#and venom fic!! which will also hopefully be updated soon

[formula-fun]

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[starrynite7114]

Misconstrued: Part 6

A/N: FINALLY! SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG. School is back in session and things you never knew has been occupying me. But here it is now! So excited to finally update! I hope you all will enjoy this one. 

Did you guys want a few more parts? See how their relationship progress? Should we move on to another series? LOL Let me know what you think!

Also, thank you again for the response I’ve been getting for this story.  I enjoy reading all of your comments!

Please check out the Masterlist! I updated it with links that hopefully work for my multi-chapter fics!

Anon:  I don’t know if this is too specific but could you do something about Angel ruining a date and later admits it because he loves them and then they have some angry smut and late night fluff

Anon, I hope you’ve enjoyed misconstrued! It wasn’t exactly how you requested it, but I still hope you enjoyed it!

Word Count: 6927

Warnings: Mild angst, Smut

Previous parts

Part 1 : Part 2 : Part 3 : Part 4 : Part 5

Masterlist

Tag list: @iambabyharry; @justahopelessssromantic : @carlaangel86 : @marvelmaree : @mrsamaroevans : @ifoundmyhappythought : @woahitslucyylu : @cind-in-real-life : @briannab1234 : @fairygardenss : @gemini0410 : @everyhowlmarksthedead : @losolvidad0s : @whyisgmora : @comasi-world : @xserenax-13 : @chibsytelford : @welovethesponge : @claytoncardenasbabymama : @jadert15 : @bigcreatorwombatdreamer : @trulysuccubus : @pananegra : @summertimesadnesswithadashofsass : @encounterthepast : @enamoured-x : @elcococruz : @samcrobae : @sadeyesgf : @briana-mishell24

Credit to the original creator of the gif!

You jolted awake, hearing the banging of cabinets in your kitchen. Looking at your phone that laid beside you, it was nearing three in the morning. You had multiple messages from EZ and Angel, frowning as to why dumb and dumber left numerous messages on your phone and called you as well. Grabbing your bat, you were hoping it was Angel that was in your kitchen, hell, maybe even EZ, but you could never be too sure. Making your way out of your room, you heard Angel cussed as he rummaged through your fridge. 

Sighing in relief, you placed your baseball bat back in your closet. Making your way out of your room, you found Angel sitting on your couch. He looked up at you and you could see the tears in his eyes. 

“Angel, what are you doing here?” 

“EZ betrayed me.” Angel uttered out, his voice thick.

“What?” You approached him, and Angel pulled you to him as soon as you were close enough, resting his head on your stomach, wrapping his arms around you. 

You ran your fingers through his hair, kissing the top of his head. You waited for him to speak, but he remained silent and just held you.

“Let’s go to bed?”

He placed his beer on the table and followed you to your bedroom. He took off his clothing, leaving him in his muscle shirt and boxers. When he found out about EZ’s betrayal, all he wanted to do was see you. He fucking missed you. It was insane how a woman could change his life so quickly. But it was hard to imagine life without you at this point. 

Angel slipped in beside you. You were facing one another. Tracing a finger on Angel’s face, you could see the sadness and anger in his eyes. He proceeded to tell you everything. From the rebels to EZ’s betrayal. You just listened as he let it all out, his frustration, concerns, anger and his sadness. You couldn’t believe EZ would do what he did, but at the same time, it made sense. EZ wouldn’t get a pass just because the cop was crooked.

“I love you, you’re a good man Angel Reyes, even though you don’t think so.” You kissed him.

Angel wrapped his arms around you, pulling you flush against him. He buried his face at the crook of your neck, your hand soothingly running up and down his back.

“I’m so fucking sorry, I don’t deserve you. You’re the only person who put me first with no hesitation. I should have respected our relationship and included you in this whole bullshit.” He held you tighter if that was possible, his tears wetting your skin. “I love you, I fuck up, but I’ll try not to, just please come back to me.”

“You’ve always had me Angel.” You felt the tears pricking your eyes as well. It was heartbreaking to hear Angel cry. “Just give me some time, and then we’ll be back together.”

He nodded his head, keeping his face buried at the crook of your neck. You felt his breathing even out as you continued to rub his back. Eventually you fell asleep as well.

The next morning, you woke up and Angel was nowhere in sight. You weren’t surprised since you’re almost certain he was needed at the clubhouse. Letting out a yawn, you contemplated if you wanted to get up yet since you didn’t have to be at work till noon. You closed your eyes and before you could go back to sleep, you felt the bed dip. You would have been alarmed if you didn’t smell Angel’s familiar scent. He pulled you against him as he laid back down, wrapping his arm around you. 

“I always feel stupid talking to you while you’re asleep, but at times, it’s better this way so I don’t become distracted of just wanting to kiss you.” You heard him chuckle. “I remember when I first saw you and how you hid behind your tio, which was comical since you’re fucking taller than him.” You smiled, wondering if Angel spoke to you in your sleep often. “I was attracted to you then, then I found myself gravitating towards you, hanging on to your every fucking word. This whole thing with Ezekiel, it fucking hurt me and I had to see you, because you’re the only thing that has made every pain go away and every insecurity I have about my brother seem like a million miles away. You’ve changed my life.” You heard him sniffle. “One day, I want to marry you, have kids with you, build a life with you. If I had to kill one of my own brothers to do so, I would. I would have buried Diego six feet under.”

Angel kissed the top of your head. “You can’t reply to me with that smart mouth of yours right now and I know you can’t hear me cause you sleep like the dead.” He chuckled. “But I love you. You’re my world and I hope one day you want to share the rest of your life with me. I fucked up with Diego, but God, just give me one more chance to prove to her that I deserve that chance.”

You had to hold yourself back from crying. Hearing Angel’s words, it made your heart swell. Sure there were things that occurred that had strained your relationship, but you could only stay away from Angel for so long, and he was so damn persistent. And you love Angel, more than you could even express. You debated on waking up or not, but you could feel his breathing evening out, most likely falling asleep again. 

You could use a few more hours, you always slept best with Angel holding you.

==============

“I hate clubhouse parties.” You said to no one in particular as you park your car beside EZ’s trailer. You got out of your car, zipping up your bomber jacket. Jeans and t-shirts were your default. Comfort trumped everything.

Walking in the gate, the party was already in full swing. Angel has been texting you the whole day, and his nagging got more persistent when he arrived at the clubhouse and you weren’t there. You were certain that if you didn’t text him that you were on your way, he would have come and picked you up. It’s been two days since you last saw Angel since the club had him busy, but he never stopped texting you, calling you whenever he could. 

“Hey bitch!” You heard Regina’s shrill voice call you. 

You groaned, turning around and was surprised by the sudden sting on your cheek.

“You fucking happy now? You got what you fucking wanted.” She spat out venomously. “Your precious Diegito came for you.”

You were still shocked that this bitch just slapped you. Before you even know what was happening, all the pent up anger and frustration, hell, all the emotions you were put through by Regina all came back. You pulled your arm back and punched Regina right on the nose. You felt everyone’s eyes on you. 

“Shit, are you okay?” You heard Diego ask you as he cupped your face, checking your cheek where Regina slapped you.

“She broke my nose Diego.” Regina cried out as she sat on the floor. She couldn’t believe Diego was checking on you when you had just punched her on the face.

“Serves you fucking right.” You heard Medina tell her as he made his way to you. “Knew those boxing lessons I gave you would come in handy. Should have done it years ago.” He slightly pushed Diego to the side and hugged you. “They’re at Templo right now, but I’m sure your boyfriend will be sad he missed you punching that bitch.”

You didn’t bother correcting Medina, you knew Angel would eventually become your boyfriend again. “My hand hurts,” you shook your hand, opening and closing it. “Not broken though.”

“Of course not, I taught you well.” Medina proudly told you. “I don’t even know why Diegito brought her here. Can you get rid of her? Send her back to Stockton.” He turned to Diego.

“You’re gonna pay for this bitch.” Regina warned you as she stood back up.

“Would love to see you try sweetheart.” Angel’s voice surprised all of you. “If I even hear that you’re breathing the same air as my girl, I won’t hesitate to put a bullet in between your eyes.” Angel wrapped an arm around you from behind.

“Fuck you and this club.” Regina stood up, dusting off her clothing. “Fuck you Diego and your small dick.”

“That’s not what you were saying before.” Diego yelled out after her.

Diego and Medina laughed while Angel’s attention was fixated on you.

“Did that feel good?” Medina knew all the hell Regina put you through. You never laid hands on Regina since she was never worth your time, but this time around, it was warranted.

You were never such a fan of inflicting violence, but you weren’t going to lie, that definitely felt good. “So good.”

“Damn baby, that was hot.” He kissed the side of your head after he pulled you against him. “You should let me show you just how good you looked.”

You laughed, playfully pushing him. “So, did you get it?”

Angel smirked and waved the patch in front of your eyes. “You're looking at the new secretary.”

“Congratulations!” You jumped into his arms. “So proud of you, well deserved.”

“Can I get a congratulatory kiss?” 

“Absolutely.”

Angel kissed you, slipping his tongue inside your mouth as he did. His hands grabbed your ass, causing you to shriek.

“Angel!” 

“Sorry,” he laughed. 

His eyes connected with Diego who looked displeased by the public display of affection, but he didn’t give a fuck. Diego could kiss his ass. He was proud of that shiner on Diego’s left eye and the bruises and abrasions all over his face. 

And he still had more coming for him.

“Everything okay with Ezekiel?”

“Yes, he’s going to quit and that’s that.” Angel wrapped an arm around you and brought you towards the clubhouse. “I don’t like how he looks at you.”

“Huh?” You looked at him, confused by what he meant. “Who?”

“Diego. I know you told him it was done, but I don’t think it’s registered.” Angel wasn’t happy that Diego was still here. He knew he was leaving soon, but it made him antsy whenever he saw Diego near you. “I should fuck him up.”

“You already did, remember?” You didn’t want anymore violence. You weren’t going to lie and say it felt good to see Diego with bruises on his face. He was your best friend not too long ago, even though you thought after all of his actions he deserved at least a punch or two.

