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thewordworrier · 3 months ago

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Heaven Ain't Got A Vacancy

[Siren gets herself in a spot of bother and contemplates her life choices.]

Word Count: 6,650 words. Warnings: Non-described implied character suffering. For a bit. Near death experience, I think. Notes: ~ Title from "Planetary (Go!)" by My Chemical Romance. ~ Uhhh. Something a little bit different I think. Slightly less bubbly, slightly different format. I saw an Instagram reel and my brain just started chewing. ~ Is this canon for this particular world? I don't know, maybe! Probably! ~ I'm a little bit... Uncertain about this one, but, I can't keep looking at it any more. So I'm gonna throw it out there. ~ Oh, and in case it's not clear, Siren is Shelly.

[Setting: the Danger Days AU. In some kinda BLI capture situation. This would be a smaller BLI building/base, a smaller team, I think. Not some giant HQ kinda building.]

Siren hissed, biting her tongue and the insides of her cheeks. She was trying so hard not to be too expressive, because she knew she was being watched and showing her feelings was obviously not a good idea here, but that… That hurt. That was… That was more pain than she’d ever felt in her entire life. Physically anyway. Emotional pain was different. Losing her family had been the most emotionally painful moment of her life.

Her first family anyway; her birth and blood family. Because she had a new family now, a found family. Her sweat and sand family, as Ghoul had said once. That had been funny, and had become some kinda running joke.

Her second family… That bunch of idiots. And she used that term affectionately. She hoped they were okay. She hoped she’d done enough to keep them safe. She hoped they wouldn’t be stupid. She hoped they would actually use their brains, stay away, use their brains and run. Not come for her. Because then they’d be falling into what she’d been scared of from the beginning of her time in the sand - getting someone hurt because she wasn’t enough. Enough anything in this case; smart enough to stay alive, good enough at fighting, fast enough at… Anything.

She swallowed down a groan. God, it seemed to be spreading. How fun. This hurt. Not that she was sure what “this” was - they’d forced her into taking something, but like hell did she know what. All she knew was that she was hooked up to something and everything hurt. It almost felt like the blood running through her veins was on fire. And she was feeling incredibly fuzzy.

If she was honest, she might even go as far to say that she might even be dying.

Siren had read once, before she ended up here and before she ended up in the Desert, that after the body gave in, the brain lived on for seven minutes. She’d also read that during those seven minutes, the brain would replay all of its fondest, favourite memories. Though, she did wonder what kind of order the memories would come in; whether they’d be oldest to newest, or if they’d be in some kind of countdown.

She had wondered if that was what people meant when they said that life flashed before your eyes before you died. Or did they say that your life flashed before your eyes when you were in danger of dying? She couldn’t remember. She had wondered at the time, which of the two would be better, but now she figured that she’d rather see all the “good things movie” instead of the “whole life movie” - because that second one might contain sad things.

Death was scary, and she didn’t want to be scared and sad. Although, if her brain was going to show her anything from her other life, with her blood family, that might be a little sad. But if she was in her final few moments, she’d hopefully be seeing them soon anyway.

Seven minutes.

A cluster of memories of herself and her blood family. She was still blonde. She was a bit younger, maybe a teenager? She was happy. It was a little fuzzy, but she knew that being happy with her family was a normal, standard state of mind. This memory might’ve been a birthday, or maybe Christmas, though she wasn’t sure. They were at a table, she was at the head end. Her mama was hugging her from the side and kissing the top of her head, while her grandparents sat either side of her.

These mental images were actually regular occurrences in her old family home; her being in the middle of her family. She even used to sit in the middle of her mother and grandmother on the sofa. Her grandfather would then sit slightly across from them in his own chair. Well. It was a slightly oversized chair - Siren could remember sitting next to him as a small child, and then as a bigger child, and then as a pre-teen. They used to read together a lot. He used to read to her, and she used to love every second of it.

She used to read with her grandfather, cook with her grandmother and craft with her mother. They all used to spend so much time together, all in the same room, sometimes doing their own thing. Sometimes her, her mother and her grandmother would all be doing something together, sometimes they’d pair off. But they spent a lot of time together. She’d often spend time crafting things with her mother, for her grandparents. Or she’d spend time with her grandparents, making things for her mother - normally she’d spend time with her grandmother for that, and then her grandfather would chip in at the end, or he’d help with the tougher stuff that her little hands couldn’t do. But her family was like that, they always helped each other.

They helped each other and looked after each other and liked spending time as a family unit. She always wanted to spend time with her family, she didn’t want to shut herself in her room on her own. Her mother was her best friend. She had, probably, the best childhood she could’ve ever wished for. She was loved and cared about, she was safe and secure. She wasn’t spoiled to the degree where she turned into a brat, but she didn’t really have to want for or worry about anything. And, it remained that way for most of her life.

Until one day, it all stopped and everything was taken away from her.

She tried not to think about that too much, if at all. She definitely tried not to think about anything in detail. That was just too much - too much pain, too much hurt, too much everything. And she didn’t like to feel that much hurt anymore.

She wished she could remember the smell of her mother’s perfume, the taste of her grandmother’s food and the sound of her grandfather’s laugh. But the thing she wished for the most was - she wished that she could remember the feel of their hugs. She loved everything about her family, and she missed everything, but there had been something so special about their hugs. Their hugs felt like home. And she missed her original home.

She wished she could’ve combined both of her families. That would’ve been the best thing. She loved her new family and the hugs she got from them, but… She missed her blood family. So, so much.

Six minutes.

A Desert memory. It was after she’d dyed her hair from the temporary red they’d dyed her blonde, just to help disguise her. That hadn’t lasted long; red was Poison’s colour after all. Her hair was dyed to the deep purply-blue she’d pounced on as soon as she saw it at the market, she was wearing better fitting boots and she had left the once-white BLI button up back on her cot. That meant that she was comfortable. They had been sitting around, either at a gig, or after one - they were hanging out as a group, other Killjoys milling about in the background. She felt happy, safe (as much as you could be out in the Zones) and accepted.

