#because it somehow feels worse than in any other fandom I��ve been into

[scarletemeterio-thesecond]

Can I request a Zuko x Waterbender!reader where the reader is Sokka & Katara’s sister and she gets super heartbroken when Zuko betrays her in the Crystal Catacombs in Ba Sing Se? Then when he arrives at the Western Air Temple, Katara and Sokka get very protective when Zuko tries to make amends with the reader? Thank you and I love your writing!! ❤️

Hi, thank you so much for requesting! For this let's just pretend like the reader was the one who was with Zuko in the catacombs. And yes, I chose this title only because I was listening to the ouat soundtrack from the musical episode and I thought it would fit, hope you like it!

•••

Happy Beginning (Zuko x Fem!Reader)

Warnings: none.

Genre: Fluff.

Fandom: Avatar, The Last Airbender.

Summary: See request.

Word Count: 2306.

I couldn’t believe what was happening and for a moment, I thought my mind was tricking me. But there were no tricks involved, Zuko was actually standing in front of us, asking to join our group. When he started talking about how much he’d changed, I found it hard to believe and since I wasn’t the only one, we told him to leave.

“Why would he try to fool us like that?” asked Katara.

“Obviously, he wants to lead us into some kind of trap,” said Sokka.

“Yeah, this is just like when we were in prison together in Ba Sing Se,” I said. “He starts talking and makes you believe that he’s an actual human being with feelings”.

“He wants you to trust him and feel sorry for him so you let your guard down, then he strikes,” said my brother.

“I know, and the worst part is that it worked. I did feel sorry for him and thought that maybe he had changed for the better, but I was wrong”.

We all started talking about everything else Zuko had said and when we said that he was a liar, Toph told us the opposite.

“I’m just saying that considering his messed-up family and how he was raised he could-ve turned out a lot worse,” said the girl.

“So what? Should we give him a medal or something?” I asked, now a bit mad.

“Yeah, what about the ‘not as much of a jerk as you could’ve been’ award?” Agreed my sister.

“All I know is that while he was here talking to us, he was sincere. Maybe you’re all just letting your hurt feelings keep you from thinking clearly”.

“Easy for you to say, Toph! You weren’t with us when he did all those awful things to us.” At this point, I was angry. Not at Toph, but at myself because I didn’t want to believe him and risk getting hurt once again.

And then she said something that I hadn’t really thought about: Aang needed a firebending teacher, and Zuko was probably the only one willing to do the job. I hated to admit that she was right, but we needed the Prince, even if we hated him or the idea of being around him. Of course, everyone else was in denial, so then Toph stormed off and left us all with our thoughts. Right after that, I went to my room, not wanting to deal with anything nor anyone; however, my loneliness didn’t last long since my brother decided to keep me company.

“Hey, sis, everything okay?” I looked at him, not needing to let a single word out of my mouth for him to realize that I definitely wasn’t okay. He sat next to me on the floor and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “What is it, (Y/N)?”

“What if Toph is right, Sokka?”

“Wait, you’re not seriously considering-”

“Where would we be able to find another firebending teacher for Aang?” I interrupted him. “I know none of us like the idea of him joining our group, but what if this is our only chance at winning this war?”

“Why are you switching sides all of a sudden?”

“I’m not! I’m just saying that maybe we should at least consider his offer, you know?”

"I don’t know, (Y/N). He’s tricked us before, especially you back in Ba Sing Se, I just don’t want him to hurt any of us again”.

I nodded, understanding his words and we stayed silent for a few minutes before changing the subject.

Our conversation was interrupted by Katara’s voice a little later, calling us for dinner. We all sat around the fire, except for Toph since none of us knew where she was.

“So… Sokka and I were talking earlier and I was wondering… Do you really think we should let this opportunity go without even thinking about it?”

“Please tell me you're not talking about Zuko, (Y/N).”

“I am, Katara. Look, I know he’s done bad stuff, but he literally came to us and offered to teach you firebending,” I said, looking at Aang for a second. “I don't want us to keep arguing about this, but I’m just saying that maybe Toph wasn't so wrong after all.”

“So should we just let him join us and forget all the bad things he's done to us?”

“No, I’m saying that maybe we should give him, this, a chance.” I let out a sigh as I looked at everyone else. “I think that this goes beyond our anger and hard feelings against the boy.” We all stayed quiet after that, and as soon as we were done, we went to bed.

The next day, Toph finally showed up, and her feet had been burned; turns out that Zuko was the one who’d hurt her. We were all around the fountain when suddenly Combustion Man decided to show up. A few moments later, the Prince appeared as well, trying to stop the assassin. It didn't work, though, and we were forced to hide while we tried to figure out a way to defeat him. We were able to do it thanks to Sokka and his boomerang, although Zuko helped us too.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this but thanks, Zuko,” said Aang.

“Listen, I know I didn’t explain myself very well yesterday. I’ve been through a lot in the past years, and it’s been hard. But I’m realizing that I had to go through all those things to learn the truth.” He made a pause and laid my eyes on him for a moment and when he looked back, I turned my gaze to the floor. “I thought I had lost my honor and that somehow my father could return it to me. But I know now that no one can give you your honor. It’s something you earn for yourself by choosing to do what’s right. And all I want now is to play my part in ending this war, I know my destiny is to help you restore balance to the world”.

I didn’t know why, but this time I did not doubt that he was being honest, maybe it was just because my anger had been overcome by the need to put an end to this war.

“I’m sorry for what I did to you. It was an accident.” He said while looking at Toph. “Fire can be dangerous and wild. So as a firebender, I need to be more careful and control my bending so I don’t hurt people unintentionally”.

“I think you are supposed to be my firebending teacher” started saying Aang. “When I first tried to learn firebending, I burned Katara. And after that, I never wanted to firebend again. But now I know you understand how easy it is to hurt the people you love. I’d like you to teach me”.

“Thank you. I’m so happy you’ve accepted me into your group”.

“Not so fast. I still have to ask my friends if it’s okay with them,” and so he started asking every single one of us for our opinion. Everyone agreed, and when it was my turn, I took a deep breath before speaking.

“I’m not the biggest fan, but I know that letting him join us is the right choice”.

And just like that, he was with us. Soon after that, my brother took him to his room, and me and my sister decided to start making lunch.

“Wait for me, I’ll be back in just a second.” I looked at her a bit confused, but she didn’t give me any time to ask her anything, so I just brushed it off; we would have time to talk later.

When she was back, she had a small smile on her face and when I asked what had happened, my sister said that she had only talked about some things with our newest member.

I knew how Katara could be, so I got a little worried, but she told me to calm down, and I did. However, I started getting suspicious after a few days since every time I was about to spend some time with Zuko, one of my siblings magically appeared out of nowhere. I could tell the boy tried his best to avoid me, but I didn't know why.

At the moment, I was looking at Aang and Zuko while they trained near our campsite, and when they were done, the boy practically ran away from me.

"Aang, can I ask you something?" I said while looking at the young airbender in front of me. He nodded and I took that as my cue to keep talking. "Is there something wrong? Because Zuko's been avoiding me since the first day he joined us and I'm sure Sokka and Katara have something to do with it."

"I, uh, well- I think it's best if you talk to them about it," he said and I silently agreed. So I walked away to do that and, lucky for me, they were already talking to each other.

"I think we need to talk," I said. They both looked at me pretending to be confused, but I knew they were aware of what this was about. "Just tell me what you said to Zuko."

"(Y/N), I don't know what you're-".

"Stop lying, Sokka! I can tell that he runs away from me every time we're about to be alone, and I've also noticed how at least one of you strategically appears at just the right moment to prevent us from being by ourselves." They both stayed silent and looked at the floor, clearly ashamed.

"We didn't want him to be near you," started saying my sister, "we just don't want him to hurt you again, we want you to be happy."

"Did you guys ever think that maybe you don't get to decide who can or cannot be close to me?" I was angry, but I also was a bit sad. I knew they loved me, but for some reason they treated me like a little girl, despite being only one year younger than Sokka and the same age as Katara.

"You're our sister, (Y/N). We were trying to protect you". I took a deep breath; I wanted this conversation to be peaceful and the only way to do that was by remaining calm.

"Look, Sokka, I get it. I care about you too, but I'm not a little girl who needs to be protected, okay?" I made a pause to look at them before continuing. "It's nice that you care about me, but you have to let me make my own choices, even if I end up getting hurt."

