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petertingle-yipyip · 3 years ago

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SIN MIEDO - BUCKY BARNES (THREE)

EPISODE THREE : POWER BROKER

series tags: @calums-betch // SM masterlist // another madripoor gif bc i loved those scenes

Pairing: Stark!Reader x Bucky Barnes (platonic/flirty)

Word Count: 9,209

Summary: Leaving John Walker in the dust, Y/N had to follow Barnes to a shifty contact. That leads them to Madripoor and an unexpected, and suspicious, ally. Juggling her grief, her control, her own doubts, the pressure of Walker on their tail, and a school girl crush, can she handle the fight?

The next day, the three of you found yourselves in Berlin. You weren’t surprised how easy it was to get through security. Flashing a smile and an ID with Stark on it opened pretty much any door. Surely it had nothing to do with Sam working with the Air Force again.

“Last time I was in Germany, we weren’t on the same side.” You commented nostalgically as you three followed the security guard. “How the tables have turned.”

“I’m gonna go in alone.” Barnes said as you all approached the last corridor.

“Not a chance.” You laughed as Sam said “Why?”

“You’re Avengers..” Barnes reasoned. “You know how he feels about that.”

“It’s not like you two were known for frolicking in the sun together.” Sam mocked.

“He was obsessed with HYDRA. We have a history. Trust me, I got it.” Barnes assured before turning to leave. When Sam didn’t stop him, you did.

Quickly you reached out and grabbed his wrist. You made no effort to pull him back and he didn’t exactly pull away from you. He looked back at you with a stern expression, that he wasn’t going to cave.

“You’re not going alone, Barnes.” You said seriously, tightening your grip on his wrist slightly.

“Y/N-“ He tried.

“No.” You cut in. “I don’t care. I can do this all day.” You offered with a slight smirk.

He chewed the inside of his cheek for a moment before caving. He nodded slightly, his expression betraying that he was slightly impressed. “Fine. Hurry up.” He said, nodding for you to follow.

“Yessir, Sergeant Barnes.” You chuckled as you followed behind Barnes. The comment earned you an eye roll and a scoff, but nothing was said.

“You sure you want to do this?” You checked as you two waited for security to let you in. “I can handle it on my own..”

“I can do it.” He nodded as you approached the cell.

“I’m sure you can.” You shrugged casually. “It was more about if you wanted to.”

You stayed a couple steps behind Barnes, using the shadows to stay mostly out of sight. You didn’t want to talk to Zemo, let alone be in the room. But part of you wanted to make sure that nothing happened. You didn’t know if you could stop Barnes if Zemo triggered the Winter Soldier, but you probably had the best shot.

You watched Barnes’ body language carefully. From your angle, you could see the look on his face. The tension of his shoulders. The hand you could see was in a tight fist. There was a certain fear in his eyes, in the way his jaw clenched. You could tell that a part of him, even if it was a small part, was scared that Zemo would send him back to the Winter Soldier.

Zemo tried the trigger words but earned no reaction from Barnes. You let out a breath of relief and saw Barnes’ shoulders relax as that tension left him. You didn’t doubt that Barnes had control, that his time in Wakanda was enough to rid his mind of HYDRA’s influence, but you also knew Zemo was crafty. You didn’t trust that he didn’t have a couple tricks up his sleeve. But then again… So did you.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.” Zemo said, catching your attention. “It was never personal.”

“Seemed kinda personal.” You muttered to yourself. You were anxious, shifting your weight between your feet. You wondered what Sam was feeling back in the hallway but you couldn’t go back. The tension in your body was begging for a release, seemingly burning it’s way through your skin. There was a crackle of electricity between your fingers, a skill you hardly had a grip on. You only figured out how to use it in quick bursts or it would build itself up in moments of high tension.

“You brought a friend?” Zemo questioned, his eyes turning to you. You sunk deeper into the shadows.

“Someone recreated the super soldier serum.” Barnes said to redirect his attention. There was more control in his tone and it settled something anxious in the pit of your stomach. “I need to find out who.”

“You’re assuming HYDRA has something to do with this.” Zemo said simply, studying Barnes as he spoke. The expression Zemo held, the way he was looking at Barnes like an experiment, tempted you to reveal yourself. Something about it made your skin crawl, but you knew you had to refrain. You needed the info. “Which is why you came to me, which means you’re desperate…” A smug tone laced his voice and made you want to gag. “Lucky for you, and your friend in the shadows, I know where to begin.”

“And in exchange?” You finally spoke, stepping into the small sliver of light and taking your place beside Barnes. “What’s it going to take?”

His sly smile made you instantly regret the question.

Without explaining anything to Sam, you and Barnes led him to a series of tunnels underground. You opted to remain silent through the endeavor, knowing you wouldn’t be able to explain it right. While Sam pestered Barnes about the plan, you were busy finding the best route.

You kept one hand against the concrete wall, tapping your fingers to feel the vibrations. The tunnels were empty save for you three. They lead to a basement where you stopped for Barnes to walk Sam through a “hypothetical”.

“Please tell me this is an actual hypothetical.” Sam looked to you. In the meantime, you were toying with balls of air in your palm. You were balancing on them in a handstand.

“Yeah.” You lied. “It’s a hypothetical.”

Barnes continued to explain everything while you purposefully distracted yourself. You weren’t a huge fan of this plan, but Barnes had a point. Zemo offered a starting point. Walker had nothing. You guys had nothing. Though you’d never admit it, you needed Zemo.

“Speak of the devil.” You commented when you felt his footsteps approaching. You landed back on your feet as Zemo entered the room.

“You’re going back to prison.” Sam insisted.

“If I may-“ Zemo tried.

“No!” Sam and Barnes yelled simultaneously.

“Sorry.” You said with a shrug, bringing your forearms up and slamming them together. The movement called walls of earth to rise and trap Zemo in a thick rock casing. “It’s nothing personal.”

“When Steve refused to sign the Accords, you backed him.” Barnes countered.

“You broke the law and stuck your neck out for him.” You added.

“I distinctly remember you-“ Sam pointed to you. “-were on the other side.”

“My name’s not anywhere on that document.” You corrected. “I was a minor. Wouldn’t have been legally binding.”

“I’m asking you to do it again.” Barnes tried.

“I really think I’m invaluable-“ Zemo began again.

“Shut up!” You groaned, lifting the rock to meet his chin. “I will go all the way up.” You threatened before turning your attention back to the boys. “I’m with Barnes. I know it’s crazy but it’s the best shot we got. And we gotta move fast cause Walker is working on this too.”

“Okay.” Sam agreed finally. You dropped the rock prison and looked to the boys. “You don’t make a move without our permission.”

“Fair.” Zemo nodded.

“Otherwise, you deal with me.” You said simply. His eyebrows raised in interest, a slight challenge glinting in his eyes. You lifted your hand in front of your face, palm to the side. As you lowered your hand, you angled it so your fingertips pointed at Zemo. You saw his muscles tighten as he struggled but gave in to your control and went down to his knees.

“Dad once said the best weapon was the weapon you only had to fire once.” You said as if you were contemplating the words. “Let’s hope he was right.” You released Zemo before Sam spoke up.

“So where do we start?” He asked.

While Zemo was collecting his things from one of the cars, he explained where to start. He mentioned a woman named Selby as a starting point.

“This whole time you were rich?” Sam asked wildly as you approached a private jet.

“I’m a Baron, Sam.” Zemo answered in a matter of fact tone. “My family was royalty until you destroyed my country.”

“Eh.” You shrugged. “The Stark jet is nicer.”

You sat across from Barnes while Sam sat across from Zemo. You weren’t too interested in conversation. You didn’t know where you were going, nor did you really care. The sudden movement of Barnes made you snap to attention.

“If you touch that again, I’ll kill you.” Barnes threatened lowly with a hand at Zemo’s throat.

“At ease, soldier.” You reached over to tug on Barnes’ jacket. After a moment’s hesitation, he came and sat back down.

“I understand that list of names. People you’ve wronged as the Winter Soldier.” Zemo said with a solemn nod. He gestured between you and Barnes. “What I don’t understand is the relationship here. Are you two… involved?”

“Don’t push it.” Barnes muttered angrily as you simply rolled your eyes.

Sam talked about the book, that it used to be Steve’s. He bragged about how he suggested something for Steve to write in it. You remembered you had suggested some things for him to look into too, your favorite had been all the horror movies you got him to add.

Sam and Barnes then bickered about the Troubleman soundtrack, to which Zemo chimed in. You groaned slightly, throwing your head back and staring at the ceiling. The conversation quickly shifted to Steve and super soldiers, mildly peaking your interest.

“Cities fly. Innocent people die.” Zemo carried on.

“You forget who you’re talking to.” You laughed in disbelief.

“Pardon?”

“You’re talking about Sokovia… I was there. And my dad nearly died - yet again - trying to save the world… Trying to fix his mistake but no one cared about that part, right?.”

“Only nearly..” He agreed. “I think it’s fair to say the Avengers, none of you were really innocent.”

“And he actually did die to bring back half the universe so excuse me if I don’t share your bitterness.”

“It seems that you do, Y/N.” He analyzed, watching the response your eyes gave away.

“Shut it.” You rolled your eyes.

Conversation quickly shifted to Madripoor. Zemo and Barnes explained what it’s like, what it was. It sounded like a place out of a book, but given that your career was fighting A.I. powered robots and a giant genocidal purple lunatic, nothing was surprising anymore.

“James, you will have to become someone you claim is gone.” Zemo told Barnes.

A solemn expression came over Barnes. You couldn’t tell if it was regret, remorse, or something else. You leaned forward, resting elbows on your knees. You nodded to motion Barnes to come closer. He leaned forward in the same way.

“You sure you’re okay with this?” You asked quietly. “We can find another way, or we can do this witho-“

“I’m not sitting out.” He cut in. “I’ll be fine. Why do you keep trying to sideline me?”

“You won’t be alone.” You offered genuinely. “Sam and I got your back.”

Later that night, you walked the bridge that led to Madripoor.

“So who am I supposed to be, exactly?” You asked after Zemo had explained Sam’s character for the night.

“Rosalinda Calvillo Del Santos.” He said, showing you a picture of the girl. “Heiress to a huge cartel ring out of Mexico City.”

“Woah, she’s hot.” You nodded, slightly impressed. “And this dress… Seems like it perfectly matches her style.”

You motioned to the dress you wore. It was a tight, short black silk dress with a 4 inch slit up the right side that showed off your body beautifully. The chest of the dress hung perfectly to keep you covered but still catch attention. The straps were silver jewels in a halter style while additional pieces of thin black silk stretched across your back in a criss cross pattern.

“She's also a bit sadistic.” Zemo added nonchalantly. “But I’m sure you’ll play that just fine.”

“Fun.” You nodded.

“She kinda does look like you.” Sam commented as he leaned over to see the picture while he adjusted the cuffs of his jacket.

“She can’t be that hot then.” Bucky said sarcastically.

“Oh shut up.” You laughed as you pushed Barnes slightly. “You’re just used to girls in the 40’s and the whole modest look, huh?”

“Yeah yeah.” He rolled his eyes. “You ever gonna retire the old man jokes?”

“Maybe, but you have to admit how good I look.” You countered.

“Not a chance, little lady.” He smiled and shot a wink your way as he opened the car door for you.

“Well, Sergeant Barnes, what a gentleman.” You said sarcastically, holding a hand to your chest. “I’m so flattered.” You patted his chest as you sat down, scooting to sit in the middle.

The car ride was quick, although the motorcycles that surrounded your vehicle put you on edge a bit. The cold feeling of Barnes’ vibranium arm pressing against your own arm was the only thing that managed to keep you from burning through the car.

“The bracelet needs to come off.” Zemo pointed out on your walk to the bar.

“Excuse me?” You answered quickly, your opposite hand moving quickly to defend the metal cuff.

“Rosalinda only wears gold. She’s never been seen with anything else.”

“But this bracelet is-“

“Hideous” Zemo cut in.

“No! It’s from my dad, jackass!” You argued and stopped your steps.

“Here, let me have it.” Barnes held his hand out, to which you simply took a step away from him. “Y/N, come on.”

“No, I- I can’t take it off.”

Barnes sighed slightly before sliding two fingers under the collar of his shirt to pull a small chain out. He reached behind his neck to unclasp it before offering it to you. “Put your bracelet on here. Nothing’s going to happen to it.” Barnes explained.

“What are…” You asked softly as you reached for the chain. Your fingers grazed the small metal shapes dangling at the end, turning them so you could read the inscriptions. “James Buchanan Barnes..” You read silently. “These are your tags.. Barnes, I can’t ask you to-“

“You’re not asking. I’m offering.”

“Y/N..” Sam tried gently. “It won’t be that long, I promise.”

“Okay, fine.” You agreed reluctantly. You handed Barnes back his chain before reaching for your cuff. You put two fingers together above the metal cuff, focusing on separating it enough to slide your wrist out. Your eyes lingered on the band of lighter skin that was hidden by the cuff, proving to everyone around you that you never took it off. Once you freed your wrist, the cuff circled the fingers you used to open it. You glided it to hook over Barnes’ chain, connecting your fingers again to reconnect the metal. “Please don’t lose it.. It means everything to me.”

“Trust me.” He nodded as he reclasped his chain around his neck. He tucked the tags and your bracelet under his shirt and patted it lightly. You smiled gently in thanks before turning back to the door.

“Good. Now, escort her in.” Zemo instructed Bucky. Barnes held out an arm for you to take so you looped yours through his, making Zemo click his tongue at you. “Other side.”

“What difference does it make?” You asked in annoyance.

“The Del Santos family -especially Rosalinda- loves to show power.” He explained. “Having the Winter Soldier makes you powerful, but being on that side-“ He pointed to Barnes’ metal arm. “-shows it off… They also know how to barter for that power, if you know what I mean.” He gave you a pointed look and nodded towards Barnes, assuming you would understand what he meant. You hoped it wouldn’t come to that, but you understood.

“So treat him like a trophy?” You replied with a raised brow as you stepped around to switch sides. “Easy enough.”

“Oh god.” Barnes mumbled under his breath. “Don’t abuse this.”

“I think you’ll like being shown off a little.” You smirked slightly, keeping your head high as you followed Barnes’ lead into the building. “I’ll try not to go too far.”

Like flipping a switch, you fell into character once you stepped into the crowd and instantly made a statement.

“Listo para cumplir, Soldado de Invierno?” You said simply, keeping your head high and shoulders back as you followed Barnes through the crowd.

You heard the whispers, asking if that was really the Winter Soldier. You had to admit, it gave you a feeling of pride in your chest to see everyone look at you in awe. The respect in their eyes when they met yours was interesting. It was different from the respect you got as Y/N Stark. There was an underlying tone of fear in the looks as well.

Your small group stayed at the bar, Barnes kept his head on a swivel while you leaned your elbows on the bar top behind you. You lazily turned your head to check on Sam but saw the bartender slicing open a snake.

“Al menos no tengo que hacer nada que… asqueroso.” You said to Barnes before chuckling. He made a small sound of agreement, the tiniest hint of a smile toying with his features. “Vamos. Diviértete, soldado.”

“Mi misión es protegerte.” He replied in a flat, monotonous voice.

“Ay, díos.” You groaned, turning to face the bartender. “Señor? Bourbon, neat. Please.”

“Since when do you drink, Santos?” He nodded in amusement as he poured your drink.

“Well, it’s been a rough week.” You sighed, lifting the glass in thanks. “Put it on my friend’s tab.” You winked at Zemo before turning back to look at the busy crowd.

“You lot aren’t welcome here.” A bald man came up to Zemo.

“We have no business with the Power Broker.” Zemo started. “But if he insists…”

“He can come and talk to me.” You cut in, resting a hand on Barnes’ shoulder and sipping your drink. “Or bring Selby for a chat.” You shrugged.

“What do you know about the Power Broker?” Sam asked when the man was out of earshot.

“Here he is judge, jury, and executioner.” Zemo said quickly.

“We’ve got company.” You said into your drink. You set the cup down and cleared your throat. “Soldado de Invierno, hora de ir a trabajar.”

The man reached a hand for your shoulder but was instantly snatched by Barnes. You had to give it to him. He was a very convincing actor. It seemed easy for him to slip back into that person, to become the Winter Soldier. You knew it wasn’t really him, but the violent scene in front of you was hard to deny.

Sam saw it too. He looked to you in concern, hearing the same click of the guns that you did. You easily took the few steps to stand between him and Zemo.

“Don’t worry.” You said simply, maintaining the cocky smirk you wore as Barnes did his work. “He’s got this.. But that’s not what that look is about, is it?” You glanced at Sam and saw the expression on his face. It held concern for Barnes but also the flash of a memory when the Winter Soldier attacked you all after the UN bombing.

“You break character and this whole bar is against us.” You used your glass to cover your lips while you spoke. “I don't like this either but-

Before you finished your sentence, Barnes slammed a man on the bar top by his throat. You instantly slipped back into character to respond.

“Buen trabajo, querido soldado.” You giggled with a pat on his chest. He let the man go as the bartender told you Selby was ready. You swallowed the rest of your drink before putting the cup back on the bar.

“Vamos.” You nodded. Barnes held an arm out for you to take, which you quickly did.

“You okay?” Sam asked Barnes quietly as you followed Zemo to Selby. A sharp nod was the only response Sam got.

You let Zemo talk to Selby since you had no idea who the woman was. You stayed towards the back of the room with Sam and Barnes, your arms still linked. The cold metal against your arm was the only thing that kept you from bursting into flames.

It was easy enough to be Rosalinda. Confident, powerful, demanding respect, beautiful and a little flirty. It mildly shocked you that you could play into her sadism. You didn’t know where you pulled that from. Maybe Nat taught you better than you thought. Outside of that, Rosalinda was close enough to a Stark that you didn’t feel like you were pretending too much. And lucky for you, you learned Spanish as a child. It was the people that knew her that worried you. One wrong mannerism, one wrong saying, and the whole thing was blown.

“What’s the offer?” Selby asked after an attempted flirt with Sam. You caught Zemo’s signal, a silent attempt to tell you it was your turn.

“I suppose it’s more my offer.” You spoke up.

“I didn’t know Calvillos travelled this far.” Selby smiled mischievously.

“Well I heard you like to play hard ball.” You said with a sly smile. “Del Santos can play too. My offer is him. The Winter Soldier, el soldado de invierno.” You offered confidently, walking a small circle around Barnes. “And the words to control him, of course.”

You traced your fingers along his shoulders, across his back and down his metal arm. You felt him tense under your touch, but his demeanor never faltered. “He will do anything you want.” You added, facing Barnes and gently running your hands down his arms. “I’m sorry.” You whispered honestly. Your expression reset to a playful pride as you spun to take your original place beside Barnes and watched for Selby’s reaction.

“This is a fun surprise. I’m glad I didn’t kill you all immediately.” She said happily.

“You have information I want.” You stepped in front of Barnes, blocking him from her line of sight. “You give me everything I need and I give you him.”

She bit her lower lip as she smiled. Her eyes looked Barnes up and down, and it made you want to gag.

“Hello? Are we going to do business or are you going to ogle him all night?” You asked in annoyance as you crossed your arms.

“A bit testy tonight.” She said with an entertained smirk and your pulse jumped. “You were right to come to me.” She said with a nod. “The serum is here, in Madripoor. You’re gonna want to talk to Dr. Wilfred Nagel. Power Broker had him work on it but it didn’t go as planned.”

“Is Nagel still here?”

“Crumbs for free but the bakery will cost you.” She wagged a finger at you. “And before you get cute, you can’t find Nagel with me.”

Before either you or Zemo could offer a rebuttal, Sam’s phone went off. You felt in your bones that it wasn’t going to work out well if he answered that call.

As Sam was on the phone, which Selby made him answer on speaker, she circled you and Barnes. You nodded towards Sam, allowing Barnes to take a few steps away from you.

Before you knew it, your cover was blown and the shot rang out. Selby was dead and the boys easily took down the other two guys in the room.

“This is going to come back to us.” You said as you stood on the other side of the room, as far from her body as you could be.

“Just drop the weapons and follow my lead.” Zemo said, trying to gain control of the situation.

Without other options, you all followed Zemo out and through the streets of Madripoor. Every turn you took, you felt more and more eyes upon you. Phones buzzed every second and you could only assume it was word spreading of Selby’s death.

“I don’t like this.” You muttered.

As soon as the words left your mouth, gun shots sounded. Barnes grabbed your hand and began running with you following close behind. You ducked the shots and grabbed Barnes’ hand a little tighter. You turned to see Sam struggling to keep up.

“I can’t run in these heels!” Sam yelled.

“Try running in stilettos and a mini skirt.” You replied in annoyance.

“You want to stop them?” Barnes tried.

“I can’t really focus right now.” You answered with an eye roll. You were going to stop and try lifting a rock wall behind you or creating a gust to push them back or even try to summon a quick lightning burst.

Shots came from a high window and took out the two men behind you before you tried to fight back. Zemo came out from behind a dumpster and made a stupid comment about a guardian angel.

“What a coward.” You sneered, Barnes holding you back when you made a move to slap the Baron.

“This is too perfect.” A familiar voice came from the shadows. You pulled away from Barnes and called a small flame to your palm. “Drop it, Zemo.”

“Sharon?” Barnes asked.

“You cost me everything.” She ignored you guys. You didn’t let the fire go out.

“Wait, Sharon.” Sam tried. “Someone recreated the super soldier serum. Zemo had a lead.”

“That explains why you guys are here and why Selby’s dead.”

“Why are you here?” You asked carefully.

“I stole Steve’s shield, remember?” She scoffed. “And I took the wings for your ass-“ She pointed her gun at Sam. “-so you could save his ass-“ Her gun pointed to Barnes. “-from his ass.” Her gun landed on Zemo. “I didn’t have the Avengers to back me up so I’m in Madripoor.”

Sam tried reasoning with Sharon but got nowhere.

“We need your help.” You tried and let the flame in your palm die out. “Please. We- We didn’t have any other options…”

With a heavy sigh, Sharon told you all to follow her. You were the first to follow her footsteps. After a second, the other three came behind you. You were questioning the timing of Sharon’s reveal, but overall you were grateful she showed up. Things weren’t looking great up until then.

“Seems like being on the run treated you better than it treated Sam.” You commented as you looked around at Sharon’s place.

“If I was going to be a hustler, I was gonna live like one.” She said, a hint of pride in her tone.

The three boys then talked about the art, and whether it was real or fake. Sam didn’t believe them until a quick google search told him the truth. Sharon made you all change your clothes, pulling out a whole rack of clothes for the boys to look through and letting you sift through her closet.

You decided on a fitted maroon wrap-style dress. It was a soft material, fitting the curves of your body perfectly. The spaghetti straps criss-crossed behind your neck. You kept your same black heels and made your way back to the group and took a seat with Barnes on the couch.

Sam and Sharon talked a bit, ridiculing the idea of heroes. She called it hypocrisy, claiming that’s why Sam gave up the shield.

“Wow.” You teased as you sat. “You clean up nice, Barnes.”

He smiled slightly at you. “Hey, I didn’t know you spoke Spanish.” He said simply.

“Huh?” His statement took you by surprise. It wasn’t the response you expected. “Right. Yeah, I learned it when I was a kid. Dad tried to teach me French but Spanish was more natural cause my mom's side of the family.”

“You look good too, by the way.” He added and gave you a slight nudge. “Cause I know that’s what you wanted to hear.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Your face.” He said simply. “You give away a lot of emotions in your face.”

“I do not!” You insisted quietly with a chuckle, smacking his arm.

“Yes, you do.” He laughed with a nod.

“Wait a second…” You paused, crossing your legs and leaning towards him. “Were you just nice to me?” You teased with a wide smile.

“Don’t push it.” He chuckled.

“Hey... I’m sorry about using you as bait with Selby. I figured that’s what Zemo was hinting at… It didn’t seem like there was any room for me to say no.” You said honesty. The look in his eyes when you dangled him in front of Selby, you could tell it brought back so much of his trauma. That inability to say ‘no’. You truly had felt wrong for doing it. “I shouldn’t have-“

“Y/N.” Barnes said and put a hand on your leg. Your words were cut off instantly. “It’s alright.. It was for the mission.”

“That doesn’t make it right.” You said softly. “You’re not just an asset or a trophy. You’re my friend.”

“How is the new Cap, by the way?” Sharon asked, drawing your attention.

“Don’t even get me started.” Barnes shook his head.

You dropped your head back to look at her over the back of the couch. “He thought he could bail me out of jail and we’d be best friends.”

“He really thought you needed bail money? ” She laughed as she came around to sit with you two. “And you. You were Mr. America before you were his pet psychopath.” She told Barnes. “Cap’s best friend.”

“She’s kind of awful now.” Barnes said to you.

“She was always kinda awful.” You mumbled while Sam refocused everyone.

“You guys shouldn’t be involved in this.” She said, as if she was warning you. “For your own safety.”

“We got a name.” You added, not leaving any room for discussion. Something about the way Sharon talked to you led you to hold suspicions. “Wilfred Nagel.”

“Nagel works for the Power Broker.” She explained.

“I can get your name cleared, Sharon. But we need your help.” Sam tried.

“I don’t buy that.”

“They cleared the bionic staring machine and he killed almost everyone he met.”

“I heard that.” Barnes said, which drew a small laugh from you.

“I don’t trust charity.” Sharon countered.

“Let’s call it a deal then.” Sam offered.

“Fine.” She shook Sam’s hand. “Lay low. Enjoy the party. And stay out of trouble.”

“I do like a good party.” You smiled as you stood. You held a hand out to Barnes, who groaned before pushing himself up.

He held an arm out to you but before you took it, you turned to face him straight on. You casually adjusted his suit jacket before your hands moved across his chest. Your hands went to his neck while he watched your hands carefully. You slid both pointer fingers under the collar of his shirt and he tensed slightly. You pulled his chain out and held it with one hand and used the other to release your bracelet. You fit the metal cuff back to its rightful place on your wrist with a proud smile.

“Didn’t give anything away that time, did I, James?” You said quietly, shooting him a quick wink.

“Shall we?” You asked happily, turning to face Zemo and Sam.

Even though you had a point in being in Madripoor and it definitely wasn’t a party, you were excited for the party. It would be nice to relax, not feel any guilt over your father. Any grief over Nat. Any anger at John Walker. And stress about being an Avenger. You could just be a twenty one year old kid and have fun for the first time in what felt like ever.