“Yeah, but someone like him needs to really have it embedded with another beating.” 

You stopped walking, turning Angel to face you. “Forget him, you have me. Just leave him be.”

“So you're done playing and you’re my girl again?” Angel smirked.

“Maybe.” You mischievously smiled at him. “Come on, I’m starving.” You pulled him towards the clubhouse so you could get some food.

“For my dick?”

“Angel!”

“You know you missed my dick, let's just skip this shit and go home.” He pulled you flushed against him, your back to his front. “I know I’ve missed the sight of your pussy, especially the taste, the feel, how fucking tight you are.” He whispered the last sentence in your ear, his hot breath against your skin. You felt a shiver go up your spine. You weren’t going to lie that his dirty mouth didn’t make you wet, but you had to at least be here for a few hours. “Come on baby, I’m the new El Secretario, you should give me congratulatory sex.”

“Behave,” you moved away from him, Angel watching as you walked in front of him.

He whistled. “God you’re fucking ass is a thing of beauty baby.”

You shook your head, laughing. Angel was too much at times, but you love him. 

You were sitting on Angel’s lap, sharing a beer with some of the members and your tio. They were busting jokes about Creepers nonexistent love life. You love hanging with the guys, they were absolutely hilarious and they always involved you in their conversations. They never held back and if they did say something out of line they always apologized.

“You having fun?” Angel checked in with you all the time. He knew too much socializing exhausted you, so he wanted to make sure you were still good.

“Yes, I’m good babe, thanks for checking.” You kissed his cheek.

Bishop looked over Angel, nodding his head towards the clubhouse. 

“Can you get me another beer baby?” Angel requested of you, understanding his gesture.

“Sure.” 

Once you were inside, Bishop leaned over to speak to Angel. “I set up dinner with Diego tomorrow. We finish this whole bullshit with my niece and him tomorrow. If he so much even looks her way, he’s done.” 

Before Templo, Bishop and Angel had a lengthy discussion about Diego and what they wanted to do with his past indiscretions. They both knew you wouldn’t exactly be happy with kicking Diego out of the club, it’s been too long. But, that doesn’t mean they couldn’t threaten him to fuck off. Angel would talk to you first, not wanting to have a misstep in your relationship again. 

“Got it prez, we both know I want this to end.” Angel sat back, taking out his cigarette and getting a stick. He lit it up and took a drag. “I don’t like it when he’s around her. He always looks at her with such fucking hope and he could go fuck himself.”

“Then make it known to him that whatever it was with her, it’s fucking done.” 

“Gladly.” 

You returned, handing him his beer. You were going to take the chair beside him, but Angel pulled you down to sit on his lap again. “Baby, you ain’t sitting anywhere else when my lap is readily available.”

“You’re so needy.”

“I got you back baby, you better get used to it. You know how I am, all about affections.” Angel kissed your cheek, before turning his attention to Creeper.

“You want to go home?” You whispered into Angel’s ear. 

His gaze turned towards you, already darkened by your suggestion.

“We’re gonna head out.” 

==============

“Fuck baby, just like that.” Angel watched as you wrapped your mouth around his cock, bobbing your head up and down. Your hair was wrapped around his hand, guiding you on how to suck his cock.

He followed you home on his bike, immediately going to your place instead of his. You took out your sewing kit to sew Angel’s patch on his kute. You sat on his lap as you did, his hands gripping your thigh. You felt him getting harder as you sewed his patch on. He looked at you, biting his lips as you concentrated to not poke his skin.

As soon as you were done, he had you on your knees and sucking his dick. You’ve been at it for a good thirty minutes and the way you were sucking his dick like a fucking pro was making him come closer to his climax. He was proud that he taught you everything you fucking know.

“Get up,” he pulled you up, putting his hands under your ass and lifting you up. You wrapped your legs around his waist, your lips meeting his. 

He walked you to your bedroom, gently placing you on the bed. Your lips were swollen, making Angel groan. He loved sharing intimate moments with you because he knew no one else has and he planned on keeping it that way. Slipping off his jeans he threw them to the side and walked over to you with a predatory gaze. You removed your shirt as you moved back towards the headboard.

Angel grabbed your ankle, pulling you back to the edge of your bed, making you laugh. He unbuttoned your jeans and pulled them off. You were only in your bra and panties, Angel’s eyes roaming your body. He smirked, licking his lips.

“You look fucking beautiful amor.” He kneeled by the edge of your bed, pulling you so that your legs were hanging on his shoulders. “I’ve missed your scent baby, it would drive any man crazy.” His fingers ran up and down your inner thigh, his touch alone made you shiver. You shifted so that he would move towards where you wanted him faster, but he was purposely making you wait. “I love you.”

“I love you.” You breathed out. “Angel, stop teasing me.”

Angel chuckled, grabbing a hold of your panties and pulling them off. He spread your lips, licking his as he saw your glistening cunt.

“I will never tire at the sight of this.” He pulled you towards him, his tongue lapping at your sensitive nub as soon as he was closed enough.

Your back arched, hands grabbing the sheets underneath them. You whimpered out his name as he began his assault, moving his tongue down to your entrance and sliding it in. 

“You’re so fucking good at this.” A pleased hum was released from your lips, your hand gripping his hair. Your hips gyrating against his tongue.

He placed a hand on your hips, holding you down. He slipped a finger inside you with his other hand, pulling his mouth away. His eyes were trained on your reaction to every move he did on you, he loved watching you, memorizing your reaction to everything he did, it was so fucking satisfying for him. 

“Look at me baby,” he commanded. 

You tried your best to open your eyes and when you did, you saw that sexy smirk on Angel’s lips, you felt your stomach tightening up, your orgasm was close. You wondered if it was always like this for other people. The intensity, how good it felt, this was driving you crazy.

“I’m cumming.” You choked out. You grabbed on Angel’s hand that was on your hip, intertwining your fingers. 

“Fuck baby, you’re drenched.” Angel lapped at your juices, causing your eyes to roll back, a loud moan escaping your lips as he did. “I fucking missed you baby, not having you in my arms was fucking torture.” He pulled away from you, instructing you to move back to the center of the bed. He crawled after you, kneeling in front of you. Coating the tip of his dick with your wetness, you whimpered at the contact. “You ready baby?” He didn’t want to overwhelm you, he wanted to always make you feel good. He knew that after an orgasm, you needed some time to adjust. Learning your quirks was his favorite thing to do. 

“Condom.” It was the only thing you could say, your mind still in a haze.

“A condom?” Angel chuckled, shaking his head. “You know you love it when I enter you bare, I haven’t been with anyone since we started everything, I told you, no one could even get me hard anymore besides you.” He ran his tip up and down your slit, slightly slipping in before pulling back out making you groan. “Come on baby, you know you love it when I enter you bare, just your warmth enveloping mine.” He sucked in that spot on your neck, making you even hotter, wetter. His hand moved up your body, settling on your breast, squeezing it. “It’s just you and me right?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t you like it when I enter you bare, nothing separating us?” He slipped his tip again, and you have to agree, it did feel good, but you’ve never used a condom with Angel either. 

“Okay, just please fuck me.”

Angel let out a low chuckle, the low timber of his voice alone could make you cum. He entered you, watching as his dick slipped in, inch by inch, rubbing your clit to heightened your pleasure making it easier to slip in. “Fuck baby, I love watching how you stretch out cause of me. You like the feel baby, when I fucking stretch you out?”

You nod your head, scratching at his chest. “Harder.”

“Harder? I got you baby girl.” Angel thrusted into you harder, keeping his pace moderate to keep this going. He didn’t want this to end yet. He wanted you to cum as much as possible, penance for the way things played out with Diego. You tightened up around him, making Angel groan. “Jesus fucking Christ querida, I love how I can make you cum.” He stopped moving, keeping his cock buried inside you as he rubbed your clit, your orgasm hitting you. You gripped him tightly and he moaned along with you. 

“Does it always feel this good?”

“Only with me baby.” Angel slipped out of you, turning you on your stomach. “Stick your ass out, chest on the bed.” He slipped right back in, and he felt different for you. You two haven’t truly experimented with different positions yet, but this has to be one of your favorites.

“You feel so deep.” You grabbed the sheets again, your cheek against the mattress. “This shouldn’t feel this good.”

“But it does baby, you always take me so fucking well cause you’re fucking made for me.” Angel thrusted in and out, slow then fast, slow then fast, the alternating pace felt so good. “You ever let Diego in baby? You let that motherfucker touch what’s mine?”

You shook your head. You don’t know why, but you loved it when Angel called you his, it turned you on so much and the way he said it with such authority. You gasped as Angel drove into you harder. 

“Use your voice mi dulce, let me hear your answer.”

“No, just you.”

“I would have killed him for you. It drove me crazy knowing he was in here with you.” Angel felt a certain type of possession over you. Besides the fact that Angel was never the type of person to share someone he cherished dearly, but you love him and only him. You gave him something that you saved for the right person and he would never forget that. For the short amount of time you two knew one another, he got to know you so well as well. And how deeply he felt for you, it was suffocating at times and he couldn’t breathe till he was near you. He never knew love could this be fucking intense, but he was basking on it.

It drove him fucking insane, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. 

“He’s nothing to me.” 

Angel pulled you up by your hair, your back against his chest. “Damn fucking right he’s nothing to you. You’re everything to me.” He told you, his voice so warm and soft.

“You are to me too.”

Angel wrapped his arm around your chest, holding you against him as he thrusted into you. He was going faster and you felt yourself tightening up again. “Keep going Angel, fuck.” Hearing his breath against your ear, grunting, it was turning to fucking on. The way he held you tightly against him, it was even better. 

“I love it when you tighten up around me, cause I know you’re about to cum.” He pulled out making you whine. “But not yet.”

“Fuck, Angel.” You whimpered out.

Angel maneuvered you on your back again wasting no time to slip back inside you. “I need to see your face when you cum.” He leaned his forehead against yours, kissing you, sucking your bottom lip into his mouth. “I love your fucking mouth.” Intertwining your hands on either side of your head, Angel’s thrust was becoming sloppier so you knew his climax was near. You loved feeling his weight on you, it made it that much more intimate. “I’m cumming baby you almost there?”