"I know, (Y/N)." Katara took my hand and looked at me in the eyes. "We're sorry, you know we love you and we meant no harm but, maybe this didn't go as planned".

"Yeah, keeping you guys apart was stupid, it's inevitable," agreed my brother.

"What do you mean?"

"It's pretty obvious you guys have a crush on each other, maybe a little more than just that and, well, our behavior was very immature". I agreed with her and I obviously decided to forgive them, they were my family after all. We spent some minutes just talking about nothing and everything at the same time when suddenly I saw Zuko just a few meters away from us. I could feel both of my siblings' eyes on me and when I looked at them, they were also smiling a bit. "Go talk to him".

And so I did. I walked up to him and when he was about to leave, I let out a little laugh.

"You don't have to do that anymore," I said. "I spoke with Katara and Sokka, they won't force you to stay away from me," I explained.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, I'm sure. This means we can finally spend some time together, right? I mean, only if you want…"

"Of course I do," he said quickly before blushing, which made me let out a chuckle.

"You're pretty cute when you blush" I mumbled just loud enough for him to hear me. He opened his eyes with surprise and then he smiled.

"Um, thanks. You're pretty cute too, all the time," and now it was my time to blush.

"Do you want to walk around the temple?" I asked and he nodded in agreement.

I'm not sure of how long we were away from the others, but it had been long enough for us to talk about pretty much everything in our lives. We sat down, letting our feet hang from the edge of a little bridge, and we looked at the horizon.

"I'm sorry about everything that happened in Ba Sing Se, I was a jerk and you didn't deserve that; neither of you did".

"I know, but it's okay. You've changed for the better, Zuko".

"So, um, we're here looking at the sky and… is this the right time to tell you that I like you?" He said extremely quick, making it a bit hard for me to figure out what he was saying.

"I mean, you kind of already did," I said while chuckling. "But I think it's the right time to say it because I like you too, Zuko." Right after saying that, I pressed my lips against his cheek, and while I was backing off, he quickly laid his lips on top of mine. The kiss was short and sweet, but it was everything we needed at the time. When we pulled back, I saw the biggest smile ever on his face and realized in that moment, that all I ever wanted was to see him smile that for the rest of my life.

[linkysmommy]

The Time That Came Between

PART I

Part II link here

Fandom: It Lives in the Woods

Pairing: Noah Marshall x fem MC

Words: 3,057

Summary: What happened to Noah after Jazmyn Park sacrificed herself and he fled Westchester?

Warnings: Some minor swearing, topics of drug use and addiction

Author’s note: This is basically my imagination of what happened to Noah after he left Westchester and before he realized that MC was still somewhat cognizant as the shadow monster. I definitely have some creative liberties and my own thoughts on the dark path Noah went on after everything went down. It shouldn’t be too long, but I’m splitting it into parts. It’ll probably be between 5-6 parts when all is finished.

The first thing he noticed was the overwhelming stench of sour, rotting garbage.

Then came the God-awful pain.

It felt like there was a bonfire burning in Noah’s back. The muscles in his body screamed and throbbed, and his body shook violently. He weakly opened his eyes, and could barely see because they were so watery. It was like this every morning when he woke up. But somehow, that didn’t make it any better.

He managed to push himself into a sitting position as he tried to put together where the hell he was. He rubbed the film away from his eyes and glanced around himself. He was sitting in an apartment parking lot, his back pushed up against a huge dumpster bin. A trail of gooey water dripped from the trash can and trickled down the cement pavement. The morning sun shone in colorful rays through the filth, and he could hear the morning hum of cars and commuters as the responsible population began their days. A street cat hissed and rustled through the trash, and one of the windows in the building across from him burst open as yells from the people inside drifted out into the morning.

Noah sighed and leaned his head against the metal trash bin. He didn’t even care that his shirt was soaked with trash water, or that the side of his face was still covered with gravel from the ground. All he could focus on was the pain and discomfort. His burning back, his aching muscles, his runny nose, the wave of nausea that crashed over him.

He should get up, go to his apartment, take a shower, get dressed. He should get to work on time and save some money so he’d be able to go far away and leave forever. But no. Instead, he woke up in front of a dumpster and the first thing he did was reach for his phone. He hated everything about himself as he turned on the screen and dialed the person he simultaneously hated most and needed most in this entire world.

But he was too weak. So he called Reynold anyway.

The phone rang, and rang, and rang. Terror seized through him and his hand began to shake uncontrollably. What if Reynold didn’t pick up? What if—

Before Noah could think much, a very unhappy voice on the other line answered.

“The hell you want? It’s 7:00 in the morning.”

“I need some,” Noah said. “Where can I meet you?”

The voice on the other end scoffed. “Are you serious? You already blew through what I sold you two days ago?”

“It’s been… a rough couple of days.”

Reynold fell silent, which pissed Noah off. He was the one funding this guy, yet Reynold acted like he was the nuisance. Finally, Reynold let out a long sigh. “I’m busy today Malcolm. I don’t have time to—”

“I’ll pay you double. Hell, I’ll pay you triple. Just tell me where to meet you and when.”

Reynold grumbled something under his breath, but then he agreed. Soon, Noah had the place and information typed into his old, cracked phone. Now all he had to do was survive six more hours until they met up. Even that long seemed like more torture than he could stand.

Noah didn’t know how long he sat there, feeling like complete and utter shit. It could’ve been minutes, or it could’ve been hours. All he knew was that when two middle school girls crossed in front of him to head to their bus stop, chattering excitedly about some TV show, the expression on their faces when they saw him was enough to make him want to kill himself.

There was fear in their faces. Fear that the dirty, grimy man sitting by the dumpster would hurt them. Noah lowered his gaze and they hurried past. And he wished, for what must have been the thousandth time in the past twenty-four hours, that his life had never been so goddamn awful that he felt the only way he could survive was through losing himself to heroin. 

He wished that it had been him who took Redfield’s place, and not Jaz.

Never Jaz.

***

The bell jingled as Noah stepped into the gas station where he worked. A handful of customers browsed the shelves, and crouched in one of the aisles was his supervisor, Russ, probably doing inventory.

The door clattered shut behind Noah and he tried to sneak past Russ. But, like some freaking bloodhound, he looked up the moment Noah took a step. Russ’s eyes narrowed and his face flushed with anger. He stood, the item scanner hanging loosely from one hand.

“You’re late again, Johnson.” Russ glanced pointedly at the clock, then back at Noah. “Twenty-two minutes late, to be exact.”

“I’m aware of that,.” Noah said, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. “I ran into some… stuff.”

Russ did roll his eyes. “That’s not an excuse. Not when it happens every day.”

“Yeah, well. I’m here now so let me get to work.” Noah shouldered past Russ to the employees only area. It wasn’t much, but there was a wall with hooks where he could hang his jacket, and shelves and shelves full of supplies. 

Noah hung his jacket and took a deep, calming breath. He hated this job. He hated how Russ thought he was worse than dirt, and he hated how much he resented that. After what he’d done, he didn’t deserve to be treated well by anyone. He deserved every ounce of hatred every single person had to spare.

He brushed his fingers over the scarred skin on the inside of his elbow. It was rough, and still tingled with his most recent dose. He was a coward for trying to find something to ease the pain, to make him forget. It was only fair that the drug no longer made him feel anything other than normal. Where it once had left him feeling powerful and nearly happy, now all it did was make him need it when he wasn’t using, and when he was using he just felt normal.

And normal… wasn’t exactly what he wanted.

The one good thing about Jaz sacrificing herself for him was that at least she didn’t have to live to see him like this. This pathetic shell of a man she thought was worth enough that she decided to die for him.

Noah squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his hand into his forehead. Forget about this. Don’t think. Just get out and do your job, go home, shoot up, go to sleep, repeat. Keep going. Just survive. 

He took one last calming breath, took a moment to steel himself… and then stepped back into the front.

As he approached the counter to take his position for the day., the girl standing behind it glared at him.

“Finally. You made me stay late, you jerk. I’ve been here since 12 AM!”

“Yeah… sorry Diane,” Noah said sheepishly, fumbling awkwardly with the edge of his beanie. “I’m here now though, so you can leave.”

Diane peered up at him from behind the counter and her scowl melted away into a grin. “I’m just teasing, Malcolm! No need to be so serious. Of course I’m not mad at you.”

