#anyway. i know nothing about ben 10 except for the watch sorry

[workplacecomedian]

Hehehe... TMA AU where martin and john wake up Somewhere Else that seems relatively Fear free, except john has the Ben 10 omnitrix watch with fear entity fuckery in it for absolutely no discernible reason. Imagining a professional looking show title "JOHN 14" hanging over a very pissed off john holding his wrist down on a table while one done-with-everything martin has a hammer raised to strike the damned thing

[farahtissaiamyloves]

Heyyo! Any Farah x reader in the works? Could I ask… for a angsty hurt/comfort… I don’t know what else baha sorry. If not all good, I love your Writing🤭 <3

Thanks a lot for the request!!! It's my first request for a Farah/reader fic and that makes it special ❤️. I started writing this as an angsty/comfort but I thought that it would be better if it got a taste of sweetness. Anyway, enjoy! This ended up being mysteriously 2222 words.

First, your dress and eyeliner (your eyeliner is blue):

Change of heart

Farah's head snapped at your direction for what felt like the millionth time that evening.

You were gorgeous.

You were wearing an elegant, pretty, navy blue dress. Your h/c hair was braided like a crown with some glitter on it.

But your makeup was the best thing on you. If Farah was the best at hair styles, you were the queen of makeup.

With blue matching eye liner, a brown lipstick and extra long ( probably fake ) eyelashes, you were smiling and navigating through the party with remarkable ease.

" I know that we have had this conversation again. And again. And again. But she fancies you, you fancy her, so go get her. " Suddenly a man's voice was heard.

Farah was pulled away from her roaming thoughts by her best friend who had been glaring at her while sipping some of his whiskey.

" And for the millionth time, she is too young for me. " Came Farah's irritated response.

Saul raised an eyebrow. " 10 years are not too young. "

Farah gulped some of her champagne. " Make them 15. "

Saul made a dismissive gesture. " What's 10 and what's 15. Age is just a useless number. The girl likes you and you like her back. Stop torturing her - and yourself - and finally get in her pants. "

Farah glanced sharply at him at the mention of your pants. " She was my student. "

Saul smirked at her. " We were soldiers back then, not professors. "

The headmistress sighed shaking her head. " It doesn't matter. I had her in some of my classes. "

Saul prepared to reply but he stopped as nothing he and his fairy's eyes were glued on you.

A man, a tiny businessman, decided to join your conversation with the queen and some other important people by brushing his hand slightly on your waist before standing next to you.

You didn't pay much attention to him, your rank, blood status and reputation were surpassing his for miles.

But Farah boiled. Anger, jealousy and temptation rising in her blood in a crazy and most importantly sudden turmoil.

" Are you alright, Fa ? You seem like you made a mistake. " Saul mocked her and then laughed at the glance she threw at his direction.

" Shut up. " Farah told him off looking daggers at the stupidly courageous businessman.

He must have said something funny because everybody laughed. Including you.

Farah's blood boiled.

The man leaned to you and whispered something in your ear making you flush.

And that was the last straw for Farah.

Farah turned on her heels and rushed outside. Out of Alfea's courtyard, out of the party she was supposed to host.

The woman couldn't bare it anymore.

Saul's eyes grew wide as he watched Farah run outside.

Fuck, with Farah gone the party was his responsibility from now on.

The specialist thought about it for a moment.

He then rushed to Ben. " Quickly, it's happening. "

Ben, who was sitting on the back of the party drinking his wine with a tiny Terra asleep in his arms, gave him a confused look. " What's happening ? "

The headmaster sat down next to him. " If we send Y/N to Farah, Farah will probably confess. "

Ben's eyes widened. " Yes. Yes. Let's go fetch her. " He wrapped his hands around the toddler as he stood on his feet.

Both friends walked to your group. 

" Good evening. Hope you are enjoying our humble party. " Saul, the new host, gave everybody especially Luna and except you (of course) a fake smile.

You raised an eyebrow. Where's Farah ?

" It's been lovely, headmaster Silva. May I ask where's the headmistress ? " That same businessman replied faster than Luna who had opened her mouth to do just that.

Luna shot him a reprimanding glance but didn't comment further, instead she refocused on Saul waiting for his answer.

" May I ask you a question. What's your name again ? " Saul frowned at him.

You took a sip from your whiskey. That one would be interesting.

" David Vandin, professor. Excuse me for not introducing myself earlier. " The man next to you made an apologetic gesture.

Saul didn't pay any further attention to him, instead he turned to you.

" Y/N. Could you help me to put Farah to sleep while Saul searched for Sam and Sky ? " Ben asked you.

You didn't hesitate to nod in agreement. " Of course. "

You said goodbye to everyone before you politely excused yourself and left the hall with your two friends.

" What do you want ? " You inquired knowing very well that they lied.

" Farah left earlier than expected. " Ben stated as the three of you turned down an other corridor. 

You were moving toward Ben's quarters to put Terra into sleep.

At the mention of Farah you were fully aware of what's to follow next. " Listen guys, even if I am very very greatful for your help, I'm not sure whether it's worth it or not. "

Saul and Ben both abruptly stopped walking and turned to face you. " I mean... even thought we had a flirt... an intense one... she doesn't want to... ya know. Share something more with me. "

Saul sighed and stepped closer to you. He got hold of both your arms locking eye contact with you. " I know that she hasn't shown to you how much she wants you. But both I and Ben have seen it. "

" Yeah. You are such a good, smart and funny person, Y/N. We would be honored to consider you family. And believe me, we already do that. " Ben added standing next to Saul.

You teared up. " Really ? " You questioned, tears running down your cheeks.

Both men nodded smiling at you and you all shared a hug; careful not to crash Terra who was still sleeping peacefully in her father's arms.

" Thank you so much, guys. " You told them when you pulled apart.

Saul winked at you. " Always here whenever you need us. "

Ben titled his head to the side. " Yes. But right now you must search for Farah. She mustn't be too far. "

And with a last smile and goodnights, you all went your respective ways.

꧁☾︎❥︎☽︎꧂

You didn't need much time to find her.

Farah was sat on a bench outside the castle.

Your heart clenched when you saw her figure trembling from both the cold and the tears in her eyes.

You silently sat next to her; surprised that she didn't see or feel you. So, you silently took off your coat and wrapped it around her.

You felt her freeze for a second before turning to look at you.

Farah frowned noticing that you weren't wearing something warmer (like your coat) with such a cold weather.

She tried to pull away to let you wear it because she didn't want you to be cold or catch a cold but you kept it in place.

" Stop it. You need it more than me; it's so cold, Y/N ! " Farah finally spoke with a hoarse voice.

You shook your head. " I'm an air fairy, Farah. Weather doesn't affect me. But it affects you. "

The older woman sighed knowing that she couldn't go against your argument. You had the power to manipulate air, you could control both your temperature and the temperature of the air around you.

Farah had no choice but to nod and agree with you.

Silence followed.

Uncomfortable silence.

Thick silence.

Silence that Farah didn't even dare to break.

" Are you okay ? " You asked her. Hadn't she been crying after all ?

" Don't worry about me. I'm fine. " Farah dismissed that conversation immediately.

You sneaked closer to her and wrapped your hand around her.

Farah's breath hitched. Oh god, she loved your touch.

You pulled Farah against you. Her head placed on your shoulder as you embraced her.

After having contact with your warm skin did Farah realize that she had still been trembling due to the cold air.

Finding both warmth and comfort in your arms, the headmistress of the most prominent magical academy in the six Realms snuggled closer.

You stayed like that for a while until you couldn't do it anymore.

It was now or never.

" I like you. " You blurted out before you could stop yourself.

However, for your great surprise, Farah just sighed.

SHE JUST SIGHED.

You pulled away to look at her.

Farah's eyes were closed and she didn't shift away from you, instead she moved closer.

You frowned. What was happening ?

" I... I know. " Farah mumbled weakly.

You stared at her for a second before suddenly standing up.

Farah's eyes snapped open and the still sat woman looked up at you.

Farah glared at you with hurt and confusion.

You crossed your hands in front of your chest. " First of all, that's serious. You can't half sleep or whatever when we have this conversation. Secondly, I don't want you to due from cold, so we are going inside. "

Farah nodded. You were right. Of course, it was serious. It was your lives you were talking about.

Still sleepy and cold, Farah raised her hand for you to take it. You did it and helped her up.

The woman gave you a smile as you led her inside. You turned through a corridor with her office as destination but Farah stopped you.

The headmistress who was slowly recovering inquired. " Would feel comfortable if we had this conversation in my chambers ? I feel like it would be more private there. "

Your eyes shone.

Farah Dowling. The woman you fancied. Was openly inviting you to her quarters.

Farah saw that glimmer of hope in your eyes.

Oh god, she felt the same.

However, after what happened today, Farah had made her decision.

She couldn't stand watching you being approached by other people.

She wanted to claim you.

Make you hers.

She wanted to take you in her arms and keep you there for the rest of eternity.

You let Farah lead you in her private rooms. Farah who was becoming more energetic and alerted with the passage of each second.

Farah's eyes shone greyish blue for a second when the two of you reached a wooden door.

The door opened and Farah motioned you to enter.

You did as told but before you get a glimpse of how Farah's quarters looked like, the said woman pinned you on the door; closing it in the process.

The woman's eyes shone again resulting on the sound of the door locking behind you.

Farah's hands held yours above your head while her mouth lowered to leave some kisses on your neck.

You sighed finally getting to feel her lips on your skin.

Farah's head stayed there, resting on your shoulder as the woman contemplated.

" What's wrong ? " You snapped unable to keep your composure.

Farah stepped back allowing you your space. Oh no.

She didn't bring you here only to kick you out saying that she changed her mind, did she ?

" Listen, the age gap we share is bigger than the normal ones. " The headmistress started.

You sighed in defeat and leaned against the door. You didn't like what was to follow.

" But you are a fellow adult and mature enough to comprehend the importance of a serious relationship. So, I would like to take you on a date. " Farah inhaled and waited for your response.

Your eyes widened.

Did she just back down from sex to ask you out ?

Well, even though you wouldn't mind starting your relationship with sex, you found it really sweet of her.

" Yes, Farah, of course. But why so suddenly this change of heart ? Why now ? " You questioned narrowing your eyes to show her your confusion.

Farah looked at the side quickly. " Nothing spectacular... Just being a tiny more courageous due to the alcohol. "

You raised an eyebrow. Was she lying ? " Unconvincing. "

" It's the tru- " Farah insisted.

" Was it because of that idiot ? " You cut her off realizing that she had probably been jealous.

Farah's eyes widened.

Yes, it was.

Congratulations, David.

You smiled triumphantly. " Gonna send him flowers as a thank you, then. Care to include you as well ? "

Farah placed her hands on her hips. She was burning. " No. You. Are. Not. "

" Yes. I. Am. " You paused after each word to piss her off.

She rolled her eyes in defeat giving you permission to do whatever you wanted, like she always had.

" You can stay here for the night, if you'd like. " Farah suggested.

You smirked. " If that's the question in which you demand my permission, then I shall inform your majesty that my legs will always be open for her magnitude. " 

She closed her eyes.

You would be the death of her.

[skellizo]

I have never watched a single star wars film completely so now I am learning what the fuck happend through the Lego Game (below read more are notes after completing each trilogy)

Disclaimer:

I know some very basic stuff of the og trilogy (mainly Luke and Leia being siblings, C3po and R2D2 exist, Yoda in some kind of swamp environment and Luke and Leia being the children of Vader)

I know close to nothing about the prequels except we got a meme from it, Obi-Wan is in them and Anakin = Vader and Pademe is the mother to Luke and Leia (I think Palpetine also appears in those movies but idk the plot of the prequels only that it ends with Anakin becoming Vader)

I know some general plot points (I think) of the sequels as I have watched some clips of them (mainly for Oscar Isaac because of Moon Knight research prior to it being released)

I remember the robot with 4 lightsabers and some lady in red with white facepaint(?)

OG trilogy:

I always thought the whole Luke I am your father would already happen in the first movie but alright

Are….Are Ben And Obi-Wan the same person….?

I thought Palpatine was in the prequel trilogy and Vader was the main villain for the OG

Also why the fuck did no one spoil to me that Vader and Luke would fight together against Palpetine

Was Leias and Hans romance also only established at the very end of the third film?? Seems a bit weird but alright

I didn’t fully get why Luke went to Vader and Palpetine in the first place? Like I guess to prove that he is not gonna turn to the dark side

…Luke and Leia kissed in the movies didn’t they? If yes thank you Lego Star Wars for just removing that part

I don’t know why I thought it was Vader that was cast in the silvery stuff instead of Han

Boba Fett?? Appears in the OG trilogy?? As an “antagonist”??

Anyway Conclusion: Story seems interesting enough especially since I knew NOTHING it turns out about the third movie of this trilogy. I was planning to watch all the movies after the game anyway but atm I am most interested in the story and execution of this trilogy

Prequel Trilogy:

I’m sorry but am I told that Star Wars happened because of an in universe trade disagreement???

ANAKIN BUILD C3PO??

ANAKIN IS NOT AN ORPHAN

Pademe seems a bit…older than Anakin

I have never seen Queen Amidala out of Lego form

Palpatine actually looked normal once huh

AMIDALA AND PADME ARE THE SAME PERSON??

Ok but did some strange insects really get sent in for a break in into padmes room??

I can’t imagine General G as something other than in Lego form like his character design stuck so in my head that after more than 10 years I still remembered it in such detail

…So they just made a lot of clones?? I always thought Stormtrooper were a lot of clones but now I don’t think they are??

So Vader/Anakin has a bunch of temper tantrums

Why do peoples faces change when they turn to the dark side??

Conclusion: I got a bit lost during the whole clone thing with Jango Fett. Bit weird when we saw Anakin as a literal small child next to Padmé a senator in the council knowing they would get together later on, had no idea that Amidala and Padmé were the same person short moment my mind was just blown, Episode 1 and 3 I understood the story I think alright but I was a bit lost in episode 2…I literally only knew about Order 66, “Do it” and the whole last fight

Sequel trilogy:

So….I know a lot from the force awakens so not much new stuff buuuut Han Solos death was nice

POE DAMERON MY BELOVED

I thought that vault where the tentacle things were stored were IN the millennium falcon so that’s new

There weren’t multiple Leia temporary general replacements in the films right??

Was there actually a prison break in the movies???

There is a weird hole on Lukes getaway Island and you have like a mirror level in it but no idea how that is translated to the movies

WE HAVE TO FIGHT LUKE

WHO THE FUCK IS DJ??

Admiral Holdo?? Times three??

Finn should have become a Jedi

Ep 9 begins and one of teh first characters you see is the live slug reaction slug?? Perfect

Did…did Kylo Ren also just wander into a strange lab like structure and found a Palpetine who was falling apart??

KLAUD THE LIVE SLUG REACTION SLUG WAS ON A MISSION

Poe and Rey are on their own…

Finn didn’t yell to Rey about needing to tell her something

Wait who are those Kylo Ren looking dudes?? I just missed that

…Rose feels like a character that was introduced just so that they could give Finn a female love interest after people started shipping Finn and Poe

Who the fuck is this little droid called D-0 and why is it on my team suddenly - IT CAN TALK?

WHO IS GENERAL PRYDE

LEIA HAD A SABER

GREBE KORORA.?

Knowing now Palpetine once looked more like a normal dude it makes more sense as to how he ever had children (the question is still when the fuck did that happen but…)

Zero idea who the Knights of Ren are or if they ever even appeared outside of Episode 9

YOOOO KYLO RENS SUBTITLES HAVE CHANGED TO BEN SOLO :D

…where did he get that blue lightsaber from though?? Like? And why does Rey also have a blue one?? One of the two is Leias I just always thought she would have another colour other than blue but still….why both blue

So you are telling me Ben and Rey kissed in the movies?? Alright then…the hug was enough

Was there als a BB-9E that got in basically a Mech in the movies

“I don’t like sand” Thanks Anakin

There is the yellow Lightsaber

Conclusion: Rose felt like she was just there as a love interest, genuinely interesting concepts, I feel like I missed a lot because no idea when the Knight of Ren first popped up and all that. Whose lightsabers did they fight with at the end of ep 9?? Finn should have been/become a Jedi like idc. THE LINE SOMEHOW PALPETINE RETURNED WASN’T THERE. Live Slug Reaction. I think if they had maybe set up that Snoke and the first orders plan was to resurrect Palpetine from the beginning and then Ben and Rey killing Snoke would have set something free that resulted in Palpetine being alive after his death would have worked better. Why did they have to include a Romance between Ben and Rey in the movies like…alright I guess

Final Conclusion: Had a good time :) Also liked most of the main characters and parts of the story though I certainly would have changed let’s say quite a bit but ey from what I got from the games: It was alright. Definitely gonna go watch the movies now so….who knows maybe I’ll become a Star Wars fan

Fun Fact: Lego Star Wars the complete Saga was the only way I knew anything back then about Star Wars. Kids in school would either play Star Wars or Harry Potter during break, so I had barely any knowledge about either of those but just bluffed my way through that. Also when I was young two kids were talking about the (real life) Lego Set for the death Star and how expensive it is, in my imagination I just had a giant Star from Mario in my head as to how this “death Star” looked.

[chilly-me-softly]

Every Little Thing’s Gonna Be Alright • Chapter 24

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10 - Chapter 11 - Chapter 12 - Chapter 13 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 18 - Chapter 19 - Chapter 20 - Chapter 21 - Chapter 22 - Chapter 23

And there's the end! Thanks to everyone who read, left comments or liked it. My longest story ever, a real pain ����. I admit I got a little lost here and there but I enjoyed writing it. There will be more chapters but I still have to decide some things so I don't know if or when they will be published... anyway I hope you like this last one x

The situation at home is awkward. Evelyn wanted to find the right moment to talk to her brother but that moment never seemed to come. She would stare at him, spend most of her time with him and yet she couldn't get those words out of her mouth. Engrossed in her own head, she hadn't noticed that the same thing was happening on the other side. Ben had an important decision to make too, or maybe he had already made it and it was only communicating it that scared him.

And one evening Evelyn had just put Cece down but didn't want to go to bed so she slowly closed the bedroom door behind her and made her way to the living room. But in the silence of the house she changes her mind and slips into Ben's room, settling into his bed and holding him close.

He immediately sighs squeezing her back, "What are you doing?"

"Remember how many times mum nearly had a heart attack because she couldn't find me in bed and I was sleeping with you?"

"How can I forget... when you slept alone I worried" she chuckles softly before sighing.

"I miss that. Being young and not having the world on my shoulders and being able to hide in my big brother's arms and feel better immediately"

"We're grown up, but that doesn't mean you can't count on me no matter what" for a moment she thinks she might burst into tears at any second, but she takes a deep breath closing her eyes to calm herself. "Even though we'll be far apart, we'll always be there for each other. Promise me Lyn"

"Ben" for a moment she thinks he knows, but it can't be. Jack promised her that he would give her all the time she needed and at the very least give her a heads up. So she tries to turn to look at him as if she could see him in the dark, but his grip is so firm she can't so she sighs "I promise, I promise"

There's silence for a few moments in the room before Ben sighs and releases his news, the one he's been holding in for a while now. "I might be a Chelsea player next season"

Evelyn snaps to her seat as soon as she processes those words, making a fuss to lean over and turn on the light hitting Ben in the process. "WHAT? Oh sorry! Ben that's great"

"Shh don't wake Cece up" Ben pulls her down but she gets back up again, resting her elbow on the mattress and looking at him proudly.

"You know I always knew you were destined for great things"

"Fly down. I said I might, it's nothing official yet"

"Well they'd be really stupid to let you go at this point: you're talented, you're a hard worker and you've got a pretty face too which never hurts" the two giggle as Ben lightly hits Evelyn with his foot and she then sits back down, her arm almost tingling.

"Why don't you look happy B?"

"I am" he states bringing his knees up to his chest and resting his arms on them, his hands brushing against each other from time to time.

"But there's something that doesn't make you live this moment to the fullest. Is it Deb?" she asks, but he's already shaking his head.

"I'll ask her to come with me if I accept" he admits slightly embarrassed as always when it comes to his personal life, but still sharing a smile with his sister who knows what it means. And she wishes them all the best because they deserve it, and not because they are the two people who have been closest to her in the last period but because they are good together and deserve all the good things that can happen to them.

"Is that for me?" Evelyn doesn't even give him time to think about changing subject, seeing him shift awkwardly from his seat sighing slightly.

"It's just... I worry about you. And Cece. It scares me to leave you here alone, because I can't ask you to follow me. Not now that you've found some kind of normality anyway"

"Ben" his name comes out more or less as a whisper, she doesn't even know if he heard it frankly. So she clears her throat slipping towards him and moving even closer, "We said you wouldn't worry about us any more than you have to"

"How can I?" when he looks up Evelyn can clearly see his inner struggle, and her stomach clenches in a painful grip. "I know I'm not her father but I love her, I love you and I can't help but worry about you as well since we live together"

"Benjamin James Chilwell are you really thinking of not taking the chance of a lifetime for a burbler and a whiner?" Evelyn tries to keep a straight face as she nonchalantly wipes away a tear that is silently rolling down her cheek.

"Family. For my family"

"Damn it Ben" she hits him on the arm between his laughter as she thinks it's now or never, if she doesn't tell him right then it's going to get harder and harder and she'll end up telling him the day she leaves. So she takes a deep breath.

"You know it's a good thing then that Jack asked us to move in with him. And that I said yes" next thing she knows she's on her back on the mattress with Ben moving his fingers over her body making her laugh and her trying to free herself.

"I can't believe it, what a bastard! You could've told me sooner!"

"Eh what can I say... I feel a certain pleasure in seeing you struggling" she sneers still trying to catch her breath as he drops down beside her.

"I promised you Ben, this time will be different. I won't make the same mistake twice" his hand goes to intertwine with hers, "Accept that contract if you think it might be the right move for your career, Cece and I will always be there to support you even if we can't see each other every day"

"I love you"

"I'm proud of you"

-

"Damn it!"

"Are you okay babe?" Jack yells from the other room where he and Cece are watching TV.

"Yeah" Evelyn lets him know clenching her teeth as she glances at the dog and places the container in her hand on the table.

"You need to stop that okay? One of these days I'm going to break something. Or you can hurt yourself"

"Babe who are you talking to?" Jack walks into the kitchen confused as she rolls her eyes.

"Your dog. He always has to get in the way"

"He just wants to play" he chuckles taking the dog and giving it some attention, "Look"

"It's annoying. I almost regret when he kept his distance as soon as we got here. And no, don't look at me like that. You have to stop"

Before she can say or do anything else, Cece comes running crashing into Evelyn's legs and laughing making Evelyn sigh just looking at Jack. He chuckles giving the dog one last pat before letting him go, "He just wants to play babe"

"I want to play babe" the little one states nodding as Evelyn picks her up, eyebrows arched in surprise.

"What did you just say?" the little girl repeats smiling as Jack hides a smile with his back to the two washing his hands.

"No no. Mh-mh. I'm not babe for you, I'm mommy"

"But he calls you that!"

"He's my boyfriend, he can"

"I can too! I'm your girl" Evelyn sighs knowing she can never win that battle, while Jack can't contain himself anymore and bursts out laughing.

"This is all your fault"

"How come?"

"You're a bad influence on her"

"Nah that's not true, she loves me. You love me don't you?" the little one agrees nodding as Jack pokes her tummy.

