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seasonschange-butpeopledont · 4 years ago

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Everyday Heroes

Pairing: Marcus Moreno x F!Reader

Warnings: A few curse words, an explosion, implied injury, depressed reader, minor character death, grief, and a bit of pining

Word Count: 3,364

Author’s Note: This got out of hand and apparently I only know how to write hopeless pining. Do we agree that Marcus gives off Clark Kent vibes or am I alone in this?

Summary: The three times you discovered Marcus Moreno was a hero.

Taglist Form - Masterlist

When you’d left the house that morning, the heels you wore had seemed like a great idea.

You were headed in for your first day at your new job and you wanted to make a good impression by wearing what you perceived to be your most professional outfit. You’d made it to the coffee shop down the street from your apartment with minimal difficulty, though you were certain to have blisters on your feet by the end of the day. Thankfully, your receptionist position meant that you would spend the majority of your day more or less chained to the front desk, answering phones, taking messages, scheduling appointments, and greeting visitors.

You didn’t know much about Vil-Tech. You’d googled them before your first interview, of course- you weren’t a total idiot and you’d never dare show up unprepared, especially when you needed this job so badly- but your search had yielded only a few results. Most of what you’d found had been articles from the newspaper. The researchers at the lab had, apparently, recently had some success in clean energy technology. Protons, neutrons, particle accelerators, electromagnetic fields… You knew nothing about it, really, but it sounded impressive. And clean energy had to be good, right? When they’d hired you, it hadn’t seemed like a big deal that you knew next to nothing about the company itself. They were only looking for a receptionist, after all, not a scientist. If they’d wanted you to know exactly what was going on in the floors above you, you were sure that they would have let you know.

With your coffee in hand, you made your way towards the Vil-Tech building. All in all, it seemed like the universe was on your side this morning. You’d woken up early enough to make yourself look decent. Your favorite barista had made your coffee just the way you liked it, and it even looked like you would be early for work.

And then it all seemed to happen in slow motion.

The upper half of your body was already moving forward, even as the heel of your shoe remained firmly wedged in the sidewalk crack. You felt the coffee sloshing around in the stainless steel travel mug in your hands, threatening to douse your crisp white blouse in the steaming beverage. You blindly threw your hand out in front of you, bracing yourself to hit the concrete and thinking to yourself that this was just one of those days when this might as well happen.

But the harsh impact you’d prepared yourself for never came.

It had taken you a moment to process that someone had caught you. Someone with impeccable reflexes, it seemed, as not only had they rescued you from taking a humiliating fall in the middle of a busy sidewalk, but they also managed to save your coffee without spilling a drop. To say that you were impressed by the feat was an understatement.

But when you looked up at your savior, you were damn near speechless.

“Are you okay?” He asked, his dark eyes finding yours from beneath his black-framed glasses. And, other than the approximately thirty-seven heart attacks you’d had in the span of 2.5 seconds only moments before, you found yourself nodding in confirmation.

“I’m fine. I… Thank you,” You breathed out, a warm, tingly feeling spreading out from your chest and right down to your toes. Gods, he had the most beautiful eyes you’d ever seen. He appeared to be somewhere in his mid-forties, and wore a leather jacket with his slacks and tie, a combination you’d never quite seen before, but decided suited him quite well.

“Are you sure? You look a little dizzy,” He noted. His arm was still around your waist, and you were grateful for it, because you didn’t quite trust the integrity of your knees at the moment.

After a few moments, which had exceeded the socially acceptable amount of time to moon over a stranger while clutching their remarkably toned biceps for dear life by a long-shot, your brain finally seemed to catch up to the rest of you, and promptly flooded your thoughts with embarrassment. You released your death-grip on his arms immediately, trying to maintain your dignity as you yanked your heel from the concrete crevice in a distinctly unladylike manor. All the while, the handsome stranger remained right there, dutifully holding your coffee and trying his best to hide the amusement in his eyes with a polite smile.

Taking a deep breath and smoothing out your outfit, you nodded at him once again. “I’m fine,” You said in what you hoped was your most composed voice. He promptly handed you your coffee, and you swore you felt electricity when his fingers brushed against yours.

“Glad to hear it,” He remarked, “That would have been a nasty fall.”

“Nice save, Clark,” You joked, attempting your most charming smile. Were you flirting? Could you even consider this flirting?

“Clark?” He repeated, his eyebrows raised in curiosity.

“You know, Clark Kent… with the glasses and... lightning-fast reflexes… saving me from an incredibly embarrassing moment?” You explained weakly. It wasn’t as if you’d never spoken to an attractive man before, but it seemed that the universe was decidedly not on your side this morning after all.

“Superman?” Another smile found its way to his face. He seemed flattered by your comment. “My daughter loves those comics.” At the mention of his daughter, your eyes quickly darted down to his left hand. There was no wedding ring there, but it was clear that there had been one there in the past.

“Well, your daughter has excellent taste. And we could all use a few more heroes in our lives, right?” You sighed wistfully, before adding, “Thank you, by the way.”

“It was no big deal,” He assured you. “I’m always happy to help a pretty lady in need.”

You laughed quietly at the last part, finding the cheesiness of it adorable. You weren’t quite sure why you were still lingering on the street corner, except that you couldn’t quite bring yourself to walk away just yet. He seemed equally as reluctant to part from you, both of you grinning shyly at one another as you soaked in the meet-cute moment. Right up until his eyes fell to the ID badge clipped to your bag, that is.

“Is that a Vil-Tech badge?”

There was a hint of disappointment in his tone that you couldn’t quite assign a cause for. It wasn’t the question you were expecting. You’d expected him to ask your name, or maybe offer you his, but you could practically see the gears turning in his head by now, so you humored him.

“Yep,” You confirmed. “It's my first day. I’m just a receptionist, though…”

He nodded slowly, his eyebrows pinching together. He didn’t even try to hide his frown. What was it about Vil-Tech that seemed to bother him so much?

“I’m really sorry, but I’m running late for work,” He said finally, nodding in the direction you had just come from. He turned his attention back to you, his eyes staring into yours as he spoke with the utmost seriousness. “Good luck on your first day, and… Look after yourself, okay? Vil-Tech might not be what you think it is.”

And with that, he brushed past you, seemingly in quite a hurry as he disappeared into the crowd and left you standing there, disappointment sinking deep into your bones.

You didn’t even get his name.

***

You didn’t see him again for a month.

Not that you often thought about him or his dreamy eyes and ridiculously charming smile or his strong arms around your waist. And definitely not that you sometimes idly wondered where he was and how his day was going while you were grocery shopping or stuck at the laundromat.

Okay, maybe you did.

Maybe you went to that same coffee shop every week day, hoping that you might bump into him again.

And maybe you sometimes imagined those eyes staring into yours and arms around you in situations where you weren’t making a complete fool of yourself.

You felt silly for being that girl. The one who falls hopelessly in love with strangers you pass on the streets, with anyone who thinks that anyone who so much as holds the door open for you could be your true love. You were a grown up, for goodness sake. You weren’t supposed to believe in that kind of thing anymore.

But it was those ridiculous daydreams you found yourself caught up in when a team of Heroics stormed into Vil-Tech on a Tuesday afternoon.

“I apologize, sir, but Dr. Pershing is out of the office today…” You sighed, listening to the supplier ramble on and on about the importance of Dr. Pershing returning his call. You had already scribbled the message down, along with his name and phone number. “Yes, I’ll be sure to give him the message.” It was difficult to hide the exasperation in your tone.

“That’s what you said the last time,” The man snapped. “Pershing didn’t return my calls for a week. I don’t know why they can’t hire someone who knows how to take a message properly. God knows they’ve got the money for it.”

You tapped the tip of your pen against the notepad on your desk, feeling a lump beginning to form in your throat. “I apologize, Mr. Wells. I’ll make sure that Dr. Pershing gets your message as soon as he returns.”

“You’d better,” He grumbled, before the line went dead.

You let out a slow breath, easing yourself back from the edge of tears. It had been like this all morning. The scientists in the building were off at a conference for the week, leaving you behind to copy down messages and field angry phone calls.

Stan, the elderly security guard, if you could call him that, offered you a sympathetic smile from his post by the door. You returned it weakly.

Closing your eyes, you tried to think of something else. Brown eyes, charming smile, strong arms. You repeated it like a mantra. Electricity. The feeling of safety. That warm, fluttering feeling in your stomach, and a rush of calm.

When you opened your eyes again, you found Stan staring slack-jawed as the Heroics sprinted into the building, announcing to you, Stan, and the maintenance staff that you all needed to clear the building immediately. They offered no explanation for their frantic demands, but when a guy in spandex and a cape tells you to go, you go. You were sure that, whatever it was, you’d be able to catch the reason for the strange event on the news later that evening. You’d watched them destroy city hall enough times from the comfort of your living room to be sure that you wanted out of this building as soon as possible.

But, given that this was your first call-the-Heroics-level emergency, it seems that your idea of immediacy was a bit different from theirs. In the time that it had taken you to grab your jacket, shove your laptop in your purse, and sling the bag over your shoulder, you had already been tackled to the ground by some idiot in a tactical vest.

You don’t remember much about the explosion.

You’d later learn that Vil-Tech Labs dealt in more than just technological innovation. The research they’d been conducting while locked away in the uppermost floors of the building, all of that gibberish involving the off-site particle accelerator you’d read about, was both sinister and invaluable. Rather than letting the Heroics get their hands on their files to uncover their plans and stop them from being set in motion, they’d decided to set off an explosion in their own goddamn building. And thanks to that ‘idiot in a tactical vest’, you were one of the only survivors.

But in the meantime, while you were lying on your back in the middle of the lobby feeling like you’d been hit by a train, you were clueless about the nefarious action of the company you’d spent the last month working for. The only thing you could seem to focus on was the pain in your head from where you’d smacked it against the tile flooring, and the weight of the fully grown man on top of you that was currently restricting your breathing.

You must have hit your head even harder than you thought, because there was no way in hell the man who’d been starring in all of your daydreams for months was here, now, on top of you, with katanas strapped to his back. You refused to accept that as a reality. Would he even remember you? Why would he? Apparently, the man you’d developed a stupid little crush on was a superhero. He probably helped people all of the time and you were just another-

“What the fuck?” You finally hissed, gasping for air. The air was smokey and it stung your eyes and nose when you inhaled.

His breathing hitched slightly when you looked up at him, the look of fear clear on your face. “You okay?” He asked, still hovering above you as he pushed himself up on his elbows, careful to avoid the shattered glass that now seemed to cover every flat surface in sight.

“I’m… reasonably certain I’m not dead,” You replied, an edge of panic in your voice, which was a bit shakier than you would have liked. “What’s happening? I don’t- I don’t understand- Where is Stan-” You coughed, your lungs burning.

You idly wondered how long you had before the building started to collapse, its structural integrity surely compromised by the explosion. Of all the ways you could die, being buried alive was up there with the ones you dreaded the most. Your growing panic must have been obvious.

“Hey, calm down,” He reassured you. “I’m going to get you out of here. You’re going to be just fine.”

The room was still spinning when you felt yourself being scooped up into his arms, the edges of your vision growing more and more fuzzy with each breath you took.

“We have got to stop meeting like this, Clark” You murmured. You swear you feel, rather than hear, a laugh rumble in his chest just before the world goes dark. Maybe he did remember you after all.

***

It’s only a little more than a week later, long after you’ve woken up in the hospital and been discharged, that you find yourself sitting in the coffee shop down the street. It’s a Thursday morning, and you’re staring blankly into your vanilla latte.

You aren’t sure why you’re up so early. The doctors had ordered you to take it easy, and it’s not like you had a job to go to anymore. You could have slept in, made your own coffee at home, and stayed curled up on your couch watching Netflix and hiding from the rest of the world like you had been for the past week. You felt horrible that you’d been associated with a place like Vil-Tech. You should have known that something was off about the place, but you’d never realized it, never bothered to look into anything when things seemed off. You felt so stupid for it now. Were you just as bad as the rest of them? Sure, all you’d done was answer phones for them, but…

Stan, your only friend at Vil-Tech, the kind man who had shared half of his sandwich at lunch with you more times than you could count and always had a smile for you when he greeted you in the mornings, had never made it out of the building. You supposed that you should consider yourself lucky that the Heroics had saved you, but the loss of your friend and the knowledge that Vil-Tech was certainly not what you thought it was, had shaken you.

You’d felt different when you woke up this morning. Like, maybe, leaving your apartment and getting some fresh air wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.

Your favorite barista had smiled sympathetically when you walked through the doors. You must have looked as bad as you felt. Considering you hadn’t showered since you’d gotten home from the hospital, you were sure that you were quite a sight.

“Good morning!” She greeted, mustering up her cheeriest demeanor for you. “The usual, right?”

You nodded, not quite making eye contact as you handed her your card to pay. She quickly waved you off.

“It’s on the house today, hon. And I insist that you take this chocolate chip muffin. I’ll make you feel better.”

Your heart ached at her kindness, the act almost forcing tears in your eyes once again. That was the thing that you realized over the past few days. The Heroics were great, but there were plenty of everyday heroes out there as well. Sometimes it was Ashely the Barista, who scribbles a smiley face and a compliment on your cup on the mornings that seem particularly rough. Sometimes it was Stan the Security Guard, who offers to teach you sudoku on your lunch breaks. And sometimes it was a stranger you passed on the street, who catches you when you fall.

You sat down at a table in the corner of the coffee shop, your vanilla latte and chocolate chip muffin sat out in front of you, untouched for the moment. You didn’t usually sit down to have your coffee, but you had nowhere to be today, and you were finding that you appreciated not being alone for a while.

You heard the bells above the door jingle, signaling that a new customer had entered the shop. You looked up to see a man with dark hair and a familiar leather jacket walking towards the barista to place his order. You listened closely as he gave his name for his order, though you’d heard it plenty of times on the news this week. A smile tugged at the corners of your lips for the first time in over a week.

Marcus Moreno, your own personal Superman.

You hadn’t meant to stare, but it was undeniably strange to see the man who had saved you not once, but twice, doing something as mundane as making his morning coffee run. After he paid, he turned towards the groupings of tables and chairs, searching for a place to sit while he waited for his drink to be ready. When his eyes landed on you, you raised your hand in a small wave. You were nervous about how he’d react to seeing you here. You had no doubt that he recognized you this time.

You weren’t exactly sure what the protocol was for meeting a real-life superhero again after they had saved your life. Were you supposed to pretend not to know each other? Should you have paid for his coffee? Did you make a public declaration to name your first born child after him?

To your surprise, he simply smiled back at you with the most heart-stopping, breathtaking smile you’d ever seen in your life, and returned your wave. It was as simple as that, you thought. Marcus Moreno, the superhero with katanas at this back and a team of Heroics at his side, the closest thing to Superman you’d ever met, was impressive. But Marcus Moreno, the helpful man with a kind, beautiful smile and warm, friendly eyes, whose mere existence had never failed to cheer you up? He was magnificent. An everyday hero, indeed.

He made this way through the crowd and over to your table, gesturing to the seat across from you as if to ask for your permission to sit down. You nodded, feeling a sense of warmth blossoming in your chest. The same way you’d felt when you saw him for the first time. The same feeling that you’d been dreaming about for months.

Hope, you realized.

“Hi,” He greeted. “I, uh, I never caught your name. I’m Marcus Moreno.”

As you gave him your name, you decided that maybe you could start by just saying thank you.

General Taglist: @theravenreads @marshmallowtraver @computeringturtle @adikaofmandalore @pascalisthepunkest

Marcus Moreno Taglist: @xjaywritesx

#marcus moreno #marcus moreno x reader #marcus moreno x you

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smol-and-grumpy · 4 years ago

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EUPHORIA - Chapter 24

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: He’s Dean Winchester, owner of a shady night club. She’s a journalist who has been asked to write an article to expose the indecency and debauchery that’s going on behind closed doors. But he’s also Dean Winchester, the boy who sat next to her in class. The boy who was too cocky for his own good.

Chapter Warning: NSFW, flangst

WC: 2824

A/N: This chapter fills my ‘voice kink’ square for @spnkinkbingo.

Beta’d by @deanwanddamons <3

This series is complete on Patreon!

Series Masterlist ~ SPN Masterlist

Become a Patron ~ Buy me a coffee

He’s pissed and overly grumpy. It’s too fucking early to be dealing with bullshit. But he’s also grumpy because he had to see Y/N off.

Walking around the corner, Cas’ notices him and nods.

“Again?” Dean asks, sees them washing down the red paint. It looks bloody and it smells awful. It almost made him nauseous.

“Yeah,” Cas sighs, “It’s nothing I couldn’t deal with, so I didn’t feel the need to call you.”

“That’s okay,” Dean crosses his arms over his chest, watches the paint come off the walls before he turns to Cas, “Security footage?”

“We got it,” Cas says, but he doesn’t look happy about it so Dean already knows that it’s probably not even worth mentioning, “The guy wore a Vendetta mask and was dressed in black.”

“Great,” Dean breathes out, his hand goes up to rub at his forehead. There’s a puddle of paint running down the pavement towards him, and he takes a step to the side.

It’s moments like these that Dean wants to give up completely. That he wants to just sell the whole fucking thing and go do something else, being a fucking accountant for the firm Sam’s working in or just something that’s less stressful. Somewhere where he has to deal with less hate, maybe. Less jealousy.

He places a hand on Cas’ shoulder, “You go home and get some shut eye. I’ll see you for the briefing later,”

“‘K,” Cas answers and turns to walk away. Looking back, he calls out to Dean, “Balth is waiting in your office!”

Dean groans and rolls his eyes at that.

Apparently, he can’t catch a fucking break around here.

Dean walks into his office and sees Balthazar sitting on the couch. The man’s busy working on his laptop. A scent of coffee lingers in the air. He must have brought a cup with him because Dean doesn’t have a coffee machine in his office. What he has, though, is a fucking bar and he wonders if it would be too soon to pour himself a couple of fingers? It’s probably five o’clock somewhere , right?

Even though his mouth waters at the thought of the burning liquid filling his throat and clouding his head, Dean abandons the thought quite quickly. She doesn’t like him to drink. It has a lot to do with how she grew up and Dean respects that, has toned it down since Y/N came back into his life, and he wants to keep that up.

“Balth,” Dean greets the man and walks over to his desk, sits down with a loud grunt, “What can I do for you?”

“How’s your hand?”

“Good.” Dean nods and holds it up, takes a look at it himself.

It’s bandaged. Y/N was telling him that he should let her do it or she’ll get angry at him. He smirks at the memory. He would have loved to say that she could get mad all she wants, because he likes how cute she looks when she’s mad, but he thinks that would have been a bad move on his part, so he just held still while she sat on his lap and bandaged his hand. The lap sitting was a deal he negotiated because he said that he wouldn’t let her if she wouldn’t sit on his lap. She rolled her eyes but sat down and it’s crazy how his lap was made for her to sit on.

Balthazar clears his throat before he closes his laptop, and Dean is catapulted back to reality. Back to an annoying work day. He thinks maybe he should take a break, ask her if she’s game to go on a road trip. Just the two of them, driving where the road takes them with no clear destination. Dean doesn’t think he needs one with her.

“I’ve stayed with Cole after you left.” Balthazar says while he places his laptop back into its bag.

“And?” Dean frowns.

“He won’t press charges,”

Dean snorts, “Yeah, because we have the upper hand.”

It’s no surprise. Dean knew that he wouldn’t. If he would, he’d see his ass in jail and Dean doubts that Cole would survive a day in there. All Dean wanted was to make a statement and he thinks that he was pretty clear about what the statement entailed.

“Still, you should be more careful with breaking bones.” Balthazar gets up from the couch and walks over to the chair across from Dean. He doesn’t sit down, though, only braces his hands on it, leaning in a little.

“He was touching what’s fucking mine, Balth. What do you want me to do?” Dean shouts out and immediately regrets his outburst because it hurt his own ears. He pinches the bridge of his nose. It’s too fucking early.

When Dean calms down a little, he asks, “So, you had your eyes on him? He wasn’t anywhere near the club?”

“Nope, I drove him to the ER and he underwent surgery to correct his fucking jaw that you broke. He’ll stay there for the next two days, at least.”

“Good,” Dean nods. It’s not exactly good when it comes to the club, though, because Cole’s out of the picture, “Can you get more people on board? I want someone watching the club after closing. It’s a tiny window of time, three, maybe four hours.”

Balthazar nods, “I can do that.”

After Balthazar left, Dean decided to start up his computer since he hasn’t checked his emails for a couple of days now. He deliberately doesn’t have his work emails on his phone. It’s his private property and he made it clear from the beginning that he’s separating work and private life.

Dean clicks through the emails. There are some new member sign ups that he needs to go through. Some harmless threats which he usually bins right away. But then there are some mails that are more worrying as well.

He clicks on the first one with the title I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST NIGHT . The email opens up to pictures of the altercation in front of Y/N’s office building. Dean can see that it was shot from across the street. Maybe from a parked car. He immediately forwards the pictures to Balthazar.

There are more emails. Without pictures though, just words. Hurtful ones.

I WILL TAKE YOU AND YOUR CLUB DOWN

YOU ARE A FUCKING DISGUSTING HUMAN BEING

SHAME ON YOU

YOUR CLUB WILL BE CLOSED. MARK MY WORDS

It’s really nothing new. He gets those threats quite a lot and he always makes sure to block the sender but they keep making new email accounts and so he’ll keep deleting and blocking them. Dean can’t win in this, but neither can they, so at least there’s that.

