#fox so high he forgot to say over twice

[timewillreveal]

"Lightheadness and heavy limbs (they'll either go away or make you get used to them)" – ao3 link

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Chapter 1

(under the cut)

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The sun does touch my eyes from the windows, what a cunt.

I pull my sheets all over my head, and I stay there for a minute or so. Tails’ long gone saying something about thermometers and water, not before making me swear I would stay in bed, though.

It's not like i wanted to get up, anyway.

My limbs are just getting that numb sensation off, my head still feels light and full of cotton, to the point that trying to move my eyes gives me a shiver capable of putting me down, again-

I still can't get over the glance my brother (little brother, who i should watch over, not the other way around) throwed me when I finally managed to open my eyes. Panic, worry. And what for? Told me he heard a thud upstairs and then found me having a convulsion.

That's something that didn't just happen, not to me at least, do i have to pull the whole “fastest thing alive” discourse up?

In hindsight, this ‘fainting’ thing can be from anything. You forgot to eat? You'll probably faint, he's gone through that once or twice. You didn't sleep well? It's mostly secured it'll happen.

Yet of the listed things, he didn't remember doing any.

Not that his thoughts were deep into what he did and did not, not when his brain felt like it was about to get out his head through the ears. Arms felt like full of sand, they were easy to move yet felt heavy, heaviness he used to pull weight on the sheets against his head. It worked, he didn't feel like floating anymore, that and the constant sensation of a bracelet on his wrist were keeping him attached to conscience.

Sonic got the sheets off when he heard muffled steps on the hallway, directing his glance to the door slowly, his eyes becoming a little heavy as he did.

Still, he saw his brother entering the room and closed his eyes when the fox’s weight landed next to his legs on the mattress. A cold hand touched his arm, goosebumps covering a part of the peach tinted skin.

Opening his eyes again, he threw a tired glance at Tails'.

“Sorry, i have to take your temperature before you go to sleep again, your shivers are already giving high on fever.” He waved with a digital thermometer in his hand, turning it on while he explained.

He handed it to him, probably because of the aversion he showed to touch at the moment.

Sonic took the little thing, shaking it and tucking it into his armpit. Old habit, he'd say, but he doesn't remember where he got it from, or thinks he'll ever do.

[fox-lennox]

@chillbenjie​ at: both in their respective apartments, for now. dun dun dun. 

-

​“Wassup Space Cadet it’s Curly Fry. You seshing?” Fox’s half way to being stoned voice fuzzed through the talkie, which neither of them needed. It was 2022 but where was the fun in that? Knowing that Benjie lived within the right distance of signal was basically the universe telling Fox that he finally had an excuse to get them. Sure, group chats and the endless back and forth of obscure memes that stopped making sense many moons ago were still a good method of contact. But sometimes, nothing beat the pure wonder it felt to grab a talkie and know it would patch right through to Benjie on the other side. It made something simple like hanging out become an adventure, which Fox was always in the mood for. 

It was no secret that River in particular scooped up particularly strong friendships with other people, they had a gift for noticing when somebody would fit right into the little group. So by proxy, Fox fell hopelessly into platonic love with Benjie the second he met them. Eventually, it ended up feeling like Benjie had always been hanging around too.  “Oh shit, I didn’t say over.” his realization pulled him out of his train of thought. “Over.” he clicked quickly, roaming down the steps of the apartment and into the Broom Closet. “Major Tom, are you high as shit right now?” he chuckled.

[lesbobiwan]

Would you consider [70] with commander fox and senator!reader? Any gender/pronouns are fine! Thank you!

YES PLEASE THIS ONE! god tier pic anon thank u so much

#70: "It's too bad the others are watching, or I'd be on my knees with your dick in my mouth." + Fox

Your elaborate dress is itchy.

Well, no. Not really.

The dress is too expensive to be itchy. Rather, it's the lace underneath your dress that refuses to be ignored. It's not scratchy so much as tempting.

With every shift of your body, you're reminded — as if you ever forgot — about the dark red lingerie wrapped around your body.

Your gaze flits to the commander standing at a perfect parade rest across from the room.

His helmet is trained straight ahead, conveniently where you sit at the table full of Senators. His head dips, unnoticeable to anyone not watching.

Not you. You find that you're always watching Commander Fox.

You enjoy these Senatorial meetings — not a full convening of the Senate, thank the Maker, but close enough — about as much as Fox does, which is to say not at all.

So it goes without saying that you are in desperate need to spice things up.

You start innocently.

The way the Senators are seated ensures that Fox has a direct line of sight to you and you intend to use that to your full advantage.

You uncross your legs.

Fox tilts his head just barely.

One of your hands strays beneath that table, the perfect picture of subtlety, and you pull at the high slit in your dress until your garter belt is bared for Fox's eyes.

His hands clench at his sides.

You can almost picture the way his eyebrow is raised in challenge.

You skate your fingers along the lace until you reach your inner thigh. You can feel the heat from your pussy.

"Please excuse me," you clear your throat in your best impression of being parched, "I'm just going to get some water."

You smile politely, and the bickering Senators pay you no mind as you walk around the table to where the water fountain is stationed. Right next to Commander Fox, not that that means anything.

No one is watching. They're all too self-absorbed in their own egos and need to be right all the time.

"You know," you drop your voice, standing next to Fox and facing the other way as if you're filling up one of the cups, "It's too bad the others are watching, or I'd be on my knees with your dick in my mouth."

Fox's head snaps to face you.

You stare into the emotionless visor, lips quirked up at just the thought of Fox's face underneath that bucket of his.

"I'm terribly sorry, Senator," Fox says, projecting his voice to be heard over the bickering (not that it matters any), "but I've just gotten word of a situation that needs your attention."

You hum in response to hold off the grin that threatens to overtake your face. "How sudden," you remark, "by all means, we should see to it."

Fox guides you out of the room with a hand on the small of your back that's less than professional.

You're pulled into a broom closet where there is distinctly no situation that needs your attention.

Fox rips his helmet off with no finesse and lets it clatter to the ground.

You duck his attempt at pulling you in for a kiss, instead folding onto your knees, fancy dress be damned.

"Cyare, what are you —"

Your hands unclasp his cod piece, setting it down beside you. "I said if no one was watching, I'd be on my knees," you gesture down at your position, "with your dick in my mouth," you gesture at the erection straining Fox's blacks. "Do you see anyone in here with us?"

Fox huffs in disbelief, "You're unbelievable, you know that?"

You grin up at him, pleased as punch as one of his hands caress your cheek, "You like it."

"I'd like it a lot more if you put your pretty lips around my cock."

You inhale sharply, thighs pressing tightly together. Your hands dutifully pull Fox's half hard cock from his pants.

Fox groans, thighs flexing as the cold air hits his cock. One of his hands fists tightly in your intricately pinned hair, and the first tug against your scalp has you keening into the empty storage closet.

"C'mon, pretty thing, put that mouth to good use."

He doesn't sound as commanding as you think he'd like to. He sounds desperate.

You press a soft kiss to the head of his weeping cock, right on his leaking slit, and lick the salty taste from your lips.

Fox's head drops back against the shelving unit behind him, rattling the disinfectant cans there. His hand tightens in your hair.

You have to open your mouth wide to the point of aching to fit him in your mouth.

He's just so thick.

Dedicating yourself in this moment to swirling your tongue around the tip of his cock, paying special attention to the ridge of his head.

A tug at your hair has you taking more of his dick down your throat until you start to spasm around him, fighting back your gags.

You lose yourself in the stretch, in the taste. In the groan that reverberates through the room and resonates between your thighs.

You don't stop until your nose is pressed into the hairs at the base of his cock.

"Shit, you feel so good," Fox gasps, thunking his head against the shelving unit again. One of the cans falls, clattering to the ground with a noise that's too loud to be hidden by these thin walls.

"Fuck, your mouth is heaven, sweet thing,"

"You take me so well, baby. Like you were made to suck my cock."

"'m gonna cum,"

Fox babbles, like he always does when you need to be quiet. It's such a wild 180 from his normal bedroom persona — Fox is all rough words and rougher snaps of his hips when he's the one in charge.

Like this, though? Like this, Fox is at your mercy and he knows it.

You pull back until it's just the head of his cock in your mouth again, and both of your hands wrap around his shaft, stroking and twisting just how he likes as you suck on his tip.

His cock is practically drooling in your mouth, almost as wet as you are in your pretty panties.

You drag the edge of your nail along the vein on the underside of his cock and Fox whines as he cums in your mouth.

You swallow three times, twice to ensure you swallow all his cum and once just to see Fox squirm.

He tugs at your hair to get you off now, trembling in oversensitivity, and you show mercy with a soft kiss to his softening cock before sitting back on your heels, looking up at the commander through your eyelashes.

Your face is red, eyes watery and you know there's drool on your chin, but Fox drags you to your feet to kiss you like you're the most gorgeous sight on this side of the galaxy.

"Fuck," Fox hisses between kisses, "You're amazing, you know that?"

His hands grasp and fumble at the slit of your dress, gloved hands searching for the lace wrapped around your hips.

"Are you going to return the favor, Commander?" you ask, trailing biting kisses down his neck until you meet his plastoid armor.

Fox laughs against your skin, deft fingers hooking into your panties to stroke along your soaked slit.

"I'm about to do more than just that, sweet thing."

[cabezadeperro]

a crack in the paint (cody/fox)

inspired in the song a lick of paint by frightened rabbit. kamino era, stinky teenagers. cody has a crush he doesn’t know to deal with, fox’s confused and kind of a dick about it, and seventeen’s there, as always (sorry, seventeen). 900w, for tru @trudemaethien.

----

Seventeen grabs him by the back of his shirt the very moment Fox sets his foot on the corridor outside the dorms. Fox chokes, scowls, throws an elbow at him. It hits Seventeen in the ribs, and he just—grunts, shakes Fox until he feels like his teeth are going to fall out of his mouth.

“Let me go,” he whispers, jaw clenched. He wraps his hand around Seventeen’s wrist and tugs, but Seventeen just shakes him again.

When he finally lets him go, Fox’s joints feel loose. He steps away from here, deeper into the empty, dark corridor, and crosses his arms, but Seventeen doesn’t follow him. He stays within the circle of light that escapes the half-open door to the dormitories, just that tiny bit taller and broader, brows lifted. 

Seventeen doesn’t bother lowering his voice. “Behave. And don’t get caught,” he tells Fox, and then he steps out of the room and starts walking down the hallway in the opposite direction, hands in the pockets of his fatigues and whistling out of tune.

Fox scowls, annoyed, but says nothing. He swallows and starts walking.

If someone catches him out of the dormitories, he’ll get in trouble. He doesn’t know what they’ll do to him, and he doesn’t want to find out. So he keeps his footsteps quiet and quick, and he keeps to the corners, and he listens carefully for the echo of other people’s footsteps. 

The storage room door is locked. Fox raps once, twice: there’s no answer. He chews his lip, winces when he finds the cut he forgot about, and thinks about going back to bed. 

“Cody,” he whispers, as close to the door as he can. The metal is very cold, and it smells vaguely of bleach. “Chakaar. It’s me. Let me in.”

No answer. He might have gotten the place wrong? Fox licks his lips and checks the sign on top of the door—no, it���s Room Aurek Three Three. 

Thunder crashes. Fox jumps and looks over his shoulder. The lightstrips on the walls flicker, and a small mouse droid zips from one side of the corridor to the other, paying no attention to him whatsoever.

“Cody,” Fox repeats. He hits his forehead softly on the door, once, twice, and then leaves it there. It’s nice against his too hot skin—he’s always hot lately. He swallows. “Cody, please. I’m—”

The words die in his mouth. Fox exhales, frustrated, and shows his teeth at the metal. Fucker. Fucking fucker. 

Thunder crashes again, and Fox thinks he can hear the buzzing sound of one of the doors at the other of the corridor opening. He swallows, fear sudden and cold and heavy in his belly, but he doesn’t move. 

“Cody,” he whispers again, voice rough.

Footsteps, coming closer. Heavy—not a Kaminoan, then, and probably not a brother either. Fox blinks, tries to think: there are no hiding spots in the hallway, just the storage room, and they’re close to one of the Cuy'val Dar landing pads, and—

He’s fucked. He’s so fucked. Seventeen’s going to fight the snakes just so that he can murder Fox himself. 

The door clicks open. Fox doesn’t wait for it to open completely: he slips inside and closes it again, and then he leans his back against it, heart beating hard inside his chest and eyes closed.

“What do you want?” 

Fox blinks his eyes open again. Cody’s staring at him, arms folded, so close their feet almost touch. 

He’s still sulking, and his face’s flushed, colour high up on his cheekbones. Fox doesn’t roll his eyes, but Cody sees it anyway, because his scowl deepens, and he turns on his heel, stepping deeper into the storage room.

There’s a thin blanket there, a pillow, his datapad. A frayed end of striplight, flickering now and then and flooding the tiny cupboard with a ghostly blue glow. Fox watches him in silence.

He knows Cody doesn’t mean the question, not really: he thinks about it anyway. Seconds tick by in silence, and meanwhile Cody returns to his nest, to his blanket and his pillow and his wisp of blue light.

He looks tired and bullish at once. The bandage on his face is starting to unstick, and he needs a shower—he skipped today’s and he honestly kind of smells.

How do I make you stop being angry with me?

It’s like Cody can hear the question. He blinks and looks away and then he sighs, and Fox crosses the small space between them and sits at his side on the floor. It’s cold and uncomfortable, but Cody’s warm at his side, it’s almost like being in their pod. Fox leans his head on Cody’s shoulder, and Cody huffs but lets him.

“You karking stink,” Fox informs him. He closes his eyes. The cold, prickly pressure on his chest starts fading away for the first time in a week. “The snakes’re gonna find us, I could smell you from the corridor.”

Cody stiffens. He attempts to move away, and Fox curses, tangles a hand in the fabric of his fatigues. 

“What’re you doing here, then,” Cody mutters. He’s uncomfortable. He always gets meaner when he feels vulnerable. Fox opens his eyes and uses them to look at—nothing. The closed door, the damp marks on the durasteel of the walls. He keeps his mouth shut and his hand tangled around the back of Cody’s dirty uniform and his head on Cody’s shoulder, and he shrugs.

[deathwishy]

x MARVEL CROSSOVER x

Marinette knew that Tom Dupain wasn't her biological father. Nonetheless, she loved him and he loved her. He married her mother when she was two and have been inseparable ever since.

On the other side, her biological father was a prick.

He first came to visit her after she developed a ... rather interesting set of abilities. She was five when that happened. Her mother had somehow contacted him and, even though he doubted it, he came.

It is safe to say that he was beyond shocked when he saw that Marinette was his spitting image, not counting the blue eyes. She had a mischievous smile and sharp eyes, carrying herself like royalty, worthy of the title of the daughter of the god of mischief.

That day, Loki found out he had a demigoddess daughter.

While he was reluctant at first, the little girl grew on him. He visited at least twice a month, mainly to help her control her powers but also to let her know that he actually cared about her, to ensure that he wasn't with her like his father was with him. No other Asgardian knew about Marinette and he would like to keep it that way. There was no need for his brother of father to swoop in and ruin everything.

As the years passed their bond became unbreakable. Marinette still thought that Loki was a prick and an idiot at times but she wouldn't have it any other way. Life was boring anyway, why not sprinkle it with a little bit of mischief?

When she became Ladybug, he knew. He called out Tikki as soon as he stepped in her room and her parents were out of hearing range.

"Tikki, you can come out. You should know better by now."

Marinette was dumbfounded when the goddess came out from behind some books, with a pout and with her arms crossed.

"I knew it. Trixx did say that you came to Midgard and Marinette looks like a miniature female version of yourself."

"I'm actually surprised the guardian gave her the Ladybug miraculous. I would've guessed she would have been a better fox."

"She is a very good match for me too. Her soul is a creative one, but yes, she would be a perfect fox."

"Um... Can I get in the loop too?"

The two gods turned to her. Marinette had her arms crossed, tapping her foot on the floor. Loki gave her a sheepish smile.

"I am a God, Marigold, I do know the other gods too."

The day passed talking with the two deities about all sorts of things, Tikki especially scolding him for the New York disaster, Marinette joining her. It happened before she was born so even if he changed it was still a horrible thing

"Look, daddy issues are a pain to deal with. I was very angry."

"Dad, it's no excuse to be an asshole."

"I know." Loki rolled his eyes then grinned. "But what's this I'm hearing about from Tikki about a boy?"

Marinette flushed, glaring at the offender, now munching on a cookie, her eyes sparkling with laughter. She was shaking her head and vigorously gesturing with her hands.

"Nope. I'm not talking with you about this and, Odin forbid, if I see you around him I'll cut your macaron supply."

Loki only raised his hands in surrender, laughing heartedly. He wouldn't dare cross his daughter, so he swore, between tears of laughter, that he would keep his distance.

"But if he breaks your heart I'll throw him in Jotunheim."

                                                         ...

A few years later, when Lila came around he knew. There was no mistaking the dimming of the fire in her soul. He could see that she didn't want to talk about it by the way she was dodging the subject so he had to take the matter in his own hands.

He shapeshifted into a horsefly and flew after her when she went to school. It took a lot of his power to hide from Marinette's sight but if was worth it. Now he knew why she started closing in on herself.

Loki could admire a good lie. After all he was the god of trickery, lies and deceit. But this girl spouting off the worst lies he ever heard. Not only were they ridiculous, they were also completely devoid of any drop of truth. That was the base of any good lie, and she was lacking it entirely. What confused him more what that some of her classmates believed her. Only a handful others didn't seem to believe her, one of which was a blond boy that looked at the leech, glued to his hand, with disgust. By his aura Loki assumed he was the holder of the Black Cat.

He confronted Marinette when she came back from school. Some of the lies were concerning, they were hurting his daughter and he couldn't let it fly. He assumed the harpy was set on Marinette because she wouldn't buy her lies. That was not surprising, she could see even though his best lies.

"I know, Marigold."

Marinette knew what he meant. She inhaled deeply and looked around.

"Can we go somewhere else, outside of Paris?"

The furrowed his brows, getting more concerned by the second. He couldn't read her in that moment. He could read most people like an open book, but that was his daughter. She knew how to hide things from him.

"Yes. Tell your parents, we don't want to concern them."

After she told her parents that she would go with Loki on a short trip, he opened a portal to a high rooftop over a city. She could feel the darkness of it, potent and corrupting. She figured that was why her father would bring her there, no one would notice them. As soon as the portal closed, she broke down. She hugged him, crying into his chest.

"I'm so tired, dad. The responsibility of Ladybug, Lila and her lies, half of my class turned against me, Hawkmoth just sending out akuma after akuma, it's just so much."

He let her cry, hugging her closely and patting her head. Even after all these years he didn't know how to properly comfort his daughter but it was something he actively was working for.

"But I assume you still don't want me to help?"

"The Avengers or The Justice League would notice if you do something. I managed to keep them away, for the time being, but I doubt they would hesitate coming if they heard that you came into a highschool, knives flying after a teenage girl or if you burnt down half of Paris searching for Hawkmoth."

She sighed, sitting on the edge of roof.

"I can handle it, I think. It's hard but I can manage it. I have Chat Noir and the others, we will succeed."

"You know that I will always be by your side if you need me, right?"

"Of course, dad." She hugged him once more, not letting go for some time.

When she calmed down, she asked him to get them to Paris.

"Dad, where was that? I've never felt a more malicious feeling to a place in my entire life."

"Gotham City. That place holds a centuries long curse."

Marinette nodded then hugged her father one more time before he left. She then went on her balcony, sketchbook and laptop in her hands. The afternoon sun was providing perfect lighting for sketching. She set aside the sketchbook for the moment, opening the laptop. She heard about Gotham from Alya when she was gushing about the vigilantes. She wasn't especially interested about them so she listened politely but forgot everything the next day.

Gotham was dubbed the Crime Capital, which was not surprising. The maliciousness surrounding the city was overwhelming, even if she was there for only a few minutes short of an hour. She could only imagine what that could do to the locals. A meeting with Fu after her patrol that night was mandatory.

Apparently he knew about the situation in Gotham. An old friend kept him updated. He confessed that he wanted to talk with her about it but decided to tell her when she was prepared. Fighting that kind of corruption would be hard and it would take years. They decided to put a pin in it and deal with it after they defeated Hawkmoth. Marinette did NOT need this on her plate now.

                                                          ...

Things got a little complicated when Wonder Woman decided to drop by. It was night, just a few hours after an akuma attack. Ladybug had to patrol on her own, Chat Noir was held back in his civilian life. She caught Ladybug on the Eiffel Tower, just when she was finishing her round.

"Ladybug."

"Wonder Woman. I wasn't aware that you would be coming by."

"I apologize, but this is important. Your presence is required at a summit between The Avengers and The Justice League. Some discussions will be about the situation in Paris and as the city is in your jurisdiction, you are invited to attend."

Marinette felt like she didn't tell the whole truth but agreed, under the condition to bring Chat Noir too. They were a team.

Loki wanted to come along but Marinette shot the idea down quickly. The was a chance that Thor would notice and everything would go south very quickly. She didn't need an international incident on her hands. The others didn't trust Loki but they were civil with each other after the brothers made amends and he helped them a couple of times. Still, she didn't think they would appreciate Marinette bringing an unauthorized guest.

                                                           ...

A few weeks later they were in a secret base in the Alps. After she got the coordinates of the location she used the horse miraculous to get there. They were fairly early, only a few members of both teams being present. Batman with his team, Thor, Wonder Woman, Black Widow, Winter Soldier and Green Arrow.

Batman was the first one to greet her, soon after she closed the portal.

"Tikki, Kaalki, divide."

The horse kwami landed in her hand, where a sugar cube was waiting for her. She then nestled on top of her head. She slid the glasses there too, for easy access, just in case.

"Ladybug, glad you could come." Batman greeted her cordially. She shook his outstretched hand.

"Of course. After all, I was said this was concerning us."

Before Batman could say anything, a man dressed in black, with a blue bird symbol on his chest jumped in front of her, grinning like a child.

"I can't believe it, you are a real magical girl!"

Ladybug took a step back, blinking, a little shocked by the grown man's reaction.

"Tt. Nightwing, be professional."

"Yeah Wingman, you're going to scare the little Pixie."

"Ignore them, they are idiots." Said one of them, coming beside her. She identified him as Red Robin, one of Batman's... Associates? It felt wrong to call him a sidekick. That would be Robin.

"Red Robin. The idiots there are Nightwing, Red Hood and Robin."

"Pleasure meeting you." She smiled to them warmly. Robin narrowed his eyes, looking at her head.

"What is that?" He asked, taking a step closer to take a better look. Kaalki flew in his face, indignated.

