#does this mean...our Allen going to “disappear” next chapter then?

[wanietheworld]

...wHAT???

[freddiesaysalright]

The Most Dramatic Season Ever - Night 1

Summary: It’s your time now! You are ABC’s new Bachelorette and this is your journey! All these men (including our fav BoRhap boys and then some) are competing for your heart! Will you find love? Will you get engaged at the end? Or will you end up heartbroken? Find out, on the most dramatic season ever!

Word Count: 4.5k

Tag List: @psychosupernatural​ @someone-get-a-medic​ @bensrhapsody​ @deakyclicks​ @crazylittlethingcalledobsession​ @minigranger​ @crazyweirdocalledfriday​ @anincurablefangirl​ @assembledherethevolunteers​ @rose-writes-prose​ @queenlover05​ If you’d like to be added, let me know!

A/N: So, the first chapter of my new Bachelorette fic! I hope you guys like it. Please, please, PLEASE let me know your interest in this fic because I’d like to continue it but if y’all aren’t feeling it, I don’t have to continue it. Hmu in the replies, my chat, or my ask box, I am all ears!

Warning(s): Some discussions of racism.

Night 1 here we go!!!

Your gown felt heavier than it really was as you stood in the cool Los Angeles night air. The low lights gleamed off the recently doused driveway of the famous Bachelor mansion and you shivered. You took a deep breath. Then, Chris Harrison, the host of the franchise walked up to you and placed a paternal hand on your shoulder.

“Y/N,” he said kindly, and you smiled at him. “Are you ready to start your journey as the Bachelorette?”

Your heart skipped a beat at his words. You still couldn’t believe this was happening to you. You were the Bachelorette. A group of men were on their way to you. One of them could possibly be the love of your life. You nodded. 

“I am,” you said excitedly. “I’m ready to find my husband.”

Chris gave your arm a squeeze. “Alright. The first limo is on the way. Let your love story begin.”

He walked away and your stomach dropped. Your eyes found the limo as it pulled up and another twinge of anticipation went through you. This was it. The start of everything that could be. Your future husband - you were sure - was about to step out of that limo.

In the first limo there were five men. They started off anxious and a bit stiff, but one in particular had them all laughing pretty quickly. He had a wide smile and a mess of auburn hair. Already, he was the most popular guy in the car.

“Oh, we’re pulling up!” he said.

Everyone pressed toward the window to get a glimpse of you. His heart swelled at the sight. There you stood in a stunning silver gown and a smile on your gorgeous lips. He was falling already and he hadn’t even met you yet. Nervous as he was when the producers told him he was going first, now he was thrilled. He got to meet you before anyone else. He just hoped he made a good first impression.

The limo came to a slow stop in front of you. The anticipation was killing you at this point. You wrung your hands together as the door was opened and the first man stepped out. You watched anxiously as he appeared outside the car and then you saw him. 

The second you met his eyes, all nerves melted away. He grinned widely at you and you couldn’t help but smile right back. You fought back an urge to reach out to him - that’s how eager you were for him to step closer.

“Wow,” he sighed as he began to walk to you. “Wow, you’re beautiful.”

“Thank you!” you replied sweetly. “You’re not so bad yourself, handsome.”

He chuckled. Now you saw that in his hand he carried a bottle of champagne. Your brow furrowed.

“My name is Joe,” he said.

“Nice to meet you, Joe,” you returned. “What’ve you got there?”

He lifted it to about chest-level and showed you the label.

“Champagne,” he said. “Because every day I spend getting to know you is a celebration.”

You giggled. “I like that attitude, for sure. Are we going to open it now?”

“Definitely!” he replied.

He opened the bottle with a loud POP and you cheered. He didn’t bring glasses, so you each took a sip straight from the bottle. It was so fun and relaxed. He held your gaze another moment. Then he sighed and hugged you. You hummed and held him close.

“I can’t wait to talk to you more,” he said. He pulled back and indicated the bottle. “And drink some more of this.”

You looked at his face, that feeling of familiarity washing over you again.

“Yeah, me too,” you said.

He gave your hand one last squeeze before departing into the mansion. You released a breath you hadn’t realized you had been holding. 

“Wow,” you said. “He’s so sweet.”

A few more men emerged from the limo and met you, but Joe still stuck out. It wasn’t what he said or did, necessarily, it was just how you felt when you looked at him. Like you had known him for years instead of mere minutes.

The next limo rolled up and you found yourself more excited than before. The first man to step out was like the others. The second one, though...he was so attractive you nearly fell over. He was broad but not intimidating. His face was boyish and sweet, but he had the loveliest green eyes you had ever seen. His blonde hair was carefully styled. Your heart raced when he smiled at you as he walked over.

“Hi,” he said with a deep British accent. “I’m Ben.”

“H-hello!” you stammered, opening your arms for a hug. “It’s nice to meet you!”

He squeezed you tight and you felt his body, which nearly made you gasp. Then he pulled back and looked you over. 

“God, you’re stunning,” he sighed. “I’m so happy to be here with you.”

You felt a bit of a shyness from him that was incredibly endearing.

“I’m happy you came,” you returned. 

“I just want to say that I’m here for a real shot at love,” he said. “I’m excited for this opportunity with you and I just want to learn everything I can about you.”

With each word, your smile grew. 

“Thank you, Ben,” you said. “I’m looking forward to this journey too, and I hope to see more of you.”

He beamed. “Great! I’ll see you inside, yeah?”

“Yeah,” you assured him with a nod.

You watched him go into the mansion with a heavy sigh. You would happily have stood there and spoken with him all night if you could. But, there were other men to meet.

Shortly after Ben, came another British man. He was handsome in a sort of quirky way, with a slim nose and a sharp, angular jaw. His smile was bright and infectious.

“Hello,” he greeted as he walked up and took your hand, shaking it politely. “I’m Taron.”

“Taron?” you repeated. “I’ve never heard that name before.”

“It’s Welsh,” he told you. 

“I see,” you said.

When he spoke, he was animated and friendly. His warmth drew you in. Just holding his hand made you wonder what it would be like to be in his arms instead. You already felt incredibly safe around him.

“We’ll talk more inside?” he asked.

You nodded. “Definitely.”

He too, disappeared into the mansion. There were some clear front-runners already and you hadn’t even met all the men. The next limo pulled up and you waited for the next one.

This man was certainly unique. His deep eyes struck you with their size and the way they captivated you. When he smiled at you, you heard an awkward laugh and you couldn’t help but join in. His mop of black curls atop his head framed his face in such an adorable way.

“Hi there!” you said as he approached you.

“Hello,” he replied. “I’m Rami.”

“Rami?” you asked, to clarify.

He nodded. “I had a whole speech prepared but now that I’m looking at you, I’ve forgotten it.”

You chuckled. “That’s alright. I prefer you to be real and honest with me.”

“Well, then you already know that I’m a bit bumbling,” he joked.

You laughed fully. “I like it. I can already say I like you, Rami.”

“Awesome, I like you too,” he returned. “Just so you know, I’ll always be real with you. Even if it’s uncomfortable.”

“That’s perfect,” you said. “That’s what I want in a partner.”

“I have more I want to talk to you about already,” he said. “But I guess it’ll have to wait.”

“Just a little longer,” you said.

He hesitated a moment before leaning forward to whisper in your ear. It was in a language you didn’t understand, but his tone completely enthralled you. You knew it was complimentary. 

“What does that mean?” you asked when he finished.

“Find me later to find out,” he returned.

You smirked. So he did have some smoothness to him, after all.

“I will,” you promised.

He left. 

The next man to make an impression on you was yet another Englishman. He was tall, with a slender build. His chocolate brown hair made his blue eyes quite startling to you. His smile was a bit crooked, but in a charming sort of way. He straightened his tie as he approached you with his long stride.

“Hello,” he said warmly.

“Hi, how are you?” you replied.

“Quite swept off my feet, I must say,” he said, taking your hands. “You are beautiful. I’m Gwilym.”

“How unusual!” you said. “Where’s it from?”

“Wales,” he told you.

“I have a lot to learn about Wales,” you joked.

He didn’t ask about your remark, but he looked deeply into your eyes.

“I have a lot to learn about you, cariad,” he said.

“Cariad?”

He chuckled. “Also Welsh. Used for someone you love.”

Heat rushed to your cheeks. “Thank you.”

He kissed your cheek and when his stubble brushed your skin, it sent a thrilling shiver down your spine. 

“See you inside?” he asked.

“See you inside,” you returned.

He also went into the mansion, which was quickly becoming rather crowded. There were a few more gimmicks you saw come out of the limo, some guys came in costumes, but the ones that really struck you as serious contenders were Joe, Ben, Taron, Rami, Gwilym, and two more from the last limo, Allen and Richard.

Inside, all the men were greeting one another. Joe was talking to Rami, since they knew each other from college. The other guys were all sort of milling about as they waited for you, sipping on the drinks in their hands. Nerves hung around everyone as they watched the doorway for your form. 

You walked carefully up the driveway and into the mansion, heart nearly pounding out of your chest. It appeared you had a wonderful group of men in front of you. The journey was going to be fun, but could end up becoming extremely difficult. But as you pictured the faces of each of them as you met them - just as hopeful, just as anxious, just as willing to risk everything as you were - you couldn’t help but smile again. You walked in.

When you came into the living room you were met with cheers and applause as the men got excited. You beamed at them and offered a cheeky curtsey. You found a few pairs of eyes as you looked around.

“Thank you all so much for being here,” you said. “I can’t wait to get to know each of you throughout this experience and I just…” you trailed off. “I know my husband is in this room. I can feel it. I have faith in this. I have faith in all of you.”

One of them handed you a glass of wine, which you raised to toast.

“To finding love!” you cried.

“To finding love!” the echoed.

You all met glasses and took a sip. As soon as the toast was over, Lee, a guy who had played guitar for you as his greeting, tapped your shoulder.

“Can I steal you away?” he asked.

“Yeah, sure!” you replied.

He took your hand and led you away from the rest of the men, who all looked disappointed and a little annoyed.

“Not much we can do,” Gwilym said. “Someone had to steal her first.”

A murmur of resigned agreement went through the crowd. After a couple minutes, Rami got up from the couch. He looked at Joe.

“I think it’s time someone stole her second,” he said.

Joe smirked and clapped hands with Rami. “Good luck, buddy.”

Rami followed the path you and Lee had taken outside and to the fireplace. You perched on the stone step, soaking in the warmth. You thought Lee was perfectly nice, but you found your mind drifting to some of the other men inside.

As if summoned by the thought of him, Rami appeared around the corner.

“Hey,” he said, cutting Lee off mid-sentence. “Can I steal you?”

“Sure,” you said. You patted Lee’s knee. “Thanks for talking with me.”

You stood up, gave Lee a quick hug, and he stalked off as you grabbed Rami’s hand. Rami led you over to the couch by the pool. You took a seat next to him and scooted closer.

“How are you doing?” he asked. 

“I’m a little overwhelmed, honestly,” you replied. “Tell me what you whispered in my ear. What language was it?”

“Arabic,” he said with a soft chuckle. “My parents are Egyptian. I said ‘You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.’”

You giggled. “Thank you so much.”

“You’re welcome.”

“So, are you first generation?” you asked.

“Yeah, my parents and big sister came over from Cairo, but my brother and I were born here in Los Angeles actually,” he explained. 

“Really?!” you teased. “So you didn’t have to go very far to be here, huh?”

“Not at all,” he laughed. “I mean, my family doesn’t have a mansion like this one or anything like that, but yeah, same town.”

“That’s really cool,” you told him. “Are your parents still together?”

“They are,” he said. “I look up to them a lot when it comes to what I want for my own life. That level of commitment is important to me.”

“Me too,” you agreed.

Inside, Lee returned to the rest of the men in a bit of a huff. He sat down on the couch next to Gwilym, irritability coming off of him in waves.

“Alright?” Gwilym asked.

“Yeah, just Diversity Rose over there interrupted my time with her,” Lee replied bitterly.

Gwilym blinked. Several of the men turned their heads at the comment.

“Diversity Rose?” he questioned.

“Y’know, he’s only gonna get a rose because he’s a minority,” Lee said with a shrug.

The room became uncomfortably quiet. All eyes were flickering between Lee and the remaining men of color in the room - Kenny, Eric, Mike, and John.

“Dude,” said the man on the other side of Lee, named Wells. “C’mon.”

“What?” Lee said defensively. “It’s just the facts.”

“No,” replied Wells. “You’re being racist.”

“Yeah, it’s all just starting out,” Joe agreed. “They could be having a great connection right now, you don’t know. You’re just mad he interrupted you and this is how you’re choosing to handle it.”

“Honestly, being interrupted is part of this,” Gwilym chimed in. “You can’t call someone a ‘Diversity Rose’ just because you’re upset.”

“That’s not what I -”

“Dude, just stop,” Mike interrupted. “You said something sh***y, you could just apologize.”

“I’m not apologizing, I’m not wrong,” Lee said, crossing his arms over his chest.

Several of the men just shook their heads at Lee’s stubbornness, and many of them were still shocked by the comment in the first place. Backs were turned on him as he sat on the couch.

Meanwhile, you were now deep in conversation with a man named Jared. He was handsome and sweet, and genuinely interesting to talk to. Rami had headed back toward the house, where the tension hanging in the room nearly smothered him. He felt almost everyone looking at him. He went to Joe and sat down beside his friend.

“What happened?” he whispered.

“You don’t even want to know,” Joe answered.

A couple minutes into your conversation with Jared, Ben came up and asked for you. Eager to speak to him some more, you said a quick goodbye to Jared and followed Ben back to the fireplace. He seemed a bit grave now. Your brow furrowed.

“You okay?” you asked. “You seemed so hopeful earlier and now I feel like you’re upset.”

“Yeah, it’s just something one of the guys said,” he told you.

You frowned. Drama, already? It was only night one. You wondered what someone could have possibly said to Ben, who seemed like such an angel of a person.

“Who said something to you?” you asked.

“It wasn’t something said to me in particular, but it was definitely disturbing,” he went on.

Your heart sunk.

“What was it?”

“Lee,” Ben said. “He called Rami a ‘Diversity Rose.’”

You immediately just saw red. A flash of anger surged through you and you took a deep breath to calm yourself.

“He said what?”

Ben explained the whole scenario. What Lee had said and that the other men had confronted him, but he refused to acknowledge that he was wrong. You hated to spend this time with Ben talking about someone else, but this was something you needed to know. If that was the kind of man Lee was then you didn’t want him here.

“Thanks for telling me, Ben,” you said levelly, though inside you were about ready to scream. This had been such a great night so far and now you had to deal with this. “Could you give me a minute?”

“Sure,” he agreed.

He gave your hand a squeeze before heading back inside. You took another deep, although shaky breath. You knew Lee was sort of country from the way he talked and that he was from outside of Nashville. But this was a bit much. True, he had not used a slur or said something overtly offensive, but to lash out with that comment because Rami did what he was supposed to do in this experience was completely out of order. You needed to fix this. You snatched your glass of wine from the table, downed it, and then marched toward the house.

All the men turned eyes on you as you came through the door. A few smiled, but they quickly faltered at the dark expression on your face. You scanned the room for Lee and found him at the end of the couch, sipping his whiskey as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

“Lee, can we chat for a second?” you asked.

“Sure,” he said, getting to his feet and starting toward you.

“No, not in private,” you snapped. “This is something everybody should hear.”

His brow furrowed in confusion and he cocked his head to the side. “Everything okay?”

“No, everything is not okay!” you cried. “Did you or did you not refer to Rami as a ‘Diversity Rose’?”

His eyes went wide. “Wha - who told you that?!”

“It doesn’t matter who told me, what matters is if you said it!” you shot back. “Did you?!”

He looked down at the floor like a child being scolded by his mother. He didn’t speak.

“So you did,” you gathered. “Lee, that was f***ed up.”

He still didn’t answer you.

“The person I marry has to be open and loving,” you said. “Every man here who gets a rose, gets one because I see potential in him to be my husband. And I no longer see that potential in you. Get out of the mansion.”

“Y/N, I -”

“Don’t!” you cried. “I won’t tolerate bigotry of any kind. Go home.”

He sighed heavily, looked at you one last time, and walked out the door with his metaphorical tail between his legs. You watched him go, satisfied that he was gone, but annoyed that this had happened at all.

“Anyone else have a problem?” you asked, looking around the room. No one spoke. “Good. Now, let’s try and salvage what was a really pleasant evening.”

You swept out of the room. Joe, bottle of champagne still in tow, followed you out. 

“Hey!” he called as you made your way to the other side of the pool. “Y/N!”

You turned to face him and forced a smile.

“Hey,” you replied. 

Without warning, he pulled you into his arms. Your buried your face in his chest and wrapped your arms around his waist. He rested his chin atop your head. You stood there with him in silence for a moment. You noticed that he smelled nice. His heartbeat was steady and strong. You squeezed him a bit.

“Careful, I might fart,” he warned.

You burst out laughing and looked up at him, so grateful for his presence and his energy. He grinned at you and held up the champagne.

“Come on, we’ve got to finish this,” he said.

You followed him over to another couch and he offered you the bottle. You took a swig and then looked at him.

“Tell me about yourself,” you said.

“Well, I’m from New York,” he told you. “I run a restaurant there with my family.”

“Let me guess,” you said. “Italian?”

He beamed. “Yes, ma’am. Great food, great people.”

“That sounds lovely,” you told him.

You were grateful he didn’t talk about what just happened with Lee. He was just talking to you and letting you know him. Everything he said was funny and sweet. You told yourself to remember everything about him. Joe was a person you never wanted to forget.

“My dad was the best at it, though,” he said, referring to his favorite dish from the restaurant, which he had described to you. “No one does it like he did.”

“He did?” you asked. “Past tense?”

He swallowed, and looked down at his hands for a fleeting moment before meeting your eyes again. He took your hand.

“Yeah,” he said stiffly. “He passed away last year.”

“Oh, Joe, I’m so sorry,” you said earnestly. “I can’t even imagine.”

“It’s been kind of a lonely year,” he choked out. “We were really close.”

“Come here,” you said, and you pulled him close to you.

Once again, you simply held each other. You knew now, without a doubt that Joe was your strongest connection so far. You felt something with him that you had not felt with anyone in a long time, even on the previous season of The Bachelor. He was special.

You broke apart and he smiled at you again.

“Thanks for opening up to me,” you said. “I really appreciate it.”

“Thanks for being such a sweetheart,” he replied. 

You held each other’s gaze for another moment. Then, before either of you really noticed, you were leaning in. He met you halfway, and claimed your lips in a soft kiss. It was rather chaste at first, before deepening into more. When you met there in the middle, it was all fireworks inside your heart. Bursting with joy. Just as you were.

The rest of the evening went well. The men were polite, charming, funny, and so, so handsome. You felt like the luckiest girl in the world to be getting to know them. As things were winding down, Chris Harrison placed the First Impression Rose on the coffee table in front of the men. They all eyed it hungrily. 

You were talking with Gwilym when a producer told you that the rose was waiting. You really liked Gwilym, but you knew who the First Impression Rose was going to. You finished up your conversation and headed inside.

When you returned, there were fewer men there, as they had sort of spread out after the Lee situation. You didn’t mind.

“Hi, gentlemen,” you said, picking the rose up off the plate. “Anyone seen Joe?”

“He’s out on the balcony with Rami,” Ben told you.

“Thanks,” you said, and headed that way.

The guys all looked at each other and sighed.

“Guess we know who’s getting that rose,” Taron said.

You went out to the balcony and found Joe and Rami there. You greeted them warmly. 

“Joe, can I borrow you for a second?” you asked.

“Absolutely,” he told you.

He followed you back to where you talked before. You took a seat beside him on the couch and smiled.

“Joe,” you said. “I want to thank you for comforting me after the drama and reminding me of the reasons I started this journey. You opened up to me, made me laugh, and you’re a pretty great kisser too.”

You laughed together a moment and he took your hand.

“You made a wonderful impression on me,” you said. “So, Joe...will you accept this rose?”

“Of course I will,” he replied.

“Yay!” you said softly, and then leaned forward to place it on his jacket.

When it was firmly pinned, he cupped your face in his hands and kissed you again. This one was passionate and adoring. You nearly moaned into his mouth. His lips were so soft and he was so tender with you, it was like a dream. You sighed when he pulled away.

“I like you, Y/N,” he said.

“I like you too,” you replied.

Your cheeks hurt from all the smiling.

Before too much longer, it was time for the rose ceremony. Chris Harrison announced it to the men and the producers told you. You followed them out to let them know your decisions. You were happy that Joe, at least, could relax.

The men lined up and you stood before them. You inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, knowing you were about to hurt some feelings. Rose ceremonies were never easy, and you understood how each of them felt because you had been in their position before.

“Thank you to all of you for being so brave and letting me get to know you,” you began. “Unfortunately, this is the hard part, where I have to say goodbye. Please know I’m just following my heart, and I wish all of you the best of luck in your own journeys to find love.”

You picked up the first rose. The air thickened in the room.

“Rami,” you said.

He released a breath and came over to you.

“Rami, will you accept this rose?” you asked.

“I will,” he replied, and you pinned it on him.

You picked up the second rose, eyes searching for the name you were about to say.

“Ben,” you said.

“Yes,” he whispered and jogged a little to reach you sooner.

“Ben, will you accept this rose?”

“Always.”

You picked up the next one.

“Allen,” you said.

“Thank God,” he sighed in his adorable Irish accent.

You giggled. “Allen, will you accept this rose?”

He did. You continued to call names. Taron, Richard, Eric, Kenny, Mike, Jared, Wells, John, and a few other guys you liked - Jordan, John Paul, and Luke. Finally it was down to Gwilym and four other men.

“Gentlemen, Y/N,” said Chris Harrison as he stepped out. “This is the final rose tonight.”

You locked eyes with Gwiylm.

“Gwilym,” you said. 

He nearly double over with relief. 

“Thank goodness,” he said as he walked up.

“Gwilym, will you accept this rose?” 

“Every time,” he replied. “Thank you.”

He re-joined the men as you looked at them.

“Guys, I’m sorry,” Chris said. “If you did not receive a rose, take a moment, say your goodbyes.”

The four men clapped their neighbors on the back before they approached you one by one. They hugged you and said soft goodbyes before leaving the mansion. The last one wished you luck, which you appreciated. You hated to do this part, but it was all part of the journey. You were excited about the group in front of you now. These were the men that really had your attention. You all gathered together for another champagne toast.

“Here’s to moving forward and learning everything we can about each other,” you said. “To love!”

“To love!” they repeated as glasses clinked all around you.

It was going to be a very good eight weeks.

[the-l-spacer]

(Ch 1) (Ch 2)

Summary: Lloyd wakes up one morning to discover that, on a whim, the Metaverse had decided to release him and Raven from the Lovers archetype they had been locked in for as long as either could remember.

In the process, however, reality became… just a little screwed up.

Now, Raven is gone, and in his place is David Adams. David Adams, who had never left Ashland, working middle-management at Justacorp. David Adams, who had never heard the anvils, never jumped off Warner's Peak.

But Lloyd remembers everything, and he makes it his personal quest to win back the love of his life.

...No matter how many 'strictly professional' coffee dates it took.

I started a (hopefully) multi-chapter, Raven-kind-of-has-amnesia fic! Title and everything's still very much a work in progress, and this chapter is more an introduction than anything, but I hope y’all enjoy reading anyways!!

- 

The last thing Raven says to Lloyd before he (quite literally) vanishes the next morning is a semi-conscious, “Good night, my love,” mumbled into the latter’s chest as they both fall asleep.

Not that he knows of his boyfriend’s disappearance just yet, of course. For now, Lloyd Allen is asleep. Well, half-asleep, roused from a dream he can no longer remember by a rather odd sensation in his chest, a sensation that he promptly attempts to shake off, willing himself to sink back into slumber. 

He succeeds with the former, though the Metaverse always finds other ways to keep him from the latter.

This time, it’s the mid-morning sun that does it, filtering in through a gap in the bedroom’s curtains, casting a single, warm beam of light across the bed. When the light reaches his face, Lloyd shuts his eyes tighter, burrowing deep under the covers.

“Mmmmfgh,” he groans. “Ravey, draw the curtains.”

When he doesn’t feel the responding shift in the mattress, nor hear the sounds of curtains being pulled, shielding his precious eyes against the sun, his half-conscious mind is consumed by halfhearted annoyance. He really didn’t know what else he expected, considering Raven was always the heavier sleeper.

Eyes still closed, he stretches out his arm, meaning to rouse his (presumably) unconscious partner. Instead of feeling Raven’s telltale warmth, however, his hand connects with nothing but an empty expanse of bed.

Fully awake now (and against his will, too), Lloyd sits up and stretches, preparing to give Raven — probably up and outside without having the decency to give his boyfriend his precious five minutes extra sleep — a good telling-to. He swings his legs to the edge of the bed, and at long last, gets up with a final, drawn-out groan.

He first realises that something is decidedly off when that strange feeling in his chest returns full-force as he’s brushing his teeth.

“This again?” He aims the question, garbled through foam, at his sleepy-eyed self in the mirror.

Spit, rinse, close the faucet, done.

He regards his reflection once again. “No response, hmm?”

More silence.

“Well, I’ll just have to work this out for myself. No thanks to you, and no thanks to Ravey, apparently. I have no idea how he’s up before I am.”

He goes through a mental list of everything that could have possibly gone wrong. Heart attack? No, there would be other accompanying signs. Some other heart condition? Impossible, at least not if the folks who built his body on the Singularity had anything to say about it.

Anxiety? It is a possibility, but what does he have to be anxious about? Compared to where he was a scant year ago, his current position of ‘Carnival Co-Runner, Trainer of One Not-So-New-Now Post-Human, and not to forget, Possessor of an Actual Living, Breathing, Positively Spry Human Body’ is downright enviable.

Perhaps it’s simply dehydration, he decides. He and Ravey did have quite a bit to drink the night before, nothing a quick trip to their small, cosy kitchen couldn’t solve. Plus, he hasn’t quite ruled out the anxiety option. Maybe, in the haze of alcohol and festivities (yesterday being their time-is-fluid-th pre-anniversary, and all), his boyfriend had talked about pulling yet another zero-gravity, hair-whitening stunt. He swears to question him once he finds him, probably in the kitchen nursing his morning hangover over a cup of strong coffee.

But when he doesn’t. When all telltale signs of life in the kitchen — the smell of cooking, of roasting coffee beans, of a chair askew or messy countertops — are simply nonexistent, that’s when Lloyd knows that something is very, very wrong.

Because the kitchen isn’t just empty, it’s as if no one but him had occupied it ever since its construction. There is one, lone kitchen chair tucked neatly at the table, a single mug, one set of silverware, and when Lloyd dashes back to the bathroom to confirm that he isn’t just hallucinating, one toothbrush, his own.

It isn’t just these rooms either. The living room coffee table, which Lloyd is certain would be filled with bottles and wine glasses in the wake of the previous night, is completely empty, and gone from various surfaces are the framed photos of him and Ravey at the carnival, at the Second Playhouse’s opening night. Even their wardrobe isn’t spared, devoid of the violent splash of purple brought by his other half’s various coats, vests, dresses, shirts and heels.

The sensation of wrongness doubles in intensity, made worse by the rapid thump-thump-thumping of his heart. Lloyd’s shaking knees give way, depositing him onto Raven’s side of the bed, cold and bare.

It is then he finally realises exactly what he’s feeling. The sensation is his heart is emptiness, something alien to him ever since he had gotten his body back and returned home to nothing but light and love (and a near-death experience, though that was an accident and hardly counted), even the memory of his hilariously disastrous homecoming sending another icy knife through his chest.

Raven is gone. With it, a piece of himself has been ripped away, and all Lloyd feels is empty.

- 

The rest of his morning is spent in a daze, running around the carnival, asking every worker, Floozy, honorary Floozy and Hell Hag he passes if they had seen his boyfriend. 

“Nope, sorry Lloyd.”

“Haven’t seen him. Isn’t he usually with you?”

“Sorry sugar, No sign of Raven Baby ‘round here just yet.”

A flurry of activity — people setting up booths, clearing the last of the previous day’s detritus, cranking the ferris wheel in preparation for the guests who would arrive from wherever the Carnival decides to park itself for the day — swirls around him, but Lloyd registers none of it. He runs and searches every corner of the place, until his hunt takes him to the last stop, Han Mi’s trailer.

Han hears the feeble knock on her door, and decides not to say anything when she opens it to a panting, wild-eyed Lloyd, who promptly proceeds to wobble past her, collapsing onto her couch, head in his hands.

“Okay, so you didn’t remember to take your shoes off before coming in, I assume you’ve got bad news.”

Through the gap in his fingers, Lloyd mutters a soft, “Shit. Sorry, Han,” before kicking his shoes off and toward the half-open door. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Han sighs, and slides a chair over, taking a seat opposite the man. Not beside. They aren’t quite there yet. 

A brief moment of silence passes, before Lloyd speaks up. “This is probably an exercise in futility, but. I don’t suppose you’ve seen Raven around this morning, have you?”

Letting out a sympathetic whistle, Han says, “No dice, sorry. I woke up, like, fifteen minutes ago, and I think I’d know if Raven was in my trailer. He isn’t with you or the Floozies?”

Lloyd deflates, letting his head fall backward to rest against the wall behind him. Addressing the ceiling, he says, “He very much isn’t. I checked everywhere, and this was my last stop.”

“Maybe he’s running a quick errand in another narrative,” Han offers.

“No. It’s not just that Raven’s gone from the carnival, he’s.” Lloyd scrubs a hand across his eyes, and rests his gaze on her. “He’s vanished completely. All his clothes, his personal items, his photos. It’s like he had never even existed.”

“Wait. What?” Han Mi’s eyes go wide. “Does everyone else know about this?”

