#he tried that one time with the san francisco flashback

[goodoldfashionednerd]

Daniel Molloy really said I'm not leaving until the divorce papers are signed

[littlemisslipbalm]

Demonology - Part 4

Just Like Heaven -- Jake x f!Reader x Josh

Series Summary: A new demon has come to Nashville. Josh and Jake's ways of life have been thrown off by her arrival. The angel and demon have lived with an understanding of one another, but with Y/N stirring up trouble and asking questions, they're forced to work out a new normal. And why is she so powerful for a human turned demon anyway, that's unusual, right?

A/N: heyyooo new chappie! I do not have the next one written at all unfortunately so it may take awhile to upload but thank you to all who read...to all those who have been wanting to fuck angel!josh...lets just say your prayers may have been answered. lmk what you think :)

Chapter Summary: Flashbacks and angel sex and demonic anxiety attacks OH MY!

Word Count: 3.9k | Warnings: Smut (pretty explicit) 18+ always!!!!, explicit language, alcohol consumption, dubious understandings of demonology like always (sorry!), Josh and Jake chapter yay!, angst and plot!

Join the Taglist! | Masterpost (catch up on the rest of the story here)

Part 4: Just Like Heaven

1972. Los Angeles, California 

4 years before she died. 

Y/N was having the time of her life. Rori was in her arms as she sat on the side of the Forum stage, atop an amp, swinging her legs back and forth to the guitar riff Jimmy was winding down. 

She hollered and threw her head back, in awe and joy. She was coked out of her mind and a little drunk but she was oh so free. 

At 21, she’s been in this world of musicians and lovers and adventure, making trouble, for around six years. From lead singers to roadies and fellow fans, she’d made a lot of friends. Everyone around most of the theaters in LA and Inglewood recognized her by then. 

She didn’t have to say her name at a single door or even have a name on any list. When people saw her coming they let her in, knowing a wicked good time was about to be had by everyone. No one ever had a bad thing to say about her either. It was incredible. Wicked. 

So it confused her when she was taking a smoke break at the side stage door and a guy in a black leather duster and dark sunglasses didn’t seem to notice her at all. People loved talking to her, she often felt like a bit of a celebrity. And her hazy mind made her feel a little indignant that he didn’t even chance a look as she stood beside him smoking a cig looking as sexy as ever. 

Half way through the smoke, she glanced to her right still feeling his presence and growing more agitated. It was strangely just the two of them out there. Both smoking. She couldn’t bear the quiet. 

“Hey, cowboy.” 

He finally looked over when she spoke and she grinned her best smile. He nodded a curt nod and took another drag, turning to face forward again. 

She worried her brow and twisted so she was fully facing this guy. It was curious rather than malicious when she asked: “What’s your deal?” 

He threw another glance her way but she couldn’t see his eyes with the dark-tinted sunglasses he wore. “Sorry?”

“Are you new over here? I’ve never seen you around before.” 

He chuckled and she wasn’t sure what she had said that was funny. He flicked the butt of his cigarette across the alley, the cherry fizzing out as it glowed for a moment and faded into the night. 

“C’mon man,” she whined. “Give me a clue.” He couldn’t be a rockstar even though he had the look about him. She knew them all. Intimately. 

“Friend of the devil.” He shuffles his glasses to his breast pocket and in the light it looks like there’s a flash of yellow in his eye, but she thought that was just the drugs messing with her as she tried to focus on the stranger. 

“Oh! Dead and company! I’ve always wanted to make it up to San Francisco. They just keep me so busy here.” She is alight with excitement. The Grateful Dead were pretty incredible even if she’d never seen them. 

“I’m usually out in Nashville. But San Fran sure is…a scene.” He shrugs, noncommittal in his words, unsure himself why he was entertaining this conversation. 

“So you really don’t know who I am?” She’s simpering, teasing in tone as she twists her legs, lengthening her body against the brick wall. 

He won’t look at her but she can’t stop looking at him. His hair is long and pretty, a little unruly, but he’s beautiful. His silhouette is illuminated by the street lamp, leaving him in intense shadow and light. His prominent nose, his strong jaw, and his sunken eyes. He was the prettiest thing. She thought she’d never forget him. 

“This is Los Angeles, correct?” He chuckles again, looking down his nose at her. “I find it hard to believe that you think any old stranger would just know who you are.”

