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chiriwritesstuff · 10 months ago

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The Girl in IT - 4. Gooey

A Boss! Joel Miller x IT Specialist F! Reader AU

The LIST │ Series Masterlist

Chapter Rating: E (18+, MDNI - Minors Do Not Interact!)

Chapter Preview: "Why did you do that?" you blurt out, turning to face him. Joel, seemingly unfazed, keeps his eyes on the road. "Do what?" "I don't need you defending my honor against Tess. She already dislikes me, and now it's all awkward-" "She doesn't hate you-" "...but clearly I have a target on my back now that I'm involved with my boss!" You keep your eyes downcast, attempting to stifle a sob. "You didn't need to cause a scene." Joel turns his head at that, his expression softening as he observes your distress, seemingly at a loss for words. "Sugar-" "It's easy for you, you know? To throw the fact that you're the boss around and have this 'I can do what I want' attitude with whoever you please. But I could still lose my job! I need this job, Joel. I-" "No, Sugar. Shit, I-" He opens his mouth, then closes it, appearing unsure of how to respond to your sudden outburst. Joel looks genuinely troubled, his frown mirroring yours. "I'm disposable, Joel," you continue, refusing to meet his gaze. "You wouldn't understand where I'm coming from."

Chapter Warnings & Tags: No outbreak AU, Boss x Employee Relationship, Sugar Daddy Lite, Daddy Kink, Smut, SO MUCH SMUT, Age Gap, Overstimulation, Squirting, Older Man/Younger woman, So much dirty talk, DD/lg (kinda? they're both into it), Virgin Reader, Loss of Virginity, PIV Sex (finally!!!!), Breeding Kink, No beta we die like men!

Word Count: 6.4K

Chapter Title Inspo/Vibe: 'Gooey' by Glass Animals

"What's up with you and Sugar?"

Sarah casually strolls over to Joel's desk, perching her hip on the edge as she hands him a cup of coffee. "Maria said she saw the two of you at the mall yesterday," peering over him as he nervously takes a sip of his coffee, "... during working hours. She said you guys seemed mighty close and all, I guess she wasn't sick like Tess said?"

Joel chokes mid-sip, coughing out the hot coffee as Sarah smirks at him.

"So it's true, then?"

"I guess I can't hide anything from you, baby girl," Joel replies in between coughs. "Should have known I can't get anything past you."

"Well, I made a wild guess you were into her, being that I heard you singing 'Pour Some Sugar On Me" in the shower the other day.

"It was being played on the radio, can't control what they decide to play, you know?" he stops, taking a deep breath. "... besides, everyone loves Def Leppard," he mumbles under his breath.

Sarah gives him a knowing glance as she makes herself comfortable on the chair in front of him. "Dad, the radio stations don't put music on repeat." She fiddles with the sleeves of her sweater absentmindedly, her face deep in thought. "It wouldn't be a bad thing, you know? You and Sugar. She seems like a very sweet girl. Kind of shy, but I like her."

Joel arches an eyebrow. "Do you now?"

She shrugs. "I mean, she is kind of young, but age is just a number, right? It's not like she's in her 20s. Besides, Ellie is obsessed with her. She's always at her office, picking her brain about her thoughts on 80s music. She's a good influence on her."

Joel nods. "Ellie- I worry about her sometimes. Lord knows that I try to do right by her, adopting her and all that. Sometimes I think she needs-"

"... a feminine touch?"

"Something like that." Joel smiles to himself, his eyes still locked on his iPad as he continues his redline revisions to be sent off to the draftsmen. "I think her being surrounded by Tommy and I makes her too-"

"Feral?" Sarah quips, chuckling. "Rough around the edges? Aggressive? It comes with the territory, I guess, with no mother figure around, you know?" she picks a hangnail. "Tommy said that she nearly castrated a client on the job site the other day for asking her out on a date."

"That jerk was asking for it." Joel retorts, his back stiffening. "You adjusted well enough without a mother."

Sarah sighs. "It doesn't mean it was easy, though. It would have been nice, you know? There's just things that I can't talk to a guy about, as much as you tried to be there for me."

"This thing with Sugar, It's new - but I know what I feel for her."

Sarah nods. "You don't need to give me all the details. I trust you, and if she's someone you want to pursue, I won't be mad about it, if that's what you're thinking. Like I said, she's a nice girl."

"She's... fuck, Sarah, she's amazing. She takes my breath away, every time she smiles at me. Fuck. I feel like a teenager, being around her. I don't know what it is, but I always want to be around her." Joel chuckles, smiling at Sarah. "I'm crazy about her."

"Well, you must be if you're out here buying Teslas like you would coffee."

Joel leans back in his chair, a smirk playing on his lips. "Oh? I wasn't aware that she bought a new car."

Sarah crosses her arms, a skeptical look in her eyes. "Dad, you do realize I handle HR, right? I know what everyone's making. I find it hard to believe she's casually splurging on a Tesla, especially a Model X." She shrugs, giving her father one last look as she heads towards the door. "I know it's tempting, wanting to spoil her. You worked for it, you know? To get where you're at now, but I have a feeling Sugar doesn't care about all of that, just like how Ellie and I don't care about that. Money comes and goes. It's what's inside that chest of yours that matters at the end of the day, ok?"

Joel smiles at Sarah once more as she walks out the door. "I love you too, baby girl."

Joel opens his messenger app, smiling at his earlier conversation with Sarah.

[Hey Sugar, you busy?] I'm about to head into a meeting with Tess, what's up? [Just wanted to see if you wanted to get some lunch?] I can't. Tess is pissed that I was out yesterday. I think this meeting is going to run past lunch. Rain check? [.....] Joel?

"Tess, what are you doing?" Joel demands, walking into Tess' office without knocking.

"Well hello to you, too Joel."

Joel stands at the door, his hands on his hips. "Sugar told me that she's going to be working through lunch with you-"

Tess scoffs, placing both arms on her desk. "Well, if the two of you didn't decide to fuck off work yesterday, maybe she wouldn't have to work past lunch."

"Sugar was sick. I had to do shit back at the house-"

"So you didn't go to the mall together yesterday?"

"It was her birthday, we just so happened to run into each other-"

Tess rolls her eyes at that. "I don't care what the fuck you guys do on your own time, but don't fuck around on my time!" she spits, pointing a finger at Joel. "Don't try to bullshit a bullshitter, Joel. Maria saw you guys. That girl of yours is lucky I didn't ask her for a doctor's note!

Joel pinches his forehead. "Tess-"

She shakes her head. "What are you doing, Joel? Have you lost your fucking mind? We have a business to run, YOUR business! Time doesn't stop just because you decided that you want to act like a fucking teenager, running around like you have no responsibilities! People depend on you to not fuck around!"

Meanwhile, you hear the shouting match between Joel and Tess from your office, your head in your hands as you listen to the both of them bicker about the stunt that you and Joel pulled yesterday. You sigh, knowing that you told Joel that you had a bad feeling about blowing off work.

"Never a dull moment at Miller Construction, huh?" Frank leans casually against your doorway, offering a knowing wink. "Nice ride, by the way. Makes me wonder if I picked the wrong man, huh?"

"Frank, cut it out. You were supposed to be at the showroom ten minutes ago," the gruff voice of the head civil engineer interjects, rolling his eyes as he strides through the hallway, delivering you a brief nod. "Sugar, Happy Belated Birthday. Hope you're feeling better."

"Thanks, Bill," you reply with a hint of meekness.

"Frank! Let's go," he shouts impatiently, already at the front door.

"Well, as much as I'd love to stick around for the theatrics of our esteemed leaders... keep me posted, okay? I want a play-by-play! Nice dress, by the way. Celine?"

"Uh-"

"Frank!"

"I'm COMING! Geez, you'd think after 15 years of marriage, it gets easier, right?" he shrugs. "Well, Sugar, it's been a pleasure." He winces as Tess' shrill voice echoes in the distance. "Go console Joel before he pops a vessel; I think someone might just call the police this time!"

You nod absentmindedly, offering him a small smile. "Sure thing," you reply, the weariness evident in your voice.

It was a lot easier when you worked at Geek Squad. Sure, you got paid almost close to nothing dealing with irate customers for eight hours, answering mundane questions -

Did you try to restart the computer?

Did you make sure that the monitor was plugged in?

Sure, I can wait for your granddaughter to come home to help you…

It was soul-sucking, but it was easy. Easier, compared to dealing with someone like Tess. Tess took no shit - no excuses, no bullshit. She didn’t care if you had a dentist appointment and couldn’t schedule it on the weekend. She didn’t care if you needed a mental health day. Your time was her time, and you found that out the hard way real quick… and now she knew. Knew that you blew off work and knowing Tess, she probably knew that Joel finger fucked you into oblivion in the Neiman Marcus dressing room. You can't help but have respect for her, a woman walking amongst the men in an unforgiving industry. If there was anyone who had balls of steel, it would be Tess.

"Joel, why can't you just wait to fuck her after work like a responsible adult?!" She shouts, the tell-tell sound of something being thrown against the wall echoing through the hall. You flinch, sinking into your seat further as you groan in embarrassment.

"Hey!" you hear the other Miller brother yell from the other end of the hallway, his hurried steps passing through as he makes his way toward the absolute meltdown happening between Joel and Tess. "What the hell is going on? The entire fucking building can hear the both of you! What the fuck?!"

"Tess is being a bully, telling people they have to work through their lunch-"

"Your brother here is throwing a fucking hissy fit accusing me of bullying his little girlfriend - I told you hiring her was a bad fucking idea!"

"YOU LEAVE HER OUT OF THIS!" Joel shouts, the sound of his fist hitting the hollow of the door. "You keep her out of your��fucking mouth, Tess!"

"Joel," you hear Tommy, his voice lowered in a shoddy attempt to placate his brother. "Let's just calm the fuck down, okay? you guys are scaring the engineers-"

"OH FUCK THE ENGINEERS, TOMMY," Tess screams, "You tell your brother to stop playing favorites and fucking around with THE HELP!"

"Tess," Tommy stammers, "I know you're upset, but you're being out of line right now, let's just take a moment to calm-"

"Oh fuck off, Tommy! you're here always defending your brother when he's just fine screwing around, fucking us over! why don't you grow a pair-"

"Tess," Joels cuts her off, his voice laced with his building anger. "I know you think that you run the show, but it is still my company, that I run. You don't go and bully everyone just because you think you can. You may call the shots, but you still report to me. Denying an employee lunch is an HR violation! Should I call Sarah in here too? Slap the fucking employee handbook on your desk and clear the air? Your meeting with Sugar can wait until after lunch, do I make myself clear??"

You don't realize you're holding your breath until-

"DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"

You hear Tess curse, and you can imagine her face, clear as day, glaring at Joel, the both of them not wanting to back down.

"Crystal."

You hear the slamming of a door, followed by the heavy-footed steps of Joel as he makes his way back to his office.

You sit in a daze, looking off into space, trying to process what just happened. You're only broken off from your thoughts by the unmistakable sound of your messenger, its distinctive ping! jolting you back to the present.

[So, lunch?]

"So, what cravings does my Sugar have today?" Joel murmurs, gently taking your hand as he navigates out of the parking lot.

"Why did you do that?" you blurt out, turning to face him.

Joel, seemingly unfazed, keeps his eyes on the road. "Do what?"

"I don't need you defending my honor against Tess. She already dislikes me, and now it's all awkward-"

"She doesn't hate you-"

"...but clearly I have a target on my back now that I'm involved with my boss!" You keep your eyes downcast, attempting to stifle a sob. "You didn't need to cause a scene."

Joel turns his head at that, his expression softening as he observes your distress, seemingly at a loss for words. "Sugar-"

"It's easy for you, you know? To throw the fact that you're the boss around and have this 'I can do what I want' attitude with whoever you please. But I could still lose my job! I need this job, Joel. I-"

"No, Sugar. Shit, I-" He opens his mouth, then closes it, appearing unsure of how to respond to your sudden outburst. Joel looks genuinely troubled, his frown mirroring yours.

"I'm disposable, Joel," you continue, refusing to meet his gaze. "You wouldn't understand where I'm coming from."

"I wouldn't let her do that, baby."

"Just because you like me doesn't mean I'm immune, Joel."

“You do excellent work, Sugar. If there’s anyone to blame for what happened yesterday, it’s me, alright? Tess’ issue is with me, not you." He heads into town, pulling over to a metered parking spot in front of a few storefronts. He cuts the ignition, staring into the distance as he takes a few deep breaths. "You're wrong, baby," he says finally, turning towards you. He gives you a small smile, "I don't like you."

You feel your expression shift into something resembling pain as Joel hurriedly reaches for your hand, gently taking it into his.

"I love you, Sugar," he breathes, "I've been in love with you, all this time."

"Joel, you don't need to say this just to make me feel better."

Joel shakes his head, unbuckling his seatbelt to lean towards you, placing a chaste kiss on your forehead. "Are you saying I'm a liar?"

A tear rolls down your cheek. "No one has ever-"

"Then let me try to show you just how much I do, baby."

"What if I'm bad at it? Bad at loving you?"

Joel looks deep into your eyes, his gaze tender and unwavering. "There's no such thing as being bad at loving, Sugar. Love is about understanding, patience, and growing together. We'll figure it out, one step at a time."

He wipes away the tear from your cheek with his thumb and offers you a reassuring smile. "I'm not expecting perfection, just you, baby girl. That's all I've ever wanted."

"What if I'm not ready to say it back just yet?"

"I'll take whatever you're willing to give me", he smiles. "Just let me love you, okay?"

Later that day, you finally muster up the courage to make the short journey down the hall for your meeting with Tess. You would be lying if you said you weren't five seconds away from shitting your pants, that's just the effect Tess has on everyone in the office.

"Tess?" you knock on her door, clearing your throat and hoping she doesn't catch the slight tremor in your voice. You attempt to compose yourself, standing a bit taller as you wait for her reply with bated breath.

"Come in!"

You hesitantly shuffle in, feeling like a moron standing before her in your new dress, feeling like she can see right through you. "Look, about earlier-"

Tess glances at you as if you've suddenly sprouted another head. "Why don't you just have a seat, and we can get this over with."

You stand in your spot timidly, shifting on your feet. "Okay," you say, settling into the seat across from her and placing your MacBook on her desk. "Where did you want to start?"

"Let's go over the employee reports."

"Okay, well," you begin, nervously pushing your hair behind your ear as you load up your reports, keeping your eyes locked onto your screen as you feel the weight of Tess' gaze on you. It's unnerving, you think to yourself. "There haven't been any new issues; everyone seems to be on task, and productivity has been steady, if not increasing-"

"Do you want a drink?" Tess interrupts suddenly, the sound of a drawer opening as she pulls out a bottle of whiskey. "It was your birthday yesterday, right? Why don't we take the edge off?"

"Uh," you glance at the time on your computer screen. 4:05. 55 minutes before the end of the day. You eye her warily. "We still have an hour before... we still have an hour before the end of the day," you cautiously mention, a hint of uncertainty in your voice.

Tess pours two glasses of whiskey, sliding one towards you. "A little celebration won't hurt. Besides, it's been a day."

You hesitate for a moment before accepting the glass, the cool surface feeling unfamiliar in your hand. "To what, exactly?"

Tess smirks, raising her glass. "To getting through the day, and to not making a big deal out of things that don't matter. To burying the hatchet. To your birthday," she adds. She leans towards you, her gaze heavy on yours. "Shall we?"

"Sure," you say, not one to shy away from a challenge. "What the hell."

It's not an hour later you find the both of you drunk off your asses.

"You know, I can see it," Tess says, eyeing you as she leans back in her desk chair. "Why Joel is so taken with you? You're quite a woman."

"Oh?"

"It takes one strong woman to be able to see the kind of illicit porn the Miller brothers watch and not bat an eye at it. Tell me, what has our leader been into lately?"

You try to stifle a giggle, attempting to hide a blush. "Well, he usually watches a lot of secretary stuff, but lately-"

"Let me take a wild guess," Tess says as she takes a swig out of the bottle, shot glasses long abandoned. "Sweet little housewife porn?"

"Not quite."

Her eyebrow raises curiously. "Worse than that?"

"Well, there's been an uptick of... breeding porn?" you blush furiously. "it's a lot."

Tess bursts into a fit of laughter, clutching her middle, all sense of professionalism out the window. "I think he's trying to tell you something!"

"What do you mean?" you ask, meeting her giggles. "What is breeding porn anyway?"

Tess stares at you. "Really Sugar? It means he wants to fuck a baby into you!"

