#and now it's not even funny brotha

[vlvtrkii]

ok but wait I've read a lot of tarots by now and most of them are saying that I got someone who is obsessed with me and has a huge secret crush on me

[whyse7vn]

BRO? -

[ot7 x reader]

JIMIN -

y/n: bro

jimin: wys gang?

y/n: i just threw up in my mouth

jimin: you started it

on GOD 🙏🏻

y/n: stop

jimin: nah bro

what did you want dude

y/n: wanted you to pick me up

jimin: okay gang

on god i can do that for you

y/n: wanted

past tense

jimin: don’t even worry gang ur bros got you

y/n: ykw i’m so good gang 🙏🏽

bye

jimin: wait no come back 🥺

y/n: lol gang you into me or something??

jimin: i might be gang…

y/n: bro…

jimin: bro….

*whimpers*

y/n: bro????

jimin: no my fault bro i was getting into it

y/n: nah you always on that weird shit bro

jimin: i’m sowwy 🥺🥺🥺🥺

y/n: u tripping ong

bye again

jimin: dhmu only real bros would get it 🙏🏻😓

y/n: i’m real

jimin: real FAKE

y/n: ur real ugly

jimin: bro…

y/n: bro.

jimin: you’ve crossed the fucking line

y/n: sue me broski

jimin: how about i fuck you

y/n: this is why i distance myself from you

jimin: sorry nature takes over sometimes

y/n: ???

jimin: ???

y/n: tae core

jimin: we are not the same

y/n: i think you are

jimin: bro ong u tweaking

y/n: no bro ong i’m on to something

let me cook

jimin: cook me a orgasm lol

y/n: i’m blocking you lol

YOONGI -

y/n: dude

yoongi: wrong person?

y/n: no?

yoongi: i’m telling you you’ve got the wrong person

y/n: i’m telling you i haven’t

yoongi: ur not funny

y/n: i’m laughing

yoongi: i’m not

y/n: cheer up bro

yoongi: fuck off

y/n: bro you can talk to me about anything

it’s okay

yoongi: i want to break up with my girlfriend

y/n: OMG????

yoongi: i thought i could talk to you about anything

y/n: i’m ur girlfriend tho :(

yoongi: though we were bros??

y/n: sometimes

yoongi: that’s not how it works

y/n: you clearly know nothing about bro code…

embarrassing

yoongi: sometimes i think violent thoughts

y/n: tf is bro talking about 💀

yoongi: leave me alone

y/n: do you love me

yoongi: do you want and honest answer

y/n: dude is acting like he hasn’t almost proposed to me several times 💀💀

yoongi: what do you actually want leave me alone

y/n: brotha wants to be left alone 💀

yoongi: stop talking like that

and i am not ur brother that’s nasty

y/n: why won’t you love me for me

yoongi: you’re annoying

y/n: sighs i know what dream feels like now

that’s what the mask is

that’s what the point of the mask is…

yoongi: tf is dream??

y/n: sorry did i give you flash backs

i miss no more dream yoongi

bring him back!!!

yoongi: no

y/n: he can be ur alter ego

or like on a full moon you transform into debut yoongi

where you roam the streets spitting in peoples faces

yoongi: debut me did not spit in peoples faces

y/n: ok???

but you looked like you did

sorry for assuming geez

you were more of a biter those days i remember

yoongi: i bit you once

y/n: ONE TIME TOO MANY MIN YOONGI

thinking about that day brings a tear to my eye

the shock the fear the betrayal it’s all coming back to me

yoongi: are you done?

y/n: yeah bro :/

yoongi: bye

NAMJOON -

y/n: i want to chew on ur eyeballs

namjoon: that’s nice babe

y/n: i’ll crawl into ur skin

we will be one

namjoon: ok

y/n: god ur sosososos obsessed with me

namjoon: always

y/n: bro

namjoon: ??

y/n: ??

namjoon: i thought we were being nice to each other

y/n: that was nice

namjoon: you called me bro?

y/n: yeah?

namjoon: ok

y/n: do we have a problem?

namjoon: never

y/n: wow ur so obedient

namjoon: ok stop

y/n: why

namjoon: ur being weird again

y/n: again??

namjoon: you opened this conversation i want to chew on your eyeballs

y/n: and??

namjoon: i can only take so much

y/n: lame as hell bro

namjoon: why are you calling me bro?

y/n: it’s cute

namjoon: bro is cute??

y/n: no

namjoon: why do you chose to lie to me?

y/n: bored

namjoon: interesting

y/n: it’s not

i’m bored

namjoon: that sucks baby

go for a run or something idk?

y/n: are you saying i need to lose weight

namjoon: no wtf?

y/n: i think ur saying i need to lose weight

namjoon: ur putting words in my mouth

y/n: soon ur gonna start putting salad in mine

namjoon: bro

y/n: DID YOU JUST BRO ME????

namjoon: ur seeing things

y/n: OH MY GOD IVE JUSTBEEN SHOT IN THE CHEST

SOMONE CALL THE AMBULANCE

OW OW OW IT HURTS IT BURNS

I DONT THINK IM GONNA MAKE IT

namjoon: i think i’m gonna go for a run

y/n: how about you run away and never come back

namjoon: oh

y/n: go “oh” with ur new bitch

namjoon: my new bitch?

y/n: bet she loves when you call her bro

namjoon: you called me bro first…

y/n: what’s ur point???

namjoon: what are you mad at me?

y/n: i’m so hungry

namjoon: what

y/n: what

namjoon: love..

are you ok?

y/n: what does ok mean in this day and age joon?

namjoon: should i come home?

y/n: dude just go back to working out with all ur little buddies

namjoon: you miss me??

y/n: ur insane

namjoon: i’m omw home

y/n: idc bro!!!

namjoon: so i can work out for 2 more hours then?

y/n: whatever come home bitch

namjoon: love u seen you soon

HOSEOK -

y/n: bro jimin just threw a rock at me

hobi: oh no

do you need mouth to mouth cpr

y/n: i need more than cpr

in so much pain rn

hobi: wait

??????

you just called me bro?????

y/n: why is that ur biggest concern rn

i said jimin just threw a rock at me A ROCK

a really big fucking rock

hobi: no you said bro jimin just threw a rock at me

BRO

like????

what is wrong with you?

y/n: I JUST GOT A ROCK THROWN AT ME

THATS WHATS WRONG

YOUR GIRLFRIEND JUST GOT A ROCK THROWN AT HER

hobi: WELL CLEARLY I HAVE NO GIRLFRIEND CUZ SHE JUST CALLED ME BRO

y/n: are you serious??

hobi: are you??

y/n: fine

hobi: fine

y/n: bro

hobi: it doesn’t even hurt me anymore

y/n: whatever you say buddy

hobi: carry on

y/n: k pal

hobi: 🙄

y/n: dude

hobi: i’m killing myself

y/n: you sound hurt

hobi: ok??

y/n: really that that deep bro…

hobi: OKAY STOP

y/n: pussy

hobi: am i a pretty pussy 🥺?

y/n: hoseok what the actual fuck

hobi: i’m feeling really insecure rn

can you please validate me

this is ur fault if we think about it

tell me i’m your petty pussy

y/n: ??????

ur fucking out of ur mind

why would i say that

why would you say that

wtf is wrong with you

hobi: plz

then i’ll like throw a rock back at jimin or something

avenge you

y/n: i’m not dead

hobi: ok ur just difficult then

say it pleaseeeeee

y/n: ew no go away

hobi: this isn’t love

y/n: it’s not

hobi: what happened to through sickness and health

y/n: so you admit you’ve got some kind of mental illness

hobi: why does it have to be mental

why couldn’t i have a physical illness

like being hot as fuck

hahahaha lol wow i’m so hilarious

y/n: u right u funny as hell cuz you ugly as fuck wow!!!!!!!

hobi: you didn’t mean that

y/n: bro

hobi: i’m gonna start crying

y/n: hobi…

hobi: babe

y/n: are you fr crying…

hobi: no lol

y/n: ur my pretty pussy

hobi: you mean it?

y/n: don’t push it.

TAEHYUNG -

tae: why are you being so loud

y/n: ???

i’m not doing anything

can you hear tan?

tae: oh yeah

thought you were barking

y/n: why would i be fucking barking bro wtf???

tae: u could be trying new things

i wouldn’t judge you if you were

y/n: no

tae: shame

y/n: shame?

tae: bro?

y/n: what

tae: you called me bro by accident

y/n: ???

tae: babe you called me bro

y/n: ok

tae: by accident

why did you call me bro by accident

y/n: it wasn’t an accident

i typed it

on purpose

tae: why would you do that

y/n: ?

to communicate?

bro idk

tae: you did it again lol

why?

why bro?

could of said babe

baby even

no?

y/n: why does bro bother you?

tae: no lol ofc not wtf

you just don’t call me that

y/n: well i do now

tae: k

y/n: k?

tae: something wrong?

y/n: ur mad at me?

tae: no

y/n: upset

tae: never

y/n: ur not a child tell me

tae: bro does things to me

y/n: that sentence is crazy as hell

tae: PAUSE

y/n: paused

tae: don’t ever bro me again you slut

y/n: bro

tae: hey!!!

y/n: you do did not need to call me a slut

tae: was that not sexy

y/n: no

bro

tae: i hate it

y/n: bro

tae: it’s gross

I’m your boyfriend

y/n: barely

tae: meaning??

y/n: i’m sure you can figure out the meaning

tae: i know what barley means!

y/n: i’m glad

tae: why am i barley ur boyfriend??

y/n: ur strange

no offence

actually all offence

u harm my public reputation constantly

tae: i think ur so in love with me

y/n: i’m glad you’ve taken the delusion route instead of the depressed one

tae: sometimes your funniest friends are the most depressed ones…

y/n: ur so right i should give jin a call ❤️🙏🏽

tae: i was talking about me

y/n: we are not friends and ur not funny

tae: ur right we’re dating and i’m fucking hilarious

y/n: bro…

tae: come kiss me on my hot mouth babe 😋

y/n: i’ll pass

JUNGKOOK -

y/n: dude

jk: me?

y/n: yes

jk: are we fighting?

y/n: no why

jk: dude??

y/n: dude

jk: ok

y/n: are you crying rn?

jk: no?

y/n: i can hear you

jk: why would you ask then

y/n: wanted to see if you were a sick little liar

jk: i am

y/n: you are

jk: tell me you love me

y/n: lol

jk: i’ll throw up

y/n: make sure u clean it up

jk: babe

y/n: bro

jk: would you love me if i was a worm?

y/n: no

jk: but you told me you would last week

y/n: that’s cuz you were drunk and would of started crying if i said no

jk: i’m crying now

y/n: exactly

it’s 10x worse when ur drunk

jk: maybe you have a point

y/n: are you still crying?

jk: no

y/n: i can still hear you

jk: no

y/n: dude

OH MY GOD DID YOU ACTUALLY JUST THROW UP??????/)£/£:££

jk: yes

y/n: JUNGKOOK WHAT THE HELL

jk: i told you

y/n: that’s not healthy

like at all

that’s really worrying actually

jk: i love you

y/n: clearly wow

that’s insane

jk: do you want to kiss me?

y/n: no

you just threw up

jk: or did i?

y/n: you did

jk: i did

y/n: it’s okay

jk: is it

y/n: no

jk: :c

i’ll clean it

y/n: it’s okay i’ll do it

jk: why

do you maybe like me a bit

y/n: no

jk: oh

y/n: go get comfy in bed

jk: but i have to clean

y/n: i said i’ll do it

jk: r u sure

y/n: no

jk: oh

y/n: i do not hear you moving upstairs jungkook

jk: i’m going i swear

sorry for throwing up

y/n: sorry for calling you dude

jk: fr?

y/n: no

jk: knew it

it’s okay tho

i’m strong

y/n: you just threw up cuz i called you dude?

jk: i can be strong sometimes

just caught me at a weak moment

y/n: you have a lot of weak moments don’t you?

jk: sometimes it’s hard to tell if you like me

y/n: i got the biggest crush on u fr

jk: 🫢

woah

i’m in bed now

y/n: kk be with you in 5 bro

jk: stop it

y/n: 🫢

SEOKJIN-

y/n: bro can you order pizza pls i’m begging you

jin: normally i would be into you begging but the bro is throwing me off

y/n: wdym???

are you ordering or not

i’m hungry

???

HELLO

DUDE

COME ON

jin: no

stop calling me those names

y/n: bro?

dude????

why?

jin: i am not your bro nor dude

y/n: ur my dude <3

jin: adding a heart does not make it any better

dude is for like friends

idk if you have any but i am NOT one of those

y/n: um wtf i have friends

jin: the members don’t count

y/n: WHY DON’T THEY COUNT?

jin: ur sad

y/n: bro

jin: do you want to break up

y/n: lowkey

jin: wtf

y/n: look me in the eyes bro

jin: no

y/n: yes

jin: no

y/n: this is kinda hot

jin: lmao not surprised i have that charm to me

y/n: sorry wrong chat

jin: what

y/n: anyways ur were too slow yoongi ordered me pizza

and i’m not sharing

jin: i don’t want any of yoongi’s nasty pizza

i hope the pizza place spits on it

y/n: ur mad

jin: ur single

y/n: finally

jin: ?

y/n: ?

jin: i find our love so comforting ❤️

y/n: dude you have lost ur mind

jin: okay wtf

ur acting like you don’t want me

y/n: loooooooooooooooooool

jin: and people think i’m the mean one

y/n: i tolerate you

jin: what is the issue???

if you want to fight we can

i’m ready meet me in the ring at 6

y/n: don’t you have a military service to be serving??

jin: i will serve crack before i severe this country

y/n: yikes

i’ll snitch

jin: ofc you will

you rat

y/n: wow is that how you feel?

jin: yep

y/n: wow

jin: don’t act all nice now you started this

was mean for no reason

finish the battle rat

y/n: ur fucking old

jin: ok wtf

you can no longer send messages to this contact!

[phighterss]

sorry if im flooding ur box 😓

but how would the cataclysm cast react if their partner was pregnant/if they had a kid togeather?

and how would their wedding be?

pregnancy isn’t canon in the phighting universe and i kind of have my own headcanon that like.. keeps the spawning elements but also adds more… understandable aspects

so like as background info: phighters are still genderless *can change their sex to whatever they want at will* and one of the parents will have to sacrifice their gear in order to have a child (sexual reproduction follows suite) and instead of one of them getting pregnant the kid develops in the spawn area b4 getting shipped to their doorstep like fuckign STORKS lmao (might change later idk take this with grain of salt)

anyway onto the actual ask:

scythe as a mom is kind of scary but funny at the same time like she has no idea how to interact with children nor has she ever considered having one with someone but now that she has she’s a lot more excitable and definitely loves it and WILL admit to it. she looks menacing to everyone else but is a huge softie with her kid she will spoil that brat beyond ur comprehension it’s cray-z she cannot for the life of her properly scold her kid you’ll have to be the one to do thst sorry

medkit is. somewhat suited for the job. he doesn’t want to do anything that harms the kid in. any way so he just kind of freaks out whenever the kid talks to him for some reason??? he just doesn’t want to say the wrong things and influence the kids life forever (he’s anxious about it since it’s so new to him and come on. the kids a little life biologically related to HIM and his beloved partner. it makes him overjoyed yet so terrified at the same time) after a while he gets way more used to being around his kid but is still very thoughtful before speaking to them. hess also to sweet for his own good. while he can scold his kid he will literally always fold during punishments like they usually like 1-2 days MAX. he can’t take seeing his kid upset. dishes out advice insanely well wants his kid to be 1. successful 2. happy 3. educated

broker… ruh oh he is NOT suited for this shit my brotha you gon have to do ALL the work it ain’t even funny. he’s kind of a deadbeat who’s always busy but he DOES make money so he definitely supports you guys lmao. while he isn’t too present in his kids life that doesn’t mean he doesn’t ADORE his kid like he will do anything for them. all the kid has to do is whip out the “puppy dog eyes” card and he’s folding like a lawn chair he like medkit in that sense… don’t let him give advice to ur kid he is a TERRIBLE influence be careful vro

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

It's easy to think that Diane annoys Hobie. She's nearly always at his side, talking his ear off about something or the other, laughing at all his jokes as if they were the funniest thing ever.

With Hobie being Mr.'Cool This Whole Time', it was easy to the get the impression.

Usually that's because people don't see what happens when she doesn't pay attention to him.

Hobie's an attention whore.

DiscoPunk: Hobie x OC!Diane

He's DYING for her Attention

Miguel gives her a particularly paperwork heavy task that she needs to focus on, and suddenly it's

'You're ignoring me?' (she isn't, if anything she's looking right at him.)

It's 'What, you don't like me no more?' or 'I'm dying of boredom. If you even care-' or 'torture, this is.'

It's him poking her side, or making kissy noises at her, or singing out of tune songs about the horrors of Boredom and Loneliness

It's like suddenly he has NOTHING BETTER TO DO other than annoying her in anyway possible.

She tries to get any work done -

He'll pester her, asking her to play games like 21 questions, then he'll purposely mess with the game to see if she notices.

He asks her stuff like 'Would you love me if I were a worm?' then acts like he's taking it personal

If she's not looking DIRECTLY at him he starts stealing shit. He's not quiet about it either.

'Put it back.' - 'Put what back where?'

Everyone on campus: 'Ugh, Diane can be so annoying, all she does is bug Hobie-'

HE'S THE ANNOYING ONE

Hobie Brown is a self-employed PROFESSIONAL NUISANCE

It's the LGS (lead guitarist syndrome)

He acts like if he doesn't get the attention he's going to literally explode as in physically combust 'kablooie' into dust right now.

Diane hasn't told him he's adorable in the last twenty minutes. Do you know what that does to a man? The world has forsaken him

The girl can't get any peace.

Margo has heard Diane say "Hobie, for the love of God'-" at least once every shift.

Margo is like 'tell him to go away'

She does, but all he does is leave her line of sight but stand close enough for her to hear his dramatic 'dejected' sighs like a puppy waiting outside the bathroom

If she tells him 'I really need to do this. I'll be off in 45 minutes, can you not die until then?'

All of a sudden Mr.'I don't believe in punctuality' is hanging out in the doorway EXACTLY 45 minutes later like-

'45 minutes, Di. You said 45, right?'

Oh NOW he can tell time. Okay, okay. Yeah.

She's like 'You see me doing this right? You see this work in my hands. The work in doing?'

It's the most frustrating thing in the world.

'You think this is funny?' - 'I really do.'

'I really hate you.' - 'You really don't.'

Unlike SOME people she tries to do her job and suddenly he's like 'I can't believe I lost you to capitalism'

'Look at this, they've got my girl slaving away for The Man. Sad, this is. The exploitation of labor here and now-' (he's being dramatic. she tells him this. he says 'I'll show you dramatic' and flops on her, pretending to die)

And Diane's like 'It's not capitalism. Miguel doesn't even pay me money'

And Hobies like 'DIANE THAT'S INFINITELY WORSE'

She gives him attention because he dies Romeo and Juliet style the second she doesn't 😭😭

She's a second away from being like

'brotha I've about had it with you'

She even goes to Miguel.

She begs him to do something about Hobie. 'Give him ANYTHING to do.' she begs 'Anything at all. There's no way I can do my job with his mind games-'

Miguel's like 'actually that IS your job. If he's bugging you he's not blowing something up. Plus it's the only way to get him to actually comes to campus.'

Hobie annoying her IS her job 😭😭 If he's messing with her he's not messing with Miguel so she has to take one for the team

Diane's like 'but he's SO ANNOYING'

'Glad you finally realized that, Diane.'

'*dejected Hobie sigh from the doorway*'

'GO AWAY.'

[teaberrii]

Chapter Twenty-Three: The President's Decision

You and Cyno can’t be more different. He’s Akademiya’s perfect student council president. You’re a labelled, cursed delinquent who changes into a cat for eight hours when kissed.

When Cyno gets a complaint about you, he’s forced to take action, only for it to lead to unexpected circumstances.

Cyno/You

Notes:

Cross-posted on Ao3

Chapter index at the end of chapter one

“So… does this mean you’re into furries? Not judging.”

Back in the house, after Cyno and your family explain your curse, he’s expecting Nahida to have some profound questions.

Well, guess not.

Cyno almost chokes on his water; most of your family laughs. Jebrael cracks a rare smile but quickly regains his composure. You’re sitting on Cyno’s lap, your tail swishing as you engage in a staring contest with Nahida. Then, she leans over and scratches your head.

“Wait, wait. So, is Cyno supposed to break this curse?” Nahida asks, her eyes sparkling.

You tilt your head up just as Cyno looks down at you. “Her transformation has been taking a little longer than usual,” he says.

Nahida smiles. “Ooh, making progress, at least.” She picks you up and snuggles you. “I want to keep her!”

