#emma jaunt

[incorrect-dead-island-quotes]

Sam: *Kicks the door down looking panicked* Emma: What did you do? Sam: Nobody died. Emma: WHAT KIND OF ANSWER IS THAT?!

[glitxhy-b0yy]

I posted a Dead Island 2 as vines video on YouTube, so anyone who wanted DI2 as vines should go check it out 👀👀 It does have spoilers for the game tho so you'll want to wait until you've finished the game (if you haven't already) before playing it! Also reccomend knowing most if not all of the NPCs since it's there's a *lot* of vines as the NPCs :]

Also here, take a picture of Michael for your travels

[itszombietime]

Emma Jaunt's house

[xbadxjujux]

Getting to hear Andrea beat Emma and Sam with her chancla is just 🎶👂👌💯

[foxcantswim]

There's no content (and I doubt there will be) for Dani/Emma from Dead Island 2.

Both are incredible characters whom I have began to ship as I play through the story.

(I honestly never thought that I would have the biggest crush on Emma omg....)

[thestormthatrises]

Even though Tony is broke in the comics and I think, I pray, I hope from the bottom of my soul that they're just getting married for tax purposes... I really hate this marriage and I echo the sentiments of OP.

The MCU and the tinky stans made me hate him so bad. It doesn't help that Tony now is infected with tiny's small dick energy and every plot line is ruined because he's like radioactive waste at this point... I'm afraid he's gonna get his stank on all the other characters in the comics and those poor guys are gonna get worse by proxy.

Also, their interactions up to this point have been lackluster at best. Didn't Emma have a restraining order against Tony at one point? ANYWAY! Emma is still really into Scott and Tony looks like a low grade pimp in his red suit. byeeee 😘

Just saw someone say emma and tony makes more sense than emma and scott, i might be bias because i hate tony at this point and prefer scott with emma. But the idea of emma being better off with an avenger just because he's a rich douche bag don't sit right with me

[hrrtshape]

MISS EMMA! this method. stunning. show-stopping. no words.. but that's a lie for I have many. I have been using your method throughout the day just randomly and I have been flashing into Forks like legitimately being there. Not shifting until night though, shifting with my eyes open is just so freaky to me.

Tldr; use emma's method cause it clears. Be back in a month <3333

anon !?!?!?!??!!?!?!?!?!?!??! first of all. i want to bite you. second of all. i am shaking you by the shoulders with manic joy. third of all.

forks? FLASHING INTO FORKS? YOU’RE LITERALLY THERE? BABY YOU ARE LIVING IN A STEPHENIE MEYER NOVEL AND I AM CLUTCHING MY PEARLS. do you understand. do you understand how insane that is. like you’re sat in a denny’s or whatever and then BOOM !!!!!!!! ol’ eddie cullen is brooding in the corner, contemplating your vascular system. i love it. i love YOU.

you just went ahead and DID THAT. your brain said forks, washington, here we go and now you’re jaunting through rainy suburbia like a divorced woman in a hallmark movie.

emma’s method clears. you said it. you proved it. i am simply the mad scientist behind the machine. now go forth, my little sparkly vampire, and return in a month with tales from the pacific northwest.

[biohazardousbunnywrites]

Amy x gn!reader headcanons

Being in a relationship with Amy would include.

its mostly story bullet points tbh and not a lot of headcanons. theyre in there it just mostly reads like a bullet point plot plan for a story. i had a lot of ideas.

warnings: nsfw towards the end, angst in the middle and fluff at the beginning.

actual headcanons

calls you baby

tells you everything

youre the only person she can be vulnerable with

kisses you often

pep talks you whenever you're nervous

love language is words of affirmation

wears matching bracelets with you like she wears a matching necklace with her twin

if you wanted to train with her, she'd be so excited, just as long as you could keep up

she'd never force you or keep bringing it up if you said no once.

if you meet pre apocalypse

you met while she was on a run in the park, she stopped to compliment you

you 2 struck up a conversation that ended with exchanged numbers and a date.

you went to her races, she went to everything important to you

your friends said you 2 were sickeningly perfect together

living together in a smallish apartment. between your job and her winnings you 2 live pretty comfortably in long beach.

when the apocalypse happened, you had been out of town bc she asked you to get a hotel room early for the tryouts, she wanted to train more and didnt want to scramble.

angst

the last you heard from her she was going to an evac location then service was cut and you hadn't heard from her since.

you heard about camps being set up for evacuees so you went to the one that her flight was supposed to be going to.

it never came, you heard planes and buses compromised by the infection never made it out.

months went by with no word, slowly excepting the fact she might be gone if she even made it to a shot down plane.

then Emma Jaunt landed in a helicopter in Seattle, far away from Hell-A

reporters swarmed her and sam B with questions about the apocalypse, like how she survived.

she talked about a plane crash, the undead, all kinds of things, tgen she started talking about immune survivors. you couldn't believe it, immune.

you had to tear your eyes away to stop thinking about her until you heard your name. Emma had a message for you from Amy. SHE WAS ALIVE AND IMMUNE. you almost passed out.

"she loves you, and misses you, she will come for you once she handles things in LA"

you cried from everything, every emotion was to the surface.

you'd wait for her knowkmg Amy, once her mind was set, there was no stopping her.

during the same time Amy never stopped thinking about you, the thought of you helping her in some of tge worst moments in Hell-A, not the Paralympics, you. yeah thats what she told everyone so she wouldn't have to focus too much on you.

shes just glad youre safe out of this mess

she'll come to you once Tisha is safe.

angst over

if you met during the apocalypse

you met in the Halperin Hotel, the only survivor trapped in a hotel room after the evac point got overrun.

you had no where to go, you knew that major was alive but she was taunting something. you didnt want to find out what by trying to get to her room.

for the last few hours since the evac point was overrun you sat and listened to her incessant yelling and the loud thumping and roaring that followed.

everytime it passed your door you thought you were next. everytime you heard the growls outside the door you feared they'd break down the door.

luckily they couldn't smell you through the door having been covered in undead blood

then outside your door you heard running, and thuds of bodies dropping, and what sounded like metal on skulls

you got closer to the door and heard a voice " you got this Ames" from what you could tell there was only one person so....nevermind

you called out "hello?"

the person responded "oh hey, where are you?"

in here you banged on your door "is it safe to come out? are they gone?" you asked

"yeah i cleaned out the hall" you heard her voice right outside the door. you pried the door open and came face to face with to a very beautiful woman with to buns in her hair.

you blinked trying to find your words for a second "h-hi, thank you"

"its no problem im on my way to that majors room, any chance you know how to get to the third floor?" she asked "oh im Amy by the way"

"y/n, theres an elevator down the hall but its busted, id suggest the stairs but I think those collapsed"

"thanks, hey listen let me finish doing what i have to do then we can leave together to Emma Jaunts place, theres other survivors there" she said before telling you to go wait for her by the front desk as she's cleared out most of the hotel besides the 3rd floor (ignore the fact zombies respawn for this story)

you do, it doesnt take long for the major to die, hearing it was chilling.

shortly after you hear thudding coming from the elevator. you braced youself but relaxed upon seeing Amy

"one more thing then we can go" she said running to the ballroom

you got closer to the open door feeling nervous

shes immune and you cant help but stare more. then you heard stomping. then a roar. then you saw it.

you looked in horror as this roided out zombie went at Amy, but looked in awe as she fought back.

you had to do something.

other zombies started shuffling in and she was too focused on the bride.

you grabbed the scaffolding pole and started taking out the walkers and shamblers as they appeared.

finally they stopped and the crusher was down.

"thanks for the help, are you ok" amy asked. you nodded watching as she smiled before running to the radio to finish her conversation.

wow, immune to all this. you thought.

soon you were both on your way and you asked her about her immunity and she answered. soon you were both in Emmas house.

it didnt take long for you 2 to fall in love

you didnt want her to go out alone following her even tho she wanted you to stay behind but she couldnt deny you were helpful.

she confessed first after you 2 kill a slobber

most of the time you travel she finds somewhere safe and tells you to stay put

you do for the time being until it feels like hours and go look for her

she gets mad at first but then thankful as you were trying to help and were actually helpful.

she actually grew to love slaying with you

she tells you about lola after their first encounter which you had stayed behind in Emma's place for, she had a bad feeling about taking you with her

once its safe(ish) she gets you and brings you to blue crab then to the sterling where she then tells you to stay as she tries to solve what happened to noah telling you everything when she returns

you follow her all the way to Hollywood boulevard where she has you stay with them while she finishes this

she had to do it alone she insists

she wanted you to leave with Emma and Sam B

if you go she promises to find you, kissing you deeply before watching you leave

if you stay much to her dismay shes actually super ecstatic but it takes her longer to kiss you for the first time.

she promises to get you both out

she loves hanging out with you in one of the many safe houses you 2 made together and filled with survivors you 2 found around Hell-A

after Patton leaves you 2 end up taking his space

you listen to her more often about staying behind after you both watched Amanda turn and she fears you'll be next no matter how careful or capable you are.

she loves to chill watching movies with you when you both need to rest

shows you the zombie guts she finds

it hurts to stay beind but she always comes back.

when the time comes she gives herself her little pep talk and kisses you, after coming back from a particularly rough outing.

your first kiss with her is electric

"i should've done this sooner" she breathes out

nsfw

she doesnt care what position she takes she just wants to touch you

makes it competitive

"whoever makes the other cum more wins"

then she overstimulates you

has a lot of stamina so you better keep up

if you need a break thats fine

doesn't really have much kinks but loves praise

praising, being praised it doesn't matter she just loves it in that setting

loves it when you worship her abs. lick em, kiss em, mark em, ride em she loves it all

an: took me awhile to write but was suddenly struck with inspiration hence why its a lot and a mess and full of plot points instead of actual headcanons lol doing Dani next

[thishadoscarbuzz]

318 - My Policeman

As is our Thanksgiving week tradition, The Ankler's Katey Rich returns to talk about another film with indistinguishable young actors. In 2022, fans and awards prognosticators were hyped for Harry Styles to make the leap to movies and leading man stardom. Amidst the gossip for Don't Worry Darling, literary adaptation My Policeman loomed, with Styles cast as a man caught in a bisexual love triangle between his wife (Emma Corbin) and the art curator (David Dawson) he secretly loves. The film flashes forward to their older selves as they grapple with the consequences of their actions. All that hype amounted to a film quickly forgotten between its world premiere and its Prime debut.