Later in the day, while Dean’s briefing his employees, his phone vibrates in his pocket. He fishes it out, thinks it’s Balthazar calling him about new developments. The man had called earlier already, only to suggest for Dean to get a fucking bodyguard but Dean really doesn’t know about that. He just thinks it’s a waste of money. Only when Balth mentioned that Y/N’s safety might be in danger too, does Dean at least agree to consider it.

Dean stops his speech to look at the caller ID, has to suppress his smirk while he holds up his index finger, “I gotta take this one, Cas?”

“Yeah,” The other man jumps in, grins himself because he knows, and Dean actually wants to wipe that smile from Cas’ face but he gotta hurry if he wants to take it before she hangs up on him.

Dean turns around, picks it up, smiles like an idiot because apparently, he lost the ability to control his fucking face, “Hey,” Dean walks up the stairs and disappears into the VIP room for some privacy.

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting? You must be busy.”

It sounds like she’s pouting, Dean bites back a chuckle, “No, it’s okay, you never interrupt. How’s the workshop going?”

He tries to sound cheerful, doesn’t want to tell her about the things that happened yet. There’s no need for her to worry, really.

“Ugh, boring,” Y/N sighs, and adds, “I have a short break before I have to go for the mandatory dinner.”

Dean flips his wrist, sees that it’s past 5pm. He grins, “You wanna spice things up at the dinner?”

“Dean,”

“What?” He chuckles.

“Well,” Her voice is almost whiny as she considers his words, “Yeah?”

“That’s my girl,” Dean smiles, “Jesus, I’m getting all excited myself.”

Cas appears in the room and Dean nods at him, “Baby, I gotta go, I need to finish something here,”

“Okay,” It sounds like she’s pouting and god, Dean feels bad for making her feel like he doesn’t have time for her or that he doesn’t care when all he’s doing is to make fucking time. But he guesses she’ll understand once they see each other.

“Wear it and let me know when you’re going to dinner, alright?”

“Yeah,” She sighs, “Miss you.”

Dean sighs, closes his eyes briefly, his heart flutters at those words. He smiles at the feeling, “I miss you, too.”

Y/N runs up to her room right after dinner, keys in her hand and leans back against the closed door as soon as she’s inside. She’s dripping wet from that vibe but she didn’t come yet. She doesn’t know how Dean does it but he always managed to stop when she’s about to come, making her whine out audibly once, and when Charlie, her friend from college who sat next to her asked what was wrong, she just said that she liked the food very much.

God, it was so embarrassing!

She thinks about calling him but he’s probably busy working as it’s already past 10pm and the club is at its peak right about now.

Taking off her shoes, she walks to the bathroom to clean her face and she brushes her teeth, walking out into the bedroom shortly after. She quickly gets out of her dress and slips out of her panties that are completely soaked.

The device is still inside of her and clear enough, it starts to buzz again, making her shriek out. She swears if he won’t let her come again—

—her phone rings.

Letting herself fall onto the bed, still in only her bra and nothing else — except for the vibrator in her pussy — she grabs at her clutch that she left there before she walked to the bathroom.

Dean.

The vibrator still buzzes lightly inside of her and she picks up, has to gnaw on her bottom lip to suppress the moan.

“You are the worst!” It blurts out of her as soon as she swipes her thumb across the screen.

“Wait, what?” He’s laughing loudly.

“Yeah,” She pouts and moves up the bed, rests her back against the headboard while she spreads her legs and enjoys the buzzing between her thighs, “You turn me on and then you stop, and I was so close to coming.”

“Awe, poor baby,” Dean says in his mumbling voice and it sounds so fucking sexy, “Are you still turned on?”

“Yeah,” She mutters under her breath, “Please, you have to let me come.”

“I don’t know,” He chuckles, “Have you been good, Y/N?”

Oh my god , he’s pulling that card, isn’t he?

“I have. Please?” She nods and whines, teeth sinking into her bottom lip when she feels the buzzing getting stronger, moaning out shamelessly.

“Christ, you sound so fucking sexy,”

She can hear him growl on the other end.

“No, you do,” There’s another increase of vibration and god, it makes her arch her back, as a shrieking sound rolls off her tongue.

“I do? I don’t think so, sweetheart. I’m getting hard just hearing you moan.”

“It— ah— it’s your v—voice, Dean.”

“My voice? What’s with my voice, baby?”

And it’s like he’s taunting her because it rolls deep, smooth like fucking honey and it feels like he’s wrapping her up in the warm sound. He increases the vibrations, and she didn’t know it could go further up but it does. One of her hands goes to her tit, kneads at it while she has a tight grip around her phone with the other.

“Ah— it’s.. Fuck— it’s so deep and gravelly and oh god— it’s sexy,”

“Yeah?” He chuckles, “Bet you’re so wet, ain’tcha, baby? You always are so wet for me. It’s the fucking best thing. Especially when you gush and come around my cock, Jesus—”

His breathing is ragged, he’s turned on too.

Good , she thinks. At least she’s not the only one.

“My panties were soaked. I took them off and now I’m on my bed in only my bra,” She manages to say, tongue darts out to wet her lips, “Wish you were here.”

“I wish I was there too. Wish I could kiss you. I’d be right between your thighs right now, eating you out like you’re the sweetest thing, because you fucking are,” It comes out a little strained, “Does me telling you these thing turn you on, huh?”

“Yeah,” She chokes out a moan, “You could read me the goddamn phone book and it would turn me on, Dean.”

“Christ, I’m just imagining you right now, all spread out and wet,” There’s a low growl before he speaks again, “Can you do me a favor, huh?”

“Uh-huh,”

“Use your words, sweetheart,” His voice is more stern. Doesn’t make it less sexy, though.

“Yes,”

“Good girl,”

God the praise . Y/N has to press her thighs together, already so fucking close.

Dean goes on, “Take off your bra for me, baby. Take your thumb and forefinger, give them a firm tug for me, bet your nipples are sensitive, huh? I wanna hear you.”

She sits up to unclasp her bra before she throws it carelessly into the room. Leaning back again, her right hand goes to her left nipple, tugs hard and moans out in pained pleasure.

“Good girl,” He coos, “Such a fucking good girl,”

The vibration increases again and she thinks that’s the maximum it can go. Hopes it is, because she’s right there, dancing dangerously on the edge.

“Dean, please, I’m—”

“—I got you, baby,” He breathes out a soft chuckle, “Come, you can come, now. Come for me, okay? I wanna hear you come for me.” His whispering low, and the words paired with his voice, plus the added buzzing in her cunt was enough to tip her over.

Oh god. His voice is really out of his world. She comes with a squeal. His name rolls off her tongue as she squeezes her eyes shut and her legs start to tremble. Her hips buck up and she doubles over and has to roll herself into a fetal position on the bed.

There’s a ringing in her ear from the orgasm and she feels the vibration getting softer until it’s completely gone. Dean’s voice is faint in her ear through the phone.

Good girl. My fucking good girl.

She swallows hard, her eyes are still closed. When Y/N comes back to her senses, she starts to giggle and then she hears it. The knock at her door.

“What’s so funny?” Dean asks as she sits up straight, startled from the knocking.

“Oh my god, someone just knocked at my door.” She says, her heart’s still pounding fast.

“Go on, open it.”

“No, who would knock at this time of night? I’m sure they just have the wrong room.” She doesn’t know if she’s trying to talk to him or talk herself out of her anxiety of the realization that someone came knocking at her door late at night.

“Maybe it’s room service?”

“Dean, I just came from dinner, I didn’t order anything!”

“Jesus Christ, I didn’t think it would be this hard!” Dean growls and she might be hearing things because she hears the deep growl outside of her door? He sighs then, “Baby, I really think you should open up.”

“Oh my god, you didn’t... Dean, no.” She scrambles off the bed, and somehow she doesn’t even care if she’s fucking naked.

“Dean, yes!” He chuckles lightly, “Come on, I’m standing in the hallway with a visible boner and I think if someone sees it, they’ll call the cops.”

She hangs up and drops the phone onto the bed as she makes her way to the door, opens it up wide to see Dean smiling at her.

Chapter 25

Please share your thoughts with me, I’d love to hear your feedback.

#euphoria #spnkinkbingo #dean winchester #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester x you #dean winchester fic #dean winchester fan fic #dean winchester fan fiction #nathalie writes

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violetnotez · 5 years ago

Text

My Hero

Pro Hero! Red Riot x Reader

I havent seen much for Pro Hero Red Riot so I thought Id mine as well give it a shot! This is a rewrite of one of my older fics so I hope its a little better than the last :)

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Genre: Angst (ish) to Fluff

Word Count: 2500+

Warnings: Catcalling, cussing

Summary: When you decide to leave your neglectful date and walk home, your met with a drunken idiot who cant seem to understand the meaning of “No”-until the hero Red Riot comes to save the day.

One Shot

(RULES | MASTERLIST| REQUESTS OPEN!!! :))

Why did I ever think this was going to be fun,” you thought miserably, the chilly night air biting your exposed skin.

Parties were never your “thing”, since nobody really invited you. It wasn’t because you were hated at your school or were an outcast; it was just you didn’t care to belong to a ‘clique’. You were a roamer, being a friend to anyone who was nice and social enough to talk to you, but you never became to the level of close friends with any of them. So, when you had been invited to go to a house party by one of your guy friends who was a little bit popular, you were more than just a “little” shocked. You were completely confused on why, but you shrugged it off and just decided to go. How bad could it be?

Very bad, more than you had expected, and now you were cursing at yourself for even agreeing to be his date. He decided to take you with a group of his old high school friends, who were the definition of a typical “Popular” group of high school: a bunch of lip glossed cheerleaders and crazy sports fanatics. It would’ve been tolerable to be around such a group if your “date” was polite enough to pay attention to you, but he had ran off to be idiots with all his football buddies, leaving you defenseless with the slightly air headed cheerleaders.

You were seriously itching to rip out your hair from frustration all night.

When two hours of having to deal with high pitch squeals from girls who would laugh at anything the guys would say finally hit, you were thoroughly annoyed and grossed out and wanted to go home. You tracked down your date, told him you were leaving, and walked yourself home, politely declining his offer of driving you home.

You had just passed what looked like another house party, the music pumping through the windows as people came in and out of the house, stumbling and dancing around with no care in the world.

To say you were mad was an understatement. You were exhausted from having to act like you were enjoying yourself so you didnt look like a whiny prick, mad that you had actually used up your money (and was now broke) on a dress and a pair of shoes you’d never wear again, and a little hurt your “date” just left you to fend for yourself with his buddies�� dates all night.

You were so frustrated at yourself and the whole situation, you almost didn’t hear the person behind you.

“Hey hottie, where ya going lookin like that?”

You whipped around, the slurred voice making your blood run cold.

The guy in front of you was definitely intoxicated, his overly gelled hair slicked back, his polo untucked and a red cup in his hand. His face was plastered with such a smug smile, it made you want to cringe from disgust. This guy was a total creep.

“Buzz off,” you gave him a dirty look, mustering your face to look menacing when on the inside you were terrified.

“Playing hard to get, huh, babe? I like that,” the drunken idiot walked closer, his drink sloshing out of the cup and the stink of alcohol and sweat hitting you, making you feel dizzy.

“No,” you walked backwards quickly in fear, “Im trying to get away from you! Now go to back to your party and leave me alone.” You pleaded the last part, wishing you could break out in a run but knew you’d hurt yourself on your shoes.

He was getting too close for comfort. You could now see clearly the stitching of the emblem on his polo, a bright cherry red. HIs breath was suffocating you, making it harder to breath. You looked around desperately for any way out.

“Why dont you come inside, baby- you’ll definitely want to stay here once your alone with me,” the drunken idiot licked his lips, making you shiver in disgust.

“What the hell!” you gasped in shock, pushing him away from you. “Get the hell away from me you creep!” you yelled, hoping somebody would hear you as you frantically walked backwards, trying a last ditch attempt to shake this creepo off as he drunkenly groped for your arm.

“Whats your deal?!” the man yelled accusingly, as if you were in the wrong and stumbling closer to you. “Why are you being such a bitc-”

“I wouldnt finish that sentence if I were you.”

You looked up quickly, your eyes still wide with terror as you searched for the source of the voice. Your gaze fell upon a boy wearing a plain gray hoodie, with spiky hair as red as a cherry. His eyes were dark, slanted in a mad glare. He looked as if he was going on a night run, and you felt relief flood your body- somebody heard you and was willing to help.

“What the hell dude, mind your own damn business-!” the drunk yelled out in anger, but then he paused, and something strange happened- the man actually looked scared. ‘Wait...I know that hair...your the hero Red Riot, right?” he said with a mix of awe and terror, turning sober for the span of .2 seconds.

“Huh, so you do have a brain? Wouldn’t have guessed that!” he laughed, a feeling of safety warming your body- a Hero was saving you-and a great one at that! You remembered that name instantly- you had seen Red Riot all the time on TV, sporting that signature red, spiky hair everywhere he went. He was always fighting some villain with that amazing Hardening quirk of his, and you had always taken time to admire his costume (and his amazing body). He was pretty young for a hero, around his early 20′s, but was already being described as one of the “Best Debuting Heroes” of that year.

The drunk man stood there, his groggy mind trying to understand the insult. You took that time to make a run for it- you shoved him again, his drink spilling all over his shirt as you ran towards your savior.

“Dude, what the hell!” he sputtered as he looked down at his now beer soaked shirt.

Red Riot instantly protected you once you got close enough to him, shielding you with his body from the idiot in front of you two. “You gotta admit,” Red Riot said, a laugh spilling out of his lips, “you kinda deserved that. Its not cool to keep pushing on a girl if she says “no”, man.”

The drunken man’s face turned red from anger and embarrassment.

“Ya know what, he yelled, “I dont give a damn if your a hero, I’m gonna beat your ass into the ground!”

The drunken idiot threw his cup on the floor, sprinting up to the hero and throwing him a punch aimed for his head.

You gasped, not expecting something so reckless and violent to happen so quickly. Red Riot instantly blocked, though, as if it was a reflex, his hardening quirk making his arm jagged like a mountain cliff.

“Hitting a hero! That wasnt very smart,” Red Riot replied calmly, as if amused. You watched the drunk’s face contort in shock, and then into panic as Red Riot swung a matching punch to his face, knocking him out cold.

Kirishima looked down at the man in distaste- he hated scumbags like this, who treat others like property and expect rewards for being aggressive. To be honest, he’d loved to do more than just one lousy punch on this idiot but- he was a hero, and heroes didn’t abuse their powers. If he did, he’d be just as bad as this creep.

He sighed, giving one last look to make sure the drunk was breathing and okay-which he was- and turned to the startled girl behind him.

“You alright miss?” Red Riot asked softly, concern in his voice.

You turned sharply, your hair flipping away from your face as you looked up at the hero, your chest hurting from the fear you were feeling moments before.

You looked at him in shock and awe- “You just saved my life,” you stated, the sound of your steady voice surprising you.

He scratched his head, almost looking embarrassed. “Its nothing, really,’ he said quickly, his concern pushing you for an answer. “DId he do anything to you? Are you hurt?”

“A little shaken up,” you said with a weak smile, “but nothing I cant handle.”

“Im sorry you had to deal with that,” he stated, the slight anger in his voice surprising you. “But- is it okay if I can walk you home? I really don’t feel comfortable letting you walk by yourself. The streets are super dangerous at night.”

You laughed sarcastically, trying to ease your nerves and keep the growing pit of emotions at bay. “Yeah, kinda figured that out the hard way.” You paused, thinking the new situation over- you didnt want to walk home by yourself, that was not happening. You felt unsafe, and violated, and the anger and slight embarrassment bubbled in your stomach, threatening to come out in streams across your face. You wanted to forget this, and you felt embarrassed that someone witnessed what just happened, even if it was a person who helped you and you surprisingly felt comfortable around. He seemed like a genuinely good person- someone who would listen to and truly care about someone.“I shouldn’t be embarrassed,” you thought violently to yourself, “it isn’t your fault.” But the feeling of being rejected and then sought after in a disgusting way made you feel crushed, and you couldn’t keep everything in any more. The tears came quietly, then slowly came on harder, the sound of sobbing escaping your mouth.

You willed your tears to go back, to evaporate and leave you, but that, inevitablely, didn’t work. But, surprisingly, the hero didn’t question this. He gently wrapped his arms around you, the soft thin fabric shielding your exposed skin from the cold.

It did feel awkward to hug a stranger at first, but it quickly soothed you.. He didn’t feel so much as a stranger, but an anonymous confidant, a past friend, someone who was easy to be with and be your real self, and not have to pretend that life was great all the time. Sometimes life throws you some curveballs-You just needed someone who a least cared a little bit about how you felt when you got two curveballs in one night.

“You’re safe, I got you. Its not your fault- Youll be okay.”

Your shoulders shook slightly as the tears left your face, the feeling of relievement making you feel much better. As your breathing began to go back to normal pace, you pushed away gently, your now shiny face smiling in embarrassment with a sniffle.

“Are you sure he didnt hurt you? Or do anything to you?” he asked again, his voice filled with care and urgency as he looked into your eyes, searching for an answer. His hands on your shoulders shielded you from the cold, the fabric tickling your skin.

“Yeah, Im okay, what you saw is all he did,” you said, your voice thick from crying. “Im sorry I broke down a little, just-, you sighed, feeling there was no point in keeping your walls up- “ it hasnt been the best night.”

He hugged you again, this time being quicker and harder.

“Dont be sorry for crying, you deserve to. Im just sorry I wasnt here sooner.”

Your heart melted a little for this boy and his big heart. You pushed a piece of hair away from your face, your cheeks a little warmer than the rest of your body.

“No your fine, you didnt know that was happening, Im just so grateful for you helping when you did. I really do mean it when I said you saved my life.”

The hero shuffled, embarrassment yet again evident in his mannerism.

“Just doing my job I guess!” his eyes filled with happiness, the evident blush looking almost comical.

“So- is it alright if I can walk you home?”

You giggled, your stress now alleviated and the look on his face looking so silly it made you feel almost peaceful.

“Of course,” you replied, and you began to walk alongside him.

You two walked quietly, the soft breeze nipping your skin, but filling your lungs with brisk air, clearing your head. The silence between you two was comfortable as both of you thought deeply. You were going over the events of the night- the feel of betrayal and annoyance, then extreme fear, and relief, and sadness, guilt, happiness- it was so much to process you couldn’t wrap your head around it. But one thing you could think clearly on was the person next to you. You gave him a side eyed glance, staring at his sweatshirt, the toned muscles contouring the sweatshirt. You wish you could know who he was- he seemed sweet and genuine, and not to mention even more handsome in person. But being around him felt peaceful, even for just talking to him for a few moments-the feeling was a little intoxicating.

As Red Riot caught your side eyed glance, the feeling of butterflies filled his stomach. He had just met this girl, but he already knew he liked her. She had a fighter’s spirit, she wasnt hung over the fact that he was a hero and gawking at him like some object- she treated him like a person, not just some hero. She was sweet to him, even though she looked like she just had the crappiest night of her life. And the fact he found her unbelievably pretty made the butterflies fill his stomach with a ticklish feeling.

You two began to start talking a little, slowly becoming more comfortable. You talked about everything, from school to friends to hero work to anything you could think of. By the end, both of you were hurting from laughing and the smiles that were plastered on your faces.

You both reached the front steps of your apartment building, the look of happiness on your face making Kirishima feel great inside. He knew a comfortable walk would make you feel better- it always did for him. But he knew he just met you and he shouldn’t go out of his way so much to help a stranger, but you looked like you needed it. And he had this itching feeling like you deserved something good to happen to you. Everyone does, right?

You looked at him, feeling a rush of butterflies fill your stomach. You had never wanted to get to know someone more so hard in your life. To just know who he was and thank him properly would alleviate the sudden need to know him, not just “Red Riot”. You grabbed your hands tightly, wishing the walk wouldnt ever end.

“Thanks again for everything,” you smiled warmly, making Red Riot’s stomach bubble with butterflies.

“Yeah, no problem!” he replied, sadness ebbing into him at the thought of leaving you. His eyes suddenly light up, an idea striking him.

“Do you by any chance have your phone on you?” he asked sweetly. You gave him a slightly confused look, but nodded, handing him your phone.

He quietly punched in a few characters in the key pad, and then handed back your phone. You looked down and there was his phone number in your contacts, and his name- “Kirishima.”

“That’s my last name-and- uh- my number,” he chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck, “If you never need anything, or want to talk and maybe...go on a date, just-”

“How about tomorrow at 2?” you asked quickly, wanting so badly to meet him again.

Kirishima was caught completely off guard- in a good way. Electricity flooded his body, as if all his nerves were on everload..

“2 so great! I'll be off tomorrow, so wherever you want to meet, I'll be there!” His smile was so happy and large, you couldn't help but smile back.

“Thanks again,” you said softly, feeling as if you were in a dream.

Then you did something you wouldn't even expect from yourself- you kissed him on the cheek, before looking one last time at your hero before you closed your front door softly.

“Wait!” Kirishima yelled as he realized something.