Seeing Party smiling, laughing across the circle, illuminated by the dim lights at night at that moment, was just a bonus. Never mind the fact that she was sure her heart stuttered at the sight. The more she thought about it, the more she was certain that they’d been sitting around a bonfire. Party had been lit up brighter (and he’d been hotter) than the flames that night. To her, at least.

She’d always thought he was pretty, but that was definitely a moment where she felt something more for him. A moment where she’d thought “...Oh. Well. Fuck.” She wasn’t sure if that had been the first moment, but it was definitely one she remembered because of the way he looked in the light, the way it looked like he had a fiery halo. Like some kind of… Neon angel. And, at the time, she’d thought that was pretty apt ‘cause he did save her from BLI after all.

As much as Siren loved the man (and she did, she really did) but she would (probably) never ever call him an angel to his face. She would probably never admit that, in that situation at the least, she needed saving, and he came along and did it. He did not need his ego inflating in the slightest, he was normally already cocky enough. She might admit it to Lux, perhaps, just never to him. She really did think that he’d saved her though, and not just from BLI.

Even if she didn’t know that she really needed saving at the time. Because, she never would’ve said anything of the sort if you had asked her while she’d been working for them; she would’ve said that she was fine, that she would rather stay in the City. But, he came along, made a mistake and accidentally stole her from them. And, as good as she’d had it in the City, she had it good in the Desert too. It was very different, of course but… She had them. She had him. And ultimately, she thought it was worth it.

Five minutes.

Another Desert memory, another group outing. This must’ve been during one of the Mad Gear gigs they’d gone to. She had been much, much more comfortable in her ‘Siren skin’ - as her new identity - and very secure in her place with the group. Ghoul had been especially extra flirty, Lux had even joined in a little and the others had been a bit more protective of her, and she had absolutely loved that. She felt so safe with them.

Looking back on it now, she knew that Lux had only been playing along with the flirting because it was winding up Party, because they had been encouraging him to actually make a move. Lux had been encouraging Siren to do the same thing - that’s why Siren had been dressed a little more provocatively that night. A lot more provocatively, actually. On purpose! She’d been dressed like that on purpose. Lux had encouraged it, and Siren had decided that it had been a good idea. She had wanted to tease Party a little. She wanted him to make the first move; just so she was sure that it was what he wanted, and because she was nervous!

She’d danced with the others in their group, even been flirted with by other Killjoys - much to Party’s displeasure, but she still kept returning to them. Every time someone else wanted to dance with her or after they’d flirted with her, she’d return to her group and one of them would pull her in, wrap an arm around her and shoot the ‘offender’ a look. Actually, Party would be shooting them a look while they were near her anyway, but she didn’t know that at the time.

It wasn’t until a tall, teal haired Killjoy (who’s name Siren didn’t quite catch) put his hands on her - slowly dragging one finger from the waistline of her shorts up the middle of her lace bodysuit - that Party appeared behind her. Party wrapped an arm around her and pulled her against him and away from the other Killjoy who had been about an inch away from having his hand brushing against her chest. And Party obviously hadn’t liked that one bit.

“There you are,” Party’s voice had been more of a growl. “We were looking for you.”

That growl might’ve entered her ear but she had felt it over her entire body. She was certain that she might’ve trembled, or at the very least gotten goosebumps. She wasn’t sure if he had noticed that or not, but maybe he had because his grip on her waist tightened.

The teal haired Killjoy looked unamused and tried to protest, but Party almost hissed at him, cutting him off by moving to Siren’s side, his arm still around her waist tightly.

“C’mon,” he said, his voice definitely rougher. “You’re coming with me.”

That had been protective, maybe a little possessive and really rather hot. And sure, the whole group had been protective of her, maybe more so than normal, but Lux had told her later on that her behaviour had definitely pushed Party a bit closer to the edge.

She was incredibly grateful to later go on to find that Party would continue to be protective and possessive over her - both before and after they got together, except after they got together, he would dial up the intensity a bit. She’d act flirty when they were out (living up to her name a little bit but nothing too much), he’d watch her like a hawk, and step in if he thought the other Killjoy was going too far. If he had to step in, it wasn’t because she’d gone too far - Siren was normally very good. But if he had to step in, he would either make a point in front of the Killjoy he was removing her from, or he’d get possessive when they got home. Sometimes, especially if she was a bit cheeky about it, he’d do both.

Siren would be lying if she said that she never played up to it to provoke him a little bit sometimes. The aftermath was always very, very hot and always left her feeling very, very wanted.

Four minutes.

This memory was the first time Party Poison kissed her. One arm around her waist, the other hand cupping her cheek. It had been wonderful and desperately wanted. And, if you listened to the others, a long time coming.

It had definitely been worth the wait, as was evident by the fact that once she’d had that first kiss, she just couldn’t get enough. Thankfully, neither could he because from that moment, he could barely keep his hands off of her.

Once they finally got themselves together, Party always seemed to be within arms’ reach of her. If he wasn’t kissing her, he was touching her - even if that was just wrapping an arm around her waist, or hooking his fingers into the belt loops of her shorts. And every time their relationship advanced a little physically? He got even worse, he was even more touchy feely, and spent more time kissing her at every opportunity. It got to the point where the others ended up rolling their eyes and almost yelling at him. It got to the point where she had to tell him off because that was the only way he’d listen.

Actually, she thought that was glorious. She never thought that she’d be wanted like that, even less so when she lost her family - because life with her family had been practically perfect and she’d had so much hope for her future and everything. And that dropped down to zero when she started working for BLI. Because they just didn’t allow for that - there was practically minimal free time, and if you were given permission to date, it was via some match they gave you, made with some programme, and it was supervised and… It was all so clinical.