This episode, we talk about Styles' disappointing and brief jaunt into films including Dunkirk and Eternals. We also talk about DWD Watch 2022, the film's TIFF Acting Tribute honor for its ensemble, and the film's much ballyhooed gay sex scenes.

Topics also include Brokeback Mountain, Emma Corrin's other 2022 contender Lady Chatterley's Lover, and the spit.

The 2022 Academy Awards

Vulture's Movies Fantasy League

Subscribe:

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Apple Podcasts

[incorrect-dead-island-quotes]

Emma, walking into her house: Hello, people who do not live here. The Slayers: Hello! Emma: I gave you the key to my place for emergencies only! Michael: We were out of Doritos.

[gamergirl-06]

Bruno headcanons

I had these headcanon’s in my mind also G/N

How you first met:

-Bruno was doing one of his runs for looting supplies for the survivors back at Emma’s when he heard a call for help.

-Immediately rushed out of the store and seen you getting swarmed by a bunch of those Z’s and so he jumped into action taking down each of them, dodging and weaving hits they threw at him.

-Once he had killed all of them he asked if your were ok and you said yes.

-To be honest, Bruno was taken by you, you were absolutely beautiful/handsome/good looking.

-He introduced himself “I’m Bruno, what’s your name hottie?”.

-you started blushing like crazy but introduced yourself back to him “I’m Y/N”.

-From that point onwards you two became best friends.

When he realised his feelings:

-You had known each other for a little while at this point

-Bruno was actually trying to convince himself that it was just an admiration for you and not a full blown crush.

- He didn’t ever see himself be with someone, he actually told you when he first met you that’s why he stopped answering his Abuela’s calls as she pestered him to find love (and also fix his hair).

-He would tell himself “No, you don’t like her like that…it’s just admiration…”

-When he finally did realise it was an actual crush he kinda..changed around you.

-you noticed the change in his demeanour when you two went out for information in Beverley Hills when you guys passed some Z’s minding their own business, he suddenly pulled you into him and never let go.

-This never happened up until that point so you were a bit confused as to why but you enjoyed it because you actually liked him as well.

-It also did continue to happen but as much as you enjoyed being in close contact with him, you confronted him later on back at Emma’s.

-He refused to answer why he does it, which kinda made you frustrated.

-It turned into a bit of a fight, you asking him what’s wrong and him refusing to give an actual answer.

-you tell him whatever, and leave him in your shared room.

- You tell the others you’re going out for supplies to stock up since you hadn’t needed supplies for at least a few weeks.

-Sam asks to come with you, and you agree, you’re gonna need the help when shit possibly goes south.

He says “I Love You” for the first time:

- A While after you and Sam left to go for supplies, Bruno came downstairs in order to apologize to you.

-When he doesn’t see you, he asks Emma where you are.

-When Emma tells him you and Sam went out for supplies, he panicked.

-A long string of curse words followed soon after with Spanish.

- “Fuck fuck shit FUCKKKK, Soy Una Idiota (I’m such an idiot)”.

-Everyone jumped when the front door slammed open with sam carrying you in his arms, bloody and a bit beaten up.

-The horrified look on Bruno’s could not amount to the pain and guilt he felt.

- He was angry now “What…happened!”

-Sam explained that when you guys were on the way back a crusher crossed your path and as it almost died it knocked you to the ground and you hit your head.

-Tears threatened to fall from his eyes as he watched Sam carry you to you guy’s room and seek medical attention.

-He followed Sam and held your hand as someone treated you and told him you could wake up anytime.

-With tears that stained his cheeks from sobbing he managed a weak smile.

-“I’m so sorry that I was such a dick, I-i just…goddammit I love you so much..I said it…te amo (I love you).

-you stirred slightly but didn’t open your eyes.

-Bruno thought you might have just been restless in your sleep so he got up and left you to sleep more.

-Little did he know, you heard him and you smiled a little “I love you too Bru”

First Kiss:

-A few days after that exchange, you guys were up on the roof of the Jaunt mansion in the late afternoon, watching the beautiful sunset together.

-You turn to him “Hey Bru?

-He turns to you and nods “hmm”.

-Your heart started beating faster, you took a breath before saying it “is it true”.

-He stopped for a sec before answering “What?”.

-“That you love me”.

-He froze…you heard him.

-You suddenly look away, feeling embarrassed that you even bought it up.

-“It is actually” came the reply.

-You didn’t even have time to stop yourself from saying it “I love you too”.

-your face goes red and you go to scramble up from your spot but instantly pulled back down and a finger hooks itself under your chin.

-Bruno looks into your eyes before slowly the gap capturing your lips in his.

-You two spend the rest of the evening cuddled up

-It’s you Two against the world

[itszombietime]

[eleanorandphantom]

For the DR ask game 💙

— 🍏 CRISP GREEN APPLE … what’s a memory from your childhood in your DR that stands out amongst the others? the edges of the picture are crisp, it may not be particularly good or bad—but intricately memorable

— 🍅 SCARLET TOMATO … what’s the juiciest secret you’ve ever kept or will keep in your DR? the kind of scandalous thing that would positively burst into drama if revealed

— 🍊 SUNSET CITRUS ORANGE … what’s your favorite kind of outing to go on in your DR, with your friends, family, or your partner? whether it’s a classy art gallery, a carefree rocky beach, or an urban jaunt to the mall, you know you’ll have a good time every time

{+ if you have an s/o}

— 🍉 JUICY WATERMELON … what’s your favorite thing about your lover in your DR? the way they smell like home, how they make your chest hurt with laughter, how they take care of you. maybe the way their hair falls in their face just so

EEEEEEEK IVE BEEN WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO ASK THIS!!!! Thank you so much!!

I will be answering from my MPHFPC DR self, Eleanor Peregrine :>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. 🍏

The first time I’ve ever created my own loop. The sparks I felt coming from my hands, my wings being in flames, seeing the world spin around me as I floated in the air. The wind whipping around me and then it all stopped. It paused, time paused for me. I looked around the once powerful waves of the Wales ocean, now still as a stone. And once I set my pocket watch back, everything went back to motion. The loop was inside of the already created 1940 loop in Cairnholm, and it spanned a few feet wide, it wasn’t much, but it was my first loop. The intense feelings of pride and excitement and exhilaration flowed through my veins like nothing else. That was the moment I felt how truly powerful I was

2. 🍅

I promised myself to never tell this to Emma, but once Abe left, Miss P would ask me to go outside the loop to check in on him at different points of his life. No normal ever saw me, as normals see me as a mourning Dove while peculiar folk see me in my white-phoenix form. I was there when Abe got married, when Franklin and Susan were born, I watched them grow up. I remember how disappointed Abe was that they weren’t peculiar, but he loved them greatly. I would report back to Miss P after every visit, she loved him as her own son and it made her happy to know he was safe and had his own family. it was years later that I went back to check in on Abe, as Miss P decided it was time to stop meddling and let him move on. But now, I left on my own reasons. I had gone to visit Abe give him hell about not answering Emma’s letters, because the week before I came to visit she had a full mental breakdown because of some shit Enoch said about Abe leaving her behind. She begged me to check in on him and to find any form of consolation. But when I got to Florida, it was 7-year old Jacob who answered the door. I was stunned, I could basically see the peculiarness fuming off of him. I introduced myself as a relative to Abe’s neighbor as to not cause suspicion. I ended up giving Abe hell later that day after hanging out with Jacob for a bit. when I got back to Cairnholm, I couldn’t allow myself to tell Emma about Jacob, after I told Emma about Abe getting married and having kids, she wouldn’t speak for months. Now if she knew he had a grandkid, I couldn’t let that happen again. It would be only until Jacob got to Cairnholm that she found out, and thankfully it went well.

3. 🍊

Of course I’m going to say the hidden part of the beach at Cairnholm. We’ve spend endless hours there, it is our go to place for every hang out, date, or party. We walk the beach twice every day, we go swimming, we practice our peculiarities without worrying there would be normals. It is our sanctuary, where we can be us, and not be confined in the house. We can breathe as we run through the thick forestry to get out to the cold waters.

