#and then we'd sleep in a bed that's just a bit too small but neither of us care

[teddybeartoji]

can't stop thinking abt how much my grandma would've loved toji.....

[pacifymebby]

t r o u b l e / Chapter Ten

a peaky blinders Modern AU balletcore story?

Chapter List

Previous Chapter (in case u missed it bc tumblr is being weird)

John

"Don't like this John," hummed Esme where she sat in the bedroom window, her hair wild and long, trailing down her back her curls knotting down to her lower back, brushing over her bare thighs when she turned to look at me over her shoulder. She'd been up half the night with the baby and now that the littlen had finally settled down she was sitting alone watching the dark garden, wearing one of my tshirts, one which had been worn to death and had grown with her baby belly throughout her last pregnancy. She still wore it now, when it was late and she couldn't sleep. She'd taken to sitting in that window all through the night, starring out at the garden like a caged bird, smoking her cigarettes one by one.

"I know love," I sighed stepping up behind her, letting my hands hold her shoudlers, thumbs rubbing over the bones. "Won't be for long, we'll go back to the farm soon..."

"Thats what you say," she said turning back to the garden with the dark shadowy eyes of a girl. A girl pining. Which is what I knew she was. She was restless and she had been for a long time, long before this shit with the Italians. I'd been trying my best on the farm, trying to help her feel free, connected to the earth. I humoured her when she walked out in the garden barefoot, curling her toes into the muddy vegetable patches when it rained. I'd promised her we'd travel, that we'd pack up and take the kids with us, and I'd meant to keep that promise. But now there were other shadows looming over us, and not just over me and her but the whole family. And keeping my promise to Esme would mean betraying my brothers and sisters.

I couldn't even toy with the idea. Of course sometimes the way Tommy was made me want to say fuck it and leave, but the rest of them, no. I couldn't leave Ada and the twins. Couldnt abandon Arthur who needed the family to stay together more than any of us.

And even Tommy, at the end of the day, no matter how cruel he could be, how unfeeling, he was still my big brother. And he wasn't as selfish as he seemed, it just takes a lot to lead a family, especially one like ours. He was just doing his best to be the person steering our battered ship.

"We're never leaving here," Esme said, her voice low and dark and gloomy like the empty garden at night. That expanse of lawn, so tame. That wall of trees just that, a wall that hedged us all in. Marked out our bit of land and kept it ours. A perimeter that  Esme understood, kept her caged.

That was why she spent her evenings starring out at it with dark eyes and a heavy heart. Smoking her cigarettes. Making me feel all kinds of guilt and inadequacy.

"We will flower, just as soon as this is all over, gonna take you and the littlens far away," I said leaning over her, tilting her head right back so that i could kiss her from above. I meant it, in my heart when I said it I meant it but we were neither of us naive and so we both found ourselves looking out at the garden then, whistful and doomed.

This wasn't going to be over quickly. Might never be over at all.

The house was quiet but only just and only for now, the twins had gone to bed, too shaken up for my liking - and I felt guilty for that because I'd aided in the shaking - but Arthur hadn't returned with Ada and I knew that she had all the fight of little Sylvie and all the zeal of having grown up in a shithole like small heath. That is to say I knew she wouldn't be affraid to tell Tommy exactly what she thought of him. How much of a cunt she thought he was.

When our mother had died Tommy had stepped up for the girls because they were only small and suddenly left without a mother or a father to care for them. He'd tried to be that father figure to the best of his ability, which was limited because he'd never really had a sturdy father figure himself. As a result the girls had wound up with this fear of him, that fear only a father can instill. In healthy relationships its known as respect but theirs was a distant and troubled relationship and so fear was the only way of describing it. Ada hadn't had that, didn't fear him and probably wouldn't ever. So I knew that when she got here she'd do the shouting and the fighting for all three of them. Wouldn't give a fuck that it was 4 in the morning and the littluns were in bed, that I was in bed, only just managing to drift off. Would blame me for that, would tell me it straight.

"Ada will stay," said Esme then, "she's not stupid she knows whats at risk..."

"Yeah," I sighed, "its the girls ain't it," I said, "gonna be trouble..." I said and she smirked as if to say 'you don't know the half of it' but I did because every step of the way we'd done everything wrong. We'd sent them away, let them grow up wild in some far away city, in a boarding school that taught them how to lie and cheat their way to the top, taught them they could have everything they wanted if they were cut throat and selfish, if they thought only about where they were trying to go and took wild risks, pushed themselves too far.

And it was obvious looking at Sylvie, that the both of them had taken on board everything that theyd been taught. That they weren't affraid to push themselves too far, test their limits. That they didn't mind their own safety when it came to taking risks to get what they wanted.

And they'd take these risks because we'd always tried to keep them sheltered, always tried to keep them seperate. The twins had never seen their brothers with bullets in their chests, they'd never seen the men we'd snatched from wives and children. They didn't really know what we did with the bodies. They didn't know about the arms severed, the threats sent. They didn't know the things we'd done to our enemies, they thought our wars were all money and talk but they were usually always retaliation to meetings gone sour, deals fucked up, families we'd made the mistake of only half slaughtering.

And because they didn't know any of those things, then they could never really understand what they were risking, what our enemies would do to them, how they would be used, how they'd be tortured.

It wasn't even a year passed since our Aunt Pol had narrowly escaped death at the hands of the Changretta's. They'd had her neck in a noose, left her balanced on her tip toes for days, a sinister act of torture we were all certain had tipped her over the morbid edge she'd been teetering on for years. They'd told her they had all of us, tricked her into believing that whilst she stood their desperately trying to keep her balance, feeling the strain of the noose against her neck every time she faltered, that each of us was fighting for our lives in an equally painful way.

No one knew, not even her, how she'd actually managed to escape. But it hadn't been any of us who had cut her down. Tommy said she must have done it, must have worked out a way to cut the bonds on her hands, to sever the rope around her neck. Polly insisted that it hadn't been. That it had been the ghost of her mother, that now she'd spent several days with death hovering around her, waiting for her muscles to spazm and falter, she could see death all the time. That she could hear the voices of those past, that she could see their shadows lingering around the living.

And though it all seemed a little mellodramatic to me, seemded like rot to Arthur, I could tell Tommy empathised with the darkness. And we couldn't laugh her off because of what she'd gone through. The days of pain, her muscles sore to burning, her adrenaline savaging her body so that when she finally returned home she was a shell of her former self. Something changed behind her eyes.

That was the darkness our fens were risking every time they fought back against Tommy. If they disobeyed him, if we couldn't keep them here, safe with us, well, thered be no ghosts that came to save them.

"Sylvies got her brothers temper," said Esme, her strange impersonal judgements reminding me that they'd never really met. That the wedding had been the first and last time they'd seen one another. So it was all the more strange, all the more uncomfortable.

"Aye but which brother..." I smirked making her laugh, making her dark brooding eyes light up for a moment as she shook her head.

"Well," she let her smirk linger, her dimple etched into her expression so that she appeared impish in the pale nights light, "ain't arthurs is it..."

"Shes nothin like Tommy," I said shaking my head, refusing to believe that that could be true, refusing to believe that there was anything about my brother that could possibly have been passed onto little Sylvia who had always been so wild and sweet.

"They're like our mum," I said trying to reiterate my point. Trying to prove Esme's observation wrong, "I guess you wouldn't see that yknow," I shrugged turning away from the window, pulling my shirt over my head, knowing there was no point trying to get to sleep. Lying down anyway and asked her to lie down with me. For want of nothing else to do.

"Come on love, can't sit in that window all night you'll get cold..."

"What and I spose you're gonna keep me warm?" she asked turning with that clever little smirk, outsmarting me again.

"Aye," I said with a cheeky caught out grin of my own, "Somet like that aye..." I chuckled opening my arms out for her, letting her crawl across the bed to me, that too bed tshirt hanging from her soft curves as she moved feline and feminine over covers to come curl up in my arms.

I kissed her hair and let my hand trail over her thigh, fingers teasing a line up to the hem of her underwear. I knew how to ease her troubled mood, even now when her eyes were dark and I could see that she was worrying.

So we didn't get any sleep, and when Arthur returned with Ada and Karl, their voices ricochetting down the corridors, their disturbance caught me and Esme off guard. Her beanth me, her thighs trembling on each side of my neck as I ground my hips against her hips a little harder than before, burying myself deep inside her.

We'd been close when that front door had slammed and Karl had woken, started crying but the moment Ada's sharp words began tumbling vitriolic and shattering the silent house, we knew it was over.

"Fuck sake," whined Esme burying her face into my neck, clutching at me still, her body clinging tight to mine. She didn't want to let go and I didn't want to pull out and away from her but I knew that any second now Ada would be hammering her fist on that bedroom door demanding to drag me into the battle.

I laughed, let my grin linger because there was nothing else I could do. Just had to keep smirking through it and appreciate the humour of it all, forty fuckin one years old and still being cockblocked by my big sister.

So I accepted my fate, kissing Esme on the nose as I pulled out and she whimpered again. Smirking at her sweetness because it wasn't a side to her that came out very often. Had never been a side she liked to show. One it had taken me a long time to find hidden and secret beneath all those rough and wild layers of defense.

"To be continued," I said pecking her cheek, trailing teasing kisses down her body, leaving one between her legs that made her whine and then push me away, kicking at me playfully as she let out a dissatisfied sigh.

"Fuck sake John," she groaned as she pushed herself up and wrapped the covers around her. "I'm going to sleep, better not wake me up when you get back..." she threatened, her smouldering eyes teasing me, her sullen lips leaving me longing to kiss her again, push her buttons just a little more.

"Oh you'll be awake lass," I grinned, "Ada'll make sure of that..."

And Ada did make sure of that. She'd no patience because despite what he said, Arthur had done nothing to calm her on the journey home and even then, when I came stumbling into the corridor tugging my tshirt over my head, laughing at the drama of it all, Arthur was watching her despairing and nervous.

"Fuckin hell Ada some of us are tryna sleep here, its 4 in the fuckin mornin..." I said still chuckling, knowimg that I was risking her temper and carrying on anyway. I was her little brother afterall, I could get away with it if I tried.

"Perhaps you'd be having an easier night if you didn't always bend over backwards to accommodate our canniving pig of a brother," she said sharply, standing in the hallway lit up by the the little light coming in through the front door and the windows in the cieling.

She looked pale as a ghost and just as cold and I didn't know what to say to her because she wasn't wrong. Wasn't right either. I wouldn't have had an easier night because Tommy would have killed me and then he'd have sent someone else, someone like Isaiah, and then my ghost would have been haunting the halls all eternity with the guilt of having left my little sisters in the hands of someone else.

It wasn't that I wouldn't have trusted Isaiah with my sisters, it was that really when it came down to it, I didn't trust anyone with them. Not even my brothers. Not to do things right anyway.

If Arthur had gone for them he'd have lost his temper because he'd have been scared, because he'd have been paranoid that they didn't respect him, because he'd have been angry at himself for not being able to do as Tommy had asked. For not being the kind of brother his little baby sisters would trust.