“They only know that I can’t find him. You’re the first person I’ve told about… the rest. And there’s more.”

“Wait. Before you tell me, have you eaten yet? Drank anything? You look like a wreck… no offence.”

“None taken, and no, I haven’t. There hasn’t been time to, with,” Lloyd vaguely gestures, “everything that’s been happening.”

“Well, if he’s really up and disappeared, a little time taken to catch your breath couldn’t hurt, could it?” Sure, she was still mad at the shit Lloyd pulled as the writer for the Cabaret, but she didn’t hate him. And she knew painfully what it was like to lose someone she loved.

Lloyd begins to protest, but Han silences him with a glare. She’s persuasive like that.

“Are we doing carrot cake?” He manages feebly.

Han nods. “We’re doing carrot cake.”

[pancakebutton]

Teacher X Reader Part I

The Beginning

A/N: Hello, the name’s Kappy and just to clarify: I switch point of views a lot but it’s not hard to understand who’s it’s in, I do take plot line requests, (Y/n) means Your Name, (L/n) is your Last Name, (T/n) will be Teachers first name, and (T/C) will be what you refer to him as formally (so basically his last name).Thoughts and other forms of communication are in Italics. Also sorry if you don’t like sports, but I reference sports such as soccer and hockey in the story. This chapter will be short since it’s basically just an introduction, but I will update weekly. And so we begin!

Summary: it’s only been a few months since moving to Rochester, Minnesota and as senior year approaches, you are nervous about what is in store. You suddenly find yourself in a group of amazing friends and have amazing classes, but after finding out you have a lot in common with your government teacher, you realize you’ve fallen head over heels for the awestrucken man.

Warnings: Foul Language

Word Count: 1038

Genre: Romance, Slice of Life, Sexual, Series.

Pairing: Insert Teacher X Reader

Master list

.

I could feel the bottom of my dress start to crawl its way back up my legs before I quickly push it back down. Working a skin-tight black short sleeved dress would not be easy as I felt handfuls of eyes analyze my outfit I had planned for days. Just as my dignity began to slip away, my best friend Morgan pushes through the sea of students and embraces me, making the fear of other opinions disappear.

“My lord (Y/n) you look hot!” She exclaims as she looks at me from head to toe and me doing the same.

“So do you! God this is gonna be our year I can feel it”.

The sound of the bell cut our conversation short and we both quickly sped-walked towards the nearby set of stairs. We exchanged schedules and as my eyes scanned through the list of teachers, my eyes caught one in particular.

“No way, you have Mr. (T/C) second period too?!” I ask excitedly.

“You do too! Ugh I am so happy I have one saving grace in this god awful hell hole!”

Realizing what time it was, we parted ways to our first classes, but agreed to try and sit by each other in the next. After a forty-minute introduction speech about my new math teacher, I was off to find room 315 on the third floor. Luckily for me, Mo was waiting for me in the back corner of the end of a hallway.

“There you are, here I found our class, let’s go find a good spot”.

We ended up sitting in the front but farthest away from the teacher’s desk.

“I wonder what he looks like, hopefully good looking” I joke, and Mo laughs along.

“Yeah totally, I’d hate to have to stare at an ugly ass old man for the rest of the year”.

After this remark, an unknown boy with tan skin, light blue eyes, and golden brown hair butted into our conversation.

“Wouldn’t want that eh doll face? Hey the name’s Allen, nice to meetcha”.

Allen then stuck out his hand for a hand shake but quickly pulled it back to comb through his hair, warning a scoff from the guy behind me.

“Don’t mind this fuck boy, he’s just looking his next fuck buddy. I’m his better friend Matt”.

This time when he stuck out his hand, I was actually able to take it and noticed how big the guy was, especially his hands.

I looked around the other that were also looking at us we didn’t know yet, “(Y/n) nice to meet you...these uh, are your other buddies I suppose?”

“Pretty name for such a doll, oh yeah this is Kaitlyn, Theo, Brock, and Beau”.

Kaitlyn had pretty long brown hair, pale skin, matching blue eyes to Matt and Allen, and a look that could kill. Theo looked like the definition of a cinnamon roll with sun kissed skin, green eyes, and wavy dirty blonde hair pushed to the side. Brock and Beau looked like they were about to kill each other, Brock was more intimidated as you could tell he was more built than Beau. Brock had a similar skin tone to Allen’s, but he had dark brown eyes, and black hair. Beau was a platinum blonde with fair skin and baby blue eyes.

The four smiled or smirked and waved while Mo and I simply returned the gesture.

“Where are you from (Y/n)? I haven’t seen you around much” Theo asked.

“Oh I moved here while ago from Maine”.

But before anyone could respond a loud but almost soothing voice boomed behind me.

“Maine eh? One of the only two states with split electoral votes giving it four in total. Does anyone know the other state?”

Mr. (T/C) was tall but not too tall, handsome but not overwhelming so, and was a big guy but you could tell he was built. Damn.

“Nebraska with five sir” a random student spoke up answering his question.

“Good. Now I didn’t catch your name Miss Maine, which city are you from?”

I pause in embarrassment, but quickly sputtered out an answer.

“Port Clyde sir, a-and it’s (Y/n)...sir”.

He chuckles while walking over to his desk.

“Well Miss Maine, it’s nice to meet you, and to all the class if your schedule doesn’t say Mr. (T/C) then you’re in the wrong place”.

A few students exchanged glances and stood up to leave. I could tell he had a super chill attitude by the way he talked and carried himself.

I leaned over to Morgan and whispered “I can tell I’m gonna have a fun year”. She quietly laughed, but before she could reply Mr. (T/C) beat her to it.

“Miss Maine, seems like this year you’ll be quite the trouble maker huh? Well I guess since you love to talk answer me this, I graduated high school in 2012. What NHL team won the Stanley Cup that year?”

Knowing it like the back of my hand, I quickly answered the question.

“The LA Kings sir.” I smirked as his eyebrows raised in surprise.

“A hockey fan? Well this must be my lucky year, a girl who actually watches hockey”.

I could tell everyone was now staring at me. Some trying to burn holes into my head, and others trying to undress me with their eyes.

“I love the Toronto Maple Leafs sir”.

I could hear Matt’s chair scoot back a tad bit but was surprised to hear him speak so loud, “The Maple Leafs suck ass! Montreal is where it’s at!”

“Language. But I’m glad to see a good rivalry here, now before things get out of hand, let’s get into the introduction”.

As I walked out of the classroom with everyone, I couldn’t stop laughing at a dirty joke Brock had just told. Mr. (T/C)‘s class was amazing, government wasn’t my best subject, but I could tell I was gonna love it. And after learning about Matt’s disdain towards my Maple babies, I knew he was just teasing and I actually felt closer to the people I had just met.

Boy was I in for a ride tomorrow.

[escaflowme]

Part 3: The Princess and the Knight

Authors’ Notes: This is an English translation of the first chapter of Vol 4 of the Escaflowne NewType Novels, affectionately called “the Marlene Chapter”. Translation was done by Fayrinferno and scanning/beta reading/editing was done by Pikafwance (escaflowme).  Please note that the chapter will be posted in four parts between Escaflowme and Heavenlydragon. Please enjoy our hard work! The next day started off with rain. Marlene opened her eyes at the sounds of soft raindrops amplified by the gusts of wind.

It led only to a small rooftop, usually deserted. Ever since she was small, Marlene would climb to the rooftop whenever she wanted to be alone. There, amongst other things, she would read and hide small treasures from her little sisters.

Oh?! Someone was there.

In an instant, she felt like she always knew who she would find at that place. The golden color wasn’t even clouded by the screen of rain. Breath held, she made her way to him silently, the sound of her bare feet barely audible over the rain. Yet he turned around and faced Marlene as if he knew that she was coming.

“Ma-… milady…” His fine eyebrows knitted in a puzzled expression. Marlene approached him slowly and wordlessly.

“…You will catch a cold.” Allen muttered a bit dumbfounded.

“What about you?” Marlene put her hand on his shoulder. His golden hair clung like wet ribbons to his white shirt sleeve.

“Well,” she breathed out a laugh, “if you are alright, then so am I.” How long was this young knight standing here, Marlene wondered. A ticklish sensation inside her chest made her amused.

“Please return to your room,” Allen said dryly.

“No,” she said clearly, smiling as she looked into his shocked face. “Not until I have an answer.”

Confused and speechless, the knight did not know how to respond.

“What answer… you may want to ask, right?” Marlene said and looked straight at Allen.

His features relaxed as he responded. “Yes.”

“I ask myself, if I was maybe waiting for you.” Allen watched her wordlessly.

Even though she was two years his elder, blood rose to her cheeks as she came to her senses a bit. “I am sorry. I am bothering you.”

“No.” Allen leaned down and lifted his hands to brush the water off Marlene’s shoulder.

“I always wanted to know…” Marlene said, looking down. “What does it mean to be alive?”

The knight removed his uniform vest and placed it on her shoulders carefully. [1] The rain became a drizzle and whirled around the two like a thick haze.

“Do you honestly think I could answer that?” Allen said, almost in a whisper.

“I believe you are the only one who can,” Marlene smiled, looking into his eyes that were the color of a bright night sky. The deep feeling in her chest could not stop throbbing. The ever-present sweet pain traveled up her throat, and welled up in her eyes.

“If I don’t hear an answer, I feel like I can’t live anymore.” Upon hearing that, a sad smile appeared on Allen’s face for the first time.

“You mustn’t talk like that.”

“It’s the truth, though.” Marlene moved to separate herself from the knight. Allen’s arm held her back before she could disappear within the whirling mist.

He was so tall.

The firm arm that pulled her back revealed that its owner was a strong man. Marlene’s body froze.

“Please return to your room.”

“No.” Marlene heard her own voice tremble. Even with her freezing bare feet, her body did not feel cold. Why she was not shivering at all, she did not know.

“Eh?” At hearing Allen mutter something unintelligible, Marlene’s face rose up. Her eyes met with his.

Before either knew what was happening, the two were tightly embracing.

Allen remained silent but Marlene felt as if she had obtained her answer, cheek pressed against his chest. “I am alive,” she murmured as they continued to embrace wordlessly.

——————

“You don’t seem to sigh so much anymore these days,” Ditoa said, clearing the breakfast tray away.

“Seems like it,” Marlene said cheerfully, standing up. “Did I really look that worried?”

Ditoa seemed to be looking for an answer, but then nodded. “A while ago, you seemed to have been tired of having nothing to do. You looked bored.”

“Ah,” Marlene said, “it was really just that, I was bored.”

Ditoa let out a big sigh, spreading her arms. “Whenever Her Highness is like that, the festivities tend to be sullied by the end. In fact, I found myself dozing off as well.”

“Hahaha, come now,” Marlene said, laughing, and exited the room.

“Oh, by the way, Your Highness, this afternoon, we host the envoy from Freid. Please return in time for the preparations.”

“Understood!” Marlene called back to Ditoa who ran out after her as she hurried down the corridor.

Through the courtyard and past the ramparts, she entered the grounds behind the castle.

Facing the thick, dark forest on the hillside, she looked around a bit before entering without hesitation. Stepping onto the forest undergrowth, she shed the sandals she had been wearing and continued barefoot. One step after another, she relished the feeling of soft grass under her bare feet.

The light shining through the leaves drew arabesques on the forest carpet; the voice of birds and occasional rustling wind tickled her ears.

Stepping around the tree trunk, she entered deeper into the woods.

Finally, she reached a spring in the deep, dark parts of the forest. The only source of light was the rays of sun reflected within the lake’s surface, creating a kaleidoscope-like effect on the surrounding forest. Marlene looked around, standing by the bank of the spring. Here, even the rustling of leaves and calls of birds grew faint. Those who made it all the way to this place could feel the presence of times long past.

Marlene sat down and dipped her hot feet in the water. She let out a happy sigh. Narrowing her eyes, she watched the water glimmer with the small splashes she created.

“Kya!” Marlene shrieked as her view was suddenly obstructed. Long fingers pressed on her eyelids gently and the sound of stifling laughter was heard above her head…

“Allen?” In a flash, she pushed the hands away and threw a fistful of water at him.

“Wah!”

The waterdrops intermingled with blonde hair, dazzling. Laughing, they both collapsed onto the grass. For a short while they continued chuckling until their breaths calmed down and they embraced, looking up to the sky through the treetops. When the clouds started appearing in the sky, they finally rose.

“You’re late.”

“I rushed here as soon as I could.” Allen made a worried face at the pouting Marlene.

“It’s alright. As long as you come,” Marlene put her hand on Allen’s cheek and brought him closer, “even waiting is fun.”

“Really?” Allen asked tenderly.

“Have I ever lied to you?” Marlene said, sulking a bit.

Allen leaned over her with a smile, covered her hands with his and brought his lips closer to hers.

During their long, silent kiss, the stillness seemed even more than usual. As their lips joined, Marlene fell back onto the soft grass while Allen’s kisses proceeded down from the ridge of her lips to her jaw and then her neck.

“Ah…” A husky breath left her throat and her exposed ivory shoulder shone with dew. Her thin arms embraced the wide back and entangled in his long blonde hair.

“If only we could stay like this forever,” Marlene murmured, lying on her side in Allen’s arms. Her heated, moist eyes gazed towards the water’s surface.

Allen said nothing as he hid his face in her blonde waves.

“Father will surely forgive you,” Marlene said as if to reassure herself more than him. “He would do anything I’d ask of him.”

“Lady Marlene…” Allen did not seem convinced. “Don’t say such things…”

“But…” Marlene hung her head, on the verge of tears. Why did King Aston seem blind to Allen’s excellent work? Even though he seemed to have accepted Allen as one of them, there was no special treatment compared to the knights from other clans.

This exclusion was something even Marlene felt, and the true shape of Aston’s values seemed to uncover before her. If Marlene had never met Allen, perhaps she would have never gotten to see this side of him… But now, fully aware, she felt disgust and repulsion towards her own father. The respect and love she had always felt for him put her in a difficult position. The relationship between Allen and her father was already paper-thin. If he knew of this, it would tear, she was certain.

The only thing Marlene could do was to keep her meetings with Allen secret from her father’s eyes. She could not, did not want to think of anything else to do right now.

It is not the time to think about this yet.

Marlene continued to tell that to herself.

“We have to go now,” Allen said, which made Marlene shake her head in denial. He wrapped his arms around her full breasts as if to hide them, embracing her with gentle strength.

“I want to stay like this forever…” she pinned his arms down with hers. Like this, their beings could melt into one. Even though she did not say it, she still strongly hoped it would happen.

——————

The wheel of fortune turned still, regardless of anyone’s wishes. Before the moon had even turned, Marlene received a sentence from King Aston.

“Me? Why am I to go to Freid?”

Aston shook his head amiably. “I thought this decision would make you happy? After all, a women’s happiness lies within marriage. Especially since it’s His Excellency, the world-renowned Duke of Freid…”

“I haven’t even met that person before!” Marlene said with a dejected face.

“But I have,” Aston said, full of himself, “You could not find such a man even if you searched. What’s more, this royal marriage will strengthen the alliance of both countries and will give way to a prosperous future the likes of which Asturia has never seen before!

It’s certainly not just my happiness that father is concerned about, Marlene thought silently.

She did not want anything else but peace and prosperity for Asturia herself. Still, the modest happiness she now had was more important to her than that great cause.

“Am I no longer obliged to stay in Asturia, to serve the country?” Marlene tried, well aware that once her father made up his mind, his resolve was unbending.

“No need to worry about that,” Aston replied immediately. “If it’s the succession you are worried about, you have no obligations. There’s still Eries and Millerna. Especially since Duke Freid specifically asked for your hand. That is beyond fortunate.”

Marlene bit her lip.

“Don’t make such a long face,” said Aston gently, as expected, when he caught Marlene’s clouded expression. “I know it feels lonely to leave your family, but your presence in Freid would prove far more helpful than merely staying here. I may be deep in your debt, soon.”

Marlene hung her head wordlessly.

——————

“Your Highness? ”Ditoa’s voice gently probed the dark room. “Why are you staying in the dark?”

Marlene did not answer, sitting limply on a chair near the window. Instead, she chose to face the night sky with hollow eyes. Warm light entered the room, causing a dim reflection in her pupils.

“Your Highness, I heard the news about the wedding,” she came to Marlene’s side and curtsied, taking her skirt in her hands. “Congratulations.”

“Does this really deserve a congratulation?” Marlene said defeatedly, unmoving.

“Eh?” Ditoa looked at her, perplexed. “I thought this was a happy occasion.”

“Is it, now?”

Ditoa stroked Marlene’s hand calmingly. “Perhaps you are just anxious? I was shocked myself when I heard the sudden news.”

Ditoa’s plump hand stayed gently on Marlene’s. “If it’s that person, you have nothing to worry about. His Majesty, Duke of Freid, is said to be unparalleled among the men of Gaea for his virtue [2] and selflessness [3].”

A small smile curled Marlene’s lips. “If he is really like that, perhaps he should have chosen a finer princess.”

“What are you saying?” Ditoa’s voice gained a slightly angry tone. “Where would he find a better noble daughter than Her Highness? For me, you are the first among Gaean princesses. If he chose you then it is clear that Duke Freid is a man of fine tastes… if I do say so myself.”

“You and your grand words again,” Marlene smiled wryly. “I am just a child who has never even left this country, lucky to be born as the king’s daughter.”

“No,” Ditoa shook her head resolutely. “You were meant to be born to a royal family. I feel that you have the power of destiny on your side.”

“Destiny…?” Marlene turned to the handmaiden. “Are you really saying I have that kind of power?”

Ditoa smiled sweetly. “Why else would all of this happen?”

Thinking of the kindness of this good and honest handmaiden, Marlene barely suppressed the urge to tell her the truth. After preparing her bed, Ditoa had left Marlene to herself and the dim light again.

If I had the power to change my destiny…

I wouldn’t have stayed silent when my father told me what to do, she stood up, shaking her head.

I don’t have that kind of power. Not on my own.

She threw on her light shawl and her feet led her to the balcony.

The cool blue light of the twin moons illuminated the area. The light shoes made of thin soft leather made no sound as she climbed the stairs up to the rooftop.

“Lady Marlene?”

“Allen!” She did not know he would be there but instinctively jumped to his arms with no hesitation.

Allen held her form without words. They embraced motionlessly for a while, still like statues. Then, as if waking from a daze, Marlene found the strength to voice her worries, still pressed against Allen’s chest.

“Did you hear already…?”

Allen nodded above her and softly said, “Congratulations, Lady Marlene.”

Marlene raised her head as soon as she heard that.

“I don’t want to go to Freid.” Was that anguish that passed over Allen’s face?

“Why do I have to leave with someone I don’t even know?” Marlene felt the world blur before her. “You are the only one I want to be with. If you were to go with me…” Marlene swallowed down her words.

What am I saying… that I could bear becoming Duke Freid’s wife if Allen went with me?

She quickly averted her blushing face. Whether the knight caught her words or not, she did not know, but he watched her intently.

What can I ask of Allen…?

The level-headed thinking she obtained as a princess kicked in immediately. She could not forget that Allen had his own circumstances. She regarded him with her tear-filled eyes.

She observed his tall, slender, yet finely sculpted figure, his handsome, mature expression… yet she knew his impulsive boyishness peeked through at times, which did not take away from his charms.

The knight was younger than herself. To make his debut at such a young age was thanks to his prowess with the sword. It was a feat that proved unmatched amongst his peers. Bearing his family circumstances, he had only started on his journey to wash away the stigma left by his father, which led him up to this point. Losing his future because of an affair, that would be unforgivable.

But…

If Allen himself wanted that…

Marlene examined his expression. He looked as if he was resigned to any conclusion, staring back at her.

Without realizing, Marlene shook her head slightly.

Allen would never make that decision himself.

If Marlene wanted, he would throw everything away for her, but she herself had too much to lose.

This is the fate of a woman born into a royal family, and of a knight.

She was well aware that for the future of a commercial country of the likes of Asturia, an alliance with a military power such as Freid was vital.

If I tried to cling to the love I have with Allen…

In truth, she may not be able to protect his safety from Father’s wrath, they would both have to flee the country and what’s more, the crack in the relations with Freid would seem unavoidable. In such case, Father may offer Eries in Marlene’s stead. Maybe Duke Freid asked for her hand, but her father could possibly make him change his mind, and for King Aston, it did not really matter which daughter would be married off.

Marlene bit her lip.

I don’t want my little sisters to end up in a situation like mine.  One or the other, they are too young to be married off to a foreign family.

I am the only one who must be burdened with this harsh fate, Marlene thought.

“Allen.” Marlene brushed away the tears from her lashes and looked straight at him.

“Lady Marlene.” For the first time, Allen’s expression became somewhat pained as he looked at her.

Marlene smiled gently at him. “By meeting you, I really got to know what it means to be alive. It is thanks to you that I can go on living.”

“My life will always belong to you as well,” he said in a low voice.

“Thank you.” Marlene smiled, barely holding back her tears. “I guess it’s time to go now.” Allen softly pulled her towards him and stopped moving. “I’ll see you off.”  The deep blue of Allen’s eyes as he stared at her seemed to burn itself into her memory.

If she would say anything more, she felt as if her tears would overflow again, and her resolve would crumble. So her lips stayed silent.

The bright shine of the double moons dimmed momentarily. Unconsciously trying to catch a glimpse of Allen’s shadowed expression, Marlene barely stopped herself from stepping towards him.

“Come now, you need to go,” even at Marlene’s words, Allen did not move.

How much time could have passed?  Was it just a dark cloud floating before the Moon, or did it make a full turn? When the moonlight hit the scene again, there was only a flutter of blonde hair.

Allen…!

She all but stopped herself from chasing after him desperately, and just watched his retreating figure. With the last glimpse of gold, her physical strength finally left her and she collapsed. The dam was broken and tears overflowed, clouding her vision.

Allen!

She pushed her fists against the stone floor.

Allen, I love you so much!

The wind got stronger, comforting her tear-stricken cheeks coldly.

——————

[1]  Original sentence: “Allen brushed the water off her other shoulder softly.” We have taken the liberty to change this part as it flowed better and corresponded with the illustration of this scene in the novel.

[2]  noble; lofty; high-minded; virtuous; upright

[3]  honesty; integrity; purity and unselfishness

[jade4813]

A Lie, Told Often Enough, Chapter 20

Author Notes: Inspired by @fallinginloveinaflash‘s AU prompt. All credit for the idea goes entirely to her. I’ve loved this story so much, I’m sad to see it go! I hope everyone has enjoyed reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it - and stay tuned for the first chapter of my next Westallen AU, Sparks Fly, to be posted soon!

Title: A Lie, Told Often Enough

Rating: NC-17

Synopsis: Iris just landed her dream job at a PR firm and her first assignment is reforming the bad boy image of celebrity artist Barry Allen. He’s overly cocky and well-known for being a playboy, but Iris has never met a challenge she couldn’t handle.

Chapters: 20/20

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Blind Gossip – The recent breakup between this sexy rock star and his fashionable fiancée have made big news, but sources close to the couple say that it may have all been for show. Rumor is they’re closer than ever but trying to keep their relationship on the down-low. Dare we still hope for wedding bells in the future? Think you know the identity of our coy lovebirds? Sound off below!

“Where are you going?” Iris asked sleepily as Barry yawned and slid silently out from under the covers. “Come back to bed.”

“I didn’t mean to wake you,” he murmured, bending over to press a kiss against her forehead. “I thought you might want some breakfast.”

She fisted a hand in his t-shirt and gave it a slight tug until he laid over her, his body pressing her into the mattress. “I don’t want breakfast. I want you to make love to me.”

“Make love to you?” he asked softly, brushing his lips against her cheek, remembering a time she would have phrased the request differently. He liked the way her words now felt on his tongue and in his heart.

Misinterpreting his repetition, she blushed. “Did that sound cheesy? It sounded, cheesy, didn’t it.”

“Not at all! Sweetheart, I’m always happy to make love to you. As long as you promise you won’t look away.”

She smiled. “So stop talking and hold me, already,” she demanded.

Barry laughed and started to tease her. “You’re bossy in the morn-” But her lips were on his, her tongue delving into his mouth, before he could even get out the words.

Royal Heartthrob? Barry Allen Lands Coveted Lead Role in Romantic Fantasy ‘A Royal Affair’

The lights were off when Iris walked through the front doors, and she looked around in surprise. She’d received a message from Barry to meet her at the cozy restaurant for dinner, but there seemed to be nobody there.

“Hello? Anybody there?” she called out, wondering if she’d gotten the day or time wrong.

“Can’t say how the days will unfold. Can’t say what the future may hold. But I want you in it. Every hour, every minute.”

She recognized Barry’s voice as soon as he started to sing and turned towards the sound just as waiters dressed in black unobtrusively stepped forward and lit candles until the entire restaurant was lit by a warm glow. Then they melted into the shadows again, leaving Iris and Barry alone.

“This world can race by far too fast. Hard to see while it’s all flying past. But it’s clear now, when you’re standing here now. I am meant to be wherever you are next to me.”

“Barry, what is this?” she asked, looking at the table, shrouded in white-linens and covered with rose petals. Had he rented out the entire restaurant?

“All I want to do is come running home to you. Come running home to you. And all my life I promise to keep running home to you. Keep running home to you.” As she watched, he got down on one knee and pulled his mother’s engagement ring out of his pocket. Iris caught her breath as he held it out to her, his hands trembling softly.

“And I could see it right from the start, right from the start. That you would be my light in the dark, light in the dark. Oh, you gave me no other choice but to love you.”

Iris didn’t realize when she’d placed her hands over her mouth, but she felt her smile against her fingertips. Seeing her expression, he stopped singing just long enough to say, “I told you. Every song I write is for you. And they always will be.”

“All I want to do is come running home to you. Come running home to you. And all my life I promise to keep running home to you. Keep running home, home to you.

“Can’t say how the days will unfold. Can’t change what the future may hold. But I want you in it. Every hour, every minute.”

As his song came to an end, she stifled her laugh with her hands. “You know, in a sense, we’re already engaged. We’ve been engaged this whole time.”

Barry grinned. “Yeah, but that was when I was pretending it was all an act. You deserve a proposal that’s real. Iris West, will you marry me? For real this time?”

She nodded. “Oh, Barry. Of course I will.”

Iris West and Publicist Linda Park Launch New Image Consultant Service, ParkWest Consulting

“It looks like our opening announcement was a big success. What do you think?” Linda cried happily as she looked around at the tables of friends, colleagues, and potential clients who had come out to celebrate their new venture. “Hold that thought. I should touch base with Eddie.” Eddie Thawne had become a good friend since their one pretend-date, and he had agreed to be their first official client. He had also been the one to suggest they set him up with Patty Spivot, if she agreed to engage in the ruse. She was still struggling to rehabilitate her image, and he’d thought they could solve each other’s problems. And since everyone had seen pictures of the two of them talking at the art show, the ground work had already been laid. “If we want to get people talking about him and Patty, making them the new It Couple, we want to make sure everyone sees them together tonight. No rest for the wicked, right?”

As she left the table, Iris breathed a sigh of relief. “You know, there were times I was halfway convinced we’d never get here. It’s still pretty scary when I think about it too long.”

Barry pressed a kiss against her lips and murmured, “Really? I never had any doubt. I knew you could do it.”

“Yeah, but you’re not exactly unbiased.”

He shrugged. “True. But I was also technically your first client, so I knew what you were capable of.” Seeing the nervousness that still lingered, he brushed his thumb along the curve of her cheek. “Remaking an image isn’t about selling a lie, at least not to you. For you, it’s about letting people show who they really are. And that’s why you’re so good at this. It’s why I never doubted you would make this a success.”

She chuckled, pressing her cheek against his shoulder. “I appreciate the vote of confidence, but if that’s true, why do I still feel like I have a million butterflies ricocheting around my stomach?”

“Ah, well. That just means you need a distraction, Princess.” Under the tablecloth, he slowly slid his hand between her legs, his fingers inching up the hem of her dress.

Iris’s eyes went wide as she covered his hand with her own. “You wouldn’t!” she breathed, scandalized and – almost against her will – getting aroused at the thought. And the memory.

Barry’s smile was a wicked reminder of the night their former charade all began, when he reminded her he wasn’t wholesome – and implied he didn’t want to be. “Wanna bet?”

His fingers started to stroke her through her panties and Iris had to stifle her gasp of arousal. “This is getting to be…a very bad…habit,” she moaned against his shoulder, pressing against him as he pressed his lips against the top of her head to stifle his responding laughter.

EXCLUSIVE IMAGES of Top-Secret West-Allen Oceanside Wedding!

“You seem lost in thought tonight,” Iris murmured as she curled up against him, her head rested next to his on his pillow. “Everything okay?” Stroking the line that had formed between his brows, she teased him, “You’re not regretting this marriage already, are you? It’s only been...what...six hours?”

“Of course not,” he replied quickly, though the frown line disappeared. “I was just…I was thinking about how we got here.”

“Ah, definitely a topic that should bring on grumpy face,” she said with mock seriousness, though the corners of her mouth twitched with a suppressed smile.

He chucked a brushed a kiss against the tip of her nose. “Okay, maybe not. But I was just thinking…earlier today, when I was standing up there, just waiting for the first glimpse of you. Halfway afraid you’d come to your senses and make a break for it. I realized that I made you a promise and I failed to live up to it.”

Her humor fading, Iris frowned, shifting her head on the pillow. “What do you mean?” she asked softly. “I don’t remember you breaking any promises.”

“I swore I would be there with you every step of the way, and then I just ended things. I hurt you, and I can’t forgive myself for that.”

Iris lifted a hand to brush his hair back from his forehead. “But babe, you said it yourself. You didn’t know –”

“I still broke my promise. I still hurt you.”