4. 🍉

(so I made a recent change to my MPHFPC script, as well as the rest of my scripts, that my S/O in all of my DR’s is my boyfriend in my CR)

I’m about to rant a lil bit teehee

THE WAY THIS MAN OH MY LAWD-

He is so sweet and gentle and funny and cute and silly and smart OH MY BIRDS HE IS SO SMART

He looks at me like I am the world in his palm, he kisses me like it’s the last thing he’ll ever do, he holds me so tight that all I can feel is our warmth and our hearts beating. I’ve never felt so much love and affection and mutual respect for another person. I could never choose one favorite part of him, because everything about him is perfect to me. Yet I understand his flaws, his own burdens, his angst, and I accept and love every bit of him. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

thank you so much for the ask, I love answering things about my DRs and it brings me so much motivation ❤️

Happy shifting everyone!!! ♾️

[dantegreaves00]

Whatever it takes

Jacob x Gender Neutral Reader

This is a story for my good friend @brunos-wife360 I hope you enjoy and that you like it.

This was so fun to write.

Request for Dead Island are open I mainly write FtM readers, but I will write for male readers or gender neutral readers.

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

"Hold on tight and when I tell you to jump, jump" Jacob said to me as we held onto the wheel of the evacuation flight. As the plane got higher and higher in the sky I didn't take notice to the wind blowing against my exposed arms, all I was focused on was the feeling of Jacobs arms around my waist keeping my body pressed to his.

"Ok now jump and pull yourself up, I'll make sure you don't fall" Jacob said as he helped me get into the safety of the aircraft. Once we were both in the luggage storage we walked towards the ladder that led to the main seating area.

"Tickets please" said an Irish woman with green hair, "sorry, must have left our tickets in my other jacket" Jacob replied.

"This will do" the woman said as she took Jacobs cigar from his mouth,Jacob scoffed before grabbing my hand and leading me towards a couple of empty seats.

"Hey, breath love, we're safe now" Jacob whispered in my ear as he rubbed his hand on my shoulder.

'His behaviour isn't helping my crush on him' I thought.

Suddenly, we heard a girl scream as a zombie bit into her neck. Chaos erupted as our evacuation flight got shot down and I felt my body being slung from my seat.

●●Time skip●●

Jacob's POV

I woke up to feel a piece of metal stabbing my stomach. Pulling out the cause of my current frustration, I looked around for Y/N, but in my dazed state, I couldn't see them.

"Shit Jay get it together, find a med kit, then look for Y/N" I told myself.

After finding a med kit, I finally exit the crash. As I'm wondering around I can't find any trace of Y/N. It's like they disappeared completely.

Each body I come across I pray that it's not them. Why couldn't I have just told them before now, will I ever get the chance.

In the distance I see a flare go off and my hope of finding Y/N doubles. As I'm making my way towards the flare, I see a person but as I approach they disappear.

Reaching another part of the wrecked plane, I find out who was setting off the flares. It was some jackass who had blood coming from his ears and a destruate celebrity and her lap dog I mean PA.

The next hour goes by in a blur as I have to kill a bunch of zombies only to get bit by one of the people who I was risking my life to save.

●●Time skip●●

I finally make my way to Emma Jaunt's place when I pass out only to wake up hand cuffed to a treadmill. After fighting more zombies and shutting the gate I then decide to make my way to the Halberin Hotel to try and contact the authorities.

●●Time skip●●

Y/N's POV

I've been at the Sterling Hotel for awhile now after being found by a young woman named Tisha. She's alright but for some reason I don't trust her father Dr Reed, he seems like he's up to something, that he knows more than he's letting on.

My thoughts keep drifting to Jacob, is he still alive? Is he trying to find me?

Last time I ventured out to see if I could find him I was bit but somehow I'm immune. I haven't told anyone about it as I don't trust any of them. But Lola, she found me after I was bit and helped me through it. She explained what I am and how to bounce back from hitting rock bottom.

I suddenly hear commotion coming from the entrance, my curiosity gets the better of me and I make my way towards Denise.

What I saw made me gasp. It was Jacob, in all of his devil may cry attitude. Did he get taller or is he just carrying himself differently?

"No way, Y/N, is that you?" He asked as he approached me, I couldn't speak so I just nodded my head. I didn't expect him to come charging at me for a hug.

The hug was tight, both of us seemed to be trying to break the others bones. We didn't want to let the other go.

"Ah, you two know each other then?" Dr Reed asked as made his way over to us.

"Yeah, we've been friends since before I moved to LA to be a stuntman, they moved with me" Jacob responded all while still hugging me.

"Well then, Y/N, why don't you show Jacob here to the room you're staying in so he can rest" The doctor said "Sure" I replied, "come on Jay, this way" but before we could go any further Dr Reed whispered in Jacob's ear "Meet me in my office later and we'll talk about your specialness".

Once we made it to my room Jacob grabbed my hand and kissed me.

"Shit love, I probably messed up but I couldn't help myself, Y/N, I've been dying to tell you how I feel for years now but I was too scared to, I love you. I was going to tell you once we got on the evacuation flight but well it didn't wor.." before he could finish I kissed him.

"Jacob, I feel the same, I wanted to tell you before but I didn't think that you felt the same" I told him after we broke the kiss to breath.

●●Time skip●●

Jacob's POV

It was night time, and I had just returned to the room after my meeting with Dr Reed. All I wanted to do was crash onto the bed and fall asleep next to the love of my life. Y/N was sitting in bed, the covers over their legs while they read one of the books that was in the room.

"So, what did the Dr want?" They asked as I face planted onto the bed.

"It turns out I'm immune and he wants me to get a blood sample to prove it" I told them.

"I don't trust him Jay, there is just something about him that makes me nervous" they told me once I had gotten under the cover with them.

"Hey, no matter what happens, I'll protect you, I thought I lost you but now I'm never letting you go" I said before letting out a yawn.

As I watched Y/N sleep I thought about what they said, maybe Dr Reed is up to no good, but right now my immunity didn't matter. As long as I had Y/N then I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe.

[indigosunsetao3]

Would It Be Enough?

Chapter 20 - Yours

Masterlist of Chapters

Warnings: 18+ - No minors Rated E - Please read the tags on A03 for any of your triggers

Johnny "Soap" MacTavish x Original FMC 9.0k words - AO3 Link

Emma's knees nearly buckled out from under her when Soap spoke aloud. It was a voice she thought she may never hear again and she had to lean her hip up against the bed to keep from falling out fully. Pulling her hand back from behind his ear she gripped his face gently with both hands, grinning as he slowly blinked a few times to try and focus his eyesight. “Took you long enough,” Emma breathed as she leaned down to press a kiss to his lips gently. “I was beginning to think you enjoyed keeping me waiting,” she finished reaching up to smooth his hair back from his forehead with one hand as he shifted his head to the side a bit to look around.

“I’d never purposely keep you waiting,” he answered after returning the kiss, though it was weak on his part. “But you do remember the part of where I was shot and stabbed, right?” Soap asked, the humor in his words evident even if his voice was still nothing more than a rasp. Despite being awake he still didn’t feel fully there just yet. He’d been hospitalized plenty of times before, been knocked out and put back together more times than he could remember but this was different. Without knowing exactly how long he had been gone Soap was acutely aware it had been a while based on how he physically felt. His body felt disused, sluggish and his brain was fogged, and vision was still a bit out of focus as he continued to squint at the brightness of the light in the room.

“I remember it a little too well actually,” Emma answered as she darted her eyes over to look at his monitors. Everything was staying at its normal baseline and she grinned a bit while she tried to ignore the nagging fear that this was too good to be true. “How are you feeling? I can get you some ice,” she finished knowing from experience his mouth and throat had to be dry and painful. She needed to go get his doctors, he would need a full evaluation, medicine update, and a plethora of tests but selfishly she wanted to keep him to herself for a little while longer.

“Little dazed,” Soap answered truthfully as he forced his arm to bend so his hand could reach up and cover her own that was resting on his cheek. He wanted to hold her hand back like he had felt her hold him so many times while he was out. Despite not being fully conscious Soap had been coming around for a while now. It had only been snippets here and there between long jaunts of just darkness. He heard voices speaking the room, sometimes they were muffled and others they were as clear as day. He’s also heard Emma crying a few times as she begged him to just wake up, move, do something. It had been infuriating, and terrifying, to scream at his body to move and reach out to no avail.

“And you? How are you doing? Your back was ripped to shreds…” he trailed off as the heart rate monitor shot up, the memories along with the anger catching up with his body again. Things were coming back to him in spurts as if puzzle pieces were being put into place. “The team?” He tacked on, eyes darting around the room as if he just remembered the rest of the 141 were in the truck with them and they weren’t in the room.

“I’m okay, lots of stitches but I’ll be fine,” Emma said softly as she pulled her hand away from his cheek and gripped his hand instead. “Everyone else is okay as well. Alex has barely left my side and Ghost is in here with you most of the time,” she looked at the door surprised he hadn’t walked in yet, he usually ate his breakfast and then sat in the corner reading when Emma left for her therapy. “You need to keep that heart rate down though,” Emma grinned as she squeezed his fingers, “I need to go get your doctor so they can evaluate you,” she felt his fingers tense. “I’ll be back in just a moment, I promise, I thought I was going to lose you and now that you’re okay I’m going to be stuck to you like glue. You’re going to be sick of me before long.”

