#but internally he's like 'they grow up so fast *sheds tear*'

[vsnotresponding]

karma: *completely unaware he's developing a crush*

gman, watching it all unfold: *eats popcorn* *is proud*

[fangirl-dot-com]

what does mitch look like? like does she have a face claim?! and vito?? (i couldn’t tell which one was which in imola)

ok so here we go! - thank you to whoever asked for this!!

this was a tag worthy post I believe :)

face claim - Amal Clooney

Meet Michelle "Mitch" Walker - Y/n L/n's race engineer

She has been at Red Bull since 2020, but was an actual engineer for the cars. She graduated with a Masters in Engineering and interned under Adrian Newey. She is currently in her late-30's and not married.

She was a bit skeptical when she was told by Christian that she'd be a rookie's race engineer, but when she saw you and your times on the sim, she was hooked.

She can be seen wearing her favorite big sunnies during race weekends and carries her gray notebook everywhere she goes. As a part of a ritual, she always drinks an iced Americano before a race.

For future references, she stays Y/n L/n's race engineer until said racer retires. She will have served under two different team principals by the end of her carrier (but I'm not saying who the second is hehe).

no face claim - Italian, short beard, and a whole lot of love for Y/n

Meet Vito Accardi - Y/n L/n's manager

Vito had been a part of an organization of people who lend out unofficial managers to younger racers who don't already have one. He was assigned to Y/n L/n in 2018 when she first joined F4. He, like most people, thought that she had raw talent and he wanted to stay with her.

Fast forward to 2019 and F3, Vito was officially Y/n L/n's manager, hired by her godfather Lorenzo. He has no plans to leave anytime soon.

He has a Public Relations Degree along with degree in Business. On the side, he runs his own line of go karts. He has mentioned that he was only able to start it due to the kindness of Y/n and Lorenzo.

For further references, Vito stays with Y/n until her retirement. After that, he ends up being asked to be godfather of her second child. Of course he agrees and tears are shed.

face claim - Brendan Taggart

Meet Lorenzo "Enzo" Alessandrino - Y/n L/n's Godfather

Lorenzo had been Y/F/N L/n's best friend growing up after meeting at boarding school, but distanced himself after he saw how awful he truly was. Only came back into his life after the birth of Y/n. Surprisingly, he was named godfather and he took that to heart.

Being a major business man and influential figure in karting and Formula racing, he couldn't possibly be near the girl all the time. But after finding out what you had been going through, he wishes that he would have fought for custody. Maybe then you could have grown up with other kids such as Logan Sargeant, Oscar Piastri, Mick Schumacher, and Arthur Leclerc. But, he couldn't dwell on the past.

Everyone thought he was pretty poor as he didn't like to flaunt his wealth everywhere, but they were wrong. Pretty much one of the wealthiest persons the time of his death.

Gave Y/n L/n a second chance at karting and formula racing as he fought for sponsors to agree on the younger girl (most said no due to age and gender, but he never gave up).

Late in 2019, he caught pneumonia, which turned into a fatal respiratory tract infection. He died in early 2020 after falling into a coma. The only person to ever show up was Y/n L/n

TAG LIST: @fionaschicken @glitterquadricorn @laura-naruto-fan1998 @treehouse-mouse @sam-is-lost @kagatinkita @fangirl125reader @megatrilss1885 @myxticmoon @angsthology @cmleitora @agent-curt-mega @graciewrote @ashy-kit @slutofmultifandom @aexitizen-ln4 @sugarvibez @vellicora @thatgirlthatreadswattpad @cashtons-wife @hoetel-manager @xcharlottemikaelsonx @jayda12 @ilove-tswizzle @justme2042 @itsjustkhaos @nikfigueiredo @stopeatread @cha-hot @sadg3 @iloveyou3000morgan @s4turnsl0ver @alessioayla @torchbearerkyle @leptitlu @awekbachira @shreks-sugar-daddy @v1naco @stan-josie @mellowarcadefun @badassturtle13 @beskardroids @callisposts @poppyalice2001 @juniper-july19 @lizzypiastri

[profoundbondfanfic]

Hi! I was wondering if you could recommend some post-canon fics where Dean and Cas fix up a house together and basically live happily ever after? Thank you!

Hello! Yes, here are a few we've enjoyed!

A Second Grace by sometimeswelose [Mature, 26k words] (Cas is in the Empty for most of the fic, so they don't necessarily fix the house "together" but Cas eventually joins Dean and they get their happily ever after)

Cas dies and Dean starts referring to himself as a widower. This is somewhat confusing for everyone involved.

Best To See These True Colours (Than To Follow One Of Your False Virtues) by ImYourHoneyBee [Explicit, 34k words]

Two months after Team Free Will beats Chuck, Jack brings Cas back and Dean wants so badly to respond to Cas's confession in the dungeon, but to do that he needs to shed a lifetime of trauma, self hatred, and internalized homophobia. After moving in to a farmhouse with Cas, Dean secretly starts going to therapy every Thursday afternoon. He also starts working on getting the tattoos he always wanted in an effort to reclaim a body that he's only ever seen as a tool. or Cas stole Dean's favorite Zeppelin shirt, Dean steals it back, Cas steals it again. A shirt-theft war like nothing you've ever seen ensues. The entire family takes sides. Is it foreplay? Yes. Is it good clean family fun? Sometimes. Are Jack's god powers used unwisely in the name of the Zepp shirt battle? Yeah, probably. Is Dean messier than a sloppy joe? Nooooo, not at all.

Fenario by ftmsteverogers [Explicit, 47k words]

“We did good, Dean,” Sam says. “We got him back.” Dean huffs a hollow laugh, because yeah, that’s always what it’s about, isn’t it? Cas or Sam or Dean getting themselves lost or dead, and then taking turns dragging each other back from the brink. He shrugs, shoving his hands into his pockets. “We got him back, yeah,” he says. Sam nods, watching him. “So now what?”

Kriah by ioascc [Explicit, 54k words]

Dean can do this. He can. He can raise Jack Kline, Lucifer’s baby. No, not Lucifer’s… Cas’ kid. Their kid. With his mother gone, and Castiel dead, Dean finds himself hanging on by a thread. Castiel has died so many times on him, Dean is half-convinced himself that Cas will return to him. Dean evades the pain of the truth, carrying on in false hope until his soul renders into a million pieces. He learns quickly that taking care of a newborn is not for the faint of heart, sleep-deprivation, grief, and feedings rule most of the early days. During this time, Dean is forced to build a new life for himself. With a new name and identity change, Dean becomes a Dad. Something Castiel would be proud of. Dean cooks, he cleans, he reads, he sings his ABCs and 123s, and ultimately Dean does his best for Jack. It’s not until Jack grows into a small child that Dean feels like he can breathe again. The grief no longer suffocates him. His new life has meaning. He sees family and he allows himself to miss Castiel. To mourn him, to love him in death. And when Jack goes to school, Dean is once again reunited with friends and enemies from his past.

Talk Some Sense To Me (Kenopsia) by ImYourHoneyBee [Explicit, 244k words]

Scrambling to his knees Castiel hugs back, burying his face in Dean’s neck, breath coming in fast little pants against his skin. Dean closes his eyes and just breathes him in, barely able to believe that this is real. At any other time in his life, closing his eyes against a threat like Death would be an inexcusable lapse in his hunter’s judgement. Right now, he doesn’t give a single fuck. Death can reap him for all he cares, he’ll die knowing Cas is going to be ok. Alive. “I will see you soon, Dean,” Death tells him, that deliberate voice of his soft enough not to intrude on the intimacy of the moment, “Raincheck on that grilled cheese.” “Thank you,” Dean croaks, propping his chin up on Cas’s shoulder, unmindful of the tears trickling down his cheeks, “Thank you.”

take the bones, begin anew by JustStandingHere [Mature, 103k words]

“What else was I supposed to say, Sam?” Dean asks him. “I’m not...look, Cas is my best friend, and I care about him. That’s it.” “And you renovated a house for him,” Sam continues. “And live with him.” or: a year in the life, in which it takes some time, but they figure it out

take the long way home by dothraki_shieldmaiden [Explicit, 95k words] (it was written before s15, so it's not canonical, but it does feature post-canon and dean and cas fixing up a house!)

Three months ago, when Dean decided to retire, he thought his life was going to end up differently. He'd thought that he might get to have it all, Sam, Cas, Jack, and nice little place to live. Instead he gets Sam and Jack off on their Summer of Love Tour, radio silence from Cas, and a never-ending road trip consisting of himself. Still reeling from the loss of his grace, Castiel travels the country in search of hunts. Driven by a need to prove his usefulness, he pushes himself beyond all limits of endurance. Together, with the help of a few friends, a crumbling Victorian house, and a stray cat, Dean and Castiel patch themselves back together and create a home together.

There's Only One Sure Thing That I Know by blinkiesays [Explicit, 20k words ] (it's not post-canon but they get a house together)

Dean doesn't even get halfway through explaining before Bobby starts laughing. When he lets himself think about it for more than five seconds, Dean can almost see Bobby's point: he's faced down demons, witches, vampires, werewolves, ghosts, angels, and Satan himself and now he's been defeated by the God damn Midwest.

[itsbinghebitch]

just finished wedding plan and I have a couple of thoughts/feelings/complex emotions I need to express here--spoilers ahead [and many thanks to @the-conversation-pod for their wonderful commentary that made me give it a chance--I owe this cathartic watch to you!]

as a queer person from a conservative society I thought wedding plan was so so so special. in that--it very deftly depicted the pressures of being inside the closet in a small community where word travels fast (also posing unique challenges for lesbians in more traditional societies, which is why yiwa's story and the few nuances around her beauty/perfect femininity as currency made me shed several tears on MULTIPLE counts). but what really sealed the deal for me was this show ultimately depicting queerness as a journey: an uphill battle for Lom that he ultimately wins not solely through romance but through the power of community.

from a writing standpoint, I was very taken with the contrast betwen Lom and Nuea, and how textual it is that Lom is attracted to Nuea first at Pai and Sky's wedding for his unrestrained enjoyment. Nuea enjoys food and his job, enjoys his sexuality, and is very openly queer. that is something Lom has never imagined possible for himself: he has, by contrast, a restrained white collar life with set rules and a single peek into his rebellious side in the form of wakeboarding. and so the way the story is set up, Nuea is not only Lom's love interest, but also almost an aspirational role model for Lom. as a closeted man, Lom learns that other possibilities for his life exist, that unconditional enjoyment is allowed, that there is now a network of people past Yiwa and Marine who will accept him with no strings attached.

my spidey senses tell me queer people have been thoroughly involved in the production and writing of this show because this has totally been my experience growing up closeted in a conservative country as well. I think the most hurtful thing was having no role models (either peers people older than you in the public eye) and just not knowing a different life is possible. I had the exact same experience as Yiwa and Lom where I only saw two men holding hands on the street for the first time visiting western Europe. like Lom, I only ever felt free to explore and understand my gender and sexuality once I immigrated as a young adult. like in Thai communities as depicted in the show, the surveillance is constant and so deeply internalized. it changes the conception you have of yourself. this story very much felt like two actual gay men learning from each other in a way i've only really seen depicted in very few QL shows--Lom learning how to be freer from Nuea, Nuea understanding how Lom and Yiwa navigate the difficult situation he never personally experienced.

overall I felt really seen by this show in a way i can't say i've felt about a lot of queer media i've watched this year and beyond. I loved loved loved that wedding plan gave us a true range of experiences and a set of queer people who went above and beyond to protect each other as a de facto family unit and really wish QL will continue depicting the complexity of queer lives in the same way. 10/10 recommended-- one of the best watches of 2023 for me. i cried a ridiculous amount of times

[serumandsteel]

the way we heal | jj maybank

- pairings: jj maybank x reader

- summary: people deal with trauma in different ways but it seems that jj thinks you don't care about the loss of your friends and deep down himself but he just needs to understand that people heal in their own time and through their own meanings, he just needed to be reassured of it. kinda pre season 2 ep 1 give ot take

- warning(s): really motherfucking angsty and swearing. mention of substance abuse

- wc: 2.2k :))))

a/n: all my fics the pogues and reader are the age 17/18 only because that's more comfortable for me to write. its been a long long time since i have wrote something so sorry for and spelling errors

People tend to deal with trauma differently. It could be resulting to crying you eyes out until you can’t breath and you can’t see through your tears clouding your eyes. Drinking until your liver wants to shut down and you whole body is so numb that yourself and everyone around you is so tuned out that you can’t function. Resulting to drugs to either feel something or not to feel anything at all. Or to have something to blame your actions on from yourself acting out simply because you don’t know how to handle the situation of a friend dying.

See you on the other hand dealt with it internally or the whim and feeling of not accepting death. Maybe it was your subconscious talking wanting you not to accept or maybe it was the gut feeling that you always got telling you that they were actually alive and have survived that storm that ‘supposedly’ had swept them away because “no body was found”.

This ‘gut feeling’ had always been right in many life or death situations. Or even just you picking out an outfit that you were unsure of whether it was going to get the boys attention that you had a crush on. It did indeed get his attention that night because that’s how you ended up loosing your virginity that night but that’s besides the point.

The best way you could describe it was like when people would do personality tests and it would ask “are you controlled by your heart or what you feel” probably not those exact words but you get the point. I felt with my feelings if my gut said yes then it was a yes.

Since the night that John B and Sarah had ‘died’ your gut had been telling you the opposite. That they were in fact not dead. As Big John use to say when you were a kid, you can never kill a Routledge. At the time it seemed like bullshit but now it was starting to grow on you.

However now your two friends were presumed dead and not everyone dealt with trauma like you did. Some would even go as far to say that you didn’t actually give a fuck that your friends were dead because you hadn’t cried or you hadn’t drunk yourself into a state of no return or resulted to smoking weed every single day and spray painted ‘murder’ on Ward Cameron’s estate. But at least Kiara wasn’t lying.

But the thing was you hadn’t cried because you couldn’t, you quite literally hated crying because it made you feel weak. Even if you tried and you tried your hardest but nothing came. At this point you could go as far as denial. This gut feeling was like getting hit by a semi truck every time a thought came into your head questioning maybe they were dead. Maybe they did get swept away at sea and never to return.

Your gut feeling was simply not letting you mourn the loss of John B and Sarah and now everyone thought you were an emotionless bitch. I mean they were right to a point but not the whole point.

So that brought you to current day driving around the Cut and night playing fucking real life Where’s Wally but its Where’s JJ Maybank because he’s blacked out drunk somewhere and now you’re on a rescue mission. Not like you had done enough of those in the last few weeks.

About an hour ago your phone rang and it was JJ asking you to come pick him up since somehow he had now idea where he had ended up and was too far gone to put together his surroundings. Well that’s what you had assumed he said since you had to decipher his slurred words.

At this point you had driven around the whole island and gone to every hid out spot that he would go smoke at or to just get away from everyday life. You had gone to all but one place. Where you avoiding that particular house because it held so many memories, plus the fact you hadn’t been near the place since shit hit rock bottom. Yes? But it was the highest chance that JJ was sitting on that dock with his legs swinging over it with a beer in hand.

Well you were right. As you walked down the old dock to where JJ was sitting it was if you could feel all the emotions, thoughts and disbelief crawling their way up your skin from the ground you were walking on. But that gut feeling was like a wave of fire, burning it all the way back to the ground.

“I don’t know why I just didn’t look here first. I should have known aye” you half heartedly said trying to keep the conversation light since you didn’t know what state JJ was going to be in. From the huff you got in response told you he wasn’t in the mood to talk.

“How much have you had J?” You asked with concern but still trying to keep you voice light and less reprimanding because you knew he was in a too fragile state for you to be angry.

“Does it even matter how much Iv had. I don’t feel shit anymore” he replied back with his words straight forward and sobered.

