#he severely hurt his back and we had to go to the ER and it wasnt til hours later that i was like.

[genekies]

screaming, tearing my hair out, sobbing face down on my bed

[alastor-x-reader-stories]

"Bite Me" - Alastor x Reader - Part 2

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You....really shouldn't have bitten Alastor.

It was a threat, yep, and the guy did need to learn his actions had consequences, but...er. Was that really worth this?

The Radio Demon had practically been your shadow for the past week. His expression never changed, his tone never shifted. You were like, 90 percent sure he was thinking of the best way to kill you for maximum pain.

Pain wasn't good. You were allergic to it.

...That line usually got a chuckle out of whoever heard it, or in your case, whenever you thought it. However, this time, it didn't quite tickle your funny bone as it usually did.

Because Alastor was standing right there.

And staring at you.

In your goddam bedroom.

"....Hi." You said, chewing on your bottom lip.

Alastor's gaze darted for a second to your lip, then back to your eyes. And he said nothing.

"...Did you need something?" You said.

He continued to stare at you, unblinking.

You sighed "Listen, if you're going to kill me can you just hurry up already? I'm sure it beats how awkward this is."

Other than the slightest twitch of an ear, he still didn't respond.

You huffed, narrowing your eyes as a growl permeated through the air. "At least say something!"

He didn't.

"OKay, fine!" You snapped, throwing your hands up in the air. You crossed them over your chest with a pout, giving Alastor a mean side-eye. "Keep standing there doing nothing. I guess I could use a new hat rack anyway."

"...You don't have any hats?" He said, tilting his head to one side.

"I'll get some so I can justify having a hat rack." You said, tail flicking.

"Mhm... So, how sincere is this threat?"

"What?"

Alastor straightened his posture, taking a couple long strides to stand right at your bedside. "You make a lot of threats, my dear. And I've only ever seen you carry 1 out."

"Usually people listen to me." You said, rolling your eyes.

"So you've never actually follow through before?" He tilted his head to the opposite side than before. His grin seemed to stretched a bit, ears becoming less stiff.

"Does that make you happy?" You said, turning to face him "That you're the first idiot who made me actually do something?"

From how he practically beamed you can only assume it did. You sighed, flopping down onto the bed on your side. The intent was to ignore him until he got bored and went away or got sick of you and killed you.

Instead you found a shadowy tendril wrapping around your middle, rolling you onto your back. Alastor grinned down at you, his body a perfect 90-degree angle bent at the waist.

"I'm the first one you've bit?"

"...Yeah?" You said, raising an eyebrow. "I mean. I think I bit people when I was little and pretending I had rabies, but not really intending to hurt them..."

His grin widened. "How did I taste?"

...

"What."

"I want to know. How did I taste?"

Oh right he was a cannibal. You grimaced internally. Was that just something cannibals got giddy about? 'Hey I'm the first person you've eaten hurrah!'

The tendril around you gave a firm squeeze. You sighed and met Alastor's crimson eyes, giving him a flat look of your own.

"Dry and tough- like badly made jerky."

He laughed. "Well, of course! You bit into my jacket! Silly creature, you."

"....Well, you asked."

"That I did, that I did." Alastor hummed. He tilted his head too far to one side, leaning in closer to you "Would you care for a taste without my jacket?"

"No." You responded curtly.

The silence was palpable. Neither of you broke eye contact or changed your expressions for several moments. Those moments seemed very, very long.

His eye slowly twitched up and his ears dropped ever-so-slighty-

"Hm. Well, it's not like you'd manage that anyway."

"Probably not. Are we done?"

Another beat of silence passed before the shadows tendril dissolved into mist and Alastor was standing up straight again.

"Now, I wouldn't say this matter is done, but I suppose it could wait."

You sat up, staring at him. The more you stared, the more his eyes couldn't seem to decide on what to focus on. Was he...nervous?

That encounter didn't go anywhere else significant. He simply said a farewell and left you to your own devices.

===========

Your eye twitched as you took a long, deep breath.

Alastor was being so horribly, horribly annoying.

The last couple days he resumed his role as your shadow, but this time solely with the task of irritating you. He'd chew loudly, he'd step in an off-rhythm on purpose, he'd claw the surface of things you couldn't stand the sound of and it made your ears hurt and your jaw ache from how much you were grinding your teeth.

You had enough.

"Will you LEAVE ME ALONE!?" You snapped at him. He didn't so much as flinch, simply tilting his head and he leaned closer to you.

"Or what?"

"I'm going to shove your hooves so far up your ass you'll be coughing up horseshoes for a week-"

"I'm a deer, not a horse." He said, eyes crinkling up in amusement at your 'threat'.

You hissed out an agitated breath before taking a couple deep, long breaths and you felt your jaw lax (a little) and your temper die down a bit.

"...Yeah, you're right." You said after a moment "And I'm sorry. I didn't really have much of a reason to snap at you like that."

His eyes narrowed and you couldn't be bothered to wonder why. You said a curt goodbye and meandered off, feeling his eyes trained on your retreating form. You couldn't be bother to think about that, either.

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

Hi it's me the writer. Letting you all know that this is not planned in the slightest and i'm just winging it. No smut will happen EVER though because I don't wanna write it. So kindly look elsewhere if that's what you want. I will put a poll here though with considerations for potential next installment

[sp0o0kylights]

Steve and Gareth as cousins warm up, part two! 

First part is HERE. 

Next part is HERE. 

Reminder: Someone on Twitter proposed Steve and Gareth as cousins whose family had a major falling out, and then someone else brought it up recently and long story short no idea who to credit the idea too bc you can’t search for SHIT on Twitter but it's theirs not mine.

Warnings: Steve and Robin Get (canon-S3) Drugged. 

"I'm just saying the other theater is cheaper." Eddie said around the straw jammed in his mouth. 

He carried the largest bucket of popcorn Starcourt’s movie theater offered, alongside the two boxes of candy he'd also demanded Gareth buy him. 

"Easier to sneak into, you mean." Gareth corrected, with his significantly smaller bag of popcorn. His, he planned to share with Jeff, Grant having snuck in his own food. 

Gareth himself would have snuck in the cheaper (and far larger) snacks, but Eddie had thrown a fit about going to the mall to see a new movie instead of Hawkin’s far older theater. 

Of course, the older theater also had several disadvantages, key of which was terrible seating, and so, Gareth had bribed him with whatever treats he wanted. 

His wallet took a hit but fuck it, at least they got to actually see the screen. 

Not that they even made it into the fucking theater, because someone chose that moment to crash into Eddie. 

Popcorn kernels and soda flew everywhere, with Eddie only avoiding it landing on him and Gareth both by years of dealing with this exact bullshit in school. Of course, the mall wasn’t school, and neither of them had their guard up. 

"What the hell man--" Eddie spat, immediately on the defense, as they both turned to see what jackass wanted to cause problems this time. 

Except Gareth had recognized the person who bumped him. 

"Steve?" Gareth asked, causing  his cousin to totter around and face him. He was in his Scoops Ahoy uniform, which remained to be absolutely ridiculous, but that hadn't been what had drawn Gareth's attention. 

No, that would be the absolute wrecked face staring at him with a doped up grin. 

All thoughts of the movie immediately faded away. 

"What happened to your face!?" Gareth demanded, immediately stepping up into his cousin's space, eyes darting over the damage. 

Recent black eye, split lip, blood splatter all down one side of his neck, nevermind his clothes… 

"Robs!" Steve called over his shoulder instead of answering, body moving as if he was walking on a wildly rocking boat and not solid ground. "Come 'ere!" 

He beamed, which had the horrific effect of resplitting his lips. "Meet Gareth, my baby cousin!" 

"I am two years younger than you." Gareth argued on automatic. He didn’t look to see how Eddie took this little piece of info--he’d figure out what he’d say later, when Steve wasn’t covered in blood. 

It did not stop Robin from reaching out to pinch his cheeks. 

She too, Gareth realized, was clearly high on something, both of them giggling and weaving on their feet. 

At least Robin didn’t appear to be hurt--or at least, not hurt as badly as Steve. 

"What the hell did you two take?" Gareth demanded, looking between them as he quickly put his popcorn back off to the side. 

"We didn't take anything, dad." Steve said bossily, rolling his eyes. He spoke in a voice so unlike himself that Gareth knew his own face was doing something crazy. 

Not that he could stop it because what the hell. 

"What my patriotic friend here means is that we don't know." Robin added, smacking a hand onto Steve’s shoulder. 

(The entire sentence was slurred and sounded like she'd shoved candy in her mouth before she started talking.) 

"You don't know?!” Gareth asked, taking in the way Steve flinched when Robin touched him. Added a mental note to check his cousin's shoulder too. “How do you not know?" 

Gareth wasn't panicking, he wasn't, except he absolutely fucking was. Steve's dad was going to kill him, disown him, and throw the body out of his house--in that exact order. 

Gareth’s parents wouldn’t take him in, not unless his mom felt she could use it to one up her sister in some way which meant that Gareth was going to have to sneak Steve in and out of the house like he was some--some puppy Gareth was trying to keep and--

"Did someone give you two something?" Eddie asked, interrupting Gareth’s spiraling. 

"Give is a very strong word." Steve said with a snicker. 

Robin nodded so much she looked like a bobble head. She leaned in, nearly falling into Gareth in the process. “In fact it’s not the word I’d use at all! I’d use…” She trailed off, screwing her eyes up in thought. 

“Made us?” Steve suggested as Gareth finally gave in to his instincts and reached out to steady his cousin. “Forced us?” 

“Socked it to us!” Robin added with a weird amount of glee, and the two of them once again collapsed into giggles.

Literally, forcing Gareth to try and steady them both. 

Which meant Eddie was right--they’d been drugged. It made perfect sense-- Steve wasn’t the kind to experiment with drugs beyond weed. Had in fact, given a very long lecture about how he’d make Gareth go on runs with him if he ever found out Eddie had given him anything stronger than weed. 

There was no way he’d change now, and especially not around a jobsite. Particularly one as busy as the mall. 

"You can't tell anybody." Robin continued, eyes so wide they were more white than pupils. "But we got truth serumed!" 

As if that made any fucking sense. 

Gareth turned a half frantic, half disbelieving look to Eddie--whose own face scared him almost as badly as Steve's did. 

He was hiding it, and doing a good job of doing so, but Eddie was the one person Gareth knew better than Steve. 

Right now? Eddie Munson was furious. 

Not mad, or upset, or even as pissed as he had been the time Tommy Hagan had thrown his drug box in the river. 

He was enraged. 

"Hey." He said, and the only thing more shocking than realizing Eddie was this mad was hearing him talk in a calming, almost playful voice. "Sounds like you two sailors had a pretty rough time. Why don't we go to the bathroom and get you both cleaned up? I bet you'll feel a little better." 

It was clearly the right move, because both of them looked downright delighted. 

"He thinks we're sailors!" Steve said, cupping a hand around his mouth and leaning to talk in Robin’s ear as if he was whispering. (He wasn’t.) 

Robin’s grin grew impossibly wider, before Eddie stepped forward to help Gareth half guide half herd the two into the nearest bathroom. 

"I know you." Robin said, squinting dramatically as Eddie opened the door with his regular flair, bellowing for anyone in the place to get out. 

It was Steve's turn to nod enthusiastically. "That's Eddie, Robbie." He said.

"I'm honored King Steve knows such a humble peasant's name." Eddie bowed as Gareth finally got both Steve and Robin into the bathroom, trying to get them to sit on the floor before they fell on their asses. 

Which just made a hurt expression appear on Steve's face. "’Course I do. You have really pretty hair." 

It had the effect of making Eddie look like he’d been punched and Gareth had to quickly turn his bark of laughter into a cough. 

"I bet it's soft.” Steve continued, as he pressed his back against the tiled wall and slowly slid down to the floor. “Gare, is it soft?" 

"It's very soft." Gareth agreed, trying to wet a paper towel with shaking hands. Finally he gave up entirely, ripping the plaid sweater he had tied around his waist and shoving one of the sleeves into the sink. 

“Oh my god.” Robin said abruptly, sitting up from her own slouched spot on the floor as if she’d suddenly been stricken sober. “It’s him! He’s your type!” 

“What’s my type?” Steve turned to her, as Eddie leaned his back against the door to the bathroom, blocking anyone else from entering. 

“It’s like--like Nancy! But boy Nancy.” Robin seemed to think this made a ton of sense, and given Steve’s immediate groan maybe it did to him, but Gareth was too freaked out to even begin to process what the hell they were on about.

Probably nothing, given they’d been drugged. 

Eddie seemed to pick up on his general anxiety and poor attempts at shoving down his own freakout, because he gently called out Gareth’s name. 

“I think it’s wet enough.” He added with a raised eyebrow. His eyes drifted purposefully to the sink and with a curse, Gareth snapped shut the water off. 

His hands were still shaking. 

“Give it to me.” Eddie said gently, moving to take the shirt from Gareth’s hands. “Here, swap me Gare, and guard the door.” 

Gareth did, as Eddie knelt down to take Steve’s chin in one hand, and carefully began dapping his wounded face with the wet sleeve. 

“May I ask what battles you two sailors have been involved in?” He said, continuing to sound like playful, fun Eddie and not like he was about to murder half the town (which, Gareth could tell by body language alone, is what Eddie actually felt like) “Did you happen to catch a glimpse of the villains who did this?"

“Robin melted into Steve, rubbing her face in his shoulder. “You wouldn’t believe us.” 

Eddie smiled his most charming smile, a full blown rouge grin he played up as he continued to wipe and dab at Steve’s wounds. “You’d be surprised at what I believe in, my fair lady.” 

Steve tried to talk, but ended up hissing as he ran into Eddie’s fingers. 

“Russians.” He managed to get out, when Eddie quickly took the sleeve away so he could talk. “We got kidnapped by fucking Russians. Also we kinda saw some shit and they’re after us. Possibly you now if they saw you with us.” 

There was the briefest of pause as Steve and Robin stared at Eddie, as Eddie stared back. 

Then Steve and Robin as one started howling with laughter, so hard that Robin’s head ended up in Steve’s lap with Steve’s own head resting on hers. 

Eddie turned to give Gareth a pinched look. “Russians.” He said, still calm despite it all. “Right.” 

Which had to be the fucking drugs speaking. 

Gareth just took a deep breath as Eddie managed to gently prod Steve back into putting his chin in his hand, shaking his head ever so slightly. 

