#fading? are people catching on? i need to stop before i see my brother on friday. even my best friend noticed he hugged me but i didnt even

[hyperexplosion]

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[pinksugarscrub]

Starstruck

Hobie Brown x fem! reader (high school au)

@rexlroze, @the-kr8tor What better place to stir up drama than high school? ✨️Enemies to lovers✨️

Part(s): Prologue, ???

Visions Academy. Elitist? Yes, but the school of your dreams. An hour trip from Harlem on the subway. But if your mom’s dingy blue bug held up for another year you wouldn’t have to worry about paying for a Metrocard.

It was incredible when you visited on a campus tour. The music program was world renowned. You plan to take every course available but you need to be in that music room. Smell the polish from the guitars and touch the marble of the grand piano. You shiver just thinking about standing in the auditorium. It’s everything you’ve ever wanted. Everything your family could ever have dreamed of for their daughter.

So it doesn’t bother you to work until the dead of night with customers that make you want to tear your hair out. Visions makes it all worth it and well, being able to pay for your own gas is nice too.

It’s Friday, the parlor is loud and bustling with families, high schoolers, and disgruntled adults who just want to pay. Life couldn’t be any better than this.

“Manolo where are my damn pizzas?” Yuri screams over the bar separating the kitchen and the cashiers. Stacking empty boxes into her hands before shoving them under the counter.

“What do you expect me to do!?” He yells back. Antonio, his younger brother slipping on what you assume is the ghost pepper Manolo never picked up. “I’ve got six other orders before damn what’s his name. Tell him to wait his fu-”

You tune them out as you smile politely to the little girl in front of you who’s asked for a to-go cup.

“Thank you!”

“You’re welcome,” you chuckle. Watching her run back to her parents. It was sweet, reminding you of your own dad and mom back home.

“(y/n)!’

You don’t react as Yuri spins you around, pushing you towards the kitchen where boxes and boxes of pizza are stacked up. “Go, I expect you back within two hours eh?”

You also don’t react when she glares down at Antonio. Who is usually your delivery boy but is currently nursing a burn on his hand. The poor guy really was as clumsy as a deer.

“Two hours (y/n)!” She repeats.

Then the door slams shut behind you. Your car keys in hand and a bag draped over your shoulder that burns into your side with how many pizzas are stuffed inside. Don’t even ask how that worked, Yuri has her ways.

You sigh as you hop down the steps. Gently setting the bag in the passenger's seat once you reach your car. It takes you a second to set up your phone with directions along with music. The speakers are surprisingly clear as you turn the volume up and drive off. The city becomes a blur and the clock ticks back at you with each and every stop.

The last apartment. A pink building that’s chipping and full of overgrown vines that reminds you of a photo you saw at a pop up show once. You walk up the steps, the last two boxes in your hand.

“O’hara…”You mumble, “O’hara, O’hara- ah ha, there.” The loud buzz of the intercom makes you recoil as it echoes across the street. A minute later a voice rang through, words muffled and unintelligible

You shift nervously on the balls of your feet. Leaning close to the speaker against your better judgment.

“Hi! For Mr. O’hara?”

More words? You’re sweating at this point. You’re almost hitting your two hour mark. A second later another buzz rings through and the door unlocks.

You sigh, muttering under your breath. “Oh thank god.”

You quickly swing the door open. Scaling the steps once you see yellow caution tape and a note stuck to the elevator.

By the time you reach the fourth floor you’re huffing. Holding onto the railing you catch your breath.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,”You huff in exasperation. Eyes wide as you see every door number is faded or falling apart. “These people need a better landlord.”

You almost shriek as you see what time it is when you look down. You have less than fifteen minutes.

Running through the numbers as best you could. You settle on a door with punk themed stickers. You hope this is the apartment or the tenants will at least be nice enough to point you in the right direction.

Before you can even knock the door swings up.

“What do you mean-”

You stand there visibly in awe as you stare into the most beautiful set of eyes you’ve ever seen. Silver piercings and earrings decorating his face. Wicks pulled back into a ponytail.

“Oh hey! Can we help you?” A second face pops out from the side of the door. A kind smile on his face.

You clear your throat as you avert your gaze. “Yes, uhm, I’m looking for 4D?”

“O’hara?”

You melt inside as you hear his accent. British? But not exactly?

“O’hara,”you confirmed. Smile wobbly as you force your butterflies down. You really need to get out of here.

You don’t notice the two exchange a look.

“Oh, that’s us love.” He grins as he stares down at you.

“Great!” You beam. Mentally storing the name in the back of your mind. For what? You don’t know. It’s not like you had the courage to ask for his number.

It takes you less than a minute to hand the boxes over.

“How much do we owe you?”

This confuses you but your smile never wavers. “I’m sorry, I’m pretty sure you prepaid online.”

“Right right!” The second boy nods. Dragging his friend inside by the arm and snatching up the pizza with his free hand. “Thanks!”

The boy with wicks sends you a wink before closing the door behind them.

You wait until you’re out of sight to swoon. It lasts for about five seconds when you realize it’s been exactly two hours.

-

Yuri’s too busy when you come back to scold you. So the rest of your shift goes smoothly. Your mind drifting to the boy every once in a while. A small smile on your lips.

The phone rings and your bliss is broken. You hold your breath as insult after insult hits your ear through the receiver.

You feel like an idiot. The boy’s pretty face fading into obscurity. You blink back tears as you talk with the real Miguel O’hara.

What a shitty night.

[pixiekiwi]

Left Behind | Newt

Hiii!! First post after a year and a half of inactivity!! Im finally going to start writing again becuz my bf has inspired me to start sharing my work again!! This is a very old one shot and I barely touched it b4 actually posting it because I need something to get my account bumpin again!! Anyways I hope you enjoy, hopefully I’ll post more soon :)

𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐭 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

Inspired by Wait by the River, by Lord Huron!

Warnings: Angst, terribly written (written a year ago and just now posting!) also long asf.

Words: 1,634

•*´¨`*•.¸¸.•*´¨`*•.¸¸.•*´¨`*•.¸¸.•*

People say time heals. But to you, time was the opposite of what you wanted. The more time passed, the more you missed Newt. The longer you spent apart from him, the more your heart ached, and burned.

He healed you, and without him- time is nothing but an aggravating evil.

Your heart tore in two pieces the day he left the Glade, choosing your brother over Newt. You were scared to leave, all you knew was the Glade. You remember the look of defeat on Newt’s face, how he welled up with tears as you gave him one last goodbye. How tight he held you before he was hurried by Thomas. You wished he never let go, you wished he never left you.

You were afraid, terrified even, but as you watched the love of your life leave the only home you’ve ever known you broke. Shattering like a mirror - splitting your ideals from reality. To follow him, you’d risk your life to do it.

Gally was watching you closely, you knew it. His eyes never left you when the blonde left you behind, he had a firm grip on your shoulder for comfort. You knew it was to also keep you within the Glade.

It was minutes later, your shoulder ripped from Gally’s hold, throwing yourself into the maze. Shouts of protest bubbled from the remaining boys in the Glade. Gally’s shout was the loudest, his own footsteps following behind you.

You weren’t worried about him catching you, as you had always been faster than him. You didn’t know the maze, for fucks sake you were a gardener with Newt, but you had seen the map. Minho was one of your closest friends, he shared everything with you. You had helped Minho study the map with Thomas, so you remembered generally where you were supposed to go.

The hard part was trying to fight the feeling that you were losing control of your own body. Your fingers had grown numb and your eyesight had fallen hazy. The further you ran down the path of the Maze, the less yourself you felt. You felt angry, angry that Newt would truly leave without you, angry with Thomas for cutting your goodbye so short. You couldn’t explain it, but you were angry with the world.

You had lost Gally minutes ago, you didn’t care. You needed to reach the group.

When you reached the Griever Hole you stopped in your tracks, and everything went black.

—

There you were again, you were in a new place, your surroundings electronic and gray. As the hazy feeling in your body faded you saw in front of you were your friends, Newt, Thomas, Minho- but something was wrong. Chuck, on the floor, bleeding.

That’s when you felt it, a flame of pain erupted in your chest. Looking down to your hand you realized you had something in your hand. A gun. You thought.

No, no, no, no-

You looked down to where the pain was in your chest, seeing a large sharp pole sticking what felt like, straight through your heart. You tried to gasp, as time seemed to pick up its pace, two bodies rushed to you. One catching you before you fell to the ground.

The two bodies were Newt and Minho, it seemed as though chaos was erupting around them and you. Light poured into the room, you could only hear Newt’s desperate cries.

“Please (Y/N) stay with me-” salty tears trailed down the blonde's face as he held you closely to his own body. Newts free hand grazed your dirt stained and sweaty face. Your skin was so pale, it made him sick. Minho stood above him, his face filled with fear. He was yelling at someone across the room, his angry words too distant to understand.

The soft touch of Newt’s hands sent you into a flurry of unexplainable emotions. You felt like you couldn’t breathe when he was holding you, although - the spear sticking out of your chest probably had something to do with that.

“I..” you tried your best to gasp out a few words, sorrow coating your tone, “I’m.. I’m so.. So sorry.” Tears welled up in your lashes, you couldn’t see anymore. Your vision was failing.

“(Y/N) please-” Newt’s voice echoed through your once again hazy mind, you could tell he was crying; his voice raspy, “Please don’t leave me, I.. I love you please baby.”

His heart wrenching pleas were the last thing you heard as you faded into nothingness once again.

–

Months passed without Newt, unsure if he was even alive. You and Gally had been saved by Lawrence and his group. Only being picked up moments after Newt had been snatched up by WCKD. It was scary, leaving the only home you’ve ever known, knowing you killed the sweetest boy you’ve ever met, Chuck.

After telling Gally how you weren’t even conscious when it happened; he tried to convince you it was WCKD who was controlling you. And although you knew this was true, you couldn’t help but feel as though it was you the whole time. You remember feeling angry before, but you never wanted to kill anyone.

And now here you were, perched on the large windowsill in Lawrence’s office, gazing out into the Scorch as your brother patrolled the outside of the Last City.

You were close with Lawrence, he grew to be like a father figure over you and Gally. You had confided with him about Newt and your friends in the Glade, and he understood. Lawrence himself lost a lot of friends, especially since he was half cranked-out.

Gally had been a big support system for you as well, he had comforted you through the nights you had cried yourself into exhaustion, missing the one person who made you feel whole.

You missed the warm summer nights in the Glade you spent with Newt, under the starry sky - wrapped up in his arms. He held you so tight, like he never wanted to let go - but he did.

“Y/N,” Lawrence’s raspy voice startled you from your thoughts, looking to the older man you noticed he was holding an orchid gazing at you quizzically, “Where did you go?”

You pulled your legs up to your chest, glancing out the window once more as you hummed in response, “Oh you know, wonderland.” You scoffed slightly at your own words, turning back to Lawrence.

Lawrence chuckled in response, his focus shifting back to the roses he was watering.

You sighed, your head resting on the window pane next to you. Closing your eyes tiredly - before you could pass out you heard commotion in the hallway. You sighed frustratedly, tucking yourself further behind the plants that guarded the windowsill. Maybe it was Gally finally coming back from patrol, you didn’t care though as you really just wanted to get some shut eye.

The door of Lawrence’s office flew open, causing your own eyes to snap open. You were hidden far enough in the window that you couldn’t make out who it was that had barged in so rudley.

“Gally- I’m glad to see you made it back, Jasper told me what happened,” the Crank man hummed his words.

“It was a slaughter,” The gruff voice of your brother seemed to cut through the eerie environment of Lawrence’s office, “there was nothing we could do against those guns.” Your heart sunk, you didn’t want to hear anymore - tuning out Lawrence’s response you played with your hands. Ignoring the aching feeling of sorrow in your chest, more people dead in an already deserted world.

Lawrences sudden sternness of voice caught your attention, causing you to tune into the conversation once more, “Now. Who are these people? Why are they here?”

Gally brought someone to Lawrence?

There was a tense pause of silence, and you held your breath, awaiting the unknown person to speak.

“We need to get into WCKD.”

The familiar voice sent you into a spiral of emotions, your body freezing up and going numb, was it really Thomas? You made a move to stand as Thomas continued speaking - “Gally said you can get us through the walls.” Your heart stopped, it really was him, his voice was more serious than it was back in the Glade, maybe even a bit fearful.

You froze before moving into sight of the others. You were preparing for the worse, what if Newt wasn’t with him? What if… You didn’t even want to think about it - your eyes welled up with tears as you hesitantly moved from behind the wall of plants.

You froze, looking to where the familiar group stood in front of you - each of their eyes now on you. Every expression showed surprise, but you didn’t care about that - your own eyes meeting the one person you missed so dearly. Newt.

You gasped - the tears that threatened to fall earlier now trailing down your face.

The blonde boy lurched forward, his arms around your frame immediately, crushing you with a force you didn’t know he had. His own shoulders seemed to shake - he was crying too.

You broke a sob as your arms wrapped weakly around his waist. You never expected to see him again, you thought he was gone.

“Newt- I’m so sorry,” your sobs broke through his chest as your arms pulled him closer to your body.

He shushed you immediately “No (Y/N), I shouldn’t have ever left you,” his own cries broke his composure- pulling you closer than ever.

Your head shook, apologizing over and over again while Newts lips kissed the top of your head, whispering how much he loved you.

This time, he truly would never leave you behind.

[panda-writes-kpop]

who you gonna call? (winchesters!) ~ k. br.

a/n: raaaahhh happy SuA day!!! a little late on the international end of things but it's better late than never, right? anyways enjoy this fic, I had so much fun writing it that I may get back into watching supernatural. :) also the title is based on an edit of the winchesters brothers to 'ghostbusters' by ray parker jr!

I normally don't do a separate trigger warning for specific triggers, but since this is the first time that a piece of work has touched on such a serious topic, I wanted to put a big disclaimer out there. There is a scene in the fic where suicide is discussed as a possible cause of death. There's isn't any more graphic of a description than the word being thrown around once or twice; however, I feel it is my responsibility as an author to inform you of this. That being said, if you or a loved one are struggling, here's a list of international suicide hotlines that can help you if you need them. take care of yourselves, my loves, and remember that you all are beloved by me. ❤️

tw: BRIEF MENTION OF SUICIDE, main character death, lots of blood and gore in this one, not accurate to the Supernatural episode (Season 1, Episode 5) that it is based on, reader's parents died at an early age, it's a mixed bag of angst, fluff, and hurt/comfort with an open ending

summary: after one of the worst nights of your life, a pair of "reporters" roll into town and ask you questions about your dead friend. unfortunately, one of the girls, SuA, is a bit too charming for her own good. your curiosity towards the girl brings you closer to her, and it brings SuA closer to solving your friend's death, as well as the death of your parents.

♡ Masterlist ♡

“Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody-”

“Stop!” You cry out before shutting your eyes. “Don’t do this!”

“You know it’s not real, right?” Ryujin looks at you as concern laces into her voice. “We can leave, if you’re uncomfortable-”

“You’re both chickens!” Yuna teases you before turning back to the bathroom mirror. “O’ spooky mirror ghost, tell these losers to go back home!”

She cackles as you open your eyes and place a steady hand on the counter.

“Yuna, I’m sorry, I can’t do this.” You bite your lip as tears start to form in your eyes.

Yuna’s smile immediately fades as she pushes Ryujin aside to pull you into a hug.

“I’m so sorry! I was just playing around, and I didn’t mean to make you cry.” She whines before placing her head on your chest. “Please forgive me!”

With pleading eyes, Yuna looks like a wounded puppy as you gently comb your fingers through her hair.

“It’s alright, Yuna,” You reassure her as your free hand wraps around her side, “I know you didn’t mean any harm. I’ve just been sensitive to these things since people started spreading those haunting rumors after my parents died.”

“Those people are assholes,” Ryujin injects, “and you shouldn’t pay them any mind.”

Yuna bobs her head up and down before letting you out of her arms.

