#constantly but something he really doesn’t have time to deal with rn | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

andiwriteordie · 1 year ago

Note

HIIII i have a prompt for u,

have mike get a vecna vision where will dies in his arms. 🤭🤭🤭

this is not a want its a NEED.

im in the mood for angst rn and i love ur art style so...... 😊😊

oh this was a cruel cruel prompt 😈

here's a ficlet that turned into a fic because i combined it with another prompt lol 🫡

—

holding hands, while the walls come tumbling down

It starts like this.

The steady yet nervous thump, thump, thump of a heartbeat that Mike can hear as loud as his own. A body nestled right beside him; an artist’s hands, smooth and soft and ever gentle, intertwined with Mike’s; a boy he has known for nearly his entire life and loved in some way for just as long who is here, here, here lying next to him—all Mike’s for the taking, just like Mike is all his.

It’s quiet in the room, save for the soft sound of their breathing. That, too, moves in time with each other—the gentle rise and fall of their chests as they breathe in and out, in and out, in and out.

Mike would stay here forever if he could. And he thinks—no, no, no; he knows, without a shadow of a doubt in his mind and in his heart—that Will feels the same.

Mike has always prided himself on being the type of person to give everything to what he does. Sometimes (oftentimes), everything isn’t enough, but that doesn’t stop him from giving it his all anyways. He’s never been the type of person to do something halfway; no, for Mike, it’s always been a deep dive into whatever it is he’s set his mind out to. An all or nothing kind of deal.

Will’s different from him. That’s something Mike’s known since their very first conversation, when his excitable, overeager “Hi! Do you want to be my friend?” was met with a quieter, shyer, but no less enthusiastic, “Yes; I – I do!” from Will. He’s not the type of first to run headfirst into something, which is probably good for Mike. It probably keeps them both out of trouble. But when Will does commit to something, when he chooses what he wants, when he decides that Yes, yes, yes, this is something I’m willing to fight for, then he’s every bit as passionate as Mike is.

All or nothing.

There’s no turning back for the two of them, and Mike couldn’t care less. This path they’ve stumbled down on is one they’ve been walking down for quite some time now—together, even though they were both a little too blind and far too stubborn to see it. Now that they can finally see each other, now that everything is out in the light, now that Will knows Mike loves him and Mike knows that Will loves him too, there’s no going back from here. They’ve passed the point of no return, and Mike will be damned if they ever go back to what they used to be.

It’s been a longtime coming for the two of them, and as Will nestles closer to Mike’s side, resting his head on Mike’s chest and letting out another soft, content sigh, Mike can’t help but smile.

The world around them might literally be on the brink of ending—constantly shrouded in darkness, plagued by monsters from the Upside Down, cold and always on the brink of another terrifying, disastrous storm that will threaten to rip Hawkins apart—but Mike has never been happier than he is in this moment, here with Will.

“What’re you thinking about?” comes Will’s quiet, sleepy voice, and Mike glances down at his boyfriend (Boyfriend? Right? Is that what we are now?) and meets Will’s gaze. There’s a softness in his eyes, mixed in with the sleepiness that’s not surprising for how late it must be now, as well as a familiar curiosity.

What’s wrong? Will’s expression also seems to say. Are you okay? Was… was this okay?

Mike just smiles, leaning forward and kissing Will, soft and slow. Immediately, the butterflies in his stomach come back to life, more excited and awake than they’ve ever been before today. “Just about how happy I am,” Mike admits, once he’s pulled away. “I… I never really thought this would happen to me… To us.”

The curiosity melts away from Will’s face, morphing into something softer and something a bit hesitant and shy. He pulls away, ever so slightly, and lies on his side, and Mike does the same, so the two of them are looking directly at one another now. The dim glow of the old lamp that’d made it with Mike all these years—somehow surviving the move from his childhood home to Hawkins Lab and making it through the literal apocalypse—shines down on them, illuminating Will’s face just enough for Mike to see him clearly.

Beautiful is the only word that comes to Mike’s mind.

“I never thought this would happen either,” Will whispers back. There’s a smile tugging at his lips, small and a bit shy, and he reaches forward, tucking some of Mike’s hair back behind his ears. “Part of me thinks I’m just… gonna wake up, and this is all going to have been a dream. Or worse. A trance.”

“Pretty sure it’s not a dream,” Mike says with a laugh, and just for good measure, he kisses Will again, relishing in the way Will’s face immediately brightens. “Or a trance. Unless we’re… both dreaming. Or stuck in a trance.”

“Stranger things have happened to us,” Will points out, just to be difficult.

Mike rolls his eyes, before pulling Will close to him and kissing him again, slower this time and with more intention. Will moves easily in his embrace, following where Mike leads the two of them until their bodies are flush against each other again, filling Mike with that familiar sense of warmth and giddiness. And because it’s Will and because he wants this as much as Mike does, and because they’re both the type of people to go all in—all or nothing—Will kisses him back without any hesitation, his tongue exploring Mike’s mouth like this is the first and last time they’ll ever get to do this and his hands carding through Mike’s hair to pull him close, close, close but not close enough.

“I love you,” Mike breathes. The words come naturally, and though they’ve gone unspoken all night, Mike knows they haven’t gone unsaid. Every single kiss and every single glance and every single touch shared between the two of them has been a whisper of those three words over and over and over again: I love you, I love you, I love you.

And there’s not a single doubt in Mike’s mind that he means it.

A smile forms on Will’s face as he leans away, resting his forehead against Mike’s own. He looks absolutely radiant like this, face illuminated by the soft glow of that old lamp, smile stretching from ear to ear, eyes sparkling with a warmth that screams back to Mike, I love you, I love you, I love you, with just as much enthusiasm and excitement that Mike feels in his own heart.

“I love you too,” Will whispers back, and he reaches forward, cupping Mike’s face gently. “I love you so much.”

Then, without another word, Will closes the space between the two of them once more.

Mike wakes the next morning to the sound of screaming.

The sound startles him right out of whatever dream he’d been having, and Mike flinches sharply, sitting up and looking around the room. His heart pounds inside his chest, and an unsettled, terrified feeling grows inside his stomach as everything inside him switches from a sleepy, even idyllic state to DANGER, DANGER, DANGER mode in a matter of seconds.

Save for the dim light of his desk lamp, the room is relatively dark, and there’s no one else in the room except for Mike and—

And Will.

There’s a terrified look on Will’s face, and much like Mike, he’s looking around the room, eyes darting back and forth nervously like he has no idea where he is or what’s real or whether or not they’re safe. He’s trembling too, hands clenched tightly around Mike’s old blanket, and he seems like he’s just another few moments away from a complete breakdown.

And instantly, Mike’s mind switches from the DANGER, DANGER, DANGER mode to his Will needs me mode.

“Hey,” Mike whispers, scooting close to Will and wrapping an arm around his shoulder. Will immediately flinches, startled by the touch, and Mike winces, running his hand up and down Will’s army gently. “Hey, it’s just me, Will. You’re okay. You’re okay. It was just a dream. Whatever you saw… it’s not real.”

That promise – it’s not a new one. After all, the last two-and-a-half years have been full of sleepless nights brought on by otherworldly nightmares. Nobody has been spared from them, but of everyone in the Party, Will has probably suffered the most, thanks to his deeper connection to One. These nightmares are nothing new, and yet, every single time Will suffers from one of them, it feels like a knife in Mike’s heart.

He can’t make the nightmares go away, but he can be there for Will. He can sit with Will until the darkness fades away, back into a vague memory, and he can hold Will and make promises that It’ll be okay; you’ll be okay; I’m not going anywhere; we’ll get through this. That’s really all Mike can do, and so God damn it, that’s exactly what he’s going to do.

Usually, it helps. It takes time, but usually, Will is receptive to the comfort, always leaning in close and allowing Mike to hold him until the terror subsides.

But for some reason, this time, Will isn’t so receptive.

It takes a moment, but out of nowhere, Will pushes Mike away, that terrified look still remaining on his face. He’s even paler than he was just a second ago, causing confusion to grow in Mike’s heart and mind. Before Mike can say anything though, Will whispers, “Mike… we have to go. Now.”

There’s an urgency in his voice unlike anything Mike has ever heard before, and that, coupled with the look of pure fear in Will’s eyes, is enough for Mike to understand exactly what’s going on, even before Will says anything about it. After all, there’s only one thing that would scare Will this much, and really, it’s just their shared, awful luck that this would happen today of all days.

They just got together—finally, after years and years of dancing around each other and hiding from themselves and one another and never fully knowing if their feelings would be reciprocated. They just crossed that line from just friends into something more, and now…

Now, the world is actually, quite literally about to end. Now, the two of them stand on the precipice of something that could change everything and could ultimately decide the fate of the rest of the world. Now, the past five years of having their lives uprooted by the Upside Down will come to an end, one way or another.

Mike swallows the lump in the back of his throat, and he turns, meeting Will’s eyes. “It’s him, isn’t it?” he asks quietly, though he already knows the answer.

A grim expression forms on Will’s face, and he takes another slow, shuddered breath, before nodding. “Yeah,” Will whispers back. “It’s him. One’s back, and we… we have to go. Now.”

The words before it’s too late hang on the end of Will’s sentence—unspoken, but not unsaid. He doesn’t have to say anything else or give any other details. Not yet at least. Those will come in time, as soon as they wake up the others and fill them in on what’s happening. But for right now, just between the two of them, all that Will has said is enough.

And Mike gets the awful feeling that… that one way or another, today is going to be the end.

“Okay,” Mike whispers. He takes a deep breath. In and out. In and out. In and out. Then, a bit more confident, “We’ll go wake the others up, and we’ll put an end to this. It’s going to be okay. I promise.”

Those words aren’t ones that he has any business promising, and both of them know it. Still, Will’s shoulders do relax just a little bit, and he scoots close to Mike once more, taking Mike’s hand in his own. “It’s going to be okay,” Will echoes faintly. “We’ll make it through this.”

There’s a slight tremble in his voice, like he doesn’t know if he believes those words, and truthfully, Mike doesn’t know if he does either. But he forces himself to smile anyways and leans forward, kissing Will’s forehead. “Whatever happens today,” Mike says, his voice quiet, “I want you to know I love you.”