“Oh! Right. Of course.” Noah forced a laugh and sidled behind the counter. 

Ever since the cops found Jaz’s broken body last September and Noah had become the prime suspect, he’d been on the run, never staying anywhere for too long. He spent time in Montana, Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. He never finished high school, and instead took to getting himself fake IDs and socials just to find work wherever he could get it. But now, he was back in Oregon, a mere three hours away from where it all started: Westchester.

Noah had only been working at this convenience store for two months, but no one in any of his other jobs paid attention to him like Diane did. She knew nothing real about him—she thought his name was Malcolm Johnson and that he moved from Missouri to live with his aunt—but she always invited him out, always found ways to tease him, always tried to make him smile.

And she was cute and pretty and sweet, but she was no Jaz. No one could ever even begin to compare to Jazmyn Park.

“Well now that somebody’s here, I’m gonna go get changed and get the hell out of here,” Diane said with a smirk, nudging Noah as she sashayed out from behind the counter.

“I said I was sorry,” Noah called after her. She just waved and disappeared into the employee area.

Noah let out a sigh and leaned his elbows against the countertop. The store wasn’t very busy right now, so he’d just get to stand there for hours, doing nothing. Doing nothing was hard because when you were doing nothing, there wasn’t anything to distract you from the terrible things you didn’t want to think about. He much preferred busy days to slow days.

The door jingled and Noah heard footsteps as people entered the store. He couldn’t see the door from where he stood. He hoped it was a munchy druggy or a parent with kids. Those people always bought the most stuff, which meant more time to be occupied.

“…Been a whole year now,” a familiar voice drifted over to where Noah stood. “And nobody knows where he is.”

Noah’s eyebrows shot up and he glanced furtively around the store. The newcomers to the store stepped out from behind a row of shelves and then, standing across the room with his back to Noah was a man with a flannel shirt and shoulder-length blond hair. A man Noah recognized all to well. Connor Green.

“Shit,” Noah muttered. His heart pounded in his chest and his mouth felt dry. “Shit shit shit sh—” 

Connor started turning, so Noah did the only thing he could think of. He dropped to his hands and knees behind the desk, disappearing from view.  Diane exited out of the employees-only area just as he did, and he saw confusion flit across her face.

“I miss Jaz,” Connor said. “She was really… somethin’ else. I still can’t believe she’s gone.”

A very unjustified but burning hatred for that man flared up inside Noah. He remembered being at the hardware store, shopping for supplies to go up against Mr. Red—Jane. He remembered how Connor flirted with Jaz and how she flirted right back. And he remembered the day Andy asked them if they wanted to go to homecoming. Noah had said, “Seems kinda pointless to go without a date. And I’m… not really in a good place for that. Dating, I mean.” Then he asked Jaz who she wanted to go with and she turned around and went straight to Connor.

He knew he had no right to be angry about it. He’d told Jaz that he wasn’t in a place for dating, and he probably would’ve said no if she’d asked him. But when she decided to ask Connor and Noah responded with “Good luck,” he really had just wanted to clock Connor in the face.

“Do you think they’ll ever catch Noah?” another voice—a woman this time—asked. Noah’s heart nearly froze at the mention of his own name and he frantically tried to place the voice. Then he realized—it was Stacy Green, of course.

Another pair of hands and knees fell onto the ground beside Noah and he started, jumping back and nearly slamming against the back wall.

Diane watched him with an amused expression. Her short black pixie cut was messily styled and her dark makeup made her features stand out against pale skin. “What’re we doing down here, Johnson?” she asked.

“Uh…” His mind raced frantically, trying to come up with some sort of explanation. Some sort of truth and lie mixture that could get him out of this mess. “I know those people from high school. And, uh, they were snobby assholes who hated me. So, I just don’t  want them to know I work here, okay?”

The amusement faded from Diane’s eyes and she nodded solemnly. “I understand. I know I already clocked out, but… I can cover for you until they leave.”

“Really?” Noah couldn’t hide the relieved smile that stole onto his face. 

“Oh yeah,” Diane said. “But you owe me.”

“Okay yeah, that’s fair. What do you want? I can cover your hours or—“

“A date,” Diane said with a smug smile, and before he could protest she bounced to her feet and pasted a winning smile onto her face.

“Hiiii,” she greeted. Noah wondered if she was talking to Connor and Stacy. All he could see was the gross tile, front counter, and Diane’s legs. “Can I help you with something?”

“Hey,” Connor’s voice said. “Cute shirt, by the way.”

Noah wanted to barf. Flirting with random strangers was so Connor.

“We just wanted to buy a few things and ask a few questions, if that’s all right?” Stacy said. Noah could practically hear the smile in her voice.

“Okay, shoot!” Diane said.

Noah heard the sound of items being dropped on the counter, and then the register creaking like it did whenever anyone leaned on it. He could imagine Connor leaning against it now, looking at Diane with the stupid flirtatious smirk he always used on Jaz.

“We were wondering—” it was Connor again “—have you heard of anyone… suspicious running through these parts?”

Diane let out a sharp laugh. “Is that all you’ve got to go off of? I’m sorry, sweetie, but if I told you all the suspicious people I’ve seen around here I’d be listing names ‘til midnight.”

Noah snorted silently. Leave it to Diane to handle a situation like this so perfectly.

He heard Stacy sign in aggravation. “Connor, maybe I should handle this.” There were shuffling footsteps, rustling of the contents of a purse, and something being slapped onto the countertop. “Have you seen anyone who looks like this man? About this tall, almost always wears a beanie? His name is Noah but he probably goes by something else?”

All traces of a smile evaporated from Noah’s face. His heart started to race with panic. He chanced a look up at Diane’s face, and her eyes were narrowed, her mouth tugged into a frown.

Silence. No sound besides a ticking clock and Russ shuffling around the aisles. Diane stared at the counter, at what Noah was sure was a picture of him. He held his breath, waiting for her to jump aside and say, “Oh you’re looking for this guy? Here he is, take him!”

But instead, she shook her head. Her voice was tight. “Nope, never heard of a ‘Noah.’ Also never seen this guy. Sorry.”

Relief flooded through Noah, almost as satisfying a feeling as a heroin high. Diane wasn’t giving him up. At least not yet.

Connor sighed loudly. “Do you have any idea who might know something? This is important. We got a tip that he moved to this area recently but so far, we’ve found nothing.”

“I don’t know,” Diane said. “Why’re you looking for him? Maybe if I knew I could point you to the right people.” 

Noah frantically grabbed her foot, trying to somehow signal to her to not ask these questions. But she shook him off and kept staring straight forward.

“It’s kind of… a personal thing,” Stacy said.

“Well I can’t help if you don’t tell me anything,” Diane countered.

“Look,” Connor interceded. “The police are after him for something he actually didn’t do. We think we might be able to help him, but he’s dodging us.”

Diane glanced down at Noah for a fraction of a second. Then she shrugged. “A person on the run? I’d look for them in Lensgate Park. Or maybe check out the baseball field on eleventh. Tons of shady people hang out there. They might know something.”

“Lensgate Park…” Stacy repeated slowly, probably entering it into her phone. “Okay. And you said eleventh?”

“Yup,” Diane said dryly. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“Nope,” Connor said. “You’ve been great. I hope you have a great shift.”

Finally, finally, the footsteps sounded once again, the bell rang as it was opened, and then the door slammed shut. Noah barely had time to reorient himself before Diane reached down and pulled him roughly to his feet.

“Malcolm, what the hell was that about? Who were those people? They weren’t high school bullies, this was something else entirely. And Noah? The cops? What. The. HELL.”

“Diane, Diane,” Noah said, grabbing her by the arms. “Look, those people are from where I grew up, and they… they can’t be trusted.” His mind scrambled to come up with some sort of excuse, but all he could see was Jaz, over and over again. Her terror when she realized he tricked them, her body, broken in his arms… “Um, they, want to frame me—”

Diane scoffed and glared into his honey brown eyes. “Do you expect me to believe that? Are you just one big lie?”

Noah fell back a step, the color draining from his face. “I—”

“Save it, Malcolm. If that’s even your real name.” Diane skirted around the counter and headed for the door. “I backed you up because I liked you, but whatever you’re involved in, I don’t want any part in it. You can forget about the date.”

Noah’s eyebrows knit together as he watched her head out the front door, never looking back. Russ came out from one of the aisles, glancing between Noah and Diane.