“Well have you even given yourself a break for your body to sober up for you to even feel the effects of it? Or have you still been going since yesterday when I saw you? J its not going to do shit if you don’t give it a rest for at least a day or so” you said back trying you best to keep you and your voice as calm as possible. You fucking hated seeing JJ like this, you would never say it to his face but fuck it just reminded you of his dad when he got into states like this. Until the last week you had never seen JJ this bad. But could you blame him.

“You just don’t get it do you” JJ was now facing you and by the tone of his voice you had unintentionally struck a nerve that you were actively avoiding. “Why did you even fucking come if you’re just going to tell me how I should cope. Do you even care that JB has gone? He was our best fucking friend. He was my fucking brother my only family! And he’s fucking gone just like his old man. You haven’t even shed a tear y/n. You’re just acting like nothing had happened. Do you even care!” JJ was now on his feet breathing heavily and his jaw so clenched you’re surprised his teeth haven’t broken

“J, please do not yell at me right now” you asked with your voice shaking trying to hold back something that was bubbling at the surface. Was it anger or was it the water works that desperately needed to be let out.

JJ started to walk back up the dock, showing that he was done with this conversation that he could have avoided if he didn’t ask you in the first place to come pick him up. Deep down he knew that you would be the only one to come and get him, he just wasn’t as good at showing his gratefulness due to the alcohol that was numbing him.

“JJ just wait please, please don’t walk away” You stood back up and starting walking after him quick on the backs of his feet. He halted his tracks and turned around to look at you with a pained look in his face, as you got up close you could see his eyes stained red. Either from crying or the linger of weed still in his system.

“What could you possibly want to say y/n. I really thought you would be the last person not to care about this” JJ was now right up in your face and his voice was holding back trying his best not to yell. But that last sentence had taken you back.

“You think I don’t care JJ!” now you starting yelling “of course I give a shit JJ our friends are gone, they are not fucking here. I know it might not seem that I don’t care. But just because I’m not crying my eyes out every hour or drinking myself into a state where I don’t now where the fuck I am or getting high that I spray paint on any wall I see” your breath was now battling to come to the surface because you were talking so fast.

“Just because Im not doing any of those things doesn’t mean I don’t care JJ! People deal with this shit differently and you need to understand that” you breathed out trying to grasp for air again “the thing is JJ I have this annoying gut feeling thats telling me that John B and Sarah are not dead, and its literally preventing me to mourn them. I have convinced myself that they are alive and I can’t fucking mourn non dead people J. I don’t know how to fucking explain it”

“Well why didn’t you just tell us that” he replied after bit letting your whole rant sink into his brain, weaving its way through the alcohol that was clouding it.

“Because JJ! Even saying that out loud I sound fucking crazy, like I’m in a deep pit of denial. The thing is I’m far from denial. Yes I know there is a massive fucking fat chance that they are dead and have been food for the sharks” you exclaimed

“Don’t make it worse y/n” JJ shook his head not very happy with your choice of words

“Okay yeah sorry bad wording. Im sorry” you lowered your head in sorrow wanting to slap yourself in the face for trying to make jokes out of trauma.

“So its not that I don’t care J, trust me I do care. But John B and Sarah are not physically here with us and I cant physically care for them right now. But when we see them can do that”

“Y/n -“ JJ tried to get a word in but you hadn’t finished

“Don’t JJ. We will see them again” you put an emphasis on ‘will’ “I trust my gut and even you know that when I get a gut feeling that it’s always been right. Correct?”

“Yes but -“ he tried to get another word in but you needed him to listen.

“JJ I care about you. I care about Kiara and Pope. You guys are physically here for me to care for. The thing is I haven’t spoken to Kie since she’s with Pope half the time and I have spoken to Pope since he’s with Kid half the time and you? I can’t speak to you because your too far gone in beers to for me to even get a coherent conversation in” This was such an over due conversation to be had, you were now on the verge of hyperventilating. You needed JJ to hear this. Fully sober would have been better but half sober is the best you’re gonna get.

“JJ I understand if that’s how you’re going to deal with all of this but you can’t throw yourself completely away. We need you. I need you JJ. I can’t have you going off the deep end and then we loose you too. You need to be here for when we get John B back. He will need you for when he’s back”. The water works that you had been holding back had finally been released and trust it to be in front of JJ. He was your fucking rock, you couldn’t loose him. No way that would be your last day on earth if that were to happen.

“I-. Im sorry. I’m just so fucking lost y/n. I don’t know what the fuck to do. You’re always at work and Kie and Pope are god knows where. I just want this to go away so fucking bad. All this pain, I feel like I have no one” JJ was now crying to and gripping your waist as is you could float away into the air

“I know JJ, but you have us you have always had us. But you have to be so stubborn sometimes that you won’t let us in and help, you won’t let me in a help you” you had JJ’s face in your hands making him look at you so he knew you meant every single word. “I’m so sorry if you didn’t think I cared and I wasn’t there to help you, I just deal with this shit in a different way. Just like every single other person. We all heal differently and that’s okay. It dosent mean we care less. It doesn’t mean I care less”

Now there you and JJ stand on the dock leading off the chateau both in each others embrace purging the pain that’s both been locked up inside you for so long. The past you and JJ had people really didn’t tend to understand but neither did you. But you would always find your way back to each other at the end of the day. Despite the fights you had in the past and the days you would be at each others throats screaming at each other to the days you would be secretly stealing a glance at him because you just couldn’t help yourself.

You would always be there to help him take the pain away and he was always be there to do the same for you.

[hostagine]

Sweet Tooth

I kinda felt like being disgustingly boring today 🥺 and gave Hikaru a baby.

There was something about the feeling of tiny hands that made Hikaru feel prematurely old. He felt his youth slipping by him and his life quickly and completely becoming somebody else's. 

Nothing was stronger than a baby, he learned, after this someone had spent 9 months positioning themselves to jump and lay claim right on his heart. Their tiny hands and their tiny fingers holding his entire world in such a tight grip; it was almost scary. And babies don't even have knuckles. 

It seemed like only yesterday that that tiny precious human came into his life, and he held her close to him, just moments after she took her first breath and cried, sobbing and withering. Now that small hand, that could barely wrap around his finger, was gripping his shirt, after having just cried an entire river when she fell trying to walk. 

His thumb caressed his daughter's face as she slept, cheeks still rosy from her tears. It took her no time at all to fill the entire space of his arms. Babies grow way too fast and it made him way too sad. He wished work would keep him away for so long. 

"Hikaru," Haruhi scolded from somewhere behind him, "I told you not to put her to sleep. She's on a strict schedule." 

He made a sound of protest, and turned to shield away the evidence. "I didn't. She fell asleep on her own." 

She gave him a look, very wife-like, for someone who wasn't even his wife, yet, with her lips sinking into one cheek, hands holding a small pink laundry basket on hip. "Well, wake her up I guess. Or I'll be up all night with her." 

"I'll do it." 

"No you won't," she scoffed, "you sleep like a brick." 

Hikaru gave her a ' what'd you know?' look. And went back to admiring the plushness of their baby's face. She had cried until her face got all puffy. As if he wouldn't give her absolutely everything she could ever ask for. Especially if what she wanted was to be held all night. "I would do anything for her." 

"You've been home for 4 hours and she's already spoiled," she emptied her hands and put away all the tiny clothes. Feeling a little too sentimental after saying that out loud. 

She walked to them, joining the circle of their little family and tucked the blanket under her daughter's squishy chin. Typical. The Hinae was smart. She probably didn't remember him but after being inseparable since he walked through the door, she probably knew he had her wrapped around her little finger, and found that if she so much as shed one fake tear she'd get her way. 

"You just want me all to yourself, that's all," Hikaru said. Haruhi rolled her eyes. 

"Her feet hang off the edge when I hold her now. She probably just likes the way you make her feel so small," she smiled, "She felt so safe she fell asleep." 

Hikaru grinned. "Kind of like mom." 

"Not me."

"Yes you," he held the baby higher against his chest to lean to her height. "I hold you and you fall right asleep." 

She made a sound of protest, fussing over how their baby was laying on his arms, snoring through her stuffy nose. He held her like a loaf of bread, but Hinae didn't seem to mind and Hikaru made it very clear the baby's feet probably will never touch the floor again, as long as he was around. 

Since she was born, he's only seen her around 3 times because of work, but it was obvious she wasn't a mommy's girl. 

Hikaru laid his face on her shoulder, melting into her as her arms hugged around his neck. There was a little bit of an internal struggle with only having 2 hands, and not being able to hug both his girls at the same time. "I don't mind. I want you to. I want you to always feel safe with me." He closed his eyes "I won't let anything happen to you." 

"Ew." Haruhi pulled away immediately, grinning "That actually gave me shivers. What was that?" 

"Don't make fun of me in front of the baby." 

"Don't say such gross stuff without asking." She rubbed her arms. "Gosh. I gotta take a shower now. To wash that off." 

He scoffed. "Whatever." 

[kaijusplotch]

Hunter is Not Ready for Omega to go Through Puberty

Debating on if i should publish this to AO3 or not? Either way, have Hunter having small crisises of the heart when Omega reaches puberty. Everyone discovering something about Crosshair. And generally the Bad Batch having DAD feels.

Hunter was worried. Omega had been miserable with stomach pain since early that morning; practically living in the fresher. He looked through every medical pack they had but Tech had said they were portioned out for adult clones and their strength could hurt more than help.

So, Hunter got hot packs ready and dimmed the lights of the bunk room. It hurt him just as much to know that he couldn’t help her more than just to be there for her until they could get some more appropriate medicine.

“Hunter…?”

He looked up from where he was trying to look up how to treat stomach pain and his heart dropped. “Omega? what’s wrong?”

“I’m bleeding...down there.” Omega’s face was beet red and there were tears in her eyes as she stood awkwardly near the door of the fresher.

Hunter’s mind went to static. What did that mean? Was she hurt? Had she gotten hurt and he didn’t notice? His heart started to race and he got up and walked over to her.

Omega had gotten taller, her clothes from Kamino no longer fitting properly. Tech’s spare blacks were at least somewhat useful but still too big in some places even being the shortest of the Batch. She was growing fast, like all clones, but differently too. Her hips were wider for sure, but it could just be because of the mutations.

“Are you hurt? I...I don’t understand,” Hunter said, hands on her shoulders as he tried to hide his fear from his voice and face.

“Um…” She whimpered and looked away biting her lip. “I ah...I’m not hurt, my stomach hurts but I’m bleeding. Not a lot, but I don’t know either.”

“What’s going on?” Crosshair asked, walking in with Tech behind.

Omega blushed and looked away, fidgeting with the oversized top of her blacks. “m’bleeding….”

“She says she isn’t hurt, but the stomach pains are still there.” Hunter explained turning to Tech.

“She is nearing seven, she’d be going through one of her first large growth spurts. Perhaps a hormonal issue?” Tech asked, grabbing his datapad.

Hunter nodded, looking up as Crosshair patted his shoulder.

“I’ll take care of this,” Crosshair said with a slight twitch to the corner of his mouth; his version of a smile. “C’mon kid, let’s go to the fresher.”

“Ah! Found something, Sargeant,” Tech interrupted, dragging Hunter’s attention back.

“What is it? What can we do?”

“She’s going through puberty, as expected. Except...it’s different for females…” Tech looked a little pale as he read his datapad. “They have...ah...oh. Menstrual cycles begin during this time which can cause them to shed the lining of their internal reproductive organs.”

Hunter’s eyes went wide. “What? Is it dangerous?!” Hunter grabbed at the pad, although Tech snatched it back.

“No, at least it shouldn’t be. It happens monthly, along with mood changes, stomach cramps and some skin issues. Well at least that’s the same as it was for us,” Tech muttered. “She will need supplies but…I’m not sure how best to handle this, Hunter.”

Hunter rubbed his face and swallowed. “I’ll try to contact Rex. Ashoka was a teenager with him during the war, he’s got to have some kind of advice.” The door to the fresher opened and Hunter turned around, watching as Crosshair had Omega tucked up into his side. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah. I’m going to take her into town.” Crosshair tossed Omega a poncho and put on a jacket and hat for himself.

“Are you sure? We haven’t completely figured out what-”

“I’ll handle it, Tech,” Crosshair hissed with a significant look. “We’ll be back in a bit.”

Hunter furrowed his brows, but Omega was leaning into Crosshair with a smile. It would be good to let Crosshair have some time with Omega and vice-versa. “Be careful. Have your comms open.” he advised.

“Yes DAD,” Omega sighed, rolling her eyes with a smile as Crosshair chuckled softly.

The door closed behind them and Hunter groaned. “I think my heart stopped.” He leaned against the wall.

“Your fine. Just like every other time she’s called you a variation of ‘father’.” Tech pushed his goggles back up on his nose. “I’ll see about trying to find a secure line to Rex.”

“See if we have any contacts to Cut too. Maybe Suu can help explain things?” Hunter suggested looking at Tech, lost and worried. His mind was still racing on how to help look after his ad. No he was not ever admitting that to any of his brothers that he subconsciously called Omega his ad.

“I’ll get right on it. I’m sure she’ll be fine,” he reassured as he walked back toward the cockpit.

Hunter spent the entire time waiting for Crosshair and Omega to return trying to get in contact with Rex or Cody. He chewed his lip as he was met again with nothing on the comms.

Echo walked in and sighed. “I’ve been trying to hunt down Cut and Suu but I can’t get any trace on the shuttle they took. Sorry, Hunter.”

“No, no it’s not your fault.” Hunter frowned and leaned back in his chair. “I should have asked them more before we left.” He scrubbed uselessly at his face and snarled. “I’m supposed to look out for her and I don’t know how to help her!”

“Hey, none of that.” Echo’s voice was firm and Hunter was a little surprised. His newest brother was rather quiet but apparently when he had something to say he would say it. “You’re doing everything you can. We all are. Omega will be okay, plenty of girls go through the same thing. We’ll adapt.”

Hunter smiled a bit. “Just like Saw said. It’s what we do best. Still want to help her feel better.” He glanced at Echo who smiled in return.

“You sound a lot like an ori’vod.” He gave a small shrug, flexing his prosthetic wrist slightly. “Just need to find out what she needs. For now, we can be there for her. She’s family.”

“Yeah, apparently Crosshair had an idea so hopefully he is able to help.” Hunter stood from his chair and stretched slowly. “How’s the upgrades Tech made?”

“Great, actually. Nice to have two hands again. Means I can give Tech a run for his money at Sabacc night.”

“Good luck with that,” Hunter laughed.

“Hey, if I can win against Cross with one hand, I think I stand a chance with two.” Echo grinned. “Maybe we’ll teach Omega next time,” he said just as the ship door opened.

“Teach me what?”

Hunter smiled in relief as he saw Omega walk in, looking a little better and holding a bag on her shoulder. “How to play Sabacc. I don’t think Tech would go easy on you, so maybe I’ll let you watch my hand next time we play. How’re you feeling?”

“Better. Cross got me some stuff.” Omega smiled, not looking as pale as before.

“I didn’t forget you guys either,” Crosshair added as he tossed a bag of items at Echo. “C’mon, kid. Let’s put this away in the fresher for ya.”

Hunter watched as Crosshair led Omega back into the bunks and relaxed. “What’d he get?” He turned to Echo.

“Food, mostly,” Echo laughed. “And other supplies. Oh, caff, keep this away from Tech. New whet stone, always useful since Wrecker loses his.”

“I do not!” Wrecker said, coming up from below deck. “Omega back? Is she feeling better?”

“Seems to be, Cross took care of it, somehow.” Hunter shrugged.

“She’s going to lay down for a bit,” Crosshair added, closing the door to the bunks behind him. “The cramps are better but she’s worn out. Try to be quiet if you need to go in.”

“How did you know how to help her, Crosshair? Tech is going in circles about what kind of information is anecdotal and what is actually medically necessary.” Echo sighed in exasperation. “It’s giving me a headache second hand.”

