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makeste · 4 years ago

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BnHA Chapter 302: As the Todoroki Turns

Previously on BnHA:

Today on BnHA: We have a very fun chapter in which (1) Shouto grows up lonely on account of his parents being worried that his siblings will literally try to kill him, (2) Natsu and Fuyu grow up neglected on account of not being special and/or self-destructive enough to attract attention, (3) we get to revisit all of that exciting spousal abuse from chapter 39, and (4) Touya burns to death right on cue, pretty much exactly like we expected it to happen. Thankfully since this is a shounen manga, Horikoshi finds some hope in all this misery as the Todoroki family rallies together, with Shouto getting his long-overdue credit for being a perfect sweet angel who put up with all of this shit for sixteen years and somehow came out of it strong and kind and empathetic and determined. Anyway, so that flashback was a barrel of laughs. But now that it’s over, we can put all of that angst behind us, and move on to... well I guess, probably, more angst. Look, we’re short on variety at the moment. Bear with it.

ouch. we knew this was coming, but still

A+ parenting move there. “ho boy, our eldest just tried to murder our youngest, now what? hmm how about we isolate our youngest from all human contact”

though in their defense, we probably shouldn’t have expected this rabidly strength-obsessed fire man and his wife who was groomed since childhood to obey her family’s whims to have any idea of how to raise stable, well-adjusted offspring

SERIOUSLY YOU GUYS

this is a perfect example of Enji’s tragically self-revolving viewpoint right here. just because being a hero is your entire world doesn’t mean you can just excuse yourself from anything outside of that and act like it’s out of your control. “alas, all I care about is hero stuff and my son can’t be a hero, we are doomed to inhabit two different worlds” no you jackass, it’s called having more than one hobby?? figuring out how to spend some time with your son that doesn’t involve training?? the same exact thing you were telling him to do last week, while ignoring that you’ve never done that yourself in your life??

that said, yet again we have that complexity though because it’s obvious that Enji at least on some level is aware of his own flaws, even though he seems unwilling or unable to confront them. honestly, from what we’ve seen so far, Enji’s obsession with surpassing All Might might be more accurately called an addiction. he literally can’t let go of it even though he’s fully aware of how it’s slowly destroying his life. and so in the same way that a lifelong smoker or alcoholic might tell their child to stay away from cigarettes and booze, Enji tells Touya not to follow down the same path as him, even though he himself doesn’t know how to leave that path. so yes, it’s hypocritical as fuck, but there’s also an element of helplessness there as well because Enji literally doesn’t know how not to be like this

though all the same he sure could stand to put in more than just a token effort. but it is what it is, and we already know how much he’ll come to regret it

and meanwhile Baby Shouto has frozen his sleep bubble with his quirk lmao. so I guess his quirk did come in early. that’s a recipe for chaos right there

once again Shouto is ruining every single dramatic panel in this flashback

this was so dark and intense... and then I spotted the lil bubs in the corner. Horikoshi please control yourself

“some hero you are, running away” and then all of a sudden, “FIVE YEARS LATER” lol what. OKAY THEN

(ETA: love the confirmation that eight-year-old Natsu comes from the Iida school of puberty and is basically a fully grown man, and meanwhile Touya comes from the hobbit school of puberty and has been perpetually eight for the past five years.)

“HEY BIG BRO WANNA COME RECREATE AN ICONIC FLASHBACK SCENE WITH US. WE’VE GOT THE SOCCER BALL RIGHT HERE, BUT HURRY UP OR WE’LL BE TOO LATE FOR SHOUTO TO WALK ON BY AND STOP TO LOOK”

lol and that’s literally the next three panels. but Horikoshi did add this extra bit after Endeavor starts to drag Shouto away

seriously Enji what the hell did you expect was going to happen here. “Touya went nuts and tried to kill his little brother out of jealousy, so let’s make it clearer than ever that Shouto is the important child and all the other children are just rejects. this will definitely not make the problem 100x worse, and will surely lead to Touya giving up and living a happy life, having been emotionally abandoned by the person he admired more than anyone.” good for you pal you figured it all out. no need for that plan b, “we all just go to therapy”

anyway so he’s telling Shouto he can’t play because he needs more endurance training. and meanwhile Touya’s patented Todoroki Drama Genes are going through puberty as well

definitely the face of a happy, emotionally stable child who’s not still plotting to murder his younger brother in his sleep

“WELL ACTUALLY MAKESTE” lol I stand corrected??

apparently during the five year interim Touya actually stopped blaming Shouto and realized Enji was the one at fault. good for him! a bit inconsistent, given what we know happens later, but I assume we’ll get to that in good time

anyway. “yeah man I agree that dad sucks, but it’s the middle of the night and I’m only eight and you’ve been monologuing for the past two hours bro”

LMAO

the manga is making my jokes for me, only better. fine then

looks like someone’s still miffed about that disagreement he had with his baby sister back when she was like four

“Fuyu doesn’t get properly riled up like I want her to so ranting to her is annoying.” okay but having been in Fuyu’s shoes, it really is just a different way of coping, and I can guarantee she’s not as fine with the whole situation as Touya might think. but making your peace with something is often a decision that’s made for emotional self-preservation reasons. and I sure as hell don’t fault her for trying to shut out a situation that she had no control over, and trying to make the best of it, and scrape together as normal a childhood as she could manage

and now in Touya’s defense as well, that is of course easier said than done, and I’m sure if there was a “push this button and instantly get over all of the trauma in your life” switch readily available for Touya then he would have pushed it too. unfortunately it’s not always that simple

so now Rei is pleading with Touya not to go train up on his little emo hill again, but it doesn’t seem like much has changed since he was eight

I don’t think he gives two figs about being a hero; he just wants his father to look at him again with pride. fucking hell, stop doing this to me you damn Todorokis

guh, they keep telling him the same thing over and over again

even if we hadn’t already known he was gonna go melt his jawbone off soon, I wouldn’t have expected a line like that to go over well

yep. fuck

that Todoroki puberty angst, though. nothing else quite like it

“you have a part in this too, Mom” ooooooh man

okay but look, he’s not entirely wrong. like, I’m not saying any of this is Rei’s fault at all! she’s in an impossible situation where she’s afraid to stand up to Enji (who by this point has shown that he’s willing to physically attack her if things get too heated, which is terrifying), and doesn’t really have anywhere to turn for support. her parents aren’t helping much if at all, and Japan in general is just a terrible country to be in when you’re in a domestic abuse situation. everyone’s expected to put on a brave face and deal with their problems all on their own in private. Rei is basically completely isolated at this point, and she doesn’t know what else to do, and so she’s just trying to keep the situation as stable as possible for the kids

but on the other hand, “for the kids” is also where that argument starts to break down a bit, because at this point Shouto is also being physically abused by his father, and the other kids are continuing to be neglected (emotionally if not physically), as they have been for years. so the situation really isn’t stable at all for them. and as a kid, what you end up learning in that type of situation is that you can’t rely on either parent. not the abusive one, certainly, but also not the other one who can’t protect you from any of it. even if they love you and they’re trying, they’re just as helpless as you. Rei is struggling to deal with all of this with one hand tied behind her back, and I get it, and I’m not blaming her at all. but all the same, particularly given that she’s (understandably) putting almost all her focus on Shouto, the end result is that the other kids have basically been left to fend for themselves

so yeah! a shitty situation all around. and one of those cases where it’s not really anyone’s fault (aside from Enji’s), but I can understand the resentment Touya is feeling all the same. and I’m so glad Horikoshi is acknowledging this, because it’s something I probably would have been too uncomfortable to bring up otherwise. as it is it’s still an incredibly heavy subject, and one that I probably have too many personal feelings about

anyway, so once again the whole “we’ll try talking to him and then just shrug our shoulders when it doesn’t work” parenting strategy doesn’t really pan out for the Todoroki fam

sob this boy is Anakin Skywalkering before our very eyes. all that’s missing is AFO to come and start whispering in his ear. any minute now...

“anyway so then he got taller and his fire changed from red to blue”

guess we’re getting pretty close then huh. this is the part of the flashback that I really don’t want to see, but also unfortunately the part that I’m most curious about :/

oh for fuck’s --

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN IGNORING HIM FOR FIVE YEARS DIDN’T ACTUALLY DO ANYTHING TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM” sob. back to the drawing board I guess

I thought he got taller, why is he still only like a third of Enji’s height here

oh fuck me these are armor-piercing feels. this is the heavy artillery right here

ENJI I’M BEGGING YOU PLEASE STOP AND THINK FOR ONE MOMENT IN YOUR LIFE BEFORE DOING SOMETHING YOU’LL REGRET FOR THE REST OF ALL TIME. your child just told you that he still thinks beating All Might is the only thing you care about, and that he believes his existence is a mistake unless he finds some way of doing that for you. please stop for a moment to contemplate that and choose your next words with care and grace and oh who the hell am I kidding

-- OR WE COULD JUST BLAME REI

go on and blame everyone but yourself then!! that’s a great solution!! jesus christ man I know this is Endeavor at his literal worst but still this is fucking hard to watch

POOR BABY SHOUTO IS YELLING AT HIS DAD NOT TO HIT HIS MOMMY THIS LITTLE BRAVE BOY NEEDS SO MANY HUGS OH MY GOD

AND MEANWHILE THE OTHERS ARE HUDDLED IN THE NEXT ROOM TRYING NOT TO CRY AH FUCK

(ETA: Fuyu covering Natsu’s ears cuts RIGHT TO THE CORE OF ME. Horikoshi if you’re really not gonna get these kids some therapy then at least consider giving your readers some. what is this.)

you know it’s bad when you’re starting to think the part where the kid burns to death might actually be a less traumatic thing to cut to right now

holy shit, actual Rei thoughts

“I was the one who ultimately made that choice” well there we go, wonder if that’ll put that whole argument to bed at last. I doubt it, but you never know. actually who am I kidding it’s not gonna settle jack shit lol

oh thank god, they decided it was getting too intense and cut away back to the present to narrate this next (final?) part

get ready to cue up that Alicia Keys. THIS BOY IS ON FIREEEEEEE

yeah I think that’s one thing we can mostly all agree on. neither of them had any clue what the fuck they were doing pretty much at any point. though I will say that the hypocrisy of him being all “WHY DIDN’T YOU STOP HIM” followed by him IMMEDIATELY DOING THE EXACT SAME THING is a bit rich

(ETA: and he still has this problem, doesn’t he? he froze up when Ending snatched Natsuo, and again when Dabi was attacking Shouto. he’s so afraid of doing the wrong thing that he ends up not doing anything, which of course is exactly what led to Touya’s death. damn Enji I guess you’ve still got some additional character development to unlock.)

and of course neither of them could possibly have known how badly it was going to turn out. like, the consequences here were WAY disproportionate even for the shittiest of parenting. no one expects “I didn’t know how to talk to my son” to snowball into “my son burned to death and then somehow came back as a villain and murdered thirty people”

ohhhhhhhh fuck me

LITERALLY INCINERATED THE ENTIRE HILLSIDE. fuck. and I am so not ready for the scene of Enji finding the remains of his jawbone afterwards. at least we were spared anything super-graphic (for now at least)

I feel like the timeline here is off, btw?? wasn’t Touya’s death supposed to happen after Rei got hospitalized? this might be the first actual retcon of the entire flashback. although I think it makes more sense this way tbh

I do appreciate that ten years later Enji is finally reflecting on the fact that if he’d just given up his stupid obsession he could have stopped his family from crumbling apart. that probably sounds sarcastic as fuck, but it’s not. there are countless jerks out there who would have still managed to find a way to blame literally everyone and everything under the sun except for themselves. at least he finally figured out how to take responsibility, even if it came too late to stop his son from dying and being radicalized into a villain terrorist organization

and speaking of, it seems to me we’re missing a third and final part to this little tale of woe, and one which only Touya himself will be able to shed any light on. so we’ll see how that goes

oh man seeing the other kids blaming themselves even though none of it was their fault hits hard af. Rei wasn’t kidding when she said they’d been bearing that burden of guilt far longer than Enji

SHOUTO I SWEAR TO GOD IF THE NEXT PANEL IS YOU APOLOGIZING FOR BEING BORN, I WILL... WELL I’LL BE VERY SAD, I GUESS. SO DON’T DO IT

oh good he’s just being quiet. good. it absolutely is not your fault lil bean. it’s not theirs either, but feeling guilty about things that aren’t your fault is a time-honored shounen tradition

goddammit I braced myself for the angsty Shouto panel a page too early. gotta do it all over again now lol. okay here goes

;_;

well well well would you look at that

imagine that. talking things out with your child before they make a rash decision. looks like the Todorokis’ parenting skills are finally leveling up

OH MY GOD

holy shit. this is the most quintessential moment of father/son Todoroki bonding in the entire series. for me it even tops the “nice scar” scene lol. Enji sobbing at the fact that he still has a chance to set things right. and Shouto offering his hand in what is actually the most mature and selfless gesture I’ve ever seen, and being all “we’ll stop him together” to his dad who he hates, but also doesn’t really entirely hate anymore. and all of that is incredibly moving... BUT ALSO HE STILL REFUSES TO MAKE EYE CONTACT WITH HIM AND HE WOULD LIKE HIM TO STOP BEING SO FUCKING DRAMATIC ALREADY IF YOU DON’T MIND. “WHEN YOU’RE DONE CRYING...” fkjldsk

OH MY FUCKING LORD

(ETA: wouldn’t be a Todoroki drama fest if there wasn’t somebody listening in on the whole thing in secret just around the corner lmao.)

“you think we should have waited somewhere else?” “yeah, probably.” “are you feeling a lot of secondhand embarrassment too?” “god, you have no idea.” STFU HAWKS IT’S NOT EMBARASSING TO BE MOVED TO TEARS BY YOUR FAMILY ALL COMING TOGETHER IN YOUR DARKEST HOUR TO GIVE YOU HOPE THAT YOU PROBABLY DON’T DESERVE BUT ARE NONETHELESS INDESCRIBABLY GRATEFUL FOR

and anyway you chose these guys as your found family, bucko. too late to back out now. next time go get yourself adopted by the Iidas then

AND MEANWHILE NO WORD ON THE WHOLE “HOW DID A THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD SURVIVE A FIRE THAT COVERED HIS BODY WITH HORRIFIC SCARS AND MELTED HIS JAW OFF, AND HOW DID HE SOMEHOW THEN MANAGE TO GO INTO HIDING FOR TEN WHOLE YEARS, AND WHAT HAPPENED IN THAT INTERIM TO CHANGE HIS GOAL FROM ‘SURPASS ALL MIGHT TO IMPRESS MY DAD’ TO ‘KILL ALL HEROES TO MAKE MY DAD SUFFER’.” as if we don’t know the answer to that. but still, would it kill Horikoshi to just confirm AFO’s involvement in all of this already. at this point it’s basically just a formality

so here’s hoping next week we’ll either get that, or more Hawks action, or (DARE I EVEN SUGGEST, I’M AFRAID TO JINX IT) finally cut back to Bakugou and Deku and All Might omg. either way I’m hyped

#bnha 302 #todoroki touya #dabi #todoroki enji #endeavor #todoroki rei #todoroki shouto #todoroki natsuo #todoroki fuyumi #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #makeste reads bnha #my sincerest apologies for this absurdly long recap which is barely funny at all!#THERE WAS VERY LITTLE HUMOROUS CONTENT IN THIS CHAPTER #congratulations horikoshi you win this round

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sleepinglionhearts · 3 years ago

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pls I think you for me into roark x steven and it's all my brain has been thinking in the past few days.. mind giving some hcs so I can brainrot some more? :'o

I'm so sorry to answer this so late! I have a large amount of stuff I think about concerning those two so it was difficult to narrow down what to reply with that would make sense hsgdhsgd

I'm sorry about 80% of this is all specific to an AU I want to eventually get around to writing/drawing and has such specific headcanons lol

-their first meeting is not in Sinnoh, but in Hoenn and when they were still pretty young. Byron gets invited to some inter-regional thing, brings his kid, said kid wanders off and runs into yet another bored young trainer and they hang out for a while. They become friends over similar interests, discover they're from different regions, and decide to become pen pals.

-...not that the pen pals thing lasts more than a couple of years or so as Steven is suddenly busier with formal competitive pokemon training and Roark is also facing a little pressure to start considering pokemon raising more seriously.

-much later, years later, Gardenia will tease Roark that the guy he used to write all the time and had his first major crush on turned out to be a regional champion quality trainer. Isn't that so funny?

-they meet again years later when Steven visits Sinnoh for purposes of rock collection and pokemon. Steven finds his way into the Underground and happens upon Roark and... well, Steven doesn't want to admit he kinda forgot Roark but it definitely takes him a minute to remember how exactly it is he knows this man who seems to have recognized him on sight and is being oddly familiar.

-Steven spends the majority of his stay in Sinnoh with Roark, either being toured around the region or just spending time together because WOW do they have A LOT to talk about.

-(Gardenia and Riley* are very amused by this.) *in this AU Riley was found as a small child by Byron and got adopted into the family! Why not! The man is already mysterious and strange, may as well add to that! Also great opportunity to have the weird sibling dynamic going.

-(Wallace is also very amused by this because as Steven's Best Friend he calls frequently to know how his favorite rock nerd is doing on his big trip and oh, wouldn't you know it, that ridiculous man has fallen in love.)

-speaking of having fallen in love they both have their own separate realizations but they don't talk about it, they just get hit by those feelings real hard after Steven has to leave. Cue both best friends yelling at their lovesick idiots about not talking about it.

-they've exchanged contact info properly by now and will text or call one another but there's something special about writing letters to one another... they've also learned that phone calls can sometimes drag on well into the early morning hours with discussions of pokemon, regional myths, and rock/fossil nerd things.

-Roark will eventually go to Hoenn after being convinced by both Riley and Gardenia (with Riley promising to look after the gym in Oreburgh, despite that being a bit of a delicate decision) and he'll get dragged around everywhere by Steven. It is possibly the most fun he's ever had.

-the first one to ask the other out is Steven because he slips up and says "I love you" in a phone call and there is no way they're not discussing that

-their primary pokemon choices are both very nice but both very different... so they have a silly rivalry concerning Tyranitar and Aggron instead

-Roark tries desperately to keep news of his dating Steven secret from Byron as long as possible. This goes on for a surprisingly long time and later becomes a bit of a joke among Roark, Riley, and Gardenia.