“Hm?” you opened the door a crack, your freezing legs hidden behind the warm inside of the door.

“I never got your name!”

You laughed as you realized you never actually did introduce yourself. “Its y/n!”

Kirishima thought your name was beautiful- a pretty name to match a pretty girl. “Well- good night y/n!” You waved goodbye, a smile playing on your lips as you closed your door.

Kirishima looked at your front porch, the spot you kissed still tingling and his heart pounding. He looked at your door in a blissful daze- he couldn’t believe that just happened. A grin spread on his face as he finally turned away from your house, and walked off with a warmth creeping in his chest. A pretty girl he saved kissed him. Well- on his cheek- but still. It was a win for the books.

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Requests open!!!!!

#bnha #bnha hc #bnha x reader #bnha kirishima #bnha kirishima x y/n #bnha kirishima x you #bnha kirishima x reader #kirishima x reader #mha kirishima x reader #kirishima #kirishima imagine #mha kirishima #bnha red riot #red riot #bnha red riot x reader #bnha red riot x you #red riot one shot #bnha red riot x y/n

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milkcartonbastard · 5 years ago

Text

Wide Eyes

Fandom and Pairing- The Outsiders (Johnny X Dally and background Steve X Soda.)

Notes- The setting is modern times. I use the word 'Fae' as the plural form of Fairy. This was a request and I know I haven't been taking them for this fandom, but it was a lot and I was blown away.

This is a Mythical Creature AU that I am living for.

Warnings- Johnny's home abuse and attempted murder. As well as Dally's New York experience. There's violence towards the end. Language warning too. Leave comments, please. I love hearing from you all.

~~~

The fan hanging from the ceiling of the Curtis living room hummed loudly in the gang's ears. There was a frequent swishing sound coming from Two-Bit flicking his switch blade around, his eyes locked on the black television screen. The gang was getting restless and sweating profusely. It was the end of Spring and it was already one of the hottest Summer's in Tulsa. Which was fitting, because the Curtis brother's were behind on their bills, causing their power to be cut off. Darry had the money to pay the bill, which had been doubled in order to be reactivated, but had to wait until Monday when the City Court House was open and accepting over-due payments.

Steve had been generous enough to use his abilities to hook up a system that caused the fan to move without electricity. But it was slow and just moved the hot-air around and caused the sweat-fall to worsen. Steve was good at things like that, but that was his gift after all. Steve's mother was a witch and had passed her genes down to him. He had a natural sway- one that didn't require spells, of course he could still do those too- over fire and mechanics, which was fortunate considering the only place that would hire him was the DX down the road from his place. He worked on cars during the hottest parts of the day and then came home at night to relax. But it was never very relaxing, considering his step-dad was a piece of shit and always trying to push him around and control his life. He was a warlock, like Steve, but his power must have been bitterness, because Steve had never seen him do anything useful in his life.

Steve's magic was pretty superior to other warlocks he knew, which was not many, at least that's what he believed. He knew of his step-dad, some prick at school who loved to make strong breezes blow girl's skirts up, and Johnny Cade. Johnny kept his powers more concealed than Steve had ever been able to. He'd only seen Johnny use his abilities once and it was against some psycho who had flicked his knife out at the gang. If it hadn't been an emergency- also a situation where the Curtis brothers weren't there- he would have been sure Johnny still wouldn't have used them. It was an incredibly strange thing to see, which said a lot considering Steve had know the Curtis brothers his entire life. Johnny's black colored eyes expanded until you could no longer see any of the whites of his eyes and his voice sounded like it was under water.

"Sleep." Johnny had gently placed his hands on either side of the man's greasy face and then the man had fallen unconscious as soon as the word's left Johnny's lips. Steve had known Johnny was a warlock, but seeing that had just shocked him as much as not knowing would have. Two-Bit had been there with them and had told the rest of the gang about it as soon as he'd seen them again, changing his face and acting it out for the Curtis brothers, who were having an 'inside' night. Everyone had patted Johnny on the back and told him he'd done a good job. He'd smiled only slightly, but his rosy cheeks gave away how thrilled he was.

"Alright. Fuck this. It's hotter in here than it is outside! Surely we can find something to do outside." Two-Bit whined and stood up. He pulled his chuck's on and laced them up. Nobody moved to stand up or put their own Converse on.

"I don't know, Two. It's hot and I've heard some rumor's going around about some Hunter's in the area. Maybe we should just stay in and lay low." Darry said. At the mention of Creature Hunter's, Pony's eyes left the homework he was doing off to the side and flickered across his oldest brother's face. Their parents had been caught a couple years back and had been terminated, which had prompted Darry to raise his brothers and the three other boys since. The Hunters had never gotten a possible ID match, which meant their parent's bodies had been too mangled to identify. That was a good thing- an impossibly horrifying thing- because that meant the three Curtis brothers were safe. For now.

Two-Bit sighed heavily, his knees buckling to the floor in front of the oldest boy's feet. He pressed his palms and fingers together, his bottom lip jutting out and quivering slightly, begging Darry for some freedom. "But it's so nice out. We can go play in the park and you can chase all the cars you want. Please? You can't say no to this face."

"Yes, I can. No, Two-Bit." Darry stated firmly. He leaned back in his recliner, his shirt soaked in sweat. Two-Bit groaned and thought for a second. A split second later, he stood up and his face had changed. Barack Obama was now standing in the Curtis house. He smiled charmingly at Darry and fixed the tie that was laying perfectly with his navy blue suit.

"Well. Certainly we can work something out. Come now, the President of the United States Of America has decided we are going to the park." Barack Obama fixed his cuff-links as he strolled to the door. Johnny was quick to shut the door, kicking the bottom while sitting on the floor nearby. Johnny would hate for someone walking by the house to see the President looking through the screen door. Obama stopped in his tracks and suddenly the Shift was gone. Two-Bit stood with a defeated look on his face.

"What if we all just go out and grab a bite to eat. If we open your fridge with all this heat, who knows what will happen?" Two-Bit was deflating, already going to take his shoes off.

"Fine. We'll go out for a little. But no Shifting, no magic, and no wolfing out. 'Hershey bars' is the code if you see anything suspicious or if something happens. You all know the drill." Darry grabbed his shoes and Soda hopped off the couch and went to grab a shirt. Two-Bit fist punched the air as they all got ready. It was around 6pm and he was ready for some fun. Of course, the Dairy Queen wouldn't be a blast, but he knew milkshakes would be involved.

Pony flipped his Calculus book closed and grabbed his shoes out from underneath the couch. The ceiling fan came to a complete stop, Steve's magic had stopped working and his red eyes faded back to their whisky brown. Soda came sauntering in, wearing one of Steve's cut up thrift store shirts. It had been carelessly cast onto the floor earlier when he and Steve had disappeared into his room. Pony was very glad that he'd decided to get his own space and move out of his brother's room, cause he was sure he would have had to change his sheets.

Steve and Soda stood by the door with Johnny and Two-Bit. Pony stood up and brushed the cookie crumbs off his pants. Darry was tying his boots up and everyone waited patiently by the door. Soon enough, Darry was shutting the door to the house and they were piling into the Curtis's beat up red truck. Two-Bit got shotgun, and since it was a stick shift and Darry couldn't change gears without hitting the knees of whoever sat between him and Two, the other four boys piled into bed.

By the time they got to Dairy Queen, the boys were no longer sweating and their damp of their clothes had dried. Pony and Johnny were sat crisscross beside each other and talking amongst themselves. Steve was sitting with his back against the cab window and Soda was laid in his lap, staring up at the clothes and pointing every now and then as they drove.

Johnny felt a strange twisting in his gut. Steve's fingers were carding through Soda's wheat-gold hair. Steve wasn't looking up at the sky, only at Soda's pretty face. Johnny wanted that. He wanted someone to stare at him like he was the stars. Like he was the only beautiful thing in the world to them. He'd used to like Ponyboy, then he'd gained a small crush on a girl up the street- Malia Smith was pretty, but her personality was like pouring salt in an open wound- and then he'd ignored his feelings for anyone until they had all just faded away. Pony was nothing more than a really good best friend and Johnny had decided he'd wanted it no other way.

"What kinda milkshake do you want? I feel like it's a strawberry kinda day for me." Pony said. Johnny felt a smile spread across his face. He only loved one type of milkshake from Dairy Queen and everyone knew that. Pony's face twisted up. "Peanut butter, again? Gross."

"It's delicious, thank you very much. One day you're going to be in a peanut butter mood and you're going to be telling me how wrong you were all these years." Johnny's face got hot and he laughed softly. "Whenever you concur your peanut allergy, that is."

Johnny and Pony both started laughing hysterically. Two-Bit heard this, which prompted him to unbuckle his seat belt and open the beer-window. He asked the two what was so funny. It took a full minute before either boy was able to compose themselves enough to answer him.

"Pony's the only werewolf I know wuh-who is allergic to peanuts." Johnny felt laughter bubble up inside of him again and then the silent laughter fit took over. Two-Bit snorted and watched the two teens.

"Yeah! I thought dogs were supposed to like peanut butter! What a-" Two-Bit was being dragged back into the cab and hit in the back of the head by Darry. Two-Bit cackled and just like that, the family was pulling into Dairy Queen and parking. It was almost empty, save for a few people at the drive-in and a couple people getting carry out orders. Darry led his motley crew of creatures into the restaurant. They all got milkshakes, minus Soda who decided he wanted a cookie dough blizzard instead. They payed and went outside to hang around at the tables. They laughed and swapped shakes occasionally. Nobody but Darry drank any of Johnny's peanut butter shake, meanwhile Soda wouldn't share his blizzard with anyone but Steve.

"Well if it isn't my favorite mutt. How ya been Horseman?" Curly Shepard hopped the little neat gate around the outside eating area. He clapped his hand on Pony's shoulder and stole a sip of his milkshake.

"Sweaty. What about you?" Pony snatched his shake back and Curly grabbed a nearby chair. He spun it around and sat with the chair back against his stomach.

"Fan-fucking-tastic. I found this awesome hangout for ya know- people like us- and figured y'all could use a new club-house since yours no longer has air-conditioning." Curly grinned lopsidedly. His dark eyes stuck out against his pale-white face. His curly black hair was getting shaggy now, almost as long as Pony's. But Pony had tied his back in a small bun today, since it was too hot to have that mess in his face.

"Sounds shady. Any Hunter could waltz in at anytime. That's a trap with a beacon attached." Darry shook his head, crossing his arms across his chest. His muscles jutted out of his tank top, causing him to look a lot more defined than usual. The tan that he'd gotten a week earlier was helping too.

"Nah, this cat had a glamour Cast on the place. Only our kind can really see the place. It makes normal eyes just glide over it. A Hunter's worst nightmare. I'm heading down there right now. All kinds and species are welcome. Come with. All y'all." With that Curly stood up and pushed his chair back where it came from.

"Who is this guy? He could be a Hunter for all we know." Steve had his arms crossed too. Pony glanced over and noticed Johnny's closed eyes. What was he doing?

"Show up and find out." Curly started to walk away, grinning widely, but that grin faltered quickly and he stopped moving. He walked closer to the table and started to speak again. It sounded like words were being pulled from his body.

"His name's Buck Merril, he's an Elf and part of a sm- small resistance. His goal is to get a bunch of our kuh-kind together and let us interact. He thinks it'll make us all stronger if anything ever happens in Tulsa and - ugh, what the fuck!- and we'll know each other good enough to want to stand together." Curly's mouth snapped closed and he was breathing hard, his cheeks puffing in and out. His mouth opened, he snapped it shut, then it opened again. "Other than that he just wants to party."

Just like that, whatever was pulling the information from him stopped and his body relaxed. Curly cleared his throat and shook his head, like he was shaking an intrusive thought away. "The club is on the East side, in the middle of Blossom Street. Can't miss it, it's got a Elvish symbol carved on the door. Only we can see it. See ya fuckers there."

Curly finally left that time and the table was dumbfounded. Two-Bit was the first one to speak up. His poster was loose and he had a giant smile on his face, but his grey eyes were stormy. "Anybody want to go for a Hershey bar? There's some good ones down the street."

"That was me. No chocolate needed." Johnny whispered. Soda's head snapped around, a look of amazement on his face.

"What did you do to him? He looked like he was going to shit himself!" Soda's mouth tugged into a smile and Steve snorted.

"I just made him give us some more information. It didn't hurt him, it's just that he was fighting back a little. Happens." Johnny sunk down in his chair and slurped his milkshake. His face was a little bit rosy, but it wasn't the sun. He'd used his powers for the first time in a while, which shocked both him and the others.

"Alright, well, I am willing to bet my fur that 'Buck's' place has air-conditioning. I say we check it out." Soda sat his empty blizzard cup down on the table. Steve rested his arm across Soda's shoulder and nodded along. Darry worried his bottom lip and looked at the other three. They all shrugged and nodded their heads.

"Alright then. Codeword is the same and so are the rules. If we don't want to go back after tonight, we do have to. We'll just check the place out." Darry stood up and gathered his trash. They all threw away their garbage and loaded the truck up. They picked up Curly on their way, since he was trying to walk in the heat. Curly had his head stuck through the beer-window and was giving Darry directions.

~~~~

When they arrived at Buck's, they were immediately caught off-guard. The place was crunched between to shabby looking houses and was... kind of crooked. From the way Curly was talking about the place, it was a mansion with golden windows and door-handles. None of them had expected this run-down bar to be the destination. Curly clapped his hands down on Darry and Two-Bit's shoulders.

"It only gets better from here. Let's go, boy!" Curly ruffled Darry's hair and pointed at the building. Darry smacked his hand away. Annoyance clearly on his face.

"Once more wolf joke and I swear-"

"You'll what? Bite me?" Curly yanked his head out of the cab before Darry could do anything. The gang unloaded and followed Curly Shepard to the door. He placed his hand over the Elvish symbol on wooden surface and the door swung open, letting them in. The place looked like shit from the outside looking in. As soon as they had crossed under the doorframe though, everything blurred with movement.

The 10ft by 10ft room with dusty walls and shitty looking bar tables changed. The room was giant now, stretching way open like a high school gymnasium. Large chandeliers, dripping crystals, hung a good 15 foot off the floor in replacement of the one naked lightbulb that had been there. The cracked tiled floor became marble and perfect. There wasn't a speck of dirt on the shiny floor and the gang wasn't prepared to see people appear out of nowhere. Soon the music reached their ears and they noticed all the people dancing. All the Creatures dancing.

"Holy shit." The entire gang's mouths were hanging open. Curly had changed along with the room. He had two, dark, ruby, colored horns poking out of his messy curls and bending backwards. His demonic features were showing and Darry almost panicked. Curly's cheek bones were jutted out and looked like they could cut someone. His tongue was forked and he had dark fingernails. He gestured to the room and grinned at the six of them.

"Welcome to Paradise. All Glamors and magic disguises get removed at the door- since we're free to be ourselves here. Buck will probably come and introduce himself to you all." A girl came sashaying out of a section of people. She was all curves and long, white, hair. She had a set of shimmering, butterfly looking wings, sprouting from her back and pink tattoos wrapping her exposed, chocolate colored, skin. She wrapped her fingers around Curly's horns and tugged him down to kiss aggressively. She was pulling him into the crowd and he was wrapping his hands around her waist. He struggled out a 'behave' before disappearing completely.

"Are we going to get a welcoming like that?" Two asked, incredulously. He laughed, smacked Darry in the chest with the back of his hand, and disappeared into the crowd. Darry rolled his eyes.

"We can split up if you want. I think- I think we'll be okay here." With that, Darry disappeared into the crowd of people too. Steve and Soda coupled off and started dancing along with the other groups of people. Pony and Johnny stayed together.

"No offense, but if a Pixie grabs me too, you can count me as good as gone." Pony shouted over the music. They were making their way through the crowd, looking around. Johnny laughed softly, no sound so much as his shoulders moving up and down.

"I'll probably just awkwardly stand next to you two." Johnny really laughed as Pony's cheeks and the tops of his ears went red. Something solid collided with Johnny and he stumbled backwards. The literal troll that he had bumped into caught his arm and steadied him.

"Sorry, I wasn't watching wear I was going. My bad," Johnny looked up at seven or eight foot troll. His skin was a mossy, green color and was like thick hide, sort of like a pig. He had two large teeth poking out of his mouth. They were a pearly white color, like the whites of his eyes. His iris's were a pale yellow. He waved Johnny off.

"Happens all the time, kid. Your first time here?" He asked. Johnny nodded and the troll gave him a smile. "Well, my name's Phillip. Nice to meet you, kid. What are you, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Warlock. My name's Johnny, by the way."

"Well, Johnny, my advice to you is to hit up the pool. The merfolk love to be in the company of warlock's. They're pretty friendly, if you get my flow. Have fun, Johnny." Phillip took a big swig of his cup- which looked more like a bowl- and left Johnny alone. Johnny stood in the middle of the room, looking around at all the different creatures. He could see centaurs, trolls, goblins, Fairy folk (Fae), Elves, and some he couldn't even name. He felt a rush of excitement fall over him. He went to hit Ponyboy's arm in excitement, but realized he must have been washed away in the sea of people. Johnny didn't feel anxious to be without one of his friends. After all, he had no reason to be scared right now.

Johnny was in a building full of people just like him. He wasn't in school surrounded by normal kids. He was in a room full of people like him, which meant he was the new normal. For the first time in his life, Johnny thought about the fact that here, he wasn't a freak. He was normal- he was himself. Johnny felt his muscles loosen up and he began to move through the crowd again.

For the first time that night, he noticed that little lanterns and tiny houses were strung up on the ceiling. If he looked close enough, he could see Pixies- which were in their normal form, that was roughly the size of a dragonfly- flying around and going in and out of the houses. If he listened hard enough, he could almost hear the soft buzzing sound their wings made- sort of like a hummingbird's wings.

"Hi, there. Who might you be?" A sweet voice brought his thoughts back to the ground and not to the tiny village floating above him. The voice belonged to a very attractive Fairy. She didn't have any wings, but he still knew she what she was. She was gorgeous and had fire red hair. Gold markings were beside her emerald eyes and she smelled like lavender. She giggled when she caught Johnny staring. She wet her bottom lip and grabbed Johnny's hand. She started dragging him forwards. He followed, absolutely dumbstruck that anything as beautiful as her would even look at him.

When they broke out of the crowd, she pulled him into another nearby room, which Johnny was shocked to see. This place was even bigger than he'd originally thought. Wow.

The look of this room was far different than the room in the front. There was wallpaper with little naked Cherub babies on it and clouds with naked men and women sitting atop of them. The floor was grassy and he could hear a stream trickling from rock to rock. The grass looked real and Johnny was almost positive it was. The ceiling looked like the starry, night, sky. Johnny could pick out Jupiter and its moons, but that was about it. More Fae and Pixies were sitting in the room, at the base of trees and in the knee-high grass. Johnny saw Two-Bit was off in the corner, telling jokes and shapeshifting as he told the story. One second he was Elvis, then the next he was Kim Kardashian and Johnny was clueless as to how those two people were interactable.

The Fairy girl was still pulling Johnny along. She looked as though she was headed to the big tree in the back of the room, by the wall. The tree had a hole in it, which a pearly liquid was dripping steadily from. There were Fae and an Elf or two sitting around that tree. They were all beautiful and despite Johnny feeling like he wasn't a freak in this place, he started feeling very self-conscious.

"Drink with us." The girl dipped a piece of bowl shaped piece of bark into the liquid and held it out to Johnny. "You just look so lonely."

Johnny thought about that story, Tuck Everlasting, that he'd had to read in 5th grade. But that Fountain of Youth and Immortality had come from a spring in the ground, not a nut-hole in a tree. The girl giggled, which sounded high-pitched and like wind-chimes. A male Fairy with brown and white feathery wings started to run his fingers through Johnny's hair and giggled too. Surely one drink wouldn't be so bad? If he didn't like it, he wouldn't drink any more of it.

Johnny gently took the bark-bowl from her and went to put it to his lips. Before he had time to, it was being jerked from his grasp and thrown into the little lake of pearly liquid at the base of the tree. Before Johnny knew what was going on, an arm was around his shoulder and he was being led away from the tree and the people there.

They were all laughing and giggling hysterically. Johnny felt a clarity, he didn't know he had lost, return to his mind and he turned back around to look at them. They were not Fae, nor were they Elves. They were Dark Pixies, standing there with scarred and torn dragonfly wings. They were not nearly as beautiful as Johnny had believed either, which made his gut clench. He was a Warlock with the ability of illusions and mind control. How was he not able to realize somebody was literally using powers like his own against him? Shame knotted up in his gut.

"Dark Pixies are trouble makers. All of them. I'd give them a piece of my mind if I really thought it would do any good. They're just so damn- pesky." The person leading him away from the Pixies was talking, but Johnny hadn't realized that there was a person leading him away. When he finally caught back up in the situation, Johnny's eyes wondered over to try and see who had knocked the drink- if there even was a drink- away from his lips.

Johnny had not been prepared, at all, to see the most beautiful guy he'd ever seen to be beside him. He was obviously a Fairy, since Johnny could see his pointed ears poking out from underneath his shaggy white hair and some Fairy tattoos circling his left wrist and disappearing at his forearm. He had the iciest blue eyes that Johnny had ever seen.

