeated Ultron, a much needed victory for the weary team, but another storm is coming their way. A new member joins the team and has some very unexpected effects on everyone, especially the Captain himself, Steve Rogers.     Secrets are revealed, scars revisited, and new wounds formed as they battle one of their toughest and most personal battles yet. All they can do is hope this wont be their breaking point...

characters: Steve Rogers/Captain America, Tony Stark/Iron Man, Widow, Hawkeye, Banner, Thor, All the Avengers, and a few original characters

Rating: Mature (just in case, still havent fully decided yet)

Note: So yay, im finally posting this after i said i would do thisa week ago... opps! And this is my first Avengers fic so be nice :)      But before you read, just a little tidbit about my writting. I love to add in new characters and it usually involves some sort of romance of some kind, so if you dont like OC’s then this might not be the fic for you, and thats ok! I also love making everything into series which this will probably end up being, so be prepared for that. But for those of you who do read it i hope you enjoy it!! And be sure to let me know what you think! ok, here it goes...

Chapter 1:

Stark Tower

     “Stark!” a familiar voice carried across the loud dance floor to the ears of the billionaire walking casually towards the bar. “You’ll throw a party for anything won’t you.”

    Tony reached the bar with one last step, a powerful hand landing on his shoulder giving him the extra push to make it there without falling.

    “Well, Captain, I hardly think defeating Ultron is any reason not to party,” he began, raising his hand to get the bar tenders attention, “we have saved the world twice, once from an alien invasion lead by Thor’s overly jealous not God adoptive brother, and once from a robot invasion initiated, not intentionally, by yours truly. A few drinks and a dance or two,” he said as he raised a glass to his friend, “is well deserved.”

    The two of them downed both of their drinks in one go, Tony ordering another round.

    “Stark, Cap, good to see you again.”

    “Doctor Banner,” Steve reached forward shaking Bruce's hand.

    Tony turned handing yet another drink to Steve then looking to Bruce, “Ah, another arrival. A drink Doctor Banner? Come on, on the house.”

    Hesitantly he declined, “No thanks. I’d better not, you know…just in case.”

    Tony pointed his drink at Bruce with wide eyes. “Fun, Banner, you’re allowed to have some.”

    “Best to be on the safe side I think.”

    “Well as much as I admire your extremely boring sense of responsibility and lack of adventure,” Tony said as he took three more drinks from the bar, “I'm going to party like the eccentric genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist I am.”

    With that stark left the two men at the bar and wiggled his way through the bouncing dance floor.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Five hours later the party was just as thriving as it was when it first started. The group of Avengers had assembled in a quieter corner of the room, Tony with one girl on each arm, both of them hanging off of every word.

    Between the laughs and slurred sentences shared amongst the Avengers, Jarvis's faint cries could be heard, “Sir, Sir!”

    Tony stopped laughing. “Yes Jarvis, what is it?”

    “Sir, there is a lady caller at the front desk for you. She stresses it is very important.”

    “Was she invited to the party, Jarvis?” Tony continued to flirt with the two blondes beside him on the couch.

    “No Sir,” Jarvis continued sounding strained, “you must see to her, Sir, she asked specifically for you.”

    “She's probably some corporate solicitor trying to get a meeting,” he sighed and with a wave of his hand continued, “just…tell her I'm in a meeting or…just make something up Jarvis, isn’t that what I invented you for.”

    Sounding quite annoyed now Jarvis persisted, “No, Sir, you invented me as an aid to yourself and your work, not a butler nor a liar. Now, Sir, I wish you to see to this young lady immediately. If it helps any she has a two toned hair colour, almost a silver blonde on top with a dark grey on the bottom, pale skin, no older then 28 I would guess. She says it’s an emergency, sir.”

    “Silver and grey hair?” with that Tony ran with a speed a man as drunk as him should not have been able to reach and within minutes was in the nearest elevator heading to the lobby, quickly followed by the rest of the Avengers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    “Please! You don’t understand I must see Mr. Stark right away!”

    The secretary behind the desk looked more then angry as she scowled at the girl over the rim of her glasses, “Miss, I have told you, Mr. Stark is a very busy man and has no time for children to come barging into his office demanding to speak with him. If you don’t leave now I will be forced to contact the proper authorities.”

    “Busy,” the young girl laughed, “he’s probably having a party right now isn’t he?”

    The secretary didn’t say anything confirming her theory.

    “Well you tell him party’s over!” the girl said with shaking hands as she whispered desperately, “I need to see him, I need his help.”

      With an exaggerated sigh the secretary gave her a stern look, “Miss, either make an appointment,” she lifted the phone, “or I'm calling the police.”

    The young girl didn’t know what to do as she ran shaking hands through her long hair.

    “You give me no choice,” the secretary said to her.

    With no one else to go to and no other options what was she supposed to do now? She couldn’t get arrested.

    “Leeanna?!”

    Both the young girl and the secretary’s heads turned in the direction of the voice.

    “Uncle Tony!” the young blonde ran past the secretary’s desk and into the waiting arms of Tony Stark.

    “Uncle?” all the Avengers questioned in unison.