You nodded your head. “Fuck, this feels so good.” You we’re already at the brink before and now you feel it coming again. Angel thrusted a few more times, burying deep into you when he came. You arched your back, his name coming out as a chant as you felt your legs quiver. 

Angel begrudgingly pulled out, a sigh escaping both of your lips when he did. “You want to shower baby?”

You shook your head, you couldn’t even keep your eyes open. Orgasms always made you feel spent, tired, all you wanted to do was sleep. You heard Angel chuckle as he cleaned you up. You used the last of your strength to go under your covers, Angel joining you shortly after. 

“Te amo mi alma.” You heard Angel whisper into your hair. “We have dinner with Bish tomorrow, is that cool?”

“Dinner? For what?”

“Just a family gathering.”

==============

Angel helped you off his bike, taking off your helmet for you. He got you a helmet a few months back for Christmas. You weren’t sure why he got it for you, but he always told you how he wanted to give you a ride on his bike. You’ve ridden with him before and you always enjoyed it, loving the feel of the air against your skin. It was so freeing.

“Before we go in, I want to talk to you about something.” Angel placed his hands on your hips.

“What’s up?” You had your hands on his flannel under his kute, playing with the ends of his shirt.

“Diego is here.” He should have spoken to you before coming here, but he was too distracted with your mouth around his cock. 

“I saw his bike,” you nodded towards Diego’s bike.

“Okay smartass.” Angel rolled his eyes. 

You both laughed. 

“I’m guessing Diego being here for a family gathering isn’t exactly a coincidence.” You noticed Taza, Coco and Tranq’s bike next to Diego’s. “Please don’t tell me you’re going to fuck him up again.”

“No, corazon, listen, Diego needs to understand that whatever you two had way back when, it’s fucking done and it’s never coming back.” Angel explained. 

“What are you going to do?” You were afraid to ask. Again, Diego got the beating he deserved from Angel already, you knew that Angel was itching to do it again, but you didn’t think it was necessary. Whatever Diego did, it was a distant memory now, especially with you being with Angel. Diego was like a bittersweet memory that you no longer cared for. 

“Your tio wants to assure that this shit with Diego is done, that when he goes back to Stockton, he doesn’t look back hoping you’re going to come for him.” Angel assessed your reaction and was relieved that you didn’t seem to care much. You were just waiting for him to get to the point. You agreed that your chapter with Diego should be closed, but you felt that this was something that was understood. There didn’t need to be this extra meeting about it.

“This is unnecessary, I feel like this is something that was handled a week or so ago.” You reasoned. “Angel, I love you, I’m with you, is that not enough?”

“This isn’t about me. This is about all the shit that happened years ago that you let slide due to your feelings and kindness, but we’re done with that baby. You don’t want to give Diego hope that somewhere down the road there’s a chance for you and him.” Angel was hesitant to talk about the future with you since he didn’t want to scare you off. Your relationship was quite new even though you two have known each other for a few years. But you were it for him, this was it. “I love you, I have no plans of letting you go and I hope you feel the same way.” God he hoped you did.

“Of course I do, I love you Angel. But I think that I’ve moved on from this whole thing with Diego, it isn’t an issue.” Maybe you were downplaying it, but you were with Angel and you weren’t one to cheat. And you’re quite certain that there was no longer a friendship between you and Diego. There was too much hurt associated in your relationship. “What are you going to do?”

“Give Diego an ultimatum, if he wants to remain a Mayan, he can’t contact you or speak to you unless you initiate it. But if he wants to keep on trying my patience and pursue you, then he’s stripped of his patch.”

“Santo Padre isn’t his charter.”

“Yeah well El Padrino signed off on it before he left. Ramos has no choice if Diego decides to give up his patch.”

You bit your lip, moving away from Angel. You wouldn’t want them to take away Diego’s patches from him. Regardless of how much he was favored because of you, he worked hard for them. 

“Mi dulce, you don’t seem happy.” He frowned.

“This is why I didn’t want to bring this up. I don’t want him to lose his patch over me, he worked hard for those. Yeah, Diego is an asshole and what happened three years ago was painful, but it’s done. I’ve moved on, isn’t that enough for everyone else to do so?” You didn’t understand why they were so hellbent on punishing Diego. Like what your Tio Bishop said, his punishment was losing you or whatever reasoning he had given you. 

“Why are you protecting him?” Angel was starting to become irritated by your response. Did you not want Diego to stop speaking to you?

“I’m not protecting him.”

“Sure fucking seems like it.”

You sighed. “I don’t want to argue Angel.”

“What’s there to argue about, you obviously want to keep fucking talking to the prick.” Ange made his way towards the front door, leaving you by his bike. He was trying to push his temper down. You two just recently made up and now, well, you were being fucking unreasonable.

“Angel,” you groaned. “That’s not what it is. You know how much I hate drama and how I deviate away from the center of attention, I don’t fucking want this for him. He was my friend once, I’m not going to lie to you and say I don’t care about him anymore, not as much as before, but I know the club is his life.”

“That’s not the fucking point. He humiliated you years ago, you gave up so much for him just to let that bitch treat you the way she did. I’m trying to protect you here, to make sure he could never hurt you again.”

“But he can’t hurt me anymore cause I don’t care about him anymore. I’m not trying to protect him, I just don’t want someone to lose their place because of me.”

“Well he shouldn’t have fucking gotten it in the first place!” Angel didn’t mean to yell at you, but it was frustrating him how you couldn’t see why they were doing what they were doing. “Why can’t you put some value in yourself? You mean the world to so many people, I know you don’t want fighting battles for you, but this isn’t a battle. It’s removing a problem. You know Diego well, he’s not going to give up on you.”

“He told me he would.” That was a weak argument. Even though he did tell you he was going to give up, that he was going to walk away, you weren’t exactly sure how much of that was true. 

“When I realized that I love you, I knew I would never give you up. His feelings are not as intense as mine, but if his desire is as great as mine to keep you around, then he’s not going to give up just cause he claims he would. I’m sure he’s holding off that you two could become friends.” 

“You don’t know him Angel.”

“And you fucking do? Querida, why the fuck are we even discussing this? Plans already in motion, he stays the fuck away, he keeps his patch, if he doesn’t then he’s signing his death warrant.” It was simple for Angel. He didn’t care for Diego, it was just irritating him that it seemed that you did. 

“Then I’m not going inside.”

“Fine, don’t.”

You watched as Angel walked in, leaving you outside. You saw Diego by the window, looking out at you. Angel passed by him, giving you one last look before walking away from the window. You really didn’t care about Diego, but you weren’t going to let him get hurt again. He was your friend long ago, you weren’t the type of person to just stand by knowing something awful away about to happen. 

Walking to the front door, you opened it and Diego was right there to greet you. 

“Can you take me home?” You questioned, trying to keep your voice low so that none of the other members would hear.

“Yeah, sure.” He gave you an odd, confused look but took his helmet.

“Where the fuck are you going?” You heard Angel question.

“I’m going home, Diego can take me home.” 

“The fuck you are.” Angel was livid before but he was beyond it now. You wanted to go home, that’s fine, he would rather not have you hear when he fucking beat him again, but there was no fucking way Diego was taking you home. “Coco can take you home.”

“No, Diego is going to take me home. Is that okay tio?” Angel just chuckled, irritated that you would use your tio knowing he didn’t have authority over that.

Bishop knew that you wouldn’t be in agreement with their plan. He agreed to this to make up for not doing anything all those years ago and to appease Angel. He was protective over you and Bishop was glad that you found someone who cared for you as much as Angel did. This wasn’t going to blow over for Angel or Diego till Angel made it clear that you were off limits and Diego would stay away.

But at the same time, maybe it would be better for you to tell Diego to stay away. As stupid as Diego was, he knew how to follow orders. If you simply asked him to stay away, he would. And if it didn’t work then Angel could beat it in him.

“Yeah, of course sweetheart.”

“No, I can take her home.” Angel wasn’t going to let Diego take you home. 

Diego stood in front of you, further aggravating Angel.

“Get the fuck out of my way. She’s my girlfriend, if I want to bring her home, then I’ll fucking do it.” Angel got into Diego’s face. You knew that things were going to pop off soon. Angel was already pissed and Diego’s demeanor was definitely not helping. 

“Y/N, do you want Angel to take you home?”

“No, you can take me home.” You knew that was a mistake, but you were trying to save bloodshed here. Angel spoke about putting a bullet in him all the time and the last thing you wanted was another body for Angel to bury. “I just need to talk to him Angel.”

“Then talk to him outside, you’re not fucking leaving.”

You sighed. 

Compromise. 

Compromise. 

“Fine, I can do that.” 

Diego followed you outside and you both sat on the steps of your tio’s porch. You rested your arms on your knees, your foot tapping as the anxiety of talking to Diego overtook you. 

“You okay?” Diego knew what you were going to say. It didn’t escape him how suspicious it was that only certain people were here tonight, but he knew what was coming and he deserved it.

“I want you to know that you were my best friend. All the times we spent together the good, the bad, and the ugly, I cherished them because they’ve taught me plenty of things.” You purses your lips, trying your best to keep your foot from shaking up and down. “But we’ve also grown apart.” Looking at him, you knew that he knew what you were trying to say. That it wasn’t ideal, but he understood. 

“You remember when we graduated high school and we talked about what we wanted out of life?” Your eyebrows furrowed, trying to recall the memory he spoke of. You vaguely remember it since you were quite tipsy. 

“Not really. Did you record it?” You teased.

Diego chuckled. “Well, it’s cause you’re a lightweight.” He ruffled your hair. “But you talked about what you wanted for the future, that you wanted to leave Stockton, go down south. How you wanted to get married, have kids, get a decent job. And you know what you said that really stuck to me?”

“What?”

“That you wanted to be happy. And at first I thought I could make you happy, that’s not a problem whatsoever. But I realize how many times I’ve hurt you, failed to protect you. Then I tried to ruin your relationship with Angel because I thought I could finally make you happy like I wanted to do so all those years ago. To make it up to you.” Diego bitterly smiled. “Guess I’m too late right?”