He didn’t know who he was going to actually have to murder, but at least Eddie looked to be on board with acting as his backup. 

[lazyneonrabbitt]

Rick and Daryl go out on a run.

A quick in and out.

Rick needs something. Daryl tells him to go grab it. "S'in ma bag."

But upon pulling out said needed item, several small papers follow.

"The hell?" His voice raised enough to have Daryl take a few steps back to him but freezing at the sight.

Rick held the collection of polaroids he had forgotten to take out of his bag.

Polaroids of your chest, his hand over one breast. Or sucking on his fingers. His hand around your throat. But the worst ones he took that night were the ones of his cock stuffed in your leaking pussy, a small freshly cut heart on your thigh beside it.

"You're sleeping with my daughter?" He snapped at his dearest friend. His trusted him. He trusted you.

Daryl had no answer. It was clear from the photos that he had been hiding his relationship with you from everyone, but still he tried to soften the blow. "I don' like others knowin'. They pry 'n ask shit I don' wanna talk about."

It's true Daryl was a very closed off person, but Rick still couldn't get it into his head you were willingly letting the man hurt you. He still had the photo with the bleeding heart jn his hand, fingers covering the parts he really disn't need to see.

Daryl saw him stare. He knew what bothered him and hoped his words were enough. "She's okay with it all. Always ask 'er first."

Rick sighed and put aside the photos, dumping them back in the bag and moving on with the reason they came here in the first place.

"You, me and her talk over dinner tonight. First we do this and head home."

[chefkids]

Feel like it’s impossible to continue to ship them after that cold open with Carmy thinking about her at 5am. If he’s in love with Sydney he doesn’t know it - and I don’t think that’s even a thing. I don’t see how they come back from that.

Claire is not Carmy's future. She's "Wednesday".

Being in denial about feelings and trying to repress them is definitely a thing. And if there's one thing Carmy has ever consistently done is be in denial and suppress. Like he did with Mikey, the NYC Chef trauma, his mother's alcoholism, Sydney when she quit etc. Part II was all about Carmy using Claire to avoid the restaurant/Sydney, even when we saw him being riddled with panic attacks every time he was with Claire. He was trying to make Claire his present/future but every time it kept pulling him back to his past. Part III was all Carmy trying to mentally rewrite his relationship with Claire and conveniently ignoring all the weird times and the panic attacks. Carmy does not think about happy times with Claire to feel happy. He thinks about them to stay in his cold pit of despair and to keep himself from moving on and accepting amusement or enjoyment in his life again. He's addicted to thinking about Claire like he's addicted to cigarettes. Both were not good for him and "a waste of time", and he "quit" both of them but he continues to think about them all the time because he is a self-destructive person.

That long scene with Claire that he thought of at 5 am established several things. Primarily that Carmy is still in "Wednesday", both the literal day that it took place but as a concept. He's stuck in the past with Claire. Frozen in time. He says he used to love Wednesday's as a kid, just like he used to love Claire. Now Sydney is just trying to get past Wednesday, while Carmy tries to avoid thinking about his legacy and the future.

His least favorite day is Sunday because the restaurant is closed and he has nothing to do and he can't turn off the "buzz" at night. Conveniently the only day he doesn't see Sydney. And it's also what Sydney lied about in order to get him to give her a job at The Beef. Then after thinking of Sunday's, Claire noticed his heart was beating really fast, in a seemingly calm situation. Buzzing one might even say.

Then they talk about his hand scar from grabbing a hot pot. He really grabbed it and it's really deep, but he wasn't paying attention. In the very first episode when Sydney arrives, he's arguing with Richie and grabs a really hot pot and burns his hand. Syd is a hot pot that he hasn't been paying attention to and that is going to leave a very deep scar on him once she leaves him.

Claire tells him a story about the girl who came into the ER on the 4th of July with a bunch of cuts, and that she almost killed her by not paying attention to her chart, but when she woke up from surgery she didn't even feel pain because it hurt so much that it didn't hurt at all yet. Then in that same episode Carmy cuts his hand and Sydney walks by, then she cuts her hand after telling him he is not communicating or paying attention. A small cut to the many that he has been adding to his relationship with Sydney. That scene remembering Claire was about how he is hurting people and himself but can't stop because he doesn't feel it yet, because he is frozen in the past, and despite his denial, he still can't "turn off" the buzz of Sydney from his head.

In Apologies after Sydney left him when he realized he was thinking about her while making a dish and starting to allow amusement/enjoyment back in his life by asking Syd to come to Ever, he went back into the fridge to distract himself by thinking about Claire again the same way he did when he was trapped in the fridge, to try to turn off the "buzzing" from Sydney.

Natalie had a similar early morning blue light flashback about her own unresolved issues, thinking about Marcus's mom's funeral and Donna. But by the end of the season we see that she has made peace with her past and Donna and has moved forward with being a mother.

How does Carmy move on from a Claire obsessed season? He faces her reality and what his relationship was her was actually like, not just a highlight reel. He might feel guilt but does he actually want to even be with her again? Doesn't seem like she does based on her conversation with the Fak's.

How does the show establish his feelings for Sydney have always been there? He actually explains to Syd why he wanted her as his partner at the end of Part I, why he was avoiding her/why he thought he could make his feelings for her go away by being with Claire in Part II, and why he was not letting Claire go in Part III and not letting himself feel amusement or enjoyment with her. The same way he explained why he wanted to build a restaurant with Mikey, why he avoided grieving him, and how he accepted the reality of the situation at the end of the end of Part I at al anon and the same way he opened up to her under the table to her in Part II. He is capable of using his words when he really wants to. Losing Claire might have put him in a funk, but if he loses Sydney? Everyone around him is going to be painfully aware of how much she actually means to him compared to Claire. Cause that guy could barely stay alive after she quit the first time. Mikey and Sydney are the only two people Carmy has ever made plans with for the future.

[scary-grace]

Enough to Go By (Chapter 2) -- a Shigaraki x f!Reader fic

Your best friend vanished on the same night his family was murdered, and even though the world forgot about him, you never did. When a chance encounter brings you back into contact with Shimura Tenko, you'll do anything to make sure you don't lose him again. Keep his secrets? Sure. Aid the League of Villains? Of course. Sacrifice everything? You would - but as the battle between the League of Villains and hero society unfolds, it becomes clear that everything is far more than you or anyone else imagined it would be. (cross-posted to Ao3)

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8

Chapter 2

When the ER doctors ask you how you got hurt, you lie. You know you shouldn’t lie, know that Tenko’s dangerous, know that his quirk, whatever it is, is deadly on contact. Some part of you thinks you should be scared of the possibility that Tenko will come back to finish the job. But at the same time, you know you’re the one who chased him. You’re the one who wouldn’t let him go. If you hadn’t run after him, none of this would have happened.

This, it turns out, is a wrist that requires a specialized healing quirk to fix, and a bruised larynx that makes you sound like you’ve been deepthroating a lead pipe. “Whoever you’re protecting, you shouldn’t,” an old, sort of grizzled nurse says severely after the fifth time you’ve repeated your lie. “Another few pounds of pressure on your throat and you’d be dead.”

Tenko was fine with killing you, at least at first. You’re not sure what changed his mind, or why he let you go, and in spite of the fact that he gave you injuries severe enough for an overnight in the ER, you can’t help wondering what happened to him. The friend you knew was nothing like that. He got frustrated sometimes, like everyone else, but he was kind. And hurting people? He wouldn’t. His older sister did more playground fighting than he did. In fact, when you think about it – you close your eyes against the fluorescent lights in your hospital room and try to fend off the memory. You can’t quite do it, because it’s crystal clear. Tenko spent more time getting hurt than doing the hurting.

If Tenko and Hana got out the door first on school days, they’d wait outside your house on the sidewalk for you to come out, so you could all walk to school together. If you were ready first, you’d wait for them. One morning you were waiting, tapping your feet, fiddling with your umbrella because the weather looked like rain even if the forecast didn’t say so, when you heard voices. One raised grown-up voice and one small anxious one, from inside the house.

You didn’t want to eavesdrop, but you didn’t know how not to. Hana had a cold, so she was staying home. Tenko had wanted to say goodbye to her before he left, but their dad said no, and when Tenko stuck his head in the door anyway, his dad yelled. And was still yelling, over whatever Tenko was trying to say, until Tenko stumbled out onto the sidewalk, without a raincoat or an umbrella and scratching the skin around his eyes.

Or wiping his eyes, maybe. He started scrubbing at them frantically when he saw you. “Don’t look –”

You turned around, and as you did, you felt the first drops of rain. “Are you okay?”

“Hana’s sick.” Tenko sniffled. “I went in her room when I wasn’t supposed to.”

I heard, you almost said. But you didn’t. You just asked again. “Are you okay?”

“We have to walk or we’ll be late.” Tenko started walking, past you, and you followed him. The rain was falling harder, spattering Tenko’s shirt and his backpack. “It wasn’t supposed to rain.”

“Here.” You put up your umbrella and hurried to catch him, holding it over both your heads. You didn’t have a choice but to look at him now, and you saw how puffy his eyes were. “I bet Hana was happy.”

Tenko nodded. He wiped his nose on the back of his hand and sniffled again, and when his hand fell back to his side, it brushed against yours. Tenko cringed. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you said. You linked your pinky finger with his. “I swear.”

Tenko’s finger hooked tighter around yours. “Only since you swore.”

He had a cold the next day, and so did you. You cried until your mom went over to his house to apologize for you getting Tenko and Hana sick. So this isn’t the first time you’ve lied to protect Tenko. It might just be the first time you’re getting away with it.

You’re out of the ER at eight in the morning, and by nine-thirty you’re at work. You’re a medical assistant in a network of urgent care clinics that serve low-income people, uninsured people, or people who don’t want to risk going to a standard hospital. Your friends call your workplace Villains, Inc., and you’re not going to say you haven’t met your share – but you also meet a lot of people, and you think it’s good for you. Sometimes it feels like there are two Japans, sharing space in the same territory. One full of pretty, shiny heroes and happy, law-abiding civilians and uncomplicatedly evil villains, where everybody has a quirk and everybody’s always doing their best. And then there’s the other Japan, populated by everybody who doesn’t belong in the first one.

They say one in five people are quirkless, but you see at least fifty people a day at work, and the number of quirkless people on your side of Japan is a lot higher. Quirkless children have the school system to nominally protect them, but there’s no such system for quirkless adults. A lot of them are pushed to the margins, losing jobs to those with quirks, even if their quirk is useless for the jobs in question. Even when quirkless people can get work, it’s at a lower level than a quirked person could get. Your applications to nursing school were rejected, even though your grades matched the standard. You’re lucky that you’d already found an apprenticeship, in a workplace willing to sponsor your education and train you on the job.

You’ve been working here for two years, part-time as an apprentice and CNA in high school and full-time since you graduated. You’re a medical assistant now, which means you can do a whole bunch of things – take history, check vitals, draw blood, give vaccines. You have a specific exam room you work out of, and the newest workers, the ones still in high school, bring patients from the waiting room to you. From there, you figure out where to route them. To an exam room with a nurse or a physician, to the lab for blood tests, to Imaging, to the ER if their injuries or illness are too severe to be treated here. You’ve only had to route somebody to the morgue once.

You’ve just delivered your most recent patient to an exam room with a doctor, and you’re in the process of documenting it in the chart when a message pops up from one of your coworkers at the front desk. FOF. Can you handle it?

FOF – freak out front. You don’t love that acronym. How F are we talking?

Creepy-looking + mean. The new kid messed up, but not that bad.

You’re not in the mood for difficult patients today. Your throat is sore and your wrist is itching and the turtleneck you’re wearing to cover the bruises on your neck is a little too tight. But you’re the most senior medical assistant working today, and even if you weren’t, dealing with difficult people is sort of your specialty. You did a great job last night right up until you decided to chase after Tenko.

Nobody’s perfect, and you learned your lesson, didn’t you? You sigh, wincing at how it feels, and respond. Send them over.

You go back to your chart, trying desperately to finish it before the new patient arrives, and you’re just about to send it to your supervisor when the CNA knocks on the door. “Come in!”

The door opens and the patient steps through, shutting it behind them. “Just a second,” you say, deciding you’re going to finish your documentation if it kills you. “You can have a seat and I’ll be with you as soon as I just –”

“Your voice sounds weird.”

You almost choke on your own spit. You look up from your computer and find Tenko staring at you from across the exam room.

Between the fluorescent lights of the convenience stores and the shadowy darkness of the street, your encounter with Tenko last night had the sense of a fever dream or an acid trip – shiny around the edges, not quite real. Seeing him in broad daylight in your dingy exam room is unnerving beyond words. He looks even more like your best friend than he did before, but there are more differences, too – a scar over Tenko’s mouth, another scar over his right eye. Whatever skin condition he had around his eyes as a child, it’s gotten worse, so much worse that it’s obliterated his eyebrows and spread to his forehead. He’s wearing a black hoodie, maybe the same hoodie he was wearing last night. And he’s staring at you.

You thought there was no way he’d come back to finish the job. You thought you were safe. You thought wrong. Your voice comes out in an airless whisper, like you’re still sprawled on the concrete with his arm across your throat. “What are you doing here?”

“It says outside you have to treat everybody. Is that true?” Tenko’s voice is abrupt, bordering on rude, and he doesn’t wait for an answer. “Your voice sounds weird. And that shirt is stupid. You wouldn’t sound so weird if the collar wasn’t –”

He’s reaching towards you, and you’re frozen, even as your mind screams at you to get out of the way. Tenko’s index finger hooks into the collar of your turtleneck and pulls it down. His eyes narrow at first, turning his expression sharp and mean. Then they widen once more, past where they were before, until he looks more like the Tenko you knew than you’ve seen yet. “Who did that?”

You don’t remember your best friend being this stupid. “Who do you think?”

“I didn’t do that,” Tenko says, but his eyes dart to one side, the way they used to do when he knew he was wrong. A second later he changes his tune. “You made me do it. If you hadn’t chased me –”

You shouldn’t have chased him, but he didn’t have to choke you and burn the skin off your wrist. You look Tenko over and change the subject. You don’t want to argue. You don’t want him to get mad. “Aren’t you missing something?”

He gives you a puzzled look, and you mime a hand covering your face. “Father,” Tenko says. He calls it Father? That’s – weird. “He’s here.”