But he’d come along and had changed that. The Desert had given her hope again, the group had made her think that she’d be okay, and Poison had definitely made her feel worth it and wanted.

Their first kiss had definitely been one for the books, definitely something that she had never forgotten, definitely one she remembered very fondly. But, every kiss got better and better. She didn’t regret a single one. And more importantly, she couldn’t find it in her to even try. There was nothing anyone could say, or anything that anyone could do that would ever make her regret her relationship with the red-head. There was definitely nothing that could be said or done that would ever make her regret their first kiss.

Three minutes.

Oh. Siren was certain that she’d be blushing if she was able to. Or if there was anyone around to witness her expression - they would certainly tell you that she had blushed when this came to mind. This memory was of the first time her and Poison were completely, physically intimate. The first time they went the whole way, to use an older turn of phrase. It had been - he had been - sweet and considerate. And he’d used her City name. She remembered that much. It had been so sweet of him to do that, to agree to the silly little request that she’d had. It had taken her by surprise, even though he’d said he’d do it, after she’d asked (very shyly), and it had nearly brought her to tears. She hadn’t expected it to mean that much to her, she hadn’t expected to miss her… City self, as much as she had. He’d indulged her with that one request, and that had meant everything to her.

He had been patient and kind, sweet and reassuring and… He’d almost seemed in awe of her. That had been the most incredible thing to her; the fact that he’d looked at her like… The way that he had. Like she was so special, like she was… Almost rare? Like she was worth it. And that feeling had been… Strange to her. It always had been up until that moment, and continued to be strange. Right until BLI had put their hands on her and she ended up here.

It wasn’t that she didn’t believe that he cared, that she was special to him, that she was wanted, because eventually she did (and truthfully it didn’t even take her that long to believe him). It was just… Somehow, she was still always surprised when she caught him looking at her like that.

If the others were to be believed, he had always looked at her that way.

Two minutes.

“I love you, Siren.”

Before her brain could even start delving into that memory, Siren was surprised to feel a sensation - she didn’t expect to feel anything in this state. The sensation Siren felt was a pair of cold hands on her face. That was a bit weird, none of her Killjoy’s hands were ever that cold. Or rough, actually. Well, they could be a little rough but this was a different feeling. This didn’t feel like skin, or the leather of Party’s driving gloves (and she was very familiar with how those felt)… It did feel like fabric but it didn’t feel like a fabric she could immediately recognise.

“Oh my child,” a voice echoed. It sounded feminine but also… It didn’t? It definitely sounded… Almost staticy but definitely kind of rough. “My dear child...”

There was only one… Person. Could you call them a person? Were they more of an… Entity? There was only one… Being! That was a good word. There was only one Being that that voice could belong to. “You must be the Phoenix Witch.”

“Ah, so you are aware.” Their hands ran over Siren’s hair, gently and slowly, actually more in a soothing gesture.

“Of course, I don’t think there’s any Killjoy who isn’t aware of you.”

Normally, Siren would be a little weirded out by the touching but… She was scared of what was coming for her, and frankly, the touches were nice. They were almost comforting. And Siren really, really welcomed that right at that moment.

“Not everyone believes in me though,” the Witch said, pausing for a moment before she continued. “Do you believe?”

“I don’t see any reason not to.”

The Witch hummed and fell silent for a moment. Siren could still feel the hands on her face.

“You are heavy with sadness,” the Witch said quietly, about a minute later.

“Well duh,” Siren would’ve rolled her eyes if she could. “I’m dying and I don’t want to be.”

“You are spirited. I do like that,” the hands gently caressed her face, the thumbs gently running over her closed eyes. “Why don’t you want to be dying?”

“I guess I’m not ready? I don’t feel like this would… Would be a good way for me to go?” Siren felt the hands lift off of her face and, once they were gone, she found that she could open her eyes. She blinked a few times before looking up from her feet to see the Phoenix Witch looking at her. Siren swallowed a little bit and the volume of her voice dropped as she broke eye contact with the Witch. She nibbled her bottom lip, knowing that the Witch was urging her to continue. “I don’t want to leave them. I don’t want to leave him.”

“Mm hm, that’s what I thought.”

Siren twitched her limbs for a moment only to find that she didn’t ache or hurt. That surprised her, and confused her a little bit. It unnerved her and actually, it scared her more than anything else. Because she’d heard that if you’d been suffering (in whatever form) and then you start feeling good again - then the end is normally not too far away. So the fact that she wasn’t hurting did not make her feel good.

She looked around to find herself still in a similar chair, but she wasn’t hooked up to anything. And she was surrounded by sand. She blinked rapidly and frowned, clearly confused. She glanced around again before focussing on something a little further in the distance. It looked like The Diner.

This... Couldn’t be real?

“You’re in a type of limbo right now; you’ve been taken out of the… Disagreeable location and put in something a little more… Familiar.”

Siren jumped. “Could you maybe not read my mind like that?”

The Phoenix Witch giggled. “I’m not sorry about that I’m afraid.”

Siren frowned at her. “I mean, fair, I suppose. I guess this is your… Domain? So it’s only fair that you can do what you want.”

“You are absolutely correct!”

Despite the fact that the Witch didn’t really have a visible mouth, Siren knew she was smiling. Actually, she was probably grinning, judging by the tone of her voice.

“Well,” Siren sighed. “A broken clock is still right twice a day.”

“Stop that,” the Witch tutted. “You’re smart.”

“I wasn’t smart enough to not get myself into this situation,” she shook her head a little bit before she tried to swallow back some tears. “I hope I haven’t gotten them hurt.”

“You’re smart and you care.”

“Of course I care,” Siren almost hissed. “They took me in. They could’ve left me. But they took me in to fix their mistake. And because of that, I fell in love.”

“Ah, yes, the red-head,” the Witch nodded. “You two are very good together.”

Siren beamed for a moment at that statement, before her expression saddened. “I wish it was all different, I wish we could’ve had a traditional future, but if this is the end, I’m glad I’ve known them. I’m glad I’ve known him.”