Pursing her lips, Iris thought over his words. “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I broke a promise, too.” At his confused expression, she continued, “I promised myself I wouldn’t fall in love with you and look what happened.”

Barry let out a surprised bark of laughter. “That’s not – Is that supposed to make me feel better? You realize that’s completely different, right?”

Her grin was mischievous as she threw her leg over his hips and lifted herself over him. “I thought it would make you feel better to know we’ve both made mistakes.”

Barry smiled in return. “Honey, I don’t know how to tell you this, but you really kinda suck at this pep talk thing.”

“Then I guess you’ll have to spend the rest of your life making your broken promise up to me, and I’ll have to spend the rest of my life making my sucky pep talks up to you. Does that sound fair?” she asked, shrugging out of the straps of her nightgown, letting it fall to a pool over her thighs.

Barry felt himself grow hard again and lifted his hand to her shoulders, gliding one slowly down her body to stroke her breasts. He linked his other hand in hers, stroking the gleaming golden band that symbolized the lifetime of love ahead of them. The reminder that the man who once believed he could never have a normal relationship had found a love that would last forever. He wanted to memorize this moment and her beauty, to carry them with him for the rest of his life. “Yeah,” he agreed, rocking against her until her head fell back with a gasp. “That sounds fair.”

[robininthelabyrinth]

Fic: An Internal Affair - Chapter 20 (Ao3 link)

Fandom: The Flash Pairing: Leonard Snart/Barry Allen

Summary: Leonard Snart, the CCPD Captain of Internal Affairs, is known as Captain Cold for a very good reason: He hates corrupt cops with a merciless vengeance, and once you’re on his list, you’re in serious trouble.

His next target?

A CCPD lab tech named Barry Allen who’s developed a suspicious habit of disappearing at random intervals.

—————————————————————————————————

Ever since Barry became a speedster, he's found that he's able to keep up with things. Events. People.

Real life plot twists?

Except five seconds ago he was dropping Mick and Eddie back at the hospital (just in case), two seconds ago he was running back into STAR Labs desperate to save Len (who loves him?!) but knowing he'd be too late -

And now he and Wells (Eobard Thawne) are standing in the base of the Accelerator, both of them empty-handed and covered in glass shards, staring blankly at each other.

"Did - did you know that she could fly?" Barry asks hesitantly. He doesn't think so - he doesn't think Wells has ever even met Kara - but Wells has been three steps ahead of him this whole time, so...

Wells just shakes his head, still looking blank.

Barry kinda agrees. Like - what? What just happened?

Kara also moved, like, really fast. Like. Speedster fast. She's a speedster? Except she can also fly - and that was definitely flying, not jumping, Kara was totally, like, horizontal there - and, just -

Hold up.

They're both just standing around being shocked. Neither of them is moving, which means whoever starts moving first will have a (brief) advantage over the other.

Barry was definitely losing earlier, and he's pretty sure even with whatever advantage he can get from an early start, he's going to keep losing.

Time for a strategic retreat.

Barry makes a break for it.

Wells only notices, tearing his bemused attention away from the shattered ceiling, when Barry's nearly at the door, and then he gives chase - because of course he gives chase, he's obsessed, he's not going to give up, he's never going to give up - right up until Barry hits the street outside and a pair of arms catches him right under the armpits and up they go.

"This is awesome," Barry says to the greatness of Central City, laid out before him, as he's carted off into the air, legs dangling below him and Wells left behind stewing angrily at STAR Labs.

There's a sigh behind him.

"You know," Kara says into his ear, "I really feel like I expected people to be a little more shocked by this revelation. Possibly more negative. I don’t know. Something."

"I don't think Len actually has any negative feelings about you," Barry says honestly, since that's probably what she was actually worried about. He thinks Kara's awesome, and he's pretty sure the feeling's mutual, but at this stage of their budding friendship they still both worry over Len way more than they think of each other. "And I was shocked! I was totally shocked. There were full minutes of shock. But, y'know, what with me being a speedster -"

"Yeah, yeah, you processed it already. And the boss doesn’t do shock in public, I know. But still!" she says petulantly, and then dives down to a rooftop where Len's already sitting, leaning against the edge, to drop Barry off and hover above them. "Barry, can you stay here and keep the boss company while I go get either his braces or his spare crutches? I feel like the ones he dropped in STAR Labs are probably a total loss."

"I told her to go back to STAR Labs and pick up what I'd left behind," Len says, very solemnly. "And yet for some reason she grabbed you -"

Barry sniggers.

Kara does, too, then punches Len lightly in the arm. "Stop goofing around. I'll be back in five minutes - most of which will be spent digging around that mess you call an apartment."

And then she's gone.

Barry looks at Len, whose legs are splayed out in front of him in a way that suggests that his leg is hurting him and whose face is overly controlled in a way that suggests his side isn't doing him any favors either.

"So," Barry says.

"Yeah," Len says.

"Did you...?"

"Nope. Didn't have a clue."

"Fair," Barry says, because he hadn't either. Of course, he isn't as close to her as Len is, but also he hadn't noticed the Wells thing for ages, so he has no place to talk about noticing things. "You do hate mysteries."

"I also hate applying normal person logic to a situation and ending up with time-travel and superheroes," Len says dryly. "I guess I'll live. Anyway, like I told her, it doesn't really matter, since it doesn't seem to impact her efficiency as a secretary any."

Barry's almost expecting Kara to reappear and yell 'Admin assistant!' at them, but she doesn't. That's probably the point - Len's paranoid (and justly so) enough to want to make sure she's not spying on them.

And, well, Barry agrees. Just because Kara has superpowers doesn't mean that he intends to start treating her any differently. Although –

"Okay, so, one thing," he says. "I feel, like, 90% certain that most of your stories about how you met Kara hinged on her not being in Central during the Accelerator explosion."

"She wasn't," Len says. "She's not a meta, she's an alien."

Barry pauses.

He opens his mouth to say something, realizes he has nothing constructive to say, and closes his mouth again.

He considers the issue for another moment.

And then -

"She's a what?!"

"An alien," Len says, with a wry expression that suggests that he took this little revelation with much more grace externally and approximately the same degree of taken-abacked-ness internally. "Born on a planet called ‘Krypton’, apparently; she and her cousin were schlepped off to Earth because it has a comparable ecosystem to their homeworld, which was in the process of exploding at the time."

"Exploding."

"Apparently."

"I see."

"Yeah."

"And, because she's an alien, she can - fly? And move at speedster speeds?"

"And punch hard enough to move a car," Len says, rubbing his arm. "I'm extrapolating, but it seems reasonable."

Barry considers this.

"...that’s so cool," he finally says.

"Agreed," Len says, unable to keep from grinning.

"So," Barry says, and he doesn't really want to say what he has to say next, but he doesn't feel like he really has a choice. "I guess that means you don't need me, huh?"

Len blinks owlishly at him. "I - don't follow."

"Well, you came to me because you need a speedster to fight Wells - Thawne - whatever, right? And now that you have Kara -"

"You idiot," Len says, but fondly. "I came to you because I wanted an excuse to see you again, not because you were our last hope, Obi-Wan Kenobi."

Of course Len goes there. He wouldn’t be Len if he didn’t think in movie quotes and talk in puns.

"Listen," Len says, his face going serious. "I'm not - I don't - listen, I was right, what you were doing was wrong, and that's definitely not going to magically go away anytime soon. There have to be consequences. But - I should have listened to you.”

Barry stares at him.

Len meets Barry’s eyes. “I should have taken time to understand your perspective and accounted for all the issues surrounding what happened - including the fact that Wells is a master manipulator who deliberately positioned himself to gain your trust as an unquestionable father-figure, and the fact that he used your actual present father-figure to reinforce what he was doing.”

He shakes his head.

“It's not that I don't know how corruption creeps in, tainting everything around it, or even that the CCPD's been drowning in it for so long that it infects the best of us,” he continues, making a face. “I should've thought about that, and I didn't. I didn’t, because I was hurt, and I was hurting, and it felt like you did it at me, when that wasn't the case at all. And that was wrong, too.”

Len reaches out and puts a hand on Barry’s arm. “I should have given you the benefit of the doubt,” he says. “And while I'm not apologizing for the fact that I'm very likely going to have to put you in jail for what you've done, I'm at least sorry for that."

Barry swallows, hard. His heart feels like it's going a million miles an hour, and with his powers, that's actually possible.

He's going to react to Len's explanation in a mature manner befitting the seriousness of the subject, to accept his apology, to thank him for his faith in Barry, to –

"Did you really tell Mick that you were in love with me?" he blurts out instead. "In - in the hospital, I mean, like Wells said."

...damnit.

He's been thinking of little else - yes, he knows, inappropriate in a life-or-death situation but the possibility of Len loving him – the thought of Len dying without ever knowing that Barry loves him back -

Barry ran faster than he ever has before.

But Len didn't die. He's alive, he's here, and Barry has to know the truth.

Len pauses for a long moment.

"Please, Len," Barry says. "It's important."

Len's throat works. "Yes," he says. "I did. I - still do."

Barry -

Barry needs to sit down.

The space right next to Len is wide open, so he sits there. It’s a perfect fit.

He somehow thought it would be.

"I understand if it's - unwanted," Len is saying, because Kara is right; he is an idiot. Barry's in love with a total idiot, and he couldn't be happier about it. "Setting the cops on your family, your friends, in quite such a manner -"

"Len," Barry interrupts. "I love you, too."

And then he kisses him.

It takes a second for what Barry said to sink in, but then Len's kissing him back and his hands are in Barry's hair and Barry's hands are on Len's shoulders and –

Kara clears her throat.

Barry yelps and scrambles off of Len's lap. He isn't sure when he got on Len's lap, actually, and now that he thinks about it, it probably wasn't doing any good for Len's leg and side –

Kara's standing right behind them, laughing and holding Len's crutches in one hand and his leg and back braces in the other. They're pretty unwieldy, but she holds them as if they weigh nothing - seems Len was probably right about the super-strength.

She grins at both of them. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?"

"You support this," Len tells Kara crossly. "I know you do. Why're you interfering now?"

"No, no, don't get me wrong, I'm delighted," she says. "It's about time! You two are so good together!"

"Then go fly around the block for another few minutes!"

Kara giggles. "Oh, trust me. I would. But..."

Her smile fades, replaced with a serious look.

"But?" Len prompts.

"The riots have started."

"Crap," Len says, all levity gone. "Iris West doesn't leave dust in her tracks when she puts her mind to it. The news must've gone out."

"Oh yeah," Kara says. "Whatever wasn't on the evening news - all the evening news, local editions, newspapers, television, radio, the lot - has gone around the more informal channels. The cardboard brigade's actually affirmatively telling people, do you know that? They never do that."

"No one in Central likes the Families," Barry mutters. "God, people are going to go crazy."

"People are going crazy," Kara corrects. "All the set-up we've done is helping keep it somewhat contained, but - yeah. The Families are going to have a hell of a time sewing up their deal with this mess in the streets. No way our people get it cleaned up by Election Day."

"Not our people, no," Len says. "But the Feds are coming in tomorrow - and by now, cover story or no, the Families will know about it. There's going to be war tomorrow - now that they know secrecy isn't an option, the Families are going to tug on every string they've ever had, call in every debt, and they're going to try to force this deal down all our throats whether we know about it or not."

"The riots will get national attention," Barry says. "That should help get us more back-up, right? National Guard or something. But whether they'll be in time, I don't know - especially since we've lost so many cops to corruption already, and are probably only going to lose more. There's a chance we'll be overwhelmed. Besides, we still haven't solved the problem of what to do about Wells, who's probably capable of taking down an army or two on his own. What do we do now?"

Len doesn't say anything.

Barry glances at him and sees that he's staring out across the city.

Their city - their beautiful, corrupt, misled Central City, which has the potential to be so much more than it is.

Not unlike all of them, really.

"Len?" he prompts.

"I think the boss has an idea," Kara says. "That's his 'I have an idea' face. I hate the 'I have an idea' face."

"Because it's usually a bad idea?"

"Oh, no, it usually works out. It's just going to be absolutely nuts."

"You're not wrong," Len says, still looking out at the city. "Davners, Barry – I know you’ve been using your powers, but where we’re going, I don’t want you to use them, no matter what the incentive. It's too risky, especially with rotten military scientists in the area.”

“Where we’re going?” Barry echoes.

“Yeah,” Len says. “Kara, can we make our way to the governor's mansion from here on foot?"

"Through the riots?" Kara says doubtfully. "I mean, we could, if we don't mind being shoved around a bit, and with Barry and me making sure no one trips your crutches up, yeah. But why the governor's mansion?"

"That's where the ‘absolutely nuts’ idea comes into play," Len says dryly. "Barry, call Singh, tell him where we're going and our likely route; we need him to meet us there. Now enough talking - let's go."

Going through a crowd of angry rioters without using his powers is basically every bit as bad as Barry would have imagined it to be, which is to say, not unlike Central City mall during the worst ravages of Christmas shopping, only with more chanting and more anger and a lot more people holding sticks to hit things with out of sheer irrepressible rage.

They’re all talking about the Families.

Oh, yes, everyone’s always known about the Families, but no one knew how deep it went. No one knew that everything they trusted to hold back the dark was actually aiding and abetting it.

“The governor’s mansion?!” Singh exclaims into the phone when Barry calls him. “That’ll be a job and a half. Tell Snart he’d better have a damn good plan – the only reason most of my men are at work right now is because I haven’t let them leave. And when they go, a bunch of them aren’t coming back, and it won’t be because they’re cowards.”

Singh doesn’t need to actually say that it’ll be because they’re on the opposite side.

“We’re bleeding morale like crazy,” Singh continues. “At a minimum, Snart’s riots are doing a good job making sure no one leaves Central – we have barricades on all the major highways, but they’ve been reinforced by all the abandoned cars left behind by pissed-off people – but it’s a complete mess.”

“Len has an idea,” Barry repeats, since he can’t give out any details of a plan he doesn’t know the details of. Possibly that’s intentional on Len’s part. “And we have a few, uh, surprises up our sleeve.”

“You remember that I already know about your so-called ‘running hobby’, right?” Singh asks skeptically.

“Yeah, I know, I meant in addition to that.”

“Christ. You know what, don’t tell me, I don’t want to know. Tell Snart I’ll be there.”

Barry hangs up and ducks as someone waves a stick – no, an umbrella – over his head.

“Seriously, dude?” he demands.

“Sorry,” the guy says, looking sheepish. “It was the first thing I could find. Hey, a bunch of us are going to go down to trash the restaurant down on Camillo Street, the one everyone knows is a Family front, you wanna come with?”

“He can’t,” Len interjects. “We’ve got other plans. But remember that the cooks are probably victims too – keep your aim to the blood-bonded Family assholes.”

“Good point,” the guy says agreeably, then raises his umbrella to charge onwards down a side street, accompanied by a small mob of people.

Barry hopes the guy really does keep it in mind.

He shares worried glances with Kara and then they both realize that Len's managed to get ahead of them again and rush (at regular speed) to catch up.

Len might not be a speedster, but he has a way of eeling his way through the smallest possible gaps in a crowd - even with his crutches! - that lets him keep moving at an accelerated forward pace that Barry and Kara have trouble keeping up with.

Especially with the way people tend to cut right in front of them and then slow down. It's enough to drive a man to consider punching people.

Seriously, Barry's been trying not to use his powers for less than fifteen minutes and he already misses it. He can tell from Kara's expression that she, too, would love nothing more than to just leap into the sky right now.

Damnit, Len just darted through another gap and now there's a whole parade between them. How is he doing that?!

This time, though, when Barry and Kara catch up, Len's actually stopped, even though they're less than two blocks away from their destination. Barry can even see Singh in the distance, directing his cops to help funnel the people onto the side streets so as to thin the crowds a bit.

But no, Len's stopped to talk to some guy - an older man, shorter than Len, given to fat and with a nasty expression. He's not marked as a blood-bound Family guy, no tattoos that Barry can see, but Barry's willing to bet he's no good.

One of Len's underworld contacts, maybe?

Barry gets close just in time to hear the stranger saying, "- major opportunity here. With your help, I can -"

"Are you fucking kidding me," Len says flatly.

"Don't you use that tone on me, son," the man warns, scowling. "I know I taught you better -"

"My city is literally on fire," Len snarls. "The Families are going to destroy everything. And all you care about is lining your pockets - no," he adds when the guy steps forward, a threatening look in his eyes. "No, no, no, no. I don't have fucking time for this. No fucking time, no fucking bandwidth, just no." Then he raises his voice. "Officer!"

"What the hell are you doing?" the man hisses.

"What I oughta've done years ago," Len says. "You're under arrest."

"I'm what?"

"Under arrest," Len says. "For criminal conspiracy to commit a robbery and for attempting to solicit a policeman to join -"

"A policeman?!"

"Didn't I mention? Oh, good, Officer Gonzales -" This is one of Singh's guys who heard Len's shout and came running over. "- do me a favor and Miranda this asshole before sticking him down some sort of hole? I can't deal with him right now. Just get him outta my way."

Officer Gonzales blinks, then shrugs. He's a big guy, taller than Len and twice the width, built like a linebacker; Barry's always ascribed the man's easy-going nature to the fact that he’s probably never met anything that could effectively stop him. "Sure, boss."

"You can't do this!" the other guy shouts at Len.

"Just did," Len says, and off he goes again, straight into the crowd.

Kara and Barry exchange exasperated looks and run after him.

"Hey, who was that guy, anyway?" Barry asks, deciding a light jog is the only way he's going to keep up with the amazing forward momentum machine that is Leonard Snart on crutches.

"My dad," Len says shortly.

"Your dad?!" Kara yelps.

"Yep."

"Hold up," Barry says, alarmed. "The one who -"

"Yep."

"Including that time with the bomb in Lisa’s head?" Kara demands.

"That's the guy."

Kara and Barry don't even need to glance at each other to coordinate; they just both spin around immediately to start stalking back towards the man now revealed to be Lewis Fucking Snart, as Barry privately calls him in his head. After some of the stories that Len's told, not to mention this apparent 'bomb in Lisa’s head' business that Barry is totally going to get Kara to explain later, there is no way they are going to let this guy get away with –

"Get back here!" Len yells. "Morons! Both of you! We're almost there!"

Barry groans. Kara does, too.

But they go back.

Protecting Len from current danger takes precedence over getting revenge for past injuries, no matter how grievous.

...barely.

They manage to get into the governor's mansion on account of Len and Singh both flashing their badges and shouting; apparently the governor's security is convinced that no one would have the balls to fake two police captain IDs.

(Also, their not-so-quiet comments of "Is that Captain Cold?!" suggest that Len's nickname is, as Wells predicted, about to become both permanent and widespread.)

Once they get upstairs, it turns out Mick and Iris and Eddie are already there. Even Cisco and Caitlin are there.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Len demands, his eyes fixed on Mick and Eddie. "You were just kidnapped -"

"I sent them ahead," Singh tells him. "They were mostly just dehydrated. Even your, uh -"

"Partner," Mick says, with a testy tone that suggests this isn't the first time he's said it.

Barry doesn't really care, though, because Mick saying that has caused the biggest grin Barry's ever seen on Len's face, and he'd be willing to fight someone to keep it there.

"Well, boss?" Mick says. "Captain Oinks here said something about you having a plan."

Now it's Singh's turn to look testy.

"Glad you're making friends," Len tells Mick, still grinning. "Where's the governor?"

"Through the doors," Iris says. "Along with the Police Commissioner."

"The Commissioner?" Barry asks, alarmed. "Is he..?"

"Currently claiming ignorance," Eddie says dryly. "We're currently pretending to believe him."

"Innocent until proven guilty," Len says, like the world's biggest hypocrite ever, and then he's off again, heading towards the doors. "Besides, we might need him."

That sounds more like Len.

The governor is pacing a hole in her rug, and the Commissioner looks like he's bitten into something unpleasant.

"Governor Kinsley," Len says. "Nice to make your acquaintance."

"You're Snart?" the governor demands. "The one who uncovered this mess?"

"That'd be me."

"Good for you," she says. "Now how do we get out of it? I've lost a quarter of my security staff - and good riddance!"

"They tried to kidnap her," Commissioner Goddard says. He's got some dried blood on his suit, suggesting he might’ve helped stop that attempt personally. "Mayor Bellows's orders - he's gone all the way over."

"Over some adultery?!" Barry exclaims. "Seriously?"

"I think it’s more that he puts the odds on the Families winning," Governor Kinsley says. "And to be perfectly honest I don't blame him."

"I've already called in the Feds," Len says. "They'll be porting in every available hand they have available tomorrow, and they won't have as many corrupt in their ranks."

"I've called the National Guard in as well," the governor agrees. "But it won't help us in the short term - General Eiling scattered them all earlier this week. Training exercises." She sneers. "Because he's in on it too, of course."

"Glad you're taking this personally," Len says. "Because you really ain't gonna like my next suggestion."

"And this is where he goes off the rails, with the rest of us behind him," Kara mutters.

Mick nudges her in the side and offers his hand for a fist-bump, which she returns.

"I'm willing to listen to any suggestion at this point," Governor Kinsley says, scowling. "The Families have been building this for months; we've had under twenty-four hours to react. They're not going to stop with the kidnapping attempts, either, and I have kids."

"The rest of the country has no idea what's going on here," Goddard agrees. "Nor will they care how it gets pacified - whether it's because the Families win or lose."

"Agreed," Len says. "And that's why we need an amnesty."

"A what?!"

Barry can't blame her. Where did that idea come from?!

"Amnesty," Len says. "Forgiveness for crimes caused by the Families in the lead up to this event - not all crimes, obviously, just stuff they can show they were manipulated into in the set up for this. No, don't look at me like that, I hate the idea too, but it's necessary. The Families' biggest weapon is people's fear of the law - an amnesty'll cut off the ones who ain't really corrupt, just dumb and used to taking shortcuts and now getting pushed around by the Families because of it."

"The ones who feel they have no choice," Barry says, understanding. "The ones who are being blackmailed - the regular people, the police, everyone - they think their choice is between the Families and prison, if they stay on our side. If we change what's on our side -"

"We eliminate the effect of the blackmail," Iris breathes. "And then they can come back - or refuse to go over."

"We'd probably stop bleeding police," Singh observes neutrally. "They were hardest hit, on purpose. I'm barely keeping my precinct together, and I don't know how the others are faring."

"Fine," Governor Kinsley snaps, her mouth twisted angrily. "You're right, I don't like it, but I see your point. But you -" And here she jabs her finger at Commissioner Goddard, the man who had prior to all of this been helping the mayor in the primary against her tomorrow in exchange for getting the mayor’s help with his own run. "- are going to sign on whole-heartedly, you hear me? I'm going to be doing this on your express recommendation that this is the only way to stop the ongoing threat."

Goddard scowls, but they've got him on the spot: he hasn't suggested that he can keep his police in line any other way, and to do anything other than his utmost to help stop the ongoing disaster could be read as suggesting a certain corruptibility that it is now in very bad fashion.

Len is smirking.

Of course he is.

"Fine," Goddard finally barks. "I'll sign. But only crimes deliberately orchestrated by the Families, y'hear? We're not granting amnesty to every two-bit pickpocket that stole something in the last year."

"Of course," Len says soothingly, or as soothingly as he can while also gloating. "Just the stuff from the last few months, yeah? When they were building up to this. Only the stuff that happened because of the Families, not in spite of."

"Fine," Goddard says through gritted teeth, glaring at Len. "Singh, I'm putting you in charge -" He says that like he thinks he's putting one over on Len, who pretends to look annoyed about it when Barry knows quite well that he didn't ever want to be in charge. Singh mostly looks long-suffering about it. "- and I want us coordinating with the FBI and anyone else who can help. Let's squash this little Family gambit like a bug."

He stomps off to where Governor Kinsley is already waiting with a swarm of lawyers, ready to retreat to her office to process (create) the necessary paperwork.

"All right," Singh says the second they're gone. "The second that amnesty's signed, we're going to publicize the living daylights out of it and get as many people reassurance as possible - not to mention heavily implying that the Families only got so far into the government and police through their blackmail schemes -"

"That's not really true, though," Iris objects. "Not at the top -"

"I don't care if it is true, it's going to have to become true," Singh says. "The riots need to be stopped. It's already going to be cop-versus-cop warfare out there; we need the regular people to believe something made this an aberration, or else they're just going to destroy everything in an absolute frenzy of terror and rage. We'll never be able to rebuild their trust in the system if this isn't an exception to the rule. You hear me?"

"I hear you," she grumbles, then brightens. "Wait, does that mean my dad's being let out of the holding cells?"

"Yes," Singh says. "We need all the good men we can get."

Wait - Joe's being released? Because they need people, sure, but -

"Given the existence of the amnesty, I'm willing to drop the charges against him," Len says. "Don't get me wrong, he still needs a million hours of remedial ethics - probably everyone does - but what he and his lot did seems to fall under 'manipulated by the Families'."

Manipulated by Wells.

And if Joe's free under the amnesty, then that means - Cisco, and Caitlin, and -

And Barry.

He's going to be able to keep his job.

And not through some corrupt deal that's going to hang over his head the rest of his life, no, but through a (mostly) legitimate amnesty, signed by the governor herself.

(Boy, is Barry glad he never did anything to try to take any of the metas over state lines - that'd make it a federal crime, which is most certainly not going to be covered by a state amnesty.)

Barry is seriously considering kissing Len right now, even though he knows Len would've never done it if it were just for him.

"There's one more thing," Eddie says.

Everyone looks at him.

"Eobard's still out there," he says.

Everyone continues looking at him, a little blankly.

"Wells," Mick clarifies. "Evil speedster. Real name Eobard, remember?"

"Oh, right," Barry says.

"Oh, yes, him," Kara says, pinking up a little. Probably because she forgot about him for a second there.

"The Reverse Flash," Cisco says.

"But I - er, that is, I don't think the Flash can stop him," Barry says, painfully aware that they're not alone. "He's not fast enough."

"Then we'll just have to stop him some other way," Eddie says. "Listen, there's an option -"

"We are not Back to the Future-ing him and that's final, Thawne," Singh says. "Do I need to put you on suicide watch? I will, just watch me. I've split off a portion of my forces just to protect Iron Heights and the courthouse cells; I won't hesitate to split some off for you."

"Yeah, that's a terrible idea," Barry says, alarmed by the very thought. He likes Eddie! Iris likes Eddie! Besides, yes, Wells-Eobard said that he needed Eddie to stay alive, but - "Besides, he totally could've been lying. Like 90% of what he said doesn't make any sense in a time paradox sort of way anyway, so who's to say that this would work? And even if it does, who knows how long it'd take to kick in?"

"Yeah, bad plan," Len agrees. "Scrap it. Now, I don't have my cold gun -"

"You don't?"

"It's still in STAR Labs where I dropped it while being thrown across the room," Len says dryly. "And that's assuming Wells - yeah, I'm going with Wells, Eobard's a dumb name anyway - assuming Wells didn't break it into bits the second after we escaped, that is."

"I still have my present," Mick volunteers, tapping a black-and-red gun strapped onto his thigh. "That'll help."

"We still don't know where to find him," Iris points out. "He's probably not just sitting around in STAR Labs while the city's on fire - he's associated with the Families, isn't he?"

"Sort of," Eddie says. "As far as we can tell, he worked for them as an assassin in exchange for getting all sorts of illegal parts for STAR Labs when he was building it, to make construction happen faster; that's how he said it started when I asked him...don't look at me like that! I was trapped with him for hours and he likes to boast. That's how it started. He'd also been working with Eiling on something - Project Grodd or something, I don't know - around the same time, so he got the idea of putting them together."

"But why?" Iris asks. "Just to get STAR Labs built that little bit faster?"

"That," Mick says, "and 'cause he thinks of himself as a very important sorta guy. He likes being a mover and a shaker, likes being descended from movers and shakers, and he figured a nice little investment in Family power now would pay dividends for generations of Thawnes. No offense."

"None taken," Eddie says wryly. "If I ever have kids, I'm encouraging them to take up anything but politics. Maybe art. Or figure skating."

"My sister's a figure skater," Len remarks. "Bloodthirsty sport. Like hockey, just more spins."

"...maybe not figure skating, then."

"You could also just take my name," Iris says, hiding a smile. "No more 'Thawnes' then."

Eddie beams at her.

"Getting back to the actual subject at hand," Singh cuts in. "I don't have the manpower to deal with the riots and fight this guy as well. Snart, can you and your task force at least try to handle him?"

"We've got it," Len assures him.

"We don't even know where he is!" Kara exclaims.

"That," Len says, "ain't gonna be a problem."

-----------------------

A/N: I'm not saying I won't write the AU where Barry gets stuck in house arrest that you all seem to want, but maybe another time :)

[southside-vixen]

Fire and Ice (Sweet Pea) 5

Chapter 5. Red Spray Paint

AO3

Adrianna Rivera has just made a difficult move from Arizona to the southside of Riverdale. With the history of her life in Phoenix behind her will she be able to find a new family in the Southside Serpents? Or will a certain tall, dark, and rage inducing Serpent cause issues?

A few days had passed and thankfully things finally started to quiet down. School was finally starting to return to normal and Adria still hadn’t heard a thing from her father. It was discouraging to say the least. Thoughts raced through her head ranging from ‘maybe he’s just getting released soon’ to ‘maybe someone placed a hit on him and I’m the last to hear he died from a shiv to the gut’

She couldn’t focus on anything, not like that was out of the norm lately. She was stressed to the point where her morning runs weren’t helping, she couldn’t stomach eating most times, and she would return after school to watch old reruns of telenovelas. Ness was worried to say the least, but despite all the distractions she could think of nothing seemed to help. She knew nothing would improve until Adria heard from the person she needed to most.