Your eyes began to water. All the things you’ve wanted to hear from Diego was happening, you weren’t making it up in your head. But you missed your friendship with Diego, you two had a solid friendship before feelings were out in place. But things couldn’t be the same anymore, things were just so different now. 

“Yeah, you are.”

“It really hurts to see how happy you are with him, how much you love him.” Diego chuckled. “But I can accept that as long as you're happy cause regardless of everything, that’s all I wanted.”

“I need you to stay away from me. Our past is our past and I want to keep it that way. Maybe someday when things are better we can be friends again, but it’s better we keep our distance.” 

Diego nodded his head, standing up and making his way down the stairs. “If he ever breaks your heart, I’m here for you.”

“Don’t fucking worry, I won’t.” 

You turned around, surprised to hear Angel’s voice, but at the same time you weren’t. You didn’t exactly close the door and you knew Angel would stay close by. 

“Take care of her Reyes.” Diego hated that this was happening, he was sick to his stomach, but he meant it. All he wanted was for you to be happy. 

“Don’t need you telling me that, but I will Diegito.”

“Am I allowed to hug her?”

“That’s up to her.”

You nodded your head. He held out his hand, which you took. He wrapped his arms around you and you hugged him as well. He kissed the side of your head, whispering ‘I love you’. He let you go and took you in one last time before walking towards his bike. 

You turned towards Angel, and he was leaning against the post at the top of the stairs of the porch. You walked up, and he watched until Diego was out of sight.

“Had fun down memory lane?” Angel turned to face you.

“Angel, you know that’s not what that was. I love you, I love that you want to fight my battles for me, that you want to protect me, but Diego was always a personal thing and I wanted to be the one to tell him to stay away.”

“I heard.” Angel sighed. “You’re so fucking frustrating. All I want is to be there for you and protect you, yet you couldn’t even let me do that.”

“It’s not about that, we’re a team, but this one is really just on me.” 

“Exactly, we’re a team. Baby, you have to meet me halfway here. I love you, seeing how hurt you were when you first told me about him, how you were in distress when he first came into town, that was painful. The last thing I want is for you to be hurt.”

“But you can’t always prevent that, I have to learn things on my own too.”

Angel walked over to you, cupping your face, leaning his forehead against yours. “I know, but sometimes, it’s just hard for me.”

You wrapped your arms around Angel, resting your head on his chest. He kissed the top of your head. He was a bastard and there were parts of him who didn’t think he deserved you, but it was the one voice he could push aside. He wasn’t sure how he could live without you and he would rather not try.

“I’ll try to be better at it, I know you can fight your own battles mama’s, but I’m just overprotective over you.” Angel’s hand soothingly moves up and down your back. 

“Which I appreciate, but sometimes, all I need is to know you have my back.”

“And I fucking do, you know I do.” 

“You two lovebirds done? We’re fucking starving.” Coco interrupted their moment. Seeing their misty eyes, Coco cringed. “My bad, but I’m fucking hungry, Bish said we can’t eat till you two are inside.”

“Oh my god.” You playfully rolled your eyes.

You’re not sure how you landed this family, but you were definitely glad that they were here to stay.

[iyatsumu]

ABYSS; SHOTO TODOROKI

Genre: Fluff, Angst

Word Count: 2.9K

Trigger Warning: Mentions of blood and abuse

Author’s Note: Hello everyone! It’s been so long since I last updated the blog but I’ve been so busy with classes and moving into a new house that I simply couldn’t squeeze this into the schedule. But I have a Shoto fic for you all. This is a repost because I realized there were too many confusions in the story. Also, in this story, Shigaraki will be a tad bit older prolly around his early 40s. Enjoy and please remember to take care of yourselves!

"When will you get it together Shoto? Stop making a fool out of me and my name!" You were all too familiar with the booming voice on the other side of the door. Knocking on the door, you pushed it slightly to reveal a man who was surrounded with flames of fire, his back facing you. In front of him was a boy with dual-colored hair. His head was hung low as his father whipped his head back to look at you. "I'm very sorry to interrupt, but Sir Aizawa is looking for Todoroki." You said, trying your best not to sound nervous. As much as you'd love to deny it, Endeavor's presence always seemed to shake you to your bones. Endeavor turned towards Todoroki once more and sent him one last glare before leaving the room. As soon as the door slammed shut, you looked at Shoto. He was frowning, rage was evident in his eyes as he stood up and glared at you. "What?" He asks, venom lacing in his voice. "Don't give me that attitude Todoroki. Your hatred is not towards me but instead to your father, and I didn't come here to save you from his stupid lecture. Sir Aizawa is requesting your presence in his office." You said and threw a shirt at him. 