“You have grown into yourself more since joining them.”

“I don’t regret it,” Siren shook her head. “I don’t regret any of it. But that doesn’t mean I can’t wish it had been different.”

“That is very true. That’s a valid thing to feel.”

“I… I do wish I wasn’t alone right now though… But I don’t think I’d want them to see this either.”

The Witch sighed. “Your heart is so big, you care so much.”

“It’s a skill I guess,” Siren shrugged a little bit. “Maybe even a weakness.”

“Not in the Desert,” the Witch shook her head. “You’re supposed to feel things and care here. It’s allowed. More importantly, it’s encouraged. And you know that.”

“I… I guess, yeah.”

There was silence for a few moments, the Witch observing the Killjoy, although she was purposely not reading the girl’s mind. She didn’t need to do that to see that Siren was both sad, so incredibly sad, and maybe even a little uncomfortable. The Witch wasn’t sure why that second feeling was there, she knew Siren wasn’t feeling any pain. She couldn’t while she was here.

“Why did you come back, Siren?” The Witch asked. “You escaped them once.”

Siren looked up at the Witch, and snorted slightly. “It wasn’t exactly out of choice.”

“Which bit? Leaving or coming back?”

She raised an eyebrow at the Witch. “Both.”

She nodded. “Quick girl.”

“Like I said, it wasn’t exactly out of choice, either time, but this time they dragged be back kicking and…” Siren paused. “Well, not screaming, but biting.”

This response seemed to amuse the Witch. “I thought Sirens were supposed to be vocal?”

The Killjoy raised an eyebrow at her and smiled a little flirtily. “I certainly can be, you wanna test that?”

“Hmn! You’re quite the funny girl.”

When the Witch didn’t elaborate on that statement, or give her an answer to her question, Siren just shook her head.

“I’d rather be back with the others,” she said softly. “We weren’t doing any harm. I just want to be back with my friends.” Siren paused and the volume of her voice dropped even more as she avoided making eye contact with the Witch. “Back with Red…”

The Phoenix Witch looked her over for a solid minute, clearly thinking about something. Contemplating. Seeing, maybe, if rumours about the Phoenix Witch were to be believed. Although it certainly felt longer to Siren, who shifted under her gaze, and dropped her eyes so she was staring at the floor.

“You don’t have your mask on,” the Phoenix Witch said finally.

Siren shook her head. “Of course not. They took it off of me.”

“You’re supposed to die with your mask on.”

“I would have! I would… Be?” Siren shook her head again, slowly this time. “If I had it!”

The Witch sighed and lifted Siren’s chin with a finger. “You can only die with your mask on.”

Siren blinked rapidly as the Phoenix Witch slowly cupped her hands around Siren’s face again. The gesture and the words felt purposeful. “O- Oh?”

The Witch gave the Killjoy a look, wondering if she would figure it out. When she got a slight shake of the head in response, the Witch gently squeezed Siren’s cheeks.

“I cannot, and will not, take you without your mask.”

Siren’s eyes widened, and watched as the Witch removed her hands from her face before she took a step back.

“Besides,” the Witch continued, almost thoughtfully, as she folded her arms and tilted her head. “I don’t think it’s quite your time. I think there’s something you haven’t done yet.”

“What…” Siren blinked rapidly at the Witch. “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t know, can’t tell you,” the Witch replied quickly. Maybe too quickly.

“Hmn, I think you do know,” Siren narrowed her eyes. “Maybe not exactly but I think you know something.”

“Don’t be too smart,” she tapped Siren’s nose gently and chuckled when the Killjoy scrunched her nose up.

“Lemme guess,” Siren continued as she eyed the Witch. “You know more than you’re letting on but you can’t say because, something something, changing the timeline?”

Despite the full face mask she wore, Siren could tell that the Phoenix Witch was smiling, and that made her smile a little in response.

“Anyway,” the Witch returned to holding Siren’s face. “I cannot take you without your mask, young lady.”

Siren giggled before smiling.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

The Witch shook her head before she squeezed Siren’s cheeks, using her thumbs to gently close Siren’s eyes.

“So I’m gonna need you to go back and get it. You have to die with your mask on, Killjoy.”

While this conversation was happening, the rest of the Fabulous Killjoys were hunting down their missing member. They’d managed to find the building with little effort, and they’d even managed to get inside. It didn’t seem to be as manned as they’d anticipated. Nor was it as up to date as some other locations. Jet Star would later theorise that maybe this ‘mission’ was an unsanctioned one and that maybe Siren wasn’t on their radar at all.

While the building wasn’t as big on the outside as most, the inside was more like a small labyrinth with too many corridors, which was a surprise. You wouldn’t think that it would be like that if you looked at it from the outside. So, it took them a little bit longer to get through to the inner rooms.

Once they’d gotten that far though, it was much easier to divide and conquer in their search for their missing friend.

Ghoul, the swift thing he was, almost darted past the door frame that led to the room Siren was in. He almost missed the doorway but he backtracked and stuck his head into the room. You could see the exclamation point light up about his head and he called back into the corridor behind him.

“Found her!”

Party Poison appeared by Ghoul’s side faster than they thought even Lux could run. Ghoul only just had enough time to get out of the way so the red-head could get into the small room. He practically skidded to a stop before rushing into the room and over to the chair.

“Siren!”

Ghoul bit his bottom lip but turned his back to the pair - both to give them some privacy and also to keep watch. It didn’t stop him from being able to hear what was going on behind him though.

“Siren!” Party tugged at the restraints a little before cupping her face. “Hey, I’m here now, I’m here, it’s okay.”

He glanced over his shoulder to see Party gently shaking her.

“Wake up,” Party had to swallow. “Siren, honey please wake up.”

Ghoul bit his bottom lip and quickly turned back around in case Party caught him watching them, during a pretty vulnerable moment. Seeing someone be vulnerable and hearing them be vulnerable were two different things after all.