Even with those couple features, it should have been impossible for any more of him to be attractive, but his cheek and jaw bones were chiseled and hard. If he stood still for a long period of time- Johnny was sure he could pass for the most gorgeous work of art to ever exist. Just like before, Johnny felt the need to curl in on himself.

"What kind of non-Fae, moron, are you? Didn't your parents every teach you about Fairy Drink?" The guy stopped guiding the two of them when they reached a kitchen-esque area. Food was piled high- like there was a catering job going on. The Fairy fixed his blazing eyes on Johnny and he felt breathless.

"Uh-well- I... no. What's a Fairy Drink?" Johnny felt his face get hot. The Fairy's eyes softened a little, but only for a millisecond.

"It can only be ingested by Fae and Fae alone. Anyone else, even the strongest of Pixies and whatever the fuck else, either goes insane or dies. Most of the time both." Johnny's throat went dry. Those Pixies were trying to kill him? What did he ever do to them? Johnny had never met any other Creatures beside the ones in the gang and the Shepard family. Were they just plain old bullies, or did they have a grudge against warlocks in particular? Certainly that couldn't have been it. They didn't know Johnny was a warlock. He could have been a vampire, werewolf, or even a wendigo for all they knew.

"I can clearly see you overthinking this, Kid. Don't take it personal. Those assholes feed off of mischief and, apparently, attempted murder." The guy crossed his arms over his chest and heat flared in Johnny's stomach. He had toned arms, sort of like the in-between stage of Steve and Soda. Johnny offered a weak smile.

"Thanks for helping me out back there. I'm Johnny Cade." Johnny stuck his hand out to the taller of the two. A large grin appeared on his face.

"Johnny Cake?" He chuckled softly. Before Johnny could correct him, he had clapped their hands together. "Well, Johnny Cake, I'm Dallas Winston. You can call me Dally, since I did save your life."

Dallas tossed his arm over Johnny's shoulder and led him toward the giant refrigerator. He opened the door and motioned to all kinds of drinks. "What's your poison? Animal blood, human blood, lactose free milk- whatever the hell that is-, or some actual poison?"

"Water is fine. But, thanks." Johnny swiped a water-bottle and cracked the seal. He took a few drinks to unclog his throat. Dally leaned back against a counter. He was looking at Johnny with a curious gaze, something Johnny fidgeted heavily under. He could feel those blue eyes trailing over the puffy scar on his cheek. His father had given him that. He'd slung a glass cup across the room, sending it splintering and cutting across his ten year old's face. He hadn't meant to, Johnny had thought then and still believed. He was drunk and had no idea he could actually hit his only son. Surely.

"Alright, Johnny Cake. Help me put together the puzzle on what kind of Creature you are. Vampires would never turn down blood and I highly doubt you're a werewolf. If you were, of course, that scar on your cheek would never have happened. It would have just healed. Of course, you could let it scar over if you were a werewolf, but most don't. Even then, you wouldn't have such dark circles under your eyes. Werewolves sleep like the dead." Dally's crossed arms flexed a little.

"I'm a warlock."

"Really? And if I were to say I don't believe you?" There was a mischievous glint in Dally's eyes. He wanted Johnny to show him his powers. Johnny nibbled at his bottom lip. He had never shown his power off to anyone before. Not even Ponyboy, who had been his best friend for many years. Was he really going to show an almost-stranger his powers because he was cute?

Yeah. Sounded about right.

Johnny closed his eyes- a habit he had when he did use his magic- and held his left fist up. He felt the gentle sensation of his magic wrap around his chest. It felt sort of like someone was hugging him softly, which is a reason he used it when he felt scared or lonely. The magic made him feel like someone was there with him.

He felt a fluttering in his hand and he opened his eyes to see if he had made the right thing. Sure enough, when he opened his fist, a white butterfly with the same dark purple markings that Dally had was fluttering into the air. Dally's hand shot out and grabbed it. When he opened his own palm up, a little sticker with the words 'Good Job!' was all that was there. A lopsided grin spread across his face.

"Cool trick. Your parents teach you that one?" He asked. Johnny opened his mouth to tell Dallas that his parents were both normal and despised anything that wasn't human, but he opted to just mention that he learned it himself. Dally's eyes flickered up to Johnny's and he saw the surprise in those icy irises.

Dallas moved forward and cupped Johnny's face gently. The pad of his thumb was rough as he ran it over Johnny's right cheek- the one without a scar- and made gooseflesh rise to his skin.

"Your eyes don't look like any other warlock's I know. Usually the color changes, but I've never seen fully black eyes. The whites just completely disappear... which parent did you say had magic?"

"Oh, uh, my paren-"

"Let's go, Johnny. It's late and we all got to get back." Steve and Soda had appeared out of seemingly nowhere, which made Johnny jump. Dallas let his hand fall and had backed up. Soda's eyes narrowed slightly, but he hid that before the Fairy could see.

"See you next time, Johnny Cake. Watch out for those pesky little shits." Dally pushed himself off the counter he had immediately gone to lean on and started to walk off. He turned around to eye Sodapop for a second, which Johnny could tell Steve did not enjoy. "All the food here is free to take with you. The third shelf has plenty of protein for those... rough nights."

As soon as Dally left the room, Soda was eyeing the fridge like it was a party trick. Johnny opened the fridge and grabbed a pack of soft, pink, meat. He tossed it in Soda's direction and Soda tucked it under his arm. Tonight was one of those nights, in about an hour and the Curtis brothers had to be home.

Usually on their transformation nights, one of the gang wouldn't stay at the house and make sure all three of them stayed in the basement. Steve was going tonight, since it was his old man's birthday and he didn't want to be at his own place. Johnny was tempted to stay and go find Dallas, but he knew that the heat of walking home would suck, even in the dark. He joined Steve and Soda and they went to get the others.

~~~~

In the couple months since the gang had discovered the Haven that was Buck Merril's, they had been back more times than they could count. It was something about the pulsing of the music and the way they were free to look and act like themselves was the most freeing thing they had ever experienced. Two-Bit had made a dozen of friends and he'd gotten on Buck's good side.

Buck Merril was one of the few Elves that resided at the club. He'd come from New York with one of his kid-friends. Buck had deep and angry looking scars that ran down his face and neck. They weren't from a fight with another Creature or an angry honey badger. He'd gotten them from a group of Hunters, which was the reason he'd left New York all together. Him and his best friend's little brother had gotten caught and tortured before they eventually got away. Johnny had heard the story three times now, but each time made his stomach twist.

The first time he'd heard it, the Curtis brothers had been with him. He couldn't imagine the thoughts running through their heads. Were they thinking about their parents? Were they wondering if it had been quick? Maybe they were just thinking about what could happen to the gang if they were caught. Whatever was playing in their minds, Johnny had never seen such anguish on his family's faces. He hated it.

Tonight wasn't a night they were going to Buck's though. It was around midnight and Johnny was laying on his bed. He couldn't sleep, so he was laying on his back, staring at the palm of his hand. He'd already knew that he had natural powers over minds and illusions, but he hadn't realized how much he could do without spells. It was kind of like how Steve had manipulation over fire and mechanics, but he needed spells for the majority of magic. The only difference was that fire would dance whenever Steve did magic and all Johnny had was a thin layer of black smoke that settled over his palm.

His magic had been strengthening a lot since he'd met Dally. He'd even managed to get his hands on a spell book. Dallas had been letting him borrow some of them so that Johnny could practice his magic. Which gave Johnny something to do when he couldn't sleep. His parents were arguing in the living room, but Johnny was so used to it that he tuned them out. He guessed they were fighting over something stupid. His dad probably forgot to throw his beer can away or something.

Johnny was working on a levitation spell, which was kind of complex. Dally had assured him that he could do any magic he wanted, as long as he practiced. So here he was, practicing as best as he could. He had caused the water bottle on his to levitate and then he had gently put it back on the ground. He had been listening to his parents earlier, but as soon as he lifted the bottle and the sensation of a gentle hug encircled him, he'd felt tons better. His magic made him feel safe, so that was another reason he was practicing in his room.

Johnny closed his eyes for a moment, breathing deeply. He extended his left arm, his palm open and his poster loose. He let the spell words- there were just two of them for such a complex spell- fall from his lips in quiet mummer. He felt that gentle pressure wrap around his chest and hold him softly. For a second, he imagined it was Dallas's arms, and then he felt the unmistakable movement of his target, except it was more than he'd wanted.

When Johnny opened his eyes- which were completely black- he realized that everything in the room was floating. His dresser and everything on it, the nightstand by his bed, his ratty old Converse, and his bed with him still on top. The bottom of the curtains in front of his bedroom window were gently floating, almost like they were blowing in the wind. Johnny smiled widely. He was making everything float! He was doing that. It made him feel incredible. He had mastered his first complex spell and he felt like he was floating- er- not in the literal sense.

Johnny's door swung open and hit the wall. His parents were arguing and his mother was pointing at Johnny over her shoulder. Johnny's black eyes widened and he gasped. "Let's just ask Johnny then! See what he has to think about wha-"

His parents stopped arguing. They were deadly quiet, in fact. Johnny dropped his arm, the dark air in his palm vanished, and everything crashed to the ground. It rattled the house, shaking the Cade family to their cores.

"What the fuck were you doing?" James Cade's eyes narrowed to slits, his fists clenching together tightly. His mother had her hand grasping her mouth, her eyes wide and shimmering with tears. She was afraid. Johnny was watching his mom with wide eyes, but he had been too focused on her.

A fist smashed against the left side of his face. It hurt too much for Johnny to be able to pinpoint exactly where he'd been hit. Johnny's eyes immediately began to water, despite his previous experience with being hit in the face. A hand wrapped up in his white t-shirt, dragging him by it. His father was leading him to the living room. He was yelling something, but Johnny was too focused on the pain in his cheek.

Why did this have to happen? He'd been so happy, he'd felt so good in those few seconds. But like always, as soon as he had a peaceful and genuinely happy moment- it turned to shit. Johnny was thrown to the floor, barely even inside of the living room. His mother was silent, but words and spittle were still flowing from his father's mouth.

Johnny must have been asked a question that he didn't hear, because a fist collided with his face again, his nose giving another sickening crunch. This was about the third time his nose had been broken and two of the times it had been his father's doing. Johnny wanted to sob.

"I asked you a question! How long? How long has your soul been sold to the Devil?" James was hovering over his son, his beady eyes were small and hollow. His mother was still quiet, lurking in the shadows with her hand covering her mouth in shock.

"You... did this! Not me! I was born thi-"

Johnny's father didn't even let him finish before he was boxed in the ear. One punch. Johnny's ears were ringing and he couldn't hear the words being bellowed at him. He could barely see anything for the blood covering his face and the tears in his eyes.

James stood up and stormed away. This was it? No more punches and no more broken bones? This was one of the easier beatings Johnny had taken. This was nothing compared to the time he'd broken one of the good China plates his mom had used for Christmas. That had been the first time his nose had been broken and his arm. Johnny didn't think he'd ever seen the gang that mad, besides when he'd shown up with a deep cut on his face, which had needed stitches.

Johnny had never dreamed his parents had ever really wanted to hurt him. Sometimes he deserved it, since he was a problem child. They had just been trying to shape him for the real world, but they just had a difficult way of doing it. He knew his mom would smack him every now and then, but it was more the liquor than it was her. His dad was just angry all the time and Johnny perfered him to hit his son than his wife.

Johnny had made plenty of excuses over the years for the abuse. He'd truly believed it was him and not his parents. It was hard raising a kid and it made parents tense. Being too tense causes people to snap. Little snaps was all it was, but as soon as he saw the gun in his father's hands, he realized that was not it at all.

His father was sick in the head. He had to have been, to pull a gun on his only child.

"No child of mine will be a freak. No son of ours will be a monster." His dad spit the words out at Johnny. He was cowering on the floor, but as soon as his dad cocked the gun and put his finger on the trigger, he felt something. Instead of a gentle hug wrapping around his chest, it felt like a punch crashing against his breastbone. Johnny screamed and his dad went flying across the room, the gun going off and the bullet lodging into the floor a few inches from Johnny's head. All of the lights and the windows cracked and shattered, sending shards of glass flying all around the living room.

It was deadly quiet. His father's head had bounced against the wall, causing his unconscious body to limply slide to the ground. That got his mother's mouth working. She started to sob and wail, walking around Johnny in a large arc. She had a couple thin scratches from the glass on her forearm, causing Johnny's heart to thunder.

"Mom, are you okay?"

Her head swiveled quickly- her eyes locking on Johnny. She snarled at him, teeth glinting in the flickering light- the only one that hadn't shattered- above the couch. "You're a monster. A fucking monster!"

She moved James's body, letting his head rest on her folded legs. She was sobbing, hands on either side of his face. She was talking, but Johnny couldn't hear anything. He was looking down at his hands. How could he have hurt his mom? His mother, who must have been too shocked to stop his father with the gun, hadn't deserved to be hurt. She was scraped up a lot more than he originally thought. Cuts were all over her chest and arms. He could have killed them both.

~~~

Johnny was crying, blood running from his mouth and nose. It was hot again tonight, but Johnny didn't care. He'd been walking for a while. He'd grabbed his one pair of shoes before he'd ran off. He hadn't known where he was going, only that he didn't want to be home or anywhere nearby. Which canceled out the lot and the Curtis house. He'd text the gang in the morning and hope they wouldn't be too mad at him for not showing up after what happened.

Johnny wasn't that surprised when he'd found himself at Buck's club. He'd been there a lot in the last couple months and didn't expect it to change anytime soon. He kicked some pebbles around outside of the shitty looking building. Maybe he shouldn't be here. Johnny turned on his heels, turning his back to the busted neon sign that said 'Buck's'. It hadn't been working for a few weeks now. Johnny picked up his feet and started walking again. He could probably crash at the Shepard house.

"Johnny Cake? That you?" Johnny jumped at the voice. Of course it would be Dallas who would notice him outside. Johnny turned around and looked at him. He was standing on the porch of the club, looking down at the bloody teen with furrowed eyebrows. Dallas couldn't really see Johnny in the darkness of the night, but Johnny could see him. His purple Fairy tattoos were gone, just like his ears. He looked like a normal teenager with a normal face. Nothing too handsome, but nothing too ordinary about him either. It was his Glamour, which had activated as soon as he crossed the threshold to the outside world.

"Yeah, it's me." Johnny's voice cracked and Dallas jerked his head over his shoulder. Johnny looked at the door behind him, still not sure if he should be here. Dallas sighed and hopped of the porch. His boots crushed the gravel under his feet and he stuck his hand out for Johnny to take. As soon as Dally's eyes focused and he saw all the blood on his face and shirt, a dark look washed over his face.

"What the fuck happened? Was it Hunters? Did they jump you?" Dallas grabbed Johnny by his shoulders and gently tilted his chin up with his hand. Johnny shook his head and then Dallas was dragging him up the porch steps and into the club. Not too many people were there, but it was still pretty full. Johnny saw Phillip the troll dancing with a troll girl nearby. Bethany, if Johnny remembered correctly.

Johnny was already trying to hold fresh tears back, keeping his head low and letting Dallas drag him wherever. Dally's hand was wrapped tightly around Johnny's wrist- a lot harder than Johnny thought he meant to.

Soon enough, Dally had brought them to a bedroom and shut the door behind the two of them. Johnny looked around and saw a mouth guard, the bandage wrapping for fists, and a first aid kit. Pictures of random people and things were stuck in the mirror above the dresser. Dally was in two of the three with people. In one picture, it was of a little Fairy kid with black wings. The kid looked like an angel with the feathers all prim and proper. It seemed to personal for someone to have up in a random room. This was Dally's room. He had brought Johnny to his room. Johnny let out a small sob and Dallas jumped slightly. He released Johnny's wrist and Johnny rubbed it softly.

Dally's icy blue eyes widened. They looked softer again, much unlike when he was around other people. Johnny was the only one he looked at like that, but Johnny still couldn't process that. "Shit, I didn't realize. What happened to you, man?"

"My parents. They caught me doing magic in my room. Weren't to happy," Johnny whispered. The words hurt his throat too much to say loudly. Confusion warped across Dallas's face.

"Why would- why would they be upset about you doing magic?"

"They're human. They didn't know I wasn't. They hate anyone not like them." Johnny wrapped his arms around himself, shaking slightly. He didn't need to be here right now. He needed to leave. He opened his mouth to offer an apology for inconveniencing Dallas, but what he did say wasn't what he meant to. "They tried to kill me. And I hurt them. I hurt them really bad."

Dallas didn't need to hear anything else, because he was wrapping his arms around Johnny's thin frame. He could feel the younger teen shaking like a leaf and he held Johnny tightly. Dallas was pissed. More pissed than he had been in a while. He'd never even met Johnny's parents, but he was already ready to break a couple laws.

"I'm a monster..."

Dallas shushed Johnny, rocking the two of them softly while standing. Johnny sniffled a couple times and patted Dally's back awkwardly. Dallas let his arms fall to his sides and he pulled a chair away from the wall and patted it. Johnny sat down and Dallas grabbed his first aid kit.

"Where are you hurt? Just the face?" Dallas asked. Johnny nodded, so Dallas gently took his chin in his grip and tilted his face up. His nose was definitely broken and his eye already had a deep purple and black bruise around it. Dallas was still mad, but that wasn't helping right now. Johnny winced when Dallas tried to wipe the blood falling from his nose. His lip was split too, but it had already stopped bleeding.

Dallas reached in the kit and grabbed a blue tube of liquid. He handed it to Johnny, who gently took it from Dallas's grasp, like he might hurt the other one. "Drink this. It'll make you feel weird for a second, but you'll be fine after that."

Johnny wiggled the container, watching the liquid swirl inside. He downed it in one go and Dallas watched him carefully. Johnny didn't feel anything at first, but soon his entire face was tingling violently. This was what Dallas drank after the ring fights, which happened every other week. Buck hosted fights sometimes and people bet on the winner. It was pretty cool to see people fight, when it wasn't Johnny or his parents.

Dallas wasn't undefeated, but he was closer to that than any of the other fighters. Johnny had been around for about four fights total and Dallas had been in about two of them. Dallas had won them both, when Johnny was there to watch. After the two fighters stopped fighting, they were both given two little blue vials. They healed automatically after that, which was wild to see.

"You're all fixed up. It got rid of the blood too, so now we just need to get you a different shirt." Dallas said. Johnny looked in the mirror that sat on the dresser. Sure enough, his face wasn't bloody anymore. Johnny gently prodded his no-longer swollen lip and repaired nose. It wasn't even crooked anymore, which had happened from the first two breaks.

"Thank you. You didn't have to do that." Johnny caught a t-shirt that Dally had thrown at him. Dally motioned for Johnny to give him the other one. Johnny stood up from the chair and tried to pull his shirt off. He was still shaking pretty bad though, his fingers kept trembling and dropping the hem of his shirt.

A pale pair of hands gently grabbed a hold of the bottom of Johnny's shirt. Dallas spoke in a soft voice, almost a whisper. "Bullshit I didn't have to help. I know what that shit is like and just because nobody really helped me, doesn't mean I can't help you. Suck it up, Cake, it's what friends are for."

Dallas was gentle, so gentle that Johnny was ready to break down and cry more. Dallas pulled Johnny's shirt over his head, their bodies really close together. Gooseflesh rolled across Johnny's bare skin. It wasn't remotely cold in here, but he could feel Dally's gaze on him and that was enough. Dallas helped Johnny into the clean shirt. Johnny really wasn't expecting Dallas to pull his shirt off, so he almost choked on air when he saw the bare chest of the Fairy.

Dallas discarded his- also bloody- shirt and tossed it into a hamper in the corner of the room. Johnny's eyes widened and his fingers were already reaching out to trace the tattoos on Dally's back. They were like the ones on his wrists. They were thorn bush vines that circled his waist and curled a little ways up his back. They were the same grape purple as the ones on Dally's wrists. They were really pretty.

"I've had them since I was little. After a certain age, all Fae get them. Mine and my mom's were the same." Dallas was looking over his shoulder and watching the warmth in Johnny's dark eyes increase. His fingertips were light and gentle, sending shivers up Dally's spine.

"I've always wanted tattoos, but I don't think mine could ever be as pretty as these." Johnny gave a small smile and Dallas watched him in the mirror. Johnny was mesmerized, tracing each and every vine and thorn. He wished he was Fae, just for the tattoos, honestly.

Johnny was silent as he traced them. Dallas didn't seem to mind, which made sense. They were friends and that's what friends do. They are comfortable around each other.

Friends do not do this. They don't trace each others shirtless bodies or stand as close as we are right now. All I have to do is move half and inch and I'll be pressed against him. Johnny thought the words, but as quick as they arrived, they left.

There were thick, pink scars on Dallas's back. They were raised above the skin and looked jagged. Johnny's fingers left the tattoos and traveled to the two, long, thick, and puffy scars that were on Dallas's back. They started a little below his shoulder blades and ended a couple inches above his tattoos. How had Johnny not noticed them first?

As soon as Johnny's finger ghosted the top of the left side scar, Dallas jumped. Johnny stopped moving and waited to see if Dallas told him to stop. He didn't, so Johnny finished tracing the jagged- cut?

"What are these from?" Johnny asked. Dallas pulled away then, going to grab a shirt from his dresser draw. Johnny backed up and watched the taller of the two move around his room.

