#cyclops you were gone too soon

[hy-borea]

It looms above.

The earliest concept for a lbp boss was fucking fire

[lousypotatoes]

Wise Men Say

"I found my mind, I'm feelin' sane

It's been a while, but I'm findin' my faith

If everything's good and it's great why do I sit and wait 'til it's gone~"

Beautiful Things - Benson Boone

Previous

Next

'It's alright, Y/N,'

.

.

.

.

.

'You can do this,'

.

.

.

.

.

'Nothing bad will happen to you,'

.

.

.

.

.

Y/N tried to regulate her breathing as she stood in front of a portal that would take her to Hell.

She had a whole week to prepare for this moment, but now as she stood in front of the portal, bags in hand, she wished she had turned down the mission.

Swallowing her fear, Y/N took a confident step into the portal.

Stepping out of the portal, she looked all around her, having to squint her eyes due to the different shades of red in the sky.

In front of her was a large hotel with a large statue of goat creature in front it. The hotel resembled a casino that you would find in Las Vegas, all lit up with different colored lights. She only knew about Las Vegas because of the things that some of the other angels told her about.

From everything Sera told her, she didn't expect the hotel to be as big as it was. Why would the hotel need to be so big when only eight people were staying there?

Walking towards the front door, she felt goosebumps all over her body. Never in her life did she think she would see Hell, whether it was for a mission or not. She was taught that everyone in Hell were greedy monsters and that they would try to take everything a person had, whether it was their belongings or their life.

Would somebody try to steal from Y/N?

Would somebody try to kill her?

Y/N didn't know what to think in that moment, instead walking up to the front doors. Before she knocked, she smoothed out her dress and fixed her hair. Even though she was in Hell she wanted to look absolutely presentable.

Almost as soon as she knocked, the door opened quickly, making the angel jump in surprise. Coming out of the door was a blonde demon with pale skin, wearing a red suit.

As soon as she came out of the door, she hugged Y/N very tightly, making Y/N tense up.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so happy you're here! Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel!" she exclaimed.

"I'm happy to be here," Y/N nervously said. "Could you please let me go now?"

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" Charlie said, immediately letting go of Y/N. "I'm just so excited you're here. I'm sorry if I crossed any boundaries!"

"That's quite alright," Y/N said. "You must be Charlie. It's an honor to make your acquaintance, your Majesty."

"Ah, you don't need to be so formal, just Charlie is fine," Charlie smiled. "I didn't catch your name."

"My name is Y/N,"

"Ah! What a pretty name! It's nice to meet you Y/N!"

"It is nice to meet you too, princess,"

"Oh! You need to meet everyone else!" Charlie said, gesturing for Y/N to come inside. "Please, come inside!"

Stepping inside, a nervous look on her face, Y/N looked around at the interior of the hotel. She saw that there was different types of demons sitting in a living room type setting. Above them was a banner that read 'Welcome To The Hazbin Hotel!'

It made Y/N smile a bit that they were thinking of her, but it also made her feel a bit guilty. She was so scared to be in Hell while they were trying to make the experience as best as they could.

"These are our guests, Angel Dust and Cherri Bomb," Charlie introduced. Angel Dust was a very tall spider looking demon with white fur and a flirty look on his face.

"Nice to meet you sweetcheeks~" he purred. "How you doin' baby?"

"Um, I'm alright, thank you for asking," Y/N replied. She was aware of what Angel Dust did for work, and she was a little bit embarrassed to be talking to a porn star.

Cherri Bomb was a cyclops looking demon. She had pale skin with pink accents, and her hair resembled the fuse of a bomb.

She was very pretty, Y/N had to admit.

"Nice to fuckin' meetcha," she said.

"It's nice to meet you too," Y/N smiled.

"Over there is Vaggie, she's my girlfriend," Charlie said, pointing to a gray skinned girl, who Y/N automatically recognized and an former exorcist.

Y/N could tell that Vaggie recognized her as well when she saw her eyes widening a bit.

Not wanting to bring that up just yet, she listened to Charlie introduce the rest of the Hotel inhabitants.

"This is Niffty, our maid," Charlie gestured to a tiny cyclops demon.

"Oooh! She looks clean!" Niffty started to laugh maniacally, making Y/N back up a bit. "Are we keeping her Charlie?"

"She's only going to be here a bit, Niffty," Charlie awkwardly laughed. "And over here, is our bartender Husk."

Husk was a cat demon, standing behind the bar, drinking straight from one of the bottles.

Y/N awkwardly waved at him, but he just rose up hit bottle towards her.

"That's everyone! I'm not sure where Alastor or where my dad are," Charlie murmured that last part, making Y/N tense up. "But I'll make sure to introduce you to them whenever they turn up!"

Lucifer was here!?

In this building!?

Does that mean Lillith is here too!?

Oh god....

Don't you ever say that or even think that.

Don't you ever use the Lord's name in vain.

"Y/N...? Are you alright?" Charlie asked, concerned.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you," Y/N said.

"Oh okay, your face went blank for a second," Charlie said.

"Could you please show me to my room?" Y/N asked. "If it's not a problem, of course."

"Of course it's not a problem!" Charlie grinned. "Here, follow me, your room's this way."

"Do you need anything? Something to eat? Something to drink?"

"I assure you Charlie, I don't need anything.

"Okay. We're having a dinner in an hour, if you want to join us. Not that you have to! I just thought it might be a nice way for you to meet Alastor and my dad and get to kno-!"

"Dinner sounds nice," Y/N interrupted Charlie's ranting. "Just please, calm down."

"Sorry," Charlie sheepishly said. "I'm just really excited to have you here. It's nice to know that Heaven believes in what I'm trying to do."

'Heaven believes in her?' Y/N thought. 'I thought this was an investigation?'

"Anyways, I'll let you freshen up a bit," Charlie said, walking out of the room. "I'll see you later!"

As soon as Charlie left, Y/N collapsed on her bed, sighing as her head fell on the very (surprisingly) comfy pillows.

Sera told Y/N that she was supposed to be investigating the hotel. Y/N didn't know why, she just did what she was told, just like she always did.

So why did Charlie say that Heaven believed in her? Because Y/N knew that they didn't.

Did Heaven lie to Charlie?

Did Charlie think Y/N was here for a totally different reason?

All this thinking was giving Y/N a headache. She decided she was going to take a nice, relaxing, hot shower before getting ready to head down for dinner.

Stepping in the shower, she let out a groan as the water hit a pressure point in between her wings. After all the fear and stress she had that day, the hot water running down her skin felt absolutely heavenly.

Maybe Hell wasn't as bad at Heaven made it out to be.

It was ten minutes before Y/N was supposed to head down for dinner, but she decided to head down now instead of waiting.

It's better to be ten minutes early then to be ten minutes late.

Before Y/N left, she checked herself out in the mirror. Her skin looked as soft as silk and her was glowing. Just the way Y/N liked. Even though pride was a sin, Y/N took great pride in the way she looked.

But she would never admit it to anyone.

Satisfied with how she looked, she walked out of her room and down the hallway. As she walked out of the room, she remembered that there were cannibals in Hell.

Was anyone in the Hotel a cannibal?

Would Y/N have to eat human flesh for dinner?

Well, not really human flesh, but Sinners were humans at one point.

Y/N walked into the dining room. Everyone was already sitting at a large golden table, similar to the one's in Heaven.

Y/N was sure Lucifer picked this table out.

"Oh, Y/N!" Y/N said, gesturing towards her. "Come here! I want you to meet someone."

Standing beside Charlie was a demon with pale skin, red hair, and a very wide on his face. It made Y/N a bit uneasy, but everyone else in the Hotel seemed to have good intentions, so Y/N decided to push all that uneasiness down inside.

"This is Alastor, our gracious facility manager!" Charlie introduced.

"What a pleasure it is to finally meet you, my dear," Alastor said, his staticky voice startling Y/N. He grabbed Y/N's hand and shook it. "Quite a pleasure, really!"

"The pleasure is all mine, Alastor," Y/N smiled, gently pulling her hand away from him.

"If you need anything and I'm not available, go to Alastor, and he'll be happy to help!" Charlie said.

"Thank you both for your hospitality," Y/N said. "This a very lovely hotel, not what I expected at all."

"Well, we couldn't of done it without each other," Alastor said. "I'm very proud of how far Charlie has gotten."

"Aw, Alastor, that's so sweet," Charlie smiled.

"Can we eat now? I'm fuckin' starvin'!" Angel shouted from the table.

"Shouldn't we wait for my dad?" Charlie said. "I want him to meet Y/N."

'Let's just delay seeing him as much as possible,' Y/N thought. 'Please.'

"My dear, I'm sure Y/N will have plenty of other chances to meet him," Alastor said.

"I guess you're right," Charlie said. "Sit down, Y/N! I hope you like chicken pot pie!"

"That sounds delicious," Y/N said, taking a sit.

Y/N wasn't ready to Lucifer again.

Was she?

No, she definitely wasn't.

So why did she get butterflies in her stomach at the thought of seeing him again?

She was supposed to hate him.

Because of him, sin was brought into the world.

Because of him, God's perfect image of human kind was ruined.

So why did she think about him all the time?

Why did she have the feeling that she missed him?

Y/N didn't know.

And she didn't like it.

Not one bit.

The pot pie was so delicious, Y/N asked for seconds. She was surprised at how easily she was able to make conversation with everyone. Whether she was talking about her fashion taste with Angel Dust, or about Las Vegas with Husk.

Just as Y/N was about to start on her third helping of pot pie, she got interrupted by Charlie. What Charlie said made Y/N almost drop her fork.

"Oh, Dad! You're here!" Charlie said.

"Sorry I'm so late, I was working on a new fire breathing duck," a voice responded, making Y/N tense up even more. "Mhmm, what are we having? Is that pot pie?"

Y/N kept her head down, not wanting to make eye contact with Lucifer. She heard a chair scrape against the floor, and of course it was the chair across from her.

"Who's that?" Lucifer asked.

"Oh my gosh! I completely forgot! Dad, this is Y/N! She's been sent from Heaven to check out the hotel!"

Despite not seeing his face, she knew that he had a surprised look on his face.

Very slowly, Y/N began to lift up her head more, making her face more clearer for Lucifer to see. Seeing Lucifer's yellow eyes widening even more at the sight of Y/N's face made her heart want to explode.

"Y-Y/N?" he choked out. "What, what the hell are you doing here?"

"H-Hello Lucifer, it's lovely to see you again,"

i wish the second season would come out faster

i dont wanna wait anymore

stay safe and drink lots of water <33

xoxo, Izzy

[romana-after-dark]

Our Gentle Sins: Part 10

Thank you so so so much to @plasticbabies for making this beautiful header!!!! we finally have a good one!

Dark!Logan Howlett x fem!reader

Series Masterlist : Main Masterlist : Logan Masterlist

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Chapter summary: Past. Scott is frustrated that no one listens to him. Present. Once again, no one listens to Scott.

Warnings: This fic features non con, pregnancy, and themes of religious trauma. I will not be saying everything that happens to warm you, by clicking read more you are prepared for extremely dark themes and that you at 18+. You are responsible for your own media consumption.

Before

When Logan was called into Charles's office, he knew it wasn't going to be good.

"Would you care to explain to me why one of my students saw you and Cyclops fighting last night?"

Logan didn't really want to deal with this. He had enough self hatred for whatever he did to make you cry, he didn't need Charles disappointed in him too.

"Are you gonna lecture Scott about it too?"

"I will be talking to him, as well as Remy and Miss Palmer. Fights are something I have to take seriously. What kind of example are you setting for the children?"

As much as Logan wanted to blame it all on Scott, make the little prick pay, he thought back to you. You liked Scott, you'd be upset if Scott got in trouble for you... It was best to just be honest.

"Listen Chuck, it was a mistake, but it wasn't Scotts fault, okay? I saw him messing with her sleeve, showing skin she don't like to show. You know how she is about that stuff." Charles nodded and raised a brow, clearly confused by Scotts actions but not jumping to conclusions. "I saw what he did, and you can't blame me for getting pissed, right? We went out back and fought, Remy broke it up. He only touched her like that because she was hiding... claw marks on back..."

Again, Charles was listening rationally. "And what were they from, son?"

Logan rolls his eyes, groaning. "you know what they were from, but it ain't like that. She came to me when I was having a nightmare and I must've scratched her in my sleep. I didn't even know I cut her until yesterday. Scott and I were both just trying to protect her, okay?"

For a long moment, Charles's eyes simple stayed locked with logan, watching him, searching him. Charles doesn't read minds unless he really needs to, seeing it was a violation of privacy he didn't use lightly.

"I know in the past I've told you i wouldn't tell you what to do, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to put my foot down about you and our young teacher."

He felt like a weight had been dropped on his stomach. "What?"

"I know a romance of sorts has formed, and I do not know how far it's gone nor do I care to. It needs to end. She is a child, Logan. I know she's opened up to you but i doubt she's told you the full story."

You hadn't, he knew, and Logan growled in frustration. "So tell me!"

"That is not my story to tell."

"But you can tell me not to see her? You don't think she can make her own choices?"

"She can't even choose what to make for dinner without crying. She's not at a place where she's ready to date."

But he'd take care of that. Logan would take care of dinner, he'd drive you anywhere and everywhere, he'd make sure you were happy and healthy and taken care of. You didn't need menial choices! You didn't need independence! You needed protection, a caretaker!

"So you just think I'm so fucking awful I'm gonna hurt that hurt, that what you think?"

"That is not what I'm saying."

Logan paused, staring down Charles and heavy breathing as he tried to control his anger. His hands fist the side of Charles's desk, knuckles turning white. He couldn't leave you alone. As soon as he saw you that day with Remy, he was cooked. By the time he got back to the mansion with you giggling at his side, Logan knew there was no future for him without you.

"Charles." Logan grinds out, jaw clenched. "I'm not going to hurt her. I love her."

At that, Charles softened a tad. "I know, son. But this is for the best. There are plenty of women here, women in this world that you could choose from. Why do you have to pick those you can't have?"

He was referencing Jean, of course.

"It's... not like that..."

You were different. You were soft and gentle and happy. You were kind and loving and you wanted him, him and only him. There was no Scott getting in the way. There were no powers, no mutations. Just a sweet girl who needed him to protect you. You were different from Jean.

"Logan, I'm sorry. But this is how it must be. I know you wouldn't intentionally hurt her, but she is fragile. For the record, I would say this if it was Scott, Remy, or Kurt. This is about her, not you."

Logan didn't believe that for a second, storming out the door and right past Scott who was waiting for his turn to speak to Charles.

After

God, this felt good.

The Monday after the schools prom.

2 days after Logan finally made love to you the way he wanted to, the way you deserved.

This morning, Logan walked you to your first class, your arm looped around his. You wore a tight dress for the first time in months to show off the pregnant stomach that swelled with his baby. His baby was growing inside you. The hallways hushed saved for the murmurs of students and teachers as he showed you off, both of you smiling. The secret was out. You were making your public debute.

Logan spotted Scott standing next to Jean, their conversation halted as he lead you to your classroom.

"Have a good day, dollface. I'll see you at lunch."

You beamed up at him in his arms. "You too Lo. I love you."

Then, making direct eye contact with Jean and then Scott, Logan took your chin in his hands and gave you a deep, open mouthed kiss. He heard a whistle from a student, but he didn't care as he slid his tongue inside you.

Scott stormed off, leaving jean behind. No doubt he was on his way to tattle to Charles now that he was back from his several month trip.

*

"I'm fine, Mr. Xavier. Really. Logan is good to me." You sat in front of your boss at his office. Scott had brought the new development to Charles immediately of course, and now you were being questioned. Logan had told you that Charles had instructed him to stay away from you, and now it was your job to convince him that everything was okay. For the sake of raising your baby in a two parent, loving and stable household, you'd omit how this happened, exactly. you'd push away your fears and focus on the man Logan had shown you he could be, not the version you worried was still lurking inside.

"Miss Palmer, Scott seems extremely worried. He is concerned that Logan has forced you into something or has harmed you in some way."

You resist the urge to vehemently defend Logan the way you had to Scott, but remember that that only served to make him more suspicious. Instead, you settle for indignation. "Mr. Xavier," You say in your best offended tone. "Logan loves me. he would never hurt me. he's not like Mark and frankly, I don't appreciate Mr. Summers throwing accusations around wildly. I thought after the incident at the dance where he was proven wrong, he would leave us alone, but he seems obsessive."

A small smile on Charles's face. "And you're aware of their history?"

"Yes, I am very aware. Mr. Summers won back Ms. Grey, so I don't understand why he can't just let Logan be happy. He's not a bad person, you know this. He's a good man, and he watches out for me."

A short pause. "Yes, I am aware Logan is a better man than Scott seems to think. If you would allow me to see into your mind, I can clear-"

"No." You say a little too quickly. Charles didn't force his way into peoples minds. You'd given him permission when you first met him so that he could see what happened to you, see what you did and why you felt no remorse for it. You would not allow that again, knowing what he'd see. He'd see Logan raping you, but he'd never understand why you defended him. He couldn't understand what you saw in Logan, the hope to put it all behind you and start new. "Forgive me, but I'm a private person. There are things I keep to myself."

He nods. "I understand. It seems, however, that you are quite distressed. I can sense it radiating off you. You have to understand my concern."

"Maybe my distress has to do with being raised in a cult, becoming a child bride and being beat for 7 years because i couldn't have a child which I was told was my only purpose in this world?"

Your words hung in the air, tension laced the nervous shuffling in your seat. You place a hand over your stomach. "I apologize, Mr. Xavier. Hormones. I-" You sigh, standing up. "We have an appointment, I have to go." You don't tell him it's your first appointment. You don't tell him you haven't seen a doctor because for the first 3 months you were convinced you would have an abortion. You didn't tell him Logan has to practically drag you here after everything you'd experienced from doctors before.

Charles watches you leave. "Don't be afraid to talk to me, child. We were here to help you. We won't fail you the way you have been failed before."

You almost laugh at that. "Please stop insinuating my boyfriend abuses me. That's how you can help." You open the door to see Logan right where you left him, waiting for you with worry in his eyes.

"Everything okay, Dolly?" He hugs you, eyes connecting over your shoulder to Charles.

"Yeah, everything's fine Lo. Let's go to the appointment."

*

"You can't fucking be serious!" Scott shouts as Remy leaves Charles's office. Scott insisted Charles speak to Remy, that surely her best friend would know something. But when Remy opened the door, and Charles said he's found nothing to suggest you are being harmed, Scott was infuriated.

Charles rolled over to where Scott and Remy stood. "She is insistent she is fine, and everyone we've spoke to says Logan never even raises his voice around her."

"But- months ago, something happened! She wasn't eating, the nightmares-" He gestures to Remy. "You said her nightmares got worse!"

Remy shrugs. "Lovers spat, Cher. She said they worked it out after she found out she was pregnant. It makes sense she's under stress right now, pregnancy outside of marriage is a shameful thing where she grew up."

Scott groans in frustration, pinching the bridge of his nose. "So you don't think it's suspicious she's pregnant? You don't think it's weird she's having sex this soon after leaving all that?"

"Cyclops." Charles warns, but Scott is just looking at remy now. How can he not see it?

Remy glares at Scott. "If you are suggesting Logan raped her you better come prepared to back that up other than this pissing contest between the two of you."

"It's not-"

"Accusing someone of rape is a big fucking deal you can't be throwing around. Last time you accused Logan of clawing her, you looked stupid so I would hope you have something more this time. Well, Scott, what do you have? What grand evidence is there that you can't just let them be happy?" When Scott didn't speak, Remy laughed. "Just as I thought, nothing. Go home to your wife, Scott."

Remy left the room, leaving Charles and Scott alone.

"You can't be serious, Charles."

The older man sighed, looking to his protégé. "Son, you know i respect your opinions and concerns. If you have any evidence-"

Scott heard enough, and stormed out. He wasn't crazy. he wasn't jealous. He didn't hate Logan simply because he fucked his wife. Okay well maybe that was the start. But this? This was wrong. You need help, even if you can't see it.

*

"Look so good like this, baby doll..." Logan mumbled into your neck. You and him laid on the couch watching Gladiator, but the movie was long forgotten. Who was Russel Crowe compared to Logan Howlett? He was hard against you, his cock pressed up against your ass underneath the blanket you insisted on because you were wearing a skirt, his arm wrapped around your middle, caressing your stomach. he was obsessed with your stomach, wanted to touch you there every chance he could.

"Logan, the movie," You giggle but make no attempt to stop as he kissed your neck. You loved the attention. You loved his gentle touches. You were nervous about having a baby, but Logan assured you every step of the way.

The appointment last week had gone well. You told the doctor you hadn't known you were pregnant, that it was a surprise, so he made sure to do a thorough check since you were 4 months along. You hadn't seen a doctor in all that time, but you had been eating well and Logan had brought you prenatal vitamins. Doctor said everything looked normal and healthy, thank god. You hadn't wanted this, not this way anyway, but you'd never forgive yourself if you somehow messed up your child's life with your indecision.

Logan's hands roamed your body under the blanket, humming against your skin. "My pretty wife... my perfect girl..." Logan had said he'd propose, that you and him were gonna get married... you were going to be a wife again. Logan's wife. he'd be different. This time would be different. You'd given logan a baby, so he had no reason to hurt you like Mark had.

"My husband..." You sigh, grinning ear to ear.

"You two are disgusting." Remy spoke, and you suddenly remembered he was in the chair, supposed to be watching the movie with you and Logan. You quickly grab Logan's hand away from where it was about to slide up your skirt, and sit up with a deep blush. Logan had promised to spend more time with Remy, you wanted them to be good friends. They were already casual friends long before you knew either one, but you wanted them to be closer. Remy was your family, the person other than Logan you spent the most time with. You had other friends now, Rogue and Ororo, and you and Emma had even begun to hang out, but Remy was your number one. He was the only person other than Logan and Charles you'd told about your past in full, although you suspected Scott knew from Charles.

Logan sat up with you, but didn't let you go, instead sitting you between his legs on his lap. His hands stayed far more decent now.

"Sorry..." You mumble, but Remy is smiling.

"Don't worry pistache, I'm just happy to see you finally together."

You tried to focus more on the movie, and not Logan's throbbing erection still nuzzled against you and how you were going to take care of it later. Everything was going fairly well. Logan slept in your room most nights, but sometimes you'd wake up to find him gone. Those were nights he had nightmares, so he got up and went back to sleep in his own room. If he was in a bad headspace he'd sleep away from you too, to not risk hurting you again.

Your nightmares, however, would not stop. Nearly every night you woke up in Logan's arms as he tried to gently wake you, the horrors of what you dreamed of still sharp and brutal in your mind. You couldn't understand why they hadn't stopped, why Logan's faded to less and less while yours increased. You were supposed to be in love. your happy ending with a husband and a baby... so where was the happy?

"Well, well, well, look who finally escaped the throuple from hell." From the doorway of the common room, and glib voice pulled everyone's attention to were Wade stood. You'd never met him, but you'd seen a few pictures here and there. He was someone Logan actually liked, and in his very minimalist decor of his room, there was a small framed picture of him and Wade Wilson together. Next to it now sat a picture from your first ultrasound.

"Shit, Wade" You can here the smile in logan's voice. "I didn't know you were coming."

Still grinning, Wade shrugged. "Yeah, well, I might have caused a few issues with the Time Variant Authority. Gross misuse of a time traveling device to save my girlfriend and all that. Gonna lay low for a bit, figured I'd come see you and my favorite piece of Cajun spiced ass."

Remy got up from his chair to greet Wade in a big hug. "Nice to see you too, asshole."

Logan spoke again. "I'd get up to say hi, but I'm pretty sure my dick would be saying hi too."

"Logan!" You admonish, face burning in embarrassment as your lover whispered a half-hearted apology in your ear.