“Just because I originally found you like this, doesn’t mean I’m returning you!” Party said, a little louder, sounding desperate as he tried to wake the girl. “I’m not trying to undo the last… However long! You belong with us, Siren!” Party swallowed and almost choked out the next words. “You belong with me.”

The man in the doorway gulped. Ghoul could hear the stress and the fear in their leader’s voice. He wasn’t really used to hearing him sound like that. Ghoul wasn’t sure if he’d ever heard Party sound like that. Kobra, yeah, when Lux was taken and they hadn’t mobilised as quickly as the taller man had wanted, but Party? Not to his knowledge or recollection.

Party, on his knees on the floor in front of her, eventually managed to untie her - shaky hands were definitely a massive hindrance. That made him feel better, and had he not been so panicked, he might’ve questioned why BLI had used such… Weak? Restraints. He half expected her to move, or to slide off of the chair and into his lap, but she remained in the seat. That had to be a good sign, right? That she wasn’t that weak? He leant up as much as he needed to hold her face.

“C’mon girl, please. You can’t leave us. Lux is gonna be so cross!”

Ghoul winced from the doorway. The longer this went on, the more broken Party sounded. And he really didn’t like that in the slightest. Part of him hoped the others wouldn’t have to see or hear this; hear him, see Siren - but the rest of him hoped they’d show up soon. He had the feeling that, if this went really, really south, he’d need their help to remove Party, and to grab Siren. Because there’s no way that their leader would let them leave her here. To be honest, Ghoul wouldn’t let them leave her here either, and he doubted Lux would. They wouldn’t let BLI keep her.

“You can’t leave me, you can’t,” Party gently squeezed her cheeks in an affectionate manner. His voice had taken on that false happy tone you use when you’re trying to convince someone else that you’re not about to break. “You don’t have your mask on! You can’t die without your mask on!”

It was at this point, with those words, in Siren’s limbo, that the Phoenix Witch’s voice started merging with someone else’s and Siren frowned. She couldn’t quite tell who’s voice it was and she was unable to open her eyes again, like she had in the beginning. She wasn’t sure if she could feel someone’s thumbs on her eyes, but she was a little more certain that someone was holding her face. It felt like a different pair of hands - they didn’t feel bandaged like the Witch’s were. The more time passed without her being able to open her eyes, the less the voice sounded like the Witch and the more it sounded like someone else.

Party looked her over again and finally saw that she was hooked up to a small machine. There didn’t seem to be a heart monitor so he couldn’t tell what was going on, whether it would be safe to turn the machine off or not - but a part of him thought that it would be a bit more obvious, more hospital like if they were actually monitoring her properly, so he assumed that it would be okay to turn the machine off.

So he did, even if his hands shook while he did it, even if he held his breath, because he honestly wasn’t sure if this was going to help her or hurt her. He just hoped that it was going to help her. He wasn’t ready to lose her. Then again, he didn’t think he’d ever be ready to lose her. He definitely didn’t want to lose her like this.

He exhaled as the dial on the machine clicked down into the off position - because he’d learnt that it was better to turn these things off slowly and not just all at once. His hand dropped to his side and he listened for a moment before turning on his heel and going to kneel back in front of Siren. Although, he focused on removing the tiny tube from her, quickly pressing his bandana to where it had been attached in case she started bleeding. He spent a couple of quiet moments checking on this, actually a bit worried that the small wound wasn’t filling with blood. He swallowed hard, gently tied the fabric around the wound and moved to touch her face again.

“I love you, Siren, please don’t leave me.”

Siren recognised the voice that time. She tried to move a bit but her arm felt heavy, and she wasn’t quite able to open her eyes yet. For a moment, she was terrified that the Witch had taken her sight in order to send her back but… Surely the Witch would’ve told her if that was going to be the case? Siren hoped so. She decided to go with the belief that she just needed time, maybe a little energy to be back on this “plane” so to speak.

While she thought that she hadn’t moved, Party had noticed her eyelids flutter - ever, ever so slightly. He was paying incredibly close attention to her after all. He blinked rapidly and he shifted away from her for a moment, removing a hand from her face to hold one of hers. His thumb stroked her cheek and he tried to divide his attention between watching her face and watching her hand.

“Siren?” He whispered before feeling her fingers twitch. “Siren!”

Ghoul spun on his heel at the louder call of her name. “Is she -?”

Party didn’t take his eyes off of his girl. “Siren? C’mon girl, it’s okay, you’re okay, I’m here. It’s me, and no agents, you’re safe. I just need you to come back to me.”

Her fingers moved against his again and his eyes widened. He let go of her face and took both of her hands in his, gently squeezing her hands. Just for a little bit before he watched her for another moment before leaning forward and pressing his lips against hers.

He wasn’t to know that him doing that was actually a massive help, a massive jumpstart of energy that Siren needed - it was almost like the Phoenix Witch knew that he’d be there when she woke up.

Party swore that he felt her warm up. He wasn’t totally sure though, so he probably wouldn’t mention anything to anyone - except maybe her later on, if she felt like talking about it. But, he kept kissing her, just little pecks on her lips or cheeks. Until he felt her kiss him back.

Ghoul had been watching this until Party started kissing her. He pulled a slight face at that point and started to turn around until he heard their leader squeak. By the time he turned to face them again, Siren had her hand on the back of Party’s neck to hold him close.

“Ew,” Ghoul choked out a little, trying to be his usual playful, flirty self about it but really, he was happy that she seemed to be okay. Instead of watching them again, he began to search the room quickly, just in case there was something useful around. “Can you two not? Can you maybe wait until we get back?”

Party pulled away from her enough to rest his head against hers. He felt her move her head a little to press a kiss to his forehead

“You okay?” He asked, trying not to get emotional. Not yet anyway. They weren’t home yet.

Siren smiled, nodded a little and hummed. “Think so. Ask me later.”