“Never,” Soap answered with a smile before coughing a bit as Emma slid her fingers out of his grasp. He watched her quickly dart toward the door, stopping to glance back at him as if to assure herself he was awake. He gave her a small nod before she disappeared into the hall, shutting the door behind her. In the silence of the room, aside from the small radio playing softly, Soap looked down at himself. His side was still bandaged down by his ribs and his left arm was also wrapped up tight over his gunshot. It was disorienting to blackout in the back of a truck still in your gear with blood everywhere then wake up in clean soft clothes in a very sterile-looking room.

“Gaz,” Emma breathed as she jogged out toward the nurse’s station, having not seen anyone in the hall. He was on the phone and writing furiously in a notebook when he snapped his head up to look at her. Her voice sounded frantic and the look on her face caused him to tell the person on the line to hold as he stared. “Gaz where is the doctor?” Emma asked as she whipped her head to the side and then leaned to try and look around a wall.

“I’m not sure,” he replied, slipping his hand over the microphone of the phone, “what’s the matter? Did something happen?” She looked frantic and he was about to round the corner of the counter to run toward Soap’s room when Emma held her hand up to him.

“Nothing’s the matter,” Emma answered with a smile, “he’s up. He just…woke up like it was nothing,” she was grinning so wide that Gaz couldn’t help but return the smile. “I need to find the doctor; they’ll want to run a few tests and assessments now that he’s awake. Make sure everything is how it should be. Have you seen Ghost or Alex? Someone needs to let Price know,” she rambled on, turning on her heel to see if anyone else was around.

“I’ll take care of the team,” Gaz answered as he lifted the phone to his ear and stated he would have to call whoever it was on the line back. “I saw one of the nurses a few minutes ago, I’m sure she’ll know,” he stated as he pocketed his notebook. Emma knew the team was still working on taking down the Russian cell, even while they were posted inside the hospital. The Americans had agreed to assist finally so they were running most of the groundwork while the 141 did intelligence gathering.

It didn’t take Emma long to locate a nurse and explain through the limited language and hand gestures what she needed. The nurse seemed apprehensive as Emma led her back to the room but when they opened the door and Soap gave a very half-hearted wave of his hand, she ran off to get the medical team in charge of his care. Emma entered the room and took up a chair out of the way and a moment later Ghost appeared in the doorway, looking as if he had run from wherever he had been, followed closely by Gaz and Alex. They only had a few moments together to appreciate Soap’s recovery before doctors kicked everyone out, the room too small to fit them all, to do their assessments. No one went far though, all of them waited in the hallway for the rest of the day.

“You need to eat,” Soap said a few hours later, his voice had returned back to normal though he sounded exhausted after everything. “Just because I’m stuck with this,” he shook his bottle of protein drink, he was strictly on a liquid diet until they worked him back to solid foods, “doesn’t mean you have to starve.” He nodded his head toward Emma who was sitting right by his side, her chair scooted as close to his bed as possible.

“I know, but the food isn’t that great anyway,” Emma said as she picked at the overcooked noodles of her pasta. She had been too busy fussing over Soap to pay attention to anything else, skipping lunch and only accepting dinner when a nurse shoved the tray at her and ordered her to eat. Despite being so sure he would come back to her, she was still in a state of shock that he had, finding herself constantly looking at him to assure herself he was there and it wasn’t a dream. When the rest of the team had been allowed in the room to talk and catch up Emma just watched Soap in silence with a disbelieving grin on her face. Then throughout his small catnaps during the day Emma just held his hand, grinning when he would lightly squeeze her fingers back in his half-asleep daze.

“Probably still better than this swill,” Soap answered as he took a sip and pulled a face. He was only allowed to eat in small increments which meant he had to consume his nutrition more often. Emma hadn’t moved though, her eyes watching him as he shook the bottle again to mix it. “Eat,” he said again, ever the commanding tone in his voice even if he grinned, “I’m not going anywhere. I doubt I could stand up if I tried anyway,” he shifted his legs a bit which felt like they were weighed down with lead. The doctors were already talking about rehabilitation and he knew it was going to be a long tiring road to get back to his full potential.

Emma sighed and began to eat her food, not tasting or enjoying it, before she took up the small cup with her nightly medication in it and swallowed them down. “We’ll get you moving soon enough,” Emma stated as she attempted to break apart the stale piece of bread they gave her with her meal but gave up when it just crumbled and flaked. “They’ve been relentless with my recovery. Constantly making me move, lifting weights, stretching, ice baths for my legs” she sighed and stretched her arms above her head. They had given her the day off considering all that transpired, not that Emma would have listened to them if they tried to pull her away anyway. “Stitches still pull a bit when they make me work my shoulder,” she added after a moment. That was the last part of her back that was still stitched. The rest had either closed up enough on their own that they didn’t need any sort of help or she was downgraded to steri-strips and glue.

Soap finished his shake and set the bottle on the small table that was across his bed, his eyes tracking Emma’s movements. She looked exhausted, there were still deep purple circles under her eyes and she was pale, though not as bad as she had been when he had found her in the bunker. “How are you?” He asked after a moment, his words careful and low. They still hadn’t talked about anything that had happened, what had ended them all in this situation, to begin with. He had talked to the rest of the 141 to get a quick recap of what transpired but none of them had discussed anything in depth outside of confirming Crane was dead and the Americans were helping to take down the cell. Alex had mentioned in passing, when Emma stepped out to talk to a nurse, that Emma hadn’t spoken to anyone about what happened to her and usually changed the subject if anyone even hinted toward it.

“I’m fine, just a little tired and stiff. Sitting in a chair all day will do that I guess,” Emma answered with a shrug as she took the tray off her lap and set it on the nightstand before grabbing Soap’s finished drink and adding it to her things. She pushed the wheeled table that rested over his legs away and as she was about to turn and ask him if he wanted the radio Soap grabbed her hand. It was a weak grab but he had moved with a purpose and she felt him tug on her slightly. “What?” She asked smiling a bit as she twisted and rested her hip up against the bed to look at him, lacing her fingers into his.

“Emma,” Soap said quietly, “how are you. I can see you are up and moving fine but what’s going on inside of that head of yours?” He knew he was going to need to work through and process everything that he had been through but he had just woken up hours ago. Emma had been up for over a week and according to Alex, she was behaving like nothing had happened. Soap knew how that went, it never worked things always caught up and the sooner you dealt and began to heal from them the better. “What happened to you is not,” he started but Emma cut him off, squeezing his hand.

“Don’t,” Emma said quickly, knowing where he was trying to go. “Not yet, I’m not,” she sighed and took a steadying breath, “can we not? Just not right now?” She asked knowing that the smile she was putting up was tense. “I just got you back, I don’t want to talk about all of…that. Let’s just enjoy this now. We have plenty of time to discuss the rest,” she finished.

All of them had tried to get her to talk about what happened at one point but she had shut them down, not wanting to even think about it. She used the excuse that she had to focus on Johnny and getting him recovered, that she was too busy to think about herself. Price had even tried when he found her lost in her thoughts staring at nothing one evening. He had used one of his own experiences to try and talk her through it but she had shot him down and walked out of the room without another word. She still needed to apologize for that one. She knew the men understood what she was dealing with but it still felt wrong to talk about. Made it too real. Johnny being dead on the gurney in front of her had hurt too much the first go around to try and talk about it so soon and when his life was still in limbo she knew she couldn’t have handled a discussion.

“The funny thing about time,” Soap said after a moment, “is it tends to move pretty fast. And before you know it, you’ve compartmentalized things you shouldn’t and it eats at you slowly from the inside. Take it from someone who still hasn’t learned that lesson.” He gave her a small smile as he ran his thumb over the back of her hand. He figured she was still going to resist him, could see it in the way her eyes darted away from his face to try and avoid eye contact. He shifted his head a bit to try and get into her downcast view but he couldn’t move far enough. “You don’t have to talk to me, or any of us if you don’t want to,” he began but Emma’s eyes flashed back to his and he saw a shift in her face. Shit. “Lass,” he shifted on the bed a bit to try and sit up more to pull her into him.

“I still see it,” Emma said quietly as the tears that were ever present behind her eyes spilled down her cheeks. “See him hurting you, feel his hands on me,” she sighed and wiped furiously at her face, “smell the salt water.” She groaned frustrated as she turned her head again from Soap to try and blink back the tears. “I wake up and it takes me a second to remember where I’m at, I’ve made them leave a light on in my room so it’s not dark when I wake up. Last time it was dark I almost had a panic attack. Crane liked to leave me in the dark,” she muttered before slamming her eyes shut to try and compose herself. Just saying his name brought back flashes of his face, of his voice, and images of his body hanging there at the end.

“Those things will fade over time,” Soap said after a moment, grunting as he moved out of sheer willpower to shift up the incline on his bed. The doctors said his wounds were healed enough that he didn’t run the risk of dying from them anymore but that didn’t mean they hurt any less. “I won’t lie and say they go away because they don’t ever fully go,” he moved his left arm to shift himself over on the bed to make room for her. He hissed through his teeth at the stiffness and pulling sensation in his muscle from the gunshot wound from the movement but he still managed to maneuver anyway. “But you’ll learn how to deal with them so they aren’t always in the forefront,” he patted the bed next to him where he had made room, “come here.”