“What happened with you two?” Russ asked.

Noah skirted around the counter, removing the name badge he wore on his shirt. “Sorry, Russ, but consider this my resignation.”

He dropped the badge on the counter and shouldered past a shocked Russ.

“Wh—what?” Russ sputtered, chasing after Noah. “Johnson, if you leave it’s just me and Tom. I need the coverage, at least wait until tomorrow—”

“Stuff came up,” Noah said, pushing the glass door open with his shoulder. “I’ll see you around, Russ.”

Russ watched helplessly from the sidewalk as Noah slid into his old beat-up car. He turned the radio on high as he backed out of the parking lot.

He was going to Lensgate Park, or maybe the baseball field on Eleventh.

He was going to figure out what Stacy and Connor knew.

***

Post-note: I wrote this a while ago and wasn’t going to finish but that fic by @isometimesplaychoices inspired me to continue and finish this fic, ily friend!! 

[laceymorganwrites]

What even is my blog anymore

I remember when I started this blog and it used to be only One Piece because it was the only anime I watched back then

And I had wonderful interactions and events (thinking back fondly to the 2 Kidd weeks I did, being confident enough to selfship and the character asks)

over time I also started writing for other fandoms but it always mattered to me what people thought so I used to hyperfocuse on my notes and be super happy

but it wasn´t always good

I beat myself up over the fact that certain fandoms did better than others, being super sad that I couldn´t compete with blogs that only wrote about xy fandom

and tbh I still feel that way, especially now about Haikyuu, now that I follow so many amazing blogs that are way mroe creative and just better at writing than me

I get down from time to time but I´m starting to care less about notes and interactions (which when I think about it is really sad because it gets lonely and I want to talk to you guys more), instead I´m focusing on what I want to write and I only write what´s fun to me, which is why I´ve been getting harsher with requests

I´m not putting any pressure on myself anymore which is good I guess

But I just really miss the old times sometimes, I´m super glad to be able to write everything I want to, but sometimes I get so insecure and really wanna know if I did good or not

In the end I´m glad that you somehow stayed with me, watched me change (for better or worse is for you to decide) and thanks to everyone from the beginning who stuck with me even though I might not post as much about certain fandoms anymore

[hopeduckling13]

A Wish Come True: Chapter 9

Summary:  How quickly can your mood change from pure happiness to pure horror? In a millisecond.The day Killian and Emma found out they were true love, they were ecstatic. That is until, they were forced to say goodbye to each other. For forever. Or so they thought.Can they still manage to find their true love for each other after five years of seperation or is it too late?

Fandom: Once Upon A Time

Ship: Captain Swan

Setting: 5 years after 5x20 Firebird

Also on AO3, FF.net and Wattpad

Catch up on Tumblr: [Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4] [Chapter 5] [Chapter 6] [Chapter 7] [Chapter 8]