You turned around and directed your attention at the burnt marks on his wall, probably caused by his outbursts whenever his father comes around to threaten him. Endeavor and his hunger for being the best always drags him into Todoroki's room to scold him whenever he loses to Bakugo or Midoriya. The rivalry between the three most powerful students in your grade started during the first year of high school. You had just transferred midway through the school year with a recommendation from a number of Pro Heroes whom your mother worked for. In the span of 6 months, you had managed to climb into the high ranks of the year level with your outstanding performance in academics. As for the field of physical traits and using your quirks, you tried to stay in the sidelines. Doing just the bare minimum in order to avoid getting in between the rivalry of the three boys. Despite trying to hide your quirk, the teachers and some students like your close friends such as Momo and Uraraka, admit that your quirk is very powerful, even on par with 75% of the Pro Heroes in the country. However, you never let it get to you and you had always tried your best to keep it down, afraid of exposing your true identity, and possibly putting your friends and other people at risk. "I'm done. What does Sir Aizawa need?" You turned to face Todoroki who was now fully changed into something more casual and cleaner. He stood up and both of you exited his dorm room. "Not sure, he simply told me to get you from your room and we had to head to his office." You said and walked alongside Todoroki in silence. --- "Ryota, Todoroki. Take a seat." Your teacher, Sir Aizawa instructed as he walked over to his table. You and Todoroki made yourself comfortable on the plush sofa of his office. "I called you both here because as your teacher, I thought the two of you would be best suited to represent our class in the upcoming competition to be held a few weeks from now. The event is for a pair, male and female, of each class per year level to compete with other pairs. The B class has decided on Itsuka Kendo and Neito Monoma. I understand that you might be confused as to why I have decided on both of you. I have no doubt that Midoriya and Bakugo have potentials to win, however it is dangerous to put Midoriya out for he still has no control over his power and Bakugo's competitiveness could harm other contestants and without a doubt, also his partner. Todoroki, I trust that you can control the limit of your quirk and Ryota, I want you to showcase your quirk." Shit. "Is there no one else that could substitute me as Todoroki's pair?" You asked and Aizawa stood from his seat. He knew how you felt about your quirk and he had expected you to decline the idea. However, majority of the teachers have seen only glimpses of your power and they asked Aizawa to let you on the field some time. "I would've paired Todoroki with Yaoyorozu. But she insisted that you would be far more suitable compared to her." He said, patting your back. "So, what do you say? Are you both okay with this?" "Yeah." Todoroki answered dryly. He had never seen a good glimpse of your quirk, and this was a good chance to understand it and see how powerful you really were. Todoroki always had a hunch that you were far more powerful than what you seem to be. He admired the control you had over your quirk, how you were able to manipulate it to hide its destructiveness. No ordinary person would get into UA with multiple recommendations from Pro Heroes. Aizawa turned to look at you, hoping for you to accept the idea. You sighed and stood up, "Fine, but I am not missing classes just to train." You spoke. "Both of you will have special schedules wherein you are excused from hero training, just for this competition." Aizawa said and with that you nodded. "Now, with that aside, make sure to train well and you may now leave." He said and ushered both you and Todoroki out of his office. You huffed the moment the door was closed, and turned to head into your dorm room. "Hey where are you going?" Todoroki asked, following behind you. "It's Saturday, I'm going to my room and sleeping. Good bye." You said and continued walking. "Sleeping? Aren't you going back home or doing anything else?" He asked, still set on following you. "My mom won't be home until Wednesday, so I have no reason to be home and no, I am taking this moment to isolate myself from Bakugo's booming voice and hopefully from you as well." You turned and smiled sarcastically at him. "Your mom is Maki Ryota, right? The well-known researcher who studies quirks and how to manipulate them." He asked and you stopped walking to face him. "Yes. Look Shoto, I really need to rest so if you would, please leave me alone." You said and left him standing at the hallway. --- "Todoroki, Ryota. Get changed into your training uniform and proceed to the training grounds." Aizawa's voice rang through the speakers inside the classroom. Bakugo's eyes widened and sat up straight on his seat, clearly curious as to why you and Todoroki had training. "Training? For what?" He asked, his gruff voice did nothing to hide the curiosity in his tone. "Shoto and Y/N will represent our class in the Year 2 Duo Competition." Momo said and Bakugo slammed his hands on his desk, igniting explosions from his palm and fingers. "Ha? Why Half n' Half and the brat?" He shouted, Todoroki shook his head and grabbed his uniform from his bag. "Your attitude towards this proves Sir Aizawa's point as to why you were not chosen." You said and was about to walk out when Bakugo shot out a blast of his quirk towards your way. Feeling the heat coming towards you, your hand extended out and opened up a black hole with purple linings that sucked in Bakugo's explosion and the hole dispersed into nothing once more. Everyone was shocked at the situation that unfolded in front of them. No one had been able to withstand Bakugo's explosions without stumbling back, and with such quick reflexes. "Holy shit. Who knew Y/N could be so manly?" Kirishima yelled in awe as he fisted his arms in the air. "Damn you, you brat!" Bakugo shouted and sent an even bigger blow towards you. Before you could react, a huge shard of ice appeared in front of you. You glared at the boy who was beside you, an annoyed look played on his face. "Enough of these childish games, let's go Y/N." He said and dragged you out of the classroom. "When you get back here, let's duel Y/N. Fucking brat!" Bakugo's voice echoed through the hallway as Todoroki kept his tight grip on your arm. "Hey let go, your fingers are cold, it's causing bruises on my skin!" You writhe and Todoroki finally let go. You rub the bruised arm and glare at him. "Why do you even try to fight with him?" He asked, and places his hand on your arm once again. He regulates the temperature of his finger, the heat kissing the pain away from your skin. "I don't. I was simply stating a fact and defended myself after he tried to blow me up." You answered as both of you entered the training ground. In the middle of the cemented ground was Aizawa and Present Mic. "Welcome youngsters into your first training, we will try our best to shape you into your best selves before your competition. Are you both ready?" Present Mic greets, using his quirk to enhance the volume of his voice. "We're supposed to do what exactly?" You asked and Present Mic laughs at your question. "We know both of you are more than ready, so you and Todoroki will try to defeat me and Aizawa." He said and you stare at Todoroki in shock. "Start!" You were startled when Present Mic announced and suddenly Aizawa's binding cloth unwrapped around him and made its way towards you. You jumped out of place and landed a few meters away from Todoroki who already set a barrier of ice which protected him from Present Mic's voice. "That won't do! Present Mic's quirk can shatter even your ice." You told Todoroki and pulled him out of the way. "How do we avoid Present Mic's quirk and be out of sight of Eraser Head?" He asked, trying his best to keep composure. You scratched your head and peeked out from another barrier Todoroki created. "This is going to take a toll on my body but fuck it." You said and grabbed his hand. You created a big hole that was enough for both of you to pass through and shoved Todoroki into the hole. "Where are we?" He asked and you raised your arm to feel the air. Both of you were in darkness, pure nothingness.   "Welcome to Abyss, this is my quirk." You said and pulled him along, continuing to walk around in the darkness. "Abyss? I thought your quirk was sucking up powers?" Todoroki asked. "No, my quirk is somewhat like a portal that leads you to a different dimension. I pushed us in here because this was the only way to escape Present Mic's quirk. In order to counter his voice, you must be layers apart. Now I need to locate Sir Aizawa and pull him down here." You said, feeling around the darkness. "What good will that do us if you pull him down here?" Todoroki asked stumbling on his feet. "In Abyss, your quirks are rendered unusable. Only I can use my quirk in Abyss." You explained and halted at a certain point. "Here, I can feel Sir Aizawa's presence just above this point." You said and concentrated in creating another hole underneath Aizawa's feet. "Wait, even if we pull him down here, he still has his binding cloth." Todoroki grabs your hand before you could fully create a hole. "Great fucking job Shoto Todoroki. Now Sir Aizawa is aware of the hole I created and is moving away." You huffed and wandered around again. "It's not my fault you are being reckless Y/N." He defends and follows behind you. "You may think that, but there's much more Abyss has to offer other than being a quirk nullifying dimension. Now stop fucking getting in the way and just trust me." You snapped and stopped midway. "I have no choice but to make the ground a huge hole." You said and sat down, concentrating on your plan. After a few seconds, Present Mic and Aizawa dropped into Abyss, clearly confused at the foreign place. Present Mic, being unable to use his quirk, could be heard calling out to Aizawa from the distance. A white cloth seemed to extend forward and wrapped around Todoroki's leg before getting dragged away. Before Todoroki could be within Aizawa's reach, a slash came and tore the binding cloth. "What the hell?!" Aizawa shouted in disbelief and tried to come forward again with another cloth. The slashing came one after another and soon enough, Aizawa was exhausted. "Let's get out of here Todoroki." You grabbed him and opened a hole that led back to the training grounds. "What about Eraser Head and Present Mic?" Todoroki asked the moment you both landed back on the training ground. You sat down and touched your hands on the ground. "What are you doing?" He asked. "What I meant by my previous statement, is that Abyss can be controlled by me. I can alter whatever happens inside the dimension, an example is sending troops from abyss to attack the people who are trapped in it. I could also blow the place up." And with that, Present Mic and Aizawa appeared back on the training grounds with burnt marks all over their bodies. You smiled and walked towards them. "Are we done now?" You asked and Aizawa groaned. "Well done students. You may now rest up and be back for your afternoon classes." Aizawa said and stood up to exit the training ground, his arm resting on his bruised stomach. --- "Another failure Shoto! How could you lose to a low-ranking Pro Hero? And a girl protected you? This is not how I raised you. I didn't raise a failure who relied on a girl for protection!" Once again, you could hear Endeavor scold Todoroki in the corner of a hallway, isolated from other students and teachers. You had just gotten out of the bathroom to wash your face after your training, and the rumors of your training with Todoroki spread across the school and Pro Heroes quickly. As soon as Endeavor heard that he was not able to do much against Present Mic and Eraser Head, he immediately made his way to UA and give his son another stupid lecture. You didn't want to get in the way of their conversation but you really had to get to class. Hanging your head low, you tried to walk past them, but oh was the world mad at you. "You're the girl who beat Eraser Head and Present Mic huh?" Endeavor says, his voice deep enough to drown you. You stopped in your tracks and turned to look at him and nod. "You lost to this girl right here Shoto? What a disgrace!" He fisted his arm and tried to land a punch on Todoroki but your reflexes were far quicker and you caught his fist in your arm. "Oh, what is this? Look Shoto, a girl trying to defend you? Pathetic." He tried to apply more force into his fist but you didn't waver and gripped his fist. You could see the fabric of his gloves turning into ash. Endeavor thought that this was similar to someone's quirk. Tomura Shigaraki's Decay. "It seems that the rumors were true. You are the daughter of an abomination, Tomura Shigaraki's child. Y/N Shigaraki. Your mother fell in love with a damn villain and had you." You shook at his words and activated Abyss, his hand getting sucked into the dark dimension. You manipulated Decay on your foot and kicked Endeavor, causing him to stumble away and an evident bruise on his stomach. Your Decay was something a little different to your father's, whereas you could manipulate it to work on different parts of your body that could make contact with someone else. Grabbing Todoroki's arm, you pulled him out of the training grounds and away from his damn father. "I don't need your pity or your help." Todoroki said and pulled away from you. You stared at him in disbelief and scoffed. "My father was right. I am a failure for having someone like you protect me." He spat and you felt tears prick your eyes. This was the reason why you never wanted to show your quirks to anyone. Chances of them finding out that you were Tomura Shigaraki's daughter would stir trouble. No one would ever want to be friends with someone whose father was a murderer and villain. "And I was wrong to think that saving you from your father was a good idea. Both of you are alike, fucking jerks." You said and left him standing in the hallway. You walked quickly into your room, trying to ease the burned skin caused by Endeavor's fist surrounded with fire. A droplet of blood escaped your mouth as the after effects of Abyss chased after you. Todoroki was just like everyone else. He was a jerk whose pride was far more important than his emotions and friends. You were foolish to even think that you could be a good pair to represent the class in the competition. You hated him. Very much. As you bled out in your room, a certain someone was left motionless in the hallways. Tears stung his eyes as he realized his mistake. As you tried frantically to ease the burnt skin on your arm and wiping away the blood from your lips, Todoroki tried his best to compose himself and apologize. But he knew that by doing so, you still wouldn’t forgive him. May luck simply be on his side during the competition.

[youtuberswithalex]

PRVL, Volume 3, Chapter 1: Round One

A/N: I TOLD Y’ALL I WASN’T GIVING UP!!!!!  I'm not going to promise there are going to be weekly updates again like there were with Volume 1, but what I *can* promise you, and you hopefully will trust me on this, is that it WILL come in time!!!

Also, be on the lookout for links throughout this fic-- I’m trying to compose more music for this fic!!

Summary: Four schools. Thirty-two teams. One hundred twenty-eight students. One winner.

It's the weekend that everyone has been training for, but not everything is as ready as it seems. Between Virgil's ever-growing disrupting anxiety, Patton's fear of his parents, Roman's brother-despised relationship, and Logan's mysterious threat, chances are that something is bound to go horribly wrong. But with their friends and families surrounding them, Team PRVL is confident that they're going to make the most of the three biggest days ahead of them.

Welcome to the Vytal Festival Tournament!

Word Count: 5,350

Warnings: Fighting (in a tournament), panic attack, cursing

PRVL Tag list: @faithfulcat111​​​ @haikyuupaladin​​​ @virge-of-death​​​ @nose-to-meet-you​​​ @themysteriousinternetentity​​​ @will-iswriting-again​​​ @capripian-light-of-my-derse @isabel3710 (I’m going to be revamping this after this chapter, so please let me know if you would like to be added/kept on!)

Masterpost -- Volume 1 -- Next

-----

Virgil was certain he’d never felt his heart beat any faster in his life than in this moment. It was practically vibrating out of his ribcage. He couldn’t believe the others didn’t hear it. It was sending his head in a spin, his hands into a sweat, his jaw into a clench so tight he swore it could break through his own armor.

Not that he thought it was without reason, of course.

Despite the locker room being clear of any movement outside of PRVL putting on their armor, the chaos of the crowd outside refused to be silenced. It mixed sweetly with the heavy excitement radiating off of the other three, creating a buzz in the air that only seemed to make his pulse race even faster. From the corner of his eye, he could see Roman’s hands shaking, Logan’s stiffer-than-normal posture, Patton shifting his weight back and forth between his feet.

Each of them had an excited grin on their face. Virgil couldn’t find himself doing the same, but he couldn’t blame them.

After all, it was the day they’d been training for for so long.

The Vytal Festival Tournament.

Slamming his locker shut, Patton whirled around and held his fists to his chest. “Guys, it’s almost time!”

“We’re right here,” Logan responded, little venom in his voice. “You don’t need to yell.”

“I think there’s plenty of reason to yell!” Roman exclaimed. He lifted himself off the ground and twirled. “We have the first fight of the whole tournament! Have you any idea how much of an extravagant privilege that is?!”

“Privilege isn’t the word I’d use…,” Virgil breathed.

Logan crossed his arms. “While I do agree with you that this is an excellent opportunity, we can’t let it figuratively cloud our minds so much that we forget how to fight,” he stated. “We must remember to keep our guard up, regardless of whomever we’re against, and remember our training.”

“Oh, c’mon, Lo! This is gonna be fun!” Patton said. “We get to meet new people, make new friends—”

“—And represent Beacon as skilled, promising Huntsmen to the rest of the world,” Logan interrupted. “We cannot forget that.”