-On the other hand, Mr. Stone finds out about his son now dating someone (and a trainer from another region at that!) pretty quickly because Steven is... not great at hiding things like that

-I like to think of Steven on again off again accepting the position of Hoenn pokemon league champion so sometimes he's there for a while to do champion stuff and sometimes he's taken off for Sinnoh for several months, you just never know

-you can take the boys to the coast but they won't swim they'll just sift through the fucking sand looking for rocks while being fussed at by the people they went with who want them to get in the water already damn it

-the first one to go in for a hug is usually Steven. the first one to go in for a kiss is usually Roark.

-Steven very much enjoys traveling and at the times Roark cannot go with him, he sends him SO MANY PHOTOS and mails him little gifts here and there.

This post got long I'm so sorry but I hope that gives you some stuff to think about!! And here, have some art!

#reply #anon #pokemon art tag #long post #here u go anon...#hhhh i feel somehow that even this was not enough cute info or anything #and again apologies for making it personal au centric #but i mean at least i didn't come out swinging immediately with the confusing stuff #that's just very deep into the au like 'adopts a child' or 'the larvitar thing happens'#or 'wallace tries to help but almost breaks them up' or 'aunt fantina....'#or any number of other things that really would require more context #anyways thank u for sending this ask i love talking about pokemon things....#it may take me a while to answer sometimes but i will answer

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postmodernmulticoloredcloak · 4 years ago

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And now I’ve watched episode 3 of Walker because of reasons. (You guys asked, that’s reasons.) #2

If you guys haven’t seen part 1, go see it immediately. Because of reasons. This time, reasons is Slutty Glitter Cowboy Stripper. No, it’s not a joke.

Yeah, I’m not sure what’s happening either.

I can’t believe they’re airing cowboy strippers in Supernatural’s air slot and Dean Winchester isn’t there. I think this is why they had to kill Dean, because otherwise he would have ripped through the CW’s show layout and appeared in Walker sponteneously, instantly adopting Walker’s entire family and friends as his own and single-handedly implementing the depolicement of the state of Texas, with Castiel rolling his eyes at him in the background while he murders ICE agents at the US-Mexican border.

*slides the CW a twenty euro bill* so I have an idea for season 2 of Walker

Anyway, there’s this lady Walker and Ramirez are doing a stakeout on, a woman called Torreto who is presumably part of some criminal organization since they’re doing a stakeout on her, and who’s bisexual given she was being entertained by a lady and a guy at a strip club. Which is like, fine, not problematic at all, alright.

So the stripper straddles her and is like ~wanna come with me in the back, and she’s like ~maybe another time, and he’s like ~torreto i saw cops outside you probably wanna come to the back with me, and she’s like ~mmm yeah that sounds like a good idea. We were rooting for you, slutty glitter cowboy stripper! We were all rooting for you! Or not.

Meanwhile, Walker has horrible car manners.

Also, he asks her how her parents were to her growing up, which is a question you normally ask to people you’re not close to when you want to do some small talk. For some reason she brings up a friend she had some ~crazy teen years~ with, called Garrison, which doesn’t make me think of angels in Supernatural, no, I am a normal person.

But then people start coming out of the strip club, but not Torreto. So they go in.

Torreto is not there, so Walker just stops the first person he sees and he’s literally like ~excuse me, do you know if there’s someone in the back. The visual is hilarious

“Excuse me, sir, have you seen my brother from another show, I suspect he might be here”

Give me a spinoff about this strip club.

Anyway, the guys answers, “No, why, you two interested?” to which they immediately answer “no!” at the same time, and share a look which makes me think we’re supposed to be like ~~ooh, talking in unison moment! or something...?

Meanwhile their truck gets stolen, and Walker yells that his bobblehead is in there. Cue disgruntled Jared face.

Oh man. We are at the title card. It’s less than 6 minutes. This will never end.

It was night, now it’s day, and Stella and August are walking around Austin. He’s mimicking David Attenborough, describing the teenagers around them as though he was doing a documentary about animals.

Two girls approach them, bringing up a party that’s taking place tomorrow. She says it’s not the best idea with her court date approaching. The girls are like, your dad can figure something out, he’s an elite ranger or something and also owes you for disappearing for a year. She’s like, he’s being kind of cool, I don’t want to ruin this, and the girls “call BS” because this is like “the best party of the year”.

Ruby, the girl August has been hanging out with, appears and August goes from “nah the party is not my thing” to “I’ll totally be there” in like 0.02 seconds.

I cannot overstate how much I am not interested in high schooler drama.

Meanwhile, at the Walker Seniors’ place, Walker’s parents are preparing the table for a family dinner. From their banter we can infer someone’s who ~is like family although he isn’t “blood”~ is coming for dinner and Grandpa Walker doesn’t like him at all and actually expects the guy to steal their china and bourbon. “It’s been years, could you please give him a chance?” Grandma Walker says, and he accepts, although she grabs the fancy bourbon from behind his back.

Meanwhile, at the police station, all the cops are having a briefing about Torreto, the woman at the strip club. She apparently steals weapons all over Texas and sells them over the border at triple the cost. Remember that Torreto escaped from Walker and Ramirez because she stole their truck while they were inside the strip club. Ramirez is worried she’ll already become the laughingstock of the precinct.

Uh. James plays security camera footage from outside the strip club. Walker and Ramirez’ truck was stolen by Torreto and the cowboy stripper himself.

Obviously the other cops laugh when Ramirez admits it was her truck.

James tells them to find Torreto, find the truck, and find out who the naked cowboy is.

I have a bad feeling about this.

Then Walker drives home, and as soon as he gets out of his car, you know how in the Supernatural pilot Dean gets into Sam’s apartment and wrestles him before revealing it’s him to ~test if his fighting skills are rusty and laughs when Sam realizes it’s him? Alright, now think intensely and guess how Walker’s like-a-brother best friend is introduced. Think intensely! It’s really difficult to guess!

Something something about violence and male intimacy except this is too ridiculous to, you know, write something serious about it.

“Oh, man!” the guy laughs, lying on the ground where Walker threw him. “The look on your face!”

“You son of a-”

“Oh, c’mon man, don’t talk bad of a mother I never knew.”

I’m facepalming soooo hard. This is the first thing we learn about him (well, after the fact that he definitely stole something from the Walkers’ house in the past), that he never knew his mother!

HOLY FUCKING SHIT

GUYS

I AM SO SORRY

I am faceblind I didn’t realize

THE GUY IS THE STRIPPER

I REPEAT

THE “DEAN BUT IN JARED PADALECKI’S MIND” CHARACTER IS THE SLUTTY GLITTER COWBOY STRIPPER

THIS IS NOT A DRILL

I SWEAR MY HANDS ARE COLD AND CLAMMY

I AM EXPERIENCING EMOTIONS NO WORDS EXIST IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE TO DESCRIBE

Oh my god guys. I am so sorry.

“You did your touchdown victory dance before you stole my partner’s truck!” Walker exclaims. “I should arrest you right here and right now!”

The guy acts like he has no idea what Walker is talking about, and says he’s in town to see his best pal.

Walker keeps accusing him, but then his mother appears, super thrilled to see him, and Walker lets is go.

They’re at dinner (NotDean brought wagyu steaks, which obviously means he does crime for a living) and Walker’s mother tells him to say grace, which he does in a semi-serious, semi-mocking way. Obviously NotDean does not believe in god, but he’s grateful for the people around him.

Stella calls him uncle, in case you missed that this is supposed to be a friend whom Walker loves likeabrother.

He talks about jobs he did here and there, and Walker and his brother tease him asking if he’s been to some prisons around the country. Stella doesn’t get the joke and NotDean explains it to her, adding, “now, from what I hear, I’m not the only outlaw in this family”. Grandpa Walker leaves the room.

NotDean asks Stella if she’s going to the bonfire (the party they were talking about earlier) and tells her that her mother started the thing when they were young. She didn’t know that. This is supposed to be a Meaningful moment.

Meanwhile the stolen truck is found... at Walker’s ranch. Gasp! What a shocking turn of events.

NotDean gives Stella advice on how to act in court to get on the judge’s good graces, “which means acting”. “Please don’t get legal advice from a criminal” walker’s brother Liam says. Is the gay brother also a NotDean of sorts, to be fair? Well, CriminalNotDean tells her to dress her best and cry. ActualbrotherNotDean tells her to use the correct legal arguments. Walker just stops them, quoting something Ramirez said earlier in the episode, “nobody benefits from the easy route”. Stella is like, what does that mean, which, mood, but Grandma Walker interrupts bringing in a plate of different hot chilis. Apparently they have a tradition of a competition. Which we don’t even see. Boo.

Ramirez finds the truck... right outside the Walkers’ house. Grandpa Walker, who’d gone outside, points a rifle to her and she explains what she’s doing there. They introduce themselves and she is like, sir why is the man who stole my truck inside your house? “Wife invited him to dinner.”

She’s like, I need to arrest him. But he’s like, I bet there’s not enough evidence to arrest him, or my son would have done it. Join me for steak and burbon in the bunkhouse! As one does. So they have wagyu and bourbon together, and she asks him what’s the guy’s story.

So NotDean and Walker grew up together, NotDean had a rough life, “my wife has a soft spot for strays, she can’t give up on him”. But Grandpa Walker doesn’t feel the same. He tells her that she cannot arrest him tonight, but it’s only a matter of time before the guy gives her enough rope. He adds that Walker has a blind spot for faces from the past, and needs someone to fix that.

Meanwhile dinner’s over and NotDean calls a uber. He and Walker arrange to meet the next day and hang out like old times. Eventually, Walker tells him that if he is involved in this case, he will have to take him down. “Theoretically, if you catch me.” They do a manly hug with manly pats, and the guy leaves. “Theoretically, go to hell,” Walker says after he’s left.

The next day, NotDean brings Walker to a storage in the middle of nowhere... full of cursed objects, no wait, wrong show. What’s inside the storage is the red Mustang. Walker is shocked that he hasn’t lost it in some bet - which apparently is how he got the car from Walker in the first place. Now NotDean says that, after everything Walker’s been through, he deserves a chance to win it back.

Glowy flashback of Walker and his wife in the car, right after the scene in the beginning of the episode. They bet it during poker night, decision of Emily, because Walker is “starting to get attached to her”. Emily teases him for calling the car a she, and Walker decides to call the car Stella.

They gave their daughter the name of a car they lost at poker.

Oh. She tells him she’s pregnant.

So, apparently, they had their first daughter when they were broke, to the point they had to try and get money at poker for a bigger place and baby things. That’s... kind of irresponsible.

Meamwhile, Ramirez goes to James to tell him about the thing, but James already figured NotDean was involved, because apparently stealing things and returning them is just something he does. “Why are you so calm about this?” she asks. He says because they cannot pin anything on him. Questioning him could scare the big crime lady. So he tells her to just keep an eye on him. “Walker, Torreto or Hoyt [NotDean]” she asks. “Yes” he answers.

Blah blah. I apologize, I’m being too detailed. I’m just bored by this. Ah, a butcher’s truck was stolen right after the strip club thing, guess where NotDean got the wagyu steaks.

Walker and NotDean go to the bar with the bartender who’s their friend, and NotDean flirts with her. They start playing poker, when Ramirez arrives, and has some banter with NotDean and spills some glitter on him that she found in the truck. He buys her a drink and she arrests him for trying to bribe a police officer. Walker is shocked.

At the precinct, he says they cannot prove he’s working with big crime lady. But she brings up he stole the wagyu steaks.

She calls him out for trying to be everyone’s friend even if they do something wrong, also with Stella.

She says she can hold NotDean for 24 hours, long enough to figure out the big crime lady’s plans. Common trope in cop shows. Arrest someone without proof, you have to release them after 24 hours, but the cop finds proof and bam, forgiven for arresting someone without proof.

I know you’re bored, I’m bored too.

Actually, nope, it goes differently and kind of worse. In the interrogation room, Ramirez offers NotDean a deal: he tells her where the big crime lady’s weapon deal is happening, and walks free. He points the location on a map and he compliments her. Walker is watching from the cameras and is shook.

Meanwhile the bonfire is happening, and Stella is there with her girl friends. So is August, breakdancing to impress girls. We don’t care.

Meanwhile, a lot of cops in serious cop gear surround the location NotDean pointed at. Nobody’s there, though.

What is there, is the red Mustang with the creepy bobblehead in it and a letter from NotDean that says he gives him the car back because it was always his wife’s.

Walker figures out where the deal is actually happening - the storage where the red Mustang was before.

Meanwhile, at the bonfire, August is drunk on booze he stole from Grandpa Walker and brought to the party. He asks Stella if she’s trying to drive their father away, breaking the law and all, he asks if she wants him to leave again. Then he throws up. She calls Walker but he obviously doesn’t answer. So she calls her uncle, who’s doing shopping with his partner or something. They’re buying cake? Doing cake testing for their wedding? Maybe.

Meanwhile, NotDean calls Grandma Walker to tell her he cannot go mushroom hunting with her tomorrow but needs to leave town, and he’s sorry to let her down again. She tells him that just because his family’s bad, doesn’t mean he is too. “You saved my boy, and I’ll never forget that” she says. Oooh, that’s so intriguing!, nobody says. They share a cute moment and then he hangs up, while the weapon deal goes down around him.

Uncle Liam and his partner pick up the kids, and Stella asks him if he’ll be in court with her tomorrow. He says he can’t, because it’s her father’s decision to make.

August turns up music and they all sing in the car. It’s funny how everyone’s got better chemistry with everyone else except with Walker. I know it’s, like, on purpose for plot reasons, but still, Walker’s interactions with everyone feel so stilted compared to anyone else. And it’s not the other characters are that compelling.

The police arrives at the location of the weapon deal, and NotDean gets arrested trying to steal the truck again. Ramirez gives a speech how that’s hard but it’s the right thing to do. Walker makes a comment about tough love, implying Stella needs to get that too.

The next day, they leave for Stella’s court thing on the red Mustang. It took Walker three episodes, but now they also have a cool classic car to show off! Yay! *eyeroll*

Meanwhile, Grandma Walker and Grandpa Walker have a conversation about their failing marriage or something.

Ramirez goes to the bar to apologize to the bartender for arresting NotDean. They have a drink together and if lesbians were watching this they’d start shipping them, but no lesbians are watching this. They’re wiser than me.

Stella got like a gazillion hours of community service and her license suspended. She’s upset, but since she has her license for one more day he teaches her how to drive the Mustang.

Wait. Americans don’t learn to drive normal cars when they get their license?? They only learn to drive cars with automatic gear?? What the hell??

They drive while August runs after the car to get over his hangover or something.

Would be a cute moment if the entire thing wasn’t so cheesy and weird.

Well. We know NotDean is a recurring role so we’ll see more of him. (Well, I’m not sure I will be there to watch, because this is boring af.)

This episode used all its interest coins in the strip club scene and then became dreadfully boring. I don’t even have some witty line to close this post.

This was a rollercoaster that went my brain go through a blender in the first six minutes or so and then killed the remaining braincells through boredom.

That’s it guys. What can I say. This is the CW’s Walker. Yee.

#marghe watches walker for some darned reason #cw's jared: legit texan

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bellaireland1981 · 4 years ago

Text

New Beginnings: CH 7

Characters: Andy Barber x Single Mom! Briella James (Named Reader), Jacob Barber, Ava James

Summary: Briella James is a HS teacher and has Jacob in her class. Jacob meets Briella’s 5 year old daughter and they form a bond. Andy is interested in Briella but her ex (and Ava’s dad) is becoming a problem!

Warnings: Mostly fluff, some angst, jerk of an ex that harasses Briella, kissing… will update in future chapters.

Word Count: 3281

A/N: I do Not own Andy Barber or Jacob Barber, they are fictional characters. I do not give permission for anyone to repost my work or translate it to another site. Reblogs always welcome! This is my FIRST EVER attempt at writing for Andy…or any character, so be gentle! THANK YOU to my friends for supporting me and encouraging me! I’m my own worst critic so I love their feedback! @denisemarieangelina @fluffymisha97 @jamielea81

Previous Chapter

“Mommy! We watched Frozen and Frozen 2!” Ava exclaimed when you entered the house. “And we played games!”

“Sounds like you had a lot of fun!” You replied, hoping your voice didn’t give away your terror. “Ava, Monkey, can you go up and brush your teeth and get your pajamas on? I’ll be right up to read you a story.”

“I can read her a story,” Jacob said, seeming to sense something was off. “Come on, Ava, I’ll read you another one of your princess books if you want.”

“OK! Goodnight, Mommy! I love you.” Ave said bouncing over to give you a hug. Then tuned to hug Andy as well, “Goodnight, Andy! Love you!”

Your heart melted at her declaration. You looked up at Andy who seemingly melted at her words as well. He hugged her back.

“Goodnight, sweet Princess.” He said, his voice thick with emotion. “I love you too.”

“I’ll be up to tuck you in after your book.” You told her, “Love you, Monkey.”

“Come here, Sweetheart.” Andy said, pulling you into his embrace once the kids had gone upstairs. “Take a deep breath. It’s going to be OK. I promise you.”

“Why is he doing this, Andy?” You asked, “Five years… he’s left us alone. Not a word. Why now?”

“I don’t know, but we’re going to find out.” He assured me, “And I’m going to make him stop.”

Andy continued to hold you, rubbing circles on your back to soothe you. It was nice to have his strength when you felt on the verge of falling apart.

You heard your phone vibrate with notification alerts. You’d been good at ignoring it while you were on your date.

“Let me look at the messages, Sweetheart.” Andy said, “Go on up and tuck Ava in, and then we can sit down and figure this out.” He pulled back slightly, leaning in to place a gentle kiss on your forehead.

You quietly walked up the stairs and headed to your first to change out of your dress. You chose a pair of joggers and a tshirt. You scrubbed your face free of makeup and pulled your hair back, out of your face. Once finished you felt slightly better and started for Ava’s room. You could hear her and Jacob talking so you paused before going in.

“I wish your daddy could be my daddy, Jacob.” Ava said, “And you were my big brother. You’d be the best big brother.”

“Thanks, Ava.” Jacob said softly, “You’d be the best little sister. Wanna know something? I wish your mom could be my mom.”

Your eyes burned from tears at the sweet sentiments. You took a deep breath and blinked the tears away, needing to go say goodnight to your daughter.

“All ready to be tucked in?” You asked cheerfully, coming into the room.