    Ignoring them all he focused on soothing the panicked girl in his arms as he ran gentle hands through her hair, “Calm down, stop shaking, you’re with me now.”

    With a concentrated breath she pulled back from his chest looking up to him. “I'm sorry, Uncle Tony, I had no where else to go. Then your secretary wouldn’t let me in, I was seconds away from getting arrested, I have no one else to turn to.”

    Tears welled in her eyes as her hands began to shake again. Pulling her in, Tony looked to his staff and ordered, “Any time this girl comes looking for me she gets a free pass. I don’t care if I am in the most important meeting of my life, I don’t care if I'm saving the queen of England, this girl comes first! Are we clear?!”

    His staff remained silent, heads down, he muttered a quick “good” before turning to his friends behind him and saying, “Out. Get everyone out of my tower, now.”

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    With the guests now gone and the party with them, Tony sat the young girl down before placing himself across from her. Taking both her hands in his, looking to her down cast eyes, he said softly, “Now, tell me what happened?”

    The girl gave no answer.

    “Did your parents send you here again?”

    Looking to him she answered, “No. I came on my own this time.”

    “Do your parents even know you’re here?!” With a shake of her head Tony let go a knowing sigh, “Jarvis, please call Leeanna's parents and let them know she's safe with me and will probably be staying here for a while. Their number is in my data base under Richard and Marina Burke.”

    “Right away, Sir.”

    “Leeanna,” he caught her smoky grey eyes in his, one last attempt at the truth, “what did you do?”

    Without looking away she pulled her hands from his, reaching into a pocket on the side of her pants. She brought a closed fist to his hands, placing a cold solid object in his palm, and gently closing his fingers over it before bringing her hands back to rest in her lap. Hesitantly, Tony opened his closed hand revealing a single piece of white stone, rough on some edges smooth on others.

    With a raised brow he asked, “Leeanna, what is this?”

    “It might be a piece of the White House that I may or may not have accidentally shattered the side of while visiting Washington with my family.” She said all in one breath, squeezing her eyes tight as she finished.

    Tony stood and walked to the back of his chair, clutching the stone in his right hand against his forehead, his other hand resting on his hip. “Oh, Lee…” was all he could manage.

    “I'm sorry!” her voice cracked as the tears returned, “This is why I never go outside, all it takes is for one thing to go wrong and something like this happens! But my parents insisted on taking me with them. I begged them to send me to you but they wouldn’t listen. Now every cop, agent, and news reporter in the country is hunting down the maniac that blew up the White House!”

    “Hold on,” Clint came closer, a confused look on his face, “you blew up the White House? How do you blow up the White House? There are secret service agents scattered every two feet, trained assassins can’t get in.”

    She looked to her uncle in pure desperation, searching for some kind of understanding. “Uncle Tony, I'm so sorry. I really didn’t mean it, you know I can’t control it!”

    Tony turned to her, looking to her balled fists in her lap. In one leap he was on his knees in front of her, holding both her wrists in his hands. “Leeanna! Leeanna, stop shaking!”

    “Stark…” Steve slowly stepped closer to the two, Tony completely ignoring him.

    “Lee,” he said begging her to look at him, “Lee, look at me, stop…shaking.”

    She met his eyes once more before choking out in defeat, “I can’t.”

    Tony let her hands go, standing to say to everyone, “Get back! Now!”

    Before anyone could register what was happening they were hit by a powerful wind. It escaped from the young blonde in the center of the room and shot in all directions with a force so strong the room was destroyed in mere seconds. The wind twirled around her, cocooning her inside its wall of protection, shattering glass, tables, chairs, anything it could. The Avengers were thrown across the room, holding on to what they could to keep themselves grounded. Opening her eyes and seeing just what she had done only made the wind worse, stronger as she further lost control. Tony tried desperately to get to her, to shout to her, trying to calm the girl but nothing worked as the wind raged on around her.

    She sat with her face buried in her shaking hands, curled in on herself, trying with all of her strength to take hold of the situation but she could feel her emotions gripping her tighter and tighter not letting go.

    Her eyes shot open as warm hands gripped her wrists, pulling them away from her face. “Stop! I’ll only hurt you!” The panic worsened the wind even more as she tried to pull away from Steve.

    He held her arms, keeping himself calm. “Hey, it’s ok. Just take a deep breath, close your eyes, and concentrate on my voice.”

    With no other choice she did as he said, taking a deep breath and releasing it as she closed her eyes.

    “Now relax, don’t think of anything else, void all thoughts.” Steve's smooth voice echoed in her head and she could feel him taking hold, finally subduing the storm inside. She could feel as her hands slowly stopped shaking, as he gently placed them back in her lap.

    Placing one hand on either side of her face he whispered, “You can open your eyes now.”

    She peeked her eyes open, afraid to see the damage she had done, but her eyes remained fixed on one thing. “I…I didn’t hurt you.” She whispered.

    Steve continued to kneel in front of her, allowing her attention to dwell on him and away from the destruction she had just caused. Cautiously she reached both hands forward, brushing her finger tips up his arms, over his shoulders, across every crevice of his face.