Reblog to be tagged in future chapters: @bioshocked-fallout

~~~ EMMAS POV ~~~

My mind slowly slips back into consciousness. I keep my eyes closed, but then I notice something weird. Something inexplainable actually.

There is an arm wrapped tightly around my middle. I feel someones steady breath on my neck. What the hell?!

I open my eyes quickly and look around confusedly. I do am in my room. How did I get here again?

And worse, this also means that there is someone in my bed.

For a second I think, that these past five years might‘ve just been a nightmare after all. A nightmare I finally woke up from. There is no one besides Killian, who would sleep in my bed, right? Not if they value their life. I would never let anyone besides Killian close to it. He’s welcome though. I mean he does live here.

The only problem with that theory is though that Killian never got to sleep in this bed. It might be ours, but he died before we ever lived in this house. He only chose it, so that we could have a white-picket-fence life. Aka the future we never got to have. The future we deserved to be honest.

Then I suddenly remember the previous day - single images coming back to until I finally remember every single detail.

It was the fifth anniversary of Killian’s death.  I was obviously very upset and missed my true love more than I already miss him any other day. My defenses were down and I also might’ve had a little bit too much wine, so I never kicked Carter out last night. He picked me up from the sheriff’s station because my mother send him to check on me.

We hung out a little at my place since I couldn’t convince him, that I’m better off alone that day - or any day actually, but I’d never tel him that. He is a good friend after all, so wouldn’t hurt his feelings like that.

If I remember correctly, I never even went to bed. I fell asleep on the couch, which means...Carter must have carried me here and changed me into my pajamas.

Oh, god.

I slowly slip out from under Carter‘s arm, before literally sprinting out of my room - careful not to wake him up though. I can’t face him. I need my space, which is why he never should´ve stayed here.

I take a deep breath once I get to the kitchen.

I’ll never drink again. I can’t ever let this happen again. I just can’t.

Sure, Carter has been my...boyfriend, I guess...for quite some time, but I’m not ready for this kind of commitment - letting him sleep here and waking up in his arm. He can’t just stay here, whenever he feels like it. I don’t ever want to wake up next to him again. I don’t ever want to wake up next to anyone but Killian.

Maybe, this gives me the perfect opportunity to break up with him. I’ve been meaning to do so and now i finally have a reason to be mad at him.

But I’m also not quite ready for really being single in my mother’s presence again. She might give me a week or so to move on, but then she’ll be back to matchmaking me with literally every single guy in town. I don’t want that. It’s the only reason I started spending time with Carter in the first place. It’s not like I ever had the slightest bit of feelings for him. He’s a nice guy and all. I do somehow enjoy his presence - with him as my friend - but that’s all he is to me.

And now he has broken the rules of our relationship. Sure, they were never spoken out loud, but he should have known I wouldn't want him to stay here. I never let him do so before and I also never stayed at his place, so why would I change my mind on the anniversary my true love’s death?

Just because he thinks, that we should get married and live together, doesn't mean that I agree with that.

And he’s aware of that since I rejected his proposals every single time.

Suddenly, two arms wrap around me from behind and a kiss is being pressed onto my cheek.

“Good morning, sweetheart.” Carter whispers into my ear and once again I have to stop myself from visibly flinching at that pet name.

I pull away from his embrace, intending full well to bring up why I’m mad at him, but before I can say a word, the door bell rings.

“Excuse me, I have to get that.” I say. Then I leave the kitchen and Carter behind to walk to the door.

Who the hell would visit me this early? It’s barely 8 o’clock. I’m usually not even awake this early - except for when Henry is here.

Oh, god.

Is it Henry? Is he alright?

I reach the door in record time after that thought and swing it open. As soon as I see who it is, The doorknob leaves my hand and the door crashes into the wall. I suck in a sharp breath and feel tears forming in my eyes.

The door might’ve damaged the wall judging by the sounds it made. But I don’t really care about that.

I wouldn’t care about anything right now because what I’m seeing can’t be real. This is too good to be true. The best thing to ever happen to me.

In front of my door stands Killian.

For a moment I actually think, that I’m seeing things now - that I’m crazy and should be checked into the mental hospital, that Archie runs, but then Killian begins to speak.

“Swan.” he says quietly with a bright smile on his face.

He’s back. How is this possible? How is he here?

Honestly I don’t really care about the how’s. I’m just glad he’s back.

I’m about to run into his arms and never let him go, but that’s the moment I feel two hands on my hips, pulling me backwards. Then Carter presses a kiss to my cheek.

“Who’s our visitor, honey?” He says and I once again feel like punching him.

How dare he act like this is his house, too. It’s not and it’s never going to be. And the stupid pet name again. I hate it and especially I hate the expression he caused on Killian’s face.

My true love looks at me with sad eyes - honestly his whole body screams hurt and sadness. I just want to hug him and never let him go. An protect him from any negative force in this world.

So, that’s what I do.

I step forward and pull Killian tightly into my arms. I put my head in the crook of his neck and press a soft kiss to his pulse point, which is indeed moving. He really is alive. I sigh in relief. This is real. He is real.

I then breathe in the scent, that I‘ve missed so much - the sea mixed with a little rum. As I do that, the tears begin to flow down my cheeks like my eyes are the Niagara Falls. And for the first time in five years I cry out of joy, instead of pain and loss.

My true love came back to me and I’ll never let anyone take him away from me again.

[blakedawson76]

Why Sheith just does it for me

Well hello 😊! I´m Blake and I´m new to tumblr (I´ve had my account for years but haven´t really understood how this works, still trying to figure it out) and to the Voltron fandom. To be honest, I am a bit scared to post this, I don´t know how some people will take it or even if anyone will read it. Even so, I wanted to write this because I´ve been watching from the sidelines for several months now and after finishing season 6 I don´t want to hold it in anymore and I´m diving into the fandom full force, and I want to do it by writing something that hopefully someone can relate to so they don´t feel ashamed or alone 😉 (I´ll try to make this as short as possible, I promise).

I first learned and heard of Voltron because of Fictional Crystal´s videos on Youtube. I never really watched them or the Voltron videos in my recommendations, but then I got into DC, Jason Todd came into my life and I started seeing pictures of someone who looked like Jason but it wasn’t. So I went searching, found Shiro and finally decided to give Voltron a chance. I had heard so many things from the fandom and especially Klance, there was art everywhere and I thought “hey! They look cute, and they say it´s practically canon? I have to watch this!” I was really excited going in, fanart started popping up everywhere, and then I started watching Voltron for good. And kept watching not because of the ships but because of the plot, of the characters themselves, but after a short while more fanart kept popping up not of Keith and Lance but of Shiro and Keith. As the episodes went on and I saw more fanart, I found myself liking those arts more and more, and I knew that Sheith was going to be my OTP from the show. Why?

Well (and please keep in mind this is my very personal opinion):

·         I like ships that have had a relationship in the past. That´s just the thing. I really enjoy ships where the characters have had a past relationship and some history to them, be it as friends, enemies, family, lovers, anything. I like the idea that there is a lot in the current story we haven´t seen, but that it is there, that two characters have gone or lived through several things together that we discover as we go along or we are free to imagine. I like characters being comfortable and free with each other because they aren´t strangers and trust one another, and that´s what I saw between Shiro and Keith. They share a past, they already have an established bond and status that allows them to behave, talk and overall interact in ways they don´t really do with the rest of the Paladins. I like the closeness they´ve had from day one. I like that they already know each other.

·         I like ships where the characters are friends. I´m not sure how to go on about this, but see, I prefer ships where the characters have a civilized relationship with each other, where they are alike to some extent, where they agree on some things and where they enjoy each other´s company. Mind you, I have nothing against the whole rivals to friends to lovers thing, it´s not that I don´t like when the characters of a ship are polar opposites, because I like those too! But I prefer it when the thing goes from friends and then to lovers. Much like my first point, this is all about an established bond where they make each other smile and are able to laugh together, are able to hold conversations that don´t end up in banter or discussions.

·         I like the brotherly/sibling bonds. I´m just going to put it out there, all right? I like incest, but more than that I love it when a ship sees themselves as siblings. Why? Because that means there´s love in the purest of forms at the beginning, and because I believe this can lead to this love developing into something much more romantic and meaningful. I´m in the Saint Seiya fandom, and my OTP? In our roleplay forum they grew up considering each other brothers and are currently madly and sweetly in love and planning to spend the rest of their lives together with their dog son. Keith and Shiro aren´t brothers, but if they were, so what? Trust me, that would just make it better for me. They see each other as comfort and as somewhere where they can be safe and be at home.  Sure, this is what family makes people feel like, but isn´t that what love overall is supposed to make one feel like? There is love there, and even if it´s platonic at this point, I ship them so hard because it´s right up my alley, it has that starting point of love that can change from a pat on the shoulder to the holding of hands. To me, a ship where there is a sibling bond (by blood, by name, whatever) is the best because to me it´s always so sweet, so very deep, so darn meaningful yet conflicting and angsty but the characters can overcome this. And why do I think that? Because bonds as deep as these ones have a foundation on love, pure and plain love.

·         I don´t mind age gaps. Nope. I mean, I have been in different fandoms for about five or six years and in that time I´ve figured out what I like and what I don’t, what I care about and what I don´t. So yeah, Shiro is older than Keith by seven years (five, after this season, eh? XD) but guess what? For starters, my parents have an eight-year-old gap between them and let me tell you, it has never mattered. Several of my OTPs in the DC and Saint Seiya have an age gap too. It doesn´t matter either. Why? Because it´s not about how much older one character is from the other. It´s about the way they interact, how they behave, how they click and of course how much chemistry one sees between them. And besides, come on. Age gaps… there are so many worse things to make a fuss about.

