#gotta fix that sooner rather than later

[longroadstonowhere]

hm

welp, guess i get to go hunting for a desk fan tomorrow

[writtenbymoonflower]

ok so,,,, i love your poly!mauraders fics like sm!!! i’d love to request their getting together story with the reader, like maybe she shares a class with each of them individually or something and they’re already together but they also all end up having a crush on her. feel free to run with this i just adore your writing.

thanks for requesting, lovely! poly!marauders x fem!reader

cw: none

900 words

You looked lost walking into the common room, clutching your book tight. Three heads turned at the sound of your Mary Janes hitting the ground. 

“Y/N! Haven’t seen you all day, where’ve you been runnin’ off to? C’mere, darling!” James opened his arms expectantly. You walked over, letting him hug your hips as you greeted the other boys. You were familiar with the group, sharing a few classes with them. You also ate lunch together every day and spent time in the common room at night. They were always soft and sweet on you, and you on them, you never understood it but you happily accepted. 

It just was difficult for you, because you liked them. You liked them a lot. They plagued your thoughts constantly, and their easy affection did not help the situation. You knew, the whole school knew, that the three boys were dating, they made it very obvious. You knew that you had no chance with them. They were happy and settled. You were happy for them, but it didn’t ease your yearning. You had been avoiding them for the last few days because of it, but they hadn’t made it easy. You winced, knowing that you would have to address your feelings. Sooner, rather than later it seemed.

“Hi!” You said shyly to the three boys, smiling. 

“You look really nice today, love.” Remus said, not hiding how his eyes raked your form. Your whole body heated, looking away from him. 

“Thank you,” You leaned more into James, making sure to keep it polite, even as his hands slipped slightly under the hem of your skirt. You pulled away, making James give you a concerned look. 

“You okay, honey?” James looked up at you with his big doe eyes, making your heart clench. 

“Yeah I’m okay, I just… I just need to talk to you guys.” You moved to be away from them, sitting in front of the couch they were all strewn across. 

“Okay,” Remus said, skeptically, setting his book down. Sirius fixed his gray eyes on you in a way that made you want to run away. 

“Okay,” You repeated, mentally preparing yourself for the (likely horrible) outcome.

“You don’t gotta be nervous, dolly.” Sirius said, much more softly than usually. “It’s just us.”

Yeah, it’s you three. You thought. 

“Okay, so, I know that we spend a lot of time together, and we are all friends. And I know that you three are like, together together.” You braced. They all looked confused but didn’t say anything. “I just um… well, I’ve developed some feelings for you three, and believe me, I tried. I tried to make them go away, I just, can’t I guess.” You started to tear up, looking down at your lap so they wouldn’t see. “Anyway, I’m really sorry if that makes things weird, I just… thought you should know.” You trailed off, shredding your cuticles from your anxious fidgeting. Sirius coughed out a laugh, making you inhale sharply. 

“Um, babe… we know. You thought we didn’t?” He asked, humor tilting his voice. You felt your heart sink. Had they all known and were making fun of you for it? You heard a book hit Sirius’ chest.

“Christ, Pads. Are you helping or are you hurting?” Remus scolded. “Y/N, dovey. We know, and the reason Sirius reacted like that,” He said accusatively at the dark-haired boy. “Is because, well, we thought that you knew that we know.” 

“And,” James cut in. “We thought that you knew we felt the same way.” He said, sounding confused. 

“Yeah,” Sirius’ voice was still tinged with humor. “Babe, I know that we haven’t really talked about it, but I thought you knew, you’re with us.” Tears just streamed further down your face, all the emotions catching up to you. You were not only relieved, but happily confused. You wiped your eyes. You looked up at them. 

“Oh,” You said, “I- I didn’t know that. I’m happy! I just thought you didn’t like me like that.” James looked appalled. 

“Shit, angel, are you crying?” He sounded horrified. “Come here.” You scrambled over to him, letting him pull you into his lap sideways while Sirius leaned over to wipe your eyes. 

“Baby,” Sirius laughed pitifully. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you cry.” 

“It’s okay, I’m just relieved. I thought you wouldn’t want to see me after this.” 

“Sweetheart,” James said miserably. “We all really, really like you. Do you think we would’ve been this sweet to you if we didn’t? Is this your way of telling us we need to up our game?” He laughed. 

“No! I’m just stupid.” You laughed wetly. 

“You’re not stupid,” Remus looked at you scoldingly. “We just didn’t communicate. So, Y/N, we all really like you, and we want to be with you, the way we are with each other.” He looked deep into your eyes, amber irises swimming with fondness. “How does that sound to you?” 

“I would really like that.” You said shyly, leaning into James. He wrapped you up tighter. 

“Aw, sweet girl. I’m sorry you were so worried.” James cooed. You boldly touched James’ face, pressing a chaste kiss to his cheek. 

“It’s okay, I know now.” You reassured. Sirius tore you from James’ grasp. 

“Okay, my turn!” He kissed your forehead with a loud smack. 

You could get used to this.

[lyfeofbilly]

Old Thing Back

warnings: angst, angst, angst!

summary: due to riri's infidelity, the two of you have been divorced for months. what happens when unresolved feelings surface?

author's note: this was saurrrrrrr fun writing, maybe a LIL trifling but fun writing. i been thinking about this for a week before i actually wrote it. now i don't condone cheating or taking cheaters back but ya'll know i love angst! enjoy pretties.

taglist: @koffeesfancy @bubbleblowinggirl @pvnks0ul @solanaszn @onyxstones-world @blacksapphhicmaddonna

"You gotta be fucking kidding me bro!" frustration ran through you as your car refused to crank for the sixth time this week. You ran a hand down your face before grabbing your phone and pressing on the contact of the last person that you wanted to hear from, Riri. Although the two of you were recently divorced, the woman was a damn good mechanic, and spending an unfathomable amount of money on your vehicle was not appealing.

The phone rang once before she picked up, the sarcasm in her words irritating you further, "Oh so we back on speaking terms now?"

You sighed, God knows how much you'd rather sit naked on a hot grill than talk to her, but being stubborn wasn't going to fix your problems. "Ri I'm not in the mood for this right now, can you come look at my car real quick?"

"Damn I'm only of use if it's about your car, that's fucked up." The woman feigned hurt.

You rolled your eyes at the statement, letting her get all the jokes she had out now knowing you wouldn't be in the mood for banter when she arrived at your house. After a couple more seconds of silence she finally agreed to help you, "I'll be over, just give me fifteen minutes princess."

The line hung went dead and you cringed at the pet name she called you. If Riri had one thing it would be some nerve. As if her infidelity being the reason for the fall of your marriage wasn't enough, she would always find some way to try and weasel back into your good graces. The affair lasted for three months- with some woman who she had serviced before. You beat yourself up for months for not figuring it out sooner, not noticing before, but there were no signs to pick up on. You were still woken up to sweet kisses every morning, taken on dates often, and overall taken care of. She was still the same woman you married all those years ago.

What felt like an eternity your doorbell finally rang. Beyond the door stood Riri, cornrows draped down her back and shoulders while she sported her greased stained t-shirt and jeans that she worked in. A smirk was plastered across her face as she held up her toolbox, "You rang sweet thang?"

"Took you long enough!," you turned to head towards your garage. "What happened to fifteen minutes?"

The shorter woman kissed her teeth as she shut the door behind her and followed you, "Aight, maybe I got a lil' backtracked, no need to yell." As you two walked further into the house she took time to admire how the home you two once shared looked completely different. "Like what you did with the place too, you always had a thing for decoration."

When it came to settling the divorce, Riri agreed to you keeping the house. It was your absolute dream home. A two story, Victorian style house with a wrap around porch, and the biggest backyard. The day you two closed on it was a dream come true. When the affair was revealed to you, you had the nagging thought of them fooling around in the house you shared. No matter the amount of cleaning or reassurance Riri gave you that nothing happened between the walls of your home, you couldn't believe a word she said. Nine months and thousands of dollars later, the entire space was transformed. Carpet swapped for shiny hardwood floors, the wood for the kitchen cabinets and counters were changed, and every room had a fresh new layer of paint.

"I called you to look at my car, not my house."

She shrugged you off and began to do what she did best, immediately popping the hood. You took this time to go back inside and try to dead the strange sensation in your gut. There was no doubt in your mind that being in the same vicinity as Riri made your skin itch, but some part of you still felt safe in her presence. No matter how much you tried to shake it, there was still this longing feeling that lingered inside you.

An hour had passed before Riri strolled back in, covered in even more gunk that she arrived in, "It'll get you going, but c'mon ma, you gonna need a new car sooner than later."

She was right, the old jeep wrangler that you drove was on its last leg but you couldn't bring it in you to buy another one.

"I wish you would stop calling me that." You took time to glance at her attire, "And you dirty as hell, don't touch nothing."

She held her hands up in a defensive pose and chuckled, "Well can i at least shower here? I don't want all this oil on my car seats."

The question hung in your mind for a few minutes. Having Riri in your house wrecked your nerves enough, but deep inside you didn't want her to leave. You knew having her stay longer than her intended stay wouldn't be a smart decision at all. Alas, you allowed your once lifetime partner this one favor.

"Fine, but make it quick."

You sat at your vanity, finishing up your skincare routine when the door to your connected bathroom opened, revealing a half naked Riri. The big towel you gave her sat on her hips, giving you a clear view of her chiselled v-line. You couldn't lie, the sight was a heavenly one to say the least. Her braids that draped over her shoulders were now tied in a bun, and droplets of water dribbled down the valley of her breasts. The tattoo of your name that was placed just under her left one on display. Seeing it was a shock, after everything was settled you got yours lasered off. Eight sessions later and the tramp stamp that once said 'Rianna' was gone.

"Yes i still have it, you?" Riri's voice snapped you out of your trance.

"That tattoo is the least of my worries." You plainly stated.

A chuckle escaped the woman's lips, "So you still enjoy seeing me naked?"

You turned to face her, "Please don't flatter yourself, but if you must know, I got it removed months ago."

"That's crazy, I never wanted to get rid of mine."

You pursed your lips, "Yea, let me know you fucked another bitch with my name tatted on you, that's exactly what I wanna hear."

The idea of even getting matching tattoos was your idea, the placement however was Riri's. The two of you made the decision after one too many drinks on your honeymoon.

She started to dress in the old sweatpants and tank top that you let her borrow, "Aight I deserved that- that came out wrong."

"You deserve a lot actually."

"Like what?"

"My foot up yo' ass for starters." You snapped.

Throughout the divorce process you did your best to stay calm and graceful even though you had the right to lash out in every way possible. Resentment and anger festered in you for months as you never had a proper outlet for them. Thoughts of bleaching clothes, keying her car, and causing Riri physical harm crossed your mind plenty of times for a number of days. In the end, you could never bring yourself to act on them.

It grew quiet between you two, the tension in the air growing by the second. Riri stood in place, a guilty expression sprawled on her face. From the moment you found out about the wretched affair she tried her best to prove that it was a mistake. Constant calls and texts of her professing her love for you, flowers getting sent to your doorstep, and frequent attempts to try and smooth things over. If you let your heart take control of things, you would have taken her back. Every bone in your body so desperately wanted to pull her into your arms and believe that she meant it, believe that she regretted the choice she made.

"I was wrong, I know that but baby it was a mistake. You know I love y-"

You held your hand up, "Don't tell me that. Just don't." Your fists balled at your sides, the emotions that you never wanted to display in front of her threatening to spill over. "You don't.....you don't get to cheat on me and tell me you love me. Dead that shit right now."

Riri ran a hand down her face, her eyes meeting yours. Deep down she was sorry, and she beat herself up about it every day. "I do though."

Tears began to well up in your eyes. Your skin grew hot with anger and embarrassment. The emotions you were feeling felt like a whirlwind stirring inside of you. "You so full of shit. You dont cheat on people you love Rianna."

And there they were, the salty drops that you tried to hold back finally cascaded down your cheeks. The lump in your throat grew as sobs filled the room. At the moment you didn't care about being vulnerable, or seen as weak.

"We were together for six years! We made vows, bought a fucking house together!" Your voice cracked as more tears fell, "H-how.....how could you do this to me? I fucking hate you!"

Riri stood in silence, the outburst you were having hit her like a truck. Your feelings never went farther than your journal. All the obscenities, yearning for her, and blaming yourself for her infidelity. The guilt she was feeling made her stomach knot up, seeing you just standing in front of her bawling your eyes out made her feel terrible. "I know you do baby, I know you do."

Without skipping a beat, Riri took you into her arms, engulfing you in a warm embrace. It felt so familiar, so warm, as much as you wanted to resist you couldn't do anything more but melt into her arms. Your head rested on her shoulder letting the tears hit her skin. The moment made you feel so nostalgic, and you couldn't muster up the strength to snatch away.

"I hate how I still miss you, how much I feel safe in your stupid arms." You choked out, lifting your gaze to meet hers, "I hate how much I still love you." You never thought you'd see the day that you would ever admit that you still loved Riri. The thought ate at you inside, racked your brain every way to Sunday trying to figure out how and why those feelings were still there.

Riri's thumb swiped across your cheek, wiping away the stray tears that wet your face. Neither one of you were sure of a way to properly respond to your newfound confession. You'd put on this tough facade for so long, resisting any and everything that could put you in a position like this with her again, but here you were.

"We both still love each other, why can't we try again?"

"I wanted.....I wanted to take you back so bad Rianna." You bit your lip hesitantly, "But I knew if you did it once you'd do it again."

Riri took your chin in her hand and brought your face closer to hers, "Well forget allat for a second, what's your heart telling you?"

Your faces got closer and closer, lips centimeters from brushing one anothers. Your body grew hot all over, the pit that formed in your stomach was a sinkhole by now. And as much as you wanted- needed to feel her lips just one more time.

"Ri I can't promise what'll happen if you kiss me." Her lips got even closer before you put a hand to her chest, stopping her. "But what I can promise is that I won't let you hurt me like this again. You need to leave."

The look of hurt and disappointment that flashed across her face did satisfy you a bit, but you knew going through with it would open an entirely new door of confusion and disappointment yet again. Her bottom lip was trapped between her teeth as she nodded, understanding your sentiment. She loosened her grip on you and collected her things before heading towards the door, but not without taking one more glance at you. A desperate glow filled her eyes, almost as if she wanted to tell you one more thing. As the front door shut and the headlights of her car faded off into the distance, you couldn't help but think about what being with her again would feel like.

[dutifullylazybread]

just found you, i see a lot of pre and post family with the teefs. what about during? and directly after? how do they care for their partner during pregnancy? especially if its a diffcult one? and afterward when their partners body has changed and maybe they're less confident about the extra weight, softer body, the extra rolls and teh stretch marks that wont go away? how does each bachelor help or make it better ir suddenly realize that is even wrong to begin with? what if they accidentally something bring out that newly found weakness in their partners confidence? ( sorry if youre busy i know you got stuff to do- i just figured youre the person who could slam dunk these thoughts i had)

Have I... GOTTEN TO THE POINT WHERE I CAN JOIN THE TIEFLING HEAD CANON SQUAD???????

ADDED 4/26/24: This might be a rough list, but I hope you all enjoy!! ❤️

OKAY. I GOTTA ADD CAL. I'M ADDING CAL. THIS SWEET MAN IS A TIEFLING BACHELOR AND DOES NOT HAVE ENOUGH FAN CONTENT... YET.

And thank you for bearing with me--I know that this ask was sent in a hot minute ago! I'm hoping I answered all of your questions; I got to a point of this sitting in my drafts where I just felt bad about how long it had been there, so I tried to be thorough but I wanted to get this out sooner rather than later. I mostly worked on this when I had a few spare moments between chapters, and then I said "screw it. This is getting done. TODAY."

So, for Cal, Rolan, Zevlor, and Dammon--let's go!

DISCLAIMER - I do not have children myself, nor have I ever been pregnant. So I shall do my best!

JUST IN CASE - A CONTENT WARNING: While writing these head canons, I did refer to the tiefling's partner as "you." If reading about being pregnant makes you uncomfortable for any reason, please be aware and be kind to yourself. I have zero doubt in my mind that I will be creating another head canon list, so if you need to pass or wait on this one, that's absolutely okay. Your mental health is important.

Cal

While Cal's partner is pregnant, he will do absolutely anything and everything to make sure they are comfortable. To say that he is doting is putting things very mildly.

He will make your favorite meals, will go out and get whatever you are craving (late night runs--not a problem), will rub your swollen ankles.

Too hot? He's asking Rolan for a cantrip scroll to fix it. Too cold? He's already piling you with blankets.

Are you feeling sick and nauseous? He's already prepping something for you to eat/drink that doesn't have an offensive smell.

And if it's a hard pregnancy? I don't see him leaving your side. If he does, he has Rolan create a sending stone set for the two of you so that you can reach out to him for anything and everything.

Honestly, he doesn't get far enough for him to even use the sending stones. He is looking for anything and everything to make the pregnancy easier on you. If he wasn't a light sleeper before, he is now because he doesn't want you to lay there in pain.

There may be points where he feels helpless because while he can do things to try and alleviate any physical discomfort, there are just times when he might just grasp at straws.