For a moment, it’s quiet in the room—the only sound the faint inhale and exhale from Will and from Mike himself. Then, in a voice that’s impossibly soft but still full of so much certainty, Will replies, “I know… and I love you too. Always.”

He glances back up at Mike with a bittersweet look in his eyes. The words are true, and Mike has no doubt about that in his mind… But both of them know that the words are a bit of a goodbye too—the last chance they might get to say things like this to one another, in case today doesn’t go the way any of them plan for it to.

Best case scenario?

El manages to defeat One. None of their friends or family die. Hawkins and the rest of the world are saved. Somehow, some way, they figure out how to go back to being normal, stupid teenagers, and they put all of this behind them.

Worst case scenario?

Well… Mike doesn’t really want to think about that. Best not to deal in what ifs and best not to let himself become too terrified of the outcome. What matters most is right now and finding the others, so they can actually stand a fighting chance.

What comes later will come later.

“Always,” Mike echoes, just as soft as Will, and because he can—he can now—he leans forward and steals a quick kiss. “Come on. We should go wake the others.”

Downtown Hawkins is a complete wreck.

There’s no other way to describe it. This place has been a ghost town for over two years now, run down and battered and destroyed by the monsters that come up out of the rifts from the Upside Down. That’s no surprise at all, but what is a surprise is just how quickly a ghost town can become a battlefield.

There are monsters everywhere, and large, black vines sprout up from the middle of the town—what used to be the library but has been a massive gate leading to the Upside Down since March 1986. The monsters just keep on coming, hundreds of them crawling, flying, stumbling out of the gate with roars and snarls so loud it’s a miracle Mike’s eardrums don’t burst.

The Party—which now unfortunately includes more than just the close friends Mike’s known since his childhood—has been training for this the entire time. Over three years of preparation have led them to this moment, but even all that time spent training and learning how to fight and how not to immediately die in battle can only get them so far. There’s only a small handful of them, and there are hundreds of monsters.

If El can’t beat One, then there’s no way this doesn’t end with every single last one of them dead at the hands of some twisted, demo-creature.

Still, Mike keeps fighting, operating on nothing but pure adrenaline now. There’s definitely a nasty cut and a bump on his head from a tussle with some mutated demodog of sorts, but Mike barely pays any attention to that. All he can do is keep fighting, shooting down demo-creature after creature and praying to whatever fucking deity may or may not be listening that he doesn’t run out of bullets before this is all said and done.

He’s long since lost track of nearly all the other Party members. El’s off somewhere fighting One. Lucas and Dustin are nowhere to be found but hopefully still alive and hopefully with someone else in their little group. The only person Mike’s managed to keep an eye on this whole time has been Will—and only because he and Will refuse to leave one another’s side. They’ve spent the better part of this battle fighting back-to-back with one another, barrages of well-aimed bullets flying out from their rifles and into the bodies of the monsters threatening to rip them into shreds.

If this is how it ends, then all Mike knows is that he wants to be close to Will.

The battle feels like it goes on forever—or at least long enough that the adrenaline begins to wear off, and the rifle in Mike’s hands begins to feel too heavy, and his limbs start to feel like they’re made out of jello. The exhaustion settles in, but there’s no time for that. Not when monster after monster keeps coming through the massive gate by the old library. So, despite the fact that everything begins to become a blur around him and it feels a bit like Mike is swimming underwater, trying his damnedest just to stay afloat, Mike keeps going and going and going in this hazy state until—

Until a scream pulls him right out of the haze.

That scream is the gravity that takes Mike’s hand and pulls, pulls, pulls until Mike is crashing back down to earth in a crumpled heap. Suddenly, Mike feels more awake and more attuned to his surroundings and filled with a newfound strength that wasn’t there before.

It comes too little, too late though.

Because as Mike turns around, looking in the direction that the scream had just come from, he feels his heart drop all the way to the bottom of his stomach. Pure panic and terror settle into his heart and mind, replacing the exhaustion from before, and in an instant, it’s like everything within Mike has been reoriented, only able to focus on one thing.

On one person.

“Will!”

The scream tears itself from Mike’s throat, and before he can even process it, Mike is sprinting to where his boyfriend now lies on the ground, bright red blood pooling around him. The two of them must’ve gotten separated only moments ago, because Will’s a few feet away from him, and there’s a whimpering, half-dead demo-creature lying halfway between the two of them. The blood from the creature flows down the street, joining the pool of Will’s blood, and Mike fights the urge to gag as he throws himself down onto the pavement beside him.

The battle rages on all around the two of them, monstrous roars still echoing in the streets of their hometown—the horrific soundtrack to what is easily the worst moment of Mike’s life.

Because up close, it becomes even more clear just how bad Will’s injuries are. What’s left of his shirt is soaked in blood, and the tattered remains of the shirt barely cover the open wounds in Will’s chest and stomach. Every single breath he takes is labored and trembling, and already, his eyes have become glassy and distant.

He’s dying.

Will is dying, and if Mike doesn’t do anything about it, he’s going to lose him, he’s going to lose Will, oh God, he’s going to lose Will, oh God, oh God, oh God—

“M-Mike?”

It’s Will’s wheezy, strained voice that snaps Mike out of the panic, and Mike flinches sharply, looking down at his boyfriend. Will’s eyes flutter open and closed, open and closed, and he struggles to keep them open as he looks up at Mike. He’s even paler than he was just mere moments again.

He’s fading. Quickly. Faster than Mike can even keep up with, let alone do something about.

Will is dying.

And Mike is going to lose him.

“J-just hold on, Will,” Mike manages to say, except that it comes out as more of a hoarse croak. His own chest feels tight, like someone is squeezing all the air right out from his lungs, and Mike chokes back a sob, weakly reaching for Will and pulling him into his arms. “Just hold on, okay? Okay, just hold on; you’re going to be okay; just hold on—HELP! Someone please! HELP! HELP US!”

Somehow, there’s no one around. Nobody can hear the strangled, desperate screams that are coming out of Mike’s mouth; nobody is around to see him sobbing and hugging Will tighter, as if somehow holding on to him will keep him here and keep him alive. Not even the demo-creatures, who were just surrounding them and threatening their lives, are around.

It’s just Mike and Will here.

Nobody is coming to help them.

Will is dying.

And Mike is going to lose him.

“I’m sorry,” Mike gasps, looking back down at Will through the blurry tears in his eyes. “Will, I… I don’t think… I don’t know if—”

“Shh,” Will whispers, and he reaches up weakly, placing a trembling hand on Mike’s cheek. Somehow, he manages a smile, though his lips and teeth are stained red with blood. “Shh… Mike… ‘s okay… ‘s okay.”

Every single word out of his mouth sounds strained, as if it hurts to say anything, and Mike bites back a sob, holding Will closer. “It’s not okay,” he whispers back, shaking his head. “I – I don’t… I don’t want to lose you, Will. You can’t go; please, you can’t—”

Again, Will offers him a smile, and he runs his thumb carefully, gently across Mike’s cheek. “You… you’ll be okay,” he murmurs and takes another quiet, labored breath. Then: “I… I’m glad you’re… here with me.”

The words feel like a knife in Mike’s already wounded heart, twisting deeper and deeper and delivering the final blow. That familiar feeling of desperation crawls back up to the surface as Mike tries to think of something—anything—he can do to save Will. There has to be something that can be done, some way to save Will, some solution that will keep them from the ending they’re quickly approaching.

But without anyone nearby, there’s nothing that can be done. There’s no solution, no way to save Will at this point, nothing that Mike can do.

Nothing except for sit here and stay with Will until the very end.

So, that’s exactly what Mike does.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Mike promises softly, and he tilts his head, pressing a kiss against Will’s palm. The tears won’t stop now; they just keep coming and coming, dripping down Mike’s cheeks and onto the bloody ground. “I’ll stay here with you, Will… until… until…”

His voice trails off, dissolving into another sob, but Will gets exactly what Mike is trying to say. He always does, and though he looks exhausted and barely able to hold on any longer, Will smiles up at Mike and takes his other hand, interlacing their fingers.

Time, the strange thing that it is, seems to slow down around them. It’s as if Mike is having an out-of-body experience, watching all this happen in slow motion around them—a mere observer to the worst moment of his life and the end of Will’s.

“I love you,” Will murmurs, breathless and barely audible now.

“I love you too,” Mike whispers back, and he squeezes Will’s hand tightly, afraid to let go. The world shrinks and shrinks and shrinks until it’s just the two of them, frozen in this slow motion reality, and he watches as Will’s eyes flutter open and closed, open and closed, open… and closed.

He doesn’t open his eyes again.

And Mike’s world comes crashing down.

All at once, it’s as if the dam has burst, and another desperate, broken sob rips itself from Mike’s throat: “Will!”

Whatever sense of peace or at least acceptance that he might have found lulled into during Will’s last moments has all but disappeared now—replaced by a gut-wrenching, all-consuming, grief that washes over him like a flood. The rest of the world still feels far away, as if nothing else in the world matters but Will, Will, Will.

Will is gone.

He’s gone, he’s gone, he’s gone, he’s lying here and is dead in Mike’s arms, he isn’t breathing anymore, and his blood is all over the ground and all over Mike, and he’s gone, he’s gone, he’s gone, he’s gone—

“I’m sorry,” Mike whispers brokenly, and he holds onto Will’s lifeless body, rocking back and forth in some desperate attempt to wake him up or to do something, anything, to fix this. “P-please come back, Will; please, please, please don’t go, please come back, don’t leave me, please don’t go, please, Will, please come back, please, Will—”

Time passes in its ever strange, inconsistent movement. It’s hard something that Mike can’t keep track of—not when his focus is solely on Will.

But then, out of nowhere, something pulls Mike’s focus away from Will.

The air grows colder around the two of them; a pervasive, terrifying feeling of evil and darkness settles over downtown Hawkins. It’s familiar but jarring all at once, and Mike can’t help but shudder, holding Will’s body closer to his own. Slowly but surely, reality begins to settle back in, trickling in little by little through the cracks of Mike’s broken heart and mind.

The world around him is eerily quiet and terrifyingly still. Unlike the battlefield from before, downtown Hawkins has once again been reduced to nothing but a near silent ghost town. Gone are the vicious snarls and growls of monsters. Gone is the sound of bullets ricocheting through the air. Gone are the screams and furious cries of his friends and family.