"Oh yeah? Well since you two get along so well, you can give her a bath tonight" she handed the little girl, who immediately wrapped her arms around his neck, winking at him.

"Yay! Lots of bubbles Jack?"

"As many as you want" and as the two of them walk away discussing the big plan that is taking a bath, Evelyn looks at them smiling getting lost in her thoughts.

Although it wasn't her first move, it was certainly the heaviest of all. Both emotionally and physically. Packing up her things and watching Ben do the same felt reassuring, but as soon as she remembered the different paths they were about to take, the nostalgia came flooding in. But there wasn't enough time to dwell on everything that Cece was calling for her attention and so it was back to square one, choosing what to pack for the moment and what not to, looking after the baby, spending time with Ben before going their separate ways...

Jack had made sure she had everything she needed, to make her feel as welcome as possible. They'd taken time to get everything set up, to make his house theirs, and she'd slowly gotten used to calling it home. And she really hoped it would be the last trip for her daughter, a permanent arrangement.

And she didn't have any big problems at the moment except for that dog. She'd never had a chance to complain about it, even when they came and went from that house the animal's behaviour had always been impeccable. He and Cece made a well-matched pair and there had been times when she'd actually thought about giving them both away, but then Jack would always calm her down. Recently though, he'd started following her around, getting in her way more than once or simply resting his face on her legs when they were on the couch watching TV. Talking to Deb about it, the girl had suggested that maybe her period hormones were the cause of the animal's sudden attachment to her, a hypothesis she had immediately ruled out because, firstly, it had never happened before and, secondly, she wasn't on her period.

However, that chat had put something in her mind, something she had not yet given a chance to sink in and had not yet checked above all.

"I wanna another baby" Jack surprises her that night after a thousand stories to put Cece to bed, alone in the living room brightened by the shades of light from the screen.

She looks at him. All she can think about is his choice of words. There had been moments: the first time Cece had called him dad, the time he had referred to her as his daughter, the first time she had referred to him as daddy in such a natural way. Yet each time, having the certainty that he considers her his despite everything, is like the first time. Like he'd never done it before. "Another?"

"Yeah. I want to add another member to this family, give our daughter a sibling. Can you imagine?" Evelyn can't speak, she's visibly emotional and Jack notices this as he replaces his dreamy expression with a more concerned one.

"I don't want to push you though if you don't feel like it yet. I know I'm not her father, well at least not biologically, and I don't want you to think it's for-"

"I think I'm pregnant" she then interrupted him giving voice to that thought that had been torturing her for a couple of days and it took him a moment to process those words.

"What? That fast?" and she laughs straddling him taking his face in her hands, leaving a tender kiss on his lips.

"I'm going to be a father?" he murmurs, his eyes sparkling as his hands go to brush against what is her stomach.

"I don't know for sure yet. I still have to take a test but I'm optimistic"

"Why haven't you taken one yet?"

"I guess I was scared. Last time I was pregnant I..."

"Oh honey, listen to me. I'm not leaving you anytime soon, okay? If you're pregnant, if you're carrying my baby right now... leaving you is the last of my thoughts. Trust me"

"I know that. I just-"

"Need someone to remind you of that once in a while. And that's what I'm here for" Evelyn leans in again to kiss him before standing up and offering him her hand which he accepts without hesitation.

"Where are we going?"

"To find out the truth"

-

Evelyn and Jack look at each other, unable to hold back a smile as Ben enjoys Cece sitting on his lap, helping her with the slice of bread in front of her. Since they had gone their separate ways, those lunches were commonplace to spend time together and they had learned to treasure those moments.

"Uncle B" Cece lifted her head bringing a crumb to the boy's lips, "what's a little sibling?"

"Oh...well a sibling is someone you'll love dearly when mum and dad have another b- wait" Ben lifts his head looking at the two in front of him, "A sibling? Why are she asking me about a sibling? Lyn" a glance is worth a thousand words as surprised and incredulous happy expressions appear on both of their faces before they get up to hug them.

"I knew it! I knew there was something different about you today!" Ben holds Evelyn tightly to him after putting Cece down, overjoyed for his little sister and the new life that will soon fill their lives.

"The dog, he knew all along"

"You 're damn right" Evelyn chuckles at Deb's statement as the boys look at them confused as they play dumb.

"I'm sorry man, this time it's your turn to take all the whining"

"Hey! Watch your mouth" Evelyn points her finger at him as Jack hugs her from behind, one hand going to gently caress her side.

"It's true! You used to cry a lot, about everything"

"Not about everything"

"A lot" Ben insists on pointing out, as his sister sticks her tongue out.

"Eh it is a bit true" Jack puts in earning a dirty look from her trying to push him away, "but I don't care. I'm ready to experience it fully, with the good and the bad too"

Later that day everyone seems to have collapsed around the living room, everyone except the two brothers. Ben signals for Evelyn to go out into the garden and the two of them walk off without waking anyone up.

"Quite a nice day" the boy relaxes on the deck chair in the green space closing his eyes for a moment as she settles down next to him.

"You called me out here to talk about the weather?" she teases him turning her head to look at him.

"And to tell you that I'm proposing to Deb this weekend"

"Ben! I can't believe you kept this from me all day" a gasp as she smacks him on the arm.

"It's not like I could exactly yell it out" he excuses himself turning for a moment to look at the glass door, "and I couldn't tell you with Cece around"

"You're right, I forgive you" she chuckles acknowledging that the little girl could have blurted it out at any moment without meaning to and ruin everything.

"Aw my big brother" she pinches his cheek as he tries to wriggle out of it by slapping her hand away, and for a while they laugh acting like they're kids again.

"Do you remember when you showed up at my house?" sighs Ben after a moment and at her nod, he continues, "you said there would be no more chances for you to find someone. Well looking at you now you could say you were wrong"

"You want to make me say it Ben?!" she looks at him cheekly before they both burst out laughing.

"I just want to... look at us. Me almost engaged, you almost a mother of two. For being the only members of the 'Boo love by Chilwell' club, it hasn't gone so bad"

"Oh my god, shut up! I totally forgot about that! We weren't normal kids"

"We never were" and it's like they've run out of time to spend alone as the little one of the house comes in rubbing one eye claiming Jack is still asleep and doesn't want to wake up.

"Oof I really hope my children can have a relationship like ours. You are and will forever be my best friend" she says sincerely, smiling and closing her eyes for a moment before standing up as Ben leaves a kiss on her temple.

"I will always be with you"

-

"Hey so about what my brother said earlier..."

"There's no need, like I said I want it all"

"Yeah but I just want to say one thing" she stands up on her toes to leave a kiss on his lips and he's already with his hands on her waist bringing her down not breaking the kiss. "I can feel this time will be different. I won't cry"

"Hmm how come?"

"Because I'm happy now"

----

Tag: @alexajanecollins @emwritesfootball @rosie7703

[forever-rogue]

Honey & Velvet - Part 5

Summary: Ruthless CEO Max Lord is about to meet his biggest match yet in another CEO such as cunning and biting as he can be.

A/N: Here ya go, Max whores (myself included). I hope you like this part ;) If you’d like to be tagged, please let me know, and as always, feedback and comments are always welcome! xx

Pairing: Maxwell Lord x Reader

Word Count: 4.5k

Warnings: mildest of smuts? idk, either way 18+ ;)

PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4 | PART 6 | PART 7 | PART 8 | PART 9 | PART 10

MASTERLIST

»»————-　♡　————-««

Glancing at the clock, you could see that it was nearing six o’clock. You pinned up a last few pieces of hair, completing the soft half updo you had created. Studying your face in the mirror, you decided you were happy with the result; simple makeup, leaving a fresh, glowing complexion, quickly finished off with the oxblood red you swiped on your lips. It was…elegant, seductive even. It was almost like the alter ego to the normally more crimson color you favored. 

Striding to your gilded full length mirror, you couldn’t help but crack a smile at the scandalous outfit you were wearing. The lingerie gifted to you from Max was still as shocking as the first time you had worn it, and almost caused a blush to rise up in your cheeks. There was something almost innocent and pure about the white lace and pearls, but you were well aware that it would lead to anything but purity. It was the type of garment created only to lead to the most sinful and carnal of acts. 

A wicked little smile crossed your face as you grabbed the black shift dress off of your bed and slipped over the lingerie. It completed the look, adding a layer of innocence, but leaving enough to the imagination. Twirling, you turned around and studied your backside, deciding that it looked just right.

The heels waited for you at the foot of the bed and you slipped them on, admiring the expensive shoes. They absolutely exuded sex and you couldn’t deny the powerful feeling they instilled deep within you. Checking your watch and seeing that it was just about six, you finished everything off with a few bursts of your newest perfume. You wondered, briefly, how Maxwell had scheduled this particular one; had a previous lover he was fond of loved it? Did he just have the perfume counter girl choose one? But no - he was much more calculated than that. He probably chose it himself for one reason or another. Whatever the reason was, you decided that you didn’t care, and let the soft mist douse you gently.

Just before the clock struck six, you grabbed the expensive bottle of champagne that you’d gotten for the occasion and stashed it in your purse before exiting your apartment. You were nervous, heart fluttering rapidly inside your chest, but something in you was determined to do this. 

»»————-　♡　————-««

Knocking on his door, a bolt of nervous energy ran through you with each rap of your knuckles against the well polished wood. Letting out a nervous breath of air, you wondered if this was a complete mistake and if you should just turn around and leave. Instead, you squared your shoulders and stood up straight, deciding you wouldn’t run away. After a few moments of tense silence, you heard a few footsteps coming towards the door, before the door was slowly unlocked and opened, emitting a loud creak, which served to make you more nervous. 

As soon as his warm eyes met yours, a small smile played on his features, despite how hard he tried to hide it. Shaking his head with a light sigh, he opened the door further and beckoned for you to come inside; part of you was surprised that he was even willing to let you in, but you shuffled in, not waiting for him to change his mind. Reaching inside your purse, you pulled out the bottle and held it out to him, as a sort of peace offering. 

He looked at curiously, one eyebrow raised in question, but he took it nonetheless, running his fingers over the label as he studied it. You slipped off your coat and laid it over the back of one of the bar stools at the counter, leaning against it to make sure he was able to get a proper look at you, “consider it a token of my gratitude…and to say I’m sorry.”

He let out a warm laugh, as he set the bottle on the counter, hands moving to his hips as he gave you the once over and studied you from head to toe; it wasn’t lost on you that his gaze lingered on your breasts, the lace visible from underneath your dress. Coming closer, he put a hand under your chin and tilted your face up to look directly into his, “and just what are you sorry for?”

“I think you’re well aware,” a dry laugh escaped your lips as his thumb traced the outline of your bottom lip, “Ben…I’m sorry about how things ended up. Just because things didn’t work out, doesn’t mean I should have treated you like that. So…I suppose I’m sorry. I should have been honest if you from the beginning.”

“I’ve never given a reason not to be, have I?” Ben let go of you before you walking into the kitchen to grab two flutes from the cabinet, “besides, if you had been honest with me from the start, it wouldn’t have mattered. You want to fuck, then we can fuck. No strings, nothing attached, but just be goddamn honest with me, Y/N.”

“I suppose that’s fair enough,” you admitted, grabbing the bottle and uncorking it with a loud pop, filling up the glasses he had set in front of you. Ben grabbed his and tapped it against yours, “cheers.”

“Cheers,” he repeated as he took a long drink from his, watched as you did the same, “now tell me…is this the only reason you came tonight?”

“Yes,” you answered honestly. The whole outfit was a more akin to get yourself pepped up and ready to do this, versus wanting to have sex with him. Hell, you’d contemplated going to Maxwell after this, making him wait for you, just to turn up at the last second and making a grand entrance. But now…you weren’t so sure. But you were glad that at least you could make somewhat of an amends with Benjamin. He didn’t have to be your best friend, he didn’t even have to be your friend, but for some reason…you just couldn’t leave it where it had been with him. He deserved honesty from you, at the very least.

“There it is,” Ben shot you a quick, “brutal honesty.”

“And just how can you tell?” you asked with a giggle as you sipped the on the bubbly, grabbing a fresh strawberry from the fruit bowl he grabbed out and popping into your mouth, relishing in the sweet juice and how perfectly it combined with the champagne.

“You have a tell,” he admitted, “it’s just this tone you adopt. I don’t know how to describe it, but it’s there. I’ve always noticed it anyway.”

“Perhaps I should be more careful,” you threw your head back with laughter, “can’t have people knowing everything about me. I suppose you can be my exception.”

“Don’t,” he said quietly, “it’s refreshing, honestly. No need to change yourself for others - remember that.”

“And here I was coming to say sorry, and yet I’m getting some life advice,” you sighed and hoped onto one of the bar stools, “what a strange twist of fate this past month has been.”

“Tell me,” Ben leaned across the counter and watched you intently, trying to figure out what was going on in your head. You were always so business oriented, so focused on things other than your personal life, that he found it odd that you were in this predicament, “come on, then. Tell me all about this Max that’s been on your mind.”

“Ben,” you sighed lightly as you downed the rest of the alcohol in your glass, reaching across the counter for the bottle; but Ben was faster and pulled the bottle just out of your reach, “oh come on! That’s not fair!”

“You can have more,” he promised, refilling his own flute first, “once you tell me what’s been going on. And don’t lie to me, there’s no reason to.”

“You’re a cruel man, Benjamin,” you signaled your reluctant agreement by pushing your empty glass towards him. He smirked but quickly refilled it, “where do I start with Maxwell Lord-”

“Wait…Max is Maxwell Lord?” Ben’s eyes widened as he set down his glass in surprise and you just shrugged innocently. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting…but he certainly hadn’t been expecting that, “like Lord Technologies, Maxwell Lord?”

“That one and only,” you agreed before meeting his eyes. You looked at each other for just a moment before bursting into laughter, “I…yeah…”

“How the fuck did you manage to do that?” he was incredulous, but leaned forward, eager to hear the story of how you made one man so weak, practically breaking him down without any effort.

“I have no clue,” you admitted with a heavy, “it all started at a board meeting we had when we signed a deal to work together and he was shamelessly staring at my tits.”

“They are something to marvel at,” Ben joked before you shot him a warning glare, “what! They are lovely…but go on…”

»»————-　♡　————-««

It was late by the time you left Ben’s house, far too late to make any sort of social call, so you opted to go back to your apartment, without so much as another thought towards Max. You could worry about him at another time. Right now you were just tired, with a happy buzz flowing through your bones from the bottle (and then some) of the champagne you had consumed. 

And surprisingly, you had stuck true to your word; nothing but friendly conversation had passed between you and Ben. Who would have thought? Maybe you were always destined to be friends, and nothing more. And for once…you were okay with that.

As you stumbled into your own apartment, you kicked the heels off by the door and stumbled towards your bedroom, not bothering to wash off your makeup, instead only slipping your dress off. You caught a glimpse of yourself in your mirror and laughed at the sight, which now seemed so ridiculous. But you didn’t bother to pull off the lingerie before flopping into the bed and crawling under the covers. 

»»————-　♡　————-««

By the time Monday rolled around, you were feeling wonderfully…refreshed, and reinvigorated. Your mind finally felt like it was so much more clear and focused than it had been in weeks, and an odd sense of peace washed over you. 

Walking into your office, you found Adina with a concerned look on her face. It was strange to see such an expression over her normally gentle exterior and even as you set down her morning coffee, she wouldn’t meet your eyes, “Adina? What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“No…” she answered after a few moments of silence. She grabbed her coffee and took a sip, swallowing the still scalding liquid without hesitation.

“Adina?”

“I just…there were a lot of blank messages this morning when I arrived. I tried to trace them, but couldn’t find out who left them,” she explained, “but I just…have an uneasy feeling. I don’t know, it’s like I can’t shake it, like something weird is going to happen.”

“You’re sure everything’s alright?” putting your hand on her shoulder, you gave it a tight squeeze as hoped you could reassure her, “if there’s something wrong, anything, you know you can come to me, right?”

“I know,” she grabbed your hand and managed a small smile, but the tension never left her face and the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, “I’m sure it’ll be fine. I just need to shake it off.”

“Right,” you remained unconvinced as you headed into your office, eyes still glued to the back of her head. Biting your bottom, you debated pressing the issue, but she clearly didn’t want to speak further about it, so you decided it was best to let it go. It still didn’t stop the light huff that escaped your lips as you walked into your office and shut the door behind you. 

But you had work to attend to, and couldn’t lose focus on something simply because you were distracted by…well, you weren’t quite sure what it was. You just hoped that if it was anything even remotely serious, she would come to you and let you know. 

Instead you buried yourself in paperwork outlining various deals and issues, getting so wrapped up in everything that you lost track of time. That was until you heard a slight commotion coming from the hall just outside your office. Tossing your pen down, you stood up and rushed to the door, trying to decipher what on earth could have been going on.

“Where is she?” the voice sounded angry…but also surprisingly calm. You recognized it immediately, and your heart plummeted to the bottom of your stomach. You’d expected you would hear from him...but not this soon. Not in your office, “where is she!?”

“She-she’s in her office, but she’s v-very busy,” poor Adina sounded as frightened as a child getting punished by a parent. You swallowed the lump in your throat before opening the door, “you’ll need to make an appointment with her before just coming over and -”

“Maxwell,” you tried to keep your voice firm and resolute as you stepped out, going so far as to put your hands on your hips to make yourself feel bigger. He turned his attention from Adina to you, his mouth curling into a grimace. It was not lost on you that he noticed you in the extravagant heels and the darker lipstick you sporting, “what the fuck do you think you’re doing here? You cannot just storm into my office and frighten my poor assistant.”

“There you are,” his words were cold, but calculated and spoken with purpose as he took a step closer to you, a dangerous look crossing his feature. For some reason it sent a delicious chill to run down your spine; what a time to get to turned on, “just the woman I wanted to see.”

Adina looked nervously between the two of you, unsure of what to do; luckily you just shook your head at her, signaling that you had the situation handled. Opening the door further and stepping aside, you motioned for Max to step inside. He cast Adina a small glance, almost disgustingly sweet as he stepped into your space. He’d never been here before, and took a moment to study everything as you closed the door behind you, locking it as you did so. You didn’t even know why you bothered to lock it, but a little voice in the back of your mind told you to do so.

“What the hell are you doing here, Maxwell?” you asked as you strode over to to him. He stared at you for all of about two seconds before grabbing your face with his large hand, his rings cool against your warm skin. His dark eyes stared into yours as you tried to swallow the nervous lump in your throat. A warm sensation started to flutter up in your belly as you tried to read his expression. 

“How dare you,” he said quietly, a dangerous edge to his voice as his chest rose and fell rapidly. You knew exactly what he was talking about; you had wondered if you’d hear from him again. You knew you would, deep down. It was foolish to think he would left something like that go, “how dare you insult me in such a manner, you foolish little girl. Do you have any idea who you’re messing with?”

“Maxwell,” you put your hand on his wrist and tried to pry his hand away from your face, but it was no use. His grip was iron, just like a vice as he seemed to try and invade all of your thoughts, “let go of me.”

He stared at you at you for a few more seconds before finally releasing you, and turning away, running a hand through his blonde locks, “I don’t know what little game you think you’re playing, but you had better watch it. I am not an enemy you want to make.”

“Oh? And just who initiated this so called game?” you tutted as you leaned against your desk, looking at his broad back and how wonderfully his suit fitted him. There was…something that flowed through you whenever he was around, creating a sense of bravado withing you; one that you normally didn’t possess, “don’t play the game if you can’t handle it.”

“Last I checked you were the one who called me and asked to see me,” he answered as he turned around to face you, “not the other way around. I wasn’t the one who stood up you and made you look like a fool.”

“Listen…I’m sorry about that,” you sighed and hopped onto the edge of your desk, giving him a half smile. You couldn’t believe you actually meant those words. Who would have thought? He raised an eyebrow at you, but remained silent as he waited for you to go on, “I had…intentions of coming, but ended up a little sidetracked.”

“Sidetracked,” he repeated the word with a certain disdain in his voice as he stepped closer to you, leaving very little room in between your bodies, “by what? Or should I say whom?”

“I don’t think that concerns you,” you insisted, raising your chin at him and pointedly looking away. He scoffed as he stopped right in front of you, put his arms on either side of you body and trapping you between him and the desk, “I said I’m sorry, Maxwell, and whether or not you believe it, I mean it. What more do you need?”

“Was it him again?” he asked softly, his face mere inches from yours, his warm breath fanning across your face. It was hard to focus on anything as you looked at his soft lips, his smell overwhelming your senses. Inadvertently licking your own lips, a cheeky grin appeared on his, “was it Ben Vasquez again?”

“It doesn’t matter,” you insisted weakly, feeling his arms getting closer and closer to your body, his heat radiating onto you. You could feel the need between your legs increasing with every passing second.

“Tell me,” he brought a hand to your face and ever so delicately brushed his fingers over your cheekbone, “what can he offer you that I cannot? He’s a mere boy playing at the big leagues. Surely an ex-lover isn’t someone you really want to turn to, is it? Surely, he can’t please you like a real man can.”

“And you think you can?” you sounded small, almost pathetic, but Maxwell just grinned at you, a glint sparkling in his eye.

“I know I can.”

You wanted to come up with a witty response, you really, really did. But your mind came up with a blank; instead all you could focus on was Max and how close he was to you, how good he smelled, how delicious he would taste. And in your moment of weakness, you couldn’t stop yourself - your body was buzzing with want, with desire.

And so you crashed your lips onto his, wrapping your arms around his neck and carding a hand through his hair as you kissed him with every fiber of your being. Max had seemed surprised for a mere moment before he responded with just as much fervor, his large hands settling on your waist as he kissed you until you were both breathless. 

It was a dizzying mixture of teeth and tongue as you finally were able to get out the repressed tension that had been building up for weeks. You didn’t even bother to try and hide the small moans that escaped your lips as you got so lost in him, so tangled up that it was hard to tell where you ended and he began. Taking charge, he pushed you back until you were flat on your desk, staring back up at him, chest rising and falling rapidly. 

Max loomed over you, running a hand down your side as he kissed you passionately, taking his time to work along your jaw, and neck. Once he heard a few soft mewls coming from you, he nipped at your delicate skin, making it a point to leave marks that would remain for days and be a burden to cover up. When something belonged to him, he wanted to Max sure the world knew.

“Max,” his name was a mere whisper as it fell off your lips, soft and delicate, almost like a prayer for his ears only. You could feel him smirking against your skin as he undid a few buttons of your blouse, your chest becoming more and more exposed to him with his passing second, his large hands exploring your body as he kissed along the valley of your breasts. You tried to pull him as close as possible to you, wanting to feel him fully and completely, “please.”

He remained silent as he continued to kiss you, and you rocked your hips against him, needing more. He brought a hand to your center, gently touching and tracing his fingers over your heat, through the fabric of your trousers. You needed them gone; you needed him to touch you, almost desperately so. He seemed amused as you tried to undo your pants, but grabbed your hands with his and held them above your head. He chuckled before planting a few kisses along your collarbone, “such a needy little thing.”

You were ready to beg, almost, and pleaded silently with him as you met his eyes. You could feel his erection pressing against you, but instead of doing anything to alleviate the problem, he simply let you go and straightened up, almost as if nothing had happened. You looked at him with wide as you sat up, a confused and dazed expression on your face, “what the hell?”