And, in situations where he can't alleviate your physical discomfort, he will do what he can to distract you.

He keeps his stress managed well enough, but that doesn't mean he won't snap at Lia or Rolan if he is too anxious. If he does get openly frustrated with them, it takes both off guard.

I also think he just holds you. A lot. Part of that is to comfort you, and the other part is to assure himself that everything will be okay.

If his partner is dealing with body image issues after giving birth, I see him being confused. You? The most enchanting person he has ever known?

Cut to him kissing you and holding you whenever possible. He'll ask Lia and Rolan to watch the baby whilst the two of you go on outings when your health permits. If it helps you to hear it, he'll remind you how lovely you are. Frequently. Hourly. Every five minutes? Not quite, but close enough.

Personally, I don't think his doting goes away after the pregnancy. And, if it is too much, it might make you feel like he views you as helpless.

If you give voice to this, he goes into immediate mediation mode. He will be extremely apologetic. He loves you and never wants you to think he perceives you as anything other than the phenomenal person you are.

Rolan

Ugh. My beloved.

He might be more stressed about having a child than you are.

He never anticipated being a father, and that might be for 15+ reasons, but he feels drastically unprepared (even if the pregnancy was planned).

He reads every. Single. Book. On pregnancy. He is the parent who gives himself nightmares when he reads about birthing complications.

Every sign of discomfort that you show is a catastrophe on the horizon.

And if it's a difficult pregnancy? Yeah. Dial that up by five notches.

He is preparing for all worst-case scenarios.

If it weren't for Cal and Lia keeping him in check, he would be safety-proofing everything in the tower.

He crafts sending stones so you can call for him if you need anything. ANYTHING.

But also, he starts shadowing midwives and asking lots of questions. If the worst were to happen and you couldn't reach a professional, he wants to be there to help you.

After giving birth, I see him splitting his anxiety between your health/recovery and the baby's overall well-being.

"The baby sneezed. That might indicate five different lethal illnesses. I'm fetching the cleric."

This is another situation where you, Cal, and Lia might have to remind him that, yes, babies do sometimes sneeze, and not everything that lands in the diaper spells doom.

Rolan might not initially understand why you're feeling self-conscious about any weight gain. Of course you're lovely. Also, isn't that what happens with pregnancies? (His words--not mine).

He assures you that you're lovely, but words might not be enough here. He might shove his foot in his mouth while trying to make the situation better.

But the best thing for him to do is remind you, repeatedly, that you are lovely. And that might not have been something he was accustomed to even saying to you prior to you conceiving. He would assume you knew that he was attracted to you.

It honestly might be the strangest (and most endearing) thing to have him say "You look very lovely today. Yes, even with the baby's spit up on your shirt."

Zevlor

*nervously staring at the tiefling I am the most unsure about writing.*

*cracks my knuckles and cries because it hurt like hell*

Zevlor has been through some of the most heinous things that can be thrown at someone. He is a seasoned soldier. A Hellrider. Surely he can help his partner through pregnancy. After all, there were plenty of soldiers in the barracks who has pregnant spouses. He's heard enough stories that he feels prepared.

He survived the Elturel's Descent. It's possible that he helped safeguard someone who was in the middle of giving birth or guided expecting parents to safety. Maybe he had to fight off the devil's skulking the streets if they caught wind/heard that person enduring birthing pains?

So maybe, he thinks, he has already seen some of the worst births ever. Maybe, he thinks, in this time of relative peace, in this home that he and his love have created, it'll be easier?

My personal headcanon for Zevlor is that he put EVERYTHING into being a Hellrider/paladin. It was his life. It was his every breathing moment. And when he became an oathbreaker, it destroyed him. His life was devoted to protecting others, and he feels that he failed in the worst of ways possible.

He certainly had friends and very possibly family that he would see on occasion, but I think that, if you didn't fight alongside him/live in the barracks too, you very likely didn't see much of him.

So maybe he has heard a great deal about pregnancies. And maybe he knows about the complicated ones--just a bit. But he himself is at a loss for when his partner tells him that they are pregnant.

Is he excited? Absolutely. Is he terrified. Oh yeah.

Regardless of how complicated the pregnancy is, he is nervous. He is worried that he will slip up in all the ways that matter, and he is terrified of letting you down.

He's a soldier though, and he prepares for everything.

He has additional blankets and pillows next to the bed.

Hot and cold compresses are ready to go.

He makes sure that he accounts for your cravings whenever shopping.

He has medicine for when the pain is severe. And when the medicine doesn't cut it, he tries his best to distract you--his mileage varies.

And this man adores you. So after the pregnancy, if you are feeling self-conscious, he will worship your body.

Dammon

I could see Cal and Dammon both being very doting, but Dammon would be juggling the forge and helping you.

If you spent a lot of time in the forge with him prior to pregnancy but find that being in there now makes you feel ill, he will absolutely feel lonelier. He is definitely the sort of person who gets very absorbed in his work, and I think this makes him feel guilty. Especially if he feels like him being there could have made things easier for you.

He becomes a meal prep king. Will cook several comfort meals for you to eat while he is working.

Massages swollen ankles and feet and anything else.

While he might have worked later hours in the forge before, he makes a point to wrap things up sooner to spend evenings with you.

That doesn't mean he isn't nervous--you're about to have a child, and he does worry if there will be enough money.

He worries that if he does slow down, commissions will dry up, and then where will that leave the three of you?

If the pregnancy is difficult, he feels guilty for leaving you alone and looks for hundreds of ways to make things easier.

Eventually, he creates a small sitting space for you near the doorway to the shop itself. It's not so close to the forge that you'll be uncomfortably hot or so close that the smell will make you sick, and he sets up a small tarp to create some shade.

If you helped Dammon in the forge before the pregnancy, he is likely hesitant to have you come back and immediately help. Especially if the birth was difficult.

But what you need, more than anything from him, is time

And Dammon wants to be a parent who is present in your life and the baby's, so he does everything to be there.

But money is still a stressor. And he might worry about you being in the forge again. So he's stressed on all fronts.

And while I don't see him commenting or changing how he treats his partner because of weight change, I do see him being VERY reluctant to have you work in the forge with him.

And this may lead to an argument. You know he is stressed about commissions and being there for you and the baby, but you still want to help.

So Dammon dials it back several notches and agrees that you know your body best. So long as you feel comfortable working in the forge, and so long as you listen to your body, the two of you can start it from there.

And it gets easier to balance the forge and child rearing. While the baby isn't allowed close to the open heat/flame until they fully understand why they must be careful (and until their lungs are developed), you and Dammon create a small swing/play area nearby.

[justagalwhowrites]

New in Town - Ch. 3: First Family Dinner

Sarah comes to visit and has questions for Joel. A continuation of New in Town chapters 1-2 found on Tumblr here.

Pairing: Best Friend's Dad!Joel Miller x Female Reader

CW: Smut :D Yeah, they're horny, OK? Just expect a lot of smut in this fic. No use of Y/N. Age gap (reader is 35 Joel is 47, not a focus of the fic). Minors DNI, 18+ only

Length: 5.1k

AO3 | First Chapter | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Joel actually felt pretty damn smart when he got to his house. He stopped at the trash bin that sat outside the garage and dropped his now empty coffee cup into it, just in case Sarah asked why he’d gone to the place with the name stamped on the side of the cup. 

He didn’t have a good fucking reason to be at a coffee shop by your apartment besides being at your apartment. And he knew he wasn’t ready to tell his daughter about the fact that you two were… whatever the fuck you were. 

What were you doing with him? What did you want with him? Why was it so hard to know and why was he so fucking afraid to ask? 

Didn’t matter now. The morning Sarah showed up to surprise him with a visit was not the morning to be having this discussion. 

“Baby Girl?” Joel called as he closed the door behind him, dropping his keys on the table in his entry way. 

“Dad!” Sarah flew around the corner and launched herself at him, just like she’d done when she was a kid. He caught her, the air knocked out of him, laughing as he caught his breath. “I missed you, old man!” 

“Missed you too, Baby Girl,” he said, setting her down and stretching out his back. “But you’re gonna have to cut me a break, think my back is gettin’ too old to be catchin’ you like that.” 

“How am I supposed to properly shower you in affection if I can’t just throw my whole body at you?” She smirked. “But fine, I guess if it’s for the sake of your health…” 

He rolled his eyes and tugged her against his side, kissing her temple. 

“Just gotta have you move back closer to home,” he gave her a squeeze. “Wouldn’t need to tackle me if I just saw you more.” 

“Yeah, I’m working on that,” she smiled. “Trying to get promoted from junior copywriter to intermediate so I can come to the Austin office sooner rather than later…” 

“That’s amazing Baby Girl!” Joel gave her another squeeze before leading her to the living room and settling on the couch. “I’m sure you’re close, they know how good you are.”

“Speaking of my grand plan,” she said. “I see you’ve been hanging out with my work wife.” 

Joel coughed to try to hide his surprise. 

“What?” He asked after a moment. 

“Well I know you didn’t do the Seattle Zombie 5K last Halloween,” she nodded at his shirt. Joel felt his stomach drop. “But I know we did.” 

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck. 

“Not doing a walk of shame are you?” She asked, her eyebrows raised. 

“You ever known me to be the walk of shame type?” He asked, scrambling for a reason that he’d have your shirt. “I just fixed her garbage disposal for her a few weeks ago, got soaked. She was nice enough to give me a clean shirt so I wasn’t drippin’ wet on the drive home. Didn’t realize it’d made it into my dresser is all. I’ll have to wash it again, give it back…” 

“But you are hanging out with her then?” She asked. “I mean, you said give it back like you were going to see her again so…”

“We went out once since I helped with the sink and shit,” he said, telling himself that it wasn’t a lie, not really. You’d only successfully made it out of the house together once. Sarah scrunched her nose. “What, Baby Girl?” 

“Nothing,” she sighed. “I was just hoping you guys would be friends is all. You’re both kind of alone down here, you know? I worry. I don’t want you doing nothing but sitting in the house doing… whatever weird old man stuff you do.” 

“I don’t do weird old man stuff…” 

“And leave her alone too long and the next thing you know she’s on the dating apps and she ends up going out with some total idiots,” she said, ignoring Joel’s protest entirely. “Really, Dad, her taste in men is shit and I’m not here to keep her busy, I was kind of counting on you here.” 

Joel frowned. 

“Not on you to protect her,” he said. Though, from what little he knew, Sarah was right. Your taste in men was shit. “And I’m sure she’s got better things to do than hang out with someone who does ‘old man things…’” 

That was something that Joel had been thinking about a lot over the past two weeks. Yes, you seemed to be about as insatiable for him as he was for you and he didn’t have any damn clue as to why. But he could think of plenty of reasons why you shouldn’t be. How long was it going to be before you realized that he didn’t offer you much? He couldn’t take you to fancy restaurants every week or on nice trips. He wasn’t interested in another child and you were still young enough that you might want to be a mother. His body was often sore and worn after decades of damn near breaking himself to make a living. How much longer would you be wanting to pull him into restaurant bathrooms and make yourself come on his leg because you just couldn’t bear to wait anymore? How much longer could he text you to bitch about work while on a break at a job site and have you respond with a gif from Sharknado because you knew it would make him laugh? How much longer could he look at the selfies you sent him and think to himself “that’s my girl,” even though you weren’t even his girl now let alone in the future?

He was already in too deep with you, way too damn deep. Someone was going to have to pry you out of him, you’d already settled inside his skin and he liked it that way. Liked thinking of you first thing in the morning and just before he fell asleep, liked that you were the first thing on his mind when he got lunch at a food truck and he stumbled on something really good, liked that you showed up with his favorite beer and some obscure snack food when you came over to his place because you said you saw it and thought of him.

“Her taste in men isn’t dangerously bad,” Sarah waved him off. “Just… she tends to go for guys who definitely don’t deserve her, you know?” 

“Yeah,” Joel sighed. “I know.” 

Fuck, did he know.

“Anyway,” she said with a dramatic eye roll that reminded him of when she was a teenager. He smiled a little. “I’m in town until Wednesday! I know you’ll have to work…” 

“I can take a few days off,” he said quickly. “Get Uncle Tommy to make sure shit doesn’t go sideways…” 

“Awesome!” She perked up at that. “Because I think there are at least two Curtis and Vipers I haven’t gotten around to seeing yet and I’m going to require a handcrafted Dad burger - preferably grilled - while I’m in town. My apartment doesn’t let me have a grill on my balcony, it’s so dumb.” 

“Probably a fire code thing, Baby Girl,” he smiled. “But I think we can swing some movies and a cookout while you’re here. Tommy’d love to see ya, Maria too.” 

“Can we start by jumping in the pool?” She asked. “Because I haven’t gotten to swim in months.” 

“Might be a bit cold…” 

“Please,” she scoffed. “This is mid-summer weather in Seattle, plenty warm enough for a swim.” 

Joel smiled. 

“Whatever you want, Baby Girl.” 

The water was definitely colder than Joel would normally jump into but, for Sarah, he’d do just about anything. 

He was still getting used to drinking with his daughter, the two of them floating around the water with beers most of the day. Joel got out for a bit to make sandwiches - he put potato chips on Sarah’s just like he had when she was a kid - and he just listened to what she’d been up to, hanging on her every word. 

Joel had always felt incredibly lucky to have Sarah as his daughter. There were the obvious reasons, of course. She was kind and thoughtful, she was smart as a whip and loved to do well in school to the point that he almost never had to tell her to do her homework, she actually liked spending time with him. But she never had a problem being open with him about damn near anything. 

It wasn’t always the most pleasant experience - hearing about boy problems when he couldn’t actually intervene was harder than Joel had expected it to be - but he was grateful for it. He never had to wonder what his daughter was up to, she just told him. 

Part of it, he was sure, was because he’d asked her to grow up too fast. He hadn’t meant to, of course, but it seemed to come with the territory of single parenthood. There was no one there to back him up when he had to work late, no one there to take over the child rearing when he was sick or just so exhausted from work that he slept through his damn alarm. Sarah fell into the role of second parent, sometimes raising herself as much as Joel had. 

He was just happy she didn’t resent him for it. She seemed to recognize how hard he’d tried to give her everything, do everything he possibly could to make her happy and give her a good life. Even if it hadn’t always worked, he’d always tried. The fact that she’d made it to college on scholarship, that she’d finished towards the top of her class, that she’d gotten a good paying job doing something she liked to do, the fact that she was happy and doing something with her mind instead of breaking her body down like Joel was every damn day of his life was the proudest he’d ever been of anything. 

Could he really risk his relationship with her for you? Yes, you made him happy. So fucking happy. You were the first thing in years that he felt like he really, truly wanted. And it had hit him hard, so fucking hard. It was like he’d saved up all his longing just for you, like it had been waiting for something powerful enough to show up and unleash it all and it had knocked him off his damn feet. 

But you were Sarah’s best friend. 

“So one thing that’s seriously lacking in the Pacific Northwest is good TexMex,” Sarah said, lounging on a pool float, her face tilted toward the sun, eyes closed. “Think we can go out for dinner tonight? I need enchiladas and tamales and I need them sooner rather than later.” 

“Only if you don’t get mad that I ask for the real spicy salsa,” Joel said. 

“How did I end up so cursed that my two favorite people love to melt their tongues off as a hobby?” Sarah sighed. “But fine, order the miserable stuff. I’ll just get the regular salsa like a normal person.” 

Joel scoffed. 

“The normal ship has sailed with you, Baby Girl. Me and Tommy around you so much? Never stood a chance.” 

Just an hour later, he and Sarah were headed into her favorite Austin restaurant. Joel added it to his mental list of places to take you. It was Sarah’s favorite for a reason, after all. 

“Table for two,” Joel held up two fingers to the hostess but Sarah cut him off. 

“It’s three, actually,” she smiled, not looking at him. 

“Three?” He frowned. She ignored him and just held up three fingers to the hostess. It took him until they were at the table to really put it together. “Sarah…” 

“I’m here to see you but I really want to see her, too,” she said as she slid into the booth. “And I do think you guys will really get along if you actually give it a shot. Please, Dad? Give her a chance?” 

A chance wasn’t the only thing he’d given you. 

“Baby Girl, I’m sure she’d rather do something besides…” 

“Besides what?” Your voice appeared over his shoulder, Joel turning toward the sound so fast it made his head spin. You smiled a little sheepishly. 

“Hi.” 

***

Well Joel clearly hadn’t been expecting you. 

That boded just so well. 

“Hey Bestie!” Sarah squealed and got out of the booth to throw her arms around your neck. You laughed and hugged her back. “Ugh, I miss you! The office sucks without you there. So does the rest of Seattle, honestly.” 

You laughed. 

“I miss you too,” you gave her a squeeze before the two of you separated. “I keep trying to convince the VP at this branch that I absolutely unequivocally need a junior copywriter on my team. He hasn’t bought it yet but I think if I just keep asking him I’ll wear him down and he’ll cave to my annoying tendencies and just give me whatever I want.”

“Oh so you’re playing hardball,” Sarah teased as she got back in the booth and you slid in beside her. 