He unhooks his finger from your collar, reaches into his hoodie pocket, extracts the hand, and secures it over his face. It should look ridiculous, but instead it’s terrifying. “I can’t wear him in daylight. Master says he’s too recognizable yet.”

None of those words make any sense, and you’ve lost your ability to speak. “It says you treat everybody here. You have to. Right?” Tenko asks. You nod wordlessly. “So treat me.”

“Um –” You get the syllable out of your mouth, watching Tenko’s shoulders stiffen at the sound of your voice. “Do you have your intake form? They would have given it to you when you checked in.”

Tenko’s mouth twists. “The brat at the front desk didn’t give me anything. She said she could fill it in herself, since she knew I was here for dermatology.”

You think back to your coworker’s message. You’d say the new kid messed up pretty bad. “I’m sorry. She shouldn’t have made that assumption.”

“You did too. Didn’t you? I bet you thought I came in here for help with my disgusting skin.”

“No,” you say. “I think you’re probably coming in for your wrist.”

It’s the only thing that makes sense to you, short of him tracking you down to finish the job, and when he’s reached for you or taken the hand out of his pocket, he’s used his left hand. If your memory’s correct, Tenko’s right-handed. “It looked like you hurt it when you fell,” you continue. Tenko stares at you. “Are there any other issues you’d like us to investigate while you’re here?”

Tenko shakes his head. Okay. Nineteen-year-old male, here for suspected injury to wrist. What’s next in your exam workflow? A process you run through at least a hundred times per week has exited your mind completely. You glance around the room uselessly and your eyes land on your blood pressure cuff. “Okay. I’m going to take your vitals.”

“Why do you need those?” Tenko looks suspicious. “Stay away from me.”

“I need your blood pressure, your pulse rate, and your pulse oxygen level. None of those are invasive tests.” Not usually, anyway – given how Tenko reacted the last time you came anywhere close to touching him, you’re pretty sure that pushing the point here could get you killed. “Or just the pulse oxygen. That goes on your finger.”

You take it out, only to remember about Tenko’s quirk. Tenko notices your hesitation. He sneers behind the hand. “Don’t worry. It only works with all five fingers.”

Good to know. You clip the pulse oxygen monitor onto his middle finger and turn back to your computer. Even without looking at his wrist, an x-ray is standard protocol, and you need to get Tenko into the queue right away. The less time he spends here, the less danger everybody else is in. It might be too late for you already.

“What do you think?” Tenko asks. You look at him. “The quirk.”

“You’ve got one.” You’re not really sure what else to say.

“And you don’t. Still?” Tenko raises his eyebrows. You nod. “And you still don’t care.”

“No,” you say. “I never cared about not having one. Only about how people treat me.”

“I bet they treat you like shit,” Tenko says. He sounds gleeful, but his expression doesn’t match his tone of voice. It’s weird. “If I ask you why you’re here instead of some fancy clinic on the nice side of town, you’ll probably lie and say you love it here. But you’re here because nowhere else will take somebody who doesn’t have a quirk. Isn’t that right?”

“I do like it here.” You aren’t lying. The pulse ox monitor beeps and you take it back from Tenko, recording the reading on your computer. “And I’m here because nowhere else will take me. Let me see your wrist.”

Tenko’s had his other hand in the front pocket of his hoodie this whole time. He draws it out slowly and extends it towards you. You’re not qualified to diagnose anything, but you can see that it’s bruised and swollen, and the skin is hot when you touch it. Tenko hisses as your fingers make contact. “What are you doing?”

“Trying to see if there’s an obvious break.” You shouldn’t – he’ll be headed to Imaging no matter what – but you don’t want anyone else to come into contact with Tenko unless they have to. Tenko’s wrist is swollen to the point that you can barely feel anything beneath it. “Were you resting this last night? Or using it?”

“I had games to play.”

Tenko’s a gamer now. Huh. “That’s probably why it’s so sore. And so swollen. No more gaming with that hand until it heals.”

“You’re not a doctor. Don’t tell me what to do.”

“The doctor’s going to say the same thing.” You glance away at your screen, checking your position in the Imaging queue. There’s a chest x-ray ahead of you, with a sick kid, and those always take a while. “I’m going to get you some ice for this. It’ll help with the x-rays if the swelling goes down. Stay here.”

“No.” Tenko gets to his feet, pulling his wrist out of your grip, grimacing as the motion jars the injury. “You think I don’t know what you’ll do? You’re just dying to go to the cops.”

“I had a chance to go to the cops. Last night, when I went to the hospital for this.” You gesture at your throat, and Tenko’s expression twists behind the hand. “I didn’t go then. Why would I go now?”

Tenko stares at you. You hold his gaze. You’ve never lost a staring contest in your life, and you’re not planning to start today – and after a long moment, Tenko averts his eyes. “You can go,” he says shortly. “But I won’t use it unless you get some for your neck.”

Does he feel guilty? Is that why he’s saying that? You decide not to think about it too hard. He’s your patient right now. If this is what it’ll take for him to ice his injury, you’ll happily slap a bag of ice on your throat.

But once you’ve brought the ice back, and you’re holding yours to your throat while Tenko applies his gingerly to his wrist, you’re out of other things to do. It’s just you and your best friend, who tried to kill you last night, sitting in a room together. Tenko still has the hand over his face. Your wrist is still itching. Before last night, when you still had the luxury of imagining what it would be like to meet Tenko again after all this time, you didn’t imagine it would be like this. It makes you sad.

You’re expecting silence until Tenko gets called back to Imaging, but to your surprise, Tenko speaks up. “Your parents had three more kids,” he says. You nod. “Why?”

“To be fair to them, they thought they were only having one.” You don’t like being fair to them about this, given what happened afterwards, even if there’s no way they could have known. “It was triplets, and they were pretty sick. They got the same kind of quirk as the rest of the family, so they made us all feel how they felt. Which was – bad.”

Tenko doesn’t say anything. You shouldn’t be talking about your family, not when his family is dead. Does he even know what happened to his family? You’re not going to ask. “Sorry.”

“Did you have to take care of them?”

“What?”

���The stupid triplets. Did you have to take care of them, too?” Tenko glares from behind the hand. “I remember you always had to before. You never stayed as long as you wanted to.”

“Oh,” you say, startled. “No, um – I had to get home. I wanted to.”

“My birthday party. Your mom came to get you early and you said you weren’t crying but you were.” Tenko is still glaring at you, and you find yourself shrinking back in your chair. “I remember. Don’t lie.”

“You didn’t remember last night,” you say, but he must have remembered something, or he wouldn’t have spoken up when you mentioned how many siblings you have. “Tenko, what –”

“That’s not my name. Anymore.” Tenko scratches at his neck lefthanded. “Master gave me a new one. Tomura.”

“Tomura,” you repeat. “Is that what I should call you?”

Tenko – Tomura? – keeps scratching, clawing up red scrapes in his skin. Then his hand falls back down. “Tenko. You should call me Tenko.” He averts his eyes from yours again. “You knew me before.”

Before what? You can’t decide whether to ask, and Tenko makes the decision for you. “I knew you before, too. When you were a kid whose parents wouldn’t let her stay long enough at a birthday party for a fucking piece of cake.”

“You brought me some. The next day.” Your voice is small. “I remember that. It was the nicest thing anybody ever did for me.”

Tenko’s shoulders stiffen. “That’s pathetic.”

“It was the nicest thing back then,” you say. “Nicer stuff has happened since then.”

Has it? It probably has, but right now your mind is full, all your memories of Tenko flooding to the forefront. There aren’t many. Not nearly enough. Three years at most – your memory is good enough to pick up some things from when you were a toddler, and you and Tenko met when you were barely old enough to speak full sentences. But you talked. You always talked. You talked to each other about everything. Right now it feels like there’s nothing in the world you could say to each other, and it breaks your heart.

Your computer pings, snapping you out of it and giving you something else to fixate on. “They’re ready for us in Imaging. I’ll walk you.”

“What, you think I can’t walk by myself?”

“I want to keep an eye on you,” you say, and Tenko scoffs. “Come on.”

He takes the hand down off his face and tucks it away again before exiting the exam room. He pulls his hood up, too, shuffling along at your side too close to be a shadow. You pass more than a few of your coworkers, all of whom give you pitying looks. They feel bad for you, but they don’t know enough to feel bad for the right reason. It makes you angry, just like it made you angry to hear Tenko’s father shout at him, a useless anger that felt too large for your tiny body. You couldn’t protect him then, and he wouldn’t let you do it now, but the urge is there, as insane as it might be. He almost killed you last night. And here you are wanting to save him.

The x-rays go quickly. A few different angles, and then you and Tenko stand there while the doctor on shift interprets them. “No fracture,” he reports. “Just a bad sprain. We’ll send you home with a brace to wear. Just take it easy for a few days.”

Tenko jerks his chin downwards. It would be charitable to call it a nod. The doctor makes a quick note in his chart and turns away, trusting you to dig up a brace and conclude the visit. Tenko won’t ask, so you will. “What about for pain?”

The doctor turns, raises an eyebrow. “The patient didn’t ask.”

“The patient wouldn’t have come in if it didn’t hurt.” You’re insane. You must be, to help someone who hurt you, except you’re not thinking of last night, you’re thinking of today – of your best friend, who’s not your friend anymore, but remembers you enough to be angry on your behalf. Who brought you a slice of birthday cake the next day because you couldn’t stay long enough to have one. “What would you recommend?”

“Ice it at least three times a day, and double up on NSAIDs,” the doctor says finally. “The OTC brands will be fine. If you rest it properly it should be healed by next week. Is there anything else?”

You glance at Tenko. Tenko shakes his head. “Feel better soon,” the doctor says. “Come back for a follow-up if anything worsens.”

Tenko trails after you as you retrieve a brace from the supply cabinet. “What the hell were all those acronyms?”

“NSAIDs – nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs,” you explain. “Things like ibuprofen and acetaminophen. OTC means over the counter – things you can buy without a prescription. Any convenience store should have them.”

You find a brace in the correct size and turn to find Tenko already holding out his arm. It surprises you, to the extent that you freeze for a moment, but then you snap out of it and secure the brace around his wrist. It’s simple to avoid his quirk, now that you think about it. All you have to do is make sure all five fingers don’t touch you at once.

Tenko grimaces as you fasten the last of the Velcro straps on the brace. “It’s tight.”

“It needs to be tight to support your wrist,” you say. “If it hurts, loosen it a little bit, but not so much that it slides. Do you have questions about anything else?”

Tenko shakes his head. “He didn’t say I couldn’t play games.”

“He said you had to rest your wrist,” you say. “You can play point-and-clicks. With your other hand.”

Tenko snorts. “I’m not playing point-and-clicks.”

“Better than nothing.” They’re the only type of video game you’re good at. Sometimes you and your friends make a drinking game out of them, doing a shot every time you find a clue or solve a puzzle. “If there’s nothing else, I can go ahead and walk you out.”

It’s quiet for a second. Tenko is looking at you, and you look back, unsure of what else to do. Part of you wants him gone as fast as possible, but it’s a smaller part of you than it should be. The rest of you wants your best friend, who remembers the things you don’t talk about, who saw you through the smile you knew to paste on even at five years old. You want to find out what happened to him. You want to know where he’s been. You want to know if he knew you were here, if that’s why he came to this clinic instead of any of the others. You want to know if it’s going to be another fifteen years before you see him again.

For a moment you think Tenko will say something, will come up with something else to stretch this out. Instead he glances left, then right. “Which way do I go to get out of here?”

“I’ll walk you out,” you say again. You lead him down the hall to the door that opens onto the street, fighting the lump in your throat. There’s a spiel you’re supposed to give to patients as they leave, but you can’t get it out of your mouth.

Tenko stands there a moment, then pushes the door open lefthanded, and something inside you snaps loose. You catch his sleeve and he turns to stare at you, a sneer already beginning to twist his features. You’ve got maybe three seconds before he hurts you again, and you have to use them wisely. “I won’t ask about the rest of it. I’m not going to follow you again,” you say. “I know we won’t see each other after this. I just need to know. Are you okay, wherever you are?”

You’re expecting him to mock you, but instead the sneer falls from his face. He looks like himself again, the part of him you knew best. He doesn’t ask why you care, and you realize it’s because he knows. He knew last night when he let you go instead of killing you. You’re his best friend. Of course you care.

“Yeah. I –” Tenko coughs, clears his throat. His voice is back to its usual rasp when he speaks. “I’m okay.”

You know he’s lying. You think he might know that you know, too. But he pulls his arm away slightly, not yanking it from your grip but making it clear that he wants to leave, and you let him go.

The door swings shut behind him, and you turn and head back to your exam room, working on documenting his visit in the chart until your eyes go blurry. You didn’t sleep at all last night. You won’t sleep well tonight, either. You know already that you’ll be up late into the night, retracing every second in your head, trying to figure out what went wrong. Trying to guess what happened. Wondering, like you always wonder about Tenko – if he’s alive, if he’s all right.

You have answers to the first two questions now. Other than that, the things that keep you up tonight will be the same as they’ve been since you were six years old. Other than the scar around your wrist and the bruises around your throat, nothing’s changed at all.

[chloessleepystories]

We have storms hitting both the east coast and west coast. Could we get a story about storms changing people on a rainy day leading to some steamy nights?

The buzz was insistent, a double, triple buzz. Jeremy hit the button to unlock the front door and a moment later heard her pounding steps coming up the stairs.

“Jesus look at you, you’re soaked!”

Candace was drenched, but smiling, as she crossed the threshold of his apartment. “Whaaat? It’s just a little rain,” she grinned.

He laughed. “You’re an idiot. Let me get a towel.”

She peeled off her sopping sweater as he called from the bathroom, “You know we could have just done this another night.”

“Are you nuts?” she called back. “It’s already hard enough to avoid spoilers online, I’m going to wait another 24 hours before catching up on Ahsoka?”

“Here, try this.” Jeremy was holding out one towel as he threw another on the floor at her feet. “You’re dripping everywhere.”

“Well if you would just share your password like a normal person, I could watch it at my house.” She squeezed the towel around her long hair, then tried to pat dry her skirt.

“I would if I could!” he protested. “You know they’re all cracking down on that shit.” He led the way into his cozy living room. “Anyway, I like sharing it with you.”

“I know. I like coming over here too.” She smiled shyly. He smiled too. After a moment, she looked away. “It’s a … It’s a good thing our apartments are so close together.”

