#at one point I struggled to narrow it to 5 and now I’m just sat here like yikes

[foreverfearlessred]

Pierre Gasly you have been promoted to one of my elite employees after that post

[rorywritessmut]

So, I am cthulhuandthejellyfish on AO3 and I wanted to share of my fics with you guys on here! I took my most popular one from there and am posting it here! Please enjoy and remember to read the TW!

As a reminder, I write these based off of deeply emotional experiences that happened to me because my therapist said it was good for me. Enjoy my own personal angst.

Song is The Scientist by Coldplay

TW: Abuse, underage sex mentioned not described, manipulation, homophobia

Come up to meet you, tell you I’m sorry

Izuku couldn’t believe Bakugou was choosing now to do this. He couldn’t believe that Bakugou got drunk enough to try and get back together with him, after all these years.

“Izuku-” Kaachan started.

“Don’t, don’t use my first name Kaachan.” Izuku was struggling to look him in the eyes. Kaachan had cornered him in the alleyway, his face beat red from the alcohol.

“I just want to say sorry,” He reached out and grabbed Izuku’s chin, “look at me, you damn nerd.” Classic Bakugou, he couldn’t stay civil for more than a couple of minutes. Izuku was already tired of this conversation.

Tonight was the UA class reunion and Izuku hadn’t planned on running into Bakugou, at least not like this. He figured that he was going to enjoy the night meeting up with busy friends and look stunning as Shouto’s arm candy. He thought that seeing Bakugou after all these years wouldn’t stir up old memories, but it did. Those same memories sat on his chest and made it hard to breathe, making his eyes water. Worst of all, those memories made him nauseous for all of the bullshit he let Kaachan put him through.

You don’t know how lovely you are, I had to find you, tell you I need you

“Please,” the sob cut through Izuku’s thoughts. “Please just hear me out Midoryia. Please, just let me tell you everything I’ve wanted to say for the past 5 years.” Tears were forming at the corners of Bakugou’s eyes. His form quivered and his palms were smoking.

“You don’t deserve it.”

“Five minutes is all I need.”

“No.” Izuku felt like his throat was caught in his throat. He was torn. Seeing Bakugou so torn up over him made his gut clench with guilt. However, the stronger side of him knew that this was just another form of manipulation.

“Fine. I’ll just talk,” Bakugou retained his cocky attitude, straightening his back.”I’m sorry for not treasuring you in High school. I should have been a better boyfriend than I was. My biggest regret is letting you go.” Bakugou set a gentle hand on Izuku’s cheek, stroking his cheek with a calloused thumb. His molten red eyes were lidded and soft. Seeing that face and being touched liked this set Izuku off.

“Your biggest regret is letting me go” Izuku felt the green electricity crackle with fury around him. He smacked Kaachan’s hand away from him and took a step forward. “You’d think your biggest regret was cheating on me and making me feel like it was my fault.” Izuku took another step forward.

“Izuku-”

“No! Your biggest regret should be the many times you manipulated me and humiliated me. It should be the fact you hid our relationship because you wanted to screw around!” Izuku was screaming now. Tears welled and spilled down his cheeks. Bakugou didn’t get to pretend that every terrible thing in their relationship didn’t happen. After a pregnant silence Bakugou spoke up.

“You think I hid our relationship so I could screw around?” Bakugou’s hands were smoking again. “I hid our relationship because no one knew I was gay!”

“Yet you bragged to everyone that you screwed around with Kirishima.” Izuku narrowed his eyes remembering the heartbroken redhead. He remembered how Kirishima cried to Izuku about how Bakugou screwed him then left him, about how he was nothing more than a failed experiment.

“That’s besides the point!” Bakugou was getting mad now. His spine was rimrod straight and his eyes were narrowed, focused solely on Midoriya.

“It’s not! You were a terrible boyfriend and you could never admit you were wrong. Even now you can’t own up to your mistakes!” Of course, Izuku wouldn’t miss how Bakugou focused on only one part of Izuku’s gripes.

“I just apologized,” Bakugou bit each word and spit them into Izuku’s face.

“You half assed your apology. I’m done here,” Izuku pushed past Bakugou and made way for the door. It was starting to get cold outside anyways.

“We’re not done here, nerd!” Bakugou’s voice faded as the door shut behind Izuku. He figured now would be the time to find Todoroki and get out of here.

No one ever said it would be this hard, Oh, take me back to the start

Izuku didn’t get the chance to find Todoroki before he had to run to the bathroom. He started to vomit every feeling he had into the toilet. Again, and again, and again until there was nothing left but numbness. Memories that were once long forgotten rushed back into his mind. Taunting him with happy and sad memories.

Memories like the times him and Bakugou made love at a young age. The secret the two of them held between each other until the fateful night that Kirishima came to him. The secret that Izuku thought was special between them seemed to be a secret Bakugou shared with everyone. Kirishima had walked in on Bakugou and some girl from class C. It was a shock to Izuku at the time. Yet, he stayed.

Memories like how Bakugou went on dates with women in public. Let them flirt with him in public. All those women who would fawn to Izuku about how amazing of a guy the terror of UA really was. How, one night Izuku slapped Bakugou for flirting with Momo instead of coming into his room like they had planned. How humiliated he felt when he told the class they were dating and Bakugou made fun of him, told he was delusional.

All of the manipulation came to the surface and Izuku began to silently sob. Tears ran down his face in a silent race to his chin. All the times he manipulated Izuku into sex with hate filled words. All of the times he made Izuku feel like shit for getting upset about his female conquests. The blame game every time.

“I can’t be gay and be the number one hero, ‘Zuku.” Bakugou touched Izuku’s face gently and kissed him, keeping Izuku from responding the way he wanted.

Izuku hated that Bakugou’s internalized homophobia rubbed off on him, even after they separated. It took two years after graduation for Todoroki to convince Izuku to date him and another year to convince him to go public. Izuku was scared he’d lose his spot as the number one hero if he was outed to the public but he proved wrong, again. The world loved Izuku no matter who he loved. Todoroki loved Izuku no matter who he was.

Tell you I set you apart

“Izuku,” a smooth voice broke the panic that had begun to set in.

“Sho, I-” His voice cracked and revealed every feeling that had taken hold in his mind.

“No need to tell me. I saw the way Bakugou stormed out of here. I figured it out once I hadn’t seen you after,” There was a pause, “Are you okay?” Todoroki’s voice came out in a whisper. Almost like Izuku would break if he spoke any louder.

“No.” Izuku managed to choke out. He couldn’t believe that Shouto had found him like this. A bumbling mess leaning on a toilet.

“Do you need help getting up? Do you want to go home?” Shouto’s voice was heavy and laced with concern, the love weighed down Izuku’s heart. Did he really deserve this love? Did he deserve to be doted on by the amazing Todoroki Shouto? ���Don’t let your head get to you.” He could always read Izuku’s mind.

“I’m not fine, I need help,” Todoroki took that as a sign to melt to lock off the door. “Sho, not like that.” He chuckled as his boyfriend helped him off the floor and out of the bathroom.

“Let’s go home, Izuku”

[invisibleanonymousmonsters]

Heeey! Can I request for the Father of Mine universe? Something along the lines of hickeys, maybe smeared lipstick all over their faces at an event, family dinner or something like that?

“Just skip it and stay here with me,” Jason offered as he leaned against the bathroom frame, shirtless and with his arms crossed.

He had been watching Y/N get ready for at least 15 minutes.

She was currently putting on blood red lipstick that went perfectly with her black winged eyeliner.

Jason wasn’t a big lipstick guy – mostly because it prevented him from kissing his girlfriend the way he wanted to. But he couldn’t deny that it looked incredibly sexy.

“I can’t. I promised Bruce,” Y/N explained as she looked at him through the mirror.

“There will always be other charity events,” he answered with a roll of his eyes.

But he’d had enough of keeping his distance and wrapped his arms around her from behind. He started peppering kisses on her shoulders since her dress was leaving the skin completely exposed and he just couldn’t help himself.

“You know,” she began, “you could always come with me.”

Jason stopped his kissing.

“Guess that’s a no?” Y/N sighed with a shy grin.

But she didn’t really care.

Y/N understood that Jason hated these events. To be honest, she might hate them just as much. But Bruce kept asking her and she tried to go when she could. Sometimes she needed breaks and her father understood that.

Jason ignored her question and his hands started roaming heatedly across her body.

“Don’t even think about it,” Y/N warned, immediately pushing him away.

“What? I didn’t do anything,” Jason laughed innocently.

“Not yet,” she spun around and pointed at him. “But you were going to!”

“And is that so bad?” He asked with a crooked smirk.

“It is when I’m running late. And the reason I’m late is because you couldn’t keep your hands off of me an hour ago.”

Jason tilted his head and narrowed his eyes playfully. “I didn’t exactly hear any complaints…”

Y/N couldn’t stop herself from laughing and shook her head.

No, there had definitely been absolutely no complaints from her.

“I won’t be there long,” Y/N promised.

Then she brushed past him and walked into the giant walk-in closet.

Barely even glancing at all the shoes, she grabbed a pair that matched her dress.

“Can we order pizza or something when I get back? I’ll be starving.” Y/N asked mindlessly as she slipped the shoes on, using the wall to balance herself.

Jason didn’t even realize he was staring.

But how could he not?

The dress was simple. Just a little black dress. It was a charity event after all. But it fit Y/N like a glove, hugging her in all the right places.

Her heels were at least 4 inches, putting her eye level with Jason – if not a tiny bit taller. She would be above the majority of men at the event, except for probably a small handful.

“What?” Y/N asked self consciously. “Too tall?”

“No such fucking thing,” Jason quickly answered.

Y/N usually wasn’t self conscious about her height. She kind of had to get over that back in high school when she was taller than most of the boys in her grade.

But that didn’t mean she completely stopped having slip-ups. Slip-ups that involved questioning her heels or outfit.

Thankfully, Jason was quick to remedy such situations.

“You just look so beautiful,” Jason added as he stepped forward and grabbed her hips possessively.

Y/N kissed him. “Thank you.”

But she opened her mouth to give another warning.

“You’re gonna be late,” Jason spoke for her. “I know. I know.”

Y/N tried not to laugh at her boyfriends desperation as she grabbed her clutch.

“Remember: pizza!” Y/N called over her shoulder as she walked out the door.

————

Bruce and Damian were waiting for Y/N at the venue.

Dick and Tim skipped, going to these things less and less as they became fully grown men with lives of their own.

“Thank you for coming,” Bruce greeted as he kissed her on the cheek.

Y/N was about to turn her attention to Damian and give him a hug.

“What the hell is on your neck!?” The boy cried out before she could.

She blinked in surprise, completely unaware of what her half brother was talking about. Self-consciously, her hand went to the sides of her neck, not sure what she should be hiding.

“Can Todd not keep his hands to himself for 30 seconds?” Damian growled.

That’s when it clicked.

Y/N had a hickey on her neck.

“Damian, lower your voice,” Bruce warned his son.

Meanwhile, Y/N started feeling hot from embarrassment.

“Father, make him stop,” Damian whined.

To her surprise, Bruce cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Damian, Y/N is a grown woman in a relationship. She can do as she pleases.”

It was the right answer, but Y/N was still sweating from the embarrassment.

“If you’ll excuse me,” she quickly mumbled, before disappearing to the nearest bathroom.

But Y/N swore she heard Bruce continuing to scold Damian for his rudeness and for embarrassing her.

When she reached the bathroom, she lifted her head to see that she very much did have a hickey on her neck. It was perfectly hidden in the shadow of her jaw, which was why she hadn’t noticed it while getting ready. If she had, she would’ve put 5 layers of makeup on it to make sure her family didn’t notice.

Thankfully, she brought some cover up with her and quickly started going to work.

After 10 minutes, it was invisible and Y/N let out a sigh of relief.

She pulled out her cellphone, glaring at it as if were her boyfriend.

“You better start behaving. Damian and Bruce just found a hickey on my neck. I’m so fucking embarrassed,” Y/N texted to Jason.

“Who cares?”

Y/N rolled her eyes. Of course he’d answer with that.

“Call me old fashioned, but I’d prefer not remind my father and younger brother that I do in fact have a sex life.”

“A healthy, satisfied, and passionate sex life *,” Jason corrected.

Before she could respond, he texted again with, “Did you cover it up?”

“Obviously.”

“What a shame. Maybe it would’ve kept the spoiled rich boys away from you.”

“You’re on thin ice, Jason Todd.”

“Ooo. I love it when you use the full name. Gets me all hot and bothered.”

Y/N sighed and tossed her phone back into her clutch.

She’d given up on making Jason feel any bit of sympathy. That man would never feel guilty about showing the world how obsessed he was with her.

—————

Jason was reading on the couch when Y/N returned home.

“Hey, beautiful,” he greeted before returning to reading his book.

“Ugh. I drank too much champagne. I have the worst headache.”

“I’ll order some pizza,” Jason offered and pulled out his phone.

Y/N sighed in relief when she took off her heels and then she collapsed on the couch, laying her head on Jason’s lap as he placed their order.

Without thinking, his free hand when to her head and started massaging it, hoping it would help with her migraine.

“Hmm,” she hummed with her eyes closed. “That feels better.”

“Order has been placed,” he confirmed.

“Thank you.”

“Arrives in 30 minutes.”

She didn’t say anything, knowing exactly where he was going with it.

“What could we possibly do with 30 minutes?” Jason teased as he inched closer to her face.

She opened her eyes and giggled up at him.

“Ya know, I heard that sex helps cure migraines…”

“Does not!” Y/N yelled out.

Before she could argue with him further, his lips shut her up real quick.

For as large as Jason was, he managed to maneuver his body very gracefully, until he was hovering above Y/N while she lay comfortably on the couch.

“You look beautiful with lipstick,” Jason said it as if it was law. “But I like it even more when I ruin it,” he added with an almost evil smirk.

It was hard for Y/N to have a clever quip when he said things like that to her.

“How about I mark you up even more?” He threatened.

“Jason…” she warned.

But they both knew Y/N was pretending to be annoyed by it – or against it. When in reality, she kind of loved how obsessed Jason was with the idea.

Just when Jason hiked Y/N's dress up and was tracing her legs, someone cleared their throat.

Jason squeezed his eyes shut in frustration and actually growled. Then he quickly lowered Y/N’s dress and tried to make her modest again.

Y/N covered her face and groaned. “Please, please, please tell me Bruce is not standing at the window right now.”

Jason smirked. “And Damian.”

Y/N pushed her boyfriend off of her and sat up to face them.

There stood Batman and Robin.

Tonight was just not her night.

“You have lipstick smeared all over you,” Damian pointed out to Jason smugly.

“I’d say one day you’d see the appeal, but I’m struggling to imagine anyone ever having that kind of interest in you,” Jason shot back.

“Jason!” Y/N scolded in a yell.

Then she quickly turned to Damian with a sympathetic look, “Dami, he didn’t mean that.”

“Yeah, I did,” Jason corrected. “What do you guys want?”

“Red Robin is missing,” Bruce stated darkly.

“So…go find him,” Jason replied.

“We need your help,” Bruce clarified.

Jason groaned and rubbed his face. “Fine. But we’re setting some fucking ground rules from now on. I’m sick of you guys invading our personal space. We have a door for a reason. Use it.”

Bruce just nodded.

Then he looked down at Damian and with a glare, got him to nod, too.

“I gotta change,” Jason told them, annoyance clear in his voice.

Y/N followed him into their bedroom, to give them a moment of privacy.

“You don’t have to be so rude,” Y/N sighed as she sat on the edge of their bed.

“They spent all night with you and now they have the balls to interrupt?” Jason shot back. “And I want my damn pizza.”

Y/N couldn’t help but laugh at him. “I promise I’ll save you some.”

Jason was in his full gear now, Red Hood helmet tucked under his arm.

He took in a deep breath, tension easing off of him as he saw how cute she was looking up from the bed at him. Her lipstick was half off her lips, but she still looked beautiful.

“Promise you’ll be careful,” her tone was nothing but serious.

“Don’t worry about me,” Jason dismissed as he leaned down at kissed her.

"And be nice to Damian."

"Never."

Jason went back to the living room where Bruce and Damian waited.

“You might want to rub some of that off,” Bruce mumbled as he turned and jumped on the window.

Jason glared at Batman’s back as he reluctantly rubbed Y/N’s lipstick off his mouth with his gloved hand.

Then he looked at Damian. “Say another word about it and I'll skin you alive.”

Damian gave him a dirty look, “I’m not scared of you.”

–––––––––

Let me know if you liked it!!!

[waitimcomingtoo]

I’m Not Half as Bad as You’ve Been Told

Pairing: Loki x Reader

Synopsis: Loki is arrested by the TVA for what he did to you 

This can be read on it’s own or as a spin off of in case you don’t live forever

Masterlist

Loki woke up in the Gobi Dessert in Mongolia after being ejected from the sky. The last thing he remembered was taking the tesseract after getting caught by the Avengers in New York. When he opened his eyes, he was met with four armed guards with their weapons pointed at them.

“Hunter B-15 with the Time Variance Authority here. Appears to be a standard sequence violation.” Hunter B-15 read off a small monitor. “Oh and look at that, you’re one of the TVA’s most wanted.”

“I beg your pardon?” Loki asked as he got off the ground.

“Hands up.” Hunter B-15 raised her weapon. “You’re coming with us.”

Before Loki could protest, he was knocked out and had a collar placed around his neck. He was brought to the TVA headquarters and handed off to Agent Mobius after being screened.

“Loki Laufeyson. I’m agent Mobius.” Mobius introduced himself as Loki tugged at his collar. “I hear the Time Keepers find you guilty of tampering with the sacred timeline.”

“The what?” Loki huffed.

“The sacred timeline. Looks like you stole the tesseract and committed crimes against the midgardian Y/n L/n.” The Mobius read off Loki’s file.

“Y/n?” Loki stumbled back at the unexpected mention of your name. “This is about her?”

“That’s part of your charges, yes. You’ll be given more details at your trial. But I’d ike to have a talk with you first. Come this way.” Mobius nodded towards the side and lead Loki to a room with a projector on a long conference table.

“What does this have to do with Y/n? Where is she? Is she all right?” Loki asked as he took a seat behind the projector. He had worried about you since the day you left him, even after you told him you never wanted to see him again.

“She’s fine.” Mobius assured him. “Even after you got a hold of her.”

“Is she here?” Loki hoped. “Could I see her?”

“No.” Mobius answered, making Loki’s face crumple. “She’s on Earth. You know, her home.”

“I know Midgard is her home.” Loki narrowed his eyes. “I also know how much she hated it there. But this all happened ages ago. Why am I being arrested for it now?”

“Well when you took the tesseract from its set path, the TVA was alerted and noticed that this wasn’t your first offense of tampering with the sacred time line. They saw that Y/n L/n never made it back to earth in 2019 after going to Asgard to retrieve the Aether. It went undetected at the time since the Aether made it back to earth like it was supposed to. She was supposed to go back as well, but she never made it. You were the one that kept her there.”

“How is that a crime?” Loki asked. “She wanted to stay with me. She was happy! She was happy on Asgard.”

“Was she?” Mobius raised his eyebrows and turned on the screen. “Because I think she was taken from her family, friends and home. Maybe I’m mistaken, though. Let’s take a look.”

Mobius pressed a button on a remote, and a projection appeared in front of them. Mobius began to fast forward through the foundational moments in Loki’s life until he got to what he was looking for. Loki watched in shock as an image of you, Thor, and Rocket creeping around a pillar in his home appeared on the screen. He wanted to shut his eyes and look away, but it had been so long since he’d seen you. He didn’t have the strength to look away from you now.

“I’m sure you remember why she was there.” Mobius said as he watched the scene unfold. “All she wanted was the infinity stone. She was trying to save the world. She missed her boyfriend and wanted to undo all the damage that Thanos had done. You couldn’t let her do that, could you?”

“The stone still made it back to earth.” Loki protested. “She said herself that she wasn’t an important part of the plan. And her “boyfriend” was nothing but dust particles. She-“

“Shh.” Mobius waved his hand. “The shows about to begin.”

Loki painfully returned his attention to the screen right as your first introduction played out. It was your job to distract Loki while Thor and Rocket collected the Aether.

Asgard 2013

“Who goes there?” Loki cringed at the sound of his own voice. He watched Rocket and Thor hide behind a pillar while you went out into the open. You walked into a room and found Loki lying on a couch, tossing something in the air and catching it. Loki sat up when he saw you, immediately on high alert.

“Who are you?” He demanded. “How did you get in here?”

“I’m so sorry, but my friends and I are here for the festival and I just had to sneak away to find you.” You gushed, trying to it best to look innocent. Loki took long strides towards you as he took in your appearance, highly skeptical of your story.

“My brother isn’t here.” Loki informed you, his voice thick with annoyance. “So you should best be on your way.”

“I’m not here for your brother.” You said coyly. You held his gaze as you signaled for Thor and Rocket to move to the next room.

“You’re here for me?” He cleared his throat to mask the disbelief in his voice. You nodded sweetly as Thor and Rocket snuck past you.

“Of course. My friends are obsessed with your brother, but I’ve always loved you. Won’t you show me a magic trick?” You batted your eyes flirtatiously, making a slight smirk appear on Loki’s face. Meanwhile, the present day Loki was watching the interaction with a pained expression. He remembered how it felt that first time you said you loved him. That was all he needed to hear before falling in love with you just the same.

“A magic trick?” The Loki on screen asked, mischief swirling behind his eyes.

“Well you are the God of Mischief, aren’t you?” You tilted your head to the side and looked at him through your eyelashes. A full, open mouthed smirk dressed his face now. His hand went to yours and it held it up, keeping your wrist tightly between his fingers. Loki brushed the fingers on his other hand over your palm and a diamond appeared. You looked at the beautiful diamond, weightless in your hand, and let out an unexpected gasp.

“Oh, Loki. That’s amazing.” You gave him an over dramatic sigh, but he completely fell for it. “But I don’t care much for diamonds. I haven’t any use for them.”

Loki felt a twinge of competition brewing in his chest, like he had to win your approval. You faked a yawn and his eyes gleamed with determination.

“You don’t like that? Well how about this?” Loki challenged and waved his fingers over your palm again. This time, a flower appeared. It didn’t look like any earthly flower. It was ten times more beautiful and smelled better than anything you had ever smelled before. The flowers colors were green and black with accents of gold, just like Loki’s outfit. You stared at the flower in amazement before looking up shyly at him. If you weren’t mistaken, the God of Mischief had a blush on his cheeks as he watched your face carefully for approval. Loki then picked up the flower and tucked it behind your ear. He began to lean in slightly, but you were interrupted by Thor and Rocket knocking over a vase. You noticed they had the stone and were ready to go. Luckily, you saw them before Loki did.

“What was-“ Loki began to turn his head towards the sound but you quickly put a hand behind his head and pulled him into a kiss. You felt his eyes flutter shut as you opened yours, catching sight of Rocket and Thor pretending to gag out of the corner of your eye. With one hand, you motioned for them to move. They quickly scattered and you pulled away from the kiss. Loki was fully blushing now but doing his best to conceal it, though his best wasn’t good enough. He seemed completely bewildered, making you wonder if he’d ever kissed anyone before. You touched your fingertips to your lips and felt a pang of guilt. This was your first time kissing someone other than Peter Parker in 5 years, and it made you feel guilty with how much you enjoyed it. Loki appeared to be just as lost in his thoughts as you were as he struggled to catch his breath. He ran a hand over the long black hair that you had slightly messed up in the back.

“Thanks for the flower. And for everything else. Bye!” You tried to make a quick escape, but Loki caught your arm.

“Wait!” He pulled you back towards him and looked at you with wide eyes. “Will I see you again?”

“No.” You smiled sadly. “I don’t think you will.”

“You’re not from here, are you?” He asked. “I know a Midgardian when I see one.”

“Good catch.” You let out a short laugh. “No, I’m not from here. I’m not even from this reality. I just needed to borrow something from your present. I’m from Earth, and I really have to get back.”

You tried to leave again, but Loki followed after to you and caught you by the waist. You stumbled back into his arms and blinked in surprise.

“Won’t you stay?” He asked hopefully. “We only just met. Do you have to leave so soon?”

“I do.” You frowned. “I’m sorry. I really need to go home.”

“All right.” Loki reluctantly let go of you. “If you must.”

You looked at him for a moment and chewed on your bottom lip, contemplating what to do. You looked behind you and saw Thor and Rocket preparing to leave. You motioned for them to leave without you before looking back at Loki.

“Do you have a pen?” You asked him.

“A what?”

“To write with.” You chuckled and motioned as of you were writing something down. Loki waved his hand and made a quill appear out of thin air, along with a piece of paper.

“That’ll work.” You shrugged and took the quill. You wrote your name and address down on the paper and handed it to him.

“If you’re ever on earth.” You smiled shyly. “Come find me.”

“I will.” He nodded eagerly.

“I really have to go now.” You said as you looked over your shoulder to where Thor was hiding. You turned back to Loki and gave him one last kiss, surprising the both of you.

“You’ll see me again.” You said softly. “Maybe not in this timeline, but the next.”

“That’s enough.” Loki interrupted, making the screen pause. “I know what happens. And since you’ve been studying me all my life as you claim, so do you. We don’t need to watch anymore.”

“I get it, you’re impatient.” Mobius held up his hands. “We can fast forward. How about we go to the part where you used magic to break her suit? Your brother was able to get back to Earth just fine, but she was stuck on Asgard. All because of you.”

Mobius pointed a remote at the screen and fast forwarding through Loki sneaking you to his bed chambers. He stopped when he got to you and Loki sitting on his silk sheeted bed.

“I don’t know why it won’t work.” You sighed as you touched all the buttons on your suit. “I must’ve run out of Pym Particles or something. I need to fix it so I can get back to Earth.”

“Right, right. Earth.” Loki said with disinterest. “What did you need to borrow anyway?”

“The aether.” You told him as the decor in his room caught your attention. You began to look at all his golden trinkets and stolen objects with awe.

“An infinity stone?” He was taken aback. “But why?”

“In the future, Thanos wipes out half the universe.” You began. “I’m on a recovery mission with the rest of the Avengers to collect the Infinity Stones to undo what he did. We’re trying to bring all the people back.”

“Half the people in the universe gone?” He gasped. “That sounds awful.”

“It is.” You stilled for a moment. “Honestly, I’m miserable. Absolutely miserable. All my family vanished. My boyfriend is gone. Half the Avengers are gone. The sky isn’t even blue anymore. It’s horrible.”

“So you aren’t happy there?” Loki asked as he walked over to you, a little jealousy bubbling when you mentioned a boyfriend.

“I hate it.” You admitted. “Everywhere I turn, I’m reminded of what I lost. That’s why it’s so important that we bring everyone back.”

“But what if your plan fails?” Loki wondered. “What if you don’t bring back all the stones? Or what if you do, but it doesn’t bring anyway back?”

“Then I don’t know what I’d do.” You shrugged sadly. “This plan is all I have. If it fails…”

“You don’t even want to think about that, do you?” He finished your sentence when you trailed off. You looked at him and nodded softly, grateful that he understood.

“Yeah.” You said quietly. “It’s too hard to imagine.”

“See?” Loki interrupted again. “She was miserable on Earth. She said it herself. I was trying to save her from a lifetime of misery.”

“I think you’re forgetting something.” Mobius reminded him.

“Forgetting what?” Loki scoffed.

“The plan worked.” Mobius said. “Thor brought the Aether back to her original timeline, and the Avengers were able to bring everyone back. She was supposed to go too, but she was left on Asgard. That was your first offense with the TVA.”

“Oh, screw the TVA.” Loki slammed his hand on the table. “She didn’t want to go back to Earth. She was unhappy there.”