He didn’t say anything as he looked himself over in your mirror, straightening his tie back out and making sure his hair wasn’t too disheveled. When he felt your eyes glowering into his back, he smirked to himself as he wiped away a bit of your lipstick from his face. Turning back to you, he gave you the cheekiest of smiles before shrugging, “what?”

“How dare you-”

“How dare I?” he countered and you couldn’t contain your eye roll. You could still see the strain in his pants and realized it must have taken every once of will power for him not to ravish you and then and there on your chest, “I’m afraid I have no idea what you’re talking about, Ms. L/N.”

“You can’t just come in here, do that, and act like nothing happened,” you abhorred how whiny you sounded as you started to button your blouse once again. You could already see faint blue and purple marks welling up on your breasts, “you’ve got some nerve, Maxwell Lord.”

“I suppose I’m learning from the best,” he gave you an easy grin and you weren’t sure if you wanted to slap it or kiss it off of his face, “consider us even after what happened, or rather what didn’t happen, this weekend.”

“I hate you, Maxwell Lord,” you sighed at him, narrowing your eyes for added emphasis, “I loathe you with every fiber of my being.”

“I’m quite sure that’s not true,” he insisted, easily calling your bluff, “if you really hated me, you wouldn’t be wearing that lipstick, or that perfume or those heels. Am I correct?”

Remaining silent, you crossed your arms over your chest as you glared at him, turning your head to look anywhere but at him. He headed for the door, a new bounce in his step, “I’ll see myself out. That lipstick really does look stunning on you. You are an exquisite woman, you know. Not just in your beauty. I’ll see you around…you know where to find me.”

“It’ll be a cold day in hell before you see me again,” you boasted.

“I’ll be sure to keep a coat with me,” he opened door and just before he stepped out gave you a final small glance, “I look forward to our next meeting. You always do know how to keep it interesting, it’s quite refreshing.”

“Get. Out.”

“Goodbye, Ms. L/N,” you sighed as he closed the door, leaving you alone in your office with just your thoughts. Walking over to the mirror, you took in your wild appearance; hair a mess, eyes wild, lipstick smudged, and a flush to your cheeks. While you were almost desperate to finish what he had started, or technically you had started, you couldn’t deny the effect he had on you. 

He made you feel…alive. Positively electric. 

Now you just had to figure out how to get him back. You weren’t about to let him just win this little game.

»»————-　♡　————-««

Permanent Taglist: @jamesbarnesappreciationsociety @yourealegendroger  @thesecondlastjedi  @bitemerog  @rogernroll  @secretsweetscollectionblog  @sheridans-dynamos  @dinkiplier @starrystarrybabe  @onexlittlespark  @benhardyseyes  @marvelstuck  @whenthe-smokeisinyoureyes  @wonderwich  @a-kind-of-magik  @lv7867  @itissnowingandimstuckinside  @dessert-hardy  @rogertaylors-lipgloss  @rogerfxckingtaylor  @queenbbarnes  @drowseoftaylor  @persephonesnebula  @mamaskillerqueen  @theimpossiblehologramtree  @loveandbeloved29 @meddows-rose @onceitbubbles @wonderwoman292 @moondustmemories @spacedustmazzello  @queenlover05  @ah-callie  @blushingwueen  @thisis-theway​ @el-lizzie​  @asgardianvamp21​  @cable-kenobi​  @lavenderl3mons​  @rae-gar-targaryen

Max Taglist: @rae-gar-targaryen @pedrosdoll​ @pascalisperfect  @cosmo-bear  @halefirewarrior  @irishleesh93  @tarrevizslas  @nadia-rosea  @longitud-de-onda  @ithinkhesgaybutwesavedmufasa  @thesadvampire​ @thesadvampire​  @choicesarcade​  @avengingangelsoulofmusic​

[dragonrebelrose]

TROS Reaction 12-20-19. AKA my 6 page long dissertation about why I really disliked TROS.

I didn’t think it would be this bad. I truly thought there would be some gleaming moments of redeemability, but no. It’s one...giant...shit-show. What a horrible blow to the end of not only the sequel trilogy and these characters but to everything that came before. It really takes skill to mess up this badly.

A little something nice though, was the guy I sat next to. Really nice (and cute too ^-^ ) and he offered me some of his candy (Buncha Crunch! My favorite!) before the film started and then throughout the film because he said, “Well this is consolation for having to sit next to me.” Aw I couldn’t have asked for a better seat partner, I didn’t even know him! And then when the film ended he knew I didn’t take it well and I cried and shook through many moments and he offered the rest of his candy and I said, “Thanks, I think I need it.” I asked him what he thought overall and he said, “C-3P0 was pretty funny.” I said, “Yeah I agree. I actually knew everything that happened before I saw it, and I thought it was a mess.” He chuckled and said, “Me too, but I didn’t want to say anything in case you liked it.” I said, “Oh, no, I didn’t really like it. But I gotta be honest, Ben Solo didn’t deserve to die. That’s just my opinion.” I think he was surprised by that but didn’t disagree. He just kinda nodded or something and then we said goodbye and he left with his buddies, who also seemed pretty unenthused by the whole movie. Hopefully I gave him something to think about with my comment, but he was really nice and I’m glad he sat next to me.

Pessimism aside for now, I’ll start by listing the things I liked. I gotta be honest, there’s not much here.

Reylo is canon! But, in my opinion, it was handled pretty badly. Ben’s death is only the start of the problems for it, but more on that later.

C-3P0 is funny I guess. Yes he is annoying sometimes like usual, but not more so than other times.

D-O is freaking adorable. Out of everything good I’ve listed I have no qualms with this one. His manner is cute, his speaking is very funny, and his actions are just precious.

Babu Frik is very cute too, just perfect! Lovely little puppet! Don’t know why he was shoehorned in at the end battle but whatever. We never saw him again.

Maz is a puppet now? Okay, cool. Wish that would’ve been the case since the beginning. You had the technology JJ.

The music is good, when it’s given its own time to shine and be noticed. I feel like I barely noticed it was there because sound effects just drowned it out. Really wasted, but still good nonetheless.

Leia’s death and how it affected Ben. Wow. This was the first moment I truly cried. This was handled very well by Adam Driver, and then Maz saying “Goodbye, Princess.” Ouch, that got me.

Ben talking to the memory of his father! This is something I did not know was in the movie and boy am I glad I wasn’t spoiled for it! THIS is where the really hard tears and sobbing came. I was literally shaking and shivering trying to keep it in so as not to disturb everyone else. This. Part. Was. Perfect. Ben looks at him like he wants to say “I love you,” and Han says out loud “I know.” *crazy screaming and crying* Out of all the things they got wrong for Ben in this film, THIS they got right!

Ben Solo is the Solo boy we always wanted. Running in with a t-shirt, gun slinging, blasting opponents without even looking. THIS is a true son of Solo! But of course they give him no lines except “Ow.” THAT was a bad idea.

And that’s it. Yes those are the only things I even remotely liked, but I have to be honest, each one of these has some kind of problem attached to it which sours the real enjoyment.

On to what I disliked. Strap in lads, this is going to be a long ride.

1. The pacing. OH. MY. GOSH. SLOW. THE. FUCK. DOWN. For fucks sake I couldn’t even process what the hell was happening before we were on to the next thing! This was the biggest problem with the movie, BY FAR. Yes I know the story is terrible, we’ll get to that, but the pacing just completely took me out of the movie. I couldn’t feel invested in anything because it was all in one ear and out the other like ten-fold!

And this is part of the issue I have with how Reylo was handled. It. Felt. So. Rushed. And. Unfinished. There weren’t enough scenes with them and the scenes we did get were so fast and then over with that it felt like no progress was being made at all! It felt, for lack of a better word, unearned. And I know, that’s not really the case since they’ve had plenty of build-up in the last 2 films, but there wasn’t enough time with them spent NOT fighting and hating each other and opposing each other. Yes, I know, Kylo kept trying to get Rey to take his hand, but it doesn’t feel genuine because even Kylo feels out of character, and Rey too, big time. Now this isn’t the actor’s faults, they did what they could with the shitty story they were given, so I put all this blame at JJ’s desk.

In any case the overall film pacing was too fast, too much, too soon, too many things onscreen, too many things happening at once, not enough character, not enough motivation, not enough letting scenes breathe and just play out naturally. Everything felt forced for the sake of the “plot.” Oh we gotta get this thing, and then that thing, to get this thing, so we can defeat these guys! LET. US. BREATHE.

2. The story. My gosh, they couldn’t have picked a worse storyline to follow. Everything truly felt like it was written by a fanboy who wanted to retcon everything in TLJ, even down to the dialogue. Everyone keeps saying to Rey “You’re a Palpatine.” But it sounds SO strange, like nobody says things like this. I get it, it’s a space fantasy, they talk weird mumbo jumbo but it just sounds like a fanboy ghost wrote this. Like we gotta have everyone know now she’s a Palpatine! You’re a Palpatine! You’re a Palpatine! Palpatine heir! All bow down to the Palpatine! Give me a break.

3. Yeah, let’s talk about Palps. The old raisin himself. You know, I never really liked ROTS, but Palps was always a great thing about it. He was sinister, diabolical, he had a plan and knew what to do with it. But this Palps. *le heavy sigh* What a waste this was. For one thing, the lightning effects that lights up his face is really annoying, even for someone who doesn’t get seizures, I can’t even imagine what it’s like for those who do, I’m so sorry. And like, he has this whole legion of Sith followers? The fuck? Where the hell were these guys before? I’m sure they existed BEFORE the last Sith Lord died, right?

I digress. I have a question though: why does he want Rey so much? Why didn’t he try to get his son to take over? Wouldn’t that have been easier? Also, WHO DID HE FUCK TO GET A SON?? HOW DID HIS SON GET AWAY FROM HIM?? WHY DID HIS SON APPARENTLY TURN TO THE LIGHT?? THERE’S TOO MANY QUESTIONS HERE AND NO GOOD EXPLANATIONS. AND NO DISNEY, I DON’T WANT A 10-PART COMIC ON THIS. GO FUCK YOURSELVES.

The only interesting thing about Palps in this film is that his face gets melted off like a Raiders of the Lost Ark knock-off. He better not be coming back. Ever again.

4. And hey, while we’re on the subject, let’s talk about Rey’s parents. So apparently they’re both good people. *le sigh* But what kind of good people leave their daughter alone on a harsh and unforgiving planet with a blubber guy? And don’t tell me they didn’t know he was an abusive asshole, they LIVED on Jakku, they HAD to have known him, ESPECIALLY if they truly were junk traders, they would have DEALT with him. Oh, and apparently the “I’ll come back for you sweetheart, I promise” line is changed up a bit and given to her father after all. No. Screw that. That line was meant for Ben, I don’t care how petty this sounds, this is terrible. So yeah, fuck Rey’s parents, I don’t care how “good” you try to make their intentions, they’re badly shoehorned in and they screw up anyway. Next.

5. Ben’s story and his fate. So yeah, obviously I hate that Ben died, but more than that I hate how his story was handled here. It was so rushed, it didn’t feel as natural as it should have. It needed time to BREATHE. A lot of time! And I feel like they really shafted Kylo/Ben’s story off to the side to give more time to the hereby named GoldenTrio. (You know who I mean...we’ll get to them.) It really seemed like JJ didn’t even care about Ben’s fate anymore, and just kind of put it in as an afterthought. His death scene? Not even given a fucking minute to process because WE GOT TO PARTAY. All in all, his whole story is so terribly sad that I don’t even know if I can watch TFA or TLJ anymore, knowing how it ends.

6. The GoldenTrio. Oh for fucks sake, JJ, you should have killed Poe off when you had the chance, because now the story is all about THEM. Boom! They’re literally front and center in the movie. I don’t even think Reylo gets as much screen time as them. I mean really, Ben’s death scene and Rey’s grieving gets 1.5 minutes, tops. GoldenTrio reunion and threesome hugging? 5 fucking minutes of nothing but them hugging. I’m not even exaggerating. (Okay maybe I am, but it’s given more focus and time to “breathe” than Ben Solo’s fucking death. I’m getting a headache remembering it.)

Hey, remember in ESB and ROTJ where the trio got split up and had their own story lines and own purposes to fulfill without each other hanging around (apart from Han and Leia because their story lines are interconnected)? Yeah, I miss that too.

Also, Rey keeps wandering off being “pulled” to something, and every...single...time, Finn is like “Rey, wait! Poe we gotta get her! rEy CoMe BaCk!!” This happens at least 5 times, pretty consecutively too. It gets old real fast. Boy do I miss the days of TLJ where people got to be away from each other to discover new things without interference.

Which leads me to another point: They tried to shove FinnRey in here while shitting on FinnRose quite literally. What. A. Slap. To. The. Face. This is horrible treatment, and I hope Kelly will never do another interview for Lucasfilm again. She doesn’t deserve this.

7. The Ending™. Wow. What a way to show that your characters haven’t progressed at all by showing them in the same environment that they started in. Let’s do an overview: Rey starts out alone on a desert planet and meets a droid that isn’t hers. Rey ends up alone on a desert planet with a droid that still isn’t hers. PROGRESSION 101!! *slaps forehead* I mean, don’t even get me started on the fact that Ben isn’t there with her and that literally one half of her soul is gone (how is she not in agony right now??), but then to add more salt to the wound she’s just like “oh yeah I must be the rightful successor to the Skywalker name, even tho I’m a Palps...makes sense to me!” Fuck off. You don’t deserve that title after hating Luke for not doing what you wanted him to do and for hating Ben for most of this movie too.

Can we also acknowledge that this is THE ABSOLUTE WORST POSSIBLE WAY TO END A 40 YEAR SAGA AND FAMILY LEGACY? So, Palps had a kid who had a kid. This kid is then deemed a-okay by the family that was affected most by Palps and they welcome her like the sunshine child she is, yet shun their own offspring for being damaged goods because he was being manipulated by said Palps. Okay, it’s official now, everyone’s an asshole...except Ben. He seemed to be the only one to understand his faults and right his wrongs and not be an idiot. Then the kid who was abused and manipulated is killed because “reasons” or “problematic” or whatever and the offspring of Palps lives while the family that Palps manipulated is ultimately gone forever because it’s last descendant wanted to save the offspring of Palps out of the goodness of his heart. Now the offspring of Palps doesn’t even give a flipping thank you and steals their name. wHaT a SaTiSfYiNg EnDiNg!!! Someone gag me.

8. Luke’s X-Wing being raised out of the water and it’s in perfect working condition. What. The. Fuck. I don’t know if you guys realize this, but this completely undermines Luke’s arc in TLJ. That X-Wing was sunk and dead to show that he had no desire to return to the outside world. He was staying on the island. For good. And he buried that thing in water to make sure he couldn’t use it ever again, but it was still visible to him to remind him of his conviction if ever he questioned it. But no. That thing is a-okay and ready to fly. No need for parts, there’s no rust or any sea salt corrosion, ready to go skipper! This was just added for easy call-backs to ESB but boy this had absolutely 0 weight to it. I literally yawned or looked at my watch around this part thinking “oh my gosh isn’t it over yet?” Pretty much sums up my entire experience.

9. Rose got shafted to appease the fanboys. This one needs no further explanation or analysis, it just sucks and has no real reason to exist.

10. Luke was barely in it and offered not that great advice. Poor Mark. His performance really peaked with TLJ and never went back up.

11. Rey is suddenly the Avatar now? You can now talk to all previous Jedi’s who existed? What buffoonery is this? Oh, but Ben doesn’t get a single. fucking. word. from Anakin, the man he looked up to. I’m so tired right now. What’s left?

12. The message changed from “it doesn’t matter if you’re a nobody, you’re a somebody to me” to “you’re a somebody with a bad bloodline, but that doesn’t define you (except when it totally does)”. That sort of message would be fine if it had been the message since TFA, but it wasn’t. The message since TFA was “I’m a nobody, but I can become a somebody regardless of my lineage or my childhood.” Why change the message in the 11th hour? To appease fanboys. Literally anything that makes no sense in this movie can be attributed to fanboys. There’s so much contradiction and hypocrisy in this film from both the narrative and the characters that it’s insulting.

13. Hux was utterly shafted too. What a waste of a well built up and conniving little bastard who in the end gets shot for shock value and laughs. It’s like what TLJ did but way worse because he’s actually killed. Hux as the spy? Just no.

14. Jannah was kind of wasted too, not enough screen time. I get her and Finn kind of bonding over being ex-stormtroopers, but it’s not really delved into. Also the whole “nature vs. machinery” thing kinda briefly shows up at the big battle and feels unearned too, because there was nothing before in this movie or others to suggest there was a war between the two.

15. Poe is treated more as the heir to Leia than Ben is. Poe gets to fly the falcon and gets to wreck it up (dishonoring who it belonged to before), gets to be by Leia’s deathbed, etc. Not earned at all.

16. The pointlessness of random cameos or thrown in references. Not a single person in my theater noticed John Williams as the bartender, nobody pointed out or said anything about any reference from previous movies, it was silent.

17. What the hell was even the point of the whole “Dark Rey” vision? Oh, she shows her scary pointy teeth ala Bilbo style. No thank you.

18. Why the hell does it feel like these characters aren’t the characters from TFA and TLJ? They feel so different and it’s noticeable.

19. Finn is Force sensitive. Literally tacked on like nobody wouldn’t notice. We noticed JJ. We notice everything.

20. Rey and Kylo/Ben fighting for way too much of the film and their interactions. Not enough caring or understanding, not enough longing looks, it feels like their romance was almost cut from the film entirely.

21. Oh yeah, Rey floating at the beginning? Looked stupid as hell. And the “Be with me” line? I thought maybe, just maybe, she meant Ben, but no. She’s trying to reach “her past selves” like the fucking Avatar and she’s even floating rocks around like Aang did. Ugh.

22. Anything else? Oh yeah, this movie sucks completely and wholly...FOR NOT GIVING ONE FUCKING LINE OF DIALOGUE TO BEN SOLO AFTER HE HAD BEEN REDEEMED. HOW HEARTLESS CAN YOU BE THAT YOU LET HIM DIE WITHOUT SAYING ONE FINAL THING?!?! DAMN J.J. YOU’RE STUPID.

And that’s it. Kudos if you read the whole thing. I ramble a lot.

[anxiouslymalicious]

Losers Club Plus One Part 10

A Richie Tozier x daughter!reader series

Read the previous part here or go here for the full series masterlist.

A/N: Hi there! It’s been a while, I know, and I’m truly sorry! There has been so much going on in my life and I simply lost my motivation to write. However, thanks to a very dear person, I have regained said motivation and I am here to give y’all some content! The next part is already being worked on and I hope to publish it very soon!

Anyway, this is about 3k words long. I hope you enjoy!

“Bill, we’re at the library. Where are you?” Mike asked the second Bill answered his phone. The incomplete Losers Club Plus One was gathered around him, trying to listen in on what they were talking about. To say that they were worried was an understatement. But the fact that Bill had picked up was relieving, to say the least. It meant that he was still with them. It meant that IT hadn’t gotten to him. It meant that he was more or less safe. It meant that Bill was still alive and not doing anything too stupid.

“IT took a-a little k-k-kid- IT k-killed a little k-kid right in fucking front of me.” Bill sounded distraught, heartbroken. He had been crying, probably still was crying. Y/N, who was close enough to Mike to listen in on the conversation, especially felt a strong urge in her to just hug the man and tell him that it wasn’t his fault. Because it really wasn’t. But Bill thought differently. It was his fault that Georgie was taken by IT, Georgie had been taken because he hadn’t been there. And Dean, the little kid, had been killed because Bill hadn’t been fast enough. It was Bill’s fault, in his mind, and it would always be.

“No, no, no, no, no,” Mike jumped out of his seat. He had known Bill when he was a kid, he knew that Bill often made stupid decisions, and Mike was sure that Bill’s want to protect the Losers from IT was kicking in just then. If there was one thing each of them remembered about Bill, it was his unintentional heroism as he was trying to protect his friends.

“Look, just come back to the library, we can talk about the plan-“

“I’m gonna go kill IT. I don’t want any of you to get near IT. I’m gonna kill IT.” Bill said through gritted tears before hanging up, falling into a quick jog towards Silver. It was only a matter of seconds until he and Silver were fast enough to beat the devil. And the devil, they would beat.

“He’s gonna fight IT alone. Alone!” Mike said, almost as though he was concluding the very short call he and Bill just had. Mike was scared. Not only for Bill who was driven to do the stupidest things, all by Pennywise, but he was also scared for the rest of his friends. The people who had once gone down the drain with him, explored the sewers with him, fought IT with him. But most importantly, he felt scared for the new generation. Because if they failed now, if the ritual didn’t work and all of them were to end up dead, what hope did the children have left? IT would continue to attack children, eat children, tear families apart.

“What?” Richie mumbled more to himself than anyone else. And, almost as though he had the same train of thought as Mike, he looked at his daughter. The girl he had watched as she grew up and had taken care of nearly every day of her life. He felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach as he thought of the things IT would do should he and his friends fail to kill IT once and for all. Or, should she be able to escape Derry, the things she would have to live through as she got back home to LA. Would she be able to provide for herself? Who could she go to once he was gone? How would she handle all the paperwork? And oh, all those moments ahead of her that he was going to miss. Graduations, relationships, first jobs, first travels, all the accomplishments and big events in her life that he would miss. The moments that would fill her with pride but also shatter her heart if he wasn’t there.

Y/N looked up at Richie. Her mind was blank with pure worry. She hadn’t thought further than what would happen to Bill just yet, but maybe it was for the better. Maybe it was better that she didn’t worry her head with too many consequences and the horrors of IT, the true horrors of IT that she had yet to face.

“It’s- it’s about the group. The ritual doesn’t work without the group. Doing it together was why it worked.” Mike’s fear was growing, steadily consuming him. Like a shadow covering the little light of hope, he had left after noticing that the remainder of his friends had come to the library. He had felt so hopeful when he saw all of their faces, despite the horrid circumstances, in the library, knowing that they had gotten their tokens, knowing that they would face IT with him. He had trusted Bill to come back as well, he knew that Big Bill was known to stick to his friends. Leaving them to fend for themselves was not like Bill. Not at all. This wasn’t Big Bill talking, this was Bill, the author with the childhood trauma, talking. The man who had no idea how to properly end a book. They needed to show him how it’s done.

Y/N was gnawing at her thumb. It was sore and it stung a little, but it provided her comfort. Not much, but every single bit of comfort was more than welcome. Eddie saw, and pushed her arm down, hoping it would pull her out of her thoughts and get her to stop hurting herself. A million arguments as to why she shouldn’t do that, shouldn’t nibble at her nails when she was nervous, ran through his mind, he was ready to spill them out, but he bit his tongue. Y/N surely didn’t need that right now. She needed someone to take care of her. She needed her father.

With anxious eyes, Eddie searched for Richie.

Richie, lost in his thoughts and fears, wasn’t one to quickly notice. He didn’t even properly listen in on what the Losers were talking about. He heard Ben speak. Voice raspy, heavy with worry. Then Bev. Her voice was airy, light like she didn’t want anyone to hear her words because she didn’t want them to be true.

Richie looked up. He noticed that he hadn’t heard either of his loves speak up in a while. His gaze landed on Eddie immediately.