You scratch the back of your head, clearly at a loss. "I-"

"The sex must be great," she quips. "I don't think that man has been intimate with anyone for the last ten years." She leans over toward you. "He has to make up for lost time," she whispers, giving you a wink.

"Yeah", you stammer, "It's great."

"Well, when you say it like that, maybe the old man lost his touch."

"Tess, can I level with you? I... I'm a virgin. I'm a 36-year-old virgin. Does that change how you see me?"

"Well, it depends. Is it by choice?"

You shrug, a hiccup escaping from your body. "I'm not entirely sure. Maybe it's a mix of both. Like I'm defective."

"Lay it on me," she looks around your surroundings, making sure that the door is closed. "This is a safe space... most of the time." She gives you a pointed look.

"I guess... I don't know how to put myself out there. My parents, well, my dad- he was strict. One of those "You're not allowed to date until you're 80" kind of dads." You take another sip of whiskey, scrunching your face as it burns down your throat. "I... tried to date in college, but it never went past a first date. There was a lot of ghosting. It gave me a complex, you know? Who wants to date a nobody who looks like me? and it's so fucking pathetic, you know? to be the unwanted one. All of my friends, well, they're married and have kids, and I'm just that token single friend they take pity on because I will always be unlucky in love."

"I think that's a load of bull," Tess scoffs, arms crossed.

"Do you know what I think? You dealt with too many boys and not enough men." She drinks from the bottle once more, reclining further into her seat as she places her ankles on the edge of the desk. "Do you wanna know what I see in front of me? I see a girl who worked her ass off getting her masters, who doesn't depend on mommy and daddy to fund her lifestyle - yes," she raises a finger, interrupting you from replying. "I know who your parents are. You're hyper-independent, and you don't like handouts. Boys don't want a woman who doesn't need them, they don't want a fucking challenge. Do you know who does love a challenge? Men. Men like Joel."

Tess leans in, a sly grin playing on her lips. "Joel, now there's a man who appreciates someone like you. Someone who doesn't need saving, who's got her own game going. Boys might be intimidated, but men, well, they see a partner, not a project."

She takes another swig, the bottle now almost empty. "You don't want to waste your time on those boys playing grown-up. Trust me, been there, done that. Men bring something different to the table. They value independence, they crave a challenge. It's a whole different ball game. Think about it, Sugar. Besides," she laughs to herself, shaking her head. "I've never seen Joel so whipped for pussy in the 20 years that I've known him. You got him eating in the palm of your hand... and the best thing about it? you didn't even have to try. What woman can say that she managed to bag a millionaire without having to put out? Now that's power."

"What's this?" Joel asks suddenly, his eyes narrowing at the two of you as he hovers over the doorway. If he knocked, the two of you were too drunk to notice. "Tess? Care to share why Sugar can barely sit straight?"

Tess throws her hands up in surrender, a faint chuckle out of her lips. "What does it look like? We're just having a little birthday drink. I'd offer you a drink," she picks up the empty whiskey bottle, "but it looks like we beat you to it."

"Joel!" you beam at him, spinning around in your seat, your face flushed from your conversation with Tess. "Just the man we were talking about!"

"Sugar, are you feeling ok?" he gives you a small smile, trying to hide his concern.

"I'm just peachy, thanks for asking!" you sway in your seat, grabbing onto the armrest to steady yourself. "Tess and I were just discussing how you haven't had-"

"Just going over productivity metrics" Tess cuts you off, clearing her throat as she tries to steady herself, wincing. "I offered her a drink to apologize for my behavior earlier. We got a little carried away-" She straightens herself, motioning towards you. "I think you should give her a ride home, make sure she doesn't end up in the next state over because she drunkenly typed in the wrong address in the Tesla."

"Home sounds good," you murmur under your breath, your eyes closed.

Joel lets out an exasperated sigh, moving towards your slouched figure. "Okay Sugar," he whispers, his hands gently placed on your shoulders to steady you. "Do you think you can walk?"

"Maybe?" you hiccup, your body feeling like lead is coursing through your veins as you attempt to meet his concerned eyes. "Are you going to take me home? I don't think I can drive, everything is so fuzzy..."

If you weren't drunk off of your ass, you might have sensed the sudden lift from your seat, Joel carrying you effortlessly with a stern look aimed at Tess. "I appreciate the effort to make amends, Tess, but maybe find a different approach other than getting the employees drunk." He adjusts you so your head rests on his shoulder, preventing any potential dizziness.

She shrugs, a smirk forming at Joel as he quietly tries to settle you. "What can I say? Whiskey cures all."

"Goodnight, Tess," Joel grumbles, adjusting his hold as he carries you towards the parking lot.

Joel carefully situates you in the passenger seat of his truck, securing your seatbelt and making sure your head rests comfortably, sighing as he takes in your inebriated state. He places a chaste kiss on your forehead, offering you a reassuring smile. "I'm going to get your stuff back in the office, just close your eyes, okay?" he whispers, giving you one last glance before closing the door.

"I don't want to head home tonight. Can I crash at your place, Joel?" you murmur, eyelids too heavy to keep open. You swear you hear Joel reply something in return, but the alcohol in your system is finally starting to settle deep within your bones, lulling you into a deep sleep.

You don't remember much after that.

When you finally stir, it's dark. Instead of the familiar hum of Joel's truck, warmth envelops you, an arm securely around your middle. Joel snores softly.

"Joel?" you call out in the dark, your eyes trying to adjust to the lack of light. "Where am I?"

"Hush, baby, go back to sleep. It's still early," he mumbles, tightening the arm around you. You feel him gently press a kiss on your head. "Sleep, my little love, we'll talk in the morning, okay?"

"Okay," you reply, the smoothness of his voice lulling you back to sleep.

"I love you, Joel." you think you say in your sleep. You don't care at this point, there's no sense of hiding it.

You swear you feel the ghost of his smile in response.

The next time you wake, the sunlight is pouring into the depths of Joel's bedroom, casting a hazy light, the air in the room still cold against your bare skin. Your eyes open wider at the realization that you're no longer in your work clothes. You blush at the thought of Joel undressing you, his hungry gaze on your bare body as he redresses you in something comfortable, embarrassed at the fact that you were too drunk to remember. You reluctantly open your eyes, blinking away the haze from a night of heavy drinking, trying to stifle a groan, not wanting to wake Joel.

You managed to lay halfway on top of him this time, your face buried in the crook of his neck. One of his hands is splayed against the expanse of your back, his leg slotted in between your thighs. You swear if you hitched your leg higher you would feel the firmness of his cock, already at half mast beneath the fabric of his boxers. You gaze at it in silent wonder, the realization that he's quite large - larger than the ones you see when you allow yourself to watch porn yourself.

You find yourself grinding against his thigh, the sensation feeling like molten lava coursing through your veins. You don’t realize what you’re doing until the hand on your back starts to move, motioning your body to move back and forth as you continue to rub your clit against the hardness of his leg. "Fuck baby, are you close? You're shaking." he says roughly, pulling you into a kiss.

"Joel, I saw what kind of porn you've been watching lately."

Joel stiffens at that, his hand still. "I'm beginning to think I can't hide shit from anyone," he laughs. "I guess I'm that transparent."

"Are you embarrassed?" you chuckle. "You can tell me, you know. Tess told me it's obvious that you want to fuck a baby-"

Joel groans. "Let's not talk about Tess right now. Besides- I know that you're a virgin, Sugar. I want your first time to be special, do it the right way. Let me help you ease into it-"

"Wasn't that what yesterday was about?" you blush, burying your face into his neck. "What if I'm ready now?"

"... are you sure, Sugar?" he asks hesitantly, his fingers gently caressing your cheek. "Don't want to pressure you into something you're not ready for."

"I don't want anyone else but you, Joel."

"You don't know how much I ache for you," he murmurs against your skin, placing wet open-mouthed kisses on your sternum, his hands slowly creeping up your shirt, his fingers grabbing onto the hem. "Can I, baby?" he asks, meeting your gaze as he kisses your skin. You give him a silent nod, lifting yourself slightly as he gently pulls his shirt off of your body, his eyes roaming on the slopes of your breasts. "Such perfect fucking tits, baby. Are they just for me?" he asks, the tip of his tongue flicking your nipple, his hand grasping the other.

"Yes Joel, just for you," you breathe. His hands drift lower towards your aching cunt. "Put a baby into me, Joel. I want it."

"Fuck," he shouts, his hands grabbing your ass, shifting your body to be at the center of his king-sized bed. "You shouldn't say those things to me, I might just do it," he replies, settling himself in between your thighs. He cants his erection against your cunt, capturing your lips for a bruising kiss. "Can you feel just how much I ache for you?" His hand finds your core once more, his thumb pressing on your clit.

Oh.

Your hands find his, pushing it onto your clit harder, the added pressure making you arch your back, your chest pressing onto his. His mouth finds your breasts once more, his tongue eagerly lapping and sucking at your pebbled nipples. "Such beautiful tits, Sugar. It'll get more beautiful when they get bigger and full of milk for my baby."

He continues to worship your tits for a while, the pleasure that he's pulling from you making you dizzy with want, your pussy clenching onto nothing as he continues to grind against you. "Fuck Joel!" you cry out, your body chasing your orgasm, your chest too sensitive from his ministrations.

"Tell me what you want, baby. What do you need?"

"I need your cock, daddy. I feel so fucking empty-"

Joel gives your breasts one final suck, the pop echoing throughout the vastness of his room. "I have to make you come first, baby. You're not ready for my cock yet." He slides a finger between your folds, his thumb adding more pressure onto your clit. Joel shifts his body down, pressing kisses down your torso as he makes his way to the waistband of your panties, his fingers hooking into the elastic, pulling them down. He hooks his arms under your thighs, pulling you to the edge of his bed, spreading you wider as you present yourself to him.

"Baby," he groans like he's in pain. He parts your slicked folds with his finger, coating it with your wetness. You jump as he flicks your clit, pinching it for good measure. "I'm beginning to think you're aching for me too, Sugar." You moan deeply, your body thrashing between the sheets, your body begging for more.

"Don't fucking tease me, Joel," you pant. "I need you-"

He slaps your pussy harshly. "You'll take what I give you, little girl. Do I need to teach you how to be patient? We skipped dinner last night, you gonna deny Daddy of his meal?"

"No, Daddy. Please-"

"Are you gonna be a good little girl and let Daddy take care of you? Let me taste your sweet pussy?" he adds a second finger against your folds, teasing your entrance as you gasp and throw your head back.

"Yes," you plead. "Yes, yes, yes, take what you want-"

You can hardly breathe as Joel tugs your legs over his shoulders, angling your hips. You swear you feel your heart beating through your ears, your entire body feeling like it's on fire. Joel gives you one last smirk as he lowers his face to your cunt.

You swear you implode the moment his mouth comes in contact with your clit.

His tongue is lapping at your slick, the tip flicking your aching nub, languidly kissing your slit, taking his time. He's devouring you like he's been starved for years, getting hungrier and more desperate as you swear you can feel the bed shake, his dick grinding down on the mattress. He harshly grabs the globes of your ass cheeks, slipping his tongue at your entrance, your entire body flailing on the bed from overstimulation.

He reaches for your hand and places it on his head, your fingers threading through his curls. "Hold on to me, Sugar. Don't be gentle," he says against your pussy, groaning as you pull so hard you swear you might just pull it out of his scalp. You begin to rock your hips against his face, the tip of his nose grazing against your clit, the both of you finding a rhythm as you chase your impending orgasm. You're close. So close.

"Come for me, baby. Fucking soak my face-" Joel begs, taking your clit in his teeth. Tears begin to form at the corner of your eyes, your body trembling and shaking and thrashing as he continues to consume you.

"Joel!" you cry, "It's too much, I can't-" You swear your vision blacks out as you suddenly feel a gush of slick being released out of you, soaking Joel's face and the sheets beneath you. You try to meet his gaze, his pupils blown black, his eyes wide.

"That's a good fucking girl!" he shouts, lapping you up completely, drinking from your pussy. He suddenly rises to his feet, his hands still gripping your thighs, lifting your ass higher as he lines his cock to your entrance.

"Are you sure you want this?" he asks, probing the tip at your entrance. "Once I start I won't be able to stop. Is this something you want? I need to hear you say it."

"I want it, Joel. I want you."

"Do you want me to wear a condom?"

You look at him, shaking your head. "I thought you said you wanted to fuck a baby into me. I'm not on anything and you would be my first-"

Joel wraps your thighs around his waist, leaning towards you as he kisses you, long and deep. "I love you, Sugar... and I know you love me," He inches his tip into your entrance slowly, giving you shallow thrusts. "I'll give you everything-" he groans as he slowly fills you to the hilt, stopping his thrusts as he allows you to adjust to his length.

It's a lot. Too long and too thick and you're gripping onto him, gripping onto him like a vice. You gasp at the intrusion, the pinch so sharp you close your eyes in pain, clutching at Joel, digging your nails harshly against his skin.

"I need you to relax, Sugar," Joel says, his voice strained. "What do you need? I don't want to hurt you."

You shake your head. "Just... talk to me. Distract me." You take a deep breath. "When did you know? Know that you loved me?"

The corner of his mouth twitches, a small smile on his face as he starts to slowly push in and out of you. "Do you remember the day that you first yelled at me? The day when I was working when it was storming out-"

"The day we had a tornado watch?" you pant, taking another deep breath as he continues to thrust into you, slow and deep. "You were an absolute moron, risking your life for some bullshit deadline my dad held over your head-" you gasp, your hips canting towards as you meet him thrust for thrust. "No amount of money is worth risking your life-"

"I couldn't bear seeing you cry, begging me to come down the roof," he groans, grabbing onto your hip as he thrusts deeper into you. "No one besides my family has shown me such care for my well-being, not even Sarah's mom, forcing me to work hell or high water... fuck. You feel so fucking good baby, I don't think I can last-" he starts to thrust into you in earnest, the sound of skin hitting skin echoing throughout the room.

It's obscene.

"You practically jumped onto me the moment I came down, gripping onto me like a life raft, fuck... feeling you in my arms, the tears running down your face-" he's pounding into you now, both of his hands gripping onto your hips harshly as he fucks you into the mattress. "I was fucking gone for you, baby," he pants. "I knew I loved you then. Knew I had to make you mine, no matter what it took... Fuck." Joel closes his eyes, throwing his head back as he fucks into you deeper, so deep you can't think straight, your second orgasm building. His chest is heaving as he opens his eyes once more, his face full of love and adoration.

You never thought you would feel what belonging felt like, what home would feel like.

Seeing him look at you in wonder, like you hung the stars in the sky at night yourself...

You don't realize you're both crying, the tears from Joel's eyes running down his face as he sets a brutal pace, angling your hips higher as he plows into you.

"I want to give you a family, baby. I want you to stay, forever."

"Then don't let me go, Joel. Don't leave me-" you gasp, your face wrought with tears. "I love you, Joel. So much."

"I won't," he breathes, leaning over you as he kisses you furiously, his hips snapping into you. "You're so close, baby, I can feel you gripping me so tight, I'm going to fill you up so good, give you a fucking baby, keep you in this house I built for you, never letting you leave..." he babbles incoherently. "Come with me, baby. Come with me, please-"

Your body tenses up like a coil, the string keeping your sanity together snapping as you shriek, Joel roaring as you both come, his spend pulsing into deep into you, thick and hot and molten.

Joel slumps onto you, completely spent. He keeps his cock in you until he softens and slips out, his finger quickly gathering the spend seeping out of you and pushing it in, keeping it safe. He laughs as he falls onto the mattress next to you, pressing small chaste kisses on your face, taking you into his arms.

"Did you mean it?" he asks softly, his fingers cradling your face. "Did you mean it when you said you loved me?"

You take his hand in yours, threading your fingers through his, offering him a small smile.

"I love you, Joel. So much."

Taglist: @sarcasm-theotherwhitemeat, @gwendibleywrites, @joeldjarin, @brittmb115, @thewiigers,

@auteurdelabre, @quicax3, @casa-boiardi, @amyispxnk, @untamedheart81,

@paleidiot, @bbiophiliaa, @laurrrra, @la-vie-est-une-fleur29 (I apologize if I missed anyone, but if you are looking for any of my fic updates, please feel free to follow my updates blog @chiriwritesstuffnotifs!)

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peachyfnaf · 2 months ago

Note

I'm sorry but "MY BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS WITH A DISORDER<3" really made my day and I needed you to know

🤣🤣🤣

I can't believe Nexus is bullying peepaw war criminal.