“You mean you walked over here?”

“What?” She was standing by the TV, still dripping everywhere. “It’s just a couple blocks. And it’s a nice warm night.”

“A nice warm night with a freak storm,” Jeremy laughed, reclining on the couch. “You didn’t check the weather forecast before you headed out, huh?”

“Nah. I don’t believe in that stuff, any – ahchoo! - anyway.”

The sneeze didn’t seem that hard, but she swayed dizzily for a moment.

“You don’t believe in … ? What, just a conspiracy of meteorologists, you mean?”

She giggled. “I just mean the forecasts are so often wrong, I don’t even – don’t even – ahchooo!! … Don’t even uh bother … ”

Jeremy stood up, slowly. The first time he thought he was imagining it, but the second time … “Are you feeling all right?”

“What do you mean?”

“I coulda sworn, when you sneezed just then, your … your uh …” He gestured to his chest, unable to say ‘breasts,’ or any of the other synonyms that came to mind. “I mean, it’s a pretty thin top, it doesn’t hide much, like …”

She folded her arms, and pouted, a little cuter pout than he had seen her make before. “Jer, you’re actin’ real weird all of a – all of a …”

There was no denying it this time. Her chest bulged as she let out her biggest sneeze yet. Candace was normally flat as a board, but suddenly her soaking wet top was sticking to – well, there was no other word for it – her sizeable tits.

Her eyes crossed for a moment, and she staggered. When she recovered from the explosion, she looked down and gasped. “What the shit are these?” she said, grasping them with both hands. Her voice seemed a little higher than before, more breathy, but there was an edge of panic to it as well.

“I think you’re coming down with something …” Jeremy said, knowing how dumb it sounded.

“Oh, you think?”

“You should probably uh … you should get out of those wet clothes …?”

She giggled, then mock-scowled. “Oh, nice try, buddy, I see what you’re – I see … I … oh shit”

Ah – CHOOO!!

“Ow ow ow!!” Her voice had climbed another octave. “It hurts!! Je-er, help mee!!”

Her tits were straining the buttons on her shirt, and her tiny bra, usually barely needed, was obviously pinching in several places, trying to hold in the unaccustomed mass. He moved toward her.

“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to – oof!”

She threw her arms around him, held him tight. She pressed her whole, wet body against his, soaking his tee shirt in moments. She was nose to nose. She pushed her bottom lip out and made her eyes big and damp. Jeremy thought she had never looked lovelier. “I need help, please,” she panted.

She was rubbing against the bulge in his jeans. Probably by accident. His erection didn’t care. He licked his lips. “Yeah, yeah, let’s uh … let’s get that off. Do you want to go in the uh …”

She stepped back, and ripped open her top in a desperate moment. A button pinged off one of his bookshelves. In a moment, she was showing him more skin than she ever had in all the years of their friendship – her chest heaving, her arms bare, her hair long and flowing (and could it possibly be longer than before?) and her plain-and-simple bra laboring with the effort of holding back the swelling melons.

Jeremy swept a palm across his forehead. Was it getting warm in here? He was wet with sweat. Wet with something – he plucked at his damp tee shirt, which was sticking to him. He rubbed his jean-covered thigh, which was spongy with water too and likewise sticking … like, were his jeans shrinking?

“Now, now listen uh – ”

“Here, here,” she turned around to show him her almost-bare back, and he broke out in sweats again. “I can’t reach it! Can you get it?” He barely registered how high-pitched her voice was now, so distracted by trying to figure out what she was asking. After a moment, it clicked, and he sprang forward to fumble with the clasp of her bra.

As soon as he had it undone, the cups flew off her boobs to land on the carpet two feet away. Her tits, released, sprang out and wobbled around like nothing he had seen outside ridiculous anime porn, as she swung around toward him. She was topless, and he grasped his swelling cock through his jeans. She was topless in his apartment, and she looked like a wet-dream cartoon.

Sounded like one too. “Ohhh!! Thank you thank you!!” she chirped. “That’s sooo much better!!!” Her eyes went to where his hand was kneading his erection, and she licked his lips. “And I know what would make it better still …”

In a moment, she was pressed against him again, her wet jugs soaking his tight tee shirt further. She stripped the shirt off him with flattering haste, catching his ear painfully with the fabric, then ran her hands over his bare chest. “Mmmm … such muscles …”

Jeremy raised his eyebrows, fumbled for words. A skinny dork, he’d never considered himself muscled but … he had to agree she was right.

She dragged her boobs down his body, falling to her knees, fumbling with his belt. “I need it, I need it,” she whimpered.

“Candace … Candace, don’t you think we should …”

“Unh uh!” she giggled, shaking her head. “Call me Candi, I think I like that better …”

She jerked down pants and underpants in one movement, and gasped at the erection inches from her face. Her eyes crossed a bit, dazed, and … was she actually drooling, a little?

She swirled her tongue around the helmet, then took a couple inches of the shaft into her mouth. It swelled between her lips, and she looked up at him, his cock in her mouth, and winked.

Candi let the cock out of her mouth with a pop. She held up her heavy melons with both hands and whispered, “I know where this belongs …”

Jeremy’s shaft slid between her swaying funbags, still slick with the storm’s rain and Candi’s sweat, and as she held her tits around it, he began to stroke it up and down against her wet skin. It grew. And grew. And grew, to a length and thickness he absolutely knew it had never possessed before.

And as it did, he felt his brain grow more sluggish. His eyelids drooped. He looked at the bimbo on her knees before him with an animal lust. “Couch. Arm,” he grunted, his voice much lower than usual. “Now.”

She draped herself over the arm of his couch, flipping up her skirt. He snatched the panties off her trembling legs in an instant, and speared her gushing cunt with his thick monster cock. She screamed out in pain and ecstasy …

As the rain came down all over the city. All over thousands of unsuspecting strangers …

An hour later, Candace and Jeremy lay sprawled on his carpet, panting. After a lot more exertion than either was used to, and months’ worth of orgasms crammed into one night, they were finally feeling a little more like themselves.

“What the fuck was that,” Candace said, in something closer to her usual tone of voice. Her breasts were no longer coconut sized, but they were still healthy large apples. Or maybe oranges, thought Jeremy.

Or maybe I’m just hungry.

He had expended a lot of energy, after all.

“I don’t know, but it was amazing, that’s for sure,” he rasped.

“We should uh … ” She sat up, looking around. Where was a glass of water when you needed one. She was powerfully thirsty. “Maybe we should hit the shower? Wash off the rest of it?”

“… Together?” he suggested.

“Why not? I think we’ve broken down that barrier.” She smiled. “You’ve been abusing all my holes for an hour, I think you’ve earned soaping up my bottom.”

Jeremy got slowly to his feet, cricked his neck. He was glad she still wanted to be friends. Maybe … maybe be more than friends. “Or …” he said.

She put out a hand, and he helped her up. “Or?”

He looked to the window, where rain was still spattering the panes.

“Or we could go outside and dance in the rain.”

Candace looked to the window. Her eyes slid to Jeremy’s smile.

And she grinned.

[gazsluckyhat]

Sarah's House

Two - Open Wide

Masterlist

Here's to chapter two guys! Really excited to have this out here. Any feedback is welcomed.

Boys are showing more of their attachment to her.

Price knew he shouldn't take the mission. The outcome seemed obvious, or so he thought. Until he wasn't anymore.

or

Like calls to like. Or something of the sort.

Ghost was surprised at her strength. The tiny woman was feral, clawing at Soap's face and swatting or kicking whoever came near. It took Ghost sneaking behind her in the shadows to get her. He wrapped his arms around her own and pinned them to her chest as he lifted her off. Her legs kicked wildly, almost catching his groin several times.

"Fuck! A little help 'ere!" He shouted as she wiggled. Price appeared beside him with a syringe in his mouth. "What're you doing?"

"Sedating her, rather not have the shit beat out of me." Her eyes caught the needle and her fighting became more frenzied. Suddenly trying to crawl deeper into Ghost. "Soap, Gaz get your asses over here!" Soap held her left arm tight as Price injected the sedative.  Ghost felt as her body started to go lax and she begin to melt into his hold. Transferring her into his arms better, he could see the fear in her green eyes. She weakly tried to push him away as her lip shuddered and tears ran out of the corners of her eyes.

"It's her." Gaz's voice brought him out of his staring. "It's right there." The mark he was pointing too was about the length of Ghost's hand, tip to palm. It was old, and a deeper pink. This was their soldier.

  The flight to the nearest hospital was silent. No one wanting to wake the sleeping woman. Her arms fastened to her sides. The sedative had took her under quickly, Ghost carrying her back to the heli. Everyone was lost in their own thoughts.

Johnny was thinking of his sisters, he was gonna call when they got home. He needed to hear their voices. His chest felt empty as he closed his eyes, the scratches he'd gotten burning hot.

Kyle was sitting with his cap over his face, feigning sleep, hoping no one could hear the tiny cries. His heat was broke from the scene they'd found. No one deserved that. It was animalistic.

 Ghost just watched. His eyes never leaving the girls sleeping face, every small movement his eyes tracked. He didn't understand the feelings he felt but something about the girl caused him to ache. His chest heaving whenever he though of what she'd went through. The horrors she'd survived.

Price looked over his men. Wondering if they were affected as he was. Wondering why he felt such anger, such wrath. His hands almost shook with it, his jaw clenched. The anger was aimed towards many. The military for giving up when she was so close. Her team for not realizing she was missing. Her captors for not killing her, instead making her suffer a much worse fate. He knew that the daughter her father was searching for had been killed so long ago. The woman that took her place was yet to be studied. But he knew it'd be a shock.

    She awoke as they landed, her eyes wide and mouth open as she began to cry. Her arms straining agaisnt the straps, fingers curling in and out, her legs struggling like her arms. She shook her head and threw it back while sobbing. They placed her in one of Johnny's extra shirts, it dwarfed her. Gaz's socks reaching her knees. Ghost was by her side in seconds, a hand resting on her head.

"Shhh. Calm down flower. 'Ur gonna hurt 'urself." He gently pressed her head to still her. His voice quiet and calm as she fought. "We don't want you causing anymore damage." Johnny had no idea where this side of his friend came from.

"They're gonna 'ave to transfer her to a gurney." Kyle piped up, kneeling on the other side. Green eyes met brown and she seemed to still for a minute. "They're gonna help you. The doctors." The second he said it he realized it was a mistake. Her body thrashing even more. Fear overtaking every sense she had. Gaz went to move hair out of her face and she snapped, catching two fingers in between her teeth and biting down. Gaz yelped and jerked his hand back, the skin slightly broken.

"'Aye, none of that." Ghost was leaning over her, his hands forcing her to look at him. "You're safe. No one is gonna hurt 'ya anymore. Understand? Flower, look at me." Her lips trembled as she shook her head, tears escaping down her cheeks.  Ghost wiped them and pressed his hand agaisnt her chest. "They'll 'ave to get through me." He could see the understanding in her eyes. With quick movements she pulled agaisnt the restraints. A question.

"You gonna attack my men again?" Price wasn’t teasing, his voice calm. She watched him for a second before nodding. Ghost made quick work of the straps, hand smoothing the shirt down. "I'll go get them." Price then headed towards the door, yanking it open to reveal nurses. The girl shook, her eyes catching the outfits and she crawled backwards.

"Hey, it's okay." Johnny piped up, putting his hands up to try and help. She shook her head and looked up to Ghost. In seconds she was up and pressed firmly agaisnt him, arms wrapping around his torso. She was crying. Could feel her small body shaking. His gently placed his hands around her. One of the nurses came forwards, gloved hands aimed at her.

"I need to get her on a gurney." Her English was good, the accent thick. Sarah jumped, pushing farther into Ghost and crying louder. "If we need to sedate her we can." Ghost snapped his head to her at that.

"Absolutely not. It has taken us this far to get some semblance of trust, you will not ruin that." Price snapped loudly from where he stood. Ghost nodded as Johnny came to stand to his left, Gaz by Price, his injured hand by his side.

"I'll carry 'er." And with that Ghost bent down to cradle her, her head snapping into the crook of his neck  and hands wrapping around his neck. "Just lead me."

Scoffing the nurse rolled her eyes before saying "This isn't protocol!" and throwing her hands up. Johnny snorted and stepped in front of the woman. His eyes darkened as he spoke.

"'d be in 'yer best interest to make it protocol." And with that she shut up, turning on the spot and heading to the entrance. Ghost held onto her tightly, whispering promises agaisnt her hair.

"Won't leave 'ya." "I'll stay the whole time Flower." "Promise they won't hurt 'ya."

She leaned closer each time, nodding her head against his neck.

"Do any of you need to be looked at?" One of the doctors asked, eyes roaming Soap due to the bites and scratches on his arms and face. Price nodded and shoved Kyle and Soap towards the man.

"These two." His gruff voice causing red to form on both men's cheeks. "I'ma go call Lewis." His sat phone already in his hands.

   Johnny and Gaz were treated and sent on their merry way. Their wounds more superficial than anything. They nodded to the nurse and gave their thank you's as they went down the hall.

"Are we gonna talk about it?" Johnny spoke up, sneaking a look Gaz's way. Gaz looked his way.

"About her, right?" Johnny hummed his approval. Gaz looked at his feet for a moment. "It's horrible. The condition of her cell alone." He shuddered.

"Twenty-six. 'on't blame 'er for attacking. God knows what she's been through." He took a deep breath. "Seems to'of taken to Ghost."

"It's his size, makes for a great hug." Both boys chuckle as they spot Price up ahead. His blue eyes catch the pair as he hangs the sat phone up.

"As soon as she's stable we're flying her to London." His voice firm. "Her father will meet us there."

"Are you sure he should see her so soon?" Gaz met his Captain's eyes. "She's in ruff shape." Johnny nodding in agreement.

"The man's been waitin' two years. Not our place to ask him to wait longer." Price knew where they were coming from. The man wouldn’t be prepared for what his daughter would bring. If she would even recognize him.

"Will she even be able to handle it, Sir?" Johnny questioned. His heart ached for the father. The idea of losing someone you love for so long, unthinkable.

"Won't know until she does." And with that he turned to go find his Lieutenant and the girl.