“Clearly yes,” you nodded sagely. “I read ‘The Art of War’ and just bothering people until they give up is the best battle tactic in the world…” 

You turned to look at Joel who was watching you intently. 

You hadn’t expected Joel to show up tonight anymore than he’d expected you. Sarah was playing you both like a goddamn fiddle. You’d worn a strappy, silky slip dress with a denim jacket over it thinking you were going out with your best friend, not going to be stuck trying to keep from staring at your who-the-fuck-knows-what sitting across from you. 

Who also happened to be your best friend’s dad. 

You tried not to think about that part. 

“Figured I’d force you two to get to know each other better over margaritas,” Sarah said brightly. “I can’t let you both just sit and stare at a wall all by yourselves until I can move back to town…” 

“I don’t stare at walls!” You protested. Sarah ignored you. 

“So you can at least keep each other company,” she finished. 

“Good to see you again, Joel,” you said, trying as hard as you could to not picture him naked across the table. 

Which was really fucking hard. 

His dark button down was rolled up to his elbows and fit his damn broad shoulders so perfectly all you could think about was the way he looked as he fucked into you, the way his muscles rippled through his chest and you had to fight to not bite down on them. His hair was tamed without being sculpted or overly styled and you wanted to run your fingers through it and sink your grip into his scalp as he ate you. 

“You too,” he said. 

You’d never had this visceral of a reaction to a man you’d fucked before, never, not even when you were a stupid teenager. Of course, you’d never tried to hide your relationship before, either. 

But you had the feeling that wouldn’t matter with Joel. You’d feel this intensity toward him whether Sarah was beside you or not, whether you could be open about your affection for him or not. 

And now you were going to have to sit across from him when he looked that damn good all through dinner. 

The second the server came to the table you ordered a margarita. You had a feeling you were going to need the tequila. 

It took conscious effort to pay attention to what Sarah was saying as she tried to bring up things she thought you and Joel had in common. Almost like she was trying to launch an ad campaign for each of you. 

It felt like forever but you were sure you’d only been seated a few minutes when you gave up on not touching Joel. You carefully slid your foot out of your pump and started sliding it up his inner leg, starting near his ankle. Joel jumped a little in his chair at the contact, his eyes darting to you. You just raised your eyebrows at him as you took a drink from your margarita and slid your foot up his leg to his knee. He shifted in his seat, his eyes steadily on Sarah but you could tell he had to focus on her now, actively work to give her attention. You smirked a bit at that. 

You kept the pattern up as the three of you waited for your food, Joel’s eyes always going a little wide when your toes made it to his inner thigh. 

“Ugh, I’m starving,” Sarah groaned as a tray of sizzling fajitas passed your table. “Here, scootch out, I’m going to the bathroom. That’ll make the food come.” 

“It always does,” you agreed, quickly shoving your foot back into your shoe and getting out of the booth. 

You both watched as Sarah made her way across the restaurant, turning to Joel the second you knew she was out of earshot. 

“Did you say anything?” You were whispering anyway. 

“No,” he replied. “We hadn’t talked about it, didn’t seem like the time… Did you say somethin’?” 

“Not a word,” you said. 

“I really need you to cool it over there, Beautiful,” Joel said. Any other time, you’d think he was teasing you but his eyes looked open and earnest now. “We can’t just go into a bathroom right now and it’s already a fucking miracle I haven’t tried to rip that goddamn dress off you, Jesus Christ, you can’t just show up places lookin’ that damn good…” “You’re one to talk!” You replied, incredulous, as you looked down at his exposed, tan, muscled forearms and back up at his face. “Fucking hell, Joel!” 

He smirked a little. 

“That’s all it takes with you, huh?” He teased, leaning across the table toward you. “Just a little bit of skin and you’re outta control?”

“Oh fuck off,” you rolled your eyes but grinned a little all the same. “I know you know what the rolled up sleeves thing does to women.” 

“I promise I do not,” he said, watching over your shoulder now. “But you’ll have to enlighten me later…” 

Sarah came back to the table and her face fell. 

“Shit, that usually works,” she sighed. “Alright, scoot in, we can just trade spots.” 

You obeyed and slid over, purposely leaning over the table as you did, giving Joel full view of your bra below your dress as you did. He was all but glaring at you as you sat back in the booth. 

Consciously, you knew you shouldn’t be pushing him like this. For starters, this was not how you wanted Sarah to find out. Assuming she was ever going to find out. 

But you shouldn’t be trying to frustrate Joel. Not like this, not so early on in your… whatever the fuck this was. 

You had a tendency to do this, to bend things until they broke the second something was looking like it could get serious, the second that it looked like it’d be worth the time and the effort. You were starting to think it was something your subconscious did on purpose. If you sabotaged the relationship early, there wasn’t the same kind of risk. Push the guy too far and he’d break things off with you and you could return to the relative emotional safety of dating apps and bars. Only ever go out with someone for a few weeks and it wouldn’t hurt that bad if they left. 

And they would leave. They always left. You might be worth the time for a bit but you weren’t worth the trouble for anything real, that much had been made clear to you in the years you’d spent dating around. It had gotten you hurt when you were young and stupid, back when you were Sarah’s age. Now, you fucking knew better. 

You knew better than to get anywhere close to what you were starting to feel with Joel. 

And here you were, doing it anyway, with your best friend’s dad. 

So of course your first reaction was to push him. Push, push, push. It’s what you did. 

You stirred your melting margarita. 

You’d never been more relieved to have food brought to your table. 

“Thanks so much for coming out tonight!” Sarah hugged you goodbye in the parking lot, the awkward, hesitant conversation at the table through dinner still tense over you. 

“It was so great to see you!” You hugged her back and kissed her cheek. “Seriously, I’m wearing the bosses down, start packing now because I miss you too much.” 

She laughed. 

“I’ll be on the first plane out once I get a job offer,” she said. “Either way, I’ll be back for the holidays, we have to hang out then. Just us girls at least once, promise.” 

You smiled a little, hoping Sarah would still want to talk to you at the holidays. 

“Sounds perfect.” 

Joel gave you a tight smile and a nod. 

“Talk to you soon?” He said, his voice too open and honest to fit the shared awkwardness of your position feet apart in the parking lot. 

“Yeah,” you smiled. “Text me?” 

“Sure,” he smiled back. 

You poured yourself a glass of wine the second you were in the door, only pausing to take your shoes off as you made your way to the kitchen. You settled in on the couch without bothering to change, carrying the bottle of wine with you, and you put on some shitty Netflix reality show you could zone out and barely pay attention to. 

You were four episodes deep when your phone lit up. 

“Fuck that was hard,” Joel texted. 

You smiled a little. 

“Was that hard or were you hard?” You texted back. 

“Both,” he replied almost immediately. Your smile grew and you downed the last of the wine. 

You hadn’t had enough to drink to be drunk but you’d had enough that it made you feel… bold. Like you wanted to try something new. 

You took off your jacket and slid the straps of your dress down so your cleavage was spilling over the top of it, your breasts barely contained by it. You took a selfie, a needy look on your face, and sent him the picture. 

“Need help with that?” You asked. 

“Jesus Christ,” he texted back almost immediately. “Good thing Sarah just went to call some boy she started seeing back in Washington, can’t just send a guy shit like that and expect him to sit still.” 

You bit your lip for a second, getting an idea. You headed for your room and shimmied out of the dress before you put on the sexiest bra you owned and switched to the matching panties. You posed in the full length mirror in the corner of your room, one leg out, a hand on your hip. 

“What about shit like this?” You asked as you sent the picture along. 

“Really fucking mean for you to send that when you know I can’t come take it off you,” he texted back. 

You flopped down on your stomach on your bed, reminded of how you felt texting guys when you were younger and you had to make sure you didn’t go over your texting limit for the month. 

“You can always fight back you know,” you said. “I can’t come rip your clothes off either.” 

“You trying to get me to sext with you?” He asked. 

“Maybe.” 

It took a few minutes before he sent you a picture. He was in his room, stripped down to his boxer briefs. He fisted his cock through the fabric of them, the veins on his hand prominent. 

“Something like this?” He asked. 

You groaned, your hand sliding to your clit before you even thought about it. You rolled onto your back and took a picture of your hand slipping into your panties before sending it on. 

“Just like that,” you replied. 

“Fuck.” 

The one word was all he sent for a minute before he followed it up with a picture of his cock in his hand. You moaned at the sight of him, a pearl of pre-come leaking from his swollen head. You wanted to swallow it up, lick up and down his thick shaft, take all of him in your mouth until you were choking on him and he spilled down your throat. 

“Tried to make this last but you’re too fucking much for me,” he texted. “Couldn’t wait.” 

You took off your bra and tossed it to the floor before taking a handful of your breast in your hand, holding the phone high over your head, high enough that it could capture your needy expression and the way you were touching yourself. 

“Neither could I.” 

Usually, when you fucked yourself, you used toys. You had a few that you’d become partial to over the years of cycling through men and relationships, the fake dicks in your life lasting a whole hell of a lot longer than the real ones. 

Tonight, you didn’t need one. Didn’t think you could pull yourself away from touching your own body long enough to pull one out, not with Joel’s face and body and cock on the brain. You slid your hand down your chest, your stomach, back to your pussy. You rubbed your clit in little circles with your index finger as you stretched your middle finger down, down, down toward your dripping hole. 

When his next message came through, you dropped your phone in your rush to open it and you scrambled to pick it up with one hand, your other one too occupied to want to do anything else. 

This time, it was a video. His large hand was working his thick length, his cock still looking big even in his grasp that dwarfed your own. He worked his cock slowly, his thumb sweeping over the head and collecting the pre-come before he slid it firmly down with quiet moan. 

“Fuck, I need you,” his voice was soft, a whisper. “Need to feel that perfect fuckin’ pussy…” 

You were about to rewatch the video, your mouth watering, when he texted again. 

“Can I call you?” 

You didn’t respond. Instead, you just called him, putting the phone to speaker and setting it on your chest between your breasts. 

He answered on the first ring. 

“Hey beautiful,” he said, voice low and dark and needy. “Fuck, I gotta be quiet…” 

“I know,” you said, whispering back even though you didn’t have a reason to. “Don’t care, as long as I can hear you.” 

“Tell me what you’re doin’ to yourself,” he was almost panting. “What you’re thinkin’ about…” 

“I’m rubbing my clit,” you moaned. “Got one finger inside of myself, thinking about you eating me out last night…” 

“Fuck you tasted so good,” his voice became a little more strained. “Wanna taste you right now.” 

You moaned and fucked yourself a little harder, a little faster, your eyes closed in pleasure. 

“Add another finger,” he said. “Want you to work up to this cock, want you thinking about me deep in you when you come.” 

“Fuck Joel,” you were panting now, too, as you added another finger. 

“Tell me what you’re thinking now,” he whispered. 

“You pushing into me,” you groaned it. “Opening me up for you…” 

“Fuck, Beautiful, you’re gonna fuckin’ kill me.” 

You heard the pace of his hand increase on the other end of the phone and you worked your pussy a little harder and faster, too, whimpering as you did. 

“Can you fit a third finger?” He panted. 

“Yes,” you managed, getting desperate, your body starting to feel tight, all the heat of you drawing deep into yourself. 

“Add it,” he groaned. “Fuck yourself deep, hard. Fuck yourself like I fucked you last night, how I’d fuck you right now if I were there.” 

You obeyed, thrusting your fingers in as deep as you could reach, whimpering at the stretch that you knew had nothing on his thick cock. 

“You were so fucking deep,” your legs were restless, the tightness extending so far down that you knew your orgasm was going to make your whole body quake. “Fuck, you’re so goddamn big, Joel…” 

“And you take me so fucking well,” he panted. “Take me like you were made to take this cock, fuck!” 

“I was made to take you,” you whimpered, desperate and aching. “Made to make you come, need you to fucking come, please Joel, please come for me…” 

“Fuck, fuck, I’m coming!” It was a choking, strangled whisper and you heard him muffle his moaning in a pillow, the sound of his pleasure sending you over the edge. 

It was the hardest you’d ever come from your own hand, harder than you’d ever come with a vibrator, almost as hard as you came with Joel deep inside you the night before. Your body throbbed with it, so much that it felt like your fingers might break as they stuffed your overwrought pussy full. You all but sobbed as you kept working your clit, even as it was too much, fucking yourself through your own orgasm the way you knew Joel would if he were buried inside you instead of in his own fist. Once it was over, you slowly, gently, pulled your hand away from your dripping slit. 

“Fucking hell, Beautiful,” he said after a minute, still trying to catch his breath. You smiled and laughed a little. “Christ, I hope Sarah didn’t hear that.” 

“You stayed a lot quieter than me,” you were whispering again. It was fun to whisper into the phone with him, like you were going behind your parents’ backs with it. 

“Still,” he said before he sighed. “I gotta go clean up, you made me make a hell of a mess.” 

“You’re one to talk,” you smirked a little, looking at the slick gathered on your fingers. 

“Can I text you tomorrow while you’re at work?” He asked quietly. “Something tells me I’m gonna miss you like crazy.” 

“Course,” you smiled, settling down into your mattress. “Text me whenever you want, I always want to hear from you.” 

Maybe it was the post-orgasm haze but you didn’t care that it sounded desperate. 

“Good,” he said. “Because hearin’ from you always makes my damn day.” 

You smiled at that. 

“Miss you, Beautiful.” 

You smiled bigger. 

“Miss you, too.” 

Next Chapter

A/N: Awww doubt is creeping in and they're still fucking each other's brains out from afar.

We love to see it!

Thank you so much for following along with this story! These two are so fun to write and I hope you're enjoying their journey. Love you all!

[honeyatsu]

Loner 4 (Junpei x Reader)

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TW: mention of suicide

a/n:

Hiiii ~ T_T it's been so long since i've written lol! I am sorry if its not good....im kinda rusty! I found this draft after trying to fix my laptop and going thru my things....I figured why not finish it!!! :D I loved working on this fic even tho the only thing done is the outline/draft...i missed writing so im just getting back into a hobby I once loved again ((: I am sooo sorry if my writing style is no longer enjoyable lol but only way to get better after a too long break is to keep writing :D !!!

You decide to take matters into your own hands when Junpei doesn’t return to school the next two weeks – literally.

If the empty desk next to you and continuous lonely lunches weren’t offensive enough, he had the audacity to not even open your texts anymore. Leaving your texts on delivered as opposed to the checked read notification you would often see desperately checking your phone at the end of the day, along with sending your calls straight to voicemail. Sometimes you think you would feel less offended if he just blocked you.

So, you generously speak to your school advisor, showing concern in your friends’ absence and inevitable fate of falling behind – you offer to take his missing work to him and help him catch up, not a complete lie. You weren’t one to be ghosted— ever. A shot to your ego mixed with a concern of your best friend, you decided if he was going to ignore you, you would just go to him. Even if it meant getting his address through the school, no matter how creepy it sounded, whatever context you would put it in.

“Are you taking those to Junpei?” you turn to see your underclassman and teammate, Ino, staring at you with her large doe hazel-eyes, her naturally flushed cheeks spreading from one corner of her face to another.

Cute, Ino was cute. You offer her a simple nod, the white pages your fingers were buried under slightly slipping from your grip, Ino catching it, leaning it towards you again before they could fall. “Do you want me to come and help?” Her tone was sincere and kind, you could say her voice was almost as angelic as her face.

Your stomach churned, body becoming stiff as she stood in front of you, batting her doe-eyes at you with a smile. She annoyed you.

“It’s fine. Gotta go.” You mutter, gripping onto the folders and sheets tightly, speeding your way past her.

It’s lively here, the area you need to walk through in order to get to his home. There are students, chatting, taking up the streets and shops as they lounge around after school. When you walked passed Tatsu Ramen, you tried to not let the bitterness linger around, seeing familiar (yet not so friendly) faces eating there. You flick your tongue against your teeth, wondering if Junpei decided to finally stop ignoring you, where would you two go now. You try to avoid them, quickly shuffling past them, using the stack to cover your face.

The walk wasn’t a short one, nor a long one. It was far enough to make your ankles ache, holding onto the heavy workload – you weren’t sure if you felt bad for the missing work he was going to have to do, or the scolding you were mentally rehearsing to give him.

Either way, it was a headache he deserved, you thought.

The lecture that wasn’t ready was going to have to come sooner rather than later, as you spot him walking toward his home, his clothes baggy and even from the distance you were at, he was more relaxed than you’ve seen him ever be at school. You were at the top of a small street-hill that came before his house, the slope only aiding your speed as you ran towards him, shouting his name, gripping the folder and paperwork that were fighting to slip through your hands.

The closer you get to him, the sloppier your moves are, your nerves reaching all the way to the tip of your toes, the crack on the street not helping as you trip over it. Junpei’s arms reaches out, stopping you from falling into his chest with both hands placed on your shoulder. You stare him in the eye, chest heaving and breath loud and messy, you don’t care that you’re practically blowing your breath into his face. Seeing him felt like seeing a ghost — but seeing his wide eyes turn into a small scowl felt like seeing a ghost who just punched you in the chest.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, his eyes squinting as he observed the piles of work placed on your hand. He scoffs at the sight.