    “How did I not hurt you?” she whispered.

    “I don’t know,” he whispered back, eyes fixed on her, “maybe my strength helped, the fact that I am a super soldier.”

    A crash from behind brought the two of them out of their daze. Tony emerged from a pile of broken chairs and tables, half suited up, shaking splinters from every nook.

    “I hate to ruin this, oh so tender moment,” the sarcasm dripping from him, “but…my house is ruined and you broke the Avengers. Congratulations.”

    Finally looking around her she began to panic again. She had destroyed everything. There was not one item that remained untouched. The Avengers were scattered around the room, most with some form of broken bone, bleeding from various places, moaning as they thanked God it was over.

    A hand came up to land on her cheek, “Hey, Leeanna, just relax.” Steve could feel her hands beginning to shake again under his but his touch instantly calmed her, her hand coming up to hold his as she let out a shaky breath as she tried to understand what had just happened. She did not know this man, she knew he was the famous Cap but that was it. so after only minutes of knowing him, how could he have such a strong hold on her already.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Alright, thats chapter 1, I hope you all liked it ^^

[milquetoast-on-acid]

Season 1 Round Up, A Reactionary Post

With every season that I review I plan on writing a season roundup. This is in the same format as the one I did for season 5. The only difference is that Season 1 only had 1 theme. I am aiming to get through all of season 4 before season 6 premieres. I'm not sure if it will be possibly but I'm going to try. Right now I am in the process of reviewing the first 5 episodes of season 2. The majority of them are done so look forward to the beginning of season 2 with in the next week or so. Thank you to all of you who read and enjoy my reviews. ;) I love all of your comments and I highly encourage discussion.

Theme: Fairness

I think this season did a really good job with the theme. It's pushed very much in the beginning of the season mostly with Sharon, Provenza and Rusty. And then again later on mostly with Rusty and his situation with Daniel Dunn. 

Character Storylines/Arcs

Buzz

So Buzz is such a minor character in the first season that he doesn't really have his own personal arc or any kind of character growth here. Which I think is why I'm talking about him first. The really only on going storyline through out the season that he's involved in is as a babysitter/older brother to Rusty. 

Fairness He starts of the season as annoyed with Rusty. And through out the season both of them (Rusty/Buzz) seem to find their groove, even if they are annoyed by the other. My point is, is that it starts off with pure annoance (why do I have to babysit this kid when I'm here to work) to evolving to I really care about you but you annoy me the way a younger/older brother would. 

Taylor Since Taylor has always been sort of an antagonist on The Closer. It's such a natural transition that he'd become an antagonist here on MC. I've always felt about his character is that he starts off as pure asshole but does grow (very slowly) through out both shows. It's very evident that in the beginning he's got himself into the position that he's always wanted to be. And now he's exercising that power. Instead of working with Sharon and Provenza he does his best to undermine them. He's holding the power and they better play ball or else. 

And the sad thing is that even though he promised a promotion to Sharon he's not doing anything to follow up on his word. And later on even threatens her job. That's not how you should treat your employees. Similarity with Provenza he threatens his job as well just in a different way. Either he sticks with MC or he's in retirement and even gets approval from Pope to do that to him. 

What I've always felt about Taylor is that once he's out of Pope's shadow and influence then he starts to get to know the people on the squad more and becomes more of the type of leader he should have been in the first place. Because we see him later on actually working with the squad instead of what he's doing in season 1, which is working against them.

Amy Amy is a brand spanking new character and she starts off on shaky ground. As sort of a new character that both stirs the pot a little bit and as comic relief. I'm rather glad they had her drop that odd New York accent she had in the first few episodes. IMO there aren't enough female cast members on this show and I'm glad that they decided to fill their vacant slot with a woman and a woman of color as well. 

Amy starts off as the young gun, the eager beaver, the one quirky one with rough edges who's rather tactless. And tactless in a rather odd combination of cluelessness and deliberate action. Quickly though Amy calms down and she blends into the squad quite nicely.

Mike Mike I feel has always been the most neglected character on the cast. I always wonder why because I love him so. I have felt that of all of Mike's plot lines the one in "Dismissed with Prejudice."  Really worked the best with his character. He's a father and it makes it so easy for him to connect with the suspect & victims daughter. He wanted so badly to make up for what he thought was his mistake and then he does everything in the girls best interests. Even going so far as to attempt to explain her fathers behavior away.

Fairness It only occurred to me now that fairness plays a really great role in that whole case and what happens to the victim/killers daughter. None of it was fair. The case being dismissed, the father killing the wife and the daughter getting that kind of a father.

Rusty Another new character although not completely brand new. Rusty serves a different dynamic to the way Fritz did in The Closer. First of all we have a younger member to possibly bring in younger people as well as a  LGBT character. It's interesting to note the differences in the show's characters dynamics. While the majority of the characters remain the same the dynamics are completely different. Having Rusty interacting so closely with the squad really helped bring them together as a family. As well as Sharon's type of inclusive leadership.