Do you think Nexus is going to be stopped by big bro Sun or do you think the lil guy is going beyond the point of no return?

(Please talk about baby cringe Lord Nexus, I want to hear about your blorbo 🙏)

That's because Nexus IS my beautiful princess with a disorder, I'll have you know <3 they're diseased but it's okay I can give them their tetanus and flu shots and it'll all be better I GOT THIS

But. ahem, okay, blorbo yapping time. I'm not even gonna say "I'll try to keep this short" because I know it wont end up that way HAHAHAHAHA

"Do you think Nexus is going to be stopped by big bro Sun or do you think the lil guy is going beyond the point of no return?"

I... have absolutely no idea!!!1! (and also it took me an embarrassingly long amount of time to realize peepaw war criminal was Ruin KJDFHSDF)

The most frustrating thing about canon Nexus is how his morals, motivations, and goals seem to see-saw back and forth all the time. at first, he became how he is now due to Solar's death. he spiraled in his grief, identity-issues, and abandonment. but... now his motivation is to become an all powerful god??? while it's most likely that NSP is at play and affecting his thought process, it's... well, it's really hard to take him seriously as a villain because of it, lol. for an audience to enjoy, and even sympathize in some cases, with a villain, their goals and motivations have to be concrete. they have to be relatable, or at least understandable, but Nexus' whole thing is... not, Imho. and I know I'm not the only person who feels this way!!!

I see a lot of people calling Nexus "cringe", and the thing is, when it comes to canon Nexus, they're not really... wrong??? The worst thing Nexus has done so far is make Old Moon see his past victims, which is fucked up of him to do, but.. so far, that's kind of it??? other than that, his "villainy" consists of saying empty threats and cheesy evil one-liners. hell, he was supposed to kidnap Sun yesterday but instead spent the whole episode yapping and venting to him, chasing Sun around in the worlds darkest game of tag before getting some lead right in the face dkfjhsdfsd

Also, notice how he's only targeted Old Moon when it comes to actual physical violence? not Lunar, Earth, Solar, or Sun, but Old Moon? yeah, I did too. we already know that Nexus does everything because he's lashing out, but as of rn the only target he's gotten his hands on physically being O.M...? well. I think it says a lot. cause' yeah, he sure as shit scared the life out of the other Celestials, but he's never put his hands on them!! the only other one of them he harmed physically was Earth- and not only was he not aiming for her, she was just in the way- he felt immediate regret for his actions once in space, and has yet to even see Earth ever since that day.

So, I really have no idea if he's going to be "redeemed" or not. one second he's showing signs he might be, and the next he's falling further down the "pretty badly written villain" rabbit-hole. if he does get something akin to a redemption arc, he'll prolly mostly be accepted in the eyes of the viewers, considering a lot of peeps sympathize or at least understand where he's coming from, but I seriously doubt the other Celestials would take him back. the only one's who might see him as family/a close friend again are Sun and Solar, but even then, nothing would ever be the same.

I hope he gets redeemed, or at least freed from the hold Dark Sun has on him and he's able to live his own life, I really do. at his core, Nexus is a good person. a good person who was crushed under the weight of the shadow of the man he was born under. and we know this because he used to be New Moon. sweet, dorky New Moon.

New Moon, who made inventions like sentient knives and whoopee cushions. New Moon, who had matching My Little Pony stickers with his best friend. New Moon, who bought a whole ass island-luxury-house for Sun because he wanted to make him feel better and give him the proper space to heal. and New Moon- the poor freshly-baked A.I who gave his all to make sure he could do everything that Old Moon could, but it just wasn't enough. he tried and tried and tried, but it wasn't enough.

So yeah, idk if he's getting one in canon, but to me, he more than deserves a good ending, for the life he was given. let him be at peace.

#why do i always end my essays off the same way. i like using the writing technique of repetition too much KJDSFHDS #but anyways yeah. normally whenever i get something in my inbox i take my time answering it but whenever its nexus related you can actually #hear my neck crack from how hard i whip it around to look at my screen HAHAHAHHH #asks tag #the sun and moon show #tsams #sun and moon show #sams #tsams nexus #the sun and moon show nexus #new moon/nexus (tsbs)#yapping about smtn tag #idk if this needs a seasoned/salty tag?? someone tell me if they'd like it lol

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xoxoavenger · 1 year ago

Text

How You Get The Girl

pairing: Pope Heyward x Fem!Reader

summary: Broke your heart, I'll put it back together I would wait for ever and ever And that's how it works That's how you get the girl

word count: 1752

warnings: none

1989 masterlist main masterlist

"Are you insane?" She asks, blinking at him. He's shaking, freezing from having run to her house in the rain. But this couldn't wait. He risked getting grounded forever for sneaking out just to see her.

Y/N cannot believe Pope Hayward is at her door.

"Can I come in?" He asks. Besides the fact that it's freezing, he also knows he needs to talk to her before the police release the actual story of where he was, or even before the town gets word of the Pouges being back. He knows it'll be worse if she finds out he's back before he can see her.

"Where the fuck did you go?" She yells. Instead of letting him in, she walks out and pushes him. He stumbles back a few steps, and she follows. She's starting to get wet from the rain, but by the look on her face he guesses she can't tell. They're standing so close; every nerve in his body can feel her proximity.

"I didn't mean to leave, I swear, especially after everything that happened," He tells her quickly, but she's already talking over him.

"Everything that happened? Really? You mean how you finally asked me to be your girlfriend after months of dates and cuddles and kisses and me waiting for you to make a move, just to fuck off to God knows where without telling me?" She's rightfully pissed, and now they're both getting soaked from the rain that will not let up. There must be a hurricane incoming.

"I know, I should have said something before I left, but I didn't think I'd be gone that long. But we got stuck on an island, and then kidnapped, and I swear I would have been here earlier except my parents are freaking out and didn't want me to leave." She's shocked into silence as he talks, because she had never thought that Pope was actually stuck on an island while he was gone. "But I wanted to tell you that I'm back. Before word gets around." They're silent for a moment, both staring at each other and blinking the rain away.

"What the fuck?" She finally says, and before Pope could defend himself any further she walks forward and hugs him tightly. He's confused, because a second ago he was sure she was going to slap him, but he wraps his arms around her and takes it in.

"I missed you." He whispers, pulling her as close as he can. Their bodies are wet and they're both colder than shit, but it feels too good to be with each other.

"I missed you too." She says, pulling back. She's glad for the water running down her face, making the tears blend in. "But I can't be with you."

Her words break Pope's heart.

He watches wordlessly as she walks away, back into her house without looking over her shoulder.

"What are you doing here?" She asks as she opens the door to Pope only a day later. It's not raining today, just gloomy and humid. It made his hair more frizzy than usual, sticking out widely.

Pope is glued to the spot, only able to blink at her.

"Hello? Pope, are you okay?" She asks, waving a hand in front of his face. He shakes his head before focusing.

"I'm not just giving up on us." He blurts out, causing Y/N's eyes to widen.

"I thought I made it pretty clear yesterday that I couldn't do that again." She frowns, because it hurts her too. She doesn't want to end things with him, but she doesn't have much of a choice. He doesn't know what she had to go through, how worried her friends were when she stayed home from everything, even school for a couple days. She had been so worried about Pope, until someone brought to her attention that they probably ran away.

And it broke her heart.

"I also wanted to bring you this picture. I framed it." He passes a picture of them at the beach, one Y/N took on the day he had officially asked her to be his girlfriend. She had taken it from a high angle, Pope's arms around her waist visible, his lips pressed to her cheek. She had her hand holding his chin, her face frozen between a smile and a laugh.

It was the picture she had cried over, the one stuck on her phone while it was pressed to her chest. It was the first one she deleted when she had the thought that he had to of run away. And here it was, in Pope's hands, framed.

She didn't know what to say.

"I just, I wanted to explain myself." He tells her, and she finally looks up at him.

"I thought you did that yesterday." Her heart is racing. She wants it to stop, wants him to stop, because she can't take this anymore.

"I did, but I wanted to give you the full story." She turns to let him into her house, trying to take a deep breath when his arm brushes past her.

"This doesn't mean that we're getting back together." She says as she shuts the door, not looking at him. In the back of her mind, she can feel the doubt, but she can't bring herself to question it too hard. She doesn't want to know what it means if she doesn't fully believe herself, the same way she doesn't want to think about what it would mean for her and Pope if she kept her word.

"That's okay." He says, and her heart flies a little higher because he sounds like he's actually okay with it, despite saying that he wasn't going to give up on them. Maybe, for him, the two aren't mutually exclusive.

After a couple weeks of Pope coming over, Y/N knows she's losing the battle with herself.

Pope hasn't even confessed to anything. He hasn't said anything about them being together since he came over with the picture, hasn't asked her how she would feel about the two of them getting back together. They've simply just been themselves, a pair of feelings that stay in the dark. It all comes to a head when Pope spends the night accidentally and she wakes up in his arms, head on his chest and feeling the most relaxed she's felt since the day on the beach when they fell asleep in the sun, warm and at peace.

She can't take it, the feeling she knows all too well that makes her heart race. She rolls over and pretends that it didn't happen, hoping that Pope isn't awake. He doesn't even have the decency to pretend like he was asleep when she leaves his arms, instead sitting up on an elbow. It's quiet as she ignores him, eyes squeezed shut in a silent prayer that he'll think she rolled over in her sleep.

"I can't do this." He says it softly, as if by not yelling it the words won't break her heart. It's enough to get her to turn back and look at him.

"What are you talking about?" She asks, her voice in an equal whisper. She knows what he's saying, but can't bring herself to let him go.

"You told me you didn't want to be with me, and I respect that. But I can't do this; I can't hold you in my arms and then watch you turn away. I know you're afraid of getting hurt again, and I know you don't have any reason to trust me, but I promise I will never leave again. I would never put you through that again." He sounds so sincere, she can't even begin to think about how much it took him to get the words out.

He knows about what she went though when he left. During a late night, she had confessed how much she had struggled, how much she had hurt when she learned he was missing. He apologized endlessly, and she knew by the look on his face she had broken his heart.

"Pope," She doesn't know what to say, which is fine because she's pretty sure she would cry if she did try to get anything out.

"I want you, Y/N. And not just in a friend way. I want to be the one you fall asleep with at night, the one you wake up to. I want to put your heart back together and hold it so tight that no one will ever be able to break it again." He can see her face, see the hesitancy, so he continues before she can cut him off. "I'll wait. If you don't want to jump into anything, I'll wait. I'll be here as long as it takes. But if you give me the word, if you could just tell me that you want me too, or will want me in the future," He doesn't know how to read her now, and he's worried he's gone too far.

It scares her, what he's saying. It scares her to fall for him again, to somehow fall even deeper this time. She doesn't know if her heart is capable of it, doesn't know how she can trust him.

But then she thinks back to the beach day, thinks back to the feeling of being in the clouds when he had finally asked her to be his. She thinks back to him recounting his days on the island, how he told her that he had thought of her so often the Pouges banned him from saying her name. How hard it was to fall asleep, how he would pretend he was with her just to get through the night. And sure, she could reject these words. She could say she doesn't care, that she thinks he's lying. But she knows he's not. She knows he's telling the truth. And she does care. She cares about him so much it hurts.

"Okay," It's so quiet that she thinks Pope may have missed it, but the way his eyes widen makes her smile so big she's sure her jaw will be sore. "I want you too, Pope." The words aren't even out of her mouth before he's tackling her, squishing her against the bed as their laughs create a perfect harmony in the air.

And then he's kissing her, and she wonders why she had ever doubted him in the first place when he kisses her like she's the only thing in the whole world that matters.

tags: @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @one-sweet-gubler

#pope heyward x reader #pope heyward #pope heyward imagine #obx #obx imagine

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tennessoui · 1 year ago

Note

You're a wonderful writer, you deserve all the treats! 🎃🍭🍬🍫🍦🧁✨

awww thank you so much 🥹🥹

it is no longer halloween but i have a couple of trick or treat asks that i didn't get to cause my time management leaves a lot to be desired & little time to desire it lol so to spare people's dashes but to not leave anyone in the wind, i'm gonna respond to all of them in one long post :D (this one)

see beneath the cut!! you guys did great there were like almost no repeats even though there statistically probably should have been???

🍬🍬 hello thank you 🧡

i already answered a kuwsk one, so for roadtrip au....

here is a little drabble from an upcoming scene in the roadtrip au (squick tag:a/b/o):

Obi-Wan narrows his eyes in his direction. "What's wrong, Anakin?" "Nothing," he says. Shit, that came out too fast. Obi-Wan's eyes narrow further, like he agrees. "You've been acting strangely all day," the love of his life says. "You didn't even say anything when I pointed out the pancake house for breakfast. You didn't even say anything when I got a cinnamon roll at the coffee shop!" "You had two servings of vegetables yesterday," Anakin mumbles, placing both hands on the wheel and looking at the road. Maybe if he pretends this stretch of flat wasteland road in front of him is the most interesting thing in the world and requires his entire concentration, Obi-Wan will drop the subject. Obi-Wan does not seem to pick up on this. He scoffs instead, and crosses his arms. "When has that ever been enough to you? Since this entire thing started?" "Obi-Wan--" "And we've been listening to my podcast for the past two hours!And you haven't mentioned it once!" "Fine," Anakin snaps, tightening his hands and then loosening his grip with effort. "Fine, congratulations. Yeah, something's wrong. I'm working through it though, okay?" On his side of the car, Obi-Wan draws himself up, and then seemingly shrinks himself down a moment later. "Is--" his hand falls onto Anakin's arm before it drops away. "Is this...because of the other night?" Anakin's jaw clenches. Them having sex hasn't just been kept to the other night. They fucked their way through all of North Dakota and Montana over the course of the last two days. But sure, the other night. "No." "Because if it is--" the omega's voice is timid and it makes Anakin's chest hurt. "You're not wearing my clothes," Anakin blurts out. "You smell different and I hate it and I know it's stupid and weird and some Dark Ages Alpha bullshit, but you need to be wearing my shirt or I'm going to fucking lose my mind, Obi-Wan." The words draw Obi-Wan up short. Anakin cuts his eyes to the side and he can see his omega's mouth hanging slightly open. Anakin taps his tongue against the back of his teeth. Great, now he sounds like some insane micro-managing lunatic. "And I think I'm going into rut." Now he sounds like a horny micromanaging lunatic. Perfect.

👻 ahh trick or treat for the naughtiest au that deserves NO treats!! 🧡

some nasty info on the cheating au i haven't talked about like. all their flying lessons. when obi-wan and anakin start fucking (before they're in love with each other), obi-wan devises a plan to get anakin alone more often so they can fuck on the weekends and not just at their places of work lol. it involves complaining to padmé about needing to really learn how to fly now that his uh valet has retired. he can't get a new one. no, that's not an option. so does padmé know anyone who flies very well and would be down to perhaps teaching him in their free time?

and padmé is like oh i do actually! my husband anakin is a very good flier. would you like me to connect you two? he came with me to your party.

and obi-wan is like i think i remember him :> he would be...available?

and anakin is guilty but very available

so they mostly spend all their flying lessons fucking in the cock pit because obi-wan's been able to fly since he was a kid. padmé learns about this either after the very end where she finds out about their affair, OR she learns about it in the lead up to the very end where she's feeling very suspicious but she's been ignoring it for THIS long so.....

🧛‍♀️🦇

trick or treat 🧡

twilight au 🧡

a headcanon for the twilight au! obi-wan's biggest pet peeve with anakin is that he absolutely hates being guided or directed in any way. he fights just to fight and obi-wan enjoys putting him in place but it would be fucking easier if anakin didn't spend so much time arguing over like. how many vegetables he should have a day. and how much water he needs to drink. obi-wan is a licensed doctor like 36 times over for fuck's sake.

anakin's biggest pet peeve is obi-wan constantly tries to mind trick him to see if his immunity will falter or fail. anakin's like for the love of god obi-wan im not a science experiment, jesus christ--'

and obi-wan hisses (cause vampire), and obi-wan's like 'you can't tell me you didn't just want to see if that was just a vampire myth'

assholes to each other <3 for eternity <3

😈 trick or treat 👽

omg smithsonian au......you know what they do for halloween, these two fuckers?? padmé invites everyone over to her (very fancy apartment) for pumpkin carving and obi-wan and anakin are so fucking annoying. they turn into a competition about who can carve the best pumpkin. obi-wan calls anakin's first attempt (a cat face) lowbrow (obi-wan carved a jellyfish), and anakin throws pumpkin guts into obi-wan's hair (he's a ginger, no one will even be able to tell!)

it goes on and on until padmé dismisses them from her apartment because it's either that or carve into anakin and obi-wan.

after getting kicked out of pumpkin carving they accidentally go on a romantic autumnal walk. they stop at a street light and anakin picks pumpkin guts out of obi-wan's hair.

it makes them feel so many things they're not mature enough to talk about

trick or treat! 🎃😸

oh ho ho the cult au! that doesn't even have a tag! (but basically it's an au where jedi obi-wan is tasked with investigating a Force adjacent cult on the desert planet Tatooine, and it's anakin obviously who is so powerful in the force he's made a whole cult out of it and sets his sights on obi-wan as his forever partner)

here is a 3 line drabble!