“Is that why you told her Earth was destroyed?” Mobius asked. Loki stilled and sank in his seat as he was reminded of his lies. Mobius fast forwarded again, but didn’t play another scene. Instead, he paused on a clip of you looked utterly devestated. Loki had to look away, not wanting to see you in that much pain.

“Now, I’m not gonna play this part.” Mobius shook his head. “Because even I find it hard to watch. But you need to know what you did, so I’ll remind you.”

“You don’t need to do this.” Loki seethed. “I know what I did. I know what I told her.”

“Fine, then.” Mobius shrugged. “Why don’t you tell me what happened?”

Loki sucked in a sharp breath before looking back at the screen. The image of your desolate expression had never left his memory, so he really didn’t need to see it again to be reminded of what he had done.

“She tried to leave again.” Loki began as he stared at the screen. “I knocked her out with my magic. When she woke up, I told her Thanos had destroyed Earth and everyone on it. I said there was nothing left for her to return to.”

“She was devestated.” Mobius said quietly.

“I know she was.” Loki snapped. “She cried for a month straight.”

“So why’d you do it?” Mobius put his hands on his hips. “Why did you lie to her?”

“I didn’t want her to go.” Loki admitted, growing disgusted with himself. “I wanted her to stay with me on Asgard. She wouldn’t want to go back to Earth if she thought there was no Earth to go back to.”

“Why keep her?” Mobius wondered. “You barely knew her. Why hold her hostage like that?”

“She wasn’t held hostage.” Loki growled. “She was safe and loved and happy. No one on Asgard was taken better care of than she was. And I may not have known here when she first arrived, but we became inseparable after a while. We were almost married, for Odin’s sake. I’ll show you.”

Loki grabbed the remote from Mobius and pressed a button, fast forwarding until he found what he was looking for.

“Look.” Loki proudly pointed to the screen. “Watch this.”

He pressed play and watched as a memory of you and him played out on the screen.

“Where are we going?” You asked as Loki lead you somewhere with his hands over your eyes.

“Almost there. So impatient.” He clicked his tongue.

“You’ve taken me around the whole palace.” You chuckled. “I have a right to be impatient.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Loki stopped walking but didn’t remove his hands. “All right. We’re here.”

You pulled his hands off of your face and found yourself in front of two large green doors.

“Wow.” You said sarcastically. “Doors.

“Open the doors.” He rolled his eyes. You gave him a playful look over your shoulder before pushing the doors open.

“Oh my God.” You gasped when the doors opened. The room was decorated from ceiling to floor with all kinds of Asgardian wildlife. I’m the center of the room, your name was spelled out in the flower Loki had presented you with on the day you met. There was a running waterfall that cascading from the ceiling to the ground, leaving a soothing babbling sound throughout the room.

“It’s yours.” Loki said as he watched your reaction. “You mentioned once that you always wanted a garden. Now you do.”

“Oh, Loki.” You turned around and rushed into his arms. He stumbled back in surprise before hugging you back tightly.

“This is the nicest thing anyones ever done for me.” You mumbled against his chest.

“Well, you’ve been so upset lately. I wanted to cheer you up.” He said as he stroked your hair. It had been a month since he lied to you and told you that Earth was destroyed, and you were finally starting to act like yourself again.

“Thank you.” You pulled away to look at him. “I love it. It’s beautiful.”

“I truly hope you like it, darling.” He said softly as he brushed your cheek with his thumb. “It’s all yours.”

You looked into his eyes for a moment before your gaze fell to his lips. Since your last kiss, Loki had brought you food and kept you company every day. You had a built up a friendship with him since arriving to Asgard, but now you felt differently. There was a connection from the very first day, but it had gotten lost in your lament over your planets alleged destruction. Now, there was nothing stopping you from feeling that connection again. You hesitated before leaning it to kiss him. Just like last time, you felt his eyes flutter shut before he kissed you back. His hands cupped your face as you reached your arms around his neck. Loki watched your first kiss on the screen with a proud but mournful smile.

“Isn’t that something?” Mobius said as he paused the screen. Loki blinked back to reality and wiped his face, not realizing until that moment he had been crying.

“That scene speaks for itself.” Loki cleared his throat and tried to act like he hadn’t been crying. “You can see how happy she was. She loved that garden. And she loved me.”

“I don’t doubt that.” Mobius nodded. “But it’s hard to see past the fact that your entire relationship was built on a lie. She was only with you because she thought her home was destroyed.”

“She was with me for three years.” Loki said sharply. “The lie may have kept her there in the beginning, but she stayed willingly after that. She wanted to be on Asgard. She wanted to be with me.”

“Maybe. But she wasn’t supposed to be.” Mobius reminded him. “That wasn’t her timeline. She was supposed to be on Earth. She was supposed to be with Peter.”

“Peter?” Loki sputtered in disdain. “Peter Parker? Her little boyfriend from when she was a teenager?”

“In most time lines, they end up together.” Mobius said, knocking the wind out of Loki’s chest. “She went on that mission because she wanted to bring him back. Do you think she would have stayed, even for a second, if she knew her boyfriend Peter was alive back on Earth?”

“She told me they were 17 when the Thanos wiped out half the universe. That means Peter would’ve been 17 when he returned. She was 22 when she came to Asgard. She hadn’t been his girlfriend for 5 years. She had grown up. Her life went on. They would’ve had nothing in common anymore.”

“But she was supposed-“

“Who cares what she was supposed to do?” Loki snapped. “Why does the TVA get to decided what she was supposed to do or where she was supposed to be?”

“They’re the Time Keepers. They make the rules. And the rules say you can’t take someone from a different timeline and marry them. Oh, that reminds me.”

“Reminds you of what?”

“Your punishment. Mobius pressed a different button and a cloudy box appeared. “Go in there while I get the rest of your files.”

“What? I’m not going in there.” Loki scoffed.

“Don’t make me get the guards.” Mobius sighed. Loki clenched his jaw and looked at the ceiling, not wanting to be overpowered by the guards again. He reluctantly stood up, gave Mobius a sarcastic smile, and went through the cloudy portal.

As soon as Loki stepped through the portal, he stepped into his bedroom back on Asgard. He took another step forward, just as something stirred in his sheets. You sat up all the sudden, hair messy and wearing Loki’s horned crown. It was too big for your head and hung in your eyes, but the sight still took Loki’s breath away.

“Y/n?” Loki gasped and stepped forward.

“Hi.” You said before yawning. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Go ahead.” Loki nodded eagerly. He failed to see how this was a punishment. It had been so long since he last saw you that this felt more like a reward.

“I want our wedding to be earth themed.” You told him as you took his hands in yours.

“Our…our wedding?” Loki asked. He looked around the room and realized that he was not actually with you, but reliving a memory from years ago.

“Yeah.” You smiled shyly. “I just miss it so much. I want it to be a part of our special day.”

Loki found himself at a loss for words. He knew that when this memory originally happened, he had continued to lie to you and lead you to believe Earth had been destroyed. This time, he knew better and kept his mouth shut.

“We could have sunflowers.” You continued. “That was my favorite flower back on earth. And we could serve earth food and play earth music and-“

“Of course darling.” He cut you off and squeezed your hand. “Whatever you want. We will have it all.”

“Thank you. And if it’s not too much to ask, I want a minute of silence where everyone lights a candle.” You said quietly. “For Peter.”

Loki gulped and forced a smile, that line causing him just as much pain now as it did then.

“Of course.”

“Thank you.” You stood up from the bed and hugged him tightly. Loki hugged you back with a troubling frown on his face. He had forgotten how guilty he felt every time he had to lie to you. He pulled away and brought you into a long kiss, wordlessly trying to convey that he loved you and was sorry.

“I can’t wait. I can’t tell you how much I miss earth.” You sighed against his lips.

“Mm hm.” He gulped.

“I just wish I could’ve seen it one last time.” You frowned, eyes growing tearful. “I feel so guilty all the time. I would’ve died too if I had gone back with Thor when I was supposed to.”

“Then it’s a good thing you didn’t go.” Loki said weakly, knowing Thor was very much alive in your timeline back on Earth.

“I know.” You sighed. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to shake the survivors guilt. It makes me sick sometimes.”

Loki stayed silent as he fingers drummed against your waist. Before he could respond, his body jerked back and he suddenly reentered the room.

“Hi.” You said before yawning. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Loki looked behind him before looking back at you. The memory played all over again, forcing him to lie to you once again. When you told him how guilty you felt, he was sent back and had to relive the moment over again. Each time he had to lie to you, he felt more disgusted with himself. After the thirteenth time, he had enough.

“I just wish I could’ve seen it one last time.” You frowned, eyes growing tearful. “I feel so guilty all the time. I would’ve died too if I had gone back with Thor when I was supposed to.”

“I lied to you.” He admitted. “Earth was never destroyed. Thor and all the Avengers and your family, they’re all fine.”

“What?” You blinked in confusion.

“I’m not your savior. I didn’t save you from anything. I stole you from your time line because I fell in love with you the moment we met. You were the first person to show a a genuine interest in me, and I took advantage of that. And for that, I am deeply, deeply sorry.”

“Oh, Loki.” You sighed and stroked his face. “It’s too late for that.”

“What?” He frowned as he wrapped his hand around your wrist to keep your palm against his face.

“I’m not even here.” You whispered.

“All right Loki.” Mobius walked through the portal before Loki could answer you. “I got the rest of your files. Let’s go.”

“But…I can’t just leave her.” Loki held on to you tightly.

“She’s not even real.” Mobius shrugged as he held up his remote. It pulled Loki back through the portal and he stumbled back into his seat.

“Here’s the last one.” Mobius said, but Loki wasn’t listening. He was still thinking about how it felt to touch you one last time. He blinked back a tear before looking up at the screen. You were there once again, talking to one of the new maids.

“Oh, I wasn’t born here.” He heard you telling the maid. “I’m from Earth.”

“A midgardian?” The maid smiled. “Wow. You’re quite far from home.”

“I know.” You smiled sadly. “I miss it every day. But I’m happy here. I’m really happy with Loki.”

“If you miss it, why don’t you go back?” The maid asked, making Loki suck in a breath. He knew exactly what was coming.

“Go back?” You furrowed your eyebrows. “What do you mean? Earth was destroyed three years ago.”

“No it wasn’t.” The nurse laughed. “Earth is fine.”

The audio faded out as you turned to look at Loki. He felt like you were looking right through him, down to his rotten soul. Your face was frozen in horror and betrayal as you finally learned the truth. Three years after arriving on Asgard, you found out your home hadn’t been destroyed after all. It was all a lie. A lie told to you by the man you thought you loved.

“Stop.” Loki choked out. “Stop it. Turn it off.”

Mobius paused the screen and looked at Loki in silence. To his surprise, Loki was wiping his tears off on the sleeves of his jumpsuit. His eyes were red and full of remorse as he looked up at the screen.

“I don’t need it see it again.” He whispered. “I know she trusted me. I know I betrayed her. I did that.”

“So you understand why the TVA is arresting you?” Mobius asked softly. “You didn’t just steal the tesseract. You stole that girl from her reality. Even if she loved you, she was never supposed to be with you.”

Loki nodded before hanging his head in shame. He knew what he had done was wrong. He knew it the entire time he was doing it. Even though he betrayed you out of his love for you, he still betrayed you.

“You’re right.” Loki said sincerely. “She was never mine to keep. Never mine to lose either.”

“No, she wasn’t.” Mobius agreed as he watched Loki curiously. The look of utter remorse on Loki’s face was out of character after everything Mobius had studied about him.

“Could you just tell me if she’s all right?” Loki sniffled. “That’s all I ask. Is she okay?”

“She’s fine.” Mobius answered. “She’s fighting for the Avengers again and reunited with her family.”

“Is she still miserable?”

“No.” Mobius smiled a little. “Not anymore.”

“And…and Peter?” His voice was barely audible now.

“Don’t worry about that.” Mobius told him. “It won’t do you any good. And for what it’s worth, there are timelines that exists where she stays. There’s even a timeline where you two are alligators and rule a kingdom in a lake.”

Loki smiled too, grateful that you were able to move on after his betrayal. Mobius furrowed his eyebrows at the sight of Loki genuinely caring about another human being, something he was not used to seeing.

“I could show you one more thing.” Mobius offered sympathetically. Loki reluctantly looked back at the screen as the man his play. To his surprise, all the good moments of his relationship with you flashed before him. All the kisses and laughter, fond smiles and endearing moments played on the screen, bringing tears to his eyes. He leaned toward on the table to get as close to you as possible, reaching out towards you with his shackled hands. The screen went blank suddenly, and his smile fell.

“They’re ready for you.” Mobius said as he checked his phone. “I can take you to the court now.”

Loki stayed silent as he was lead to the courtroom and sat in front of the judge. All he could think about was the moments of happiness he had been able to relive.

“Loki Laufeyson.” The judge brought his attention back. “How do you plead?

Loki blinked a few times, your smile flashing before him each time he closed his eyes. He thought about he had caused that smile to fade with every lie he told, and that’s when he knew he had his answer. He looked the judge right in the eye and entered his plea.

“Guilty.”

[kohanayaki]

.:Time And Time Again:. (Marauders Era x Reader) Ch 1

Old habits die hard— and so do feelings, apparently. Relive moments high and low from your life with the Marauders and co. as you tell your godson, Harry, about all the mischief you got up to back in your school days. Takes place mainly in the Marauders era but also has content congruent with the Order of the Phoenix timeline, with some cannon divergence, of course~

- Main pairings: Sirius Black x Reader, Severus Snape x Reader, James Potter x Reader, Remus Lupin x Reader, slight Regulus Black x Reader, and a bunch of friendships! Gender neutral pronouns :)

LINKS:   CH 1   CH 2   CH 3   CH 4   CH 5   CH 6   CH 7   CH 8

____________________________________________________________

Ch 1 .:Memories And First Meetings:.

12 Grimmauld Place was cold.

Not in the temperature sense of the word, especially in the heat of London summer, but something about it felt distant. Perhaps it was the cookie cutter exterior, dreadfully drab, although you knew its true nature was anything but. Despite its grandeur, the interior was as ornate as it was dull and unsaturated, like a black and white photograph in all its monochromatic glory. Maybe it was the fact that you knew what had happened here in the past, or the fact that you knew who was waiting here for you in the present.

You felt the strange sensation of stepping through the thick blanket of protection charms surrounding the house, as if your body were moving through molasses for a fraction of a second. The moment you were fully inside, you began to hear the hushed bits of a conversation echoing through the entrance hall from the dining room whose door was slightly ajar. The words became clearer as you neared the door.

“Harry's not ready! Have you gone completely mad?”

You found yourself grinning at the first voice, Molly Weasley's stern tone unmistakable.

“He's not a child, Molly.”

You froze as you heard the second one; you'd know it anywhere.

A heavy wave of emotion surged through you as you got near enough to the entrance to see the face of Sirius Black through the gap in the door. His time in Azkaban had taken a toll on him, you could tell. Heavy bags hung from his face, his cheeks hollow; although his gray eyes still held that spark in them. His hair was longer, somehow even more wild and unruly than before, but it suited him.

“Well he's not an adult either! He's not James.”

You caught a flash of ginger as Molly crossed the room, using her wand to aggressively clear away the plates on the table as she made her point.

“I know he isn't, but he can handle himself,” Sirius said, “and I'll be there to protect him.”

“How touching, Black. Perhaps the boy will grow up to be a felon just like his godfather.”

Your stomach dropped at the third voice. Shit.

Your presence remained unannounced, but as you peaked your head around the corner of the door frame you were met with Severus' stoic face, an imperceptible crease of distaste in his brow as he regarded Sirius. As your view widened you saw that Lupin sat to his left, a human wall between the two former foes.

You stilled at the door, taking a deep breath in an attempt to settle your irrationally rioting nerves. It's not as if you didn't know they would be there, but it had been so long since you'd seen any of them. So much has changed. . .

“You stay out of this, Snivelus. I don't care what Dumbledore has to say about your supposed reformation, but I know better.”

“Don't you have to go play fetch elsewhere?”

“Oh come on, you two,” Remus sighed.

Well, maybe not much has changed after all. 

“Still resorting to playground bickering, are we?”

Several heads snapped in your direction at your words, and you were met with various reactions. Molly's face immediately split into a smile and she rushed around to table to greet you.

“(Y/n), dear! So nice to see you again,” she pulled you into a surprisingly strong hug and you couldn't help but join in her laughter.

“It's good to be back,” you admitted, “Charlie says hello, by the way.”

“Oh, I'm going to give give that boy a talking to,” Molly huffed, “you aren't his owl, dear. The least he could do is write home and say so himself.”

“Romanian mountain ranges keep a wizard busy,” you grinned, “He says he tries to keep in touch.”

“Sending home a bag of petrified dragon scales with a note that says 'look at this!!' is hardly keeping in touch,” she retorted, fussing about with your jacket's collar that had become wrinkled from her embrace.

Even from across the table you could feel Sirius' eyes on you, grateful that you had Molly's whirlwind greeting as a scapegoat for your flushed face.

“(Y/n). . .” he said softly, getting up from his seat.

“Hey,” you smiled, fighting the lump in your throat as he wrapped his arms around you. He was so warm, still wearing that damn leather jacket he'd somehow been reunited with after his imprisonment.

“What are you doing here? They told me you were out working in America,” Sirius said, eyes twinkling as he held you at arm's length.

“Well, I suppose I'm sort of working everywhere these days,” you said. As his words registered in your brain you turned to Molly with narrowed eyes. “You didn't tell him I was coming?”

“I thought it would be a nice surprise,” she said coyly.

You shook your head, turning back to Sirius.

“I'm so sorry, Molly said I could stay here so I thought she already ran it by you—”

“No, no, of course you can stay!” he said enthusiastically, “I'm glad you're here.”

He seemed gentler than he was before, certainly more mellow than in his youth, but that energy that was so quintessentially him remained buzzing beneath his skin, and Merlin, you'd missed it.

After realizing how long the two of you had spent practically holding each other you coughed awkwardly, slowly drifting apart. As you looked around the table your eyes caught Severus' and you thought your heart stopped for a moment. To the untrained eye he probably seemed just as uninterested as ever, but the look of shock in his eyes was so blatantly apparent to you that it threw you off guard. You managed to cast a small smile in his direction, but his expression remained unchanged while yours dropped. You felt your stomach twist up in knots as you thought about what had happened the last time you saw each other.

Lupin looked between the pair of you before getting up from his own seat and coming to your rescue. He extended his arms with a kind smile, and you happily shifted your attention to him.

“It's about time London had its best auror back in town,” he said.

“Flattery will get you nowhere, Moony,” you said playfully, hugging him tight, “It's good to see you too.”

“Are you hungry?” Molly asked, pulling a chair out for you.

“Oh no, I had something on the way here,” you said, taking a seat, “thank you, though.”

It felt surreal to be back here, where it all started. The faces were different—some new, some missing—but the same determined feeling remained.

“Now, where were we,” Sirius said, his confidence returning to his shoulders as he addressed the table.

“We were just talking about how Harry isn't ready to be tangled up in all this,” Molly said sternly.

“I think he should decide that for himself,” Sirius said adamantly.

“Well of course the boy would say he wants to fight, he's—”

“Listening in right now,” you pointed out, jutting your head in the direction of the open door where Harry stood, half obscured by the shadow of the stairway.

The boy flushed, backing away slightly as he was caught. But his eyes lit up as they landed on you, and you felt a tug at your heart as you saw your best friend in their bright green hues.

“(Y/n), you're back,” he said in disbelief.

“And here to stay for a bit, apparently,” you said with a smile.

Molly looked between the two of you before letting out a sigh.

���You know what, we should stop for the night anyways,” she said with a wave of her hand, “We've kept the children up long enough with our chatter, and (Y/n) ought to get some rest as well. Off to bed, the lot of you.”

Some of the other adults exchanged some knowing smiles as she shooed them out of the room. People slowly trickled out through the doorway, goodbyes exchanged, and before long it was just you and your godson left.

You had been lucky enough to meet Harry at the end of his third year, and he'd broken the news about Sirius' innocence to you. You so badly wanted to be there for Harry sooner, but between your strained relationship with the Ministry and cleaning up the mess with MACUSA in the States, you always seemed to be called away from the boy. You wanted nothing more than to take him away from that horrid house—you knew how nasty Petunia could be firsthand. Nonetheless, he seemed to be doing well, and you were happy that you'd grown closer over the last few years even if you couldn't be there in person all the time.

“I've got another little souvenir for you, by the way,” you said, having migrated to the living room.

Harry seemed to perk up at that. Since your visits had been so sparse, you began to make it a tradition to bring him back something magical from whatever part of the world you'd been working in.

“You mentioned you were struggling in Potions the last time we spoke,” you said, rummaging through your bag, eventually producing a small, gold-rimmed vial full of a deep maroon liquid. Small black clouds seemed to tumble in a miniature cyclone inside the glass.

“Dragon's breath essence,” you grinned, “nicked it off of Charlie before I left Romania. Put a few drops of this in your salamander blood the next time you brew a Wiggenweld potion and you're set to pass with flying colors.”

“Brilliant!” Harry said, eyes wide, “that's on our O.W.L.S. this year.”

“I know,” you said cheekily, “you didn't hear it from me. Personally, I think an Outstanding in Potions as a requirement to become an auror is utter rubbish. Don't get me wrong, it's important to know your way around a cauldron, but to hold someone back who excels at Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms just because they can't cook up a sleeping draught? I don't know, it doesn't sit right with me. And I've heard Severus is hard enough on you guys as it is.”

Harry seemed surprised at your casual address of his professor but shook it off quickly.

“But you're ace at Potions, and it seems like you really like it,” he said.

“Yeah, well I—” you faltered a bit, “I learned from the best. . .”

“Professor Slughorn, you mean?” Harry questioned.

Your eyes widened at that.

“Yeah,” you lied, recovering fast, “Well, Slughorn was a great teacher but terrible at throwing parties. He had this thing called the Slug Club and the dinners were just awful. Your mother was the first of us to join and she ended up roping me into it, and before we knew it we were all standing around in these ridiculous outfits taking swigs of the firewhiskey your dad snuck in just to get through the night.”

You smiled fondly at the memory, and you could see Harry living vicariously through the emotions on your face. You were grateful for this moment; this was the longest you'd actually gotten to sit down and talk together in a long time.

“Were you always friends?” Harry asked, “with my parents, I mean.”

You had to laugh at that question.

“With your mum, yes. Your father, well, not exactly. . .”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   1971    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your body swayed gently with the movement of the Hogwarts Express as you walked up and down the isles, looking for someplace to sit. Most of the carriages were packed tight with large groups made up of upperclassmen not exactly looking to expand their circle.

As you approached the back of the train a mostly empty car caught your eye, occupied only by two children your age, or at least that's what you guessed from their black ties and basic robes that marked them as unsorted first-years like yourself.

One of them was a brooding looking boy with messy, shoulder length black hair and shockingly pale skin, leaning against the wall of the train and halfway through a book that seemed well beyond his years. Sitting across from him was a pretty red-headed girl who was admiring the rapidly passing scenery through the window.

“Excuse me, do you mind if I sit with you?” you asked, sliding the screen door open.

The boy's brow furrowed, clearly about refuse when the young girl beat him to it.

“Of course not!” she beamed, her smile infectious. You didn't miss the sharp look she shot over to the boy who simply rolled his eyes in response. After you muttered a small 'thanks' she scooted over closer to the window so you could sit next to her.

“My name is Lily,” she said, extending a hand, “Lily Evans.”

“Nice to meet you,” you smiled, “I'm (Y/n) (L/n).”

The boy quirked a brow at your last name, his expression shifting to something unreadable as he blatantly studied you over the spine of his book. After letting this go on for some time, you glanced over at Lily.

“Does he speak?”

“Perfectly well, thank you,” the boy said coldly.

Lily sent a disappointed look his way and his heart fell slightly, but he didn't need to be friends with anyone else, and he certainly didn't want other people becoming friends with Lily either. An irrational thought, he knew, but it was how his stubborn little brain worked at the time. They didn't need anyone but each other. Wasn't that enough?

In any case, he expected his behavior would be enough to scare you off (it usually worked on other people), but to his complete and utter surprise, you began to laugh. It started off as a light giggle, soon growing into full on laughter. He stared at you in open confusion as you were nearly brought to tears from your fit.

“You're funny,” you stated honestly, managing to speak through your chortles.

The boy was taken completely aback by your candor, actually at a loss for words. Lily joined in the laughter at your simple remark.

“So you do talk, I guess you must have a name too, then,” you said teasingly.

He blinked once. Twice.

“. . . Severus Snape.”

“That's a cool name.”

The heat that crept onto the boy's face surprised no one more than himself, and he buried himself in his book quickly to hide it. Another surprisingly frank statement from you, and not one he'd ever heard before.

If he thought you were full of surprises then, he had no idea what was coming to him.

_____________________________________________________________

The minute the Sorting Hat was placed on your head, it was immediately intrigued.

“Now here's an odd one,” it chuckled, “loyal, compassionate, empathetic, and yet a razor wit. A calculating, ambitious mind, and yet a relentless sense of adventure. All this, and with your bloodline to take into account as well. Your family has quite the history here, (L/n).”

Hushed whispers fell across the Great Hall among the older students and even some of the faculty at the hat's words, and you shifted uncomfortably in your seat.

“Though, I sense a different sort of mentality in you,” the hat continued, “you desire to challenge the old ways,” it paused for some time before going on, “do you truly have no preference, child?”

You were surprised at the question. You knew your family's reputation— it had been ingrained in you from a young age— but that didn't sway you, nor did it scare you. When you really thought about what house you wanted to be in, you truly couldn't think of an answer. It wouldn't change who you were, after all. Whether you donned red, yellow, blue, or green, you stood firmly in the knowledge that you would always be (Y/n) (L/n). Having made up your mind, you shook your head at the hat's question, and although its face was obscured from your view, you could almost sense its grin as it knew you were telling the truth.

“Well then,” it chuckled, “It is truly rare that I get an opportunity such as this. Let's make it interesting, then, shall we? Better be. . . Slytherin!”

Snape sat, slack-jawed, as you bounded over to the applauding Slytherin table and plopped down next to him. You rested your chin atop your folded hands, looking largely unbothered, a glint in your (e/c) eyes. He chuckled under his breath despite himself.

Full of surprises indeed.

___________________________________________________________

Your first encounter with James Potter was of a different sort.

It was the very beginning of your third year when you'd first met him properly. You had a few classes together, and Lily would rant about him constantly pestering her; occasionally you'd see the Gryffindor, along with another unfamiliar boy in his house, sprinting through the corridors, Professor McGonagall not far behind and demanding them to stop. But other than that, you'd never really interacted with him.

Ever since you'd met on the train you and Lily started to hang out more and more, with Snape “begrudgingly” tagging along. The Slytherin had been slow to warm up to you, but you were relentlessly kind and infuriatingly persistent, and eventually he found himself enjoying your little quips and comparatively sunny disposition. By the end of your first year, the three of you were nearly inseparable, and your bond only strengthened throughout your second. But third year is when things started changing.

Snape sat in the shade among the thick, overgrown roots of the old oak tree by the Black Lake, nose deep in an advanced Potions textbook he'd swiped from a fifth year as he waited for you and Lily to return from Transfiguration, the only class you didn't have together. This became your usual spot, with Lily sitting in the grass beside him and you on the branch above him, legs swinging as you absentmindedly sketched in your notebook. A comfortable silence would settle between you, something you'd all grown to enjoy; there was no need for constant conversation, it was enough sometimes to just enjoy each others' presence.