A shiver ran down Virgil’s spine.

“Plus, with you refusing to use your Semblance, despite any and all reasoning, we need to be extra careful about our tactics,” Logan finished.

Patton frowned. “Lo, I’ve told you, my parents are going to be watching. They’ll be furious if they see that.”

“I have to agree with the Grimm Sleeper, here, Pat,” Roman said. “What does it matter if they see when you won’t be speaking to them again?”

“I…”

The speakers screeched to life. Virgil felt his stomach leap to his throat.

“Ladies, Gentlemen, and everyone in between! Welcome to the 40th Annual Vytal Festival Tournament!”

The crowd erupted into cheers above them, amplified by the close, metal walls. Patton threw his hands over his ears while Roman let out a squeal.

“This is it!”

“We’re broadcasting to you live from Amity Colosseum, floating high above a beautiful day in the Kingdom of Vale! And boy, do we have a crowd today!”

“Yes, Peter, I’d say this is one of the best crowds we’ve had in years! It seems almost every seat is filled with someone on the edge of their… well… seat!”

“Oho, and why keep them waiting? Please welcome our first two teams of the tournament!”

Patton gasped and started to run for the door. “Come on, we better get out there!”

Roman and Logan were hot on his heels; Virgil took a second to take a shaky breath before following suit.

“Hailing from the Kingdom of our last Vytal Festival Champion, Shade Academy’s Team JTTT is here to uphold their title!”

“We got this guys,” Patton stated.

“And, representing our very own Beacon Academy, we have our promising Team PRVL to kick things off!”

The door slid open.

Screaming and bright, stadium lights nearly knocked the four off of their feet, but they managed to press forward towards the stage, however slow their pace. It was hard to not stare at their surroundings.

Dr. Oobleck hadn’t been kidding when he’d announced how packed the crowd was. Thousands of people were staring at them, waving, cheering, anything imaginable. From where they stood, the faces beyond the first few rows of the first level were far too small to distinguish, but was it loud.

Roman was quick to soak up the attention, twirling and sending kisses and waving right back. Virgil couldn’t shake the tremor in his hands.

By the time they made it to the stage, Team JTTT was lined up, weapons at the ready. PRVL scrambled to do the same.

With a wave, Patton grinned at the opposing team. “Hi! I’m Patton, and this is Roman, Logan, Virgil! It’s nice to meet you!”

“Pat!” Roman hissed. “You’re not supposed to befriend them until after the match! We’re enemies right now!”

Across the way, one of the members burst into a hearty, full laugh. He nearly dropped the camera in his hand. “Nah, c’mon! We can be friends now! It’ll be a friendly competition!”

“Of course you’d go for that,” the person next to them retorted, a smirk on their face.

“Did you expect anything else?” said the member furthest left.

“I sure hope not!” the first guy laughed. He beamed at PRVL and waved. “My name’s Thomas!”

The person next to Thomas scoffed before looking back at them. “Sorry, he’s like a big dog. I’m Joan.”

“Terrence,” said the guy on the left. He waved with two fingers before adjusting the baseball bat on his shoulder.

The person on the far right peered over their shoulder. “I’m Talyn.”

“It’s nice to meet you all!” Patton exclaimed.

“Just don’t expect us to go easy on you,” Roman shot.

Thomas made eye contact and gave a confident grin. “Trust us,” he said. “We won’t.”

“The rules of the tournament are simple,” Professor Port announced. “As per tradition, we will once again be breaking the competitions into three categories: Teams, Doubles and Singles.”

“The winners of the Team battles will choose two members of their team to progress to the Doubles, and whichever team wins that chooses one member to progress to the Singles!”

“From that point, the remaining combatants will fight their way through the final bracket in hopes of achieving victory for their kingdom!”

“Yes, and it is crucial to note that the only attribute being tested is skill!” Dr. Oobleck shouted. “Age and school year are completely irrelevant in this tournament!”

“Thank the gods for that,” Joan muttered.

Screens popped up around the stage, each with a rainbow of icons rapidly scrolling around them. Patton’s grin faltered as his eyes fell on them.

“What is that?”

Terrence blinked. “Have you never seen a tournament before?”

“Uh…”

“Don’t judge him. You know how hard it can be to watch these things,” Talyn pointed out. “Especially in Vacuo.”

“I grew up in Atlas! How am I supposed to know that?!”

The screens slowed to a stop. Behind Team JTTT showed a silhouette of a sun high above jutted structures. Patton turned in time to see silhouettes of geysers appear on their screens.

The ground rumbled.

Gasping, Patton stumbled back, both Roman and Logan grabbing an arm to keep him from falling to the ground. He saw Virgil drop to a crouch out of the corner of his eye; somehow, Team JTTT was hardly phased.

Aside from the middle panel they stood on, the floor began to recede into itself. Patton watched in awe as two environments rose out of the ground: one covered in high mountains of sand, and the other full of rocky geysers that blasted boiling water as soon as the floor settled.

When the stage stopped shaking, Roman shot him a grin. “That’s what those mean.”

“Students, are you ready?! The Vytal Festival Tournament is about to begin!”

The teams were quick to get into their fighting stances before Patton and Joan offered curt nods.

“In three…”

Roman’s wings fluttered.

“Two…”

Joan smirked.

“One…”

Patton smiled back.

“BEGIN!”

Patton reeled back and hurled his shield as hard as he could.

It soared across the gap between the two teams until it came just in front of Thomas’s face, who was quick to flip back just out of its reach. He eased into a backhand spring before lifting his camera and snapping a photo.

A flash of light blinded PRVL, and they threw up their hands to cover their faces. As soon as Virgil blinked his vision back, Talyn was flying towards him, sword extended; it split in the middle and spread apart, and red bubbles pelted him in the face, exploding into fire. He stumbled back, but had the quick intuition to throw his pole up just before they slammed their sword into it.

There was a blast of air next to them as Terrence leapt into the air. His baseball bat snapped into a scooter, which he was quick to put under himself before landing. He sped into the geyser field before anyone could react.

Logan launched his book at Joan, prepared to catch them while they weren’t paying attention, but they threw up their gloved hand and snatched it out of the air. A yelp escaped him when they gripped it tight and yanked it towards them, sending him tumbling in their direction.

Thomas beamed at the sight until a shadow loomed high above him, and he glanced up just in time to see Roman diving towards him, sword extended; he was quick to snap his camera into a tripod and hold it above his head. As they collided, a blast of air burst around them, sending dust and gravel flying everywhere.

Patton’s shield wedged itself into a sand dune far behind the others, and he sprinted to get to it before anyone else could. The wind toppled him over; he somersaulted to keep his momentum, only stumbling a bit before steadying on his feet. As soon as he was close enough, he yanked it out of the sand and snapped it back onto his gauntlet, whirling around to see who he could fight.

In the distance, a small figure wove through the geysers. Patton lifted his shield and fired.

“What an explosive start to this year’s tournament!”

Terrence kicked onto the flat, middle ground of the stage and sped towards him, dodging the bullets with ease. The closer he got, the more Patton’s heart pounded, and the harder he focused on firing bullets.

He leapt into the air and swiped the scooter out from under his feet; it transformed back into a bat as he held it above his head. Patton threw his shield up just in time. The resounding CLANG! Caused him to throw his hands over his ears, and Terrence took the opportunity to smash the bat into his side and knock him to the ground.

As soon as Logan was close enough, Joan thrust their bare fist at his face; he was quick to duck back and grab their wrist, pulling it over his shoulder to smash the heel of his hand into their jaw. They snatched his hand and spun until he was behind them. They launched him into the air, over their shoulders, but Logan ripped himself away and landed steadily on his feet. He threw up his arm just as they threw a punch, blocking it and repeating the action a few times.

Joan took a step back, pulling their right arm with the motion. The glove began to crackle with electricity. Logan shielded his eyes from the flashing lights, only for it to collide with his chest a second later; the jolt sent him flying through the air, and it took every muscle in his body to get him to slide to a stop on his feet, one hand on the ground for balance.

He shot a glare. They grinned back.

Gritting his teeth, Logan gripped his book and charged forward.

Talyn flipped over Sangria Salvia and landed neatly on their feet, switching their sword back into a bubble wand and shooting more bubbles; Virgil was quick to respond this time and spun his pole to block them. As soon as the fire was gone, he gripped it with both hands and swung. They matched his motion and blocked the attack.

The two hit, blocked, hit, blocked, back and forth until Virgil shoved his weapon between Talyn’s arms. He yanked it back towards him and knocked their sword out of their hands, sending it flying through the air and onto the ground far out of their reach. They watched it go before looking back at his beaming face.

Virgil couldn’t help but feel his anxiety dissipate just a little. We might actually be able to do this!

Talyn glared and held out their hands on either side. Claws shot out from underneath their nails.

His face dropped.

Roman let out a battle cry as he slammed his sword into Thomas’s tripod. The steel clashed back and forth until he leapt into the air and twirled above his opponent, landing behind him and kicking sand into the air. He swung, but Thomas was quick to snap the back of his camera open; film ribbons shot out and wrapped around the blade, and he ripped it right out of his hands and sent it flying. Roman lurched for it, but Thomas pointed an open palm at the ground and lifted his hand, and a giant column of sand rose up and knocked him away.

As quickly as he could, Roman twisted to right himself, coughing and spluttering to get the grains out of his mouth. He growled and dove towards his sword, but another blast slammed into his stomach; by the time the third was hurdling towards him, Roman was quick to spread his wings and use the wind to soar around it.

Seeing his opportunity, Terrence switched his weapon back into scooter mode and drifted around where Patton was pushing himself off of the floor. He shot him a grin and a wink.

“Catch me if you can!”

With that, he shot back towards the geysers. Patton beamed and jumped to his feet with a laugh, sprinting after him.

“You bet I will!”