You lost the boys in the crowd rather quickly. But it wasn’t a heavy thought in your mind to stay with them. What seemed to bounce around in your brain were your interactions with Barnes through the day. You couldn’t quite figure out if you were flirting with him intentionally or just habitually.

You brushed it off temporarily as your personality. You were a Stark after all. And Starks tend to flirt with anyone… Right?

Regardless, you weaved through the crowd and let yourself enjoy the party for a moment. You enjoyed the music, letting your body sway and spin with the vibrations. It was hard for you to tell where anyone was through the vibrations of the floor with the vibrations from the speakers, but you told yourself that wasn’t your problem. Barnes and Sam would be fine for a little while. You weren’t sure how long you had been dancing when you heard the boy beside you.

“I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.” A boy said from your side.

Turning, you were met by a very beautiful boy. He was a bit taller than you, dark brown curly hair that fell messily across his forehead. You couldn’t tell the color of his eyes, only that they were looking at you with admiration. You couldn’t help but smile at him.

“I’m just passing through.” You answered vaguely. Given your previous escapades through Madripoor, you wanted to be as discreet as you could until you were able to leave.

“You come with anyone?”

“Just a few friends..”

“No boyfriend?”

“A boyfriend?” You repeated with a laugh. “I wouldn’t say that.”

“Girlfriend?” He tried.

“No.” You laughed slightly. “I’ve been out of the dating game for a few years, actually.” You snapped your fingers to show what you meant.

“You’re too pretty to be at a party alone.” He shamelessly flirted.

“Well I’m not alone.” You corrected. “This is actually a friend’s party.”

“Your friends with the Power Broker?”

Before you could voice a response, a hand found your arm. You quickly looked over and saw Barnes at your side, only his eyes weren’t on you. They were on the new guy.

“I thought you didn’t have a boyfriend?” The boy said nervously.

“Come on, Sarge.” You chuckled, noticing the staring and tense shoulders resembled jealousy. But for Barnes, distrust and suspicion was a more likely reaction. “It was nice to meet you.” You told the kid before pushing Barnes to move.

You couldn’t help but wonder… If the party was the Power Broker’s, but Sharon was hosting like it was her party.. Could Sharon be the Power Broker? Or closer involved than she led you to believe at least?

The next morning, you were all walking through an old shipping yard. Sharon was smart enough to grab you a more practical outfit, a skinny fit pair of black pants and a fitted light blue long sleeve and better shoes. You followed Sharon’s lead to crate. While she stayed for lookout, your group of four went in.

You knocked with one hand and felt the vibrations change at the end. You nodded towards the back of the container so Zemo went to take a look and exposed a secret door.

Sam and Barnes went in first, you behind them, and Zemo behind you. The guys tried to get you to take a gun but you adamantly refused, telling them you were a terrible shot and you had weapons of your own. Sam tried talking to Nagel, but he tried to run instead. Instantly, Nagel froze when he saw Barnes.

“You know who he is, right?” You chuckled, something intimidating dancing in your words. It was something you normally didn’t hear in your voice. You usually weren’t the intimidating type but things were different…You were different. “There’s Baron Zemo and me… Well, you’ll see.”

“How about a counter proposal?” Nagel tried. You ignored Sharon’s warnings in your ear. “Make me a better offer and I’ll talk.”

“Your life isn’t enough?” Your brows raised as you challenged him. You nodded slightly before raising your hand. Your fingers lazily pointed straight up as you grabbed hold of Nagel’s blood. “You don’t know what I’m capable of, do you?”

“Maybe she’s the intimidating one.” Zemo said, an odd respect in his voice.

You forced Nagel to his knees while Sam kept his gun pointed at him. “I can manipulate air too… I wonder if I could pull it from your lungs since you refuse to talk.”

“Okay, okay!” Nagel broke and told you the whole story after you released him. You were getting good at your new blood trick, and that mildly worried you but you had to push it to the back of your mind. Parts of his story included Siberia, an American who you could only assume was Isaiah Bradley, the Snap, and the Power Broker.

You caught the name Donya Madani, committing it to memory. If she was someone Karli wanted to help, she was someone that could lead you to her.

“Is there any serum in this lab?” Barnes asked. When Nagel didn’t answer, he pressed the gun to the man’s temple.

“No!” He said quickly. “But would she-“ He gestured to you. “-be incredible with it.”

“Thanks, but that’s a question I don’t need answered.” You crossed your arms and leaned against the wall behind you.

“The pure power you hold..” He continued and let out a devious chuckle. “You’re not at all curious?”

“I’m not the kind of person who deserves it.. Trust me. There’s probably as much blood on my hands as his.” You nodded to Barnes. “Just different motives.”

“Aren’t you tired of depending on them to help you? To save you?”

“I know my value. Anyone else’s opinion doesn’t really matter.”

The rest happened too fast to process in that moment. Sharon burst in. Zemo shot Nagel and that drew an interesting reaction from Sharon. And an explosion went off. Barnes had pulled you out of the way before you could get caught up in the blast.

Your head spun mildly from the quick movement and your ears rang violently. You tried to shake it off but that seemed to only make it worse. You felt a warm stream down the side of your head and realized a loose piece of shrapnel had sliced your forehead.

“You alright?” Barnes asked, helping you to your feet. “Y/N? Are you alright?”

“Yeah.. Yeah, I’m fine.” You nodded, mildly disoriented. Looking around, you saw the smoke gathering in the room. You put a hand above your head, using it to keep the smoke at the top of the room.

“Ah shit.” He muttered, pushing the loose hair out of your face. “You’re bleeding.”

“I’m fine.” You pushed his hand away. “We gotta go. These chemicals are going to go off any second and I doubt I can save us from that.”

You got Sharon to her feet while Barnes got Sam. Sam asked about Zemo, but that was the least of your concerns. You four had to get out of there before you were trapped.

You tried using your powers to move the shipping containers or pull a piece of the wall apart but it was too heavy to do in such a hectic environment. There was too much going on for you to really focus. Once you were out, the boys started arguing about whose fault it was.

“Not the time!” You shouted at them, your back against one of the fallen containers. “We’re blocked in and you three are out of bullets. So either I can try to handle this or we stay here and get caught. Either way, you need to zip it so one of us can come up with something.”

“Just use your pow-“ Barnes tried.

“I can’t do anything when you’re this loud!” You snapped. “Besides, the containers are too heavy. I’m not strong enough.”

You thought out loud to yourself. “I could try a concrete wall but I don’t know how long I can hold it if I’m worried about getting shot.” You chewed your lower lip in contemplation. “I’m too far to try the blood thing… They’re firing too many bullets for me to redirect back… What if I…”

It was so much easier when you had your dad to talk things out with. When you had someone smarter than you and could see a different angle, who could run the numbers and tell you your best chance, everything was so much easier.

“How are you going to handle it then?” Sharon challenged with an eye roll.

“You really don’t know a thing about me, do you?” You laughed in disbelief.

Before she could offer a rebuttal, there was another explosion. A smirk found its way to your face as you got an idea. You quickly hopped the barricade your group was stuck behind, despite the protests from Barnes and Sam. You slid under a hanging metal beam and popped up by the explosion. You shaped the flames away from you four and pushed it towards the people shooting at you. You used what was left as a wall to give you cover for you to get away.

“That’s how I’m going to handle it.” You said with your trademark Stark pride as you met back up with the group.

“You could've got yourself killed.” Sam reprimanded as you four had to duck into a separate container after a gunshot nicked your shoulder. Barnes launched a metal pole through one of the shooters’ shoulders like a javelin before shutting the door behind him.

“Okay.” You groaned, lighting a flame on two fingers. “That could've got me killed.” You ran the flame gingerly along the graze in an attempt to cauterize the wound and stop the bleeding.

“You’re an idiot.” Barnes grumbled.

“Who just saved your ass, huh?” You challenged as he opened the door when the shooting stopped.

“When are you gonna realize you’re not indestructible?”

“When are you gonna realize who you’re talking to?”

The heavy roar of an engine drew your attention and interrupted the sudden tension. The tension and attitude dissipated as soon as it came but you could tell it wasn’t going to be the last time that grievance was brought up.

“Supercharged.” Zemo said proudly as he pulled up in a sleek black car.

You let out a low whistle and nodded in approval. “She is a beaut.” You commented with an amused laugh. “Would it be wrong if I kept her after this?”

“You’re going back to jail.” Sam told him. “And you-“ He told you. “-aren’t keeping the car.”

“You’re no fun... Shut up and get in then.” You rolled your eyes. As Barnes climbed into the front seat, you went to the driver’s side - as if proving a point that you didn’t want to sit behind Barnes - and hopped over and into the backseat. “We still need him.”

Sam got in on the other side and after a quick conversation with Sharon, you were ready to go.

“You’re not gonna move your seat up, are you?” Sam asked.

“No.” Barnes said simply. You rolled your eyes at his childish antics. You leaned forward and tugged his sleeve to get his attention.

“Move your seat up.” You insisted.

“I’m not gonna move my seat.”

“Why not?”

“He didn’t move his seat for me so I’m not-“

“Solo tienes que mover el maldito asiento, Barnes.”

“No me voy a mover“

“Venga, muévete.”

“Por qué debería?“

“Cállate y mueve el maldito asiento. Hmm?” You patted his chest before leaning back. Barnes scoffed, but slid forward slightly.

“Okay…” Sam started, leaning closer to you to speak quietly. “What the hell was that?”

“I’m fluent in Spanish.” You shrugged as you leaned to the middle and spoke in the same hushed tone. “Dad taught me when I was eight-ish. I use it for fun or when I’m trying to prove a point, hence the conversation you just saw. Why?”

“Not that… That.” He gestured to you with one hand and to Barnes with the other. “You guys have been flirting since-“

“Nope.” You shook your head and sat back again. “I’m not talking about that.”

“But you were! Why else would he listen to you?”

“What are you guys talking about back there?” Barnes tried.

“It’s above your pay grade, Barnes.” You answered without thought. “Anyways, Sam.” You turned back to Sam. “I’m a Stark. If there was any flirting, it’s harmless. Starks flirt with everyone.” You shrugged innocently.

“Mhmm.” Sam said unconvinced. “If you guys end up together and-“

“If we end up together I’ll be just as shocked as you.” You laughed. “But it’s not gonna happen. I’m pretty sure he hates me, deep down. You saw how he snapped at me a few minutes ago.”

“So just right now and the other day before Walker showed up, right? That’s what you’re basing this on?” Sam asked, gesturing a small circle in reference to the current scenario. You pressed your lips together in a line while you nodded. “But didn’t he make sure you didn’t make it worse after you got arrested?”

“Sure but-“

“Before we ran into Sharon, he reached for you, right?”

“Okay but wait-“

“And he pulled you out of the way of that blast?”

“I see what you’re saying but-“

“And he only seems to get mad at you when you get yourself hurt!”

“It’s coincidental!” You reasoned quickly with your hands up in surrender. “If he’s gonna like anyone, I highly doubt it’s gonna be me. Wanna know why?”

“Enlighten me.” Sam laughed.

“Cause I push every button I can with him.” You explained. “I annoy him and I talk shit to him and I don’t listen to him. I purposefully see what I can get away with. I’m his annoying roommate/best friend.”

“Right… Because that gimmick never leads to anything…” He rolled his eyes in amusement. “Whatever you say, Mini Stark.” He chuckled.

On the flight back, Sam and Barnes sat opposite each other while they talked. You opted to lay on the ground between them after healing your shoulder and other small scrapes, wanting something flat to let your back relax. As soon as you laid down, you felt your spine pop and practically reposition itself.

Your mind wandered back to the same thoughts it kept coming back to, with the newest additions to your messy brain. Your dad, and if you were doing right by him. Steve, and if you lived up to his expectations. Nat, and how she’d be proud to see you utilizing the skills she taught you. The boy at the party, his unintentional implications of Sharon and the Power Broker. And Barnes… Sam’s suggestion that you were purposefully flirting with Barnes had made you rethink your last interactions with him.

There were comments slipped in here or there, sure. You had played a bit when you took your bracelet back, sure. But were you flirting? Did you.. Did you have a crush on Barnes? No, no it was all in good fun. You didn’t really know him. Why would you flirt with someone you didn’t know? Right?

“Maybe I should’ve destroyed it.” Sam said, which instantly caught your attention.

“That shield represents a lot of things to a lot of people, including me.” Barnes said quickly.

“Yeah, me too.” You agreed from the floor. “My grandfather made that shield… It holds a special place in my heart, kinda the only physical thing from Howard...”

“The world is upside down and needs a new Cap.” Barnes started.

“And it’s not gonna be Walker.” You added.

“Before you destroy it, I’m going to take it from him myself.” He finished.

“Count me in, Barnes.” You said, sitting up when Zemo came down the aisle. You moved to sit by the side of Barnes’ chair and looked up at him. “In it together?” You asked, holding up a fist.

“Together.” He smiled slightly as he gave you the fist bump you waited for.

“Thanks, by the way.” You added softly as Zemo muttered something. “For keeping this safe-“ You shook your wrist. “-and for getting me out the way of that blast. I could’ve died but you didn’t let me.”

“I told you I wouldn’t let you die, Y/N.” He nodded. “You trust me yet?”

“Hmm, getting there.” You pondered playfully. “You’re making good progress, but it depends on if you’re still mad at me.”

“Why would I be mad at you?” His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“You yelled at me..” You realized how silly it was once you said it.

“You could've gotten hurt or even killed and I- I can’t have your blood on my hands too..”

“I know I’m not invincible…” You admitted heavily as you looked between Sam and Barnes. You knew Sam worried about you too, but he and Barnes had different ways of showing it. “I know I’m not Iron Man, but… But that’s the way I’ve always fought. It’s how I learned to fight. One time Steve told us ‘If you get hurt, hurt them back. And if you die, walk it off’.”

“Of course he did.” Barnes chuckled as Sam smiled fondly.

“It’s what I've always followed. So yeah, I’m a little reckless but I can heal myself so I never worried… But I guess I can try to be more strategic if it would make you guys feel better.” You offered with a small smile.

It was nice to know you had people watching your back, two people by your side that would seemingly burn down the world if it took you. You felt safer than you had with anyone since your dad.

“Why do you call him Barnes?” Zemo asked suddenly. “I thought you were all friends.”

“Wait. Does it bother you?” You wondered honestly, looking to Barnes.

“No, just a little different.” He answered with a small shrug.

“Dad always called him Barnes. Not James, or even Bucky. Guess I picked it up from him. I never really thought about it, in all honesty.” You shrugged.

“Yes, but that’s very business.” Zemo continued. “It’s so impersonal. If you two have a good relationship like you claim, or the type of relationship you two display… Shouldn’t you call him something more intimate?”

Using your powers, you plucked one of the ice cubes out of Zemo’s drink and flicked it towards his forehead. It smacked the center and left a wet square on his skin before plopping back in the cup. You smiled in amusement and looked to Barnes, who also enjoyed your little trick.

“Mind your business.” You chuckled, leaning your back against Barnes’ seat. You tilted your head back against the seat too, closing your eyes and letting out a sigh.

“Hey.” Barnes tapped a finger against your forehead. “Don’t sleep on the floor.”

“Stark?” Sam laughed from the other side of the aisle. “Get up, kid. There’s an open seat right here.”

“With the amount of times I’ve fallen asleep on the floor of my dad’s lab or in a desk chair leaning on a lab table or even on the lab table.” You laughed while you stayed in your spot. “This doesn’t bother me.”

“Get your ass up.” Barnes tried again.

“Too late!” You announced, dropping to the ground. “Good night.”

You woke up when you all landed. Even though you had napped on the floor, you didn’t wake feeling stiff or uncomfortable. You followed the boys out of the jet and through the Latvian streets.

It was a beautiful country, as many European countries were. Cobblestone streets that carried vibrations perfectly. Intricate stone buildings that were tall but not towering. Simple painted doors to break monotony.

“I don’t suppose any of you bothered visiting the memorial?” Zemo asked, referencing the memorial for Sokovia.

“I did..” You said softly, almost too quiet for anyone to hear.

“Did you?” Zemo was honestly surprised.

“After my dad’s funeral, when I moved out… There was a gap between leaving and moving in with Barnes. I didn’t know where else to go or who I was without Tony Stark. So I went to the memorial… It didn’t make anything clearer but it reminded me of a lot.”

“I’m sorry about your father.” Zemo said. You swore you heard sympathy playing in his voice. “He had his flaws but he was a good man.”

“Yeah, thanks, you and the rest of the world are sorry.” You said, somewhat bitterly. “He was the only permanent family I had. No one cared about me like he did.” You felt Sam and Barnes shoot you a look of confusion but you didn’t acknowledge it.

“What about the Avengers?”

“Yeah, they were great.” You shrugged slightly. “It just wasn’t quite the same. I was the most important thing to him, you know? Whenever I was feeling off, he was always there with something fun to distract me. Granted, that something fun was usually a new piece of tech he wanted to test, but it always worked to cheer me up. The world misses and mourns Iron Man, the CEO of Stark Industries and Earth’s best defender. No one other than me mourns my dad.” You explained as you noticed a change in Barnes’ demeanor.

“I’m gonna go for a walk.” He announced.

“You good?” Sam tried.

“Yeah. See you in a bit.” He nodded before taking off.

You lingered outside while Zemo went in. Sam turned in the doorway when he realized you hadn’t moved.

“Little Stark?” Sam asked. “You coming?”

“That was weird, wasn’t it?” You commented, pointing in the direction Barnes went.

“Yeah but he’s weird.” Sam chuckled. “You know that…. Oh! I see what this is.”

“It’s not that.” You shook your head with an annoyed sigh.

“That’s exactly what it is.”

“Seriously? He’s our friend.”

“You don’t see me chasing after him.” Sam shrugged. “He’s a grown man, Y/N. If he wants to brood and take a walk, let him.”

“You didn’t see it.. Something caught his attention and made him leave.”

“Well I don’t just stare at him so no, I didn’t see anything.”

“Nat taught me to constantly watch my surroundings. To keep my head on a swivel… He saw something I didn’t, but I saw him see it. I just don’t know what exactly he saw.”

“Just come inside.” He sighed. “You can interrogate him when he comes back.”

“ Or I just go check on him… Cause I’m grown too and don’t have to listen to you.” You said carefully, hurrying after Barnes. You heard protests from Sam but none made you turn.

You made it to the alley where Barnes turned. You knelt at the corner, feeling the ground and knocking your knuckles against the stone. You closed your eyes to focus, picturing Barnes and an incoming familiar figure. With an amused smile, you turned the corner.

“Ayo.” You said happily. “I didn’t think I’d see you here.”

“You followed me.” Barnes said, moderately annoyed.

“You made it easy enough.” You muttered before turning to the Dora.

“What brings you to Latvia?” You asked, already knowing the answer.

“Y/N.” She greeted respectfully. “I’m here for Zemo.”

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theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin · 4 years ago

Note

Lily (from "Lily and the Art of Being Sisyphus", what else?) and Lenin and maybe some other people? Watch "Heathers". Reactions? Or what they get transported there? Sorry, it's just that I'm in this Heathers-obsession phase and since I love your work so much (and the fact that Trotsky is kinda sorta like JD) I've been wondering about a crossover like that. I honestly have no idea what your answer to this will entail.

I’ve been musing on this one for a bit now but I suppose it’s time to dig in and answer.

First, I’m not usually a fan of the “X characters watch Y thing” so we’re going to avoid that. Also, to Wizard Lenin, it’d undoubtedly be yet another one of Lily’s weird 80′s movies that she loves so much and forces him to watch. It’s less gory than Predator, but dammit Lily, high school isn’t like this!

Getting transported there is a similarly weird story. It’s such a muggle setting that it really doesn’t mesh well with the “Sisyphus” cast. Why would Lily and Wizard Lenin be stuck in this high school in Ohio? Would they even do anything besides go “That JD kid sure is weird” and “Wow, the death count here is higher than Hogwarts!”? Point being, I can’t imagine they’d get entangled in the true plot of “Heathers” and at best would be providing riff track commentary on this crazy high school.

So, instead, let’s go the good old fusion route. Let’s make the world of “Lily and the Art of Being Sisyphus” just a bit more like “Heathers” and see how it pans out.

Because “Heathers” is all about the destruction of society from within, we’re axing Voldemort. Sorry, Tom, you got stuck in a magical mirror, eaten by bears, or something after 1943 and are going to be Sir Not Appearing in this Universe. As a result, there’s no Voldemort, but the deep societal issues that Tom took advantage of very much remain and are flourishing.

In this world, Lily is still a god, but is not immediately recognized as such by being the girl who lived. Instead, she’s just a strange, dangerously overpowered, nuisance that nobody likes. And her home life is trash.

I imagine in the world without Voldemort, Death Eaters, and a second war Lily and James’ marriage quickly crumbles. This is mainly due to the stress of marriage but also due to having a gifted, ridiculously intelligent, and creepy child. Within a few years, Lily Evans has the audacity to do what is never done: she divorces her pureblood lord husband and tries to vie for child custody. She loses, of course, as she’s a muggle born woman, and is basically banished from ever seeing her kid again.

James never really gets over this, Ellie looking so much like Lily Evans certainly not helping matters, and over the years grows very cold to her. She’s not a son so is useless to inherit, she’s nothing like him, and she’s just an all around disappointment. James very quickly gets remarried for political purposes, marrying a far less scandelous pureblood witch from pick your prestigious family, and they have a son meaning that Lily is no longer heir.

Lily thus attends Hogwarts as essentially the half-blood Potter. She’s for all intents and purposes a bastard child, one barely acknowledged by her father, and is also weird. As a result I imagine she’s bullied relentlessly much in the manner Luna is. For years.

I imagine Luna Lovegood is her only friend, as the pair have bonded over constantly having their stuff destroyed and being locked out of their dormitories.

Enter Lily’s seventh year and thus the plot.

The outside world is looming and Lily effectively has no future. Despite being the daughter of Lord Potter, she’s in a similar position that Tom Riddle was. She won’t be hired into the Ministry or basically any position thanks to her dubious heritage as well as the fact that no one likes her.

Mostly, she just wants out. She wants out of the country where everyone knows exactly who she is and where she came from. Her best hope for this is employment with the goblins but she needs recommendations from a professor. Her best bet is Slughorn, but while he’s always been awed of her ability after seven years of Lily the charm has worn off. Lily has never received an invitation to the Slug Club.

Lily realizes that to get out she must become popular so someone can vouch for her to Slughorn. Not to mention her life might become slightly, slightly, less miserable. So, Lily approaches the Heathers. Much like in the film/musical, Lily offers her services to them for the fee of making nice, pretending to like her, and getting her an in with Slughorn.

This spirals out of control as the Heathers instead do the makeover and make Lily suddenly cool. She’s suddenly invited to parties, people talk to her, it’s a whole new world.

Around this time, Lily in the room of requirement happens to stumble across the diary (nevermind how he gets there, we’ll pretend Tom just never managed to smuggle him out of the castle). Tom has been trapped in there, dying, and Lily obliviously informs him that all his ambitions and sacrifices amounted to nothing. There was no dark lord after Grindelwald, she’s never heard of a Tom Riddle, and everything she describes makes it sound like nothing has changed.

Tom Riddle inexplicably vanished off the face of the earth leaving only the diary behind.

Naturally, Tom is very pissed about this, and sets about plotting how he can return, trying to get Lily to open up by asking her for help returning him to his body. Lily does him one better and just returns him to his body without any sacrifice, casually remarking that she’s always been like this as long as she can remember, fully accepting Tom to yell “SHE’S A WITCH! BURN HER!” to her face as everyone else does.

Tom, however, is floored and everything he’s ever known to be true is thrown out the window. He decides to make Lily his new pet project.

Unfortunately for him, by this point Lily has a Slug Club to attend, only it goes horribly wrong. The Heathers have purposefully set about humiliating Luna, Lily’s only friend, and Lily has to very publicly break ties with them even though it means sacrificing her only real chance of leaving the country with gainful employment. Worse, the Heathers promise wrath the likes of which Lily has never seen before.

Lily, devastated and despairing, goes back to Tom and confesses all the shitiness of her extremely shitty life and how she doesn’t even know what the Heathers will do to her now. Tom finds this a little odd, as Lily has quickly proven herself the most powerful person on the planet, but he’s willing to play along. More to the point, Lily and Tom’s relationship goes from 0 to 100 as he is not only the first guy to show interest in her but he’s very very interested and very very hot. When Lily decides to beg Alpha Heather for forgiveness, Tom notes that he’ll come with, he’s better with people than she is.

Tom, having hit a low point of nihilist rage thanks to Voldemort having amounted to nothing, poisons Alpha Heather and dutifully covers for Lily by writing her suicide note. This works. There is an ecstasy of joyous grief throughout the school as staff and students alike confess how they never knew the true Heather. Lily is astounded, Tom is ecstatic.

Lily tries to return to life as normal, goes back to hanging out with Luna, but also has to introduce Tom to the school. Tom suggests she mind wipes everyone, that makes Lily uncomfortable, so she instead confesses what she believes is the truth in that Tom was trapped in an enchanted object. Dumbledore nearly has a stroke, but since Tom Riddle never became Voldemort, it’s more that this is a solution to an unsolved mystery and the castle is glad Tom isn’t actually dead. They’d thought he got hit by one of those muggle bombs during WWIII or whatever it was the muggles had going on.

HA HA HA HA, but no, Tom says in response.

In the meantime Tom gets to witness Lily’s weird and strained relationship with her father, his friends, and her younger half-brother. Tom points out that Lily seeking out gainful employment is unnecessary. Lily doesn’t have to be a part of society, like all these worthless people around her, she’s so powerful that she can do whatever she likes however she likes it. She can simply leave the country, she could become a dark lord even, there’s nothing stopping her. Lily’s never thought of it like that before, to become a true part of society, to be accepted on some level by that society, has always just seemed like the obvious path to her. What else would she do?

Due to this, Lily and Tom’s relationship continues to grow as they’re really the first people to see each other as they are. Naturally, this is when shit hits the fan. Thanks to Tom, Lily’s invited to another Slug Club with him (Tom can still become minister even if he was trapped in a book for fifty years! Slughorn says). Lily gets hit on and nearly sexually assaulted by some of the boys there, Lily gets out, but the next day rumor circulates around the school that Lily was in a threesome with them.