"Oh-ho-ho, trust me peanut I would not be complaining." Wade looked to you. "And just who is this pretty piece of pumpkin pie?"

"Watch it, mouth." Logan growled behind you. "She's mine." Him calling you his made you warm up even more, as if the display every single morning as he walked you to class didn't say that enough.

"I see that!" Wade is nearly chuckling, a twinkle in his eye. Logan went to Wade's right after Jean chose Scott over him, so Wade was very aware of everything he'd been through. No doubt he was happy to see his friend in a better position. "No more crawling back to Jean and Scott like a lost wolvie?"

"I never fucked Scott you goddamn twink"

"Sure you didn't." Wade lifted himself off where he leaned against the wall, walking towards where you sat. You were raised to be polite, so much to Logan's grumbling you stood up. Logan covered his pants with the blanket. "Wade Wilson." He extended his hand. "And you are?"

"Judith Palmer." You gave him your fake name.

"My fiancé." Logan asserts from the couch.

With the blanket off, your pregnant stomach was on full display, and Wade's eyes nearly bugged out of his head looking at you.

"Good golly miss molly, she sure as hell is! Fucking hell, I've been in need of a good tea spill sesh, this is just the right time." A deep breath and a dreamy sigh, Wade looked between you, Logan, and Remy as he crossed his arms, grinning. "So tell me, how did all this happen?"

Sorry it took so long to update!!!! I've been, frankly, very sick. If you havnt seen my posts, I spent one weekend literally friday to monday laid up, so lethargic i couldn't lift my arms sometimes. I have an amazing roommate whose in nursing school who i love dearly who took care of me.

two weeks later im still sick. Not lethargic and feverish but bronchitis now :( suffering.

And i still have school to catch up on.

but i finally got a better laptop thanks to black friday sales which has made doing stuff fast without lagging and crashing unexpectedly.

so, WELCOME WADE WILSON!!!!!!

And scott, poor scott. I've been telling my friend whose not a fanfiction reader about this series and shes been helping me with things, she says the fact that scott is the only one who sees something is wrong and no one is listening to him is "biblically accurate scott summers" LMFAOOOO

We're probs not gonna meet all the xmen, even the ones i actually know. Idk if we'll even see kurt again. but they are around! scott, remy, and wade will be the biggest piece.

thanks so much for all the love!!!

@multiversed-daydreamer @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @del-ightfulling @miraclesabound @hindi-si-ikay @samsamsantos @madamerubrum @shybluebirdninja a @hornystan @rogueinmymind @accountforreading123 @yawnetu @princessanglophile @and-claudia @new-genesis1000 @teaganthemorningstarr @oldloganslittleslut @zaggprincess2 @bugsinmyeyez @groundclueless @cosmolight

[dick-helmet-magneto]

Injury #2: The X-men are fighting the Brotherband and Erik gets badly hurt, causing Charles to stop the fighting immediately?

injury 2: “Someone get the medic. Get the medic!” 

They all knew the risks of battle and, if they didn’t they had learned fast. Anyone could get hurt, but—for the most part—no one died. At least, not in this situation. The brotherhood versus the X-Men. 

Erik always felt like a mother cat in those moments, teaching his kittens how to hunt for survival. At best, he was a stepparent, but it wasn’t like Charles was going to be the one to teach them to fight and someone had to. It was a job Erik was all too happy to step up and take on. 

Until that day, all had gone well. The X-Men were getting better at fighting but still not good enough. They had to keep trying, keep experiencing and hope they learned more. 

And learn more they did. Erik didn’t even notice Cyclops behind him until he felt the burn from his laser eyes against his back. The shock and force was enough to send him hurtling toward the ground, his powers failing due to the surprise as he struggled to find out what had happened. 

The pain in his back increased as he landed flat on the hard, rough ground, a thud seeming to echo from him. For a brief moment, the world faded and was replaced by nothing but black. 

***

Screaming. Someone was screaming and Erik wasn’t sure who it was at first. It took time for the world to right itself and everything to come back into focus. 

“Someone get the medic. Get the medic!” It was Charles, Erik realized, screaming from right over him. A hand was on his hip and he slowly opened his eyes to look up at the man who was clearly panicking. 

Erik raised his hand and wrapped it around Charles’s wrist as their eyes met. “It’s going to be okay, darling,” Charles was whispering to him, and Erik wondered if he was reassuring himself or Erik. 

“Hurts,” Erik whispered, honestly, the feeling of dirt and rocks digging into his back where lasers had burned him was almost enough to make him delirious. “Trust you,” He added as he saw the pained look on Charles’s face at his confession. 

“Hank’s coming, love. He’ll be here in a moment. Just stay still, I’m afraid of you getting hurt worse by moving,” Charles said, his voice steady and quiet. If Erik didn’t know him so well, he would almost believe the façade. He was anything but calm in that moment. 

Slowly, Erik moved, his free hand raising and his powers wrapping around his helmet to pull it off. It felt wrong to have it on and, besides, he was just noticing all the X-Men and members of the brotherhood standing back, staring at them in shock and, perhaps, horror. Hank, Logan, and Raven seemed to be the only ones not surprised. If anything they just looked tired. Well, maybe not Hank who was fell down beside him with a bag over his shoulder that slipped off as soon as he sat. 

Erik clenched his jaw as he was moved. Despite Charles’s concern, Erik was sure falling hadn’t created much damage. Cyclops, however, that was where the damage came from. 

Charles’s hand found his as Hank got to work and Erik just had to try not to break his hand. The stinging and burning of the cream, the bandage being wrapped over the worst of the burns. Then the cleaning of any other injuries from falling and scooting across the ground, it was enough to make him wince. Most of the time he thought he had a good pain tolerance but he had to admit the kid’s powers were impressive. 

Once Hank was done, Erik carefully moved to sit up, trying not to show how much pain he was in. His eyes went to Cyclops, “That was a good shot,” He said, “Impressive strength behind those beams.” 

“I think Erik is trying to say he’s proud of you, Scott,” Charles said, a small smile on his face, though it was still tight, like he wasn’t sure if he should believe Erik was okay or not. 

Scott just looked at the two of them for a moment, as though he hadn’t heard what was just said. 

“What the hell, Professor?!”  

[justsomerandomfanfic]

Human And Mutants - Chapter 3 - Logan Howlett X Female Reader

Title: Feed The Flame

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Logan Howlett X Female Reader

Additional Characters: Jones (Mentioned), Bobby, Rogue, Pyro, Bobby's dad, Bobby's mom, Ronny, Jean (Mentioned), Ororo, and Kurt

WC: 2,322

Warnings: Guns mentioned, killing mentioned, death, fire, X-Men canon fighting, slow burn, slight angst, and fluff

(Sorry, if this series is a bit odd, I made this in 2018)

The boy, Jones, sat in front of the TV, slightly enjoying one of the channels, before he blinked and the channel changed. He was just about to change it once again when he heard something he turned off the TV and got up. Walking out of the room, he saw three dark figures in the hallway. They were dressed in black, form-fitting battlesuits, and they were carrying around big guns.

From the kitchen, Logan heard Jones fall, thanks to his heightened hearing. He slowly turned to look at the window behind Bobby as he heard the soft sound of people’s footsteps. The footsteps were too loud to be kids, and almost all of the adults were gone from the mansion. There were intruders. 

Bobby tried to speak but Logan raised his hand, silencing the teenager. Behind Logan, two of the many intruders stealthily walked into the kitchen, guns raised and ready. When they walked in, Logan pulled out his claws and stabbed them both in the chest, instantly killing them. Bobby turned around, looked out the window, seeing helicopters and vans parked outside. When he turned around, Logan had already left. Bobby got worried and he quickly left the kitchen, off to find Rogue and Pyro. 

Meanwhile, over by the front door, multiple guys burst through the door and raised their guns. Rogue screamed when they came in, but before the bad guys could shoot them with sleeping darts, Logan jumped off of the balcony above them. He killed all four of them and then he and the teens ran off to the secret exit. Bobby opened the secret sliding door and they went in, they hesitated, but Logan wanted to stay behind, seeing that Stryker was behind all of this. 

He wanted to know what happened in his past and wanted to get some answers, but before he could do anything, a thick ice wall separated them. Logan screamed out, frustrated as he placed his hand on the ice, covering the shadow of another hand from the other side. Rogue called out to him from the passageway, and he reluctantly followed. They ran out to the car garage, opening the doors to a blue sports car. Bobby mentioned that it was Cyclope’s, or Scott’s car, but they got in anyway, Logan didn’t care. Logan hijacked the car with one of his claws and they went speeding off. Towards Boston. 

On the car ride to Boston, Bobby mentioned once again that his parents live in Boston and that they could stay there for a while, till things cool down. The ride was dreadfully tense and boring for the four. Pyro tried to turn on the radio, but Logan turned it off. The rest of the ride was pretty silent, until they finally got to Bobby’s parents' house. Bobby tried to call out to his family, but there seemed to be no one home. 

“Hold up, if there is going to be any more trouble, shouldn't we have a backup?” Rogue brought up as everyone sat down in the living room after getting themselves together with food and new clothes. 

“Yeah, hold on.” Bobby spoke before he left the room for a moment. 

Meanwhile, Logan wandered around the home, making his way into the kitchen. He then suddenly heard a small noise, quickly turning around and pulling out his claws. Right before the claws was a cat. It meowed at him and then began to lick one of the claws, which made Logan slightly smile before he heard Bobby come back into the living room.

“She will be here soon, she just has to pack a few things.” Bobby stated, sitting back down next to Rogue on the couch.

Pyro sat in an armchair in the corner, fidgeting with his lighter, “Who did you call?”

“Ghostbusters. Who do you think I called?” Bobby asked with sarcasm, seemingly frustrated as Pyro rolled his eyes. “I called Prof. L/N. She can help us.” 

“She can’t really help us a lot though, all she can do is teleport.” Pyro said, irritated, playing with his lighter again.

“She is still an adult who can help us, aside from Logan.” Bobby stated thoughtfully, wrapping his arm around the back of the couch, his fingers grazing Rogue’s shoulder. 

Logan wandered to the entrance of the living room, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, “When is she going to get here anyway?” 

“She said it may take a few minutes. She is just packing for the weather here. Plus, she has to concentrate to even get here correctly.” Bobby explained.

“What if she doesn’t concentrate?” Rogue asked curiously, looking up at her boyfriend beside her who just shrugged.

“She will teleport somewhere way off of where she is supposed to be.” Bobby explained once again.

Logan raised an eyebrow, confused, “How do you know so much about this?”

“In one of my classes with her, she had to teleport to get some papers she had forgotten. When she came back, she said she accidentally teleported into a different room. Said something along the lines of not concentrating long enough.” Bobby said, Logan nodded, understanding; his mind now racing with more questions about you.

Soon the big front doors opened to Bobby’s parents and brother; Steven and Madeline Drake, with their teenage son, Ronny.

“Bobby!?” Ronny shouted, shocked to see his big brother home.

“Aren’t you supposed to be at school? Who are these people?” Bobby’s mother asked, concerned as she looked at the three new people in her home.

Bobby cleared his throat, “Mom, Dad… This is… Professor Logan.” He introduced the man, still leaned against the wall. “There’s something I need to tell you.” Bobby proceeded.

Everyone sat in the living room, silence filled the room around them. Everyone was tense and still, almost suffocating. The only thing that made a sound was Pyro’s lighter being opened and closed repeatedly.

“So… When did you first know… That you were a… Um…” Bobby’s mother was lost with her words, she could not bring herself to say that word, but Pyro finished her question.

“A mutant?”

“Would you cut that out?” She inquired, lightly glaring at Pyro who was repeatedly opening and closing his lighter, which was annoying almost everyone in the room.

“You have to understand, we thought Bobby was going to a school for the gifted.” Bobby’s father said.

“Bobby is gifted.” Rogue added urgently, standing up for Bobby.

Bobby’s father let out a sigh, hesitant, “We know that. We just didn’t realize that he was…”

Before he could finish his sentence, his wife cut him off. “We still love you. It’s just that… The mutant problem is very…”

She was then cut off by Logan. “What mutant problem?” He asked, his crossed arms tightening slightly in annoyance.

“...Complicated.” She finished, seemingly upset by Logan cutting her off.

“And what are you a professor of, Mr. Logan?” Bobby’s dad asked, interlacing his fingers in his lap.

“Art.” Logan smartly fabricated, his fib was simple, the first thing that came to his mind.

The air was thick with tension but Rogue tried to lighten the uncomfortable mood. “You should see what Bobby can do.” She spoke up, proud of her boyfriend and his powers.

While Bobby’s mom took a drink of her tea and sat the tea cup down, Bobby reached out and gently touched the cup with his finger, the contents in the cup froze over and became frozen solid. From the corner of Ronny’s eye, he saw it happen, becoming frightened. Bobby’s mom gently flipped her cup to the side, the now iced tea flipping over into a dome shape on the plate she was holding. She sat the plate down on the coffee table in front of her, surprise evident in her eyes. The family cat jumped on top of the table and began licking the iced tea.

“I can do a lot more than that.” Bobby said, proud of himself for finally coming out with the truth but Ronny got up from his place on the couch and ran upstairs, upset.

“Ronny!?” His mother hollered after him, but it was too late, he had already run upstairs and into his room. “This is all my fault.” She spoke to herself, running a hand through her hair.

“Actually they discovered that males are the ones who carry the mutant gene and pass it on, so it's his fault.” Pyro said, giving a slight gesture to Bobby’s dad. 

Logan walked out of the house for a moment when his phone rang. Leaving Bobby’s mother asking her son a terrible question.

“Bobby, have you tried… Not being a mutant?”

A few seconds passed and a bright light enlightened near the front door. Everyone covered their eyes and waited for the light to dim before they saw you. You stood there with a small smile, holding your backpack that was slung over your left shoulder. You were dressed in lighter clothes, since you weren’t in Alaska anymore.

“Who are you?” Bobby’s mother demanded, confused and startled as she stared at you with wide eyes.

“Sorry I startled you all. My name is Y/N L/N, I’m Bobby’s Biology Professor.” You replied, placing your backpack on the floor next to you. “Sorry if I interrupted anything, Bobby called me if anything goes wrong.” You responded, moving your hair away from your face, exposing your eye-patch.

“What do you do?” Bobby’s dad asked, and you clasped your hands together in front of you.

You raised an eyebrow, “Oh, like my superpowers? Well, I can teleport and… Uh, yeah.” You responded clumsily, shuffling your foot against the hardwood floor, looking down anxiously. “Well, this is… Awkward.” You laughed out lightly, trying to ease you and the others in the room.

A few minutes passed and there was still a bit of tension here and there with Bobby’s family and Bobby’s friends. Everything was alright for the time being before the sound of sirens grew outside the house, becoming louder and louder. Before you knew it, you were trapped inside with cops around the whole house. You and the others soon found out that Ronny had called the police.

Logan, Bobby, Rogue, and Pyro went outside while you stayed inside, keeping the family out of harm's way. Logan had his claws out, in front of the entire police squad. 

“This is just a misunderstanding.” Logan said, to the kids and himself.

“Put the knives down!” One of the cops, a few feet away ordered, his gun raised.

Logan turned to the cop, “I can’t.” Moments passed and the police officer looked at him confused. “Look.” Logan said slowly, raising his hand to the side of him, but before he could retract his claws the police officer shot him in the forehead.

Rogue screamed as he fell to the ground, a bullet stuck in his forehead. He was unconscious, eyes closed as Rogue felt tears well up in her eyes. 

“Alright, the rest of you on the ground now!” The same police officer commanded Bobby, Rogue, and Pyro. They slowly got to the ground, except Pyro. He looked at the police officer, breathing heavily. “Look, kid, I said now!” The cop repeated, his gun aimed at Pyro.

A woman police officer looked slightly worried from beyond a bush. “We don’t want to hurt you kid!” She shouted out.

On their places on the ground, Bobby and Rogue looked up to Pyro, who looked pissed off, his eyes narrowed and his nose flaring. “You know all those dangerous mutants you hear about on the news? I’m the worst one.” Pyro announced, while doing so, he flipped open his lighter, looking over to the police officer who shot Logan. Fire erupted from his lighter and into his hand. Pyro harnessed the fire’s flames, shooting it towards the officer. The officer flew backward off the porch and to the ground. Pyro began shooting fire at every police officer, knocking them down, and burning them in the process. Cars exploded into the sky as Pyro’s fire hit it, causing more fire to erupt.

From his window on the second floor, Ronny watched in horror as all the police officers flew around and fell to the ground from the power that the fire harnessed. More police officers drove up in their cars, but Pyro sent them off course with another car, which burst into more flames. Rogue had seen enough, she pulled off her glove and raised Pyro’s pant leg, exposing his leg. She then placed her hand on his leg, stealing his breath slowly, and causing the flames to disappear. His terror on the police had ended.

Meanwhile, Logan, who was on the ground still, his bullet slowly popped out of his forehead, his wound now fully healed. He opened his eyes and slowly got up. Up above, a jet flew above. It slowly landed andBobby, Rogue, Pyro, and Logan got up. Logan tilted his head to the side, earning a crack as you ran outside and looked at the jet. 

“What happened? Was anyone hurt?” You asked as they all stared at the jet landing.

“Nope, all good.” Bobby said quickly, as you nodded, taking in the damage around you that had been caused by Pyro.

You teleported onto the jet, not really having to walk.You quickly made it to a seat, strapping yourself into the seat. Ororo headed to the cockpit. Nightcrawler popped up from behind a chair. The three kids shrieked.

“Guten Morgan.”  He stated, a grin on his face. 

“Guten Abend. Who are you?” Logan demanded, staring at the mutant skeptically.

“Kurt Wagner, but in the Munich Circus I was known as “The Incredible-” 

He was cut off by Logan. “Save it. Storm?” Logan called out to the cockpit, slightly annoyed.

“We’re out of here.” She spoke up as she grabbed the controls and flew the jet out of there.

------

@ashdoctor @powergirlsupremacy

Slashed out means Tumblr won't let me tag you.

[queenjunothegreat]

Chapter Three: Not To Be Outdone, PIPER Has a Bad Week

Hihihihi!!!! :D I'm here with chapter three and it is time for Best Girl Piper!!! *(airhorn noises)* Please please please forever and always keep in mind that I absolutely LOVE my girl, thank you <3

She took a deep breath and gave Will a pleasant smile. “So, who do you think my godly parent is? Athena would be cool.” Will considered her for a moment. “Well, most Athena kids are blonde or have gray eyes. Not all of them, of course, but most. What are you good at? A lot of times we can wager a pretty good guess based on that.” “Uh,” Piper wracked her brain. What was she good at? She was good at convincing people to do what she wanted, she had a pretty mean right hook when the situation called for it, and her grandpa always said she was the best singer their family had seen in a hundred years, but none of those seemed right. “I’m a pretty decent pick-pocket.” “Normally, I’d suggest Hermes, then. God of thieves and all.” He cocked an eyebrow at her. “You’re sure your godly parent is your mom? Gods don’t exactly follow the rules when it comes to baby making. I’ve got a sibling with a mortal dad. Most of the Athena kids have mortal moms.” “I’m sure,” Piper said, thinking of all the times her dad had gone misty-eyed and told her about his time with her mom. 

Master List First Chapter Previous Chapter

Piper was officially having the worst week of her life. If anyone bothered to ask, she’d freely agree that the last day had been the worst of it – what with her best friend deciding to all but replace her with some new guy he insisted was her boyfriend, finding out that monsters were real and then almost dying – but it was really just the cherry on top of everything else. In all honesty, the whole Monsters and gods are real! Good luck! thing hadn’t been all that difficult to believe. Not after the dreams she’d had that week. Dreams where a cruel voice whispered awful things in her ear. Soon they will find you, demigod, the voice had said. When they do, follow our directions and maybe your father will live. She’d seen things that seemed impossible, even in the realm of dreams: Leo plummeting through the air while wreathed in brilliant orange flames, living snowstorms and Cyclopes and a terrifying giant with a nasty grin. Startlingly blue eyes and a wickedly sharp golden sword that both flashed with lightning while the voice crooned, The worst is yet to come, Piper McLean. You will betray them or face the consequences.

At first she’d dismissed them as nightmares. What else could they be, really? She was just stressed about her upcoming Spanish exam and her dad had been too busy to talk to her the past couple of times she’d called. It didn’t mean anything was wrong with him, but it certainly made a fantastic little cesspool of anxiety in Piper’s brain. It had been messing up her sleep to the point where Leo, who was the king of ignoring problems until they just disappeared, actually sat her down and asked what was wrong. She’d told him about the test and her lack of sleep and he’d just nodded sympathetically. That afternoon, she found three cans of her favorite energy drink, a bag of marshmallows and a stack of meticulously crafted Spanish flashcards hidden under her pillow. That had made it a little easier to pretend that everything was just fine. 

Now, she couldn’t ignore her dreams. Now she knew that there was a whole magical world she hadn’t known about hidden right under her nose. Will had even shown her and Leo a tricked-out cave where a teenage girl who was apparently an oracle – the Oracle – lived. Who’s to say she wasn’t having her own visions? Katoptris suddenly felt heavier at her side. She’d managed to avoid screaming in the armory, but the vision that she’d seen in the blade – of that horrible face carved into granite and her dad beaten and chained to a pole next to a sickly purple bonfire – still terrified her. She needed to call her dad.

She had to wait for that, though. She wanted to wait until she was alone with Will to bring up trying to call him. Leo was already going through enough right now, she didn’t want to add worrying about Piper and her dad to his plate. He’d looked so sad and confused and hurt when he’d finally figured out that his memories of Jason were fake, and she’d been helpless to do anything but sit there and watch.

She grit her teeth. Jason was another problem. She didn’t normally dislike people on principle, but everything about Jason rubbed her the wrong way. He was almost too perfect, like he’d been given the blueprints on how to be a homegrown, boy-next-door, All-American kind of guy and he followed them to a tee. It made her skin crawl. It wasn’t that he was fake, exactly. Piper knew fake like the back of her hand, it was more like he was wearing a mask, but there wasn’t anything behind the mask, which was much, much worse in her book. She didn’t know anything about Jason and she wasn’t sure that there even was anything to know. All she knew was that she couldn’t trust him. Wouldn’t trust him. Not when he’d already managed to hurt Leo so easily. Would he hurt them again? She wasn’t exactly eager to find out. 

“And here’s Cabin Nine!” Will announced, yanking Piper back to reality. 

Somehow, she’d been so caught up in her own thoughts that they’d managed to walk into the cabin area without her noticing. It was the strangest assortment of buildings she’d ever seen. There were twelve of them in a big U shape, with some more being constructed down at the bottom to connect the loop. There were two matching ones across from each other made out of solid silver and gold that glowed so bright they were hard to look at. Another was a short, squat little thing that was mostly blue and looked like it had been dropped there after a decade or two on the beach. One was a polished gray stone with a gleaming bronze owl above the door, and another had a roof of living grass. The one in front of her looked like a bank vault and a steam engine locomotive had a baby and decided to turn that baby into the most Leo-friendly building imaginable. Based on the way he was practically vibrating at her side, they succeeded.

Surprisingly, it was pretty much deserted inside, but Will seemed to have expected this. He cupped his hand to his mouth and shouted, “Hey, Jake! You in here?”

“Yeah, over here.”

The three of them whirled around to where the voice had come from, only to see an empty bunk. Then, the air kind of shimmered, and a boy appeared, like he had just drawn a curtain. Piper couldn’t help but wince at the sight of him. He was covered in bandages from head to toe; he could still move, but it was obvious from his wincing that the effort pained him. The worst part was the look in his eyes, though. He seemed so hollow and defeated and just plain sad. 

Will took it in stride. He smiled down at Jake and started checking over him with practiced ease. “How are you holding up? Feeling any better?”