In place of all of that is the simple sound of footsteps approaching him.

The footsteps are quickly approaching. Each step taken is one made with intention, and the movement brings that pervasive feeling of darkness closer and closer to Mike until the air around him feels near suffocating. All the while, Mike’s heart pounds in a nervous thumpthumpthump as the realization settles back in.

The battle is over.

There is no one left—no one but Mike.

All of his family, his friends, Will… they’re all gone.

And One has done it. He’s finally succeeded.

This is it.

This is the end.

As the footsteps approach, Mike takes a deep breath, and he leans down, pressing one last kiss to Will’s forehead. If this is it, if this is the end, if somehow Mike is the last person left of the Party, then he won’t go down without a fight. It doesn’t matter how futile it is. Mike has to at least try.

So, he gathers up all the courage left inside of him, and Mike lifts his head, daring to look One in the eye.

Icy blue eyes meet Mike’s own for the first time as something akin to a smile forms on One’s face. He looks pleased—amused even—and stops, just a few feet away from Mike and Will. “Michael Wheeler,” One says, voice low and gravelly, “we meet at last.”

Mike swallows the lump in his throat, doing the best to ignore the way his stomach is twisted into knots. It feels impossible—that he would be the last person standing here after all this fighting and bloodshed. Mike’s never been much of a hero, and God knows that he barely stands a fighting chance against One.

Still, his friends died trying to fight One and the monsters of the Upside Down. Will died trying to fight One and the monsters of the Upside Down. And if Mike is going to die too, then… so be it.

“Rot in hell,” Mike spits, his own voice full of venom. His rifle’s long since gone, tossed aside somewhere in the desperation to save Will, so all he’s got left to fight with now are his words. Those will just have to do.

One just chuckles and takes another step towards Mike, gesturing to the ruins of downtown Hawkins. “Look around you, Michael,” he says coldly, and against his own better judgment, Mike does so, his breath hitching as he takes in the carnage from the battle. “Do you see what I have done? Do you see what I am capable of? Do you see how futile fighting back is?”

Suddenly, it feels as though some invisible force is wrapped around Mike, and it pulls him all the way to his feet with a terrified yelp. The force squeezes him so tightly Mike feels like he can barely breathe, and it brings him forward until Mike finds himself barely inches away from One.

Another twisted smile forms on One’s face. He reaches forward, running his large, clawed hand down Mike’s cheek, and whispers, “You’re going to send a message for me, Michael Wheeler.”

Barely a moment after the words have left his mouth, the visions begin.

The visions are familiar—some moments that Mike has lived through and seen with his own two eyes and others that he’s only heard about from his friends and family. They flash across his eyes at dizzying, overwhelming speeds, one right after another after another.

At first, the visions are moments from today. Glimpses of the battle they all have just fought and lost, the screams of his friends and family, the snarls and growls of hundreds of demo-creatures coming out from the gates. But then, the visions work their way backwards, moving through moments in time from patrols over these past two years, Upside Down storms that began to cover Hawkins, and sporadic monster attacks that they almost didn’t survive.

The day at the meadow flashes through Mike’s line of sight too, before it quickly melts away into memories not belonging to himself. A jarring CRACK resonates through his mind as he watches Max’s bones snap and sees the gates ripping across all of Hawkins during that spring. Then, even before that, he sees Eddie’s death, sees his friends fighting for their lives against demobats and against vines, sees El and Max struggling against One’s power over them.

Suddenly, it’s the summer before, with the Mind Flayer and the Flayed and Billy. Starcourt Mall, going up in flames as the Mind Flayer’s fleshy form towered over and chased all of them. Black tendrils tracing up and down Billy’s face as an otherworldly horror controlled his actions. Will’s haunted whisper that the Mind Flayer was back, that this wasn’t over, that they still hadn’t escaped this.

Then, it’s the fall before that. The tunnels and the massive gate to the Upside Down. The night at the lab, with demodogs tearing through flesh and bone and with people screaming and crying for help. The Mind Flayer’s shadowy form, descending on Will, choking him, filling him up, and taking over his mind and body.

Finally, the visions end with that very first fall. The demogorgon, feasting on Brenner’s men at Hawkins Middle School. Hopper and Joyce finding Will in Upside Down. Will hiding and running for his life in the Upside Down, all alone with no one to help him. Barb screaming for help as the demogorgon rips her to shreds, and then—

Will.

Riding his bike through Hawkins, that very first night when this all began.

“Tell Will,” One’s voice whispers into the silence of Will’s bike ride through Hawkins, “that I am coming. The end is near, Michael. And there is nothing any of you can do to stop what I have been planning all along.”

One last vision flickers across Mike’s line of sight.

A memory that he still remembers, clear as day.

“It was a seven,” Will’s twelve year-old self says to Mike’s own younger self.

“Huh?”

“The roll,” Will explains. “It was a seven. The demogorgon – it got me. Well, see you tomorrow!”

And just like that, Will’s younger self rides away, leaving Mike’s younger self standing just outside his garage.

Mike watches as the garage light flickers above his younger self.

Then, in the next instant, he finds himself falling into the darkness.

The darkness seems to last for an eternity.

There’s an inky black void surrounding him as Mike falls, and he can’t help but scream, reaching out for something, anything to pull himself back up. But there’s absolutely nothing there to hold onto, so Mike just continues to fall and fall and fall, further and further into the darkness.

Then, suddenly, the darkness dissipates. The fog clears just a little bit, enough for Mike to hear someone call out his name: “MIKE!”

Will?

“MIKE!” the person—that’s Will, it has to be Will—calls again, more desperate this time, and Mike reaches back up, trying to grasp onto anything that will pull him out of the darkness. The way out seems just a little bit closer now, getting easier to reach out to as Will calls his name again, “MIKE! MIKE! MI—”

And with a gasp, Mike opens his eyes.

Light floods his line of sight, replacing the never-ending darkness at an overwhelmingly fast pace. Mike’s mind feels like it’s racing at a million miles an hour, and his heart is pounding inside his chest, so hard that it almost hurts to breathe. All the while, the room spins around and around and around and around and—

Suddenly, Mike’s knees buckle, nearly sending him crashing to the ground. Fortunately, someone—Will—is there to catch him, and though the two of them both stumble, Will manages to break his fall. “Mike?” he asks, voice full of concern. “Mike, hey, are you okay?”

There are tears in Will’s eyes, and his face looks blotchy, like he’s been crying. Still, even with the worry written all over his expression, there’s relief there too, and Mike takes a shuddered breath, choosing to focus on Will.

Will’s here. Will’s here, and he – he’s alive. He’s alive. Mike didn’t lose him. He’s not dead. Will isn’t dead.

Which means…

That entire battle must have been a vision from One. An opportunity for One to pass along a message that he’d been waiting to send. And… a warning for what’s still to come.

“Shit,” Mike whispers. “Shit. Will, we have to – he… One… I—”

“Hey, just take a deep breath,” Will says worriedly, and he hesitates, before reaching for Mike’s hand. “Just breathe, okay? Mike, you – you were in that trance for a while. We couldn’t snap you out of it, and I… I thought I was going to lose you.”

Will’s voice breaks on those last few words, breaking Mike’s heart with it. “I’m still here,” Mike reassures, reaching up and cupping Will’s cheek as gently as he can. “I’m still here, Will.”

A bright rosy blush spreads across Will’s face as his eyes widen and glance at Mike’s hand. “I know you are,” he replies quietly, “but I… I still could’ve lost you. I – I mean… we all could have.”

The memories of seeing Will’s mangled body on the ground, surrounded by a pool of blood, come back to the forefront of Mike’s mind, and he can’t help but shudder. Without giving it another thought, he wraps his arms around Will, hugging him as tight as he possibly can.

Mike… he still has no idea how much of the past two days have actually been part of his vision from One versus how much was real. There’s no doubt in his mind that the battle itself and his encounter with One were all a result of being held in a trance, but as for… as for everything that came before that—confessing his love for Will and learning about Will’s feelings in return—Mike isn’t honestly sure.

There’s a part of him that thinks… maybe that stuff was just too good to be true. Maybe Mike did make that all up in his mind, or maybe it was just a trick from One, designed to taunt him before delivering the final blow. Maybe what happened with Will the night before that battle was nothing more than just a dream.

Mike swallows the lump in his throat, and he tries not to think about that as Will hugs him tighter and buries his head in Mike’s shoulder. “I’m still here,” Mike repeats, softer now than before. “We’re both still here… We’re not going to lose each other, Will.”

“The end is near, Michael,” One’s voice echoes through his mind—the cruel threat solidified in his mind now as a promise. This isn’t over. What Mike saw in his vision… it may very well come to pass.

And just like Will once said to him, One isn’t going to stop until he takes everything and everyone.

“And there is nothing any of you can do to stop what I have been planning all along,” One had told him, as the visions of Will leaving Mike’s house on that fateful night had played out for him like a twisted home video.

More importantly, One isn’t going to stop until takes Will.

Mike can’t let that happen. He can’t lose Will.

Will takes a shaky breath of his own, and he pulls away, just enough for the two of them to look at each other, and offers Mike a tiny smile. “We won’t,” he agrees softly. He hesitates, then carefully lifts his hand, resting it against Mike’s cheek. “Are you… are you okay?”

Will’s hand is warm against Mike’s face, and his touch feels like electricity. There’s something so genuine and so tender about the way that he’s looking at Mike and the way he gently runs his thumb across Mike’s cheek, over and over again. He’s here—warm and firm and solid, close enough that Mike is able to take his hand and hold on and never let go.

Will’s here. He’s okay. He’s safe.

And for now, that’s all that matters.

So, even in spite of One’s haunting message and the visions from their past and the warnings of the future, Mike finds the ability to smile. He reaches up, putting his hand over Will’s, and he nods. “I’m okay. You’re here, so… I’m okay.”

Those words cause Will’s face to turn an even brighter shade of red, but he smiles regardless, leaning forward and pressing his forehead against Mike’s own. He takes Mike’s other free hand in his own and doesn’t say anything else—not that Mike needs him to. They’ve always been able to communicate without words, and this time is no different.