“She’s still a person, Nahida,” Cyno deadpans.

“That’s the best part! It’s like… pet-on-demand.”

Cyno sighs. “I think we’ve overstayed our welcome. We should get going.”

"Nah, it's always nice to have company over," Rahman says. But, then, he looks at Cyno. "Do you know you're the first person Ojou brought home?"

“Wait… as in like a boyfriend?” Nahida asks. “Or…”

“Just anyone,” Rahman answers.

Nahida nudges her cousin and gives him a small smirk. “I bet someone is pretty happy about that.”

Of course, he is. But instead, he gives Nahida a deadpan look.

“When will you come by again?” Jebrael’s son asks Nahida.

“Aw,” Rahman coos. “Someone made a friend.”

You hop from Nahida's into Cyno's arms. He smiles and gives your head a quick kiss. Nahida pouts. "Well, it seems I'm still no match for Cyno."

Cyno carries you to the front door. Then, you jump onto the counter, your tail swishing upwards as you watch Cyno and Nahida prepare to leave.

“By the way,” Jebrael says. “We’d appreciate it if you kept her secret to yourself.”

“Of course,” Nahida says. “I… don’t think anyone would believe me if I told them anyway.”

Cyno suddenly thinks of Alhaitham and quickly shakes the thought of him away.

“Bye, Nahi-chan!”

"Nahi-chan?" Rahman asks, raising a brow at Jebrael's son, who's in his father's arms. "You come up with nicknames fast, kid."

“Bye, my brotha!”

Cyno looks at Nahida. “What did you just call him?”

Nahida frowns. “You’re too old to understand.”

Cyno scoffs. He waves at you and your family and follows his cousin out the door.

◆◆◆

“Relax, Catnip.”

It's the day you're going to tell Candace and Tighnari about your family and debunk all the weird rumours they might've heard about you. But you've been nervous, so Cyno gives you a light massage to calm you down.

“You’re overthinking it,” Cyno whispers in your ear.

“P-prez!” You gasp when his lips find your neck.

Cyno chuckles. "Sorry, Catnip. I couldn't help myself." Then, when he sees a faint blush on your cheeks, he smirks. "Did I make you even more nervous?"

Suddenly, you spin around and lean closer… and closer until Cyno’s back hits the wall. “Looks like I should be the one asking that question now.”

Cyno puts his hand around your head and brings you closer. “Are you testing me, Catnip?” His eyes land on your lips. “I wouldn’t want you to miss the rest of your classes.”

“Get a room, would ya?”

You quickly move away from Cyno and see Candace and Tighnari a few feet away. Tighnari is snickering, while Candace has a sly smile on her face.

"I always thought you wouldn't like to show affection in public, Cyno," Candace says as she and Tighnari sit before you.

“Well, I guess he’s too in looove.”

“Very funny, Tighnari,” you deadpan.

Tighnari laughs. “Is he showing you too much love, Catnip?”

Candace laughs. “Okay, okay. We’re not here to grill them on their relationship.” She looks at you. “So, what did you want to talk about?”

That's when you tell them about your family, Scaramouche, your memories, and everything that's happened. By the end, both are left speechless, and Tighnari's jaw has dropped.

“I… wow… I… what?”

Candace rolls her eyes. “Very eloquent of you, Tighnari.”

“Well, it’s better than saying nothing!”

“I’m so sorry that happened to you, Catnip,” Candace says. Then, she mutters, “I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

Tighnari pulls you into a tight hug, but when he hugs you a little too tight and for a little too long, Cyno clears his throat. Then, after letting you go, Tighnari says, "Where is the little he-devil today, anyway?"

“Maybe torturing Nahida’s classmate."

“You shouldn’t joke about that, Candace!” Then, Tighnari turns to you. “So… is Scaramouche here because he wants revenge on what happened to his mother?”

“But it’s not like Catnip did it on purpose,” Candace says. “That wouldn’t make sense.”

You and Cyno look at each other. "He might want to take it out on her," Cyno says.

“Ah… you mean he’s just looking for someone to blame?” Tighnari asks. “Like people having ill feelings toward someone who gives them bad news even though it’s not that person’s fault?”

“Yeah… but it’s been so long,” Candace says.

“I think there’s something else we still don’t know,” you say.

“Oh?” Tighnari asks. “Like what?”

“Another reason,” Cyno answers. You nod. “It’s possible he blames Catnip, but looking at it another way, his mother decided to take her own life that day.”

Candace sighs. “This just got complicated, and I don’t like it.”

“Regardless of what it is… are we forming the protect Catnip squad today?”

“I… doubt you’d be of any help, Tighnari.”

Tighnari puts a hand over his heart. “You hurt me, Candace.”

“I’m more worried about all of you,” you say. “It’s very possible that he’ll come after you.”

“What if he sabotages our trip?” Tighnari asks quietly.

“A legit criminal could be after us, and you’re worried about our trip?” Candace asks incredulously.

“Just be careful,” Cyno says.

His friends nod. Then, Tighnari asks, “What about Nilou? What was the point of approaching her?”

“We think he was using her,” you say. “But… I’m not sure what he wanted out of it.”

“If he wanted to start a rumour, he could’ve done it himself,” Tighnari muses.

"Well, maybe he wanted to use Nilou to turn us against you. I mean… it's not every day you hear something like that." Candace looks at her watch. "Class is starting soon."

As everyone leaves the rooftop, Tighnari says, “Man, just like that, it’s like we’re part of a mystery thriller movie.”

“Here’s to hoping we all make it out alive.”

◆◆◆

Cyno opens the door and lets you inside. Nahida comes running out of the kitchen and hugs you with wet hands. It's the weekend, so you're going to be spending time with her while Alhaitham takes Cyno to visit his friend.

“I hope you like video games,” Nahida says, looking up at you.

“Don’t you have homework, Nahida?” Alhaitham comes out of the kitchen and smiles at you. “Hey, Catnip.”

“Hi, Professor.”

“Yeah… but that doesn’t mean I have to do it,” Nahida grumbles.

“It’s not good to procrastinate,” Cyno says. “It’ll become a habit.”

Nahida sighs, and you pat her head. "Let's finish homework first," you suggest.

“Fine…”

Nahida walks to her room, and Cyno turns to you. "Thanks for babysitting her today."

“Of course.”

Then, Nahida comes out with two textbooks. "I hope you're ready to have fun with good 'ol calculus."

"Great," you say with as much enthusiasm as you can. "My favourite subject."

“Don’t give her a hard time, Nahida,” Cyno says.

“Who says I will?” she huffs.

Then, Alhaitham and Cyno are out the door.

In the car, Alhaitham turns to Cyno and asks, “How did you become interested in law? Is it because of Catnip?”

“Why do you ask?”

Alhaitham switches to the left lane. "No one just becomes interested in something out of nowhere. There has to be a catalyst of some kind."

A small pause. And then, “Do you remember the rumours about her?”

“Ah… you mean the one where she punched that boy?”

"It doesn't feel fair that people can get away without taking responsibility for what they said and then go on as if nothing had ever happened."

Alhaitham sighs. “That happens too frequently.”

“It doesn’t apply to just Catnip,” Cyno says.

His cousin chuckles. “A voice for the victims. Is that it?”

“Why did you go into teaching?” Cyno asks. “I thought you hated it.”

"I do. But I have to teach to continue doing research." Alhaitham glances at his cousin. "I'm sure you know this, Cyno, but no matter what profession you go into, you'll come across things that you don't want to do but have to for your career."

Alhaitham pulls up to a large house and parks the car in the driveway. When the door opens, Cyno is surprised to see a girl shorter than him. It's the first time he's seen a girl with bright pink hair.

“Hi,” she says with a smile. “You must be Alhaitham and Cyno.”

A man comes down from the winding staircase. “Hey, Haitham, Cyno. This is my friend. She’s visiting from Liyue.”

Alhaitham and Cyno do a quick introduction as they step inside. Then, as Alhaitham’s friend is making tea in the kitchen, the girl who Cyno now knows as Yanfei keeps them company in the living room.

“Ooh, so you’re interested in becoming a lawyer?” she asks, looking at Cyno.

“Yanfei was the top in our class,” Alhaitham’s friend says, walking into the living room with a full tray of drinks and cookies. “She’s the only one who opened her own practice.”

“Just curious,” Alhaitham says, “Why didn’t you work for a corporation?”

"I did," Yanfei answers. Then, she takes a sip of her tea. "But, I hated the corporate life. Very rule-abiding and has no flexibility. At least for the place I worked at. And… it was pretty dirty."

“Dirty?”

“It’s all about the money,” Yanfei says. She takes a cookie from the plate. “It’s funny how I later had a client where that same company was playing dirty with employee contracts.”

“As in… there were loopholes?” Cyno asks.

Yanfei nods. “It was completely in their favour.” She bites into a cookie. “So, Cyno, how’d you become interested in law?”

“Long story short,” Cyno says, “It’s because of my girlfriend.”

“Ooh, was she an inspiration?” Yanfei asks. “That’s cute!”

“Have you thought about what kind of law you want to practice?” Alhaitham’s friend asks.

“Criminal.”

“A very bold choice.” Then, she looks at Alhaitham’s friend. “You, out of all people, should be able to give sound advice for this one.”

Alhaitham’s friend looks at Cyno. “There’s ups and downs, but… you’ll need a strong heart and will, that’s for sure. It’s also hard to completely detach yourself from a case. Even for seasoned lawyers, it’s difficult.” He takes a cookie. “It’s also about following your client’s wishes.”

“... Are you talking about the case with Jebrael?” Cyno asks.

"You catch on fast. But, yeah, you're right. I knew he was innocent, but he wanted to get the guilty verdict." Alhaitham's friend sighs. "I still remember what he said…."

“I hired you to help me,” Jebrael said, looking him square in the eyes. “That doesn’t always mean getting an innocent verdict.”

“It was the first time working with a client who wanted a guilty verdict,” he continues. “It was also a very different feeling.” He smiles slightly at Cyno. “Every profession has its ups and downs, but this one really takes a mental toll on you.”

“It sounds like you regret it,” Yanfei says, surprised.

"I've had very rewarding times, and I wouldn't trade those for the world," he says. "But, there were times when I thought I wouldn't be able to make it. It's chaotic."

“But you’ve always been an unpredictable person,” Alhaitham says.

Yanfei nods. “I agree. It suits your personality.”

The man smiles and then turns to Cyno. "It's great that you're interested in pursuing criminal law. But don't forget to look at other options, too. Switching practice areas can be a challenge."

By the time Cyno and Alhaitham leave, it's late afternoon. Alhaitham is driving Cyno back when he glances at his cousin. Cyno is looking out the window, and Alhaitham can easily guess what's on his mind.

"If you decide to pursue law," Yanfei said just as Cyno and Alhaitham were about to leave. "I'd recommend Liyue's law school."

“Agreed,” Alhaitham’s friend said. “Sumeru’s law program isn’t as mature as Liyue’s yet. No matter what law you want to practice, it would look great on your resume if companies or clients saw that you graduated from there.”

“Hey,” Alhaitham says. Cyno turns to him. “Was talking with them helpful?”

"Yeah. But… I still have a lot of homework to do." Then, he sighs. "I know I have to work fast, though."

“Don’t rush into anything, though,” Alhaitham warns. “I know some people take at least a year off before they apply.”

“It’s funny how the tides have changed,” Cyno says. “I used to be the one early to applications. Now, I feel like I’m behind.”

Alhaitham slows the car to a stop at a red stoplight. “Well, you might be going at the pace you’re supposed to be going.”

◆◆◆

When Cyno returns home, he and Alhaitham are surprised to see Nahida diligently doing her homework in the living room. You come out of the kitchen with what Cyno assumes are hot drinks for you and his cousin.

“Hey,” you smile. “Welcome back!”

“Am I… seeing things?” Alhaitham asks, looking at his youngest cousin. “Is Nahida really doing… her homework?”

Nahida looks up. "What is that supposed to mean? Of course, I'm doing homework!"

"How'd you get her to be so well-behaved?" Cyno asks you quietly.

You chuckle and whisper, You mean… without turning into a cat?” You hand Nahida her drink. “I have many secrets, prez.”

“Yeah!" Nahida says, putting her pencil down. "Did you know Catnip is actually a really good teacher?" She slowly sips her drink. "Maybe even better than you, Haitham.”

Alhaitham smiles and looks at you. “Well, you should teach me some of your tricks, Catnip. Like… how to deal with a problematic student like Nahida.”

“Excuse me? I’m problematic?” Then, she looks at you and Cyno. “Tell him I’m not problematic!”

“You’re not problematic,” Cyno says, and Nahida grins. “But you’re not an ideal student.”

“Yeah, well, I bet I still have better grades than you and Haitham when he was in school,” she huffs.

You sit next to Cyno on the couch while Alhaitham sits on the adjacent one. “Have you thought about what you want to do for a career, Catnip?” Alhaitham asks.

“I told her to go into teaching!” Nahida says.

Cyno looks at you as you say, “I’ve never considered teaching, actually,” you say. “I tried teaching Jebrael’s son one time… and I lost my patience pretty fast. But that was a few years ago.”

Alhaitham picks up Nahida’s homework and looks through it. “It’s the first time you got everything right, Nahida.”

Nahida frowns. “Calculus isn’t my strong subject, okay? Geez!”

“She picks things up fast,” you say, and Nahida beams.

“Teacher Catnip, huh?” Cyno asks. You turn to him, and he smiles. “It suits you.”

You nudge him. “You think so?”

After some time, Cyno invites you to dinner with Alhaitham and Nahida. While his cousins are in the living room playing video games, you and Cyno are in the kitchen making dinner.

“You sure you don’t want to join them, Catnip?” Cyno asks. “I can handle things here.”

You lean closer to him. "I finally get you alone, and you want me to leave? You hurt me, prez."

As you turn around, Cyno spins you back and pulls you against him. "I would never want you to leave."

His arms are around your waist, and you nuzzle your nose against his. “How did the visit go with Alhaitham’s friend?” you ask.

“It was good. I met one of his friends. Her name is Yanfei, and she’s a legal advisor in Liyue.”

"Ooh, I bet you got a lot of good info." Then, when Cyno doesn't say anything, you ask, "What's wrong?"

"There's still a lot of research I still have to do, but… I really think I'm going to pursue law."

"Is it just me, or do you sound kind of down?"

“I haven’t decided… but there’s a chance I’ll go to Liyue for law school,” Cyno says.

A small silence.

Then, you put your arms around his neck. “Are you hesitating?”

The last thing Cyno wants is to be away from you. Would it be selfish of him to ask you to come with him if he does decide to go to Liyue?

"Prez," you say, snapping him out of his thoughts. "We can talk about it together. But I want you to make a decision that will benefit your future." Cyno hugs you tightly, and you gently kiss his neck. "So, if you decide to go to Liyue, I fully support it."

Just as you bury your nose into the crook of his neck, he says, “I love you, Catnip.”

He feels you smile against him. "I love you too, prez."

Someone clears their throat loudly, and you and Cyno immediately break apart and see Alhaitham and Nahida at the door.

"I thought you're supposed to be cooking, not flirting," Alhaitham says.

“Well, at least we know they didn’t kiss,” Nahida giggles. “Or else Catnip would be—”

“Nahida—”

“A cat?” Everyone looks at Alhaitham. He looks from Cyno to his cousin. “Why the silence?”

“Uh, well, um, anyway, Cyno and I will finish up here,” you say.

Cyno isn’t sure what to make of Alhaitham’s smile. As his cousins walk away, Alhaitham puts a hand on Nahida’s shoulder. “Have you heard of the Cupid’s Cat Curse, Nahida?”

You turn to Cyno and ask, "Does he…."

Cyno looks back. “I really have no idea. I didn’t tell him anything.”

You sigh. “Professor Alhaitham’s full of mysteries… maybe that’s why he’s so popular.”

You’re back to washing the vegetables when Cyno asks,  “Was he… popular with you?”

"Me? Wait a minute. This feels like deja vu. Didn't we have a very similar conversation… a few months ago or something?"

“I thought you were teasing me that time… saying he’s… cute and all.”

You turn off the tap. “Aw, prez, are you jealous?” 

“That’s—”

“You know I only have eyes for you. Back then… and, of course, still now.”

Cyno turns around and brushes your hair out of your face. “You’re making it incredibly hard not to kiss you.”

You press your forehead against his. “Well, didn’t we say we would experiment?”

“As soon as they leave,” Cyno says quietly. “Because I want you all to myself tonight.”

As if sensing another pair of eyes, Cyno turns around. At the same time, you look past him and see Nahida and Alhaitham peeking out from behind the corner.

“Retreat! Retreat!” Nahida grabs Alhaitham’s hand and drags him toward the living room.

◆◆◆

“You don’t need a ride back?” Alhaitham asks you once he and Nahida are ready to leave.

“I can drive her back,” Cyno says.

Nahida nudges Alhaitham. “Hear that? He said he’ll drive her back.”

Alhaitham looks at his cousin. “Is that… supposed to mean something?”

Nahida sighs loudly. Then, she opens the door and says, “C’mon, let’s leave the lovebirds alone.”

“Don’t keep her too late, Cyno,” Alhaitham says.

Cyno frowns. “I know.”

As soon as Alhaitham closes the door, you hug Cyno from behind. Then, he turns around and puts one arm around your waist. He pulls you close so that your lips almost touch.

“Can I kiss you now?”

Your answer is as sweet as always. “Please.”

Once again, your kiss lights a flame within him that has Cyno losing all sense of time and space. You taste like the honey tea he made you before dinner ended. Sweet. And perfectly right. You sigh against his lips and murmur his name as his hands flutter to your waist. Your body arches against his as his kisses increase in intensity. Cyno feels your hand slide underneath his shirt, and as soon as he feels your cool fingers against his skin, it sends his nerve endings on fire. He wants you. He needs you.

One kiss after another eventually leads you to break apart for air. But, Cyno only gives you a second before his mouth captures yours in a ravaging kiss that opens the skies and has both of you craving, begging for more. Cyno has you against the wall; your shirt has already been tossed aside with his, and your legs are around his waist. Both of you are panting softly in the aftermath, waiting for something… anything… to happen until you're lost in each other again.

One moment passes. And another. And another.

But neither of you can wait anymore.

Your mouth is on his, and Cyno’s hand slowly kneads a breast, drawing a moan from your soft lips. As soon as Cyno feels you slowly grinding against him, he breaks the kiss but smiles against your lips. “Needy, aren’t we?”

“Stop being a tease,” you say breathlessly.

Maybe you expect him to pull off your bottoms and have sex with you. But instead, Cyno asks, "Are you sure about this, Catnip?" His question takes you a little off guard. "Don't get me wrong." He can feel his face burning. "You have no idea how much I want to do this, but are you comfortable?"

“I…”

Poof.

You fall on your back into Cyno's arms. You look a little dumbfounded at what just happened, but then you see him chuckle.

“I guess that’s a sign,” he says.

You meow softly, and he kisses the top of your head.

Cyno has just finished putting on his clothes and putting your clothes neatly onto the counter when he hears his phone go off. When he gets there, you’re already on the table, staring at the name on the screen.

“Who is it?” Cyno asks, sitting on the couch.

Cyno looks at his phone and sees a message from Nilou. 

Nilou: Hi. I’m by the park near your place… do you have time to come out and talk?

You and Cyno glance at each other. Talk…? About what? So, he calls her up and puts it on speaker.

One ring… two rings… three rings…

Finally, it goes through.

“Hi, Cyno,” she says.

“Nilou. What do you want to talk about?” Cyno asks.

“I just want to apologize to you in person. I’m… outside your house.”

You and Cyno glance at each other again. “If you’re outside… why not—”

The doorbell catches you and Cyno off guard.

Cyno hangs up the phone, and you immediately jump into his arms. He carries you snugly against him and goes to open the door.

But as soon as he opens it, it’s not Nilou he sees but… Scaramouche.

Cyno has no time to do anything until everything goes black… and his phone left on the table dings with a message.

Nilou: I’m sorry, Cyno…

Chapter Twenty-Four

Tag list: @seirenspinel @lxry-chxn @suoshiii @lordbugs @sketcheeee @iwishitwas @ch0c0shortiie @bennytheghost @thetwinkims @chaimkko @whorerificstuff @sakiimeo @ashtree-and-the-cats @riylvx

[bluewallowner]

@iamfarfromvibingrightnow

ok i was mentioned so I will do this uh

Were you named after anyone?

not anyone but my mam chose my name bc it

means victory😭

Do you have kids?

Brotha bye

Do you use sarcasm a lot ?

not often but occasionally. I love doing a sarcastic funny laugh like HAHAHAHAH and then a straight face 😐

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

First thing I notice about people is their physical appearance as a whole, so fit and hair mostly. AND LIKE THATS NORMAL BC IVE NEVER SEEN THIS PERSON BEFORE. but then I focus on their smile bc teeth

eye colour ?

green like the beautiful casual tree leaf green

Scary movies or happy endings?