The man had slung one arm very awkwardly around his daughter, almost like Eddie wasn’t sure of his role in that particular moment, nor did he seem very confident with it. Both Eddie and Y/N were looking at Richie with raised brows and huge eyes. They resembled a pair of helpless puppies in a way.

With a few quick strides, Richie reached the pair and pulled his little girl close to him. Y/N leaned against her father. It felt strangely foreign and yet so natural to be so close to him. Her whole body seemed to still be a little confused with what was going on, how to feel about Richie, how to act around him. But Y/N knew him. And she knew his comfort. Richie was something to hold on to. Someone who had always been there. Father or not, she needed to feel at home. And that was exactly what Richie was.

Home.

“Oh, we’re not going to like this, are we?” Eddie asked, making Richie and Y/N listen in on the conversation around them again.

Y/N looked at the group. Everyone suddenly seemed much tenser. Arms crossed, faces cold, almost sorrowful looks in their eyes. Sighing, and then-

“Fuck.” Y/N whispered as something clicked in her mind. Shit was about to go down.

Derry had turned dark. Very dark. But not only the sky had lost its light, the occasional lightning on the horizon being an exception, but the town itself seemed to change. It was like the town had become one of ghosts. Barely a soul left a trace. Very few windows were lit. It was like time had stopped around Derry and no one was alive, or at least truly waking anymore. Everyone except for the Losers Club Plus One.

Y/N found herself feeling more and more like she was asleep. She couldn’t say it had been since arriving in town. Coming to Derry was strange. It was like she had started reading a book from the middle. She had a very small knowledge of what has been happening and tiny snippets of explanations were thrown her way, but nothing really. It just wasn’t enough. And the more she lost herself in the book, the twisted storylines and the even more confusing actions of the characters, the more she felt like nothing was real. Like whatever was happening wasn’t really happening and she had actually fallen asleep while reading a book.

But every book also had an ending. And not all of them were happy endings.

“Whatcha thinkin’ about, squirt?” Richie broke the silence in the car. Richie and Y/N were riding together, just like Mike and Ben and Bev and Eddie. All of the pairs were ready to beat silver. Desperate to beat silver.

“Don’t know… Just… This place, I guess. It’s strange, isn’t it?” Y/N looked at her father. His face, every now and then illuminated by the scarce light of the streetlights all around Derry, seemed so young, yet he didn’t act like he usually did. Even Richie ‘Trashmouth’ Tozier seemed to be intimidated by the situation he found himself in.

“It is. And I never missed it.”

“You couldn’t even remember it until Mike called.”

“Because I didn’t want to.”

“So you didn’t want to remember Eddie either?” Y/N smirked.

“Damn you, squirt. Sometimes I really wish your mom would have swallowed.”

Silence.

“Do you think things will change when we get home? Like between us?” Y/N asked curiously. But there was a sliver of hurt in her voice. Richie sighed.

“I don’t think anything is going to change unless we make a change. If you don’t want things to change between us, they don’t have to. We can act like Derry never happened when we get home. We can forget about all of this.”

It was strange hearing Richie speak all wise and serious. But it felt nice. It felt nice knowing that he took Y/N and her worries seriously and didn’t just flip them off as irrelevant.

“I don’t think I want to forget.” Y/N mumbled more to herself than to her father.

Richie’s car caught up with the other two. He hadn’t noticed how far they had fallen behind until he noticed that he could barely see the other cars before them. That’s when he sped. And it felt nice. It felt like he finally regained at least a little control over something. The last time he felt so powerless and so small compared to the world was when he entered the house on Neibolt Street for the first time. When he saw how Eddie got hurt. When he tried to reposition Eddie’s broken arm and was trapped in the same room as IT.

When the group split up for the first time.

When everything somehow shifted. And they were the world’s oldest 13-year olds.

“I can see Bill!” Y/N exclaimed, sitting up straight in her car seat, hand shooting to the seat belt buckle.

“Fuck.” Richie said as he watched Bill pushing a bike away. Was that silver? Richie was sure that he somehow had gotten his trusted bike back. How exactly, Richie didn’t know. Things had a way of coming back in Derry. But it wasn’t important. What was important was getting back together.

“Bill!” Beverly yelled, effectively stopping Bill. He turned to look at her just as he was about to enter the house.

Y/N felt like she was trapped inside a bad horror movie. The house she was facing was dark, the wood it was made of looked like it defied the laws of nature as it still stood. Y/N felt like she should feel silly, she should not be able to take this house seriously. It was the definition of a bad idea, but somehow, she felt compelled to show respect. Something about it felt intimidatingly evil. She knew the house would be no good, but she didn’t expect the place they would fight IT in to be looking as shabby yet scary.

“No!” Bill yelled back as he watched the group step closer to him and the building. They all were there. Bev, Mike, Ben, Eddie, Richie, even Y/N. Y/N, who was just a little older than they were when they first encountered IT.

Bill felt tears stinging in his eyes. He didn’t want to risk his friends’ lives again. And he for sure didn’t want to be the reason another kid had to go through what he and his friends did. Or – worst of all – he didn’t want to risk seeing another kid die because of him.

“N-no, you guys, no. I st-st-started all this. I-It’s m-my fault that y-you’re all here. Th-this curse, this fucking thing- It’s inside you all. It’s s-started growing the day I m-m-made you all go down to the barrens. Bec-cause all I cared about was finding G-Georgie. Now I’m gonna go in there, I don’t know what’s gonna happen, but I c-can’t ask you to d-do this.” Bill sounded distraught.

Y/N, subliminally, wrapped her arms around her father’s right arm. Richie acknowledged it, pulling her a little closer, but remained silent as they watched Bill fall apart with the pent-up guilt. The guilt he had been living with, sometimes more and sometimes less consciously, over the past 28 years.

Bill made eye contact with Y/N. He looked at her and saw so much potential in her. So much life, so much she had yet to give the world. And he felt sorry that she was there. He felt sorry for the pain she had endured over the past hours. Physically and mentally. Bill felt sorry for the wounds and the scars that, ultimately, he was to blame for. Because none of this would have happened if he had listened to his father. If he had stopped looking for Georgie. Or better yet, if he never acted sick to avoid playing with Georgie.

Had Bill not been so selfish, Georgie would still be alive.

“But you’re not asking us.” Y/N told Bill. “We’re here because we want to be. All of us could have left, we are free to go. But we didn’t.”

Bill sighed, running a hand through his hair to push it back. It felt sweaty, his whole head felt heated and the slight breeze of evening air felt nice. Relieving.

Richie looked funnily at his daughter. A part of him was scared she might tell the story of how they almost left if it wasn’t for Stan the man. Another part of him, however, registered that she wanted to be there. Be there, at Neibolt, with them. And it scared him to death. Nausea washed over him again and Richie had a hard time not showing just that.

Beverly picked up something from the ground. Something long and rusty. To all the Losers, it seemed to make sense, seemed to be a missing piece from a puzzle. Only Y/N watched on, visibly confused.

“Well, we’re not asking you either,” Beverly replied.

“We didn’t do this alone then, Bill. So, we’re not gonna do this alone now.” Mike added.

“Losers stick together.” Ben.

A pregnant pause. The air was thick with tension as the Losers made it clear that Big Bill wouldn’t go in there on his own. Like they had proven to one another once before. When they were nothing more than a mismatched group of kids that fit together perfectly.

The only sounds outside the house were crickets chirping in the night, an occasional roll of thunder and the wind lightly blowing through the grass. No one dared to speak up. No one dared to say another word. But not all words had been spoken yet. Each Loser was just waiting for the next move. The words that would decide how they were to proceed. 

“So, does somebody wanna say something?” Eddie broke the silence. And with that, decisions were made. The Losers would, once more, stick together.

“Richie said it b-b-best when we were here last.” Bill replied, looking at Richie expectantly. Richie now looked taken aback. He couldn’t remember ever saying the right thing at the right moment. Even Y/N looked at her father, a hint of curiosity on her otherwise confused face.

“I did?” Richie asked, still not remembering. He felt the Losers’ eyes on him, all of them waiting to hear the familiar words again. Richie thought for a moment.

“I don’t wanna die?” he asked. His daughter loosened her grip on him and shrugged a little.

“Very reasonable.” She mumbled to herself.

“Not that.” Bill’s voice sounded hoarse. A few moments of silence as Richie thought again, trying to remember what he said that day.

“You’re lucky we’re not measuring dicks?” The Losers looked at Richie, unimpressed. Y/N, however, had to fight back her giggle, but a tiny snort escaped the girl. She couldn’t hold herself back at the unexpected and yet so typical statement from the man she grew up with.

“No…” The Trashmouth whispered to himself as his friends failed to answer. The group seemed to ease up a little despite the situation they found themselves in.

“Let’s kill this fucking clown?” Bill grinned at that. The Trashmouth had found his words.

“Let’s kill this fucking clown!” Richie repeated, this time more eager. With that, the group found their spirit. The Losers Club was back and ready to kill a bitch. With that, the Losers entered the house that they knew was potentially the last place they would visit. 

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[trashmouth-tozier89]

Welcome to the Loser’s Club Asshole - Ch. 1 | F O U R

warnings: swearing, pretty disgusting stuff (dead bodies) , angst, pretty sad stuff but the next chapter will be worse

word count: 4,748

pairing: richie tozier x reader, platonic!losers x reader

a/n -  fourth chapter in and y/n finally gets her encounter with pennywise... also she takes a big step with richie!! this is quite a big chapter for y/n, so pay close attention and more importantly... enjoy!! 

If you wish to be added to the taglist, send in an ask or pop it in the comments! :)

taglist: @grapesauze​

Welcome to the Losers Club Asshole! Masterlist

Y/N had never been one for swimming. She hadn’t grown up around the ocean, or even swimming pools; there was a quarry on the other side of her hometown, but the idea of swimming in polluted water never appealed to her and her friends. Especially after her father’s accident.

So, of course, hearing that the boys wanted to spend the rest of their afternoon at the quarry swimming didn’t exactly have her jumping for joy. That didn’t mean she wouldn’t go though; they were the only friends she had made so far, and ditching them on their first official ‘hang out’ together wouldn’t have been a good first impression.

As the rest of the boys planted their bikes firmly on the ground, Stanley propping his up with the stand, Y/N had already made her way over to the edge of the cliff. She stared down at the gentle waters below, gulping at the thought of having to jump, beginning to nervously bite her lip. Richie seemed to sense Y/N’s hesitation, as he glanced over at the girl as he began to remove his shirt; “what’s wrong?” he mumbled, not wanting to catch the attention of the other boys who were currently arguing with Eddie about the health risks of going swimming.

“Uh… nothing” she muttered, eyes not even flicking towards the boy who was now stood at her side, also looking over the edge. He had a wide grin on his face, full to the brim with excitement and exhilaration. She needed to come up with an excuse believable enough so that she didn’t have to dip even her pinkie toe into that water; “I just, um- I can’t swim”

“You can’t swim?” Stan piped up from where he was stood, making Y/N jump as she hadn’t realised she had said it loud enough for them to hear. The glares coming from the boys felt like it was burning into her skin, as she tried to explain.

“W-we didn’t have anywhere to swim back in my hometown, so I-I never learnt. Sorry, I should’ve told you before I dragged myself out here” she explained, earning small nods from all the boys except Richie, who wasn’t sure whether he believed her or not. He saw the look on her face, and that was a look of fear; he would never confront her about it though, the last thing he’d want to do was make her uncomfortable.

“It’s n-n-no problem Y/N. There’s a p-p-path leading down to those rocks, if you’d rather just sit there for a while? W-we probably won’t be in the water for too long.” Bill proposed, pointing out the edge of the water where the boys would often sit to dry off after they had been swimming. Y/N considered it; it was better than just going home, and she supposed now would be a good time to do some sketching.  

“Thanks Bill” she grinned, feeling relief wash over her with the fact the boys weren’t judging her. She played with the hem of her dress as Eddie led her back to the path; throwing her satchel over her shoulder and waving goodbye to the boys before heading down the trail. It didn’t take her long at all to get down to the spot, and by the time she arrived, the boys had only just finished stripping down to their tighty-whities. She giggled at the sight, settling herself down on the edge of a rock comfortably and unclipping her satchel to pull out her sketchbook. She was rather glad she didn’t want to swim, considering the day was a perfect one for sketching.

Before she began to let her imagination run free, her eyes drifted up to the 5 boys who were still stood at the top of the cliff, partaking in a loogie contest which Richie was sure to win. Everyone knows it’s about distance, not mass. Who care how cool it looks, if it’s green or it’s white or juicy and fat? What matter is how far it goes; that was Y/N believed anyway. Soon after watching the boys, mainly Eddie and Richie, argue about nonsense, she noticed that someone had finally made the jump; though when said person bobbed back to the surface of the water, she recognised the red hair to be that of Beverly’s.

“What the fuck?” Richie shouted, watching alongside the 4 other boys as the girl made the leap none of them had been brave enough to take yet. “Oh, holy shit! We just got showed up by a girl!”

“Do we have to do that now?” Stan mumbled; he had already been nervous to do the jump in the first place, but after watching Bev, he was now even more uncertain of performing the feat. Maybe he should’ve just joined Y/N where she was perched near the bottom? Though, the other boys seemed just as nervous, but they knew they’d look like absolute pussies if they didn’t. Eddie answered almost immediately, as if it were obvious; “Yes!”

“Come on!” They heard the feminine voice of Beverly come from the below waters, so they at least knew she was alive and hadn’t drowned. Ben waved down at the girl, while Stanley simply mumbled an “oh shit” with a petrified expression on his face. He was extremely close to backing out, until Bill took the first step and jumped down to where Beverly was. Which meant there was absolutely no way they could back out now, so one by one they joined.

Before they knew it, they were all together in the water and splashing about with the widest grins on their faces. Bill suggested a game of chicken, and so Beverly mounted his shoulders and Eddie on Ben’s, Stan spotting the two on top to ensure neither got hurt in the process. Richie, however, stood away from the group with his eyes on something much different; it hadn’t taken long for his gaze to fall onto Y/N where she had sat perched on the rocks in the distance. He watched the way she focused on her art, drawing as if the ideas were just flowing through her; he wished he could have a talent like that. No, all Richie was good at was annoying people. Y/N had decided drawing the scenery before her was something she hadn’t tried, but would like to; she was used to drawing smaller things like birds or insects because she found she was best at capturing the finer details they carried. However, the sight of the quarry sparked something of inspiration in the girl, and she was stirred into a world of art before she knew it.

After about 20 minutes, Y/N’s hand had begun to cramp from the constant movements, and smudges of lead pencil coated the side of her hand. She was happy enough with the sketch to say it was done; she could always go back to it and add more later on. Nevertheless, the girl was eager to take advantage of the summer weather and so she took to sunbathing on the towel she had brought along for some reason. Pulling her dress over her head to leave her in only her underwear, she put her sunglasses on to protect her eyes and lay down. She hadn’t been aware of the eyes which were staring her down; Richie couldn’t find his voice. He felt his cheeks flush hot, and his stomach grow heavy. His heart pounded in his throat, threatening to break out; his eyes stayed locked on her. How many love songs had he heard that said, “She takes my breath away”? Now that line made a lot sense to him. He couldn’t comprehend the feelings taking over his brain; he hadn’t felt anything like it before. Sure, he thought girls were hot, and he found his cheeks blushing when his hand would brush against someone else’s, and sometimes he’d even stutter on his words when a girl asked him the answer to a question in class; but he was a teenage boy with a penis going through puberty, of course he got overwhelmed from time to time. But it was never this intense; he hadn’t ever looked at a girl in this way. Looked at a girl as if he was in love with her. No Richie, he thought, there’s no way!

The boy was pulled out of his thoughts by the sensation of something nipping at his ankle; “Ah fuck! What was that?” he yelped out, catching the attention of the rest of the group who had been too distracted to notice he had zoned out moments before; “Something just touched my foot right here!”

Both Richie and Stanley ducked their heads under the water to see if they could spot the mystery creature, but they were unsuccessful. Eddie tried to help too, asking “where are we looking” and Richie had tried to point it out to the small boy but they couldn’t see anything for the life of them.

Bill ducked under too, and was quick to notice exactly what it was; “It’s a turtle!”

****

This here’s a tale for all the fellas

Tryin’ to do what those ladies tell us

Get shot down cause ya over-zealous

Play hard to get females get jealous

Y/N wasn’t sure at what point the Beverly had lay beside her and began sunbathing, as she had been dozing off for the past 10 minutes; the beams of the sun were surprisingly relaxing. Thankfully, one member of the group had brought a radio, which was currently playing Young MC’s Bust a Move; one of Y/N’s personal favourites. She had soon found herself mouthing along to song, unaware of the fact she didn’t know every word because that didn’t matter.

Her h/c hair had splayed over her shoulders and her skin almost sparkled in the sunlight. A deep curve on her lips made the world stop around her; she has a smile that makes you feel happy about being alive. She was lay on her front, a novel in hand as she scanned the page to find where she had previously been after getting distracted by the music.

Okay smarty, go to a party

Girls are scantily clad and showin’ body

A chick walks by you wish you could sex her

But you're standing on the wall like you was Poindexter

Y/N was yet to notice the sharp glares of the boys, as she had found herself too caught up in the pages of her book. Richie couldn’t tear his eyes from the girl lay in front of him; none of the boys could divert their gaze from the pair really. Stan kept glaring at the boy who had to keep pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose; he couldn’t stop thinking about what Y/N had told him just the night before. She hadn’t had a conversation with Stan about her so-called crush on Richie since then, and so Stan was yet to have the chance to apologise for making her feeling bad. He just didn’t expect someone like Y/N to like someone like Richie. The boys, not used to seeing girls in nothing but their underwear, all sat eyes wide and mouth ajar while admiring the girls; though Richie only had eyes for Y/N and was finding it difficult to disengage his attention.

Next days function high class luncheon

Food is served and you’re stone-cold munchin’

Music comes on people start to dance

But then you ate so much you nearly split your pants

It wasn’t until Y/N started to feel herself getting cramp in her neck from the awkward position that she noticed the boys staring at her. A smirk growing on her face, she began to turn around to watch the boys scuttle around eyes wide, some coughing awkwardly, attempting to make it seem like they hadn’t spent the past 5 minutes preoccupied by the sight of the half-naked girls. Both Y/N and Beverly glanced at each other and chuckled, before propping themselves up onto their elbows to face the rest of the group.

Richie was almost certain he’d been caught checking Y/N out, if not by her by Stan. Thankfully, he distracted himself when he caught sight of Ben’s backpack open, digging his hand in to realise it was probably full of school stuff; he announced to the rest of the group in a comedic voice “News flash Ben, school’s out for summa’”

Y/N couldn’t help but chuckle at the boy, never getting tired of his ridiculous voices and impressions which nobody else found funny; Stan noticed the way he blushed almost immediately, and he would’ve questioned it if Ben hadn’t but in; “Oh that? That’s not school stuff.”

“Who sent you this?” Richie chuckled, a humoured smirk growing on his face as he pulled out a small postcard from the bottom of the bag. He looked to Ben, wiggling his eyebrows up and down teasingly.

“No one! Give it-“ Ben insisted, snatching the card out of Richie’s hand before he had the chance to read it and shoving it back into the bottom of the backpack. The smile failed to fall from Richie’s face as he pulled out a book, filled with old newspaper articles about the Black Spot explosion; it was titled “Easter Explosion Kills 88 Children, 102 Total”.

“What’s with the history project?” Richie questioned, furrowing his brows as he read through the first few lines of the article. Y/N had found herself growing curious at what the boy was reading about, so she pulled herself to her feet and went to sit on the rock between Richie and Stan. Richie gulped slightly as he processed the proximity of the girl, her leaning over him to look at the paper intently before paying attention to what Ben was saying

“Oh, when I first moved here, I didn’t have anyone to hang out with, so I just started spending time in the library” Ben explained, earning a snigger from Richie.

“You went to the library? On purpose?” Richie asked, sounding completely serious with the question. Y/N took a little offence by this as she had always been an avid reader, and the library was one of her personal favourite places to go. She nudged him lightly, scolding him; “Some people enjoy going to the library, Richie!”

“Why? It’s all just books and… well, more book” Richie pointed out, earning an eye roll from Ben and the girl. He stared at them in utter bewilderment.

“That’s the whole point Richie; maybe if you’d learn to actually read, you’d realise it can actually be interesting”

“Oh, I wanna see” Beverly changed the subject, jumping to her feet and grabbing the folder out of Richie’s hand. Sitting beside Bill, she handed it to him without noticing the way his eyes followed her as she sat, his throat bobbing up and down to clear his throat.

“What’s the Black Spot?” Stanley asked, considering he hadn’t had the chance to properly read the paper.

“The Black Spot was a nightclub that was burned down years ago by that racist cult” Eddie explained.

“The what?” Y/N questioned at the same time as Stan; they were both clueless at this point.

“Don’t you watch Geraldo?” Eddie questioned, and at the sight of Y/N’s head shaking he gasped, pressing a hand to his chest in a joking manner as if he had been wounded. The couple chuckled softly, Y/N shoving Eddie’s shoulder gently; Richie watched on at the interaction with a pit of jealousy growing in his stomach.

“Y-y-y-your hair…” a soft voice pulled them out of their interaction, turning to see two pairs of eyes gazing intently at the redhead; Ben and Bill. As Y/N managed to match the voice to Bill after a few seconds (thanks to the stutter), she let a small smile perk up on her cheek; there was something going on between those two. It was obvious Bill wasn’t going to finish his sentence as about 10 seconds of silence passed by, finally being filled by Ben perking into the conversation; “Your hair is beautiful, Beverly”

“Oh” Beverly smiled at the boys compliment; “Right. Thanks”

There was a hanging tension between Bill and Ben, as Ben grinned towards the ground bashfully; Y/N could tell from the moment Bev joined the group that Bill had something of a crush on the girl, and so she wanted to investigate into a little further. Perhaps it was to take her mind off her own problems with Richie, but that didn’t need mentioning. Richie was beginning to feel awkward, staring at the two infatuated boys who were practically pining over Bev. “Here, pass it” he snapped his fingers, holding his palm out flat for Bill to pass the folder back over. Once having received it, he reopened and scanned the page.

“Why’s it all murders and missing kids?” Richie questioned, passing it to Stan and Eddie so they could read it too.

“Derry’s not like any town I’ve ever been in before. They did a study once and it turns out people die or disappear six times the national average,” Ben explained, not noticing the way their eyes all widened at the statement.

“You read that?” Beverly asked, while the rest shared worried looks. It wasn’t difficult to realise that the conversation had taken a turn for the worse, yet Ben still continued.

“And that’s just grown-ups. Kids are worse; way, way worse” Ben said as Y/N and Richie locked eyes; she gulped loudly at the thought and he could see the ounces of worry in her eyes.

“Well that’s great, my mum decides to move to the one town I could realistically die in” she mumbled, feeling her palms grow sweaty at the notion; this was not what she expected to come from her first summer in Derry. She felt a hand place itself on hers, shooting her head up at the source; Richie. “I-I won’t let that happen.”

Usually Richie would make a joke at this point, or a snide remark about how pathetic Y/N was being; that was if it was any other member of the club. Considering he could tell how spooked she really was, and he felt a little unsettled too, he wasn’t in much mood for jokes. Y/N searched his eyes for any sign of sarcasm or humour laced in his intentions, before nodding slowly and letting the corners of her lips curve up slightly; he meant it.