“I went through the same thing when I was her age.”

Hunter stared at Crosshair as the information slowly processed in his brain. “What?!”

“Quiet! don’t wake her up,” Crosshair hissed back before deflating. “If we’re going to have this discussion, let’s do it away from where the poor kid is sleeping.” He rolled his eyes and skulked off toward the small kitchen and eating area.

Hunter walked in and sat down across from Crosshair, watching as he kicked his feet up on the table chewing on a toothpick. “So what did you mean you went through the same thing? I don’t remember anything like that.”

Crosshair sighed and waited for everyone to sit before replying. “You don’t remember it because it was in the middle of the night in our eighth year.”

“That could be...what happened though? I mean...you-”

“Look like any other male clone,” Crosshair interrupted Tech. “I know. But I’m not. I had bad cramps and woke up in the middle of the night. Bled all over my bunk and was scared shitless. I ran off to the freshers with everything and tried to wash it.” Crosshair frowned. “Skirata must have heard me and found me.”

“What happened?” Hunter tensed, ready to get a plan to hunt down the trainer from Kamino.

“He helped me.” Crosshair shrugged. “Helped me get cleaned up, took the bedding to get washed and got some supplies from another trainer for me.”

“I remember that night!” Wrecker said. “I woke up and was wondering where you were,” he added with a frown. “I was worried.”

Crosshair laughed softly. “I was fine. Ended up with Skirata helping me out with medical and the Long-necks removed the ‘unneeded’ mutation.” Crosshair gave a sarcastic air quote.

“So...you’re female?” Echo asked before blushing. “I don’t mean to insult you or anything,” he added quickly.

“Genetically yes, I think the medics said that I've got an extra X. so XXY? I don’t know. Doesn’t mean anything to me now.” Crosshair pulled his feet down. “Doesn’t affect my work so I don’t care.”

“What can we do to help her then?” Hunter asked, leaning against the table as he took everything in. Crosshair’s genetic identity didn’t mean anything would change. He was still Crosshair’s ori’vod nothing would change that.

“First thing’s first, don’t make it a big deal; for EITHER of us.” Crosshair stared down Wrecker and Tech the most. “Second, she’s going to have cramps and mood swings so don’t take it personal. Third, the choco in the ship is GOING to disappear, don’t fight her on it.”

“Doesn’t sound too different from a standard cadet’s first growth spurt,” Tech commented as he made notes. “We can start to get more supplies for her, new clothes so she feels comfortable.”

“Yeah, she doesn’t look too comfortable in yer blacks,” Wrecker snickered. “Maybe we should think about getting her armor too! She’s already been doing great with her electro-bow.”

Hunter sighed and leaned back, biting back a groan and the ache in his chest of Omega growing up too quickly. “She...she isn’t ready for armor.”

“She’s the right age to start, Hunter. We all started with training armor at seven,” Echo advised, leaning up against the door frame. “We could do the mandalorian thing, have her started with a pauldron, and chest piece.”

“I really don’t want to think about that. She’s too young to be putting on armor and...and fighting.” Hunter stared at the ceiling, brows furrowed as he tried to control himself. “I don’t want her fighting. She’s just a kid and...and she deserves something other than the same shit we grew up with.”

“Careful, Hunter,” Crosshair flicked his toothpick at him. “Your buir is showing.”

“Shut up!” Hunter snapped and glared, hackles raised; although he really didn’t know why. Maybe because he was afraid Crosshair would accuse him of going soft again. Although that wasn’t exactly Crosshair before.

“Honestly, We’re all showing our buir tendencies.” Echo said with a small smile. “I understand why you don’t want to have her go through the same things we did, Hunter; but she won’t. We’ll train her. We know what not to do from our own experiences. She’ll be fine.”

Hunter frowned and leaned forward again. “I’ll think about it. For now, let’s just try to make her comfortable. Growth spurts are never fun.”

[mcufox123]

The Best Part of You

This is part 2 of “The Worst of You.”

Summary: what happens after time apart for both of you to grow? Will your relationship with wanda survive?

A/N: This part is kind of rushed. I had a storyline for it but decided to go in another direction instead. This is sort of so we all have closure from the first part. Also this is loosely based on Noah Cyrus and P.J. Hardings “The Best Part of You.”

Warnings: Recovery? 

I DON'T OWN ANY OF THESE CHARACTERS 

*****************************************************************************************************

Getting better proved to be harder than you thought. After you had agreed that you needed help the hard conversation started. All of Earth’s mightiest hero’s voicing their concerns about you and that they wanted to help. There was not a minute in the conversation that you had a dry eye, feeling so guilty for all the pain and worry you caused.  The one thing that you tried to avoid, being a burden to everyone, ended up being the one thing you were doing. They were worried about your drinking, they were worried about how closed off you were, they were worried about your powers, they were worried about everything about you.

“Y/N we love you and we are here for you.” Were the final words of the conversation from Steve.

After the initial conversation you sat down with Bruce to make a plan. You both decided that therapy was the first step. You would wake up in the morning and start your day with a run with Steve. Then, every morning, you would have a therapy session with Dr. Raynor. Then you would go to the training facility with Natasha and Bruce to work with your powers and learn more about them. Natasha also helped you train in hand-to-hand combat. You both were evenly matched.  The fact that it was after therapy was great because you got out all of your frustrations from the session. After that you would usually grab lunch and then meditate with Bucky, most the time complaining about Dr. Raynor. After hanging out with Bucky, you would talk with Bruce about your anger and how you could manage it better. Then came your time with Tony in the lab, just tinkering away, sometimes doing reckless stuff like flying around in Iron Man suits. After that was dinner, everyone usually ate together, besides Tony who went home. After dinner you would write Wanda a letter and read the one Nat usually gave you from her.

That was always your favorite part of the day. Hearing about her adventures wherever she was. The team, of course, didn’t tell you. They kept her location hidden so that you could both heal. At first it was rough. You tried so hard to get in contact with her and go where she was. The team was strong though and wouldn’t let you out of the compound. In the beginning they put an ankle monitor on you, so you had to stay in the house. It was torture.

Along with all of the work you were putting in, they also helped with your alcoholism. They didn’t try to completely cut you off though. They let you drink; they would just watch and moderate you. You were allowed one glass of whisky a night, two on weeknights. They kept the rest locked up. Soon you only drank the ones on the weekends opting not to drink during the weeknights.

It took you days to start to accept the help. It took weeks for you to start to get into a rhythm and start to feel a little bit better. It took months before you felt a little lighter. And at just about a year, you felt a complete sense of calm. You were lighter. You could have fun like you used to without blacking out. You learned how to control your powers with both ice and fire. You leaned on your team when you needed them, and you could finally be there for them again. You pushed yourself hard to get better, putting in the work.

Wanda had taken the year to be at peace with her life. She took trips to Wakanda often and they helped her work through her grief. When she wasn’t in Wakanda she joined the teams on their missions, being grateful for still being able to see them. She also was loving her domestic life helping Pepper with Morgan, especially since the Starks were expecting a new addition to the family. Wanda often imagined what life would be like with you when you got better. She wanted to marry you, to have a family with you, to grow old with you. She knew it would take time, but she was willing to wait.

A few months before you had come up on a year of healing Natasha went to visit Wanda.

“She’s doing much better Wanda. She seems like herself, the drinking isn’t a problem anymore and her powers are incredible.” Natasha gushed about you. Wanda felt a sense of pride well in her at hearing your progress. A pang of guilt also washed over her because she couldn’t be there for you to help you. Natasha caught it “You did the right thing giving her space, you both are going to see in the end.” She gave the witch a sad smile.

“When can I see her? If she’s doing better, can’t I come home?” Wanda felt stupid but she missed you so much.

“Soon Wanda, I promise soon.” And they sat on the dock watching the sky change colors.

The week that had been your one year of getting help, you were taking a walk with Bucky around the compound.

“You’re doing great Y/N. You should really be proud of yourself.” Bucky said while patting your back. “How do you feel?”

“I feel good. I feel light, like some weight has just been lifted off ya know.” You say, reflecting on the past year, “You know it was rough at the start. I hated all of you.” You say with a chuckle. “But looking at where I was then, and where I am now. It’s just I am so grateful for everything, and everyone. How’s Wanda?” Bucky was visiting her yesterday and you were eager to hear about the woman who was the only thing you couldn’t keep off your mind.

“She’s doing amazing! She learned to control her powers more. She seems free, but she never fails to ask me about you. She’s proud of you.” You smiled as he wrapped his arms around your shoulders.

After that there was a comfortable silence all the way back to the compound. You had time now after Bucky because your anger was under control and you didn’t have to meet with Bruce anymore.

You decided to take a short nap in your room. You deserved a nap. You laid in bed not even taking in your surroundings, closed your eyes, and fell into a deep sleeping dreaming about a specific pair of emerald eyes.

While you were napping Wanda was in the compound cooking up your favorite dinner. She had moved all of her stuff back into your room which you didn’t notice. She was back now, for good and she made a promise to herself to never leave you again no matter how bad she was herself. She felt amazing being home and cooking, but she couldn’t keep her nerves at bay. When she saw you in the room sleeping, she couldn’t stop staring. You looked so peaceful, just as you had all those months ago. This time, however, your face was glowing, and your hair was in a loose messy bun, and Wanda knew you were better. She wanted to crawl right into bed next to you and snuggle close, breathing you in. But she didn’t know that she would’ve rather surprised you.

Natasha was the first to come in the kitchen. She was the one who called Wanda about a week ago and told her it was time to come home.

“Hey Wanda!” she said as she gave her friend a welcome home hug. “I am so happy you’re back I missed you, and you’re cooking so much!”

“Thanks, I missed you guys too!” she said as she rolled her eyes. Natasha and Wanda entered into conversations about coming home and how excited they were to see your reaction. Soon enough the rest of the group started to enter the kitchen, even Thor. It would be the first time you were all under the same roof since Tony’s party last year. The kitchen was bustling, and everyone was so happy to be together. Wanda kept her eyes peeled for the hallway waiting for you to enter.

You opened your eyes to noise coming from the kitchen. You walked to the kitchen smelling your favorite dish cooking. Only one person knew how to cook your favorite meal. Your pace started to quicken your pace, trying to confirm your suspicions faster. You walked in to be disappointed however by just seeing the team. You walked over to the counter to see what was cooking and saw that it was indeed your favorite meal. Your heart started to beat faster because you knew she was here.

“What’s the matter Y/N?” Nat asked you with a smile on her face, you didn’t notice however because your eyes were trying to find the pair that had been in your dreams for over a year. You didn’t even answer Nat. You were losing hope when all of a sudden, arms snaked around your waist. You felt your whole being just relax at the touch.

“Oh, how I missed you, my love.” You heard a soft Sokovian voice say behind you. You turned around so fast in her arms and held her so tight. You buried your face in her neck, taking in her scent. You finally looked at her after a few minutes to see that her eyes had glazed over, threating to shed tears. You quickly brought your hands up to her cheek, caressing them with your thumbs to make sure she was really there.

“Hi,” was the only word you were able to get out.

“Hi,” Wanda whispered back to you. You weren’t sure what else to say or do you were in shock. There was so much you had to say, that you had to apologize for. You had talked many times with Dr. Raynor about what would happen when you saw her again, but no amount of preparation could help you in this moment. She still shined with her beautiful smile, and she still looked at you with such admiration, but you had hurt her. You had worked through all of the guilt and resentment you had for yourself but seeing her again brought it all back.

She could sense your internal battle, instead of making you think more or say anything else, she took you over to the stove and made your try the pasta sauce to make sure it was ok. It felt like normal, like before the blip, before your spiral. You were grateful that she didn’t press for more at the moment.

You helped her get the rest of dinner ready, often your hands would brush past the other, or you would be so close that it was hard to leave her proximity. You enjoyed the time, and you enjoyed everyone else being there too. The conversations were so light and happy. It felt like it was back to normal.

Dinner went by with the light atmosphere. Tony could not stop gushing about your new project that you had both been working on. He was trying to make a spaceship to go back and explore space and this afternoon you figured out how the oxygen in the spacecraft would be recycled so you could be in space for an extended period of time. Thor was having fun making fun of the fact that guys that you had never visited another planet.

The whole time Wanda’s hand was placed gently on your leg with your hand over hers.

“Would anyone like a round in celebration?” Thor asked while getting up and walking to the bar. Everyone raised their hands including you. You could feel Wanda physically tense besides you, fearing the person you once were. You gave her a reassuring smile and squeezed her hand.

“It’s ok, I’m ok.” You leaned over and whispered in her ear. She seems to relax the smallest bit, still feeling tense, however. You scoot your chair closer to her and wrap your arm around her back. She leans into you like old times.

Thor passes everyone their drinks and Tony raises his glass, “I would like to make a toast, to these great people in front of me. These past few years have been tumultuous to say the least, with the big three, people disappearing, health deteriorating, friendships lost, and the world falling apart. We got through it though. We are stubborn though, every single one of us, no exceptions, and we are all still here. We leaned on each other and took the time we needed. We should all be proud of ourselves.” He said this while looking directly at you. “So, without further ado, to the Avengers! May we always have the peace and family that we have here right now” he finished while raising his glass and toasting everyone.

You raised your glass and instead of gulping it all down like you used to do, Wanda was happy to see you sipping the beverage, putting the glass down so it could last you the whole night.

The night carried on with stories, games, and singing old songs. Towards the end of the night, you took Wanda’s hand and led her outside, away from everyone. You both walked on in a comfortable silence before coming to the gazebo Steve had built by the lake.

“I’m proud of you.” Were the first words that were said by Wanda. You felt a sharp pain hit you however, and the words were not comforting at all. Not till you at least said your part.

“Please not yet.” You whispered bowing your head in embarrassment. She gave you a few moments to gather yourself before she took your face in her hands making you look at her. She was beautiful. “I am so sorry for what I did to you. The pushing you away, the drinking, the keeping you out on how I felt. I was so numb and lost. It was hard even just being me.” You saw her flinch at your last sentence, but you pushed on wanting to tell her everything. “When the blip happened, I tried so hard to get you back and when I couldn’t I fell apart. I didn’t live much then. I shut everyone out and I hardened myself. When I saw you back at the battle, I felt so happy but so much guilt, like I didn’t deserve you because I had given up. I hated myself. I couldn’t be around you without feeling like the worst person alive.” Tears now streamed freely down both your faces.

“I’m ok now Wanda. I'm still working but I am so much better. I am so sorry for all of the pain and hurt that I put you through. I love you so much, and I didn’t show you before. If you gave me another chance, I am going to work every day to make it up to you.” You said while taking her face in your hands.

“I love you Y/N. I forgive you for all of it. These experiences that we went through are something no one should have to. But we do, we save the day, and everyone loves us. They don’t recognize the toll that it takes on us afterwards. I’ll say it again because I am so proud of you. You have made so many strides and are an amazing person. I love you, all the worst parts of you which are few, and all of the best parts.” She says gazing into your eyes.

“The best parts of me are just the pieces of you.” You tell her smiling. She laughs and you love her laugh, you love that you are the one who made her laugh. You can’t hold it back any longer and you kiss her. A long-awaited kiss, that isn’t needy. You know that you both will always have each other now. You pull back putting your foreheads together.

The both of you walked back and went to bed in the comfort in each other’s embrace that night, never spending another night by yourself.

[jackiequick]

Stella Strange’s Life Before The Avengers!

As one knows by now Stella grew with two cultural backgrounds. So she lived moving between her two house, her mother and father’s place. She also had a brother! Here are a few examples of her life!

When she was growing, her brother Alexander or Alejandro as he was called at him seemed to always be her mother’s favorite. Stella was her father’s favorite but they of course love both equally!

One day, her mother Elizabeth came in yelling, “Cual de los dos tengo que golpear?!” holding up the sandals.