If Tommy had gone, then the speech which had brought Sonya to petrified tears in the office that night, would have been given much sooner, with no care for the audience, no care for who was watching, recording or making notes. He'd have lost his temper because he'd have realised they only feared him, didn't respect him. And they were more delicate than either of them liked to let on. Sonya and Sylvia had always been a little less Shelby like our father. Much more like their mother than anyone wanted to admit.

I had noticed it in Sylvia straight away. The thin quality, that washed out pale tone, the greyish brown which shadowed her eyes, which lingered and left her looking tired. Sonya had hidden it better but I'd still seen it there. They were both just so much smaller than they should have been but I knew that if I mentioned it to my brothers they'd tell me I worried too much, that they were tougher than I gave them credit for.

"Ada love come on now eh its late, you'll wake the twins..." said Arthur, all sheepish and tired, one hand on the back of his neck, his features flushed, embarassed to be approaching 50 and still unable to quell his sisters temper. If there was one thing you could say about Ada it was that she'd always been the one to put us in our place. Humble us when we let our position and our reputation get to our heads.

"You care for their wellbeing so much then why in gods name would you drag em back to this fuckin place?" and then she sighed and shook her head, "fuckin go to bed arthur it aint you I need to speak to..."

"Tommys in his..." I trailed off when my eyes met my brothers down the hall, he was walking slowly, a shadow approaching, a cigarette unlit hanging between his lips.

"Ada love," he said making her jump but doing nothing to hush her or shake her determination. "Good to see you made it up safe an sound..." and when I saw his patronising little smile I resigned myself to a sleepless night and a long morning of achey heads and sore throats. Tension bristling.

It was exactly what we got, but not what we didn't deserve.

🔪🦢

"She won't forgive you you know..." said Polly the next morning when it was only myself and her left in the dining room.

Sylvie had left with an angry static buzzing all about her, Tommy had sent her to fetch Sonya and, in his usual tactless charm, had said something so patronising that I was surprised our Fen hadn't torn his head from his neck right in front of us.

"No," I said with a sad smirk, "Fens right, gonna fuck Sonyas whole career up ain't it, poor lass must fuckin hate us..." but when I said it Pol just chuckled and shook her head.

"I wasn't talking about Sonya," she said lighting up her cigarette and drawing in a long leisurely inhale, "Sonya knows she can't go back, I don't even think she's going to put up a fight..."

"Its Sonya who's losing her job not Sylvia," I shrugged a little confused, not understanding when Polly laughed.

"Ha," she said, "stupid lads the lot of you..." she turned her head from me, looking across the dining room and out the window at the gardens where the mist was just beginning to thin.

"What?" I couldn't keep the confusion off my face despite wanting to hide it, I hated it when she made me feel stupid like that, perhaps I deserved it, perhaps I was as daft as she said. Even so I didn't like the fact being highlighted so bluntly.

"Since their mother died those two girls have had only eachother... Their big brothers weren't there were they? In London? Learnt to look after one another didn't they..."

It was painful to hear it from her, our Aunt Pol who has always been the matriarch, the one who looked after us all, the one we all looked up to. She it was painful to hear her tell it so straight, how we'd let them down. How we'd abandoned them. Left two little girls down south on their own, fending for themselves among strangers.

"I should never have let him do that," said Polly then, her voice as dark and gravelly as her eyes, that harsh kind of doom lingering around her like a shadow. One of those auras she claimed to be able to see around people these days.

"When our Tom puts his mind to somet..." I started only to trail off, only to remember that none of us had really fought against it, "we all believed it was for the best..."

"Fools," murmured Pol sucking in another drag on her cigarette, watching the cloud of smoke linger and then disperse just in front of her, "the lot of us."

[beantothemax]

Elena had been put to bed. She'd slept most of the day. Harvey had sapped her of nearly all her energy and traveling for several days immediately afterwards only made it worse. But now she could rest.

After Osvald tucked her in, he stayed by her side a while longer. He held her hand as tears trickled down his cheeks. His little girl was alive and she was finally safe. He had to rest too though.

When Clarissa reminded him of that, he nearly shooed her away. But she gave him a stern look and he gave in. Just before he left, he pressed a kiss to Elena's forehead.

"Sleep well, princess," he whispered.

They'd spoken at length when Osvald arrived and only wished each other goodnight before he retired to the inn. Though Castti usually went to bed early, she remained in the tavern. When Osvald entered, she gestured for him to sit.

"So? How'd it go?" she asked.

"Fine. Clarissa said she's happy to-"

"Yes I knew she'd say that. Did Elena wake up?"

Osvald sighed at her uncharacteristically rude interruption but continued.

"No, she's still unconscious."

Castti smirked at his words and sipped at her tea.

"Is her health a joke to you?" Osvald asked, quiet but firm.

"No. I've been helping you with your weird little journey for nearly a year now. You've got a home to return to and I still have no clue what to do," she chuckled.

Castti downed the last of her cup, pouring another.

"No ideas at all?" Osvald asked.

"Nope," Castti smiled, "I could always join the others and slit my throat."

Osvald had learned that whenever she said 'the others', she meant Eir's apothecaries, never their current traveling companions. She loved those she traveled with but that would never compare to what she felt for Eir's apothecaries. Only Osvald came close to that.

"You know those jokes aren't funny," Osvald sighed.

"I know," Castti muttered.

She finished the last of her second cup of tea before standing.

"I'm heading to bed."

He grabbed her hand and tried to look her in the eyes but she only stared at the floor.

"Please, Castti, let's talk a bit longer," he said.

"Sure. Should we walk?" she asked.

"Sounds nice."

They walked in silence to the edge of town. The sun had dissappeared beyond the horizon hours prior.

"This is where I'd always walk," Osvald said.

He looked to Castti, awaiting her response but she said nothing. He understood. She was unwell, she didn't have to speak.

Once they reached a tree atop a small hill, they sat under it. It overlooked Conning Creek. The town glowed a warm yellow from all the candles lit by windows.

"Did you have suggestions?" Castti asked.

"No. I hoped I'd think of something but all that comes to mind is that we'd all miss you," Osvald answered.

Castti moved closer and wrapped her arms around him. He held her closer when he heard her sniffle. This wasn't the first time she cried into his arms like this and hopefully it wouldn't be the last. He would rather comfort her everyday than plan her funeral.

She needed the help. She always made sure everyone else was okay, often going the extra mile with Osvald and making sure he didn't do anything to hurt himself.

"Okay means happy and uninjured," she would say, patching up some wound Osvald got after pushing himself past his limits.

She tended to everyone's wounds with a smile, listening to their problems and offering advice, always dodging the question when asked if she was okay. As she sobbed into his arms, this was all Osvald thought of.

"Osvald," she whispered, "c-can I stay with you? Just till I figure out what to do. I'll help with Elena too."

She trailed off and her sobs had died down too and she seemed to have fallen almost completely silent.

"You can stay forever if you want. I'm sure Elena will like you," he smiled.

"You really think so?"

"Yes, it's hard not to like you."

"I see."

She stayed in his arms for a long time. She'd stopped crying and nearly fell asleep where she sat. Osvald couldn't help but fear for her. Right now, they had a solution but neither knew if it would stick. What if Elena didn't like her? Or she changed her mind and decided she couldn't bear living any longer?

...But that was an incorrect approach. Castti decided to stay, that was worth celebrating. They could take each day one at a time, staying in the present and appreciating the little things. Those always seemed to make her happy.

in absolute shambles. btw.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUH…….. WAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!! GAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PIE!!! you’re actively trying to murder me through text alone because. augh

castti talking about ‘joining’ eir’s apothecaires always hurts to see. she has so so so many people who care about her and she needs to know that this instant

castti staying for elena……. wanting to keep going for, if nothing else, for her…………… if you’ll excuse me I need to go bury my head into my pillow forever

YOUR CASTTI FICS ARE ALWAYS SO SO GOOD HOW DO YOU DO THIS

[tineoladragon]

All of them for V1 :3c

Insert glaring Rivulet emote here

🍬 - if you were in canon, what would the fanbase for your ship be like?

Oh VERY unpopular. V1 is heavily shipped with everyone in there, why would they get with a little dragon girl? Who really has no reason to be in hell. Honestly I don't even think I'd even be in hell. I'd more likely be a lesser angel.

🧁 - your f/o is planning a surprise date for you two! what do they choose?

I'm going to end up picked up, and carried to some beautiful place that V1 found. That and they're going to bring me little things that they think I'll like. And I love that. Might be a little spooked at the being carried.

🍵 - do you have any pets with your f/o? if not, what kind would you like to adopt? how do they act around animals?

I do not have any of my own.. And neither do they. But I think we'd like a cat or two. They'd be a little confused at first I think but they'll get attached way too fast.

🍓 - what's a bad habit your f/o has?

Uh.. Murder. But they're chilling out a little bit thankfully. Little murder robot is learning to care..

🍦 - what's your f/o's favorite way to show affection? are there any little things they do to indicate their appreciation for you?

Their favourite way is to bring me things that they like and remind them of me! Like little rocks, flowers.. And I love that so much.

🥥 - talk about a memorable moment in your relationship.

The very first gift they got me properly.. Someone broke into a gift shop, and stole a Jellycat for me. I had to gently scold them for that but they just looked like the knife cat. I think they've done it again.

🍾 - who confessed first, and how did it happen?

Honestly it didn't really. happen? We just kind of started dating. It was a mutual thing where there wasn't really a confession.

🍧 - which of you is the better chef? what's their favorite thing to make for the other?

V1 I love you but you're not good at cooking. Plus I've also been to culinary school. So it's me that's better at cooking. They also.. don't need to eat. So it's a bit of an awkward situation.

🍒 - what is your f/o's love language, and how do they express it with you?

Acts of Service, and Gift giving. They like to help me and give me things.. Frankly any of the languages except words. Cause they don't talk much. And they are incredibly affectionate.

🥞 - who spoils the other more?

They spoil me more.. I am just really bad at remembering things. They're so so affectionate..

🍮 - what's something you do that always makes your f/o smile, and/or vice versa?

They don't have a mouth to smile but... They like when I take time to show and teach them things. They love learning. And fishing. I helped them get a fishing license recently and they're loving it.

As for me.. Anything small. Little things that make me feel loved. They do a lot. I can't pinpoint one thing.

🫐 - what's your sleeping arrangement with your f/o like? do you share a bed? do they cuddle you, or talk in their sleep?

We don't really share a bed. V1 doesn't sleep much. We sometimes fall asleep on the couch together, with them just entering sleep mode. Sometimes they cuddle me just cause but they don't really sleep with me.

🍩 - what are some irl things that remind you of your f/o?

Coins, the body pillow (I don't own one), blood spatter.. And go-pros.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

🌟 - what does your f/o do to help comfort you about your insecurities? what do you to do comfort them about theirs?

They assure me about a lot of things.. Mostly just helping me when I start to spiral.

As for them, Just lots of little things. Assuring them that they're not a killing machine. They can do what they want. And helping them walk through their new emotions.

🪽 - imagine an au where your f/o is your guardian angel. what kind of relationship dynamic do the two of you have? are they the type to be more exasperated by your silly actions or protective over you?

They'd probably be trying to encourage me to be more reckless. I'm too anxious and don't take jumps that I probably should. They want me to jump, so that they can help me through it, and catch me when I fall.