“Could be worse,” Jake shrugged. He looked Piper and Leo over. “These are the new campers? Are they both Hephaestus kids?”

“No, just the smaller, maniacal-looking one,” Piper corrected.

Leo scowled at her. “It’s two inches, you–”

Jake laughed, which startled them all. “Are they always like this?”

“Near as I can tell, yeah,” Will said with a groan. “This is Piper and the ‘smaller, maniacal-looking one’ is Leo. He’s going to need a bed.”

Jake nodded then cocked an eyebrow at Leo. “You believe in ghosts?”

“Uh, the literal kind or the metaphorical kind? And is ‘no’ the right answer?”

Jake seemed to consider that for a moment. Then he shrugged. “Good enough for me. Bring out bunk 1-A, please.”

“Beckendorf’s bed?” Will asked, visibly startled. “Are you sure?”

Jake’s face hardened, and he nodded grimly. “I’m sick of that thing being empty. It’s a ghost all on its own.”

As they spoke, a bed rose out of the floor. Piper could tell that it had just about everything a person could possibly want: a fridge, a stereo, a flat-screen TV, and a fairly modern gaming system Piper didn’t recognize. Leo whooped his delight and bounded over to inspect his new accommodations, and Piper wanted to join him, but instead she frowned and turned to the other two boys. “Who’s Beckendorf?”

“Charles Beckendorf. He was the head camper of Hephaestus Cabin before Jake,” Will explained. He paused and added, “He… died recently.”

That got Leo’s attention and he looked a lot less excited. “Um, should I… get off?”

Jake shook his head. “Nah, man. That bed being empty is just making everybody miserable. Someone’s gotta fill it before we all go crazy. Everyone’s already convinced we’re cursed.”

“You’re the second person to mention a curse,” Leo accused. “What curse?”

“There is no curse,” Will tried to say, but Jake cut him off.

“We haven’t been able to make things,” he explained. “Every time we craft something, it goes wrong. Our machines don’t work properly, weapons won’t hold their edge, armor falls apart. That kind of stuff. Will’s right, there is no curse, it’s all in our heads. But that doesn’t mean it’s not real.”

“And you want me to take this bed to try and break this curse?” Leo asked skeptically. “You sure about that?”

Piper personally thought that if anyone could shake a cabin out of a self-imposed slump, it would be Leo. He was smart and creative, and he had a passion that burned so brightly that you couldn’t help but feel inspired. Jake seemed to think so, too, because he gave Leo a grin. “Don’t see why not. Look, try it out. If you wind up hating it along with everyone else, you can pick a new bunk. It won’t be as cool as that one, but you’ll make your own modifications to it. We all do. Sound fair?”

Leo still looked a little doubtful, but he just shrugged. “Sure. Like you said, don’t see why not. I’m willing to give it my best shot. Don’t hold your breath for a miracle, though.”

Jake looked visibly relieved at Leo’s acceptance. “Cool. Well, everyone else is at the forges. I can take you there, but–”

“No, you keep your ass in bed like I told you to,” Will laughed. “I’ll show him the way. I’m still not done with Piper’s tour anyway.”

“Thanks, man.” Jake turned back to Leo and gave him a warm, genuine smile. “Welcome to Cabin Nine, Leo. See you guys at dinner.”

Then Jake closed his invisibility curtain again, and Will led them both outside. The forges were pretty much identical to Cabin Nine, and were nestled right up to its back yard, which wasn’t all that surprising. The surprising thing was the way the forges radiated heat unlike anything Piper had ever experienced. Even when they were still almost twenty feet away, Piper felt like someone had left an oven open for too long. She’d had to begrudgingly take Will’s “friendly advice” (which he swore didn’t translate to “doctor’s orders upon pain of death” though Piper wasn’t sure she believed him) to stay outside, which meant it was finally time for her and Leo to split up. It suddenly seemed much more daunting now than it had before. She grabbed his hand.

Leo squeezed her fingers back for just a second before he turned on her with a smarmy little grin. “Geeze, Piper. Chill out. It’s not like you're dropping me off at my first day of kindergarten.”

Piper rolled her eyes and dropped his hand so she could shove him. “Shut up. I’m just worried about whether or not we packed you enough Pull-Ups to get through the day.”

Leo blew a loud raspberry at her and started walking backwards to the front door, turning red from lack of air before too long. He gave her one final wave, then took a deep breath to steel his nerves and walked in.

Piper missed him already.

“He’ll be alright,” Will said. She turned to look at him and he smiled. “The Hephaestus kids are a little rough around the edges, they can thank their dad for that, but I don’t know that there’s a more close-knit cabin here. Not to be cheesy, but they run like a well-oiled machine, and they take in new campers better than anyone. I mean, they’d probably even take you in if you asked nicely. You’d be stuck on wrench-fetching duty, though. Fair warning.”

Piper let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. It was a relief to know that Leo was going to be with people who would take care of him. She had to remind the part of her that had been feeling abandoned all day that she was glad for that. But now that Leo wasn’t here, there was nothing distracting her from what she needed to do next. She took a deep breath and gave Will her best wide-eyed smile. “Is there a phone I can use?”

Will frowned, startled at the request. “Um, what?”

“A phone,” Piper reiterated as sweetly as possible. “I’d really like to call my dad.”

“We aren’t really allowed phones,” Will explained slowly. “Any kind of technology that connects you to the outside world is basically a homing signal for monsters.”

Piper mentally cursed, but her smile only faltered to tilt into a sad little frown. She let her voice go a bit wet. “Oh. So there’s no one with a phone then? At all?”

Will hesitated, but Piper saw the instant he faltered and she had to bury her victorious smirk. “Well…” He glanced around to make sure nobody was nearby. “Me and a couple of the other head campers have them. Sometimes people need to call me for medical emergencies, you know? I’m pretty sure this doesn’t qualify as that, but if you won’t tell, I won’t.”

“I won’t tell a soul,” Piper beamed. 

Will handed over the phone, and explained that it had an automatic timer on it that made it shut down after three minutes, so she’d need to be quick. She nodded her understanding and took a few steps away for a bit of privacy. She dialed her dad’s personal number and waited as it rang. Surprisingly, someone picked up, but Piper had to grit her teeth at the familiar voice. “Jane? Why are you answering my dad’s phone?”

“I thought you weren’t allowed to call from school,” Jane said, sounding bored.

“That’s the thing. I’m not at school. I was kidnapped by a bunch of crazy teenagers who legitimately believe they’re half-god. They’ve taken me to their cult headquarters because they think my mom is a Greek goddess.”

“Hmm, that’s nice.” Somehow, Piper could just hear Jane rolling her eyes. “Well, I’ll be sure to tell your father that you called.”

“Why don’t you get him now? I called his private line – which you aren’t supposed to answer, by the way – so surely he’s just in the other room.”

“He left his phone at the office.”

“When did he leave it at the office?” Jane was silent, and Piper’s voice dropped. “You have no idea where my dad is, do you?” she accused with a hiss. “Why haven’t you called the police? He could be in serious trouble and you’re just sitting there because–”

“My responsibility is to Tristen McLean and the management of his image,” Jane interrupted, her voice dangerously calm. “I will not allow that image to become marred over his little delinquent daughter stirring up a media circus all because she thinks her daddy isn’t paying enough attention to her. Besides, he’ll come back. He always comes back.”

“So, you admit it? You don’t know–”

“Good bye, Piper,” Jane interrupted again. “I will be sure to tell your father you called.” Then the line went dead, and before Piper could even think to call again, the screen went black, too.

She turned and handed the phone back to Will with a weak smile. “Thanks for letting me borrow your phone. I promise not to tell anyone that you broke the rules for me.”

Will took the phone, but he was refusing to meet Piper’s gaze. For some reason, his cheeks were red. He cleared his throat. “So, um, your last name’s McLean? Sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, I just heard the lady on the other end say that name.”

Piper narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. “Yes, it is.”

Will’s cheeks turned even darker. “Uh, King of Sparta was a good movie. I really liked the, um… costumes?”

Piper hid her face in her hands and groaned as she sunk down to the ground. “Oh my god,” she moaned. “This is the absolute worst day of my life.”

“Sorry,” Will squeaked. “I don’t know why I said that. I’m so sorry.”

Piper peeked up at him from between her fingers, and saw that he looked positively mortified. If it was possible for a person to actually combust from the force of their embarrassment, Piper was pretty sure she was going to witness it. She felt a little bit of pity for him. “How about we never mention any of this to anyone ever?” she suggested. “You never tell anyone who my dad is and I’ll never tell anyone you got all googly-eyed at the thought of him in a mini-skirt.”

“Deal,” Will said immediately. “Thank you. Oh my gods. Let’s please never talk about this again.”

Piper grinned and accepted the hand he offered to pull her up to her feet. “So. How about the rest of the tour? The cabins looked pretty cool.”

Will gave her a grateful smile and beckoned her over. “Yeah, come on. Let’s get this tour done before dinner.”

*-*-*

Their tour of the cabins began with the blinding gold one, which was, unsurprisingly, Apollo’s. Piper considered that for a moment, then pointed across the U shape at the matching silver one. “I’m guessing that’s Artemis?”

Will cocked an impressed eyebrow at her. “Sure is.”

“I thought she was one of the maiden goddesses. Does she have kids?” Being an Artemis kid would be cool, Piper thought. Athena would also be good, but something about the way Annabeth held herself made Piper a little hesitant to think that the wisdom goddess was her mom.

“Artemis is a maiden goddess like Athena, but she doesn’t have any kids of her own,” Will said, crushing Piper’s dreams before they could properly form. “She does have her Hunters though. It’s a group of girls who travel with her, swearing maidenhood in exchange for immortality.”

“Immortality, huh?”

Will snorted and elbowed her. “Yeah, but they swear off any kind of romantic love, and boys are off the table entirely,” he warned. “I’ve only met the Hunters a couple times, but I can tell you right now that you would not be seeing Leo much. He’s pretty much exactly the kind of guy they hate.”

She scowled at the building. “Alright, yeah. Moving on.”

“Okay, so on the other side of Hephaestus, you have Hermes Cabin,” he said, gesturing at the plain wooden building. Out of all of them, it was the one that looked the most like a cabin that you would see at a summer camp, with its weather log walls and faded shudders and cracked window. “He’s god of travelers, so that’s where unclaimed kids used to go.”

“So, is that where I’m going?”

“Good question. This past summer, Percy made a deal with the gods that they had to claim all of their kids by the age of 13, so we actually haven’t had an unclaimed kid since then. We’re all kind of banking on you getting claimed as soon as possible to avoid that problem.”

There was that word. Claiming. Piper didn’t like it. She didn’t like the fact that her mom was some magical goddess who thought she had free rein to just waltz into her dad’s life, make him fall in love with her, then waltz back out, breaking his heart. Piper knew her dad still missed her mom. Sometimes, when it was just the two of them out on a trip, she’d see him sit so very still and stare out into the setting sun. He always looked so sad. Now that same lady who had hurt her dad was breaking her promise just so she could ignore Piper for a little bit longer. Not that Piper could really blame her. If she were an all-powerful goddess, how excited would she be to claim a little kleptomaniac who got kicked out of school every other year and couldn’t even manage to get her own dad’s attention?

She took a deep breath and gave Will a pleasant smile. “So, who do you think my godly parent is? Athena would be cool.”

Will considered her for a moment. “Well, most Athena kids are blonde or have gray eyes. Not all of them, of course, but most. What are you good at? A lot of times we can wager a pretty good guess based on that.”

“Uh,” Piper wracked her brain. What was she good at? She was good at convincing people to do what she wanted, she had a pretty mean right hook when the situation called for it, and her grandpa always said she was the best singer their family had seen in a hundred years, but none of those seemed right. “I’m a pretty decent pick-pocket.”

“Normally, I’d suggest Hermes, then. God of thieves and all.” He cocked an eyebrow at her. “You’re sure your godly parent is your mom? Gods don’t exactly follow the rules when it comes to baby making. I’ve got a sibling with a mortal dad. Most of the Athena kids have mortal moms.”

“I’m sure,” Piper said, thinking of all the times her dad had gone misty-eyed and told her about his time with her mom. 

“You could be a child of Hecate,” Will suggested. “She’s magic and controls the Mist, which could possibly explain why your memories weren’t affected.”

Piper brightened. “If I am, do you think I could fix Leo’s memories?”

“Maybe, maybe not.” Will wrinkled his nose. “I’m not really all that good with magic, if I’m being honest. I mean, I can use it for healing purposes, but I’d honestly rather stick to good old-fashioned medicine when I can.”

Piper hummed, and looked over the rest of the cabins on the goddesses’ side. The silver one was Artemis, the stone was probably Athena, and Piper was willing to bet her bottom dollar that the grass-roofed one was Demeter. She cringed, thinking of all the poor, innocent houseplants that had met their maker at her hand. Definitely not Demeter. Which meant that the pink and white Barbie Dreamhouse cabin was– “Aphrodite?” she guessed, trying to not curl her lip up at the name.

“Yup,” Will confirmed, looking at her with raised eyebrows. “Got a problem with that?”

“No.” 

Will shook his head, and Piper reminded herself to either get better at lying or to not lie to Will. “I know you didn’t get along with Drew–”

“Of course she’s an Aphrodite kid.”

“But they’re not all bad,” Will finished. “Aphrodite cabin may seem a bit shallow at first, but they’re the cabin with the most compassion. Whenever there’s a battle, we Apollo kids are in charge of the healing. The Aphrodite cabin was always the first to volunteer to help, and, in that situation, I’d honestly take one Aphrodite kid over half a dozen other campers. Their old head counselor used to be a perfect example of that. Things have changed a bit since Drew took over, but I still say there’s more to them than you might think.”

Piper was quiet for a moment. “That head counselor. What was her name? What happened to her?”

“Her name was Silena. Silena Beauregard,” Will said quietly. “She was actually dating Beckendorf. There was a big war this past summer. They both died.”

“Oh.” 

Piper looked out over the camp, at all the kids running around, laughing, yelling at one another. She’d thought that it had been full before, but now she couldn’t help but wonder how many campers weren’t there. How many kids had friends who didn’t come back from that war. She thought about Jake’s question, asking Leo if he believed in ghosts. Literal or metaphorical Leo had asked. She wondered just how many ghosts roamed the grounds. 

Will shook his shoulders suddenly, as if shrugging out of a coat he didn’t want to wear any more, and smiled at Piper. “Well, there’s other goddesses, too. You met Butch, so you know about Iris, but there’s also Tyche, Hebe, Nike, and Nemesis,” he said pointing down at the smaller cabins that completed the loop. They looked a lot newer than the others, but lacked some of the character. “Do you feel particularly lucky, young, victorious, or vengeful?”

“Vengeance, thy name is Piper,” she joked, and she felt a bit proud of herself when Will laughed. Then her eyes fell on the two cabins Will seemed to be almost deliberately ignoring. They were large and imposing, the biggest ones by far, and made out of solid, perfectly white marble. They reminded Piper of those big, fancy, old-fashioned banks, or palaces from a storybook. But a cursed palace where no one was allowed to live. She pointed at them. “What about those two?”

“You’re definitely not in one of those cabins,” Will dismissed, trying to usher her away. “Hey, let’s go check out the Tyche cabin real quick. Maybe they can test your luck or–”

“Whose cabins are they?” Piper asked stubbornly.

Will looked a little irritated at being ignored, but he took a deep breath. “The bigger one belongs to Zeus. You’re definitely not a child of Zeus, both because your mom is your parent, but also because he just doesn’t have kids. Kids of the Big Three – Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades – are all crazy powerful, and they made a vow to not have any more after World War II. Though, Percy is the result of that promise being broken, so make of that what you will.”

“And the other?” Will raised an eyebrow at her. “You seem to know your mythology. Why don’t you tell me?”

Piper thought for a moment. “It’s Hera’s.”

“Yup. She’s another one without any kids on principle, just like Artemis, but she doesn’t have anything like the Hunters, so her cabin is purely honorary. She’s actually the one who sent Annabeth the dream that led her to you.”

“Annabeth doesn’t seem to be too fond of her.”

“Yeah,” Will laughed. “They have some kind of history between them. A history I don’t know and don’t want to know. Now, seriously, come on. I want to see if we can knock out some of the standard maternity tests before dinner.”

“Can we go inside?” Piper asked, ignoring him. “The Hera cabin, I mean. I just wanna see inside.”

“That’s probably not a great idea. People aren’t supposed to go in there. Like I said, it’s just honorary, so it’s basically a shrine.”

“Someone’s in there now,” Piper informed him, staring at the door to the cabin where she’d just seen movement in the gloom. “We should probably go see what they’re up to if they’re not supposed to be in there, right?”

“Still a bad idea.,” Will said seriously. “It’s actually dangerous to go onto a god’s sacred ground, you know?”

“Come on,” Piper wheedled. She’d probably feel bad about sweet-talking him twice so soon after one another later, but she really wanted to go in that cabin. She couldn’t put her finger on what it was, but something told her she had to get in there. She gave Will a playful little smirk. “We’re demigods, right? Heroes? Aren’t we supposed to go do dangerous things?”

Will held strong for a moment, but like everyone else, he crumbled. “Okay, fine. We can take a look around. A short look around.”

“You got it!”

“And if Hera comes storming down off Olympus, I’m going to tell her this was all your idea.”

“Understood!”

Will’s face still puckered up as he looked at the cabin. “You’re sure you don’t want to go play roulette with the Tyche kids?”

“Positive,” Piper said firmly. “Now come on. Let’s go inside.”

*-*-*

Sometimes Piper wished she wasn’t so good at getting her way. Gaining entrance to the Hera cabin definitely counted as one of those times.

She realized almost immediately upon entering that her earlier comparisons of a bank or a cursed fairy tail castle were both accurate and woefully inadequate. Considering it was supposed to be a shrine for the goddess of motherhood and marriage and family, Piper couldn’t imagine a place that reminded her less of home. There were no bunks along the walls or chairs gathered up in little circles or tables full of clutter like Piper had seen in the Hephaestus cabin. There were no windows or decorations or even a bathroom. There was just cold, unforgiving marble on every surface, a bronze brazier with a low, likely magical, flame, and a giant, ten-foot statue of the queen herself looking over her dominion. 

Piper wouldn’t say that the statue was unattractive, even if she wasn’t worried about that kicking off Trojan War Two: Electric Boogaloo. She was incredibly pretty with her flowing golden robes and a staff topped with a blooming lotus flower. She had a hawk perched on her shoulder, its head cocked to the side like it was studying Piper and ready to take flight and report back to its real mistress with news at any moment. Hera’s face was all elegant curves and gentleness with an indulgent smile on her lips, but it made Piper as uneasy as the hawk did. She looked almost condescendingly amused, like she was waiting for a babbling toddler to finish telling the story of their dream, but there was a coldness to it that matched the rest of her cabin. She looked like she was thinking Mother knows best. Now, remember your place before I’m forced to remind you of it. 

“Are you happy now? Can we leave?” Will asked, glancing nervously around the room. “I hate being in here.”

Part of Piper wanted to agree. She wanted to turn on her heel and march right back out of the cabin the same way she’d come in and just add this whole experience to the list of things she and Will were never going to mention again, but she couldn’t. There was something about this cabin that called to her. She wasn’t sure how, but she knew for a fact that this place, this goddess, had something to do with the dreams she’d been having of her dad, and she wasn’t leaving until she got at least a couple answers.

“Come on, we’re supposed to be talking to whoever came in here first, remember? Let’s keep looking.”

Will grumbled his discontent, but fortunately for them both, their search was short. Tucked behind the giant Hera statue was an altar, and at that altar was a girl. She was decked out in all black from her dress to the long shawl she had draped over her head, though, for some reason, she was completely barefoot. Her eyes were closed and her mouth was open, and she had her hands open, palms up as she chanted quietly under her breath. Piper thought she looked a bit like she was praying before she realized that was likely exactly what she was doing.

Beside her, Will relaxed. “That’s Rachel.”

At the sound of her name, Rachel turned around and gave them a wide smile and Piper felt her heart skip a beat. She lowered her shawl, showing off the cloud of wild red curls around her head, and stuck out her hand. “Rachel Elizabeth Dare, at your service.”

“Nice to meet you, Red,” Piper commented with a grin, and took her hand. “My name is Piper.”

Rachel’s brow furrowed for a second as she thought over Piper’s words before she laughed. “Red, huh? I like that.”

“What are you doing here, Rachel?” Will asked. “I thought you were supposed to be at school.”

“I’ve got at least two days before anyone notices I’m gone and another two before they’re willing to call my dad and let him know they lost me,” she dismissed. Piper grimaced in sympathy. Been there, done that, got a t-shirt that didn’t even fit. “I came because Annabeth told me about Percy.” She looked up at the Hera statue with a frustrated frown. “I had a feeling that I needed to come here. That I was going to get some kind of clue, but it’s still silent for some reason.”

“What do you mean by ‘still silent,’” Piper asked. “Does the statue normally talk?”

Rachel shrugged. “The statue itself? No, that doesn’t normally talk. I feel like things would be a lot weirder if there were talking statues possessed by gods running around camp. Can you imagine?” She snorted lightly at the thought. “But the gods do normally speak with us. They send messages to their children through dreams and sometimes they’ll come down and talk face to face if you ask politely enough.”

“So, are you a demigod, then?”

“Nope. I was born 100% mortal,” Rachel said, holding her arms out. “Though I have been possessed by the spirit of Delphi, so that 100% claim may be a little out of date now.”

“Oh! You’re the Oracle Will was telling us about!” Piper felt a bit dumb for not realizing it sooner, but, in her defense, she had a lot going on. “So, how does that work? You can just tell the future?”

“Not exactly. Most of the time I’m just minding my business when the spirit decides to make herself known and hijacks my body for a few minutes.”

“That sounds wildly unpleasant,” Piper winced. 

Rachel shrugged noncommittally. “A lot of things sound wildly unpleasant when you put them into words. Doesn’t mean they aren’t important. Doesn’t mean they aren’t worth doing.”

Piper considered that. Would she be able to give up a mortal life just because she knew there was a job she needed to do like Rachel had? She’d lost her mortal life today, she knew deep down that she’d never get to go back to the way things were before, but she hadn’t surrendered it, it had been taken. That felt different somehow. She wasn’t sure she’d ever be willing to give up what was hers like that. She shook her head. “So, you said the gods were silent. What does that mean?”

“Pretty much exactly what it sounds like,” Will said. “ It’s pretty normal for them to ignore us for stretches of time, but it’s definitely weird for there to be this level of radio silence. People are still getting claimed–” he glanced above Piper’s head, but unfortunately no flaming wombats or anything appeared– “but there's been no word from any of them for about a month. No dreams, no visions, nothing. That’s why it was such a big deal when Annabeth got the dream from Hera.”

“Annabeth got a dream from Hera?” Rachel asked sharply.

“Uh, yeah,” Will frowned at her. “Hera told her she needed to go to the Grand Canyon to look for a guy with one shoe. Instead she found Piper, and two other guys, Leo and Jason. Leo was claimed by Hephaestus as soon as he showed up, but Piper hasn’t gotten her sign yet, and Annabeth took Jason up to the Big House to talk to Chairon. He’s got something really weird going on.”

Rachel looked troubled, and she started pacing back and forth, tapping her lips as she muttered to herself. “I get a calling to camp for the first time since Olympus closed. At the same time, Annabeth gets a dream from Hera of all gods and winds up with three new campers. And one of those campers happens to be–” She froze, mid-thought and turned to look at Piper with a frown. “Why are you here, Piper?”

“What? Like, at camp, or–”

“No, I mean here.” Rachel gestured around the room. “This place isn’t exactly welcoming, especially to new campers, and I doubt coming in here was Will’s idea.”

“I can assure you, it was not,” Will confirmed helpfully.