“Ready!” Ava nodded, you could tell she was getting very sleepy. It was much later than she was used to staying up.

“Goodnight, Ava” Jacob said smiling, leaning over to give her a quick hug before he left the room.

You tucked her in and turned on her bedside lamp before turning off her big light.

“I love you, Monkey.” You whispered, standing by her door.

“Love you, Mommy.” She replied softly, already drifting off to sleep. You quietly stepped out and closed the door.

Jacob was leaning against the wall by the stairs, waiting for you, looking anxious.

“Is everything ok, Bri?” he asked, “Did something happen?”

“Everything is going to be ok” You reassured him, pulling him gently into a hug. His arms came around you, hugging you back tightly. “Thank you for taking such good care of Ava.”

“It’s not a problem.” He replied, “I had fun.”

You both headed down stairs to find Andy. You didn’t want to say too much to Jacob in case Andy didn’t want him to know what was happening, but you knew you’d have to tell him something. He knew something happened and it was clearly making him anxious.

Jacob went to the living room and started picking up the blankets and pillows off the floor, while you found Andy in the kitchen, sitting at the island.

“Hey” You said quietly, walking to the fridge to get a bottle of water. “Do you want something to drink?”

“Water is fine.” Andy said, “Ava all tucked in?”

“Yeah,” you confirmed, “Jacob is worried, Andy. He knows something is wrong. He asked me if something happened. I said it was all ok, I didn’t know if you wanted to tell him anything or what you’d want him to know.”

“He’s always been good at picking up on stuff like that.” Andy smiled, gently, “I’ll talk to him. He’s going to need some kind of explanation because we’re not leaving you and Ava alone here tonight.”

“How bad were the texts?” You asked, unsure you wanted to know. Andy slid the phone over to you, as Jacob walked into the room.

“Hey, Jake.” Andy said, “Listen, Pal, we’re going to stay here tonight with Bri and Ava. There is someone who is harassing her and I need to make sure they’re safe.”

“Who is it?” he asked, “Someone you know, Bri?”

“Its my ex,” You replied, “Ava’s biological father.”

“Does Ava know anything about him?” He asked, curiously.

“No.” You answered, “She’s never asked and I’ve never volunteered information about him. He left before she was born.”

“He’s scum.” Jacob said, his voice sounding angry, “He doesn’t deserve you or Ava.”

“You’re sweet, Jacob.” You said, smiling, “You OK with staying here, and all of this?”

“Of course!” he replied, “Dad’s right, we need to make sure you’re safe.”

“There is a guest room next to Ava’s, and the couch isn’t too bad to sleep on either. I can grab extra pillows and some blankets.” you said.

“I’ll sleep on the couch.” Jacob said, “Can I watch some TV for a bit?”

“Of course you can!” You answered, “Do you want anything to drink?”

“I’m good.” He replied, “But thanks. Goodnight.” He came over to where you were standing and gave you a hug, then to his dad’s shock, hugged him too before heading to the living room.

“You ok?” You asked Andy, smiling, “You look a little shell-shocked.”

“My teenage son, who hasn’t hugged me in years, just hugged me.” He answered, “I’m more than ok.”

You laughed quietly, then taking a deep breath, unlocked your phone and opened up the text messages from your ex.

:You really think I’ll allow some other man to have what’s mine?

: You’re stupid to think he really wants you, Briella. You’re worthless.

: Just because I don’t want you or the brat doesn’t mean I’ll allow anyone else to have you.

: If you continue to go against me, you’ll regret it.

You felt as though you were going to be sick. You could feel bile rising up in your throat. You quickly sat down, knowing if you didn’t you’d collapse.

“Sweetheart,” Andy said, coming around to where you were sitting and pulling you up into his embrace, holding you against him for support. “Those last few messages are essentially threats. We’re going to go to the police station in the morning and report him. We need the paper trail. First thing Monday, we’re filing a restraining order to add to the other orders. In the meantime, I’m not leaving you alone. You and Ava are far too important to me to risk.”

“If I’m being completely honest,” You said, “I’m really glad you’re here. I feel safer with you.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Bri.” He promised, cupping your face with his hands and leaning down to kiss you.

Your arms were around his waist, hands splayed over his back. His hands moved from your face, to wrap his arms around you, one hand bracing your head, pulling you closer. The kiss deepened, his tongue once more licking over your lips, seeking entry into your mouth. You opened, allowing him to deepen the kiss, your tongues meeting. You moaned softly, your bodies pressed together. You didn’t know how long you stood there, locked together, but when you came up for air you were both breathing hard, lips swollen.

“You have no idea how badly I want to keep kissing you,” Andy said, his voice low and husky, “But if we do it’s not going to end with just kissing you and when I do finally get you, I don’t want it to have to be rushed, or to have to worry about one of our kids walking in on us.”

“As much as I’d like to keep kissing you too, I think you’re right.” You reluctantly agreed. “I’ll have to arrange a sleepover for Ava with her grandparents sometime.”

“Sometime soon.” Andy suggested, smiling at you.

“Definitely sometime soon.” You agreed, “In the meantime, I will show you to the guest room for the night.”

“Lead the way, Sweetheart.” He replied. “I’d suggest we could share a bed so I could hold you all night, but it would open up a lot of questions if Ava were to come in.”

“She’ll be full of questions in the morning anyway when she sees you and Jacob still here.” You reasoned, “But those questions will be easier to answer than the questions she’d have at finding you in bed with me.”

You grabbed some extra pillows and blankets from the linen closet and took them to Jacob in the living room. After saying goodnight to him, you led Andy to the guest room.

“There are extra towels in the bathroom if you want to shower or anything.” You said.

He reaches out and gently pulls you back into him, dropping a soft kiss on your lips.

“Get some sleep, Sweetheart,” He said, “We’ll come up with a game plan tomorrow.”

“I forgot to let my mom know about dinner. I’ll have to call her in the morning.” You said, “Maybe we should wait on that until everything with my ex is settled?”

“If you want to wait, we can.” He said, “But I don’t think it’ll hurt anything if we go ahead as planned.”

“Ok.” You said, “I’ll call my mom in the morning.”

“Goodnight, Bri.” He smiled, leaning in to kiss you again.

“Goodnight.” You replied.

You crossed the hall and entered your bedroom, quietly closing the door. You brush your teeth and strip down to just a tshirt and panties, and slip into bed. You laid there, trying to shut your brain off so you could relax and drift off to sleep. You thought about the texts from your ex and worried if he’d actually follow through on his threats. You started to think of all the worst case scenarios of what he could do. The more you thought about it, the more anxious you became.

After tossing and turning for over 30 minutes you gave up trying to fall asleep and picked up your phone from your night stand.

B: Are you still awake?

A: Yeah, everything ok?

B: I can’t sleep… I can’t shut my mind off.

A: Want company?

B: Yes, please.

Shortly after you send the last text, your door opens and Andy strolls in. He’d taken off his pants and button up shirt, leaving him in his boxers and a white undershirt. He smiles warmly at you as he steps closer to the bed.

You scoot over to the side, making room for him to slide in under the covers with you.

“Come here, sweetheart” He said quietly, laying on his back and opening his arms to you. You settled into his embrace, laying on your side, leg kicked over his and your head resting on your chest. The sound of his steady heartbeat instantly put you at ease, you were finally able to take a deep breath.

“Thank you” You whispered, in the dark.

“I have absolutely no problem holding you.” He replied, dropping a kiss to the top of your head, “Try to sleep. We’ll deal with it all in the morning, but I promise, I won’t let anything happen to either of you.”

Comforted by his words, and lulled by his heartbeat and breathing, you were finally able to drift off to sleep.

You woke up feeling well rested. You glanced at the clock on the bedside table, seeing that it was well past when Ava would have normally bounded in to wake you up. Andy stirred next to you, pulling you back into him, his eyes still closed.

“Good morning” You said, laughing quietly.

“Ten more minutes.” He mumbled, a faint smile on his lips, “I don’t want to let you go yet.”

“I’m pretty sure Ava is already up.” You told him, “She’s normally in here bouncing on me by now.”

He finally opened his eyes, his hand coming up to brush the hair out of your face.

“Good Morning, Beautiful.” He said, “Did you sleep well?”

“I did.” You said, “Probably the best I’ve slept in a long time. Did you sleep ok?”

“I slept amazingly well.” He replied, “I loved being able to hold you. Waking up to you was pretty great too.”

“I could really get used to sleeping in your arms and waking up to you.” You told him.

“That’s good because I fully plan on making this a regular thing sooner rather than later.” He confided. “Going back to Ava though, how do you want to handle the fact that Jake and I stayed?”

“You’ll get no objections from me, Counselor,” You teased him, “For now, if she asks, we’ll just say it got too late so we decided to have a sleepover.”

“That’ll work.” He said, “Once we get some breakfast, we can have Jake keep her occupied while we file the report with the police. Afterwards, we can come up with a plan. I don’t want you and Ava alone until we have this settled. I don’t trust your ex.”

“I feel really bad that you’re getting pulled into the mess that is becoming my life.” You said, “I promise it’s not normally like this. Honestly, until recently he was a non-issue.”

“I want to be in your life, Bri” Adny said, “And I know better than anyone that life is sometimes messy. I don’t just want to be here for the good and easy parts.”

“You’re an amazing man, Andy.” You told him, “Most men would have probably run for the hills already.”

“Good thing I’m not most men, then huh?” He said smiling and cupping your face and kissing you gently.

“Very good thing.” You agreed. “Come on, let’s go face the circus and my Monkey.”

“Why do you call her ‘Monkey’?” He asked laughing, while the two of you got up.

“She used to cling to me like a little monkey when she was really little and then when she got bigger she was always climbing on stuff. The name just sort of stuck.” You explained.

“It’s cute.” He replied, “But I think I’ll stick to Princess Ava.”

“She loves that you know” You informed him, “She’s all smiles whenever you call her that.”

“Good” He said, “I’m pretty sure she’s already got me wrapped around her finger.”

“I’m pretty sure you’re right.” You laughed.

You pulled on the joggers you’d worn last night while Andy quickly ran across the hall to pull on his pants. He didn’t bother with his button up shirt just yet. The two of you made your way downstairs. Ava was already perched on the couch with Jacob watching cartoons, clearly in her element and more than happy that he was still there.

“Morning, Monkey” You said, smiling, “Morning, Jacob. Are you guys hungry?”

“Morning, Mommy! Ava exclaimed, “Can we have pancakes?”

“Of course,” You agreed, “Jacob, would you like pancakes?”

“Yes, please.” He said, “And Good Morning.”

“Alright, pancakes coming up.” You said.

“Mommy?” Ava asked, you stopped and turned back towards her. “How come you had a sleepover without me?”

“It wasn’t a planned sleepover, Princess” Andy said, jumping in, “It was just really really late when your mommy and I finished talking and we thought it would be better just to sleep here. We wouldn’t have a sleepover without you!”

“Can we have a real sleepover?” She asked, accepting his answer.

“We can plan a real sleepover.” You and Andy both agree.f

“Next time, we can build blanket forts and camp out in the living room.” Jacob said. “But no parents allowed.”

“Yes!” Ava agreed, laughing, “Sorry Mommy, Sorry Andy!”

“It’s quite alright.” Andy said laughing, “Your Mommy and I are going to go make those pancakes.”

“Bri,” Jacob said, “Can you please not let my dad be in charge of the pancakes?”

“Hey!” Andy said, indignantly. “I can make pancakes.”

“I stand by my plea.” He said, smiling at his dad.

“I promise not to let him wreck the pancakes.” You reassured him, “I can probably teach him how to make them though if you’d like.”

“That works.” Jacob agreed.

“I seriously take offense to the accusation that I can’t handle pancakes.” Andy said, shaking his head playfully.

“Come on,” You said, leading him to the kitchen, “For Jacob’s sake, I’ll teach you the basics of breakfast.”

You managed to get breakfast on the table without incident. Andy wasn’t as helpless in the kitchen as Jacob made him out to be.

After breakfast, you sent Ava upstairs to get dressed and brush her hair. Andy and Jacob took over clean up duties, so you ran upstairs as well to shower.

You were just out of the shower, a towel wrapped around you as you ran a brush through your hair.

“Now there’s a sight.” Andy said coming into the bathroom, looking you over. You laughed, shaking your head.

“Did you want to grab a shower?” You ask him.

“I’ll wait until I get home and can change into clean clothes.” He said, “Although, if you were offering to shower with me…”

“Maybe another time.” You teased.

“Once you’re dressed and ready, we can all head over to my house so Jake and I can change.” He replied, “Did you have a chance to call your mom about dinner today?”

“I wasn’t sure if you still wanted to after last night.” You said, “But I can call her. I’m sure she already planned on it, knowing my mom.”

“Let’s do it.” He said, “I’d like to meet them.”

“Ok, once I’m dressed, I’ll call.” You agreed. Andy smiles, taking your hand and pulling you into him, before bringing his hands up to cup your face, leaning down and angling his mouth against yours. Your arms came up to wrap around his middle, while your tongues explored each other’s mouth. You weren’t sure how long you stayed wrapped in each other and kissing. Slowly, you both came up for air.

“This is the sweetest form of torture.” He chuckled, “It’s hard keeping my hands off of you.”

“I’m having the same problem.” You admitted.

“Soon, Sweetheart.” He promised, “In the meantime, we’ll focus on taking care of the problem with your ex and keeping you and Ava safe. Jake and I will grab clothes from the house and plan on staying again tonight.”

“I’m sure he’s all talk… I’m sure we’ll be fine. It’s a school and work night, I hate to be such a disruption to your normal routine and life.” You said.

“I’m not comfortable taking that chance.” He said, “You’re not a disruption to our lives, Bri, you and Ava make our lives better and I’m damn sure going to protect that and you.”

@nickysurfer28 @waywardodysseys @thesecretlifeofdaydreamss

#andy barber fanfiction #andy barber x oc #chris evans fanfiction #Chris Evans

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risingsouls · 3 years ago

Text

Recruited: Chapter 37

We're in the thick of it now! I....definitely changed stuff to fit better, but I think that's just the norm at this point. I almost made this longer but this seemed like a natural end.

As always, Lila and Ninazu belong to @synthetixviola and @kiealer!

Nabooru

Initially, she found Vegeta's violent reaction to his future son's attempt to stop him from seeking out Gero and these other models he kept tucked away as a backup plan–a failed one, as it turned out his creations possessed far more free will than he could handle–overly callous and brutal. The teen proved by traveling back in time in the first place he cared for the well-being of the fighters in this time and hoped to prevent Vegeta from meeting the same fate as the one from his time. But with each insistence they wait on Goku before engaging the bionic menaces, Nabooru better understood the prince's thinning patience and the blow to his future son's stomach: it was grating. Obnoxious. And skirted right in line with the over reliance Goku's friends had on him to save the day. A realization that made sense; Trunks was obviously raised by a Bulma who, even with Goku dead in her time, still clung to some manner of hero worship she passed to her son.

The truth of the matter was Goku wasn't there and she doubted the androids would wait for him to show up before going on these rampages Trunks warned them about. They wouldn't wait to attack and kill them. If the teen's confusion when he arrived on the scene told them anything, it was that they had already altered their future for better or for worse. It was either fight for their lives or sit around and hope the androids would play nice and let them wait for someone they couldn't be sure could win anyway.

Nabooru did not sit and wait for anyone to save her. The outlook already seemed to have shifted in their favor. But they needed to be active in ensuring that victory.

She couldn't completely credit reason for her agreement with Vegeta's way of handling the situation. Like him, she wanted a good fight and a chance to test her limits. Like him, she wanted to prove that she was a force to be reckoned with. That she controlled her life, her fate, by her own strength and willpower. It was the first test of keeping her promise to herself.

After pretending none of them existed for several moments, the woman, designated number 18, agreed to fight Vegeta to "shut him up." Nabooru had to bite back a snort, though she couldn't fight the upward twitch of the corners of her lips. Lila's marked silence from beside her at the jab to the man she despised struck her for a brief second. Long enough to ensure she addressed it when she got the chance.

17, her twin, buried his hands in the pockets of his jeans while Vegeta boasted and slung machine-based insults at the woman and refused the insistence of aid from his son before their fight began, the beginning of which appeared evenly matched between the two. His pale eyes remained on the bout for a moment before slipping back to the group of sidelined fighters. It lingered a few beats longer on Trunks, whose face had paled, his fists clenched at his sides, and his jaw was so tight Nabooru swore his teeth were cracking in his mouth. A sight that coaxed the hint of a smirk onto the dark-haired youth's visage.

Remembering their previous blunder in not taking on Gero and destroying him when they had the chance, Nabooru rested her hands on her hips.

"Surely you're not content to just watch," she said, tone dripping with self-assurance. 17's gaze fell on her, a dark brow rising in tandem with the corner of his lips. "How about we speed this along and you fight me? I didn't plan on this taking all day."

17 chuckled and twisted around to face them fully. "There really isn't a lack of confidence in this group, is there?" He mirrored her pose. "Tell you what, Red. I like you, so when 18 is done with the uh…what did he call himself? The Super Saiyan? Whatever. When she's finished with your pal there, I'll gladly fight you. But for now…"

His gaze rested on Trunks again, then panned over the rest of the audience. "I'm going to make sure none of your friends here jump in to save the Super Saiyan when 18 decides to stop messing around. We all want a fair fight, right? So I'm going to make sure it stays that way."

Nabooru bit her tongue on her insistence that, outside of Trunks who was likely planning on assisting the second he saw an opening to, everyone besides herself despised Vegeta and would probably rather see him fall than help him. But she had no plans to jump into his fight, either. Outside of a general confidence in him and his ability to handle it, Vegeta was a proud warrior. She wouldn't like him muscling in on her battles, so she had no intention of interfering unless it actually did mean potentially saving his life.

Instead, she nodded. With everyone's attention back on the fight, she glanced to Lila. Her shoulders drooped slightly, and her brow was pinched. Her scarlet lips formed a tight line, and though her gaze was directed at the fight between Vegeta and 18, Nabooru wasn't convinced she perceived the action at all.

Upon seeing the combination of distress and defeat in her friend, she felt a familiar tightness in her chest. She had a feeling she knew what whirled through Lila's mind. It was something she experienced herself.

"Sorry you didn't get to kill Gero," the Gerudo muttered at last.