As he ran onto the rocky, uneven ground, he dodged and jumped over the cracks and geysers that Terrence seemed to be skipping over with ease. He couldn’t figure out how, or how he was going to catch up to him in the first place, but… He couldn’t find himself caring. Despite the thousands of people watching in the stadium, and millions around the world, and all of them putting all their expectations of Beacon on PRVL, he didn’t have any care over which team won. This was fun. His heart was full of sunshine and joy over meeting new friends and getting to spar with them like this.

A little too full of joy.

Energy started to flow down to his feet, and Patton skidded to a stop just in front of a geyser, heart leaping into his throat. He looked down in time to see little patches of grass forming where his footsteps had landed.

Ice seeped into his veins.

Millions of people included his parents.

Semblance.

The ground rumbled in front of him, and he stumbled back just in time for the geyser to blast boiling water into the sky.

A green light formed around it, and the stream twisted and turned around itself. He blinked and glanced to the side to see Terrence holding his hands out in front of him, eyes shining a bright green.

“Oh!” Patton yelled. “Your semblance is—!”

Boosh!

The water slammed him directly in the gut, and he was sent flying high into the air, tumbling and twirling at almost the height of the second level of seating in the colosseum. Briefly, he caught a glimpse at the whole field from a birds��� eye view, watching as Virgil and Talyn parried, Joan and Logan battled hand to hand, and Roman bobbed and weaved through the sand Thomas was blasting into the air.

Roman caught him out of the corner of his eye, and he froze. Quickly, he calculated where it was Patton was going to land, and—

“Patton!”

He shot out of Thomas’s sand trap as fast as he could and dove for his leader, snatching him in his arms just before he hit the floor just outside of the battlefield. They each let out an oof, but recovered without a second to spare.

“What a save performed by Roman Reptilia!” Professor Port exclaimed. “Team PRVL’s lucky to have someone so quick-thinking on their side!”

Patton beamed up at him as he flew them back towards the battlefield. “Thanks, Ro!”

“Of course, Padre! Can’t have our leader losing from something as silly as falling out of bounds!” he replied. “Just be careful, alright?”

“You know I will, kiddo!”

Before Roman could say anything else, a blast of sand slammed into his side, and he was sent tumbling through the air; Patton fell towards the main stage, but, prepared this time, he tucked and rolled before sprinting back towards the geysers. A boulder came flying at him, covered in green light, and he was quick to throw his shield up to block it as he continued on his path.

Roman landed in the sand with a poof, skidding and sending sand down the inside of his shirt. It scratched and burned at every inch of his skin; as he pushed himself into a sitting position, he cast a quick glance to the big screens at the very top of the colosseum.

He found his name on the left side, second person down, and checked his aura levels.

27/100

He had a feeling.

A flash of light blinded him, but he leapt to his feet, reaching for his sword that was still stuck in the sand on the other side of the field. He cracked his eyes open just in time to see the tripod heading straight for his face; all he could do was throw his arms up to take the attack.

Roman formed a shield of light, but it shattered within the next blow. With a battle cry, Thomas jumped and held his tripod high above his head.

Thwack!

“Oh, and there’s our first knock out of the tournament!”

Logan gasped and cast a glance over his shoulder in time to see Roman staring up at the big screens, brow furrowed and mouth set in a slacked, deep frown. Next to him, Thomas was cheering and throwing his hands in the air, waving at the crowd. If he’d been facing him, Logan figured he would have seen a huge grin on his face.

He threw up an arm to block Joan’s punch, and, with his other, gripped his weapon’s strap tight, flinging the book as hard as he could at Thomas. It hit him square on the back and knocked him out of sight.

“And our second, just a second later!”

“It seems that PRVL and JTTT are evenly matched against each other! There’s no telling who will win this fight!”

“Ah, but whoever it is will clearly be worthy of going on to the next round!”

Virgil swallowed thickly as he blocked another scratch from Talyn’s claws. “That’s debatable,” he whispered to himself.

“Not so confident now, are you?” they snarked, shooting a smirk.

Glaring, he shoved them back as hard as he could, and they fell to the ground; without missing a beat, they did a backwards somersault, snatching their sword off the ground and firing bubbles at him again.

Virgil snapped his pole into its shotgun form and shot at each of the bubbles, letting them explode in the air instead of in his face. He crept forward as quickly as he could at the same time. Talyn inched back on their own with each step he took.

Finally, he ducked, snapped his weapon back into a pole, and swiped it under their feet. They hit the ground with a thud, and the buzzer sounded through the arena.

The crowd cheered. Distantly, Virgil heard Dr. Oobleck and Professor Port announcing the win.

He should have been happy, or at the very least, on his way to helping his teammates. But he couldn’t.

His eyes were glued to the people and cameras surrounding them.

Patton grit his teeth as his and Terrence’s weapons collided. With a grunt, he shoved him away, but Terrence kicked him in the chest and knocked him to the ground. He gasped pushed himself up, only to pause at the sight of an unsettlingly still figure.

“Virgil?” he muttered.

He glanced up at the screen to check his Aura level. 56/100.

Virgil realized with a start that he couldn’t breathe. His chest squeezed to the point where it felt like each breath was restricting his lungs even further, and his heart was feeling it. Pain started to run down his left arm as he broke into a cold sweat.

Something was wrong. Something was horribly, horribly wrong, and he was going to die, right here, in front of all these people, on live TV.

His legs trembled under his own weight, even though he felt like he was going to float away. All of these people were going to watch him die, and—and they were going to be traumatized. And all that panic and trauma was going to attract Grimm, maybe so many that the Atlas Military couldn’t hold them back, and everyone was going to die and it would be all his fault because he couldn’t handle a single, stupid fight in front of some people—

Virgil’s knees buckled.

Patton’s heart leapt to his throat. “Virgil!”

“What’s this? It seems Mr. Vengier is exhausted from the fight!”

He snapped his gaze towards Logan and Joan, just in time to see Joan staring at Virgil with a calculating look in their eye. They strategically hit Logan in the gut with a charged punch, and then they were running.

Patton glowered.

He whirled around and slammed his shield into Terrence’s shins just as he was raising his bat above his head. As he toppled forward, Patton leapt to his feet and smashed his fist into his chest as hard as he could.

A streak of flames followed Terrence as he flew out of bounds. Patton hardly registered the buzzer, as he was already sprinting as fast as he could.

Joan leapt into the air, their glove crackling with electricity and aiming right for Virgil.

Patton felt the ground rise under him with each step he took. Fire engulfed his fists.

They made eye contact.

Joan’s face fell.

With a scream, Patton slammed his fist into them, and they were sent flying through the air; when they hit the ground, they smashed through a rock formation in the sand before skidding off of the stage and slamming into the far wall.

“AND THAT’S THE MATCH!”

“TEAM PRVL OF BEACON WINS!”

Patton landed back on the ground and stumbled, cloak landing over the top of his head and blocking his vision. He yelped and scrambled to get it off; by the time he could see and whirl around, Talyn was already knelt next to Virgil, gripping his arm tightly.

“Virgil, right? Try to focus on me,” they encouraged. “Can you hear me?”

Logan dashed up behind them. “What’s going on?”

“Is he okay?!” Patton asked.

They shot them a quick glance, but kept their focus on Virgil. “He’s having a panic attack,” they stated. “I’ve got this. Virgil, if you can hear me, I need you to breathe in through your nose for four seconds…”

A hand rested on Patton’s shoulder; he turned to see Thomas giving him a gentle look. “Has he ever had one of these before?”

“Not to my knowledge,” Logan replied.

“Mine, either.”

Thomas nodded, and then he offered them a smile. “He’ll be okay. Don’t worry. If anyone knows how to help, it’s Talyn.”

“We need to get off the field soon, though,” Talyn pointed out. “Help me out?”

“You got it.”

Carefully, Thomas and Talyn lifted the trembling Virgil to his feet; when his knees buckled again, his weight caused Talyn to drop as well, and the other three scrambled to grab them both before they could fall. Patton held Talyn steady while Logan helped Thomas with Virgil.

“Aura depleted?” Thomas asked.

With a groan, Talyn could only nod. They leaned almost their full weight against Patton, eyes squeezing shut. Weakly, they pointed at Virgil and frowned.

“Help him do my breathing exercises.”

Thomas nodded and started to softly speak to Virgil, leading them carefully towards the locker room. Patton was about to do the same, but he stopped when he heard footsteps running up behind them.

“Talyn!”

They immediately turned and drooped into Joan’s arms the second they were within reach. Joan let out a breath, and then they lifted them bridal style, pressing their head carefully into the crook of their neck.

“I think you pushed yourself just a little too far today,” they muttered.

Talyn let out a moan, shaking their head. “’M fine.”

“Um…”

The two looked at Patton as he glanced back and forth between them and the locker room. He shifted on his feet, gripping tight to his cape.

“Are— Are you okay?” he asked.

Talyn hummed, dropping their head back onto Joan’s shoulder. “I have EDS,” they explained. “My Aura lets me fight without it hurting too bad, but once it’s gone, it hits full force.”

“We should probably go take a nap or something,” Joan said.

“No— No, I want to make sure Virgil’s alright.”

They blinked.

“What do you mean?” they asked. “Did something happen?”

Talyn raised an eyebrow at them. “Uh, yeah? He started having a panic attack in the middle of our match!”

Horror spread across Joan’s face, and they looked at Patton. “Wait, so—that’s why he collapsed?! Shit, I had no idea—”

They bolted off towards the locker room, holding Talyn tight in their arms; Patton let out a breath and followed.

------ 

Virgil lowered the water bottle from his lips, making sure he kept his eyes shut to avoid any eye contact. “Thank you,” he wheezed.

“Are you feeling any better?” Thomas asked.

He let his head drop and gave a non-committal shrug. “’M not dying, so…”

“Not that you ever were in the first place,” Logan stated.

There was a soft thwack!, followed by a yelp.

“Not now,” Roman hissed.

“It was intended as a reassurance!”

A weak laugh escaped his lips, and he cracked his eyes open to look around the locker room. From where he sat on the bench, he could just barely see Logan and Roman glaring at each other off to the side. Terrence was watching them with a raised eyebrow, and Thomas was next to him, still focused on Virgil. Next to them, Joan leaned against the lockers, holding a steady hand on Talyn’s shoulders, who was sitting cross-legged and exhausted right in front of him.