The silence he was reveling in alone, however, was promptly interrupted as rowdy laughter reached Snape's ears. Sure enough, a few figures emerged from the curve of the hill, revealing none other than James Potter, flanked by the curly haired boy he'd been seen running around with earlier along with two other Gryffindors: a short-statured boy with dirty blonde hair and another, taller and leaner, with long scars that ran along his face.

Snape didn't pay them much mind until he realized that they were heading straight for the tree— straight for him. Snape had noticed right away how the Potter boy had tried to befriend Lily as soon as she was sorted into Gryffindor, and it was safe to say he was less than fond of him despite having never really spoken to him before.

“You've got to be joking,” James snickered as he walked up to the tree, looking Snape up and down, “This is the guy Evans has been ditching us to see?”

Severus' eyes narrowed. So now he had a reason not to like him.

“Get lost,” he said, turning back to his book.

“What, you think you're too good to talk to us, huh?” James scoffed at him, clearly miffed.

As if on cue, the curly haired boy snatched the book out of Snape's hands, holding it out of his reach as he fumbled to get it back.

“Toss it, Sirius!” James called out. The boy, who he now knew as Sirius, threw the textbook like a frisbee, and Potter caught it easily.

As Snape angrily rose from his seat to get it back, the two boys continued to throw it between themselves so he couldn't grab it. Fed up, the Slytherin drew his wand but was quickly outmatched.

“Expelliarmus!”

Snape's wand flew out of his hands and straight into Sirius', who held it above his head. Just as the black haired boy jumped up for it, another spell flew towards him, this time from James.

“Winguardium Leviosa!”

Snape grit his teeth, staring helplessly at his wand as it hovered higher and higher out of his reach.

“James, come on, I think that's enough,” the taller boy near the back said.

“Don't be a bore, Remus, we're just having some fun.”

“I-I think he's right, guys.”

“Shut up, Peter.”

While his gaze was trained on his wand a harsh shove threw Snape to the ground, tears of frustration welling up in his eyes.

“No way, is he really crying?” James taunted.

“He is,” Sirius goaded on, “just look at him snivel.”

“You're right, maybe we should call him Snivelus, it suits him better.”

“Nice one, James.”

Snape winced as he was harshly pulled to his feet by James who sneered at him.

“Come on then, Snivelous. What are you gonna do?”

“Relashio!”

James' eyes widened as he suddenly felt himself repulsed back by some invisible force, his grip on Snape's robes forced to loosen as he was flung backwards. You stared the shocked Gryffindors down, wand at the ready for another spell as you ran to stand between Severus and them.

“Accio!” another voice called out, Snape's book and wand whizzing past their faces and into Lily's hands.

James staggered to his feet, trying to look unbothered by the fact that he'd just been knocked down, and by a spell that he hadn't even heard of yet.

“Look at that, boys,” he said, feigning confidence, “guess Snivelus needs a couple of girls to come to his rescue. You should ditch this loser, Evans.”

Before Lily could lash back, you stepped between them.

“What's that supposed to mean?” you scoffed.

“I'm sorry, who are you?”

You felt your forehead twitch, itching to smack that smug grin off his face.

It was Sirius who spoke next, recognition filling his gaze.

“Wait, you're the (L/n) kid, aren't you? Well that's just perfect, you two freaks can go study the Unforgivable Curses together.”

That struck a nerve in you.

“You don't know anything,” you said, not lowering your wand, “now get out of here before I knock you down too.”

“Aw, I don't know, Sirius, they're kind of cute all flustered like this,” James smirked.

You felt anger flare up in your chest, and it was Lily's turn to step in for you.

“Leave us alone, James,” she ordered.

When none of them moved you exhaled sharply, taking another step forward.

“Or I can just turn you into a flobberworm instead,” you said, “might be more fitting.”

Sirius laughed off your threat, but you could have sworn you saw a twinge of concern in his eyes as he looked over to the rest of his friends for backup.

“Let's just go, James. Come on,” the one named Remus said, trying to be the voice of reason.

The bespectacled boy frowned, shoving his wand back in his robes.

“Fine,” he said, “they aren't worth it anyways.”

He turned promptly on his heels, Sirius right behind him and Peter scampering after. Remus stayed behind for a moment, regarding you three.

“I'm sorry about them,” he said, “really.”

Your brow creased in suspicion, but you nodded, not quite smiling but offering up a neutral expression at least before he turned to catch up with the rest of his group.

“You were kidding about (L/n) being cute, right?” Sirius said as they headed back to the common room. When he was met with silence instead of a clear 'of course I was' he nearly had a stroke.

“Are you kidding, James?” Sirius said incredulously, “They're a Slytherin! They're just another dark arts dabbler who doesn't care about anything but their blood status.”

James only shrugged.

“Normally I'd agree, but they seem different,” he said. When he turned to see Sirius' unwavering expression he sighed, “I was just saying that to get a rise out of 'em. Don't worry, this won't be the last time we mess with them and Snivelus.”

Meanwhile, you were still out sitting by the tree, brushing the grass out of Severus' hair.

“That was amazing, (Y/n),” Lily said, wide-eyed, “How did you manage to learn that spell? And you already learned the worm-morphing jinx too?”

“Sev isn't the only one who's been learning ahead,” you said, “but that worm thing was a total bluff.”

“I didn't need your help,” Snape muttered.

You blinked down at him, shaking your head and unable to fight the smirk that crept onto your face.

“Sure you didn't,” you huffed, helping him up to his feet despite his protests, “don't be so dramatic, we won't tell anyone if that's what you're so worried about. Now come on, we're gonna be late for dinner. If Wilkes hogs all the Yorkshire puddings I'm blaming you entirely.”

Severus said nothing, only taking his book and wand back from Lily before you three walked back to the castle arm in arm, the smallest hint of a smile playing on his lips.

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

“It seems like so long ago,” you said, reminiscing, “Although I suppose it was, but I don't want to think about that too hard— I'll start to feel old, Merlin forbid.”

Harry's eyes were full of disbelief at your story.

“So you, my mum, and. . . Snape were friends?”

“Believe it or not,” you grinned, “unlikely trio as we were, it just sort of worked somehow.”

Until it didn't, you thought grimly, but forced the thought aside. You could tell by how quiet Harry had gotten that something was bothering him.

“My dad really did that?” he asked quietly.

Your gaze softened and you turned to fully face him.

“He was dumb and immature at the time,” you said, “we all were. There's not much else to be when you're thirteen. Each of us made plenty of mistakes, too many to count. And your mum. . . she was good for him. He always told me that she made him want to be a better person. People can change. In my opinion, there are few things someone can do that makes them truly irredeemable, and your father never came close to doing any of those things.”

You thought it better to mention that Snape probably didn't feel the same way.

“In any case, we should be getting to bed,” you said, getting up from the couch, “if you ever want to hear any other stories about your parents, I've got plenty of them.”

“Yeah,” Harry said, smile brightening his whole face, “yeah, definitely. Thank you.”

As Harry walked off to his room you sighed, making your way as quietly as you could up the creaky stairs. Just as you were about to retreat into your own guest room, your eyes snagged on the slightly ajar door at the top of the stairwell.

You stalled in front of it for a moment, wondering if you were out of your mind or not. When you had unapologetically settled on 'yes', you moved to knock on the door when it suddenly swung open. You practically leaped back at the proximity as you were met with Sirius standing in the doorway, stormy eyes wide. He'd shed his leather jacket for the night, leaving him in a dark maroon button up with the top few undone. Your senses were draped with the heady scent of his cologne, and you found yourself grasping at words to say.

When Sirius got over his initial shock he laughed sheepishly, running a hand through his curls out of habit.

“I was about to see if you were awake,” he admitted with a small grin, “Seems we both had the same idea.”

Read chapter 2 here !

[jemmahazelnut]

Don't tell me in Italian

Summary: Since Kojiro returned from Italy he has enjoyed speaking in Italian. Kaoru hates not understanding what he is saying.

Or: 5 times Kojiro declared his love for Kaoru in Italian, once Kaoru understood it.

Link: AO3

Notes: Fanfic inspired by this prompt. It’s the first time I’ve written for this fandom and the idea fit so well that I couldn’t resist writing something about it. Hope you like it!

P.S. I recommend that you read this story on AO3 if you don’t know Italian, because you can read all the translations as you read.

Don’t tell me in Italian

-1-

“What do you think?” Kojiro asked entering the restaurant. Kaoru was silent for a moment, letting his gaze slide to the wooden tables and various paintings hanging on the walls. Kojiro looked around him proudly, knowing that nothing that came out of Kaoru’s mouth would hit him. He was too happy. He was about to fulfill his dream, opening his Italian restaurant in Okinawa. A few more days and Sia la luce would open, Kojiro still struggled to believe it.

“I could have done it better,” Kaoru said and Kojiro narrowed his gaze, slightly irritated. “It’s very western.”

“Because it’s an Italian restaurant,” Kojiro pointed out.

“You don’t have the slightest sense of aesthetics. Why aren’t there any plants outside?”

“It’s a restaurant, not a flower shop!”

“And why those paintings? You could literally choose anything else and it would have been better.”

“They are Italian dishes!” Kojiro exclaimed. “You know what, I don’t wanna hear your opinion.”

“You asked for it,” Kaoru said.

“Well, now I’ve changed my mind,” Kojiro growled. Before Kaoru could answer a woman walked out the kitchen door and her face broke into a smile.

“Kojiro, sei tu! Sentivo delle voci.”

Kojiro smiled and walked over to her greeting the woman with two kisses on her cheeks. She was Giulia, one of his employees and a friend he had met in Italy, when he had studied to become a chef. She was very attracted to Japanese culture, that was why she had moved there, and Kojiro had immediately offered her a job. A true Italian cook would have been helpful.

Giulia threw a curious look at Kaoru. “È il famoso Kaoru?”

Kojiro snorted. “Sì, è lui.”

“Gli hai già parlato dei tuoi sentimenti?”

Kojiro stiffened and blushed slightly. Even though Kaoru didn’t understand Italian, he didn’t want to talk about it in front of him.

“No,” he said and gave her a warning look, then turned to Kaoru. “She’s Giulia, an employee, I met her in Italy. Giulia, he’s Kaoru” he introduced them.

Giulia smiled and immediately held out her hand, which Kaoru shook a little confused and Kojiro giggled at his puzzled expression while the woman chatted moving her arms animatedly. Kaoru kept a friendly expression but Kojiro already knew that as soon as the woman left, his friend would complain about the strange Italian habits. As if he hadn’t already seen Italians when he went to visit him in Bologna.

Fortunately, Giulia left shortly after, leaving them alone in the restaurant and Kaoru sat comfortably in the chair in front of the counter.

“Why did you sit down?” Kojiro asked confused.

“It’s a restaurant, I’m waiting for the food,” Kaoru said as if it were obvious.

Kojiro raised an eyebrow. “The kitchen is closed.”

“You brought me here to judge the restaurant,” Kaoru pointed out.

“The restaurant, not the food!” Kojiro exclaimed.

“The most important part of a restaurant is the food, you stupid gorilla.”

“You just want to eat for free.”

“You brought me here!”

Kojiro rolled his eyes but decided to bring him some food. He knew that Kaoru was so stubborn that he wouldn’t move from the chair until he satisfied him, and after all Kaoru had helped him organize the opening of the restaurant, Kojiro felt he owed it to him.

He moved around the kitchen and prepared something quickly, pouring a glass of wine for Kaoru. He expected another complaint from Kaoru, but strangely the friend said nothing, instead he began to eat, evidently enjoying the food, even though he probably would never have admitted it. Kojiro smiled satisfied, while Kaoru took another sip of wine.

“What were you saying about me before?” he asked. Kojiro frowned. “Your employee, she said my name,” Kaoru reminded him.

“Ah, nothing special. She only asked me if you were Kaoru,” he shrugged. There was no way that Kojiro told him how one night in Italy he had made a fool of himself in front of Giulia, getting so drunk that he talked for hours about his irrecoverable crush on his friend.

“Why did she know me? Did you tell her about me?” Kaoru asked a little confused.

Kojiro grinned. “Sure. I told her about the asshole you are.”

“You told her what, you stupid gorilla?” Kaoru snapped.

“That you were one of those assholes who led me on the wrong path,” Kojiro continued quite amused.

“You dragged me into your follies!”

Kojiro frowned. “You dragged me down the street at one in the morning.”

“Because you weren’t sleeping!”

“I slept great until you threw rocks at my window,” Kojiro complained. Kaoru kept complaining that it wasn’t true – when it clearly was – and Kojiro found himself hiding a smile. Actually, making fun of Kaoru about something like that was pretty funny, maybe he could have lied to him more often about what he was saying in Italian.

-2-

“I was right. Not only did you get dumber while you were in Italy but you also forgot how to skateboard,” Kaoru said with a smirk. Kojiro glared at him. They had just finished a beef, after years of not doing it, and Kaoru had won. In his defense Kojiro could say that he hadn’t been skateboarding on that track for years while Kaoru did it continuously. Besides, Kaoru was cheating.

“You only won thanks to your robot.”

“It’s Carla!” Kaoru snapped and Kojiro rolled his eyes.

“Whatever it is, and it’s creepy that you talk to it like it’s a girl,” he muttered.

“It’s an artificial intelligence, so obviously I talk to her like I should, you stupid gorilla!”

“Whatever,” Kojiro muttered and stared up at the black sky above him as Kaoru defended his robot or whatever it was the skateboard he was holding. Kojiro hadn’t yet understood even though he was curious to know. Not that he would ever admit it. He would never even admit that he found that a brilliant invention, Kaoru was already arrogant enough, he didn’t need an ego boost. Also, it was much more fun to tease his friend and tell him how creepy that stuff was.

And Kojiro refused to call her Carla.

He also refused to admit that this beef had been fair, because it hadn’t been. The only reason the asshole had won was because of that robot. He had practically cheated. It didn’t matter that at S was all allowed, or that Kaoru skateboarded really well. It was still cheating.

Kojiro smiled and then a laugh left his lips, as he shifted his gaze from the starry sky to the man next to him. Kaoru’s gaze went puzzled and Kojiro smiled tenderly at his adorably confused expression.

God, he was handsome. Kaoru, that evening, running on the skateboard, seemed to be a child again, Kojiro adored it.

“Has the last neuron in your brain gone crazy?” Kaoru asked with his arms crossed. Kojiro shook his head.

“Mi sono mancate queste notti,” he said and then, knowing Kaoru wouldn’t understand it, corrected himself. “Mi sei mancato tu, davvero tanto.”

Kaoru stared at him in silence for a few seconds, his expression mixed between confusion and annoyance. Really damn handsome. It was unfair. Fucking asshole.

“What did you say, you stupid gorilla? Did you forget that you are in Japan?” Kaoru asked nervous and Kojiro laughed. Obviously, Kaoru would be annoyed not to understand what he was saying, and Kojiro was going to have a lot more fun with that. Especially if that allowed him to be honest and say things he would never have the courage to say in Japanese.

“Don’t you understand Italian?” he teased him.

“How do you expect me to understand a useless language?”

“Useless?” Kojiro raised an eyebrow.

“It’s a language I’ll never speak, so obviously it’s useless to me. Do I really have to explain it?” Kaoru asked as if he were dealing with an idiot and Kojiro grinned.

“I said you got a poor skater.”

“I won.”

“It’s not a legitimate victory if your robot assists you,” Kojiro retorted.

“Carla is not a robot, and the victory is completely legitimate. If you are unable to accept it, it’s your problem.”

Kojiro retorted, and as he resumed arguing with Kaoru, he had to make an effort not to be overwhelmed by a new laugh. He had really missed those nights.

-3-

Kojiro looked up in surprise when he heard the restaurant door open. He wasn’t surprised to see Kaoru after closing time, but he was surprised to see Kaoru that night because it was raining. Kaoru was soaking wet, wet hair encircled his face, and his soaked kimono didn’t help him not to tremble.

“Give me a towel,” Kaoru snapped immediately clearly annoyed.

“You’re dripping in my restaurant” Kojiro said although he wasn’t in the least bothered. Not when Kaoru was wet and cold. And not when he came to him despite the storm.

“That’s exactly why I’m asking you for a towel, you idiot.”

Kojiro threw it at him and raised an eyebrow when Kaoru used it on Carla. Right, because the skateboard was more important. Fucking idiot.

“I can’t believe it,” he muttered and went to get another towel. This time Kojiro approached his friend and threw it on Kaoru’s head, earning a dirty look from the man. Kaoru slapped the wet towel with which he had dried Carla on Kojiro and then began to rub his hair with the other towel.

“Damn storm” he complained, glancing out the window, where the thunder was still ringing.

“You should have stayed at home,” Kojiro said.

“The storm broke when I was already out,” Kaoru pointed out.

“Can’t Carla predict the weather?” Kojiro asked.

“Of course she can do it. I didn’t ask her.”

“So, you’re the idiot,” Kojiro grinned. Kaoru gave him a dirty look, he was already about to argue something but Kojiro anticipated him. “Let’s go upstairs, you really need warm clothes or you’ll catch a cold.”

He ignored Kaoru’s complaints and grumbles as he climbed the stairs to the apartment above the restaurant, and entered the house. When he was there, his friend went into the bathroom without even asking for permission – not that he needed it – and Kojiro retrieved some clothes. He left them for Kaoru outside the door and went into the kitchen to make dinner. He knew Kaoru enough to know that he would complain if he didn’t have something to eat.

Kojiro pulled the leftover parmigiana out of the fridge, and heated it in the pan while he opened a bottle of wine that he knew Kaoru would like. When he heard his friend’s footsteps behind him, Kojiro turned around, ready to say something, but his words died in his throat.

Kaoru was… really beautiful. Kojiro never saw him in clothes other than the kimono so seeing him in a tank top and in a pair of sweatpants surprised him. Not because it was his clothes – even if it somehow had an effect on Kojiro’s body – but because Kaoru’s arm muscles were completely free, his still wet hair was pulled back into a high ponytail and the tank top was a little damp because of the drops falling from his locks. And Kojiro was sure that if he turned around, he would be able to see his friend’s ass.

But it wasn’t just that. It wasn’t just that Kaoru was hot, or that he was wearing his clothes. It was the fact that he was domestic, something Kojiro would have liked to see more often.

“What the fuck are you looking at?” Kaoru growled.

Kojiro turned to hide his loving gaze and sweet smile.

“Sei solo bello,” he said sincerely.

“How many times do I have to tell you not to speak Italian with me?” Kaoru growled and Kojiro giggled.

“Right. I said you look like a wet chicken,” he said with a smile and even though he wasn’t looking at him he could feel Kaoru’s annoyance grow.

“And you look like a gorilla.”

“I didn’t expect anything else, your insults are becoming banal.”

“At least they’re true. And what are you preparing for me? Leftover? I came to your restaurant to have a decent dinner, no leftovers!” Kaoru snapped. Kojiro rolled his eyes. Spoiled asshole.

“It’s parmigiana, and it’s still good,” he specified.

“I doubt it,” Kaoru growled, but he sat down at the table pouring himself a glass of wine. “What’s this? It’s not the wine I like, you fucking asshole, and you know it.” Kojiro felt his nerves pressing on his temples, that was also an expensive wine! He put the parmigiana on a plate, and slammed it in front of Kaoru.

“Bello ma stronzo,” he snapped.

“What did you say?” Kaoru growled.

“That you’re an asshole,” Kojiro said, and that was half the truth.

-4-

Kojiro shot a puzzled look at Kaoru. That day he was behaving strangely, not only had he waited some minutes before entering the restaurant, but now he was photographing the dishes instead of eating them.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I take care of your restaurant’s web page, since you don’t,” Kaoru explained, putting the phone down and starting to eat the carbonara. Kojiro, as usual, felt a hint of pride in the expression his friend made while he was enjoying the pasta.

“Does my restaurant have a web page?”

“Of course, how do you think people know that it exists otherwise?” Kaoru asked.

“Word-of-mouth?” Kojiro said and Kaoru glared at him, but he didn’t answer because eating was more important. “You could also have told me you made a website. Can I see it?”

Kaoru turned on the phone and turned it towards him, and Kojiro caught it curious. Kaoru had really made a cool webpage. The graphic was good, he had placed photos of the restaurant from the outside, from the inside and of various dishes. It was… a really nice gesture. Kojiro looked at all the photos before returning the phone to Kaoru, but he didn’t know what to say. Luckily Kaoru preceded him.

“I have to take a picture of the menu, and the other dishes you have, so people will at least know what they’re going to eat,” he said.

“Sure, I... thank you,” Kojiro said sincerely. Kaoru looked flustered.

“I had to do it, or this restaurant fails. And I’ve no intention of listening to your complaints when that happens,” he clarified, taking a sip of wine as his cheeks turned slightly pink. Kojiro let go of a half laugh, Kaoru really couldn’t even admit that he cares. He smiled tenderly.

“Sono davvero innamorato di te,” he revealed and blushed slightly after the declaration of love, even though he knew Kaoru couldn’t understand him.

Kaoru blinked. “Speak in an understandable language,” he said vaguely irritated and Kojiro continued to smile sweetly.

“I just said I could do it myself,” he lied. Kaoru arched an eyebrow, and Kojiro realized his mistake. He had said it in such a sweet way that obviously Kaoru wouldn’t have believed him. Kojiro tried to distract him by pulling out his arrogant smile.

“In any case, it’s not thanks to your stupid website that my restaurant is successful.”

“And thanks to whom, then?” Kaoru frowned.

“Of my dishes, of course.”

“How do you think people can know there’s a restaurant if you don’t advertise it?”

“As I said, word-of-mouth.”

“We’re in the age of the Internet, you idiot. But obviously a stupid gorilla can’t understand that.”

And luckily they were back to normal.

-5-

“What are you doing here?” Kaoru asked as he opened the office door. Kojiro lifted the bag full of food.

“It’s your birthday, asshole, or did you forget?”

“Shouldn’t you wish me a happy birthday instead of insulting me?” Kaoru asked.

“I would, if you weren’t such an asshole. Won’t you let me in?”

“I’m working,” Kaoru snapped and Kojiro rolled his eyes. He knew it wasn’t going to be easy, Kaoru obviously was going to put his work first on his birthday. Well, Kojiro would too, but Kaoru could at least have avoided making appointments for that day. His job didn’t include keeping a restaurant running, he could handle himself as he pleased with appointments with his customers.

“I just brought you food for your lunch break. Consider it your gift,” Kojiro said and Kaoru immediately grabbed the bag. Kojiro smiled as he watched his friend curiously open the pan to find out what he had cooked for him, and immediately made a face. Predictable.

“It’s not carbonara,” Kaoru said frowning.

“No, it’s not,” Kojiro agreed with a smile.

“Why didn’t you bring me carbonara? It’s my birthday and you know it’s my favorite dish,” Kaoru complained.

“Because, spoiled princess, carbonara must be eaten as soon as it’s made,” Kojiro explained, without abandoning his arrogant smile.

“Bullshit,” Kaoru snapped immediately. “You warmed it to me several times, you’re clearly lying.”

“The second reason is that you’re an asshole, you don’t deserve anything more” Kojiro concluded and Kaoru gave him a dirty look, his lips stretched out obviously annoyed. He was pretty funny. And even pretty.

“I can’t consider this stuff, as a gift. Try harder.”

“Dio, perché dovevo innamorarmi di un rompicoglioni come te?” Kojiro muttered running a hand through his hair. Kaoru glared at him, because he had spoken in Italian, then looked down at the bracelet and Kojiro cocked his head to the side. “Don’t you wanna know what I said? Usually you always complain when I speak in Italian.”

“It’s probably just another insult,” Kaoru said looking up and Kojiro looked at him puzzled because Kaoru looked… agitated and confused. His cheeks were red and he looked embarrassed for some reason. Maybe it was for the gift?

“Yes, it is,” Kojiro said, and it was half the truth. Kaoru didn’t need to know that he was in love with him. “Anyway, since your present didn’t satisfy you, spoiled princess, I’ll give you another this afternoon. We go out at four, I know you don’t have any appointments, so don’t try to lie to me about that.”

“What if I don’t want to go out?”

“You’ve no right to choose,” Kojiro shrugged.

“It’s my birthday!” Kaoru snapped.

“Yes, and I choose,” Kojiro said. “Four, don’t be late” he greeted him and walked away from Kaoru’s office. He didn’t turn around and missed the way Kaoru continued to observe the bracelet on his wrist, with red cheeks and a confused expression on his face.

-6-

Kojiro smiled tenderly, glancing at Kaoru next to him. They were both sitting on a blanket in a public garden, under a cherry blossom as they watched the ducks splashing in the river ahead. Kojiro had to admit he had a great idea. Even though Kaoru had complained about everything – the sun, the flowers in his hair, the lack of carbonara, and the terrible company – he now had a sweet smile, a sign that he was really relaxing and having a good time. And the sweets Kojiro had brought helped, even if it wasn’t carbonara. Anyway, Kojiro intended to cook it for him that evening.

“Do you remember that time you fell into the fountain?” Kaoru asked with a smirk.

“You mean that time you threw me in?” Kojiro frowned, even with his lips folded in a smile at the memory.

“No, I mean the time you skateboarded into it, because you couldn’t stop,” Kaoru grinned.

“No, I don’t remember it at all,” Kojiro lied. “But I remember when you ended up in a garbage can,” he grinned.

“It never happened,” Kaoru said immediately and Kojiro laughed.

“I distinctly remember the stench you gave off.”

“And I remember how drenched you were,” Kaoru retorted.

Kojiro chuckled and Kaoru let out a smile as he grabbed another cannoli and ate it, continuing to watch the river ahead. Kojiro let the laughter die out and looked at the man next to him, unable to hold back a sweet smile. He loved seeing Kaoru so quiet, that was exactly why he had organized an afternoon just for them, with Italian sweets and funny old stories.

Well, he had organized it also because he enjoyed spending his days with Kaoru. He liked talking to him, whether it was old times or new inventions that Kaoru made, about Italian food or skateboarding, whether it was their stupid discussions or more intimate conversations. He loved doing anything with Kaoru, he just needed to be with him.

Kojiro ran a hand through Kaoru’s hair, removing a flower that had fallen into his hair, and Kaoru turned to him looking confused. Kojiro smiled tenderly.

“Vorrei davvero baciarti adesso,” he revealed, in a low voice even though he was saying it in Italian. He really wanted, because Kaoru was beautiful, that moment was perfect and he was completely in love with him. Kaoru frowned and Kojiro barely registered the way his friend toyed with the bracelet, too focused on removing more flowers from Kaoru’s hair.

“What are you waiting for then?” Kaoru asked, looking up sharply.

Kojiro blinked.

“What?” he asked puzzled.

“Aren’t you going to do what you say?” Kaoru insisted, with pink cheeks and Kojiro stared at him in confusion until he blushed.

“What the fuck?” he murmured with eyes wide in panic. The panic didn’t last, because a moment later Kaoru grabbed him by the shirt, pulled him and pressed his lips to Kojiro’s.

For a second Kojiro couldn’t understand what was happening, because Kaoru’s lips were the last thing he expected to kiss, but it was instinctive to return the kiss, squeeze his fingers through Kaoru’s hair and push forward. It was instinctive to place his free hand on Kaoru’s thigh, tilt his head to the side and deepen the kiss. He felt Kaoru’s hand release the grip on the shirt and rest on his chest, and Kaoru’s soft, cold lips move against his.

It was perfect, and much better than any kiss Kojiro had imagined.

As they pulled away, Kojiro noticed Kaoru’s red cheeks and didn’t say anything just because he knew he must look similar. He opened his mouth to say something but couldn’t think of anything that made sense.

“You... did you learn Italian?” was the only thing he managed to murmur. Kaoru rolled his eyes and snorted lightly.