"I'm a goddess, you oaf." Robin took a step back, hands on his katana, shocked by the little goddesses reaction. She narrowed her eyes, suddenly tamer. "Are you famous?" Robin was sputtering, clearly not prepared for the change in her demeanor.

Red Hood burst out laughing.

"Fucking hell, his face. I've never been more grateful for the camera in my helmet."

"Kwami don't show up on camera, but his face definitely will." Chat Noir pointed out. He went beside Ladybug, up until then scanning the compound. "I'm Chat Noir, the fabulous purr-tner of Ladybug, at your service." He made a mock bow, grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Ladybug, Red Robin, Red Hood and Robin groaned.

"Not ANOTHER ONE!"

"Tt. I can't handle two of them. I'll inevitably going to break the no killing rule."

"Um, what's going on?" Ladybug turned to Red Robin, who was grimacing.

"Nightwing." He said, giving her a pitying look.

"Oh, come on, it can't be that claw-ful." Retorted Nightwing. Chat Noir lit up like a Christmas tree.

"My lady, see. I was sure I was feline a fellow paw-nner nearby."

"Kill me." Ladybug and Red Robin said at the same time. They looked at each other and laughed.

As more heroes were arriving, Ladybug introduced herself to each of them. She tensed a bit when Thor came beaming at her.

"Ah! I haven't seen the miraculous for centuries! I am not really that familiar with the Chinese Miracle Box but I did encounter a wielder of Trixx."

She smiled tightly listening to his encounter with Fylja. She knows from her father about her, a trickster just like him, who managed to seduce Thor and steal Mjolnir and hide it. Thor decided to omit that detail. He liked the young hero but something seemed oddly familiar about her.

When Aquaman came, he looked very uncomfortable with his proximity to Chat Noir. He was cordial but kept his distance after finishing introductions. Chat Noir did tell her once that Plagg said that he was the one who sank Atlantis. It was a real story, apparently.

Ladybug preferred the company of Red Robin. They had a lot of things in common, from mutual interests to similar experiences as heroes. He asked a lot of questions without being invasive or trying to find out things about her civilian life and actually seemed interested about her answers. She actually blushed when Nightwing called them cute. She could see with the corner of her eyes how Chat Noir was wiggling his eyebrows but swooped up the other boys when they started teasing them.

"Everyone is here. Only the official members of the Justice League and the Avengers are allowed, as well as Ladybug and Chat Noir. The rest will stay here." Wonder Woman announced, leaving the rest of the young heroes pouting and protesting.

Ladybug turned to Red Robin and gave him a wave.

"See you after."

"Definitely." He grinned, making her blush.

Chat Noir came beside her, smiling knowingly.

"At least you're not a stuttering mess this time."

"Shut up you alley cat, that was four years ago."

"So you do like him." He smiled even wider. Ladybug blushed furiously, punching him in the ribs. He only giggled.

"Nightwing and Red Hood owe me 50 dollars."

"You're unbelievable."

All the heroes were seated at a circular table, everyone having an assigned seat. Even Ladybug and Chat Noir, their symbols gleaming brand new on the backs of the black chairs.

"The summit begins. We are now gathered here to discuss the Paris situation." Superman began, opening a slide on the projector.

Ladybug narrowed her eyes. It became obvious that they called the summit just for this. They were trying to take control. She clenched her fists, but didn't say anything. She hoped this wasn't what it looked like. She put her hand on Chat Noir's shoulder when he looked like he wanted to say something. She squeezed twice. ' I got this.'

"Ladybug, Chat Noir, it's been four and a half years since Hawkmoth has been active and so far we haven't seen much progress. The akumas seem to become more powerful and aggressive and the damage to Paris greater each time. We think you might be over your heads."

"What we are trying to say," Batman stood up, glaring at Superman for his lack of tact, "is that the situation is becoming increasingly difficult and we feel the need to intervene. We know that you are young, let us help you."

"You are kids, we can tell. We thought that because of the nature of the miraculous you will be able to neutralize the threat in due time, seeing as it's the same type of magic." Added Captain America.

"We trusted that you could handle it, as you said, but some of us already have doubts." Iron Man said, crossing his arms.

"Your miraculous might not be enough this time. But that's ok. We want this to end as much as you do." Professor Banner added, looking at them like he was explaining to children why they couldn't cross the street when the traffic light was red.

Most of the heroes didn't notice the way the two young heroes narrowed their eyes, faces darkening, but some, mostly those who knew the power of the miraculous, did. Aquaman was uneasy, a sense of foreboding dawning over him, Wonder Woman looked like she didn't know what her peers were going to say. She stood still, but tense, like preparing for an attack. She knew they were somewhat right, but that wasn't the way to help them. Green Lantern was leaning in his seat like he wanted it to eat him. Thor looked around the table, damning every one of them present. They were going to get them killed. Black Widow was glaring at Banner, knowing what his words did to the Parisians by their increasing straining to say nothing and stay in place. Batman was following them carefully. Something about the two of them screamed danger.

Then Superman dropped the bomb.

"So, effective immediately, we take jurisdiction of the city of..."

He was cut off by a sudden boom reverberating through the room. All heroes jumped in a battle stance. When there was no threat in sight, they looked at Ladybug, who had made a dent in the table with her fist. Her eyes were entirely blue. But it was not her usual color, it was an icy blue, that could freeze the fires of hell. Thor held his breath. They looked exactly like frost giant eyes. And familiar ones.

"How. Dare. You."

She didn't yell but the heroes could feel the ice in their veins.

"For four years we've been tirelessly fighting an emotional prying bastard, while controlling our own to the point where it seems that we have none, handling our civilian lives at the same time, trying to minimize the destruction of Paris even though we new the cure with bring everything back to normal, tending to our citizens after they've been akumatized, ensuring they would get therapy and support, even stopping minor crimes around the city and you have the balls to say that we are in over our heads?! We may be but we are handling it way better than any of you do! You are not one to speak, Superman. Metropolis gets trashed every other week with you're messy fights, and there is no cure. You obviously have no regard of the destruction or the victims most of the time. The rest of you are mostly the same. But there is no one getting in your way saying that you're doing a horrible job and trying to replace you. And if there is, gods forbid, you just send them to prison or in a mental asylum. You have NO right to criticize our ways when yours are statistically worse!"

Both the Justice League and the Avengers were silent and wide eyed. Thor was the first to recover. Her eyes went back to normal after she finished but there was no mistake. The girl wasn't human.

"Who are you?" He pointed his hammer at Ladybug. She rolled her eyes.

"Put that down, you're not intimidating anyone."

"Those were frost giant eyes. Answer me or perish."

"Dad would not appreciate the perish part, you know."

The Avengers and the Leaguers were now exchanging confused looks. What were they supposed to do? What was that about? After exchanging glances, they remained silent, watching the exchange curiously.

"What are you talking about?" Thor retorted, now gripping Mjolnir tighter.

"I guess this is as a bad time as any but... Hello uncle."

It wasn't ideal but she couldn't have both the Justice League and the Avengers trying to arrest her. She took the yo-yo from her hip and slid it open. She scrolled through her contacts and tapped the one named 'The God of Bullshit'. After a few beeps, during which the heroes were recovering from their stupor, Loki's face appeared on the screen.

"Daughter dearest. What's the matter, are the others bothering you?" He said in a sarcastic sweet voice. She rolled her eyes then pointed the screen towards Thor.

"L'Oréal blond knows."

After a few seconds Loki starts laughing like a maniac.

"This is the best way they could've found out. This is PERFECT."

Thor walks in wide strides to an unimpressed Ladybug and takes the yo-yo from her hand.

"I have a niece and you didn't TELL ME!"

"Of course not. You pieces of shit are not worthy of the presence of my daughter. I don't know why she even agreed to come to the meeting. She is doing a wonderful job in Paris and does not need any interference. Beware, brother, if you upset her I'll come for your heads. I have to go now, see you soon, daughter."

Ladybug closed her yo-yo and looked around the room.

"I don't care what you decided. Paris is my city. You don't come barging just because you think you can do a better job. And yes, I'm the daughter of Loki but that doesn't mean that I have bad intentions. I'm a hero as much as you are. Now, have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Ladybug." Wonder Woman was the first to respond. Even if she was a daughter of Loki, the young hero earned her respect. She stood her ground against them and made her point crystal clear.

The rest of the heroes agree, though some reluctantly.

"Now, I agreed to come here mainly because I wanted to say that I have a strong lead. Hawkmoth may soon fall."

After some other arguments with some of the reluctant heroes and a few protests that were quickly shot down by Ladybug and her supporters, the heroes dispersed. She and Chat Noir were between the last ones to leave, having a shushed conversation while the others left.

"We will discuss it back in Paris. But yes, it's true."

"So you're a half goddess?"

"Demigoddess, but yes."

"That is awesome."

When they entered the hall, they saw it was almost empty. She was disappointed that maybe Red Robin left until he was in front of her. He gripped her shoulders and looked in her eyes.

"I think I'm in love with you. That was the greatest hero smack down in history."

She was a blushing mess by the time the other boys and Batman came around. They were all snickering, even Batman and Robin.

"How did you..."

"Father turned his com on when he saw that you looked like you were ready to kill someone."

"B, you are not allowed to adopt her under any circumstances, do you understand me? We do not need another sister."

"Yeah Bats, don't ruin your only chance at grandkids."

Now Red Robin was blushing too.

"So... You don't care about the Loki thing?"

"We noticed that he toned down a few years ago. We didn't know why. Now it makes sense."

"Yeah, trust me, you're not the only one with a villainous parent 'round here." Red Rood pointed, putting his elbow on Robin's shoulder. The latter looked like he wanted to rip it off.

"And you are clearly taking your job seriously. Even father respects your efforts."

"I didn't intend to make you feel like you are not good enough. We wanted to help you, but it got out of hand. I apologize."

"Apology accepted. I understand where you're coming from, but trust me. This is coming to an end. Soon."

When the Bats were going to the zeta tubes and Ladybug was merging the horse miraculous with her own, Red Robin stayed behind. He handed her a phone.

"It's a non traceable phone. Of you ever want to talk, my number is programmed in there. I really enjoyed our conversation"

She took the phone, smiling brightly.

"I did too. Thank you."

She pulled him into a hug. He hugged her back, kissing her on the cheek then running to the zeta tubes. Her cheeks were as red as her suit. She touched the place where he kissed her, smiling like an idiot.

"Aww, I'm going to die of fluff. I ship it."

"Shut up." She grumbled but still smiling.

                                                           ...

A few months later Hawkmoth’s reign of terror came to an end. It was messy and heartbreaking but they were finally free. Adrien was exonerated by both the Justice League and the Avengers when accusations started to appear in the media. Not wanting to live with the Graham de Vanily’s, Adrien was taken in by Selina Kyle a.k.a Catwoman. It was quite fitting.

They have revealed their identities during the battle when they had to recharge and barely found one place to detransform. When they had the Butterfly and Peacock miraculous secured and Gabriel and Nathalie in police custody, they swung to the Eiffel Tower and collapsed there on each other, crying their hearts out for the first time in five years. Loki got there at some point but he kept his distance, understanding that it was their time. That was how they were found by the Justice League and the Avengers. Huddled together on the railing, not talking, with Loki next to them, smiling serenely. Thor almost had a heart attack. When she noticed that Red Robin came too, she ran to him and kissed him like the world almost ended, which almost actually did.

Fu passed guardianship to Marinette not long after, deeming her ready.

After everything was solved in Paris and the trials of Gabriel, Nathalie and Lila, for her aiding Hawkmoth, were done, Marinette began her first mission as Guardian. Cleanse Gotham.

Soon, a new vigilante, with a black fox theme, swung through Gotham with the Bats and Tim Drake appeared in public with his new girlfriend, Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

When I first saw what the prompt for today was I had no idea what to write. I didn’t want to do the class trip to New York so I took my favorite character, Loki obviously, and brainstormed. This came out. I don’t know if this has been done before but I love biodad!Loki.

So this is approximately 4326 words (I added and edited things on here so I don't know for sure) which is a new record. I did enjoy writing this. Maybe I will do something biodad!Loki again in the future, it's fun to write.

And as a sidenote, Marinette can lift Mjolnir.

@timari-month-event​

[amjustagirl]

Chapters: one. ~ two. ~ three. ~ four. ~ five. ~ six. ~ seven. ~ eight.

Wordcount: 2k

Summary: Being with Miya Atsumu is like chasing a storm - equal parts exhilaration and danger. After all, it’s impossible to tame a storm.

Masterlist Here

AO3 Link Here

‘Hello, Miya-san? Yes, please don’t worry, Shino-chan is fine, just that your husband hasn’t come to pick her up?’ the nervous childcare assistant murmurs her apologies as she hangs up, ready to dial Atsumu to chew him out for yet another display of his bloody lack of responsibility. But it’s no use because Atsumu’s number is engaged, and after five minutes, she gives it up as a lost cause and after a moment’s hesitation, dials the other number most used on her phone. 

‘Samu – I’m so sorry to trouble you, could you…? Yes – Atsumu forgot to pick her up again. I’m sorry – I’m at work so I can’t just step out… Thanks ‘Samu – I owe you again’. 

She sighs, leaning her head against the cubicle wall in her office toilet. Then she squares her shoulders before heading back to her cubicle, preparing to tackle the stack of work on her desk until office hours end.  

She picks Shino up from Onigiri Miya later that night, promising treats to her daughter to persuade her to give up her perch from Osamu’s neck. 

‘He’s an ass’, he tells her, voice heavy with sympathy, and she lets herself rest her head on his shoulder. 

‘Yes, you’ve told me that’, she responds with a tired smile. ‘Maybe I should’ve listened’. 

He pats her back, and she departs with Shino in hand.

A storm blows into the city from the sea, so she shutters the windows and locks the doors, but the house still shakes from the blitz of thunder and lightning. She rocks Shino to bed, and sings her to sleep amidst the gale wailing outside their walls. 

She can hear the jangle of keys and opens the front door to let Atsumu in. He ignores her baleful glare and shoulders his way in, dripping rainwater all over the floor. 

‘Well?’ she demands, hackles rising at his sullen silence. ‘Would you like to explain how you managed to forget to pick up your daughter from childcare today?’ 

‘It just slipped my mind, alright?!’, he replies, face arranged into a sneer, and with a few strides he’s already halfway to their room, back turned against her. ‘You don’t need to make a big fuss about everything all the time’, he says, his hand on the doorknob. 

‘Atsumu!’ she snaps, her fists clenched by her side. ‘Do you know how embarrassing it is for me to keep bothering Osamu to help clean up your messes? Could you dig deep and grow the fuck up so you can act like a decent husband and father for once? I wish I listened to Osamu when he warned me about you, even before we started going out’.

He whirls around and grabs her wrist in a painful grip, a blaze growing in his eyes. ‘All I ever hear from you these days is  Osamu this,  Osamu that. If goddamned Osamu is so fucking perfect, why didn’t you just marry him when you had the chance? It would’ve been easy enough to pass Shino off as his, aren’t I right?’ 

‘Maybe I should’ve - then I wouldn’t be in such a state’, she snarls, wrenching her wrist from his grasp. ‘But my fate was sealed the moment I was stupid enough to fall in love with you instead.’ 

He snorts through his nose, the sound bitter, twisted. ‘Well, the feeling ain’t mutual, darlin’. Who said I ever loved you?’ 

She reels back from the force of his words, the bruises on her wrist nothing  compared to those in her heart. His eyes widen in shock – but he does not take his words back. 

The rain turns the apartment freezing cold and she shudders, fighting the urge to shrink into herself, counting the seconds in the strained stillness between them before stepping tentatively towards him to cup his face in her hands. 

‘What’s with you, Atsumu?’ she asks, more gently this time. ‘This isn’t like you.’

Her words break his silence, and he sinks onto the couch with a groan, dropping his head in his hands. ‘I’ve been offered a chance to play in Italy for a year, and MSBY’s agreed to let me go for a season. I just haven’t told you yet’, he finally says, shoulders hunched. 

‘Are you going to accept it?’ She manages to ask, a lump of ice lodging itself at the back of her throat, choking the airflow to her lungs. 

He nods mutely, and a storm erupts in her heart.  

‘Gods, Atsumu. Does it mean nothing to you that you have a wife and child now? Couldn’t you have talked to me first before making such a move? You know I can’t just up and leave Japan with my job and Shino. Are you going to just get up and leave? What’s going to happen to us?’ 

‘I’m just tired of all of this, ok?’ He shouts, jumping to his feet, his tone sharp enough to pierce right through her heart. ‘We got married and had a kid so fuckin’ young, and there’s so much out there that I could be chasing that I wonder sometimes if all of this is a mistake’. 

‘You asked me to jump off a cliff. This is what you wanted, Atsumu, don’t you dare pin this on me!’ she screams back, not even bothering to staunch the bleeding from her multitude of wounds.  

He throws his head back and laughs, the sound drenched with bitterness and contempt. 

‘Osamu fuckin’ talked me into it – do you think I actually wanted all of this?’ he says, with a callousness she always knew he was capable of but never experienced first-hand. ‘I wish I'd never listened to him, I should’ve just stayed away. Then all of my problems – all of  this - would’ve never existed.’

His words finally strike the breath from her lungs, and she chokes, chilled to the bone, unable to speak as she watches him grab his bag and storm out of the house again. 

‘He’s not picking up my calls either’, Osamu tells her, when she drops by his store a day later. ‘I could hunt him down for you and beat some sense into his thick head’. 

‘Don’t bother’, she says, shaking her head. ‘He’ll resent me even more if you take my side again’. 

‘What are you going to do then?’ Osamu asks, the steam from freshly cooked rice rising between them. 

‘Come home’, her mother said when she called to break the news, her words ringing clear even over the cacophony of threats her older brothers make in the background about ‘slicing that bastard’s balls off with a knife’. She'd be lying if she said she weren't tempted by the promise of her family's support - her father had always taught her to run for the bamboo grove if there were ever an earthquake, to trust in the strength of the bamboo’s roots to hold the foundations of the earth in its place. But she’s built a career in the city, a life for her and Shino in a small apartment between buildings that seem to burst through the clouds in the sky, and she’s not sure she can walk away from all that just yet. 

‘I don’t know’, she says to Osamu. ‘I guess I’ll figure it out along the way’. 

Atsumu evades all of her attempts to talk through matters again, and a month later, he’s packed his bags, ready to get on a flight to Italy. He pauses to kiss Shino goodbye, and slips her two stuffed toys – a fox and a jackal, and she almost smiles at the sentimentality of it. Then he turns to her but does not look her in the eye. 

‘It’s ok to forget me as long as you remember that we have a child’, she says softly.   

He parts his lips to respond but decides against it, eyes hardening as he drops his set of house keys and his wedding ring on the countertop by the front door and storms off. 

She does not cry until Shino is safely tucked into bed, and she finds Atsumu’s old jacket, carelessly thrown in a heap at the back of the closet. She holds it close to her chest, breathing in the memories sewn into its seams, and lets herself finally break. 

‘Miya-san, I saw on the news that your husband is playing in Italy now. We’re all so surprised you didn’t go with him?’ Yuna-san asks in a too-loud voice, and she has to suppress a cringe when the rest of the office hyenas swoop in, hungry for a kill. 

‘We decided that I should stay in Japan to ensure Shino has some stability in her life’, she answers with a tight smile, the practiced statement she and Atsumu’s manager eventually agreed on spilling easily from her mouth. The ladies slink away, and she sighs in relief. 

Atsumu thankfully heeds her words and sends money and gifts to Shino, and even calls their little girl twice weekly, so she still manages to recognise her father - she’s grateful for that. 

He only responds to her texts once, when she messages him to let him know that Shino got admitted to the hospital for a high fever, but seemed to be responding well to treatment, and would be discharged the next day. He promised to pay the hospital bill, and said nothing more. She does not allow herself to be crushed by her disappointment and stops texting him after that. 

Osamu does his best to step in to fill Atsumu’s shoes in his absence, fetching Shino from childcare and letting her hang around his shop until she’s done with work. He spoils her with far too much affection and food, doling both out interchangeably, and his staff and customers treat the little girl like their mascot. 

‘Thank you for all of this’, she says one night, when Osamu insists on walking her and Shino home. ‘I’m sorry for making you clean up Atsumu’s mess.’ 

‘Don’t thank me. Sometimes I wonder if I should be blamed for stepping in to meddle with ‘Tsumu in the first place’ he responds with a strained laugh. 

‘Don’t be’, she responds, pressing a chaste kiss to Osamu’s cheek. ‘Your interference gave me Shino. I could never regret that’.  

But Osamu can never fully step into Atsumu’s place - they may look heartbreakingly similar but he is not her husband, a fact she’s painfully reminded of when they drive back to Hyogo to the Miya family home for Obon without Atsumu. She does her duty with her head held high and Shino strapped to her back, placing the offerings by the family graves, releasing lanterns down the lake to guide the Miya ancestral spirits back to the mortal realm, but the matriarch of the family sniffed her disapproval when Atsumu’s mother shakily informs her that he isn’t visiting this year. 

‘You’re his wife - what good are you for if you can’t even make your husband come back home’, the old lady snapped. 

She bent herself into a low bow to murmur a litany of apologies, shaking her head minutely at Osamu before he even tries to put his foot in his mouth in a misguided attempt to defend her - dear boy that he is, but he does not deserve the burden of his brother’s sins, and she will not let him go to battle for her when she can hold her own - until the old lady stalks off, only vaguely appeased. The smile on her face for the rest of the night is unflinching but she still cries herself to sleep because she hates herself for being so goddamned stupid  - it should have occurred to her that chasing Atsumu into the eye of the storm would leave her with nothing more than a ruined home and a broken heart. 

But when the morning dawns and the sunrise reflects its colours in her daughter’s eyes, she’s reminded afresh that she's a knife maker’s daughter, and her spine is forged with steel. So she hammers the pieces of her heart back together and does not let herself break again. 

The months pass and the pain recedes. It slowly becomes easier to breathe. 

[yandere-sins]

The Fox Wedding - Run away with Atsumu

Summary: You are to marry the fox spirit Kita Shinsuke after you accidentally agreed to become his wife by signing the deed to your new home. A contract is a contract, he says, but is there more to this marriage than you know? Will you be whisked away by one of the foxy twins instead, or have to marry Kita after all? Can you be with a creature that only seems tender on the surface, or will you try to run even if it might cost you your life? Choose your route carefully, you never know what these foxes are up to!

Characters: Kitsune!Miya Atsumu x afab!Reader

Rating: Explicit   Warnings for this chapter: Yandere, Kidnapping, Forced/Unhealthy Relationship, Rough Handling, Verbal Insults, Mention of blood, Manipulation, Narcissistic behavior, Idolization

With your head bumping against the wall every time you finally slipped into sleep, your night wasn’t a particularly restful one. You wished for a soft bed, a mattress even, but all you had was that one corner in the cell you deemed ‘safe’. At least, you couldn’t be seen from the window or reached through the bars. It would give you enough time to wake up and get ready when someone came around to bother you again. 