Happy endings all the way. Unless they’re too good to be true. Like the ending of that movie “cant buy me love” with Patrick Dempsey. The mcs were fighting the whole time and then magically made up and got together like wha

only “scary” movie Ive watched is It and I LOVE IT. I want to read the book low-key and I love the relationship of the whole friend group but that movie is so odd bc how are those kids brave enough to do have the stuff they did like 💀

Any special talents ?

uh I’m a grade 7 in piano but like idk if that’s a special talent

What are your hobbies ?

reading and drawing. The problem is I never have motivation. LIKE EVER. reading is so based Istg and also playing songs on the piano. I like playing popular radio songs and then more classical pieces that have big ranges in speed and dynamics bc that stuff is beautiful 🥲

also whenever I go on any trip I like to make vlogs of them and edit them for my family and friends.

Have any pets?

Only my beloved dog. I love her and I want her to live with me forever

What sports do you play/have played?

I use to be kinda athletic when I was younger, MORE THAN I AM NOW. But I played basketball and I even went to like three summer sports camps. Icl one of those sports camps was one of the best weeks of my life when I was in primary school. I did swimming lessons too but brotha I still can’t swim

How tall are you ?

5’9/5’10 ? I haven’t measured myself since like 3rd yr. but honestly I don’t feel tall at all unless I stand beside some of my friends 😭😭😭

Favourite subject in school ?

Art. I LOVE ART CLASS. Hate art history but I love my projects. Very much. I also like maths, not because of the physical class itself but idk I like the work and taking down notes and then doing the questions while using what we learned.

Dream job ?

Ok there’s a few bc idfk but they’re all maths themed:

maths and bio/phys teacher, mathematician, (theoretical maybe) physicist, engineer ( preferably electrical and aerospace engineer), bc I want to work in nasa so bad. I just need my job to have lots of maths, and not the “financial and household budgets” maths, but the “algebra and theorems etc” maths.

ok bye

[spongebob-connoisseur]

There is the link for Flying Dutchman/Patchy theory video!

Thanks!! I watched it! Shouldve replied sooner but anyways. This dude was eating raw meat to feed his muse. Right on brotha!

Tbh there's some holes in this theory but I still liked it. He talked about how the dutchman's episodes are chronologically out of order. Tbh I had a theory about that for the entire show since dates and stuff don't line up and the show always contradicts itself (I mean, its spongebob there is no continuity)

I don't think dutchman is a time traveler by any means. He's got a lot of power but he tends to overestimate himself and exaggerate (lie) a LOT. He lies about how long he's been a ghost, he can barely scare children. He isn't as big and bad as he tries to be. hence why the thing about him saying his beard taking thousands of years to grow back but it grew back in months isn't really surprising. He's a trickster and a liar and I'm sure he just said that to make Sponge and Patrick more terrified than necessary.

I do love how they pointed out that he's pathetic and just wants to be around someone. I can imagine being a ghost being isolating and especially knowing you aren't nearly as terrifying as you once were. He lacks a lot of the ghost clout he used to have. He's just a washed up old man now. I doubt he has any genuine friends and spongebob is the most genuine friend you could get. No wonder he seems attached to him. I always assumed it was because sponge is easy to scare so it's always an ego boost to dutchy. Which, it is. But he really craves honest genuine intimacy and when you're like that, you'll likely crave the most eccentric and liveliest person in the room, which we all know who that is.

I'll be honest it's INSANE that dutchy would be patchy. Nahhh dutchy is a dirty old man with weak pussy game. I just can't see that for patchy. Imagine if they were opposites jk jk but this was too much of a stretch for me. I get Patchy's frustration dedicating his life to spongebob and he has no proper friends either. His house party was filled with people who were indifferent to him at best and loathed him at worst. No wonder he fixates on spongebob so hard. Placing all your the expectations on one person or one thing will make you incredibly sensitive to it. Anything that breaks your idealized perception of them will hit you HARD. and it would feel like everything is crashing down on you, because for you that was your everything. So I'm not surprised about Patchy's breakdowns. Mans needs some milk.

But even then I don't think he'd ever have a true vendetta against sponge for revenge. But who knows, considering the extreme lengths he's gone to see spongebob that nearly killed him. I think it eventually did. But he wouldn't become dutchy from it. They just don't seem related enough.

Besides there is an official spongebob comic that goes into the flying dutchman's true origins! Him and his crew are cursed snd only true love can break the spell. Thus turning them back into humans. He ends up marrying spongebob who's disguised as Pearl but the marriage dissolved because spongebob loves Krabby patties more than he could ever love a person. Wild.

Anyways human dutchy does have a black beard and black hair like patchy.. Wait.. Hmm.. You know what? This could work? Patchy deciding to gather some neighborhood losers so they can become REAL pirates™ maybe got cursed by some forbidden treasure and doomed to become ghost pirates for eternity? Who knows.

Buuuut we do get to see child dutchman in kamp koral. He's a blonde pathetic little boy with no resemblance to patchy. So I don't think so.

But I am willing to accept patchy dying in Spongebob's Big Birthday Blowout. It's funny. I LOVE the idea that patchy's decapitated body violently convulsing on the beach❤ now when I rewatch the episode, I'll think of that. And his final wish in death was to meet spongebob! So he finally does meet him.

Anyways it fills in for an in universe explanation on why patchy is animated in Spongebob's road to Christmas.

By the way, you wanna know why Patchy was animated? It's because of covid. Tom Kenny talked about how it was supposed to be live action but they couldn't go into the studio to shoot. So we get animated patchy.

As for the team saying how "patchy isn't allowed to meet SB" as part of one of the shows rules. Tbh I can see them changing it. Especially for something as big as a 20th anniversary special. They'd definitely make some exceptions or change their minds. And I think it was appropriate too. The 10th anniversary special sucked ass and for all the wasted scenes with patchy preparing spongebob a party only for him not to show up really ruined the special. There's some gags that should die after being stretched out for so long. And especially for the 10th anniversary special, it should have been the moment to break the rule. So it feels satisfying to finally have them meet in SBBB even if it doesn't make much sense in series.

And after that in SRTC, where they meet patchy on the surface, they already met so here's some loose continuity. I'm fine with it. I personally headcanon patchy being officially a ghost in SRTC hence why he's animated. Of course even in the after life, he still has to work. But he CAN use his ghostly powers to his advantage. Like him working as a mall Santa.

I noticed in that episode that in costume he has completely different facial features before throwing out the costume. Even his skin tone changed. He definitely used his ghost powers to shape shift.

So uhh yeah! Those are my thoughts. I like this dude who makes these theories. My favorite is the goofy goober death cult theory. I don't keep up with them much because I barely use youtube because it's been downgrading in quality for a long time. But it's nice to get suggested stuff once in a while. I had fun watching and talking about it.

Also I do 100000% agree with dutchy consuming potty's ghost. I endorse ghost cannibalism👍

[heknewwhoyoureallyare]

In this world there is always two type of guys. An Alpha and a Beta. My name is Jimmy and I’m a beta. This is what I look like:

I have this friend, well sort of, we are roommates. His name is Alaric, Our lives are both miserable, but while I have normal people problems like having trouble loosing weight, having low self esteem, can’t get a girlfriend, have a low paying job which led to difficulties paying the bills, and I have no social life (because I spend to much time playing video games). My roommates have Alpha problems, like how to snatched away the company that his big brother has inherit from their father, how to destroy his competitions in his work field, and how to create his own personal brand in his social media account and gain more followers, which in all honesty he already have plenty of. Oooohhhh and he looks like this:

The only reasons that I said that we are sort of friends its because, it’s true that Alaric and I are roommate, and sometime we talked to each other, during dinner while watching televisions, (right before I go back to my video games). It’s because we couldn’t be anymore different from each other. I’m a nerd and he’s a jock. I came from a lower middle class family, and he’s an old money rich. I have confidence issue and he has to much confidence. I am a follower and he is a natural born leader. I am a good person and Alaric is well Evil. He doesn’t bully me or anything but the thing that he told me especially about the stuff that he do to the people that he hates is extremely shocking and twisted. This guy has everything that he needs and yet his heart is full of nothing but hatred and envy! His minds are full of plots and evil schemes. So one time I took it upon myself, (because I’m a good person), to decide to become an Alpha for once and teach Alaric a lesson! A moral lesson! I snooped around his bedroom, when he’s not at home and I open his laptop. In there I found a file that are filled with his evil plans to take down his big brother and snatched away their father’s company from him. Since I’m a good person, and I’m learning to become more of an Alpha for once, I took the initiative to delete this file. I hope that this action will give him a signal to stop what he’s doing. After I delete this file that are full of his evil plots and schemes towards his perfect older big brother, I also found his other files that are filled with his collections of videos, but not just any videos. His porn videos collection, his forced role play porn videos collections. Not a BDSM videos, but a role play of a beautiful women getting forced to have a sexual intercourse by a guy that almost looks like him, big, strong, tall and has the power to dominate any women that he likes. I feel so disgusted by it, that I decided to deleted this file to, straight away. After he came back, I heard a loud manly scream from his room and when I checked it out, it was Alaric trying to find a file about his plan to destroy his big brother. He asked me where his file has gone, but I replied that I don’t know. He then checked the webcam that he has install in his room (which I am not aware off btw) and saw me deleting everything. He confronted me about this behavior and ask me why would I do such a thing. He thought we were friends. I have no choice but to come clean to him and explained that the reason for me to do this, it’s because I want to teach him a lesson. A moral lesson, about not hurting other people and accept our fate no matter what, without hurting anybody else. He then give me the most evilest glare that I ever seen him in.

And he said, “I trusted you and you have betrayed me! I never hurt you before because I thought we were both at the same side, but apparently, you think that you are better than me, well at least morally anyway. In fact you think you’re better than me so much that you decided to jeopardize my plan for my future and the future of my father’s company and for what? To teach me some big moral lesson? You know what, I will consider you my enemy now, and I will show you what I will do to my enemy especially the one that I think is my equal!” He then packs his bags and left the apartment right away. I was relieved, I thought for a moment there that he’s going to beat me to a pulp and put me in a hospital, but thank God that he doesn’t. Perhaps he was just bluffing, but what does it mean when he said that he consider me as his enemy, that are also his equal. I don’t understand. A couple of months later I have to move out from the apartment that I’m in because someone just bought the ownership of this building and now they want to bulldoze it and turn it into a Mall. Sucks to be me. I have no choice than to go back to my mother’s house and move in back with her. My mother is a very beautiful woman and very faithful to my father, after my father has died. She has never married again. Prim and proper and very religious, she’s always been a very caring woman. This time however I noticed that she has changed:

She dressed in a very sexy way, and there is a certain allure that she has now, that is sort of making me feel uncomfortable, especially as a son. I asked her “Mom, what has changed” and she said “What do you mean?” I asked her again “Why do you dress very sexy now?” And she said “Oooohhh I’m just very anxious for you to meet my new lover that’s all...” I was shocked when I heard her say the ‘L’ word. I thought she’s going to be loyal to my Dad until she passed away. I asked her immediately who is her new Lover, and how many lovers has she had in the past, and she said “Oooohhh calm down honey, this is the first lover that I ever had after your Dad has passed away, he’s very sweet, he’s always helping me around the house when I’m alone! In fact he’s here right now. Would you like to meet him?” I said “Yes”, and a couple of minutes later I heard a familiar voice saying “Hello Son!” And guess who showed up.

It was Alaric. I freaked out and I get angry. I wanted to attack him but he’s stronger than me. My Mom started to try and stop me and asked me what has gotten into me, and I told her everything, about the apartment, the files, the threats everything! My Mom asked him if this is true of which he deny everything. He said that he had never met me once in his life. At that moment, I just realized something, I have no proof to back my claimed up. I don’t even have any social media, to stalked him to. I only know that he has a lot of followers because he has showed me his social media account once. My Mom said maybe the reason why I’m so angry it’s because I haven’t gotten to know him very well, so she decided to give us some quality alone time together. When my Mom leave the room, Alaric started to smirk at me, and said “So what do you think? I told you that I will start treating you like the enemy that I consider equal!” I replied “Alaric please this has come to far, you have to leave my Mother alone! She’s innocent! This is between you and me!” He said “I don’t give a shit! I will destroy everything that you love and you hold dear, just like you did to me, and I will teach you about some big moral lesson about life, and you will start thanking me for it! You even have to start calling me Daddy!” I asked him again “Wait what do you mean? What do you mean that I have to start calling you Daddy?” He said “Your mom and I has gotten engaged!” I replied “Wait What? What do you mean? How? When?” He then smirked again and said “a couple of days ago, it took me a while to seduce her, but she finally gives in. It’s seems that after your Father has died and you have moved out from her house, she has become very lonely. I just have to fucked her once and showed her what she has been missing with, and she couldn’t say no to me ever since!” I asked him “Wait What? You did what?” In which he replied “Yeah you heard me. I fucked your mom! It was the Greatest Fuck that she ever had, she even said that I’m a better fuck than her late husband! Your Father! We Fucked, and we fucked, and we fucked. Sometime we fucked without condom, and I cream pied her a couple of times and we recorded it! We also did that role playing thing that you hate so much from my Laptop. Where she pretend to be this weak innocent woman and I came in to her house and have my way with her and there is nothing she can do to stop me! Yeah we did that!” At this point I don’t know what to say anymore. He then continued by saying “If you ever try to do something funny again to me, and jeopardize my plan for my future, I will post your mom videos to the internet and the world will know what a whore your mother really is!!! Peace out Brotha!!!

I was very angry at him, I tried to taught him a lesson, a good moral lesson in the past and this is how he repaid me. The next couple of days things has gotten really worse. Every night, I couldn’t stop hearing my mother’s voices moaning and groaning in her room while screaming Alaric name over and over again “Oh Alaric, That’s it! YOU are so good! Don’t Stop, Don’t Stop!” She even can’t stop stroking his ego “Oooohhh Alaric you are such a Man! A Big Man!!! A Strong Man! You are much stronger than my first husband!”. I can’t believe she said that! These voices can last for hours and hours. I sometime wonder when will they finally get some sleep! Alaric then take his revenge a step further by starting to wear my father’s clothes and smoke his cigars!

My Mothers even allowed it. Everyday she can’t stop talking about how Alaric is going to be my Stepfather someday! A good Stepfather, even though, she knows that he’s about the same age as I am. I always get angry at her and I tried to talked him out of this, but he refused to listened. He just smirked and continue to do his thing. One time I get a text message from my mom’s phone saying that she needed me in the beach near the house and when I get over there well, guess what I found.

Alaric having his dick sucked at the beach by my mom, in public. No one was there but I guess he just wanted me to see how much control that he has over me and my mom! He texted me using my mom’s phone while he’s getting a blowjob from my mom at public places. Just so that I can see this thing. I can’t stand this anymore, I almost went crazy. I begged Alaric to stop punishing me because of what I did in the past, of which he replied to me“I only wanted to teach you a lesson!” And when I asked him what the lesson that he wanted to teach me, he simply replied with “Never try to teach an Alpha anything, especially about Life, cus he might schooled you on what real life really is!” And just like that I realized that I should never overstep my boundaries by teaching an Alpha anything.

[aelysianmuse]

SUMMARY: Canon-divergence post-Purgatory fic where Benny decides to meddle, make Cas feel appreciated and Dean jealous enough for them to pull their heads out of their asses and get together once and for all. AO3 LINK.

On the first morning back from Purgatory, Benny learns that comfort zones are where Dean fails to thrive.

Without any imminent threat to Castiel, Dean is quick to leave addressing him as his ‘angel’ behind. Instead, he slips right back into the authoritative ‘Cas’. Lingering touches shift into brief pats, and intense stare-offs turn into avoidant glances when the other one’s not looking.

Right at the very end, before the three of them had found the portal, the tensions between Dean and Castiel were so high that, if he’d left them alone for longer than ten minutes, Benny had half-expected to return to them fucking in a tent.

How they’d gone from that to this, in just a matter of days, beats him.

Either way, if he’s learned anything about them throughout these past couple of months, it’s that both of them are idiots in love. They’re wasting their time pining for each other, when they could be spending it together. It’s only Dean who seems to engage these in self-sabotaging behaviors, and right when he’s at the cusp of having everything that he’s ever wanted.

As he watches the two bicker over unwashed dishes, like a married couple does, Benny takes a sip of his coffee and smirks into the mug. He knows he ain’t much, but he’s a solid meddler. If he can get Dean back to feeling like Castiel being here’s not a guaranteed thing, he thinks he can get him to act on his feelings.

“Game on, brotha.”

1. Benny.

Benny’s in the kitchen when he hears them come back from the case.

Sam’s still unhappy that he’s allowed to stay in the Bunker, even if it’s for a couple of days, but Dean was very firm about it not being up for negotiations. They’ve found a compromise in not letting Benny join them on the hunts. Sam doesn’t trust a vamp, and Benny’s alright with that.

“Benny!” Dean’s voice cuts through the Bunker, loud and clear. “We’re back.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He responds from the other room, taking a couple of minutes to join them by the map table.

He’s carrying two cups of hot tea with him, and he walks over to Castiel’s right, placing one cup in front of himself and the other in front of the angel.

Both Dean and Cas seem to be confused at the gesture, and they’re sporting a matching frown to prove it. Okay, so maybe he’s decided to go a bit bold right at the start, but he’s only got a week so he has to skip a couple of steps.

“Dean said somethin’ about you likin’ honey. I found this guy who’s willin’ to deliver me some top-notch raw one, straight from the honeycomb.” Benny explains. “I reckon it should be good.”

The atmosphere in the room feels awkward for a couple of more seconds. Not a sound is to be heard, but for Castiel’s uncertain “Um.” The angel picks up the cup to taste the honey-laced tea, and all eyes seem to be at him.

Benny can sense Dean brimming with nervous energy.

“I know you don’t drink tea, so I figured you wouldn’t want any. But if ya want—“

“No, no. That’s…it’s fine.” Dean finishes instead of him.

“This is very good, Benny. Thank you.” Castiel offers, once he’s done with the tasting.

“Good. That’s good.” Benny responds with a soft smile. “I know nothin’ about honey, but I wanted to do somethin’ nice. Despite our differences, you had my back in there. So. Thank you.” He finishes, making sure that the expressed gratitude holds enough gravity.

Dean shifts uncomfortably from across the table and Castiel gives him one of those soft smiles he’s only ever seen Dean receive, so he counts it a win. Dean takes notice of it as well so he counts it as a double win.

“Anyway—“ Benny goes on to change the subject. Go easy on him, he thinks. He wants to shake Dean up a bit, but has to be careful not to frighten him completely away. “—Did you take care of that vamps’ nest?”

“It was challenging to track them down at first, but once we found them they didn’t put up much of a fight. I don’t expect for any remains of the nest to not taken care of.” Castiel explains, lowering the cup down to the table.

“Nice.” Benny takes a glance at Dean’s disheveled appearance. A cut here and a blooming bruise there, and then he looks at the angel. Castiel looks like he hasn’t even broken a sweat, taking on those vamps. “You look great for someone who’s just taken down a nest.” He points out, directing the observation at Castiel in particular.

It’s quite entertaining, if you ask him, watching the angel squirm. Castiel clears his throat, clearly picking up from Dean that something’s odd about this exchange, and Benny can almost see the gears shifting in his head as he tries to figure out what a proper response to this situation would be. They haven’t been exactly friendly in Purgatory, and Benny’s mostly used whatever time off from killing they had to tease him mercilessly. He figures this newfound gratitude and exchange of pleasantries between them must be weird as heck.

“Ooo-kay.” Dean is the first one to point it out. “I think I’m gonna go get a shower, now.”

“Yeah, alright, man. Cas here can tell me the rest of the details.”

“Cas?” Dean quirks a brow, not addressing the angel, but rather Benny’s usage of the nickname. Instead of acknowledging that there’s something odd about it and responding, Benny dives straight into questioning Castiel about the case until he hears Dean disappear in the background.

2. Dean.

On his way from the shower, Dean feels off. He knows well enough that it’s got something to do with Benny and Cas, but when he tries to rationalize his feelings, he doesn’t really have a reason to feel wrong about their exchange.

Two of his best friends are getting along, Benny’s given up on the teasing, he’s engaging with Cas, they’re having civil conversations and being nice with each other. It’s good. It’s what he wanted all along, right?

He runs the towel through his hair and enters the room, only to find Cas and Benny leaning into each other and laughing over something they’re discussing.

“I don’t remember there being anything that funny about the case.” He blurts out thoughtlessly, and where the hell did that come from? “Unless you’re talking about decapitation. Then I kinda get it.” Dean attempts to recover.