“I don’t really know why I came in here,” Piper confessed. “I just saw it and felt some sort of connection to it. Like I was looking for something and that I’d find it in here.” She cocked her head at Rachel. “You don’t think this has anything to do with that missing guy, Percy, do you? Or anything to do with whatever’s going on with Leo and Jason’s memory?”

Rachel grimaced and shook her head. “I’m sorry, I can’t really say. At best, I’m a mouthpiece for the gods, not an interpreter.” 

“But you do think there’s something going on.”

“Oh, there’s definitely something going on, and I’ve got a feeling it is not good,” Rachel laughed. “But whatever it is, I’m certain that I was supposed to meet you here today, Piper.”

Piper smiled at her and went to say something, but before she could open her mouth, Rachel went a little cross-eyed and stumbled. She let out a sharp cry and pressed the heel of her palm to her forehead.

“Rachel!” Will yelped, grabbing her by the elbows, and slowly lowering her to the ground. “Are you alright? Do you have a prophecy coming on or something?”

“No, it’s not that,” Rachel said, shaking her head. “When the Oracle wants to say something, she just kind of walks into my brain through the front door because I basically gave her a house key. This was different. It felt like someone was trying to break in through the window.”

Will pursed his lips. “We should get you to Chiron; he might know something. I’ll ask my siblings, see if maybe they’ve heard anything from our dad about this.”

“Yeah, that’s probably for the best,” she said, heaving a deep sigh. 

Piper smiled gently at her and offered a hand. “I’d like to go with you, if you don’t mind.”

“I think I’d like that. I really do want the chance to talk to you some more.” 

Rachel reached out and took Piper’s hand, but as soon as their skin touched she stiffened up like she’d grabbed hold of an electric fence. Her grip tightened painfully when Piper tried to rip her hand away. Rachel’s eyes started glowing a brilliant, terrifying green, and she hauled herself to her feet, using Piper’s arm like a rope. Piper tried not to scream. “Um, Will! Help!”

“Rachel, what’s going on?” Will demanded. He tried to pull Rachel away, but he jerked his hand back like he’d been burned. His fingers were a bright red and he stared at them in shock. “What in the–”

Free me Rachel hissed in a voice that wasn’t her own. She sounded like an old lady. An angry old lady who had somehow fallen down a well and was blaming everyone but herself. You must free me, Piper McLean or the earth will swallow us all. It must be by the solstice.

Piper’s vision started to blur. She wasn’t sure if there was some awful magic affecting her, or if it was just her awful week and even more awful day finally catching up to her. She had a feeling it was the former. She could hear a muffled version of Will’s shouting, but it was like she was under water. He was trying to separate her and Rachel, but it was no use. Rachel’s grip on her shoulders was beyond human, and Will’s flesh burned every time he touched her. Piper distantly hoped that he didn’t hurt himself. Rachel’s jaw dropped and sickly green smoke billowed out, engulfing them completely. She spoke again in that same awful voice from before: Our enemies stir. The fiery one is only the first. Bow to his will, and his king will rise, dooming us all. FREE ME!

With one last terrified gasp, Piper’s knees buckled and everything went black.

[epic-kotlc-crossover]

The Underworld

and into the Underworld!! this was by Cricket, hope you enjoy :)

@thesfromhms @sombrathedragon @myfairkatiecat @imnotskyguy-remake @bookwormgirl123

@justalunaticfangirl @ham-cheese-toastie

“Friends!” Fitz called, standing at the front of the ship. His crew– or what remained of it– gathered on the deck. “Biana’s instructions were clear. No matter what you hear,” he continued, gesturing to the gray-black landscape of the Underworld, “full speed ahead!”

“Until we find the Prophet,” his men echoed. 

“Remember: this place is designed to confuse your minds. So no matter who you see or hear, don’t stop.”

The crew nodded uneasily.

“Good.” He dismissed them and they scrambled back to their positions on the ship. 

They were sailing on the River Stynx, where mortals’ hopes and dreams went to die. The Underworld stretched far out of sight on either side, mist rolling through the plains of dead grass and ghosts. Haunting screams rang through the eternal night, sending chills up Fitz’s spine. Flames tore across the fields, the orangey glow illuminating the sails.

All I hear are screams, every time I dare to close my eyes. I don’t dream anymore. Only nightmares of my fallen friends. Here in the Underworld, my past is always close behind. Fitz wasn’t sure what he was doing, but maybe Sophie could hear his transmissions despite the distance and whatever Poseidon had done to hinder his telepathy. 

He repeated those words over and over and eventually drifted off. Fitz didn’t have normal dreams, instead, his mind showed his memories of every time he had failed. The battle with Polyphemus stuck with him, eerie voices shouting, “Captian! Captain! Captain! Why would you let the Cyclops live when ruthlessness is mercy? 558 men died under your command because of your mistakes.”

Then an image of the infant’s sad gaze flashed to the forefront of his mind. Just as his dream-self was about to drop the child over the cliff, a phantom wail tore him out of his sleep.

“This life is amazing when you greet it with open arms….”

Was that… Dex?

“I see in your face there is so much guilt inside your heart…”

 Fitz’s eyes stung from the memory of that day.

“So why not replace it and light up the world? Here’s how to start….”

“Greet the world with open arms,” Fitz choked out. 

Dex’s ghost rose up to the side of the ship and Fitz rushed over to it. “Dex…” he said, reaching out. The image evaporated as soon as his hand touched Dex’s.

“Waiting….”

“That voice. It can’t be,” Fitz whispered.

“Waiting….” the voice repeated. “Fitz, when you come home I’ll be waiting…”

That was what his mother had said to him before he left for war. If–If she had died….

“Mom?”

“Even if you’re the last thing I see I’ll be waiting…” she said sadly. Her spirit stood where Dex had been a moment before. Fitz started sobbing, but he didn’t dare touch her. He needed to say something before she was gone for good.

“I’m right here, Mom, can’t you see?” Fitz pleaded. “I’m waiting…”

“Waiting…” she echoed sadly.

“I took too long,” he whispered.

“I’ll always love you,” she told him, smiling weakly.

“And ventured too far…” he continued.

“I’ll stay in your heart, Fitz. I’ll never truly leave you. Don’t worry about me,” his mother said.

“I– I was away at war, while you were waiting. All this time…”

His mother nodded, looking away. 

“Bye, Mom,” Fitz said, tears streaming down his cheeks. She turned to smoke, swirling around him once before diving back to the fields. 

Fitz collapsed. “All I hear are screams!” he yelled hoarsely. A few of his crewmates looked at him with pity, but he didn’t care. Keefe sat next to him, sending calming breezes into his head. Fitz took a shakey breath.

In the Underworld your past is always close behind….

[foxy-128]

Here's how I imagine the X-Men and Deadpool would react to discovering their partner (the reader/you) has plushies of them and cuddles with them when they aren't around:

---

Peter Maximoff (Quicksilver)

Peter would be over the moon.

“Wait, wait, you bought a plushie of me? That’s… awesome! It’s, like, the ultimate compliment. I mean, who wouldn’t want a mini me, right?!”

He’d probably grab the plushie, zip around the room with it, and then dramatically pose next to it like, “Who wore it better, me or plushie-me?” Once the excitement settles, he’d quietly admit:

"That's actually really sweet. You know, I might miss you too when I’m not around."

Cue him buying a plushie of you so he can return the favor.

---

Logan (Wolverine)

Logan would be baffled at first.

“You’re tellin’ me you got a doll of me? What, they sell those now?”

When you explain, he’d grumble something like, “That’s kinda… weird. But, uh, I guess it’s cute. Don’t go tellin’ anyone, though.”

Later, you’d catch him subtly checking the plushie out, maybe poking at it with a claw. Eventually, he’d leave a gruff comment like:

"Guess it’s good you miss me, darlin’. I’d be pissed if you didn’t."

---

Jean Grey

Jean would be flattered and touched.

“Oh my gosh, that’s adorable! You really do miss me that much when I’m gone?”

She’d probably tease you a bit, playfully holding the plushie up to her face and pretending to "talk" to you through it.

“Well, it’s good to know I’m always with you, even if it’s in stuffed form. But you know, I’d rather me be there to cuddle instead.”

Cue her trying to spend even more time with you.

---

Scott Summers (Cyclops)

Scott would blush and try to play it cool.

“You… you have a plushie of me? That’s, uh, really… thoughtful. I didn’t think people even made those.”

He’d overthink it a bit, wondering if you were making fun of him or if it was genuine. Once he realizes it’s the latter, he’d smile and say:

“It’s nice to know you miss me as much as I miss you. Maybe I’ll keep one of you around too.”

---

Ororo Munroe (Storm)

Ororo would find it endearing and dignified.

“A plushie of me? You’re so sweet! I had no idea you felt so attached to me even when I’m away.”

She’d probably chuckle, lightly brushing her fingers over the plushie’s hair and marveling at the tiny details.

“You’ll always have me by your side, love, plushie or not. But I’m honored you’d think of me this way.”

Ororo might even buy a small trinket for the plushie to make it more "you."

---

Erik Lehnsherr (Magneto)

Erik would be perplexed and a little amused.

“A plushie? Of me? I’m not sure if I should be flattered or insulted.”

But deep down, he’d be secretly touched that you miss him. He’d make a sarcastic comment like:

“Let me guess, you use it to win arguments with me when I’m not here?”

Later, when he thinks you’re not looking, you might catch him inspecting the plushie with a small, almost imperceptible smile.

---

Charles Xavier (Professor X)

Charles would find it heartwarming.

“Is that… me? Oh, my love, that’s absolutely delightful.”

He’d tease you lightly, but his tone would be warm and affectionate.

“I must say, it’s a comfort to know I’m always with you in some form. Though, I’d much prefer to be there in person.”

He’d give you a kiss and might secretly wish for a plushie of you as well.

---

Deadpool (Wade Wilson)

Wade would absolutely lose his mind—in the best way possible.

“Oh. My. God. You have a plushie of me?! That’s, like, the cutest thing anyone has ever done. EVER.”

He’d immediately grab it and start narrating an over-the-top love story between himself and the plushie version of him.

“Deadpool 3: Plushpool’s Revenge! Coming soon to theaters near you!”

Then he’d dramatically throw himself on the bed, fake crying.

“I feel so loved. You’re the best thing to ever happen to me. This is better than Chimichangas. I said what I said.”

You’d never hear the end of it, and he’d probably buy plushies of the two of you as a matching set.

---

Let me know if you'd liked it and want me to write more x-men fanfiction!! Love you guys! 🫀

[lillambiespasture]

Gangreen headcanons

These have zero order or anything it's just a few HCs I have

Skip past Billy's if you don't wanna read like a lot of stuff

Big Billy

He's only half cyclops

His mom is a human

And his dad was a cyclops

But he had two eyes (this is totally possible, ty genetics lessons)

Since his dad didn't really look like a monster and wasn't THAT big he lived in Townsville for a while

Hence how he met Billy's mom

She didn't know at first but didn't mind when she found out

They got married maybe and lived on Monster Isle

But before Billy was born or soon after his dad died so they never met

Billy's mom definitely took amazing care of him though and stayed on Monster Isle

So he had a great childhood

Until he was around ten and he just sort of wondered off (cyclops thing)

He ended up in Townsville

Sadly he has no clue where his mom is

Otherwise he would visit her

She however is in the same place

So a reunion is possible if he ever remembers where his house is

He's super self conscious btw (thinks the gang doesn't care about him but they do)

He loves animals, mostly fluffy ones

HAD a secret pet cat but after a while she passed

She was pretty old and died in her sleep

He took amazing care of her and was inconsolable when he realized she was gone

When he starts crying nothing can stop him

Except sleeping or food

He's the only one who can properly cook

He met Arturo before the met the others

Lil Arturo

He's a huge hugger

It doesn't matter who you are if he decides to hug you you'll get hugged

He definitely steals hair products a lot

He loves doing his hair

Mostly because he gets to use Maria

He does the whole gangs hair for funsies

He loves sugar a scary amount

If/when someone babies him he acts like he hates it

But he actually loves it a lot

Because he was a middle child in a family of like 15

Speaking of his family

After his dad went to jail he (and most of his siblings) got put in foster homes

He wasn't in the worst foster home ever but they were still neglectful

So he ran away

Which is how he met Billy (and later the gang)

He's not allowed to have caffeine of any sort

He curses in Spanish a lot

Or makes mocks people in Spanish when he's pissed

Mostly Ace

Who has caught on a little bit

Grubber

He can totally talk in several languages

He just chooses not to

I think he's a lab experiment that went wrong

The purpose of the experiment was to create a brain serum that could make people smarter

But it would've been made from Grubbers brain

When he figured that out he escaped

He really loves classical music

If he wasn't in the gang he would probably collect antiques

He tried while being in the gang

You can probably tell how that turned out

If you ask how he got his violin he'll tell you a different way every time (bought it, found it, stole it, ect.)

He's the smartest in the gang (duh)

And he gives the others tutoring lessons sometimes do they aren't too dumb

But they don't know that's what it is

Yet

He's British

Grubber met Snake first (probably deep in the dump)

Ace

Oh boy

He REALLY cares about the gang

Like if anyone in the gang gets hurt he thinks about it for weeks and blames himself

Even if it's something like Billy getting a scrape on his knee

He stole a motorcycle and rides it all the time

He can't stand coffee

Though he can and will down five monsters

His glasses were a gift from his grandma

Who was the only adult who ever loved him

She died when he was 6

His parents are literal garbage and they kicked him out when he was like 7

The only reason they didn't do it sooner was because of his grandma

She was kinda loaded

But she didn't put his parents in her will LOL

Ace found the shed when he was a kid and it was the only place he knew no one would bother him at

So that's where he started living

Surprisingly he doesn't just like rock

Bro is a former Swifty (I'm projecting)

Oh he loves music by the way

The thing he steals most is vinyls

God help the soul that touches his vinyls

Knows how to play several instruments

He's also very handy

If he wasn't a known criminal he could probably make an honest living building stuff

I don't know IM not handy enough to explain

Ace met Snake before anyone in the gang had met each other (probably saved his life one way or another)

Snake

He's not an actual Snake as far as he knows

But he's always extremely cold

He might have anemia

The D in his name stands for something silly

Again always changes if you asked him

I think his parents acted like those super perfect 60s neighbors

Think the Flanderses from The Simpsons

But in reality they were horrible

In everyway you can think

After they had another kid, a little girl

They got way worse to him

And we're never bad to the girl because bruises on her would look suspicious

They also just really didn't like Snake sadly

One day his sister told him their parents were going to kick him out

It was a joke but he didn't know that

So he packed and left on the day she said they'd do it

He's got an irrational fear of egales (probably his sister's fault)

He goes by he/they pronouns

But probably hasn't told anyone

He's super good at art

He loves gaming

It doesn't even matter what game it is he'll play it and love it

Probably rage quits and breaks arcade games though

In the winter he definitely hordes the gangs entire blanket supply

And bundles up so much he looks a little silly

His speech impediment gets worse when he's scared or really really angry

But he very rarely ever gets angry

He considers Ace his best friend

He has a fat crush on Ace

And probably babies Arturo the most

Not that he isn't hardcore

He's pretty cold (emotionally)

Usually not to the gang though

He wears makeup

Not much though, usually just his lipstick

And he gets high on a daily basis

It's only when he runs out of weed that he'll stop smoking for like weeks to a month

Just for a break

Then go back too it

He's not a hugger

BUT

If someone hugs him he'll accept it

He's had multiple piercings

A lot are closed now

Most he gave himself

He gives the other gang members piercings if they ask

I think that's all I got in the tank— so uh smell you later

[manyothermusingsofmine]

Ride or Die || Drabble

Fandom: Xmen Warnings: Stabbing injury Wordcount: 3030

Summary: Gambit and Miranda are send on a mission together so of course it goes haywire ---------------------------

It should have been an honest to god easy mission. The most simple mission of get into the weirdly haunted looking building, get the blue prints that were used to probably set up new Sentinels for obvious nefarious reasons; and get the fuck out. It should have been easy enough that sending in just Gambit and Drifting should have been fine and should have gone off without a hitch. Unfortunately it is always the missions that seem the easiest, the simplest to pull off, that have a tendency to go horribly wrong.

This one went horribly wrong when the basement that should’ve been empty was instead absolutely crawling with people who did not want Gambit and Drifting to get away with the blue prints, to which inevitably a fight broke out between the two mutants and the henchmen surrounding them. As Miranda threw another discarded chair in the basement at their opponents, trying her best to scare at least some of them off by doing her whole Poltergeist schtick, she noticed that one of them was trying to use the same chaos to their own advantage. Her blood ran cold when she actually saw what the intent was. In a split second she ran, her very quickly draw up plan being to just get in between the two men and redirect the knife that was about to be thrown Gambit's way, aimed at his spine.

Gambit was far more focused on the assailants in front of him, keeping them at a distance with his exploding cards when he heard a very distinct yelp of pain behind him. He turned on his heels, his body being the only thing catching Miranda as she stumbled backwards. Without thinking he reached around her to grab hold of the enemy wrist that was too close near her to his liking. His other free hand flew over her to deck the attacker in the face, and that combined was enough to make them let go of the knife-

Wait a minute the what.

As soon as the realization dawned upon him he swore his heart dropped, the sheer horror of it all sinking in rapidly. He shook it off, needing to find both of them a way out of this and getting her the medical attention she now needed. He quickly grabbed one of the crates that were littered around the place, charging and throwing at the enemies before doing the same to another crate and tossing that at the nearest wall to make a big enough explosion to blast a hole in the side. He picked up his friend trying to be mindful of her injury, and with long strides ran away from the building until he found a back alley they could hide away in where they wouldn't be found by their previous assailants.

"Why the hell did you do that?!"

He didn't mean to sound angry, his worry coming out a lot rougher than he intended to. He didn't even know what kind of reaction he expected out of her; maybe the same kind of light bite her words always had whenever they bantered with each other as it would be the only thing to assure him this wasn't as bad as it looked. Gambit lightly, gently, pushed her hand away as soon as it tried to reach for the handle of the blade.

"Don't touch it," his voice was softer now, as something in her panicked breathing made him aware that he had to step up and be the calm one in this situation. He couldn't expect the one with a knife sticking out of her abdomen to not freak out about the situation she was in and- damn it, they needed help; and they needed it fast. As Miranda grabbed onto his sleeve, Gambit used his free hand to activate his communication system, sending out an emergency call to Cyclops. As his mind constantly repeated the words "pick up" in a desperate plea for Scott to answer, a small sigh of relief escaped him when the call was answered.

"A distress signal? What's-"

"Ain't got time for this; I need medical back up. It's Miranda; get Shadow to the back alley south of the target location!"

"Wh-"

"Now, Scott!"And with that he disconnected the call. Gambit looked down at the hand that had a grip on his jacket's sleeve that seemed to be tightening more by the second.

"You're going to be alright," he whispered, not sure if he was trying to convince her or himself, "help's on the way."

"Remy, it hurts," his heart simply broke at the pain and panic in her voice, and Gambit shifted his position beside her so he could offer a shoulder to lean on.

"I know, I know," he reassured softly, offering his other hand for her to hold so both were occupied and wouldn't try to reach for the knife to pull it out, "just hang in there, please."

He had to do something to distract her until help arrived, surely. With both his hands occupied he couldn't exactly pull off any card tricks, so Gambit had to think of something else to keep her mind off her injury and keep her focused on him. He immediately looked her way when his mutant codename left her mouth in a pained yelp, the hand holding his jacket clinging on tighter.

"Don't leave," the scared shiver in her voice tugged on his heartstrings bad; how he wished he could just take her pain from her or heal her himself, "please."

"I ain't going anywhere, Miranda," Gambit softly reassured, "promise." She kept holding onto the sleeve of his jacket like a vice, apparently drawing some sort of comfort out of the grasp she had on the leathery fabric. Gambit didn't mind in the slightest; it wasn't like she had an actual grip on his arm underneath and Miranda seemed to focus her strength on that instead of the hand he held to stop her from reaching for the knife still embedded in her stomach.

"You must think I'm so stupid; I keep getting myself into bullshit situations like this all the fucking time," she said with a pained laugh.

"Non; practically X-men tradition at this point," Gambit said, as calm as he could will himself to be knowing that help was on the way. He thought for a moment, trying to think of something that would keep her both distracted and alert. A certain someone popped into his mind, as his red eyes flicked to Miranda, "Even on the golden team we get up to quite some nonsense. You didn't hear this from Gambit, but you should've seen Nightcrawler when he was just getting used to the teleporting."

"What, he didn't have that from the start?"

"Far as Gambit knows, non. Which made for hilarity when he tried to control it, failed, and inevitably crashed into something like a cat completely miscalculating a jump."

"Explains why the gym is littered with soft surfaces, huh?"

Gambit couldn't help but laugh at that, adjusting his pose a little as well as his grip on her hand. Thankfully her sense of humor had gotten back to her, probably due to the fact that true to his word he hadn't moved an inch out of her way. She winced slightly, green eyes flicking over to meet his; and Remy swore he could see the cogs in her head turn and debate for a moment on something she apparently wanted to say.

"What?"

Her eyes flicked away at that, meaning to point down but immediately regretting that decision as that meant looking at the weapon sticking out of her, so she rolled her eyes up to the sky instead and still seemed to debate something with herself for a moment longer.

".... I love him, Remy," her voice was barely above a whisper, soft and cushioned, "he... I-"

"I know you do, fifolet; the cards have already called your bluff on that. Besides, it don't take a gambler's eye to notice the way you light up whenever the elf’s around."

"Cards, what? ... Whatever," she muttered, her eyes averting away from him though still keeping them pointed at the sky, "I'm just.. telling you, that he and I are, well... you know."

"Together?" Gambit didn't sound surprised in the slightest, a light smile on his face as she nodded, "no surprise there either. How about I let you in on a secret, keep your mind of the whole ordeal until the cavalry gets here?” He leaned closer to her, whispering barely audible enough that she wasn’t the only one who had gone and changed the status of a friendship into a relationship; “Shadow and I are together, too.”

As he pulled away, the unimpressed look on her face made him laugh as it at least lightened the mood of the situation a little; with her just blinking once or twice while her expression remained unchanged at being told this supposed secret. “Yeah, well, duh,” she eventually responded, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes, “You and Shadow have been flirting with each other at least since I wandered onto the premise. Next time you want to let me in on a secret, tell me an actual one and not the worst openly kept secret of the entire mansion. The only surprise here is that it took you this long to make it official instead of that ‘nooo we’re just friends with benefits’ nonsense you two had going for months.”

Gambit just smirked at her, glad to see at least some of her feistiness return to her as that held promise for her healing. He looked up as he felt some kind of presence drawing near; floating far above them was Jean in one of her telepathy bubbles, Shadow just as snugly wrapped up in that same bubble with her. It took little more than a clear thought from Gambit to draw Jean's attention, the two descending in the bubble until the telepath gracefully hit the ground and discarded it.

To which Shadow immediately scrambled to get next to her friend; serious and determined as she overlooked Miranda's injury.

"Can you heal it, chère?"

"I can. I am going to need you help to get the knife out, but aside from that all I need is skin contact and some time to tell the wound to close. If we just-"

"Uhm, hello, can you two not talk like surgeons over an operation table, or, you know, like I'm not here?" Miranda protested, glaring from one to the other before she winced, "I might be in pain but can I have at least a little say in what's going to happen to me?!"

The other two looked at each other for a moment, with Gambit biting back an annoyed sigh. Miranda was so ungodly stubborn, it was frustrating. Shadow on the other hand looked at Miranda, trying to figure out exactly what she was trying to say.

"Care to explain?" she asked, while Miranda's grip on Gambit's sleeve just intensified. He could feel the pull, looking down at her hand where her knuckles turned white from the strain once more.

