#but he would leave everyone else in the dark he’d want to disappear

[calamitoustide]

once again thinking about James and Reg going backpacking to run from their problems alone and then they meet each other on the fourth day and just keep walking with each other because they’re going the same pace so why not (James’ idea) and they end up talking through everything and heal together in a way they couldn’t do alone

[thelostconsultant]

Delicate. part 1

pairing: Charles Leclerc x reader

note: Lando invites everyone to his New Year's Eve party, but Charles convinces you to join him on a hunt for food.

You knew this New Year’s Eve party was important to Lando, you knew he wanted everyone to be there, so you put on a shiny, dark pink sequin mini dress, applied some light makeup, then headed out to the club that he somehow managed to reserve for himself. How long he’d been planning this, you had no idea, but he surely went a little overboard this time. I just want to be alone with my friends, that’s not a crime, he defended himself when you pointed this out to him a few weeks ago. 

At the party, you felt a little out of place. This was the first time in years you weren’t entering the new year on the side of your boyfriend, the one you had broken up with half a year ago. It was a mutual decision, the spark wasn’t there anymore, so you didn’t miss him, you just missed the idea of clinging to someone the whole night. It was pathetic, you hated yourself for feeling this way, but there was nothing you could do about it. 

Your best friend knew Lando, but she didn’t get an invitation because everybody knew she spent every New Year’s Eve on a yacht in the Maldives. She tried to convince you to go with her this year, but you didn’t feel like leaving Monaco for a place so far away, especially not when she would be all over her boyfriend the whole time. They were cute together, you loved them, but third wheeling wasn’t so inviting. 

You chatted with a few people, even let someone convince you to dance a little, but then you found a couch in the back of the club that you chose as your permanent spot for the rest of the night when you sat down with a cocktail in your hand. It was nice to sit back and watch the people around you celebrate, having the time of their lives from the looks of it. Despite the weird feeling you had since you arrived, you couldn’t help but smile at the sight. At least they were happy. They were celebrating. 

You? You didn’t know what to look out for in the new year. Maybe you should get a job again. After you finished your studies, you worked for a consulting company for a year, but then you had enough of the excel files and the presentations, and decided to be nothing more than a carefree heiress in the future. Your grandmother, who came from a wealthy family with a long history, had always favored you over her children, including your mother. So, when she died, she left everything to you in her will. 

The peaceful people-watching activity was disrupted when you noticed someone plopping down next to you out of the corner of your eye. It annoyed you, really, but once you turned to look at who it was, your annoyance disappeared as if it hadn’t even been there. You didn’t really know Charles. Sure, he was on good terms with Lando, sometimes you attended the same parties, but the most you exchanged were probably a total of ten sentences in the span of years. But he had that calming aura around him, one that made you feel better, as if you were suddenly wrapped in a warm blanket. 

At first, you didn’t talk, there was no need for that. He just probably needed a place to sit down until he got a little rest before rejoining the party. Sipping your drink, you continued to watch the people, completely ignoring your neighbor. But then you began to have a strange feeling, as if someone was watching you, eyes burning a hole in you without knowing, and it didn’t take long to figure out it was him who was shamelessly ogling you. 

When you turned to him with a questioning look, he quickly shifted his gaze somewhere else, acting like he hadn’t just been caught in the act of staring at you. Shaking your head a little, you decided to ignore him for now. He was probably drunk and had no idea what was appropriate anymore. Although, he didn’t seem that out of it, in fact, he just looked tired with those dark circles under his eyes. 

And then you felt his thigh press against yours, shoulders touching after he moved closer to you. “I bet you don’t wanna be here either,” he said, leaning close so you could hear him over the music. Finally turning to acknowledge him, you give him a surprised look. “Lando was quite literally begging me to come tonight. I’m only here because I promised, even though I’d rather be somewhere else. Anywhere else,” he added. 

“If I could choose, I’d be sitting on my couch with a blanket around me, eating popcorn while holding a movie marathon,” you admitted with a smile. “But it’s impossible to say no to him.”

“Sad, but true.” His green eyes turned to the crowd in front of you, but you didn’t miss the way his fingers played with his bracelets. “I would give up my car for some popcorn. Or a pizza. Or some pasta. Anything, really, because I’m starving,” he told you as he looked back.

The last time you were around the other side of the club, there was a huge table with a lot of food, how could he not see that? But when you shared this little piece of information with him, he just laughed, and his bright smile reached his eyes too. You wondered what was so funny about this, but you soon got your answer.

“Yeah, that was true until about an hour ago. I was just about to finally eat something, but some guy grabbed the very last of the sliders I had my eyes on. The table is empty. There’s no food. We’re going to die.” He dramatically threw his hands in the air as he leaned back, glancing down at his watch. “It’s only eleven, I don’t know how long I’ll last. Do you think I will live until midnight?”

You couldn’t help but laugh at his question. But you weren’t laughing at him, you were laughing with him. Now that he mentioned food, though, you realized that you were quite hungry too. “Did you really have to bring up food?” you asked him with a disapproving look. 

Charles’s lips curled into a grin. “Now you’re hungry too, aren’t you?” When you nodded, he bumped his shoulder against yours. “It’s your fault for talking about popcorn,” he pointed out. “Although… Do you think Lando would notice if we left? He seems so busy partying that I highly doubt he would notice we’re not here.”

As your eyes scanned the crowd to find the host, you let out a thoughtful hum. The last time you saw him, which conveniently happened in the restroom, he was already on his way to get real drunk, and he was having so much fun you highly doubted he would care about some of his guests escaping. So, without thinking more about this, you turned to the Monegasque next to you and told him the answer is probably no. 

“Great,” he said as he jumped up and extended his hand for you to grab it. When you just watched him with a questioning look, he leaned down to take your hand and pull you up. “Come on, I know a place where we can hopefully get food.” And with that, he took your hand and pulled you towards the exit, not really giving you the chance to object. 

The two of you walked down the street, hands stuffed into the pockets of your jackets to fight the chilly night air, and you talked about music, movies, even about how Christmas went. You barely noticed that he came to a halt in front of a little bistro in a narrow street, holding up a pointer finger to ask for a second while he opened the door and peeked inside. 

He spoke with someone in French, exchanging words you couldn’t quite make out, then he reached out for your hand with a smile on his face and pulled you inside. There was a small group of people sitting around a table, happily discussing something until they noticed you standing there. At first, there was silence. But then they erupted in cheers while someone stood up and pulled Charles into a hug.

A man in his late thirties ushered you to an empty chair by the table that he pulled out for you, then he poured both you and the Monegasque driver a glass of wine. You watched as your new companion got comfortable across from you, already deep in a conversation with an older man who explained something with wide motions of his hand. 

Whoever these people were, they clearly welcomed him like he was family. The older man he was talking to called him son at one point, and Charles didn't flinch, he just smiled lovingly as he listened to the story. He was way more at ease here than he had been back in the club. The dark circles under his eyes were still there, but those green eyes came to life in this new environment.

Someone placed freshly made sandwiches in front of you, and you didn't miss the small smile on his face when he glanced at you for a moment. A little explanation would have been nice, just so you would know whose company you were enjoying, but since he didn't bother to explain, you focused your attention on your food. And when you took a bite? God, it was heavenly. 

“Good, right?” When you glanced up, you noticed that a kind-looking, forty-something woman was now sitting on the chair next to you, her long brown hair flowing down her shoulders as her blue eyes watched you with a mischievous glint. “My father,” she began, motioning towards the man Charles was talking to, “opened this place because he wanted people to have actual conversations with each other while enjoying their food. Charles can have extremely long discussions with him about literally anything.”

Once you swallowed, you extended a hand to her to introduce yourself. After you got past that, you turned your finger around to show what you were about to say was related to everyone in this room. “So, is it a family event that he just crashed?” you wondered out loud. 

Marie let out a laugh as she shook her head. “Hardly. They're all friends through my father, though. We always gather here on New Year's Eve, but this is the first time Charles came. Although, based on the way he made his sandwich disappear so fast, I guess it was the food that brought him here,” she said with a wide smile. 

Guilt rushed through your body upon hearing this, because that's exactly what happened. But he seemed happy, maybe deep down he wanted to be here with his friends. They were so different from the ones you also hung out with, the F1 drivers and other celebrities. These were normal people, having normal conversations, acting genuinely and kindly. 

You got lost in a conversation, but soon it was interrupted when she glanced at the clock on the wall. 11:55 p.m. It was almost time. She excused herself and left to fill flutes with champagne, and before you knew it, you were all standing in a circle, counting down to midnight. Charles was standing next to you, smiling so much that his nose crinkled in the cutest way.

Five. Four. Three. Two. One. 

And just when you wanted to join the group as they said happy new year, you felt a hand on the back of your neck, then a few milliseconds later, before your brain could comprehend what was happening, Charles's lips crashed into yours. It was slow and soft, he definitely took his time with you as if you weren’t surrounded by people. And just as abruptly as it began, it came to an end eventually. 

“It's in the law to kiss someone at midnight,” he said with a smile as he licked his lips.

For a while you were staring at him dumbfounded, but you managed to shake off this feeling and nodded after a short break. That’s true, it was a well-known tradition. Flashing a smile at him, you turned away to clink your glasses with the others, placing friendly kisses on their cheeks in the process, but Marie decided to pull you into a hug, treating you as if you had known each other for a long time. 

It felt nice. Unlike at the party, here you actually felt like you belonged. Sure, you and Lando were really good friends, and yes, you knew many of his friends, but none of them was a close friend of yours. Yet, despite not really knowing Charles, the fact he was so relaxed and happy among his friends made you happy too. It was a contagious feeling, and maybe it was related to the warm welcome here that lifted your mood. These people were so different from the ones you were used to in your everyday life. It was charming, really. 

You all sat down when someone pulled out a board game that seemed old and unfamiliar to you. But they were kind enough to explain the rules to you, and Charles even promised to help you throughout the game as he took a seat next to you. I only began to understand it around the third time we played it, so don’t be sad if you still don’t understand any of it by the end, he told you with a laugh. You returned his beaming smile, and in the next two hours or so you laughed a lot, argued a lot, and there was even some shouting when someone accused another of cheating. 

By the time they packed up the game, you were so tired you couldn't fight back your yawns. You glanced at the clock on the wall and noticed it was past three in the morning, and you knew it was time to go home now, because even though fun’s fun, there's a limit to everything. The thought of your soft bed was inviting, like a siren calling for you from the distance, and the idea of spending the whole day in it was the cherry on top.

“Going home?” Marie asked you with her hand resting on your shoulder, her tired smile giving away that she was probably also debating calling it a day. When you nodded, she let out a defeated sigh. “I wish I could go too, but I promised my father I'd stick around and help him clean up a bit after everyone left.”

Without thinking much, you pulled her into a hug. “I'm sure you could convince him to clean up tomo–well, later today,” you finished with a laugh. 

She leaned back to look at you. “And leave the dirty plates and glasses here? No, thank you. I'll just sleep a little longer, I guess,” she replied as she let you go.

Suddenly an arm landed around your shoulder, and based on the bracelets around the man's right wrist, it was a safe bet that the man was Charles. And sure enough, the driver's face came into view when he leaned into your field of vision. You watched him with a curious look in your eyes, but he didn't seem too interested in explaining what he wanted.

“I've already told this to your father, but thank you for hosting us, even though we arrived last minute without a warning,” he finished with a boyish smile before his green eyes turned to you. “But it's late, we'll head home now.” 

Marie kissed his cheek, then she reached out to squeeze your hand as a goodbye. “It was nice to have you both here. You know you can jump in anytime. And you,” she went on, turning to you, “would better not disappear on me. Let's have lunch together someday.”

“Of course. I'll give you a call tomorrow when we're both fully awake,” you promised with a smile.

The two of you said goodbye to everyone, then stepped out on the street, standing next to each other in silence. It felt like you had suddenly run out of topics to discuss, although after some thinking, you managed to find something you could bring up.

“You could've stayed a little longer,” you told him as your eyes found his face again. 

Charles laughed as he shook his head. “It's late, I could use some proper sleep too,” he admitted. As his eyes were focused on you, he bit on his lower lip and clearly thought about something. “Can I walk you home?” 

“That’s a nice offer, but I already called a taxi. Thanks for bringing me here, though. I had fun,” you said with a wide smile. It was true, you couldn't remember the last time you had been to such a nice New Year's Eve party. Your phone pinged to tell you the taxi was arriving, and when you noticed the car pulling up, you stood on your toes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “Goodnight, Charles.”

“Sleep tight,” he told you quietly, but you could feel there was something else he wanted to say. 

In the end, he remained silent, and you got in the car that took you home. As you sat there with your eyes taking in how magnificent this city looked tonight, you couldn't help but think about how the party turned out. It was nice to get to know him a little better, seeing a side of him that maybe wasn't as visible from the outside as one would expect. If you had known how fun he could be, you probably would have become friendly with him sooner.

[highonmarvel]

Ribs

Bucky Barnes: Mob!Bucky finds you. 18+ only.

additional content warnings here!

CONTENT WARNING, PLEASE READ: This piece includes graphic depictions of domestic violence. Seriously, this is really dark; do not proceed if you are uncomfortable with explicit descriptions of physical and verbal abuse and rape. This is your warning. This is fucking dark. I can not stress this enough. I am fucked up.

Non Con Warning!

What’s scarier than dating Bucky? Leaving him.

You thought with dating the most notorious mob boss in New York, the biggest danger would be his enemies, no: the biggest threat to your safety was him. When you had first met him, you hadn’t known who he was, having only moved to New York a few months prior. He was charming, and he had an air of danger about him you couldn’t help but be attracted to; you thought it would be fun, a New York bad boy, he was all mysterious. You didn’t have any friends at the time, so no one could have warned you about who he really was, and by the time you found out, you were in too deep.

Maybe him being suspiciously rich should have raised a red flag, because even the most pretentious of the wealthy don’t take a limo to a bar, but he had, that first night you met him. The loud chatter had ever so slightly dimmed when he entered the bar, but you only thought it was because he was wearing an expensive suit, and though you rolled your eyes at the flashy display, you couldn’t help but stare at him as he made his way through the room—crowds parted, everyone tried to appear that they hadn’t noticed him, but it was crystal they had. You can’t not notice a man like that.

He disappeared into a back room with two men trailing behind him, and after a few minutes emerged looking slightly disheveled, but satisfied. You tried your hardest to focus on… something else when he sat down beside you and ordered a whiskey, but that was practically impossible when everything about him was magnetic. You chanced a look at him only to find him already staring at you, blue eyes twinkling with a mischievousness you couldn’t quite place and a small smirk. He had taken you home that night.

You hadn’t fled because of his business, selfishly, you could live with the fact he hurt other people—for a while, you could live with the fact he hurt you too, because he just had you captivated. He was harsh, brutal, but could also be loving, he bent over backwards to your every desire—say the word and he’d do it.

Except when you asked him to stop.

You had to leave New York altogether, you knew; he ran the whole fucking city, there was no way you could hide from him in the kingdom he ruled. You had struggled to pick where to go next, if you had had the money, you honestly would have left the fucking continent, started a new life in Namibia or Australia or Japan or however far away from him as you could get, but for now you were restricted to the States. Was Los Angeles too big a city for him to find you, or was it too obvious? Maybe he had people there, you had no idea. Would a small town be too quiet to scream for help, or so obscure he wouldn’t even think to look there?

You settled on a random town in Colorado.

You had ditched your phone the second you could—you had had to hold onto it a bit longer in order to get around, and received many calls and angry texts, but you had tossed it into a street somewhere in Oklahoma and picked up a random brick phone just to have. You thought you were being dramatic at first, taking all these measures, but no, James Barnes is the most powerful man in New York state, more powerful than you could have imagined when you first discovered who he was. He runs everything. He always gets what he wants, and he wants you.

I’ll find you you fucking cunt.

His last text message to you before you had destroyed your phone. You didn’t doubt he could.

You cut your hair, dyed it a shade darker, and spent the first month looking over your shoulder, jumping at shadows, barely speaking to anyone, unsure of who you could trust and who you couldn’t, even from so far away you remained cautious. Picking a job was difficult; if you got an office job, could he find out through fucking white collar records or something? If you got a job in retail, would someone recognise you and alert him?

You got a job at a bookstore—fairly quiet, and the rows of shelves seemed like good enough hiding places were he to hunt you down. Hunt.

In front of the mirror, you pull up your t-shirt to examine your ribs: the bruises are starting to fade, and there’s only a dull pain when you run cold fingers over the light blue. The final reminders of the night you had feared for your life, the night you had decided you had to leave, were starting to fade.

Bucky had gotten violent many times before, but never had you feared for your life; you genuinely thought he was going to kill you.

He had come home fucking livid like you’d never seen before, and three months later you still have no clue as to why. At least when he had been drinking his blows were slightly less hard and you were sometimes (very rarely) able to outrun him and lock yourself in a bathroom for the night, but that night he was drunk purely on anger.

You were genuinely surprised he hadn’t broken your ribs; just hit after hit until you could barely breathe—you thought you’d suffocate. Turns out he had fractured your right foot, but even still you left New York limping badly, knowing if you stopped even to just get it checked out, you’d never make it out the city.

Here, in your new town, you got your foot checked out and fixed up by a friendly doctor, Dean, who you’d taken a liking to. Though it was a bit worse for wear considering you’d left it unchecked for a week, and even now you still couldn’t walk quite right, he assured you you’d make a full recovery.

Dean and you had been growing closer, and you thought he would eventually ask you out, until one day he stopped visiting you at work—usually he’d come in every Wednesday afternoon, but he hadn’t, and you couldn’t reach him online. You even went into his practice, but his assistant had said he’d just taken a camping trip. Your stomach twisted, but you left it, and took he had just gone away for a while.

Deep down, you knew.

The third Wednesday afternoon Dean hasn’t dropped it. You walk back to your place a little down; despite not knowing him well, you were really growing to like him.

You sigh, kicking off your shoes as you enter your apartment and into the pile by the door. You turn on the lights as you make your way through the small place, still limping slightly: corridor, light on; kitchen, light on; living room, light on.

You can’t even say your blood runs ice cold, more like it freezes in your veins.

Bucky is seated comfortably in your armchair, of course nursing a drink, face entirely stoic, and eyes fixated on yours, as if he had been staring at that exact spot for hours, knowing you would fall into his line of vision.

But the door was locked, you want to cry, How did he get in? No windows are broken, nothing.

“Sweetheart,” he coos as he sets his drink on the side table, “I’ve missed you.”

“Why?” is all you can muster, barely a whisper, more like a nearly silent whistle in wind, one you can only hear if you were to really strain for it, and if you knew what to listen for. Why is he here? After three fucking months, you thought (hoped) he’d just lost interest—this can’t be the first time he’s had a girl run away from him considering how he treated you. Why is he so set on this? You can only imagine it’s stubbornness and pride, not wanting to lose a prize, no matter how ill he treated it. And why you?

Of course, though, you can’t articulate any of these thoughts, you can barely even think them, can’t process them, all turning to a light buzz in your in your mind, one that could be mistaken for pure static��just absence of thought. No thoughts, all thoughts, you can’t even care about.

“Of course I missed my favourite girl,” he offers, a lopsided smirk forming on his handsome features, “Sit,” he instructs, so gently you wonder if you’ve imagined it—a very direct order (and you know he doesn’t like to be disobeyed), yet delivered in the softest manner.

The bruises on the right of your ribcage sting as you stare back at him, unmoving. Bucky never repeats himself, and he doesn’t now, seeming to overlook your defiance (though really it’s shock) as he leans forward slightly and begins speaking to you.

“You’re a smart girl, I can tell from how you really tried to cover your traces when you left, huh? You’re a smart girl, so why would you do something so stupid?”

He stands, and you stumble back with a whimper at a harsh misstep on your injured foot.

“And now you’re out here all alone… you need someone to take care of you; look at you, honey,” he gestures to your foot, and if you could get your vocal chords to work, you would scream at him that he did this.

He stalks towards you, and where the sudden adrenaline comes from, you have no idea, but you dart for the front door. He’s on you in a second, slamming your head against the door and watching you slide down. He stands over you a foot on either side of your body and looks down on you, slightly amused.

He’s pure evil.

It occurs to you the front door is locked anyway, you’re caged under him in the narrow corridor, and so you try to crawl through his legs, but he turns and grabs you by your injured foot.

You shriek in pain and desperately try to claw forward, but he tugs you back and twists harshly so you have no choice but to turn over or risk him twisting your fucking foot off.

With more strength than you’ve ever mustered, you swing your left foot up and kick him hard in the crotch. He howls in pain as he drops your foot.

“You fucking bitch!”

You scramble to stand and dart for your bedroom, hoping to climb out the window. He limps after you, and you cry out as he grabs a fistful of hair and tugs you back. You manage to stumble into the bedroom. He grips the doorway and you slam the door after him, hearing a deafening crunch and a yell behind you. You push your back against the door, planting your feet firmly in the ground and trying with all your bodyweight to keep him out, but he easily blows it in, and you fall forward.

You start screaming at him and kicking, but he catches your legs, leaving you to only pathetically wiggle underneath him. He leans down and shouts, “Shut the fuck up!” bringing down a hand you feebly attempt to grasp to stop him, but he slaps you, “You’re a fucking cunt!”

You assume you’re crying, but you can’t feel anything on your cheeks but the sting of his hand.

He drops down to his knees and straddles you easily, despite your struggling against him. He punches you in the face, his rings leaving deep cuts against your cheek. Again, and again, and again, until his knuckles are bloody from the cuts he’s left. You attempt to cough but he brings a fist down and punches your throat. You can barely gasp before he grabs your neck and pulls you up close to his face.

His voice is dangerously low as he drawls, “You’re lucky I have the decency to fuck you on the bed.” He spits in your face and slams your head back down into the floor. He gets off you and, before you can even move, kicks you in the ribs; you can feel the bruises—the healing bruises, they were healing—bloom once again against your skin, against your bones. You roll over before he grabs your left arm, twisting harshly and pulling you across the small room.

You feel your shoulder pop out of place and scream louder than you ever have in your life, an intense white hot pain shooting across your shoulder as it’s dislocated. You can’t even beg him to stop through your sobs and unbearable pain, you can’t breathe, you want to throw up.