“Obviously not. Do you think I would waste time learning a language I would never speak?” he said and Kojiro looked at him even more confused, until Kaoru raised his wrist, showing the bracelet that had a digital writing on it. The writing said ‘I would really like to kiss you now’. “Carla translates it for me.”

Fuck.

Kojiro really should have thought about it.

He found himself giggling in embarrassment and ran a hand through his hair.

“Since when did she do it?” he asked, not sure he wanted to know.

“Today,” Kaoru said and then smiled and softened his tone, while still keeping some fun. “I guess they weren’t all insults you told me.”

“Some were,” was the only thing Kojiro could say.

“I don’t doubt it,” Kaoru smiled. “Although I’d rather know what you were saying the rest of the time.”

“I... uh.”

“Are you... really in love with me?” Kaoru asked lowering his voice to a whisper and Kojiro looked down embarrassed.

“If I were... would it be bad?”

“I kissed you, you idiot,” Kaoru said, albeit with a soft tone. “You can say it in Italian if you prefer, Carla will translate it.”

Kojiro almost laughed, because it was strange to hear Kaoru so understanding and sensitive and… and Kojiro was really in love. And Kaoru had kissed him. He didn’t need to say it in another language.

“Of course I’m in love with you,” he said.

“Then kiss me, stupid.”

And Kojiro did.

[lunar-wandering]

“Not Sick.”

Wukong gets sick, except this time, I’m writing comedy instead of hurt/comfort.

Word Count: 2k

Read on Ao3

MK blocked a kick from Wukong with the staff, sending dust into the air from the force of it. Smirking, proud of himself for blocking the hit, he pulled back before Wukong had the chance to push off of him, and immediately swung the staff in an arc. Wukong, as expected, ducked down under it, flipping backwards once the staff was out of the way, then jumping and flipping again when MK moved forwards with a follow up attack.

They'd been at this for a while now, dodging and blocking as they sparred. It was still early morning, MK having arrived bright and early for a full day of training.

Wukong landed another flip, only to stumble, just the slightest. MK, in the moment, didn't register how weird it was for the Monkey King to stumble, instead only seeing the opportunity. Planting the staff in the ground, he used it to propel himself as he spun around, kicking Wukong in the side, knocking him into the nearby mountain, birds flying away and more dust flying up as the Monkey King slammed into it.

"I did it!" MK cheered, before pausing. "Wait. I did it? Monkey King, you didn't throw the spar so that I'd win and get more confident or something, did you?"

"Nope, you won that one fair and square bud!" Wukong pushed himself off of the mountain, and MK noted that the Monkey King seemed.... a little unsteady on his feet, slightly wobbling back and forth.

"...Are you okay? I didn't hit you that hard." MK said, eyes narrowing in concern as he re-evaluated his mentor's physical state.

"Oh, I'm fine!" Wukong said- then immediately disproved that claim as he sneezed, the ground literally shaking from the force of it. MK barely kept himself from falling using the staff for balance, looking at his mentor with a deadpan expression. Wukong coughed a little, avoiding MK's gaze.

"Ah." MK said, "You're sick."

"What? No I'm not." Wukong waved his hands in denial, "It was just- just the dust is all."

"I bet if I walked over there and checked you'd have a fever."

"No- No I wouldn't. Because I'm not sick." Despite saying this, Wukong still backed away when MK started walking towards him. "You do know that I can't even get sick, right? It's absolutely a ridiculous notion, I mean, I'm immortal in at least 5 different ways, and not to mention the invulnerability y'know? I'm also made out of stone, so you know, I don't get sick-"

"You're doing the lying smile again." MK didn't stop walking towards him, and Wukong didn't stop backing away. At this point, it was almost starting to look like they were on a normal walk. You know, that is if MK wasn't walking towards Wukong in a mildly threatening manner and Wukong didn't look like he was two steps away from outright starting to run. "You're also rambling."

"Rambling? I'm not rambling, why would I be rambling-"

"Because you're trying to convince me that you're not sick, which you absolutely are."

"I am not." Wukong's back hit a tree, cornering him. MK stopped mere inches in front of him.

"Yes, you are." MK wasn't going to take no for an answer. "I didn't have Pigsy and Tang spend an entire 2 hours teaching me to take care of myself just to watch you attempt to push your limits. You're going to go back to your house and rest."

"I'm fine. And even if I wasn't- what about you're training?" Wukong asked.

"I can come and train another day. I'll just spend the rest of today with Mei." MK went to put his hand against Wukong's forehead to check for a fever, but the Monkey King ducked under his arm, moving to the right, grabbing onto a tree branch and hauling himself up. "Would you stop straining yourself?!"

"I'm not straining myself, because I'm not sick." Wukong sat cross-legged in the tree, looking very proud of himself.

That is, until a monkey climbed up on his shoulder.

Followed by another climbing onto his back.

And another grabbing onto his leg.

"Wh- hey!"

Ignoring his mentor struggling to get out of the monkey's grip, MK turned to a monkey that was sitting on a branch nearby.

"I take it you guys will look after him?"

The monkey nodded, and MK gave it a high-five, before turning and starting to walk away.

"Hey- kid! Wait!"

"I'll bring you some noodles later, okay?!"

-

"Monkey King is sick?" 

"Yeah, hopefully the monkeys will keep him resting until I drop by again tonight..." MK and Mei walked down the street as he talked, passing by some stores, a food van, a street sign with a bird resting on top of it... 

"Wait a second." MK stopped in his tracks, turning back around, just in time to see Wukong sneeze, changing from his bird form back into his normal self, tumbling off the street sign and onto the ground, indenting the pavement on impact. "Monkey King, what are you doing here?"

"What does it matter what I'm doing here? Can I not be allowed to go about town?" Wukong asked, slowly standing back up.

"I- you're sick, Monkey King. You're meant to be resting." MK crossed his arms, walking over to stand in front of his mentor.

"I keep telling you kid, I'm fine." Wukong emphasized the word fine, dragging it out for a few seconds as he leaned against the street sign-

The street sign ripped out of the pavement and toppled over, Wukong stumbling, almost falling down with it. He laughed nervously as MK fixed him with an unimpressed stare. 

"Ha ha, whoops, uh, I totally meant for that to happen, let me just fix this real quick-" Wukong picked up the street sign, trying to place it back where it had been. MK sighed, grabbing hold of the sign and taking it out of Wukong's hands. 

"Monkey King, go home and rest, or I'll hit you with this sign." He threatened. He wouldn't actually hit Wukong with the sign, not in the condition the Monkey King was currently in, but he figured that if nothing else, a threat might get through the monkey's stone thick head.

"...I'm not sick, but y'know, I'd rather not deal with a sign related headache so-" Wukong summoned his cloud, taking one wobbly step towards it- and it occurred to MK that, you know what? Having a sick Monkey King attempt to fly home on his own might not be the best idea.

"Mei? Grab him."

Mei didn't need to be told twice, rushing forwards and wrapping her arm around Wukong's own, stopping him just as he was about to step onto the cloud. The cloud itself dissipated, as Wukong looked at the both of them, confused.

"Wh- I thought you wanted me to go home?" He asked, struggling to get out of Mei's hold, and honestly, the fact he was actually struggling spoke volumes.

"I changed my mind." MK nodded to Mei, and she turned, heading in the opposite direction she and MK had been walking in. "We're taking you to the Noodle Shop."

"What- to Pigsy's- wait no-" Wukong started struggling more, Mei having to shift her grip to keep him from getting loose.

"What's so wrong about going to Pigsy's?" She asked, "Surely, if you're not sick, there's nothing wrong with going to visit the mother hen of the block."

Wukong opened his mouth, about to argue- only to seemingly realize that doing so would just be dooming himself, as his mouth clicked shut.

MK gave Mei a thumbs up, before sending Pigsy a text, warning him of the storm that was about to enter his shop.

-

By the time MK and Mei entered with Wukong in tow, Pigsy had already kicked out any customers for the day. Tang was still there, of course, chatting with Pigsy about something or other, and Sandy was sitting over in a corner. Mei let Wukong go as soon as the door had shut behind them, and she and MK went over to sit at the counter.

There was some cold medicine set out, along with some various teas and other things.

"What's all this for, is somebody sick?" Wukong asked, looking at all the supplies on the table, and the room went dead silent. Wukong sniffled a little, rubbing his nose on the edge of his sleeve, before processing the way everyone in the room was staring at him. "Wh- hey, I'm not sick, I'm perfectly fine!"

"Monkey King." MK rose from his seat, looking the most serious Wukong had ever seen him. "If you try and insist you're fine one more time. I will call in even more reinforcements, and you will not like it."

"But I keep telling you, I. Am. Fine."

"Your funeral, then." MK pulled out his phone, and Wukong suddenly had the distinct feeling that he might of made a mistake of some kind. "Hello, Mr. Demon Bull King Sir?"

"Wait- Hold on-" Wukong rushed over, misjudging the distance and hitting the counter, cracking it slightly, before pushing himself off of it, turning and trying to grab the phone out of MK's hand. MK, having expected this, practically danced out of his mentor's reach. "Kid-"

"I'm calling you because Monkey King is sick, and we might need some reinforcements." MK continued, completely ignoring his mentor's protests. "You'll be over right away? That's great!"

"No it's not!" Wukong made another lunge for the phone, having to stop for a moment to cough as he swayed, the sudden movement having made him dizzy. "I'm fine! He doesn't have to come over!"

"You do realize you're just proving the kid's point by how much you're protesting right now, right?" Pigsy said, making Wukong yelp as he hadn't noticed that the pig demon had gotten so close to him. Pigsy used the Monkey King's surprise to grab hold of his scarf, dragging him down so that he could press his hand against his forehead and take his temperature. "...Yep, that's a fever alright. Nothing too concerning, but it's there. You're sick."

"...I'm not." Wukong denied yet again, but it was quieter, a little bit weaker this time. He was starting to recognize that he was fighting a losing game.

The door swung open, and everyone turned as the Demon Bull King entered the shop.

"Oh, that was fast. How'd you-" MK started, before noticing Red Son standing just slightly in behind his father. "Oh, fire teleportation, right."

Wukong laughed nervously as Demon Bull King's gaze landed on him.

"I see you're being a stubborn fool when it comes to your own weaknesses yet again, simian." Demon Bull King picked up Wukong by the back of his scarf, letting him dangle a few inches off the floor. "If I remember right, I'm pretty sure you promised you wouldn't do this again after what happened the last time."

"...What happened the last time?" Tang dared to ask.

"It's nothing you need to know about, because there wasn't a last time, because I don't get sick." Wukong said- then sneezed again, this time dispelling his shapeshifting, shrinking a few inches down to his real height. Everyone rolled their eyes, no-one bothering to audibly argue with him.

"The last time the simian pulled this kind of stunt, he ended up in bed for three days after he injured himself in a bout of fever-induced delirium." Demon Bull King clarified, "Truly, I'm glad we've gotten him before he reached the delirium point. It is not a sight you would want to see."

MK momentarily pictured what a delirious Monkey King would be like. He ultimately decided he never wanted to know.

"I'm not at a delirium point, because I'm fine." Wukong somehow managed to pry Demon Bull King's fingers apart, landing on the ground. "I keep telling you, I'm perfectly and utterly healthy."

As he said this, he put one hand down on the table beside him for balance. Said table almost instantly cracked down the middle, crumbling down, Wukong falling down onto the ground with it.

Red Son shook his head, sighing, before grabbing onto Pigsy's arm and dragging him into the kitchen.

"Come, I've got a soup recipe here that'll blow his mind so much he'll completely forgetting about keeping up this whole 'healthy' pretense." He said, Pigsy willing following along after him.

Wukong sat up, pouting, a piece of table falling off of his head. MK sighed, Mei comfortingly patting him on the back.

"Was I this bad?" MK mumbled.

"Maybe in the denial part, but you didn't cause this much property damage, so no." Mei answered.

Sandy placed a blanket around the Monkey King's shoulders, Demon Bull King making sure that Wukong didn't protest or try to stand up by keeping a hand resting on top of the monkey's head. Tang sipped his coffee, contemplating.

"I suppose I'm going to have to make another powerpoint presentation."

[levi-my-beloved]

Birds of a Feather

Chapter one

Pairings: Canon!Levi x F!reader

Content warnings: violence, swearing

Word count: 4K

Summary: You were the most notorious criminal in the Underground City. With your organisation of highly skilled professionals, only one man could take you down. He also happened to be Humanity’s Strongest… and your ex.

A/N: asdfghjkl hello there. so, this has been on my brain for a while now, so i started this as just a drabble. what i thought would stay as just a drabble turned into this 22k+ multi chapter fic because i have zero self restraint or self respect. i’m currently finishing chapter 5 as this is being posted, but i want to keep chapters posted around once every two weeks so i can keep up with the workload. maybe once a week if i start feeling spicy. yeah plot twist this is actually the second time i’ve drafted this up. the first time i managed to get everything done and in order and then manages to delete the entire post with my huge disgusting thumbs. Genuinely felt like crying for a good half an hour.

This is also my first Levi fic! yay! lmk if it sucks and idk i’ll cry or something. nah, in all seriousness please send me criticism cuz i really want to improve and critiques are the best way.

𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔

“How down, Raven?”

“Six feet.”

Within the dank confines of a stinking alleyway, two green capes marked with the Military Police insignia crept ever closer to the taller, run-down building upon which you and your little squad of Shadows were now perched. No sunlight illuminated your position. Not that you’d ever seen the sun, or know what it even looked like, but you based your guesses upon the pathetic rays shining through the grates littering the ceiling of the Underground City.

The language you used with your Shadows, coded words translated to:

‘How do you want them to be dealt with?’

‘Death.’

It was something developed by your late guardian and mentor, Viper. See, you all had aliases in The Nest, your criminal organisation. The leader was often referred to as The Raven, however your mentor preferred to use his own nickname, stemming from his own reputation.

Then come the aliases for your Shadows. Prongs was your second, a tall, stern looking man with the black mask of a stag settled across his features.

Then came Wolf, and you swore the first time you’d set eyes on him, you thought a titan had wandered into the city. He was enormous, all 6ft 6ins of him carved in hard muscle. Slicked back silver hair and a beard that to rival a bear. Similar to Prongs, a mask sat upon his face, resembling that of a snarling wolf.

Following him was Verdant, Scales and Diablo. Your power trio. Though their special talents lay in different professions, get these three together and they were borderline unstoppable. A white mask decorated with three broad maple leaves obscured Verdant’s pretty features, Scales sported a bronze half mask etched with a snake-like diamond pattern, whilst Diablo, your trained escort, had opted for something that accentuated her own gorgeous features, a mask of black leather arcing high onto her brow on the left side, whilst the right arced low by her jaw. Though you were already spoken for, you couldn’t deny the beauty of Diablo. She did wonders when prying information between the legs of a moaning MP.

To your left crouched the twins, Una and Leaf. Una was gifted her name by none other than you yourself, after seeing her accuracy with a rifle. A single shot was all it took, from any distance. She wore no mask, something you’d allowed simply because she’d complained about the sight obstruction when lining up a shot. You’d agreed, but only under the condition that she wore a low hood. Her fiercely protective brother Leaf had chewed you out for that, but you knew he meant well. Leaf was good at what he did, excellent, in fact. Which was part of the reason you kept him on as a Shadow. The larger part was that you were damn fond of him. Of all of them, in fact. You loved every single one of your Shadows. Every single damned member of The Nest, you adored. You were their leader, afterall.

A masked helmet of black leather, similar material to Diablo’s, perched snug upon your own features. The hooked beak and obsidian feathers of a raven decorated the necessity, covering your face and hair, though leaving your lower features visible. It was a rite of passage, for you especially, and it signalled the start of your leadership.

“Una, set up. Verdant, Prongs, roundabout. Wolf…” your eyes slid to the giant man on your right, a dark smile slicing across your mouth. “Heel.”

The boulder of a man visibly sagged, clearly disappointed at your orders whilst the others sprang into action. Prongs and Verdant leapt across the rooftops in separate directions whilst Una removed her rifle from her back, parting her heavy cloak to reveal rounds and rounds of bullets strapped across her body. Leaf nestled closer into her side, whilst the other four took a step back. It was obvious you’d all been at this for a very long time, despite the twins not looking a day older than sixteen. In fact, most of your squad was younger than you, save for Wolf and Prongs, who had served their respective roles twice previously.

Sitting back on your heels, you watched your team get to work, the warmth of pride blossoming in your chest. Whilst you knew Prongs and Wolf were already incredibly skilled, the rest had flourished under your leadership. It had been ten years since you’d witnessed MPs put a bullet through your mentor’s skull. Ten long years since you’d taken up leadership and expanded the reaches of The Nest. Honestly, you were pretty proud of yourself, and none more so than when you watched your Shadows do what they do best.

Taking care of unwanted visitors.

Una took aim, resting the butt of her rifle in the crook of her shoulder, staring down the makeshift scope. She would be ready to take care of the two soldiers if either Prongs or Verdant failed to eliminate their targets.

Speaking of which…

That kernel of pride ignited as your (E/C) eyes followed Verdant’s careful, calculating form dropping from the rooftops above the alleyway, in sync with Prong’s own movements. The two assassins swooped with the grace of a stooping hawk, the silver glint of metal caught your eye as they both brandished their blades, before sinking the steel into the necks of the two soldiers. You didn’t need to be closer to see they were both dead. Expert precision. Deadly accuracy. That was why these people were your hand-picked Shadows. And why you were the most formidable gang leader in the Underground City. Your little criminal organisation had expanded into something to rival the killcount of Kenny the Ripper. You couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought.

Una lowered her weapon, strapping it back in the buckles between her shoulder blades.

“Finished.” she simply stated, turning back to drop down between the shattered tiles and splintered ceiling beams that marked your entrance and exit to this lookout point.

“Rendezvous back at The Nest,” you ordered flatly, before dropping forward and into the alleyway below.

“Anything?” you ask, a brow raised behind your raven mask as you saunter over. Prongs held up two sets of blades from one of the crimson bodies now gathering dirt and grime. Useless to you as they were, but somebody would definitely find an interest in them. Verdant seemed to be struggling with the straps of whatever gear these mosquitoes used to fly around. You’d never been able to figure out how to use it, but that shit made good money when in doubt. However, your usual buyers had disappeared off the face of the city, and you’d noticed a decline in gear sales since then. Gritting your teeth, you shook your head to Verdant, laying a hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t. It’s not worth it. The thug trio haven’t been back in years. I doubt they’d return to us now,” you explain softly, prompting the girl to stop her struggles and huff defeatedly. You’re heart ached softly at the thought of him, but you pushed the feeling down.

“Here,” she muttered, handing you another rifle. It seemed to be a newer model, something of an upgrade for Una.

“You did good, Ver. I’m proud of you,” that seemed to immediately lighten the girl’s mood, her eyes shining behind her mask as her mouth widened into a toothy grin.

“Thanks Raven!” she beamed, before scampering off back to The Nest, almost forgetting to take the gun back from your outstretched hand in her haste to make it back and tell everyone she’d received a compliment from you. It wasn’t an everyday occurrence. Rather it only happened once in a blue moon…

A huffed chuckle had your head turning and eyes narrowing to your second in command.

“Can I help you?” you ask, your tone dripping with the poisonous threat of hell if he chose his next words poorly. But Prongs continued to smile ever so slightly, shaking his head.

“Not at all, Raven. It’s just, in the last few years, since you drafted her into the Shadows, she’s really come into her own,” Prongs explained simply, shrugging as she stooped to kick over the now drained corpse, hoping to find anything useful. You bristle ever so slightly. That was something you hated. Compliments. How the fuck were you supposed to respond? You tried to think back to when Viper tried to teach you simple social skills.

“Uh, yeah. She has,” you respond, keeping your features as neutral as you could as you turned away, beginning to trudge back to The Nest.

“I’m serious, Rave. You’ve done incredible things for us. You know Viper would be proud of you. I am too. But…” Prongs trailed off, clearing having something to say but not knowing how to say it.

“Go on. But what?” you pressed, wanting to hear what your second in command had to say.

“Well, don’t you think it’s a bit much? Rave, it’s been years. Eyes have started looking in our direction since those three vanished. You don’t think we should be lying low for a bit? Calming suspicions instead of rousing them?” Prongs offered gently. You knew, deep down, he was right. But some notable gang disappearing hasn’t stopped you before, and it sure as hell wouldn’t stop you now.

“I’ll talk to Scar about it,” even just the mention of your advisor, and wife’s name gave your stomach butterflies. Scarlett Obsidine, your other, and better, half. After the disappearance of a certain dark haired man, Scar was the woman who comforted you, and though you missed him dearly, your heart managed to haphazardly piece itself back together and love all over again.

“Rave, listen—“

“Let’s go,” Prongs closed his mouth, the tone of your voice stating clearly that this matter wasn’t up for discussion. Especially not with him.

⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈

“You know he’s right,” you couldn’t help but sigh when your wife’s soft tones calmed your irritated mood. Soft hands gently kneaded at the tense muscles in your shoulders, forcing them to relax as a tired moan escaped your lips. Leaning back, you peer into her shining sapphire eyes, locks of brunette framing your face as she took the sides of your cheeks in her hands and leaned down, softly pecking your lips with her own. You couldn’t help humming a smile against her mouth, reaching up to deepen the kiss, but she pulled away before you could.

“Scaaaaar…” you pout, looking up at her mischievous smirk as she winked playfully.

“(Y/N)...” Scarlett sighed, swinging her legs over your body to sink into your lap, one thumb now caressing one of the most prominent features on your face. A nasty, jagged scar ran down from the the top of your forehead, over your right eye and finishing just past your jaw bone. One (E/C) iris lighter than the other as a result of the old wound. Soft lips chase away the shadows of your past as Scarlett replaced her thumb with her mouth.

“(Y/N), I don’t want to find you dead in some alleyway because you picked a fight you couldn’t win,” a finger poked your chest as she huffed above you, feigning irritation. You roll your eyes, (E/C) landing on your gear now strung across the table. That raven helmet almost calling to you as you shook your head. Disagreeing with your wife was never a good idea, but you were feeling particularly bold this evening.

“Look. So many jobs have opened up recently. We have so many opportunities to make this life more comfortable. More jobs means more money, more money means we can afford the gate toll and actually see the world above ground. And I can finally buy you an actual ring.”. Technically, you two weren’t married. Who the fuck would be stupid enough to perform marriage ceremonies in the underground City? But, it was easier than saying you were devoted to each other in every single way.

Lightly smacking your chest, Scarlett raised herself from your lap with a hefty sigh. “One of these days (Y/N), you’re going to be captured or killed,” she said quietly, unable to meet your eyes. “And then what the hell will I do…?” Scarlett had now completely turned away from you, shoulders hunched. Running a hand down your face, you pick your sore body up from the chair, reaching her in a matter of strides.

“I can’t give this up, Scar. You know that. You knew that when you chose to be with me. You knew The Nest was always going to be my priority,” you held out your arm, hand hovering over her back, not sure whether to comfort her or let her go. The admission almost had her in tears, you could tell by the way her shoulders shook ever so gently.

“You still miss him don’t you?” It was her vulnerable, defeated tone that alerted you to the slight change of topic.

You fell silent, not really knowing how to respond. Yes, of course you missed him. You loved him more than anything. But those days are over, you knew that. You’d cried enough those following nights after his disappearance.

He was probably dead anyway.

“Of course I do,” you wouldn’t lie to her. That wasn’t fair. But you knew the truth was just as painful for her.

“Will I ever be enough? Will I ever be enough to replace him?” the sound of her voice had your heart in pieces. You loved Scarlett. You really did. But your heart wouldn’t let you love her wholly. Part of yourself will always be dedicated to that grumpy kid you’d fallen for all those years ago.

“Scar… I—”

“I know,” she whispered, stepping forward away from your outstretched grasp. “I know,” you watched as the woman you loved, and who loved you, stepped from your shared quarters, hovering in the doorway. “I’m sorry I asked,” she closed the door as she left, leaving you a frustrated, conflicted mess.

⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈⎈

“Understood, I’ll bring them in right away. Thank you Niles,” The Commander of the MPs stood opposite Erwin, arms folded. An expression of irritation plastered on his sunken features. Erwin simply sighed, realising Niles was wanting to stay for this seemingly impromptu meeting. With a nod of his head, a cadet rushed off to find the two soldiers mentioned in their little conversation. Being Commander of the Scouts often had its perks, like having cadets around to run errands for him.

Niles cleared his throat, taking a seat on the green leather sofa within Erwin’s office. “You sure he’d help us? I mean, it wasn’t too long ago he actually decided killing you was probably a bad idea.”—he raised a thin brow, peering at Erwin with barely concealed suspicion—“I’m pretty sure the Underground City would be the last place he’d want to return.” a knock at the door cut their conversation short, both turning their heads as Erwin called;

“Enter.”

Hange was the first to make her presence known, poking her head in as she opened the door. A smile adorned the slightly dishevelled section commander, her hair sticking up in all directions. Clearly she had been in the middle of something when Erwin requested her presence.

“You asked to see us, Erwin?” her eyes sparkling with curiosity behind her glasses as she stepped through the door.

“Tch, just make it quick, I have shit to do,” the monotone voice of Levi behind her made Erwin pinch the bridge of his nose. How many times has he told him not to talk to him like that?

“Yes, come in and make yourselves comfortable.” Hange immediately took up a seat next to Niles on the sofa, Levi preferring to stand against the now closed door, arms folded. Erwin’s sharp eyes shifted to Niles, an indication for the MP Commander to speak.

“Well, no point in beating around the bush. We’ve received an anonymous tip about some criminal gang that’s been plaguing my soldiers in the Underground City.” Levi visibly stiffened at the mention of his old home. His jaw tensed in anticipation. There would be only one reason he would be called into such a discussion, and the answer was a firm no.

Without his permission, his mind flashed back to a (H/C) girl, her face etched with that ever mischievous smirk. He quelled the thoughts as quickly as he could. He needed his wits with him, and allowing his mind to wander back to what he’d left behind wouldn’t help anything. Besides, the likelihood of you being alive was close to none.

“Section Commander, I don’t suppose you would have heard of the group but Captain Levi here surely would have done. The Nest.” Niles continued, now eyeing Levi to gage his reaction. And for a man whose emotions were usually on a tight leash, this seemed to be what cracked his impenetrable walls. His eyes flew wide open, frantically searching between Niles and Erwin. They couldn’t be serious. The Nest? That was where Farlan and Isobel used to—

Shit, he really needed to keep his thoughts at bay. But what he did know was that The Nest was an impenetrable fortress of criminal activity. Trying to mess with them was suicide.

“Judging by your reaction, I’m going to assume you are familiar with them, Levi,” Erwin’s surprisingly calm tone eased the growing tension in the room. Taking a subtle breath to calm himself, Levi’s eyes narrowed to his commander.

“Yeah. I know of it. Why?” it was a rhetorical question, he already knew why, but he wanted to hear it from Erwin himself. Hange looked incredibly confused, looking between the men in the office, trying to glean something, anything, about what the hell was going on.

“The Nest? Why are they so bad?” she asked, not afraid to show how completely oblivious she is to anything that doesn’t concern titans or science. Erwin gestured to Levi.

“Levi? Care to explain? You probably know more than myself and Niles combined,” though his voice seemed kind, there was a slight edge to his deep tones. One that didn’t go unnoticed by Levi.

A heavy silence filled the room as the Captain wracked his brain for all the information he could think of regarding the organisation. It seemed like hours before he finally spoke.

“Well, you got one thing right. The Nest is a criminal organisation. A nasty one at that. Merciless bastards. Whether you’re a soldier or a citizen, they don’t give a shit. They’ll leave you a broken, bloodied mess in the street. I don’t know much about their leader. Only that he took over from the previous one around ten-ish years ago. Since then, they’ve expanded their shitty little gang and taken over an entire section of the city,” he explained, poison lacing his tone. It wasn’t that he was above the whole gang thing, oh no. It was more the state Farlan would be in before he left to meet whoever the fuck led that group of demons. He’d never seen his friend so anxious. So afraid.