Stella looked at Alexander smirking, “It was him Mama! He scratched dad’s car!” Elizabeth looked at him in shocked screaming, “You got 3 seconds to run! Wait until your dad get home!” Alexander looked in shock running glaring at Stella as they’re mother threw her sandals at him.

Stella stayed laughing at her brother knowing that she was in trouble too since they both scratched the car. Her mother glares at her, “You better start running too hija.” Just then they’re father, Stephen walked in them asking, “Don’t try to lie, I already know.” So Stella went running behind Alexander.

After example, since Stella was a little girl she loved to sing and take care of people so she seen creating performances for her dad who joined along in the fun.

Her brother Alexander on the other hand loved playing the guitar and law enforcement. So they would perform together that ended up with a argument or two as well.

Even though they had fights and moments that they regretted, family is something important to them. They’re parents enjoyed every second of where they could combined American and Puerto Rican cultures together.

So that results in a lot of family gatherings full of food, music and dancing. Stephen often driving up to place to get the best good possible while Elizabeth cooking and sang in the kitchen with family. So much music and laughter in the family!

However since a young age, she was taught to be smart and speak her mind. Or as her father said to both children, “Never give up on yourself and if you, climb out of that lost to fight. Don’t back down.”

Over the years, the parents divorced however stayed in touch with each still caring about one another. They lost family members. Stella studied to become a doctor. Alexander became lawyer…but the love in the family kept them strong.

However one night Alexander died trying to save a client’s life sacrificing him. Elizabeth was at home with Stella talking when they got the call. Stephen arrived late to work about to teach a few interns when he saw paramedics wheeling his son in.

The family stayed in waiting room as the doctors tried everything to save him…but he bleeding out to fast and his heart gave out hours later. Tears were shed that night and a funeral that same week.

Yes it a sad few years, but that lost made the family stronger. With Stella moving in with her parents to be closer to each other. Fights broke up every once in a while but they was fine in the end.

Years went by full of trips, studying and more. Until she met Steve, got into the car accident with her father and the rest is history…

That’s her early life! Leave a like or comment!

Tags: @teddyaillard @bucky-barnes-11 @ethan-brekker @msrochelleromanofffelton @i-have-too-many-oc-s @nyxphie @meirafireshield @yesterdaywastuesdaytoo @gaminggirlsstuff @rooster-84 and etc.

[starr-fall-knight-rise]

Humans are Space Orcs, “Heroic Incompetence.”

Wrote this at the suggestion of an anonymous reader :) Hope you all like it and have a great day :)

He sat next to her on the bed, legs crossed and a book in his lap. Wearing only shorts and a T- shirt, he looked significantly smaller than he usually did, either in his uniform or in his trademark jacket and jeans. It also made him look significantly younger with his scruffy blond hair sticking up in all directions. And now that he had finally shaved and gotten some sleep, he was looking even better than he had when he found her.

Her perception probably wasn’t helped by the stack of graphic novels he had sitting beside his right knee, most of them star wars themed all of them sci-fi. He had taken the day off to sit with her since the drugs were still not cleared from her system, and krill had demanded that she rest.

She had only been a little surprised when he insisted that she take his bed, which he argued was much bigger and more comfortable than the crew quarters. Also he had a TV.

She was surprised he would be so brash about something like that, but she supposed after almost losing her he would be a little more lax on their secret. She sighed deeply half napping half awake as he flipped through his books. She had a sneaking suspicion that he also wanted to be close by her to monitor her mental state after what had happened. She didn’t blame him, though at this point it was all just seeming like some sort of horrible dream.

She felt disconnected, far away, and her only reminder that it had actually happened came from the silver vambrace on her am  covering the spot where her carapace would never grow again 

Eventually she cracked an eye and glanced down at him.

He was looking at her with a concerned expression.

She sighed, “I’m fine.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“I know what you were thinking.”

“Well stop trying to read my mind then.”

The two of them grew quiet, “So what did I miss while I was gone…. How did you find me, what happened?”

He sat up, puffing out his chest rather proudly, “Well I have you know I was a stoic badass the entire time. After I clawed my way out of the sand, I marched across the desert with single minded determination not an ounce of hopelessness or self pity ever entering my mind.”

***

One month prior

-

It was Hopeless!

He had never felt self pity this profound in his entire life! He had lost her1 He had been so close to finding her and he had gone and lost her! He was hopeless and pathetic. If he had only just held on for a little longer than maybe he would have been able to save her. His feet burned in the scorching desert sand and he staggered aimlessly from one side to the next burning up in the scorching heat. His was so tired, and his throat was so dry, like sand. He felt like choking, a few times he staggered to his knees and screamed at the yellow green sky in anger and frustration,but no one ever hard him.

He had to get her back, somehow he had to get her back.

The desert sand was awash with light blue, like the sky and it seemed to be the same in all directions he looked, every dune and hill just like the last, yet the implant in his arm told him he was heading in the right direction. How long had he chased her before he had fallen into the sand. He just wanted to lay down for a minute, lay down for a minute and scream, but he had to keep going.

He pushed himself up the nearest sand dune hoping beyond hope that he would see the city over the next rise.

That is when he heard it, just from behind him.

The roaring of shuttle engines.

He turned on the spot down to stare at the shuttles. He wanted to yell  and wave his arms, to run to them and beg them to help find Sunny, but NO, he couldn’t, he couldnt be like this.

Kicking himself internally for his weakness, he straightened up and forced himself to focus as the shuttles landed. He was going to find Sunny, he was going to find her and bring her back no matter the cost. There was nothing, not in this universe, not in heaven nor hell that could stop him.

Even if he had to fight angels and shake hands with the devil.

The shuttles landed, and he marched forward head down brows furrowed downward like thunderheads brushing past the marines and onto the shuttle. He was going to to find whoever had one this and they were going to pay.

***

Sunny snorted and raised a brow over one eye, “Oh really.”

“Damn straight.” He said, setting down his book and turning to look at her. He had a shallow cut across one cheek given to him during a fight in some not so distant past, but his smile was as bright as ever.

He leaned forward, crawling over on hands and knees to lay next to her resting his hands behind his head.

“So after your stoic badassery in the desert, what happened.”

He rolled onto his side to look at her, the corner of his mouth twitching up in a jaunty smile. “Well, I admit that I was a little bit down, obviously. I mean what does someone do without the best part of their life.” He waved a hand dismissively, “But I persevered. I kept my emotions in check sure not a tear would escape past me until I found you, and even then, only if I was too late.” he looked at herein that moment very seriously, “You know, because real men don’t cry.”

Sunny just smirked.

***

One month Prior

-

He couldn't stop crying. While he could suppress the racking sobs that threatened to tear him in half, nothing he tried could prevent the tears from rolling down his face on hot and heavy streams. Where was it all coming from! He was positive that by now his entire body should be nothing more than a mummified corpse with all of the tears he had shed, yet they just would not stop, likely draining down through his sinuses and reabsorbing back into his body for another go.

Still, the collar of his shirt was soaked, and his face was sticky with tears eyelashes crusted with salt.

His head pounded.

Ever since she had vanished, he just couldn’t keep his emotions in check. He admitted to himself that he often played fast and loose with his own feelings, but this was just ridiculous. Holding himself together for the crew was all he could do though beyond that he was a quivering mess, hiding on the bridge in the observation room, or in his own room where no one could see him.

Now he was standing on the observation deck, the tears rolling down his face and into the scruffy five o clock shadow just sprouting on his cheeks and chin.

Light filtered in from behind him, and in that light, he could detect the movement of shadows, two tall shadows and one very short shadow. He knew that the were watching him, and so kept his back straight and hands clasped behind his back so as to seem hard and contemplative.

Inside, he was forcing himself to calm, forbidding the tears to fall anymore and, hopefully, dry on his face before anyone could come and speak with him. He needed to remain calm and professional. He needed to convince the others that he was in charge, and that everything would be ok.

The moment they saw him believing otherwise was the moment that it would be true. As their commanding officer…. As their admiral, he was what stood between them and hopeless defeat at the hands of their own morale.”

***

She shifted a little in her place, and he helped to adjust the pillow behind her. He sat up against the headboard, and she made the executive decision, leaning her head down to rest on his lap. He wrapped an arm around her, resting his hand on her back, while the other was leaned up against the top of the headboard where a jar of moon rocks and mars dirt sat

He stroked his fingers over the side of her cheek and she hummed softly, “So You were an emotionless badass superhero out for revenge against those who had wronged you, and in the shadows you brooded and waited as you scoured the universe for me?”

He smirked, “PRretty much.”

She hummed again deep in her throat adjusting her head against the warmth of his body, “Right…. A righteous warrior of justice. And I assume during all of this you remained in tortuous silence of our secret, unable to tell anyone of your private pain for fear of what might happen if you let something slip.”

He was quiet for a moment, and she cracked an eye to look up at him.

His one eye was very wide, like a deer caught in the headlights.

She shut her eyes and hummed.

“Yes of course, I wallowed heroically in silence my emotions bottled up, locked like a vault inside my heart with the key tossed into the darkest abyss of the ocean where no one migh find it. I couldn’t tell anyone.”

***

One Month prior

-

He had to tell someone. He had to, it was just too much to keep a secret. It was just too much for someone not to know what he was feeling. Just one person, if he could just share with one person maybe he would feel better. 

Keeping himself…. Like this was just torture…. No one could expect…

He had to do it.

Standing behind him in the darkness, he could sense Ramirez’s eyes on him, watching him.

So he turned, his eyes clear but the words heavy as lead on his tongue. The other man stared at him, his expression hard to read in the darkness.

He felt as if he was slipping out of his body, seeing himself from the outsider rather than viewing the next words he spoke from the inside as he normally should, “I...Love her Ramirez… I don’t know what I’ll do without her.”

The words rolled from his tongue and spilled onto reality…. He had finally admitted it, finally admitted it to his best friend.

What would he do.

How would he react?

Staring at the man’s face, he was surprised to find that he didn't appear to be phased in the slightest. It was as if he had just told him that the earth turns, and some birds fly south for the winter. He acted as if it was the most natural predictable phenomena in the universe.

There was only a slight pressure as Ramirez squeezed his shoulder, “I know… I know.”

Adam stepped back in near surprise.

Ramirez almost rolled his eyes, “Adam you have all but SAID those words. I think everyone on the ship, or at least everyone from the original Harbinger knows by now. You guys aren’t exactly discreet about your feelings towards each other. This shouldn’t surprise you.

He sat there mouth opening and closing with surprise.

But he supposed the more he thought about it the more he had to admit Ramirez was right.

There were signs.

And he had always been bad at keeping secrets.

It made complete sense.

He dropped his head, “that obvious huh.”

“Does the moon orbit the earth?”

He took a seat dropping his head into his hands, “You must think I’m nuts.”

Ramirez sat next to him placing a hand on his shoulder, “Seriously, ‘me’ think ‘you’ crazy. Adam, c’mon, I have dated people way crazier than Sunny, and that’s a fact. No one can beat me when it comes to psycho exes.

When he didn’t respond, Ramirez placed a hand on his shoulder, “We are going to find her Adam. I promise. If anyone in this galaxy has the connections, or the know how to find her, it is you.”

He nodded.

He had to believe it, he just had to.

***

Sunny reached up wrapping her fingers through his, five to four, “A tragic hero indeed.”

He shrugged nonchalantly, “You know, that's me.”

“How did you eventually find me anyway, after all, it is a big universe, and even with all your resources, it couldn’t have been easy.”

He shook his head, “No, it wasn’t. For the first few weeks we had no leads at all, but it was actually your brother who came up with the final lead that led me to you. Turns out your big brother has connections that I didn’t know about, and they led us to a fence hiding out in some grimy hotel downtown in noctropolis.”

“Oh, and how did you manage to swing all that? You and my brother went in guns blazing did you?”

A smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. “We were a well oiled machine, a precision instrument of stealth and intimidation. No one has even been more synchronized than us. The operation could not have gone more smoothly.” 

***

About a week and a half earlier

-

They were a fucking wreck.

And this night was a wreck to go right along with it.

They were stuck in the seedy elevator of an even seedier hotel jammed up together against Kanan’s immense bulk as he was crunched against the ceiling above in the tiny elevator.

Adam grunted, his face pressed against the elevator’s interior mirror, the metal of the iron eye suit jammed into his back.

“Your fat ass broke the elevator.”

“I didn’t break it.” Kanan complained, “the Weight limit says 800 lbs.”

“They are Tesraki Kanan they LIED.”

“Well why didn’t you think of this before we got in the damn elevator. I’m not from somewhere where we have an elevator.”

Kanan shifted and he was squished further into the wall choking and gasping, “Just pry the damn door open you big lug.”

“I can’t reach.”

“Uh Fine, I’ll do it just let me….”

What followed was a very uncoordinated hustle of grumbling pushing flailing and grunting as the two maneuvered around each other in the most horrible game of twister that ever existed, with entirely to many arms, and pointy bits, until Adam was in the right position to jam the fingers of the iron-eye suit into the cracks and then pull.

The elevator groaned and the metal screeched in protest, but at some point the locking mechanism gave way and he was able to shove the elevator doors open. It was just then when Kanan could no longer hold his position and stumbled forward, knocking into Adam who, in turn burst from the elevator and flew headfirst into an unsuspecting Tesraki, who only had a moment to let off the first notes of a scream before being slammed into the wall and completely knocked out.

An explosion of towels fell to the floor around them as Adam sat up on his knees staring down at the Tesraki, completely knocked out, their tongue hanging out of their mouth.

“Shit.”

He patted the Tesraki on the cheek, “Uh wake up.” The Tesraki’s head fell to the side, tongue still lolling.

“Shit.” He said again as Kanan pried himself from the elevator nearly tripping over a towel and landing on top of the two of them for a second time. He did manage to avoid falling on them, but in his haste, to avoid doing just that, he tripped over Adam and went pitching into the floor sending up another wave of towels.

Adam glowered at him, “Are you serious right now.”

Kanan sat up rubbing his head.

“Help me fold these towels.” Adam snarled, awkwardly propping the unconscious Tesraki against the wall before grabbing a pile of fallen towels.

Kanan took one of the towels and stared at it, fiddling around for a moment.

Adam stared at him again, “You have four arms, Kanan, seriously.’

The Drev flipped him a rude gesture.

After a while they had one unconscious Tesraki, and a stack of poorly folded towels leaning heavily against the wall in an uneven pile.

Adam stood and brushed off his hands, staring down at the floppy Tesraki and their shoddy work.

“Er…. hm.” Then a grim smile split his face, “I have an idea.”

A few moments later the two of them waddled down the hall carrying stacks of towels, leaving the Tesraki to slowly slump to the floor skidding slowly down the wall with the soft brushing noise of fur.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Kanan muttered from behind his stack of towels, “I wouldn’t believe it.”

‘It’ll be fine, I promise”, he said as he raised his hand to knock on the waiting door.

***

Sunny couldn’t stop from snorting. And he stared down at her with his brows furrowed as she began to laugh, “You jest, but its true.”

She continued to laugh, and eventually he joined in with her.”

“So how about the boarding party, how did that go.”

He shrugged, “it was pretty straightforward. We found where their ship was located, deployed the gravity grapples, and then had our AI hack their airlock to open it for us. When we got inside kanan and I did a quick sweep with the marines covering us from behind. Of course you know the rest.’

She smiled a bit, “I kind of like you when your angry. That part where you smashed the saw into his foot….well I have never found you so attractive.”

The two of them laughed again.

And he leaned further back against his pillows.

The room went quiet for a moment.

She looked up at him.

“That was all a lie wasn’t it.”

“Yep.”

“You crawled out of that sand hopeless and miserable didn’t you?”

“yeah , I have to admit that I wasn’t doing too good. Kind of hard not to be hopeless in the scorching desert heat. But I did mange to pull myself together when we got back on the shuttles.”

“You cried like a baby didn’t you.”