“… Please don’t make me let go of him while you rummage around in there,” Miranda said, “I just- I don’t like that this is even necessary, that you even need to be here to fix my dumb mistakes-“ “Hey,” Shadow replied firmly, “this is not a dumb mistake. Let me help you, okay?” Her tone and general demeanor softened a lot as Miranda nodded, with Shadow also taking a quick peek at the hand that held on to Gambit for dear life. That was definitely a request she could fulfil.

"I don't need to use your right hand anyway; keep hanging onto him with that one, alright? All I'm going to do is make contact with your arm here, and heal you from the inside out. You can watch, or look away; whichever you prefer," Shadow's voice was calm, serious; almost clinically so which did seem to ease Miranda just a tad. At least enough to let the healer do what she needed to do with Gambits assistance, trying not to flinch when Shadow rolled up one of her sleeves so she could make contact with Miranda’s arm.

Miranda deliberately looked away, trying to ignore the feeling of Shadow rummaging about right under her skin. She had been told the full use of Shadows power felt like two people now housed themselves in the same body, and it felt as unpleasant to her as that had sounded to her mind. Shadow encouraged the wound to heal itself while, with Gambit's aid by holding the handle with his free hand, pushing out the knife lodged in her abdomen. He watched as the wound healed itself from inside out, very gently hushing at Miranda that she was going to be alright.

Shadow seemed to take longer than she usually would healing a wound such as this, not really leaving until Miranda visibly jerked and shuddered as her body had enough of the intruder underneath her skin to which Shadow seemingly came to, back in her own body.

"Sorry about that," she said sheepishly, "I got a little bit distracted both by how your cells seem to regard me with some trepidation- and then by something fascinating; your heartbeat and breathing are really quiet. Everything functions like it should, don't worry, but it’s just.. suppressed. Like the wings of an owl. The shudder was those same cells telling me I had my fun and that I should really vacate the premise before they would make me."

"Good to know even my cells give warning shots," Miranda dryly remarked, only letting go of Gambit when she was back up on her feet, "I don't know about you two, but I really like to go home, now." As soon as her feet hit the ground around the mansion when Jean flew the whole group back, exhaustion did as well. Miranda quietly thanked Shadow, Gambit and Jean for all their help as the group dispersed. Gambit lingered for just a moment, going back for a second to whisper something to Miranda before immediately joining back up with Shadow. Shadow looked back just in time to see her friend vanish from sight, turning to Gambit with a raised eyebrow.

"I hope she's alright, I can't exactly take her fatigue from the whole ordeal away- what did you tell her?"

"Eh, just where to find a certain someone."

And the thing was, normally Miranda would go straight to her room after a day like this, curling away into the bed and just sleeping it off until morning, but she yearned for more than just the comfort of her bed. She found Kurt around the back of the mansion, exactly where Gambit said he would be: he feeding some of the cat population around the place as she flickered back into view.

"Hey.." she tried to not sound as tired as she felt, failing miserably. As soon as he turned to face her, familiar warmth and softness in the yellow hues of his eyes, her resolve gave up on her. She closed the gap between them, hiding her face in his shoulder as she wrapped her arms around his waist. Only when he wrapped his arms around her in response did the tension in her body ease up.

"Hey, Süße. You alright?" he asked softly, his tail instinctively curling around her waist as he ran his fingers through her hair.

She just shook her head slowly, pressing her face further into his shoulder to breathe in the comforting scent of woodsmoke that clung to him as her grip tightened on him.

"Rough mission?"

"You can say that again; I got stabbed."

".... What?"

It hadn't been the most tactful way of saying it, that was for sure. Miranda felt his grip on her tighten just as much as he clearly grew tense.

"Sorry, harsh way of putting it. It's fine. Gambit alerted Scott, who send Jean and Shadow. I'm already healed, now I'm just... tired."

"Okay; I would've liked it if someone had alerted me as well."

Miranda pushed herself up and out of Kurt's embrace a little, her eyebrows knitted together into a worried frown as she tried to get more clarity out of Kurt's expression. Something in his voice had been hinting to annoyance; anger even, but he seemingly shook it off with no real notion or explanation.

"You sure you're just tired?"

"Yeah..."

"Want me to take you to your room? I'm done feeding the cats anyway."

".... Yes, please."

In a heartbeat they were in her room, and Kurt let go of Miranda so she could go and freshen up a little. As soon as she returned he ushered her over to the bed, gently, pulling her back into his embrace as he ran his fingers through the thick waves of her hair. She silently took his free hand, lightly pressing it palm down against a spot on her side.

"... Is that where..?" he started softly, with Miranda just sleepily nodding while keeping his hand over the spot- as if she was trying to shield a wound that was no longer there. He very gently ran his thumb over the fabric that clothed her, a very light sigh leaving him. In the safety of his embrace it didn't take her long to sink off into a deep, dreamless rest. Kurt on the other hand couldn't get to sleep. He stared at the ceiling for a while, before his yellow eyes flicked to the side as he desperately tried to ignore the gross feeling of anger bubbling up in the very pit of his stomach. Did really no one feel the need to tell him what had happened? Scott, Jean, Gambit; either one of them could've bothered to tell him his girlfriend was hurt, right? If he had only known, he could’ve done something to help.

The more he thought about it, the less capable he was of stopping a soft, low growl from leaving him.

[fandomworld9728]

The Life of the Morningstars - Chapter 14:

"Now, Charlie, you're old enough now that I finally tell you something very important."

"And because mommy isn't here."

"...Yes. Also, because your mother isn't here to stop me. Before you were born, daddy had another baby. Her name is Emily, and she is your big sister."

"A big sister?! Where is she? Can I meet her? Do we have the same human parent?"

"No, sweetie. She has a human parent, however, not the same one as you. She lives up in Heaven. Your Aunt Sera... took her when I fell. Honestly as much as it hurts to be away from her, Emily staying in Heaven was probably for the best. I do hope that one day you two can meet. I know that I probably don't have any hope of seeing her again, but for you, kiddo, the sky's the limit."

~

Today was the day! Charlie would be going to Heaven and hopefully she'd get a chance to finally meet her big sister. She'd have to take a picture with her to show dad. He'd be so happy! Setting her bags down in the lobby, Charlie quickly hugged her dad. "Thank you so much for this!"

"Of course, sweetie. Just stay safe. Tell Sera and Emily I said hello."

"Don't you worry, sir. I'll keep her safe if anyone tries anything."

Their goodbyes were ruined by a blast, making a hole in the wall, and manic laughter. A punk, cyclops beta girl stepping through. 

"Holy shit! Cherri Bomb?! Long time, no see baby."

"Angie, you bitch! You've been texting me depressing shit all day. Figured we could tear shit up like normal times. It's been fucking forever-" Pausing at seeing their company, Cherri tugged her friend down to whisper excitedly to him. "You're hanging around the fucking King of Hell? And didn't tell me? He's so tiny and hot."

"Yeah. He's been stayin' here for a couple days now- you have no impulse control, do you?!" Taking the bomb from the king's hands, he tossed it outside as it exploded. 

"I have no idea what that is."

"I like him already. Bring him with us! We can show the blue blood how to have a fucking wild time."

"Look. I love seein' ya, Cherri, but I'm too tired. I need to pass out."

"Oh, you can sleep when you're double dead, fuckhead. Come on! What you really need is a recharge. A reinvigoration. A re-"

"Responsible night on the town! That is a great idea." Charlie cut in. She wanted her friend to have a nice night out while she and Vaggie were gone. Maybe her dad really would join them and go enjoy himself for once. She knew everyone at the hotel would protect him if necessary.

Especially Angel Dust. Whatever happened between them had Angel pretty much glued to her father's side before he went to work, making sure he was okay. She even saw them both napping on the couch before he had to leave. It was so cute!

"Hi~ I'm Charlie. That's my wall that you just blew up. It's so nice to meet one of Angel's friends. Ah! He never brings anyone around."

"Wonder why."

"Yeah, me too." No, she didn't. Charlie knew she had a strong personality like her dad. But she wasn't gonna let people know it bothered her. She liked who she was and anyone who couldn't handle her, she didn't need in her life. "Anyways, Angel and everyone else have been working so hard. So, I want you to take them out for a fun night."

"What? No, I only came here for-" Cherri shut up as the princess pulled out a large stack of clash. Hell, she could work with that! "You got it, princess!" 

"What do ya say, short king? Wanna come out and party?"

"Party, huh? Oh fuck. When was the last time I went out and partied...?"

"The night I went to prom and Aunty Bee invited you to Greed for some big bash. You were drunk and trying to cheer me up when we met up at home."

Oh. Yikes. That was a while ago. "Yeah... that's why I don't party with Beelzebub much. That woman is the only one who can produce a drink strong enough to knock me on my ass that easy."

"Oh! The portal's here! Okay we'll see you guys soon and I'll bring back souvenirs for everyone!"

"Call if you need anything and be safe! Oh! If you find yourself in trouble call for Raphael and Azrael!" Lucifer watched as the portal closed behind his daughter and her partner. He wishes he could have gone with her. He couldn't trust Heaven. However, he knew his two brothers would protect their niece. 

"Alright. If you're coming out with us, you are gonna need a makeover."

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[snkts]

the first time this scene played out, josh had been a teenager. his eyes still blue, his hair still blonde, his golden hands already stained with blood and mottled with the rot of it. there in the dim lighting of a grimly dive bar he'd sat, asking for guidance and protection from the world that the man before him couldn't give. he'd been scared of himself, scared of what he'd done, and scared of what he would do -

and all the weeks and months that followed had done was prove that he was right to be scared. that he was alone in all this, that his problems were his to carry and handle and secrecy and misery were his truest companions.

maybe, had that first time gone a little better, the second would be different. maybe the gold on his skin would feel truer and less like gold plating, hiding a monster just waiting to come out.

this bar is equally grimy to last. not krakoan. some hole near enough to a gate. there's a tooth on the bartop from a still bleeding mouth. its former owner is slumped over in a booth at the back, trying to act like he'd given as good as he'd got. soon enough he'll forget himself and start another fight, but his is not the focus of this story.

the golden boy that steps through those swinging doors doesn't even spare him a sideways glance. and that, in itself, is a sign that the only advice he'd gotten that day has been forgotten.

there's no awkward bid for attention. no fumbling for words and an explanation for why he's here and what he wants.

josh merely sits down beside his former favorite hero. his eyes are no longer blue, his hair is no longer blonde, and the evidence of that first blood once so visible on his hands has been washed away by all that came after. those new folks on krakoa

he orders a drink - strongest they have. "one for me, and one for my buddy here." the drinks come and then there's... silence.

josh doesn't acknowledge the man next to him, staring down into the amber liquid of a drink cheaper than what he's paying for. of the five, elixir is the least talkative. he's not said a word to cyclops, nor to wolverine. the nice thing of being one of five is that someone else is always there to do the talking, to be the words that he doesn't want to give them.

but it's just him now. him, and logan, and the weight of the sins he knows are happening and he is once again complacent in.

after a moment or two, josh pulls up his glass and drains it dry. then leans back, pulls the latest missive from the x-force and beast himself, and slaps it down on the table in front of them.

"this," he says, his voice deceptively calm, "x-force bullshit is either gonna stop or i'm gone."

the first part of the memo is a request from the five to the x-force. the message is written in egg's careful script, their discomfort with what they've been tasked with all too clear.

the response is cold and to the point. in doctor mccoy's handwriting, but no the voice josh ever knew him to have. we order. you cook. end of story.

"i'm not doing this again," he tamps the words with one long golden finger, which flares with a power far greater than that he'd had as a teen. "not after what it did to me. not with what i can do now. and not with what it's doing to them."

( somewhere, in the back of the bar, the drunk will come to and find all his teeth have regrown. every person in this space will awaken and find themselves renewed, courtesy of his ever-expanding abilities. powers flaring whether he wants them to or not. )

It’s dark here. Quiet. Almost peaceful. Not quite, but almost. That seemed to be a frequent theme on Krakoa. Almost-not-quites piled up like Toronto’s playoff losses. … Was he still allowed to watch the NHL? It wasn't exactly mutant owned. Sure, he’d keep watching anyway, even if it meant some extra trips through the portal, but was it gonna turn into a headache? He growled quietly and downed his glass. Fuck. It already was. The rules were almost-not-quite clear. The beer was almost-not-quite good. Some special brew made ‘just for mutants like him’ that was meant to somehow bypass his healing factor and actually get him shitfaced. It sort of worked, but it didn't taste right. Nothing compared to a nice glass of Molson’s. Or, fuck, some actual whiskey…

Yeah.

Almost-not-quites. Just like he could almost-not-quite ignore the footsteps behind him. They were getting closer. He recognized the cadence, the scent that was barely masked by the reek of alcohol and sweat and bodies and floor polish. He knew who it was. He glanced up anyway, and - yeah.

There was Elixir. He was as hard to miss as he ever was, skin gleaming gold in a way that felt horribly out of place in the bar’s dark atmosphere. That much has stayed the same, but everything else about him… That was worn down. That was tarnished. Logan looks back at the bar. He breathes a sigh.

So much for a restful evening.

Logan doesn’t speak when Josh sits. Doesn’t say anything when the kid orders for him, either. Just grimaced and pushed the new glass away with the back of his hand, and tapped two fingers against the countertop to get a refill of what he’d had. The booze here was already watery piss; he didn’t need it soured by pity, too. Besides, he knows the familiar term is more of a hidden ‘fuck you’ than anything else. He could shoot it back. He has an idea of what’s coming. And when Josh speaks - yep. Right on the money. Guess they were doing this. Logan grunts, glances at the sheet of paper. He recognized the letterhead. He leans over just enough to see what it says. Oh, right - he remembered that one. That was from… Four days ago, right? Something like that. He’d had to talk to Hank about that. Argue with him, more like. They did that a lot these days. It’s not that Logan wanted to get rid of X Force. If Krakoa was going to function as a sovereign nation, they needed a defence force - especially with how tangled they were with the Skrull and how antagonistic the Quiet Council got with the humans. They’d need someone to stand between them and the shit they stirred up. (And, selfishly, it was a way to get off this rock. Yes, his family was here. Yes, the home he'd been given was warm, dry, safe, and comfortable. And yes, it was good to have everyone together. But he missed Earth, and sometimes he just wanted some goddamn In-N-Out.) But- Fuck. It was getting twisted. Things were getting FUBAR and it was hard to know where the bad seeds were sown. But he also can’t just walk away. He has a duty, to his friends, to his family, to everyone on Krakoa. And if he leaves, who keeps X-Force in line? It’s already spiralling out of control, and that’s with him yanking on the reigns. (And he hasn’t always done the best job of that. Since when the hell has he been the model of self restraint-?) And when it comes down to who’s on it…

Apparently, not Elixir.

Logan grunts and returns to his drink just in time for it to be refilled.

“So leave.” It’s blunt, and it’s callous, but he’s done arguing. He’s tired. He's pissed. And he just wants to drink in peace. “You're one of the Five. You decide which of us get to live. Why do you give a shit what I say?” And he downs his glass again.

“Do what you want, kid. You're the one who’s gotta live with yourself.”

[goddessofeternity]

Chronicles of the Supernovas: Chosen

Chapter 24: Decisive Brawl

Nim

There was still something that we needed to do. 

The others were busy with moving Altair and getting the ship together and ready. Lady Serafina had drawn the Darkness away to give us our chance. The threat from that Atrocity was still too fresh though for Masami. Watching her now, she was fooling everyone else with her smiles and apologies, but the lies were deep in her eyes. She was ready to burst at the seams and her eyes held such bloodthirst that I was surprised that she could smile like that. The peaceful woman that we had all come to know was gone, or maybe she was never really there. I exhaled deeply glancing at Callum, because he seemed happy to have his wife back by his side. He was the one that was going to lose something if she kept it up, but the poor fool was too blind right now. 

“Hey…time to go…” Nerissa walked over and looked at me curiously. “What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing important…” I looked down and made a fist, feeling my energy coming back to me quickly. I never thought that I would be powerless like that. These weapons were a deadly foe. “Have your powers come back quicker?”

“Yeah actually…I feel pretty good right now.” To show her meaning, she drew the water out of the various plants and formed daggers made of water. Turning towards a tree…she sliced it and several others cleanly in half. “See? Not my best work, but still good enough.”

“Hmm yes…” I flexed my fingers and smirked at the electricity that flowed over them. I had to be almost at sixty-five percent right now. That would be enough to get us the rest of the way home. “I only worry about this Morlo…”

“Yeah…you would think that he would have shown up by now…” She scratched her head as we walked over to the ship. “He sends us all of these lackeys to face, but the big man himself just doesn't show up.”

“If he’s smart, he’ll stay away as long as he can. After the stunt that he pulled, he should stay in hiding for the rest of his life.”

“Heh…I want to get my hands on him before you do big guy…”

“Trust me little one…you won’t want to see what I do to him.” I smirked down at her as the woman finished healing Altair. It seemed that his captors took some turns roughing him up. He seemed better than he was when we first found him, but that was probably because the woman was babying him so damn much. 

“Hey cyclops! Hurry up, you old fart!” Nerissa snickered as a vein formed on my forehead and the child was lucky the woman was standing next to him and glaring at me. I picked up the pace as he chuckled behind her. “Surprised you could move that fast…”

“Listen you little fuc-” The smurf stepped into my view and I glared right back at her, but seeing the former hole in her clothes made me brush past her. She should have been more careful and not so damn reckless because of this kid. He was a walking red flag even more than Nerissa was at the time of her birth. There was always something about a star child that made the Darkness more jumpy than ever. Glanching at Nerissa, I could see why they wanted Altair so bad. Her untapped potential and power was staggering at times, and losing her was devastating to the Darkness. I could see the need to not want to fail again.

The other star children were safely hidden and protected by some of my best soldiers and Regan and Tove go on a rotation to guard them every few centuries. The Darkness was incredibly bitter about the whole thing, and I was quite smug about it. Although, being cocky about it was never in my mind for long, there was no telling what could happen when it concerned them. 

“Get on the damn ship brat…” I frowned at him over the woman’s shoulder and he laughed and strutted in with her close behind him. The others soon followed and it was finally time to head back to the temple. The woman was eager to pick up the rest of the children, but we had to secure Altair first. She thankfully didn’t fight it, but she also gave me a nasty look too. I let her have it though, she wouldn’t get the nice version of myself for long…just…just until I was sure that she was fully recovered. Callum gave me a look so that definitely meant that I had to let it go.

“Hehe…” That giggle meant that Ka’seem was once again flirting with Masami’s sister. After everything that happened and what he saw Masami do. I was surprised that he thought it was a good idea to keep pursuing that. Speaking of regrets, he was facing them now as Masami stomped over and grabbed him by the back of his throat. He let out the most unmanly squeak from his mouth as she dragged him away. Her sister was a pretty little thing, so I could see why he would attempt such a thing.

Nerissa started up the ship and Celica made her rounds to check up on everyone and I took the chance to sit back on a chair and close my eye and rest. The journey back would be enough for me to get an adequate amount of sleep.  The sounds of everyone's quiet chatter lulled me into an easy enough sleep. My mind did what it always did when it was at rest…think about her. I wondered if she was alright and healing after her fight. Or perhaps she was still fighting against them. 

Perhaps I should take Lady Serafina’s advice and check on Kay. No…I was just being sentimental right now because of Cel-

“Ow…” I opened my eye when I felt someone stand over me. I glanced out to see that she had reached her hand out to touch my shoulder. The grip I had on her wrist was turning it red. She didn’t seem fazed by it though. 

“Mmm…sorry…” I released her and she sighed before placing her hand on her hip. She looked well enough…the color was back on her face, and her eyes sparkled with intrigue. She had found some fresh clothes to wear, but I could still see the bandages that wrapped across her waist peeking under the small shirt. It is always painfully ironic that a goddess of health could heal so slowly. It was leagues better than most and was still fast, but serious injuries took her at most a week or two. 

Not that she ever got this hurt often. 

“I just want to make sure that any injuries you have are healing properly.” 

“My powers have been coming back quick enough.” I leaned back further in the chair to stare out the window. “You don’t need to waste your healing abilities on me.” 

“....” She sighed and I closed my eye again, figuring that she had walked away. “I’m alright…”

I released a breath through my nose at her tone. So small…so quiet…vulnerable. I opened my eye once more to see her standing over me with a frown. “Listen…you need to rest…stop worrying about everyone else and-”

“I’m fine-”

“You almost died Celica!” I hissed through my teeth at her, quiet enough that I didn’t disturb everyone else, but just enough frustration for her to know I was pissed off about it. She looked surprised at my tone as I sat up and rubbed a hand down my face. She had to be the most infuriating woman I had ever met! I’ve been around a long time and she was still the worst person to be around. 

“Nim…I had to keep him safe and I did that…I won’t apologize for that…”

“You’re a selfish one, you know that?” My fist tightened on the arm of the chair. Her care for children was commendable, but she made such a foolish mistake that almost cost her her life, and she felt nothing for it. “Have you thought about how everyone else would have felt with you being gone?! How would the rest of us would deal with that? Hell…do you think that is a conversation I want to have with your father?”

“I can’t help that I want to keep him safe! It’s my job! He is just a little boy who has his whole life ahead of him! I will not let the Darkness take his childhood away from him when he has already lost so much of his innocence! You can’t be mad at me! Not for this!”

“Goddamn it woman! You-”

She huffed out a breath before she grabbed my hand and squeezed it…tight. Tight enough that I could feel that her strength was definitely back, but not enough to break it. She didn’t stop there before she placed my hand against her chest. I furrowed my brow at the action and was about to move it, but she held firm. 

“You feel that right?” I was gonna ask what she meant, but the steady beating of her heart silenced me. “I’m alive and I’m not going anywhere. I know that everyone was worried and I’m not displacing any feelings here. If my time comes…then I would hope that I’ve done that fighting and saving someone, especially a child.”

She placed her hand on my shoulder and her eyes held my gaze hard with determination and strength radiating through her. “I’m sorry.”

“...fine…” She released me and I crossed my arms as I leaned back in the chair once more. “Just don’t let it happen again…bitch…”

“Yes of course stupid mutt.” She smiled at me before walking back to the others. The rest that I got was much needed and I only hoped that we were closer to finishing this mission so I could relax and get a damn drink, but we weren’t out of the woods yet, because the next thing I knew…I was thrown from my seat as the ship started spiraling through space. Once it began to right itself, I rushed to the front as everyone looked at a ship that was approaching us quickly. 

“What the hell is going on now?!” 

“I think something is coming at us!”

“Kid! Get further back in the ship!”

“Why?! I want to know what’s going on!” 

“You fucking brat-”

Crack!

“Get him off the glass!” Ka’seem yelled from the pilot seat and I took notice of a man outside the window. The glass was already cracked from his earlier strike, and he raised his fist to strike it again, but I moved to intercept him. I didn’t make it far as he jumped away from the glass and the ship that fired at us decided to become a battering ram. Ka’seem tried to turn the ship as best as he could, but it still slammed into us hard. It took me off my feet as I slammed into a wall. The side of the ship burst into flames and the force from space went quickly to work trying to drag us out. The woman had a grip on the child and Masami and her sister were holding onto other frames in the ship. The man from earlier burst from the flames right at Altair. A weapon raised and ready to kill him, but I charged at him with an angered cry. 

I caught the blade in my bare hands before I punched him in the jaw. He didn’t even flinch before he headbutted me. It surprised me that I reeled from it, but I suppose my abilities still weren’t fully restored. It would not matter because I would break this fool with only my bare minimum regardless. I gave him an even stronger headbutt before we spiraled through the air. I managed to get the weapon out of his hands before I slammed my fist into his face again. He retaliated in kind with his own flurry of blows. He gripped my shirt as we went through the air, and he planted his feet against a pillar before he pushed off, sending us flying across the ship and through a wall. 