“I’ve got more stuff, if you want to see it?” Ben suggested, more enthusiastic than everyone else combined. Eddie was quick to deny it, shaking his head as his eyes scanned his friends. They were hesitant, but they knew it would probably be better to know it all than be in the blue. The group packed their stuff away, getting dressed and heading back to where their bikes were left. Eddie was ranting to Y/N about the dangers of grey-water, which she found ironic considering the boy had been swimming in quarry water only an hour ago, when she realised she had forgotten to pack her sketchbook back into her backpack.

“O-oh, guys, I think I left my sketchbook behind. I’ll catch up with you!” Y/N shouted out from the back of the group, watching as they all turned and nodded at her words before continuing their walk to where they had left their bikes. Believing nobody was going to follow behind her, Y/N went in the opposite direction, back to the spot where the group had been sat only minutes ago. She could spot the pastel yellow sketchbook from almost a mile away, and considering she didn’t want to completely lose the others (she didn’t have a clue where Ben lived), she almost raced over to the sketchbook. Placing it in her red satchel hanging over her shoulder, she went to turn away and catch up with the boys, who’s heads were now only just bobbing out of sight; that was, until she heard a voice from behind her.

“Y/N” the voice almost choked out, sounding as if its mouth was gargling ounces of water. Y/N’s eyebrows furrowed almost immediately, confused considering there hadn’t been anyone there before. Not wanting to turn around, afraid of the possibility that there was a random homeless man who had followed her back down to the quarry, she brushed it of as just her imagination. It was just her imagination. “Y/N…?” ‘

That stopped her in her tracks; the voice had become clearer, as if the water had drained out of their mouth, and she knew that voice. She could’ve recognised that voice anywhere. Her whole body turned at the speed of lightning, eyes brimming with tears at the sight before her; “D-dad?”

There stood her father, just how she remembered him; the same high-waisted chinos, which were held up by the same pair of brown suspenders. The same tacky Hawaiian shirt, which she noticed looked a lot like what Richie was wearing the day before, but green; no wonder she liked Richie’s style. The same pair of brown loafers he insisted on wearing every day, whether he left the house or not. The same thick-rimmed glasses he would wear when sat at the dining table with the newspaper and a coffee in his hand. The same bushy moustache which would always tickle her cheeks when he’d give her a small kiss goodnight. It was all the same, except he looked exactly the way he should’ve; a corpse.

The corpse was almost devoid of skin and pitted by burrowing sea insects, and Y/N almost had to turn away as her stomach heaved, nostrils filled with the smell of rotting meat. The clothes were ripped to shreds, drenched in saltwater and algae just like the rest of it. Froth emerged from the corners of its mouth and nose, the sound of spit almost becoming worse than the smell. Its hands were almost down to the bone, the tissues having turned into grave wax, and the greenish black skin blistering over. She didn’t know what this was, but it wasn’t her dad, her dad was dead.

“Y/N, my sweet” The voice choked out, if you could even call it that, it hardly sounded like words. It was as if its lungs were full to the brim with water. She didn’t understand what was happening; what was this thing and why did it know her name? “I’ve missed you”

“What the fuck are you?” She almost yelled out, wanting to back away from the sight before her, but she found herself almost frozen in place; she felt paralysed with fear. Her eyes brimmed with bitter tears threatening to spill as the thing began approaching her slowly. It wasn’t even walking; it was floating through the surface of the water; the hand reached out to grab her own.

“Why, Y/N, you know who I am.” It spoke, so calmly she couldn’t quite help but believe maybe it wasn’t dangerous.

“Y-you’re not my d-dad. He’s dead” She tried to convince it, when really she was only trying to convince herself that this wasn’t real; it couldn’t be real. There was absolutely no way this was real… right?

“Oh, dear, don’t you think I know that. And let’s not forget who’s fault that is” he chuckled at her expense, watching as her head shot up at his words in shock. “Don’t look so shocked, we both know it was your fault. You did this to me, you’re the reason I died that day at the quarry” his voice became louder and harsher with every word, his hand now grasping the collar of her dress so tightly that she was struggling to breath.

“I-I didn’t do anything! I didn’t know!” Y/N defended herself, but her voice came out as mere wheezes, the tears pouring down her cheeks.

“Such a shitty excuse for a daughter, aren’t you? You left me to die, and so now you’ll be next. Come join me, Y/N, come join your old man. You’ll float, float just like the rest of us” he spat, face mere inches away from hers. She tried to fight back, kicking and punching at the monster that wasn’t budging at all.

“D-dad, stop!” she cried out, gaining nothing but a laugh. It wasn’t her dad’s laugh though, it wasn’t the monsters laugh. It had risen in pitch, morphed into laughter that Y/N didn’t recognise. Her scrunched eyes burst open to see a clown, replacing the corpse that was once there. Its grin was wide, rows of razor-sharp teeth sticking out, and eyes an unnatural orange colour. Before Y/N could scream, the clown spoke up.

“You'll float down here. We all float down here.” The clown teased, and in a split second the two were dunked into the deep waters of the quarry. Before she could surface to catch her breath, darkness had enveloped her. The water began to close in around her, filling her with a deep dread. She tried to hold her breath for as long as she could, but it ended up being too long. Red and black splotches danced in front of her eyes and she couldn't really tell if her eyes were opened or closed at that point. The coldness she had felt upon entering the water was completely gone; a desperate hot wave had washed over her, warming even her frosted toes. Her heart was beating rapidly in panic, the urgency for air was more apparent than ever before. There weren't red speckles in her field of vision anymore; it had become all black.

She opened her mouth, gasping for air. She revelled in the sensation of fresh air filling her lungs, rather than the salty, polluted water she had tasted only seconds before. Her vision was still blurred, but she could tell she wasn’t submerged anymore, as the bright light hit her eyes faster than she’d have liked; though she couldn’t have complained. Her ears felt clogged, all sound around her was extremely muffled; she could barely make out the begs and pleads coming from the figure in front of her. Wait; there was a figure in front of her?

“Y/N, breathe… say something… come on, say something”

As her eyes began to zoom back into focus, she could just about make out the shape of the body before her; it was wearing a green shirt over white, what seemed to be patterned grey shorts, and thick-rimmed glasses which sat across the bridge of its bright red nose. Her mind immediately drew back to the rotting body which lured her into the water, and how much it resembled whatever was before her now. With as much strength as she had, she attempted crawling backwards away from it only to find she couldn’t, as her back was perched against the rock ledges. Her hoarse voice screamed out; “get away from me! Leave me alone! I can’t-”

“Y/N, it’s me! Stop moving around, you’re going to hurt yourself; it’s me!” The voice shouted over her, clamping its hands down on her shoulder so that she would stop moving; he was afraid she’d bang her head on a rock or scrape her knees. The girl didn’t calm, still having trouble identifying the individual as anything but the monster; “what do you want with me? What are you?”

“Y/N calm down, please!” he pleaded, feeling tears brim in his own eyes at the sight of the girl in such distress. As she shivered vigorously, she felt herself losing energy being wasted on trying to escape, so she calmed herself and focused on getting her vision to return. Tears pooling in the corners of her eyes, she slowly began to recognise the person as not her dad, not the clown or the monster, but someone she was much happier to see.

“R-Richie?” she croaked out, launching her whole body forward to wrap him in a swaddle of her arms and chest; she was soaking wet and absolutely freezing, but the boy couldn’t care less.  He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, gently rubbing her arm. Despite the heaviness in her stomach, it fluttered at the feeling of her body pressed against his. She sunk into the warmth of his side, finally feeling a sense of comfort.

Then it dawned on Y/N; Richie had rescued her, pulled her out the water and saved her from drowning. He didn’t let her die.

He kept his word.

*****

A/N guys i imagine y/n’s drawing to look something like this ^^

[edream93]

I’m Hooked On All These Feelings (Harry of Auradon AU) Part 12-End

Hey everyone! This is the final chapter! Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has read and supported this story. 

Anyway, this is also posted on on AO3 or FF.net. Here’s the link for Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3, Part 4, Part 5,  Part 6 ,  Part 7, Part 8, Part 9 , Part 10 , and Part 11 of the story.

Maleficent’s head crashed against the floor, the vibrations nearly knocking most people off their feet. A final exhale was released before both head and body turned into dust before completely disappearing. 

Jay cautiously got up from holding Mal, slowly stepping back as if dealing with a wild animal.

Uma moved silently towards Mal, sword down but cautious. Her face was expressionless as she watched Mal’s body shake with sobs. Uma’s entire body sang with energy so intense she clutched tightly to the hilt of her sword. 

Her legs itched, feeling too dry, too restricted. She wanted nothing more than to follow the call of the sea and test her new limits. To see how long she could swim and be one with the waves and tides before she ever felt tired. She wanted to sail the seas. She wanted to see the shores of Neverland that Harry always spoke about with such delight and wonder. (She wanted to watch that look of wonder unfold across his face again and again and again. To soak it in. To kiss it like the sun and sea kiss at the horizon…) 

But not now. 

The fight wasn’t over. Not yet.

There was one last dragon to slay.

Mal’s sobs suddenly stopped as she turned to Uma. Green eyes flashed haphazardly. “You did this,” she said so quietly Uma almost didn’t hear her. Getting shakily up to her feet, Mal’s face twisted with raw anger. “YOU. DID. THIS!” Mal howled, body shaking, blurring around the edges, a hazy smoke that Uma eyed wearily. As if a line holding her up had snapped, Mal bent over, the weight of her despair pulling her down. “FIX IT!” she ordered at the ground. 

“No,” Uma firmly stated with the power of thunder in her voice and steel in her stance. 

Mal gasped.

“Please Uma. Fix it!” Mal fell to her knees, hands raised and outstretched to Uma as if she was her only salvation. Her green eyes were soft and filled with something that Uma would never be able to be forgiving enough to call love. “Uma. Please. You can do it. I know you can. You can- you were-just, please!”

Uma’s face was a complete expressionless mask. Rage boiled beneath her skin. Had Mal ever listened to her pleas? Had she listened? Had she? HAD SHE?

 She took a step forward, bending forward to whisper into Mal’s ear, warm breath caressing her ear in a mocking twisted imitation of a lover’s murmur. “Rotten roots make rotten apples,” she said before pulling away, a not at all small part of herself relishing the way that Mal’s face crumbled at those words.

Mal glared up at her. “So what are you going to do? Slay me too?” she nodded towards the sword in Uma’s grip. 

Uma’s grip on the hilt of her sword tightened. It would be so easy to do that, wouldn’t it? But then...she would be no better than the villains that she had grown up around...or the heroes that had left them on the Isle in the first place.  

“No,” Uma shook her head. “You aren’t worth my time,” she said sheathing her sword dismissively.

Mal’s expression cracked. She looked more creature than human, snarled mouth and fae like features sharpened and inhuman. Claw like hands reached out to wrap around Uma’s neck and wring out every last breath...

...and then Mal collapsed against the floor with a thud and a loud snore.  

“Wow. Mother was right. Apples do make sleeping potions more potent,” Evie hummed conversationally as she looked at a small spray bottle before tucking it into the pocket of her dress. “Maybe taking a little nap will put her in a better mood.”

Uma hummed distractedly, looking down at her lifelong tormentor. She had never seen Mal’s face so relaxed and peaceful before. She knew that she should be figuring out a more long term solution for Mal but as she felt someone turn her around and lift her up into the air, Uma found it difficult to allow Mal to get in the way of her happiness any more.

“Uma,” Harry purred against her stomach as she dropped her sword, her hands finding perch on his shoulders. “Uma,” he murmured again, placing her feet back on the ground, their foreheads pressed together. “Uma.”

“Harry,” Uma found herself smiling, releasing a breath she had been holding now that she was able to touch him again. Her heart beat loudly in her ears, her cheeks warm. He looked at her like she was his world, a feeling that made Uma feel both powerful and terrified. 

For Harry, he never knew until that moment that his name could be said with so much fondness. Her hand instantly began running through his wet hair, his knees nearly buckling, praise falling from his lips like the most delicate pearls. He leaned forward and tucked his face into her deck, breathing deeply and pressing a lingering kiss on her neck before pulling back, pressing his forehead against her again.  

The necklace around his neck hummed in tandem with the one tucked underneath her collar, wrapping them in magic that made his blood sing, too much magical energy rushing through him with no release. But each run of Uma’s fingers through his hair seemed to siphon off all of the excess energy he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in for days until this moment. A delicate and delicious balance of pain and pleasure. 

“Sorry,” the sea witch murmured, bumping gently her nose against his before taking one of his hands into hers.

Sorry for running.

Sorry for being afraid of whatever was growing between them.

Sorry for doing anything that put space between them.

“Oh! An apology! I see those Remedial Goodness classes are working out,” Harry softly teased, wrapping his other arm around her waist, pushing her further against him, teal and red colliding. He pressed his lips against hers to drink in the soft gasp that escaped hers like it was the only thing that could sustain him...Like she was the only one that could sustain him.

“Maybe you should get a room.”

Harry blinked, dazed, then pouted as Uma pushed him away with a laugh. He glared at Ben who only grinned smugly back.

“You know, your majesty,” Harry pointed his finger at the now king, his other hand already reaching out to pull Uma back against his side. “You are a terrible wingman.”  

Uma rolled her eyes at Harry, slapping his hand away before turning her attention to Ben instead. 

“I’m not going to apologize for what I did,” she stated as the coronation goers including Adam, Belle, Fairy Godmother, Audrey, and a now awake and ashamed look Jane began to enter back in. “For breaking Gil out of jail or stealing from the museum.” She picked up the sword from where it fell on the ground, feeling the heavy but grounding weight of the sword. “Or even for killing Maleficent,” she looked down at Mal’s unconscious form still on the ground. “It had to be done.”

Fairy Godmother gasped taking in the Sword and Shield of the Three Good Fairies that Uma and Gil were holding, respectively. “Unfortunately Uma, all actions must have their consequences!” she tutted. “Uma, you are guilty for obviously breaking out Gil and you both are guilty of stealing from the Auradon History Museum!The rules are there for a reason! To keep order. Punishment for such deplorable actions must be given!”

“Are you going to punish Uma by making her fall off a roof to her death?” Gil asked worriedly, stepping protectively next to Uma. “That’s what King Beast did to my dad.”

Adam and Belle both paled at the memory.

“Or maybe pushing people off cliff edges is your more your style, Fairy Godmother” Evie asked with an innocent pout, eyes sharp and calculating as she stood behind Uma. 

Fairy Godmother look offended. “W-why I’d never-”

“Maybe they’ll make you go insane before locking you up,” Carlos interrupted, easily dodging out of Fairy Godmother’s reach as she tried to grab back her wand from him. He moved next to Evie, behind and slightly to the side of Uma, handing her the wand. 

Everyone in the room seemed to tense as Uma fluidly took the wand, handing Harry the sword. 

“Or maybe,” Jay said stepping up to Uma, his eyes never leaving her guarded brown ones. “They’ll turn you into a slave and keep you in a prison so small and restricting you’ll beg for death as long as that means you’d be free.”

Unspoken words went between Jay and Uma for several seconds before Uma nodded, and Jay slid easily right behind Uma, between Carlos and Evie. 

Uma gazed at the wand, running a long line down it with a finger, a thoughtful expression on her face. She turned her gaze towards Fairy Godmother, watching smugly as the woman paled in fear. 

It would be so easy to lean into it. To make them all fear her name. 

She glanced over at Mal’s unconscious body, hand gripping the wand even more tightly, before looking back up.

“You know, a lot of people on the Isle would literally kill to get their hands on this thing,” she said with an almost absentminded tone that was betrayed by the way she flicked the wand experimentally, dangerous gold and teal sparks flying from its end. Everyone except Harry, Ben, and the rest of the Isle kids took a fearful step back. “It would be so easy to just...” shrug, “...tear the barrier down. Free all the kids who never got a chance to choose for themselves whether they would be heroes or villains. I’m sure all our parents would be so thrilled for a reunion with all of you,” she smiled at Ben’s parents and the headmistress. 

“And with Maleficent gone and Mal temporarily out of the picture, I wouldn’t be surprised if it became a power struggle between the baddest of the bads that led to your pretty little kingdoms falling. One. After. The. Other,” she punctuated with flicks of her wrists that shot out spells as easy as breathing. 

Waves of magic that smelled like sea salt flowed throughout the room, righting knocked over furniture and erasing scorched marks. Thick iron handcuffs appeared around Mal’s wrist which wouldn’t kill the half fae but would definitely leave an irritating rash against her skin. 

“So cool,” Gil whispered in awe as she also made their clothes dry and clean. And just to see the look on the woman’s face, Uma changed Fairy Godmother’s gown into a patch worked Isle version of her signature cape. 

The sea witch smirked, crossing her arms over her chest at the indignant squawk the woman gave. “I mean, it’s like you said, Fairy Godmother: Punishment for such deplorable actions must be given. And I think allowing innocent children to grow up and starve on an Isle full of thieves, killers, rapists, and swindlers deserves punishment too, don’t you?”

Fairy Godmother, grew pale, eyes growing dangerously wide as the wand was lazily pointed towards her. Before she could mess with anyone else, Ben stepped in front of her, hand outstretched to her with that gentle patient smile of his, all kingly justice and naivety wrapped up in sincere blue and gold wrappings.

Uma sighed as she felt Harry tense next to her but didn’t hold a grudge against him. Ben with his kindness and loyalty and good faith in others had gotten under her skin. 

“Help me then,” he said simply to her before looking at the other Isle kids around her. “All of you. Be the solution. Uma, you told me once about how cruel the Isle can be. So help me get kids like you, kids whose backs have been pushed against the wall and are just trying to survive the only way they know how, here where they can be safe.”

“And what makes you think helping you appeals to me at all?” Uma questioned.

Ben smiled, as if she had asked something obvious. 

“Because,” he looked towards Harry.  “Even though he’s basically committing treason right now, I still trust Harry and his decisions with my life. Because even before you took down an actual dragon, you cared. I could see it and I think I can guess that the only reason you let yourself be the subject of the love spell on me was because it was better than it being Mal. And because when I look at you and Harry,” his voice filled with warmth and genuineness, “it just fits. Does that make sense?” 

Uma snorted, shaking her head though a small smile broke through. The hand not holding the wand reached out without looking and easily slipping into Harry’s, giving it a tight squeeze. 

“It’s starting to.”

Harry grinned, raising their entwined hands up to his lips to kiss her knuckles. Uma glanced at him, seeing all the tension release from his shoulders and ignoring the way her heart lurched as if it wanted to punch right through her chest to be closer to him. She looked to her other side at Gil who was beaming brightly down at her and for once in her life Uma felt without fear. Her body felt light and filled with warmth that she had never really experienced before. 

She was happy. She was free. 

Stepping forward, Uma handed Fairy Godmother her wand back. The headmistress, let a relieved smile split her face before stepping back, doing a small flick that returned her dress back to the gown she was wearing. 

Ben cleared his throat, drawing attention back to him. 

“Uma of the Isle,” Ben said with a grin. “As King, any crimes that you or the others have committed in the last week have been pardoned. Good deeds deserve to be recognized just as much as bad ones deserve to be punished,” he winked. 

Uma paused. “Are you serious?” she questioned.

Ben nodded. “Very. So it is said, so it be done.” 

“So you’re not sending us back to the Isle?” Carlos questioned.

“Nope. You’re free to stay in Auradon if you wish.”

“Oh, we wish,” Carlos said happily giving both Jay and Gil a high five while Evie squealed with genuine happiness. Harry could tell King Adam and Queen Belle seemed exchanged unsure glances with each other behind Ben but kept silent, trusting their son’s judgement.

Evie stepped forward. “Your majesty. Ben,” she smiled taking his hands. “There’s a lot of kids on the Isle who deserve a happy ending. If I’m not being too bold, I’d like to offer my help in getting more kids off the Isle and aiding in their transition here.”

Ben grinned, squeezing her hand. “I would love that Evie."

"Uh...we'd like to help too," Jay said humbly. Carlos nodded next to him. "There's a lot more kids like us who need their pain and aggression channeled through more positive influences," he said glancing at Uma with a sad smile before looking back at the king. "I know that was true for me."

"That's great! Write me a list of all of your ideas and we can-” Ben began but was cut off by a loud commotion outside.

“They’re here!” Gil perked up, looking eagerly between Uma and Harry before pushing through the confused crowd to the door. Uma and Harry grinned at each other as well, quickly following Gil. 

Ben followed them outside, unsure of what to expect with Evie, Jay, and Carlos behind him. When he got outside, the king had to do a double take at what he saw. 

A large crowd of children from toddlers to gangly teenagers wearing the distinctive patchwork clothing of the Isle stood on the steps leading up to the coronation hall. Looks of wonder, fear, and awe were all on their faces as they looked around the bright and clean views of Auradon taking it all in. One little girl with glasses and colorful streaks of hair pulled into messy ponytails at the top of her hair pulled away from the group and ran towards them straight towards Evie.

“Dizzy,” Evie exclaimed happily, pulling the younger girl into her arms in a tight hug, Dizzy speaking with rapid excitement 

“Remember what you said about pardoning us for any crimes we may have committed this week?” Carlos grinned holding up the remote that let down the Isle’s barrier.

“I wasn’t going to forget that we weren’t the only ones who needed to get off the Isle,” Uma said with a look that said she dared him to say something negative about her freeing a bunch of Isle kids.

Ben was speechless for a moment before he shook his head with a laugh. “I guess you and I have our work ahead of us,” he chuckled at Evie before turning to Uma. “Any other surprises?”

“Just one more Benny!” a familiar voice shouted above them, a large shadow falling on them all. 

The new King paled as ship covered in fairy dust floated over them, CJ wearing a very obvious Isle inspired outfit as she hung off one of the rigs, iridescent wings flashing a kaleidoscope of colors behind her. On board the deck of the ship, he could see more Isle kids yelling with excitement over the boat edges as they shouted at and pointed at the dumbstruck Auradon citizens below. 

“UMA!” they all cheered, when they saw her teal hair. Someone threw down a rope ladder that Gil already started climbing up. 

“That’s our ride,” Harry grinned. “I’m guessing we’ll have two days head start before you send Harriet after us?” 

Shaking his head, Ben patted him on the shoulder. If it lingered longer than necessarily, neither boy pointed it out. “Oh, not even being the High King of Auradon can stop Harriet from giving you anything more than an hour head start.” 

Harry ran his hand through his hair. “Yeah, you’re right. But this is what I want,” he said softly, glancing over at Uma who had already said her goodbyes to Evie, Jay, and Carlos and was climbing up the rope ladder. “She’s what I want.”

Ben reached out and pulled him into another hug. “Then I’ll try to get you at least two hours headstart,” he grinned pulling away.

“Just two?”

“Well my fiance is running away with a beautiful woman so forgive me if I’m feeling a bit scorned,” Ben teased.

Harry rolled his eyes as he began to climb the rope ladder. “You’re never gonna let that go are you?” he shouted over his shoulder as the ship began to rise.

“Nope!” Ben shouted back, becoming smaller and smaller. 

Harry shook his head, a smile on his lips before climbing the rest of the way up. Uma reached out and helped to tug him over the side of the ship despite her small frame. They stumbled however, and Harry found himself bringing Uma closer to him once more to keep their balance. 

“You’re amazing,” he found himself breathing out as he looked into her brown eyes. 