The short clips of dreams you experienced were both colorful depictions of a better life than you were currently in, and at the same time, nightmares of shadows and claws reaching for you. Neither truly made the reality any better, but you were glad to at least get some kind of rest after everything that had happened. 

For probably an hour after your late-night visit at the window, had you continued to pace the cell. Some part of you had expected that there would be someone coming to free you after all. But the sparks of anticipation never completely started a fire of hope inside of you, and after a while, you realized no one was going to rescue you, no matter how long you waited. It was the point where you could only sigh, hug yourself and cower into your corner, wishing for the morning to come faster than the sadness and hopelessness you felt.

Undeniable, the thing that you feared the most was the feeling of acceptance that slowly but surely crept through your night. The longer you had to sit around and do nothing, the more you felt the despair of the situation. So you really would have to marry this man you barely knew? Was your life really going to take such a strange and undesired curve? Could you become happy here, under the fox spirits? Live a more or less ‘normal’ life with them? Even if you didn’t want it, for the sake of not having to fear for your well-being every second of your life, would you be able to accept it?

Those all were the thoughts weighing heavily on your mind. Other people had years to make life decisions like this - marriage, joining a new family and culture. And you had… hours, at best. The life you had wanted and imagined before was now in crumbling ruins. In contrast, you hadn’t even started building the new one, and that was not only tearing at your nerves but also ignited anxiety beyond comparison to anything you ever did before, inside of you.

“Hey,” you heard a soft voice in your dreams. It sounded so close and familiar, you were tempted to listen to it longer. So far, the voices in your dreams hadn’t been good in any way, but this one was welcoming to you for unknown reasons. Just like it was the touch to your cheek, warm and gentle, a palm keeping your head from bumping into the wall any longer. 

“Wakey-wakey ~” the voice cooed, caressing your cheeks in its hands as you slowly tore yourself out of your dreams. That was a peculiar instruction for a dream. After all, the whole point of dreaming was being asleep! You squeezed your eyes together tightly, groaning lightly under your mind awakening. Instantly, the heaviness of the situation returned, reminding you of the future and the burdensome expectations on your shoulders. It wasn’t so much a gentle awakening than it was an exhausting pull back into reality.

No wonder that when you blinked your heavy eyelids a few times, focusing your gaze on your immediate proximity, the scare of the century overcame you, seeing a face only inches from you. Your body, immediately alert, began to struggle, but your throat acted up as you wanted to scream, and a hand covered your mouth before you could go through with it. Your heart was about to leap out of your chest from the surprise, and you instinctively clasped your hand around the arm, digging your nails in. 

“Whoa! It’s me! It’s me, calm down!”

Were you supposed to know this person? Yes, the voice sounded familiar, but in the darkness, it was hard to make out any features aside from strands of light blonde hair and an eerie shine coming from the person’s eyes. Blonde hair? Where had you seen that before?

“We met at the window, remember?” 

Slowly, cautiously, you began to nod. Yeah, you remembered now. With your mind waking up, you remembered the encounter you had with the twin-like fox spirits, who got ushered away by Kita. One of them, the one who promised to come and get you, had been blonde. Your eyes grew wide as you nodded more strongly, letting off his arm, and he too put down his hand from your mouth, now that you both were sure you wouldn’t scream and alert anyone. 

“You came back...” you whispered, unbelieving. With the reality dawning on you, you couldn’t quite believe what was happening. He really kept his word. He really came to get you. “You- You…”

Feeling the tears of relief well up in your eyes, you didn’t think twice before throwing yourself at him. No matter how inappropriate or out of place this action was, you were hit with unspeakable joy that someone would come for you. That there was at least one spirit with good intentions in all of this was as unbelievable as it suddenly was real, and you hugged him tightly with your arms slung around his neck. 

For a moment, you were hit with stunned silence until you realized what you were doing. You were just about to pull away when you felt his arms snake around you, pulling you in close. One hand rested against your lower back, the other on the back of your head. Completely enveloped in his arms, you could feel yourself relax a little, breathing in the earthy yet strangely sweet smell that came from him. Warmth spread all over your body, from head to toe, as he embraced you, and you felt safe and comforted in his arms, even if the situation was still far from it. 

But eventually, it was he who pulled away first, hand falling from your hair to your cheek shortly to caress it for a moment. The spirit kept you close, whispering into your ear to minimize the risk of someone else hearing you talk. “It sucks to stop now, but we have to go. I’ll hold you all you want later though!”

With a soft gasp, you pushed your hands into his chest, and you heard him chuckle while you felt yourself grow hot from embarrassment. When you moved, he let you go but kept his hand on your right elbow to pull you up into a stand. “Keep quiet and don’t let go,” he instructed, his hand falling to yours. Sparks of fear overcame you as you realized you’d have to hold his hand, simply because you expected that same sharpness of claws on his as on everyone else.

But when you laid your palm in his, he gently clasped it around your hand, squeezing it without cutting or hurting you. You could hold his just as tenderly, and yet you weren’t afraid anymore, not even about him maybe letting go of you. 

Pulling you along, you made one step before you used your weight to stop the movement immediately. “Wait!” you called out, softening your voice. Having stepped into the moonlight coming in through the window, you could see his ears twitch as you thought, the young man turning around confused about what could be.

“What…” Suddenly you felt almost ashamed to ask, and you avoided looking at him. Perhaps you were seeing him in a totally new light now. From the feared fox spirits, he had turned into something more of a prince, rescuing you, the princess, from the evil sorcerer - or so. Still, you were caught off-guard by his expressive face and the cute, moving ears on his head, the light almost coating him in a warm shimmer. You hadn’t noticed before, but he really was… handsome - if that was a word that could be used on spirits.

You almost forgot all about what kind of spirit he was.

“What’s your name…?” you asked coyly, and his lips curled up into a grin almost immediately. “Call me Atsumu,” he told you carefreely, and you couldn’t help yourself from smiling too. 

“Then… Thank you, Atsumu-san.”

“Don’t thank me yet.”

Before you could question him, he turned around, pulling you towards the bars. Only now did you notice the gap he created, and you wondered if he could use the same kind of magic Kita used on them before. He helped you step outside, keeping you from bumping your head on them in the dark, and led you up the stairs where he waited. “Where are we going?” you asked, cowering next to him as he checked that no one was near. 

“The forest. So far away that they can’t follow.”

“Should we go back to my house first? If… If it’s a longer journey, maybe we’ll need to prepare.”

Carefully, he opened up the door. There was no audible sound coming from it, which calmed you down as you feared someone spying you immediately. “That’s the first place they’d look. Where we’re going--” Atsumu paused, his ears twitched as he tensed, suddenly in high alert. The next seconds seemed like a small eternity to you as you instantly feared getting caught already. No words could describe the relief you felt as he relaxed again, turning to you and smiling wildly. 

“You won’t need anything ’long as I am around!”

Somehow, his chipper nature was contagious. You felt immediately better, not as overcome with worries. As if you could put yourself into his care without thinking twice, and you smiled back at him, giving a single nod in understanding. 

“Let’s go,” he whispered, squeezing your hand encouragingly, and you followed him as quietly as you could.

You would have followed him anywhere at this point.

“A-Atsumu--!” 

You did your best. You really truly gave it your all. But how could he expect you to run for as long and fast as he did? Even if you put all your energy into it, you still couldn’t keep up, your only saving grace being his hand that pulled you along. “Can’t you go faster?” he asked, pulling you by the hand roughly, so you had to set out a step to jump forward.

“I- No! No, I can’t! I need a break!”

“Come on!” he moaned, and you saw the disappointment showing on his face, making you bite your lip. He wasn’t wrong. You really couldn’t complain. He was just trying to help, and you were currently risking you both by asking for a break. By now, the village could have already noticed you being gone and started to search. You didn’t want to think about what would happen to you two if they found you.

“Humans…” you heard him grumble in front of you, tearing you out of your thoughts. Though you strained yourself to listen to the end of the sentence, you couldn’t understand it, asking, “I’m sorry?”

“I said--” With a rough tug on your hand, he made you stumble to his side, a surprised squawk escaping you. Only briefly, while you still tried to comprehend the situation, did you feel his lips fall against your temple, your eyes widening as you repeated himself. 

“Humans are so pathetic.”

“W- What--” you tried to stutter, perplex by this statement, but Atsumu didn’t bother with waiting for you to comprehend what he said, quickly continuing to drag you along. However, other than you were used to from Kita by now, Atsumu had no intention of hiding his thoughts from you, speaking them out loudly without hesitations.

“You humans are so pathetic, you don’t stand a chance against us. You’re lucky that Kita liked you, and you’re pretty. Otherwise, I don’t think he’d ever considered marrying you. What good are you? Can’t run, can’t use magic, can’t fight or hunt or at least bite! Would’ve let yourself be married off without even a bit of hissing and clawing, huh?”

“That…” You felt yourself puff up in anger as his words worked through your mind. “That’s so mean!” you complained, wanting to shake your hand free, but his hold on you stayed. 

“Oh, it wasn’t meant to be nice,” he assured you boldly, not decorating the fact that he knew he was insulting you. 

“How dare you!” you croaked in horror. Up till now, you had found him to be so nice and caring. Where was this coming from all of a sudden, you wondered? Stemming your whole weight into the next step you did, you wanted to inconvenience him by slowing him down. Even so, Atsumu easily pulled you over the ground, your heel digging into the dirt from the polar influences of strength. 

A quick, patronizing sigh fell out of his mouth before he turned around, his everlasting smile on his face. “Now, now, don’t be upset. I was merely saying the truth, alright? Look…”

Atsumu closed in the arm-length between you, and you wanted to take a precautious step back but scrambled to keep your footing on the uneven ground. Without any hesitation, he wrapped an arm around you, keeping you steady and - for you - uncomfortably close. 

“I like you,” he revealed. The small peck he left on your lips was barely noticeable before it was over again. “I like you a lot even, I think.”

His free hand came up, his pointer finger landing down on the middle of your forehead. There was a creeping nervosity as you felt the fingertip slide down between your brows and to the tip of your nose while you were aware of the sharp end of each of his fingers. 

“Without me, where would you be? What would become of you? You needed my help, and now you need me too. What do you think will happen to such a pathetic, fragile, powerless human like you if they find you after you run away?”

You gulped. There was more than one reason for you to do so. For the first time, it dawned on you that this man was no prince at all, in fact, and you wished you had realized that earlier, he was just as much a fox as all the others. This situation for you was very much out of the frying pan and into the fire. Staying in the village and running away was both as terrible of a decision, despite the realization only now revealing itself to you as Atsumu uncovered how he truly felt about you.

“Stay here and let them find you so you can be killed and eaten, or come with me. The choice is yours,” Atsumu whispered, bringing his face closer to yours as if he was about to kiss you again. With his breath on your face, you felt yourself beginning to shake, overwhelmed with the situation and the choices he was giving you. You never felt so close to death than when you heard about what they’d do to you, but going with him also didn’t sound as appealing anymore as it did before.

“I--” you started, but a sudden jolt went through Atsumu and, therefore, also through you as he suddenly perked up, his ears moving to high alert before you could finish. For a moment, everything around you went quiet as you held your breath. Atsumu subtly moved his head around, trying to make out sounds while he listened for them. 

“Chill, ‘Tsumu,” a voice rang out from behind you, and you flinched all while Atsumu relaxed a little, looking more annoyed than happy about who was interrupting. 

“‘Samu, you bastard. Did you follow us all this time?”

Finally, you caught a glimpse over your shoulder, noticing the other twin you remembered from the window earlier that night. “Nah,” he yawned, massaging the back of his neck. “Just caught up with you because you decided to stand in the middle of the territory flirtin’.”

“Damn it,” Atsumu mumbled, not really to anyone, but his gaze lowered back down to you as he thought for a moment. “They started looking for us,” he explained, and you noticeably froze up. The fear must have shown on your face, but he seemed unmoved by it. “It’s time to make a choice, Princess,” he sighed, finally pulling his arm away and letting you go. 

Immediately, you spun on your heels, running back to the grey-haired fox spirit. “Please! You have to help--” 

Before you could even finish your plead, you noticed the sudden strange spark in his eyes as he raised an arm in front of his face. It was too late when you realized that he wasn’t as comfortable around you as his brother, claws lashing out for your face as you came too close for comfort to him, just like with a wild animal.

Your eyes closed the second you realized you’d be hit, but nothing happened. Instead, you felt a gust of wind, followed by a hand pulling you back. “Woah there, Osamu.”

When you opened your eyelids again, you were staring at Atsumu’s back, shielding you from his brother and having caught his hand just a second too late after getting some scratches on his cheek already from the impact. However, he merely wiped the blood away with his sleeve, flinching from the pain. “You’re my brother,” Atsumu noted nonchalantly.

“But if you lay even one hand on her, I won’t hesitate to tear off your arm.”

“I want to see that,” Osamu replied, shaking out his wrist from Atsumu’s grip. 

“Get back,” Atsumu hushed to you, pushing you back carefully by walking backwards, never letting go of your hand. You spared a glance over your savior’s shoulder, meeting his brother’s gaze head-on. 

“Just so you know, I ain’t helping you with this,” he said, clearly talking to you. Then he turned his gaze to Atsumu, brows furrowing more in distaste. “It’s your problem.”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Atsumu purred before getting serious again for a moment. “You’re not coming with us then?”

“Not happenin’.”

“... Alright then.”

Turning his back to his brother, Atsumu finally focused on you again, a never before seen frown on his face. “So what will it be? You comin’ with me, or do you want that scrub to drag you back to the village? He might eat you along the way, though.”

You felt your heart race as you looked at Atsumu for some time before glancing back at his brother Osamu. The latter didn’t seem too interested in the deals his brother was making, only waiting for your decision also. “I--” you whispered, trying to make the decision of your life. You never wanted to go back to this village, become the clan head’s wife, or even worse: Dinner. But was going with Atsumu really a good idea? If you knew anything about him now, he was far worse when it came to moodiness than Kita, and his real intentions were hidden by his smile. 

But still.

Your hand reaching for his sleeve, and immediately he bloomed up, his face showing a broad grin from ear to ear as he quickly reached for your hand again. With a quick wave and glance over his shoulder, he yelled, “See ya, ‘Samu!” before dragging you off again. You gave the twin another glance too, and whatever moved you to it, bowed your head briefly before trying to follow after Atsumu. Osamu merely sighed, mumbling something about ‘always having to clean up the mess’ before turning and leaving in the opposite direction, not giving you any more seconds of his mind. 

It wasn’t a decision you liked making, but in the end, your life was still more important to you than… whatever it was that Atsumu was planning. He, at least, hummed happily after you chose him, his fast pace never ceasing even when you struggled. “Will he not tell them where we are?” you asked, glancing back over your shoulder nervously, not seeing any trace of life behind you any longer. 

“Why would he?” Atsumu replied, and you figured that was the end of the discussion, even though it still made you uncomfortable not knowing what was going on. 

“What am I going to do from now on…” you whispered to yourself, feeling an overwhelming dread rise in your heart. The anxiety of the unknown and fear that maybe even after all that happened, you’d still be found and captured again. And what was the deal with Atsumu anyway? It was so hard to trust him again, even though it was precisely what you needed to do at that moment. 

“Don’t worry!” he suddenly chimed from the front as if he read your mind, and only now did you realize his lingering gaze on you, paired with an ever-casual smile. “We’ll hide somewhere no one can find us.”

“For how long?” you asked cautiously, still hoping that it would be possible to go back into your normal life someday. 

“Hm? Who knows?” Atsumu replied, laughter falling from his lips right after he said that. That didn’t give you a good feeling, but he squeezed your hand tightly and simply kept moving forward as if nothing was wrong at all.

“At least--” he laughed, the forest suddenly clearing up and revealing the great, white moon above you, once again making Atsumu seem like the beautiful being he was. However, by now, you had your doubts about it. No matter how pretty his looks were, his personality seemed to lack in many places you had yet all to uncover. 

“We’ll have a lot of time to keep the promise of hugging it out, right?”

He winked at you, and as the morning began to dawn, you realized your life would never be the same.

➤  Be safe

➤   Go back to the prologue to change your fate

➤ ?

Read other routes first to unlock more fates  

[koutarousangel]

━ hometown glory.

prompt : you were incredibly nervous to return home, especially since you knew that he’d returned home too. loosely inspired by this.

genre : angst to fluff

warnings : i mean at this point i can put swearing as a warning every time cause they’re apart of my everyday vocabulary lmao.

music suggestion : hometown glory - adele, happiest year - jaymes young, from the dining table - harry styles.

author’s note : @asdfghjkl7things​​ thank you so much for your support and your request ! i hope you like it !

you and hajime started dating during your third year in high school.

it was a surprise to practically everyone who knew you two, but the both of you had promised each other that you’d keep it on the down low as you were getting to know each other. mostly bc the two of you had friends that never knew how to shut up.

and what you had between you wasn’t really anyone else’s business.

you’d comforted him when they’d lost to karasuno, telling him that it wasn’t his fault and that he’d done all that he could, and you told him that if he wanted to, he could play volleyball again, or do whatever he wanted.

he’d consoled you when you failed the one exam that you needed to pass to go to the university of your dreams and he encouraged you to take the make-up exam, studying with you and making sure you were more than prepared.

you were each other’s rock and you genuinely thought that you were going to last.

until you got into an argument which turned into a full-blown fight bc the two of you were moving away from each other to study your respective courses.

you were scared of long-distance bc you didn’t want to hold iwa back, iwa tried telling you that you could make it work, but as you insisted, he accused you of never really loving him and that you were just finding a way out.

ouch.

four years later, the both of you were college graduates, and something drew you both back to japan.

walking through your hometown felt strange. it was familiar, heartwarming, but at the same time it felt as if you were a tourist, discovering everything for the first time. it had been a while since you’d walked through the streets of miyagi, having gotten used to the streets of london so much that the peace and quiet was almost far too loud. you’d thought about it, staying in london and finding a job there, settling with a brand new life but part of you missed japan so much, your family, your friends … him.

“you know,” your friend looked at you pointedly as she wiped a vegetable piece away from the corner of her mouth, “he’s back in japan, right?” it was almost as if she was fighting a smirk.

a sigh left your lips as you shook your head a little bit, “i know… he posted something on instagram,” the subtle confession that you still followed him on social media came out as a grumble, because you knew that your friend would make it her priority to never let you live it down. which was why you’d never told her that you’d accidentally liked one of his posts.

her eyes widened to the size of saucers and she practically choked on her drink, batting at your upper arm, “you sly fox you, so you do follow him!” you halted her frantic movements by grabbing her wrist.

“i do, which is also how i know that he has a girlfriend,” it was almost comical, how your friend practically deflated at your comment, scowl growing on her face, “it’s been four years, it was bound to happen.”

still, seeing him with his arm around her shoulders made your heart ache and you had angrily swiped away at the tears that spilled down your cheeks, because it was your fault. keeping him back had never been your intention and that’s what you felt you would have done had you remained in a relationship together. all that distance, the drastic time difference, attending separate colleges full of new experiences. you wanted hajime to have the world.

it was almost as if fate was trying to play some sort of cruel trick on you, because as your mind raced with thoughts of your old high school boyfriend, you felt yourself collide with someone and as soon as you heard your name being uttered by the person in question, you swore your heart wanted to jump out of your chest.

“hajime…” his name tumbled out of your mouth in what practically could be constituted as a breathless gasp, as if seeing his face in person after four years had completely winded you.

the man in question took a slight step back, taking a good look at you, almost making sure that you were really in front of him, and not his imagination toying with him. “small world,” was his only comment as he scratched the back of his head, awkwardness settling between you two as you wrapped your arms around yourself, the chill in the air suddenly very prominent.

“would you like to get some-” “i was going to go get some” the both of you spoke at the same time, nervous words overlapping each other. “coffee…” a smile as your shared thoughts fell together in perfect harmony, as if nothing had changed.

you had walked to the coffee shop in silence, questions of why you’d agreed to get coffee with your ex racing through your mind but the reason was simple … you didn’t want to walk away from him, not yet at least. sneaking glances at him while he grabbed your coffees made your heart thump faster than it had in a while, reminiscent of the first time you’d went on a date together.

there was a slight fear that it would be far too awkward to handle, but the two of you fell into a comfortable conversation, telling stories of your college days, how you’d gotten so drunk one time that you ended up stealing a plant and taking it back to your dorm, or how he’d once gotten so hungry during a late study session that he and his friends went to a mcdonalds drive through, even though they didn’t have a car.

you laughed until your face hurt, and you hadn’t realised, but the two of you had instinctively gotten closer to each other, and his arm had ended up wrapped around your chair, you leaned over and shoved him whenever he said something to tease you.

it was as if these four years apart never happened.

as your shared laughter died down and you finished off your drink, iwaizumi looked down at his lap and shook his head slightly, chuckling to himself and making you smile softly, “what?” you questioned, poking his shoulder.

“it’s still you, you know?” he looked up at you, eyes locking with yours as he gave a slight shrug of his shoulders, “the person i see by my side at the end of the day.”

his words hit you like a punch to the gut and you almost forgot how to breathe. you cringed, nose burning as tears tickled the corners of your eyes as you pushed your chair back, standing up and grabbing your belongings, holding them close to your chest as you rushed out of the coffee shop.

you could hear him calling for you, but the blood had rushed to your ears and you were trying your hardest to keep from crying, but as soon as you felt his hand around yours, you spun around and shoved at his chest, once, twice, tears dripping freely onto the pavement, cheeks burning red with anger and sadness, heart that was excitedly jumping around, now quietly sitting in the corner, thumping cautiously as you felt him grab at your hands to stop you from hitting him any further.

“you can’t say that shit hajime! you can’t say it, not after four years of nothing … you didn’t try to fight for me, convince me to stick with you through it all, and you have someone else! how sick can you be? saying that shit to me, stringing that girl along …” the anger wasn’t making you think straight, words spilling out of your mouth without you mulling them over first. 

it was iwaizumi’s turn to get angry at your words, “you broke up with me!” he pushed your hands away from his before pointing an accusatory finger at you, “you broke up,” and he turned his finger shakily at himself, “with me.”

your mouth dropped open and you closed it again, gaping at the air like a fish out of water, hoping the words would come to you, “i wanted what’s best for you,” you managed to whisper, “i wanted for you to be happy.”