Tom Riddle sets up a ridiculous scheme in which he fakes their murder suicide where they confess to being homosexual. Lily is increasingly horrified. The school, once again, is in an ecstasy of joyful grief over the loss of these two, beautiful, oppressed, gay souls. Lily realizes that Tom is A Bad Dude (TM) and tries to confront him. He easily confesses he cares nothing about these people and has decided he wants to watch society burn. These are the people who thought he had died in the Blitz and did nothing. They are people who cannot and will not change. They’re the absentee fathers who dote on far less powerful, pureblood, sons. Tom has officially, completely, given up on the wizarding world and now he will destroy it as quickly and horrifically as he can. Lily, not belonging to society, can pour the kerosene on with him.

This is getting a little too gnarly for Lily and she dumps Tom.

Unfortunately, he quickly becomes exceedingly popular thanks to his angelic face, his natural charm and charisma, and his understanding of people. He passes around a petition for suicide and bullying awareness that everybody and their brother signs. What they’re really signing is pages from the diary which, much like Death Note, promises him both their magic and their life force.

Tom confronts Lily and admits he’s going to murder everybody, an entire generation of wizards and witches gone in an instant, AND LILY CAN BE HIS DARK QUEEN! Lily and Tom get into a fight, Tom accidentally murders the shit out of her and is devestated, only of course for Lily to wake up later after he’s left because she was unwittingly immortal this whole time.

Rising from the dead, Lily hunts Tom down before he can blow up the school, and sucks him back into the diary. Upon graduation Lily makes up with Luna, still has no prospects and plans to go and be homeless in India, has hesitantly gotten in contact with Lily Evans, basically has no contact left with her father, and has a boyfriend diary named Tom who might be let out in fifty years if he promises not to blow up a school.

#ask #anon #lily and the art of being sisyphus #heathers

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anotheronechicagobog · 4 years ago

Text

The Crackship Sails to Molly’s - Hailey Upton x Kim Burgess - Strain

written by @anotheronechicagobog

Instead of her alarm clock, it was the sound of retching in the bathroom that woke Kim up. She sighed, pinching her brows together. She didn’t need to ask why Hailey didn’t wake her up when she wasn’t feeling well, she’d been dating her long enough to know the answer. She grabbed a glass of water, a ginger ale from the fridge and a hair tie from their dresser. After tying back Hailey’s knotted and sweaty hair she sat on the bathtub next to her, rubbing her back. “Do you think you’re well enough to try some water? A ginger ale? We should get some fluids into you.”

“I’m-”

“And don’t you dare say that you’re ‘fine’.”

“... Let me wash out the taste of vomit in my mouth and then I’ll try the ginger ale.”

“Okay.”

“Thank you.”

“Of course, Hailey, you know that-”

“No, I really just... Thank you. For taking care of me, for loving me, for everything. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

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The ginger ale did not help, nor did the medicine she’d been able to keep down. Her fever spiked, she was so flushed her skin was an irritated pink, she’d gotten dizzy, and she started to hallucinate a talking dog wearing a lion costume. Kim had managed to corral her into the car but nothing, not even Dr. Choi when they got to MED, could calm her down. Her fiance was getting sicker and sicker and nothing was going to be able to quell the panic and fear inside of her. So she sat at Hailey’s beside, curled up in an awful chair, letting her tears flow freely as she cradled the hand of her unconscious soulmate. “Hey, Kim. I got your text. And pizza for you.”

“Pizza, Jay? Really?”

“Hailey would maim me if she found out I didn’t take care of you when she couldn’t. Seriously, we actually made a pact. So eat your food, drink this bottle of water and get ready to be fussed over. She’s gonna make it.”

“How do you know?”

“She’s my best friend, we’ve been through so much together that there’s no other option for me. She’s going to make it, she has to.”

“She has to.”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hailey had woken up the next day, but only momentarily. She’d mumbled something about dancing tulips and promptly passed out again. Kim and Jay laughed lightly at her expense, but they were mostly just relieved that she was getting better. Her fever was down and according to Dr. Choi that was really good news. They wouldn’t be able to tell if the dizziness or nausea had dissipated until she woke up, but the fact that she was waking up was amazing. She’d caught a nasty strain of the flu, it was so bad and unusual that the CDC had to get involved. Study her treatment, interview close friends, get samples from Hailey. The works. They were actually starting to get pretty concerned about all the blood tests and tissue samples they needed when Will showed up with an explanation, the strain of flu that Hailey has isn’t from the U.S. so it was slightly different than the strains they’re used to treating, at that point they were just trying to determine where it was from and if they needed to be concerned about an outbreak.

So Kim and Jay calmed down a bit. They were still worried, but having Will there to decipher all of the doctor speak, it was a little easier. When her fever broke they were approached by one of the CDC doctors who had been observing Hailey’s case. They could both tell from the look on her face that this was not going to be a pleasant conversation. “Detectives Burgess and Halstead, I’m afraid I have bad news. We have determined the origin of the strain that has infected Detective Upton. It’s from England, and it’s a unique strain because it appears to have been formed overtime from a few different strains from different countries, not uncommon in people who travel frequently without adequate vaccinations. We have determined a course of action, but unfortunately might be too late. The antibiotics that she needs need to start being taken within 72 hours. It’s been 61. And the closest antibiotics we could get are in London, England. It’s an eight hour flight and they have to go through customs and the FDA and they just might not get here in time. I’m sorry.”

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. She can’t- Why- No-” Tears were streaming down Kim’s face and she fell back into her chair. “This can’t be happening, we’re supposed to be together, have more time together. More time. Just a little more time, please.” Jay was standing beyond Kim’s chair, watching with a fractured soul as she stroked his best friend’s face and begged her to wake up. When suddenly, it dawned on him. “Dr. Tamara, do the antibiotics have to arrive on a commercial plane?”

“Well, no, but a private plane wouldn’t be faster and would cost a lot more money.”

“What about a military plane?” Hope was starting to creep into his desperate features, and instead of meeting sorrowful silence, he was met with mirroring spirits. “I don’t have those kinds of connections to make that happen, but if you do that would absolutely work.”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jay managed to get the antibiotics on a military passenger/cargo flight from London to Chicago, almost halving the time everything would’ve taken. Kim hadn’t stopped hugging and thanking him since he got off the phone with an air force buddy he’d done a couple of operations with while he was in the rangers. The meds had been given with four hours to spare, so now both detectives were just a pile of nerves, antsy to see Hailey open her eyes. “For the last time Kim, you don’t need to thank me. Hailey’s important to me too, okay? I haven’t been holding onto that ring for her for the past four months for nothi- Shit.”

“... Ring?”

“Yes.”

“An engagement ring?”

“Yeah.” Kim turned back to the love of her life, happiness shining through for the first time in days, “you better wake up, Hailey Ann Upton. How am I gonna say ‘yes’ if you don’t even ask me?”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hailey woke up, and was lucid. Kim and Jay were trying so hard not to overwhelm her. So when Intelligence and firehouse 51 had stopped by they just smiled gratefully and accepted all of the get-well-soon gifts that were offered and sending everyone on their way. When Jay re-entered the hospital room after accepting a batch of cookies and containers of lasagna from the ever angelic Cindy Hermann, he found Kim and Hailey curled up in bed together. Smiling, whispering and just enjoying being in each other’s arms again. Kim blushed at his chuckles and Hailey grinned sheepishly. “I needed a cuddle from my favourite girl, Jay, what can I say?”

“She gave me her puppy-dog eyes. I had no choice.”

“Yeah,” he looked at Kim meaningfully, implying her to remember their conversation about Hailey’s not-so-secret intentions, “you didn’t really stand a chance.”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jay dropped the two women off at their apartment a week later after Hailey had finally been discharged. “Thanks for dropping us off Jay, I appreciate it. And Hailey, you still have to take it easy, I’ll go put your hospital bag away and order some food and after Jay heads out we’ll have a Mamma Mia! Marathon, okay?”

“Alright, well my work here is almost done then.” He was met with two sets of raised eyebrows, so he turned his teasing smirk to his partner. “Someone has to make sure you don’t get up unsupervised while Kim’s in the other room.”

“Smart thinking, Halstead.”

“Hey! I’m capable of taking care of myself.” Kim jogged to the bedroom in a fit of laughter, leaving Hailey and Jay alone for a few moments. Jay leaned his body out to look down the hallway and make sure that Kim was out of earshot before he turned back to Hailey. She looked better than she did before, her pallor was back to normal, her eyes were vibrant, and she was glowing in happiness and relief, though her movements were still lapsed and slow. Jay reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the navy velvet ring box and placed it into her confused but waiting hand. “I accidentally let it slip when you were in the hospital. You should’ve seen her face when she caught on, she loves you. So much, and if these past couple of weeks have taught us anything, it’s that you don’t have the time you think you do. Ask her, she’ll say yes. I guarantee it.” After a one-armed hug with a shocked Hailey, Jay shouted a goodbye to Kim before taking his leave.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They’d finished the first movie and were about to put in the second, but Hailey hadn’t even noticed, she’d spent most of that time staring at Kim.

“Hails? Are you okay? Do I need to call Dr. Tamara?”

“I... I’ve tried writing speeches and planning exactly what to say, but I can’t because you’re too amazing to capture with words. Nothing ever seems good enough. And I have to be honest, I love that, because it means that I love you so much I can’t even fully comprehend it. And I know that you feel the same way, too. Kim, will you marry me?”

Hailey revealed the box from behind her and opened it up to show her the ring. Her heart was hammering in chest so hard and she just couldn’t force her eyes away from Kim’s face and the wistful tears accumulating in her eyes that mixed with the beaming smile she just loved to see.

“Yes!”

#One Chicago #Chicago PD #chicago med #hailey upton #kim burgess #jay halstead #will halstead #hailey upton x kim burgess

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lesbianzhane · 4 years ago

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our last summer (crygi)

a/n; hello again! this is the first time i’ve ever written crygi, so hopefully it’s not awful! i was originally basing this off of our last summer from mama mia, but i got a little sidetracked. despite that, i hope you all enjoy! any and all feedback is welcomed!

Crystal was fifteen years old when she did her first exchange program. She had always dreamed of working overseas, seeing the world and learning so many new things. When the school approached her and offered the opportunity to fly to Paris for an entire school year, she couldn’t refuse. She practically jumped for joy at it. Her parents were a bit skeptical of the whole thing, they were nervous that Crystal wasn’t going to be safe in a completely new country. Crystal, and the school, assured them that the entire time Crystal was in Paris, she would be protected and accounted for.

She moved to Paris at the beginning of that summer. The school had told her it was to help her adjust, to ensure that when she settled into her new school life she had at least a small understanding of the city. The family that was hosting her had a daughter that would actually be going to her school, and the two of them hit it off almost instantly. Crystal was much more outgoing than Nicky was, and for a bit Crystal was nervous that she wouldn’t like her. Nicky warmed up after a couple of hours, telling Crystal all about the city and how things worked here. It made Crystal feel like a true part of their family, even after a short amount of time.

One day, the two of them were out in the city, ordering from a local coffee shop. That’s when Crystal spotted her. The tall, blonde haired girl who was struggling to relay her order to the barista in french. Nicky stepped in, translating for her. The girl had to be the prettiest person Crystal had the pleasure of laying her eyes on. Her legs seemed to go on for miles, and Crystal’s eyes wandered up the smooth expanse of skin exposed. The girl was wearing a tight miniskirt, and a simple button up shirt that fit her perfectly. Crystal wondered if it was legal for someone to be this breathtaking.

Nicky had to nudge her to get her to stop staring. The girl shot them both an appreciative smile, stepping out of line as the two of them ordered. Crystal got a simple hot chocolate, relaying her order to Nicky so she could translate it to the barista. Once their orders were placed, Nicky decided to approach the girl they had helped. The french accent was heavy on her lips as she spoke, though her English wasn’t broken or hard to understand.

“Hi, my name is Nicky. You’re welcome, by the way.” Nicky shoots the girl a cocky smile, and the look is reciprocated.

“Thanks. I’m Gigi.” She holds out a hand for Nicky, and Crystal watches on in awe as the two of them easily fall into a conversation. Gigi explains that she is also here on an exchange program, and that she just so happens to be going to the same school as the two of them. Nicky swears that the three of them will be the best of friends, even if Crystal hasn’t said a word this entire time. Just as the thought crosses her mind, Gigi turns to her and tilts her head, waiting for an answer.

“Huh? Oh! I wasn’t listening. What did you say?” Crystal tries to laugh it off, bringing a hand up to rub at the back of her neck.

“I asked what your name was. You haven’t spoken this entire time.” Gigi smiles with her teeth, and Crystal swears it goes straight to her heart. She stutters on her words for a moment, trying to formulate a proper sentence.

“Crystal! My name is Crystal!” She quickly introduces herself, though she talks a bit too loud. The attention to the cafe shifts towards her, and she flushes a bright red. Their coffees, and Crystal’s hot chocolate, are placed in front of them and the three of them decide to leave. Crystal is happy to observe the two of them talking as they walk through the busy streets of Paris. She admires Gigi, the way her nose curves and the light dusting of freckles on her nose. The way her lips turn up and the way her eyes crinkle when she laughs. Crystal thinks she’s absolutely beautiful.

-------------

About a month into Crystal’s summer, her and Gigi have become much closer. The two of them text almost everyday, usually Crystal sending Gigi some silly meme that made her laugh until she cried. Today, the two of them sit in an open field in the park close by Nicky’s house. It’s rare for the three of them to be separated, but today Nicky has to do something with her mother and couldn’t join them on their outing. Crystal is laying down against the grass, watching the way the clouds roll slowly across the sky. Gigi sits next to her, twirling a flower that Crystal insisted that she kept between her fingertips.

Gigi had been struggling for the past few weeks with whatever she was feeling. It seemed that whenever she was around Crystal, her heart would race and all rational thoughts would fly out of her mind. Gigi had never felt this way before for anyone, not even the boys she had dated. Ever since she was little, she had known that she was different, but she never wanted to admit it. Back in LA, gay people weren’t exactly an anomaly. Her best friend, Jackie, was a lesbian. She remembered sitting on Jackie’s bed with her, watching the Persian cry as she came out to her. Gigi was incredibly happy for her, and those feelings that had been brewing up in her chest for any pretty girl that showed her the time of day only got worse.

If Jackie was unapologetically herself, then why couldn’t Gigi? Her eyes flicked over to Crystal once more, and she rested her chin in her hand as she watched the other teenager. Crystal was also someone that Gigi looked up to. Not literally, considering that Crystal was a few inches shorter than her, but in a figurative way. Crystal was always herself, she never seemed to abide by anyone's rules but her own. Crystal was everything that Gigi wished she could be.

Gigi lay down in the grass next to the other girl, staring up at the clouds. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes and reaching over to lock both of their pinkies together. It was a simple gesture, but it made Gigi’s heart practically leap into her throat. Crystal didn’t seem to mind, instead the girl locked their fingers together and gave Gigi’s hand a squeeze. Gigi could have sworn she stopped breathing at that.

The pair lay in silence for a few moments, Gigi trying to regulate her breathing and Crystal sneaking peeks at the other from the corner of her eye. Gigi sat up abruptly, looking down at Crystal in the grass. Her heart pounded in her ears, and it was almost deafening. “Crystal, can I tell you something?”

Crystal sits up, concern present on her face. She fiddles with her fingers in her lap nervously, looking up at Gigi. “Yeah, of course you can.”

“I think…” Gigi wanted to confess everything. She wanted to tell Crystal how beautiful she thought she was, how her smile alone would make her day. She wanted to tell her how much she wished she could kiss her all day, and lay in bed and cuddle with her for hours. The words caught in her throat, and she had to force herself to look away from the other girl. “I think I’m gay.”

That hadn’t been exactly what she wanted to say, but it was enough. Crystal bounded forward, wrapping Gigi up in a warm hug. The presence of her friend was enough to put Gigi at ease, and she silently prayed that Crystal couldn’t feel the way that her heart pounded. She relaxed into the hug, closing her eyes and breathing in the sweet scent of Crystal's perfume. It was enough to make her feel at peace.

“I’m so proud of you, G.” Crystal whispered into her ear, and it sent chills down Gigi’s spine. After a few moments of simply holding each other, Crystal pulled away with a smile. The rest of their day was spent talking about girls they thought were attractive, and everytime Crystal laughed, Gigi had to force herself not to spit out that she thought Crystal was the most beautiful girl she’d ever seen.

-------------

Nearing the end of summer, Nicky had insisted that the three of them had a slumber party. Crystal didn’t really think it counted as a slumber party, considering that the two girls lived together. Really, it was just a sleepover with Gigi. Nicky was very adamant about the fact that it was a slumber party, because there were three people. Crystal just laughed at her and let her believe what she wanted.

Gigi arrived in the late afternoon, and the three of them made their way to Nicky’s room. Crystal told her earlier that she wouldn’t be sleeping in there, and that Gigi could pick between sleeping in Nicky’s room or hers. She was pretty sure that Gigi would choose Crystal’s, but there was still a bit of doubt in her mind that the other girl would rather spend time with Nicky. She would consider Gigi her best friend here, and she hoped the sentiment was returned.

Nicky, being the leader that she was, suggested the three of them watch horror movies. Crystal was an absolute baby when it came to them. Anytime even the slightest noise happened, she would jump and cower behind Gigi’s arm. Gigi thought it was absolutely adorable, and she would have to thank Nicky one day for allowing herself to be in this position. Once the first movie was over, Crystal had practically begged the two of them to watch anything else.

This was how they found themselves in the middle of some old romance movie. Nicky was long asleep by this point, and Gigi herself was starting to feel tired. It was the middle of the night, and Crystal seemed to be completely immersed in the movie. Her eyes were filled with tears as the two leads kissed in the rain, and when a breathy ‘I love you’ slipped out of the male character’s lips, the tears started flowing. Gigi blinked quickly, registering the way that Crystal sobbed beside her at the movie.

She glanced down at Nicky’s sleeping form, before moving to tug on Crystal’s arm. “You alright? You’re crying a lot for some trashy romance movie.”

Crystal looked up at her, eyes glassy with tears. She sniffled, motioning for Gigi to follow after her. She led the pair down to her room, stepping inside and watching Gigi close the door behind herself. It certainly wasn’t the first time Gigi had stepped foot in Crystal’s room, but over the two months she had been in Paris, it changed. The walls went from being barren to being full of paintings that Crystal insisted she needed to own. The shelves filled with photographs of the three of them, most of which Crystal was smiling brightly as Nicky and Gigi laughed on either side of her. There was a photo in particular that always caught Gigi’s eye.

It was of her and Crystal, sitting right on the girls nightstand. Crystal had her arm slung over Gigi’s shoulder, pulling the girl into the frame. Gigi looked shocked, mouth hanging open slightly as Crystal simply laughed beside her. It always made Gigi’s heart race when she stepped into Crystal’s room. It was special to her, and the fact that Crystal left it on her nightstand would make her believe that there was a possibility that Crystal felt the same way Gigi did.

Crystal opened her mouth, tears still fresh in her eyes as she spoke. Her voice was hoarse and sleepy, and Gigi’s eyes were full of concern as she watched her. “I’ve been trying so hard to hide this, Geeg. I really have. But, school is about to start, and I don’t wanna go into it with all these thoughts in my head.” Crystal took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. “I like you so much. So much more than a best friend. Ever since we met, you just make me feel like I’m living one of the stupid romance movies.”

Crystal’s words tore straight into Gigi’s heart. Just like the night Gigi had come out to her best friend, she wrapped her up in a tight hug. She could feel the way Crystal tentatively held her back, and once she was sure the other girl had stopped crying, she pulled back. Crystal quickly spoke up, eyes darting away. “I’m sorry, I hope this doesn’t make things weird-”

Gigi didn’t let Crystal finish her sentence. She crashed her lips against the other girls, closing her eyes and pouring every longing emotion she could into the kiss. All the time she had fantasized about kissing Crystal didn’t live up to the real thing. Their lips fit together like perfect puzzle pieces, and Gigi could taste the cherry lip gloss that Crystal loved wearing. Gigi hoped that Crystal could feel just how much she loved the other girl.

After a few moments, Crystal pulled away to look up at Gigi. Her tears had dried, and were replaced with a small smile on her lips. Gigi could see how tired Crystal was, and she pulled the two of them towards the other girl's bed. They fell back on it, a small laugh escaping Crystal’s lips as they snuggled underneath the covers.

The two of them drifted off into a peaceful sleep, tangled up in eachother.

-------------

Crystal was twenty two now. Every so often, she would text Nicky and the two of them would catch up on Facetime. They had parted ways after Crystal’s exchange program, but had never truly lost touch. Nicky was busy with her fashion label that she worked so hard for, and Crystal was a freelance artist bouncing around jobs. She had finally managed to leave Missouri, opting to move to New York. She figured she could get more art opportunities in such a big city.

Along the way, she had met some of her greatest friends. Jan, a musical theatre major, had proved to be someone that Crystal absolutely loved. The other girl would gush about her girlfriend, and soon to be wife, whenever she could. Crystal loved hearing about their love, she had always been such a hopeless romantic at heart. Jan was sure that Crystal and Jackie would get along swimmingly, and when Jackie finally visited, her theory was proven correctly.

Jackie was smart, much smarter than Crystal was. She was wise beyond her years, and sometimes Crystal wondered if she really was just as young as they were. The two of them became quick friends, and it made Jan ecstatic. Crystal could swear she had heard the name before, but she couldn’t place her finger on it.

Everytime Jan would gush about her fiance, or she would watch one of her favorite romance movies, her mind would wander back to her exchange program. She thought about Gigi, how she was doing and if she ever went on to become the seamstress she always dreamed of. Nicky never brought her name up, so she could assume the two of them hadn’t kept in contact after their year of friendship.

That summer had always stood out to Crystal. It was the first summer where she experienced true love, the first summer she had ever been truly happy being away from home. Gigi had made that the best summer of her life, and every now and again Crystal would wish she could do it all over. Gigi’s number was still saved in her phone, even after all those years. The little heart she had next to it never changed, and it was a reminder of the time the two of them spent together.

Crystal never brought up Gigi to her new friends. She didn’t want them to think she was weird for pining after a girl she had a romance with at fifteen years old. Still, that summer the spent together would forever remain in her memories.

She still had that damned photograph too, sitting behind a few new ones of her and Jan on her nightstand.

#rupauls drag race #rupauls drag race 12 #rpdr #rpdr 12 #rpdr fanfiction #crystal methyd #gigi goode #nicky doll #jackie cox #jan sport #crystal x gigi #crygi #goodemethyd #small mentions of jankie as well

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youvebeenlivingfictional · 5 years ago

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Love Isn’t Always On Time Part Twenty Four

Previous Part | Next Part | Masterlist Notes: These next few chapters are gonna be kinda Steve-heavy due to the nature of the MCU Not beta-read Warnings: Uuuuh none Summary:    Steve had been in D.C. for nearly seven months; I got regular updates about him from Natasha, but he didn't know that. I was worried about him getting lonely while he was down there, had asked her to keep an eye out.

"Come on, please? Just for a weekend." My brows rose at the tone of voice, and I shifted the phone where it was cradled between my ear and shoulder. It was slow as hell at work -- one couple making out in the corner and a regular that I trusted to pour his own drinks from the bottle of Jack I'd left on the Formica-topped bar. I wasn't too far off from it anyway - close enough to make it look like I'd just set it aside to spiral a lemon peel if my boss stepped out of his office.

Steve had been in D.C. for nearly seven months; I got regular updates about him from Natasha, but he didn't know that. I was worried about him getting lonely while he was down there, had asked her to keep an eye out.

I liked Natasha. We'd known one another before I went back in time; she'd always told me I was in the wrong business. When I'd come back, I'd bonded with her and Hill more than I thought I ever would.

"I'm trying to get him to go out more," Natasha told me the last time we'd spoken, "But it's hard. He's got this little notebook he keeps of things people tell him he needs to look up. I'm pretty sure he's been spending all of his free time either working out or looking things up."

"Steve likes to be thorough."

"I bet he does." That flirty edge to her voice told me Steve had mentioned a thing or two about our past relationship. I ran my hand over my face, looking around the bar, as if there was someone or something there that needed my help to get me off of this call. I'd been dying to see Steve, but adamant with myself about giving him his space.

"Sounds an awful lot like you're begging me to come and see you," I finally said.

"I am."

There was a firmness in his voice that I hadn't heard from him in a long time. At least, not where I was concerned.

"I miss you," He added more quietly. I wasn't expecting that. In all of our other conversations, Steve had nothing but good things to say about D.C., the sparse details of the missions he was going on, the things he got to do and see, some fancy combat moves he'd learned while sparring with Natasha. I leaned against the bar, resting my hand on the phone and sighing.

"I miss you, too, Stevie."

"Then come see me. Drive down in that swish car Stark gave you and stay the weekend."

---

"You haven't been sleeping well," I observed when he opened the door. He pursed his lips.

"It hasn't even been a minute and you're already scolding me," Steve pulled me into a warm hug before I could say anything else. I leaned into it, sliding my arms up over those broad shoulders and letting myself curl against him.

"Come on," He urged me inside, an arm still around my waist as he led me into his apartment. I whistled, looking around.

"They set you up in a nice place," I commented, looking around.

"I like it. Three times as big as our old place," Steve reminded me.

"And not even half the size of the floor Stark set you up in," I teased.

"I went on a mission last night. That's why I look tired," Steve justified to me. I hummed in understanding, leaning against the arm of the couch and looking up at him.

"Everything go okay?"

"Fine. Fine, just. Natasha..." He trailed off, shaking his head, and I frowned, waiting for him to finish. When he left it at that, I sighed.

"Nat's a spy, Stevie. Not a soldier."

"You sound like her."

"I'm stating a fact. S.H.I.E.L.D isn't like the old days, we can't go back to that. Everything is different now. The way we treat our privacy is different, the way we fight wars is different. And with Loki, in New York? Thor? Gods, demi-gods, magic, whatever the fuck the Tesseract is? The world has changed."

Steve's lips were pressed into a thin line. Neither of us spoke right away.

"I thought Nat was kidding when she told me that not being in the game was driving you crazy," Steve said.

"You two talk about me?" I asked.