Sure, the future might be bleak, and there’s no telling whether One’s visions will come to pass, even in spite of their best efforts to fight back. But right here, right now, he and Will are together. They’re both safe, and they’re both here.

All they can do is take this moment for what it's worth and hold onto each other while they still can.

And for now, it ends in very much the same way that Mike thinks it began.

The steady yet nervous thump, thump, thump of a heartbeat that Mike can hear as loud as his own. A body nestled close beside him; an artist’s hands, smooth and soft and ever gentle, intertwined with Mike’s; a boy he has known for nearly his entire life and loved in some way for just as long who is here, here, here right in front—all Mike’s for the taking, just like Mike is all his.

#byler #byler fanfic #andi writes not dies #byler ficlet

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hijinxinprogress · 1 year ago

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Young Justice watches one piece together

They argue constantly over which pirate crew they are and none of them can agree

They’ve all made up power moves based on one piece

Every one piece backstory has Cissie, Kon, and Greta sobbing and dry heaving while an amused Cassie tries to console them

Whenever Robin says something morbid offhandedly they all turn and look at Tim who’s immediate response is ‘it’s not like she’s wrong-‘ while Anita agrees with him

During Momonosuke’s backstory, they all just stare at Bart bc he goes ‘hey it’s me’ while giggling which ended with Greta sobbing

Cassie compared Mr. Sarcastic to Sniper King & Tim made a powerpoint with over 300 slides explaining why they’re wrong

Cissie and Anita will explain in detail why they’d never lose to a devilfruit user (all of their plans involve drowning) while Greta points out the weak points in their plans

The entire team will wordlessly gesture to Tim whenever Nami or Usopp are lying, undercover, or just straight up doing shady shit

“My name’s Kon and I ate the tact-tact fruit now I have tactile telekinesis which means-” “stfu I don’t mention my powers that much” “yes tf you do” “wE dOn’T hAvE tO WoRrY mY tTk will-” “now it’s a crime to share things about myself with my friends??” “if I have to hear about your ttk again I don’t want to be friends”

Whenever it’s mentioned that characters parents are dead/abusive/estranged they all make fun of each other for being orphans or belonging to otherwise dysfunctional families

Bart was compared to the tontatta tribe for the entirety of Dressrosa and still gets shit for it

whenever a character explains their devil fruit it doesn’t matter if it’s once or every time their on screen, they look at Kon who’s very adamant that he does not sound like that

Cissie has threatened physical violence in response to being compared to both Uta and Yamato

Brook hadn’t even been on screen for five minutes before they had to pause bc Tim ordered Greta a piano while entire team compared Greta and Brook for over an hour

They referred to Tim as yj’s chief of staff for months, they had Bart change his position on young justice to chief of staff in his fucking file

Anita once told Cissie that her insults took little imagination much like the nickname’s Luffy gives people he doesn’t like

Then they teamed up to fight Tim who mentioned that their arguments were reminiscent of Zoro and Sanji’s

They compare each other to one piece characters all the time and it’s not in a friendly “haha hey you and this character like the same food” but evil ass shit that you’d have to fight someone for saying

“Another orphan!” “mf your parents are dead too!” “I don’t know why you’re giggling, yours aren’t even dead and they don’t want you”

“Big Mom and Pudding’s relationship is sorta like you and Superman” cue Kon pointedly sideyeing Bart and Bart jumping up to point at Tim with both hands who doesn’t even look away from the screen to point at Cissie

“You see Luffy rn? That’s what Tim was like when Kon and Bart died, that’s what you left me to deal with” “You were like that too!”

“Oh, wow Brook also joined a cult after being separated from his friends” “separated?! mf I died” “tim YOU JOINED THE LEAGUE” “we’re all technically-” “no ra’s al ghul’s league” “TIM…tim what the hell”

“Do you think you and Sanji flirt with everyone in your immediate vicinity bc you need someone to validate your existence and you know your father never will?”

“You and Sanji have the same dumbass taste in code names” “wdym??” “red robin….soba mask” “soba mask is objectively worse??” “is it really though”

“Anita, wasn’t your grandfather also complicit in your parents death??” “more like directly responsible but fuck you”

“Anyone else seeing the similarities between Sterry and Sabo with Tim and Damian??”

“You and Bepo both apologize for existing, do you think he does it bc his mom doesn’t love him or is that just you?”

“A stoic badass with a sword-” “it’s not a fucking sword-” “-did I say I was done? that never had any semblance of a normal childhood so their trust issues and short temper are 74% of their personality” “I just want you to know I have your address” “proving my point rn”

“Has anyone else noticed that Greta and Baby5 will fall in love with any moron that gives them the slightest bit of positive attention?” Tim and Greta making offended noises but not disagreeing

“Dead parents, fanboy, hates life, idiot friends, 37 complicated ass convoluted fucking plans with a million steps for a simple ass mission, and gets a little too aggressive when their plans aren’t being followed, am I talking about Law or Tim?” “you’re my idiot friends, you fuCKING-” “see!?”

“Kon, you fly and some psycho created then abandoned you along with ruining your self-esteem” “the fucking CLOUD??? why wouldn’t it fly you goddamn asshole” “that’s your issue?!” “well maybe you shouldn’t say dumb shit to me”

“Hey, Zoro also has dead childhood friends-” “why don’t you go-”

“Look, an impulsive moron doing reckless shit in a whole ass suit with absent/abusive parents from a wealthy background, does this sad adrenaline junkie remind you of anyone?” “yeah you you fucking moron-” “what fucking money do I have-” “he means lex” “well, I also said suit you ever see me in a fucking suit, genius?” “You didn’t specify what kind of suit, genius”

“Do you think you and zoro are so mistrusting of others bc you had to take care of yourselves from a young age??”

“You ever think about the fact that every adult in you and robins life disappointed you when you needed them?” “which robin?” “either tbh” “okay, fuck all of you”

#young justice watches one piece #young justice #young just us #anita fite #dc empress #greta hayes #dc secret #bart allen #impulse #dc impulse #cassie sandsmark #wonder girl #kon el #kon kent #superboy #cissie king jones #arrowette #dc comics #source: i made it the fuck up

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redbleedingrose · 2 years ago

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You know what I’m thinking about rn? That’s been consuming my thoughts for a while? That maybe one day I’ll write a fanfic for when I have the time?

A co-workers to best friends to lovers trope with Az.

I meannnnn just imagine it

Imagine being Azriel’s best and favorite spy

Imagine coming back every weekend for meetings with him and the other spy’s, imagine drinking together and getting to know each other and playing cards together.

Imagine the cocky smirk he sends you, knowing his cards are better than anyone else’s at the table

Imagine smirking right back, shrugging your shoulders with a smug look across your face

Imagine you constantly beating the “unbeatable” spymaster

Imagine him, and everyone else, being shook as you cackle while sliding all the money towards you

Imagine the shared looks between you during meetings

Looks of exasperation when someone gets really talkative and all you wanna do is sleep

Looks of humor when someone says something out of pocket

Looks of confusion as someone says something questionable

Looks of longing that are missed between you

Imagine the mutual teasing that takes place. Imagine the coworker relationship slipping into a best friendship

Imagine you standing outside of River house for 20 minutes on the balcony, staring in and waiting for Az to notice

Imagine he steps away from everyone and slips onto the balcony

Imagine everyone in the inner circle hearing a teasing laugh as he slides the door shut behind him, “Aren’t you supposed to be spymaster shadowsinger? I’ve been out here for 20 minutes”

Imagine him looking at you, his face set with annoyance, but his hazel eyes flashing with something deeper as he snatches you by the waist and winnows you to his office for a debriefing

Imagine opening up during these debriefs to each other.

Imagine him telling you about his life and his deepest darkest secrets during these debriefs.

Imagine you doing the same

Imagine how it does change things between you.

But not in a bad way.

In a way where you constantly are able to read each other. Are able to pick up on what the other is thinking. It shifts you both into sync.

Imagine his shadows absolutely adoring you

Imagine them playing with your hair during meetings

Or curling around your ankles and wrists whenever you stand near Azriel

Imagine Azriel trying to pull them back but ultimately failing

Because the one place he doesn’t have control of his shadows, is around you

Imagine knowing each other for centuries and missing each other. Right person wrong time vibes.

When you met him, he was windswept with Morr

And then when he realized his feelings for you, but you were in a relationship with someone else

And then you break up with your someone, only to find out that Azriel is somewhat infatuated with Elain

What he doesn’t tell you is that he needed to be thinking about someone else other than you.

Because you had consumed his life. Consumed his every thought. He wasn’t able to concentrate, constantly thinking about what you are doing, how you are doing, how whatever situation he was in would make you laugh, or how you would love this little trinket that he found away on a mission.

And maybe he couldn’t deal with it anymore because you were taken. Because you weren’t his.

You weren’t his to constantly be thinking about.

But gods damnit, did he want you to be

Imagine you being incredibly jealous of Elain. Imagine wishing that you were different. That you were softer, that you were quieter and gentle.

Imagine having to walk away from them several times with your heart entirely too heavy. Imagine going downstairs to the kitchen to drink your sorrows away as the twin wraiths coddle you.

Imagine his jealousy when you start to seek out comfort from another male spy. Imagine the heartbreak he feels when you start to pull away. Imagine the pain he feels when he realizes that you no longer seek him out for comfort after a rough mission, instead electing to go see the other male spy.

Imagine him creating a rule of no coworkers relations because of it

Imagine going on missions together all the time

Imagine the protectiveness he feels towards you. Imagine how it’s been the start of a couple of arguments. Because even though he trusts you, the thought of losing you is something that is unbearable.

Imagine him having to give in because you are his best spy, and the person he trusts most with his life and secrets

Imagine him flying you to wherever your mission is at.

Imagine his shivers as you bury your face into his neck and cling to him as he ascends into new heights

Imagine him playfully loosening his grasp mid flight, even though he would never dream or dropping you, which only makes you scream a scolding at him while clinging to him tighter, clenching at his Illyrian leathers and wrapping your legs tightly around his waist

Imagine the mission going terribly wrong, and having to sleep in a cave while he recovers

Imagine you taking care of him, rubbing salve all over his injured wings while his shadows swirl around you both, hiding you from the rest of the world

Imagine it being freezing cold outside. Imagine the fire not being enough to keep you warm.