·         I like power bottoms and gentle giants. I don´t really have much to say on this one. Keith is a power bottom and has Shiro wrapped around his finger, and I love that dynamic so darn much (Superbat, the Egoist couple, etc.).  I like the idea of a prince and his loyal and beloved knight, and I think Keith would make a beautiful prince and Shiro the best knight XD.

And I could go on and on about this, but this post is already too long. So I´m just going to cut it here. I´m not trying to put down any ship. Please don´t attack me. I live by the ship and let ship motto. Today, I merely wanted to write down why Sheith calls to me personally. I really hope at least someone reads it and finds it somehow relatable. And if anyone does make it to the end of this thing, thanks for your time and attention :D

[vicbartons]

For me, what would be even worse than Robert being an absentee father (which would be an all round tragedy for both him and Seb) would be the idea that he would take on some type of pseudo parental role with Liv as a consolation prize and that fans would celebrate it as a Good Thing. That would make me feel really sick.

everyone knows that i agree that sebastian is held to a different standard when it comes to rob´s care and affection by some in this fandom, merely because of who his mum is and the whole ons-thing, and if sebastian were to leave - which we don´t know he will - there would certainly be a lot of people who´d be happy to forget he ever existed and see robert back with liv and aaron (and an army of “proper” robron babies in the future). but to each their own, right? 

that aside, i don´t think you can compare robert/liv to robert/seb. first and foremost because to me personally the former has always been more of a brother/sister-thing (as liv herself has pointed out before), eventhough the fact that aaron and robert were acting as her guardians forced robert into a paternal role in certain situations. i don´t think it serves much of a purpose to pit liv and sebastian against each other, or imply that robert caring for liv would somehow be less valuable because he´s got a son somewhere out there that he isn´t in contact with. neither would either relationship be any less important or valuable if he were to “raise” both of them alongside each other. at the end of the day, the important thing to me is that robert would never see liv as a consolation prize. she´s his family just as much as seb and aaron and vic and diane are and he´s going to fight for them and protect them whatever it takes. so who cares what other fans might say about it?

honestly nonnie, just try not to see everything super grim before you´ve seen anything on screen or even read a spoiler. there´s still more than enough time to get annoyed with the fandom once they´ve actually done the thing you fear they might end up doing in your worst nightmares.

[roomba-your-ass]

Revelations Chapter 2

Fandom: Stormlight Archives

Pairing: Kaladin/Adolin

Spoilers: For WoK and WoR

Also on AO3 http://archiveofourown.org/works/13169070/chapters/30119982

Link to Chapter 1, Chapter 3

Chapter 2

“Why didn’t you?” Adolin ground out between clenched teeth. He really wanted to drive his fist into Kaladin’s nose again. Would he have used his full strength if Dalinar had been close to death with no real chance of turning the fight into his favour? But hadn’t that been the case all along? His father’s survival had been as much luck as skill. That and the fact that the assassin hadn’t seen them as threats and not used his full strength. Adolin didn’t want to think about what would have happened if the Assassin in White had attacked them using his full strength, but the ‘what if’s’ were like a loud noise in a cave, echoing for ours whenever he thought about it. He doubted he or his father would still be here in that case. He had been helplessly stuck onto the ceiling. He wondered what would’ve been worse, having to watch his father die, unable to help, or knowing Dalinar had to watch is son die at the hands of the man that already robbed him of his brother.

Adolin’s fury was matched by a determination to do anything to prevent a catastrophe like that from happening, should the Assassin in White return.

He could see Kaladin’s adam’s apple bob as he swallowed, he opened his mouth and closed it again without speaking. Adolin’s scow deepened.

“I am afraid of people finding out about what I can do.”

“So afraid that you couldn’t do your job, what you promised to do, to the best of your abilities?! You might have saved our lives by pushing the assassin along with yourself out the window but if my father hadn’t caught the blade beforehand, instead of letting it split his skull in half there would be nothing left for you to protect because you chose to hide your abilities!” Adolin knew he was raising his voice and possibly alerting any nearby guards or servants but he couldn’t care about that at the moment. He couldn’t care about anything else over the seething anger making his head pound in rhythm with his heart.

Kaladin opened his mouth as if to reply. Probably to deny that he wouldn’t have let Dalinar die, but Adolin didn’t let him speak.

“I don’t care whether or not you want people to know, but you should have told my father about it. You say you won’t be as helpless again should the assassin return? But if you can’t bring yourself to trust my father with this,” Adolin wanted to gesticulate at Kaladin’s now slightly less glowing form and perhaps punch him again for good measure but found his hands still firmly stuck to the ground. “If you can’t bring yourself to tell my father about it, how can I believe you when you say you’ll do your best to protect him?”

“I want to trust him, I want to trust and believe in Dalinar fully, but I can’t let believe and hope guide me. Not again.” For the first time since Adolin met the storming man, Kaladin seemed his age. Younger than Adolin. A young man with brands on his forehead that were put there against his choice. Scarred by the cruelty and corruption of the world. He seemed fragile. It made Adolin feel uncomfortable. His anger was sniffed out like a candle in a Highstorm and he cleared his throat in a useless attempt to dispel some of that uneasiness.

“My father sacrificed his Shardblade for you and your men, he made you a captain! What more do you expect him to do?” He wished the glow around Kaladin’s body was stronger so he didn’t have to see the pain in his face or so he could pretend it was an illusion cast by the Stormlight. He was glad when a glimmer of anger emerged onto the bridgeboy’s face at his words.

“You lighteyes have taken everything from me! This,” Kaladin gestured towards his chest, “is the only thing I have left. I can’t let it be taken as well! I can’t stomach another betrayal.”

“My father won’t betray you!” Now that he no longer wanted to choke the life out of the storming man, he felt exasperated at Kaladin’s words. Dalinar was very likely the most honourable man in all of Alethkar. How could the bridgeboy not trust him after what his father had sacrificed to Sadeas after the betrayal? What man would’ve given a Shard to his enemy?

When he finally spoke, Kaladin’s voice sounded raw, as if he had a hard time saying the words aloud.

“I told Dalinar something.  I was convinced to trust him with something that happened. But he didn’t want to know about it. Didn’t want to hear anything bad about another lighteyes. It was my mistake. I was well aware they knew each other. I knew they were friends. I should really know better by now.” Kaladin’s bitter smile looked more like a wavering grimace.

Adolin wanted to deny it. Wanted to stand up for his father. But he couldn’t do so with a clear conscience. Would his father believe a darkeyes that saved his life; a person he promoted to captain without knowing him for even a month or a friend of the same rank, a friend Dalinar had known for far longer? Adolin knew what the answer would be for himself.

He didn’t know what he could possibly say to that. Accuse the birdgeboy of lying? No, this was probably the longest they had ever talked and Adolin felt like Kaladin was telling the truth. Or at least what he felt was the truth. Adolin wasn’t willing to just blindly trust whatever he said. He wanted to ask what the bridgeboy had told Dalinar but it would be a useless question. They didn’t like each other, let alone trust, so what reason should Kaladin have to tell Adolin about it? He probably already regretted saying what he did. Maybe Adolin could somehow ask his father about it without appearing too suspicious

Adolin closed his eyes for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts. He sighed. His evening was supposed to be him relaxing with a glass of yellow wine, not have an emotionally exhausting conversation with the bridgeboy while nearly straddling him.

“Alright. Let’s just assume you had a good reason not to tell anyone about it, not even my father. Or do the best you could,” Adolin took a steadying breath because that part was what bothered him the most and was almost enough to send him tumbling into another rage. “Even though the Stormfather knows how irresponsible that was! What now? I know what you can do.” The bridgeboy’s expression turned a mix between worried and angry and Adolin hastened to add, “I’m not going to tell my father or anyone, unless you give agree or give me reason to. But, I have conditions. I want you to tell and show me everything you can do and know. And I want you to train with me. If the Assassin in White returns or someone else with powers like that comes along I need to be able to fight.”

Kaladin was the perfect training resource for this. And the only real solution for Adolin to learn how to fight against people with the power of Stormlight. He couldn’t risk Kaladin running away or something like that if he told his father about what he found out. There was no doubt that, if Kaladin felt threatened by the truth coming out he could just vanish. Though Adolin doubted the bridgeboy would leave his men behind. But he still could not risk it. He needed Kaladin’s cooperation. Of course, should the bridgeboy give him reason to doubt his loyalty that was a different story entirely.

“Alright.” Was the only thing Kaladin replied, apparently remembering his grim and brooding nature. His customary scowl was already back in place. At least Adolin now had seen proof that the bridgeboy hadn’t been born with that perpetual frown.

“But first, you are going to free my hands from whatever you did to them.” Kaladin looked almost amused hearing that demand, lips twitching, before seaming to realize the position they were in. Storms! How could the bridgeboy have been unaware of it until now!

Kaladin inhaled sharply and Adolin watched as Stormlight drifted from his hands to Kaladin’s mouth. It looked fascinating. If he hadn’t been in such a ridiculous position, Adolin would ‘ve remained rooted to the spot for a few moments longer just to watch the Stormlight drift from Kaladin’s mouth. As it was he hurried to scramble up, resisting the urge to punch the storming man again.

Adolin flexed his fingers, relieved to finally be able to move them again. He ran a hand through his hair and moved toward the table with the wine because he really wanted something to drink before remembering the goblet and the poison that led to this revelation in the first place. Adolin frowned. He had completely forgotten about the poison.

“Are you alright, bridgeboy?” It was probably a useless question but it didn’t hurt to ask. Kaladin seemed startled by it.