"About as much as you two talk about me," Steve retorted. I nodded. That was fair. "Why don't you talk to Fury about getting reinstated?" Steve asked. I snorted.

"That's not gonna happen, and you know it." I pushed myself off of the arm of the couch.

"We should go do something. What do you wanna do?" I asked.

"Could check out the exhibit." I knew exactly what he was talking about. I nodded.

"Let's go."

"I'll grab my jacket." "Still can't believe you haven't gone yet. It's been open for months. I hear Morita and Falsworth were at the opening," I said, leaning in Steve's doorway as he pulled his jacket on.

"They were. I saw them separately. I can still drink them under the table."

"Only because alcohol doesn't effect you. That is elder abuse, Rogers."

"Hey, I'm an elder. You wouldn't believe the look the ticket taker gave me when I asked for the senior discount at the movies last week." I snorted, grinning, and straightened up as Steve made to leave the apartment, baseball cap in hand.

"Hey, Steve."

We turned at the sound of a woman's voice, and I raised a brow at the sight of a pretty blonde in nurse's scrubs and a denim jacket. She cast me a smile, and I did my best to return it, even as my mind was racing.

"Hey, Sharon," Steve greeted.

She ducked into her apartment before introductions could be made. I could swear I had seen her before, but I couldn't place her. Steve must've taken my furrowed brow and staring at her door for simple confusion.

"My neighbor," Steve explained.

"I kinda got that when she opened the door to the apartment and went inside."

"Alright, smart-ass," Steve grumbled.

"We taking your bike?" I asked, tucking my hands into my pockets.

"We can, if that's what you want."

What I wanted was a good reason to hold on to Steve.

---

We took the bike.

--- "I still don't understand why they're exhibiting this in the Museum of Air and Space," I commented. Steve had surprised me by taking my hand in his as we walked toward the building.

"I mean, no offense, but the one time you flew a plane, it didn't go all that well," I added. Steve shot me a look from under his cap, and I couldn't help but snort.

" 'm just saying,' I mumbled.

I felt Steve tense as we drew closer to the exhibit. The words, 'Captain America: The Living Legend And Symbol of Courage' were in thick type at the entrance.

"If you wanna go at any point, we can," I offered. Steve nodded, giving my hand a squeeze as we walked inside.

"The story of Captain America is one of honor, bravery, and sacrifice."

Steve's shoulders were practically at his ears, head ducked like if he stood up straight, people would know him instantly. I didn't blame him- a baseball cap wasn't the most efficient method of cover.

Drifting through the exhibit with Steve's hand in mine made me think of the World's Fair, Bucky's last night in Brooklyn, and our last night as us.

"Hey," Steve said softly, squeezing my hand and drawing my attention to a photo. I turned to look at it, and I felt my jaw drop. I wandered closer to it, stunned at the sight of a picture of Steve and I. It was from behind the scenes on the bond tour.

I could tell from our positions - my face tipped up and grinning, lipstick smudged, his head bent toward me, hands cradling my face- that he'd just gotten through kissing me fairly thoroughly. The caption beneath the portrait said 'Captain Rogers with unidentified fan'.

"'Unidentified fan'," Steve read, brow furrowing.

"Well. I was a fan. Still am, in fact."

Steve lowered his voice, "Do you think that was... S.H.I.E.L.D's doing? Keeping your name out of things?"

"If they knew this was listed to be part of the exhibit, they never would've let it through. I did my best to keep my head down and my face out of the pictures back then. I guess this one slipped."

"This and that picture of you and Howard."

I hummed in agreement, nodding. Tony had gone through a few of his father's things, finding notes on Steve, me, Bucky, and a newspaper clipping from the World's Fair; a photo I barely remembered with me pulled into a grinning Howard's side; I'd looked like I'd seen a ghost.

"I used to think you were just camera shy. Especially when Bucky borrowed that one from Ernie, to take a picture of you before he was shipped off.”

My face went red at the memory, Bucky's careful cajoling as I had stripped down to my bullet bra, garter belt and tap pants ("You really think I'd ever let the guys see this?...Aw, baby, no, this is just for me...And maybe a copy for Stevie...Look at you, all flushed. So pretty for me, baby.")

"You okay?"

Steve's words broke me from my remembrance, and I raised my eyes to meet his. He had a small, mischievous smile and a twinkle in his eye.

"I'm fine. I was...Somewhere else."

"I think I know where that might've been," Steve teased, wrapping his arm around my shoulders.

"Shut up," I mumbled, ducking my head as if I could hide the blush Steve had already seen.

"Tell you what," He added, "I still have that picture."

"You do not."

"Do, too," Steve laughed.

We rounded a corned and both froze when we saw it. Bucky. A photo of his face, that stern moue of his mouth.

"Best friends since childhood, Bucky Barnes and Steven Rogers were inseparable on both school yard and battle field. Barnes is the only Howling Commando to give his life in the service of his country."

Just beside the display, old reels of footage showing Steve and Bucky pouring over maps, of the two of them side by side, laughing despite of where they were, what they were doing. I turned my head, resting my forehead against Steve's shoulder and closing my eyes for a moment. I missed Bucky every day, but that loss always felt little more poignant when I was with Steve. It wasn't fair that he and I were there and Bucky wasn't.

"Y'alright?" Steve asked. I lifted my head, swinging our hands between us and casting Bucky one more look before nodding.

"C'mon," I urged, "I wanna see if they have a bobble head of you in the gift shop."

---

"You seeing anyone?" I asked. Steve squirmed in his seat, eyes set on his fries. I'd waited until we were well into our meal to start politely grilling him. It wasn't going well.

"No," He said.

"Not even Natasha? You two seem pretty close." Steve shrugged his shoulders.

"We've been working together a lot."

"She's attractive, you're attractive--"

"Is that all it takes?"

"You two are very similar people," I finished, watching Steve, "You're both calculated, quick. I'm not saying being hot is a requirement but it doesn't hurt." Steve grunted, and I could tell it was a dead-end.

"What about that neighbor we ran into?" I prodded. Steve lifted his head, meeting my eyes.

"Have you been seeing anyone?" He asked.

"We're not talking about me."

"Well have you?" I held his gaze as he stared me down before I shook my head a little bit.

"No."

"Neither have I."

"Not even one date? One drink, one dance?"

"Nope."

"What are you waiting for, Steve?"

"Nothing. I've already met the right partner. I made the mistake of leaving her in New York." My stomach twisted, and I felt myself drawing away, slouching a little; it was my turn to look down at my fries.

"Nat's down here with you," I pointed out.

"It ain't Nat and you know it."

"Steve--"

"I have had... A lot of time to think," Steve said, "And Nat has spent a lot of time trying to set me up." I laughed, shaking my head and raising my eyes to meet his. Steve leaned forward, folding his arms and watching me.

"I haven't just woken up. I have spent time in the 21st century, and I've been doing it without you, and it's awful. If you don't feel the same, that's alright, I get it. I haven't been the best at keeping in touch--"

"You've been working things out. I was trying to give you your space, too."

"I don't want that much space."

"...So what do you want to do? Stay here in D.C.?"

"Work will keep me down here, probably. Headquarters is here." I nodded. Steve bit his lip, thinking.

"I ...Would you come down here?" He asked. He looked shy, nervous. I smiled.

"I think they've got bars down here. I could get a job."

"Wouldn't have to worry about an apartment," Steve added.

"Or a car," I smiled. Steve's shoulders relaxed for the first time since we left the museum. He took hold of my hand, raising it to his lips and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

"Fuck, I've missed you, doll," He sighed.

"Language, Rogers." Tag List: @gloryevans @redryderdesigns @winter-scolder @aactuaaltraash @secretagentben @staplerrrr @moli1497 @adayinmymeadow @allonszassbutt @mannls @witch-of-letters @niallssweetheart22 @uneniffler @rinthehufflepuff @panic-angel3314 @firstangeldragonranch @kaetastic @mcuwillbethedeathofme @skeletoresinthebasement @i-dont-know-what-im-doing-yay @kkaos15 @iiamnotoverlyfondofwhatfollows @bassclarinety @tomshelbystits @rvgrsbrns @marvelmenarebeautiful

#Steve Rogers #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x you #steve rogers x bucky barnes #steve rogers x reader x bucky barnes #stucky #stucky x reader #stucky x you #Bucky Barnes #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #Love Isn't Always on Time

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birdeedee · 5 years ago

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Andromeda Six Actor!AU - Background Info

*Slams fist on table* Nobody asked for this but hERE WE GO (under the read more because I got carried away)

Cal: Was originally a model before he got into acting. Started off mostly with photo shoots and print photography before he blew up after he landed a job with a particularly big brand that used his face everywhere. He decided to branch out into acting as a hobbie (*cough* his agent told him to *cough*) and took an Intro to Acting for the Camera class - where he met Aya. Him and Aya have known each other the longest out of the entire A6 cast.

Aya: Started off on broadway (because of course she did) right out of high school. She wasn’t much of a singer and stuck to more dance heavy roles and shows (think shows like Cats, where you don’t watch for the plot, you watch for the amazing performers). After a few years of doing on and off broadway shows, she decided she wanted a change of pace, but she knew she wanted to pursue acting still. So she signed up for the first Acting for the Camera class she could find, because she knows stage acting and camera acting are very different, and the first person she pesters is the grumpy hot guy brooding in the corner (they become instant best friends- from Aya’s point of view).

Damon: Absolute heartthrob, I’m telling you. He’s always been extremely charismatic and he knows it. He landed his first acting job when he had just gotten out of highschool, a CW like show that lasted a few years before it got canceled. The role got the ball rolling on his career, and with a few appearances in small films and tv shows, he solidified his image as the “charismatic bad boy” (which is to say he definitely had a casting type). He’s absolutely done a few photo shoots with Cal, but the two never really got to know each other that well besides work related stuff.

June: Has been in the public eye the longest out of all the cast members. He started out as a Canadian country artist (i will die on this hill. you cannot convince me he was not) but it took him a while to gain traction in the industry. He had a small following for a good few years before one of his songs got extremely popular- but only really in Canada. He always had loved acting, he performed in all his local small town productions when he was growing up (June is from the praries, fight me) and so he decided to give acting a go. He’s starred in a few Life Time movies, the cheesier the better, but still was only popular in Canada. Until he landed the role in A6, that is.

Bash: Always thought he was going to go into a STEM field of some kind, it was always what interested him from the get go. But he was also known as the class clown where ever he went, and he was extremely charismatic. Whether he used that charisma for good or not, who knows. As his interest in science, engineering specifically, grew so did his love for comedy and stand up. He would watch old stand up shows and analyze them for what exactly made a joke a good joke (bash is a closet nerd!! He is the epitome of jock-nerd and that is final!!) and he realized that so many comedians went into acting, which led him to go down many, many rabbit holes. He still went to uni for a bit, as it didn’t quite register in his head that he could actually pursue acting and comedy as a career. He took training here and there because he loved it so much, but it wasn’t until after university that he really started to view it as a career option.

Ryona: Loved, loved, loved acting when she was growing up. She begged her parents to let her audition for local productions and would always try out for her school plays. But as she got older her passion for acting slowly dwindled and was replaced by the passion for helping people, aided by the fact that her parents were both doctors. She ended up going to nursing school, and in her first year she found out her uni had some extra courses, one of which was an acting course. She took it thinking nothing of it at the time but once she got a taste for it she realized that, as much as she loved helping people, acting was something she really, really loved as well and absolutely wanted to pursue it. She and Bash dated briefly when they both went to uni, but it ended on a good note and they’re still friends!

Vexx: Was a child star, something a kin to the Olsen twins. He was too young to remember most of it, but the public loved him. He was adorable as a baby and because of that he was in everything. But as he got older and his parents allowed him to make his own decisions he decided to stop acting all together and live a normal life. He stopped appearing in anything around his early teens, so he got to finish his high school career without any major public scandals. He got a degree in English literature but once he graduated he found himself wanted to revisit his acting career, and he’s determined to breakout of his child star image.

MC: Besides the fact that they come from a very big actor family, they’re a complete nobody in the business, they don’t have any major titles under their belt and A6 is the first show they’ve worked on as a lead. Previously, the biggest role they’ve had has been actor roles, but they’ve mostly just done background work. When they landed the role for A6 it was a major shocker because most of they’re family is so well known in the business that the public didn’t even know they existed (because anybody who is worth knowing about would have already made themselves known, right?)

I might revisit these later on and tweak them, but they’ve been stuck in my head for so long I might as well share them.

#andromeda six #actor!au #andromeda 6 #my writing #a6 #long post #text post

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falls-slice-of-fantasy · 4 years ago

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So, i know no one asked, but have a seat make yourself at home and get some popcorn. This is LONG. Also I think due to this AU I’m J’s dad and not her brother??? but it’s fine even if I really normally HATE erasing her mom. i have to reblog for part 2.

It’s already canon that my Phantoms s/i is a producer who works really hardcore behind the scenes. But here’s the thing. I grew up deep in the entertainment industry and my main jobs include editing movie scrips and mixing music but he also gives HEAVY feedback on all sorts of creative projects from soundtracks to anything else. A lot of it is from his connections though and no one really knows what his official paid job is besides payroll. ( Lyell I know you’re in film school please forgive me if you read this mess???)

So I’m thinking about an AU where he’s older than me for NO reason. He’s been in the industry for about 5 years officially but again, he pretty much grew up in entertainment, he was probs in a few commercials as a wee child but just never really went into acting. It was just more of “Oh, hey Ray’s toddler is here? Maybe we could just add him in the shot!” and “Doesn’t Ray have a 10 y.o who can look at some fish? for this low budget af pet store ad” LMAO. Anyway.

After five years of being in the industry as an official mystery job I decide to do a music class for kids out of the local guitar shop that’s like a block from the local public and private school. I go ahead and rent out the space for weekdays right after school for kids in middle school. My main goal was to give kids a place to go after school if their parents worked but it was obviously open to everyone.

I start putting out ads and eventually I get some kids, but it’s way less than I expected. I honestly kind of worry it’s the “married to a man thing”. I’m pretty well known because my husband’s an actor. But then parents start calling asking about prices.

One day this kid comes in and he’s like this total pop punk kid in a flannel that’s like 100x too big for his damn body wanders in and he slaps a bunch of singles and coins on the table and he’s like “This is 2 months of lunch money is it enough for guitar lessons? I’m going to be a rockstar.”

and listen, I pretend to count this kid’s money and it’s like $8.50. (Lessons are $20 a week + paying for strings or like replacement parts) but I’m like “This is exactly enough! What’s your name?”

“Luke. Remember it! I’m gonna be FAMOUS.” and I just. BABIE.

and I get out an acoustic guitar and start showing him a couple a things. Before he leaves I hand him his money back and he’s like “This was for the lesson.” and I tell him “It’s a a deposit, it was just to make sure you didn’t break the guitar!”

and this babie comes in every day for four days and keeps giving me his 8.50 in singles and coins and I keep teaching him guitar stuff and giving it back. (Crying my EYES out thanks)

and then he doesn’t come in for like 8 days and I don’t think much of it because 1. he isn’t my kid, I barely know him and 2. Kids gain and lose interest in things all the time. Then he comes in and he’s like “Can I bring my best friend? He plays guitar too!”

and I pretend to be all professional like “Of course if he brings his deposit.”

and so this one couple comes in one day with Luke and another boy and the husband comes over and tells me he’d like to enroll his son Reginald. The mom is scolding him I’m like “Okay, great. It’s $20 a week and he can come any weekdays until 6(plural) plus you’ll have to replace any strings or drum heads he breaks.” and this dude is like “Do you take checks?” and I’m like “Sure”

and he tries to pay for 2 weeks and his wife starts fighting with him about how pointless it is to write a check for that little and convinces him to buy like 4 weeks.

He asks me what I’d recommend, and honestly like. This couple is stressing me out. So I tell them. “You know, how about we do three lessons for free and if he gets dedicated enough we can talk about a monthly or bi-montly payment?”

They agree to this. So both these boys are coming and one day Reg is like “I want to play bass!”

So I’m like “Lets do it!”

and the class starts filling up a LOT. Like I have 8 kids now in the class and people are talking about it word of mouth. Reg and Luke are there almost every day of the week. But one day Luke’s parents come in and he’s begging them to buy him a guitar.

and they’re worried about spending that much money on something he’s just going to get bored with, and with very little hesitation I’m sort of like. “Hey, I’ve got an old six string. It’s from like the 70′s but it still plays and he’s welcome to have it.”

and his parents feel so weird about accepting it but I assure them that i have a wall full of guitars that were mostly gifts and I don’t mind parting with it at all if Luke is really passionate.

and that kinda blows over and now Luke has this real beat up six string but it still works. (I left out the fact that some famous country singer gave it to me when he was drunk when I was 15).

A I keep classes open on holiday breaks and extend them but it kinda just turns into a daycare + music when there aren’t school days, and all these kids keep coming and I’m basically made it PAYW/can.

Luke’s parents want to pull him out but honestly he’s the most focused kid in the class. It would kill me if they just kinda snuffed him out so I’m like “I think he could really be great. He puts in 110% in every lesson and there are 30 kids here and I only see that from two other students.”

and his mom is all about how she doesn’t want him to waste his life, and she doesn’t mean it too harshly but she points out that despite my connections I ended up just teaching. I assure her that the only reason I missed this chance was because of my choices and if Luke applies himself he can really make a career of what he loves.

So she kinda agrees to keep him in if he keeps his grades up. Fast forward to the next year where R and L are 7th graders and they’re basically the only two left from the original group. [There are maybe a handful of others but most of them aren't OGs]

R’s parents buy him a brand new bass and it’s really good quality so he can practice at home too. L and R are practicing together all the time.

#smol: unburied 🏳️‍🌈🥁#smol: inside voices only 🔇#smol: he has a way with words ✏

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s13e06 · 5 years ago

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Recuerdos Perdidos

Draco Malfoy / Female Reader

Harry Potter AU

Warnings: mild swearing and mentions of death

Words: 4.2k

Summary: She could see the pictures with her own eyes, right there in her hand. She knew they were real. It was her in them, plain as day. But who was the boy next to her... and why did it hurt so much to try and remember?

Pt 2, Pt 3, Pt 4

Chapter 1

The news had hit you like a truck. With just those seven words you felt everything around you stop, you couldn’t even breathe let alone speak. It was like all the sound around you washed out, replaced with the deafening hum of silence.

“It’s your parents…There’s been an accident”

Walking up the familiar stone steps to your childhood home you felt a bittersweet smile rise on your face. You recounted a simpler time as you studied the aging wood of the porch. What you wouldn’t give to just relive one of those days. To cherish it in a different way… at this moment it was all you desired.

Stepping into the house you couldn’t help but feel how overwhelming the emptiness was. It’s like the house knew it was empty… but how could it?

Fighting back the urge to cry for the millionth time you were greeted by the comforting sight of your younger brother. He was currently sat on the couch looking through an old family album. The look on his face as he eyed each photo told you all you needed to know. Growing up you weren’t that close, but it wasn’t as though you were on bad terms. The age difference just kept you apart most of the time. However, you knew that he wasn’t one to show when he was sad. At least other people wouldn’t recognize. But his intense gaze and silence told you everything.

“Hey,” you said coming to sit next to him, glancing at the album in his hands. This album, in particular, was of your family's trip to Ecuador. You smiled a little remembering how at the time you were particularly moody. It was a mixture of the fact that you were only 14(your early teen years were particularly angsty) and the fact that the humidity did hell to your hair.

“Hey” was all he replied with as he shut the album quickly, he wasn’t going to show you he was vulnerable… you knew it.

“So… I figured you could start packing up in the kitchen and I’ll start in the attic” you suggested, purposely giving him the kitchen as there weren’t too many tear-jerking memories in there.

He agreed with a silent nod of his head as he stood up and made his way into his designated room.

You watched him disappear around the corner and waited a few more moments before heading into the attic. You figured it wouldn’t be too hard since everything up there was already boxed away. You just had to go through those boxes and deem what was worth keeping really.

As you made your way up the worn-out pull downstairs you chuckled softly at the memory of how terrified you were of the attic as a child. You were convinced that there was some pale girl with long black hair living up there, a rational fear considering your early interest in Japanese horror movies.

As you stood in the dimly lit room you scanned the area calmly. Reaching up you pulled the cord to the uncovered lightbulb, the light coming in from the small window just wasn’t enough. The space lit up significantly more and you hummed in content as you set your eyes on the first box. It was unlabeled so you figured it was a good place to start.

Kneeling down and ripping the box open you were surprised to find that it was full of old Christmas decorations. Tinsel and ornaments shoved into the box completely unorganized, your dad definitely packed this one. Digging a little deeper your hands felt the soft texture of Christmas stockings. A smile grew on your face as you pulled them out. Both yours and your brothers were handmade by your mother and as you hold them in your hands you couldn’t stop the tears from streaming down your face again.

“Fuck” you rasped out while wiping away the tears harshly.

Mentally deciding that this box was an automatic keep you quickly refolded the top and moved it towards the entrance to the attic.

Turning back to the corner you started in you noticed a box with your name on it. You scrunched your face in confusion. Not because you didn’t have any boxes up here but because all the ones that you did were labeled in your mother's handwriting. She was notorious for taking charge when it came to packing and organization. So why would there be a box here labeled with your name… in your handwriting.

You carefully came to sit down beside it, pulling it between your legs.

You noticed that this box was tightly taped shut unlike most of the others. But you had brought a box cutter for just this circumstance. Pulling it from your back pocket you carefully began to open the box. Upon opening it you found the contents rather peculiar. It was full of random things you didn’t quite recognize right away. An old journal, a white envelope that appeared to be quite full, a worn looking hoodie, and a smaller brown box taped securely shut. The longer you studied it the more you became confused.

Picking up the journal you flipped it open to find the first entry to be a short story you had written years ago. Glancing at the date you finally pieced together what this box was. This was a box you sent back home from your summer in England with your grandparents. You were 18 at the time and fresh out of high school. You remember begging your parents to let you spend the three months before college started with your grandparents in a new country. They had lived there all your life but the only time you saw them before that summer was when they came out to visit your family in the U.S. it was no secret that they were wealthy so their trips were actually quite frequent. However, that summer you insisted on being the one to visit.

It had been five years since that summer so naturally, you didn’t remember much but what you did remember was pleasant. The hoodie was something you were almost daily there as the weather was cloudier than you expected. The smaller box… you were unsure. Same with the envelope.

Deciding to focus on the envelope first you took it in your hands. Carefully ripping it open you peeked inside to discover that it was full of photos. That was… not what you were expecting.

Taking out the bunch you began to flip through them. They were all pictures of your summer in England. You smiled as you recounted the memories behind each one.

Some were of you posing in various places of their house obviously caught mid activity, a grin on your face. A few were of your grandparents, taken by you, smiling cheerfully. You continued to thumb through it. A few scenery shots, your grandparent’s adorable calico cat, and then you saw something you didn’t recognize.

It was a photo of you… and a boy.

This was someone you didn’t recognize. Not one memory came to light as you stared at the photo.

It was taken from a selfie angle, clearly, by you, you were smiling wide and he was smirking slightly as he looked at you and not the camera.

“What the hell” you whispered to yourself starting to grow a little scared at our inability to remember who this was.

You flipped to the next photo and felt your stomach turn.

There he was again.

In this photo though you noticed that you were both holding hands as you threw a peace sign up with your free hand. The strange boy beside you was giving a lopsided smile as his free hand stuck in his dress pant pocket. This photo was either taken with a timer or by someone else.

It was clear by looking at it that this boy, whoever he was, was more than a friend.

So how on earth could you not remember him? Nothing made sense and the more you stared at the photos the more your head began to hurt. Your vision blurred and it felt as though someone was squeezing your brain.

You winced as the pictures fell from your hand and back into the box.

What was happening?

Why was this happening?

You couldn’t make sense of anything.

The pain was becoming so unbearable that held your head and turned over into a fetal position, waiting for it to go away as silent tears streamed down your face.

When it seemed like the pain had faded completely you sat back up and peered at the box next to you. Deciding that it was best just to pack it back up and save the headache for later.

You really didn’t want to think about it anymore… not now.

Folding the box closed without much more thought you shoved it to the side by the other box at the entrance.

Eyeing it for only a second more you wiped away the last traces of wetness on your face before turning back to your corner of unopened boxes.

By the time you’d gone through the entire attic, you’d noticed that the sun was beginning to set. It had taken a while but you’d made great progress. You felt satisfied overall, all thoughts of the strange forgotten memories shoved to the very back of your mind.

Walking back down the stairs you headed to the living room where you were greeted by the tired-looking sight of your brother.

“Good place to stop for today, yeah?” you asked with a smile.

He only sighed before looking at you with a judging look.

“It took you the whole damn day to sort through the attic. Whereas I completed the kitchen, living room, and garage” he told you clearly unimpressed by your slow pace.

You only laughed in response before shrugging your shoulders.

“Don’t question my methods young one” you smiled before heading towards the door, but something made you stop. You turned slightly to face him again "Say... can I ask you something?" the nervous tone to your voice shifting the mood immediately.

"Sure... go ahead?" he answered, very obviously confused at where this was going.

"Remember that summer I spent at Nana and Papa's five years ago?" you asked slowly.

He raised a curious brow before answering you as slowly as you had asked. "Yes, why?"

Here goes nothing, you thought.

"When I came back... do you remember me mentioning anybody? Someone that I may have met there? A boy maybe?" you asked, scared by your own words.

For a moment your brother said nothing as he stared at you with an expression of worry. He could tell that you were thinking about something unnerving and if his answer was what you feared you could see why it was all the more alarming.

"I don't... remember you bringing anyone up... is something going on?" he questioned taking a step closer.

The situation was seeming to become more serious by the second and for some reason you didn't want him to be involved. This was your mystery to solve. It wouldn't help any to have him worry. "Hmmm, It must have been a different trip then. You know me, I have too many boy toys to keep track of," you said with a grin while wiggling your eyebrows. you hoped that this effort of comedic relief would deter his curiosity.

He rolled his eyes at you dramatically before mumbling something about you being an ass. Well, at least he wasn't suspicious anymore.

"Well I think we've done enough damage for today," you said with a chuckle while shuffling to the door. “same time tomorrow?” you asked.

He looked at you for a moment, seeming to think about something before visibly shaking it off. “You bet” he replied with a chuckle.