"I used to have wings." Dallas spoke so softly, Johnny almost didn't hear him. Dallas had wings? The scars did match up with where the wings were supposed to be. How did he lose them? Was it an accident? Was there a fight? How long ago did it happen? Why did it happen? Johnny had questions swarming his mind, but he remembered when he got his cheek cut up and all the questions from that. He'd hated each answer that was drug out of him.

"What did they look like?" Johnny whispered the question. He saw the frustration- which he knew wasn't aimed at him- and anger flash across Dallas's face. Johnny just wasn't ready to see the painful expression on his face. He locked eyes with Johnny and flashed a weak smile.

"They were beautiful. I wish I cou- yeah." Dallas shook his head, like he was throwing the thought away. The words made Johnny's chest hurt. The pain was still on Dallas's face and just like with the Curtis brother and that story, Johnny would do anything to make that look go away. The picture stuck in the frame of the mirror jumped out at him. That was Dallas. The kid with the black wings- the ones that made him look like an angel. Those were Dally's wings.

Before Dallas could put his shirt back on, Johnny placed a hand on his back. The familiar hug sensation wrapped around Johnny's chest and black wings sprouted from Dallas's back. They were just like the ones in the picture, the little grey feather towards the top and all. Johnny backed away and the wings stayed on the scars. They even moved back and forth. It was a pretty good illusion.

Dallas's eyes locked on himself in the mirror and he smiled. It was a bittersweet smile, but the pain in his eyes was gone and Johnny had made it go away. Dally's hands twitched to touch them and Johnny nodded at him. Dally's right hand grazed the feathers of his left wing and he gave a startled laugh.

The illusion did not falter, but remained very solid. Dallas leaned into the touch of his wings and smiled at Johnny. He crossed the room and pulled Johnny into a hug. The wings disappeared, since it caught Johnny off guard. Dallas was hugging him tightly and Johnny felt nice. It was a 'thank you' that Dallas couldn't get out.

Dallas pulled back, but didn't move out of the space. He was looking down at Johnny, eyes scanning his face. Dallas brought his left hand up and let his thumb graze Johnny's scar. He was gentle, just as Johnny had been. Dallas opened his mouth to say something, but his bedroom door swung open. Dally's eyes lost their softness and he glared at whoever had opened the door. He dropped his hand from Johnny's face, but didn't move away from Johnny. There bodies were still inches apart.

Buck was standing in the door, looking at the two of them with a twinkle in his eye. He had grey eyes and his ears were tall and pointed. He had his long dirty blond hair pulling into a bun at the base of his neck. He was slim, but not as tall as Dally. Dally sighed and looked back at Johnny.

"Head up to the roof and I'll meet you there." Johnny nodded and Buck moved out of the way to let him head up the other set of stairs off to the side of Dally's room. He was going to go look at the stars and wait for Dally to join him.

"You're falling for that warlock boy, huh?" Buck leaned against the door frame. Dallas knew his face had given his answer away, because Buck whooped and clapped him on the shoulder. "Thought so. Go keep the kid company. Have fun, but we're going to talk about the next fight in the morning. I need to figure out who to put you up against."

Dally shot him the finger and earned himself a hair ruffle as he was going out of the door. He jogged up the stairs, trying to get the pink out of his cheeks and ears. When he got to the roof, Johnny was sitting on the edge and staring up at the stars.

Johnny looked over when Dallas joined him and gave him a small smile.

"What are you looking at? Any constellations?" Dallas asked. Johnny shook his head and looked at his feet, that he was kicking back and forth over the ledge of the roof.

"I'm just lost in thought."

There was a silence that hung between the two. Johnny was thinking about his mother's sobbing and the cuts from the glass in the windows. How could he have done that? To his own mother?

"What happened, Johnny? Why'd they do that to you?" Dallas was looking at him with those soft eyes again. Johnny wondered why he cared so much. Why he cared at all. He was a monster, someone who hurt his own family. What would stop him from hurting his friends? Johnny looked away and figured this was a shitty last conversation to have. Dallas would definitely hate him after this. If not hate, then just not want to be around.

"My parents are human, like I said. My powers started up around the time I met the Curtis family. I showed them that I could make Ponyboy fall asleep, just by touching him and saying it. They told me about them being werewolves and asked if my parents knew. I said no and then they explained that it should probably stay that way. I agreed, even then.

"Tonight, I was practicing a levitating spell in my room. It was just a water bottle on my dresser. Then it was supposed to be my dresser, but I made everything float. It was the best feeling in the world. My parents had been arguing and decided I should be brought into it, so they came into my room. They saw everything floating and the next thing I knew, I was getting beat up in the living room. My dad pulled a gun on me. I freaked out and threw him across the room. The windows and lights exploded, which cut my mom up pretty bad. She called me a monster and I think she's right."

Johnny took in a deep, shivering, breath. He felt tears try to pool into his eyes, but he blinked them back. "I know that they were just scared and it's my fault. I shouldn't have been practicing in the house. I knew better and my dad's just stressed over work and I-"

"Johnny, stop. Stop. This is not your fault in any way, shape, or form. No matter how scared or stressed a parent is, they don't try to kill you. They should never hurt you." Dally's eyes flickered to the scar on Johnny's cheek. He knew who had done that, without even having to ask.

"I still shouldn't have hurt them. I feel so bad." Johnny took his shirt-tail and wiped a stray tear away. Dally's shoulder pressed against his and there was a silence again. He waited for Dallas to get up and leave him, but it never happened. He stayed there and never once made a move to leave.

"My parents weren't great either. Back in New York, when I was with my parents, they fought a lot. They were drunks, so it happens. Well, my mom took it too far one night, after a huge fight with my dad. My mom got into his liquor, sort of to spite him. She got into a bottle of Fairy Drink, which was really bad since she was only half-Fairy. Long story short, she died and I just got... angry. I was out with friends more than I was at home. Buck and me were out one night and we got caught by some Hunters.

"I don't know how they knew about us. Either way, they stripped off my Glamour and when they saw my wings... you get the picture. I got us out of there, which was hard since Buck was so torn up and my brother was dead. They had us there for two days, just playing with us. When I got back to the apartment, my dad had all of our shit packed up and ready for us to leave. Buck came down to Tulsa with us."

Dallas scoffed and spit off the side of the building. Johnny was surprised at the fact that Dallas was the kid that Buck was with. That he was the kid in the story. "It wasn't until after we got down here that my dad told me about the Fairy Drink. He told me that someone had broke in. He said it was random and that they got scared and ran off without taking anything. Bastard."

Johnny was looking at the ground still. He almost jumped out of his skin when Dally's fingers slid under his chin and turned his head towards his. He was looking Johnny in the eyes seriously.

"So don't believe what your parents say. I know monsters, but you are not one of them." Dallas was staring Johnny down. "Okay?"

"Yeah. Okay." Johnny said the words honestly. He wasn't a monster.

Even after Johnny agreed, Dallas never removed his hand. His forefinger stayed where it was, but his thumb moved across the scar on Johnny's cheek again. It was dark outside, but the two of them were illuminated by the stars and the big, almost full, moon. Johnny bundled his left hand in Dally's shirt.

As if on instinct, Johnny's tongue wet his bottom lip. Dally's mouth quirked a little and then he was leaning down, closing the small distance between them. Johnny's mouth found his and there was a moment where neither one of them moved. Johnny felt like a middle schooler right then, so he deepened the kiss. He wanted to smile when Dally's other hand moved to his face, but he didn't want to mess up this kiss.

Dallas was gentle with him still, the only rough thing was his fingernail grazing across Johnny's scar and Johnny's hands doing the same to the scars on his back. Dally's mouth was soft and his face had a small amount of stubble, which nipped gently at Johnny's warm skin.

They broke away and rested their foreheads together. Dally's hands were still on Johnny's cheeks and Johnny's hands were twisted in his shirt. They breathed the cooling air in, smiling like idiots.

"See? Nobody thinks a monster is beautiful. So obviously, you can't be one." Johnny rolled his eyes and Dallas leaned back down for another kiss, something Johnny was more than ready for. Their lips had barely brushed when door to the roof crashed open.

"This better be important, Buck." One look at Buck's face was enough to tell the two boys that it was important. Johnny's stomach dropped and Dally was already getting to his feet.

"The Hunters. They're here."

#the outsiders #johnny x dally #jally #Johnny Cade x Dallas Winston #johnny cade #dallas winston #ponyboy curtis #sodapop curtis #darry curtis #two-bit mathews #steve randle #modern au #mythical creature au #fluff #angst #violence #give me feed back please #toby writes

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artificialqueens · 6 years ago

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Indomitable; shattering glass doesn't fix hearts (Trixya) - Dymphna

Hi! I began posting this on AO3 awhile ago but decided to bring it here as well since… well, I don’t know, it’s the fic I like most that I’ve written myself. I’ll be the first to admit it takes quite awhile to get to the actual plot but… bear with me guys! I hope you enjoy, any feedback is appreciated :) <3

You can find me at my blog @tropicaldepressionkatya

Who the fuck wears nude shoes to a hunt in the woods? Trixie couldn’t believe her own stupidity. She’d think it was her first hunt. When she glanced down at her feet, the mud was already all over the soft shoe. The fabric soaked it all up, and Trixie wanted to just take them off, preferably throw them in a fire as well. Unfortunately, she had made a choice. And the price was a pair of perfect nude colored heels.

So there she was, crouched, a once beautiful pair of shoes on her feet, her hair in a ponytail. She was chewing on the inside of her cheek, eyes not leaving the tree. The tree where the demon was supposed to appear.

Everything had led her to that point, and she was prepared. Salt, salt bullets, iron, even. The thing about demons was that they responded differently to certain things. Salt always kept them out, but couldn’t always kill them. Iron only worked on some.

After Trixie had seen a hunter with angel blood kill a demon, she had cursed her own parents for not sleeping with angels. The runes, which apart from looking amazing, also made them better at, let’s say, everything. They had knives and swords that were given to them by the angels themselves, buzzing with light and slicing through the demons with ease. After a hit in the chest, they crawled back to where they came from.

Trixie was jealous, but she couldn’t change her blood type and decided to let it go. She had killed plenty of demons all on her own, without runes and fancy knives. She was an amazing hunter, even though working alone could get her killed faster than she’d like.

Her legs and knees were beginning to hurt, the demon hadn’t showed up yet. Beginning to get impatient, Trixie cocked her gun, checking the bullets, cleaning her knives.

“Did you hear that?” Someone hissed, a little too loud, to be sneaky. “Someone is here.”

Changing the position of her feet, Trixie stopped breathing, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from.

“It’s probably nothing. Let’s get this over with.” She exhaled again

Two women walked towards the small open spot, the tree in the middle. Big, majestic, demonic. Probably all Trixie’s favorite things, it just missed some pink.

The smaller one, wild curls bouncing as she glanced around, reached for a bottle, which she sprinkled over the tree. Trixie caught a glimpse of a tattoo. She had no idea what they were doing. The other woman, a little taller, wearing a tight dress and black pumps, almost tripped a couple of times, before she lighted a match.

Trixie liked to think she was pretty smart, but she didn’t realize that the girls were going to light the demon tree – her demon tree –on fire until the match was thrown towards the tree.

“What the fuck?!” Trixie jumped up, her voice a low growl. “Do you have any idea what the fuck you’ve just done?!” She yelled, grabbing her gun and cocking it again.

“Oh my-“

The smallest girl also pulled out a gun, black and modern, yet not a revolver. Trixie knew her bullets wouldn’t kill a human, but the long shaft looked intimidating.

The taller blonde, apparently a lot slower than her friend, pulled a machete from her back. The fire reflected on the metal. It seemed so close, too close. Trixie might have been angry, but her job was protecting the mundane, so she lunged forwards, yanking the smallest girl closer to her. “Watch out! Your fucking fire is gonna bite your asses.”

Stunned, they looked back. Just shortly, but Trixie had lowered her gun. “I hope you know that this town is seriously fucked now, it’s y’all’s fault.”

“We actually saved the town!” The blonde called, machete loosely dangling in her hand. “You don’t know what we’re talking about.”

“Whatever,” Trixie put away her gun. “I’ll drop a flower on your grave.” She turned her back to the girls, jogging away. The girls wouldn’t hurt her. Not when she saved them from getting severe burns. Trixie thought it was weird they carried weapons, but consumed by anger and annoyance, she didn’t think to give it, or them, any attention.

“Is she wearing nude shoes? Out of fabric? Is she stupid?”

Throwing the shoes back into the sink, Trixie rubbed her eyes, sighing. As expected, those shoes were ruined. Now all she had was a pair of pink and white cowboy boots and a selection of ugly black and blue pumps. After she’d saved the town from the demons that were going to flood the town, she’d go shopping. Her formal wear was beginning to thin, all her nice clothes destroyed during working hours. So there she was, in black jeans and an orange sweater. She hated that sweater. It tickled her all the time, and by the end of the day, her skin would be red and itchy.

The sun was beginning to rise, and Trixie realized she had lost another night of sleep to working and not being able to sleep. The coffee maker was way too loud, deafening almost, in the quiet motel. She didn’t like coffee, but the lack of tropical redbull forced her to do things she didn’t like.

Slipping into her white boots, Trixie took her shoes, strutting through the hallway. The lights were on, but there was no sound, no living soul in sight.

The dumpster next to the motel doors were something that had put Trixie off at first, but it was the closest to the woods and the city. After all, it was convenient. From where she was standing, she could see a crushed wall and an obvious hole in the roof. She hoped no one was dumb enough to use those rooms.

She dropped the shoes in the dumpster, sighing once again before she turned around.

“What is a pretty lady like you doing up so early?” Trixie had almost bumped into a tall man. He had a lot of muscles, and light hair. Generally speaking, he was attractive.

“Not just appearing and scarring other pretty ladies.” Trixie didn’t mean to snap, but his gaze held something offputting and empty. She tried to brush past him, but he spoke again.

“Come on, we’re already here, let’s make the most of it.” His voice was deep, but missed the warmth Trixie liked.

“I have an appointment in two hours.”

“Oh, with a boyfriend?” He teased, and Trixie turned fully back to the man. Her face was blank, something she always had been able to do. Resting bitchface, people said. Others said she was just a bitch.

“No, with the police. I’m helping them.” Trixie was bluffing, but she had a certain confidence, one that people simply couldn’t ignore.

“Oh,” His voice dropped in volume. “What are you investigating, hm?”

“Classified,” Trixie smiled, waving. “I’m going to get ready now.” The man didn’t say anything else.

Closing and locking the door behind her, the coffee maker was done, and she poured herself a cup. The key to delicious coffee was lots of sugar and milk. A lot of it.

Walking over to her suitcase, Trixie frowned. FBI clothing. Her last formal skirt was covered in blood stains, after she had raided a vampire nest a few weeks ago. She really needed to go shopping.

Since she didn’t have much choice, she picked a dark pant suit. One of the few positive things about it was that she had a pocket for her lipstick.

Moving to the small bathroom with her mug in her hand, clothes over her arm, and shampoo bottle in her other hand, she bumped the door open with her hip.

She’d been in the motel for a few days, so she knew the water took ages to heat up. So Trixie turned on the shower, carefully hanging the clothes over the sink as she sipped the last of her coffee. The motel towels were crappy, they always were, but bringing her own was just something she couldn’t afford. She was usually on the road, anyway. The apartment she owned in California was just collecting dust. She hadn’t been there in four months.

But having a place where she could stack all of her stuff, her books, her bills, and pictures was nice. She planned on going back for some time after her current job.

She stepped into the shower, the water turning dark with dirt almost immediately. Her feet and legs had been gross, covered in dirt. She’s washed most off when she got back, but dirt was annoying like that.

Her flowery and over-expensive shampoo covered the smells of her adventure and the lack of sleep, even though her makeup was going to finish that job.

Whatever she had to do, she would. She was going to fix the mistakes of the girls in the woods. She didn’t have a choice, really. She wouldn’t run away, even though it’d probably be safer.

“Miss Johnson?” Trixie turned at the sound of her fake name. When she was an FBI agent, she was Jessica Johnson, a widow. “Your coworkers have arrived.”

“I-“ Trixie bit her tongue, offering the officer a polite smile. “They’re here sooner than expected. Delayed flight,” She explained. “Could I talk to them for a minute?”

“Of course, they’re with officer White.” He said. “I’ll take you, Johnson.”

“Please, call me Jessica.” Trixie followed the man, wondering if they were real agents. Her fake ID was convincing, but with the shoes she picked, she’d never be fast enough to outrun an agent.

“Well, here they are. If it’s fishy…” He trailed off, clearing his throat. “Call me when you’re done, okay?”

Trixie closed the door behind her. The doors in the whole building were rather heavy. Trixie wondered why that was. But when she spotted the two agents, it was a good thing the doors were heavy.

She pulled her gun, pointing it at the woman with wild curls. The blonde pulled her gun a little later.

“What are you doing here?” Trixie snapped. “You set a very special tree on fire, no way they would let two idiots be FBI agents.” Trixie slowly cocked the gun, her eyes following every movement of the girls.

“We are,” The blonde spat back. “I’m going to reach in my pocket, grab my ID.”

Trixie nodded, balancing her focus over the blonde and the girl with dark hair. The blonde fished out an ID, it looked real enough. Then again, so did hers. “Isabel?”

“The one and only,” Isabel lowered her gun. “That’s Rose.”

“Sounds like the fakest names ever,” Trixie scoffed, rolling her eyes. “I’m the FBI agent. Y’all are imposters.”

Rose scoffed at the same tone as Trixie. “Well, girl, what was a real FBI agent doing in the freaking woods at night? Alone?”

“Important stuff, but that’s-“ The door was flung open, startling Trixie, who turned to the person. It was the man from that morning. “What the-“

Even though the man only hit her with one hand, his power was enormous. As she was being thrown against the floor, she realized that it was a demon. Her vision got blurry, the air was slammed out of her lungs. She needed to get up. She needed to protect the girls.

She forced herself up, slightly dizzy, but she had fought in worse shape. The blonde girl, who Trixie had written off as not so bright and slow, had a blade in her hand. Trixie would recognize blades like that everywhere. Freaking angel bloods. Of course they were, no one else would be as stupid to burn a demon portal tree. The other girl, Rose, reached for a weapon, but the man – demon – hit her with his fist, full against her head.

“Shangela!” The blonde called out through gritted teeth. Trixie’s head was too messed up to connect the dots. She didn’t care, anyway. It didn’t matter who these girls were, as long as they would be alive when Trixie left the building, trying to come up with a great lie.

She cocked her gun, the metal cold against her warm fingertips. She could feel blood drip down her neck. The blonde girl lunged away from the demon, hissing when he clawed at her skin.

Narrowing her eyes, Trixie had trouble keeping the gun straight, seeing straight. She shot. She was pointing at the demon’s head, but missed. It hit him in the shoulder, an unnatural sound leaving his mouth. Even if he was just distracted for a moment, the blonde lady, Isabel, jumped back forwards, slamming her fancy knife into the demon’s chest. With much more strength that Trixie thought was possible for a skinny thing like Isabel, she repeated the action multiple times, until the man opened his mouth, the demon circling out before vanishing with an agonizing scream.

Isabel was panting, dropping the dead body and rushing to Rose, or Shangela’s, side. “Hey,” She whispered, so softly that if Trixie had been standing two steps back, she wouldn’t have heard it. She wouldn’t have heard the desperation, fear and slight crack in her voice. “Shangela, Shangie, are you there?”

Trixie wondered how no one had noticed a gunshot or the obvious sounds of a fight. She just assumed the walls were soundproof. She hurried to the door, seeing a few officers frown at her. She smiled politely, closing the door again. Getting that body out would be a problem.

“Is she alright?”

“Fuck no,” The blonde snapped. Trixie was almost sure her name wasn’t Isabel. “Damn it, why did I leave my Steele in the hotel?” She ran a hand through her hair, biting her lip before getting up in frustration. She kicked one of the chairs before a few creative and impressive cuss words left her mouth.

“That isn’t gonna solve anything,” Trixie bit at the woman. She moved closer, her first-aid classes coming back. She had plenty of experience with wounds. Her head had stopped spinning, and the blood hadn’t dropped onto the floor, so she knew she was good. Better than the girl – Shangela, she assumed – on the floor.

After a quick glance, she knew the woman needed a hospital, or a real doctor, at least. She remained calm, speaking slowly to not alert the other girl. “She probably has a concussion. I can’t tell if she’ll wake up all by herself. I think she needs a doctor.”

“Okay, okay,” The girl breathed out, returning by her friend’s side. “Hear that Shangela? We’re gonna call Pep for you.”

“Who the hell-”

“Did I fucking ask you anything?” The blonde snapped probably harder than she intended to. She released another shaky breath. “I’m sorry, I’m really frustrated. I can’t carry her all by myself. Could you please help me?”

“My Jeep is outside,” Trixie said, looking at the still unconscious body. “But the body. We can’t become wanted after y’all burned a demon portal.”

Isabel closed her eyes, grinding her teeth. “Fine. I’ll take care of the body. Can you cause some distraction?”

“Isabel,” Trixie smiled. “Distraction is my second name.”

From the corner of her eye, Trixie could see the younger woman drag the body behind her, doing surprisingly well for her slim and breakable form. The officers were gathered around her as she clutched her forehead. The wound wasn’t deep, but stretched long enough over her face to worry some. Her agonizing groans were rather convincing, and men were always looking for a damsel in distress.