  "Shh. I know." Ghost hushed the small girl huddled agaisnt him, her left arm held out as the nurse took blood. The girl was shaking, her teeth chattering. "Just a little more, okay? Promise it'll be over soon." He was trying to distract her but she was zeroed in on the nurses and doctors in the room. Had clung to him when they'd first started to crowd her, Ghost snapping at them. "One ata time." His arms holding her tightly. He couldn't handle the way her greens eyes looked at him. The sheen of unspilled tears as she shook.

"We need to undress her and look at her wounds." The mans hands were heading to the hem of Johnny's shirt, starting to pull it up before Ghost could say anything. The girl jumped, turning in his arms and snapping at the man. Her teeth clattering loudly as she growled. The doctor jumped back, cursing in Russian. Ghost yanked her back, pinning her head to his chest.

"Do that again and it won't be her you need to worry about." Ghost said lowly, his hand pulling the shirt back down. "Only females from this point on. Get out." The man nodded and took off,  the two nurses looking at each other.

"Sir, we can't care for her unless we see everything." The older woman reasoned. Ghost knew this. It was common knowledge, but he wasn't sure how the girl in his arms would take it. He nodded and pulled her just far enough to look at her better.

"Hey, flower. The nurses need to see the rest of 'ya wounds, okay? I need you to stay with them and take 'ur shirt off." As he unwound his hands from her she started to freak. Crying loudly and grabbing at him, shaking her head. "Okay, okay, I'll stay." He pressed her into his chest. "We still have to take this off, okay?" She stared at him for a moment before nodding, her cheeks turning crimson.

  Ghost gave her a nod and made a show of slowly grabbing the hem of the shirt,  she shivered when he touched her skin. Lifting it slowly up Ghost adverted his eyes and instead watched her face, the gasps from the nurses proof what he'd seen earlier was bad. As he got to her head he gently pulled it around her matted head, tossing it over his shoulder as she shivered. Her arms falling to her side and she turned towards the nurses, kicking the socks off to join the shirt. The women's eyes moved in horror as a new wound or bruise popped up with each new pass over. Along her chest were burns, her breasts the size of a child's. There was a mark starting at her left shoulder and wrapping around the back of her neck to finish at her right shoulder. Looked to have been cut that way. Ghost looked away as the growing anger became harder to choke down. The woman took notes, one even took pictures. The soldier flinching every time. Ghost reached for her hand and squeezed it, reassuring her he was still there.

   When they were done cleaning and tending every wound they gave her a gown, even if it swallowed her whole. Ghost tucked her into the bed when the others joined him. Their eyes taking in the semi-clean woman in front of them. Her hair was still a mess but the ladies had put it up for the time being. 

"You look better." Gaz gave her a award winning smile and took a seat beside her and across from Ghost. She immediately held her hand out, and when he didn’t understand pointed at his own. Gaz showed her, the two fingers wrapped in a simple band-aid. "They're fine. No hard feelings." But she stared at them. You could see the shame creeping into the room. Her eyes trailed Johnny. The scratch marks she'd given him cleaned but very apparent along his face and arms. She'd bitten him too but he was smart enough to catch her head quickly. Quickly she looked away, hiding her eyes and scratching at her hands.

"No need for that, no ones upset except you. You did nothing wrong Love." Price knelt to her level at the end of the bed. He gently rubbed her leg, giving her a toothy smile.

"I'm gonna have to ask you gentlemen to leave." Heads whirled towards the door were burly man stood. The cart in front of him held various tools and a gel like substance. Johnny quickly spoke up.

"What the fuck is that for?" The instrument he was pointed too was a handled thing with a long head and it seemed to even open. "Is that fucking lube? You're not fuckin' touching 'er!" Johnny was steadfast as the man rolled his eyes and stood up taller.

"It's routine for a female victim to have a pelvic exam along with a pap smear. The way she looks no doubt she's been ran through." He was agaisnt the nearest wall and gasping in a blink. Johnny's arm agaisnt his neck as the man clawed at him.

"One more word and I'll cut out 'yer tongue." Price and Ghost wretched his arms back, the cart bumping agaisnt the bed. The girl openly crying as she sunk down away from the fight. "I'll fuckin' kill you if you look her way."

"We're takin' 'er home. Get 'er papers and some clothes. Now!" Was all price said as he threw the man and the cart out of the room, slamming the door behind him. She was shaking again, her hands over her ears. Gaz carefully grabbed at them, prying them away and holding them in his hands.

"It's over, it's okay." She looked at Ghost her gave her a nod and looked at Price.

"Laswell is gonna set us up on a flight home, where you'll see the doctors there instead." Price sat on the edge of the bed and focused on her. "Your dad is who sent us out here" She perked up at that, listening closer. "He's gonna fly into London and meet us at the hospital, are you alright with that?" Ghost watched closely, she was thinking about it. Her bottom lip trembled as she opened and closed her mouth. Eyes filling up and spilling over. She nodded furiously. She was attempting to speak they realized.

"H-home." Her voice was gruff and low. The months she spent not talking showing its affect. They all smiled.

"Home."  

[jacksonseymour13]

my 3rd and final inspection of Nam-Gyu's handling of Thanos' death.. Buckle up my Thagyu lovelies, it's a rollercoaster of angst. TW: Suicidal thoughts mention

Let's start with the aftershocks of his rage and his sadness coming forefront in this scene. Nam Gyu takes a moment to completely isolate himself from all the players, from the battle of Team X vs Team O. He gives himself this moment because he's come to grasp of Thanos' death and it hits him like a damn truck. He couldn't believe it before, he was too consumed by rage and denial to accept it but now he does. It practically kills whatever semblance of sense to him. In this shot, I guarantee you his heart was throbbing in pain. His mind was a racing migraine, he was a ticking time bomb and he was ready to blow.

In this next screenshot, It's Nam-Gyu taking out his last tie,connection to Thanos. His cross necklace. He kept it NOT BECAUSE OF THE DRUGS but because it's a reminder of his soulmate,his entire half. It's sentimental NOT BECAUSE OF THE DRUGS(seriously fuck reddit for that narrative) but it was dear to Thanos so it's dear to him. He looks at it with guilt, I assume. It's just a interesting shot they would focus on because it's slow and methodical in terms of how they shot it. It just reinforces to me that Thanos' death destroyed him as anyone losing a lover would, your are grief stricken,depressed,lonely and self-deprecating over the loss of someone you love and care about. In Nam-Su's case he feels like he lost the only good thing in his love and is severely struggling to cope with that.

Sorry about the quality my lovelies. In this gif we see how Nam-Gyu protectively fiddles with the cross like it holds the secrets of the universe or the answers to such impossible questions. He's in no rush as you can see here to open it and pop a pill. He's deep in thought, talking to himself and treating it as another person. Self-Monologuing as if you wish to speak to the person that isn't there anymore(Thanos).

My overall read from this gif is he holds himself some blame with Thanos' death, he's telling himself "Let's just hurry up and get the fuck out of this bathroom so you can still be here by my side.". He's telling himself it's your fault for not having his back and watching out for any potential danger against him, he has cemented the fact that he psychologically can't do this without him as he crumbles and sinks into the abyss 2 scenes after his death that we see Nam-Gyu who copes,grieves and wallows in despair. He openly verbalizes "Thanos, you asshole" as a way to blame him for leaving him all alone, he has no one and nothing. He calls him an asshole for paying these useless nobodies any mind or attention. He just wanted his "buddy" all to himself and lost him in the process of everything going downhill.

This shot I'm confident is the last moment properly grieves for Thanos before his mind self-destruct and he gives in to his violent urges. He gives himself this moment to be taken away from the reality that took Thanos away from him, why would he condemn himself to face it directly? We all process loss differently and I pass no judgment from Nam Gyu in how he handled it UP TO THIS POINT. I don't condone the 3 murders he commits but still he was hurting and had no time to handle such a valuable loss in his life. He lost Thanos in the midst of chaos and a war between 2 teams. What right moment would he have had? What right way should he have done? Pills was his only outlet, it helped Thanos. Naturally Nam Gyu would use what once brought his depressed bipolar friend happiness even if it was only temporary. LET'S GOOOO!

My favorite shot er shots during Nam-Gyu's grief over Thanos. He's just empty and feels numb to everything in the world. He fiddles with the fork similar to how he manipulated the cross in his hands, you get 2 different pictures. 1 that focuses on Nam Gyu's face and then the fork. The blasted devil thing directly responsible for taking Thanos from him. Here where his hate slowly brews from this scene onwards to...Semi's demise(I will never forgive him for taking her from us even though the meta reason is there). He hates Min-Su for drawing to the bathroom, he hates Semi for stealing Thanos' attention away, he hates player 333 for killing Thanos and he fucking hates this fork for existing at that moment.

Of course he would use it. Nam Gyu sees it as a retribution to use the same weapon against those in his twisted mind responsible for the chain of events for Thanos' death until he wasn't and just abandons all sense of logic as his mind slowly deteriorates into madness because he's missing his buffer, he's missing his real fix, his drug Thanos who fixed him when he was broken. He can't be put back together this time nor does he want to as time slowly goes on. He has to keep himself constantly distracted with the chaos of the game, the murders and pills so he's never brought back to "A life without Thanos." He is living life without him for the first time in a long time, and it's too scary. He has to be scary back. He has to show them he's prepared for anything, he's not afraid to die. He highly encourages it, the quicker the faster they would reunite together. Hell he would do it himself if it didn't mean it would mock Thanos' death in his eyes, he would probably get scolded "So you kill yourself just to see me fool but not the fool who kill me? Man!" Nam Gyu would chuckle at the assumed meeting if he ever ended his life just to see his purple hair again and that smile...

Had to remove the shit so my boy was the main focus. Nam Gyu who is at his most broken here surrenders himself completely and gives in to all his emotions that fuel his rage to attack whatever is blocking his path. What is path? What is he after? Even he doesn't know. He gets justice for Thanos? What good would that do? It would be the only purpose he has left in his meaningless life, getting revenge on the fucking asshole that took the one intricate but important thing in his life. Thanos was stolen from him and he has to unleash this furnace that is brewing hot for blood,vengeance and hate. He doesn't care who it is. They must die. If he can die then so can they? Right? I think if Thanos was still alive or survived the bathroom fight. He absolutely would have kept Nam Gyu in check and not let him get corrupted by the Team O bullshit politics or engage in the Lights Out Riot. They had a pretty...even rotation of looking out for the other when one was at his lowest, we just so happen to see those ironically with Nam Gyu to Thanos but we all know Nam Gyu saw Thanos as a stable foundation to his life's support.

He misses him and can no longer breathe without him. His heart yearns for his presence, his touch, his voice and comfort. Without it drives him mad.🥺

[icrypop]

In pain, theres peace.

Call of Duty Ghost

Ghost x Fem! Lieutenant! Reader

Angst/Comfort

Warnings: Mentions of guns/gunshot, wounds, friend dying, friend getting injured, self blame

Oof this one hurts- I'm so tired but I got it done, I need to go eat my hot-pockets now

-Writer Icy

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

Gunfire. Screaming for a medic. Not having enough time

It happened too fast. I watch as he lay lifeless on the concrete floor, several gunshot wounds to the stomach and chest… right through the vest.

As the unit communicated through coms, the world went quiet for me. I froze, my heart pounding in my ears as my blood ran cold. Rage and anger but sadness and regret. I was frozen, stuck in one spot as I stared down at my now dead best friend. He had been there my junior and senior year of highschool and enrolled into the military with me..I was at his damn wedding- “Y/N! Pull yourself together!' I heard Soap's voice ring out sharply, his words cutting through the silence that I thought was there. 'This isn't a field trip, L/n! Get your ass into gea-” another gunshot and a yell. My head whipped around to Soap who was now bleeding from his bicep. “Fuck..” I had to move, I had frozen in the middle of fire. My heart sank as I realized the severity of my actions. 

Ghost’s POV

Soap's words had stung her, but they also served as a harsh reminder of her duty. I ran out just as L/n looped her arm up under Soap’s, making their way back to the hall we took cover in. I could only serve a sharp look her way. “L/n, You're a lieutenant. Act like one.” I grumbled under my breath. She put her head down as the rest of the unit met back at the evacuation heli.

No ones POV

After returning to base, a run-down shack in the middle of nowhere; they were able to get Soap down and banaged after removing the lodged bullet in his arm. “Fuckin’ ‘ell Soap” Ghost mumbled after watching Y/n bandage Soaps arm. “L/n, what the hell were you thinking? People die everyday- You could’ve gotten Soap or yourself killed.” 

Y/n nodded “Yes Ghost I know, I know the severity of my actions and what could’ve happened…It wont happen again.” she mumbled before leaving. Soap grabbed Ghost’s arm with his good one, “Go easy on ‘er mate. How’d you feel if ya’ lost her in combat?” Ghost nodded, “I know…Have to be harsh on her out front…Price would have our arse if he knew-” Soap patted his comrade’s arm and nodded “I know. Just go get ‘er.” He mumbled before relaxing back into his temporary bed.

Ghost returned to their shared room to find Y/n sitting on the edge of the bed, her back facing the door. Tears streamed down her face as grief consumed her, not only for their fallen comrade but also for the realization that her panic and freeze up could have jeopardized Soap, herself and the whole mission… So many more lives could’ve been lost if she had stood there another second-

“Y/n,” Ghost’s deep voice rang through the silence of the small room. He closed the door and made his way over to her, his heart heavy.

'I'm sorry, Simon,' Leah whispered, her voice trembling. 'I let you down.'

Ghost crossed the room and crouched in front of her. With a soft touch, he rested his ungloved hand on her knee, his gaze meeting hers. 'You didn't let me down, Y/n.”

'But I panicked,' Leah protested. “I could’ve gotten Soap or someone else on the team killed. I-If I had stood there another second, It could've-”

“We all have our moments of weakness, Y/n,” Ghost sighed, cutting her off. “But it's how we respond to them that truly matters.”

Ghost's words brought a glimmer of solace to Y/n. She leaned into his shoulder as the final walls broke as she cried openly into her partners shoulder. He held her close, whispering soothing words into her hair. “Let's honor your friend,” Ghost suggested softly. “We'll give them a separate burial, just the two of us tomorrow…I know they were your best friend.” 

“He was practically my brother Simon..” she hiccuped. “So lets make them feel honored. He may be gone but not completely.” Ghost soothed her to the best of his ability. Comfort wasn’t his specialty, it was Soap’s. Being with Y/n, he had to learn a thing or two as to, in words of Soap, “Not be a fucking dick-faced-prick”.