Fairness So many moments between Rusty and Sharon in season 1 are truly heartfelt and you want so badly for the two of them to officially become family. After everything that befalls Rusty his mother abandoning him once again and his biological father turning out to be and an abuser.  First Rusty would rather not live with Sharon, but then the two start to bond and form a rather tight relationship. Once that is settled then Dunn comes into the picture. To Rusty it's not fair that he has to be forced into meeting a man he doesn't want to met.

Julio We really have yet see much stuff from Julio in season 1. We do get to see him continuing as the 'heavy' or action character that he was on The Closer. This time it's with Amy instead of Andy. We do see some stuff regarding his character on how deeply he feels about missing children and abused children. Which is a plot thread that has worked its way into season 5 and him adopting a child. Julio has always been a guy with a huge heart and a father without a child.

Provenza Fairness The theme of fairness plays so well in with his character. He was given command of MC and within a week told that his old enemy is taking over but that he wouldn't be able to transfer if he wanted off the team. So unfortunately he has to suck it up and he has a much harder time doing that than Sharon does.

The Sudo-Father/Grandfather I also love his relationship with Rusty. His sudo-father/grandfather role that he begins to play with him in this season and in the next season. It's interesting that as close as the two of them start out, Rusty seems to gravitate towards him less and less through the years. 

Flynn and Provenza, two besties with two different view points It's so interesting that Provenza and Andy who are two really close best friends are so completely split on their views on Sharon and her leadership. Normally we see the two of them in agreement on a situation. What I do love about their friendship is that even though they disagree about her and her new ideas it doesn't stop them from being friends. Neither of them seem to take it to heart and both clearly express their feelings with the other.

Andy His Personality and Role in the Squad We are also starting to see a different side to Andy than we have ever seen on The Closer. He seems to be taking on more of a leadership role verses his comic relief/ the action hero role he had on the closer. We see him right off the first episode interrogating a suspect in a rather caring way and in a way that really feels like he knows what he's doing. In a way we hadn't seen from him in The Closer. 

Also we are starting to see sides of his own personality that we weren't allowed to see on The Closer. Given that the show was from Brenda's perspective. I find it interesting that as a character who's really known for showing all of their emotions on their sleeves - he's also a character that has hidden a lot of himself. So evident is that line from "The Ecstasy and the Agony". 

"Your divorced. You have a whole in your heart so deep, you couldn’t fill it with booze so covered it up with a badge. You feel you destroyed your children's lives even though they say they forgive you.” Which really tells us that there's more to Andy then just cynicism and a lot of what he does his sense of humor, his cynicism, his non serious dating life are all things that cover up how he's feeling inside and about himself. That a lot of his own actions are sort of a band-aid to cover up something that was missing from his life. It shows us a guy that is really concerned about people (his family most especially) in a way that we hadn't ever before seen. 

Rusty's Father It's made really clear that Provenza is the guy that Rusty goes to when he can't go to Sharon about an issue. I watched an interview with the cast and crew in which the interviewer says that Provenza is the father of Rusty. And Tony points to himself and says quietly that he's the father. I thought it was cute but after re watching season 1. I realized that I don't think that Tony was nessicairly wrong about that. They both are Rusty's fathers. 

It surprised me to learn at just how much Andy is already involved with Rusty as a father figure. That wasn't something I remembered so much from season 1. Andy is sort of always there when it comes to issues with Rusty. He leads the whole conversation on what to do with Rusty not wanting to meet his father and getting information on him. He's with Sharon and backs her up when Cynthia turns up with Daniel Dunn. He notices even more than Provenza just how distracted Rusty is over meeting Dunn. I mean this is why it's great doing a rewatch because you notice things that you hadn't the first time around. It brings you a richer experience and more appreciation for the characters and the show.

Sharon Her Personality Already we are starting to see different things from Sharon. She's still the same person but now we are seeing how she is at home and what really makes her tick. We have seen how she deals with certain problems but now we are starting to see things from her perspective so that helps us fill in the gaps on why she does the things she does.

Sharon's Leadership (verses Brenda's leadership) The differences in how she runs the unit verses how Brenda ran the unit. As well as how that effects the dynamics of the characters and their relationships to each other. Sharon is much more inclusive as a leader. And I have always felt that her and Brenda are two completely opposite people. Brenda's sugar sweet image which hid a very smart, cunning and (sadly) manipulative personality. It was often a great way for her to get her suspects to confide in her. Verses Sharon's detached, cold and seemingly emotionally aloof personality. Which hides a warm and very caring personality. Often she takes on the burden of other peoples problems.

Rusty’s Mother It's interesting to see Sharon so attached to Rusty and so fast. Everything we know now it makes perfect sense but what we know of Sharon from TC, it may be kind odd. But then I've always felt that TC was almost exclusively from Brenda's perspective and a lot of the characters we only got to see one side of them. I think it's a great idea for us to get another look at who Sharon is from a completely different perspective.

Sharon & Provenza It's odd to think that it's Provenza that Sharon has the hardest working relationship with. Since Sharon has usually always had the hardest time with Andy. Although it's not odd to think that she's going to have issues with Provenza. Provenza is a guy that's very much used to how things are done and in certain way. He's not really one open to change. And he complains, he's not shy of showing how he feels about a situation. The thing that Provenza is not aware of is how much his situation is so similar to Sharon's situation. Eventually they find some common ground and he starts to work with her instead of against her.