“That’s why you’ve got us!” She proudly says before looking in the mirror. “We’ll protect you from anything, ghost-related or not.”

You let go of Yuna before heading towards the bathroom door.

“Thank you, to the both of you.” You wipe away the tears that threaten to fall as Ryujin grabs your hand and guides you away from the bathroom.

“C’mon, I’ll make you some hot chocolate and we can talk about those cute girls you’ve been seeing at college.” She teases as you smile back at her.

“Girls? What girls?” You play dumb, which causes Ryujin to laugh.

“You know exactly what I mean.”

Your other hand catches the door frame as you look back at Yuna.

“You coming?”

“In a minute!” She gleefully says as you remove your hand from the doorway.

A second later, and it would’ve been crushed by Yuna slamming the door shut. You allow Ryujin to drag you to the kitchen as your thoughts begin to wander.

It’s silly to believe those rumors, right? Maybe I should be brave like Yuna and face them head on.

~

After Yuna slams the door shut, she turns the light off and grabs the candle from the sink. With a spare match that she stowed away in her pocket, she lights the candle and sets it back onto the counter.

Yuna looks at herself in the mirror, locking eyes with the reflection that looks back at her, as she smiles to herself.

“It’s just a child’s game - what harm could it do?”

She leans close to the mirror before whispering, “Bloody Mary.”

A single shiver runs up her spine - fear? adrenaline? panic? fate?

She sighs to herself. 

This is stupid.

“Bloody Mary.” Her voice rings out again, and this time, the candle wavers in the wind.

Yuna looks out to the window in the bathroom, but it isn’t wide open or slightly cracked. It’s completely shut, with no holes to be seen.

A new shiver runs down her spine - this one she identifies as pure terror.

What’s going on?

“Bloody Mary.” 

The words leave her lips before she can stop herself. Yuna immediately turns on the lights and looks around.

There’s nothing here - you’re just a scaredy-cat!

She breathes out before wiping a tear from her eye.

I must’ve really scared myself if I started crying.

She looks down at her hand, expecting to see nothing but a teardrop, but she sees blood.

Her blood.

A scream is caught in her throat, threatening to escape as she looks in the mirror.

This time, she sees blood falling from both of her eyes, and a shadowy figure in the back.

A woman.

Bloody Mary.

~

You grab the warm mug from Ryujin’s hands before taking a sip of the hot chocolate. Like an impatient child, you take a sip and are immediately reminded why doing so is a terrible idea. You quickly set the mug back down as the liquid in your mouth is scolding your tongue and throat as it travels down to your stomach.

“Fuck,” You wipe your lips, “that’s hot.”

“It’s hot chocolate, you know.” She nudges your arm before taking a seat next to you in the dining room.

You roll your eyes as she laughs at her own bad joke.

“Thanks, Einstein.”

Her mug sits on the table, right next to yours, as her hand grabs your arm.

“How’s college life? Meet anyone special?”

“Not yet. I’m focused on my studies.” You shrug off her nosiness, but Ryujin’s persistent.

“You can’t just spend the rest of your life slaving away at work, you know.” 

“You can’t just spend the rest of your life working at a shitty cafe, Ryujin.” You mimic her voice as she loudly gasps.

“Excuse you! My caramel macchiatos are anything but shitty!”

You both laugh before falling into a comfortable silence.

Her fingers run up and down your arm, and you find comfort in the gesture. She’s been your closest friend since your parents died, back during your first year of high school. Through her, you met Yuna, her neighbor and childhood best friend, who had the biggest house on the block.

It was easy to escape the pain of being in a home with no parents when you could simply spend every night at a friend’s house. It wasn’t like their parents complained - you all got decent grades and stayed out of trouble, so what was the harm?

“It was nice of Yuna to offer her house to me since I’m in town for the week.” You say, as Ryujin nods.

“Her house is always open to me. The benefits of being neighbors, I suppose.” She looks over to the hallway where the bathroom is. “Yuna, come out here before your hot chocolate gets cold! I don’t want to hear any complaints if it already is!”

You laugh before looking out to the hallway.

“That’s odd. She’d usually have some sort of smartass comment to say by now.” You glance at Ryujin, who seems perplexed by Yuna’s odd behavior.

“You’re right. She’s never this quiet. Do you want to check in on her, or should I do so?”

“I’ll do it.” You quickly get out of your chair and head towards the bathroom.

“Yuna!” You call out to her as you slowly approach the bathroom door. Nearly every light in the house is on, yet you feel some sort of darkness around you.

C’mon, Yuna, now is not the time for jokes.

“Yuna, please come out! Ryujin and I, we’re worried about you!” You stop before the door, fist raised to knock against it.

You knock once, twice, thrice.

No response.

“Yuna, please!” Your voice becomes more desperate as you continue to knock. “This isn’t funny!”

You try to open the door, you’re past the social politeness of knocking in case she’s taking care of private business. You’re worried that she slipped and fell, or maybe she hurt herself and didn’t want to say anything-

A key. There has to be a key somewhere.

You look down to see if you can spot a key, but your eyes widen at the sight in front of you.

Blood soaks into your shoes and the carpet below your feet.

You shriek in terror.

“What’s wrong?” Ryujin races around the corner as you start sobbing.

“Call an ambulance! I think Yuna’s, she’s-” 

You choke on your own tears as Ryujin scrambles to find her phone to call for help.

Your mind can’t help but to make a terrible comparison, one that you thought you would never have to relive.

This was exactly how you found your parents, all those years ago.

~

“Mom! Dad!” You call out from your bedroom. “You guys forgot to turn off the hallway light!”

You tightly hug your stuffed rabbit as you wait for one of your parents to respond. They were the two people you trusted most in the world, even though you were a young teenager.

Making friends didn’t come easy to you, especially not in high school, when most of the friend groups had already been decided.

You did talk to this one girl in your math class - Ryujin - but she was more of a study buddy than anything. A friend that simply saw you as a means to an end.

How tragic.

“Mom! Dad!” You call out for them again, wait for a response, and then get out of bed. “I wanted to stay curled up in bed, but I can’t do that when you guys are ignoring me!”

You sigh before putting on your slippers and trudging towards the hallway.

You exit your bedroom and turn to the left as you find the lightswitch with ease. That, however, isn’t what peaks your interest.

It’s the steady stream of a red liquid coming from the master bathroom.

“Mom…” You trail off before walking towards the door. “Dad?”

As you approach, a metal tang hits your nose. It isn’t any red liquid - it’s blood.

~

Red and white lights consume your vision as you sit on the steps of the front porch. In the distance, you can hear Ryujin talking with one of the paramedics, but it all feels like white noise to you.

Could it really be? Could the same entity that killed my parents really have done this to Yuna?

It’s all a jumble of lights, endless questioning, and paranoia until a hand meets your shoulder.

You look up at Ryujin, who tries to give you a forced smile.

“What did they say?” You softly ask as Ryujin takes a seat next to you.

“They think it was a stroke, or some other heart condition. That’s the only thing that could’ve caused her eyes to be like that.”

“Her eyes were liquified, just like my parents.” You quietly say. “Paramedics said they died of strokes, too.”

“But I don’t get it. Yuna ate healthy, exercised regularly, and didn’t seem stressed at all. That’s why they’re looking into suicide as a cause of death too.”

“You can’t be serious, Ryujin,” You glare at her. “Suicide?”

“We never really know what’s going on in someone’s head.” She shrugs before letting her head fall between her knees. “How are we going to tell her family about this? We should’ve been in there with her, maybe we could’ve caught the signs sooner-”

You lean your head against her shoulder and offer her a bit of comfort.

“Trust me, dreading the past doesn’t help at all.”

“What are we supposed to do, then?” 

When Ryujin lifts her head to meet your eyes, she hides her face in a valiant effort to hide her red eyes and quiet sniffles. You gently rub circles into her back as she grabs your shoulders and pulls you closer to her.

“We grieve, we remember, and we move forward with our lives.”

~

“Hustling for pool money again?” Siyeon asks, not daring to lift her eyes from the newspaper.

“Uh-huh.” SuA tosses a stack of cash on the bar table. “What do you think?”

“That it’s better than the credit card scams, but worse than an actual job.” Siyeon bluntly says before SuA grabs a chair, spins it around, and takes a seat.

“Think what you want, but it’s money and it’s right there.” She proudly smiles before looking at Siyeon. “Speaking of jobs, have you found anything?”

“This might interest you.” Siyeon grabs a pen and circles an article in the paper before tossing it to SuA.

“What am I looking at?”

“A girl from a prominent family died about a month ago. Shin Yuna was her name.” Siyeon explains.

“What’s so special about her that requires our… unique expertise?”

“Read the autopsy report in the paper. Her eyes were completely liquified, and they found most of the blood in her body within her skull. They claim that her cause of death was a stroke.”

“No shit.” SuA bites her lips as her eyes gloss over the page. “Are we dealing with a pissed-off spirit, a deranged vampire, or something else?”

“I say that we give it a look before those men over there get mad at you for your hustling.” Siyeon grabs her jacket as SuA takes a sip of beer from the stein in front of her.

“Hustling is an underappreciated art form.” SuA argues before putting on her leather jacket. “Let’s go.”

Siyeon shrugs before grabbing the newspaper from SuA.

“Let’s go.”

~

“This feels wrong.” Siyeon raises her fist to the door before looking back to SuA’s ‘67 Chevy Impala. “Are you sure there isn’t anyone else we can talk to first?”

“Family and next of kin is always the best source.” SuA adjusts the aviators on her face as she admires her reflection in a side view mirror. “We have to rule out witchcraft and demonic possession, just so we can be sure that we’re dealing with a pissed-off spirit.”

“Yuna’s family… her parents have been through enough. Should we really not start anywhere else?” Siyeon’s hesitation causes SuA to sigh and walk towards the house.

“Where has this hesitation come from? It’s not like you.” SuA places her sunglasses on the top of her head before knocking on the door.

Siyeon crinkles her nose in disapproval before moving to the side.

“Mr. and Mrs. Shin, a moment of your time!” SuA calls out while banging on their front door.

She stops for a moment and waits for an answer, but no one responds or comes to the door.

“They must be out of town.” Siyeon shrugs before watching SuA grab a bobby pin from her hair. “Don’t tell me you’re going to-”

“You said they weren’t home,” She argues, “and we have to learn about our victim one way or another.”

She places one knee on the ground as she lowers herself to be eye-level with the door. One hand grabs the door knob while the other takes the bobby pin and begins to mess with the lock and-

Easy does it, baby.

“Hey, I’m pretty sure trespassing is illegal in all parts of the world!” A voice yells, which breaks SuA’s concentration.

Startled, she launches herself to her feet before Siyeon walks backwards and falls into SuA, sending them both to the ground.

“Nice one.” SuA grumbles before Siyeon scoots aside.

“You tried breaking in!”

“You encouraged it!”

“You two have to be the worst thieves I’ve ever seen.” A pink-haired girl walks from the next-door house to greet them at Yuna’s home. “Or you’re the next Nancy Drew in-training.”

“Who are you?” SuA quickly stands up before offering a hand to Siyeon.

Siyeon takes the hand and quickly reaches for her wallet in her back pocket, most likely looking for whatever fake ID will get them out of a potential cop car ride.

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” She innocently tilts her head as her piercing gaze makes SuA sweat under her leather jacket. “The nearest police station is five minutes away, and I know the deputy’s daughter-”

“Ryujin, that’s enough!”

SuA lets out a heavy breath as her knight in shining pajamas appears at Ryujin’s side. With messy bed hair and a kind smile, they look much less terrifying (and much cuter) than Ryujin.

~

“Ryujin, that’s enough!” You march towards Yuna’s house as Ryujin sheepishly backs down from the two women in front of her. “They’re probably interns at a newspaper who were sent to look into Yuna’s death.”

“Yeah, sorry we forgot to mention that to you.” The taller one rubs her neck before putting her wallet away. “I left my college ID in my car, I can go get it for you if you’d like-”

“Nah, don’t worry about it,” You shrug before looking at her, “Names are enough for me.”

“Siyeon.” The taller girl sticks out her hand, which you gladly shake.

“And you?” You look over to the smaller girl, who simply smirks.

“You can call me the woman of your dreams.” She flashes you a charming smile before Siyeon elbows her in the gut. “Fuck! What was that for?”

“Her name’s SuA.” Siyeon apologetically says as SuA grabs her stomach in pain. “She can be a bit… much at times.”

You simply smile at SuA, who leans against the doorframe to look tougher.

And less like a child who got their hand stuck in the cookie jar.

Cute.

“SuA, Siyeon, it’s nice to meet you,” You say before quickly introducing yourself, “and this is Ryujin.”

“You still didn’t tell me why you’re knocking at our dead friend’s front door.” She deadpans as you place a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s better that they bug us instead of her parents,” You say, “who have been out of town since the funeral. Rumor is that they’re going to sell the place, but it’ll most likely get torn down.”

“Right. No one wants to live in a house where a woman died.” Siyeon looks at the door for a moment. “Is there any way we could look inside? For our article, we need a full biography of the victim, and we thought her childhood home might fill in the pieces that we don’t know.”

“Yuna.” Ryujin sternly corrects Siyeon. “Her name is Yuna.”

“I-” Siyeon pauses, rethinking her answer. “Yuna, of course. Apologies.”

Ryujin scoffs before nodding. 

“I wouldn’t feel comfortable being in there without her parents’ permission, but we can talk to you in Ryujin’s house.” You clarify before Ryujin can say something argumentative in response.

That, however, does not completely stop her from responding as Ryujin’s head snaps towards you.

“You can’t be serious! They’re strangers-”

“-Yet, they’re much better than the other reporters and photographs that have come around here.” You say before beckoning SuA and Siyeon towards Ryujin’s house. “C’mon, we can tell you everything you need to know. We were her closest friends, and we were there when she died.”

You don’t miss the way that SuA’s eyes light up when you say the last part.

She must be really invested in this case.

~

“This hot chocolate is really good.” SuA remarks before offering her glass to you. “Want some?”

“No, I’m alright,” You lean towards SuA with a smile, “but Ryujin’s coffees are so much better.”

“Are you shit-talking my hot chocolate?” Ryujin yells from the kitchen as you slide into the stool next to SuA.

“I thought you said it was okay to do so, as long as you said your coffees were better!” You holler back as Siyeon takes a seat next to SuA.

“My coffee is fantastic, by the way!” Ryujin says as you chuckle to yourself.

Never change, Ryujin.

“Maybe I could buy you some, as a treat for your hospitality?” SuA gives you a wide grin before nudging your shoulder.

“Maybe.” You teasingly shrug before looking at Siyeon. “Are you sure you don’t want anything besides water?”

“No, I’m alright. I feel like we’re imposing on you already.” Siyeon gives SuA a sharp glare before looking back at you. “Do you mind if we ask you some questions about Yuna? It’s not exactly surface-level stuff, and if we cross any boundaries, be sure t-”

“-Did you notice anything weird going on with Yuna before she died?” SuA enters the conversation with the gracefulness of a one-ton elephant. “Any flickering lights, sulfur around window sills, increasing or decreasing temperatures…”

“No, none of that,” You shake your head before thinking, “but there was one thing that she did say, before she died.”

“What was it?” SuA looks deep into your eyes, and you’d blush under any other circumstance.

“The three of us - me, Ryujin, and Yuna - were in the bathroom a few minutes before she died. When we were in there, Yuna was teasing me and she started chanting Bloody Mary in the mirror. I stopped her before she got to the third one, but I can’t help but wonder…”

You bow your head for a moment to recollect yourself before speaking again.

“...I’m sorry, you didn’t come for speculation. So no, there wasn’t anything weird with Yuna before she died.”

You glance over at Siyeon, then to SuA. The two girls are staring at each other with an intrigued look on their faces.

They can’t actually believe this story, right?

“Have there been any other deaths like this in town?” Siyeon asks.

Here we go.

“Two, actually,” You start to chew on your lip, “my parents.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.” 

The words fly out of Siyeon’s mouth as she tries to pick her jaw up off the table. 