Imagine him worrying about your shivering despite his near fatal wounds.

Imagine him pulling you into his arms, and resting your head against his chest and he burrows his face into your hair, allowing for your scent tinged with some sweat to soothe him

Imagine wrapping your arms around his waist and listening to his heartbeat the entire night to make sure it doesn’t stop, sleep escaping you despite the hypnotizing lull

Imagine when he wakes up to find you stroking his hand, tracing the lines of the scars that mar them. And he just watches you, silently wondering what your thinking as his heart starts to race. Imagine you feeling the change in the rythmn to his heart.

Imagine you adjusting to look up at him.

Imagine when you meet his beautiful gaze, something snaps within you both.

And suddenly… you don’t need the fire to keep you warm

All you need is him.

Imagine coming back home from the mission. Imagine the buildup as he leaves you to rest in his room as informs Rhys that he’s gonna need some time off to sort some things out.

Imagine everyone in the inner circle being like, “about time”

“We have been betting for decades on when your dumbass realizes she’s the one”

Imagine the dumb grin that lilts his face as he nods his head in goodbye

Imagine him taking you to this little chateau where you spend a month together on your own, exploring the new dynamic of your relationship

Imagine accepting the bond. And the frenzy that comes afterwards. Imagine him being so happy and content so freely for the first time

Imagine his deep belly laughs at your little jokes. Imagine the smile that constantly tugs at his usual stoic face when he catches the slightest glimpse at you. Imagine his shadows being completely enamored by you, constantly reaching out to tug you into their masters embrace.

Imagine the pure joy, happiness, and contentedness that you both share as mates, wanting nothing more than each other.

Yeah anyway… just thinking about him today

#Azriel x reader #azriel x you #rose rambles #Azriel shadowsinger #Azriel spymaster #Azriel acotar #angst #fluff #acotar fanfic #acotar drabbles #azriel drabbles

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cheffe-cool · 2 months ago

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There’s another person on here who’s recording a bunch of reread details on Aouv rn (you probably know who you are, hi lol) so I thought I’d also draft some of my own thoughts up about it 👌

So here’s some All of Us Villains details :)

I like how in chapter 12 of Aood when Finley and Briony visit the Blair’s, and Finley says that their family uses their code to justify slaughtering people they care about, Abigail immediately assumes Finley is talking about Briony, because she doesn’t even consider sending her OWN son off to a death tournament as slaughter. To her, it really is an honor to go and die for your family, even though it’s taken the lives of countless of her ancestors and likely would have Finley, if the tournament had played out as usual- most certainly Gracie or Ava if one of them had been the volunteer.

But instead she’s just like “dude kill your girlfriend it’s not that big of a deal”

But seriously she’s so delusional- the Lowe’s win every 2 out of 3 tournaments and it seems like the second most likely winners have historically been Thorburns. Like Finley had such a small chance of survival, but when he volunteered, her reaction was probably just to be proud of him.

These seven families are so mf delicious.

This one’s a bit obvious, but the Full Moon Child story that Alistair commandeers from ML.Jr in chapter 11 of Aood is literally just about himself lmao. You can go back and read it and it’s like “Don’t deny who you are because then your brothers gonna die ooooo 👻”

I love when these books do foreshadowing lol- there’s this moment in the first book where a succulent plant or something casts a spiky shadow in Reid’s face 😭

In Aood- the little blurb from the news at beginning of each chapter usually pertains to whichever pov you’re on, but the news covers Gavin so little, that his blurbs are usually about Alistair or the Lowe’s, because the average person probably just thinks of Gavin as an ad on to that crew. He’s just the Lowe’s sidekick lmao.

Hendry likes sweets but he’s bad at baking :,)

Isobel and Alistair have remarkably similar thoughts, feelings and circumstances in aood. One example is how they are both the most loved AND hated member of their respective alliances. Isobel is sent a trick spellstone that paints the world ‘cunt’ in sores on her arm (holy shit you guys she’s a fucking seventeen year old get a grip oh my god) while Gavin sights the curse stones they receive along side the fan mail as “usually targeting Alistair.” Whilst on the flip side, Isobel is the most famous champion and covered the most in the news, while Alistair has a dedicated fan club, who asks him to record sexy voice messages for them and draw him shirtless.

Man, fame sucks.

(holy shit you guys he’s a fucking sixteen year old get a grip oh my god)

Okay Gavin only says Alistair’s name once in the entire duo-logy. Like???? In his head he says Alistair’s name all the time (pretty much constantly) and in book two calls him “Al” all the time. But the ONLY time he says the word “Alistair” EVER is after he goads Alistair into burying the lamb’s sacrifice, calling out to him to apologize.

He literally doesn’t say the guys name the entire second (and longer) book lmao.

I wish there was a bigger fandom so that I could make a TikTok slideshow with that audio “how about I dance the black swan for you?” Accompanied by depictions of Briony cutting off Innes’s finger and get a billion likes.

Y’all WHAT HAPPENS TO THE LOWE SPOUSES? I know Alistair makes a joke that his mom ate his dad like a praying mantis, but fr- what happened to Moira’s husband and Rowan’s wife??? They were totally probably murdered right??? Rowan’s wife is actually never mentioned, but I’m assuming sombody gave birth to Marianne jr.

Also Alistair and Hendrys dad doesn’t have a canonical name- just thought that was interesting. Probably because it was a little…. “On theme” with the other Lowe names of you catch my drift 😬

I would’ve been in full support of Alistair and Hendry having long faces and genetic defects- but oh welll, I suppose they had to be hot.

That theory’s not even canon anyway- but how does your whole family line have dark curly hair, widows peaks and gray eyes for 400 years straight lmao. Besides they can’t exactly invite many outsiders inside with all that child sacrifice and oh my god that’s why they killed Alistair’s dad and Marianne’s mom isn’t it. Shit.

Marianne Sr. IS quite the fan of cover ups 😭

That’s probably it for now, but I’ve definitely got some more thoughts that I had a long time ago and have half forgotten now- so I’ll write em down if I remember :)

#all of our demise #all of us villains #aouv #aoud #alistair lowe #gavin grieve #aood #briony thorburn #finley blair #isobel macaslan #reid mactavish #Abigail Blair #Marianne Lowe jr #hendry lowe

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ryuichirou · 6 months ago

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Replies

Happy weekend! Today I’m replying to things that you wrote regarding this post <3

characharing asked:

you can desensitize Idia of being called by other name by cheering for premo while fucking him. after being called by the name of all the singers, what's being called jamil or riddle as well

True true, but then you would face another possible risk: Idia would think “damn I want to listen to them rn” and just ditch his partner to rewatch his favourite concert of theirs. Sex is great, but Premo is otherworldly. Idia has his priorities.

Anonymous asked:

Ooohh, the boys are seething and heart-broken, there's no better sound than the shattering of fragile young egos! I'm glad that the question was a fun one, these headcanons are all perfect. Cruelty aside, it's really interesting to see how unique their relationhsips are with one another. I was thinking about this ask the other day and I started joking that the reaction for all of them would end up being like "Oh it's ok, one time I called prof. Trein mom, now that's really embarassing!". Also, is Sebek discovering a new kink? Between the "father" thing and his enthusiasm at the idea of breeding Malleus, I'm keeping an eye on him...

Thank you, Anon! I am very happy you liked the headcanons, it was very interesting to think about this one. Yeah, the shattering of fragile young egos and the bitter sweetness of young hearts’ tears… such beauty <3

But imagine calling Trein mom…!! I remember a comic one artist drew about Deuce calling Trey mom, but with prof. Trein it’s even better lol I wouldn’t be surprised if all of them did that at some point.

I feel like Sebek is constantly on the verge of discovering all kinds of kinks lol And the fact that he is very opposed to all of them make him react even stronger: his body would react before his brain even realises what he’s just heard. Not sure if this is going to end up becoming a kink, but he definitely would feel interesting sensations…

eh-nonnie-mouse asked:

Your hc's (the calling lover by diff names specifically) are all so on point. But the ones that had me giggling are freaking Sebek and Malleus. There is just something so shouty about Sebek that makes me wanna put him in a jar and shake him (like Idia but less loving).

Silver calling out for Lilia with Sebek, does the boy even get a chance? Sure if he's with Malleus, that's one thing. But Idia too?! Every man he sticks his dick into has a certain someone else on the brain. It must mess with his ego a little to be compared to someone else he clearly looks up to. (But also what if Lilia was the one who taught him how to top, hm? So his movements just feel too familiar. 😔)

And Malleus, that whole snip of interaction really shouldn't be as funny as I read it to be but I was cackling. You know that boy is calling down thunder and lightning *in the bedroom*. Not even hellfire can save you now. He would get that cold angry look, you know where it's just face calm but internally raging. I feel a little bad for doing this to them but....Sebek calling for Silver. Seven help them all, the betrayal of love (in like a 'I love you enough to assign you as my personal guard and switch in lover' if that makes sense) that Malleus has. Sure, Malleus is only playing with Sebek so if he (Mal) calls for someone else that's not as big as deal. But as a Prince and to be King? Naughty boy, Sebek shouldnt have let his thoughts stray.

Thank you so much for enjoying the post! I think you should put both Sebek and Idia in a jar and shake them together, it would be a joy.

Also you are so right, Sebek really is being haunted by Lilia’s presence no matter who he sleeps with! And Lilia doesn’t even sleep around all that much these days, I guess this is just Sebek’s poor luck… But I really like the thought of Sebek just moving in a similar manner because of Lilia’s teachings because it really wouldn’t surprise me if Lilia was there for Sebek and Silver’s first time. Or even Sebek and Malleus’ first time, who knows, all those are possible scenarios lol

Oh but Malleus being called Silver… this is very dangerous!

Ironically though? With Malleus, Sebek has this weird immunity that could work in some situations. I think it’s not impossible for Malleus to be so shocked that Sebek of all people called him by some other name, that it would actually be amusing/funny in a weird way, but ONLY in specific situations and ONLY because this is Sebek of all people. And of course, it’s only possible if these two aren’t together-together but are just having sex.

I guess Sebek does have some luck after all..