“Nim!” Callum charged into the room and knocked the man off me before we all finally fell to the floor. I glanced at the other room for a quick second and saw that the woman managed to freeze the wall up, but the ship was still plummeting. Callum and the man wrestled each other for a bit before Callum kicked him across the room, remnants of his strength becoming clearer. The shaking of the ship was starting to make me sick to my stomach. 

“Ka’seem! Get the ship steady!”

“I’m fucking trying up here!”

The man roared like a beast as he fought Callum before I joined his side to combat the man as well. His rage washed over us like a plague as the force of his strikes became stronger and stronger. The only reason that this would be is if the Darkness gave him some of its power. I caught his fist before it collided with my face just as the kid shouted over all the chaos. 

“That’s him! That’s Morlo!” 

This was him?! I had to admit that I expected much more from this man and Callum shared a look with me. The room took on a sinister chill as the woman burst into the room and slammed Morlo onto the ground. He instantly coughed up blood before she slammed her heel into his nose, sending him through the floor. She blew out a chilled breath before she charged after him with a shrill cry. Callum and I were quick to follow her. 

“You son of a bitch!” She delivered a swift punch to his ribs, but he stood strong despite staggering back. “He’s just a child! All of them are!”

“Children are easily exploitable! That brat is no different bitch!” Withdrawing a gun, he shot at the woman but I jumped in front of her and cut the bullets with my sword. “I will not fail my mission again!”

“I will rip you apart for what you have done!” I held her back as she clawed at him. “Nim move!”

“We have to at least bring him back alive. Lady Serafina will want to question him…we need any information that he might have.”

“Fuck that!”

“I agree with Nim Celica…we have to take him back-” I flinched back as the man shot at us and we ducked behind various objects. I hated feeling defenseless like some mortal. My abilities needed to come back in full soon. I was ready to take him back, but if he kept this up I actually would kill him instead. The ship suddenly grinded to a halt, but the sudden force made us launch into the air. That bastard took the opportunity to launch himself at the smurf. She turned just as he grabbed her by the throat. 

I flung myself over as the zero gravity activated and punched him once more in the jaw. The woman kneed him in the stomach before Callum came over and slammed his elbow into his nose. He roared and took a hidden blade from his leg and stabbed Callum in the shoulder. Spinning through the air, the four of us finally settled on the ceiling, and we were once again in a brutal fight. 

This mortal would have never stood a chance if the three of us had our full abilities. I could feel my electricity slowly breaking through, but I could not risk it on this ship. The old fashioned way was perfectly fine with me. Morlo struck out at me, but I threw his arm down and two tapped him in the face before Callum followed up with his own punches. Morlo took a few but so did we as he proved to be a competent fighter despite our strange area of combat. The woman advanced on him too with her own blows and kicks. Her abilities seemed to be coming back as she wielded an ice dagger in her hands. I gave her a quick look before she tossed a pair to myself and Callum, and I blocked a strike to my face from Morlo. 

“The Light will taste defeat at the hands of my master! First however, I will break her spirit with the deaths of her precious Supernovas!” 

The man was a crazed lunatic as his strikes became more and more powerful by the second. His eyes were wide and crazed and saliva was spewing from his mouth. There was something in his eyes as Callum and the woman both charged at him. There was more than a growing sense of hatred, his pupils seemed to be changing. It would not be strange if he was changing in more ways than one. The Darkness seemed to be keen on making new creations. I would have to handle this quick if my suspicions were right. 

The zero gravity suddenly stopped and the four of us plummeted to the floor, but on the way down the three of us attacked Morlo as one. It was amazing how we could always be in sync when the chips were down. Callum struck towards his stomach, while the woman aimed for his heart and I went for his head. Morlo pivoted in the air and twisted just as Callum almost made contact with him. The quick turn almost made him collide his blade with smurfette, but she was quick to react and caught the blade and slammed it into his chest. I growled as he managed to dodge my swing to his head, but I continued my momentum and slashed his throat. 

He choked out some blood as we slammed through the ground and that is when he finally awakened. I didn’t react fast enough as a black mass consumed my face. I heard the others struggle next to me as we continued to crash through the ship. I was sure that I heard the others yell out for us before a harsh chill consumed my body and I realized that we were out in space now. My arms felt heavy and my sight came back and I saw the creature that Morlo became. 

The man was long gone and there was nothing but an amalgamation of various parts of different creatures mixed into the man. Most of the mass was a dark ball of liquid that was slimy to the touch and frankly I didn’t like that I could taste some it either as it wiggled across my face. Morlo or what was left of him was in the center of it. Only his head was visible, but his eyes had sunken deep into his skull and a shrill scream emerged from his mouth every few seconds. The thing that worried me the most was the fact that the mass seemed to be heading back to the ship and I could barely move. Glancing to my left, I could see Callum struggling to break me from its grasp. The woman was completely covered but she was fighting back against it. 

“Hey fucker!” I looked up as Nerissa was falling towards us with her ax raised over her head. Ka’seem was close behind her as they both collided with the mass, sending us further into space. Nerissa managed to sever Callum away from the beast and Ka’seem managed to dig me out. I spit out some of its disgusting gunk before moving towards the woman, but she didn’t need any help as the mass that had her started to freeze over. 

I flinched back as she shatter the mass around her and shards of ice flew out around us. Her face was red with anger as she willed her spear to her side. It was at this moment that I felt the familiar feeling of electricity coursing over me. Morlo’s face disappeared into the mass and that told me all I needed to know about finishing him off. 

Nerissa charged at the beast once more and we were all quick to follow her. The blue one managed to freeze its limbs as they swung at us with sharpened blades. Conjuring up some lightning, I managed to make a sword from it before I charged for the center of the mass. Morlo didn’t make it easy as one of the tendrils snaked out and caught me in the ribs. I coughed out a bit of blood as a chunk of my flesh stung from the wound. Such a wound would not bother me now or ever. I ducked and dodged as he shot out more tentacles at me, but Nerissa and Ka’seem came to my side and cut them away. 

The mass that was Morlo began to vomit out smaller masses that soon attacked us. Smurfette sprang into action alongside Callum and I, and the three of us made quick work of them. Although we seemed to be having the upper hand, Morlo seemed to grow larger and larger. His attacks became more targeted as well. Although our abilities were coming back at a good pace, we still needed to be cautious about the whole thing, but I wanted to finish this bastard because he had caused far too much pain. I stole a glance at the woman as she fought off the smaller enemies that were surrounding us. 

I hated feeling that this lesser being, this disgusting mortal had almost taken her away. She might piss me off, but that didn’t mean that some low life and his gaggle of imbeciles could finish her off. I roared as my sword blazed with raw power. Callum blasted the creature with his pure light and he recoiled in pain and agony and his core revealed itself. The woman floated above the mass and blasted it with her ice and his face twisted in pain as the entire thing began to freeze. I was so close to finishing this, but he was an annoying bastard. With a piercing roar, I was thrown back from him as my ears bled and my head began to spin. The others also flinched away from it, but Nerissa and Ka’seem recovered quickly. Nerissa gathered water into the air above her head before she formed a water snare for the creature, but he broke one of his tendrils free and pierced her through her chest. 

“NIM! HURRY THE FUCK UP!” 

It was easier said than done since I hated to fly and my ears were ringing, but feeling something around my waist, I looked down to see a vine. Ka’seem was almost as strong as me, so when he nodded at me and swung me towards Morlo. I knew that I had the force to knock this fucker into the next few galaxies. The others parted the way for me as Ka’seem slammed me into the mass. Callum’s light had still managed to weaken it, and it was still immobile from the ice and water from the girls. 

“N-No! I-I…the…the LIGHT!!!”

“You aren’t worthy to speak her name!” I cut through all of his disgusting body as my lightning consumed and broke him apart. The blade striking the top of his head, before I split him down the middle. Lightning crackled and sparks flew as we both roared, one of pain and one of determination and victory. His body cracked apart and exploded when I managed to cut all the way through him. We all were thrown away from him and I grunted as I managed to slam into the ship. My head was spinning as I looked over at the former mass. 

The others gathered around him and I held my head as I did as well. The only thing left of him was his split head, but the bastard still found the strength to talk.

“My…my master will…avenge me…destroy the…Light…” A broken chuckle escaped him as he began to disintegrate. “This is not…my end…you bast-”

“The Darkness has no need for weakness.” I rolled my neck as I looked down at his pathetic attempts to warn us. “They made you a monster because you were no longer needed. A brainless and weak creature that in the end still couldn’t finish the job.”

“F-Fuck you all!”

“No Morlo…you don’t get to have the last word for what you have done.” The woman moved up as her eyes glowed dangerously. Reaching a hand out, she grasped his skull and slammed it together once more. “Hell will not be your final resting place…no…I have something in mind for men like you…something far far worse than Hell…”

