#cause lydias family does hold those

[igetthedisneybox]

Lidia Madrigal

Inspired by @hannahhook7744's Encanto AU, and her own character headcanons.

Third image made using https://picrew.me/en/image_maker/1558575

Fourth image made using https://www.dolldivine.com/la-colombiana

Fifth image made in Disney Dreamlight Valley

Lidia’s full name is Lidia Rosa Madrigal.

Her first name means “from Lydia” and her middle name means “pink”. 

She is the third child of Mirabel Madrigal and Bubo Marquez.

She has her parent’s brown skin and eyes, and black hair. She has her mother’s nose, and her father’s stature. Somehow, she did not inherit either of her parents' need for glasses.

She is seventeen years old.

She has a triplet brother Óscar, older by thirty minutes, and an older triplet sister Beatriz, older by fifteen minutes.

She likes boys and girls, but is single.

Her gift is that she can make her paintings and drawings come to life, but they still abide by drawing rules. If she uses paint thinner/ an eraser, or it rains, they go away. She loves her gift, obviously, and uses it to make a bunch of cool stuff.

Her door portrays her with one hand holding a paintbrush, making a long line of paint. Her other hand is at her side.

Her room is a tower-like structure, with basic white walls for painting on, and a tall spiral staircase. At the top of the staircases are her bed and other amenities. At the bottom are many boxes full of paints and extra paint brushes. 

Her symbol is a paint brush.

She and Mirabel love to do art together, and Mirabel appreciates how protective Lidia is of the family.

She is the apple of Bubo’s eye. He is very proud of her for everything she does.

She loves Óscar despite his gift, and they get along. Lidia will beat anyone up (probably with a dinosaur) whoever makes fun of him, or isolates him.

She thinks Beatriz is snooty, bossy, and annoying. She did however, paint the yellow rose in her hair for her.

She mainly hangs out with Leta and Carlos, and occasionally Amelia and Princesa. She also draws with Mariana.

She gets along best with Bruno, Luisa, and Leta.

She’s very rough and tumble, and likes to wrestle with Leta and Lusia.

Her favorite thing to paint is butterflies and flowers. And fake money, but she was banned from doing that.

She despises anything but clear, sunny weather, as all of her creations melt in the rain. She and Pepa have a running (one-sided) feud.

She sometimes wishes she had a more active or useful gift.

When she’s upset, she has a tendency to scribble, and those scribbles turn into monsters that ravage the Encanto. They don’t cause much damage, but they sure scare people.

Her favorite colors are hot pink, vibrant purple, red, and orange.

[my-mt-heart]

Thoughts on The Book of Carol Teaser and Sneak Peek.

Melissa McBride is the highlight of this show. Period. Her performances in both the new teaser and sneak peek establish a clear drive for Carol, which is to find the man who means the world to her. Though I assume the separation will span most of the season, I think Carol's arc will attempt to keep the special bond between her and Daryl alive through conversations with other characters and gimmicks like the crossbow and the bike. I'm all for that. However...

I'm worried lazy writing choices are going to drag her down. For example, I loved the vulnerability in Carol's V.O. where she says "Daryl's the only family I have left," but that line is weird. I believe Daryl is the most important person in her life. I believe he means everything to Carol. I believe she feels very lonely without him. Why not phrase it that way? Why say that Daryl is her "only " family? What happened to everyone at the CW? To Lydia? These are rhetorical questions because I know Zabel can't be bothered to do his homework and yet I'm still floored every time he shows a deep misunderstanding of these characters.

Melissa and Carol aside, the promo and sneak peak are confirming my biggest fear that the story is going to be totally lopsided, like Melissa is doing everything to honor Caryl, which goes hand in hand with honoring Carol's individual arc, but no one else is meeting her halfway. If this is "The Book of Carol," if we're supposed to be excited about a Caryl show, then why is the very first image one of Daryl and a character who isn't Carol? Why is there such a big focus on that family unit (Daryl, Isabelle, and Laurent) and not Caryl? Why does the sneak peek start with an entire Daryl sequence before jumping to Carol? The positioning is all wrong.

It makes me feel really sad for Carol because she's so broken up by the thought of losing Daryl, but there's no indication of how he's feeling about her unless we reexamine his microexpressions in a scene about pigeons. There's delivering angst and then there's being reckless with the characters, causing them and their fans pain without any concern for relieving it. It's so devastating to me that such beautifully-developed characters, characters I relied on for comfort for many years had to fall into the worst hands possible.

I said I needed to wait until the promo circuit kicked off before I could get a sense of what we're in for and now I think it's pretty clear that Daryl's arc will continue to relentlessly shipbait and minimize Carol's importance and that's not what I signed up for. Settling for Caryl crumbs in what's supposed to be a Caryl show is not what I signed up for. Gaslighting and abuse from the misogynists and ageists at AMC and in TWDU are not what I signed up for. I love Carol and I want to support Melissa after the shitstorm she's been through, but I can't turn off my emotional investment in Daryl while I do that. As I've said before, his story resonates with me on a deeply personal level as much as Carol's does. I didn't have any male role models growing up. Daryl was it. And since I can't focus my excitement on one half of my favorite pairing while shutting out my dread for the other, how do I watch this show? How do I invest my time and money in a story EPs and AMC have repeatedly shown me I'm not welcome to? Those aren't rhetorical. I'm really at a loss.

AMC, you couldn't even let us hold onto the "To Find Home is to Find Each Other" tagline? Really, nothing?

[jjtheresidentbaby]

Hi, I don't know if you've already done this before, but what about a Stiles bedroom headcanon post? They're always so fun to read about!! :D Tyy!

– ☀️

🫧Little Stiles Bedroom Headcanons 🫧 ➢ event masterlist

1. What kind of bed do they sleep in? What size is it?

- his bed is a full size with a very squishy mattress that he can sink into

2. How many pillows do they sleep with? What’s the color of their pillows?

- two normal pillows with matching pillow cases to his comforter and a bunch of stuffies that get used as pillows

3. How many blankets do they sleep with? What colors are they?

- he has a blue flannel comforter but also a couple throw blankets! there’s one that’s Halloween themed, a blue one that matches his comforter, a wolf pattern one per Scott and a purple one that matches one Allison has

4. Where do they keep their clothes? How are their clothes organized?

- he has a dark wood dresser that he keeps all his clothes in but they aren’t organized in the slightest. the only rule he does follow is all his little clothes/gear stays in the bottom drawer so it doesn’t get lost and so he can reach it without needing to stand while he’s regressed. he prefers to crawl around the floor & having things easy to reach makes his life 10x easier

5. What kind of light sources do they have? How many do they have? Why?

- he has his main light but rarely uses that when he’s regressed, he opts for one of the galaxy projectors he has or the leds he has lining his room or some fairy lights that Allison gave him. there’s also nightlights he flicks on each night, he has a wolf one that’s his favorite, but he’s grown quite a collection after being gifted them by the pack & Noah

6. What colors are their bedroom walls?

- they’re blue just like in canon!

7. What does their bedroom look like? What kind of furniture do they have in there? How big is it?

- it’s the same set up as canon! bed in the corner, nightshade next to it, his dresser near the foot of his bed, and his desk on the other side of the room. though he did end up buying a bookshelf second hand to hold all the lord books and other things he’s accumulated over the years, he keeps books for when he’s little on the bottom shelf so they don’t get grouped in with the rest of the serious topic books

8. What kind of floor does their bedroom have? What color?

- a light gray carpet, it’s a pretty nice texture so when he’s little he likes to play on the floor

9. Do they have any toys? Do they sleep with any of them?

- he has quite a few toys. most of them are geared toward the baby side of things as that’s the age range stiles regresses to, he has one of those baby Nintendo switch games that he likes to press the buttons on, most times he’s too small to actually play the game like it’s meant to be played but pressing random buttons holds his attention. he also has a plethora of stuffed animals, most of them are gifts from people from the pack, the ones he sleeps with are two bunny’s (one from theo & one from lydia)

10. Do they have any rugs? If so, what color are they?

- nope, since he has carpet he has no use for a rug

11. Are there any decorative elements to their bedroom? What are they? Why?

- he has a bunch of posters above his bed of different band’s & musicians that he likes, there’s also some video game promo posters up that the video store gave him after they were done with them. he has a board filled with pictures of the pack & his family, when he’s regressed and a caregiver is there with him he likes to show them all the pictures he has. then of course he has his clear board that he uses to piece together whatever situation the pack has found themselves in, it almost always has something written on it

12. What are some of the things they do in their bedroom?

- literally everything. researching, homework, playing games, trying to relax, pacing around cause he’s stressed, everything & anything happens in that bedroom. though if he’s small he does try to limit the stress and will cover up his researching stuff with a blanket so he won’t be tempted to try and figure things out when he’s supposed to be having his ‘small time’ as Scott calls it. he also keeps a box of teethers & pacifiers in his room that probably ends up dumped over his bed when he’s regressed and is in the middle of another task (noahs given up on trying to keep them organized), his favorite type of teethers are the ones that are water filled and can be frozen so they’re hard or left unfrozen and squishy to bite on

13. Do they share their bedroom with anyone. If so, who?

- nope! the only people he really lets stay in his room are Scott, Malia, Allison, Lydia, and eventually Theo, he likes his space to be his space (unless people need to come over to research & whatnot)

[lunas-treehouse]

if i posted a one shot to my a03 with kai and lydia using the prompt “two best friends go as a date to an event and they both actually like eachother” would u read it...just curious

[karleetakeenan]

It’ll All Be Okay In The End

Pairs: Alpha twins x sister!reader, Derek Hale x reader, McCall pack x reader

Warnings: Season 3 Spoilers of Teen Wolf, Death, crying (cause gross emotions), angst cause I'm a slut for it. That's all I can think of let me know if I missed any.

Word Count: 961

Song - Heavens not too far away - We Three

AIDEN! I saw the sword go through my older brothers stomach from the stairs. I ran as fast as I could and reached him just in time as Derek was sitting him on the ground. Ethan and I ran to his side next to Derek and Argent. I grabbed onto one of Aiden’s hands with Ethan grabbing the other. We were all crying at this point. Derek placed his hand on my back rubbing soothing circles to try to comfort me. I was losing one of my older brothers, one out of the only two family members I had left, not much could comfort me right now but I guess the gesture was nice. 

“Does it hurt you as much as it hurts me?” Aidan sobbed while trying to seem strong. Ethan and I where crying as we placed our heads together. I could barely talk and Ethan sobbed a yes while rubbing Aiden’s back to try to comfort him. We all knew he was going to die which made it all the more painful. 

Aiden practically sobbed as he spoke his next sentence, “Lydia never believed I was one of the good guys anyway.” Derek tried to console him in his final moments. “She’ll believe me.” We all watched as Aidan took his last breaths with Ethan trying to console him, our hearts shattering. I heard the guys running out of the school but I couldn’t bring myself to care. I had just lost my brother, my best friend and protector, just as I got him back. “I-I can’t do this, I’m sorry.” I took one last look at my dead brother and got up and ran. I ran out to the lacrosse field and just kept running, I ran across the field and into the woods. I ran and ran until I reached the preserve where we kept Jackson captive all those months ago. 

I felt like I was suffocating, I did the only thing I could in that moment. I roared, I roared as loud as I could then sunk to my knees and sobbed. I thought of all those memories of me and my brother. My favourite one came to mind which caused me to sob more.

I was 12 while the boys where 14, I was on the basketball court playing with my team. We were down to the last 30 seconds and only needed one point to win. I had promised my parents I wouldn’t use my werewolf powers on the court, I looked into the crowd. My parents nowhere in sight, just as I was going to give up on them being here, I saw my two older brothers. Both holding a sign that had “GO Y/N! YOU GOT THIS!” In bright red writing. They were cheering my name so loud that the other parents were glaring at them. Other kids may have been embarrassed but not me, I was glad to have my best friends there. I grabbed the ball from the opposing players and took it to the middle of the court with 5 seconds left on the clock, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to use my powers a little, right? I shot the ball from the halfway line and watched the ball soar through the air. It landed in the hoop just as the buzzer went off, my team pulled me into a hug as we won the game. We shook the hands of the other team then went to find our families, I ran up to my brothers throwing myself at Aiden and him throwing me in the air. “I’m so proud of you Squirt! You did so good, did you see that shot? It went flying!” Aiden praised. “I reckon it was their best game yet don’t you agree Aiden?” Ethan looked at your brother smirking. “You’re so right E! Hey, why don’t we go get some celebratory ice cream for our little star?” Aiden proposed while looking at me. Ethan and I both scream out an affirmative as Aiden threw me over his shoulder. We spent the night laughing and cheering. I was so happy to just be with my brothers.

I don’t know how long I sat on the floor of the preserve crying but I didn’t register someone there until I felt his arms wrap around me. The scent told me it was Derek, He sat their trying to console me as much as he could, if anyone knew how it felt to lose their family it was Derek Hale. We sat their for another 20 minutes before I started to calm down. As I was sniffling, Derek spoke, “I know there’s nothing that I can say that would make you feel better or to bring him back but just know this y/n/n. It may hurt now but it will get better. It’ll get better to live with. And you won’t be alone, you’ll have the me and you’ll have the pack to help you through this. You will make it out on the other side Y/N, I promise you.” I looked up at Derek still crying to see him already looking at me. Even now, he looked at me like I was the prettiest girl in the word, snot, tears and all. I gave him a grateful smile, unable to talk with my raw, dry throat. I placed my head back onto Dereks chest, feeling slightly better but still broken. I felt Derek place a kiss to my forehead. 

I knew that I would be okay, Aiden may not be here anymore but I still have Ethan alive and Derek and also the pack to be there for me. I’ll be okay in the end.

[voidsbabe]

After we graduated (2)

Pairing: Stiles x female reader

Characters: Stiles, Lydia

Word count: 1,6k

Warnings: please keep in mind that english isn’t my first language

Masterlist

———————/

Stiles inhales deeply and licks his lips. He looks at this beautiful baby girl and starts to see some similarities between him and Claudia. Claudia has Stiles’s eyes and some of his behaviours.

“Ok little one, It’s getting late and that means you have to go to sleep” says Stiles and takes Claudia in his arms. He goes to her room and lays her down to her bed.

"Can you find my rabbit? I can't sleep without it.” Says Claudia looking at him with exactly like his puppy eyes. Stiles looks around trying to find a little plushy rabbit. Instead of that he notices a picture. He frowns and gets closer to see that one particular photo. A huge smile appears on Stiles’s face. It’s a picture of the whole pack right after graduation which he believes Coach took. He smiles to that memory.

Next to that he notices one pink rabbit.

“Found it sweetie!” Says Stiles and gives it to almost sleeping Claudia. He kisses her on her forehead and leaves her room.

**********

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Says Stiles right after you enter the living room. You frown, not understanding what he means.

“Claudia. Is she my child?” asks Stiles with some frustration in his voice. “Is she mine? Just tell me Y/N!”

“Cool out.” You whisper “you are going to wake up Claudia”.

Stiles’s chest is rising rapidly as he looks at you. He’s breathing faster and faster in anger and frustration.

“So that’s true. She is my child. SHE IS MY CHILD AND YOU DIDN’T TELL ME?” yell Stiles.

Claudia comes downstairs and looks at you and Stiles sleepy.

“Mommy, why are you both yelling?” She asks.

You give Stiles a death stare and run to Claudia. You kiss her on the forehead.

“It’s nothing, baby. We are so sorry that we have woken you up. Go to your bed and I will be there in a minute sweetie pie” you say. Your little girl does as you told her and goes back to her bed.

“Look what you have done.” You say angry.

Stiles bites his lips and closes his eyes.

“I can’t do this. I can’t be around you right now.” He says and you can’t help but notice some tears in his eyes as he leaves your house.

You cover your face with your hands and take some deep breaths to calm yourself. You feel your throat slowly tighten. You take one more deep breath and finally go to Claudia’s room. You push her doors just to see your little angel peacefully sleeping holding her pink rabbit. You smile a little. She seems so peaceful and innocent and somehow she’s still a little devil in the morning… just like her father.

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

After a few weeks you finally find courage to call Lydia and tell her everything “Lydia, has Stiles been calling or texting you?” you ask her hoping that Lydia would say yes. Claudia has been asking about Stiles since the next morning when she asked you why you both have been yelling at night and since you can’t lie to her because she’s smart just like her dad, you finally confess the truth crossing your fingers for the good ending and her being understanding even though she’s just a kid and she shouldn’t have been through that.

“I’m sorry Y/N, but no. He hasn’t been talking to anyone after he found out” says Lydia “I’m really sorry that I can’t be there with you and Claudia. How's the little angel holding up since you told her?”

You put your phone on speaker and unpack your groceries.

“Well, she’s been a little quiet since then but I feel like she understands why I haven’t told her nor her dad about everything. She’s just six but you know how smart she can be. I just hope it wouldn’t cause any trauma because I never really wanted that to happen.” You say and sigh loudly. You hear Lydia saying some things about Stiles but you don’t listen to her because of that sudden memory that appears in your head and holds onto you tightly.

“Lydia, I gotta go” you say and hang up.

“OMG Y/N I CAN’T BELIEVE I GOT TO THE FBI'' says Stiles looking at you. “I mean yes I know it would be far away from New York City but we still can be in touch. That's easy. Me, you, Scott, Allison, Lydia and Isaac we would all stay in touch and it would be amazing. We could hang out and do some things and I could tell you about some cases and…” he says out of his breath. You just giggle a little seeing little sparks in his eyes. He is truly happy. You feel tears in your eyes as you watch Stiles calling to Scott to get the whole pack together. You bite your lips and wipes tears away. Even though you are so happy for your friends, all you can feel is fear. You don’t know what the future will look like and how to be a single mom. Yes, you could tell Stiles but it would definitely end everything. He’s so happy and you want him to stay that way after everything that has happened and after the void you can finally see true happiness in his eyes.

You shake your head just like you are trying to get that memory out of your head.

Stiles still hasn’t called even though you left him a couple voicemails hoping that he would listen to all of them and somehow appear in your door ready to listen to you but that didn’t happen. It was all just in your head. Your head was messing up with you and it was slowly killing you. You sigh and sit on the couch trying to distract yourself by watching a stupid movie about some teenagers trying to not to fall in love. You frown a little as you hear the doorbell ringing. You didn’t invite anyone so it seems even weirder to hear your doorbell ring. You get to the doors and open them. You hear your jaw loudly dropping to the ground.

“Stiles” you say still pretty shocked. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to see my daughter and you. I got a present for Claudia.” he says and gives you a box of Claudia’s favorite cereal and a big teddy. You thank him and invite him inside.

He kisses you on the cheek and sits on the couch. “Claudia, there’s someone to see you” you yell to get your daughter downstairs. Claudia runs as fast as she can downstairs and freezes in shock. “Daddy!” She screams and runs to hug Stiles. He smiles and takes her to his arms. He gives her a little kiss on the forehead and takes her on his lap.

“I got you something” he says and gives Claudia those presents. “Thank you Daddy” says Claudia and hugs him tightly and then runs to her room to introduce her new teddy to other toys.