Snapped from her daze, Lila blinked and looked at Nabooru. Her lips moved around an answer–the easy one, perhaps, the "I'm fine" approach–before finally parting to give it: "It's…it is what it is. He's dead, and by one of his other creation's hands. Another like me, I'm betting. It's what he deserves." She sighed, fingers curling into her palms. "Even so…I can't help but feel…"

Lila trailed off with a soft puff of air. Nabooru's attention was only pulled for a second when the rest of their band of would-be fate-changers powered up and took off to continue spectating the fight. "Empty?" Nabooru supplied, then, softly. With the care and empathy her friend deserved.

Her responding chuckle was bitter. "That's about right. Is it how you felt when you didn't get to kill Frieza?"

"Yes." And how no doubt Vegeta felt, likely to a far deeper, more complicated and encompassing degree than her. But saying such would likely only annoy Lila further. "Still do. Sometimes."

Lila blew the stubborn strand of hair from her face, grin crooked. Crimson energy enveloped her. "Thanks for the honesty. I probably would have hit you at this point if you told me some lie about how it will get better."

"Did you really expect me to?" Her own orange ki enveloped her, and the pair of women took to the sky. Nabooru watched android–cyborg, if Lila was right–and Saiyan continue their bout in and out of traffic wending its way around the mountain. She was unsurprised by the explosions and wanton destruction, the lack of care to the humans commandeering the vehicles. Paired with Trunks's bleak description of his future, 18 didn't seem any more the type to suggest keeping their battle from endangering others than Vegeta.

They found the others gathered on a ledge overlooking the fight. 17 remained in front, keeping them herded like livestock waiting for slaughter. Nabooru focused her attention on Vegeta, the glee ebbing from his onyx eyes and grin as the limitations of waning energy began to take hold. Something the woman he faced did not seem to suffer from, for each recovery was as seamless as the last, and her attacks and motions remained fluid, graceful, and deadly. A consideration she could tell niggled at his easily-stoked temper and impatience. As much fun as he was having in the challenging bout, he expected to win, too. He was, she hoped, wise enough to understand that maintaining this level of aggression and energy output for too much longer would cost too much against an opponent unaffected by such. In his mind, this fight should be over, and Nabooru hoped he intended to make good on that sooner rather than later.

Once more Vegeta gained an upper hand, slamming her into a mountainside below. This time, however, he did not allow her to recover. A ball of blue energy formed in his hand, the same technique she recognized as the one that ensured his victory against 19. He fired it into the crevice 18's body made. She raised her arms in front of her face as she heard Krillin shout for them to get down, Lila following her lead. She saw Piccolo shield Ninazu from the corner of her eye as the blast exploded on impact in a blast of scorching heat and debris. When the smoke cleared and she lowered her arms, Nabooru found several mountains surrounding them reduced to half their majestic height and flattened like plateaus. Though her heart sank to the pit of her stomach and her gold eyes widened as the silhouette of a woman stood undeterred in the clearing dust. Save for a few scuffs of her cheeks and hands, tattered clothing, and disheveled blonde locks, 18 appeared untouched. Her own excitement replaced with cool annoyance as she stared up at the Saiyan.

"You damaged my clothes," she called up to him, tearing the scraps of her vest from her shoulders. "The good doctor didn't think to pack me a spare set, you know."

Vegeta's chest rose with indignance. With his temper. "Shut up!"

His ki surged and he fired a rapid-fire volley of blasts at the woman. While he was occupied and blinded by rage, 18 danced out of harm's way and appeared behind Vegeta. Before he could retaliate, she slammed her fist into his spine and sent him flying. She cut off his flight with a punishing sledgehammer, sending the Saiyan hurtling into the debris below. She followed him down and pulled her stunned plaything from the rubble first by his arm and then with a hand on his chin. Her free palm slammed into his face and sent him skipping across the destroyed pavement.

17's smirk grew at the display. "He's losing it. This will be over soon," he said, resting his hands on his hips. His eyes slipped to Trunks again, cat-like grin on his lips again. "Too bad. I was enjoying the show. Maybe if he fought me, he'd have a little more time to live. I like to play around with my toys more than 18."

In looking to the distressed hybrid, he missed the darkening of Nabooru's visage, the calculating taking place behind her molten eyes.Yes, keep goading him, she thought. Vegeta ripped from the ground and surged toward 18 to engage her again, his anger deteriorating his skill to desperate swings and hoping one struck with enough force to destabilize her again. His opponent remained unfazed, dodging each blow with graceful ease. She just needed an opening. One she hoped would show itself before 18 could kill the prince.

Tiring of the game, 18 took control by catching Vegeta's fist. Smirk on her lips, she shifted to his side. In a flash, she swung her leg straight into his arm. The sickening snap of the bone rang out like of an ice-laden bough breaking in the midst of winter, echoing all the way up to the spectators. Vegeta caught himself for the barest second, then dropped to his knees and wailed from the sheer pain, holding the useless limb in his good hand. Nabooru and to swallow her own rage and distress at the sight, the gruesome angle it hung limply at.

Come on, Trunks. Make a move. She could see the terror in his face, but for the moment it immobilized him. She needed one more push. 17 to say something stupid. 18 to prepare an attack to finish the job. Anything to set the hybrid off and distract their jailer.

Finally, the latter. Like a match finally struck, 18's steps toward the prince ignited the fire in Trunks to try and save his father. His anguished scream drowned out 18's taunts to the kneeling prince and gold energy burst outward from Trunks. He surged from the cliff, sword brandished and eyes pinned on the blonde woman. 17's gaze fell on him. She only needed the subtle twitch of his fingers to understand his motive, that he would stay committed to his promise to keep them from rescuing Vegeta.

She didn't bother ensuring 17 stopped Trunks, her time too precious and the window of opportunity too small to squander. She bounded from the cliff and shot straight for 18. She vaguely heard Trunks grunt and the snap of metal; 17 reached him and was distracted. The element of surprise worked in her favor; when she reached the pair, Nabooru caught 18 in a punishing kick of her own and sent her flying away from the injured Saiyan.

If Vegeta had any protests over it, she missed them in favor of chasing down her opponent, orange blades of ki curving from her enclosed fists with a deadly shine. 18 righted herself and just pulled back from the first swing, sharpened energy catching the ends of a strand of her blonde hair. Easing into this mode of battle with blades in hand–one that came to Nabooru as easily as breathing and one the Gerudo hoped 18 might not know how to combat immediately–she maintained pressure with speed and skill alike, keeping 18 on the defensive for the moment. Though she danced out of the way of each slash, her icy eyes were a fraction wider and each dodge held a hint of uncertainty, either in wondering if blocking them would cause her to lose a limb or, as Nabooru initially suspected, she did not know how to combat a warrior armed with dual blades. Let alone one that, for the moment, could keep up with her.

Her blade caught the fabric of her shirt, singed a fingertip. No matter how she continued to press, she couldn’t make much more headway. Limitless energy aside, Nabooru wasn’t entirely certain she could overpower her, especially if the cyborg ran her dry. It was the same trap Vegeta fell into and would serve as her undoing if she didn’t switch up her tactics.

She swung her left blade downward as if to cleave her opponent in two, forcing 18 to dip left to avoid in and, hopefully, her right blade. Ki dissipated in a shower of sparks in her left and, taking advantage of 18’s attention on her right hand and the sword in it, drove her left fist upward. It collided with the other woman's jaw. Nabooru followed up immediately with a high kick to send her skyward. 18 rebounded quickly enough to meet her flurry of attacks, unfortunately, meaning she lost her advantage.

“You’re not bad,” she purred, throwing a punch meant to shatter her nose and only missing by a loose strand of Nabooru's crimson hair. Nabooru switched her tactic up again, the motion of her right arm shifting from punches to a sweeping arc, glowing orange blade surging from her clenched fist at the last second. However, 18 was ready for the switch this time. She caught her wrists, the right followed immediately by the left in her hands, firmly enough to prevent escape.

"Nice try. But I'm not looking to be dismembered today." Her grip tightened, bones crunching beneath her iron grip. Nabooru clenched her jaw, unable to release herself from the entrapment. She ignored the pain of likely further breaking bones to use her height to her advantage and slam her foot into the cyborg's jaw and free herself. 18 bent backward out of her reach with ease, her grip remaining solid as ever. “I'd love to keep playing with you, but I want to finish off that cocky prince first.”

18 whipped Nabooru behind her head and launched her. With a cry, she whizzed passed blurry silhouettes of the others trying to take on 17 before crashing to the ground. Her body tumbled over itself and skidded along the dirt before finally halting against a remnant of one of the cliffs that survived the carnage. Dust and rocks fell on top of her from above.

She cursed under her breath. Her wrists throbbed and pain already settled in other portions of her body from the too short bout. She grit her teeth and stood, head pounding and drowning out the sounds of battle from the others. She blinked and regained her balance. Though, just as her eyes and brain turned to the same page, she spotted a pair of bodies being flung straight at her. Air left her lungs, and her feet were once more ripped from beneath her. Her spine slammed into the ground, the weight of Trunks and Vegeta pinning her.

"Get off," she growled, biting back a pained hiss when she tried to shove them away with two bad wrists. She didn't dare look at the damage done to them. She wriggled out from beneath father and son and rose to her feet alongside them just in time to see 18 slam her knee into Vegeta's back, forcing him face first back into the dirt, foot digging into his spine. Trunks lumbered forward only to be met with a blast to the face from the blonde to once more send him flying. When he crashed to the ground again, the golden aura faded from his frame. He didn't move.

Nabooru began a lunge to intervene herself, only for a sharp knee to catch her in the side. She cried out pain as she was forced from her feet and onto her side. She dug her elbow beneath her frame but, before she could begin to push herself back up, the sole of a shoe pinned her face flat into the ground. She sputtered as she unintentionally inhaled dirt, a mix of earthiness and iron filling her mouth, coating her lips.

"I thought you and me had an understanding, Red," 17 pouted. He put more pressure on his foot. Nabooru cried out, sure her head was going to explode. "I had such high hopes for you."

More pressure and her fingers dug into the dirt, scrabbled to find his ankle to trip him or break it or anything else to relieve the pain and save her life. She wheezed and coughed, trying to maintain her breathing. Just when she thought her skull would shatter, that she would suffocate on dirt, blood, and spit, the force on her head eased. She pushed up on her elbow and spat the grime from her mouth, chest heaving as she caught her breath.

"Let's let them live this time, 18," she heard 17 say. "I bet we can squeeze more fun out of them later."

A body thudded to the ground. "Whatever."

Turning over, she watched through bleary gaze as the twins hopped back onto the ledge before her neck gave out. Where Krillin, Ninazu, and Lila remained. The last surprised Nabooru at first, but she probably saw the beating they all took and decided against jumping in herself. Nabooru's arms quaked their last beneath her weight as Lila turned to the pair as they rejoined their third cohort. 16, she thought she heard Gero shout. Why hadn't he fought with them?

Before long, she could hear the others stirring, their ki signatures returning to normal one by one. Footsteps approached her position and she heard a snort above her. "Well, was that all the fun you hoped it was? For the sake of the mess they made of your face, I hope it was."

"Shut up, Lila." Nabooru opened one eye to glare up at her, grimacing when she found the strength to sit up again. "And it was pretty fun until I started getting my backside handed to me."

Her eyes fell on Krillin and Ninazu standing several feet off. The former appeared tentative about approaching them. The latter said a few reassuring words, tugged on his gi, and finally coerced him to meander over to them. Another who had little experience with her outside of Namek and the crater she nearly turned West City, if not the planet, into. She couldn't blame him for preferring to avoid her.

He cleared his throat when he approached, Ninazu bustling off to help Trunks. "I uh…here." He extended his open hand to her. In it, she found three green beans resting in his palm. "They're Senzu Beans. It will heal you up."

Nabooru met his gaze for a moment before taking in the damage done to the others. Tien and Piccolo had either downed their beans or were healed by Ninazu and were on their feet. Vegeta still lay motionless, both arms obviously busted among other notable injuries.

"Keep them. If you didn't plan to, give mine to Vegeta," she responded at last. When he blinked in confusion, she added, "Ninazu can heal me. It's why we brought her into this mess, isn't it?"

Krillin glanced over to Ninazu who was shyly accepting Trunks's gratitude, tangerine dusting her cheeks. "You think she can handle that much? She helped Yamcha earlier and you saw how bad that was along with Trunks now…Don't want her overdoing it in her first world threatening crisis, you know?"

"We should take advantage of her power while it's available," Nabooru countered, the seemingly ancient and forgotten air of a general returning despite her bloody visage and broken bones. Callous and calculating with little apparent regard for Ninazu, another soldier. A concern reflected in Krillin's minute recoil. Despite these Earthlings not being her troops to command. Their general had succumbed to battle with a heart disease. Piccolo, Goku's obvious second in command, would rather ignore her existence entirely than consider an alliance for more than the potential strength she could offer, and even that was questionable. But with his distraction in reassessing their position in the face of their loss, someone had to make these decisions. If not for the group then at the very least what she felt was best for her.

"Her healing ability is tied to her ki, so you're right; there is a chance she'll wear down. We don't know what's going to happen next, so we should keep as many of those beans as we can, and using Ninazu is the best way to do it."

Krillin mulled over her words then closed his fingers over the beans. "Alright, if you say so... Ninazu?" The girl turned to them and, when waved over, jogged to Nabooru's side. "Are you good to heal her?"

Ninazu nodded and knelt next to Nabooru. She could still see hints of uncertainty and fear in her eyes, in the way her smile didn't reach them and an easy to miss tremor in her lip, but pride in her work, her usefulness to the team and, perhaps Trunks's gentle nature, instilled her with more confidence than she likely felt after watching the most powerful people she knew get thrashed. Nabooru didn't miss the smug glance at Krillin's hand closed over the beans, the slight puff of her chest. She saw as little use for Senzu Beans as Nabooru when she was around.

"I can do it."

He nodded and sighed, one of equal parts relief and dread as his gaze slipped to Vegeta. Hisneyes had opened, but they remained unfocused on the ground beneath him. "I guess I'll take these to him. What are the odds he won't kill me as soon as he's conscious again?"

Krillin didn't wait for her answer, and Nabooru didn't plan to give one. Instead, her attention was on the girl resting her hands on her forearm. "You alright?"

"Huh?" Her eyes lifted from her hands, the orange glow wavering as her focus shifted. "I'm fine. I didn't fight, so…"

She trailed off, plum brows knitting together as she returned her attention to healing Nabooru's wounds. Cuts closed and bruises disappeared. The bones in her arms mended themselves back together. All pain eased. "Don't feel bad, kid. No one blames you for not throwing yourself into the fight."

"Yeah, some of us think it was the smarter move," added Lila. She seemed to have a better time finding distraction in reassuring Ninazu and taunting Nabooru than wrestling with her nemesis's death and three more cyborgs like her being awakened. Or created at all. "In fact, I think jumping in like that was downright stupid. Especially since your abilities wouldn't do any of these bozos any good if you were injured, too."

Ninazu flushed, a small smile finding its way to her mouth. Nabooru, however, rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I just wanted to fight. I didn't care to win <i>that</i> much."

A half truth; she definitely wanted to beat 17 and 18 while preventing them from killing Vegeta. Two out of three wasn't the worst thing in the world, she supposed. Though, after three years of grueling training, the sound defeat stung. She couldn't deny it. A sentiment she was sure resonated among all present, that they all struggled to accept. And if they didn't find some miracle, 16, 17, and 18 would kill Goku and then return to finish them off. Just as Trunks predicted after all.

"There. You're all set."

"Thank you, Nina."

The Earthling-Ankian hybrid rose to her feet and offered a polite nod. She scurried off to Piccolo's side where the others gathered around. Vegeta stood off to the side, seething but healed. Nabooru could feel his shame and rage emanating from him in pulsing, terrible waves. He did not wait for the others to formulate a plan; moments into their conversation, he took off, a cloud of dust left in his wake. Trunks made to fly after him, but Piccolo stopped him.

"Now what?"

Nabooru's gaze was pulled from the dissipating trail of ki left in Vegeta's wake and back to Lila. She rose to her feet, dusting off her backside. She mopped her forearm over her face, clearing it of dirt and blood. From what she could hear, the others planned to move Goku for, apparently, the androids planned to hunt him down at his home in the mountains. A task she wouldn't be needed for. Tracking the androids wouldn't bear any fruit, even if she and Lila fought them together. For the moment, there was nothing they could do.

With a shrug of her shoulder, Nabooru's feet left the ground. Lila followed suit and the pair took off together. Moments later, she sensed Piccolo jet off in the opposite direction. "I don't know," she responded at last, watching the mountainous terrain flatten then transform to endless ocean. "What do you think we should do?"

Lila's eyes remained fixed straight ahead. "I tried talking to them. You know. Cyborg to cyborg. Tried to convince them they didn't need to uphold Gero's directives since he was dead. That they could be and do whatever they wanted now." Her frown deepened. "They obviously didn't go for it. Yet. It's hard to say if 17 and 18 were married to the idea, but that 16 said it was all he wanted."

"So do you plan to track them down again and try to reason with them more?"

"Nah. I don't think it will do any good." The two women slowed to a halt. Lila folded her arms. "I'm…conflicted. I'm not sure what to do. I know they can't help what he made them into, but I can't let them carry out his and the Red Ribbon Army's mission, either. I vowed to end it."

Nabooru reached out and took Lila's hand, squeezing it. "You have my support no matter what you decide, whether it's to keep fighting them or not for whatever reason. I know this…all of it…it's not easy for you. Or how you planned any of this going."

"No kidding. I was planning on torturing Gero. He got off easy with 17 just kicking his damn head off," she sneered. It swiftly shifted to a sigh. "Maybe I'll head home for now. Make sure they don't try to make a pit stop in East City and destroy it. I need a hot bath and three packs of smokes to clear my head."

"Sounds like a good idea. There's not much else for us to do. I'm sure I won't need to, but I'll let you know when the fighting starts again."

"What are you going to do?"

Gold eyes shifted toward the horizon, toward where she sensed Vegeta's energy settle. "I don't know. Maybe clean up and find Vegeta." She ignored Lila's scoff and sour expression, and interrupted any protests she might have offered. "You can't deny that he's valuable no matter how much you hate him. He's not going to be thinking clearly if he's angry, and we need solutions. Not recklessness."

"And you think you can calm him down?"

It was Nabooru's turn to snort. "Not at all. But maybe someone to talk to will keep his brooding thoughts geared toward a productive line of thinking rather than a stupid one."