This time, you almost wish he does kill you. You wish for him to kill you.

He pulls you up onto the bed, your shoulder blade sliding further across your nerves and sparking pain as intense as the first few seconds all over again. He tosses his suit jacket to the side as you try to sit up. He presses down hard against your injured shoulder, and you choke on your own cry, suffocating more than screaming, at this point.

He punches up from your chin and your head lolls back, your teeth hitting each other harshly, before he uses the opportunity to grasp your throat with one hand, tearing your skirt off with the other.

It’s too painful to struggle other than weakly kicking your legs, which he effortlessly ignores, maybe he doesn’t even feel it.

Mind over matter, Mind over matter, Mind over matter—

You repeat to yourself when you hear him spit in his hand and softly groan as he runs his hand up and down his cock. You don’t even know when he unbuckled his belt.

You close your eyes and try to focus on your breathing; Mind over matter, mind over matter, mind over matt—

He head-buts your forehead, effectively pulling you out of your attempted mental respite. Bucky is scary; he looks down at you with wild eyes, and you hadn’t noticed blood dripping from his temple. You briefly wonder how much blood you’re covered in when he interrupts your thoughts; “Stay with me, bitch.”

“Please stop,” you finally find words rather than shrieks, your voice hoarse and words slurred, like you’ve never spoken before.

He just smiles—smiles—and then thrusts into you, stretching you open, not giving you any time to adjust to his massive length before pounding into you, beyond rough, beyond violent, he’s a fucking mad man, he’s feral. You attempt to grab onto his shoulders and pry him off but your own shoulder hinders you. You weakly punch at him with your right hand, but he doesn’t feel it, and at this point, you’re just exhausted. Throat hoarse, head aching, shoulder burning, foot in pain, and your ribs on fire.

He lets go of your throat and feels around on the bed for his jacket, pulling something out of the inner pockets.

Before you can even process it, he places his other hand over your mouth and presses something cold and metal to your knee. He fires the gun, the bullet flying from the front of your kneecap, shattering the cartilage, and resting in your flesh. He presses down harder on your mouth so your scream is completely guttural.

“Try leave me now,” he pants as she shoots out your other kneecap.

He presses the gun to the right side of your rib cage, digging into the bruises, “Next time you leave me will be in a fucking body bag.”

Ribs (II)

✪

[mononijikayu]

no more sad songs for my broken heart — gojo satoru.

Swallowing back the bitter taste rising in your throat, you steadied yourself and turned your gaze to Satoru, watching him sleep peacefully. The room was hushed, filled only with the soft rustling of fabric and the steady rhythm of his breathing.

"You're the most important to me, Satoru." you whispered, your voice a fragile whisper in the quiet night. The words hung in the air, carrying the weight of a love that defied death itself. "And you always will be."

Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence

Warning/s: Romance, Friends to Lovers, Heavy Angst, Fluff, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, An Pining, Emotional Hurt, Depression, Ghost, Trauma, PTSD, Depiction of Funeral, Depiction of Trauma, Mentions of Alcohol, Depiction of Alcoholism, Depiction of Depression, Depiction of Ghost, Depiction of PTSD illusions, Gojo Satoru deserves a Hug™

masterlist

song: no more sad song for my broken heart by k.will

note: the fact that we waited years and years for a sequel to please dont mv and k.will decided to give us a heartbreak on PRIDE MONTH??? but i shouldnt be speaking because i saw that mv and thought holy shit, satoru definitely went through it and held my breath for a whole week until i could write it on my free time. anyway, ill be disappearing again cause exams !!! but i will be back soon ~ i love you all <3

HE NEVER EXPECTED THIS TO END THIS WAY. Gojo Satoru stood silently in front of the floral arrangement, the vibrant colors contrasting starkly with the somberness of the ihai before him. He lowered himself gracefully, bowing deeply in a gesture of respect and remembrance. Carefully, he lit three incense sticks, their thin spirals of smoke curling upwards, filling the air with a calming fragrance. 

The silence, the lonesomeness of the room — he’d never expected it before. If he was being honest, Satoru never liked the quiet. It was hard to be alone in the realm of thoughts that burden him. But there’s nothing he could do about it. No one was here other than the funerary staff. And even then, they were all scattered around this dingy property. 

As he stood up, his gaze fell momentarily on his watch, the cracked glass dial. He doesn’t think he’d ever have it fixed. He wanted to let it be, let it rest at that moment. It was better, a reminder for him about a time that had long been frozen in time. The hands were stuck at 19:42 pm, a constant reminder of a past event he couldn't change. His cerulean blues was intense against the broken clock from the darkness of those round rim frames. 

Everyone else had already come, he supposed. But it was perhaps most poignant that he was going to be the last person here. He was away on missions, as he always has. Yaga–sensei was going to go as early as he could, Shoko would get it done and over with. Nanami was here, judging from the fact that the bread rolls from that corner store all those years ago were here. He sighed, trying to think if Suguru had come here at all. If he had the audacity to bring condolences and grief in hand. But Satoru thinks that all the incense had erased the scent of all his cursed energy. And perhaps that was for the best. 

He looked at the black armband on his arm. Ever since he arrived yesterday, he couldn’t find it in himself to leave. Not even to sleep or to eat. The moment he arrived, he was told that he was the chief mourner. He never expected that to be someone’s final request, not ever. But he supposed that it was just how fate is, with someone like him. A conundrum of irony, one that could not ever be prevented. One that could never truly stop. 

Satoru left the room quietly, his footsteps echoing softly in the empty hallways. You watched him from your hiding spot, leaning against the wall, your heart pounding in your chest. You didn't want to face him, not now, not here. But as fate would have it, Gojo Satoru could not help but notice you as he grabbed his energy drink from the vending machine. You recognized the drink from all those years ago. It was the one you hated — because it was too overly sweet. But you drank it anyway, when Satoru got it for you. 

"Hey!" he called out, his voice filled with a blend of surprise and familiarity. He rushed to your side, his tall frame towering over you, but his presence was somehow comforting.

You tried to compose yourself, managing a weak smile. "Satoru..."

He grinned at you, his usual playful demeanor tinged with genuine warmth. "I haven't seen you in a while. How about we grab a bite to eat?"

You shook your head, your voice barely a whisper. "I'm not hungry."

His grin widened, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Come on, indulge me. It's not every day I get to catch up with an old friend."

You hesitated, torn between the desire to flee and the comfort of his company. But something in his eyes, a blend of understanding and insistence, made you relent.

"Okay," you sighed, a faint smile tugging at your lips. "But just this once."

Gojo's grin softened into a genuine smile, and he gently placed a hand on your shoulder. "Let's go then."

In no time, you and Satoru sat across from each other in the small cafeteria, the ambient chatter echoes between the two of you in the silence of the empty cafeteria. He was intently looking at you as he started making conversation and you listened, nodding along with what he was saying as you ate. He was like this too when you were younger in Jujutsu High and nearly ten years later, he somehow hasn’t changed. You could only smile at that. 

Satoru starts stuffing his face with the already cold tonkatsu. You could only sigh fondly at him, watching him put the rice bowl down and take the miso soup’s bowl in hand and drink the  cold broth. You picked up your chopsticks and, absentmindedly, stuck them upright into your rice meal. Satoru's cerulean eyes widened slightly, and he leaned forward, his tone playful yet chiding.

"Hey, you know you're not supposed to do that, right? It's bad luck. Reminds me of funeral rites."

You snorted, rolling your eyes at his scolding. "Oh, please, Satoru. Don’t tell me what to do." 

“It’s still bad luck, use them properly!”

You smirked, pulling the chopsticks out and resuming your meal properly. "Besides, it's not like the spirits are going to come after me just for this."

Satoru laughed, shaking his head. "You always were stubborn. Some things never change."

You smiled, a hint of nostalgia in your eyes. "You know, Sugu-chan and Nana-chan were always sticklers for the rules. But you? I can’t believe you’re lecturing me about rules.”

He pouts at you. “I can follow rules too! You’re so mean to me, y’know?”

“It’s very rare to see you follow rules, Sato-chan.”

“But you admit that I follow rules?” The glint in his bright eyes was shining at you like a star in the cloudless sky. So clearly. “You do, don’t you?”

You grinned at him mischievously. “Well, at least the ones that suited you."

“Oh don’t patronize me!”

“Well, you asked!”

The two of you continued eating, the conversation flowing easily. You talked about the current state of affairs, your work, and shared memories from your past. The atmosphere was light, filled with genuine warmth. It’s been a long time since you’ve seen him. Not since you left Jujutsu behind and had gotten married abroad. But from what Satoru heard, you returned recently. 

And he wasn’t sure what happened in all that time. But it was good for him, to see you smiling at him again. It was as if time hadn’t moved at all between the two of you. It was as if it was still like yesterday. He could feel his heart tender as you put your matcha mochi on his plate. You smiled at him, even wider than before as you told him to take it and eat it for you. He looked at you, but you just kept nodding. You watched him eat the mochi and make a satisfied groan as he ate it. You laughed, seeing that he hasn’t changed much. 

Satoru leaned back in his chair, a contented look on his face. "You know, it's really good to see you. I missed this. Just talking and being ourselves."

You nodded, feeling a similar sense of contentment. "Yeah, me too. It's nice to just... be, without any of the usual chaos."

Satoru's eyes softened as he looked at you, a rare moment of vulnerability. "You've been through a lot, I imagine. It’s been….a while.”

You shrugged, trying to downplay the weight of his words. "We all have our battles, Satoru. Some just leave more scars than others."

He reached across the table, giving your hand a reassuring squeeze. "Well, if you ever need someone in your corner, you know where to find me."

You smiled, squeezing his hand back. "Thanks, Satoru. That means a lot."

The conversation tapered off, and a comfortable silence settled between you and Satoru. Both of you watched the birds outside the window, one bird leaving the other behind, fluttering away into the open sky. The scene was tranquil, a stark contrast to the turbulent lives you both led.

Breaking the silence, you reached for your phone. The chair squeaked softly as you shifted, pulling out an outdated flip phone from your pocket. You handed it to Satoru, causing his eyebrows to rise in curiosity.

"Can you put your number in?" you asked.

Satoru took the flip phone, chuckling softly. "You still have this old thing? Why not upgrade to something more modern?"

You shrugged, a faint smile on your lips. "The new ones overstimulate me. I prefer something simple."

Nodding in understanding, Satoru quickly input his number into your flip phone and handed it back to you. Then, he pulled out his sleek, modern smartphone, offering it to you.

"Alright, fair is fair. Put your number in mine too," he said with a grin.

You took his phone, marveling for a moment at the advanced technology before carefully entering your number. As you handed it back, your fingers brushed lightly against his, a brief but comforting connection.

"Thanks," Satoru said, pocketing his phone. "Now I have no excuse not to stay in touch."

You smiled, feeling a warmth spread through you. "Exactly. No excuses."

Another comfortable silence fell between you as you both returned to watching the birds outside, feeling a sense of calm and connection. Despite everything, moments like these reminded you that some bonds were unbreakable, no matter the distance or time that passed. Satoru took a sip of his drink once more and looked at your contentment. He hadn’t expected to have met you today, not at a funeral. He wished it was a better time. But he knew, it was better than not having met you again at all.

“Are you good on Thursday?” Satoru asks, breaking the comfortable silence and causing you to turn your gaze back to him.

“For what?” you reply, raising a curious eyebrow.

“To hang out...like the old days?” he says, a hopeful grin spreading across his face.

You ponder for a moment, the idea of reconnecting with him sounding appealing. "What did you have in mind?"

Satoru leans back in his chair, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "I was thinking we could visit that ramen place we used to love. You know, the one with the best miso ramen in town. And maybe after that, we could catch a movie or just walk around the old neighborhood."

A nostalgic smile creeps onto your face as you remember the countless times you’d both gone to that ramen place, laughing and talking for hours. "That sounds nice. I could use a break from everything."

"Great!" he exclaims, his eyes lighting up with excitement. "It's a date, then."

You chuckle, shaking your head. "It's not a date, Satoru."

"Sure, sure," he says, waving his hand dismissively but with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Just two old friends hanging out."

"Exactly," you agree, a warmth spreading through you at the thought of spending time with him. 

“Exactly.” He repeated, with that grin on his face. 

You shake your head. “You always have to have the last word, huh?”

He laughs. “Of course!”

For a moment, Gojo Satoru didn’t feel sad anymore.

In this moment, hearing you laugh, he escapes it all.

He escapes the misery of the world in your warmth.

WHEN YOU LEFT, SATORU WAS SHATTERED. He still remembered the details of that moment, when you told him you were leaving. The unruly pile of clothes lying around the room, the ripped pieces of paper scattered across the floor, and the bedsheet that hadn’t been replaced in days—all of it seemed like a chaotic reflection of his inner turmoil. You stood by the door, suitcase in hand, your expression a mix of sadness and determination.

"I can't stay here anymore, Satoru." you had said, your voice trembling yet resolute. "I need to find my own path, away from all of this….I’m tired.”

Satoru's heart had shattered in that instant. The room had felt colder, emptier, as if the very air was being sucked out of it. The dorm already lost its life. Everything about it was just silent. Nanami’s moved out even before graduation, Shoko’s gone off and taken to medical school. It was only him that’s left. Him and you. He clung to you, for all this time. He would push you to join him on his food trips during missions, even if you weren’t here. 

You and him stayed up watching movies together when he had those rare days off. The emptiness Suguru left behind would never go away, but you filled some tenderness in his life. A tenderness that he had enjoyed.  A tenderness he could not live without. And now you planned to leave him too. Now that he couldn't comprehend a world where you weren't a part of his daily life. The thought of you walking out that door and never coming back was too painful to bear. And he hated how it hurt, it hated how it made him return to that time, when Suguru turned his back to him forever.

Thinking of it now that you both were older, Satoru realizes that all of it must have been hard on you too. You were a year below them, in a team with Haibara and Nanami. You were close to Suguru and Shoko too. And now you lost them too, you were all alone too, left with echoes that Satoru did not know. You were left with ghosts and grief and lonesomeness. 

And he didn’t see that, he didn’t want to. You were close to breaking and he didn’t see it. And choosing your peace, it hurt him. It hurt him beyond words could express. It was a horrible thought for certain. But Satoru thought at the time, that if two miserable people were together, maybe the happiness that could come would be enough to overcome that misery. But he was wrong. He was all too wrong. Misery will never keep people together.

"Please," he had pleaded, his voice breaking. "Don't go. We can figure this out together."

But you had only shaken your head, tears streaming down your face. "I'm sorry, Sato-chan…I know it's going to hurt you. But….I can’t stay here.  I need to do this for myself."

The memory of you closing the door behind you haunted him for days, weeks, even months. He couldn’t stop crying for days after Suguru left. He had tried to fill the void with anything he could—training, missions, even attempting to drown his sorrows in alcohol—but nothing worked. The pain of losing both of you was too much to bear. The apartment became a constant reminder of the life he once had, now reduced to a hollow shell.

Every time he looked at the bed, he remembered the late-night conversations, the laughter, and the warmth of your presence. The ripped pieces of paper were drafts of letters he had tried to write to you, words that never seemed adequate to express the depth of his feelings. The clothes strewn about were remnants of happier times, now just silent witnesses to his grief. Even now, years later, the memory was as vivid as ever, a wound that never truly healed.

As Satoru sat across from you, his mind drifted back to the years following your departure. At first, he didn't want to hear anything about you. The pain was too raw, too immediate. Every mention of your name felt like a knife twisting in his chest. It hurt to know that, just like everyone else, you moved on with your life without him.

He remembered the first time he heard you'd left the country. It was Shoko who told him, her voice gentle as she broke the news. You had found a new passion, something that took you far away from the world you both had known. It was supposed to be a casual conversation, but it left him reeling. The idea of you building a new life, so distant from the memories you had shared, was almost unbearable.

Then came the news that you had married. He remembered the hollow feeling in his chest when he heard. It was as if a part of him had died all over again. Shoko had shown him a picture of you and your spouse, smiling and happy. In a fit of rage and heartbreak, he ripped the picture apart, unable to bear the sight of you with someone else.

Each memory hurt him badly. Nights were the worst, filled with imagined scenarios where you were still with him, where he could reach out and feel your warmth next to him. He would lie awake, staring at the ceiling, wondering what could have been if you had stayed.

Despite his attempts to move on, the memories lingered. Every accomplishment, every smile, every moment of happiness he found was tinged with the bittersweet reminder of what he had lost. The thought of you, happy and loved by someone else, was a constant ache.

Yet, as he looked at you now, he couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope. The pain was still there, but so was the undeniable bond you shared. It was as if no time had passed, and in this small café, surrounded by the remnants of your shared past, he found a small measure of peace. Maybe, just maybe, there was a chance to rebuild what had been lost.

You and Satoru began meeting up more often than ever. Each encounter breathed new life into the corners of his world that had long been shadowed by loneliness and regret. For the first time in a long while, besides the joy he found in teaching his students, Satoru felt a genuine happiness blooming within him, one that he had almost forgotten could exist.

Your meet-ups started simply, with visits to quaint cafés where you’d talk over coffee and pastries, reminiscing about old times and sharing stories about your current lives. At times, he brought you along with him when he would see Megumi and Tsumiki. They seemed fond enough of you, and it was a privilege for Satoru to see how tender you are with them. 

You became his daily routine, everything he said revolved around your daily vernacular. Your home cooked meals became his sustenance. He realized too that he smiled more. That he was always in a good mood when you texted him something about your day. He didn’t want this to stop and he knew that you also didn’t want to leave him. Satoru realized that you found solace in each other's presence. The more you met, the more the walls of time and distance crumbled away, leaving only the essence of your bond, untouched and untainted.

At times, Gojo Satoru would come over to your place, bringing groceries or a bottle of sake. These evenings were filled with laughter, shared meals, and a sense of comfort that was rare in his life. It was one of those days to be together again. As you both sat on the porch, the sky painted in hues of twilight, you revealed something you had been holding back. Satoru already knew you were married, but you didn’t know that. But he just listened, when you talked all about it. He just let you lift the weight of your chest. He just let you give yourself to him little by little.

“I’m divorced.” you said quietly, your eyes fixed on the horizon. “It happened a while ago.”

Satoru’s heart skipped a beat. He turned to you, his expression a mix of surprise and concern. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

You shrugged, a bittersweet smile playing on your lips. “I didn’t know how. It’s not something I talk about easily. But I thought you should know.”

He reached out, gently taking your hand in his. “I’m sorry you went through that. But thank you for telling me.”

As the weeks turned into months, Satoru realized something profound. He loved you. It was a love that had never truly faded, only hidden beneath layers of time and circumstance. Each moment spent with you reaffirmed this truth. And each moment, he was even more terrified. Terrified of telling you the truth. Terrified of letting you see the pits of him that he doesn’t like. 

The monster that lingers in the strongest, he does not want you to see that. The danger that comes with the world that he dwells in, the world you’d long abandoned. You laughed together, drank together, and enjoyed each other's company in a way that felt both new and comfortingly familiar. The nights, like tonight, continued to be joyous evenings filled with stories and laughter. 

You looked at him, your eyes reflecting the soft glow of the lamp. “I’m glad we’re doing this,” you said softly.

“Me too, y’know?” he replied, his voice filled with sincerity. “I’ve missed you. More than I can say.”

Your fingers brushed against his, “I always thought about you, all those years.”

His cerulean blue tenderly met your own orbs. “I always thought about you too."

“Do you mean it?” You responded in a whisper.

“Why would I lie to you, after all this time?”

After a delightful meal shared on your porch, you found yourselves enjoying dessert. You had bought some sweets to bring over. You didn’t like sweets all that much, but you always thought about enjoying them with Satoru. Because it made him happy. And when he was happy, you were too. You could feel the night air breezing in consistent cool kisses, and the distant sound of cicadas filled the silence between your laughter and conversation. You picked up a piece of the dessert, holding it out to Satoru with a playful grin. You supposed you had drunk much already.

“Here, try this. It’s delicious, Sato-chan.” you said, your eyes sparkling with amusement.

He leaned forward, his eyes locked on yours as he took the bite. “Mmm, you’re right. It’s amazing.”

Before you could pull your hand away, he took a piece and held it out to you. “Your turn.”

You hesitated, feeling a sudden rush of warmth to your cheeks. “Satoru, I can feed myself, you know?” you laughed nervously.

“Come on, indulge me, sweets!” he teased, his tone light but his eyes serious.

You opened your mouth, letting him feed you. The intimacy of the gesture made your heart race, and you quickly looked away, trying to hide your flustered expression. Satoru chuckled, clearly pleased with himself.

As the evening wore on, Satoru, a notorious lightweight when it came to drinking, began to feel the effects of the sake you’d shared. He leaned back, his eyelids drooping. “I think I’m going to pass out, sweets.” he mumbled, a sleepy smile on his face.

“Then go and sleep.”

“Hm….night.”

‘.....G’d night.”

You watched as his eyes closed, his breathing evening out. For a long moment, you stared at him, your heart aching with unspoken feelings. You had always been in love with him, but you knew deep down that you could never compete with Suguru. That bond, that history, was something you could never touch.

Unbeknownst to you, Satoru was not entirely asleep. He was keenly aware of his feelings for you, feelings that had grown stronger with each passing day. But rather than confront them, he chose to feign sleep, his mind whirling with thoughts he wasn’t ready to address. Not just yet. Not when it was too hard to face the truth.

You reached out, your hand trembling slightly as you gently brushed a stray lock of hair from Satoru's forehead. Your touch was tender, filled with a longing that transcended the boundaries between this world and the next.

"I... I... I lov..." you began, your voice faltering as if caught between the weight of your emotions and the limits of your spectral form. Frustration and exhaustion etched across your ethereal features, and you brought your hands to your face, overcome by the inability to express what lay heavy on your heart.

Swallowing back the bitter taste rising in your throat, you steadied yourself and turned your gaze to Satoru, watching him sleep peacefully. The room was hushed, filled only with the soft rustling of fabric and the steady rhythm of his breathing.

"You're the most important to me, Satoru," you whispered, your voice a fragile whisper in the quiet night. The words hung in the air, carrying the weight of a love that defied death itself. "And you always will be."

He heard your words, each one piercing through his heart, but he remained still, his breathing steady. He wasn’t ready to face the complexities of your relationship, the unresolved emotions that lay between you.