“So I am ready to talk. Tell me everything” says Stiles and looks at you. You nod and bite your lips. You take a deep breath fighting some tears that appeared in your eyes. “When I got pregnant I didn’t know what I should do. I felt hopeless and I was so scared because I already knew that I won’t tell you and I know it sounds extremely selfish and you have every right to be mad at me that I haven’t told you, but you did not see yourself. Stiles I love you and after everything that we have been through. Every damn supernatural creature and after the void you seemed so happy that you got to that FBI program and I knew I couldn’t tell you because you would stay and miss that opportunity. I’m so sorry that I made that decision. I know it was irresponsible and selfish and I know that I fucked everything up by telling everyone except you. I’m really sorry” you say with a shaking voice. After that it is silent. You feel your heart beating rapidly as you start bawling your eyes. Stiles gets up and takes you in his arms. He wipes away tears from your face and hugs you. “I’m not mad Y/N. I know that you have made that decision because you had some reasons. I was mad and shocked and frustrated when I found out because I always wanted a kid and you know how much I loved you. How much I still love you. Y/N you are my everything and you will always be. You and Claudia. I love both of you and I’m ready to take every responsibility for my actions and I’m ready to be a dad. I want to be a dad. A good one. And of course I wanna be with you. I never stopped loving you.” he whispers in your ear and leans to kiss you softly. You smile through that kiss and place your hands on his cheeks just to kiss him more passionately.

After you graduated you didn’t know what your life would look like in the next 10 years. You were extremely scared and hopeless. But after all, you got your happy ending with the most precious angel that you could have and the most amazing husband that you have ever dreamed of. You were happy that Stiles found out about Claudia because your life as the whole family just started. In that moment when you said “I do”. It changed everything. Claudia changed everything.

And that’s what happened after we graduated...

———————————/

Hey guys! Thank you for waiting and reading. Reblogs and replies are very appreciated ❤️

Tag list: @cookiecakeslive @alexa-rae-dreamz @loulouloueh @dandelionqueen @marvelsis @drugsandcandy069

[princeescaluswords]

Stans go "the world is shades of GRAY!!!! nothing is black and white!!!!!" yet want Scott crucified for saying that maybe the Argents had a reason for killing the Hale family. C'mon guys, nothing is so black and white remember? Scott is displaying that by saying there's a darker side to the Hale Pack, the same dark side you all glorify when it's Peter "Left Hand" Hale committing bloody deeds.

But you’re forgetting one important thing.   Peter is a white man.  

I know some people might think I’m being reductive but the truth as I see it is that “shades of gray” and “black and white thinking” and “Left Hand” are all mechanisms for allowing (and often celebrating) white male characters’ moral complexity while denying characters of color and female characters and especially female characters of color any agency, complexity, or permission to act in their own self-interest.  

Take Scott’s “Well, then, they had a reason” line at the end of Magic Bullet (1x04).  Even if you ignore that Scott’s experience with werewolves in the previous four episodes had been an unprovoked assault, stalking, a transformation filled with body horror,  deception, more assault, mind control, home invasion, more assault, more mind control, more deception, more assault, threats of public exposure, and rank ingratitude, the line comes out of frustration with Derek’s behavior, because Derek feels he has the right to bully, manipulate and control Scott into discovering and taking revenge on whoever killed his sister. 

And, as we have seen, parts of the fandom go wild about that one line, even to the point of using it to justify an even more horrific assault on Scott’s person.  And yet, where’s the outrage against Stiles for saying this to Derek, after he got Derek arrested in Second Chance at First Line (1x02)?

Stiles:  The girl you killed - she was a werewolf. She was a different kind, wasn't she? I mean, she could turn herself into an actual wolf, and I know Scott can't do that. Is that why you killed her? 

Isn’t that just as callous as Scott’s line?  (It is, by the way, and it also puts to bed the idea that Stiles has a perceptive eye for evil and is always right.) But parts of the fandom will turn this into banter and part of Stiles’s character.  Stiles is not only a suspicious character with sharp edges -- he has a right to be.   No matter what people do to Scott, he does not have the right to be less than perfect. 

On the other hand, burned Peter is also present in that scene in Magic Bullet!  Imagine how he feels to hear Scott blame his family for being burned alive.  There’s an argument to be made that Scott certainly deserved getting mentally violated for it.  Even if Peter had been tormenting and assaulting Scott, he’s out of his mind, as he repeatedly put it.  So much for Scott’s vaunted compassion if he hates werewolves so much he can’t see that Peter’s a victim.  I mean, compare that with Stiles’s compassion for Peter in Code Breaker (1x12): 

Stiles: You turn into a giant monster with red eyes and fangs, and you're not the bad guy here? 

Whoops.  I’m sure that Stiles doesn’t hold a prejudicial hate against werewolves.  He just ... misspoke.  That’s it. 

Stiles, the Hales, the shitty Sheriff, they all get to cut corners and lash out and be morally gray (I don’t think they fully understand what those words mean) and do all sorts of the things because they, as white men, have the right to be complex. 

The Sheriff gets to arrest teenagers and interfere with federal investigations because ‘he’s just doing his best and was forced into a terrible situation’ but Scott is equated with a rapist for being forced to hurt Derek at clawpoint and for violating Corey’s mind. 

Derek isn’t scorned for forcing his betas to live in an abandoned train station when he has millions of dollars, but Braeden is terrible because she does things for money.

Peter should be allowed to get revenge on those who burned his family alive and that punk teenager who’s alpha when he should be, even though to do so he terrorizes, mutilates and murders, and he has no obligation to Scott and Lydia at all, but Noshiko is scorned for not doing more for Stiles, the collateral damage, in her revenge against the government who imprisoned her people and caused them to die from an easily curable disease.

Moral complexity -- shades of gray -- is an option only available for white men.  And it’s not just on Teen Wolf.  

You may not remember television in the late Eighties and the Nineties, but there was a whole slew of films and shows that dealt with criminals ‘getting off on technicalities,’ reflecting a pervasive public opinion that criminal defendants were being coddled by the system.  Vigilantes -- nine times out of ten, white males -- acted to correct these abuses of the justice system.   Now, two decades later. how many cop shows talk about the ‘complexity’ of police who break the rules?  It’s the same phenomenon in a different context.  

All you have to do is watch.

[got-any-references]

What are your fav beetlebabes headcanons? Also, love your stuff <3

Thank you <3. And thank you for the wait cause oh boy if I don’t answer this ask with a ridiculous amount of art how will I live?

*Digging out the dust covered manuscript that is my nonexistent Beetlebabes fic from under the floorboards* It’s showtime.

So...Lydia is the one who falls first. She is about 17 or 18 at the time, so this is very much an “I have a teen crush on someone I am not supposed to” type of deal. Honestly they fell in love with each other way before that but like, platonically 

Beej is...horribly oblivious XD. Honestly its for the best because Lydia spends the better part of her pre-college summer freaking about because any time her best friend walks in the door her heart wants to go bull-riding in her chest and if she actually has to confront her feelings she might just explode.

Then, just before Lydia was supposed to go away to college, Beetlejuice...disappears. He leaves a note, saying he’ll be back, but weeks turn into months, months turn into a year, and no one either in the living world or the netherworld has seen a hair of him. Lydia goes through college without really knowing what to do with herself, missing what was probably the closest person in her life. She graduates with a journalism degree and a minor in photography. She works for a newspaper as an investigative journalist before breaking off over less than great circumstances and going off on her own.

She’s 25 when she establishes herself as a pivate eye, with an enormous amount of anonymous sources being dead people. Also, this takes place in New York City.

(Yes she absolutely does exorcisms on the side).

She’s following a rather stange missing persons case when one of her sources points to a run down establishment that is 100% totally haunted. Except when she goes there she doesn’t find any ghosts, but rather

Beetlejuice. And he looks awful. And very much human.

Lydia: You look like hell.

Beej: Yeah, I just got back.

...

Beej: Also I’ma pass out now so you better catch me.

So he crashes at Lydia’s place, and the whole thing turns into solving the crime as well as Beej’s  mysterious aquirement of a beating heart and working lungs. He doesn’t remember how that’s happened, only now everything is Too Much with Too Many Feelings. Speaking of feelings, you bet your ass there is PINING. SO much pining. Lydia’s best friend comes back and suddenly those feelings she’d dismissed as a stupid teenage crush come FLOODING BACK. 

While Lydia’s internally feaking out over her feelings (it's totally normal and platonic to wanna kiss your best friend while he sleeps, right??), Beetlejuice is, you guessed it, totally oblivious! To his own feelings especially! All he knows is that it's his best friend only now she seems like a completely different person, and hot. She is now hot. His mad respect for Lydia makes him bury that thought deep, deep down. Also the whole marriage deal is a source on bad memories for both of them and he doesn’t wanna ruin the only good thing he’s ever had and-

Anyway, more pining:

Lydia’s feelings bring out resentment, too. She hates that Beej calls her kid, because that means he still sees her as one, and her ego and her desire for him make her want him to see her, the woman who's seen some real shit in the name of finding the truth, who can take care of herself, and who is very different from that angsty 15 year old girl on the roof. 

It all comes ahead to a big confrontation where Lydia is shot, and Beetlejuice has to drag her to the hospital without any knowledge of how human bodies work and he has no magic so he can’t help her-

The hospital needs to know his relationship to her when they take her away, and Beetlejuice knows they wont let him in unless he’s close family so he is blurts out: “Husband. Yeah, I’m her...husband.”

Lydia wakes up with a patched up hole in her side and Beetlejuice clinging to her hand. She’s happy she’s alive, but also angry, because she could have avoided all of this. She was competent enough to not need anyone to rescue her. 

She wants to get back on the case as soon as possible, she found the key lead, but Beej doesn’t wanna hear it, cause he saw way too much of her blood and he’s not big on how human bodies work, but he's pretty sure that shit’s supposed to stay inside. They’re arguing when the nurse comes in and adresses him as “Mr. Deetz.”

Lydia snatches the clipboard away, sees that he’s told them she’s his wife, and is livid. Because crush or not the wedding thing had a whole lot of baggage she does not want to unpack. She has to confront the fact that her feelings are for someone who manipulated her into marriage at 15 and who she’s not supposed to see in that way but she does anyway.

And Beej, a dumbass but also angry cause she almost died out of a stupid reckless mistake is like: "Why are you all mad? It was a green card thing. It's not like it means anything." And that gets Lyds even more upset, with him cause he's an idiot, and with herself because she's still pining for someone who, she thinks, still sees her as a child. 

Lyds, getting her coat: "Fuck off." 

BJ: "Kid-"

 Lydia: "Stop calling me that! I haven't been a child since my mother died. I haven't been a child since you showed up! I haven't been a child since I've started this, since I moved here, since the first asshole tried to kill me. I've been through literal hell and I've had to pull myself out of it all on my own because I was still here and you left."

There's a beat of silence as Lydia realizes what she just said. 

Lydia: "And that's fine. Because I don't need you. I don't need anyone. You taught me that, at least." She yanks her coat onto her shoulders and turns to go.

 BJ, quietly, but its clear he's angry: "Do you think I wanted to leave?" 

Lydia: "I don't know what you wanted. Do you even know what you wanted?" She pauses at the door, turns to him. "Do you know what you want, Betelgeuse?" 

BJ: "I-" 

He stops. He can't look her in the eye anymore. You. I want you. Lydia scoffs, turns to go. 

BJ: "Lydia, wait-" 

Lydia: "Fuck. Off."

She leaves, and he just stands there, floored by his too little too late realization. Lydia thinks the best thing to do after leaving the hospital with a bullet hole in her side and hopped up on painkillers is to go get drunk! Self-preservation? None

Beetlejuice finally finds her drunk off her ass and suddenly in a great mood. He grabs her under the arms like "Whelp. Time to go." 

Lydia: "Nooo come on-" 

BJ: "Aren't you on hospital drugs? Doesn't that shit kill you breathers if you mix it all up?" 

Lydia: ":D I stopped taking them :'D it hurts like a bitch." 

BJ: "I guess I have the shared braincell now. Okay, time to go."

He manages to get her in the car without incident, but when he gets in the driver's seat suddenly Lydia's all over him.

BJ, with a lap full of drunk Lydia: "What. What are you doing." 

Lydia: "Beeetlejuice." 

BJ: "Yeees?" 

Lydia, smiling all dopey as she cups his cheeks: "Beeetlejuuuice."

BJ: "What" 

Lydia's finger hovers over his nose, as if to boop him. He closes his eyes. And suddenly her lips are on his. She tastes like alcohol and hospital food and as she pulls away he can't think. Then she starts laughing. "Ha! Gotchaaa! Classic Bait and Switch!"

And he’s pissed.

BJ: "Ha. Ha. Good one, Lyds." 

He dumps her out of his lap and into the passenger seat. Lydia blinks in confusion. Now she's cold. She wants to ask, but her mental faculties aren't all with her at the moment. He drives them home and helps her up the stairs before dumping her onto her bed. "Well. Bye." Lydia scrambles up the bed. The car ride gave her enough time to be at least a bit sober, and everything before getting here is blurry. "Where are you going?" Beetlejuice turns around, the widest smile on his face. She's confused for a moment before she realizes he's vibrating with rage. "Ya said you want me gone? Great! You don't need me, you can do your weird little suicidal quest thing yourself!" Lydia looks lost. They had a fight but she'd rarely seen him this angry. "If its about the thing at the hospital, I didn't- I didn't mean it-"

Beetlejuice: "Really? You'd think you'd be glad to have me gone. Why would you want a creep like me around? The whole marriage thing didn't just disappear, after all! Great to know you can still pull one on me, huh?"

Lydia: "Pull what, Beetlejuice-"

She remembers, hazily, the car ride.

They stare at each other for a moment Beej is breathing heavily, he's not used to living person emotions, ones you can feel with your whole body instead of just as an abstract thing, but its clear he's holding back

Lydia: "I wasn't-" 

Beej: "You weren't what?"

 Lydia (quietly): "It wasn't a joke."

The angry grin slips off Beej's face. He suddenly looks very, very tired. She might have believed just now that he'd lived for millennia. 

 Beej: “Why are you doin' this, Lyds? Did you know the whole damn time? It's not like I was gonna do anything, I just thought- I just-”

Lydia suddenly realizes that they are having two different conversations. And something else. She looks away, trying to wrap her head around it, and Beetlejuice doesn't read it correctly. He turns to go. 

Lydia: “Wait!”

 She jumps off the bed, feeling the whole world tip over slightly, still drunk, and stumbled over to him. He catches her instinctively as she grips his forearms for support. 

Lydia: “Beej. Beej, look at me.” 

She takes his face in her hands, and turns it toward her. He looks so lost, like one word from her might actually break him. She'd only seen that look on his face once before, and she never wants to again.

Lydia takes a breath. 

Lydia: “Beetlejuice, I-”

Aaand then she throws up all over his shoes.

She doesn't quite remember what happened next, only that she was in the bathroom, leaning against the door, the toilet was flushed, she was sweating, and he wasn't there. 

Lydia: “Beej?” 

Beetlejuice (through the door): “...hi”

Lydia: “What-”

BJ: “-happened? Well, that's a story!” 

His voice sounds cheerful, but it’s shaking slightly 

BJ: “First ya threw up all over us both! then that little experiment of yours with mixing the meds went off, and you started babbling about...rocks? Then we got here, you heaved out the rest of your insides, and then ya kicked me out and said you were gonna shower, and now we're sitting here, so, yeah”

Lydia: “...Are you still covered in puke?” 

BJ:”...yeah”

Lydia: “...sorry?” 

BJ: “Pshh, what's a best friend if ya can't throw up on 'im a couple times.”

They both fall silent

Beetlejuice (quietly): “Lyds, do ya still want me here?”

...

 Lydia takes the time to find the words. Want him here? After everything, he was still asking that question. Did he still think, after all this time, that she'd throw him out at the smallest inconvenience? Would he ever stop thinking that way? Why did he think so now? Was it because he- Because he-

Lydia: “I love you.”

The other side of the door is silent. 

Lydia: “I love your stupid laugh. You sound like a fucking cartoon villain, its so fucking obnoxious. I love your jokes, all of them, even the shitty ones- you always look so god damn proud when you say them.”

Is she crying? She tries to wipe at her face, but the tears keep coming. 

Lydia: “I loved you since that last day on the roof, and when you left-” 

Her throat closes up. She chokes back on her tears, she has to finish it, he has to hear it. 

Lydia: “When you left I thought I might die again.” 

Lydia: “I kept seeing things, dumb branding on cereal boxes, that shitty college play I went to, my first client, and I kept thinking aw, Beej would have a field day with this one. I thought about what you'd say. You were like a voice I couldn't scrape out of my head, I thought I was going crazy, I thought I'd imagined it all, some lonely little girl with no life or friends, needing someone to talk to- But you'd been real, and then you were just gone- “

The words dissolve in her throat as she sobs, pulling her knees up to her chest. She feels like a child now. She feels more childlike than she had at 15. She’s clinging to a scrap of hope she doesn’t have a right to demand from him. And yet he'd said- 

Lydia: “I love you. Please, don't leave.”

They sit is silence for a while. Lydia tries to stop crying. Then, quietly from the other side of the door:

BJ: “You know what I thought when I first saw you?”

Lydia: “Here’s a suicidal teen haha what a riot?”

BJ: “What? No, not then. Like now.”

Lydia: “Oh. What?”

BJ: “I thought wow, who the hell is that and why is she so dang hot?”

Lydia laughs.

BJ: “And then I thought oh God that’s Lydia.”

Something in his voice makes her pause. Maybe it’s the strange fear that she feels coming from him.

BJ: “It’s like, you’re Lydia, and I don’t know shit about you! You’re the same person, but you’re a stranger to me. Lyds, do you know how fucking terrifying that is? You’re someone I never got to know because of a shitty decision I don’t even remember making.”

he falls silent. She can hear the pain in his voice. And something else. Longing. 

Beetlejuice: “I’d like to.”

Lydia opens the door. Beetlejuice scrables up, only for her to throw her arms around him. 

They figure it out. It’s a slowburn 200k fic that I’ll never write so it takes a while for them to actually kiss, or do anything more, but they get there. 

This turned out...ridiculously long XD. I don’t know what you meant by “headcanons”, exactly, but have this instead.

Thanks for the ask! 

[iliveiloveiwrite]

Paging Healer Malfoy // Chapter Two - The Improper Use of Magical Materials (D.M)

A/N: CHAPTER TWO!! I wonder fi you can all guess what’s going to happen in this chapter from the title alone? Draco deals with some interesting cases, and I am loving writing this series. The love for the prologue and chapter one blew me away. I only hope you love this one just as much!!!

Summary: Coffee equals venting as well as inquisitions over personal lives. Interesting patients have their way of falling into Draco’s lap.

Warnings: mentions of coffee, mentions of procedures, hospitals, injuries, swearing, mentions of food, mutual pining, yearning, an overuse of commas and semi-colons, interesting medical cases.

Word count: 4k

Prologue// Chapter One

By the time Draco has a long enough lull in patients, it’s been a couple of hours and he’s more than ready for a coffee.

The tradition of coffee with her had started through their training; it was how they vented to each other after a particularly long shift that had either been difficult or slow. It was how over the course of their training; their friendship had formed. It was over the coffees and the vents that Draco slowly realised his feelings for her were far from platonic.

(Y/N) stands at the admit desk, chatting to one of the longest working nurses at St. Mungo’s, Lydia. Lydia had seen it all; there was very little that could shock her. Draco thinks out of his eight years at St. Mungo’s, he had only ever seen Lydia speechless from shock twice. Both of those cases had not had positive outcomes.

(Y/N) greets Draco with a smile that almost knocks him breathless. He slots his chart into the discharged box and cracks his knuckles; he grins at (Y/N)’s displeased face, knowing that that particular habit gets on her nerves.

“Are you free now?” She asks; an eyebrow raised as if she’s expecting another rebuff.

Draco nods, “Coffee?”