The boy's head tilts, and his eyes are heavy, piercing gold. They pin Obi-Wan in place even from across the room. It is immediately completely obvious who among the people in this room has influenced the Force. Even though the boy could not be more than twenty, his entire presence radiates pure power. Obi-Wan has never felt a Force signature so aggressive, so strong. For the first time since he heard the rumors, since the Council handed him the file for this mission, Obi-Wan can believe that there is a Child of The Force on this desert planet. A demi-god, whose attention can change futures, destinies-- "Approach," the boy commands, extending a hand out over the empty space surrounding him. "Obi-Wan Kenobi."

trick or treat 👽🎃

hello hello the selkie au <3

here is a bit of background thought on the selkie au! one of the things i include in most fics/characterizations of anakin is that he's a pretty one partner for life kind of person (in that he married padmé after being obsessed with her forever in canon, and one of my favorite fanons is that his very first crush/sexual awakening was obi-wan and then he would have totally married obi-wan if obi-wan was a bit different character)

but in selkie au, anakin has a very long history of dating/trying to fall in love, which is like pretty unique in my writing!

and obi-wan probably has like only a few partners he's been head over heels with, and he falls really hard for anakin which makes their (temporary) break up so much harder for him personally

trick or treat ! 😈

and omg for the space actors au??? ok ok

so obi-wan and anakin are in a holo film where they have to be jedi which will mean very serious research

and they absolutely go to the jedi temple and fuck in like a few sacred places, but tbh so many other jedi have also fucked there so that it's no big deal......even if they get caught.....and even if the make-up department has to spend a small fortune covering up their hickies they somehow got on a "research trip"

(the holonet runs a scandalous article about which jedi broke their vows of celibacy and slept with famed actor anakin skywalker?)

(obi-wan is offended that his handiwork is not recognized)

(the jedi order has to put out a statement to say that actually there are no enforced vows of celibacy though jedi may choose to follow whichever personal vows they would like)

(and if a jedi slept with anakin skywalker, the jedi council has decided they do not want to know. or hear about it anymore. thank you.)

🎃 trick or treat 🦇

i actually got asked for lslm 3 more times after you sent this in, but you were the first to ask after lslm so congrats on beating the crowd haha

ok sooooo here's a bit of the new chapter (remember, anakin's discovered that padmé has a golden wolf's mask in her luggage, what the council's intelligence has said is what the traitor will be wearing):

Padmé's eyes are unreadable when she looks back up at him. He’s been compromised. Fucking stars. He’s been compromised within the first five minutes of his mission. The enemy—the alpha in the golden wolf’s mask—she knows he is lying, she knows who he is, and she’s dangerous. She’s dangerous, and Obi-Wan is here. Anakin can feel his shoulders straightening at the reminder. Obi-Wan is here, sharing the same air as Amidala, the woman who now knows too much. If Anakin is compromised, it will only be a few minutes before Obi-Wan is compromised as well. Obi-Wan will not be threatened on this mission. Anakin will not allow it, even if it means silencing Amidala himself. She had shown him kindness and compassion when he had been nothing but a slave. And then again when he had been nothing but a boy crying out for his master. But it seems she’s forgotten what loyalty is. Anakin can remind her. But before he can step forward into her personal space, slip control of his pheromones so that all she can smell is willing omega, tease her fingers before interlacing them with his own and pulling her out of the entrance room into a more private location—before he can take the first step towards extinguishing this threat to his alpha’s safety, someone touches Padmé’s bare shoulder.

trick or treat!! 🎃👻

a fish hook, an open eye--what a fic, thank you for sending this and therefore reminding me of it lol 🧡

hm quick head canon for this fic is....anakin actually honestly makes obi-wan a better person and sorta saves the galaxy. see, he would have stopped at nothing to take down the jedi order, but then anakin comes into his life and all his priorities sort of change.

mostly cause anakin doesn't really care about ruling the galaxy. he's very family focused (thanks, obi-wan) and he wants his family to be safe and hidden -- probably because a lot of sidious' initial teaching enforced in him that safe = hidden

and obi-wan...he doesn't actually want to give up his dreams and he would sure love to see the jedi die for no other reason than they're stingy about who gets to use the Force or whatever, but....he likes the family he has with anakin. he could be content with setting up an empire in the outer rim. he doesn't need galactic wide conquest. he's already conquered the bestest part of the galaxy (anakin)

cody is going to be sick. this is disgusting, and the thought that obi-wan and anakin actually make each other better is too awful to even consider. straight lies and deception.

🧛‍♀️🍬 trick or treat!!! 😈

oooo time traveler ahsoka au!

here is a drabble for time traveling ahsoka au during one of the re-dos (specifically, the one where obi-wan is duke of mandalore and anakin is a Jedi General married to Senator Amidala and they respect their duties at the cost of their almost love):

Even though Ahsoka had not screamed along with Anakin when she'd seen Obi-Wan's body struck by droid-fire---she could not, she had no body, just another thing to add to the long list of things she'd given up for this, for the galaxy---her throat feels raw, as if she has been sobbing for hours the way her master has been, seated slumped over in the chair next to the Duke of Mandalore's cot. Anakin is quiet now, though every so often a fresh tear will roll down his reddened cheek as he sits silently, hand clutching Obi-Wan's own. A part of Ahsoka is screaming at her to reset this scenario. Obviously, these two souls are as entangled together as their fingers currently are. But it would be cruel. Wouldn't it? To end this run now, when Obi-Wan and Anakin are so recently wounded? And they have been so reasonable up until this moment. They have been cordial, respectful---friends, brothers in arms. Obi-Wan has almost died. Surely, Anakin is allowed to mourn. Surely if Ahsoka existed in this scenario, if she were Anakin's padawan and she'd be struck down, he would sit at her bedside and cry over her sleeping form. Right? It takes three tries for the words to pass Anakin's lips, and when he does finally speak, Ahsoka can barely understand him. He has pressed his mouth to the back of Obi-Wan's hand. "Never again," he mumbles against the duke's skin. "You do not belong here, and I would--I would tear my heart out and leave it for safekeeping on Mandalore before I would watch you take on blaster fire again." Ahsoka's mouth opens, spell words meant to reset the circumstances on her tongue. It sounds like a love confession, and she knows that those such things are to be avoided. Her mind begins to race. A new scenario---this time, she will keep them apart forever---this time, they will never meet, and the galaxy will--- "When you wake," Anakin's voice derails her thoughts and holds her tongue. "I will send you back to your wife. And it will be the end. It will--it is time. To end." Ahsoka's mouth closes. The words evaporate. Her chest tightens, and though this should feel as if she's dodged a blaster shot, it feels like she's been hit.

trick or treat 🍬🧡

i gave a little drabble of the couples counseling au for the last trick or treating ask re: couples counseling au so i'm gonna give just a bit of a headcanon this time!

in couples counseling au, the jedi council absolutely knows that they're seeing a couples therapist who specializes in married partners 💙 probably a few of them think that anakin and obi-wan know that as well, but most of them are like. well. they'll figure it out right? some of it may be applicable? they're definitely better than how they were a month ago so, no harm no foul etc etc

#asks #obikin #ask haul #trick or treat ask game #roadtrip au #cheating au #couples counseling au #time traveler ahsoka au #lslm #selkie au #smithsonian au #twilight au #thank you all so much for sending these in im sorry i missed the end of the holiday!!#it was really fun !!! happy virtual halloween haha <3 #i saw someone else do this for asks and i thought it made sense

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phantomspren · 18 days ago

Text

I've been watching LotR the last few days (cause why watch something I haven't seen before from my incredibly long list of things I need to watch when I can watch something I've seen before a ton) and I just want to talk about radical hope.

The story of LotR is bleak. Just. So incredibly hopeless. There are so many points where the characters just genuinely have no hope that they will live, let alone save the world.

During Return of the King, there is a literal darkness that covers the world for days. The only hope there is for success is a couple hobbits. Who are walking through enemy territory. With one thing that would instantly guarantee success to the enemy.

And in the end Frodo fails.

Despite all of this

They kept hoping.

Frodo failed and all was lost.

But it wasn't.

They saved everything.

They didn't make it through unscarred. Many people didn't make it through at all. But they did make it.

But they wouldn't have if they'd given up.

Sam's speech at the end of The Two Towers left me in tears. (It normally doesn't.)

Lately I've been feeling incredibly hopeless. I'm at the point in my life where I'm trying to figure out what I want to do for a living, and I'm currently working towards something that I have so little chance of succeeding in. I'm paying so much money to go to school for this.

Beyond just me, I'm terrified for the upcoming election for obvious reasons. I live in a country where we already have a maternal mortality rate that's way too fucking high and people are actively working to make that worse. I live in a country where there are people who don't think I and the people I love deserve to exist. I live in a country where the highest cause of death for children is guns.

I live in a world where there is an active genocide going on and no one gives a shit. I live in a world where the deadliest disease has a cure, but why would we give them access to that? The people dying from it are poor. They're poor because of us. I live in a world that those in power are slowly destroying.

But I'm here. We're all here. And there's so much bad. But there's so much good.

I went to a convention last month, and it was the most fun I'd ever had. I want to do that again.

I got invited to go to a pumpkin patch with a friend next week.

I just finished rereading Hamlet.

I have motivation to write and tell stories for the first time in years.

I made a new friend this year.

I still haven't finished listening to Welcome to Nightvale.

Alecto the Ninth isn't out yet.

I had a friend help me out yesterday.

I helped out a different friend.

There are stars in the sky.

The leaves are turning colors and falling and it's so beautiful.

I watched a movie that I've seen at least a dozen times before and it made me cry.

It feels so hopeless.

But that's not a reason to give up hope.

We gotta fight for what we've got. I'm going to fight tooth and nail even if all it means is that I get to see one more sunset, read one more book that changes me, meet one more person who gets me.

I don't care if you can donate a thousand dollars to a charity, or if all you can do is just stick around for another day because you know that you will feel joy again at some point, that's what you gotta do.

It might get worse.

We might not see things get better.

But it will get better again. And before it does, there will still be moments of joy. And the chance that we'll see everything get better, the chance that we'll see anything get better, that's worth sticking around for.

That's radical hope.

Sam: It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.

Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?

Sam: That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo… and it’s worth fighting for.

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dana-chan-the-control-brain · 10 months ago

Note

Thanks for your response. I was the anon who ended the ask with 'the fandom can suck it'. When I saw that anon who you and twinanimatronics had assumed to be the one that keeps you know starting shit with you, I really hated that they labeled us as shipbrain or whatever they said. I am aroace who finds comfort in shipping characters and that doesn't make me any less aroace. Can't people like them just let us have this, let us share it and stop taping our mouths? God. We are not even hurting anyone. I posted a solarxmoon and solarxearth mini comic thing yesterday and behold, I believe that same anon found it and is looking adamantly through the solarxmoon and even solarxearth because I didn't use the tsams tag for my comic. I took the comic down fast and turned off anon messages so quick because God that anon was quick to leave nasty messages, six in total and that was panic attack inducing. I'm sorry for rambling about this. I don't know anyone else who got that same anon on their back. It looks like they are persistent for lack of better term and it annoys me+scares me. Can't even share things I like about here anymore. Hoping solarxmoon becomes canon so that anon can shut up already

If Solar Moon became canon, they don't even need to change anything.

The actors don't even need to pretend to kiss or be romanically involved at all.

It's literally as simple as "Oh yeah, we were dating for months, anyway..."

OH AND... FUCK THAT ANON. I know the user you are talking about, I think there's around two or three of them... and it seems like they're dead set on hunting down people who use that Solarmoon or Solar x Moon tag.

Going into popular users in the tsams fandom that I personally don't know... and spreading bad lies and rumors about me.

Like, they typically try to keep it as vague as possible, like "oh I am not talking about dana-chan-the-control-brain specifically....." but they often steal the exact wording and turn of phrase I use.

Cause I have an overly wordy way of talking on the internet.

I've always been this way since I was 15, so I feel my style of speaking is pretty overly wordy, rambly and long compared to most people just because I don't have a lot to share with my opinions with in real life. And I also misspell things a lot cus spellcheck has gotten worse since it became AI trained and it doesn't help my dyslexia.

But how sad is that? That someone is searching out the tag for a ship that they don't like, claim that "it's everywhere" and I'm "poisoning the fanbase" when I'm just.... here... playing with my own dolls, doing my own thing.... and not bothering anyone... Not even putting the ship in the tags publicly because I have Such respect and love for the silly little youtube show, who also plays with fnaf characters like they're dolls.

(just saying.. "bio-organic" and interdimensional travel did NOT come from fnaf I can tell you that much. )

And yeah, if they're really stumbling across Solarmoon or these ships on accident.......Blacklist the tags and move on? Don't come to my messages... Don't harass my friends...

And don't harass other people I DON'T EVEN KNOW because someone just said "hehe but what if they kissed" on the internet?

Like blocklist the tag, and move on.

I know the blocklisting tagging system sucks sometimes, so maybe it's picking up "Solar" like in that case? Just scroll super fast and don't look at it?

And yeah. You don't deserve those nasty messages sent your way at all!

Oh, and if you feel brave enough to reupload your art to tumblr and DM me, I will gladly reblog it here. <3

#danachan's rants #danachan's replies #danachan's asks

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woodandwaxwings · 2 months ago

Text

How You Remind Me

A/n: if you saw this earlier, no you didn't, my tumblr glitched out and posted this before I was done writing it.

"Y/n slammed the picture frame face down as his roommate, Ajax, entered. Ajax, he had to remind himself, Ajax not Victor. Ajax smiled and waved as he set his dirty clothes on his bed across the room. Another difference, Ajax smiled with his teeth, Victor never did that. As of late Y/n found himself focusing a lot on the differences in his life."

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Day 1 and he had already flipped out. Y/n was beginning to think coming here alone was a mistake, but it was a mistake that was too late to take back. After his flip-out, he decided to lock himself in his and Ajax's dorm bathroom, which he had ended up sleeping in. As a result, he had been awoken by Ajax banging on the bathroom door. "C'mon man get up and lemme in! I have to pee!" Y/n groaned as he reached above him to unlock the door and use the doorknob to pull himself up to open the door. "You look like shit," Ajax said as Y/n slid passed him, letting his roommate rush in to do what he needed.

"You look like shit." Y/n raised his head from his hands as he looked over to the tan boy who stood in the doorway of their room. "Not m' fault somebody couldn't sleep." He said about Victor's continuous bothering him over the night. He figured if he couldn't sleep why should Y/n. "Sorry Liebling(Sweetheart), seems like you could have used the beauty sleep." Victor laughed as Y/n threw his pillow at him.

"Hey, what was up with you yesterday?" The snake-haired boy spoke loudly through the door. Y/n walked over to his bed and sat down. "No offense, but none of your business." He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt his skin morph as one of his tattoos tried to push out of his skin. Ajax exited their shared bathroom with his toothbrush in his mouth. Y/n was almost afraid to look at him. Still in a shell-shocked state from being trusted into war flashbacks he was almost afraid looking at him would cause him to break. He felt like glass as he sat on his bed and stared out the window in front of him as he willed himself not to cry. "That's fine." Ajax raised his hands up in defense before returning to the bathroom to finish brushing his teeth. Y/n felt tears break down his face as the burning pain of his peculiarity fighting him persisted. "Close your eyes," Ajax shouted and Y/n rolled over on his stomach and buried his face into the comforter as Ajax reentered the dorm bedroom, most likely getting dressed.