Emma had started when Soap moved and she instantly moved to try and help him but he did it on his own. Her eyes darted to his arm to make sure the bandages held before going to his side, everything looked fine. “I can’t make the thoughts stop,” Emma breathed out as she shifted a bit on the bed staring at the small space he had made. It was going to be tight and she was nervous to knock into him but she really did just want to hold him, and be held, right now. “I keep myself busy but the second I let my guard down they’re back. It’s like he’s still torturing me,” she let her shoulders slump, it was as if she had let the floodgates down and everything was coming out now after days of keeping it locked away.

“I know,” Soap said gently as he tugged at her hand again to get her to come to him. She bent at his second tug and shifted around on the bed. It was tight and he clenched his teeth together to keep from grunting as he raised his left arm higher than he probably should so she could curl up against his good side. The doctors would be pissed if they walked in now and saw this but he didn’t care, he needed her against him as badly as she needed him right now.

Emma was quick in her movements, her smaller frame folding up against his side like so many nights in the past. Her leg was twined around his above the sheet and her head was pressed against his shoulder near the crook of his neck. It was like they were made for one another for how seamlessly they fit together, even in a creaky old hospital bed. Her cheek was wet as it pressed into his bare skin and despite the fact she was crying Soap felt content at the contact, it felt like coming home to him.

“It’ll get better,” Soap promised after she had stopped silently crying. Her arm was wrapped around his chest and holding his other shoulder, careful to avoid his ribs as she pressed herself tightly against him. “We’ll get through it all together,” he said as he ran the fingertips of his right hand gently up and down her arm. “I have someone you can talk to if you want. She’s helped me through a few of my own issues,” he paused and kissed the top of Emma’s head. “Her office is not far from my place,” he explained lightly before grinning as he felt Emma still at his words. That was just what he was going for.

“Your place? Where?” Emma asked as the words sank in for her and she shifted her head up to look at him. He was smirking.

“Ghost was right you know,” he said smoothly, “that I could still hear you, I don’t remember all of it but there’s some stuff I recall.” He waited for Emma to put the pieces into place and he saw the telltale look on her face when she figured out what he was talking about. “You asked me to take you back to Scotland, show you where I grew up,” he shrugged his head to the side a bit, “I figure I’ve got a little bit of leave coming my way after all of this, some time to recover before I’m at it again. Come back with me,” he stated though it was more of a question.

Emma smiled, though it was a bit watery and she knew her face was a blotchy mess from all the crying. “Are you sure?” She inquired, “I mean I don’t want to, you know, intrude,” she stumbled a bit before laughing at Soap’s face that he gave her. “I’d like that,” she said finally before pressing a kiss to his cheek, “I want to be wherever you are.”

Soap grinned broadly at that before settling himself back down on the bed, adjusting himself down a bit and closing his eyes. He knew it was only a matter of time before a nurse walked in and forced Emma out of the bed but he was going to enjoy the closeness that they were sharing. It was something he had been terrified he would never get again when she had been ripped from him all those days ago. But now as her breath slowed and her tense muscles relaxed against him Soap found he had never been more at ease.

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Four months later

The old townhouse in the Scottish Highlands had finally started to feel more like a home in the past few weeks. When Emma and Soap first arrived late one night the air was stagnant inside with a thick layer of dust over everything and no amenities. Since Soap was barely ever home he didn’t bother with anything to make it feel cozy or welcoming and Emma had to dig in boxes to find a few extra blankets for the bed since the place was freezing. After that first night though, Emma had gone to work to make the place a little livelier. Fully unpacking all of Soap’s items that were piled in boxes throughout the house, going to the store to stock back up on all the necessities and even purchasing a few plants which Soap warned her would be left to fend on their own when they were called back into the field.

Standing in the kitchen Soap took in the downstairs of the house, sipping on his water after getting back from a run. He had begun working on his stamina now that everything was fully healed. Running every morning, hitting the gym most afternoons and even working out at home in the evening with Emma to help her with her own physical therapy and strength training. She had started her own healing journey and was seeing the therapist in town that he had used in the past. It had been a rough few weeks when she started, the night terrors pulling them both out of sleep were a normal occurrence. She still had the panic attacks and nightmares but they were coming less and less frequently, though Soap still saw the haunted look in her eyes when something triggered her.

Glancing at the clock showed it was barely six, which meant Emma was hopefully still asleep. She had been up late the night before reading, another hobby she had picked back up now that they had more quiet time. There had been plenty of times he had to literally drag her into bed to get some sleep and pry the book from her hands. He knew the stories were an escape for her, as his drawings were for him, though he hadn’t picked up his sketchbook in a while. The images in his mind weren’t ones he was ready to put down on paper yet.

Slipping into the shower Soap made quick work of his wash down, pausing to look at the still pink skin under his ribs that slashed straight down his side toward his hip. Just another scar to add to his ever-growing collection. He knew he had been lucky, beyond lucky, this time and in those quiet moments he wondered to himself how long until all that luck finally ran out. How long could he keep fighting the good fight and come home? Now that he had the drive to come home that was. Before he was just a good soldier in the field that would do whatever it took no matter what, sacrificing himself for one of his brothers. But now? Now he had someone depending and waiting on him and he wasn’t sure how much he was willing to risk anymore. He nearly lost his chance with her once and Soap didn’t know if he wanted to do it again.

Wrapping a towel around his hips Soap walked back into the bedroom and paused at the sight before him. Emma was sprawled out on her stomach on the bed, her head tilted to the side and eyes still closed with sleep. She was barely covered in the sheet, leaving much of her bare back exposed in the weak morning sunlight. Her back, while still beautiful to him, was covered in scars. Much of her whipping injuries had left dark red gashes and lumps on her back. The knife slash that dug along her shoulder blade mingled with a scar from one of her old surgeries was the worst, the skin raised and jagged where the doctors did their best to repair it. She was self-conscious of them, never wanting to look at them in the mirror and always wearing leggings to cover the matching marks on the backs of her knees.

It angered Soap that she felt the need to hide but his anger wasn’t at her, it was at Crane. For what he had done to her, to them, to everyone. He had caused irreparable damage that was still echoing after his death, which had been conveniently covered up and swept under the rug to prevent an international incident. Soap still hadn’t received the whole story yet but Ghost had passed along a heavily redacted file that the bunker under the barn was destroyed along with all the evidence of what happened.

Crossing the room Soap took a seat on his side of the bed and reached over to brush some of Emma’s hair off her face, running his hand over her cheek before gently sliding his fingers down her neck and shoulders. He felt her body shiver from the touch and she shifted a bit coming out of her sleep with a little groan. “Sorry,” Soap said with a small chuckle, waking her up when she wasn’t ready to be awoken still wasn’t advisable. He had been on the receiving end of her half-asleep cursing a few times already. “Couldn’t help myself,” Soap finished as he leaned down to kiss her shoulder as she stretched out a bit “all this bare skin on display is too tempting.”

“What time is it?” Emma asked as she attempted to roll but Soap had pressed his hand down on her back to keep her where she was. It was habit for her now to keep her back hidden, she didn’t like looking at it, didn’t like the doctors seeing it, or even risk people getting a glimpse of it if she could help it. So much so that she never wore anything less than a t-shirt anymore and made sure she covered up even when she went to bed. When the lights were out and Soap reached for her in the dark, as he had done the night before, it was a bit easier for her to ditch the clothes because there was no chance of either of them seeing the marks. Her eyes were looking around to where he had thrown her shirt, spotting it stuck on the small chair near the foot of the bed, before she took in the fact he was sitting there in a towel. “You’ve already showered? What time did you go running?”

“I was out the door by quarter of five,” Soap answered with a small shrug. He had awoken from a nightmare and had flown out of bed as fast as possible. He didn’t want to wake Emma; she hadn’t been sleeping through the night very often and he didn’t want to be the reason she was awoken this time. “Stopped at the farm for a bit and watched the farmers letting out the sheep,” he grinned. While this wasn’t where he grew up, his hometown had been a rough area, this was the place he loved. It was slow-paced, simple, and most importantly unobtrusive. People were friendly but they didn’t pry into other’s business and no one batted an eye when he brought an American girl to the local pub for dinner on their second night back into town. He’d take her to where he grew up one day when he was ready to face that. “I was too early for the corner shop to get you a muffin, I can go back out though,” he added as his fingers danced down her spine to the dip of her lower back, careful to keep his eyes on her face to watch for any reaction.

“Mmm, no,” Emma answered as she reached out a hand to grab the hand he was using to lean on and support himself on the bed then tugged. “I think you should come back to bed instead,” she stated simply. She wasn’t ready to leave the softness and warmth of the sheets and judging by the clouds outside the window it was going to start raining any minute. “We have a few hours until our call with Laswell,” she coaxed, “unless you have somewhere to be.”

Laswell had been checking in on them periodically and providing quick updates on the rest of the team when she could. The 141 was still at it, back out in the field taking care of things though Laswell couldn’t tell them too much of what those things were on unsecured lines. She had assured both Soap and Emma that their spots on the team were still there, that Ghost wouldn’t let her fill them if she tried anyway, but for them to continue to take their time to recoup. Emma still wasn’t sure what she wanted. She wanted the work, though after viewing her bank account one day she realized she certainly didn’t need the money anymore. The money transfers had hit her account in the same large increments every day for a week solid and she had asked Johnny if it was some kind of joke. The amount of money was not what she agreed to on her work contract, it was almost four times the amount. Soap just laughed and informed her that Laswell took care of her own and he had a sneaking suspicion that many of her family’s debts had disappeared as well.