By process of elimination, that left Patton as the weight pressing against him. Not that he’d ever had any doubts on that.

“Was that your first panic attack?” Talyn asked.

Swallowing thickly, Virgil lowered his head again. “I-I guess.”

“They’re pretty terrifying the first time. I know,” they said. “But you learn how to handle them.”

First time?

“I’m really, so sorry for attacking you like that,” Joan said. “I really had no idea that was happening.”

“S’fine,” Virgil groaned. “Didn’t even notice you, honestly.”

“And you have Patton to thank for that. That final blow was awesome,” Terrence pointed out.

The grip on his shoulder tightened a bit, and then Patton let out a nervous laugh. “Uh… Thanks.”

“No, he’s right! I didn’t see that coming at all!” Joan added. “Was that your Semblance? How many years have you been—”

Virgil quietly sucked in a breath too big for his lungs to handle at the moment and threw himself into a coughing fit. Talyn leaned forward to push the water towards his lips; he took a swig and tried to ignore his burning lungs.

“You okay?” they asked.

He swallowed and slowly nodded. “Thanks.”

Talyn nodded back before pointing to his pocket with a shaking hand. “Let me give you my scroll number,” they said.

“What for?” Virgil replied. Regardless, he pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to them.

“If you’re ever having a panic attack, or just want to talk, you can always call me. I’ll help as much as I can.” They typed in their number and moved to hand it back, but Thomas stepped forward and held out his hand before Virgil could take it back.

“Let me put mine in too,” he ordered, “Just in case Talyn can’t pick up.”

“Oh, I want your numbers, too!” Patton exclaimed.

“So do I!” Roman added.

Joan pulled out their scroll. “Why don’t we all just exchange numbers with each other? Maybe we can hang out later during the festival.”

Patton grinned. “Would that be okay?!”

“Of course! You guys are cool,” Terrence said, “Even if you did beat us up and knock us out of the tournament.”

After they all exchanged and returned scrolls, Joan helped Talyn to their feet and looked at PRVL. “Do you guys want to get something to eat? I hear there’s some great ramen down on the fairgrounds.”

“As much fun as that sounds, I’m afraid we already have plans,” Logan stated.

Patton frowned. “We do?”

“Yes. Team CTLN asked us to watch some of the matches with them, remember?”

Waggling his eyebrows, Roman leaned in. “Oh, of course you’d remember.”

“Maybe some other time, then,” Thomas said. “We’ve got three days before the festival ends, so there’s plenty of time to plan. Let’s meet up again soon!”

“And don’t forget to call if you need anything,” Talyn added.

The two teams headed out of the locker room, each waving goodbye as they headed in different directions down the hall. Roman was quick to hop into the air and hover in front of Logan as they moved.

“So, skipping out on new friends to spend time with Thamir, hmm?” he said.

Logan rolled his eyes. “Do not assume it’s for any hidden reasoning. I simply wish to support them during the tournament,” he replied. “The members of Team CTLN have seemed to expressed remorse that they were unable to qualify to compete, and I’m certain that being with friends will help their emotional states.”

“Uh huh, sure.”

Taking a shaky breath, Virgil slowed to a stop and glued his eyes to the ground. “Guys? Uh… I-I think I’m just… gonna go lie down for a bit,” he softly admitted. “I’m kinda tired after all… y’know. That.”

The others stopped and looked at him; they cast a quick glance at each other, and then Patton stepped forward and put a hand on his arm. “Do you want us to come with you?”

Virgil shrugged, swallowing thickly. “I don’t want to keep you guys from CTLN, or from watching the tournament.”

“I’m sure they’d understand,” Logan replied.

Roman nodded. “And we could always watch on our scrolls.”

Offering a gentle smile, Patton tipped his head to the side. “I don’t really want to be in the colosseum, anyway, if I’m honest,” he said. “It’s a bit too loud for me in there.”

“And crowded,” Logan added.

Virgil chewed on his lip, looking between the three. “Are you sure?”

Shooting forward, Roman threw an arm around his shoulders. “We are certain, you nervous little Nevermore!” he exclaimed. “Now, let’s head back to the airships before this match ends! Best time to beat the crowd!”

A weak smile formed on Virgil’s face. “Okay.”

The group turned and began to head the other direction, towards the light at the end of the hall and the rumbling of the airships.

(https://youtu.be/-0E3bheVYRQ)

[littlethingwithfeathers]

Writing Update 3/4/19

Publishing Now!

A Room for Rent in the Fourth Estate: My Darcy/Venom/Eddie fic, which clocks in at just over 46k.  I update every Monday morning at the link above. Thank you to everyone who is already reading and commenting! I’m loving how excited some of you are for this fic. It’s really humbling!

As a side note, I’ve decided to extend the final chapter (Chapter 11), which may make me a little late in getting it out. But hopefully, the wait will be worth it. <3

Chapter 9 just went live! You can read a short excerpt from the first chapter below!

***

“Hey Dr. C! It’s Darcy.”

“Hey Darcy! How’s the superhero life treating you?”

“Oh, it’s the usual. The scientists don’t ever remember to sleep or eat. And Captain America strutting around in muscle shirts keeps me from remembering how to do things like breathe and walk in a straight line. But y'know. Eating regular. Living indoors. Living the Millennial dream.”

“Living most anybody’s dream more like.” her advisor replied, a smug smile in his voice.

“Yeah well.” Darcy gave a sheepish shrug even though Dr. Carpenter couldn’t see her. “So about that intern credit. I thought I had that covered. That’s how I wound up on Dr. Foster’s traveling circus in the first place.”

“I know but the new regs for graduation say that it has to actually be in your field, and ideally relevant to your thesis. Not sure I can spin an internship with a theoretical physicist into political science gold.”

Darcy groaned and buried her face in her hands. “You know that internship nearly got me killed right? Like… Multiple times?”

“Yeah, but I also know that it’s got you living rent free in the Avengers facility in upstate New York where Captain America struts around in a muscle shirt. So… no sympathy.”

Darcy snorted against the rim of her coffee mug. “Fair enough.”

“Besides,after last time, I wanted to find you something good.”

“Yeah?”

“So… Just hear me out on this. You know I went to undergrad here at Culver.”

“Uh huh?”

“You know who else went to Culver for undergrad? Who’s a journalist covering human rights issues, and was one of my classmates?”

“Who?”

“Eddie Brock.”

She sat up straight on that one, like she’d just applied her own taser to the base of her spine. “Eddie Brock? Like… “The Brock Report” Eddie Brock? THE Eddie Brock?”

“The very same. He’s doing print stuff these days, and he’s chasing a story involving military recruitment practices. And I found out just the other day that he’s looking for an intern.”

“No shit.”

“Yep. With your focus on recruitment demographics, military policy and so forth, I thought you might be a good fit to help him.”

“You want me to go intern for Eddie Brock.” The disbelief was thick on her voice.

“No. Eddie Brock wants you to intern for him. I just want you to graduate and get the hell out of my hair.” Dr. Carpenter sniped cheerily. “I sent him your thesis and he was all about it.”

There was a beat of utterly pulverized dead silence. “You’re kidding.”

***

Coming soon!

An Echo in my Soul: the next installment for “ Friendship is Unnecessary.” This one is Bucky/Natasha focused and set post Civil War. It is finished and clocks in right at 7k words. Look for it to go live once “Fourth Estate” is finished publishing.

Before the Storms Begin Breaking - Loki/Darcy fic: I’ve had several requests for more from “The Rain’ll Be Gone in the Morning.” And while I had intended it to be a stand alone, there is room to explore the vulnerability in Loki and the dutiful attachment in Darcy that I introduced in the fic… and the giftee of that fic in particular has been asking for more. It now has a title and currently stands at just over 6k words. So look for that coming sometime in early April.

The Night the Wall Came Down: Next up in my “Friendship is Unnecessary”series. It’s a Steve/Natasha fic set about a month post Infinity War.  Definitely will be a sad one… I’m actually using this as a mourning piece for myself for Infinity War, for what might be coming in Avengers: Endgame, and for the end of season 5 of Agents of SHIELD.  The rough draft is finished, clocking in at 7.5k, but my beta reader @kaminaduck pointed out that the opening chapter is no longer canon compliant because of the Endgame trailer. So I’ve got to go back and do major surgery on the opening. It’s looking more and more likely that this one will not go live until after I see Endgame and know for sure it can match up. Especially now that I’m toying with the serious idea of doing a final fic for this series that’s post-Endgame.

Hang By Every Word: The outline for my Stucky fic is still coming along but it will be awhile yet before I start writing on it in earnest. Now that “Fourth Estate” is finished and publishing, I’m ready to start picking at a new bigger fic. The basic theme (and I’m sure this has been done, but fuck it) is the undoing of Bucky’s conditioning one trigger word at a time. And each trigger word locked down a memory of Steve. So I have to write things from Steve’s point of view, and all ten memories have to be written from Bucky’s point of view, and they have to tie together into a cohesive narrative but the memories are out of order, but Steve’s time line isn’t and… It’s… a challenge. I’m still largely in the brainstorming phase… writing little snippets here and there. Nothing’s solidly taking form just yet.

Other “Friendship is Unnecessary” fics in the planning stages:

Rusalka: Steve/Natasha set sometime before Age of Ultron. Natasha takes Steve as her +1 to a Stark gala at an art museum. I’ve begun sketching this one out in earnest, with almost a thousand words written already. It will probably be next on the docket after “An Echo in My Soul.”

A Little Better to Travel: A plot bunny was gifted to me where Steve and Nat go on a little motorcycle ride sometime between Ultron and Civil War. Still just batting this one around like a cat with a bit of string.

Sweet and Honorable: Bucky insists on coming with Steve and Natasha to rescue Sam Wilson. Set post Civil War. This is starting to take shape in my head as a sort of work through for some of the issues that get raised in “Echo.” We’ll see how it goes…

Untitled Final Fic: I have begun toying around with ideas for different post-Endgame scenarios. Depending on how things go, I might wrap up the series there. It will just really depend on the fallout of that movie. I’m… not looking forward to it.