Y/n felt the searing pain stop as a thump hit the hardwood floor and a loud grating purr followed. He then felt his bed shift and then a pressure on his back. "Vershwinde,"(clear off) Y/n grumbled into his bed at the creation as its purring got louder, ignoring his command to get off of him. He heard a chuckle beside him, "You have this much trouble controlling all of them?" Y/n swatted behind him so he could get up, even if the animal wasn't real its weight was. "No, fake or not a cat is a cat." Ajax let out a laugh again, "Ok. They're covered now, you can look." Y/n rolled over as the imaginary cat disappeared and reformed as its tattoo. A silence washed over the room as Y/n scanned the gorgon's side of the room. A silence that put pressure on that glass line, a silence Y/n didn't want to welcome just yet.

"Why Nevermore?" He asked and it was like a bucket of cold water as wide brown eyes met him as a stranger instead of a familiar figure in his world. "What do you mean?" Ajax asked, his head bobbing to the side like a curious dog. "Why'd you come to Nevermore instead of go to another school?" The gorgon's mouth opened into a small 'o' as he nodded. "My moms went here, so you could say it's a generational thing." Y/n nodded, turning his gaze to the window as though looking at his roommate any longer would burn him. "What about you? Why'd you come here?"

A hearty laugh filled Y/n and Victor's shared room as they climbed out the window. "No, seriously." Y/n paused to catch his breath before continuing. "What would you do if we left?" Victor licked his lips before pulling a nervous tight-lipped smile. "Go to school." He shook his head, his brown hair falling into his face as he shook his head. "I know it sounds stupid but Yuko goes to school, if a vampire can why can't we? I want to go to Nevermore and I want you there with me." Y/n's smile dropped as he looked up at the everchanging stars and thought about what his love was saying. "Yeah," A wide smile pulled onto his lips as he unknowingly looked at the love of his life for one of the last times. "I think I'd like that."

"A friend wanted to be here. I figured it must be a good school if he of all people wanted to come." Ajax nodded, seemingly oblivious to the melancholy behind the other boy's voice. "That's pretty cool. They must've been pretty great for you to take their word for it." Y/n nodded as he glanced at the picture frame and then his roommate. "Hey me and some of my friends are gonna go swimming in the lake, do you wanna come?" He stared and kind brown eyes stared back like a knife to the face. Did he want to go? No. Absolutely not, the open isn't safe, unknown waters with unknown people weren't safe. And he absolutely didn't want to be tortured with the kind face of a boy all too similar to the boy he once loved and lost. "No thanks," His answer felt outside of himself, it felt weak despite the regular tone of voice. "I want to take a shower." He pointed to the bathroom door like an idiot and Ajax nodded in understanding.

The two hit a wall of silence again, one more uncomfortable than the last as they sat and stared at each other. Ajax swallowed as he broke the staring contest, "Well, I'm gonna go." Y/n nodded as his doppelganger roommate got up with a beach towel and left. It couldn't have been more than a minute before Y/n decided not to play the sitting game and stare out the window. He grabbed his bag and pulled out the only set of sheets he brought the only set of sheets he owned, and got to making his bed. As he stood back he realized how little that did to bring comfort to the room, or at least his side. It almost looked sad, as was the flannel sheet set and nothing else, as if it was a fancy prison bed. Y/n sighed as he grasped onto the fact that he didn't actually care that much and grabbed a set of clothes to replace the ones he'd been wearing since the day before.

His shower was quick but hot and his green cable-knit polo sweater and flare jeans were a comfortable welcome change. Y/n lay in his bed and felt the minutes pass by rather than counting them. It was strange being outside of a loop after so long and being relieved from the stress of war. Of course, before time still passed but now it felt more final, as though turning back the clock was impossible even though it was. Every minute passing was a minute closer to dying and for some reason that was exciting, a normal life was exciting.

"I don't want to live forever." Y/n turned to face Victor as he laid in his bed across the room. "I want to grow old together, I want to live a life that matters outside of this island." Y/n sat up to meet his lovers gaze better, "What's wrong with loving each other forever? We'll never have to fear anything because here our love won't be killed by hate, we won't be killed." Victor shook his head, "It's not the same, once Miss Peregrine forms the loop our time will be stuck. Nothing is amazing about living the same life over and over every day." Y/n shifted to be sitting, "Ok, if you want to leave, I'm coming too."

He sat up from his bed and grabbed the picture on his bedside. The image itself was nothing special, one that Y/n had Horace take of him and Victor together. He stared at the face he had already drawn from memory in his heart. Forever wasn't something they had gotten all because of teenage ambition. Y/n slammed the picture frame face down as his roommate, Ajax, entered. Ajax, he had to remind himself, Ajax not Victor. Ajax smiled and waved as he set his dirty clothes on his bed across the room. Another difference, Ajax smiled with his teeth, Victor never did that. As of late Y/n found himself focusing a lot on the differences in his life. "I see you've made yourself comfortable." The gorgon said as he tightened the beach towel around his waist.

"Did you have fun?" Y/n caught himself off guard as he spoke. The gorgon nodded, "Yeah. But I smell like dead fish and salt so I'm going to take a shower." Y/n nodded in understanding as Ajax followed through a similar routine as his own. He almost felt bad letting his eyes trail across the uncannily familiar frame as Ajax grabbed clean clothes and walked into their shared bathroom. Surprisingly, Y/n found the gorgon to be more built than the boy he resembled, likely from actually having to build muscle to gain strength. One thing that remained true was the kindness he radiated. Y/n almost wanted to curse that fact, maybe if he wasn't so kind it would be easier to move on from the past. But Y/n knew that no matter how cruel or kind his roommate was, it was his face that left a lasting reminder of the past.

"Do your snakes ever talk to you?" Y/n found himself walking to the bathroom door and standing beside it. Despite everything in him searing into a pit of lava every time he looked at his roommate, he couldn't help but want a friend in this strange new town. Maybe he wanted to be close to the boy for the same reason just looking at him made Y/n want to throw himself off of a cliff. "Uh, yeah sometimes," Ajax answered through the door and the white noise the shower provided. "What's it like having snakes for hair?" Y/n asked as he wrapped himself in his own arms, even with the cable-knit a chill ran down his spine. "Well, I guess it's like having normal hair if normal hair talked to you and could turn people to stone." Y/n nodded despite the boy on the other side of the door not being able to see him.

"What's it like with your tattoo thing?" Ajax asked and Y/n smiled, "They're kinda just there. They don't do anything unless if I consciously or subconsciously tell them to do something. Kinda like a puppet." Y/n almost felt comfortable talking to him like this. It hurt less to not look at him and he hated that. He hated how he couldn't force himself to treat Ajax like anyone else all because of his face. He heard a hum through the door and the water shuts off. Y/n walks back to his side of the room as he held his back to the door, waiting for the ok that he wouldn't be turned to stone. He had to stop himself from turning around as he heard the hushed panicked curse from the bathroom. "Hey dude, can you do me a favor?" The door must've been cracked now because the gorgons voice was clearer than before. "What's up?" Y/n asked, tilting his head toward the door but never fully moving, feet remaining firmly planted in place.

"I dropped my beanie, can you hand me one?" Silence, then the dragging of bare feet on the hardwood floors as Y/n turned 90° to look at the checkered beanie a few feet perfectly centered between him and the door. He turned again to be facing the bathroom door then grabbed the beanie. His feet dragged on the wood like they were being weighed down Y/n stopped just before the door then reaches his hand holding the knit fabric out to the door. "Here," More silence, then the creaking of the bathroom door as Ajax pushed it open. Y/n didn't dare raise his eyes from his hand as he waited for his roommate to grab the beanie. He couldn't help it as his eyes drifted forward onto the bare torso in front of him. Bare, not a single freckle or scar in sight. Bare, as in lacking the large gaping hole where his doppelganger had been stabbed through the center of his chest by a hollowghast tongue.

In what was either a sliver of hope or delusion, possibly both, Y/n let his eyes move up to look at his roommate's face. As his eyes hit the other boy's jawline they were suddenly void of any view as Ajax slams one of his hands over the boy's eyes. "Dude, I could've turned you to stone." Instant regret hit him as Ajax voiced what would've happened if Y/n hadn't stopped in his actions. "Sorry," His voice came out in a mere whisper as he quickly turned his back to Ajax with a pivot of his heels. "I'm sorry," Y/n repeated, guilt of his selfish action burning like hellfire on his face.

"It's chill, just be more careful in the future, yeah?" Still with his back turned to the gorgon, Y/n nodded. "You're friends with Yoko, ja?" He asked as he walked back to his side of the room. "School is starting tomorrow and I need her to catch me up on some stuff, socially and educationally." Ajax cleared his throat making Y/n turn to face him. "Yeah, she dorms in Ophelia but you can probably find her in the courtyard." With a curt nod and an accidental slam of the door to their shared dorm Y/n left for the place Ajax said Y/n's only piece of the past would be. The chill in the air nipped at his skin as he practically raced to the courtyard, only slowing down when he spotted his target.

"Yoko," He called for her attention as he stopped a few paces away from the girl. Both the vampire and her siren girlfriend turned to face him. "Why didn't you warn me?" Y/n's voice was abrasive and accusatory as his sweater shielded him from the outside chill. "About?" Yoko's voice was calm, very much matching her appearance. "You know," Yoko sighed and quickly turned to fill in her confused girlfriend on the issue. The siren only giggled in amusement before interjecting herself into the situation. "Let's go into town for a bit. You can get stuff for your room while Yoko explains herself." The vampire and the peculiar nodded in agreement and set out to follow the siren's plan of action.

Throughout their adventure in the town Y.n came to understand why Yoko liked Divina so much, she reminded him of Claire. He had also learned more about her friend group overall. Kent was Divina's twin brother, and Bianca was also a siren and basically the leader of their friend group. There was Xavier, who he heard had similar powers to himself, and the root of his problem, Ajax. "You should've come to the lake earlier," Yoko states from the other side of the Booth in the coffee shop. "I didn't receive a very detailed invitation of who exactly Ajax's friends are." Yoko scoffs and returns to her drink.

Their rendezvous lasted until the mandated school curfew set in and they were required to return back to their retrospective dorms. Being dragged around by two girls explaining the modern age better than Jacob Portman was tiring and by the time Y/n had reached his dorm room, he was beginning to regret not passing out on the Poe statue. "Oh, you're back," Was all Ajax said when the door clicked shut quietly behind Y/n. "Yeah, Yoko and Divina dragged me all over town." Ajax nodded as Y/n walked to his side of the room to retrieve his pajamas. There was a silence between them as Y/n began to undress.

"Can I ask you a question and you not be weirded out by it?" Y/n paused from pulling his sweater off, goosebumps forming on his bare inked legs as he turned to face Ajax. "What's up?" The day had already worn on him but deciding to be nice, Y/n indulged his roommate. "What's that one?" Y/n looked down to where Ajax had pointed from his bed across the room. His eyes trailed along the inked scales that ran up his right leg and disappeared beneath his boxers. "It's a king cobra," Y/n said as he looked back at the gorgon who was already clad in his pajamas. "That's cool. Why?" Y/n let out a confused chuckle, "What?" Ajax shrugged, "Why a cobra?" He licked his lips as he thought about his roommate's question, or really how to answer it in a way to get the least amount of questions. "It's good to have a defense. And snakes are cool."

Ajax smiled, "How many do you have?" Y/n continued changing as he realized this conversation would not end soon. "Tattoos? A lot." "Do they have names?" Y/n finished changing and turned back to face his roommate. "Why would they have names?" Ajax shrugged, that goofy grin still pulled taught on his face. "Why not?" Y/n shrugged. "Can I name one?" Y/n's face burned hot at the gorgon's question. "Which one?" He asked as he sat on his bed across from his roommate's. "The snake," Ajax gave him a look that screamed 'no shit.' "I mean, if you want to." Y/n laid in his bed as a since enveloped them, the only light in the room Ajax's bedside lamp. Just as Y/n was about to fall asleep he heard Ajax speak, "Medusa." Y/n let out a sleepy scoff, "How original."

"Can I name one?" Y/n let out a hum as he looked up from his book to the boy across the room. "What?" Victor nodded to Y/n's inked legs, "Can I name one of your tattoos?" "Why would you do that?" He questioned, setting his book down. "Why not?"

#x male reader #male reader #x reader #mphfpc #male y/n #victor bruntley x reader #victor bruntley #mphfpc x reader #wednesday series #ajax petropolis #ajax petropolus x reader #ajax petropolus #ajax x reader #ajax

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ruthlesslistener · 9 months ago

Note

I got harassed because of you. Because you declared anyone who doesn't headcanon the Knight as a child to be sus. So thanks. Hate how you seem to be the "headcanon/lore expert" these days, to the point where no on else is allowed to headcanon differently from you. All the hk antis seem to cite you as their "reliable" source always, even outside of tumblr.

i. turned on anon yesterday. What. how did you find me this quickly already.

Anyways, another announcement just to make this potently clear to anyone stupid enough to treat a tired college student with a neurodevelopmental disorder as some sort of pariah of headcanon/lore expertise: i said that headcanoning the knight as an adult was 'sus' in a half-hearted jokey manner right before i went to sleep late at night based on bad porn takes that i came across while scrolling twitter and nothing else. Then when my friends were like 'uh wait no more interpretations exist' i went 'oh shit my bad, i still dont like it bc of personal tastes tho so please dont flood my inbox about it again, but its fine'. I don't even believe in anti rhetoric either, I'm constantly reblogging why they're fucked up and their harassment campaigns are wrong and dangerous, so idfk why they'd consider me as a reliable resource

Also, why the fuck would anyone take me as the lore/headcanon god?? Nothing about what I do is special. I don't even care that much about my own headcanons, almost all of what I find fun about the fandom is comparing and contrasting my headcanons to those of other people's because I love seeing what they get up to. As for canon, literally everything I loredig about is in the game already, I'm just rambling about it through my own perspective as someone who likes to do media analysis. Nothing about what I do is special or should be treated as such, and I always talked about my hcs/interpretations as someone who assumed that people knew they were just that: ramblings and nothing more. I love different hcs, I just sometimes don't click with others because of my own weird squicks and triggers

Also also: I don't post my headcanons outside of tumblr and what I write on my ao3 in my fics, so idk how you want me to somehow control the rabid freaks on other websites. I'm not doing this to be an influencer, gain popularity, or broadcast some superiority complex. In fact, I've actively spent the entire duration I'm in this fandom worrying about bothering people with my hcs/ramblings, but posting them anyways because if I don't talk about it then it makes me want to chew my own leg off. The main reason I've not been talking about it on my tumblr and have only been passively rbing hk stuff recently is specifically because I'm trying to avoid causing that sort of damage again after this whole disaster

#im not some sort of 'lore god'. im just some guy who posts about bugs in his free time because hes autistic #hollow knight #i just turned on anon bc i wanted to hear people rambling about hk ideas in my inbox again ;-;#anyways the only reason im maintagging this is bc its no shit been haunting me day in and day out #im a paranoid person and all ive been thinking about recently is how little i want my works to be viewed as the 'correct' interpretation #to the point where ive honestly considered abandoning this blog and starting from scratch just so that i can get rid of that title #anon #reply

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halothenthehorns · 3 months ago

Text

Chapter 16: A TITAN BRINGS ME A PRESENT

Jason read the new chapter with each word causing a stronger feeling of bad in him. He kept wondering how this was going to get worse and did not appreciate the answers.

"Is it Kronos with a Nuclear bomb?" Alex asked with interest.

"Oceanus with an apology to your dad and an explanation," Jason sighed.

"World peace?" Magnus asked without any hope.

Thalia couldn't help but laugh. It was the opposite of that.

We could see the white flag from half a mile away. It was as big as a soccer field, carried by a thirty-foot-tall giant with bright blue skin and icy gray hair.

"Yeah, but according to Percy's own girlfriend, Percy can't read for shit," Alex was all for instigating. "So I don't see why even that would stop him from setting them all on fire for starters."

"I've grown since then Alex," Percy said in a prim voice. "Matured, stopped being so impulsive."

"Since yesterday?" She asked in disappointment.

"Since I decided Annabeth would be pissed if I didn't hear this out," he shrugged, tapping the side of his head.

"Fair enough," Alex didn't bother to question the fact that Annabeth would still scare the living daylights out of Percy with one arm behind her back.

"A Hyperborean," Thalia said. "The giants of the north. It's a bad sign that they sided with Kronos. They're usually peaceful."

"You've met them?" I said.

"Mmm. There's a big colony in Alberta. You do not want to get into a snowball fight with those guys."

"First time I've ever heard Thalia say that," Jason chuckled.

"Don't worry, you'll never make that list," she grinned, making Jason sigh in defeat already his sister was going to dump snow down his shirt at the first available chance.