“I’m pretty notorious.” She leans her head to the side, still showing herself off for him, but he doesn’t seem affected. 

“So am I, doll, and you didn’t know me,” he raises his eyebrows. “So maybe let’s call it even.” 

“Deal,” she grins, extending her recently freed hand towards the man. She shook it at him as he looked at it reluctantly. “C’mon, baby.” 

He shook his head in disbelief. She was strange. A mix of sweet and sour. Pure and evil. Strange but he took her hand nonetheless. She bit her lip at the touch. He was cooler than she’d expected but it was welcome. 

“You wanna come?” She asks after a moment, not letting go of the stranger's hand, nodding towards the door she’d exited less than 10 minutes ago. “I can get you in to meet Jimmy and the boys. Jimmy’s real nice.”

He chuckled again, removing his hand from hers with a tug. “Another time. I was just passing through.” He pushed off the wall and chanced another glance back at her face as he moved to place his sunglasses back on. 

“Catch you on the other side!” She called when she caught his eyes, gleaming yellow once more before he disappeared. She hadn’t realized the corner was so close but she didn’t think about it twice, hearing one of the boys calling her name from inside. 

-

Present Day. Nashville, Tennessee 

47 years after she died. 4 months since she’d been back. 30 minutes since she’d left the dive bar. 1 hour since Jake had left her.

The moon was still high in the sky when Josh got home from the bar and was in the middle of taking off his blood-ridden shirt in his entryway. He wasn’t sure if it was salvageable and as he was inspecting it with disinterest, the last thing he expected happened. A soft knock sounded. Y/N was at his door. 

Hurrying to the door, he opened it a crack, eyes wide and mouth ajar. Shirtless despite his efforts to stay behind the wood. She smiled shyly, unlike herself. 

“How did you know where I live?”

“You said ‘come over, anytime I need’. Is now not anytime?”

Josh chuckled, “Yeah, I just hadn’t expected you to take me up on that invitation, what, a half hour after I’d extended it.”

She bit her lip, feeling the emotions flowing off Josh already. “Well I need it. Can I come in? I think we have some unfinished business.”

“Damnit,” Josh sighed to himself, hanging his head and opening the door wider. She made him weak. 

She smirked and tried to channel her excitement into casual cockiness. Like she’d always known he’d fold. “Isn’t swearing wrong, Joshua?”

“Shut up,” He shook his head, locking the door again and meeting her in the dimly lit hallway. “I can’t believe you came here. Like this.”

She had changed on her way over. A body-hugging slip dress barely covered her skin. It was an iridescent light blue satin. Josh couldn’t take his eyes off her body. She had dressed it up for him.

“I realized I wasn’t ready to say goodnight.” She replied, allowing him to back her up into the cream wall. Her hands reached up to play with his necklace, fingering the shiny beads. “And I can feel that you wanted to see me too. I felt you at the bar, watching me and Jake. How you wanted it to be you. I can feel you.” She breathed the words softly, their breath mingling with the faces inches apart. She pressed her hands against his warm chest. “You radiate towards me. Constantly.” 

Josh hummed, fingers dancing over the silk concealing her waist. Beneath was the skin he couldn’t take his eyes off of all night. She was right. Because of Jake, because of her, but mostly because of himself, he was about to screw his greatest temptation. Maybe still half in spite of Jake tonight. 

Josh thought she must have come to his apartment immediately. She must have known his resolve was at his weakest. A few drinks in and jealous, needy for her touch and here she was stepping onto his doormat, presenting herself for the taking. She made doing the wrong thing too easy. But, Jesus, all he thought about at night was her and the images she’d shown him, wishing they were real. Wishing he could forget all about her. 

She pushed her hips towards Josh's, pressing them even closer together as he rested his forehead against hers, taking a deep breath. Exactly how he’d wished he’d been in Jake’s place at the bar.

“This is wrong,” Josh’s voice is shakey, fanning hot against her skin.

“This isn’t wrong. This is right, I swear. Can’t you feel it,” her voice is sickly sweet again, whispering just for Josh. “It’s okay, Angel. It’s okay to want me. I want you, too.”

“What about Jake?” Josh selfishly wanted to know where his brother fell in this equation. He took solace in the fact that she was with him instead of Jake but he didn’t know if that should actually reassure him.

“What about Jake?” She repeated. Her eyes stare into Josh’s with a scary intensity he’d never seen from her. She knew he’d overheard what Jake had said. Never again. He must have heard it. 