“You’re not in the right to ask questions! Do you even know how a phone works?” you huff out, trying to catch your breath and put your adrenaline at ease.

A look of shame left as quickly as it came as he let go of you giving you a slight shove, his lips pouting as he faced the opposite direction of your face, “Don’t tell me you’re here because you’re worried about my coursework.”

“Well, for us to graduate together, you kind of need to pass. I just thought I’d do you a favor.” Your lower your arms to remove the work that was covering half of your face, displaying your frown even though he was refusing to look at you. You take a deep breath as you contemplate your next sentence. “Plus, I was wo –”

“Us? There is no us,” You were interrupted anyways.

Your mouth opens but no words come out, Junpei finally turns to you. Looking into your eyes, challenging you, just daring you to say something next. You feel the heat of embarrassment rise to your cheeks – or maybe it’s anger, you weren’t exactly sure how you felt at the moment. At the sight of someone who was supposed to be your best friend staring at you with such disgust, almost as if he regretted getting to know you at all.

“You’re all the same.” He started out. His eyes never left yours. “Did you know we’ve gone to the same school for years? By chance you finally noticed me, and because you were too afraid to sit in the front. You think that makes us friends?” His dark gaze was going right through you, burning. The tension couldn’t be cut with a knife as he tried reading you, scanning you for any reaction.

You give him one, taking a slight step back, mouth thinned. You’re still holding on to the stack of papers, crumpling them between your fingers. He waits for you to reply, but you don’t.

“That’s not what bothers me. Your friends, they’ve been picking on me for years. How are you just now noticing? What – because you think we’re friends you finally think I’m worthy of being saved?” He gives a dry, coarse laugh. “You’re no different from the rest. You think you are, because you became friends with poor Junpei, right? You finally decide not to turn a blind eye, barley. The same way everyone else pretends to not notice, you did too! You let them get away with it. It’s not just me that gets picked on! And unless they’re your friends, unless they’re worthy of kindness, you just let them! Everyone does! Teachers, other students, you!”

You don’t dare to speak; you simply shove the assignments to his arms. You don’t look up, you don’t want him to see your lips quiver at his words – you don’t want him to see you fighting to keep your eyes dry, fighting to tune him out. Your attempts fail you, feeling your own wet lashes against your cheek, a single, suppressed tear managing to escape.

“I never needed you. I never needed your pity, I never needed you to save me!”

Of course, he’s mad at you. You don’t know what you did, but you figure that you abandoning him when there was something clearly wrong the other day had something to do with it. You knew something was wrong, yet you still left. And you feel guilty, so guilty for being such a bad friend, just like he says. You feel guilty, thinking that you could just march to him when you’re the one who is in the wrong. You weren’t a good friend, and Junpei knew his worth. You were convinced you were in the right, that it was okay for you to be mad at your friend for abandoning you, but you abandoned him first. You’re ready to turn your heel, turn back and leave him alone for good, and you almost do.

Almost.

“What’s going on here?” A strong voice asked from behind you. You turned your head to be met with a tall slender woman, short black hair, and holding a cigarette in her left hand.

His tone changes, along with his facial expression. His eyebrow twitches when he realizes who has arrived (at the worst possible time, for him); It did not take you necessarily long to realize who she was, her and Junpei practically sharing the same face. If you weren’t so hurt and angry, you could imagine how humiliated you would feel. Weeks of begging Junpei to let you come over, introduce you to his family — and here you are, face to face with the woman who brought your favorite person into this world (even if he was being an ass right now); snotty nosed, eyes glossy, and an ugly tight facial expression because no, you didn’t want him to see you cry.

“She’s bringing my missing work, just a classmate–”

You cut him off, introducing yourself by giving your name, “I’m his best friend.” you snuck in, bowing to his mother while grabbing a work folder, pointing to it. “I brought his classwork. And being honest, I was concerned. I wanted to see for myself that he was okay.” Considering the fact that he seemed to forget how to use his phone and turned into an asshole, you thought to yourself, but you knew to leave that thought to yourself, not wanting to push any of his mother’s buttons, determined to make a good first impression.

“The ramen girl?”

Your eyebrow twitches, turning to Junpei. It almost shocks you, how after his speech of how cruel he tried to make you out to be, this is what offends you. “Your mother knows me as…. the ramen girl?” Junpei stares at you in disinterest and shrugs.

“It’s not often I get to meet a friend, let alone a best friend.” She grins in amusement, “Do you wanna come in and help him catch up with work?”

“Mom, not necessary.” Junpei mutters quietly.

“It wouldn’t be a problem at all!” You chirped in response, grinning from ear to ear as you follow them into their home, ignoring Junpei’s face twisted in irritation.

Their home is welcoming, fit for a small family of two. His mother (you find out her name is Nagi), goes straight to her fridge, taking out a bottle of beer while settling on her counter.

“I appreciate you doing this for him. I understand school isn’t for everyone and honestly, it isn’t as big as you kids make it seem. “ She takes a sip of her beer before continuing, “but I would be lying if I said I didn’t appreciate this. Or you. I’m just glad I finally got to meet the girl who’s worked wonders you’re not even aware of.”

The praise makes you flush — your body heating up. You swiftly look towards Junpei’s direction, seeing his face tinted red, from his cheeks to the tip of his ears. He was avoiding his mothers gaze along with yours, looking to the side and pouting, arms crossed. He looked like an angry toddler, and you would laugh, normally — if you didn’t feel he hated you at this moment.

“ — Oh, I’m sorry, am I keeping you guys waiting?” His mother replies with a grin, “You’re free to go on, help your best friend catch up on his work!” She takes both of you, leading your way to his bedroom with her palm on both backs, lightly shoving you through the door.

Junpei is standing beside you, sheepishly, his guilt showering his face as he sees you softly close the door behind you and fist your palms as a way to calm yourself down. You’re nervous, and you can tell he is too, the blush never leaving his face. And as awkward and unpredictable this current situation is (meeting his mom in the middle of a fight and having her throw you into his bedroom, awkward is an understatement), you still know there are things you need to talk about. You slowly take a few steps towards him, each step causing you to take a deep breath before you trap him in a tight hug.

“I should’ve been a better friend.” You mutter into his chest. Still holding onto him, you look up at him and nearly laugh at his surprised expression. “Please don’t think you don’t matter to me. Or that I feel bad for you. I mean – ouch – because of how you judge my character. You are my friend. I care about you, a lot. And I’m sorry for making you feel otherwise.”

The gold locket you usually kept hidden in your shirt was brought out, it felt so delicate in between your fingers, but the feelings and memories with what was inside laid heavy in your heart. You took one last, slow, deep breath before you opened the heart-chapped locket, revealing the photo of your deceased father. “He was bullied at work. My dad. They treated him horribly, told him he wasn’t worthy of being man of the house, or something like that.”

Don’t cry, You try to tell yourself, don’t cry.

“Well, one day it all got to him. And he decided it was easier to leave me and my mom, than to ‘burden us with his pathetic excuse of a husband and father’. At least that’s what he said in the letter. If he asked me, I would’ve said he was great.”

You sigh, closing up the locket and placing it back into your shirt, “I should’ve paid more attention, you’re right. No one wants to believe people are bad, or people with hearts can be capable of being so cruel. I always thought people were just people when my dad died. When I read his note, it was so sad. Life seemed so dimmed in his perspective. I guess I didn’t want to experience my life like that, I became ignorant to those around me, especially my shitty friends. I was around bullies and was too dumb to even see it.”

Your arms quickly found their way around his waist, bringing your head to his chest and looking up at him, the small tears that still haven’t fallen glistening in between your eyelashes. “What I’m trying to say with all of this is, I’m sorry. I understand what they do is fucked up, and I’m sorry for just staying silent. My ignorance isn’t an excuse, it was never okay. I won’t let anyone hurt you. And I’m not enabling those friendships any longer. You’re my friend Junpei, I care about you.”

Junpei wraps his arms around you, pressing his body tightly against yours. He would’ve never guessed you felt as bad as you did — he would have never imagined you having to go through something so tragic, yet remained so strong, so willing, so vulnerable to the world around you.

It’s silent, the forgiveness that’s communicated between the two of you. After the embrace you look up at him, your eyes still glistening but your smile turns into a small curve, your teeth slightly showing before you start giggling, hitting his chest. He follows you after — laughing at how vulnerable and serious you two were with one another, and he’s happy, because this is new. He hasn’t experienced a true friendship, a falling out, or making up after, being vulnerable.

The next few hours are peaceful as you two sit sprawled out on his bed with the textbooks and folders with weeks worth of school work. You promised to help catch him up as long as he promised to stop skipping class and ignoring you, especially during times he needs people most.

Junpei spends five minutes staring at a problem, not quite understanding what he was supposed to do. He calls your name for help, but you don’t respond. “I really need help right now,” he states, bringing his attention to you, lifting his eyes to meet yours; His eyes softened at the view in front of him, the world around you became a blur — you being the focus point, the soft beating his heart slowly becoming rapid, his body becoming flushed seeing you laid across his bed, your mouth agape and slight drool dripping from the side. He stares and thinks to himself, he’s always thought you were pretty, but this would have to be the prettiest he’s seen you.

He slowly lifts himself off the bed, tip-toeing around to make sure he doesn’t make the slightest noise while going to your side, being sure to not wake you from your sleep.

Junpei takes your leg that was hanging from the edge and takes the piles of work spread across his bed and neatly places them onto his desk, sitting beside your sleeping figure and taking his blanket, covering your body. He then lays beside you, on top of the covers so there is a barrier between the two of you. His eyes trace the shape of your body, looking at the little details and appreciating every blemish, every texture, every line on your face. Without even realizing he brought his face closer to yours, in awe at how at peace you look laying beside him after all he’s put you through.

He takes a moment, taking in a deep breath as he decides to swallow his pride, whispering an apology.

And to his surprise, he hears you accept his apology faintly, right before your quiet snores echo around the room. He smiles at the sight, laying down besides you

As you two fell asleep with one beside one another, close but not close enough, his mother barged in, holding a tray of tea, about to offer some until she noticed the sight before her.

She then smiled to herself, wanting to wake you guys up, or just take a picture to tease you two with it later. She decides to let you two have this moment, because something tells her there would be more to come.

₊✩‧₊˚౨ৎ˚₊✩‧₊

When winter comes, it comes quietly — the snow falling sneaking up on the world, the same way your feelings for Junpei seemed to. You don’t exactly remember when his presence alone would have your heart beating out of your chest, you don’t remember when you would feel heat rise in your face when he would give you a simple compliment, but it made you uneasy — and confused. Because he was your friend, later on you realized that these physical setbacks weren’t supposed to happen around your friend.

Your friendship with Junpei slowly got better, it was like starting from square one, but he got comfortable fast — you’d say things were getting to how they once were, but you’d argue that they were better. Junpei smiled more, he laughed more, he even got bold and would initiate physical contact with you. It should make you happy, that he has become more open, more willing to shed his light not only to you, but others as well. He developed a better friendship with his club members, he even started to acknowledge people that even shocked you, and it should make you happy.

It should.

One moment you’re urging Junpei to smile more. He’s president of a club filled with classmates with the same interests as him, you jokingly tell him if he can handle being your friend he should have no problem making more. One moment you’re skipping down the halls, holding a bag with a surprise for him – a gift, there was no special event coming up, but you saw the item and thought of him. One moment you’re excited to start off his day with one of his warm laughs, and wide smile you’ve come to adore – and now, you’re trying to be still as your legs wobble, witnessing something that makes your stomach turn in discomfort.

Junpei is laughing – an honest, joyful, (almost too joyful) laugh. The gift bag almost drops to the ground, but you gripped it tightly as it nearly slipped out of your palms, your jaw suddenly tensed up, and you feel like even blinking would be impossible. His eyes are practically glistening as he looks down at the pink hair, doe-eyed girl you knew all too well. She looks up at him, reaching towards his upper left arm, grabbing it after giggling something you couldn’t make out to him. Junpei doesn’t flinch, in fact, he doesn’t react at all. He accepts her physical touch as if it was the most natural thing to him, and something in you bursts. It was as if a fire was casted in your chest, as if the devil himself pushed you far enough to run into Junpei’s back, nearly pushing him further into Ino if you weren’t able to catch the back of his school shirt before he got a chance to fall.

Before you realize what you’ve done, you feel Ino’s large eyes on you, a curious look on her face quickly switching to her sweet smile that has the rest of the school on the palm of her hands, and Junpei looking back at you curiously. You remove your hand from his shirt, slowly bringing it to your side, you lower your gaze to the floor, gripping your gift, wishing to any god out there to have you disappear from the scene itself.

“We have things to go over, Junpei.” You try to state as calmly as possible, but it comes out bitter, a shaky voice followed by a nervous hand reaching for his wrist, not waiting for a response before you attempt to drag him to the opposite direction of Ino.

You peak over his shoulder when he doesn’t move, seeing Ino hold onto his other wrist, keeping him in place. You try to imagine how this looks to the classmates around you, Junpei in between of two classmates, both pulling him into the opposite direction. You try to imagine the amount of self control it would take to not grab one of the most popular first years by the head and drag her down the hall without it becoming a big scandal.

Your breath hitches as Ino looks you in the eye, her smile never faulting. You watch her with a blank stare, your eyes staring at her hand gripping his wrist until she drops it. When you look up she looks back at you innoccently, as if she didn’t just send you into an internal war with her. “I asked Junpei to the Lantern festival.” Ino announces, clear and to the point, her eyes staring directly into yours.

“Just…just the two of you?” You blink back, letting go of the grip you have on him. Your gaze switched from staring directly at her to Junpei, “Did you say yes?”

“No!” Ino laughs out, and it pains you to admit how melodic it was, how you get why Junpei is so comfortable with someone he barely knows. “Chifuyu and Hori are coming. I didn’t want to be the only girl, so I asked Junpei to come along with you. You know them right? They’re in your art classes.”

“I’d like to go.” Junpei states softly. You try not to glare at him, huffing to yourself as you mutter back “whatever.” You pull Junpei rougher, which leads Ino to let go as you drag him into the empty art club room.

The room is silent for the first few minutes. The sound of you ruffling through your bag to get things out and place them onto the desk is the only thing that echoes through the room. The two of you avoid eyecontact with one another – Junpei looking at anywhere but you while playing with his hands, you take out pictures you’ve printed, sprawling them across the desk, neatly lining them up to one another.

A majority of them were selfies of the two of you. If the air around the two of you wasn’t as heavy due to the last encounter, you probably would’ve smiled – chuckled, even. These photos were the visual documenting of the friendship the two of you shared, a visual timeline of seeing his comfortablility with you. From looking awkwardly at the camera (you were lucky if you even got a smile), to some blurry pictures of him shying away, they blossomed into him

“You know,” you started off, pretending to look into the pictures as if you were inspecting them, “When I said you should show the more open side of you more often….I didn’t think you’d do it so easily. Especially with other girls.” You try to sound nonchalant. You try to make it sound like a friend teasing another one.

“I – I just,”

“It’s not a problem. It’s just crazy. Lookin’ at these pictures, y’know? How long it took you to get comfortable with me but you talk to Ino as if you’ve known her for years.” You don’t know what you’re implying or why you’re implying anything at all – Junpei is just your friend and it’s not not fair to act like you own him, that you’re the only girl in the world he should be laughing with.

It shouldn’t bother you that he’s getting more social thanks to his friendship with you. This should be a happy moment. But you can’t help the way the memory of him laughing so easily with her causes your skin to burn, or the heavy fall you felt in your chest when you saw Ino’s hand touch him. The red flush that spread around his face didn’t make it better either.

“I feel like I should say sorry.” Junpei admits, “But I don’t know why I’m apologizing.”

“You don’t need to.” You mumble to yourself, still refusing to look up at him. You sigh as you’re shuffling through the pictures, none of them working for you. The selfies themselves were nice, two friends just savoring memories with one another. Staring at them all heeds the realization that these pictures were nothing but mere proof of your friendship with one another, the word friends sitting grudgingly in your mind. “None of these are good enough.”

You feel Junpei tower over you, his eyes similarly scanning the photos you’ve laid out. He brings his arm out, it hovers over you, lighty grazing your shoulder as he grabs a photo that’s caught his eye. Your breath hitches when his chest presses up against your back due to the movement – your body freezing, this physical contact alone having your breath to become uneasy, using every ounce of your strength to not lose the balance onto your legs. Hesitantly, you turn your head to look up at him, his dark eyes glistening, staring at what he’s just picked up with nothing less than stars in his eyes. He brings the picture closer to him, unintentionally wrapping his arm around you, pulling you closer to him.

Your eyes shift towards the picture he’s holding. It's one of the first ones where he actually felt comfortable enough to look into the camera and smile, his arm wrapped around yours and a peace sign being held up to the side of your face. Your gaze landing on him once again, you tell yourself not to overthink the small grin spread on his face, the red tint that’s just barely making itself visible to you. If you weren’t in such close proximity to him, truthfully, you wouldn’t have even noticed.