Ness placed a heaping plate of tamales in the center of the table, smiling at her own work. It had been ages since she last made a meal at home as she hated cooking for one. When Adria came to live with her it just became easier to order takeout. Seeing her niece depressed for the few days was making her desperate enough to cook and she figured what better than to try to make an old favorite. Tamales.

“Dinner’s ready” She called out to the living room. Adria quietly pulled herself off the couch and placed herself at the dinner table. Her eyes widened when she caught a glimpse of the giant stack on the table.

“You took a break from your cooking hiatus to make tamales?” Adria stacked a few onto her plate “Very ambitious.”

“I think I did pretty well. I followed a blog about Mexican cooking. It’s a good read”

Adria’s face lit up for the first time in days and it was enough to make Ness’ heart swell. She watched as her niece took the first bite, and her face immediately fell.

“Oh wow. It’s great, Ness.” Adria tried to choke down the rest of her bite. It was absolutely terrible. She wasn’t sure if she even soaked the corn husks before steaming them. Ness followed her lead and immediately spat the bite back out

“This is awful. Wow.” She broke down laughing “I guess this is what I get for not cooking for years. Don’t eat that, I’m gonna order pizza.” Ness took her plate and immediately scrapped the contents into the garbage.

“Thanks, Aunt Ness.” Adria got out of her chair and helped her aunt clean up the mess “The thought really means a lot. Also, Maria’s cooking is a tough act to follow so don’t feel bad.” Her father had the same cook since she was a child. Maria was basically family. It was another thing she missed so much from Phoenix. She never gave it a second thought until now, but she didn’t want to know how many people lost their jobs when her father was carted off to prison.

The mess didn’t take long to clean and soon both were munching on slices of pizza, watching Halloween. Adria had her eyes glued to the screen as Judith watched her boyfriend leave her home, not knowing that her murderer was already in the house. The tension was building as Judith turned around to see-

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

Adria screamed and jumped nearly a foot into the air before she picked up her phone. The caller display read ‘UNKNOWN’

“Can you press pause? I need to take this” Adria asked, feeling her heart rate starting to return to normal levels.

“Yeah of course, I’ve already seen this like five times.” Ness smiled, shooing the younger girl off

Adria returned to her room and shut the door behind her. She glanced at the screen once more before accepting the call “Hello?”

“Hola mija “her father’s voice came through the speaker and it was like the clouds finally cleared.

“Papá!” She nearly yelled “Where have you been? It’s been weeks.”

“Talking to my lawyers. I can’t say much more than that but I wanted to call you sooner.”

“Are you getting out? Please tell me you are. Aunt Ness tried to make tamales tonight and it just reminded me of how much I miss home.”

The line went quiet for half a minute before Alejandro replied “I wish I could say I was. My lawyers are doing all they can but…it’s not looking good.”

Adria tried to process it as best as she could but it just didn’t make sense. Her family’s lawyers were the best money could buy, there was nothing they weren’t able to do.

“But Papi…” Adria pleaded, hearing a chuckle from the other end of the line

“Papi or no, Mija. I promise you I will be out by your 17th birthday. I’ll even get you a new McLaren to replace the one they seized.”

Adria smiled to herself “Better be the Spider. You know I like to go fast” Maybe a little too fast, it was a good thing none of her speeding tickets ever stuck.

“I do not need to hear that” her father laughed again “You’re nearly a grown woman and I’m missing so much. Tell me about your biker aunt and her home town.” Adria rolled her eyes

“Aunt Ness is great, Papá. She even tried to make tamales tonight to make me feel better. They were terrible but the thought was there. School’s…terrible but its school. I’m making friends! We even have movie nights. They somehow roped me into watching terrible quality old films.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my daughter? The Adrianna I know would never tell me ‘it’s the thought that counts’. As much as I hate to admit it this seems to have been a good choice for you. Although I know your tíos would have loved to have you in my absence.”

There was a small series of beeps on the other end

“Unfortunately, Mija that’s my time. Te quiero. You’re growing into a strong woman and I couldn’t be more proud.”

“Te quiero, Papá”

Just like that, the line went dead. Adria placed her phone down on the night stand and flopped onto her bed. Every time her feeling of homesickness seemed to disappear it would come back with a vengeance.

“Fuck everything” She whispered to herself, staring at the ceiling.

------------------------------

The next day life went on as usual. She rode with Fangs to school, suffered through her classes, and sat down with the Serpents at lunch. When she sat down, no one even paid attention. Which was always a relief. This time, however, Sweet Pea had placed a laptop in front of them. One that was covered in duct tape. Classy.

“Ads, you’re here” Toni smiled “You’ve got to see this, the Northside’s gone crazy and now they’re making snuff films.”

“What?” Adria scooched over to Toni and glanced over her shoulder to watch some red head with an army of well-built shirtless guys behind him. Talking about some Black Hood and how they’re going to take him down.

“Snuff film?” She looked at Toni “This looks like the start to a really weird porno.”

“Hey guys.” Jughead walked up and stopped apprehensively “I guess we’re not watching funny cat videos”

Sweet Pea turned the laptop around to show him and pressed play

“We were just talking about how Fangs can earn his Serpent stripes by bringing us the head of the Northsider that posted this” he gave Fangs a pat on the back as he smirked at Jughead, as if he knew this would get a rise out of him.

“Don’t” Jughead sighed “I know this guy. He’s a football player, kind of a lame target is you ask me.” Just like that his demeanor altered “If you want to prove something, you go after the black hood”

Adria saw Toni’s eyes narrow out of the corner of her eye as Sweet Pea spoke up again

“Why would we do that? The Black Hood is only targeting Northsiders”

‘Thank God for that’ Adria thought

“As far as we’re concerned the Black Hood is doing our work for us. They’ve been blaming us for their problems for years. We’re sick of it.” Sweet Pea finished

Jughead sighed in defeat and walked off, leaving the table in a brief silence.

“Are you sure we need him here?” Sweet Pea scoffed “He’s less of a Southsider than Princess over here.”

Adria rolled her eyes.

“Not only is he blood, he’s FP’s blood. He’s one of us whether you like it or not.” Toni said “As for Adria she’s already proven herself to everyone but it seems like you didn’t get the memo.”

“Yeah. Let’s not talk about that night ever again.” Adria forced a smile, although it probably looked more like a grimace.

“Finally, something we agree on.” Sweet Pea locked eyes with her, as if daring her to say something. For once she didn’t rise to the bait.

“Shut the hell up, Sweet Pea” Toni groaned “No one’s in the mood.”

Thankfully the bell rang and released her from her what could have easily turned into her own personal hell. Adria watched as everyone picked up their bags and slowly started meandering toward their next class.

“Thanks, Toni.” Adria said as most everyone had cleared out of the cafeteria

“No problem. He’s being a huge douche and frankly I think everyone is over his shit now.” She put a hand on Adria’s shoulder “You’re one of us and everyone else thinks so. Ignore the idiot.”

Adria laughed “That really does mean a lot. Anyway, Ness is making one of her ‘specialties’ since her tamales were terrible. So if you want to come over for spaghetti tonight you’re always welcome at Casa de Rivera-Allen”

Toni made a face “Ads, I would love to but I already promised Jughead we would work on the cipher the Black Hood put out…”

“Oh…” Adria’s eyes widened “Well awesome. I hope that goes well for you.” She gave Toni a wink

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Anyone with eyes can see you’ve got a thing for the new boy. I don’t blame you, he’s cute.”

Toni blushed “It’s not like that. He’s got a girlfriend. If you looked up ‘Girl Next Door’ in the dictionary you’d find a full page picture of Betty Cooper”

“Wow. Girl Next Door, huh? Definitely not what I expected from Mr. Dark and Mysterious. I’m sure you’re more his type anyway. Only a matter of time before he sees it too.” Adria nudged Toni in the shoulder “We’ll miss you tonight but definitely tell me how it goes!”

------------------------------

That night Adria passed the time by chopping up mushrooms for her aunt’s ‘special’ spaghetti sauce. Although she wasn’t sure if Ness was allowed to call it special when the base was a store bought can of tomato sauce.

“Fuck!” Adria heard Ness grumbling with her face inside the pantry. She pulled out a can of sauce and examined it “This expired a year ago. I really should clean this whole thing out.”

Adria stopped chopping up mushrooms to look at her aunt “Anything you need me to do?”

Ness sighed “Can you stop by the bodega and pick up a couple cans of sauce? See if Fangs will go with you. I don’t want you out alone after dark.”

Adria sighed and threw on a coat “I’ll be back”

Just as she was told she paid a visit to her neighbor, pounding on his door. For a second she thought about if Fang’s parents would answer the door. Then again, that never happened. It seemed like everyone on the southside was either working multiple jobs to make ends meet or running errands for the Serpents. She probably only saw Ness as much as she did because of child services looming over their heads.

“Fangs!” She yelled

Fangs opened the door, confusion all over his face “What? Miss me already?”

“Terribly. I need someone to walk to the bodega with me. Apparently I’m too frail to go by myself.”

Fangs laughed “Have you seen yourself? Anyway what’s in it for me?”

“Ness’ spaghetti and my appreciation?”

“You got enough for 2 more? Sweet Pea and I are playing video games.”

Adria stopped in her tracks. “Sure…” apprehension was apparent in her voice, but considering she liked to consider herself sane, the idea of a serial killer out and about made her not want to go alone. Even if the bodega was a fairly short walk from the trailer park.

“Awesome!” Fangs smiled “I’ll grab Pea.”

Adria waited outside, rubbing her arms to keep herself warm. Regretting every decision she made up until this point.

Fangs exited the trailer with a disgruntled Sweet Pea following shortly behind. She wasn’t sure how to feel as he looked equally as upset about the arrangement. Honestly, she wasn’t sure how Fangs even convinced him. Especially in that short of a time.

The walk to the bodega was eerily silent. There wasn’t really anyone out on the streets and the company she kept didn’t say a word. Which was concerning but not necessarily surprising. She and Sweet Pea weren’t one to talk to each other by choice and Fangs must not have felt like keeping the peace tonight. Or maybe he was trying to avoid the fact that the awkward silence was his fault for inviting Sweet Pea in the first place.

Adria was now determined to make the trip as quick as possible. In addition to practically running to keep pace with the two boys, she quickly grabbed a couple cans of sauce from the store. She shot a quick text to Ness letting her know they would have two additional people for dinner tonight. All she got back in return was a string of smiley face emojis.

Adria met back up with Fangs and Sweet Pea outside, both of which seemed significantly less tense without her. The two were throwing play punches when they saw her.

“Ready to go?” Fangs smiled “I’m starving”

“Yeah of course” Adria raised the bag for both to see “Got the goods right here.”

The trio rounded the corner only for Sweet Pea to stop all of them

“What the fuck is this?”

Not even 20 feet away from them was the redhead from the snuff/porn video spray painting something onto the side of the bodega. Fangs looked and Sweet Pea and both of them seemed to reach a silent agreement. They weren’t leaving without showing this kid who ran this side of the tracks.

Adria followed the two as they stormed up to the red head and squared off. Adria wasn’t sure what was going to happen but she knew it wasn’t anything good. She stood next to Sweet Pea and Fangs ready to watch the entire scene play out.

“What do you think you’re doing” Sweet Pea shoved the guy’s shoulder so he was facing the group “Southside’s Serpent country.”

“Back off” The guy said “This doesn’t involve you.”

“Yeah?” Sweet Pea smirked “And who’s this for then? Hell, don’t tell me it’s for the Black Hood” he chuckled

The red head tried to walk away but both Sweet Pea and Fangs shoulder checked him, keeping him in place

“Where do you think you’re going?” Sweet Pea continued “You think you can just come here and tag our turf? Go back to the Northside”

“Move before someone gets hurt.” His eyes moved from Fangs, to Sweet Pea, and then locked onto Adria. Almost like he didn’t notice she was there until just now.

Both Sweet Pea and Fangs looked at each other and laughed. Adria was in awe of this kid. Didn’t he know that messing with any sort of gang was usually a bad idea?

Sweet Pea pulled a switch blade out of his coat pocket and released the knife “You’ve just made a big mistake” his smile was easy to see, even in the dark. It was clear he was in his element. As much as Adria would never admit it to a living soul he looked really good doing it. She scolded herself internally.

The guy’s eyes narrowed as he reached into the pocket of his hoodie. None of them expected him to pull out a gun and wave it in their faces

“Who made a mistake?” His voice grew louder to the point where he was yelling. All three were in a state of shock, Adria worst of all. Fangs immediately put his hands into the air, while Sweet Pea lowered his knife.

Adria, however, froze. She never in a million years imagined herself in this position, even with her father’s profession. She always had a sicario or two with her to keep watch but even then no one who wanted to live would dare threaten Alejandro Rivera’s only daughter. Even people who had a death wish didn’t want a death as painful as what waited for them if they so much as looked at her the wrong way.

Before she could even process how to react Sweet Pea grabbed her arm and moved her behind him

“Woah, Woah” he took a step back “In front of the lady?”

Sweet Pea gave her a quick push and whispered ‘run’ before the three of them took off. They didn’t stop running until they were in the safety of Sunnyside Trailer Park.

Adria was still in shock over the whole ordeal. Fangs took the shopping bag from her and led her inside. Adria quickly walked off to the bathroom as Fangs and Sweet Pea talked to Ness in the kitchen. When the bathroom door was shut she turned on the fan and ran over to the toilet, throwing up everything in her stomach. When she finished she walked over to the sink and splashed her face with cold water. The face she saw in the mirror barely looked like her own. She looked broken, her skin red and eyes puffy.

She was quickly brought out of it by a knock on the door

“Ads? It’s me. You good?” Fangs voice came from the other side “Ness wanted me to tell you dinner’s just about ready.”

Adria slowly opened the door to face him, trying her best to look normal. Judging by the look on Fangs’ face it clearly wasn’t working.

“Let’s just get this over with.”

Thankfully Ness didn’t ask too many questions with the guys there. After dinner Adria went back to Fangs’ with both boys. The three sat in silence on the living room floor for what seemed like an eternity. Until Adria finally spoke up

“Thanks for not saying anything to Ness. I’d appreciate if we could keep it that way.”

Both Sweet Pea and Fangs nodded

“Are you okay though, Ads?” Fangs asked “You’ve been a mess since it happened.”

Adria let out a small, sad chuckle “That bad, huh?” She brought her knees up to her chest “Needless to say I never thought someone would have the balls to point a gun at me.”

“Even with your dad?” Fangs asked

“Especially with my dad. He’d have them gutted alive. Do you deal with this a lot?”

“No. Not usually.” Sweet Pea broke his silence “We have to retaliate. If we don’t we look weak.” He looked to Fangs

“You’re right. What’s the plan?” Fangs asked. Both of them were far more serious than she had ever seen them. Given the circumstances it shouldn’t be surprising and yet it still was. She felt like she was seeing a brand new side of both of them and it was fascinating to watch.

“Whatever it is I want in” Adria inched closer to be part of the conversation

“Absolutely not.” Sweet Pea snapped “You froze there. Who’s to say he won’t have it again?”

Adria sat there quietly for a moment. She didn’t have anything close to a good response. She glanced over at Fangs who silently shook his head

“He has a point, Ads. Just let us handle it.” He stood up from where he was sitting “Let me walk you back home” Adria was about to argue as it was literally 20 steps away from his door but he spoke again “I insist.”

Adria groaned and followed Fangs the short distance to her front door; he stopped abruptly and put his hands on her shoulders. Adria raised her eyebrow, waiting for him to reveal whatever was going on in his head.

“I’ll tell you everything. I swear.” Fangs removed his hands from her shoulders and pulled her into a hug, rubbing his hand up and down her back as she started to ease up a bit “If you ever need to talk about what happened tonight I’m just a few steps away.” He let go and flashed her a large smile before turning around and walking back to his trailer.

Ashe watched him disappear into the door and let out a large sigh, sitting on the front step. Once again she felt alone looking to the lit window of Fang’s trailer. She could only imagine what they were planning. She thought about calling Toni before remembering she would be at Jughead’s. Good friends didn’t interrupt quality time with the guy their friend’s trying to bang.

So Adria rest her hands behind her and looked up to the sky, for the first time in a long time able to see stars.

[jeidafei]

The Core Message of D.Gray-Man

In my opinion, every story has something to tell. So what is D.Gray-Man actually trying to show us beneath the layers of all this tragedy and deaths?

This is my wild guess!

P.S. This is just my opinion, everyone! Every story conveys several messages and we are all free to interpret what the core message is in each work of literature...or whether they have a message at all...(I believe they all do, though!)

What is the core message of a story? A very clear example would be Aesop’s fables, which all end with “The moral of this tale is...”.

Most stories don’t just shove the message right into our faces from the get-go. In fact, most stories didn’t set out to preach at all, and the authorーsometimes even unknowinglyーdevelops the core theme and message as the story progresses. And part of the fun for me as I read novels and manga is figuring out the core message stories are trying to convey.

As D.Gray-Man is still ongoing, there are possibilities of plot-twists and new revelations, so I’ll state my guess for the story as of now (Chapter 230). 

And most importantly, if you’re an optimist like me, this core message might have already ensured that D.Gray-Man will have a HAPPY ENDING.

Though it does not necessarily mean Allen will survive, though...

1. Denying the Fate of an Exorcist

The message is there from the very beginning.

Yes, the bomb dropped pretty fast. Too darned fast most peeps including me wouldn’t notice. I’m talking waaay back into the first volume. Over a decade ago. We folks might not recall much, but we'll definitely remember this signature quote from Allen:

"Fate has got nothing to do with this. This is the path I chose by my own free will."

Yes, folks! The BIG SPOILER BOMB has dropped. This whole manga is all about....

                                                Fate Versus Choice

In this scene, Allen is denying what the Grand Generals and Cross Marian have told him: that by being born with Innocence, his fate had been set in stone by God himself, and to fight to the death as an Exorcist is his destiny.

Allen, however, assures Mana that he walks this path for he himself had chosen it. To atone for Mana. To save the suffering souls only he could see.

He's not doing this because Godーbecause Fate forces him to. It’s his own choice.

Allen's choice to become an Exorcist is what sets him apart from most ーif not allーExorcists from the very beginning. Other Exorcists usually joined through pure necessity or by being forced to fight by the Black Order. It’s more like can’t help it and I’m born to do this rather than I chose this. And this, as Dumbledore would put it, makes all the difference in the world.

And though some of them, like Lenalee and Kanda, later embraced their fate bound by Innocence, it's only due to having no other choice; Lenalee knows she can't keep living her daydream of a world without Akuma, and finally accepts that the only way she could protect her world is to fight.

Meanwhile Kanda first accepts his Innocence solely in order to survive and find his lost love, then later to repay Allen for his kindness. After he's done with that, then he can finally get his long-overdue rest in peace. Krory destroys Akuma to make sure Eliade didn’t die in vain. Miranda can’t make herself useful otherwise. Timothy has to leave the orphanage due to the danger Innocence brought to those around him. And so on and so forth.

Allen, on the other hand, probably could have gone on living normally even with his arm activated; Cross had simply asked him whether he would like to be an Exorcist. Despite all his misfortunes, Allen had what the other Exorcists-to-be don’t: a choice. And he made it: He decided on his own to become one and atone for Mana, then later to save the Akuma, and eventually to fight alongside his friends. That is his sole purpose. Allen will not choose another path even if it is open to him, as I will talk about in the next point. 

Had they not possess Innocence, Lenalee would have chosen a normal life in China with Komui even after her parents had died. Kanda would have chosen to run away with Alma and Marie and start a new life. Lavi would have gone on training to be a Bookman. Krory stated himself that he would be content to stay locked up in that castle with Eliade forever. Miranda would have chosen anything else, any job she could do well. Timothy would have chosen to stay on at the orphanage with Mother Superior and Emilia, etc.

2. Denying the Fate of the Fallen One.

When Allen's left arm was destroyed, everyone thought his fate had been sealed. It's over. He's not an Exorcist anymore. He’s fallen. Bak Chang offered him many choices: he could walk a different path, become a Finder or some other support staff. I think he could even leave the Order, actually, seeing as nothing else binds him to the place, and be whatever he wants.

But Allen instead chooses to stubbornly walk forward on this road, even with no hope of regaining his arm, refusing to bow down to fate.

Later when he faces the destroyer of his arm, Tyki Mikk, once again in Noah’s Ark, he states that one does not cease to be an Exorcist when one’s Innocence is destroyed. He then demonstrates this by repairing his broken Innocence using nothing but his own willpower. Nothing, even destroying his arm, will stop him from pursuing his goal as an Exorcist. 

3. Denying the Fate of the Host

Yes, Allen never seems to get a friggin’ break. Right after the Invasion, he starts to learn that his beloved Mana might not be what he thought he was at all.

This is a very, very devastating blow to Allen’s personality and development. His whole life had been built around this illusion, this mask of Mana he cherishes.

He chose to walk this path primarily because he wants to atone for Mana, after all. He hates the idea of succumbing to fate, so he chose to be an Exorcist that fights with his own free will, instead of bowing down to the Innocence’s (or, in other words, God) will (that’s why he won’t let Suman’s Innocence kill its host).

Allen soon learns of his true fate: his fate is to disappear and make way for the 14th Noah to use his body to reincarnate.

But still he refuses to surrender and go quietly into the night. When Link brought him some porridge in jail and confesses to him about the Thirds, Allen said this one sentence that deeply moves Link:

“If only I knew, then I would be able to change something, wouldn’t I?”

Exactly, by trying to learn more about it all, Allen hopes to change his fate. Yet again he does not obediently accept his fate. He then leaves the Order to do so, vowing to Lenalee that no matter what fate throws at him, he will always remain an Exorcist, as he has finally found his home amongst his comrades in the Order. He also refuses to accept his fate and disappear even at Cross’s insistence, as he believes that if he continues to walk he might be able to change his fate, or at the least inspire those who walk the same path as him to fight.

Don’t stand still. Keep walking has always been the words Allen lived by, and may actually translates to Never stop fighting against fate. By coming to a stop on your path, you are accepting that fate no longer has a future laid out for you, and you simply await your end: your chance to change things is zero. By going on, walking on even when the end looms ahead, there is still hope for a better tomorrow.

And as Cross most wisely and beautifully put it: Our path is not laid out before us from the start; but the earth hardens and forms into our road after we have walked upon it. He is saying that there is no such thing as fate; our lives are decided solely by our own choices.

Really, the Hallow OP said it all:

「誰一人邪魔をさせるか。初めて自分で選んだ道だ」

I won’t let anyone stand in the way...of this path I first chose for myself.

4. Link’s confession to Kanda

This recent(?) piece of evidence is what seals the deal for me, actually. The penny drops in this scene Link confessed he fervently hopes Allen will be able to win against the fate of the host:

"There’s someone I want to save...

If heーif Allen Walker could really triumph against his fate as the host...then I want to be there to see him make it.

If it’s true that people could choose any future they want simply by following their hearts, then I want to know the source of their strength."

In my opinion, when Link said there's a person he wants to rescue, he is talking about Tewaku. He's hoping to see Allen win against such a hopeless fate, so he could finally believe in the power of choice himself, and use that inspiration to spur himself to save Tewaku and his remaining Third friends. Link, though he had started to have doubts about Lvellie, is still too weak-willed to openly defy his fate as Lvellie's dog, and relies on Allen to make him believe in himself. And if my noobie writer's sixth sense is to be trusted, THIS scene confirms that the core message of D.Gray-Man is indeed trumping fate, against all the odds. 

And this is why I say DGM would probably have a happyーor at least bittersweet ーending: Even though DGM has always been a very tragic manga, the message of friendship, love, sacrifice and perseverance in the face of impossible adversity is always portrayed as having an optimistic outcome. Characters may die or suffer a lot throughout the series, but every arc ends on a positive note.

This is what sets DGM apart from stories like Attack on Titan, whose message is cynical and pessimistic, and if any dude starts spouting idealistic crap you might as well just stick a death flag on his head, and not a single arc ends positively.

Hoshino-sensei herself said that no matter what happens, Allen will always have friends by his side. You won't see that kind of heartwarming note with AoT. So if the core message of DGM is winning against fate, you can be quite sure DGM won't betray it and will show Allen winning against fate in the end.

5. Even his personal motto confirms it.

The latest guidebook, Gray Log, has revealed Allen's personal motto: To wait for fate is to wait for death.

Exactly, Allen. Literally. 

6. Even his fate as the host is something he chose by himself

Yes, this is the real deal. This is why I say that there is no such thing as fate for Allen; even the so-called fate he is fighting to change right now is actually brought about by his own choice.

Other reincarnations of the Noah have been doomed by random; no-one knowingly becomes one (pretty much like the Exorcists, come to think of it!), but in the case of Allen (if that past!Allen really is him) he willingly chose to become one. Why? I’d guess that maybe he believed that by doing so he could help Neah save the world...help change fate.

The Allen of then already knew the Earl is the enemy of mankind, with his soul-sucking powers. His purpose has not changed, be it 35 years ago or now; he wants to save the world from the Earl, and now he’s going to learn why he brought this fate upon himself.

In the end, after he has learned the Truth, Allen may no longer be an Exorcist in the sense that he fights on behalf of the Order and dons the black coat, but in the sense that he fights to save Akuma and mankind alike, just as he had decided when he regained his Innocence.

Allen’s journey, from the time when he was Red the circus errand boy, has always been one of finding his true home and family. Now that he has found his second true home amongst his Exorcist comrades, he will not let his fickle fate tear it away from him.

(NEW!) 

7. The Mask of Allen and Red’s determination

I stumbled across this one while finishing my translation of Lost Fragment of Snow.  

As I mentioned earlier in Number Three, we now know that Allen’s current personality and motivations are mostly shaped by his determination to atone for Mana: The Mask of Mana. He doesn’t care that much for God or the Holy War or whether the Order wins this war; Remember, he refused to help the Order’s cause by being just any support staff; he just wants to save souls (and later humans) as an Exorcist. In this way, Allen’s worldview is perhaps just as particular and narrow as Lenalee, and that is why during his training to restore his arm, Lenalee’s question of “When you close your eyes and think of the world, what do you see?” constantly had him thinking hard, and finally adding humans to his world as well.

Back to the Mask of Mana. We now know that Cross despises that mask and torments Allen because 1) It’s payback for having him mopping up his two icky Ps and nursing him for months 2) He’s a d-head and d-bag 3) Because he likes his share of booze and boobs and 4) Because he wants Allen to drop that mask and be The Boy With A Red Arm once more. 

(Why do I not simply say Red? Because actually in the Japanese text of LFS and D.Gray-Man, Red is actually just “The Boy with A Red Arm”. It’s in BRACKETS. Yes. He has NO NAME AT ALL.  For the sake of convenience I’ll go back to calling him Red for now, but we must keep in mind that Red is not a proper name.)

In Lost Fragment of Snow, Red is initially a silent, traumatized yet unusually perceptive kid. But his true personality shines out when he starts befriending Mana after Allen the Dog’s death. Just like how Allen gets frustrated by the irresponsible, improbable Cross and yells at him occasionally, Red also loses his temper with and bossily mothers the distracted, naive, slightly amnesiac Mana. The more I read LFS, the more I notice the similarity between the rant-mode Allen to little Red, and normal Allen to Mana back then. 

But Allen’s mask has existed long before Allen turned Mana into an Akuma. His first mask was the Mask of Allen.

After a fiasco in the circus during which Red lost his temper with Mana and pummels him on the head with his dormant, Innocence-embedded arm, Mana became entirely amnesiac, forgetting even his purpose of searching for Neah, and even confusing Red for his dog. 

After an enraged Cross blames Red for Mana’s plight, an extremely guilty Red decides to play along as Mana’s dead dog Allen in order to payback to Mana and Allen for the simple love and happiness they showed him. That is how Red donned his first mask and adopted his first name: Allen Walker.

Why is all this important? 

Back when Red faced impending death, thrown into a lion cage, Red was thinking in frustration and despair about how his life is meaningless, his existence pointless, that he is helpless and powerless, simply waiting to be killed. During his childhood in the circus, Allen/Red repeatedly lamented having no power to change his own fate. He yearned to escape the hellish circus and make a better life somewhere, but with his disabled arm he was unable to do so. 

Evicted from the circus, and with the circus later destroyed by the Millennium Earl, for a while there Red had no clue how to proceed with his life. This is no different from the time Allen lost his arm and had no clue how to keep walking on. But then Red saw the amnesiac Mana and remembered how he destroyed him, and decided that atoning for Mana will be his new reason to live on.

Yes, Redーnow Allenーhas always lived to fight fate when it dropped him into terrible spots, to find meaning for his life. And that journey has led him through THREE turning points on his road, after all of which he still chooses to live to atone for Mana Walker. 

But then, along came Neah’s resurrection and the unfurling truth behind Mana. And now that (in the latest chapter) this Boy With The Red Arm has returned to Eddystone (which is actually Edinburgh according to lots of our dissatisfied readers XD), where he had first donned his mask of Allen Walker, he must question his reason for living and take action one last time to change his fateーand perhaps finally live for himself. 

After listening to the theme song for D.Gray-Man Hallow, I must say that though the anime’s quality (and decision to replace Ms. Kobayashi) might be up for debate, this is the best and most relevant theme song for Allen. 

Key-Bring it on, My Destiny mainly talks about the Path of One’s life, of choosing between crossroads and keep walking on with free will. Once I was researching suicide in Japanese culture, and I came across an interesting explanation of the importance of The Life Path for Japanese people. The Japanese of old seem to view life as one single path set out for them. Once they came to a standstill or hit a wall in their way, they feel as if their life is over, and thus many chose to end their lives. Unlike western culture, the Japanese do not seek an alternate path.