(Y/N) smiles broadly; another smile to leave him breathless and hopelessly yearning for her as she murmurs her goodbyes to Lydia.

The café for St. Mungo’s is on the very top floor, and Draco thanks every god and deity out there that the hospital board had seen fit to install a lift instead of relying on the stairs. It was useful for practical reasons too; especially transporting patients to different floors and such alongside Draco’s continued avoidance of physical exercise.

It wasn’t an overly large café, but it catered for the Healers and nurses on every floor as well as the steady stream of patients and their families that came through the doors. It constantly smelt like coffee beans; the scent settling within Draco’s bones as he walks to the till with (Y/N) by his side.

Happy to see their usual table by the furthest window empty, Draco heads over there with their tray of freshly brewed coffee. They sit across from each other and share a tired smile; they were coming up to halfway through their shift now. They both loved their job; they couldn’t imagine working anywhere else as anything else but even they couldn’t help but countdown the minutes until they could clock off and go home to their showers and their beds.

Adding a splash of milk to her coffee, (Y/N) asks, “What do you think of the new trainees?”

Draco nods, “I think they’re going to be better than last year for definite.”

(Y/N) nods her head in agreement. Draco grabs a sugar packet from the centre of the table, “What do you think of your student?”

She rolls her eyes fondly, “He’s rich, that’s for sure. The only other person I’ve ever seen with a tailored lab coat is you.”

Draco huffs; tugging at the collar of his lab coat, “It was a gift, thank you very much.”

She laughs, “And you look very dashing.”

Draco turns her nose up at her, “Tell me something I don’t know.”

(Y/N)’s eyes sparkle with mirth over the rim of her coffee cup; the cup barely concealing the smile on her face. Draco returns the grin in earnest; never truly able to stay mad at her or hold a grudge against for too long.

“How have you been?” She asks; light concern lacing her voice.

“I’ve been okay,” Draco answers; expecting the worry she always has for him. He had been diagnosed with insomnia after the second wizarding war. It came in waves; he could have weeks, even months, where he slept fine, but then he would have periods where sleep was a distant memory.

“Have you been sleeping better? I can always prescribe you something if you need it.”

Draco waves away her offer, “I don’t need medicine to help me sleep.”

“Draco, you have insomnia. You, yourself, have admitted that traditional remedies aren’t helping.”

“(Y/N), I’m fine,” He reaches out for her hand; she lets him take it, “I’m fine. I’m sleeping better, I promise.”

She bites her lip; looking like she so desperately wants to believe him. For a second, Draco thinks she’s going to argue but at the last moment she decides against it. Instead, whispering what she wanted to say at the start of their conversation, “I feel like I haven’t seen you in so long.”

“We see each other nearly every day,” Draco argues.

“We’re so busy, Draco, we don’t talk like we used to.”

Draco sighs; knowing how right she is. If they found themselves on nights together, they would spend most of that shift together – especially if it was a quiet one. They would talk aimlessly about whatever came to their minds; the job, their families, their love life.

To Draco, it felt like his feelings for her were almost inevitable. The longer he spent with her; the longer he thought of her. Their fumble at the Christmas party last year had driven a wedge between them; neither ready to talk about what happened for the fear of losing their crutch. They so heavily relied on the other in terms of emotional release from their jobs; if things went south, what would they do?

Catching sight of the clock, (Y/N) sighs, realising that their conversation was over, “I need to go chase up some labs. As smart as my trainee he is, he’s useless at keeping on top of things.”

She stands; finishing the final few sips of her coffee. Her hand finds its way to Draco’s shoulder where it squeezes it once in goodbye, “I’ll find you at the end of your shift, we can get the tube together.”

He smiles at her, “I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

And he wouldn’t.

------

The first week with the new trainees goes swimmingly. Draco cannot help but compare this year to last year where last year he had to dismiss one Healer immediately based on their bed manner with patients; inappropriate comments flying freely.

The second week with the new trainees gives Draco a breather from needing to watch over them constantly. He starts to spend less time flitting between their patients and more time taking on his own cases whilst still supervising the trainees and their assigned attendings.

As the trainees find their feet, Draco finds it easier to fall back into his routine from before they arrived. Working in Emergency Medicine meant that there was very little leeway for a strict routine, but there was always a lull in the early afternoon that allowed Draco to sneak upstairs to the café and grab some lunch without being pulled in for consultation after consultation.

However, Draco feels that something is off within his very bones. As he lines up to pay for his food and drink, he feels suspicious. As he sits down at the table he usually shares with (Y/N) - admitting to himself that he does miss her presence when he’s eating alone – he feels as if he needs to rush whatever he’s about to eat.

Eight years as a Healer has taught Draco to trust that gut instinct; to follow it to very end to where it leads.

The familiar static of the tannoy system precedes the announcement of his name, “Healer Malfoy to Trauma Two. Healer Malfoy to Trauma Two.”

Draco looks down at his meal sadly; briefly wondering whether the patient would protest to him eating through his trauma. He throws out the food as he rushes from the café, stethoscope clinking around his neck as he amps up his brisk walk to a flat out run.

As he runs to the trauma room, Draco has no idea what awaits him when he arrives in the emergency room. He has no clue as to his patient; their age, gender, ethnicity. As of right now, he couldn’t care – all he needs to know is that there is someone who needs his help.

The patient has already been lifted onto the bed when Draco arrives. Studiously ignoring his growling stomach, he looks to Vera, “What do we have?”

“27 year old Rowan Talbott; injured in a duel between friends. BP and oxygen all fine though his pulse is a little fast.”

Rowan Talbott writhes on the bed in pain, gasping, “It hurts so much.”

“Where does it hurt, Mr. Talbott?” Draco questions; standing over the patient.

“My side! It feels like its burning.”

Draco makes eye contact with the nurse who helps to roll the young man onto his other side. With deft, experienced fingers, Draco examines the patient.

“Mr. Talbott,” Draco calls out over the patients cries, “Can you tell me which spell you were hit with?”

“Entrail-Expelling, I’m sure of it.”

Draco sighs; taking a step back and removing his gloves, “I can assure, Mr. Talbott, you were not hit with the entrail-expelling spell.”

“How do you know?” He demands; face cross.

“For one thing, Mr. Talbott, your entrails are still very much inside of your body. And another, it looks like you were instead hit with the stinging hex which has caused the burning,” Draco looks towards Vera, “Perform the counter-jinx and let him sleep it off?”

Vera nods; her face amused at the sound of disappointment in Draco’s voice.

He tears off the trauma gown; throwing it in the disposal bin. He looks towards the patient who slowly sits up in bed; his face aflame with embarrassment, “So I’m not dying?”

Draco shakes his head, “Not dying.”

Rowan Talbott sags in relief as Vera performs the counter-jinx.

“Rest now, Mr. Talbott, I’ll check on you in an hour or so.”

Rowan Talbott doesn’t reply; his snores fill the room as the porters come to move him to an empty exam room.

Both Draco and Vera chuckle as they leave the room. They return to the admit desk where Draco places his chart on the side.

“There never is a dull day, is there Vera?”

Vera laughs, “The day it is dull here, Draco, is the day I leave.”

“Merlin let’s hope that never happens there. How would we run without you, Vera?”

“Draco Malfoy, you are a flatterer.”

Draco laughs, “I’m going out to grab some lunch. I’m sure there’s a muggle café down the road. I won’t be long.”

Vera nods; waving him off as she’s pulled into another case by another Healer.

Before he can be dragged anywhere, Draco rushes to the break room. There, he grabs his jacket – replacing his lab coat with it and then makes his way to the exit. Through it all, his stomach has been growling like a wild animal; the café down the road would still be open, Draco thinks gratefully as he inhales the crisp autumn air.

At the café, Draco orders a sandwich and a coffee to go. All the while knowing that he would have to eat it on the way back to the hospital should another trauma come in or that he’s needed by someone.

By the time Draco arrives back at the break room; he’s eaten half his sandwich and finished his coffee. Munching on the other half, he doesn’t hesitate to pour another cup of coffee and settle on the break room couch.

A few years back, before Draco had started his training, the emergency room staff were given a television by a patient who was grateful for the saving of his life. After much attempting to get it working in a hospital that was, back then, mostly magical, the TV had become a hit with the nurses. However, no-one dared to switch the channel should something happen that they couldn’t fix, so it played a constant loop of the muggle news.

It’s this that Draco watches as he finishes the last crumbs of his sandwich and the dregs of his coffee. He kicks his feet up onto the coffee table and lets himself have a few minutes to himself with his eyes closed; letting the stress of the last few weeks leave his body.

All too soon, however, the usual guilt settles over Draco. In his early days as a trainee, Draco found it exceptionally hard to take for himself. He always had to be helping; he always had to be working. He simply couldn’t sit still. Draco thinks it stems from his family’s involvement in the second wizarding war where they had left the Battle of Hogwarts without sticking around to make sure that the survivors were well cared for.

It’s that thought that has Draco hauling himself off the couch and back into the fray.

“Janice – lovely, lovely, Janice. What do we have free?” Draco asks; always ready to compliment the nurses.

Janice laughs, “Malfoy, you are a flirt,” She hands him a chart, “23 year old female with stomach pain.”

Draco grins at Janice; happily taking the chart from her hands. He knocks on the door to exam room one before entering. He smiles welcomingly at the patient, “Miss Collins, I understand you’re having some stomach pain.”

Miss Collins nods her head, “For the last few days now.”

Draco makes some notes on her chart before putting on some latex gloves. He points to her stomach and asks, “Do you mind?”

Miss Collins shakes her head and lifts her shirt to reveal her stomach, “I don’t mind.”

As Draco examines her; he asks her routine questions that Nurse Marie lists the answers of on her chart. “And there’s no chance you could be pregnant?” He asks; broaching the subject carefully.

She shakes her head, “I got my period last week.”

Draco nods; continuing his examination of her stomach, feeling some tenderness which understandably is causing some discomfort and pain. Draco removes his gloves and thinks through the possible causes of this pain. He smiles down at Miss Collins before addressing Nurse Marie, “Let’s get a blood test and give her anti-nausea potion, thank you. We’ll monitor you over the next couple of hours to see if things get better or worse. How does that sound?”

Miss Collins opens her mouth to reply but she’s cut off by a timid voice asking, “Healer Malfoy?”

Draco turns from his examination of Miss Collins to find a trainee stood behind him, “How can I help, Healer Kinghorn?”

Matthew Kinghorn flounders for a moment; trying to find the words to explain his predicament to his superior. Draco frowns at the trainee, “What’s wrong?”

“There’s something you need to see.”

“Is it urgent?”

Matthew nods, “I’d say so.”

“Is the patient dying?”

“No, but-”

Draco cuts him off impatiently, “Then are you able to handle it?”

Matthew huffs, “With all due respect sir, you need to see this. I don’t want to be the one to pull it out.”

Draco’s eyebrows furrow, “Pull what out?”

-----------

“That is a wand,” Draco states; staring at the x-ray.

Matthew nods wildly; humming his affirmation.

“The patient,” Draco starts, “Has a wand in their rectum.”

“Do you see why I pulled you away?” Matthew asks, “It looks to be 10 inches.”

Draco can’t help the snort that leaves him though he knows he should act more professionally around a trainee. He holds a hand to his mouth as the other points to the image on the lightbox, “Why?”

Matthew shrugs, “The patient wouldn’t say.”

Draco sighs, “Well they’re at risk for a perforation. What room are they in?”

“Exam room three,” Matthew answers.

Draco pulls the x-ray from the lightbox; stuffing it in a file before walking to exam room three. Entering the room – Matthew close behind – Draco finds the patient lying on his front with his knees tucked up to his chest.

“Mr,” Draco pauses; holding his hand out for the chart from Matthew, “Winters, I’m Healer Malfoy. Would you care to tell me what’s happened?”

Mr. Winters groans; his voice full of pain and embarrassment as he replies, “My wand is stuck.”

Draco slips on some gloves before approaching Mr. Winters, “Sir, you know that that isn’t the proper use of your wand.”

“I know that.”

“I’m glad you’re aware.”

Mr. Winters sighs, “I just had an itch that I couldn’t get, and I just looked at my wand and before I thought it through, I was doing it.”

“I’m not here to judge you, Mr. Winters,” Draco murmurs, “I’m just here to help extract your wand, but we need to be careful so please remain as still as possible.”

Mr. Winters nods; trying to relax as much as he can and remain as still as possible. Draco looks to Matthew who remains by the door; watching the scene with wide eyes, “Healer Kinghorn, will you please fetch some lubricant and any tweezers you can find.”

“You’re going to pull it out?!” Mr. Winters cries.

Draco walks around the bed, removing his gloves, and bends so he’s eye level with Mr. Winters, “I think it’s our first option. You lost hold as you were inserting it, that’s correct?”

Mr. Winters nods, so Draco continues, “So I’m going to use the tweezers to try and grab hold of the end of your wand. Should I meet any resistance, however, I am going to have to call a surgeon.”

“I could need surgery?” Mr. Winters shouts.

Draco nods, “It’s a possibility. There is a slight chance of perforation so any resistance, it’s a surgeon.”

Matthew comes bustling back into the exam room carrying everything Draco asked for including a pain potion and relaxation potion. He lays it all out on a tray before wheeling it to the end of Mr. Winters bed.

“Thank you, Healer Kinghorn,” Draco murmurs before turning back to Mr. Winters, “I’m going to give you a pain potion, so you won’t feel a thing, is that okay?”

Mr. Winters nods, holding out a hand for the bottle. Draco pours the right amount into a small cup before handing it to the patient; watching him finish it all before making his way to end of the bed.

“How are you feeling, Mr. Winters?” Draco calls; slipping on some fresh latex gloves.

“Ready,” He answers. Draco nods despite tef cat that the patient can’t see him.

Draco turns to Matthew; his hand out expectantly for the lubricant and the tweezers. Together, they manage to dislodge the item from Mr. Winters; his wand offering little trouble at all. Matthew watches the procedure wide-eyed and in awe as Draco manages to extract Mr. Winters wand.  

He bags Mr. Winters wand as Matthew helps him back onto his side; reminding him that most likely isn’t quite ready to sit on him bum any time soon.

Mr. Winters has tears in his eyes as he thanks both Draco and Matthew. They wave off his thanks before leaving him to sleep off the remaining pain potion in his system; once he wakes he’ll be discharged and given a leaflet on appropriate wand use.

Draco co-signs Matthew’s chart before handing it back to the redheaded trainee. “You did well,” Draco compliments with a smile.

Matthew beams, “Really?”

Draco nods, “You went beyond what I asked you to do and made sure the patient was comfortable. You also recognised that you were out of your depth and you needed help. Past trainees haven’t thought of that; they would go straight in with the procedure and make a mistake. Well done, Matthew.”

Matthew nods; rubbing his hand across the back of his neck as his skin warms with the kind words from Draco. “Thank you, Healer Malfoy,” He replies earnestly.

Draco claps Matthew on the shoulder, “Go get some lunch, Matthew. You don’t know when you’ll be able to eat again.”

Matthew smiles at Draco again before leaving; rushing for the lift to head up to the café.

Draco shakes his head at the eagerness displayed by his trainee, but also pride in the fact that he did think before acting which is vitally important in a job like this. It requires you to think fast and act fast; it seems that Matthew had the talent for both. Draco couldn’t help but wonder how he would be like in a major trauma situation.

Returning to the admit desk, Draco finds that all patients are accounted for and for the first time in a while, he has no immediate need to see a patient – still waiting on test results for them all. He removes his stethoscope from his shoulders as he enters the break room; the television still playing its circuit of the daily muggle news.

(Y/N) sits at the small round table in the middle of the room; her eyes focused on the small screen. The volume always remains low; never playing loud enough for anyone to hear the words leaving the news anchors mouth. Instead, they rely on the red banner travelling across the bottom of the screen from right to left where it announces the breaking news.

“Anything changed since an hour ago?” Draco asks; heading straight for the coffee pot only to find that its empty. He pulls the coffee grounds down from the cupboard and begins to make a fresh pot.

“I don’t think so,” (Y/N) answers, “A celebrity couple is getting divorced; a royal is having a baby, and there’s a debate in the muggle parliament today.”

Draco leans against the counter; waiting for the coffee to brew. He nods, “Nothing new then.”

“I heard about your… impalement,” (Y/N) comments; turning her attention from the television screen to Draco.

“How?”

(Y/N) raises an eyebrow at him, “Lydia.”

“Of course,” Draco rolls his eyes, “I can’t say it wasn’t interesting.”

She snorts, “You always get the interesting ones.”

“(Y/N), you are an attending in emergency trauma surgery. All of your cases are interesting.”

(Y/N) huffs, “But I haven’t seen an impalement in so long!”

“It was barely even an impalement. The patient had an itch he couldn’t reach, that’s all.”

(Y/N) is silent for a minute before bursting into giggles.

“Act professional, (Y/N),” Draco chides but he cannot help the smile at that spreads across his face at the sound of her laughter. Soon enough, he finds himself chuckling along with her; their laughter providing the chorus for the chaos of the emergency room.

(Y/N) wipes her eyes with her sleeve after she finishes laughing, “It’s like what Healer Dorian used to say before she retired.”

“What?”

“If you don’t laugh, it’ll kill you.”

Draco snorts, “There’s some truth to that, but I don’t think Mr. Winters was laughing.”

(Y/N) shakes her head, “I don’t think he will be. I think he’ll choose muggle medicine over ours now to avoid us all.”

He hums, “Most likely, but if he needs us that badly, he’ll come back.”

(Y/N) doesn’t reply; she just shakes her head fondly, hair slipping from its ponytail.

“What shift are you down for next week?” He asks.

She grins at him; her eyes crinkling in the corners, “Why? Do you miss me when I’m not with you?”

He places a hand on his heart and stretches the other out; mimicking a Shakespearian pose, “Dear (Y/N), my heart yearns for you all the time, but it misses you more in your absence. Pray, tell me your shift pattern next week so I know whether to cry tears of happiness or sadness.”

A ball of paper hits his face. Her laughter fills the room, “You’re such an arse, Draco.”

He grins toothily, “And yet you’re friends with me.”

She glares at him playfully, “I’m regretting that decision past me made.”

“I don’t believe you for a second.”

She rolls her eyes, “I’m on nights next week.”

Draco pouts; playing the overdramatic lovestruck fool he is, “But when will I see you?”

“When I’m leaving… like now,” She stands from her chair; grabbing her drink and her unfinished charts.

Draco swivels in his chair; watching her leave the break room with his feelings all in disarray as to whether they’re finally going to confront of what is so clearly in front of them.

*********

Paging Healer Malfoy taglist: @sycathorn-slush @obsessedwithrandomthings @kpopgirlbtssvt @kalimagik @brycelahelalover @fallinallinmendes @mischi3f-manag3d @remmysrecs @willowbleedsonpaper @nao-cchi @haphazardhufflepuff @soundsquid27 @mytreec @maydillydally @chaoticgirl04 @pregnant-piggy @rhyxn @acciotwinz @birdie-writes @reaganwonders @chanelwonders @izzytheninja @ravenclawbitch426 @ohissandhalasta @missmulti

Draco Malfoy taglist: @the--queen-of-hell @obx-beach @obxmxybxnk @sycathorn-slush @dracomalfoyswifey @kashishwrites @justmesadgirl​ @detroitobsessed​ @reaganwonders​

[walkerwords]

“The Savior Sessions” Part 18 of 33 - Negan x GN!Reader

IMAGE CREDIT: AMC

SERIES MASTERLIST

Summary: The fair is in full swing, but an unseen enemy still has her sights set on the ones that took her daughter from her. How will this play out when people go missing? And what happens when the reader is faced with a new kind of horror while Negan waits for them to come home to him?