✨ - share some headcanons about your f/o! this can be visual headcanons, sexuality or gender, disabilities and neurodivergencies, etc!

Well. Robit. I personally headcanon that they have both parts, cause V1 was made by humans.. and Humans are questionable.

I also headcanon that they're very much catlike.

Oh, and that the little shutters around their eye express a lot of emotion.

🎐 - what does your f/o smell like? is it a natural scent they pick up from their surroundings or is it a scent they get from scented lotions or perfumes/colognes?

Blood and overworking machinery. I'm sorry they don't smell amazing :'

It doesn't bother me too much but I do encourage them to clean up, and to not overwork themself.

💫 - would your f/o be an eldritch horror or a biblical angel? why?

Hard to say.. I think I'd lean Biblical angel though. Just because of the media that they're from. They don't feel particularly eldritch to me.

🕊 - would your f/o kill a man for you? how would they do it? would they get caught?

V1 is a murder robot. They'd kill. They will kill. And they will do it again.

They'd probably just shoot them. And they might get caught but they're a robot built for it so... Can you really be mad at them.

🌙 - what would your f/o's favorite video game genre be? what is their least favorite genre? why for both?

I think they'd like both cozy games (especially if they have fishing) and soulslike games? But first person shooters they'd hate. Not realistic enough.

🎂 - how has your f/o changed over the course of the relationship? how have you changed? do either of you miss past things about the other?

They've mellowed out and got a lot more in touch with emotions. And I've got a little less reserved.

We don't really miss our past selves.

🌕 - what kind of fashion subculture would your f/o be partial to and why? do they prefer form over function or function over form?

Alt style. They love it a lot. And they like dressing up in fancy dresses. They like function but they also like looking cool.

☁️ - does your f/o like to travel? where are some faraway places they'd like to go with you someday?

They love to travel. Absolutely love it. They take pictures, and explore. They need new stimulus.

They want to bring me along but their travel method is a bit much for my damaged body alas. So we will figure it out some day..

💛 - what is something most people consider a flaw of your f/o that you find endearing? why is it that you like that trait?

The fact that they're really out of touch with themself.. but It's cute. I'm also really out of touch with myself. We can be out of touch together.

🍰 - draw a doodle of your f/o! no more than 5 minutes allowed!

[shiroi---kumo]

·:¨༺ ✩★✩ ༻¨:·. They keep getting pushed from town to town and it's exhausting, even for him but especially for Sielu and Valo. The Historian can only hide his symptoms so well and recent weeks, it's been worse than normal. He's slower in his motions and coughing. Even with keeping his mask on at near all times, he's coughing. He hasn't wanted to say anything about it, but his breath his smelling awfully sour - they all are and the small bits of fruit they keep managing to find within the few times that don't immediately run them out haven't been enough to keep their levels up.

And now they are being run out of towns faster than ever when Aamunkoitto made one very foolish mistake. He doesn't blame the man, it was all on their minds but he should have been a little more cautious about voicing. A woman with long hair of a deep brown and animal like ears had been glaring them from across the street, holding what he could only assume her child close to her chest. She was watching their every move until she finally broke and snarled at them, as the Knight had approached a vendor on the street to attempt to purchase from goods.

"Get out of here!" She had hissed at him. "We don't need your kind! You're just like Lord Makenshi and we don't want you here!"

And that was when the man of roses made a terrible mistake. It's only to lead to make their lives worse ever since.

In the purity of his innocent, Aaamunkoitto had approached the woman and smiled the best he possibly could in that moment despite his face being half covered by his mask.

"If you've met him, can you tell us where he is? We'd like to find him, so if you could - point us in the right direction we would be most grateful."

Grateful to find the White Devil.

What could they possibly be thinking?!

They were declared devils on the spot and drove out of town without question and word must have spread because finding any town that would tolerate them for more than a few hours now was nigh impossible.

The Aurorean doesn't want to make the Dawn feel any worse about this than he already does. They could survive in these conditions for the most part but Valo and Sielu were looking.... the knight is sighing as he thinks about it; pink vision dropping to glance at the man of blue in his arms and his consistently paling complexion. Neither the musician or the historian were looking very good at all.

They needed to find some place or someone who wouldn't looking at them like demons and devils soon because the man of green can only assume this town would run them out in moments once they realized who they were. He could hope not though. Valo and Sielu needed beds to sleep in. This sleeping outdoors on the ground wasn't doing them any good.

None of them really.

˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ Kain seems to have the situation under control, and he's digging through his bag to give him what appears to be a two way radio and upon explanation, it seems that's exactly what it is. He'll have to set Kain down and ask him about all of this later but right now he needs to go back through medical records and to run this blood sample he took, so he can find out just exactly what was wrong.

Because something was very very wrong.

"Thank you, Kain. I'll keep it on me at all times. Just call for me if anything changes or you need anything." He sounds with a smile and a sigh - shoulders rising a little only to fall with the motion moment's later. "I'm going to run this blood sample and I'll keep you updated with what I find out. If he wakes up and needs anything, just call and I'll bring it."

Indigo eyes are shifting over to glace at the pale form of the man of snow and he sighs again. Too many times has he seen him in that bed. Too many times has he seen him littered with the injuries or worse not breathing. He needs to know why the scars on Kumo's stomach and he assumes his back have gotten bigger.

"I'm trusting you with him."

And the engineer is finally leaving the room to part with his temporary help and head back to his office. He needs to get this blood sample set up to see what's going on and he sets the small metal square that is the Misterican's mask down on his desk once he enters the room.

Soon he's pulling out his files and the graphs and the timeline he'd been working on earlier when he was speaking to Knave about his concerns several weeks back. There's something deeper going on here than just a case of Kumo pushing himself too hard...

@flameleads -> forgotten-teammates -> shiroi---kumo

Of all the times for Hayate to run off, it had to be right after he ate. Roy wanted to be mad. As he followed behind both the Lieutenant and her dog, he wanted to be mad that their schedule just got ruined by what could be nothing. But, he knew that dog, and he knew Hayate didn’t run off without a reason. He smelled something. For all the two of them knew, it could be Edward and Alphonse! Their search could be soon over!

Would it be silly of him to hope that, after only a week of searching, he would find them? He didn’t want to go another minute without knowing where they were, that they were safe, warm, fed, in his arms—

It wasn’t them.

The Lieutenant came to a slow stop several feet in front of him, leading him to stop as well. She did not raise a weapon, and she did not seem alarmed by the man standing not too far from her. Roy tried not to look crestfallen at the fact that Falman met his gaze instead of a pair of golden eyes. What was he… why was he in Wonderland? Wasn’t he supposed to be in Briggs? Of all the places in Amestris, Briggs was safe. Briggs couldn’t be part of Wonderland now—Major General Armstrong wouldn’t have it. But, she wasn’t in Briggs anymore anyway, which meant… well, fuck. Nowhere was safe.

Fuckity fuck everything to shit.

The salutes came with ease—sloppy on Roy’s part, but with ease. It wasn’t as if he saluted anyone at the Comodeen. He and Kain were on a first-name basis now, and he had a feeling Breda wasn’t too far behind. The Lieutenant was the only exception, and she would undoubtedly remain that way for the rest of her life. His first name wouldn’t ever leave her mouth except when they were under cover. Falman, though, was different. He was far more formal, more prone to toe the line. 

And he had no idea what happened thus far, the things they knew, or what they knew of this damn place. They had a lot to catch up on indeed.

First things first, though…

Roy Mustang did not believe in angels. Yet, that did not explain why he could suddenly hear a choir of them singing in perfect harmony as Second Lieutenant Vato Falman all but glowed in front of him. Perhaps his time stationed at Briggs turned him into one of those divine creatures. Whatever the case was, Roy found himself a believer the second the word “coffee” left that man’s lips. It could be made of dirt for all he cared. The important fact was that it was coffee, something he hadn’t had in months, and he could use every ounce of it.

“You really are a sight for sore eyes, Falman. Congratulations on the promotion!” Roy offered him a smile before giving him his hand to shake. “I would love some coffee. Take a break while I get a fire going.”

“We’re limiting you to one cup only, Colonel,” the Lieutenant chimed in as she watched him gather some brush, “Your doctor may not be here, but I still remember your orders.”

“Yeah yeah.” One hand waved at her. “You said you’ve got a lot to report? How long have you been here? Last I heard you were at Briggs, but I’m guessing Briggs came here. Major General Armstrong’s gonna be pissed if that’s the case. Either way, tell me what happened, and we’ll share what we know too.” 

flameleads-> @forgotten-teammates -> shiroi---kumo

[zedif-y]

Tango wakes up with his face buried in Jimmy's chest, strong arms wrapped around him in an embrace. Nearby, the faint sounds of cattle and clucking reach his ears, and he shifts.

Jimmy's arms tighten around him, his face in Tango's hair as he whines in protest. "Stay."

Tango huffs fondly, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. "Aren't you normally awake at this time?" He asks, voice rough from sleep.

With his face buried in Tango's hair, he can feel more than hear his next words, " 'm comfy," He mumbles. Tango chuckles, tilting his head up to look at him.

"Hi," Tango smiles, admiring the way he looks in the morning light. "Fancy seeing you here."

Jimmy meets his gaze, looking down at him, his mouth quirking up. "Hi, love." He whispers, words only meant for him. They're said with a warmth like sunlight on a peaceful morning, and Tango basks in it, eyes fluttering shut when Jimmy presses a kiss on his forehead.

Tango's long tail moves lazily behind him, not unlike a cat's. "We should get up." He says when Jimmy pulls away. His eyes now trail the lines of Jimmy's throat, dipping all the way down to his exposed collarbone.

What's the harm in admiring the view?

Above him, Jimmy hums in agreement. "We should."

Neither of them make a move to get up.

Mornings are always a treat, Tango thinks as the warm light catches in Jimmy's hair, turning blonde strands golden. Still in Jimmy's embrace, he can't help but feel boneless as they bask in the tranquil glow of the morning, taking comfort in each other's company.

After some time, Tango hears Jimmy sigh, annoyed. "Hm?" He tilts his head in question, eyes flicking up at him.

"My wings itch." Jimmy pouts. "Needs preening."

Tango smiles, "Let's get up, then. I'll help." He murmurs, nosing at Jimmy's jaw. It takes a few moments, but finally Jimmy shifts to get up, arms pulling away from their embrace.

Tango valiantly doesn't whine at the loss.

He follows, sitting up and stretching his arms as Jimmy yawns, golden wings spread slightly at his back. Tango makes his way behind him, scooting over until he's close enough to preen his wings.

"Is it your turn to feed the cows, or mine?" Tango asks, straightening a few feathers. Jimmy makes a pleased sound, "Mine, I'm pretty sure." He replies, and they lapse back into easy silence.

It takes time, but eventually Jimmy's wings are all tidied up, loose feathers removed. Tango examines his work, pleased with himself. "All good?"

Jimmy hums happily, looking at Tango with open gratitude. "Yeah, thanks."

With a smile, Tango presses a light kiss on Jimmy's back, at the space between his shoulder blades. Jimmy shivers, "Tango," He groans, drawing out the o.

In reply, Tango kisses at the base of his wings, making Jimmy gasp. "You said we'd get up!" Jimmy squirms, but doesn't pull away.