"Right. I don't see why you bother. I know it's not all about strategy." The last part she tacked on when Nabooru's lips parted to suggest just that. "If the man wants to self-destruct and throw a fit because he got his ass kicked, I say let him. One last thing I'll have to deal with on my to do list."

Nabooru waved her off, orange aura surrounding her. "Old habits, I guess." She saluted the cyborg. "I'll see you soon. I'll grab my phone, so call if you need anything."

She saw Lila return the salute, then streaked off into the blue sky. She didn't care to hear any further lecturing or insults flung at the prince, deserved or not. They were all sore enough–physically and mentally–as it was.

#fic: recruited #:: nabooru ☀#// vegeta ♅#rip vegeta's arms man #as much as he deserved it #i cringe every time

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m4gp13 · 4 years ago

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For those of you who made it through my laughably incoherent ethabaster think piece, here’s some hc’s, you’ve earned them:

- Ethan has sole possession of their one shared brain cell. Alabaster is not allowed to even look at it. This is because they used to have two but Al broke the good one trying to blow up something (probably Percy).

- If Al finds out Ethan left without some form of magical protection i.e. a sigil, a crystal, ground eggshells, he will be pretty much vibrating with nerves until Ethan gets back so he can give him a once-over.

- Alabaster’s from a very witchy family who all worship Hecate for many reasons that differ depending on which estranged relative you ask and they all kinda saw Al as the first coming of witch Christ so he had a lot of expectations at a very young age.

- Ethan knows this and tries to lift as much Titan army business off his shoulders as possible.

- He accidentally lifts too much off to the point where he is drowning in work and is now the one in need of saving. But does he tell anyone that if he looks at one more stack of demands from his mile long list of bosses he’s going to cry for five hours? Of course not don’t be ridiculous.

- Alabaster immediately hated Percy as soon as he heard the guys name but due to the arena stuff and telling Thalia not to k*ll him Ethan actually held a bit of respect for Percy which annoyed Al to no end.

-This was until the not-so-peaceful peace talk in tlo when Percy starts shit talking Nemesis and Ethan just internally goes “actually the witch bitch was right this guy sucks ass”

-However, under no circumstances will Ethan ever tell this to Alabaster; not because he values his pride (he has none) but because he knows the life of a demigod is short and he doesn’t want to spend the rest of his very short one hearing Al rub that one thing in his face for every single second of it.

- And I mean Every. Single. Second.

- So yeah he takes that to the grave and doesn’t even tell anyone in the underworld in case they tell Al when he dies and he doesn’t want to spend the rest of his afterlife with Al being a dumbass. (also yes Ethan got into Elysium, fuck you)

- (Actually I have another idea about where Ethan went post-life but that’s so far from canon it’s more of an AU than a headcanon so we’re gonna leave that out for now)

- Al thought he was the one in charge of the Hecate kids because he was the most powerful and the highest ranking in the army but he was Not. That was Ethan. The Hecate kids thought Ethan was their unofficial adopted baby brother but little did they know he was the mum the whole time.

- Ethan is the only thing standing between them and starving to death. He also does the younger kids hair and gives everyone with long hair super intricate braids that stay out of their faces during “field work”. Al thinks this is more of him trying to take the weight off his shoulders but Ethan knows that if he doesn’t do this shit no one will so he kinda has to. Not that he doesn’t like doing it. being helpful is his love language.

- Because of their powers over the mist the Hecate kids of the army were notorious pranksters who were usually at war with the Hermes kids (wars usually declared by Al because he rolled a zero on self restraint) but none of them prank Ethan because “nooooo you can’t do him he babey 🥺”

- Ethan has simply decided that what the magic prank wizards don’t know can’t hurt them and just turns to his blind side whenever he sees them sneaking off the ship to get Micky D’s in the middle of the night to stay on their good sides.

- Speaking of the ship, Ethan thinks it’s the dumbest thing in the world that one of their most powerful demigod enemies is the son of a sea god and he actually has a pretty decent relationship with said sea god and their main base of operations aside from mt Othrys is a fucking BOAT. He tells Al all about his worries for the ship and while Al assures him that nothing that bad could happen he always makes sure that the ship always has the least amount of demigods on board at all times just in case.

- It takes all the strength Ethan has not to yell “TOLD YOU SO” at him when the ship blows up.

- Al probably either wears basic white boy clothes or typical witchy stuff (like moons and shit) depending his mood meanwhile Ethan found out about leather and just goes for it.

- Every grunge/punk/emo/eboy/teachwear bitch aspires to be him and because he aint about all that “gender roles” bs he definitely goes about wearing cool egirl stuff too. Not just slightly feminine shaped jumpers but all the plaid skirts, fishnets and lace trimmed dresses he can steal afford and Al, despite his more basic fashion taste is here for it. You’ve never seen someone more supportive of their pals fits, get you a hypeman like Al. You deserve it. (Ethan is also not afraid to walk around in a full pastel gamer girl fit)

- (Also Al hyping up one Ethans fits in front of a Titan is the reason they were allowed to start wearing army fatigues instead of the whole ancient Greek armour on occasion)

- Ethan appreciates Al’s enthusiasm but he also kinda doesn’t get it. And he definitely doesn't do that “yeah you’re right I DO look good” thing because he just doesn’t know how. He’d always been a little self-conscious about getting a big head but then he found out about Nemesis and hubris and all that fun stuff, looked at his meager pile of self worth and said “ yep, this has to go”

- Al almost starts crying when he finds out and pretty much makes it mission to be such a good hype man that Ethan has no choice but to think of himself as a Pretty Cool Dude via absorbing the hype through diffusion. It kinda starts working but then Ethan [REDACTED] in tlo so we’ll never know what could’ve been.

- To nick a hc from someone ( hi @chromarozee-spam) contrary to his taste in clothes Ethan does ballet (he was a punk AND did ballet, what more can I say?) and while Al tries to support his hobbies he is genuinely afraid both for and of him. “For” because “holy fuck that looks painful are you okay?”. And “of” because “are you sure those are bones inside you because I don’t think bones are supposed do that?!”.

- Ethan tries to assure him that no his spine is not made of rubber, broken bones or otherworldly materials so can he stop bothering him during practice please?

- This does not stop Al from making a million protection wards and constantly asking his deck if Ethan is indeed a Being of this Good Green Earth.

- Eventually his cards pretty much just tell him that he is friends with one bendy heck of a boi and he needs to fucking get over it so he kinda just,, ,,,,, , does.

- Again with the hc thieving (this time from @altorringtons) Al learning to use a two-handed broadsword so he can guard Ethan’s blind side and back in a fight *soft noises* just them trying so hard to keep each other alive because they love each other and they care about each other!

- They also sleep in the same bed whenever they get the chance (fully clothed ya nasties, they’re kids) and they just hug each other soooo tight because they just need to know they’re alright cos they always get pretty banged up in fights against campers or just monsters that are too much like wild animals to recruit. (What? Me? Projecting my desire to be intimately held by the closest person I have to family with their arms wrapped not tight enough to make me uncomfortable but tight enough to make me feel loved? Never! What on earth are you talking about?)

- Because Al is super stubborn and prideful whenever they have an argument Al can’t really bring himself to say he’s sorry so when he’s ready to apologise he just climbs into bed on Ethan’s blind side and cuddles him because he knows Ethan is super worried about getting attacked on his blind side so it’s like he has a guard or a shield.

- Ethan on the other hand just calls him a Rock Boy in a derogatory way until he gets over himself and apologizes but he really does love the fact that Al knows that about him and accommodates that.

- The thing they fight about most is how “heroic” the titan army is. Kronos’ brainwashing worked on Al like a charm and he fully believes that they are the rebellion and camp is the empire. Ethan on the other hand wasn’t at camp long enough for Kronos or Luke to really do anything but it doesn’t matter because Ethan really doesn’t give a shit if he’s on the “evil side” cos he just wants respect and he’s willing to do what it takes without a second thought of how people see him. If he thinks he’s doing the right thing but on the wrong side he can live with that but Al needs to feel like all of his side is on the moral high ground because that’s what Kronos drilled into his brain.

- Ethan knows that Al delusional when it comes to the non-existent heroics of the army but eventually he just decides to let Al believe the titans lies because that’s easier for him even if it hurts Ethan to see him being manipulated like that.

- Due to Ethan not giving a shit on the humanity of his bosses he gets punished a lot more often and a lot more violently than Al because they know that Ethan already knows they don’t care about him so they don’t have to sugar coat him but Al still believes that they’re heroes and his mindset needs to stay like that to keep him obedient.

- Also because I am a Cruel Person By Nature I hc Ethan’s mortal family (which usually just consists of his dad) as meeting a not very pg13 end at the hands of a monster who wanted to nible on Ethan a tad which pretty much scarred him for life.

- SO, at the end of the battle of Man Hats Are In when Al looks around and sees that his whole family (that joined the titans) are dead! oh no! How sad! At least he knows someone whose been through the same thing so they understand each other and can help each other through this tough time together right? SIKE!

- so yeah Al learns Ethan d-worded in the worst possible way at the worst possible time and just looses it from grief. Loosing his family was bad enough but finding out he lost the one person he thought he would be able to confide in and heal with immediately after just really rubs salt in the wound.

- When the survivors start re-grouping to find someplace to hide until the gods forget about them Al just wanders off because it’s all he can do to not break down on the spot.

- He’s just wandering in a daze for a while and most people just assume he’s high but he snaps out of it and gets into anger mode when Lamia starts attacking him because he finally has something to do and occupy himself with even though it’s hard not to think about his sibling especially when Lamia keeps talking like they never would have died if she’d been in charge which is why she should totally just kill him and lead their siblings instead.

- His desire to have something to keep his mind off his family and Ethan is the first thing he thinks about when Claymore re-alives and immediately starts talking about doing research (yeah because that’s what you need after a long stressful day of fighting monsters and literally dying).

- Ethan keeps trying to cross the veil and help, even if he just sends Al a pleasant dream to help him sleep but contrary to what you might think from the name, the veil is really hard to cross so Ethan just has to bite his nails and watch his friend suffer.

- It gets easier to watch after Al and Claymore pretty much adopt each other because at least he has someone but they do still get into pretty scary situations.

- When they were both premortem they got paired up for a lot of missions for the titan army and they usually just tried to pretend they were on a fun road trip around America when they could and make fun of mortal shit together.

- At one point they were in a motel and the last people accidentally left behind one of Claymore’s books about death and they found it the funniest thing ever. Between a pair of in which one of their mum’s regularly goes to the underworld and one has been there himself they find mortal ideas of the afterlife to be very amusing.

- Alabaster has decided he would not like to share this with the class (Claymore) thank you very much.

- Also when they’re doing their road tripping Ethan knows all the best places to crash, the cheapest food places and the local gangs don’t bother them because between running away from camp and joining the army he just wandered around a lot.

- Like he’d just hop on a random train, take a nap and figure it out when he wakes up; he made a lot of friends this way too as well as his taste in clothes cos he didn’t have a lot of money so he’d just DIY some second hand punk shit. Al thinks he’s the Gandalf of the demigod world because he just knows everyone who might help them and everywhere they could spend the night. He definitely tells his siblings about Ethan being the closest thing they have to a wandering wizard and they fucking love it.

- Also because Nemesis tends to not have a lot of kids Ethan was the only one of hers in the army and Al felt really bad for him because his sibling were his favourite part about the army so he tried to include Ethan in as much as possible with his siblings.

- As an unexpected result Ethan ended up with a small army of super powered children to sick on the people who keep making jabs about him loosing in the arena battle.

- Al sometimes thinks he’s given him too much power but also he will fuck a bitch up if they make fun of his pals so he sees where his siblings are coming from and yeah those bitches had it coming. He also has a copy of bitchcraft.

- Ethan’s dad was the type to play “Stay With Me” by Miki Matsubara on repeat for hours and Ethan would probably enjoy the song but he’s heard it so often that now it makes his ears bleed and Al sometimes tortures him with for fun until Ethan starts throwing shit.

- To steal another hc from @chromarozee-spam Ethan has a thing for cats and one time Al accidentally gave himself mistform cat-ears and Ethan could not stop touching them. Ethan was just craning his head back uncontrollably grinning so much his face hurt. Al can’t bring himself to be upset because Ethan rarely ever smiles since he joined the army.

- Al saw Ethan crying over one of those video’s where people put their hoodies on backwards and put their cat in the hood so he made a mist cat and bought him a hoodie. Ethan of course started crying again but it was happy tears instead.

- Ethan is fucking tiny while Al is almost a foot taller than him. He wouldn’t mind so much if Al didn’t exhaust every opportunity to rub it in his face so he just starts climbing all over shit (especially tall buildings) half to give Al heart attacks and half so he can be like “Sorry? What was that? I’m so high up I can’t hear you. Can you speak up a little? Maybe get a ladder? Or taller?”

- Also I don’t know why but I hc Al as Texan. Ethan gets told about this “Alabaster C. Torrington” guy who knows latin, incantations and other magical knowledge and expects some fancy British guy so when they meet and Al speaks Ethan gets whiplash so hard he fuckin chokes.

- Al is also very casual and Ethan is pretty professional so when he meets this magic general with a straight back and the first thing that comes out of this assholes mouth is some “Howdy y’all!!” bullshit he just dies on the spot.

- Also because Al is texan he is very sensitive to the cold (I’m about 80% sure that Texas is one of the Warm states) so when he has to do stuff in cold places like the labyrinth or new york (idk about that one to but in every film I’ve seen that’s set in NY it’s raining for about 90% of the time) he complains about being freezing all the time until Ethan helpfully reminds him that he can literally make fire out of nothing, surely he can find a way to warm himself up.

- Ethan is also sensitive to the cold because he’s basically malnourished but he’s been like that for a while and thinks it’s normal so he sucks it up until Al notices he’s always cold. Ethan tells him it’s fine but Al is basically a walking electric blanket so whenever Al cuddles him to keep him warm Ethan can’t help but melt because he’s so fucking warm and soft and have you noticed I crave intimacy?

- Ethan started studying Greek myths vigorously since he found out he was a demigod and when he died he kept an eye and an ear out for Al because even though he wouldn’t be able to do anything it still reassures him to know what’s going on, HOWEVER, he was almost filled with enough malice to rip through the barrier between the living and the dead purely to beat an ass when he hears Al’s little “I don’t bother reading about worthless monsters like you!” jab.

- Ethan is very jumpy and fidgety to the point where Al is genuinely concerned and while Ethan assures Al that nothing’s wrong Al is still suspicious. Ethan probably would have told Al about it if it was because of anything but Kronos but seeing that it mostly is, he doesn’t because Ethan feels like Al will just take Kronos’ word over his and he’ll loose the only person he trusts in the army.

- Al doesn’t find out about it until way after the war when Kronos’ brainwashing starts to come undone because by then his mindset is a lot less biased in the titans favour so he can see things that he just unconsciously ignored before and is able to put two and two together. When he does boy is it a trip.

- Ethan is really bad at talking about feelings and stuff so whenever Al gets upset over something and Ethan has no idea how to talk to him he’ll just get him some rocks. One time Ethan found out about those heart shaped valentine boxes that are normally filled with chocolates but people put crystals in them and that just became his go-to for when Al was especially upset.

- Al is only slightly better at talking about stuff but he can still get Ethan to open up to him which is good because Ethan isn’t very materialistic so it’s hard to make him feel better by buying him things and because someone needs to get Ethan to express himself in an emotionally healthy way.

- Also because of this they just can’t tell each other they love each other. Like they’ll barely whisper it when the other is asleep because they’re just so bad at talking about feelings. It wasn’t that much of an issue until after the war and Ethan gets k-worded and Al is left alone and sobbing over all the times he never told his loved ones how much they meant to him.

- But because this is a headcanon list; fuck that, Al saved Ethan with some sort of magic bullshit and they talk about how much they love each other all the time now because they can’t stand the thought of one of them dying having never been told how much they are loved.

#me going around nicking hcs: thank you for your sacrifices #this will help tremendously in the war effort #also max i am extremely pleased to tell you that auto correct thinks Harrington is a lovely name for you #and you stan the magic messiah #autocorrect didn't say that one #but it's true #pjo #percy jackson #ethan nakamura #alabaster torrington #alabaster c torrington #ethan x alabaster #ethabaster

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speechlessxx · 4 years ago

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Crossing Lines. 2 (Andy Barber x Reader, Ransom Drysdale x Reader)

Summary: The line between best friend and lover is so thin... Can you choose which one to cross?

Warnings: expected ending let’s be honest, angst, fluff, language! (this is the last part... btw)

for fic purposes, Ransom and Andy aren’t twins and their physical similarities will not be mentioned LOL

Word Count: 2.4 k

Read Part 1 Here

The rest of the night was a drunken blur. You vaguely remembered the way Andy held you in the park as you drunkenly cried into his chest. He listened attentively as you ranted and cursed Hugh Ransom Drysdale – whom he assumed was the other man on the porch. Andy put together the pieces and with your slurred confessions, he understood that the best friend of yours held a special place in your heart, but it didn’t deter Andy’s attraction or his growing feelings for you either.

You woke up in your apartment with a dull headache and fifteen missed calls – along with fifty-five messages – from Ransom. And one “have a good day :)” from Andy, but you decided to ignore and ghost both men. You were too confused to even entertain the idea – the possibility of you and Andy, especially when you were still questioning your feelings and the fate of your friendship with Ransom.

Over a week of radio silence from you left Ransom antsy. You had never iced him out like this. The longest you two had gone without speaking was three days – when he stood you up at a university gala so that he could fly out to the Victoria Secret Fashion Show and hook up with a model. You were so angry with him but forgave him all the same when he showed up to your dorm with two pints of ice cream and a smile.

It always so easy to get you to accept his apologies. He thought it was because you two were meant to be in each other’s lives. That your smiles and laughs – and even your playful jabs – were meant to brighten his day, every day for the rest of your lives. And it hurt him when his pleads and apologizes were left on read.

He blamed your absent responses to his dozens of messages and voicemails on that hotshot Assistant District Attorney. He blamed Andy Barber for turning you against him. And his anger towards – what seemed to be his rival – only heightened when both he and Andy Barber pulled up to the front of your apartment complex.

“What are you doing here?” Ransom said, accusingly, as he balanced the cookies and cream pint on top of the mint chocolate chip.

Andy didn’t even respond. Like the night the two were acquainted, he simply ignored Ransom and began to stride towards the complex’s doors. Fumbling with his keys, Ransom quickly locked the Beamer and chased after the suited lawyer.