“I- it was a man! How did you not see him?! He rushed over there!” Tears were streaming over her face, and Trixie was amazed at how amazing she was doing. “Please, he said he was going to kill me!”

Several officers shuffled away, to the direction Trixie pointed at. Two stayed by her side. “Miss, it’s going to be okay. Come with us, we’ll make some phone calls-”

“No, no,” Trixie wiped her tears away. “I- I should go home.” Trixie wiped at the last tears. “I’m okay, I’ll be okay. I just… need to get out of here.”

“I understand, miss,” One officer said softly, a soothing tone to his voice. “Should I go and grab your purse?” He already was moving towards the door when Trixie saw Isabel hurrying back inside.

“No!” Trixie cleared her throat, hoping her voice would break just a little. “It’s fine, I can do that myself. Can you please help him get behind bars?” The innocent flutter of eyelashes broke something in the man, his eyes softening. It wasn’t the best thing for an officer.

“Thank you,” Trixie sniffed, wiping under her eyes again, offering the man a smile. She got up from her crouched position, taking the offered hand before she slowly skipped back to the room. Isabel was already inside, A bright grin on her face. “Good enough?”

“Yeah,” She said, a hand pressed against Shangela’s arm. “Help me with her, okay?” Trixie didn’t even have time to brag about her theatrical skills and charm.

Trixie put the lady’s arm around her neck, gently lifting her to her feet. The other girl did the same. “So, I’m guessing you’re not Isabel?” As she groaned softly under her weight.

“Aquaria,” She muttered back, walking as fast as she could. Even though no one was walking in the main office, they didn’t know how fast they’d be back. The black Jeep was shining around the corner, and Aquaria let Trixie alone to deal with the unconscious girl as she opened the door. The two of them gently laid the girl on the back seat. She’d been out for a good ten minutes, and Trixie was beginning to worry.

Hopping in her car, the blonde was already sitting in the passenger seat, typing furiously on her phone. “Who’re you calling? We’re bringing her to the hospital.”

“No!” Aquaria snapped once again. She really seemed on edge, and Trixie couldn’t blame her. “How do you think they’ll look when they see her with all those wounds? With weirdly shaped scars? Too many questions. Besides, Peppermint can get her back on her feet in just a few hours.”

Aquaria pressed call, and was getting frustrated pretty fast. Trixie watched the girl on the backseat with caution and worry. She hoped this Peppermint person was as talented as Aquaria claimed her to be. If she wasn’t, Shangela would be dead by morning, she guessed. But Trixie felt like she couldn’t argue. Shangela had angel blood, after all.

“Okay,” Aquaria breathed out. “Here left. Pep will be there in half an hour.”

“That’s fast, where’s she from?”

“She’s in France, right now,” Aquaria glanced at Shangela, her curls decorating the last seat. “She needs to set up a portal, but she loves us. We’d do anything for her, and so would she.”

Trixie decided to say nothing. So Peppermint was going to travel by portal. Right. Sure. Whatever.

Trixie followed Aquaria’s direction, parked in front of a rather fancy looking hotel, at least in comparison to her motel, and helped carry the brunette to their room. Room 015, first floor, luckily. The hallways were thankfully empty.

“Let’s bring her to the bed,” Aquaria opened the door with a key, and Trixie was stunned. How in the world could they afford that place? The kitchen was small and neat and the dinner table had 4 spots. The table was decorated with a white tablecloth and yellow flowers. There even was a rather large lounge. “Over here.”

Trixie followed Aquaria’s lead, Shangela’s eyes sometimes opening a bit. At that point, Trixie wasn’t sure if she was affected by the hit on her head or if the demon blood had been too much for her. The burns in her legs and arms had been big.

Gently, they placed the woman on the bed, which was big and looked incredibly soft.

Aquaria brushed Shangela’s hair out of her face with a fond look on her face. “You’ll be okay, Peppermint is on her way.”

Trixie felt like she didn’t belong in that moment, too intimate and familiar. “Wanna help with the hot chocolate?”

“Hot chocolate?”

“Pep likes hot chocolate. We’re kinda friends, I guess. We don’t need to pay her anymore, so I make sure we always gets some chocolate when she comes to the rescue.”

“Oh,” Trixie whispered, nodding her head and following Aquaria back to the kitchen. Now that there wasn’t an unconscious girl hanging between them, Trixie noticed that it wasn’t white and gold, but a soft pink cream color and bronze. The couch was one of the few shades of brown that Trixie thought didn’t look like shit, and the painting above a dresser had blue and pink tones that matched the walls and the kitchen cabinets. “I didn’t know hunting paid this well.”

She let her fingers glide over the dresser, which was spotless. Cleaned that morning, probably.

“Oh, it really doesn’t,” Aquaria smiled, opening the cabinet to grab a pan before moving to the fridge, which undoubtedly was too large for a hotel room. Aquaria’s mood had shifted, she didn’t seem too worried anymore. “You get creative, though. Lots of people die, you know. The unsaveable. We just…”

“Take their money,” Trixie finished. She hadn’t done that often, found it a rather disrespectful thing to do, and got what she wanted by lying, shoplifting, and going on dates to fancy restaurants. “I thought y’all angels were nice people.”

“Being nice doesn’t bring bread to the table,” Aquaria added some sugar to her mixture. “Can you close the curtains? Peppermint will be here soon.”

Since Aquaria didn’t say why, Trixie didn’t think it was her place to ask. She just did what was asked, muttering her questions under her breath, growing annoyed with the whole situation. In all honesty, she should probably go to her motel, try to solve the case, and forget about Aquaria and Shangela. But her curiosity was sparked, and if there was one thing Trixie knew about herself, it was that all questions should be answered.

So Trixie let Aquaria babble on and on and on. Humming or chuckling where needed. She talked a lot, stumbling over her own words from time to time, earning a genuine giggle from Trixie. It only took Peppermint about ten minutes, before she literally walked through the wall.

“What the fuck?” Trixie chocked out when she saw the light wall darken, the core so black, it looked as if nothing had ever been there. “Aquaria, What the fuck is happening?”

Aquaria glanced over the edge of her phone, an eyebrow raised. “Oh,” Aquaria dropped her gaze to her phone again, shutting it off a few seconds later. “The portal.”

Aquaria moved closer to the wall, a bright smile of excitement on her face. It was as if she had forgotten about Shangela. Or that she didn’t really care. Trixie shrugged those thoughts off, because it could just be her coping mechanism, and because it definitely wasn’t her job to judge whatever was going on between them.

A woman with black braids and pink lips stepped through the ‘portal’, smiling brightly as she spotted Aquaria. “Hello, dear,” Her voice was soft and gentle, and Trixie could imagine her hug being comforting and motherly. “What happened? Where is she?”

Aquaria led the woman to the room, and Trixie felt left out and unsure what she should do. It was a familiar feeling, even though she rarely paid attention to it. She preferred to work and travel alone, not wanting to take care of anyone, or being a burden for someone else. However, it did get lonely.

But Kim had warned her for that, yet young and dumb Trixie had been fueled by anger and fear, and she never thought about what it had meant, getting into the business. Now that she was almost ten years older, Trixie knew, and had to live with the consequences every day, sleep with it every night.

She hadn’t worked together since Kim, and even though she wouldn’t call saving Shangela’s live working together, she didn’t mind listening to Aquaria’s rambling, or the change of scenery. Sometimes, Trixie wondered if she made the wrong decision by working on her own.

“You okay?” Aquaria had her hair pulled in a high ponytail, the grey-ish tone in her hair more prominent now that she was opening the curtains again. The sun was shining, and even though Trixie doubted it would warm her skin up, it was pleasant to know she wouldn’t need a raincoat.

“Yeah,” Trixie gently shook her head, coming back from wherever her mind had wandered. It was a place she didn’t like to visit. “Is she going to be okay?” Trixie pointed at the door. The door was closed, and she swore she could hear a faint whisper.

“Pep is fixing her,” Aquaria’s hands were balled into fists. “She’s been through worse, Shangela,” The blonde let herself fall on the couch, closing her eyes and pinching the bridge of her nose. Trixie could see the hint of dirt under her nails. Maybe it was blood.

“What about you?” Trixie couldn’t believe she forgot to ask that. Her social skills were rusting, that was obvious. The occasional hook up didn’t require much talking. Most of the time she was lying, anyway. She couldn’t be Trixie Mattel, often she had to be Jessica, or Isabella, or Alice. It was easy to forget who she was, even though fighting always brought her back.

“I’m fine,”

“No demon blood?” Trixie had a hard time believing that. Aquaria had been dressed in a skirt and the thinnest white blouse she’d ever seen. “Want me to take a look?”

“No, when Shangela wakes up, she’ll do it, it’s fine.”

“You sure?” Trixie carefully stopped herself from correcting Aquaria. If Shangela wakes up.

“Yeah, runes will heal it in no time.”

Right. Aquaria had angel blood. Trixie tensed up. “I can look at yours, if you want. I make killer healing runes, just so you know.”

“No,” Trixie sounded harsher than she meant to. “I mean I’m fine. I should just … go.”

“What?” Aquaria sounded surprised, pushing herself up and shaking her head. “Hell no, you’re staying. Wouldn’t it be better if we solved this case together?”

Trixie scoffed. “It’s obvious y’all need it, because you set a portal on fire.”

“Geez, let it go,” Aquaria chuckled. “We’ll work on that, it’ll be good in no time.”

“Let it go,” Trixie scoffed, pushing the tip of her shoe into the carpet, which looked too soft and expensive for an hotel. “I could be on my way home, but no, I might have to stay for weeks if it’s as bad as I think it is.”

Aquaria raised an eyebrow. “Weeks for closing a broken portal? Girl, how aren’t you dead yet?”

“What?” It came out harsher than she meant, but Aquaria seemed unbothered.

“I already texted someone from back home, she’ll bring some stuff and we’ll be done here in like, two days.” Aquaria looked at her nails, sighing in annoyance when she noticed that the baby blue polish had chipped a little bit. “I have to fix this.” As much as she tried to hide it, Trixie guessed she wasn’t fine, too restless to be okay.

The girl walked away, but Trixie wasn’t done. She often spent weeks trying to find a solution, and this freaking teen just let someone bring the answer to all their problems to them? Well, the solution to some problems.

“What do you mean? What is she bringing?”

Aquaria, who had an air of slight arrogance around her, looked at Trixie as if she was the one who figured out how to use the potty two days ago. “Some sort of dirt made from iron and salt. A few sticks with runes. I don’t know, we’ve used it for ages.” Aquaria spoke while painting her nails a cute orange, soft yet outstanding. “Where are you from?”

Dumbfounded by the simple question after Trixie had come to know something major, she just stood there for a long moment, trying to grasp the meaning of the words, before they hit her in the chest. “I live in Cali. Well, my house is there. I travel a lot.”

“I can tell,” Aquaria didn’t clarify what she meant, and when Trixie was about to ask, about to be offended, the girl began talking. “We’re from Boston. We go home often enough, Raven has a large place. Sometimes we do smaller cases in little groups, the big ones all together. We’re with a lot, you know.”

Trixie, for one, couldn’t imagine working with a large group. That only meant more people to look after, more people to protect. She couldn’t even protect one extra, how the hell was she about to take care of a group? However, Aquaria didn’t seem to have that problem.

“Sounds like fun,” Trixie rolled from the heel of her foot back to her toes. “Does this Peppermint person always take so long?”

“She won’t be ready before dawn,” Aquaria closed the bottle, blowing her nails with elegance and a certain laziness that was fascinating. “You can leave, if you want. It was really nice to bring her here.”

“I-“ What was she supposed to say? “It’s fine, I hope she’s okay,” Trixie glanced back to the closed door. “Can I come over tomorrow? Just to check if she’s okay.”

“Of course!” Aquaria stopped blowing her nails to smile. “Maybe you could help with cleaning up some more demons. You seem like a good hunter.”

It did feel indispensable to leave Aquaria, a foolish girl who painted her nails before fighting demons, possibly alone to kill maybe a dozen of demons. “Sure, why not?” Trixie scratches her nose, careful not to smudge her makeup, a strange tingle in her chest. “I’ll come over at noon?”

Aquaria nodded, giving her an awkward wave while not stopping her blowing. When Trixie left, she knew for a fact that Aquaria wasn’t looking at her.

Her fingers were shaking when she tried to open her room, the faint smell of something disgusting not bothering her for the first time since she checked in. She couldn’t stop the tremble, her heart was throbbing in her throat, and tears were threatening to well up any moment. It was weird, Trixie didn’t know where it all came from.

And yet she did.

Careless banter with someone who understood what she did. Someone who knew more than her and wanted to work together. She hadn’t worked together in three years.

When the lock finally clicked open, Trixie pushed herself in, hoping to find relief in the motel room, an empty room, a silent room. Nothing changed.

So, deciding that facing her feelings would be too hard, she kicked her shoes out with more force than intended, and moved to the little kitchen. The glasses had been dirty when she arrived, and she had only cared to clean one. Filling it with water, she took a small sip. Even though it did cool her down, she still felt like crying, like fainting.

I love you.

The words were loud and clear in her mind, she could even imagine that stupid crooked smile.

She threw her glass against the wall with a yell. She reached for the used plate in the sink, which soon followed the glass. Some of the glass hit the wall, jolting back at Trixie. She didn’t know if something hit her. Not then. She didn’t care.

See you at dinner, loser.

She leaned with her palms on the itchy tablecloth, her breathing uneven when a large tear rolled over her cheek. She never saw her at dinner.

#rpdr fanfiction #trixie mattel #aquaria #peppermint #tw blood #tw fighting #indomitable #dymphna #submission #shangela laquifa wadley #trixya #lesbian au

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irlpinkiepie · 7 years ago

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a house built on sand, chapter 5

a bnha fic

Dreams are fickle creatures.

Sometimes the most certain can fall apart at a moment’s notice, and sometimes, the most fantastic dreams have a chance of coming true.

Of course, that all depends on the dreamer.

[ao3]

Quick rundown. Breakfast, shower, get dressed. She had timed the train ride a few days before, and the earliest she could afford to leave for a 9:00 start was at 8:10, 8:12 if she ran. Look down. 6:28. That’s plenty of time.

As the dye soaked into her hair, Izuku sunk into her favorite habit. What is the exam going to be like? She knew there was some kind of practical component, so it probably had something to do with talent towards being a hero, but beyond that she was totally lost. Fighting villains was the most obvious choice, but villains didn't exactly operate on a schedule, and that would also technically be illegal since neither she nor any of her compatriots would be licensed heroes. Maybe some kind of quirk test? She sincerely hoped not, but she trusted All Might not to deliberately mislead her into false hopes. Unless he had as much of an idea as she did? She didn't want to think about that possibility.

7:31; hopefully that wouldn't hurt too much. Izuku closed her eyes as she rinsed out her hair in the sink, then opened them to look into the mirror. It wasn't perfect, to be sure; there were some waves of hue, and a couple of places where the roots still shone the same light brown as before, but she figured that would come with practice.

She stared into the bright green eyes of her reflection, and then smiled. She looked just like her mother.

Now, get everything else ready to leave. A jacket would probably be a good idea; Izuku grabbed one out of her closet and slid it on over her tank top. Shoes? A pair of white sneakers lay in a rack by the front door before she grabbed them and jumped into them. ID, railcard, and applicant forms were all set; she was practically bouncing at this point, desperate to hop on the train and not spend a single second more waiting.

So, not seeing any reason to stay, she called out a quick goodbye and dashed out the front door.

The train ride was a blur of expectation. The moment Izuku got on, she rushed straight to the back of the car and sat down in the corner, struggling to stay calm as the suburban scenery faded into cityscape. Unable to keep her mind wholly distracted, she took to scanning the car’s passengers, looking for other kids about her age who might be joining her for the entrance exam. A young girl with long, pointed ears poking out of her blue hair, sitting on the other side of the car; Izuku almost moved to say hi, but before she got the chance, the girl picked up her bag and got off a couple stops into the journey. Probably not, then.

A boy with golden blond hair, sitting by himself, but in a tuxedo and holding a briefcase? Doubtful.

Izuku was both relieved and disappointed to not see Katsuki anywhere on the train. There was something a little nerve-wracking about having to navigate such an important day on her own, but she had heard quite enough of his opinions regarding UA High, and she preferred her current uncertainty and nervousness to the contempt which that familiarity had bred.

That being said, she hoped to have a chance to talk to him after the exam; maybe once the pressure of school had been alleviated, he’d be in less of a sour mood.

When her stop was finally called, Izuku was the first one out of the door. School’s right around the corner. No sense in waiting after coming this far.

The sight that she beheld upon rounding the block and turning to her left was so much glorious than pictures could ever have done justice. Towers of glass rising high above the earth, the morning sun reflecting off the building bright enough she had to shade her eyes. A sparkling concrete wall encircling the premises, trees bursting up from behind its border whose leaves were just beginning to bud. And in the midst of it all, hanging gently over what Izuku could only assume was the front gate, was a plain white banner which read simply, “Exam day!”

A few minutes later, she managed to collect herself and walk through the entrance.

Cars are expensive, sure, and a big responsibility, but was being dropped off by Mom and Dad really necessary? It didn't seem dignified.

He was made for greatness, after all.

The school was bigger than his last, but that didn't hugely concern him. He knew there would be more students than in a local junior high, and besides, the school looked rich enough that some amount of this was just extravagance for the sake of it.

Take a look around, survey the competition. Almost everyone already went to the lobby already, he should probably join them, but who was this girl with green hair, wearing shorts in winter and just staring at everything? She seemed a little familiar …

Probably not important; he probably wouldn't see her again. Time to head inside.

Izuku was thrown from her taking in the scenery by the passing of a face she couldn't help but recognize. Katsuki.

She was glad he was okay, at least, but he didn't even say hi? Was the exam stress getting to him that much? She definitely still had a few more minutes before she had to go inside, so he couldn't have been in a rush…

Wait. The hair, the outfit - maybe he just didn't recognize her. She beamed thinking about that possibility.

Still, the inside of the campus was just as phenomenal as it looked from the outside. Despite the building’s apparently bureaucratic appearance, it was actually put together rather artistically; the glass blocks, when viewed separately, seemed almost as towers of a radiant castle. And the height! She could count up almost a dozen floors standing far away, but from this close all that Izuku could sense was just the sheer scale of the place, dominating everything else around it. Hopefully, at some point, she'd get used to this. If she got in. When she got in.

The pathways, too, seemed remarkably well-kept; Izuku knew this school had been around for half a century, but every single brick looked positively brand-new. Maybe there was someone on staff whose quirk related to repairs? That'd definitely make for a pretty useful hero in an emergency situation although the applicability of that sort of power would probably vary wildly so maybe that's why they would move towards an educational career so that they can more effectively benefit wait that pathway is getting closer really fast uh oh close your eyes--

But despite her panic, Izuku never hit the ground.

After a moment of stunned realization, she opened her eyes, and found her face inches away from the pavement - and staying there. She was flying, or, at least, she was floating. But why?

“Oh gosh, I’m sorry!” came a voice from behind her. “I didn't mean to scare you like that, I just saw you about to trip, and it felt like bad luck incoming! I had to do something. Here, spin around and grab my hand.”

Izuku reached out her left arm and gently pushed against the ground in an attempt to get herself at least a little bit further up. Face no longer pressed towards the path, she found herself being stood over by a girl with warm brown hair, holding out her arm and looking at her expectantly. Reaching out her own hand and grabbing on, Izuku felt herself being pulled weightlessly into a more or less upright position, before suddenly feeling the pull of gravity again as she fell the last couple of inches.

“My quirk is making things weightless,” the girl said, pulling a pink scarf down from her face and tucking it into the collar of her coat. “I know you’re not supposed to use them on people, but I hope you don’t mind too much.”

“O-oh, not at all!” Izuku stuttered in reply, not entirely sure how to react. “Thanks for the help.”

“Of course!” responded the brunette with a smile. “It’s like I said, I’d hate it if someone lost out ‘cause of feeling unlucky. I know it’s a bit silly,” she continued, stretching an arm behind her head, “but it can’t hurt. I’m Ochako, by the way.”

“Izuku.” There was something reassuring about Ochako’s presence, even if she couldn’t figure out what exactly.

“Should we get going? As beautiful as it is outside, it can probably wait until after the exam, don’t you think?” Ochako walked a couple of steps towards the door as she spoke, and then turned back to Izuku, motioning to follow.

She was still unsure of herself, but she didn’t have any doubts about this. Smiling back as best she could, Izuku followed her new friend through the school’s front doors.

“No, it’s actually rarer than you’d think,” Ochako said as the two of them found their way into the auditorium at the end of the hallways and arrow-labeled signs. “I was the only one from my school who applied. It’s like, self-selecting? Most of the people who wouldn’t get in don’t even bother going through the exam. Middle section alright?”

“Sure thing,” responded Izuku, as the two of them moved into the rows and set their sights on a pair of still-empty seats. They weren’t scheduled to start for a few minutes, but the seats were already filling close to the brim. “There seem to be a lot more people here than that, though,” she said gesturing to the room around her.

“Hm? There are a lot of junior high schools in Japan, you know.”