“Don’t be, it was seven years ago. But yes, when I found them, their eyes were liquified, just like Yuna’s.” You offer a weak smile to your companions, both of which look like they’d rather be five feet under the ground than right next to you.

And everyone wonders why I don’t like to talk about my parents - the response is always similar to this.

“Can I ask a stupid question?” SuA takes a sip from her mug after responding.

“Shoot.”

“Did you play Bloody Mary before your parents died?”

Your eyes widen as SuA’s bluntness.

“I-”

“SuA!” Siyeon reaches behind you to smack SuA on the shoulder. “Why would you ask something like that?”

“I’m forming a theory on what’s happened here,” She pauses for dramatic effect, “a damn good one if you ask me.”

Siyeon clears her throat before grabbing her water and standing up.

“Alright, we’re done here. Pardon my partner’s rudeness.” Siyeon walks over to SuA and hauls her onto her feet.

“But my hot cocoa-” SuA whines, which causes you to laugh.

“It’ll be here if you have any more questions.” You wave at the two girls as they bicker and exit the house at the same time.

Ryujin slowly approaches from the kitchen with her eyebrows furrowed.

“Why’d you tell them all that? You know they’re not reporters, right?”

“I don’t know, Ryujin,” You say before patting the vacant stool on your left, “there was something different about those two. They might just be nosy tourists, but I think they might be able to find something in connection with Yuna and my parents.”

“Be honest - you just let them in because SuA was eye-fucking you-”

“RYUJIN!”

~

“Alright, SuA, what’s your theory?” Siyeon places her feet on the dashboard before SuA swats them away in disapproval.

“We’re not dealing with a demon or a vampire or a werewolf. This is just a seriously pissed-off spirit. One that looks like Blood Mary, apparently.” SuA says before turning the car to the left. “We need to look into unsolved murders in the area. Perhaps one that has to do with eyes?”

“Spirits do like to kill their victims in ways that resemble how their murderer killed them. A twisted sort of revenge.” Siyeon nods along. “What would cause the spirit to attack once, and then not attack until seven years later? Usually, these sort of killings happen in rapid succession.”

“That’s the part that has me stumped, too.” SuA pulls into the motel parking lot with ease before putting the car into park. “Let’s get some sleep and see what we can figure out in the morning.”

~

“Shit.”

SuA runs her fingers through her hair as she stares at the headline for the morning news broadcast on TV.

A Deadly Sleepover: Three Teens Found Dead in Local Home!

“You think it’s our spirit?” Siyeon asks as SuA places her head into her hands.

“They said that the girls had their eyes liquified.” SuA absentmindedly looks up to the ceiling.

Why does there always have to be more deaths before we catch our murderer?

SuA watches Siyeon sort through a few newspaper clips while looking at her computer.

“Tell me you’ve got a lead.” SuA taps her foot against the motel flooring as Siyeon nods.

“I do. I cross-referenced local unsolved murders with any autopsy reports of eye gouging or similar injuries, but I couldn’t find anything on the victim’s side.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” SuA asks as Siyeon hands the computer to her.

“Look here. Lucinda Brown, 25 years old. She was murdered in her home by an older man who had his eyes gouged out at the scene of the crime.”

“Jesus.” SuA scrolls through the autopsy reports. “You think this is our girl?”

“Timeline matches up. Lucinda was murdered twenty years before any murders occurred here. That’s enough time to drive any person, living or dead, to insanity. Speaking of, her murderer managed to escape jail time by pleading that he was mentally unwell at the time of the murder.” Siyeon replies.

“Alright, so what do we do now? Dig up some old bones and give them a communion in fire?” SuA suggests, which is quickly shot down by Siyeon.

“The woman was cremated, so that’s a no-go. There must be something else tying her to the mortal world.” Siyeon ponders for a moment. “Let me see the laptop again.”

“Sure.” SuA hands it back to Siyeon before looking at the TV.

The reporter’s interviewing a neighbor who had heard nothing of the incident, except that the girls had been playing Bloody Mary with a handheld mirror in the backyard.

“Bingo,” With a satisfying click, Siyeon turns the laptop to face SuA, "we've got our object of interest.”

On the laptop monitor is a picture of the crime scene from Lucinda Brown’s home. It’s obvious that this was a home invasion - a dresser was knocked down in the background, sheets were tangled with each other on the floor, and blood was splattered across every possible surface in the room.

No wonder the family cremated the poor girl.

SuA’s eyes drift up towards the middle of the picture, where a floor-length mirror stares back at her. In the middle of the mirror, written in blood, is a simple message: Help Me.

“She knew she was going to die there.” SuA softly says. “One last act of rebellion against her killer. I think we’ve got our ghost, but the question remains: where’s that mirror?”

~

“I can’t believe you still kept the thrift store, after all of these years.” Ryujin adjusts the cap on her head before leaning over the counter. “I know it’s your parents, but that place gives me the creeps.”

“I know.” You nod as you stare out of the cafe window. “There’s just a part of me that would hate to see it go to ruin.”

“So you just leave it in limbo?”

“So I just leave it in limbo.” You answer as she looks over to the register. 

“You could always come work with me, y’know. I might own this place one day.” Ryujin’s eyes sparkle with ambition, and you can’t help but laugh at her goals.

“You work on that, Ryujin.” You take a step back before the door opens. “Well, if it isn’t our reporter friends.”

“Friends?” SuA scoffs before walking in. “I thought I left a better impression than friends.”

“Maybe I want you to make a better impression now.” You tease before grabbing your coffee. “Order something first, and then we’ll talk.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” SuA rushes over to talk with Ryujin, which causes laughter to fall from your lips.

Wonder if she’s like this with every person she meets…

“Siyeon.” You greet her as she admires the display of baked goods. “You should try the donuts so Ryujin doesn’t have to burn anything in the oven.”

“It was one time!” Ryujin yells as she writes SuA’s order on a cup.

“I’ll get something in a minute, but I wanted to ask you if you saw the news this morning.” Siyeon places her hand on the display case as her eyes look through the different options.

“I did, yes,” You lower your voice before asking, “do you think it’s related to the other deaths?”

“Given that the girls had the same wounds that Yuna did, I’d say there’s a strong chance that it is.” Siyeon quietly answers.

“Do you know how to stop them?”

“We have a strong idea. Have you seen a mirror like this?” Siyeon grabs a folded-up piece of paper and hands it to you.

You grab the paper and carefully unfold it, and you gasp as you stare at the crime scene in front of you.

“I-” You pause as you notice the mirror in the corner, “I think I’ve seen that mirror before. My parents used to have one just like it in the thrift shop that they owned.”

Siyeon’s eyes widen as she looks over at SuA.

“I’m listening, hold on.” SuA hands her card to Ryujin before walking over to the two of you. “Mind if we take a look around there?”

“I thought you wanted to have a coffee shop date.” You smile as she bashfully looks away for a moment.

“Ah, so now it’s a date.” SuA chuckles before leaning against the counter. “We can change plans, as long as you don’t mind having a third wheel.”

“As long as you two aren’t making out in the back of the Impala, I don’t really care.” Siyeon shrugs before Ryujin hands her a baked good.

“Here’s one slightly toasted-but-not-burnt donut.” Ryujin says before grabbing a coffee from the back. “And your black coffee, you heathen.”

“I prefer my coffee black instead of liquid sugar, thanks.” SuA remarks before taking a sip. “Perfect.”

“Whatever.” Ryujin rolls her eyes before looking out of the window. “Hey, did you see that woman?”

“What woman?” You look out to the road, but there’s not one car or person outside except the Chevy Impala.

You notice the visible panic on Siyeon’s face as she walks over to Ryujin. 

“What does she look like?”

“Well, she had pretty blonde hair, but her face was a little messed up. It almost looked like she was dead or something…” Ryujin confesses.

“Fuck.” SuA sets her coffee aside before grabbing Ryujin. 

“What are you doing?” She frantically looks around as SuA drags her to the car.

“If you want to live, you have to come with us.” 

The door slams shut as Siyeon follows after her.

“We’ll explain in the car, I swear.”

~

“Are you serious?” Ryujin breathes deeply through her nose as Siyeon covers the rearview mirror with a small towel. “If so, I’m fucked.”

“But she didn’t say Bloody Mary three times!” You try to reason with SuA as she steps on the gas after pulling out from the parking spot.

“It doesn’t seem to matter who said it.” SuA runs a red light in town as you fumble with the keys in your hand. “What can you tell us about that mirror in your parents’ thrift shop?”

“I remember that they sold it to a woman in our neighborhood, a few weeks before they…” You trail off. “You’re telling me that this mirror killed my mom and dad?”

“Not the mirror as much as the spirit attached to this.” Siyeon says as she lowers the passenger seat window.

“This is insane, right?” Ryujin looks over to you with a look of fear that doesn’t normally sit on her face. “I can’t believe that you believe this!”

“I mean… I’ve always felt that there was something wrong about their deaths, but I didn’t think it was a literal haunting. I just thought it was a mean rumor that the neighborhood kids saw.”

“The same kids that would play Bloody Mary with that mirror?” SuA asks as you point out the thrift shop in the distance.

“You guys have done more to solve my parents murder in the last twenty-four hours than the police have done in seven years.” You shake your head. “I don’t know how I could thank you.”

“Let’s save your friend first, and then let’s talk about thank you’s, alright?” SuA pulls into a nearby parking spot as you hand Siyeon the keys.

“Are you positive that the mirror is here?” Ryujin looks over to you as you nod.

“The woman who bought that mirror had died a few weeks later, of an actual stroke, and one of her children took it with them when they moved out of her house.” You explain as SuA nods along.

“That explains the lack of murders in seven years, but that means someone brought it back to your town.” 

“I’ve used the thrift shop as a storage unit since my parents’ house was torn down two years ago. A few weeks ago, I saw that someone placed a floor-length mirror outside of the back door, so I brought it inside so it wouldn’t get smashed.” You hand the picture back to Siyeon. “The same mirror in that photo, minus the bloody message.”

“I hate to rush the exposition, but I’ve seen Bloody Mary in your side mirror.” Ryujin says before slapping a hand over your eyes. “Can we please get this show on the road?”

“Right. You get the hammer, I’ll get the shotgun.” Siyeon says as she and SuA exit the car at the same time.

“I’m fucked, aren’t I?” Ryujin whimpers as you rub her shoulder. 

“They hunt ghosts, or whatever they tried to explain to us. We have to keep you alive long enough for them to deal with this.” You attempt to comfort her as you hear the trunk of the car slam shut.

You roll down the window as SuA approaches your side of the car.

“Hey, be careful out there. I still want to get coffee with you sometime.” You offer her a cheerful smile as she runs a hand through her hair.

“You don’t have to worry about me, babe, I’ve got you. Both of you.” SuA winks at you before walking towards the thrift shop.

You shyly look away as Ryujin punches your shoulder.

“Can you flirt with her when I’m not near certain death?”

~

“Of course there isn’t any electricity.” SuA quietly grumbles before flipping the light switch off. “Where did they say the mirrors were?”

“Up ahead, and to the left.” Siyeon says before following your instructions. “Here we are.”

“How many mirrors are there?” SuA says as she looks at the collection of floor-length mirrors. “Do we start smashing, or…?”

“Maybe if we summon her, she will appear from the mirror that was in her house.” Siyeon says before turning to a mirror hung on the wall.

“That’s a terrible idea that will get us both killed.” SuA tries to pull Siyeon away, but Siyeon pushes her aside. “Don’t do this, I’m warning you.”

“Too late.” Siyeon locks eyes with the reflection in the mirror. “Bloody Mary, Blood Mary, Bloody Mary.”

The lights above them flicker as SuA approaches the first set of mirrors. The reflection of the flashing lights nearly blinds her, but she manages to smash the first one with little difficulty.

“Do you see her?” SuA yells before smashing another mirror.

“Not yet!” Siyeon calls out before turning to the side. “Keep going!”

The lights flash with increasing frequency as SuA continues to break every floor-length mirror that crosses her path.

Why would anyone ever have so many mirrors?

Again and again, SuA smashes every mirror that she sees. And again, none of them seem to stop the flashing lights. She travels deeper and deeper as her hammer strikes every mirror in her path.

SuA’s deep into the back of the thrift shop when Siyeon screams in pain.

“Siyeon-ah!” SuA yells out before running through a different part of the store.

How many different types of mirrors are there?

“She’s… here!” Siyeon manages to get out before another scream escapes her.

SuA doesn’t have time to smash every mirror she sees - she has to find the mirror, and fast.

She flies through the store, to the musical accompaniment of Siyeon’s sounds of terror and pain, until she spots a mirror with the tiniest bloodstain on it.

“Guess the mirror wasn’t totally clean, huh.” She says to herself before the hammer connects to the mirror.

It shatters instantly, just as Siyeon goes quiet. 

“Siyeon!” SuA backtracks quickly, only to find Siyeon laying on the floor with blood coming from her eyes. “You okay?”

“I’ll live,” She mutters before slowly getting off of the floor, “but she won’t.”

Siyeon weakly points ahead of her, where a woman that matches Ryujin’s descriptions and the autopsy report disappears into a cloud of black smoke.

“You think she’s gone for good?” Siyeon quietly asks.

“As long as the mirror stays shattered, I’d say so.”

~

“I suppose I should say thank you.” You say as you approach the Chevy Impala.

SuA leans against the driver’s side door with a smirk.

“I suppose I should say that you’re welcome, but I think an apology is in order.”

She sheepishly looks away as you wave off her concerns.

“Don’t worry about the mirrors. They’re not worth the price of someone’s life.” You look over to the thrift shop. “Besides, it’s time that I let that place go. It’s just a collection of bad memories and poor decisions. Something more positive and welcoming should take its place.”

“You’re selling it?” 

“No, I’m giving it to Ryujin. She’s dreamed of owning her own coffee shop since she started working at that little cafe uptown.” You gaze at the keys in your hand. “She’ll make better use of the space, I know it.”

SuA tilts her head at you.

“How is she?”

“Fine. Nothing that a pint of beer and a bit of therapy won’t fix.” You laugh to yourself. “How’s Siyeon?”

“A bit shaken up, but nothing major. Brushes with death are pretty common in our line of work.” 

“Well, for your sake and mine, I hope you’ll be a bit safer through your travels.” You bite your lip as SuA takes a step toward you.

“You’ll be thinking of me, even after we leave? How sweet.” SuA teases you before you retaliate.

“It’s not every day that I meet a girl as forthcoming, kind, and attractive as you.” You flirt back before taking a step towards SuA.

It’s in this moment that you realize how close you are to one another, and another step from one of you will cause your bodies (and hopefully your lips) to collide.

“If you keep sweet-talking me, I might not be able to leave.”

There’s a shred of honesty behind SuA’s flirting - she’s seriously considering staying for another night or two.

“Maybe that’s the idea,” You take a half-step forward, and you place a quick peck on her cheek, “but you have more people to save, no?”

“Unfortunately, I do, but I’m not ruining this moment.”

SuA pulls you closer by grabbing your hips, and before you have time to relax, her lips collide with yours. You immediately kiss her back as your hands land on her shoulders.

You only break off when you need air, and SuA looks at you with a proud smile.

“Maybe I’ll come back some day.” She lets go of you before pulling her aviators off of her head.

“Maybe.” You softly repeat as SuA climbs into the car.

Siyeon offers you a friendly wave before rolling down her window and handing you a piece of paper.

“For later, when you miss SuA.” She says before the Impala pulls out of the parking spot and heads back onto the road.

After the car leaves your field of vision, you look at the note in your hand.

Written in pen is SuA’s phone number, followed by a brief message:

For when you miss SuA, or if anything in this town ever requires our area of expertise. - Siyeon.

You smile to yourself.

Maybe you’ll call the Winchester girl and see if she’s free for a week or two in the future. Maybe you’ll call just to hear her voice and ask about her adventures. Maybe you’ll wait for her to track down your phone number and call you first.

maybe, maybe, maybe.