In my opinion, the concept of walking on one’s road and challenging that road is becoming more and more significant in D.Gray-Man. Allen has always been very fixated on one goal. He viewed his life as one road he cannot deviate from, and falls easily to despair whenever it seemed he could no longer live as he had chosen to. Cross reminds him that his life path is not straightforward but meandering. One’s fate and life goal can change during the course of one’s life. And understanding that, Allen finally sets out to face the truth behind Mana so he can decide what he should do next with his life. 

The concept of living on by yourself after the death of your loved one has always been another central theme, obviously, of D.Gray-Man. Allen early on said he came to understand that the tears of Akuma are not tears of hatred, but love and grief for the bereaved who could not find the strength to live on alone. But Allen himself is still unable to move on from Mana. In a sense, with Mana living inside of him as his Akuma eye, with Allen “wearing” Mana like a human suit, Allen is an Akuma himself. And thus his story might end with him exorcising himselfーby finally stepping out of Mana’s shadow, putting the past to rest, and freely choosing his own future.

End of uber long rant. Will add more when I could think of more XD

[ittybittypbandj]

The Internship - Chapter 3

We’re 3 chapters in, team! Halfway there and things are about to get real!

So buckle up, let’s keep going with this multi-chapter Bittyparse fluff-fest, now featuring special guest Angst.  5 chapters, weekly updates.  Also on ao3. <3

Fic Summary:

Eric Bittle arrived in New York two weeks ago, newly single and ready for a fresh start. This internship was just what he needed to jumpstart his life.

Kent Parson loved his life in New York. He was at the peak of his NHL career. He had friends, the world’s greatest cat, and everything he thought he needed.

He never expected a small Southern blonde to burst into his life and turn everything on its head.

“Okay, brah, so what happened after that?”

Bitty rolled his eyes and adjusted the laptop resting on his knees. “C’mon, Shitty, I told you this part already. He grabbed my arm so I wouldn’t fall and then stared at me for a minute.”

Shitty cupped his chin in his hand and sighed longingly at the screen. “Fucking love at first sight, my man. Like a scene out of a queer-positive, alternate universe John Hughes movie.”

“You sap,” Lardo snorted, and shoved Shitty’s shoulder. “So what will you do?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you obviously want to bone him and have his hypothetical babies, so what’s the plan?”

Bitty sputtered. He could feel his cheeks blushing and he covered his face with his hands to hide the evidence. This was embarrassing enough as it was.

“I don’t know, guys…I don’t even know if I like him like that.”

Lardo arched one eyebrow.

Shitty leaned offscreen briefly, then reappeared with a joint between his fingers. He waved it at Bitty decisively. “You can’t fool us, little brah. You look super glowy for a dude who just spent two hours with another dude he didn’t like.”

Bitty sighed. He knew it was fibbing to say that he didn’t like Kent. But what was he supposed to do? He didn’t want to lie, but the situation was a mess. Kent was his client. And Jack’s ex. And a hockey player. Apparently Bitty had a type, and his type was Closeted Top Scorers in the Eastern Conference.

He was pretty sure Kent felt something for him, too. He may not have a lot of relationship experience, and goodness knows it took him and Jack long enough to sort out their feelings, but he also wasn’t born yesterday, and Kent’s winks and smiles and lingering stares…well, he could read between those lines.

“Earth to Bitty…hellloooo?”

Bitty looked back at the screen, where Shitty was waving his arms at the camera.

“Look, I like him. Okay? I want to have his – lordy – his hypothetical babies. But he’s Fancy Feline’s client. Isn’t that illegal or somethin’?”

Shitty stroked his mustache. “It could be problematic, I’ll give you that. But it’s only a conflict of interest if it affects the business relationship. As long as you keep it on the DL and don’t, like, grab his ass in meetings – although, the guy does have a handful of handsome ass…maybe a couple handfuls…”

“Shitty!” Bitty cried. His cheeks were seriously going to catch fire.

“Sorry bro. What was I sayin’? Oh, as long as you keep it professional and don’t let it affect your business decisions, I wouldn’t sweat it. Besides, if they transfer you to another department when your internship ends, you’re golden. You can grab all the hot hockey ass you want.”

Bitty leaned his head back against the headboard. What did he even want? He didn’t want to jeopardize this job, goodness knows he needed it for his resumé. But he also wanted Kent. Lord, how he wanted.

Bitty tried to remember the last time he was this infatuated with another person. It was obviously Jack – he and Jack had circled each other for two years before making a move. They’d wasted so much time that they could have spent together. Bitty didn’t want to make that mistake again.

He didn’t have the luxury of time with Kent. At the end of September, his three-month internship would be over. That was only a month away. What if the company didn’t extend his contract? The Rangers’ season would start in October, and it’s not like Kent would have loads of free time. If Bitty didn’t give him a reason to make time, they might never see each other again.

Lardo leaned in and eyed the screen as she said, “You’re thinking awfully hard, Bits. Care to share?”

Bitty nodded to himself, decision made.

“I’m gonna go for it.”

Shitty whooped and Lardo smirked.

“Shitty, you’re right. I reckon we can keep it professional, and I don’t wanna lose my chance by waiting. If he’s interested – and that’s a big if.” Bitty pointed at the camera for emphasis. “If he’s interested, I want to give it a shot.”

_/_/_/ \_\_\_

Kent’s phone buzzed for the fifth time in an hour. It was from Eric, another chirp about the episode of Chopped they were both watching. Kent grinned and tucked his toes under Kit’s couch cushion as he typed a reply.

Somehow, ever since their meeting in the café, Kent and Eric had gone from business acquaintances who occasionally texted, to text acquaintances who occasionally talked business. Kent was totally down for the shift. He hadn’t seen Eric in person since then – his schedule had gotten crazy and he knew Eric was swamped with his job – but he was already imagining the things they would do the next time they saw each other.

It was super lame to be crushing this hard on someone he hardly knew. He was almost thirty, for god’s sake, and he probably should have wised up a decade ago. But you know what, fuck it. He’d wasted most of his twenties pining after a teenage heartbreak. He was a grown-ass dude now and he could do what he wanted.

Kent: i found where we should go to our next meeting thingy

Eric: Our monthly touchbase? That’s great! Where?

Kent: i’m not telling. it’s a surprise

Eric: Ok lol, how am I supposed to get there?

Kent: i’ll pick u up

Kent: lambo or r8?

Eric: Bless you

Kent: cool, r8 it is

Eric: [puzzled emoji]

Kent: [sportscar emoji] [thumbs-up emoji] [sunglasses emoji]

Kent set his phone on the table when it became clear Eric wasn’t replying right away. He snuggled further down the couch, and Kit stretched out on her cushion like she was trying to protect her space from his feet. Kent’s legs were sore from a grueling practice today, and it felt good to relax at home.

Kent’s phone buzzed and he grabbed for it. That would be Eric, chirping him about his flashy cars.

Jack: Hi Kent. Ready for pre-season?

Definitely not Eric. That was cool, he could roll with the punches.

Kent: hey zimms

Jack: When is your first game?

Kent: next saturday at home, then leave for a 2-game roadie in cali

Kent: u?

Jack: We play the Isles next Friday

Kent: cool

Eric: how on earth you justify TWO sports cars in NYC, I’ll never know. smh.

Kent’s stomach did a little flip at seeing Eric’s name on the screen.

Kent: three

Kent: sports cars, that is. if u count the beamer

Eric: Lord, where do you even park them?

Eric: Also what day is good to meet? How 'bout Saturday?

Jack: Would you want to meet up this weekend? We’ll be in New York until Saturday afternoon.

Jack: It would be nice to see you.

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.

Kent muted the television. He needed to think right now, and he couldn’t do it with Ted Allen describing kumquat soup in the background. Fucking hell. Of course Eric and Jack wanted to meet on the same goddamn weekend. Kent’s life was basically a Lifetime movie. He scrubbed his face with his hands and weighed his options.

He really wanted to see Eric. That was a given. Eric made him feel weirdly happy. It was the first time in forever that he’d felt this optimistic about someone.

And Zimms…Kent hadn’t hung out with Jack since the doomed frat party of 2014, not unless you counted the small talk at galas and awards ceremonies. He didn’t even know what they had in common anymore other than hockey. It might be totally weird, but meeting up was part of his Being-Friends-With-Jack Master Plan, and he still wanted to be friends, even if it required super awkward hangout time.

A niggling part of Kent’s brain was worried that seeing Jack would dredge up old feelings. Kent was doing fine now, doing great actually, but when Jack had called him ‘Kenny’ last month, his brain had gone totally haywire. What if seeing him was like that, but a million times worse? What if he fell hopelessly in love again?

Kent flopped across the couch and onto Kit, trapping her with his arms and nuzzling his face into her side.

“Tell me what to do, baby girl.”

Kit twisted like a goalie blocking a wraparound and jumped free of Kent’s arms. He watched her disappear into the bedroom.

“I see how it is!” Kent called after her.

His phone buzzed. Crap, he probably should have texted Eric and Zimms back like five minutes ago.

Eric: I'm also free Thursday or Friday

Kent’s stomach swooped. Before he could answer, his phone dinged again.

Jack: I’m sorry if that was overstepping.

Jack: I understand if you don’t want to meet up.

Kent noticed that his stomach didn’t do any swoopy-feelings at seeing Jack’s name on his phone. Huh. That was a good sign, right?

Eric: Basically I have no life yet in this city........ :/

Kent felt the swoopy feeling again. Yep, he definitely only felt it for Eric. Taking it as a sign from the Lifetime movie gods, he replied,

Kent: how's thursday? gotta get my beauty sleep friday and saturdays the game

Eric: Thursday's great! 6pm?

Eric: Y'know, can we make it 7pm instead?

Kent: 7 is perf. text me ur address

And to Jack,

Kent: sure zimms, let’s meet sat morning

Kent unmuted the television and stretched his legs along the full length of the couch. The upholstery was warm where Kit had been sleeping.

Now would probably be a good time to tell Jack and Eric about each other. He was pretty sure adults were supposed to tell each other about being friends with exes, although he’d never been in that situation. It seemed like an upstanding thing that a real adult would do.

But what would he say to Jack that wouldn’t scare him away? And more importantly, what would he say to Eric that wouldn’t be a total buzzkill for whatever feelings Eric potentially had for him?

He stared vacantly at the TV. If he told Eric about Jack, and then Jack decided to ghost him again, he’d ruin his chances with Eric for nothing. His and Jack’s track record of being friends wasn’t exactly stellar. Hanging out with Jack might be awkward and he'd bail after an hour. Surely that wouldn’t warrant telling Eric about. And if it went well, Kent would have plenty of time to tell him later. Right?

Kent nodded at his own logic. He would wait to tell them. It would be fine.

Everything would be fine.

_/_/_/ \_\_\_

“…I’ve been here all night….I’ve been here all daaaay…and boy you got me walkin’ side to side…”

Bitty swayed his hips and sang along over the hairdryer.

He’d been looking forward to this meeting all week. If he was being honest, it was a work meeting only in name. He’d transferred his work files to his phone so he wouldn’t need a laptop. He’d pushed the start time to 7pm so they wouldn’t hit happy hour. He wanted to have the luxury to take things slowly, to suggest dinner or more drinks without the pressure of happy hour ending at seven.

He stepped back from the mirror and gave himself a come-hither look. Should he add eyeliner?

He grabbed his phone off the toilet back.

Bitty: eyeliner??

Lardo: yasss

Bitty: [blowing kiss emoji]

He closed one eye, stuck out his tongue in concentration, and started to apply.

At 7:05, Bitty’s front door buzzed. Kent was downstairs, leaning against a royal blue Audi. He flashed Bitty a smile as he opened the passenger door, then walked to the other side and slid into the driver’s seat. When he pressed the ignition, the powerful engine settled into a deep purr.

“You ready to start your New York education?”

As they crossed the Manhattan Bridge and drove into lower Manhattan, Bitty’s leg bounced restlessly. He forced himself to sit still and squeezed his fingers together in his lap. Kent was right here, and he was so much hotter than Bitty remembered. It was hard to be around him without staring; everything about him felt electric. Eric willed his dick to ignore the observation. His skinny khakis wouldn’t exactly hide an erection.

They pulled up to a swanky hotel and a uniformed man opened Bitty’s door. Kent gave instructions to the valet and handed her a folded bill.

“Is this where we’re going?”

“Nah, we’re just parking. The Dominick does good valet service.” Kent grinned and motioned for Bitty to follow him down the block. “You’ll see. We’re going to a real New York institution.”

The location Kent had picked for their date (meeting, Bitty scolded himself) turned out to be a 1960’s tiki bar that had been in business for fifty years. Kent peppered Bitty with details about local history as they made their way to the bar.

The interior of the bar was dark and hazy. The ceiling was completely covered with autographed dollar bills pushed into the ceiling with drink umbrellas; Kent pointed out his own name, and Bitty politely pretended he could see it in the mass of bills. Surfing movies played on a TV in the corner, vintage posters covered the walls, and everything was covered in a fine film of dust.

Kent ordered drinks – two variations of something fruity and blended, garnished with pineapple – and he let Bitty try both and pick his favorite. They slid into a mostly-hidden back booth. Bitty noticed the bill Kent slipped the bartender, and the ‘Reserved’ sign the bartender removed from the tabletop before they took their seats.

Bitty couldn’t help feeling a little bit awed at the way Kent spent money. Jack and Kent both made a lot of money playing hockey (Kent made two million more, not that Bitty’d checked, that wouldn’t be polite). But they spent it so differently. Jack was reserved and cautious, investing in real estate and vehicles with good mileage and safety records. Kent spent money like it was water. He seemed to view money as a means to solve problems and enjoy himself. After years of coexisting with Jack, Bitty found Kent’s largesse exciting.

As they sipped their drinks, the conversation was light and easy. Bitty leaned into Kent’s space and listened to him describe his favorite New York restaurants. They traded stories and chirps until their glasses were empty and Kent hailed a waiter.

“Another?”

Bitty grinned and nodded. His limbs felt loose and warm. Lordy, he couldn’t even taste the rum in these drinks.

When their refills arrived, Bitty leaned forward to taste Kent’s drink and used the movement as an excuse to shift his knee so that it pressed against Kent’s under the table. Kent glanced up sharply. He didn’t move away. Bitty’s stomach did somersaults.

The thing Bitty loved about conversations with Kent, is how he felt like an equal in them. He didn’t feel young or inexperienced or like an object of adoration – although watching the way Kent’s eyes tracked him as he talked, maybe there was a little of that, too. But he felt like an adult and an equal. Bitty had as many stories to share as Kent did, and Kent seemed genuinely interested in them. He asked follow-up questions about Bitty’s job. He whistled at Bitty’s recounting of the Jam Fiasco of 2015. Bitty thrived on the attention.

By the time they finished their second drinks, Bitty had his hand on Kent’s forearm as Kent regaled him with an embarrassing story of him and his old teammate, Jeff Troy, at a state fair. Bitty gasped as Kent concluded the story by miming a bin of stuffed animals falling on top of them.

“Oh my!” Bitty exclaimed. “Thank goodness y’all were alright.”

Kent looked down at Bitty’s arm, opened his mouth to say something else, closed it again. Bitty was suddenly very aware of the places their bodies were touching.

Feeling brave, he traced his finger down Kent’s arm to his wrist, following a vein just below the skin. Kent inhaled. He watched Kent’s lips, parted slightly with his breath. Bitty wanted to kiss him so badly. He felt invincible from the alcohol and Kent’s attention.

Before he could lose his nerve, he leaned forward and pressed his mouth to Kent’s.

The kiss was gentle and lasted only a few seconds. Kent moved his lips against Bitty’s, hesitantly, chastely. To an outsider it probably looked innocent enough, and before Bitty could lose himself in the moment, Kent pulled away.

“Not here,” he breathed.

Bitty leaned back. Oh lord, how had he forgotten? Kent was famous in this city and he wasn’t out. There could be cameras anywhere. Kent could be outed on Deadspin tomorrow and it would be so awful for his career. Bitty pressed his hands to his face. Goodness, he’d been so selfish.

Kent looked at Bitty with concern. Bitty could feel the flush of embarrassment rising in his cheeks.

“It’s okay,” Kent whispered, “I…I want to, just…later?” He cocked his head to one side and asked in a normal volume, “How about we get some food?”

Bitty nodded, still feeling horrified. Things had been going so well, and he totally messed it up with his stupid recklessness.

They closed their tab and walked outside into the warm September night.

_/_/_/ \_\_\_

“So, uh, is pizza okay? I had a place picked out, but we could find somewhere else if pizza after Mai Tais is a no-go.”

Kent looked at Eric hopefully, wishing he could turn the dial back ten minutes and put the wide, happy grin back on Eric’s face.

“Pizza’s fine.”

Kent tried a new conversation topic. “Got any plans after your internship ends? It must be soon, right?”

Eric nodded. “I think they might give me an offer in a different department, outside the Pet division. I’ve had a couple interviews.” Kent nodded as Eric got into the rhythm of the conversation and started to sound more like himself. “Of course, I want to move to the magazine – Home Cooking, they sell it in supermarket checkouts?” Eric glanced over and Kent made a noise like he’d heard of it, “but it’s so darn competitive. I don’t know where I’ll end up.”

Kent half-smiled. He was happy for Eric, even if it blew that he wouldn’t work with Kent and Kit anymore. He’d known from the beginning that Eric’s internship was temporary. He wondered if it would be appropriate to send a letter of recommendation to someone about the food magazine. He’d seen firsthand how good Eric was at his job. The company would be crazy to let him get away. He filed the thought away for later.

“Will you stay in New York?”

Eric nodded and looked around him in a way that made Kent imagine he was assessing the worthiness of all New York City.

“Yeah, the city’s growin’ on me. The company’s based here. And I’ve made some friends,” he turned and met Kent’s eyes, “I’d feel like I missed out if I left now.”

They lingered over pizza at the little restaurant Kent picked out. Eric perked up after a slice of margherita pizza and a coke. He asked Kent all about this year’s team and how Kent felt about their chances in the preseason.

Kent couldn’t stop looking at Eric’s eyes. They looked fucking beautiful, warm honey brown ringed with dark lashes, and it was all Kent could do to keep his hands to himself. He wished they were somewhere private so he could kiss him again. He wanted to feel Eric’s fingertips on his arm again, to lean into his kiss instead of having to pull away. Would Eric be down for it if Kent asked him to come back to his place? What if he was hella offended? He was Southern, did that make a difference? He should have googled this shit beforehand.

Kent waited until they were back on the sidewalk, strolling away from the restaurant with no particular destination, to ask the question.

“Uh, so, I only live a few blocks from here. It’s a nice night…do you, um, maybe want to walk back to my place and leave the car? I can hire you a ride back to Brooklyn whenever you want.”

He could see Eric blush in the yellow light of the streetlamp. It hadn't been his smoothest line, and he hoped he’d read the situation right.

“I wouldn’t be a bother? Don’t you have early practice?”

“You could never be a bother.”

Kent cringed. Welcome to Cheesy McCheesetown, population him.

Eric smiled tenderly, apparently not noticing Kent’s total lack of cool.

“Well, then. I’d love that.”

Kent grinned. His chest felt lighter than it had in months. Eric liked him. Eric wanted to spend time with him and kiss him and come back to his place and hopefully do other things with him. He felt like he’d won the fucking lottery.

They started walking. Kent looked quickly behind them to see that the street was deserted, then reached out and traced his index finger down the outside of Eric's hand. Eric moved his hand closer and pressed their fingertips together. Kent's face felt warm. He felt like a giddy teenager walking home after the homecoming dance, not that he'd ever had a homecoming. He briefly squeezed their fingers together.

When they reached his building, Eric casually put his hands in his pockets as he followed him inside. He stood off to the side, typing on his phone, as Kent asked the concierge to retrieve his car from SoHo; and Kent remembered that Eric had done this before.

Eric knew how to date a famous athlete in the closet. This wasn’t his first time looking unobtrusive in the lobby of a condo building. It was a very specific skill set, and Kent wanted to fight every homophobe who'd made it so Eric needed to learn those skills in the first place. He deserved so much better. Although he had to admit, not many people knew how exhausting it was for guys like Kent and Jack to keep up the bro-ey pretense of heterosexuality, and it felt really fucking good that Eric understood.

Kent nearly vibrated out of his skin as they rode the elevator up to Kent’s apartment. He kept his hands shoved in his jeans pockets, trying not to look nervous.

As soon as the apartment door closed, he turned to Eric and gingerly took his face in both hands. Eric stared up at him, eyes dark.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked.

Eric grinned without answering, then leaned forward and pressed his lips against Kent’s. Kent tried not to moan at finally getting the contact he’d wanted all night. He brushed his tongue inside Eric’s mouth, relishing the hot wetness. He ran his fingers up through Eric’s hair and smelled his coconut shampoo.

Kent hummed in encouragement as Eric wound his hands around Kent’s back and down over his ass. He squeezed playfully, smiling against Kent’s lips, then pulled away just enough that Kent stopped and looked at him questioningly. When Eric seemed satisfied that he had Kent’s attention, he pushed Kent backward with more strength than Kent would have expected, pressing him against the wall of the entryway and bracing him in place with a hand on each of his hips.

“This okay, hon?” Eric asked through his lashes.

Jesus fucking Christ. “More than okay.”

Eric kissed him again, deep and filthy. A shiver ran down the whole length of Kent’s body, and he instantly felt himself go from mildly aroused to hard as a fucking rock.

A small chirp sounded from behind them. Kent groaned.

He turned his face away from Eric’s lips and grumbled, “Go away, Kit. I’ll feed you later.”

Another chirp. This time Kit came right up to them and butted her head against Kent’s shinbone, annoyed. Kent wondered if locking her in the guest bath would be considered animal cruelty. He sighed and relented.

“Sorry, Eric, I forgot. I usually feed her right when I get home.”

Eric gave him an amused little smirk. “You’d better get on that, Mister Parson. She looks mighty displeased.”

“I’ll be back in two minutes.” He leaned forward and kissed the smirk off Eric’s face with quick, silly, closed-mouth kisses. Eric laughed and squirmed away.

Kent ran to the kitchen and proceeded to set a land speed record for preparing cat food. When he finished, he found Eric in the living room with all the lights turned off, watching the city from the wall-to-wall windows. The night skyline of Manhattan lit up his face in a warm yellow glow. Kent stood behind him and circled his arms around his waist, resting his chin on Eric’s shoulder.

“Amazing, isn’t it?”

Eric half-laughed, half-sighed. “If you’d told sixteen-year-old me that in a handful of years I would be living in New York City, making it on my own, enjoying dinner and drinks and this,” he gestured pointedly between Kent and himself, “with a hot NHL star...I would’ve said you were downright crazy.”

Kent smiled and trailed little kisses down the back of Eric’s neck, feeling pleased with himself when he felt Eric shiver. “C’mon,” he whispered into Eric’s ear.

“Hmm?”

Kent slid his hands over Eric’s torso, brushing the exposed skin at the waistband of his khakis. “Come with me. I know a few things we could do that would make sixteen-year-old Eric blush.”

Eric snorted. “Oh my god, Kent, that line was awful.”

Kent grinned. “Did it work?”

Eric just laughed, full and throaty, and pulled Kent in the direction of the bedroom.

“Uuuugggghhhh.”

Kent groped around on the bedside table for his phone. Why the fuck was his alarm going off? It was so goddamn early. How was anyone awake at this ungodly hour?

He turned off the offending alarm and reached out for Eric, but the bed next to him was empty.

Kent was immediately awake. He sat up.

When had Eric left? Oh god, had he done something to offend him? He tried to recall what would have upset Eric enough for him to leave, but nothing stood out. The last thing he remembered from the night before was both of them crawling under the sheets, post-orgasm, and Eric laying his hand on Kent's chest as they passed out.

He scrubbed his hands over his face and looked around. A little yellow sticky note sat next to his phone.

Kent,

I had so much fun last night.

I left early, needed a shower & clothes before work.

Kick ass in your game.

<3 EB

_/_/_/ \_\_\_

Bitty scrambled for his phone when it buzzed, praying it would be Kent. He’d had two false alarms already this morning – a good-morning note from his mama and a string of eggplant emojis from Shitty.

Kent: my pillow smells like you

Bitty: [blushing emoji] you got my note?

Kent: i did

Bitty: Sorry I had to run, I forgot we had a team meeting at 8 and I kinda needed a shower

Kent: heh yeah

Kent: i mean, if you’d let me swallow like i was planning to

Bitty: Oh lordy

Kent: but nooo, u wanted it on my abs

Bitty: Kent Parson

Kent: and then it got everywhere

Bitty: We are not having this conversation while I’m sittin’ in a SHARED cubicle

Kent: [smiling devil emoji] [winking kiss emoji]

Bitty swiveled his chair so he faced away from his cubicle-mate. He hunched over the screen and reread Kent’s texts, beaming like an idiot.

Bitty: Will I see you before your roadie?

Kent: probably not

Kent: we have practice & team photos today, game tmrw, then hit the road right after

Bitty: :( :( :(

Kent: I’d love to meet up next weekend after i’m back

Bitty: I’d like that :D

Bitty: Btw you earned serious baked goods last night

Kent: i live to please [cherub emoji]

Kent: and my favorite flavor is blueberry

Blueberry. Hmm. Bitty had all sorts of blueberry recipes he could bake for Kent. If he stopped by Whole Foods on his way home from work, he could whip up a batch of blueberry mini crumbles easy-peasy. Or maybe the blueberry brie tartlets the boys had been so fond of at the Haus? He opened his browser to research recipes.

It was a bummer that Kent couldn’t hang out until next week. Bitty had no plans tonight and baking would take his mind off the excitement of the last couple days.

That’s alright, he could wait until next week.

He could wait.

If he stopped on his way home and picked up some blueberries, surely that was alright.

If he washed the blueberries and set the butter out to room temperature, that was just smart preparation.

Well, as long as everything was out, he might as well make a little somethin'.

Two batches of mini crumbles, two batches of tartlets, and one batch of sweet potato cat treats later, Bitty finally felt calm enough to crawl into bed. He knew Kent would be busy tomorrow, but he could drop by quickly and give Kent the baked goods and a good-luck kiss. He wouldn’t even have to go inside. It would be sweet and perfect.

The next morning, Bitty tied two bakery boxes with twine and a little note; presentation was important. Kent had said their practice was over at 10, so at 10:30 he skipped up the front steps of Kent’s building and set down his boxes in the lobby.

Bitty: Hi hon, are you home?

Kent: hi what’s up?

Bitty: I have a surprise for you [winking kissy face]

Kent: ??

Bitty: Let me up and I can show you [winking emoji]

Kent: how about I come downstairs to u?

Bitty: Oh don’t you worry, this won’t take but a minute

Bitty: I don’t mind makin’ the trip

Kent: that’s ok you don’t have to

Kent: i can come down

Kent: i don’t mind

Kent: eric?

Bitty hopped into the elevator with a woman holding a Pomeranian, pushing the button for Kent’s floor after she’d swiped her keycard. He smiled in what he hoped looked like a friendly-not-intruder way. Kent was so silly. He didn’t mind coming up at all. No reason Kent should have to interrupt his routine for Bitty.

Bitty knocked on Kent’s door and Kent opened it right away, like he’d been waiting for him. He had on basketball shorts and a Rangers t-shirt. His hair was sweaty. He didn’t invite Bitty in.

“Hey Eric, I didn’t expect you today.”

“Oh honey, I was just in the area and thought I’d drop off a little somethin’ for the boys on your roadie.”

Bitty handed Kent the packages and Kent smiled as he sniffed appreciatively. He turned briefly to listen to something in the other room, and his smile faded. He turned back to Bitty.

“That’s really cool, man. Thanks.”

Bitty started to wish him good luck, but he stopped when he thought he heard…was that footsteps?

Kent jumped in, “Sorry I couldn’t hang out today, I just–”

“Parse, where are the bowls?”

A tall, dark-haired man in running shorts and yellow sneakers walked into the entryway holding a box of cereal. He froze when he saw Bitty.

Bitty’s heart stopped. “Jack?”

“Bittle.”

Bitty backed away, clutching his phone to his chest. What was happening? He couldn’t breathe. Why was Jack here? From somewhere far away, he heard Kent saying his name.

He turned and ran.

[xswestallen]

Iris Remembers: Chapter 10

Read the whole story

Summary: AU where Iris has Cisco’s powers. In this cahpter, Iris realizes she might be a metahuman. Barry, Iris, Caitlin, and Cisco find the time vault. 

"Well, Bates is in the pipeline now. He won't be able to frame any more innocent people." Barry told Iris as they left S.T.A.R. Labs. "And I gave Cecile the names of all the people he framed. She's going to have them all released."

"Good." Iris said. "I used to think Tony Woodward was the worst of the metas. But, Bates is tough competition." Now that justice was served, Iris's anger was fading. She was enjoying her newfound relief that came with forgiving herself for what happened with Eddie. As they walked out the door, Iris felt exhilarated by chill in the night air.

"Are you cold?" Barry asked her, already taking off his jacket to offer her.

"No." Iris said. "I'm just appreciating things. It's like- I don't know. Like, my pain has washed away and I'm free to move forward. Eddie and I finally talked about our relationship, what happened, and how we'll always be grateful for the time we shared. I got closure. I was able to forgive myself so now, my guilt, my baggage, it's all gone."

Barry smiled at her.

"What?" Iris giggled. "Does that sound really cheesy?"

Barry rubbed his neck. "I'm just happy for you." he said. Iris could tell he wanted to say more. She had a bad feeling that she knew what it was. Barry chewed on his lower lip and blinked a few times. Iris was glad he didn't bring up his feelings for her or ask what was next for them. Iris wasn't quite ready for that.

Iris changed the subject to something she was more comfortable with and curious about. "How did I know that Bates was at the airport?"

"I don't know." Barry shook his head. "But, I think the important thing is that you did."