As the giant got closer, I could see three human-size envoys with him: a half-blood in armor, an empousa demon with a black dress and flaming hair, and a tall man in a tuxedo. The empousa held the tux dude's arm, so they looked like a couple on their way to a Broadway show or something— except for her flaming hair and fangs.

"Don't know what you're on about Percy," Magnus chuckled, "those two would be the talk of the runway."

"The talk of the runaway," Percy rolled his eyes.

The group walked leisurely toward the Heckscher Playground. The swings and ball courts were empty. The only sound was the fountain on Umpire Rock.

I looked at Grover. "The tux dude is the Titan?"

"I would have believed it was any of them by this point," Will shrugged, his money would be on the giant.

"The treacherous one in a tuxedo, remember?" Alex shook her head with interest. "I was expecting some kind of double cross to show up for Percy's benefit by now to be honest. Why's he on their side if another titan would call him treacherous?"

"Maybe ram face guy really wanted to be the god of tuxedos but got beat out by him," Percy shrugged without much care what politics went on between these guys.

He nodded nervously. "He looks like a magician. I hate magicians. They usually have rabbits."

Jason usually felt all eyes on him as he read, but as the words poured out of his own confused mouth, he felt the way they grew in intensity same as his own for those baffling sentences being said as a negative.

I stared at him. "You're scared of bunnies?"

"Blah-hah-hah! They're big bullies. Always stealing celery from defenseless satyrs!"

"I have, so many questions," Magnus put his palms down in his lap, causing a slight slap noise to make his point.

"Get in line," Jason agreed as his mind began going haywire on what that food chain was like.

Thalia coughed.

"You do like Grover better than me," Percy accused. She'd never once tried to poorly muffle her laugh in here.

"I was trying not to join those bullying rabbits and be better than that Percy," she said saintly.

Percy was to busy planning in his head how to buy bunny ears and glue them to her head in revenge while keeping Grover away to listen.

"What?" Grover demanded.

"We'll have to work on your bunny phobia later," I said.

"Leporiphobia," Jason offered.

"Why do you know that?" Percy asked in concern. "Why is there even a word for fear of rabbits?!" He knew what phobia meant and he could use context clues. "They don't attack people for that to be a thing!"

"Trauma comes in all shapes and sizes Percy," Alex said seriously, before she broke into a grin and said, "like Jason, poor thing was clearly mauled by a dictionary at some point in his life."

"Ha, ha, ha," Jason rolled his eyes. Honestly, it would be nice to know why such random things came to mind.

"Here they come."

The man in the tux stepped forward. He was taller than an average human—about seven feet. His black hair was tied in a ponytail. Dark round glasses covered his eyes, but what really caught my attention was the skin on his face. It was covered in scratches, like he'd been attacked by a small animal— a really, really mad hamster, maybe.

"Percy's nightmares of turning back into that guinea pig finally make a great real-time influence," Thalia chuckled.

Percy felt rather robbed these books were only from his perspective as he frowned at her. He just knew she had to have embarrassing dreams about tea parties with Barbies he'd never get the chance to mock her for.

The only reason he didn't say any of that now was because, he kind of wished that one were true himself.

"Percy Jackson," he said in a silky voice. "It's a great honor."

"Thanks," Percy couldn't make that sound any more sarcastic if he tried.

His lady friend the empousa hissed at me. She'd probably heard how I'd destroyed two of her sisters last summer.

"I'm over here hoping that's why Tux guy said it was an honor to meet you," Alex nodded.

"I think Percy has a bit of a fat head, thinking all monsters know him," Thalia rolled her eyes.

"Probably safer for him to just assume all monsters have a personal grudge against him," Magnus shrugged.

"My dear," Tux Dude said to her. "Why don't you make yourself comfortable over there, eh?"

She released his arm and drifted over to a park bench.

I glanced at the armed demigod behind Tux Dude. I hadn't recognized him in his new helmet, but it was my old backstabbing buddy Ethan Nakamura.

"This is the worst white-flag party I've ever heard in my life!" Jason looked offended at whoever had approved this strategy. "They sent a monster and the guy who tried to kill Annabeth! Kronos had to have known you wouldn't fall for this!"

"Oh, I'm sure that was the point," Annabeth sighed. Kronos knew not to underestimate Percy again by this point, not after the cruise ship incident. He'd sent distractions to keep Percy on edge.

His nose looked like a squashed tomato from our fight on the Williamsburg Bridge. That made me feel better.

Well they hadn't needed that descriptor. Percy looked devilishly pleased.

"Hey, Ethan," I said. "You're looking good."

Ethan glared at me.

"Really Perce, flirting with someone else at a time like this?" Annabeth sighed.

Percy spluttered and only managed, "but-tomato-" but as usual was pretty toothless when it came to her.

"To business." Tux Dude extended his hand. "I am Prometheus."

I was too surprised to shake. "The fire-stealer guy? The chained-to-the-rock-with-the-vultures guy?"

Percy blew imaginary dust off his knuckles and rubbed them on his shirt as he looked around like he was awaiting applause.

"You actually remembered his name and what he was famous for," Will was the only one who couldn't make that sound sarcastic. "Showing off that C+ years later too, good work."

Annabeth brushed her fingers fondly through his hair and couldn't wait until they got back to the surface to show him he'd actually been doing even better in his recent studies. Percy was thoroughly distracted by the attention and had no clue what happened for the next several moments.

Prometheus winced. He touched the scratches on his face. "Please, don't mention the vultures. But yes, I stole fire from the gods and gave it to your ancestors. In return, the ever merciful Zeus had me chained to a rock and tortured for all eternity."

"Hard to believe nobody could convince this guy to be on Zeus's side," Nico said drolly.

"I want to know if he was granted Titan hood, like, after he got off the rock, or was he one when this happened," Magnus frowned.

"You can't be granted Titan hood," Annabeth shook her head. "The Titan's are specifically children of Geae and Oranus, but Titan is applied rather broadly to a large percentage of the divine family and their offspring. The Titans are all gods but not all of the gods are Titans."

Magnus considered for a moment before deciding not to press that further. He wasn't sure he wanted a better explanation.

"But—"

"How did I get free? Hercules did that, eons ago. So you see, I have a soft spot for heroes. Some of you can be quite civilized."

"He used a terrible example," Thalia scowled. If he'd thought bringing up that half-brother would soften her up he'd been hilariously off track.

"Unlike the company you keep," I noticed.

I was looking at Ethan, but Prometheus apparently thought I meant the empousa.

"Is he blind?" Jason raised a brow.

"He certainly couldn't see his own ass fumbling this," Thalia smirked.

"Oh, demons aren't so bad," he said. "You just have to keep them well fed.

"On what?" Magnus rolled his eyes. "I doubt they take blood bank donations, or possibly subsist on cranberry juice."

"Organic free-range half-bloods," Will nodded, "it's supposedly better for them."

Now, Percy Jackson, let us parley."

"Getting piratey up in here," Alex nodded in approval. Nico grinned along and was as grateful as ever he hadn't been dogging Percy's every step. He might have had the same thoughts at the time and been much less cool about it.

"And look, here's a zombie dude, kind of," Percy rolled his eyes. "Plus the tux! This is all somehow your fault Alex, I can just feel it in my bones."*

"And I haven't received a single phone call up to this point of you complaining to me about it," she grinned. "For shame Percy, I had more faith in you."

"Trust me, won't happen again," he chuckled.

He waved me toward a picnic table and we sat down. Thalia and Grover stood behind me.

The blue giant propped his white flag against a tree and began absently playing on the playground. He stepped on the monkey bars and crushed them, but he didn't seem angry. He just frowned and said, "Uhoh."

Then he stepped in the fountain and broke the concrete bowl in half. "Uh-oh." The water froze where his foot touched it. A bunch of stuffed animals hung from his belt—the huge kind you get for grand prizes at an arcade. He reminded me of Tyson, and the idea of fighting him made me sad.

Between this and his now understandable hesitation against hell hounds, Annabeth bit her lip with worry what would have happened had Percy been lost out in the world in his amnesiac state like this. He had so many enemies who would exploit this.

Prometheus sat forward and laced his fingers. He looked earnest, kindly, and wise.

"Crud, they sent a grandpa kind of guy," Will sighed. Percy might have been in trouble falling for this.

"If he starts yammering on about fishing and polishing his teeth, I'll ditch him easy," Percy shrugged.

"Percy, your position is weak. You know you can't stop another assault."

"We'll see."

Prometheus looked pained, like he really cared what happened to me. "Percy, I'm the Titan of forethought. I know what's going to happen."

"Also the Titan of crafty counsel," Grover put in. "Emphasis on crafty."

"Well that's just not fair, having both under his banner," Magnus sighed.

"Fair? Fair!" Percy let out a pitiable laugh that word even still came out around here.

Prometheus shrugged. "True enough, satyr. But I supported the gods in the last war. I told Kronos: 'You don't have the strength. You'll lose.' And I was right. So you see, I know how to pick the winning side. This time, I'm backing Kronos."

"Eh, statistically someone had to jump sides and was only right half the time," Annabeth grumbled.

Percy looked to her nervously, but relaxed a bit to see and feel she wasn't tensing and getting to stressed about this. It helped to keep his own mood soothed every time.

"Because Zeus chained you to a rock," I guessed.

"Yeah," Nico drew that out mildly. "That moment where you can't blame them kind of annoys me."

"I power through it for my family," Will nodded sadly. He'd wandered that medical tent more than once wondering who the spy was after losing another brother, but as he'd treated the unmistakable sword wounds he couldn't help but notice he didn't recognize more kids that kept showing up and looking into their faces with the horrible thoughts of why the damage had been done more than who had done it. One to many names had gone unasked. One to many kids who hadn't been there at the start of the fight with them, but had managed to make it back home.

"Partly, yes. I won't deny I want revenge. But that's not the only reason I'm supporting Kronos. It's the wisest choice. I'm here because I thought you might listen to reason."

"The same Percy Jackson I know?" Thalia demanded, picking at her ear. "Man, this guy really came in with nothing." She was hoping by playing off her nonchalance now it would gloss over when Percy's stupid, annoying ability to pick up on her later would inevitably show itself as her last name was truly exposed.

She glanced at Jason and swallowed hard. He probably wasn't going to appreciate that.

"Must have meant my twin brother," Percy nodded his agreement with a chuckle. "Peter Jefferson, long lost kid raised by, I don't know, whoever my Roman parent is."

"Haha," Jason said dryly, but the joke still gave him an uncomfortable twinge of a headache. He tried concentrating on the feeling, knowing he shouldn't but so damn tired of only having just gotten his last name back yesterday while Percy was two days away from practically being caught up with his life.

All he got for his troubles was the vague name Shen Lun, which meant nothing to him, and starbursts behind his eyes until he gave up and looked around to see his efforts hadn't gone unnoticed.

Since he hadn't been making any noise however, they'd been sitting there quietly letting him sort himself out. It meant more than he knew how to put into words they even noticed as he shook himself and tried to move on, studying his hands in embarrassment he even had to do that, and still catching Percy's little nod of understanding.

He drew a map on the table with his finger. Wherever he touched, golden lines appeared, glowing on the concrete.

Annabeth frowned with minor annoyance how useful that must be, how he probably didn't have a document with a million undo commands in it that haunted him, or an Olympus sized trashcan worth of ideas he'd scrapped.

"This is Manhattan. We have armies here, here, here, and here. We know your numbers. We outnumber you twenty to one."

"Your spy has been keeping you posted," I guessed.

Prometheus smiled apologetically.

"Punch him in the face!" Alex looked like she was seething already she couldn't be doing that to this pompous prick. She despised false niceties, no matter how well they were dressed, and she wasn't buying a word of this as she imagined those scars around his lips.

"It was pretty tempting," Percy admitted, he was surprised the idea hadn't crossed his mind yet...and was sort of relieved the book hadn't blatantly acknowledged he'd been a little taken in with this approach. That smile reminded him to much of his mom apologizing she had to pick up an extra shift this weekend while Gabe belched in the background.

"At any rate, our forces are growing daily. Tonight, Kronos will attack. You will be overwhelmed. You've fought bravely, but there's just no way you can hold all of Manhattan. You'll be forced to retreat to the Empire State Building. There you'll be destroyed. I have seen this. It will happen."

Nobody needed Percy to fill in the gaps of Rachel's painting that sat on the edge of their mind half this battle. They'd assumed it was the wrong army. It didn't seem possible the prophetic power of a Titan and Rachel's vision could both be wrong...

I thought about the picture Rachel had drawn in my dreams—an army at the base of the Empire State Building. I remembered the words of the young girl Oracle in my dream: I foresee the future. I cannot change it. Prometheus spoke with such certainty it was hard not to believe him.

"I won't let it happen," I said.

Percy's confidence made Annabeth smile. The feeling of his arm around her that she wanted to believe she'd never lose again. The kind of feeling that made her think she'd made the right choice slamming the door in Luke's face that day, because it had all worked out.

Prometheus brushed a speck off his tux lapel. "Understand, Percy. You are refighting the Trojan War here. Patterns repeat themselves in history.

"Yeah, but Percy doesn't repeat himself," Thalia chuckled with great swagger and confidence what she'd been thinking at the time. "They can throw all the regenerating monsters they want to at us and he'll call all of them something other than ground beef I'm sure."

"Thanks Thals, couldn't have done this without you," Percy chuckled. He meant in here, this room. She'd truly been the best of friends to him.

At the time he was very grateful she actually had more restraint than he ever did, he hadn't needed that kind of distraction right now.

They reappear just as monsters do. A great siege. Two armies. The only difference is, this time you are defending. You are Troy. And you know what happened to the Trojans, don't you?"

"So you're going to cram a wooden horse into the elevator at the Empire State Building?" I asked. "Good luck."

"Aw Percy, always so thoughtful, wishing them luck on their endeavors," Will chuckled.

"I'm actually trying to imagine it and what order the Titans would get in," Alex stroked her hair back from her face with glee. "Would Kronos demand to get in first and be squashed, forcing him to get out last; or, would he get in last and be in the horse's ass to get out first?"

The others laughed, but Annabeth sighed. She didn't know what exactly they pictured, but she still saw Luke crammed into that with Titans, his eyes flashing from gold to blue and back.

Prometheus smiled. "Troy was completely destroyed, Percy. You don't want that to happen here. Stand down, and New York will be spared.

"Just New York?" Jason raised a brow skeptically. "Will he leave your island floating and go about ripping the rest of the planet and throwing it into outer space?"

"I think that might upset the moon or something, I sure wouldn't recommend it," Percy nodded like Jason had made an excellent point.

Your forces will be granted amnesty. I will personally assure your safety.

"Even if he swore it on the River Styx and his own mother I wouldn't buy that until I did a certain bridge," Magnus said. Annabeth was afraid her cousin would go blind from rolling his eyes that hard.

Let Kronos take Olympus. Who cares? Typhon will destroy the gods anyway."

"Right," I said. "And I'm supposed to believe Kronos would spare the city."

"All he wants is Olympus," Prometheus promised. "The might of the gods is tied to their seats of power. You saw what happened to Poseidon once his undersea palace was attacked."

I winced, remembering how old and decrepit my father looked.

"Mentioning that is really the way I'd plan on winning over your trust," Nico grumbled. He was hitting them where it hurt, taking them down and throwing other problems in their face. Perfect tactics to keep their focus elsewhere.

"Yes," Prometheus said sadly. "I know that was hard for you. When Kronos destroys Olympus, the gods will fade. They will become so weak they will be easily defeated. Kronos would rather do this while Typhon has the Olympians distracted in the west. Much easier. Fewer lives lost.

"Easier, yes. Fewer lives lost?" Will made a deep scathing noise. Nico nodded in complete agreement. He wasn't a walking death sensus or anything, but he also hadn't needed Percy's dreams to tell him the continental destruction that 'storm' was causing. He'd been in the Underworld watching the incoming spirits.

But make no mistake, the best you can do is slow us down. The day after tomorrow, Typhon arrives in New York, and you will have no chance at all. The gods and Mount Olympus will still be destroyed, but it will be much messier. Much, much worse for you and your city. Either way, the Titans will rule."

Thalia pounded her fist on the table. "I serve Artemis. The Hunters will fight to our last breath. Percy, you're not seriously going to listen to this slimeball, are you?"

Percy had been doing a much better job in here hiding how discouraging this little speech had been getting to him. Thalia had seen it then though, a painfully familiar look on their trek across the states when he thought no one was watching. He'd fidget with his necklace or his pen as the troubled thoughts stayed buried but his attention began diverting to all the ways this could go the worst.