[bebe-writes-stuff]

Damn, you felt sore. Almost every part of your body ached. Last thing you remembered was, you were behind the school because you've received a note to meet someone there, just like the many you got like every other week. It's always the same corny love confession, and you always respond with the same answer,

"Oh, I already have a lover. Thanks for the thought though." You say and walk away.

But this time, it was something you never would've expected. It was a girl this time but that wasn't the new part, you've had even girls confess to you. It was she started talking about,

"You just think you can do whatever you fucking want just because you're pretty." She said in a spiteful tone,

You grimaced knowing what type of girl she already was. She was a bitch, not the good kind. She was green with envy of any girl who tried to outshine her. You snickered,

"You think I'm pretty, why thank you <3." You dropped the smug remark, rolling your eyes playfully.

You started walking away, not wanting to waste your time with some girl who has nothing to do then shit on other women who are living their lives. Jealousy really is a disease, and an ugly one. But suddenly you stopped in your tracks when she shouted,

"YOU THINK YOU COULD JUST STEAL HIM AWAY FROM ME, YOU BITCH!"

Turning to her, annoyance bubbling up inside you as you spat back at her,

"What the hell are you talking about, steal who?

"HARUKI SENPAI, YOU SEDUCED HIM!"

She saw your furrowed eyebrow and crooked smile, before you burst out laughing, hugging your stomach,

"PFFT, BAHAHA! OH MY GOSH, REALLY!? THAT UGLY GUY CONFESSED TO ME."

Taking a deep breath before wiping the small tears in the corners of your eyes,

"Okay, so you're yelling at me because your man-wait no- CRUSH asked me out. Sounds like you should keep him in check rather than attacking me. You know, that's a really bitchy move. There's a special place in hell for insecure hoes like you who put down other women."

You felt bad for her, she was trying so hard for this guy's attention to the point of coming at other girls. That's so...pathetic. You saw how her malice expression faded into a sadistic smile, then you caught the sound of a twig snapping behind you. You gasped at the realization, turning halfway when you felt the sharp pain in the side of your head. One of her friends had snuck up on you then at the moment you put your guard down, she struck you with a metal pipe.

RIP my man...Shinichiro

You weren't sure how long you've been knocked out for, but once you woke up it was night time. And you were met with two afros you were oh-too-familiar with.

"Hey Souya, it's alright. She's opening her eyes, there's no need to cry." His older brother, Nahoya, tried to comfort him.

Souya hasn't stopped crying ever since they got the first glance of your almost lifeless body on the floor. He never ran so fast to check up on somebody, pulling you into his arms and light shaking you to wake up. Begging you to.

"Hey Soso, baby, you're kinda squeezing the life out of my ass right now." You managed to gasp out,

He quickly let you go but both of his hand were still on your shoulder,

"Who...who did this Y/n. I'll fucking kill-" He started, his voice dripped with malice and rage.

Tears were running down his face, Nahoya had warned you about Angry's tears. No matter what, don't make him cry. You cupped his face, catching him off guard. You took a good look at him before gently wiping his tears away and leaning in and kissing his wet cheeks, You giggled a little at the small blush that became visible on his now hot cheeks. He was such a kind soul. He was one of the rare people who truly had a good heart. You weren't sure how hard you fell for him until now.

"Why are you crying dummy, I am literally right here in your arms."

You feel relieved once you see his tears stop running like a speeding river. You continued by kissing his hands,

"I told you before, your tears are precious to me, baby. Mm, I love you so much." You whispered, your voice sugarcoated as you pulled him into your arms, holding him lovingly.

He sniffed and struggled to talk because of his constant gasps,

"Shh, it's gonna be alright. Just listen to my voice. Take a deep breath, angel. Yeah, that's it. Are you calm now?" You whispered near his ear, rubbing his back and gently caressed his hair.

He nodded,

"I-I tried, I really did! But you were hurt and bleeding!"

"I know, baby. I know, and it's okay. I'd never ever blame you, love. Also c'mon, I bleed like every month. I think I can handle this." You joked,

You heard his muffled laugh when he had his face rested in the crook of your neck.

You were too focused on Souya, notice the way Nahoya took the hint and left you two to the comfort of your own presence.

...

The walk home to patch you up was sweet. Souya offered (demanded) to carry you all the way to your house. It was relaxing, he smelled nice, and he was warm. You wrapped your arms around his neck getting more comfortable when you pulled him closer resting your head on his shoulder.

"Souyaaaaaaa, I love youuuu. You're so sweet and make me so happy." You whispered, dragging out some of your words.

He was glad you weren't looking at him. You would tease the freak out of him if you saw the way he blushed hard at your harmonious voice. You raised your head, facing him. You snicker at his flushed face,

"You're so cute when you blush." You purr, biting your lower lip a little.

You moved your face closer to his, brushing your lips against his. It was a deep and affectionate kiss. You lost yourself in his warmth, treasuring the sensual moment. Pulling away to take a shaky breath. You sunk back into his arms, a smile tugged on your swollen lips, and let your eyes rest, getting sleepy.

After a moment you heard a small chuckle. You open one of your eyes, staring up at him,

"Hmm, what's up?

"I just remember talking with my brother about something."

"Oooh, tell me! Tell me!"

"He said you were a lot like a tootsie pop."

"The sucker. pfft-why?"

"You always act so tough on the outside but you're really such a softie."

You got flustered and a tad bit angry,

"dammit Nahoya, I'll shove my foot up your ass next time I see."

Ate a whole bag of tootsie pops while writing this

[ladytauria]

“You drive me so insane, you don’t even know.”

Vampire Dick any Bat 👀

thank you so much for this prompt <3

also congratulations, i'm p sure this is my longest prompt fill yet 😂 thank you so much for helping me with suggestions and also brainstorming titles with me <333 i had a fun time writhing this~

>> AO3 <<

Jason wakes slowly; long lashes fluttering against his cheeks.

Dick watches him—the way he tenses, the slight furrow in his brow, mouth twisting. Jason can tell something is wrong.

All of them are used to alertness coming suddenly—but the drug in his system makes him slower. Sluggish. Dick can hear the way Jason’s breath catches; the uptick in the beat of his heart.

Dick hated to do it.

Really, he did.

If he could have gotten Jason back to his apartment any other way… he would have. But the last thing he wanted, or needed, was for Jason to put up a fuss. Drugging him would make sure he was… pliant. Receptive.

Still.

Dick may be immune to the drug’s effects, but the flavor will taint Jason’s bloodstream. He would have preferred his first taste of his brother to be… purer.

It’s worth it, though. For this—for Jason naked and on his knees before him, wrapped up like a gift in soft blue rope. His arms are bound behind his back, crossed nearly, while his calves and thighs have been tied together. He’s a living, breathing work of art. Dick is honored to have him on display in his bedroom.

He’s even already decorated; red tipped hoops glinting on his nipples and a few fading purple bruises on his skin. Dick would prefer to see Jason in blue—or perhaps purple, a lovely mingling of their colors together. He’d like to add a chain between the piercings as well; something to tug on. It would draw such delicious noises from Jason, he’s sure. Maybe he can convince him into getting a piercing on his cock as well…

Dick is getting ahead of himself.

The position should be one Jason can hold for a while. He had done his best to ensure it was comfortable, but there will still be some strain.

No matter.

Dick will soothe him…

Later.

After Jason understands what’s good for him.

Jason’s eyes flutter open at last. His pupils are blown wide from the drug. It takes him a moment to focus; long, slow blinks as he slowly drags them through the room.

They settle on Dick. His brow furrows, the corners of his eyes wrinkling as Jason fights to keep those pretty green-blues focused on Dick.

“Dickie?” His name in Jason’s voice, still thick with sleep, is one of the loveliest things Dick has ever heard.

“Hello there, little wing,” Dick whispers, kneeling down in front of him. He can’t stop himself from touching; gliding his fingers over Jason’s jaw.

Dick has always had charm. Charisma. He was born into showmanship. Drawing people to him, keeping them captivated… it came to him as naturally as breathing. After he was turned…

After he was turned, he had quite a few new tricks to add to his toolbox. One of those is his allure. A subtle, ever-present vampiric charm that does wonders for drawing in new prey. Dick usually keeps it on a tight leash, unless he’s hunting. But here, now, in his den…

He lets it free.

Like this, still half-drugged and bleary from sleep, Jason’s defenses are down. He’ll have a harder time fighting against it. It’s playing dirt. All of this is. But…

Dick can’t have his little wing running out on him.

Not that he could, of course, but it will be much less painful for both of them if he doesn’t fight.

Jason’s brow furrows. Dick can see the wheels turning in Jason’s mind.

His lovely, brilliant Jaybird. People tend to forget how smart he is. They see the bulk and the guns and assume that Jason is all violence and muscle. They forget it takes far more than athletics to get through Batman’s training, let alone whatever he learned during his time outside of Gotham.

“I don’t… What’s going on?” Jason frowns, the furrow in his brow deepening. “I…”

His eyes sweep through the room again. Dick watches him take in the details, his head cocked like a bird’s. He loves watching his Robins untangle a new puzzle.

The dark hardwood floor is covered with a dark blue-and-gold rug. It’s plush and soft, but Dick had still placed a pillow under Jason’s knees. He’d left the overhead light off in deference to the light sensitivity the drug may cause. Instead, the room is illuminated by lamps, their light dim and golden. All of the windows are blocked by thick, light-blocking curtains, all of them deep blue with golden tassels.

The doors leading out onto the balcony are similarly covered. There’s a private bath attached, though Jason cannot see it. Nor the antique wardrobe and standing mirror.

What he can see, right behind Dick, is Dick’s bed. It’s nothing so gauche as a coffin—he can be a sadist, but he’s not that cruel. Instead, it’s a four-postered bed with a canopy.

Dick has never brought his Robins to this apartment before. It’s luxurious, tasteful in a way that would be right at home in the Manor. Still… there’s no denying Dick’s touch.

He can see the realization dawning in Jason’s eyes. In the same moment, he watches him try to fight it.

Dick’s heart squeezes. Precious.

“Dick?” he repeats, sounding more alert now. “What’s… What’s going on? Where are we? What are you doing?”

“Oh, little wing…” Dick moves his hand to Jason’s shoulder, his thumb settling over Jason’s pulse. “You’re a smart boy. What do you think is going on?”

Jason’s eyes flicker over his face. The movements are half a beat slower than normal.

“I don’t…” Jason’s throat bobs when he swallows. Dick tracks the movement, and doesn’t bother to hide his hunger—both natural… and unnatural.

Jason’s breath hitches.

Dick decides to be generous. “You and Tim have been working a case,” he prompts gently. It’s the same tone he’s used on all of his little Robins, when guiding them toward an answer he has already puzzled out.

Jason nods slightly; an infinitesimal dip of his chin. “People keep turning up with neck injuries,” he whispers. “Puncture marks on their necks, in the middle of a bruise. And missing time. Usually a night, sometimes a little longer. But… every now and then… we find a corpse instead.”

Dick hums, rubbing his thumb over the best place to bite. He can feel, and hear, the rabbit of Jason’s heart. Silly boy. There’s no place for fear here. Dick would never hurt one of his little Robins. His precious little birds. All of them have already suffered too much.

“I— Tim and I joked about vampires,” Jason says, voice cracking a little. He searches Dick’s face. “Dick… are you…”

Dick dispenses with a little of his glamour, and smiles, showing off his fangs. “I told you you were smart, little wing.”

As much as Dick doesn’t want Jason to be afraid… he would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy the scent of it; the way it makes saliva pool in his mouth, fangs itching, aching for a bite.

He resists.

For now.

“Dick… please,” Jason whispers. “Let me go. We can talk about this.”

Dick cups the back of Jason’s skull, leaning in to brush his nose over Jason’s cheek. “Oh, little wing,” he breathed. “You drive me so insane, you don’t even know. Now that I have you… I don’t think I can let you go.” Just being close to him like this is eroding Dick’s self control. He can’t help but cup Jason’s pec in one hand. It fills his palm just like a breast, the relaxed muscle plush under his touch.

Jason shakes his head, trying to move away from Dick’s touch. “N-no… Dick… You can’t… you can’t be a monster.” His voice breaks. Poor little wing. He sounds so young—the boy who never quite got to grow up.

“Shh,” Dick hushes him. “Of course I’m not a monster, little wing. I only want to keep you safe. My first little Robin.” He kissed the corner of his mouth, another little indulgence he just can’t help.

“Dick… please.” A tear rolls down his cheek. Dick tastes it on his lips. The scent of his fear has ratcheted up now, no longer enticing in its bitter pungence.

Dick exhales slowly, in something not quite a sigh. He had been hoping to avoid this a while longer, but he supposes it simply can’t be helped.

Just his allure isn’t enough. Dick needs more.

He cups Jason’s chin in his hands, and meets his eyes. Jason’s eyes widen, slightly—but he doesn’t look away.

He can’t.

Dick has locked them together, his power holding Jason in place.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, little wing,” he says, voice melodic. “Big brother will keep you safe.”

>> continue on AO3 <<

[dollyyyhouse]

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐦𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

An AU where the demons involved in the exchange student program have always plotted to sacrifice the humans in the program.

This is an edit! I'm adding some content warning because I originally forgot to add some :}

CW: Mentions and descriptions of violence, mostly a horror AU!

Poor sleep habits were common, nothing unusual for people like yourself, but ever since your arrival in the Devildom; sleeping peacefully seemed like a thing of the past. You began to toss and turn in your sleep, night terrors of violent scenes, all of which involved YOU playing the poor and helpless victim flooded your dreams, and those few seconds you faded in and out of sleep— you could hear ghastly cries for help to YOU and ineligible mumbling in your ear. Perhaps it was your mind playing tricks on you?

No. You swore it wasn't, the Avatars of Hell even explained the story behind the House of Lamentation. The macabre and brutal murders that took place and how poltergeist roamed the halls in search of either revenge or rest— for all you knew, you might have stood in the exact same place as a victim during the attacks! Were the same entities that had died in the murders the ones whispering and crying out for help to you?

Some nights, all you could do was helplessly lay in your bed, praying for a sun that would never come out. Oh, how you wished to see the light of day during those lonely nights. All you could do was find beauty in the little things; and that's exactly what you did.

One evening, you confided in the second eldest brother, Mammon, about your fears of living in the house, along with your night terrors. "Huh? What are ya' yapping about, human?" Mammon looked at you in a funny way, as if you were some weirdo. "Uh, well, I don't know," you let out an awkward laugh, "I guess it's just my imagination that's making me feel uneasy. You did explain that all sorts of ghost and ghouls exist in the Devildom." The demon laughed, "Aha! The Great Mammon is always right!"

"I told ya', stop freaking out over no big deal, not like anything can hurt you with me watchin' over ya'!" Mammon slung his arm over your shoulder, keeping you close, almost too close. It was like he always wanted to have power over you. Even if he didn't boast about it outright— Mammon, along with all of his brothers and the others involved in the exchange student program, were one step ahead of you. "Those dumb little ghost can't do anything. All they do is whine and groan about the past, just don't talk to them. " Little by little, you tuned Mammon out. You originally didn't mean to, you had just fallen down a rabbit hole of thoughts. When you realized he was still complaining about 'this' and 'that', you just grew tired of listening to the greedy man speak.

You parted ways from the demon, using the excuse of wanting to wash up and have some alone time in the bathroom. Truth be told, Mammon's words didn't soothe you at all. His statement about how the ghost only ever "complain about the past" struck a nerve with you, how could they not? Majority of them died pitiful deaths and were cursed to roam a house with a tainted reputation.

So, here you were. Fresh out of the bath, brushing your teeth and planning on heading to bed soon after. You spit out the left over toothpaste, glancing at your reflection in the foggy mirror before looking down into the sink, you resumed brushing, catching another glimpse of yourself in the mirror. You spit again, in the upper corner of your eye, you see a young girl in a tattered and bloody nightgown, you go to grab a cup — wait what?