He yelled out more curses before the woman crushed his head into delicate shards of ice. With a final sigh, we watched as his pieces scattered away before returning to the ship, and at last we returned back to Lady Serafina’s temple to finally complete our mission. 

~~~

“You’re making this such a big deal…”

“I won’t have the brat in her home looking like…this…”

“Hey!”

“Shut up and move it…little shit…” Altair grumbled as I shoved him along through the halls of the temple. The trip back to the temple was mostly spent sleeping and feeling our energy come back, and thankfully nothing else. Now, we just had to make a final introduction. 

Opening the doors of her throne room, I inhaled deeply as I saw her looking up at the moon. She was covered in some bandages, but she looked fine from here…she always did honestly. Hearing the doors open, she turned to dazzle us with her smile. Altair even paused when she laid her eyes on him, but I just pushed him further in while the woman glared at me. 

“Altair…”

“You…you were the other voice that I heard…”

“Yes…I’m sorry if I was confusing you…” She crossed the room with slow steps and I frowned at that. She really needed to be resting and not worried about the brat, but I suppose that would be asking too much. “I just want to stress the point to you that you are safe.”

“I…I know…I feel…safe…”

“Good…” She smiled once more before she kneeled to his height and held her hand out to him. He hesitated for only a second before he took it. His face was a bright crimson as she brushed his hair back and held his cheek. “I will make sure that you never have to be scared and worried ever again. You deserve to live a life of peace and security, and I would like to give you that…for you and your grandfather.”

“W-What?! He’s alive?!” I glanced to the right of the room as a man walked into the room. He was quite young to be a grandfather. The pair ran at each other and embraced and I couldn’t help but smile at their joyous reunion. I guess the little brat did deserve a win after everything that he had been through, we all did honestly. 

“I trust that you all will get some rest?”

“I think we should be saying that to you instead, my lady.” I frowned at her before she laughed and patted my shoulder. “Seriously…”

“Oh my wolf…you worry far too much…all of you do…”

“With good reason, my lady.” Callum stepped up beside me before he looked over at Masami and her sister. “There is a lot that we have to discuss once we rest, my lady.”

“Yes I know Callum, but I want to thank all of you for protecting another one of my precious star children. You all fought valiantly and for that you have my eternal gratitude. Rest my Supernovas you have earned it. Until we meet again…”

I sighed as everyone began to break away and head home. I’d give Nerissa and Ka’seem a day before I show up to their temples and kick their asses. I needed to rest, but I didn’t want to leave her side yet. The woman smirked at me and I couldn’t help but send her one myself. I could admit that I was worried that we had almost lost her. It only meant that we still needed to train and grow ever stronger to make sure something like that didn’t happen again. 

This particular mission was over for now, but the Darkness always had more things up their sleeve. I knew that this was only the beginning and things were changing at a rapid pace. We would have to be more ready than ever, because now having the time to rest and think. Something in the air was making my hair stand on end. Something was happening and the feeling in the pit of my stomach was one that I hadn’t felt in…well it had been some time. I glanced at Lady Serafina to see if she felt what I felt, and the worry on her face confirmed it as she led Altair and his grandfather away. Ka’seem barely was out of the temple but his face changed as he stopped talking to Nerissa. I hadn’t seen him this pale in years, but the speed in which he left the temple and the raw energy that I felt suddenly shook my core. 

I ran outside the temple as I felt a familiar surge of power. Lady Serafina appeared at my side as we looked into the vastness of space. The battle…no…the war was far from over. Something had awaken and been unleashed into the cosmos again, something that should have stayed buried. This fight with the Darkness would now only get harder, fiercer, and more deadlier from this point on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[wqintraining]

NEW X-MEN: THE ANIMATED SERIES - SEASON 2, EPISODE 3

We open on the Xavier Institute in the middle of the night. Dressed in casual clothes, sipping a beer, and with a six-pack at his side, Cyclops is seated on the roof and looking up at the stars. We cannot see his eyes, but we do not need to to know the pain in them. 

"Room for one more?"

With the grace expected of a goddess, Storm floats up to the roof. 

Scott is unsure until Ororo warmly smiles at him. He can't help but smile back at her, and pull out another beer for her. Ororo takes it and sits down next to him. 

The two sip their drinks and stargaze together. 

SCOTT: "I miss her so much."

ORORO: "We all do. We can only hope that, wherever Jean is, whatever she's doing, she's happy."

Another moment of silence. 

SCOTT: "Thank you. For still talking to me."

ORORO: "You did an awful thing. But, unlike someone else, you know it was wrong. It was a mistake, one with grave, unforeseen consequences, but not a mistake I expect you to make again."

Scott's smile widens as he hangs his head and thanks her again. 

ORORO: "We'll get through these dark times the way we always have. As a team. When Jean eventually comes home, your wife and my sister returned to us, our family will be whole again. And then, we need not ever even speak the name, "Emma Frost" again. 

Scott chuckles. He hopes that day comes soon. 

Scott raises up his beer, and Storm clinks hers against it. 

We cut directly to a large home in Mississippi, where Rogue kisses her mother, Irene Adler on the cheek. 

The two are standing in the doorway. Rogue wouldn't look out of place on a runway, while Irene, a blind, frail old woman with gray hair in a bun, glasses to hide her eyes, and a sweet smile on her face, is dressed far more conservatively. 

Rogue says it's been nice spending time with her again, but she really does have to get back to Remy. Irene understands, a wife needs to be with her husband, but asks her to please never be a stranger again. 

ROGUE: "If you can avoid stayin out of any more trouble, that won't be a problem."

Rogue gives her mom one more kiss, before saying she loves her and flying off. 

Irene waves goodbye and shuts the door, only to immediately shift personas, a sneer overtaking her face as she cracks her wrinkly neck. 

Irene puts on her Destiny costume, grabs her sidearm, and dons her helmet, all the while growling about how much she hates Gambit, and how she, for the life of her, cannot understand what Anna-Marie sees in her. 

In the basement, Toad, Blob, Avalanche, and Pyro - the Brotherhood of Evil - are gathered. It's been a while since they were all together, and they're all catching up. Pyro just got out of jail after three years, and is positively itching to burn something again. Avalanche says he should count himself lucky. He was living on Genosha, and only wasn't there when everything went boom because he was getting drinks with Blob. Blob meanwhile has been in therapy. 

PYRO: "You're in therapy, mate?"

BLOB: "Mmhmm. You should consider it too, Pyro. For a Flatscan, Dr. Garrison is the best."

Toad laughs at this. 

TOAD: "Well, while you've been talking about your fee fees, I totally banged Husk!"

PYRO: "The X-Men girlie?"

AVALANCHE: "Isn't she a kid?"

TOAD: "She's 19!"

The other three exchange glances. 

AVALANCHE: "Oh. Well then I just don't believe you."

As Toad shouts back, he's quickly silenced as Destiny comes downstairs, the boys all terrified of her mere presence. 

Now that Rogue is gone, they can get down to business. Her wife has been in SHIELD custody for months now, and she refuses to tolerate that any longer. The four of them are to break into the prison she's being held in and bust her out. 

Blob wants Mystique free as much as they do, but he raises the obvious question: won't the X-Men come to stop them?

TOAD: "Eh, he's got a point, boss. You see who's on their team these days? I'm awesome, but I dunno if the rest of these guys are up to fighting them."

Pyro smacks Toad on the back of the head. 

DESTINY: "Yes, on your own, there is no future I see where you can succeed. This is why I've enlisted someone else to lead this mission."

AVALANCHE: "And who's…that?"

The Brotherhood all strike looks of disbelief as they glance up the staircase. 

The camera pans up a short, muscular, excessively hairy man in a white tank top and jeans, chomping a cigar. 

LOGAN: "Sup, bubs?"

Back at the school, Cessily and Roxy are hanging out in Bling!’s dorm room. The two are seated on Roxy’s bed, her side of the room decorated with band posters, with instruments all over the place. Cessily has headphones on and is listening to a hip-hop track. She’s clearly enjoying it, bobbing her head along with it. Roxy is happy to just watch her reactions until the song finishes. 

Cessily takes the headphones off and tells Roxy that the song was amazing! Roxy plays it casual and says it’s not perfect yet and her mom and dad are still working out the kinks. 

ROXY: “Aaaand, once they have, I may have talked them into letting you audition in front of them for a spot as a background dancer in the music video.” 

Cessily freaks out with excitement and anxiety. That’s so cool, but also does she really think she can do this? Sofia’s the dancer, not her. Roxy assures her she’s seen Cessily’s cheer routines, and she should be perfect. And if she isn’t, her parents already agreed to let her be an extra no matter what. 

Cessily practically squeals with joy. 

CESSILY: “Roxanne Washington, you are the coolest girl in the world.” 

ROXY: “Girl, I know that already.” 

She smooches Cessily. To her surprise, Cessily suddenly shrinks in her seat, partially literally, as her face falls. Roxy questions what’s wrong, with Cessily explaining that she’s so amazing, and this opportunity is incredible, but…

CESSILY: “What will people say? Won’t everyone hate that there’s a freak in the background? Dancers in music videos are supposed to be hot.” Cessily partially melts onto the floor. “Not sure how *anyone* could look at me and think that.” 

Roxy holds Cessily, not caring one bit that Cessily is mostly goop right now, and tells her that, first off, she’s been starring in her parents’ videos since she was little. Anyone who had a problem with Mutants checked out a long time ago, and they’re still riding high as hip-hop royalty. And as for Cess herself…

ROXY: “You’re stunning. One of a kind. The most beautiful metal in the world.” 

Cessily liqufies even further, but this time with a smile creeping across her face. 

CESSILY: “You mean that?” 

ROXY: “I never lie.” 

Roxy detaches a piece of diamond from herself and sticks it into Cessily, tickling her with it. 

Laughing hysterically uncontrollably, Cessily jovially tells her girlfriend to stop. Roxy only joins in the laughter. 

We cut from Roxy laughing to Roxy shouting, as Bling! and her squad run drills in the Danger Room. The rest of Roxy’s squad consists of Pixie, Match, Indra, Loa, and Network. They are not doing well, with Roxy unable to hit the target circling her with her diamond shards, Loa unable to catch the target she’s supposed to disintegrate through, Match running out of steam before he can finish melting his assigned beam, Indra’s armor form unable to withstand the drone attacks it faces, and Pixie just getting scared of the drones she’s supposed to be fighting and flying headfirst into a wall. 

PIXIE, rubbing her bike helmet on the floor: “Aww, thanks helmet. You’re always there for me.” 

The only member of the squad who’s performing well at all is Network, who’s using her ability to interface with technology to shut down the other tests one by one. 

Above the Danger Room, the kids aren’t the only ones who are frustrated. Scott is on his phone, shouting at the top of his lungs. 

SCOTT: “Your vacation is over, Sunspot! Get back here, now! Northstar says he wants your spot, and I WILL give it to him!” 

Scott hands up and takes a breath as he joins the rest of the teachers present, Hank, who’s squad this is, Iceman, who wanted to come see his oldest friend, and Emma, who was curious to see what Bling! had since she’s spending so much time with her squad now. 

Beast knows it’s not what she was hoping to hear, but, no, Bling! Is, fittingly, quite close to Mercury’s skill level currently, not the rest of her little prodigies. 

BEAST: “Of course, there’s no shame in one’s strength being in the lab.” 

ICEMAN, obnoxiously eating a banana: “Yeah, we wouldn’t be able to do anything without you science dorks.” Bobby swallows. “Good thing to be getting your seat nice and warmed up for her.” 

BEAST, unamused: “Mmhmm.” 

Suddenly, Network is blasted across the Danger Room and into the opposite wall, hitting her head and getting knocked unconscious. 

As everyone freaks out, Scott orders Beast to shut the Danger Room down and tell his kids to stay bacl. He questions what happened, but Beast isn’t sure. Before she ever set foot in the Danger Room, he’d made sure Network’s powers would never trigger any defensive response. 

Scott pinches his forehead. He’s gonna go make sure Sarah is okay, and help calm the others, who are still visibly freaked out downstairs, but he wants Beast to make figuring out what happened and fixing it his top priority. No more kids are getting hurt inside these walls, dammit. 

Beast understands, but Iceman wants to help. He may not understand any of this stuff, but there has to be someway an Omega can be useful. Besides, it’ll give them more of a chance to catch up. 

BEAST: “Oh, that’s really not necessary.” 

ICEMAN: “Come on, I don’t mind, it’s all chill.” 

The others all groan at that. 

EMMA, putting a hand on Scott’s shoulder: “Well, while you boys get to work, I have some new students to greet.” 

SCOTT, swatting Emma’s hand off of him: “New students? I haven’t received any reports about any. Who’s bringing them?” 

EMMA, clearly displeased with Scott’s attitude: “Oh, don’t worry about that. They have their own means of transportation.” 

At an airport, a private jet lands. With a driver and limo waiting for them, attendants seeing to their luggage, and a carpet rolled out, five identical blonde teenage girls, sporting sunglasses, exit their place and enter their car. The limo rolls out and drives across New York City, until arriving at the Xavier Institute. 

The girls get out and step through the school’s gates. As they remove their sunglasses and put them in their purses in unison, their eyes look like they’re all judging the school. 

ESME: “This seems…” 

SOPHIE: “...adequate.” 

As the five strut toward the school itself, the bombshells draw the attention of the students who are presently outside. For one student, however, simply looking at these mysterious new girls isn’t enough, as he rushes up to them. 

DJ, with a cocky shithead smirk on his face: “Hello, ladies! You must be new here. I’m Mark. I basically run this place. Want me to show you around?” 

The girls smile as their eyes glow a familiar shade of blue in unison. 

“Go jump in a well.” 

Mark’s eyes flash blue for just a second. 

DJ, with the dopiest dumbass grin on his face: “OK!” 

DJ runs off to go jump in a well. 

(AUTHOR’S NOTE: DJ was never seen again.) 

As the girls laugh among themselves, they’re greeted by Emma. 

EMMA: “The Stepford Cuckoos. A pleasure to meet you all.” 

Pointing at them one by one, she makes sure she knows who is who. In the center of their arrangement is Sophie, at her sides are Esme and Phoebe, and on the ends are Celeste and Irma. 

Emma notes that, with her now teaching Jean’s telepathy class, she’s gotten a chance to know an obnoxious, arrogant young man who thinks he’s the most powerful telepath of his generation. She hopes that her expectations for these five remarkable, well-bred young women are rightly placef, and they’ll be able to crush his dreams. 

THE CUCKOOS: “We settle for nothing but the best, Ms. Frost.” 

EMMA: “Girls after my own heart.” 

Emma volunteers to show them around and introduce them to her current prized students, but they tell her that won’t be necessary. They’ve already ripped the knowledge of the campus’ layout out of the other students’ heads, and they already have a very good idea of who they want to be friends with. 

Emma pays no mind as they all smile obviously evily. 

In the Danger Room, Beast is going around opening to panels to examine the system’s inner workings. He remarks to himself about how this room has always been such a scientific achievement, always updated to be on the cutting edge of progress. Professor Xavier truly is a genius like no other. He hopes he can live up his standards on its maintenance. 

While Beast says all this, Bobby stands behind him, clearly not paying attention and lost in his own little world. Hank notices. 

HANK: “Bobby, are you even paying attention, or am I speaking to the air?” 

BOBBY: “Sorry, sorry. Yeah, the professor was great…mostly. But come on! I wanna hear about what you’ve been up to, fuzz. Get it? Rhymes with cuz? And you’re fuzzy?” 

Hank pinches his nose and tells Bobby that between teaching and his research, he hasn’t had time to “be up” to anything. Not anything he’d understand at least. 

Bobby questions why it seems like Hank isn’t happy to have him around. Didn’t he miss him? As Hank starts to answer, he presses a series of buttons on a panel, which results in a trap door opening and the two men falling through it. 

In Scott’s office, he’s hard at work as ever when Emma slinks in. She tells him to cancel his non-existent plans for the night, because she got them seats for the grand opening of the hottest new restaurant in the city. Scott flatly tells her he isn’t interested as he continues to type. 

Emma questions if he really wants to do this whole dance AGAIN. She sees how he looks at her, she knows what he thinks about her, and she sure as Hell knows how she made him feel, so what’s the problem? 

Scott doesn’t even respond. 

EMMA: “Oh, is this about poor Jean? Still feeling sorry for how you betrayed her? Genosha’s destruction isn’t the only thing which would have happened without us. The second you rightfully obliterated Stryker, Jean’s fate was already sealed. Cassandra Nova had seen to that. She feels no guilt for what she’s done, not as we do. Unless you wish to tell me that you regret killing Stryker, and that it wasn’t the most freeing moment of your life, then you have nothing to brood over, and no reason to resist what you desire.” 

Scott stands, not changing his expression. 

SCOTT: “This isn’t you, Emma. I’ve gotten to see a different side of you, a side I care for, respect, and am grateful to have around…but this? Chasing after me when I’m not interested? That’s beneath you. So whatever game you’re playing, drop it.” 

Scott heads for his door, only to stop momentarily as Emma responds. 

EMMA: There’s no game. Not currently. I’m just looking for someone to play with.” 

After hesitating for a moment, Scott exits. 

Back in Bling!’s room, with class having gotten out early due to the accident with Network, she’s jamming out on one of her guitars. Across the room, her roommate, Pixie, has puffy, pink-furred, over-sized headphones on, is watching one of Sofia’s makeup tutorials and taking notes, her facorite stuffed animal, Mr. Dogbear, “watching” with her. Pixie’s side of the room is filled with flowers and many other stuffed animals. 

When Roxy takes a quick water break, there are multiple simultaneous knocks on their door. Roxy puts down her guitar and goes to see who it is, opening her door to reveal the Cuckoos all smiling at her. 

ROXY, confused: “Uh, can I help you?” 

SOPHIE: “You’re Roxanne Washington. Daughter of Roy and Angel Washington. I’m Sophie Cuckoo. These are my sisters Phoebe, Esme, Celeste, and Irma. We’re going to be best friends now.” 

ROXY, weirded out: “Riiiiight. Listen, it’s cool you guys are fans but you can’t just do…this. How about you come sit with my friends and I at lunch tomorrow? Sounds good? Good.” 

Roxy starts closing the door, but Esme keeps it open with her high-heel. 

PHOEBE: “We’re going to be famous Mutant pop stars one day. Like Dazzler. It only makes sense we get along.” 

Just as Roxy is started to get freaked out by these girls, Pixie notices what’s going on and flutters over to them, taking her headphones off. She tells the Cuckoos their outfits and hair are really pretty, only for the Cuckoos to flash their eyes blue, and making Pixie’s flash blue for a second. Pixie spins around and, from her perspective, all of her stuffed animals have been mangled and torn apart. 

Pixie screams hysterically as she flies over to them in tears. 

PIXIE: “Mr. Dogbear! Everyone!” 

As the Cuckoos giggle, Roxy questions what the Hell is wrong with them…only for her eyes to flash blue. An instant later, she’s pointing and laughing at Megan with her new best friends. 

ROXY: “This is hilarious.” 

IRMA: “We knew you’d think so.” 

At a SHEILD prison in Arizona, two uniformed agents are having coffee in the break room. One of the guys mentions that they need to go feed the inmates. The other guy groans. He really doesn’t want Mutie duty again. 

SHIELD AGENT #1: “Heh. Duty.” 

SHIELD AGENT #2: “Real mature, Dave.” 

The other agent doesn’t want to have to go near the Mutants either, so they play rock, paper, scissors for who gets to feed the human prisoners, and who has to feed the Mutant prisoners. 

Naturally, Dave loses. 

Mumbling and grumbling the whole time, Dave brings a food cart to the Mutant section of the prison. Along with season one villains such as Mastermind and Sabretooth, we get cameos from Lady Deathstrike, Black Tom Cassidy, Frenzy, and Nanny & Orphan Maker, all of whom are in SHIELD custody. 

Simultaneously afraid and disgusted by all of them, he eventually arrives at Mystique. Her, he takes an extra moment on. He doesn’t get her. She was one of the good ones, helping the government capture dangerous Mutants. Why would she throw away the good thing they had going by picking a fight with the X-Men? 

Mystique laughs as she seductively saunters over to the agent, a glass-quartz wall separating them. 

MYSTIQUE: “Well, David, it’s really quite simple. Capturing Mutants was business. Desiring the death of your entire race? That’s what I dream of.” 

The agent snorts. She should recheck the scoreboard. Mutants are the ones who look like they’re on the way out. 

MYSTIQUE: “Perhaps. But your numbers are dwindling too. For instance, you’re about to be crushed to death.” 

SHIELD AGENT #1: “Huh? What are you…?”

Blob crashes through the cieling and crushes Dave to death, leaving nothing behind but blood and gore underneath him. 

BLOB: “Ooph. That hurt my butt.” He dusts himself off and stands up. “Rescue team’s here, Mystique!” 

Mystique speaks as the rest of the Brotherhood drop down from their plane. 

MYSTIQUE: “Of course you are. Just as she said you would be.” 

 In the school cafeteria, Cessily, Sofia, Sooraya, Brian, and Laura are at their usual table. Sofia is frustrated. She’s been pumping out more content than she has since she got here since she’s no longer spending so much time with Julian, but that jerk is all people are commenting about. They just HAVE to know how the “Mutant Prom King and Prom Queen” are doing. 

SOFIA: “It wasn’t even a prom!” 

Before this can be dwelled on too much, Roxy enters the cafeteria alongside the Cuckoos. Cessily enthusiastically calls over to her girlfriend to introduce her to her new friends, while Laura questions who these new girls are. 

LAURA: “They’re cute…but they don’t smell right.” 

 Roxy and the Cuckoos turn their attention to the squad and laugh, before finding a different table. 

CESSILY, confused and hurt: “Huh?” 

BRIAN: “Hey, don’t panic. Maybe they just madea funny joke, and she wants some time alone with the girls.” 

SOORAYA: “You panicked at the dance. I don’t know romance, but I know you can’t become afraid of everything.” 

CESSILY: “Yeah. I guess. Maybe you’re –”

Before Cessily can finish that sentence, Sofia picks her up with her winds and flies the two of them over toward the Cuckoos and Bling!

SOFIA: “She does NOT get to do this too!” 

CESSILY: “Sofia, wait, I don’t want to…!” 

Cessily trails off as they land. 

CELESTE: “Oh, look, Roxy. It’s your girlfriend and…” 

SOPHIE: “Sofia Mantega. The most popular girl in this school. Of course, without your man, that won’t last.” 

SOFIA: “Who do you think you are?!” 

ESME: “Careful, Sophie. Get her too mad and she’ll try to kill us.” 

Bringing up the Shaw incident partially shuts Sofia down. 

ROXY: “They’re the Stepford Cuckoos. And I’m trading up.” 

CESSILY: “Wh…what do you mean?” 

Roxy laughs. 

ROXY: “Sofia gets it. It’s why she brought you over here. You two are a matching set.” She mockingly waves at Cessily. “Buh bye.” 

Cessily starts crying, as the Cuckoos cackle. 

ROXY: “Honestly, I was just curious what you’d be like in bed. There are no other freaks as freaky as you out there. One of a kind.” 

Cessily breaks down completely, sobbing and begging Roxy not to mean this, at which point Sofia utter a somber sigh and flies them both away, hugging her. 

SOFIA: “It is going to be, Cessily. I will get you through this. I know what you need.” 

In the school’s gymnasium, Scott is playing basketball with two members of his squad, Quill and Specter. The game of course is brought to a sudden end with Quill accidentally pops the ball on one of his spikes. While Specter gets mad at him cause that was HIS ball, Scott walks away to take a call. 

On the other end of the line, we see Maria Hill, acting commander of SHIELD, on the Helicarrier. She informs him that Mystique is presently being broken out of prison by the Brotherhood of Evil, and the agents they have stationed there won’t be able to hold them off for long. They require immediate assistance. 

Scott questions why they can’t handle this themselves. Maria answers that “The X-Men deal with Mutant problems” was the deal their predecessors made, and she intends for him to stick to it. 

MARIA: “Not to mention, there’s someone with them we can’t do anything about.” 

Scott raises an eyebrow. 

We hardcut to a new Blackbird being geared up for takeoff. The only ones on board are Cyclops and Storm, and Scott is livid. 

STORM: “You don’t wish to bring the others?”” 

CYCLOPS: “Kitty and Laura have enough on their plates. If Logan’s actually cracked, they don’t need to know. And we don’t need Bobby for this…or Emma. You shouldn’t have any problem dealing with the Brotherhood while Logan and I have a talk.” 

STORM, calmly: “You had me, “or Emma”.”

The Blackbird takes off, heading for Arizona. 

Iceman and Beast wake up suspended in mid-air in darkness, their arms and legs wrapped in metal cables. 

Bobby notices where they are and asks if it’s weird that was the best he’s slept in ages. Beast ignores him and notes he has no idea where they are. He’s looked over the Danger Room’s schematics a million times, and he’s never seen anything about a lower level to it. 

BOBBY: “According to Cyclops, the Professor hid a sister from us. Not too hard to assume he’d hide a scary basement or two.” 

BEAST: “Hmm. Touche.” 

Bobby says he’ll get them out in a flash and tries to freeze the cables, but no matter how hard he pushes, the ice melts. Hank tells him it’s no use. Between this and what happened to Network, he can only hypothesize a virus has caused the Danger Room to resist being examined or tinkered with, and with its ability to counter every X-Man’s powers, there’s nothing they can do. Not till someone comes looking for them, at least. 

BOBBY: “Soooo, we’re stuck here?” 

HANK: “That’s what I said, yes.”

BOBBY: “Right…so what fur brush have you been using? Cause I could definitely use it for my hair.” 

Hank groans in annoyance. 

At the Grindhouse, Cessily is crying her heart out to Sofia as they both have coffee. She just doesn’t understand why Roxy would do this. Sofia says she can’t understand herself, but maybe that Quentin kid has some points about people like her and Julian. 

Cessily takes a deep breath in. She questions if Sofia is going to fight Bling! for her, with Sofia laughing that, no, she isn’t Noriko. Surge fighting Hellion didn’t make her feel better. Doing what she loves with a friend, and remembering that’s what’s important, did. So, they’re going to put together an Xavier’s cheer routine to do together to post on her Instagram and TikTok. 

Cessily slightly smiles and says that’s a sweet idea, but she can’t. She’s a freak. She can’t put herself online. Sofia slams her hands down on the table. She insists that Cessily cannot listen to the cruel things Roxy said about her. She is beautiful, and she promises all of her Sofia Stans will say so as well. 

CESSILY: “I don’t know. Also, I thought you were calling your fans Wind Babies.” 

SOFIA: “People didn’t like it.” 

CESSILY: “I didn’t either. I don’t like tihs name either.” 

SOFIA: “Really? I am off my branding game.” 

Now working here as a waitress, Noriko approaches her friends. 

NORIKO: “Hey, Sooraya let me know what happened. Said she was telling me so I wouldn’t say anything insensitive or dumb. Anyway, you wanna know what I think you should do?” 

CESSILY: “Nori, I appreciate the thought, but I’m pretty sure whatever you’re about to say is going to make me feel infinitely worse.” 

NORIKO, slamming her hands down on the table: “YOU GO UP TO THIS NEW BITCHY BIMBO BRIGADE, YOU GIVE THEM A PIECE OF YOUR MIND, AND YOU DEMAND TO KNOW WHAT THEY DID TO YOUR GIRL! THEY’RE MUTANTS! THEY PROBABLY USED THEIR POWERS ON HER!” 

SOFIA, sighing: “Noriko, I’m helping her move on. Accepting the facts is the only way she will–”

CESSILY: “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you’re right, Nori. Yeah. The Cuckoos? I’m gonna figure out what they did to Roxy and save her from them!” 

NORIKO: “Hell yeah!” 

The two high-five as Sofia embarassedly put her face in her hands. 

In the SHIELD prison, SHIELD agents fight a desperate, losing battle against the Brotherhood as they make their escape from the secure facility. The agency’s marksmen are useless as the Blob acts as a bulletproof wall to protect his team, while their martial artists are no match for the supernaturally agile Toad and Mystique, Avalanche and Pyro using their localized earthquakes and flamethrowers to ensure none of their enemies can even stay still. 

This isn’t a fight. It’s a massacre. 

All the while, Logan stands back and does nothing but seethe. 

TOAD, taking a pistol from an agent whose neck he just broke and mockingly bowing as he hands it to Mystique: “Madame.” 

Mystique takes it from him and, with a sadistic grin on her face, swiftly headshots the entire next round of agents to come for them. 

They’re almost out the front door, when, at last, they’re stopped in their tracks by the appearance of Cyclops and Storm. 

Blob and Avalanche shrink a little, nervous about taking them on, while Pyro and Toad appear excited to throw down. Logan is sneering right at Scott. 

MYSTIQUE: “Cyclops. I’m glad you’re here. I’ve been waiting for another chance to kill you. And, would you believe it: there’s someone who wants to kill you even more?” 

Logan steps forward and pulls out his claws. 

ORORO: “Logan, do not do this.” 

LOGAN: “Sorry, Stormy. This isn’t about you.” 

As the two teams stare each other down, Cyclops fires the first shot. 

In the school’s dance studio, the Cuckoos are performing a routine to the most soulless pop song imaginable, with Bling! cheering them on. 

As the song enters its final verse, however, their speakers are unplugged by a pissed off Mercury. 

The Cuckoos and Roxy all ground around and taunt Cessily, but she isn’t backing down. She doesn’t know who these girls are or what their powers are, but she knows Roxy would never act like she’s doing, and she would never, ever enjoy trashy music like she was just listening to. 

CELESTE: “Aww, can someone not accept they were just used and tossed aside?” 

PHOEBE: “Like a tin can?” 

The Cuckoos cackle. 

Cessily holds herself together, hard as it is for her, as she says she doesn’t care if they’re telepaths or just have mind control, but they’re going to undo it NOW. 

Roxy gets right in Cessily’s face. She tells her to face facts. She was never into her cause she’s a loser. Although the Cuckoos did get ONE thing wrong. 

ROXY: “We never slept together. Girl was a damn cheerleader, but she’s still a virgin. She’s as freaky on the inside as she is on the outside.” 

As the Cuckoos all start mocking Cessily, she  just utters, ”Please”, as she tenses up, grits her teeth, and clenches her fists. 

SOPHIE: “I don’t believe she’s gotten the message yet.” 

ESME: “Let’s teach her this time, Sophie.” 

As Cessily struggles not to let her rage get the best of her, her eyes flash blue. She roars and stretches out her entire body to attack the Cuckoos, only for the quintuplets to effortlessly blast her away and nearly knock her unconscious with a single psy-blast. 

Roxy hollers as the Cuckoos stand over the half-way melted Cessily. 

IRMA: “You can believe what you’d like.” 

CELESTE: “But we hope you get the message.” 

SOPHIE: “Never fuck with us.” 

Cessily cries as she further melts into the floor, as her tormentors strut away…only for her eyes to widen upon hearing what Roxy is shouting. 

ROXY: “Ms. Moonstar! Wherever you are, we’ve got a problem! One of your kids just tried to kill the new girls!” 

Cessily belts out a high-pitch screech of despair. 

Back at the SHEILD base, the X-Men and Brotherhood’s fight has begun. 

Storm is battling Mystique, Toad, Pyro, Avalanche, and Blob all at once. With what Storm can do limited by the confined space they’re in, Mystique and Toad’s taunts and difficult to hit natures, Pyro being able to manipulate his flames to move in any direction, Avalanche staying behind Blob, who’s durable enough to even tank Storm’s attacks, as he launches his seismic waves at her, they’re able to keep her busy, if nothing else. Still, Storm clearly has them all on defense, and it’s evident that they really do need all five of them to be a match for her. 

While the Brotherhood are able to successfully keep the big gun busy, the main event of Cyclops vs Logan takes place further down the hall. For all of Scott’s skill and precision, he struggles to land a hit on Logan with his beams, while Logan jumps around his attacks and picks key moments to move in and kick Scott around. 

Scott questions what the Hell Logan is doing, with Logan spitting back that he’d have loved to ask him the same thing before it was too late. 

SCOTT: “Wiat…is this about Jean?!” 

LOGAN: “What else would it be about?!” 

Logan manages to slash Cyclops across the chest and, while he’s stunned, kicks him to the floor. 

LOGAN: “She trusted you!” 

Scott can only cringe. He knows he cannot defend himself. 