Tango smirks, moving forward to kiss Jimmy's shoulder. "We're up," He drawls, right next to Jimmy's ear. Like this, he can see the faint dusting of pink on his cheeks, the way he's biting at the corner of his lip.

Jimmy glares at him. Tango laughs.

"Alright, alright!" He says, finally moving to get up from the bed. Tango opens a chest, tossing a shirt at Jimmy, who just barely catches it. "Up you go." He grins, watching as Jimmy's muscles flex and move while he puts on the shirt.

(It's one of Tango's, just a little bit too small.)

Jimmy gives him a knowing look, and Tango just smiles, feigning innocence.

He picks up his tools from the chest, eyeing the healthy crops outside with satisfaction. Just as his hand lands on the doorknob, Jimmy speaks up. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

Tango turns, and- Oh-

Jimmy's kissing him, soft lips on his with a hand cupping his face. He pulls away, looking down at him with such a loving expression that something inside Tango melts, Netherborn blood be damned.

"There you go," Jimmy says, tongue darting out to wet his lips. Tango's eyes zero in on the movement, and Jimmy laughs, gently pushing him away. "The wheat isn't gonna harvest itself, Tango."

"Yeah," Tango replies faintly. He shakes his head, clearing it. "Yeah." He repeats, more firm this time.

Jimmy looks smug. Tango chooses to ignore this.

He opens the door, stepping out. "I'll see you later, yeah?"

"Take care!" Jimmy calls out.

Tango closes the door behind him, a pleasant feeling following him the whole day. If the others notice the skip in his step, well, they don't say a thing.

[lovee-infected]

Macaroon anon I love you and how can I resist writing for such a great idea? I really wanted this piece to take place as Ciel was stuck in twst in my previous au but since I mentioned dorm leaders there it couldn't be really done...Rip

A twisted path ✨

~ Black butler x twisted wonderland ~

Feat : Mey-Rin , Bard & Finnian

Poor trio stay away in shock of not only his unexpectedly loud shout but also...eh...his appearance .  Are they wrong or does this guy really look similar to master Ciel...?

Coming conscious still with his eyes closed , he hears some sounds around him:" He dead ?-""No I don't think he is, his chest is still moving" "Anyway what's this body doing hear at Phantomhive's mansion? If he's been stabbed or something it's going to be troublesome," "Na I guess this dude's just been really drunk y'all. Also...what's with the clothes ? Could it be that he's somewhat of an actor from nearby theaters ?" "Aye? Since when are the designs this messed up...- I guess we'd better get rid of it before mister Sebastian returns, maybe burry hi-"

Riddle freaks out as he hears this idiots wanting to burry him alive and immediately wakes up screaming at them to stay away.

Riddle on the other hand gazes upon what he just faced: a red haired haired maiden wearing a pair of glasses, a yellow haired boy with green pupils and a rather buff man with a toothpick in his mouth staring at him. " Ah- He a'live ! Man ya gotcha be more careful with drinking," the buff man chuckles. Riddle suddenly feels highly unsafe: Who are these people? And where am I? He's read NRC's maps enough to know that such a building is surely not a part of it , come along it's weird people. Was he kidnapped while asleep...?He pulls up his staff and starts threatening them with it , wanting them to immediately introduce themselves and explain what he was doing here- wherever it was-

Finnian tries to calm him down with a soft smile and a friendly attitude, but Riddle is strong at his point: He wants answers.

When he sees them all trying to calm him down with no explanations he gets mad : "OFF WITH YOUR HEADS!"

...What ? Wait-maybe try again:"Off with your-Heads!" ...Why isn't it working? Riddle stays still, the magic collars have to be around their neck but- they are not...?? There must've been a mistake: " Off with your heads - Off with your HEADS - OFF WITH YOUR HEADS DAMN IT-"

Mey-Rin, Finnian and Bard stare at their angry guest shouting nonsense and getting as red as a tomato, what is wrong with this guy..?

Riddle is furious and confused , what's the matter ? Is his magic blocked the same as that time Beans day?  He doesn't know , and he doesn't like it

Riddle starts shouting at them asking what they've done to his magic and the poor guys just go...Huh ? Riddle keeps on getting redder and redder as if he's about to explode . He starts threatening them from reporting them to the head master to giving them to the official policies for kidnapping and neglecting his picture 

Finnian then decides that maybe it's better to leave him to mister Sebastian and so : Picking up a huge branch and a striking it to his head , savage

Riddle passes out immediately whoops- maybe Finnian should have been softer-

They stay there gazing upon their... masterpiece . Finnian might have even broken his skull - Good god , what should they do now ? They must wait until mister Sebastian arrives ; But where is he now ?

Feat : Suma & Agni

"Pssssssst- Agniii...I guess he finally woke u-" " M- my prince , y-you sure that it was a good idea too bring a total stranger out of nowhere to our home ? I'd greatly appreciate it if you be more ca-"

Argh...what is with all noises around him ? He's told Ruggie a million times not to let anyone in his room whole he's taking a nap even if it's gonna be the grim reaper ; what are these brats doing here?

Leona rambles under lips and with a push he's awake : " Oi , you'd better know that I don't like having my naps ruined,"

Suma gasps at the sight of him being finally awake and tries to offer his unwanted guest a welcome hug which Leona rejects- Poor Suma

Leona isn't yet realizing what actually is going on , from not knowing that this isn't his room to the fact that he's now at more than 100 years ago in a whole different world ; ironic

Leona orders them to take this annoying conversation out of his room just to face Agni's locked expression : "Your room...?"

Taking a better look , Leona finally gets that this probably isn't his room and these people surely aren't from NRC

Sounds get echoed through his brain and he feels a small ache inside it . He rubs his head ...why does everything feel so strange ? Something is different ... could it be that he's still sleepy or..? Wait a second - Why can't he shake his tail ?

He immediately looks back to see if he's sit on his own tail but faces a terrifying scene : There is no tail . Is it cut off ????

and a newer fact flashes his brain : There are no ears either . But then how can he still here the sounds ? "P-please don't be", he begs . His hands shake as he brings them up to touch both sides of his head ; wishing not to find what he is looking for . And they are ! Human ears !A mild shiver is sent down his neck and he rushes to the mirror on the other side of the room just to face this nightmare with his own two eyes

He stares at the mirror with his eyes wide open and mouth as if he is going to shout . No...

Oh...nevermind . He has to calm down ; it's nothing but another fancy dream . He'll soon wake up and these will be all gone . Leona tries closing his eyes and cursing , wanting to wake up to sanity when he opens them again

Surprise : Nothing's changes . Two crappy brats still staring at him . Agni is now a bit suspicious but Suma on the other hand is really motivated : " Ahh~! Sorry if it's strange to sleep in the streets and wake up in bed- I just saw you laying there in a death like slumber and couldn't help but to bring you along ! Also , haven't we met before ? I'm pretty sure that I've seen your face somewhere before... Don't you happen to be from India ? "

Agni is really stressed out and keeps warning the young boy : " My prince ! He's now all conscious and fine , then I'd lead him out of he-"

"Prince , huh ?" Leona wasn't ever really interested in visiting ally kingdoms back at his home town so he barely got to meet any other princes , hm but to think that this cherishing child is actually a prince...man , the world has really changed

But he has no time for such games now , he has to find Ruggie or anyone else who may lead him out this insanity and return him his ears and tail

He asks for where he is - else than Suma's mansion - and the answer doesn't really do any help either . Where on the bloody hell is London ? And if these people found him laying in the streets when the heck did he even get here ? Well , doesn't really matter now , but where is NRC ?

Suma and Agni probably don't know where NRC is and Dire Crowley ? Suma wonders if this guy was the one who fooled him to buy a sick elephant which died a week after in india , but Agni is sure that neither him nor his prince have ever met a single soul named this

Leona is getting more and more pissed off wasting time chatting with these idiots so he takes his way out , ignoring Suma's begs for him to stay for lunch at least

He freezes just at the second he opens the exit doors and gazes upon the streets : Horses? carriages ? 19th century's clothing ? How long have these people been stuck in this lack of technology?

He feels like he now really needs to make a phone call but searching his pockets he finds both of them empty...those brats stole my-

He was close to getting hit by a carriage when someone shouts at him with a : " OUT OF WAY YOU SON OF A-"

He is now ready to get in a fight but a sound cuts him off : " LEONAAAA HELLP-!!!!!!" , this extremely annoying sound...what the heck is he doing here and : WHAT IN THE BLOODY HELL HAS HE DONE NOW !!!????

Feat : Lau & Ran-Mao

Business tip nu 1 : Always keep calm , even if you end up losing all your magic powers in the surface without the possibility of returning to your original form or knowing where in the damn world you are : K-e-e-p-c-a-l-m

Thankfully , Azul's dope nature avoids him from going crazy during his stay in this...non-Twisted wonderland world

He had heard of theories explaining the possibility of other world's existence ; countless ones indeed . But to end up in one of them without any preparations ? He wasn't planning on that

Well nevermind , that cannot be helped now . let's look for a better way

Lack of facility , cultural deprivation and severe corruption ; is this how humans are ? No wonder the sea witch called them Poor unfortunate souls...

Enough with these people , he must now ignore all other disadvantages and take a look into beneficial sides of it...If he has ended up here , in this world and into this spot of the city there must be something linked to magic nearby ; even if he's surrounded by all these foolish people who haven't ever even seen real magic by their own eyes

Just as he's looking around , something catches his attention : a strange smell . Thanks to his family he's pretty good at following smells to their source and knowing what exactly they are : it's the pungent smell of Opium

He follows the smoke to its source and arrives to a bunch of stares going underground . A board is place next to the stares with something written on it :  Opium Den

Azul isn't one to believe in superstitions but he is sometimes interested to take ambitious  steps ; life sometimes brings you worthy surprises

Entering the shop , someone slightly grabs his arm . He turns his head to face a young, beautiful lady pulling his sleeve softly , eyes empty of any emotions . Without saying a word , Ran-Mao grabs his hat and coat and Azul thanks her , seems like he took the right path

His vision got a bit blurred as must of the air is filled with smoke , not that he isn't used to such atmospheres

" Why welcome to my place , sir . How may we service you today~ ? " a sound says from other side of the room . Azul turns back to face the source of all these smoke holding that young lady from before close , could she be her right arm woman or something ? She seems pretty obedient for one , which is nice

Azul introduces himself and takes a seat . He isn't going to get to his main point at the very first seconds ; he needs to make sure that he's come to the right person . He introduces himself as a businessman from a far away city , came to explore more of business tactics here in London . He offers Lau a small chat toward that , wanting him to give him more information on business if possible and return , he'd be given similar information about Azul's home town

While being considerably great at it , Lau isn't really interested in wasting time talking about business , all he ever cares in some sort of entertainment in whatever he does . Still , he agrees of playing this fake role for a short time . Although he knows that Azul isn't here for this either...