Sharon's Right Hand As with Brenda, she had a right hand (Gabriel) who helped transition her into the squad's leader. Andy becomes Sharon's right hand from the very first episode. I talk quite a bit about it in my Reloaded review and why I think it they choose Andy so I won't go into that here. I just really love how we are seeing a different side of Andy through his relationship with Sharon and how that starts off here as him being her first ally.

Fairness Sharon finally gets herself out of IA where many people including the majority of the MC squad never quite understood her. Is promised a promotion to go along with her new leadership position and then is promptly told by Taylor that the job is the promotion. So any prospects of being a Commander are now dashed quite quickly. While this is not fair to Sharon and nor does she thinks so. She takes this in great stride. Sharon takes her lack of promotion much better than Provenza does having taken MC away from him. Sharon is very much used to making life with lemons in both her personal and professional lives.

Favorite Scenes:

(in no particular order)

The Confrontation

My favorite scenes from this season are the one were everyone confronts Daniel about what he did with Rusty and gave him different options. It was much more than satisfying to see all of them united on a front against him and his shit headiness.

Sharon Hugs Rusty I loved that little moment when Sharon finally gives Rusty a hug. It's really the first time we see Sharon give Rusty any kind of physical comfort. She had been so careful (and obviously wanting to touch him to reassure him) to not invade his personal space. Because of what he has gone through. It was wonderful seeing not only hug him but to see him accept and sink into it. And that it was done right in front of Daniel. To tell him in no uncertain terms that here is someone that loves this boy deeply.

Sharon goes to Flynn and Provenza for advice on Rusty I love this scene and it's probably one of my favorite all time Flynn and Provenza's scenes. I love how Sharon addresses both Andy and Provenza but it's Andy that leads the conversation. It's really the start of the Raydor/Flynn/Beck family and I love any family moment. Andy's "there's a man by the name of Rusty's father who may be involved in a murder." I don't know why I love that line so but I think it's hilarious. And one of Andy's best. Also Sharon in the background not trying to laugh...or really Mary not trying to laugh at them.

Sharon and Andy team up against crooked Cop Conner They are such a team here. I how much Andy already has so much respect for Sharon here verses how he had treated her in The Closer. Not only that but the whole Andy gets pissed off and Sharon calms him down with just a pat to his arm. Definitely shows how the two of them are connected on such a different level despite their opposite personalities. 

Sharon and Andy parent Rusty verses Cynthia parenting Rusty from afar I love this. I never really sat down and analysed that particular scene before. But it's really interesting how Sharon and Andy are completely in sync with the other and seem to follow the other's track of thought so very closely. And not only that but they are really acting like Rusty's parents here years before the two ever got together as a couple. 

And it's not like Cynthia doesn't have Rusty's best interests at heart but she doesn't really know Rusty the way that Sharon and Andy do. Cynthia only sees that Daniel is a good thing for this boy. But I love that Sharon and Andy both make it clear the emotional repercussions of having him there and what that means for Rusty. And doing their best to stall Dunn until they can take a look at who he is. And for Sharon to gather her facts and doing her best to tell Rusty.

Andy watches Sharon

This was a scene I never noticed on any of my watches until this particular rewatch. It’s such a tiny moment, Blink and you’ll miss it. Andy knowing that Sharon is preoccupied with thoughts on Daniel Dunn is seen here watching Sharon. He’s already got his mind on her emotional state so early on in the series is striking. 

I love his transition from thinking she’s only there to push the rules at them at no cost to their emotional states. To seeing how she’s taking on so much with no emotional support. I also love how he’s watching her so openly - like he’s not even trying to hide it. At all. 

What I didn't like about the season: I didn't care much for the comedy episodes in this season. IMO they are the weakest of MC's comedy episodes. I don't do much re-watching of season 1. I get that much of season 1 a show is still finding it's footing and things are going to be kind of harry the first time around. Since this was already part of an established franchise (could you call it that?) they need to do their best to try to step out of the previous shows shadow. 

I think for the most part they do that - but there isn't really much hear that interests me all that much in season 1. There are things here and there but I find the episodes in the later seasons are what really capture me. I also think that the show at this point doesn't have very many dark/hard hitting emotional cases. There were a few in season 1 that I really connected with but not very many. 

It's definitely my least favorite season of MC. And of the episodes that I rewatch, this season is dead last. It's not a bad season. There are episodes I do like but I think there are more established relationships between the characters that make for more interesting viewing later on. Now that may be an odd thing to say since 90% of the cast came from TC but (for teh most part) the relationships on this show are different than what they were on MC. 

We don't really get all that much information on Sharon. We get a few things, we relearn her character is married but separated for 20 years. We are not really sure what went wrong at this point but we get some very subtle hints in a few episodes. We get more information on her son, Ricky than we do on anything else in her life. I get that Sharon isn't a person that really shares personal things but as our new main character - it would have been good to get most background stuff on her.