"You would've found him anyway." Iris reminded Barry. "He stole your phone."

"But what if he hadn't? You would've been able to tell us he was at the airport so I could stop him from getting away."

"You're giving me too much credit."

Barry stopped walking. "Iris, I think maybe.... you have some kind of..." he moved his hands around and tried to find the right word. "Power?"

Iris laughed. "Come on, Barry. There is no such thing as physics."

"You're not physic. But, you have something that allows you to remember events that happened because of a change in the timeline. I think that's also what allowed you to see where Bates was."

Iris considered this. "So, you think I'm like.. a metahuman?"

Iris felt her phone vibrate. It was a text from her dad: Hey, we're back from Starling City. It was an informative trip. At the precinct now.

Informative how? Iris texted back.

You and Barry might want to come down here.

Iris felt her stomach churn. Did they find out Wells murdered Tess Morgan?

"My dad just texted me. He and Cisco are at CCPD." Iris told Barry.

Barry froze. "Did they say if they found anything?"

"I think they did."

Barry stared at the ground and shuffled his feet. He took a moment to process his thoughts. Iris took his hand to comfort him.

"Knowing is better than not knowing." she said.

Barry nodded in agreement. "Can I run us to CCPD?" he asked, obviously anxious to learn more about Joe and Cisco's trip.

"Let's go, Flash." Iris smiled.

Barry lifted her off the ground. He held her bridal style, with one hand under her knees and the other supporting her back. Before Iris could blink, she was in Barry's crime lab. Her dad, Cisco, and Caitlin were standing around an autopsy table. On it, was a decomposing body.

"Oh god..." Iris whispered. The sight was disturbing. Barry let her down gently. Iris hurried over to her dad and hugged him. "Is that," she pointed a finger at the body. "Tess Morgan?"

Joe shook his head.

"Then who is it?" Barry asked.

Cisco took a deep breath. "Harrison Wells."

Iris initially thought it was the beginning of a sentence, but Cisco didn't say anything else. "Harrison Wells what?" Iris prompted.

"This is the body of Harrison Wells." Joe said.

While everyone else looked at the remains in horror, Caitlin was staring, open mouthed, at Barry's computer. Iris saw that she was examining DNA results.

"This is impossible." Caitlin said.

Cisco approached her. "Caitlin, I ran the DNA test twice. It's a perfect match." he said.

"This body is the real Harrison Wells." Joe said.

"If this is Dr. Wells, who have we been working for this whole time?" Caitlin asked.

Iris looked to Barry, who somehow didn't look shocked. His eyes bore into the body and he spoke in a calm voice. "Dr. McGee said that after the accident, Wells became a completely different person." Barry looked up at Caitlin. "It's because he is a different person."

The insane reality of the situation hit Iris like a ton of bricks.

"We need to go to S.T.A.R. Labs." Cisco said, urgently.

"Why? We were just there." Caitlin told him.

"I need to check something. It's important." Cisco said.

Cisco ran through the S.T.A.R. Labs corridors to get to the cortex. The other followed him. Iris and Caitlin were catching there breath in the entryway of the context, while Cisco immediately got on the computer and started rapidly clicking through what looked like blueprints.

Barry watched. Caitlin and Iris got closer so they could see too.

"What are you doing?" Caitlin asked.

He answered without looking away from the screen. "After the accelerator exploded I built a 3D model of S.T.A.R. Labs so that I could pinpoint what exactly caused the malfunction."

"And you never ran this test?" Barry asked in disbelief.

"Of course I did. I just never had any reason to look at any area outside of the pipeline or the cortex. It's a big building. Lots of places for Wells to hide something."

The computer beeped and a red mark appeared on the screen. They all leaned in to see what it was. The red was highlighting a spot on a piece of the building model. It was a part of the facility Iris had never been in.

"What is that?" Barry asked.

"That," Cisco said, "Shouldn't be there."

"Are you sure?" Iris asked.

"I've come here everyday for years. I know every inch of this place. But, I had no idea that space existed."

"It looks like it's in the hallway just outside the cortex." Barry said. He moved away from the computer and looked down the hallway.

Cisco got up from the desk and began rifling through every draw in the cortex in search of something.

"Ah ha!" Cisco exclaimed as he pulled out something that looked like a triangular medal detector. He grabbed a pair of headphone too and put them on. Cisco, Iris, and Caitlin joined Barry in the hall. Cisco held the device up to the wall as he walked and listened for something. The others followed him.

The device started making beeping noise. "Picking up more activity around here." Cisco said. The beeps got louder and more frequent. Cisco stoped. "Tachyons." Iris didn't know what that meant, but it didn't sound good. Cisco backed away from the wall. "There." He pointed to the stop that caused the device to beep so erratically.

Barry put his hands on the wall. The wall looked normal, as it always had. Barry moved his hands around, searching for something. Whatever it was, he found it. The wall behind his right hand glowed blue. A section of wall opened up in front of him, revealing a hidden room.

Barry looked at his friends, their eyes all mirrored the astonishment in his. The room was pitch black. Barry walked in first. Once they had all entered, the wall suddenly resealed itself.

To lights came on. They were on either side of a cylindrical glass tube containing The Reverse-Flash suit.

"Oh my god." Caitlin said.

Everyone but Barry stepped closer to it.

Iris turned and saw Barry's eyes. She decided to hold his hand again. The two of them peered around the small room with strange white, textured walls. A white podium was the only other object in the room. Barry walked up to it and a hologram appeared.

It was a newspaper article from a publication called The Central City Citizen. In the center was a photo of the Flash. Above it, the headline read: FLASH MISSING VANISHES IN CRISIS

"Guys" Barry got Caitlin and Cisco's attention. They turned and gaped at the article with Barry and Iris.

"What the frack...." Cisco muttered.

Iris squeezed Barry's hand and he squeezed back.

Barry began reading from the article. "After an epic street battle with The Reverse-Flash, our city's very own scarlet speedster disappeared in an explosion of light."

"Barry, look at the date." Caitlin instructed.

Barry read aloud, "April 25 2024"

Iris felt her palms sweating. Barry shook his head. Cisco and Caitlin continued to stare.

"Guys," Barry said, "When I fought The Reverse-Flash at Christmas, he said that we'd be fighting for centuries."

"Wait, you can't really think that this is from..." Caitlin said and she struggled to get the next words out, "the future?"

Cisco spoke. "That would mean Dr. Wells, or whoever he is, is also-"

"From the future." Barry finished the sentence.

"How can that be?" Iris asked.

"I have to say, I'm really digging the brighter red suit and the white on the symbol is dope." Cisco said. "Wait a second, suppose we now change the color on your suit, will it be because we got the idea from this picture? That would mean we're living in a causal nexus. This is- Wow, this is so trippy like Marty and the Polaroid trippy."

Iris wasn't listening to Cisco's babbling. She had finished reading the article and was looking it over. She skimmed over the byline and then did a double take.

"by IRIS WEST-ALLEN Thursday April 25 2024"

Iris gasped. Her friends looked at her, curious. Iris pointed and croaked, "byline"

Barry read it aloud, "Iris west.......Allen?"

Iris couldn't take her eyes off the text. She never thought she'd hyphenate her name when she got married. Wait wait wait.. married? If she was Iris West-Allen that means that her and Barry get married?

"Mazel tov?" Cisco offered.

"Hebrew," a feminine computer voice said. Everyone jumped and looked around. Nobody else had entered the room. "Ancient language of the Jewish people."

The hologram article vanished.

"Uh ah! What the hell was that?" Cisco asked.

"Is-Is someone here?" Barry asked the room. "Hello?"

Another hologram appeared, this time it was a gigantic face. "Good evening, Barry Allen." it said.

Barry's eyebrow rose and his forehead wrinkled. He squeezed Iris's hand again. "Uuuhhhhh- Hu- Hi." Barry said to the face. "You know who I am?"

"Of course. Barry Allen, director of Central City Police, CSI division." the face answered.

"Director?" Barry and Iris said simultaneously.

"I guess you get a promotion." Cisco said.

The face spoke again, "Also known as The Flash. Founding member of-"

Barry held up a hand and cut off the face's words. "What are you?"

"I am GIDEON, an interactive artificial consciousness."

Cisco laughed. "AI! Sick!"

"You know Dr. Wells?" Barry basked 'GIDEON'

"Yes." GIDEON replied.

"Do you know who he really is?"

The eyes on the face blinked. "I don't understand the question."

Barry rubbed his temples. Iris put a hand on his back and massaged gently. She felt his tension.

"I- I Do- d I" Barry stuttered. "I mean what is he doing here? Wh- Why did he come here?"

The large face of GIDEON became a humanoid body. "To kill you." it said.

Barry went pale. A vain bulged in his forehead.

"It's ok." Iris whispered in ear.

"Wells is in the building." Cisco said.

"How do you know that?" Caitlin asked him.

"I put a tracker on his wheelchair. Which, if we're wrong about him and he is paralyzed, I'm going to Hell for that one."

Iris felt her heart pounding.

"He's in the cortex, ask questions fast!" Cisco yelled.

"Wh-Why did he kill Nora Allen?" Barry asked GIDEON.

"Because he was angry." GIDEON answered.

"About what?"

"That you escaped."

"He's on B level!" Cisco said. "He's coming this way."

"What does he want from me?" Barry demanded.

"For you to be The Flash." GIDEON said.

"Maybe that's why Wells let the particle accelerator explode? So that, you could become The Flash." Caitlin spoke as if she was still trying to make sense of what she was saying.

"For what reason?" Barry whispered.

"GUYS, we gotta go. He's almost here." Cisco panicked. Caitlin, Iris, and Barry moved to leave the secret room but Cisco said, "Wait a second. What if Hal over there tell Wells that we were in here?"

That was a good point.

"That would be bad." Caitlin said.

"If I can get into it's operating system maybe I can disable it's memory core?" Cisco said.

"Uh-uh GIDEON, can you show us where your operating system?" Barry asked.

"Certainly." A blue and purple thing with a grey part in the center materialized beside the body of GIDEON.

"Haha, yeah, nope. That's not gonna happen." Cisco said.

"Guys, he's in the corridor." Caitlin warned.

"Maybe it won't tell if we asked it not to?" Iris suggested to Barry.

"Uh-GIDEON, could you just not tell him that we were here?" Barry asked.

"Of course." GIDEON assured them. "I will accept any command given to me by you."

"BARRY!" Cisco urged.

"Come on, we gotta get out of here." Caitlin said.

"Wa-wait, wait. Why would you accept my commands?" Barry asked.

"Because," GIDEON explained, "You created me."

A second later Iris, Barry, Caitlin, and Cisco were standing outside S.T.A.R. Labs. Barry was breathing heavily and Iris knew it had nothing to do with running them out.

Iris's head was spinning. Wells is definitely The Reverse-Flash. He's from the future and he killed Barry's mom because he was angry that Barry escaped and he came here to kill Barry. There would be an epic battle between The Flash and The Reverse-Flash in future and Iris would write an article about it. And, her name would be Iris West-Allen. West-Allen. Somehow, that was the piece that struck Iris the most. She and Barry were going to get married.

The byline was all Iris could think about the next day. Was that article actually real? At what point in the next 9 years would she and Barry get married? Would they be happy together? Well, that last question was a dumb one. She was always happy when she was with Barry. Would they have kids? Would he hyphenate his last name too?

"Iris," Barry's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Are you listening?"

"Yeah." Iris lied. She was in the cortex with Barry, Caitlin, and Cisco.

Cisco was tampering with a pair of glasses.

"This is going to make me see Cisco getting killed by Wells again?" Iris asked.

"Hope it's a good show." Cisco said.

Caitlin explained how she got the idea and how the glasses would basically let Iris lucid dream.

"It won't hurt her?" Barry asked for the millionth time.

"No. The amount of electricity required to trigger lucid dreaming is harmless." Caitlin said.

Barry pulled Iris aside.

"Iris, I appreciate that you want to help me get my dad out of prison and stop The Reverse-Flash, but you don't have to do this if you don't want to." Barry reminded her. "I don't want you to feel pressed."

"I don't." Iris said. "I want to know the truth about Wells and figure out whatever is going on with me too." Iris wasn't going to admit it, but the possibility of her being a metahuman hadn't crossed her mind since she got her dad's text. Learning that Wells was an imposter took the place of those thoughts. Then, learning that she would marry Barry and become Iris West-Allen took the places of those thoughts.

Barry pulled her in for a warm embrace. "I'll be right there the whole time."

"I trust you. I trust Caitlin and Cisco too. I'll be fine."

Barry nodded. "We'll do it in my lad tonight?"

"Sounds like a plan." Iris said.

[tina-the-resident-deity]

What’s going on with Mana?

Okay! Just as I said, I’m coming back to you with my theory about how it was possible for Allen to call Mana back as an Akuma, while Earl was with him.

Just prepare for a shit ton of text.

So, first things first, this theory comes in parts. Four main parts, with the last one split into hella lot smaller of them (Fifteen I think), to be honest. So, yeah, be prepared! 

I’m going to focus in this theory on Apocryphos, Noah Memory and… Helix of Life (dun dun duuuuun).

Part One: Apocryphos

What do we know about Apocreep?

sentient Innocence, which main reason of existence is to protect Heart

is immortal, and over 7000 years old

can control Innocence, and has the ability to desynchronize it from it’s user (Cross’ case, and another theory on why Cross is alive, for another time)

can manipulate memories (Kanda’s case)

deals hella lot of damage to Noah and is damn near impossible to kill/destroy (Road’s case, scene in Order’s cell holding Allen)

We know, that Noah were searching for Apocreep, as he is rather big clue on finding the Heart, as it strives to protect it. We also don’t know where Apocryphos was all this time. We can assume, that it was for at least some time hiding in Central/Vatican as unnamed Cardinal, and only came due to all this Allen/Neah/Cross shit. 

Apocryphos said, that Heart had been worrying about Allen. But why we don’t know. It can be worrying about Allen, (though I doubt it), or abou what Allen is going to become, about Neah. Neah is part of Earl, therefore, he’s a Noah. With Innocence. How disasterous could it be?

Part Two: Millenium Earl and Noah Memory

So, what we know about Earl:

52 years prior to current events, he split into Mana and Neah (but we don’t know why. Clue may be that, that he was crying then).

this splitting caused him to develop as two humans with two different personalities. He vanished for seventeen years, as they grew up, and therefore, strayed from “Scenario” - creating new Three Days of Darkness. 

Earl isn’t the first Noah to split, I must say. We have Jasdevi. They were born as a single human, who then in cradle split into two - Jasdero and Devit. They share the same Noah - Bondom. They are “fully Noah” when they merge.

 Then similar thing happened to Earl.

Earl became two people - his soul split into two parts, but I think that Noah Memory cannot be split like soul (that explains merging of Jasdevi, and later Mana devouring Neah). But as Mana and Neah had one soul, they both still were Millenium Earl - they both were Noah (just like un-merged Jasdevi). 

I think that at some time, they both came to associate with the rest of Noahs. We know, that at this point of time, they were both around seventeen, and Bookmen were on the Noah’s side of war. 

Here comes theory about past!Allen being Bookman previous apprentice (he knew interesting facts, like Helix of Life, but we will come to this later on, and somehow Neah had to meet Allen, this just fits perfectly, not to mention, that in 221 chapter Lucia and Katerina have conversation how Bookman is waiting for person with answers. Who’s better than previous Bookman, who took place in this events?).

But something went awry. What? Adam, Earl’s Noah Memory started taking over Mana. There was no Millenium Earl, and Noahs need their leader. So Adam took Mana over, for purpose of reuniting both parts of Earl. That’s what is the most important now.

Remeber what Wisely said, when he remebered about Neah’s betrayal, and how his Noah felt massive hatred for him?

Wisely is afraid of being swallowed by Noah’s Memory - of becoming just a puppet. Also, what said Neah when he first met Allen?

He refers to Earl as a “mad puppet of destruction”. Earl is overtaken by Adam - he lost himself to his Noah.

Part Three: Helix of Life 

Chapter 220 gave us something entirely new. Someone, who with high possibility is past!Allen, and propably previous apprentice of Bookman, told us of something that is origin of everything on this world.

So, what it basically says, is that souls originate from Helix, body is just a vessel for soul, without vessel, soul is going back to Helix, and without soul, body is going to disappear.

So if after death souls are going to Helix, this means, that Akuma are made from souls called from Helix. It’s the only way they can “break out” from it - they cannot come back themselves, and they need vessel to hold them, so Earl binds them to another person using Dark Matter, creating new vessel for soul taken from Helix. It breaks the natural law of world. It’s something unnatural.

Okay, so now we know about three main parts. Let’s go further, and make all of the other parts into some sort of timeline, it would be easier to follow and maybe unsderstand. 

Part Four: Timeline

1. Earl splits into Mana and Neah, therefore disappears (it was said that in whole history, Earl disappeared only once).

2. Mana and Neah are growing up. There is no Earl, so “Scenario” can’t go on.

3. At some point, Mana and Neah awaken as a Noah, probably nearing their 17th birthday.

4. Neah learns about third side of war. He meets with past!Allen and Cross (we can assume that Cross and Allen didn’t know each other), and Allen tells him about Helix. 

5. Neah decides to kill entire Noah family, barring Mana and Road (Mana was his brother, and he couldn’t kill Road? It was scene with Neah towering over Road holding Mana’s body on bed, with Bookman watching).

6. Mana is devoured then by Adam, who wants revenge for betrayal, but also needs to “push” Scenario into moving. 

7. Neah flees, meets with Allen and gives him his Memory.

8. Adam kills Neah, and devours him. At this point, two parts of Earl are finally together, and Millenium Earl is back, but Adam is still in control over Mana. Adam says he needs to destroy Heart, so there must be Earl to do it. 

Mana (controlled by Adam) devoured Neah, so he could destroy Heart. 

9. Adam is driven mad and blows his face, so it won’t remind him of Mana and Neah - he says everything is Mana’s fault. Road creates for him his “fat” persona. 

NOW WE’RE COMING TO IMPORTANT PART.

10. Remember Apocryphos? He’s a guardian of Heart. But up till now, there was no threat for Heart, because There was no Earl. But at this point, Earl finally is merged. So there is threat to the Heart. And there are only two Noah in the whole world. There is no one bar Road (but she was propably wounded, in chapter 187, she says that she could remember only Neah’s face, so something had to be wrong with her) and Earl. So there is no Noah that can protect Earl. And we know, that Apocreep is one hell of a bitch, seems impossible to kill, and is personification of death to Noah.

It’s just perfect moment to strike. Though, it’s still damn Earl, he’s not some easy prey, and he’s elusive as fuck. It took Apo some years to find him. Meanwhile, some Noah were born. But he found him.

10. So, Apocreep attacks Earl. He deals a lot of damage. We saw what happened to Road after his attack, and she’s really powerful Noah, the oldest one bar Earl. Apo almost destroyed her Memory. 

We can assume, that Apo dealt so much damage to Adam, that he was in awful state. 

And what with that?

Easy thing. Adam was so weak, he wasn’t able to control Mana anymore. And Mana came back to control, after nearly 30 years, with body a lot older, but mind still of 17 years old boy (In “Lost Fragment of Snow”, he tells Red, that one day he woke up as a old man, but still is only 17). Mana appears to be slightly mad, with weird memories, but we can connect it to Apocreep’s attack, as he does weird things with heads.

11. Mana became travelling clown in search of a brother, and met a dog he named Allen (maybe after long-lost friend, some Bookman Apprentice, hmm?). He then stumbles upon Red. A little weird kiddo, he instantly adopts. 

12. Circus is attacked by Akuma. After attack, Red hits Mana with his Innocence arm. It appears to have some kind of effect, as Mana suddenly calls Red “Allen” (maybe he confuses Red with his old friend, or maybe, he… remembers him?). He also says that Earl brings tragedy (so… I would say that he recalled few things).

13. Mana adopts Allen, they live together for a year, and then Mana dies.

OKAY NOW. Remember what I said about Helix of Life? It will come handy now. 

14. Mana dies. His soul lost it’s vessel, and it goes back to Helix.

But wait!

There is one more thing in Mana, beside his soul. Adam. 

Sooo, right now, Adam has soulless vessel, and purpose. He’s Earl’s will, after all. And there is no one restraining him, so he don’t need to fight for control. And so, we have Mana’s body, controlled by Adam, while Mana’s soul is safe in Helix, for now. And there we have our Earl. 

15. Allen calls Mana back, forcing him out of Helix, and makes Akuma from him. But he soon exorcises him, and his soul goes back to Helix, again. Therefore, he cant escape from Helix. He’s in place, from which he can never return.

Sounds familiar?

There is no Mana. Mana is long dead. Now it’s just Adam, controlling Mana’s body, like a mindless, mad puppet. 

But there is one more thing. Mana cursed Allen, and Earl himself told, that Allen is just like Akuma. Allen has part of Mana's soul in him. And also he has Neah's Memories. After Neah will devour him, there will be only Mana and Neah. Two parts of Earl, reunited. Allen will become host for true Millenium Earl. But there is no Adam. He still inhabits Mana's body. They will be Millenium Earl, but Earl's Memory won't be with them. There would be personification of time, destruction and creation, Patriarch of a Noah family... but without will, that strives to destroy humanity and bring next Three Days of Darkness. There will be Earl, that don't want to kill humans. Third side of war.

[bettername2come]

The Nights You’ll Never Remember with the Friends You’ll Never Forget 2/?

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12299736/chapters/27986097

Waking up cold was never a good thing for Oliver. In the past it had meant no shelter on the island at best and a kidnapping at worst, but, god, he was freezing right now. And was he on the floor? It had been ten years since he’d had a headache like this and it occurred to him that he really didn’t miss his playboy days. He tried to stand only to have his feet fly out from under him and land flat on his back.

Because the floor was ice.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” a familiar voice called. “Apparently I had a little too much fun last night.”

Oliver opened his eyes to find Caitlin standing over him in full Killer Frost attire, complete with blonde hair. And above her, a breathtakingly beautiful ice ceiling that made Oliver think of cathedrals, not that he’d seen that many of them. “Where are we?” he asked.

“My apartment,” Caitlin said, pointing towards the kitchen, which looked completely normal. “And I think it’s safe to say I will not be getting my security deposit back.”

“How long have I been out?” Oliver asked, sitting up slowly rather than risk falling again.

“No idea,” Caitlin replied, making her way into the kitchen effortlessly over the ice despite the high-heeled boots she wore. “Woke up myself about five minutes ago, saw all this and you. Figured it probably wouldn’t be good for my recovering supervillain progress if I let the Green Arrow die of hypothermia in my living room, so I put on a pot of coffee.” She held up the pot. “Want some?”

“Sure,” Oliver said. He reached his hand out to steady himself as he rose to his feet and that was when he realized he was wearing the Green Arrow suit, right down to the gloves. “I’m wearing the suit.”

“Yes, I can see that,” Caitlin said with just a hint of mocking in her voice. “Probably a good thing, too. I’m guessing it’s better at maintaining core temperature than the suit you were wearing last night.”

“No, I mean I didn’t bring the suit to Central City,” he said as he moved slowly to the kitchen counter.

Caitlin passed him a steaming STAR Labs mug. “World’s fastest delivery boy, maybe?” she offered. “Add it to the list of questions.”

Oliver took a sip of the coffee. “Where’s your phone? We should probably call Barry.”

Caitlin pointed to a small, rectangular chunk of ice on the counter. “My guess is it rang and I froze it to shut it up.”

“Of course you did,” Oliver said.

“Hey, you’re lucky I didn’t freeze you.”

Oliver rolled his eyes and pulled up the hood, searching for his earpiece. To his relief, he found it. He pushed a pushed a button the side. “Overwatch, do you copy?”

It was Diggle’s voice that came on the line instead. “Man, what the hell is going on there? Lyla’s been working with ARGUS all night trying to keep a lid on this thing, especially since Supergirl’s involved, but every five minutes she has to pull some new video off of YouTube.”

“YouTube? I have no idea what happened last night. Last thing I remember was giving a toast, next thing I know I’m waking up in Killer Frost’s homemade ice castle.”

“See this is why I turned down the invite. Weird shit always happens when we visit them,” Diggle said. “You’re lucky you didn’t wake up next to a man-shark.”

“Vibe picked it up for you last night. Wild Dog said he popped into the bunker last night after he came back from patrol, called him ‘Casey Jones’ and took off with the suit.”

“He say when that was?”

“Around one a.m.”

“You know anything else that happened last night?” Oliver asked.

“Green Arrow stopped an ATM robbery last night with the help of an unknown woman I’m assuming was Supergirl. Breaches were opening up like crazy and there was a wave of superspeed-induced destruction last night. Lyla says there’s more to it, but she’s trying to compile all her information before she gives me the details. The phrase ‘national security’ was used a lot.”

“Let me know when you have more. Can you patch me through to Felicity? I don’t have my phone.”

A moment later, Felicity’s voice was sounding in his ear. “Oh, thank God, you’re alive. Have you heard from The Flash?”

“No, I’m with Killer Frost.”

Felicity sounded worried. “Killer Frost? And exactly how Killer is she right now?”

Oliver looked back at his companion, who was eyeing him now that she’d heard her nickname. “More frosty than killer. It’s fine. She’s in control. Where are you?”

“Stuck on a roof waiting for the slowest meta on earth.”

“Where?”

“Jitters.”

“Okay, I’ll come get you.”

“As sweet as that is Oliver, it’s nine o’clock in the morning and the Green Arrow parkouring his way through the wrong city might just turn some heads.”

Oliver turned back to Caitlin and gestured down at the Green Arrow suit. “You don’t happen to have anything else I could wear, do you?”

Oliver could have sworn Caitlin’s already pale skin went even whiter when she responded. “Yeah, I just, um. I need them back, okay?”

Oliver suddenly remembered just why Caitlin might have men’s clothing in his size and nodded. “Right. Of course.” He spoke to Felicity once more while Caitlin disappeared into her bedroom. “Just sit tight. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Caitlin came back carrying a sweater, jeans and sneakers. “These should work. Ronnie was about your size.”

“Thanks.” Oliver ducked into the bathroom to change and popped back out a moment later. “Are you gonna come with me?”

Caitlin gestured towards her hair with an icy hand. “No, I can’t seem to make this go away. It’s probably best if I stay in hiding until I have this all under control better. And I should probably grab a hair dryer and start doing something about all of this,” she said, waving her hand at her ice-encrusted living room.

Oliver nodded. “All right. I’ll call you as soon as I know something about the rest of Team Flash.” He hurried out the door, leaving Caitlin to clean up her mess.

Caitlin sighed. “Come hang out with the team, they said. It’ll be fun, they said. Liars.”

*

Oliver reached the door of CC Jitters at the same time Cisco and Iris did.

“Oh, man, is it good to see you,” Cisco said, clutching at Oliver’s arm. He turned back to Iris. “Okay, two down, four more to go. It’s a good start.”

“Three more to go, actually,” Oliver said. “I was at Caitlin’s. She’s fine, she’s just having some trouble with her powers.”

“Yeah, she’s not the only one. I can’t

“Yeah, a real great time for your powers to go down.”

“Iris, we will find the ring, but first we should probably find the groom,” Cisco said. “Don’t you think he might be a little more important in the grand scheme of things?”

“You lost the ring?” Oliver asked.

“You see?” Iris said. “He didn’t say ‘You lost Barry?’ He said ‘You lost the ring?’ Barry can find us himself. He knows where to look. The ring doesn’t have legs. It can’t just track us down. It might just be gone forever and it’s not like Barry has so many Allen family heirlooms to pass on.”

“Okay, Iris, breathe,” Oliver said. “We can find the ring we just have to retrace our steps from last night. And once we get Felicity, I’m sure she can hack into some security footage and give us a clue as to where we all went last night.”

“Hey, she is not the only one who can hack into things around here,” Cisco said.

Iris turned toward him, eyebrows raised. “Really? Because five minutes ago you were rambling about how you weren’t sure you could help the team anymore without your ‘semi-phenomenal, nearly cosmic powers’ at your disposal.”

“I had a moment of panic,” Cisco said, pulling open the door to Jitters. “You got the key to the roof?”

“Oh, you mean the key to the coffee shop I haven’t worked at in almost three years? Yeah, it’s right here in my jacket pocket. The symbol of Barry Allen’s undying love for me, however…”

“Okay, let’s just go get Felicity,” Oliver said, following his friends into Jitters. If anyone noticed the three of them making a beeline for the stairs to the roof they didn’t say anything. Then again, the civilians who ignored the odd behavior here and there tended to fare better in Central City.

Felicity latched onto Oliver as soon as the door opened. “Oh, boy am I glad to see you guys. Well, mostly see you. My vision’s a little on the blurry side this morning actually.”

“I think I know why,” Oliver said, reaching for her glasses. Gently, he tugged them off her face and studied them closer. “These are window glass. Kara’s.”

“God, did that woman keep any of her clothes on last night?” Iris asked, earning her puzzled looks from Felicity and Oliver. “I woke up in the Supergirl suit.”

“Ooh, how were the boots?” Felicity asked.

“Surprisingly comfortable. I think I have to have this Winn guy make me a pair. You think he does commissions?”

“Can we focus on the main plot here, people?” Cisco said. “We’ve got three superheroes still unaccounted for and only one clue as to why.” He handed the card they’d received with the champagne to Oliver.

“Music Meister?” Oliver read. “Cisco, you have got to stop coming up with these names.”

“Sure, I’ll just call everyone whose name I don’t know the unsub of the week. That won’t be confusing,” Cisco said. “Anyway, he’s not a totally bad guy. He actually did help Wally and got Barry and Iris back together last time, but that doesn’t mean he’s not a total dick!” Cisco yelled the last two words, earning him a strange look from his friends. “Oh, like he’s not listening now? If you were an insane magician wouldn’t you be?”