“Oh. Right.” For some reason, the idea that there were kids like her who had traveled across the country to chase the same dream had never occurred to her, but now that it had, her nervousness suddenly escalated far above what it had been all day. She had probably had more training, sure, but she wasn’t even the best in her class, let alone the entire country.

“Are you feeling okay?” Ochako said, and then her voice became static and swirled around her.

There wasn’t a single thing she had done to prepare herself for several hundred students who were all the best in their school, and now she was stuck and there was no way out and the walls and the students pushed closer and closer and a hand gently fell into her lap and she grabbed it as tight as she could and held on until the panic faded and the lights and sounds outside her returned to their sources and she followed the hand she held tight to its origin and looked up at her and smiled and said, simply, “Thank you.”

“Are you sure you’re going to be alright in the exam?” Gone was her previously cheery demeanor, replaced by an expression of worry.

“Yeah, I-I’m sorry.” Stay calm, don’t fret, just focus on what’s best possible. “I don’t really do well with uncertainty, and I was kind of thrown…”

Ochako nodded, a faint smile returning to her face. “Well, if it helps at all, orientation’s just about to start; should be any minute now.” Sure enough, Izuku looked down at her watch and saw the faint glow of an 8:59 screen, which she stared at expectantly waiting for the next change in time.

Just before it had the chance, though, it was interrupted by a hum of speaker static coming from the front of the auditorium, followed by an almost ear-splitting amplified voice echoing through the room which said only the words “EVERYBODY READY?” And with that, the lights dimmed, a projector shone onto the back wall, and a young man dressed in all black leather sauntered on stage, blond hair gelled back to a point.

Present Mic.

UA graduate of ‘38, top 10 in popularity polls for the first five years of his career, billions of yen earned lifetime, and now, it seemed, high school teacher. Honestly, as far as career paths went, Izuku didn’t think that one was so bad. She wasn’t sure how much he really needed a microphone given his quirk, though.

Still, as much time as she had spent with All Might, there was still something amazing about seeing a professional hero standing right in front of her and talking directly to her, especially one whose radio show she still listened to on a nightly basis.

“Welcome, everyone, to the first day of what will hopefully be a long and happy three years of study at UA High School! That is, of course, if you can pass the entrance exam! LET’S GET THINGS STARTED!” The projector, which previously displayed a blank white screen, now had additional lettering: plain black type which read ‘Entrance Exam Details’, and below that, in a smaller font, the words ‘By Hizashi Yamada’.

“So!” Present Mic continued, still excitedly shouting every word. “There is a written exam too, and that’ll be in a few days or so, but there’s nothing EXCITING about that! You kids signed up here ‘cause you wanted to be heroes! So let’s see if you can!”

He threw his arms out and yelled, “CURTAINS PLEASE!” At that, the title card behind him faded, replacing itself with what looked like a… video game screen? Complete with tinny music playing through the speakers.

Well, he seemed excited, even if the rest of the room was silent.

“Your test is gonna be fighting villains! Robot villains! Lots of them!” Pixelated figures materialized on the board, and were those Mario enemies? On second thought, this was clearly going to be weird; Izuku figured it would be better to just accept it. Each of the figures was labeled with a different number, and a similarly-styled Present Mic appeared and started wandering around the virtual city.

“Three types of robots! Each one’s worth a different number of points - try to get as many as you can in ten minutes! Don’t get killed!” Wait, how dangerous was this going to be? No, that was probably just a joke. Maybe. His shouting every word didn’t exactly make the tone of his words clear, as much as it was still a delight to listen to.

“Excuse me, sir!” Another voice rang out from the audience; Izuku was amazed that anyone managed to find room to get a word in edgewise. She looked to find the source of the interruption, and traced it to a boy sitting near the front, standing perfectly straight in his school uniform and raising his hand high in the air. Astonishingly, Present Mic noticed him too, and stopped his speech to respond, “Yes? What’s the matter?”

“You mentioned there being only three types of opponent,” the boy said bluntly, pushing his glasses to his face, “and yet the diagram you provided shows four plus yourself. Is this a problem with your speech, or with the presentation?”

“Worry not!” Present Mic responded before spinning back behind the podium and dramatically stretching out his arms again. “That’s just what I was about to mention! The mid-round game changer! Zero point robot! Just don’t get in its way!”

All in all, this ‘test’ seemed bizarre at best. They were just going to be set loose on a bunch of fake villains? But presumably still dangerous villains, otherwise the test wouldn’t be very useful, but also not too dangerous villains, since she hadn’t heard about any previous children killed by an entrance exam. She turned to Ochako making a confused face, and received only a shrug in response.

“Check your forms for your exam center! Buses leave outside in 20 minutes, so get ready! Break a leg! PLUS ULTRA!” Shouting his final words loud enough to put Izuku’s hair on end, he stood back and bowed as the screen faded to black. Izuku, for her own part, managed a couple enthusiastic claps before realizing that the rest of the room failed to share her sentiment.

The two of them both perused their sheets before finding a small, capital letter ‘B’ in the bottom right corner.

“Well… good luck, I guess,” Izuku said hesitantly. She wasn’t sure how she felt about having people she knew watching her during the exam, even if only indirectly, but she gave a thumbs up regardless.

“Thanks! You too.” Ochako blinked a couple of times before nodding and offering a faint smile alongside her words.

As the two of them filed out of the auditorium along with the rest of the students, neither said another word.

The bus ride was surprisingly short, and Katsuki was nowhere to be seen. Cherish blessings as they come.

This current situation, though, was nothing short of confounding. Izuku really wasn’t expecting to be blown away by architecture twice in one day, but it seemed like the school really had built enclosed cityscapes out in the middle of the countryside, and she could see the peak of a skyscraper rising out above the sheer metal wall in front of her. Seven buses outside before she left probably meant that there were seven of these, and if there was any damage to the interiors, they would have to be rebuilt every single year. Everything she had learned that day shocked her.

Looking around, she saw Ochako again - no longer dressed in winter gear, but instead sporting a light blue jacket and tracksuit. She must have gotten changed before getting on the buses, then - that would explain why she had left and Izuku hadn’t spotted her again until now. It felt wrong to leave the situation between the two of them unresolved, though, and she wanted to make sure her words had been taken sincerely. She only managed a single step in her direction, though, before her path was blocked by the straightened arm of another student.

“And what do you think you’re doing?” the boy stopping her said sternly. Izuku was surprised to see the same boy who had interrupted Present Mic’s speech standing in front of her. At this rate, it was more surprising that Katsuki wasn’t there with her.

“That girl over there is clearly trying to concentrate. It would be extremely inappropriate for you to interfere with your competitors in such a manner, and I ask that you please refrain.”

“I-- uh… okay.” No point in arguing; even in what was presumably a school P.E. uniform, he was still somewhat of a presence. Izuku gently backed up and walked off in a different direction as quickly as she could.

Wanting to avoid thinking about that awkwardness, Izuku decided to take a moment to strategize. While she hadn’t technically done it before, there was nothing about fighting robotic opponents that seemed noticeably different from human opponents with quirks, and she had been taught by the best how to do that. It was just a matter of being resourceful and thinking quickly, and with only three types of robots to contend with, it shouldn’t be tricky to get a feeling of how to defeat them all.

How would points be assigned for collaborative efforts, though? She didn’t really want to take any risks, so she should probably head out on her own and hope not to run into anyone. That being said, she wasn’t on the best of terms with the two students she had actually spoken to already, and not really being sure how much time there was before the exam actually started, trying to collaborate at this point seemed like a fool’s errand. Seeing the other students all standing apart silently in front of the open gate, she doubted anyone would even wait the gate was open.

Did that mean the test had started? No one else seemed to have noticed, and the worst that could happen is that she would be pulled out and have to start with everyone else. Besides, a head start was a tempting offer.

Just as she was about to cross the threshold into the artificial city, she heard the crackle of a loudspeaker, and nearly panicked before she heard its message: the voice of Present Mic angrily shouting, “Well, what are you waiting for? No countdowns in battle!” At that, the people behind her perked up and started running, so Izuku took that as a sign to do the same. Pulling off at the first corner and making sure no one had followed her, she wandered into the city looking for enemies, and it wasn’t long until she found one.

Never had Izuku been more glad to have accidentally left a screwdriver in her pocket. With as many electrical appliances as she had dismantled over the course of her beach training, there was often a temptation to hate its presence, but right now she couldn’t be more grateful.

The android standing in front of her had large shields over its arms, each emblazoned with the numeral “1”. Mutator-type quirk, she thought. Tackle the weak points, manipulate the mutation. Seeing the arms about to come down at her, she dodged out of the way, and then ran behind her opponent and held on tight to its back. A loose plate became looser, and a couple of wires were knocked from their slots, and the robot she was grabbing lost power and fell to the floor.

Izuku sat down for a moment to catch her breath. The moment she had stepped through the gate to the city, she had felt slightly uneasy, and that encounter had amplified that feeling to distress. Not panic, fortunately, but enough to start making her feel sick.

As soon as she could, though, she picked herself back up and kept moving. She wasn’t sure what a winning score was, but something told her that a single point would not suffice.

Walking through the cityscape was an oddly surreal experience. So many of the side alleys and narrow roads reminded her of her own home city - was that deliberate? - but for every familiar doorstep and street corner, there was a pristine concrete wall or row of darkened windows that reminded her that her surroundings were artificial. Given more time to ponder, Izuku would have wandered for days; as it was, though, her observations were minor distractions as she ran by on a quest to defeat more enemies.

When the loudspeaker rang out with a five-minute warning before she had increased her score any further, though, she realized that she was going to have to adopt a different strategy.

Concentrate. The simulation is likely to be accurate. Real villains don’t attack randomly, they attack population centers. Going right to the most open areas would probably mean competition from other students, but the access routes would probably be effective targets, as well as blocking off the other students. Plus, this was just a simulation, but there was something that seemed wrong about attacking villains in places where others could be endangered.

She listened out for the sound of commotion and followed it as best she could, but when another one-point robot crossed her path, panic suffused through her body and overrode her previous ability to fight back. When the metallic arm swung down towards her, she tried desperately to run away, but her legs were frozen in place, and she could only squeeze her eyelids shut and fret.

She wasn ’t entirely happy with how this whole situation played out, but at the halfway things seemed to be looking up. Her quirk was starting to wear her out, though; thankfully, this wasn’t an extended fight, so she could go home and rest afterward. For now, though? All out; there was something so oddly satisfying about the process of tagging the robots, pushing them into the air, and letting them fall to the ground, and she couldn’t help but smile every time she heard a crash behind her. The latest set had brought her up to a clean thirty.

While she had seen other students around, none of them ever tried to mess with her, though she couldn ’t count on that staying true as the number of robots dwindled. She was going to have to act.

A loud whirring noise sounded a couple of streets down; with any luck, she ’d be the first one to it.

Izuku opened her eyes to see the robot still in front of her, swinging wild strokes with its shield arms, not a single one in danger of hitting her. Curious, she stepped forward into their path, and the robot in its turn rolled back so that its attacks were still out of range.

The robots were never going to hurt them. This test was completely safe.

That realization now under her belt, she took to disabling the second robot in the same manner as the first, and it quickly fell down to the ground with a clatter. Not having to worry about staying safe, this test would become a cinch. Izuku rushed off towards the city center, the few remaining enemies in her path tumbling harmlessly as she passed them and deactivated them.

People talk all the time about missing the forest for the trees, but no one ever mentions missing the collapsing building for the giant robot knocking it down. Funny, that.

While she had managed to avoid most of the debris, the impact from what remained was enough to knock the wind out of her, and she doubted she ’d be able to clear all of it with her quirk right away. Still, she felt like she had a decent lead, and once the exam was over they’d come and rescue her.

As much as she wanted to focus on silver linings, she was still drowning in steel.

Izuku’s forward progress was halted by a sudden, loud whirring off in the distance. She hadn’t actually seen any three-point robots still intact, and the idea of a burst of extra points was too appealing to pass up on, even if it was some distance away. She made a dash for the sound’s origin, then stopped cold when a couple of blocks later, she found it.

Stay calm. Focus. Don’t worry. This was probably the zero point robot. If it was anything like the other robots, it wasn’t allowed to actually hurt any of the students.

Mixed in with the sea of debris in front of her was a familiar light blue.

It wouldn’t hurt them unless it didn’t know that they were there.

Her view to the outside was limited, but there was nothing comforting about seeing a sea of people running from the place where she was fixed. Baffling, though, was seeing this and noticing a single person heading towards her.

Only one thing to do. Dig as fast as you can. Her life depends on it.

The roaring motors grew louder by the second, but it felt as though the weight on her shoulders was lifting.

Reaching out a hand to Ochako’s now excavated body, she saw the hand in front of her and grabbed on, but no matter how hard she pulled, the rest of the debris still weighed down on her body, and she felt her body lighten as her control over her power began to waver and Izuku was floating.

“I’ll save you,” she whispered, and then pressed off the ground and flew into the air.

A rising, followed by a crashing.

The joint at the robot’s neck was crucially weak. A single, impulsive punch sent it flying backwards, as she did the same from the now lifeless robot.

She smiled, and then closed her eyes.

In the rush of the moment, she failed to notice that the pull of gravity had returned to her body.

A falling, followed by a landing.

Izuku and Ochako were both barely, luckily, alive.

#talking always yes lots of reading #ok to rebagel #bnha #tv: my hero academia #adherence to typical form? never heard of her #ahbos

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moonhowlerpack · 7 years ago

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A Complete 10 {Son’s Of Anarchy}

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MasterList

Ask Anything: {Here}

Request: {Here}

By: @soa-brothers

Reader x Female Pairing

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Having a blade in hand walking towards the guy twisting it slowly “You know this is my least favorite knife” I sighed sadly “Do you know why” I asked the guy let out a muffled yell seeing the knife was huge. “It’s because it’s to big I actually prefer a smaller one, more pain and a slower death” I said “But the person who ordered to kill you had a little bit of sympathy they said and I quote ‘Do whatever you want with him but make it fast he is my husband after all’ end of quote” I quoted.

The guys widened drastically “O yeah bud it was your wife, I’m glad my wife hasn’t did that yet” I muttered “You poor basterd” I said before he had a chance to react I slashed his throat let him choke on his own blood. The blood poured down the drain right under his shoes. That didn’t stop it from getting on me I felt half of my face wet my sweater splattered with blood, oh don’t forget my shoes my poor shoes were covered in blood completely soaked.

Looking down sighing in return before moving towards the bag of ‘instruments’ grabbing a blood red lip stick applying it a stamp that was formed into lips. Walking over to the guy grabbing his chin and placing the stamp on the cheek I mean they didn’t call you kiss of death just for nothing. I stood for a while wiping down the ‘instruments’ and throwing the rag on the floor removing your black gloves and putting them inside a bag so you can burn later even your clothes.

Hearing your phone ring was surprising no one was supposed to call you during the ‘job’ seeing the caller ID made you pick up your phone as fast I could “DAD” I half-yelled “I haven’t seen you in almost four months” I said leaving my phone between my shoulder and my ear while packing up my stuff and taking them to the car. “Hey sweetheart I know this isn’t how I was supposed to start the conversation, but I need a favor” My dad asked “Of course anything for you, so what is it” I said.

My dad filled me on the details while I packed and got out of the lot to drive back home to prepare for 20 min trip to Charming. During the ride after he gave me details I talked to my dad about what was going on with grandma, my life in general it was good to talk to your parents about certain things. “Of course dad I just got home, yeah no worries I’ll tell him, ok bye dad love you too” I hung up on my dad parking in driveway of your home making sure your Harley was covered because it was going to rain tonight.

Seeing the lights to your bedroom was surprising because well it was late around one in the morning, grabbing your bag from the concrete slinging it over shoulder, grabbing your house keys in the process of your jacket unlocking the door peeking in the hallway where was the bedrooms to see the light still on. Leaving your bag in the laundry room before going into the kitchen to eat the sandwich that was left for you, finishing it quickly chugging a glass of water down to wash it down.

You removed your bloody shoes before changing them to slippers heading back to the laundry room you started removing every article of clothing and grabbing a clean towel before walking to the ‘guest’ bathroom to take a quick shower making sure rubbing every part of your body was squeaky clean. After finishing up and changing into your pajamas you walked back to the laundry room getting the contents out of your bag, putting your ‘instruments’ into a very high place because your little boy was very curios.

After dealing with that you walked back to the hallway before turning into your boy’s room seeing him sleeping with a snoopy plush, walking in turning of the nightlight before re-tucking him again and settled a kiss on his forehead. Heading out you looked back just one more time and closed the door just enough to let the light from the hallway in, heading towards the master bedroom was one of the most exhausting and refreshing things you did today.

Seeing your wife with her hair sprawled out across the pillow watching friends re-runs was literally breathtaking. “Hey you, did you eat already” She asked concerned “Of course I did who do you think I am” I said fakely offended putting a hand on my heart. Laying down she turned the TV off before readjusting her body to where it was facing me and her face were mere inches from each other.

“Let’s go to bed” I muttered before closing my eyes and letting the dreams roll around me.

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Arriving at the TM was very funny for you at least people turned around to see a woman on a Harley was a bit surprising but you could care less in all honestly. Perching your sunglasses on your head looking around for your dad you saw a dark curly headed guy walking towards you, walking towards him meeting him halfway “What do you need sweetheart” He asked he definitely didn’t try to hide the fact he was checking you out.

“Yeah, I’m looking for my dad” I said I tried to look around him put he put a hand on my shoulder to prevent me from doing that, he then continued to put his whole arm around your shoulder leading you to the office “I don’t know about you sweetheart, but I can be your new daddy” He flirted with you.

Shrugging of his shoulder you grab his hand and pinned it behind his back before lowering yourself to his ear “I asked nicely the first time and you don’t want to know what I’ll do to you if you make me ask the second time” I growled into his ear. “HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH HIM” a blonde guy came running from another building that caught the attention of two other guys before following him.

“You see what you caused all because you couldn’t bite your own tongue” I muttered before letting him go and putting my hands up “I asked nicely but he didn’t reply so nicely so yeah” I said rolling my eyes “Jesus I wonder how you would be in bed” The curly one said before anyone had time to react you turned around punching him right in the jaw knocking him on the ground when you felt someone grab your waist you threw your elbow behind your head.

Feeling your elbow wet you knew you got him to bleed next thing you know the one with the tribal tattoo on his head had his gun pointing it at you. Hearing another click beside you grabbed both of your guns from your back and pointing at both men the men you had injured were behind them, inspecting their injuries. “Alright lass put the guns down and we won’t do anything” The Scottish man asked you scoffing your took the safety’s off “I’m not putting down shit, you Scottish jackass” I mumbled glaring the one with the tribal tattoos laughed softly before he stopped completely realizing that it was definitely the wrong time to laugh.

“Don’t stop laughing you tribal headed idiot” I mumbled again feeling a gun behind your head you raised your eyebrows “Really now I’m going to have to take down five guys oh how fun” You said sarcastically feeling the gun drop from your head “(Y/N)” You heard the person mumble glancing back you saw your dad looking at you with a smirk. You smiled before putting your guns way in your holsters you reached up and you hugged him “Already causing problems aren’t you” He murmured into my shoulder “Always” I said.

“Uh Happy aren’t you going to introduce us to this very very lovely creature” The curly headed one said “Actually Tig she’s my daughter” Tig jaw dropped “You know I kinda figured that out, because of the whole exchanged we just had seconds ago” The blonde one said. “Boy’s this is (Y/N), (Y/N) this is Jax, Chibs, Juice, and Tig” You nodded looking over at Chibs “Sorry I said that to you if I knew you were my dad’s friend I would have not said that to you” I said “Or you Juice” I said. “Right what am I here for anyways” I clapped my hands “Let’s talk about that in the clubhouse” Jax said walking towards the clubhouse.

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Finishing the job that needed to be done for the club they wanted it to celebrate it by throwing a party, picking up your wife leaving your child with a close friend you trusted very much. Arriving you can hear the music pumping from the outside fixing your top before turning your wife looking down at your hands. “Hey what’s wrong” I asked I put my hands on the side of her face she put her hand on my left hand “You don’t have your ring on” She muttered nodding my head understanding I usually don’t wear the ring because of my job.

I let her place my ring on my finger before interlocking our hands and walking inside “(Y/N)” Tig yelled making everyone turn around “Oh, who is this fine piece” Tig said before looking over at your very gorgeous wife “This is my wife” I said and thrusted my hands towards her showing her off. “You’re kidding right because you didn’t have a ring earlier” Tig looked baffled Happy walked over “She’s telling the truth brother she’s my daughter in law and adopted a boy together” Happy said before slipping his arm over both of shoulders.

“I swear You were a 9.5 now you are a complete 10” Tig said “Then I learned you’re a mom and I think you just broke the scale you’re a MILF” he yelled out at the end my wife step forward grabbing his wrist in the same position I did when I first met him. “You don’t get to talk to my like that only I can so I suggest go finding somwthing in your standers because she way out of your league” She whispered dangerously.“Ah this is why I married you”

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GIFS DO NOT BELONG TO ME ALL CREDIT GOES OUT TO THE OWNERS

Words~~1,745

#soa #happy lowman #chibs telford #juice ortiz #jax teller #reader x female #Sons of anarchy #asdfghjkl #asdfghjkjhgfds #asdfghjkk #masterlist #:)#MoonHowlerPack MoonHowlerPackImagines #MoonHowlerPack #MoonHowlerPack Imagines

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twxntrash · 7 years ago

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The Moon Is Beautiful, Isn’t It? Ch. 13

At long last it’s here. It’s not the longest of chapters, but, it’s a chapter. Hope you enjoy.