“I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered, nuzzling the tip of his nose against hers.

“Can’t get rid of me that easily,” she grinned tiredly at him. “You’re stuck with me.”

“Good,” Party moved to his feet and held out his hands. “Ready Ghoul?”

Ghoul checked one last drawer. “Yup, all good.”

Siren went to take Party’s hands but her legs wobbled. “Oh no, I don’t know if I can -”

Party and Ghoul looked at each other for a moment before Ghoul just grinned; they clearly had the same idea.

“I’ve got your back,” he said, nodding for Party to go ahead and grab her.

The red-head rolled his eyes with a smile and sighed before stepping forward and hoisting Siren up over his shoulder. She squealed a bit.

“Hey!”

“Well, this is familiar,” Party gave her rear a slight pat - a double tap even.

“And I still don’t like it,” she protested before squirming. “Seriously, please carry me another way if you’re gonna carry me.”

Ghoul shook his head, waiting in the doorway.

Party put her down and immediately had to steady her. “Okay, yeah, maybe you’re right. Let’s keep you the right side up this time.”

“That’s a good idea.”

“I agree, actually,” Ghoul said, sticking his head out of the door. “Seeing you wobble like that wasn’t good.”

Siren squeaked as Party picked her up again, bridal style this time. She raised an eyebrow at him, only getting a bright smile in return. For some reason, this made her blush.

“I’ll be okay,” she held onto him tightly, despite the fact that she knew that he could hold her up like this. “Can we get out of here now?”

#She Speaks #She Writes #my fanfic #Gerard Way x FOC #Danger Days AU #MCR fanfic

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snorky · 1 year ago

Text

Desert Drifting

Hey y’all! This piece is more experimental in my opinion since I tried to merge this story with an existing fictional universe, so I apologize if the quality isn’t the best. The universe is the Danger Days/True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys Universe, written by Gerard Way and Shaun Simon, which is a lovely comic series you should check out. All credits go to those folks for anything relating to that universe in this story! Flashbacks are in italics. I hope you all enjoy this, and take care of yourself!

Pairing: Vince Dunn x GN!Reader

Word Count: 3.2k

Warnings: Mentions of sci-fi weapons, Some violence + hurt (slight blood); (Let me know if I need to add anything)

—

“Dunn! Slow down!”

He drifted his old Mustang Fastback down the desert road, kicking up a cloud of dirt in the process.

“No way, darlin’!” He laughed maniacally. “You’ll live!”

The sky had an array of golden and burnt orange hues as an aftermath of the Helium Wars. Radiation occasionally fizzed from the carcasses of poor animals that didn’t escape the firefight in time.

His curly hair seemed to glow in the sun, his face darkly handsome when the shadows of his face were apparent. A soft smile was on his face as he maneuvered the car in sharp curves and turns at high speeds, quite the opposite of their scared expression.

Vince, or his new nickname he took on after he fled from Battery City, Dunn, lived in Zone 6, far enough that he didn’t have to worry about getting caught by Draculoids sent out by Better Living Industries, but not far enough where he could keep his guard down.

“Dunn! We’ve got to get back before sundown, the Dracs are probably on our way from Route Guano!” They stuck their head out of the car window frantically, checking for any Dracs out on the horizon.

“Just one more loop, promise,” Dunn spoke softly, catching their attention.

They sighed, “Fine, but if you get caught in a fight, I’m not helping you tonight,”

Dunn looked over at them, smirking. He knew well that they would help him anyway. After all, they’ve known each other for the past two years out in the Zones.

Grabbing the steering wheel, he quickly turned his car around and then switched into the highest gear possible. The engine seemed to roar around the both of them, like a beast trying to fight for its life. As he drifted his car to go back to their quarters, they spotted a couple of Dracs on motorcycles heading their way.

“Dang it, grab your blaster!” They quickly pulled out theirs and leaned out the window to aim at them.

Whips of rays came hurling towards them, causing them to duck back into the car for cover. Dunn grabbed the steering wheel with one hand, while the other held a ray gun pointed at the Draculoids.

After firing a couple of shots, hitting one of the five Draculoids, he pulled over on the side and got out of the car quickly. They followed suit, staying low to the ground to avoid getting hit.

Looking over the top of Dunn’s Mustang, they could see the Dracs aiming for them rapidly, firing one shot after another without remorse. His car was getting pelted with each laser that struck it, dents and burns evident.

Each close call came buzzing past them, one after another, the zap of the lasers burning the air. They could hear each missed shot hitting the ground, displacing the sand and gravel right next to them.

Quickly standing up, they fired a few shots at the Dracs, some completely missing and some hitting them directly. Dunn did the same, with a few of his shots grazing a Drac’s shoulder or leg.

As he stood up, trying to fire the final shot at the one remaining Drac, he was hit in the calf, the whir of the laser sounding past him. He dropped to the ground in pain, taking his bandana to wrap around his leg for a temporary solution.

“Damn it!” he hissed.

They quickly looked over at him, and then turned their head back towards the Drac, pulling the trigger to seal the fate of it. When the final Drac dropped to the ground, they quickly ran over to where Dunn was and checked on him.

“Dunn! Get in the car!” They slung his arm over their shoulder, helping him to get back into the car. When he tried to get into the driver’s side, they stopped him. “I’m driving, get in the backseat.”

He hesitantly limped towards the rear of his car and opened the door. Sliding into the backseat, he rested his injured leg onto his jacket that he set down so as to not get blood on the interior of his car.

They turned on the ignition and quickly shifted gears to get back to their quarters before more Dracs could arrive. The sunset seemed to fade quicker as the night sky began to loom over in the opposite direction. The Mustang sped down the road, wind rushing past them through the open windows.

Just in a few minutes, they arrived back at their quarters. It was an abandoned convenience store, considering that after the wars, no one needed groceries in this area, besides those who decided to move into the desert. Dunn’s group that formed out in the Zones spruced up the run-down place well with some trinkets and furnishings they found on the side of the road.