“Okay,” Felicity said. “Let’s get back to STAR Labs so we can find out just what happened last night.”

*

“All right, so let’s get bank statements to see where we were last night,” Felicity said as they walked into the Cortex. “Then I can use that to see which cameras we need to hack into.”

They all stopped short when they saw Joe West sitting in chair behind the main computers. “I could probably help you out with that. I’ve got a few dozen witness statements that could give you a place to start, but first, where the hell are Barry and Wally?”

[we-are-all-of-legend-now]

Never Say Goodbye Playlist: Part Two

Youtube Playlist

|Part One | Part Three|

Part Two: Songs That Remind Me Of The Text*

(*If a song matches a certain part in the text, it will be indicated, if not, it’s a general inspiration)

A Father’s First Spring - The Avett Brothers

When I'm in my sweet daughter's eyes, My heart is now ruined for the rest of all times, There's no part of it left to give,There's no part of it left to give. I never lived til I lived in your light, And my heart never beat like it does at the sight, Of you baby blue, God blessed your life. I do not live 'less I live in your life. I do not live 'less I live in your life. I do not live

All I’ve Ever Needed - Paul McDonald ft. Nikki Reed

My bed sheets feel empty, When you're not home, Your heartbeat helps me sleep, Your breath soothes my soul, Baby, you’re all, Baby, you’re all, Baby, you’re all I've ever needed

All That You Are - Goo Goo Dolls

I feel wrong, I'm so human and flawed, I'll break down even though I'm still strong, And time... will make fools of us all, Build us up and then laughs when we fall, You... pull me through, When I'm alone in the dark and the fear is my truth, Yeah all the things that you are, Beautifully broken, Alive in my heart, And know, That you are everything, Let your heart sing and tonight, We'll light up the stars, All that you are

A Million Skies - Kensington Prairie

We’ve witnessed many sunsets,Watched as many moon falls, And I know you’re not far away now, Tho’ oceans divide us, And worlds may come between us, I know you’re not far away now. 

All The Years - Wild Child

You're my best friend, You, you know you mean the world to me, I can't think of a better thing than growing old with you, You, you know I need you by my side, And everything seems better now with you here in my life

All This Time - OneRepublic (Chapter: 12)

All this time we were waiting for each other, All this time I was waiting for you, We got all these words, can't waste them on another, So I'm straight in a straight line running back to you

Always Be Together - Little Mix

We'll always be together, Don't you worry, Don't you worry, no. I'll always be by your side, Don't you worry, Never worry about a thing, no no no no no no no, The circle will never end, It'll never end, Just know that we'll meet again, We'll meet again, And we'll always be together, Forever always, Don't you worry, I am here

Angel - Leona Lewis

So we take it each moment our love grows, I see it, you see it, What we have is made of gold, We're so filled with meaning, Nothing can make us shallow. So I hold it, and you hold it, The promise of tomorrow. When we make love its overwhelming, I just touch the heavens. You're an angel, you're an angel

Army Of Angels - The Script

This world’s a war zone, But I’ve got a shield, And I won’t surrender, 'Cause your love feels, Like an army of angels 

A Sky Full Of Stars - Coldplay

'Cause you're a sky, you're a sky full of stars, Such a heavenly view, You're such a heavenly view

As Love Is My Witness - Westlife

‘Cause love is my witness, I swear, I'll be with you till the end, Nothing in tear this love apart, I'll put my hand upon my heart, This is the promise I'll make to you, Whatever comes we'll see it through, Nothing can break it, This feeling's too strong, 'Cause love is my witness

As Much As I Ever Could - City And Colour

No I am not where I belong, So shine a light and guide me home. No I am not where I belong, So shine a light, guide me back home.

Beautiful Love - The Afters

Larger than the moon, my love for you, Worlds collide as heaven pulls us through, The secret of the world is written in the stars, I'm carrying your heart in mine

Because You Live - Jesse McCartney

Because you live there's a reason why, I carry on when I lose the fight, I want to give what you've given me always, Because you live and breathe, Because you make me believe in myself when nobody else can help, Because you live, girl, My world has twice as many stars in the sky

Because You Loved Me - Celine Dion (Chapter: 39)

You were my strength when I was weak, You were my voice when I couldn't speak. You were my eyes when I couldn't see, You saw the best there was in me, Lifted me up when I couldn't reach, You gave me faith 'cause you believed, I'm everything I am, Because you loved me

Before The Goodbye - Britney Spears (Chapter: 49)

Though, You're near, Still, I wanna make it clear, Love, I will always be around, You're leaving, I'm waiting, Forgive me, I'm always missing you, Before the goodbye, I Feel It , Already, Forgive me, I'm always missing you, Before the goodbye

Be My Forever - Christina Perri ft Ed Sheeran

We're on top of the world, We're on top of the world, Now darling, so don't let go, Can I call you mine? So can I call you mine now, darling, For a whole life time? My heart finally trusts my mind, And I know somehow it's right

Bleed - Hot Chelle Rae (Chapter: 139)

I bleed my heart out just for you, And it's all here in black and white and red, For all the times those words were never said, I bleed my heart out on this paper for you, So you can see what I can't say, I'm dying here

Blindfolded - Kris Allen

If I was blindfolded, If my memory was erased, If every sign pointed to another place, I'd still find you, I will still find you, I'd still find you, If I was blindfolded

Borrowed Time - Thompson Square

Let's not waste what we have left, Just talking about goodbye no, We can sit here pretending, We have more than a lifetime, Than a lifetime, How can something end so soon, When it feels so right, Yeah it feels so right

Bring Me The Night - Sam Tsui ft. Kina Grannis

Measuring days in the spaces between our goodbyes, Learning to wait through the endless parade, Of our same old see-you-next-time's, But when I close my eyes the miles melt away, Like you're here in my arms at the end of the day

By Your Side - Faber Drive

Your heart in mine, Don't you know I'll always be near, Even in the hardest times, Don't you know I'm always right here 

Changing Tides - The Fray

Changing tides, Baby that's the hardest part of life, Hold me tight. And we will move as one in the changing tides 

Closer - Westlife

Don't give up, don't let go, Come on get closer, Give all we have inside, Don't look back, Come on get closer, The world is ours tonight, Tonight, tonight, tonight, The world is ours tonight

Close Your Eyes - Westlife

I know I'm gonna see you again, But promise me that you won't forget, Cause as long as you remember, A part of us will be together, So even when you're fast asleep, Look for me inside your dreams, Keep believing in what we're sharing, And even when I'm not there to tell you

Come Home Soon - SHeDAISY

I sleep alone, I cry alone, Without you this house is not a home, So please, come home soon, I walk alone, I try alone, I'll wait for you, don't want to die alone, So please, come home soon

Darling I Do - Landon Pigg ft Lucy Schwartz

Notes on the keys, meant nothing to me, The world didn't sing without you, Birds in the trees fell silent for me, The world didn't sing without you, Without you, I know pleny' of people with eyes closed, They don't see you like I do

Daylight- Maroon 5 (Chapter: 21)

This is way too hard, cause I know, When the sun comes up, I will leave, This is my last glance that will soon be memory. And when the daylight comes I'll have to go, But tonight I'm gonna hold you so close, Cause in the daylight we'll be on our own, But tonight I need to hold you so close

Dear Daughter - Halestorm (Chapter: 139)

These are words, That every girl should have a chance to hear, There will be love, There will be pain, There will be hope, There will be fear, And through it all year after year, Stand or fall I will be right here, For you

Dear God - Avenged Sevenfold

Miles away from those I love, purpose hard to find, Dear God, the only thing I ask of you, Is to hold her when I'm not around, When I'm much too far away, We all need the person who can be true to you, I left her when I found her, And now I wish I'd stayed, 'Cause I'm lonely and I'm tired. I'm missing you again, oh no, Once again

Dear Love - Quanah

Dear love hold tight, I’ll be coming home really soon, to under the time, And the distance from me to you, I Won’t disappear, So don’t shed a tear for me

Destiny - Jim Birckman ft. Billy Porter/Jordan Hill

Maybe all we need, Is just a little faith, 'Cause baby I believe, That love will find the way 

Devastated - Gemma Hayes

Don't forget me, Now don't regret, Left there. Left bare. I'm left devastated

Does Anybody Know? - Us And Our Daughters

How does a glance turn into a lifetime? How does a touch turn into an embrace? How do lovers outrun? How does two suddenly become one?  Does anybody know how to keep how to hold love close? Closer than your heart, so nothing can break it apart 

Don’t Deserve You - Plumb (Chapter: 44)

And you're quick to forgive, When I make a mistake, You love me in the blink of an eye, I don't deserve your love, But you give it to me anyway, Can't get enough, You're everything I need, And when I walk away, You take off running and come right after me, It's what you do, And I don't deserve you

Don’t Give Up - Peter Gabriel ft. Kate Bush

Don't give up, You still have us, Don't give up, We don't need much of anything, Don't give up, 'Cause somewhere there's a place, Where we belong

Even Now - Dashboard Confessional

Even now I can see you smile, I can hear you hum, I can hear you sing, And I always can find you again, Even in the dark of night, Even in the lowest light, Even as the world outside, Is spinning, and spinning

Everything - Lifehouse

You are the strength, That keeps me walking. You are the hope, That keeps me trusting. You are the light,To my soul. You are my purpose, You're everything. How can I stand here with you, And not be moved by you? Would you tell me, How could it be, Any better than this?

Everything - Michael Buble

And I can't believe, uh that I'm your man, And I get to kiss you baby just because I can. Whatever comes our way, ah we'll see it through, And you know that's what our love can do. And in this crazy life, and through these crazy times, It's you, it's you, you make me sing. You're every line, you're every word, you're everything.

(Everything I Do) I Do For You - Bryan Adams

Take me as I am, take my life. I would give it all, I would sacrifice. Don't tell me it's not worth fightin' for, I can't help it, there's nothin' I want more

You know it's true: Everything I do, I do it for you, oh, yeah. There's no love like your love, And no other could give more love.

Falling - Oh Gravity

So fall, I'll be behind you, I'll be there to guide you when you've lost your way, Yeah forever's a long time, But far from enough time to spend with you

Father And Daughter - Paul Simon

I believe a light that shines on you will shine on you forever, And though I can't guarantee there's nothing scary hiding under your bed, I'm gonna stand guard like a postcard of a Golden Retriever, And never leave 'til I leave you with a sweet dream in your head, I'm gonna watch you shine, Gonna watch you grow, Gonna paint a sign, So you'll always know, As long as one and one is two, There could never be a father, Who loved his daughter more than I love you

Final Goodbye - Rihanna

Hold, draw me close, close to my lips, Listen intently as I tell you this, Outside the world wages its wars, I'll rest in peace as long as you know, Before we turn out the lights and close our eyes, I'll tell you a secret I've held all my life, Its you that I live for, and for you I die, So I'll lay here with you 'til the final goodbye

Forever - Rascal Flatts

It wasn't long enough, It wasn't long enough together, but it was long enough, yeah it was long enough to last forever. Sometimes I get so mad, I scream, I swear at this, ‘cause this isn't how we planned it. I sit here in a cold room prayin', waitin' on you, to run back through that door,

to the way it was before, you left

Forever - Westlife

You are the sun,You are my light, And you’re the last thing on my mind,Before I go to sleep at night, You’re always round, When I’m in need,When trouble’s on my mind, You put my soul at ease, There is no one in this world, Who can love me like you do, That is the reason that I,Wanna spend forever with you.

Forever In Your Debt - Jamestown Story

You gave me hope, when all my hope was gone, You gave me strength, when all my strength was gone, You picked me up, when I couldn't go on, You took my side, whenever I was wrong 

For You - Keith Urban

And I wonder, would I give my life, Could I make that sacrifice, If it came down to it, Could I take the bullet, I would, Yes I would, for you 

From Where You Are - Lifehouse

I miss the years that were erased, I miss the way the sunshine would light up your face, I miss all the little things, I never thought that they'd mean everything to me, Yeah I miss you, And I wish you were here

Gold Dust - Galantis

Keep coming down that street, There’s a hollow in this house whenever you go, You’re like gold dust 

Gold Forever - The Wanted

Promise me you'll stay the way you are, Keep the fire alive and stay young at heart, When the storm feels like it could blow you out remember, you got me and I got you,’cause we are, butterflies, butterflies, we were meant to fly,You and I, you and I, Colors in the sky, When the innocence is dead and gone, These will be the times we look back on.

Gone Gone Gone - Phillip Phillips

When enemies are at your door, I'll carry you away from war, If you need help, if you need help. Your hope dangling by a string, I'll share in your suffering, To make you well, to make you well.

Goodbye My Lover - James Blunt

Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one. You have been the one for me. And I still hold your hand in mine. In mine when I'm asleep. And I will bare my soul in time, When I'm kneeling at your feet.

Goodnight But Not Goodbye - Nina

This love is a dream that came like clouds out of the blue, Raindrops fill my eyes 

Gotta Have Him - Emily Hearn

Oh, I can't believe he loves me like he does, He takes my hand and flies my heart to the moon, That's what it's like when he's loving you

Greatest Prize - Nat And Alex Wolff

When I am around you, All my worries wonder off, at different times, Different times. When you speak so softly, I'm entranced and cannot move, I’ll blink and nod, blink and nod.

Have You Ever Been In Love - Westlife

Have you ever felt, How far a heart can fall, Have you ever stayed up waiting, For a telephone call, Just to hear her say hello, Cause you miss each other so, Have you ever been in love?

Hearts Collide - Mans Zelmerlow

You forgive mistakes that I made and nurse all the scars then away, You set the, the wind in my sails, sparking me over and over again, And all I kept running from was staring me straight in the eyes, Now I don't ever wanna say goodbye

Heaven - Bryan Adams

Now nothin' can take you away from me, We've been down that road before, But that's over now, You keep me comin' back for more, And baby, you're all that I want, When you're lyin' here in my arms, I'm findin' it hard to believe, We're in heaven

Heaven - Kira Isabella (Chapter: 49)

Hearts don't beat to be alone, Hold me close, don't you let me go, I'm right here, and you're right there, We can have a little bit of heaven, We can't stay forever young, But you can stay 'til the morning comes, Before the dawn, before the tears, We can have a little bit of heaven

Heaven Knows - Five For Fighting (Chapter: 133)

There's no time to waste, In this famous goodbye, There's angels landing on the shore, So lay down with me, Let the river run dry, It's Sunday in the six-day war, Smile darling don't be sad, Stars are going to shine tonight, Tell me where the good men go, Before I wash away, Walk me down the old brick road, So I can die where I met you, Hold me like we're going home, Turn your tears to rain, Bury me beautiful, Heaven knows how I loved you

Here In Your Arms - Hellogoodbye

I like where you sleep, When you sleep, next to me. I like where you sleep ... here, Our lips, can touch And our cheeks, can brush, Our lips can touch here

Hero - Enrique Iglesias

I can be your hero, baby, I can kiss away the pain., I will stand by you forever, You can take my breath away, Oh, I just want to hold you, I just want to hold you, oh, yeah

Hey Jude - The Beatles (Chapter: Bonus Chapter - Maia’s Origin Story)

Hey Jude, don't let me down, You have found her, now go and get her, Remember to let her into your heart, Then you can start to make it better

Hold Back The River - James Bay (Chapter:105)

Once upon a different life, We rode our bikes into the sky, But now we're caught against the tide, Those distant days all flashing by, Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, Hold back the river, so I, Can stop for a minute and be by your side, Hold back the river, hold back

Home - Daughtry

Oh, well I'm going home, Back to the place where I belong, And where your love has always been enough for me, I'm not running from, No, I think you got me all wrong, I don't regret this life I chose for me, But these places and these faces are getting old, I said these places and these faces are getting old, So I'm going home, I'm going home.

How Do I Live - LeAnn Rimes (Chapter: 138)

How do I, Get through one night without you? If I had to live without you, What kind of life would that be? 

How Long Will I Love You - Ellie Goulding

How long will I love you? As long as stars are above you, And longer if I can, How long will I need you? As long as the seasons need to, Follow their plan

I Can Wait Forever - Simple Plan

Every time I leave my heart turns gray, And I wanna come back home to see your face tonight, And I, Cause I just can't take it, Another day without you with me, Is like a blade that cuts right through me, But I can wait, I can wait forever, When you call my heart stops beating, When you're gone it won't stop bleeding, But I can wait, I can wait forever

I Could Not Love You More - Bee Gees

If you promise to believe that it's you I'm living for, And I could not love you more, Seasons may come and season go, But these are the truest words I know, Face to face, eye to eye, This is the summer of our lives, One love that cannot die, Here you are, owner of my soul, Never let you say goodbye

I’d Lie - Taylor Swift

He looks around the room, Innocently overlooks the truth, Shouldn’t a light go on? Doesn’t he know that I’ve had him memorized for so long? He sees everything black and white, Never let nobody see him cry, I don’t let nobody see me wishing he was mine

I’d Wait A Million Years - The Grass Roots

I'd wait a million years, Walk a million miles, cry a million tears, I'd swim the deepest sea, Climb the highest hill, just to have you near me

If I Could Be Where You Are - Enya

If I could be close beside you, If I could be where you are, If I could reach out and touch you, And bring you back home, Is there a way I can find you, Is there a sign I should know, Is there a road I can follow, To bring you back home to me

If I Lost You - Travis Tritt (Chapter: 36)

Like a ship with no harbor, Like a bird with no wings, Like a fish out of water, A dreamer without a dream, I have learned about losing, I could lose most anything, But if I lost you, There'd be no sunshine shinin’ through, I don't know what in the world I would do, If I lost you

If The Moon Fell Down - Chase Coy ft Colbie Caillat

I just always wanna have you right here by my side. The future's near but never certain, So please stay here for just tonight. I musta done something right, To deserve you in my life, I musta done something right, Along the way

If The Sun Comes Up - Trace Adkins

I believe you’ll watch the sunrise, With me for years to come, But if it turns out this morning’s our last one, Baby, Go on living, Don’t stop loving, Please find something you can put your heart into, And if the sun comes up, without me tomorrow, You’ll be fine, Just let it shine, On you

If We Hold On Together - Diana Ross

If we hold on together, I know our dreams will never die, Dreams see us through to forever, Where clouds roll by, For you and I

I Knew This Would Be Love - Imaginary Future ft. Kina Grannis

There were days when I thought I'd lost you, I read the letter aloud, what could I do? Now, we're right back where we belong, Don't second guess your heart, it's never wrong

I’ll Be - Edwin McCain

And I've dropped out, I've burned up, I've fought my way back from the dead, I've tuned in, turned on, remembered the things that you said, I'll be your crying shoulder, I'll be love's suicide, I'll be better when I'm older, I'll be the greatest fan of your life

I’ll Be Seeing You - Billie Holiday

I'll be seeing you, In all the old familiar places, That this heart of mine embraces

I’ll Be There - Westlife

I'll be there to comfort you, I'll build my world and dreams around you, So glad that I found you, I'll be there with love that's strong, I'll be your strength, I'll keep holding on and on and on, Oh yes I will

I’ll Be Your Strength - The Wanted

This is not gonna last forever, It’s that time when you must hold on. And I won’t let you surrender, And I’ll heal you if you’re broken.

I’ll Fight - Daughtry

But if you ever fall down straight to the bottom, And you can't get back where you started, With no strength to stand, I'm gonna reach for your hand, When the going gets rough right when it's hurting, I will be there to help bear the burden, Any place any time, You gotta know for you I'll fight, (Ooh ooh, ooh ooh), Any place any time, You gotta know for you I'll fight

I’ll Never Say Goodbye - Barbra Streisand

When I say always, I mean forever, I trust tomorrow as much as today, I'm not afraid to say I love you, And I promise you I'll never say goodbye

I’ll Stand By You - The Pretenders

I'll stand by you, I'll stand by you, Won't let nobody hurt you, I'll stand by you, Take me in, into your darkest hour, And I'll never desert you, I'll stand by you 

I’m Falling For You - Chester See

But I don't know how long I can stick around and be, just another friend time and time again and hold my tongue. I don't know how long before it breaks me down inside, and all my strength has gone away, and it's too late before I say, I'm falling for you, I'm falling for you, I'm torn between the chance for everything and a price that I can't pay, losing you is something that I'd never chose so I'll just have to wait, but it kills me everyday

I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) - Sleeping At Last

And when I'm lonely, well I know I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be the man who's lonely without you. And if I grow old, well I know I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be the man who's growing old with you.

In Your Arms - Kina Grannis

Anything we have known, anything we've forgotten, In the rain, in the dark we'll lay, In your arms, in your arms I'll stay, Follow me, We both know the way, It's always been the same

In Your Arms Again - George Canyon/Crystal Shawanda

Oh, whatever I may have to do, Nothing’s gonna stop me, coming back to you, Every stolen moment, washed away, I want all these troubles far behind us, Better days to come and find us, I just wanna be in your arms again, I just wanna be in your arms, again.

I Wanna Grow Old With You - Westlife

The time we spent apart will make our love grow stronger, But it hurt so bad I can't take it any longer , I wanna grow old with you, I wanna die lying in your arms, I wanna grow old with you,I wanna be looking in your eyes, I wanna be there for you, Sharing everything you do, I wanna grow old with you, A thousand miles between us now, It causes me to wonder how, Our love tonight remains so strong, It makes our risk right all along

I Want You - Tom Waits

All I want is you, Give you the stars above, Sun on the brightest day, Give you all my love, if you would only say, I want you

I Will Love You - David Myles

When we’re close, when we’re far, Over the mountains, under the stars, I will love you, I will love you, I will love you

Just A Dream - Carrie Underwood

Baby why'd you leave me, Why'd you have to go? I was counting on forever, now I'll never know, I can't even breathe, It's like I'm looking from a distance, Standing in the background, Everybody's saying, he's not coming home now, This can't be happening to me, This is just a dream

Just Fishin’ - Trace Adkins

I say, “Daddy loves you, baby” one more time, She says, “I know. I think I got a bite.”, And all this laughin’, cryin, smilin’ dyin’ here inside’s, What I call, livin’, And she thinks we’re just fishin’ on the riverside, Throwin’ back what we could fry, Drownin’ worms and killin’ time, Nothin’ too ambitious, She ain’t even thinkin’ ‘bout, What’s really goin’ on right now, But I guarantee this memory’s a big’in, And she thinks we’re just fishin’

Kiss Me - The Fray

Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight, Lead me out on the moonlit floor, Lift your open hand, Strike up the band and make the fireflies, Dance silver moon’s sparkling, so kiss me

Knocking On Heaven’s Door - Guns ‘N’ Roses

Mama put my guns in the ground, I can't shoot them anymore, That cold black cloud is comin' down, Feels like I'm knockin' on heaven's door

Last Mile Of The Way - Westlife

Like day turns to night, Stone turns to dust (yeah), Like life becomes memories, Steel becomes rust, Pain's just a lesson learned, We'll look back one day, And I'll take you with me, To the last mile of the way

Lay Me Down - Sam Smith ft John Legend

Your touch, your skin, Where do I begin? No words can explain, The way I'm missing you, Deny this emptiness, This hole that I'm inside, These tears, They tell their own story, Told me not to cry when you were gone, But the feeling's overwhelming, it's much too strong, Can I lay by your side? Next to you, you, And make sure you're alright, I'll take care of you, I don't want to be here if I can't be with you tonight

Letters From The Sky - Civil Twilight

That you and I were made for this, I was made to taste your kiss, We were made to never fall away, Never fall away, One of these days letters are gonna fall, From the sky telling us all to go free, But until that day I'll find a way, To let everybody know that you're coming back, You're coming back for me

Light - Sleeping At Last

I’ll give you everything I have. I’ll teach you everything I know. I promise I’ll do better. I will always hold you close, But I will learn to let you go. I promise I’ll do better. I will soften every edge, I’ll hold the world to its best, And I’ll do better. With every heartbeat I have left, I will defend your every breath, And I’ll do better.

Lighthouse - Westlife

This kind of love, Is more than a feeling, For a man who really cried, I get all choked up each time, You say you love me, You could've walked away, Could've give my problems back, Could've left, You took the chance

Like A Wrecking Ball - Eric Church

That whole house is gonna be shakin', I hope those bricks and boards can take it, But I won't be surprised, If the whole damn place just falls, Wanna rock you baby like a wrecking ball, And that old house is gonna be shakin', Rafter rockin', foundation quakin', Crash right through the front door, Back you up against the wall, Love you baby, Take it right there baby, Rock you baby like a wrecking ball

Lost Without Your Love - Amy Pearson

I count the days now where apart, And each hangs heavy on my heart, I know it has to be this way, Tomorrow happens gone away

Love - Nancy Adams (Chapter: Final Epilogue)

Once we watched a lazy world go by, Now the days seem to fly, Life is brief but when it's gone, Love goes on and on

Love Is A Song - Donald Novis

Love is a song that never ends, Life may be swift and fleeting, Hope may die, yet love's beautiful music, Comes each day like the dawn

Love Lives On - Mallary Hope (Chapter: 133)

She comes with me on your birthday, little flowers in her hands, she’s always known there’s something missing, but too young to understand, and someday she’s going to ask me, what kind of man you were, I’ll tell her all the ways I loved you, and all of you I see in her

Love Me Tender - Elvis Presley

Love me tender, love me sweet, never let me go. You have made my life complete, and I love you so. 

Lover Lay Down - Dave Matthews Band

By my lover's side, Together share this smile, Each other's tears to cry, Together share this smile, Lover lay down

Love Takes Two - Westlife

Love takes two, Time after time we've talked it through, Cause baby, I need you, What am I supposed to do, When your words could disguise what you're going through, But they can't fool your heart, Now it's time to decide what you wanna do,  I'm telling you

Lucky Ones - Faber Drive

We're the lucky ones, We are the lucky ones, Going strong and it's getting better, You're still the one I'm dreaming of 

Make Me Yours - Beth Crowley (Chapter: 2)

I've said too much but I have got to get this out, Don't blame the timing, 'Cause the only time is now, And if we're done we'll go our separate ways, And say goodbye, But I think we'll both have our regrets if we do not give this a try, This push and pull, Aren't you tired of running, Making me feel like I'm the fool, And this back and forth, Is stopping tonight 'cause I'm standing here telling you, Make me yours

Me And You - Kenny Chesney

Everyday I live, Try my best to give, All I have to you, Thank the stars above, That we share this love, Me and you

Mess Is Mine - Vance Joy

You're the reason that I feel so strong, The reason that I'm hanging on, You know you gave me all the time, Or did I give enough of mine?

More Than Anyone - Gavin DeGraw

I'm going to love you more than anyone, I'm going to hold you closer than before, And when I kiss your soul, your body'll be free, I'll be free for you anytime, I'm going to love you more than anyone, Free for you, whenever you need, We'll be free together baby, Free together baby

More Than Anyone Deserves - LeAnn Rimes

Cause I love longer and wider, Deeper and higher, Cause I've been loved, More than anyone deserves, If tomorrow for some reason, Somehow I could not hear, In silence there'd be music, Of a love that's always here

My Heart Belongs To You - Hayley Westenra

Hold me, touch me, Let the love come rushing through me, I’m yours with every breathe I take, Forever and ever, Hold on to love, Cause deep down that’s what we’re made of, Never let go for my heart’s sake, Cause my heart belongs to you, Don’t give up but just give in, I will always be here waiting for you, Love will see us through

My Heart With You - The Rescues

A tattered photograph my pocket holds, I keep you secretly. I've studied every line. You're etched upon my mind, for not a million soldiers could take you from me. My love, the reason I survive, trust we'll be together soon. Should our fire turn to dark, take my heart with you.

My Love - Westlife

To hold you in my arms, To promise you my love, To tell you from the heart, You're all I'm thinking of, Reaching for the love that seems so far, So I say a little prayer, And hope my dreams will take me there, Where the skies are blue, to see you once again... my love, Overseas from coast to coast, to find the place I love the most, Where the fields are green, to see you once again... my love.

Mystery - Brooke Fraser

Your love endures forever, Your love changes me, Your love makes me whole, makes me better, Your love endures

Never Gone - Backstreet Boys

Never gone, never far, In my heart is where you are, Always close, everyday, Every step along the way, Even though for now we've gotta say goodbye, I know you will be forever in my life, Never gone, No no no, I walk alone these empty streets, There is not a second you're not here with me, The love you gave, the grace you've shown, Will always give me strength and be my cornerstone

Never Gonna Let You Go - The JaneDear Girls

I'm never gonna let you go, I'm never gonna let you walk away, There's not an inch of me that you don't know, I'm never gonna let you go

Never Make You Cry - Eric Clapton

I'll never ever make you cry. I'll never ever say goodbye. Can't you see it in my eyes? I'm yours until the day I die.

Never My Love - The Association

You say you fear I'll change my mind, And I won't require you, Never my love, Never my love, How can you think love will end, When I've asked you to spend your whole life, With me

Never Say Goodbye - Bon Jovi (Title Song)

We danced so close, We danced so slow, And I swore I'd never let you go, Together - forever, Never say goodbye, never say goodbye, You and me and my old friends, Hoping it would never end, Say goodbye, never say goodbye, Holdin' on - we got to try. Holdin' on to never say goodbye

Nobody But You - Gloriana

Steal my soul, steal my kiss, Rock and roll, I can't resist, No, I just wanna dance with you, Take my hand, blow my mind, Do it to me every time, No, and not a moment to soon

Nobody Without You - Nikola Sarcevic

'Cause you're my sunshine, To keep me warm,You're my shelter and my hideout, In rainy days and storm. You're my laugh-line, make me feel new. You give the only love I know, I'm nobody without you. 