Josh swallowed and she caressed the skin around his throat where his Adam's apple had moved. She smiled. 

Maybe he was trying to prolong the inevitable. The sin he was about to commit. That he couldn’t come back from. Maybe if he talked about Jake enough she’d leave him for his twin. It was something he both wanted and couldn’t stand. His voice is choked up, pinched. “Won’t he mind?”

“He made it clear he doesn’t want me…again. But if you’re worried about him, Angel, it can be our little secret. Now kiss me, sweetheart. I know you want to.”

The way she called Josh that pet name made it sound like a curse but it still made him press his lips against hers. Fervent and desperate to taste her again. He pressed into her more and she opened her legs, allowing his to slip between hers, slotting them closer than ever before. Immediately she ground down onto the thick of Josh’s thigh, relieving the pressure growing in her core minutely. 

“Dear god,” Josh gasped when he pulled away from her for a moment. 

He could feel her wetness on his thigh already and the press of her hardened nipples against his chest. She grinned at him, her smile fucked out and devious. This was exactly what she needed. He was exactly what she needed. 

“They’re not here…Take me to your bedroom, Joshua, and have me anyway you want me. My treat.” She nipped at his lower lip and he felt an ache in his chest and his pants. She was sin incarnate and he couldn’t wait to taste it any longer. “Please.” 

“Oh,” He whispered, but she caught it. He was too close to miss a thing. The ‘please’ had gotten him.

His fantasies were becoming reality and grew tenfold in front of his eyes as they made their way to his bedroom. Drapes of white and cream extended around it. Votive candles in golden vases and holders were scattered around the room and offered a warm light. They illuminated his floor to ceiling bookshelves, filled with hundreds of books, and paintings of foggy serene landscapes in lilac and robin’s egg blue. It was beautiful, but she couldn’t be fucked to take the time to appreciate it all. Her mind was filled with Josh. 

“You’re so wet,” Josh mumbled, pressing his thigh into her center again as he laid her gently down on his sheets. 

She grinned up at him, her hands wrapped around his neck, curling into his soft hair. “So this isn’t your first rodeo, angel?” 

Josh pecked her lips and moved to litter tender kisses on her cheeks, jaw and neck. “I’ve had a few committed relationships over the years,” he mumbles. “They couldn’t exactly last, though.” 

She nodded in understanding, petting over the nape of his neck and over his broad, strong shoulders, creamy skin. Soft as silk. 

He inhaled deeply, taking her in. “This dress,” He ran his thumb up and down the fabric on her hip. 

“Just for you, angel. I know how you hate all my black and red.” 

“S’not that,” He kisses down her chest, kneading her breasts through the fabric and then slipping a hand down between her legs. 

“Then what is–oh! Oh fuck!” Her hands gripped for purchase on Josh’s shoulders. Her thoughts derailed. 

Josh’s fingers had slipped between her folds and swirled around her clit. “So wet,” he repeated and she groaned, in disbelief this was happening. “No panties.” 

She hummed in agreement, body beginning to work with his fingers with small thrusts. “Was hoping I wouldn’t need them. And I was right, wasn’t I?” 

“Dirty, dirty demon,” He whispers, breathless at the feeling of her heat. How his fingers feel inside her, thinking about what it will feel like when he sinks in. He burrows his face into her neck, laving kisses into her skin, feeling thankful. “So good, baby. Oh, wow.” 

She whined at his words. She wanted to worship Josh as he began to fuck into her every way he needed after he made her cum the first time with his fingers. He was so strong and powerful, yet so gentle with his touch. It was long, a strong ocean wave, pounding into her steadily, filling her with his heavy cock. Angelic strength and stamina. The room seemed to glow a golden light emanating from every inch of Josh’s skin. The same gold as the fading sun on that same rippling sea, where the light catches the movement just right and it’s pure reflected light. She came three more times before she began to feel Josh let up. A little. She was feeling euphoric. 

He wanted to switch positions. It was the one his fantasies often drifted to. Her dress had been discarded on the floor a long time ago. Her beautiful body was on full display for him as he whispered in her ear how he wanted her and she giggled, practically purring in compliance. 