“Did she invite you?” Ransom prodded. He felt a dull ache in his heart at the thought. Is this what you’ve been doing for the past week? Ignoring him to be around Andy?

Andy huffed, still ignoring the other man, as he pressed your apartment number’s button on the intercom systems. Ransom looked over at the takeout bag in Andy’s hands. Though he couldn’t see the contents, he recognized the logo. It was from your favorite Japanese place – the one you said had the best shrimp tempura rolls. He remembered you tried to get him to go with you, but he blew you off to go to a bar with his rich friends. Did Andy know your order? Did Andy take you there?

Ransom repeated his question and Andy just gave him a side glare as he pressed the button next to your apartment number again.

“No.” Andy finally answered. “I went by her office to see if she wanted lunch, but her co-workers said she’s been sick.”

Relief rushed through Ransom. So, you were ignoring both of them – that’s fine. Ransom smirked to himself. His years of friendship with you gave him the insight to know that whenever you were sick, you preferred hot soup as opposed to sushi – that you’d puke the raw fish right up.

“Hi, sorry, hello?” Your voice statically came over the speakers.

“Hey.” “Hi, (Y/N).” Andy and Ransom said at the same time. Andy shot a glare at Ransom.

“(Y/N),” Ransom said, pushing Andy’s hand away so that he could press the button. “It’s Ransom. I have ice cream and uh…”

“Ransom, I…” you sighed. “I’m sick.”

“I know, but I know all the best remedies.”

“Sorry.” You deadpanned. “I don’t… I don’t think you should be up here.”

Andy lightly shoved Ransom’s hand away from the button, pressing onto it firmly. “Hey, it’s Andy… Lauren and Sabine said you were under the weather, so I brought you lunch from that Japanese place you liked so much.”

“Andy, I…” You frowned as you spoke though neither could see it. Were they there together? “I’m sorry… I’m just so sick… and I tend to throw up sushi when I’m – “

“I actually bought you ramen.” Andy said, hope still in his voice. “I remember you told me you throw up sushi when you get sick, so I thought I’d better order some soup instead.” Ransom’s brows knitted together – when did you have time to tell Andy this? How long have you two known each other?

“Oh…” You facepalmed. The slap was audible and made Ransom crack a smile. “Okay fine… C’mon up, Andy.” That smile quickly dropped.

Andy smirked at Ransom as the doors buzzed and unlocked, but Ransom was not going down without a fight.

-=+=-

Several days later, it was Ransom’s turn to show up at your office, but this time you were there. Your work friends, Sabine and Lauren, were divided about the strange predicament you found yourself in. They were the ones who arranged for you and Andy to meet, but they were also the ones living vicariously through the love triangle you stumbled in.

“What are you doing here?” You groaned as Ransom showed up with two coffees in his hands. He put one cup on your desk and brought his to his lips with a smirk. “Hugh – “

“You’re ignoring my calls and texts, but you sure do love giving Andy Barber attention… Did you know he has a kid?” Ransom poked. “I know you wouldn’t date people with kids. The ex’s still in the picture y’know.”

“Considering how I haven’t dated anyone since college, I’m in no room to judge.” You frowned. “Now, unless you’re in some legal trouble, I suggest you leave.”

Ransom shook his head and pushed you back into your seat when you moved to stand. “He’s also really old…”

“Not much older than you and I.”

Ransom frowned. What did Andy Barber have that he didn’t? Why were you so intent on breaking your own dating rules for him?

“What’s it about him?” Ransom wondered aloud. “Is it his job? Dating an ADA would surely get you out of this joint… Hell, maybe you could even be a trophy wife. Stop working, drive around his Audi. You can probably even be friends with the ex-wife… Laurie, I think that’s her name. Aw, you and Barber would be so cute… Imagine him going to the country club with his pretty, young wife.” He snorted.

“Ransom!” You scolded as you glanced around at those who were listening in the conversation. You were already given flack for being friends with Harlan Thrombey’s grandson. You didn’t need your other co-workers to whisper about your attempts at social climbing by dating Andy Barber. “What is wrong with you! Andy’s a good guy. I’d date him even if he wasn’t a lawyer. Now shut up and leave.”

“No… No!” Ransom argued, lightly slapping your hands away when you tried to push him towards the doors.

“You’re making a scene at my work-place, Ransom,” you aggressively whispered.

“No!” Ransom repeated, his voice rising. Those who weren’t paying attention before were certainly now. “I just wanna know… what’s it about Andrew Stephen Barber that’s got you ignoring me? Huh?” When you didn’t respond, he grew angrier. Why weren’t you answering?! Did your ghosting also apply to real life? “(Y/N), I told you I loved you and you just got in a car with him and left me.”

You bit your lip, furrowing your brows as you glanced around. Those who were trying to discreetly listen abandoned their attempts. They watched on as if they were watching a soap.

“You sleep around.” You muttered. “You parade girl after girl around me as if it didn’t hurt, Ransom. I cancelled my date with Andy, so I could go to your mom’s party. You invited me and ditched me, so that you could go fuck some wannabe model in your grandad’s house. You only came looking for me when you needed a damn condom!” You heard some snickering in the background, but you were too focused on trying not to cry to care.

“I – “

“I’ve been at your beck and call for years. And now, I think…” you stared up at Ransom’s eyes, your own shiny with tears. “I think you only keep me in your life because I’m the only one who gives a damn about you.”

“(Y/N) – “Ransom sighed. “No… I love you, that’s why,” he tried to grab your arm, but you pulled away, shaking your head. “No guy has ever been good enough for you. That’s why I never let them date you!”

“What?” You asked in disbelief. Your tongue darted out to lick your lips as you thought about every date – every guy who came into your life who miraculously disappeared after meeting Ransom. “Son of a – “

“And Andrew Fucking Barber is definitely not good enough for you.”

“And what you are?” You prompted. Your eyes wide and with your shaky tone, Ransom knew you were on the brink of crying. “Ransom,” you shook your head, “I loved you for years. I loved you despite you constantly sleeping with other girls, despite you always ditching me, or despite your family. I loved you even though you can be heartless and insensitive. I loved you so much I put my life on pause to always help you – to always be there for you… But Ransom, I can’t do this anymore… I’m sorry. I can’t…”

“Hey pal,” the security guard finally stepped up just as the tears started to roll down your cheeks. “I think you gotta go.” When Ransom reached out to grab you, the guard quickly stood between you. “Now, Mr. Drysdale.”

Ransom stared at you as you slumped back into your seat. Lauren and Sabine immediately rushed to your side, but you waved them off as you put your head in your hands. You were embarrassed that you caused a scene. You were embarrassed that you confessed your love for Ransom. But it gave you clarity.

The love you had for Ransom was toxic.

And you needed to let it go.

Ransom allowed himself to be dragged out of the office and onto the pavement. The guard told him not to come back. “You leave Miss (Y/L) alone, alright, man?” The guard said. “I know Andy Barber… and when he finds out about this, he ain’t gonna be happy.”

“I’m not scared of Andy fucking Barber.” Ransom rolled his eyes.

“Nah, but he’s got some pull in the DA’s office. He can get a restraining order approved in minutes, pal…” The guard chuckled. “You leave Miss (Y/L) alone.”

Ransom watched as the guard hobbled back into the office, closing the doors behind him. He tried to look through the glass, to get one last glimpse of you. He always wished you’d be the first to confess your love … But he never expected it to be like that.

Now, he couldn’t help but wonder… was this your last conversation? He made you cry and he couldn’t even apologize for that … After this, are you cutting him off completely?

-=+=-

Andy Barber was attentive, observant. He was kind. Growing up with a murderer as a father, he found that his compassion was a way to compensate for his father’s sins. He strived to make a name for himself aside from being Bloody Billy’s son. He was a good man.

A man that put aside his late evening plans to drive from Newton to Boston just to pick you up. A man who put his night on pause just to spend some time with you on a whim of a phone call.

If it had been Ransom, he’d be scolding you as he drove. Blaming you for wasting his time. He’d guilt you and make you feel worse.

But Andy wasn’t Ransom.

Andy made you feel wanted.

“I’m sorry,” you muttered when you slumped into Andy’s couch. “I didn’t know where else to go… Ransom knows where I live and if I see him at my apartment, I think I’m gonna lose my shit and I’ll need a lawyer.”

Andy chuckled as he settled down next to you, handing you a cup of coffee. You smiled and thanked him as you put your head on his shoulder. “I’ll represent you, no worries. I’ll even do it pro bono.”

“I don’t think you’re allowed to,” you laughed. “Circumstantially, they say that lawyers shouldn’t represent their significant – “you bit your lip, cutting yourself off. You’re thinking too far, (Y/N), you scolded yourself.

Andy smirked. “Significant other?” He asked, bringing his cup to his lips, taking a long sip. “Taking strides now, are we?”

“Sorry…” you felt heat rise to your face.

“No, you’re fine,” Andy smiled and pressed a kiss to the top of your head. “We’ll take strides.” He muttered and nodded. “If that’s what you want?”

“Yeah, Andy… I do.” You smiled to yourself as you brought took a sip.

Your nose scrunched up. You had forgotten to tell Andy your meticulous coffee order. Whenever you were at Ransom’s, you didn’t need to tell him – he just knew. Your heart ached at the thought of losing your best friend, the one of the only people who knew you. After years of friendship, you couldn’t just burn that bridge… right?

You pulled your head from Andy’s shoulder and looked over at him. He smiled at you and you couldn’t help but smile back. This growing relationship was fresh. It was new and it felt healthy. Sure, Andy didn’t know your coffee order, but like Ransom, he could learn it. Maybe he could even memorize it by heart.

You smiled at the thought and leaned into Andy, pressing your lips onto his.

You weren’t sure what fate had in store for you and Ransom – whether that friendship ended forever or will revive itself in due time…

But you were certain about Andy…

You were certain you wanted this new beginning.

#andy barber x reader #andy barber #andy barber imagine #ransom drysdale imagine #ransom drysdale x reader #ransom drysdale #chris evans #chris evans x reader #chris evans imagine #crossing lines #angst #fluff

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awhitehead17 · 4 years ago

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Universal Signs

Chapter 22 / Previous Chapter

A/N: WARNINGS! A panic attack does occur, so be please be aware of that. Something else to be mindful of is that this chapter is FULL of emotions so be prepared, you've been warned!

Also on AO3

Please enjoy! :D

He feels numb.

Tim doesn’t think there’s any other way to describe what he’s feeling in that moment. Sad, disappointed, despondent, happy, elevated, excited. There's whole mixture of emotions stirring inside of him, so when they combine it leaves him overwhelmingly numb.

He doesn’t see the ship take off but he knows when it leaves, there’s a gentle thrum in the air and strong gust of wind that catches him. Tim can’t believe it’s all over, he can’t believe that he’s back on Earth, that he’s almost home. There’s so many thoughts running through his mind along with so many questions he wants to ask and need answers to.

Tim purposely got Kon to drop him off in some fields just outside of Gotham city. The fields are an open space so there’s plenty of room to park and it’s a pretty much abandoned area so it was less likely someone would see them. The main road leading into the city isn’t too far away from the fields either, Tim plans to get to the road and hitchhike back to the city, perhaps someone may offer him a lift out of pity.

Tim shoulders the bag he’s got and continues forward. It’s crazy to think that in the next hour or so he’ll be reunited with his family. What will that be like? To see them all again after who knows how long? Will they be happy to see him?

Before those thoughts could get too far Tim shakes his head and tries to move away from them. If he thinks about it too hard then it’ll become too much to handle. The last thing he wants to happen in that moment is to become too overwhelmed and have some kind of breakdown. He needs to keep it together, just for a little longer because he’s almost there, it’s so close to being over.

Tim makes it to the side of the road and observes the various of vehicles zooming by. When was the last time he saw a car or a truck? Not only that, but the smell of patrol coming from the vehicles too?

Moving his attention away from the vehicles Tim continues on walking down the road, seeing Gotham City far up ahead. It’s currently light out, if he had to guess it may currently be around mid-afternoon, if he walks the entire way back to the city then it would probably be evening by the time he reaches it.

As he travels towards the city it’s easy to get lost in his thoughts, both negative and positive, and it certainly keeps him occupied as he walks over the gravel of the road. It’s not until a car pulls up in front of him that he comes out of his head and back into the present. Tim stops and frowns when he sees it’s a cop car that’s pulled over. He holds his breath as the driver climbs out and makes their way over to him, Tim has no idea on what to expect here, he’s almost tempted to turn back around and run into the trees.

The cop, a man around his mid-thirties wearing a cap and a GCPD uniform, stops a few feet away from him. He’s looking at Tim with an expression showing concern and confusion. “Hey there pal, what are you doing out here?”

Tim knows that he means well, but he does sound a little patronizing.

“I need to get to Gotham City.” Tim tells him without answering his question. How the hell was he supposed to answer that question? I got dropped off by some aliens in a spaceship because I’ve been in space for who knows how long because I was kidnapped and now I’m on my way home. Yeah right.

The cop seems to get the message that Tim wasn’t going to answer the question, he simply nods his head. “Yeah okay, I can give you a lift back. I’m Officer Ryan Peterson.” The man holds up his badge and Tim takes a moment to study it before nodding. The cop puts it away, staring at Tim as if he’s studying him and Tim could only watch back wearily, feeling rather sceptical about this situation. In the end the cop simply frowns and asks, “Have I seen you before, have we met?”

Tim blinks at the unexpectedness of the question. He raises an eyebrow. “No sir, I can’t recall us meeting.” Just because he’s weary doesn’t mean he’s going to be an asshole about it.

“What’s your name pal?”

Tim hesitates before answering, unsure whether to be truthful about it or not. Revealing the truth could make this go two ways. He tells the truth and then the cop takes him home and he gets reunited with his family or the cop could kidnap him and hold him hostage or something. (He’s from a rich family, hostage situations are unfortunately known to happen.)

Eventually he decides to chance it and tell the truth. “My name is Tim Drake.”

The cop’s eyes widen in surprise. He blinks at Tim for a moment as if trying to remember how to speak. “Tim Drake? As in Tim Drake-Wayne, missing son of the Bruce Wayne?”

Tim’s eyes widen in surprise, the cop knows he’s missing, he knows Tim’s family. “Yeah that’s right! Can you take me home? Please.”

“Pal, you’ve been missing for a long time. You’re really alive? Everyone is going to be ecstatic that you’re alive.” The officer gestures him over, “c’mon, let’s get you home and back to your family.”

Without waiting Tim hurries over to the car and climbs into the passenger’s side as the cop climbs into the driver’s seat. He starts the car up and then they’re on the road heading towards Gotham within seconds.

The officer glances at him. “I’m going to need to call this in, I hope you don’t mind. Unfortunately I’ll have to take you to the station before I can take you home.”

Tim feels his heart drop at the news. He shakes his head, almost feeling desperate. “No please. I need to go home. I need to see my family. Please! Once I’m there we can deal with all the legal stuff. I just need to see them.”

Peterson sighs and Tim stares at him pleadingly. The man switches between looking at the road and glancing at him several times before he speaks up sounding resigned. “Okay, fine. How about a compromise? I’ll still call it in but I’ll take you straight home. That sound okay?”

Figuring that’s the best he’s going to get, Tim nods in agreement. The cop smiles and reaches over the dashboard to grab his radio and speaks into it.

“Sir I’ve found Tim Drake-Wayne… No sir, he’s currently sitting right next to me. I was coming back from outside the city and found a boy walking alongside the main road on his own. I pulled over and spoke to him, it’s Tim Drake-Wayne, he looks exactly like the photos too. On my way back, just entering the city now.

No sir, I’m taking him straight home. I know, but he needs to go home first. I’m sure we can deal with the paperwork tomorrow while he reunites with his family tonight. If your daughter were missing wouldn’t you immediately want to be reunited at the first opportunity? Exactly, I’ll take him home, please call Mr Wayne in the meantime and we can continue the case later on. Thank you sir, I will.”

The cop returns the radio back to its place and sends Tim a sheepish smile.

“Sorry about that, really I should take you to the station where we can check you over, check your wellbeing, find out if you’re still in danger and sort paperwork out. We’ll have to definitely to discuss things with you and your family, but that can be at another time.

For now they’ll ring your dad and I’ll get you home. I’m assuming it’s the famous Wayne Manor correct?”

Tim nods and the cop goes quiet. As they travel through the city, Tim stares out of the window in disbelief. It feels like it’s been forever since he’s been in the city, it’s unreal. Eventually they break away from the city and head down a familiar road, as they drive closer and as the Manor comes into view Tim suddenly feels nauseated.

He’s excited and nervous and his stomach is going crazy. The feeling only heightens when they reach the gate to the Manor and Tim finds himself unable to look away. After all this time, he’s finally back. He’s finally home. A small part in the back of his mind comes up with the thought that this isn’t real, this isn’t happening, it’s like a dream and he’s going to wake up at any second.

The cop speaks into the intercom and soon enough the gates open up. Officer Peterson carefully drives through and follows the road up to the front of the Manor, as they approach Tim sees the doors open up. His breath catches in his throat as his family appear on the front steps. There’s Bruce, Alfred, Dick, Jason and Cass. There's another person that Tim doesn’t recognise but he doesn’t pay them much attention.

He’s brought out of his haze when Peterson speaks up next to him. Tim had forgotten where he is for a moment, completely absorbed into seeing his family for the first time in however long.

“You okay pal?” The cops asks sincerely. Tim could only stare at him. Silently blinking. “I know you’ve probably been through a lot and this is overwhelming but everything is okay now. You’re home safe and sound.”

Tim swallows thickly and in robotic movements he nods his head. He tells the copper thank you but barely registers the words as they leave his mouth. It isn’t until the cop gently encourages him that Tim finally moves to get out of the car.

Taking a deep breath Tim opens the door. As soon as his foot hits the ground it’s like he’s been unleashed, Tim shoots out the car and starts running up the stairs, taking two or three at the time, anything to get him closer to his family as soon as possible.

It’s about halfway up the staircase that he collides with someone, he isn’t even entirely sure who he’s hugging but he feels their arms around wrap around him, squeezing so hard that it hurts but Tim isn’t complaining. He wraps his own arms around their shoulders and clings back just as tightly.

After a few seconds he feels himself being moved, it’s only where he’s being picked up and lifted higher. Tim wraps his legs around the person’s torso and adjusts his arms so he’s now hugging their neck.