“Can I keep this one?” Junpei barely whispers to you. He looks down at you for approval, eyes widening at how close your face has gotten to his. He looks down, noticing it was him who has pressed himself to you, and quickly looks back up into your eyes – face growing redder the more you two look into each other's eyes. You imagine the two of you share the same expression, a mix of being flustered and afraid. His arm wrapped around you stays frozen, afriad that moving would bring you closer or bring your bodies farther from one another. Junpei was unsure which one made him the most uneasy between the two.

Neither of you are sure who brought their face closer to the other, his nose touching yours being the only indication that the two of you were even moving. The quiet room wasn’t silent enough, the beating in your chest too loud for your comfort, convinced that Junpei could hear the way he was making your heart jump. Attempting to break the ice, you open your mouth, closing it just as quickly when you see Junpei scanning your face, his eyes landing on your lips. He tenses up, watching the way it closes and seeing your lips subtly pout.

Seeing Junpei watch you with so much want, feeling his chest rise and fall unevenly on your back, this whole situation became overwhelming for you. Here you stand, a few moments ago trying to rid yourself of the jealousy that was clouding your mind, to now find yourself trapped against him. As close as you two are, it still doesn’t feel close enough. You slightly look away, overwhelmed. Noticing in the corner of your eye the gold sparkly bag making itself noticeable to you on the tabl besides the one with all the pictures.

Whether you were even looking for an escape from the situation or not, you took it, quickly removing yourself from Junpei’s hold. Your cheeks heat up as you shuffle yourself away from him, quickly turning and grabbing the gift back. A deep breath escapes your lips as you turn to him, ignoring the look of rejection spread across his face. You chuckle awkwardly, lifting your arms straight and pushing the bag into his chest.

“I got you something.” You announce too quickly, the sentence almost sounding like one word mushed together. Junpei blinks as he stares at the bag, hesitantly grabbing it and removing it from your hold. Whatever confusing feeling he had left for the time being as he opens it, pulling out the movie Killer Klowns From Outter Space disk.

“I thought you hated this movie.”

“I do. That’s why I’m giving it to you. You can keep it, you said it was hard to find a copy. My mom was gonna toss it anyway.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It was my dads. I would rather give it to someone who matters to me just as much than just throw it out.”

Junpei smiles, a soft “Thank you” leaving his lips while he pulls you in for a hug. You can’t move for a moment – nor speak. Just leaving one awkward situation where your bodies were almost too close for comfort right into another one. You slowly wrap both your arms around him, feeling his grip on you tighten.

While it no longer feels awkward, to deny you felt anything other than your stomach doing flips and feeling so at ease in his grip all at once would be a lie.

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[ckret2]

i personally think bill looks dashing in that tunic >:]

im excited to see that fic, have fun making it cause it's amazing so far. rip ford. LOL

Good, because here's the next part! I was gonna fully draw out Bill in his tunic again, but then I was like, no I'd rather do the fastest doodle possible so I can get this posted sooner. Sneak preview of a later scene!!

The masterpost of the full fic with every chapter so far is here!

Updated 7/29/2024 for compatibility with TBOB

####

"Mr. Pines! Watch out!"

Ford was turning to face his assailant when Soos barreled into him. They crashed into the glass souvenir case. Ford tumbled over it and to the floor, bringing a dozen jars filled with plastic aliens and lime jello with him. Soos felt the heavy glass sculpture slide down along the back, ripping through a layer of fabric. Aw. That was his best suit.

From the ground, Ford grunted, "Thanks." Stan rushed around the souvenir case to help Ford up. 

"Sure thing, Mr. Pines." Soos steadied himself, then face down the murderous tourist.

She was panting, still clutching the glass weight in trembling arms, one eye half squinted, face contorted in a hateful snarl toward Ford—before her glower fixed on Soos.

He returned the glare. "You! If you wanna get at either of the Pineses, you'll have to throw down with me!"

"Cute, a warm-up round! What the heck, why not." One corner of her cruel sneer quirked up. "I've got time to waste."

"Bring it on!" Arms outstretched to seize the tourist, Soos lunged for her with a roar.

And she vanished.

Soos crashed into the souvenir display beside the shop exit, knocking one shelf off the wall and dumping a pile of snow globes and hats to the floor. He looked around wildly. "What?"

Ford gingerly stood with one hand on Stan's shoulder for support and the other on the souvenir case. "Where did Bill go?"

Soos stared. "Bill?"

Ford stared back. "That was obviously Bill! Didn't you recognize his voice? What did his eyes look like?"

Soos's heart leaped into his throat as his adrenaline doubled. "Wait, that was Bill?!" All he'd noticed was that the "tourist's" voice was kinda nasally.

Before Ford could answer, the "tourist" reappeared, in the exact spot Soos had barreled through just a moment ago. Soos and the Pines flinched back.

Ford looked over the intruder's ridiculous purple pony-covered robe. "All right, I can see why you were distracted."

Bill cackled. "And it works on you, too!" He heaved the glass sculpture onto one shoulder, stumbled back a step under the weight, and chucked it toward Ford's head. 

"Duck!" Stan tackled Ford to the ground again. The sculpture shattered on the wall behind them. Soos lunged again for Bill, only for him to snap off his tape measure belt and vanish again before Soos's eyes—

—and instantly reappear across the room, holding a heavy replica diver's helmet made of iron. "I've gotta hand it to you, Stanley—" Bill grunted under the helmet's weight, "—you've got quite a toy collection!" He spun to build momentum before heaving the helmet toward Stan's face.

Stan caught the helmet, slowing it down enough to bruise his jaw rather than shatter it. He charged for Bill, who was still trying to regain his balance, with fist raised—"And your head's gonna be part of my collection when I'm through with you, you freak!"—only for Bill to vanish again.

And then the room dissolved into Bill-filled anarchy. Soos's view of Stan was blocked by two more Bills, one picking up a fake ancient clay tablet, the other weaving the other way to pick up the diving helmet off the counter where it had sat for years undisturbed. The pair flashed each other finger guns, then with a synchronized snap of their measuring tapes they disappeared. Meanwhile two more Bills appeared next to the taxidermy mermaid case, and with a laborious heave toppled it against Stan. One immediately vanished; the other paused to catch his breath long enough for Stan to shove off the mermaid and take a wild swing toward his face, but the punch only hit air.

"How's he doing that?!" Stan yelled.

"Time tape!" Ford said. "Dipper wrote about them in my journal! I—"

Another Bill appeared, swinging one of the Mystery Shack's novelty 8 ball-topped canes down on Ford.

Ford crossed his wrists over his head, narrowly catching the cane in the crux and diverting it to the side. Bill blew a raspberry in his face and disappeared again. Ford drew a futuristic space laser Soos did not know he had, and shouted, "I've seen similar devices before! While Bill's using time travel combat he can anticipate our moves and appear anywhere!"

Ford said the phrase with such conviction that Soos had to ask, "Is 'time travel combat,' like, a legit thing?"

"Yes! I've studied some myself—although I never progressed past a yellow belt."

"Dude."

As Soos surveyed the sea of Bills, he realized, to his horror, that Bill's now-removed time tape belt had been the only thing keeping his pony toga closed. He instinctively clapped a hand over his eyes when he caught sight of a sliver of skin exposed from armpit to foot.

"Oh, you've studied!" Bill's mocking laugh was a thin, strained wheeze. "Always the scholar! I'm self-taught. It makes me less..."

—a Bill appeared, tripped Soos, raised a hand just before another Bill appeared to throw him a clay tablet, and vanished.

"... PREDICTABLE!" Yet another Bill swung an 8 ball cane down at Soos with a grunt of exertion. Soos barely jerked his head out of the way. His ear rang from the crash of the 8 ball on the floor. "This—hahh... this thing's more durable than it looks," Bill panted, then vanished.

Stan shouted, "So what's the plan?!" He had resorted to standing in one spot, taking wild swings at any Bill he could see, forcing them back out of his striking range. Soos hadn't seen him land a hit yet.

"Converge on me!" Ford had never gotten out from behind the (now shattered) glass souvenir case, and was using it like a shield as he swiveled his laser toward any Bill that got too close. "Wall to your backs! 360 degree awareness!"

Soos got up on a knee. A snow globe thrown from the far side of the room hit his skull. He saw stars. "Ow?"

"Come on, move!" Stan jerked Soos up and dragged him toward Ford. Dizzy, Soos instinctively covered his eyes as more Bills flashed by.

When they finally shoved their backs to the wall behind the souvenir case, Soos cried, "That was the longest ten-foot run of my life! How do we fight a time traveler?!"

"For starters," Stan snapped, "You could try looking at him!"

"I'm sorry Mr. Pines, I can't help it! He's got womanly curves and that toga is really indecent!"

A cackle, "If I knew you were that easily distracted, I wouldn't have bothered with a toga at all!"

"My Abuelita raised a gentleman!" (Abuelita—she was probably still in the living room napping in her chair, just one door away from the gift shop. If Bill found her—)

Ford fired a futile laser shot toward the voice, then batted aside the Mr. Mystery bobblehead Bill had chucked. "He's very good at this—he hasn't accidentally appeared in the path of our counterattacks; he's improvising split-second stable time loops with his trans-temporal iterations—the sophistication of his chronological choreography—"

Appearing perched on the corner of the souvenir case with his legs crossed, Bill said, "Nerdy but flattering!"

The Pines started. At the sight of way too much leg, Soos automatically hid his eyes again. Between a crack in his fingers he saw Bill pull a novelty 8 ball cane from a basket with a dozen more and mutter, "It'll probably break after the first swing, but what the hey. Polo!"

A second Bill appeared. "Marco!" He threw the cane to himself without looking, the second raised it to prepare to hit an unseen target, and both vanished just in time for Ford's laser shot to harmlessly pass through empty air.

Ford groaned. "He's even timing his banter! This level of time travel combat is vastly beyond my expertise! We'd have to get lucky enough to wrestle the time tape away from him—but when he's got eyes on the battle from the past and future..."

Stan snapped his fingers in Ford's face. "He's bedazzling you with that gizmo, Poindexter! Forget the time travel. He's not using his space demon magic, his aim's terrible, and look at him—he's got little noodle arms! He can barely lift the stuff he's chucking. It took two of him to knock over the mermaid!"

"The mermaid case has wobbly little legs," Soos pointed out. "I've almost knocked it over by accident like a million times."

"And he's been outta breath since the fight started," Stan went on. "This weird time travel junk means he's been fighting longer than us, right? He's barely on his feet! I say we start swingin' like maniacs! It'll only take one good punch to lay him out, no matter what time he jumped in from!"

"You make an interesting point!" Bill said.

He was standing between the trio and the shop exit—face flushed, breathing heavily, sweat plastering his golden hair to his forehead and soaking the collar of his toga, arms trembling as he leaned his weight on the 8 ball cane. But he was still wearing his hateful, squint-eyed grin, like he'd just thought up some nasty new trick. "What can I say, I've always been more brains than brawn! But, consider this: what if I make ten of me, and we throw every single piece of junk in the room at you!"

There was a split second of horrified silence, broken only by the snap of a retracting tape measure.

And then the room was a storm of purple pony bedsheets hailing down cheap knickknacks. 

"Dudes, get behind me!" Soos protectively cupped his hands behind his head and turned his back toward the brunt of the projectiles to shield the Pines. Novelty keychains and out-of-date roadmaps pelted his back. "This is the most annoying fight ever!"

"Annoying—until a lucky throw concusses us! We have to retreat," Ford said. "Our only chance is to get somewhere he hasn't been yet and catch him the first time he comes into the room. Come on!"

He tore down a cheap tapestry to fling over the trio like the world's flimsiest shield. They charged first toward the museum entrance, veered away when another Bill chucked the invisible man's glasses through the doorway, and then turned toward the living room.

"No," Soos gasped, "This way!" He dragged the trio toward the vending machine.

Stan tried to yank away from him. "Are you crazy?! Lead Bill to all the dangerous science stuff down there?"

Soos was already punching in the vending machine code. "I'm sorry, Mr. Pines, but I'm not letting a crazy killer triangle get my grandma!" 

Ford said, "Even with the worst equipment in my lab disabled, the living room's still safer—"

There was a fourth person beneath the tapestry. "Peekaboo."

Soos and the Pines screamed. Bill grappled Ford and his teeth went for his face—Soos and Stan pried Bill off of Ford and flung him out from under the tapestry, and the trio barreled down the basement stairs.

They waited until the elevator door was closed and they were descending toward the basement before taking off the tapestry and heaving a sigh of relief.

"That was close," Stan said. "He didn't get you, did he?"

"No," Ford sighed. "Thank goodness for that."

Soos said, "Dude, wouldn't it be crazy if like, he bit you, and then you turned into a triangle?"

Stan and Ford stared at him.

"Heh. You know. Like a were-angle?"

Solemnly, Ford said, "Yes, it would be crazy." He turned toward Stan. "Anyway—you were right about his strength, Stanley. I've dabbled in my fair share of martial combat styles during my travels, and—well, if he's a black belt in time travel, then he has the hand-to-hand combat skills of a second grader. And whoever he's possessing, she's not terribly strong. If I'd had more free space to move, I probably could have broken his arm in three places."

"Whoa!" Stan laughed. "The next time he grabs you, I'll just back off and let you do your thing!" 

Ford gave him a wan smile.

The elevator stopped. Ford strode out first to check on the defunct lab equipment, followed by Soos; Stan emerged last, walking backwards, keeping an eye on the elevator as if he feared something would come out of it. "So," Stan said, "All we gotta do is stop him at the elevator before he starts pulling his time tricks in here, right?"

"Precisely," Ford said. "And, if we're lucky—"

"—I won't come downstairs an hour before you, right?" Bill said.

Ford and Soos whipped around. Bill stood silhouetted in the yellowy light of the open elevator, novelty 8 ball cane in one hand, pointing a familiar-looking laser at the back of Stan's head. Ford frantically patted down his empty hip holster, and sucked in a breath. Slowly, Stan raised his hands in surrender.

"Now I know why you're just a yellow belt, Sixer," Bill laughed. "You never learned how to cheat!" Bill had clearly taken the opportunity for a short break: he wasn't gasping for breath or dripping sweat anymore. But there was still a faint tremble in his arm as he held the gun up.

Ford began, "Bill..." 

"No talking, Stanford," Bill snapped. "I still remember what happened the last time we played 'hostage negotiator.' I'm not falling for your tricks twice!"

"Falling for my tricks?! After all that you—"

Bill's finger twitched on the trigger. The laser hummed, its lights slowly brightening. "What did I just say! No. Talking."

Ford stiffened, but clenched his jaw shut. Soos said, "I, uh... I think he's agreeing to your terms."

"Good." The laser slowly dimmed. Stan's shoulders sagged. Bill pointed, "You two—in the portal room. Stanley and I will be riiight behind you."

While Bill spoke, Ford tugged open a small drawer hidden behind Soos from Bill's view; but finding it had been emptied, he grimaced, exchanged a helpless look with Soos, and nodded. Reluctantly, Soos said, "Okay."

As Bill marched his prisoners into the next room, he prattled giddily, "Oh, this is too perfect! First I can take out the geek who killed me, the idiot he killed me in, and their giant baby; and then all I have to do is wait for the littler twins to get here so I can deal with them, too!" His laughed shrilly. "Then maybe I'll make upholstery from your hides! Hey, Fordsy—do you know how ancient Romans tanned leather?"

Teeth grit, Ford muttered, "I can guess." 

Dipper and Mabel were arriving that evening. If Bill stuck around that long, and found Abuelita... And if Melody came over for dinner... Soos shot a sideways glance at Ford. His face was red with rage, but he kept his gaze fixed forward. Soos prayed he was thinking of a plan.

There was nothing of the portal left but some mechanical rubble strewn across the cavern floor. Ford and Soos were feet from where the activation switch used to be before Bill called, "That's perfect—stay right there! You—go join them."

Stan's teeth were clenched and his fists balled, but he didn't turn to face Bill until he was standing at Ford's side. "You're nuts if you think you'll get away with this. It's three to one! Hit one of us and the others'll tear you apart before you can line up the next shot."

Bill cackled, voice high and echoing in the empty cavern. He twirled his novelty cane gleefully as he said, "Look who's never fought a time traveler before! You think you're facing one of me?" He carefully positioned himself directly in front of the trio, glancing down at the floor as if looking for the right mark to step on, and said, "You're already outnumbered. In a second I'll have a firing squad a hundred strong. You'll be shredded into flesh spaghetti! And me—" His gaze moved from Stan's eyes to Ford's. He raised his gun. "I'm gonna really enjoy killing you a hundred times in a row." 

He tightened his grip on the trigger. 

The trio braced themselves.

The laser hummed louder.

Bill hesitated.

He glanced from side to side. "Where are the other ninety-nine of me?"

And that was when fifty teenage twins crashed against his back like a tidal wave.

[jackiequick]

Operation Baby Rescue / Fast & Furious Fic 🏁 (Part 1)

-

Pairing: Deckard Shaw x Valentina Toretto

Fast and Furious fanfic

Setting: The Fate Of The Furious

Continuing to this fic 🏁

-

To say this wasn’t how she planned her week to go like this, was a understatement. One minute she’s doing a mission with her crew when suddenly her own brother turns to table, going completely rogue on them. How lovely—not! What made it even more or less weirder was that called to retrieve her playful Brit a week later, but before that she visited him, firsthand at the prison center for men like him. He walked in and sat in front of her, even in that jumpsuit he still looked amazing in her eyes.