“You never met him? Their leader?” Erwin inquired, lacing his hands together on the desk in front of him. Levi scoffed, rolling his eyes.

“If I had, I would tell you. But I know he’s smart. And not the good kind of smart. The kind of smart where he would always be ten steps ahead of you. He has a small group of trusted criminals surrounding him at all times, called his Shadows. They’ll be the ones to look out for,” Despite his voice sounding bored, Levi’s heart was racing. They couldn’t seriously be thinking of facing The Nest, could they? But something in the expressions of both Niles and Erwin told him he was wrong. Dead wrong.

“They’ve been picking off my soldiers. Always in the same places as well. I was going to leave it, just tell them to avoid certain areas until this tip. Their next job. We know what it is,” Niles interjected, looking down to the floor, his own mind a whirlwind.

“And you want to intercept them. The same way you did with me, right?” Levi finished through gritted teeth. This was absurd. There was no way they could pick them all off. Unless… that wasn’t the goal. Levi’s grey eyes widened slightly, realising what they wanted to do. Yep, this was total suicide. Hange clapped her hands together almost excitedly, as if she was also able to read Erwin’s mind.

“You want to capture him! The leader! Ah! This all makes so much sense now, I was starting to wonder why I was here,” the scientist mused almost to herself, before jumping to her feet. “This is the perfect opportunity to test some of the concept traps I have in mind. Obviously for titans they’d need to be much, MUCH bigger. And of course a few modifications would have to be made so they could adapt to size and body type but oooooooh this is so exciting! I’ll start right away!'' Without allowing anybody to get a word in edgeways, Hange dashed back to her lab to begin her preparations.

“Thank you Erwin, the Military Police will remember this,” Niles said, before he too was rising from his seat. Throwing Levi an unsure glance, he made his way towards the door, only to be shoved into the hallway by Levi, who promptly closed the door behind him.

“Don’t.” he simply said, turning back to Erwin who was peering at him, his expression puzzled. Levi rolled his eyes again, clearly having to clarify what he meant. “Don’t pursue them. It’s suicide,” The Commander’s expression relaxed slightly in understanding.

“We don’t have a choice, Levi. Not only are hundreds of MPs being slaughtered down there, but relationships between the Scouts and the MPs are strenuous at best. It would be in our best interests to—“

“Bullshit.”

Erwin sighed again, having to hold his tongue. Snapping at Levi now for his language would only rile up the man more.

“Levi, we already have a plan in motion. There are soldiers down there now meeting whoever gave us that anonymous tip to further discuss the job The Nest has taken. It’ll be fine, but you’re going to have to trust me.” Erwin’s eyes bore into Levi’s own, the man once again asking his Captain to trust him in a risky call he’s made. Levi’s done it so many times before, why was it so difficult now?

It took yet another pregnant silence before Levi eventually yielded.

“Fine, but don’t be surprised when we’re once again forced to retreat with our tails between our legs.” it was a savage comment, but one that Erwin didn’t take to heart as he watched the raven haired man leave. Yes, this was a risk, but all his risks so far had worked out fairly well. There was no reason why this one would fail. No reason at all.

Levi leant against the door to Erwin’s office, looking down the hallway before letting loose a long breath. Not only would he have to go toe to toe with The Raven, but he also had to face so much of his past he’d wanted to forget. Fuck, this was a terrible idea. Why did Erwin always have to gamble? It was exhausting for everyone else involved.

Folding his arms, the shorter man strode back to his own office, lost in thought the entire way. Would he see you again? Were you even alive? Did you know just how much he had missed you. Just how much he’d wanted to see you again. To hold you again.

Did you know he’d looked for you? How his heart shattered over and over again each time he found no trace of you. He’d never accepted you were gone. Always holding onto that thorn of hope that maybe, just maybe, you’d survived.

Collapsing in his chair behind his desk, Levi unlocked the bottom draw and gently pulled it out. He delicately picked out a small, ebony bird feather you’d crafted into a quill pen. Even though neither of you knew how to write, you knew back then how much he had wanted to learn despite never voicing it directly. All those nights spent copying out basic letters from discarded newspapers and wanted posters. You always had this way of reading his mind.

The smallest fond smile crept across his usually bored face. God he missed you. It had been years and he still missed you like he only lost you yesterday.

[i-need-entertainment]

Haikyuu!! Boys getting stuck places and having to ask you for help

Characters: Akaashi, Washio, Konoha, Kita, Suna, Ushijima, Yahaba, Iwaizumi, Futakuchi, Daishou, Numai and Iizuna

**Today has been pretty bad, but my sister, @foodacoochie gave me this idea and it made me giggle and inspired🥺🥺 thanks dude💙**

Warnings: Drugs in Washio’s but they’re for a surgery and being used responsibly and for pain, just the boys getting stuck and not being able to get out of places/things lol

Akaashi Keiji:

Akaashi had been over at your house, you guys were ‘chilling’ and what not, just wasting the Saturday away.

Your family had recently done some renovations on your house, and one of those renovations was changing all of the door nobs.

Your mom had called you downstairs to come talk to your grandmother on the phone.

You knew that you’d be on the phone for a while, so you told Akaashi to do whatever until you got back. You had been gone for 5 minutes when Akaashi needed to use the bathroom.

Luckily, you had one connected to your room!

He walked in the door, shutting it behind him before he froze at the small ‘click’ he heard.

Whipping around he immediately tried the door nob, only to groan when he realized it was locked.

From the outside.

You see, you had insisted on putting the door nob on yourself, but when you did so, you had managed to put the lock on the wrong side of the door.

And when you showed him what you did, he could distinctly remember you locking the *then open* door.

So as soon as he shut it, it locked.

He sighed as he shook his head. He had also distinctly remembered you telling him it would be at the very least 30 minutes before your grandmother would let you go, so he was going to be here awhile.

He did his business then sat on the edge of the bathtub, sitting and waiting until you came back upstairs.

When you came back up to your bedroom, you were surprised to not see Akaashi sitting on your bed where you had left him. 

You softly called his name before hearing him sigh and a defeated sounding ‘in here’ from your bathroom.

You raised an eyebrow before trying the door nob, slapping a hand over your mouth when you realized you had locked the door.

Unable to hold in your giggles, you unlocked the door, almost snorting at the deadpan look your boyfriend gave you.

Washio Tatsuki: 

**he may seem out of character, but it’s because he just got his wisdom teeth out, and as someone who has recently had that done, I know that for some people their personalities do a 180 switch**

Washio had just had his wisdom teeth removed.

At first his mom was going to take him home, but she had to go into work, so you offered to take care of him and take him home from his surgery.

When they walked Washio out into the waiting room, you hurriedly walked over to him, because as soon as the nurses let him go, he started to go down. Giggling when you struggled to hold him up.

Now, keep in mind, Washio is a big guy. He’s 6′2 with a broad build and lots of muscle, so he’s not exactly light.

Seeing as he had just had a major surgery, he was very doped up on drugs, and seeing Washio drugged up was nothing short of hilarious.

He was very clingy and very giggly, laughing at anything he found remotely amusing. A night and day difference from his usually calm and stoic demeanor. 

After you somehow managed to get him in the car, you began to drive him back to his house.

You got to his house and pulled into the drive way.

Before you could help him out of the car, you had to make sure he had a clear path to the couch where he would be sitting.

You had left the keys in the ignition and the air conditioning on because it was a hot day, and let’s face it, he wasn’t going anywhere.

Walking back out to the car you went to open his door, only for the handle not to budge.

Your brows furrowed as you tried to open it, looking to the inside of the door only to see all of the doors locked.

...uh oh..

You knocked on the glass, gaining the attention of a very drowsy looking Washio who just lazily waved when he saw you.

You, who had no way to actually get to him, started frantically pointing to the unlock button, him looking at you like you had grown 3 heads.

He finally tried the door handle, only to find it didn’t open.

You could faintly make out the words ‘i’m stuck’, when he realized he was ‘stuck in the car’.

You watched as he grew more and more frustrated with the door not opening.

You were pointing to the unlock button, him then pressing every button except for the unlock button.

Thankfully, he pressed the window button, rolling it down so you could reach your hand in and unlock the door, finally being able to help him inside.

Konoha Akinori:

Not everyone knows this about your boyfriend, but he is very competitive.

He just so happens to have a younger sister, who is also very competitive.

On this particular day you had been over at his house, his sister had been in the living room with you guys when a movie about dancing or whatever came on.

Konoha jokingly scoffed when the ballerina did the splits, stating that “I could do that” while you rolled your eyes, but his sister laughed, “Yeah okay boomer.” 

Glaring Konoha turned towards his sister, who simply narrowed her eyes back at him, “What was that?” She stood her ground, you nervously watching from the sidelines.

“Boomer, and I stand by it. You have the flexibility of an 80 year old man.” He narrowed his eyes at her before he laughed, standing up and walking to the middle of the floor.

Without any warning he, albeit slowly, fell into the splits, cringing when he got like 5 inches away, entire body shaking.

“s-see?” His sister was laughing as he stayed there, high pitched sounds of pain escaping him.

He, finding himself unable to stand or move for that matter, continued to suffer, heavily contemplating every decision he had ever made.

“y/N, hELp”

Kita Shinsuke:

Kita was very responsible, so you never had to worry about him getting himself into silly situations he couldn’t get himself out of.

But, everyone has their moments.

You and Kita were spending the day with his grandmother!

You guys had gone through old photo books, and made some desserts, now she wanted to teach you and Kita how to finger knit!

It seemed easy enough, and in no time you had gotten the hang of it and were on your way.

Kita however, was having a little more trouble.

He had gotten how to wrap it around his fingers and how to pull it but...

Somewhere along with way, he messed up.

And he messed up bad.

He didn’t really know how it happened, but before he was aware of it his fingers were caught in a tangled web of yarn, somehow he managed to knot both of his hands together, eye brows furrowed as he looked down to his hands.

You held in your laughter when you saw him, hopelessly caught in strings, as he tried to figure out how to get out of them.

It took 20 minutes and both you and granny to release him from his self-made prison.

He stuck to a different activity after that.

Suna Rintaro:

You had a big project coming up, but your boyfriend did not, and wanted to hang out with you.

You, who also wanted to hang out with him, let him as long as he let you work.

He promised he would cause no such distraction and be like a fly on the wall.

That doesn’t mean you believed him, but it was nice he made an effort.

Anyway, after just under an hour he got bored just scrolling through instagram.

So, he got up from his position on your bed and sauntered over to your vanity where he sat.

You didn’t pay him much mind, he was 16 so it’s not like you had to babysit him.

Er- you shouldn’t have to babysit him.

Fiddling around with the things on your desk, he stumbled across the small dish you kept your rings in.

There was one ring in particular that really stuck out to him.

It had a silver band and a dark blue gem, it was really pretty. He remembered you saying you didn’t wear it often, but he couldn’t remember why so he just shrugged and slipped it on his left middle finger.

He had been holding his hand up, looking at it, cause it really was a pretty ring.

All was fine, all was nice, until he tried to remove the ring. Then, some problems were presented.

The most prevalent of those problems being the ring was stuck, like really stuck.

And the second being he remembered why you didn’t wear the ring a lot, it was a size too small, for you.

So it was much too small for him.

Claiming defeat he called your name, defeatedly holding up his hand, and cringing as you called his name.

Ushijima Wakatoshi:

The team had finished practice and were fooling around in the locker room, making stupid bets and doing stupid things

Underestimating just how competitive (and curious) their captain was, Tendo and Yamagata bet 25 dollars Ushijima couldn’t get into a locker, Kawanishi and Shirabu each bet 35 dollars saying he could, and Reon bet 45 saying he would get stuck.

Being genuinely curious what would happen, and being heavily encouraged by his teammates, Semi found an empty locker, rigging it open before ushering the ace in.

It was quite small, and not a comfortable experience at all, but he was also never one to turn down a challenge.

So after some major manipulation and hitting his head, he got fully into the locker.

Tendo and Yamagata forked over their 25 dollars, imploring Reon to do the same before Reon shook his head.

“Let’s see if he can get out before I pay my money.”

All eyes were back on the ace, whose eye brows were furrowed in...concern.

He was stuck.

Bad.

Not wanting to face the wrath of the demon coach, they called the next best candidate to deal with this kind of situation, Ushijima’s girlfriend, you.

Your jaw dropped when Semi told you that your boyfriend was stuck in a locker because...hOw?!?!

Reon made a lot of money that day~

Yahaba Shigeru:

He had been over at your house and the two of you were taking a nap in your bed.

You had both since woken up, and were now on your phones.

You, still very sleepy, weren’t paying attention and before you or Yahaba could stop it your phone had slipped down the crack between your bed and the wall.

You groaned as you dragged your hand down your face, Yahaba, being the wonderful boyfriend he is, offered to get it for you.

He laid on his side as you used his phone to shine the flashlight down the side of your bed.

He stuck his arm down, but it was just barely too short.

Without realizing it he had slipped to the very small edge of the bed, inevitably slipping off only to be caught between the wall and your bed.

He groaned as he felt like he had been stuck to a wooden plank, unable to move any parts of his body.

You felt terrible, seeing as he had offered to get your phone for you and had proceeded to get himself stuck.

You grabbed his arm and shifted yourself to the opposite side of your bed, and after lots of tugging and sounds of pain from your boyfriend, you were able to roll him back onto the bed.

You rolled your eyes with a smile as he waved your phone in the air, a dorky smile on his lips as he had, despite being put in a very uncomfortable situation, managed to get your phone.

Iwaizumi Hajime:

Hanamaki had bought this bag of ‘tricks’ from the dollar store, for fun and what not.

One of the things that had been in there was a Chinese finger trap.

He brought a few of the things into his bag, hoping to trick at least one of the members.

But most of all he wanted to trick Iwaizumi, if nothing else he thought it would be funny.

So, when the Seijoh 3rd years met for lunch in the club room, and you, Iwiazumi’s girlfriend had of course joined them, he decided then was the perfect time to try.

“Yo, Iwaizumi! C’mere!” Iwaizumi, recognizing the teasing tone in Hanamaki’s voice, was instantly on guard, expecting something crazy to be suggested.

“What?” Hanamaki smiled, pulling the finger trap out of his bag, Iwaizumi looked at it, raising an eyebrow at the wing spiker.

“I heard no one has ever been able to put two fingers in this at the same time without getting trapped.” Iwaizumi rolled his eyes, grabbing the trap from Hanamaki and mindlessly stuck on finger in each end of the trap.

Just a few seconds prior, you had looked over Hanamaki’s shoulder, recognizing the trap, but before you could warn your dear boyfriend, he had already stuck his fingers in the trap, and pulled it, tight.

“Hajime...do you know what that is?” He shook his head, eyebrows furrowing when he tried to pull his fingers out, only to have the trap get tighter. 

“Hajime, it’s a Chinese finger trap!!” Iwaizumi’s eyes widened before he turned his head to glare at Hanamaki, curses ready on his tongue as Hanamaki and Matsukawa just about died of laughter, Kunimi snickering in the background.

It took 4 people and approximately 7 minutes to free him from the trap.

Futakuchi Kenji: **in tribute to my dear sister who locked herself out of her bathroom today🥰**

You and Futakuchi had gone to the beach with your family for the weekend, and the two of you were relaxing on the beach.

The beach had these lounge chairs, the ones that fold?

Well, you and Futakuchi were getting everything set up, he had just finished setting up the umbrella and you had laid out a large towel and set the bags down.

You guys both sat down and enjoyed the warm sun, and relaxed to the sound of the waves crashing on the shore.

About an hour later, Futakuchi decided he wanted a drink, and after asking what you wanted he left on his way.

Unknown to him, these chairs were really tricky.

They were good chairs and really comfortable, but you had to be careful how you sat in them.

After about 10 minutes he returned with the drinks, setting them down on the small cooler.

He went to sit on the lounge chair, expect that he more like flopped onto it, and before he could react the thing had snapped in two, you sitting up after hearing your boyfriend yelp.

You turned your head to see your boyfriend, squished in half by the lounge chair, with no signs of being freed.

After recruiting the help of your dad and a few kind passerby's, you were eventually able to free him of the lounge chair...

but that was after you took a picture and sent it to Aone.

Daishou Suguru:

You and Daishou had been on a date, nothing too fancy, just strolling around the city and what not.

You were just talking about random things when your eye spotted an empty park nearby.

You smirked as you nodded towards it, dragging your boyfriend towards it, you knew he couldn’t resist you if he tried.

You two were just fooling around, him chasing you around and you evading him like you both were 5 and it was ‘boys vs girls’ tag.

You had ran away from him when you spotted the set of toddler swings, y’know, those ones with the leg holes?

Yeah, those ones~

Anyway, you decided not to get in one because ✨danger✨

But your boyfriend took that as a challenge.

Without warning he grabbed the chains and jumped, sliding his legs through the very small holes and sinking into the seat.

You slapped his arm as you laughed, hand on your hip as you judgmentally looked at him.

“You’re gonna get stuck, there’s no way you’re getting out of that by yourself.”

He rolled his eyes, smirk still present on his face as he started to slowly swing back and forth.

You shook your head, shifting your weight to one leg as your arms crossed in front of your chest.

“Okay then, now try to get out.”

He rolled his eyes at your tone, grabbing the chains as he tried to pull himself up.

Only to bring the seat with him.

Your eyes widened as it set in, his smirk disappearing and his own eyes widening when he realized it as well.

He was stuck.

And at that moment, some of the Nekoma boys volleyball team members just happened to be passing by.

Kuroo’s laugh rang throughout the park as you desperately tried to free your boyfriend.

Numai Kazuma:

You and Numai were hanging out at your house, it was Halloween night and you guys were just gonna chill out and watch some movies and eat candy.

But before that, you guys were going to take your younger brother out trick or treating!

Your little brother decided he wanted to be a cowboy, and his outfit came with a pair of plastic handcuffs.

You were helping your little brother get his costume on while Numai messed around with the handcuffs.

He had latched one side onto the table leg, mindlessly scrolling through his phone as he fiddled with the cuffs.

He doesn’t know what came over him, but without thinking he latched the empty side of the handcuffs onto his wrist, tightly onto his wrist.

He didn’t think much of it, until it sunk in.

Had he really just done that??

You were fixing your brother’s costume when you heard your boyfriend call your name.

“Uh, Y/n?” You hummed, continuing to work on his costume.

“Where’s the key to the handcuffs?” 

“Oh, they got thrown away with the package, that’s why I set them..over...there..Kazuma.”

You turned around to see him nervously smiling while his hand was indeed handcuffed to the coffee table.

You blanched as you remembered the trash had already been taken out, so they key was gone.

Glaring at your boyfriend you sighed, shaking your head before you started to laugh, hiding your mouth as you continued to laugh at his misfortune.

Eventually you did help him.

It took 3 tries and 4 different tools, but with the help of your dad you were able to get his wrist free of the handcuffs.

Iizuna Tsukasa:

Iizuna has 2 sisters.

1 older sister, and 1 younger sister (ayyyee middle children let’s go-)

You just so happened to be very good friends with your boyfriends sisters, and you guys often had a lot of fun together~

One of the wats you guys had fun was messing with your boyfriend.

Todays scheme: Dress Tsukasa up as a girl. Simply because you could.

And seeing as he lost a bet to you the other day, he couldn’t refuse it.

Luckily, his older sister had a dress she accidentally ordered in a size too big, it would still be snug on him, but it would do the job.

His older sister did his make up, you worked on his outfit as the youngest fixed his hair, him sitting through the whole ordeal trying not to take away too much trauma from it.

Leaving the room so he could change, you all patiently waited as he got changed into the dress, laughing at the pained noises he made as he slipped on the dress and shoes.

You couldn’t help the laugh that burst out of you as your boyfriend stumbled out of the room, heels way too small and dress uncomfortably tight.

You all snapped the pictures you needed and he sacrificed what was left of his dignity.

Waving off you three, he hobbled back into his room, kicking off the heels and attempting to pull the dress over his head.

I say attempting because as he tried to move his arms to grab it he made a very disturbing realization.

He couldn’t grab the hem of the dress...

he couldn’t even reach behind him.

He was stuck.

And the only ‘help’ he had was his sisters and his girlfriend. 

[themaribatpit]

Saturday Challenge: Continue a Fic You Wrote for Jasonette July

Written by: The Maribat Pit  @jasonette-july-event Prompt: Continue a fic you wrote for Jasonette July Rated: M (for violence and strong language)

Then Perish : Part 2

Marinette tossed the helmet aside, she glanced over at the desk and grabbed a letter opener.  She tried to take several swipes at him, all of which he evaded with ease before grabbing her by the wrist.  Marinette tried to drop the letter opener into her other hand but he caught it before she did.  “Nice try, mind telling me why you’re so desperate to kill me?” he asked, Marinette could just about hear him smirking under the mask.  Up close, she noticed that, in addition to his dark hair,  there was a white streak of hair framing his face.  His eyes were still covered by the domino mask as they looked down at her.  “You killed my parents,” she growled. “So is that what this is all about…tell me, what makes you so sure that I did it?” he asked. “I saw you, I saw people begging for their lives just before you killed them.” she recalled, “I saw you standing over their dead bodies.” He pushed her back with very little effort, but before she could charge at him again, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun.  He tossed it to her and she caught it, the cold metal felt heavy in her small hands. “If you are so certain that I’m the one who did it,” he said, “then let the punishment fit the crime.” Marinette looked down at the gun in her hands, she knew exactly what he was asking her to do.  She took aim with the gun, her hands shook as she pointed it at the Red Hood. Her eyes were wide, her hands were shaking, she tried to steel herself.  She tried to ignore the voice in her head telling her that something wasn’t right.  It couldn’t be this easy, there had to be a catch, a struggle, something.  She brought her other hand to the gun, trying to hold it steady. She hoped he couldn’t hear her heart hammering in her chest, she tried not to think about how frightened or nervous she was at that moment.  Meanwhile the Red Hood remained calm, beckoning her to shoot him. “Come on I’m right, here, need me to draw a bullseye?” he taunted. Marinette squeezed her eyes shut and pulled the trigger, she heard a loud BANG, followed by silence.  She slowly cracked open an eye to see her target. “You missed.” Red Hood remarked. Marinette tried to make another shot, but the gun went CLICK, it was empty.  She looked down at the empty gun in her hand, before glaring up at the Red Hood. 

“Look kid, you’re after the wrong guy. I’m not the one who killed your parents.” he explained.

Marinette eyed him suspiciously “More lies.” she scoffed as she glared at him.

“Fine, but the camera doesn't lie,” he walked over to the laptop on his desk and pushed a button. A projector screen appeared and began playing footage from a camera during that fateful shootout. Red Hood continued typing away, until he found the right camera to see the events unfold. “There, camera 5.” he finished typing and turned to watch the footage with her. 

Marinette stared at the footage, her eyes widening in shock. She saw their final moments and it made her heart ache. She watched them go looking for her while she was helping other people as Ladybug. She wondered if she had left those people to die in Park Row, would her parents still be alive and well? She watched her parents run into some mobster with a gun, he tried to mug them. Her father tried using his large size to threaten the mobster, but he had a gun and her father didn't. Tom Dupain was then shot in the head, Sabine held his dead body begging for the mobster to spare her. 

Upon hearing her mother’s cries of mercy, Marinette dropped the gun and fell to her knees.  Her hands were balled into fists, trying to latch onto the carpeted floor beneath her.  There were tears dripping down to her cheeks and clouding her vision. Even so, she could not bring herself to look away, she had to know who this man was. The man then shot Sabine in the head. He ran away, just as the Red Hood showed up on camera to inspect the unfortunate couple who walked past Park Row. 

Marinette wailed as the video footage ended, “No more, please no more,” she cried. “<Mom, Dad, I’m so sorry.>” she cried to herself in French. 

Jason watched the girl cry her heart out after watching her parents get murdered. He couldn’t blame her, no one could. He sat on his desk, as she continued crying. He brought up zoomed camera footage and a mugshot up on screen. Once he was done he stepped in front of her.

The Red Hood standing right in front of Marinette was enough to stop her from crying, she looked up. “You want the man who killed your parents?” he asked. Marinette could only nod. “Luca Angelo, known associate of the Falcone Crime Family.” he stepped aside and pointed to the mugshot. “Last spotted in the Falcone Slaughterhouse.” 

“You want him? We’ll go together at sunrise.” he told her. Marinette stood up and nodded, wiping her tears on her sleeve. “All right Suzie’ll bring you back to your room, they’ll pick you up again later.” Marinette then left the room, escorted by Suzie Su.  

Jason looked over at his window viewing the Gotham Skyline. “I know you’re there Batman, come on in, it's unlocked.” Batman emerged from the shadows. 

"Isn't she the French girl that was in GCPD a few weeks ago?" Asked Batman, staring straight at Jason.

"Yup" said Red Hood, "Sent back to Paris, if I remember correctly. Came back to Gotham thinking I was the one to kill her parents." Red Hood shrugged and sat on his chair, feet resting on his desk.

“She could have killed you.” Batman pointed out. “It’s nice to know you care, Bruce.” Jason said sarcastically, “You saw what happened there, she couldn’t even get a scratch on me.” he explained. “Not without her powers anyway,” he thought.  “She could have killed me...just like how I could have killed the Penguin.” Jason told him.  Batman sighed, remembering how Jason explained that the Penguin didn’t really die the night that he shot him.  One of these days, Jason was going to give him a heart attack with all the elaborate stunts that he pulled. 

"Why are you two going to the Falcone Slaughterhouse?" Batman asked, as Jason poured himself a drink. 

"Closure." Jason told him,  "You and Dick should know how important closure is when you lose your parents." 

"Luca Angelo is dead." Batman stated, "That gang war was unsanctioned by the Falcones, they killed him to appease you and the Maronis."

"You're right, but she'll need to learn that herself.” Jason nodded in agreement, taking a sip of his drink.  “At that moment she’ll have to make a choice, whether or not she wants to find peace or let her vengeance spiral out of control?” “That’s quite a risk to take,” Batman pointed out, “what makes you so sure she won’t choose the latter?”  His eyes fell on the helmet that lay discarded on the floor. “Call it a calculated risk,” he said “sometimes you just have to give people a chance.”  Batman narrowed his eyes, Jason looked back at him over the rim of his glass as he took another sip.

"Fine," Batman relented. "but I'll be there to watch you two." “Say hi to Yo-Yo Girl for me, next time you see her.” Jason said nonchalantly, “She was a huge help getting people to safety that night.” “Yo-Yo Girl?” Batman asked, Jason looked up and cocked an eyebrow. “Sorry, thought she was one of yours,” he said, before finishing the last of his drink.  Batman decided not to ask anything more about it, before he crept back into the shadows and vanished. That morning, Marinette opened the Miracle box and took out Tikki’s earrings.  Tikki gave her a sad look, “Are you sure about this, Marinette?” she asked in a soft voice. “I saw the man who really killed my parents,” Marinette told her, “if I let him walk free, all this would have been for nothing.”  Tikki sighed but had no choice but to comply.  “Spots on” she said, she transformed into Ladybug, ready to face the real culprit. When she stepped out onto the rooftop, Red Hood was waiting for her.  He turned to see the Yo-Yo Girl who was getting civilians to safety that night, it explained how she managed to avoid meeting her parents’ fate that night.  Still, this should be interesting. “So you got a name or is it really just ‘Yo-Yo Girl’?” he asked. “Ladybug,” she told him, “let's get this over with.” she said.  Red Hood grappled away and Ladybug followed with a very creative use of her yo-yo.  