“You would think after like an entire day of on and off tears, at some point the body wouldn’t be able to produce any more water.” He shook his head, “But no, as it turns out it just squeezes out more water while simultaneously giving you the more horrible headache you can possibly imagine. Even Waffles got tired of it after some point, and she has the patience of a saint.”

Sunny couldn’t help but laugh. Of course the thought of Adam so upset was horrible but, but there was just something so funny about it all, about him, about the way he had bounced back from all of that.”

“Let me guess, Ramirez knows?”

Adam sighed, “yeah, he knows, but he told me that the entire ship pretty much knows and to stop deluding ourselves into thinking we are good at keeping secrets.”

Sunny turned her head to look at him, “And he is just fine with this?”

“This IS Ramirez we are talking about Sunny. I could be dating the tentacle monster and he wouldn't bat an eye, probably say something about how he’s seen weirder, or talk about some guy he dated that might as well have had tentacles.”

“How about that thing with you and my brother?”

Adam snorted, “it wasn’t funny at the time, but looking back on it, the sheer incompetence that the two of us managed to pull off and STILL rescue you is absolutely astounding.”

She continued to laugh, pulling him closer in the process.

He laughed with her, and she decided once and for all that that washer favorite sound. No matter what, It was a sound she would never get tired of, and spent a few moments basking in the glow.

After a moment, she paused and sat up to lean against him nuzzling the hair on his head lightly with her cheek, “Adam?

“Yes.”

“Not to make this too serious or anything, but I just… well I need you to know you aret incompetent.”

He looked up at her eyebrow slanted slightly up, seeming surprised.

“You aren’t incompitent, you’re a hero and a warrior, and you should remember that.”

A small smile flickered at the corner of his mouth, “Well how could I possibly disagree with you”

“You can’t.” She rested a hand on his, “Like you always say, It’s not stupid if it works.”

[peachyteabuck]

something i can eat [peggy carter x reader]

summary: She backs you against a wall easily, towering over you. Her eyes scan your form, pausing when she gets to your center and chest.  

“When Stark said he’d get me something to play with, I admit I didn’t expect it to be this cute…”

pairing: dark!peggy carter x reader

words: 1,668

trigger warnings: dubcon, corruption kink, innocent reader, face slapping, vaginal fingering

notes: this is actually a writing warm up that went awry. it’s quite different from what i usually write so uh. please let me know what you think!

ask box / masterlist / commission info / ko-fi

The ice had knocked something loose. It had done the same to Steve – changing him in a way no one expected and everyone tried to hide.

Each request to interview either of them – either half of the World War Two star-crossed lovers who were bound by ice so thick many were sure no one or thing would be able to get them out - was turned down in the politest way Stark Industries’ PR team knew how.

Oh, they’re on a top-secret mission. Oh, they’re tired from a top-secret mission. Oh, they’re doing something confidential.

When Peggy was found, it had become glaringly obvious she would need what they had gotten Steve the second he could stand – a distraction.

They had found you the easy way. You were one of the poor kids Stark had hand-picked from the thick stack of intern applications that didn’t make the cut for the real job.

He framed the alternative job offer as being an “assistant.” Peggy just needed someone to help her, he said in an email. Not much work, with free, required room and board.

To you, a broke recent college graduate with student loans and nowhere to turn, it was the opportunity of a lifetime.

You showed up to the first day in thick leggings, thicker sweater, and a simply adorable button-up underneath. Stark nearly cooed when he saw you – patting himself on the back for picking the perfect person for his friends…unique needs.

Stark was grinning when you stepped through the door and, though seemingly overly enthusiastic, you chalked it up to him wanting to meet you.

You followed him diligently throughout Stark Tower as he explained to you your duties – to make Peggy remained fed and ate and kept her apartment clean and dressed herself.

You blushed at the last one, but continue to walk at a brisk pace as you enter an elevator. There, Tony hands you a badge and a tacky Stark Tower lanyard and tells you which employee entrances you’ll be able to use with your unusually high level of access (this didn’t make sense given you were an assistant, and not even a glorified one. But you chose not to question it).

Stark enters the apartment that you’re told is Peggy’s without so much as a knock – announcing his (and your) presence with a loud call into the minimalist living space.

A woman you sort-of recognize from the news (which talked about her nonstop when they found her in the place she had used to try and rescues Steve) appears from nowhere – dressed in a black and dark grey women’s suit from the 1940s, complete with low heels and deep red lipstick.

You’re starstruck, speechless – a ringing in your ears so loud you don’t hear that Stark has left until he’s gone.

And with the door shut loudly behind him, you and Peggy were alone.

“Well,” Peggy says, smile off-putting but beautiful. “Aren’t you a pretty little thing.”

Your chest felt like your ribs were tightening around your lungs, your breath squeezed from your body as she watched you. “I, uh,” you swallowed, trying to find whatever words you would pull from your dry mouth.

She backs you against a wall easily, towering over you. Her eyes scan your form, pausing when she gets to your center and chest.  

“When Stark said he’d get me something to play with, I admit I didn’t expect it to be this cute…”

Your breath catches in your throat, eyes wide in confusion. “Miss Carter, I-I have no idea what you’re-“

She cuts you off, shoving three fingers into your mouth. “Quiet,” she hisses through her teeth.  “You will not speak unless I ask you something and when I do, you. Will. Answer. You understand?”

You gulp around her fingers. “Y-yes.”

She grins and moves to shed you of your sweater, huffing when she finds a fully buttoned shirt underneath.

“You’re such a tease,” she tuts before ripping the shirt. Buttons fly everywhere, but before you can process or complain or ask her what she’s doing your bra is gone, too.

Her tongue circles on of your pert nipples, making you fight back a small moan.

Her lipstick remains perfect when she pulls away with a soft pop!, moving to tear at your leggings and picking your flats off with the point of her heel.

It’s then that you find yourself able to push at her shoulders – stuttering through a menial protest.

“Wait!” you cry out. Peggy stops, but only for a moment. “W-wait! What are you doing?”

Peggy just smiles.

“C’mon little dove,” she coos down at you. “Don’t you want to feel good?”

You gulp, feeling the cold of the table press into your hot skin. “I-uh…”

“Don’t worry, baby girl,” she says. Her voice is low, as if not to scare off a wild deer. “I’d never hurt you, I’d never hurt anything so precious.”

You look between her and the door once more, admittedly a little scared.

But, what’s the worst that can happen?

You give her a little small nod, avoiding her heated gaze.

“Nu-uh,” Peggy tuts, using a single, perfectly manicured finger under your chin to raise your eyes to hers. “You have to tell me what you want. Don’t leave me guessing, little dove.”

Your eyes widen in fear and unknowing – struggling to find what you want to say.

It’s then that Peggy laughs lightly, fake pouting as she watches every movement of every muscle in your face.

“Oh, darling,” her lips curl sinisterly, but you can’t help but press your thighs together as a desperate heat grows there. “You don’t know what you want, do you?”

You shake your head silently. When Peggy narrows her eyes, you quickly move to correct your grave mistake. “N-no, I, uh…I don’t know…what I, uh. Want.”

Despite your mediocre presentation, Peggy doesn’t chastise you.

“You’re a fast learner,” she murmurs. “I like that.”

A moment passes where she just stares at you, and suddenly you feel quite insecure.

That, however, does not last for long.

“Open your mouth,” she tells you.

You do.

Easily, she slides two fingers past your lips and massages them over your tongue.

“Good girl,” she murmurs. “From now on you belong to me, do you understand?”

You nod.

Peggy moves her hand from your mouth to cradling your face, squeezing your cheeks before she pulls it back and slaps you.

You whimper in pain, making Peggy laughs.

“Aw, little dove,” she coos as you hold your hurt cheek, tears threatening to spill. “Did you like that?”

“N-no,” you mumble. “I, I didn’t l-like it.”

Peggy grabs your cheek forcefully, making your watery eyes meet her fiery ones. “Then don’t disobey me. Do you understand?”

You sniffle before you respond. “Y-yes.”

Peggy then rubs your pussy through your panties, smiling as you hold back whimpers.

“Sensitive little thing, aren’t you?” she murmurs.

“I-“ you struggle to respond but fear punishment. “Y-yes.”

“I’m going to make you feel so good,” Peggy tells you as she pushes your cotton underwear to the side.

You’re practically dripping as she pushes two fingers into you, the same two that remained soaked in your spit. Your hands scramble for purchase and land on Peggy’s shoulders.

She’s an expert at this, much better than the boys in college. Actually, everything about her is better than the boys in college – you didn’t even know girls did those kinds of things together.

It doesn’t take long for pleasure to light itself inside of you, for your spine to melt and your head to feel as if it was floating.

There’s something else, though, something both familiar and unknown to you.

“W-what-“ you moan. “I- Why does it f-feel like I’m g-going to-“

Peggy just smiles easily, eyes trained on your face. “That’s called an orgasm, little dove,” she tells you. “It’s okay, just let yourself feel good.”

You gulp, still trying to move out of her grasp.

Peggy just tuts at you, her other hand moving to run a comforting thumb over your jaw. “You can’t lie, I can see it I your pretty, dazed eyes. C’mon baby girl, don’t you want to come for me? You do, darling, don’t you?”

You nod, the coil in your stomach tightening with each passing second. “I, I-“

“Shh,” Peggy says, kissing at the corner of your trembling mouth. “Just let go, just let go for me…”

You cum with a loud moan, clinging to her as tears threatened to spill from your eyes and your skin felt like it was being torn at your fingertips and stomach.

Peggy holds you up as you come down from your high, allowing you to slump against her when you become boneless and blissed out.

She carries you to her bedroom, laying you down before she sheds her own clothes and joins you under the covers.

“So,” Peggy begins, holding you close to her despite the expansive, unclaimed real estate left on her large bed. “Are you going to be my filthy little girl from now on?”

It’s the next day when you’re sitting at the dining room table, going over the meals you planned to make during the week for Peggy and yourself.

The woman in question sits herself in the chair next to you, looming over your shoulder as you wrote into your notebook.

You thought she was going to say something, but then you feel her hand on your thigh.

For a moment you tense, but quickly realize what Peggy’s doing. With some hesitation you then use your own hand to push it closer to your center.  

Peggy just massages the inside of your thigh, pressing into the bruises she left last night.

“You’re such a good girl for me, aren’t you?” She says, leaving small bites along your exposed neck. “Can’t wait to teach you fuck you, humiliate you a little.”

You gulp but lean into her body nonetheless and open your legs further. There’s nothing you’d like more.

[tagsecretsanta]

from @Little-old-rachel

to @misssquidtracy

Secret Santa does not own this work, full credit to the author above!

Part Two: Second First Snow

After they lose Mom, Gordon finds he can’t stand the snow, unable to marry that wonderful day with the same substance that leeched life from his mother. 

And he’s not alone. Virgil can’t even bear to be cold, takes to bundling layer upon layer in winter, long sleeves even in summer. John watches weather forecasts anxiously, cross-examining different stations’ reports and awaiting the first signs of black ice. Even little Allie learns from Scott’s fretting that snow = bad. Gordon can’t help but wonder if they are all following their father’s lead - a man who increasingly finds any excuse to reach for the whiskey bottle, but especially when the cooler weather closes in. 

It doesn’t snow again, or at least, not enough to blur road and field into one endless white landscape. Instead the tarmac becomes a slushy stream, refreezing into deadly ice runs (or incredible tobogganing slopes, if only Gordon could bring himself to join the other kids without intense anxiety of what it might bring). 

And then - all at once - they’re living on a tropical island (“really, Dad, that’s a little bit extreme even for you,” Gordon smirks at his father, receiving a Look in return), and Gordon thinks he’ll never have to worry about snow again. His experiences with it are now strictly limited to rescues - because people will insist on attempting skiing in a blizzard. As much as they all love what they do, rescues aren’t exactly the place to form happy new memories and so Gordon never quite loses his dislike of snow, even as he grows old enough, smart enough, skilled enough to know a thousand different ways to save lives from it. 

(It’s in the same way that Virg has now shed most layers, even if he still wears a plaid shirt and undershirt in tropical heat. Or how John still tracks snowstorms obsessively when he thinks nobody notices - well Gordon’s on to you, Johnny. Or how Scott insists that snow rescues are done in pairs or not at all.) 

(They cope as best they can. Because they’re International goddamn Rescue.)

(And the world needs them to be coping). 

****

Except this year, apparently. 

They’re fast approaching the end of a second year without Dad, preparing to stagger through their second Christmas without him. 

And then all of a sudden, John gives himself a concussion - he won’t tell them how and EOS mournfully says that she’s sworn to secrecy - up on Five, and has to be dragged down to recover. In the same twenty-four hour period, Scott misjudges the speed at which he could hit the ground and fractures his wrist, much to Virgil’s consternation (“I was right behind you, Scott, if you had just waited twenty seconds-”). Except then it was Virgil’s turn to eat humble pie, because he nearly passed out in the middle of flying back to the island, because! Turns out you shouldn’t keep quiet about having the flu!

And then Alan slips off a cliff in the midst of a tropical storm, and whilst he’s fine (“I’m okay, guys, really - see, not even a scratch”), he’s understandably shaken up, and the Smother Brothers descend full force to take him off rescues.

And so, as brilliant as Gordon is, he’s not quite up to the task of single-handedly running International Rescue, even with Kayo picking up the slack - they’re only human. 

All in all, tensions are running high. 

Grandma’s all: the-world-won’t-fall-apart without-you-watching-over-it-Jonny, humankind-can-get-by-without-International-Rescue-for-a-week-Scott, so-help-me-God-Virgil-get-back-into-bed, taking out his older brothers in one fell swoop as only she can. She doesn’t so much pose the idea of spending their week off somewhere that isn’t Tracy Island, rather she tells them to pack their warmest clothes and be ready to leave that afternoon “or so help me God.”

****

The Squad descend on Kansas with subdued hearts and confiscated paperwork (“you’re on holiday, Scott”). They have happy memories here, of course - almost all of their memories involving Mom took place in this rickety house and its surrounding fields. Every room contains echoes of her singing, ghostly brushes of her forehead kisses, the smell of hot cocoa.

Which is why it’s also so very painful to be here again. 

They haven’t come here since Dad’s disappearance - because he’s disappeared, he’s not gone. So why can Gordon also feel the ghosts of his Dad’s arm around his shoulders? 

That first day, Grandma recruits the non-incapacitated members of the family (Kayo, Gordon, Alan and herself) to decorate the house, whilst Scott stomps about, lamenting that he can’t join in properly. The four of them make short work of the job, and before long, the lounge is lit with the soft glow of golden fairy lights. They’ve dragged the artificial tree from the loft, and Gordon feels oddly nostalgic for the cheap plastic baubles they’ve strung around it. 

Kayo has just thrashed Gordon in a race to make paper chains quicker when John says quietly, “hey. Snow.”

Virgil staggers up from the couch, cloaked in blankets and waving off Scott’s hovering hands. He makes his way to John’s window seat at the same time as Gordon. 

Light snowflakes are indeed falling from thick white clouds, pirouetting gently downwards to settle in dusty heaps on the frost-tipped yard. The landscape turns slowly whiter around them, and the snowfall gets heavier. 

Alan ducks under Scott’s non-injured arm to peek out too, and Scott swallows hard, likely remembering the last time they stood here and watched the snow fall in this way. 

They all feel the ache of the two missing family members like a physical wound. Gordon finds himself having to blink hard to shake off the visions playing tricks on his eyes. A tiny Gordon, gloveless, clueless, but joyful, rushing towards Mom, whose arms are outstretched. Virgil’s face as he concentrates on positioning the snowman’s features. John flopping his limbs into the snow to make angels. Dad and Scott, hurling snowballs at one another battling it out to the bitter end.

Virgil wraps an arm around Gordon’s shoulders, and with a start, Gordon realises he’s crying. 

Only they aren’t tears of grief or anger or pain - though he’s definitely felt all of those things. 