She sat down picking up the phone on the wall, placing up to her ear, “How’ve you been, Deck?”

“Could be better. Hey, I’m sorry about what I did, you didn’t deserve that to happen. I’ll make it up to you, I promise.” Deckard said with his ear up to the phone letting out a sigh, and give a side smile with made her return the gestures.

“We talked about it. It’s the past Deck, we can’t change anything that happened. We gotta move from it, honestly we should’ve been honest with each other.”

“We made it a rule when we first started seeing each other at the vacation homes, to not mention too much or stay in the past, be in the moment. We’ve should’ve known better and talk about it.”

“You’re being too forward, do you know something I don’t? I swear to god Deck if you plan on—”

“Relax! Val, I know better than to break out of here to see you. I’m not mad at you and Owen is alive god knows where.”

“Good…I miss you.”

“I miss you too…say we share a bit, as soon as once I get out of here?”

“I’ll be sooner than you think.”

-

Sooner happened rather quickly, as Mr. Nobody waited outside the prison center that he had Valentina hijack into about a exact week later. The sounds of shouting, alarms ringing, things breaking and running could be heard from the other side of the wall. Val put a timer on the clock as Mr.Nobody smirked watching the scene take place on his handheld tablet. It was priceless, 4 minutes and 27 seconds later Deckard Shaw and Luke Hobbs came rolling in a fighting standoff ready to pounce at one another. “Not bad, gentlemen.” Said Mr. Nobody with a grin and satisfying nod explaining his job for both men while Val was biting her lips smiling at the sight.

At the facility where everyone met, Valentina stayed behind for a moment, stepping into the room where Deckard was fixing his clothes. She stood outside the doorway with a grin as she said, “Nice view. You look good.”

He turned around with a matching grin and he walked over to the girl. “You’ve haven’t seen me in a while, that’s why your eyes are staring onto my face.” He said in pride in his voice knowing it was true and he was staring into at his girl the whole time here.

“You really miss me?”

“You have no idea.”

“Then kiss me.”

“Is that request or a demand?”

“You choice whichever one you believe it is. I like to think it—”

Valentina wasn’t given a chance to finish her sentence as Deckard laced his fingers crossed the back of her neck as his lips crashed gently but quickly onto her. A surprise gasp escape from her before she kissed him back and wrapped her hand onto the small of his back. A deep breath was taken away from the pair and smiles were laced on their faces. Val pulled away chuckling, “That was-i didn’t expect to you do it.”

Deck laughed with his hands still rested on her cheekbones, “Would you have expected anything else from me? I am determined.”

“Oh i know how determined you can get. Remember our first date in Italy? You asked me out right on the spot that afternoon.”

“I’m a man who knows what he wants, love. And in this case, it’s you. I made you feel happy, didn’t i?”

“Yeah you did, you still do.”

“But no more, funny business from you or i might have to make you mine.”

“Make me you’re what?”

“My wife.”

Before Valentina had a chance to give good comeback, Mr. Nobody called them out. Or should i say, Little Nobody called them out to see the team. Val went first and meet up with her gang, her friends—her family. They all talked about the idea of Dom going rogue and how they can get him back, especially with Cipher being the target with Dom. Just then Deckard Shaw made his appearance as Roman, Luke Hobbs and Tej stood up ready to pounce at the man. Letty rolled her eyes grumbling in annoyance and Ramey stayed quiet in her chair with a slight glare. Little Nobody and Mr. Nobody explained onto why Deckard was here and how he can help them find Dom. Soon enough they all got to work.

—

Ramey, Tej and Deckard used their brains and witty to track down Cipher and Dom’s current location which lead to their facility that was blown up by their bounty. Dom and Cipher came in exploring as he blow up the walls, threatening the group, even kissing in front of Letty who glared in disbelief as she yelled out her husband’s name. Val was in shock and glare at the pair, shaking in her head in disgust and disbelief. Soon enough they all left having the group ears ringing and glaring at the job at the hand involving Dom. Val stood up next to Roman and Tej while Ramey tried again to find their nearest next location, Val smirked figuring out the placement before they said the word. New York City.

And they were off to New York City undercover in a stinky mess of a fish truck, it took them a few hours to get there but they did. Mr. Nobody had a surprise up his sleeves, a warehouse filled with cars, gears and weapons to be used once Dom was found. Roman kept asking for the pretty bright orange car but after some negotiations he settled for a white one instead. Little did they all know, Domenic had plans out his own for the gang, needing two of the players to do a underground job for him. Deckard and Val. He needed them to rescue his son, a small package but a loving adorable one that needed to be delivered to his safe house safely, at least until the job was done.

Dom appeared in New York with his connections from his past undercover to deliver the message to Val and Deck when ready. Santos and Deckard’s mother Magdalene "Queenie" Shaw. Mr.Nobody called them out to the streets with Little Nobody coming with them in his own car. Val was set in her velvet vehicle driving off with the team behind Letty and Roman, Hobbs in his own truck, Ramey and Teri paired up together in a comfortable spot with it their car and Deckard driving next to the center cars when he received a message on his phone from mother and Dom Toretto, not knowing about all of the job set in stone yet.

Soon enough they were off! All of them against Dom for a suitcase with expressed interest inside for Mr. Nobody. To say they failed was a understatement to say the least, as Letty ran out of her car towards Dom and the assistant for Cipher to followed Dom around. It was a sad argument between the husband and wife, Val heard it from her walkie talkie as she noticed Deckard and Hobbs running as well. She followed. Val slides over and under crowds, ending up in street nearby an alleyway when she saw it. Dom yelling as he shot Deckard in the side causing the man to fall onto the pavement. Deckard was faced down on the ground not moving as Val let out a whimper from her lips, tears held back with a anger washed over all of it.

Dom glares towards Deckard soften as he noticed her standing there, giving his baby sister a certain type of look. It was a certain look at Val knew very well in fact, her big brother Dom had a plan set in stone. The man always had a plan in mind. He wasn’t the bad guy here, he never was and he was just being manipulated into doing the dirty work for Cipher for a reason. She’s holding something against him, to make Dom work for her but he couldn’t say it to the team. Val face soften as she noticed his body language shift as he looked into his sister soul with a slightly bruised, stone cold face. It was like a bruised shoulder of a a look that gave Val the signal to wait for it as Dom ran off. Before Val can say a word and race after her brother, Hobb swooped her into his arms and carried from the horrific scene.

-

Hours past, the place was silent as the crew looked around in frustration, concern and confusion at what just happened. Hobbs watched Letty and Val with a careful eye knowing what Dom did must’ve sting. Roman wanted to rub Letty’s shoulder for comfort but didn’t know what exactly would happen if he did to that. Val left a note for Mr. Nobody and Hobbs saying she doesn’t know if she’ll return for a while, needing some fresh air. Val walked out of the facility, stomping onto the pavement noticing a truck across the street and hummed in confusion but curiously.

Walking up to the truck, a light smirk placed on her lips. Val noticed it was Santos at the wheel grinning at the girl.

“Linda! Girl where you’ve been?” He said calling her ‘pretty’ in Spanish, holding up a small note for her, “Here.”

“Of course you were recruited!” She replied chuckling while taking the note from his hands and reading it, “Holy shit..”

-

Thank you for reading it. That was part one. Remember like, comment and share if you enjoyed it! 🤞🏼

Tags: @gaminggirlsstuff @t-nd-rfoot @mandylove1000 @blueboirick @sherlkore @meirafireshield @hanlueluver @rooster-84 @xgoddessoffandomsx @gcthvile and etc

[gryphonlover]

Whumptober 2023 Day 1

Prompt: swooning

Victim: Sky

Words: 994

Notes: I'm hoping this is decently accurate, since I referenced a couple of first aid sites before writing.

I have a headcanon that Wild experiences seizures and the Sheikah have taught him how to handle them. That's why he knows what to do and why he's worried, because he knows that seizures have to do with the brain, which is kind of an important organ. The type of seizure that Sky is having is an atonic seizure, which basically just means that his muscles went slack and he was temporarily unresponsive to external stimuli.

It had been a rough day. They'd been forced to make camp earlier than usual because Sky was having a hard time breathing from all the tree pollen in the air and Wind had walked himself bloody. Again. The little stinker had the strongest pain tolerance out of all of them.

Four had reassured Warriors that he could take care of Sky. It wasn't that different from the times Red had needed to be calmed down due to a panic attack, and he could tell that Warriors wanted to take care of Wind. The two were very close, and while Warriors considered it his duty to take care of everyone, it was best if he got it out of his system sooner rather than later.

Besides, no one was dying, and—

Sky suddenly dropped into Four's lap and the smithy flinched in surprise. Sky had a tendency to fall asleep in the strangest places, but he always asked before using someone as a pillow. Maybe sitting down had been a bad idea, though.

"Sky?"

No response. Okay, that was not good.

Four hesitated, but then rested a hand firmly on Sky's shoulder, giving it a little shake. "Sky, are you okay?"

Still nothing.

Yeah this was bad.

Four pushed down his panic and reached around Sky to press a hand to his chest. He was still breathing and his heart was still beating, that was good.

He shifted a bit, and adjusted Sky the best that he could into the position that Warriors had drilled into their heads just in case someone ever fainted and he wasn't around to help.

He turned to look for Warriors, to see if he was still here and if he could ask him for help when he came face to face with Wild, who was now only 4 inches away from his face.

"Jeeze, Wild, give me a little warning next time!"

Wild blinked. "Sorry. What's up with Sky?"

Four took a deep breath to calm his spooked heart. "I don't know, he just suddenly fell into my lap. I thought that maybe he fainted from not getting enough air, but..."

Wild's gaze shifted over to the still knight, and he scooched over, poking and prodding in a manner that seemed to indicate that he was following some sort of protocol, but Four had no idea what he was doing.

Sky let out a soft, confused sound, and Wild patted his head. "It's alright, you're safe."

Four released a slow exhale. Sky was awake. Things were going to be okay.

Wild watched Sky intently as if waiting for something, then sat back on his heels after a handful of minutes.

"So, I'm going to ask you some questions, and you gotta answer them, okay?"

Four had no idea what he was going on about, so he just ran a hand through Sky's hair, letting the champion do his strange first aid.

"I... okay." Sky still sounded a little breathy, but he was no longer struggling for breath.

"First question, what's your name?"

Sky clearly felt as baffled as Four did, if the silence was any indication.

Wild's brows furrowed. "Come on, work with me here, man."

The silence stretched on and Wild's face grew even more concerned. "Oh crap..."

Four could feel his heart speed up again. "What?"

Wild's eyes didn't leave Sky's face, and he gently tapped him on the cheek. "Come on, featherhead, now's not the time to be having a seizure."

"A what?"

"A seizure, just—" Wild sounded stressed. "There's not really anything we can do until it passes. We're in the middle of the forest and none of us are doctors."

"What do you mean there's nothing we can do!?"

"I mean," Wild snapped back, "that this isn't something that's easily fixed. There is no cure, there is no medicine, there is nothing that can make it better. We just have to wait until it's over and then make sure he isn't confused or hurt or anything."

The little red part of Four's brain continued panicking, so he shoved it back, back, back into a dark corner where it wouldn't bother him as much.

"He won't..."

Wild took a deep breath. "To be honest, I think his breathing problems will kill him before a seizure does. Besides, he's one of us, he's gotta be pretty hard to kill."

Sky shifted, stirring listlessly and Wild's face lit up. "Oh thank Hylia."

Sky stared up at him in confusion. "When... when did you get here...?"

Wild smiled. "Not long ago. You had a bit of an... episode."

"Huh." Sky seemed to process the information. "What are we doing?"

"Well, you are supposed to be resting." Wild wagged a finger chidingly. "But before that, I need you to answer some questions."

"Why? What's wrong?" Sky struggled to sit up properly, still weak from not being able to get enough air. Four helped him up, propping the Skyloftian up against himself the best he could.

"Everyone is fine, I just need to make sure your head's working right now."

Sky squinted at Wild as if he was trying to see through him, then seemed to decide that whatever Wild was doing couldn't possibly be that problematic.

"Okay."

Wild ran through a list of questions that were really simple. He asked Sky what his name was, how old he was, where they were, what they were doing, things like that. Four didn't really understand why he was asking these questions, but he resolved to pull Wild aside later for a discussion on what had happened.

Once Wild was satisfied, he instructed Four to stay with Sky while he went and talked to Warriors and Time about what had happened.

Seeing Sky have that... seizure thing had been scary, but now that Wild had taught him what to do, he was more confident that he'd be able to help Sky if it happened again. Things were going to be okay.

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers CHAOS LINEAGE ー Laito [09]

ー The scene starts in the entrance hall of the Violet Manor

Yui: The inside of the manor’s in a much worse state than I expected...

Laito: Ahーah, the door’s been broken. I guess we can thank Ayato-kun for that? Who’s going to fix this, I wonder? 

Yui: ( It definitely won’t be Laito-kun, that’s for sure... )

Azusa: Eve, Laito...!

Yui: Azusa-kun!

Azusa: Are both of you unscathed...? 

Yui: Yeah, we’re fine. How about you...?

Azusa: I’m alright as well...The two of them left right away once they realized that you were gone...

Yui: I see. I’m glad you’re safe and sound...

Azusa: What about you, Laito? You didn’t seem to be feeling well...

Laito: All good! Seems like the fresh air really helped.

Azusa: I see...But don’t push yourself too much, okay?

Laito: Heeh...How kind of you to look out for me like that. As to be expected of my ‘big bro’~

Yui: ( Eh? Big brother... )

Azusa: Yeah...Family is important after all...Of course I’d be worried about you...

Ah...There’s something I need to tell you two.

Laito: Yes?

Azusa: Carla and the others have returned. 

When Carla heard about Ayato-san and Kanato-san’s attack on the manor...It got him thinking. He wants all of us to gather together and hear him out.

Kou and Subaru went out to look for you two, so they’re absent right now, but I’m sure they’ll return sooner or later...

I’ll go tell Carla that the two of you made it back safely, okay...?

ー Azusa leaves again

Laito: ...I see. He really lost his memories, huh? Calling me family.

Yui: Is that why you addressed him as ‘big brother’ earlier?

Latio: Yup, exactly. I figured I’d see it for myself. By the looks of it, the others as well...

Fake brothers...Huh?

Yui: ( I wonder what he seems to be pondering about...? )

Laito: ...Say, Bitch-chan? Shall we go back to my room for now until Kou and Subaru get back?

You must be exhausted after everything that went down, no? Let’s rest up a bit.

Yui: Ah, good idea.

Monologue

As soon as we arrived at Laito-kun’s room,

we fell into a deep sleep.

For Laito-kun, it was probably the backlash,

of retrieving his memories. 

While for me, I believe it was the sense of relief,

which ended up hitting me hard.

I completely lost myself,

in the first comfortable sleep I had gotten in a long time.

ー The scene shifts to Laito’s room

Yui: Zzー... Zzー...

Laito: She’s sleeping so defenselessly. ...I guess she finally let loose.

You were trying your hardest all by yourself this whole time, weren’t you?

So, I’llーー

Monologue

After resting up in our room for a bit,

Azusa-kun came telling us to come,

in a hesitant manner.

Apparently Kou-kun and Subaru-kun,

had made their return.

After quickly making ourselves presentable,

and rushing over to the living room,

the others had already gathered there.

With a stern expression on his face,

Carla-san addressed us in a solemn toneーー 

Carla: I was aware that the Orange House had been investigating our manor, however, I did not expect them to directly attack us.

Kou: For realー I was shocked when we came back and our door had been destroyed. 

Azusa-kun was in a state of panic and both Eve and Laito-kun were nowhere to be found. 

Laito: It all happened so suddenly, running was the only thing on our mind. Right, Bitch-chan?

Yui: Y-Yeah...

Azusa: Thank god you’re both safe...

Subaru: ‘Thank god’, my ass. What if those bastards come for us again?

Carla: There were only a small number of people involved in this conflict. On top of that, they chose to attack us directly.

While it is very much possible that those two came up with the idea for an attack themselves, rather than it being a direct order from Ruki...

Either way, I take this as a declaration of war. Let us go make quick work of those nuisances of the Orange House.

Yui: No way...!

Kou: The Orange House, huh? Honestly, I think Ruki, the oldest brother, will be the most difficult to deal with.

Subaru: Don’t be pissin’ your pants now! You just gotta show them who’s boss, no matter who your opponent may be!

Azusa: Everyone...Be careful not to get hurt, okay?

Yui: ( Carla-san has decided to actually make a move... )

( I can’t watch quietly as they wage war against Ayato-kun and the others...! )

Selection

→ Convince them (🖤)

Yui: Carla-san, won’t you reconsider!? Fighting is not the correct thing to do right now!

Carla: Your opinion is irrelevant. I am the one who makes the decisions.

Yui: But...

Laito: Lay it off. Carla’s word is law after all.