What I liked about the season: I like the stuff with Daniel Dunn. The first time I watched season 1, I wanted so much for Rusty to stay with Sharon. I wanted all of the bad people in his life to just stay away and for Sharon to get sole custody of him. The relationship and bond between Sharon and Rusty is such a highlight of season 1. 

I love changing up some of the characters roles from The Closer. Specifically Andy, who was always viewed/portrayed as this comic relief character who is full of cynicism, loves younger women and has a rather black and white view of the world. But from the first episode we are already seeing a different/deeper side to this character. 

Adding a new character and in the form of a woman. TC lost a female cast member when Gina  Ravera left and it wasn't until season 7 of TC that we had Mary McDonnell on the show with any regularity. Yes I know that she had a recurring role on 5 & 6 but she's only in a few amount of episodes that I don't really count as a regular until season 7. 

I love the whole idea of having Andy to Sharon as what Gabriel was to Brenda. Andy as Sharon's right hand is such an odd idea because of what we know about them as individuals and how they are with each other. Because of how much they have clashed in the past and how both are strong willed people who have very different ideas on how to proceed in an investigation. It's such a startling difference between Gabriel and Brenda. Because Gabriel and Brenda end up gravitating towards each other because of their (initial) shared ideals. When it's the differences between Sharon and Andy that have them gravitate towards the other. 

It's a nice thing to set the two (Sharon and Brenda) apart as the type of leaders they are. Brenda and Gabriel were much like two peas in a pod with similar ideas and ways of doing things (although there were times when the two of them were on opposite sides). I think that it's Andy not being afraid to tell Sharon when she's in the wrong that pushed the two of them together. And everything we think we know about Sharon makes the pairing of Sharon and Andy (as friends, as allies and later as loves) a very odd thing. And then we start to get to know Sharon more, and then we met her husband.

[mfmagazine]

Tiffany Hines

Article by Diane Walsh

Photo by Annette Navarro

If you haven’t noticed Tiffany Hines on either the LA or Toronto entertainment scene then you haven’t been paying, enough, proper attention.  She’s hopping amazing! Appearing all over the place, on multiple popular TV series not only as an actress but also as a singer - AND - she can dance.  Tiffany struck me as someone with a real nice, down-home attitude. A person, modest about her talents and accomplishments, yet worthy of being a role model for young women. On top of that…nobody can help but notice she’s gorgeous to boot! The ‘total package’ as we [*WINK*] occasionally, annoyingly-crass-journalists, explete, from time to time when we see a gem.  And a diamond in the rough Tiffany sure is. You star in the new CW TV-series, Nikita, as Jaden’ What does she mean to you? Tell us Jaden’. Most people will see her as the mean girl at first, but to me she is so much more. What makes her interesting is that in the beginning she comes across as a tough girl, but as we get to know her we discover she also has this vulnerable side. The tough exterior is all she has ever known. She relies on that to protect the real Jaden underneath that has never felt love and acceptance and wants it more than anything in the world. When I first read the pilot it really intrigued me how hard she is at first, but how fiercely she tries to cover up her feelings for Thom. I was like, oh... I see you Jaden... I get you. And what we can expect from the series?

As the show progresses, we will get to learn more about each of the characters. Who they were before they came to Division and how they ended up there. And of course we will learn more about Michael and Nikita's past. You can definitely expect more action, and you can expect more writing that continues to keep you guessing. I constantly find myself reading scripts with a bag of popcorn, flipping feverishly through them and going "What?! That did NOT just happen!" [Laughs] I hope you all enjoy watching it as much as I enjoy making it for you! It’s sweet that Nikita is being filmed in Toronto. How do you like TO by the way?

At first I was a little apprehensive about living in Toronto. I am a country mouse through and through! So being surrounded by all this concrete and all these buildings in downtown Toronto, instead of trees and yards was a bit of a change for me. But now I absolutely love it. I love exploring the city. And I'm proud to say I am becoming very streetcar and subway savvy. This from the girl that takes a cab in NYC to go three blocks because I'm scared I will get lost! [Laughs] But yeah, Toronto is great. I love filming here. The people are amazing, there's amazing Canadian destinations I can see on my days off...and the Poutine, Tim Hortons Coffee, and Ketchup chips are addicting! Are your Canadian fans any different from your American ones?

I think all my fans are great! It's flattering to know I have them in both countries as well as the rest of the world.  I am just really grateful for all their love and support, because without them I would never be able to keep doing what I love. I want to share as much of this journey with them as I can. How did you enjoy playing in the romantic-comedy movie, Perfect Combination, alongside Christian Keyes, Angell Conwell, Kareem Grimes, and Ayo Sorrells?

We had such a blast shooting that movie! From day one we felt like the best of friends. We had so much fun on set, but everyone was so professional and determined to make a great film. As shooting continued, we actually became a family. In this business you are constantly on the go and often it's hard to keep those relationships going after you wrap the film. I feel so blessed that now so many of them are my closest friends.  Even the Executives of Tri-Destined Studios who produced the film are like family and keep in touch! I feel so fortunate to have had that experience, and I truly love each of them dearly. Any favorite brand promotions that you’ve done or would like to do in the future? Old Navy again perhaps?