In the weeks that followed you and your brother successfully managed to sort through and move out the entire house. Taking the few boxes of your own belongs back to your separate places.

After the will reading, you attended a small and neatly organized funeral. Both of your parents were cremated as you knew that would be their wishes.

After everything was said and done your brother was on a plane back to his dorms across. Hopefully the few weeks away from college hadn’t hurt his grades too badly. Luckily for him, he was only a freshman. Without your parents help tuition would be harder but the football scholarship and small inheritance should help him. If need be you wouldn’t mind stepping in to help as well.

When you settled back into your apartment you eased onto your small sofa and begrudgingly looked at the small collection of boxes you’d brought back from your parents’ house. You knew you had to unpack and sort them soon or else they’d collect dust there forever.

You stood up and stretched as a yawn escaped your lips. Trudging over to the boxes you began to stack them according to where they should go in makeshift organization. As you did so you were once again faced with the five-year-old box full of mysteries.

You picked it up and set it onto your kitchen counter, eying it warily.

Against your better judgment, you opened it again slowly.

With timid fingers, you grabbed onto the two photos again. Still splayed out messily in the box where you dropped them.

Studying them once again you began to feel the aching in your head as you stared at the mystery boy’s face.

It seemed like the harder you tried to remember him the more your brain tried to stop you.

But why?

Nothing was making sense and you were afraid you were going to go crazy.

You knew you’d never find answers yourself… not when you couldn’t remember a thing.

There was only one place where you could possibly find the answers you were looking for, and thanks to the small fortune your parents left behind in their wills, it would be no skin off your back to make the expense.

You shouldn’t have felt as nervous as you were sat in your cramped airplane seat. But you couldn’t help but agonize over what you might find when you got to England. After all… if you didn’t know anything, would your grandparents?

You didn’t know the answer. But this was your best bet.

Besides, if all else fails… at least you’ll get a vacation away from everything going on back home. All the pain that seemed to have settled permanently into your life like a thick gray smog.

Maybe this could be your chance to breathe.

When the taxi stopped in front of your grandparent’s large house in Wiltshire, England you felt like there was a weight on your shoulders.

All the uncertainty was weighing on your mind in a way that you couldn’t even begin to comprehend.

Making your way up the long narrow path to the house you hadn’t seen in so many years felt partially surreal. The last time felt so long ago now that it hardly seemed real.

When you arrived at the door you gave it three hard knocks; knowing very well that your grandparents were quite hard of hearing at their old age.

You stood there at the doorstep rocking on your heels as you clutched onto your large duffle bag. Considering the visit was so last minute you didn’t really put much thought into what you brought with you. You weren’t even sure how long you were staying seeing as you just bought a one-way ticket there.

Just as you started to get lost in thought the door opened wide in front of you.

“Hello there, dear! Oh, how I’ve missed you! Please come in, come in.” your grandma beckoned you from the doorway, stepping aside to make room for you. “We were so happy to hear that you were coming”.

You walked in with a smile.

“Hi Nana, I’ve missed you too. Things have been well I take it?” you asked politely.

“We’ve been just swell. Although I suppose we can’t say the same for you… I’m so sorry we couldn’t make it to the funeral but it was just such short notice I hope you understand” she spoke to you softly as you saw her eyes water in sadness.

They may have been your parents but it was their daughter and son in law as well. The loss hit them in a way you probably couldn’t even begin to understand.

“I understand, Nana. Don’t worry, it was a small service anyway. Private… like they would’ve wanted” you said with a sad smile.

She simply nodded at you lightly with a forced smile on her face. She was being strong for your sake. The sorrow in her eyes gave it away clear as day.

As you walked through to the living room you couldn’t help but notice that even after five years barely anything had changed. It was almost refreshing to see them living just as they were before. Even down to the same four porcelain frog figurines lined neatly atop the fireplace mantel.

Something about the sight brought a warm feeling to your chest.

You had been sat on the all too familiar plastic-covered sofa when the smell of roasted chicken began to waft into the room.

You smiled, knowing that your grandpa made it just for you, he remembered that it was your favorite.

“Something smells good” you commented while walking into the kitchen.

“Ah, there you are dear. Go have a seat in the dining room, I’ll bring it out shortly” your grandpa replied with a toothy grin.

You headed into the dining room to find your grandma already sat at the table, intently reading over a rather hefty looking book.

Taking your seat in your usual place to her right you glanced at the title. It looked to be another Stephen King novel. They were her favorite after all.

You recalled that she owned all the books, gleefully purchasing each one as they were published. It was an interest that she’d passed down to your mother.

The thought was bittersweet now but it would be impossible to count all the times you’d caught your mother, nose deep in a Stephen King novel growing up. She loved them dearly and with an aching in your heart, you realized that she’d never be able to read a new one again.

“Dinner is served!” your grandfather exclaimed while strolling into the dining room with several plates of food all carefully laid out on a platter. Your painful thoughts were easily blown away as you chuckled at the sight. He looked like a personal chef rather than the owner of the house.

Eating with them again after so long felt nice. You’d of course seen them a few times in the five years after your visit but being here in their house felt different of course. It was so uniquely them that the feeling of it all couldn’t really be replicated any other way.

You talked about how they’d been doing, where they’ve traveled to lately, how their garden was coming along, and current events in England. It was always interesting to hear their take on things.

In turn, they, of course, asked you all about how your life was going as well. Asking about work and any potential male suitors (as family tends to do). You laughed with them as you recounted your last failed attempt at love which had lasted all of two months. The guy, to be blunt, was a real bum and you weren’t yet at the age where you felt like mothering something.

The topic of boyfriends being brought up started to get you thinking once again. About the thing, you were so desperately trying to figure out… the whole reason you had come here so abruptly, to begin with.

The boy in those photos… this is where you’d find the answers if there were any.

You decided that after dinner you would confront your grandmother about it casually. Hopefully, she could shed some well-needed light on the situation.

Once you heard the sink start to run in the kitchen you knew that now was the time to confront your grandma.

“Hey, Nana need any help with the dishes?” you asked while walking over with a smile, already pulling up your sleeves before she answered.

“Oh, how kind of you to offer. Of course, you can dry.” She said while gesturing to the neatly folded hand towel in the corner.

You picked it up and began to dry the freshly cleaned dinner plates; wondering how exactly you were going to casually ask about this mystery boy.

Well, better to go all-in than dance around the question, right?

“Say, Nana… when I was here five years ago, did I have any friends that you knew about?” you asked, too nervous to turn and face her.

She continued to scrub in silence and for a brief moment, you wondered if she’d heard you at all. But then she spoke.

“No, not that I can remember. You spent most of that summer in the house with us or out exploring around the property.” She said in a curious tone. “Why do you ask?”

Your stomach twisted in knots as you processed this information. Would no one be able to solve this mystery?

“No reason… it’s just been so long a few of my memories are a little fuzzy. I just thought if there had been someone it would be nice to say hello again.” You said quickly realizing that it wasn’t a very good excuse. “But, now that you mention it I really didn’t meet anybody huh? I was very to myself in those days”. You laughed, trying to brush it off.

You turned to her and saw that she was studying your face, clearly questioning something. But to your relief, she didn’t press it further.

That night as you lay in bed, pictures in hand you began to feel overly restless. What if this was a dead end after all? Would you just have to go back home as clueless as when you left?

The thought left a scowl on your face.

But that’s when you noticed it.

In the background of one of the photos.

There was a humongous house, dark and gloomy in appearance.

It didn’t look very welcoming and was barely visible in the background of the photo but to your amazement, you had seen this house before.

You were certain of it.

But where?

You didn’t have to think much longer before it came to you.

You had seen it in the cab on the way here. In fact, it was the last house before you reached your grandparents. Meaning that it was the neighbor…

Given how large each property was though, this didn’t mean the house was just a few feet away… but it wasn’t very far.

Glancing out the window you noticed how dark the sky had become, it was sure to be a little chilly as well. But how could you simply forget about it now… not when you finally had a lead.

Quickly throwing on of the few hoodies you had brought with you, you began to quietly make your way through the house. You knew very well that despite your age, you’d be scolded for sneaking around at this time of night.

When you safely made it outside the house with no detection you clutched the small photo in your hands as you began to walk in the direction that you came in the cab, knowing that it would lead you to your destination.

After walking for what felt like hours you finally saw the huge building come into full view. Rather than call it a house you would be inclined to say that it was actually a mansion.

Tall, dark, and looming. It stood surrounded by a vast property. Whoever lived here must be wealthy beyond your imagination that much was for sure.

As you stared at the house you brought the picture up in the air. Glancing from the image there to the one in front of you.

This was definitely the same place.

But now what?

You stared at the mansion, studying it closely. It was like you were completely transfixed and before you knew it there was that pain again.

Clutching your arms in an effort to redirect the pain you desperately glanced around. There was no one in sight, no one to see you like this. That was a relief.

Looking back at the picture you saw a flash of something in your mind.

A single white rose.

Your brain felt like it was in agony. Desperately trying to keep you out. But you focused on it harder.

Then came another flash.

A small brown box with beautiful carvings of flowers and swirls decorated all around it.

More pain.

You fell to your knees as the world around you began to blur. No sound could be heard except an ear-piercing buzz that ripped through you like a bullet.

Then you saw something else.

It was a stick of some kind… held in a pale hand. Pointed right at you. The person holding it was completely blurred in your memory. But the object was crystal clear.

But what was it?

The three images flashed through your mind continuously, each time they did so the pain grew worse and before you could even feel it coming… you collapsed completely.

Everything around you going pitch black as you lay on the cold wet ground.

---

AN:// Ahhhh I’m so excited to finally start this one! I’ve got a lot of ideas for it so far and I really hope you all enjoyed this first chapter. So much is going to happen in future updates, I promise!

#Draco Malfoy #Draco #draco malfoy fic #draco malfoy fanfiction #draco fanfiction #draco malfoy imagine #draco malfoy x reader #Harry Potter #harry potter fanfiction #harry potter au #harry potter imagine #draco x reader

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enbycalicocat · 4 years ago

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Day 13: 8th of February, 2021

XiaoFeng had read many transmigration novels. And when the word many was used, it really did mean many. Transmigrating was his dream. His fervent wish. So much, that the day he woke up and found himself in a strange room the first thing he thought was not, “I’ve been kidnapped.” It was, “I’ve been sent to another world!”

There was just no other explanation. He had gone to sleep the day before, sick, coughing, body aching all over, and barely breathing. And now he felt full of energy and had no difficulty moving or breathing.

Hence, the first thing he did was look into the mirror. He had absolutely no doubt in his mind that he had transmigrated and wanted to see how he looked now, so he just confidently got up, and walked into the bathroom. He was lucky to be right. Else, the thugs that might’ve held him hostage would’ve harmed him for that.

When he saw his reflection, he gasped, and immediately fell in love with himself. XiaoFeng now had the biggest bluest eyes he’d ever seen in his life. On top of his head was a flop of endearing dark brown curls that pointed in every direction. His skin was porcelain white, smooth and vulnerable and lush.

If this wasn’t the body he currently owned, XiaoFeng might just date himself. Too bad the body was already taken over.

After having detailed his face, he observed the rest of his body to get hints from it. Hmmm. White, button-up, long-sleeved shirt, suspenders, trousers, boots. All very old fashioned. The fabric was coarse but thick, designed for the cold weather most probably. Looking around he didn't find a jacket, but he did find a waistcoat. The material for that was also very rough. XiaoFeng concluded that that he was not from a very wealthy family. Other than that... Well, the clothes might belong to the early 1900s. He wasn’t very sure though, because he didn’t know much about western fashion.

Suddenly the ground tilted and XiaoFeng lost his footing. When the ground became stable again, he froze for a second. And then he felt it and heard it: the rush of water.

The boy ran out of his room and found the halls looked oddly familiar. Very, very familiar. As if taken out of something he’d been watching just yesterday. His stomach sank as he vaguely sensed where he’d been sent to.

Please, he begged. For the first time he wasn’t ecstatic about his transmigration anymore. He ran up the stairs, panic coursing through his veins, his chest feeling tight, his stomach aching, fighting to put on his waistcoat. Please, no. Anywhere. Anywhere but here. Please. Please don’t let it be…

He broke through the last door and found himself surrounded by lots of people, dressed like him, milling around, talking, gossiping, laughing, eating, all on the deck of a big boat. He looked around and sea surrounded them everywhere.

It was. It was true. What he’d feared. His knees gave out and he couldn’t help releasing a sob. The Titanic. That was the movie he’d been watching yesterday. And that was the movie he’d been sent to.

“Hey,” a gentle voice sounded beside him. “Lad, you alright there?”

He turned and fell head first into a striking pair of green eyes. His chest felt tight all over again, but for different reasons.

“Everything alright?” the gorgeous guy kept asking. “You hurt or something?”

Jack. XiaoFeng was sure. Sure as he had been about the transmigration. Sure as he had ever been about anything. And no. Standing in front of him was not Leo DiCarpio, the star of all his wet dreams. So that meant, this was not in fact the movie, even though the boat looked alarmingly similar. XiaoFeng didn’t know how he knew just who was the owner of the eyes watching him, but he just knew.

“Mate? You there?”

XiaoFeng blinked, and then he finally reacted.

“No, I’m not okay. My heart hurts.”

Well, would you freaking look at that. XiaoFeng suddenly spoke English. And not just any English, British English.

Jack’s beautiful eyes widened and then furrowed in worry. He got closer and XiaoFeng took the chance to observe him. The skin of his face was not perfect by any stretch; he was, after all, a poor guy that had gotten onto the boat illegally. He had scars and some acne marks, but somehow that made him look even more handsome. XiaoFeng never liked the perfect, too pretty boys. He liked the ones with imperfections and marks and signs that they had lived and had fun. Jack wasn’t blonde per se. His hair was in fact darker than that, but lighter than brown. He had seen it before in movies, in commercials, and when the people around him dyed their hair. But this natural tone? With the highlights and the darker tones mixed in? Never.

“Your heart? Why does it hurt?”

“It’s you. You made it hurt. You see as soon as I saw you, it tried to jump out of my chest and into your arms, but it crashed against my ribs instead, and now I’m in pain. You have to take responsibility for the damage your green eyes have caused me.”

Really, XiaoFeng had never in his life been that bold. In China? With all the censure? And the square minds? And the military force defending those square minds? There was just no way. And he was aware that this was the very beginning of the twentieth century. There was no pride parades. No LGBTQ rights. Nothing of the sort. But, he had just died while in his sleep (he was sure of that too) and been transmigrated into the past, on board a boat that would sink who knew when. As you might imagine, XiaoFeng didn’t care one single bit if Jack was in fact gay just like him. He just saw an opportunity and took it. Because quite literally he could die (for the second time) tomorrow. And who knew if he would have the luck to be transmigrated again or if he would stay dead this time?

Jack stared in awe for a few seconds. XiaoFeng awaited the punch, the indignation, the insults, the derisive snort. But Jack flushed the deepest shade of red. Made even more obvious on his paler than white skin. The boy stuttered, completely flustered, and XiaoFeng really did feel his heart ache this time. It ached with hope, with love, with tenderness, with care, with everything he didn’t dare dream of back in his original country.

“Si-sir, I-I would… I would first-first have to-to-to know your na-name.”

As soon as the words were out, Jack somehow managed to become even more red.

“Be-because!” he hurried to exclaim, trying to explain himself. “You-you said to take re-responsi-respon…”

“My name’s Mark.”

The name rolled off of XiaoFeng’s tongue without the slightest doubt. As a matter of fact, XiaoFeng? XiaoFeng who? Who was that? There’s no XiaoFeng here. There’s only Mark.

“Nice to meet you Jack.” Mark smiled prettily, tilting his head adorably, making his curls bounce.

Jack was so busy blushing, staring into Mark’s eyes, falling in love faster than ever in his life, becoming as lost in the blue as Mark had been in his green, that it took him quite a few minutes to realize Mark knew his name.

But he hadn’t said it yet! Did they know each other from before? They couldn’t. Jack would remember someone was pretty as Mark.

“How do you know my name?” Jack asked cautiously.

At this point Mark realized his mistake as well. And faced two options. Either he used his knowledge to try and save as many people, including himself and Jack, or he kept quiet and just saved himself and Jack when push came to shove.

The decision was fairly easy.

Both boys stared into each other’s eyes. Mark’s determined, Jack’s increasingly confused.

“I know a lot of stuff. About you. About the people on this boat. About the future. And I need you to help me. Do you trust me?”

Mark saw Jack wanted to say yes. But his brain got in the way and made him skeptical. So Mark started spouting facts about Jack. Facts about the people on the boat. Facts about the events they would announce on the nights and what would happen during them. And Jack finally believed in him. Mark didn’t mention anything about transmigration yet. And he didn’t think he would. The time was too old to believe in that. Instead he told Jack that he was clairvoyant, and the boy believed it without question. It was a white lie. But it hurt Mark deeply. Already he didn’t want to keep anything from the other boy. Maybe when the situation wasn’t as urgent he would try.

And so, the duo went to find the capitain. Off to prove him that Mark did in fact know what would happen, and that they had to turn this boat around right this very second.

Prompt: 13. You find yourself aboard the Titanic with full knowledge of what is going to happen.

Previous Day Next Day

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shreddedparchment · 6 years ago

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To Be Seen

02/26/2019

Pairing: Thor x Reader Word Count: 9,079

*Masterpost in Notes

Warnings: language, smut, angst, alcohol consumption, drunk sex

A/N: So, this turned into something I wasn’t expecting. I haven’t edited it because I’m hurting and I don’t have the energy to go back and fix it. So please excuse the typos if there are any. There probably are. I’ll come back and fix it all when I feel better. I’m thinking this will be a mini-series because I don’t want to leave the characters yet and would like to explore them some more. I hope y’all like it. As always if you reblog, thanks so much for helping me spread my work! xoxo

You're heartbroken.

The agony ripping through your chest you’ve known before. You’re familiar with rejection. Over the years the bitter sting of once again not being enough to be wanted or desired has become a toxic friend.

Rather than every wound healing to make you stronger, it has only broken you more. Conditioned you into a fearful and hopeless response when your eye is caught by some person or other.

It's also not like you fall often. It takes you ages to move on. Which leaves you caught in the limbo of pining for someone you know you can never have.

You sniffle, overcome with sorrow as you replay the soft expression on his face. His name doesn’t matter anymore. All that matters is that as you sat beside him in the small local park, body burning from being so close to him on the stone bench you’d first met, you’d been happy to just be near him.

He was no Adonis. It's not like he had movie star good looks or that he was some ideal that everyone wished for. What he was, was nice. He was sweet and considerate and funny. He had gorgeous green eyes and a soft smile.

His teeth weren’t perfect, but they didn’t make him less attractive to you. They were normal. He was normal. Extraordinary because you cared about him.

After two months of getting to know him, two months over which you fell more and more for him, your crush taking solid hold, you’d done what you swore you wouldn’t do again.

After last time you should have learned your lesson.

“I like you.” Your soft voice, uncertain and barely confident had seeped out those dreaded words without your permission.

He'd made you laugh, made you feel safe, and without your consent you confessed.

The stunned silence that followed had been stressful. Your hands were suddenly numb and your heart had stalled completely as you and he were suspended in unbearable awkwardness.

You’d wanted to take your words back. You hadn’t truly been ready to tell him. You'd just gotten caught up in the moment. Stupid!

Then he'd turned to you, watching you with those stunning eyes and you recognized the guilty shift.

“I…I’m flattered, Y/N but I-"

He was so sorry to say it, sorry to hurt you. Why did this always happen? Why you? What was wrong with you? What were you missing?

You weren’t the most outgoing but with the people you liked you were an open book. You were polite about it, speaking your mind while being considerate to respect the opinions of everyone else. You rarely lost your temper and when you did you never misdirected it and let someone else feel your rage.

You weren't a genius, but you had your smarts. In your own way you were pretty. You didn’t think you were lacking there. Perhaps your beauty, what you saw when you looked in the mirror, wasn't enough?

You'd always been grateful for what you had. Maybe you weren’t a supermodel, but you were you. You had your own charms. Or did you?

Why couldn’t any of them see you? Why couldn’t they, just once, like you back?

You'd quickly reminded him that he'd said he had an appointment, by which you knew he meant date, before he could finish his sentence.

You hadn’t wanted to hear another speech about how you were sweet or so nice or such a good friend.

He’d continued to stare at you until you gestured behind him where a girl, much closer to a supermodel than you were with her flowing blonde beach waves, large sweet smile, and big blue eyes had stood waiting in a short white and pastel blue floral dress.

You’d compared yourself to her even though you knew you shouldn’t. It wasn’t healthy. It wasn’t right. You were you and she was herself…but why her? Why not you?

“You should go, your appointment is waiting.”

“Y/N…?” He'd said, that guilt in his voice twisting your gut.

“Don’t keep her waiting. It's not polite. Especially when she can see you sitting with another girl. Even if there’s nothing between you and the other girl it can cause misunderstandings.” You gave him a quick smile, trying to ease his conscience but failing.

“Y/N…”

“Please, just go.” You’d quietly begged almost losing your voice completely as you’d turned your gaze down onto his hands which had slid towards you, but he still wouldn’t reach out.

You knew he wouldn’t and still part of you had hoped.

He’d risen slowly and you could feel his eyes on you the entire time. They were always nice guys. They always hated to hurt you. But they always hurt you any way. It wasn’t their fault. You know that.

They hadn’t made you like them. They hadn’t made you confess. You’d done it on your own and so the heartbreak had always been on you. As much as you wanted to hate him, as much as you wanted to be the one who was in the right, you had never been and never will be. He hadn’t led you on. He hadn’t made promises and broken them. All he’d done was be nice. You’d fallen for him all on your own.

Maybe this time you’d finally learn your lesson?

“We’re not done talking about this, Y/N.” He’d said sternly as if he were trying to settle that your confession was more important than you both knew it really was.

You’d known the truth of what he was doing. If he’d really cared, if it had really mattered, no other girl could have kept him from reaching out to you right then, in that moment. It’s not like he was married or in a relationship. He’d told you he was single. Had it really mattered that you’d just told him you liked him, he’d have apologized to the other girl and the two of you would have talked.

Instead he continued to stare down at you.

“Y/N?” He’d repeated with more authority, but you were unmoved.

“Just go. She’s getting upset.” He’d followed your gaze and sure enough the pretty blonde was standing with a frown on her face, contorting her beautiful smile into a nasty pout.

To you she hadn’t looked so beautiful right then, but it was enough to finally pull him away.

“We’ll talk later.” He’d insisted one final time before he turned and hurried to his date.

You’d watched him place his hands on her biceps. She’d pouted a bit more prettily as he got closer, and he’d pulled her in for a quick hug before leading her out of the park without glancing back.

He’d left you sitting on the bench, staring across the small and worn brick path at the small pond where birds, squirrels, and other small wildlife gathered during the daytime, unafraid of human presence.

You hate thinking about it again and again, but it replays itself in your head over and over.

You kick the ground, scuffing up your sneaker as you sniffle again then reach up to wipe your nose with the back of your hand. Very attractive.

You haven’t cried much this time which is a big improvement to your last crush.

“I’ll never like anyone ever again.” You grumble forlornly as you kick the ground again, dislodging a brick and smacking your toe. “Ow!”

You fold your leg up and quickly curl both hands around your large right toe. It feels like you’ve broken it. It’s throbbing and hot. You really want to take off your shoe.

“Oh, sorry. Forgive me, I did not mean to intrude.” A deep rumbling baritone hits your ears like a soothing song.

You sniffle again, hating your runny nose and look up for the source of the intrusion to your multilayered and self-inflicted torture.

You should be shocked by what you see because you’ve never seen any of the Avengers in person, well except for Mr. Stark. However, you’re not shocked. In fact you look down at your foot before lowering it back to the ground as you wiggle your big toe. Definitely not broken.

“You’re not intruding.” He speaks in a funny cadence, accented. It’s pleasing.

You look at him again as you sniffle once more. He’s tall, really tall. He’d tower over you, your head barely reaching his chest if you stand up. He’s large too. Muscles rippling underneath a black heather shirt as he stops his casual walk and slowly shoves his hands into the front pockets of his black jeans. His brown leather boots look the newest. They’re dark and glossy. He’s also wearing a watch—why would he need a watch?—and a few silver rings on his fingers. Large manly rings. Has he acclimated so much to living here with the team that he’s taken to caring about Earth’s fashion?

Your eyes roam over the exposed skin of his clavicle, the two top buttons of his shirt left unbuttoned flashing browned peach skin. He’s so tan. His short blonde hair and full but well-manicured beard looks almost brown save for the soft golden flecks that the sun illuminates as he teeters back and forth on the balls of his feet.

“I felt as if I was.” He insists. “May I join you?”

“It’s a free country.” You counter with a final sniffle. “Mostly.”

He smiles sweetly, no teeth, just a soft curve of his full pink lips. They’re wide and his eyes crinkle at the corners. He seems to genuinely be smiling at you as he moves over to you and sits to your left. He’s large closer. He takes up a lot of space.

You turn your gaze back across the path to the pond and wonder about the heat radiating off of his body. Is it an Asgardian thing?

“I am Thor, by the way.”

“Y/N.” You introduce yourself simply. He won’t remember you later anyway. “And I know who you are, Mr. Thor.”

That sounds weird.

“Please, just Thor.” He waves off your formality. “Hold on, how do you know who I am?”

“Doesn’t everyone know the Avengers?” You shrug and look up a little higher at the beautiful wine, grape, and pearl colored butterfly flowers across the pond.

“Oh, right.”

You feel a little guilty about not being a hundred percent truthful, so you come clean.

“I uh…I also work in the compound.” Your hesitancy draws his brow to a pucker, and you stare this time, his confusion looks funny and for a moment you forget today’s disappointment.

“I have never seen you before. What department do you work for?”

“You wouldn’t have seen me, I’m kept in the back. Hidden from view. I fix everyone’s suits. Me and a few other people. Did you think Captain America’s Kevlar just magically stitched itself back up?” You tease.

“Sort of. Is it a hard job?” He rests his hands beside his thighs, leaning forward as he attempts to get a better look at your face.

“Just a thankless one. I fix your cape and then you just go and tear it again.”

“You have fixed my cape?” He asks, astonished. You know why. Asgardian material is difficult to work with sometimes. When the tears are too big you’ve had to find a weave that is similar.