“and you came to that decision on your own!” his chest was heaving now, bottom lip trembling as he tried to keep his strong facade, but it was crumbling, “how dare you, decide for me what’s best for me?” his words were only making your chest ache because they were true. you were scared that you were not enough for him, that you’d never be enough for him, “you were what’s best for me, i wanted to share everything with you!” but you were wrong. 

he let out a strangled laugh, “and that girl? she knew it too. i tried going on one date with her, and when i tried going home with her, she pushed me away and told me that i was just kidding myself and setting myself up to get hurt, because my heart was with someone else.”

the two of you were practically in hysterics, wild stares at each other, tears staining your cheeks and some threatening to fall on his own. this was how the argument was supposed to go four years ago, not with you doing everything in your power to walk away. you needed to talk it out, communicate with each other; the only reason it had reached this point, as if you were two people in some kind of romantic movie on the sidewalk professing your love for each other, was because all these emotions had accumulated during the past four years.

after he let out a couple of strangled breaths, iwaizumi’s shoulders slumped, and he raked his hand through his hair, shaking his head and going to sit down on the sidewalk, arms on his knees and head bowed forward.

you watched him for a couple of moments, hand pressed over your mouth as you tried not to sob. the man who’d held your heart so firmly in his hands even if you were continents away had never given up on you. suddenly you didn’t feel so pathetic, but the guilt was eating you alive. you’d never meant to hurt him so, you adored him and you really did want the best for him.

swallowing back the remainder of the tears, you looked up at the sky and sniffled softly, before taking a couple of brave steps forward, kneeling down and wrapping your arms around his shoulders, burying your face into his neck, “i’m sorry, i’m sorry, i’m sorry,” you chanted softly, knowing that no matter how many times you said it, silently praying that he’d accept your apology, even though you didn’t really deserve it.

his hand rested gently on your forearm and he kept his head forward, pressing soft kisses to your wrist and the back of your hand. iwa hesitated for a moment, before he rested his hands on your waist, carefully guiding you to his lap and wrapping his arms around you, rocking you back and forth and shushing you quietly as you continued to sob into his chest. the way he said your name was as soft as a butterfly coming to rest on a fingertip, and he gently guided your face up to look at his.

“i forgive you,” he admitted to you, giving you a small smile, “i’m sorry for yelling, i’m sorry for letting you go ... ” his forehead came to rest against yours, and his eyes were closed. you could feel your heart practically soaring, having him so close again, him accepting your apology. 

your hand came to rest on his face, thumb gently drawing back and forth across his cheek, before leaning forward and leaving a tentative kiss on the side of his mouth, watching as his eyes all but shot open, cheeks burning red under the palm of your hand as he looked into your eyes, “i forgive you too hajime.”

~ three year timeskip. ~

you were anxious. more anxious then you had been ever in your life. 

you’d been with hajime ever since you reconciled now, going through all the motions with settling into your life back in japan, finding a job you both love but still there were struggles. like how hajime worked himself to the bone, hell bent on being the best athletic trainer the national volleyball team had ever seen. you laid blankets on his shoulders when he slept at his desk while he was writing reports or planning injury prevention programs. meanwhile, he carried you to bed whenever you fell asleep on the couch because you couldn’t sleep in an empty bed, or when you were studying for your job and you fell asleep at your own desk.

your relationship was strong, communication prominent during the whole time, because you knew what could happen if it wasn’t there. the two of you never went to bed angry with each other, he always brought home flowers if he fucked up, hiding his face behind the bouquet as he uttered an apology and you always made sure to bring him a cup of tea to bed if you stepped out of line, before cuddling into his side and muttering a small ‘i’m sorry’ into the silence.

vip tickets gave you the perfect view of the volleyball court, adorning the japanese flag on one of your cheeks and a polo shirt that matched hajime’s with ‘iwaizumi’ spread across your shoulders.

it would be your own name anyway, you thought, as you twirled the engagement ring around your finger, grinning brightly before looking up at him and giving him an encouraging wink, mouthing an i love you at him.

you’d returned home twice; to japan the first time, and to iwaizumi hajime’s heart the second time.

[missskzbiased]

Getting a Roommate (2)

Okay, So I’m back! I got a suggestion about the roommate so I wrote it. I’m really glad people read it kkk I honestly thought this wasn’t going to go anywhere.

Anyway, I think I should put a “Language” warn(?) since I write a lot of “fuc-”... And This one has a lot of dialogue. I guess all of them will have it, but this one is basically talking. Felix and IN are here this time~

Word Count: ~3,9K Female lead I hope you guys like it. I’m all ears for suggestions! Also, I hope you guys suggest a Love Triangle pair you prefer :3

(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (Final) ---------------------------------------/////------------------------------------------

    You were heading out Jisung’s and Changbin’s place, making a decision You thought would be the best-case scenario: Seungmin would be a perfect choice. He was sweet, quiet, clean and kinda funny too with the old hag stuff. You should have just stayed there. When you finally got to his place, walking a lot, since you didn’t want to spend money on a bus if you could just walk for 20 minutes, you knocked all happy.

   “Y/N!” He said smiling as he opened the door.

   “Hey, old hag, I’m back” You smiled back, but your smile soon dropped from your face.

   In the middle of his living room were some boxes and a really cute guy wiping his sweat with the back of his hand from his forehead. He looked like a fox and you felt He was one at that moment.

   “Oh boy…” You whined “Am I too late?”

   Seungmin looked at you sympathetically and tapped your shoulder twice.

   “I’m sorry, but He’s an old hag too” He said, grimacing at you.

   Great… Now your best option was going back to Jisung’s and Changbin’s place and get the bloody room… Why had you had to walk all the way here for nothing?! Seungmin seemed to notice your moody self and gesticulated to his new roommate. That could have been you, You thought devastated.

   “Hey, Jeongin, come meet my not-hag friend! She came right before you” He said and the boy came smiling to you.

   You wished you could call him a sly fox, but He was so cute! He could be a baby fox, tough… His smile made him look like a child and He extended his hand to you really excitedly, shaking it like He was really hyped to meet you.

   “So my little Seungmo have a friend beside me?! I am: CHOCKED” He laughed, getting a slap on the back from Seungmin.

   “I’m older than you, you little shit” Seungmin retorted, smiling, and both of them laughed.

   You wanted to laugh too, but you were feeling too dumb to do it at the moment.

   “He’s a sly fox and didn’t even say it was him, so I thought it would be just like anyone to see the place, but then He just dropped his stuff on my floor!” He said excitedly.

   Good News: Seungmin was hyped, so He could warm up with time, just like you thought.

   Bad News: You were homeless.

   You were about to say goodbye to them and bring your sorry ass back to your last place, but Jeongin looked at you with a bright smile and gestured for you to come inside.

   “Do you have any manners, Seungmo?” He rolled his eyes “How can you let a friend hanging by the door?” and He grabbed your wrist and pulled you inside gently, closing the door.

  “He’s bringing people home!” You accused jokingly “Did you really betrayed me for him?” You faked a hurt expression and made both of them laugh.

   “And you called me a sly fox?” Jeongin arched his brows, chuckling.

   “Can I sit down a little bit?” You asked, tired, and Seungmin promptly gestured to the couch.

   “Of course!” He rushed, going to the couch and fluffing it “Where are my manners?” He apologized and you chuckled.

   “Thank god!” You said as soon as your butt reached the cushion “I���m so tired!” You whined, looking at them sitting down across you, Seungmin on the couch and Jeongin on the armchair.

   “Is it that hard to find a roommate better than me?” He said smugly joking and you rolled your eyes.

   “I came on foot, under this bloody summer sun at midday, Seungmin… But yeah, it’s also hard to find a good roommate” You complained “And now I have to walk back to where I just came because my best shot is to live with two loud, but really nice, musicians” You sighed “What a day”

   “Why the hell didn’t you message me?” Seungmin asked surprised “It would have saved you from walking under the bloody sun” He mocked you.

  “That’s because I thought we had a connection, you snake!” You accused and he cackled.

   “Yeah, We have! It’s called Wi-fi and it would save you from walking” Jeongin snorted at that and you giggled.

   “I’m dumb, for god sakes, forgive me this once, you supreme intelligent life form on Earth” You pleaded mockingly and They chuckled.

   “That’s a whole new way of calling Seungmin a knows-all! I like her, Hyung” Jeongin said happily.

   “But then again you took him from me” You sniffled, wiping fake tears from your eyes and then laughed.

   It was all going too well, you happily talking to the guys that wouldn’t be your roommates, but could be your new friends, before your stomach made a loud grumbling sound. You widened your eyes in chock and the boys cackled at you.

   “Should we have lunch?” Seungmin offered.

   “No! I can’t bother you that much, I’m heading out to Jisung’s place and I can eat something around there” You refused.

   “Did you message him?”Seungmin asked narrowing his eyes.

   “That couldn’t even be possible” You laughed like He was crazy “What are the chances that both of my best choices would find another roommate?” You giggled at the thought.

   You got up and thanked them for being nice enough to let you crash on their couch for a little, and happily got all the way back to Jisung’s and Changbin’s place. 20 minutes walk wasn’t really much and the sun was almost bearable now, so you were feeling better. You should know you are an unlucky bitch, tough.

   When Jisung opened the door, confused, You saw a big backpack on the floor and a skinny boy right next to it.

   “What are the chances that both of my best choices would find another roommate?” Your voice echoed on your head. Yeah, right! The chances of you being screwed were 100% because you were the subject, of course. You could only be angry with yourself for not taking Seungmin’s advice.

   “Oh, Y/N!” Jisung said, smiling at you “Did you forget something?”

   Well, yeah! You forgot you have the most rotten luck in the world!

   “Y/N?” You heard a familiar voice and you looked up to the new boy in the place.

   You couldn’t believe it.

   “Felix, you little piece of shit!” You beamed.

   “What are you doing here?!” He asked surprised, coming to the door and hugging you “Are you stalking me, you creep?” He asked alarmed, laughing right after.

  “As if” You snorted “Why didn’t you say you were looking for a place?! We could be living together and I wouldn’t be so screwed up right now!” You whined and he laughed.

  “How would I know you needed a new place too?! My roommate got caught in the hallways, apparently having sex with someone while they were really high” He explained “So we got expelled and here I am”

  “I can’t believe it! Was the boy your roommate?! The girl was mine!” You groaned “We totally should have lived together! But your mom was all like ‘You can’t live with a girl, Do you want to be a father?’” You mimicked her tone and Felix laughed.

   “As if all the sleepovers wouldn’t be enough to get you pregnant” He chuckled and You laughed, remembering all the sleepovers you had with him, playing Uno until morning, and watching Horror movies just to be scared and asking him to go to the bathroom with you.

   Jisung looked abashed, eyeing you both.

   “So… I’m going to head back… Make yourself home, Y/N” Jisung said, turning around, embarrassed.

   You couldn’t understand why he looked so ashamed, but you decided to ignore it, sitting on the couch with Felix.

   “Are you hungry?” He asked you, his eyes shining while He smiled at you.

   “I’m starving” You groaned “Have been hungry since before coming back here… Felix, why couldn’t We be smart for once and talk to each other about moving out?” You whined, looking at him with puppy eyes “I just have two more places to go now… I can live with a guy that would like me to hear him having sex” Felix shot up a brow at that “Or I can live with two fuckboys”

   “What the hell?” He uttered “Don’t you have anywhere better to go?”

   “I had a great chance to move in with a really sweet guy, but I thought maybe I could find a better place, so I ran into a Dom guy and then I came here” You explained “So I went back to the sweet guy and He found a roommate, a friend of his, and then I came here again… And here you are” You sighed “And now I’m hungry and homeless all over again”

   “What will you choose? Dom guy or Fuckboys?” He asked curiously.

   “I don’t know… Dom guy seemed nice enough, but do I want to hear him being called Daddy?” You wondered “Not really…”

   “Fuckboys are creep guys? Or just… Free souls?” He asked unsurely and you chuckled.

   “One of them is really nice, He was almost a gentleman, Maybe a little bit… Crude on his words. The other one tough…” You groaned “He’s an asshole!”

   “Okay, but the asshole one is that unbearable? Did He try to make a move on you or something?” Felix asked worriedly.

   “No! He said I wasn’t fuckable enough! Can you believe it? He said I would have to beg him to fuck me” You rolled your eyes “Where in the world would I beg to be fucked by a dumbass?” You complained, getting angry.

   “Well that’s good, actually” Felix shrugged “If dumbass don’t want to fuck you, You will have a peaceful home, won’t you? They can fuck whoever they want and you can sleep in peace without listening to anything… It sounds like a win-win situation to me” He advised.

   “I can’t believe I am considering living with that douche” You sighed again “Well, I better call Minho before another random roommate gets my place”

   “I’m not a random roommate! I was thinking of giving you these, you ungrateful brat” He uttered, searching for something on his backpack and showing you a box full of brownies.

   “Did I say a random roommate? I meant a perfect friend that I could never badmouth!” You said, picking a brownie and feeling all your soul screaming in happy language “Oh god! This is so good!” You said while picking another one before he could close de box.

  He laughed at you.

   “You’re a snake, did you know that?” He looked at you playfully.

   “And you are the biologist guy that feeds me and makes me happy” You answered, feeling a lot better after eating something.

   You searched Minho’s number on your phone and called him.

   “Hey” You said after he answered “Yeah, It’s Y/N… Make a room for me, I’m staying there” You sighed “Yeah, totally great… Yeah, I’ll be there later, I just need to get my stuff. What? Oh… Well, yeah… It would help me a lot, actually. Okay! Goodbye!”

   Felix looked at you curiously.

   “What?” He asked “You sound happy to live with a fuckboy”

   “He will help me bring my stuff!” You beamed “He has a car… Finally, something went right!” You couldn’t believe your luck. You messaged him your old address.

   “Want a helping hand?” He asked, but you denied, thanking him for the offer and the food.

   “I’m out, Felix!” You waved him goodbye and decided to finally take a cab to your place. No more walking for you, little lady!

   When you got there, Minho was already waiting, his arms crossed and his face emotionless while He looked at the passersby. You waved a ‘Hi’ and His eyes lighted up when He finally found you.

   “Thank god! I was beginning to wonder if you were pranking me because of Hyunjin” He confessed and you chuckled.

   “I’m not that bad and you were nice enough” You tapped his shoulder “So let’s go, dude, We have a lot of things to pick up”

   “I’m really sorry for you having to put up with him” He said suddenly and you looked at him. He really seemed sorry and you let a smile crack on your face.

   “It’s his fault, not yours” You shrugged “And I will have to put up with him anyway now that I don’t have anywhere else do go, so this is it. Moving on”

   He smiled and then followed you around, helping you pick up all your things and get the boxes to the car. When you finally sat down on the passenger’s seat and buckled up, He whistled.

   “That was a lot of stuff” He states.

   “Imagine doing this all by myself” You agreed “I own you one”

   “Own me enough to buy me some food?” He asked grinning

   “It hasn’t even been a day and you already extorting me” You accused and He laughed “Unfortunately I’m starving so I will have to accept that offer”

   “That makes two of us. Where should we go?” He asked.

   “Anywhere you want, but remember I’m poor” You shrugged and He snorted.

   “Fast Food is good enough for you, my poor lady?” He said jokingly.

   “Is that how you flirt?” You cackled “It’s good enough, I can afford it” You agreed and He drived you guys to eat some unhealthy food.

                                                                               ------

   “Get your lazy ass off the couch and help us with the boxes” Minho yelled at Hyunjin, Who just stood there looking at him.

   “What took you so long? I was waiting for you” He whined and Minho arched a brow at him, putting the box down.

  “What is it?” He asked.

  “Let’s order some food” He pleaded and Minho snorted.

   “Do I look like your father?” Minho rolled his eyes “Pay for your own food for once, man”

   You finally got there with your box and put it on the floor.

   “Oh, look at him!” You said, giggling “I could say that to you, sir” and Minho smiled sheepishly at you.

   “What?!” Hyunjin groaned “You ate with her?” He rolled his eyes “Not even a day and you’re already disturbing me” He looked at you, pouting.

   “Didn’t know you had a child” You said looking at Minho “When baby boy stops crying help me out with the boxes, please?” You asked, heading back to the car and ignoring Hyunjin’s tantrum.

   Hyunjin looked pissed at the door and Minho cackled up.

   “Hey, baby boy” Minho called, mocking him.

   “Fuck off” He uttered, getting up from the couch.

   “Are you going to cry on bed now?” Minho asked, still laughing.

   “You’re so annoying!” Hyunjin groaned “Did you left any food for me?” He asked.

   “Yeah, but Y/N was the one who paid for it, so I do think it’s better for you to help with the boxes, so you can eat because I won’t cook for you” He warned, heading back to the car.

   You were surprised to see Hyunjin coming with Minho, his hands on his pockets, like He didn’t give a fuck, but coming to help anyway.

   “What did you tell him?” You whispered on Minho’s ears and He chuckled.

   “I said you were only giving him food if he helped” He answered, whispering to you.

   “We don’t have any food left” You said amused, eyeing Hyunjin getting the box to the elevator.

   “Well, I figured He deserved a little prank” He grinned and you laughed out loud.

   “Oh my god! I love you” You said amused and He smiled.

   “Now I think We’re even” He said, ruffling your hair and picking up two boxes. “Let this one there, so He come back to pick it up” He advised.

  You giggled. Making Hyunjin unhappy was really making your day.

   “Give me this” You pointed to one of the boxes, and He shrugged it off, heading towards the elevator and you followed him.

   Hyunjin went back for the last box when both of you came inside the house, this time you were holding the box that Minho rushedly put on your hands. When He put the last box on the floor, he looked at you.

  “I would like the food now” He said politely.

   “What food?” You asked slyly.

   He eyed you and scoffed.

   “The food you bought to me” He said “Please? I helped with two boxes” He made puppy eyes and you wheezed.

   “Sorry, but I didn’t buy you any food” You admitted “What made you think that I did?” You asked innocently and Minho scoffed at that.

   “You son of a bitch” Hyunjin pointed at Minho “I can’t believe I helped her for nothing” He whined “I thought you were my buddy” He faked hurt and Minho arched a brow and chuckled.

   “You are, but She’s my buddy now too” He shrugged “And you were an asshole this morning, You could have screwed us up, dude, I won’t have it”

   “And here was I thinking it was all for me” You joked.

   “Don’t get ahead of yourself, darling” Minho grimaced at you, and you both laughed.

   “Ok… I guess I deserved it” Hyunjin rolled his eyes “We can’t do anything now, She’s already here anyway” He sighed “We should make some rules” He suggested.

   “Oh, please!” You agreed eagerly and both boys looked at you confused.

   “Please! Please don’t be too loud” You pleaded “I want to sleep at night without hearing you guys having sex”

  “Well, you should say it to the girls we’re gonna bring” Hyunjin snorted “But our walls are thick, We choose it so we didn’t need to hear each other having sex” He admitted “So I guess this one is fine”

  “Thank god” You said, smiling, sitting down, waiting for them to do the same.

  “ We have to schedule things” Minho brought up “Who will be cooking, cleaning and doing laundry, buy groceries” He remembered “Hyunjin is fine by cleaning everything up, He likes to have a tidy place and brag about it”

   “Well, you did brag about it tough” You reminded him and He smiled sheepishly.

   “I would say anything for you to stay” He admitted and you laughed.

   “Ew, It sounds like you guys are dating, stop it” Hyunjin made a gagging sound and Minho laughed “Which bring us to the third rule: No dating or fucking?”

   “What are you? Six?” Minho scoffed “Why should it be a rule? If someone gets jealous, It would be way better to have a rule saying that if anything comes up the person will have to help us find a new roommate” He made his point.

   “I don’t mind at all” You shrugged “It’s not like I intend to hook up with one of you anyway, but Minho’s idea is way more mature like expected” You stated.

   “Fine, so if you guys hook up you will help us to find a roommate” Hyunjin agreed and you scoffed.

   “Why me?” You complained “Maybe it’s you who will be getting jealous because I will steal your buddy” You reasoned.

   “Great, She already thinks she can steal you from me, Minho, put her in her place, please” He joked and you grinned.

   “Anything else?’ Minho wondered “Well, obviously you can bring anyone you want here too” Minho said looking at you “We just warn one another when we coming with someone, so it won’t be uncomfortable for anyone… Imagine if I break into the room taking off someone’s clothes and you are watching TV with a friend… Not the best way to set up the mood. We try to stay in our rooms too, so We don’t run into naked people on the corridor” You laughed at that.

   “That seems ok for me” You agreed “What about the bathroom?”

   “What about the bathroom?” Minho asked

   “Do you guys have it scheduled? Do you lock the door? I don’t want to run into you showering” You explained.

   “I wouldn’t be so sure about that” He joked and you rolled your eyes “But no, we don’t… We just enter the bathroom when the other is there, but I guess we can’t do that anymore”

   “Well, obviously” You agreed.

   “You can just lock it” Hyunjin suggested “And you will only need to check if He or I am not inside it before you come”

   “Good enough for me” You stated “Maybe a little bit of schedule would be good, though, like know who has classes first and this kind of thing”

   “ We can see this later, I don’t think it will be necessary… We’re both really quick to bath and get ready, so you should have a lot of time to do it anyway”

   “I guess that is it?” You shrugged “We’re roomies now”

   “Great” Hyunjin mocked, raising his hands like he was celebrating and you rolled your eyes.

   “Do you wanna do the laundry so we don’t see your stuff?” Minho asked suddenly.

   “I got the impression you guys already saw a lot of underwear in your like, I don’t really mind it” You scoffed and Minho laughed.

   “Fair enough, so we can schedule it. You can help me buy the groceries since Hyunjin will be cleaning  and wash the dishes, so we split the house chores”

   “Perfect” You smiled “Now I’m going to get my room ready” You said excitedly.

   “Oh! Actually…” Minho looked at you nervously and scratched the back of his neck “Your room isn’t ready yet” He admitted “We have bought a new bed, but it probably will come just by the end of the week” He explained.

   “I can’t believe it” You sighed “I knew I should choose the Dom guy” You complained “Well, I will just hang my clothes then…”

   “Yeah…” He started and you eyed him suspiciously “You don’t have a closet yet” He stated.

   “Oh, lord” You groaned “Why did you announce this shit if you hadn’t a room ready?!” You whined.

   “I thought we would have more time!” He apologized “Sorry, you can take my bed”

   “No way in hell!” You fake gagged “I’m sleeping on the couch” You assured.

   “What? Why?” He asked surprised.

   “That’s no way I will just sleep where you have sex every day!” You answered outraged.

   “Hey, I change the sheets!” He defended himself.

   “No way, I’m sleeping on the couch” You shushed him.

   “Well, I don’t know…” Hyunjin started talking, But Minho cut him off.

   “No, let her sleep here” He grinned “When she gets her back hurting She will come to me crying”

   “Yeah, right, Hyunjin’s father” You rolled your eyes.