Flipping around, you see no one. "Holy shit.. I need to get a grip of myself!" You mumble. Turning back to the mirror, a message appeared to form in the foggy and damp mirror. "Run." You weren't sure if that was the message intended, the writing looked as if a child had written it in a rush. Deep down, you prayed it was just a young poltergeist playing tricks on you, maybe the kid had eavesdropped on your conversation with Mammon?

You discarded your towels on the bathroom counter, hurrying over to your closet to dig for pajamas before someone saw you naked. Once you grabbed a nightgown, you quickly threw it on and jumped into bed— hoping that you could fall asleep before the monsters came out to play.

It truly seemed like everyone and everything around you was always one step ahead of you. When you shifted in your bed, you were met with a pair of eyes only displaying a mortified expression. When you blinked, they were gone. Retreating under the blanket, you curled up and made sure the blanket was properly tucked underneath you and that not even a toe would be seen; only allowing a small pocket of air for your nose. "I feel too much like a scared child right now, damn it, it's so stuffy underneath this stupid blanket!" Shutting your eyes, a pout formed on your lips and your brows furrowed.

The security of the blanket seemed to help you, because just a few moments later, you were slowly falling into sleep, but conscious enough that even a creak of a door would alert you. Usually the night terrors would wait until you were in a deep sleep to begin; but this time they begun early.

Your thoughts were hazy, you could barely keep up with the dialogue running through your dream, but familiar figures lurked throughout the dream.

"Stop this! Please! I thought I could trust you!" Those words fell from your lips, only to fall upon deaf ears. Your body moved on it's own, as much as it possibly could with the ropes holding your body into the shape of a star. "Barbatos, is everyone ready to begin our precious exchange student's graduation ceremony?" A grand voice spoke, the owner of the voice was all too familiar, along with the name he mentioned. Nothing made sense, but neither did the 8 other hooded figures surrounding you. All of the demons began to chant an unknowing curse, the man who spoke first stood beside you, wielding a large knife. "No, no, no, no, no! Stop, I did everything I was supposed to! I thought you were meant to keep the human exchange student alive no matter what!—" In a swift motion, the tall figure stabbed you in the chest, twisting and forming a shape in your lower chest to upper gut.

And just like that, you woke up and recollected all the other scenes in your night terrors. All had similar dialogue and the same hooded figures, almost everything was the exact same, besides a few scenes where your restraints broke loose due to "your" thrashing. The nightmares weren't of you, instead, you were only a replacement for the past exchange student who suffered a fate you were soon also going to suffer.

The poltergeist around you were only trying to warn you. The demons you thought of as friends were the hooded figures of the dreams! How could you be so stupid to trust a demon, let alone 9 demons?! Your heart race increased, it seemed like at any moment your heart would just bounce out of your chest and run away!

It all made sense, the highest ranking demons of Devildom were always PLENTY of steps ahead of you. You didn't know when, but soon, you were going to be betrayed and slaughtered.

[hrefna-the-raven]

Tome of fate

Masterlist

Chapter 1

Summary: This is basically an AU story about Loki, prince of Jotunheim, and the reader, princess of Asgard, meeting in the Utgardhall's library.

Warnings: fluff and Jotun Loki :)

Words: 1315

Your older brother Thor was meant to rule Asgard one day and you were chosen to maintain and forge diplomatic relations with the other realms, at least that was the hope Odin still clung to. You couldn't have been more different than your brother, although also being a formidable fighter and somewhat social if required, you rather preferred the company of a good book and the quiet of the night while sitting in the library absorbing all the stories and knowledge available. You were also known to cause a lot of mischief around the palace with your pranks but the fact that you somehow managed to talk your way out of it most of the time made the Allfather think that, some day, you'd actually use those skills for the good of the realm. Which lead you to this very moment, walking down the long halls of Utgardhall alongside Odin and king Laufey who was one of your father's most precious allies. Your feet suddenly stopped dead in their tracks in front of an open door as your eyes spotted the many bookshelves of the palace library. Your eyes sparkled at the marvelous sight of the old leather-bound tomes stacked neatly together, drawing you into the room as if possessed by a spell until you heard the Allfather call your name, followed by an amused chuckle from Laufey.

"I see your daughter treasures the written word more than the spoken one. May I propose to let her do so for now, old friend", the king's hand rested on Odin's shoulder, "she will need to hold negotiations soon enough, she should have the opportunity to enjoy Utgardhall's library today."

You paced slowly through the room, your fingertips brushing of the spines of the carefully bound and neatly stacked books. Asgard's library was clearly bigger and brighter but this one left you in awe with the sunlight shining through its large stained-glass window, bursting into an opalescent cataract of azure, emerald, gold and ivory. The image kindled a cozy feeling deep inside you as if you'd be sitting at a crackling fire enjoying its comforting warmth while a snow storm raged outside. Your eyes strayed from the window to the bookshelf on the left, stopping at the sight of a protruding and rather big book, covered in time-worn black leather. You took it off the shelf, running your fingers along the ice blue runes on the cover. You learned to read and write older runes from your tutors when you were younger but these seemed so different from the ones you studied. The shapes looked somewhat familiar until they seem to twist into something much older. You carefully opened the book, skimming through the faded pages as you tried to concentrate your gaze on the many runes and the few beautifully drawn and colourful illustrations at the beginning of each chapter.

"I wonder what this is", you mumbled absorbed in your thoughts.

"The tales of how my people and this realm came to be", a gentle male voice spoke up behind you.

Startled your hands let go of the book and it fell towards the ground, a big blue hand catching it right before it could hit the floor. You gulped uncomfortably at the sudden clumsiness as you slowly turned around. Your eyes widened at the sight of the rather good looking Jotun standing right next to you. He was obviously taller than you but due to being bent forward, his face was at the same height as yours, close enough to feel his hot breath fan over your blushing cheeks. Every part of mind screamed at you not to but you kept staring at him without a single word leaving your usually eloquent mouth. Your eyes traveled from his dark lips, over the pale ridged markings up to his ruby eyes staring straight into your soul.

"I'm rather fond of this book so I'd prefer for it to not be dropped on the ground", he chuckled, a teasing grin spreading across his lips while he straightened up.

"I apologise", there was a crack in your voice, "given my love for books I can assure you that I'm usually more careful but you startled me."

"Well, we Frost Giants are known to frighten others," a sad expression spread across his face while he tried to smile, eyes glued to the book he was still holding.

You watched him carefully, intrigued by the depth of his sadness emanating from him as he spoke and it stirred something deep inside you, a sudden urge to to show kindness and bring back that grin from earlier. You didn't know this man but meeting him in a place that some of your fellow Aesir would have mockingly described as your natural habitat, witnessing his endearing humorous way to talk about books, it connected the two of you in a way neither of you could have fathomed.

"Can you read it?", you asked, pointing at the book.

"Well what kind of Jotun would I be if I couldn't?", he snickered.

"Read it to me", you requested, stretching your arms up so one hand could reach and carefully open the book he was still holding while the other motioned to a large divan in the corner of the room, "please."

The Jotun didn't look at you, his eyes remained firmly on the first page, but just before turned around to walk to the divan, you could spot the corners of his mouth twitching into a gentle smile.

"Well how could I refuse if I'm being asked by such a beautiful lady."

You felt the heat creep up your cheeks as you sat next to him. Despite the Frost Giants being welcome in Asgard and not considered enemies, they were still a rather unusual sight in your realm, with rumours circulating amongst the noble families about how brutish and uncivilized the Giants could be and yet here you were in the heart of Jotunheim, sitting next to this particular Jotun reading you the origin story of his kind.

"There was in times of old, where Ymir dwelt, nor sand nor sea, nor gelid waves", his soft but deep voice filled the room.

"Wait", goosebumps forming on your arm as your hand moved up touching his cold blue skin.

His ruby eyes studied you curiously while you flicked your fingers, an emerald mist wisping from the tips, floating in front of you and slowly transforming into a bright faintly translucent image of the words he just read out of the book. His mouth opened slightly at the sight, he'd seen spells many times, he was even capable to cast some himself, but the entire encounter with you, leading up to this moment as you used your seidr to make it seem as the story of his kind was alive, gifting him with the opportunity to see the story come to life filled his heart with a happiness he never believed to be real. It was the random act of kindness from a stranger that filled his eyes with tears of joy.

"I'm Loki", he almost sobbed, not daring to look at you.

Your eyes widened at the sudden realisation that you were sitting next to Laufey's son, the next king of Jotunheim whom you just asked to read to you. You murmured your name in between hitched breaths, shifting nervously on the divan.

"It is a pleasure meeting you, princess", he almost whispered and his gaze finally shifted to your delicate frame next to him.

Your eyes met and while your face felt like it was burning, you could have sworn to detect a slight shade of pink on his blue cheeks before you nodded and put your concentration back on your seidr.

"Earth existed not, nor heaven above, 'twas a chaotic chasm, and grass nowhere.", he continued calmly, unable to hide a content smile.

Notes: I'm not sure if this is headed anywhere^^ I'm very hesitant if I should add more chapters, especially since I still have 2 ongoing series, 1 even about Loki, that I somehow neglect all the time xD

Chapter 2

[selencgraphy]

— 𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐌𝐄

TAGS: loki and sylvie as siblings (bc i just didn't like the romantic connotations to their relationship that the show gave them...), reuniting with thor, fluff, he/him pronouns for loki, canon divergent bc obviously i now know the tva isnt just gone hehe

A/N: okay this is the LAST lost selencgraphy fic, i swear. wrote this while loki s1 was airing :) happy reading <3

WORD COUNT: 897

masterlist || request box <3

"I barely remember what my Thor was like..."

Loki's heart clenched at Sylvie's statement. The TVA took her entire life away from her. When he had been taken from his timeline, learning that he could never go back hurt him immensely. He would never see his brother or his mother ever again outside of holograms. He couldn't imagine what it was like for Sylvie. With the TVA now gone, they could go anywhere they wanted and Loki thought of only one place.

"Where the hell are you taking me?"

Loki turned to her and gave her a reassuring glance. "You're just going to have to trust me on this one."

As they continued to walk, Loki only stared straight ahead, mumbling to himself. Sylvie only caught parts of it. One sentence that she heard clearly was, "I hope you're still alive."

Who was he taking her to?

Once they reached a small clearing they came to a stop and Loki closed his eyes for a moment until suddenly a portal of green smoke appeared before them. He chuckled in surprise and excitement. "I didn't think that'd work. I saw the other version of us do it so I just- Never mind, let's go."

As he was about to step into the portal, he noticed that Sylvie wasn't following behind him. Turning around, he offered his hand which she hesitantly took. As soon as he got a solid grip on her hand, he ran into the portal, dragging her along right behind him. “Loki!" she screeched as they passed through, her eyes squeezing shut. When they exited out of the other side, the sounds of crashing waves and people filled her ears. Slowly opening her eyes she was met with a small shore town, people greeting each other as they passed. Fishermen worked the day's catch off their boats, everyone helping as the fish was passed from person to person. Taking in her new surroundings, one thing caught her eye and caused her chest to tighten. A small sign sat next to the entry road. Welcome to New Asgard.

She knew of the destruction of Asgard. Of all the apocalypses she had traveled to, Asgard's was one she never stepped foot in. She couldn't. Her memories of it had already been fading, seeing it crumble would have hurt her in ways she couldn't imagine. Seeing her people again, thriving together made her heart swell. Fighting back tears, she turned back to Loki who was already looking at her, a smile of adoration on his face. Sylvie pulled him into a tight hug, letting her tears finally fall. Arms tightly wrapped around her, Loki began to explain, “When Asgard was destroyed, my brother- well, our brother took what was left of our people here—to Midgard."

“Is he-"

She didn't need to finish her sentence. He knew who she was referring to and quickly nodded. Neither of them have seen him in years. “Loki?"

The voice that called out caused both of them to turn. A tall, dirty blonde man stood in the distance, adorning baggy clothing and accompanied by a creature made of rocks. The three of them stood there staring at each other, tears filling their eyes to the brim. Suddenly, the other man was running towards them and soon enough his arms were thrown around Loki's shoulders, his head stuffed into his neck. “Brother, is it really you?"

Loki quickly hugged him back, eyes squeezing shut. "It really is me, brother."

Pulling back to face him directly, the taller brother stuttered out, "I- Thanos he- how is this-"

“None of that matters. I'm here now."

The brothers quickly pulled each other back into a tight hug, something they hadn't done in decades. While hugging his brother he noticed Sylvie behind Loki, who was also crying. Letting his brother go, Loki noticed Sylvie was stuck in her place, unable to say or do anything. The last time she had seen the blonde boy, they were young children who played in the gardens of the palace. She couldn't believe her eyes as she looked at the man in front of her. Was it really her brother too? Filling the silence, Loki started, “Thor, this is Sylvie. Sylvie, this is Thor."

She suddenly ran into Thor's arms, burying her head into his chest as she cried. Realizing that this Thor might be confused as to why she was hugging him, she backed away and apologized. “No need to apologize Sylvie."

"Brother, Sylvie is um well- Long story short, she is our sister."

As Loki said sister, Thor's eyes lit up and moved to gaze at the woman. It was then he was the one who pulled her into a bone crushing hug. “Welcome home, sister."

The three siblings reunited, resting into each other's arms after so many years. The weather of Asgard shifted from its normal gloomy day, as the sun peeked through the clouds. The sun did shine on them again.

Bonus:

Thor turned to Sylvie once again. “I've always wanted a sister. Well, I had one but she tried to kill me… You're not going to try and kill me right?"

The mischief makers turned and shared a quick smile with each other. Catching their small gesture, Thor knew what that meant. He was in for more trouble now that he had two siblings with the same mischievous tendencies.

[justjbeboriginalo]

Don't Die This Time

Kili Fanfic

Kili meets a girl who has to go along on their quest on Gandalf's request. The girl captures his attention from the first time they meet and they grow to love each other over the course of the quest.

Pairing: Kili x OC female who can control natural elements

Chapter 5: Pain Part 2

Warnings: Death (orcs)

Gaia walks behind Dwalin with the town’s people surrounding them. Her eyes dart to Kili who is limping behind her with Fili short on his heels.

How are they going to reclaim Erebor when Kili can barely walk on his own?

She hears a soft groan from Kili and reaches her hand out to his. She feels around for his hand and takes his hand, walking slower in order for Kili to catch up. The hidden flower attached to his pants causes her to avert her gaze quickly.

The blackened flower does nothing to ease her worries.

The cheers of the crowd boom in her ears, but she keeps her attention on Kili’s pale features. She never noticed his eyes were such a dark brown, but it could perhaps be the paleness that accentuated them.

“Kili, are you sure?” Gaia asks, her voice mostly muffled by the cheering of the crowd. Kili gives a nod, but she knows he is in a lot of pain.

When they were together in the barrel, she felt his cold hands in her own. It was then that she knew how much trouble he truly was in.

She tried everything to get the poison from his blood, but she needs more time. It takes all her energy and strength when she performs her healing ritual which she picked up from the elves.

Kili did not want to risk her depleting her powers as they might still have to face Smaug. Gaia can only hope that Thorin does not allow Kili to continue with the quest. Fili would most likely also stay behind.

As the company makes their way onto the boat, Thorin stops Kili from getting on the boat. Some hope flickers across Gaia’s features as she knows that she will be able to help Kili once he can rest.

“Not you,“ Thorin says with his hand blocking Kili from getting into the boat. “We must travel at speed. You will slow us down.” Kili’s hand slips from Gaia’s. She can feel Kili’s heart breaking at Thorin’s words, aware of the importance of this quest to the King’s nephews.

“What are you talking about? I’m coming with you,” Kili argues back, an oblivious smile decorating his features.

“Not now.”

The realization hits Kili and the smile fades. How can he not continue this quest? This is what he has trained for his whole life. This is what he had lived for.

“I’m going to be there when that door is opened.” Kili’s voice is filled with despair. “When we first look upon the Halls of our Fathers, Thorin.”

Gaia steps forward with her eyes trained on Thorin. Thorin gives her a knowing look before he turns his attention back to his nephew.