“I didn’t know you cared, princeling.” Adolin scowled. Look what came out of him trying to be nice. Kaladin scowled back. The storming man seemed to be alright if he could be this insufferable again already.

“Forget it! If you die from poisoning I’ll just tell them to chuck your corpse down a chasm, your stench alone is going to keep any Chasmfiends away from the area.”

Adolin took a seat and gesticulated towards the other chair, motioning for Kaladin to sit down. Kaladin seemed to hesitate for a moment before getting up from the floor and sitting down almost opposite of Adolin.  As they scowled at each other, Adolin asked himself how in the world the two of them could possibly work together. Adolin didn’t know how long they had been scowling at each other before Kaladin looked at the goblet with the poisoned needle and started speaking.

“Who would poison you? Dalinar is more of a problem to the other Highprinces.” Kaladin’s eyes widened in sudden realization, he jumped out of the seat. “Someone could’ve placed poison in Dalinar’s room as well!”

Adolin stood up, growing worried as well, although it was unlikely his father had even been to his rooms yet.

“My father should not be back in his quarters yet, he has a meeting that will probably go well into the night.” The two looked at each other before hurrying out of Adolin’s room to check Dalinar’s quarters. They passed Teft and Drehy and Kaladin stopped shortly to inform them about the current situation and left orders to question anyone who had access to Adolin’s room.

“The poison used wasn’t lethal, although the small amount that entered my bloodstream had a very strong effect in a short amount of time,” Kaladin began as they rounded a corner. “I don’t think it was meant to kill, merely incapacitate.”

“How would you know?”

“I was trained to become a surgeon before I ended up in the army. Anyway, the amount of substance that can be put on a needle that size is miniscule. Even Blackbane or Backbreaker Powder couldn’t manage to kill a grown man, a child maybe, yes. Whoever planned this had to have known it wouldn’t be enough to kill you, only make you seriously sick for some time. Maybe if you suffered some illness or your body was weakened enough. My guess is that it was a Backbreaker Powder concentrate because of the fast and strong effects it showed. It would’ve paralyzed my body, made breathing hard and induced unconsciousness in a matter of minutes with a small possibility of choking to death if left lying on my back.” Adolin nodded, he knew about those poisons but not much beside the fact that they were lethal. Somehow, he wasn’t that surprised to hear that Kaladin had been trained as a surgeon. It fit the man and his overprotective nature.

“This attempt to harm you was better than the one a few days ago, but it’s purpose still seems to mainly be to incapacitate you.” Adolin agreed. The attempt a few days ago, when his food had been laced with a mild poison hadn’t even come as close to succeeding as this one. Apparently, the people trying to harm him and perhaps other members of his family hadn’t known that he had a food-taster.

Who would be stupid enough to make an attempt on his life with next to no possibility of it being successful? It made sense for the goal to have been merely to incapacitate him.

They reached his father’s rooms where another bridgeman, Hobber, guarded the door. Adolin had made a habit of learning all their names, he wanted to know who was tasked with protecting him and his family.

“Has anyone been in or out of this room since your start of the shift?”

“No, Sir!” Kaladin briefed Hobber on the situation and then both he and Adolin entered the room, closing the door behind them.

Instead of starting to look for any threats though, Kaladin started taking spheres out of the lamps. Adolin stared open mouthed at the storming man, utterly baffled.

“What in Kelek’s name are you doing?”

“I need to replace my spheres, they’re all dun.” Kaladin took out his pouch and put his dun spheres in the lamp. Adolin felt stupid for not realizing, he had just learned the bridgeboy could breathe in Stormlight after all. He started to walk deeper into the room intending to start looking for threats.

Kaladin grabbed him by the arm, keeping him in place. Adolin looked at him in annoyance.

“Let me look. You should not touch anything. It doesn’t matter if I get poisoned as long as I have spheres but it’s going to be a problem if you get poisoned.”

“Fine.” Adolin had to agree with Kaladin but it was frustrating not being able to do anything. He leaned against the wall and once more watched the bridgeboy carefully comb a room. Only this time he wasn’t annoyed at his thoroughness.

“We are still going to have a talk.” Adolin started after a while. Kaladin only grunted and continued inspecting everything, including the bedsheets.

“How long have you had those powers?”

“I’m not sure, but I became aware of them during my time in Sadeas’ camp.”

“How exactly does it work? You just take the Stormlight from the spheres and then you can do stuff? Can I learn to do it?”

Kaladin stopped inspecting the bed and looked at him, an unreadable expression on his face. After a moment, he turned his head back and resumed his task.

“I don’t think you can simply learn it, I’m not exactly sure how I works either.” Adolin knew that wasn’t the whole truth but he let it slide for now. Getting some answers was enough for now. Even if it bothered him it was better than nothing and he didn’t want Kaladin to close up now that the storming man talked.

“And what can you do with it?”

“It enhances my strength and speed,” Kaladin started to explain obligingly. “It makes wounds heal faster and poison or alcohol rather useless. I can make things stick together.” Kaladin looked up at him and flashed him the tiniest of grins. “As you got to experience first-hand.” It caught Adolin completely off guard. He was glad Kaladin had already averted his gaze again or he would’ve witnessed the Kholin-heir staring stupidly.

“If you do something like that again I swear you’re going to regret it, bridgeboy.” Adolin finally snorted.

“I can also change the direction of gravitation of an object or person,” Kaladin went on, not reacting to Adolin’s comment. “Though I only learned that was possible when I saw the Assassin in White do it. I’ve practiced but I’m not very good yet.” He sounded frustrated. “You said you want to practice with me, when do you want to start? I train down in the chasms.”

“Tomorrow, in the later evening, so I don’t stand out so much. I can’t have people talk about me going down there with a bridgeman if I don’t have a good reason.” Going to train in the dark, damp chasms with the bridgeboy sounded about as fun as spending the afternoon in a fresh pile of Chull dung. Adolin wondered if it was a worrisome sign that he felt excited about it.

Notes:

How do you think my story-scapegoat aka the attempt to poison Adolin is gonna end? Who did it? Was it an old assassin, doing his last job before retirement but confusing the targets due to dementia? Was it Adolin himself, trying to get Kaladin's attention or one of Adolin's old girlfriends trying to get revenge because Adolin looked at differrent pairs of boobs instead of her own? Who knows. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter!

PS: Stay tuned for Kaladi groping Adolin's undergarments in chapter 3, though not in the way you might hope

[senyoun]

[Delayed Affection] Ch.1: Witnesses of Time

Fandom: One Piece

Relationships: Roronoa Zoro / OC

Tags: ANGST!, Unhealthy Friendship, Unhealthy Relationship, Therapy sessions, OC´s, Toxic Relationship, Depressions, Anxiety, later on smut

Word Count: 2.298

I jump onto the Angst-train guys.  You can also find this fic here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17509382/chapters/41244938

"Scars are the witnesses of time. They will follow you all your life and make you remember your mistakes."

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"Tell me about your past friendship with Ms. Reynolds, Lienna."

Sitting in the comfortable but cold leather chair the young woman starred into her hands she folded and unfolded nervously. She eyed the woman seated across from her carefully and somehow pleading, maybe she would change her question to something more... comfortable. It was obvious that sooner or later Dr. Robin would address the difficult topics and Meg, or how the therapist called her, "Ms. Reynolds" was such a topic she would rather avoid talking about. By merely hearing that woman´s name lots of different and also opposing emotions started to boil up inside of her.

"Didn´t we already go through that? There is not much to talk about it anyway. We were best friends until I realised I was nothing more than a tool for her. She used me to make herself look better in front of others. She´s a slu-"

"Ah, ah, language, Lienna. We are civilized and won´t put ourselfs on the same level as the people who hurt us." Dr. Robin interfered and after murmuring a quiet ´Sorry´, Lienna continued: "She is... a woman who enjoyed snatching the things I wanted right under my nose. When I told her about a dress I thought of pretty, she bought it to herself 2 days later. When I wanted to get a new haircut, she got it first. And do you know what the worst is? She always surpassed me. The dress I liked, she was stunning in it. The haircut? She rocked it better than I ever could. All I aimed for, she was always first and better in it than me." Lienna didn´t know when she started to get mad or when she began to clench her fists into the leather seat. She hated herself for letting that get so close to her since she now knew what kind of person Meghan was.

Putting her pen on the lips the raven-haired therapist thoroughly observed her client. "You were saying "what the worst is". Do you still consider her as superior?"

Shooting her gaze to the therapist as if she was caught off guard, Lienna nearly gasped at that question. "Of course not!" She hesitated and bit her lip before going on, "But I can´t deny that she still has something, someone I wanted so much. She could´ve taken everything from me. All the clothes, all the things. But she decided to take him as well. And that is what will make her always superior to me. Also because he chose her since, again, Meghan was faster than me."

"You are talking about Zoro, right? I assume you are trying to avoid any thought of him, is that the reason why you refuse to use his name?" And after Lienna nodded sadly Robin added: "But what strikes me as odd: I learned a lot about Zoro´s character from your previous stories. You are still not ready to talk about him directly, but to me it doesn´t make sense how he could even fall for someone as Ms. Reynolds?"

Lowering her head, Lienna starred at her thighs. She lost a lot of weight in these past 5 years, hunger simply wasn´t present and in the first months all nutrition she took to herself was puked out some hours later. Instead her alcohol consumption increased a lot but thankfully she started to get slowly rid of this unhealthy habit. "Meghan has a really unique talent: She wraps everyone around her finger. She is very good at manipulating people, I mean, I am the prime example, right? Even headstrong and cautious people like him are an easy prey for her."

Satisfied with the answer, Dr. Robin started a different topic. "Tell me how you met Ms. Reynolds."

Taking a deep breath and collecting all the courage she had Lienna started to speak.

Now that she stood in front of the still closed classroom door, the young girl´s anxiety reached a new high and restlessly she plucked on the hem of her skirt. Today was Lienna´s first day at the East Blue Middle School and she would prefer to just sink into the ground than going into the -with lots of strangers filled- classroom. But she promised her mom to not cause any problems and she really didn´t want to upset her, so when the teacher opened the door and winked her in, Lienna held her breath and stepped in.