These are tears of a man overwhelmed. 

But the memories are good ones, they nestle in his chest, temporarily defrosting the icy tendrils of anxiety that have taken root there. They pour warmth and love and belonging into his chest, filling the pit of sorrow in his stomach and rushing to overflow in every small, aching part of his body. Gordon tips his head against Virgil’s shoulder, takes a shaky breath, and smiles. 

John is tucked against Gordon’s other side, Kayo’s fingers laced in his own. Alan is nestled into Scott’s chest, who has a hand on Virgil’s back too. 

United. As they always are. 

Outside, the temperature drops to freezing and the roads become treacherous. But the snow also dances in mesmerisingly beautiful patterns, and the trees sway as they gather their fine trimmings.

And here, in the centre of it all, is his family. 

His wonderful, loving, giving, crazy, ridiculous family. God, he’s the luckiest man alive. 

Maybe towards the end of the week, when John’s able to stand without wavering, and Virgil’s stopped mumbling deliriously, they’ll go tobogganing near the quarries. Hell, if they time it right, Scott will probably try and join them - the jury’s out on whether or not they can sneak that past Grandma. 

But for now, Gordon’s perfectly content to stand with his family, and watch the snow fall.

[theuntamednarrator]

Thank you @mika--82​ for the question! I’m sorry it took so long but since I really enjoyed plotting out my Cangse Sanren lives au, and I think a lot about the women in The Untamed who didn't get to see their children grow up, strap in for round two of TB Revives the Mothers of the Untamed. This week's episode: Save Mama Lan by killing Lan Qiren \^.^/

(Many thanks to @drwcn​ for letting me borrow her hc names for Mama Lan (Qui Baiti) and Papa Lan (Lan Cenrong). You can read more about them on her blog here and here.)

(Warning for an unsuccessful suicide attempt)

QBT has been isolated in the Jingshi for a decade. She only sees her sons once a month, she isn’t allowed her sword, and her spiritual power is kept sealed

But LWJ inherited his stubbornness from his mum and she's determined to escape, one way or another

LQR is walking by the Jingshi when he feels a massive surge of energy and breaks his first ever Discipline (no running in Cloud Recesses)

He wrenches the Jingshi door open and sees an array that wouldn't look out of place two decades in the future in an alternate universe in a dingy shed behind Mo Manor

LQR breaks his second Discipline in as many minutes (do not make excessive noise) when he screams for his brother before he grabs QBT and drags her out of the array

LQR didn't have time to think, let alone study what the effects of that might be, all he knew was that it was killing her, and that her death would kill the brother he loves more than anything else

The backlash strikes him and he keels over

QBT gathers him up, sobbing and asking why he did it, she wanted to die, why did you do it Lan-er-gongzi? what were you thinking? Your brother loves you

LQR meets his brother’s eyes as he appears over her shoulder, the terrified disciples flanking him a white blur

He smiles and says I know

Curtains on LQR

(alternatively, we can just kill JGS again because ngl that was real satisfying the first time around)

Now the Elders are in a pickle because this may have been an accident but QBT has now been responsible for the deaths of an Elder and Second Young Master Lan

It's decided that the only option is exile

QBT is forbidden from setting foot in Cloud Recesses and the territories of Gusu Lan for ten year and forbidden from speaking to any Lan disciple during that time

She bows, accepts back the plain sword she had yielded when she came through the gates to be married, and is gone before the dawn. LCR watches her leave and then goes to wake their sons

Now, QBT was a wandering cultivator long before she was Lan-furen and actually really enjoys returning to life on the road

I wandered once! I can do it again!

Five years later she meets XXC battling a ferocious demon snake and together they defeat it

QBT definitely doesn’t feel her heart beat a little faster at the youthful face, white robes, and elegant jade-and-silver sword

She answers XXC's graceful bow with one of her own and the two spend a week clearing out the fierce nests of demons on the mountain

The next time their wandering brings them together she is introduced to my good friend Song Lan and hides her smile in her sleeve

Meanwhile in Cloud Recesses without LQR to pick up the slack LCR is forced to step out of seclusion and actually run his sect and parent his children

He does a very good job

QBT has to fight back proud tears every time she hears Twin Jades of Lan spoken of with awe

Ten years to the day of her exile QBT is grinning as she climbs the long flights of stairs towards the gates of Cloud Recesses

Part of that might be the entertaining company she walks with

A young man clutching two bottles of Emperor's Smile and talking so fast she’s only half listening while she tries to figure out if he’s actually taken a breath since introducing himself

Talking at breakneck speed of the young master who had been so strict with him at the gates, aiya Auntie! He was so cold! you should have seen his stony face

QBT only grins harder as WWX climbs the wall, is challenged, and blades flash over tiles (it might bring back fond memories of her own youth)

She slips over the wall while they are distracted and once WWX is silenced she reaches out her hand

You handle your sword beautifully, may I?

LWJ can't even say why - it's too dark to see her face and the voice is roughened after 10 years on the road - but he hands Bichen over without a second thought

She sighs as she runs a finger over the blade and the steel glows, lighting up her face (solely because I think glowy Bichen is very sexy and we should have had more of it in the drama honestly)

Bichen suits you better than it ever suited me, ZhanZhan 

LWJ is emoting all over the place (so embarrassing)

(luckily his back is to WWX because if baby disaster bi WWX saw that smile he would've died on the spot)

WWX of course is still a troublemaking rule breaker and LWJ is still charged with overseeing his punishment

QBT and LXC are united in their LWJ should make friends agenda and LXC inherited his sense of humour and delight for teasing LWJ from QBT

Between the two of them LWJ soon has more friends than he knows what to do with

QBT and LXC co-captain the good ship Wangxian

Of course plot stuff still happens including accidental-marriage-before-a-Quest-Ghost

XXC and SL meet them in Yueyang and when LWJ introduces himself they're thrilled because hey we know your mum! she’s real cool!

They don't trust the clans and they might've heard of NMJ but they know Qui-jiejie and they trust her and so they decide XY will go to Cloud Recesses for judgement

N-wow the twin jades are really deserving of their reputations-HS insists on a Qinghe representative going too

oh me? no no Wei-xiong this has been quite enough adventure for me. Meng Yao you'll go won't you? Dage trusts you and Lan-gongzi admired your *delicate cough* capability *innocent smile*

my.blush.com/embarrassed/yearning agrees

QBT is delighted to see XXC and SL again and happily introduces them to her elder son

SL and LXC almost immediately get into a heated debate over ahistorical fantasy chinese philosophy and/or politics and are instantly bonded

QBT may or may not have instigated said debate with a well-timed quote from a well-known (re: divisive) text

Basically QBT shares my get LXC more friends agenda

SL is, again, the first person (apart from LXC and his parents) to laugh at LWJ's jokes

WWX still refuses to believe this actually happened (the joke and SL laughing) (XXC swears it’s true)

XY is locked in the back hills and eventually a) dies trying to use his hidden piece of the yin iron to break the seals OR b) is rehabilitated by the power of bunnies and become an outer disciple (reader's choice!)

XXC and SL accompany WWX and JC part of the way to Lotus Pier

Cloud Recesses is attacked, QBT and LCR send LXC and MY away with the sacred texts, MY promising he knows somewhere safe to hide

LWJ refuses to leave his parents. The losses are not as bad as in canon, the Wen are beaten back, but LCR and LWJ are both injured

No Good Very Bad Summer Camp with World's Worst Head Counselor WC

No Good Very Bad Turtle Cave of Love

WWX wakes post-rescue with LWJ still there

(Because his parents are holding Cloud Recesses and he knows LXC is safe so he doesn't need to rush off)

JZX, JC, LWJ, and WWX spend a day planning before they split up

(this is hilarious and JC says "fuck" not less than 219 times)

(WWX only almost punches JZX and it only happens twice honestly people should be grateful! he was so restrained!!)

They all return home, LWJ promising to bring reinforcements from Cloud Recesses to Lotus Pier (because it's the most obvious next target. no other reason. just. strategically it makes sense)

WQ sends WN to Lotus Pier to warn WWX when WZL's forces are on their way

When the Wen attack, they're met with a prepared force of 1) YZY and the Jiang Disciples 2) QBT, LWJ, and a contingent of Lan Disciples AND 3) JC and WWX and a gaggle of archers (seriously why tf show the Jiang being so good and then only give us two archery fight scene moments and it’s heart breaking sixth young master jiang dying and some rando ouyang disciple shooting WWX?)

Things get a little hairy but between YZY and QBT they defeat WZL and the rest of the Wen quickly surrender

JFM and JYL arrive just as the battle is ending, escorted by Madam Jin, JZX, LQY, and all the Jin Disciples who were at Cloud Recesses

(WWX: MianMian you came you must have been so worried about me! LQY, ignoring him: Lan-er-gongzi are you okay? WWX: ah Lan Zhan you MianMian really likes you! that’s lucky! LWJ, screaming internally: mn)

(JGS was furious when JZX announced he was joining the campaign but what could he possibly say in front of his battle ready wife without looking like the utter coward of a wet biscuit he is)

Once again WWX is left with a screaming sword, too much curiosity, and too much time on his hands (due to his adopted family being not-dead)

But worse he has now also access to a woman who created an array powerful enough to kill even with her spiritual power sealed

Poor WRH doesn't stand a chance, even without MY spying for the Sunshot Campaign

After the battle QBT&LCR and YZY&JFM shut JGS's bullshit power grab down real quick and JGS sulks like the baby he is (probably in a brothel) while Madam Jin and JZX take over Lanling Jin

JZX hears about MY and the way he helped LXC and NMJ sends a letter of support and JZX is already quite jealous of all these sibling bonds and welcomes Ziyao with open arms

(All of which goes slightly to waste when JZY marries out to the Lan clan slightly less than a year later but hey, at least it's a good alliance.)

WQ takes over the Wen Clan but tears down Nightless City and relocates the capital to Dafan

(WQ: have you been to Nightless City? It’s built on an active volcano. Do you know how bad sulfur ash is for open wounds? Do you know what medical herbs grow in lava slurry? None is the answer. My family are all fucking morons)

(WQ: Not you a-Ning you’re a delight and we’re thrilled you’re here)

Rumour has it a certain immortal was so impressed with the stories of the medical techniques of Dafan Wen that she paid WQ a visit

(Disciples are so reckless after all! One never knows when one might need to be capable of transplanting vital organs!)

Each year WWX and LWJ spend 3 months at Gusu, 3 months at Lotus Pier, and 6 months wandering with XXC and SL

They get "fake married" no less than four times in three years (for the investigation xiongzhang! absolutely no other reason shishu! no other reason at all!) before LXC, MY, XXC, and SL get fed up and barricade them in their room until they talk to each other dammit

(LXC is very grateful MY has gotten so handy with the silencing talismans because the 'conversation' gets uncomfortably loud real quick)

Side note to say Clarity works very well to avert a qi deviation when it's not being actively corrupted, thanks very much, and NMJ lives many, many, many years which would be entirely happy if only NHS would pick up his saber once in a while

He would tell NHS this if he could ever find him

Happy ending!³

[thumbgarden]

What is Thyme (Thymus mongolicus Ronn)

Thyme (Thymus mongolicus Ronn), semi-shrub, oval leaves, head-shaped inflorescence, tubular bell-shaped or narrowly-bell-shaped calyx, corolla purplish red, purple or lavender, pink, flowering from July to August, small nuts nearly round Shaped or oval.

It can be used as an ingredient. It is commonly used as a spice in European cooking. It has a spicy taste and is used to add to stews, eggs, or soups.

Traditionally in Europe, thyme is considered a symbol of courage, so in the Middle Ages, it was often used as a gift to the enlisted knight.

In the Yuan Dynasty of China, there was a book called "Complete Collection of Things to Use at Home", which remembers that it was seasoned with thyme and camel hooves.

The famous Chinese medical scientist Li Shizhen’s "Compendium of Materia Medica" records: "The taste is slightly pungent, and the natives cook lamb to eat, which is delicious." Thyme is native to Southern Europe and is widely cultivated as a gourmet spice.

The appearance characteristics of thyme

Semi-shrub. Many stems, creeping or ascending; sterile branches emerging from the end or base of the stem, creeping or ascending, pubescent; flowering branches (1.5) 2-10 cm high, densely curved downwards or slightly flattened under the inflorescence Hair, the lower hair becomes short and sparse, with 2-4 leaf pairs, the base has the first leaves that fall off.

Leaves are ovoid, 4-10 mm long, 2-4.5 mm wide, apex obtuse or slightly acute, base wedge-shaped or tapered, whole or rare 1-2 pairs of small serrations, both sides glabrous, lateral veins 2- 3 pairs, slightly protruding underneath, glandular points somewhat obvious, petioles are obvious, the petiole near the lower part is about 1/2 of the leaf, and the upper part is shorter; the bracts are the same shape as the leaves, and the edges are ciliated in the lower 1/3.

The inflorescence is capitate, more or less flowered, and the flowers have short stalks. The calyx is tubular bell-shaped or narrowly bell-shaped, 4-4.5 mm long, sparsely pilose on the lower part, nearly glabrous on the upper part, the lower lip is longer than the upper lip or nearly equal to the upper lip, the upper lip has shorter teeth, and the teeth do not exceed 1/3 of the total length of the upper lip, Triangular, ciliate or glabrous.

Corolla purple, purple or lavender, pink, 6.5-8 mm long, sparsely pubescent, crown tube elongated, 4-5 mm long, slightly enlarged upward.

Nutlets are nearly round or oval, flattened, and smooth. Flowering from July to August.

The growth habit of thyme

Thyme likes a warm, light-loving, and dry environment. It does not have high requirements on the soil, but it grows well in well-drained lime soil.

Loose and well-drained land, facing the sun. Born in rocky mountains, slopes, valleys, ravines, roadsides, and weeds, 1100-3600 meters above sea level.

The main value of thyme

1. Ecology Thyme plants are relatively low, with stolons that grow along the ground surface, extending nearly horizontally.

The adventitious buds on the stem can germinate many root systems and form a very strong root network, which can effectively prevent soil erosion.

Because thyme has outstanding cold tolerance, drought tolerance, barren tolerance, resistance to diseases and insects, as well as fast growth, large flower volume, long flowering period, and pleasant fragrance;

It has become a rare and excellent ground cover plant in urban landscaping, and because of its strong resistance, wide ecological diversity, and clonal growth characteristics;

In many fragile habitats with severe soil degradation, natural dominant plant species or single superior groups can be formed, and they play an important ecological function in desertification community composition and ecological succession.

2. Medicinal Thyme can treat many diseases, with a sweet and herb-like smell.

The medicinal records of thyme in China can be traced back to the Northern Song Dynasty. There are records in various Chinese medicine classics.

"Shaanxi Chinese Herbal Medicine" records that it can cure indigestion, general body pain, dispel wind and analgesia, abdominal distension, toothache, and cure stomach cold pain;

"Jiayou Materia Medica," said that it is the main source of swelling and pain; "Xinjiang Handbook of Chinese Herbal Medicine" records the effects of treating colds, dispelling wind, strengthening the spleen and eliminating food, relieving cough and resolving phlegm, warming the middle and dispelling cold, and "Selected Chinese Herbal Medicines from Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningqing" Stomach relieving vomiting and clearing heat and reducing fever;

"Chinese Medicine Plant Illustrated Book" records that it has antispasmodic, expelling wind, and strengthening effects, and is mainly used for inflammation, spastic cough, whooping cough, and sore throat.

Modern medicinal use uses fresh or dry samples of the above-ground part or whole plant, which has the functions of dispelling wind and relieving pain.

3. Edible The whole thyme plant has a fragrant odor. It appeared in people's lives as a spice vegetable and nectar plant for a long time. It is one of the natural flavoring spices used by humans since ancient times.