I figured Prometheus was going to blast her, but he just smiled. "Your courage does you credit, Thalia Grace."

Thalia stiffened. "That's my mother's surname. I don't use it."

She sighed and met Jason's confused stare. She'd called him her little brother and meant it, but his choice to see their mother as their connection wasn't her preference. She'd never deny her last name again if that's what he wished to go by though, the one good thing Beryl had done for her life.

Thalia visibly winced she still wouldn't have gotten the chance to tell Jason at her own speed either, as he rubbed the back of his head with a crazy smile like he'd gotten a sugar rush again, hearing that out loud. He would have known. She should have remembered this exact exchange was coming much sooner and told him herself.

"Sorry," she whispered again, just for him.

"It's okay," he promised, smile dimming only a bit as he looked at her, but there all the same. It turned cheeky real quick as he threw a look at Percy. "I've already accepted he makes everyone's life chaotic, he just can't resist."

Percy gave an exaggerated sigh and huffed in his beanbag without protest. If they wanted to bond over antagonizing him, well, that was nothing new. And he was happy for them.

"As you wish," Prometheus said casually, but I could tell he'd gotten under her skin. I'd never even heard Thalia's last name before. Somehow it made her seem almost normal. Less mysterious and powerful.

"Like Beyonce," Magnus added oh so helpfully.

Thalia chuckled and popped the collar of her hoodie, making it fluff behind her like a bird's feathers before it settled back, but they could tell it was posturing. She didn't regret a word of that, she was devout to Artimes and was still struggling in her mind how to bring up the possibility she might not want to stay with her forever now as she'd once vowed...Artemis had a brother too though, surely she'd understand...

"At any rate," the Titan said, "you need not be my enemy. I have always been a helper of mankind."

"That's a load of Minotaur dung," Thalia said.

"That is one big pile of shit," Nico said.**

"And I meant every shovelful," she nodded.

"When mankind first sacrificed to the gods, you tricked them into giving you the best portion. You gave us fire to annoy the gods, not because you cared about us."

Prometheus shook his head. "You don't understand. I helped shape your nature."

Will had always taken to wanting to understand both sides of a standoff, he hoped in genuinely trying to connect where they came from he could help form a better bridge than what had nearly broken his own at camp with the Apollo and Ares strife.

This was one of those moments where he worried his kind heart would be played for a fool. He wanted to believe Prometheus had been on Kronos's side to help mediate this fight, but he also couldn't deny to himself this was just the kind of deception he'd fall for, deliberating what to do to long in the interest of what was best for everyone.

He knew the choice Percy had made and didn't begrudge him this, he just worried at himself what he would have done.

A wiggling lump of clay appeared in his hands. He fashioned it into a little doll with legs and arms.

The lump man didn't have any eyes, but it groped around the table, stumbling over Prometheus's fingers.

Alex found herself begrudgingly impressed at the display there, and very annoyed at herself for it. A quick mold to help get your point across, the inherent blindness she felt most people had of the world. Gods she wanted to see this with her own eyes and then shove it down Prometheus's throat.

"I have been whispering in man's ear since the beginning of your existence.

Magnus rubbed his ear in disgust at the idea.

I represent your curiosity, your sense of exploration, your inventiveness.

That would be all the things she loved most about humanity too, Annabeth scowled. She usually associated those things with her mother, the sense that tied into her ability to craft and build and never want to stop looking for a better way to do things.

Help me save you, Percy. Do this, and I will give mankind a new gift—a new revelation that will move you as far forward as fire did. You can't make that kind of advance under the gods. They would never allow it. But this could be a new golden age for you. Or . . ."

He made a fist and smashed the clay man into a pancake.

"Is it deep space exploration, because we're already getting there mostly on our own," Percy frowned. He still wanted the others to think he hadn't been taken in by this as much as he really had been. Like his previous wish for Annabeth was here with a white flag. A god, actually offering to help them. He'd even showed all the strings attached to it.

"I hope it's teleportation, I thought we'd be much closer to that by now," Annabeth nodded along, happily indulging the show he was putting on nobody was falling for but she fully supported.

The blue giant rumbled, "Uh-oh." Over at the park bench, the empousa bared her fangs in a smile.

"Soooooo indicative, really speaking volumes in here with so little said, except he won't shut up," Jason scowled. He was all for parlay and finding solutions without war, but would not have been surprised any word now for Percy's temper to snap and draw his sword. He'd have backed him up if he were there.

"Percy, you know the Titans and their offspring are not all bad," Prometheus said. "You've met Calypso."

"That's the example he goes with?" Will seemed in awe of this bad move. "The girl who's imprisoned and made Percy question why the gods do- no, wait. Now that I said it out loud that made sense."

"It's okay bud, I have those moments too," Percy grinned.

My face felt hot. "That's different."

"How? Much like me, she did nothing wrong, and yet she was exiled forever simply because she was Atlas's daughter. We are not your enemies. Don't let the worst happen," he pleaded. "We offer you peace."

Moments like this gave Will the conflicting feeling of wishing he could read minds. It was invasive and wrong, of course, but gods would he have used it on Prometheus to hear the real truth. Of the actual story with no myth, legend, or hype around the facts of what happened to Calypso, and indeed anyone accused of a crime.

I looked at Ethan Nakamura. "You must hate this."

Nico was still personally shocked Percy hadn't ripped out his vocal cords yet to let him speak again at all. It's not like that would kill him, but there was a chance the ambrosia wouldn't heal that so much as just keep him alive without regrowing something vital to life...

"I don't know what you mean."

"If we took this deal, you wouldn't get revenge. You wouldn't get to kill us all. Isn't that what you want?"

Magnus's mind spun back to that first time Percy had met him though. He'd never actually said why he was trying to join Luke's side, he'd been very unfriendly to the guys saving his life, and apparently just run right back to the people who would have cheered while he died.

There was a tiny grain of admirability to someone willing to die for their cause, but that kind of half-blind dedication had nearly gotten Annabeth killed so it made this more pitiable no matter what his real reasoning behind all this.

His good eye flared.

"Nobody assumed the bad one shot fireworks out Percy," Alex said in the kind of way where she might have been hoping it did though.

"All I want is respect, Jackson. The gods never gave me that. You wanted me to go to your stupid camp, spend my time crammed into the Hermes cabin because I'm not important? Not even recognized?"

Nico could own one very solid fact about his good standing on Percy's side, and it was that he'd never been tempted to join Luke's side.

He couldn't stop a little sigh of unease though there was a real chance it was just because he'd never had a conversation with the guy. If Luke had ever tried to win him over with this speech though? The exact grievance he still had to this day about recognition for living outside of the 'main gods.' Not to mention his stellar inability to pick up on who was untrustworthy.

Yeah, odds weren't in his favor.

He sounded just like Luke when he'd tried to kill me in the woods at camp four years ago. The memory made my hand ache where the pit scorpion had stung me.

Percy flexed his hand now and looked down at his smooth palm, finally with the understanding of it all. The betrayal and horror of someone he'd thought of as a friend doing this to him never had visible scars he was still having trouble making sense of.

"Your mom's the goddess of revenge," I told Ethan. "We should respect that?"

Jason glanced at Percy and pursed up his lips without saying anything. He'd had a growing sense lately that he might sympathize with someone like Ethan a lot more than he'd ever have admitted to himself until he had nothing else to reflect on. He knew Percy didn't mean it so harshly in never acknowledging such gods who weren't all awesome and stood for pizza shouldn't ever be spoken of, but Percy had only spent a few days in the Hermes cabin before he was hoisted into the great light of being a child of the Big Three.

Somewhere in the recesses of his thoughts, memories Jason could do no more than follow on instinct, he knew he had always lived a similar way...and he was starting to wonder how much he'd resent going back to it.

"Nemesis stands for balance! When people have too much good luck, she tears them down."

"Which is why she took your eye?"

"It was payment," he growled. "In exchange, she swore to me that one day I would tip the balance of power. I would bring the minor gods respect. An eye was a small price to pay."

Thalia swallowed the snide comment it had cost him much more than that. The fool had died in the end. His payment had cost him everything...but she gave a small, proud smile to Percy he had gotten his reward in the end too. His mother had kept her word.

"Great mom."

"Percy would know," Annabeth said sullenly. She might not have been there, but she imagined the inflection in Ethan's voice a little to perfectly. The balance of respect and fear in your godly parent expecting all of that from their child.

"At least she keeps her word, unlike the Olympians. She always pays her debts—good or evil."

"Yeah," I said. "So I saved your life, and you repaid me by raising Kronos. That's fair."

Annabeth had the most mixed feelings about that in history, but the logical part of her did understand it in the greater scheme of the Fates. This had to happen eventually, the Great Prophecy ordained it. If it wasn't her Luke and Percy, it would have been someone else's family torn apart by this war just as had happened to the Trojans before. Nemises had played a part in this just as Posideon had against tipping the scales against Typhoon.

But gods the cost felt like she'd been strung into a spiderweb she'd never been able to escape from as she still sat pinned in place by it all.

Ethan grabbed the hilt of his sword, but Prometheus stopped him.

"Now, now," the Titan said. "We're on a diplomatic mission."

"Good of him to remember that," Nico grumbled. It wouldn't have gone well for them otherwise, considering Percy could have blasted them all to Australia whenever he wanted.

Prometheus studied me as if trying to understand my anger. Then he nodded like he'd just picked a thought from my brain.

Percy looked newly frustrated at somebody trying to pick apart his anger. Never in his history had he ever felt better by somebody telling him to calm down. He could be distracted from it, he could redirect it where it needed to go, sometimes he even managed when one of his friends reminded him he was going to far to reign it in, but none of that usually helped the initial problem.

Prometheus annoyingly reminded him of Chiron right then. The kind of adult who'd ever bothered to take the time to understand why he was angry and how best to solve the problem that didn't involve throwing textbooks.

"It bothers you what happened to Luke," he decided. "Hestia didn't show you the full story. Perhaps if you understood . . ."

The Titan reached out.

Thalia cried a warning, but before I could react, Prometheus's index finger touched my forehead.

Alex sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose in deep frustration. Gods if that wasn't the perfect display of the god's arrogance! Hestia had shown Percy the part of the memory she'd felt was important, now Prometheus was doing the same. Nobody had stopped to ask Percy if he wanted these memories beamed into his head!

Suddenly I was back in May Castellan's living room. Candles flickered on the fireplace mantel, reflected in the mirrors along the walls. Through the kitchen doorway I could see Thalia sitting at the table while Ms. Castellan bandaged her wounded leg. Seven-year-old Annabeth sat next to her, playing with a Medusa beanbag toy.

It had apparently been one of her better days, Thalia grimaced with distaste at the vivid memory of how strongly she'd smelled like burnt cookies. She'd rambled on about being a traveling nurse and all the baby stories about Luke seamlessly, which was how she'd caught Hermes' attention and looked right at Thalia with actual coherence in her blue eyes the entire time, which had freaked Thalia out nearly as much as if they'd turned green. An adult caring about her well-being had never happened before.

The home had been a first for Annabeth too. The first time she'd ever been given such an awesome toy to play with, the kind that had lore behind it and she could imagine defeating all by herself one day. Oh she had no idea, she snorted now at the improbable foreshadowing. Luke's mom hadn't once muttered under her breath about any trouble she might cause or even frowned in her direction. Only smiled as she asked if she wanted another cookie, not one of her half-brothers.

Granted, the cookie had been burnt, and she could feel the unease in the room. It hadn't been a warm, welcoming place. She preferred sleeping in their laps every night by a mile.

Hermes and Luke stood apart in the living room.

The god's face looked liquid in the candlelight, like he couldn't decide what shape to adopt. He was dressed in a navy blue jogging outfit with winged Reeboks.

Jason managed an awkward grin. Some part of him finally liked that description, this distance. The fear and vastness of not conforming to one mold with this rare appearance to one of the legions- his brain hard glitched back to what he was actually saying as he shook his head at what he'd spoken rather than what his brain kept expecting to hear.

"Why show yourself now?" Luke demanded. His shoulders were tense, as if he expected a fight.

Percy managed the awkwardest of smiles, the pithy comment floating to mind of how he wasn't the only one ready and willing to take on the gods, but he restrained himself. He hated when others compared him to Luke, he certainly wasn't going to do it himself.

"All these years I've been calling to you, praying you'd show up, and nothing. You left me with her." He pointed toward the kitchen like he couldn't bear to look at his mother, much less say her name.

Thalia knew that feeling all to well. She'd never even said her mother's name out loud since she came out of that tree, she hated her too deeply.

Percy just kept blinking slowly, not able to understand a word. She envied that look of confusion and sorrow on his face as he caught a glimpse of this broken family while he'd fought for his own.

"Luke, do not dishonor her," Hermes warned. "Your mother did the best she could.

The worst part was, Alex believed that. She'd been mentally incapable of handling that child, no true 'fault' at her feet except a broken system that had given her no support. She wasn't a bad person, she just hadn't been a good mother. Something Adrian had once said of his own mother never able to side with him over his father now bleeding into her ears she wished she could shake loose.

As for me, I could not interfere with your path. The children of the gods must find their own way."

If he meant that as some kind of explanation, it was a tired one, Will sighed. He'd heard that around Camp from the older kids, the ones that didn't live very long after passing such wisdom on. He heard it from Chiron, every time another kid went missing. He didn't know when exactly he'd grown numb to hearing that and accepted it as fact himself, but knowing now it had been the root of all Luke's grievance and the start to a war costing him both his brothers, it sounded as flimsy as the first time all over again.

"So it was for my own good. Growing up on the streets, fending for myself, fighting monsters."

"You're my son," Hermes said. "I knew you had the ability. When I was only a baby, I crawled from my cradle and set out for—"

Magnus looked like he was going to be sick. That was his response to his son growing up on the streets fighting monsters?! That he'd been able to do a bunch of stuff as a god!?

He'd preferred his ignorant bubble where Hermes had just, never known or bothered to keep track of this particular son. Indifference was something Magnus knew every day.

Instead, he'd long since learned there were two kinds of parents. The kind that had been through it and didn't want their kids to suffer the same, and the kind that expected their kids to go through exactly the same to know their pain. The second were nearly always the ones he met. His mom made him a rare exception on the streets of Boston.

"I'm not a god! Just once, you could've said something. You could've helped when"—he took an unsteady breath, lowering his voice so no one in the kitchen could overhear—"when she was having one of her fits, shaking me and saying crazy things about my fate. When I used to hide in the closet so she wouldn't find me with those . . . those glowing eyes. Did you even care that I was scared? Did you even know when I finally ran away?"

Nico never would have expected his dysfunctional relationship with his dad would ever sound better than any of the other kids at Camp, but man was he stunned to be wrong right now. Hades had been a vague yet constant presence in his life, disapproving, harsh, unloving, but at least noticed what he was doing the majority of the time. He'd even let slip once about who Minos's replacement had been when he went on sabbatical, which had given Nico the suspicion he not only knew he left his post but where he'd been while that was happening.

The fact that Luke, pre cursor to Kronos, face of all evil, had asked that with all his heart at the same age Nico was now, sat strangely in his mind.

In the kitchen, Ms. Castellan chattered aimlessly, pouring Kool-Aid for Thalia and Annabeth as she told them stories about Luke as a baby.

The parallels between that and their car ride with Ms. Jackson had not been lost on either girl as Percy had sat red-faced and miserable up that snowy mountain, as they exchanged looks now. Annabeth might have been to young to take in the full scope of that situation back then, but the tone of Sally's voice as she'd joyfully spoken with love of her son had risen that memory from the ashes.

Thalia rubbed her bandaged leg nervously. Annabeth glanced into the living room and held up a burned cookie for Luke to see. She mouthed, Can we go now?

"Luke, I care very much," Hermes said slowly, "but gods must not interfere directly in mortal affairs. It is one of our Ancient Laws.

The flash of anger that burned through Percy surprised him. It wasn't the usual kind where he'd cuss out the gods and call them all cowards for using this as a scapegoat to ignore their kids.

No, it was the kind he used to turn his enemies into dust and walk towards his next challenge. Something about this anger had a resolution buried in his mind he couldn't wait to find the source of.

Especially when your destiny . . ." His voice trailed off. He stared at the candles as if remembering something unpleasant.

"Something to do with the fire of the library of Alexandria? Or that time Notre Dame was on fire- no, wait, that one was a movie," Alex shook her head at herself. "No wait, yes it did happen! Crap, I'm getting my stuff mixed up."