A few minutes pass and they both know that Azul doesn't really care to know how much a pork costs and either is Lau , so takes a serious step himself : " I see you're a man of business , Mr . Azul . I wonder what I you may be able to offer me in return ," Azul clarifies that he would get interesting information if he gives Azul good ones ; everything is clear and equal . "Then , I'm afraid that I've got not much to offer ," Lau sighs , but a small smirks appears of his lips : "But what would you say about some tea ? And maybe a small talk ? "

Lau isn't like others out there and that's pretty recognizable to Azul , but it doesn't make him the right person to trust either . He is continuing this conversation in hope of Lau leading him to the right person he is looking for , someone worthy of a greater contract . Lau lets out a sad sigh feeling sorry that he can't do much help , but he knows that who may do : A well-known friend , serving years working as a right arm man . Talented , well cultured , big on all issues including business : "I'm sure that you'll like him ,"

Well perhaps this thing's starting to work out for him : " Then by all means , lead me to this mister you speak of , Mr. Lau~" "With all pleasure . Bring him his coat and hat , sister " , Lau orders . Pleasure is always his first priority , but nothing would ever break rules of a contract ; He gives , he receives . Even taking him to Sebastian is counted but , he's already thought of that . This young man seems quite entertaining and when he first stepped into his shop Lau was expecting him , a spacial guest

Lau doesn't really care about superstitions , but still enjoys his ambitious steps  . This guy had came to him just as expected and now , something about him tells Lau that getting him to Sebastian will bring him as well newer faces to meet...what an entertaining day it would be

Feat : Tanaka

Jamil is... about to lose his mind . Caught in a whole other world without a meaningful explanation of how he ended up here or why . Magic doesn't work and there is no certain way to scape this situation and make a return to NRC . But the worst thing about it remained certain : He is caught with Kalim

Why in the bloody hell does he always have to be hooked up with Kalim ? Parents forced him into it at childhood , headmaster orders to it at school and now , the world suddenly decides to abandon him together with Kalim ? If it's joke , that's a pretty lame one . Why does he have to live in the shadows of Kalim being the unworthy dorm leader ?

Now lost in the streets , not knowing where to go or who to contact , what a wonderful way to start a day

Kalim isn't liking it at all : dirty streets , loud and short tempered people , street fight and drunk men everywhere , the smell of death filling the air , this is horrible . Kalim is well aware of poverty and deprivation lasting for so long and even remaining until the very present day , but traveling back in time and space to face one of the most terrifying levels of it just isn't his thing . He feels sorry and odd at the same time : Is this how life behind of the walls of his royal castle looked like ? He wishes he could help it . He probably could if he was any linked to NRC right now

He keeps on telling Jamil how poor they look and wonder if there is a way to help...The world Kalim knows has elegant and colorful nights and days but this world...was all caught in a dead gray mist

Jamil doesn't say a word because he doesn't want to listen , Kalim can keep on daydreaming but he has to find a way back a.s.a.p . They can't leave Scarabia just on their own and everyone (including Kalim's Dad) must be really stressed out by now . He continues to look , but there isn't really anything helpful around them . People yelling at each other and smoking the shit out of themselves . Young ladies flirting as young men offer them a carriage ride and tourists staring at each and every building like they hadn't ever seen a place to live inside as if they've been living in a cave so far , huh

Jamil can no longer take it next to Kalim and eventually goes feral : " WOULD YOU JUST SHUT UP !!?" He has no control over his words now , he's nervous , furious and freaked out . If he were to compare his mood to something similar he'd say the time he overblotted , just that he had his magic back then

Now Kalim as well gets into a fight with him . What the hell does this have to do with him ? Jamil has to calm down and be realistic unless they'll never find a way out ! Jamil states that if he grew up just enough to realize how terrible their current situation is , he would've had something better to do than showing mercy over some bunches of street rats

The two of them keep on arguing until someone cuts them of : " Hohoho young men ! What's with all these loud sounds ?"

They stop and turn back to face the source of this old , chill voice . Facing a tall , old man dressed in all black clothes which high-leveled servants would wear and a monocle , giving them a soft , calm smile

" Aa- nevermind grandps ! It wasn't like it seemed we were just talking ! Right Jamily ? " he says , putting a hand on Jamil's shoulder and giving a big , wide smile . "H-hey... don't call me that..." , Jamil doesn't like Kalim acting this chill ; but it is embarrassing to see that they actually called attention

"Hoho , better . Now tell me young men , could it be that you have a trouble ? You look awfully down ," Tanaka asks ; sounding just like a grandfather guiding his grandchildren

Kalim takes a look at Jamil , wondering if it's right to do what he's thinking of and Jamil in return , nods as a yes " Well sir , there you see we actually don't belong here yet to another-" Jamil cuts him off before he could mess the whole thing up : " -Another state , indeed ! We came here for some sort of a business trip and were supposed to be on our way back home by now but sadly , ran into thieves . Our families must be really worried for now and I doubt them being sure of us being hooked up here . We lost everything and have no way to contact anyone we know... only if someone nice enough could be found to help us with it right now ," Jamil dropped his head , trying to act as natural as possible . Kalim wants to remind him that this isn't right to lie someone who is trying to help them yet he wonders if he should let Jamil take care of this now , after all he was much of a worthier leader than him to be honest...

" That's so sad to hear dear boy , I'm sure that young master as well would've been really frustrated if he were here ," Tanaka replies . Oh ? Young master ?  Jamil is now interested . Wherever this man came from , it can't be somewhere cheap , Jamil could tell . Leading them to a mightier source would be a better thing than just laying in the streets waiting for some miracle to save them right ? " Young master , you say ? " Kalim asks . " On the second thought , how about me introducing you to my master ? You're not much older than him I suppose , he as well needs to have more friends like you good men  ," Tanaka says with a sweet smile . " That'll be so nice of you um , Mr...? " Jamil asks " Tanaka is fine young boys . And you? "  " Jamil Viper ," " Kalim al Asim ! Glad to meet you Tanaka sir ! " Kalim says , bringing his hand for Tanaka to shake . Tanaka shakes hands with both of them and Jamil decides to make the process a bit faster : " I look forward to meeting this young master you say , Mr. Tanaka . It's always great to meet more men of culture ," Jamil sneakers . " Then by all means , follow me young men ," Tanaka says . With a sound of pop and some smoke , the tall man shrinks into a chibi version : " Ho , ho , ho ," " What the-!!!" Kalim panicks , no magic and yet this dude can shrink all of a sudden huh ?

" Ho ho," chibi Tanaka says before turning back and going to another direction . " I guess we should follow him," Jamil says . Kalim agrees and then , they're both following the chibi old man to the Phantomhive's mansion . Unaware of the two eyes watching them all this time : " Hihihi ~ they're quite interesting ,"

Feat : Grell Sutcliff & Ronald Knox

"Come oooon Ronald~ Shake your lazy ass and bring her along already..." " Oi senpai , that's mean ! This one's quite heavy-" "JUST SHUT UP AND DO THAT ! Don't you know it's rude to question ladies too much ? " " F-fine then , but at least give me a hand ! Have you even checked if she's dead !? " Heavy ? Dead ? She...? Vil isn't born to be disrespected like this . AND NOT A SINGLE SOUL GETS TO PULL HIM BY LEG WHEN HE'S ASLEEP

Vil immediately starts shouting at the Blondie , threating him that he'll regret it if he doesn't let go of him now . Ronald and Grell almost have a heart attack at Vil's chicken like screech which makes them jump

Vil snads up and glares at the two shinigamis : A really ugly female like one all dressed in red and a small blondie brat which looks like...eh..Azul ? Well nevermind ; doesn't matter now

What should he begin with ? Where he is ? Who these potatoes are and how they didn't recognize him being the leader of Pomefiore ? How perky they were to move him while asleep like this and ruin fabric of his overly expensive unforms ? Too many things to do

" Ah you're too loud ! My ears...Such an unexpected shout to hear from a man this hot I'd say..." Grell giggles . Vil's eyes widen , well of course he is beautiful but to be praised like that ? Ew , this is more of a insult ...

Vil decides to ignore Grell and get to the main point : Who they were and what they wanted . Grell smirks before preparing to give a 5 hour long opera show of shinigamis' romance but Ronald locks him on that point : They are shinigamis , they collect souls of the death , they had grabbed Vil because he looked a bit like the woman they were just going to collect yet didn't pay enough of attention to notice that they made a mistake , so they can all leave since they've got nothing to do with each other

Just before Ronald could get away Vil grabs him by collar , asking where they've brought him to . Grell clears that they just moved him by 30-40 meters from where they found him so it can't be really counted as bringing him to somewhere . Vil refuses to believe , wherever he is , it's way further than Pomefiore dorm or even NRC's accessable area ; that can't be . Vil threatens them one more time : " You refuse to tell , you'll end up dealing with the headmaster ," Grell and Ronald probably don't know who the headmaster is but Grell tries to take advantage : "Aaa? Is he one into punishing type ?" Vil is slowly getting annoyed by how weird this red one sounds to him ; To be honest he acts like an impatient porn star or something...

That's it , he's calling Crowley but uh , where is his phone ? Did he lose it ? Impossible . He'll never forget such an important thing to bring along ... Did these brats dare to steal his pockets....!? Vil asks them to give his phone and wallet back : now " Sir , you may like to know that human money brings no good for us and also , I'm afraid that I don't really know what you may mean by phone? " Ronald mumbles (Remember that phone isn't yet invited at their time ). Why don't this guy just let them go take care of their business ?

Vil hates it when people dare opposing him and doesn't ever take that lightly...who do these two think they are ? " Where is Night Raven College , answer or you'll face unpleasant consequences..." Is Vil challenging Grell ? Then Grell's more than ready to see what this human may have up his slave to speak to a shinigami like this : " And what may the consequences be...?" Vil gets tired , a small spell and this red ass bitch would be nothing but a toad , " I tried to warn you , you should've listened..."

Ahem , hello ? Magic ? Why isn't it working ? " Pffffffftttt- Lmao are you high or something man ? You just woke up !You'll be a great actor though I swear- You can drown in all that nonsense ," Grell laughs . " Well then hottie , I'm afraid we've got to go , see you when it's your time ~ " Grell turns to leave but Vil grabs him by collar . No one is leaving until they explain what the actual heck is going on : this place , the magic , everything

Grell on the other hand enjoyed flirting , but can't take being acted to like this . He pushes Vil back and gives him a psychotic smile , bringing up his chainsaw : " Wouldn't it be amazing if I cut those rushy tongue of yours at once ? fewer words , more of a male charm ," "Oh ?" magic may not work here , but they're not all Vil has got , he can still give this bitch guy a lesson without them : " Oi you two , this isn't really gonna workout-" Ronald mumbles but it's too late now -

Feat : Undertaker

At least he wakes up to a more suitable scene , or it seems so - His body couldn't move freely inside of this cage-like space . Is this a cuffin...? He has experience with them from his freshman year but to end up in one of them again ? Could it be that Crowley is planning on another fancy event like their first time ? Boy , he didn't like it anyway . He knocks the door trying to open it but if seems too heavy to be moved . Damnit- , he hears footsteps from the outside : " Someone there ? Why can't I open this ??" A sudden screech from out and the door slides open : " Ah thank yoUWAHAAAA- !!" Idia screams at the sight of the creepy stranger's smile at him ; he wasn't expecting this . Also , this place doesn't look like the mirror hall ? Who is this guy and where is this place ??