Yui: Laito-kun...

( But at this rate, Ayato-kun and the others will...! )

→ Keep quiet (♡)

Yui: ( Carla-san is serious about this. He actually wants to attack them. )

( Whatever I say right now, it’d be pointless. I can only keep quiet... )

Laito: ...Your expression gives it away. Come on, you have to act normal.

Yui: ( ...! Laito-kun... )

Yui: ( Right. Laito-kun has retrieved his memories. I’m sure he’ll help me out. )

( I hope I’ll be able to ask him for advice once we’re alone... )

Kou: Hmー? Did something happen with you two?

Yui: Eh? W-Why do you ask?

Kou: I mean, you’re looking at him so passionately. 

The two of you seem awfully close as well. Did something happen when you were being attacked by the Orange House?

Yui: ( H-He’s sharp... )

Laito: ...What a sinful man I am, attracting such passionate stares from the ladies~

Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to give you my full attention later.

Yui: ( L-Laito-kun!? )

Subaru: God, could you please not spout that bullcrap? Even Eve’s disgusted by it.

Oi, in what world do those two seem close?

Kou: Huh? Did I just imagine it?

Yui: ( T-Thank god...Seems like they won’t question it any further. )

Carla: Enough with the trivial chit-chat.

I want each of you to get everything ready to launch our attack on the Orange House. 

Laito, do not let Eve out of your sight under any circumstances. 

Laito: Rogerー You can leave Eve in my hands while you guys focus on the fight with the Orange House.

Good luck kicking their ass, okay~?

Yui: Eh...?

( I can’t believe he’s saying that when their opponent is Ayato-kun and the others...Those aren’t his true feelings, right? )

ー The scene shifts to Laito’s room

Yui: Haah...I was so nervous. Thanks for earlier, Laito-kun.

Laito: Hm? What do you mean?

Yui: You know, you covered for me when Kou was suspicious of us, remember?

Laito: Rather than covering for you, I just genuinely felt happy with the passionate look you were giving me~

Some things are more exciting when you’re being watched, no?

Yui: I don’t think so, I can say that much...

Laito: Oh geez, can’t you play along? We’re finally all alone, so let’s mess around a little~

Ah, could it be...You’re waiting for me to jump you? In which case, I better live up to your expectations~

Yui: N-No! I’m not waiting for anything!

( He’s still his usual self despite everything we were just told. )

( ...No, I’m sure that deep down, he wants to do something about it as well. )

( Ayato-kun and Kanato-kun are his brothers after all. )

Laito-kun, about earlier...

Laito: That you want me to assault you? Geez! So you’re in the mood for that after all.

Yui: N-Not that one! What Carla-san told us.

At this rate, they’ll get into a conflict. ...No, they might even fight to the death.

We have to stop everyone somehow...!

Laito: Ehー? I don’t see the problem?

Yui: ...Eh?

Laito: We don’t lose anything from Carla going to attack the other Houses, right? We should just let them do their thing.

Yui: B-But...Ayato-kun and Kanato-kun are in danger as well, you know!? Subaru-kun as well!

No, if it turns into a fight with the Scarlet House as well, then even Shuu-san and Reiji-san might...

Laito: I’m sure they’ll be fine. Shuu is surprisingly strong and even Reiji or Kanato will pull through at times when it truly matters.

Ayato-kun and Subaru-kun are combat-oriented, as you should be aware of, so they’re used to getting into fights.

You’ve got absolutely nothing to worry about.

Yui: But...

Laito: Not・to・mention...We’re Vampires, remember?

It takes a lot to kill us, so it’ll be fine.

Yui: Maybe, but...

( Is Laito-kun okay with it? Even though his own brothers might get hurt... )

Laito: More importantly, right now...

 ー He approaches

*Rustle* 

Laito: I finally got my memories back, so let’s spend some quality time together.

Yui: B-But, I just can’t sit here and do nothing when a war is about to break looseーー

Laito: Ehー? You don’t like getting affectionate with me? What a shocker...

Yui: N-No...! I don’t dislike it, if anything...

( I nearly admitted it out loud... )

Laito: If anything, what? I’d love to hear it directly from your mouth?

Yui: Uu...Like I said, now’s not the time for thatーー

Laito: How do you feel about my touch?

Yui: I-I like it...

Laito: Well done~

Yui: ( I can’t, he’s messing with my head. )

( Still, he might be glad to have his memories back, but to say such things at a time like this. )

( What has gotten into you, Laito-kun...? )

Laito: I better give you a reward for actually saying it out loud.

*Rustle* 

Yui: ( Ah...He’s holding me in his arms... )

Laito: ...Say, how would you like me to reward you?

I’ll give you whatever you want, whether it’s a sweet reward or a painful, pleasurable one. 

Yui: ( His breath tickles against my ear... )

Laito: Fufu, look at you blushing and squirming around...

You really are sensitive, aren’t you? ...Phewー...

Yui: Hyaah!

Laito: Your shoulders twitched just now. Did it feel that good? 

Then I’ll do it from this side next...Phewー...

Yui: Nn...

Laito: No need to hold back like that. Let me hear your voice like you did earlier.

Your sugary sweet moans, that is...Nn...

*Smooch*

Yui: Nn...Ah...

Laito: ...Nfu~ Such lovely cries.

I wonder what kind of sounds I can get out of you if I kiss you here? ...Nn...

*Smooch*

Yui: Ah...Nnh...

( He kissed my nape next...I have to be strong now, but my head keeps spinning more and more... )

Laito: Fufu...You’re making different sounds now, nice.

But the place where you want to get kissed the most...has to be your lips, right? ...Nnh...Nn...

*Smooch*

Yui: ...Nn...Phew...

( I know we shouldn’t be doing this but...I can’t help but give in to it... )

Laito: Just surrender yourself. You don’t need to rack your pretty brain over anything, okay?

Yui: ( His voice sounds far away... )

Monologue

He showers me with kisses,

always as if he was trying to prevent me from speaking up.

I cannot get a grasp on his true intentions,

as he told me we don’t have to pay mind,

to the situation revolving Ayato-kun and Kanato-kun.

Is he certain about everyone’s safety?

Or perhaps...

He simply does not care...?

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

[yellowmagicalgirl]

A discord server I'm in is gonna be deleted soon so I'm gonna start archiving AU's on tumblr. I will be more-or-less copying and pasting directly from discord, so excuse the typos. I made this one up back in August 2021.

AU where Krel, for some reason, goes to Earth without anyone else and something happens that breaks the ship and causes Krel to revert to his core. He lays there, dying, until Douxie finds him, picks him up, and accidentally transfers enough magic to Krel that 1) he can keep Krel alive and 2) the two of them can now telepathically communicate

However, Krel's just kind of stuck like that for a while bc the ship is so badly damaged that it'll take a while for Douxie to fix the ship in order to either call for help or just regenerate Krel's body, and Douxie can't fully bring back Krel

(Aja will probably show up sooner rather than later and once Krel is aware of her, he'll try to lead Douxie to her)

Also because the core already has a hole in it Douxie might gently but firmly tie a ribbon through it and wear Krel like a necklace under his shirt

Krel is very indignant about this at first, but he's gotta stay close to Douxie to be able to 1) communicate and 2) not die (though this would take way longer)

@MeMe said

If you drew this it'd be funny to like have Krel be like, what if he's like a "ghost" via his connection to Douxie but only Douxie can see him, so like he can emote and stuff to things but can't go farther than like 3 feet from Douxie Sassy ghost Krel I'm just loving the thought of Krel playing the sassy ghost sidekick that gets to shittalk about whoever Douxie is talking to and the poor lad has to fight to either not laugh or groan

(I chose to go in this direction)

Douxie's math grades at the academy inexplicably go up for the same time period as Krel being a sassy necklace ghost

@MeMe said:

Aw now I'm imagining like if Douxie wraps his hands around the core it feels to Krel like he's getting a warm hug Krel: what's in it for me if I help you on your work? Douxie, holding the core close: these hugs :3 Krel, blushing: Fine Douxie: also I'm sure you want something to do Krel: Seklos and Gaylen yeah if I wasn't already cheating death I'd be dead from boredom by now

Unfortunately good luck for if Douxie were to try and practice playing any love songs on his guitar bc his newest crush is perpetually 3 ft away from him

@MeMe said

And can read his mind

(Unless Douxie puts the core down and walks away to practice but then Krel might get grumpy about being stuck there w/nothing to do and no one to talk down)

@MeMe said

He's like "bitch you just SET ME DOWN like I'm just some SHINY THING YOU WEAR" Krel: I'm not an ANTIQUE Douxie: :confusion:

Krel might not be an antique but Douxie qualifies!

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #90

I'm not really sure what to write to you about today. I think I might have overextended myself in recent days, and once more I'm finding that my brain feels like soup. The sense of not really belonging in this place is hitting me kinda hard today, I guess. Suppose you would know a lot about what that's like.

Truth is, I struggle often enough with the way I perceive the world around me. I do it weirdly (much like how I do literally everything else... sigh...). I'm not gonna bother to articulate how, though; I doubt you'd be interested anyway. Fact remains that there ain't a whole lot of folks I can talk to about it; even if I could, most wouldn't understand, so why bother. Suppose it is what it is though; no sense in bellyaching. I just wish that it was a thing that could be measured, recorded, corroborated. Something that could be rationalized, explained, made logical. My mind tends to despise uncertainties; it likes everything to be concretized and nailed down.

…Ah well.

Like yesterday, today was busy, and also painful, thanks to Physical Therapy. There's weird stuff going on with the right side of my jaw, and the muscles holding it together needed to be mashed up with metal implements. I guess I'm gonna need braces sooner rather than later, because I really needed braces as a kid, but I didn't get 'em, and now my bite is all messed up, which means now my jaw is all messed up, and having the jaw messed up pulls on the neck, which then pulls on the ribs, and my ribs being weird is why I've been dealing with limited ability to use my right arm for the last almost two years to begin with, but I hesitate to get it fixed because braces cost a LOT of money, and I think most insurances won't cover the cost of it this late in life, so… it's a mess.

My whole existence is kind of a mess in a variety of respects, and… ya know. Sometimes I'm not sure why I bother persisting when all of it seems kind of like a farce; I live in a defective body on a dying planet where everyone is so traumatized that lots of 'em believe that killing each other is the answer to all their problems. Sometimes I just... don't wanna. Waking up in the morning in a world where there is no ethical way to maintain the integrity of my physical vessel seems like a chore.

…But then I remember that there are people who like having me around, even if I can't understand why most of the time. So I gotta believe that something good might come of my derping around on this mossy wet rock hurtling through space, even if I don't yet know what it is.

You ever get the feeling like there's something you're supposed to be doing, but you have no idea what it is, and you're running out of time? Feels like that almost constantly for me. If you know what that's like and know how to deal with it, lemme know, willya? I could use some pointers.

In the meantime… there's some stuff I've been meaning to learn how to do. I'm not gonna tell you what it is just yet, because it would ruin the surprise. But I hope the results will be good, if I can stop being intimidated long enough to get the gumption.

Anyway… Sephiroth. My brain continues to be soup. I think if I keep going, I'm just gonna keep rambling. I'm tired, but… I wanted to write anyway, because you're worth others' effort, even when they're feeling weird. But it's time to stop for today, because I'm having trouble staying on topic and stringing cohesive ideas together.

Please stay safe out there, okay? I don't wanna endure your absence, just like the folks who love me don't wanna endure mine. So let's both keep trying our best to keep our chins up and our eyes on the horizon, okay?

I'll leave you with this today:

I know you're not a little girl, so maybe you can think "little one" instead. Please take the overall message to heart. Please do your best to remain kind and gentle, no matter what tries to come along and break you.

I'll write again soon.

Your friend, Lumine

[blackjack-15]

okay i need to go the frack to sleep it is well into the am but i'm finishing this ep

sydcarmy scene still has me buzzin and by the throat, hand to heart

i'm prolly gonna go feral over the audio choices after i finish because i know myself but i gotta shout out to the music overlaying the sounds of the city and then on top of it clearly Sydney's voice ringing out and keeping order???

from stoppard's arcadia (sorry, was a lit major long ago) is this awesome quote "in an ocean of ashes, islands of order" -- that's what syd's voice over the chaos makes me think of; carmy's providing support, syd's providing structure; sure the restaurant's going through hell, but together they keep going

and it's a very good thing, because this episode does not pull the punch that carmy, left to his own devices, would be joining mikey sooner rather than later. he's doing what mikey should have been doing -- al anon, fixing The Beef, taking in the sunset in chicago. sugar's voicemail that it's mikey's birthday and that she's thinking of carmy is the last, most obvious piece of the comparison, and it's something that The Bear seems to specialize in -- the soft, understated scene with a dark undertone to it

each episode has gotten better, and this one is a clear favorite so far

and i'm really happy carmy hasn't found the envelope from mikey yet -- i don't know he could handle it right now, especially since a phone call from someone who didn't know mikey was dead was enough to majorly throw him off for nearly a full day

[ace-disgrace-on-the-case]

(I'm placing this here so as not to clog the rp blog, but it is relevant to the events unfolding there)

@is-the-battlemech-cool-or-not I know you expressed interest in the events that have been going on for the past few days (and will continue for a while longer) eventually becoming something of a group-authored fanfic. I decided to take a crack at what that might look like and concatenated the events of one of the scenes from a few days ago (the bar meeting) into a single, readable chapter. It's a bit difficult given the mediums are different, and there was some overlap to untangle between conversations different characters were having at around the same time, but I think I've put something together that makes it cohesive and contains as much as possible of everyone's writing.

If this works, it should be a great way to bring everything together! I've included it below the read more for your reading pleasure.

This is still a rough draft, so I do apologize for that, but let me know what you think!

Melissa, in her SLDF dress uniform, walks into the bar of the Unity City Grande alongside Karrie DeLacey. The Marten-Steiner siblings notice an immediate commotion as every SLDF soldier in the bar stands instantly to attention, remaining so until Melissa salutes the officer nearest her and says, "At ease."

She shakes her head in amusement as the two newcomers walk over to Theodora and Dieter at the bar.

"We are here," Melissa says to the two possibly-former Steiners.

Theodora stands, offering a handshake. She's wearing her LCAF uniform, but with any patches and insignias removed. Without it all, the uniform looks empty; nothing more than a cobalt tunic and white pants, with empty rank epaulettes on the shoulders.

"Greetings, Melissa. It's good to see you."

"Good to you two as well," Melissa says. "I apologize for causing this to occur," she says solemnly.

Theodora waves her hand, as if to swat aside the general’s words. "You made this happen no more than I did. The Archon chose to revoke my nobility, so the blame lies with her, and her alone."

Dieter, however, merely nods, eyes fixed on Melissa's new rank. He's obviously distressed, but he's trying to hide it. After a moment, he snaps out of it, looking to Karrie.

"And you'll be Ms. DeLacey, I suppose?"

"I should be Ms. DeLacey, last I checked!" Karrie quickly adds. "And I do offer you my condolences again. Fucked up that they decided to hit you like that for doing the right thing." She shrugs. "Nobles."

Dieter chuckles, shoulders sagging.  "Indeed. My cousin has always been... a stubborn woman, but I hoped I could make her see sense. I maintain my noble status for now, but news of my involvement will reach her sooner rather than later, then it will be done for me." A savage gleam enters his eye. "Lucky for me, I've been preparing for something like this to occur."

“I don’t know what kind of promises I can make but if you ever want some help with that sort of thing, ha… you know how to find me is all.” Karrie pats Dieter on the back in a rough gesture of affection. “But cheer up, my noble friend! That’s tomorrow’s nonsense! Tonight’s is drink.”

Dieter holds up his half-empty glass, giving a wry grin. "Amen to that. What's your flavor? I'm buying tonight."

"Oh! Right, thanks." Karrie glances over at the bar for a moment. "If they do those here I like a Dark and Stormy. Bit of rum, bit of ginger beer, and a lime. It's a nice change of pace." She points at Dieter's glass. "And you? Someone of your means's gotta be drinking something interesting."

"Tonight? No," he says, taking another drink. "Tonight the only objective is get shit-faced, and do it quick. To that end, I've got the bartender coming over with a new glass of Glengerry Reserve every five minutes. Eventually, I fear I'll just have to buy a fucking bottle service, 'cause he came two minutes ago and I'm already done with this one."

"Does being a Lyran come with an iron liver or is that an acquired skill?"

"An acquired skill, gained over years of dealing with politicians, morons, and a sister with a death wish."

Theodora nods and gestures to the empty chairs at the table, opposite her and Dieter. "Please, sit, order something. We must celebrate your promotion, no?"

"I suppose we should," Melissa says, sitting next to Theodora. "But before we do that," she says, smiling with her voice, as even her somewhat modified beak makes that expression physically difficult, "here." She pulls out two small grey velvet boxes.

One she places in front of Theodora. Theodora pauses, poking at the box as if it's likely to explode. "Thank you for this gift of... a box? It's not going to blow up if I open it wrong, yes?"

"Neg, Theodora," Melissa giggles. "Just open it." She places the second box in front of Karrie.