He isn’t even aware that he’s crying, doesn’t notice it until he has to breathe. He pulls his face away from where he buried it into the fabric covering the person’s shoulder. He takes a long shaky breath but finds he’s unable to control the tears streaming down his cheeks and the way his breath hitches as another sob breaks out of his throat.

There's a hand running up and down his back, a voice speaking unintelligible words into his ear, and the arms around him never loosen up.

After several long moments Tim attempts to get his breathing under control again. He moves away from the shoulder and looks up. Through blurry vision he finds Dick and Jason standing so close just opposite him, they’re watching him with open expressions. Seeing the two of them again makes him sob with uncontrolled happiness.

Tim glances to the side and finally works out that he’s in the arms of Bruce. His adoptive father has him wrapped up securely in a strong embrace.

He squeezes Bruce with his arms again and looks at him. “Bruce.”

Bruce pulls his own face away and he looks back at Tim, a wide relieved smile taking over his face. “Thanks the gods your back Tim. I was so worried. Thank god you’re okay.”

“I missed you.” Tim whispers he rests his head against Bruce’s shoulder again and continues on hugging him, unable to find it in himself to let go.

Eventually Bruce shifts, he begins to slowly drop Tim down to the ground, letting his legs fall from his waist until he’s standing steady on his feet. Tim reluctantly lets his father go, though Bruce must be feeling the same because he keeps a hand on Tim’s shoulder as they take a step apart.

Tim only gets a moment to himself before he’s being wrapped up in another pair of arms and this time he’s much quicker at recognising the person hugging him. Tim sighs as he feels Dick press him closely to his chest, his eldest brother’s arms wrapped firmly around his back and his head resting on top of Tim’s. Unable to help it, Tim sobs again. Overwhelmed by the strong onslaught of emotions.

The hug with Dick doesn’t last as long as it did with Bruce though its long enough for the two of them to be comforted. Once Tim leaves Dick’s arms he’s instantly being crushed by another pair, this time it being Jason’s.

Once he and Jason separate, Tim has a bit more control of himself. He’s continuously taking long deep breaths to try and compose himself, his brain still trying to wrap around the fact that he’s reunited with his family once again.

The next hug he receives is from his sister Cass. While she’s not as broad or built as the others, her hug is just as strong and means just as much. Their height is similar so Tim easily manages to press his head against hers and is able to wrap himself around her body more.

Once they separate Tim hugs Alfred. Seeing the elderly butler who’s practically a grandfather almost makes him break down again. He manages to control himself and is comforted by their hug, much gentler than the others but is just as soothing as the rest.

When they separate Tim takes a moment and wipes his eyes. He’s blinking at each of them as they all smile back. Tim can’t believe it. He’s finally home, back with his family once again.

As if he couldn’t help himself Bruce gets in his space again, his father wraps a single arm around his shoulders and tucks Tim into his side. Tim smiles and goes with it, finding the action reassuring and comforting. Bruce bends down and presses a kiss to Tim’s hair.

“Words cannot describe what I am feeling right now Tim.” Bruce tells him, his voice sounds thick with emotion and Tim could see some tears running down the man’s face. “I’m so happy you’re home.”

“Mr Wayne…”

The moment is interrupted by Officer Peterson who’s still around. Clearly he’s been giving them some space all of this time, if Tim’s being honest he had completely forgotten about the man.

The cop sends Bruce a sympathetic look as he begins to talk. “I know you want to spend time with your son and rejoice, but there are a couple things I need to discuss with you, like legal actions and what the near future will look like for you and your family.”

Bruce takes a deep breath and nods. “Of course. I understand. I want to thank you for bringing my son home.”

Peterson ducks his head. “No thanks needed Mr Wayne, I simply happened to be in the right place at the right time. I found Tim here walking alongside the main road just outside the city. There’s only a couple things I need to cover with you now but we can deal with the rest tomorrow.”

At that Bruce sends Tim a questioning look but doesn’t comment on it as he turns back to pay attention to the cop. Alfred also comes and stands beside them, taking in what was being said. Tim probably ought to pay attention as well because it’s clearly about him but he finds himself not able to. His attention is diverted when Dick appears in front of him and gently tugs him away from Bruce’s side.

Tim now finds himself in front of his siblings and for the first time he takes in their appearances. Dick and Jason both look slightly older, they both look broader too, like they’ve been frequently working out. Their hair styles have stayed the same, at best Dick’s looks a little longer down the back.

Cass appears to be the same as before too. Maybe the only noticeable difference is the way she carries herself, she seems like she’s much more comfortable and confident now.

Something that gets his attention, something that stops him in his tracks for the first time since opening that car door is when he makes eye contact with someone he doesn’t know.

This person seems to be a young teenager, he’s slim, slightly shorter than Tim, has black hair, an olive skin tone. There’s something familiar about him but Tim can’t pinpoint what it is. He knows he’s never met this kid before. The main question is however, what he doing here? He’s been lingering around at the back of the group like he’s not sure on what to do with himself, but he steadily meets Tim’s eyes with a confidence Tim hadn’t been expecting.

The others seem to have finally clicked that the two have noticed each other because his siblings shift about, creating some kind of circle between them all. Dick stands just to the right of the kid and places his hand on his shoulder.

Dick looks at Tim, watching him cautiously. His expression puts Tim on edge, he has no idea on what kind of news he’s about to receive. Who is this kid? They’re obviously all familiar with one another which leads to another question of how long has he been around for? Tim certainly didn’t meet him before disappearing.

“Tim.” Dick gets his attention. His eldest brother now looks almost uncomfortable. “This is Damian. Um, he’s uh, he’s - Damian is Bruce’s biological son.”

Tim blinks. He opens his mouth to say something but quickly shuts it again. Did Dick just say that Bruce has a biological son? As in his adoptive father has a teenage kid that he didn’t know about? He has another brother he was never aware of?

He’s stunned. Upon returning home that is certainly something he never expected to find out. How long has he been gone for!

“None of us knew about Damian.” Jason states firmly while frowning. It’s like he could read Tim’s mind, knowing what he’s thinking. “Bruce didn’t even know himself. Damian was dropped on the doorstep by his mother over a year ago where she left him with no explanations or anything of the sort. It’s like she had enough of Damian and decided to dump him on Bruce.”

As if the news of finding out that Bruce has a biological son wasn’t enough to rock his boat Jason dropping that bomb completely capsizes the boat. Tim feels himself freeze. He blinks at his brother trying to comprehend what he just heard.

“A year ago?” Tim repeats in disbelief. “He’s been around for a year? I’ve been gone for a year!” Tim can’t control the way his voice gets higher.

All of his sibling’s eyes widen at that before a look of sympathy, confusion and sadness washes over them. The change in emotions make Tim feel like he’s missing something else. “What? Don’t tell me there’s another kid or something...”

Dick steps forward and places a gentle hand on his shoulder as if to comfort him but all Tim feels is dread. The action isn’t like what Bruce had done earlier, it feels like Dick is about to deliver some grave news.

“Tim… you’ve been gone for two and a half years.”

Everything stops. No one moves a muscle as Tim just stares back in complete astonishment. That can’t be true…can it?

“Two years… two and a half years… I’ve been gone for two and a half years,” he mumbles underneath his breath trying to understand that information. As he tries to wrap his head around that his chest suddenly tightens and he finds himself unable to breathe. He gasps for air, clutching at his chest. “I can’t breathe. I-I can’t breathe.”

Everything around him blurs and all Tim can focus on is the pain inside his chest. Why can’t he breathe? Two years! He’s been gone for two fucking years? That’s practically three years of his life he’s lost!

His chest is burning now and he thinks he’s crying? At least that is what comes to mind when he feels wetness running down his cheeks. It’s hard to tell at this point.

Something gets his attention. There’s pressure somewhere on his body. He doesn’t know what it is but tries to reach out to it. The pressure moves and his hands are grabbed, Tim clings onto it. Finding the sensation grounding. He still can’t breathe but it’s something.

His hands are moved and now he’s touching something solid, something that’s steadily moving up and down. As well as the pressure Tim tries to focus on it, tries to keep his attention on the movement, it’s surprising when his head starts becoming a little clearer as he focuses on the steady rise and fall of whatever it is.

“Follow my breathing Tim, in and out. Tim can you do that for me, breathe in and breathe out.”

Right, right, breathing… he still can’t breathe, his chest hurts… why can’t he breathe…

“Tim follow my breathing, slowly in and out… copy my movements son…”

Tim’s trying to. The words are telling him to follow the movements and he does try but it’s difficult. As the object rises Tim breathes in and as it falls Tim breathes out. It takes a while but gradually Tim finds as the tightness in his chest eases he’s able to breathe easier.

He takes in one more deep breath before opening his eyes and looking around. In his mind it takes a moment for everything to register. He’s sat on the floor, curled up against someone’s side with his hands stretched out resting on that same person’s stomach.

His chest feels sore as does his head and everything feels a little fuzzy. After a minute he realises that he had a panic attack, a pretty bad one too.

“Tim?”

Tim looks up and finds that it’s Bruce who he’s resting against. Taking another breath Tim pushes himself away from Bruce and sits up. “Yeah, yeah I’m fine. Sorry I just … yeah.”

Bruce doesn’t comment on what happened and Tim is grateful for that. Instead his adoptive father keeps him sat on the ground for a while, making sure he’s okay before helping him to stand up, and then offering him some support when Tim wobbles.

Tim glances around to find Officer Peterson is still around, looking at Tim with a frown, Dick is hovering just behind Bruce and Jason is up at the top of the stairs overlooking them all. Cass, Alfred and Damian aren’t anywhere to be seen.

“Why don’t we go inside and get some rest? There's been a lot to handle recently.”

Tim nods at Bruce’s suggestion. He feels exhausted. Everything from the overwhelming sensations of leaving the others to being reunited with his family and then experiencing a panic attack has really worn on him.

Bruce says something to the cop and then turns his attention to Tim, together they make their way up the stairs with Dick beside them and Jason watching them approach. Together the four of them enter Wayne Manor.

Tim wishes he’s more with it. He hasn’t seen the place in a long time and wants to appreciate being back home but he’s just too tired to take in all the details. Thankfully Bruce seems to pick up on this, his adoptive father begins to guide him towards the stairs which lead up to where the bedrooms are located.

“Why don’t we get some sleep? We can properly talk once you’re all rested up.”

Time passes in a blur and the next thing Tim is aware of is being tucked into a bed. A soft warm blanket is laid on top of him, a light pressure of a kiss is pressed against his hair and then everything fades away into nothing.

Everything is groggy when Tim wakes up. His head is pounding and he feels exhausted despite just having woken up.

He grips the blanket around him tighter and buries his head deeper into the pillow he’s lying on not wanting to face whatever is going to be thrown his way that day. They’ve been stationed on Krypton for several days so Tim doesn’t think they’ll be leaving any time soon and with the other’s punishments, there’s not a lot they can do. Maybe they’ll look into doing some training that day?

Settling his thoughts Tim takes a deep breath, inhaling the scent of the pillow as he does so and freezes. Why does it smell so familiar? Is his mind making things up or…

Tim shoots up right on the bed and wildly looks around, taking in his surroundings. It takes a moment for it all to sink in and when it does he slumps aback against the headboard of the bed he’s on.

He’s home. It wasn’t a dream. He really did return to Earth and reunite with his family. How did he forget that?

He’s in one of the guest’s bedrooms in the Manor. The walls and décor are all neutral colours, making it seem open and warm, there were beams of light peaking out of the drawn curtains across the windows.

Tim doesn’t know how to feel about not being in his personal bedroom, obviously they’ve put him in here on purpose. Did they still have his room or did they clear it all out when he disappeared? Tim’s not sure and in that moment he’s not sure if he wants to know.

When he glances around the room again, this time his eyes land on a pile of clothes placed on the desk opposite the bed. Upon seeing those Tim realises he’s still dressed in the clothes he wore back from the ship and realises that he desperately wants a shower. The bag he brought from the ship is there too, sitting on the ground unopened. The policeman must have passed it over to someone and they’ve then brought it in.

Grabbing the clean clothes Tim heads for the ensuite attached to the guest bedroom. It’s an open bathroom with plenty of space and Tim wastes no time in starting the shower up.

He only pauses once he’s taken off the shirt and sees the necklace hanging from around his neck. Tim had forgotten about it. It was the gift Doctor Fate had given him when he sorted out Cassie’s enchanted bracelets. Tim studies it closely, seeing the red gemstone glisten brightly when the light hits it. It’s supposedly a cloaking device but Tim doesn’t know how much he believes that, then again does he have a reason to not trust it?

Deciding to not think about it too much, Tim leaves it on, he then proceeds to take off the rest of his clothes and jumps into the shower.

Once Tim is done with his shower, now feeling clean and refreshed, he heads down to the kitchen. Tim takes his time to get there though, he travels at a slow pace as he takes in the feel for being back at home, seeing the corridors of the Manor that he grew up in and remembering everything that’s occurred in them.

When Tim arrives at the kitchen he finds it occupied by Jason and Alfred. Jason is sat at the kitchen island eating something and playing on his phone while Alfred is by the sink scrubbing dishes.

“Look who’s finally decided to get up.” Jason comments smirking at him as he walks into the room. “We thought you were going to end up sleeping all day.”

Taking a seat next to Jason, Tim frowns. “What do you mean? How long have I been asleep for?”

“About 16 hours. It’s nearly lunch time, you’ve been asleep since yesterday evening.”

Tim blinks. He’s both surprised and not by that news. He must have really needed to rest and recharge to be asleep that long.

“How about some food Master Timothy? You must be feeling rather famished at this point.” Alfred asks observing him from the other side of the room.

Tim freezes when he hears Alfred voice, or rather at the words he said. Master. That’s what he used to call Ra’s Al Ghul when he was first kidnapped. Will he be able to handle hearing it again, and not only that but being called that even in a different context?

“Tim?”

Tim snaps his gaze to the side to find Jason wearily watching him. Tim looks at him for a moment before he realises he had zoned out and still needs to answer Alfred. He looks over at the butler, “Uh sorry, yes please to food Alfred. If you don’t mind.”

Alfred studies him for a moment but doesn’t comment on his behaviour, instead he smiles and starts preparing Tim some food. Tim glances down at fiddles with his fingers anxiously, he’ll need to talk to Alfred about that. Hopefully the butler won’t get offended with Tim asking him to stop, but Tim doesn’t know if he’s going to be able to handle the reminder all the time.

A tense silence fills the kitchen and it makes Tim feel guilty. He doesn’t mean to put Alfred and Jason in an awkward position but he’s grateful that neither of them ask him any questions about anything.

In the end Tim turns and faces Jason who’s still on his phone. Tim stares at it for a long time, taking in the difference from this phone and the one he remembers. It makes him realise that this is just one of many things he’s missed in his two and a half years away.

“How have you been Jason?” Tim asks his brother. He knows a lot of attention will be focused on him but he wants to reconnect with his family too. He wistfully wonders what things he’s missed in his sibling’s lives (beside Damian, that’s an entirely different matter altogether).

Jason side eyes him, pursing his lips as if debating on what to tell Tim. “Up and down.” He says in the end. Tim almost rolls his eyes at the vague answer. “I finished my qualification.”

Tim perks up at hearing that. “Oh really, congrats! So what are you doing now work wise?”

As they discuss Jason’s work, Alfred drops a sandwich in front of Tim and leaves them be. It takes all of Tim’s effort to split his attention between listening to Jason and not being overwhelmed by the sandwich. When was the last time he had normal human food?

They talk for a while, changing from topic to topic but stay away from anything big and heavy. Tim finds out, that other than Damian, thankfully nothing major has changed in anyone’s lives. There’s been job changes and a few family arguments but nothing life changing to say. Tim is relieved to find this out. There's a few things worldwide that he’s missed but Jason’s told him that he can catch up with all that later on, it’s nothing to really fret about.

Their conversation is interrupted when Bruce and Dick enter the kitchen. They’re pleased to see that he’s awake and ask about how he’s feeling while both giving him a hug. Tim soaks in the attention, not minding it at all, and is yet again relieved to find that they don’t ask him any major questions.

However that relief instantly vanishes when Bruce sceptically asks Tim is he’s willing to talk to the police so they could clear some stuff up. Tim freezes, unsure on what to do. In the back of his mind he knew that he would need to talk to the police but he knows that they’ll be asking questions which he doesn’t think he’s ready to answer yet.

In the end he agrees to do it, he goes with Bruce and Dick and they take him to the library where two policemen are waiting. There's the cop from yesterday and the commissioner.

Tim doesn’t tell them anything. After an internal debate on what to do, he refuses to speak about anything that’s happened to him. He doesn’t say where he’s been, who (and what) he’s encountered and nothing about how he returned home. The only information he gives is how he knows he’s no longer in danger, nor is his family, from those who originally took him.

Of course Tim can’t guarantee it but there’s no way he’s saying that Earth may or may not be attacked by some alien assassins. He doesn’t think that’ll go down well.

The police prod him for more details but Tim doesn’t budge on it. Eventually they give in and say they’re only a phone call away when he does want to share more. Bruce sees them out after that while Dick stays behind with Tim.

During the entire conversation Tim could feel Dick watching him, his brother’s concerned gaze never once leaving him the entire time. Tim would snap at him for staring if it were different circumstances. Dick gets up from the chair he’s been sat on and approaches Tim on the opposite couch. His brother crouches down in front of him and places a gentle hand on Tim’s knee, rubbing it soothingly.

“Tim, I know that there’s a lot going on inside your mind and that’s completely understandable, I also get why you may not want to talk to the police but I want you to know if you ever, and I mean it, if you ever want to talk about what happened then I’m happy to listen. I won’t judge, I won’t ask questions, all I’ll do is listen. Please don’t shut us out, you’re not alone, we’re all here for you okay.”

Hearing Dick talk, Tim feels his emotions building up inside of his chest. He closes his eyes and takes a few deep breaths to control himself. Opening his eyes back up Tim looks up and meets Dick’s. “Thank you Dick. I’m – I’m just not ready yet. I don’t know when I will be either. There’s so much I need to catch up on, so much that I’ve missed both in our family and around the world. I know you’re there for me no matter what.”

Opposite him Dick looks tearful and Tim feels bad for making Dick like that. Without thinking about it Tim stands up, encouraging Dick to do the same, before he’s giving his brother a hug. Dick instantly hugs him back, resting his head on top of Tim’s.

“I missed you Timmy. Everyday.”