“Not bad yourself, sailor,” Uma chuckled, allowing herself to enjoy being in his arms, leaning towards him, lips barely brushing against each other.

“Captain!” CJ shouted from where she now stood at the wheel. 

“Yes?” Both Harry and Uma said at the same time. Uma glared at him, a look that would have made other men tremble in their boots, but for Harry made him smile with glee, letting out a little giggle. 

CJ rolled her eyes at the two of them. “Where are we heading?”

“We’ll go where the wind takes us!” Uma grinned before looking at Harry. “Together,” she said softer so that only he could hear her. 

He grinned, a wild crazed look that buzzed in the presence of the surrounding pixie dust, threatening to overwhelm him. But Uma’s presence kept him anchored. Every touch, every smile, every little wrinkle of her nose kept him from drowning. The necklace around his neck thrummed, vibrating with unsaid but acknowledge feelings of warmth, trust, and love. Uma reached up to her necklace, the Nevershell she had given him and he knew she felt the same. 

Pivoting on his heel, Harry’s manic grin grew wider as everyone’s eyes were on them. “You heard the Captain,” he laughed. “We ride with the wind! Now get your lazy asses moving or I’ll toss you over myself,” he barked as he began to give orders to their crew, easily inspiring both fear and awe despite being Auradon born. 

“Uma,” Gil asked softly next to her as they watched Harry tease one of the crew, Jonas, about his horrible knots. “Is this what happily ever afters feel like?”

Uma shook her head. “No...this is better.”

[moviestorian]

Im glad the asks helped! I have anxiety and depression and can understand what youre going through. My ask today is what are your thoughts on Bo Rhap as a movie?

Thanks! :) I’m above all extremely happy to see people on this site being so kind and supportive in time of need, it’s a human quality that will never get enough praise! I’m also really sorry to hear about your problems. :( I send you lots of love, I can imagine how difficult it must be for you, but I’m sure you're strong and coping❤️

As for your actual question - that’s some truly excellent and interesting timing, considering that I rewatched BoRhap (with @incblackbird) literally three days ago. :P It was already my third rewatch, and while I enjoyed the movie overall, I liked it quite significantly less than upon the last time I saw it. Of course, there’s been gazillion discourses about BoRhap, whether it’s genius, extremely evil, etc., but since it’s such a broad topic (and I think some of my opinions could potentially outrage certain parts of the fandom), this time I’m going to stick to purely cinematic terms.

Needless to say, the soundtrack is excellent - with music such as Queen’s you don’t really have to do much, but they made a good choice of songs, alternating between their best known hits (We Will Rock You, Somebody to Love, Bohemian Rhapsody) and songs to fit the narrative (Doing All Right, Now I’m Here, Who Wants to Live Forever, Love of my Life). It’s practically impossible to leave the screening of BoRhap without at least one Queen song stuck in your head.

The cast was overall very good, too. My personal favourites in terms of acting were Gwilym Lee (who I liked even more than Rami), Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton and Allen Leech - I think they did a great job with their roles as they were written (whether their characters were well written or not is a subject for a whole another discussion). All the side characters were well acted, too (Mike Myers, Meneka Das and Aaron McCusker, for instance, I found particularly memorable), but I must admit I wasn’t a big fan of Joe Mazzello and Ben Hardy, but even they weren’t bad. So, acting is definitely one of the strongest points of the film.

Moving on, I also think they did a great job when it comes to costumes (Brian lending some of his old clothing definitely helped) and make-up (except for Roger’s wigs, perhaps); the choreography and stage movement for the characters were super well done, too - and it definitely wasn’t an easy task!

Now, let’s discuss cinematography. I will talk about editing in a separate paragraph, so for now I’m gonna stick to other aspects. The composition of shots struck me as rather mediocre, nothing particularly exceptional in either good or bad way, it was pretty basic but rather correct. Of course, there were some shots I really liked, but if I were to start adding screenshots the post would become way too long. XD The colours I really liked, especially in the musical scenes - they were vivid and lovely, and they used a combination of colours that I tend to appreciate in cinema, like various shades of blue and red. Finally, the camerawork - for dialogue scenes it was correct; again, rather average with some use of handheld camera which served no particular dramatic purpose, but it wasn’t nowhere near very bad, also it’s quite a common thing in modern biopics I would say. Handheld camerawork isn’t bad in default, but my comment largely comes from my personal preferences: in most cases I don’t really like it, especially when it’s particularly shaky. Then, there are scenes in BoRhap which display excellent camerawork, namely Live Aid and We Will Rock You scenes. If most scenes were filmed like that, I would give the movie a higher rating.

Before I move to the worst (imo) cinematic aspects of the movie, let’s have a look at writing. It is probably the most divisive thing in the fandom - people seem to either adore or absolutely loathe it; my stance lies somewhere inbetween. The first time I saw the film (I’m gonna remind you that I’ve seen it four times), I had certain objections, but the script didn’t bother me all that much; I was mostly simply having fun in the cinema. With every next watching, the experience was getting gradually worse, but even now I don’t hate the movie. Yes, some of the dialogue is cheesy, trite and makes me cringe a bit - certain parts of the script definitely end on an “overly sentimental” territory, I can’t deny that. Knowing quite a lot about Freddie, Queen and their stories, I generally think they deserve a better script; some characterisation was a bit offputting and chronology was all over the place. Having said that, I understand where some of those narrative choices come from, as scripts for mainstream movies require oversimplification of events, archetypes, and patterns. And quite frankly, I don’t think BoRhap differs any drastically from most modern biopics; it’s not a masterpiece, but - in my opinion - it’s also not bad overall. Regardless the flaws of the script, the movie still managed to emotionally affect a huge, if not major, portion of viewers, entertain and move them, and honestly? I think that was pretty much the point. Btw, there were some lines that I really loved, like “Puritans in public, perverts in private”, and I still think that their decision to cut from Live Aid performance to Ray Foster’s grim face during We Are the Champions was the funniest shit ever. XD Would BoRhap’s script benefit from sticking to historical accuracy? I’m gonna say yes, I think so - the scenes that were the closest to actual events are definitely the strongest - but this approach would require tons of changes, including narrowing down the narrative scope and probably the characters, too. Also, a lot of people keep forgetting that this is not an arthouse, niche film and therefore resorts to narrative and cinematic choice that compromise between satisfying the fans and the newbies; it’s meant to tell a (simple) story and entertain, not educate and provoke existential and philosophical debates. Still, I think the script could have been done a bit better, because some scenes  (the tour “Now I’m Here” montage) feel a bit...random?

Finally, the infamous editing. I totally agree that it was one of the most undeserving Academy Awards that year, because some scenes were simply atrocious, with their unmotivated and overly fast cuts and unreasonably ridiculous face that doesn’t fit the dialogue scenes, and those are honestly the worst when it comes to pacing and editing. I think the editing is the worst aspect of BoRhap; but even here, I could point at some examples of pretty amazing editing (Oscar-worthy? Not necessarily, but definitely very good); again, I’m gonna bring up Live Aid and “We Will Rock You” scenes, especially the latter, because less people talk about it. I already mentioned that it has some really nice camerawork AND colours, but also the editing is actually really cool, because it’s cut to the music! Which makes me think: “what a shame!”, because if they went with different editing choices, the movie would be affected in a positive way. The way we have it, it’s either a hit or miss (sadly, mostly miss), and the badly edited scenes are pretty striking, so the ones that are done nicely are unfortunately a wasted potential.

Okay, this is already waaay too long, so I’m just gonna finish with a few general remarks. Well, despite BoRhap’s flaws, I still like and enjoy it. With every screening slightly less, but enjoy it anyway. I don’t think any amount of discourse will ever take away my positive experiences and memories from seeing it twice in cinema. It sparked my previously dormant love for Queen and united me with some people in the fandom and in real life; making this movie made Brian and Roger happy; as a result, I like this movie. It brings back a lot of positive recollections, which sometimes is more important than critical discussions. And boy, do I adore those - I’m often critical and I adore analysing stuff academically; but I think that not all daily interactions require those and depending on who’s asking and what about, I’m capable of switching between the two options. If somebody asks me in 25 years whether I remember the times of BoRhap’s release, I’ll be far less likely to say “yeah, the editing sucked and writing was cringy, I remember the discourse on tumblr and instagram” than “Yes, I remember that chilly evening in December when I had a really fun time and ended up with 10 Queen songs stuck in my head”, because the latter is the experience I want to remember.

Thank you for this ask! Hope it wasn’t overly exhausting to read, I didn’t proofread this, sorry! xx

[dear-wormwoods]

Ch.2 reactions part six

LAST ONE I SWEAR. Spoilers spoilers spoilers.

Eddie’s Death

- I’ve said already that the emotional impact of the ending really needed one or two more Reddie scenes to be fully, 100% effective. That being said, it was still like 90% effective because Bill Hader... Bill Hader.

- Probably my favorite part of Eddie’s death scene is Richie refusing to believe he’s actually dead. “He’s okay. He’s just hurt! We can still help him. He’s just hurt. He’s okay.” Stroking Eddie’s cheek, holding his face like he did when they were kids and IT was coming for them at Neibolt, knowing that his face wasn’t the last thing Eddie saw when he died, that Eddie was alone, and not wanting to accept that. His angry “what” at Bev when she again tells him Eddie is dead. Just... wow.

- The way Eddie was clutching onto Richie’s jacket the whole damn time and even though Richie wasn’t there when he actually died (I’m sure he encouraged that though, like “go on, kill it, I’m okay, they need you out there”), he had the comfort of that jacket in his hands during his last moments.

- Richie clutching onto Eddie’s body and refusing to leave him... he wanted to die down there, he really fucking did. He wanted to stay and die with Eddie. They really had to pry him away with FORCE, and Ben held onto him and dragged him out the whole god damn way because he knew - he knew - that if he let go of Richie, Richie would turn back. He knew, because he would have wanted to die down there too if it had been Bev.

- The pain on Richie’s face, the way he’s screaming Eddie’s name as Neibolt was collapsing, the fact that he spent the entire movie, and his entire childhood, putting Eddie’s well-being before his own, thinking about Eddie’s safety first always, and in the end he could not save him... the fact that Eddie died after he encouraged him to be brave, feeling the responsibility of that, thinking that it should’ve been him... the irrational anger he feels toward the others for taking him away, for not letting him stay with Eddie and die too... the tragedy of it all.

The Aftermath

- The quarry scene was heartbreaking, Richie’s pain was so real and so obviously different from everyone else’s. They were grieving but he was GRIEVING.

- Glad Ben and Bev had the decency to make out underwater and not right in front of Richie djksghsds.

- Disappointed that they gave Mike the ‘Nothing lasts forever’ line... like really disappointed. It should’ve been Richie, and Ben/Bev should’ve responded with a knowing ‘except love’, which later prompts Richie to go back to the bridge and re-carve his R+E. Because nothing lasts forever except love, and he wants that carving, their love, to last forever. That line loses its impact with Mike saying it, sorry but it’s true.

- Bill literally writing IT was a nice touch. Showing him writing one of Eddie’s most iconic inner monologues was an even nicer touch.

- Loved that Stan left a separate letter for Patty and it’s there on his desk so we KNOW he left her a letter. I love... Stanpat.

- Ben’s dog is HUGE and Bev saying she had a beautiful dream was a nice reference to her 27 years of nightly horrible death nightmares. Benverly really gets their happily ever after!

- But Richie sure as hell doesn’t! The fact that they aren’t going to forget in this version makes it so much more painful! But at the same time I’m glad Eddie’s memory lives on?? But also it’s so sad!!!

- Stan’s letter was really nice, and I love that the film closed with the image of the Losers, young and happy and all together (and with Mike finally getting to leave Derry).

Final Thoughts

- So I really loved it and I’ll definitely go back to watch it a few more times and then watch it a hundred more times when I own it, but there were obviously issues. I could’ve used, like I’ve said in other posts, another 3-5 minutes on almost every single scene to really flesh out the character dynamics. I’m really looking forward to the supercut in the hopes that it satisfies my need for deeper content, and not just... more Pennywise, ugh.

- Also think that the movie would have benefited from 1-2 more Reddie scenes for maximum emotional payoff. Really loved James and Bill, they fucking killed it. Loved the chemistry between them. Also loved the chemistry between Jay and Jess - Benverly was absolutely wonderful in this movie, and you could tell how much attention to detail those two actors put into their characters. Could’ve used more Mike but Isaiah killed it. All the kids killed it even though the CGI was wonky at times. Everyone was just so great.

- Overall I’m happy, obviously, or I wouldn’t have spent the entire day writing a ton of posts about it. 8.5/10. Rotten Tomatoes can suck my dick.

Anyway... feels good to get all of that out of my system lmfao. Now I can like, rejoin society.

[ssttitdramon]

The Road Trip to Florida

-IT X SSTTITD crossover-

Note: Here’s some actual crossover content, since my last post on a IT x SSTTITD crossover had very little to it and therefore, disappointing. Also, I’m placing them all in 1990, everyone is the same age as they are in their respective movies. 

(Just as I was finishing this up- I finally noticed Ramón’s car has a Florida license plate- which could mean nothing, he might’ve stolen borrowed/bought a car in Florida for all we know. But since I'm taking in all the Morales crumbs they’ve dropped, Ramón is Florida Man™)

Mike mentions wanting to go to Florida and Ramón is all oh? Let's go then?? 

This calls for a rooooad triiip (listen, I know. But for Mike’s sake, it's happening.)

Mike, Beverly, Eddie and Chuck are buzzing around with where to stop on the way

They pull out a map and start marking up places

Immediately, Richie demands they see Times Square, "ol girl, Liberty" and the Empire State Building

To add to that, Ruth and Bill want to walk through Broadway

Stella, Chuck and Stan also want to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art

"So a whole day in New York."

Obviously you can't have twelve kids pile inside Ramón's car for a trip down the country like that

So they put their money together and rent out a van- making sure they've still got enough for gas and food

They spent their day in New York for sure

Right away, Auggie has a strict no-New-York-hot-dogs rule

And Eddie uses up all of his hand sanitizer in "Bacteria City"

Stella and Mike have the day scheduled down to where the group can go to every place everyone wants to see and can enjoy without chaos

They could've easily split into smaller groups, but these small town kids wanted to take it all in together- even with Chuck and Richie wearing those ridiculous I ❤ NY shirts

Actually, the only time they split up is in the art museum- Stan wants to avoid portraits altogether and he's joined by Ruth, Mike, Bill, Ramón and Stella

Mike's snapping a whole bunch of pictures of everyone the whole day

At first, Ruth hides from the camera, somewhat insecure about the fading scar on her face, but both Beverly and Stella give her some reassurance and slowly boost her confidence enough to let herself into some group pictures

They buy lunch and eat in Central Park- losing Auggie and Ben for 5 minutes before finding them in deep conversation with a tourist from France

*cue Stan and Eddie pretending to be French tourists for the rest of the day- and no, of course they're not a part of that obnoxious groupe*

Chuck spots the Central Park Carousel and makes everyone get on

He almost falls off his horse and nobody lets him forget about it for the rest of the day

They crawl walk up and down the Brooklyn Bridge- Stan and Ben pretend to be harsh architecture critics

That day it seemed like every cyclist was destined to almost run over Richie, so Ramón becomes the designated lookout for the boy- quick to pull him out of the way of annoyed New Yorkers

Unfortunately, they couldn't fit riding the Coney Island Cyclone into their schedule

"We'll go on our way back"

That night they stop at a campsite since no one wanted to sleep inside the van

Except Ruth and Eddie, she's afraid of getting bit by a spider and Eddie just refuses to sleep outside

The rest of them take out sleeping bags and settle down next to the van as Mike starts a fire

Bill suckers Stella into letting him read one of her stories out loud

But only if he reads one of his too

They all listen in, becoming paranoid of the darkness that surrounds them

Eventually they loosen up, but they still make Ruth and Eddie promise they won't drive off without them in the middle of the night

"Well if I wake up and see Bigfoot walking around- I give you all 10 seconds to get in."

For the whole trip: Auggie, Ramón, and Ruth are the designated drivers

Beverly, Mike and Stella alternate on keeping track of the map and making sure they don't pass by marked places they want to stop by

At some point, Bill swears up and down he can drive too, but they shut him down after hearing he's got about two hours worth of driving experience

When given the chance, Stan sits up front on the lookout for birds and sticks blue tabs inside his book for every East Coast bird he manages to spot

He reads off the description of every blue tab bird to Auggie, Ramón, and Ruth- comfortable enough to ramble on and on about why he finds them appealing 

With everyone else, there are discussions about the government, aliens and milk before or after cereal…

"Guys, it's only 9 a.m. and you're alrea-"

"Hey I'm just saying, milk before cereal is absolutely barbaric. Back me up, Mike."

"Nah, I'm staying out of this one."

Their second destination is the Smithsonian’s National Zoo

“That lizard right there looks like your mom.”

"Funny, I was about to say it looked like you."

"Uh, why's the tiger staring at me like that."

"I don't know, Stan. Maybe she knows you got a B minus on the Government fi- oW OW OKAY SORRY"

Afterwards, they walk around D.C.

"They say you can see the whole monument reflected if you're at Lincoln's eyes, anyone else want to climb up there?"

"I’m fine with watching you four get arrested."

They trailed behind a random evening tour group

10 minutes in, they were asked to leave for being disruptive

“It’s not like we’re that interested in that giant dick sticking out anyway.”

They stop by a diner and they all eat “like I’ve never taken you anywhere.” (-Ramón)

Richie keeps stealing Ruth’s fries, only to flick them at Eddie

Which make the two start bickering and Ruth makes Stella sit in between the two boys

An old couple at a nearby table who have been watching the group in amusement and hear about their Florida plans- advise them to stop by the Luray Caverns the next day

Seeing that it was roughly two hours west of D.C.- they agree to it

That night they settle down at another campsite, this time Auggie makes the fire and he's damn proud of it

The next day they head to the Luray Caverns

Everyone's so mesmerized by it

Richie tries scaring Eddie, saying there are ghosts in small corners

Auggie, ever being the non-believing reasonable one, assures him there's no such thing in there with them

Chuck then joins Richie on a mission to scare Auggie and Eddie

Which didn't work and only ended up making Stella paranoid 

Once they’re out, they start the 7 hour drive to Spoonauger Falls 

Beverly has silently sworn off smoking while on the trip, so when she gets the occasional urge- Ben gives her gum while Stella keeps her mind busy talking about movies they've seen 

Richie unsuccessfully tries to start an argument about Star Wars with them

Everyone else take naps on each other’s shoulders, dig into the book/comics boxes brought in by Ben and Chuck, or peek over Bill's shoulder as he draws

They also play cards- Ramón and Beverly have the most winning hands

Chuck tries card tricks on Auggie and Eddie

Auggie pulled 8 of Hearts while Eddie pulled King of Clubs

Asks "Are these your cards?" after pulling a Joker and 6 of Spades

"Sure, Chucks."

A flat tire leaves them stranded in a long empty road surrounded by trees

"See, this is how we all get murdered by some hitchhiker.”

“Oh shut up, you’re not helping.”

“Yeah, I can see it in the papers now. Twelve fools murdered on a road trip!”

“Ruth, please tell me there’s a spare...”

“Of course there is, it’s in the back. I checked it myself before leaving.”

After pulling over, everyone gets out to check the damage, which was just a nail that had torn through the rubber

As Ramon, Auggie and Bill replace the tire- Stella spots a figure walking towards them in the distance

“Uh guys, there’s someone walking over here.”

“Maybe he’s checking if we need help.”

“What if it’s Chuck’s killer hitchhiker?”

“Yeah well, I don’t like the way he’s walking.” 

The person in question began to walk faster, their arm reaching to grab the stick poking from their back and pulling out what seemed to be an axe

“OH FUCK, WE GOTTA GO.”

They all scramble inside, nearly tripping over each other

As soon as the new wheel was secured in place, Bill rushed in carrying the jack and lug wrench as Auggie clumsily put away the flat tire in the back.

Luckily, Ramón sped off right before “Mr. Axe” got as close as 20 yards

They get to the falls at night, sleeping at a nearby campsite 

Everyone was still anxious over Mr. Axe so they agreed on someone keeping watch for an hour each until morning

Which failed as soon as Bill fell asleep on his time at 3 a.m.

In the morning they walk through the trail and splash each other when they get to the water 

Chuck manages to catch a spotted salamander and chases Stella and Ruth with it

Ben and Stan sit by the bank when a Carolina Wren lands by Stan’s hand

Mike manages to get a picture of the boy’s ecstatic face, eyeing down the curious bird that walked around him and flew off to a nearby branch, already harmonizing with other birds

Auggie gets completely soaked by Richie and Beverly

The three of them chase down Ramón for laughing too hard, so now you’ve got two completely soaked bois

From there to Florida, Ramón and Auggie sleep the entire way burrito-wrapped in towels

The next morning they get to Honeymoon Island State Park, an island recommended by Ramón himself- as it’s quite close to home 

Mike is the first to get out when they reach the beach, he’s got the biggest smile just feeling the sand under his feet and runs into the waves

[imyourliquor-youremypoison]

A Girl’s Best Friend (Peter Parker x OC) - Part 9

Synopsis: Diamonds are man’s best friend- or dogs are girls’ best friends, wait… how does the saying go again?

Warnings: Family issues; Peter has a crush and it’s complicated; mention of assault; good dogs; College AU; aged up! characters; TONY STARK IS ALIVE AND WE ALL LIVE IN A HAPPY PLACE CALLED DENIAL

A/N: In this story, Peter has Tom’s dog, Tessa.The dogs in the story play a minor but key role.

Word count: 2.5k

Part 8 <<< >>> Part 10

MASTERLIST

Come Thursday, Emmeline walked into the library, reveling in the silent early hours when it was nearly empty except for Peter and her. This was even more true now because the Christmas holidays would start in two days, and most people had already gone back home to avoid the rush at the airports the weekend before Christmas.

                She looked forward to these study sessions, they became part of her life in that sneaky way that things you start doing on a regular basis do. Sometimes they didn’t even talk much, but it was nice and comforting to be with Peter. He had a good aura, one that drew her to him. Emmeline wondered if the feeling was reciprocated – she thought he liked her, but it was always hard to tell, he was a bit on the shy side. At least, he never gave her reason to think otherwise. He never cancelled their plans, never said no when she suggested something, he was always on time when they agreed to meet somewhere.

  Peter was always at the library before her, waiting at their usual table. Waiting or… sleeping.

                With a wicked smile, Emmeline approached, finding Peter fast asleep on his open notebook, snorting lightly. She couldn’t help it, she slammed her books on the table next to him, startling him awake.

“I’m awake! I’m awake!” he exclaimed, shooting up and looking around him, panicked eyes. Emmeline laughed. “Oh, hi, Em. I was just… resting my eyes.”

“Oh, is that what they call it these days?” she asked, sitting down and placing a coffee in front of Peter.

She had stopped at Starbucks on her way here, and she was right to do so. Instead of commenting Peter’s state of dishevelment and obvious exhaustion, she let him take a sip and took a mental note to keep an eye on him.

“’m sorry,” he mumbled, pushing back his hair with a sigh after setting down the cup. “Long days, short nights.”

“I brought the notes you asked for,” she told him, pulling a pile of papers out of her bag. She had printed them for him and changed the layout to make it easier to read. “We can go through them together if you're up to the task,” she said, eyeing him carefully. He looked a total mess.