The following day, they found a secluded spot, far from the temporary base in the forest clearing. With solemn hearts, they laid their comrade to rest, offering a whispered prayer for their eternal peace. As they filled the grave, Y/n felt a sense of closure. Though the sorrow would linger, she knew that her friend had found their way to the afterlife. It hurt her but she knew it was always going to hurt when she lost someone she loved. She knew when she joined, they both did. But as she looked at her partner beside her, she felt relief that she wasn't going through this alone. The man might be harsh, rude, and unfeeling on the outside but she knew what laid in his heart and she loved him for it all.

Together, Ghost rebuilt Y/n’s shattered spirits. They recognized the strength in their connection and the importance of supporting each other through their darkest hours. Y/n's panic had been a harrowing experience, but it had also brought them closer together, forging an unbreakable bond that transcended the battlefield. He knew she was going to be okay, not today or tomorrow, but she’ll get through this and he’d help her till the end.

[densi-mber]

All I Wanted was a Steak

***

“I have been looking forward to this all day,” Kensi said excitedly, grinning across a small table at Deeks. For once, they’d actually gotten out of work early enough to have a date night, and ended up at their favorite steakhouse.

“Yeah. And we should actually have an enough time to catch a movie or something else afterwards,” Deeks said, checking his watch. “You want to see that new superhero thing?”

Kensi inclined her head. “Mm, maybe next time.”

“We could always do one of those classes where you drink wine and paint,” Deeks joked. Kensi made a face.

“That sounds awful. And you’ve seen my painting when I’m completely sober.”

“Hey, I still think the duck is very cute.”

“It’s supposed to be a swan,” Kensi said with a roll of her eyes. “And I had something a little less…clothed in mind.”

Deeks grinned, lowering his voice as he leaned close enough to see the distinct color of her eyes. “You mean less clothed like for a late night dip in the ocean or something a little more private? Cause I know an amazing spot we could skinny dip.”

“You’re ridiculous. And I love you.” Taking his hand, Kensi rubbed her thumb over his knuckles. She smiled slyly. “It’s been a while since I’ve been arrested.”

“Oh, that can definitely be arranged.”

Their waiter arrived then with their drinks and to take their orders. As he walked away, Kensi looked slightly beyond Deeks, her eyes widening with curiosity.

“What’s going on?” Deeks asked suspiciously.

“A guy just walked in with a gun. I’m not sure, but I think he might be about to rob the restaurant,” she said with a calmness that belied her words.

“Kens, that’s not funny.”

“No, it’s not. Yeah, he’s headed for the register.”

“Crap!” Deeks hissed.

With a resigned sigh, and muttered curse, he followed Kensi as she got up, winding her way between tables. Deeks veered off, intending to come at the guy from the side.

About halfway there, a second guy appeared from nowhere, pointing a gun directly at Kensi.

“Kens, on your left!”

She dropped to the ground and Deeks launched himself through the air, tackling him to the ground. Several nearby patrons screamed, scrambling to get away. The gunman bucked beneath him, trying to throw Deeks off.

Amidst the chaos, Deeks heard Kensi shout something, and automatically searched for her in the crowd. He saw her fighting against the first guy. The second gunman took advantage of his momentary distraction to elbow Deeks in the face. It gave him just enough leverage to flip onto his back, and he slammed the gun into Deeks’ cheek.

The blow radiated through Deeks’ entire head, but he managed to keep ahold of the guy, grabbing the hand hand quickly descending towards his face again. Forcing his hand back, Deeks grabbed a handful of his hair, slamming his head into the ground. It stunned the guy long enough for Deeks to flip him back over and force his arms behind his back.

“Deeks?”

Chest heaving, Deeks looked up into Kensi’s concerned face. Other than messed up hair, she didn’t appear to be hurt.

“Are you ok? God, you’re bleeding.”

“Yeah, I’m just. He got me with his gun,” Deeks explained, his explanation a little disjointed as the pain set in.

“Here, let me take over.” Carefully taking Deeks’ place, Kensi pressed her knee into the gunman’s back. Deeks sat down heavily, wiping blood away from his eye with a grimace.

“Where’s the other guy?”

“An off-duty cop is holding him till LAPD gets here,” she explained.

“Damn, this is really gonna put a damper on our festivities. I didn’t see this date night ending with a trip to the ER,” he said.

“I was really looking forward to that steak,” Kensi sighed sadly.

“And using our handcuffs for much different activities,” Deeks added.

[howlingday]

jaune is spiderman au) jaune confronts the red huntress while having to be on a call with his grandpa who keeps telling him that since he's a superhero he should be pulling more bitches, like that red huntress lady! she's hot as hell and totally into him. or that iron fist girl with the gauntlets! she's stacked as hell! or even that reaper girl, she's cute enough! maybe the mercenary chick weiss? or that asguardian girl nora! he could totally pull a goddess of thunder! he just needs to have confidence and ask them out. huntsman is regretting answering the phone on speaker mode

Chapter 3 - Greater Responsibility

Today was not Jaune's day, for more than one reason. To start off, he found out he was failing some of his classes. Adding to that, he was caught up in some schoolyard teasing and was forced into a curfew, wherein he was to stay on schoolgrounds for the next two weeks. Thankfully, Professor Ozpin was kind enough to allow Jaune to attend the school fieldtrip to the Vale Police Department, which was perfect because although Jaune Arc was grounded, the same could not be said for

THE HUNTSMAN SPIDER!

Sneaking off from the group to go to the bathroom, Jaune was able to sneak his way around to find the evidence room. Now he just needed to figure out how to-

"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING OVER THERE?!"

"Ack!" Jaune whirled around to find a woman in a white uniform, glaring down the hall at him. "S-Sorry! I was just looking for the bathroom!"

"Bull!" She spat. "This isn't some playground, kid! This is a police station, and unauthorized access is punishable pretty severely!"

"Um, I-"

"Just let him go, Bree." A man behind her said with a shrug. "Not like he was hurting anyone. Here, kid, I'll tell ya where to go."

The woman sneered, hissing under her breath. "You got lucky, kid."

'Lucky is right.' Jaune watched the woman stomp away. He looked to the man who had a more relaxed visage. 'These uniforms don't look like police.'

"Um, excuse me, but are you not police officers?"

"That's right." The man nodded. "We're specialists from Atlas. We're here on a special project with the police. You didn't hear it from me, but there's a lot of nasty business going on in town, and Atlas is itching to get in there and help out our friendly neighbors in Vale." Suddenly, the man's eyes took on a darker tone to match his words. "So don't go starting any trouble tonight."

Jaune gulped. "Er, yes, sir."

"Great! See ya round, kid!" Having completed escorting Jaune back to the restrooms, the man walked away with the same grin he wore when he met Jaune. Something about him made Jaune's spider-sense flare up. Though not as much as-

"MISTER ARC!" Professor Goodwitch shouted. "Need I remind you that you are on CURFEW for your misconduct?" A couple of student giggled at how Jaune shrunk into himself. So far, the only win Jaune had was the location of the evidence room. It wasn't much, but it was at least something to start with, right?

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

"You're going out tonight, too?"

"Yeah." Pyrrha nodded, pulling out her new outfit. Black wasn't able to convince her to stop, so the two agreed to help The Red Huntress become a proper vigilante. Tonight, Pyrrha would begin another night of patrolling with Black and learn the ropes. Whether or not ropes were actually included, Pyrrha wasn't sure. "Just for a few hours."

"Are you sure you can trust this guy?" Nora asked, watching Pyrrha put her arm into the sleeve. "For all we know, he could be a pervert trying to kidnap you."

"I don't think so." Pyrrha shook her head. "Something about the way they spoke about the White Fang made me think that they meant what they said."

"Well, if you need me, I'm gonna be hanging out with Ren tonight." Nora shook her scroll. "Just give me a call and I will drop everything to come help you!"

Pyrrha giggled. "I appreciate the offer, Nora, but I don't think I'll be needing it."

"Buuut~?"

"But if I do need help, you will be the first one I call."

"Aw, thank you~!"

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

"Is Jaune going to call again tonight?"

"Mhm."

"You should really tell him the truth, you know."

"Mm."

"Will you at least tell him his grandma loves him?"

"...'course, honey."

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

"Hey, Grandpa!" Jaune said into his earpiece.

"Evenin', Jaune," his grandfather replied, "you just missed your grandma. She love you, y'know."

"I know, Grandpa, and I love her, too."

"So, what mischief are you up to tonight?"

"I'm not up to any mischief, Grandpa." Jaune answered. It wasn't so much mischief tonight as it was a misdemeanor. Or maybe it was a felony. He hoped it was the former.

"Oh, really? So there's no plan to break into police headquarters at all?" Jaune was quiet all of a sudden. "I'm retired, Jaune, but I still have friends on the force. They said there was a kid who went wandering away from his class. I take it that was you?"

"Um... I please the fifth?"

"Plead, Jaune, and that's only in court. Y'ain't been arrested yet." The two Arcs shared a laugh. "Speakin' of pleasin', any chance of you bringing a girl over for the holidays?"

"I'm not really looking for a date, Grandpa."

"And that's why you're up to mischief in the middle of the night. Wouldn't happen if you had a girl to keep you company."

"That's not true."

"Oh, yeah? Where's your roommate?"

"He's back in the dorm, hanging out with his-" Jaune stopped talking, partially because he was unsure of the two's relationship status, and also because he knew he was walking into a trap. He didn't need spider-sense to see that. "Back in the dorm."

"Uh-huh. Y'know, I hear there's a vigilante group out there. Maybe you could join up with them?"

"Really? This is the first I'm hearing about it."

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

"I'm in." Black softly said as Pyrrha dropped in behind them. "...Roger." They turned to their red-headed pupil. "Your form could use some work."

"Any pointers?" Pyrrha asked.

Black placed a finger to their covered mouth. Pyrrha's eyes widened and pursed her own mouth shut. Down below, a few police officers milled about, working the late shift on little more than coffee. Pyrrha followed behind Black, noting how they walked with big strides starting on the heel and rolling to their toes. Pyrrha noted how her costume, no longer her normal fit of just red goggles and a cape and now tightly hugging fit of a red body suit covered by light yet sturdy polymer that flexed as she moved, all courtesy of Black's partner, Fencer.

Fencer, for their part, seemed much more animated than Black, making gestures and vocally exasperating. They wore a white fencing outfit that made her digitally camouflaged while moving, completed by a shaded helmet and voice modifier. She was polite to Pyrrha, but would often chide the other members, notably the other two on communications with Black. She'd yet to meet them, but Pyrrha assumed she had yet to earn her keep on the team. Less chance of exposing everyone that way.

Black came to a stop at a corner, holding up her hand with the palm facing out. A low growl came from them, putting Pyrrha at unease. She leaned a bit closer out and saw someone moving around in the evidence room. Black gave Pyrrha a glance then shifted her hand into a pointing two fingers and waved the pointed digits at door. Pyrrha nodded and approached.

Getting close to the door, she tenderly touched the door handle.

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

'Spider-sense going off?' Jaune thought, his body tensing. 'But I don't see anyone.'

Jaune knew better than to doubt his ability and ducked down.

He'd found what he needed already. Since the murder was recent, Snipe Hunt's evidence was readily available. The bullets found at the scene of the crime came from a 500 magnum, more hand-cannon than pistol, but still easy to carry concealed. His grandpa had one, and he even let Jaune fire a couple rounds. Guns were never his thing anyways. It couldn't have been him, but who else could have fired a gun like this? This was a question to ask later when he wasn't under attack.

"No point in hiding." A familiar voice came. "We already got your little friend."

'Little friend?' Jaune thought. Nobody was with Jaune when he came in. That meant...

"I'm gonna count to three, and I want you to walk out, nice and slow. One. Two."

Jaune opened the door, finding the man from before holding a tied-up woman under his boot. She was wearing a red cape, red bodysuit, and red goggles. The only thing that wasn't red was the light brown armor on her chest. Keeping his hands up, he pushed the door and walked out.

"Oh, so you're that vigilante that's been skulking around lately?" The man said with a bemused grin. "Was wondering when I'd get to see ya." He pressed down on the woman, making her grunt. The wire wrapped around her pulled taut, making her whine.

"Stop!" Jaune stepped forward, holding his hand out.

"Stop?"

"Look-" Before Jaune could speak any further, he felt something tug against his leg.

"Look? Stop and look? Sounds like something you should have done a long time ago."

Spider-sense throbbed like crazy. It felt like there was danger everywhere now. He noticed a gleam and realized there was wire everywhere, thin strands all closing in on him. Keeping his arms up, he was ironically nabbed in a web like spider silk. However, the way in which was caught only surrounded his upper body, thanks to him ducking just in time with one leg bent and the other extended behind him. It started to burn as muscle began to stretch like they hadn't been before.

"Hm." The man hummed. "Wasn't expecting you to be that quick." Jaune pushed himself to both feet, wires sliding up and digging into his gut. "Good thing I've got a friend who's quicker."

Jaune charged, arms held up to cover his face, only to be knocked down by something moving as fast as lightning. He rolled on the ground and stood up, only to be knocked down again. Roll, stand, knock down. He rolled a third time, stood a third time, and turned on his heel catching the lightning bolt off-guard. Turning his body in mid-air, he crashed into the woman in the white uniform from before.

"Get off me!" She shouted, trying to push Jaune off. In the struggle, the wires slid up over Jaune's arms but caught themselves on each other, making the strands tighter and harder to move than before. Jaune suddenly felt his spider-sense go off again, this time focusing on behind. He tried to move, but the woman underneath him kept him held in place.

SHIKT-KREEEEEE!

Something sharp tore through Jaune's bindings, almost digging into his suit. He heard an awful screech against the back-plate of his armor. However, this was Jaune's chance as shoved both arms out, smashing his fists into the woman's chest, knocking her hard into the ground and Jaune to his feet.

"Finally, some breathing room." Jaune sighed. "Next time, try pizzas WITHOUT anchovies."

The woman, furious, spun to her feet and bolted for Jaune. However, as she charged head-to-head, he was able to dodge to the side. There was a loud crash as the woman tripped over something and slammed into the wall. He looked behind him and winced.

"Sorry about that." He offered to the unconscious woman. He turned his attention to the man in white. "So, was that enough for you?"

"Yeah, it was."