“I missed you too. I never stopped thinking about you from the moment we got separated.”

They only break apart when Bruce enters the room, laughing lightly as they do so. Now alone away from the police, Bruce tells Tim pretty much what Dick said to him. If he wants to talk then he would listen no matter what. Obviously Bruce would like to know the details but he’s not going to force Tim into talking before he’s ready too. Tim appreciates this and politely tells Bruce what he told Dick.

After that the three of them spend a few hours together. As Tim had done with Jason, he gets updates on Bruce and Dick’s personal lives. Other than Damian appearing, nothing major has happened. Dick got a couple work promotions and Bruce’s company currently has the highest numbers it’s ever gotten which is impressive.

Following their catch up, Tim retreats back to the guest room he woke up in. He hasn’t yet found out the current status of his bedroom but Tim figures that he isn’t in that much of a rush to do so.

He crashes onto the bed and buries his face into the pillow. He hasn’t done much that day but he feels exhausted. It’s still sinking in that he’s returned home, he’s back with his family and no longer in imminent danger all the time.

Tim thinks about everything, his thoughts reeling all over the place. He had refused to talk to the police about what happened, not budging in the slightest to give them any details on what happened to him. Tim hadn’t been lying when he said he isn’t ready to talk yet, he needs time to comprehend everything and then he needs to decide if he going to actually come out with the truth or make up a cover story.

What are the chances his family and the police are going to believe he got kidnapped by aliens? If it didn’t happen to Tim he certainly wouldn’t believe it. They would end up thinking he’s cracked and try to send him to therapy or even ship him to an insane asylum like Arkham.

He could always try telling them half of the truth? Isn’t there a saying along the lines of “the best lies are half-truths”. Tim could pick out areas of what he’s been through but simply leave out details, like the biggest detail being that it all occurred in space.

Tim lets out a groan, he doesn’t know what to do!

For the next few days Tim feels like a ghost. He floats around the Manor not entirely sure on what to do with himself. His family are tiptoeing around him as if the smallest of things may trigger him off, it leaves Tim feeling agitated and frustrated.

On the most part Tim feels fine. Physically he’s okay, just slightly underweight but Alfred is working with him to get him eating regularly again which includes a variety of foods and supplements that he needs to function.

Mentally though is a little bit questionable. Tim knows on the most part he’s okay however there is a bout of paranoia coursing through him, anxiety often comes and goes, he gets flashbacks at random intervals which leaves him feeling disorientated, nightmares happen each night and he often loses track of time (mostly because he forgets he can now actually track it again by using clocks).

More often than not he’s with a family member, they certainly don’t want to leave him on his own nor be too far away from him, so a lot of his time is occupied but those times when he’s not with someone Tim has to try and find something to do. His siblings have taken it upon themselves to write him a list of things he's missed and needs to catch up on so Tim spends a good amount of time browsing the internet researching those things. It ranges from political news to the most recent meme.

Throughout this it doesn’t help that the main thing on his mind is whether he should tell everyone the truth or not. It’s like he’s carrying a massive weight on his shoulders and it’s heavily weighing him down. Thankfully none of them have yet pushed him to talk but Tim can tell they’re itching to ask, it’s only so long until they break their restraint. Tim still hasn’t decided what to do.

At one point, several days after arriving home, Tim is aimlessly wondering the halls of the Manor, taking in all the details he remembers and picks up on anything new that has been added in his absence.

In one particular hallway Tim comes across a painting, it’s a family portrait and looks like it’s been done fairly recently. The picture is of Bruce, Alfred, Dick and Cass. They’re dressed up in formal attire, like something they all would wear to a gala. The men are suits made of different shades of grey with different coloured shirts and ties while Cass is in a simple black dress, it’s plain but it suits her and she pulls it off fantastically.

He doesn’t know how long he stands there staring at the picture, it’s very well painted, uniquely capturing all of their features and the details of their clothing, it’s so good that it could pass as a photograph rather than a painting.

“This took seven weeks to complete. I gifted it to father as a present for his birthday.”

Tim shits his pants when a voice speaks up. He startles badly and snaps his head to the side to find Damian standing nearby looking at him. Tim takes a deep breath and tries to settle his pounding heart. “Jesus christ, don’t do that!”

Damian stares back unimpressed. After a moment his words catch up to Tim and his eyes widen, he glances between the painting and Damian. “You painted this? Holy shit that’s incredible.”

“Thank you Timothy. I was unsure on what to gift father and Richard suggested to do something personal. Father was pleased with it.”

Tim nods still blown away by the apparent talent this kid has. “I can imagine.”

They stand there together silently in the corridor and Tim takes a moment to study Damian. Finding out Damian’s existence had been a shock, one of the two biggest ones upon returning home, and Tim didn’t know how to approach it. He hasn’t spoken to Damian at all since coming back, this in fact has been their first conversation.

Being around the teenager feels off but Tim figures that’s because he doesn’t know him, he isn’t familiar with his presence in the manor and in the family. Tim is still adjusting to being back so there’s already a lot on his plate and this just adds to it.

Tim is aware of Damian’s story, the others have caught him up on it. None of them had been expecting it, even Bruce didn’t know about the kid, so Tim couldn’t be annoyed at that. He still feels off about it though, but deep down he knows he’ll adjust to having Damian around just like all the others had done.

“I was on my way to the library, would you like to accompany me?” Damian asks breaking the silence between them.

Tim blinks, surprised at the offer but nods. “Sure, I’m not doing anything.”

Together they quietly make their way to the library. Being with Damian is different, it doesn’t feel like the kid is itching to ask him a million questions on what happened to him, it’s like he’s content to just let Tim be and Tim finds that refreshing. However it does add more to his conflicting emotions about the kid.

They enter the room and take separate couches. Damian grabs a book from the side while Tim simply plonks down onto a cushion not bothering with anything.

“You had been gone a year when I arrived here. Despite it being that long they never stopped searching for you. Father had private investigators on speed dial, he would jump every time someone called, every event the Wayne’s attended father would plead for your return.”

Tim feels himself stop and he looks at the kid who is only focused on the book in his lap.

“I admit at first I had been jealous of you Timothy. Even though you had not been here you still occupied so much of father’s mind. As that all happened it was Richard who taught me what it is like to be part of the family, who taught me to accept and to care. I hadn’t been an easy addition, I see that now, but we all found common ground in the end. As time went by the search never ended, the hope of you returning was always there.”

At Damian’s words Tim could feel himself welling up. Just hearing that they never stopped looking for him was nearly enough to send him over the edge. He hadn’t even been on Earth but they never stopped looking.

Tim buries his face in his hands and takes a few shaky breaths to collect himself together. He doesn’t know why Damian is telling him these things but he finds that he appreciates it. Damian hadn’t been there when it first happened, he’ll see the whole situation from a different perspective.

That’s enough for Tim to solidify that he wants to get to know Damian. The honesty at the start and the way he opened up about his arrival is enough to convince Tim.

Eventually he drops his hands and glances at Damian. “I’m sorry that’s how your introduction to the family went, it couldn’t have been easy. By the sounds of it, you’ve already been through a lot of character progression and I would like to get to know you. I already know that you can paint, what else do you like to do?”

They talk for a couple hours and Tim finds it interesting. The two of them in fact have very little in common and there’s a clear line where it’s kind of awkward for both of them but Tim does enjoy getting to know the kid. They don’t have to like one another straight away, but this is a good steppingstone, at least that’s what Tim thinks.

Apparently Dick must have similar thoughts because of the proud and pleased grin he sends the two of them when he walks in on their conversation hours later.

Each day is different as it passes by. There are good days and there are bad days. The good days are when Tim’s feeling content and adjusted to being back home. The bad days are when everything comes crashing down on him, the anxiety, the disorientation and even paranoia become too overwhelming for him to handle.

Nightmares are common too, unfortunately Tim has the feeling that they won’t be going away any time soon. They mostly consist of flashbacks of what happened when he had been trapped with Ra’s Al Ghul, mainly of all the torment and torture he had endured.

He knows that his family are concerned and how they’re getting more worried each day, Tim’s even overheard Bruce say to Alfred about getting him to go see a doctor or a therapist. It annoys Tim that Bruce has suggested it but at the same time he understands the reason behind it.

Another mental barrier Tim is facing is focused on his old bedroom. Since returning Tim’s been based in the guest bedroom, it’s quickly becoming his permanent one because he can’t find it in himself to go back to his old one. According to his family his old room hasn’t been touched, meaning it’s the exact same as it had been the day he was kidnapped. Tim finds himself unable to go into the room, it’s like he’ll be forced to remember the Tim that was kidnapped and realise that’s not the same Tim who has returned. He’s different now than to what he was almost three years ago.

It’s been about a week and a half since his return now and Tim still hasn’t spoken about what happened to him, he still refuses to answer any sort of question about his kidnapping and disappearance. Tim’s aware that it isn’t healthy to keep it all bottled up inside but he hasn’t yet decided on whether he’s going to tell them the truth or not. It’s a constant debate he has with himself, even going as far as making a pros and cons list to help him decide on what to do.

It’s only when Jason accidently walks in on him while shirtless that Tim realises he can’t continue with the silence anymore. He finally cracks under the weight of the secrets he’s been hiding from everyone.

After coming out of the shower, Tim had only been dressed in a towel which was wrapped around his waist. Typically he forgot to take clothes into the bathroom with him but he didn’t think of it too much as an issue considering it’s an ensuite. As he had been getting his clothes out to wear for the day, his bedroom door swings open without warning and Jason comes striding in like he owns the place.

Tim is livid at the audacity Jason has to just stroll into his bedroom like that, thank god he had a towel on or else it’ll be extremely embarrassing for both parties involved. Tim turns to scald his brother but stops short when he finds Jason frozen in place staring at him with wide eyes and a horrified expression.

Tim frowns, not understanding Jason’s behaviour. Surely it’s not that much of a shock to see him half naked? Sure he’s not muscular, but its only pale skin on show so what else could there be…

It’s embarrassing how long it takes for it to click and once it does it’s Tim’s turn to be horrified. He feels his heart drop and suddenly he couldn’t breathe.

The scars.

Jason’s just seen all of the scars on his back. All the ones he’s received from the torture he’s endured, where the healing cream had helped close the wounds but left scars behind nonetheless.

The two of them stand there staring at one another for a long time, neither of them moving or saying anything. Tim doesn’t know whether he wants to run and hide or break down crying. How the hell was he supposed to explain the scars? Jason wasn’t supposed to see them, no one was! What’s he going to do?

“Hey Jason, did you ask Tim – what are you guys doing?” Dick’s voice breaks the two of them out of the weird trance they had fallen into. The eldest of the three had come to the room to find out what had been taking Jason so long to ask Tim a question and finds them having a stare off while Tim is undressed.

With no explanations Jason spins around, grabs the front of Dick’s t-shirt and yanks him into the bedroom and slams the door shut behind him. Dick stumbles in and glares at Jason, he crosses his arms over his chest and silently demands for an explanation.

Jason glares back before pining Tim with a look. “Tim turn around.”

Tim continues to stare at Jason in horror, his eyes would occasionally flicker to Dick in the same response. Tim doesn’t know what to do. Both of his brothers are looking at him expectantly, Jason with fire and concern in his eyes and Dick with confusion and worry.

In the end Tim thickly swallows and slowly turns around so his back is to his brothers. He takes controlling breaths to help ground him as the scars are displayed, he ignores the soft gasp that emits from Dick.

After counting to thirty Tim moves again and shoves a jumper on wanting to hide his back from sight. He quickly dresses into some sweatpants too, there’s no way he’s about to have this conversation half naked and dressed in a towel.

The room is filled with a heavy silence and Tim feels vulnerable. He hates it. Jason and Dick are staring at him with pity in their eyes along with concern, anger and genuine sadness. It’s crazy to think that Tim can still read his brothers well even after years apart.

“Tim,” Jason sighs, he runs a hand over his head before settling into a tight posture with his arms crossed over his chest, “we have been ignoring the elephant in the room since you’ve returned out of respect for you and I think it’s time that we finally ask. What the hell happened to you while you were gone Tim? Those scars man… what the fuck?”

Tim slumps onto the bed, leaning back against the headboard. Jason stays standing while Dick lowers himself onto the opposite end of the mattress.

In that moment Tim knew he couldn’t hold it back anymore. One moment to the next, everything spills out of Tim’s mouth. It’s like a dam has been broken and all the water is gushing out.

Tim tells them everything.

He describes being taken from Earth and waking up strapped to a table, to becoming a slave, how he escaped, how he was saved and looked after and the crazy adventures he ended up being part of. He talks about the aliens and creatures he encountered, the different planets he visited, how he was injured, how he was kidnapped again, how he was tortured followed by being rescued a second time, how he spent days recovering with the others and finally how he returned home.

There are details he missed of course, his mind is in too much of a frenzy to remember everything but he thinks he covers the majority of it. By the end of his story, Dick is hugging him tightly and Jason is sat on the end of the bed. Tears were running down his face, Dick is in the same boat and opposite him Jason appears to be impassive.

Tim sobs into Dick’s chest, holding him tightly as everything comes out. So many emotions coming together and erupting as a noisy and snotty mess.

It takes some time but eventually Tim calms down and wipes his face with his sleeve as he pushes away from Dick. He leans back against the headboard and fiddles with his sleeve.

“So there, that’s what happened to me.” Tim bites out, feeling rather bitter. “Are you finally happy to know? Call me crazy, call me insane because aliens don’t exist or whatever but that’s the truth. Take it or leave it. Those scars are the result of what I have had to endure.”

His brothers remain quiet for a long time, he’s not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. He doesn’t push for them to talk however, there’s a lot of information to understand and that’s even if they believe it.

“So aliens took you…” Dick drawls out, looking kind of constipated, “did you ever find out why?”

Tim shakes his head. “Not really. Apparently the one who took me just thought I was interesting or something. Out of the billions of humans there are and he chooses me.” He laughs in disbelief.

“What if he takes you again?” Jason questions suspiciously.

At this point Tim doesn’t know if they’re simply humouring him or if they genuinely believe everything he just told them. Either way he answers their questions the best he could. “Hopefully that won’t happen. I got given this gem, it’s supposedly a cloaking device, as long as I wear it I’m hidden from the League so they can’t track me.”

They fall into silence again and Tim sits there waiting for more questions, or even a disbelieving laugh. When nothing comes Tim frowns and glances at his brothers. “Do you believe me?”

Dick sighs and rubs his hands over his face. “Its certainly a lot to comprehend but I don’t think you would make all of that up. Also it kind of explains why we never found you. You weren’t even on the planet, of course no one would be able find you.”

“That day Tim,” Jason starts, his voice sounds think and he looks haunted, “that day was awful. I don’t even think there’s a word to describe what that day was like really. Turning away just for a moment and then looking back to find you gone…”

It shatters Tim’s heart to see his normally strong-willed brother breaking down. Unable to help himself Tim crawls across the bed and throws his arms around Jason’s neck, capturing him in a hug. His brother doesn’t cry but he hugs back, squeezing Tim tightly.

“I’m sorry,” Tim whispers brokenly, feeling his own emotions rising again, “I’m so sorry you both had to go through that. Every day I thought about what you two had to go through, me disappearing like that, and it was horrendous. I’m so sorry.”

A hand appears on Tim’s back, making him look away from Jason. Dick has moved closer, rubbing a comforting hand across his back. Dick has tears in his eyes again and when he speaks his voice is hoarse with emotion. “It’s okay Timmy, it’s not your fault. We never blamed you. It’s never been your fault. You’re here now right, we got you back, that’s all that matters.”

Tim nods and swallows the bubble that’s formed in his throat. Doing his best to keep control of his emotions, Tim smiles sadly. “Yeah. I’m back. I’m not okay, but I will be.”

He pulls away from Jason and the man wipes his eyes, still stubbornly refusing to cry. Tim snorts softly, he’s pleased to find Jason hasn’t changed all that much. The man looks up, glancing between him and Dick. “So what do you want to do? Do you want to tell Bruce everything you told us or stay quiet about it? Since you were taken by aliens - what the fuck is all that about – the police can’t exactly do anything. They’re still going to want a statement or some shit.”

Tim shakes his head in denial. “No. I don’t want to tell Bruce, at least not yet. Look I know how it sounds, its crazy, the whole thing is just bananas. I don’t know if Bruce will believe it or not and we’re absolutely not telling the authorities! They’ll just straight up send me to a therapist or an asylum.”

Dick and Jason both blink at him and Tim glares back. “I am not going to see a therapist, no matter how much you think I need to. End of discussion.”

His brothers hum and Tim knows that they’ll be revisiting that topic at a later date despite his protests. He decides to ignore it for now, he’ll deal with it when that bridge comes around.

“I will tell him, I promise,” Tim sighs, “Just let me adjust being back home and everything then I’ll tell him. Please don’t tell him, or anyone else.”

They both stare at him for a long time before they look at each other, and even though Tim’s been away for a long time he can still recognise the “over-protective older brothers” looks and silent conversation. Tim pouts, not liking he can’t tell what they’re thinking, he just knows its about him.

They turn back to him a moment later. “We won’t tell anyone, however you have to come to one of us any time there’s some kind of issue or you need someone to talk to about anything.”

Tim sends them a glare, he’s practically being blackmailed for their silence. Huffing Tim throws his arms up dramatically. “Okay fine, I’ll talk to one of you. You both know now anyway, it’ll make it slightly easier to deal with.”

They send him matching smug grins. “Glad to hear it.”

“So I know that you’ve been through some pretty horrific stuff, but there sounds like there was some positive stuff too.” Dick comments sounding intrigued. “What was that team like who saved you? What planets did you visit, how different is space life compared to Earth?”

Tim smiles, now these were the kind of questions he actually doesn’t mind answering. It’s going to be great that he can excitedly tell someone about how mind blowing being in space was, of course ignoring all the bad stuff that happened in between.

Things weren’t perfect, far from it but he’s home, he’s back with his family and he has a group of aliens to thank for that. Tim knows its going to take a while to adjust and settle back into human life, if he ever settles at all, but he gets to live his life knowing something that only others ever dream about.

#universal signs #Tim Drake #family reunions #emotions #so many emotions!#family bonding #panic attack #anxiety #sibling bonding #hurt and comfort #bruce wayne #dick grayson #Jason Todd #Damian Wayne #batfamily #humans are space orcs #humans are weird #fanfiction #this is the second to last chapter

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