“Nah, brotha. Cas was just telling me his buddy up there –“ Benny points up with his face. “Benjamin, right?” Cas nods to that. “Here I was, thinking the angels are uptight, but turns out they just have a different social custom there. Once you get into it, they actually have a solid sense of humor.”

“It is true, Dean.” Castiel deadpans and Dean finds him endearing for being as socially inept as ever.

“Alright, you two. Wanna share and elaborate, maybe?” Dean asks, hating the way light annoyance tints his voice. Why does he sound like that? Like a—jealous…thing. Person. Whatever.

“It’s not of import.” Cas says. “I never would have brought it up if Benny hadn’t asked what my favorite things about Heaven are.”

Dean feels something squeeze tight around his heart. He’s never even thought of asking him that. He didn’t even know about this Benjamin, who was apparently among Cas’s favorite people. Hell, he’s been so self-centered that he assumed Cas didn’t even have anyone besides them.

He wants to say that Cas’s favorite things can’t be irrelevant, and they aren’t to him, and that he wants to know. Benny’s faster on the draw.

“I beg to differ. If it’s making you smile like that, it’s important.” Benny drawls, and for a good measure presses a brief touch against Cas’s forearm. Dean feels his stomach lurch at the sight.

It’s even worse that Cas looks all shy and grateful for that declaration, and it makes Dean want to jump out of his skin and put at least five feet of distance between them.

Dean must’ve been glaring daggers, because there’s a sudden shift in the way Cas holds himself. Like a reprimanded child, he moves back from where he was leaning into Benny, and looks worriedly at Dean.

Dean pretends not to notice.

“Sam arrived while you were showering. He said he’ll go sort through the archive. I should go and help him.” Cas gets up from the chair and leaves the room somewhat abruptly. Benny doesn’t seem to find anything odd about it. If he does, he’s as good at pretending as Dean.

When they’re left alone, Dean somehow musters up the courage to ask.

“What was that?” he tries to sound casual.

“What was what?” Benny asks, playing dumb. Or maybe he really doesn’t have any idea what Dean’s talking about, and Dean’s embarrassing himself by being paranoid.

“You, being like that. With Cas.”

“Like what, Dean?” Benny asks and leans back into his chair.

“Like…suddenly interested in anecdotes about his life, all thoughtful and appreciative.” Nice, Dean. If it sounded bad in his brain, it sounds even worse coming straight out of his mouth

“You don’t think Cas deserves someone to be thoughtful and appreciate to him?”

“I didn’t say that.” Dean snaps defensively. “You know what, nevermind. I’m gonna go get some rest, my back’s killing me.” Suddenly, he feels twice as tired, his bones twice as weary.

“Sure thing, man.” Benny responds, not pushing. Dean appreciates that, at least.

When he gets into bed, sleep doesn’t come easy.

3. Dean.

When Benny tells him he’s leaving for Louisiana on Sunday, Dean hates himself for feeling relief. He tells himself it’s because his relationship with Sam has become strained due to Dean’s willingness to fraternize with a vampire.

Five more days doesn’t seem that long, until Benny makes sure that it does.

He and Cas seem to be inseparable, and they’re always smiling and doing things.

Benny seems to be right there, all the time. Whatever Cas is doing, he’s itching to offer a hand. Throughout the week, Dean sees them baking together, playing scrabble, discussing lore, watching Our Planet on Netflix…one day he even sees them doing crafts together. Just for fun, Cas says.

On Friday, there’s a Wendigo in Topeka and Cas doesn’t offer to go with him and Sam.

Instead, he asks “Do you need me to join you?” And he phrases it in a way that Dean reads as ‘if it’s not necessary, I’d prefer to stay here, with Benny”.

So, naturally, Dean says “No.” He makes sure not to linger, so he wouldn’t see Cas’s joy upon hearing the words.

It’s nighttime by the time they return to the Bunker, and Benny and Cas are nowhere to be found. Dean makes sure to check the whole place, and if it takes him too long to knock on the doors of either of their bedrooms, no one has to know. No one answers anyway.

He considers texting one of them, and spends at least two hours mulling over the idea, which turns out to be long enough for the pair to come back from wherever they were. Dean hears them speaking in gentle, hushed tones and though a part of him wants to remain hidden behind the wall, so he can listen in on their conversation without being exposed – a stronger part of him propels him forward to interrupt.

“Hey.” He announces himself, and Cas takes a step back from Benny, stopping mid-sentence when he sees him. Dean’s nails dig into his palm. “I was worried about you-” comes right out of his mouth, the honesty and vulnerability of the admission scaring him. “-you didn’t say where you went.”

“Benny wanted to see the planetarium, so he asked if I’d like to come along.” Cas explains, sounding apologetic.

“I happen to know a thing or two about the stars.” Benny chimes in. “Me and my buddies from old nest used to be pirates.”

“You’re a vampirate?” Dean asks, stunned. Benny chuckles.

“Sure, brotha. If that’s how you wanna call it.”

“I learned a lot about the constellations.” Cas joins in and he seems genuinely excited to share this piece of information. Dean thought he already knew everything that’s to know about this universe, so he finds Cas’s claim that he’s learned something new from Benny odd. What if he wants to stroke his ego, what if—

“So you had fun.” Dean clears his throat, barely managing to tear his gaze away from Cas’s. He looks at Benny instead and shuffles his hands around the pockets somewhat awkwardly. He wishes he could be anywhere but here, but also, he thinks if he’s to leave now, something horrible could happen.

Not the ‘someone might die’ kind of horrible, no. Benny wouldn’t hurt Cas, that much he knows. But Benny could…

It’s a different kind of horrible.

“I’m actually pretty wiped.” Benny says instead of responding to Dean’s question, or well, more of a statement. “You two can catch up – I’m gonna go to my room now. And Cas—“

“Yes.” Cas turns to face him.

“Think about my offer. I mean, take your time but…lemme know.” Benny says and leaves it at that.

Cas doesn’t sleep, and that night neither does Dean.

4. Dean.

When Benny leaves, he decides to take the guns out and clean them. Cas decides to keep him company, in silence.

It probably would’ve been a polite thing of Dean to ask more about their little…date, but Dean doesn’t want to know. So he doesn’t ask. And Cas doesn’t tell.

For thirty minutes of muscle memory work, Dean lets this feeling stir within and gnaw at him. It takes him precisely thirty minutes to ask.

“So. Benny made you an offer?”

“He did.” Cas responds, matter-of-factly. He doesn’t seem too keen to elaborate, at least not without Dean’s further prompting. Dean’s far too curious, so he caves in.

“Can I ask what it is?” He sounds vulnerable, even to himself, and he doesn’t like that Cas picks up on it right away.

“He asked me to go with him to Louisiana, on Sunday.”

Dean doesn’t mean to, but he stops dead in his tracks and lowers the gun he’s holding on the table.

“Like…to visit?” Dean asks, unable to form any coherent thought at the moment.

“No.” Cas responds, gaze avoidant, looking down at his lap. He parts his lips, seemingly to offer further explanation, but ultimately decides against it.

The words he doesn’t say speak louder than the ones he does.

Dean swallows the lump in his throat, and he can feel the fear creep up and take roots in his lungs.

“Well, what did you decide?” he dares to ask. He feels anchored to his seat, paralyzed, and at the same time like he’s floating above and looking down at two of them.

“I told him I’d think about it.” Cas admits and Dean wishes he could refrain from reacting, but he flinches at the admission. When Cas does look up at him, he seems to be looking for Dean to say or do something.

But Dean’s left speechless. Because Cas has to think about it. He’s not sure about whether he wants to stay with Dean or leave, and Dean thinks back to ‘I always come when you call. I do everything that you ask.’

He thinks where along the way he’s screwed up so epically that he hasn’t given Cas reason enough to stay, but made him doubt whether this is where he belongs.

And then he looks back at the past week. At how Benny’s greeted Cas in the mornings, made him breakfast and coffee, and asked him about his life; learned things about him that Dean’s never bothered to in all these years. How Benny’s taken time to spend with him, out of the context of their jobs, and made it all about Cas – and how Dean’s never done that.

Of course, Cas thought about leaving. Of course.

“Well.” Dean swallows. “If you think that’s gonna make you happy…then I’m happy for you.”

Dean’s been selfish enough for a lifetime. With Sam, particularly, but everyone else that he’s ever cared about too. He wasn’t going to do that to Cas.

“Thank you, Dean.” Cas says, and Dean sees his shoulders sag. Whether in defeat or relief, because Dean’s green-lighted the decision, he can’t tell.

They don’t talk for the rest of the night.

5. Dean.

After hours of tossing and turning, Dean gives up on trying to fall asleep.

He gets up and gets into the car. He drives to the nearest open store to pick up stuff for an apple pie. It’s 4 AM and he’s baking, because it’s the only way to distract himself from the anxiety settling low in his belly.

Dean recognizes Cas’s steps when he hears them, and realizes then that he’s been making the pie with him in mind. The fact that Cas will be gone tomorrow makes it that much harder to face him, so Dean’s quick to scribble ‘For you. Hope you like it.’ on a sticky note. He leaves it by the baked good before Cas can find him.

When he comes back to the Bunker, he’s that much more certain that Cas has decided to leave. He doesn’t run into him until much later into the day, but finds a matching sticky note right where he’s left one.

‘Thank you, Dean. It was wonderful. I appreciate it.’ It reads, and Dean takes a sharp inhale to hold in, certain that if he allows himself to exhale right away he’ll crumble into pieces.

By the time sun goes down, it hits Dean that in less than twelve hours Cas will be gone and that he’s wasted what last precious moments he’s had with him on running. Panic settles deep in his bones when Cas joins him in the room, for the first time of the day.

“Hey, stranger.” He decides to speak up first. “Haven’t seen much of you today.” Or Benny, he thinks.

“Yeah.” Cas makes an attempt at a smile, but it falls flat.

“Were you out with Benny?” Dean tries not to make a big deal out of it.

“No. I don’t really know where he is. I just thought you would want some space, so I took a walk.”

“Why would I need space?” Dean frowns.

“You’ve been avoiding me.” Cas puts it right out there, raw and unfiltered. Should’ve seen that one coming.

“I wasn’t—“ he starts but fails to defend himself because that’s exactly what he’s been doing. Although, not because he needed space. What Dean needed was to come to terms with what was about to happen. He needed to prepare himself because this time he was given an actual notice. A chance to see it coming and get accustomed to it. Other times, when Cas would disappear for days, he usually did so without any warning or explanation, leaving Dean to wonder what had happened. This time, he at least knew. And understood.

“It’s okay, Dean. I know that things are different here than down there.” Cas finishes for him, and he sounds so understanding, so empathetic, and without holding a single grudge against Dean. It’s like he’d take whatever Dean will throw his way, and Dean feels sick.

“What does that mean?” he asks, and sounds defensive about it, but he knows. He may not fully comprehend all that he’s feeling, but he knows some—enough of it, despite having tried so hard and for so long to push it all down.

“I’m not trying to accuse you of anything, Dean. I’m just saying it’s different when we don’t have all kinds of monsters breathing down our necks, and we don’t know if today will be our last day on Earth.”

“What are you talking about? This gig, this life…we never know—“

“You know what I mean.”

Dean’s lips press together, preventing him from speaking any further.

He feels cornered. Cas hasn’t said anything, nothing’s really out there yet, but it kind of is. It’s like they finally acknowledged this elephant in the room between them, with as few words as they could, and Dean doesn’t know how to take a step back from here.

But more importantly, Dean feels ungrateful and he feels like a coward because Cas is right – and he shouldn’t be. It shouldn’t make any difference, this thing.

“I’m going to—“

“Yeah.” Dean gives him a quick nod, seeing Cas drift towards his room after a long moment of shared silence.

6. Cas

Although he doesn’t always understand humans, the things they do, and why they do them, Cas thinks he knows what’s going on here.

When Dean asked him about the answer he’s given to Benny’s offer, Cas doesn’t think he lied when he said he’s thinking about it. ‘Cause he is. He’s been thinking about whether he should stay here, more so than whether he should leave with Benny, ever since the topic came up.

He just failed to mention that when Benny offered, Cas immediately turned him down.

“That’s very generous of you, but I’ll have to politely decline.” He’d said.

“Thought so. Still, I’d like you to think about it for a couple of more days. The offer will stand.” Benny insisted, and Cas listened.

He’s not dumb. He knows what Dean thinks of them. He also knows that’s not what Benny wants from him.

Cas figured that, while initially it was all about pushing Dean to a breaking point and getting him to speak up about his desires, Benny’s intentions transformed. After a while, because he has spent a considerable amount of time with Benny and not all of it was pretending for the sake of provoking Dean, he and Benny did get closer. Although not in a way that Dean thinks, Benny has grown to respect and even like Cas, and he believed that’s at least a part of the reason why he’s asked him to come along.

There’s nothing respectful about the way Cas lets himself be treated, and he knows that.

He sits on the bed of his room in the Bunker, and he thinks how messed up he has to be to know that nothing’s ever going to change, and yet he chooses to stay – hoping that it will. Isn’t that the definition of stupidity?

He considers what it’d be like to allow himself, for once, to seek some finality. To ditch the hope in entirety and make peace with his truth.

If he left, it’d mean that he’s giving himself a chance to move on. He wouldn’t have to wonder anymore/ Wouldn’t feel so helpless, insecure, and stripped down to his very grace every time he’s around Dean. He’d just…know.

He’d make a choice and live with the consequences, whatever they are. It sounds as close to free will as he’ll ever get, and it’s tempting, but it doesn’t feel right.

And if he decides to stray, then what? Does he give himself a time constraint, for how much longer he gets to hope and wait? Or does he accept that regardless of him staying, everything else will remain the same and he’s going to be fine with that?

A knock grips him out of his thoughts, and he pushes himself up from the mattress to open the doors to the bedroom. On the other side, he finds Dean.

“Hey.” Dean says, and Cas doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to the way he gets weaker in the knees when he sees him. Once he started falling, he never stopped. Anna was right – all of these feelings that have found their way into every crevice of his being, they were massively beyond those first human experiences he’s had. Nothing could have warned or prepared him for the sheer intensity of loving Dean.

It was a different kind of pain. One as sweet as tempting, and although one didn’t want to be experiencing it, one was too weak to stop. After having heard about enough human experiences, he thought it was comparable to getting rehabilitation for drug addiction.

“Hello Dean.” He manages, unable to look anywhere but at Dean.

Dean doesn’t say anything after that, and Cas doesn’t really know what this is about, so he waits. And he waits.

And then asks.

“Is there something—“

“Stay.” Dean jumps in, and there’s urgency in the way he lets that word spill over.

“What.”

Cas can see him straighten and push his shoulders back. Dean reels in, the same way that he does when he’s expecting a punch.

Dean licks his lips, taking time to draws a sharp inhale before continuing.

“Look, man—“ he stops, then corrects himself. “—Cas.”

“If leaving…if going with Benny’s what you want, then I’m not going to stop you. But…”

Dean looks like he’s struggling to find the words, and Cas has no intent to rush him. He does feel instinctively drawn to lay a gentle touch on him, to offer comfort and reassurance, but he doesn’t.

He waits.

“If you’re looking for a reason to stay, if you need one – I want you to know that I want you to stay.” Dean says, and he looks like he has so much more to add, and he wants to, but this is as far as he can go. For now.

“Okay.” Cas manages after a while.

“Okay.” Dean nods and lets himself exhale as his shoulders sag further down. “That’s…that’s all I wanted to say.”

They both take one long look at each other after that, and then Dean leaves down the hallway and goes to his room.

7. Dean.

Dean doesn’t want to, but he sleeps soundly through the night. The exhaustion from not having rested properly these past couple of days runs him over. He dreams of nothing.

He wakes up abruptly to the clock reading 10:00 AM. That’s two hours after Benny’s planned departure.

He’s up on his feet before he knows it, running to the common room, as though he could catch up with them if he runs fast enough. There’s nothing rational about the way he’s thinking, but he can’t stop moving, can’t stop—

He gets to the map table and Sam and Cas are there, going through the lore, working on a case.

“Morning.” Sam greets him, brows furrowed in response to Dean’s disheveled looks and panicked appearance. Cas just stands there, trenchcoat on as always, nothing odd about him.

“Where’s Benny?” he asks, heart thundering loud against his chest as he grapples to reach full, sane awareness.

“He left.” Cas is the one to respond this time around, and Dean feels lighter than he has in a while.

“He left?” Dean repeats, dumbfounded. “Why didn’t you wake me up to say goodbye?”

“He said he hasn’t seen you sleep this long from the day he’s met you. Quite frankly, neither have we.” Sam offers. “We decided to let you rest. Besides, he said to tell you it’s not a goodbye – it’s just a see you later.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

“I’ll try to be.” Sam offers.

He’s finally awake enough to make further steps towards the table, and join the two of them in going through the papers scattered across.

“So.” He takes a look at Cas, not yet taking a seat next to them. “You decided to stay.”

“I did. Benny’s offer was nice but this is my home.” Cas pauses for a moment, before adding “It’s where I want to be.”

Dean sees a smile tug on Cas’s lips, and he allows for a matching one to bloom across his own.

“Good. That’s good. I’m glad.” He swallows and breaks the gaze, sitting down to look at the case.

“So get this.” Sam begins. “We have reports of witnesses seeing someone leave the house of the vic, thought they saw pitch-black eyes. Victim is a young male; pathologists say the corpse looks like someone had been gnawing at it…”

“So we’re thinking rugaru?” Dean asks, feeling himself slip into sense of normalcy that he hasn’t even realized to have been missing.

He lets the voices of Sam and Cas carry him through the rest of the case as everything falls back into its place.

[nickelkeep]

Find a Little Fire

Pairing: Dean/Cas, other background pairings Rating: Teen+ Word Count: 6.3K Warnings: John Winchester. Written For: nickel’s storytime, and part 3 of the Runaway Series On Ao3

Dean never realized how slow two weeks could actually move. Granted, the say was that time is a construct, not a set thing. He could measure it in different ways, just like they did in that one song from that one musical. All Dean knew was that the time, until Cas would be cleared from bed rest, was too damn long.

And it wasn't as though they didn't talk. Dean made a point of exchanging numbers, so they texted, they spoke on the phone. Dean may have also made his way to the homestead a couple times after getting off of his shift, under the pretense of giving Cas a house call.

No one ever believed him.

Dean sat back at his desk, kicking his feet up as he watched the monitors mounted above his desk. Only room two and room five were occupied, and both patients were resting. Dean let his eyes drift shut slowly in anticipation of climbing home and getting into his bed.

"Is Dr. Vaugier in?" Dean's feet slipped off of the desk, thanks to the sudden voice in the relative quiet of the nurse's station. A deep, hearty chuckle sent chills down his back, and he looked up to a wolfish grin. "I'm sorry. That shouldn't be as funny as it was."

"Hiya, Cas." Dean smiled, for once not caring who saw his excitement at his... something?... being at his place of employment. "What brings you in today?"

"I'd like to say that I'm here to visit you, which I am, but I do need to see Madison. It's been two weeks, and although I was would be clear after two weeks, Gabe has decided that I still can't do anything without the doc clearing it." Cas leaned forward on the pony wall and smirked. "Plus, there's something I want to ask you after I see her."

Dean raised an eyebrow out of curiosity. "You can ask now."

"And kill the suspense? Wouldn't dream of it." Cas winked, albeit poorly, and stood back up straighter. "She hasn't gone home yet, has she? I know it's getting close to shift change."

"Nope. If I'm still here, that means she's probably still here." Dean picked up the phone and called the lunchroom, assuming that was where Maddie was still hiding. The phone rang, and the doctor picked up on the third ring. "What's up, Dean? I haven't heard anything about someone coming in."

"Walk-in, specifically asking for you, Doctor Vaugier. I can go set them up in room six if you'd like." Dean cracked a smile.

"Let me finish chugging this coffee, and I'll be right there." The phone disconnected, and Dean stared at it in feigned shock and disgust.

Cas waved his hand in front of Dean's face. "Uh, you alright there?"

"Madison has coffee, and isn't sharing." Dean frowned when Cas' face twisted, clearly holding back laughter. "Yuck it up, furball. Let's go. Room six." Cas' resolve broke, and he burst into laughter.

Together, they walked down to the examination room. Once inside, Cas slid off his shirt and hopped onto the bed. "Do you think she's going to ask me to shift?"

"It's always a possibility." Dean swallowed, quickly taking the conversation to hide the fact he was staring at the Were. "So, how are you feeling, honestly? And I just don't mean physically."

"Are you asking about..." Cas' finger wiggled back and forth between the two of them. "Whatever this is?"

"Yeah–" Dean started to comment as Maddie wrapped on the door. It swung open, and all five-foot-seven of the doctor came striding in.