“Kili, stay here. Rest,” Thorin says with sympathy, his hand cupping the back of Kili’s head. Anguish flickers across Kili’s eyes while he looks into Thorin’s eyes.

Kili hesitates a moment before he trudges back to where the company waited for the boat. Oin gets out of the boat and walks to Kili.

“My duty lays with the wounded,” he says with honor and Gaia bows her head to him when he passes her. Perhaps he can be of assistance when she heals Kili.

Gaia starts backward towards Kili, watching Fili arguing with his uncle. After a short discussion, Fili walks to them to be with his brother.

“You should go,” Kili’s voice is low, the pain evident in his tone. His eyes bore into Gaia’s, pleading for her to leave. “I do not want you to see me like this.”

Gaia takes his hand again and her free hand moves to his cheek. She rubs her thumb soothingly in circles on his cheek, a warm smile appearing on her face.

“I am not going anywhere.” Gaia gives his hand a gentle squeeze before she turns to the front to watch the company sail to the mountain. She feels Kili’s hand trying to give her hand a comforting squeeze, but he is too weak. His hand almost slips from hers again.

The Master of Lake Town starts bidding his goodbye to the company as the trumpets play and the people cheer. Gaia glances at Kili and notices the sorrow as he watches the boat leave him behind. At least Fili stayed behind with his brother.

“Ah. So you missed the boat as well?” Bofur asks. Gaia furrows her brows at him. Bilbo had asked where Bofur was, but she assumed he was amongst the company. It seems he overslept.

Gaia lets out a laugh, but Fili’s panicked calls to Kili force her to focus on Kili instead.

Oh no.

Kili is unable to stay upright and Oin along with Fili holds him up. Gaia did not think that it was possible, but Kili appears to be even paler than before. He is in dire need of help.

Bofur and Fili support Kili, looking around at someone who might be of assistance.

“The Master,” Gaia says, gesturing for them to follow her. She hurries to where he resides, making a path along the way to ease the journey of Bofur and Fili with Kili.

“There.” Gaia dodges a few people and finally emerges from the crowd.

“Please wait,” Fili shouts, forcing the Master to turn to them. “Please. We need your help,” Fili pleads. “My brother is sick.”

“Sick? Is it infectious? Get back,” the Master demands, waving his hand for them to move as far away from his as possible.

Gaia stares in disbelief at the revolting man at the top of the stairs. How can Man be like this? They do not care for anyone other than themselves. Nothing new, she supposes.

“Please, we need medicine,” Oin says, stepping forward. His tone is desperate and Gaia is aware that Kili needs immediate intervention. Or else he might not make it.

Alfrid tells them to leave the Master alone before they head back into the Hall. How are they supposed to heal Kili without any medicine?

Gaia needs certain herbs and plants to be able to perform her healing, but without them, she fears she might not be successful.

The guards push them, forcing them away from the only help there might be in this forsaken town.

Gaia chews the inside of her cheek, trying to think of any other person who might be able to help them.

“Bard,” she says to Bofur, her tone without hope. Will he be able to help them?

Gaia fights off the Orcs, using a wooden stick. She focuses on the tricks Kili taught her during their journey together and manages to sweep an orc off his feet. She turns and kicks an oncoming orc, causing the orc to fall backward.

A shout from Kili catches her attention and she spins around, trying to locate him. She runs to where Kili was before Orcs attacked them.

An Orc charges at her and nearly knocks her off her feet. She uses the wooden stick with all her strength to impale the orc. The orc coughs black ooze out, sinking to his knees before falling to the ground.

“Kili,” Gaia shouts, trying to find him. She hears a pained moan and follows the sound. “Kili.” She crouches down next to Kili as her hands move to the open wound. The poison has caused the flesh to turn black around the wound on his thigh.

“Kili, stay with me,” she whispers, forcing him up. His shouts pierce her heart and she feels a tear sting her cheek.

The Orcs retreat and Oin hurriedly makes his way over to Kili. Fili helps Bard’s children out of their hiding spots before he also walks to where Kili is laying on the table.

“We’re losing him.” Oin’s voice is panicked. Gaia cups Kili’s face, feeling the life leaving him. Gaia racks her brain, trying to remember a plant that she might find here. Her eyes shoot to the door as she remembers.

“Atholos.” Gaia gets up as fast as she is able before she swiftly runs out of the house. She guides the stairs to move with her and she lands on a platform below the house. Her feet search for the vibrations of livestock and it leads her to a nearby coop.

Pigs.

Of course. The humans see it as a weed.

Gaia grabs a handful of the plant and uses the wood to carry her back to Bard’s house. She falls through the window, rolling to break her fall. She forces her body to stand up and rushes to Kili.

“Ah, yes. Of course,” Oin says, giving her a quick smile. She places the plant on Kili’s wound which only worsens Kili’s pain. He cries out in agony and Gaia knows that she needs to save him. It might be too late. Damn those Orcs.

Gaia closes her eyes, shutting out all the noise. Especially Kili’s shouts of anguish. She goes back to her days when she lived with the Elves after she escaped Sauron.

They took her in after the war between Sauron and Elves, Men, and Dwarves. Everyone came together to prevent Sauron from taking over Middle Earth. She was created to destroy the enemy.

Sauron created her.

She cannot remember much from her early days, but she knows that she could never kill anyone. Except for the Orcs.

The words start flowing out of her heart. Her hands tighten around Kili’s thigh while her healing incantation courses through the air, embracing Kili.

Evil was used to bring her to this world and she thought that she would never escape its grip on her.

She managed to escape Sauron’s hold on her and fled. The Elves found her and decided to grant her shelter. They found out about her origins and threatened to kill her, but Elrond saved her from that cruel fate. He taught her how to use her powers and how to control the elements. He knew how powerful she truly was when she knew of nothing.

Gaia feels the energy of Earth rushing through her into Kili’s wound. The house trembles at the power of the healing chant and this causes the children to scream.

After Elrond had taught her the fundamentals of her power and where she came from, Gandalf showed up. Gandalf helped her to remember how she came into this world.

She was trained to kill the Elves and Men since they were the biggest threat to Sauron. Thus, Sauron made her smaller than humans to cause confusion. How can something so much smaller than Men and Elves cause such destruction? Still taller than dwarves.

She trained by killing the Orcs who were the weakest of them all and slowly moved up the ranks. It was always easy to kill Orcs.

When she was assigned her first mission, she had to kill a group of men who had managed to sneak past their defenses.

After she had killed the first man, she thought she was dying. She did not know what was wrong with her, but it felt as if her soul was ripped from her.

That was when she realized that Sauron was evil and that she had to get away. So she fled.

Kili stares at Gaia, watching as she transforms into another being. A being of pure energy. There is a dark glow emanating from her.

He cannot help but gawk at the strange and almost intoxicating beauty of Gaia. He has never seen such a being. She is ethereal.

The glow only darkens and he notices her veins turning black. It seems like she is absorbing the poison from him.

Gaia inhales deeply, allowing the poison to travel through her. She was made from malevolence, so she is able to absorb pure evil energy.

When she traveled with Gandalf throughout Middle Earth, she learned everything about the forests and lands. She knew what her true purpose was.

She needed to heal the lands after the war.

Gaia slightly opens her eyes to look at Kili, who seems to be in some sort of a trance. He is looking at her and she tries to smile at him, but the poison traveling through her does not allow her.

She closes her eyes again and exhales slowly. She cannot mess this up. She cannot lose Kili.

Kili continues to watch Gaia and realizes that the pain is gone. Or perhaps he is dead. Perhaps she came to accompany him into the afterlife. He cannot tell.

All he knows is that she has become much more important to him than he wants to admit. He never felt these feelings before. They only become worse when he is separated from Gaia. And the feelings are stronger when he is with her.

Do not look for something that might not be there.

The way his heart clenches at the thought forces him to close his eyes. Perhaps he is not dead yet. Only time will tell.

Gaia feels Kili relaxing under her touch and she opens her eyes. She inspects him to see whether he passed out or whether he is still awake. His eyes are closed and his breathing is even. It might be better for him to have passed out.

She finishes her incantation and rests her hands on Kili’s thigh. She feels her strength leaving her and her knees almost buckle beneath her. She stumbles to a nearby chair and falls into it, allowing herself to rest.

“Are you all right, lass?” Oin asks, placing his hand against her forehead. She lets out a tired chuckle and waves her hand dismissively.

“I will be.” Oin bows his head to her before he turns his attention to Kili. Fili crouches next to Gaia, his hand on her shoulder.

“Thank you,” he says, his voice quivering. “You saved my brother’s life. I am forever indebted to you.” Fili inclines his head and Gaia notices a tear sliding down his cheek. She places her hand over his on her shoulder.

“No, Fili. You don’t owe me anything. I’m just relieved we were able to save Kili in time,” Gaia says with a soft smile. Fili nods, humming in agreement.

“He should be fine,” Oin states. Gai flashes a smile at Fili who pulls her in for a hug. She laughs into the embrace, flooded with relief.

Fili lets go of her and heads to his brother. He taps Kili’s chest with a smile before he heads to the kitchen.

“We should get some rest. We leave in the morning.” The other dwarves mutter in agreement as they head to their makeshift beds.

Gaia glances at Kili and decides to rather stay awake. She can rest by his side. She moves her chair closer to Kili before she sits down again. Her hand trails over his wet locks and she lets out a relieved sigh.

She healed him.

She did not lose him.

Gaia takes a strand of Kili’s hair and starts to braid it absentmindedly. She remembers how Gandalf told her about loss and she thought she understood what he meant. The searing pain that she feels every time she sees an animal or man dies. But that was not what Gandalf meant. He meant this.

Losing people you care about more than anything else.

Gaia rests her head on Kili’s arm, sighing. He must know loss. The dwarves of Erebor lost their home. They lost so many to Smaug. They lost everything.

Kili mumbles something and she lifts her head. She sees Kili’s eyes opening, waiting for him to recognize where he is. He continues to mumble, his eyes glued to her.

“Kili, you’re all right. I got the poison out of you. And your wound is closing up. How do you feel?” Gaia asks, her hand cupping his cheek.

Kili mutters something under his breath, but she cannot figure out what he is saying.

“You’re fine,” she whispers to him while she plays with his hair.

Kili’s eyes close again, a soft groan leaving his lips.

Gaia smiles at the peace that settles over the home. She missed this. This calmness. Except for the snoring of the dwarves, but she got used to that.

She stands up and replaces the walnuts that served as a pillow with Bofur’s jacket that was laying around.

“There you go,” she whispers, placing Kili’s head on the jacket. “Night.”

Gaia sits next to Kili, resting her head on her arms. Just one more day, then they will reach Erebor. Then she can . . .

Gaia sighs.

Then what?

[lena-in-a-red-dress]

Lena's Mercy (another black mercy fic)

Warning: mentions of suicide

Lena is tired.

She has been ever since the shock has worn off. Receiving her diagnosis on the tail end of discovering her life has been just one lie after another had been unexpected. But the blessing is that it will be swift.

She can already feel it-- the fatigue that wraps around her bones and weighs her down, the lingering cough that now brings up speckles of blood. Pounds shed from her by the day, and every time she looks in the mirror the heavy circles under her eyes grow darker. She's been able to hide it thus far, but it won't be long before even that will be beyond her. There's nothing she can do to halt the disease working its way through her system-- not in the little time she has left.

So Lena finds herself going to the last place she ever thought she'd go.

Lex's bunker greets her as coldly as her mother. Her footsteps echo as she strides towards the solitary scanner console. A dozen pricks across her palm and the console beeps, and the floor before her lifts with a hiss.

When the gate slides open to admit her, Lena walks straight past the warhammer, Lex's suit of kryptonite.

She draws to a stop in front of a clear containment case, and the sight of its occupant sends a flood of relief through Lena's exhausted body. The black mercy within coils and shifts, as though sensing her desperation, her readiness.

There's no other itemd here that tempts her: she has no intention of harming Supergirl. Lena's anger has faded in the face of her new fate-- it's meaningless, in the grand scheme-- but a small part of can't deny that she relishes the devastation she knows her former friend will feel upon realizing Lena is gone without the chance to say goodbye.

As though summoned by Lena's thoughts, just as her hand reaches for the latch of the containment device, a whoosh of displaced air announces Supergirl's arrival.

"What are you doing here?"

Kara's voice is sharp and authoritative, riling for a fight until she sees exactly where Lena's attention lies. Then, more gently, fearfully even-- "what are you doing?"

"Exactly what it looks like."

"Lena, no, you don't understand-- it may conjure a fantasy, but only so that it can drain the life from you..."

Lena exhales. That's exactly what she's hoping for, but for a different reason than the conclusion Kara jumps to a moment later.

"Please don't do this," the hero blurts in a rush, eyes brimming with tears. "Please, I'm sorry, okay? I'm so, so sorry. I'll say it every day until you believe me, just please-- don't do this."

Unable to muster the effort to keep herself from doing so, the corner of her mouth lifts into the tiniest, softest of smirks.

"One of these days, Supergirl," she says softly, "you'll realize that this world doesn't revolve around you."

Silence drifts between them, stale and thin. Lena feels the hero's gaze on her, studying. Can her x-ray vision spot the disease inside her?

"Lena," Kara says slowly. "What's going on?"

Then, as she continues to piece through the puzzle--

"You're sick."

Lena says nothing.

"This isn't the answer," Kara continues. She takes a step towards her, entering the vault proper.

"I'll be the judge of that."

"Suicide? No! I refuse to accept this is your only option. We can get you through this--!"

"There is no we," Lena snaps. She glares at her former friend, finally deigning to meet her gaze. "You have yourself to thank for that."

But just as swiftly, the irritation dissipates.

"Do you know what my fantasy will look like?" she asks softly.

She hears Kara inhale, an argument catching on her tongue. But then she deflates. "Tell me."

"Not a long life. I don't need that. I'll still be dying, but with dignity. With love. From all of the people who should have been there from the start. My brother, my father... even Lillian. Even--" Lena's breath catches on a sob. "Even my mom."

She swallows painfully around the lump in her throat, her chest tight. There haven't been any tears yet, and she isn't about to start now. But even as she makes the vow she feels the tears drop from her eyelashes.

"They'll-- they'll tell me that they're proud of me. That they'll stay with me-- until the end."

Her voice drops to a rasping whisper.

"That would be enough," she chokes out, a sob chasing on its heels. A hiccup follows, and the tears start to flood. They won't stop, and her breath comes sharper and sharper...

Suddenly, warm arms turn her around and envelop her. Lena returns the hug reflexively, and once there her arms refuse to unclench. She sobs into Kara's shoulder, letting the scent of sunshine and coconut shampoo wash over her.

"What about me?" Kara murmurs when Lena's tear ebb. She doesn't loosen her hug in the slightest. "Will I be there?"

Lena swallows, clenching her eyes shut. "I don't know," she whispers. "Will you?"

"Yes." There's not a sliver of hesitation. "I'll be with you every step of the way."

Lena's chest tightens, and her arms squeeze tighter around Kara. Kara's arms tighten gently in kind.

"I'm not going anywhere."

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

plot twst (heheh) ending

after everything rollo ends up as a die hard simp for malleus and raven

maybe he even ships them when he finds out they’re not in fact related

[Related Posts: Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8]

We skipped over the battle atop the bell tower part 😂 and immediately went to the resolution--

WELL. Seeing as how Rollo still seems super resentful and stubborn about his beliefs even by the time of the masquerade 🤡 probably not?? Maybe a burgeoning, begrudging smidgen of respect for stopping him before he did something unspeakable, something that would make his departed brother sad--even if he doesn’t openly or explicitly acknowledge that.

Malleus pressures Rollo into having a dance with him, so maybe the prince could pass him off to Raven afterwards (who’s dancing with Sebek--).

Something like...

“Pardon, may I cut in?” Malleus inquires, nodding towards his flustered knight.