As you sat there, watching over him, you wondered if there would ever be a time when you could be honest with each other. For now, you were content to cherish these moments, fleeting as they might be, and hope that someday, the barriers between you would fall away, leaving only the love that had always been there.

A few moments later, you realized Satoru groggily opened his eyes, blinking away the remnants of sleep. He watched you with a mix of concern and amusement as you clumsily attempted to put your shoes on, fumbling with the laces and nearly losing your balance. The room was dim, and the aftereffects of the night’s drinks were evident in your unsteady movements.

“What are you doing?” Satoru asked, his voice laced with confusion and sleepiness.

“I need to go home,” you whispered to him, your voice soft but tinged with a hint of desperation. You hiccuped, the sound breaking the silence of the room. “My dog needs me.”

Satoru sat up, rubbing his eyes and trying to make sense of your words. He reached out to steady you, his touch gentle yet firm. “You’re not going anywhere in this state, sweets.” he said, concern etched across his face. “Let’s get you some water and figure this out.”

But you shook your head, your thoughts already miles away. “No, I have to go. She’s waiting for me. Please, I need to get home.” The urgency in your voice was palpable, and despite his better judgment, Satoru knew there was no stopping you. 

“Alright….Let me take you home.”

“You don’t need to.” You tell him, shaking your head. “You…don’t you have a mission tomorrow?”

“It’s fine.” Satoru insisted to you. “Don’t worry.”

Walking through the train tunnel, the air was thick with the musty scent of concrete and dampness, punctuated by the distant echo of footsteps reverberating off the tunnel walls. The dim, flickering lights cast long, eerie shadows that danced around you and Satoru as you stumbled forward, your movements unsteady and guided more by instinct than clarity.

You were particularly drunk, your senses dulled and your thoughts muddled. Every step felt like a small victory as you navigated the uneven ground and avoided stumbling over the occasional debris littering the tunnel floor. Beside you, Satoru walked with a surprising steadiness, his normally calm demeanor now tinged with a quiet concern. His eyes darted around, scanning the surroundings with a vigilance that contrasted sharply with your intoxicated haze.

The tunnel seemed to stretch on endlessly, the occasional flickering light offering brief glimpses of the graffiti-covered walls and rusted tracks that lay beyond. The sound of your footsteps echoed loudly in the confined space, creating an unsettling symphony with the distant sounds of passing trains and the occasional drip of water from above.

“Be careful now.” he cautioned, glancing at you as you stumbled slightly. His tone was light, but the concern in his eyes was evident.

You turned to him, your heart pounding in your chest. “Satoru,” you began, your voice wavering. “There’s something I’ve never been able to tell you.”

He stopped walking, turning to face you fully. “What is it?” he asked, his expression curious and a little concerned.

You looked at him, your eyes almost broken, the weight of unspoken emotions heavy on your shoulders. “Can I… can I hug you? Just once?” you asked, your voice barely above a whisper. “Can you turn off Infinity around me? Just for a moment?”

Satoru’s eyes softened, and he took a step closer. “My Infinity is always down with you,” he said quietly, his voice filled with a gentle sincerity.

Without another word, you stepped forward and embraced him, wrapping your arms around his waist. The warmth of his body against yours was both comforting and overwhelming. Satoru stood still, his arms at his sides, too shocked to respond immediately.

For a moment, you held him tightly, your face buried in his chest, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. “I’ve always loved you, Satoru.” you whispered, the words slipping out before you could stop them. “I wished….I wished I told you, before I left. Maybe……maybe it would have saved me a decade of pain. Of heartbreak.”

His body tensed slightly, and you could feel his breath hitch. Slowly, as if coming out of a trance, his arms began to lift. Tentatively, he placed them around you, his embrace becoming firmer as the reality of your confession sank in.

You stood there in the train tunnel, holding onto each other as if the world around you had ceased to exist. The distant echoes and the cold air were forgotten, replaced by the warmth of the moment and the raw, unfiltered emotions that had finally been laid bare.

Satoru pulled back slightly, just enough to look down at you. His eyes were filled with a mix of shock, confusion, and something else—something deeper. “Why now?” he asked, his voice barely audible, as if he was afraid that speaking too loudly would shatter the fragile moment.

You looked up at him, your eyes glistening with unshed tears. “Because I couldn’t hold it in any longer,” you replied, your voice trembling. “Because I need you to know, even if it changes nothing.”

For a long moment, he said nothing, his gaze searching your face. Then, slowly, he leaned down and pressed a soft, lingering kiss to your forehead. “Thank you.” he whispered, his breath warm against your skin. “For telling me.”

“I know we can’t be together.” You ramble to him, tears falling all over your face. “I wish we could have had more time. I wish….”

“We will have more time.” He tells you in a mumble. “We have all the time in the world.”

“We don’t.” You whispered to him, looking into his eyes with your own tear stained face. “We don’t.”

In that moment, he could see it in your eyes.

You were telling him the truth, the whole of it.

As the sound of the train echoed through the tunnel,

You burst into tears as those words echoed in his head.

“I’m sorry, Satoru.” You whispered. “I’m going to hurt you.”

YOU CHOSE THE PICTURE YOURSELF.  You looked at him, a sad smile playing on your lips, a bittersweet expression that conveyed both regret and acceptance. Your gaze was gentle yet haunting, and he couldn't tear his eyes away from the photograph he held in his trembling hands — a portrait of you, captured in a moment of serene beauty that seemed to transcend the confines of the photograph itself.

As he stared at your image, framed by the soft glow of candlelight, he felt a pang of disbelief and sorrow grip his heart. How could someone so vibrant, so full of life, now be reduced to this still, silent image before him? The photograph seemed to capture not just your physical likeness, but also the essence of your spirit — a spirit that had once danced with such vitality and now lingered only in memories.

He remembered that day in the tunnel, your words echoing in his mind like a haunting refrain. You had warned him, confessed your impending departure with a sorrow that mirrored his own. In that moment, he had felt a deep ache, a foreboding sense of loss that now seemed inevitable and crushing.

Now, holding your funeral photo, he felt as if he were suspended in that tunnel once more, caught between the reality of your absence and the vividness of your memory. You had prepared for this moment, for your departure from his life, long before fate had delivered its cruel blow. The photo captured a version of you that he knew was only a fraction of the person he had loved — a mere reflection of the complexities and contradictions that made you who you were.

He shook his head, trying to dispel the illusion of your ghostly presence that seemed to linger in the room. This spectral image, so painfully beautiful, could never truly encapsulate the vibrant soul he had cherished. Everything that defined you now rested in the small urn before him, the echoes of the fleeting nature of life itself. He had promised to protect you, to hold you close, but now all he could do was hold onto your memory, etched into his heart with a sorrow that would never fade.

Gojo Satoru sat in silence, the photo trembling in his hands. He couldn't bring himself to look away from your serene face, captured forever in that moment of calm. The flickering candlelight cast dancing shadows around the room, creating an atmosphere that felt both intimate and surreal.

"You told me……" Satoru finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, "that you were going to hurt me. But I never thought it would end like this."

Your ghostly presence seemed to shimmer faintly in the dim light, a wistful echo of the person he had loved so deeply. Your eyes, even in the photo, held a depth of sadness that mirrored his own

"I'm sorry," you whispered, your voice carrying a weight of regret that pierced through the silence. "I never wanted this for us."

He looked up at you, tears welling in his eyes. "I should have done everything." he said, his voice breaking with emotion. "I should have done something."

You shook your head gently, a gesture that seemed to encompass both forgiveness and understanding. "It wasn't your fault," you reassured him softly. "We couldn't change what was meant to be."

"But I miss you, my love." Satoru confessed, his voice choking with grief. "Every day feels like a struggle without you."

Your ghostly form seemed to draw closer, as if reaching out to comfort him. "I know, I know…." you murmured, your presence a fleeting warmth in the cold emptiness of the room. "I miss you too."

He reached out a trembling hand towards where your image lay, desperate for some tangible connection to the love that had defined his world. "Why did you have to leave me?" he asked, his voice filled with anguish. “Why now when we had everything?”

You looked at him with infinite sadness, your ethereal presence flickering faintly. "I didn't want to," you replied, your voice barely audible. "But my time was up. Some things... we can't control it."

He closed his cerulean eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks. The ache in his chest felt unbearable, a gaping void that no amount of time could ever heal. "I wish I could have saved you, my love." he whispered, his words a desperate plea to the universe. “I wished I….”

In the silence that followed, your ghostly form seemed to fade gradually, leaving behind only the faint echo of your presence. "You gave me everything I ever wanted." you whispered softly, your voice drifting like a gentle breeze. "And I will always be with you, in every memory, in every heartbeat."

He closed his cerulean eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks like silent rivers of grief. The ache in his chest felt unbearable, a gaping void that no amount of time could ever hope to heal. "I don't want anything else, my love," he whispered brokenly, his words a desperate plea to the universe. "I just want you. I need you."

His voice faltered, choked by sorrow too deep for words. In the deafening silence that followed, your ghostly form seemed to fade gradually, leaving behind only the faint echo of your presence. The room feels emptier without you, devoid of the warmth and light that had once filled his life.

"I know." You choked as you tried not to falter. Not when he needed your smile more than your tears. "I know."

"I wished we had more time.....so I could have....." You shook your head at him.

"You gave me everything I ever wanted," your voice echoed softly, ethereal and distant like a whisper carried in the wind. "And I have no regrets. Neither should you, Satoru. Hm?"

He clutched the photograph to his chest, feeling the weight of your absence press against him like a physical force. The candle flickered, casting fleeting shadows on the walls as if dancing to the rhythm of his heartache. Memories flooded his mind — moments shared, laughter exchanged, dreams woven together — now a tapestry of what-ifs and regrets.

"I don't know how to go on without you, my love." he admitted quietly, his voice trembling with raw emotion. "Everything reminds me of you. What is life without who makes life have sense?"

"You are stronger than you know, you always were." your voice whispered gently, a soothing melody in the midst of his storm. He could feel you touch his cheek. He leans against the ghostly weight, wishing he could feel your warmth in his. "You'll always get by, Satoru. You always will. You're the best I know, after all."

"Because I'm the strongest?"

You smiled, softly shaking your head again. "Because you love too well."

He opened his pale blue eyes, searching for a glimpse of you in the shadows, in the flickering candlelight. Though your physical presence had slipped away, he could still feel your love wrapping around him like a fragile cocoon. It was a love that had weathered storms, endured trials, and now lingered as fragile hope in his shattered heart.

"I love you, my love." he whispered into the stillness, his words a solemn vow to carry your memory forward. "Always."

As he sat there, cradling the photograph that held your smile frozen in time, he knew that while he had lost you in body, your spirit would forever remain intertwined with his own. And in the quiet moments of solitude, he would find solace in the memories of a love that had transcended mortality itself. 

He knew that time would be the bridge between now and when he would see you again. Even in his deepest despair, the thought of reuniting with you brought a bittersweet comfort. Yet, he also knew that to join you prematurely would betray the promise he had made to you in those final moments — to live a life worthy of your love, to carry on and make a difference.

The scent of incense filled the room, a solemn reminder of the rituals and prayers offered for your departed soul. Satoru let out a long exhale, his lips pursed into a determined line. He would fulfill his promises, no matter how difficult or daunting the path ahead seemed.

"I'll change the Jujutsu society," he vowed quietly to himself, the words carrying a weight of determination. "I'll guide the next generation, help them grow strong and wise."

As a sad melody filled the air, a song that once brought joy and laughter to both of you, he closed his eyes and allowed the memories to wash over him. You had loved to dance to this song, your laughter echoing in his ears as you twirled around the room together. It was a memory etched in his heart, a fragment of a life he cherished and longed to live again.

"I'll do everything you believed I could," he whispered softly, his voice tinged with both sadness and resolve. "And then, I'll find you again."

In the solitude of that moment, amidst the flickering candlelight and the haunting melody, he made a silent promise to himself and to you. He would continue to carry your love in his heart, through every trial and triumph, knowing that one day, their souls would reunite in a dance again.

And so Gojo Satoru waits as he lay on that cold operating table.

Those sad sing along songs repeated in his head over and over.

But as he lay there, all that he could think to do was smile at pain.

He was going to meet you soon, he thinks to himself in such peace.

Then, there would be no more sad songs for his broken heart to hear.

some facts about the fic

in the first part, satoru is struggling through his grief for you to the point that he is suffering traumatic illusions that you were there, eating with him. in that whole scene, satoru was actually alone and he's repressing that for the vision of being together, eating.

when you were eating, the chopsticks  were stuck upright. this should not be the case especially rice. chopsticks are only stuck upright into rice in the bowl on the altar at a funeral or when paying respects to the deceased. this is called hotokebashi.

in the funerary flower arrangement, there's something called an ihai. an ihai is a placard that people used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. the name of the deity or the past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet.

an ihai is usually used in the funerary rights and then afterwards, put in a butsudan which is often an ornate platform or simply a wooden cabinet sometimes crafted with doors that enclose it. families often put their ihai into their butsudan at home.

since i thought that in this story, you don't have parents - i like to think that satoru put your ihai in the butsudan in his house, so that you could be there with him always.

your ashes in the story are with satoru. but i like to believe he already had a spot reserved for him as clan leader in the future - so he buried you beside his future spot so he just made sure both of you are together in the afterlife too.

the watch belonged to haibara and his parents gave you and nanami something of his to keep. you kept the watch he wore during the mission and kept using it all your life. it stopped working when you died.

the time in the story was 19:42. in japanese superstition,

in the first part, satoru is struggling through his grief for you to the point that he is suffering traumatic illusions that you were there, eating with him. in that whole scene, satoru was actually alone and he's repressing that for the vision of being together, eating.

when you were eating, the chopsticks  were stuck upright. this should not be the case especially rice. chopsticks are only stuck upright into rice in the bowl on the altar at a funeral or when paying respects to the deceased. this is called hotokebashi.

in the funerary flower arrangement, there's something called an ihai. an ihai is a placard that people used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. the name of the deity or the past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet.

an ihai is usually used in the funerary rights and then afterwards, put in a butsudan which is often an ornate platform or simply a wooden cabinet sometimes crafted with doors that enclose it. families often put their ihai into their butsudan at home.

since i thought that in this story, you don't have parents - i like to think that satoru put your ihai in the butsudan in his house, so that you could be there with him always.

your ashes in the story are with satoru. but i like to believe he already had a spot reserved for him as clan leader in the future - so he buried you beside his future spot so he just made sure both of you are together in the afterlife too.

the watch belonged to haibara and his parents gave you and nanami something of his to keep. you kept the watch he wore during the mission and kept using it all your life. it stopped working when you died.

the time in the story was 19:42. in japanese superstition, you have to switch it to have meaning. 42-19, together sounds like shini iku (死に行く – to go and die).

your story ex-spouse and you divorced because they found out that you were a jujutsu sorcerer - after you saved them from a cursed spirit that was about to kill them.

you found out that you were very ill a month after you met satoru again and were given a year or two to live, with medication. its a rare disease, so there was only maintenance medication.

originally, i thought to write that you die from a mission after returning to jujutsu to be with satoru. but i realized that it's just not gonna hit as hard. so i changed my mind and got to this ending.

i also thought that you dying in this story because of cursed spirits was going to rile satoru up against the higher ups. but i felt like the fact that you left him because you were traumatized too, and needed a room enough to breathe was enough for him to be angry. if you hadn't left, you and satoru would have had a life together and you wouldn't have been ripped away from him by fate so quickly.

[sinsirellaxx]

The slytherin boys react to you breaking up with them but youre hella toxic😛

Have also been fucking obsessing over your page wtf

Slytherin Boys – What they’d be like if you broke up with them

Warning: toxic Slytherin boys (nothing new) and toxic reader

A/N: Thank you so much. I'm glad you like my page! 🥰

Mattheo …

… he’d be confused. Everything was going well, right? You were madly in love with him, right?! Apparently not. You smiled at him evilly as you watched the cocky smirk, he always wore on his lips disappear.

Everything played out in slow motion as Mattheo listened to you telling him that it was his fault. That he wasn’t enough. That he’d never be enough for you.

Before he could register what he was doing he was all over you, desperately holding onto your shoulders as he shook you. “D-Don’t say that love. I can change! I can be better.” He pleaded with you, which was very untypical of him. Looking at him with disgust, you pushed him away, shaking your head as you told him that there was someone else.

“Who is it?” Mattheo grit out, the feeling of hurt being completely replaced by raw anger.

You told him his name, the smirk never leaving your face as you felt pure excitement at his pain. Finally, it was your turn to watch his world came crashing down instead of your heart being broken, day after day by him.

The dark-haired male scoffed, “You’ll regret that, love. He won’t be able to tame a brat like you.” He tilted his head as he glared at you, still in disbelief over your audacity.

You walked out of his room, briefly stopping to speak over your shoulder before you disappeared out of his life. Oh, he can handle me just fine.

Theodore …

… outright refuses. “You can’t break up with me.” Theodore wouldn’t even leave room for discussion or a fight – he’d simply kiss you and continue acting like you were still together. You left his room? He isn’t worried – he’ll see you tomorrow.

You ignore him in class? Nah, you’re just playing hard to get. He’d still sit next to you, even if he had to threaten the person already sitting there to stand up. They would, obviously, get lost as no one wanted to get on Theo’s bad side. You didn’t want to embarrass him, but desperate times call for desperate measures. It was now your mission to publicly shame him – be it mentioning how he reeks of smoke loudly in front of everyone or calling him clingy and outright creepy. After a week you loudly screamed at him, in the middle of the Great Hall, that you had broken up with him and that he should leave you alone.

But Theodore was stubborn. So, you had to resort to more … toxic ways. You sent him a message and asked him to come over that evening to watch a movie together. Theodore immediately returned to his cocky self when he read the message – he knew you were just playing around. What he didn’t expect to find when he arrived was one of his best friend’s head between your legs.

Lorenzo …

… gaped at you as you demanded to see his phone, your arm stretched out in front of you as you wiggled your fingers to motion for him to put his phone into your waiting palm.

You suddenly wanted to check his messages – which was weird, because he was usually the one in your relationship who wanted to control and check everything. Enzo reluctantly gave you his phone, he had nothing to hide – he really didn’t. Yet you still found something to be pissed about.

The day after that Lorenzo was changing, about to go out with his boys. You stared at him from where you were lying on his bed, frowning at the satin dress-shirt he had chosen to wear. Enzo whipped around to stare at you in shock when you told him he had to change. His nipples were clearly showing. When Lorenzo refuse, yelling at you how ridiculous he thought you were being, you jumped up from the bed and walked up to him. Your faces mere inches apart. After a moment of silence, you raised a brow and told him it was over – that he was the biggest hypocrite, for being offended even though that was the way he always acted with you. Ripping the diamond necklace he had given you on Valentine’s Day off your neck you threw it into his chest, turning to leave the room. Your hips swaying as you left a shocked Lorenzo in his room.

Draco …

… it had taken you a while to get used to Draco’s love language. Gift giving. You didn’t want to be ungrateful, but Draco knew no limits. A new Cartier bracelet? You got it. An iced-out Rolex for that empty wrist of yours? Check. Flowers every week, followed by a colorful box of macarons? Double-check. No matter how much time had passed, it wasn’t getting better. The only thing that had changed was you: You started liking the expensive gifts more and more. You even purposefully talked about things you saw online or in stores, knowing very well that he would go and buy it for you like the good boy he was. The only downside? He wanted you to be well-behaved. You were supposed to dress a certain way, be styled every single day and there was no room for imperfections. You were tired. You were planning on breaking up with him for a while now but there were still those new boots that just came out and you were waiting for them to arrive – you knew Draco had bought them the second he had seen them on your phone screen.

Just one more day and you’d be waltzing out of Draco’s life with those new boots that were to die for.

Blaise …

… frowned at his phone as he was left on read by you. Again. The past few days you had been weirdly distant, taking hours to reply to his message until you didn’t anymore. Whenever he’d ask why you had left him on read you would roll your eyes and tell him that you had fallen asleep. Blaise was still skeptical but chose to ignore it for the moment.

What he couldn’t ignore, however, was the way you flirted with boys left and right.

“What the – what are you doing?” He asks obviously frustrated. You just shrug your shoulders and tell him it’s nothing. It’s not that deep. Stop being so clingy. You said, before standing up to leave. We’re over, Blaise.

Comments are appreciated! I'd really be happy about feedback. 🥹

If you want to support me: https://ko-fi.com/sinsirella 🥰

[joelmillergirl]

Give In ~ Joel Millerxonenightstand!reader Drabble

Word count: 1,025

Warnings: unprotected piv, creampie, tit slaps, depiction of rougher sex, delulu Joel.

Author’s Note: Uhh, could not stop imagining like one night stand Joel Miller turns into him just obsessing over you.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

It took a while for Joel to give in. It was tempting, he couldn’t deny that, but every time, he refused. You were innocent, pure, slightly younger than him, everyone loved you. He was the opposite; dark, plagued with nightmares and violent reflexes, anticipating a scenario where he’d have to protect himself like he once had, and everyone seemed to avoid him.

Tommy had suggested the idea to him one night after a few drinks, the Sun finally disappearing behind the horizon after a long day of patrols. You were sitting alone at a table, a content expression on your face, minding your own business. Joel couldn’t help it, couldn’t resist the urge to just look at you, take you in. He’d seen you around, he’d never admit it, but he’d look for you in the crowds, your smile the brightest, your hair the softest, no, he’d never admit it.

“You taken a liking to her?” Tommy asked, breaking the silence. Joel turned his head towards his brother, his eyebrows furrowed. “She’s single.”

Joel winced and looked down at his drink, “Good for her.”

Tommy laughed beside him, downing his drink in one, “Come on, brother… Get out there! Get her a drink, anything other than starin’ at her will do…”

Joel sends his brother a glare, shaking his head, “Will you quit it? Not starin’… Not gettin’ her a drink.”

That was the first time he denied. Over the next few days, you had completely taken over his brain, clouding his thoughts, driving him insane. Every little thing reminded him of you, every little thought would develop into bigger thoughts, further into fantasies. It got to the point where he’d have to fuck his fist every time he wanted to go out, his cock aching and rock hard from the mere thought of you. He needed to get it out of his system, have a taste of you, but yet, he refused.