As she moved to turn around, her eye caught something in the dresser mirror. The golden light that emanated from Josh, bathing him in a shiny glitter that stuck to his skin, had fallen onto her own skin. Together, they were both bathed in liquid gold. Instead of angels and demons, she swore they resembled gods, gods caught in the most human of acts. 

Hands and knees on the bed, she presented her ass towards Josh and stretched her back. Lengthening her torso, she leaned her head down into the sheets. Josh watched her move, lithe and practiced. Breathtaking. Unmatched. He was catching his breath at the side of the bed, one leg already bent on the bed and the other keeping him standing. His eyes couldn’t leave her body. He would’ve fucked her forever if he could. 

She wiggled her ass and whined his name, effectively getting his attention and breaking his reverie. He thrust into her from behind and she moaned out and he grinned, smoothing his hand down her naked ass and lower back. She pushed back on his length, meeting him in the middle. 

“Good girl.” He mumbled. His hands spread her ass checks and got lost in the trance of their bodies meeting. How he disappeared inside her and how her body welcomed him, never wanting him to leave, sucking him in deeper and begging him to never leave. How could something feel so right be so wrong? 

“So good, Josh. Fuckin’ me so good. Thank you, angel.” She breathed, eyes fluttering shut in ecstasy. “Love it, love you…” 

Josh was sure he misheard her. Surely she hadn’t just said–he was distracted by his imminent orgasm that led him to a different headspace all together. He moaned as he came inside her and she whined in agreement. “Let it all out, baby.” 

She hadn’t even heard herself. 

When Josh woke up the next day, he was naked and alone in his plush bed. His eyes scanned the room, feeling calmer. Maybe that had just been a really weird and vivid dream. He tried to believe himself until he saw the satin blue dress on his floor. Oh fuck.

He threw himself back into the pillows and covered his face with his hands groaning into the silence. He’d gone somewhere he couldn’t come back and now he was left in the after of it all. 

Picking up the evidence of the previous night, he wandered around his home, muttering to himself and feeling immense shame. As well as another emotion. He longed for Y/N. Why had she left him before he had woken up? 

No note. Just the dress which he assumed she didn’t want now that it had done its job. It wasn’t her color after all. 

Josh showered off the remainder of the evidence from last night, gold flecks drifting off his skin and swirling down the drain, a river of gold shame. 

-

She tiptoed back into her apartment around sunrise after leaving Josh’s. She couldn’t bear to face him in the light of day. He had bestowed the exact gift she had longed for since she’d laid eyes on his glowing skin, but it felt wrong to lay with him afterwards. 

She had waited for his breathing to even, his mind going to another place, before she untangled from his angelic body. Something had been repeating in her head the moment he had finished in her for the final time. 

She wasn’t good. She was wrong. She had led him astray. 

She had expected pure bliss to continue flowing through her when he had laid beside her, caressing her skin gently with sweet innocent kisses placed against her temple as he mumbled a song under his breath. It was beautiful and tender. She wanted to be at peace. 

Instead, she felt disgusting shame. Like she has done something terribly wrong. It made her skin crawl. She didn’t understand the sensation. She didn’t feel this feeling. Ever. As a demon or as a human (or whatever Josh and Jake think she was). 

So he eventually fell asleep and she fled because maybe if she got away from him the feeling would go away. She didn’t have time to test that theory. 

Jake was sprawled across her couch with Rori wrapped around his chest in his chupacabra form, cooing to the animal until his yellow eyes flicked up to her figure. 

Clad in last night’s original red and black outfit and covered in gold, she stood in her doorway frozen. 

“Your animal was feeling neglected.” Jake lifts the dog off of him and sits up. “How was dear brother Josh?” 

She opened her mouth but no words came out, she just stepped inside and Jake shut the door behind her with his mind. She closed her mouth. 

Jake continues, eyes still gleaming as they flicked up and down her face and torso. “He’s all over you.” 

“Why do you care?” She finally manages to get out. 

“I don’t.” Jake smiles wickedly. “Just making conversation based on observation, kid.” 

“Get out of my apartment, I’m not in the mood.” She decides that being punished by Jake wasn’t helping her situation. 

“I’ve heard celestial fornication creates something of this,” he pauses, finger swiping along her collarbone, suddenly at her side. Their opposite shoulders were beside each other as he inspected the fine gold smattering of flecks that had come off onto his fingertip. “Sort. But I wasn’t an angel long enough for me to ever find out first hand. Not that they’re supposed to…is he okay now that he’s got his wings wet?” 