"Castiel! It's good to see you, I hope." She stole a glance at Dean before crossing over to Cas. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"I look good, I feel good, I know my strength is back, and I'm restless. Gabriel won't let me do anything around the homestead unless you clear me." Maddie started to speak up, and Cas held up his hand. "And he specifically said it had to be a doctor clearing me. Otherwise, he'd figure that I was using Dean."

"Would he not have accepted it from Bess?" Madison shook her head. "Or is he just sick of Dean coming by the homestead all the time?"

"Hey!" Dean cut in. "I resent that remark."

Maddie tried her best to put on a severe face and stared at Cas. "I think he means resemble, right Cas?"

"Absolutely." Cas nodded enthusiastically.

"Traitors. Both of you." Dean shook his head and handed the doc a stethoscope. "Do I need to go step outside?"

"Why, so you can just text Cas from out there? Don't think I don't know what you're doing on your phone at night, Dean." Maddie shook her head and laughed. "I need Cas here to stay calm, so I can read his vitals right. While I know you think that you and your texts are funny, I'm not sure he thinks they are."

Dean scoffed. "I think I'm adorable."

"Keep telling yourself that, Dean." Cas took in a deep breath as Maddie instructed him to do. "You may just believe it." He exhaled slowly, winking - yet again - as he caught Dean staring.

"I don't know how, with all the texting and talking you two do, you haven't scared the other off yet. Granted, it is the first thing in the morning." Maddie's nose scrunched up in amusement as she finished checking Cas' lungs. "Hold this one for as long as you can."

Dean watched in wonder as Cas inhaled deeply and sat calmly for almost a minute. As Cas breathed out slowly, Dean found Cas staring at him, and the pair locked eyes. Dean still couldn't get over how blue Cas' eyes were, and the color had become prominent in his dreams over the past two weeks.

"Alright, Cas. I just need to check your temperature, but as long as you're honest and not having problems shifting or walking, I'm fine with feeding you to the wolves," Maddie smirked. "Pun entirely intended."

"Thank goodness. Can I get it in writing? Or do you mind calling him?" Cas' eyes had turned hopeful. "I need to do something other than just mope in my room."

Maddie nodded. "I have his number. I'll go call him real quick." She pointed at Dean. "No funny business."

"Right. What am I going to do?" Dean rolled his eyes as Maddie left. He turned to Cas. "Ready to actually do things?"

"You have no idea." Cas slid his shirt back on, and Dean fought to keep himself from frowning. "So, I do remember having a conversation with you about two weeks ago."

"I may vaguely remember that conversation." Dean fought against smiling. "Perhaps you could remind me."

"Of course." Cas pushed himself off the examination table and stepped into Dean's personal space. "You had mentioned wanting to get to know me, and I mentioned wanting to discover Sioux Falls." Cas pulled playfully on Dean's badge. "I know we can't do much today, you're about to get off work, so I know you're tired, but I thought - maybe - you could show me a good place to get some breakfast?"

Dean suddenly found himself famished. "I know just the place, Cas." A cough caused Dean to jump, and he turned to shoot daggers at the person who walked in. "Hello, Garth."

"So, this is why Madison sent me in." Garth laughed. "She's on the phone with your brother, Cas. But you're good to go."

"Thank you, Dr. Fitzgerald."

"And Dean, Bess is ready for you to pass off your report." Garth turned and walked out of the exam room.

Dean waited until Garth left and ran his hand down his face. "So. You drive here, Cas?"

…

Cas' mind was set. He was going to have a great day. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. He got Madison to clear him, personally calling Gabe herself. Dean was excited to see him, and they were going on their first date. Well, Cas hoped that Dean would consider it a date. Breakfast after a long shift wasn't necessarily the most romantic of venues.

Dean had taken his phone and plugged in the address for a place called Andrea's Diner into his GPS. As Dean had handed the phone back to Cas, Cas watched as Dean's eyes moved, traveling down to his lips, and briefly pausing there before moving back to look Cas in the eyes.

Cas had wanted nothing more than to kiss Dean while still in the exam room. However, he refrained, knowing that Dean needed some sort of decorum to keep intact, especially after Garth had walked in on them, practically pressed together.

He let out a sigh as he pulled into the parking lot of the diner. It looked like it was straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting, the chromed exterior, and the blood-red neon sign flashing Andrea's out front. Cas stepped out of the car and walked up to the door. Entering the diner, he was hit with the scents of fresh baked goods, deep-fried treats, and even some things that would probably be on a special menu for creatures like him.

Cas walked up to the hostess stand and asked for a booth before being led to one tucked back in a corner. He made mention to the hostess that he was waiting for someone, and she promised to keep an eye out. As he leaned back in his seat, finding the section of the menu that catered to Weres, Cas found himself surprised when he heard people - not a person - slide onto the bench across from him.

"Well, if it ain't Castiel." A warm Cajun drawl caused him to put his menu down.

"Benny, Sam." Cas offered his hand across the table, taking their hands and shaking them. "It's nice to see you both in more pleasant circumstances."

"I was just at the homestead with Maddie like two days ago." Sam shot Cas a look that he couldn't quite discern. "That wasn't pleasant?"

"Lay off him, brotha." Benny gently shoved Sam. "Clearly he's up and about which means he's gone and got himself off of bed rest. That's gotta be better than just laying around all day."

"Thank you, Benny." Cas relaxed a little. "That's what I meant. I went to the hospital this morning to get Madison to clear me. Gabe insisted."

Sam shook his head. "Had nothing to do with Dean being there also?"

"Well, that was clearly an added benefit." Cas tilted his head in confusion. "Am I not supposed to go and say hello?"

"No, of course you can." Sam sputtered slightly before pushing forward. "What I mean is that you know. I, uh. He and I live together."

"I'm aware." Cas had to hold back a chuckle as Benny smacked his forehead. "I also know that Madison has come to stay with you a couple times this past week."

"Woohoo, this is gettin' spicy." Benny turned in his seat and looked at Sam. "You seriously gonna have this talk with our wolf pal here, considering he's got your number?"

Sam glared at Benny before looking at Cas again. "I'm assuming that Dean told you."

"As you're clearly aware, we've been talking." Cas closed the menu and rested his elbows on top of it, before resting his chin on his knuckles. "What's your concern, Sam?"

"Dean. I mean, I guess that part is obvious, but it's about how Dean's been acting." Sam ran his hand through his hair. "Have you done any research into witch bonding?"

"I understand that in order for a witch to cast a spell on a living, breathing, being, they must create a bond with said being. The bond passes magic through. In Dean's case, and I'm assuming yours, it's healing magic." Cas raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "I know there are concerns about the two of us being bonded more permanently because of how much magic he used to heal me."

"That's only part of it. Are you aware of the equivalent exchange aspect?" Sam questions.

Cas sat up straighter in his seat. "And what do you know about Werewolves, Sam? I understand you're an EMT, and you're able to treat us on the fly, but what do you honestly know about us, besides our anatomy? Has Madison told you anything yet?"

Benny shook his head. "Careful where you tread, Sam."

"Look, I'm just worried about my brother. I haven't seen him this... content, in years." Sam pointed at Cas, and Cas noted how Sam avoided his question. "I hope it's just because you two are getting to know each other, and not because of him accidentally bonding himself–"

"Cher!" A female voice interrupted, and Cas quickly looked to his side. A gorgeous woman with long black hair had come up to the table. Unlike the rest of the staff, she was dressed in a billowy white top tucked into black pants. Cas stole a glance at Benny, whose face had set into a wide grin. "I didn't see you or Sam walk in! Why aren't you back at the family table?"

"Andrea, this is Cas." Benny pointed to Cas. "Cas, this is my wife, Andrea. She's been puttin' up with my ass for almost 200 years now."

"Longer, Cher. We knew each other before we were married." She smiled sweetly, then looked carefully at Cas. "Oh, my sweet loup-garou. Are you the Were that was attacked?"

Cas frowned. "Does everyone know who I am?"

"'Fraid so, brotha. While we have a variety of creatures in this town, the highest population is of Weres. So I imagine that everyone knows about a new pack comin' in, and how y'all came in."

"Plus, your pack has already started to get around town and explore. Considering you've been stuck up on the farm and couldn't really get around? It's not going to take long to figure you out." Sam shrugged.

"Sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable." Andrea rested her hand on Cas' arm. "What can I get you?"

"I'm waiting for Dean, but thank you." Cas frowned.

Andrea tapped his chin with her pen. "Turn that around for me, Cher." She pointed at Sam and Benny. "Get your asses back to the family table and leave this poor boy alone."

Cas watched as Sam and Benny looked properly chastised with Andrea merely telling them to leave him alone. He waited until she was out of earshot before speaking again. "You guys don't actually have to go."

"Oh no, we do." Benny nodded fervently. "Andrea is my partner in every sense of the word, except here. Here she's queen, and her word goes."

"Is that so?" Out of the corner of his eye, Cas saw Dean approaching the table. Dean held his finger up to his lips, and Cas continued speaking. "So does that make this her castle?"

"Don't let Benny fool you." Dean boomed his voice behind his brother and friend, and Cas laughed as the two of them jumped in their seats. "Anywhere Andrea is, is her castle."

"Jesus, Cher. Tryin' to scare me back to life?" Benny grasped at his chest as Sam shot his brother a death glare. "I ain't survivin' today, Sam."

Sam slid out of the seat and pulled at Benny's arm. "We should get back before Andrea comes out and finds us anyway." He shot a pleading look at Cas. "Enjoy your breakfast, guys."

No sooner than Benny had slid out of the seat and stepped away, Dean took his place. "Sorry about that, I was doing the shift swap with Bess, and we had one of the young harpies come in with a broken wing. I helped get her into a room and settled before leaving."

"It's all good, Dean." Cas forced a smile and offered his hand across the table. He relaxed slightly when Dean took it and squeezed. "I'm glad that you're vital to this community."

Silence hung in the air between them for a few moments, and Dean spoke up. "Cas, what's up?"

"What do you mean, what's up?" Cas shifted in his seat and forced himself to meet Dean's eyes.

"Something's bothering you." Dean laced his fingers into Cas' to keep him from escaping. "I mean, I can see the way that your smile doesn't meet your eye, but something just feels off. You're putting off an energy of disappointment."

"You're getting that, how?"

A blush filled Dean's cheeks. "Uh, I feel it. Off of you."

Cas' heart sunk. He told himself he was going to have a great day, but instead, he had jinxed himself. "So, the bond is still there." He hung his head and ran his finger along a not-so-interesting line of fake marbling.

"It appears so. Does that bother you, Cas?" Dean ran his thumb along Cas' knuckles, gently petting him.

"It does. What if this thing we're feeling isn't real? What if it really is just the bond working?" Cas frowned, "I don't want you to feel trapped with me."

Dean's eyes widened, and Cas felt himself wanting to move closer, wanting to comfort Dean. "Dude, Dean shook his head. "Didn't we legit have this talk, but from my perspective?" Dean waited for Cas to nod. "I'm the one who bonded us. You're the one who's been reassuring me that you do, in fact, want this. You suggested that we take this slow and that we get to know each other."

"I know." Cas gently squeezed Dean's hand.

"Do you not want to get to know me anymore? Are you already over it? I get that I'm pretty lame." Dean smiled, and while Cas could feel it hurting Dean, he could feel the honesty.

"I never said that, Dean. I just–"

"Then we keep moving slow. One foot in front of the other." Dean laughed out loud, and Cas found relief washing over Dean before it flooded him. "I get that this? It's not a common way for two people to meet each other, or get to know each other, but I want to try."

"I agree, Dean. I want to get to know you." Cas let himself relax again and hoped that it washed over Dean the way that Dean's relief washed over him. "And you promise you'll tell me if things aren't working?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die." Dean held up his fingers in the scout's salute.

"Hey, no dying in my diner. It scares away the customers." Andrea returned to the table, order pad in hand, and only privy to that last sentence of the conversation. "What can I get you two?"

…

Dean was surprised how long he had stayed with Cas at the diner. He had figured they would grab a quick bite and a drink, but Dean found himself not wanting to leave Cas' side. A part of that, he knew, had to be because of the bond.

The bond. There was something so strangely profound about it. It felt like more than an ordinary healing bond that he made with patients. Dean was nearly sure that it was because of the amount of magic he poured into healing Cas, into removing as much silver as he could. Yet the bond now had grown and changed and flourished. And it was apparently scaring Cas.

While at breakfast, he could feel Cas' emotions. It didn't take much for Dean to figure out that Sammy had said something to Cas, which made Cas doubt himself. Feeling and seeing the worry in the werewolf's eyes was unnerving to Dean. Not in that he could feel them, but the fact that Cas had those feelings at all. It had been Cas who want to try and pursue this bond thing between them.

It left Dean to wonder. If Cas doubted it, why was he, the white witch that accidentally forced the bond, now wanting to push it?

Led Zeppelin blared from his car speakers as Dean forced him to stay awake. He sang along to Black Dog while he worked on keeping his focus sharp, and only let up once he was home. Dean pulled Baby into her parking spot before turning down the music. As he climbed the stairs to his apartment, Dean felt a small sliver of hope shoot through him. Considering what he was thinking about, Dean briefly wondered if the emotion was Cas'.

Dean stopped in front of his apartment, hesitating for all of a moment before unlocking it and walking inside. Sam and Madison were curled up together on the couch. They look peaceful and content, and Dean silently cursed Sam for filling Cas with anxiety.

Quietly, Dean closed the door and watched the pair for another moment. He smiled as he realized that in all honesty, what they were finding was something he wanted.

Madison stirred slightly, opening her eyes and smiling at Dean. He waved and whispered, 'Sorry,' knowing that she would hear it before heading back to his bedroom. He closed his own door, crossing to the bed and collapsing on it, not bothering to change out of his outfit.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and blindly swatted at his nightstand, looking for his charger. He plugged his phone in and stared at it for a moment before pulling up his texts. Dean quickly scrolled through, finding his conversation with Cas over the past two weeks and smiled.

They had shared a lot about each other, either trying to force the bond to break or nurture it. Cas had told Dean about life with the pack, being on the run. About how his position as Den Protector left him with little time to do things like watching tv or movies. Dean talked about being raised on the road, although not why he was raised that way, and about his love of all things pop culture.

They had talked about music, about books, about siblings. And Dean realized, not once did he feel obligated to do that because of some bond he had with Cas. He may have at first, but as the weeks went on, he wanted to know Cas. Dean wanted to talk to Cas, to have Cas in his life as a friend, maybe even more.

Dean swiped back down and started typing out a message.

[10:30 AM From Dean]: Cas, I know when we left the diner, we had gotten back to a neutral point. We both have this fear that maybe the bond is doing something, maybe it's not. I don't know. But I need to say something I should have said before we parted earlier. [10:30 AM From Dean]: I'd rather have you, bond or not. I want to get to know you. And not just because of this metaphysical bullshit that happens to be my life.

Dean smiled as a sense of calm came over him. He laid his phone on the nightstand, hoping that if Cas responded back, he'd understand the delay in response. Dean rolled over, pulling a pillow to his chest, before dozing off.

…

A few hours later, Dean woke up to pounding on his door. "DEAN! DEAN! WAKE YOUR ASS UP!" Dean smelled the air and determining there was no smoke, lazily reached for his phone. Three PM. Less than five hours of sleep. He quietly cursed Sam's name for the second time that day and unlocked his phone to check his messages.

Text Messages: 3 Missed Calls: 6 Voicemails: 4

Dean ran his hand down his face and stared at his notifications in confusion. Who the fuck had been so desperate to call him. He pulled down the shutter to see the notifications and, since they were at the top, opened the texts first. All three were from Cas.

[11:00AM From Cas]: You're probably asleep by now, but I wanted to make sure I got my feelings straight. [11:04AM From Cas]: I agree that there was a small step backward. While I never wanted to stop getting to know you, I doubted the feelings between us. But as we walked back to our respective cars, there is one thing I realized. Bond or not, the happiness I feel when I spend time with you, the excitement I experience when you text me or call me? Those are real, Dean. And I want to keep getting to know you. [11:06AM From Cas]: Good things do happen, Dean, and I'm excited to find out what those things are. With you.

Dean's heart started beating a tattoo as his smile broadened across his face. The bond he made may have brought them together, but they were both on the same page, wanting to learn about each other before committing to anything.

"DEAN!" Sam banged on the door again, startling Dean. "WAKE YOUR ASS UP AND CHECK YOUR PHONE."

"What do you think I'm doing?" Dean mumbled to himself, as he protected the texts from Cas. He pulled down the notifications shutter and pressed on the missed calls. Bobby. Bobby. Unknown Number. Bobby.

Dean looked up at the door and realized that something was wrong. So very, very wrong. "Sam? It's unlocked."

The door opened, and Sam peeked in. "Uh, it's just me. I sent Maddie home. Neither of you are going into work tonight." He pushed the door open further and crossed into Dean's room. "Charlie and Ash both agreed to take the shifts later." He pointed at Dean's phone. "How many?"

"Six missed calls total." Dean turned his phone at Sam. "I haven't listened to the voicemails yet."

"Can you play them on speaker?" Sam sat next to Dean on the bed, causing Dean's anxiety to build.

"Do you know who the unknown number is, Sam?"

Sam nodded.

Dean pressed for his voicemails to open. The robotic voice came through the speakerphone. He closed his eyes as she repeated the information that he had four new voice messages. The first one started, and Dean relaxed slightly as Bobby's voice played.

"Dean, You're probably sleeping. Your brother better not be. I need you two awake ASAP.

"That's not so bad, right?" Dean clicked to play the next voicemail.

DEAN! I don't know why I'm yelling at this damn robot, but I need you to call me now. I'm going to keep calling between you and Sam, but you need to be awake, and you need to hear this from me before you find out on your own."

"I will say he was nicer to me on my voicemails." Sam shrugged.

Dean rolled his eyes and moved to the next message. As soon as Dean recognized the voice, the temperature in his room dropped below freezing, and he started shivering.

"Hello, Dean. You know it's not really nice to keep your phone number from your old man. I just wanted to let you know I'm going to be in your neck of the woods on some business. You're probably going to want to stay away from any of your freak friends. I got the proper permits to go after them, and there's no stopping me. I'll see you soon, boy".

Dean's stomach dropped, and he looked at Sam. "The proper permits?" Sam nodded and pointed at the phone.

"Dean, I finally got a hold of Sam. He still hasn't gotten a call, but I know you did. John's in town. He's been hired to go after a pack of Weres who were supposedly responsible for killing five people and injuring another out in Pontiac. He's coming after Cas' pack. I don't know who he bribed or what connections he has, but the permit is legit. I'm reaching out to an old friend out there who can prove they were Wendigo kills and get the permit revoked."

The call ended, and Dean immediately started to dial Cas' number. "Sam, can you call Bobby, tell him we're on the way?" Sam nodded and pulled out his phone, stepping out of the room to give Dean privacy. Cas picked up on the third ring, and Dean let out a sigh of relief.

"Dean, shouldn't you still be sleeping? It's only–"

"Cas, there is no time to explain. Your pack is in trouble." Dean interrupted, his words quickly exploding out of him. "A shady as fuck hunter was either able to bribe someone or exploit someone and got a permit to hunt Werewolves. I know this jackass doesn't normally go through the legal routes, but he knows he's wanted in Sioux Falls, and the permits give him immunity."

"Wait, what?" Dean could clearly picture Cas' head tilt, and it pained him that he wasn't there. "Immunity from what?"

"He's allowed in the town, and he can legally hunt you guys until he deems the pack destroyed. He's not going to come after you guys, he's going to try and kill all four packs. Or at least take as many of the Weres in town out as he can." Dean stood up and started pacing his room. "This guy is dangerous and unstable, and knows how to negate magic."

The silence between them was deafening. Dean wasn't sure if Cas had muted him and was shouting out directions, or if the call had disconnected. He started to speak when Cas' voice came quietly over the phone.

"It sounds like you know a lot about this guy. That he's caused issues in the past." Another pause. "Who is he, Dean?"

"He's my father, Cas. Mine and Sam's." Dean shut his eyes and squeezed, ready for Cas to yell or scream at him. After a moment of silence, Dean spoke up again. "Cas? Say something, man."

"It sounds like we have an advantage," Cas responded calmly. Dean held his breath, waiting for Cas to start yelling at him. "What do we need to know or do?"

"He uh... He's..." Dean stopped and knew he was going to regret his next words. "Why aren't you yelling at me?"

"Why should I be yelling at you?" Cas' confusion was evident in his voice.

Dean pulled the phone away from his ear and looked at it, making sure he had called the right number despite knowing he was on the phone with Cas. "Because it's my father?"