"We might need another break after this one," Magnus agreed. They all felt like they were being punched by the god of emotion every new moment of Percy's life lately.

"What?" Luke asked. "What about my destiny?"

"You should not have come back," Hermes muttered. "It only upsets you both. However, I see now that you are getting too old to be on the run without help.

"I need the godly version of CPS so bad right now," Jason muttered under his breath. He was pretty confident he hadn't had the best childhood either, but somehow a godly parent acknowledging their child was getting to old to live on the streets and it wasn't cute anymore to see him struggling was a layer of insulting that burned painfully to hear he might have felt a little to personally.

I'll speak with Chiron at Camp Half-Blood and ask him to send a satyr to collect you."

"Teleport him there!" Percy stormed like he hadn't been able to do strapped into this in his own head. "He's the god of travels! If any of them could get away with that, it would be him!"

Annabeth didn't have the heart to shush him as a reminder, to promise him it would all be okay because it hadn't been, to do anything but bite back a sob and rest against his side once more. Percy being angry on Luke's behalf, to understand him as she did and be on his side was what she'd always wanted. Of course the twisted way she'd been given this was at the lowest of moments in his life.

"We're doing fine without your help," Luke growled. "Now, what were you saying about my destiny?"

The wings on Hermes's Reeboks fluttered restlessly. He studied his son like he was trying to memorize his face, and suddenly a cold feeling washed through me. I realized Hermes knew what May Castellan's mutterings meant. I wasn't sure how, but looking at his face I was absolutely certain. Hermes understood what would happen to Luke someday, how he would turn evil.

The gods having the slight power of foresight was not news, but to hear it so specifically on this of all half-bloods shook them. Maybe Hermes was the secret traitor to Camp all along and he wanted this all to come about, the downfall of his own brethren. Alex didn't know the how or why, but she'd instantly believe it as easily as Hades sitting back and doing nothing for them as well.

"Could, Hermes have even done anything to stop this?" Magnus asked quietly, haltingly, like he was whispering at someone's funeral. "When the big three swore off having kids, that obviously didn't stop the prophecy. Even if Hermes does know..." he trailed off uncomfortably. Hermes hadn't struck him as arrogant enough to change it, just resigned.

"I don't know," Annabeth murmured back, her voice just as hoarse. The kind of question she'd wanted to lob in his face when he'd kissed his son's forehead goodbye, when he couldn't even convince Luke he had loved him. Would any of it have made a difference? Would it have just made the whole thing worse as Luke slipped away anyways?

"My son," he said, "I'm the god of travelers, the god of loads. If I know anything, I know that you must walk your own path, even though it tears my heart."

"You don't love me."

Alex shook her head slowly at how miserable a feeling that was, to say it and believe it right to your parent's face. She didn't know if Hermes was going to deny it, but she knew Luke wouldn't believe him.

"I promise I . . . I do love you.

Jason wished that the hesitation in his voice had been because of him, because he had no clear idea how to say that to someone and mean it. He knew he loved his sister, but even that was clouded with frustration.

He wasn't going to stop and show the book around with pride it was clearly Hermes hesitating over those words. To fathom why was too deep.

Go to camp. I will see that you get a quest soon. Perhaps you can defeat the Hydra, or steal the apples of Hesperides. You will get a chance to be a great hero before . . ."

"Before what?" Luke's voice was trembling now.

A useless quest that he'd loathed from start to finish, Annabeth's lip was trembling with unshed tears now. A moment of triumph as he'd come back throwing the apple into the lake and storming into his cabin and locking it with blood still seeping from the bandages like a scarlet beacon. He'd never taken a moment to bask in his victory with them, her, and after he'd shouted at Chiron what had happened two days later when he'd finally come out nobody had ever spoken of it again.

He'd gone quiet, after that. The Stolls had promised her he was actually sleeping again. The root of that change hadn't even crossed her mind until it was far to late.

Had Kronos been whispering to him along his path, like he had Percy? Lying to him that nothing he did mattered, that everyone would forget about him and betray him?

"What did my mom see that made her like this? What's going to happen to me? If you love me, tell me."

Love wasn't supposed to be conditional, some part of Magnus wanted to scold Luke for this. But frankly, this entire dysfunctional family just needed to stay far away from each other. Maybe if Hermes had never been there for Luke to confront all of his hateful feelings out, Kronos never would have had any solid proof to drag Luke in.

Hermes's expression tightened. "I cannot."

"Then you don't care!" Luke yelled.

"I do wonder if it was another ancient shit law that made Hermes decide that, or even better, if he'd known that was what Luke was going to say no matter what he said and he just bulldozed into it," Alex sounded so scathing, like that Medusa toy had been laughing in the background.

Nobody had a response for her, though Magnus looked at her like he was admiring she was nuts as usual.

In the kitchen, the talking died abruptly.

"Luke?" May Castellan called. "Is that you? Is my boy all right?"

Luke turned to hide his face, but I could see the tears in his eyes.

Did she ask that every time she came out of one of her fits? Had she ever been in the right mental capacity to ask that? Nobody would ever know the answer to that except for Luke.

"I'm fine. I have a new family. I don't need either of you."

A part of Nico was vaguely surprised not to hear, 'I don't need any of you,' but he knew it was because his brain kept trying to fast-track to this moment, where Luke had made that look on Thalia and Annabeth's face something nobody ever wanted to see. The heartbreak, the failure, the rejection he'd soon leave them with too.

"I'm your father," Hermes insisted.

"A father is supposed to be around. I've never even met you. Thalia, Annabeth, come on! We're leaving!"

"My boy, don't go!" May Castellan called after him. "I have your lunch ready!"

Luke stormed out the door, Thalia and Annabeth scrambling after him. May Castellan tried to follow, but Hermes held her back.

The only decent thing he'd ever done for his son, Percy scowled. The same god that had once lashed out at Annabeth for never doing enough to stop Luke, would have to finally admit to his face when he next confronted him that he hadn't forced Luke to stay and talk this through.

As the screen door slammed, May collapsed in Hermes's arms and began to shake. Her eyes opened—glowing green—and she clutched desperately at Hermes's shoulders.

"My son," she hissed in a dry voice. "Danger. Terrible fate!"

"I know, my love," Hermes said sadly. "Believe me, I know."

The image faded.

A part of Annabeth wanted to yell at Percy for having seen that. Wanted to erase this from his mind again because at least then she could burn these books with a clear conscience so no record of this would ever have to exist and she could go back and tell her own mind it had just been a bad dream. Gods, the part of her that had hated Percy, been afraid that Percy cared about everyone but her were really trying to drown her today.

Prometheus pulled his hand away from my forehead.

"Percy?" Thalia asked. "What . . . what was that?"

I realized I was clammy with sweat.

"That, was a dam mess," Thalia said darkly.

Percy felt drunk as he started laughing, and couldn't make himself stop for a long time. Gods their life felt like one mess right after the other, and the gods were at the center of all of it, every time. The good and the bad.

Prometheus nodded sympathetically. "Appalling, isn't it? The gods know what is to come, and yet they do nothing, even for their children. How long did it take for them to tell you your prophecy, Percy Jackson? Don't you think your father knows what will happen to you?"

Percy did what he always had, looked to Annabeth for the answer.

She just looked back at him, her deep gray eyes had finally let the tears fall, a pattern on his shirt he hadn't noticed. She thought the answer was yes.

I was too stunned to answer.

"Perrrcy," Grover warned, "he's playing with your mind. Trying to make you angry."

Grover could read emotions, so he probably knew Prometheus was succeeding.

Alex had always admired Percy's anger and the way he used it to such great effect. She wished he'd use that anger now to break Promehteus's nose. She knew it wouldn't have any long-term effects, it would just make her feel better.

Thalia hadn't needed an emotional reader-satyr-empathy link to tell her that. She'd been furious right along with Percy. This Titan was lucky he hadn't shown up wearing a top hat because she wouldn't have been able to decide where to shove it and probably settled for all of the holes.

"Do you really blame your friend Luke?" the Titan asked me. "And what about you, Percy? Will you be controlled by your fate? Kronos offers you a much better deal."

I clenched my fists. As much as I hated what Prometheus had shown me, I hated Kronos a lot more.

"Hmm, yes, prioritizing your anger in order of importance. I'm going to remember this next time one of you mocks me for making lists of pro's and con's on a situation," Jason nodded emperically.

"I won't even turn it into spitballs this time," Percy nodded.

"I'll give you a deal. Tell Kronos to call off his attack, leave Luke Castellan's body, and return to the pits of Tartarus. Then maybe I won't have to destroy him."

Annabeth jerked upright to look him in the eyes so fast he'd be spitting her hair out of his mouth for weeks. He was pretty sure a few strands had flossed his teeth.

"You-" her voice broke, but she was smiling at him with such a tender expression of joy he really didn't care.

"Yeah, of course I asked," he shrugged like it was nothing. Like the thought would never not cross his mind to just tell Kronos to jump back into Tartarus no matter what form he was in.

She leaned forward and kissed his cheek and hugged him so tight that the only thought running through his head was which god he should tell to get out of so-in-so's body next.

The empousa snarled. Her hair erupted in fresh flames, but Prometheus just sighed.

"If you change your mind," he said, "I have a gift for you."

"Burn it," Magnus said at once. His mind at once on Hermes's gifts. They had been helpful...but now he was questioning all over again everything Hermes had done that might have just been a way to push Luke further down the path he was on faster, sending Percy along with the message the god himself admitted would do no good!

A Greek vase appeared on the table. It was about three feet high and a foot wide, glazed with blackand-white geometric designs. The ceramic lid was fastened with a leather harness.

Grover whimpered when he saw it.

"Geometric designs can be very intimidating if you're not accustomed to seeing them," Thalia nodded in mock understanding. Her blood had chilled to the bone when she'd seen it too.

Thalia gasped. "That's not—"

"Yes," Prometheus said. "You recognize it."

Looking at the jar, I felt a strange sense of fear, but I had no idea why.

"This belonged to my sister-in-law," Prometheus explained. "Pandora."

"The, music streaming service god-"

"Nope, just stop," Percy shook his head. "Even I know this one Alex."

"Darn," she sighed, always a lost moment when she couldn't laugh with Percy about which Greek myth he forgot this time.

A lump formed in my throat. "As in Pandora's box?"

Prometheus shook his head. "I don't know how this box business got started. It was never a box. It was a pithos, a storage jar. I suppose Pandora's pithos doesn't have the same ring to it,

"I entirely disagree!" Annabeth sniffed. "Pandora's Pithos has an excellent ring to it, and it's historically accurate, and-"

Percy kissed her temple and patted her arm, causing her to release a grumpy sigh but file that one away for later on a PowerPoint she'd force the rest of the camp to sit through.

but never mind that. Yes, she did open this jar, which contained most of the demons that now haunt mankind—fear, death, hunger, sickness."

"Don't forget me," the empousa purred.

"Indeed," Prometheus conceded. "The first empousa was also trapped in this jar, released by Pandora.

"Great, real awesome lady, I think I preferred whatever music god Alex was fixing to create," Magnus sighed.

"Music streaming lady," Alex said, "she'd never dare overtake Apollo of course, but with the right offering, she gives you the best playlist for any situation-"

"Alex," Thalia groaned.

"Fine," she huffed.

But what I find curious about the story—Pandora always gets the blame. She is punished for being curious. The gods would have you believe that this is the lesson: mankind should not explore. They should not ask questions. They should do what they are told. In truth, Percy, this jar was a trap designed by Zeus and the other gods. It was revenge on me and my entire family—my poor simple brother Epimetheus and his wife Pandora. The gods knew she would open the jar. They were willing to punish the entire race of humanity along with us."

"I'm getting, Eve bit the apple and we're ashamed of being naked vibes from this," Magnus admitted.

"Doesn't surprise me, most religions have several cross-overs. Apple, phythos, snake, Kronos, minor details," Percy nodded in agreement while Annabeth gave him an aggrieved look for calling all that a minor detail.

I thought about my dream of Hades and Maria di Angelo. Zeus had destroyed an entire hotel to eliminate two demigod children—just to save his own skin, because he was scared of a prophecy. He'd killed an innocent woman and probably hadn't lost any sleep over it. Hades was no better. He wasn't powerful enough to take his revenge on Zeus, so he cursed the Oracle, dooming a young girl to a horrible fate. And Hermes . . . why had he abandoned Luke? Why hadn't he at least warned Luke, or tried to raise him better so he wouldn't turn evil?

Maybe Prometheus was toying with my mind.

Prometheus didn't have to make up any of that stuff though. The worst lies were wrapped around truths, the seeds of doubt and strife ready to bloom. Will swallowed stubbornly though Percy had made the right choice.

Anybody could be shown at their worst if all that was shown was one side of Jason's list.

But what if he's right? part of me wondered. How are the gods any better than the Titans?

"The Titans don't have the classy ability to turn people into animals though, from what I've heard," Alex said as if this were a very important distinction. Somehow in the god's favor. Whatever floated her boat.

Prometheus tapped the lid of Pandora's jar. "Only one spirit remained inside when Pandora opened it."

"Hope," I said.

"C+," Percy mock whispered again with pride, but there was no enthusiasm in the brag as usual. Gods it had been a lifetime ago since he'd sat at that desk and pummeled his brain to remember any of the studying he'd tried to soak in the night before. When Mrs. Dodd's trying to kill him had been his biggest worry in life.

Not holding all of humanity's hope in a pithos!

Prometheus looked pleased. "Very good, Percy. Elpis, the Spirit of Hope, would not abandon humanity. Hope does not leave without being given permission. She can only be released by a child of man."

The Titan slid the jar across the table.

"I give you this as a reminder of what the gods are like," he said.

"The gods have never turned themselves into a jar," Will said blithely. "My dad would never be a geometric pattern! Bubbles, maybe, or a rainbow, but never that."

"You keep that cheer alive Will, someone has to," Jason chuckled.

"Keep Elpis, if you wish. But if you decide that you have seen enough destruction, enough futile suffering, then open the jar. Let Elpis go. Give up Hope, and I will know that you are surrendering. I promise Kronos will be lenient. He will spare the survivors."

The survivors, Percy was still scowling. Like they would experience some unique horror that would go down in history books.

Instead of Kronos waiting twenty-four hours to fulfill his promise of letting them live and then hunt them for sport out of boredom.

I stared at the jar and got a very bad feeling. I figured Pandora had been completely ADHD, like me. I could never leave things alone. I didn't like temptation. What if this was my choice? Maybe the prophecy all came down to my keeping this jar closed or opening it.

"At least you know there aren't pickles inside," Alex offered.

"I'm over here worried Percy's just going to, like, start picking at it," Magnus sighed. "He's going to push the edge of the lid to see how sturdy it is, and then rotate it, and scrape against that leather until it's worn thin, and just keep pushing his luck until, whoops, it fell off."

Percy rubbed the back of his neck without denying a word of that being a very plausible thing to happen.

"I don't want the thing," I growled.

"Too late," Prometheus said. "The gift is given. It cannot be taken back."

"Well it's not my fault he didn't keep the receipt!" Percy huffed.

"Talk about a regift," Nico agreed.

He stood. The empousa came forward and slipped her arm through his.

"Morrain!" Prometheus called to the blue giant. "We are leaving. Get your flag."

"Uh-oh," the giant said.

"Third time's the charm," Jason muttered with no self-restraint.

"I liked it better when you were counting old ladies," Percy sighed.

"We will see you soon, Percy Jackson," Prometheus promised. "One way or another."

Ethan Nakamura gave me one last hateful look. Then the truce party turned and strolled up the lane through Central Park, like it was just a regular sunny Sunday afternoon.

Percy's blood was still boiling at that exchange. He'd envisioned in his mind throwing Riptide at their exposed backs, at storming after them to get this over with Kronos already, to chuck that stupid pithos into the nearest manhole.

He'd done none of that as he felt Thalia and Grover exchange a look behind him, and all he'd wanted to do was hurry back to Annabeth's side for what little time they might have left.

PJOPJOPJOPJO

*Prometheus's smooth-talking does remind me of Loki, the basis of this joke

**No Nico has not seen Jurassic Park, yet, but you bet your drachma Will's going to show that to him after they're done binging Star Wars and Marvel, and he's going to love it all

#pjo #hoo #Jason Grace #Percy Jackson #nico di angelo #solangelo #percabeth #Thalia Grace #Annabeth Chase #alex fierro #Magnus Chase #will solace

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