#replies #sebemal

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basim-ibnishaq · 1 year ago

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I’m seeing a lot of discourse about Miguel being out of character compared to his comic self. I kinda disagree because I think Miguel is going through a character regression. In the comics, Miguel started off (in Xina’s words) “an arrogant pompous jerk” who relied on an authoritarian system (Alchemax) to achieve stability, something he never had in his past. In a way, Miguel retreads similar ground in ATSV where he comes off as an antagonistic force (a jerk :P) who relies on an authoritarian system (the Spider Society) to maintain stability for the Spiderverse after being traumatized by the destabilization of his alternate dimension. I think the creative team is implicitly tying this aspect of Miguel’s origins into his film arc while placing it in a new context to better fit the Spiderverse trilogy and introduce new audiences to his story.

I think the reason why Miguel is retreading this aspect in the film is because he’s trying to hide his true comics origins. Despite Miguel’s first intro showing a near replica of his first comic issue (creating the assumption that he’s going to tell his comic origins like the other Spiderpeople thus far), he instead states that he’s the leader of the Spider Society (essentially making up his own origin story where he’s framed as the “ultimate” Spiderman). One reason why he might be hiding his true origins is that it might delegitimize his position as head of the Spider Society, since the majority of Spiderpeople get bit by a spider. Another reason could be that he views his origins and the implications of his transformation being too traumatic to disclose (something Miguel in the comics does as he hides the abuse he faces from Conchata). With both of these reasons, Miguel uses his high position at the Spider Society to create a fresh start where he’d only be seen as Spiderman. This way he doesn’t have to deal with the trauma of his past nor the lack of closure he has regarding his relationships with Gabriel and Xina (considering the ending of the 90’s comics).

However, Miguel ignoring his true past ends up becoming his folly in ATSV. While becoming Spiderman was the catalyst for Miguel’s growth in the comics, Spiderman becomes the facilitator for his regression in the film as he delves into the responsibility and guilt aspect of this persona. By trying to shed his civilian self and donning his Spidey persona full time, he forgets the true essence of Spiderman (which is to always try to save people) and the progress he made in the comics as he’s now boiled down to his fatal flaws: rage, guilt, and self-hatred. Plus, since the Spiderverse films are “a meta-commentary on art while still being art,” Miguel not mentioning his backstory and him constantly going in and out of different dimensions could be a comment on how modern iterations of his comics don’t take place in his home (dimension) of 2099 or feature his full cast.

I feel like Miguel’s true self would emerge once his real comic origins and story are revealed in BTSV, which includes the loss of his interpersonal relationships in his home dimension. By being truthful to himself and others, Miguel would be able to merge his Miguel and Spiderman persona together instead of viewing them two separate entities (something he struggled with in the comics). This could even lead to reconciliation between him and the Spider Squad as the other Spiderpeople (ie. Peter B, Gwen, Miles) experienced the same issue in the trilogy. Overall, I think BTSV will truly do Miguel justice by allowing his backstory to be told, affirming him as both Miguel and Spiderman, and by going back to his home dimension to show that his issues can be fixed ( hopefully seeing Gabriel and Xina). Hopefully after BTSV, it will inspire creatives to continue/reboot Miguel’s story from the 90’s and have it be set in 2099 with his full cast in the future.

(I’m sorry this is so long! It’s just SV Miguel isn’t really popular in the sm2099 comic fandom rn, but I can’t help but draw this connection and believe this is Miguel’s direction in the trilogy. Hopefully, you can share your thoughts on this, but I really just need to get this idea out there, privately. Thank you for reading all of this though!)

hey! this is an interesting read and i'm glad you shared it with me, i can see what you're saying and agree with elements of it but personally (and this is purely my opinion) i'm not sure i'm seeing all of it the same way as you

firstly, i do think it's a bit too harsh to describe the spider society as authoritarian - there are thousands of spideys in the society who all belive in miguel and what he's set out to do, he's not forced them to be there and demanded they do everything he says, and in the movie we only see a couple of events out who knows how many they've dealt with overall - and we can gather from the reactions of others that this is the first time miguel's reacted like this. miguel is their leader but he's not an authoritarian leader, he doesn't demand absolutely obedience in fact we know from dialogue that he's discussed how to handle miles with a few of them at least and he tries to explain everything to miles to give him all the information about what's going on, he doesn't just lock him up straight away and refuse to divulge any information, so he leads them yes but being a leader doesn't make you authoritarian, if he was not one of those spider characters would have joined him because they wouldn't trust him?

i'm also not sure he's ever tried to frame himself as the ultimate spiderman, he says he leads an elite strike force which is true? miguel is a man who can be very self assured yes but this is normally in the context of his work, not acting like he actually believes he's the greatest man to ever walk the planet and i don't think he'd ever do that as spiderman either - to have him act like he's the ultimate spiderman is so ooc for how miguel faces being spiderman, he thinks he has to do this because of what happened to him and he still doesn't think doing so makes him a good person let alone better than everyone else who is also has a spiderperson - i don't think he's even framing leading the spider society as his origin i think he just considers that to be all anyone needs to know about him because his origin is so traumatic to him that it's too personal for him to be sharing with gwen (and therefore the audience) right off the bat. he's painfully open about the elements of himself that are relevant for people in the society to know, namely him going to the other universe and its subsequent destruction, and therfore why he believes the things he does about canon events etc. i do agree with you that he's probably keeping his origin completely to himself because it's traumatic, because this way he can be viewed as the person he chooses to be not what other people in his past have made him to be.

honestly i don't think miguel has forgotten the essence of being spiderman and trying to save everyone, he has every reason to believe that letting canon events play out will save more people in the long run by preventing the destruction of entire universes, he is trying to save people, that's his entire goal with the spider society - to preserve the multiverse and prevent complete destruction and the loss of billions and billions of lives - whether the canon theory is 100% accurate we don't know yet but i don't think it's fair or accurate to suggest that miguel isn't trying to save people because he so clearly is, he's just doing it by letting events play out as its projected they're meant to instead of miles' approach which is to believe he can, in his words "do both" when it comes to saving the many or the individual, neither of them are bad or stupid for doing it their particular way - they're both unlimately trying do to the right thing

i absolutely agree that sharing more of who is is outside of spiderman would help reduce that separation he has between spiderman and miguel o'hara, because the spider society is a huge support system for people who understand each other and i think it would help miguel greatly to be open with even just a few of the other spider characters, but like you said we also know that his personal identity and how he sees himself is something he really struggles with in the comics

i do hope btsv does him justice and shows us more of the miguel characteristics from the comics, i like the idea of us getting a solo movie/series that's much more grounded in the 90's run so we actually get to see more of miguel outside the spider society (and the spider society is set in his home dimension but i get the gist of what you're saying)

thank you again for sending this though, it's interesting to see other people's interpretations!

#miguel o'hara #atsv #atsv miguel #spiderman 2099

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tiptapricot · 1 year ago

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Moon Knight City of the Dead Issue 1… why…?

So. New MK side run has begun, the hyped up full on debut of Layla/new Scarlet Scarab in the comics, with a premise that most writers would twist into an epic and breathtaking journey.

We don’t get that here.

And I have a lot of thoughts on why and how I feel so frustrated with what we got. There’s pieces of something awesome, potential to go to some really fascinating places, and yet it is held back in almost every aspect, creating something messy and clunky that makes me mad to read.

(This is long btw)

First off though, some things I did enjoy!

I really love the art and coloring of this issue. The anatomy and movement and shadows, the stylization of character’s faces and costumes, the sprawling city with its deep reds and blues that feel saturated and weighty. It’s great. Besides a few moments that it comes out of left field with some bad stuff (Layla’s whole face at the end or the MK mask w teeth during the memory slideshow like whaTtt is that), it’s super solid and made for a very enjoyable looking comic.

It was also really fun to see Badr for a little. I think it would’ve been cool to get more, and the pacing of things as I’ll get to later sapped his importance in the story for me some, making him feel more like a prop or a plot device to get it going, but overall it was lovely to see him again. And it was cool to see him being a doctor as well, as we haven’t seen that as recently in MacKay! Always a joy my dear sir please come back soon.

The story in concept. Going to the underworld, detaching a headmate supernaturally to journey to a different plane of reality to save one life, and meeting a dead ally along the way is fascinating stuff, an idea that inspires me to want to explore it myself.

Because (and now it’s time to get into the stuff I didn’t like) the writing doesn’t do this idea justice at all.

This is not the worst MK comic ever rn, not their worst writing. It’s not as violently ableist or antisemitic as things like Bemis or making a joke out of MK like some others, but it’s just stupid, and what it glosses over or gets wrong is weird and uncomfortable and harmful in its own right.

To start this isn’t my Marc. His guilt is not one of punishment for penance, of believing he’s sinned and needs to be washed clean by pain. He is a man stuck in bad coping mechanisms and trying to pretend he’s not. He’s a man who hates himself and uses violence as what I would describe as a form of self harm. But it is not with the goal of erasing his past.

Yes, he runs from the person of Marc Spector, he runs from the idea and the responsibility, but Marc doesn’t try to forget. He holds onto things with a vice grip and never lets himself drop it. He believes in his own mythos and is grappling with his complicated and traumatized history to remember he can love and care and trust people again, that the work of making his life better is not solely on his shoulders. That’s what MacKay’s been dealing with.

MacKay Marc is guilty and self flagellating but in a way he tries not to think about, that he brushes over. He puts on an air of confident collectedness and has more hate for Marc as a concept then specifically his actions, and he’s still able to move forward and find a type of momentum and bravado in the MK suit.

Or in simpler terms: yes Marc has guilt. He does not have this kind of guilt.

The first few pages read so strangely, just this over dramatic spiel that feels more like daredevil than moon knight, like a rehashed dramatic intro to a moody sad 90s comic. And not in a good way. It’s not deep it’s just annoying and tedious and the prose is clunky and again, extremely off in its vibes and message. I think it could’ve been alright, if some of the talk of his guilt had been shifted and the narration hadn’t continued constantly throughout the rest of the issue (which I’ll get to later), but as is in its full context it’s just… weird.

In addition to the weird guilt vibes, there’s further issues with the Khonshu religiosity in this.