Word Count: 7939

Warning: Swearing, Death of Major Characters, Angst, Graphic Description of Gore

Song I Wrote To: “You Are The Reason (Duet Version)” by Calum Scott and Leona Lewis

Note: I’m Sorry. This is where we get some canon divergence. I will be changing a few things. For one, I don’t think Aaron went to the fair in the show, but he’s there in this story with Gracie. As we move into season 10, I have changed quite a bit. Thanks for sticking with me so far! ALL OFFICIAL DIALOG IS PROPERTY OF AMC

—————

It had been a long time since you had seen the walls and roads of The Kingdom.

King Ezekiel had just given his big speech as he welcomed everyone to the first community fair. Aaron had run off with Gracie as soon as you had arrived. The two of you had left Alexandria before Michonne and Judith were about to head out. Michonne assured you that she would be fine even though you offered to go with her as a security escort.

It was so strange to see so many of your old friends in one place. Tara was there with her people from Hilltop, Alexandrians milled about, and you even spotted Rachel smiling with her women from Oceanside.

If you weren’t feeling the dread from what was waiting for you beyond the safety of the walls, you would have been smiling along with her. However, you couldn’t. The entire ride to The Kingdom, you had been on edge and you thought your reins were going to shred beneath your fingers.

Aaron had told you to relax. He figured Alpha wouldn’t be stupid enough to do anything on the main road. While you wanted to believe that, the sheer fact that you didn’t run into any of the Whisperers made you even more nervous.

Still, you tried for Aaron, for Ezekiel and Carol, and especially for yourself. Aaron had been right, you needed a break. Negan’s tired eyes and concerned smile were still fresh in your mind as you walked among the stalls. He said that you would have a lot to talk about when you got back and he was right. Perhaps then, you would be able to finally get words out that weren’t drenched in frustration.

Till then, you needed to learn to breathe again.

Enid walked next to you, smiling as she too, took in the joys of the celebration around you. You noticed her in the crowd with Alden as soon as you arrived and she had just gravitated towards you, chatting away about the stall she was going to be doing.

“Did you hear what I said?” Enid asked you and you turned to her.

“Sorry, what?” you asked. She gave you a sheepish smile.

“I was just asking if you thought about setting something up?”

“A stall for the fair?”

“Is that such an odd idea?” she asked.

“I just don’t know what I would do,” you said with a shrug.

“You’re a great shot,” Enid reminded you.

“With a gun,” you said. “Not many of those around these days.”

“Yeah, I guess not,” she said with a shrug of her own. As the two of you headed for the main gate, Enid peeled off to go find Alden and you pushed on to meet Carol.

You had briefly said hello when you had arrived, but she was doing her “Queenly” duties and you hadn’t had much of a chance to speak to her. Now, she looked to be gearing up. Ezekiel was next to her along with Kelly, Magna, Luke, and Yumiko.

“What’s going on?” you asked as you approached.

“Henry isn’t back yet,” Carol explained.

“He’s not? But they left last night. They should have beat us here,” you said with a furrowed brow.

“That’s what I thought,” Carol said and you could see a worried look in her eyes. A look you were all too familiar with. A weight settled on your chest as your hand rested on the pommel of Paul’s sword. “I have to go look for them.”

“I’ll go with you,” you promised. While Carol was worried about her child, you were suddenly very concerned for the other teen in the group.

Where was Lydia?

“You don’t have to,” Yumiko said as she pointed over your shoulder. You all turned to see the large doors open. Running ahead of a horse-pulled carriage was a familiar dog with its tail up in the air.

Michonne and Judith sat in the front of the carriage as Daryl walked alongside it. In the back were Connie, Henry, and Lydia. Dog began making circles around everyone as Henry hobbled out of the makeshift carriage and towards his parents.

Carol didn’t hesitate to pull him into her arms. Connie was doing the same thing with her sister and the rest of her family. As Ezekiel grabbed onto his wife and son, you went for Daryl.

“Ya showed,” he observed as you hugged him.

“Aaron suggested I needed a break,” you said and then stepped back so Carol could launch herself at her best friend. Henry was still hugging his dad and that’s when you noticed Lydia watching the interaction with an awkward stance.

You moved immediately to her side and slipped your arm around her shoulders. “Hey, kid,” you greeted and she gave you a closed-mouth smile.

“Hi,” Lydia said.

“Ya alright?” you asked, checking her over in case she was hurt. Lydia just nodded and fiddled with the wooden pendant around her neck.

“I’m glad you’re here,” Lydia whispered and you squeezed her shoulder, pulling her tighter against you.

“I figured it would be boring without my winning personality,” you teased and she laughed a bit at that. She then became very stiff next to you. “What’s wrong?” you asked, but she was staring at something ahead. Looking up, you saw Tara staring at Lydia with venom in her eyes.

“What is she doing here?” Tara said and you placed Lydia behind you protectively. Henry then moved to her side and took hold of her hand. Tara watched the movement with anger.

Michonne, who had been speaking with Ezekiel and Carol as they got acquainted with Judith turned to the King and Queen.

“Gather the leaders,” Michonne said and then nodded at you as an invitation, “We need to talk.”

—————

“I know I haven't always seen eye-to-eye with everyone in this room,” Michonne began, “but I never stopped caring about any of you. I was just trying to protect my family and do right by my people. Alexandria's future is here. Together, with you. And we lost sight of that for a while. But... I'm here now. We're here now.” 

Michonne then turned to you and gestured for you to speak. “Michonne, Gabriel, and I have all spoke with the other council members at the fair, and we all agree. Alexandria is willing to grant asylum to Lydia. She's one of us now. We hope the rest of you can join us in doing the same.”

“Since when do you speak for Alexandria?” Tara asked. 

“Since I asked them to,” Michonne defended. “(Y/N) has taken up a role that I had never expected. They are more than capable of not only speaking for us but defending us as well.” Tara was quiet after that and you couldn’t help but feel pride swell in your chest at her words. You had been so worried about how Michonne would see you after everything that had been going on with Negan, but she was still the woman you had met all those years. 

“Thank you,” Lydia spoke up from her spot between Judith and Henry in the theater seats. “I'll do whatever I can to earn my keep and pay you back.” You sent her a wink and she gave you her signature closed-lip smile. 

“If her mother retaliates, it's gonna be against Hilltop, not Alexandria. I have to do right by my people. I thought we were on the same page,” Tara said.

“We were,” you said. 

“Look, when she came to my gates,” Michonne said, “I asked her to run away. And when she didn't, I was angry.”

“Then you know why I'm not okay with this,” Tara said.

“I do. I also know why Rick didn't trust me when I showed up at the gates of the prison. And how people didn't trust you after seeing you on the other side of the Governor's firing line,” Michonne said. 

“Or how Daryl nearly took my head off when he met me,” you added and Daryl raised a brow at you, remembering the moment. 

“I was gonna kill you on sight when you washed up on our shore,” Rachel added. 

“Okay, okay,” Tara said. “That’s fair.” 

“Lydia didn’t choose where she came from,” you said. “None of us did, but she deserves the chance to be apart of something. She deserves a family who will care about her.” 

“Second chances don’t come around often,” Rachel added, supporting you. You thought that statement was ironic considering who was constantly living in your mind. 

“I left some of my best fighters at Hilltop, but if Daryl's right about these skin job numbers, it's not enough people,” Tara said. 

“We should take a group to Hilltop to protect ‘em just in case,” Daryl said. 

“I’ll take some from Kingdom,” added Carol. 

“Oceanside can spare some,” Rachel said. 

“Alexandria, too,” finished Gabriel. 

“Nobody is going to fight this war alone,” you said. “The only reason we won the last one is that we were together. If Alpha does come after us, we can’t afford to be on different sides anymore.” 

“So, we head out in the morning?” asked Rachel. 

“Nah, we go today,” Daryl said. “Best not to give them any more time.” Michonne then spoke up again. 

“In order to face this threat, the four communities have to present a united front. Which is why I'm proposing a mutual protection pact. An attack against one community is an attack against all of us. Together, we can make these people think twice before moving against the Hilltop,” Michonne said and you and Gabriel nodded, backing her up. 

“The leadership of the Kingdom is very amenable to this idea,” Ezekiel said after looking to his Queen. 

“Oceanside is in,” Rachel agreed. 

“So, how do we seal it?” Tara asked. “Cause I’m not doin’ a blood oath with (Y/N).” You just smiled sweetly at her. 

“I have just the thing…” Ezekiel said as he got up and walked into the wings of the stage. From a crate, he pulled out an old theater poster frame, and from it, he pulled the community charter. 

“You’ve had that thing this whole time?” you asked, impressed. 

“I’m a man of many surprises,” he said and you raised your hands in surrender. 

“Fair enough.” 

Ezekiel lay the charter on the table and one by one, the leaders of the communities signed. Rachel signed for Oceanside, Tara for Hilltop, Ezekiel and Carol for The Kingdom, and Gabriel for Alexandria. You looked at all the people in that room as you stood next to Daryl and you felt as something big had just happened. 

Everything was finally coming together and your family was finally whole again.

--------

You and Judith began walking laps around the fair. 

The young girl picked at a candy apple that she held in her hands. “Can I ask you something?” Judith asked, peering up at you from under her hat. 

“Go for it,” you said. 

“Did you talk to him before you left?” she asked. 

“Subtle,” you said, flicking her hat. 

“I’m just making sure you’re okay,” Judith said. “I don’t like it when you two fight.” 

“When did you become such a matchmaker?” you asked. 

“I’m not!” she said. “I can just see that he likes you a lot...maybe more than a lot.” You paused in your tracks. 

“What do you know?” you asked, your eyes narrowed. 

“Nothin’,” Judith said, but you weren’t buying it. 

“Remember Jude, I watched you grow up. I can see through you,” you said.

“Nope, I’m a wall!” she announced as she bit into her apple again. 

“Right,” you snorted.

“But are you okay?” she asked, this time her voice was a bit more serious. Well, as serious as a ten or eleven-year-old could be. 

“Yeah, kid, I’m okay. I actually think I figured it all out,” you said. Which was true, you had figured it out, but now you were just trying to get the courage to do something about it. All in all, no matter how angry you were with him or how upset, what you felt for Negan was bigger than all of it. 

“Good,” she said with a smile. As the two of you walked, you began to feel a chill in the air. You noticed Lydia and Henry up ahead walking hand in hand and as your breath became visible before you, you shivered. “I think a storm is coming,” Judith said. 

“Yeah?” 

“I can feel it,” she said. 

“Where’d you learn that trick?” 

“From Mom who learned it from Uncle Daryl,” Judith said. You couldn’t help but smile at her then.

“Smart,” you said and she laughed before grabbing your hand and dragging you further into the fray, her candy apple swinging alongside her.

---------

Back in Alexandria, Negan lay on the floor of his cell as he tossed a ball in his hands. 

When the door to the cell opened, he had no idea who it could be and because he knew it wasn’t you, he didn’t care. However, when he heard the person clear their throat, he did sit up. 

“What do I owe this pleasure?” he asked. Laura stepped further into the light and in her hands was a new winter coat. 

“there’s a storm on the way,” she said. “I was asked to give you this.” Negan stood as she passed it through the bars. 

“Thanks, Laura,” he said and she nodded. Negan hadn’t spoken to his former lieutenant since the fall of the Sanctuary, at least no more than a few words here and there. 

“I’m sorry,” Laura suddenly said. Negan was confused as he braced a hand on the bars. 

“What are you apologizing for? Isn’t that my job?” he asked. 

“I’m sorry that your life ended up like...this,” she said, but Negan was already shaking his head. 

“Don’t apologize for the shit that I did,” he said. “You know better than anyone that what I was doin’ was eventually gonna get me dead or locked up. I guess I can just be glad that Rick didn’t cut any further than he did.” Laura nodded, hearing him. 

“Still, you were always fair to me and kind. I also wanted to thank you. While being a Savior wasn’t the most moral of things, if you hadn’t found me all those years ago and brought me to the Sanctuary, I’d be dead.”

“Silver lining, then?” he offered.

“A small one,” Laura said. Negan smiled softly at that. 

“I’m proud of you, Kid. You managed to make a new life, one that I should have tried to give you years ago. Don’t screw it up.” 

“I won’t if you won’t,” she said and then offered her fist to him. He bumped it with his own. 

“I’ll take that deal,” Negan said. Laura smiled and then went to leave, but right before she left, she turned one last time. 

“Oh and if you hurt (Y/N), I’ll castrate you with a rusty spoon,” she said with a grin before leaving. Negan stared after her and he was suddenly very aware of everything on his body. 

“Fucking hell.”

-------

Eventually, it was time to head to Hilltop. 

When you told Aaron you were going to help, he wasn’t surprised. “I knew you couldn’t sit still for long,” he had said. “Just be careful.”

You promised that you would and headed to the main gate to prepare to leave. Daryl was getting his bike off the trailer when you found him. You were tightening your sword’s scabbard when he looked up. 

“Ready to go?” you asked. 

“Yeah,” he said. “Lydia is gonna stay here and then Aaron and Gabriel will bring her to Alexandria.”

“Sounds good,” you said. 

“Mmhmm,” he said. “Are you in any rush to get back there?” 

“You and Judith spend too much time together,” you said with a knowing look. 

“So, you and Negan…”

“We really don’t need to talk about it, D,” you said. 

“Are ya sure?”

“I’m so over talking about it,” you admitted. “I just gotta do something.”

“When ya do, I don’t need the details,” he snarked. 

“Asshole,” you muttered and he just smirked. “Where ya gonna go after we get to Hilltop? I heard Ezekiel offering you to make Kingdom your home.” 

“Not sure if this place is gonna last much longer,” he said with a sigh. 

“You know that Alexandria is always going to be your home, right? No matter how long it’s been.” 

“I know,” he said. 

“We can’t keep running, Daryl. Come home,” you said. He was quiet for a moment before he dropped his head. 

“Alright,” he agreed, “but after we handle Hilltop.” 

“Okay.” 

Soon everyone was saying goodbye and assuring that they would all be safe. Tara was sending her people out first before following after. Ezekiel was trying to get her to stay for the rest of the fair, but she said that she needed to get home. So, Dianne was going to lead her soldiers home. 

As you were securing Daryl’s bow to his bike, you noticed him with Dog as he spoke to Connie. It was subtle, but there was something about his body language that told you a lot. Perhaps Connie was more than just a friend. You watched on as he awkwardly waved to her and when he turned back to you, his eyes narrowed. 

“Shut up,” he said as he went up to you. 

“I didn’t say anything,” you said. 

“Nah, but you were thinking it. I can see it on your face,” he said. 

“She’s pretty,” you said. 

“And yer annoyin’,” he countered. 

“Hey, who am I to judge?” you said with your hands raised. 

“Yeah, exactly.” With a roll of your eyes, you climbed onto the back of Daryl’s bike as he took the spot in front. Michonne waved to Judith as you and the others pulled out of Kingdom. You hadn’t seen Lydia before you left, but Ezekiel said that he would keep an eye on her for you. 

It was odd that you had essentially become her advocate with Daryl as her main protector. You never imagined you would essentially become a parent to a messed up teen, but here you were. 

Yumiko and Magna rode behind you, their weapons at the ready and you kept your head on a swivel as you all move through the woods. Walkers were around, but only a few at a time and were easily taken out by the archers. Still, any time one would make itself known, you could feel Daryl tense in front of you. It was going to be a long night.

You were well into the ride when you came across three men who flagged you down. 

Carol seemed to know them as she walked up to meet them. “What’s wrong, Ozzy?” she asked. 

“Ya gotta see this, Boss,” the man, Ozzy, said. He seemed very concerned as he gestured you all forward. Daryl shouldered his bow as he followed and you and Michonne were right behind him, both of your hands on your swords. 

The Highway Men, as Carol referred to them, had been acting as security and watchers for The Kingdom. They were good trackers, fighters, and were the newest addition to the community. What they had found on their patrol, worried you a lot. 

It looked as if a pack of wild animals had attacked a caravan. “We were clearing the roads. Spotted tracks leading here,” Ozzy said. 

“It's from Hilltop,” Yumiko said, holding up one of the wooden pendants that were crafted there. The same one that Lydia wore around her neck. 

“Walkers didn’t do this,” you said with a glance to Daryl “This was people.”

“Skins?” Michonne asked and then looked to the Highway Men. “You know about them?”

“We got the download,” Ozzy confirmed. “We would have seen any people out here with my patrols, but not if they were covered in Skins.”

“Fantastic,” you said, your nerves growing. 

“(Y/N),” Daryl called, “look at this.” You met him down by the broken carriage and realized what he was seeing. 

“They fought back,” you said. “They were dragged away. That way,” you said with a point. 

“Come on,” Daryl said. 

“We can’t all go,” Dianne said. “If this was the Whisperers, then they would have followed this from Hilltop. We need to get back.”

“Michonne and I will go with (Y/N) and Daryl,” Carol said. “Rest of you ride for Hilltop.”

“We can continue our patrols around here,” Ozzy said and Carol nodded. 

“Alright,” said Michonne. “We’ll see if we can find them and bring them home.” You nodded to Michonne and then everyone was shaking hands and promising to meet up later. Yumiko then joined you, offering her bow. 

“Stay close and if you see Walkers, don’t hesitate. They could be Whisperers,” you said. 

“And if they are,” Michonne said, “go for the kill.”

—————

“I really don’t like this,” you said as you walked next to Yumiko. Carol and Daryl were in the front while Michonne was at the back, her Katana in her hand.

“Neither do I,” Yumiko said as she gripped her bow tighter. “Do you people do this a lot?”

“Only when it’s necessary,” you said. “We try not to get involved, but we usually end up doing just that.”

“I don’t know how you do it,” she said.

“We do it because nobody else will.”

“And your families, are they okay with this?”

“My family is right in front of me,” you said. “We’ve been fighting since day one, I don’t think any of that is going to change.”

“Then I’m glad that I have you on my side,” Yumiko said and you gave her a half-smile.

“Me too.”

Daryl was tracking the Hilltop members that were attacked. You kept back, but mirrored his steps, just in case he missed anything. He never did, but it was a force of habit. All you could think about was Alpha’s face and every shadow in the woods was keeping you on edge.

“Don’t give her an inch…” Negan had said. He had wanted you to be strong and you weren’t going to let him down. Whatever happened when you saw him again, it didn’t matter. You just needed to see his face again. That was what kept you going.

You had to get home to Negan.

“Magna is worried about me,” Yumiko said, trying to change the mood. You nodded, grateful for the distraction.

“That’s actually a good thing. It means she cares about you,” you said.

“Do you have one? A Magna?” Yumiko asked.

“Sort of,” you said with a sigh. “It’s complicated.”

“Word of advice,” Yumiko said. “Uncomplicate it because if you are lucky to have them, you better keep them.”

“Thanks, Yumiko,” you said and she knocked your shoulder with her own.

As you walked, Michonne and you both took down Walkers with your blades, taking their heads off their shoulders. It took you a few to get the hang of the new weapon, but it was beginning to feel natural. You would definitely need to do some proper training with Michonne when you got home though.

It was after dusk when Daryl told everyone to halt. Then, from out of the trees came Walkers that you instantly recognized.

“They’re from Hilltop!” you said as you went for the first one. In a long arc, you swung your sword at the Dead man who came at you. His head was cut from his body and you pierced the brain as it rolled to your feet.