Later, Red Hood and Ladybug snuck into Falcone Slaughterhouse.  The pungent smell of blood gave Ladybug the sinking feeling that livestock wasn’t the only meat that was cut up here.  They quietly knocked out the guards as they made their way in. Red Hood pointed to the door with a sign above the said "Foreman". He then kicked the door down, and they quickly subdued the two guards in the room.

"What the fuck?!" cried the foreman as Ladybug ran up and bashed his head with an ashtray.

She wrapped the string of her yo-yo around the foreman's neck. "Where is Luca Angelo?!" she yelled.

"Rat-faced Luca? Motherfucker's already minced meat by now!" the foreman laughed.

"W-what?" Ladybug stuttered, “No, you’re lying!” she yelled.  This had to be a trick, he was probably hiding somewhere, relishing in the memory of making her parents feel helpless.  She would not be so easily defeated.

"Are ya deaf? He's dead." The foreman drew a gun from his pocket and pointed it at Ladybug. A shuriken then hit the gun, knocking it away from his hand.

Ladybug tightened her grip on the wire. As she was strangling the man her hands shook as rage consumed her. The man gasped and struggled for air, but she held it tight. “Please” he croaked, “have mercy.” 

“Why should I show you any? My parents were shown none!” Ladybug growled, baring her teeth. She pulled the string tighter, as if she was garroting the man. She pictured how her parents had suffered, her mother’s cries for mercy echoed in her mind. 

“Please...I..have..a..daughter.” The foreman barely managed to speak, he tried to paw at the wire with his hands but it wouldn’t budge.  Ladybug paused, she looked at her reflection in the window. She had seen what she had become. 

Shame and guilt filled her as the man became limp. She let go of her yo-yo, and released the man.  She brought her hands to her mouth as she stumbled back in fear and guilt. What would Tikki, Alya and her parents feel if they knew she had blood on her hands? Her breathing became more rapid as panic set in. 

Red Hood calmly walked over, placed two fingers on his neck. “He ain’t dead.” he commented. Ladybug ran, tears streaking down her cheeks. Red Hood didn’t follow, he knew she needed time alone to think. He hoped what she saw was enough to give her closure. He tried to be optimistic that Ladybug would not walk the path of vengeance, but he wasn’t known for his optimism.  Roy would have known what to say to her, but thinking of Roy at all made his heart sink. 

Ladybug ran, she had no clue where she was or where she was going, she just needed to be alone. She didn’t know how long or how far she had traveled, she just found a secluded rooftop. “Spots off” she muttered, Tikki didn’t say a word as she looked up at her.  They sat on the edge of the roof, watching Gotham at night. They both sat in absolute silence, as Marinette came to terms with the tempest of thoughts, guilt and anger that stirred in her mind.  She wondered if she could bring herself to use the Ladybug Miraculous again? If she could trust herself not to lash out at innocent people? A part of her began to question if she was even fit to be Guardian of the Miraculous?

“I almost killed an innocent man,” Marinette croaked, tears welled up in her eyes. “I don't know what to do Tikki, the man who killed Maman and Papa is already dead. It still hurts.” she cried harder. 

Tikkie floated in front of Marinette’s face. Marinette didn’t even try to look at her through the sheen of tears in her eyes, “Marinette, I know, everyone needs time to grieve and move on.” Tikki told her, trying her best to comfort her.

“How, how can I move on? What should I do now? Go to Shanghai and live there?”  Marinette asked.

“Maybe I can help,” came a voice from behind. Tikki zoomed straight to Marinette’s pocket and hid in there. The figure walked up to her and took a seat beside her on the edge of the roof. 

The man wore a leather jacket, looked like he was a few years older than her, and he held a takeaway bag with him. She was about to ask who he was until she recognised that distinctive white streak of hair. Her eyes widened as he handed her the bag. 

“Go on, dig in,” he said, pushing the bag towards her. She apprehensively took the bag from him until the scent of freshly baked bread hit her nose. “I had a friend make those for you, he’s an amazing chef and baker.” he told her, “Don’t eat his waffles though, they taste like paste.”

Marinette gave a small chuckle at his joke, “Thank you” she quietly said. She opened and tearfully ate the baked goods. They were just as good as her father’s baking. 

“There’s not much left for you in Paris, and I know you don’t want to go to Shanghai. Why don’t you stay here in Gotham?” He asked. 

Marinette paused to think, she had no plans on what to do after she had her revenge. She had just spiraled into obsession. He was right, she had nothing left in Paris, and Shanghai would be a struggle to start all over. 

“I know you’re underage, why don’t I be your Guardian until you’re 18?” He suggested, “Then you can swing away and do whatever you want.”  Jason thought she could do a lot worse for a Guardian, besides, Batman and Catwoman weren’t the only ones who were allowed to take orphans under their wing.  

Marinette stayed quiet, thinking of her options. It was either Shanghai or Gotham. After a few minutes of contemplation, she nodded her head. 

“Name’s Jason, Jason Todd.” He held out his hand. 

Marinette shook his hand, “Marinette Dupain-Cheng, but I guess you already knew that.” 

“You don't have to call me ‘Daddy’ unless you want to,” Jason Joked. Marinette wrinkled her nose and playfully shoved him away. For the first time since her parents died, she actually smiled. “I’m already a Guardian myself” she said, “but I always wanted an older brother.” “I have one, trust me it’s not all it’s cracked up to be,” he said. They sat in silence for a long moment, “so what’s the story with you and Ladybug?” he asked. “I helped one old guy across the street, and he decided that was a good enough reason to make me a superhero.” she explained, “I had to fight against a villain who was using people’s negative emotions to control them.” “Well, good thing he hasn’t found his way here, plenty of those going around in a city like this.” he said, trying to make her feel better. “How about you?” she asked, “Were you always this big bad crime lord?” She said the last part as if it was merely a facade or the stuff of legend.  “My dad was sent to jail when I was a kid, my mom didn’t last that long after that,” he told her, “so I spent a few years living on the streets of Gotham.” “Was it always like this?” she asked, her childhood in Paris was already looking rosier by comparison. “Gotham? Almost certainly.” Jason told her, “When I was 13, I thought I’d be joining my old man in prison sooner or later, before I met the Bat himself.”  Marinette’s eyes widened, she remembered hearing Alya gush about Batman and his various sidekicks over the years.  “I thought he’d just beat me up for trying to steal the wheels off of the Batmobile, instead he gave me a hot meal and a place to call home.” he told her.  “You’re looking at the second Robin,” he said. Judging by the sad smile he had on his face, Marinette could tell this story didn’t have a happy ending.  “So, what happened?” she asked cautiously, he took a deep breath as he tried to find the words.  On the one hand, the last thing he wanted, the last thing anyone needed, was this girl making the same stupid mistakes that he did.  On the other hand, she had been through enough, it would have to be a story for another time. “That’s a story for another day,” he decided “but I promise you, one day I’ll tell it.” Marinette looked down at the city streets before her, it was a far cry from Paris, but maybe one day she would come to see it as home. Batman watched the two of them from a distance and smiled slightly.  Maybe this girl would keep Jason from going too far down the treacherous path he was on, much like Tim had done all those years ago after he lost Jason.  Only time will tell if that proved to be true, but for now he was pleased to see the two of them getting along.  He grappled away, leaving the two of them to talk, laugh and joke with each other.

[fanimesenseiwrites]

So here it is, the thing that I've been working on for so long that I haven't posted anything else, My magnum opus of fanfiction. I had to write it all at once or I knew I would never finish it lol.

Warning: This fic is quite angsty. There's some sex in later chapters and a little violence and I will tag those chapters as necessary, but mostly there's just a lot of crying and emotions and being dumb.

Kidnapped to Hell (pt. 1)

Lucifer shot up in bed, startled awake by the sound of Hoshiko screaming for him and for his help.

He looked around his room frantically, certain that their scream had come from right inside his room. Upon finding no one else present, he poked his head out into the hall to see if anyone else was awake. It was then that he finally gathered his thoughts enough to remember that Hoshiko wasn't even supposed to be in the Devildom at the moment.

He sighed and shook his head as he climbed back into bed, suspecting that he had just had a nightmare. He looked at his DDD, sighing again when he saw that it was nearly a quarter until 5 in the morning. He sent Hoshiko a quick text message: - Thinking of you. I love you.- before putting it down and trying to go back to sleep.

While he had rested, he never fully fell back asleep by the time he had to get up to get ready for school.

Lucifer checked his DDD again and while he was not terribly surprised to find that Hoshiko had not responded to him yet, there was a feeling of unease that he was unable to shake.

Lucifer left for RAD that morning without bothering to eat breakfast before hand, the feeling of unease leaving him without an appetite.

He constantly checked his phone for a reply from Hoshiko throughout the day, to the point that even Diavolo was curious about what he was looking at.

The demon prince snatched Lucifer's phone from him while they were having lunch together.

"Hey! Give that back," Lucifer accosted.

"What are you looking at?" Diavolo asked, totally ignoring Lucifer's demand.

Lucifer sighed. "I texted Hoshiko this morning and they haven't responded yet."

Diavolo looked at the time stamp on Lucifer's text. "Why did you text Hoshiko at... 4:44 in the morning?"

"Because I was thinking about them at that time."

Diavolo gave him a disapproving look. "Why were you awake at that time?"

"I had just woken up... I thought I had heard Hoshiko scream, it must've just been the residual of a nightmare though."

Diavolo frowned.

"I just wanted to check on Hoshiko without making it too obvious." Lucifer admitted, unable to look Diavolo in the eye.

Diavolo hummed thoughtfully and handed Lucifer his DDD.

Lucifer took it and slipped it back into his pocket.

Diavolo crossed his arms. "Are you worried about Hoshiko?"

Lucifer sighed and looked away from Diavolo. "I understand that I may be overreacting, but I just can't help it when I don't know exactly where Hoshiko is or what they're doing."

Diavolo shook his head. "You're all antsy today."

"All? Who do you mean by all?" Lucifer looked back at Diavolo.

"You and all of your brothers. I've seen most of them this morning and they all seemed out of sorts; none of them were acting like their usual selves."

Lucifer frowned. "That's not good."

"It's not, and I'm actually worried too."

"About my brothers or Hoshiko?" Lucifer asked for clarification.

"Well, both. But I meant Hoshiko. You see, I've got this..." He sighed and motioned to his chest with his hand, struggling to find the right words. "... Feeling. I woke up this morning and I thought Hoshiko had come down here..."

Lucifer paled. "Do you mean-?"

"Oh no, not like that," Diavolo assured. "But when Hoshiko and Solomon arrive, I know even before I'm told. I know when the angels come and go too. It's just part of being the crown prince."

Lucifer nodded. "I forget all the things you can do sometimes."

Diavolo nodded. "I just thought that Hoshiko had come to visit us but you've confirmed to me that they're still up in the mortal realm, as far as we know at least."

"So, what? Do you suspect that Solomon and Hoshiko have snuck down here and are plotting something?"

Diavolo shook his head. "I don't sense Solomon's presence, and Hoshiko isn't the scheming type."

Lucifer rolled his eyes. "As far as you know."

Diavolo chuckled. "Anyway... I can't say for sure, but I have an uneasy feeling. I wonder if your nightmare was an omen of sorts."

Lucifer pressed his fingertips to his chin and furrowed his brow in thought. "Who could we talk to that would know about omens and dreams?"

"Your brother," Diavolo answered plainly.

"Satan?" He asked, barely hiding a grimace.

"Yes. There's no one who's as well read as he is, and he has some of the best grades in the entire school."

"Yes, I'm aware. However, it's still a habit to him to not fully cooperate with me."

"I'm sure his tune will change if we tell him it has to do with Hoshiko," Diavolo assured him.

Lucifer nodded with a sigh. "I don't want to tell him that we're worried about Hoshiko... but you're right, it may be the only sure way to get him to cooperate with me."

Diavolo nodded. "Let's go find him then."

They both left Diavolo's RAD office and went to the dining hall in search of the middle brother.

Satan was sitting at a corner table with a book in his hand as he ate.

Diavolo and Lucifer made a beeline for his table as soon as they spotted him.

Lucifer sat down right in front of Satan. "Hello, Satan."

Diavolo sat down next to Lucifer.

Satan sighed and sat up straight. "What do you want?"

"What do you know about omens and dreams?" Lucifer cut straight to the point.

Satan raised an eyebrow. "Dreams? Like, by way of divination?"

"Yes, I suppose."

"Well, it's not exactly a reliable source of divination. Most people don't even know a dream they've had has foretold the future until said future has already happened."

Lucifer nodded. "Well what about omens?"

Satan narrowed his eyes, now suspicious. "Why are you asking me about this?"

Lucifer glanced at Diavolo.

Diavolo motioned for him to continue.

Lucifer sighed and looked back at Satan. When he spoke again in was in a hushed tone.

"I believe I had a nightmare, but all I remember is Hoshiko screaming my name."

Satan's expression was akin to a grimace, but still conveyed a feeling of concern. Satan matched his volume to Lucifer's. "And they sounded scared?"

"They sounded terrified, they were calling to me for help. And it sounded so clear, I thought Hoshiko was actually in my room this morning."

Satan frowned. "What if Hoshiko was actually trying to contact you?"

Lucifer tilted his head slightly. "Pardon?"

"There's an old spell that allows the user to communicate with an intended target via telepathy. It's not used much anymore because of the rise of technology though."

Lucifer frowned at the thought of Hoshiko trying to contact him and only being able to scream. "Does Hoshiko even know that spell?"

"You know there's only one person besides Hoshiko who knows the answer to that question," Satan told him smugly.

Lucifer pursed his lips, suddenly annoyed. "I suppose I'll go call Solomon then."

"You can use my office for privacy," Diavolo offered.

Lucifer looked at him and nodded. "Thank you." He stood up.

Satan and Diavolo stood up as well.

Lucifer headed back to Diavolo's office and Satan and Diavolo followed him.

Lucifer looked back at them. "Are you two going to follow me and listen in on my phone conversation?"

"It is my duty as crown prince to know about everything that transpires in my kingdom," Diavolo told him diplomatically.

"Your concerns now have me concerned about Hoshiko," Satan told him.

"Right..." Lucifer responded to them, not fully believing their intentions to be that pure.

They all went back to Diavolo's office where Lucifer called Solomon, much to his chagrin.

Solomon answered cheerfully. "To what do I owe this pleasure, Lucifer?"

"Hello Solomon," Lucifer greeted politely. "I was hoping for some information about Hoshiko's magical studies."

"Hmm, that depends on your exact question," Solomon answered cryptically.

Lucifer rolled his eyes. "Right. Well I know of a spell that allows the user to speak with another telepathically. I was just wondering if Hoshiko had been taught that spell."

"Ah, yes. I have taught them that. I thought it could be useful in case of emergencies. Why do you ask?"

"I believe that Hoshiko may have tried to contact me in that fashion early this morning."

Solomon immediately dropped his cheerful demeanor, and took on a far more serious tone. "What did they say?"

"Nothing specific I'm afraid; they called my name and were asking for help. It woke me from my sleep."

"I see." Then Solomon hung up.

Lucifer looked at his DDD when the line went dead and scowled. "Well that was barely helpful..."

"What?" Diavolo asked.

"He hung up on me," Lucifer told him.

"But does Hoshiko know that spell?" Satan asked Lucifer.

Lucifer nodded. "Solomon told me that he taught it to Hoshiko in case of emergencies."

Satan nodded. "So now we just need to figure out where Hoshiko is."

"I think Solomon would be the best person to assist with that task," Diavolo commented.

"Then why did he just hang up on me?" Lucifer asked, clearly annoyed.

"Perhaps he went to go check on Hoshiko himself," Diavolo suggested.

"It would be nice to know if he was," Lucifer huffed.

Diavolo opened his mouth to say something else but stopped, pursed his lips and looked toward the door.

Then Barbatos and Solomon both entered the office.

"That was quick," Diavolo told Solomon.

Solomon only nodded in response and then looked to Barbatos.

Diavolo looked at Barbatos as well, suddenly noticing how shaken he looked.

"Barbatos, what's wrong?" Diavolo asked, voice laced with empathy. He couldn't recall the last time he had seen Barbatos appear any way besides calm and collected.

Satan and Lucifer turned their attention to Barbatos as well, finally noticing what Diavolo had noticed.

Barbatos took a deep breath, willing himself to stay calm. "I apologize, my lords," he started, addressing all three of the demons present. "I just recently had the thought to check and see where Hoshiko was- is," he corrected himself. He looked Diavolo straight in the eyes. "Hoshiko is down here in the Devildom..."

"I knew it-" Diavolo interrupted, but Barbatos was quick to interrupt him in return.

"Diavolo," Barbatos spoke with urgency.

Diavolo was stunned silent, as far as he could remember, Barbatos hadn't called him by his first name since he was a young boy, and even those moments had been rare.

"Hoshiko was kidnapped and taken down to the eight circles," Barbatos told them all solemnly.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, shocked but otherwise unsure of how to react.

Diavolo crossed his arms and breathed deeply in a manner that commanded attention, and he got it from everyone in the room.

"Barbatos and I will travel to the eight circles to find and retrieve Hoshiko." He looked at Solomon. "While we are gone I want you to prepare every potion, salve, and tincture you know of that can heal physical wounds."

Solomon nodded. "I can do that. Where may I work?"

"You may work in the House of Lamentation, we generally keep supplies to create such potions," Lucifer told him.

"That will work," Diavolo approved. "Hoshiko will probably be most comfortable there anyways."

Lucifer nodded in agreement.

Diavolo looked at Satan. "You want to come with Barbatos and I, dont you?"

Satan nodded quickly, anxiety fueling his actions. "Yes, I do."

"You may go if, and only if, you can keep your temper in check. We are going there to retrieve Hoshiko, they are the priority."

"I understand. I can focus on that."

"Be sure that you do, I will not hesitate to send you back if you lose your cool," Diavolo warned.

Satan only nodded, understanding that the gravity of the situation didn't allow for any argument or mistakes.

Diavolo looked at Lucifer, an apologetic look suddenly painted his face.

Lucifer looked at him and frowned. "You don't want me to go," he said, seemingly having read Diavolo's mind.

Diavolo shook his head. "I need you to prepare your brothers for how Hoshiko may return and to keep them from following after us. They're too reckless to allow them all to go down there when Hoshiko is involved."

Lucifer nodded. "I understand completely, I will do that."

Diavolo gripped Lucifer's shoulder. "Thank you. I greatly appreciate it."

Lucifer nodded.

Diavolo looked at Barbatos and Satan. "Alright, let's get going."

"Ah, wait!" Solomon asked as he pulled off his cloak.

Everyone looked at him.

Solomon closed his eyes and whispered an enchantment into the folds of his cloak, then looked at Barbatos and handed it off to him. "When you find Hoshiko, wrap them in this. It might not help much to shield their psyche from... down there, but it should help."

Barbatos nodded as he took the cloak. "Thank you."

"Thank you, Solomon," Diavolo told him. He looked at Satan and Barbatos again. "Let's go."

They nodded and left with Diavolo.

Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18

[aressss1]

Through Fire and Ice Chapter 5

(Technoblade x Reader)