I really enjoyed my time with Old Navy. I am also a huge video game playing geek so I think it would be cool to do promotions for a video game company like Activision or EA Sports. And since I love beauty products and makeup, I think it would be interesting to promote a beauty or makeup line. But the one rule I live by is, that I really have to be passionate about something, and truly BELIEVE in a product if I am going to promote it. Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, Criminal Minds, Miss Guided – this is getting to be quite a list! You must be very proud. And also – of your role as – Allysha, in the film, The Winged Man, which, I understand, was honored as the Official Selection in the Rhode Island Film Festival, LA Short Film Festival, and Big Bear Film Festival.

I am so thankful to have been in projects that have allowed me to work with and learn from so many brilliant and talented actors and actresses so early in my career. Working with people like Chandra Wilson, Tamara Taylor, Emily Deschanel, Jesse Williams, David Boreanaz, and so many more, has really been inspiring for me and has taught me so much about my craft. Playing Allysha in the Winged Man  from Esperanza Productions was such a beautiful experience as well. It was such an honor to be able to participate in a project penned by Oscar nominee Jose Rivera. And I don't think there was one person, whether it was cast, crew, or producers who were not touched after participating in that film. We were all so thrilled when something we had worked so passionately on, was recognized by such respected film festivals. You as Kelly Hawkins, lesbian student, on ABC Family's Lincoln Heights is a stand-out.  Why do you think that is? Along with, you, as Layla, on CSI?

Well my role as Kelly on Lincoln Heights is probably one of the most controversial roles I have ever played. In the episode I kiss one of the lead actresses. I think a lot of people were shocked at that episode. But I was happy that ABC Family pushed the envelope like that. I think that television and film is a representation of all us...our culture...who we are, and all of the experiences that make us human. I was proud to be part of something where I was representing the voice of a group of people who in the past have been seriously underrepresented and misrepresented in T.V. and film. Playing the role of Layla in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation was also very different from my other roles, because I got to sing. I played this girl who was about to win an amateur national televised singing contest, and the CSI team has to find out who murdered her. It was exhilarating and fun to incorporate both of my loves, singing and acting, into my work at the same time. A lot of people don't know that I sing and were surprised I actually did all my own singing in that episode.     Of course, you’ve got to tell us about your character ‘Michelle Welton’ on Bones and ‘Lacey’ on Lie to Me. What’s that like?

One of the things I love the most about being an actress is the vast different people you get to be. I am basically getting paid to do now, what I did as a kid for free... play make believe! Michelle is a young and sweet impressionable 16 year old. She is the adopted daughter of Detective Camille Saroyan (played by Tamara Taylor) on Bones. I love playing Michelle because on the one hand she is so sweet and has a good heart, but on the other hand she is a rebellious teenager who is trying to discover who she is as a woman. My role of Lacey on Lie to Me is completely different from my role of Michelle on Bones. She is a hardened 25 year old woman who has had a rough life and makes her living as a porn star. I love putting on various different hats like that and not limiting myself to just being a character that is the mirror image of myself. Part of the reason I love acting is because I get to be so many different people from one day to the next. In any other field, I would probably be considered certifiably insane and locked in a padded room. But as an actress I get praised for it. I love working with the cast of Bones! It is one of the most fun sets I've ever had the privilege of filming on. Bones is a popular series.  Why do you think it is?  

I think there are a lot of reasons why it is popular. First off, the writing is amazing, and secondly, the two leads David and Emily are great at bringing those beloved characters to life. Lastly, I think that everyone on the show, from the cast, to the crew, to the producers really have amazing chemistry together and work so hard from week to week to continue bringing a quality story to life. I feel so lucky that their family opened up their arms to me. That amazing chemistry that spans across the entire family is infectious and you can see it in every scene and in every show of theirs that you watch.   What’s your favorite TV series? Apart from the ones you’re in, of course!

True Blood! I AM SO ADDICTED! I think Alan Ball is a Genius! I am a huge fan of the books by Charlaine Harris. I read often, and it is very rare that I love a television or film adaptation as much as I love a book that I've read. But Alan is brilliant because he keeps even the fans of the books on the edge of our seats. I never know what's going to happen, and I am completely hooked. Also since I love music, of course my other favorite show is Glee! I can't get enough and my iPod is filled with all their music. Is Glee up your street somewhere in the future, do you think?

I definitely wouldn't turn down the offer if it came. I think anyone that did would be crazy! I don't know one actor/singer that wouldn't want to be on Glee...myself included. In your past, you’ve won several dance titles.  What are your dance fortes and what’s your favorite sound to dance to?

I love every form of dance.  I started out clogging, and some of my favorite types of dance I used to compete in are ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical/contemporary, musical theatre and hip hop, but I also dabble in salsa and meringue. Next I would love to learn the various ballroom styles and African dance. My favorite music to dance to is any kind of music that stirs up a strong emotion inside me. The emotion starts within in me, and then comes out in my dancing. To me, dance is emotion put into motion. Who are your role models?