   “I wasn’t even doing anything now!” Hyunjin protested, but you only laughed at him.

   “Well, I’m just gonna put my clothes on random piles on the floor then”

   You picked up the boxes one by one, heading to your new room. It was big enough for you, it already had a writing-desk waiting there and a lot of empty space. You could start decorating and leaving your style here, hanging some posters, photos and putting your books on the desk… It would be good enough for you. Your classes were going to start in three days, so you had enough time to do all that and go sleep on the damn couch.

   You should really have chosen Seungmin when you had the chance…

[mimiplaysgames]

Terra Week Day 7 (Bonds/Fave Scene)

Summary: Terra lets his friends love him. | Word Count: 3,462

Read on AO3

A/N: For Terra Week 2021! You can find that account on Twitter!

~*~*~*~*~

At the end of the day, your chains weigh a burden. Share them. At the end of the night, your Bonds make you free. Mend them.

The stars wink sometimes, if you stare at them long enough.

Terra’s been lying on his back at the roof of the residential tower, where the slats are at a gentle slope so he’s not doomed to fall off. A small, square window behind him gives him easy access; he and Aqua used to waste many nights at this spot for years. Here, they can watch the sun rise behind the mountains, so they get the best of night and day. 

The sound of the window slipping open means she’s here—he just wasn’t expecting the plop of an open book landing in his face.

“Look what I found,” she says, and he pulls darkness out of his eyes to see detailed drawings of a fox with a bow and arrow, talking to a large bear who is spying from behind a bush. Robin Hood and his sidekick, Little John. They used to role play as these characters when they were children for hours. Aqua lies down on the space next to him, careful not to slide too close to the edge.

“Thanks, I was looking for this earlier.”

“It was in the potions section. Do you remember putting it there?” He doesn’t, and she shrugs and rolls over to her side. “I forgot there was a part where he dressed up as a blind beggar to sneak into the prison.”

Terra flips pages. Many of them have multiple bends, bookmarks to areas of the story that the two of them enjoyed to play with. That is one of his favorite scenes, Robin Hood dressing in a long cloak and dark sunglasses to hide the fact that he is a fox (despite that it’s still obvious), shaking a beer jug for coins. Those goons he fooled are so dumb.

“It’s still kind of funny after all these years.”

“You would do something like that.�� She hides her smile behind her fingers. “Dress up to trick the enemy so you could sneak in and save the hungry.”

“You’re making fun of me.” 

She slaps his bicep. “I am not.”

It’s the greatest compliment he could receive but it’s also the greatest cringe. He’s always wanted to be compared to his hero... yet it’s still something he can’t quite believe, like there’s a twist to the joke, even though Aqua would never. She’d speak from the heart.

“Dress like this with me”—he shows a drawing of Robin Hood and Little John in their signature thief green tunics and hats—“and I’ll believe you.”

She rolls her eyes. “They don’t have any pants on.”

“That’s the point. We’d be wild.” Terra hides a smirk behind his finger.

“Only if you pay me a thousand munny.”

“... You know, that’s not going to be hard to collect.”

“A bold claim.”

“Okay, but if I end up collecting it all—”

“You’re seeing nothing.”

He laughs and she joins him, warm and painful in the stomach, something that hasn’t happened so sincerely since they have come back. Nights so far have been tight and insecure, as though laughing would expose them to an enemy hiding around the corner. 

Out here, graced with the breath of fresh air, they’re safe under the guidance of the stars. It feels like a young night when their dreams for the future come uninhibited. 

“I talked to Yen Sid,” she says once she’s able to slow down. 

“And?” Terra swallows air down the wrong pipe and coughs.

She wipes a tear from her cheek. “I convinced him to change the standards of your Mark of Mastery.” Picking herself up by the elbows, she sighs. “Though I still think it’s unnecessary, if you want my opinion.”

Terra doesn’t agree, flipping towards the end of the book where Robin Hood and his love are sent off by a carriage, free from persecution. “What are the new terms?”

“Everyone is splitting up to look for Sora and… I proposed searching for him in the Realm of Darkness.”

Terra rolls to his side, dropping the book, all joy that stayed with them minutes before now drained away. He speaks softly. “You want to go through that again?”

She purses her lips. “I don’t want to, but if it helps with finding Sora, then what other choice do I have?”

Terra hums. “I understand. It’s just… you’ve been through so much already, Aqua.”

“It’s crazy it’s been twelve years,” she mutters before perking up and pretending it’s not a heavy subject. “If you survive the Realm of Darkness, then Yen Sid will name you Master.”

Terra sputters. “Are you serious?”

She giggles. “Partially, but that did come out of my mouth in the meeting. Ven would want to come with us of course, but Yen Sid is most concerned about your affinity to Darkness… which isn’t fair.” She brings her knees to her chin. “We all carry Darkness, and you have already shown, twice now, that you are able to face yours and defeat it. So, I suggested you come with me and face the Master of Darkness yourself.”

“What do they look like?”

“Whatever you think it looks like.” She shrugs. “Yourself.”

Terra doesn’t know what to say. He traces the ridges of the slats in front of him. The Realm of Darkness is a different plane of existence entirely, one where the rules of Light don’t apply, where logic makes no sense and there’s only the constant pressure of regret and succumbing, based on what he’s read from the books. From what he’s heard from her, Darkness is the never-ending fight of giving yourself reasons to keep waking up the next day—when there’s no reason to.  

“Twelve years,” he muses. “I couldn’t have survived if that were me.”

Aqua sombers, watching the horizon for the outlines of mountains that you can only see in the night if you squint. “It’s not so different from what you have told me.” She looks at him. “About Nowhere and not knowing when it would end. If it would ever.”

Terra rolls back to look up at the stars. Darkness gives them room to shine. “So all I have to do is survive while we search for Sora?”

“When you say it like that,” she says with a mock-wave. “You know, twelve years isn’t that long. How about we make it twelve days? Survive twelve days and you’re Master. That sounds fair.”

He does a double-take. “That’s not funny. What’s wrong with you?”

“I’m taking a page out of your book and making inappropriate jokes.”

He groans. “This is why you’re not funny.”

“I am, you just won’t admit it.”

He shakes his head, but he can admit it brings a smirk to his face.

The window slips open again with a thud, Ven’s golden head of hair sticking out but not joining them. “You two are the most predictable ever. It was easy to find you.”

“You’re predictable for looking for us,” Terra reminds him.

“Did you find the thing?” Aqua asks, her head leaning back to address him.

“We did.”

That’s right. We. They accepted another member to the family the day of the Master’s memorial, when a talking cat-thing appeared out of nowhere and crashed the end of the eulogy. Terra and Aqua haven’t found a trace of its breed in any of the books in the library (five floors of it). They call it Cheers (because “Chirithy” is a ridiculous name; how in any star can anyone pronounce such a thing?), and every time they ask it questions about its past and how it knows Ven, it responds with more vague questions. Otherwise, it doesn’t offer much opinion. Much like that stupid book, Affairs of the Heart. 

But Ven inexplicably has a bond to it, and they are simply going to have to trust his heart. 

“What thing are we talking about?” Terra asks.

“Can’t tell you,” Ven quips. “Sworn to secrecy.”

“To who?”

“Come with us, Terra.” Aqua stands up, brushing dust off of her drapes and bending to squeeze through the window. 

Just when he was getting comfortable.

Lanterns light the way. Aqua likes to be in charge of how bright they get, and tonight they shine for a feast, bright with a cheery kick, glistening the golden halls of the castle as though it’s sitting in daylight. She marches to the entrance hall where they held their Mark of Mastery years ago. Cheers is already here with two books and a bouquet of flowers on one throne and more knick-knacks on another that Terra doesn’t have a reference for.

“What’s this about?”

“An honorary title ritual.” Ven cranes back into his own arms, proud of himself. “We found a couple of books on how they did it in the Age of Fairytales. A lot of it we can’t translate, but it’s pretty cool.”

“A title ritual?” Terra asks Aqua, who is stroking the middle throne where the Master used to sit, eyes closed in prayer.

“An honorary one.” She brings her hands to her heart. “I believe the Master really wanted to name you Master. And I agree. Riku does, too. I know you want to prove yourself and do it traditionally, but we wanted to do a little something special for you. A title that only we know of so you can keep it to yourself and no one else has to find out.” She steps down. “Until you want them to.”

“Aqua…”

“This is my thanks for what you’ve given me.” She summons Rainfell, and it springs in her hand among glowing petals and a swirl of waves, a second quicker to respond than the aged and wise Defender. She’s whole.

“It looks like so much fun, too,” Ven says with puppy-dog eyes. 

“You deserve it,” Aqua says.

“Pfft,” goes Cheers. 

“We’re supposed to be equals,” Aqua continues, twirling her Keyblade like it’s as natural as wiggling her fingers. “The Master said so that day.”

“Just say yes.” Ven nudges his elbow. “Roxas already calls you Master.”

Terra coughs on a snort. “Does he?”

“He calls all of us Master for some reason.”

“Maybe it’s because he thinks you’re all old,” Cheers mutters but Ven continues—

“When I tell him there has to be official recognition and an exam, he just shrugs.” He raises his shoulders too high to his ears for a good imitation. “He says, What difference does a dumb test make?” Ven is trying to act voguish, but it makes him look dorky instead. “Master Ventus sounds pret-ty cool if I say so myself.”

“Ahem,” Cheers announces, broadening its arms to command attention. All it needs is a conductor’s baton. “Shall we begin?”

“Do it with us?” Aqua pouts and raises her eyebrows, joining Ven in the ridiculous charade of coaxing Terra into playing along.

Terra huffs. “Okay.”

Both of their faces beam, Aqua throwing a sheepish high-five to Ven’s enthusiastic holler, giggling like they’ve won a game. It’s touching. 

“I’ll need your Keyblade,” Aqua says, handing over Rainfell. “Trade?”

“Huh?”

“Standing Masters must accept the Blade of the candidate. To bless it,” Cheers says like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. 

“If you say so,” Terra says, straining a chuckle from pouring out in case Cheers gives him a death glare. He summons Earthshaker and lends it to Aqua by the hilt. Rainfell is as light as a feather, as it has always been—he held it when she first called it at the age of thirteen, surprised by the paper-lightness of its weight, wondering How in the stars do you expect to hit anything with this? when he’ll learn the truth later that she hits just as hard as he does. 

It doesn’t feel arrogant and big like a Master’s Keyblade. It just feels like Aqua’s, the longest friend he’s ever had. 

“Terra. How on earth—?” Aqua grunts and pulls. Earthshaker screeches across the floor, and she takes breaks before inhaling and dragging it more. “So impractical.” She cries a sigh of relief when she reaches the throne. 

“Now the masks, in accordance with tradition,” says Cheers, peeking into one of the books.

“Oh.” Ven hurries over to the other throne, grabbing thin, plastic masks Terra’s seen in amusement parks, with the rubber strings that cut into your circulation. “Masks apparently were really fancy in the old days.”

“Yes,” Cheers says. “Made of porcelain and leather. Very tasteful.” 

“This is what we got.” Ven showcases three tacky half-face masks of a pig, a bee, and a frog like a deck of cards. “Which one do you want to be?”

Cheers wrinkles its snout in disgust.

“The pig is kind of cute,” Terra says. It’s bright pink, with holes cut out in the eye sockets and a tout nose. The string squeezes him around the temples, so he hopes the ceremony will be quick.

“You be the frog, Aqua.” Ven hands over her mask and dons the bee, complete with springy pom-poms for the antennae. 

“Don’t forget the robes,” Aqua says as she slips the frog on, lumpy and shiny, bracing herself so that Earthshaker leans on her hip. 

Ven comes back with three of the Master’s hand-me-downs. They smell like dust from a damp dresser. The one given to Terra is too short, and the one Ven is wearing drags on the floor. Aqua’s hangs off the shoulder (We’re going to need to hire a seamstress, she mutters).

“Now we shall truly start,” Cheers says.

“Why does Cheers get to lead this?” Terra asks.

“Because Aqua is the one to honor you and Ven is the witness,” Cheers says. Duh. “Master Aqua, you understand what you must do.” 

Aqua holds Earthshaker by the hilt like one of those knights in the attic, its point at the floor. It’s bigger than Rainfell, reaching up to her chest. She gestures for one of the books and Cheers is too eager to turn to the right page and hand it over.

“That book?” Terra rolls his eyes, remembering that no one else can see.

“Yep.” She brings Affairs of the Heart closer to her face, frowning before checking her attitude and reciting:

Thus a wield'r and a cousin, so longeth as thy heart stayeth true, and thy duty vows to who, a mast'r to the endeth, so longeth as thee behold not backeth.

She sniffs and double checks the passage, her chin wrinkling. 

“That’s it?” Ven asks. “What the stars does that even mean?”

“You shall also honor your bonds,” Aqua says, whipping her nose out of the book.

“You’re improvising,” Terra says. 

“And never scare me again.” 

“Mmm—”

She slams the book on his head with enough pressure to make him nod. “Say yes.”

“Yes, Master.”

She chuckles.

“Now we shower the room with flowers,” Cheers says.

Ven gathers up the flowers he plucked—a mix of withering vanity plants, such as tulips, and weeds, such as dandelions late into their development, where they spit white fuzz. 

“That’s all you have?” Aqua says. 

“It���s late into the season,” Ven says, defensive. “And you didn’t want to wait too long for me to get more.”

He throws them and they droop down to the ground, crinkling on the floor in an unceremonious finish and lack of climax. Terra brushes two petals off of his shoulder. 

Cheers stares in contempt. “Well… it is done.” 

“Now I call you,” Aqua says, licking her lips as they tremble, and she stops to cup her cheek and compose herself. “Master Terra.”

Master Terra. 

He doesn’t know how to feel when she leans his Keyblade toward him. Earthshaker feels the same–not more powerful, not more wise, but a friend patting his back. But what for? 

“Has a nice ring to it,” Ven says. “Master Terra.”

“How do you feel?” Aqua says, slipping fingers under her mask to wipe her eyes. 

“I don’t know, I guess I expected to feel… something that justifies it all. But I’m still me.”

“Isn’t ‘me’ the person who spent all these years studying for Mastery?”

“Yeah, but it doesn’t make sense in my head.”

“I felt the same way,” Aqua says quietly. Cheers is closing books and picking up dry flower petals, urging Ven to help. “Without you by my side, it just felt… a little empty and confusing.”

“I never congratulated you.”

“I’ll do it first. Congratulations.” She smirks, her cheek wet under the frog mask. 

Terra pulls off his mask—ignoring Cheers when it squeaks, Excuse me, but that must stay on for the rest of the night out of respect for your appearance—and studies her. “What’s that look for?”

Aqua pulls hers off as well, her eyes red but soft and happy. “I want to see Yen Sid’s face when he names you Master and I get to tell him that I already did.” 

He snorts. “What if he objects?”

“What if he’s too stuck up in past grievances and can’t appreciate you for who you are or what you’ve accomplished?” Cradling Rainfell in the grip of her hand, she nods to herself. “Who gives him a say? I spent twelve years in the Realm of Darkness. Not him. There were some things the Master was wrong about. Do you know why that is?”

Terra wants to say it’s because the Master was afraid, but he won’t speak over her. “Why?”

She looks away at a wall, blinking too much. “I’ll never use it again. It makes me feel like I’m not thinking straight, that I’m too close in making a fatal mistake I can’t take back. But I can’t help but feel there’s a purpose for it. Darkness exists not to put us astray on our path but to help us understand ourselves and our needs better.” When she speaks with this much conviction, Aqua seems the tallest in the group. “Within us, it needs comfort as much as the Light needs faith.”

“That’s what makes the heart strong enough to protect what matters.”

Aqua smiles. “That’s why.” When he’s about to object, she places a hand on his shoulder. “The Master is no longer with us. If you continue like this, who’s to say you’ll be okay with Yen Sid accepting you as well?”

She’s right. “I just think I need to do more to atone.”

“Atone?” 

“I faced the Darkness, and maybe I’ve won. Sure.” Terra shrugs, and the change in tone catches Ven attention, who ignores his immediate chores to come close and remove his mask. “But I’m still missing the same Light you have, Aqua. The one that made you, Master, as you deserve. Mine is not that strong.”

Ven sighs.

Aqua opens her mouth to say something but stops herself, searching his eyes with a gentle mix of love and skepticism. “There’s something I never told you.” She rubs her palms together. “In the Dark Realm, I… there were many moments where I wanted to give up. 

“I saw you once, a bright light standing in front of me. You talked to me. You protected me from Xehanort, and you told me to never give up.” She breaks, swiping her eyes and sniffling loudly, willing her body to breathe normally.

Terra stares at her. “I thought I made that up.”

“No,” she says, smiling and shaking. “You never stopped lighting me back, either.”

Ven holds her hand, silently crying with her. He looks up at Terra, as he’s done for years, worshipping the ground Terra walks in, thinking he is a prime example of what a Keybearer should be. They did this because they believe in him. 

“Thanks for doing this for us,” Ven says quietly, and Aqua nods in agreement. And Terra takes them in his arms, Aqua under his right and Ven under his left, letting them sink their faces into his chest and wraps their arms around his waist.

“Thank you for always being there.” Terra doesn’t know what else to say that would measure what they mean to him. Forgiveness is not a real friend, and they don’t have reasons to give it to him, but he hugs them close without going too tight, his tears falling on their crowns.

“We still have things to clean up,” Cheers mutters.

“Come here.” Ven opens an arm to which Cheers happily accepts, nuzzling its nose into Ven’s neck. It’s only cheerful with him. Terra is most cheerful with all of them. A broken home renovated, a hearth revived, a clear sunrise over the mountains. 

Those who know him as Master Terra hold onto him dearly, under a night sky that waits behind stained glass in a moment they keep to themselves, where the future is irrelevant and the past goes to sleep.

[meterokinesis]

Caged Birds Still Sing

Read it on AO3

Prompt: explosion, kidnapping, tearful smile

Summary: Tim's been kidnapped before. He doesn't know if he's getting out this time.

It had been three days since Tim had been kidnapped by the League of Assassins. This time was significantly less nice than the last, and then he’d been missing an organ.

He was in the same lavish rooms, with their silk sheets and gilded mirrors, but the lock on the door had been changed. Where Tim had once been allowed to come and go, he was now stuck here. The door locked from the outside, and the only other point of escape was the large balcony, where iron bars arched overhead. He was a Red Robin in a golden cage.

Meals came at regular times. A crossword puzzle came with his breakfast, and on his second day a copy of War and Peace came with lunch. He’d been stripped of all his trackers and gadgets when he got here, which had been replaced with the silks of the League.

Tim was well acquainted with kidnapping. Having been the only heir to the Drake fortune, he had been kidnapped twice as a child, once when he was three and once when he was eight. He didn’t remember much, other than the shrieks of police sirens when he’d finally been found. Once he started as Robin, the kidnappings began in earnest. He was never gone for longer than a night or two, and Bruce always saved him. He was Batman, that was what he did.

So Tim bided his time, sipping ginger tea and doing crossword puzzles and reading Tolstoy. Soon, Bruce would come.

On the fourth day, Tim received his first visitor. He was on the balcony, taking his breakfast under the bright desert sun. He looked up to see Ra’s al Ghul, the reflection of his jewelry practically blinding against the shadowy backdrop of Tim’s chambers. Tim took another bite of toast.

“Hello, Detective,” he drawled as Tim squinted up at him.

“Oh, hello,” Tim said quietly. “Have you made up your mind on whether or not you’re killing me yet?” Ra’s didn’t laugh, but Tim didn’t expect him to. He wasn’t known for his sense of humor.

“See, there’s only so many reasons you’d keep me here,” Tim continued. “You don’t need intel, because you already know everything about us. You don’t need money, because you’re richer than God. I’m either here because you want to trade me for something, you need me to code, or you still want that heir.”

A venomous smile spread on Ra’s face. “Clever boy.” The words stilled Tim, his toast abandoned on his plate. “Now, follow me.”

Ra’s swept out of the room and Tim followed, keeping sure to hold his head high. His mother would be proud. Even being led to his doom, he wouldn’t let the facade fall. As they walked through the Cradle, Tim refused to meet the eyes of the assassins that milled about. He could feel their gazes tear at him, but he let the wounds pile up.

Ra’s study was incredibly simple, but nice all the same. It looked like an older version of every board member’s home office. Tim despised it.

Ra’s gestured for him to sit in one of the stiff chairs, and Tim complied. The head assassin remained standing, his fingertips brushing over the manuscripts that lined the walls.

“I feel as if we know each other well enough by now, Detective. You spent quite a bit of time with us before you decided to defect. You know that I do not play, I win.” Tim stared ahead, trying his best to keep his face blank.

“So, here is what you will do. And you will do it, Detective. You will notify Batman that you are turning in your cape to work for me. You will tell him not to search for you.”

Tim cleared his throat. “And if I don’t?”

Ra’s smirked, as if he expected the question. “Then I will instruct the assassins following your civilian friends to put bullets in their skulls. I don’t believe Mr. Fox will appreciate losing two of his daughters in one day. I know Commissioner Gordon wouldn’t be a fan. Nor Ms. Ives.”

Tim nodded shallowly. “So it’s them or me?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “Why exactly do you want me so badly? Why not Damian or Bruce?”

Ra’s laughed darkly. “Because your spirit will be so much more fun to break.”

                                                ___________

That night, when he was safely back in his beautiful cage, Tim began his letter.

Dear Bruce (and Dick and Jason and Babs and Cass and Damian and Steph),

Since my return to Gotham, something has been missing in my life. I’ve decided to come back to the League of Assassins in an attempt to solve that emptiness. This is of my own volition. Do not come looking for me, I do not want to be found. I love you all.

Always yours,

Tim

He fell asleep watching the moon shine through iron bars, wondering if this is how every criminal he ever put away felt.

                                                ___________

It took two days for Ra’s to start giving Tim tasks around the Cradle. Small ones, mostly filing. Some putting pieces together. It felt as if even with all of Ra’s power over life and death, he didn’t know much about order. Tim slogged through the work, waiting for time to tick down. He fixed small loopholes and backdoors and monitored agents in the field. It was easy work, at least when Tim forgot about the trained killer hovering just outside his door.

At night, he scratched out notes on the pages of Tolstoy. Short snippets, like “I’m sorry” and “Thank you” and “I always loved you.” They’d never see the light of day, but they made him feel better.

During his free time, he fixed the computer wiring and did odd electrical tasks around the Cradle. It was as if no one there knew how to use a soldering iron. As much as the menial tasks frustrated him, they kept his hands busy and kept Ra’s off his back.

                                                 ___________

Rescue came two weeks after Tim Drake was kidnapped. He was in the main hall when the alarms of the breach sounded. Assassins streamed around him, all headed to their respectful stations. Tim headed to the control room.