" Hihihi you weren't that dead I see , why waking up so soon though~ ?" , Undertaker giggles in his playful tone . Idia needs too many things to be explained to him but he just doesn't have the time , Crewel will burn him in acid if he gets any late for his class again and he doesn't care how weird his current situation is , he has to go

He gets out of the coffin and rushes to the door but Undertaker stops him there telling him not to show up out there so carelessly , which clearly confuses Idia . " Your hair...It is quite fascinating that curses remain strong even as magic gets blocked..." Undertaker adds . Idia is used to people judging him for his family misfortune but this one seemed quite...odd . He decides to ignore it and leave

" ~ Okies then I warned you , but you'll end up needing a real cuffin in a few minutes pwahahaaa-" , Undertaker burts into laughter and Idia leaves

" creepy ass old ma-" , Idia nags slowly before freezing as someone screams really-loudly right into his ears " HAIR ON FIRE , HIS HAIR IS ON FIRE !!" Before Idia can notice what is going on he's gained tens of gazes to himself , why are these guys all dressed so strangely...

" M-mummy is that a monster ? I'm scared..." " Stay away from our children you hellish creature ! " Idia freezes , critiques coming one after one : Demon , monster , Satan , Death . One option left : Run

Idia now has to run for his life , this world just isn't his thing : not at all . Even if it weren't because of being chased by a group of angry humans , do you think that he could last for even one day in this old fashioned zone ? No technology , no phones , no robots , no gummy bears , no wifi- He'd read about how different the world was before the invention of media and couldn't explain how thankful he was to never have to handle a second in the past world because he wouldn't last there for more than an hour- well he wasn't right about never ending up there but , he was 100% right about not lasting for more than an hour

Now there , he is running like he never has , begging his feet to help him this time out of any other time . Angry people screaming and bringing fire and weapons to destroy the evil

He tries to contact any possible source for help but : No magic - no internet . RIP Idia

Meanwhile Undertaker is chilling at his shop , his mind running over the cursed boy and now listening to the sound of the frightened people because of him , how pathetic , If only he had agreed to hide his hair through a safer way...sigh he should have listened to advises coming from someone who has been living within humans for years by hiding his identity as a shinigami as as his eyes... " My my , humans aren't the only fragile creatures I see..." creation can seem disturbing to him sometimes , and that's the best part with it

Back to Idia , he is slowly running out of breath . Well maybe this is the point where he has to give up ? He has long lived as a loser , bastard , procrastinator and wasted almost each and every second of his life ; well perhaps except Ortho , that was a nice work of him . Wish he was here too say goodbye .  He isn't sure if his prayers would be accepted or not but it won't hurt trying : " Good gods who're told to be somewhere up there , I know that I wasn't best that I could be and I won't try to excuse my sins ; just please let it end fast, Ame- " he forgets his prayers as his guardian angel is standing just a few meters away from him ; oh have gods sent an identical twin - human version of Leona for him to be saved ? Well whatever now , he has no time if he's the original furry or not : "LEONAAAA HELLP-!!!!!!"

And yes , he is the original one ! He curses as he sees the population after Idia , what the hell is wrong with this world ? Idia hides behind his back and Leona tries to take control before they end up burning the two of them together : " You people , chill ," " Why you defending that creature ? He a a misfortune ! A demon !" others shout at this words in agreement . Leona laughs it off . He says that Idia is way too dumb for a demon and even if he is one , he's the type to scream his ass off when someone says "hi" . Idia doesn't know if Leona's defending him or not but he doesn't dare saying a word . Leona seems too busy dealing with the crowd and slowly , the argument topic switches from Idia to Leona ; who isn't afraid of punching some faces . The argument slowly takes over and no one (even Leona) realizes Idia sneaking into an alley saving his life . He feels a bit guilty for leaving Leona on his own but he'll be fine , hopefully

Thankfully the alley is deserted and he finally lays down to catch his breath , still panting heavily . He almost got killed today and can't get over it , but things were getting a bit comforting : "Meow~" several cats show up from the corners and Idia puts on a small smile . A white kittens comes closer and allows Idia to touch and comfort him . Idia wonders , how does their lives as a cat here feels ? do they as well get as scared as he was just now?  . A few minutes later when Idia -and his cats- were chilling someone steps closer to them  . Before Idia gets to run away , a tall , black and familiar face shows up and gives him a pretty calm smirk : " My my , I see you as well adore cats, could it be some part of our hellish natures ?"

"...J-Jade...?"

Feat : Ciel Phantomhive & Sebastian Michaelis

Let us be honest , it isn't going to be that bad for him , is it ? His current lifestyle at Valley of the thorns is nothing less than London's late 19th century , just maybe it had more of a natural theme . Well , no technology can be good news since he never really get used to it after all . London's atmosphere as well seem to be just his thing : Sometimes savage but calm , filled with tea parties and great ceremonies , an interesting back ground toward the royal family and in summary , Malleus's ideal theme

Well maybe except some things : 1) HORNS-ARE-GONE . His family treasure , the great heritage that proved him coming from the all great and respected Draconia family , now is gone 2) No need to mention that there is no sight of his fairy ears either- 3) Having his magic lost in this unknown world , he is now nothing different from a fragile human being , just as weak , just as empty , just as disgusting . Oh but our prince isn't totally left on his own here...

Unexpectedly , Phantomhive's mansion is serving a mysterious guest today , even though Ciel was against letting strangers inside the house . Sebastian insisted on being aware of the importance of hospitality as the Queen's watch dog , specially with special guests

Everything seems odd to Malleus , this world , this time , this people and...this master and butler . He is no fool , not even the foolishest of these humans would treat and cater strangers without wanting something in return , therefore he needs to keep his guard up . They shouldn't be aware of his actual identity even if they look deprived of any magic

Ciel is feeling awfully uncomfortable , who is this man ? And what the heck about him might have caught Sebastian's eyes ? This greedy demon wouldn't easily be impressed , so what could it be ?

Sebastian insists that it's how he should learn to treat everyone else if he's willing to be well remembered after death ; he pronounces the last word in a pretty deep , dark tone . Making it clear that how he'll finally die in a sarcastic way which teased Ciel

He decides not to have any argues with Sebastian on that point since he can act pretty cocky with stuff he gets stubborn over , so let's see what he's hiding up in sleeve this time . Though Ciel is suspicious of other stuff as well , this Mr... -whatever he is since he doesn't give them a name- looks like a pale - greenish version of Sebastian . Could he be another demon..?

Malleus refuses to give them a name due to possible risks , yet he has to admit that he's being taken care of properly . The room he's given isn't as big as the one in his castle , but is still considerable for something a stranger would be given . Other than that , anyone else he's met here so far seemed to be pretty chill , oh except this tiny child with a blindfold and he gets to be called young master ? He has to admit that he's impressed . To be in control of all this property when you aren't yet even tall enough to pick your favorite book from the shelf on your own

And there is another guy who is really...how to explain , is it some feeling of deja Vu or he really does look like Silver ? The guy is always talking to the snakes just as Silver talks to the birds and animals . If it weren't because of difference in eye color , perhaps Malleus wouldn't believe that he wasn't Sliver himself . " Your stay won't last much longer master , your friends are on their way here , says Donne ," Snake tells him . Malleus doesn't really know how to feel about him but his words comfort him for some reason...

Ciel says that he needs to check on the trio since they've been calling him all day so he heads to the front yard , leaving Sebastian and Malleus alone

Sebastian offers him some tea and Malleus of course sees no reason to refuse . Sebastian doesn't sit beside him because it's arrogant of servants to sit beside the guests , so he remains stood up . He doesn't bother starting a conversation with Malleus and he does know how to get him to speak . Malleus doesn't mind answering to...some of his questions . How he likes it here in London , if he needs anything else during his stay , but the last question made his eyes widen : Does he do feel any uncomfortable under the terms of not being able to use his powers ?

Malleus doesn't answer , he pretends that he didn't hear him and stares at the window . He is hoping it to help him ignore Sebastian , but what he sees isn't any better :  Isn't that... Rosehearts laying there...??

Malleus has to go , not only because of getting rid of Sebastian at this point but to also check on his ally if he's alright or not :  Did the butler know he too was here all the time ?

Sebastian just knows what was going on in his mind and wants  better answers . Malleus stands up to leave but Sebastian takes grabs his arm before he could do anything : " No need to rush . We still have a lot to talk about , Mr. Draconia ,"

♦♥♠♣

Note for Idia's part : I was actually planning on Idea having his hair as well gone because , well , no magic no hair ? But that seemed too unfair for him lol

[spacesuitsforemergency]

The Rise Of Iron Maiden

Chapter 4: Failure to Launch

Word Count: 2.9k

Originally Requested by: @amateurwriterbigdreamer

Previous Chapter: We’re in the Endgame Now

Next Chapter: The Return Of Iron Maiden

A/N: this chapters kinda slow, but I gotta fill the plot. Next chapters gonna be pretty Tye heavy (mostly from his POV)

“Wrah!” Nebula stood up, putting her hands in a fighting stance.

“You don't need to do that. Because uh... you're just holding position.” Tony mimicked a football goalpost with his hands as she flicked a paper football towards him. “Oh yeah, that was close.”

“I would like to try again.”

You and Tye watched from the front of the ship, both of you previously watching the stars. Both of you are silent, neither of you wanting to talk. You were still too shaken up from the events of nearly last month. Nebula had attempted to fly you back to Earth, but the Milano broke down and now you were floating in space, hopeless.

“Fair game. Good sport. Have fun?” Your dad asked Nebula.

“It was...fun.” She nodded slowly.

“Tye, Y/N, wanna play?” Tony looked over to the two kids.

“I’m good.” Tye mumbled.

“Hey, come on.” Your dad urged. “It’s fun. Right, Nebula?”

“It is fun.” She nodded, face deadpanned. Tye sighed, but eventually joined them.

“Y/N?” Your dad offered.

“Um...I’m tired, I’m gonna go sleep for a little bit.” You give him a small smile as if to say you were okay, before retreating to the back of the ship towards the bedrooms.

You lay down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. You think about everyone at home, and the frustration of not knowing who was still alive. Were Eduardo, Jaime, Peter, Quill, Drax, Mantis and Doctor Strange still alive? Or did they die? Would they ever come back? Could you bring them back?

Usually Eduardo was there to tell you you were overthinking and to calm you down, but he was gone. He turned to dust in your hands, and you couldn’t do anything about it. You hated it when you couldn’t control something, much like your father. If you couldn’t protect the ones you loved, you felt useless. You felt guilty, believing it was your fault that Eduardo, Jaime and Peter were gone. You were even guilty about the Guardians of the Galaxy, even though you barely knew them.

You looked over at your pile of armor on the floor. You dragged yourself out of bed, sitting against it. You clicked a button on your helmet, and waited for it to light up.