“Every time you’ve torn it. I had to shorten it a few times and fill it in with some of the stuff we have here on Earth. You know, if you want to make my job easier, next time you happen to be around whatever provides the thread and material for your cape, you’d remember to bring me some.” You feel distracted enough that you smile at him kindly.

It doesn’t reach your eyes and he seems to see that because he frowns.

Feeling exposed, you turn tender eyes back onto the pond and shift uneasily in your seat.

“I shall keep that in mind.” He assures you. “Is something wrong? When I found you, it appeared as if you had been crying.”

Damn.

“Your eyes are still red.” He continues relentlessly.

You sigh and cross your arms across your chest, hating to be so obvious.

“If you do not wish to tell me-”

“I don’t.” You reply quickly. “But…it’s no secret. I’m kind of a loser when it comes to romance and I confessed to a guy I was crushing on.”

“Crushing on?” Thor asks, that cute look of confusion shaping his chiseled features again.

“Someone that I have an interest in being with. Someone I like.” You explain gently.

“Ah. What is wrong with confessing? Unless of course he…Oh. I see.” Thor realizes what must have happened.

“He doesn’t feel the same way.” You confirm for him and he turns to look out across the path at the pond too. “It’s a stupid reason to cry.”

“Love is a very powerful emotion. The strongest, I would say.”

“I don’t love him.”

Your eyes are suddenly wide as you think about the big ‘L’ word. You definitely don’t love him.

“Perhaps not, but an attraction that would bring one to tears is sure to have been deep and with the potential for love. It is a sad thing to lose. A terrible hope to crush. I am sorry that this man did not return your affections.”

Thor’s right of course. And as he talks about the potential you’d seen with him, the future that now you know for sure is lost forever, you feel your chest give way again and let the pain back in.

Your lip trembles and your eyes spring with large salty tears. You turn away from Thor, angling your body towards the small empty gazebo. It’s surrounded on all sides by wild flowers and tall grass. It’s picturesque and pretty but you don’t see it. All you see is your rejection. Not just this one. All of them. This isn’t so much about him anymore. It’s about all of them. One after the other. Blow after blow. How much more can you take?

You jump slightly as a warm graze prompts you to turn back towards your left. Thor’s hand rests against the side of your bicep with a neatly folded handkerchief clutched between his thumb and forefinger.

After staring at the small square for a few seconds, you look up at Thor expecting to find him watching you but he’s not. His eyes are courteously trained across the pond to give you your privacy. You take the piece of fabric and carefully unfurl it.

“Thank you.” You offer thickly.

“You are most welcome.”

You wipe your cheeks and eyes first then your nose before balling the fabric into your hand. You’re not handing it back to him until you’ve washed it. Gross.

“This place is charming. I’ve never seen such a collection of flowers in one location. Not like this.” He gestures around at the way the flowers grow in whichever direction they want to among other flowers that look nothing alike. The wild grass and the barely maintained pathways all lend to the beauty of the garden.

“It’s a wild flower garden. It’s maintained by some of the locals and they plant new flowers every season. Some spring up on their own. The point is not to control it but to let it grow on its own. It’s pretty.”

You’re suddenly smiling again, glancing around at the numerous flowers and the way their contrasting colors oddly compliment each other. The soft song of bluebirds, common sparrows, and cardinals fills the air pleasantly once again, for a moment, making you forget your sadness.

“That it is. Very beautiful.” His voice is soft as velvet and quiet so that only you might hear him.

Suddenly, you spot a bright red cardinal. It stops first on a stone in the pond then flitters over to the gazebo and hops forward along the railing.

Quickly you turn to Thor to see if he’s seen it too but instead find him watching you. “Did you see-What? What is it?”

You reach up to quickly wipe at your nose and then at your cheeks. Had you made a mess of yourself?

“Nothing.” Thor says with a shake of his head. “So, who was this man who rejected you? A fool no doubt?”

Great. You’re back on this topic. “Just one of the guys from work. No one important.”

“That cannot be true if he has made you shed tears like this. Shall I give him a stern talking to? Perhaps he simply needs a guiding hand to lead him down the proper path?” Thor offers, the threat clear in his tone though it’s slightly teasing and the smirk on his lips affirms the joke.

“Really, he’s just another guy. It doesn’t matter. I’ll get over it and then I’ll probably fall for another guy who won’t like me back and I’ll repeat this process over and over. It’s my own personal time loop. Doomed to repeat the same mistake again and again, somehow expecting a different result. Which means I’m crazy. So, I’m fucked.”

You sigh heavily and beside you, Thor answers you with his own long sigh. “Hmmmm.”

Watching him, you can see the cogs in his brain turning.

“I need a drink.” He concludes. “And I do not like to drink alone but my friends are away on mission. Would you do me the great honor of accompanying me to the local bar?”

“Me?” You laugh because it sounds stupid. You and Thor in a bar? Drinking? If anyone from work saw you out with him it would cause quite a lot of gossip. Not that you care about the gossip. It’s just strange.

“Yes. I have enjoyed our brief conversation and would like to continue. I beg you, do not let me drink alone. Join me. I shall pay.” He asks again.

“I don’t know, Thor…” A drink sounds great but you’re also a terribly emotional drunk. “I’m not exactly a stable drunk.”

“You need not get drunk. Just one drink to relax and forget your trouble for a few hours. That is all I ask.”

“Thor…”

“Please! Please join me. I will not take no for an answer. Unless you really do not wish to go in which case, I cannot force you though I will be very lonely and depressed to be drinking without you at my side.”

You watch the uncertain expression on his face and measure up his invitation and the look of sincerity on his face. His lips suddenly curve into a very small pout and you laugh. “Fine. I’ll come.”

“Excellent. We shall imbibe into the wee hours of the night and laugh and celebrate with great joy that I have made a new friend and that you are rid of your crush and shall soon find a man worthy of your affections.”

“Right.” You sigh again, highly doubtful that he might ever be close to right.

Thor rises and towers over you as he offers you his large hands. Your stomach twists nervously. Are you making a mistake? What if you become a mess after having a few drinks? It would be so embarrassing to fall to pieces in front of Thor. It would be embarrassing to fall to pieces in front of anyone, but especially Thor since now he knows who you are and that you work at the compound.

You carefully slide both of your hands into his. They’re calloused and warm. Rough, manly hands but soothing in their heat. He closes his around yours, devouring them in their enormity, and gently gives you a tug to your feet.

“Promise me something?” You ask him as you fall into the space before him, turning your chin up to look at him with pleading eyes.

“Anything, Y/N.” His lips curve into that sweet soft smile from before and you can’t believe how close he is. This man is an Adonis. Perfect and so out of your league that your mind and body reject the idea of him immediately. The thought doesn’t even cross your mind.

“Please don’t let me get drunk. I’d hate to do something stupid now that you know I work for Mr. Stark.”

“I promise, on my honor, I shall keep you safe and ensure that you do not become intoxicated.” He drops his hands and with his hefty assurance, you follow.

The world is spinning. You can feel strong hot hands hovering around your waist as you spin in circles, blurring the room around you. You can still vaguely hear the steady and bopping beat of Deniece Williams’s ‘Let’ Hear It for the Boy’. It fills your body with unbridled joy, and you can’t fight the rhythm as it prompts you into a final spin.

A deep chuckle reaches your ears making your chest feel warm. You look for it’s source and find Thor standing before you, his eyes focused on you completely but he’s a lot shorter. How did he get down there?

“Hey…” You slur and reach down to place your hands on his wide shoulders. They’re so firm. You give them a squeeze. “How’d you get so short?”

Thor’s smile widens. “Perhaps your drink had a potion to make you taller?”

“We don’t have potions here on Earth, silly.” You giggle as his joke makes no sense.

“Oh, that’s right. I forgot.” He blinks slowly, smiling softly up at you. “Then perhaps you should come down from the table and we might correct my height. However, if I am honest, I cannot say that I mind this view.”

You’re not sure what his words mean. You shut one eye, watching him in confusion. Is he flirting? It kinda sounds like he is but your mind is so befuddled that you can’t decipher his meaning.

“You like being short?” You stupidly surmise.

“If it means that I can look up at you, why not?”

What the hell does that mean? Frustrated, you semi-explode. Luckily, you’re not a screamer when you drink. You’re just prone to strong shifts of emotion.

“Are you flirting with me?!”

Thor laughs. “I might be. Come down. I would hate it if you fell down and hurt yourself.”

“Okay.” You laugh like an idiot and with his hands firmly held on your waist you let him lead you first down onto the seat of your booth and then onto solid ground. “Woah.”

You sway unsteadily but Thor catches you up, wrapping his left arm around you loosely as he waves to the bartender across the emptying room.

“Some water, I think.”

Suddenly, the bar is filled with the infectious notes of ‘You Make My Dreams’ by Hall & Oates. As if it is beyond your control, your body begins to respond and there, within Thor’s arm, you begin to dance again. You sway your hips left and right then like a deranged but rhythmic tornado you spin again, laughing.

“You make my dreams come true!” You laugh again, singing excitedly. “Oo-oo, oo, oo, oo-oo.”

“If I had known you would enjoy music this much, I might have chosen a venue where we could have danced.” Thor doesn’t let you go and let’s you dance around him.

At least until the bartender approaches with two glasses. He places them down on your table and Thor wraps his arm more firmly around you as you spin again to stop your dancing.

You’re so disoriented and dizzy but your body feels happy and warm. He’d stopped you mid-spin, pressing you back against his large body with your back pressed against his front. You squirm in his grip, eager to keep dancing.

“Gods save me...Please do not move so, Y/N.” His voice is suddenly nervous as he leads you back to the table. “I am still a man and your hips are taunting.”

“Why? I wanna dance.” You completely didn’t hear his reason.

“You were not kidding about not letting you get drunk. Come, sit. Let us drink a little water and then if you wish to dance again, you may.” He moves to your side of the booth and turns you around then with large hands on your shoulders he sits you down. He slides a glass of water over to you and you stare at it with a small pout. The Police’s ‘Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic’ just came on!

As Thor drops into the seat opposite you, you finally allow your eyes to roam over the space again. The bar is nothing great. A hole in the wall, probably privately owned. Nothing fancy but it’s nice. It’s one of those bars that you choose to go to every day, and it becomes a regular space to inhabit where everyone seems to know each other. You remember the bartender greeting Thor as if he knew him and the way he brought Thor’s drink without being asked for it.

You wrap your hands around your glass of water and appreciate the dim lighting and the plush blue cushion you’re sitting on. There are small candles at the center of every table casting a soft glow on the patrons. Or it would if there were any other patrons in the place. It looks like it’s just you and Thor now. A waitress lingers around the bar chatting up the middle-aged bartender.

“What time is it?” Now that you’re sitting, you’re regaining your sobriety if only fractionally.

“Very late. You danced for a long time.” Thor leans forward, elbows on the table, as he watches you with that same soft smile he’s been giving you all day.

“Why didn’t you stop me?” You demand before taking a drink of your water.

“Do you think I did not try? I’m sorry I did not believe you about letting you get drunk.”

You’re still drinking but you narrow your eyes at him.

“I enjoyed watching you. I think you have been needing to relax for a while.”

Finally, you put your glass down, almost empty. “Why do you come to a regular bar? This stuff can’t get you drunk, can it?”

“No. But I enjoy the flavors. And the company is excellent. Especially today.” He gives you a toothy grin and the sight of it makes your heart stutter.

You must still be really drunk.

“Thanks for asking me to come. I…I did really need to cut loose a bit.” You sigh, remembering your afternoon.

Thor’s smile wavers and he reaches towards you with his right hand but before he can touch you and before the sting of your rejection earlier in the day can bite, the melodic Ahh of ‘Don’t Worry Baby’ by the Beach Boys flows through the speakers of the bar.

“My song!” You proclaim and rush up onto your feet.

You stumble your way towards the large digital jukebox at the far end of the bar, grabbing chairs and tables as you go so that you don’t fall.

Pressing your hands along the hard plastic and then the brilliant touch screen you begin to sway your hips to the left and the right in time with the music. You sing with familiar voices, your voice soft and gentle as the smooth tones and sweet melody begins to stir up your emotions.

“Well it’s been building up inside of me for oh I don’t know how long. I don’t know why but I keep thinking something’s bound to go wrong.”

You can hear Thor’s heavy footfall approaching.

“But she looks in my eyes and makes me realize and she says, ‘don’t worry, baby’.” Your voice cracks.

“Y/N?” Thor’s deep tremble is directly behind you and you lean your forehead against the machine, the fingers of your right hand fiddling with the screw on the bottom right corner.

You sob once. Thor places his hand on the space between your shoulders and gently coaxes you to turn towards him. You do. You let him lead you closer and you don’t try and hide the way your tears fall.

“What is wrong? I thought-?”

“Why can’t they see me?” You sob, fat heavy tears splashing down onto the floor.

“What-?”

“I’m not mean. I don’t do anything wrong. Not that I know of. Am I too nice? Should I be meaner? I can be meaner...I think. I have feelings. I can feel. I’m not empty. My heart breaks. I have hopes. I have dreams. Why can’t they see me, Thor? What’s wrong with me? I-I know I’m not perfect. I know I’m not pretty like other girls. But I’m patient. I listen. Should I not listen? Should I play games and pretend that I don’t care? Is that what they want? Do they want me to be aloof? I can’t do that. When I like someone, I can’t pretend that I don’t. When will it be my turn? When will I be the one that they choose? Why can’t it be me?” You shut your eyes tight, gripping Thor’s forearms while your body shakes with heavy sobs. “Why am I the only one that ever gets hurt? Why? I just want to be seen.”

Large hands suddenly engulf the sides of your face. You open your eyes, looking for their source and find bright blue eyes and a narrowed brow watching you. With your hands still gripping his forearms, Thor leans down and presses soft warm lips against your own.

You gasp against his mouth, shocked by the contact but you don’t pull away. You can’t. He’s got you held in place.

He’s so gentle in the way he massages his lips against your own. Unable to fully comprehend what’s happening you don’t kiss him back.

When he pulls back, he gives you only enough space to speak. You can still feel the heat of his breath on your lips. “Why…?”

“Forgive me. You just…to answer your question. Perhaps these men of Earth are not worthy of your vulnerability.”

“And you are? Why did you kiss me?” You demand.

“I needed to.” He confesses.

“Oh.”

And he kisses you again, once again startling you. You gasp again against his lips, this time your heart flutters. Unsure of what it is that you’re doing exactly, you give in and pucker your lips against his. He responds to your kiss and pulls you closer, dropping his left hand to wrap his arm around your waist to pull you flush against his body.

The way he moves is intoxicating. You’re not sure what you’re doing. You’re half not thinking. You’re drunk. Sort of. You’re sober enough to know that you’re making out with Thor in the middle of a bar. But had you not been drinking, would you have kissed him back? Not this soon, maybe. But it feels so good. Suddenly you’re pulling him closer, wrapping your arms around his neck as he finds your legs and guides them up around his waist as he lifts you up.

Your kiss deepens as he opens his mouth and traces the edges of your lips with his tongue. You let him in, mingling with him as you mewl at his touch. As he kisses you, his beard tickles you but you don’t dare pull away, shifting your head to the left as he also adjusts to keep your kiss going.

You kiss him until your lungs begin to protest and you pull back, gasping for air.

“Forgive me.” He says again, confusing you.

“For what?”

“You are…I cannot help myself.” He explains, his voice low and husky.

“Then don’t.”

“You are so starved for affection.” He looks down at your hands as they trace the shape of his biceps and shoulders.

“I…” You feel shame course through you, and you begin to pull your hands back. “I’m sorry.”

“Was that your first kiss?” He asks and it makes your neck and ears burn.

Had you sucked that much? You nod.

“They do not know what they are missing.” He assures you.

You look up at him, wondering if he’s serious or simply trying to make you feel better.

“Are you sober?” He wonders.

You think, trying to examine your own mind but the dizziness you feel could be from Thor’s kiss or the copious amount of liquor you’d drunk earlier. Because you can’t tell, you shake your head.

Thor sighs heavily. “Then we shall stop here for tonight.”

“But…” You protest, wanting so much to kiss him again. Now that you’ve had it, you want it. He’s right. You’re starved for it.

He unhooks your legs from around his waist and helps lower you down gently to the ground before he lumbers towards the booth, you’d been in to grab your bag.

He moves back to you, grabbing your hand as he passes and after a nod to the bartender, he leads you back out into the night.

“This is where you live?” He wonders, staring up at the small house.

It’s not exactly nice. It’s cheap. The shutters are falling down, the paint is faded, the windows barred, and the lawn overgrown. You feel embarrassed again.

“The landlord is supposed to come and fix it up, but they never come.” You look up at him but find him watching you instead of your house.

“Do you live here alone?” He wonders, worry in his voice.

You nod.

“Come, I shall escort you inside.” He pulls you up the rickety steps of the porch, stopping to look down at them as they protest against his weight.

“The wood is rotted.” You explain with embarrassment.

You release his hand and move up to the door and first slide your key into the black metal security door, struggling with the lock for a moment before it finally turns. You pull it open and it creaks loudly. The second door is easier to open. You unlock it and push it open before moving inside. Thor follows and your heart hammers in your chest as you drop your bag and keys by the small table near the door and flip lights on as you go, moving towards the kitchen.

Thor keeps close behind you, his eyes roving over the small living room and the sparse decoration.

Your kitchen is dated. The last time the house had been remodeled must have been the fifties. It’s canary yellow, counters made of cheap plywood. Your fridge is rusted in certain areas, also no older than the fifties, with the handle for the freezer missing, replaced by a rope you’d found in your boxes when you’d moved in. You sigh as you look the space over feeling more and more self-conscious as you expose your home to him.

“I know it’s ugly. I mean, compared to what Mr. Stark must have for you guys up on the compound? He’s got such an eye for modern design. I love working at the compound.” You turn to look at him, to explain that this is only temporary until you can save enough money to move out of here into somewhere much nicer, but you don’t get the chance as he’s suddenly lifting you up to sit on your counter.

He closes the space between your bodies and sighs heavily as he leans down to rest his cheek against your own, itching to kiss you again it seems.

Your mind is a jumbled mess of sensory information. His large hands on your waist grip you tightly, his large torso, so close to yours washes you with wave after wave of heat. His breath tickles the curve of your lips and once again his beard gently scratches along your cheek.

Your surroundings, the way he’d found you today, crying in the bar, you’re suddenly worried about why he’s doing this, and you pull back to look at his face. His blue eyes search yours, curious as to what you’ll say.

“Thor, I’m not…I don’t need you to save me if that’s why you’re…you’re doing this. I know that my life kinda sucks but it’s really great too. I might not have a boyfriend and I might have been rejected earlier today and then gotten drunk and made a fool of myself by crying at the bar, and I know my house is shit but this is my life and I’m okay with it…for the most part.” Obviously, you could do without the constant rejection. “I don’t need you to save me.”

Thor pulls back, giving you a bit more space as he smiles down at you. “Is that why you think I kissed you?”

“Isn’t it?”

Thor sighs and reaches up to caress the back of your head before dropping his hand to rest on your right left shoulder.

“I kissed you because you make me laugh. I kissed you because you can’t hold your liquor. I kissed you because of the way you dance. I kissed you because…because you wiggled against me.” His cheeks flush. Even beneath his scruffy beard you can see the red hue burn bright.

“When did I wiggle against you? I did not!” You argue.

He laughs lightly. “I kissed you because of the way your hips swish in time to the music. I kissed you because I have never seen someone open up the way you did when you cried in the bar. And now I want to kiss you because you prove that although your heart was broken this morning, you do not need to be saved. And I like the way you taste.”

It’s your turn to burn.

“But…” You begin, unsure. “I’m nothing. No one ever wants to kiss me. No one has ever wanted to kiss me.”

Not to mention this is Thor in front of you. You look him over again and your heart aches with how beautiful he is. And he’s nice too! It’s not enough that he looks the way he does but he also has to be nice and funny? How is it fair?

“I do not think you understand just how much you have made me want you.” His voice drops in octave again, making it husky and fluid as he speaks. “If we had not been drinking and I were certain that you are not drunk, I would take you into your bedroom and have you in every way I could think of.”

You swallow hard, suddenly wishing you hadn’t been drinking tonight but also remembering that you’d just met him. “Thor…”

“We will have plenty of time for that. For now, I will have to make do with your lips.” He leans down and catches your mouth in another searing kiss.

This time he kisses you until you’re dizzy. His heady scent, fresh spring rain and the slightest hint of ozone, overcomes all of your senses as he deepens his kiss once more. You could sit here in your kitchen and kiss him forever. His lips move with such gentle passion, his hands exploring the curves of your body without moving too far into taboo territory for a first date.

No. That hadn’t been a date, had it?

You’re not sure how long you and Thor make out but when he finally pulls away, you give in to the comforting heat of his form and lean in against him. You rest your cheek against his left shoulder, your eyes staring at the tight muscles of his neck as he swallows and forces himself to breathe slowly.

“What if I wake up and this has all been a dream?” You ask, reaching up to grab a gentle hold of his right ear with your left hand.

“I will show you that it is not a dream.”

“This is really weird, Thor. We just met today.”

“Did we?” He asks, teasing uncertainty.

“Didn’t we?” Your brain quickly tries to think of another time you might have come across Thor but you’re drawing up a blank.

“I should go. It is very late, and you need rest.” Regrettably he pulls away from you and with your hands held in his he helps you down from the counter before moving for the front door.

The closer he pulls you towards the it the heavier your feet seem to get. You don’t want him to go. The idea of him leaving weighs heavily on your chest until he’s reaching for the handle and you yank back on his left hand.

“No.”

Thor’s blue eyes find you again, “What is the matter?”

“Don’t go, Thor.”

“I must go.”

“Because I’m drunk?”

“Well…yes, but-”

“I’m not drunk.” You argue, ignoring the way the world sways beneath your feet. “Please, don’t leave me. Stay.”

“I cannot. I do not wish to take advantage of you if you are not of sound mind. We will have plenty of time to revisit this possibility, Y/N. I-”

Throwing caution to the wind you throw yourself on him. You pull his head down so that your lips can move with his. He kisses you back, gentle and uncertain if this is right.

You want him. You’ve never wanted anyone more. Now that you’ve kissed him, his intoxicating lips, you need more. You move your hands down slowly along the taut muscles of his back before they come to rest on his waist where your fingers search for the seam of his shirt. They yield their purchase and with yearning intent your hands caress the surprisingly smooth skin of his back sliding his shirt up further and further as you explore.

He suddenly groans into your mouth and slowly he backs you up until he can turn you and press you up against the wall of your hallway. You break the kiss to catch your breath, excited by the feel of his skin underneath your hands.

Shifting slightly, he trails his burning kisses down along your throat. He reaches up and pushes your t-shirt aside to kiss the bare skin of your shoulder sending shivers up and down your spine.

“Stay…” You whisper, begging in what sounds so much like a moan.

“I should not.” He argues, the groan in his voice as he struggles with your pleading sending flutters into your stomach.

“Stay…” You insist.

“No.” He argues, still kissing his way up and down your shoulder and neck.

You reach up to catch his face once again and pull his lips back to yours as you initiate a slow salacious kiss.

“Mmph.” He moans against you and you know just a little more and he’ll cave.

While his hands are busy massaging the flesh of your hips, you let your own snake their way down to the front of his pants to undo the buckle of his belt and the button of his pants.

He breaks the kiss, startled.

“Stay…” You beg against his lips.

“Y/N…” He warns.

You search for the small metal tab along the front of his pants and find it in triumph before you slide it down. The sound of his zipper echoes around the hallway loudly. Your fingers go searching, delving into the front of his pants to find the soft fabric of his briefs, and the growing heat of his rod. He shuts his eyes tight and flexes his jaw hard, fighting some internal struggle as you touch him.

“Stay with me.” You plead one final time.

Suddenly his hands on your waist are rough. He lifts you up, slamming you slightly against the wall of your hall. You gasp and your hand falls out of his pants. He grabs your left leg firmly and wraps it around his waist as he holds you against the wall with his body alone then rocks his hips against your sex.

He uses his left hand to pull your shirt up over your head and you raise your arms up to help him pull it free. He rips the latch of your bra and you quickly peel it off for him and toss the fabric aside, gasping as he pushes himself against you.

For one long agonizing moment, Thor simply stares at your chest. Does he not like what he sees? Your insecurities begin to manifest quickly then they’re quickly wiped away as Thor leans down and suckles on your left breast.

You gasp, your core growing slick quickly. How long have you wanted to be touched this way? How long had you waited for the perfect one? The man who would finally have you? You’re so glad that it’s Thor.

As he traces long tantalizing circles around your nipples moving each of them into his mouth in turn, his right hand finds its way to the front of your jeans. He pulls his own hips back then undoes them and without warning slips his hand in underneath your underwear.

You moan as his fingers find your wet lips and immediately he begins to slide them up and down along your slit searching for whatever spot might please you most.

You tremble as he finds your nub, your little bundle of nerves at the apex of your lower lips and he pulls back to watch the twist of pleasure in your expression.

“Does that feel good?”

Does he really need to ask?! “Yes.”

He wraps his free arm around your waist as he continues to play with you, then turns and waits. “Which way is your bedroom?”

“Th-Third…ah!” You shudder against his hand, gripping onto his shoulders tightly as you lean forward to bite down on his shoulder.

He stops his fingers so that you can speak. “Third door on the right.”

As soon as you’ve released the desire information his fingers are back at work, pressing hard against your nub so that you shudder against his large body.

You have no time to look to see what he thinks of your bedroom. Nothing much in it but a small full-size bed on a rusted bed frame and two sets of drawers, both mismatched and out of place. He’s too busy to care about what’s in here too. He drops you onto the bed and pulls his hand free of your pants only to remove them along with your underwear leaving you completely exposed for him to see.

Nervously you attempt to cover yourself, but Thor reaches for your wrists and pulls them away from your breasts and presses them into the mattress over your head firmly, indicating he’d like you to keep them there. You do as he wants and with nervous flutters in your stomach you watch as he stands back up. He reaches back behind his neck with both hands and pulls his black shirt up over his head exposing for you large rippling muscles. How can he look like that? It’s not possible.

Your jaw drops as you gape at him in awe.

He smiles knowingly at you before pushing his pants and briefs down exposing his fully erect staff. You panic slightly, wondering how the hell he’s going to fit inside of you. This makes you clench your legs together, worried that you’ll disappoint him suddenly.