From there on, more and more Dead converged as the sun set and darkness wrapped around the five of you. “I can’t see,” Yumiko said.

“Stay together!” Daryl shouted, placing you at his back as you and Michonne leveled your blades. The archers, all three of them, let go of their bows and drew their knives. Daryl held two blades in each of his hands as he prepared to strike.

“Watch their hands!” Michonne yelled as the Walkers fell upon you. You could feel the blood from the other Dead splashing on the back of your neck as you fought your own Walkers.

Your arms stung from the exertion, but you couldn’t slow down. Fear settled into your bones as you fought, but Negan’s voice returned to you.

“You are stronger than them and the only way they win is if you let them,” he had said and with those words being screamed in your head, you swung again, feeling your adrenaline spike.

“Back to the road!” Daryl yelled and everyone began running. “This way,” he grunted reaching for you, but before you could find him in the dark, the sound of a gun cocking had everyone freezing in their steps.

“Drop them,” a horrific whisper said and if you hadn't already been scared, that sound chilled you to your soul. More and more whispers came from around you and your grip loosened on your sword. “I won’t ask twice.”

“Beta…” Daryl sneered and you felt your heart fall into your heart. Beta was alive and you could feel the anger that echoed around him. One by one you all dropped your weapons and the Skins picked them up. Seeing the dirty hands of a Whisperer touch Paul’s sword made you sick.

“You just had to give me the girl,” Beta whispered. “No one else had to die. Now that deal...is done.” His words washed over you and no matter how many times you tried to focus on Negan’s face or his voice, all you heard was Beta’s horrifying voice.

“You touch the girl and I’ll tear your throat out with my teeth,” you snarled. Beta walked up to you and grabbed you by the throat, angling your face to meet his. You stared back with unwavering disgust.

“You make veiled threats,” he said.

“Come a little closer and we’ll see how veiled they are,” you said, pushing in closer. Beta shoved you back and you stumbled into Carol who quickly righted you.

“Take them,” Beta ordered and his people moved in.

One by one, you were tied up. The Skins tied your hands behind your back and pressed blades to your backs, forcing you to walk ahead, leading you somewhere. Your heart was trying to leap from your chest, but you took deep breaths as you tried to keep a level head.

You could still smell the rot that revolved around Beta and it made your stomach churn. You were forced to walk behind Yumiko whose hands were moving. In the moonlight, you could make out some of the shapes and realized she was signing.

“Stay calm,” she was signing over and over again. You were very grateful then that you knew ASL well enough to understand her.

You walked for a bit longer before you reached a clearing and suddenly, you were seven years younger. You half expected for headlights to light up the surrounding area. Daryl and Michonne must have felt it too as they were tense as well.

However, this time, Negan would not be there to just kill two of you. Beta could slaughter all of you for no reason and then turn his sights on Kingdom, Alexandria, and then Hilltop and Oceanside. This was it, you thought, you were going to die.

The Whisperers pushed you into a semicircle, making sure your hands were still secured. You were between Daryl and Michonne and tried to focus on their breathing, but it was difficult. Even if they were thinking of an escape plan, nobody could voice it and nobody was coming to save you.

From the darkness, Alpha finally made herself known. She crept through the night like a predator stalking her prey. Expect, Alpha didn’t kill for food, she killed for sport.

“You ain’t getting her back,” Daryl said, facing down the Matron of the pack.

“You think this is about my daughter?” Alpha asked, tilting her head. “I ran into some trouble on the road,” she said, wiping blood from the knife in her hands on her pants. You struggled against your bonds, wanting to rip her eyes out with your nails. “It was unavoidable.”

“Bullshit,” you shot, but Alpha ignored you.

“Do you like my new camp?” she asked. “My people like to keep moving, keep roaming.”

“We’ve granted Lydia asylum,” you said. “You try to take her and we will fight back.”

“What is your name?” Alpha asked, stopping in front of you.

“...(Y/N),” you said.

“Do they speak for you?” Alpha asked the others.

“We speak for each other,” Daryl countered. Alpha sniffed, unaffected by Daryl’s attempt at camaraderie. Instead, she continued to pace in front of the five of you.

“My daughter isn’t a concern anymore. She was weak, she never lived up to expectations.”

“Was?” you asked as the worst-case scenario entered your mind. “What did you do to her!” Still, Alpha ignored you.

“To be clear,” she said, “your group is in no position to threaten me. That is a habit that needs to be broken.”

“Oh, I’ll break something,” you threatened and Alpha merely smiled at you as if you were some child she was humoring. Turning her attention back to Daryl she pointed at him.

“Come with me,” Alpha said. “Just you.” Beta cut Daryl’s bonds and then pushed him forward. You struggled to go after him, but you couldn’t move.

Daryl glanced back at you once more before following Alpha into the darkness of the trees.

-------

Daryl was gone for a while, and with every minute that ticked by, you grew more fearful that his body was somewhere being torn apart by the Dead.

You, Michonne, Carol, and Yumiko were sitting together by a fallen tree as you waited to be released. Beta was across from the four of you, watching the woods, waiting for his orders.

You began to think about Rick. What would he do right now? What would he say? You also began to think about the conversation you had once had with Negan about evil and humanity. 

Alpha and Beta were evil and there was no doubt about it. Evil was around you and you could not find a shred of light to hold onto. Rick had wanted to build a new world, but if this is what it was going to look like, you didn’t want it. 

“This is not how I’m dying,” you whispered. 

“Nobody is going to die,” Michonne said. “I don’t think Alpha wants to kill us.”

“She said ‘no one else had to die’, meaning she already killed those Hilltop people and now she’s going to keep going. With us.”

“Just try to stay calm.”

“This is me calm. I’m calm and I’m pissed.” 

“We’re going to get out of this,” Carol said who hadn’t taken her eyes off of Beta since she sat down. 

“I left too much shit unfinished,” you admitted, unable to stop yourself. 

“I know,” Michonne said and there was a bit of pity in the tone of her voice. “You know, I actually wish for his psycho ass right about now,” Michonne said and you couldn’t argue with that. 

“Don’t we all,” you agreed. 

“Who?” Carol asked and Michonne hesitated, but you just shrugged. 

“Negan,” Michonne said. 

“Who’s that?” Yumiko asked.

“Asshole who we have locked up back home,” said Michonne. 

“You think he could take on Beta?” Carol asked, but you shook your head. 

“I don’t think a bulldozer could take on Beta,” you said with a glare in the man’s direction. 

“Negan would be a good distraction,” Michonne figured and then stopped speaking as she saw the look in your eyes. “Or not.” Carol looked at you in confusion. 

You couldn’t imagine Negan going up against someone like Beta. Everyone you had seen him fight, he had been the bigger one. He had been the one in charge and the one with the edge. Negan fighting Beta would have been like a Mustang charging a Semi Truck. That was not something you wanted to see. 

“Am I missing something?” Carol asked. 

“No,” you and Michonne said at the same time. Carol narrowed her eyes but didn’t push it any further. Instead, you all sat there in silence as you waited for the fate you were sure you were about to meet.

You didn’t know how much time had passed when the sun began to rise again. Nobody spoke and nobody moved as the Whisperers began to disperse. Beta then gestured to you and your companions. 

Slowly, his people approached and cut your bonds. Nobody dared to move as Beta watched over you. He then ordered his people to hand back your weapons. 

“Go West,” he sneered. “You’ll find your man.” 

“Come on,” Michonne said, moving Carol in front of her as Yumiko followed. You hesitated, glaring at Beta who leveled his knife at you in something that felt like a promise. Almost as if he was saying that the next time he saw you, he was going to kill you. In your mind, you made the same promise. 

The sun rose quickly as you hiked through the woods, following Beta’s orders. “Something feels wrong,” you said as you fastened your sword to your side. Carol was holding Daryl’s bow and blades as you walked. 

“We got out, that’s all that matters,” Michonne said, but you had a feeling something was very wrong.

It didn’t take long for you to find Daryl. 

He seemed unharmed, but you could tell he was angry. Carol reached him first, handing him his bow and kissing him on the cheek. Michonne hugged him too and Yumiko clapped him on the shoulder. When he reached you, you hugged him tightly.

“I thought she was going to kill you,” you said. 

“Nah, not yet,” he said and then nodded his head in another direction. “This way.” 

You all followed Daryl who seemed to be on a mission. Whatever Alpha had told him had him set on a path and you were willing to go with him no matter what. 

You walked until the sun was finally above you and then, Daryl picked up his speed. “Daryl?” you called, but he just kept running. Eventually, you saw what he was running towards. “Oh my god.” 

“Siddiq!” Michonne yelled as she ran up the hill towards the Doctor who was leaning against a dead tree and behind him, was another. 

“Enid!” you yelled as you saw her struggling as well. You slid to her side, using one of Daryl’s knife that he tossed to you to cut her bonds. As soon as she was free, she nearly crawled to you, gripping you tight. Enid was shaking and so was Siddiq who held onto Michonne. “Shh, it’s okay,” you assured her. 

“What happened?” Michonne asked, but both of them could barely speak.

“I… I…,” Siddiq stuttered out as Enid pointed up the hill with tears in her eyes. Slowly, you pulled Enid into you and began the trek up the hill. 

“No…” you whispered in horror as you saw what was ahead. It was too far to make out details, but the smell of fresh and Dead blood wafted towards you. Enid was trembling in your arms as tears fell down her face. 

Nobody spoke as you crested the hill, but nobody needed to as you got closer. As soon as it became apparent what was before you, Yumiko fell to her knees and Michonne gasped in pain. 

At the top of the hill were nine pikes and on each one, was the head of someone you knew.

You started at the beginning, your bones as cold as ice as milky white eyes stared at you. They hadn’t killed the brain and as you looked at the first pike, Ozzy, the Highway Man, was staring at you with vacant eyes and a gaping mouth. Next to him was Alek, and then, DJ. 

Your heart sank as you saw who was next. Frankie, one of Negan’s former wives and a spitfire of a woman. Her red hair blew in the wind as blood and gore dripped from the flesh at the base of her severed neck. 

Tammy was next and Enid cried harder as she saw the older woman. A woman you knew who had taken care of Enid at Hilltop. You struggled to keep the young woman upright, but it was difficult as you nearly collapsed when you saw the next two. 

Rodney and Addy. 

The teens that you knew from Hilltop were gasping with their breathless mouths as their gray skin dulled in the sunlight, but who was next made you crash to the ground. 

“No!” you screamed as you saw Tara’s dark hair blowing in the wind.

Enid fell next to you as the woman who she saw as a sister stared at her with empty eyes. Sobs echoed out of you as you stared at her, but that wasn’t compared to Daryl who immediately began yelling. 

“No, No!” he yelled as he ran for Carol “Just look at me, just look at me,” he said as he held onto his best friend. That’s when you finally looked at the final pike and everything around you broke. 

It was Henry. 

Enid was leaning all of her weight onto you just as Siddiq was doing to Michonne. Carol had fallen into Daryl and Yumiko was crying as she beheld the horror. 

Alpha had done this. She had taken these people from you, but left two alive as witnesses. She had killed children, friends, leaders, and left you feeling empty. 

You had been through so much, lost so much, and, yet this felt as if someone had torn your soul from your body. As the wind continued to blow, all you could hear were Enid’s screams and Carol’s sobs as yet another child was stolen from her. 

---------

“We were there,” Siddiq began as he stood on the stage in The Kingdom.

You stood next to Daryl and Lydia was in front of you both as you listened. Enid was across from you in the protective arms of Alden who hadn’t let her go since you returned. 

“Enid and I were taken with the others. And I saw... We were supposed to die with them and I was ready to.” Siddiq went on, speaking for both him and Enid considering she could barely say a word. Aaron was sure she was in shock. 

Siddiq went on, “Then, Alpha whispered in our faces as she knelt before us, ‘Tell them’, she said… she then said that two sets of eyes were better than one. Then, something hit me, and everything went black.”

Lydia leaned back into you and you gripped her tight. You noticed that Daryl was holding onto the other side of her. You knew that you needed to protect her now more than ever. 

“And when I woke up, it was just the two of us,” Siddiq said with a look to Enid who stared back with red-rimmed eyes. “What happened was evil. It was evil. And I think she left us alive to tell you that story. To scare you and to drive us all apart again. But I want to tell you a different story.” Siddiq then looked at you and you could see that he was struggling. You gave him a nod of encouragement. 

“See,” he went on, “before the end... Ozzy, Alek, and DJ found us and they gave us an opening. And everyone fought back. They fought like hell. And what they did was more than brave. 'Cause they defended each other. And they sacrificed for each other... And some of them... they didn't even know each other, but they still fought like they did. Like they were family. 'Till the very end.”

Tears were flowing from his eyes and your own, but you tried to put on a brave face for him, for Enid. 

“And in the end, they... Their time was cut short, but ours keeps going. So we have to keep going. For them and for all of us. We need to honor them. We need to honor them, and we need to remember these friends, our family, died as heroes. That's the story that I want to tell you. That's the story that I want us all to remember.”

In the quiet of the fair as Ezekiel and Carol cried in silence, you swore that you would remember and when it came down to it, you would avenge them.

—————

Once the pikes were taken care of and the tears stopped, for the time being, people began to move out. 

However, as winter moved in, The Kingdom was no longer capable to house the members of the community. They would need to move and Michonne was going to stay to help them do that.

While you wanted nothing more to help, you needed to be somewhere else, with someone else. As you stood by the main building of The Kingdom’s square, Michonne approached you. 

“There’s a storm coming,” she said quietly, her voice a bit hoarse from crying. You were sure that yours sounded the same. 

“I know.” 

“We need to move these people to Hilltop and Alexandria,” she said and you nodded in agreement. “(Y/N),” she said, “can you get her home, please?” 

Turning to look at her, you were surprised to hear the desperation in her tone. “Michonne?” you asked. 

“Please, get Judith home and protect her. Protect my daughter,” she said, once again on the verge of tears. You pulled her into your arms and clutched at your friend. You hadn’t been the closest with Michonne since she arrived at the gates of the prison, but you had a feeling that was about to change. 

When you pulled back, you held her by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “I will,” you said. “I will protect her with my life.” 

“They were brave,” Michonne whispered and you knew who she meant. 

“Yes, they were,” you agreed. “And we will not let their deaths be in vain.” Michonne nodded, gripping your arms. 

“Go to him,” she said. 

“Michonne…”

“No, you listen to me,” she said as it was her turn to be serious. “I do not care what people think about him. Don’t worry about that. He could have lost you and as much as I have my demons when it comes to Negan, you have to go. Trust me when I say that Death does not discriminate when it comes to the man someone loves. Even if that man is...unconventional.” 

“But…”

“No,” she cut you off. “Take Judith and go home. Stop overthinking it, (Y/N). You said you had left things unfinished, right?”

“Right.”

“Then, finish them.”

—————-

The ride to Alexandria was very different than the departure. 

You rode on a horse alongside the carriage that held Gabriel, Aaron, Gracie, Judith, Eugene, and others. Nobody spoke and nobody relaxed until the comforting gates of Alexandria were in view. 

For the kids’ sake you put on a brave face, but as soon as your horse came to a stop and the gates slid closed, you could barely keep it together. “Scott!” you called as you dismounted. He ran up to you as you helped Judith down from the makeshift carriage. “Take her,” you begged the man. He nodded as he gathered his bag. You then turned to Judith. “You need to go to your brother,” you said. 

“What?” she asked. 

“Go find RJ and give him the biggest hug he can handle, okay?” Judith nodded at your words.

“Are you going to be okay?” 

“Not for a while,” you admitted, and then she was wrapping her small arms around you and you let a tear slide down your cheek. “I’m going to come over later and we’ll have dinner, okay?”

“Okay,” she whispered and with a final squeeze, you let her go as she ran after Scott who was waiting for her. Ignoring Aaron, Eugene, and the others, you turned your back on the stables and began to run. 

You didn’t slow as you ran towards the main street. Your boots slid on the slick spots of ice that littered the ground, but you kept going. Stopping before the Grimes house, you searched your pockets for your key ring. 

You couldn’t get your hands to stop shaking as you found the right one and jogged down the steps towards the jail. Slipping the key in the lock, you shoved the door open.

The loud noise alerted Negan to your presence. He was laying on his cot, but when he saw the tears that flowed down your cheeks and coated your collar, he launched to his feet. 

“(Y/N)?” he asked, staring at you in shock. You kept moving, switching the key on the ring and inserting it into the lock of the cell itself. You wrenched it open and faced him, taking him all in. “What happened?” he asked, staring at you with concern. 

You didn’t answer him right away. Instead, you took your time to memorize his face, the set of his jaw, how his shoulders were settled on his torso, and especially that wonderful light that was in his eyes. You choked back another sob as you moved into his space. 

“(Y/N)?” Negan asked you again. Reaching up, you placed your hands on his face, feeling the warmth of life beneath his skin. With a deep breath, you got your voice back. 

“Don’t make me lose you, too,” you whispered and then, you gripped him by the back of his neck and pulled his lips to yours.

Negan immediately wrapped his arms around you, holding you closer to him as he kissed you back without hesitation. It was as if a dam broke inside you as light burst behind your eyes. Negan kissed you tenderly, but it was full of urgency as well. 

Pulling yourself tighter against him, you were worried that he would be pulled away at any moment. He didn’t seem to be ready to let go either as he lifted you up, tilting his head back to get a better angle.

Your tears dripped down onto his face, wetting the stubble on his jaw, but he didn’t care. Negan didn’t care about anything else at that moment. All he cared about was you in his arms as he finally got to show much you meant to him.

When you pulled back to get some air, he set you down. Negan looked at you in awe and while you knew you had to explain what had happened, there was something you had to say first. Something that you had felt for a long time. 

“I love you, Negan,” you said, your voice soft as it mingled with his own breath. He looked in your eyes and you watched as the words resonated with him. His eyes grew softer and all the tension in his body dissolved. Negan reached up and placed his hand against your face. 

“I love you, too,” he said and then pulled your lips back to his.

You clutched at the man in your arms, your new reason for living. You knew that war was finally coming and that Death was not done with any of you yet, but in that small cell, in the arms of the man you loved, you let it all become whispers on the wind as the first snowflakes began to fall.

TAGS:

@lucillethings​ @stark-dreams​ @amaroho​​ @thanossexual​​

@yes-sir-hotchner​​ @boom-bunny​​ @delusionalteenagewhispers​​

@scootankle @ritajammer21 @writteriguess @tea-atfive @jennydehavilland @waspyyy @yespleasejayhalstead @fmunegan @hoemadegrace @writingdeadangel 

@pulplorrd​

[shawtygonemad]

Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better.

A/N: This story is dedicated to my uncle and cousins who are hard of hearing. Even with my botched ASL you all still love me. 

Daryl Dixon x Connie

One-Shot

- Please note that anything signed will be in bold and anything written will be in italics.

Connie woke that morning bright and chipper. The sun wasn’t even up yet and she was already getting her day started. Her sister on the other hand was not much of a morning person. Connie was kind enough to let her sleep until the sun rose. She always enjoyed finding different little ways to wake her little sister up. Some days it’s tickling her nose with a leaf while other days she practically flops down on her. 

Today Kelly happened to be in a deep sleep in which nothing barely woke her. Connie breathed out a sigh of annoyance at that. All of her tricks didn’t work. Instead she took it upon herself to draw on her sister’s bare arm. She smirked as she slowly got to work. The older woman was no artist, but she still had fun. She wrote ‘World’s Best Sister’, but crossed out best and wrote ‘Okayest’ above it. Then she drew some other pictures and wrapped it up by putting Kelly and her crushes initials together in a heart. 