Khonshu isn’t something Marc worships, he’s something he uses for his own means. He’ll call on him or talk about being the priest of the mission, but that’s because Khonshu doesn’t have oversight, he’s a tool and form of direction and theming, and at the story’s core Marc is the priest for his mission, not this god’s.

At points in this issue he genuinely sounds dedicated though, and it shifts the flavor of earlier pieces more in line with his usual monologuing to seeming more like strange spiritual devotion. Especially calling Khonshu the greatest of great gods, or saying that him being in the underworld is Khonshu’s mission. It changes his actions from that of Marc to that of a real Khonshu follower and its…. Just weird. It’s all just weird and very ooc.

On top of that, there’s no mention or interrogation or even presence of discussing Judaism alongside all of this. I’m not Jewish myself but have had multiple convos around the topic w those who are n who have made their own posts discussing it and can add on more nuance n info to this should they like (bc more thoughts for discussion are always awesome), but just on a surface level it’s strange. It’s strange to have a plot revolving around going to another belief system’s afterlife and not at all bringing up how it clashes or relates to Jewish beliefs. Yes Marc isn’t really actively practicing anymore but I’d hazard Jake probably is, and Marc has still talked about his connection to his faith and how it’s impacted his time as moon knight and serving Khonshu.

The text treats the Egyptian pantheon belief system as the True and Accepted default here, with Marc not even discussing anything about going to an afterlife he doesn’t belong in (and shouldn’t even have) as a Jewish man, or even thinking about how Badr discussing Ka conflicts with Jewish beliefs on the soul and how Neshamah differ.

And yes, Marc works regularly with the very real Egyptian pantheon and mystical systems but it’s in a different way, and under a different context and understanding by readers of his acceptance of it.

A whole other layer of depth, conflict, and exploration could’ve been added by really digging into the theological implications of this plot, of a Jewish soul in the Egyptian afterlife, and yet it’s not brought up at all, not referenced or mentioned and it makes it all feel weirdly out of place, or like stuff is being glossed over.

That, on top of Jake and Steven (not to mention the entire rest of the main mission cast) being completely absent in mention, consultation, presence, or anything just feeds into this strange sense of Pepose wanting Marc to be the idea he has of him in his head, this guilty, sad, and violent merc serving a moon god with not a ton else. And yes again those are all aspects of Marc, but there is nuance to each of those aspects and treating him as a singlet with no thoughts on the conflicts in faith of his present is… just weird.

I don’t know if he’ll be treated as a singlet the whole run, but the fact that the body’s soul being sent into the afterlife has not already brought in any system conflict at all is an issue. Is it their collective soul? Is it just Marc’s? How does this comic understand alter soul distinction? Has it thought about it at all? I mean the answer is no but the thing is it should’ve.

That’s where so many of my issues with this come from though: choices just being… not good. Not thought out or in line with the characters and world. The writing is off and out of place and gOD THE CONSTANT NARRATION IS GRATING!!

I don’t know why it was chosen for Marc to novel write his thoughts and observations the whole issue but it’s bad. It goes past introducing plots or observations that can’t be shown in text to either:

1. Filling space that doesn’t need to be filled

2. Restating what has just been said or shown in a panel (“we have the power of the four horsemen” “wow they just got the power of the four horsemen”)

3. At worst, telling us stuff that was not indicated at all by anything else (“oh I know something is wrong here even though I have not been given enough reason to pique that suspicion” “oh I reunite with Layla and hold her and take her in but haha you don’t see that ig”)

It’s annoying and makes reading things difficult because he’s blabbering on the whole time in places he DOESNT NEED TO!! And it makes the action and emotional movement feel awkward and forced. I don’t need to know every second of Marc’s thoughts Pepose I can parse out things with my eyes I promise you that. Also can he stop talking about penance for TWO SECONDS!!!

The worst part is narration works when done well! When it highlights things that can’t be shown in art or gives some bits of exploration into feelings or exposition, but we don’t need it in every panel. It actually confused some parts of where to look for me by telling me what was about to happen before it did. Stop being like “I thought it was over but—“ JUST LET US SEE ITS NOT OVER!!

Another moment (similar ish to the start) where the narration would’ve worked for me (if it was not surrounded by just more constant narrating monologue) is when Marc first arrives in the Duat. The prose is pretty, it’s vibrant, it describes things the audience wouldn’t be able to pick up from static pictures and helps to set the scene. The only issue is that it doesn’t stand on its own, it’s not an interjection of observations and thoughts, it’s another entry in the never ending cycle of Marc just talking. And it loses some of its luster because of that.

There’s also just a handful of pieces of either dialogue or thoughts that (in the context of Steven and Jake being absent at the moment despite not being absent at the point in time this should be taking place) make me feel very uncomfortable with Pepose’s vibes on their mental health. Some lines that rubbed me the wrong way in context include “The rage fills within me—and suddenly I have a plan. That said, it would help if my plan wasn’t dangerously insane.” “You know me Badr, mental discipline is my middle name.” And a few similar ones I don’t want to reread again for.

They’re just unnecessary man. We don’t need vaguely or directly ableist vibes in words with MK anymore. It works if it feels like it’s coming from Marc’s internalized ableism IE when he was talking about being called crazy during the discussion with Steven and Jake and Jake called him out for it, but when it’s obvious it’s just how the author sees things it sucks!

Stop using insane, stop using crazy, stop being like “oh I’m so good at keeping myself in check,” WE DONT NEED IT!! ALSO THEY R AT A GENERAL POINT OF SYSTEM COMMUNICATION N HARMONY RN!!

Which also just… man this feels like it’s trying to introduce MK instead of continuing an already established and well under way arc. Yea, this isn’t MacKay writing it, but it’s still in the continuity and set up for his run and like… sorry not sorry but I think you should take that context into account if you’re going to be working within it???

Instead the story props itself up by trying to introduce everything at once and Marc feels like he’s starting from the bottom of development.

And speaking of introducing everything at once! Oh boy the pacing!

No one besides Badr is consulted before Marc goes into the Duat, Badr just. Sends him there. There’s no real build up for why there’s a need go that far, for what the threat is or why Marc would go to these lengths so suddenly. Like yeah I know he wants to save a kid who’s a traveler of the night, but like… Others have died or almost died on his watch and he’s never gone to this point before, even though it seems like it’s always something they’ve had as an option. Like… ok ig if Soldier hadn’t been vamped he would just be dead lmao (though also hey! Why and how do souls end up in this afterlife? Do they have to believe in the gods? Do they have to be in some way tied to the pantheon? Is it just where souls go if they’re near moon knight lmaO? If you want to have your afterlife plot you have to do the worldbuilding for it)

And while yes, a lot of this is because This Plot Wasnt Thought Up During Earlier Parts Of Mackay, it also isn’t introduced in a way that feels natural or makes sense.

Events just Happen. Mysteries or drives are just Said without a good basis for why they’re there. Again, this cult was talked about as just kinda a sadistic gang but then they’re a big deal? And oh the kid is dying and oh he’s worth going to the afterlife for and OH WERE JUST HERE NOW and “oh there’s a conspiracy I’ve decided with no real evidence” and HEY FOUND THE GUY and—Suddenly a whole lot of what is happening. God heart full on cult horsemen of the apocalypse memory flashback and BOMBS NOW APPARENTLY and LAYLA and MK BIG PAST BADDIES BOSS FIGHT INCOMING!!

Like ohhhh my god stuff is so rushed and happens so inorganically and with no time to really understand what’s happening. It’s a type of story where my suspension of disbelief isn’t there and it fully just feels like seeing the writer trying to get to the end goal of what they want to write about (moon knight fighting old villains) as quickly as possible. And it SUCKS! Like this genuinely should’ve been more than one issue, there should’ve been at least sOme more build up to gEtting to the city of the dead in the first place, no matter additionally uncovering a plot of some sort happening and Layla turning up.

It’s just…. It’s so rushed and strange and forced and it didn’t have to be and IT MAKES ME MAD IT IS and it’s just not enjoyable to read. It all feels so shallow and stilted and weird, all while having this underlying idea with so much weight, some generally gorgeous art, some moments that could’ve been really awesome, and last but not least…. Literally a good reference to doing a Duat plot well.

This whole mini run is for MCU synergy, bringing Layla in, exploring the Duat and it’s lore, and again yes, the run isn’t done, but it just…. Compared to the MCU plot for the Duat this feels so…. GraaggHhggh. Especially when it comes to system interaction and exploring different painful memories that effect headmates in different ways.

It’s just. It was an extremely frustrating read from both a technical writing standpoint and a character exploration standpoint, and it worries me and doesn’t excite me at all for future issues. Like we’ll sEe but goddamn this is not a good start no matter how it plays out and it doesn’t give me confidence if it turns out I have to read several more issues of this kind of stuff.

Petty nitpicks speed run because there wasn’t enough enjoyable padding for them to not stand out!

I don’t know if Pepose could’ve specified or not but Marc’s not drinking vodka in the opening scene, it looks more like whiskey or something similar by the bottle, again nailing home how strangely off this Marc is from the Marc he’s meant to be with how Mackay has built him up.

Why do they use Duat and City of the Dead like they’re interchangeable titles it’s just the Duat like I get calling it “the city of the dead” since it is that but like. Let that just b the run title they shouldn’t be calling it that like it’s a final name.

They misspell Dr. Alraune’s name lmao

How did the kid get… hurt..? The only point in the opening fight I can think he maybe got hit was with the gunfire but it didn’t seem like that was aimed towards him and there wasn’t any moment of having a detail in the background showing him get injured. And he wasn’t lethally injured at the start so ???

What… is the continuity between the Hydra vs Karnak Cowboys fight we see in MacKay and the flashback here. They were on an empty road there when they crashed? And now they’re in the heart of the city? AlsO bOMBS???

Anyway all I’ll wrap it up with is when the only thing I genuinely smile at is the cameo and namedrop of Apocalypse you know something is wrong with your story lmaO

#moon knight #moon knight comics #moon knight city of the dead #the fruit is talking again #marc spector #mikes mk meta

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return-to-twisted-wonderland · 1 month ago

Note

🔆anon

Dusk and Lilia don’t have a genuine conversation about their issues for a WHILE. They have small convo’s like Dusk’s hair and how that it’s ok if Dusk doesn’t match how Lilia looked, but that’s about it.