The control room was small and filled with screens. A skylight gave the tiniest bit of natural light twenty feet above. Tim busied himself with the controls, monitoring the cameras and putting the last minute details on his plan.

Rapping came from the skylight, and Tim looked up to see Steph waving at him. He hesitated for half a moment, then nodded. She shattered the glass and rappelled down, landing with a quiet thud.

“Tim, here,” she whispered and pressed a comms unit into his hand. He nodded and placed it in his ear.

“I need all of you to listen to me. You need to leave,” he began, his voice hoarse from disuse.

“We’re not leaving you-” Dick butted in, but Tim cut him off.

“You have to. If you don’t, civilians die. People we love die. I-I can’t let that happen.” Stephanie placed a hand on his arm, but he shrugged it off. “I have a plan, but I can’t pull it off if you’re here.”

“We’ll let you take point on this, Red Robin.” Bruce’s low voice calmed the nerves racing through Tim’s veins. If Batman said it would be okay, it would be okay.

“You have three minutes to evacuate,” Tim finished, then slipped the comm unit out of his ear.

“Tim…” Stephanie whispered, reaching out for him. This time, he let her hold his hand, running his thumb over the seams of her gloves.

“Hey Stephie,” he murmured, trying his best to muster a smile. “You have to go, okay? You have to be a hero. For me.” She shook her head, opened her mouth to say something, but he pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“Go,” he urged, and she nodded. With one last squeeze of her hand, she was grappling back through the skylight. He watched as she disappeared, and tried not to let his heart break too much.

He readied the plan, fingers flying faster than he could remember ever doing before. Hands trembling, he placed the comms unit back in his ear just as it crackled to life.

“We’re all out, Red Robin. We’re a kilometer away, in one of the nearby caves. What’s your ETA?”

Tim smiled shakily. “I’m afraid I won’t be joining you. The Cradle’s undergoing self-destruction. I set up the protocol while Ra’s thought I was doing busy work.”

“Tim, you can’t be serious.” For the first time in years, Tim thought he heard fear in Bruce’s voice. “We can still get you out.”

“Someone needs to make sure it goes through with no interference. If Ra’s wants me so bad, he can have me.” Tim suddenly became aware of the tears rolling down his cheeks. “Thank you for saving me. Thank you for loving me. Now it’s time to let me save you.”

Despite the layered protests in his ear, Tim pressed the figurative big red button. As tears stained his face, he smiled. At least he would go out saving people. That’s all he had ever wanted to do.

The numbers ticked down on the screen. 8… 7… 6…

“I love you,” Tim rasped.

3… 2… 1…

0.

The world went white, and then there was nothing.

[kazimakuwabara]

Fall Into Me

Becoming Open and close is a series of collisions. Hiei hates the journey. (about 2.500 words. friendship/gen)

*****

They hadn't known each other that long, or at least he hadn't known them all of them that long. He had only known them as a group for one mission, and honestly, that was enough to have Hiei wishing he had never accepted the deal from Koenma to avoid some time in hell.

Hell would be less annoying.

Glancing a sideways glare at Kurama, he wondered privately how the fox wasn't losing his mind at his other two teammates' very existence.

He had been a human for too long perhaps.

Hiei closed his eyes at the sound of Yusuke and Kuwabara laughing, the two pushing against each other in the late light of the day. The reasons why Hiei was growing slowly more aggravated continued in their childish antics, noisily bantering with one another with no regard to their other exhausted teammates.

"Aren't you two tired? It's late and we've got a bit of a walk to get back to civilization tomorrow," Kurama asked, tone light and eyes dancing.

'Of course, he's amused by the nonsense,' Hiei thought darkly, glaring at the redhead for all he's worth.

"Ah sorry Kurama, we bothering you?" Yusuke asked, digging his elbow into Kuwabara's back, the human yelping at a startling high pitch.

"No," Kurama said smiling smoothly, "But I can hear Hiei about to implode from here."

Hiei's eyes snapped open, and he glared in Kurama's direction, the man waiting for his gaze with a smile, and twinkling green eyes. He could feel Kuwabara's and Yusuke's sudden abrupt, and rapt attention, curious startled eyes looking over at him. Hiei sighed getting up, too tired to endure any of these shenanigans for another moment.

Kuwabara was giggling like a baboon behind him, and Yusuke called after, "Ah, Hiei! Don't go! We'll be quiet!"

The laughter that followed after confirmed Hiei was making the right decision in walking away.

***

Another mission later, Hiei was startled as Yusuke slumped next to him against a tree Hiei had chosen to settle down by.

"What are you doing?" Hiei asked, no bite to his tone yet, as he watched Yusuke with a cautious eye.

Yusuke pressed further into Hiei's side, and sighed dramatically, "That was a pain in the ass mission! That demon smelled like rotten eggs boiled in cabbage!"

"Before or after we killed him?" Kurama asked idly nearby. He was hanging out his shirt to dry.

Hiei didn't answer, but he also did not disagree.

Their opponent, a demon who fed on the anxieties of humans, had a terribly foul odor. It had distracted the newly formed team quite a bit during their fight, and Kuwabara had even thrown up on himself when the demon wrapped a slimy claw around his chest. To Kuwabara's admitted credit, that didn't stop him from slicing the demon's arm off with that thing he called a sword.

Someone needed to show that human how to properly wield his weapon, and not just throw it around.

"Before!" Yusuke whined dropping his head on Hiei's shoulder. "Even I ralphed when Kuwabara opened him up! The smell got ten times worse!"

This was also true. The putrid stench had even made Hiei's eyes water.

"At least it wasn't all over yourself," Hiei muttered, trying to pull away from Yusuke's insistent need to be close.

Hiei was strangely echoed by Kuwabara, who had appeared from the trees just to the left. There was a little river further down, and Kuwabara had been washing out his shirt, and Yusuke's jacket. Kuwabara and Hiei met eyes, a little startled that they had spoken the same thing, and then quickly looked away from one another.

"Here Kuwabara, I'll ring those out and hang them with my shirt," Kurama offered, holding his hands out. He had also washed a few of his belongings in the river, and was now hanging them to dry on a vine he had stretched from one tree to the next.

"Thanks, Kurama," Kuwabara mumbled, offering out the shirts as he came forward.

Yusuke was growing heavy on Hiei's shoulder, and Hiei closed his eyes taking in a slow breath. His patience lost for any more of this... "quality time," Hiei rose abruptly, knocking Yusuke to the ground.

"Ow! Ah, come on Hiei, just relax here!" Yusuke whined, a smile in his words.

Hiei ignored him and went to find some solitude away from the group.

***

"He'll be okay... right?" Kuwabara asked Hiei in a soft voice as Hiei tended to Kurama's back.

Kuwabara was laid out on the rest of the team's shirts and jackets, giving the fox as little comfort as they could from the hard ground. Kurama was unconscious, his back sliced open and bleeding. Hiei was tending to the wounds with practiced hands, and using a balm he knew how to create for situations like these.

Hiei glanced up at Kuwabara, studying the human's concerned frown. With a snort, Hiei answered, "He's taken much worse than this."

"Yeah, Hiei stabbed him in the gut once!" Yusuke piped up from his place at the fire where he was boiling some water.

Kuwabara's eyes went wide and snapped over to Yusuke, and then returned to Hiei with a confused, startled gaze.

Hiei rolled his eyes, "I was trying to stab Yusuke, Kurama just decided to take the hit."

"This was back when Hiei was being a shit! That mission I told you about with the orb, and mirror... and shit like that!" Yusuke added, shrugging his shoulders casually.

"Huh..." Kuwabara grunted after a while. He smiled at Hiei then, and laughed, "I forgot you were a bad guy before."

Hiei looked at Kuwabara, trying to glare and not just come across as confused. The answering smile told Hiei he had failed.

"Go away," Hiei muttered darkly, returning to his work. "After a night's rest with this salve, Kurama will be almost back to his old self."

"And we can take him to Genkai later! Don't worry so much Kuwabara!" Yusuke shouted again, standing up to remove his shirt so he could pull the boiling pot of water from the fire.

Kuwabara nodded, keeping his eyes on Kurama. Slapping his hands on his knees he sighed, and then suddenly reached out for Hiei's shoulder. He squeezed the shorter demon's shoulder, his thumb stroking Hiei twice, and then Kuwabara hefted himself up and walked to join Yusuke.

Hiei, still bristling from the unexpected contact, stared after Kuwabara, wondering what had the human reaching out for him like that. When Hiei couldn't find an answer, he went back to looking at the scrapes all along Kurama's back. These people were strange.

***

"He did good today," Kurama said, voice soft and eyes tired.

Hiei glanced over at Kuwabara, who was collapsed on his back, dead asleep after a vigorous day of training.

Hiei grunted, "He can almost see me at my top speeds." It was a fact, and not a compliment.

"His power is interesting, don't you think?" Kurama asked sitting next to Hiei, his shoulder pressed to the shorter demon's arm.

Hiei did not pull away. He frowned thinking over Kurama's question, before he asked, "What is interesting about it? He has some power, a weak and pitiful amount, but he has a little bit of ability. What's so fascinating about it to you Kurama?"

Kurama chuckled and lifted both shoulders, "Oh... it's... not violent. There's no... aggressive undertones to it."

"Ah, that..." Hiei muttered.

He had felt it too. A strange kind pulse resided in Kuwabara's power. It was not something uncommon among humans, Hiei had noticed, especially those of the monk persuasion. Kuwabara was no monk, but his spiritual awareness would have allowed him to go down that path if he ever chose to.

"He would be better as a healer or an exorcist," Hiei admitted, and then deciding to continue added, "I'm surprised his weapon isn't a shield."

"Why do you say that?" Kurama asked, tone clearly delighted in Hiei's willingness to have a conversation.

"A shield protects. It's what his power wants to do," Hiei answered simply.

Kurama hummed, "Swords can protect too..."

Hiei sighed and lifted his shoulders in a shrug. Hiei didn't use his sword to protect, or at least he didn't use to. Hiei glanced at the hilt of his sword and wondered privately if that had changed now.

"Well, he'll have to get a lot better if he's going to protect anyone with it," Hiei muttered, a growl in the undertones of his voice, "He can hardly protect himself!"

"Which is why we're training him. He'll come out of this tournament alive," Kurama said with a grin, "Don't you worry."

Hiei's face twisted with disgust and he glared at Kurama, "I am not worried!"

Kurama laughed, pressing his shoulder harder into Hiei. Hiei pressed back.

"Of course," Kurama sighed softly, "Of course."

Hiei snorted, disgusted by Kurama's misunderstanding. He was not worried about a human. But if he was going to fight at his side, that human better be able to take care of himself. His thoughts drifted over to Yusuke, somewhere training on his own. Frowning, Hiei muttered, "Yusuke better be getting stronger as well."

"Oh, now worrying about him is silly Hiei!" Kurama teased immediately, a smile stretching across his face, "Yusuke is very strong."

Hiei got up, intentionally pushing Kurama over who laughed.

"I am not worried!" Hiei snapped, before storming away to seek some time to himself.

***

Hiei watched Yusuke as he slept.

The tournament was over, Toguro was defeated. They could go home, but Hiei sensed things would be different from now on.

His arm throbbed, and Hiei glanced at it.

Yes, things would be very different.

Hiei's eyes shifted back to Yusuke, the detective frowning in his sleep. There were red splotches under his eyes, and his lashes had leftover tears. Yusuke had started to cry in his sleep, ever since Genkai's passing. Hiei had thought it might stop now that everything was all over, but he was mistaken. He would not judge Yusuke for his pain.

He shifted his eyes over towards Kurama who was feigning sleep. He could tell by his rigid shoulders that Kurama was lying awake, perhaps going over his battle with Karasu. Karasu had poked at the wounds of Kurama's heart, and dug out the cruelty Kurama had tried to lose now that he was not a Youko. Hiei did not understand what feelings were disturbing his companion in the corner of his mind, but Hiei would keep an eye on him.

It was all he knew how to do.

Shifting his gaze to look at Kuwabara, Hiei was startled to see the human was sitting up.

Hiei froze, keeping still in his place by the window, and watched as Kuwabara pushed back his covers and shuffled over towards the bathroom. He flicked on the light, closing his eyes at the harsh white light, but Hiei could see what had woken Kuwabara. His bandages were bloody.

Hiei was amazed Kuwabara had survived such an attack. Even if Toguro had been intending for a nonlethal stab, the wound had been very grievous. Kuwabara's spiritual powers had kicked in and closed the wound largely on its own, Kurama contributing to the rest. Still, it was remarkable that Kuwabara was alive, let alone able to walk around easily with that wound.

Kuwabara's hand rubbed his chest.

Well, maybe Kuwabara wasn't walking around easily, but was good at faking it.

Kuwabara changed his bandages with quick and practiced care, and then shuffled back out into the main room. Instead of returning to his bed, Kuwabara shuffled over to Kurama, checking on him. Kuwabara plucked at the loose comforter, and tucked it around the man's shoulders with a slow tender care. Hiei could see Kurama's body language relax, and he wondered if Kuwabara could tell Kurama was awake too.

He then shuffled to Yusuke and stared in silence for a period of time. Even if the room wasn't dark, Hiei wasn't sure he would understand the expression on Kuwabara's face. Eventually, Kuwabara raked fingers through his mussed hair, and then reached down to fluff one of Yusuke's pillows, and tuck the smaller man into bed. Gently his hands were on Yusuke's shoulders, and Hiei could feel Kuwabara sending a soothing energy into Yusuke, a skill he did on instinct alone.

Yusuke sighed in his sleep, the pain in his face smoothing away, and shifted into the comfort of his bed.

Kuwabara then turned towards him.

Hiei snapped his eyes closed, fighting to keep his body from going rigid.

He could sense Kuwabara standing over him after a moment, and there Kuwabara stood for a long time. He was attempted to open his eyes and ask him to go away, but remained quiet, curious what Kuwabara would do.

There was a shuffling sound and then a blanket was being tucked gently around him.

He opened his eyes staring at the top of Kuwabara's head, the human's face lowered as he concentrated on his task. Kuwabara's hands were being very cautious of his arm, and Hiei could sense Kuwabara's nervousness pooling off of him. Kuwabara's hand settled on the wrist of Hiei's good arm, and Hiei felt a small sleeping wave of comforting energy.

Hiei closed his eyes, and let Kuwabara slink away without getting "caught."

He listened as Kuwabara resettled into bed, and vaguely remembered a conversation he and Kurama had shared some time ago.

Kuwabara would be better suited as a healer.

***

Sensui was dead and gone, and Yusuke was a demon apparently.

Hiei couldn't deny how much sense that made.

In fact, it was really laughable that he had never noticed before.

Currently, Kuwabara, Yusuke, and Kurama were all piled against each other, all dirty and half asleep. With the way Kuwabara's mouth was hanging open, Hiei suspected Kuwabara was fully asleep.

Hiei privately thought he probably deserved the rest. There was no way Kuwabara would have been able to relax around his captors.

Hiei had just pulled himself from that pile, irritated that he had been dragged into it, to begin with.

He looked at the people he had been working alongside for the better part of a year, and glared at them as he tried to label them something other than what his heart was whispering.

It was no use.

They were... his friends now he guessed, a word that was as uncommon as peace. But that's what they were, and that was what they brought him. Peace.

It was all so strange.

"Hey..." Yusuke grunted, popping open an eye, "Don't move around so much... you're exhausted."

"You're exhausted," Hiei returned petulantly, receiving a cheeky grin in return.

Yusuke held out an arm, and lazily waved Hiei over, "Hey. Come on. Just... settle down with us."

Hiei made a face, but stepped closer.

Yusuke grinned, shaking his head with a sigh, "No one is looking, and also who gives a fuck. Just come join us and exist for a bit."

"I don't..." Hiei tried to say, but the words were dead before he could voice them. He... was not opposed to settling down against his teammates, enjoying the feel of their closeness, and relishing in the fact they had all survived. Somehow.

He could allow himself this, just once, right?

"Don't think. Just... fall," Yusuke said with a sigh and a careless shrug.

Hiei cringed, but reluctantly tipped forward, and let Yusuke catch his wrist. He was tugged down, and pulled hard into Kuwabara, who groaned as he was jolted into alertness.

"Jesus! Watch it Urameshi!" Kuwabara snapped, shoving Yusuke, while seeming unbothered that it was Hiei who had been thrown into his side.

Instead, Kuwabara settled himself more, giving Hiei room to be pressed against his side. Yusuke pressed into Hiei's opposite side, and from around Kuwabara, Kurama's hand reached out and squeezed Hiei's forearm.

"Shut up Kuwabara," Yusuke said, voice soft and teasing.

Hiei's lids were heavy, and he settled against the group quietly.

How strange it was to have affection for these three strangers he'd been forced to endure.

[rosemaidenvixen]

A Secret’s Worth

Chapter 6: Toby

Ao3

The squeak rubber on linoleum got louder as the footsteps came closer. 

Toby didn’t move an inch, eyes locked on the gap beneath the stall door.

Coach Lawrence’s sneakers stepped into view.

The muscles in his legs were wailing in protest, cramped in position to keep him perched on top of the toilet. Toby forced himself to ignore the pain and held his breath, staying as still as he possibly could. They were close, so close, he couldn’t mess things up now.

They hadn’t come this far just to trip at the finish line.

Seconds ticked by, each one feeling like an hour, before Coach Lawrence’s shoes turned and headed out of the bathroom. Toby letting out a silent cheer of victory as the door shut behind him. He waited a few more moments, just to make sure Coach Lawrence wasn’t trying to fake them out, before dropping down to the floor and peeking out of the stall. 

“Coast is clear Jim,”

Right on queue Jim stepped out of another stall and hurried over to meet him by the door. A quick glance to make sure the halls were clear, then they made a break for it. Running through the school as silently as they could, taking care to make sure they wouldn’t be seen.

When they reached the side entrance Toby was shaking, half from excitement and half from fear. Part of him was convinced that Señor Uhl was going to be standing right outside waiting for them, two detention slips held at the ready. Their adventure over before it could even begin. Palms sweaty, he slowly pushed the door open, when he saw that the walkway was clear his heart leapt.

He and Jim ran down the sidewalk, grabbed their bikes, and started pedaling like their lives depended on it. Not even slowing down when they crossed the street and cut through the intersection. When they finally stopped, huffing and puffing in front of the diner’s parking lot, only a sliver of Arcadia Oaks High school was visible, the rest concealed by buildings.

Toby felt giddy energy bubbling up inside his chest. They had done it, for a while he didn’t think he had it in him but he had pulled through. 

Now the afternoon was theirs. 

“Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh I can’t believe we just did that!” he hopped from foot to foot, practically jumping with exhilaration “We ditched a pep rally and snuck out of school we’re practically delinquents now! And no one suspects a thing! Oooh man if anyone finds out we’re going to get Saturday detention for the rest of the year!”

Jim was giggling and grinning from ear to ear, if anything he was even more buzzed about this than Toby was “Who cares, detention will be worth it!”

Toby gave Jim an admiring glance, he had always been so straight-laced since...well, ever. It really felt good to see him finally cut loose. 

At that moment the girls rounded the corner on their bikes, racing towards their designated meeting spot right on time.

Jim waved them over as the three slid to a stop, panting as they caught their breath. 

“You guys have any trouble escaping?”

Mary leaned heavily against her handlebars, still gasping from exertion “We nearly got caught, Ms. Janeth almost found us, we had to hide in the recycling bins,”

She perked up almost instantly “But we got away, now we have the rest of the afternoon off, and you know what that means!”

Like Toby needed to be told twice “Gun Robot 7 here we come!” he cheered, playfully bumping shoulders with Jim.

Immediately Jim stiffened, a slow shudder making its way up through his body “Tobes,” he hissed through clenched teeth “...arm…”

Oh...oops.

“Sorry dude,” he scooted away, giving Jim plenty of space “Forgot about your needle arm, at least you’re done now, right?”

“Yeah, just finished the last round of shots yesterday,” Jim replied while rubbing his much punctured limb “Thank god, if I had to get jabbed one more time I think my arm would have fallen off,”

Darci snickered “It is kind of funny that the shots you had to get after are worse than when the fox actually tried to bite your foot off,”

“Yeah, hilarious,” 

Toby noticed how Jim kept rubbing his arm as the five of them walked their bikes over to the movie theatre, there was a crackdown on sidewalk laws and they didn’t need to get busted for that of all things. 

It was nuts how Jim and Dr. Lake had been going on camping trips for years without any trouble, and then all of a sudden the most crazy-town-banana-pants thing happens.

Jim was still pretty touchy about it, he’d only ever showed Toby the injury under the bandage once. A cluster of thin red lines an inch above his ankle, not nearly as gorey as Toby had been imagining. He really didn’t like talking about it though, which was cool, Toby knew when to back off. But after enough time had passed and Jim had gotten over almost being mauled, Toby was going to try and convince him to show off the scars more. 

Scars were a huge chick magnet.

Soon enough the theatre was in sight. Not wanting to miss the start of the movie, they hurried to secure their bikes and buy their tickets. Ten minutes and three giant tubs of popcorn later they were all sitting back and watching the pure epicness of Gun Robot 7: Revenge of the Federation. 

The movie was well over two hours long, but they managed to sit through every last glorious, action packed minute of it. Except for Mary who managed a quick potty break during one of the chase scenes. 

In other words a lot better than the pep rally would have been. They should do this more often.

All too soon the credits started rolling, forcing them to gather their trash and head for the door so that broom wielding employees could do their thing.

While throwing they were all throwing their trash away, Toby happened to notice Claire looking thoughtfully at the banner advertising another movie two theatres down. 

Her pensive look broke into a wide, cheshire-like smile “What do you guys say about making this a double feature?”

Toby did a double take at her words, before shooting a discreet glance at the nearby theater employees. One behind the ticket counter trying to pretend he wasn’t reading a textbook and fooling nobody. Two at the snack bar engaged in a heated debate about the Star Wars prequels.

None of them would notice or care if five teens snuck into an extra movie. 

For the first time today Toby didn’t feel one hundred percent onboard with this. Ditching during a pep rally was one thing, but theatre hopping was another. Forget grounding, if they got caught it was game over for real. Darci’s dad might even pull strings to get them all sent to juvie.

This was stupid, crazy, if there was a single brain cell between the five of them they’d quit while they were ahead and just go to Claire’s house and play videogames. 

But that wouldn’t be nearly as fun, or as thrilling.

Mary was practically vibrating “We totally should!”

“We’ve already cut school for half a day,” Darci said with a shrug and a smirk “What’s sneaking an extra movie?”

Toby was about to say that they could count him in when something occurred to him.

He glanced at Jim from the corner of his eye, trying to gauge his reaction without being completely obvious. 