Once she became bored she decided to go downstairs for some breakfast. Today would be an uneventful day since neither of them had been assigned to do anything. Connie was never a fan of days off. She always needed to be doing something and loved to help out. They should always be doing something to earn their keep. The people of Alexandria were kind enough to let them have their own house. A house that just so happened to be next door to the tall and ruggedly handsome Daryl Dixon. The newly unofficial leader of Alexandria since Michonne left. He lived there with his niece, nephew, Lydia, and dog. Their family dynamic was so cute to watch. For a man who never really had a family until the end of the world he was trying his best and doing a damn good job of it. 

Even though Connie may not be able to hear she could still feel vibrations from noise. That’s how she knew her sister finally woke up and discovered her new tattoo sleeve. She could feel the stomping through the ceiling. When she could feel the rushed, heavy, footsteps coming down the stairs. She grinned and chuckled to herself as she bolted it for the front door. If she didn’t run now then her sister would for sure catch her which would end up in a wrestling match on the floor. 

The warm morning air and sunshine hit her face as she booked it down the front stairs. She looked around for a hiding spot when she noticed Daryl standing on his porch smoking a cigarette. He watched her with curious eyes. Knowing she had less than a minute before her sister caught up to her Connie bolted it for Daryl. He was caught by surprise when she hid behind him. They were back to back with their bodies aleigned from their ankles all the way to where her curly locks reached the middle of his shoulder blades. 

As if timed perfectly, Kelly busted out the front door and looked around for her sister. Thankfully Daryl decided to roll with the odd situation and acted casul. Kelly noticed him and decided to approach since he was close friends with Connie. Or rather, more than close friends she always teased her older sister. 

“Have you seen Connie,” Kelly asked. 

Daryl stood still as to not expose his friend for whatever reason she was hiding. 

He cleared his throat before speaking, “Not this mornin’. Why?”

“‘Cause she’s sneaky and devious and knows that I’m a deep sleeper,” the teen huffed before retreating from the porch. 

Once the coast was clear Daryl nudged his ankle against hers to signal it was safe. When she rounded to his front she had a huge devious smirk on her face. The hunter shook his head in amusement. This woman was always up to something. It’s what he admired about her the most. Even in the darkest of days she was still able to smile and see the bright side. 

“What you do,” he shakily signed. 

Connie smiled as she reached for the notepad and pen in her back pocket. Her heart always felt a warm squeeze every time he signed to her. She almost cried when she discovered he had an ASL study book. He was trying. Not only that, but he was trying for her. Not a lot of people did that or even wanted to waste that kind of time. They usually spoke louder, elongated their words, or just wrote down in her notepad. Most times Kelly had to translate. Unfortunately this wasn’t anything new. People weren’t considerate in the old world and they sure as hell weren’t in this new world. 

“You’re getting better,” she wrote before giving him some tips on how to properly say ‘what did you do’. Without those extra words he just sounded hilariously like a caveman. “I was bored, so I drew on her while she was asleep.”

“Why,” he signed that one with ease. 

“Why not,” Connie grinned. 

She knew Daryl understood her because he seemed to be chuckling while shaking his head.

 “Do you have any plans for today,” she wrote on the paper. 

She noticed him shake his head and his mouth move to a ‘na’ sound which usually meant no for him. It was his heavy southern accent she had to get used to. He even signed with a southern accent much to his bewilderment. 

This man was so incredible. He was kind, enjoyed learning and never got offended when corrected, and sometimes it was hard to read his lips. Not because of his accent, but because she started to wonder how they feel on her own. Even though his lips seemed slightly chapped compared to hers she just knew the kiss would feel amazing. 

“Might go hunting or something,” he wrote. 

“I’ll go with,” she excitedly replied. 

“‘S not a good idea,” he spoke as he turned his head to make sure he still had an eye on Dog. 

Connie frowned before gripping his chin and bringing it back to face her. She gestured with her fingers that he should look at her when he speaks so she can read his lips. He took a deep breath before speaking again. 

“I hunt better alone.”

“Being alone is dangerous,” she signed. 

Daryl’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried to understand what she said. The only thing he caught was dangerous. She must have been telling him the dangers of going out alone. He pointed his thumb in the direction of his pet across the street. 

“I got Dog.”

Connie stared at him blankly before writing in her pad again. She held it up for him to see, her face still neutral. 

“Because he’s so ferocious.” 

He could practically hear the sarcasm in her handwriting. He turned back around the check on his animal. Dog was currently sitting across the street on a patch of grass with his niece Judith. She was currently painting his nails with a sparkly blue polish that Connie found for her. Dog sat there patiently while allowing her to do so. He tail was wagging ever so slightly so you knew he was enjoying it. Daryl rolled his eyes before turning back to his neighbor.

“Fine. We leave in an hour,” he told her before stepping off the porch to retrieve his dog.  

Soon the pair were off trekking through the woods with a begrudging Dog. He must have really wanted to stay at his spa day with Judith. The thought made Connie chuckle. Daryl glanced over at her, but didn’t say a word. Her chuckle was sweet but he thought nothing could compare to her laugh. It was so bright and boisterous. It was able to bring light to even the darkest days. 

Daryl noticed Dog froze in his steps. This caused Daryl to stop and hold his arm out for Connie to follow suit as well. He placed a finger on his lips - a universal sign to be quiet. She rose an eyebrow at him. As if she didn’t know to be quiet already. Does this man really think she’s never been hunting before? What does he think kept her and Kelly alive this entire time. 

She swiftly took out her slingshot before bending down to grab a sharp and rigid rock. It was placed in the holder and fired off before Daryl could even lift his crossbow. With the speed, force, and rigidness from the rock it was easily able to go straight through the woodchuck’s head. Daryl looked at her impressed. She gave him a knowing smirk before signaling Dog to go retrieve it. When he returned she tossed Daryl the animal to put on the kill string. She placed her hands on her hips as she stared Daryl down. She then tried to speak. 

“Anything you can do, I can do better,” she sassed. 

Even though it was a little hard to understand, Daryl could hear her clear as day. He quickly snatched the notepad from Connie’s back pocket, much to her surprise. Once he was finished scratching down his sentence he lifted the pad up for her to see. 

“Is that a challenge?” It said. 

She grinned in excitement at the idea of this game. She was always competitive, and she had a feeling Daryl was too. The notebook was grabbed back and she began to write on it while snickering. Soon she lifted it up to show the redneck. There were two columns. One said Connie and the other said Daryl. Connie had 1 tally mark in her column while Daryl had a frowny face. Daryl laughed. 

“We’ll see who’s frowning afterwards.”

“Bet?” she signed. 

“What’s the wager,” Daryl asked, slightly afraid of her punishment. 

She wrote down on the pad again before lifting it up. 

“Winner’s choice?”

That made Daryl feel a little more at ease. It also meant that he'd have to work his ass off to beat her. He really wanted to win and had a great prize in mind. Connie may be good, but he’s been hunting for 35+ years. He nodded in agreement with her. They even shook hands to make it official. 

This game took place for hours. Both of them enjoying the hunt, a few laughs, but especially each other’s company. They were so entranced with hunting that they completely forgot to even keep score. Hunting with the two could have continued all day, but it was already late afternoon. Dog was the one to call it a day. He was laying down panting hard, too tired to go and retrieve the final catch. The humans decided to agree with him. Besides, they had plenty of meat to feed their entire community. All three of them walked back in comfortable silence. It wasn’t until they were inside the gates of Alexandria and before their houses that they remembered the game. 

Connie practically flung the notepad open just for her to frown. They stopped placing tally’s after 3 catches each. Technically they both won by the Talley's.

“A tie,” she signed. 

Her heartbeat sped up. During the entire hunt she was thinking of what his punishment should be. The only thing that kept circling back was for him to kiss her. She finally told herself that she would do it, and psyched herself up the entire time in the woods. Now it was a tie, and her stomach tightened in disappointment. She lost her chance. 

“What does that mean,” he asked, seeming slightly disappointed as well. 

“We both win?” she wrote.

“What did you want,” he sketched beside her reply. 

Her heart sped up again. Maybe she could still get her chance. It was either now or never. She decided to throw all insecurities to the wind and go for it. 

“This…” she slowly signed before placing her two hands on each side of his face. 

She brought him down to her level and kissed his lips. They were warm and slightly wet from him licking them moments ago. To both of their surprise he kissed her back with ease. Only Daryl was still awkward and unsure of where to put his hands. This made Connie smile into his lips and she grabbed his hands and placed them on her waist. This seemed to be the confirmation Daryl needed to fully get into it. He placed one hand on the back of her neck and deepened the kiss. Shortly after they were out of breath and had to pull away. They just stared into one another’s eyes trying to be sure that what just occurred really happened. A devious smile soon formed on Daryl’s face when he noticed how out of breath and flustered Connie was. 

“Anythin’ you can do, I can do better,” he said.

[yourdeepestfathoms]

pegasus grounded (part one)

[horse racing au]

———————————

...and they’re off!

 “Lawrence will you stop cringing and HELP ME?”

Barbara’s partner peeked into the barn, his face pale and expression disgusted, then immediately yanked himself back out.

 “Oh, that is so gross! I didn’t sign up for this!”

 “You didn’t sign up for ANYTHING! I am letting you LIVE in MY HOUSE for FREE! So get your ass OVER HERE and HELP ME!”

Standing against the far wall of the barn, Adam, Barbara’s husband, and Lydia, their young farmhand, stood by, watching the exchange go down. Lydia was holding any tools that might have been needed. The barn cat, Hemlock, came strolling by, took one glance at the scene, then bounded out.

 “Are they…?” Lydia’s words trailed off as she scratched the top of her head. “Does this…?”

 “Oh, yeah,” Barbara said, looking over at her. “This is our process!” And then, shrilly, “LAWRENCE!!!”

 “You have your ARM in a horse’s VAGINA!! You never said anything about THAT when I came to live with you!”

 “I’ll stick my arm up YOUR VAGINA if you don’t get over here!”

 “I don’t have a vagina!!”

 “I DON’T CARE!!” Barbara then quieted her voice and stroked the fur of Latte, the foaling horse she was assisting, “Shh, Shh, Shh. It’s okay, sweetie. You’re okay… LAWRENCE I SWEAR TO GOD!!”

 “Okay! Okay! I’m coming!”

Beetlejuice dragged himself over to the fallen horse and did his best to not look at the hooves sticking out of the mare’s vagina.

After some time went by, Barbara was pulling on the foal’s front legs, sticky and wet with birthing fluid and covered in the placenta. She was doing her best to be gentle, yet firm enough to pull out the baby, but the mare continued to let out louder whinnies. Adam gripped tightly to his shirt as he watched. They had already lost three dams that season. They couldn’t take losing another.

Despite its name, The Netherworld was one of the most successful horse ranches in all of America. In terms of the equine community, Barbara and Adam Maitland were basically famous. They had bred several winning foals from the finest mares and the strongest stallions. People came from miles just to bid on one of their colts or fillies. All the horses on their farm were like family, and losing them was like a shot straight to the heart.

 “Come on, girl. I can’t do it alone. Push.” Barbara said encouragingly, pulling out more of the baby.

 “Come on, Latte, push. You can do it.” Beetlejuice said to the mother. The horse’s wild, tired eyes looked up at him.

And then, as if she was actually listening, she began to push harder. The foal’s head slipped out a second later, followed by the rest of the upper body.

��“Hey! She’s doing it!” Beetlejuice exclaimed. “Oh, that is disgusting. But she’s doing it!”

 “Almost there,” Barbara murmured as she got a hold of the foal’s middle.

After a few minutes, the foal was finally out. A spew of birthing fluids and placenta followed, and Beetlejuice was darting out of the barn, causing Barbara to laugh as she peeled off the soaked glove she had on her arm.

 “Good work, Beej!” She called.

 “Urrg…” Beetlejuice groaned from outside.

 “You okay, love?”

 “Fine,” Beetlejuice replied, then grumbled, “Like you care…”

Barbara laughed again and then looked back down at the baby. The new foal looked just like its mother. Under all that goo was a beautiful, chestnut-colored mustang, with a sweet little patch of white on its nose. She just about swooned when she saw those large, gleaming brown eyes look up at her.

 “It’s a filly,” Barbara called to Adam, who was taking deep breaths of relief.

 “Oh, she’s perfect,” Adam said, walking over slowly. “I was so worried for a moment there. You know, after Misty and Prancer and Baylock…”

 “Hey,” Barbara cupped his cheeks, making him look at her. “That isn’t going to happen. We aren’t going to lose anymore.”

Adam nodded.

The filly began to gather her surroundings, looking around to see where she was while her mother licked and nuzzled her from above. After a moment, she slowly began to stand on her long legs, wobbling and tumbling down a few times, making Lydia laugh a bit before she finally started to get the hang of it. She clumsily tottered her way over to her mother and instantly began to nurse.

 “Can’t believe you made birth your profession,” Beetlejuice said as he entered again.

 “What do you think doctors do?” Adam looked at him.

 “I--” Beetlejuice shut his mouth. “Shut up.”

Adam laughed. Barbara shook her head, then looked over at Lydia.

 “What did you parents say about tonight?”

 “They said yes,” Lydia said.

 “Awesome!” Adam looked excited. “FINALLY, we can show you proper horse racing! Barbara, go get changed! Hurry!”

None of them blamed him for his energy. Horses were everything to them, and there was no better way to pass the time than watching horse races. This would be Lydia’s first time watching one firsthand since she was employed by them.

Lime Rock Raceway was a huge, towering stadium, filled with sharply-dressed patrons, colorful slot machines, and expensive fine wine. Barbara, her two partners, and Lydia got to watch the races from the highest point, where the whole track was stretched out before them, eager for their attention. They discussed their bets on the contenders in the next race as they waited.

 “That one.”

Beetlejuice scoffed.

Barbara did not. She continued to stare down at the horses filing onto the muddy racetrack. The one that had caught her eye was at the back of the pack, head held low, ears flicking all over as if it heard something nobody else did. She checked the number.

 “Beside The Dying Fire,” Adam said, having already looked. “Jockey’s name is Jeopardy.”

“What a curious name,” Barbara mused. “Must be a nickname.”

“I sure hope so,” Beetlejuice snorted. “Or else his parents must hate him.”

 “Why are they always men?” Lydia grumbled. She wasn’t having nearly as much fun as Adam had been hoping for, but Barbara didn’t blame her. Watching a horse race wasn’t for everyone.

She looked up at Barbara, asking again, “Can women not race or something?”

Barbara chuckled. “Of course they can. A lot just choose not to. It’s a very male-dominated sport.”

 “That’s weird,” Lydia said, squinting down through the glass at the jockey in question. Despite how thin all the riders were, this one in particular was awkwardly small compared to his competitors. His silks were red and white with black and white stripes down the long sleeves. “Aren’t jockeys supposed to be, like, light? Wouldn’t it make more sense for women to race? It’s easier to be lightweight when you’re a woman.”

 “You got a point there, kid,” Adam said.

 “The weight thing is so fucking stupid. Also, no offense, Babs, but you can’t possibly think that will win?”

Barbara turned to Beetlejuice with a coolly raised eyebrow, a smile playing around her mouth. “Do you doubt me?”

Beetlejuice grinned at her. “Never.”

Nobody knew exactly where Lawrence “Beetlejuice” Shoggoth had come from. He had just shown up one day down in town, presenting himself at Yonkers Raceway with dyed green hair and barely the clothes on his back. But when he started to ride, nobody cared about that anymore. Up on that saddle, Beetlejuice was unstoppable force of speed and grace. Nothing stopped his stride, ever. The races he rode seemed to unfurl as though to a script he had written; a script that left everyone else trailing behind his broad shoulders like a wake left in water. He was the best rider Barbara and Adam had ever seen, but never got to actually become professional due to the weight limit required to be a jockey. Now, he had become more mellow, living among Barbara and Adam as a horse trainer, wanting to teach others about his methods, but still not finding the right student. Nobody he ever came across was good enough for him and his golden wonder: Sandy aka “It’s Showtime,” a magnificent black and white thoroughbred mare with bulky muscles and a knack for sprinting.

Barbara winked at him. “Exactly.”

Out in the mud, the horses were lining up at the gate. Barbara’s bet, Beside The Dying Fire, had drawn a bad position, way over on the outside. Barbara glanced over the information again. The horse was coming up to age four, stood at a staggering seventeen hands, and had terrible form. His jockey was basically a nobody, too, as scrawny and aloof as the horse. And yet, she was drawn to the stallion. There was something to look at with that dull grey horse, even if nobody else saw it.

The racers came under starter’s orders and then they broke from the gate as one at the siren’s scream. It was a small field- plenty of hooves had scratched their own trenches from the earth due to the weather. Beside The Dying Fire hunkered down the outside, ears pulled back against the driving rain. Barbara watched him gallop, watched the low, straight stride stretch and release over the sodden ground. She had grown up around horseflesh, had watched races obsessively for years; she knew a good horse when she saw one.

This was not it.

But all the same, she found herself unable to look away. There was something.

Slogging through the slippery mud, Beside The Dying Fire did not display the brilliance locked deep within him--but when the finish line passed beneath him, his nose was one of the ones in front. Barbara could see the jockey, slathered in muck all over, smiling with relief.

Barbara smiled too, which turned to a smirk as she looked at Beetlejuice. “I told you.”

 “Never doubt you,” Beetlejuice said. He looked back down at the horse in question. “I’m glad I listened to you. Let’s go have a chat with this one.”

——— ——— ———

 “How many times do I have to tell you? Use your goddamn whip!”

 “I don’t want to! It’s mean!”

The sound of arguing echoed down the stable corridor like thunder.

 “Mean? What kind of PETA shit have you been looking at? It’s a damn animal. It doesn’t know anything.”

 “Peril knows a lot of things! He’s smart!”

 “You’re losing us so much money.”

 “I can win without hitting him. I don’t need a crop. I did good today!”

 “You got third. You should have gotten first.”

 “At least I wasn’t last.”

 “Each day you prove that your kind doesn’t belong in racing. Not unless you use your fucking whip!”

 “Well, I think I raced really well.”

 “Your parents will be hearing about this.”

A grizzled man stormed past Barbara, Adam, Beetlejuice, and Lydia as they were making their way down the aisle, hissing and cursing underneath his breath. They all looked forward again to find the victim of his verbal assault: the jockey of Beside The Dying Fire.

 “I think we did good,” He said to the grey giant munching on some alfalfa inside the pen he and that man had been arguing in front of.

“Jeopardy?”

Saying that name made Barbara feel a little stupid, but her call was received when the jockey just about jumped out of his skin. He whirled around, startling his horse into a stomping, huffing fit. He blinked big, doe-like eyes at Barbara and her group.

And that was when Barbara realized he wasn’t a he at all.

Beside The Dying Fire’s jockey was a girl.

Well. That probably explained what that man had meant when he said “your kind.”

She was a tiny, skinny little thing, barley 5’1, bearing no muscle at all. She was young, too, much younger than any of the jockeys Barbara had ever seen before. At most, she had to be fifteen, but by how high pitched and youthful her voice was, she could be even younger. She was completely slathered in mud from head-to-toe, face smeared with sludge and blocking most facial features, but her youth was clear and her hazel eyes were bright behind her goggles.

 “Hi! Hi. Yes, hello. I’m Jeopardy.” She said, stammering slightly, and her voice was a lot higher up close, but not in an obnoxious way. It was sweet and silvery, like candy.