A week later, he found himself standing next to you during a town meeting. He hated it, almost hated you, how easy it was for him to get distracted with you near, hearing your small intakes of breath, imagining you were underneath him in his bed rather than in the town hall surrounded by others. At one point you had shifted on your feet, your arm brushing against Joel’s. The contact sent a rush of blood and adrenaline through his body right to his cock, causing him to almost instantly harden. He groaned quietly, his fist clenching, subtly moving away from you in an attempt to escape your alluring presence.

Joel looked up, scanning around the room nonchalantly, trying to think of anything else other than you. From the front of the room he caught Tommy’s eyes, the younger brother mischievously nodding his head over from Joel to you, winking. “Fucking prick.” Joel muttered, shaking his head at his brother.

“Pardon?” You asked hesitantly, having heard the remark. Joel looked at you silent for a moment, the two of you simply staring at each other.

Joel let out a deep breath, “Nothin’…” When you didn’t reply, he continued. “Just wanna get outta here.”

You smile, oblivious to the torment you were inflicting on the man next to you, “I feel that… Wanna ditch? Get a drink?”

He almost gave in, the words just about leaving his lips before he managed to ground himself. He looked at you, what looked like nervousness in your eye. You took your lip between your teeth, a gesture Joel did not miss. His jaw clenched, “No, I should stay… Wouldn’t be right to leave.”

He could see the disappointment in your expression, hated the way your teasing smile dropped slightly. You covered it well, sending him a more gentle, friendlier smile and a nod. That was the second time he refused.

When the third opportunity came around, he had nothing left in him to refuse. He was sitting at the bar alone, an empty glass in his hands when you stormed up to him, the effects of alcohol clearly taking its course through your body.

“I’ve seen you looking, Joel Miller.” You started, bumping into his side as you pulled the stool out next to him. “Been giving me those stares, can almost hear your thoughts... Am I crazy? Tell me I’m not imagining that, Joel.”

He looked at you, almost taken aback at your honesty. He cleared his throat, looking away from you, “No, you’re not imaginin’ it… Not crazy.” He cleared his throat again, his own voice slightly slurred from the drinks he had consumed before you’d approached him.

You huff, “So why haven’t you done anything about it? You’ve been driving me crazy, getting me all horny, all frustrated.”

Joel pulled his lips into a thin line, raising his eyebrow at you, “What do you want me to say, honey? Want me to apologise?”

“If an apology includes fucking me, yeah.” You say, shrugging your shoulders.

Joel sat up straighter, leaning closer to you, “What happened to the sweet girl I saw, hm? Not talkin’ very sweet.”

Not even twenty minutes after that conversation, you were in his bed, underneath him, fulfilling every fantasy he had ever had of you. No longer was the innocent, sweet talking girl he knew, this version of you was rougher, dirtier, begging for it harder.

He fucked into you hard, hips slapping into the back of your thighs as he held your legs up close to his shoulders with one hand, the other exploring your body, circling your clit before moving up to palm at your tits, his hand coming down and slapping the flesh gently, only sending another harder slap after you gave permission.

He stretched you out, reached places you never thought had existed, your pussy trapped him inside you, clenching tightly around his cock as he drove you closer to your orgasm. And when he watched you reach your climax, your legs fighting to shut close and your head flying back, triggering his own orgasm, his cum shooting deep inside you, he finally accepted that he would never be able to deny you ever again.

[rafesgoldrings]

Rafe loves to pick you right up and put you in his lap and make you get off on his thigh 🥵🥵🥵

He does😩 he loves seeing how desperate you get to come, the pretty sounds that slip through your lips as you fall apart all over him. Especially if he’s at a party or out with his friends, this man loves watching you get off on him around people. He’ll be at a party having a conversation, spreading his legs and tapping one of them to encourage you to climb onto him when he sees you waking over. You’ll do so thinking it’s safe since other people are around, but then he starts bouncing his leg. Each movement creating friction against your throbbing clit. He knows what he’s doing, can fucking feel your pulsing cunt on his thigh, and it only encourages him to go faster. You’ll look at him, eyes wide and mouth slightly open almost in a pleading way, and he’ll just shoot you a smirk. It gets to be too much just sitting still so you start grinding into his thigh, thanking whatever forces there were that it was dark enough to not be obvious what you were doing. Your arousal drenched through your thong and onto Rafe’s leg, making it easy to grind against. The person would eventually leave and Rafe would whisper in your ear “such a dirty whore baby, what if they would had seen? you want everyone here to know what a slut you are for me?” you’d weakly shake your head no, a small whimper falling through your parted lips. His hand would snake around your throat, lightly squeezing it and pulling you into a rough kiss full of teeth and tongue. You’d start grinding faster against his thigh as you got close and closer, when someone else came over. And of course it was Topper, you liked him, but you could have killed him at that very second. You’d feel a soft squeeze around your hips and look up at Rafe who gave you a knowing look. He wanted you to come on his thigh with Topper right there. Normally you’d say hell no, but you needed it so bad. Your eyes screwed shut, mouth hung open as you came undone. Your back would be arched slightly, your tits pushing into the air and the low cut top you had on accentuating them perfectly, nails digging into Rafe’s forearm and soft pants and whines of his name on your lips, his thigh soaked from how much you came. Topper only stood there awkwardly as he realized what happened, adjusting his pants and scurrying away with a short ‘i’ll talk to you later man’. You’d finally open your eyes, slightly embarrassed but also relieved and find Rafe staring in a amusement. “Upstairs now. Going to fucking wreck that pretty cunt of yours” he’d tell you, slapping your ass when you stood up to fix your skirt. The two of you quickly disappeared from the party to handle business, his thigh still covered in cum and shorts soaked

[a-small-writer-in-a-big-world]

Following this dynamic from this Drabble I made

This is a draft, it’s not good or polished but here’s something

Pairing: Simon Ghost Riley x reader

Reader’s call sign is Stray

The air is chilly when Ghost steps outside of the pub. His breath barely shows through the mask covering his mouth as he held his hands inside of his pockets. His eyes scanned the dark street for you with urgency, ready to run after you in he needed to.

He found you leaning against the wall of a building a few feet away.

You’re swaying against the wall, a testament to how much you’ve drank tonight, while you stuff your hands in the jumper that you were warned was too thin for a night like this. Your eyes were closed as you leaned your head back against the wall, your eyebrows knitted together.

Ghost can only stare at you as the street lights above cast a warm glow over you. You look almost pitiful, standing alone near black out drunk as you go ignored by everyone who walks by you but your CO. It was almost striking about the fact that you were living up to your callsign.

Stray. Unwanted, thrown to the streets, ignored, abandoned.

It’s not his business.

Whatever happened in the pub to make you run out is not his business and yet he can’t make himself walk back inside. The thought of leaving you out here made his chest ache, he couldn’t imagine doing that to you even though most of the time he’d much rather be with anyone else but you.

It’s not his business.

His feet carry him towards you without him even thinking and before he knows it, he’s towering over you. His breath hitched in his throat when he saw a few tears run down your cheeks before you sloppily wiped them away.

It took you a moment to open your eyes and yours met his, he expected you to give him a glare. Instead you just blinked away the tears, trying to hide the pain hidden within them before you looked back towards the street.

“Ghost.” Your words were slurred but your voice was shaky and it made him swallow hard.

“Alright?”

You sniffled and wiped any remaining tears from your eyes as you nodded. You let out a shaky breath, puffs of steam disappearing into the air, as you shook slightly.

“Yeah,” You sighed and pulled your arms closer to yourself. “Cold.”

“Told you to bring a heavier jumper.” His voice was uncharacteristically soft as he spoke to you and you let out a dry scoff.

“Yeah…”

Ghost had never seen you so…small before. It was a stark contrast to the personality you often showed him when the two of you would get into it and fight with each other. There was no sharp look in your eyes, there was no snappy remark or any kind of attitude.

You looked like you wanted to hide, like you were prepared to run away instead of attack like you normally did. You looked helpless, scared, vulnerable.

He felt a pit form in his stomach and he couldn’t help but look away from you for a moment as shame washed over him.

“I’ll take you back to base.” He offered but you shook your head.

“You don’t have to ruin your fun for me.” You tried to argue but he ignored you.

He knelt down so you could climb into his back

“Ghost-“

“Get on or I’m leaving you here.”

It was an empty threat. He’d never leave you alone when you were in a vulnerable state like this or even if you were sober. He didn’t trust anyone to be kind to you at any hour of the night even if he knew you could handle yourself better than most.

You climbed onto his back rather haphazardly, unable to get your bearings as you wrapped your arms around his neck and rested your legs around his hips. You held onto him tightly as he stood up and began to walk back towards the base, holding onto you securely.

“Tell you a joke.” He began but you were silent. “A turtle is crossing the road when he’s mugged by two snails. When the police ask him what happened, the shaken turtle replies, “I don’t know. It all happened so fast.”

You stifled a laugh and he felt the corner of his lips twitch when he felt you hide your face in his shoulder.

“How do ghosts stay in shape?”

“How?”

“They exorcise.”

You giggled and pressed yourself further into his back, causing him to tighten his hold on your knees. You leaned your head against his and he swallowed hard at the contact. He had to remind himself that you were drunk, that you were probably unable to remember just how much you didn’t like him in a normal setting.

“We could do this all night.”

“I don’t think I’d survive.”

“You’re warm. I thought ghosts were supposed to be cold.”

“Poor joke, you could do better.”

A/N: yeah this was meant to be something but it never came to be. Maybe another time

[myesmi]

GENTLE MOMENTS WITH THEM. 𓂅 ˖ ࣪ ( headcanons )

cw. soft / gentle moments with michael and thomas ( sep ) <3, established relationships, gn! reader, etc.

note. i don’t know, i just really wanted to write headcanons, so this is what i came up with! i was going to do jealousy headcanons, or when the reader gets catcalled or something, but i needed something more simple since i’m dead tired rn.. <3 hope you enjoy! comments and reblogs appreciated!

requests are open. masterlist.

MICHAEL MYERS.

any time spent with michael is generally quiet, mostly due to how mute he is. the loudest he gets is a confirming grunt, or an annoyed huff.

however, on the extremely rare occasion, those quiet moments hold a different atmosphere. almost.. soft, or gentle, in some capacity.

it’s strange to call such a silent, intimidating, stalker of a man ‘gentle’, but in your heart you knew it was his intentions that spoke the words he wouldn’t.

you roused in the middle of the night, lazily sitting yourself up at the sudden appearance of your tall, violent lover. it wasn’t unusual for him to disappear for hours on end and show up in the middle of the night.

he stood in the frame of your bedroom door, mask on, however he stood in a fitting black t-shirt and simple dark pajama pants that you gifted him last christmas.

…he used to sleep in his coveralls, but you quickly forced him to wear some form of pajamas ( obviously after being well established in the relationship where you were able to twist his arm in such ways, otherwise he wouldn’t have been so receptive ).

you barely remember the sleepy smile that formed on your lips, giving michael a little wave before you found him standing at your side where you sat on the bed.

his chest stilled briefly, as if he was holding his breath, and his gaze was directed at you, observing. despite how you couldn’t see his eyes through the mask’s eye holes due to how dark it was in the room ( the only light being the moonlight that filtered through the window blinds ), you could feel his piercing gaze crawl over your sleep-addled features.

and suddenly, one large, rough hand patted the top of your head. his palms were littered with callouses, the meat of his palm below his fingers tenderly ached from how tightly he tended to grip his knife. and yet, his touch was somehow comforting. a sort of prize you thought, as michael wasn’t one known for tender caresses and loving touches.

his large hand drifted from the top of your head to your neck, his fingers brushing along your jugular in a feather-light trail.

and as soon as the soft moment had come, it was gone. michael pulled away, turning and leaving your bedroom. you knew that you’d fall back asleep before he would lay himself down next to you, and you knew he’d be up and gone before you woke in the morning.

but gentle moments like these reminded you of why you fell for the man that everyone else deemed a monster

THOMAS HEWITT.

unlike michael, gathering soft, quiet moments with thomas wasn’t too rare. he was, to you, a texan gentle giant.

however, the real challenge was getting him alone in the first place for more than half an hour.

you understood how important his family was to thomas, and how needed he was around the family ‘farm’. the man had many physically demanding and time consuming daily chores that he carried out in order for his family to live the reserved, happy little lives they did.

and that often resulted in your only shared time alone being when you wake in the mornings and when you sleep during the nights. in short, it wasn’t ideal.

however, being as thomas was completely wrapped around your little finger, it never took too much convincing to have him all to yourself for the evening on certain occasions.

you sat comfortably on the recently repaired front porch, enjoying the humid evening under the slow sunset, able to sit comfortably in the shade of the house as the night started to cool.

thomas wasn’t too far away, and you watched carefully ( and.. enjoyably ) as thomas worked on one of the last tasks of the day. he was slowly cleaning out the large old barn that sat on their property, full of rusted old farming equipment and spare heavy car parts that the hewitts simply did not need any more. and so, he took it upon himself to, over the course of the week, clean out all the junk.

and boy.. was it a show for you. your tommy was by far the strongest man you knew, both mentally and physically. and watching your big texan hunk lift heavy metal parts as if they weighed nothing?

and thomas knew you were watching him. a part of the man enjoyed showing off in front of you. he loved how hot your face grew, how you shifted in your seat, your beautiful eyes staring him down lovingly ( and hungrily ).

you smiled as your thomas finished up for the day and made his way to the porch, wiping his big hands on the front of his work apron to rid himself of the dirt and old car grease. you scooted yourself over, offering him room to sit down on the swing next to you, already having a glass of sweet tea to offer out to him, figuring that he was no doubt breathless from his work, no matter how effortless he made it look.

he took a heavy seat next to you, gratefully taking the tea from your hand, replacing it with his own large hand, interweaving his fingers with your own. thomas was always still shy when it came to you, however intertwining your hands together was like second nature now. it was his way of saying hello.

both of your hands, interlocked, landed comfortably on your thigh. thomas’ fingers were still somewhat grimy, yet it didn’t bother you. you comfortably leaned into his plush side, resting your head against his broad chest, right under his masked chin.

you looked up, admiring his dark locks of hair that framed his face and ever so slightly dipped in front of his dark, lovely eyes. you have a warm smile, before you both simply enjoyed the silence together, staring out at the beautiful texas sunset, knowing that you had no place you’d rather be.

© myesmi . . . do not steal, translate, or repost.

[dangerousduckcloud]

Flowerbeds make up for a nice eternal rest

Read it also on AO3

“Don’t scream, bitch.” Your breath caught in your throat, the night wind cold in your face, a single lit blinking streetlight on top of you lighting up the street, the rest covered in darkness. “The boss will be happy to see you again.”

Chapter 11 < > Chapter 13

Masterlist

taglist: @kurai-hono-blog @katrina0-0 @readingfictionnothingelse @lookingforsyd

If anyone else would like to be added to the taglist, let me know!

This chapter took me a bit later to update than usual because a lot of changes (nothing bad) happened on my life, so I didn't have much time to be on my computer, but things are settling down now!

You couldn’t continue with the conversation, what else could you say? The boldness you’d felt disappeared as suddenly as it appeared, being replaced by shame that soon overcame your body, taking its rightful place in the part of your brain that fed of the worst possible outcomes your mind could think of at his lack of reply.

Because he didn’t even try to reply, to try and say something only to come out empty and leave it like that. No. He never even tried it, as the writing status never showed up (Not like you had spent half an hour looking at the screen in hopes of a response…).

He was certainly content with leaving it like that.

With a disappointed sigh, your gaze moved from the empty notification box on the phone to the droning voice in the background of the room, the weather cast of yet another raining week in Gotham. Why did they even bother? It rained every week in Gotham.

Letting your hand drop to the bed, you left the phone somewhere around the sheets, searching for the tv remote, surfing channels until you could find something mildly interesting.

“—llionaire Bruce Wayne, it sure is a wonder how he’s managed to keep his company afloat.” The host said, the show was one of those evenings gossip programs that only helped to spread rumors about famous people. “Must be from all the air in his head.” Fake, canned laughs accompanied the lame joke. “Seriously, who in their right mind hands seventy percent of responsibilities of their multi-billionaire company to their seventeen-year-old son? It’s only a matter of time before he drives it to bankruptcy.”

Your lip curled at hearing the presenter talk trash about Tim, if only they knew he was as smart —if not maybe even smarter— than Batman, they wouldn’t be talking shit. Tim could physically and mentally outsmart everyone watching the program right now. Hell, even the leader of the League of Assassins was so impressed by his smarts he wanted to work with him.

Huh, did Tim still had his spleen? You should make a note of asking him later.

A muffled ding from your phone had your heart beating fast, looking under the covers to find the device and check if he’d finally replied. You did have a message, but the sender, as well as the content, made you frown.

              | Come down to the cave.

It read. A second text popping up a few seconds later.

              | Please.

It was unusual of him to say his ‘please’s and ‘thank you’s, so you assumed it must be something important to him to say it. You stood up, not wanting to leave the kid waiting, switching your sandals for sneakers, as the cave tended to be quite cold, especially late in the evenings.

When you got down there, you couldn’t see anyone, specially since patrol wasn’t going to start until a couple of hours later, when the family would come down here to warm up before going out. Was he simply pranking you? You scoffed at being forced to get up from your comfy bed for nothing, turning around to go back to your room.

“Hiya!” A voice said from behind, hitting you on your arm with a cheap, plastic sword.

“Damian!” you groaned, rubbing your arm with the tip of your fingers. It didn’t really hurt; it was mostly the anger at being hit. “What the hell?”

“I gave away my location with a cry of war, you should have been able to block it.”

“Yeah, well, ‘s not like I was expecting to get jumped at here.”

“And that was your mistake.” He said, walking towards the training area, leaving the toy on the floor. “I shall rectify that for our next outing to the city in our civilian identities, shall we get confronted with an unfortunate situation once again.”

He took off his shoes, his socked feet bouncing slightly on the training mats, waiting for you to do the same. Your head tilt lightly to the left, the meaning behind his words dawned on you.

“You want to teach me self-defense?” The tip of his ears’ turning pink was enough answer for you, walking up to hug him. “Aww, Damian! I knew you cared!”

“Let go of me, dolt. I am only doing this to avoid another hostage situation that impedes the imprisonment of criminals.” You let him go, the kid dusting his clothes of any visible dust, with you feeling guilty at being reminded that Two-Face escaped because of you. “Now, remove your shoes so that we can begin.”

“But I’m not wearing gym clothes.” Your loose, red t-shirt, and black, cargo pants were probably the worst thing to train with.

“It is preferable to be wearing something you are most likely to wear if another incident were to happen, that way it doesn’t impede you from fighting back.” You hummed, using the tip of your foot to remove your shoes, not bothering to untie them.

The blue mat underneath you was firm. If you were to fall with even the least of force, it will most likely hurt for a second, but nothing that’ll do any kind of damage.

“Alright, what now?”

“You have been held at gunpoint already, but trying to disarm an armed man is the least thing you should do unless you are highly trained in martial arts like us.”

You frowned, kicking your right foot on the mat.

“So, what am I gonna learn, then?”

“Tt. I thought you were smarter. I just told you. Martial arts.”

You stood rooted in your spot. Damian Al-Ghul Wayne, grandson of the Demon’s Head, son of Batman, was going to teach you to fight?

“You want to teach me crime fighting?”

“No. Todd would endlessly hunt me if I did that— I am simply teaching you self-defense, whatever you decide to do with that knowledge is up to you.”

“What’s got Jason to do with— Umph!” Damian didn’t give you the opportunity to finish, instead, his foot swiftly knocking you on your back, the air leaving your lungs. You were right, the fall did hurt even on the padded mat. “Why?” You groaned, accepting his had to help you back up.

“You need to improve your surroundings awareness, but we can work on that during the day. Now, copy my movements.”

You did regular warming up exercises first, until he began to swiftly swing his arms as if to punch someone, going all the way out and then snapping them back in, going slow and then gradually upping the pace. While doing so, Damian thoroughly explained the exercise —the hook punch— would help you build muscle and getting your shoulders strong.

Once Damian was satisfied with your punches, he moved on to teaching you an uppercut, a right kick, side kick and a front back kick, first doing them in the air, moving to the training dummies, to a kick pad he was holding to teach you precision.

You were spent. Your shoulders hurt with the tiniest of movements, you were sure your knuckles were slightly bleeding from under the bandages, your legs were pulsating, tiny needles pricking you everywhere.

You felt like you wanted to nap for a thousand years, while Damian was barely sweating, taking a sip of his water, another bottle left on the floor next to your head, a straw pointed at you.

Lolling your head, you took the straw into your mouth, moaning once the refreshing water touched the desert it was your lips, an oasis for your broken body.

Damian sat down next to you, legs outstretched and his arms supporting him behind him. “He likes you too.”

“Who?” You asked, unsure if the two of you had been talking about someone and your brain didn’t register it.

“Todd. I had never seen him so upset when a civilian was in danger.”

Then why hadn’t he responded to your last message? It’s not like he didn’t know where you were all day, every day, to come and talk. And as much as you would like to believe love at first sight was real, it simply wasn’t. You two hadn’t spent that much time together for him to develop any kind of feelings, you wanted to believe there’s a possibility he might consider you attractive, but that was it.

“It’s simply because he knows me. I’m sure he would’ve been the same had it been you, or Cass, or Steph.”

“It has been us already, in our line of work it is not uncommon to be held at gunpoint; he worries, of course, but not like he did with you.”

Do not listen to Damian your mind screamed. But why not? your heart begged.

“It’s… different, Dami. He knows you’re capable of taking care of yourselves, I’m just a normal person, not a vigilante. I don’t know what to do in that situation.”

“Tt. What will it be? He would’ve been the same if it was us, or he does not worry as he is aware of our capabilities? Cloud your judgment with poor reasoning as much as you want. That is not the truth.”

Why were you so hellbent on not considering the possibility that maybe, just maybe he did like you? Every time the idea crossed your mind, your pulse quickened, and you felt empty. You always thought it was nervousness, excitement, maybe even hope.

But it was quite obvious if you thought about it for more than one second; it was fear.