The movie they were looking at was over two hours long, which would mean for Jim to stay and watch with them he would have to break curfew.

Toby had to bite the inside of his mouth to keep from saying anything, Jim needed to make this choice by himself, pushing him one way or another never ended well.

Jim always stuck to his mom’s rules, which was one of the things Toby admired about him. But Dr. Lake still made him follow the same rules they’d had back since elementary school. They were in high school now, they were teenagers for crying out loud. Trenchcoat wearing strangers weren’t going to throw them in a windowless van if they were out on the sidewalk five minutes past dark. 

And Toby was sure that if Jim would just let himself relax and forget about the rules just once, he would realize that to. Then he could spend his nights going out and having fun with Toby and their three awesome new friends instead of being cooped up inside. Sure Dr. Lake would probably be a little upset at first, but Toby was confident that she would understand eventually.

But was today the day?

He held his breath as Jim opened his mouth “I’m in to,” his smile was giddy and carefree “What about you Tobes?”

Bliss shot through him from his head to his shoes.

Hearing Jim say that made Toby feel like he was walking on air. It was all he could do to not grab Jim in a bear hug and sweep him off his feet “As if you guys even have to ask me,”

After making a couple bathroom trips as stealthily as possible, the five of them quivering with barely restrained giggles, they scurried into a second theatre. One showing a cheesy romcom that they most certainly had not bought tickets for.

The movie was nothing they hadn’t seen before in other similar films. Completely predictable with cliche miscommunications and an obligatory love triangle, but they were all still roaring with laughter. Not so much at the movie, but at the thrill of successfully having broken multiple rules in a single day and gotten away with it.

So another two hours later they were all still laughing their heads off as they walked out of the theatre.

“We, we--” Darci’s words were broken up by loud guffaws “Should ditch and do movies more often,” 

“Totally,” 

“Definitely,” 

“No argument here,”

Toby sided up to Jim, making sure to avoid his needle arm this time, and flashed him a wink. He knew Jim had it in him, that one day he would realize sticking to old, outdated, frankly babyish rules wasn’t as important as spending time with his friends, he just had to give Jim the chance to figure that out by himself.

“Glad you decided to stay later this time Jimbo,”

“What?”

“Dr. Lake probably won’t be too mad at you for breaking curfew, just make her some of your famous spinach puffs and she’ll get over it,” 

Jim stopped in his tracks and turned to look at him, confusion written all over his face “What are you talking about? It’s only three, I’ll be home in plenty of time,”

“No dude, it’s four thirty,”

Wait. Had Jim not been planning on this? Had he just...forgotten the time?

Frown deepening, Jim rooted through his pocket and pulled out his phone “It can’t be that la-”

He stopped in his tracks, jaw dropping open. Toby could actually see the color draining from his face as Jim saw that it was indeed 4:27 pm.

Just like that the cheerful mood was gone. The waves shock and panic coming off of Jim strong enough to make it crash to the ground. Quickly picking up on the sudden shift in atmosphere, girls all looked at each other uncomfortably, Claire coming up to Jim and gently laying a hand on his shoulder “Don’t worry, I’ve broken curfew a few times, your mom might be mad but it’s n--”

Without warning Jim turned and sprinted towards the entrance. They all just stood there, dumbfounded, for a few moments before speedily following him.

Outside Jim was frantically trying to unlock his bike, his hands were trembling so badly that the lock and key slipped from his grip multiple times.

“Hey, where’s the fire?” Darci’s tone was light, but her question landed awkwardly.

Toby’s could feel his face growing hot. Whether it was anger, embarrassment, or some unholy combination of both he had no idea. 

Why did Jim have to do this? Today of all freaking days. They had been having so much fun and then he had to go and ruin it.

Why couldn’t Jim just not do what his mom told him for once in his life? 

He stepped up to him, prepared to say whatever he had to to get Jim to forget his dumb curfew and actually put his friends first for once. 

At that moment Jim finally ripped his bike free and mounted it. Looking back just long enough to flash them an apologetic look. 

“Sorry but I really need to leave right now,” he said in a shaking voice.

“Jim wa-” Mary shouted at him but it was too late, Jim was already speeding away, he hadn’t even bothered to put his helmet on.

 Expression flickering back and forth between fury and confusion, she grabbed her own bike and took off hot on his trail. Claire, Darci, and Toby rushing to get their own bikes and follow after them.

The four of them pedaled as fast as they could after Jim. Darci nearly got close enough to touch him a few times, but they couldn’t keep pace with the almost manic way Jim was pedaling. In ten minutes, a time frame Toby never before thought possible, they pulled into their cul-de-sac. 

Jim didn’t even slow down, dismounting and discarding his bike on the lawn without missing a beat, and then running for his front door at a breakneck pace.

Toby braked hard on the sidewalk “Hold on Jim, let’s ju--”

Jim vanished as the front door slammed shut with a resounding thud. Toby’s entire face was burning, he was very very aware of the girls huddling up on the sidewalk and exchanging hushed whispers.

This was bad, this was bad, this was so freaking bad.

Toby didn’t care if he had to drag him, he was getting Jim out here.

Blood pumping hot and furious, Toby jogged up and pounded on the door.

No reply. 

He was hyper aware of the girls eyes on him now “C’mon Jim open up,” he forced his tone to be light and friendly “You can’t just leave us hanging like this,”

Still nothing.

Clenching his fist, Toby tried again.

On the fifth knocking attempt the doorknob started to turn. Toby opened his mouth to unload on Jim about his uncool and uncalled for attitude, but to his surprise it was Dr. Lake that answered the door instead. 

“What is it Toby?”

He stretched his fake smile even wider, if there was ever a time to play it cool it was now “Hey there Dr. L, I know Jim has a curfew to stick to...but would it be ok if he just came out so we could say goodbye for the night?”

“Jim is in for the night, you guys can talk tomorrow,”

“Oh,” Toby thought quickly “How about I just pop in really quick, just for a minute,”

He moved to step around her and go talk to Jim himself, but before he could set foot inside her arm shot out and grabbed the door frame. 

Her expression had shifted from calm to annoyed as she stood firmly in the doorway, hand fixed firmly to the wooden frame beside her. 

Barring him entry.

“I’m sorry Toby but Jim can’t talk right now,”

Unwilling to move but able to go forward, Toby stayed where he was, feet rooted to the ground.

That was when Claire came hurrying up from behind him, Mary and Darci right on her heels “Please don’t be mad, Jim wasn’t trying to break curfew, we all lost track of time,” 

“That isn’t--” Dr. Lake let out a deep sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. 

“I’m not mad,” she said tonelessly “But Jim still can’t come to the door,”

Mary’s eyes narrowed, mouth twisting into an indignant frown “Why not?”

“He...he needs to get started on his homework,”

“We won’t take long,” Darci piped up “And besides, the only thing due tomorrow is the biology worksheet, and I know Jim’s finished it already,”

Suddenly a strange sound came from deeper in the house behind Dr. Lake, it almost sounded like...fabric ripping?

Instinctively all four of them shifted around to get a look at the source of the noise. Dr. Lake grabbed the door handle and started to ease it shut while still blocking them.

“I-- I’m sorry but the answer is still no,”

Toby felt sick. Could today get any worse? Why did Dr. Lake have to do it like this. He already knew Mary was going to give them hell about this, not to mention what Claire and Darci would think “But Dr. Lake--”

“Goodnight,” with that she shut the door firmly in their faces

They all stood there for a few seconds of awkward silence before starting to shuffle toward their bikes.

“What does she mean ‘Goodnight’?” Mary grumbled “It’s still light out...” 

Toby moved to follow them, paused, and then turned back and stepped toward the door. Jim always had lots of weird rules to follow, but this was the first time he’d broken one of them and gotten caught.

But Dr. Lake hadn’t been mad, the way she had acted was...weird. 

On impulse he tried the knob. 

Deadbolted. 

His entire body ignited in a hot flush of embarrassment. They had just missed curfew by half an hour and Dr. Lake was locking them out like they were just some random punks?

Any sense of shame gone now, Toby stepped right up and pressed his ear against the wood.

At first he couldn’t hear anything, then he started to pick up the whispers. Toby pressed closer, most of it was too quiet to make out, but some of it wasn’t.

“What were you thinking?” Dr. Lake’s voice “I must have called you over a dozen times!”

The volume died down abruptly. Toby strained to hear more, the silence ticking on.

Then her voice shot up in a sharp peak, nearly forcing him to stagger back. 

“Do you have any idea how close you were cutting it!”

After that it got really quiet.

For a while he thought that was the end of it, then Dr. Lake spoke up again, this time so soft he could barely hear her “Oh sweetie I’m sorry…stay here, I’ll get the scissors,”

Toby kept listening but things stayed quiet. Except for the hundreds of questions swirling in his skull.

He raised a fist, ready to rap it against the wood. To knock on the door one more time today.

His hand stayed like that, raised and ready for action, for five seconds, ten, twenty, thirty.

Then at forty he deflated, hand falling softly and soundlessly against the wood. Hanging his head, Toby turned and walked away from the house, back towards the sidewalk where his bike and the girls were waiting.

[imperfectcourt]

Just closed eyes with nothing behind

4.4k Andreil

Neil has a bad day

[AO3]

“There you are.”

He didn’t know he wanted to be found until Nicky peaked into the court lounge. He didn’t know he wanted Nicky to the the one to find him until his jaw started to tremble with relief.

“Hey,” was all Nicky said as he lowered himself to sit next to Neil on the floor behind the couch. “Renee told me what Allison said.”

Ah, so that explained why he’d been looking for Neil in the first place. Neil’s hands tightened around the tube of paper in his hands. It was soft and pliable, almost cloth-like from how many times it had been rolled and folded and flattened. “It’s fine,” he said. “You didn’t have to come look for me.”

“Yes, I did,” Nicky countered.

Neil let out a shaky sigh and wished that Allison’s words were all that had gotten to him. That it wasn’t issue upon issue on a bad day. That Andrew hadn’t been a part of it. That there hadn’t been a one-two punch and a sickening realization.

“That’s not a real word, sweety.” One. “It explains how I feel. My feelings- my relationship with Andrew…” “What relationship.” Two

Issues on issues on a bad day. Neil didn’t cry with tears anymore but the rest of his body remembered the motions of wringing him like a towel- chest squeezing, jaw shaking, arms stiff. He twisted his hands around the rolled paper. It was so mangled it no longer even crinkled.

After a few moments of silence, Nicky slowly, slowly reached over and took the paper. Neil let him and didn’t understand why. It was a private, personal thing.

Maybe that was why.

1. Neil Abram Josten 2. Fox 3. Exy player 4. Aubor Aubar Aborn Brown Red Reddish brown hair 5. Boyfriend 6. Math major 7. Demisexual

Nicky looked at the paper for a long time and Neil looked up at the pictures tacked to the wall. Time and growth stopped Nicky from smothering Neil but it was still Nicky and his face betrayed every emotion. His brows wrinkled, his eyes squinted and then widened. His face went slack and then smoothed over and that was a new one to see.

“There’s a lot to unpack here,” he finally said, voice quiet and soothing. Neil felt his face go hot.

“Alright, Bee,” he said, aiming for biting and failing. Nicky didn’t look offended, just blank. He was chewing on the inside of his cheek.

“The first thing I want you to know is that your sexuality is real and nobody gets to tell you that it’s not or that you’re not or that it’s wrong. It’s really important to me that you know that.” He turned his head to meet Neil’s eyes for the first time. Neil only nodded because he didn’t know what else to do. It didn’t feel appropriate to tell Nicky that that made it worse and he’d been trying to be more appropriate after too many awkward silences at team dinners and movie nights.

Nicky nodded back. “I’ll be honest, though- I don’t really know exactly what the word means. Could you tell me?”

The way Nicky was speaking was so unlike himself. He was measured and scripted and Neil wondered if he heard these things in Germany or Reddin. Neil didn’t want to answer. He didn’t want to say it again and be told it wasn’t real (Nicky would never…) and he didn’t want to face the reality of his situation. He wanted to sit behind the couch and look at the faces of the foxes frozen in time. And he did, for a little while. Nicky did, too. Patient. When he finally spoke, his voice was tight.

“It, uh, it means that I only experience sexual attraction after I’ve developed a strong emotional connection with someone.”

It felt like a confession. Part of him wanted to elaborate and make this connection with Nicky, but then he started to think about Andrew and his cheeks hurt and his hands clenched. It seemed to be enough for Nicky, who bumped their shoulders together.

“Thanks for sharing that with me. And not that anyone’s opinion on it matters, but I think that sounds exactly right for you.”

“Your opinion matters,” Neil said. His throat felt tight around the words, started to hurt. They sat in silence again as Neil tried to control his breathing. Eventually, Nicky’s thumb rubbed over the crossed off number 5 on the crinkled list. He braced himself.

“Something else happened,” Nicky guessed. “Allison makes catty comments all the time. Something she said wouldn’t make you feel like this.”

Neil didn’t ask how Nicky knew what he was feeling because he was right.

“Andrew said something.” It wasn’t a question because Nicky didn’t have to ask. Neil shook his head at himself and wiped at his dry cheeks as if he actually shed tears.

“He wasn’t wrong. It’s my fault for not listening when he said we weren’t a this.” He hated what he was feeling. He hated that he was feeling and all the complicated implications that followed along. He hated that it hurt and why it hurt and he hated himself for not being able to suppress these emotions anymore. That was one thing about being real that he didn’t need. Without the distraction of running and fighting for his life, emotions were something he felt much more often and- worse yet- more strongly.

“What? Why on Earth would Andrew say you’re not together?” Nicky momentarily forgot the calm demeanor he’d been trying to present and gave Neil a bewildered look. Neil felt his lip curl over his teeth.

“Because we’re not. He’s always said we weren’t a this. You need two people who want to be in a relationship to actually have one and it’s always just been me and I wasn’t supposed to do this. Mom was right-”

He stopped. He brought up his knees and dug his fingertips into the sides of his mouth to keep his lips from pulling into an anguished snarl. He felt raw and ugly with vulnerability- consumed with both the desire to keep himself secret and safe and the desperation to be known.

Everyone always got twice as interested and equally up in arms when he mentioned his mother. This time was no different. Nicky was putting in a valiant effort to be a presence Neil would allow close. He didn’t go in for a hug but his body betrayed his desire to. Neil was grateful that he didn’t. Hew as feeling too much and his skin felt over sensitive like a fever, like every hair on his body was raised.

Issues on issues. Layers of problems and a broken psyche and a racing mind that was puzzling together the memory of February in a picture that suited it’s anxious needs. Was it Allison’s comment or Nicky’s assurance? Was it Andrew’s dismissal of his feelings or was it the betrayal his feelings indicated? Was it his mother’s hands ripping out his hair or the fear that she’d been right?

His body seized again, desperate to squeeze something out of him. Tears would have been best but instead it was air. He gasped and choked and held his breath in a vain attempt to hold himself together.

“I’m just having a really bad day,” he choked out, to reassure either himself or Nicky that this would all pass eventually. Nicky didn’t hug him but he did put a hand on Neil’s knee. He was less sure of himself but next to Neil’s breakdown he was the epitome of composed.

“I- I think you really need to get all this out, Neil. Do you want me to call Bee?”

“No.”

“I could call Andrew, he’s hom-”

Neil let out a broken noise to cut off that idea. That small part of him desperate to be known recognized that he did want to talk. But he didn’t trust Betsy around him and he didn’t trust himself around Andrew.

“I was- I was so excited to have this word for my list because I knew there must be one- I couldn’t be the only person like this. And it hurt when Allison said it was fake because it was like she was saying I was fake. And… and then Andrew- it wasn’t the first time he’d said that. It’s my own fault for not remembering and then- and then I realized that Andrew probably only agreed to what we do because there were no feelings and he’s always said- but if I can only do… what we do after I have feelings then that means I’ve been lying- I’ve been tricking him. We’ve- we’ve done- and I- I realized I can’t win. Either Allison was right and I’m back to square one of being a nothing or she’s wrong and I’ve been tricking Andrew and lying to him this whole time. And mom always said that feelings and relationships were bad and dangerous and it hurts so much because I think she was right.”

Neil inhaled, long and shaking and deep. His face was hot and he felt just as embarrassed as he did relieved to take this- this box and put it outside of himself for someone else to rifle through. Then a new wave of fear hit him because Nicky was Andrew’s family and he’d just admitted to something terrible. He whipped his head to stare at Nicky, eyes wide and burning and finally, finally close to tears. He didn’t understand the expression he was facing.

“Nick, I- I never meant- I’m so- I promise I- I’m sorry.”

“Do not apologize,” Nicky said fiercely. Neil seized up in fear even as Nicky gave in and gathered him up in his arms. “I am so sorry you’re going through this, Neil. Nobody deserves that. You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“I lied to Andrew so that we could be together,” he moaned into Nicky’s shoulder.

“I trust Andrew enough to never allow himself to be taken advantage of ever again. You might have said no feelings back in February but given that you were going to die and were completely oblivious, I don’t think Andrew has been under any assumption that what you to have now is anything but real and honest. And don’t forget that I’ve looked after them since high school. I see how he is with you, how he looks at you.”

“Don’t say that.”

Would it be worse? If Andrew returned his feelings and still said they were nothing? He didn’t know. He was too fried. Finally, finally, numbness began to take over. He bundled all of his emotions up and tucked them neatly back into the box. Sharing had made it lighter. Maybe there was something to it after all. Catharsis, his mind supplied. God, he was exhausted. That, at least, was an easy thing to hide. He pulled away from Nicky’s embrace and cleared his throat.

“Thanks for listening, Nicky. I’m gonna head out.”

“Neil-”

Neil didn’t give him the chance. He shot to his feet, pretended his vision didn’t white out, and strode out of the lounge with another thanks thrown over his shoulder. Down the hall, out the side door. His eyes felt puffy and itchy. Must be a ragweed allergy or something.

He made it to the roof of Fox Tower after a circuitous route around campus. He could recall every step of the way but he had no idea how long he sat up there. The sun was only just starting to set but it wasn’t a great time marker considering he didn’t know when he’d left the court. He still felt drained, physically as well as mentally. Was that normal? Why would people willingly allow themselves to go through things like that?

The quiet was nice. Helpful. Of course, that meant it couldn’t last. He heard raised voices from an open window below and was annoyed until he realized it was just one voice. One familiar voice. One voice loud enough to be articulate and two voices too low, only loud enough to be indistinct murmurs.

“-and you will sit your butts there until I’m through with you.”

It sounded like Nicky was scolding a child. Neil privately hoped it was Aaron for the amusement of it.

“-should be ashamed… high order for people like… how fucking… Neil was…”

Hold up. That was his name. Neil sat forward to listen to more actively. He could guess what was happening and the embarrassment was burning.

“-obviously…I don’t care… And if you can’t do that… Now…. misery, because he’s really fucking...”

Murmur, murmur

“Don’t even get me started… where do you get off telling someone… can’t even admit you want to date Renee… last person to make those decisions…”

Murmur murmur

Slam

Murmur

Murmur

Neil jolted a little when he realized how far over he’d been leaning as he tried to hear what else was being said. Pathetic. He already knew everything that could be said, there was no use eavesdropping. Nicky might feel like he occasionally had some sort of authority over the twins but it was all just an act on both sides. He would front at parenting and sometimes Andrew would let him. It was how the expressed affection. Some might call it the bare minimum, Neil thought it was nice.

The sky started to turn orange and then bright pink and then dark purple. He liked it. It was peaceful and quiet just like he was feeling now. His thoughts and memories seemed clearer but he pushed those aside and took a deep breath and held it as he imagined taping up boxes and setting them up in piles in an attic. Tomorrow was Saturday. Practice in the morning. Practice in the afternoon. There was an Exy game next Friday against a team with a strong defensive line.

“I can tell by your face that you’re thinking about Exy. It’s nauseating.”

Neil was surprised but his body didn’t react so he pretended that he’d heard Andrew coming. He stared straight ahead as the trees became silhouettes against the darkening sky and bugs started swarming around the street lamps. Andrew sat next to him, lit up a cigarette, and joined in the silence.

When the sky was fully dark and the stars were trying to come out, Andrew pulled out a piece of paper that had been folded twice into a square. Neil didn’t need to look closely to know what it was. Embarrassment and anxiety flared up inside of him but he quickly boxed it up with everything else.

“Did you read it?” He asked as he reached over and took the list, careful not to touch.

“Nicky told me what it was.”

Nicky needs to mind his own business, he thought and then immediately felt guilty- Nicky had been exactly who Neil had needed early. Then, he felt frustrated for feeling guilty. Then he felt nothing. Neil picked up the lighter Andrew had placed between them and lit the corner of the paper. It took longer than it should, the paper soft and coated from all the constant handling. When it caught, he held it until the last possible second. It felt appropriate. It felt like California. It felt like nothingness. He was nothing again. They were nothing.

“Care to explain your disappearing act and why Nicky thought it was his job to chew me out for it?”

No, he didn’t actually. He was finally feeling clear-headed and was able to see how some of his thoughts hadn’t been logical and he didn’t want to start opening the boxes and go through it all again. Because not everything had been illogical and justified or not, he didn’t want any part of it anymore.

“I was just having a bad day,” he explained away, hoping it was a good enough answer. And might have gotten away with it if Andrew didn’t have a small pile of black ash between them to prod at.

“Burning yourself up is an awfully rabbit thing to do for just a bad day.”

“The list wasn’t me. It was stupid. I had a bad day and now it’s fine.” Drop it he almost said. (He didn’t know why he stopped himself short.)

“A bad day doesn’t send you crying in a corner instead of the court.”

He hadn’t cried, Neil wanted to say but he felt doing so would come across as defensive. Instead, he snapped, “I said it’s fine,” and willed himself not to start shaking again.

“Just because your new thing is saying it’s instead of I’m doesn’t make you any less of a liar.”

A liar. A runner. A fool. A nothing. The boxes were cracking open and Neil tried desperately to tape them back up. He felt his breath speed up without his permission and couldn’t will it to slow back down.

“Why are you pushing,” he ground out, because Andrew was an instigator, not a pusher. He stopped when he was told and- Neil realized a second too late that he hadn’t actually said no or stop or don’t.

“Why are you avoiding the question?”

“I’m not. I had a bad day, okay? Is that allowed? Do I need your fucking permission or something?” It was happening again. His cheeks hurt and his throat was closing. His fists shook so he shoved them under his thighs. He closed his eyes and looked for a bigger, stronger box. He couldn’t find one.

“A bad day is a stubbed toe not a nervous breakdown.”

“Shut up,” Neil finally burst loudly. “What do you want from me?” He kept his eyes closed, squeezed shut like blindness could encompass more than just his sight.

“I want the truth.”