“Back to bed?” Soap asked as he shifted to lean over her, using both of his hands to grip where her neck met her shoulders and squeezing lightly. “But what if I’m not tired?” He asked as he kneaded the soft skin, grinning as he earned an appreciative moan and Emma shifted a bit to pull her hair further off her neck and back. “I thought we could maybe walk down to the grocer, we’re running low on a few things, and maybe make a quick stop into the bookshop,” he added with an eyebrow raise as he continued to work her muscles, careful to not squeeze too hard on her still sensitive skin.

“Just because I want you to come back to bed doesn’t mean you have to sleep,” Emma retorted simply as she forced herself to ignore the fact her back was on full display and instead enjoyed the moment. Her therapist had been working with her on accepting her new self, that there was nothing wrong with it and instead embrace it and let Soap help her with it. He too was covered in marks and scars and he never tried to hide them, even letting Emma sit on his lap and question each one and get the story that went with them when she couldn’t sleep or felt particularly self-conscious. “You could just draw, or read a book with me,” she groaned a little again as he found a knot between her shoulder blades and he worked it out. “Or keep doing this,” she tacked on with a small chuckle.

Soap kept up his ministrations in silence for a while, his fingers making quick work of the tense spots he found in her back before sliding the blankets off her lower body and moving down to her legs. He could tell that despite the fact her body was relaxed under him her mind was going a million miles an hour. She hadn’t allowed him to really see her properly in weeks so this was progress even if she was questioning it. “Get out of your head,” Soap said after a moment as his fingers massaged her thighs just below the curve of her butt. “Be in the moment,” he continued, knowing that the therapist had given her that tactic because she had already given it to him to use when he was having flashbacks. “What do you feel right now?” He traced a finger up the inside of her thigh getting dangerously close to her center before dragging it down to her knee.

“I feel,” Emma started before hesitating and biting her lip at his finger before he pulled it away again, “your hands on me. The sheets on my feet, a bit of a breeze from the fan,” Emma listed slowly and quietly. She kept her eyes closed as she attempted to keep her brain at the moment and not worry about everything else outside of her control. It was a losing battle though; she could feel the breeze on her back from the fan and it kept drawing her mind to the scars peppering her skin and what caused them. She was going to back out and roll, the thoughts were catching up too quickly, “I think I,” she gasped as she felt Soap bend over and place a kiss right along her spine, “I feel your lips.” That had certainly distracted her from running away.

“What else?” Soap asked with a grin as he kissed his way further up her back, his hands sliding back between her legs to push her thighs a little further apart to make more room for him. She obliged without question so he positioned himself between her legs on his knees, his hands planted on either side of her as he leaned over her again and kissed one of her scars. He knew she was about to back down so he acted quickly, planting another kiss to keep her pleasantly distracted.

“Your knees brushing my thighs,” Emma breathed out as she kept her eyes closed just feeling what he was doing instead of watching. “My scars,” she said after a second as he seemed to be drawing his lips over every mark on her back in a slow, soft rhythm. She stiffened a bit at the thought of it but fought to remain in the gentle moment they were having together. “Johnny,” Emma breathed squirming a bit, “you don’t have to do,” she started but Soap cut her off.

“Do what?” Soap asked as he moved to grip her hips and tug her backside closer to him so she could feel him pressing against her. “Admire you?” He questioned lightly as he moved his mouth up to her neck and bit down gently into the soft skin, laughing as she gasped. “Desire you?” He kissed the spot he abused, “because you’re the sexiest goddamn woman I have ever seen,” he continued, his lips brushing over her ear. “And keeping my hands to myself is a fucking problem when you’re laying in my bed naked.”

“You know what I mean,” Emma ground out, though her fight was weak. If his goal had been to get her out of the anxiety loop in her head he had done that. Her skin was humming with anticipation of what was next. “You don’t have to look at my back, I can roll,” she started and adjusted to try and show her intent to move again but Soap pressed his weight down on her holding her there.

“Emma,” Soap said gently as he slid his palm up her back in a soothing gesture, “when I said you’re the sexiest woman I’ve ever seen I meant it. That means all of you,” he continued, “you think I care about these?” He ran his finger along a particularly long gash that wrapped toward her side, “I’m covered in marks, scars, and bullet wounds. Do you find them unattractive on me?” He stayed silent waiting for an answer which he knew would be no, and Emma didn’t say a word. “Exactly. So why is it so hard for you to believe me? I mean I know you can feel the attraction,” he laughed as he pushed up against her and saw her breath catch.

“I know,” Emma dared to say after a moment, opening her eyes to look over at him. “It’s just, hard when it’s so new and,” she paused, “I just need time is all.” She saw Soap nod as he ran his thumb over the most jagged wound on her back. “I believe you; I just can’t get myself to look at it the same,” she finished as he continued to gently trace his fingertips along her back.

“I have no problem reminding you,” Soap answered, laughing a bit as he saw goosebumps pop up along her skin as he dragged his nails along her ribs. “You know, you managed to get me back into bed,” he said after a moment, his eyes darting to the window where a downpour had started. “And I don’t think we’ll be walking to the grocer anytime soon,” he turned his attention back to Emma again. “So what are we going to do with our time?”

“I suggested reading or drawing,” Emma answered but subtly wiggled her backside against his length. “Then you started groping me,” she taunted, laughing a bit as Soap caught her movement and not so subtly pushed himself back against her with a small huff. “I think I know what you want, apparently last night wasn’t enough.”

It never was enough between them it seemed, though Emma was not complaining. During the start of both of their recoveries, the intimacy had been nothing more than soft cuddling in bed or heavy kissing sessions, with careful consideration to not push one another too far. There had been plenty of times they stopped and one of them excused themselves for a cold shower or a step outside for a breather. Soap had been the first to crack after two and a half weeks home, dragging her into his lap on the couch and all but tearing her sleep shorts off her so he could get inside of her. He paid for the strain later, only relenting to take a pain pill when Emma threatened she’d cut him off for another month if she had to.

“I have a suspicion if I just,” he slipped his hand between her thighs, “run my fingers over you I’d find I am not the only one that didn’t get enough last night.” He gave her one second to react before he did just that, sliding his fingers through her center which elicited an indecent moan from her. “Mm, see?” He asked, sliding his finger to brush over her clit to which she arched her backside up and into him to give him better access. “I don’t want to hear a single word from you about me not getting enough,” he admonished, “you are bloody soaked leannan.”

“Your fault,” Emma groaned out as she squirmed against his fingers to get more friction, biting her lip as she wantonly pushed back. All worries about what her back looked like were gone from her mind at the moment, her attention laser focused on his ministrations. This had been the first time she had allowed him behind her like this and she found she missed it. Missed the control he was able to exert over her in this position as well as how deep she knew he could get when they were like this. “Where are you…” Emma started as Soap pulled away from her completely. She twisted to look behind her to see him throwing the towel off the side of the bed before his hands grabbed her hips hard and yanked her back and up toward him so she had to prop herself up on her elbows.

“Not going anywhere,” Soap answered her as his hands slid around her thighs to hold her still before he bent down and ran his tongue over her center. He kept his hands gripped tight on her legs to keep her properly spread and pushed up against his face as he worked, knowing she would try to roll her hips to assist. He heard her gasp into the pillow as he lapped his tongue in and over her in long sweeping strokes that went from her center to her asshole, his teeth scraping along her every now and then to get her to cry out.

“Fuck,” he breathed as he leaned back to admire his work before slipping a finger into her easily, not giving her any time to adjust as he started pumping. She was whining in her throat before he added a second finger to give her the stretch she was looking for. “So eager for me,” he admired as he curled his fingers a bit and started moving them faster, his gaze flicking up to look at Emma’s face as she started to breathe faster, curling her fists into the sheets as she twisted her head to watch. “You’re gorgeous,” he growled out feeling her getting close, her body clamping down on him. “Don’t you ever think otherwise. You are incredible and fucking beautiful and most importantly,” he shifted his thumb to rub small circles over her clit to get her over that edge, “you’re all mine.”

There it was. His praising words had thrust her right to that edge but those last three words sent her over. Emma cried out loudly and felt her legs lock up and body tense as the orgasm ripped through her, but Soap kept his fingers moving. He was going to send her right into a second one if he could and she shuddered, rocking her hips with abandon to ride out the high. “I’m yours Johnny,” she agreed a bit breathlessly once she got her voice back, smirking as she felt him gently rubbing at her asshole now that his fingers were sufficiently wet.

“What do you want gorgeous?” Soap asked as he continued to rub her ass gently. He pushed in lightly when she didn’t answer him, cursing under his breath at the sensation and visual. He felt her tense for a moment around his finger and he hesitated before she relaxed and he pushed further. “Tell me what you want,” he stated more commanding as he pulled his finger back a bit and pushed in, the rhythm slow and methodical. He noticed she was moving her hips a bit with him and he huffed pushing in a little more with each thrust but then stopped altogether. He wanted her to say it and not just go with what he was giving her.