Chapter 5

< Prev Chapter | Next Chapter >

~~~~~~

Dream felt you shift into him, his arms tightened around you to keep you steady. The two of you were almost to the mines. Spirit was running through the snow like a champ. When it was just starting to snow again, he sighed in annoyance. George and Sapnap were going to have a hell of a time getting back. He just hoped Techno wouldn’t cause too much trouble… ‘Should’ve just left him. He wanted to be alone anyway.’ Dream thought to himself rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.

 He looked down at the patch job he did on your shoulder, pleased that it still was holding, even if it was bloody. You were going to need a real doctor soon, between that and your sickness, you really weren’t doing well. You were hot to the touch and it was worrying.

It had taken around two hours, but he could see the community village everyone lived in or nearby. It was surreal seeing it without life. Everyone had been evacuated underground. He even saw his old home; it was weird to think that his home wasn’t his anymore. So many memories happened behind those walls.

“Dream!” A voice called from the community mineshaft. A hooded shadowy figure waved cheerfully. Dream smiled at BadBoyHalo from behind the mask, happy to see him. Bad was carrying supplies and he was struggling to keep them in his arms when he waved to Dream. His tail swishing back and forth. Dream steered Spirit up to the mine. “Who’s that? And where’s George and Sapnap?” Bad’s eyes flicked from you to the surrounding area, looking for Dream’s team.

 “Bad, I’m going to need help, with her.” Dream carefully jumped down from the horse, keeping you in his arms. “The others are fine, but she is sick and injured.” Bad’s tail swish in curiosity. His eyes flicked to the bloody mess that was your shoulder. “Please tell me we have health potions.”

 “We might…” Bad looked up in thought. “But the amount of injured people we have, might have used up all the glistering melons we had… The food situation isn’t any better…” Bad looked back to Dream, as he grabbed ahold of Spirits reigns.

 “Once Phil gets here, we can start production.” Dream started pushing past Bad into the mine. It was a long way down, but he had been through these mines many times. He was just thankful the mine had been widened so Bad could follow with Spirit.

 “I don’t know if the doctor will help her right away…” Bad peered over Dreams shoulder at you.

 “Why’s that?” Dream asked his arms tightening around your frame.

 “He’s… not the nicest doctor around.” Bad hesitated. “He has a huge room full of patients, I think it’s wearing him thin.”

 “Is he from our village?” Dream was trying to think of who it could be.

 “No, he’s not. But he’s all we have.” Bad sighed. Dream could hear the exhaustion in Bad’s voice.

 “We will see what happens.” Dream shrugged. It didn’t take long for him to reach the end of the staircase and it led to a short hallway, with an iron door at the end of it. He could hear an immense amount of activity on the other side of the door.

 “Are you ready?” Bad asked with a tint of excitement. Dream slightly nodded his eyes trained on the door. There used to be a small room on the other side of that door. But with the amount of activity, he was hearing, he didn’t think it was that small anymore. When The iron door was just in front of him, Bad reached around and pulled the lever for Dream.

 Through the door… A man-made cavern lied in wait for them. Dream felt his eyes widen at the sight of it. People had carved out holes into the sides of the walls, working on where their houses were going to be. People on the ground floor were rebuilding shops and other buildings. The ceiling of the cavern was covered in clusters of glowstone.

 “Med bay is this way.” Bad pulled at Dreams sleeve and led him to their destination, Spirit still in hand. There were still parts being worked on in the cavern, but Dream watched the activity around him. A tree farm was being built, the huge hole was already carved out and Tubbo was seen placing around bee houses near the trees. Awesamdude was placing down grass, while showing a reluctant Tommy how to farm. None of them paid Dream any mind and they kept working on their project. Bad pointed out something ahead of them.

 “We can keep Spirit here.” Bad said cheerfully. He was pointing at a nicely half-built stable. Where other horses were being kept. Dream nodded and Bad handed the horse off to a nice enough woman manning the stables. Dream promised the horse he would be back, receiving a nudge from Spirits nose. Spirit did well in the last two days, he was proud of that horse.

“Bad… This is amazing,” Dream couldn’t stop staring. The glowstone from above shimmered and cast a nice warm glow on everything. The best part about all this though… Was it wasn’t cold. It was a little humid, but it was going to work out.

 “I don’t think anyone slept,” Bad beamed, “I’m glad you like it, because this is going to be our new home! Might as well make the best of it.” It wasn’t long, before Bad stopped in front of a blank cave wall with nothing but a wooden door leading into it. “This is it. I hope he helps your friend out quickly. I gotta go find Skeppy.” Bad, with his arms still full of supplies, gave Dream a half wave before he walked back the way they had come.

 Dream had kicked at the door, trying to simulate a knocking sound. A few seconds had gone by and a woman had answered the door. It was Nihachu. She had looked tired. She hadn’t got a wink of sleep it seemed. Her eyes scanned over you and she brought her hand up to her mouth.

 “Oh no!” She held the door open for Dream to come through. The inside was just as plain as the outside and Dream bit his cheek looking at the long line of other patients. Niki followed his gaze, and she had anticipated what he was going to say next. She had heard it from all the others before him, but he had to try.

 “She’s in really bad shape, Niki.” Dream stated, almost pleading.

 “It-” Niki was tripping over her words. “We have others in bad spots…” The look she gave Dream was apologetic. “It’s not my call, Dream…”

 “She’s sick and injured,” Dream swallowed dryly. “She needs medical attention now.” Niki opened her mouth to say something, but she was cut off completely by a voice behind her. The owner of the voice had just walked into the room.

 “If she’s sick, leave. I will not have her contaminating my other patients and worsening their lives more.” The voice came from an older man with a rather large nose. “We run on a first come first serve basis here. You can’t just expect to jump ahead of these people.” He motioned to the people in the waiting room. Dream supposed he was right… but having a closer look at the people waiting in the room, they had only suffered minor injuries. You had a hole in your shoulder…

 “I don’t give a fuck,” Dream spat stepping toward the doctor in an almost menacing way. “This woman was stabbed, and you think a swollen ankle trumps that?” Dream motioned to someone who had a swollen ankle resting up above their heart.

 “Listen.” The doctor hissed, his eyes narrowing at Dream. “No, I do not think that a swollen ankle is more important than a stab wound… That’s preposterous. What I do think is… That she could make the people who have bad wounds worse. They do not need to get sick. We don’t have the resources for illness here.” The doctor turned away from Dream, this made Dreams blood boil. “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. And that girl in her condition will die anyway. I can’t waste resources on someone who I think will die.” With that he turned to Niki. “Miss Nihachu, please escort this man out.” And with that he was gone, walking into the backroom where the groans of the wounded were.

 Niki hesitantly stepped up and Dream stepped away from her. If his mask wasn’t on, she could’ve been able to see the daggers he was glaring at her. She bit her lip and turned, walking to a bag left on the ground. She fished around it and when she found a pouch that she was looking for, she stood and handed it to Dream. Dream felt the stares of all the other people in the room boring into his back.

 “I-I’m going to have to ask you to please leave…” She didn’t want to say it, but she had to, and he knew it. Taking the pouch, he gives her one last look, wishing she had taken his side. “Dream… I wouldn’t stand for this if others didn’t need my help. Find my bakery, Its one of the spruce buildings by the entrance. The key is in there.” She whispered, pointing at the pouch. “She can use my bed in the back, and you can use what I have left in that pouch.” Niki gave him a sad look. “Good luck.” Her eyes flicked to your wound. The bloody material needed changing.

 Dream huffed, retracing his steps, his legs moving on a new sense of urgency. If the doctor could take one look at you and think you were on the brink of death… Then he had to hurry. He couldn’t bring himself to just easily give up on you or anyone else. He wanted to help lead these people and how could he lead the people if he couldn’t save even one?

 When the plain square building, that was still under construction, entered his vision, he breathed a sigh of relief. The sign from Niki’s old bakery leaning against the wall next to the heavy spruce door. At least it had walls and a roof. When he walked up to the door, he kneeled, setting you briefly onto the ground. He opened the pouch and fished out a key. The pouch seemed to be a mini first aid kit. A small vial of health potion sat in the pouch along with bandages sutures gauze, and some hydrogen peroxide. Taking the vial in hand he examined it. He didn’t think it was enough to close a wound like yours, but it could help. He quickly unlocks the bakery and promptly gets you inside.

 There was no furniture in the main room, but he remembered Niki said something about the bed in the back room, he wouldn’t bloody her bed… So, he opted to clean your wound on the floor. The inside of the bakery was bare bones, the walls didn’t have any insulation yet and the floors were still stone. ‘This would do for now.’ Dream thought to himself while carrying you to the middle of the room, a lantern hung just above his head. Lying you down on the stone floor, he lit the lantern, and carefully sat down next to your body. He inched himself closer to you and brought your head to rest on his leg. Peeling back the sloppy patchwork and cringing when some of it stuck to your skin. He took his mask off to get a good look at the wound.

 “Shit.” He hissed through his teeth. It looked as though an infection was starting to set in. Taking some of the gauze he soaks it in the hydrogen peroxide, dabbing at the skin around the wound cleaning it. The peroxide bubbled on contact. He cleaned your wound as best as he could and waited for the peroxide to dry. He then took the healing potion into his hand, uncorking the small vial. This amount would have been great for small wounds but not for some thing as big as this.

 He pours the vial of health potion into your wound, careful not to spill it. Just as expected, it only heals a tiny bit of the wound. Any progress was progress. He bit the inside of his cheek, his eyes skimming over the sutures still resting in the pouch. That was when he felt you stir below him. His eyes meet yours and he felt his breath catch in his throat. He felt a blush creep up on his cheeks, and it never occurred to him that you might wake up in the middle of him tending to you, especially at the worst part to come.

 ~~

 Your eyes fluttered open to a dark room, and you were thrown for a loop between the pain in your shoulder and the dizziness. The only thing grounding you was the persons leg your head was resting on. When you finally had focused in, your eyes met a pair of green ones. A halo of light circled around his head and you reached up, your fingers caressing his face. You were questioning if you were alive at this point. He slightly leaned his face into your touch, and you felt your heart flutter.

 “Is this real?” Your voice was hoarse, your throat ached, and your lungs burned. His hand came up and around yours, tenderly holding it.

 “Do I feel real to you?” His fingers interlaced with yours and he gave your hand a squeeze. You gave a nod pretending that you didn’t feel the blush that spread on your cheeks. Hearing him chuckle he lets go of your hand. “I’m Dream, what’s your name?”

 Your throat burned as you uttered your name to him, trying to clear your airway, “Where’s Techno?” You asked your eyes searching around the barren room for him. An irritated look crossed over Dreams features at the mention of Techno, for a split second, though you had missed the look altogether.

 “Not sure…” He said leaning down over your shoulder, “He’s on his way here, but knowing him he’s not going to stay anyway. He’s not the best person to be around anyway.” You were surprised by his words. He seemed fine to you… When you gave him a questioning look, he sighed, and he showed you his neck. You had to sit up a bit to see it fully. On the back of his neck, was a scar, just under his hairline on his neck.

 “O-Oh.” You bit your lip, you quickly set your head on his leg again, your body needed to rest and you sitting up was taking a toll on you, even if it was just for a second.

 “Techno,” Dream began, as he inspected your shoulder, “isn’t to be trusted. I nearly lost my head to him. He can’t control himself, and I would hate to see you getting hurt because you don’t know what he’s capable of.” Dream withdrew a suture. You weren’t sure that he was talking about the same man… He seemed very caring, it seemed like he had a hard time showing it sometimes. He even had his tender moments when you two had shared the bed for warmth. You had woken up many times during that night and when you would move, his arms would instinctively pull you closer even though he was asleep. Is that why he moved away from other people? Because this was what others thought of him?

 “I-,” you hesitated, “I’ll be careful, I promise.” Your eyes flicked up to Dreams again. He gave you a soft smile and brushed some hair from your face.

 “Do what you want, I won’t stop you. But if you need my help… Come find me, and I’ll be there.” He spoke the last words earnestly. You would remember that. After a few moments of silence, he changed the topic to your shoulder. “This is going to hurt… Badly.” He warned. You gave a nod and swallowed back your fear.

 “Let’s just get this over with…” You eye the suture in his hand. He gives you a nod.

 “Don’t worry… I’ll take care of you.” His words echoed in your head. The next few minutes were filled with excruciating pain.

 --

 Techno rode in the back of the caravan with Philza. Phil was on his back trying to get some sleep, his hat covering his face, and Techno let his eyes wander over the sling Phil had his arm in. He felt horrible, he had lost control… Again… And in the heat of the moment, he would have killed Philza. Guilt riddled his thoughts.

 “Mate.” Phil said, “I told you, you can’t blame yourself for this…” He sighed. “I’m just happy you’re alive.” Techno was silent. “You can’t let it eat at you, and I can feel your self-loathing from here.” He could hear the smile in Phil’s voice. Techno inwardly sighed, ‘If only it were that easy Phil…’ He shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. The silence that followed rolled into minutes.

 “So…” Phil started as he peeked out from under his hat at Techno. “You found a girl?” Phil let out a laugh as Techno looked away sheepishly. “I approve, but you’re going to have to teach her how to defend herself better.” Phil joked.

 “We’re just friends, Phil.” Techno said in a huff.

 “For now,” Phil repositioned the hat back over his face again. “I still have to apologize to her.” Phil simply said, “Maybe we can work off of that.” Techno looked over at Phil with irritation. He just wanted the subject dropped.

 When there was nothing, but silence coupled together with light snores from Philza, Techno sighed and lied down himself. His eyes staring up at the fabric of the caravan. He wanted to take you to Nihachu’s bakery and find out your favorite foods. He would help you build your house. He wanted to be there as a familiar face, as a… friend.

 ‘She’ll leave, once she figures out what you are.’

 ‘She’s going to betray you.’ The voices rang clear through his mind. He was so exhausted; he couldn’t even push the voices away in his mind. He wanted to give you a chance, and he would do just that. He felt his eyes become heavy, and before he knew it, he had drifted away into the land of sleep.

[sodasback]

The Kegger - For You Series

JJ Maybank x Allie Routledge (John B’s younger sister)

 Allie was sitting on a log next to some tourist, a good looking guy, who was obviously not in high school. JJ turned to look at them when Allie let out an exaggerated giggle at something dumb the tourist said and then he watched while the stupid touron’s hand started to move from it’s spot on her knee and up her bare thigh. JJ didn’t know it but he was crushing his beer can and clenched his jaw so loud that Pope and Kie noticed. 

“WOW! You are so jealous!” Kie said teasingly to JJ. 

“What?” JJ said pulled from his trance of imagining breaking the nose of the touron that had his hands on Allie. “Pfft! No! She’s like my little sister! I’m just being protective.” JJ defended. 

“Really? ‘Cause her actual brother barely cares.” Pope nodded towards John B. talking to some friends at the keg, completely not concerned with Allison and the guy flirting with her. 

“Please J, we all know you’ve always had a thing for Allie.” Kie said. 

“I do not! It’s Allie. I’d never do that to John B.” JJ said reminding himself more than trying to convince Pope and Kie.

“So if she wasn’t John B.’s little sister, you’d admit you’re in love with her?” 

JJ glared at the two of them before groaning. “I’m not talking to you guys anymore. I’m not in love with Allie!” He emphasized as he walked away. 

Pope and Kie smiled at each other, “So he’s totally head over heels for her right?” Pope asked.

“Oh 1000%” Kie agreed.

Allie saw JJ approach and shot him a glare knowing he was about to interrupt her and try to cock block this tourist, but he didn’t even glance at her, just squeezed in between Allie and the tourist on the log. 

“Dude, what the fuck?” the tourist asked, obviously pissed off at the interruption. 

“Oh. hey man! Sorry, didn’t see you there.” JJ said sarcastically, putting his arm around Allie’s shoulders, “did I interrupt you hitting on my 17 year old baby sister? ...yeah, dude, I know she’s a minor, so I feel like-” 

“This is your brother?” The tourist interrupted. 

“No! He’s not.” Allie said sharply, looking at JJ and pushing his muscly arm off of her, “He’s just jealous, but trying to pretend he’s being protective instead.”

JJ looked at her and smirked as he drank from his solo cup, obviously proud of himself and amused as the tourist looked confused and then sighed, fed up with the drama this was turning into. “Whatever” he said walking away.

“What the fuck JJ?!” Allie yelled at him as she stood up to face him still seated on the log. 

“Ya know, I feel like people are always saying that to me!” he chuckled sarcastically, but Allison was not amused, “What Allie?! Are you seriously mad at me for saving you from a hugely disappointing 5 minutes that doesn’t end with you in an orgasm?” He raised his eyebrows as he sipped his beer again. 

She just gaped at his bold statement. 

“And you know what Allie? I’m not jealous! You’re like my litter sister!” he scoffed. And JJ didn’t miss the flash of disappointment cross Allie’s face, which she failed to hide fast enough. 

He cocked his head to the side while the grin on his face grew. “Wait a damn minute! Was that disappointment I just saw? You want me to be jealous, don’t you?” He asked standing up and getting excited while Allie crossed her arms and put on her best poker face. “You want me to look at you as something other than a little sister, don’t you?!” he teased further as he looked down at her, trying to break her. 

“I don’t know JJ, do guys practically break their necks trying to check out their ‘little sister’s’ ass in a bikini?” she asked indignantly, using air quotes. 

“I never-” JJ smiled and shook his head, but she interrupted and leaned in next to his ear, “Or get hard watching me eat a popsicle?” 

And she saw JJ’s jaw drop a little and she pulled away from him, “Yeah. I knew you were watching me dumbass ...you really think that’s how I would normally eat a popsicle?”

JJ just closed his mouth and rolled his lips into each other knowing he lost this battle. “Later ...bro” Allie said walking away from him.

...

Allie continued to get a little drunk, because even though she was annoyed at JJ for cock-blocking her with the tourist, the fact that JJ might be jealous gave her all kinds of satisfaction, which only reminded her that she liked JJ way more than her brother’s best friend. And she had a feeling JJ knew this too, and yet, there he was along with John B entertaining a whole group of girls. JJ caught Allie scowling at him and he just gave her a smirk and a wink before going back to making his new-found groupies giggle. Allie rolled her eyes and downed another screwdriver. Then she had an idea. As immature and petty as it was, she decided 2 could play at this game. 

Allie grabbed the bag of cut-up limes, the tequila and the salt. She stood on top of the one giant wooden table someone had built and left down here at Boneyard party years ago. "Who wants to do body shots?!" She yelled. Immediately, a dozen boys and some eager girls surrounded the table. She didn't even look over to see if JJ had heard. Allie helped a girl lay on the table and after a guy licked some salt off her stomach, took a shot of some tequila and then took the lime out of her mouth.

"Hey, when is it your turn?" one of the hot tourists asked Allie. She smiled and hopped up on the table to lay down.

What Allie didn't see was John B and JJ exchanging admonishing glances. JJ shook his head and walked over to the table indicating he would handle it.

"Allie, what are you doing?" JJ asked, annoyed as he reached the table. She sat up leaning back on her elbows and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why do you care JJ? You jealous?" She cruelly teased with an edge to her voice. JJ just glared at her, before looking away and shaking his head yet again at her antics, "Or you just don't want your 'little sister' acting like a whore?" she asked taking off her tank top and throwing it at him, before she poured salt in the cleavage revealed by her bikini top.

The tourist slightly pushed JJ out of the way as he bent down to lick it off her, but JJ shoved him hard before he could touch Allie. Then JJ grabbed Allie's arm and pulled her off the table. "Come on!" He said dragging her through the party.

Allie chuckled darkly as she struggled to keep up, "This whole jealous toxic masculinity doesn't look good on you, just fyi." But JJ ignored her, pulling her to a secluded area. Allie had to admit though, this was her plan all along and even though it definitely was not a healthy way to get JJ’s attention, she couldn’t lie and say she wasn’t actually super turned on by what was happening.

"What JJ?! What?! You came in like the bad big brother and pulled me away! Now what?"

"What is wrong with you Allie?! Letting random guys do body shots off of you?! You were about to let that guy lick your tits?! What the fuck?! You think that's cool to get wasted and let guys just take advantage of you?"

"First of all, I'm not fucking wasted! Secondly, they aren't taking advantage if I'm consenting to it dumbass. And three, it's frickin harmless! It's not like I'm fucking random tourists every weekend!" She threw at him.

JJ stared at her angrily with a furrow in his brow for a minute. "Yeah?! What was that earlier tonight then, huh?! Were you not gonna go home with that fucking touron if I hadn't interrupted?"

"Okay, so my one time versus your dozens of girls?!" She threw her hands out as they continued yelling at each other.

"Why do you think I do that Allie?! Huh?! Why do you think I hookup with random girls?"

She looked at him confused. "What the fuck, JJ?" she muttered, "Because you're a fucking horny teenage fuckboy? How am I supposed to know?!"

"You ever think it's because I can’t be with the girl I want to be with ...because she’s my best friend’s little sister? And everyone on this island knows I’m no good for her?! So yeah, I sleep with random girls, smoke all day, get in fights and just, in general, be a fuck up, because I might as well live up to everyone’s expectations of me, right? ...If I can’t have the one girl I’ve been in love with since we were kids, then what’s the point of trying to be better?” He finished, shrugging and staring at her, furrow in his brow still present.

Allie stayed quiet for a second, as the tension in her face relaxed at the realization that JJ was actually admitting feelings for her and then returning as she heard what JJ thought of himself.

“Whatever, just forget it okay?” He muttered and started to walk past her. 

“JJ, wait!” She called after him.

He stopped, but didn’t turn around yet, just let out a sigh, “What Allie?” He asked tiredly and started to turn around. Allie walked up to him and crashed her lips on his. No softness or gentleness about it, just 11 years of pining after one another sparking a fire that ignited when their lips touched. JJ’s arms instantly around Allie’s waist, pulling her as close as possible. Her hands on his cheek and neck, fingers snaking through his hair. 

They pulled apart, breathing heavy, foreheads pressed together. “I’ve been in love with you for as long as I can remember JJ Maybank.” She whispered. He searched her face for a second making sure this was real before kissing her again. 

As much as Allie never wanted to stop kissing JJ, she also had something important to tell him, so she pulled away and held his face in her hands. “You might think you’re a fuck-up. But I think you’re charming and ...and fucking electric and insanely smart and fiercely loyal. You are the most amazing guy with the biggest heart and if you ever talk that way about my JJ again, I’ll have to kick your ass.”

“Oh, I’m your JJ now, huh?” he smirked.

“Damn straight ...always have been.” She smirked back before kissing again.

Taglist: @abbyj1822 @october-cameron @moonrisebeach @hernameisnoell @moniamaybank @railmerafe @phantompogues @jeyramarie @gabiatthedisco @baby-cakes-98 @lemur46 @lexieee304 @jjpogueprincess @imjustanothernerd 

[invisibleanonymousmonsters]

Non-Sequential [Ch. 29]

Pairing: Pre-Serum Steve Rogers/Steve Rogers x Reader

One night, Steve Rogers met a beautiful dame named Y/N. He hadn’t intended on letting her get away. But fate had other ideas. Y/N appeared and disappeared in his life so hauntingly that Steve started to wonder if she was an angel meant to watch over him.

Word Count: 2,500

Chapter 28

The next 5 years simultaneously felt like they were moving too fast and too slowly.

Steve wondered if there would be limited visits from Y/N or if this was the rest of his life: just holding onto the past and praying that the next time she would stay for good.

But he knew that would never happen.

She would always leave.

Steve felt like he had returned to his teenage years when Y/N had first started visiting him. But watching her go now hurt a 100 times worse than back then. During that time, he hadn’t acknowledged that he loved her. He didn’t know what it was like to fully have her. 

What he would give to regain that naivety. He didn’t know how much longer he could handle such torture.

When Y/N did visit the present, Steve tried to seize it as much as he could. He tried to act normal, wait for Y/N to ask the questions so he could figure out what she knew and what she didn’t. By some miracle, she always knew about the snap.

Steve felt lucky, he wouldn’t know how to handle her naivety to how she would die. Nat always told him he was a terrible liar. He could only assume lying to the woman he loved would be even worse.

Steve was sitting at his window, staring out at Brooklyn. There was a steaming cup of coffee in his hand and he was waiting for it to cool down. The sun had just rose past the horizon. Most of the city was still sleeping. He started to enjoy watching it slowly wake up. It was one of the very few joys he found these days.

“Steve?” Her voice whispered from behind him.

He jumped at the sound, shooting to his feet and turning around.

In the process, he spilled some of the coffee on his hand and bare feet.

He hissed at the burn.

“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry!” Y/N rushed forward.

Steve was both so surprised to see her and feel the boiling liquid on his skin that he didn’t realize Y/N was still completely naked.

“I’m fine. It’s OK.” He tried to tell her, only looking into her eyes.

One time Sam asked about the binding nudity that came with Y/N’s time traveling. He asked about it in a way that wasn’t really a question, but like he clearly wanted Steve to comment on it.

“Just so we’re clear, you’re asking what I think about my girlfriend being forced to be naked when she’s also forced to time travel at any given moment to a place she doesn’t know? Did I get that right?” He’d said it with the classic Steve Rogers sass.

But Sam got the point and never brought it up again.

Y/N’s nudity wasn’t something sexualized by Steve. He’d grown used to it. He assumed most people saw their naked wives and girlfriends, and only linked it to sex. But all it did for Steve was remind him of Y/N’s vulnerability.

Her skin was unprotected from the elements. That’s why she had almost frozen to death during the first time she ever traveled.

Her skin attracted unwanted attention. Steve would never forget when Y/N appeared at his military camp, standing innocently in front of an army that hadn’t felt a woman’s touch or seen a female body in months. He didn’t like to think what could’ve happened if Bucky hadn’t been there to look out for her.

Her skin reminded Steve that even though she didn’t don a uniform, there was still something about her that forced her to be different from the world – just like him.

Now her skin told Steve that she was much younger. 

There was no scar from getting shot during the Battle at the Triskelion, a scar on her abdomen from the medical team at the compound digging out a bullet. Then there were the scars that should’ve been scattered across her skin from when she was tortured by Hydra. Thanks to Wakandan medicine, they were almost invisible. But Steve was familiar enough with Y/N’s body that he could still just barely point them out. Those were nowhere to be seen either.

Which meant that the Y/N standing in front of Steve was from a much younger time.

“Did we…did we break up?” Y/N’s lip trembled as her eyes filled with tears.

Steve stepped forward. “What? Why would you think that?”

Her eyes looked around the room. “None of my stuff is here. It doesn’t even look like I live here.”

But it was true. There was hardly any personality to his Brooklyn apartment. Anyone that knew Y/N would expect her apartment to be filled with warmth, and the perfect lighting, and everything that made a home intimate and charming.

“Steve, did we break up?” Y/N’s voice shook as she repeated the question.

Tears were streaming down her cheeks and Steve couldn’t handle it anymore.

He closed the distance between them and pulled her into his body.

“Hey, hey, hey,” he muttered. “It’s OK. We didn’t break up.”

At least he didn’t technically have to lie about that.

She pulled away from being tucked into his body to look at his face. “What is this place?” It was still obvious she didn’t exist in this space.

“We just bought it,” Steve was quick on his feet. “It came furnished and we haven’t moved all of our stuff in yet.”

Y/N seemed to believe him. “Where am I?”

“You’re away on a freelance job.”

She nodded, processing the new information.

“Would you like some clothes?” He asked her gently.

Y/N laughed lightly, apparently having forgotten that she was fully naked. 

She sniffled, trying to clear her nose and nodded.

A few minutes later, Y/N was in Steve’s sweats, sitting at his kitchen island with her own coffee cupped between her palms.

“I’m sorry – again – that I scared you into spilling coffee on yourself,” she winced.

Steve chuckled. “Y/N, believe it or not, I’ve suffered much worse injuries than hot coffee burns.”

“Right,” she smiled. “You’ve just casually been shot a few times and survived a plan crash.”

He quirked an eyebrow. “Amongst other things.”

“Amongst other things,” Y/N agreed and repeated back.

A peaceful silence settled between them.

Y/N’s eyes narrowed. “You know, I don’t believe you.”

“About the hot coffee?”

“About us not being broken up,” Y/N confirmed.

Steve just tightened his jaw. He didn’t know how much more he could lie to her.

Y/N slowly stood up and closed the distance between them. When she was in his space, she carefully reached up to brush his cheek with her thumb.

“Your eyes… they’re so sad. And they get even sadder every time you look at me.”

“We’re on a break,” Steve quickly told her. He hoped a half lie would save him.

Y/N nodded. And he knew that she believed that one.

She opened her mouth to ask more.

“Please, don’t ask me to say more about it,” Steve begged.

Y/N just nodded.

But then she stepped even closer to him. “Do you miss me?” She whispered as her gaze flickered down to his lips.

Steve’s chest hurt from the question alone. Present and future Y/N had never prepared him for having interactions like this.

He just nodded his head, knowing that if he tried to say actual words then he’d just let out some pathetic whimper.

Y/N leaned even closer. Her gaze flickered to his, silently asking him if he wanted her to stop.

But Steve didn’t have that sort of self control.

So Y/N kissed him.

And he felt her surprise when he responded with a hunger she didn’t expect.

Without hesitation, he pulled her closer. But it still wasn’t enough. Then his hands slid down the outside of her thighs and then gripped the back of them. He scooped her up and pulled her hips to his waist, holding her there until she realized she needed to wrap her legs around him. But it still wasn’t enough.

He pulled away from the kiss. “Do you want me to stop?” His words struggled while he also tried to catch his breath.

Y/N gave him a shy smile and shook her head before giving him a sweet and precise peck on the lips.

“No, I don’t.” Then she laughed, “But maybe we could move this to the bedroom.”

Even if she wasn’t his in this time period, Y/N still knew what Steve needed. And she was more than willing to give it to him. 

——————————

Steve always got this guilty feeling after sleeping with a version of Y/N that wasn’t her present self. No matter how many times Y/N told him it wasn’t, Steve could always convince a part of his mind to believe he had cheated.

Y/N had fallen asleep so quickly. It didn’t matter that she was out of her time. She always felt safe with Steve.

Meanwhile, Steve wouldn’t allow himself a second of sleep. He wasn’t going to waste a moment with Y/N by not being awake. How could he?

Instead he held her naked body against his chest. He switched back and forth between tracing the line of her spine to thumbing circles on her shoulder.

The more time he spent without Y/N in his present, the harder it was to watch her other selves leave him.

He glanced at the clock on his nightstand and sighed. He had to go to his group therapy in a few hours.

If Y/N was still here by then, he’d skip it. Lie and tell them he was sick. 

Those sessions made him feel like a mockery anyway. At least once a week, he sat in a circle and told people they needed to move on with their lives. Meanwhile, he was still in a relationship with his dead girlfriend. She was a ghost that haunted him. He lectured other people how to live their lives in a post-snap world when he couldn’t go a minute without hoping a future or past Y/N would visit him soon.

Steve was taken out of his thoughts when Y/N stirred next to him.

She wasn’t waking up; she was leaving. 

He saw her body start to fade.

There was nothing he hated seeing more than watching Y/N travel.

Was she going back to her own present? Was she going somewhere else? Would she be safe? Would this be one of her trips where she got hurt or almost killed?

And then, just like that, Y/N was gone. And Steve was alone once again.

Steve hoped his sheets would smell like her for longer than they did last time.

He should probably shower before he went to group, but he didn’t want to lose the feeling of her on his skin. He just wanted it to linger, if that was even possible.

That’s when he decided he needed more than a talk with a group of strangers. He needed a friend – a real friend – who knew what he was actually going through.

——————-

Steve hated going to the compound since the snap.

It was like going to a haunted house.

He never knew what memories would be resurrected when he visited.

Sometimes it was just the way the sun lit the room for a second or he’d catch a certain smell, then he was suddenly thrust into a memory linked to Y/N.

Steve found Nat in tears. 

It was subtle, but it still broke his heart to see her upset. She was the strongest of them all. If she couldn’t hold it together, that’s when the rest of them truly knew how bad things really were.

“Ya know, I’d offer to cook you dinner, but you seem pretty miserable already.”

“You here to do your laundry?” She teased, trying to hide that she’d lost her composure for even a second.

“And to see a friend,” he added.

“Clearly your friend is fine.”

“What if your friend is the one that’s not?” He offered.

Her forced smirk faltered. “She show up today?”

Steve sighed and nodded. “She thought we broke up. It took one look around my apartment to know she didn’t live there.”