Fear of having your feelings reciprocated, fear of having something real and having it taking away in an instant. You don’t belong here, you’ll leave and you can’t take that love home with you; they’re going to forget you, move on like they do from every single weird plight they’re drag to every month or so, while you’ll be left hollowed out with the longing of a life you’ll never be able to have.

“Ready for tomorrow?” You changed topics, heavily lifting your body until you were sitting, legs crossed, it pained you to do the simplest of movements, slowly closing and opening your hand to try and get rid of the pain. Damian had grabbed the plastic sword again, swinging it around as if it were a real one, his strikes to the dummy getting harsher at the mention of school.

“It is just a waste of my time, time I could be spending patrolling. Father does not allow me to go out during the week. Do you know how many cases I could be helping with?”

His last strike to the dummy broke the sword, the clattering of the plastic muffled by the training mat.

“Come on, school’s not that bad. I’m sure there’s some interesting clubs you can join, why don’t you check them out tomorrow?”

“Whatever…”

He picked up the broken part of the sword, checking to see if he could probably glue it back together. He walked past you, to where you’d seen some crates positioned to the far end wall. You’d finished your water already, but with doing more exercise this night than your whole life, you wanted to drink a whole river, however, that meant getting up and walking all the way to—

“Don’t scream, bitch.” Your breath caught in your throat, the night wind cold in your face, a single lit blinking streetlight on top of you lighting up the street, the rest covered in darkness. “The boss will be happy to see you again.”

No, no, no, no. That voice, that cold, metallic barrel on the back of your head couldn’t be real, they’re gone, behind bars and with several broken bones, courtesy of Red Hood.

Where was Jason?

Jason, Jason.

JASON.

You were back on the dingy basement, blood curling screams shattering the heavy atmosphere, steps were getting closer and closer from everywhere, echoing around the dilapidating walls.

“You thought you could escape?” A voice said, warping into a raspy, warbled voice reverberating all around you, eerie and screeching. “You can’t escape from the Scarecrow.”

The disembodied voice took form, a burlap mask with black, empty eyes that never stopped looking at you, even when he had his back to you, neck twisting like an owl’s.

“This will hurt, Jane.” He grabbed your arms, screaming in your face, the hold fickle until the palms were barely touching you, your name being called over and over again, but the voice wasn’t gnarled anymore, it was distant, raspy but childish-like.

“Jane!” It called again. Your vision was blurry, unfocused, bright blue lights enveloping you, the screams fading until they turned into a constant hum you’d learned to tune out. Through your tears, blurry green eyes met yours, but those were not the ones you wanted to see, these ones were harsh, cognizant, and hopeful, hiding his panic behind a green ocean. “Jane, you are safe. You are in the Batcave. I am Damian Wayne, not the Scarecrow.”

“Damian?” He nodded. “I—What happened? I wanted more water and then… Then I was there.”

“I am not sure. You had a panic attack, but I do not know what caused it.”

You screwed your eyes shut, trying to remember what the cause could’ve been. “I felt something, on the back of my head.” With a shaking hand, you prodded behind your head, feeling nothing but your hair and sweaty neck. “That’s when I heard the voices.”

Damian’s eyes widened, biting his bottom lip, looking at something behind you, following his gaze to see the taped-up sword discarded on the floor.

“I did not know.” His voice wavered the slightest bit. “I simply wished to annoy you, but when I put the sword to your head… You froze up, trembling and begging. I did not mean to cause such a reaction.”

You took a deep breath, calming your racing heart. Damian wasn’t here when you tried to escape, and knowing how great this family was at communicating, it was safe to assume no one had informed him of the kidnapping.

It was hard to be mad at him for something it wasn’t his fault (although you wanted to, for bringing you back to that moment), hell, you didn’t even know something like this could’ve happen, and with him looking so lost, out of the loop and believing it was his fault, you could barely hold the sentiment of anger. He looked so miserable, almost as much as you did. “I did not know that could happen.” Damian whispered, more to convince himself that this was an accident than anything else, and sat down away from you, afraid he would do something else to cause another panic attack.

With your heavy arms, you opened them, inviting him to hug you. The kid was wary, getting up a couple of centimeters. “Would you please hug me?” You knew you had to make him believe he was only doing it because you were distressed —which you were, a lot—, knowing he wouldn’t do it out of his own volition for not wanting to be seen as weak. Only when you said please did he stood up, sitting next to you, his arms encircling you in a way it showed he wasn’t used to hugging people and thus didn’t know how.

You hugged him tightly, resting your head on his hair, his head burrowing on your shoulder. You needed this as much as he did.

“Where… Did you go?” His voice was soft and doubtful in a way you’d never heard him speak. “You said that you were ‘there’.”

Taking a deep breath, you began explaining to him how unsafe you felt at the begging of all this, thinking you’d been kidnapped, and how you escaped only to actually be kidnapped.

“I am not surprised Drake did not bother to explain the situation. His incompetence is not surprising.” He scoffed, a light chuckle coming out of you. Midway during the explanation, you both laid down on the floor, some bats flying on the roof from time to time. “Are you… Will you inform Grayson of what happened?”

“Hm?” You were looking at a bat perched on the ceiling, cleaning its wings.

“I will understand if you do, and I will take any punishment you deem fit for my blunder.”

“What?” You turned to look at him. “Damian, I—Yeah, I will tell him, but not to accuse you or anything, just to let him know that things like that can provoke bad flashbacks for me, but you won’t be reproved for an accident.”

He nodded, turning his gaze back to the bats. What did he had to endure to believe that he had to be punished for a mistake? For something he had no control over and had no way of knowing it would happen? From what you’d gathered, he’d been here for at least a year, maybe a bit more. It wasn’t easy to understand the way you’d been brought up wasn’t the right one, to forget everything you’d been taught to in the span of a year, but his reaction made you think that not much had changed since he moved in to the manor.

You would have to pay more attention to the way he was treated around with everyone.

The silence that came upon was disturbed the sound of a motorcycle’s engine, only one person who could belong to. You both stood up, with Damian running to the parking pad.

“Akhi.” Damian greeted him. Jason got off the bike, taking off his helmet, his soft curls were all over the place, the tips wet with sweat. Did they have a heater in here or why were you feeling warmer?

“Hey, Demon Spawn.” Despite being a harsh nickname —and one would think it was because Jason didn’t like him—, it was the opposite, a warm smirk on his face, messing up Damian’s hair. “Oh, hey, Jane, what are you two doing down here?”

“Dami’s teaching me to defend myself.”

“Mmh.” Damian agreed. “I taught her five moves; she is a quick learner. I could have taught her more, but her brittle body had to take a break. Of course, I can still go on.”

It couldn’t be a compliment from Damian if it wasn’t also veiled as an insult.

“Really? You plannin’ on joining us on patrol now?”

Despite de carefree attitude, he was slightly tense.

“Not in a million years.” You chuckled, and the deep sigh leaving his lungs did not go unnoticed. “Just in case I get taken hostage again. The universe travelling agency didn’t mention anything about high crime rates.”

“That’s Gotham for you. Hey, is Dickhead here? Got some intel about the trafficking case.”

“He’s off planet with the League.” You replied nonchalantly, when had that become a normalcy in your life? “I’ll go find Tim; Dick left him in charge.”

“I will go.” Damian quickly piped up. “He should have been here already preparing for patrol.”

Without waiting for a response, he ran towards the stairs, and up to Bruce’s office.

The little shit left you and Jason alone on purpose.

[estellan0vella]

Sunshine's Guide To Murder│Lee Minho

Chapter Twenty Four: A Fuckton Of People SS: 7 (ignore time stamps and dates) Word Count: 1.08K Content Warnings: talks of murder, talks of drug use Previous Next Masterlist

The atmosphere in the living room is charged with an almost palpable tension as everyone looks at the murder board, their expressions a mix of determination and dread. 

The whiteboard glimmers under the glow of the overhead light, illuminating the central focus, a haunting photograph of Yeji. Her image is pinned firmly to the board, and beneath it, the word DEAD is scrawled in heavy, jagged strokes of black marker, an ominous declaration of her fate. Surrounding Yeji’s picture is a chaotic collage of newspaper clippings, suspect photographs, and hastily written notes sprawling across the board like a frantic tapestry of clues and suspicions. 

Jeongin steps back, arms crossed over his chest as he assesses the board, a thoughtful frown creasing his brow. “Alright,” he begins, the frustration clear in his tone, “we’ve confirmed it wasn’t Mingi. The bastard was in custody by then.” He glances over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing. “But Ryujin, she’s an obvious suspect. Girlfriend, easy access. But what about motive? I mean, Yeji helped her cover up Yuna’s death.”

Minho, leaning forward on the couch beside Hayun, interjects, “Maybe Ryujin thought Yeji was about to stab her in the back? If she thought Yeji was getting nervous, she’d want to shut her up.”

Jisung nods, his expression grim as he picks up a photo of Ryujin and slaps it onto the board with a quick, decisive motion. “Fair point. Even if Yeji wasn’t likely to rat, Ryujin’s paranoia could have made her act. And who else should we consider? That creepy priest guy?”

Felix raises an eyebrow, scepticism in his voice. “What would the priest’s motive be? But yeah, sure, put him up there. We’re leaving no stones unturned.”

With a mischievous grin, Jisung grabs a printed photo of the priest, adding him to the ever-growing board. The faint sound of tape ripping as he sticks it in place punctuates the tension.

Hayun, leaning against the armrest, speaks up, her tone more analytical. “What about Yuna’s dad? If he found out Yeji was the one who dumped his daughter’s body in a septic tank, that’d give him a damn good reason to want her dead. He’s a cop; he’d understand exactly how to make someone disappear.”

A murmur of agreement ripples through the room, and Jisung taps his chin thoughtfully. “Yeah, if Mr. Shin believed Mingi was responsible for Yuna’s death, he’d assume Mingi would enlist someone like Yeji for the cover-up.” He scribbles “Mr. Shin” on a neon Post-it and slaps it up on the board.

Hyunjin, who’s been standing back, arms crossed as he observes, finally steps forward, his voice steady but grave. “And what about Lia? She was still on the run back then, and she’s known for holding a grudge.”

Jisung adds a new photo of Lia to the increasingly chaotic tapestry of suspects. The board is a swirling mess of faces, names, and motives, each with its own dark twist.

“Then there are Yeji’s clients,” Changbin pipes up from the couch. His voice is low, but it cuts through the noise as he leans back, arms stretched out. “She had quite a few people buying from her. Anyone in her circle could have wanted her gone.”

Jeongin makes a note, scrawling A FUCK TON OF PEOPLE and slapping it beside Yeji’s photo. A shared glance between everyone confirms the grim truth: Yeji wasn’t exactly winning any popularity contests.

Hyunjin raises an eyebrow, throwing out another theory. “Or it could have been someone connected to one of her clients—someone with a grudge. Think about it: they might have blamed Yeji for what happened to someone they cared about.”

Jisung lets out a half-laugh, rolling his eyes as he scribbles another A FUCK TON OF PEOPLE on a fresh Post-it and pins it up beside the others. The sheer number of suspects is overwhelming, each connected by a web of lies, betrayals, and deep-seated grudges.

Seungmin, who’s been sitting off to the side, shakes his head, his voice laced with dry humour. “So, basically… a fuck ton of people wanted Yeji dead?”

Minho sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Pretty much,” he mutters, sounding both exasperated and resigned.

Hayun, watching the board with a critical eye, leans forward, her expression sharpening. “But we’re missing one angle.” She picks up a Post-it, writing ACCIDENT in bold letters before pinning it next to Yeji’s photo. “We all know Yeji got paranoid as hell when she was high. Every time I’d get high at her place, it was like walking on eggshells. What if she went to check on Yuna’s body in the tank while she was high… and accidentally fell in?”

There’s a moment of silence as everyone considers this new possibility. Jisung shrugs, though he doesn’t look entirely convinced. “Worth putting up there. If it turns out to be that simple… honestly, I’d be relieved.”

Felix, his brows knit together in thought, leans in. “Wait, when did they find Yuna’s body? Just over a week ago, right?”

Seungmin nods. “That’s what the news reports said.”

Hyunjin clears his throat, looking more serious than usual. “Right. And according to the pathology report, Yeji died less than twenty-four hours before they found her body in the tank with Yuna.” He digs into his bag, pulling out printed photos of the report. “Since I’m her next of kin, I had to identify her. Managed to snap a few photos of the report when they left me alone with it.”

He hands the photos to Hayun, who scans them carefully. “It says here she had molly in her system.” She pins the report to the board, then rips down her ACCIDENT note, her face hardening.

Seungmin raises an eyebrow, curious. “Wait, if she was high, wouldn’t that support the accident theory? Why take that down?”

Hayun shakes her head, her expression tense. “Because the report also says her lungs were clear. If she’d fallen in alive, there would be tank water in her lungs. She was dead before she was put in there.”

Minho nods grimly. “Dead people don’t crawl into septic tanks on their own.”

Seungmin lets out a low whistle, rubbing his temples. “Alright. So someone definitely put her in there after killing her. The question is, who hated Yeji enough to do that?”

They all stare at the board, at the messy, chaotic array of photos, notes, and lines connecting suspects, each tangled in a web of secrets. The silence stretches, heavy with the weight of what they’re up against, until one by one, they murmur the grim truth in unison.

“A fuck ton of people.”

Taglist: @hityoulikebahng @drewsandsebastianswife @fackeraccount @lily-loves-kpop @stilldontknowhoiam

@ziggy1221 @justaspoonofjam @tr-mha-fan @candycurshidkwhatthehell

@heeseungspookie @smigcrazy @skzstannie @nightmarenyxx @beaann

[folkloresthings]

Pride and prejudice - seb with cruel summer 🫣 bridge suits him SO MUCH it should be illegal

can i just say ty to all of the anons sending seb requests you’re the backbone of our society. can’t wait to write them all!

CRUEL SUMMER. ❨ sebastian vettel x reader ❩

✩⡱ warnings: allusion to sex but no actual smut. age gap if you squint.

maybe it was the heat, you thought to yourself, making you feel like this. stuck on a yacht in the french riviera, you tried to distract yourself with your friends. but he was there, and he was so handsome and older and wiser. but sebastian vettel was trouble.

still, every evening after dinner, you found yourself disappearing below deck to him, letting him kiss you until you ran out of breath. he was a good kisser, too good, and knew just which buttons to press to make you give in.

“seb, we can’t,” you whisper, shaking. “everyone’s just upstairs, they’ll hear.”

you played this game every night, receiving some kind of smart quip from sebastian as he sank to his knees in front of you. and every time, he’d look up and grin devilishly as he disappeared between your thighs.

as soon as you arrived back on deck, it was like nothing had happened. you made your excuses and went back to your friends, and sebastian would only steal glances and brushing touches in passing.

one night, you’d all headed on land to a club that lewis recommend. sebastian hadn’t stopped staring at you in a dress that left little to the imagination (not that he needed much of an imagination). at the club, he may as well have been a stranger. you watched from the bar as he danced with a beautiful girl, being too drunk to notice how her hands were wandering over him.

in the taxi, you’d cried into isa’s arms, not giving her or charlotte a reason why. they knew, of course they knew. they’d be fools not to notice how you looked at sebastian. when the boys’ taxi pulled in behind you, you dried your eyes and looked away when carlos asked if you were okay.

“i’m fine,” you assured, avoiding sebastian’s stare and letting charlotte hold your hand as you hurried back to the boat.

he found you on the deck later that night, when everyone else was fast asleep. your legs were pulled up to your chest, chin resting on your knees, looking out to the dark waves on the horizon. he said nothing, sitting quietly beside you.

“i’m sorry,” sebastian admits after a moment of listening to your soft sniffles. you don’t dare look over to him, knowing how you’ll give in when you do. “please, talk to me.”

“i love you,” you’re saying it before you have the sense to stop yourself. you look at him then, because it’s out there, there’s no stopping it. “is that the worst thing you’ve ever heard?”

sebastian shakes his head, the ghost of a sad smile pulling at his lips. “no,” he whispers, reaching out to touch your cheek.

you sigh, leaning into his warm hand. he doesn’t return the words, and you know what it means. he loves you, he does, but he’s afraid. so are you, but you’re trying.

“i… i don’t want to keep secrets,” you tell him, voice quiet and taken away by the cool night air. “even if it means i get to keep you.”

sebastian winces, feeling you slip away from him. he doesn’t want to lose you, but the prospect of giving this relationship, everything that he has, up for the world to ogle at — he can’t face it. to have you is to lose you, he can’t seem to win.

summer was cruel like that. it gave you heaven only to take it away when the leaves turned. or maybe, it was just love that was cruel. and you, it’s sweet victim.

[uniquevoidflowers]

For @mad-navi

I was that anon ask for this post: https://www.tumblr.com/mad-navi/764169572942233600/if-someone-were-to-write-you-something-lu-what?source=share

I tried to combine all the tropes you gave me so here's the finished story.

Word count: 9241

“Who’s era is this?” Wind exclaimed.

Time swallowed a lump in his throat when he recognized his surroundings. A town in the centre, a vast field surrounding it. A swamp, a mountain, an ocean, and a valley. He still wasn’t sure what Termina was. Another country? A different dimension? A dream? Although going through that portal had felt very real. He cleared his throat from sudden roughness. “It’s mine.”

“Doesn’t look like what we saw,” Four muttered under his breath, eyes flashing violet for a moment.

The old man decided to pretend he didn’t hear that. “We’ll head to the town, considering they have the most rumours about mostly anything. If we want to find information about our quest, we’ll find it there.”

“No castle?” Warriors raised a brow.

“Save your questions,” Time replied tiredly. “This isn’t Hyrule.”

Everybody’s expressions turned to vaguely confused to some curious, some understanding. They wandered closer and it was...odd to see no scary-faced moon looming over Clocktown, but something settled in his gut, calming him a little. He walked to the first entrance he found and a soldier pointed a spear at him, expression hidden by his helmet. Time flinched. “What—“

“We’re not accepting visitors now! Leave!”

“And why is that?” Warriors stepped in. “We may be armed, but we have no intention of hurting anyone.”

“Clocktown’s business is none of yours. This is your last warning to get out of here!”

Time sighed. “Alright. Just send word to Anju and Kafei that Link was here.”

The old man corralled everyone and led them away. Twilight eyed him with concern in his beast-like blue eyes. “Why are we leaving?”

“Whatever crisis going on is our business but we’re going to get nowhere by arguing with a soldier. If something is going on in the town...we better check everywhere else too.”

He saw the forest, that hid the huge swamp and headed towards it, the others wordlessly following in suit. As the sun disappeared, the trees overhead covering it, Time adjusted to sudden darkness. He heard someone panting and turned around, confused. They hadn’t been walking too long, he thought. Sky started wheezing, stopping to try and pick up his breath. The skyloftian had a history of low energy and breathing problems. He had told them it was probably because of altitude differences. “Here,” Wild offered him a potion that was the colour of the sky when it was bright out.

Sky gave a grateful nod and gulped the liquid down, wincing but stuffing the rest in his pocket. Time thought not much of it, considering this was unfortunately a pattern. Soon though, more coughing and hacking filled the air, and he found himself doing so as well. The air turned thicker, and sour and it became more than just breathing problems. Warriors narrowed his eyes and covered his mouth and nose with his scarf, and Time realized they would need to turn back. He rushed everyone out, carrying the skyloftian who had scarily collapsed, falling unconscious. Time’s heart pounded against his chest wildly. The Deku Scrubs...the monkeys and the witches...are they okay?

For what its worth, though Termina wasn’t a great experience and he’d never wished to return, he still cared about it. Those kind people who’d helped him as a kid, even though it seemed impossible for him to save a land from impending doom. In many ways it was...

ADFADF—

He shook himself out of it. Now was not the time. They reached out of the forest, and fresh air returned to them. He set the chosen hero down, and turned to the others, expression grim. “I’ll go in alone. Captain, can I borrow your scarf?”

There were loud protests in response, the captain included.

Time raised a hand, getting a bit irritated. “I know what I’m doing, and I’m quite capable. Someone needs to figure out what’s going on and I do not want a repeat of what just happened. There is no way anyone else is going there alone.”

“Take someone with you,” The captain demanded. “What happens if you don’t return?”

Before Time could reply, Legend raised a hand. “I’ll go. Before any of you ask, this needs to be handled responsibly.”

Silence followed and the old man merely gave a nod. If anyone he could bring the veteran hero with him, the most experienced of all of them. Perhaps he had an experience with poisonous air such as this and could help. “Someone can use my pelt,” Twilight offered.

“You alright with the vet taking it?”

“...Yeah, sure.”

That wasn’t very convincing but Time didn’t feel like pointing it out when there was a situation they absolutely had to solve. The veteran took the pelt and the old man took the long scarf and they headed inside, fabric draped over their faces. It was almost comical how big the pelt was over Legend. The veteran looked at him and rolled his eyes, likely seeing the amusement. They didn’t say a word though, for fear of the air getting into their lungs somehow. It would’ve been muffled by the fabric anyway. They got deeper and Time stopped the vet from stepping in the shallow swamp water. He yanked damp grass out of the ground, and put it in the water. When it remained as well as it could be he stepped in. When seeing the veteran’s confused expression he signed, “Last time it was poisoned.”

Confusion molded into understanding as they set forth. The witches’ hut stood tall and he gestured for his companion to follow him in. Kotake saw them enter and stared into his eyes, narrowing her wrinkled yellow eyes. “You seem quite familiar, young lad.”

Time has to fight the urge to draw his sword. The Twinrova...I forgot the witches were them...

“I came here once or twice,” He responded eventually, pulling down the scarf and being relieved to feel nothing in his throat.

“I can’t place your name, but you’re armed I see...perhaps you can help us?”

Koume nodded along gravely. Legend pulled down the pelt after a bit of struggling. “We came here to help. We noticed the poison in the air and was hoping to figure out what was going on.”

“Wonderful. You see, ever since the change in the air arrived, we’ve been forced to spend our days here, and it won’t be long before we run out of resources. We don’t get visitors around here and aren’t able to sustain ourselves,” Kotake explained. “If you two could go and fix things, I promise a reward.”

“What reward?” Koume grumbled and Kotake ignored her.

“We will,” Time agreed.

“Good boys!” Kotake crowed. “If you need our help, just come back! We’ll be here...”