“You’re a girl,” Lydia said in wonder.

The jockey blinked, then looked down at herself. “Last time I checked, yes.”

Lydia laughed.

Jeopardy tried to dust herself off now that she was in the presence of other people, only to remember that she was completely covered in grime. She dropped her arms, looked back up at them, and said, “I swear, I’m not usually covered in this much mud.”

They all laughed. It was nice to see a jockey that had a sense of humor. There were too many that got cranky for asking simple questions or even breathing in the general vicinity of their horse. This girl was the complete opposite of that, and it perhaps had to do with her young age.

 “Does it get in your mouth?” Lydia asked.

 “Oh yeah,” Jeopardy answered. “And my nose. And my ears. ”

Lydia laughed. “How?!”

 “I have no idea!” Jeopardy exclaimed. “Usually it isn’t this bad, but it was rainy today, so it kinda got everywhere. My dinner tonight is going to taste like earth.”

More laughing, and Jeopardy looked delighted. She was giving off a strong sense of loneliness, like it wasn’t normal for people to talk to her in such a friendly way.

“I’m Presley Lind,” Jeopardy— no, Presley, said. “Jeopardy is just a show name.” She then extended a hand to Barbara, only instantly rip it away when she realized how dirty her glove was. “Oh dear. Pretend I shook your hand or else my Southern Belle training will go down the drain.”

“I’m Barbara,” Barbara said. “These are Adam, Beetlejuice, and Lydia.”

“It’s nice to meet you all,” Presley said politely, smiling, and her lips were caked with drying mud. “What can I do for you all?”

 “Oh, we just wanted to come down and congratulate you on your victory tonight,” Barbara said. “You were amazing.”

Presley perked up, as if it wasn’t uncommon for her to be congratulated. “Oh, really? Th-- thank you! But I didn’t really do anything. It was all this big guy!” She turned to her horse, who looked more brown than grey with all the mud sticking to his coat, and she had so much love in her eyes.

 “He’s beautiful,” Adam said. “What’s his name?”

 “Peril!” Presley told him proudly. “Presley and Peril- it’s kind of our thing.” She reached out and patted the stallion’s freckled nose.

Barbara felt a sort of endearment fill her heart. What an adorable girl.

And then Peril snorted and spit half-chewed alfalfa and huge globs of saliva right into his rider’s face.

For a moment, Presley was frozen, then spit the muck back out onto the ground and raised her gloves hands to wipe her face off. She took off her goggles, and the rings left around her eyes were perfectly clear of grime.

 “I deserved that,” Presley said. She looked at Barbara and her group. “Do not mess with this one when he’s eating.”

 “Say, Presley,” Beetlejuice spoke up. “Do you have a trainer?”

 “Yes, sir,” Presley said, and her manners shocked Barbara. “He was that guy yelling.”

 “Does he always yell at you like that?” Adam asked, sounding slightly concerned.

Presley nodded. “Usually. He doesn’t like me or Peril very much. But he was a lot nicer today. He didn’t hit me with my crop this time!” She laughed, and then realized the others weren’t laughing with her, so she stopped and cleared her throat. “I’m-- I’m totally joking. That was a joke!”

 “Well, it sounds like your guy right now is an ass, but you’re in luck,” Beetlejuice said. “Presley, I’d like to be your trainer.”

[rqgnarok]

in the face of death - derek hale

fandom: teen wolf

words: 1765

warnings: talk of blood and violence, death, teen wolf spoilers, if you haven’t finished the series? werewolf!female!reader

summary: derek faces the anuk-ite and the confrontations opens up old wounds that never really healed.

author’s note below.

“Derek?”

Derek turns around, a feeling not quite like panic but awareness of the danger he’s in making goosebumps erupt through his skin and the hairs at the back of his neck to stand, his eyes closing quickly when Lydia’s warning from earlier echoes in his head: shut your eyes!

“Derek,” he frowns, because he knows it’s not her, is completely aware that (Y/N) left for Gerard’s armory with Lydia and Stiles, but it is her voice. He spent years familiarizing himself with the tone and pitch, tattooing it to his memory at first unwillingly, but then welcoming the knowledge of how (Y/N) sounded like when she was in danger, when she was frustrated or angry at him, when she was in mourning or in love. 

It was only a part of what it meant to fall for someone like (Y/F/N), and now he knows her well enough to understand that it's not her, talking to him and walking from the end of the hallway, nearing him with careful, calculated steps.

Still, he tightens his jaw and draws his claws out because knowing isn’t enough. Derek’s been away from home for too long, not as long as he expected but definitely long enough for him to miss her terribly. Their lousy goodbye in the middle of the fucking desert left a lot to desire; if he could turn back time he would’ve kissed her straight on the mouth instead of dodging her sad eyes and closing his own to press a rough, long kiss to the crown of her head.

“Derek, it’s okay,” the voice calls for him, he can hear it closerclosercloser, but he can’t move, can’t turn around, he’s not sure that if he does he’ll fight the shapeshifter off of him or fall straight into its game. He panics, for a moment, wonders if the reason why the Anuk-Ite is so good at pretending to be (Y/N) is because he’s already got to her before Scott could fix any of this, even before Gerard’s hunters had a chance to fight her first. 

A shiver, his fingers tremble at how bad he’s tensing them, his jaw and shoulders ache. 

“It’s over,” it tries to win him over, and the soft fingers clutching his right shoulder catch him off guard even if they shouldn’t. And, damn it, it has got (Y/N)’s touch down to a T, too, skin perfect despite the fights and battles she’s gotten into, a werewolf’s healing nature erasing any physical scar she might’ve acquired during their suicidal-like stunts to save the town from the supernatural and vice versa. 

But Derek knows none of them have gotten out of them truly intact, is more than aware of those wounds hidden deep inside their minds and not so easy to notice, impossible to really truly heal from them completely.

It takes Derek a moment too long to shift away from the hold and he knows, he knows he’s trapped, done for, as good as dead as Peter, who was waiting for him, Scott and Malia at the entrance of the school, features forever caught off guard and set in stone if they don’t fix this soon. “It’s okay, you can look now.”

“You’re not real,” he bites back, turning around suddenly and throwing a punch so blind not because his eyes are closed but because Derek’s always been weak when it comes to her, and since he came back they’ve barely shared a couple of stolen looks before Scott sent them all on different ways. As he faces Death right now Derek can only think I hope she knows how I feel. He hopes that those looks conveyed everything he was trying to say, the I’m sorry I left, I still love you, I don’t think I ever stopped missing you-

“I’m right here,” there’s a smile in those words, Derek’s been away for a while but he remembers what it looks like and how it tastes, and the memory of (Y/N) grinning sleepily back at him as the sun rises through the windows of his loft, eyes soft and happy and Derek’s sure hand on the small of her back as if that simple touch could protect her of every evil in Gerard Argent’s bestiary. is the only thing keeping him from opening his eyes and surrendering.The moment he does the memory fades, left behind on the back of his eyelids and forgotten as he’s turned into stone. “I’m here, Derek, and so are you, you came home. I didn’t think you would.”

His tightly shut eyes soften almost involuntarily, there’s nostalgia and residual hurt from when he drove away and left her standing outside the abandoned church, and this is the kind of reprimand he expected to be thrown at him when he came back, yet it still feels like a sucker punch to the stomach. He momentarily forgets this isn’t the girl he left behind and lets himself be swallowed by the guilt of his actions. 

When he first came back to Beacon Hills after the fire he realized that he wasn’t the best at running away, and the second time he left he expected to be better at it, except now he’s got something to run to rather than away from, and that’s how he realizes, he was always meant to end up here: in the middle of a war he’s been fighting his entire life for just being what he was born as, but willing to give his life to it if it means (Y/N) won’t have to live with the repercussions of their kind.

“But you did, you’re here,” she coos, soft and somehow incredibly personal. It’s not everybody (Y/F/N) doesn’t acknowledge with an almost harsh sarcasm Derek’s sure she got from hanging out with Stiles too much. There’s a hand reaching for one of his own and it's amazing how quickly the claws draw back, he lets it be held despite knowing better. “You came back, that’s all that matters to me. Derek, please, open your eyes.”

He shakes his head almost imperceptibly, even when she guides his hand to rest on top of her heart, feeling it beat underneath his fingertips and being too unfocused, blindsided to realize that he can’t actually hear it, a sound he’s learned to identify as easily as her voice. 

No, for now, he trusts his touch, his fingers as they follow the path to her face through her collarbones and the slope of her neck, sighing out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding in since he decided to drive back to Beacon Hills as (Y/N) leans into his touch, the weight familiar against his palm.

“We can skip town,” she suggests, light and hopeful with an underlining of satisfaction as he remains putty in her grip. Derek’s too enamoured to notice, resolve weakened by the presence of the shapeshifter that’s been haunting his hometown and his traitorous heart, which insists on focusing on literally anything but the matter at hand. “Get in your car, drive to wherever the hell we want. You always wanted a home away from the city, we can do that. I wanna go with you, Derek, please let me go with you.”

I’d take you anywhere he admits to himself, a fact he wasn’t ready to acknowledge a year and a half ago. It had taken him less than an hour into his drive to realize how true it was, but at the time he was convinced that it was the right thing to do, letting her go and trusting she’d be safer with a pack that had people like Scott McCall and Stiles Stilinski in it. However blind their optimism and suicidal their plans could be they were good kids, and were certainly better at protecting the people they cared about than Derek had been his whole life. 

“Please, don’t leave me behind again.”

“I wouldn’t-”

“Then look at me,” she insists, and the air reeks of something Derek can’t recognize, at least nothing he relates to (Y/N) at all, and that should be one of the many warning signs he should’ve taken into consideration to realize that he’s letting his guard down so quickly it’s so fucking stupid. There’s a hand in his hair, slowing down to settle at the back of his neck. “Please, Derek, don’t leave me, look at me-”

“I-”

“Why won’t you look at me?” she covers his hand with her own, and the intensity of her grip along with the fire in her voice is what makes him pull away, too out of character and out of place for the Anuk-Ite to keep the charade any longer, to pretend it’s something, someone it’s not. Derek takes his hand back with a harshness to his movements, his claws back in display and fangs ready to fight his way out of it. 

Its voice, shaky with a fury that does not belong to (Y/N) and never has in the years Derek has known her, breaks the spell, and if he weren’t in so much fucking trouble, the born werewolf would laugh. The Anuk-Ite’s greatest advantage in a fight has just become its downfall, unable to perfectly recreate the only person Derek knows better than he knows himself. 

After all these years sometimes he fears he’s forgotten the voices of those he lost in the fire, their mannerisms and their familiar expressions. If it weren’t for his mother’s visits in his dreams, his family’s eyes and manners alive in Cora’s and Peter’s faces, he would’ve. 

But there’s no way he’d forget her, he knew it the first time after he spent the whole afternoon with her in a injured daze with a wolfsbane bullet deep inside his arm, he knew it when he left her behind in that desert with the taste of salty, bloody skin imprinted on his mouth, still tingling as he drove away and watched her through the rearview mirror until (Y/N) became nothing more than something else he’d left behind in Beacon Hills. 

And he knows it now, as he opens his eyes, helpless, aware that the last thing he is going to see is the one monster he couldn’t save his hometown from. His thoughts blur together into a senseless babble inside his head, I hope they make it out, Scott, does he have enough time, please, take care of her for me, tell her I’m sorry, tell (Y/N) I love-

He gives into the darkness.

-

i wrote this like seven months ago and just wrote a quick ending so i could upload something, mostly cause its been over a year since i have written anything, let alone completed it and i’m still working on the requests you have been sending out.

its been a long year with a horrible writers block but i kinda do like this, so here it is, for you. i hope you like it. i also have a vague idea for a scott piece i wanna write but im not sure i will, lmao, tho writing for teen wolf is really, really easy for me, idk why. anyways, whatever.

stay home and stay safe.

- e.

[dancing-the-hellfire-rumba]

Seen ✓ - 3

Pairing: Sam x Reader Warnings: cursing, a bit of self depreciation Word Count: 2.2k Series Summary: On her way home, Y/n finds an abandoned, cracked phone on the sidewalk. Anxious about the well-being of its owner, she picks it up and texts the first contact she finds; Sam. Beta: None

Part 1  -  Part 2 Masterlist

Chapter 3: for the love of god, explain this

Sam Winchester lies awake at three in the morning, under foreign, scratchy sheets, stubbornly not tearing his eyes from the cracked, ugly wallpaper on the ceiling. A lot of things are happening and his brain is going about a million miles an hour, spinning endlessly, Castiel, Dean returning from hell, the stress of the hunting life, the current case and… Y/n. Wonderful, smart, talented, funny Y/n.

It’s been a while since someone has made him excited. He keeps bumping into her in his mind, keeps finding thoughts of her lying around, eager to distract him. He catches himself wanting to text her about every stupid thing that happens in his day, much like she sometimes does. She’s been the only thing that makes his heart a little lighter, and it’s such a strange feeling, someone’s presence being this uplifting.

He was suspicious of her at first. A strange woman (at least she claims to be one, he forgets he’s never actually… seen her) asking about him, his profession, and then about… ghosts? A bit random, too specific, Sam recognizes he got defensive. But the way she spoke afterwards… he doesn’t know.  His instinct tells him to trust her.

Amidst his thoughts, he doesn’t remember picking up his phone, but it’s just one of those nights, he needs someone to talk to- or rather, wants Y/n specifically. A thought he chooses not to dwell on.

are you awake? I can’t sleep.

I actually am. Lucky you.

Sam smiles. Lucky me, he thinks.

isn’t it like 4 am for you?

Tell me about it. No luck sleeping either.

happen to you a lot?

Yeah.

I happen to have anxiety induced insomnia.

Working at a bar also helps fuck up your sleeping schedule as well.

You?

i’m sorry :/

i don’t get much sleep either. something always keeps me up.

Yeah, I get that.

Where in the Great Unites States of America are you today?

hahah it’s Oregon today.

it’s the ugliest motel room i’ve ever been in.

Ooh

Do I ask about your case or is it confidential?

it’s confidential but i’ll tell you that i am investigating a bunch of strange murders.

You’re investigating serial killers?? That’s so fucking dope.

something like that yeah.

how was your day?

Oh, you know. The usual.

College assignments, a shift at the bar. I went out with a friend I hadn’t seen in a while.

I need to clean my house desperately.

I also nearly burned my kitchen down trying to cook lunch. Emmy and I ended up eating some lazy-ass spaghetti, because pasta is the only thing I can cook, apparently.

hahahah what were you making?

You’re gonna laugh if I tell you.

well now you must.

Ugh, do I?

come onnn

It was eggs, okay? I was just trying to make eggs.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAH

I TOLD YOU YOU’D LAUGH AT ME

HOW DID YOU BURN EGGS?!

LISTEN, OKAY

I NEVER SAID I WAS A GOOD COOK

HAHAHAHAH

Sam laughs over his phone, as silently as he can, so as to not wake Dean up. He turns on his other side and realizes his cheeks hurt from smiling, and it’s a feeling he’s missed.

Yeah, yeah, laugh, culinary genius. Not all of us can be perfect.

i never said i was a culinary genius

but at least i don’t go near stoves if i don’t have to.

Well, it’s not like I can afford every-day takeout (or like that shit is healthy, even if I could) and someone has to cook for my sister while she’s in school

you have siblings?

and yeah you’re right i didn’t think like that sorry.

It’s okay.

And yeah, my sister, Emily.” Emmy”

oooh i thought emmy was your friend.

Nono, it’s my sister. She’s 17.

can i ask you a personal question?

Shoot

why do you have to take care of her? are your guys’ parents not around?

you don’t have to answer if you’re not comfortable with that.

Well, it’s a bit complicated.

My parents’ marriage kind of fell apart when I was around 10. They tried to fix things by adopting a kid- Emily. For a while that worked.

When I was 16 my mom took off and dad took care of us for 2 years almost. He really dedicated himself to us.

He worked his antique shop and supported us. For two years, I didn’t see him spend a penny on himself.

But I ended up having to take care of Em when he passed. I was freshly 18, so I could take care of her as a guardian.

shit i’m so sorry.

It’s okay, honestly.

I mean, it didn’t use to be, and it was hell for a while.

But we made it.

i admire your positivity.

I try :)

i also love that you put smiley faces in your text messages.

Shouldn’t have said that, now I’ll always think about it before I do it

hahah

Sam bites his lip. What the hell is happening? They’re… flirting. Sorta. And it’s nice- better than nice. Fuck.

What about you?

you mean what’s my relationship with my parents?

Well, when you put it like that it sounds stupid. It wasn’t what I was asking either.

What I meant was, how’s your life right now. How’s the family business. You can pick which you wanna answer.

i don’t mind either honestly.

as for my parents my mom died when I was 6 months old. my dad passed away about a year and a half ago.

Jesus, I’m so sorry Sam

I don’t know what to say. It can’t have been easy. Losing a parent never is.

it wasn’t but as you said we’re trying to sort of find our footing with Dean. we’ve had our ups and downs.

Yeah I understand that.

Do you wanna talk about it?

right now not really. I mean there’s not much to say about it.

i kinda wanna forget about it. thanks though.

Alright.

So how’s the family business?

Does it feel good to be paid to be Sherlock Holmes?

crap. but we’re doing our best.

for the record i don’t get paid nearly enough for the shit i have to do.

Hahaha, hang in there.

Dean still refuses to come get his phone?

yeah. he says you can keep it.

Tell him to take care of his devices from now on, this one was battered beyond recognition.

duly noted.

The conversation continued until well after the sun rose. Sam had officially accepted this night to be sleepless, and Y/n was good company. Somehow she took his mind off of everything that was bugging him, made him, if momentarily, forget about it, and he truly loved that about her. The back and forth tended to flow easily between them, and he couldn’t get enough of the chemistry he had with this practical stranger.

Sleepless or not, this night was a good one, after she entered the picture.

-

The glow on her skin is blue-ish and soft, combatting the one from the fairy lights above them. Laptop absolutely not low in volume, couch dipping under two bodies, slumped together, legs leaning against one another, soft flannel pants and droopy eyes. Emily’s hair is out of its usual half-up hairstyle, exploding with volume and bright, firey color, flowing onto the back of the couch.

Jon Snow is yelling on the screen, and Y/n is completely ignoring him, constantly checking her inactive phone and the way the screen doesn’t light up with Sam’s name. Every time she feels disappointed, she tries to quell the relentless thoughts of the possibility of him being completely over her.

Damn it.

“Do you have a boyfriend or a girlfriend I’m not aware of or something?” Emily mutters dryly, half-hearted but gentle teasing. Y/n sputters.

“Huh?”

“’Cause you keep checking your phone, and as far as I know you don’t have any friends.”

“HEY,” deeply offended, Y/n places her hand over her heart, glaring at her sister. “Excuse you!” she exclaims, “Connor? Ashley? Lydia?”

“Yeah, a neighbor and two college students that you haven’t talked to in like, what, two weeks? What a social butterfly.”

“Okay first off,” Y/n ignores the screaming and fighting on the screen and shifts to look at her sister. “Stop tracking my socializing.” Em scoffs.

“C’mon, bear, spill.” Bottom lip pouted. She pauses the episode, turning to face her older sister. “Who are they and when can I meet them?” A devilish smile, teasing like only a younger sister can, curling the right corner of her lip.

“He’s not my boyf-“

“AHA! So there is someone! I knew it!”

“I’ve known him for like- what, three weeks? Nothing is going on! I barely know the guy!” Y/n fiddles with her hair and huffs, holding back a smile.