“I gave it to you.”

“You gave me a flimsy excuse.”

“Don’t ask for the truth if you’re just going to dilute it.”

Opening his eyes wasn’t necessary to know that Andrew recalled those words. It was probably unfair of him to try and derail the conversation with that memory but he didn’t care. It gave him a moment of peace to try and get himself back under control. He counted to measure his breaths and focused on the sensation of the cool fall air in his nose and the smell of the browning leaves and the brush of the breeze in his hair. Five seconds in, hold for three, five seconds out. Thirteen second cycles. Twelve breaths. Two minutes and thirty six seconds before Andrew took the thirteenth breath with him and spoke again.

“Trying to convince yourself something is the truth does not make it so,” he said in a soft, even tone. It was only the contrast that made Neil realize the bite and frustration of before. He’d been so caught up in himself that he’d missed it.

“You seem to already know this truth you’re looking for so why don’t you tell me since I’m apparently too stupid to figure it out on my own.”

Andrew’s frustrated sigh was barely audible over the ruffling leaves and passing pedestrians. “Look at me.” Neil kept his eyes closed. “Neil. Look at me.” Neil kept his eyes closed. The concrete was hurting his knuckles. “You don’t need to have a bad day to excuse your feelings. You’re allowed to just have them.”

“What feelings.” A split second, he heard his own tone echoing from hours ago. What relationship.

“I don’t know because you won’t fucking tell me.”

“God, you’re being so fucking annoying, Andrew.” Annoyance was easy and so was talking as long as he kept his eyes shut. “What do you want to hear? That I feel like shit? That I’ve been sleeping with a dumb list under my pillow trying to figure out who I fucking am? That I’m either nothing or a lying asshole who can’t spell auburn? That I’ve been trying all day to stop feeling like this and it was working-”

“You can’t stop yourself from feeling.”

Oh, that was rich coming from Andrew. “Why not?” he bit out.

“Because you’re not a sociopath.”

“Neither are you.”

Andrew’s entire person was focused on feeling and wanting nothing. He didn’t have monopoly over numbness and Neil didn’t understand why Andrew was trying so hard to force this.

That was a lie. Yes he did. He just didn’t want to because letting it happen meant the hurt would continue.

“You’re allowed to feel like shit,” Andrew said.

“Thanks for your permission.”

“Why do you feel like shit?”

“Because I’m having a bad day.”

“Dammit, Neil,” Andrew growled out. Neil felt his lip curl into a snarl. He squeezed his eyes tighter.

“What the fuck do you think a bad day is? I woke up feeling like shit and then shit things happened and I felt like worse shit. I’d say that’s a bad day. Sorry it’s not up to your standards of what counts but hey, I wasn’t stabbed or tortured so I can’t complain, I guess.”

“What shit things happened,” Andrew pressed.

“Shit like I woke up sad. Shit like people important to me telling me that things that are important to me aren’t real. Shit like my scars hurt. Shit like my mom being right. Shit like I don’t know what about me is real because it’s all lies and fire. Shit like I can’t- I can’t stop.”

His breathing was speeding up again. His throat hurt. His hands under his thighs hurt.

“Open your eyes, Neil.”

“No.”

“Why not.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not.”

“Because I think I might do something bad if I do.”

“You won’t do anything bad.”

“Yes I will.”

A huff. “What you will do when you open your eyes will not be a bad thing,” Andrew rephrased. Neil’s jaw trembled and he couldn’t say anything past the tightness of his throat. He opened his eyes.

“Neil. Look at me,” Andrew said for the second time that night. Neil turned his head and looked but didn’t see. His vision was watery and distorted as tears gathered and fell. Andrew didn’t reach out to brush them away but he did tug one of Neil’s hands free and massaged the memory of concrete out of the scars on his shaking knuckles. It felt like a bad thing to cry and then it didn’t.

They were silent for a while as Neil cried and Andrew held his hand. Eventually, Andrew pulled out a blank piece of paper and a pen from his back pocket. He used his thigh as a table to write Neil Abram Josten at the top and then a 1 beneath it.

“Shouldn’t that be number one?” Neil asked.

“Your name is just a handful of letters you picked out of a magazine at a Wawa- it has nothing to do with who you actually are.”

“I don’t know what else there is.”

His vision has cleared enough that Neil could see the ring of gold around Andrew’s eyes this close.

“There’s enough,” Andrew said and it almost sounded like a confession. Next to the 1 he wrote Fox.

“You said you didn’t read it,” Neil accused.

“I didn’t say that,” Andrew replied and wrote 2. Top Exy Player.

“You think I’m one of the best Exy players?” Neil asked because he had to.

“It doesn’t say that.”

“…you think I’m a top?” Neil asked because he had to. Andrew’s mouth twitched and it was the lightest Neil had felt all day.

Andrew wrote a number 3 but didn’t put his hair color, the same way he hadn’t counted his name.

“It gets hard,” Neil offered. “I tried to think of how I am and I couldn’t think of anything. What about… what do you think- I don’t know, my most defining character traits? I’m really fast, too. And don’t forget math.”

“Being a math nerd isn’t a character trait, it’s a flaw,” Andrew snarked and wrote Hothead, Loudmouth, Instigator. Neil snorted and sniffled.

“Tell me how you really feel,” he joked. “What about my best traits?” Maybe he was fishing but a compliment wouldn’t make him feel worse.

“Those are your best traits.”

“They sound like annoyances.”

“They are.”

“You like them.” Neil teased.

“They are literally the only reason we’re dating.”

He said it so straightforward, so blandly, like he had no idea the turmoil he’d just sent Neil into. He kept going on to write 4. Boyfriend, 5. Math NERD, 6. Demisexual. Neils entire body was tensing back up.

“You can’t write that,” he said. Andrew wrote 7 but didn’t fill it in.

“Allison doesn’t get to decide that for you,” he replied like he really had no idea.

“No you can’t- number four.” Andrew’s eyes shot up to his, blanker than ever. “That- you can’t say that just because I- it doesn’t work if it’s just one sided. That’s not…”

Andrew stared at Neil for what felt like a very long time and for the first time in months, Neil had no idea what he was thinking. Then, he raised the pen back up to number 4 and Neil couldn’t breathe when his heart clenched at the thought of Andrew crossing that word out.

But then he underlined it.

4. Boyfriend

Logically, Neil understood, but he was not having a very logical day.

“I have feelings for you,” he said dumbly.

“Yeah,” Andrew replied in a tone that supported that idiocy.

“But you said…”

“Forget what I said.”

“You won’t.”

“No. I won’t. So forget it enough for the both of us. Number seven, dumbass. Number eight, pain in the ass.” He wasn’t writing any of this. “Number nine…”

“Two in a row. Something on your mind? Maybe we should put that down as my best feature.” Neil teased because he could. He didn’t feel 100% but the reassurance was beginning to settle his blood pressure. Andrew wrote Fucker next to the 7 and Neil almost laughed as he made a grab for the pen. Andrew held it up and away at an angle Neil could easily reach if he pressed against Andrew’s side. As he moved in for it, Andrew snaked his free arm around Neil’s waist and tugged.

“I have them, too,” Andrew said.

“Yeah,” Neil replied.

He felt better but only by comparison. He still felt sad and his scars still hurt but he tucked his face into Andrew’s neck and breathed without counting.

[hccopper]

Jude returns from exile to pay Cardan a visit, but it does not go to plan...

I stand in the shadows and observe the High King with his subjects. Picking out my dagger from my jacket, I begin idly poking the tip into the wooden arch. And twist.

There he sits. A mere fifty meters away with the inevitable goblet in his left hand. Locke stands at his right, a small smirk playing on his fox face. Cardan appears strained - his usually full, sulky pout drawn in a thin line and his shoulders tight.

It appears the King of Elfhame is not enjoying his duties. What a pity.

Before him stands a selkie, emploring him to give her money in exchange for god knows what. Cardan stands suddenly, his hands clapping together in finality, “I find this tiresome. This assembly is over.”

The court titters with displeasure and Locke pipes up; “Your highness, you are not halfway through your subjects.”

Cardan narrows his eyes at Locke, his lips moving into the cruel smile I know so well.

“Very well, as you are so concerned about them, you may give them your counsel in my place.”

I feel my brows raise and reluctantly feel pleasure at what will obviously be a tedious chore for the master of revels. Not quite the dagger in the back that Locke deserves, but perhaps prolonging his suffering will ultimately give me a heightened sense of revenge.

“Clear the room” Cardan calls.

And clear it does. Once the throne room completely empties, he sits heavily back down on the throne hard enough to tip the crown of thorns down his forehead. He strikes a forlorn figure, much like the lost prince in a fairytale. Fortunately I am not fooled this time.

I slip out from my perch and sly foot to the back of the throne, reaching round to place the dagger at the base of his throat.

“To be in this position once could be considered misfortune,” I whisper to him in what I hope is a cold and menacing tone. “Twice is far more likely through foolishness.”

I savour the tension I feel in his body, the sight of his hands clenched against the arms of the throne. His goblet has fallen to the side.

“Jude.” Not a question.

“Yes, your dreaded wife has returned to haunt your nightmares” I croon, pressing the tip slightly harder.

Cardan gasps in what I think is pain, “I’m not dreaming.”

“No, but perhaps I’m not Jude at all. Perhaps I am Taryn. You certainly struggled to tell us apart in the past.”

His eyes bore into mine, “No, I know you. Your blood calls to mine Jude. The crown feels different.”

“The crown feels different?” I scoff, “We don’t share a crown. I’m the queen of nothing. Although it seems you will be the king of nothing soon enough.”

He reaches his hand toward me and I push the dagger again in warning. His fingers hover uncertainly at the bite mark at my shoulder.

“What happened to you?”

“I fought. I won. I did what I needed to do.”

“You’re still bleeding,” he says unevenly, as though he’s drunk. He probably is drunk.

“I will sort it as soon as I’ve dealt with you.”

His eyes pull away from my wound reluctantly to meet my eyes and I feel that spark of something dangerous. It seems I’m as likely to betray myself as he is likely to betray me.

“And what, dear Jude, do you plan on doing with me?” He drawls.

Ignoring the warning of my dagger he reaches to touch my face, the cut on my lip. I can see my face in his black irises. My breath hisses out when his fingers brush against the small hurt. It’s an unleashing for us both.

His hands reach for me and the dagger slips from my fingers, clattering to the floor. I forgot how soft his lips were, how gentle they felt and how incongruous the feeling of them was in comparison to the cruelness of his smile. He gasps my name, pulling me onto his knees and cradling my face as though in reverence, but I can’t help think that part of him does it in readiness to push me from him. I kiss him harder, a mixture of anger and desperation driving me.

He breaks the kiss, eyes closed, to rest his forehead against mine.

“Jude,” He whispers, and then says nothing.

I look up at him for a moment, catching my breath and then the wave of shame and frustration comes back to me.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to go, I was supposed to make him fear me. I was supposed to hurt him. Instead here I am, stupid Jude, lying in a gutter with a lion standing over her.

I push away from him roughly and step away from the throne. His eyes flash open and he tries to catch me.

“Jude?” He asks.

“Well my king, that was an impressive display of affection for your banished queen. But I’m afraid that interlude is over, we have unfinished business to see to.”

I hope my voice is harsh enough to make him flinch as I reach down to pick up my dagger...

[jsteneil]

So today (the 30th) is my birthday so here’s a birthday prompt for our boy and queen himself that I started and forgot to finish in february  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Neil is on his feet as soon as Kevin opens the door.

“We’re going,” he says.

Kevin stares at him for a second, dropping his bag on the floor—that book on the socio-economical development of railway in Europe is heavy—, but Neil’s face doesn’t change.

“Did you have afternoon classes? You shouldn’t go to practice on an empty stomach.”

“I’m fine,” Neil says. Somewhere on campus, Andrew’s whole body just spasmed, Kevin is sure. “We’re not going to practice.”

“What?” Neil’s gaze strays to the side. Kevin follows it to the calendar taped to the fridge. “Oh, no,” he says, catching on. “We have a game next week.”

“It’s in seven days,” Neil says. “We’d have gone out to Eden’s anyway.”

He’s still standing in the middle of the room, so Kevin takes his bag and makes his way to the bedroom, the farthest point from the front door. If he can get on his bed, open a book, maybe take a nap—

“You won’t even celebrate your birthday,” he says as Neil follows him.

“It’s not my decision.” Neil looks and sounds a bit like he’s dreading this as much as Kevin. There is not a celebratory bone in his body.

“Did Nicky put you up to this?”

“I can’t say.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be a liar?”

Neil’s phone must go off, because he fishes it out of his pocket and clicks a number of keys to read a message. He conveniently forgets to answer. Kevin collapses on his bed and tries not to think of the beautiful embrace of sleep.

“I’m allowed to use force,” Neil says, looking up from his phone.

Kevin stares at him for a while. “How?”

Neil doesn’t answer that either. “Come on.”

No amount of scowling deters Neil from dragging him through the door and pointedly locking it shut. Kevin wants to tell him he has his own keys, but when he looks closely, he realizes that it’s his set of keys that Neil is using, and he doesn’t give them back. Neil types something on his phone one-handed, then snaps it shut with a vengeance.

“Alright, let’s go.”

By the time they make their way downstairs, Andrew is leaning against the Maserati in the parking lot, pale and black like an omen of ill-fortune. Kevin scowls at the cigarette pinched between his lips. Ever since he started running with Bee after her accident, they’ve all noticed a significant decrease in the number of cigarettes smoked around the dorm, but on weekends Andrew still lets himself go.

Kevin wishes he could pluck the stick out from Andrew’s grasp and stomp on his addiction at the same time, but even for him that’s hypocritical.

“Finally,” Andrew says as he puts the cigarette out.

“Did you wait long?” Neil asks, getting close.

Kevin turns his eyes away and slides in the passenger seat. Watching Neil and Andrew grow into something more every day feels both natural and slightly bitter. There might only have been Nicky to be surprised by their relationship. To Kevin, it’s as resounding as the shock of an exy ball thumped against a wall.

To Kevin’s surprise, no one is waiting in the car. Neil slides in the backseat, leaving Kevin to sit next to Andrew’s characteristic wall of silence.

“Where are the others?” he asks as Andrew backs the car out of its parking spot. He assumes they’re going to Columbia, but it makes little sense for them to go without the others. Kevin is glad he’s not rooming with Nicky anymore if it turns out Andrew and Neil have planned on going out without him.

Andrew hits the brake. “It’s a surprise,” he says, as if Andrew Minyard somehow understood the concept of birthday surprises. “Neil?”

“Oh, yeah.” Neil’s knee hits the back of Kevin’s seat when he contorts himself to extract something from his pocket. He throws the thing on Kevin’s shoulder. “You’re supposed to put this on.”

It’s one of the shirts Nicky bought for Neil when they go out to Eden’s, a scrap of black mesh fabric. It’s surprisingly tiny when folded over itself.

“This is never going to fit me,” Kevin says. He senses a headache building behind his eyes. Andrew still hasn’t backed the car out of its spot. “Did you both hit your heads? Is this a parallel universe? What’s going on?”

“It’s a blindfold,” Andrew says, turning over in his seat. “For the surprise.”

“You want me to blindfold myself with a shirt.”

“I thought the sleeves would be useful to tie it behind you,” Neil says. “I considered putting a bag over your head but it seemed a bit too execution-style even for me.”

Contrary to what people might think upon meeting him, Kevin knows that Neil actually can make jokes. He’s not sure this is one of them.

“Yes or no?” Neil asks impatiently as Kevin considers the shirt.

“We could stuff him in the trunk,” Andrew suggests, leaning up to meet Neil’s gaze in the back mirror.

Coming from Andrew, the suggestion might be even more dangerous than Neil’s mob-style blindfolding method. Still, his tone was light—as light as it gets—and Kevin is eighty-percent sure it was another joke.

This is shaping up to be a weird evening.

“Fine,” he relents. Andrew is clearly not starting the car again until Kevin has a shirt tied around his face. He hands the shirt back to Neil. “Do it.”

Neil rolls the shirt a few times in the air, then places it around Kevin’s head. Kevin directs the shirt to rest above his eyes but clear of his nose, tucking up a bit hanging in front of his face.

“There,” Neil says. He tugs on the to make sure they’re secure, then Kevin feels him sitting back. “Sure you can’t see anything?”

Everything is black. “Just go.”

Andrew finally turns the key in the ignition again.

“Kevin wouldn’t have fit in the trunk,” Neil says as though he’d been seriously considering Andrew’s proposition. “We’d need a SUV. I’m not sure even I would fit.”

“Don’t push me,” Andrew warns, “or you’ll find out.”

It feels weird to hear their voices in the dark, so close and disembodied.

“Please stop flirting,” Kevin says to remind them that the shirt covers his eyes, not his ears.

Neil presses his foot into Kevin’s lower back, gentler than he could have been. The next time he speaks, it’s in German. Andrew hums in response, then the Maserati jerks brutally to the right and Kevin is left without point of reference to his surroundings. He was sure they were almost out of the parking lot, but he thinks Andrew might be turning around on purpose to confuse him.

Coming from Neil, it’s not surprising.

It’s too short a drive for them to be in Columbia, though it’s longer than Kevin would have anticipated. Maybe they’re still in Palmetto. Maybe they went to Abby’s house.

His mind is still churning out hypotheses when he hears Neil’s and Andrew’s doors open. Kevin scrambles for the tie to the blindfold, but his door opens before he can get to it. “Don’t touch,” Neil says. “Get out, I’ll guide you.”

“I can get out of the car just fine,” Kevin says, batting his hands away. He almost trips when he stands up, but thankfully Neil doesn’t remark on it. Hands on his elbow guide him a few steps away, then Neil’s voice comes from behind him.

“You can take it off.”

Kevin does, cursing when the knot catches in his hair. Neil tied it tight, too, and in the end Kevin just sort of rips it out.

He has to blink a few times to get his vision back. The high lights are still as bright as usual, blinding for someone who spent the past fifteen minutes in the dark.

They’re outside the court.

“Surprise!” the Foxes shout before Kevin can say something. They’re all huddled in front of the athletes’ entrance.

“Happy birthday,” Dan says, stepping forward. “We couldn’t do anything last year so we figured we’d do something twice as fun today.”

Last year’s February 22nd was a Thursday just before a game, so Kevin had forbidden any of the Foxes to make a fuss. He had spent his twenty-first birthday watching Andrew eat the cake Nicky bought for him and trying not think about his past.

He’d spent the one before that drinking himself into a stupor, shaking every time his eyes fell on the dirty white of his cast.

“What kind of fun?” Kevin asks anyway.

“You’ll see,” Dan says. “Allison?”

Allison turns to rummage into a large shopping bag at her feet, taking out a colorful birthday hat. She hands it out solemnly to Dan, who gestures for Kevin to lean down.

“There you go,” she says, snapping the elastic under his chin.

The hat almost falls off. Kevin automatically reaches to steady it.

“Is this necessary?”

“Yes. Now let’s go in, I’m freezing.”

Matt clasps Kevin on the back when he is shuffled forward. “You’ll like it,” he says. “Renee helped organize it, so you know it’s tasteful.”

“I’m surprised anyone on this team knows the meaning of this word.”

“Hey!”

“Case in point,” Neil mutters from somewhere at the back of the group.

“Shush,” Andrew says with his usual brand of brutal fondness. “You don’t get to criticize anyone’s mouthing off.”

The Foxes’ party organizing skills apparently extend to bringing an ungodly amount of alcohol and snacks into the court’s lounge. Kevin doubts this was Renee’s doing, except maybe the small cupcakes decorated with her signature rainbow sprinkles. A large banner is hung from the ceiling, reading “Happy 22nd Birthday, Kevin”, with the twos crossed out and replaced by badly printed pictures of chess pieces.

“Is that the tasteful part?” Kevin mutters.

Andrew slithers past him through the door and glances around. “Look,” he says, pointing to the table in the middle of the room. “Pineapples.”

It might be an answer to his question. It might not. In any case, Andrew’s right: the paper plates are covered in colorful pineapple patterns.

The way Andrew says it makes Kevin glance at him from the corner of his eye. He looks almost too detached, like a caricature of himself.

“Were you the one who told them I like pineapples?” Kevin asks, because he’s never been good at denying himself the hope of provoking Andrew into responding.

“You’re not that much of a mystery,” Andrew replies, which is neither here nor there. He leaves, cutting short the conversation, and makes a beeline for the frost-covered cupcakes.

The Foxes must have passed the word around not to leave Kevin alone all day, because Nicky replaces his cousin almost immediately.

“Kevin, my man,” he starts. Then: “No, it’s terrible. Dude? Sir? I can’t tell how formal you are.”

“I’ve known you for two years,” Kevin replies. “I saw you dance at 4am in your underwear.”

“Yeah, but that’s me. The neighbors probably saw it. I doesn’t mean I know their names.”

Their Columbia neighbors are an old couple who always look at them from behind their blinds when they’re at the house. Kevin isn’t sure he ever wants to know their names.

“Anyway,” Nicky continues. He places a glass of some colorful alcoholic beverage in Kevin’s hand. “Drink up, birthday boy!”

Matt does a drum roll on the back of the couch. Kevin drinks. The other Foxes cheer.

At one point Renee comes up to him, hugs him and tells him, “The cupcakes on the left are carrot cake. Lemon icing. Happy birthday!”

Neil flits in and out of his vision all evening, always too distracted for Kevin to hold even one conversation on when he intends to catch up on their missed evening training session. If they’re not going to Columbia for the weekend, Sunday is the perfect opportunity to use the court.  

They all get progressively more and more drunk as the evening progresses, until Allison’s lying on the couch with her head in Renee’s lap and Renee’s hand in her hair. Kevin downs his drink and mulls it over. It’s not an entirely new development, but it still takes Kevin by surprise.

“Ha,” Dan says. Kevin starts a little. He didn’t hear her approach. “Mark the day. Bet you fifty bucks they’ll be together by spring break.”

For someone who built her future career over reading team players and working with their dynamics, Dan is excruciatingly bad at relationships which aren’t her own.

“I’ll take it,” Kevin says.

“Really? You usually don’t bet.”

“I refused to bet on Neil and Andrew we had better things to do last year than waste time on such an obvious outcome.”

“Are you saying you’re happy with the way the season is going? Aw.” Dan hugs him one-armed, squeezing him almost painfully against her side. “Guys!” she calls before Kevin can squirm out of her hold. “Kevin’s just said he’s proud of us!”

The team cheers.

“I didn’t—” Kevin splutters, but he cuts himself short. This isn’t the battle he wants to fight.

“You’ve mellowed,” Dan says, winking at him before Matt catches her attention.

Kevin stares at her as she retreats, pressing the edge of his cup in his chin. Maybe he has.