“Lars! Cann! We need backup!” They shouted as they got out of the car.

The two men came rushing out of the front entrance, running towards the car that was haphazardly parked in front of the building. They opened the back door and helped Dunn out of the car, leading him back into the building.

“Sit down right here,” they said as they set Dunn down on a booth chair. “I’m going to get a med kit, so don’t you think about getting up,”

“Ouch, grouchy, huh?” He chuckled as they walked away.

“I swear Dunn—”

“Hey, hey,” he laughed. “Can’t an injured man joke a bit?”

They shouted from the back storage area, “No.”

“Take it easy on Dunn,” Lars sighed. “The pain hasn’t settled yet,”

They came back out from the storage area carrying the medical supplies needed to help Dunn with his wounds.

“Do we need any more supplies like aid kits or general things?” Cann asked.

“Yeah we do,” they sighed.

As they knelt in front of him to be level with his leg, they tapped on his knee to get his attention. “Take your pants off,”

He looked at them in false offense, “My, my—” he placed his hand on his chest. “Not even going to take me out for dinner first?”

“No, Dunn.” They looked at him with a stern face. “So that I can stop you from getting an infection.”

He sighed, sliding his pants down his leg, careful not to further injure his wound. They inspected the area of injury, and luckily for Dunn, the wound wasn’t too serious.

“Okay, good news,” They said looking up at him, making eye contact, “you aren’t bleeding out severely! The heat of the laser essentially cauterized your wound as it made contact,” they explained. “Bad news, I’m still going to need to clean the wound and surrounding areas to prevent an infection.”

His smile disappeared as fast as it came. “Oh,”

“And you probably shouldn’t go on supply runs or drive for the next few days,” they added.

His shocked expression turned into sadness, “But, what am I supposed to do for the next few days? Nap? Stare at the empty desert?” he listed.

“Oh, I forgot to mention that you can’t go and fight either, that’s a high-risk activity.” They inspected his wound, still slightly bloody.

Taking an alcohol pad, they started to clean the surrounding area of the wound as Dunn started to complain and groan. “Booooring—ah!” He hissed as the alcohol grazed the wound.

“Doctor’s orders, Dunn,”

“You’re not a doctor,”

They looked up at him, a cocky smirk drawn on his face. “Neither are you,” they shrugged. When they finished cleaning and bandaging Dunn, they got up and walked to their bunk, which was just a mattress on the ground behind the counter.

“Going to sleep already?” he loudly spoke as they walked.

“Yeah, we need to go on a supply run tomorrow since we are going to be out of food here.” They turned around to look at him. “And by ‘we need to go on a supply run’ I mean I need to.”

He frowned, “You got my hopes up, darling.”

“Deal with it.”

Silence hung in the air between the both of them, with Dunn sitting in the booth all by himself, and them standing, leaning against the counter. He looked at them with the saddest eyes he could try to make, in an attempt to make them feel guilty.

“Okay you can come along but I’m driving and you are going to be the passenger princess,” they sighed caving in, resting their head in their hand.

“You’re the best.” He grinned. As he tried to get up, he limped slightly as he tried to walk to his bunk.

“Dunn—” They quickly walked over to him to help him walk.

“I’m okay, I’m okay.” He chuckled as he tried to reassure them.

They scoffed. “Like hell you are,”

He hesitantly put his arm over their shoulder, allowing them to help him walk to his bunk. The night was settling down and it remained quiet outside. Once Dunn was sitting on his bed, they got up and walked to their own bunk.

He watched them as they were walking, and spoke out, “Rest well, okay?”

Turning around, they looked at Dunn, looking back at them, “You too,”

The next morning, Lars and Cann went out on a supply run, leaving a note on the counter for Dunn and them to find. They found it before he did and disappointment filled them slightly.

“Damn, should’ve let them known,” they sighed.

Dunn peeked out from the corner of his bunk, “Known what?”

They jumped at the sound of his voice, not expecting him to be up at this time of morning, “Dunn, what the hell—”

“I’m hungry,”

“Well yeah, that’s why the other two are on a supply run at the moment.”

He grumbled like a moody teenager, walking out the front door.

“Hey!” They whistled at him. “You’re injured—”

“I’m not going on a drive or anything! ‘Doctor’s orders!’” He mockingly said.

They followed after him, in case of an emergency where Dunn couldn’t defend himself. He well could, but his injury hindered him slightly. He was strong, quick-witted, and could fight a couple of Dracs on his own pretty well.

As they stepped outside, the hot desert air mixed with the radiation became slightly unbearable, their sweat sticking to their skin and clothes.

“Dunn, it is hell out here what are you doing?” They looked around, trying to spot where he was.

He stood in front of his Mustang in a white tank top covered in car oil and dirt, shirt discarded somewhere nearby. The hood of the car was propped up, and it was apparent that he was trying to work on something within his car.

“Car’s acting up, sounded a little off last night when you drove me back.” He looked up at them as if they were the cause to blame.

They stuck their hands up beside their head as if to plead innocence. “Quit lookin’ at me like that, for all I know it could’ve been the fact that some blasts smoked your car,”

Dunn looked up from under the hood of his car, his sweat making his hair stick to his forehead slightly, “That’s not how cars work,” he chuckled.

“Your car is from like what, 1967?”

“1967, but with maintenance and repairs to keep it running smoothly.”

“High maintenance,” they added. “Last time your car completely broke down was a couple of days ago near Zone 4.”

“And so did you, you’re pretty high maintenance,” he laughed.

They rolled their eyes at him and stood against the wall, watching him continue to work on his car. Dunn stood there, the sun gleaming on his skin, muscles flexing as he worked under the hood of his car.

“What’cha starin’ at?” he said teasingly.

“Making sure you don’t injure yourself again.”

“You sure that’s not just an excuse to look at me in a tank, darling?” He winked.