No Matter Where You Are - Us The Duo

I'll take care of you, and love you just because, You and I are better than forever, Nothing can stop us, I won't let you fall, I won't let you go, No matter where you are, No matter where you are, I'll be there

No Place That Far - Westlife

If I had to run, If I had to crawl, If I had to swim a hundred rivers, Just to climb a thousand walls, Always know that I would find a way, To get to where you are, There's no place that far, It wouldn't matter why we're apart, Lonely months, two stubborn hearts, Nothing short of God above, Could turn me away from your love, I need you that much

Ocean Wide - The Afters

If love is an ocean wide, We'll swim in the tears we cry, They'll see us through to the other side, We're gonna make it, When love is a raging sea, You can hold on to me, We'll find a way tonight, Love is an ocean wide

Oh, It Is Love - Hellogoodbye

Oh, dear, It's been hardly three days, And I'm longing to feel your embrace, There are several days, Until I can see your sweet face, Oh say, wouldn't you like to be older and married with me? Oh say, wouldn't it be nice to know right now that we'll be,  Someday holding hands in the end, All our broken plans will have been, I will kiss you soft so you know

One Safe Place - Marc Cohn

Life is trial by fire, And love's the sweetest taste, And I pray it lifts us higher, To one safe place

Only Of You - Green Day

I wish I could tell you, But the words would come out wrong, Oh if you only knew, The way I felt for so long, I know that we're worlds apart, But I just don't seem to care, These feelings in my heart, Only with you I want to share

Parallel Lives - Azizah Rowen

I see you here, You are my dream, The end is near, But time will tell, The leaves have fallen, I could be whole if you were with me, oh, Time will tell

Please Stay - Warren Zevon (Chapter: 138)

Don't leave me here, When so many things so hard to see are clear, I need you near to me, Will you stay with me to the end? When there's nothing left, But you and me and the wind, We'll never know till we try, To find the other side of goodbye

P.S. I Love You - The Beatles (Chapter: 139)

As I write this letter, Send my love to you, Remember that I'll always, Be in love with you, Treasure these few words till we're together, Keep all my love forever, P.S. I love you

Remind Me - Conrad Sewell

When I think about love, you are right beside me, I think about us, you will always find me, When my heart is lost, I know that you'll guide me, I think about all the little things that still remind me

Rest Of My Life - Michelle Featherstone

I don't want to leave, I don't want to be one night, Or one day. So I'll stay the rest of my life, How 'bout that, Waking up every morning with me. Spend our time drinking coffee, Speaking softly as the days go by.

Roses And Violets - Alexander Jean

Days are getting longer, The nights are feeling colder, When we are not together, I'm falling apart, 'Cause all I want is you, And all I need is you, Baby, you may be somewhere else too far from me, Come home soon

Running - James Bay

When the lights are faded to black, Only stars are guiding me back, I'll keep running, To the place where I belong, When you think you're on your own, I'm still coming home, When you think you're on your own, I'm still coming home

Sacred - Victoria Banks

This is no ordinary love, angels are watching over us, nothing on earth is strong enough to shake it, it’s sacred 

Safest Place To Hide - Backstreet Boys

I know I promised you forever, Is there no stronger word I can use, To reassure you when the storm is raging outside, You're my safest place to hide

Saturdays In September - The JaneDear Girls

And those up all night Friday nights, phone calls and our goodbyes, Reading and writing love letters, It's hard to sleep in between thinking 'bout you. And me dreaming of being together on Saturdays 

Say Goodnight - The Click Five (Chapter: 21)

Baby just say goodnight, I'll be gone tomorrow, Baby just close your eyes, I can't take the sorrow, Baby just walk away. You know I can't stay, There's no easy way to say goodbye, So baby just say goodnight

Say Something - A Great Big World ft. Christina Aguilera (Chapter: 105)

Say something, I'm giving up on you, I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you, Anywhere I would've followed you, Say something, I'm giving up on you, And I will swallow my pride, You're the one that I love, And I'm saying goodbye

Say You Love Me - Steve Grand

What if I say you love me? Could I make it true? We could build us something, That would mean something to you, Cause when I close my eyes, I'm in this world where you don't have a girl, And I'm right by your side, Say you love me, It don't mean that I'll ever have you, Oh, no 

Say You Won’t Let Go - James Arthur

When you looked over your shoulder, For a minute, I forget that I'm older, I wanna dance with you right now, Oh, and you look as beautiful as ever, And I swear that everyday you'll get better, You make me feel this way somehow

See You Again - Carrie Underwood

I can hear those echoes in the wind at night, Calling me back in time, Back to you, In a place far away, Where the water meets the sky, The thought of it makes me smile, You are my tomorrow, I will see you again, whoa, This is not where it ends, I will carry you with me, oh, 'Til I see you again, Sometimes I feel my heart is breaking, But I stay strong and I hold on cause I know

Singing Forever - Westlife

You took my hand, long ago, And you've been by my side always, I didn't know where to go, You showed me the way, Ohhh.. who knows what the future holds? Ohhh.. we'll never know

Soldier - Gavin DeGraw

I'll get it if you need it, I'll search if you don't see it, You're thirsty, I'll be rain, You get hurt, I'll take your pain, I know you don't believe it, But I said it and I still mean it, When you heard what I told you, When you get worried, I'll be your soldier.

Soldier - High Valley

Hey hey hey, I'll be coming home to you, You're the burning fire that my heart is beating to, You're like red, white, blue, I'd do it all for you, I'd fight a war and win it; you make me bulletproof, I'll be your soldier

Soldier On - Richard Hawley

As the stars they slowly die, Thunder cracks across the sky, These are the words I've longed to say: Be with me, my love, always, But no our moonlit silhouettes they part and fade, I'm left with a loneliness that has no name, For so long, For so long, I'll soldier on

Song For A Friend - Jason Mraz

As long as you got me, And I got you, You know we'll got a lot to go around, I'll be your friend, Your other brother, Another love to come and comfort you, And I'll keep reminding, If it's the only thing I ever do, I will always love, I will always love you, Yes you

Stand By You - Rachel Platten

Even if we're breaking down, we can find a way to break through, Even if we can't find heaven, I'll walk through Hell with you, Love, you're not alone, cause I'm gonna stand by you, Even if we can't find heaven, I'm gonna stand by you, Even if we can't find heaven, I'll walk through Hell with you, Love, you're not alone, cause I'm gonna stand by you

Start Saving Me - Mike Corrado

Forget the world, start saving me, I'm holding on, I can barely breath, So come on home and rescue me, Save me, I can feel myself breaking down, Piece by piece, Another phone call, My fingers crossed, Come on rescue me, You're half a world away, I'm holding on to faith, But there's only so much, I can take

Stay - Hurts (Chapter: 138)

My whole life waiting for the right time, To tell you how I feel. Know I try to tell you that I need you. Here I am without you. I feel so lost but what can I do? 'Cause I know this love seems real, But I don't know how to feel. We say goodbye in the pouring rain, And I break down as you walk away. Stay, stay. 'Cause all my life I've felt this way, But I could never find the words to say, Stay, stay.

Stay Just A Little - Kina Grannis (Chapter: 138)

It kills me as I lay awake at night, Remembering the last kiss that we shared doesn't feel right, Is it impossible for me to win this fight? Keep you a little longer in my life, Would you stay just a little, my love?

Still Here - Digital Daggers

Every night, I dream you're still here.The ghost by my side, so perfectly clear. When I awake, you'll disappear, Back to the shadows, With all I hold dear. With all I hold dear. I dream you're still here. I dream you're still here.

Still On The Line - Tim McGraw

I just called to hear you breathing, Your last words before you're sleeping, I can't sleep without your body next to mine, Yeah, I know I'm always leaving, Breaking your heart, breaking even, I'm just a number in the middle of the night, But, I'm still on the line, I'm still on the line, I'm still on the line

Surround You - Echosmith

Where ever you are, When ever you need me, Just crawl in my arms, Oh and I'll hold you beside me, I want my love to surround you, I want my love to surround you, And I'll just sing it out, I want my love to surround you

Tangled Up In You - Aaron Lewis

You're the fire That warms me when I'm cold, You're the hand I have to hold as I grow old. You're the shore When I am lost at sea, You're the only thing That I like about me.

That’s How I Like It - Doc Walker

You're mine, you're mine, And that's how I like it, I'm yours, I'm yours, And nobody else's, You're mine, you're mine, You hit me, I felt it, I'm yours, I'm yours, And that's how I like it

The Best Is Yet To Come - Us And Our Daughters

Here's to today, Here's to tomorrow, Here's to our love, From which we will borrow, Here's to forever, To you and to me, Here's to tastin' last time, Cause the best is yet to come 

The Best Of Me - Josh Kelley

I got demons all around me, I hear them whisper in the night, Trying to break me down, but they ain't got a prayer, With this angel by my side, They can't get the best of me, The best of me, the best of me, Can't get the best of me, The best of me, the best of me, Cause I got you, cause I got you

The Last Goodbye - Lara Fabian

So just, Close the door, Let nobody else in our head, Close the door, We can lay right here in our bed, 'Cause anything else is wasting time, You're all I've wanted, All of my life, Just let me grow old, Here by your side, Until the end of time, Till the last goodbye

The Promise - Tracy Chapman

Remembering, Your touch, Your kiss, Your warm embrace, I'll find my way back to you, If you'll be waiting, I've longed for you, And I have desired, To see your face your smile, To be with you wherever you are

There By Your Side - The Milk Carton Kids

I wanted to be there, I wanted to find, I wanted to be fair, I wanted to go there by your side, I wanted to be there, I wanted to find, I wanted to tell you, I wanted to tell you, Goodbye

Thinking Out Loud - Ed Sheeran

And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70, And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23, And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways, Maybe just the touch of a hand, Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day, And I just wanna tell you I am

This Is What It Takes - Shawn Mendes

And if this is what it takes, Then let me be the one to bear the pain. Oh if this is what it takes, I'll break down these walls that are in our way, 'Cause if you don't understand yet, Then I'll never let you forget, That you don't have to do this on your own. I'll be your shoulder to lean on. I'll be your right when you feel wrong. So come on, take my hand, we're moving on.

Through The Years - Kenny Rogers

Through the years, You've never let me down, You turned my life around, The sweetest days I've found, I've found with you, Through the years, It's better everyday, You've kissed my tears away, As long as it's okay, I'll stay with you, Through the years

To Be Loved - Westlife

And you move me with ease, And you rescue me time after time, Oh Oh you give your all, And you take it all in your stride, Oh with all the power of a symphony, That's how my heart beats when you're holding me

I can't conceal, this is how it feels, To be loved by you, Oh yeah, to be loved by you, If everybody knows, it's only 'cause it shows, Because I take your love, Everywhere I go

To The Moon And Back - Luke Bryan

Through the bitter and the sweet, The cold and the fire, Lonely cotton sheets, And the burning desire, Until our song is over, Til the stars all fade to black, I'm gonna love you, To the ends of the Earth, To the moon and back, Yeah, I'm gonna love you, All the way to the moon and back, To the moon and back

Touch - Troye Sivan

Night is young and we're living, Hands move, moving steady, And the time is moving slower, I can feel we're getting closer, closer, Standing in the eye of the storm, My eyes start to roam, To the curl of your lips, In the center of eclipse, In total darkness I, I reach out and touch

Two Soldiers Coming Home - Lori McKenna (Chapter: 141)

When that plane landed, We watched one soldier leave, But the second soldier we never got to see, An army band was playing, By a long black limousine, Two soldiers coming home, Returning to their families, They've been away from the so long, There's gonna to be some flags waving, And some tear stained faces, Oh the journey’s over for two soldiers, Coming home

Unforgettable - Natalie Cole ft Nat King Cole

Unforgettable, that's what you are, Unforgettable, though near or far, Like a song of love that clings to me, How the thought of you does things to me, Never before has someone been more, Unforgettable in every way, And forevermore (and forevermore), That's how you'll stay (that's how you'll stay), That's why darling, it's incredible, That someone so unforgettable, Thinks that I am unforgettable too

Us Against The World - Westlife (Chapter: 43)

Cause it's us against the world, You and me against them all, If you listen to these words, Know that we are standing tall, I don't ever see the day that, I won't catch you when you fall, Cause it's us against the world tonight, We’re not gonna break, Cause we both still believe, We know what we’ve got, And we’ve got what we need all right, We’re doing something right...

What If I Kissed You - Temecula Road

Your eyes, Been dancing to the dashboard, And landing on the floorboard, It's cute when you're nervous, Your hands, Reaching for the dial, Been static for a while, But I don't think you noticed, No, what if I just closed my eyes, What if I lean in first 

When I Fall In Love - Westlife

When I give my heart, I give it completely, Or I'll never give my heart, And the moment I can feel that you feel that way too, Is when I fall in love with you

When I Look To The Sky - Train

Cause when I look to the sky something tells me you're here with me, And you make everything alright, And when I feel like I'm lost something tells me you're here with me, And I can always find my way when you are here

When I See You Smile - Bad English

'Cause sometimes it seems like this world's closing in on me, And there's no way of breaking free, And then I see you reach for me, Sometimes I wanna give up, wanna give in, I wanna quit the fight, And then I see you baby, And everything's alright, everything's alright

When The Darkness Comes - Colbie Caillat

I'll be here waiting, Hoping, praying that, This light will guide you home, When you're feeling lost I'll leave my love, Hidden in the sun, For when the darkness comes

When The World Stops Spinning - Kyler England (Chapter: 138)

And the world stops spinning, When the terra firma quakes, When the oceans tidal wave, I would rather die than to ever say goodbye, To you my love, to you my love, I will let you go when the world stops spinning, I will let you go when the world stops spinning, I will let you go when the sun and the stars explode

When You Got A Good Thing - Lady Antebellum

So baby, hold on tight, Don't let go, Hold onto the love we're making, Cause baby when the ground starts shakin’, You gotta know when you've got a good thing

When You Say - Jamestown Story ft. Michelle Rene

I give you my heart to have and to hold, in sickness and health, when we grow old, and if we get lost we'll find our way home, you don't have to worry anymore, I've been waiting for this moment and as long as I'm alive I promise, I'll be here for you when you say "I do"

Where Does The Time Go - A Great Big World

Where does the time go? I don't want this to end, Where does the time go? Let's hang on to the moment we're in, Of all the things we will remember, The good, the bad, and all the blessings in disguise, Today will stick with me forever, Even if we have to say goodbye

Wherever You Will Go - The Calling

If I could, then I would, I'll go wherever you will go, Way up high or down low, I'll go wherever you will go, And maybe, I'll find out, The way to make it back someday, To watch you, to guide you, Through the darkest of your days

Where We Belong - Thriving Ivory

Hold on we're gonna make it if it takes all night, Hearts racing like a rocket at the speed of light, Don't fight it we've been running for far too long, We're going back where we belong, So hold on we got our wings and we're chasing the wind, Farewell to all the places that we have been, And if it takes us all night long, We're going back where we belong

Wild Thing - The Runaways (Chapter: 20)

Wild thing, You make my heart sing, You make everything, Come on, wild thing

Without You - My Darkest Days

If I had my way, I'd spend every day right by your side, And if I could stop time, Believe me I'd try for you and I, And each moment you're gone, Is a moment too long in my life, So stay right here, right now, 'Cause without you I'm a disaster, (The moment you go), And you're my ever after, (Just thought you should know), 'Cause I need to know your answer, (Just say you'll stay with me), I want you to say you're gonna stay with me, (Just say you'll stay with me), I die every day that you're away from me

Worth It - Francesca Battistelli

Love can hear you, Love can heal you, If you let it inside, Oh, remember now, Love's not easy, But it's worth it

Written In The Stars - Westlife

I wasn't meant to love like this, Not without you, ‘Cause when I look at my life, How the pieces fall into place, It just wouldn't rhyme without you, When I see how my path. Seem to end up before your face. The state of my heart, The place where we are, Was written in the stars

You - Keaton Henson

If you must leave, Leave as though fire burns under your feet, If you must speak,Speak every word as though it were unique, If you must die, sweetheart, Die knowing your life was my life's best part, And if you must die, Remember your life

You And Me Song - The Wannadies

Then we watch TV, Until we fall asleep, Not every exciting, But it's you and me, And we'll always be together

You Are The First, My Last, My Everything - Barry White

The first, my last, my everything, And the answer to all my dreams, You're my sun, my moon, my guiding star, My kind of wonderful, that's what you are

You Bring Me Home - Brandon Chandler

And I'm almost in your arms, Just a little too far, You bring me home, You bring me home, And I'm almost in your arms, But I'm just a little too far, Please, please, please don't be sad, I know I've been gone for way too long

You’ll Be In My Heart - Phil Collins

Oh, you'll be in my heart (you'll be here in my heart), No matter what they say (I'll be with you), You'll be here in my heart (I'll be there), always, Always, I'll be with you, I'll be there for you always, Always and always, Just look over your shoulder, Just look over your shoulder, Just look over your shoulder, I'll be there always.

You’ll Be Okay - A Great Big World

'Cause you're never alone, I will always be there, You just carry on, You will understand, You'll be okay, You'll be okay, Just look inside, You know the way

You’re My Best Friend - Queen

You're the best friend, That I ever had, I've been with you such a long time, You're my sunshine, And I want you to know, That my feelings are true, I really love you, You're my best friend, Ooh, you make me live

Yours - Ella Henderson

And I would fight my strength to untape my mouth, When I used to be afraid of the words, But with you I’ve learnt just to let it out, Now my heart is ready to burst, Cause I, I feel like I’m ready for love, And I, wanna be your everything and more, And I know every day I say it, But I just want you to be sure, That I am yours

You Should Be Here - Cole Swindell

You should be here, standing with your arm around me here. Cutting up, cracking a cold beer, saying cheers, hey y'all it's sure been a good year. It's one of those moments, that's got your name written all over it. And you know that if I had just one wish it'd be that you didn't have to miss this. Aw you should be here.

[dw-writes]

Factual Mythology - The Second Tale

Hello everyone! :D Welcome to the second installment of this series! Just a heads up for how the story timeline works. The present timeline, with Allen telling the story, will pick up where the previous story left off. There won’t be any time skip in Allen telling the story. All of his narration takes place in the Science Division while everyone is on a break from moving.

The story with you, the mermaid, however, jumps a week between every chapter, just like with the other series that I have posted to this account! I hope that makes sense?? :D

ANYWAY!! Enough talk, here is the second tale!

The First Tale

Lenalee fell back onto the floor, kicking her feet into the air. One of her shoes dangled dangerously from her toes. “So you found a mermaid,” she repeated to the ceiling. She heard Allen move around until he was lying shoulder to shoulder with her, staring up at the dome of the room they occupied. Beyond the skyscrapers of boxes around them was the chipped and faded night sky someone had painted on the stone many years ago. The stars were mostly in silver, with various stars glittering in red and golds and blues. Allen would have believed that the dome was gem encrusted. He would hate to leave all that behind with the move.

“Does the sky really look like that out there?” Lenalee asked quietly. Allen glanced over at her. “I’ve never paid attention,” she confessed, “To the night sky. I’ve always been afraid of where I’m gonna land.” Her voice was soft and distant.

Allen returned his gaze to the ceiling. “It is,” he answered.

“In the dead of night, out on the water, the ocean and the sky look like they’re one and the same.

I remember when we left the ship. It took almost a week to arrive at the first port, and Master wasn’t kidding when he said we were leaving with you at the first opportunity. The port was abandoned in a fishing village. Rotting fishing boats were half sunk on the shore and frayed ropes were hanging from planks. The captain shouted obscenities after Master and I as we left the ship. Our suitcases and jackets were heavy with money I had swindled from the crew. I carried them while Master carried you in his arms. You had your arms wrapped around his neck as he walked, staring back at the open water behind him.

“We won’t be able to let you go anywhere near here,” Master said in your ear. “They’ll stick around, wait to find you. Is that alright?”

“What are we gonna do?” I asked.

“Stay here,” he answered. He wasn’t nearly as nice in his response to me. You glanced up at him.

“No one is here,” you whispered. You cleared your throat. “No one has been here in a very long time.”

“So you know English,” Master pointed out. The look you gave him was annoyed this time. I smothered a snort.

“I know many things,” you responded. Your eyes left his face and focused on your tail. What little was exposed was drying and the scales had lost their rainbow sheen with the disappearance of the sun. The rest was covered with a tarp. “I know it gets cold here after dusk,” you said slowly.

Master snapped his fingers at me, motioning to the first intact home nearby. It might have been the only one still standing in the town; most were a mess of fallen walls and rotting wood and everything smelled like salt water. I stepped over a neatly sawed log lying on its side in front of the house like a bench and pressed my shoulder against the door. It was locked. I tried again as I heard Master walking up the trail behind me. He grunted an order to move and I jumped aside.

His boot crashed against the door. It flew inward, rotting wood splintering. Irritation must have been eating away at him. It could have been from the cold, from the wet, from me, or from the fact that he had you wrapped in a drenched tarp in his arms; so, most likely, from the cold and the wet. I repressed a sigh. I was going to get the brunt of that annoyance the longer we stayed here.

Master’s vision had always been incredibly sharp. He could see through the darkness of the shack and set you gingerly on a water stained mattress. You patted the material with your hands. “You two need fire,” you pointed out, “if we are to stay here through the night.”

“Us two?” Master inquired. He struck a match against the dry side of his boot to light a crumpled cigarette. It barely touched the walls of the shack. It was only one room.

You nodded and tilted your head to the side. Your uncut hair fell over your shoulders. It was dry and brittle from your time in the water. “Home is much, much colder than it has ever been on land,” you said. You shrugged and straightened and stared at the wall next to you. “Or so I’ve been told.” You leaned across the mattress to brush your hand against the wood. It must have been soft from exposure. You rubbed your fingers together.

“Boy.” Master’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked up at him. He was watching you. “Go find some candles in the rubble. And clothes.” He turned his head. I could barely see the white of his mask. “Any kind.”

The biting cold of the next breeze off the sea prompted me to run.”

Allen sighed. Lenalee was leaning against his shoulder, staring up at the gems that sparkled in the stone ceiling high above. “What happened next?” she asked.

There was a loud sigh. Bright red hair fell over both Allen’s and Lenalee’s eyes as Lavi fell back, pushing his head between theirs. He stared blankly at the ceiling. “So,” he sang, “What’re we talkin’ about.”

“Mermaids,” Lenalee answered flippantly. “Allen and General Cross found one.”

“Oh yeah cause that’s normal,” Lavi responded. He lifted a small hand with a frustrated sound. “I mean, I’m a damn child so. Mermaids. Totally normal.” Lenalee suppressed a giggle. “Glad they fixed your meowing, Lena,” Lavi grumbled.

“There’s bound to be a cure in one of these boxes,” Allen commented.

Lavi grumbled again. “So. Mermaid, huh?”

“What happened next, Allen?” Lenalee prompted.

Allen laced his fingers across his stomach. “I ran through the village, looking for anything I could that could help. I found a blanket and loaded that with every piece of clothing and candle I could find or that I could carry. The village wasn’t large, and it was so quiet that I could hear you and Master talking clear as day.

“You called him boy,” you said, contempt clear in your voice. “He has a name. It’s Allen.”

“He’s my apprentice. I’ll call him whatever I want to call him,” Master replied. He sounded tired. “What do we call you, anyway?” he asked. There was a series of clicks, louder and more solid than those that a bat would make. Then silence. “If I wanted to travel with a clown, I would have found one by now,” came Master’s sharp retort.

Your laughter that followed was sarcastic and rude. You gave him your name though. “If you wanted it in a way you understood, you should have clarified,” you said.

“You’re articulate, for a fish,” he snapped.

“You’re touchy, for a man,” you replied. There was an irritated growl. “You all but kidnapped me and expect me to be kind?”

“I saved your life.”

“You forced me to trade one death for another.”

“Because being out here, on land, with someone that will make sure that you’re safe, is so much worse than being sold to a circus or slaughtered for the highest bidder.”

I pulled my haul through the door before the argument could escalate. You looked up then. Your hands were threading through your hair, pulling broken pieces away in handfuls. Master was grinding down on the filter of his cigarette. “I have candles,” I said, “and clothes. As much as I could find.”

Master yanked the first thing he could from the pile and threw it at you. “Put this on,” he said with a huff. You caught it as it hit you in the face. It was a shirt, one almost too big for you, but you pulled it on anyway. You peeled the tarp from your tail and stared at it. It was almost completely dry.

“If we move,” you said, “I’ll need something more.” Master glared at you either in frustration, irritation, or exhaustion. Or all three. “Stories say that mermaids gain legs when they come to land. That’s how humans came to be.”

Master snorted as he lit a handful of candles. He warmed the bottoms and stuck them fast against the small dining table in the room. He made quick work of all the candles I had collected. “That’s the story of humans, is it?” he asked.

You arched an eyebrow at him. Your hands were still pulling handfuls of broken strands of hair from your head. “Do you have a better one?”

“I have a more plausible one,” he grumbled. He turned to me and regarded the rest of the things I had gathered. With a sigh, he fell onto the bed next to you. “C’mere, brat,” he said. You made a rude noise and glared at him. I pulled everything I had towards the bed. “If it gets as cold as they say, we’ll need to share warmth.”

“You’ll need to share warmth,” you pointed out. You pushed yourself back against the wall, drawing your tail up to your chest. “I’ll be alright.”

Master spat his crushed filter onto a dry plank of the shack. “Right,” he commented dryly. I took the empty space between them and pulled the fabrics onto the mattress.”

Allen heaved a sigh. “It was a very long night,” he grumbled.

Lavi had the nerve to laugh. It was high pitched and childish, but it was still a mocking laugh. “Oh I bet,” he said. “Sounds like the fish was a real treat.”

“Mermaid!” Lenalee protest. She rolled over to give the child sized Bookman a dirty look. “Be nice, okay!”

He stuck his tongue out at her. Allen sighed again.

[lefandomimagines]

Stranded (Barry Allen X Reader) Part Three

Pairing: Barry Allen x Reader + Team Flash (platonic)

Word Count: 726

Summary: Reader is best friends with Fred and George Weasley and has been for as long as they can remember. They were just going about their normal day at work when something rather peculiar occurred after a certain team Flash member decided to experiment with his powers. (I suck at summaries k sorry.)

Warnings: None as far as I am aware of

A/N: Thank you so much for all the positive response you’ve given to this story, it really does make my day when I see your lovely comments :) { i’m already working on the next chapter and it shall be vv fluffy ;) }

Tag List: @the-fastest-mutant-sith @originah @booknerd424 @tildehassing @yohoyohoafandomlifeforme @inlovewithasa { send me a message if you would like to be added to the list }

PART ONE / PART TWO / PART THREE

Cisco and Barry muttered amongst themselves as if you couldn’t clearly see them looking back at you every ten seconds. There��s no way these muggles would have been able to figure out that you were of magical blood, you thought to yourself. Though you had a small inkling that these people were not all they appeared to be. You knew for a fact that it was not your magic that had brought you to this foreign place, and it certainly did not feel like an infamous ‘Fred and George’ prank. You were snapped out of your thoughts by H.R as he cast away the newspaper he had been reading. “Hey, can I take a look at that?” You questioned “Yeah, I guess so.” He hesitated momentarily before pushing the newspaper in question over to you. Your eyes began to scan the page rapidly in search of even a morsel of information of your whereabouts. 'Central City, Missouri.’ How on Earth had that portal taken you all the way to America? '24th August 2016’ “Two thousand and sixteen?” You gasped, the newspaper dropping from your grip. “Hey, you okay (Y/N)?” Caitlin questioned, concern evident in her tone as you stumbled from your previously seated position onto your feet. You simply waved her off; rushing out of the room, you burst into the smaller room where Barry, Cisco and Julian stood. “You’re not here to punch me again are you?” Julian questioned in clearly very insincere tone. “As much as you deny being him, your resemblance with Malfoy is uncanny. You’re both arrogant tossers.” You shoot back, causing Julian to shut up rather quickly. “Now one of you two better answer my next question really damn honestly or I swear to Merlin you will feel my wrath.” Cisco and Barry looked at you with fear evident in their eyes. “How the hell have you transported me not only to another country but an entirely new time too?” “I don’t think you really want to know the answer to that right now,” Barry replied softly “I think I bloody well do mate” “Yes Ramon, do tell our delightful new friend here what you’ve been up to this morning,” Julian remarked, his words laced with sarcasm. Cisco chuckled awkwardly, “Well, you see, I-uh.” “Spit it out already.” You sighed impatiently. Barry gave Cisco a nod of approval. “I umm, I have powers.” He began “I was experimenting with them earlier to see where I could vibe myself to.” “Vibing is like teleporting,” Barry chipped in, noticing the confused look on your face. “And basically, I tried vibing into my favourite book; I thought it didn’t work, but well…here you are so…” He trailed off sheepishly. “You mean to tell me that I’m from a book?” You laugh incredulously “I have never heard anything so ludicrous.” “He’s not lying,” Barry stated; he stopped for thought momentarily before continuing “We can show you.” So there you stood, a small book held tightly in your shaking hands 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’ Someone had written a book all about your friends! The web page of 'J.K Rowling’ in front of you crushed about half of your explanations for the situation. Your heart seemed to stop as your eyes trailed across the pages of the text you gripped tightly in your hands. “And before you ask, they changed it from the Philosopher’s Stone to the Sorcerer’s Stone for the American copies,” Cisco stated. “Oh my Lord.” You muttered through ragged breaths, there was no way you would be able to apparate or floo your way out of this problem. “Well you vibed me here, can’t you just vibe me back?” You questioned. “Well, we don’t know the risks. Cisco already caused so many disruptions by bringing you here, we can’t risk trying sending you back before we properly understand the situation.” Barry’s words made your heart sink, all you wanted to do was to go home to your best friends. Just when you thought things couldn’t have gotten any worse… “I think we’ve got an even bigger problem.” Julian piped up, handing the book you had just been studying over to Barry “She’s starting to disappear from the book completely.”