“I want you,” Emma breathed but knew he wasn’t going to take that for an answer. “I want you to fuck me,” she continued and pushed back against him. “Like this,” she added before pushing up on her hands and pulling her hair over one shoulder. “I’m yours so make me yours,” she tacked on looking over her shoulder at him. She could see her scars out of her peripheral vision but she didn’t care now. Right now she cared about Johnny and how he was looking at her like she was the damn air he breathed to keep him alive.

There she was. The confident Emma that didn’t hide and told him what she needed from him and it was sexy as hell. He adjusted up onto his knees and guided himself toward her entrance before he pushed in, hissing out a breath at how easily he slipped in. He paused to steady himself before rocking his hips into her, pushing further in with each roll until he was fully seated. But it was not enough for her apparently, she was pushing back against him and arching her back with a small plead. “How do you want it?” He inquired as his fingers dug into her ass cheeks, keeping her still on him so she couldn’t wriggle. “Soft?” He pulled back antagonizing slow, “or hard,” he snapped his hips and she all but shrieked as she clamped around him.

“Hard,” Emma whimpered. They had done soft and slow the night before, most of their times together had been soft lately thanks to her insecurities. “Hard and fast,” she stated before dropping her head down as Soap began to slam into her. He had one hand on her hip to keep her in rhythm, the other finding her asshole again. She moaned as he pushed his thumb into her and he matched the thrusts of his thumb with his hips. “Fuck,” Emma moaned as she arched into him, sliding her body down so her head was rammed into the pillow and her hands were pushing back against the headboard to keep from slamming her head into it. “Keep going,” she begged.

“Jesus Emma,” Soap breathed as he looked down at her, her face was already getting red and there was sweat breaking out on her brow. “You take me so good,” he praised knowing she was preening under the attention, “you were made for me. You’re mine and I’m never letting you go,” he continued before sliding the hand that was on her hip up to her shoulder and neck to help keep her pushing against him and also to help her not injure herself. “Fuck you’re tight, you going to come for me again?” He asked his fingers tightening around her neck ever so slightly.

“I’m close,” Emma answered as she reached one of her hands back to grab at his leg and dig her nails in, knowing he liked the sting. “Right there,” she said after a moment as she felt him slide his thumb even further in her ass as he slammed home again, “Johnny right there, please.” Her voice had taken on a bit of a begging tone which only amped Soap up as the bed squeaked loudly underneath them. “Finish with me,” she breathed out as his fingers flexed on her throat again, pulling her head up off the pillow as he angled her body just right. She was there, the tightening in her body was about to be unleashed, and when she heard Soap let out a curse and his hips stuttered a bit she climaxed. It was a ragged sort of moan that escaped her lips, followed by whimpering pants as Soap finished with her. He was pounding into her hard enough that it was stealing her breath and she was gasping against the grip of his fingers before he slowed to a stop.

If he wasn’t exhausted from his run before he was certainly spent now. Soap was breathing heavily as he admired Emma while still buried in her, the way her skin was flushed, and how her arms shook to hold herself. He smiled a bit as he slid himself out, his hand gently letting go of her neck to slide down her slick back before moving out from between her legs. “I love you,” Soap said after he managed to even his breathing and collapsed onto the bed next to her.

Emma was rolled on her side looking at him with a smile, her hair a ragged mess around her sweaty face which only made Soap’s chest swell with emotion at the sight. Reaching out he tugged her against him and pulled her in for a heart-stopping kiss, his hand winding into her hair at the back of her head. He didn’t care that they were both panting and trying to bring themselves back down to earth. “Fuck I love you, Emma,” he said again with a small laugh as he crushed her tight against his chest and used his other hand to hold her face to his to kiss her multiple times.

“I love you too,” Emma answered, laughing a bit herself as she half laid on top of him in the bed. She smoothed his hair back off his forehead a she looked into his eyes, her thumb tracing over his eyebrow feeling the small indent of an old scar that ran through it. “I never want to leave this room,” she said after a moment, “or this moment. Let’s just…let’s never leave.” Being in this room with him meant the outside world wasn’t there. Her issues weren’t there, the insecurities and fears were on the other side of the door where they couldn’t hurt her. In here she was in a safe bubble with the man she loved and that’s all she truly wanted.

“We may need to leave eventually,” Soap answered her with a grin, “but I’m on board with staying in this bed as much as humanly possible. Only if it’s with you though,” he answered cupping her cheek as she nuzzled into it. “What I said before,” he continued, “that you’re mine,” he hesitated. “And you agreed,” his eyes searched hers, flicking his gaze back and forth over her face. “I meant it, and not in just a fun sexy way,” he laughed as Emma laughed. “You’re mine Emma and I want you to stay mine. Forever.”

Emma hesitated at his words, her hand sliding over his chest to feel that his heart was still pounding though she wasn’t sure if it was from the exertion moments ago or what he was saying now. He had a look of apprehension on his face and Emma thought she saw a nervous gleam in his eyes as he watched her. That was very unlike him, Soap never betrayed a sense of nerves when it came to anything, always confident and cocky no matter what he was doing. “I already said I was yours and I don’t have any intentions of leaving you. So, what are you saying exactly?” She asked, curling her fingers a bit so she was gripping at his sternum. She needed him to say it because the mood had certainly shifted from the high of sex to some charged apprehension.

“I’m saying that I want you to marry me,” he swallowed, his eyes trained on her face for any sort of hint of her reaction. “I promise that my proposal will be much better than this,” he grinned a bit, sure that his face was probably looking grave because of the nerves. He knew it was quick, they hadn’t even known one another for a full year yet and he was already talking marriage. But nothing in their relationship had been slow anyway and he couldn’t picture his life any other way. Everything they had been through together already had shown him she was the one for him and the thought of not having her around sent an icy punch right through his heart.

“I just wanted to know if you also felt it before I went and bought the ring.” That was a lie, he had bought the ring over a month ago and had hidden it just waiting for the right time. Because despite how nervous he felt he knew she felt the same way, there was no denying it with how well they fit together.

Emma blinked a few times before nodding, doing her best to not cry. “I’d take this as a proposal right now,” Emma answered him truthfully as she leaned down to kiss him. To be honest she hadn’t thought too hard about marriage, not yet. It had of course crossed her mind a few times, wondering if she had finally found her person and they would be together forever. But ever the man that was two steps ahead, Soap had already been seriously thinking about it. The first to cross that boundary of friends to lovers, the first to say I love you and the first ready to contemplate marriage. “But I have a feeling you are going to want to do it ‘properly’,” she added grinning a bit as he nodded.

When he had died in her arms Emma had felt part of herself die in that moment and that’s when she knew he was hers. She couldn’t be without him, because being without him meant she was missing part of her. Emma lost the fight with the tears and felt them spill over but she didn’t move to wipe them away. “I love you John MacTavish and I am not going anywhere. I’m yours,” she promised.

“And I’m yours,” Soap replied, pulling her back for yet another soft kiss. “Tha gaol agam ort, Emma.”

[theexaltedbride]

Dead Island 2 Slayers X National Guard Reader (Gender Neutral)

(Art is not mine. Its taken from the old, and sadly dead, zombie Tabletop RPG “All Flesh Must Be Eaten” by Eden Studios.)

You were part of the failed attempt by the military to wipe out the seemingly endless hordes of the undead in Los Angeles. After its failure you were re-tasked with aiding in quarantine for Hell-A and evacuation procedures for the remaining survivors of LA before Zero Hour. The moment when no one, alive or dead, would be allowed to leave the city to stop the risk of infection spreading to the rest of the country, the continent...the world. 

You’ve seen so much horror, so much suffering and heard so much screaming, but you still strapped on your boots like everyone else. Some may have gone too far, others not far enough, in trying to stop the infected, but you did everything possible while still keeping your soul. 

Not all of you were even originally from LA, but the outbreak was so bad that National Guard units even from as far as Texas were being called up to come in and reinforce the quarantine zone around the infected regions. Not even a single zombie could be allowed to escape and cause outbreaks elsewhere. All options were on the table, and everyone had to go above and beyond the call of duty to save humanity, which for some (like your unit) meant going in and destroying clusters of the infected where they seemed to strangely be congregating in areas that would keep them safe from artillery and airstrikes. 

This is how you discovered you were secretly a Numen. You were immune to the infection. One of those things got too close and ripped off your mask before your pistol went under the monster’s chin and fired off a round.

Some of the infected matter got into your eyes, your nose, your mouth, you knew that was when it happened...deep down you knew you were infected. But you were too scared to tell anyone. So, you covered it up, and while you managed to pass out somewhere private, you woke up as yourself. The disease which turned others into monsters had given you new strength, made you feel younger, stronger, faster, healthier. Were it not for the occasional head splitting headaches, you probably would call it the best thing to ever happen to you. 

It certainly made the coming days easier as you fought through countless swarms of the undead, saved who you could, and even gave up a seat on an evacuation plane so that others could get to safety. 

You were there at the failed attempt to burn out the undead from around the Hollywood Sign, you can still smell the roasting corpses, before finally falling back with the others to the last evacuation flights out of LA. Somehow you ended up as part of the security detail for the same flight as Emma Jaunt. But then her husband turned out to be infected, and it spread like wildfire inside the plane.