They groaned in annoyance while Dunn just laughed at them. “Be grateful I haven’t tried to beat some sense into you,”

“You wouldn’t do it anyway, I’m too precious to you.” He was right, and both of them knew it.

He continued to work on the car as they talked mindlessly about whatever was on their mind. Topics ranging from random anecdotes from the Zones, campfire stories and legends, to more serious things, the ‘what ifs’ of their lives.

“Remember that time you decided it would be funny to try and fight Larsy while we were out camping?

“Pfft—” He wiped his hand on a rag. “No, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he lied. “But I do remember that time where you tried riding Cann’s motorbike and fell,”

They cringed as they thought back about it. As they turned the motorbike, their center of balance was thrown off and they ended up on the ground with some scrapes on their hips, dust and dirt covering their clothes. Their body ended up being slightly bruised at the area of collision with the ground and they were sore for the next few days.

“Jeez, that was terrible,” they laughed awkwardly. “But I’m better at riding now.”

“Yeah, but can you drag race?” Dunn asked quizzically.

“Yeah, of course.” They kicked their foot into the ground idly, bringing up dust. “How else did I get the fifty-dollars for us a few months ago?”

“I don’t know,” he looked up at them, “you said you were going on a supply run? I thought you traded a crap ton of scrap metal for that,”

“No? I was racing,” they stated. “Someone bet fifty that I couldn’t beat them,”

—

It was a late summer evening that day, the sun still up in the sky pridefully. Plenty of people were racing, lined up on the side of the road, watching as fast cars and motorcycles whipped past them.

“Hey you, in the navy jacket,” someone shouted at them.

They looked over, spotting the person yelling at them. He had mid-length messy black hair, a yellow shirt, and a ripped up black jean jacket. His stature was shorter than average, but he looked to have a larger build, mostly muscle. “Yeah, you alright?”

“Me and you, race? I’ll bet fifty,”

Looking at the man in front of them, they put on a confused expression. “Why?”

“You look confident,” he shrugged.

“Alright.” They stuck out their gloved hand for him to shake. “Fifty it is.”

He shook their hand firmly, sealing the deal. “I’ll go notify Show Pony, they’ll set us up for the next race.” They nodded and waited as he walked away. Shortly after the last race finished, he ran up to them. “Snagged us a spot, follow me.” He waved his hand as he walked in the direction of the start.

Once they were at the starting line, the tension was high. They got on top of their motorbike and put their helmet on. Grabbing the handles, they leaned forward, maintaining a steady balance. Their mind raced, wondering how they were supposed to give a stranger fifty dollars if they lost the bet.

He looked over at them, as if it was going to be an easy win. “Don’t stress it, I’ll take it easy on you,” he chuckled.

They turned their eyes onto him in annoyance and returned their attention back to the stretch of road in front of them.

“Three—” Silence enveloped the desert air.

“Two—” The wind rushed past both of them, rustling the dirt.

“One—” They both revved their engines, anticipation boiling the air like the sun.

The revolver rang in their ears, signaling the start of the race. They twisted their throttle, sending them forward on the motorcycle. As they continued to accelerate, they kept their eyes forward, focusing on the end.

People cheered loudly, clapping and hollering as both vehicles ripped down the road at an insanely fast speed, most likely gaining the attention of people passing by.

The desert scenery seemed to fly right past them, disappearing and coming quickly. Adrenaline coursed through their veins as they continued down the road, engine growling beneath them. The hot sun started to make them sweat, causing their jacket to stick to their skin uncomfortably.

However, they didn’t allow that to distract them as they continued to speed up, lowering their body to reduce air resistance. As they both approached the finish line, the crowd became more loud within the final meters.

When they crossed the finish line, it seemed like he crossed it as well at the same time. Their vehicles came to a stop and they both stepped off and out of them.

Silently, they both walked back to the finish, Show Pony standing there. “I am proud to announce,”

Nervousness seeped into them. If they didn’t win then they’d owe that guy fifty dollars, which was much more than they had at hand at the moment.

“The winner of this race is—” They grabbed their hand and raised it high in the air. The crowd started to roar, hollering all sorts of complements and congratulations as he handed the money to them.

“Good one, kid.” He walked away towards his car and drove off, and they couldn’t tell if he was upset or not.

—

Dunn closed the hood of his car as he finished repairing it, listening to them telling their story. “Damn, you did all of that?” He leaned against the car, crossing his arms in front of him.

“It wasn’t much, plus we were tight on money that month,”

He looked at them with a genuine smile, “Thank you.”

They smiled back and hummed, allowing silence to overtake the both of them. The scorching sun stood at midday, beaming downwards.

“Car should be fixed now,” he broke the silence. “Should we take it on a test drive?” He asked, looking up at them.

“Yeah, let’s see how good you fixed it for now,” they chuckled.

They both got into the car, Dunn on the passenger side, and them on the driver’s. As they drove off, the car seemed to run smoothly without any strange sounds or noises coming from the engine.

“Sounds pretty good so far, right?”

Nodding their head, they continued to drive down the road. “Yup, pretty smooth.”

The slight breeze that came as they drove was refreshing compared to the sun, which seemed hotter than ever.

“I’m going to turn back,” they spoke as they turned the car around. “Don’t want to waste gas,”

He nodded in agreement as they continued to drive back to their quarters. The drive back was mostly silent, but it was quickly broken by him talking. “What if I never tried to run away? What if I stayed in Battery City?”

They turned their head, looking over at Dunn, who was sitting comfortably in his tank, now mostly covered in dust, oil, and sweat. “I don’t know,” they whispered, barely vocal over the sound of the car. “I just know that you wouldn’t be out here today.”

“Well I’m glad I ran then.” He smiled.

#nhl #hockey #nhl hockey #nhl writing #nhl fic #hockey fic #hockey imagine #seattle kraken imagine #seattle kraken #vince dunn x reader #vince dunn imagine #vince dunn #danger days au

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