“Thor?”

He removes his watch and tosses it down onto his pants before he moves back to crawl over you slowly.

Your heart racing in panic, you reach up to press flat palms against his approaching chest. God, he’s hard.

“I…I’ve never…I haven’t been with anyone before.” You confess feeling self-conscious again.

He suddenly stops his advance, lowering himself down against you but keeping his weight supported with his arms.

“You have never made love before?” He wonders, surprised.

“No.” You shrug bringing your arms down to cover your chest again.

Thor frowns and reaches up with his right hand to push your hands away from blocking his view.

“I…I told you that no one has ever, they don’t see me.” You say, reminding him of your breakdown in the bar.

“I see you.” He whispers then leans down to kiss your lips.

That you like. You like his lips. You kiss him back eagerly, wrapping your arms around his neck. You’re so intoxicated by his kiss that you don’t realize he’s positioned himself over you, nudging your legs up and open as he presses the tip of his rod against your very wet entrance.

You pull back, gasping at the strange sensation and look down between your bodies but he’s lying almost completely on top of you that you can see only the tight well-formed muscles of his stomach.

“I will be gentle.” He assures you. “But if you would like to stop, we will stop right now.”

He’s giving you an out. The fear you feel at never having done this before, the pain it might bring, the consequences it could yield, and your inexperience all scream at you to take it. You might suck. What if you suck? With Thor? And he’s so…so big. Will it hurt?

“Y/N?” His voice brings your eyes up to meet his. “Shall we stop?”

And you might have said yes. If you weren’t looking into his stunning blue eyes and if you couldn’t see the kindness and gentle patience in them, you might have stopped. He reaches up with his left hand and caresses the side of your face slowly. You shake your head.

“Don’t stop.”

He leans down to meet your lips again while simultaneously pushing himself slowly inside of you. Your limbs spasm, quickly reaching up to clutch him closer, tighter, as you fight the strange sensation of being filled. It hurts. It does, and you groan against his lips. He stops and lets your body adjust before he pushes in a bit more, all the while kissing you with soft feather light kisses.

He pulls back to trails those soft, apologetic kisses along your jawline and up towards your cheeks, your forehead, your nose, your other cheek, and back to your lips.

He finally stops moving and you realize that he’s all the way in. Your pelvis hurts only a little and slowly the throbbing dies down leaving you feeling strangely stuffed.

“Are you alright?” He asks gently.

You nod. “It hurts.”

“Shall I stop?”

“Please, don’t stop.” You try to focus on something other than the ache and pull him back down for a quick kiss.

“If you want me to stop…” He begins, giving you another out but he pulls back slowly, sliding out of you almost three-quarters of the way before he pushes himself back in.

You gasp, squeezing your eyes shut as the pain is renewed.

He stops.

“Keep going.” You beg.

Thor hesitates but you pull him into another lusty kiss, and he begins to pump himself in and out a little faster.

You wish it had gotten better after a few minutes, but you didn’t enjoy your first time. Thor didn’t dislike it, but you can tell that he’s regretful that your first time was painful. He reached his release and that makes you happy. At least you were able to make him feel good.

“I’m sorry.” He whispers, breathing heavily over you, his hands massaging your shoulder then arm.

“Don’t be.” You slip your hands into his hair and gently scratch his scalp. He shuts his eyes, enjoying the sensation before he slides his hand down between your legs.

“Thor…” You begin, worried that he’s going to obsess over your lack of orgasm.

“It is not fair.” He argues and proceeds to press his fingers against that nub of yours again.

You squirm slightly, shifting your hips beneath him.

“It will get better with time.” He assures you.

You reach down to grab his wrist and hold it in place, brow furrowed as you search his face.

“You…You want to do this with me again?”

“Of course. Did you think this was a passing fancy?” He demands, half laughing at how ridiculous he finds that notion.

His fingers move again, and you buck against his touch. He plays your nub until your hips surge upwards, seeking one final push as your body is suddenly awash in euphoric climax. Thor worms his arm underneath your waist as you lift your body up towards him with the power of your release. He holds you close and lets you ride out your orgasm until your body is slack in his arms.

“I feel better.” He sighs, happy to see you content.

You laugh and reach up to pull him down for a long kiss.

“If someone had told me that I would wake up this morning alone and end up in bed with Thor, the God of Thunder at night, I would have called them psychotic and delusional.”

“You do not give yourself enough credit. You are irresistible, Y/N. And if I may, I’m almost certain that tomorrow you will end up in bed with Thor, the God of Thunder again. And this time, you’ll enjoy your time together much more.”

“I did enjoy tonight.” You assure him.

“You’ll enjoy it more.” He promises.

You take him at his word and then look down at your body. “I should go shower. And we should change the sheets.”

It’s not a large stain but the red on the sheets is embarrassing. You slip out of his grip and roll off the side of the bed, feeling sore, but eager to get cleaned up. You’re also still dizzy, drunk still but you’re not telling Thor that. You concentrate hard to keep your body from swaying.

He watches you, slowly getting up too so that you can strip the bed of the soiled sheets.

“You do not regret my staying?”

You look up at him as you ball the dirtied sheets in your arms and are startled by the soft look of insecurity on his face. How can he be worried about you wanting him here?

“No.” You assure him sweetly. “Thor…”

Quickly you move around the bed to his side and without hesitation wrap your left arm around his waist. Where you’ve found this sudden confidence, you’re not sure, but you know that you need to show him that you love his being here.

“I wouldn’t have asked you to stay if I didn’t mean it. I wanted this. I wanted you. Do you regret staying?” Now it’s your turn to be insecure.

You loosen your arm and he’s suddenly wrapping you up in his own.

“Never.” He promises.

“Good.” You smile. “I’m gonna go shower.”

You pull out of his arms and wander into the bathroom. It takes you ten minutes to clean up. You hope that the soreness will fade quickly. You want to try that again soon.

In the room, Thor is laying on top of a freshly made bed, right hand under his head, left on his chiseled stomach, still completely naked. He must have found the sheets in your closet and made the bed for you.

You stare at his perfect form and reach over with your right hand to pinch your left bicep hard. “Ow.”

Definitely not dreaming.

It’s a whisper but Thor’s eyes shoot open at the sound and he pushes himself up to look at you, a sweet smile plastered onto his perfect lips.

You had been wanting to wait for a while before you tried again but just watching him lay there, naked, looking good enough to eat, you unhook the corner of your towel and let it fall away.

As your nakedness is exposed once more, Thor’s smile falls away and he swallows hard as the rod between his legs twitches and slowly stands erect again.

“I think I’m ready to try again now.”

“Then come here.” He murmurs huskily and you happily obey.

Forever Tag List @until-theend-oftheline @jessieray98 @dsakita @coldfacedwarf @just-trying-to-survive-marvel @fairislesheets @jewelofwinter @mannls @moonlessnight14 @sovereignoblivious @pandazlazykid @lilulo-12 @moli1497 @shifutheshihtzu @the-real-mary-jane @pastelxvirgo @just4muggles @vulpecula-minor @wildefire @mdgrdians @tiffanynguyen03 @shield-agent78 @i-cant-shine-without-darkness @the-wayward-robot @babytrollgirl @alagalaska @sincerelytlh @theonelittleone @sea040561 @xrosegoldwolfx @peppermintvanillaa @awkwardfangirl2014 @toffeecoloredqueen @crist1216 @xxloki81xx

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@zoey-odinson-stark @slice-of-thunder

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unfortunately-lovestruck · 5 years ago

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Havenfall finest in Roaring 20's? Pleeeease?

YES. ABSOLUTELY.

I’ve actually headcanoned this before in my head but I’d completely forgotten about it lmao. But without further ado, here’s HIFL in the Roaring 20’s.

Mackenzie

poor lady, her job is never done

bootlegging is a huge ass problem, and no matter how many sellers/smugglers she catches, it feels as though 3 more pop up after them like a hydra

she isn’t the happiest with Prohibition (after all she does enjoy a healthy bit of alcohol from time to time) but she respects and enforces the law nonetheless

on the bright side though, she’s beaming when she goes into a voting booth for the first time and actually feels like her voice is heard after women finally get suffrage in the US

she’s still waiting for LGBTQ+ people to be protected under the law though, so she isn’t exactly thrilled about that

though comic books don’t really reach their peak until the 40’s-50’s, Mac is proud to say she adored them way before they became huge

loves jazz music, because who can’t? it’s so much fun to listen to (and I swear if any of you make bee movie jokes in the comments I’ll manifest in your houses and kill you myself)

Diego

still a doctor of course

a looooot of alcohol poisoning in his patients

doesn’t like that people don’t respect the law but he ain’t snitching

he can’t snitch anyway, since patient files are private, hippocratic oath and whatnot

honestly, sometimes he felt like the entire decade just wasn’t real

the entire world was scarred from WW1 and the excess opulence and alcohol was more like a universal coping mechanism than anything

but then again, he can’t say he was perfect

since Razi had a bar in a speakeasy (more on that later) Diego still supported him, and even visited sometimes just for the music and atmosphere

but even then, he kept to himself and only really talked to Razi and JD

at least then he didn’t have to worry about people commenting on his red eyes, since they were all too drunk to look too long

Razi

yes, he ran an illegal speakeasy

but was it to be a menace to society or to blatantly disrespect the law? no

he knew Prohibition would only be temporary

in fact, he made multiple bets with other people for how long it would last

he probably won and JD still owes him like $5 (prices were lower back then so they let the money depreciate)

the point is, he knew America wouldn’t commit to this ban for long

he also disagreed with the notion that everyone had to be permanently policed and babied like rowdy teenagers

so he ran a speakeasy, but it was probably one of the safest ones in the country

if anyone got too rough or violent, it was getting shut down, and it was getting shut down quick

trust me, not a lot of people will question a disapproving 6’2 man much

yet despite all this, he was still friends with Mac

he didn’t tell her until after Prohibition though

she knew, she wasn’t dumb

no one did the Charleston like they did, and that is a fact

let’s be honest, they loved speakeasies because it was basically just “hey the law? yeah fuck that” time

after 140 years of society being so morally uptight and strict, the 20’s were the biggest relief they had ever experienced

they could finally wear and say what they want and dance the night away and no one (they cared about) would call them an embarassment or disgrace

they felt light and free, and even with all the underlying problems and unsustainable economy, they just didn’t want it to end

but oh man, they never found sheer anarchy and fun like that until the 70’s punk movement 50 years later, and they still miss it

Vanessa

sadly, she doesn’t get much fun out of life no matter what decade you put her in

vampires are an eternal problem (to her and the Order at least) so there is no lax point in time

also, being a lesbian in the 1920’s was not a good time

but she does get some fun out of TV

it didn’t become popular until the 30’s, but since the Order is funding her and giving her high tech things, a TV isn’t unreasonable for her to have back in the 20’s

she really doesn’t like speakeasies and drinking though

the 20’s were basically a golden era for vampires since so many people just didn’t remember getting bitten the morning after from all the liquor

so if anything, when she found a speakeasy, it was basically a gold mine of vampires

she’d walk in and at least a good fifth of the people were undead

almost went after Diego, but Razi stopped her

since he didn’t drink from live humans and he was a doctor, she lets it slide

basically both Mac and Vanessa just had their hands full the entire decade

Antonio

oh boy

y’all know Jay Gatsby, right?

basically think of him, but on crack

not literal crack, but just Gatsby 2.0

bootlegging and owning speakeasies made him disgustingly rich

the 20’s were his prime decade, and nothing came close to it

it had opulence equivalent to 1700’s France without the social etiquette and customs, and also hedonism that he (like JD) never got to experience so openly before

I mean tuxedos, cars, radio, the general aesthetic?? the man was living

imagine growing up in medieval times where sneezing wrong could get you in trouble with the church and finally getting to feel free after 420 years (and yes that number is mathematically correct this literally couldn’t get better)

of course it wasn’t perfect, since he has canonically mentioned being with other men just wasn’t accepted

but if anything, the mentality of “fuck it, we’re living” just assured him that someday, he would be able to be open about his sexuality, and so would everyone else

Bonus! MC

her circumstances are the same

she and Grace are orphaned, and she gives up her dreams so her sister can have a better life

but every weekend, she needs an outlet to relax and let loose

so of course, she finds the speakeasy Razi runs and begs to work there since she needs money for Grace

he lets her work there out of pure understanding and kindness (bless him) just like he did with JD

they actually both do work most of the week

but when Friday hits? shit gets wild

MC would always actually serve people drinks and work the first half of the night, but eventually, Razi would always take over and tell her and JD to go have fun

he knows neither of them are living under the best circumstances, and besides, he doesn’t have anything more urgent to do

so, MC and JD are always competing over who can do the Charleston the best (just like with arcade games in modern times)

JD always wins, but MC is seriously a close second

they dance the night away, and drag Diego into it occasionally (with Razi’s subtle support)

he’s definitely not bad at dancing at all, and occasionally, they can get him to actually smile and even laugh a little bit

as for Mac, MC knows her because she always patrols her neighborhood

though she feels a bit guilty when she talks to her with all the speakeasy business and all, she’s thankful Mac keeps the neighborhood safe for her and especially Grace

she meets Vanessa the night she tries to kill Diego

she, Razi, and JD all form a barricade around the doctor, and don’t let her even come close to him

they convince her to leave him alone, though Razi does most of the talking, and Vanessa eventually does concede

but damn, MC can’t help but think she was hella cute

I mean she feels that way about everyone in Havenfall’s Finest, so nothing’s new there

but one night a guy with slicked back brown hair and red eyes like Diego walks in and oh wow look at that Diego’s shadow warped off into the void that’s weird

he keeps glancing at her throughout the night, you know, in that weird “you have the blood to resurrect my dead sibling but damn you’re hot” kind of way

Razi is offput by him, because he feels like he’s that guy Diego told him about who abandonned him 4 centuries ago

but he has no proof, so Antonio continues to do what he likes in the speakeasy (really he was checking to see what other speakeasies had so he could implement them in his own to make more money)

so in the end, MC’s got 6 possible LI’s around her nonetheless :’)

#lovestruck #havenfall is for lovers #hifl #mackenzie hunt #diego escalona #razi nassar #jordan davies #hifl jd #vanessa helsing #antonio vasquez

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miraclejune · 5 years ago

Text

HERO’S SOUP: Chapter 15

Old Friends

The grass scrunched from their footsteps, coming back up as they walked on. Encountering the red haired pyrokinetic somehow made the situation worse than it was.

Jeongin looks up to Kazuo, gazing at him while they walk side by side. He was much taller than him, his red hair continued to amaze him and at some point, he wanted to ask if it was his natural hair color. "It's not. I just color it. Pyrokinesis. Red hair. You know the gist." the man glanced at him through the corner of his eyes.

"Can you read minds?"

Kazuo chuckles, running his hand through his hair. "I can read faces."

Chan pulls Jeongin to his side, giving Kazuo a stink eye.

"And it's still very much creepy that you can, Sofia." the redhead laughs out loud. He can’t actually read faces as an ability. He’s just very observant, which later on gave him a lot of benefits. "It's been decades and I still can't figure out why you hate me so much."

He looked at Chan, his face was calm and neutral. He was the only person he couldn't figure out. It didn't annoy him at all. It's just.. he was curious.

How much has this person been through all these years? He never knew why Chan never opened up to him, although they spent decades together at the Sofia's mansion. He opened up easily to the others. But he does know that the vampire doesn't hate him. The perfect word might be 'resent'.

"Shut up."

"Aw, come on. We go way back!"

"...thank you."

Kazuo stares at the vampire's back as he walks past him. He smiles.

Chan doesn't resent him either.

He speeds up, pacing himself with the vampire. "For what?" He saw how Chan’s tense demeanor slowly relaxes. "For saving my family."

"When we escaped the building, Changbin gained consciousness but he was losing a lot of blood. His wound was healing way slower than normal. I remember Chan saying that if ever something really dangerous appears or we have gotten into a really tight situation, we were to go to any Neutral zone that's nearby. And the closest was this place."

Seungmin pulls Jeongin before he gets run over by a coach harnessed to 2 horses. They had walked for what felt like an hour until they reached a town in the center of the neutral zone while Jisung was explaining what had happened.

The place looked like you're in the beautiful streets of Rome.

The narrow streets are paved with small, square, black bricks. They walked past maybe a dozen bakeries, the smell of fresh bread made Jeongin's mouth water. Most of the buildings that line the streets have so much character, they are worn looking and earthy colored. Seungmin swore every building they pass by has a fancy rustic balcony.

There were no cars or anything that emits hazardous smoke. Instead, bikes and coaches were the modes of transport within the town. But what littered the streets the most were people, different beings to be exact.

The crowd is a river of them, the only difference is that it flows in different directions. You will see different faces only to be forgotten once they pass by. Some were enjoying their alone time while others moved in groups staying together with fingers entwined or shoulders close to each other.

All of these people are supernatural beings that try hard to fit in the human world. Most of them might be centuries old, used to adjusting themselves with different people. The burden for the young ones is big, but the prize of being able to move freely outside neutral zones is worth it.

None of them were mad about the fact that it was they who needed to adjust. None of them ever regretted doing good outside for minimizing the risk of being caught. They were grateful. Plus, human beings are way scarier than any being out there. The capacity of their minds and actions were far more superior, leading to a lot of negative effects outside.

"How did you manage to sneak Jeongin in? He's human." Jisung glanced at Seungmin for a second before fixing his coat.

"Oh, that. The old lady let us in. She stared at Jeongin for a while before letting us through." he shivered, recollecting the scene from earlier. "She's one scary gatekeeper alright." Changbin couldn't agree more.

He was half-aware of what was going on but he could still feel the immense amount of power being contained by a frail and wrinkled old lady.

"Says the one who got recognized by that old lady." Jisung shrugged. Seungmin, on the other hand, wondered what Chan meant by that. Recognized? As in, she knows Jisung personally before or what?

"But as soon as we entered the area, Changbin collapsed. He was pretty much gone." Seungmin and Chan both looked worryingly at the said wolf. His state now was so much better than earlier.

The wolf laughed softly. "I was seeing double even before we got in. I just had to hold it in before we got into the safe zone. I had to protect Jeongin and Jisung. But, I was weak."

Jeongin steps up and gives Changbin's shoulder a squeeze, making the wolf look back at him.

"You aren't weak. You're the strongest.''

Those words were cliche but it made him feel a whole lot better. He continued. "What pulled me back into consciousness was Woojin's howl. He was miles away but I still shivered as if he was just right beside me. It was almost as if he was crying. Calling out for me. Telling me to keep it together. Help is on the way."

Jisung put a hand around Changbin's shoulder. "I heard it too, so I knew I had to stay strong for these two." he said, giving a glance linked with a smile at Jeongin in which the boy returned back.

Help was on the way? So that means, Kazuo knew about Changbin getting hurt and them entering the neutral zone? Seungmin looked at Kazuo, did he expect them to arrive at the right moment because Woojin told him?

“Did Woojin tell you?"

Kazuo smiles. Ushering them inside a huge tavern with a sign outside that says 'Forest and Fauna Inn'. The question hung in the air unanswered as they entered a ramshackle, weather-worn wooden building situated in the northwest part of town.

Upon entering the place, it looks quite more pleasant than the outside. The smell of smoke and stale ale welcomed the bunch. Surprisingly, it was much quieter than the usual 'bar' or 'inn' you see in movies or read in books. People huddled around wooden tables, the tinkle of glass on glass wipes the awkward atmosphere for unacquainted people. Quiet murmurs and occasional cheering made the place... quite lively enough.

This tavern draws in people of all sorts. Witches, wizards, orcs, wolves, spirits and rare ones like high elves, multi-headed creatures, human-born beings, goblins, and vampires.

Each race or being has their own system or we can call them "agencies" that manage each and every type of being. They provide order and laws to be followed promptly by everyone. Surprisingly, there are humans who work within those agencies. Of course, they're bound by a pact that won't allow them to talk outside about what sort of work they do and who their superiors are. Such offices are located everywhere and are often camouflaged as normal offices.

The vampire population is quite huge as well. Most of them are populated in Europe and on glacial places like Alaska, Mongolia, Finland, Greenland, Russia, and even the inhabitable Antarctica. There are also a few of them in South Korea and neighboring countries like China and Japan.

That's how Seungmin was assigned to Chan to make sure he doesn't cause any harm or drink blood from a human being, which is far from happening at all. He was in it for the money at first, but somewhere along the way, he enjoyed nagging the vampire and sometimes caring for him.

"Well, I be damned. Someone give me a neck to offer. Looks like we got ourselves a vampire." a distant voice cheered from behind a crowd pooling near their table.

A mysterious man leered down on Chan as soon as they sat down at a table near the bar.

Oily voice, greased back hair, hunched back, piercing black eyes, and a false smile.

The atmosphere was suffocating. Seungmin peers from the opposite side of the table, as his view was blocked by Changbin who sat in front of him. It surprised him to see all eyes were on them.

The buzzing sound of talking and loud cheers vanished as everyone's attention was on them. He angled his head more to see the barkeeper wiping the counter, not minding the situation at all, was he used to rumbles in here?

In the middle of all the tension, his eyes caught a redhead coming up to the counter. Is that? Kazuo? Getting a drink?! Is he not concerned about what was happening?

"Woah woah woah."

The rest of them panic, when Chan stands up and turns to face the man. Jeongin was clinging to his right arm, almost begging him to not start a fight.

He caresses the boy’s hand, as if cue, Jeongin lets go. Chan was not planning on making a scene at all and he got the message clear. Seungmin, on the other hand, grew way more anxious.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes.” Alas, the heavy atmosphere was broken by the two men hugging each other, the contrast between their bodies was unimaginable, it was like Hercules hugging a dwarf.

“Long time no see, Uiane.” Uiane patted Chan's back before removing himself from the vampire. His yellow teeth are on full display as he laughs out loud.

“Ye fuken bellend, ye ne’er came back!” His weird accent was a mixture of what seemed to be either old English and Scottish? And his name? Was it Um-ya? U-ya?

Chan chuckles, shaking his head in defeat. Uaine moves away from him, letting the rest of the people behind him greet an old friend.

“Okay, what is going on?”

Their confused faces looked at Chan laughing and hugging the men who looked much like pirates, before landing on Kazuo who got back from the bar.

“Oi, wait. Chan? Wha-where are yo-and there he goes!” Seungmin threw his hands in the air, the rest of them felt sympathetic towards the witch. They were all confused as much as the next person.

Seungmin was now lost.

Everyone was shaken up by what happened earlier, someone got injured badly, they lost track of them, and now they’re sitting inside a tavern owned by the Sofia’s! That’s not the worst part of it! The old lady still gave all of them the creeps.

The redhead snuggled beside Jeongin. Way too close for personal space. And when did they get all chummy? How on earth did they become all buddy-buddy with each other that fast?

Knowing Jeongin, he was the least likely person to be comfortable meeting an unfamiliar face for the first time, given the circumstances that had happened before. Seungmin's anxiety shot through the roof.

He scoots over to Jeongin a bit more, circling his arm around his waist. “Care to explain, Sofia?”

Fiery red hair shifted as he took a sip from a tall glass of beer. He wished Seungmin would be more subtle in protecting the boy from him. The rest waited for him to respond. He sent the thought to the back of his head and something flashed beneath the surface of his calm expression, it was as if he was reminiscing good memories.

He rested his elbows on the table, clasping his hands as a faint, transient, wistful smile lit his face. “As all of you guys know. Me and Chan go way back. Centuries back.” Jeongin looked at Seungmin, his face questioning if he really heard what Kazuo said correctly, centuries? Plural? More than a hundred years?

Seungmin leans in to tell him it was true before they both turned their attention back to Kazuo. “He wasn’t really the type to join a group or be involved in a system, I thought he hated being lower than someone. Turns out he’s just a loner.” He chuckled. “It was hard to approach him. He was…” his voice trailed off, he was thinking of the correct word to say. “Intimidating.” He shifted his gaze and met Jeongin's eyes. He smiled at the innocence behind them. “Yeah. He was intimidating. Back then he was way more guarded than he is now. Not gonna lie, huge difference.” all of them agreed with that one.

“To put it briefly. He joined our clan. He joined Sofia.” heavy oppression seemed to brood upon the air as soon as he finished his sentence. He knew it was a secret and Chan would probably kill him but there was no other way to explain the situation.

His fingers played with the, now empty, glass. Picking his words carefully. “I did try to stop him. Believe it or not, we were friends even before he joined the clan, well... As far as I know, that is.” Kazuo’s eyes found Chan amidst the crowd hovering about his location. “He never really verbally acknowledged me but hey, it’s Chan we’re talking about. A man of few words.”

“He was trained by my grandfather. The head of the clan. He would have private sessions with him at the family dojo guarded by the strongest men. No one would lay a foot at that wing, not because of the guards but because it had this ominous feeling of fear and death itself."

"How can you measure death?" Jisung asked with a matter-of-fact tone in his voice.

Kazuo fell into thought, striving to find the correct way to estimate the feeling. "AH!" he snapped his fingers.

"Remember that old lady at the entrance?” they all nodded. Kazuo thinned his lips. “Multiply her presence by 100.” Jisung's breath hitched. Changbin clinged to him. He too was very much shaken by what Kazuo said.

He shouldn't have asked that now it's gonna be giving him nightmares for the next few weeks, which means Hyunjin's gonna have a roommate for the next few weeks as well. “Your grandfather must be really strong.”

Kazuo wished that was the case in Changbin's question.

However, as he held his breath in admiring silence, his eyes never left Chan. His gaze was full of wondering interest meddled with pain and fear. No one at their table noticed it, thank god. “I guess you could say that.” The tone of his voice was vague. Seungmin thought.

It wasn’t the right answer to the question. He would’ve accepted it if Kazuo responded with silence. “Chan wasn’t that cold-hearted bitch you assume he is. He was just aloof, always had a hard time socializing because he doesn’t know how to act. He stayed with us for decades and I can tell you that Chan is more than a blood-sucking vampire who has a knack for vintage stuff.”

His smile was linked with a sigh. “I can’t believe the day will come that I would tell you guys this but, Chan is the nicest, most loyal and resilient person I have ever met. Everyone in the mansion acknowledged him as the strongest, but he remained rooted. He was humble. Never used his power for something stupid or would hurt the people around him.”