“Where’d you meet him? Is he hot? What’s he like?!” Poking her sister’s thigh continuously, she grins wide, excited. “C’mon, you’re like, no fun.”

“The thing is… I didn’t. Meet him, I mean.” Eyebrows furrow.

“Uh…” Emily purses her lips. “I’m … not following.”

It takes all of five minutes for Y/n to explain to her sister all about her crazy adventure, the lost phone, the brother, Sam. The girls munch on leftover garlic spaghetti, talking about the stranger on the other side of Y/n’s screen.

“He’s just… different? I don’t know- I just, I’m intrigued I guess. He’s mysterious and hilarious. The type of guy we’d hang out with. Why pass it up?”

“Just hang out?” Emily wiggles her eyebrows. Y/n shoves her.

“It’s really not like that.”

“I don’t know, Y/n, he doesn’t necessarily sound just friendly to me.” Y/n won’t lie and say she hasn’t thought about it. She’s a romantic after all, and what a wonderful, movie-like love story would it be for them to fall in love and march into the sunset?

But she recognizes this is the romantic side of her picking up speed on a subject that definitely isn’t for her to decide alone. There’s a second participant in all of this, and he needs to do more than half the work by liking her. She knows it’s no easy feat. A bitter dab of paint dissolves in her chest, because why would he like her? She’s nothing quite special. She’s just a bartender, a college student, a boring, normal girl, painfully mundane, painfully boring. He’s brilliant, kind and sweet, a private investigator, he travels all the time, he’s the most interesting guy she’s ever met for crying out loud. Why would he ever give her a chance?

“I doubt it, Em,” is what Y/n decides to say, because there’s no way she can explain exactly what she’s thinking.

“No, no, you’re doing that thing again.” A hum in question falls from the older Andrews’ lips. “The thing where you put yourself down for bullshit reasons. He’d be lucky to have you.” Y/n wants to roll her eyes. “Hey,” a snap of Emily’s fingers in front of Y/n’s face to catch her attention. “I will literally slap you. You’re smart, funny, kind. He’d be fucking lucky to have you, and if you don’t believe it, I’m gonna beat some sense into you. Stop putting my sister down.”  Y/n doesn’t have anything good to say to that, so instead she lets out a huffed breath of a laugh and sits back on the couch.

“Now,” Emily leans over her own crossed legs and grabs her phone from the rickety coffee table. “Did you Google him?”

“Why the heck would I Google him?”

“It’s the 21st century, Y/n, gosh. Are you at all familiar with internet stalking?” Y/n watched pebbled coffee brown eyes get illuminated by the phone screen, freckles nowhere near as bright as they can be, because she hasn’t gone out into the sunlight today. Emily is gorgeous. Y/n is sometimes jealous, but also genuinely admires her younger sister. “What’s his name?”

“Sam Winchester.”

There’s typing, and then silence.

“Y/n…” And the warning tone on the younger one’s voice completely throws her off.

“What? What is it?” A phone screen is thrust in her face.

Mail fraud, credit card fraud, grave desecration, armed robbery, kidnapping, three counts of first-degree murder, and breaking and entering, she reads. Winchester brothers Sam and Dean, disappeared, considered dead.

“What the fuck,” she mutters under her breath, completely horrified at the chance that this is real and the universe isn’t playing some comic joke on her, creating another pair of Winchester brothers called Sam and Dean who, instead of chasing murderers, are the murderers.

She scrolls lower and sure enough, there they are. Mug shots, but more specifically, the guy from the dating app, smouldering cheekily into the camera –a real blue steel-, holding a police station name on a black plaque, sitting at close to six feet and two. Then the younger one, less joyful and sassy, more serious and puppy-eyed. Sam. Close to what was described to her, it’s all there. Pointy nose, sharp jawline, curly brown hair with a growing, swoopy fringe, pulled behind his ears. It’s him. There’s no way, the coincidences are too many.

“Bear…” Emily stares at Y/n’s shocked face, gaze empty and out of it. “What the hell have you gotten yourself into?”

Immediately, Y/n grabs her phone.

Sam

His reply is instantaneous.

hey y/n

i was just thinking about you

what’s up?

Please for the love of God.

Explain this.

She sends him the mugshot, photographed from the screen of her sister’s phone.

shit.

-

Part 4

A/N: Tell me what you thought? How the hell does he even explain this?

I realized I haven’t been tagging my forever taglist like a MORON, so just, sorry, I’ll start now. 

Forevers:   @deanxfuckingadorablexwinchester​ @deanssweetheart23​ @nostalgic-uncertainty​ @mogaruke​ @superseejay721517​ @lady-hawkguy​ @thosefeelsarereal​ @superwholockmarauder​  @justiceiswater​ @petra-arkanian-1497​ @heyitscam99​ @danijimenezv​ @aj-reuth  @unicornblood4ever @mystriee​ @sadist-fangirl23 @asguardiansoftheavengers​ @superrandomnatural​ @altosaxplayer098 @winter-moons @hunterswearingplaid​ @novaddictx​ @choosemyname​  @live-like-a-girl​ @thisismysecrethappyplace​ @bowtomytenderaddiction​  @elara98azalea​ @lemondropirwin​ @emmagolden4118​ @glitchcypher @calaofnoldor​ @paradoxical-sleep​ @narynechan @canwenotdothis​ @suicidepanda07​ 

Sam Taglist

@kymberlytorres​ @theboykingsamwinchester​ @depressed-moose-78 @andi-mendes-barnes​ @captainmarvelcorps​ @nerd-in-a-galaxy-far-away​ @nellachain​

 Seen Taglist  @shutupiminlooove​ @sammysgirl1997​ @kymberlytorres​ @bambi95-blog​ @demonic-meatball​ @thekarliwinchester​ @littlekay15​ @li-m-ii​  @thinspo-isuppose​ @carryonmywaywarddemigodwitch @ellen-reincarnated1967 @moonlitskinwalker​ @marichromatic​ @illuminatus42​ @lazy-author​ @mirandaaustin93​ @hauntedsiriel​ @pilaxia​ @devilgirlsarah​ @nobodys-baby-now​ @captiveties​ @calamitychaos @midiocris @wordswillscream​ @burningforsam​ @aiofheavenandhell​

[princeescaluswords]

*walks up to a podium in a college lecture hall* "Kate Argent and Peter Hale were parallels of each other, which fandom refuses to acknowledge because to do so would mean admitting Peter actually was in the wrong and that his actions aren't worthy of defense. Chris obviously disapproved of Kate's actions, thus she wasn't some Left Hand therefore neither was Peter. Peter was literally a monstrous, murderous, red eyed beast wolf who killed his own niece and hurt and manipulated Derek so it was never about family, it was about Peter himself being hurt and his family as possessions or extensions of himself."

I sit in the audience of that hall taking notes, but at the top of the page, I write -- they know this already.  

I understand your frustration; I empathize with it whole heartedly.  Fandom is unanimous in its hatred of Kate Argent, who seduced a sixteen-year-old boy and then used that relationship to kill his family.

Kate is greeted with all the revulsion that she deserves.  Even though we don’t actually see the original violation on the screen, when Kate gets all creepily flirty and touchy with Derek in Formality (1x11) and Code Breaker (1x12), the fandom doesn’t rewrite that as something that Kate had to do in order to protect her family or to protect herself.  It’s criminal and immoral.  When Kate kisses the de-aged Derek in 117 (4x02), I don’t know of a single member of the fandom who said “wow, that’s hot.”  

There’s not a single person who tries to mount a defense that Kate was only protecting her family or doing what she had to in order to survive.  Universally, she is seen as using those as excuses.

The fandom is very good at condemning her sexually predatory behavior.  They’re even skilled at twisting things that aren’t sexual or predatory at all, such as Scott’s at-claw-point neck grab of Derek, into things that could be seen as hurting a sexual assault survivor.  

Unless, of course, the sexually predatory criminal is a hot white serial killer.

I’m going to piss off a whole bunch of people by saying what Peter Hale did to Lydia Martin is just as bad  (if not worse) as Kate seducing Derek.  Let’s compare them.

Both Kate and Peter shared an ulterior motive -- both of their sexual assaults were motivated by things that had nothing to do with the act itself

Both Kate and Peter possessed greater physical power

Both Kate and Peter created the illusion of consent

Both Kate and Peter employed corruption of romantic feelings

Both Kate and Peter targeted already traumatized individuals, though in Peter’s case, he targeted the trauma he caused

There is however, a fundamental difference in their sexual assaults (beyond the fact that the fandom pretends that what Peter did isn’t almost identical to what Kate did):   Peter got the pleasure of having his victim forced to interact with him in a way that justified his actions and denied her reaction:  

“I’m the spark that lit your fire, sweetheart.”

Pardon me while I throw up in my mouth a little bit.  But imagine the outrage in the fandom if Derek had been forced by events to go to Kate for help repeatedly.  To negotiate with her for help in understanding what was happening to him -- what she did to him.  To force him to stand there and hold Scott and Stiles back as she explained in a smirky voice why what she did all turned out good for everybody in the end.

They would have burned Viacom to the ground.

Imagine if in the final season, they would have written Scott having to recruit Kate to defeat her father, or they would have given Kate and Derek a nice comic dialogue in the McCall kitchen.

Yeah, fandom’s a trip, isn’t it?   This attitude will continue to prevail and influence institutions like studios to give men like Joss Whedon and Harvey Weinstein passes on their creepy, predatory behavior toward women.  After all, they don’t excuse his actions, they just love his art. We have all talked about Hollywood’s toleration of slimy white men.  Does anyone truly believe that the powerful don’t include the way the public accepts predatory behavior from white male characters -- as long as they are entertaining -- when they think about what to do about the predatory behavior of white artists?  Deniers can scream “fiction =/= reality” until they grow hoarse, but the fact is that there is a cultural predisposition to tolerate sexually predatory white men as long as they are sexy and funny.

Stay tuned for Joss Whedon’s redemption arc.

[gummybearzgocrazyagain]

MALEC FIC REC POST, vol.3

vol. 1

vol.2 

Media AU

Society Rules by @Tiger_Tiger_Burning_Bright [it is apparently based on films i’ve never heard of - The Philadelphia Story / High Society - which does not make it any less entertaining. malec are childhood friends, who had a falling out 5 years ago, and now Magnus is back from London to interrupt Lightwood wedding, aka the social event of the season]

Making my way to you by @asharee_arie [woah, what was that??? is the correct answer “a perfect fanfic”?? what a muthafuckin delight, where has this gem been hiding this whole time??? i was on the floor, rolling around and squealing like a newborn piglet. Intended as some kind of Office AU, this piece does not necessarily follow the outline, but who cares, when the story, and characters, and author’s style are all that perf??? i am in luv]

Mistletoe and Margaritas by @nevermetawolf [this is legendary, and i mean, muthafuckin epic - Office AU so authentic you’d feel it in yo old bones... author calls it a crack fic, although it was anything but!!! major must read for those, who’s ever loved office, allllllll the kudos]

Once Upon a Time in the Clouds by @Fatale (femme) [one of my all-time fav authors, every time i come by a piece i have not read yet, is like a huge YAY, what a talent. so this piece is an AU of something called “sky high”, which i have no idea about, but luved it nevertheless, Alec is born to a family of Supers, and is going to school for children with superpowers, but he himself is yet to manifest any.]

Quite Magical by @lorenzobane [Hogwarts AU, and what an adorable thing it was! granted, i’ve never actually read any of HP books, this was such a delight though... alec is bad at potions, and magnus has to tutor him *wink*]

Chef AU

the way to a chef’s heart by @lecrit [okay, the GIANT SMILE one’s face acquires when one finds out there is a new lecrit fic ≧◠‿◠≦ ≧◠‿◠≦ ≧◠‿◠≦ was reading it, and legitimately squealing like a feral piglet all the way through, cause i fucking luv every single word this woman writes, is like a tiny endorphin explosions in my brain. i know am a hopeless fangirl, but i’ll die on this hill. the way she gets malec, and every variation of them in her works just makes me go (❁´◡`❁) every. single. time.]

kids in the kitchen by @perpetual_journey [cuteness personified, malec are both chefs, and magnus is a single father of max and rafe, and go and read ittttttttt, its that soft content we all need in our lives sometimes]

Knives at the Ready by @harrysglasses [restaurant AU, that is supposed to be a malec rendition of Burnt (am guessing it’s a movie...?), and what a sweet treat it was! i liked author’s style, this is the kind of smooth, unproblematic content one would require to take repose from all the heart-clenching longing i’ve been reading lately... delightful piece to ease thy soul]

Single Parent AU

I Knew From the First Time by @KlaineJane [emmm, excuse you, dear author, who gave you the right to use Rafe and Max to get to my heart, and be generally so fucking cute??? Alec is a single dad of both rascals, that has a meeting with the High Warlock of Brooklyn, and Chairman meets new friends]

And Then I Met You by @everydayfandom [malec are single parents of max and rafe respectively, and alec gets called in to school about the accident max was involved in...who doesn’t luv them some gud ol’ sweet piece of kidfic? those are like a soothing baths for your soul, and lightwood-bane kids are incapable of being anything less than extremely adorable in any interpretation, so]

College AU

Don’t say goodnight by @alistoney [this the kinda lighthearted content i am always here for - College AU]

One year and a bottle of whiskey by @CryptidBane [yassssss, yet another version of the College AU, but with malec as both clueless and pining professors, this type of fic i can read endlessly]

All is Fair in Love and War by @LadyOxymoron [aaaaaaaa, what was this adorableness *major heart-eyes* what a piece, mashallah, college professors AU, where magnus is new in town, and malec is engaging in an elaborate prank war, which, undoubtedly, is nothing more than a prolonged foreplay (c), what a gem]

Canon Divergence

oh, i’ve waited for you by @manticoremoons [so, the fic is happening a little bit further in a timeline, than the books or the series, and Alec is around 30, and... married to Lydia. i know, i know, it almost stopped me from proceeding, and boi am i glad it hasn’t completely, cause it is a damn good piece!]

Hey There Demons, It’s Me (Your Dream Boyfriend) by @thealmostrhetoricalquestion [how many recs of this author can i make, without being deemed obsessed? cause y’all should go and read every single thing they wrote, stat. this adorableness is outta this world, literally - magnus’ summoning went sideways, and the loft ends up populated with the teenage ghost-demon, who is very clearly enamored with alexander... all kinds of fluff ensue]

Something Else verse by @CryptidBane (Impetus) [maybe it’s my fever talking, but i am such a sucker for memory loss AUs, and SH fandom has the richest canon base for those, yay! this time, it’s an AU verse after 3x10: rather than asking for his magic, Asmodeus curses magnus by taking away memories from everyone who’s ever loved him, in exchange for freeing jace from lilith’s thrall... oh, what a beautiful and delicious angst ensues]

Home by @otppurefuckingmagic [waaaaaaaaat... *sits with her mouth open* how did you....? how did he...? damnnnnnnnnn you authors in this fandom, stop being so talented!!!! this is uncannily brilliant]

I’ll hold on until you’re home by @alistoney [how dare you sir, right in the feels... the missing scene in the midst of 3x18/3x19, when magnus realizes what his idiot of a boyfriend has done, and confronts him about the Asmodeus deal]

First time for everything by @nebulein [“Nowhere in a Shadowhunters’ job description does it read ‘must look adorable while infatuated with the local High Warlock’.” - series of firsts written with such tenderness and adoration for characters, that it warms your heart while reading, - it shows how much the author cares for them. it is not finished, but whatever has already been written, is gold]

Fake dating AU

The Great Repression by @CryptidBane (Impetus) [although it might not be exactly my regular cup of tea, i still appreciate this author’s style so damn much, and the way they do malec dynamic overall, so it’s here. magnus is a camboy, and alec is hired to protect him from a stalker]

Friends to lovers

Family is Family by @hexicity [my brains are fried by the covid, so any coherent rec would be unlikely right about now, but the softness of this <333 alec sees an ad about a free room, and when he moves in, he finds way more, than he bargained for... gave me a bit of a “happy, shiny people everywhere” vibe, and that’s an automatic rec in my books, so]

Spinning Around In Circles by @lemonoclefox [my fav friends to lovers/mutual pining trope, here you are, and what a pretty pretty wrapper are you wearing - absolutely amazing interpretation of a trope, that seems to has been done to death, and yet here i am, never able to get enough of it <3]

If it walks like a duck by @thealmostrhetoricalquestion [this. i was reading this. and after every single word. all i wanted to do was get down on one knee and propose to this person. i dunno who the hell you is, but.... how did you do this? it was... another level of fanfiction.]

Neighbors AU

Meow 17:1 Love Thy Neighbor by @high-warlock-of-brooklyn [again, not a fan of drabbles, but who could resist such softness??? Neighbors AU, where Chairman takes some lessons he learnt from “Parent trap” to heart, and alec is a stumbling mess, but he gets shit done, kudossssssss]

Various AU mix

Solid courage by @thealmostrhetoricalquestion [how goddamn CUTE was dat???? answer - the cutest. mashallah people in this fandom can write]

Paper Love by @thealmostrhetoricalquestion [it would not be an exaggeration to admit i thoroughly fell in love with this author’s style, i mean, all and every version of their malec is all kinds of awesome. this one is no exception - catarina works in the library, and malec have to take madzie out to a coffee shop, cause their obnoxious flirting is too loud for the quaint environment of catarina’s workplace.... it’s tiny and so so sooooooo sweet]

make no bones by @ohfreckle [yaaaaaaaaay, what a cutie, tiny preciousness about magnus having an awful day and taking it out on a no-good useless building super, simply delightful]

Freud is a Dick by @sanctuary_for_all [Alec works in IT firm, and accidentally sends someone else’s dick pick to his boss, whom he has a crush on... do i need to say more]

shadows in moonlight by @kaeg [damnnnnnn, son, that was a ride!! something exquisitely soulful, tender and so, so poetic... young malec meet in summer vacation home, and it will take your breath away in the best way possible... warning, it is unfinished, but whatever was written, is absolute preciousness]

For the Love of the Game by @TicklemyPickle [Hockey AU, where malec were childhood friends, but had a falling out, and were not in touch for the last 7 years, until magnus gets traded in to alec’s team... i was somewhat unsure about reccing this, as some of the choices author made regarding their dynamic did not exactly resonate with me, but decided to go on, because, god as my witness, one thing this world definitely needs more of - is malec Hockey AUs, word upppp]

Love Is A Gamble by @la-muerta [i myself do not completely understand, why has it taken me so long to get to the “The importance of elsewhere” author’s most famous piece, but i finally have, it was amazeballs, like, the world-building...? off the charts. the language, the moral struggle, what a gem. alec is a grumpy and surely sheriff *duh!!!* of a tiny town, and magnus strolls in being all... well, magnus-y, and opens a gambling house, the potential!!! anyway, i highly doubt this piece needs recs, so imma zip it]

@ohprongs [this author has too many tiny pieces i like to name them individually, but as far as reccing goes, they should def be mentioned here for their effortless, seamless style, and clear love for the characters in all interpretations, that simply shines through all and any AUs they choose to put malec in]

special mention:

@theleftboobgrabber [i wasn’t aware that at this stage it was still possible to come by someone like this. the author, who’s style would impress me so. that unbelievably glorious Mafia AU, absolutely delightful and literally perfect My mama don’t like you series, and something that went straight to my top-5 - MI6 AU ohhhhh, that MI6 AU... i have no coherent words to express the depths of my appreciation, this is unbelievable fucking talent for writing malec]