"Dean, we've known each other all of two weeks. That's not a lot of time to tell me your full life story." Cas breathed out a rough chuckle. "I will start yelling at you if you don't tell me what we need to do. You're shaken. I can sense it. If you're scared, then I know I need to take this seriously."

"Thank you, Cas. I'm making a pit stop by Bobby's, and then I'm going to come to you at the homestead. In the meanwhile, I know that Gabriel had people work on fixing the bunker under the silo. Get all of your pack there and lock it down." Dean swallowed roughly, fighting down a million feelings threatening to unload. "John Winchester is a bull-headed asshole. He won't stop to think of other ways to get to you guys, he'll just try to brute force his way after you all."

"And when you get here? What's your plan?"

"I don't know yet, Cas. But the more time we waste on the phone, the more time he has to sneak up on you. Go." Dean paused, hesitant to hang up the phone. "Be safe. Please."

"Same could be said for you, Dean. I'll see you soon."

…

Cas stared at the phone in his hand. Dean's father was not only a hunter, but the hunter coming after his pack, and possibly even the hunter who had filled him with silver buckshot. And Dean thought that Cas would hate him for it.

Shaking his head, Cas pocketed his phone and ran to Gabe's room before banging on the door. "Gabe, we have a problem!"

"Hold on, Cassie!" A couple of moments later, Gabe opened the door in a robe. "What's so bad that you can't take care of it?"

"There's a hunter coming for us. He went through the legal channels to get a permit." Cas watched as Gabe went through the seven stages of grief in less than ten seconds. "Dean and Sam are working on getting him out of town, but Dean believes he's going to go after all the packs."

Gabe looked over his shoulder. "Meg, we gotta move. Now." He turned back to Cas and frowned.

"Find Anna, have her round up the kids, there's a–"

"A bunker under the silo, I know. Dean told me." Cas licked his lips and let out a worried sigh before leaning into Gabe to whisper in confidence. "The hunter is their father, Gabe. Dean warned me that he can negate magic, and he's not usually known for going through the proper channels."

"So the wards on the perimeter?" Gabe frowned.

"Will barely slow him down. I don't know anything about his skill at negating magic, but considering both his sons are witches? It's probably really fucking high." Cas frowned. "Gabe, go get dressed, we need to make sure you and Meg stay safe and get you in the bunker now."

Cas turned and bolted back down the hallway banging on doors. "Pack meeting in the foyer! Now!" He stopped in front of Anna's door and shoved it open. Anna was grabbing a bag and filling it. "I know, Cas. Pack bond. What am I doing?"

"So, you know what's going on, but not what you're supposed to do?"

"I started to panic!" Anna threw her hands up in frustration. "Just tell me what I need to do."

"Go round up the kids, get them in the bunker. I also need you to make sure that Gabe doesn't do anything bull-headed." Cas dragged his hand down his face. "Inias is one of the ones converting that old storage building into apartments, right? He's living in there?"

"Yeah. His room is the second one in on the left."

Cas kissed his sister on the cheek and ran out again. He sped out past the rest of the pack gathering in the foyer, hoping that Gabe would tell them what was going on. In the worst-case, he knew Anna would.

The building that the pack was working on converting sat next to the barn. Cas found himself stripping out of his clothes and shifting to cut the time it would take to get there in half. He skidded to a stop in front of the door and scratched at it, pushing through the pack bond for Inais to come let him in.

"Castiel? Why are you in wolf form?" Inais had opened the door and was squatting down next to Cas instantly. He placed his hand on Cas' head, taking a moment to listen to Cas as he explained everything he knew. "I'll gather everyone here, Castiel, but your Aunt Amara? She's going to need you to convince her to come."

Cas whimpered and paced in front of Inias. "Can you at least tell me where she is?"

"She found a glade, but she won't tell anyone where it's at. She said at her age, she's allowed a private place. I'm sure if you know," Inais tapped the side of his nose. "You can find her."

"Fuck." Cas howled in frustration and started back towards the main house. He was relieved to find the pack quickly evacuating, but frustrated to see Gabe leading it. He shifted back to human form and walked up to his brother. "You're supposed to be in the silo."

"Under the silo, Cassie, under it." Gabe gently touched the shoulder of one of the younger wolves, keeping them moving. "I'll go now since you're here. I already sent Meg ahead."

Watching as the last of the pack exited the house and made their way to the silo, Cas shifted back into form and ran towards the woods that lined the one side of the farm. If there were any glades to be found, they would be there. He sprinted through the trees, realizing how much he had missed being able to just run. He knew it was an inappropriate time to have that thought, but the wind through his fur, the moss and dirt under his paws, the scent…

He smelled his Aunt. Cas made a sharp turn and followed the scent to an opening in the trees. In the center, his Aunt Amara was in human form, sitting in the Lotus position with her eyes closed.

"Castiel."

"Aunt Amara, we need to go." Cas walked up to her and bumped against her arm with his snout. "Please. There's a hunter on his way."

"I'm well aware, Castiel. His aura taints these woods." She opened her eyes and gently scratched behind Cas' ear. "He's trying to destroy the magic that we are using to ward our home, but I won't let him do it."

"He knows how to negate magic, Aunt Amara. If he gets too close to you..." Cas sat on his haunches next to her and whimpered. "From what I've been told, he won't care what you are, he'll shoot first and ask questions later."

"Your Dean told you this, didn't he?" Amara rested her forehead against Cas' and pet his side. "I'm not surprised. He's afraid of what he does not understand. Including his own sons."

A branch snapped nearby, and both Cas and Amara's attention locked to it. Cas sniffed the air and found himself unnerved not by what he smelled, but by what he couldn't smell. "Please, Aunt Amara. There's no time. We can stay safe if we leave now."

"You've always been such a good member of the pack, Castiel. You knew when to obey and when to question. You always did everything to keep those you love safe." Amara sighed. "Very well, let's get to the safe house."

The sound of a long rifle racking froze them both in their place.

"I don't think either of you are going anywhere."

[writtenfan]

Feel like double-crossing the Shadow Man? (Part 1)

Anon: Heyo! I know this is kinda weird, but please could you write something with Hades and a reader who is like... Dr. Facilier's sibling? Like, they are into that voodoo thing too? 

(I plan to continue this small story, but hope you enjoy what I have here!)

Warning: Some swears, be aware..s.

You ruffle your hair and walk into a small garden just inside a seldomly trafficked graveyard. The sun shines on your skin and it’s so nice and warm, it just felt like the perfect time to prove somebody wrong.

“I’ll show him, psh. Tell me I don’t have the power capable enough to summon my own assistance from the other side. Ha!”

...

You remember just an hour or so ago when you went to visit your brother after he pleaded with you for some assistance on a ritual that needed more hands than he had attached to his arms.

You remember how he bowed to you at the doorway to his dark abode. With his top hat, his purple clothes. His bone tooth necklace. 

 A new building, a new style. He really had changed since you last saw him at home. When you and he lived with mother...

“Glad you could make it little sista’ It’s been a…” his familiar purple eyes stared into yours, a hint of politeness masking years of sibling rivalry that made you mad just thinking about. But truthfully, he loved ya despite your bickering. He just had a funny way of showing it.

“…long time since I’ve seen you…I've heard, good things.” He sniggers with that deep voice of his and you just roll your eyes and push him aside by his shoulder so that you could enter the building.

He certainly wasn’t used to being touched roughly, it’s been too long since you’ve both gotten into a physical and or magical fight and his eyes widened for a few moments before he started chuckling and popped his collar, snapping his finger and slamming the door shut behind you.

The air from the slam whooshed into the room, but instead of blowing out, it ignited numerous candles that littered the space. Some in candleholders, some…in skulls.

“You really focused on the dark arts huh big brotha?” you say with a chuckle as you look at a few, freshly looking shrunken heads that made you fearful yet intrigued.

“Well, mother always said to pick a specialty and I’ve never been one to follow the family norms…” his voice was light and still polite, but you could feel the hint of resentment as he mentioned mother that made you sad inside.

You stop at a halt at the table surrounded by purple curtains adorned with a beautiful tapestry. You turn to him and sigh, “Well. Just be careful. Despite your attitudes and actions, I still care for you. Despite the fact, I’ve been told not to do so.” He’s standing in the shadow’s the glint of his eyes peeking through as he stepped fully into the illuminated light of the candles on the table. His fingers wrapped around the top of his magick cane, his eyes staring into yours with a wave of impatience.

“My my…” he walks up to you and looks down at you with a smirk. “Aren’t we being sweet? Going against the talk, feeling fearless enough to challenge the family and hang out with you long outcasted brother! I thought you were always the little saint, compared to…the others.” His gait is so swift as he moves to the other side of the table and sits down in the chair.

“Take a seat little curlicue” he murmurs.

Your dumbfounded to hear your childhood nickname but are jolted out of the past when the nearest chair to you moves back and knocks firmly into your middle, not enough to wind you but to jolt you around a bit.

You furrow your eyebrows and fake a smile. Oh, this was how it was going to be.

“I think we need it to be a little bit lighter up in here…” you wave your hand around a bit and the lights from the candles flicker a bit brighter and hover a bit from their holders towards you two.

“You mind?” you say with a smile,

“I do.” He waves his hand, and everything goes back to normal.

You stare at him from across the table and lean forward scrunching up your nose and he leans forwards and gives you a small sneer.

“I didn’t invite you to give me interior assistance, I invited you just for your little help and then you can be on your way.” He grumbled.

“Fine, Facilier. I got it. From what you told me; I won’t be making any deals with some unknown entity by doing this, correct?”

His sneer turns into a smile and he leans back in his chair hands behind his head and looks at you with a twinkle in his eyes and pops of his feathered hat, revealing the bunch of curly hair you remember fondly messing with when you were little.

“Cheri, of course not…I just need you for an extra boost. Nothing more…all the talking and the promises will be done by me.” He elegantly gestures to himself and then presses his fingers on the table, sitting up from his lax position of the chair, tossing his hat from its brim once in his hand then plops it back on his head. “So, shall we start sista?”

Something begins to creep itself from behind his chair and then fully steps out into the light with a wicked smile nodding.

“Oh seriously…not him again.” You groan and Facilier turns his attention to his shadow.

“Hahaha…what’s wrong? I thought you two just loved to play together when we were pintsized.”

“You two always started trouble Facilier and got me in trouble along with you.”

“The past is the past.” he grins and then it drops.

“So, are you ready?”

The air turns cold at those words, you shiver but shake it off and nod your head and you help him out with his ritual.

...

After the ritual, you're shaken by the waves of power that was cast though the circle of salt and chalk on the ground of his den. He simply shakes off like he had just gotten out of a freshly jumped in the lake and he walks with you back to the main room.

“Ha, that was quite interesting brother, I think I might just try some of that conjuring myself…maybe boost my flow of magic.”

“You? Ha!” he starts laughing and that is when things got heated.

He told you that you wouldn’t have possibly been able to do such a thing by yourself and to forget about it. Then when you argued back is when the voices started raising between you two. He said something about you being too weak to be doing anything worthwhile and you yelled at him that he was the dark Loa’s little bitch and then you were dragged out the house by his vile shadow. By the hair. But not before making his sorry ass fall to the ground and get tied up by the foot by the cloth hanging from the ceiling near his “fortune table”!

…

Which led to where you were now. 

Of course, you went by and got a few Hoodoo & Yoruba objects along with other magical tools from a few mystical boutiques and you set them down on the earth of the graveyard and once you liked how it looked, you got down on your knees, feeling the earth underneath them and sit on the ground, focusing on that feeling at the sunshine on your face through the trees.

You decided you wanted to invoke the help of something big, something to mess up your brother’s connection to the other side for a while…fizzle up his mojo. So, you decided to call out on the other side and see if anyone picks up on your offer.

You begin to chant your intentions softly and the clouds slowly begin to cover the sun in a thick overcast, how fitting. You continue your chants and focusing your intentions non-verbally before you open your mouth and set your hands on the earth looking at the soil.

“I’m asking for assistance, hear me and respond if your power is strong and you willing to aid me on my desires…”

You wait for a moment and meditate in the silence but after hearing nothing respond for 20 minutes you get up on your feet and look at your summoning circle in disappointment. You raise your hands behind your head and look up at the sky, feeling your bothers words of how weak and sheepish you were form into an anger that boiled in your chest like fire…

…Fire? fire?! 

You jump back as the small flame of blue exploded and a cloud of smoke engulfed the area for just a moment and dissipated revealing-

“-Woah talk about humid, not with all this black nuh-uh. But i’ll risk it for the look.” 

A deep-throated yet whimsical voice speaks from the tall form that had smoke traveling around its feet.

The being looked you in the eyes with deep black pupils, his face oddly shaped with a prominent chin and sharp, sharp teeth and cheekbones and that wasn’t the most notable aspects of him. Beside his blue-greyish skin, his head was blazing with blue fire. Blue. Fire. When you locked with his eyes, is when he let out a little “Ohhh?” and raised their hand giving you a little wave. “Ha! Shalom and who might you be?” He lowers his hand and presses his fingertips against each other.

 “Having the audacity…” he steps, no glides over the protective barrier and you step back frightened by its ability to do so.

“…but not only that.”

You keep backing up, but he keeps coming closer, and his hand gestures as he talks become even more intense.

“The ability. To just, BLOW my ears out with your call, I mean SERIOUSLY-“

You bang your back against a tombstone, and it crumbles at your weight. You fall over and he towards you with an intimating gaze as the stone dust travels in the air around you.

“RING RING, CALLING! CALLING!!” he raises his pitch and mocks a girls voice “Please, please help me teach my brother a lesson, please oh please!~” The dust cleared and you look clearly at the being before you and clutched the ground at your side, your legs still propped up on the broken tombstone.

“To reach me that loudly, you must get some spunk kid, some family ju-ju even? I can feel it in you, heh.” He then raises an eyebrow and fully takes in your position. “Oh, and might I dare say, and I do~ Cute too.” He says with a smirk. You scramble off the stone and bounce on your feet taking a defensive stance.

“Ahem, I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to, make you jump out of your skin there.” The way he stares at you makes you even more uncomfortable as it was no longer hostile, but you felt as if he was looking, through your clothes.

“Hades, Lord of the Dead. Greek Division. How can I help you?” He reaches out his hand for a shake.

“Charmed, (y/n.)” You nervously place your hand in his and he shakes it gently, letting you go and giving you a big-toothed smile.

“So (y/n), a little bit of revenge eh? Talking my language, I'd love to help a gal out…but I can't just help you out. For free.”

“What is it you desire, Hades?”

“Desire? Ooh, I desire a lot of things sweetheart” he clicks his tongue and begins to circle you, and continues eyeing you up and down, making you stiffen and feel uncomfortable. “But I’m not sure if you have anything to offer darling, nothing…I feel your strong sense of self would let you do.” You furrow your eyebrows and he raises one of his and its dead silent.

“Well.” Your voice cracks but you clear it before he could feel your unease.

“I know my brother has a few things in his house of dark magic…perhaps something there you would- “

He holds up a hand. “W-wait wait wait…. house. Of dark magic?”

“Yes, about a couple of blocks from- “

“Ok. Ok. Ok…wait wait, hold up.” His eyes are wide with interest.

“Would your brother happen to be a tall lanky guy, mid-drift crop top showin’ gap-toothed fella?”

“You know him?!”

“HA! NO. I mean no, never met him personally. But you see, and this works perfectly into a possible agreement we could make for my services, -“

He stops in front of a tombstone next to you and sits down.

“-I respect the whole native magic here you know, meet up with a couple of guys the people worship around here for drinks down under. Ha! Such wild rascals! Throw great parties.” He looks at his nails and poofs up a nail file and starts filing them while talking.

“And they talk a lot about this big ace in the hole, right? This real powerful mortal on the front lines, the perfect lackey with powerful magic heritage. Ring a bell?”

Your mouth opens slightly in astonishment.

“Oh! This is PERFECT.” He pumps his fist in the air and rises to his…smoke, and glides behind you guiding you towards a few peach trees by placing his hands on your shoulders poofing away the file in his hand.

“They talk the big talk, right? About this deal they made with him y’know? An ongoing debt that gets better and better every time they talk to the shmuck, right? So, of course. I get jealous and they start getting cocky. Threatening that they’ll become even more powerful than me. White God. They call me sheesh, first of all. I’m a lovely shade of blue thank you very much.”

You find a nervous chuckle rise from your throat, but you refuse to let it verbalize.

“But you see, I just LOVE extending my reach, you know? I’m accepting of any mortal who wants to give my ego a boost see? Black, white, green, blue, chartreuse. I don’t discriminate.” He snickers and clenches your shoulders, leaning forwards and giving you this weird look that made you flinch and shake him off, but he didn’t give any mind, he was way into the whole lay down of his plan.

“There's a few Greek churches here and there and a few small groups and practitioners who hey, give me offerings. Out of the kindness of their own hearts!” he laughs and blows on his nails and rubs them on his shirt, giving you a sly eye.

“And to think I have right here, the same fruit from the lengthy tree of mortal magic, packing enough punch to help me make my mark here in The Big Easy…get at those chumps a little bit, make them softer, weaker, just a little something to mess them up a little.” He laughs and moves in close to you and presses his finger against your chest then slides his arm around your shoulder and pats your chest just below your collarbone.

“See, that’s where you come in, my deal is a win-win, you mess up with your bothers flow, I mess with your brother’s bosses flow. Two Stymphalian’s one arrow! Badabing!”

“We got ourselves a deal, little lady?” his voice grows lower and more seductive as he pinches your chin lightly and you pull away from him with a scowl.

“So, how will I be helping you get back at my brother's keepers?”

He smiles baring his surprisingly pearly whites.

“Oh, so insightful, can’t rope you in without the details, right?”

He presses his fingertips together and glides to a low hanging peach and daintily picks it between two fingers and holds it out towards you.

“I need you to be sweet like this peach, got it?” He then takes a big bite out of it and the juices run down his mouth as he talks making your squirm.

“Get in on your bro-bro’s good side. Ask him to teach you to become stronger, less weak, less simple-minded less like a sheep of angel’s and light and more rebellious and badass.” he mocks talking to what was left of the peach-like it was you.

You clench your teeth “His words, right?” he says astutely as he swallows.

“Yes.”

“Good, so you ask him for some family bonding, right? Get to a point where you witness him talking with his guys, maybe even ask to commit yourself to them…but pander to his ego kay? Say you’ll work for him or something.”

Your eyes widen “No. I can't do that they’re- “

“Now, now, you don’t got to, just you know schmooze them a bit, get them to trust you…then one night, or day I'm not picky. Conceal your presence and just leave this”. He poofs away the peach and in his flat palm lies a small amount of blue paint inside this squeezable black see-through tube. He presses his fingers together on one hand like and makes a small gesture in the air. “Just two little pecks of this blue dye on their main communication device, and whatever else he uses often in his work and I’ll be able to have some eyes and ears and sap a little of their oomph-” He takes his other hand,  forcibly opens yours and places the tub carefully in your hands.

“-Right on over to me! Maybe even turn some of their- “he jazz hands the air

“-shadow guys on my side, makes them more, receptive to my influence. Got it? Got the memo?”

“Fine, understood, and in turn?”

“Your brother's magical abilities get a little weaker, transfer over to you, and badabing! Who’s the prodigy child now? Sure, isn’t going to be him if you do things right.”

“So, we got ourselves a deal, or am I just wasting my time?”

“No, no I agree to you, Just a little spot, right?” You tighten your grip on the tube and look at its contents.

“Little Itsy-bitsy spot. Say you’re into painting or something if he asks about it. Gather a few more tubes like it to make it believable. I’ll even make it look the same, just dap a little on whatever he uses to communicate and or uses to conjure his famous illusions and we’ll be set.”

He holds out his hand a small grin on his face, eyebrows raised.

You don’t give yourself any time to hesitate and place your hands in his and with a bright flash and some swirling smoke around your hands he lets go and snaps, his fingers and a pair of shades materialize on his face.

“Great Wonderful. Absolutely brilliant now let’s talk schematics alright? Pop on by his place today or two more or whenever, just soon. I’m only giving you some time because I sense some recent tension between you two. I have a brother of my own. Brother’s more like, hate their nonexistent guts. Anyway- rekindle that bond. Become an apprentice, do the deed.”

“How long do I have?”

“I’m in no rush…but about 6 months seems fair, sooner the better. I don’t mind because, in order for you to get back at him, you need to help me out so it’s a go-go for the both of us, I don’t expect any hesitation…”

He clenches your shoulder a bit tighter “and if you're ever feeling a little unsure, a little oh no what am I doing? Just remember how terrible you two got along when you were tots, all the favoritism, the betrayal, and the turmoil and keep plowing on!” He sings the last part and raises his hand into the air dramatically.

“But know even if you get cold feet.” His voice turns icy and he spins you so that your face to face, he leans in slowly and you feel the air around you grow stale and hot

“You still made a deal…capishe?”