It was first recorded in China that thyme was used as a seasoning spice in the Yuan Dynasty. When cooking seafood, meat, fish, and other foods, add a little thyme powder to remove the fishy smell and increase the flavor of the dishes;

Adding thyme to pickles and kimchi can improve their fragrance and grassy aroma. In 1970, the International Standard Organization announced that thyme can be used as a food spice.

Tips Comparing and analyzing the nutrients in thyme and common vegetables, it was found that the content of carbohydrate, protein, vitamin C, selenium, iron, calcium, and zinc was higher than that of common vegetables;

In particular, thyme contains a large number of volatile components such as monoterpenes, which have extremely high edible nutritional value to the human body.

Thyme honey has a high concentration, a strong aroma, and a light amber color. Studies have found that thyme honey has a higher amino acid content, which is of great benefit to the human body.

Thyme facts

1. Flower language

Courage, you who like this flower are broad-minded, brave to face difficulties, and have a lot of self-esteem, and will not give in easily.

You believe that tomorrow will be better, make a rational analysis of everything and not be blindly optimistic.

Because of your strong self-esteem, your relationship will not be very intense, which is a type of rational communication.

In addition to its charming fragrance, thyme has a romantic and beautiful meaning-"good luck".

The scarves given to brave knights by women in the Middle Ages in Europe are pierced with thyme, which means to bless everything.

2. Legend

One of the legends There is a legend in ancient Greece that as long as a girl who thinks of spring embroider a thyme pattern on her clothes, or wear thyme on her body, it means looking for a lover and waiting for the love of the suitor.

For a shy men, as long as they drink a cup of thyme tea, I heard that they can pluck up the courage to pursue what they love.

Legend Two Also known as "The Favor of Provence". In Greek mythology, Aphrodite (the god of love and beauty) shed tears when she saw the cruelty of the Trojan War. Her tears fell into the mortal world and became the lovely leaves of thyme.

Another theory is that Troy’s tears of Helen turned into thyme drop by drop. The English word for thyme comes from Greece, which means "courage".

Interesting story

A song poet in the 16th century called the scent of thyme "a paradise at dawn" because it smells fresh and charming, natural and comfortable, and pure and beautiful like heaven.

According to legend, thyme is related to the most glamorous and beautiful Princess Helen of Sparta, who caused the historic Trojan War.

In Greek mythology, thyme is Helen's tears. Princess Helen, who is all over the country, is the daughter of Queen Rita of Sparta and the god Zeus. Because she is very beautiful, countless princes and nobles pursue her.

Helen's adoptive father, King Spartan, in order to avoid everyone fighting for Helen, married her to the new Spartan King Menelaus and became the queen of Sparta.

Not long after the peaceful days, a handsome Trojan prince Paris came to Sparta. After seeing Queen Helen, he was deeply fascinated by her. He tried every means to get close to Helen and confided in love with her. Helen was also attracted by his handsomeness and fell in love with him unconsciously, so the two met and fled to Troy.

However, how did the two young people know that this elopement led to the ten-year Trojan War?

When Troy finally perished and Paris died in battle, Helen couldn't help but shed crystal tears and turned into thyme on the ground. The expression of tears falling gently on her face caused many Trojan warriors to be overwhelmed and swear to protect her.

Therefore, since then, thyme has been given a symbol of courage and vitality. Women will send a sprig of thyme before their beloved samurai goes out to convey their love and encourage each other's courage.

The girl of Sichun embroidered the thyme pattern on her clothes, or wears thyme on her body, which means looking for a lover and waiting for the suitor to show love;

Benefits of thyme

1. Protect the liver Thyme has a natural aroma. It contains a large amount of oleanolic acid. This substance can directly act on the human liver to improve liver function, prevent hepatitis and cirrhosis, and promote liver cell regeneration. It can be eaten regularly. Reduce virus damage to the human liver.

2. Anti-inflammatory and sterilization Thyme contains a variety of natural anti-inflammatory components, especially the high content of linalool and cymene. They can eliminate a variety of bacteria and viruses in the human body. Usually, it can be used for human oral inflammation and tracheitis. The prevention and treatment of upper respiratory tract inflammation such as pneumonia are particularly effective.

3. Relieve pain and itching Analgesic and itching are also important functions of thyme. Its medicinal ingredients such as linalool and paraffin can eliminate inflammation and sterilization and can eliminate a variety of skin fungi. People usually grind thyme directly and take out the juice when people have dermatitis and eczema. Applying to the affected area can quickly reduce the itching symptoms caused by dermatitis and eczema.

4. Prevent high blood pressure Thyme can prevent high blood pressure. The baicalein and apigenin contained in it are all-natural antihypertensive ingredients, and they can reduce the activity of carcinogens in the body, promote blood circulation, and improve the contraction of the heart. Not only do they often eat It can prevent high blood pressure and also play an important role in preventing cancer.

5. Resolve phlegm and relieve cough Thyme contains a lot of volatile oil and some natural aromatic substances. These substances can expand the trachea and speed up the discharge of sputum. People can use it to prevent coughing and sputum. It can also be used for the treatment of human cough and asthma. The effects are very special obvious.

#Perennials #Edible #Botanical #garden #Herb #Fresh #Herbal #Healthy #Spices #Treatment #Benefits #Planting

Author: Ms.Geneva Link: https://www.thumbgarden.com/what-is-thyme/ Source: ThumbGarden The copyright belongs to the author. For commercial reprints, please contact the author for authorization, and for non-commercial reprints, please indicate the source.

[akimmito]

Heroes are made by the path they choose

Previous | AO3 | Next

___________________________

Chapter 5

Paris News @ParisNewsTWT

Two more victims are confirmed as a result of the bomb, on the way to the hospital an eight-year-old boy and a fifteen-year-old teenager die. We regret the loss and our condolences to the families.

              ______________

Byakko is the first vigilant to appear on the scene, watching from the rooftops the development of the situation. She was the first to be able to warn the others if they should also arrive, the officers argue while the bomb team checks the perimeter to determine if there are more devices or if there was only one, the forensic team is waiting to move the two bodies. Byakko grimaces, the scene is terrible to watch.

"Byakko, give your report." Max's voice sounds on the other end of the line, only getting the images from the security cameras surviving the explosion, which gives him very little coverage of the scene. He only sees police and paramedics.

"The bomb squad checks the perimeter. You should send someone to see the wounded and find out their condition. I will stay here and speak to the police to offer support. "

"Be careful. "

"Always."She smiles and jumps off the roof to fall behind the coroners, she approaches them to discuss the events and gather information, they will be in charge of investigating further in parallel with the police, as they usually do when they decide to get involved in any case.

While Byakko plunges into the crime scene, Pyxis enters the hospital to await the victims who are still alive. He draws everyone's attention, his black costume with violet and silver is striking enough surrounded by so much white... that and that he's one of the vigilantes, the mask definitely gives the attention call, at least it is not a kind of helmet like that of Byakko. He adjusts his black hair as he stands uncomfortably in an emergency corner, it would be easier if there was someone else with him, but everyone is waiting. He's sure that Felix must be returning from Romania and that Marinette must be preparing to return to the MT without her employees suspecting.

"Pyxis, can you take a picture with my son?" A woman approaches him, looks concerned." They'll take him to emergency surgery and he's scared. "

"Uh, sure…" He grows shy as he walks behind the light brown-haired woman, she also looks scared. The good news is that the hospital has safeguards or it would be an easy target for Akuma, he's relieved that Hawkmoth didn't think to use them until a year before the end of his reign of terror. The Akuma created by emotions born from traumatic problems are much more dangerous than the common ones, they are dangerous and the situation that just happened can become a trigger.

As they advance to the space where the child waits on a stretcher, sends a message to Max so that he can get the information from the families and they can be located, it is better to avoid more victims in the tragedy. When he has done so, he approaches the little boy with a friendly smile.

"Hi, what's your name?" He slides into the chair next to him.

"Francis. "

"Nice to meet you, Francis. I'm Pyxis, do you know me?" The boy nods, his eyes sparkling with excitement and fear. "I know you are afraid, I also  have fear all the time. "

"Really? But you fight the bad guys and don't panic. "

"Yes, we are scared, but we can't let him beat us or the bad people will win too." At that moment the doctors enter, the boy's mother took a picture of the interaction of the two, much more natural than just posing. "I will keep an eye on you, we will see you when you return. "

Francis is encouraged and says goodbye when nurses and doctors take him to surgery. Pyxis sits for a moment and then gets up, just in time to see the commotion. One of the wounded is transferred to the area where he's located and seeing a pregnant woman with a completely unmade leg is distressing. They don't leave her for long in the area, different doctors come and talk to each other and to the paramedics. It's a distressing little chaos.

"Hi." He leans over to the young woman and places his gloved hand on the bloody reddish hair, reminds her of Nathaniel's and the mental image doesn't help him smile to calm her down. "I know it hurts, I know you're afraid, but the doctors will find a way to help you. "

She barely nods, shedding tears, her gray eyes look almost glass, the blood runs where the tears flow.

"Pyxis, will you allow us?" One of the doctors talks and he nods, walking away. He leaves the care area and watches the small chaos, some family members congregate and two bodies are taken to the hospital morgue.

Since becoming Pyxis there had been no terrorist attack, after Hawkmoth, Paris seemed a little bleak and gray. Tourism had not diminished, but it certainly was not as lively as it had been years before and just when everything seems to be recovering, Akuma and terrorist attack, an incredible combo. It gives he a bad feeling.

          __________

Agatha @WhiskyMyLife

Pyxis is in the hospital cheering for the victims and their families. He's quite an angel, absurdly adorable for an adult man with an alpha male voice.

#OwnParisAngel #MTPyxis

Héros parisiens @MTHeroes

Byakko at the Louvre and Pyxis at the hospital. Will Black Metal appear? They are the closest to civilians.

#MTPyxis #MTByakko

             _________

While at the MT headquarters, the other members gather around the round table in the main room where the mother computer is located. Max keeps his eyes on every security camera trying to find something, he even rescued the last few hours before the explosion of the corrupted files, maybe it's time to replace the cameras technology and make them connected to the MT database, just someone with the Oracle level of Batman partners could access that data and that would help them more. Max nods to himself by opening a file to start the project, but leave it that way until the current problem is addressed.

"I think the heroes should go too, now that they're back to business. The negative feelings surrounding the situation should be enough to justify their patrolling, as well as generating much more hope than the MT can offer. "Felix speaks after a few minutes.

"Yeah, that will help lower negative emotions. Red Fox, Rakkīgāru and Abeilla, you three will go to patrol the surrounding areas, be on the lookout for any butterflies. We will provide support if any situation arises. "Marinette gives the order and the three mentioned nod, soon, Kagami, Nathaniel and Chloe transform and Kaalki opens a portal for them in front of Notre Dame.

"We'll be watching the communications." Marinette smiles and nods to Kagami, she was just beginning to relax and a terrorist attack happens. The bad part of this is that there is no cure that can save you all, you just have to accept the natural course of life, even if it was caused by someone else.

When they are gone, there are only five left in the room.

Max programs one of the screens to present the international news about what happened, they can't get news about anything related to prodigies outside of France, but since this has nothing to do with it, its broadcast is not prohibited. Among the images they can see Byakko with the officers and as it's live, in the distance they can see the Red Fox figure passing by. So used to running on the rooftops, they know fast routes to move and thanks to the improved skills of the wonders, they come quickly wherever.

Damian frowns, annoyed at having to do nothing, but he can't just complain when faced with such a situation. They have sent all those who can be useful, he would not be for the simple reason that he despises people and doesn't have a good relationship with them. He is aware of the comments, even though just being on two patrols was enough to earn him a reputation as an infamous demon boy. Stupid woman and her sensitive brat.

"If an Akuma appears, we will go except for Sabik and Equuleus, they will stay here and handle the situation from a distance. As long as our new villain doesn't know that the snake is active, the easier it will be for us. Damian, you will join as Thuban for the protection of civilians, Akuma born from such situations are dangerous and we can't trust the miracle cure. "Dealing with civilians, perfect.

"Yes, mother." He sits with his arms crossed, he doesn't like it, but at least they won't leave him relegated to staying with Max and Luka, it would be frustrating, although he understands that their positions are important. He prefers to be in the field and face his enemies head-on. His mother has not even taken him to any of his case investigations, he only goes with Felix and occasionally with Kagami; He can also be useful and even better than them.

"Byakko and Pyxis will maintain positions and, if necessary, help protect civilians. "

Everyone makes some kind of confirmation.

Luka slides into the chair next to Max, slips on the headphones to be part of the connections, and helps check out video from some of the surrounding cameras. The tension is palpable in the room, everyone is silent and there is only an occasional small conversation.

Marinette pulls out her phone and makes a publication, in addition to sending a message to Hugo to take out a certain amount of money and buy medical supplies to be sent to the hospital, in addition to making a donation to families and the city to repair the damage caused by the bomb. Max is also doing his part and a statement of commitment is given for KanTech to replace all cameras in the city with much more advanced ones that help detect artifacts (he has certainly been working on something like that associated with two other companies, including Wayne Tech). Felix says nothing, he's in Romania for everyone and  it's not even his city, but he can be supportive considering that his friends and associates are from there. Maybe tomorrow.

            _____________

Marie L. @MarieLenoir

It is outrageous that an attack like this happens as we try to recover from the impact of the butterfly's return. I hope the MT catches the one responsible.

Max K. @MaxKan_Tech

I promise to replace every security camera on the streets of Paris for the greater security of my fellow citizens. I will not allow them to catch us off guard again, I will work with the MT and the police for a more adequate follow-up.

Polaris Vermilion @Elgato_Solaris

In a few years, Paris will belong to Lenoir. @MarieLenoir will become a @BruceWayneOfficial for Paris. Remember my words, she already has an animal shelter and seven of the fourteen Akuma shelters are funded by her, recently rumors have been heard that Lady Black will also be a wine brand.

Héctor de Troya @EpicAdveturerHector

@Elgato_Solaris She's affiliated with the Graham de Vanily, is a business partner of @KanTech and Sabine & Tom Boulangerie.

Héctor de Troya @EpicAdveturerHector

@Elgato_Solaris She finances two arts schools, one in Paris and the other in Bremen, she's also co-owner of a Spanish publisher (anyone explain this to me?) and has recently started to finance a project for the protection of endangered birds in America.

Polaris Vermilion @Elgato_Solaris

@EpicAdventurerHector Our own billionaire philanthropist.

Lalaland @ LaLa-235Vick

@Elgato_Solaris @EpicAdventurerHector Actually, it's estimated that within three years she could enter the 100 richest people in the world, if the rumors of various businesses under the signature of Lady Black are true.

Theo @ ArtisgratiaArts_009

@Elgato_Solaris @EpicAdventurerHector @ LaLa-235Vick Is it really important? They are making it a trend and it's more urgent that victims know our support.

               _________

ALERT MONARCH

AKUMA! AKUMA AKUMA! AKUMA!

Location: District VI.

Escape routes: ****

Nearby shelters: ****

Emergency number: ****************

                                          ______________________

Marinette wants to hit her head against a wall, she really hoped there wouldn't be an Akuma in the distressing situation, but her hope was in vain. Max quickly locates it through the cameras, at least after the first attack they learned that the Akuma are a white point when infrared vision is activated, luckily, that option was incluided along with the night mode.

"The Akuma is moving toward the Luxembourg Palace, is the senate still in session?"

"Why would the Akuma go to the senate?" Damian questions without understanding, that he knows the Akuma don't lose reasoning, they only focus on the trigger of their negative emotion.

"Maybe he's not going after them, maybe he's just taking it as his route..." Marinette mutters, biting her left thumb, they're following the Akuma's route through satellite cameras. "Well, we will find out. Team, we have an Akuma to face. "

"I'm going to get dressed..." Damian mutters in a bad mood, they are going to transform and leave immediately, he still has to get dressed and will be relegated to taking care of the civilians. Annoying.