The old man tightened the scarf around his mouth and nose once more and climbed out. Their best bet would be heading to the Deku Palace. The path there was more familiar than it should’ve been. When he was there last, he had taken to memorizing the route after countless loops. Rewinds using the cursed ocarina. Soon they reached it. A tall wooden structure made of logs, painted red on the bottom and green on the top, a white line separating them. Spikes covered the very top, along with shrubbery. The entrance was securely guarded by two Deku Scrubs. He sighed, and signed his plan to the boy beside him. The vet took the scarf, clutching it tightly, and Time slipped on the Deku Scrub Mask before the thick air could get into him. He felt the sorrow and couldn’t help but scream, anguish filling him with pain. It was the sorrow of the son of a butler, who had died alone, away from his father, his sweet princess. The vet looked on, wide-eyed and quickly wrapped the scarf around his mouth.

He hadn’t missed the feeling of putting on those masks, but he had a feeling that he would have to get used to it again.

They hurried up to the entrance, walking on raft-like platforms to get to the guards. “Halt! Human must leave.”

“He’s a friend of mine,” Time insisted. “He helped me get here.”

The guards looked at each other, skeptical. Legend narrowed his eyes. “See, I came here because this swamp is overtaken by poisonous air and I wanted to help with it.”

“By King’s orders, no one but Deku Scrubs may enter. Leave.”

Time gave the vet a helpless look and went inside, Legend huffing and pretending to leave. Time knew he wouldn’t go far without him. Inside, he walked past doors, heading straight ahead. The walls were stripes of green, white, and red, the sky hanging over him. Getting to the throne room was easier than last time. The King and the Princess sat on two thrones, the butler looking grim. “Your Majesty,” Time started. “Will you grant me permission to discuss an issue with you?”

The Princess gave her father a look, and the King sighed. “Yes, you may go ahead.”

“There’s a poison of some sorts polluting the air in the swamp and—“

“That is no issue,” The King interrupted. “How did you not know about this?”

“I apologize, I’ve been off travelling for a while now and just came back recently. What did you mean its not an issue? Residents living in the swamp are forced to stay inside their homes.”

The princess’s eyes grew solemn, tears welling up. “We polluted the air so no one can hurt us any longer.”

The King leapt out of his seat, stomping on the ground angrily. “Those nasty humans have only done us harm! I would take care of them myself if it wouldn’t cause my people plight!”

“What did the humans do?” Time started to sound riled up, even though he could only feel clueless at the moment.

The butler stepped over. “Our little saplings were stolen one night. A creature of black and red came in and revealed that the humans had wanted them to study. We were wary. We did not trust the creature. Why should we, after the human Link rescued me and our waters, and visiting humans were mostly kind? It warned us that the humans were planning to...oh, how do I put this into words...”

“They were planning to burn our homes!” The princess wailed.

“What?!”

“Sure enough, the princess’s room was burning the next morning,” The butler explained. “She barely escaped to tell the tale. Now some of her most sacred possessions are but ashes.”

Humans did this? A creature of black and red...hm...

“If I told you I could bring Link here, would you let him in?” Time asked cautiously.

The princess brightened. “Father, please. He did so much for us.”

The King looked at his daughter and softened for only a moment before agreeing. “I suppose so. Bring him in.”

“Alright. I will warn you he has grown older, so he doesn’t look the same as you last saw him.”

He came outside and found a spot to take off the mask, before heading back in. “Is that you, Link?” The princess asked.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Link never spoke though. How do I know you’re not some pretender?”

“I can tell you that you told me of your undying love for the Deku butler’s son. You spoke of him always hurrying to make you happy...that was what made him meet his end.”

The princess hurried up to him and pleaded, “Won’t you help us? Some of my items were irreplaceable but you might be able to save the saplings!”

He was careful not to mention that he wasn’t welcome in Clocktown right now, and he just nodded. “You have my word.”

“Now leave!” The King barked.

Time went outside and found Legend, who straightened up upon seeing him. “So, what’s going on?”

He explained and the veteran’s eyes lit up in recognition. “Do you think this black and red creature could be the Shadow we are chasing? Maybe the humans are innocent.”

“We will not know until we get inside the town.”

After weaving their way through the swamp, and relaying the information once again to the others, they began to think of a plan. Sky roused, and was fussed over, given a blue potion for safe measure. They could try and sneak in the town, but the champion grimaced and informed them towns like these had impossibly tight watch. Time wasn’t certain that could work. They could move on to another location, but they might reach another dead-end instead. Eventually, they came to the conclusion that attempting to get in the town normally might be the best idea, sneaking in as a last resort. The captain happily took his scarf back, more relaxed with it secured around his neck. Time’s curiosity got the best of him and he hesitantly asked, “Where did you get that scarf?”

Warriors tensed but saw it was him and gave a small, soft laugh. “My mother made this for me. I was the youngest of soldiers, maybe around 14 or so. The day I managed to get in, the Princess herself recognized my skills, and I was promoted to a captain after a couple of fights. Not a war mind you, but people thought of it as impressive. My mom told me that even if we don’t see each other often, that she’ll always be with me, and she gave me this. I never let go of it during the war.”

Time patted his shoulder, with a pained smile. “Your skill is commendable, both in earning a promotion like that, and in keeping on fighting even knowing you’d see your loved ones less. I hope you know how incredible that is.” Even if you were so young...

“Thank you.”

“We’re here,” The traveller informed them, recognizing the walls of the town.

Time drew in a deep breath and tried another entrance. After being denied he tried reasoning. “I’m Link. I used to be the boy that saved this town from the crashing moon, remember?”

The others blinked, surprised by the mention of the moon.

“Hey old man, what’s the biggest thing you’ve ever fought?”

“The moon.”

“Who?” The soldier asked, raising a brow.

“Nevermind,” Time muttered, defeated until he spotted a purple-haired man with gleaming red eyes. “Kafei! It’s me! Link!”

The soldier held the spear to his neck, glaring. “Get out of he—“

Kafei’s eyes widened and he hurried over. The soldier hesitated, dropping the spear for a moment. “You know him?”

“Is it that you, Link?” Kafei asked. “Last time I saw you, you were only a child.”

He heard the others sigh in relief and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He just nodded back at the man in front of him. “How are you and Anju faring?”

“Very well,” Kafei smiled, a fond, love-sick smile. “I could never forget what you’ve done for Anju and I. We may have never seen each other again if not for you.”

“It was a pleasure. Now, I have business in town, and I’m not sure why I’m being refused entry. Do you know why?”

“Oh...yes. Come on to my place and we can discuss it further.”

Time gave him an odd look. The soldier narrowed his eyes. “Look, man—“

“He’s a great friend of mine, okay? He can be trusted,” Kafei reassured.

“The thing is I have a group with me. It’s okay if they can’t come to your place, but could I get them rooms at the inn?”

“Group? Uh, I don’t think so. Sorry man.”

Time gave them a tired look and they all nodded. The skyloftian smiled. “We’ll set up camp. It’s alright.”

“Except for the kids,” The soldier cut in. “We won’t deny kids a good sleep at an inn.”

“...Kids?”

“Well the one with the green headband, and the one with the lobster shirt.”

Four blinked but didn’t say anything, and Wind pouted slightly. Time just gave them an amused smile and nodded. They went inside and the old man gave them lodging at the inn. Anju smiled happily. “I never thought I’d get business so soon. Has anything changed?”

“No,” Kafei kissed her cheek and Time would admit, it only made a feeling grow of missing the woman he loved. “But Link’s back. He has these kids.”

“Oh?”

Time laughed. “These two aren’t blood-related to me but I do have a wife.”

Four scowled and Wind looked mildly surprised. Kafei led Time away and sighed once they sat down on a couple of chairs in his house. “We don’t allow visitors anymore because of what they did to us. The Deku Scrubs came and chased people out of our town square, demanding saplings. The Zora came and vandalized the town, blaming us for apparently ‘wreaking havoc’ among them. The Gorons stopped communicating and trading with us. Skeletons popped up out of the ground, claiming vengeance for something they didn’t elaborate on...it’s been a tiring few weeks for us. The mayor was worried letting anymore people in could cause more damage.”

“Hmmm, and you’re sure none of you did anything of the sort?” Time hummed.

Kafei shook his head. “The town was searched by the guards. We don’t have anything and no one admits to doing anything.”

“I know what happened to the Deku Scrubs, though the Gorons, Zora and skeletons I have no clue about. The Deku Scrubs had their saplings stolen. From what I understand that’s basically their babies. They told me...a creature of sorts, black and red, blamed humans for it.”

“That’s...strange. What can we do to prove our innocence for it?”

“I was planning to find those saplings and give them back to their parents...Once I get them back, perhaps we can discover who stole them and prove the town had nothing to do with it. Then I can explore Zora Hall, Goron Mountain and Ikana Valley for answers. I have a group who are just as skilled as me, that can help me.”

Kafei relaxed slightly. “You’re a life-saver. This town doesn’t feel as lively and Anju’s going to run out of business soon...”

“Much is at stake,” Time agreed. “I’m not one to flee from danger.”

“That much hasn’t changed. You said you had a wife? Tell me, who’s the lucky gal? And how have things been going elsewhere? I know you don’t live in Termina.”

“I’ll tell you once this is all over. I’m afraid there’s not much time.”

“Well...alright then. I’ll see you later?”

“Hopefully.”

He made it back to Four and Wind who were sitting in the inn, matching scowls on their faces. It was almost crazy how identical they looked. Time hummed, making sure his presence was known. “What’s going on?”

“They won’t let us out of town. They said we should go back to our parents because we’re ‘children’ and ‘don’t need to go out into danger’,” Four seethed. “I’m sixteen for the love of the Minish.”

Wind nodded but the scowl faltered for a moment as a glint lit up in brown eyes. “Er, and they called him a little missus.”

Time blinked while Four glared daggers at the sailor, nudging him. The old man shook his head with an incredulous smile. “We’ll spend the night, because I have to start figuring out where to go to find these saplings...if you could find me a map...”

“On it,” Wind saluted and pulled the smithy away.

______________________________________________________

“The traveller and I are off,” Time called. “Captain, go along with the champion to the Zoras, and the sailor and skyloftian can head to the Gorons. The rest of you go to Ikana Valley. See if you can get any information. The rest of you can keep watch for the Shadow around the field. There’s plenty of spots you can uncover.”

Once they gave them their assent he started towards the ocean. He would search for the Gerudo of Termina once more, to see if they had what he was looking for.

The Zora coughed wetly. “They took it...Lulu’s egg...I-I have failed.”

He clenched his fists and started walking away. Hyrule followed, silent until the old man felt a tap on his shoulder.

“Hey, are you okay? It might not be my place to ask, but you seem...tenser than usual.”

Time sighed. “I’ll be alright. I’ve gone to great lengths to rescue this land, even if it caused me bad memories. To hear something’s happening...I just worry.”

It was a half-truth. He did feel that way but...he was more angry because of the Gerudo thieves of Termina. Hyrule gave a nod. “We’ll do what we can. I...get that. Did you know Hyrule wasn’t where I was born?”

“Oh?”

“I was born in a kingdom called Calatia, that borders it. Hyrule now is actually called Lesser Hyrule, and most Calatians don’t bother to come anymore. My parents sent me there to explore, saying their ancestors lived there and they trusted me to figure things out. They didn’t know the land was filled to the brim with monsters, and how little resources there were. I managed to get to one of the towns and get myself a place to stay. I couldn’t go back...I can’t...I was set on making my parents proud...and...they passed while I was away. I don’t have a home to go back to.”

Time’s shock must be present on his face because the traveller chuckles dryly. “I’m not looking for pity by telling this story. Hyrule became important to me, even if its not what it once was. So, I understand your worry. We’ll save Termina...This land isn’t Lesser Hyrule and you know this place already, unlike me.”

“Thank you. Caring for a land broken and beaten is commendable. I admire your strength throughout what has happened to you.”

“O-oh well...I had to make do, you know?”

“Hm. While we’re heading there, tell me about your Hyrule. I’m rather curious hearing you talk about it.”

The traveller eventually started. “Well, there’s not much wild-life. If there is, they’re constantly hunted for food that people are desperate for. I never hunt, I usually buy some from the lucky few that have it. My Zeldas are doing what they can but its not easy. Ah, sorry. It’s easy to look at the negative things, but there’s plenty to love about my Hyrule. The knights are trained especially well, and so are the people in villages, so most monsters can be taken care of without my help. Kids, get trained to find the easier monsters, although to have them trained is entirely up to their parents. The kids like to wander off, so most parents do have them prepared if they meet any monsters along the path. All the towns gather near the castle to celebrate Ganon defeated, and there are tons of different festivals. They’re a lot of fun, I have got to show you sometime.”

Time blinked, feeling his stomach squeeze. Kids?

The boy in front of him continued, oblivious. “The castle isn’t open to strangers, but if it was people would like it, I think. There’s these flowers in beds in the courtyard that I really like. They’re called Coneflowers I think. There are different colours but I see mostly pink in the castle. They’re some of the only ones who can thrive out there. We have tons of tales to tell as well, because uh, we all really enjoy telling stories, and though they can have some dark themes I find them fun to read. I collected a lot during my journey, because there’s not much else to do during the night. Can’t sleep much cause I need to make sure nothing kills me, but I can’t necessarily continue on in the dark of night when more monsters appear. Books were very comforting.”

Time needed the kid to switch to something else. Of course, he acknowledged the good parts of the conversation but every word seemed to make his heart ache a little more. He patted Hyrule’s shoulder with a pained smile. “Tell me more about those Zeldas of yours...there’s more than one.”

He launched into an explanation about the story of how he woke a sleeping princess from a long, long slumber, explaining how it was his second quest, and the first time he encountered the Triforce. When he finished the old man managed to smirk a little. “And just how did you wake up this sleeping princess?”

The traveller blushed profusely. “Uh, well there’s the second Zelda that I haven’t told you about—“

“With a kiss?”

“NO! I mean, yes, but it’s not like that! Dawn, would be so upset if it did...”

“Dawn?”

Hyrule turned a deeper red. “Uh...”

Time chuckled, clapping him on the back. “You can tell me all about this girlfriend of yours later. We’ve arrived at the ocean. Can you swim?”

“N-no,” Hyrule mumbled, shooting him a glare.

“Alright. Well, I’ll lend you...” Time froze.

Could he really give Hyrule such a mask? Let him face the anguish of the mask echoing a dead spirit? He took a deep breath. “I’ll lend you the Zora armour. It should help you breathe, and then you can hang onto me, alright?”

A pirate ship sailed in the distance, which was funny, because it was destroyed last time he was here. A new one, huh?

All the more reason to check it out.

Time put the mask on, enduring the endless sorrow poured onto him and then grabbed Hyrule and swam as a Zora, getting through the water swiftly. Coral, of multiple colours and long bouts of seaweed that stood tall whirled past him, and a sudden thrill made him smile. Of course he kept a tight grip on the boy clutching onto him, but it was impossible not to laugh and feel the water brush against him as he hurried along. He remembered it making him sick as a child. Now it brought him joy. Once they reached the pirate ship the joy was wiped away like it had never been there in the first place. Time brought Hyrule up to a platform, ripping off the mask and stepping in. The boat was wooden, littered with lanterns that glowed dimly. Various shelves of random junk sat on the walls. It wasn’t a whole punch of puzzles and boss-fights this time. No, it was a long winding pathway, going up and up. Soon, he found himself lost. Hyrule groaned. “I wish the sailor were here.”

“Why?”

“He said he’s a pirate. If anyone he’d be able to figure this out.”

“Hmm...I do wonder if this is just specific to the thieves here though.”

“True.”

“I had to swing from one light to another without falling to the rough boards below me. I held on to the lights for me dear life!” Wind told them all, eyes lit up with a light that never failed to warm people’s hearts. “A time-limit was placed on me as well! No time could I waste clinging onto them, I had to be quick!”

Time rubbed his head, silent for a moment before ushering his companion forward again.

________________________________________________________

“Intruders!” A Gerudo hissed. “You’ll learn that we don’t take kindly to people storming inside our boat.”

Time resisted the urge to retort something back and drew his sword. “I don’t want to make this rough, but I have heard that the Deku Scrubs saplings have been taken. I don’t know what possessed you to steal something like that, but you’ll learn, that I don’t take kindly to this degree of thievery.”

“What saplings?” The Gerudo’s face screwed up.

“Don’t play dumb with me!”

“Wait,” Hyrule stopped the old man. “If you don’t know what saplings have been taken then you won’t mind if we search the boat, right? I know we haven’t done anything to earn your trust, but we can clear your name. We’re trying to help the Deku Scrubs.”

“As long as you get us something in return, we’ll let you,” Another Gerudo piped up.

“Aveil, my lady, what—“

“A Zora egg,” Aveil smirked, a long scar stretching down her face from the last time they met. “I want a Zora egg in compensation for the privacy you’re about to breach by searching this boat.”

“So you do have the saplings,” Time narrowed his eye.

“No, I have no desire for a sapling of all things. Since you won’t believe us though, we can make a deal.”

Hyrule looked alarmed. “A Zora egg? I know next to nothing about them but isn’t that—“

“We don’t have a deal. I’m willing to give you something else though,” Time dug through his bag, feeling the rough edge of a gem.

“Pray tell.”

“I have golden rupees. Multiple of them. I will give them to you as compensation. Deal?”

“...How many golden rupees are we talking?”

“I believe I have three.”

“More,” Another Gerudo murmured. “Five would be enough for us all, Aveil.”

“I don’t have five, and I won’t be able to get five,” Time countered, irritated.

“Well, three gold rupees and a silver,” Aveil decided. “If you cannot give us that, we will kill you for trespassing.”

“A pirate’s word is word. If you make a deal with me, I expect the exact thing I asked for. Anything less and...” Wind trailed off, as the old man handed him some rupees. “Of course the same isn’t for family. Don’t worry.”

Time started to sweat as he looked through his bag, swords pointed at his throat. There wasn’t a single silver rupee in there. He glanced at the traveller who took the chance to dig through his bag, but no one was pointing swords at him. He stopped to give a look at Hyrule who realized what he could do and he rained thunder down upon Aveil, eyes flashing with the same golden light as the lightning that poured forth from the heavens. The Gerudo pointing their swords at him rushed to defend their leader, giving Time an entrance to defeat them. They eventually fled, and Hyrule panted, looking wide-eyed. “They’ll be back.”

“Hmmm...maybe. I see you’re exhausted though. We’ll do a quick search then leave and rest okay?”

“Fine with me.”

Their search bore no fruit, no saplings anywhere to be found no matter how much they turned things over and rummaged through barrels and whatnot. Time gritted his teeth. “Guess it’s not here.”

“All that fuss,” Hyrule muttered.

“Well, I’d say it’s better we checked anyway. One place we know doesn’t have any saplings. I did find Goron drums though, which I took because it’s odd they’re there.”

“You sure they stole it?”

“These Gerudo are thieves. They stole Zora eggs once before.”

Hyrule fell silent as they got out of the ship. The traveller rested, considering the thunder spell he had used, and then they met back with the others. When asked, he shook his head. “Nothing from the area I thought would have them. We’ve got to search elsewhere. What have you all got?”

The captain looked at the champion sternly who glared back. “Well, if it weren’t for recklessness, we would’ve gotten better results. But, the Zoras didn’t trust us with any information after he accidentally destroyed something of theirs. I did learn though, that their home was somewhat ruined and something else destroyed, but that was all I could gather.”

Time hummed, opening his mouth but shutting it again. Disconnect between these two. He gave a stern look towards both of them. “While you may have prevented us from getting information, it was unintentional, so don’t beat yourself over it. Captain, thank you for gathering what you could.”

“He hasn’t stopped talking about it,” Wild snapped. “It was an accident.”

“All I did was scold you because you need to be more careful. We didn’t know the land. We may have ruined our chances with the Zora.”

“Captain, champion—“

“I am careful! Do you think I haven’t learned my lesson? I’ve ruined a lot of things,” Wild’s voice broke.

Twilight bared his teeth, stepping in. Warriors shook his head. “Not careful enough. For the record, at least you haven’t been breaking many weapons. Keep your hands to yourself. If you want to talk about it, we can talk later.”

“I’ve been doing what I can! You can’t blow up at me for making a mistake like this! If you want to throw blame around, why didn’t you stop me from making a mistake? Why are you being such a hypocrite?!”

“How am I a hypocrite of all things?”

“Have you been careful with our strategies lately? No. Have you been careful with what you say? I didn’t think so.”

“Break it up,” Twilight rumbled. “The cook with me, the captain with the old man.”

Time strayed to the back of the group. He chewed his lip, wanting to say something but deciding against it. The captain looked miffed. He could sort of understand where both groups were coming from. Warriors was upset because they could’ve come back with more information and he didn’t want a repeat of it. Wild was upset because he didn’t like the constant scolding about it after he had made a mistake. It had probably grown more intense after that. He sighed. “Well, sailor? Chosen? Anything to report?”

“Oh, yes,” Sky cleared his throat. “The Gorons weren’t angry. Very miserable though. The elder was kidnapped, and so was his heir, so they don’t really know what to do.”

“Kidnapped?” Time echoed, blinking back shock.

“Yeah, it was kinda crazy. Everyone just stayed in their homes, worrying. ‘specially cuz’ the heir was a baby of the Gorons,” Wind chimed in.

Oh. Poor kid.

He put a hand through his hair. “Any other news to report?”

“Ikana Valley was...” Four shuddered. “Something else. Some thief tried to talk us into giving them something and got terribly angry when we didn’t.”

“That wasn’t what we gathered, though. There was a girl and her father, and they told us a part of the valley’s just gone...Wiped out in a couple hours,” Legend cut in, grimacing.

“Which part?” Time asked.

“Uh, I think it was the graveyard and around it.”

“Oh...”

“Yeah, the undead have been leaving the valley, but new monsters have taken homes there,” Twilight added. “The girl and her father were concerned.”

Time took a moment to take in all the information given to him. “Even though I don’t like it, we might have to search the villages for the saplings. If they aren’t there, then we’ll have to assume that creature framed the humans and stole them itself.”

“The Shadow...” The smithy realized. “Could it have come here and caused all this?”

“It’s very possible. However, we don’t know where the Shadow is, and we won’t know unless we start searching.”

“Right.”

“We’ll start with Ikana Valley.”