He rubbed his face without looking at her, eyes focused on the papers already.

“Of course, I'm up to the task, that's why we're here.”

                Emmeline furrowed her brows but nodded nonetheless, thinking it was better not to argue. Peter made an admirable effort to stay awake and concentrated on their work, she gave him that, but there was no ignoring the way his head dipped and his eyelids fell a little as though they weighted a ton. But what pushed Emmeline to speak up was the bruise she saw on his arm, peeking out of his sleeve when he reached to grab the book to her right.

“Peter, what's this?” she worried, yanking back the sleeve to uncover the big purple bruise. It covered his entire forearm; it must hurt like a motherfucker. “How did you get this?”

He shook her hand off and pulled the sleeve down before she could take a good look at it, immediately denying that it hurt and stuttering out some lie about falling in the tub. She knew he didn't have a tub. The knot of worry forming at the back of her throat wasn’t new; she had spotted bruises before. She never said anything because Peter didn’t look in pain, and she knew some people just bruised easily – but this one was bad.

“We should take a break. You should go back to your room and get some more sleep; we can always meet up this afternoon.”

“No, I made you come here early, I can't ask you to come back tonight. And Tessa will be wide awake and think it's time for her walk.”

                That last part sounded like an excuse; they both knew Tessa was a huge couch potato.

“It's not your fault if you're tired, Peter. Anyway, I offered, you didn't have to ask. I can dogsit Tessa this morning. I don't have class until noon.”

It was obvious she was going to win because Peter clearly did not have the energy to argue. He relented after another minute of protesting. The dark circles under his eyes causing lines of worry to appear on Emmeline's forehead. Something was wrong. Something has been wrong for a while but she thought he would sort it out eventually.

“You seriously look like you’re going to pass out. I’m walking with you,” she told him, not accepting no for an answer.

She put his belongings into his backpack and wrapped a hand around his elbow, the way she usually did. She knew he liked it: he always sported this look of pride whenever she walked at his arm. She liked it too.

                They walked out of the building arm in arm.

“I feel so dumb for making you come here for nothing,” Peter grumbled, rubbing his eyes to stay awake.

“It’s okay, I don’t mind. With Bella still at the vet, there’s not much to do at my place. I’d rather hang out with you and do nothing than stay there all alone,” she confessed, offering him a heartfelt smile.

                Peter’s knees almost buckled.

“Why are you so tired though? Is something the matter?”

                A flicker of hesitation crossed his eyes and he looked at his feet, but Emmeline’s grip on him didn’t waver and the steadfast support she provided prompted him to open up to her. It was only fair after all, he had been trying to get her to be more honest about her feelings for months, it would be hypocrite of him to not do the same.

“I have nightmares. I wake up in the middle of the night drenched in sweat and can’t fall back asleep.”

                Not even Ned knew that. He wanted to be honest about why he had those nightmares, but she didn’t ask, probably having sensed that it was personal. Private people tended to not pry into other people’s lives, and that was a huge relief at the moment.

                Truth was, he didn’t really want to talk about the fact that this time of the year reminded him of his uncle Ben. He died shortly before Christmas when Peter was 16. It was always difficult for him, this time of year. It would always be. Coming back late from his missions didn’t help either.

                However, Emmeline was smart enough to figure it out on her own. He had told her about his dead parental figures and if she gave it a bit of thought, she would guess why he couldn’t sleep these days.

                They finished their walk in amicable silence, and Emmeline took Peter’s keys to open the door. Tessa was still asleep, not even waking up when they walked inside.

“Looks like you won't need my services after all,” Emmeline chuckled, watching Tessa sleep quietly. Bella tended to snore, which was why she didn’t sleep in Emmeline’s bedroom.

                When she turned around, Peter was already lying on his bed, arms spread open, sighing in content.

“I’m never getting up again,” he vowed, making her laugh.

                Feeling playful, Emmeline dropped her bag and kicked off her shoes before lying down next to him, her head resting on his arm.

“I admit it’s pretty comfy,” she hummed. “Is that how you lure girls into your room, Parker? I’m amazed it works!”

“Shut up!” Peter scoffed and wrapped his arm around her head, trying to cover her eyes. He only succeeded in making her giggle as she wriggled away. He dropped his head on the pillow again, thinking that he liked hearing her laugh. He wanted to make her laugh more. “It only works on the really gullible ones.”

                She snorted this time, and he felt her body rumble with laughter.

“Aren’t you going back?” he eventually asked, having stopped bothering her and let his arm rest on the bed again, allowing her to lie on it if she wanted.

“What for? I quite like it here,” she hummed, closing her eyes and making herself at home.

“I don’t know. Study? That’s why we meet up every week,” Peter mumbled, feeling himself slip into unconsciousness.

“Maybe I’m just using it as an excuse to spend time with you.”

Peter’s tired brain barely processed what she said before he dozed off. There were no more words exchanged between them, only peaceful silence, and the delicate touch of her fingertips on his open palm. Peter fought to stay awake just a while longer to enjoy this fleeting moment with her, but his eyelids were too heavy. He drifted off to sleep with Emmeline still lying beside him, wishing she were closer.

  *

                  Emmeline was happy to have Bella back, the reunion was an emotional one. It was now the last weekend before Christmas. Columbia was empty, the shopping streets were buzzing with people. This year she bought a tree. She didn’t really know why, she wasn’t much into celebrating Christmas, but this year she wanted to try something different.

                And maybe it did have something to do with Peter, maybe not.

                There were only two things tainting her mood. The first one was silly, really. She hadn’t seen Spider-Man in a little while although he hadn’t said anything about not visiting anymore. Then again, perhaps he was busy this time of year, like everyone else. Everyone else except for her, it seemed.

“Do you miss him?” She turned to Bella who lifted her head when she was being talked to. Sometimes Emmeline wondered if she understood what she said. “Yeah, me too.”

                The second stain on her lighthearted mood was the customary Christmas speech given by mister mayor himself, live on TV, and which required the presence of the entire family apparently. Emmeline loathed these occasions, where she had to play pretend, act like the perfect little daughter. Her parents even hired a stylist to make her look the part.

                Her skin crawled just thinking about it. One of these days she would have to rebel and not come. But not this year – her father was trying to her re-elected, and if she did anything, anything at all, to jeopardize his chances, there would be hell to pay. She still hated this masquerade, and she hated herself for playing along too. There was no solution that satisfied everyone in this scenario.

                She was saved from her own thoughts by her phone.

From Peter: I just finished my part of the assignment. Can I send it to you for proof reading?

                She smiled, already typing out an answer when she received a follow-up message.

From Peter: and to make sure I didn’t completely bullshit it. The chapter about boundary value problems is still a bit obscure to me.

To Peter: Gotcha. I’ll send you my part too so we can both give each other feedback.

                He sent her a gif of Jake Peralta saying ‘noice’ as an answer, and she shook her head, putting down her phone. Emmeline went to her room and opened her laptop to send him her work – it should be ready to send at this point, she had a fairly decent grasp of the subject and had proofread it a couple times already.

                She did not want Peter Parker to think her stupid and refused to leave a single silly mistake in her work, and that was the truth. Emmeline liked Peter, more than she anticipated and perhaps more than she would like to. Her life was complicated, and she was complicated, it didn’t feel right to drag him into it.

                Bella barked to get her attention then. When her eyes landed on her alarm clock, Emmeline realized it was already half past lunch time for Bella. She stood up to fill Bella’s bowl while her phone buzzed away on her bed.

From Peter: hey, what do you say we go out later? For coffee or whatever you’d like?

From Peter: Do I sound desperate? Be honest. I feel like I do. Please say yes though

                Another moment later, it buzzed once more.

From Peter: It’s a date btw

  *

  “What do you want me to say?” Ned asked Peter, sighing through the phone for what felt like the hundredth time since the beginning of their conversation. It wasn’t without reason either, Peter was quite the rambler when he was anxious. “I know you’ve been friends for a while now and she’s cool, but if she hasn’t answered by now, well… you’ve got your answer dude.”

                No, he refused to accept that explanation. As long as she hasn’t answered, there was still a chance, right?

“Maybe her phone died, and she didn’t see the messages,” Peter argued, full of hope and denial. He had been telling himself just that for three hours now, nearly convincing himself too.

“Get yourself together, man!” Ned shouted. “Have some pride! Chicks don’t want no sissy!”

                Peter held the phone away from his ear and looked at it with a perplexed frown before putting it back to his ear.

“Did I hear correctly? Is this the way you talk now?” Peter asked, frowning to himself, amused though confused.

“Trying something new.” Peter could practically hear his friend shrug.

“Stop then. It doesn’t work for you,” Peter told him. Better to be honest, Ned would thank him later.

“Noted. But I stand by my word, girls like confidence, be confident! You’re freakin’ Spider-Man, the chicks dig it! Girls have posters of you!”

“Still not working,” Peter groaned, rubbing his face with his free hand. “But I hear you and I’ll try.”

“I’ll get it right, you’ll see,” Ned laughed. “Alright, gotta go, Noobmaster69 is back online. Got ass to kick.”

                They both hung up and Peter slid his phone back into his pocket, shaking his head after this weird conversation.

“Noobmaster69?” he repeated, still a bit confused about… well, everything to be frank.

                He just spent the whole afternoon trying insanely hard not to look at his phone and focus on the work she had sent him for review. It was good. Like, it was solid, they won’t have to worry about passing this class, and no thanks to him. It was too late to take back what he had sent her though, and even if it were possible, he wouldn’t know how to make it better.

                If he had paid attention in class instead of alternating between sleeping and staring at her in awe, maybe he wouldn’t be in this position? He only had himself to blame. Then again, time spent looking at her wasn’t wasted in his opinion.

                The second his phone buzzed in his back pocket, Peter whipped it out so quickly he almost dropped it – and wouldn’t that just be his luck?

From M: Alright, it’s a date. Nothing comes to mind but I’m not difficult. Meet me at the fountain in Central Park at 6pm?

                In a bout of joy, Peter jumped to his ceiling, scaring Tessa in the process. He stayed upside down while typing his answer and wondered if it was the blood rush that made him dizzy or something else.

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Reblog to save a writer

Tag list:  @justanothercynicalgenzkid @of-virtuoso

[galacticcannibalism]

Of Assassins and Hearts CH. 10

Chapter 10: Breaking News

beta-d by: @thinkwritexpress-official​ and @arrow-guy​

Summary: Time for Kylo to tell you the truth.

Rating: Explicit 18+ ONLY

Word count:2634

AO3 Link

Kylo Ren is an assassin. Kylo Ren is an assassin. Kylo Ren is an assassin.

The frilly underwear you held in your hand slipped from your numb fingers, your mind repeating the words over and over while Max’s voice in your head spoke soothingly to you. Your stomach lurched and you had to fight down the nausea that rose at the words.

That’s not the only secret he is hiding from you. His name Little Bird, what is his name? Max asked, his voice soft, almost concerned. 

“Kylo Ren,” you whispered aloud.

Your voice cracked with the words, leaving you feeling like your voice tried to stop you from uttering the lie.

Ben Solo, His name is Ben Solo. Now that I’ve revealed him, maybe it's time you come back to me, Little Bird,  he said, sweet and harmless.

Your ears rang as you wrenched yourself away from Max’s poisonous thoughts, but his words still rattled around in your skull like dice in a cup.

Assassin. Ben Solo. Assassin. Ben Solo. Kylo Ren. Kylo Ren. KYLO REN.

You sank to the floor, hands clamped over your ears, trying to stop the rattling, trying to see past the words Max had sprung on you. You squeezed your eyes shut and cleared your mind, blocking out Max and Kylo. You could feel them both in your head, a chafing presence. 

A hand on your arm pulled you out of the storm of thoughts and dual voices screaming in your head. You staggered to your feet, eyes still closed and voices still drowned out. The hand on your arm moved and pried your hands away from your ears, and you finally opened your eyes to find Kylo standing in front of you, his expression concerned. You jerked out of his hold and turned away from him. The tidal wave his hands held back threatened to overtake you again.

“Don’t touch me,” you spat at him.

“What’s wrong? What did I do?”

“According to Max, you’re a fucking liar!” you shouted.

“Listening to the nutcase that zip tied you to a chair is always a good idea,” Kylo said sarcastically.

“Who is Ben Solo?”

The words you whispered took immediate effect. Kylo’s face paled as he stepped back from you, stunned. You waited a few seconds before turning on your heel and leaving the store. The fact that he had no answer was proof enough that he had lied to you. You power-walked toward the road. Between the feelings of anger and sadness, your heart cracked as your mind went over every lie. Tears streamed down your face as you walked, partially blinding you to the Jeep pulling to a stop behind you.

“Y/N, get in the car,” Kylo shouted behind you.

You didn’t respond and chose to keep walking. 

I just need to get away from him.

“Please, Y/N,” Kylo pleaded from behind you.

“Leave her alone, dude, you’re dumped!” a man in a passing car yelled.

Y/N I’m sorry, Kylo said in your head.

Who is Ben Solo?

You stopped walking and turned to face Kylo. His head was tilted, making his hair fan across his face, hiding his expression from you. 

I’m Ben Solo.

“Why should I trust you?” you called to him.

You started back in his direction, determined to wring the truth from him. I can’t have another incident like I had with Max.

“I’ll tell you everything.”

“Everything? Like why you don’t go by your name kind of everything?” you asked.

“I will, I promise. Just get in the fucking car,” he growled at you.

You finished your walk to the Jeep and climbed in, waiting for him to start the conversation. He started the car up and took off down the road back onto the highway without a word. You watched the scenery flash by, mind drifting. 

What if he’s some kind of serial killer? What if I’m his target? Do I even know this man? If he doesn’t give me a satisfactory answer I’m gone at the next stop. 

Kylo glanced over at you before turning his eyes back to the road. You were sure he’d heard your thoughts, but he didn’t comment on them. You waited for a few more seconds for him to offer up the information.

“Before I explain, you have to understand some things are secret because they aren’t my secrets to tell,” Kylo started, his tone grave. “And I’m only going to go over this with you once because there are parts that not even I know.” 

You nodded, prepared to commit every word to memory.

“When I was a kid, I trained at my uncle’s dojo. My uncle, Luke, was a martial artist and a gunsmith. He wanted me to learn control and balance in my life. I lived with him and trained with him for years, learning different martial arts and my way around guns,” Kylo explained in a low voice.

“You asked me if I could shoot,” you pointed out.

“Yeah I did. I learned the beautiful calligraphy you write with too,” he said, casting a glance at your bright pink cast.

You pulled the sleeve of your shirt down to cover as much of it as you could suddenly embarrassed. 

“When I was 16, my uncle and I had a major falling out. I left and joined a gang, The Knights of Ren. I stayed with them for years, not realising how toxic they were. My dad pulled me out, but it cost him his life,” Kylo continued. “I was on the road with him one night. He was trying to talk me into going home to see my mother when his truck got ambushed. They killed him, and they killed me. They killed Ben Solo.”

You shuddered at what you heard. You could almost see it in your head, Kylo laying on a deserted road way with his body broken. You wanted to reach out to the broken man in your vision and cradle him, to reassure him everything would turn out alright. You looked at Kylo and the unshed tears in his eyes made your heart ache.

“What about Poe? Where was he during all of this,” you asked.

“You’ll have to ask him. It's not my secret to tell.”

“If you died...  how are you here?”

Kylo didn’t answer. Instead he concentrated on the road, humming again. You let him hum through Devil in Disguise before you started to get impatient.

“I woke up handcuffed to a hospital bed with feds standing over me, telling me that I was a suspect in a list of crimes that would land me six feet under if I was convicted. That list included murdering my father. They threatened me with jail time before leaving. What I didn’t know is that the Knights of Ren took exception to me leaving and decided to move illegal goods that The First Order wanted via my father’s truck,” Kylo explained. “The Knights of Ren are lenient, but the First Order is a leave-no-witnesses kind of group. ”

“You were supposed to die with him.”

The realization shook you to the core. Nothing could have prepared you for the revelation that the man who was supposed to be tied to you almost didn’t survive to form the bond.

I might have ended up Max’s Soulmate, you thought sourly.

“Nobody on the planet deserved to be tied to him,” Kylo said gruffly. “Sorry about earlier.”

You nodded absently and picked at the cast, resisting the urge to scratch at the growing itch.

“The doctors patched me up and released me. They told me I’d died on the table 3 times and they were surprised that I’d even survived. Before I made it 10 feet out of the hospital doors, the feds hauled me in, they were waiting for me to be released. First they threatened me, then they bargained. I didn’t have anything to give them, so I made them a deal; I’d take out the Knights of Ren and the First Order. But I’d need immunity for everything. Permanently. That included any jobs I took for them.”

You stopped picking at the cast and turned in your seat to look at him fully. Kylo’s expression had hardened while he told his story.

“I never killed innocents, only people that deserved it. Traffickers,untouchable, and murderers. People like that. I don’t just go on unchecked rampages. I have standards,” Kylo said, his tone harsh.

A few minutes passed in silence, broken only by Kylo taking deep, angry breaths. You wanted to say something but you didn’t want to interrupt if he had more to say.

“I killed them all. The Knights of Ren. That was the day Ben Solo completely died. He has a lovely gravestone, and he was buried with his father. I became Kylo Ren that day,” he narrated, his words starting to dip into a monotone.

“So, you really are an assassin?” you asked nervously. “What about your Mother and Poe, do they know?”

“They know and disapprove, but what can they do? The First Order needs to be stopped, or they’ll keep spreading.”

“Why me? Why did Armitage come after me?”

“I can only assume he came after you to weaken me. Nobody knows what effects the violent death of a soulmate can have,” Kylo answered.

You swallowed thickly. He wanted me to give up Kylo’s secrets and then he was going to kill me? 

“I’ll protect you, I swear. And I’ll stop them, and if Max has joined them, I’ll deal with him too,” Kylo promised fiercely.

“What were you going to tell me if I asked what your job was?

“Probably a police officer or something along those lines. Something safe.”

You didn’t ask any more questions as darkness fell and Kylo left you to mull over his words. Your heart sank the more you thought about everything he said and everything he hadn’t. He was an assassin, like Max said, but he hadn’t done anything overly threatening to you. 

“Wait, you said you pinned Armitage to my floor. Did you- I mean how? Why?”

“I pulled out a big ass knife and stabbed him through the chest with it, and pinned him to the floor. Not really rocket science,” Kylo answered with a shrug.

“How big was the knife?”

“The blade was about 14 inches.”

The amount of strength he’d need to do something like that is incredible. That is both extremely sexy and absolutely terrifying.

The words caught up with the rest of your brain.

“Wait, you left a man pinned to the floor of my apartment! Oh god I’m going to jail,” you groaned.

“He isn’t dead. Phasma can take his wounds from him. And they probably burnt down your apartment anyway.”

“And that is better how?” you asked, glaring at him.

Kylo shrugged and pulled off at the nearest exit and into a hotel parking lot.

“Why are we stopping? I thought we had a ways to go.”

“We do, I’m just tired. Get us a room and I’ll get us food,” Kylo directed.

You looked down at your clothes and back at him. 

You gestured at your sweat pants and said “Pockets.”

He dug into his own pocket and pulled out a cellphone and a credit card, pushing them to you. 

“My number is programmed in, text me which room it is.”

You climbed out of the Jeep and watched him speed out of the motel parking lot. You tapped the credit card thoughtfully against your chin while you pondered Kylo’s stunning revelations. You’d never heard anything so convoluted and twisted. If Max hadn’t already confirmed it in an attempt to get you away from Kylo, well, you’d never believe it. With that disheartening thought, you strode into the office of the motel.

After 10 minutes of haggling and a non refundable incidentals deposit that you were sure went into his pocket, you managed to get a double room. You glared at the man behind the desk and stalked out of the office, taking out the phone Kylo had handed you. You opened the contacts list, and true to his word, he was the only contact. You punched in a text message with the room number and pocketed the phone.

Where are you, Little Bird? I can come and take you away from him, Max’s voice spoke gleefully in your head.

Stay the fuck away from me, Max. I swear you’ll regret it if you don't, you snarled, sending every ounce of anger you felt through the connection.

You felt him flinch away from your thoughts, making you smile in satisfaction. Maybe the bastard finally felt an ounce of the pain he had caused.

Don’t worry, Little Bird. I’ll be there to save you, Max promised, his voice sounding far away and muffled.

While you walked, you pulled all the anger and pain you felt around you, using it to shield your mind. Max being in your head was a violation that couldn’t stand, no matter what the reason. 

No more, you thought grimly.

You made it to the room you’d texted to Kylo and unlocked the door; it surprised you that the hotel hadn’t switched to electronic keypads, but that wasn’t your business. You double-checked the door was locked then dropped the key with a clang on the little table by the door. Walking to the bed furthest from the door, it looked clean enough, so you kicked off your shoes and climbed in.

I’ll get up when Kylo needs to be let in.

You were pulled from sleep by a rhythmic sound, unidentifiable and soft. You looked to the empty bed across from you, noting with tired interest that Kylo wasn’t wasn’t there. You held your breath for a few seconds and angled your head to get a better feel for where the sound was coming from. When you determined it was coming from the bathroom, you climbed out of the bed and padded silently to the door. The sound of flesh-on-flesh followed by a sigh was unmistakable.

I should go back to bed, you told yourself. But what if it's some random person? That clerk was pretty sketchy.

You peered through the crack of the open door, resolved to scream bloody murder, but the sight in front of you froze the sound in your throat. Kylo was seated on the edge of the crummy bathtub, hunched over himself with his shirt clamped between his teeth, one arm braced on the side of the tub, the other moving rhythmically over his length. Your eyes strayed from his face, unable to keep yourself from watching his cock disappear in his fist. A bead of precum formed at the head and he spread it across the length of his cock with the palm of his hand, easing the friction as he thrust into his fist. The new sensation pulled another muffled whimper out of him that had your eyes shooting back to his face. He let his head fall back as he let out a low groan, and you sighed as the sound set you aflame. His motions halted at the sound, and he quietly called out your name, guilt heavy in the word. 

You backed away, slowly and soundlessly, retreating to your bed and climbing in, laying motionless. A few seconds passed before Kylo walked out of the bathroom and stopped at the end of the bed. He called your name again softly, as if he wanted your attention but was afraid to wake you. A few more seconds passed before he went back to the bathroom, shutting the door with a soft click. You rolled over and the scene played before your eyes over and over until you drifted back to sleep.

[honeybee-babe]

Sharing is Caring (Except When You’re SIck) Chapter 1

Part 1 of my multi-chap collab fic with @hargreevesstyles!! It’s already finished, and we tried to keep all the chapters relatively the same length. We’ll each be posting the parts, probably according to some schedule. You can also read it on @hargreevesstyles‘ account!

~

Luther woke with a start to the familiar feeling of soreness in his throat, only now it was accompanied by a tightness in his chest. His reading glasses had slipped off his face onto the pages of research laid out before him on his desk.

Suppressing a wheezy cough against his wrist, he lifted his other arm up and checked his watch: 10:27 am. Last he remembered, it was 8 pm. He must have fallen asleep at his work. Despite the sheen of sweat forming on his hairline, and the three layers he was wearing, he was shivering. With a groan he crossed over to his bed, picked up one of the many blankets out of the messy pile on his bed, and threw it over his shoulders.