“You’re a terrible liar, so I could only imagine how that went.”

“Well, I eventually got her to believe we were just on a break, instead of telling her that she was…”

“Dead?” Nat offered.

Steve’s jaw just tightened at the word. He moved to sit across from her.

“It’s the first time she didn’t know about it. And now I’m wondering if I prefer the version of her that doesn’t know what's going to happen to her.”

Nat just hummed, understanding what he meant.

Steve’s eyes glazed over as he thought about it. “How was she able to just live every day knowing what was going to happen?”

“She had to learn to accept what she couldn’t control awhile ago, Steve. She didn’t have any other choice.”

“Why couldn’t she tell me?” He thought aloud, frustration clear in his voice.

“Because she knew you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You would’ve made yourself crazy trying to stop what you couldn’t. Nothing else would’ve mattered...including her.” Nat sighed. “Maybe she just wanted to embrace what little time she had with you. She can ignore the ticking of a time bomb, but not you.”

Steve knew Nat was right.

Suddenly, there was a ping and a hologram appeared in front of Nat.

She pressed a few buttons in the air and a video played out.

Next thing they knew, Scott Lang was fumbling his words at the front gate’s security camera.

Steve slowly stood up. Scott Lang was meant to be dead. “Is this an old message?”

“It’s the front gate,” Nat told him.

An hour later, Scott had stopped his pacing and explained his time travel theory.

Steve looked at Nat and immediately knew that she didn’t find Scott as crazy as he did.

But Nat had been searching for hope these past 5 years, while Steve refused to let it into his life.

“Tomorrow we’ll go see Tony,” Steve confirmed. “For now, you should get some rest, Scott.” Then he looked at Nat. “We all should.”

That was code for, ‘Don’t get excited.’

She clearly got the underlying message, but refused to ignore the hope.

—————————

Steve walked into his old room at the compound. He was only ever there when he visited Nat, which wasn’t often at all. He only kept some things there because he saw the hurt in Nat’s eyes when he had once suggested he completely clean it out.

When he turned on the light, he immediately noticed an envelope on the nightstand.

It was a letter addressed to him at the compound.

But Steve’s heart raced when he recognized the writing as Y/N’s.

“FRIDAY, where did this letter come from?” He asked the AI.

“It arrived in the mail today, Captain Rogers.”

He ripped it open instantly, his hands shaking in the process.

But there were only three words for him to read:

Listen to Scott.

Steve felt his heart beat faster.

And for the first time in 5 years, he felt hope.

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

Ya’ll, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. 

[i-am-a-stupid-robot]

End of the Year Creative Wrap-Up

Tagged my lovelies @nade2308 and @holbytlanna! xoxo

1) What is your favorite thing you created? Which work are you the proudest of?

I’ve written more this year than I have my entire life put together, which isn’t saying a lot, but it does make it hard to narrow down. :P For now, I’ll say St. Judy’s Comic, All That Remains in My War-Ravaged World, and Mac + Breakfast + Jill + Dreams.

2) Is there anything else you are proud of that you achieved this year?

Okay, this isn’t a creative thing, but. I’ve got this chronic thing called Hashimoto’s disease, which makes me feel generally exhausted and sick pretty much always. I go through phases where it’s not particularly debilitating, but I’ve spent the last year and a half essentially bedridden, which meant I had lots and lots of time to write stories and do art. The second half of last year and the first half of this year, I was more creatively productive than I think I’ve ever been, and it felt AMAZING. I couldn’t be physically productive, so making pictures and stories sort of started to be my day job. Flash forward to about, mmm, July/September-ish of this year, which finds me so tired even scrolling on my phone while flopped, otherwise motionless on my bed, makes me ache with weariness. And let’s not even mention the brain fog. I’m suddenly so tired I can’t even do the tiny things I was doing to be productive before, and I start to feel guilty because I gotta do SOMETHING, right?

Well. I’m learning that I am doing something. I’m surviving, and I’m doing my best to grow and take care of myself and encourage the people around me, and for right now? That’s enough. Doing my best today might not look the same as it did a year ago or a month ago or even a day ago. And that’s okay.

It’s been a hard lesson to accept, and one I expect I’ll always be learning it to some extent, but I feel like that’s probably my biggest accomplishment this year. :)

3) Did you explore anything new this year? (A new way to be creative, a trope you didn't write before or an idea you hadn't thought of earlier, etc.)

I got really into digital art, which has been soooo fun. I started a giant AU that scares the living daylights out of me, and I’ve been part of a fic collab which is so utterly rad on so many levels. I wrote a fic in my best attempt at the style of Cormac McCarthy and failed miserably, but had a splendid time nonetheless. It was also, incidentally, my first fix-it fic.

4) Which work gave you the most difficulty? What was your biggest creative challenge this year?

Sat Phone + Heat Stroke + GPS was a struggle to get through, but I was pretty satisfied with it in the end. It’s also been a fun challenge to figure out the best way to do a writing collab when the authors are on different sides of the universe, but I’m happy to say, I think we figured out a pretty decent balance!

5) Which work brought you the most joy?

Warmth, maybe? It’s art, not a story, but it took a lot of work and it was kind of a breakthrough for me at that point, and I was just so happy with the vibe it gave me. I also loved doing Sky Full of Stars SO much. And my guys, I had the best time with So Happy Together. Don't judge.

6) Which of your works do you think people should check out?

Asdjfksadfakhdafda. Well. All my stuff is up on AO3, and everything that’s not an art is also up on FF.N. I’ve got an increasingly large repertoire of MacGyver (2016) stuff, a slowly but steadily growing pile of Stargate: SG-1 content, some NCIS: New Orleans, a few Jack Ryan (2018) fics, plus a few other miscy misc things. I think it’s all gen/found family feels except That One Jack Ryan Fic that almost did me in. I’d be thrilled and honored if anyone wants to check any of it out! Y’all welcome by my fire any time.

7) Do you have creative plans for next year? Is there anything exciting you are currently working on?

[glares at Prison Break AU] I don’t wanna talk about it.

Kidding. I’ve got a bunch of smol things and a few biggish things and that one heckin lorge thing in the works, and I’m really excited about all of it. I’m mostly making Stargate fic at the moment, and I’m really excited to explore those characters more. I also got an art commission from someone that’s making me fangirl a little, and I’m pretty psyched about that! I think my main plans are just to keep growing my skills, though, and hopefully challenge myself.

8) Lastly, any words of wisdom or anything else you would like to share?

This applies to creative pursuits, but also just. Life. Be gentle with yourself, love. Your fic didn’t turn out as beautifully as you imagined? So what? I garuntee you your readers aren’t going to see it that way, and you’ve grown in writing it. Your art was messier than you planned? That’s okay! You’ve made an important step toward your goals! You haven’t produced anything creative in months? Don’t worry. You’ll find your mojo again. For now, it’s okay to feed your muse and let her rest. Do your best each day, whatever that looks like, and learn to be proud of that. Give yourself the same grace you’d give to a friend, and I think you’ll start to see yourself in a different light. I have, anyway.

(Credit: Charlie Mackesy)

Happy almost-New Year, my loves! Be good to yourselves and each other. <3

Tagging: @melliabee​, @starrybouquet​, @commanderbunnbunn​, @appalachianapologies​, @starryhc​, @impossiblepluto, and anyone else who wants to participate! No pressure, of course <3

[kisskeiji]

5. Lifeboats.

Lost & Found.

WARNINGS: language, alcohol consumption,suggestive (but not really)

“So you’re telling me that you are going to Miya’s high school reunion because he wanted you to meet his friends?” Oikawa took a sip from his mug after asking with an inquiring tone. You were getting ready for Atsumu and Osamu to pick you up, fighting the urge to cancel on them but it was out of the question, they were supposed to be at your door in less than twenty minutes. 

“Yes, and I’m close to rip my hair off.” You ran your fingers through your hair and huffed.

“You look pretty with your hair down Y/N!” Bokuto assured you. “Right, love?” He asked Akaashi who turned back and nodded in agreement. Oikawa thought it was a good idea to invite them to the call for “emotional support” but in reality they were just making fun of you and your current crisis, Akaashi and Oikawa were a dangerous combo. You brushed your hair down and stared at yourself in the mirror. ‘What am I even doing?’ You couldn’t think of anything except how awkward things could get and many different ways you could mess up at dinner. 

“You look constipated, Y/N-chan.” Oikawa mocked. He was lucky he was on the other side of the world. “I know what you are thinking and turning that invitation down is not an option.”  You hated how easy he could read you, but considering your current state and how heavy you were breathing trying to calm yourself it wasn’t hard to know how anxious you were. You thought it was ridiculous, Atsumu was being a good friend, you weren’t going out alone and it was just dinner with his friends. Why were you so uneasy? 

“I never thought Miya would like Y/N.” Akaashi teased. 

“He doesn’t like me, he is trying to be nice, and what does that even mean? You are not helping, Keiji.” You retorted and the three men laughed at you. “It’s going to be awkward, why would he invite me to a high school reunion?” 

“Didn’t he say something about Ojiro's girlfriend? She is really funny! And Ojiro is a nice guy, I promise you there’s never an awkward moment with them.” Bokuto encouraged you and you smiled, but the list of things that could go wrong was still present on your mind. You talked for a few more minutes while you added the final touches to your make up and sprayed perfume on your wrists and the back of your ears. Your phone screen lit up showing a message from Atsumu saying they were outside. 

“They are here.” You announced and looked at your laptop.

“Go have fun, Y/N, you can drink wine with someone other than me.” Akaashi held his glass up for you to see. “I already started.” 

“Don’t drink too much.” You warned. “I’ll talk to you guys later.” They wished you luck and ended the call.You roamed through your apartment looking for your purse and keys. You locked the door and walked down the hallway to the elevator, your hands were sweating a little and you swore your eye just twitched. You always struggled with meeting new people and the circumstances of this meeting did everything ten times more awkward. Again, what were you thinking when you agreed? Nothing, exactly, just the look on Atsumu’s eyes and how even in the dark they shined with expectation. You couldn’t turn him down. 

You spotted Atsumu waiting for you resting his weight on his car, arms crossed and hair carefully styled. Your mouth almost dropped at the sight, you always see him in gym clothes or the team uniform, trying to keep your walk steady, you focused your attention and how uncomfortable your shoes were — It was an impulse buy, but they were so cute you told yourself you could endure the pain. Atsumu waved at you and opened the door right before you reached his car. “Hey.” He said almost sighing. He was just as stunned as you but wasn’t really trying to hide it. You noticed how he checked you out at first glance but stopped himself halfway trying to keep his cool. 

“Hi.” You greeted nervously and looked away, noticing Osamu on the backseat. “Hi, Osamu.” He had a lazy grin on his face and his hands rested on his knees before he waved at you. “You can take the front seat if you want to.” You offered. 

“No!” Atsumu was quick to respond for his brother, earning a curious look from you. “I mean, he already offered to take the backseat for you! Right, ‘Samu?” He looked at his twin hoping for him to play along. It was not like Atsumu forced him to sit on the back right before you walked out of your building. 

“ ‘Tsumu is right. It would have been impolite from us to have you sit on the back.” Once again,  Osamu saved his brother’s ass from an awkward situation. If only you knew that Atsumu was just as nervous as you and Osamu teasing him nonstop was not helping his case. He went from excited to a pit of nerves in less than twenty minutes. Maybe it wasn’t a great idea to have you meet his friends on your first date, especially when Osamu and Suna were going to be there. Did he just say date?  It was definitely not a date, but it felt like so. Everyone would think you two were dating when you just met a little bit over a month ago. He didn’t think this through, but it was too late, you were already in his car sitting right beside him on your way to Aran’s house having a small talk with his brother about his week in the restaurant. 

“You are going to get along well with Hana-san, you have the same dry sense of humor as her.” Osamu said, running his hand through his hair. 

“What do you mean? My sense of humor is not dry at all.” You looked back, clearly offended. “Atsumu, is my sense of humor dry?” You asked now looking at him. He smiled and tried to avoid the question. 

“I’m driving, I can’t answer.”

“You drive with your mouth?” You deadpanned and both men laughed. 

“See?” Osamu said as if he was proving a point.

“See what? You clearly can’t differentiate sarcasm from dry humor.” You crossed your arms and huffed. 

“If it makes you feel better I think you are funny.” Atsumu nudged your arm once he reached the stop sign and you almost gave in and smiled. 

“I don’t need your pity, Miya.” You looked through your window, trying to ignore his playful gaze and the grin plastered on Atsumu’s face. He knew what you were doing so he poked your side making you jolt on your seat. You were ready to poke him back when the red light turned green. 

“I’ll get my revenge later.” You announced making him laugh. Osamu watched the whole thing from his seat. ‘I feel like I am interrupting something.’ He thought and smiled to himself, the unfamiliar feeling of third wheeling taking over at the sight of his brother having fun with you. Once again, it felt like you met years ago, maybe because Atsumu would never shut up about you or how bright he smiled at you, it was just right. Like Bokuto, Osamu started thinking that his brother and you would look good together. The fun was cut short when Atsumu pulled over in front of Aran's house, he asked you to wait for him to open the door for you. 

“Chivalry is not dead.” Osamu whispered to his brother who just elbowed him to shut him up. You three walked to the door and Atsumu rang the bell. “You look like you want to throw up.” The gray haired twin said and you let out all the air you were holding in. 

“You have such a way with words.” You leaned on your right side and remembered Bokuto’s words, they were nice people, you shouldn’t stress too much. After a few seconds a man with gray hair and dark tips opened the door. 

“Kita-san!” Atsumu cheered. Kita greeted them both and exchanged a few words, you fading in the back without really listening to their conversation and waiting awkwardly when you heard Atsumu say: “This is my friend Y/N.”  You adjusted your purse under your arm and bowed with your head, Kita returned the gesture and reached to shake your hand. 

“Pleasure to meet you.” Blood rushed to your ears under his intense gaze, he looked so calm and put together, but his brown eyes were definitely intimidating. “Come on in, Aran and Hana are busy in the kitchen.” You walked in first and took your shoes off and looked around spotting two men sitting on the couch having a small talk. “The twins are here.” Kita announced and both of them turned their attention to the ex-volleyball captain. 

“Late as always.” The one with silver hair joked, Atsumu and Osamu  walked past you to greet their old teammates with a hug. 

“We are not late, you came here too early.” Atsumu retorted. “Y/N this is Ginjima and the one about to stick his tongue down to my brother’s throat is Suna.” Before you could introduce yourself Suna smacked the back of Atsumu’s head. 

“You are so vulgar.” Atsumu rubbed the spot where Suna had hit him trying to sooth the pain. Suna looked familiar for some reason. Narrow eyes and tall figure, you must have seen him somewhere. You didn’t failed to notice Osamu’s arm sneaking around Suna’s waist, that’s when you realized you sure looked dumb standing there staring at the five men in front of you, but could they blame you? They were towering over you. The scene was terrifying from an outside view, lucky for you the house owners walked out the kitchen to welcome you. 

“What are you guys doing to this poor girl?” A tall woman asked standing right beside you. “You must be Y/N! I’m Hana, I am so excited to finally meet you after the twins came in talking nonstop about you.” She extended her hand for you to shake. 

“They did?” You smiled and felt a reassuring squeeze on your hand, an unspoken ‘I am here.’ Her presence was warm just like her smile. “Y/N L/N, they also told me a lot about you, it is a pleasure to meet you.”  

“I know the twins are already a handful, but when they are all together is a disaster, you can have all the wine you need.” She whispered in your ear and you two shared a laugh.

 “See, Aran-kun? I told you they were going to get along well.” Atsumu sat on the couch and crossed his legs. Right, you still haven’t greeted him, you looked around and found him standing behind Hana. ‘Way to go.’  

“I am so sorry.” You bowed. “ Thank you so much for having me tonight.”  

“Thank you for coming. Please make yourself at home.” He bowed back before Ginjima and Atsumu jumped on him to give him a hug. “Come on, we saw each other last week.” He said, taking a step back to support the weight of the two men. 

“The twins mentioned that you were a bartender back then! We just finished our new bar, wanna see?” Hana asked. You nodded and spared a glance to the rest of the boys in the room and excused yourself to follow Hana. She guided you to the kitchen and you noticed the racks hanging beside the lightbox displaying the wine glasses, the warm lighting made the wide place feel more cozy despite the minimalist decorations. “Here it is, Aran knows nothing about wine or liquor but one of his teammates has a bar, so he decided we needed one.” She opened a cabinet revealing a collection of bottles and a wine cooler. 

“Really? But you have such a nice selection here.” You peaked through the fridge glass to see the bottles tempering. “It was a good decision then, it is so pretty.” When you looked at Hana she had her arms crossed and a faint smile on her face. 

“Don’t let him hear you, it will get to his head.” 

“I heard that!” Aran entered the kitchen. “So, what do you think about my baby?” He walked closer to where you were standing, looking at his collection proudly, Hana rolled her eyes and elbowed him. 

“I was just telling Hana-san that your collection was really nice, you have good taste.” His smile grew wider and he thanked you. 

“Too much for someone who can’t drink ten out of twelve months a year.” Hana added and Aran side hugged her and kissed her temple. You smiled at the sight but something made you avert your gaze back to the cabinet, this time focusing on the gold utensils nicely displayed at the bottom. “You can touch, it won’t bite.” Hana said. “And I won’t complain if you make some cocktails.” She inched closer to you and nudged your shoulder making you laugh. 

“We’ll see.” You helped Hana to set the charcuterie boards on the kitchen island, and Aran insisted on you choosing the wine since most of them couldn’t drink, having a small chat with both of them and getting to know each other you learned that they were together since high school and were actually engaged but no plans were made yet since Aran’s career was still starting and they wanted to wait a little more. They worked together so well, not only with each other but their space, the house matched their energy perfectly, they gave you the familiarity you craved ever since you moved. For the first time in a month you were not alone on a friday night downing whatever alcohol you had in hand, and you were thankful for their company, in the end — like always— Bokuto was right, they were nice people.

“We are starving over here!” Osamu yelled. 

“That sounds like a personal problem!” Hana yelled back without looking away from the cutting board. The other five men joined shortly after and took their seats on the stools. You were facing away from them, pouring a mix of alcohol and lime juice in two glass cups you previously filled with ice and sharing a laugh with Hana before she asked you to sit down, you didn’t notice Atsumu’s eyes lingering on you as you sat down on the stool beside him. The others were already eating from the boards and talking about their days, you listened attentively and nodded from time to time, you liked listening to people without necessarily sharing your thoughts, it was easier to avoid talking about your past. It was your turn to look at Atsumu while he excitedly talked about whatever he did at practice with Bokuto and Sakusa; but this time he felt your eyes on him. Doing a double take, the moment his eyes met yours he tripped on his words but recovered quickly.  

After twenty minutes or so, you noticed how Atsumu was only eating the cheese cubes from the boards and you laughed. “You are supposed to mix the flavours, not eating all the cheese.” He looked at you confused. 

“But I don’t know what to do with all of these, why would you mix jam with cream cheese? And what the fuck is this?” He asked, pointing at the honeycomb.

“I’m gonna start believing you have the taste buds of a five year old.”  You took the butter knife and a slice of bread from the board to carefully cut a piece of cheese and spread it on top of the bread.

“That’s not true. What are you doing?” You didn’t answer, too busy trying to cut into the honeycomb with a spoon and finally placing it on the bread along with a slice of strawberry on top of it. You brought the slice of bread near his mouth and he looked at you, then the food in front of him and then back at you not knowing what to do.

“Hurry up, the honey is dripping on my fingers.” He opened his mouth and took a bite, reaching for the uneaten piece to hold it so you could wipe the honey off your fingers, his flustered state was quickly replaced by the flavors melting on his mouth. His eyes widened as he looked at you. 

“Wait, that was actually really good.” He hummed and ate the other piece as you smiled softly. “Can you make another one? For me.” His eyes shining still delighted with the flavors lingering on his mouth. You kept handing him different mixes of textures and flavors, all of this under Hana and Aran’s gaze, mesmerized by your chemistry. “Okay that one I didn’t like.” Atsumu wiped his mouth. 

“Sorry, I wasn’t really looking.” You said having a bite for yourself. 

“My turn.” He said with the butter knife in one hand. You were nervous, his choices were a bit odd and you didn’t wanted to spit it out as soon as you bite into it. “Say ah.” He held his creation and you hesitated to get closer. “Hurry up, the honey is dripping on my fingers.” He mocked your previous words using them against you. 

“Very funny.” You narrowed your eyes finally opening your mouth and biting into it, it wasn’t until you started to chew that you could assimilate the flavors on your mouth, you couldn’t quite place them but it tasted good, looking back to Atsumu’s hand analyzing whatever he put on top of the bread slice. “It 's good.” 

“Just good?” You took the other part from his hand and he pushed himself back to stretch a little bit. 

“I mean, for a roasted tomato, peach jam and aged cheese; it’s great.” You cleaned your fingers once again and he just mumbled something about you being the one with childish taste buds. Everyone was aware of what was going on between you two but decided to keep the conversation going while you and Atsumu had your charcuterie expert moment. Osamu looked at his brother having a good time without necessarily causing ruckus or being loud, just genuinely enjoying himself. 

“Is there something going on between those two?” Suna whispered to him. 

“I have no idea.” He took a good sip of his wine and smiled at his boyfriend. “But Atsumu acts different when they are together.”

“Well, duh, look at him! He looks like a highschooler in love.” Ginjima intervened and the three of them laughed looking at Atsumu. You noticed the three pairs of eyes on you and pointed at them for Atsumu to pay attention to his friends. 

“What?” He asked and none of them said a thing. 

“Dinner is ready!” Aran announced and Hana called for you, asking if you were up to another round of margaritas. You agreed, trying to get away from the curious stares from Atsumu’s friends and brother; you walked straight to the bar to take the bottles of triple sec and tequila from the shelfs, she handed you the cups you were using already filled with ice. Atsumu was completely focused on your swift moves and the way you carefully poured the transparent liquor on the measuring cup and then the shaker. When you finished straining the drink on the two cups, Suna and Kita started asking you questions about your previous job and how it was working at a bar while Aran and Osamu served and garnished the plates. 

The rest of the night went well, way better than you thought. You exchanged numbers with Hana and made plans to go out for lunch the following week, you got along really well from the beginning and she said you were really fun to be around and complimented your mixology skills by saying you did the best margaritas she ever had. After saying goodbye to everyone and thanking the couple for the good time you and Atsumu left without Osamu since he went back home with Suna to spend the weekend together  before he had to come back to Osaka on Monday. You were now at your door with Atsumu, he claimed that he wanted to make sure you made it home safe but he just wanted to use the restroom. You let him in and told him where the guest bathroom was before taking your shoes off and walking to your bedroom looking for a hair tie. 

When he came back from the restroom your phone started to ring. “Someone’s calling you.” He said. 

“Can you see who it is? It’s probably my friend Oikawa.I’ll be out in a second” You yelled from your room. It was an unknown number but he still picked up. 

“Y/N?” The person on the other side of the line asked as soon as he pressed the phone on his right ear. 

“Uh, no, she is in her room right now but can I help you with something?”  The call was cut short. ‘Weird.’ Atsumu thought, he placed your phone back on the counter when you joined him again, this time with your hair tied in a messy ponytail with a few strands of hair framing your face. You looked beautiful.

“So, was it Oikawa?” 

“Well, I don’t know, it was an unknown number and they hung up as soon as they heard my voice. Probably a prank call.” He said making his way to the door with you trailing behind. 

“That’s weird.” You said before opening the door. “I had a lot of fun tonight, Atsumu, thank you.” You leaned on the door frame. 

“Would you like to do it again sometime? I mean, hanging out, I had fun too.” You were startled at his question. “As friends, of course.” He was quick to add and something inside you twisted in disappointment. You looked at him, towering over you with his overwhelming height and broad shoulders, he sure looked good.

“Sure, why not.” That came out more bitter than you expected. “Good night, Atsumu.”

‘Fuck it.’ Atsumu thought before taking a step closer to you and placing his left hand on your lower back, you didn’t dare to move waiting for his next move, in a matter of seconds his lips were on yours and your hands on his biceps trying to support yourself on him while he busied himself setting the pace of the kiss; slow and steady, making sure you knew that he fucked up the last part. “Do friends kiss each other like that, Miya?” You asked playfully when he parted away from your lips. 

“We can be really close friends.” He kissed you again, this time it was shorter but he still managed to take your breath away. “I have to go now.” He said after one too many kisses at your door, lips slightly swollen and eyes shimmering. 

“Text me when you get home.” You fixed his hair and gave him one last kiss on his cheek before he left. You checked the number that called before, not recognizing it at first glance you locked your phone, maybe Atsumu was right and someone was just trying to prank call you. Once you were in bed ready to sleep, a text from Oikawa lit up your phone screen asking for details, you sighed and turned it off. You tried to avoid your friends' questions all weekend, giving vague details and not mentioning that you made out with Atsumu for almost twenty minutes at the end of the night, you were not ready for them to tease you nonstop. 

-

“Y/N?” Iwaizumi asked, waiting to hear your voice from the other side of the line.

“Uh, no, she is in her room right now but can I help you with something?” A male voice answered. His insides twisted as panic took over his senses and immediately hung up. You were with someone else.

“What happened?” Hanamaki entered the kitchen, he saw Iwaizumi holding his phone in one hand and the landline on the other. “What are you doing with my phone?” It took him a few seconds before realizing. He grabbed his phone from Iwaizumi’s hand and saw your number displayed on the screen. “You called her?” 

“Why didn’t you tell me she was back.” Iwaizumi was angry, but so was Hanamaki. Did he really just ask that? 

“Because she asked us not to tell you, and we are trying to get our friend back, or do I need to remind you that she stopped talking to us because of you.” He stared at Iwaizumi coldly. 

“Shut up, that’s not fair.” 

“Not fair for who? For you? Get fucked Hajime, you act as if you were the victim in this situation. Maybe learn to respect other people’s privacy and stop trying to call her, she is over you.” With that Takahiro walked past him and made his way to his room. Tears threatening to spill from Iwaizumi’s eyes, a frustrated sigh left his lips as he ran his hands through his hair. 

You were over him. Just the thought of you forgetting about him made his chest hurt, still heavy with guilt. You were over him, and even worse, you were already with someone else.

-

The next few weeks were hectic, the season started and the team had a winning streak, the schedules were full and you received endless calls from magazines and sport channels. You were exhausted but happy to be occupied and your team made your work much easier. For the first time that week everyone was able to take it slower; the medical team went home earlier and the players were practicing by themselves while you and one of your assistants patiently waited for an email from the volleyball association. “So I heard you and Miya-senshu are really close lately.” You looked up from your phone and smiled. 

“Yeah, we are good friends.” You giggled. 

“I don’t understand how you get along so well with him, every time I work with him he acts like a diva.” She said adjusting her glasses on the bridge of her nose, you scrunched your nose in confusion; Atsumu was a genuinely nice guy, but it was true that he wasn’t easy to approach.

“Well, the spotlight was meant for him, he has a magnetic personality that makes everyone around him take an interest on him, but he is not the best at managing all of the attention. He is human too, you know? He knows what everyone thinks of him, so he reciprocates that perception without being aware of it. Maybe if you treated him like a normal person he would show a nicer side of him because he won’t feel like you are expecting him to be a complete asshole.” You explained as simple as  you could, she looked at you as if you had a third eye. It made sense, but before she could thank you for the advice your monitor screen refreshed, showing the email you were waiting for; the nominees for the Volleyball Association Awards. Reading carefully the names and the date of the ceremony you headed to the gym to break the news to the players along with your assistant. 

“I have good news!” You said as soon as you opened the gym doors. 

“Y/N!” Bokuto ran to you. “What is going on?” He asked, trying to peek on your clipboard. 

“The volleyball association sent the names of the nominees for this year’s awards.” You announced and waited for everyone to gather around you. “The team is nominated for best division one line up.” Everyone cheered in excitement. “Bokuto and Sakusa for best newcomers, Meian-senshu for best middle blocker and finally, Atsumu and Inunaki-senshu are nominated for setter and libero of the year.” They congratulated each other with side hugs and high-fives. “Also, Thomas-senshu was requested to be one of the hosts for the  ceremony.” 

“For real?” His eyes widened in surprise. 

“Yes, they loved your appearances on the sports channel, they are going to send Hideko the details later so make sure to check them with her later.” He nodded and Meian patted his back a little bit too hard. “Congratulations to all of you, once the nominations are available to the public we are expecting a few interviews but we are going to try to keep them short until the end of the season in november, please be mindful of your interactions with the press, one mistake can cost you the award.” After another round of cheering you and your assistant took your leave. 

“We can go celebrate later.” Atsumu held your wrist before you exited the gym, he raised his brows trying to convince you. 

“I would love to, but I have plans with Hana-san.” He pouted. “Maybe tomorrow if you are not planning to practice all day like always.” 

“Hana is always stealing you away from me.” He complained playing with your fingers. “You are always hanging out with her” 

“Weren’t you the one who wanted me to be friends with her?” 

“Yes! But now is different.” He whined. 

“What changed?” You asked, knowing the answer very well. The expression on his face begged you to not make him say it as he loosened his grip on your hand. “We’ll talk later, okay? I need to go home if I want to be on time.” He hesitated but agreed in the end.

“No goodbye kiss?”  He asked and you looked around to make sure you were alone, the rest of the team also left the gym to get changed and go home and there was no one to be seen on the hallway, so you inched closer to him until you were breathing on his lips, he closed his eyes waiting for you to kiss him. 

“No.” You said and ran as fast as you could to your office, ignoring Atsumu’s whining from behind. You decided you wouldn't let him have his way with you this time, at least until he was clear with what he wanted. While it was true that you spent a lot of time together after that night at Aran’s house, not a word about the nature of your relationship was spoken, it was a silent agreement between the two of you, you clearly liked each other but you were still scared to jump into a relationship of any kind and Atsumu wasn’t really open about his intentions, so you decided that each other’s company was enough. That until your feelings for the setter started to change from a childish crush to something deeper that you couldn’t explain — more like, you were scared to admit.— and that was constantly on your mind.

And it wasn’t that Atsumu wanted to play with your feelings, he was just as scared as you, he never really committed to a relationship because he was so focused on his career as a volleyball player. But you made everything easier and it just felt right, he wanted to come clean and tell you how much he truly liked you but he didn’t knew how. He thought he was going too fast, but if he waited for too long you would forget about him. What if you weren’t looking for something serious with him? Truth is, you didn’t knew what you were looking for, but something about Atsumu made you believe that maybe this was a second chance for you to find happiness. 

But you wouldn’t know unless one of you gathered the courage to admit you were helplessly in love.

(a/n: hey everyone! im finally back after so long, im really excited to post this chapter since i finally got a hang of my creativity again, i would like to thank miss taylor swift and miss hayley williams for the inspiration, you should listen to FLOWERS for VASES / descansos by hayley, listening to it last night gave me the push i needed to finish writing (i am updating the fic playlist regurlarly if you like to check it out ;)). also, did you see those two???? THEY ARE SO CUTE when i tell you i was screaming last night when i was writing the last few scenes, i mean it. thank you so much for your patience and your concern for my health, i am doing much better physically, emotionally im still working on myself so i can stop projecting my sadness on poor y/n TT i hope you like it as much as i enjoyed writing it. i promised my betas i wouldnt take more than two weeks to write the next chapter and hopefully i can keep my promise. take care, and i hope all of you are wearing your masks and staying safe. <3)  

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