They began to walk and Wild seemed a bit downcast. The rancher was talking to the veteran, occupied by something and didn’t notice. Time hummed, and turned to the captain who was chatting with the traveller about something. He sped up and put a hand on Wild’s shoulder. Wild jumped and looked over, before relaxing a little. “...Hello?”

“Are you alright, Cub?”

“...I’m 117 and I’m getting angry over this, when the captain’s right. I’m a failure.”

“Hey. I don’t think he means that. I think he just wants to keep us all safe, and avoid recklessness when it comes to these things. Don’t use your real age as an excuse, how many of those years did you truly live?”

“...17?” Wild tried.

“Was that you or him?” Time said gently.

“Him,” Wild replied, sounding frustrated. “But I remember some things of his life and its confusing whether I think of it as a completely different person, or my own experiences. Did you know there was a Zora Princess who fell in love with me? She thread armour by hand to give to me as a proposal. She died before she could give it to me...and now I wonder if she looks at who I’ve become and still loves me? I mean, if she was still alive, I think I would love her. But she’s not. Does my worrying even matter?”

“If she truly loved you, I think she would still love you after everything that’s happened. I think the fact that you’re worrying about it shows me how much you care about others.”

“...Really?”

“Yes. Don’t let failure bring you down because we all fail in our lives. Yes, you probably should have been more careful but it was an accident.”

Wild sighed. “Thanks.”

Time squeezed his shoulder and looked back at the captain. “You should talk to him. The captain.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. It’s only going to get worse if you avoid it. You don’t have to do it now, of course, but sometime later.”

“Is that Tingle?” Wind gave an incredulous cry before Wild could respond.

Time’s face screwed up, realizing Tingle was supposed to be elsewhere, deeper in. “...Yes. He sells maps, although I’m not sure how useful they’ll prove because he sells them for other areas.”

“He looks familiar but I can’t quite place where I’ve seen him,” Legend mumbled.

Four blinked. “Oh the guy obsessed with Force Gems. Always stole them from me.”

“Great,” Time said sarcastically. “Tingle appears more than once.”

“Does anyone know a merchant named Beedle?” Sky asked hesitantly. “I thought of that time when I that I saw him in the cook’s Hyrule.”

Wild, Wind and Four raised their hands. Time groaned. “I hate time shenanigans.”

Everyone burst out laughing at the irony of it. The old man bemoaned, “Oh, hush.”

They went inside Ikana Valley. Termina wasn’t that big of a country considering the size of Hyrule. Well, he guessed that depended on the era. Tingle, a man in a pointy green bodysuit with a red belt and a clock necklace looked at their group and instead of having to pop the red balloon that kept him up, he popped his own and landed gracefully in front of them. “What’s this? A group of people with green clothes? Emanating strange magic? Sirs, could you by chance be forest fairies? Oh my! My name is Tingle! I think I am the same as you all.”

The old man resisted the urge to snort. If only he knew...

“Alas, though I am already age 35, no fairy has come to me yet...My father tells me to grow up and act my age, but why? I tell you...Tingle is the very reincarnation of a fairy!”

Twilight’s face scrunched up, and the traveller looked mildly offended.

“Now while I stand here waiting for a fairy of my own, I sell maps to help out my father. If you know where any fairies are please tell me! We’ll be great friends! Yes! Yes! I’ll sell you a map for cheaper now as a sign of my friendship. Will you buy one of Tingle’s maps?”

“We’re okay,” Time denied before any of them could speak up. “I have a good layout of the land, thank you.”

“...Fine, fine,” Tingle grumbled. “Oh, before you go, Tingle no longer sells Ikana Valley maps. Anywhere. Toodle-oo!”

They walked away, and Time led them through, checking every little cave and the Stone Tower. He never liked this tower, always hating the feel of it and how scared it made him feel. As an adult, he could safely say the feeling had lessened, but was still there. In the end, he got no results. He had no idea what to do about Ikana Valley’s issue, so he ushered the group out and they travelled to the Gorons. “I doubt they have saplings, but we might be able to find a trace of the missing elder and his son,” He had explained.

When confronted, the Gorons just shrugged miserably. So they searched. Sky asked if they had anything of theirs and someone held up a rattle, red in colour with the pattern of Din lined across it. The skyloftian clutched the back of the sacred blade on his back and walked out. “Sky?” Wind whispered.

The sacred blade gleamed with power, brighter than anyone had ever seen it, as the chosen hero stood, backs turned to them all and white sailcloth billowing behind him like a cape. The sun began to set, marking the near end of the day. Sky looked on at the sunset. “Fi senses them. You’re not going to like this.”

___________________________________________

“Are you sure?” Time asked.

“Positive. I know you don’t trust her, but she’s never been wrong about these things.”

The old man glared. “This is not the time to discuss preferences on that sword. If Clocktown has truly kidnapped these Gorons, they’ll likely have the Deku Scrub’s saplings too.”

Sky said nothing.

They hurried towards the town and avoided the guards. Wild tried to scale the town and could surprisingly get through so he pulled the others up. They sat on top of the walls and looked down on the unusually quiet place. The mayor, a man with pointy purple hair on his head and his face and an orange suit with purple pauldrons, and a couple of guards walked through town and everyone outside scrambled to get in their homes. The guards looked rather uncomfortable. “Mayor Dotour, are you sure this is necessary?”

“Of course!” Mayor Dotour yelled, turning to glare at the guard that had spoken. “Those nasty creatures invaded our homes and destroyed things! Do you doubt me?”

That was so...unlike the mayor that Time felt suspicion thrum in his gut. He saw the guards stiffen and shake their heads adamantly. The mayor huffed and looked around before pulling out a silver key and unlocking a room. The guards kept guard and the others leapt down. The knights pulled out spears. “Hey! There’s a curfew—“

“Wait,” Warriors hissed. “Do you truly like what the mayor’s doing?”

The knights blinked, looked at each other and kept the spears up. “No, but he has only ever had our best interests at heart.”

“You say there’s a curfew? The night is only just nearing, the kids wouldn’t even be in bed yet.”

“Well—“

“And you were just questioning him. He yelled at you and refused to explain. I think that’s good reason to disobey his orders,” Warriors continued. “If you truly are a knight in service of your people, you’ll realize something’s up, and needs to change. What else has the mayor done?”

“I hear wailing in here every night,” One of the guards admitted. “Sounds like a baby crying, and an old voice always tries to reassure it. Mayor Dotour never talks loud enough for us to hear him, though.”

“Sometimes I hear instruments but I’ve always just imagined it was the Milk Bar nearby,” The other one added. “Not only that but he’s told the town they’re not allowed to leave at all, and they must never enter this one building...it’s...something’s up, yes. These are only just recent additions, and Mayor Dotour never was strict like this before.”

“We’re looking for a Goron child and his father, as well as some saplings...ah, like Deku Scrub saplings,” Time explained. “They’ve all went missing.”

Concern flickered in both the guards’ eyes before they gave a nod. “You are all armed, I see. Perhaps you’ll be able to confront him.”

They swung open the door and the Goron elder was there, his son sitting on his lap. They were both chained up. The saplings weren’t there though. A collection of instruments sat on a shelf beside them. The Goron elder breathed a shuddery sigh of relief. “About time.”

The mayor startled at the sight of them. Normally wide, but tired, grey eyes looked back at him but his pupils were pure red. His eyes were narrowed. “It’s you all. Meddlesome brats. Now my guards won’t trust me. It’s no matter, I’ll dispose of them swiftly for betraying me.”

“Mayor Dotour. Or, is there someone else hidden behind this appearance?” Time unsheathed his sword.

He smirked, and then flashed a grin of sharp teeth before walking out. Sky narrowed his eyes. “He just...left?”

Twilight crouched down in front of the screaming baby and murmured, “S’alright little guy. We’ll get you out of here.”

The son blinked back tears. “H-Huh?”

“That’s right,” The rancher smiled. “Don’t cry. It’ll be alright.”

The chosen was looking through the open door, and the captain put a hand on his shoulder. “He’s gone. Perhaps he fled from us. For now, we need to unlock these cuffs, and get these people out of here.”

“There’s a hatch,” Legend called, pulling it open and looking under only to disappear, falling into it.

“Vet!” Four yelped.

The old man climbed down after him and saw a few lines of saplings. He ran a hand through his hair. “So these are where the saplings were.”

“What do you say, half us go with the Gorons and the rest take the saplings back.”

“Sounds good. You alright? Didn’t hurt anything during that fall?”

“No.”

They climbed back up to see the Gorons free, Twilight holding the baby, with a smile, and the smithy helping the elder walk out. The old man guided them all out and grew a bit suspicious when the guards were gone...that “mayor” said he’d dispose of them...There was a cry. “Folks!”

People peered out of their windows. The mayor pointed at them with horror. “They kidnapped the Goron Elder and his son!”

“Wait, that’s not true at all,” Wind tried.

The captain’s face hardened. “We were rescuing them from your mayor.”

“They’re blaming me! All I’ve done is try to keep you safe from people like these.”

The baby started wailing, and the elder suddenly collapsed, bleeding out from a wound on his leg. There were gasps and curtains shut, the people coming out of their homes. Kafei and Anju held each other, looking confused. “I’m Link,” Time told them. “I came here as a child when the moon was up in the sky, threatening to crush Termina. You may not remember me, but a few of you do, and know that I stopped it. I went around and helped who I could, on both smaller and bigger issues. Why would I be accomplice in kidnapping the people I helped?”

Murmurs and whispers. The mayor shook his head. “The moon being stopped was the work of the divine not some Hyrulean brat. Seize these Hylians! They have hurt our relationship with the Gorons by kidnapping them!”

The guards rushed forward, not the ones from before but entirely different ones. “Unhand the Gorons!”

“We’ll be taking them back to their home with the other Gorons thank you,” Twilight bared his teeth.

Time sighed. If they fought back, the people would trust the mayor more, and these were innocent people just following orders. If they let the Gorons go though, they could be back in the hands of their kidnapper. He hummed. “We’ll let you take us, if Kafei can escort the Gorons back to their homes.”

Kafei’s eyes widened. “Link, no, don’t let yourself get taken.”

“You’re siding with him?” The mayor hissed.

Time shook his head. “He’s not.”

Anju put a hand on her husband’s shoulder and whispered something in his ear. He relented. “Yeah, I’ll take the Gorons to their home.”

The people approved so the mayor could only nod along. The guards grabbed onto the heroes and took them away. Since when had they had a dungeon? He thought as they were tossed into separate cells. They only lighting was a dim ceiling light. “Old man why did you let us get tossed in here?!” Four hissed.

“Those Gorons had to leave.”

“We could’ve ran away with them, fought them off.”

Time was silent. He slid against the walls of the cell, exhausted from the days spent in Termina. He heard footsteps and looked to see the large purple hair of Mayor Dotour. He turned to them, and laughed. “I have got all you heroes where I want you. How does a public execution sound? Or would you rather I kill you all in the dead of night where no one will ever find you?”

“You are not Mayor Dotour,” Time observed.

“No shit,” The “mayor” transformed and suddenly they were looking at the Lizalfos. The Shadow. “You still haven’t given me an answer though.”

“Do you really need one?” Legend’s voice echoed throughout the dungeon.

“No, I wanted to do the public execution. I just need the Triforce of Courage from at least one of you, and I have more than enough heroes to choose from. Let’s see, why don’t we start with the Hero of Time?” Red eyes flickered to him.

When he got no response he shape-shifted into the mayor and got the guards to bring him out. The others began to protest. He heard their voices slowly fade as he was brought up into the light. Time watched the people around him. They were also silent, just like him, fear on their faces. They clearly wanted no part of this. He was about to talk to them before a voice from behind him spoke. “Hold it right there,” He turned to see a girl with curly red hair with a hibiscus nestled it. Her face was filled with freckles, and she wore a blue dress with a grey cloak. Marin. “Are you people willing to stoop so low as to watch this person get murdered and do nothing about it? Where is the proof he did anything?”

“Quiet!”

“Look at this guy! Is he the same person as he was? I don’t think so,” Marin continued, while the old man watched, dumbfounded as to how a girl in the war ended up in Termina of all places. “I see you’re all afraid of this man. You don’t have to be.”

The people slowly began to agree and the mayor’s eyes flashed a bright red. Suddenly he was able to move his hands again, rope cut that once bound his hands. The guards pointed spears at the mayor, who laughed. “Alright then. I was hoping this vessel would prove to be useful but I guess I have to do the dirty work myself.”

“Mayor Dotour” disappeared into thick mist and the Shadow appeared. The people grabbed what they could, ready to defend Clocktown. Marin leapt down and looked at him. “It’s up to you now to get rid of this monster. I’ll get the rest of your group out, I just have one question.”

“Go ahead.”

“Is Link in there?” She asked, tears gathering in her eyes. “The Hero of Koholint?”

He chuckled, despite everything. “There are multiple Links down there. I am one myself. The Hero of Koholint is not a name I have heard though.”

She gave a nod before blinking. “Wait, you’re name is...Link? Were you by chance in a war?”

He ruffled her hair. “I went by Mask.”

“Mask! You’ve grown up!” She cried, swatting his hand away.

“Go find your Link. I’m sure if he’s a hero, he’s down there.”

She hurried away, and Time turned back to the Shadow.

He charged at his foe with his blade and it was met with a darker, malicious one. The others soon joined him, along with Marin who avoided the vet but talked to the captain. Huh. The battle was quite difficult. The Shadow’s true strength overpowered everyone, and they nearly lost, suffering many wounds. Eventually, with blood splattered across town, the Shadow dissolved, promising to return. Time collapsed, being held up by Anju, who had rushed over. “—ink come on, don’t close—please!”

He lost himself to the darkness.

_____________________________________________

He opened his eyes and immediately wanted to close them but he heard a voice. “Hey, old man,” Legend murmured.

He turned towards the veteran and processed why he was here in a comfy bed, with Legend and remembered. He sat up, a but shakily. “So, what happened while I was out?”

“Sit back down,” Legend huffed. “I’ll explain.”

He told the old man of finding the true mayor, and explaining to the people that the Shadow was an imposter. “The saplings were returned to the Deku Scrubs, and the Zora were apparently missing important instruments that we gave back to them. The skeletons from Ikana Valley, though...haven’t showed up again. The town-folk were discussing about letting visitors back in and boarding the town up at night to try and stop any of the Ikana undead from creeping into their town. There was also talk about making another graveyard.”

“The Gorons?”

“Right. The elder and his son made it back safely, thanks to that man you sent off—Kaf something.”

“Kafei,” He said, amused.

“Whatever. I also...there’s someone here that isn’t supposed to be...M...Marin,” Legend hunched in on himself. “I don’t think it’s really her. The Marin I know is...long gone.”

“Well, I know Marin myself,” Time said carefully, thinking about what to say. “She was in a war with the captain and I. She said her home was gone, but she managed to get through a blue portal that appeared. When we tried to send her back, it didn’t work, so she went through a random one and...I suppose she might’ve ended up here.”

Legend’s breath hitched, and he ran a hand through his hair. “I accepted she was gone...and never coming back...I’m not who she once knew...”

Oh.

“I see. If you want to talk to her, tell her the truth, and I’m sure she’ll understand. Or if you need space, time, that’s alright.”

“Okay,” Legend slid down on a chair, expression unreadable.

Termina should be alright. Our next step is finding another portal.

The others came crashing into the room and the sailor ran and hugged him. “You gave us a scare, old man,” Warriors told him. “Those wounds were deep.”

“Well, I’m alive now aren’t I?” Time wrapped an arm around the sailor. “You all did an exceedingly good job these past few days and I’m proud of you.”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” Four called.

Time rolled his eyes. “Get over here. I hope you all don’t think you can’t give me hugs as well.”

He received hugs from everyone and blinked away something wet away. This was a far cry from his adventures, being in the company of a fairy. As much as he loved Navi and Tatl, he could’ve very much used a large hug like this. So, he thanked his family and tightened his hold on them, warmth settling into his chest.

[izuizzy]

thinking about Vanitas again because I'm a sucker who likes crazy ocs; how come they all thought that he was dead?? like was that something in the records or did Vanitas just disappear and presumed dead?? its eating at my mind izzy!!!! I MUST KNOWWWW

OKAY I HAVE SLEPT AND I AM HERE ONCE AGAIN ASKING YOU TO LISTEN TO THE VANITAS PARASITES WHISPERING IN MY EAR AAA I’m so glad you asked this fos. you have no idea you’re asking all the things I’ve already been thinking about heheheheh so long post incoming. it’s story time!

to anyone also reading this, story was written by me. so yeah just the usual do not claim as your own. and enjoy! also tw for inhumane research projects, death mention. I will tag this post.

so, basically Vanitas and all other test subjects for Ultimate Lifespawn were supposed to die when the facility was found. as team dark and GUN found it they arrested and captured all the researchers, but not until one dangerous researcher activated a fail safe to destroy the subjects. miraculously it failed on Talia and Vox, but all other subjects were killed. it is still unknown why they survived. was it just a stroke of luck? did their programs buckle after the destruction of the facility? no one knows yet.

so how did Vanitas survive? to start, I wanna give a little background on him. he wasn’t always a crazy psycho JAKAHSHS

he was actually quite happy even in their unfortunate circumstances. he definitely inherited more of Sonic’s energetic and playful sides. out of all the subjects in the facility, he was the first to survive the abhorrent experiments and tests after Vox. so they stuck together in those trying times being the only two who could last longer than a few days or a few weeks. Vanitas grew attached to his older brother and Vox enjoyed having company for once even if he didn’t understand his own feelings at the time.

however… things didn’t stay that way.

(gonna cliffhanger cut this bc it’s getting super long so read under the cut for more)

around the time Talia came into existence, Vanitas noticed a change in Vox. something more sentimental as he bonded with Talia. something Vanitas had never seen from Vox. Vanitas saw her as weaker than them (her Chao energy levels are not the same as the two of them) and he once suggested that he and his brother Vox escape the facility and the cruelty of the researchers, they were definitely strong enough to level the facility and take out anyone who stood in their way. Vox didn’t want to leave Talia behind though, and what if more hedgehogs like them came into existence that could survive, who would be there for them?

Vanitas didn’t like what he was hearing. one argument led to another and Vanitas had had enough of his sentimental brother, and the weakling that turned him into this. he became more violent and aggressive towards everyone and everything. he took joy in tormenting the subjects and fighting with the researchers, and seeing all of them as dolls more so than other living things. the researchers soon learned he was too dangerous to the project as a whole and so they separated him from the rest of the subjects and performed experiments on him alone.

Talia and Vox never saw him again after that, and so they had assumed he was going die (as they were young and watching him leave didn’t mean just experiments but death).

Vanitas was later subjected to terrible experiments alone, so painful and excruciating that his mind began to fray at the seams. after the experiments he did not return to Vox, Talia or anyone else. he was left in isolation in a room. all alone. there were times where he regretted the things he’d said that had separated him from Vox. it wasn’t long though before his mind would start to block things out. he became the emptiness that his name stood for. he started shutting out his pain and his emotions, and he lived in isolation, cold and numb. he’d already used that coping skill before so he could use it again.

Vanitas never saw another soul again besides the researchers. they planned to place him in a cryostasis different from the other subjects and extract his chaos energy to be used for the others because he was too erratic to control. they’d keep him around for later but basically they wrote him off as deceased for the records so no one would question them about him.

so Talia and Vox had assumed he was dead as they never saw him again (a spell of out of sight out of mind just a bit). they had to move forward. Vox had to come to grips that the brother he knew he changed and was no more and Talia had to learn to cope with the fear Vanitas had imparted on her even after he was gone.

a tldr of their interactions is that after a long while neither Vox nor Talia had anything kind to say about Vanitas and wouldn’t miss him after the shift in personality he had. he became manipulative, aggressive and cruel and neither of them remembered him fondly (unfortunately). Vox and Vanitas both missed the old versions of each other that were long gone.

later down the lines when team dark found them there were only four subjects found. even though in truth five had survived. Vanitas was only a name among a list of names when they recovered the files all while being labeled as “dangerous” and “deceased.”

for reasons I have yet to write, it turns out all this time Vanitas was alive and never died in the research facility… because he wasn’t there to begin with when team dark and GUN raided the facility.

he had disappeared much earlier, his cell empty, and the fail safe chip inside him left on the ground.

fun fact: I also put this in a sonadow comic I did once before. mentioning the fail safe that was meant to kill all subjects created by the project

[blessyatoz]

longfic (+48k words and on posting) tags: pro-hero izuku midoriya, manager au, falling in love, humor read all on AO3 excerpt from chapter four: how to follow a Pro-Hero on patrol

The room was shrouded in darkness.

It was cold—the windows in Izuku's room were wide open, and no blanket covered him. He always left them that way: in case something happened, in case someone called for help, in case anyone needed him, he would hear it.

Hikage-san's Danger Sense would alert him to any significant danger approaching, yes, he knew that. But it was a habit, a routine he had developed. One that gave him a certain sense of security, somehow. So he kept doing it, always leaving them open, always feeling the cold.

It was more than the middle of the night, once again. He never got home before this hour in recent years. His alarm was set to go off in four hours and forty minutes.

He should be sleeping.

But here he was, eyes glued to the ceiling, replaying a memory from earlier today.

Yo, Uzuki-kun! I’m Marin, nice to meet ya!

A memory of Marin’s words to a little boy, at sunset, in the middle of a children’s playground. A sandbox.

He remembered how he had arrived there. It hadn’t taken long to resolve the emergency he’d been called to—he made sure everyone was safe, talked to the police, and returned to the park sidewalk where he’d left his assistant. He just hadn’t expected her not to be there anymore exactly where he’d left her.

But a quick glance at the horizon was enough to spot her, the tips of her pink hair giving her away from a distance—she was in a sandbox, apparently talking to some kids. He smiled. Kitagawa-san was naturally social (and a bit crazy fun, for sure, he thought with a chuckle) so she was probably playing with them.

Izuku then began to walk in her direction, but he stopped. He stopped behind some bushes when a group of boys came running out, looking terrified—they even bumped into him on the way.

None of them apologized or acknowledged his presence; they seemed too scared to notice, driven by a need to escape evident in each of their faces. All he heard as they talked among themselves was:

"That shitty quirkless Uzuki, he’s gonna get it when he’s alone!"

"Yeah! We’ll get him good!"