“He’s something else alright. Accepting not 1 but 4 ancient wolves into his life was like hitting death in the face hard. A cursed one too. You've been through a lot, I can tell.” Changbin forced a smile, the thoughts of his past prickling on his heart and mind.

"Yeah, it's been... hard." worry washes over Jeongin. He hadn't quite paid attention to the wolves as well. But, he didn't want to seem nosy and ask about their past if it hurts them like this. He sat upright when Changbin glanced at him, a sad smile and sad eyes. Jisung leans on his shoulders and he looks away from Jeongin. He clears his throat.

“Felix told me he was afraid of Chan at first. Minho also. But all of their doubts and misconceptions of him vanished as soon as they made eye contact with that idiot. Chan is… he’s great.” Seungmin knew Changbin had more to say. But he felt like the wolf couldn’t find, no, the words he thought of were not even enough to describe how he felt about the vampire.

“That’s why everyone in the clan admired him. They admired the way he would pass the halls to lowkey watch over the rookies. We always caught him red-handed but he had an excuse without fail, denying that he was just passing by. We let him be because it's how he shows that he cares. He was caring in his own way and my boys felt that.” What he meant by ‘my boys’ were the people recruited under the Sofia’s family.

“What really surprised us was when he was 3 months in the clan and the most unexpected thing happened.” He leaned back, he was so immersed with the story.

“He has his own stash of blood containers in his room, staff would deliver fresh batches every Sunday. However, one day he silently popped up in the mess hall. I still remember the exact same words he said when everyone looked at him standing in the entrance ‘What the hell are you dumbasses looking at? Never seen a vampire before?’ before plopping down next to Uaine.” That sounded like Chan alright. He was really hard to read. And sometimes you might come up with misconceptions about him in certain situations but in the end, you get the total opposite of all of it. Oh and they finally got the pronunciation of the name: Oon-ya.

He chuckles deeply, staring at the empty glass in front of him.

“Who told you you could go around and blab about my past, Kazuo?” all eyes were on him as he settled down beside Jeongin.

“Looks like someone’s in a good mood.” Chan rolls his eyes at Changbin, making the latter and Jisung giggle.

"So, you boys probably already know about my angsty past. Thank you by the way.” no way in hell Chan wasn’t being sarcastic with that thank you directed to Kazuo.

“Now, I’m the one asking questions.”

“We haven’t even heard the full story yet!”

“Jisung, sweetie. Would you do me a favor and shut up?”

Jisung pouted. “But, thank you." The wolf's pout was soon replaced by a gummy smile.

The vampire couldn't help but snort. "Thank you for thinking fast. I wouldn’t even have thought of this place given the situation earlier. You did great.” Chan felt proud. He compliments all the members quite equally but this time he wanted to thank Jisung with all of his immortal life. If it wasn’t for the wolf, Changbin would’ve been in grave danger.

“And, you.” Before the boys could go all mushy and cringy, he directed his index finger at the redhead. “You’re an idiot and I hate you so much but I'm saying this again. Thank you again. For saving my family.”

To all the misconceptions and harsh words given to Chan. Seungmin wants all of you to know that you can go suck his fluffy ass because the vampire is nothing like that.

“Fucking hell man.”

“Yikes, I know. I didn’t have a choice!”

“That shit disgusting. You’re disgusting.”

"I've become like this because of these stupid wolves, fox, cat, witch and awkward college kid."

The two of them shivered in horror of what Chan just proclaimed. They were the only ones feeling that way because even Seungmin's heart grew warm as he saw and felt the way the vampire thanked Kazuo. Minus the insult to everyone in the mansion though.

It was like they were looking right into Chan's past with the Sofia's.

“Moving on, Changbin's wounds didn’t look like they would close up anytime soon during the encounter earlier. How did he heal so fast? Did you take him to the doctor?” Jisung explained to Chan how they managed to drag Changbin to the healer. Seungmin double checked Changbin's body for any hint of pain or injury but he was as good as new.

Jeongin was partly listening because another thing bothered him. He tugged Seungmin’s sleeve as soon as the witch finished checking the wolf. “There are doctors here too?”

“Yes. They’re more or less like the doctors outside, but a bit more advanced. Their knowledge is extensive because of the variety of beings here. Herbal Witches are the strong ones.” Jeongin nodded. Seungmin, on the other hand, felt like he had boasted about his entire life's work. And he did. He was proud to be a herbal witch as well.

Jeongin thought he had to write a book about this. It would sell loads for sure. By the time he directed his attention to the conversation, they were already discussing what had happened this afternoon.

“It gave me the creeps as soon as I stepped out of the room. It looked like an old guy but the power emitting from it was almost nauseating.” Changbin recalled the scene from earlier. Jisung started worrying about Chan who has not come back from the restroom for quite a while, although he’s probably the scariest being on earth, they couldn’t help but to go out and check on him.

“What even is that thing?”

“Wasn’t that the guard of your building, Changbin?”

“Wait, you guys have seen it before!? And what guard?” Jisung panicked.

“You guys haven’t?” After seeing the puzzled reactions on their faces from Jeongin's follow up question.

Seungmin concluded the worst. “No, Jeongin. I don’t think they did,"

The boy looked at him curiously.

"Because there was no guard in the first place.'' Jeongin connected all the puzzle pieces. The guard was fake.

They argued endlessly.

However, Kazuo sat there completely still. Upon hearing the exchange of information in front of him, he may have a clue on what was going on and who the attacker was. “Chan.” the vampire put up a silencing hand, sensing there's some sort of important information about to be revealed.

“There’s news about a weirdly shaped being attacking people and other supernatural beings. And what I mean by attacking is killing. It killed even the strongest who have ever existed. According to the ghosts, it may be able to wipe out humanity within days.”

Chan closed his eyes shut along with his lips. He took a long deep breath, roughly caressing his face with his palms. To think that she would go to this extent just for him. This is getting out of hand. Way out of hand. “Is it after you?” here he goes again with his face-reading. “Y-”

“No.”

“Seungmin, don’t butt in. And what do you mean no? You were there.” Chan glared at him tirelessly. Seungmin's face was stern, but his eyes jumped around the room. He wasn't quite sure if he's supposed to say this. But it's now or never.

“You said it, I was there when you’re being gobbled up. It wasn’t after you Chan.”

“It was after Jeongin.” Chan stood up from his seat, his eyes burned in anger. The inn grew dark and cold in just a second.

“Chantopher, sit down.” his breath continued to mingle with the smell of alcohol and smoke. The cracking sounds of his fingers echoed around the spacious tavern now that it grew quiet.

“Chan, sit down or else you’re gonna end up wiping out another neutral zone again.”

“Fine.” he sat down begrudgingly but the air was far more suffocating than earlier.

'Another neutral zone' Jeongin never doubted Chan's power. He remembered the mental notes he made from before ‘Never make Chan mad’, he meant that in a way that he should never get the vampire mad because he might end up being tickled or cussed to death. Not to the extent that Chan can be a killing machine when he’s enraged.

“Look, all I know is that it was after Jeongin. Because when Jisung moved out of the way to pick up Changbin and escape, IT had a great view of Jeongin who was hiding. That’s why you had the chance to attack it. It was distracted. You killed it for now but it seems like it will be coming back for more.” Seungmin's mouth grew dry even though he drank almost 1 liter of water from the bar. The group’s words ceased. The agitation was slowly building up.

"Killed it for now? You mean it's difficult to get rid of?" Kazuo's question was given dirt so that means he was correct on his assumptions.

He leans back on the wall and sighs deeply. It was great information, useful indeed. But he seriously regrets asking about it. This wasn't some low scale issue. This might threaten the 11 families. He has got to tell his old man about this. "Chan." he looked at the vampire hopefully. "Tomorrow. Let the kids rest, for now, please. I'll be there." The vampire knew it was inevitable to stay away from the Sofia's lane. He had no choice but to swallow the pill.

“Has anyone contacted Minho and Felix?” Chan redirected the topic.

“Yeah, they sent Eric home in a flash and are on their way here too.”

“Updates on Woojin and Hyunjin?”

“They said they’re near. I’m gonna go pick them up at the entrance.” Changbin stood up from his seat. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

He smiled and flexed his muscles. “Hah! You underestimate the power of these bad boys." the rest of them cringe as Changbin kisses both his biceps.

"For the love of satan, just let him go!" Jisung pleaded, moving his eyes away from the horrific scene.

"Vote on 'we should've let him die'. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

Changbin gasped in betrayal. "Fucking sons of bitches."

The mood somehow grew brighter. Kazuo thanked the heavens for Chan calming down. He saw Uaine at the corner of his eyes earlier, ready to strike.

His big figure shook not in determination to kill but in fear. He and the rest of the crew had no choice but to defend the Boss (Kazuo) no matter where they are, who they are facing and how many lives will be taken. It's part of the fucked up rules made by Kazuo's ancestors. Really, why can't they stray away from tradition just once?

"Let Jeongin go with you."

"Chan, are you hearing yourself?"

"Jisung, I can hear the ants walking in the counter over there so I guess that's a dead giveaway."

Jeongin stood up and fixed his shirt.

"Chan, are you really really sure?"

The vampire shrugged, chugging down his drink. "Yeah, no harm in letting him into some adventure. Besides, this is called a safe zone for that reason."

"But... it's Jeongin we're talking about. Your baby boy. Are you a hundred percent sure about this? What made you think this is the right choice?" Seungmin's voice trailed off.

"He's with Changbin." the wolf swore he could cry right at that moment.

"Wait." Jisung stood up, placing his hand on Chan's obviously cold forehead. "You don't have the vampire chills, do you? Are you okay? Where does it hurt?" he swatted Jisung's hand away.

Gosh, he was so embarrassed by them making a big deal about this. "Changbin just please go and take Jeongin.'' The wolf wanted to join in with the fun but Woojin and Hyunjin might be waiting outside. Plus, Hyunjin's a scaredy-cat so he might've peed himself upon seeing the old lady at the entrance. And so they made their way out of the inn, chuckling underneath their breaths as they did so.

Seungmin scoots closer to Chan, looking straight at his eyes. "Are we sure you're Chan? That bitch wouldn't have let Jeongin go out without him? Who are you? What did you do to our idiot vampire leader!!!" shamefaced, Chan let Seungmin poke his face a dozen times and shake his body harshly.

"You should've just left me to die earlier as well. This is humiliating."

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lavenderbones22 · 6 years ago

Text

Playing The Game- Ben!Roger Taylor

Summary: Roger has been thrust into sudden fame with his band, Queen, and with fame come groupies. Overwhelmed with the amount of attention he's receiving and unsure how to handle it, his girlfriend falls on the back burner and now Roger must try to win her heart back.

Requested: 'I sent you my request yesterday but Tumblr is being useless as always hehe. So, can you write an os where Ben!Roger is so excited with his sudden fame and the groupies all over him that he kinda forgets the reader exists. Then, realizing that this kind of life is good but only for a moment, he tries to win the reader's heart all over again. You know, angst and fluffy stuff.'

Word Count: 3491

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1973

The bright lights, the encapsulating smell of cigarettes and weed, the alcohol, the hard drugs, it was all prevalent in the small venue Queen were playing at. Having gone around playing bigger venues in other countries for a while, they were back at their old stomping ground for a night. The crowd of what used to be mainly guys who loved rock music had seemingly suddenly turned into a crowd of young women.

Maybe it was all the hair, the tight jeans, the bare chests, the sweaty muscles, that drew them to watch the band play but it was thought that it was mostly because they wanted to fuck one of the band members.

Brian and John were single, leaving Freddie and Roger the half of the band currently in relationships. Roger would sit back and watch two of his best mates indulge in the pleasures of these easy young women and he couldn't mistake the feeling of jealousy that would hit him.

He loved his girlfriend, he really, really did. She was a good girl, been by his side for just on two years now and sexy, fuck, she was sexy as all hell but it was the excitement that these groupies would bring that intrigued him.

He'd listen to Brian and Deacy's sinful stories of what these women would let the guys do to them, how they would beg to be tied up, be hung from things, fucked in every orifice of their fit bodies. If he didn't have such a healthy sex life with his girlfriend, fucking most days, Roger would have caved a long time ago. He was satisfied, but he was curious.

He was sat in his usual spot at the drum kit, a perfect view of Freddie as he waltzed across the stage singing his dramatic heart out. He'd been keeping an eye out for his girl, she was meant to come to the show after work but it was after eight and he still hadn't seen her. She knew how much this show meant to him and the guys, it was like coming full circle and he wanted her to be there.

Her hectic work schedule as of late had been playing havoc on their relationship. They were like ships passing in the night, schedules that were completely opposite. She worked in a salon, a hairdresser, and her hours were all over the place.

As he hit the symbol's, pressed his foot down on the bass pedal, he channelled the frustration he felt at not having seen her yet; they were half way through the set, she was probably not going to show.

Roger tried desperately to distract himself from his negative thoughts by going harder at the drums and although one would think that it would be easy to shut everything else out of your mind whilst playing an instrument as intense as they were, it was not.

The set came to an end, the sweat literally dripping down Roger's face, his chest, his arms. He was always so fierce when he drummed, putting everything he had into bringing out the best beats he possibly could. It was part of his charm and his girl would often say one of her favourite things to do was watch Roger lose himself in his music. They'd even fucked on his drum kit a few times.

He lit a fag before he did anything. Grabbing a cloth and using it to wipe his face. The crowd was cheering, the others were thanking them. Roger stood up, waving to the crowd to huge cheers as he stepped off the stage and went out the back.

Deep puffs, strong exhales, he was annoyed.

She had intended to go to the gig, she knew how much it meant to Roger. He'd been going on about it for a couple of weeks now, excited to play for their home crowd again now their careers had taken off and everyone knew every word to every song. She didn't leave the salon until seven forty-five, her feet killing her from standing all day. Knowing the guys went on stage at seven, for an hour and a half, she didn't see much point in going for the last fifteen minutes.

Well aware that it was poor on her behalf by not showing up to her boyfriend's gig, she fought with her conscience on the taxi ride home and by the time she arrived at the doorstep of the flat she shared with Roger, she had come to terms with her decision.

There was more to this though, than what was presented on the outside. She had another reason for this decision.

Along with the bands growth in album sales and popularity came their growth in attention from women, groupies in particular. It seemed that every woman, and some men, wanted to fuck a rockstar. Sure, she'd known it was a fad, she had fancied a few guys in bands in her time, but the extent that it was at currently took her by total surprise.

Women just wanted to have sex with a rockstar so that they could go and brag about it to their friends, maybe sell a story to the newspaper about how big or small his dick might have been.

She had never been bothered by this fact until her boyfriend was the centre of everybody's attention.

Most people who visited her salon knew Roger or had met him at some point in time, but sometimes when she had new clients who didn't know who she was or who her boyfriend was, she would hear things. It had happened on only a few occasions but that was a few occasions too many in her opinion. Young girls similar to her age or a tad younger would come in mouthing off about how hot Roger Taylor from Queen was and how much they wanted to fuck him. She remembered one girl even saying that he had been eye fucking her the entire performance; needless to say, that was an awkward moment for everybody in the salon.

In hindsight, she wished to have made a different decision that night when she left work. She should have gone to the gig, then maybe things between her and Roger wouldn't be so shit.

It was about a month after the hometown gig and Queen were still in England. They were driving around doing shows in smaller parts of the country, being no more than a few days away from home at a time.

Her work had become more demanding, people had found out that she was Roger Taylor's girlfriend and suddenly her client list became endless. Roger, well Roger was playing music and revelling in the attention from all of the groupies. He was still angry at his girlfriend for missing that important show, so he channelled that anger into attracting beautiful women.

He hadn't cheated, or at least anything he had done he'd hadn’t classified as cheating.

A few brief kisses on lips, bites on necks, ass pinches, they were all innocent to him. And besides, he wanted to give these girls something to talk about, make their day.

Oh, and they hadn't had sex in weeks.

She was antsy and had pleasured herself in the shower more times these past few weeks than she had ever in her life. Roger though, he didn't seem phased by it or at least he didn't show that he was.

There was a party tonight down in the nicer part of London. It was an exclusive event, organised by the band's record company to celebrate the number of album sales they had achieved thus far.

She had been angry at him for a while for his behaviour, hearing more and more stories as every day passed but the anger had stopped and suddenly it had turned into sadness. She missed him. She missed who he was, what they were together. She missed just spending nights lying together on the sofa playing with each other's fingers and watching shitty movies. She missed waking up to him holding her tight, his breath on the back of her neck.

He was barely home at a decent hour anymore and when he was he wasn't holding her like that.

She wanted her Roger back, the one who told her that he loved her so much that she sometimes had to tell him to stop. She wanted to hit herself for that. She wanted to hit herself for a lot of things she had done recently.

She also wanted to hit him. He was a fucking idiot for indulging even a little bit in these pretentious women. She missed Roger so much that her heart hurt but if he was going to go around acting like he didn't have a girlfriend, then he wouldn't have a girlfriend.

She loved him, but she could get over him if she had to.

Black slacks, gold suit jacket, black shirt, open half way down so his chest could be seen; that was what Roger decided to wear to the label party tonight. He was stoked, the band had sold more albums than ever expected and the record label were ecstatic at the result. The four lads literally had cash being thrown at them. Roger had no idea what to do with all of the money he was suddenly making.

He was a few drinks down and a little high when he rocked up. His ego was soaring as fans called out his name when he got out of the car. They were lined up outside of the venue, having somehow found out when and where the party was being held. He waved and threw some cheeky winks at the hot girls screaming for him.

There were over two hundred people inside the fairly large venue, many wanting to talk to the charismatic drummer.

It wasn't until someone asked him about her that he realised he hadn't invited her.

Fuck.

Neither the drugs nor the alcohol could prevent his mind from feeling grossly guilty about this revelation.

"I forgot to fuckin' invite her," he had dashed over to Brian who was talking to one of the label executives. Brian excused himself politely, moving aside with Roger who looked frantic.

"Who?" Brian asked casually, knowing exactly who Roger was referring to but rather enjoying watching him freak out. He had had a few conversations with his best mate's long term girlfriend in the recent weeks and knew just how upset she was about his behaviour around town. He had assured her that he knew Roger like the back of his hand and that the excitement of all this new attention would wear off after a while. She had also asked him if he thought Roger had cheated, to which Brian replied that he was ninety percent sure he hadn't. He knew though that the ten percent was all she was thinking about.

Brian had also invited her to the party tonight.

Like he had said, he knew his mate like the back of his hand so he just knew that he would forget to extend an invitation to her.

Roger didn't see when she walked in wearing a gold dress, much like Roger's jacket, that fell down to the floor, deep v neck showing off her cleavage and a low cut back. It was a divine creation, she was a divine creation, glistening in the lights of the room and turning everybody's heads. Her dark hair was behind her back in loose curls, gold hoops hanging from her ears.

She couldn't see Roger, but she didn't really care.

He'd been at the party for nearly two hours and he'd lost count of the amount of drinks he'd had. He felt terrible about forgetting to invite his girlfriend, he couldn't believe he'd done it honestly. It started his mind off, thinking back to the last month or so where he wouldn't come home, instead crashing on Deacy's couch or stand her up when they were meant to have a dinner date. He'd been a positively rotten boyfriend to the love of his life.

And that's what she was, she was the love of his life and for a little second there he'd forgotten it. He'd come to realise that these groupies were never going to stick around, they'd fuck off the second someone more popular or hotter came around; that was what groupies did. His girl though, she was his partner in life and he knew she would never leave him like the groupies would. Well, he hoped she wouldn't. He was overwhelmed with all of the changes going on in his life that he'd derailed for a moment. But he had decided that it ended here, this was the last mistake he was going to make when it came to her.

It was her ass he saw first, then the curve of her back, bare in a tight fitting gold dress.

She was here.

But how?

Brian was watching him from a short distance, chuckling to himself over Roger's confusion, deciding to walk up and enlighten him on how she had ended up at the party.

"I invited her," he put his hand on his shorter friend's shoulder, sipping his beer.

"H-how?" Roger looked up, wide eyed at Brian. "Why, Brian?"

"Because I knew that you would forget," he responded. "You've been a bit distracted lately, mate."

Roger sighed. "I know. I'm fucking terrible," he ran his hands through his long, blonde hair. "I wouldn't be surprised if she ended it with me honestly."

"She loves you," Brian reassured him. "But trust me when I say that you're really going to have to make it up to her."

Roger knew he was right. He knew that she loved him and he knew that he loved her. A lot had happened but it wasn't a total lost cause.

"You're here." His deep voice startled her. She whipped around, meeting his emerald eyes for the first proper time in weeks.

"I'm here," she replied monotonously.

Neither knew what to say. It was awkward.

She accepted her drink from the bartender and thanked him. She turned back to her estranged lover.

"Brian invited me," she told him.

"I know."

"I would have thought you would have," she spoke with no bitterness in her voice, only sadness.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, sheepish. "I've been fucking horrible lately. I cannot believe I forgot to invite my own girlfriend to a party."

"Not just any party Roger," she looked at him sadly. "A party to celebrate the success of your band!"

He swallowed nervously. This really wasn't the place to have a conversation like this but it was happening and he wasn't about to stop it.

"I am your biggest supporter, you know that! I love you and I love the guys. I want to be included in everything you do. I want to be there by your side as you succeed," she felt herself getting teary but she held it in. "But you've just pushed me away and replaced me with cheap groupies."

"I never meant for any of it to happen," he sighed. "I was angry at you that night you didn't turn up to the home town show. I guess I let it bubble away inside of me too long and used the groupies as a way to make you feel how I was feeling."

She cocked an eyebrow. "Are you kidding me?"

He shook his blonde locks, embarrassed by his childish behaviour. "No, unfortunately."

"You're a child, Roger," she crossed her arms still holding her wine. "Why didn't you just talk to me?"

He shrugged. "I don't know really."

"I felt terrible that I missed that show but I was exhausted after a nearly twelve hour work day and I just couldn't comprehend standing there. Besides, the show would have been practically over by the time I arrived and I would have had to wait around while all the gear got packed up," she explained. "I also couldn't bare to stand in a crowd of women talking about how badly they want to fuck you. I can only take so much."

Roger hadn't always been a self obsessed womanizer, he was always very considerate of other people's feelings. He prided himself on being able to pick up on when someone was upset and doing everything he could to rectify it. He was ashamed. He hadn't even thought about what she had been going through during all of these changes, only thinking about himself.

He would throw punches if he heard men talk about her that way.

Fuck, he was a shit boyfriend.

He stepped closer to her. Her usual 'Charlie' perfume floating into his nostrils. It made him feel like he was home; she made him feel like he was home.

Her big, round eyes looked up at him as he placed both of his hands on either side of her neck. "I'm so sorry for everything baby," he spoke quietly. Although the music was loud, the sounds of people talking louder, she heard him perfectly. "I know nothing I say right now can take back anything that's happened but all I can do is try to be a better man, a better boyfriend for you. You deserve the world and I want to give it to you."

A tear left her eye, rolling down her cheek and she smiled up at him. "You've got a lot of ground to make up," she told him. "But as long as I have your word that you won't let these women have you, that you'll love me and consider me in everything just like you used to," she smiled again as Roger wiped away her stray tear with his thumb. "Then I guess we can begin to move forward."

He laughed and pulled her into him, their lips meeting for the first time in quite a while.

"I love you," he whispered, forehead against hers.

"I love you too you asshole," she chuckled. Roger smiled once more, pulling her to him again, this time deepening the kiss and letting their tongues tangle around each other. She couldn't even help the moan that vibrated their kiss.

"Wanna pop into the toilet's for a sec?" He suggested, brows raised.

She knew she should make him work for her forgiveness a little longer but honestly, she was horny as hell and needed to feel him inside her again.

"We gotta be quick," she told him, taking his hand. "They're serving the food now and I saw some mini hamburgers." Roger laughed loudly at his girlfriend's priorities. Her humour was one of the many reasons he loved her.

Her back was pressed hard against the stall of the female toilet's. Roger's lips were on her neck, hands firmly placed on her bare ass. Her dress was gathered around her hips, thong pushed to one side while his dick was currently buried inside of her.

"Fuck," she cried. "Fuck Roger that feels so good." Her eyes were closed tightly, arms hanging on for dear life around his neck as he pounded into her like there was no tomorrow.

"I fucking love it when you tell me how good I make you feel," he groaned, licking across her throat. "You look so sexy when I'm fucking you."

His dirty words always helped bring her orgasm on and this time was no exception.

His fingers dug into her ass cheeks as his cock kept banging against her cervix. "Fuckkkk, yeah," he groaned loudly. She giggled, shushing him because even though it was noisy, they could probably still be heard if someone was in the bathroom with them.

She was so wet she swore that she could feel it dripping down her leg. Her orgasm started to hit just as she heard voices in the bathroom. Mindless chatter from women started to distract her, she was cursing them in her mind.

"Focus baby," Roger brought her back to him with a hot kiss. He went harder and faster to bring her mind back and within seconds she was right on the brink of coming again.

His shirt had undone all of the way now so she leant forward and licked up his bare skin. She loved the taste of his sweat, especially when she had gone without tasting any of him for so long.

She cried out, expletives leaving her lips as she tightened around Roger's cock, spurring on his orgasm and it would be a damn miracle if nobody heard them. His name was loud from her mouth letting everybody know who was making her feel so good. This turned him on so fucking much.

When they had both finally recovered, they kissed slowly while they both tried to regain their breaths. He was still in her and semi hard. She never wanted to be without him inside of her again.

"Bet those groupies couldn't take your cock as good as I can," she told him with a girly giggle.

"Never baby. You're such a good girl," he ran his hands up her sides, kissing her collarbones. "So sexy. I'm such a lucky motherfucker."

"And don't you ever forget it again!"

TAG LIST: @galileoqueen-mama-mia , @fuckinghurricanesoul , @spidreling , @screaminggalileochickenwrites , @softbenhardy , @meraki--mai , @mortifiedmoon , @ziggysstarrdust , @tanya-is-dead

I LOVE WRITING BEN!ROGER, MORE IDEAS ABOUT THAT BABE PLS! ENJOY BABIES XXXXX

#ben hardy #ben hardy x reader #ben hardy imagine #ben hardy fanfic #ben hardy smut #queen fanfic #queen band #queensmut #roger taylor #ben!roger x reader #ben!roger taylor #ben!roger imagine

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