In Dani’s classroom, Mercury continues to cry as she’s chewed out for attacking The Cuckoos, with no knowledge of how she was manipulated into doing so. Dani is starting to think therapy should be mandatory for every kid who went out to fight the sentinels, because she knows they’re good kids, but they just keep on acting out. 

DANI: “Two weeks detention, Cessily. I’m sorry.” 

CESSILY: “WHAT?!” 

DANI: “You didn’t nearly destroy the school like Noriko, so you’re getting off easy by comparison. But you can’t do this again. No matter how much you’re hurting.” 

Cessily sniffles.

CESSILY: “I’m sorry, Miss Moonstar. I don’t know what came over me. It’s like one second I was just angry, and the next, I felt like I HAD to hurt them.” 

DANI: “I know, but…” Dani trails off as she has a thought. “Cessily, you said Roxanne only started acting differently after The Cuckoos showed up, right?” 

Cessily nods and tells her that just this morning, Roxy was arranging with her parents for her to audition for their next music video, but she guesses that was a lie. 

Dani, without another word, proceeds to give a call to Roxy’s father. We only see Dani’s side of the conversation, but all she does is check to see if Roxy was lying or not. Of course, she was not. 

With Cessily still deeply confused as to what’s going on, Dani hangs up and hops onto her computer. Cessily questions what she’s doing. Dani pulls up The Cuckoos’ file and the audience gets to see two of Emma’s notes about them: 1) They’re among the most gifted telepaths she’s ever met, perhaps on the same level as Captain Britain, and 2) They have sociopathic tendencies. 

Dani smacks her desk. 

DANI: “God dammit.” 

CESSILY: “What’s going on?” 

Dani gets up and tells Cessily to follow her. She’s not the one getting detention today. 

Iceman and Beast are still stuck in the under-level of the Danger Room. Bobby asks Hank if he’s seen any good movies lately. Hank doesn’t answer. Bobby asks Hank if he’s built anything cool lately. Hank just sighs. Bobby, starting to get a little pissed at his old friend’s attitude, begins whistling obnoxiously. 

Hank tries to ignore it, but the longer Bobby goes, the louder he gets. And, eventually, Hank snaps. 

HANK: “Would you quit it with that infernal, brain-rattling whistling?!” 

BOBBY, instantly shooting back: “Only if you tell me what your problem is! You’ve had a stick up your butt ever since I got here. What, have you come so far as a scientist that I’m too low brow for you now? You’re too good for me, so you don’t want me around?” 

HANK: “No, I DON’T want you around, but it has nothing to do with me.” 

BOBBY: “Then why?!” 

Hank sighs. 

HANK: “When I got the call from Jean that the school would be re-opening and the X-Men would be re-forming, I was thrilled. I thought it would be just like the old days, but better. But…they aren’t. They’re so different, I’m not even sure I fully comprehend them. What I understand is that we’re moving in the wrong direction. And anyone who’s on this ship when it reaches its endpoint will be worse for it.” 

There’s a pause as the atmosphere becomes more somber. 

BOBBY: “Look, if this is about Scott and Emma–” 

HANK: “Not just them, but…yes. And please, do not try and defend their actions to me. As far as I’m concerned, the man who’d cheat on Jean and who’d murder a woman, even a monster like Cassandra Nova, in cold blood, is not the Cyclops we grew up with.” 

Another pause.

BOBBY: “So what are YOU still doing here then?” 

BEAST: “I’m seeing out the rest of the school-year for my students. I’ve already arranged for Forge to come and take my place come September.” 

BOBBY: “Damn. It’ll suck not having you around, but I’m not going anywhere.” Bobby chuckles. “And hey, when things do work out for the best, I’ll be able to laugh in your face that you were wrong about something for once.” 

Beast smiles remorsefully. 

BEAST: “I’ve never hoped for you to make stupid jokes at my expense more.” 

Storm continues to battle the Brotherhood, but the fight doesn’t last long. 

Toad hops on Storm’s back and sniffs her hair, poorly flirting with her as he asks what shampoo she uses, because it’s making his heart go crazy, only for her to blow him away with a fierce wind, sending him flying into Pyro, and launching them both down the extended hallway headfirst into a wall, knocking them both out. Without Pyro as backup and Toad’s distractions, Avalanche is defenseless as Storm takes him down with a single lightning blast. 

STORM: “Dammit.” 

Ororo realizes in the middle of the action, Mystique abandoned her team and made a run for it. She goes to fly after her, but Blob attacks. Storm proceeds to just lift him off the ground, leaving him to wiggle his legs, as he’s left helpless. 

BLOB: “Hey! You let me go, now! I’ll knock your head off!” 

STORM: “Fred, weren’t you in therapy?” 

BLOB: “I still am! Just here supporting my family.” 

STORM: “You may have meant well, but this destructive behavior under any circumstances will only ever set you back. You need to cease being a super-villain if you wish to make progress. Do you understand?” 

BLOB: “I…you…yeah. Sorry, Storm.” 

STORM: “It’s okay.” 

As Fred smiles, Ororo grabs his face and electrocutes him at point blank range until he’s unconscious.

With the boys all down, Storm calls out to Cyclops, who’s barely holding his own against Logan in hand-to-hand combat, that she’s pursuing Mystique, and flies off. 

As Logan and Scott continue to fight, their conversation continues. Scott tells Logan that he knows he messed up. No matter what he was feeling toward Emma at that moment, he shouldn’t have betrayed Jean. 

SCOTT: “And if you think I haven’t been beating myself up for what I did every second since it happened, then you don’t know me at all.” 

LOGAN: “Guilt doesn’t make things any better, Bub.” 

SCOTT: “No, it doesn’t…but isn’t there also a reason she chose me over you?” 

As Logan loses his cool completely at that and attacks more like an animal than the master martial artist he is, Scott is finally able to land a blast on him and put distance between them. 

Scott tells Logan that he knows he loved Jean just as much as he does, and that Jean loved him back, but while Scott may have hurt her worse, Logan hurt her first. 

SCOTT: “Or do you think she didn’t end things with you for good because she couldn’t stand your attitude? Your jealousy, your sense of “ownership”, and the way you’d run off on her for “business” on a dime. Face it, Logan. Neither of us was good enough for her. Neither of us was ever good enough for her.”

Veins practically pop out of Logan's head as he hears all this. Once Scott is done, however, Logan finally gets a hold of his temper. 

Both unsure of what to say, but their fight over, the two simply stand where they are. 

The Cuckoos are getting moved into their dorm room, with Bling! helping them decorate. They're all laughing about something when Dani appears in their doorway, Mercury nervously hiding behind her. 

Sophie asks if Cessily has received her punishment and has been brought here to offer an apology, but Dani tells her to cut the crap. She knows what they did. 

The Cuckoos play dumb, but Dani doesn't play around with this kind of thing and uses her powers on them. While we don't see what they see, Dani subjects them to their worst fears. As they cry and scream, Roxy threatens Dani, while Dani orders the Cuckoos to undo the brainwashing. 

The Cuckoos quickly relent in the face of a challenge, as bullies so often do, and free Roxy from their control. Dani turns her powers off, and the sisters collapse on their beds. 

CESSILY, sheepishly: "Roxy?"

Roxy groans as she rubs her aching head. For a moment, it seems like she doesn't remember anything, but her mind is just playing catch up.

Roxy runs into Cessily's arms as she apologizes profusely, but Cessily is just crying happy tears none of this was real and that she has her back. 

Roxy spins around, not letting go of Cess, and shouts at the Cuckoos that they're all fucking psychopaths. 

Roxy leads Cess out of there. 

CELESTE, holding herself: "Sociopaths, actually."

PHOEBE: "People always get those mixed up."

IRMA: "We're in trouble, aren't we?"

DANI: "Ooooh, big time."

Scott and Logan stand next to each other, backs against the wall of the SHIELD base hallway. 

It's silent at first, save for the occasional sniffle or cough, until Logan speaks. 

LOGAN: "So…seriously? Frost?"

Scott laughs. He knows it seems crazy, but he's gotten to know her better than anyone, and she understands parts of him he never even knew existed. Parts of him which were repressed for so long. 

Intending to insult himself, Scott says he might actually have more in common with her than he ever did with Jean. Still, that doesn't change anything. He isn't taking their relationship any further. 

Another brief silence. 

LOGAN: "Why the Hell not?"

Logan says there are few things he cares about less than the love life of Scott Summers if Jean isn't involved, but she clearly means something to him, and he did what he did for a reason. He acted on instinct, and instinct? That's who you are. 

More silence. 

SCOTT: "Are you just saying all of this so you have no competition when Jean comes home?"

LOGAN: "That depends. Do you agree?"

Before this subject can be further discussed, Storm returns. Mystique got away…again. 

She questions what Logan was doing here, and the succinct answer just makes her pinch her forehead over how stupid her boys are. He *really* helped break free one of their greatest enemies just so he could fight Scott. 

Logan makes a point that he didn't actually kill anyone here, he just didn't stop the Brotherhood from killing the cops who'd be rounding them all up if Charles hadn't made a convenient arrangement with them. Storm tells him Maria Hill is still going to want him locked up just for being here and helping Mystique escape, but Scott assures them both he won't let that happen. X-Men don't just turn over their own. 

Scott and Logan fist clasp. 

In the cafeteria, Cessily and Roxy are having dinner. Roxy feels so incredibly violated by what the Cuckoos did, but she's more concerned about if Cess is okay. She knows she didn't mean any of what she said, right?

There's no doubt in Cessily's mind. Now that she has her girlfriend back, everything is perfect. For her. She's going to do everything she can to make sure Roxy is okay too. She's heard a bunch of kids are going to see a guy named Dr. Garrison, a Mutant ally therapist, lately, so maybe they can give him a call. 

Roxy shakes her head, saying she doesn't want that.

ROXY: "But, seriously, if after all this you don't want to be in my rents' music video, it's chill. You gotta take care of yourself first."

Cessily giggles and, under her breath, remarks that "Nori actually brought it back." 

Picking her head up, Cessily says she's more confident than ever that she wants to be in the video. If it took literal brainwashing to make the coolest girl on Earth think she isn't hot, and girls like the Cuckoos are the only ones who disagree, then she has nothing to worry about. 

CESSILY: "Maybe being a Mutant isn't the worst thing in the world after all."

As the two hold hands, the Cuckoos enter the cafeteria. 

ROXY: "Yo barbies!" The sisters turn to look at her. "If you wanted to be my friend that badly, you could have just tried being nice."

The Cuckoos seem like they may have something apologetic to say, but they quickly turn back around and continue walking, sneers on their faces. 

Continuing to pan across the cafeteria, we find Sofia and Noriko. Sofia questions how Noriko knew all wasn't as it seemed with Roxy. Noriko sighs and tells her that, after her fight with Julian, she no longer thinks things are with him either. Sofia isn't sure what to say to that. 

In Emma's bedroom in the school, she's in her nightgown and brushing her hair before bed. There's a knock at her door. 

Emma gets up and opens the door to reveal Scott. Before Emma can even get out the first three words of a witty remark, Scott grabs her and plants a long kiss on her lips. The two walk over to and fall onto the bed as Emma shuts her door telekinetically. 

Scott, on top of her, pulls up to breathe, smiling as he sees the widest grin on Emma's face. 

EMMA: "What changed your mind?"

SCOTT: "Instinct is who you are. I'm done denying who I am just to make others happy." Pause. "Even if she hates me for it."

The two resume enthusiastically making out as they rip each other's clothes off. 

We cut directly to Mystique and Destiny, also making out in bed. 

MYSTIQUE: "I counted the days till we would be reunited."

DESTINY: "As did I, my immortal love."

MYSTIQUE, smiling innocently: "I only wish my prison stay could have been as lovely as time with our daughter." Pause. "Is everything still on track?"

DESTINY: "Yes. We are still moving toward the sacred timeline."

The two resume having sex, as we cut between them, Scott and Emma having sex, and Cessily and Roxy just resting their heads against one another as they listen to music together. 

In the Danger Room basement, Bobby and Hank are both passed out when Kurt BAMFS in, having been looking everywhere for them. With Beast's back aching and Bobby joking about not getting to do his skin care before falling asleep, Kurt teleports them out. 

Once back in the common area, Kurt asks what happened. Beast isn't positive on the details, but it shouldn't be anything serious. So long as no one uses the Danger Room, everything should be fine.

We close out in the Danger Room, sinister music playing as a feminine face forms in one of its walls.  

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

BONUS: 

Since several members were revealed this episode, I’ll mention that Scott’s squad consists of Quill, Specter, Armor, Greymalkin, Wolf Cub, and, formerly, DJ.

[greektragedybitch]

okay I feel like this has been talked about before but wow why would you think romans could win a war against greeks? 😭 practically speaking, yes, it would make more sense that CJ as a well oiled wat machine would win but CHB has so many advantages over them let me list some off the top of my head

• home field advantage - CHB is more aware of the valley, they have grown up here and played hundreds of capture the flag matches, they know every nook and cranny, every blade of grass, every little pebble, watch CJ fighters activate some weird mechanism and fall into a trap lmao

• historically speaking, the romans practically copy pasted greek gods so I think that destroying the greeks would cause a lot of damage to their own existence while the greeks could get away with destroying romans without any consequences to themselves

• CHB kids are more attuned to their powers, more attuned to their gods, more attuned to nature, their camp director is literally dionysus while CJ hasn't seen a god in like forever I don't think CJ is ready for that kind of exposure to powers and gods so many of them would just crack

• greeks fight for survival, romans fight for glory/honour whatever survival is a far more terrifying thing, sharpening the edges of hope until it's a weapon

• and while it may seem like romans have more numbers, if we think back to battle of manhattan it's obvious that the greeks could easily increase their numbers too they have so many reinforcements at their disposal - nature spirits, party ponies, the cyclops from poseidon's forges, the hunters of artemis, the armies of undead like I don't think CAMP I haven't left this bordered city in ages JUPITER is prepared to fight that kind of crazy shit

• and please greeks are naturals at fighting together we haven't seen a single time where they had to shout order out loud to form an attack formation like the romans keep doing like what "senate ave–" cue arrow through throat

• and we've seen that most romans fight with a mundane weapon like the only ones with magical weapons are jason and frank who's spear was gone after three uses while the greeks literally run around with weapons gifted by gods like percy has the blade of a titaness, which was wielded by heracles himself, thalia has a spear by zeus and a working replica of his shield, clarisse had an electric spear and apollo campers could spare arrows given to them by their dad, annabeth has her magical cap from athena etc.

• greeks are trained by an immortal centaur that is the brother of the eldest gods and romans are trained by crappy generals that believe their army should be made up of child soldiers despite a city full of adults (jason was two when he first joined the legion if you think everyone is as amazing as you think then think again)

• and bestie did you say the greeks die too fast, too young cuz they are "untrained" let me please remind you that in botl apollo campers fought against a drakon while they were half asleep, half armoured and in their pyjamas and were able to defend camp against it

• greeks defended olympus and the thrones of the gods with their meagre numbers when kronos laid siege with an army of thousands if you think they can't defeat the tiny roman army that gets confused as soon as they lose a commanding officer then you haven't read tlo properly

SO IN CONCLUSION what I'm saying is that if the romans were half as good as you think they are they would have been able to defend themselves against polybotes and his tiny army in their own home (which already has all the numbers of warriors you think would make so much difference) but they couldn't they literally only won cuz percy came in with that fancy lightning eagle and tyson and mrs. o'leary destroyed the monsters the CJ campers could barely fight

i rest my case bye

saying CJ would win in a battle against CHB is like saying mortals could win against gods simply because they have a huge population

edit:

i had a shower so lemme add some more points lol

• first of all guys please what is this non sense about amazons backing up the romans? why would they? they came to aid CJ once cuz hylla was backing up reyna why would they take the side of CJ when reyna is against war with CHB? and that aside, amazon is actually a tribe of greek warrior women, their origins are GREEK, their patron god is ARES they wouldn't pick sides with romans in a battle they have no stakes in

• octavian had to assemble an army of MONSTERS to seem threatening to greeks CJ on its own is not that big of a foe

• and all those onagers that we seem so afraid of like please I'm pretty sure the curse of cabin nine is lifted a snap of fingers from a child of hephaestus and the onagers would turn on them and decimate the romans from within

• greeks have a lot more reliable system of back up they are seasoned veterans of war while the romans fought like one titan in one battle they haven't seen WAR

• if we go back to som we see that the apollo campers can nock like half a dozen arrows at once while romans have no respect for archers like these crazy children of the sun would shoot down CJ campers before they can start falling into formation much less get close enough to CHB defences

• children of ares can curse weapons like sir? if they wished all of the CJ army would lose their weapons within minutes what do you think these powerless legacies would be able to do against the greeks who have trained their raw powers all their lives? NOTHING that's what

• the golden fleece is a strong defense too even if it doesn't fight physically like I'm pretty sure its healing and strengthening abilities would extend beyond the valley and to the demigods when in war like CJ wouldn't even be able to cross the borders CHB has a safe haven where they are protected while CJ does not and lol peleus would destroy the romans so fast

• all this and I haven't even gotten to the destruction and carnage the likes of thalia, nico, percy, clarisse, leo etc could cause like what makes you think PERCY what did they do to my city JACKSON would let CJ destroy CHB because he has like three friends there who aren't even actually gonna fight in this war? my bro would level new rome within minutes the same way he caused mt. st. helens to explode

• but what about jason and hazel? you ask, they are powerful too! first of all, hazel would always pick the side nico is on, she has no love for CJ and even if jason picks the side of CJ instead of staying neutral because it's his home like have you seen the difference between the greek big three kids and roman big three kids?

jason: father, please, I beg of your glorious self to bless me with one lightning bolt to help us defeat this foe please father

thalia: *casually picks up spear and kills an immortal* what were you saying zeus?

hazel: *horse girl with power to summon riches* *chills with nico as romans die* hehe idc

nico: *causing destruction with his army of undead, turning the living into ghosts and turning dead romans on their own people* wow dad is going to hate the paperwork

so yes, i don't think romans have as much of a chance of coming out victorious as y'all think because greeks are formidable and terrifying and will tear the romans to shreds and devour them piece by piece until nothing remains

i rest my case (hopefully finally lol)

If Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter were to fight CHB would win. This is based solely on the fact that they actually know how to think outside the box.

They’re also crazy.

[lamppostss]

"Fevers" [2/3] (Disc)

After an acceptably short amount of time, the eggs slid out from the pan onto a thick pewter plate with a pleasant sizzle. The plate landed onto an old wooden tray, accompanied by a mug of coffee. A nutritious breakfast, albeit a bit heavy for the stomach. Not like they had any choice right now… “Finally! Did you grow the coffee yourself or what?” announced Vallarys as soon as her door opened and a variety of delicious smell entered the room, accompanied by a noticeably less delicious mage. “Pardon?” “What took you so long?” “…” He placed the tray onto her bedside table, taking his food off it and placing on the windowsill opposite of the door. “Just eat. Save your bile for digestion.” He calmly turned away, as she childishly stuck out her tongue at his back. “At least she has table manners” sighed Soleil in his head, opening a book. The horrifying concept of having to babysit the group’s bard in such a manner made him shudder slightly, but quickly he found things more interesting than scaring himself with hypotheticals. Eating breakfast, for example. The room went quiet for a second, with only noises breaking through the silence being the clanking of utensils and the flipping of pages. “Watcha readin’?” Soleil raised his head, looking away from the text. “” Accounts of a Rogue Alchemist” by Geltenkranz of Par Noueu. An…” “Oh, so more nerd shit.” Chuckled Vallarys. “Let me guess – the author is an all-powerful crusty old wizard who can magic anything into existence but is defeated by having to chew food and his ye ancient dick not working?” “He was an outlaw who happened to have academic interests. It is fascinating to see how much one can achieve even without the backing of any major institution. Besides - his writing is rather creative with some of the… less academic aspects of his life.” Retorted Soleil. The mage sounded offended, almost like those insults were directed at him, rather than a man most likely long gone.

The rogue’s ears perked up a tiny bit. “Go on.” The pale wizard flipped a page back and cleared his throat. “”Countess Emilia Umbranox was an often called an industrious woman, most likely because of the district-worth of men she managed to bed every other weekend.” I also like “He was like the Cyclops of the legends, except instead of being a horrifying force of nature – he was an aging fat sodomite.”.” read the man aloud, with a completely straight look on his face. The young dragonborn erupted into laughter. “Now THAT’S something. Why can’t you be more like him?” “You want me to be a thieving alchemist?” “Well he was a crouton, just like yourself, wasn’t he?” “I do not understand.” “Of course you don’t, genius. You don’t even know what “fun” is.” Le’Garde went quiet, right before scoffing and turning back to reading. Vallarys sat in silence for a moment, before grumbling a plea. “Can I get something to read too?” “Oh? No “croissant-boy” or “cheese-eater” this time? No “please” or “thank you” either, but that’s part for the course with children…” the man tilted his head to the side. “You can just say “No”, you patronizing dickhead.” She crossed her arms and turned her head away from the wizard. After a bit of shuffling – suddenly a small tower of books was on the floor beside the bed. Soleil sat back down, without uttering a word or even making any noise, besides slow, measured footsteps. Vallarys couldn’t help herself but stare at the man. It was mostly spite, mixed with bemusement and even, surprising even herself, gratitude. There was something about the pale wizard that made her admire him as much as detest his presence, though she could never say what exactly it was. His intelligence? It made him insufferable. His penchant for magic? She has seen greater wizards than some undergraduate academic. Maybe his personal charm or looks? The great rogue would never stoop so low as to admire a loser like him. Probably.

The dragonborn picked up the first book she found. “Crossed Swords – Love on the Battlefield”. Cheesy, god-awful, scandalous “provocative erotica-focused bio-historical accounts”. Why would someone like Soleil, who shied away from almost any physical pleasures, carry something like THIS in his bag? Her eyes darted to the fair headed man and back to the book, imagining him, reading wordy graphic descriptions of interracial cunnilingus while drenched in candlelight in the academy dorm. It was humorous, but also strangely familiar. She would do that too if she could. Everyone has their guilty pleasures in life. He wasn’t a bad person, just a poor sod misguided by his own perfectionism. Obviously, only until he decided to open his blasted mouth again. “You are staring.” Cheeky fuck, thought Vallarys to herself. “Just surprised how ugly you are without your robes. Could you please put them back on? Or would a potato sack be more of your aesthetic?” Soleil’s gaze slowly trailed away from his reading, through the floor and onto the bedridden woman. “Aha, so you are clearly jealous of my noble complexion. With yourself being just a stubby dragon mutt…” “You look triple your age, bellend. And don’t start on nobility – my mother could make you kiss my feet with a snap of her fingers.” “And she is not here, is she? It is just you and moi. So…” “Once I am out of this bed – I am kicking your ribs in, you twat.” “Watch me tremble in fear.”

Both turned away from each other. While their spoken words were filled with hostility and animosity, within there was a rather strange, pleasant feeling. It was like they were bonding. Not through fake smiles and polite nods at some grand event, but with honest banter and constant jabbing at each other. Both of them felt that they wanted more, that this was fun, that they enjoyed this type of company… Obviously, neither would admit to such thoughts. Not in a million years.  For now – just quietly reading in a room together would suffice. After a good couple hours, the banging of the entrance door was heard by the pair. Their comrades have returned. “Wizard! Come ‘ere!” Called out Torgrim from downstairs. The dwarf rarely raised his voice, but when he did – it felt like all the windows nearby shook. Soleil sighed, put away his reading and approached the door. “And get me something to drink while you’re at it, maid.” Added Vallarys with the usual smugness in her voice. To her surprise – there was no quip back. No banter, no annoyed sigh. Just a stare back. A cold, genuinely resenting look, right before the door shut behind him. The rogue wouldn’t admit it, but it did make her feel a bit uneasy. She didn’t do anything wrong, did she? The pale human and the dwarf met each other in the kitchen, with the latter piling different vegetables onto the table. “Did you sell our bard for food, master Dwarf?” “Nae, not yet.” Calmly responded the squat warrior. “We’ll be out for longer than we thought. So, we bought this for yer two.” “What exactly for?” Soleil raised an eyebrow. “Ye’ll be cooking soup for the child.” “Why exactly soup? We have plenty of other food.” Torgrim turned away from the table and looked directly at the wizard, pointing at him with his calloused finger. “Every warrior worth their salt lives by the Three Ss. Their strength, their sword, and their soup.” He sounded gravely serious. “Remember this, lad.”

An awkward silence followed, as two men shuffled around each other, relocating small bags of potatoes, leek and other kitchen necessities. After a short while, the dwarf was on his way out of the building. Soleil expected him to ask something about his “patient”, but it seems he underestimated Torgrim’s taciturnity. He left as suddenly as he appeared, leaving the wizard to get to cooking the holy broth. Though, he had to get some tea for her first. As the water reached its’ boiling point, Le’Garde caught himself… stung. Not by any critter, but by the woman he was told to care for. “Maid”. “Servant”. “Callboy”. Those words meant the same and hurt the same as well. He remembered well the days of his youth. The days of eternal servitude to those who were above him. They looked down on him not for his lack of merit, but for who he was born. Slum rat. That’s what they called him. Again, a palpable sense of anger started to build up inside of him, and again, he held it back. He was a bigger person than this. Now, about that tea…

The door creaked open and he almost dropped the poor pewter cup of boiled leaves on the floor. Not only did Vallarys get out of bed, but she was also going through the stack of books he left on the window. Seeing the wizard, she let out a barely audible “Shite…” and fell backwards, onto the floor. “Vallarys!” The wizard rushed to her, setting the tea onto the floor. The rogue’s eyes met his, only to see something that she didn’t expect. Genuine concern. Even fear. His mask of cold indifference to the world slipped off, giving way to something genuine. “I’m… fine.” “Why did y…” “I just wanted another book, okay? Don’t fuss over me.” As she sputtered and hissed, Soleil suddenly put her arm over his shoulders and walked her back to the bed, leaving Vallarys wide-eyed for a brief moment. “So, what was that Torgrim business about anyway?”. A simple question to quickly change the topic of conversation and save her from her own thoughts of embarrassment. “Torgrim has bought some supplies. Ingredients for a soup, mostly.” “So…” Vallarys smiled, almost with devilish intent. “Soupplies?” Soleil raised an eyebrow, not noticing how the corner of his mouth formed a barely noticeable smirk. “That was horrible and you know it.” He placed a cup of tea on the bedside table, letting out a sigh. “Let us… Just, not do that again?”

„Or what? Gonna put me in the timeout corner? Take away my teddy?” mockingly replied Ra’anir, smiling softly. “Probably die of a heart attack, if I have to be honest.” He… cared? A sudden warm jolt ran through the middle of Vallarys’ chest. What has happened to this man? From scolding and banter to… this. Soleil was just full of surprises. And she wanted to crack them open – one by one. “Didn’t know you had one, wizzie.” “Please never call me that ever again.” Half-seriously scoffed Le’Garde, sitting back down with a book. Over the next couple of hours, they have managed to collectively read more than their companions have in the last two years of their lives. The quiet complemented the aged and dusty surroundings perfectly, being a dark oak cherry on top of a melancholy cake. As the scaled rogue fell victim to a sudden urge to take a short nap, the wizard went downstairs to start cooking. Every great dish starts with some poor soul pacing around the kitchen, trying to find an adequately sized pot, then filling it with water and finding out that the needed ingredients have been unexplainably misplaced, needing additional two very awkward minutes of searching around. In the end, Soleil managed to locate the following – four cloves of garlic contained in a bag with a holy symbol on it, five northern onions, three enormous carrots, a small bunch of thyme, a celery stick, some jumbo potatoes and something that was deduced to be some variety of parsnip. Combined with spices and other foods that the group was lugging around with them – that was enough for a good, enjoyable meal. The mage got to cooking straight away, completely occupying his thoughts with the process. Fine chopping, dicing, peeling, boiling, frying, mixing, seasoning, mixing again – all a coordinated dance, an expression of soul and the eternal lust of all mortal beings to acquire as much soup as they can.  Having finished, the wizard sampled the broth, nodded in approval of the result and ventured back upstairs, with a steaming bowl in hand. There, in the evening lights, he had noticed a thing amiss with his patient. She had set her book away, curling into a ball under a thick woolen blanket. Placing the soup on the table, Soleil rushed to the bed, sitting down beside the young woman. “Fever?” quietly, with audible worry in his voice asked the fair headed mage, placing his hand on the rogue’s forehead. It was abnormally warm, almost hot. “Fever.” He concluded. “I’m trying to sleep, Sol.” Vallarys brushed off the academic’s concerns with a weary voice. “It’s fine.”

It in fact, was not fine. First it was just a mild temperature increase, sleepiness, and loss of appetite, but soon after came the shakes, the chills and harsh shortness of breath. The dragonborn flipped herself over onto her back, staring at the ceiling with a blank, clouded gaze. The wizard could feel his palms get covered in his own sweat. For all he knew – she could die, right here right now. Thoughts rushed through his head like a squad of dwarves through a busy tavern. Pleasant scenes from the past. How they danced between worlds, how happy she seemed to spot him in the land of the undead. She still was an insufferable brat, but one that Soleil had a colossal soft spot for. She got on his nerves, but also was his breath of fresh air in the suffocating presence of the world. On the other hand, he could feel the heavy shade of doubt crawl over him. Maybe he was just blind? She IS a noblewoman, a daughter of two of the most influential people on the discs. She could be using him, pulling the strings, patting his back inbetween harsh jerks of the leash. Le’Garde knew very well how most nobles show their gratitude. He wants to help her, but at the same time – he can already picture the constant backtalk coming back in the morning, with no “thank you” to speak of. His own bitterness and exhaustion made his body feel weak, as if he was to collapse next to the sickly girl. As the evening dragged on into the darkness of the night, the thoughts became even more conflicting. It felt hellish, feeling as if someone dear to him was suffering greatly, but also as if another metaphorical backstab was coming soon after. The mistrust lingered even as Vallarys finally fell asleep, turning away from the wizard. What would she say when she were to woke up…? He sat in silence, darkly.