“Yes. I understand…”

His face changes to an ecstatic smile. 

“PERFECT! So! Run along, go do your thing…and if you need to contact me.” He manifests and flips a coin with his thumb, and It hovers in mid-air in front of your eyes. It turns slowly in its dull gold color with the picture of a wreath on one side and some fruit on the other. “Flip it, spin It, hold it, kiss it, bop it. Spin it. Tap it.” You look at him with a puzzled look.

“Ah whatever you want to do with it, your intention will seep into it and ring out to me, just hold it in your hand”

You take the coin into your hand and feel its hefty weight in your palm.

“Now, this was fun. But I got to go, the whole underworld to rule, dog to feed. Imps to burn you get my drift.” He lets you go and gives you a wink.

“Chow babe.” With a poof of smoke and flames, he was gone. Simple as that…

Now, it was time to figure out how to rekindle your relationship, after such a, nasty departing.

[questioningespecialy]

Black Conversation; Everybody else stay ya ass outta it

oh shit this gon'be alot

pre-edit: This is all my own perspective. I don't recommend others follow suit with my mentality. Got my own tastes and my own issues. Do what works for you, booboo.

Context

So~ I should start off with context I guess. I'm AMAB and from the South (USA), moved to the Midwest for college (for opportunity), and the Southwest after ('cause i couldn't find a job basically 🤷🏿‍♂️).

First and foremost ('cause y'all mofos in here), the Midwest wasn't less racist. It was just less blatant. (iow: they had a bit more "class" 🙄) As for the Southwest? I'm noticing racism still, mostly from light(er)-skinned BIPOC's since I moved outta Colorado. Is there less now? I think? 🤔 Barely get out enough to say for sure. And haven't done the "look like you're on a date with a light-skinned/Euro woman" test yet. 😅 I'mma stop there before I end up writin' 4 different essays on the topics I brought up.

Let's Get In

Now, I already got a passport and been havin' the idea of gettin' dafuq outta this mud since middle school iirc. Why haven't I, though? 'Cause by time I had enough income to actually make a move I was caught up havin' too much fun. That and my options felt hella limited. Time for some more context.

I'm Black. Surprising, I know. There are only so many countries outside of the African continent that aren't gonna be full of people who only see me as a racial stereotype (positive or negative). [insert essay on how representation matters] Nevermind the places where there'll be plenty of folk who do not want my foreign (nationalists), dark (colorists), Afro-ass there. I ain't tryin'a deal with dem mofos, so any country that's got a low-ass percentage of African descended gets filtered out by default. Is that extreme? Am I not givin' places (and its many peoples) a chance? Yep. You think I'mma spend hella time lookin' up "is x country racist towards Blacks?" 140-ish times? Fuck dat. How'bout 10-20. And how would I get to 10-20? By filterin' out a mofo. Suddenly, dating apps.

How Africa Be, Though?

But what about countries within the African continent? Well, that's where it gets funny. See, I've seen how a handful of the Africans that went to my PWI viewed Afro-Americans. There's a default filter of what kinda person can "make it" to an American university in the first place, so I just assume they're representative of most well-off (or lucky) Africans. In short, 1 mofo thought they were better (like a Black sellout tbh), 1 just (benefit of the doubt here) fell victim to America's lies/propaganda, and 2 were both. 🤷🏿‍♂️

Why even bring this up if I've got the tiniest of sample sizes? Well, I later watched group discussions from The Grapevine (defunct as of 2022) where a buncha Afros brought up some things I took note of. One was of a brotha mentioning that, while he was accepted by the Africans in his area (New York iirc), he had to show them that he wasn't a stereotype first. So "one of the good ones" basically (aka: Some Euro shit). I'm sure somebody's gettin' ready to explain dat shit away. Go ahead. I'll probably read it. But here's the thing, I'mma talk how I wanna talk. And I'mma dress how I wanna dress. And I don't really feel myself in places where I don't fell "allowed" to wear a wave cap, locs, or a muscle-t. So why would I want the company (or intimacy) of somebody who thinks I should "talk properly"? Das a flag for me. Yeah, I've got plenty of people in my family who talk propa. And yeah, I'll do it when I feel like I need to. But a friend? A neighbor? The whole damn town? Fuck dat. I'd rather be me in a medium crime rate area than live in a low crime rate area where I can't actually relax.

And how much does this filter of mine limit my options in life? Hellas. Speaking from experience on the opposite end, I doubt I'll regret it and I'm pretty sure I'll be a happier healthier person for it, which is a whole'nother essay. 🤷🏿‍♂️

...Caribbeans 😐

There's another piece I should bring up before getting back to Africa: the Caribbean. First thing's first (yes, i've got an NPR bias), consider listening to or reading these:

Tell Me More's Behind Closed Doors: 'Colorism' in the Caribbean (July 16, 2007) 11min

Code Switch's Amara La Negra: Too Black To Be Latina? Too Latina To Be Black? (March 28, 2018) 35min

Code Switch's Black Like Who? by Gene Demby (April 15, 2020) 34min

Code Switch's Puerto Rico, Island Of Racial Harmony? by Adrian Florido (April 24, 2020) 32min

So the late Ayesha (a panelist on The Grapevine) brought up, during group discussions about colorism/racism in the Caribbean, quite a bit that the above links get into. Simply put, my Afro-ass gonna be treated a certain way for bein' dark and light-skinned mofos are likely to think they're better than me because they're White passing (outside the States). I don't feel like dealin' with dat bs. Sure, there are gonna be areas where it's less common, but I've got no reason not to expect those areas to be pockets compared to the size of the country itself. Which brings me back to the same issue I've had in the USA: "Where can I live?"

So, like,... where?

And that brings us to the next piece of the puzzle: I'm part of multiple marginalized groups. I'm an agnostic non-traditional "dark"-skinned brotha who's also a non-binary transfem with gynesexual-leaning omnisexuality. And I'm neurodivergent. And quite socialist. 😐 So~ my 10-20's gonna get filtered down to 5-10 real~ quick after a "Is x country homophobic/transphobic?" search. And I already know I'm gonna have to ease up on some of the "bear no ism against me" criteria if I don't wanna end up where there's ≤1% African-descended. 🤷🏿‍♀️

(hella anti-gays in the comments; 2 out of 3 of the hosts aren't allies)

So Nothin' Then?

You know a country that caught my eye a few years back? A place I ain't even heard of 'til they were on the news for ditchin' da Queen's ass in late 2021? Barbados,... which is >90% Afro 👀. And you know what I found? They had only just taken significant pro-LGBTQ+ steps. naw fuq dat

Well, Shit. 🤷🏿‍♂️

So where does that leave me? Well, I've felt hopeless about this from time to time. Depressed, pissed, etc. I mean, either I'm gonna start diggin' and find a place that's ideal or I'm gonna give up a part of myself that I know I won't want to... again. Which raises a question: Why bother? Why not stay? Why not just ride it out and try to resist/fight the bs where I reasonably can? Well, that's where we get into the usual territory. Genocide. How bad does it have to get for me (just me) to say "fuck this" and bail? We might be clearly heading in that direction with these damn Conservatives and Republicans my fucking god, but I'm not sure it's certain yet. Real talk, though, if Jewish (trans) people say "we're there" then we're there.

To finish up,

yeah, people who can leave probably should leave for their best interest. Though, it'll make things harder for those who remain. People who can't or have things tieing them here (e.g.: family) should resist/fight to keep it from getting worse (and try to live in racially safe areas). That includes votin', y'all. For every ballot election. (gonna be clear here that i'm of the "research every issue/candidate" mentality; i rarely ever take trusted individuals' word for it)

As for what I think I should do? Stay resistin' and votin' like I been doin', but also... get on dat research so I can have an immediate backup plan and be out this mud real quick. 👍🏿

Here Ya Gifts

ILGA's 5 LGBTIQ world maps: https://ilga.org/ilga-world-maps

Equaldex's collaborative knowledge base (and 14 maps) for the LGBT movement: https://www.equaldex.com/

SafeHome's 2023 LGBTQ+ State Safety Rankings (USA): https://www.safehome.org/data/lgbtq-state-safety-rankings/

(read the tags)

edit: Just realized days later that "every ballot" kinda sounds like "each political party's ballot". I meant every local and national election.

Do we stay or do we go

i have a serious question to my brother and sisters, all those stolen of africa and those that immigrated from their of their own volition and the generations that came after.

ive been doing a lot of listening to the goings on in the world, and ive been learning of our past and our history and philosophy and i have a question that we of the diaspora(not counting the islands in many regards and you'll see why) have not seemed to really be able to qive a definitive response to in the over 200 years since i've first seen this question be raised, and yes the context is different today from when it was first asked, and you may have guess what the question really is.

Do we stay and fight this oncoming wave of fascism and antiblackness that is sweeping through Europe and its settler states that it spawned? or do we turn towards Africa and the carribean nations?

I dont feel i need to say this, its very clearly not a "well if you dont like america, go back to africa" situation. but what im saying is, the western experiment, is falling apart at the seams, im sure we all see it at this point, most the other black folks i speak to are feeling pretty jumpy about it rn, my mother and my great aunt who hate each other and agree on nothing, are getting real strong get out vibes and pushing everyone to have passports. it feels like no matter where we look the white world is trying to position itself as being oppositional to and a defense against POC, the far right is gaining major traction enough in germany they are considering banning a political party(which they should) and that not to speak on much the rest of europe, which is trying to convince us not to be worried about the dudes waving nazi flags and making claims about russians being asian and thus being less human, american police violence just keeps going up to the point we aren't even safe in our own four walls, and much like the past they kill you and then take everything you owned so your family doesn't even get anything. france is proving how much distain it has for the people of africa living in its borders and the cops there are mad that they can't do even more extrajudicial violence against brown people. you got in nearly every EU nation at this point 1 or more parties who's whole thing is "we hate poc and immigrants and lgbt people" and they seem to be gaining support more than losing it.

so i guess im saying, is it worth staying in these places that just hate us? even when there is another place we can potentially go to that doesn't require us to do colonizer shit?

like don't get me wrong i get the idea, we been in x place 200, 300, 400 years why should i leave, my great grandpa had people like that in his life, they didnt make it long. but like you or i most likely aren't anywhere near where our families started in america or britian or france etc,(tho for us in settler states that shit gets even more complicated tbh) chances are your family much like mine has been pushed and pulled across the place to the point that we are damn near nomadic, we are the most if not the second most poverty stricken group in these places, we are more likely to be charged more for half par services goods and the state just refuses to support use to the extent where vast swaths of us are in food desert, areas with low access to internet services and more issues. i dont feel like we really leaving much behind except of course the friends and extended families we have made(which tbh is huge).

This shit sounds super doom and gloom and im aware of that, this isnt really for me to present a sunshine are roses situation, in fact i am really putting that on who ever sees this. if you can read what i laid out here and feel you have something constructive to say one way or the other, i wanna hear it. like i really want to hear both sides, this topic been around a long time, i feel its really about to become super relevent again and i'd like for as many of us to have discussed and thought about this as physically possible(talk to your families and friends about this too, they dont have to come reply)

so black folks, reblog, message in the replys, talk in the tags whatever, just think about this stuff critically and talk about it. poke holes as best you can, bring up whatever figure you can think of that ever even had a thought about this topic. learn about this topic as best as you can, its older than garvey by a lot. theres bad sides to it and not so bad sides to it.

non black folks, please just leave this alone, its truly not the type of topic you should involve yourself with.

anyway i go more i wanna say about it. and im not myself sold that i should move to say ghana(more likely to move with my gfs in Australia rn) and ill likely add more in reply to other people. be safe Everyone of the world.

[zacharyleigh316]

Radio Silence

Here’s a little Destiel (au) ficlet inspired by this post. I wasn’t initially sure whether I was going to make this or not (due to lack of motivation, etc.) but here it is! So @mychemicalobsession514 and @fandomtrash2405 this one is for you. Hope you enjoy!

Dean loved being a cop. It was everything he hoped it would be and then some. There wasn’t one thing he hated about his job; he got to protect people, save lives, uphold the law (most of the time), and work with amazing professionals, most of whom did what he did for the same reasons, all while putting the bad people away. Being a cop made him feel good. Knowing that what he was doing everyday, what he was getting paid to do everyday, but more importantly what he chose to do everyday, made a difference in the world, was extremely fulfilling. Even if only slightly, and the world was better off for it? So yeah, he loved his job.

Though, given the most recent events, he might have to re-evaluate that statement.

“Mornin’ brotha’.” Came Benny’s Louisiana drawl from the coffee station. “Chief wants to see you, in his office when you get the chance.”

Dean nodded, making himself a cup of coffee, black, as usual. (Even though he didn’t quite understand why any of the officers continued to get their coffee from the station, including him, seeing as it tasted like absolute shit all the time.)

He looked over to his partner and raised a brow, Benny looking like the cat who caught the freakin’ canary, “What’s got you lookin’ all smug? I’m not getting reassigned are something, am I?”

“Oh no, nothin’ like that Dean. Besides, that wouldn’t be desirable for any of us.”

“Okay, but that still doesn’t explain why you got that stupid look on your face.” Benny just chuckled, tossing his empty cup into the trash.

He slapped Dean on the shoulder when he passed, and paused, meeting his eyes with a shit eating grin. “Just wanted you to know that I love you too brotha.”

Dean brows furrowed in confusion, watching Benny’s retreating back just as clueless as before. Not that he minded Benny’s terms of endearment; the guy was not only his partner but basically his best friend. He was comfortable enough with himself and his sexuality to actually quite enjoy being affectionate with his friends. So it wasn’t as if that was the weird part.

No, what was weird was all the smirking and the chuckling, as if Benny was enjoying some one-sided inside joke that only he was privy to. In fact, now that he thought about it, everybody else was being weird too.

Dean winced at the piss poor excuse for coffee when he took a sip, and made his way over to Chief Singer’s office. He was just about to knock on the door when it suddenly swung open, and Dean was being accosted by one of Garth’s hugs.

“I love you too Dean. Never forget that. I know I won’t. It made my day. Thank you.” Garth gave Dean a squeeze before pulling away, the latter more confused then ever.

Garth held onto Dean’s shoulders for a moment after the hug, just smiling at him, and though he admit he didn’t mind open affection, Garth had this way over overstepping boundaries that sometimes Dean wasn’t aware of.

“Uh, Garth, buddy? Mind stepping back now?”

“Of course Dean. You’re a good man.” He nodded, more so to himself than to Dean, and walked away with a skip in his step.

Dean shook his head and knocked on the doorway, stepping into the office at Bobby’s gruff, mumbled “come in”.

“What a weird guy.” He said in disbelief, chuckling at Bobby’s snort of affirmation.

“Anyway, you said you wanted to see me?”

“I did. Take a seat boy, we gotta talk.”

Dread immediately consumed Dean, his head already rapidly flitting through a million ways to say sorry about hundreds of possible scenarios of shit that he may or may not have done, when Bobby rolled his eyes.

“You can stop that right now, ya’ idjit, you’re not in trouble or anything.” He relaxed, and the Chief shook his head.

“Remember, you can’t hide nothin’ from me boy, I may be your boss, but I’m also like your daddy.” Dean raised a brow, curious as to where this was going.

“With that being said, I hope you know that even though I don’t say it as often as I probably should, I do love you. You and your brother.”

“Me more though right?” Bobby shot him an unimpressed look.

“Right sorry, I love you too, and all that. But seriously Bobby, where is all this coming from? Not that knowing everybody here loves me is a bad thing, but why are you all saying it all of the sudden?”

“You tellin’ me that you don’t know?” Dean shook his head.

“Obviously not. I wouldn’t have asked you if I did, old man.”

“Watch yourself boy,” Chief Singer said fondly, “I’m not against hitting you. That or firin’ your ass.”

“Yeah yeah. Both you and I know you’re just talk.” He smirked at Bobby’s responding huff, and leaned back against his chair.

“So you were saying?”

“Right. I don’t know what the hell you’re doing when this happens, but your radio codes in from time to time, before you come in, and you’re always saying that you love us.”

Dean both paled and somehow colored simultaneously. “Wh-what?”

“Which is why I was saying earlier, or attempting to say rather, that I uh...love you too of course, but the radio ain’t for that, son.”

“Oh my god.”

“What? You look like your trying to pass a kidney stone.”

“Are you freaking serious? You gotta be joking with me, right?”

“Why in the hell would I joke about something like that?” The Chief glared, at Dean, who ran a hand through his hair, and dragged it down his face.

“You okay? It ain’t that big of a deal, Dean. That’s why I’m letting you know now.”

“Oh my god.”

“There something you wanna say?”

“Even if there was, Bobby, I’m too humiliated and embarrassed to even...god, I’m a dumb ass.”

“Okay, well, I’m sure that it ain’t that bad. You have a tendency to over exaggerate, princess.”

“Oh no, Bobby, I’m pretty sure it is that bad. I mean, how is radioing ‘I love you’ out to the whole precinct not that bad? This takes the cake on just the level of bad it is.

“At least this explains why everyone was being spontaneously openly affectionate today.” Dean sighed, burying his face in his hands.

“Minus Garth. He’s always like that.”

Bobby chuckled, “I’m gonna take a gander and say, judging by your reaction, that this wasn’t intentional.”

“Christ, of course it wasn’t!” Dean flailed. “I wouldn’t friggin use my radio for that! Hell, I probably wouldn’t even say it in person unless they said it first.”

“Well, you seem to know exactly why this has been happening.” Bobby raised a brow. “Do you?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“Care to explain?” Bobby prompted, when Dean didn’t elaborate.

“Not really no.”

“Fine then, you’re dismissed. Keep your secrets boy. I’ll find them out eventually. And just make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

“Sure thing, sir.”

With that, and a nod from the chief, Dean left Bobby’s office and went to work, which, to no surprise (Dean was very rarely ever that lucky), sought out to personally torture him for the entirety of the day.

Officer Jody Mills and her partner Officer Donna Hanscum called in during lunchtime to profess their love for him, which okay maybe wasn’t so bad, because he did love them back, enjoyed their company immensely, and thought of them as surrogate mothers. Then Charlie, the computer tech, and regretfully also one of his best friends, personally came to his desk, dragging the other tech, Kevin, along, to talk about LARPing, and comics, and game night, and just as Dean relaxed, when they got off their break, the redheaded monster that was his Queen expressed her strong platonic love for him, letting him know he was safe from no one.

When the day was finally over (it hadn’t even been that exhausting, but when every single person you work with takes the time out of their own day to tease you because of one little colossal mistake—that you may or not have made—it begins to take its toll on you) Dean couldn’t wait to get home. He was starting to regret not only his choice of career, but also ever being excited to work with his friends.

He packed up quickly and clocked out, letting out a sigh at the prospect of home. Though, of course the day wouldn’t be over without one final ‘I love you’ from another coworker.

“Didn’t want to you leave with saying I love you, man. Stay safe out there, honey.” Dean snorted, snapping a glare at Detective Henriksen.

“Very funny, Victor. Go fuck yourself.” Victor laughed, and Dean flipped him off on his way out, making the detective laugh harder.

“Whatever you say, darling!”

Dean rushed out of the police station, never more grateful to see his beloved impala waiting for him in the parking lot. At least she couldn’t tell him she loved him, thought he didn’t mind that it was certainly implied.

Yeah, he hated work.

Dean pulled into the doorway shortly after, ready to put the whole day behind him, forget about it all with a nice, cold beer and some television.

He pat Baby’s hood as he got out, and gave the same treatment to the golden Lincoln Continental parked beside her, when he passed it on the way to the front door.

“Dean.” Cas peeked his head out of his office with a smile on his face, and met Dean at the door.

“You’re home, how was work?” He went in for a hug, before being stopped by Dean’s hand on his chest.

His brows furrowed, and watched questioningly as Dean went and switched his radio off.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, s’fine. Just, the last time we hugged, your shoulder must of hit my radio and it called dispatch.” Cas’ eyes widened in surprise.

“So basically the entire precinct, meaning every officer on duty, heard me say I love you when I left the other day. I didn’t even know until I got into work this morning, and everybody started tell me they loved me.”

Castiel’s eyes widened further before a smile broke out onto his face again, and he started laughing.

“Yeah, laugh it up sweetheart. But I would be nice to the person who cooks for you and makes sure you eat.”

“I’m sorry Dean. Work must of been interesting.”

“Tell me about it. So now whenever we hug, I’m going to make sure my radio is off. Who knows what else they may have heard.” His boyfriend rolled his eyes and opened his arms expectantly.

“Well now that it is, may I get my hug now, you drama queen?” Dean snorted, choosing not to think about how Cas sounded both like his brother and Bobby just then, and instead gathered him up into his arms for a hug.