“M-Milord wishes to share a dance?! OH, JOYOUS DAY!!” Beads of glistening tears collect in Sebek’s eyes. “B-But of course, that is not to say that I also do not enjoy dancing with Milady!! NOT AT ALL!!”

“You’ve been acting quite strangely this entire time,” Raven grumbles, relinquishing her grasp on Sebek. “He’s all yours, Malleus-senpai--”

Her voice fades away when she takes a look at Malleus’s partner--at the cold, pale hand slipping into hers. The diamond-cut jewel upon his middle finger catches a ray of glitter-cut moonlight and comes to life like a dancing flame. Raven’s heart jumps.

“... Miss.” Rollo’s tone is as pointed as glass. His eyebrows are creased with displeasure. “May I have this dance?”

Raven glances helplessly at Malleus. “Is Silver-senpai or Rook-senpai avaliable?” she squeaks.

He folds his arms, his expression turning stern. “Young Crowley, you must not waver. Let your conviction be known. For your words to be heard, and for them to resonate with those who need it most... That is what you desire most of all, is it not?”

What I desire most of all.

Raven stares at him, unable to argue. He speaks the truth, and she cannot deny it.

Then, like a fairy godmother or a genie of the lamp having granted the final wish, Malleus turns away and vanishes. Not with sparkles or with fanfare, but by quietly gliding across the dance floor, Sebek trailing after.

“Hmph.” Rollo sniffs stiffly, letting his hand drop. “You must truly detest me.”

“... Not at all.” She tries to sound friendly, and she can’t tell if she’s successful or not. “I think we’re a lot alike. And maybe... just maybe... that might be why I’m a little scared of you--and why I feel so sad too. Because it’s scary looking into the mirror and seeing the ugliness of your soul reflected back.”

The surprise lasts for only a second before a glare wipes it clean off. “What nonsense. What could you possibly understand about me?”

“I understand more than you believe I do.” Raven sadly shakes her head. “... You once described magic as being a ‘cage’ that keeps me locked in. You said that I should be set free from it.”

Whether Rollo-senpai realizes it or not... Back then, he was also talking about himself. She ached at the thought, her cheeks heating up and her eyes threatening to burst into tears.

“But I don’t think that’s true at all. It’s not the magic that’s caging me or holding me back. I think... it’s this.” Raven taps at her chest. “Guilt, self-hatred, and fear—but I was fortunate enough to go to Night Raven College, to meet people that changed those doubts into hope.”

“I believe I asked for a dance, not for a lecture or your pity.” Rollo takes an abrupt step back. His handkerchief of moons and stars flutters into view, hiding his nose and mouth—but his eyes burn with a smoldering disgust. “The fault was not my own, so why should I be forced to endure your self-righteousness?”

Her feathers quiver, as if set aflame by his scathing words. Yet she does not balk from the heat.

What I desire most of all is…

Raven inhales shakily and presses on. “If you look around, you’ll realize that there are others that care for you and want to see you at your best. You don’t need to face your pain alone anymore.”

Raven tilts her head, and Rollo follows her line of sight. Nestled away in the corner of the room are his vice president and aide, glasses of punch and ours d'oeuvres in hand. They’re excitedly chatting about something with a stocky, animated gargoyle.

Rollo frowns, his face crumpling into a complicated expression.

“That’s something I had to learn for myself, so... I know it’s possible for you too, Rollo-senpai. Let others in. Reflect, repent, and forgive yourself. Only then can you rediscover joy.” Raven gives what she thinks is a reassuring smile. “I’m sure he would have wished for your happiness as well.”

At this, Rollo startles, crushing his handkerchief in his fingers. Hot and cold, fire and ice, rage in his veins. Through gritted teeth, he hisses, “... As if it could be so simple. Do not lump me in with you, the sort of degenerate that relishes her captivity.”

But there is a tug at his conscience. A discrepancy in his observations. They give him pause.

The merciless Malleus Draconia, condemning him to his thoughts. The merciful Raven Crowley, pleading for him to change his ways. Two sides, opposites.

“You…” Rollo narrows his eyes, the fire in them dimming from hate to hesitant curiosity. “Just what ARE you? You’re clearly nothing like the others from Night Raven College. No--you’re too... kind, too fuzzy, like some Royal Sword Academy student.”

"I’m a raven. I just made my nest and found a family of friends where the wind took me.”

“... Nfufu. I see it now.” Rollo crosses his arms, smirking. “It appears I was gravely mistaken. Of course. You are not the same as that man.”

There is no conceivable way that a fool as soft as this one would be related to Malleus Draconia.

“... I don’t know if I enjoy whatever conclusion that you’ve come to just now. It feels as though you’re looking down on me.” Raven sighs. “Well... as long as you take my advice to heart--”

“I never said I would.”

“... Has anyone told you that your attitude is positively infuriating?”

“Were I a mirror, I would say the same to you--since you claim that we are so alike.”

“………………………. If I am like you, and you are like me, then I will be your reflection and repeat your words back to you.” She extends a hand. “May I have this dance?”

ANYWAY I’M TOO TIRED TO WRITE MORE SO JUST PICTURE THEM ALSO SHARING AN AWKWARD DANCE WHILE THEY GLARE AT EACH OTHER LIKE ROLLO DID WITH MALLEUS

I find the “Rollo ships Raven with Malleus” angle difficult to incorporate, since I don’t really think Rollo would assume such a thing. I don’t personally see the ship either. If I had to describe Raven and Malleus’s relationship, it doesn’t really come off as romantic. It’s more like a clear mentor and mentee relationship, with Malleus as the strong, confident leader that Raven quietly admires and tries to learn from and live up to. At best, maybe Rollo would leave the masquerade thinking they’re co-conspirators against him.

Meanwhile, Sebek leaves the event still thinking Malleus and Raven are distant relatives because no one bothered to clarify for him--

[autumntouched]

Day 26 of Ode to Phoenix

Summary: Part of the Hannix Football Rivalry AU Series in which Jake is a Cowboys fan (lol like Glen) and Natasha is a 49ers fan (like Monica and me)

Jake and Natasha's Wedding, Pt. II - Husband & Wife

Pairings: Natasha "Phoenix" Trace x Jake "Hangman" Seresin

Warnings: None for this part, just fluff

A/N: This fic got really long so I'm posting it in three parts. I'm sorry this took awhile, and I'm a little nervous about it but needed to stop rewriting and get on to your ACTUAL requests. Thank you so much to everyone who submitted song suggestions! As you'll see, I may have gotten a little carried away. Also, clearly some of these songs are homages to Top Gun and TGM. Please don't judge my song picks too harshly. A note that they had everyone do their toasts at the rehearsal dinner the night before. Okay, hope you enjoy!

I'm sharing the full Hannix Wedding Playlist here, but the key songs are also included when they appear in the fic.

The Wedding | Pt. II - Husband & Wife

The next hour is a whirlwind of pictures with all of their loved ones and then finally, they escape to a quiet moment to themselves. Only a half hour, but it’s everything. Jake closes the door of the suite behind them. It’s been decorated with flowers for the occasion, and a small table with motif candles and flower petals waits with their meal.

But before they sit down, Jake pulls her into another kiss, this one so heated that it leaves her feeling almost tipsy. He cups her face in his hands, eyes bright. “I haven’t had a chance to tell you today how stunning you look.”

“You like the dress?” she murmurs, only inches from his mouth.

“So much I want you out of it so bad,” he groans and kisses her forehead. 

“I could say the same for you.” Natasha spreads her fingers across his chest. The fading sunlight catches the diamonds on her rings. Jake places his own ringed hand over hers, and she stares like she’s seeing their hands for the first time. 

“Maybe we could skip the reception,” he suggests, only half joking. Before she can scold him, he swoops in for another kiss and Natasha finds herself very nearly persuaded to agree. He kneels on the floor to help her out of her bridal heels, pausing to kiss each of her ankles cradled between the strap and the lace detail on the counter. 

It’s not until they sit down to eat that she realizes she’s starving, and although he must be just as hungry, Jake lets her have everything she wants from his plate. 

—

They enter the reception to “Take My Breath Away” and a thundering standing ovation. In the soft blue tinted light, Jake dips her again. Natasha stares up into her whole world with his scintillating green eyes, deep dimples, and imprinted laugh lines. The cacophony of clinking glasses begins already, and he murmurs, “I think they want me to kiss you, Mrs. Seresin-Trace.”

She grins back at her new name and cradles his jaw. “I think we should give the people what they want, Mr. Seresin-Trace.” Natasha kisses him and nearly bites his lip when he swings her back to her feet so he can finish it properly. 

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Gabby says into a mic, “that’s my incredible big sister and now another big brother for me to annoy. Jake, you can’t say you didn’t know what you were getting into.” 

Everyone laughs, and Natasha looks over to a little stage beside the head table where her sister and Rooster stand ready with guitars over their shoulders. For weeks, Natasha and Jake argued about their first dance song. Some couples bond over their taste in music, but theirs could not be more different. She was on the verge of digging in her heels when Gabby reminded her that Jake had made his proposal everything she wanted. All he was asking for was a song to let her know the life he wants to build with her. That was enough to persuade her to agree, but then Gabby rearranged the song and sent a recording of her and Rooster performing the duet. That was when Natasha finally understood that Jake wanted the song because of its conventional portrait of love, because he’d never imagined wanting that with anyone until her. 

Gabby starts to play while Rooster sings the first verse. “A few days before he turned 80, he was sittin’ out back in a rocker. He said, ‘What you been up to lately?’” 

Jake holds her so close that their knees brush as he leads. They’ve practiced this dance in their living room until they flow through the steps as one. Only now, there is an audience of their friends and family circled around them. Although she knows the lyrics by heart, as both Gabby and Rooster play and sing the chorus, it hits her that the man she can’t live without is now her husband and the one with whom she truly gets to do what she loves and call it work. 

She spins at his gentle prompt, her skirt swirling out around her feet, and whirls back into his warm hold. His smile is radiant when the palm he rubs up and down her exposed back presses her closer into the line of his body. She can feel his brass buttons on her chest and stomach. They no longer bother with the choreography and instead sway together. “You know why I really wanted this song, sweetheart?” he breathes over her ear. 

“Why?” she sighs happily. 

“It came on and by the end, I knew I was going to propose to you. I almost went straight home and did it.”

Natasha smiles up at him, thinking of him holding in his proposal so he could make it as perfect as it was. “You’re the only one I want this life with, dickhead,” she promises softly. 

His arm tightens around her. “I never knew I could be this happy until I loved you, Nat.” 

“Happy isn’t even close to what I feel right now,” she says thickly, nose a little stuffy with emotion. She laughs and blinks to hold back the sudden tears. “Jake, I love you so much.” 

He smiles tenderly. “That’s why I wanted to give you this.” 

A soft chord plays on the piano, and Gabby’s voice lowers and becomes more ethereal as Rooster accompanies her. “I found myself dreaming in silver and gold, like a scene from a movie…” It is the first dance song that she wanted, “Like I’m Gonna Lose You.” 

“Close your eyes,” Jake whispers. She squints at him suspiciously. He touches her cheek, the hardness of his wedding band on her skin going straight to her heart, and places a kiss on her forehead. She does as he asks. They sway together to the breathy notes of Gabby’s singing. His hand slides up to hold her shoulder as she rests her head on the chest that has protected her, comforted her, and carried his love for her. 

He squeezes her hand at the chorus, stroking her rings. “Okay, you can look now sweetheart.” At first, Natasha thinks her eyes haven’t adjusted because she and Jake are floating in darkness. Then he turns her slowly, and the soft glow of candlelight spreads around them as their friends and family pass a flame from candle to candle. Their smiles and awe are illuminated in a wash of warm, golden light that rises to surround them. She looks back at him, too overcome by the exquisite, breathtaking moment he’s orchestrated to know what to say. 

He rests his forehead on hers. “I wanted you to see how you light up our lives, Nat. The light you are in mine. Nothing scares me more than the thought of losing you.” His hold on her tightens as if the thought alone will sweep her away from him. 

His words nearly burst her heart. If she could, she would marry him all over again. She would marry him every day so he never forgets what his love means to her. Lips trembling, Natasha reaches up and cups his face as teardrops splash onto her chest. Whether they're hers or his she can’t tell. “You told me we have only so many times to tell someone we love them, and I wanted you to know that I’ll treat every one like it’s the last. I’ll never take it for granted.” 

She pulls him down into a kiss, their lips salty and wet with their mingled tears. A promise to love him always with no regrets. “It’s beautiful, Jake,” she whispers. “Thank you.” By the time Gabby and Rooster let the last notes drift into the air, they’ve given up moving altogether and simply hold one another.

They break apart to soft clapping and sniffles while the lights come up. Smoke from the candles wisps through the air, adding a magical haze to the room. As Jake takes her hand to lead her to the head table, Natasha’s glad that she has her own surprise for him. They pause at the stage to thank Gabby and Rooster for making their first dance so special. Natasha hugs both of them and nudges Jake when Rooster steals a kiss from Gabby when he thinks their backs are turned. Lise dashes in to blot the tears from both their faces. 

Making their way down the table, hugging their friends, takes them longer than Natasha would have expected, and her brother, Sebastian, is waiting to say the blessing by the time Jake pulls her chair out for her. 

Nervous about her own upcoming performance now, Natasha tunes in and out of Sebastian’s grace and is glad that their bowed heads mean Jake can’t see her worrying her lip. Her older brother is remarkable with words so his blessing receives an impressed round of applause. She blows him a kiss on his way back to his seat at her family’s table then gets to her feet. Nora, Payback’s wife and one of her bridesmaids, and Gabby take their cue and rise with her. 

“Where are you going?” Jake whispers, glancing at her parents standing to welcome everyone. 

Natasha smirks. “You didn’t think you were the only one with a surprise, dickhead.” Beneath his suspicion, he looks almost proud. Even when they’re keeping secrets they know one another too well. 

“Go get ‘em Phoenix,” he whispers loudly, leaning behind her chair to slap her ass. 

“Watch yourself, Commander,” she warns over her shoulder with a giggle, “you’re in uniform.” 

Gabby grabs her hand and tugs. “C’mon. Could you two behave yourselves for two seconds at your own wedding?” 

“It’s our wedding!” Natasha and Jake quietly protest in unison. But she follows her sister to the music stage. 

There are whispers of curiosity at the tables as Natasha pulls Gabby’s guitar strap carefully over her hair. While Gabby takes up the banjo she borrowed and Nora makes sure her violin is tuned, Natasha steps up to the mic. Fortunately, one of the lights throws a flare over the top of her vision so she doesn’t have to see too much of the crowd. 

“Thank you, Mama and Dad,” she says, “and like they said, we’re so glad you all could celebrate with us today.” She glances at Jake who’s watching her with his chin propped on his fist, dimples visible even from where she is. 

“As some of you may know, someone very important and dear in my husband’s life couldn’t be here tonight.” A thrill goes through her at calling Jake her “husband,” but the smile dropping from his face settles a weight in her stomach. She scans the crowd, and she’s relieved to see Sandy’s blonde tresses swaying through the tables as she makes her way to be with her son. “I never got to meet his sister, Colleen, because she passed away when Jake was in high school.” 

The sounds of sympathy scattered through the room turn to chuckles when she adds, “I’d like to think we’d be close, that she’d be happy to have me as a sister because I hear that until I came along, she was the only one who could keep her little brother in check when he was bent on being a dickhead. So to all of the Navy senior officers and anyone who has had the pleasure of working with Jake here, you’re welcome. From us.” Sandy takes the empty seat next to her son. Jake’s eyes crinkle, letting Natasha know he is entirely glad to be under her influence. She has to stop looking at him to get through the next part or she might start crying too much to be able to perform.

Clearing the tightness from her throat, she adjusts the guitar. “Sometimes I feel like I know Colleen a little, though, through all of the ways Jake carries her in him. I have her to thank for some of the things I love most about him. How brilliant Jake is, how relentlessly competitive, how protective and fiercely loyal, and how very very sweet and endearing he is. I wanted to make sure that she was part of our celebration today, that you all know how much she will always be part of our lives, and couldn’t think of a better way than one of her favorite songs for the wonderful Texas cowboy she gave me.”