It was lunch break when she approached Lienna. The brown-haired girl was wearing twin-tails which fell over her shoulder and on the desk she was supporting herself with. She starred down at the blue-eyed girl with a big smile. "Hi, I´m Meghan but you can call me Meg. Welcome to Class 1-C! I hope we can be good friends in the future!"

"I swear to god maths is killing me. Who needs something as useless and overly complicated as Integrals? I mean where in daily life would you need that anyway?" Meghan was walking besides Lienna sighing painfully. She pushed out her big chest annoyed. The whitette giggled slightly. "You only have to know it for the exams, after that you can just forget about it." Upon hearing those words Meghan swayed with her hips. "I can´t wait to get out of school and into university." She turned to Lienna. "And I can´t wait for us to move into our own apartment, we´re gonna be the coolest commune on the campus! Also..." Meghan licked her lips seductively. "... I can´t wait to lay my eyes and fingers on the boys." Now it was Lienna´s turn to sigh. "As long as you don´t forget to keep studying." The Brunette grinned. "That´s what I have you for, Lia. You will help me out if I need you, right?" Her gaze was intense and after some moments Lia answered. "S-sure."

Dr. Robin listened carefully and occasionally wrote something in her notebook. "I see. Did the friendship start to crumble when Zoro came into your lives? Or did something happen before?" She shifted in her seat and eyed Lienna carefully waiting for a reaction.

The Doc was a tall and beautiful women with long, black hair and hazel eyes which gave off a friendly and warm feeling. She was someone you know you can trust and can talk to. When Lienna first came into her practice for her first session she immediately felt that she could even entrust her darkest secrets to this woman, hell, the Doc would most likely even join her for a murder. Sometimes, when topics became rather difficult for Lienna to talk about, Dr. Robin knew exactly what buttons to push to make the Whitette spill what she wanted to know. The sessions were rough with her but Lienna was thankful for the Doc´s direct attitude. Dr. Robin doesn´t talk things pretty, she states out even the most uncomfortable facts and it was not unusual that Lienna started to cry like a baby in some of the sessions.

"I honestly don´t know. I mean, when we went through puberty both of us changed, I guess. She became more and more confident since her body was pretty well developed and she has always been popular with the boys. And I... well I just became more..."

"... submissive? Obeying?" Dr. Robin ended her sentence.

Lienna stayed silent and played around with her hands again. She couldn´t deny the truth of it as much as it hurt and before she could think of anything to reply to the Doc, latter spoke again.

"Where you scared of her? Were you afraid of the things she eventually could´ve done to you if you disobeyed?"

Shrugging, the younger woman impatiently pulled at her fingers. She knew that the Doc studied her body language just as much as her verbal answers so there was no need to actually say something. Closing her eyes and smiling softly, Dr. Robin stood up. "I think we made good progress today." Walking over to Lienna who also raised from her chair, the black-haired woman placed a hand on her clients shoulder in a soothing way. "Let´s continue there next week, shall we?"

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While she was sitting in the tram on her way to the office Lienna thought about Dr. Robin´s last words.

´Where you scared of her?´

She was. After they moved into their shared apartment, Meghan started to finalise her authority over Lienna and she was at her mercy, not able to do anything. And when he became part of their lives it only got worse since Lienna didn´t want to give Meghan any area she could attack and in front of him she also wanted to leave a good impression. She wondered what he thought really of her, did he only see her as the friend of his girlfriend all this time? Did he consider her as friend of him? Geez, she hated the post-session hours. Her thoughts went completely on rampage and made her forget her principles, for example to waste as less thoughts as possible on him. It only hurt her in the end and caused her sleepless nights she spend with crying into her pillow.

When the robot-like voice announced the trams arrival at Blue Water Station, Lienna forced herself back into reality and made her way to the exit. From here on it would only be a good 10-minute walk to her workplace and some fresh air would help lifting her spirits, even if it was just for a bit. Though she had to admit, the work at the Galley-La Company really did help a lot coping with her anxieties and depressions.

The Galley-La Company became famous in the 17th century as one of the largest ship-building companies in the city. To adapt to the industrialization they changed their business model to architecture. And nowadays the company is responsible for most of the buildings which were built in the vast city. When Lienna finished University and passed her exams she took the chance to apply for the assistance job the company was offering. Not only was this a huge step in her career, it was also her long-awaited possibility to leave. She couldn´t believe it when the chef, Iceburg told her after her interview that she convinced him to be the right choice for it. Especially, since she was directly working under him.

It was also Iceburg that got her on top of Dr. Robins way too long waiting list. Despite trying her best to keep her depressions and anxiety out of her workplace and at home, Lienna one day bursted out in tears when she messed up the model of a new Health Care Center Iceburg was working on. But instead of scolding her, Iceburg helped her out of her panic attack and talked her through it. When some of her colleagues told her that Iceburg treats his employees like his family, there weren´t exaggerating.

Waving to the twin-receptionists Mozu and Kiwi, Lienna went to the elevators, which carried her to the floor where her office was. The elevator was entirely empty besides her and especially after sessions she was happy to just listen to the lame elevator music before the turmoil of daily life comes haunting her. Stepping out of the elevator she was greeted by a tall, blonde man who looked way too stressed for his own good. "Morning, Paulie, going for a smoke?" The addressed man sighed exhausted and scratched the back of his head. "Morning, Lienna. Don´t ask, it´s only 10 am and I´m already done with everything and everyone for the day. We have way too much work. Anyway, see you later at lunchtime." Poor man, being Iceburgs head-engineer surely was an exhausting job since that man could come up with some really crazy stuff which Paulie had to put into reality.

"Good Morning! How is Robin doing?" Someone approached her as soon as she stepped through the door of the main office. Iceburg was leaning against Kalifa´s desk and both looked up when they heard someone entering. Before answering, Lienna took off her coat and placed her handbag on her desk. "I think she´s doing good. She doesn´t really talk about herself, so her private life is more or less a mystery to me. But she seemed to be happy with the progress we made today, so..." The Whitette shrugged but Iceburgs eyes lightened up, he came over to her and placed both of his hands on her shoulders. "That sounds really good, I´m happy for you!" Kalifa who still sat on her desk adjusted her glasses and narrowed her eyes: "Direct body contact without getting permission of the employee, thats sexual harrassment." she stated bluntly and Iceburg shuddered upon her words. Lienna though waved it off. "It´s fine, Kalifa."

The following hours went by without any exciting events. She finished transfering some paper-plans to the computer and constructed the 3D-Model for it and during lunch time she tried to take part into some daily conversations her colleagues held. It was around 5 p.m. when she decided to call it a day and made her way home. Saying her goodbye´s to Iceburg and Kalifa who both tended to work until late in the evening -damn workaholics-, Lienna stepped out of the large building and instantly pulled her warm scarf deeper into the face. The late afternoons really started to get cold and if not for the city lights everything would´ve been engulfed in darkness.

Drawing a comparison, Lienna decided that it has been a good day. Sure, her early morning session with Dr. Robin has been exhausting, but her work and the constant but somehow cute bickering between Iceburg and Kalifa made up for it. She managed to eat most of her lunch and drank a lot of water and as soon as she came home she would take a nice relaxing bath and end the day with a good book. She smiled, her nose and cheeks slightly red from the cold she strolled out of the tram station which was closest to her apartment.

Lienna just turned around the corner when she saw him standing there. And the whole world seemed to freeze. With a pale face and wide eyes she starred at him, frozen at her spot, talking to two men which seemed to be his friends. There goes her good mood. She wanted to run away or hide but the sheer sight of him turned her legs into stone and she was unable to move. Her heart hammered in her chest and cold sweat made its way down her spine and set off a weird contrast to her bodyheat. She tried to calm her breathing as the Doc taught her, else she would run into the danger of hyperventilating and just as she closed her eyes to soothe herself and opened them again, their gazes met.

Over the range of approximately 15 meters blue eyes looked into grey ones which looked more surprised than shocked. She saw his, still so kissable, lips moving but the chattering and traffic noises of the environment made it impossible for her to hear his words. Not that she wanted to hear them. She wanted to get away, as far away as possible, somewhere where she doesn´t have to see him, even though, at the same time, there was nothing more she wanted. He gestured something to his friends and started to move towards her with fast steps. That´s when reality finally woke up her senses and her legs seemed to function again. She turned around and dived into the sea of people, desperately trying to escape his gaze and his entire being before he could even reach out to her.

Closing the door to her apartment behind her she sank down to her knees, trying to catch her breath. She practically ran all the way to her apartment, taking small detours to stay out of sight. Thank God that man had a way too bad sense of orientation.

Why is he here?

This question kept echoing in her head and only when she felt her face being wet, Lienna realised she had started to cry uncontrollably. With shaking deep breaths she tried again to calm herself and after a while she was able to stand up, take off her shoes and coat and pulling out her phone to dial Dr. Robins number with shivering fingers.

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"Oi, you have been searching now for nearly an hour, Zoro. She´s gone." The raven-haired man slapped him on the back, trying to compensate his friend. "Shit! I never expected her to be here out of all places. And damn, she´s fast. I need to find her, Luffy!" Zoro gasped between his heavy breaths and braced the hands on his knees. The man named ´Luffy´raised an eyebrow. "What´s your relation with her, anyway?" The Greenette erected himself and sternly looked into the distance where Lienna had run off to. "She is the one I should´ve choosen instead."