“This thing on?” You ask nobody in particular, then let it scan you. “Alright. Hey mom. Uh...sorry for not listening to dad. Again. I should be down on Earth, I’m sorry I’m worrying you. Dad makes you do that enough already.” You chuckle softly. “Um...it’s day 22, just floating in space. The blue meanie tried to fly us back. You’d like her, she’s very practical. It’s only her, me, dad, and Tye left. He doesn’t talk much-well, not that he did before. He’s pretty broken over Jaime. Peters gone too, poor kid. Aunt Mays gonna kill him. Um...I lost Eduardo. He just...turned into dust. I couldn’t do anything about it...I really miss him, mom. I won’t miss him much longer though, in fact, I might see him in the next...48 hours of oxygen. It won’t last long with four people on here though. I didn’t think I’d die like this, it’s so pathetic.” You scoff and shake your head. “I thought I’d die saving people. I want to die saving people, that’s how I’ve always wanted to go but...nope. I’m gonna die because this piece of junk broke down in the middle of the universe. So uh...I’m gonna go play some paper football with the two grumps and dad. I’m really sorry, mom. All you do is put up with our shit, and tell us when to stop. I should’ve listened this time.” You go to turn it off, quickly saying, “I love you.”

You fall back against the bed, feeling lightheaded and dizzy. The low oxygen levels are already effecting you, which meant your dad and friend were both feeling them too. You wanted to go join them, but you couldn’t move your whole body enough to do so. You lied there, staring at your Iron Maiden suit. The suit you used to save people, but you couldn’t even save yourself. You failed Eduardo. Jaime. Peter. Quill. Drax. Mantis. Doctor Strange. And who knows who else.

You feel yourself being lifted off the ground, and you look up to see Nebula. She was mostly machine, so the lack of oxygen wasn’t effecting her as bad as you. She carried you over to a couch that she had dragged into the control room, facing the window. Your dad was sitting in the middle, Tye beside him. Nebula sat you on his other side, then left.

Tony gathered enough strength to lift his arms, resting them around the two kids’ shoulders and pulling them closer to him. He wanted to comfort them, but he couldn’t speak. You all stared out at the stars, awaiting your deaths.

•

A bright light pierced your brain, making you cringe as you wake up. You open your eyes and blink until they adjust. You see a woman outside of the ship, looking in. You weakly shake your dads leg, trying to alert him. His hand rests atop of yours to tell you he’s okay, as he slowly sits up a little.

“Who’s that?” Tye mumbles, half asleep.

“Not sure, kid.” Tony replied. You pass out again, not able to hold consciousness. You wake up again when someone shakes you awake, opening your eyes to see your dads best friend, Rhodey.

“Y/N? Hey, think you can stand?” He asked softly. You nod, and he helps you to your feet you lean on him as he walks you down the ramp to outside.

“Is mom...?” You breathe out, still blinking away black spots in your vision.

“Y/N! Tony!” You hear her yell from somewhere, before Rhodey can even open his mouth. “Oh my god! Oh my god!”

Your mom practically crashed into you, holding you tightly to her. You fall into her, not having the strength to stand any longer. Your dad walks by himself over to his two girls, hugging them tightly. Back in space, he truly thought those would be his last moment, so he was eternally grateful that he got to live long enough to hold them both again.

Tye watched the scene from where Natasha was helping him stand, feeling alone. His mother was in a different dimension than him, and Tye felt like she probably didn’t even miss him.

“Nat?” He breathed out.

“What’s up?” She asked, looking down at the exhausted boy.

“You have food that isn’t freeze dried and in a silver bag, right?” He asked.

“Yeah, come on.” She chuckled, helping him walk towards the Compound.

“Don’t you two ever do that again.” Pepper began to cry.

“No promises.” Tony kissed each of his girls on top of the head, as Steve approached you guys. “Couldn’t stop him, Cap.”

“Neither could I.” Steve nodded.

“I lost the kids. Peter. Jaime. Eduardo.” Tony shook his head, guilt washing over him once again.

“Tony, we all lost.”

You’re brought into the compound, each immediately given an IV and some food. You and Tye eat like animals, not having any rations for the past couple of days. You watch a holographic screen listing the heroes that disappeared in the Decimation; Wanda Maximoff, Nick Fury, Jaime Reyes, Bucky Barnes, Peter Quill, Scott Lang, Sam Wilson, Peter Parker, T’Challa, Eduardo Dorado Jr...

“It’s been 23 days since Thanos came to Earth.” Rhodey announced.

“World governments are in pieces. The parts that are still working are trying to take a census. And it looks like he did... he did exactly what he said he was gonna do. Thanos wiped out fifty percent, of all living creatures.” Natasha paced slowly in front of the holographs.

“Where is he?” You ask timidly, still nervous about him.

“We don't know. He just opened a portal and walked through.” Bruce Banner said slowly, trying to not scare the kids even more than they already were.

“What's wrong with him?” Tony asked, motioning to Thor, who was staring into space.

“Oh, he's pissed. He thinks he failed. Which of course he did, but you know there's a lot of that's going around, ain't there?” A talking raccoon spoke up from behind you.

“Honestly, until this exact second, I thought you were a Build-A-Bear.” Your dad pointed at him.

“You’re with him, kid? Really?” The raccoon looked at Tye.

“You know a talking raccoon?” You asked Tye, staring at the raccoon.

“He’s not a-.”

“I’m not a raccoon!” It snapped at you. “Why do you humies keep saying that?”

“We've been hunting Thanos for three weeks now. Deep Space scans, and satellites, and we got nothing. Tony, Y/N, Tye, you fought him.” Steve interrupted.

“Who told you that? I didn't fight him.” Tony scoffed. “No, he wiped my face with a planet while the Bleecker Street Magician gave away the store. Nearly killed my daughter, and Tye. One hit away from it, in fact. That's what happened. There was no fight.”

“Okay.”

“He was unbeatable.” Tye shook his head, and you agreed.

“Did he give you any clues, any coordinates, anything?” Captain America asked.

“Pfft! I saw this coming a few years back. I had a vision. I didn't wanna believe it. Thought I was dreaming.” Tony said.

“Dad, calm down.”

“Tony, I’m gonna need you to focus.”

“And I needed you. As in past tense. That trumps what you need. It's too late buddy. Sorry. You know what I need?” Your dad stood up, slapping things off a table. Everyone winced from the sudden noise. “I need to shave. And I believe I remember telling all youse-“

Tony lunges at Steve, but Rhodey stepped between them and held your dad back.

“Alive and otherwise what we needed was a suit of armor around the world! Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedoms or not-that's what we needed!” Tony yelled at Steve.

“Well, that didn't work out, did it?” Steve kept his composure, only angering your father even more.

“I said, "we'd lose". You said, "We'll do that together too." And guess what, Cap? We lost. And you weren't there. But that's what we do, right? Our best work after the fact? We're the Avengers, we're the Avengers. Not the Prevengers.”

“Dad! Stop!” You shout at him, your head spinning.

“You know what, honey? The adults are talking, alright?” Your dad said, with a little more venom than he intended.

“Mr. Stark you made your point just-“ Tye started.

“Nah, nah. Here's my point. You know what?” Tony turned back to glare at Captain America.

“Tony, you’re sick.” Rhodey insisted, trying to get him to sit back down.

“I got nothing for you, Cap! I got no coordinates, no clues, no strategies, no options. Zero. Zip. Nada. No trust. Liar.” Tony slowly walked up to Steve, getting right in his face. You all tensed when Tony ripped his arc reactor out of his chest, smacking it into Steve’s hand. “Here, take this. You find him, and you put that on. You hide.”

“Dad!” You shout when he suddenly falls to the ground.

“Tony!” Steve reached down to help his old friend up.

“I’m fine. I...” Your dad trails off, falling unconsciously to the floor. You try to get up, but Natasha pushes you back down by your shoulders.

“Get him to a room. Call Pepper.” Natasha ordered the men, before turning back to you two. “He’ll be fine, Y/N. Just needs to rest. So do you.”

“Not tired.” You shook your head stubbornly.

“Nebula, Rocket, think you can handle watching them for a moment?” She asked the two aliens, sitting on the wall behind you.

“Yes.” Nebula nodded.

“Sure.” The raccoon, or, Rocket shrugged.

Natasha gave you a reassuring smile before turning to help the other bring your father to a room.

“Sorry about your friend, kid.” Rocket hopped down and rounded the couch you and Tye were on to face him.

“Yeah. Sorry about the others.” Tye nodded, expression not changing at all. Your eyes drifted back to the screen, watching more and more names and pictures appear onscreen.

“Where are you going?” You hear Natasha ask someone.

“To kill Thanos.” The lady that flew you home stated simply as they emerged from the hallway.

“Hey, you know, we usually work as a team here, and between you and I, morale's a little fragile.” Nat mumbled.

“We realize up there is more your territory, but this is our fight too.” Steve nodded.

“You even know where he is?” Rhodey joined them.

“I know people who might.” The lady said, blank faced.

“Don't bother. I can tell you where Thanos is. Thanos spent a long time trying to perfect me. And when he worked, he talked about his great plan. Even disassembled, I wanted to please him. I'd ask "where would we go once his plan was complete?". His answer was always the same: "To the Garden." Nebula stood up, walking over to them.

“That's cute, Thanos has a retirement plan.” Rhodey joked, earning small smiles from you and Tye. He smiled back, glad to bring the two kids joy, even for a moment.

“So where is he?” Steve asked, and the adults walked over to a round table. You and Tye joined them, regaining enough strength to stand. You still leaned on Rhodey, which he happily let you do.

“When Thanos snapped his fingers, Earth became ground zero for a power surge of ridiculously cosmic proportions. No one's ever seen anything like it... Until two days ago.” Rocket showed a hologram of a planet, with a shockwave visibly traversing the surface. “On this planet.”

“Thanos is there.” Nebula added.

“He used the Stones again.” Natasha muttered.

“Hey, hey, hey. We'd be going in short-handed, you know.” Bruce piped up.

“Look, he's still got the stones, so...” Rhodey said.

“So let's get him... Use them to bring everyone back.” The lady told you.

“Just like that?” Tye raises an eyebrow in disapproval.

“Just like like.” Steve nodded.

“Even if there's a small chance that we can undo this... I mean we owe it to everyone who's not in this room to try.” Natasha tried to convince everyone. You looked down, feeling the guilt from letting your friends die in the pit of your stomach.

“If we do this, how do we know it's gonna end any differently than it did before?” Bruce asked.

“Because before, you didn't have me.” The lady crossed her arms.

“Hey, new girl, everyone here is about that superhero life. And if you don't mind my asking, where the hell have you been all this time?” Rhodey put a hand on his hip, making sure to balance so you wouldn’t fall.

“There are a lot of other planets in the universe. And unfortunately, they didn't have you guys.” The lady narrowed her eyes at Rhodey.

Thor walked out of the shadows, towards the lady. They stand in front of each other as if challenging the other. Thor holds out his hand, and Stormbreaker flies into his hand. Then they both grin at each other.

“I like this one.” Thor said.

“Let’s go get this son of a bitch.” You growl.

“Like hell you’re going!” Natasha laughed.

“No way, kids.” Steve shook his head. “Adults only on this one.”

“Would you quit treating us like children?” You glare at them.

“We probably got more punches in on Thanos than all of you combined.” Tye said venomously.

“First of all, not possible.” Natasha said. “Second of all, you are not coming. Tony and Pepper would go into cardiac arrest if you came along.”

You and Tye exchange looks, looking to the floor in compliance.

“Look, we know you’re hurting. But going at him all malnourished and seeking revenge is not the way to do it.” Rhodey told you guys.