In the quiet before she starts to play, she can hear people sniffling and blowing their noses. The wait staff does their best to move quietly through the room to serve dinner while they perform. Gabby passes her a pick, and Natasha plays the first chords, leaning into the gentle notes to ground herself. Nora joins on her violin. 

“I said I wanna touch the earth,” Natasha sings softly. “I wanna break it in my hands. I wanna grow something wild and unruly.” Building into the chorus she adds more forte to her voice and finally has her footing enough to look at Jake on, “Cowboy take me away. Fly this girl as high as you can into the wild blue.” 

Her fingers nearly lose their place on the strings when she sees the raw emotion on his face, the depth of gratitude, the softened grief, and the boundless, quiet awe she sometimes catches in her periphery. Now that it’s there for her in plain sight, she can’t look away. 

She steps off the stage and moves toward Jake, playing and singing just for him. He and Sandy sit arms twined and heads leaning against one another. Without missing a note, Gabby shifts from the harmony to the melody at the mic. Although it’s not how they practiced, Gabby and Nora fade out as they reach the end of the song to let her finish on her own. 

Standing in front of her beautiful cowboy who looks like he is truly on the verge of answering the invitation of the lyrics to take her away, Natasha sings the final words for him, “Cowboy, take me away. Closer to you.” She strums through the last chords of the song and lets her hands fall from the guitar with a smile. 

She’s barely finished before Jake is out of his seat, face blazing, to take her by the cheeks. Guitar and all, he hauls her up to his mouth and kisses her like they’re the only ones still in the room. His lips are sealed to hers, threatening to steal every last breath from her body, while their guests don’t even bother clinking glasses they’ll likely shatter and go straight to pounding the tables and stamping their feet. Their cocktail hour may have been a little too free flowing.

Rather than come to her rescue, the DJ jumps in with “Kiss Me.” She touches Jake’s shoulder, and finally he takes the hint. They’re both breathing heavily, her lips buzzing, when they break apart. “Colleen would love you,” he promises, tracing the curve of her ear through her hair. “She’d have loved that. I loved it.” 

He brushes his lips across her forehead before Gabby rescues her out of the guitar. 

“That was beautiful,” croaks Sandy, dabbing at her eyes then reaching across the table to hug her. “Thank you, sweetie,” she whispers. “That meant the world to him.” She draws back and affectionately touches her knuckles to Natasha’s cheek before also giving Jake a hug and returning to her seat.

Jake joins her to greet their guests during the meal, leaving Zach instructions to watch their plates. 

Part I | Part III

Ode to Phoenix Masterlist

Hannix Football Rivalry Series AU

Tag List: @melodiousoblivionao3

[megamattzx]

Dragon Ball New Frontier: Tales of the Time Patrol: A Father's Worst Fear Comes True......

The Time Patrol was operating in a timeline that was in desperate need of aid. Cities were on fire, battles were being fought, and people were screaming in fear and terror. Goku Black, aka Zamasu, had led his armies across various timelines in a massive crusade to conquer as much of the infinite Omniverse as possible. Killing all of those who stood in his way. As the Time Patrol continued to push back his forces, chaos could be seen all around. Eventually, it got to the point where battles were being won all over. Eventually, Goku and Goku Jr, or seen facing off against Zamasu himself.

"So the two Goku's that have always been a nuisance to me have continued to do so even after all this time……" Zamasu said pondering what to do that'll get Goku's anger to be unleashed. He then took a minute to look at Goku Jr and remembered something that gave him leverage to anger Goku. Of course. The perfect way to get Goku to snap. Killing his clone and adopted son. The son was raised alongside his "twin" brother, Goten. The pure-blooded Saiyan that everyone in their timeline cherished in that family. Possibly the most human of all the Saiyans. The heart and gold of the family. The persistence of Goku. The patience of Chi-Chi. The cunning of Gohan. The adventurous spark of Goten. All of which were passed on to him. If he could kill him, the boy that Goku spent raising alongside his other young son, with the help of Chi-Chi and her patience. That would be more than enough to break Goku, theoretically.

Realizing that his time was running out and that he was cornered, he quickly fired a ki blast that went straight through Goku Jr.'s chest but not before Goku Jr fired a destructive disc that decapitated Zamasu. Goku only saw the fact that Goku Black was decapitated by his son and he turned to congratulate him only to see the horrible truth of what happened. His eyes widened in horror as he saw his son slowly falling to the ground.

"No...." Goku quietly said in horror as he ran towards the falling body of his son. Catching Goku Jr before he completely fell, tears falling from his eyes as the grief-stricken father tried to heal his son to the best of his ability. "Please...." He begged. "Please Kaka, please don't die on me!" His voice sounded more broken and frantic as he continued. "You can't die on me! Please get up! Please! Wake up kiddo!" But it was too late. Goku felt his clone's energy slowly fade away and his breathing stopped. Goku felt Goku Jr didn't have a heartbeat. His son was gone. Tears fell at a faster rate, as he held his son closer in his arms crying in his grief. "I'm sorry kiddo....." The broken father heard himself say in a mixture of grief and guilt. "I'm sorry....."

"GOKU!!!!!" Yamelia screamed out for Goku Jr. She suddenly ran out towards him and Goku.

Yamcha looked over with wide eyes. "N-no...."

Goku just broke into tears as he held his son in his arms.

Chi-Chi gazed upon her beloved husband holding the lifeless corpse of their son. It was quiet for a moment, as if time stood still for her, as white noise filled her mind. Her legs shook to the point of them giving out on her, as she collapsed to the ground. Her breathing is quick, heart thundering in her chest. It was still so quiet.. Until a loud, agonizing scream of rage and sorrow ripped forcefully from deep within Chi-Chi's chest. Sobs following, along with yells for the son she once cradled in her arms when he was a baby. "No! My baby, not my baby please! Goku Jr!! My little Son-Ku!!!"

Gohan and Goten hear the screams of their mother as they rush to where everyone was as they tried to get out of the way as much as possible. Desperately trying to see what was going on cuz I couldn't understand or fully decipher what their parents were saying until eventually they saw their father holding their brother in his arms. His body was completely lifeless and his eyes were closed.

Not a single word was said at first as the two just stood there in horror. Their minds swelling like a massive storm and they cursed themselves internally as they tried to process what was going on. Gohan was the first to snap as he was just on the ground and breaking down into tears, frantically trying to hold his younger brother as well. Until the younger siblings were seen seeing this before he instinctively tried to emotionally comfort them barely able to keep it together.

The other siblings were breaking down crying as they saw the lifeless body of their older brother. With Chia just screaming in anguish as this happened.

Goten was hit the hardest by this. Tears fell from his eyes as his breathing became heavier and heavier. His biggest rival was dead. But this wasn't just his biggest rival. It was his best friend. His brother. His own family. Ringing similar to what his mother was hearing was present in his ears and in his mind as he just felt his heart racing and even his breathing becoming heavier and heavier. Eventually, he just broke, a scream of anger, pain, and sorrow was heard from the second biological son of Goku.

The memories he had with Goku jr with the various prank wars, competitions, and even bonding moments overwhelmed him as he dealt with his grief. "WHY!?" The Demi Saiyan cried out. Pain is evident in his broken voice. his sobs were light breaths until he eventually let out an agonizing scream of pain, sorrow, and anguish. At last, Son Goten broke.

Yamelia fell to her knees, tears flowing down her face. She screamed once again, calling out to him once again. "GOKU!!!" She called out, a clear pain in her voice. The... Love of her life, dead... Right in front of her.

Her father tried to comfort her and hold her and stay strong, only to break down himself. He hated seeing his daughter like this.

Videl was in genuine shock, blue eyes widening in horror at the sight of Goku Jr now deceased in his father's arms. He was family to her, her fun loving brother in law who she would often tease and train with. Now, he is gone. All she could do was let out loud sobs, as she held onto Gohan's hand. In an attempt to comfort both him and herself, as they went to comfort the younger siblings.. However, when she heard the broken scream of 'Why!!' from Goten... That was the straw that broke the camel's back, as Videl began crying harder. She threw her arms around Gohan's side, hiding her face against his shoulder. No coherent words were heard, just babbling cries, and soft screams of anguish. The only thought she had in her mind was of the two sons of the now-deceased Goku Jr... How would they react to this if they knew? Just thinking about that made her break down even harder, at the thought of those boys crying for their Papa Bear.

Gohan couldn't help but stare at his brother's corpse as he processed everything that was happening. His nephews having to deal with the fact that they lost their father was one thing but Gohan was about to deal with it even more. This was his baby brother. The one that he found all those years ago. The one that he rescued from Pilaf and his gang the day he and Goten were born. The pure-blooded saying he helped his mother raise. The one he watched his mother rap in her arms and named after his father. Both of his father's names. Finally, he finally collapsed onto the ground completely as he simply broke down into tears. The eldest son of Goku and Chi-Chi finally broke. "I'm so sorry Goku....." He said in a broken tone and the guilt was evident in his voice and in his cries. "I'm so sorry bud.........."

Videl felt Gohan collapse, but she still gently hugged him. She tries to comfort him and herself, pulling him into a more comfortable embrace; cradling his head to her chest as she tries to soothe him and his never-ending tears. "G-Gohan.... I'm sorry..." Was all she managed to croak out, as her sobs prevented her from saying any more.

[arrowverse-next-gen]

Wes is (currently) winning my poll, so here’s so stuff about my boy.

He used to get brought home by the cops like all the time in high school. And I don’t just mean from like breaking curfew. He, Sage, and Miles had a habit of breaking into the school after hours, stealing school property, vandalism. Was a good 40% of it to impress his girlfriend, yes. Was the other 60% pretty much him acting out because by middle school everyone knew his bio dad was a mass murderer, who killed his mom, yeah...

But Wes was tryna find his place. 

He and Sage dated off and on all through high school. Considering most people were either afraid of him or hated him, it was nice to have one person who seemed to like him no matter what the state of their relationship was. It sort of helped that they had a lot in common. 

Her mom is a supervillain too, so they used their relationship to escape from that reality. It wasn’t healthy, but they were both kids. 

Towards the end of senior year they’re relationship started to fizzle out. Wes didn’t want to admit it, but he had started to develop feelings for someone else. (But it would be a few years before he acted on that.) Plus by some miracle he managed to get accepted to CCU, and he was looking forward to going. His parents hook him up with Cisco’s foster son, Roman. They have a lot in common. Father’s who liked crime more than they liked taking care of their kids. They decide to get an apartment off campus.

So that July, right before he’s set to leave, he and Sage spend one last night together. They go to the drive in, but he doesn’t know what movie they see. He just remembers her in the back of his jeep, and he knows it’s the last time. But he also knows he doesn’t want to say it.

He goes to school, and for the first time in forever he’s not looked at as Adrian Chase’s son, or Oliver and Felicity’s Queen’s foster kid. He gets to fade into groups, he gets to make friends. Roman introduces him to a few of his CC friends. They’re a couple years younger, but they’re nice. A little more cheerful than Wes is used to, but he doesn’t mind too much. 

He comes home for winter break and looks for Sage everywhere, even goes to a few old haunts they used to meet up with Miles at. But Miles hasn’t seen her since around September. Plus his friend has now fallen into a stride with the Grey Starlings, and while he would never turn on Miles, he knows his parents track all their kids. And he doesn’t need Oliver and Felicity to start worrying about him again. 

He tries again over spring break, looks for her everywhere but he’s sure she’s moved out of Star City, leaving it and him in the past. So he decides it’s time to start doing the same.

He spends the summer with his family, his older brother is finally back in town and it seems like a good time to catch up. They avoid talking about they way they’re connected, they both get it. They’re nothing like their father. Apollo had stopped referring to Adrian as such years ago. He’s always seen Eo as more of a father anyway. But that summer was the first time Wes ever calls Felicity and Oliver mom and dad. 

He’s back at school in the fall. It’s early September and Will and Apollo come down for the weekend with Owen and Emmett, something about bonding with their little brothers. Wes thinks neither of the pre-teens want to be there, but he’s happy to see his brothers regardless.

Roman went to go pick up the pizzas when there’s a knock at the door. Wes is sure his roommate forgot his wallet, and goes to answer it, nearly tripping over the piles of stuff that somehow exploded from Owen and Emmett’s bags. 

When he opens the door it’s not Roman on the other side, it’s Sage. She’s crying, she says she’s sorry but she can’t do it anymore. Then she hands him a carseat and takes off. 

[sarcasticcebby]

its obviously an apocalypse but here you are, milling about in a store that reminds you too much of Costco, cramped around other people deciding that the best way to face the end of the world is to get 50% of a giant jar of mixed nuts. You feel like you're trying to press down your panic by walking just a bit faster. Your family is nearby. They're close. Hopefully.

The first time you see it coming, see that shambling mass slicked on the concrete floors. Everyone holds their breath and you feel the hotlines of heaven clog up. A man, or what was, screeches and breaks line- he tears out an old womans throat. The trance broken and the wail raised, the horde moves in. My family, pressing by me, urging me to move to the exit at the end of the aisle. I'm almost there. They're ahead, speed unexpected considering everything. I dont worry too much, I know where they're headed: the city at the other end of the forest is prepared for this and willing to help. An arm yanks out and catches my shirt and pulls. I feel pain, then nothing. I gasp in and things are urgent, bright. I feel mania and excitement thriving inside me, gums tingling. I want to share it but where's my family? I huff, bemused. I dont worry. I know where they're headed.

It fades to black.

The second time, a surprise. I stick closer to my family, nudged by their shoulders, nervous. we're closer to the exit when the wail rises alongside the panic. I glance around, making sure no strangers are approaching.  Nobody is near us. My mother is a little bit behind, says she got a scratch but that's alright. we have medical supplies in the car, band aids and all. We get out the building and head to the car avoiding the shadows dancing in the flames of a pileup. My mother doesn't feel well but we've treated the wound and it's not bleeding anymore and shes fine I'm sure. we make it to the rest stop, a well stocked and clean environment. Makes it stand out more from the side of the road; too saturated I think. the lady at the register tells us that the forest is especially full and that theres a tunnel of half destroyed monsters right before the city, cut down by gunfire. we join a group, safety in numbers, and rush down the path. I avoid grasping hands with red knuckles and black nails. we get in the tunnel. my luck runs dry. A hand grabs my ankle and I feel something twinge. I cry out and my brother is there. something's wrong. He smiles, and lunges.

It fades to black.

It fades in and out several times

We make it to the city- the barrier breaks

I'm running through the forest but I'm chasing something

It flashes more often

Live and die if lucky

always running

what happened to strength in numbers?

The last time, was...

I separated from my family, said I would go alone.  safer for all parties involved. I'm aware I'm probably going to die. I find a knife, finally a weapon. I join a group of strangers, wait way behind them. I hide as they go into the forest. I'm inside the rest stop, lights buzzing faintly. I'm in the janitors closet. I know I'm just delaying the inevitable but I need a break. I sneak out to get supplies but cant pick anything up off the racks. another group comes in. i hold my breath. heart thuds too loudly. they dont hear, thankfully. one guy stays behind, talks with the cashier.  hes planning on taking out the people in the group who are on bikes and selling them. offers to bring them to her so she can facilitate the exchange. she doesnt give an answer. he leaves. I try to sneak out but theres a small group of monsters slouched outside, looking in. they dont get close but I feel they're looking for something. I look at the cashier but I feel like shes trying not to look my way. finally we lock eyes and she motions under the counter. She explains that I broke the cycle and they're waiting for me to go back to playing my part. I ask if I can stay there, help out. she says that she exists as a separate lifeform and exists only for a certain duty. I cant stay in there. she offers to stock up a few items and distract the creatures so I can exit through a window.

We work out a plan. I promise to visit again and her perpetual smile wavers a little at the edges. her eyes are sad. I open the window as she causes the distraction and move to slide out.

I wake up.