"Huh?" Then the man let go of the wire and backed away from the vigilante woman. The wires came loose enough for her to pull off. "That's it? You're just... letting us go?"

"Yeah. I've seen enough." He reached to his collar and spoke into it. "This is Specialist Ebi. Exercise complete. Recovering Specialist Bree for treatment." There was a beep and a response from the other side of the radio. "Looks like it's your lucky day, kid." The man known as Ebi said as he walked over to the woman known as Bree. "But that lucks gonna run out in about three days."

"Three days?" The red woman said. "What happens in three days?"

"Nothing too special, but, uh, if I were you, I'd hang up those costumes and let the big kids have their fun."

"Big kids?" Jaune asked. The woman then gasped.

"Atlas..."

"Lucky guess." He picked up Bree. "Hopefully your luck keeps rolling. Because eventually," he turned the corner, but not before saying, "your luck's gonna run out."

Jaune stood there, his body tense. There was no spider-sense to warn him of danger. No, this fear was something far away, yet close enough to bypass his senses. Shivering out his fear, he reached down and helped up the woman.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine." She said. "He just... caught me by surprise."

"Careful with the puns." Jaune jokingly warned. "I know... a guy who likes puns enough to fight for them."

"I'm sure you do." She brushed herself off. "You seem... familiar. Have we met before?"

"Uh, nope, I can't say I've ever met a woman in a red skinsuit." Then a thought came to his head. "Say, uh, do you want to team up? This Atlas thing in three days might be some big trouble. Y'know, strength in numbers and all that?"

"Well-"

"Red." Jaune turned to see his 'friend' from the bank.

"Oh. So you're with them?"

"Do you... know each other?" The woman asked.

"Now." The figure growled.

"I'll... let you go." Jaune stepped away. Walking down the hall to the room with the window he entered. Along the way, he passed the mysterious figure in black. "Go easy on her. It's her first day, right?" Jaune got a glare in response, making him walk faster.

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

"And what happened next?" Nora asked, interrupting herself to scrub her teeth.

"Then Black was quiet for 20 minutes." Pyrrha said, from the doorway. "You ever have that friend who's mad at you, but doesn't say anything to let you know they're mad?"

Nora spat into the sink. "Nope~! Renny and me are so close, we can practically read each other's minds~!"

"I can almost believe that." Pyrrha said with a giggle. Her mind then began to wander. The vigilante who saved her. He was sturdy, but there was also a kindness to him. Something of a gentle giant. A smile crept to her face as she imagined teaming up with him.

"Ooh~! Thinking about Jaune again~?"

"Huh?" Pyrrha blinked. "Er, y-yes. Yes, I think I was."

[mysticsublimeperson]

<< part 2 >>

Merlin woke up feeling cranky, he didn't exactly sleep. It resembled more to several disgusting and sweaty naps, and a lot of self deprecating introspection in between.

So Merlin decided to stop trying around 10 am, and moved to the sofa. He didn't have anything to do that day, they weren't waiting for him in the lab, nor in the office, they all thought he would have been too hangover. Funny.

He needed to get out, to get coffee, to try and look for a new perspective, or at least a solution, so he got up and dressed and went to open the door.

A sharp thud sounded when something collide to the ground.

"Arthur?"

"Shit, er... Merlin, sorry, good morning?" Arthur was trying to blink away the heaviness.

"Were you sleeping in my hallway?" Merlin was really confused now. Arthur had always been a bit of a prat, and he grew up rich (and still was very rich, even if he denied it) so he was posh. In all the years he knew him, Arthur had never volunteered himself to discomfort, because he could afford not to.

"Yeah, I.. Well, you told me to go, but then I thought that if I went then I would have to come back in a few hours, and well it was really early in the morning, and I didn't bring my car, so I would have to call for a car and then, well come back, and wold spend like a proper half hour just pacing around my flat, just so far away from you... guessed you also wouldn't be answering your phone, so waiting here seemed like the better option. But now that I say it out loud, it sounds kinda stalk-ish" He said sheepishly, his voice was still deep, and slow. Trying to recover from sleep. He stood up, but was supporting in the door frame. "It's just... you seemed really upset. I know I was the reason, but" he gulped "you are always for me when I'm like that..." Merlin sighed.

"Come in" Merlin talked with a controlled voice. He would have wished for a little more time to figure this out, but if he was honest maybe more time would have only made him more paranoid.

"I, er, yeah, thank you" It was extremely strange to hear Arthur so insecure, but Merlin needed to focus on his situation, and not fall into old habits. "How.. How did it go? Yesterday I mean, sorry I didn't ask sooner"

Bad, he wanted to say.

You ruined it, he wanted to shout.

I missed you, he wanted to cry.

"Fine, I guess" he didn't want to offer information, he sat in the sofa again.

Arthur gulped again and put on a tight smile. "I see" sitting beside him.

"And you? How was your dinner?" Merlin suddenly felt tired again, he didn't want to shout, or yell, he didn't want to incriminate or fight, he just wanted this situation to be over. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

Arthur opened and closed his mouth several

"Merlin. I am so sorry" he said after a while. Without looking at him. "I know there's no excuse... and the way I treated you when you arrived here too... you didn't deserved that" his voices sounded tight.

If this had been any other day, Merlin would have folded, he would have told him that it was forgotten. Any other day, Merlin would have bitten the bullet of disappointment, and would have try to understand his point of view, his situation. Any other day...

"Arthur" he said after a long silence "I think it's time for us to rethink about what we want from this relationship" he could see the moment all the muscles in Arthur's body tensed up.

"What do you mean?" He sounded so scared, and Merlin fought the urge to hold him.

"What I mean Arthur it's that, this relationship can't go on like this forever" Merlin breathed slowly, trying to express himself as accurately as posible "I feel like im living on borrowed time with you, and even if you are the one in the wrong, I feel like I should just be grateful to have you a little longer, no matter how you much you may hurt me"

"That's not true Merlin, please, I would never intentionally hurt you. how can you think that? I love you" he finally looked Merlin in the eye. They were red and swollen, and a bit desperate.

"I know you love me Arthur, I believe you" he tried to swallow the knot in his throat "but sometimes that's just not enough" Merlin sat back at the sofa, looking at the ceiling. The same ceiling he had been looking since he arrived yesterday, thinking the same things, over and over. "I know you love me, and I love you, more than anything. But I also know that you would never invite me to a company dinner, you would never even acknowledge me in front of your coworkers, you would purposely hide me from your dad..."

"Merlin" Arthur said his name like a warning.

"Im not trying to be resentful Arthur" Merlin spat "they're just facts. Like the fact that you hate your job, and it makes you miserable. But you would never leave. Even if it's a shit job, at a horrible and inmoral company" he kept his tone neutral, he wanted to make a point "I would never ask you to leave, because a would never want to put you in a position where you would need to choose"

"Merlin" now his name sounded like a prayer, and a question.

"I think I always knew that I really never had a chance if you had to choose" suddenly his voice quivered.

"That's not..."

"Arthur please!" he really didn't want to hear empty promises, so he made a gesture for him to wait "I told you that yesterday was important, you knew that. And you choose him" he will not cry, no more "You ditched me, last minute. You left me alone even though I told you I Wanted you with me" his words bouncing on the walls.

"I didn't think..." Arthur was trembling a bit. And he looked like his world had been rocked and put upside-down.

"Arthur, you already have a life planed out. And you are the one that's choosing to keep it that way, you are going with the plan. And one day I will have to see how the papers and magazines cover the stories of you ascending to CEO of the world's most evil construction company, and marrying a young nice pretty girl, who is really boring and bratty but also insanely rich and has good connections, and have three beautiful very normal and healthy kids... all while I keep fighting with my little NGO to change the status quo that you reinforce. Don't you see that you don't have space for me in your future?" all the resolve to keep his cool abandoned him mid speech but at least he got it out. Arthur was looking at him like he had just told him that he only had a minute to live.

"I don't see a future without you Merlin" Arthur said, really softly, eyes shining with soon to be shed tears.

It hurt Merlin to hurt Arthur.

He never wanted to hurt Arthur.

Merlin brought up his legs and hugged his knees, hiding his face momentarily biting his lips hard, while blinking away the tears. "I love you Arthur, and I don't think I could leave you alone if I wanted to. But I think this relationship... it puts unfair expectations, for both of us" Merlin swallowed "It's not fair for me to expect something you are not ready, nor willing to give" he argued as calmly as he could. "I suppose we work better as friends"

He could see Arthur wanted to fight.

He also could see that Arthur had seen his point.

"What if...?" Arthur started, shaky. "What if I leave?" Merlin's brows furrowed confused. "My father, I mean. What If I leave him? What If I leave Pendragon Constructions? Everything... what if i..." he was starting to stammer and was not making sense. So Merlin took his hands.

"Why would you do that?" I was the genuine confusion in his expression that made Arthur sob.

"Because I love you Merlin!" he practically screamed with broken voice and desperate eyes. "please" begged silently.

"I think that if you do that. You'll resent me, eventually" he tried to reason while giving a reassuring squeeze to his hold "He is your father Arthur, you love him, and you want to make him proud, I understand that" even when he knew what it meant for himself "But you also are better than he could ever be" he assured "You won't ever lose me, I'll just need some space"

"I don't think I can do that" Arthur spoke carefully while caressing his hand "I don't know how to, I don't want to" he breathed trying to calm himself. "But I will try for you if you want me to" he swallowed "But don't misunderstand. I am not giving up on us. I won't" using his hold he pulled Merlin in for a hug. "I am sorry, I am sorry I disappointed you, I am sorry you felt like that, but above all I am sorry that you are right" he hugged him strongly and Merlin tried and failed nor to melt in his arms. "But this won't be the end Merlin, you are right for now. I will work, everyday, every moment to deserve you, to make you feel loved, to prove to you and to myself that I can become the man that you think I can be, and when that day arrives, Merlin I will sweep you off your feet" he talked those words like it was a threat, directly in his ear, while holding him close, so Merlin decided that just one last time, he would believe in him.

He would keep hoping.

[wolfjackle-creates]

Bring Me Home Arc 2 Part 9

Time for another WIP Wednesday! Wasn't sure how much I'd get out today, but had a sudden burst of inspiration and so you've got a decent segment here. Hope you enjoy!

Story Summary: Tim and Danny are both neglected by parents who care more about their work than their families. They deal with this by spending too much time online and find each other playing MMORPGs. They keep up their friendship as Tim becomes Robin and Danny becomes Phantom and don't bother keeping secrets from each other.

First, Previous

Word Count: 1.5k

-----

The first thing Tim and Conner did once on the ground was determine which streets were still intact enough for vehicles to drive on to set up transportation routes in and out of downtown.

“Superboy! Can you clear the road of glass and debris?”

“You’ve got it, Rob.”

Conner had barely started when a group of four ghosts noticed them and flew at them, batons raised. Tim shot them with his blaster. It pushed them away too far to use the thermos and he cursed under his breath.

“Keep going, Superboy!”

“This section is clear. Let’s go!”

Two overshadowed humans, one only a kid, started throwing debris at them and Tim dodged as he rushed towards them. Two quick blaster shots expelled the ghosts and this time Tim made sure to trap them in the thermos before they could get away.

The no-longer-overshadowed humans sat hard on the ground and held their heads.

“Are either of you hurt?” Tim asked as he looked around to make sure no other ghosts were going to attack.

“I— no, no. I’m fine,” said the older one, a hispanic woman in her late thirties in casual clothes. “Gabriella?”

Gabriella couldn’t have been more than ten. “I’m fine, Mama. What happened? Who’re you?” The last part was directed at Tim.

Tim hadn’t had to explain who he was in ages, but he smiled disarmingly. “I’m Robin. And the boy over there is my teammate Superboy. Phantom called us in to help with the invasion. We’re going to get you out of here, okay? But we need to get moving now. Can you do that?”

“Yes,” said the mother. “Come on Gabby. We’ve got to move quickly. Like racing your cousins.”

He and Conner fell into a rhythm. Conner would use TTK to clear several dozen yards of road while Tim would keep the ghosts away. All humans they rescued, up to ten now, were kept between the two of them to make it easier to keep an eye on them.

When not clearing the road, Conner would shoot at all ghosts with his weapon which had better range and a wider blast than Tim’s.

They’d managed to move about five blocks and this time, when Tim tried to use the thermos, nothing happened. He curse and grabbed the blaster to at least get it away from the people he was protecting. Turning on the mic on his Fenton Phone, he said “My thermos is no longer working. I’ve thirteen ghosts in it. Could it be full?”

“Shit,” came from Danny. “Must be. Um, B— er, Impulse. They can be emptied in the Fenton’s lab. Can you bring Robin’s thermos to the lab and back? I can’t get in with the shields up. I can give you instructions once you’re inside on how to do it.”

“Can do, Phantom,” replied Bart. “Location, Rob?”

Tim gave his location and seconds later Bart was in front of him. He handed over the thermos and Bart was gone so quickly he had to thank him over comms.

“Hey, Robin. I think my… The Fentons are near your location. They seem to be trying to hold the perimeter, so if you can get past them your people should be as safe as possible. Take a left on the next street and it’s just another two blocks.”

“Thanks, Phantom!”

Then Bart was back with his thermos. “All empty and ready to go!”

“You’re the best, Impulse!”

Bart saluted and was gone again.

“Superboy, we’re taking a left at the next intersection. The Fentons have a barricade set up and everyone should be relatively safe once we get past them.”

Sure enough, once they turned the corner, they could see the Fenton’s GAV and the flashing lights of emergency vehicles behind them. At the sight of safety, over half their humans began sprinting forward, heedless of debris in the street and running right past Conner.

Tim cursed under his breath as ghosts tried to rush the panicking people, and Tim was kept too busy shooting them away to be able to use the thermos as well. But then the Fenton’s saw them and added their own firepower to the mix. Everyone made it past the barricade.

Tim was the last to cross the barrier and found Conner already talking to some of the officers on scene.

“Robin, I’ve asked to speak to the police chief and head of EMS. We’ll accompany ambulances and firetrucks through the downtown area to help any who are trapped that Impulse and Wonder Girl haven’t already helped.”

“Excellent.” Tim turned the mic on his comm on again. “Impulse, Wonder Girl, report. How many have you found that need to be removed by ambulance?”

“Surprisingly, not that many,” replied Cassie. “We have five that we’ve found so far and Impulse has pretty much checked every building.”