“You’ll stay here with Tony and Pepper, okay?” Natasha asked. “Rest. Let us take care of this.”

“...okay.” You sigh.

“Thank you.” She pulled both of you into a hug. You melted into it, Tye tensed up.

You hugged each of the remaining Avengers, even Thor let you hug him, though he didn’t hug back. You and Tye stood and watched at they boarded the now fixed Milano, then watched them take off. You stood there for a little bit after, staring at the dark sky.

“Tye?” You whisper after a long stretch of silence.

“Yeah?”

“You think they can do it?” You ask

Tye hesitates. You’re scared, he’s scared, and both of you just want even a glimpse of hope. He debates what to tell you, what he truly thought or what he knew you wanted to hear.

“...no.”

You nod slowly, agreeing with him. A single tear falls down your face, dropping onto the paved pathway.

“I miss them, too.” Tye took a shaky breath, fighting his own tear ducts. He never cried, let alone in front of anyone.

“I’m sorry you lost Jaime.” You turn to him. “I know how much he meant to you. Eduardo too.”

“I’m sorry you lost Peter. You guys are as close as Jaime and I are. And I’m sorry you lost Eduardo, too.” Tye quickly blinked away tears.

“Can you believe they’re all gone?” You ask.

“No.” He shook his head. “I wish it could just be a month ago. When we were on that one mission.”

“The one where Jaime and Peter accidentally broke into Scott Lang’s house?” You giggle.

“How do you accidentally break in?” Tye laughed, shaking his head. “They’re truly idiots.”

“But they’re our idiots.” You nod, smiling sadly at the sky.

[susannaprouse]

Four - Quito

After waking from our great sleep in a king size bed and having great hotel breakfast we wandered down to the meeting point for our free Quito walking tour. There was a huge group of people waiting and I was thinking maybe it wasn't going to be very good but luckily there were two guides to take two groups. We were quickly sorted in a group with Fernando, who we learned was called Fernando after the Abba song. And that was it, Fernando, the song, was in my head for the rest of the day.

He told us he was born and lived in Quito just like his father, grandfather and great grandfather so he knew the city well! He walked us around the old part of the city (a tiny porportion of the city as a whole) taking us to see lots of churches, hidden courtyards and bustling squares. As it was Saturday the city was full of locals, apparently on a weekday the city is very quiet. The Quitoians were buying all the delicious food being sold, buying everything and anything on stalls, watching the entertainment and just sitting and relaxing. It felt a bit like being in Covent Garden.

Fernando also told us Ecuador's interesting history, grusome stories about their presidents being murdered and why they had to change from local currency to the American dollar. The tour was really good and considering I knew nothing about Ecuador I was really pleased to have some insight early on. We gave Fernando a tip (as a free tour is never really free) and headed to the Central Market for some food.

The Central Market was amazing, selling meat, vegetables, fruit, meat and loads of types of potato! There were also loads of places to get food but obviously I had researched it so knew where I wanted to get some. We found the stall and both opted for the traditional lunch - fish with potato and ceviche (cold fish soup), thinking about it now we really threw ourselves in for a potential dodgy belly but neither of us got ill so it was worth it!

The food came out and of course it was delicious. I wasn't sure I was going to like the ceviche as gazpacho makes me feel weird but it was salty and fishy and great. The fish itself was amazing, it was so soft and flaky, with a light and crispy batter. We really enjoyed the meal, making the woman that owned the stall very happy. We paid our 6 dollars and decided to have another wander around the old town.

I quickly noticed a lot of people were eating ice cream as we were walking and was determined to find it. We walked around a corner and found someone selling it for 50 cents! It was a no-brainer and also delicious.

To satisfy my fascination with nuns we then went to a working monastery. I had images of walking among the nuns that weren't allowed to speak except for one hour a day, staring at them and wondering what their lives were like. I was dissapointed when I realised the nuns were in a seperate part of the monestary and we weren't going to see them. It was like missing the panda at Edinburgh Zoo all over again.

We made our way around the rooms looking at the religious artwork and seeing the rooms the nuns used, the big hall where they ate in silence, the kitchen where the cooked in silence, the sewing room where they sewed in silence and their room where the slept in silence (what happens if they sleep talk I wonder?). We finally made it to a room where there was a black curtain at the back. Mike asked what was behind it, I knew he was too scared to look so I did. It was terrifying. It was a pitch black room with nothing but a head with a light shining on it. I quickly poked my head out and told Mike to come in. As he did the room lit up with more terrifiying flickering light to reveal a cast of dummies. Mary was in the back (it was her head that was lit up initially) and she was surrounded by disciples and angels. I loved it, but no idea why it was set up as a jump-scare.

We finally went into the last room where I could hear a humming noise like a car engine running. I wanted to find out what the noise was so I squinted through a hole in the wall. I couldn't believe it, it was a nun on an electric floor polisher polishing the chapel floor! It was amazing and I wanted to watch her for longer but Mike made me leave. I'm not sure why I've got a fascination with nuns but surely it's something to do with Sound Of Music, Mum?

After the monastery we walked back to the hotel for a quick rest, it was quicker than we anticipated because there were two weddings on in the town and so we needed to wait to see the bride (I'm not sure Mike would say we needed to wait...). After our rest we went back out to La Ronda, a cobble stoned street that we'd visited and that was dead in the day but that comes alive at night. On our way we saw some people up on a roof terrace and realised it was a bar so we decided to go up to get a drink with a nice view of the city. We got in the ancient lift and the woman operating it cranked the lever up. We got out and had the most amazing view of the city at sunset. We took photos and realised we didn't actually have to buy a drink so went back down again. We continued walking and spotted a man dressed in all white with a small white contraption. We knew what he was selling and decided to get some for 50 cents. He poured it out into a small cup and we each had a gulp. The only way to describe it is the head of a beer that's been fermented. It was slightly fizzy, slightly weird and more than slightly good.

We got to La Ronda and started to hunt out what we'd come for - Canelazo - a spiced alcholic hot drink made with a sugar cane spirit and other spices. We found a woman selling it like someone would sell mulled wine at a Christmas fayre. We had a cup each for 2 dollars and tasted it. It was really sweet and really good, kind of similar to mulled cider but more alcholoic.

Having drank the cups by the time we'd walked back up the street we decided to have a snack and went in to a pizza place that seemed to be the best place in the area. We shared a personal pizza and empanada, both were great but better was the tiny old woman running the place who we both fell in love with.

Feeling warm from the canelazo and tired from all the walking we head back to our hotel to read and sleep.

[sally-annesstories]

Day 67 - Antigua, Guatemala

1. At a cool 3am there was a knock on the cabin door to wake us up for our morning hike. This is so we can make the summit for sunrise (about 1.5 hours away). Only 5 minutes after that though there was another one. The guide was back to say the weather just turned and the clouds had come over intensely and perhaps the walk wasnt going to be worth it. He was happy to do the walk if anyone wanted but based on weather likely any sunrise view would be better from basecamp. I got up out of bed to check it out myself and it was so cold and the wind was blowing a gail with thick clouds surrounding. After hanging out a couple of minutes I decided going up wasnt worth it. I didn't feel I needed to say I made it for the sake of it when we were told and my view from the weather was we had it as good as it would get. Just under half the group decided to make the trek. I stayed up for a while sitting by the fire but after 15 minutes the clouds kept a coming in and it felt like nothing was going to change. I decided napping was a better use of my time. Glad I did this as those that stayed up said nothing changed and eventually followed suit. On top of this those that hiked up the top said it was immensely challenging in the wind and darkness. When they made the top there was nothing but clouds and they had to face the volcano side from the wind only turning to the (non-existant) view intermittently. They ultimately stayed up there 3 minutes before making the trek back. While I know you go up Acatenango to get to summit and see Fuego erupt, of which neither happened for me. I still really enjoyed the hike, it's not often you're really in the clouds like that!

2. At around 7am it was wake up round two for breakfast, this was oatmeal and tea. While we'd had the hike the day before I wasnt overly hungry so I took my time going along but eventually did. Just as I'd finished breakfast one of the men on my tour came into the food tent saying a group had shown up at the campsite asking for a doctor. Luckily we did have a doctor on the hike and on top of this, I think all the guides have to have a certain level of training. What eventuated was a group had been up the summit for a while (remembering the guys from my group were only there a few minutes) and a member of their group had hypothermia. Everyone cleared out of the food tent where the heater was that they took her inside with the doctor. Then my cabin cleared all our stuff out and got a sleeping bag to her ( doctors orders) and then they moved her in the cabin with the sleeping bag and the heater. It must've been further help the doctor spoke pretty good Spanish but the guides also stayed to help with translation too. While this was all happening myself and the others from my cabin stood by the campfire trying to stay warm. After 30/40 minutes the all clear was given and she was deemed in the green and it was time for us to begin our descent.

3. Yesterday it was largely an uphill journey so today is all downhill. From a physical toughness perspective this isn't so bad on my muscles but the challenge is staying up right and not spraining knees and ankles! The path is semi slippery from the wet and then also people race up and down the volcano (!!) So when they go down they intentionally slide their feet at parts to go faster but this makes it more slippery for us wee walkers. The trip down was only like two hours and I managed to go largely unscathed. I was wearing warm gloves at the start because of the cold but then kept them on once I didnt need them. This was because I realised if I slipped or needed to grab onto something it was better they got dirty than my hands. This was lucky because at one point we went through a cornfield which was protected by barbed wire. It just happened to be here that my ankle gave way on me. I had tried to grab a wooden post but missed in the slip and grabbed the barbed wire! Luckily the glove ripped ever so slightly but I was unscathed. Even better was all of me also didnt go into the menacing fence and I stayed upright! At around 10am i finished the decent and it was into the bus for the one hour ride to Antigua.

4. Back in Antigua I was rather optimistic for my afternoon. I only had the rest of this day and the start of the next to finish tripping around. Back at the hostel I had a shower (hottest temperature and strongest water preassure in 67 days!) Before heading out. First was to the Antigua lookout with the cross. It was a Sunday so a little bit busy but not as bad as you'd expect. Its only a small hill walk up but given it had been all of 3 hours since I'd finished Pacaya I was super slow. Pretty sure I was dwadling with my sleepy legs. Once down again the next stop was la mercad la mercad church. Turns out I'd been to both before a number of times without really registering. They were cute but nothing overly exciting. Then I went to go to the Santa Catalina arch but there were hundreds of people on the road so i cut my losses and went to Museo Casa Santo Domingo (a fancy hotel you can tour around). My zombiness got the better of me here and after a quick circle I ended up just sitting in their courtyard for an hour before making my way back to my own hostel. It was super peaceful in the gardens there.

5. Back at the hostel Abi and I caught up for a drink before going out for dinner. While we had a drink we looked at her draft Colombia plans as she had done lots of research and so it was helpful for me to learn a few things for my future weeks. I also passed on info I've received from others. Then what better way to spend your last evening in Guatemala than with Mexican food. We went to a highly recommended place called Frida's and it was well worth the hype. Delicious quesadillas and nachos. I had a frozen guava margarita which was heaven. At 10pm it was hometime for the final sleep in Guatemala! Its been a good 5 weeks here.