I find inspiration from anywhere and anyone. Some of the people who are my role models are celebrities, some of them are the women in my family, some are close friends of mine, and some are people I have never met, but I have heard their stories and it touches me. Some of my favorites are My Grandmother, Angelina Jolie, Michelle Obama, and L.Y. Marlow of the Saving Promise organization that is fighting to end domestic violence. There are so many others, but if I named them all here now, this interview would take up hundreds of pages! [Laughs] Out of the big-name people you’ve worked with - Katherine Heigl, Ellen Pompeo, Loretta Divine, Hayden Panatierre, Kim Kardashian, Thomas Dekker, Tracy Thoms, and Jesse Williams – what stands out for you?

Every single big-name person I've ever worked with, cared less about being a big name than they did about bringing 150 percent to the table and doing a great job. At the end of the day, it is all about the work... doing not just good work, but great work. One of the most eye opening lessons I learned while working with so many brilliant actors, is that I don't have to be the best, but I do have to be better than I was the day before. If you focus on that, the sky's the limit. Great lesson! You play violin and piano, and you sing and you dance.  Can you talk a bit about your musical background and your goals in this area?

When I was in the fourth grade I wanted to play the piano, but my mother said it was too big to fit in her house, so we went with the violin instead! [Laughs] I was kind of a natural at it, and from a very young age I started writing my own songs and even wrote a symphony that my elementary school orchestra performed. I also was one of the youngest kids admitted into the youth orchestra program at Florida State University when I was 10. Music, singing, and dancing has always been a huge part of who I am as long as I can remember. One of the first movies I ever saw was Singing in the Rain. I was pretty young when I saw it, maybe 5 or 6. But I will never forget when Debbie Reynolds did her Good Morning dance. I used to try to sing and dance like her and I would get so frustrated that I was too little to tip the couch over like she did during the routine! [Laughs]... As far as singing goes, when I got older, I also sang and performed in a couple bands in my hometown of Cincinnati and even recorded a few songs on my own. I really miss that side of the performing arts and eventually I would like to make my way back to it. Previously, you’d co-written some original songs and (I’m told) you still dabble in song-writing.  Did you want to say a wee bit about your also being a vocalist, and your future aspirations?

I really miss my music, but I know it is only a matter of time before I get back to it. I still keep a notebook under my bed and write songs all the time. I really believe that everything happens for a reason. I feel so blessed and grateful to be working as an actress right now, so for now I am focusing on that. But when the time is right for my music, I know that it will happen too. For now, I am just going to continue writing and when I can, I will go back to the studio and start recording again. You were born in Cincinnati but grew up in Tallahassee, Florida. What do you love most of Cincinnati and Tallahassee? Is there anything you hate, like people asking you about WKRP in Cincinnati and if you’ve ever met Loni Anderson! Or if you like alligators!

My favorite things about Cincinnati are Skyline, Graeters Ice Cream, Kings Island, and WEBN Fireworks. Tallahassee was one of my favorite places to live because it had that southern hospitality feel to it. It's the kind of place where one second you could be talking to someone in line at the grocery store, and the next second they are inviting you over for homemade lemonade on their porch. I feel so blessed to have grown up in such amazing cities like Cincinnati and Tallahassee. I think it's funny when people ask me about WKRP in Cincinnati. I mean, the show was airing before I was even born, yet people ask me all the time if it is a real radio station. [Laughs] For the record, WKRP is a fictional radio station. But I think it's cool that a show that has been off the air for so long has been able to put Cincinnati on the map like that. As far as Loni Anderson goes, I haven't met her, but if I ever got the chance to, I would want to ask her if she likes Cincinnati and what she thinks about Cincinnati Skyline Chili. I am NOT a big fan of alligators... But that's probably because when my family was living in Tallahassee, one of them ended up in our backyard pool and scared the living hell out of me at a very young age. If I ever see one again in person that up close and personal I would probably crap my pants. Do you return to your birthplace in Ohio?

Yes. I still have a lot of close friends and family living in Cincinnati. I try to get back as often as I can. Especially for big holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving.   After spending time in Ohio and Kentucky, and then Los Angeles when your career starting taking off – how did that feel?  Any thoughts on the California-LA experience?

I absolutely love living in LA. I feel like I am in one of the biggest creative playgrounds in the world. There is so much to learn in a city like that, that embraces the arts. It was definitely scary for me to leave my hometown for LA. I had to give up everything I knew, and drive all the way across the country to this strange land where I didn't know anyone, on a whim and a prayer that things would work out. It is the hardest thing I have ever done, but I am really glad I did it, because now I absolutely love where my journey has led me. I have learned so much about life and my craft after living in California, and I can't wait to learn even more. Do you like Facebook? Do you tweet?

I am so grateful to all my fans and all the support they have shown me, so I try to Facebook and Tweet as much as possible. Without their support I wouldn't be able to do what I love, so I think it is only fair that I share that journey with them. I try to reach out to all my fans as much as possible via twitter and my Facebook Fan Page. Lastly, I got to ask…what do you like to do for fun?

For fun, I do anything and everything! Some of my favorite things to do for fun are making up recipes and cooking for my friends, playing video games, reading sci fi and mystery novels and of course, my new favorite pastime... reading comics.