“Anywhere you haven’t been able to get into?” asked Tim.

“There’s three banks, the backroom in a jewelry shop, and the back of a pharmacy. But the pharmacy gate was mesh and I couldn’t see anyone. No one replied when I shouted back to see if anyone needed help, either.”

“I’ll see if anyone has contact with those locations.”

Danny spoke up, “The portals closed by themselves five minutes ago. I’ll check them out.”

“Thanks, Phantom,” said Tim.

With impeccable timing, the police chief finally arrived just as Tim finished touching base with the rest of his team.

“We didn’t have a chance to send out a distress signal before communications were disrupted. How did you know to get here?”

Tim shrugged. “I’m friends with Phantom and he asked for help. Impulse and Wonder Girl have found five people too injured for them to safely evacuate. We’d like to get ambulances to their locations as soon as possible. We can probably keep two safe at a time.”

“Hmmm,” the chief looked over at the people Conner and Tim had already rescued. EMTs were checking them over and treating the minor injuries they’d received. “My men haven’t heard a single complain and the people you rescued speak highly of your skill. We’ll take you up on that, Robin. But if any of our people get hurt on your watch, it’ll be on your head.”

Tim couldn’t help but roll his eyes behind his mask, but he smiled the gala-smile his mom had drilled into him and said, “Yes, sir. You have my word we will keep everyone safe to the best of our abilities. Which is quite a lot.”

At that point, Jack Fenton came over. “Didn’t expect to see any superheroes in our little town! How’d you get a hold of our tech? Do you like it? Think the rest of the Justice League would be willing to put in an order or two?”

Tim turned the gala-smile on the man. “You must be Jack Fenton,” he said as if he’d never met him before. “I’m Robin and this is Superboy.”

Conner nodded, “Hello, Mr. Fenton. This tech is quite impressive. You’ve done good work.”

“We heard you were the best for ghost weapons,” said Tim, “so tried to stop by your house when we first came to town. But the invasion had already started and you were out here fighting already. Your son helped us find weapons that suited us. I hope that’s all right?”

Jack boomed a laugh. “That’s my boy! Of course it’s all right. Dan-o knows our inventions almost as well as Mads and I do.”

Maddie came over as well. “It’s great to see someone else use them. Let us know if there’s any improvements you’d recommend or anything that isn’t working out quite right.”

“Yes, ma’am,” said Tim. “They’ve been working great so far.”

“Oh, that’s so lovely to… DIE GHOST SCUM!” She turned away from him halfway through her sentence and shot a beam from a bazooka at a group of ghosts trying to sneak past the barricade.

Jack stared adoringly at her. “That’s my wife!” He returned to his own weapon.

The ambulances arrived minutes later and Conner and Tim spent the next hour evacuating the five injured victims.

As the night wore on and downtown fully evacuated and more ghosts trapped in the thermoses and sent back to the ghost zone, things got quieter. And around four in the morning, they decided it was safe enough to call it a night.

Phantom carried them back to his house invisibly and they changed in silence, too exhausted to say anything. Danny retreated to his own room so Sam and Tucker could make sure he’d wake up in time for school and the rest stayed in the guest room. Tim, Bart, and Cassie all managed to squeeze into the queen sized bed while Conner took the floor.

Tim was asleep nearly as soon as his head hit the pillow.

I'm not very good with action scenes. Have very little practice with them, honestly. So hopefully this doesn't come across too rushed! I hope to get better with them as I spend time in this fandom.

-----

Next

This takes place before the introduction of the Specter Deflector. I'm not sure if I've mentioned that in any notes yet. I think I have, but idk. So if you were wondering why Danny didn't just give everyone one of those, that's why.

I will no longer be doing tag lists, but please turn on notifications for the Subscription Post if you want to be notified when this updates.

[falling-star-cygnus]

First time asking for a request...uhhh if you're still doing em. Have Billy angst of being trapped somewhere (my mental thought is under a building and some rubble keeping him pinned) and waiting for rescue, in a hollow. Make him wait a long time before help comes and debate morbidly what will kill him first: the corruption or the crushed body parts ;))

i am still doing requests!! honestly my inbox is always open to any kind of question, or thought, or request you want to share! -> i love interacting with you all, even if i don't respond right away

this is a great idea btw, yet another fantastic trope i wish was exploited more

im taking several liberties with the process of corruption :D -> brief references to Dismemberment in the beginning

All things considered, fighting an Ethereal inside a.. relatively small building was not their best idea. Neither was fighting four stories off the ground, but... well.

Nicole had taken on a client that had insisted on going with them- to make sure the Cunning Hares didn't 'pull the wool over his eyes' or whatever. Billy hadn't really listened to his tirade.

He probably should have, considering then he might've caught on to the fact that the client's Ether aptitude absolutely SUCKED.

Corruption was never a pretty thing to watch, sickening in the way stalagmite and geode petal like appendages forced their way through bone and skin and downright painful to hear the tortured wails that ripped through the air. Their former client clutches his- its?

"...Look.. if it'll make you feel better, I'll return it to you. Er- it's parts anyway."

-his newly orb shaped head and bashes it against floors and walls. Each crash spiderwebs across the feeble foundations and shakes the Hares up like a children's toys. The android's back hits the ledge of a window.

This wasn't good, if the fight lasted any longer it'd send all of them crashing down to their deaths. Billy couldn't even find stable enough footing to shoot! Which- normally wouldn't be too much of a problem, but he absolutely would not risk hitting the girls in this sardine can proximity.

He lines up a shot.

And is immediately knocked off center when Nekomata is flung towards him. Billy yelps and catches the small Thiren as softly he can, thankfully avoiding firing his gun directly into her back.

...that was going to keep him up later.

"ACk... sorry Billy," Nekomata yips out, leaping right back into the fray after getting steadied. Her cat paws navigate the crumbling floor deftly, even if her attacks don't do much damage.

None of their attacks did.

What the hell.... we need to get out. Billy takes aim once more.

"Billy!" Nicole scolds, struggling to keep her footing and bludgeon the Ethereal, "why aren't you doing anything!?"

"What? I'm trying, Boss!" he snaps back, uncharacteristically waspish in the face of their... situation, "do you want me to shoot one of you??"

Billy refocuses on the Ethereal as it lunges towards him, missing the way Nicole cringes and sputters out a cowed rebuttal. It- he was finally close enough that the android didn't have to worry about... less then friendly fire.

He slides into a dodge, lining up his shot just right as time seems to slow down and-!

The floor gives out under his foot.

The bullet goes wide, just barely glancing over the Ethereal's sickle like limbs. Thankfully it doesn't hit anybody, but Billy's head cracks into the edge that his foot fell into.

His vision sensors go white, blanking everything out in an awful burst of static.

The next thing he remembers is calloused- small- hands tugging at his jacket, raised voices, ringing, and then...

....ow..

Billy powers back on, very much against his will.

He doesn't remember powering off, ever, sure, but the bliss of unawareness had to be better than- whatever this was. His limbs hurt, and there's a crack over the right glass of his eye- and it hurts.

Heavy, heavy weight pins his lower torso down, and he can vaguely feel something stabbing between the plates of his stomach, but it's hard to make out what exactly it was in the dim surroundings.

Where was he anyway? Wasn't he just-

Awareness jackknifes through him.

The building. The building had crashed, the building had crashed and Billy was underneath it. The building had crashed and Billy had no idea if the girls had made it out okay. The building had crashed.

He could be rebuilt, if it came down to it, he could be repaired like nothing had ever happened, but their human skin couldn't. Circuitry sputters into a higher power under the wrecked metals of the android's body, a mimicry of the way a heart accelerates under stress.

The rubble refuses to budge no matter how much he scrabbles at it.

Not good... Billy thinks, giving the ground under him one final shove like it might dislodge the cement blanketed over him. The wires exposed on his arms spark in protest before deciding to fail entirely and send him back to the floor.

This had been... the worst mission the Hares' had taken.

How long had he been here already? How much longer did he have until he turned into an Ethereal? Billy had never been the best at sitting still, even when he was powered off- and he did even worse in cramped spaces. And now...

This was hell, the android was sure of it. A liminal space of torture just for him. He wanted to go back to being offline.

Why was he always getting the short end of the stick when it came to the Cunning Hares', anyway?

Billy swats that thought away as soon as it forms, feeling guilt settle into whatever was left of his wiring. It was a good thing that he took more blows than the others, he could handle it better.

He could be put back together better. Like nothing had ever happened. He could withstand Ether corruption longer, even if it made him feel sick and sluggish.

This was nothing.

...Are they even looking for me? A traitorous part of Billy's mind whispers. A seed that takes root.

But- of course they were! The android was an integral part of the team!

...wasn't he?

Green- like Anby's hoodie, or Nicole's eyes- flickers to life between the lines of his plating.

He was good firepower, at the very least. Even if Nekomata could hit twice as hard, twice as fast. Free labor? None of them really got paid to be a Cunning Hare.

...their- friend?

"Meeting Billy Kid increases my chances of survival by over 67.8%. I'm glad you're ok, Billy." "It wouldn't hurt him if he's wearing a thick sweater"

"Billy-!" Nicole had sounded worried... "Can't you be more like Nekomata?"

Metal creaks as black buds sprout between his joints.

The Cunning Hares' cared about him right? Sure- they didn't let him join in on hugs or affectionate leans or high fives, but that's just 'cuz he was metal! It was uncomfortable to touch his unyielding make.

That didn't really stop them from hitting him though, even if it didn't hurt. Much.

Physically.

...they weren't going to come for him.

The buds bloom into hauntingly pretty geometric flowers.

[5typesoftrash]

MumScott Week Day 5: Meet Ugly / Flower Shop AU

@mumscottweek2025

Mumbo wakes up in a hospital bed. Which is not good. The person sitting next to him is a stranger, which is also not good. For a brief moment he wonders if he’s fallen into some bad drama plot where he has amnesia for years and years of his life, but he glances at his phone and finds that yes, it’s still 2025, exactly as it was when he woke up this morning. His only amnesia appears to be for the events that landed him here.

“Morning, sleepyhead,” says the person sitting next to him in a Scottish accent. “Or, afternoon I guess. You’ve been out for hours. How are you feeling?”

Mumbo stares at them. They have light blue hair and soft blue eyes, wearing a blue flannel worn open over a white shirt with some kind of rainbow pattern on it. It takes him several seconds to process the fact that they’ve asked him a question. He swallows. “Er... fine, I think? My head hurts.” He reaches up and finds that his head has been bandaged. “Not to be rude, but... who are you?”

His new companion laughs. “Scott,” they declare, extending a hand. “And I didn’t catch your name, when you came into my shop, slipped on discarded flower petals, split your head on the corner of my counter, and passed out.”

Mumbo’s face heats up. That is... quite possibly the most embarrassing thing he’s ever done. And he’s got quite a track record of doing embarrassing things. “I am so sorry,” he rushes to say. “I’m really quite clumsy.”

“Clearly,” says Scott, looking amused. “Your name?”

Mumbo flushes even deeper. “Mumbo,” he stutters out. “Mumbo Jumbo.”

If Scott finds his name ridiculous (the way everyone else does), they don’t show it. “Lovely to meet you, Mumbo. I’ll stay here with you ‘til the doctor comes back, but then I really ought to get back to my shop.”

Mumbo nods. “Gosh, thank you for staying with me all this time, I’m so sorry you’ve had to deal with all this.”

“Well, I wasn’t going to let you wake up alone,” Scott declares. “But now that I know you’re safe, I gotta open up my shop.”

That’s the third or fourth time they’ve mentioned a shop, and Mumbo’s curious, so he asks. “What kind of shop do you run?” Scott grins.

“I’ve got a flower shop. It’s a sweet little place I run with my platonic soulmates Pearl and Cleo.” They twirl a stray strand of hair around their finger as they speak. “We’ve known each other for ages, and we each have different specialities. Pearl does arrangements for events, Cleo makes the bouquets for like, birthdays and Valentine’s, and I handle the administrative side, keeping the books, filling orders, and so on.”

Mumbo smiles at them. “That’s excellent.” He has another question on the tip of his tongue, but just then the doctor comes back in and starts to question him. Scott pats his hand and leaves.

~~

He doesn’t expect to see Scott again. He can’t for the life of him remember the name of the shop he was visiting when he had his incident, and the doctors want to keep him for a couple of days for observation. But the next day, Scott appears holding a thin vase with a single flower in it. It’s cone-shaped, white petals with a yellow stamen in the centre. They set it on the desk next to his bed and sit down, smiling.

“How are you recovering?” they ask. Mumbo smiles back.

“Better today than I was yesterday. I still get quite dizzy when I try to stand, but apparently head wounds always bleed like that, so it’s not something to be all that concerned about. I’ve been trying to read, but it’s hard to focus.”

Scott looks... fond? Which seems a bit strange. But Mumbo’s not going to question it when a beautiful person is sitting next to him giving him their full attention.

“What’s the flower?” he asks. Scott glances at it.

“Calla lily,” they inform Mumbo. “Represents beauty.”

Mumbo raises his eyebrows. “Beauty?”

Scott meets his gaze and holds it steadily. “Beauty,” they confirm. “Much like yours.”

Mumbo flushes and breaks the eye contact. “You don’t mean that,” he mumbles. Scott shakes their head.

“I absolutely do.”

Mumbo clears his throat and changes the subject, but that thought plays on his mind all day, even after Scott leaves.

~~

Scott comes back with a new flower every day that Mumbo is in the hospital, sometimes bringing stories about the shop or its co-owners. A gardenia, a gladiolus, a hibiscus. The last day he’s there, Scott brings him marjoram, which symbolises joy and happiness.

“I’m getting released tonight,” Mumbo tells him, and Scott looks a little sad.

“I see,” they breathe. “I’m happy for you.”

Mumbo forces a smile. “I’m looking forward to visiting your shop again.”

Scott looks up from where they’d been inspecting their lap. “Really?”

Mumbo nods earnestly. “I’ll be there as soon as possible.”

Scott looks thrilled. “I can’t wait to see you again.”

That gets Mumbo to pause. “Did you think I was just going to walk out of your life?”

Scott shrugs. “Well, I wasn’t sure if you...” They trail off, looking at the wall. Mumbo reaches out to put a hand on Scott’s wrist.

“I’m glad we’re friends,” Mumbo says, smiling at them. “I want to keep being friends with you.”

Scott smiles back. “Me too.”