Dean gave Castiel a squeeze, and pulled away slightly, smiling down at his boyfriend. “You’re so needy. Like a pet.”

“Mm, love you too.” Dean chuckled, and joined their lips, bringing Cas closer by his hips.

He hums into Dean’s mouth, and reaches up to cup his face in his hands. (Yeah, Dean prays to anything and anyone who’ll listen that his work buddies didn’t hear something like this).

And then, of course, (once again showing just how unlucky he was) his phone decided to ring, making Cas pull away. Dean whined, and pulled his phone from his back pocket, answering it in the hopes he could will the person who called to hang right back up, just by the sheer amount of glaring at it he did. Cas rolled his eyes, but hey, Dean really didn’t feel like being interrupted at the moment.

“What?” He snapped, holding the phone up to his ear. “This better be pretty friggin’ important Sammy. You better be dying or some shit, or I’m gonna kill you myself, bitch.”

“Jeez, Bobby said you would be home, jerk, so I assumed you wouldn’t be busy. I wanted to call you now rather than later. Guess I was wrong.”

“Yeah, you were wrong, now what do you want?”

“Just wanted to jump on the bandwagon, and send you some appreciation is all Dean, relax.” He could hear Sam’s bitch face through the phone.

“What?”

“Well you’re my brother, and you’ve done a lot...you do a lot, yet I don’t say this often when I probably should so I-“

“No. Nope. You were not just about to tell me you loved me!” Cas chuckled silently to himself, and smirked up at Dean, who was having another meltdown.

“Wha-Dean what’s so bad-“

“No Sammy. Do not say that to me! Seriously dude, I’m freakin serious. After all the people telling me that today, I don’t want to hear another person say those words in the context of me for a week! Actually make that two.”

“Christ alright. No need to be so anal about it. I guess I’ll talk to you later then.” Dean sighed, and visibly relaxed, ignoring his boyfriend smug expression.

“That goes for you too you ass hat.”

Castiel snorted, now ignoring Dean. “Bye Sam!”

“Bye Cas.” Dean glared at their easy rapport, as if nothing was wrong. “Tell Dean to stop being grumpy.”

“Will do.”

“Well he’s still right here, and currently wishing his Sasquatch of a brother would hang up already.”

“Whatever you say, Dean. Love you!” Sam hung up quickly after that, leaving Dean to stare at his phone dumbfounded.

“Son of a bitch!”

[somedayonbroadway]

Can we get some Henris fluff in these trying times?

We absolutely can!

This is the first time I’ve ever written Henris. Let me know what you all think!

“Henry, slow down… you’re gonna break the bowl…”

Henry did not slow down. He didn’t even know if he could. He was so lost in his own head that he words hardly even registered in his poor little confused brain.

“Hen… hey… look at me, buddy…”

Henry let out a strained breath as he did as he was told, dropping his spoon into the bowl and dropping the bowl back down onto the counter. He looked up to see Jack standing in the doorway, a backpack slung over his shoulder. Henry could hear Katherine somewhere in the background. But he didn’t care to listen too much as she swooned over little Romeo who had been sitting with Race and learning to read.

“You wanna tell me what’s goin’ on, kid?”

“Nope.”

Jack snorted. Henry didn’t find it so amusing. But Jack just shook his head and rounded the counter, dropping his backpack down on the ground as he snuck his finger into the bowl that Henry had been desperately and violently stirring just a minute before. Henry swatted him away, shaking his head.

“Go ‘way,” he grumbled pathetically.

Jack gave him a playful smirk. “Boy, ya know I won’t leave ya alone till ya tell me what’s eatin’ at ya,” he stated, going in for another taste. But Henry grabbed the bowl and turned away.

“You’ll make yourself sick, Jack. I’ll make you n’ extra batch without dairy, just… stop…” the younger boy sighed.

Smiling, Jack wrapped an arm over Henry’s shoulder. “Fine… but I still ain’t leavin’ till I know—“

“I think I’m in love, okay?!” Henry cried dramatically, stopping in his practiced movements and looking up at his big brother, completely terrified.

To his horror, Jack only laughed.

“What, you think this is funny?!” he demanded, pulling away from the older boy and taking his bowl and spoon with him to the other side of the kitchen and pulling out more ingredients.

He was stress baking. A habit he’d only sort of picked up from Race.

“Kid… come sit down,” he coaxed, heading over to the kitchen table and pulling out a chair for the fifteen year old.

Henry grumbled something under his breath. But he complied.

“Alright… so… tell me about this person…”

Henry sat still for a moment, looking embarrassed and frazzled as he stared down at the batter now sitting lifelessly on the table. “He’s… different…”

Nodding, Jack smiled. “And?”

“And… he’s… he’s protective… and he’s… he’s so hot and strong and good at… at… so many things…”

“Henry, if you’ve already had sex with this boy, I might have to kill him—“ Jack started, knowing it would get quite the blush out of his little brother.

“I haven’t had— Jesus, Jack, just…” Henry didn’t know what to say. He had no idea what to do. “I… really like him…”

For a long moment, Jack studied the boy. He rested his chin on his hand and smiled. “So? Why is that so bad?”

Henry dramatically groaned and threw his head back. “I can’t be with him!” he cried, picking up his bowl and heading back to the counter where he’d left the flour. “It would be a disaster!”

Jack blinked and shook his head, trying to shake off that shout that he hadn’t quite expected, but he stood again, following the younger kid. “A bigger disaster than Race n’ Spot?”

“Yes!”

“I find that hard ta believe,” Jack scoffed. “But I’ll bite. Why would it be a disaster?”

Henry paused, looking over at the boy that had looked out for him since he was eleven years old. “He… n’... I just… I—“

“Okay, okay, pal, don’t hurt ya’self,” Jack chuckled. “Look, if ya really like him, talk ta him… thing’s ‘ll work out… n’... a cupcake definitely wouldn’t hurt ya,” he said, reaching to ruffle the boy’s hair before grabbing his backpack again and walking back out to his girlfriend.

Henry watched Jack go. And he sighed.

Maybe Jack was right.

He sighed and turned on the oven.

He hoped red velvet would be good enough.

Morris jumped when he heard a knock on his window. He whirled around, ready to shout at whoever thought they could intrude on him like this.

But his whole body softened when he saw that shy, small smile. He laughed a bit when he saw him, bringing a finger up to his lips as he rushed towards the window to let the boy in.

“Henry! It’s after midnight! What are you doing?”

The boy blushed and shrugged. “The betta’ question is why’re yeh still up with all the lights on?”

Morris glared at him a little as he helped him through the window, but smiled when Henry gave him that stupid, perfect, crooked smile. “Nah… that ain’t the betta’ question… my question is… what’s in the bag?”

Henry’s cheeks darkened even more. But he giggled a bit as he followed Morris over to the edge of his bed. “I… uh… I noticed that you was havin’ a bad day n’... n’ I… I was makin’ these f’r my fosta’ brotha’s birthday anyway… but—“

Morris pulled the small, perfectly decorated cupcake out of the bag. And he grinned. “Red velvet… my… my mom used ta make these…”

Henry’s eyebrows raised up as his smile widened. “Yeah?” Morris nodded. “My mom did too… well… she does… I mean—“ The boy froze when Morris leaned over to kiss his cheek.

“Oh… so that’s how ta get you to stop talking…”

Henry laughed breathily at that as he turned to face the boy who so many of his brothers hated. It’s true, Morris wasn’t necessarily the kindest or gentlest person they knew. But he was more than just some muscle.

He was so much more than that.

It was an act.

“Thank you… for the cupcake… it means a lot,” the older boy smiled. He was so close. Henry wished he was brave enough to just close the distance. “You’re right… I was havin’ a bit of an off day. But it’s better now,” he stated, looking from Henry’s eyes back down towards his lips.

Henry’s heart was beating so fast and hard that he was sure Morris could hear it. His stomach was doing flips. “Do you… wanna talk about it—?” he barely finished his sentence before his phone was buzzing in his back pocket. Henry sighed. “That’s probably Jack…”

Morris chuckled slightly. “Don’t worry about it… I’ll tell you about it tomorrow, under the bleachers, yeah?”

Henry grinned. “Yeah…”

Morris smiled and stood slowly, offering the other boy his hand. Henry took it, letting himself be led back over to the window. He sighed when Morris pressed another kiss to his cheek. “Goodnight, Henry Butler…”

Henry sucked out the window, squatting down and looking back up at the slightly taller, slightly older, muscular boy. “Goodnight, Morris Delancey…”

Henry walked back home, too giddy to get the grin off of his face, even as Jack yelled at him over the phone.

He was falling hard. But maybe it wasn’t so bad.

[mashitandsmashit]

America’s Got Talent: Season 15 - Auditions 1

Hello, and welcome to my reviews/countdowns for “America's Got Talent”, Season 15! I'm Mashitandsmashit, but you can call me Mash or Mashit for short...

So with AGT turning a decade-and-a-half old, some changes are bound to be made...I guess I'll just get them out of the way real quick...

1: Heidi Klum has officially returned to the AGT judges' desk, and yes, I will admit that after the boredom I endured from What's Her Name and That Other Chick last year, her quirkiness was sorely missed...

2: Sofia Vergara will be taking the other seat, and while she can be likable and entertaining, they probably just hired her because they wanted a chick with an even funnier accent than Mel B.

3: Due to a certain virus flying around, some of the auditions will be held remotely, like every other “live” show on TV right now...In fact, a handful of them have already been uploaded to Youtube, but I'm not sure whether or not they'll air these auditions on TV, so I'll hold off on reviewing them for now...

Anyway, it's not like we have anywhere to be these days, so let's get right down to tonight's premiere...

Here's my first act ranking for Season 15!

10: Archie Williams. The act that felt more like a Golden Buzzer than the ACTUAL Golden Buzzer, and the act most likely to win the whole season so far...And he's at the bottom of my list...Not that I don't see the value in him, his singing was very nice and all...BUT it was far from the best singing I've heard, including from old brothas like him...Indeed, when Simon said he will never forget this audition, it's pretty obvious what the reason is, and raw talent is not it...That being said...this is one case where I might be willing to throw the act a bone specifically BECAUSE of the sob story! In fact, I don't think I'm even gonna complain about this guy making it all the way to the Finals! Because you know what, as rubbish as the results on this show can be a lot of the time, even the worst results in the show's history don't even hold a candle to the injustice that this man had to suffer for all of these years! I'm at a point in my life where my mortality has hit me hard, giving me an existential crisis over not having accomplished anything significant that I would have liked to in life, and feeling trapped in my current situation, unable to improve it! I can only imagine what THIS guy went through, having the prime years of his life stripped away from him and thrown in a cage over something he didn't do! A LOT is owed to this man, not the least of which are those 37 FREAKING YEARS of his life back! But since that is a tragic impossibility, I guess the LEAST we can give him is his time in the sun on this show! And we won't let that sun go down on him! ...Even if he's by no means the best...Will he win? Probably not...But he'll probably go far either way...And maybe he can even legitimately earn some of it by improving his voice or performing an original song...Who knows...? (HOO, boy...That's a HELL of a review to open this season with!)

9: Double Dragon. I didn't know the Lee Brothers had successors! Where's the coin slot? I wanna beat up some Black Warriors with these ladies' singing and choreography! Anyway, this was entertaining, if rather gimmicky...We'll see if these ladies can pick a song choice I can take a little more seriously next time, or if they go all out on the silliness! ...Honestly, I'm kinda rooting on the latter!

8: Voices of Our City Choir. A choir getting the Golden Buzzer? STOP THE PRESSES! But seriously, I do see potential in this group...There were a few aspects to this act that we haven't seen in previous choirs, like the (very catchy and enjoyable) original song, the instruments and the choir leader actually singing with them (in a very unique singing voice, no less). I'd rather avoid another Detroit Youth Choir situation, but seeing that this IS Terry's Golden Buzzer, and the hosts' GB picks have consistently made the Top 3 AT LEAST every time...again, save for that old burlesque dancer lady...I'd say these people have the potential to keep that streak going...Then again, Angel City Chorale had similar draws to them, and they never did that well in the votes...The whole numbers factor usually only works for kids, because parents are more likely to vote than OTHER relatives...So between that and the comparisons made between this act and Archie, it's a tough one to call...We'll just see what develops as the season goes on...But if nothing else, maybe it's time to break that streak...

7: The Pork Chop Revue. We've seen dog acts, bird acts, cat acts and even a rat act, so who's to say we can't add pigs to the animal trick collective? I guess when you get down to it, it's pretty much another dog act but with pigs...And I probably wouldn't even say that pigs are the most difficult animals to train, as they're actually quite intelligent...But this was unique and different enough for the time being, and both the gigantic mother and the little baby pig stole the show...and everyone's hearts! That'll do, pigs...That'll do...

6: Ryan Tricks. I would like to take this moment to coin a new AGT term: The Shin Lim Effect! Basically, it refers to the shadow that has been cast over all magicians on this show by a certain other magician, hence the name...Because of it, all magicians that compete on this show will inevitably be compared to You-Know-Who...It's not exactly a fair comparison, but it does set the standard for what is expected of all magicians from here on out...This man, for instance, did a trick that was far from the most mesmerizing or head-scratching...BUT, he still made me wonder what made this trick possible, and as mundane as that sounds, it IS the highest of compliments you can give a magician! The only answer that could hurt his credibility is if Howie and Simon were plants...But I've long since stopped assuming that they do those things...I'm not ENTIRELY sold on him yet, but he is likable enough that I'm willing to give him a chance...

5: Broken Roots. These guys were easily the most interesting singers for me tonight! I look forward to seeing how they improve with a little more practice...

4: Muy Moi Show. Just when you thought you'd never see a more insane sideshow act than Bir Khalsa...This guy did everything short of hanging something off of his eyelids! He even put his shirt back on! That's almost a cardinal sin in the eyes of the female judges! All I have to say is, I look forward to seeing what he does with a bigger budget!

3: BAD Salsa. Is it wrong that I almost wondered if they were former V.Unbeatable members? I mean, they certainly had the acrobatic abilities! This takes the whole dance duo genre to a new level, so I guess it's no surprise that it's from India!

2: Vincent Marcus. I wish I had Eminem and Jay-Z singing my nursery rhymes back when I was little! I never watched Vine, so I'm not aware of this guy's earlier work, but he seems like a pretty funny guy! Question is, will he make good progress like Greg Morton, or will he be taken out prematurely like several other acts of this nature...? Who knows? But I hope he does well, because this was certainly one of the more memorable acts so far...

1: Malik DOPE. Looks like my dream band consisting of Tokio Myers, Brian King Joseph and Marcin Patrzalek finally has a drummer! I'm not sure if this guy blew me away to the same degree that those other guys did (yet), but I do love his moves! I see a lot of potential in this act, especially when he gets enough of a budget to add some special effects or something...(PS, I'd probably pick Courtney Hadwin to be the lead singer...I'll call them the Sounds of Chaos!)

Overall, a pretty solid opener to the season! Even the weakest acts (not counting the rejects) had something to admire, and that's always good!

Next week, Simon's apparently got the Golden Buzzer...And I figure that it's only a matter of time before his GB wins the show, so we'll see if this is the year...I just hope that WHATEVER kind of act it is, it's deserving enough to go all the way to the Finals as I'm sure it will inevitably either way...

So I guess I'll see you then...Assuming anyone else will be posting here with me, after the total silence I got at Champions a few months back...

Still looking into that podcast...

[nicolebehariewce]

KELLEE TERRELL: What about being in the Black Mirror universe appealed to you?

NICOLE BEHARIE: First, I just really like genre and sci-fi and imagining the world, the future. That, and Black Mirror is one of my favorite television shows and one of the only ones I look forward to. It's also nice to see people of color on-screen and [Charlie Brooker, the show's creator] has done a good job of creating a diverse world in their universe.

Also, a year ago, they wanted me for a part for a different episode, and I wasn't available. So this time around when they called, without even reading the script, I was like, "I am not going to miss the opportunity. I'm in!"

KT: I read that "Striking Vipers" was shot in Brazil. If that's true, Nicole that's like a free vacation and a paycheck.

NB: Listen. When I first read the script, I felt like the story and my character were pretty domestic, so I was sure we were going to shoot in Atlanta or Los Angeles. Then they told me we would be shooting in Brazil and I was like, "What! Come again?" And with all the different architecture and the beautiful, lush outdoors and how that world was constructed, it was so beautiful. Plus, it was like a free vacation, and it was amazing. 

KT: This episode is such an intense exploration of sexuality, marriage, and technology. What did you take away from it?

NB: The themes were spot-on and on time, especially for Pride Month. As a culture, we are currently going through a period that is more approving [of the LGBTQ community], and more of us realize there are a lot of different ways of loving, living and choosing your life.

As a woman who grew up in the South and was raised in West Indian culture, there are things that "were not allowed." Luckily, throughout my career, I have been able to explore some of that, just like in the film Shame with sex addiction and now [with "Striking Vipers"]. And as an actress, I am always interested in how women exist in these different spaces and how they confront and deal with the expectations placed on them.

KT: Theo is juggling a lot. Being a good wife, a good mother, and wanting to get pregnant again, but still wanting to be sexy, seen and content.

NB: Exactly. I feel like in the very beginning of the episode, Theo had ownership of her body and her sexuality then fast forward to her speech where they are sitting at the table at the restaurant, and she says that other shit [that is opposite of how she used to be]. Now she is raising a family and, in her mind, things are different. Her body is different. And this is real. Often women are living that life and also trying to be fulfilled and wanting to be able to be honest in their walk. 

KT: Let's also talk about the intersections between black masculinity, male friendship, and sexual desire. Because let me tell you, when Karl told Danny he'd virtually slept with a polar bear and it wasn't as good as it was with him, Black Twitter was shook.

NB: Yes! I love how this explores black male masculinity and all of that unsaid things that people whisper about and don't say out loud because they are afraid. And I don't even think Charlie Brooker and the other folks behind it were even aware of that particular conversation when casting us.And when I look back at the scene with [Anthony and Yahya] kissing and that was all about these two brothas' trying to figure it out — and figure it out together. In the end, that's what everyone is trying to do — black, white, trans, whatever — somehow figure out how we fit into this world being ourselves.

KT: Let's also talk about that ending! While Danny is getting his yearly dalliance on with Karl, Theo is also getting hers at the bar. I thought it was empowering and even feminist that she isn't just sitting at home letting him have all the fun.

NB: Honestly, I have mixed feelings about it.

KT: Really? Do tell.

NB: I mean, I think it's cool that there is some type of balance, but it's also kind of sad. I don't know. Why can't Danny play online with Theo instead? But as an actress, there are times when we play parts we don't necessarily agree with, but that's the beauty of this work.

KT: Throughout your career, you have been in so many things, but genre looks really good on you, especially with Sleepy Hollow and now Black Mirror. Why is it so important for more black women to be portrayed in sci-fi and horror?

NB: Whether it's Black Panther or Get Out, I think it important to expand what the world looks like and for us to have the power of letting our minds fly in these different universes. It's also important for actors to have these breaths of experiences in their craft. Super early on in my career, I had a conversation with someone about my skill level, and they were telling me what I needed to work on in order to be in these types of projects. And my response was that it's not that I don't have the ability to do this, I just don't have the same opportunities to do it. But things are changing, slowly, and it's an exciting thing to see.

But even in genre, black women can get stuck cast as the strong and long-suffering archetype. I would love to see the neurotic, quirky black woman because to me, genre is about trying new things, not staying in the box and I hope we can keep building that out, because I'm here for it.

KT: Your fans really missed you and Sleepy Hollow's Abbie Mills, so when the trailer for Black Mirror first came out, people were beyond excited to see you back on television.

NB: Wait, really? Is that true? I took a social media fast from January to March, so I'm so out of the loop.

KT: I swear. I wouldn't play with your emotions like that. [Laughs] Every three months, folks on Twitter want to know where you've been and when you're coming back.

NB: Wow. That's so awesome to hear. I mean, I knew I have fans and that I was missed, I guess I just didn't know it was to this extent. Maybe I'm just too reclusive and shy. It's funny. There was this Iconoclasts interview between Dr. Maya Angelou and Dave Chappelle where he asked her about how she handles criticism and admiration, and she said something to effect of, "I don't pick it up and I don't lay it down." I try to do the same, because I still have work to do and I don't want that to change. I don't want me to change, you know? But I am so grateful to be seen and just know that I see y'all who have been there with me and with Abbie. I appreciate you and feel this love. So while I might not be on Twitter all the time, I am reaching out and connecting with you all through the work. We got some metaphysical shit happening between us. 

KT: Finally, what's next for you?

NB: I don't think I can talk about it yet, but I have some really cool things cooking that I am excited about. Some of it will be familiar, and then there will be things that some people are going to be like, "OMG, Nicole is really going in!" So you will just have to stay tuned. [x]