Max is watching to see if he begins to use his powers, but he is only moving. It looks like out of a Neon Genesis Evangelion chapter, if someone asks he, as long as it doesn't come up with a biblical name, enough for him. He decides to transform to make transportation easier, especially since Thuban will also have to pass later.

Ladynoir is the first to go through the portal, followed by Jade Shield. The portal closes immediately, only to reopen when Damian appears dressed as Thuban. This time, it opens next to the Church of Saint-Sulpice, since a building was built next to it that serves as a refuge, he runs to the populated sectors to help them, especially if the Akuma decides to attack.

From his location he has a direct view of the Akuma, its size is not very subtle and he wonders what kind of ability it will have. A large golden rhombus flying over Paris is something that easily attracts attention.

Suddenly a chirp is heard that stuns everyone, the children near him start crying from the pain. The screeching is followed by a thick layer of smoke that quickly covers them.

Damian begins to feel airless and in front of him, his biological mother appears.

____________

Jason @IAmYisus_XD

I was calmly watching the news when one appeared about Paris, an terrorist attack after almost ten years without having one. That's not important, were there two vigilantes on screen? Since when does Paris have vigilantes?

Little Little Sun @ ErasmusLS_564

@IAmYisus_XD For seven years? I went on vacation to Paris, I was caught in a bank robbery and they appeared, the MT. A group of very cool vigilantes, they are 10 in the team and they only needed two to solve the problem.

Jason @IAmYisus_XD

@ErasmusLS_564 Seriously? It wasn't like bank robberies here, was it?

Little Little Sun @ ErasmusLS_564

@IAmYisus_XD It was not the same lvl of insanity, but according to the news these robbers had already robbed large banks in London & Spain without success in their capture. It was incredible to see Suzaku and Corvus destroy the group without wreaking havoc or damage to the plce

Roy @RoyHarperQ

@IAmYisus_XD @ ErasmusLS_564 Can you give us their names? I would like to know more.

Little Little Sun @ ErasmusLS_564

@IAmYisus_XD @RoyHarperQ Sure. Women: Suzaku, Seiryuu, Byakko, and Genbu. Men: Black Metal, Caelum, Pyxis and Corvus. Child: Thuban, is the most recent and is a little demon boy according to twitter. He stays close to Suzaku or Corvus, theories say that heis his son

Jason @IAmYisus_XD

@ ErasmusLS_564 @RoyHarperQ Wasn't they 10?

Little Little Sun @ErasmusLS_564

@IAmYisus_XD @RoyHarperQ Yup. Augur doesn't come out, but we know it's there. He's a kind of sentinel, we know why they communicate with him.

Roy @RoyHarperQ

@IAmYisus_XD @ ErasmusLS_564 Who is the orange fox-like one? He also appeared in the news footage.

Little Little Sun @ ErasmusLS_564

@IAmYisus_XD @RoyHarperQ Oh he. I'm not sure of his name, but Paris is quite unique. It's as if Batman and Superman protecting the same city, the vigilantes are in charge of the crimes and the heroes... of the big problem. I can't say more.

Jason @IAmYisus_XD

@ ErasmusLS_564 @RoyHarperQ Heroes and Watchers? What is there? Gotham 2.0?

Little Little Sun @ ErasmusLS_564

@IAmYisus_XD @RoyHarperQ No... The city just has its own fun stuff.

__________

If the other identity has not been mentioned, I will not say it. Marie: Ladynoir/Suzaku Felix: Jade Shield/Corvus Chloe: Lady Abeilla/Genbu Alix: Byakko Kagami: Rakkīgāru/Seiryū Nathaniel: Red Fox/Caelum Luka: Sabik/Black Metal Max: Equuleus/Augur Marc: Pyxis Damian: Tunin/Thuban

[daysswithyou]

Fallen Chapter 23: Promise

 previous / next

Characters: DAY6 Young K x OC (Rachel)

Warning!: Mentions of drowning

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Your homeroom teacher and overall teacher in charge for the trip Mr Kim felt like he was going to cough out blood just simply trying to get your cohort in order. You are all high school seniors ready to graduate in a few weeks’ time, but here all of you were, acting like a bunch of elementary school students that didn’t know how to keep their excitement in and their volume down.

“Alright! Listen up! Boys off to the left, females off to the right. I sent the room arrangements to the various class presidents whom should have sent it to you. Check again if you forgot, else hound them for it. Have fun, stay safe and most importantly, don’t break anything. Else you’re footing the entire bill yourself.”

Mr Kim isn’t dignified with a response when everyone scurried off to their rooms, the volume of their chatters became deafening as the second passed. You and Younghyun chuckled sympathetically at your teacher, whose face looked ashen as he retired to his own room – presumably to get away from you little devils.

“Rachel, meet me here in 30 minutes? I planned a little something for us.”

“A date?” You quirked an eyebrow up, pleasantly surprised that he planned ahead without you catching even a waft of news.

“You can say so…”

“Attire?”

“Comfortable… light… where we’re going to go can potentially be very hot.”

“Oh~ interesting! Alright, I heard you lover boy. I’ll see you here in 30.”

With one last squeeze of your hand, both of you parted to get settled in your rooms. As promised, both of you met again at the lobby at almost the same timing, Younghyun carrying a large black duffel bag in one hand.

“So secretive? You won’t even let me see the contents of the bag?”

“It’s to maintain the suspense, and really make it a surprise! I promise you that I don’t have anything illegal or dangerous in there.”

“I trust you. Want to lead the way?”

“Of course, sweetheart, but after you.”

With a flourish of his hands, he directs you towards the glass entrance of the resorts. As you trailed behind him, you soaked in the sights and smells along the way. It’s been so long since you lasted travelled anywhere outside of your town, so all of this was new and fresh to you. Too entranced by the activities happening around you, you merely followed Younghyun, not really focusing on where he was taking you. It wasn’t until you felt the heat of the sand, heard the sounds of the waves lapping languidly at the shore, and smelt the salt in the air – that you realised that you were by the beach – the single, most hated place on Earth for you.

Against your wishes, you halted in your tracks as you felt the blood drain from your face, shivering despite the hot sunlight that nearly blinded your eyes. Younghyun notices the lack of footsteps behind him, and turns around to find you pale – almost like you had seen…a ghost. That expression on your face looked familiar as well – when did he see that expression on your face before?

“Rachel? Love, are you alright? You look really pale, are you unwell? Maybe we should head back to the resort, you must be tired from the travelling and late nights.”

Younghyun turned to walk back where you two came from, but you immediately spun around and caught his wrist to stop him from leaving.

It’s been years, Rachel. Get a damn grip.

You didn’t want your fear of the ocean to stop the date from happening, especially not when Younghyun put in effort to make it happen. The look of disappointment on his face would be unbearable.

“Rachel, it’s fine, really. We’ve got a few more days here, we can come back when you’re feeling better.”

“I’m better! I mean- I was not even sick to begin with. Let’s just stay ok? We can try to catch the sunset too.”

You muster up a smile, hoping it didn’t look too weak in his eyes and you internally breathed a sigh of relief when he walked back onto the beach. You helped him carefully lay out a mat under a shady palm tree – the last thing you need is some skin ailment from the harmful UV rays. The two of you chatted like you always did, and the conversation flowed smoothly from one topic to the other. Younghyun got tired after some time, and you let him rest his head against your lap as you threaded your fingers through his short black hair. You silently observed as he slowly fell asleep, noticing the rhythmic rising and falling of his chest as well. It brought back memories of that afternoon in the café – but that awful reality felt like a universe away and once again, you thanked the heavens that you no longer had to experience that sort of uncertainty again.

Just as you were staring out at the horizon, you felt Younghyun shift around on your lap. He – too – was now watching the horizon like you did but he turned to you swiftly to ask a question.

“Do you want to swim? It’ll be fun, bet the water isn’t too cold.”

Shit. Why did he have to ask this question…

Licking your dry lips, you racked your brain for the least suspicious excuse and you mentally steeled yourself before answering, praying fervently that Younghyun wouldn’t press the issue further.

“Erm… I don’t actually feel like swimming today… you can swim on your own! I’ll get us some snacks from the convenience store?”

You jabbed a thumb behind you, hoping that Younghyun would let you off the hook.

“Awww. You really don’t want to swim?”

Younghyun pouts and gives you his best puppy eyes, even going so far as to rise his voice a pitch higher to play up his cute appeal. Usually that would have done the trick, but not today. Not in this situation.

“It’s fine, really. I’ll swim another time! I’ll go get the snacks now ok? What do you want?”

“Ice cream? Oh, frozen slushies!”

“Alright, I got you. Be right back!”

Both of you rose from your respective spots and as you rummaged through your bag for your wallet, Younghyun sheds off his clothes, leaving him only in a loose-fitting white shirt and swimming trunks. You left the beach fast, your heart stopped thumping when your feet finally let the hot sand onto the hot gravel. The little granites of gravel rock tickled the soles of your feet, occasionally pricking the skin but you didn’t let the pain bother you. Whatever it is, it’s always going to be better than staying by on the beach… and near the sea. Just before you pushed open the glass doors of the convenience door, you turned back to glance at Younghyun one last time, realising that he was not waddling knee-deep into the water. Turning your eyes away from the scene, you entered the store, the blast of cold air from the air conditioning above causing you to shiver momentarily. You took your time picking out the ice-cream and slushie flavours, wanting to delay the return to the beach. A good 20 minutes had passed before you were willing to head to the counter to pay, and you were only out of the store after 25 minutes. Gripping the white plastic tightly in your fists, you trudged back to the shore. Once again, you were trying to delay your return – but you were only delaying the inevitable. Eventually, your feet found soft sand again and you called for Younghyun as you dug around the plastic bag for his food.

“Younghyun! Got your ice cream, you should eat it now before it melts!”

You anticipated a reply from him but none came. Instead, the only sound that filled your ears was the sound of the waves crashing against the shore and rocks, creating a loud and distant boom as they slammed into the wall of rocks. It felt like déjà vu.

No… it can’t be…

“Younghyun?”

You tried calling his name again, louder this time, as you turned to face the sea despite the blinding lights of the now setting sun. All you were met with is a body of water that glistened golden under the sun rays, but there was nobody in sight. It was happening all over again.

“Younghyun… come on now, it isn’t funny. Show yourself. Younghyun! YOUNGHYUN-AH!”

With each successive cry being met with silence, the desperation grows within you, swelling like a bubble that threatened to burst apart any moment to release a torrential flood in it’s wake. With shaky legs and ragged breathing, it’s a miracle that you got to the sea without tripping, your fear of the sea forgotten as you plunged into the water in search of him. It’s been years since you’ve last went swimming ever since that incident, so your body no longer knows what to do when it’s in water. In an effort of stay afloat, you flail your limbs frantically as you move deeper into the water in search of him. Like before, the saltwater mixes in with your tears, and you’re no longer sure which is streaming down your face. The mouthfuls of saltwater that you drink in makes you gag, and you nearly retch your innards out into the ocean. You scream, and scream, and scream – but Younghyun didn’t reply you, nor was there anyone that came to help you.

You’re all alone – again.

Just as you were slowly losing consciousness from the exertion, you felt strong movement from beneath you and you came face to face with Younghyun, whom was now carrying you bridal style with his hair slicked back due to the water.

“Rachel! What were you doing!”

Younghyun’s teeth are bared as his lips curl upwards, a deep frown settling between his brows as he noticed the look of pure anguish on your pale face. Younghyun doesn’t get another word in before you’re lunging at him, knocking the breath out of his lungs as you slam into him. You’re now clinging onto him with a vice-like grip – your arms around his shoulders as you secure your legs around his waist. Younghyun feels the skin around his shoulder break as you dug your nails into his flesh, the weight on your leg bruising his lower back. Still, Younghyun doesn’t say a word – something terrible has gotten you shaken up so badly, and your well-being was his top priority now. Your harrowing sobs into his ears evokes deep sorrow within him, the kind that comes from deep within his bones. He immediately wrapped his arms around your smaller frame, hoping the contact will help to calm you down.

“Oh my god, I thought I had lost your forever! I was so scared… so afraid… so – ”

You choke on your saliva and words, violently coughing now as you struggle to get your words out.

“Shhh… it’s ok, I’m here now, I’m here now. I got you, ok? Don’t cry anymore please…”

Younghyun continues to soothe you with his words as he strokes your hair with one hand, the other placed securely around your waist. It wasn’t until a violent tremor ripped through your body before Younghyun realises that you might be cold from the water. Wordlessly, he carried you out of the water and back onto the shore. Even as he tried to detach himself from you, you couldn’t let him go, tightening your grip on him instead.

“Please! Don’t go! Don’t leave me again…”

There was so much desperation and pleading in your voice that he feels his heart crack at your words so he does as he is told, never leaving your side. With one hand, he tugged the towels out of his black duffel bag before wrapping them around your shivering self. The two of you stay locked in each other’s embrace until the sun sets. That’s when you’ve finally calmed down, and you were willing to let him go. Younghyun feels your grip on him gradually loosen as your hands fall limply to your lap, your eyes still glossed over from the trauma earlier. He takes it as a cue to try to probe the topic – what the hell was that just now?

“Rachel? Rachel, love, can you talk to me?”

You nod your head slowly – it was only a matter of time before he found out and you would have to tell him. With your little fiasco just now, there was no running from the matter anymore.

“I’m afraid of the water.”

Younghyun raises an eyebrow at your statement – he’s not thoroughly convinced that this was the sole reason for your behaviour just now. There must be more to the story. When you’re met with silence, you hesitantly lift your eyes to meet his.

Doubt. Worry. Apprehension. – these 3 emotions were clearly reflected in his eyes. Of course, of course he wasn’t going to believe you. That outburst wasn’t just due to simple “fear” – even a toddler can see through your lies.

“That’s it…?”

“No, of course, that’s not simply it. You know it yourself Younghyun, I can see it in your eyes. It’s just… it’s just… it’s just something that I still have a very hard time talking about.”

“It’s alright, just take your time. I’m not going to go anywhere.”

Sucking in a deep breath, you close your eyes before you start telling your story, not wanting to look Younghyun in the eye out of fear that your resolve might break again.

“I lied. I lied about my family. My parents weren’t just out of town for a long business trip, they’re… they’re… they’re gone. Gone as in dead. I lost them due to drowning many years ago, before I even became a teenager. Right here by a beach. We were just playing in the waters before this storm came out of nowhere. The waves got larger… more violent…

And then…”

You let out a shaky breath at this point in time, hot tears burning at the back of your eyes again. Still, you persisted with your story.

“And then I just couldn’t see them anymore. I woke up a long time later in the hospital, only to have my aunt tell me that they’ve left. That’s why I was so deathly afraid, Younghyun. I can’t bear the idea of losing someone else that I love to the waters again. I can’t stand the idea of someone that I love leaving my side too soon again. It’s all too much to bear and I – ”

Another violent sob rips involuntarily from your throat and Younghyun has you trapped in his warm embrace again, once again stroking your hair as he tries to comfort you.

“I won’t leave you. I meant it earlier when I told you that I always got you.”

You scoff weakly against his chest.

“You’re not going to be around forever, Younghyun. People die and leave as a natural course of life.”

“I will stay, I will be around for as long as you would allow me to. I’m not going to die and I’m not going to leave.”

“Even when she wants you back?”

You don’t know why the words slipped out of your mouth, you’re not even sure if he knew that Ayeon and Jaebeom had broken up. Maybe it was your fear talking and now that you’ve said it, you waited in bated breath for his reply.

“Even when she wants me back. I’m not going anymore. I’m staying here by your side. I’m here, I’m always going to catch you when you fall. Promise.”

The frantic beating of your heart finally slows down, your heart comforted by his words of reassurance. Younghyun tightened his hold around you when he felt you snuggle into his chest. He places a soft kiss to the crown of your head before staring off into the horizon.

I promise you; I’ll be by your side.