You survived the plane crash by assuming the crash position, only to wake up being carried out by one of the other survivors, who saw you writhing in your seat, this same person...a fellow Numen of all things, would eventually become your lover.

Amy:

-At one point Amy’s prosthetic slipped and she landed on the ground, your training kicked in and you grabbed her and carried her to safety, all the while firing round after round from your pistol into the oncoming swarm, driving them back just enough for you to get away. You swept Amy of her feet figuratively and literally. 

-Amy and you both share the same story of having given up a flight to safety so that others could get out first. You’ve bonded over this and its not uncommon to hear Amy call you Superhero for it, even though she did the same thing.

-She’s not normally one for uniforms, but likes the way your PT gear fits on you when you both hit the gym at Emmas Mansion. Though her regiment is more designed for stamina while yours is an all purpose strength builder. she still loved to see you sweat all the same and hit the showers with you.

-As a sign of trust, you let her carry your dog tags, and she keeps it tied together with the little cross she sometimes prays to when she’s afraid. She even went so far as to look into a prayer for soldiers, so she can pray for you when things get tough.

Bruno:

-Tends to keep thinking you’re in the Army despite how many times you explain how the National Guard works as his only experience with anything military was the evacuation, movies, and videogames. 

-He loves to joke that the footage he gets of you could be used for recruitment videos, or how you already are a super-soldier, even without the Numen part of you.

-He happily shoots guns Gangsta style until you teach him the right way to do it. The entire time you had your hands on him and helped Bruno shoot straight, he was just blushing and nervously nodding. It would take several tries for the lessons to stick, which gave you plenty of material to tease Bruno with later on.

-Likes to watch you flex your muscles when you’re alone together, and when you sleep in bed, he tends to idly play with your dogtags enjoying the sound and feel of them, while committing the details in them to memory. He kind of wants to get a set of his own now, only far more tricked out than yours. 

Carla:

-Loves to arm wrestle you because she knows you can take it and sometimes likes to play the knife game with you. (Carla wins most of the time and your poor fingers would be covered in bandages, were it not for your Numen abilities healing you up faster). Carla has also been a bit rougher with you in sparring matches and wants to learn what you know, half of the time its so she can really learn to fight like a soldier, but the other half of it is just so she can spend more time with you working out and pushing your bodies to the limit.

-Can’t keep up with you during PT runs around the mansion and makes excuses about leg cramps, or that she does it so she can check you out as you run. In truth it’s really that you run faster than her, but at least she gets a nice show out of it. 

-She thinks you look good in your uniform, but thinks it would be a little tighter.

-Tends to be disappointed when you explain real military life isn’t like the movies, but appreciates you being honest with her. 

Dani:

-Surprisingly good with firearms once you taught her the basics, you soon discovered she was putting in extra practice with Curtis to impress you and to look good for you while shooting. She’s also the most serious about trigger discipline out of everyone in the group.

-Loves to swear and drink, and tends to challenge you to a contest of one or both of those things since soldiers do both in ample amounts. Or at least that’s what she learned from movies. 

-Tends to take your camo-cap, beanie, beret, or helmet, from off your head and put it on herself. If you want it back you gotta pay the toll. Or you could try to put her in a friendly headlock, whichever works.

-Geeks out over deciding which military focused tattoos would look great on you and which ones she can get for herself so you both have a matching set.

Jacob:

-”Yes Captain, my Captain!” Is a common phrase from Jacob when he’s messing around with you. It was annoying at first, but the sincerity and positive energy he puts into it brings a smile to your face...of course its also led to some confusion as others think you’re a Captain now.

-He can’t stand all the pomp and circumstance of a regimented lifestyle like the military, always taking orders and having to obey etc etc. But he has to admit, you make it appealing in your own way. 

-Jacob’s not into any of that PT and weapon drills you run for the other survivors, but he does like watching you do it while sitting back with a cigar. He can also be found cheering you on when you have a sparring match with one of the others. 

-He might occasionally make a comment about soldiers or military being mindless drones who kill, but he won’t say it to you or around you. 

Ryan:

-You actually remembered Ryan from the airport and kept referring to him as a firefighter, until he (in one of his first displays of affection to you) shared the truth that he wasn’t really a firefighter. Just a male stripper who used the costume to get past the guards. Something about that sent you into a deep fit of laughter, and 

-You’ve both had shirtless (or even fully naked) flexing contests in the mirror to see who has the best body from all their training and working out. Ryan always says you look better than him no matter what.

-He jokes about perhaps dressing up in a uniform too and taking on the role as your CO, which you tell him no because you’ve grown to really like his Firefighter persona. (Especially since impersonating a soldier like that is disrespectful and in a crisis situation might be even more illegal than impersonating a firefighter.)

-Ryan has a keychain that reminds him of his brother, and so you gave him one of your tags to add to it, so he can think of you whenever you are separated for a while by your missions.

General Interactions and Headcanons:

-Due to your position, duty, and uniform, survivors tend to call you ‘Trooper’ ‘Guard’ ‘Soldier’ or by the rank you are wearing at the time.

-You have a growing collection of dog tags from every undead soldier you put down. They might have been monsters when they attacked you, but before that each one was someone’s father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter...someone’s lover. Its only right they get some kind of closure when all of this is over. 

-Your bayonete is slowly becoming your lucky charm. Its always there when the swarms get big or when the ammo runs dry. Its also pretty intimidating to hostile survivors and when stabbed into a zombie it gives you some good distance to catch your breath and figure out your next move.

-You are the best at handling Grenadier Walkers, and can sometimes re-arm from them if you manage to take them down without igniting their explosives.

- Thanks to Ryan and you both wearing uniforms that seem to indicate you are in positions of authority, random survivors defer to you both for help and guidance. You are starting to become somewhat of a team leader because of this.

-Surviving military personnel, like those at the beach, are a little more lenient to you and the Slayers if you speak first. They might be willing to part ways with some extra supplies if you ask nicely or can offer something in return. Teh extra bit of firepower is going to really help out in the days to come.

-You made sure that everyone learned proper gun-safety and trigger discipline. Emma, Andrea, and Michael nearly shot someone by accident when you first arrived at Emma’s mansion. There are no hospitals, so accidental shootings are even more dangerous now than before. This is a crisis situation and everyone needs to know how to handle a firearm, even at its most basic level, without hurting themselves even if they don’t like guns. Out of the whole group Bruno and Luciana appreciated the lessons the most. While Amanda is absolutely not allowed to handle a gun ever again.  

-Andrea looks to you for guidance as an authority figure more so than the other Slayers and taught Amy a soldier’s prayer to say for you.

-Carlos is happy to help you do maintenance on your firearms, and even watch as you explain certain things so he can help repair the group’s equipment.

-You’ve taken to occasionally having shooting competitions with Curtis.

-Luciana was excited to learn from you that in their off time a lot of soldiers indulge in nerdy hobbies like miniatures, tabletop RPGs, or Anime weaboo stuff. Its not always just guns and marching and chest thumping. 

-Dr Reed was initially worried about your presence, as not everything about his operation is actually approved of by the CDC, but you presented more valuable data and were of too low a rank to know the full truth and be a risk to his plans. 

-The Other Numen of the Eschaton group don’t exactly like you. They see you as an agent of the old order, one which must die out (along with the ‘unevolved’ parts of humanity). But so long as you don’t get in their way (and because you have six other Numen on your side/one devoted lover) they hold off on trying to harm you. Someday your two groups may come to blows. Not now, but eventually.

-Sam B did not initially trust you as he’s been burnt by the authorities too many times. But after everything you’ve all been through together, he trusts you as much as he does the rest of the Hell-A Slayers. He may not have much love or trust for anyone in authority, but in his eyes, you are one of the good ones, maybe even the best.

-Patton initially saluted you, old training taking over as he mistook you for an officer, and then was a little hostile to you. Like many veterans abandoned after their service, he has a bit of resentment towards the military for using him and tossing him away. But when he sees you being an action hero and saving people, that will quickly turn around. 

-The Nightmares can get bad sometimes. You can remember the screams of people you considered your brothers and sisters, you can still hear the calls over the radio:

“Ghouls are climbing over the fence, we’re hanging on by a thread!”

“3 O’ clock! One of those big fuckers just flipped a humvee!”

“The Earthquke cracked open the sewers, we got...we got fucking monsters spilling out of the ground!”

“Oh God we just lost the civvies! The quakes knocked over the evac bus!”

“The quakes just knocked over the artillery over by the hill, I repeat, artillery battery is unable to engage.”

“This is the boardwalk FOB, we’ve taken 90% losses! We need a ride out of here or we’re all going to die!”

“Get those Little Birds out of here! The fucking ghouls are jumping on them!”

“Ghouls breaking through the...shit...we cannot hold this position any longer. Broken Arrow! Broken Arrow! Broken Arrow! Turn our position to glass! I wanna die quick by the bombs....6-4 signing out...God help us...”

You’ve been left twitching in bed or reaching for a weapon, only for your lover to calm you down. They brush away any shame or fear you might have. They’ve fought through swarms of the undead, killed monsters alongside you and stood up to the Eschaton Group for you. They won’t abandon you because you have some chronic night terrors. They love you and once all this is over, they will do whatever it takes to get you the therapy you need, and be by your side to support you no matter what.