That got Izuku out of guard.

And before he could say anything (something that might change their minds, something that might make them less scared), the kids had already disappeared from his sight.

Then Izuku looked ahead, through the tall bushes. And he heard:

"Yo, Uzuki-kun! I’m Marin, nice to meet ya!" He saw Marin smile brightly, gently patting a boy’s hair. The little guy was crying. "So, what happened here, huh? Were those your friends?"

“Th-they are.” Midoriya heard the boy stammer and lower his gaze, sniffling again. The scene seemed strangely familiar to him. "T-they were making fun of me."

"Why’s that, huh? You seem like such a cool kid to me!"

The boy swallowed hard, looking away. As if he felt ashamed. As if he felt guilty.

He took a while to respond.

"B-b-because..." He seemed afraid to say. "I-I’m q-q-quirkless… Just because I wanted to be the hero in our play… S-Sorry, One-san. Sorry! I-I-I don’t wanna bother y-you!”

Strangely familiar to him.

“Nah, don’t worry, little guy! You don’t have to apologize to me! You not bothering me, okay?! You looked like you were asking for help! I’ve come anyway.”

Izuku felt a gentle breeze brush against his face—Kitagawa-san's words somehow touching him.

Like he was asking for help, huh? 

“S-sorry! Sorry, one-san!”

"Don’t say sorry, little guy. These guys are a bunch of jerks." Kitagawa-san, don’t swear in front of kids! Izuku thought automatically. But that wasn’t where his mind was really focused. It was on something else. On her all other words. On how she seemed to care. On how all of this was bringing back memories.

“Huh?”

“A bunch of jerks, that’s what I said. Those friends of yours are j.e.r.k.s,” Kitagawa-san continued, with an expression Izuku recognized as nothing less than comedic indignation. “How can they know you won’t be an incredible hero, huh? Impossible! You’ve got a whole future ahead of you, Uzuki-kun! What nonsense…!”

‘B-but they’re not wrong, Marin-onesan. I-I-I… I-I don’t have—”

“Don't have a quirk?” The boy nodded, a tear running down his nose. He looked like he was about to cry again. But Kitagawa-san was quicker, smiling that big smile of hers, the kind that Izuku couldn’t even count how many crinkles it created around her eyes. “And since when does that mean you can’t be a hero?”

The words seemed to jump out of Kitagawa’s mouth, like her body, her mouth moved before she even had the chance to think straight. As if she didn’t need it. As if she was sure of it.

All Might's first words to him pop into Izuku’s mind. Why?

I cannot simply say, ‘You can become a hero even without power.’

Was what he first said to him. Before all.

“B-but—”

“But nothing! Listen to your one-san! Isn’t this your dream?”

Izuku saw the boy nod, the tearful expression starting to fade from his little face. Kitagawa-san then carefully picked up the fabric from the ground and gently tied it around the boy’s neck. 

It was a cape. A green one.

“Then no one can say anything about it, gotcha?! No one can tell you what you can or can’t do! ONLY YOU! Don’t let those idiots’ opinions mess with your goal, okay, Uzuki-kun?!” Kitagawa-san was like a wall of confidence, unshakeable, with an unbreakable belief. The boy’s eyes sparkled with admiration, practically twinkling with stars. More than admiration—Izuku knew it: it was hope. “You’re not only can, you are going to be one hell of an amazing hero! I know that!” And Izuku knew, Izuku knew exactly what felt like to hear something that. The words he always wanted to hear. He had dreamed of it for too long as a child not to know. To have someone say that to you. To have someone encourage you like that, even when no one else believed in you. Just like All Might had done for him once, when made him his sucessor. “And then you’re gonna rub it in those idiots’ faces just how wrong they were!”

Izuku watched Marin make those ridiculous punching sound effects in the air, making the boy laugh.

“Yeah!” He cheered, throwing punches in the air.

“You’re gonna be the greatest hero in the world!”

“Yes!”

“And you’re gonna kick a ton of villain asses!”

“YEAH!” And then Izuku heard Marin’s laugh, loud, expansive, and contagious, the kind you could hear even from miles away.

“I believe in you!” Izuku heard Kitagawa-san say, and the All Might’s voice saying ‘You can become a hero.’ was the thing that came to his mind. “And I’m counting on you, okay? I’m, like, super clumsy and always getting into trouble. So in a few years, you better be ready to be my hero, okay, Uzuki-kun?”

Izuku listened.

What was that trying to leak from his eyes?

“I'll be, Marin one-san!” The sad expression had long since left the boy’s face. All that remained now was a smile—and a look of courage and determination.

Izuku watched them laugh quietly for a few moments, as if soaking in the comforting feeling of the silly, stupid promise they’d made. But Izuku knew that it wasn’t a silly promise. Not either stupid.

To that boy, it wasn’t.

Kitagawa-san had done something there. Something big, real. Like a real hero. Something that many heroes would never believe in or have the guts to do. That almost no one ever said it to him back in the past, just All Might. And that was more than—

He realized: what was that trying to leak from his eyes? Those were small tears. Tears. 

Why did he was about to cry? He didn’t know… He didn’t know how they had gotten there—they just… were.

At that moment, he heard Marin’s voice say in a strange and funny tone:

“Do you want ice cream?” He saw her offer a completely melted ice cream to the boy. 

One of the scoops fell comically to the ground.

“No.” The boy was emphatic—as Marin looked at him with a face that ranged between offense and indignation. Izuku found himself laughing softly, a bit silly, a bit shaky.

He was still an emotional mess, wasn’t he? Crap.

The boy waved towards something further away, and Izuku noticed it was his parents. The boy then began to walk away from Kitagawa-san, a smile of pure determination and confidence lighting up his entire face. He never took his eyes off her when he said:

“Thank you, Marin-onesan! You can be sure I’ll be an amazing hero and I’ll save you! Please wait for me! I’ll show you! I’ll show everyone!”

That was the memory of today. And Izuku remembered, Izuku remembered the whole scene perfectly. As if it had happened to him. Just like he remembered when All Might believed in him.

And Kitagawa-san says that he, Izuku, is the incredible one.

Kitagawa-san had been an even more incredible hero that day. Even though she didn’t know.

Suddenly, he noticed: he wasn’t as cold anymore.

The window remained open, always open—the curtains swayed and swayed slowly, the night breeze filling his room at home.

That night, Izuku didn’t have much time left to sleep.

That night, his alarm would go off in less than three hours now.

He was tired, exhausted.

But still, he drifted into sleep with a smile, a quiet warmth settling deep within him.

AUTHOR NOTES:

HELLO TUMBLR that's a tiny little except from my fic Izuku Midoriya/Original Female Character. We already have six chapters posted. Feel free to check out the all chapters and tags on AO3! Hope you enjoyyyy! Comments and kudos are appreciated, I just love to know what u guys are thinking about the shipp dynamic <3

[the-name-is-z]

SKELETONS | ch. 59

daryl dixon x f!oc

masterlist

a03 link

Summary: Aaron reunites with Eric. Rick and Glenn reunite with the others. They decide to take a new route to Alexandria. Warnings/Information: AMC's The Walking Dead OC Insert | 18+ Advised | strangers to lovers; the slowest of slow burns; gore; angst; horror; humour; m/f; there's not really any chapter-specific warnings? idk domestic bliss is kind of a warning it itself

Chapter 59 - Go The Distance

It was about a half hour before soft whistling carried through the alleyway, a system they had come up with while wandering the woods. Two notes. Daryl whistled back, pounding on the industrial supply room door from the outside, a signal that it was safe for them to come out. Iris opened the door from their side, allowing Maggie and Carl to burst through to hug Rick and Glenn. They ran in on foot, disheveled and a little bloody.

“Dad!” Carl cried in relief. 

“Your sister okay?” Rick whispered.

“Yeah, yeah. We’re fine.” Carl assured. Rick looked up at Iris and she nodded. He visibly relaxed, nodding to her in thanks. Rick extended his hand to Daryl, giving him a small handshake. 

“Eric? Eric?” Aaron called in a panic.

“In here.” Eric called from the supply room. Maggie had fashioned him a splint for his ankle and ordered some rest, leaving him alone when everyone had flooded out. 

“Eric!” Aaron called in response, practically diving headfirst into the room. Iris supposed she would feel a similar panic if she was separated from her spouse. Well, if she had one. Rick narrowed his eyes after Aaron and followed him to eavesdrop. 

Daryl directed everyone inside anyway, to dampen the sound in case they attracted any more walkers. They kept out of the office, so Aaron and Eric could reunite in semi-privacy (Rick) and they could speak semi-freely (Rick). After a few minutes Aaron came out of the office, clearing his throat.

“Excuse me, everyone? Everyone?” He coughed, then projected louder as they turned to look at him. “Thank you. You saved Eric. I owe you. All of you. And I will make sure that debt is paid in full when we get to our community. When we get to Alexandria. Now, I’m not sure about you, but I’d rather not do any more driving tonight. Maybe we can hit the road tomorrow morning.”

“That sounds fine.” Rick agreed from the dark hallway behind him. Aaron nodded, turning to acknowledge him. “But if we’re staying here for the night, you’re sleeping over there.” He pointed a grimy finger to a random corner of the room and Iris rolled her eyes. 

“You really think we gotta do that?” Maggie asked, her tone conveying the same annoyance Iris felt.

“It’s the safe play. We don’t know you.” Rick explained.

“The only way you’re gonna stop me from being with him right now is by shooting me.” Aaron said, his voice low. It was the most confident he’d sounded since they met, and Iris was almost proud. She smirked. 

“Rick, he told us where the camp is.” Glenn whispered in Rick’s ear. Yet, the room was small and they were all silent, so Iris wasn’t sure what that was accomplishing. “And he really was only travelling with one other person. They’re both unarmed, one of them’s got a broken ankle. I want us to be safe too, but I can’t give up everything else. I know what I said, but… it does matter.” Rick paused, considering before agreeing.

“Alright.” He nodded. Aaron brushed past them back into the office.

-

The next morning, with the help of Iris hot-wiring another car, all of them were able to get back on the road. Route Sixteen this time. Iris was happy to drive the RV with Abraham silently sitting at her side, staring out at the road while they listened to Eugene explain to Tara and Carl how to play his ridiculous fourteen-wild-card poker game. 

“Abraham, look.” Rosita murmured, coming up behind him and putting her hands on his shoulders. He put his palm over one of them, smiling softly at the sight of the Washington Monument. They could see the whole city ahead, before the view disappeared behind a crop of trees as the road curved. Iris glanced down at the dash, trying not to let the Low Voltage light flashing at her affect the relief and joy that everyone seemed to be ruminating in. 

Eventually, however, it did. The RV died out and Rick pulled the other car around behind them when he noticed they stopped. Glenn was more than helpful when he dove headfirst under the hood of the RV. Iris felt a pang of nostalgia, almost expecting to see Dale leaning over his shoulder, directing Glenn’s movements as he tinkered with the engine. 

“Can’t win.” Abraham grunted, slamming a hand on the outside of the RV. “Might as well paint it red, put a ladder on it.” Iris raised an eyebrow. That man just loved living in the past. 

“All we need is another battery.” Glenn assured, straightening.

“Where the hell are we going to find another battery?” Abraham scoffed.

“Right over here.” Glenn replied, walking around to the side door and flipping up on of the covers on the stairs. Underneath was another battery, plugged in and primed to go. Iris’ lips twitched as she silently muttered a thank-you to Dale. Abraham climbed into the RV to start it up once Glenn had everything fixed up. 

“You okay?” Daryl asked quietly, coming up behind Iris as she stood on top of the RV, watching their backs. She glanced at him, looking down as he gestured at her hands. They were trembling. 

“Huh.” Iris muttered, clenching her fists as a shiver ran through her. She looked up at him again, watching her with concern in his eyes. “Too good to be true, right?”

“Maybe not.” He countered. He reached down, lacing his fingers through hers to stop the tremors. Underneath their feet, the RV roared to life, small cheers and clapping echoing from the group below. “C’mon.” 

They got moving again, and after another hour or so, Abraham stopped the RV behind the car as they reached a large set of gates. The corrugated steel walls looked strong, reinforced. Efficient. A feat of engineering, especially during times like these. Rick waited, observing the gates and listening. They cut the engines, everyone climbing out of the vehicles to stand patiently at the gates. 

It was serene. Children’s laughter carried over the walls, and Iris was shocked that she had forgotten what that sounded like. No headaches, no feelings of impending doom. No fear. 

Someone on the other side of the gate wheeled the chain link open, leaving just the iron bars of the main gate. Then that opened too. Aaron and Eric were the first through, and Eric made his way to the infirmary. 

A crash startled all of them, Daryl immediately turning and firing a crossbow bolt into the opossum that had accidentally knocked over a trash bin. He leaned over and picked it up as the gate fully opened, revealing another man staring with furrowed brows.

“We brought dinner.” Daryl called nonchalantly. 

“It’s okay.” Aaron assured the nervous-looking man. “Come on in, guys.” The gate clanged as it locked shut behind them, and Iris was hit with a sense of finality. She took slow, deep breaths as she looked around, seeing houses in the distance, neatly planted trees and mowed lawns. Goddamned landscaping. 

“Before we take this any further, I need you all to turn over your weapons.” The guard at the gate stated. “Stay, you hand ‘em over.”

“We don’t know if we want to stay.” Rick said, still guarded. 

“It’s fine, Nicholas.” Aaron assured again.

“If we were gonna use them, we would have started already.” Rick explained. Iris found herself clenching her jaw and she let go of the tension, wishing she had a piece of gum, not for the first time. 

“Let them talk to Deanna first.”

“Who’s Deanna?” Abraham demanded.

“She knows everything you’d wanna know about this place.” Aaron explained. “Rick, why don’t you start?” Rick blinked, turning to look back over the group. As he surveyed them, he spotted a lone walker approaching the gates from outside.

“Sasha.” He said quietly. With her being closest to the gate, she turned to look, and with one swift movement, the silent bullet blew apart the walker’s skull. Nicholas blanched, the chain link closing across the gate behind them. “It’s a good thing we’re here.” Rick grunted. 

Aaron led them all through the street to a house near the corner. It was neat, nicely decorated, curtains open to let the light in. Low brick walls to line a neatly paved brick patio. They waited outside as Aaron took Rick in to speak to the elusive Deanna. When he returned, she brought out another person, a large plastic cart, introduced herself, and asked for their weapons.

“They’re still your guns.” She assured. “You can check them out whenever you go beyond the wall, but inside here, we store them for safety.” The cart was overflowing by quite a bit by the time Iris got to it, and her small armoury was the icing on the cake. Though she didn’t give it all up. She never would. Most of her knives were under her jacket anyways.

“Should have brought another bin.” Olivia, the woman who manages the armoury joked. Iris took note of the very false smile Carol had plastered on her face. She also noticed the fake fumbling Carol did when she surrendered her large rifle. 

Deanna explained that she would be interviewing each of them to get a sense of who they were, what they could contribute to the community. As she went through a few of them, Aaron led Rick and Carl to the houses their group would be assigned to start with. 

Iris sat down in Deanna’s living room, eyeing her large collection of books and the camcorder pointed at her. The furniture was lovely, and it was almost as if this place went entirely untouched. And then Deanna explained that it had.

“I’m Deanna Monroe.” She introduced, smiling softly.

“Iris Bowen.” Iris replied.

“Do you mind if I film our conversation?” Deanna asked. Iris chuckled inwardly, reminded of interrogations and interviews she’d done from police precincts and cells as a wayward youth. “What?”

“I’m not used to people asking.” Iris replied, offering a small grin. Deanna smirked, nodding in understanding. 

“How long have you been out there?” She asked.

“Since the beginning.” Iris replied.

“How did you all find each other? Rick told me you didn’t know one another before… everything.” Iris nodded, clearing her throat.

“It was Atlanta. Rick left a bag of guns in the road, and I, alongside many others, tried to steal them. We came to an agreement when other survivors took Glenn for ransom, and I guess… I just never left.” She smiled awkwardly, remembering their meeting. Glenn seemed so young. She did too, she supposed. Deanna smiled warmly.

“I was a congressperson in Ohio, fifteenth district.” She explained. “What did you do before?”

“Does it matter?” Iris asked, a little defensive.

“Oh, yes. My husband was a professor of architecture. Who we were mattered a great deal to this community.” She explained. Iris nodded in understanding.

“I was a member of a biker gang and a mechanic.” She admitted. Deanna nodded without much reaction.

“And your attachment to knives?” Deanna asked, nodding to the break in Iris’ jacket where her harness was visible. Iris moved her jacket closed and Deanna chuckled. “It’s alright. I figured some of you would be rather attached to your weapons. Your knives, Michonne’s sword, Daryl’s crossbow.” Iris hummed. “In your gang, did you—“

“The knives came after.” Iris replied shortly. Deanna closed her mouth, nodding again. 

“Look, Iris, who you were before is important, yes, but who you are now is more important. We want to know how you can contribute so our community can prosper. Now, whatever you learned as a gang member is not useful to me. But we have had need for a mechanic for quite some time. If you’re willing and able, we want you and the rest of your family to have a home here, whatever that means for you.” Deanna explained. Iris nodded slowly. 

The woman spoke like a politician or a therapist. But it was clear from her demeanour and her explanation that the people here had no idea what life was like on the outside. Except maybe Aaron and Eric. And that kind of ignorance is very dangerous. 

Deanna asked her to send Daryl in next. Iris was then led to the pair of quaint little houses they were assigned, and more importantly, the bathroom equipped with a hot shower. And new clothing. Iris tried her best to be quick so as not to use up all the hot water, but each of them confessed there was nothing like it. 

A woman who worked in the “pantry” even offered haircuts to each of them. A little self-care, a little pampering… it did little to wash away the grime from outside. The pain and suffering, the starving, the wandering. It wouldn’t be erased, but some numbing once in a while was… nice.

-

“You’re welcome to sit, Daryl, I won’t bite.” Deanna stated as Daryl fiddled with some of the random decor on her coffee table.

“Yeah, I’m alright.” Daryl replied, looking her up and down as he paced in her living room.

“Daryl, do you want to be here?” She asked honestly. He turned back to her and dropped his shoulders in a half-assed shrug.

“The boy and the baby, they deserve a roof… I guess.” He replied, deflecting the question. It was a secret to no one that domestic life didn’t exactly fit with Daryl, even before everything. A part of him wondered what it would be like, the same part of him that wanted… other things. A larger part of him felt anxious at the very idea of allowing himself any luxuries. 

-

Iris walked out of the house Rick and the others had been using, freshly showered and wearing clean clothes. Rick and Daryl walked up from between the two houses, meeting Carol by the front porch where Iris stood. 

Daryl nodded to Iris and she smiled softly at him. He found his face heating as his eyes trailed over her skin, clean and soft for the first time in weeks. Rick cleared his throat as he looked around, Carol hiding her small smile behind a light cough. 

“They’re right next to each other, but…“ Carol began.

“They took our weapons and now they’re splitting us up.” Rick murmured, shaking his head. “We’ll all be staying in the same house tonight.”

“I’ll send someone to grab some of the extra linens from the other house. Blankets and whatever to sleep on the floor.” Iris agreed.

Once everyone had been interviewed and had a chance to shower and clean up, they gathered in the living room of the first house, doling out blankets and pillows to stick together. Abraham and Sasha were insistent on keeping watch by the windows. The woman from the pantry, who introduced herself as Jessie, even came by with a small playpen that Judith could safely sleep in. Michonne spent twenty entire minutes brushing her teeth. Iris had to admit, she did the same. 

Everyone jolted as a knock sounded on the door. Daryl immediately positioned himself over Judith’s crib. Iris, Glenn and Maggie already had their hidden weapons half out, and Rick slowly went to answer the door. He opened it, finding Deanna standing on the porch in the dark.

“Rick, I—“ She stopped, looking over his clean-shaven face. “Wow. I didn’t know what was under there.” She joked. He grunted. “Listen, I don’t mean to interrupt. I just wanted to stop by and see how you were all settling. Oh, my. Staying together. Smart.”

“No one said we couldn’t.” Rick replied. Iris almost snorted. A bit of a childish riposte on his part.

“You said you’re a family. That’s what you said.” Deanna said with a wide smile. “Absolutely amazing to me how people with completely different backgrounds and nothing in common can become that.”

“Everybody said you gave them jobs.” Rick stated. It was true, in each of their interviews, Deanna had assigned them a position where she and Aaron agreed they could help out in the community. Iris was told she would be taken to check out the garage when she was ready. Apparently they even had a few cars lined up for her to fix. 

“Mm-hmm. Yeah.” Deanna nodded. “Part of this place. Looks like the communists won after all.” She laughed. Rick surrendered a small smile at the joke.

“Well, you didn’t give me one.” He stated by way of question.

“I have.” She replied. “I just haven’t told you yet. Same with Michonne. I’m closing in on something for Sasha, and I’m just trying to figure Mr. Dixon out, but I will.” She smiled at each member of the group before nodding at Rick and looking at him again. “You look good.” She waved and stepped outside, Rick closing the door behind her.

That night, Iris didn’t sleep. She felt a sense of responsibility, to watch over her family as they huddled in the living room. Rick didn’t sleep much either, but he didn’t notice her. He got up in the middle of the night, breathing rather quickly, and Iris followed him into the kitchen. He opened one of the drawers beside the refrigerator, pulling out a large kitchen knife.

“Subtle.” Iris murmured softly. He turned, almost whipping the knife at her. She put her hands up, offering a lopsided grin. “Can’t sleep either.” She confessed.

“I’m worried.” He admitted, looking up at her, and for the first time since they arrived, she noticed the hope glimmering in his eyes.

“I know.” She replied sympathetically. “We all want this to be right, Rick. For everyone. Deanna… she seems alright.” 

“She said she was almost a professional poker player.” Rick stated, rubbing a hand over his face. Iris chuckled softly, nodding.

“Sounds right. I’ll have to play her sometime.” She replied. Rick smiled again, nodding. “Rick… if and that’s a big ‘if’, everything goes south, we’ll all stand with you. Always.” His smile faltered and he inhaled a large shuddering breath.

“Thank you.” He whispered. Iris nodded, spying the water lining his eyes. She reached forward and he stepped into her arms, releasing a long sigh as they hugged each other tight.

-

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