In the prologue and book one, Dusk is seething and the Diasomnia brothers are trying to avoid Lilia and Dusk while dealing with their own emotions over the whole “Lilia has a kid who’s been missing and he’s never mentioned it once” thing

In book two, Dusk isn’t really part of the Savannaclaw plot despite being in that dorm. He’s aware something was going on, but not what, but he didn’t care to figure it out as it wasn’t affecting him. Meanwhile the Diasomnia brothers stop avoiding Lilia, but the tension is too high for them to ask about anything (no one in this family can talk to each other, it’s not just Lilia and Dusk). Both Lilia and Dusk were there during Leaon’s OB, so Dusk got to see Lilia fight in his weakened state and instantly knew something was off. Once the fight was over, dusk confronted Lilia and Lilia admitted to his old age. Dusk ended up crying about how it all hurt while listening to Lilia’s side of what happened while he was gone. Dusk told Lilia to tell the others that Dusk wouldn’t be upset if they continued being a family because it wasn’t right to just tear that apart. So Lilia did, he told the brothers all about what happened and why he never mentioned Dusk, so Malleus, Silver, Sebek, and Lilia’s relationship all mended, even if there was still some tension.

In book three, The others try to get Dusk to join in on their family, which he starts doing. It’s awkward, but they’re making a step. Plus here is where they start thinking of everyone as family, even if a broken one.

In book four, they all leave for the break and are in briar valley. Dusk meets Malleus’s grandma as well as some high and important people due to being “General Lilia’s lost son” (he’s not fond of being connected to Lilia by others rn, especially being thought as only Lilia’s son, so this is a sore time for him) . Dusk also meets Sebek’s parents, Sebek’s siblings, but most importantly Baul. This is when Baul kinda gives Dusk wisdom (therapy) and this is also when Baul puts Dusk as also a member of his family and basically tells Lilia “I know how badly you wanted this chance and hard you worked to get it. Now you have it. Don’t mess it up.” Telling Lilia not to mess up his chance to be with his son again

In book five, there’s just more of the Diasomnia fam hanging out in school, but Dusk is also a member of SDC, but not as a performer. This is also when Lilia catches Dusk messing with how his hair looks, and they talk about that. Also this is when Dusk gets his UM by using it on Sebek. Dusk is then involved in Vil’s OB and tries to use his UM to calm him down before he actually OBed only to get completely overwhelmed by the emotions and fail, completely destroying any confidence he had in him being able to use his UM, this plus him constantly feeling sick is when he starts thinking of not doing another year.

In book six, they’re all just at the school trying to deal with the crisis there.

And I’ve been over how book seven goes in the rising action pretty extensively, but I’m still planning out the climax and ending to it.

Dusk going through his character arc~

You love to see it.

#twisted wonderland #return home au #🔆anon #dusk vanrouge

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kinfanfiction · 2 years ago

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Bernard x Elf!Reader - Chapter 4 - Charmed

A/N: I know the flow of this story is a little strange, within this narrow, 4 day period, Bernard went from busy, to REALLY busy, and now all the tough work is over with. But I think that can be considered realistic and relatable because personally, when it comes to things like homework, I start off really stressed, feeling like there’s a ton on my plate, and I just slowly chip away at it over time. I constantly feel behind, and then once the deadline of a term or semester ending, I get a bunch done in a short period of time. Then, I can finally focus on less daunting tasks. This note is literally just here to explain my writing choices as if they’re well thought out. I stayed up till 4 am writing this chapter to be ahead of schedule like Bernard. I’m hoping when I wake up later in the morning I won’t despise what I’ve written because I’m posting it rn. P.S. I was giggling and kicking my feet writing the 8th paragraph.

Bernard and Curtis were never known for getting along, and today in particular, Curtis was really getting on the head elf’s nerves. The younger elf was going around nitpicking at the way the other elves were doing their jobs. He had taken it upon himself to play second-in-command to the head elf and make sure everyone was following the rulebook. “That’s not how you’re supposed to make the toys! You do one step, then you hand the toy down to the elf next to you until it’s done. That way the toy making process is faster and more efficient.

“Curtis, shut up.” The head elf spoke as he snuck up behind him, shoving Curtis away so he’d stop harassing the elves as they worked. After getting through all his paperwork, for the first time all year, Bernard was struggling to find something to do, so he walked around the workshop waiting to be called upon for something, anything. There was still 5 days left until Christmas, and in the 4 days before Santa’s takeoff, he was sure there was something important he should be working on. He finally checked in with Santa, since he still hadn’t thought of something he should be doing.

“Because of all the paperwork you and Y/n finished yesterday, you’re now ahead of schedule. Doesn’t accepting help work wonders?” Mr. Claus commented with a smug look on his face. “There’s no more stressful tasks for you to manage, all I can ask is that you look after the animals and the elves, and that you make sure you’re not the only one on task. Although, the other elves seem to have all that covered, so don’t worry about that too much. Maybe you can make a Christmas gift for someone special to you.” Santa suggested, giving him a little nudge. Bernard brightened at the thought. Making you a gift would keep him busy, it would make you happy, and it just might make it easier to finally confess his feelings for you.

Bernard didn’t waste any time, he went around the shop looking for gift inspiration, and as he did so, he ended up running into you. You were carefully crafting something, but you were huddled so close to it he couldn’t see the item itself. “What are you making?” He questioned as he stood behind you with his hands behind his back. You jolted, shocked by his sudden presence, which immediately made him feel bad. “Sorry! I should’ve announced myself sooner.” You shook your head and laughed, looking over at him.

“I thought you were Curtis for a second. He keeps sneaking up to me trying to tell me I’m doing everything wrong, so now I’m cuddling close to all my projects to avoid his judgment.”

Bernard shook his head and scoffed, “He seems to be doing that all over the workshop today. I told him off when I saw him, but knowing him, he’ll probably be back once I leave. I’m sorry you have to deal with him.”

You shrugged, “It’s okay, I’ve managed in spite of his annoyance. Anyways, to answer your question, I’m making a personalized necklace for a woman named Julia.” You informed him, showing him the silver chain with a plate that so far only had the letters J-u-l engraved in it. Bernard lit up at the sight. It gave him the perfect gift idea. He thought to make you a necklace with charms that made him think of you and that represented your friendship over the years. He watched you continue your project as he thought of the one he would soon start. You enjoyed him being there, even if not many words were spoken because you were so focused on engraving each letter to perfection. Once he knew exactly how he was going to make your necklace, he said goodbye, and subtly grabbed some supplies on the other side of the workshop before hurrying up to his workshop.

Making your Christmas gift consumed the rest of his day. He had started the project by crafting all the charms. He made a hot cocoa charm, to represent all the meaningful conversations you’d had while drinking it. A snowflake charm, because it reminded him of walking beside you in the snow. He added an ice skate charm as he remembered every time he went skating with you. Moon and ocean charms, because he saw you as the moon to his ocean. He could never resist your magnetic pull. A star charm, because to him you were all the stars in the sky (even though you hardly saw stars because it snowed all the time, but who needed to see those stars when he could just look at you?) He added a gift box charm, because you were the greatest gift of all. Finally, he added a heart, because you had stolen his. 8 charms to start off the necklace. 1 charm for every hundred years you’d spent together. If all went well this Christmas, and this was as good of a way to confess his feelings for you as he thought, he would continue to make charms for your necklace in many future Christmases to come until he couldn’t add any more, and then after that he’d make you a bracelet.

Once he was finished with the charms he noticed it was getting late, and he realized you might come up to find him soon. He found a little box and put them in it, before putting the box of charms in his top desk drawer. Then, he walked downstairs to find you. You finished the necklace you’d been making the last time he saw you hours ago, and you were carefully knitting something. He tried to take a look, but just as he went to, you put whatever you were working away in a drawer and looked up at him. “You ready to call it a night?” He asked, and you nodded with a yawn.

“I think so.” You stated as you stood up from your seat. You linked your arm with his and began walking out of the workshop. Curtis was up late working as well, and noticed the two of you leaving arm in arm. He knew Bernard was in love with you, just as Santa and pretty much every elf except you did. He found your oblivious nature to be incredibly annoying. You broke so many rules every day and didn’t even know the extent of your mistakes because the head elf was always there to defend you and get him to back off. (Bernard always told him to back off no matter who he was trying to boss around, but he chose to ignore that bit.) He’d gotten to speak his mind to you a few times, but usually he was stopped before he even got within 6 feet of you.

You and Bernard went about your nightly routine of walking to your house, and you both were in your own heads. He was thinking about his new project, and he couldn’t help look at you as he wondered if you possibly felt the same. Usually, when imagining his confession, he felt convinced everything would fall apart and you wouldn’t want to be around him anymore. But tonight, he felt a tinge of hope. Hope that perhaps you did love him back in the same way, hope that even if you didn’t, you’d still continue to care for him as a friend.

You, on the other hand, were thinking about how the two of you might celebrate the holidays together. Perhaps you’d go ice skating, go to a Christmas party, bake some cookies. You loved thinking about celebrating with him. Though, as you thought, you realized now would be a good time ask him about some of your ideas. “Would you want to go to a Christmas party with me?” You asked, which took Bernard a minute to process because he was so deep in his own thoughts. After a few seconds, he nodded.

“That sounds nice.” He agreed. He was never really invited to parties at the North Pole because everyone just saw him as their boss and probably just felt intimidated by the idea of their boss coming to them. If you were ever invited, you didn’t go because you always had something else you’d rather do with him. This year, however, you kind of wanted to see if you could be someone who enjoyed parties.

“Do you want to go ice skating as usual?” You asked.

“Of course.” He spoke with a grin.

“And bake cookies?”

“Always. I’m up for anything as long as I’m with you.” This really made you smile, and as he said this you both arrived at your front door once again.

“You’re perfect, you know that?”

“I am anything but perfect.” He objected bashfully. Every time you complemented him, he didn’t know what to do with himself.

“Wrong. You’re definitely perfect.”

“Goodnight, Y/n.”

“Goodnight, perfect.”

#bernard the elf #bernard #bernard x reader #bernard the elf x reader #x reader #fem reader #the santa clause #the santa clause 2 #fanfic #fanfiction #david krumholtz #y/n #chapter 4

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