"Shit, me?" Karrie says, taking it. "Damn, I must be magestrix of the universe or something the way everyone's being so nice tonight." She flashes a sly grin, looks to Melissa one more time, and opens the box.

Inside are the twin sapphire rank bars of an SLDF Warrant Officer.

"They are yours, should you want them," Melissa smiles. "You would be both a MechWarrior as a member of my Command Supernova Trinary, and the Chief MechTech for the Regiment.

 "I have seen enough, and heard enough, about your handywork and 'Mech skills to know you would excel at both at once, let alone either on its own... You need not say aff immediately, Karrie. But do think it over tonight. It would come with more than just rank, of course."

Karrie stops trying to cheer up Dieter for a moment and stares in shock. She's hard to read; her body is tense, but her face is pensive, almost wistful. Finally, she manages to speak. "I...I don't know what to say, Star Captain. That's a big offer for someone like me. I'm flattered. Just—completely floored flattered." Her drink arrives along with another of Deiter's glasses of liquor, and she takes a steadying sip. The expression on her face is strange; Melissa can’t quite tell if she’s crying, but she’s certainly staring at the sapphire bars like her life depends on them.

Theodora opens her own box, though she does so carefully, still not entirely convinced of the box's non-explosiveness. Dieter also braces somewhat, as if he expects the box to spontaneously combust.

Inside are two sets of twin emerald "bar and dot" rank devices - the rank of SLDF Major.

"They are yours, if you wish," Melissa says. "And technically, it's a promotion. I cannot have my prospective Nova Captain outranked by actual Captains, quiaff? It would come with more than just the rank, of course. You may not be Lyran nobles any longer, but you can be Star League nobles."

For a moment, Theodora, too, is silent, eyes fixed on the emerald insignias, running her hand through her hair. Before the moment becomes awkward, however, her training kicks in, and she straightens, snapping a crisp Lyran salute.

"I'm honored, Commanding General. I accept."

Melissa salutes back, the casual salute of an officer returning a subordinate's gesture. "Now then, Major Marten-Steiner. Theodora. We have several things to discuss. Firstly, you'll need a new paint job on your Atlas. How does SLDF Green and Black Watch tartan sound to you?"

"It'll suit me just fine, sir." Theodora pins the rank badge in place, straightening it to parade-ground perfection. "So, what's the plan? Given your shiny new rank, I suppose it's to be total war?"

"Indeed. I am told the First Lord will be issuing our orders within the day. The SLDF will deploy. Before that, however, we must attend to more personal matters," she says. "We need to refit, reprogram, and re-serial your Atlas, get you your new uniform, and most importantly, get you your new citizenship. You and your brother," she says, looking over to the still drunken Dieter, before smiling and looking back at Melissa. "And please, Theodora, just call me Melissa."

"Yes, sir. Er, Melissa."

Dieter points at Melissa, brows creased. "First, we're drinking. You're a damn general, now. And that's worth celebrating," he grins. "Unless, of course, the great Commanding General is too good to drink with us lowly soldiers and diplomats?"

"Absolutely not, Dieter," she says, sitting down at the bar. She waits for a bit, letting Karrie think, sipping her own pint of Timbiqui Dark, conversing with the bartender, who seems at once terrified, starstruck, giddy, and incredulous at just who he's suddenly serving beer and bar snacks to. Eventually, looking over at the still staring Karrie, she chuckles.

"Terra to Karrie? Terra, calling Karrie... Are you all right, Karrie?"

Karrie starts. “Blake’s sake! Scared the shit out of me.” Her face immediately twists into a shape of regret as she remembers where she is. “Oh! Shit, that’s…that’s not proper decorum at all, I’m so sorry about that.” She takes another sip from her drink and shudders.

“I’m…gonna have to think about it, Star Captain. It’s a lot to take in, is all.” A half-hearted look of mischief crosses Karrie’s face. “Tell you what: we both survive this, Star Captain? I’m yours,” she says, draining the last of her cocktail and looking around for someone to ask for another.

"Very well, Karrie," Melissa says. A look of contradictory, dead-serious mischievousnesa crosses her avian features before she continues, "I'm still making it temporarily official, though. I need a good MechTech and pilot to back me up. And you're much better than just "good", from everything I've heard. We'll need to talk about getting your Awesome up to SLDF standards. That means a full teardown and rebuild if needed. And she will get a new paint job. We will need jump jets as well."

"And it's General now, Karrie," she chuckles, switching to a more lighthearted tone. "Great Father's bones, don't make me remind you every time, quiaff?" she continues, mock-exasperated, handing her new cocktail.

“General! Agh, I—sorry about that. Won’t forget again!” Karrie laughs. “In that case, General, I just hope I’m every bit the woman you’re counting on.”

She lifts her glass in the air. “I think we’ve all got something to toast to, then,” she says, elbowing Dieter out of his drunken stupor. “To…something new! Whatever it’s gonna be. And to friends!”

"To new adventures, and new friends!" Melissa toasts.

[razzek]

Saw this kind of post expressing a thing I see rather a lot online and since my knee hurts so bad for no reason I can't sleep I may as well respond to it here.

In just about every fandom space, sooner or later there's always that one person who doesn't like a thing or a fellow fan and in their screed against whatever they say something like "I'm a survivor of x bad thing" as this weird justification for their arguement. And look, my guy. My dude. You gotta stop with that shit.

Before I go any farther I wanna say that whatever happened to you, yeah that sucked. I've been there too. It's a bad feeling, especially when you're young and it just starts to hit you how bad it was. That's a lousy feeling and a real hard place to be. And you're trying to deal, trying to figure out how your world that is functionally the same as it always was is suddenly contorted around the awful thing. And suddenly something you like or some asshole you've never met blunders into that new raw wound and you freak out. I get it. It's hard being in that place in life. It hurts, it makes you mad, and it's so damn unfair that you can't fix it or make things go back to before you knew. For what it's worth, I'm sorry that happened to you. Shit sucks big time.

However. You are not the only person on earth who was hurt in whatever way you're hurting. Your trauma does not make you an expert on the matter and your hurt does not excuse you when you use it as a bludgeon to try and force people to your side through guilt. That thing that makes you feel uncomfortable and weird all of a sudden? Maybe that's the only thing that got someone who went through exactly what you did through this awful period of realization. And maybe it's all just a joke to some strangers online you'll never meet. You will never really know. It's still a dick move to try and force everyone in a room to do what you want through this guilt trip tactic. For one thing, you're almost certainly hurting someone you have more in common with than not. For another, if you don't care enough about strangers to respect that they feel differently about something than you do, why do you think they give two shits about your feelings? It sucks to find out this way but in most fandom spaces, nobody cares how you feel, and they really don't care when you're a total stranger barging in yelling that they should feel bad because something they like made you, a total rando, feel bad.

tl,dr: Using your trauma as a blunt force instrument to try and get your way is not going to work out how you want and it's a pretty good way to give others a stick to hit you with.

[aberrant-webnovel]

Chapter 5 - A Kind of Guy

Content Warning: Needle used for medical injection

Chapter 5 - A Kind of Guy

"I can't believe Auntie really broke three of your ribs just to prove a point."

Silva stood at my side, looming over me and studying my bruises.

I laid in a bed in one of the medic offices. I'd been brought here after my "final test" to get an examination for injuries. I was stripped of my shirt and helped into the bed by Silva. She never left my side after I got beat.

Time to see how the Vault Breakers take care of their own, I guess.

The one door in the room creaked open and in walked a tired man in a lab coat. Dark brown hair, tan skin, hazel sunken eyes, rough stubble, and deep laugh lines creasing his face. He held a clipboard and flipped through the sheets on it.

"Ymir Sorenson, you got off light. Heard the Chief even removed her limiter to give you a beatdown. Surprised you don't have any ruptured organs. Just minor internal bleeding and your broken ribs. Should be a quick fix."

He walked slowly to a swivel chair next to a desk in the corner of the room as he spoke. Once he sat down, he turned away from us and then pushed himself backward until the chair rolled over to the bedside. Then he swiveled to look at me.

"We'll have to give you one of our lower grade stims for a quick fix. You're supposed to start training in a few days and this won't heal naturally in time if we give you a civilian procedure. You're also not augmented so a stronger stim isn't advised. The more you integrate tech into you, the more you need."

"Heard those stims of yours just start repairing you on the inside the second you get it. That true?"

"Yeah, kinda. It's an injection of nanites, really. They're designed to mimic your blood cells, no matter your blood type, and then travel through your system to locate damaged areas. They'll then seep into those areas and start to piece back together torn tissues and repair bones as well. Should take about two days to fix you up entirely with this stim. It's tech from a Vault that we got maybe some forty years ago."

"Sounds pretty cool, really."

"Yeah, it's pretty cool."

The doctor smiled at me with a chuckle. A nice smile. Felt friendly. Warm.

Silva then asked a question.

"Um..? That's really all the damage that happened, though? Just a few ribs and some bleeding?"

"Bruising, too."

"That's not what I mean."

"Sorry. But look, this kid is tough. Last person to fight the Chief hand-to-hand was augmented and still ended up needing to go out on a stretcher. Both of his lungs got ruptured and his femur was snapped. Either she still held back or Ymir here is a monster like the rest of the Sorenson bloodline."

"Auntie Harper really did that to someone?"

"Huh? Yeah, it was routine training but a Runner got a little too excited and challenged the Chief. She hates cocky Runners so she beat him and shipped him off to my office. But wait, Auntie Harper? Who are you?"

"Oh! Sorry, I'm Silva Dirge. Varun Dirge is my father."

"Really? Varun's a good friend. I'm glad to meet his child. I'm Doctor Eugene Atom."

"Atom? So are you related to the Founder?"

"That's right. But he lived a long time ago. And my family isn't as dedicated to the Vault Breakers as both of your families. I'm just a D-Ranker in the Medic Corp."

"Even still, it's nice to meet you, Doctor."

"Likewise."

Eugene turned to look over my bruising and then address me.

"I'm sure you want to get fixed up sooner rather than later. I'll prepare the stim and then return. Sit tight for a bit, yeah?"

He stood up and slowly sauntered out of the room, the door creaking as it shut behind him. Someone should replace the hinges.

"So, you're a C-Ranker then?

"That's what Auntie said. Still gotta put it in writing somewhere, I think. I actually have no idea what to do after this."

"You're the first in history, you know."

"That's right."

"Don't let it get to your head."

"I won't."

"I know you won't. You're not that kind of guy."

"Oh yeah, what kind of guy am I?"

Silva pulled the swivel chair over to the bedside and sat next to me. I saw her grow a warm smile as she looked at me.

"You're the type of guy who always thinks he's not doing good enough, but really you're doing a lot better than everyone else. You just do things better that others don't think about. You're better at paying attention, understanding other people, and lots of stuff. Not to say you fall behind everywhere else, either. You might be average at doing a lot of things, but that should be good enough.

You're also the type of guy to spend an extra three years studying to get into the Vault Breakers because you thought you couldn't do it at the age your dad did. Everyone knew you'd make it in once you tried, but instead you showed up more prepared than any civilian ever has been for the testing."

"Hey was that teasing?"

"A bit. But you still did that. And it's something I'm proud of you for."

"Says the Amazing Silva. When did you start training enough to handle that test in the pool? I know we were both beaten up by those waves, but you really pulled through better than I thought you would."

"A year ago, maybe. Auntie Harper started training me a bit. Nothing too serious since I didn't want to fight once I enlisted. But she still thought I would need another year of training. I snuck out to enlist with you once I heard you were going to give it a shot today. I thought I'd have a decent chance if we went together."

"I feel like having you here for this was what I needed, too. You always pull through for me, Silva. I rely on you a lot."

"Exactly."

The door creaked open again and in walked Eugene. Silva started to stand up from the chair, but the doctor gestured to her and stay.

"No need to rise for me. I'm going stand up while treating the patient, anyway."

I laughed a little bit at his mild joke, but my body felt a sharp pain spread rapidly from my chest. I coughed twice, which didn't help the pain, but then calmed myself.

"Whoa now, don't do anything to hurt yourself. I've got the stim here. I went over your data that we got in your testing and cleared you of any risk with this treatment. After I give this to you, I'll need to keep you here and examine your reaction just to be sure. Give it twenty minutes, then I'll send you home. Most of the repairs occur while you sleep so just get a bunch of rest and drink water at home. Sound good to you?"

"Sounds great, Doc. I'll be sure to take it easy."

Eugene approached the bedside and started to examine my arm. He gripped it and started tapping around with his free hand. He was looking for a vein. Then I saw him pull out a silver container, about the size of a cigarette case. He opened it, removed a short plastic cylinder, and looked at it closely. I didn't know what he was checking, but as long as I was safer because of it, then keep doing what your doing Doc!

"Alright, this here is the stim I'm gonna use. You're gonna feel a pinch once I inject it."

Eugene pulled off a cap from the injector to reveal a small needle. He prepared my vein to receive the injection. Then I felt the pinch.

A half-second of pain and then nothing. I watched the injector drain of fluid. It wasn't much at all. Will it really be enough?

"Okay. We're all done."

Eugene removed the needle and swabbed the spot with alcohol. A small bandage was placed on it right away.

"I'll be finishing some paperwork at my desk. If there's no issues in the next twenty minutes, come see me and I'll just have you sign out of treatment. All costs are totally covered for Vault Breakers, by the way."

"Thanks, Doc."

"Silva, you can keep the seat for now. I've got another chair in here somewhere."

With that, I watched him walk over to his desk area and pulled a foldable metal chair out from behind a cabinet. Can't be comfortable, but I guess he's a really nice guy for choosing that seat over his normal desk chair right now.

"Hey, Silva. When are you supposed to get your results?"

"Oh? I didn't tell you, I guess. Commander Vasquez let me know that I've been evaluated as an E-Ranker. I'm going into the R&D corp."

"Yeah? That's great! We'll have to celebrate once I heal up."

"Oh that sounds great. You and Auntie Del should come over for dinner."

I talked with Silva for a bit about this and that. Some things we haven't been able to catch up about yet. We see each other frequently, but we both have our own lives still. We both study all the time. Both of us because of our passions. That becomes a lot of what we talk about.

Twenty minutes went by in a flash. I didn't feel any weird side effects from the stim at all. Moving around still hurt. It was obvious that I wasn't going to have fully repaired ribs in twenty minutes. But something surprised me.

All the bruising on my body had disappeared. I didn't see anything wrong with me on a surface level. This stim stuff is crazy!

Silva helped me up from the bed and over to the desk. Walking was actually pretty awful.

"Hang on."

Silva left my side and went out of the office. She came back pretty quickly, dragging a wheelchair.

"Don't push it. For today, I'll help."

"Y'know, that sounds like a good idea."

I waited for Silva to bring the chair over and I sat down. I got my feet up on the rests just fine and sat in the most comfortable way I could fit.

The chair wasn't the best seat. It was a general use one that the Medic corps provides for patients. Still, it beat walking home with broken ribs.

Silva pushed the chair and walked us over to the desk. There I saw Eugene scribbling through various forms on his desk. He didn't look up at us right away.

"No issues since you took the stim, I take it?"

"Nothing. My bruising is gone already, though. Is that normal?"

"Not normal. Let me see you."

Eugene was seemingly shocked by my answer. He shot his head and looked over at me. I still hadn't put my shirt back on. Figured he might wanna see the bruising, too.

With a few invasive pokes and prods, he checked over my torso and didn't find a single bruise. He tested some of the areas that he remembered were especially dark with more pokes.

"No pain in these areas?"

"Well when you poke me a bunch, my ribs still hurt. Other than that, I don't feel the bruising."

Eugene sat back on his metal folding chair and closed his eyes. He hung his head back and remained silent for about a minute.

"Come back once you're fully recovered. Even if that's before your training day."

"Something wrong, doc?"

Eugene lowered his head back down and looked me in the eyes.

"I don't know yet. Bruising should have gone away after a few hours. I was expecting it to take until the evening. Especially with how badly you were beaten. I need to see about running some tests. I'm gonna be running this through the Chief directly."

"Well, uh, yeah. I can be here once I'm healed. You sure I'm fine to leave?"

"Can't hold a patient for healing fast. Plus you should get going home, yeah? I'm sure you need to tell your family about today."

"Sure thing, Doc. Thanks for taking care of me so far."

"It's what I do. Oh, and please sign over here."

I was handed a clipboard with a blank sign-out sheet. I filled in my name and the time of my departure.

Silva had walked away for a moment and came back with my shirt. I slipped it on with some discomfort, but easily enough. We both said a goodbye to Eugene before Silva wheeled me out of the office and into the hall.

We chatted while she walked us both through the Medic corps building. She took us towards a connecting hall to the main building.

This place is really built like a bit of a maze, but most things are pretty easy to find if you familiarize yourself with the layout. It's almost like this place was designed with a Vault layout in mind. Keeps the Runners and Scouts on their toes.

Silva has been here plenty of times with Uncle Varun. She always told me that they'd hide away in one of the labs and look at crazy things that were being researched. She never met people since Varun was breaking so many rules by doing that. Silva had no problems telling me all about it. We kept all of each others secrets.

Finally we arrived at the main building. We left out the entrance together. Time to go home.