Lapis could only stare at Peridot in silence, her shopping bags from the convenience store having been forgotten at her sides, no care for if the contents inside got wet from the rain. She just stared at Peridot for what felt like forever trying to understand what was going on. Mind trying to figure out why Peridot would be out here. She was just shocked to find the girl who had taken over her thoughts out here. In a storm. Drunk. She snapped out of her stupor when she saw the blonde shiver where she sat, worry and concern quickly taking the forefront of her mind. The girl was probably out in the rain far longer than Lapis, she was completely drenched from head to toe. She had to be freezing! Lapis quickly got to her knees, trying to discern any injuries on the blonde as she looked her over.

Worry filled her system, and maybe just a little bit of anger too at seeing her student and friend like this. “Peridot, are you okay?” she asked. Her response was a drunken, carefree giggle from Peridot as she slowly helped the blonde to her feet, though the young woman swayed and stumbled a little, so Lapis kept her hands on her to help keep her up.

The blonde took a moment to respond, just staring at Lapis with wide eyes, between the alcohol and the water blurring up her glasses, the teacher had to wonder just how bad her vision was currently impaired. Peridot pulled herself from Lapis' grip and shot finger guns at her. In any other situation, Lapis would have found it adorable, “I’m better than okay, Laz. I’m feeling great—whoa!” she cut herself off as she very nearly lost her balance again just from taking a few steps back. However, she managed to keep herself upright without Lapis’ help this time, her bottle of whiskey was still clasped between her fingers, the sound of the liquid sloshing inside was audible even through the rain.

Lapis glanced down at the dark bottle, and then back at Peridot, at the drenched, drunken wet cat look that she had now. She hadn’t a clue what Peridot was doing here, why she was drunk and where she got the alcohol from in the first place. But, there was no way she could just leave her out in this rain. Nor was she going to trust Peridot to be able to get back home safely on her own. Could Peridot even lead the way home in her state or was she too drunk to remember her way home? Lapis didn’t want to risk it if it could keep them out in the rain longer than needed.

“Come on, let’s go,” Lapis said, gently taking a hold of Peridot by the arm and, after picking back up her bags with her other hand, she began leading Peridot down the sidewalk. She wanted to get her somewhere safe, where she could dry off and where could sober up. Somewhere Lapis could watch her so that she could make sure that Peridot was okay and stayed okay. She really couldn’t help the bitterness and sour taste she got in her mouth just from thinking of what could have happened if someone other than herself had come across Peridot, drunk and vulnerable, in the rain tonight.

Thank God Lapis had found her when she did, and thank God that Peridot didn’t appear hurt at all. Still, they were going to have a rather long talk when they got out of the storm about why Peridot should not be drinking, and if she still decided she was going to be drinking, why she shouldn’t go wandering out in storms while drunk. For someone so smart, Peridot could be so stupid.

Peridot smiled at her and Lapis could feel her heart constrict a little and do some backflips, even drunk she had a beautiful smile. Her steps were uneven and she gave the occasional hiccup, but regardless, she was pretty willing to follow Lapis through the rain without complaint, “Where we goin’?” she asked innocently.

“Home,” Lapis replied, and then as an afterthought she clarified, “my home. It's not far from here.”

“Oooh! Ms. Lazuli, how forward of you!” Peridot burst out laughing as she put a hand to her chest, clearly trying to do the swooning pose but failing big time as she was unable to contain her laughter.

At the implications being made, Lapis’ face turned red, feeling hot despite the chill of the rain. “Oh hush, you know I don’t mean it like that,” she chided, unable to look Peridot in the face.

Peridot was grinning ear to ear as she drew closer to Lapis, almost hugging her arm as she followed, “Aww, and with that my dreams are crushed.” If Lapis didn't know better, she'd say Peridot was trying to flirt. But, it was just the alcohol talking. Lapis was sure it was just the alcohol talking.

She supposed that the good thing about finding Peridot where she had was that Lapis wasn't lying when she said she didn’t live all that far from the park. All it took was for them to walk three or four blocks and then she was pulling Peridot through her front door and kicking off her shoes on the doormat. She wondered for a moment what her neighbors would think if they saw her taking home one of her students, but shrugged it off. Like she cared what they thought, and it wasn’t like they really cared enough to keep tabs on what Lapis did.

“Just take your shoes off here, don’t mind Malachite, she won’t bite,” Lapis directed as she pulled her jacket off and left it on the coat rack. Water dripped down from it onto. Even though she had her jacket on and zipped tight, her shirt was pretty wet and so was her pants, she’d no doubt have to change clothes. Of course, Peridot would too, she was far wetter than Lapis. “I’ll get you some towels and a change of clothes, follow me.”

Peridot shook her head at the offer and instead held her backpack up for Lapis to see, “No need. Got a spare set in here,” she said.

“There’s no way anything in there is still dry.” Just from one look at the backpack, it was soaked all the way through. Lapis had her fair share of running her bags through the rain, and if Peridot had brought clothes with her in there, then they were bound to be wet. Wait… why would she even have a spare set of clothes in her bag? Lapis was going to have to ask her about that later. “I’ll throw them in the dryer, but, I should have something around here you can wear.”

Thankfully Peridot wasn’t too argumentative about it. She put her backpack down and followed Lapis through the house. The bluenette managed to find a pair of shorts that had been too small for herself and a shirt for Peridot to use and ushered her into the bathroom along with a few towels.

“Go on and get changed, I’ll be back in a minute,” Lapis said from the doorway, closing the door as she left Peridot to her own devices for a minute so she could change into some dry clothes herself. Of course, the first priority was to dispose of the whiskey now that it wasn't in Peridot's hands anymore, and she was more than happy to dump the bottle into the trash on her way to her room.

Ten minutes later found Lapis and Peridot on the couch. Malachite had already come to investigate the new guest in the home and had already gotten bored; stepping off to sleep in the bedroom when Peridot showed to have nothing of interest to her.

Lapis was finding it hard to figure out what to say, how to start this conversation. She never thought she’d have to be questioning Peridot like this, after all, who in the world would have thought they’d run into Peridot drunk? But still, she had to get to the bottom of this. In the back of her mind, she realized that this could also be her chance to find out once and for all why Peridot had been avoiding her.

“Peridot,” she began slowly, cautiously. She didn’t want to start this off bad right away, who knew what kind of drunk Peridot could be, she’d handled enough people at the bar to know to be careful, “what were you doing out there?”

The blonde shrugged as she hugged her knees to her chest, watching the TV with interest as a bunch of chefs tried to prove themselves better than the other. “Cause I wanted too?” she offered. Lapis was sure that there was more to it. Her phone started ringing, and as Peridot pulled it out of the shorts pocket, Lapis caught a glance of the caller ID; Yellow Demon. She saw the narrowed eyes and furrow brows on Peridots face, her teeth worrying her lips as she watched the phone, not answering as it vibrated and rang. Only speaking when the phone stopped ringing and turning it on silent as she talked, "It's rain, rains nice, right? It's water, you like water, so I want to like water."

Lapis shrugged off the phone call, she could understand not wanting to answer a call when drunk, she did the same thing so many times in the past. Especially if it was someone you really didn't want hearing you talk drunk. “You’re not the kind of person who’d sit down in a rainstorm just because you wanted too,” Lapis pointed out instead, though the fact that she said she wanted to like water because of Lapis. It was somewhere between surprising and flattering, she wasn't sure how to describe it.

Shaking her head, she pressed on. “Did something happen?” Was it because of me? she wanted to add. A bit of guilt was gnawing at her from inside as the thought occurred to her. What if it was because of her? Because it was the only way Peridot could deal with whatever it was Jasper told her about her.

She didn’t like thinking like that. But, it was a possibility. If she was the reason Peridot got drunk and threw herself out in the rain… she felt awful.

“I guess… I guess I’m not, huh?” Peridots voice was soft, but it was only a moment because she smiled, voice as loud as always as she spoke up again, “But, can’t a gal try new things? I tried alcohol and I tried the rain. At least I liked one of them.”

“You could have gotten sick,” Lapis retorted. Just because Peridot wasn't going to give her a straight answer didn't mean she was going to give up. “You're not the drinking type, you're not the kind to make stupid choices like this," she said and then hesitated a moment, adding on after making her decision. “Peridot, why have you been avoiding me? Did I do something wrong? Is this because I did something?”

The blonde fell silent. Her entire posture had gone stiff at the question, as though it was the last question she even wanted Lapis to ask. Her nails curled into her legs, digging into her borrowed shorts as she stared at the TV without a word. Her discomfort was clear, and Lapis regretted asking her that question since this was the result of it all.

“Peridot, are you okay?” Lapis asked, turning her entire body to face the blonde, “I’m sorry, look, you don’t have to tell me right now.”

Yeah, she wished Lapis hadn’t asked that question. It wasn’t something she really wanted to admit to the blue haired woman just yet. Peridot looked up and swallowed dryly. Okay, no, she was lying to herself. She wanted to answer Lapis question, really, she did. She wanted so badly to just tell her that ‘hey, sorry I was avoiding you like the plague, it's just because I’m in love with you’, but, well, she wasn’t the most articulate when drunk and handling feelings. The butterflies that Lapis still managed to put in her even now wasn’t helping her all that much either. She wanted to tell her, she just couldn't get the words to come out.

She glanced at Lapis, at the worry that was on her face at seeing Peridots unease. She felt her insides heat up and turn to goop. Lapis had always been pretty, and she seemed even more so. Maybe it was the alcohol talking, but, well, just looking at Lapis she could feel her unease start to calm. She liked looking at pretty things, and Lapis was the prettiest one in this house. It was so easy to just get lost in looking at Lapis right now, and it was so hard to look away.

Her blue eyes were so beautiful if Peridot was being honest, and she was pretty honest right now, they were the most breathtaking shade she’d ever seen. She could stare at them for hours and never get bored. Her skin was flawless, smooth and soft. Peridot found her eyes dipping lower, to the plump lips she’d dreamed and desired to cover with her own.

She couldn’t trust herself to use words to answer Lapis’ question. But there was a different way to convey it all. If there was ever a chance. She’d rather do this now and brush it off as a drunken act of stupidity later when she was sober then spend forever wishing she’d not backed out of it.

“Peridot?” Lapis asked again. The blonde had been staring at her silently and she was a little concerned if she was okay. “Are you spacing out or whmph!”

She never got a chance to finish because Peridot had leaned in, quickly cutting her off as she captured Lapis’ lips with her own. Small hands came up to grab Lapis by the arms, holding onto her but just loose enough that if Lapis wanted to she could break out of with ease and push the blonde away.

She didn’t push her away. Lapis’ mind had gone blank for a moment, eyes wide in surprise as she felt the younger woman’s lips against her own. Feeling the blonde so close to her. Kissing her. It was like her mind had to go through a reboot system, and when it finished, she was hyper-focused on what was happening.

Peridot was kissing her. Peridot was kissing her. Peridot was kissing her.

Before she could even do anything, Peridot pulled away. Her face red, her eyes hazy, her breathing a little uneven. Yet she was watching Lapis, eyes laced with a tinge of fear, looking for something, anything from Lapis. Her grip on Lapis growing weak, like she was torn between letting go or holding onto her.

Lapis could feel her heart beating fast, her pulse a drum in her ears. Her face was burning. Her mind was screaming at her. She shouldn't want this. Shouldn't do this. Shouldn't have enjoyed the kiss as much as she did. But she couldn’t find it in her to listen to her brain, she knew what she wanted, who she wanted.

Lean arms wrapped around Peridot, pulling her close, holding her tight with no intentions to let go as Lapis dragged the blonde into another kiss.

#TMIB #Lapidot #SU #cam writes shit

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svetlanawagner-blog · 5 years ago

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While living in LA, we visited the no more than 5 times the ENTIRE year even though we said we wouldn’t take the for granted. We immediately regretted it after moving to land-locked Las Vegas.

Traffic was always our number one excuse for staying in, but we know we could have made the effort. Now that we’re back on the coast, we’re determined to enjoy San Diego’s beautiful es. We’re hoping to explore every in the area and make it out to a – new or old – once a week. Today, we put together a list of what to bring to the to help us and you stay organized.

A big thank you to Sparkling ICE for sponsoring this post. All opinions are always our own. This post may contain affiliate links, where we receive a small commission on sales of the products that are linked at no additional cost to you. Read our full disclosure for more info. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Local Adventurer possible.

Last Updated: Jun 7, 2019 // Originally Published: Jun 11, 2015

What to Bring to the Beach - Our Beach Essentials Packing List

Beach Bag – It’s especially good if it’s like this one with a zipper or clasps at the top and you can use it as your personal carry on item too.

Dry Backpack or Dry Bag – Jacob likes to carry this backpack to keep our stuff dry.

Reef Safe Sunscreen – Skin cancer is no joke! We used to love using our Neutrogena Dry Touch, but after reading up on what ingredients go into their sunscreens along with other big brands, we’ve found some great non-toxic alternatives. Keep in mind sunscreens above SPF 50 only add slightly more protection. If you find oxybenzone, octinoxate, octocrylene, homosalate, or octisalate on the label, it is not reef friendly. Mineral sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide are generally safer.

Chapstick with SPF – Jacob’s burnt his lips more than once because he forgot about them. This one is SPF 30.

Cheap Big Sunglasses – I keep my nicer pair in the car, so that they don’t get scratched up by the sand. You want big sunglasses to be able to protect all around your eye.

Sunhat – Gotta keep the sun off your face. The one I’m wearing above is from San Diego Hat Company.

Swimsuit

Swim Cover Up

Summer Attire – Summer dress, tank top or tee, and shorts.

Beach Towel – This is a cute watermelon one from ban.do.

Beach Blanket or Portable Beach Mat – Lately, it’s been too cold to get in the water, so we like to bring a blanket to relax on. Jacob hates getting sand in everything, so that’s the best way to keep the sand away. We got ours a while back at our alma mater.

A Good Book – Nothings better than feeling the breeze, soaking in the sun, and enjoying a good book. We typically bring our Kindles with us so we have multiple options on what to read. I’m currently reading Slaughterhouse Five, and Jacob is currently reading The Giver. What about you?

A Light Jacket – Even though the is usually nice, winds can always pick up and make it chilly as the sun sets. Be sure to bring a light jacket to stay warm. We really like our Patagonia nano puff jackets that pack up small.

Change of Clothes – Always good to have just in case.

Camera – Whether it’s a phone, a point-and-shoot, GoPro, or DSLR, we like to have at least one camera (if not all 4) to capture the moments.

Waterproof Flip Flops x2 or Water Shoes: These flip flops go with me everywhere. They’re so thin and light that I can pack them in the side pocket of my backpack and forget about them until I need them. Pack an extra pair in case one breaks. I’ve had flip flops break on me on trips before, and it’s never fun hobbling back to the hotel. You also might want to consider bringing water shoes if you’re at a with rocky surfaces.

Baby Powder – It removes moisture from your skin so sand will fall off easily.

Bug Repellent

Kleenex Wet Wipes or Sanitizer – this is the germ removal kind.

Zip Lock Bags in Various Sizes – I actually bring ziplock bags on every trip because they’ve come in so handy on many occasions. You can use them to protect your phone and personal items from getting wet or pack your wet swimsuits afterward.

Portable Phone Charger: This Anker charger keeps both our devices charged all day.

First Aid Kit – We don’t always pack one, but we know we should.

Snorkel, Mask, Fins – if you can snorkel right off the , we prefer to bring our own masks and snorkels since it fits our faces better.

Wetsuit – if you’re swimming out in San Diego, you need a thick wetsuit.

Rash Guard – for extra protection from the sun.

Spare Change for Parking Meter

Snacks – To keep the hanger at bay, we always bring some of our favorite beef jerky or trail mix to appease the monster. It’s good to bring nice portable snacks that won’t melt in the sun. Great snack options are fruit, nuts, crackers, and power bars.

Hydroflask Bottle or Growler – to keep your drinks cold.

Cooler Filled With Water and Beverage of Choice – It’s always important to stay hydrated. Doctors recommend you drink 8 full glasses of water. I’ve never liked drinking regular water, so it’s been nice having our fridge full of Sparking ICE. They have over 20 sparkling water flavors, and they have no calories. I love the fizziness, and my favorite flavor so far is Peach Nectarine.

More: How to Pack for a Snorkeling Trip

More Things to Bring to the Beach

These aren’t necessities but make life easier or more fun.

Beach Umbrella – Sure, you don’t need a umbrella, but once you use one, it’s hard to go back to the old life. This one is very packable and can turn into a sun or rain canopy or try this portable tent that’s easy to set up.

Camping Chairs – these fold down way smaller than chairs.

Waterproof Portable Outdoor Speaker

Towel Clips – to keep your towel in place

Sand Coaster – to keep your drink from falling over.

Inflatable Lounger / Hammock

Giant Pool Float

Bodyboard

Float Strap – for cameras, phones, and other devices

Entertainment – Frisbee, Football, Volleyball Kite, Card Games, Toys to Play in the Sand, Slackline

Whistle – It’s good to have especially when ing with children.

Binoculars – to do some birding or to scout other wildlife.

Walkie Talkie – if there’s no service

cutest watermelon cooler / bag that I’ve been toting everywhere!

More: The Best Summer Sandals for Travel Road Tested and Reviewed

Essential Tips

Pick a Beach Bag you don’t mind getting dirty. Large totes or medium size backpacks are good. Compartments and pockets help keep things organized and water resistance is always a plus.

Maximize space by using cubes and rolling your clothes and towels at the bottom of bag.

Leave most of your valuables at home including your nice pair of sunglasses.

Weigh your luggage to make sure they will not go over the allowed weight.

Personal Items

ID Driver’s License or Passport

Credit Cards and Cash

Insurance Cards

Wallet

Keys

Car Rental and Hotel Information

Directions

Phone + Charger + Portable Charger

Printable PDF

Clothes to Bring on Every Trip

PJs

Bras and Underwear

Socks

Nicer Outfit for Dinners

Workout Clothes

Tees + Tops

Shorts, Pants

Sundresses

Dryer Sheets – keep it in your suitcase to keep your clothes smelling fresh.

Toiletries

Shampoo, Conditioner, Soap / Body Wash, Lotion – Most hotels will carry these already. I usually only pack my own conditioner since my hair is so damaged and needs extra love.

Travel Hair Dryer – depending on where we stay, I’ll bring my own mini hair dryer.

Lotion

Toothbrush

Toothpaste

Floss

Sunblock

Aloe

Hairbrush – love the tangle teezer.

Hair ties, Bobby Pins, Clips, Spin Pins – I always lose them so I like to bring extras and stash them in each bag.

Hair Product – Hair Cream, Gel, Spray

Shower Cap

Flat Iron or Curling Iron

Eyeglasses

Contacts, Contact Case, Contact Solution

Eye Drops

Makeup Bag + Makeup Listed Below

Pads and Tampons

Jewelry

Nail Clipper

Tweezer

Meds Prescription, Vitamin, Benadryl, Dramamine, Pain Reliever

First Aid Kit

Eye Mask

Ear Plugs – You never know when you will have snoring roomies.

Garbage Bag

Makeup

Magic Cushion – this works as a great foundation and concealer

Face Setting Spray

Eyeshadow Pencil

Lipstick pencil

Chapstick with SPF

Blush

Eyeliner

Mascara

Makeup Remover – I’ve been collecting extras from hotels whenever I can, but I also love using these Grapefruit ones.

Eye Cream

Moisturizer

Electronics

Power Adapter and Converter

Phone

Phone Charger

Portable Phone Charger

E-Reader

Laptop

Laptop Cables

Camera / GoPro

Waterproof Case for Cameras and Phone

Waterproof Outdoor Speakers for music

More: Your Essential Underwater Photography Guide

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Favorite Beach Destinations

Pfeiffer Beach, Big Sur, California

Zuma Beach, Malibu, California

Torrey Pines, La Jolla, California

Your Ultimate Oregon Coast Road Trip

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Waipio Valley Black Sand Beach, Big Island, Hawaii

19 Incredible Road to Hana Stops

15 Best Things to Do in Turks and Caicos

Agios Sostis Beach, Mykonos, Greece

15 Most Beautiful Beaches in Greece

Checklist - Do This Before You Leave Your House

Stop deliveries – or have a friend or neighbor take packages inside for you.

Mail

Board your pets or hire a petsitter

Housesitter

Take care of any bills

Unplug appliances

Put all valuables in a safe

Empty the fridge

Take out garbage

Set Thermostat

Lock doors and windows

Send your itinerary to a friend or emergency contact just in case.

Set Alarm

Address, map

PHOTO

photo:

What to Bring to the Beach

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More Resources

To Do

What do you usually pack for the ? Any essentials we’re missing?

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“Discovery consists not of seeking new lands but in seeing with new eyes” – M. Proust

Esther + Jacob

Esther and Jacob are the founders of Local Adventurer, which is one of the top 5 blogs in the US. They believe that adventure can be found both near and far and hope to inspire others to explore locally. They explore a new city in depth every year and currently base themselves in Las Vegas.

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