He’d been holed up in his room for two days now, only sneaking downstairs to grab tissues. He’d skipped Allison’s “family dinner” both nights, instead opting for some crackers and water. He was too tired for anything else anyway, and this way he could avoid his family. Even though he was sure it was just a little cold (he hadn’t been sick in so long, this was normal, right?), he didn’t want to take the risk of getting them sick.

There was also the fear of attracting unwanted attention to his body. He’d gotten better at not isolating himself, but in times like this, when he felt even more grotesque than normal, he reverted back to old habits.

He shuffled downstairs, clutching the blanket around his arms. It was too small to cover his gargantuan shoulders, and he had to stop repeatedly to readjust it. When he got into the kitchen, his throat itched in that telltale way, the catalyst for a series of deep, chesty coughs, which he smooshed as much as possible into his elbow. Three layers of fabric were a good enough silencer.

Unfortunately, the violent movement sent the blanket slipping off his shoulders onto the ground. He looked down at it with a small sniffle, dreading the aches and dizziness that would inevitably come if he picked it up. He stood there for a good minute, staring at the blanket and trying to figure out if it was worth it to bend over and pick it up. He didn’t have to think for long though, because a bony hand swiped it up off the ground and threw it over its own shoulder.

“Klaus-I. What the hell? Give it back!” Luther spoke defensively. Part of him just wanted his blanket back but a bigger part of him didn’t want Klaus to be infected by the germs inhabiting said blanket.

Klaus ignored Luther and draped it over his own shoulders. Luther wanted to say something but he didn’t want to admit that he was sick. If he did so, his siblings wouldn’t leave him alone—either by helping him or teasing him. Luther stuck with a small sigh and went to turn around to start making some tea when Klaus tapped him on the shoulder.

He said, “I’m just poking fun at you, big guy. Here you go.” He handed the blanket back to his big—size-wise—brother. Luther didn’t know what to say and Klaus caught onto that quickly. “You alright Number One? You’re looking a bit peaky.”

“I’m fine. What do you want, Klaus?”

“Hey, hey, hey, relax! I’m only trying to help. Do you need anything?” Klaus asked. “I’m so damn bored all of the time now that I don’t have anything fancy running through my system. I came here looking for an adventure and it seems like you’re on a fun one. May I join?”

Luther felt badly. He really wanted to spend more time with his brother. He was trying to push himself out of this character Reginald forced him into. He tried to stop himself from thinking about his siblings as teammates and actually as his brothers and sisters. But right now he was caught between a rock and a hard place.

If he hung around Klaus for even a few minutes longer it was likely that Klaus was going to catch whatever Luther was harboring.

So, Luther shook his head. “Sorry, Klaus. I’ve got to go back upstairs and work on something. A lot of reading. You wouldn’t be interested.” Luther tried his absolute hardest not to sound cold or annoyed with his brother.

Still, Klaus’ reaction was full of nothing but disappointment. He nodded quickly and quietly and skirted out of the room before Luther could say another word.

Now that Klaus was gone, Luther could focus on how he felt. Without Klaus distracting him, the pounding in his head seemed to come back with a vengeance. Luther wasn’t sure if he just had a headache or if it was from the buildup of all of the congestion. Whatever it was, Luther was in pain.

He let out a small cough into his elbow, knowing that anything more would have him dragging on for what could be minutes, and he didn’t have the time nor the energy for that. The tickle in his throat was momentarily alleviated, but not the tightness in his chest that still lingered, begging for a deeper release. But he couldn’t let that out, not right now, with Klaus in clear earshot the next room. He’d have to wait until he was in the privacy of his room.

With his arm still held up to his face, he shuffled over to the sink and poured himself the glass of water he’d come downstairs for in the first place. The first sip unfortunately hit his throat in just the wrong way, and he had to bring his elbow to his mouth again to suppress the coughs that inevitably resulted, this time a bit more chesty than the last. Fortunately, the second sip seemed to soothe rather than aggravate the tickle, and he downed the rest of glass in just two more sips, quickly pouring another glass, which he downed in two huge gulps.

Unfortunately, the rush of cold water made him shiver even more profusely than he already had been, to which he responded by immediately washing the glass in warm water -- he needed to wash it ASAP anyway, if he was serious about not leaving any germs lingering around.

The steam from the sink ended up wafting up to his nose and loosening some of the congestion that had built up there. A good thing for his health, probably, but it meant that the persistent tickle he’d had some momentary relief from was back. Which meant he’d inevitably start sneezing again soon. And, with this cold, there was a very good chance they’d keep coming for few minutes. Klaus definitely wouldn’t leave him alone if he heard that. So Luther turned the faucet off a soon as he felt the steam tugging at his sinuses, and brought a gloved hand up to scrub ferociously at his flaring nostrils. He gave one pointed, congested sniff.

That seemed to do the trick. For now.

Klaus had left the kitchen with his arms crossed over his chest, but once he’d made his way into the living room, he put them down by his side, exposing the tiny mesh tank top he had on as he stood rimrod straight and put on a stern face.

“‘It’s grown-up stuff, Klaus, a lot of reading,” he put on his best Luther voice. He quickly lost the act, however, and flopped down on the couch, staring up at the ceiling and speaking in his normal voice. “Cause God knows I never learned how to read, right?” He rolled his eyes. “How do you know what  I’m interested in? Maybe I secretly want to learn all about moon rocks!”

“Do you?”

Klaus shifted his gaze to see Ben sitting by his feet, grinning at him. He stuck his tongue at his ghost brother.

“That’s not the point, Ben. It’s the principle of it!” he explained, pushing himself up with his elbows into a sitting position. “He just pushed me to the side, like I was in the way. Typical Luther.”

“You’re overreacting,” Ben said, shaking his head.

“I’m just having fun, Benny boy,” he said, reaching over and booping his brother on the nose, though he knew his finger would just phase through him. “I’m not upset, we all know how Luther is.”

“I don’t think that’s what it is,” Ben said. “Did you get a good look at him? I think he might be sick.” Klaus just shrugged.

“He was a little pale. He’s probably fine, he’s always had a good immune system.”

“I don’t know, Klaus.” And with that, Ben poofed away. Klaus groaned and got up from the couch. He had a sense of where Ben might have gone.

Back up in Luther’s room, the largest Hargreeves sibling was blowing his nose into a handkerchief he had found in his dad’s belongings a couple of weeks prior. He still felt a deep connection to his father, feeling like no matter what else he did, he had still done whatever he could to save him while his life was on the line.

“Heh-NGXht! Hahh-nGHXtchiew!” Luther’s body rocked forward as he let out the properly contained explosions. He always tried his hardest to keep them quiet nowadays, for fear that his siblings might find them funny whereas he found them deeply embarrassing and draining.

With this cold, one sneeze was never enough. He was pretty sure he’d sneezed more times in a row that morning than he ever had in his entire life. Miraculously, he’d managed to keep the sound contained until now. But the pressure in his head was building, and he didn’t know how much longer he could keep this up.

He had just started blowing his nose again when a knock at his door had him hastily putting the handkerchief down sniffling back the congestion back instead before speaking.

“Who is it?” he called, getting up from his desk chair and shuffling over to the door.

“Your worst nightmare.” It was Klaus.

“Sounds about right.” Luther rolled his eyes. “What do you want?”

“Open the door,” Klaus whined. “Ben wants to see you.”

Luther bit down on his lip as he considered that. He really didn’t want to infect Klaus, and he wasn’t even sure if he was just fucking with him. But he very well might be telling the truth, and he knew if Ben wanted to see him, it had to be important.

So he opened the door just a crack, catching a glimpse of his dead brother’s concerned face outlined in a blue glow, before his own wildly hitching breath caught him off guard. He eyed the handkerchief on his desk for a moment, before shutting the door quickly, just before he brought his hand up to pinch his nose shut.

“Hih’nXGT! Hihh... heh-GNXT!” Once again, his large torso shook with the force of suppressing the explosions, which were growing more and more difficult to contain, just like the pressure in his head grew more intense with each stifled sneeze.

“You’re gonna blow your brains out!” Ben tsk’ed from the hallway, apparently still manifested. Klaus just giggled.

“Bless you, big brother! What, you got the sniffles?”

Luther groaned, “Go away, Klaus.”

Klaus wouldn’t let up. “Come on, Ben and I both know you’re sick! There’s no point in hiding it from the two of us!”

“You can’t keep lying to us forever!” Ben joined in.

Luther tried his hardest to ignore them. He knew they really did mean well, but Klaus had a weird way of going about it and sometimes Ben would tag along. Luther blew his nose as quietly as he could into the handkerchief. Great. It was soaked. Luther grabbed around for more tissues but he realized that he had forgotten to grab more on his journey downstairs earlier.

He cursed under his breath. With this wretched cold he couldn’t afford to go without tissues.

Luther stood up and walked to the door. As he opened it, Klaus and Ben fell into his room. They had had their ears pressed up against the door.

“What the hell, you guys? Can’t you leave me alone?” Luther yelled. He really wasn’t feeling well.

Klaus’ look softened. He asked, “Do you need anything, buddy? I-I could go fetch you some tea or some tissues or something like that. Come on, we both know you’d like that. If not, I ca-“

“Jesus Christ, Klaus, if I let you get me tissues will you leave me alone?”

Klaus nodded happily. He bounced off, taking Ben with him.

Luther shut his door. He knew Klaus was going to get sick. “Goddamnit,” he muttered. Klaus always picked the worst of times to become interested in his seemingly eldest sibling.

“Knock knock! Your nurse is here!” Klaus’ voice came from the other side of the door. “Ben’s here too I’m just a little winded from those stairs and manifesting Ben isn’t really within my power limits right now. Anywho, I have some tea for you and I also found some nifty cough drops! I grabbed all the boxes of tissues I could find, too. Oh, and, open up!”

“I-wha-“ Before Luther could finish talking, Klaus stuck a thermometer in his mouth. Luther went to scold him but Klaus cut him off again.

“Nuh-uh, big guy! Keep your mouth closed until the thermometer beeps or it won’t get a good enough reading and you’ll have to do it again!” Klaus tutted.

Annoyed, Luther waited. When the thermometer beeped he went to take it out and read it but Klaus’ scrawny little hand grabbed it before Luther could even move his hand.

Klaus frowned. “You’ve got a fever. 101.3 to be exact. Strictly bed rest for you, Number One! I’ll be back in a little to bring you some soup or something!”

Luther couldn’t help but smile as Klaus sauntered out of his room. Sometimes he felt estranged from all of the other siblings, but Klaus had this way of magically making him feel like they were all a real family.

As soon as Klaus stepped out of Luther’s room, he wiped his nose on his sleeve. It was running for some reason.

“You feeling alright?” Ben asked.

Klaus nodded, “Yeah, it’s just from the steam from the tea. You know how sensitive my nose is after all that damn cocaine.”

Ben nodded, but he decided to keep a closer eye on Klaus, as well as Luther. Ben hadn’t been completely blinded as to why Klaus hadn’t manifested him when he was in Luther’s room. He knew that Klaus was feeling tired and he hoped, no prayed, that Klaus wasn’t catching what Luther had. When Klaus had been asleep the night before Ben had been wandering around the house and he heard some noise coming from Luther’s room. He heard him up coughing and sneezing, trying to keep himself quiet so he didn’t disturb his siblings. Ben wished they realized how much Luther cared about them.

He had brought up Luther looking sick to Klaus hoping he would catch on, and he was glad that he finally did. At least Luther was getting some rest now, even though Klaus had to hassle him before he could get some.

Now Ben was worried. He hadn’t realized that while Klaus was the least likely to really make Luther feel badly about his illness, he was also the most likely to catch it. Klaus’ immune system was shot to hell due to the cocktail of drugs he had consumed every day for seventeen years. Yes, Klaus was sober now, but he was a lot more susceptible to illness, and now that he wasn’t high all the time he was present enough to realize how shitty he felt.

“You’ll tell me if you don’t feel well, right?”

Klaus rolled his eyes. “Hop off my dick, Ben! I feel fine. Go haunt Diego or something.”

Ben liked to stay around Klaus to keep an eye on him as much as he could, but as Klaus was now sober he felt less of a need to babysit him. So Ben disappeared.

Klaus wandered into the living room and rubbed his nose. He flopped onto the couch and tried to ignore the bloody bitch to his left. She was wailing at the top of her lungs. Klaus felt bad, he always did, but there was a slight ache in his head that made him a little more aggressive than usual. He was going to yell at the ghost and tell her to can it, but yelling at ghosts usually did more harm than good, so Klaus stayed silent.

Back in Luther’s room, Ben was creeping around. He wished he could will himself to become corporeal to help clean up and tug the blankets up to Luther’s shoulders. He was shuddering in his sleep. Ben frowned and sat down on the edge of Luther’s bed. He started humming one of Luther’s favorite songs from when they were kids. He knew Luther couldn’t hear him, but he could’ve sworn he saw a smile on Luther’s face.

[dr-gloom]

The Makings of Greatness: Chapter 11

Fandom: Sanders’ Sides

Pairing: platonic logince, platonic moxiety, platonic anxeit, familial ThVi

Tags/Warnings (for this chapter): 

Ko-fi

AO3

Masterlist

Prologue  Ch 1  Ch 2  Ch 3  Ch 4  Ch 5  Ch 6  Ch 7  Ch 8  Ch 9  Ch 10  Ch 11  Ch 12  Ch 13 Ch 14  Ch 15  Ch 16  Ch 17

The mushroom trees provide a dense cover from the light, bathing the atmosphere in shadow. The ground is covered in a soft moss, with the occasional rock, though a metal surface peeks out where the moss has been removed in some patches. The metal of the planet’s surface has grooves in it; lines and circles that seem to follow a nonsense pattern. Particles can be seen floating in the scarce streams of light that break through the mushroom trees’ canopy, the entire scene calm and still, the only thing offsetting the undisturbed natural scenery being the smoking, overturned skiff.

Virgil is the first to regain consciousness, looking around in the dim lighting to see Logan and Roman still disoriented. He grips the lip of the skiff, grunting as he lifts it just enough to slip out, then he positions himself so he’s standing with his back to it, feet braced on the metal surface of the planet, and grips the lip of the skiff again, pushing. He manages to lift it more, turning around to fully push it over and free the two older adults, then sits back down heavily on a moss patch and lets out a tired puff of air.

Logan is the next to fully wake, groaning softly and rubbing the back of his head. He sits up, looking around, his eyes widening as he becomes more aware of his surroundings. He shifts, his hand brushing along the grooves of the exposed metal, and glances down. “Curious….”

Roman wakes up next, shifting to sit up and then standing, looking around. “Well… That wasn’t one of my finer landings.” His face pinches with pain and he clutches his side, gasping softly and dropping into a kneel. Logan rushes to his side. “Captain!” Logan starts to help him up and Roman brushes him off. “It’s nothing, just bruising. I’ll be fine.” He turns to Virgil. “Mr. Shae, the map?”

Virgil reaches into his pocket, pulling out the gold orb and sighing with relief, a smile curling his lips. “Ah, good.” He starts to hand it over and it levitates out of his hand, making a few whirring and clicking sounds, the bits and pieces coming apart-

Only to turn into Morph.

Morph laughs and sticks his tongue out, and Virgil groans. “Morph!” Morph flies around his head, still laughing. “Morph, where’s the map?!” Morph stops in front of Virgil, then turns into a much smaller version of the map and the coil of rope from earlier, then the map tucks itself into the coil of rope.

“Are you serious?! It’s back on the ship?” If Morph had shoulders to shrug apologetically, he no doubt would be doing so. As it is, he looks regretful enough. Virgil grabs at Morph in frustration, the blob slipping between his fingers again and again.

Roman looks up when sounds of an engine catch his ears, muttering to Virgil. “Silence the blob and get low. We have company.”

Virgil looks up in time to see the second skiff sailing slowly overhead; no doubt Declan and his men trying to find them. The three of them duck behind the overturned skiff and watch Declan’s skiff sail by. Roman turns to Virgil. “We need a more defensible position. Scout ahead.” He hands Virgil a solar gun, which the teen hesitantly takes, his expression turning serious. “Right.” Virgil stands, looking around and heading off in a random direction. As he’s leaving, he hears Roman gasp in pain again and what’s most likely Logan helping him to the ground.

“Steady, now. Let’s have a look at that, shall we?”

 As Virgil wanders farther into the forest, it grows darker. The cover becomes thicker, the light more scarce, and the ground slopes downward. He walks hesitantly down a rather large root before just sitting on it and sliding the rest of the way down, finding his feet at the bottom and looking around as he walks. In this part of the forest, it seems like there are more ground-level organisms. They look almost like very large brussels sprouts, though it’s hard to tell if they’re some sort of shrubbery or just infantile trees. The canopy here is much denser; that, coupled with the lower ground, provides a much darker environment, and Virgil finds himself looking around a lot more, wary of any possible threats.

Just because they haven’t come across any native animals, doesn’t mean there aren’t any.

The large stalks of the mushroom trees loom ominously from all directions, stretching into the sky. With as little light as there is, the shadows make the stalks look almost like decaying wood, covered in some sort of slime. Virgil casts his eyes to the ground, his imagination getting the best of him; at least the moss looks the same.

A large root stretches out in front of him, blocking his path, and he has to hop up to sit on it, then pivot himself to get to the other side before hopping down. Unbeknownst to him, someone watches from the shadows, carefully monitoring his every movement.

A rustling comes from a patch of foliage behind Virgil and to his right. He spins around, but there’s nothing there except for the swaying stalks of some strange, tube-shaped plants. Morph titters anxiously and Virgil quietly shushes him, reaching for his solar gun. He turns it on, creeping closer to the stalks as the gun warms up, and peeks into the opening of the biggest one, his heart hammering in his chest. What kind of animal is it? Is it harmless? Does it have fangs? Claws? Does it eat meat?

Something jumps out of the stalk and screams, moving too fast for his brain to process. Virgil lets out a startled cry and falls on his back, the thing jumping on top of him, still screaming. Thin, hard, metal hands clamp down on his shoulders. Thick metallic joints press into his sides and shins. Large, glowing green eyes stare down at him and his first thought is I’m going to die and my dad will never know what happened.

“Oh, this is fantastic!”

What?

The thing sits up, and now Virgil can tell that it’s a very thin, worn-down robot. Its body looked like it’s made of copper, the minimal build of gears and thin limbs covered in dark patches where the shine was worn down with age, or dirt, or rust. Wires stuck out from the back of his head, wiggling around with his movements. His eyes were in a sort of binocular-like setting, the “eyes” themselves screens that lit up bright green, narrowing and widening like actual eyes and with small black pupils that moved around to indicate what the robot was looking at, along with small metal eyebrows that moved just like real ones.

“A carbon-based lifeform has come to rescue me at last! Oh, I just wanna hug you, and squeeze you, and never let you go!” The robot scoops Virgil up mid-crawl in his attempt to get away, hugging him tightly from behind. Virgil lets out a quiet “oof” as the breath is squeezed out of him, extremely confused. He glances at Morph.

Are you seeing what I’m seeing?

Morph looks just as confused, if not a little excited at the new possible friend.

Virgil pries the robot off him, taking a step back. “Alright, wh-” The robot hugs him again, and Virgil once again pries him off. “Jus-” The robot clings to him with his arms and legs like a koala, smiling happily. Virgil pries him off again. “Would you just- stop it.”

The robot takes a step back. “Ah, sorry. Sorry sorry sorry. It’s just,” he puts an arm around Virgil’s shoulders. Virgil leans away, grimacing. “I’ve been marooned for… so long. I mean, don’t get me wrong, solitude is fine! It’s just that, after 100 years, you go a little nuts!” His voice picks up on the last part, practically screaming. Virgil winces at the volume as the robot chuckles nervously. “I-I’m sorry, eh,” He removes his arm from around Virgil, dusting him off and taking a step back. “I’m, uh… My name, is….” He scratches at his head, groaning a little in exasperation.

Morph pops up at Virgil’s shoulder and turns into a miniature of the robot, a cuckoo bird popping out of his head and making the “cuckoo, cuckoo” sound the clock makes. Virgil rolls his eyes and pushes him down, Morph turning back into his pink self with a giggle.

“BEN!” The robot suddenly shouts, grinning. “Of course, I’m B.E.N.! Bio-electronic navigator. But uhm….” He scratches his chin. “I don’t think I like that very much. Oh! Call me Patton!” He slaps his chest proudly, the compass attached to it popping off, only attached by a spring. “Oops.” He pushes it back into place. “And you are?”

“Virgil.”

Patton takes his hand, shaking it excitedly. “Nice to meet you, Virge!”

“It’s Virgil.” Virgil pries his hand off, hunching down to slip past Patton.

“Anyway!” Patton giggles, resting his elbow on Virgil’s head. Virgil huffs and pushes him off, standing straight.

“Look, I’m kind of in the middle of something, okay?” He maneuvers around the robot, walking backwards as he continues talking. “I gotta find a place to hide, and there’s pirates cha-”

“Oh, pirates!” Patton laments, stepping in front of Virgil as he turns to face forwards. He puts a hand on Virgil’s shoulder, the other to his forehead. “Don’t get me started on pirates! I don’t like them.” Virgil shrugs his hand off and keeps walking, and Patton sits on a nearby rock. “I remember Captain Flint- this guy had such a temper!”

Virgil whips around at the name, walking back over to Patton. “Wait, wait. You knew Captain Flint?”

“I think he suffered from mood swings, personally - I’m not a therapist - anyways.” Virgil groans, raking a hand down his face. “Oh, but you let me know when I’m rambling!” Virgil’s eyes widen. Wait, this robot knew Flint. That was good, right? That means…

“That means… you gotta know about the treasure, right?”

Patton grimaces. “Treasure?” He asks hesitantly.

“Yeah, Flint’s Trove? You know… Loot of a Thousand Worlds?” Virgil smiles, gesturing as if the treasure was around them. Morph turns into a treasure chest, opening to show a chest of gold coins.

“I-it-it’s-it’s all a l-li-little-” Patton stutters as he stands, his movements jerky. Virgil frowns, almost concerned. Was there something wrong with him? “Little fuzzy. Wait. I re-re-remember.” His eyes glitch, the green fuzzing out before returning to normal. “I do! Uh… Treasure!” His pupils are replaced by treasure chests. “Lots of treasure!” His eyes turn red. “Buried in the centroid centroid centroid of the mechanism!”

Virgil bites his lip, eyes wide and heart fluttering anxiously. Should he like… stop this? It was freaking him out…

“And there was this… big door.” Patton mimes a doorway, reaching as high as he can. “Opening and closing and opening and closing!” The green of his eyes changes into a triangle, turning green, then black, then back to green, the color shifting like curtains being pulled back. The compass on his chest springs forward, then goes back, repeating the action with Patton’s words.

“And Captain Flint wanted to make sure nobody could ever get to his treasure, so I helped him-“ Patton glitches, the graphics on his eyes going haywire and his body jerking, sparks flying from the gap in the back of his head where the wires stick out. “Ng-aAH! Data inaccessible! And- reboot!Reboot! Reboot!” Where the green would be if he was squinting had turned into a black screen with green text, his whole upper body jerking back and forth like he was the bird in a cuckoo clock. Virgil flinches back, his hands instinctively flying up. More sparks fly from Patton’s head, and Virgil panics and slaps him.

Patton settles, blinks, then squints at Virgil. “…And, you are?”

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