“Wh-what?” She steps back from Jake, still reeling from the night with Josh and the information at the bar and now Jake in her apartment. It all was happening too fast, she felt her head swimming. The room was too hot. Jake was too similar to Josh in this moment. Her eyes were blurring, it was like Jake’s face was shifting or morphing into Josh’s as she stuttered. Spinning around and around. “Wings…wet…what?” 

Jake’s eyes widened, the smirk on his face quickly sliding off as he watched Y/N, her eyes flickering in her head to black. She took another step back from him and this time Jake took a step forward, following after her staggering body. 

“My head,” She groaned, clutching a hand at her forehead, and Jake grabbed for her elbows, realizing she was about to collapse. 

“Woah, woah,” He says, carefully easing her body weight into him. “It was just some light teasing for bagging my angel brother, don’t go discorporating on me.” 

He carries her to her couch as carefully as possible despite his awkward hold on her, adjusting her so that he can sit by her legs and lean over her, staring into the abyss of her still black eyes. Rori is on the back of the couch, staring down at his master. One of Jake’s hands is smoothing over her forehead and then down over her hair as he inspects her. She can make out his snake-like eyes shifting quickly back and forth between hers. 

“Can you hear me, Sal?” He asks weakly, giving away his distress. 

Her lips part, “Did you just give me a fucking demonic anxiety attack?”

“I don’t think so…asshole,” He adds with a joking lilt in his voice, glad she was able to joke, meaning it couldn’t be that bad. “I don’t know. Maybe. This has never happened before?” 

“No,” She murmurs, reaching out to her dog to scratch at his ears–that servant of hell might’ve been wrong, this little monster might end up being her ESA. She takes a deep breath, still feeling a little overheated. “Maybe don’t ambush your colleagues from now on.” 

“I thought you were made of stronger stuff, kid.” 

She huffs and Jake bites at his inner lip at his ability to bother her, just a little. His demonic self couldn’t help the pleasure it brought even if he was also genuinely worried about her well-being. 

“Sorry,” he says half-heartedly. “Just wasn’t expecting to see you come home in eau-de-Josh.” 

“Yeah, well I wasn’t planning on it,” She says. Her eyes were slowly fading from black and back to her average color. “Going or you seeing me right after the fact.” 

Jake almost smiled and then quickly suppressed it, leaning back from her as she shuffled up onto her elbows. “Well this settles it.” He says with a finality that she doesn’t understand at all. 

What she wanted was some peace and quiet, but it seemed the universe–and Jake, had other plans for her. 

“What do you mean?”

“Now we really need to figure out what you are because my bet is that your little mystical panic attack is linked to the questions surrounding your powers and true parentage.” He runs a hand through his hair, before tapping his fingers against his lips. She could see the thoughts rapidly racing through his mind. 

“That seems like a leap,” She says, unsure. 

Jake leans closer and they are once again within each other’s breathing spaces. “Like I said last night. The things you do, including this, aren’t normal for demons. You are not normal and I fear that means you may be in serious trouble that we cannot even begin to fathom.”

Her eyes flutter at his words hitting her face. His voice was low and raspy, urgent. She licked at her lips and watched his eyes flicker to the movement. 

“So no pressure, huh?”

-

To be continued....

Taglist: @ofthecaravel @gretavanfreaky @sinarainbows @jaketlove @mysticalstarcatcher @whiterosekiszka @sacredjake @beingextraisfun @malany-gvf @joshysgirl @ascendingtothestarssasone @amygvf13 @myownparadise96 @josh-iamyour-mama @alwaysonthemend @lvnterninthenight

[crazykuroneko]

Just to clear up Luke did go back to London but it seems his band has an EP coming out tomorrow so that's likely his next thing that'll be taking up his time. He does post quite frequently about his whereabouts but I do think we need to be careful about making too many assumptions re: s2 based only on these things, but also remember the only thing we have confirmed from Rolin is that we'll revisit San Francisco, nothing more than that yet. I know some people are very invested in DM but no one involved has ever said it would be a major part of s2 so hopefully people don't go into it hyping themselves up for something that the show never officially said they were going to do.

Oh, yes, you have a point. I forgot about his band.

Yeah, Rolin only mentioned SanFran, but it doesn't mean they won't explore more DM in the future, so I hope fans won't be too disappointed and just be patience. Let the series breathe.

I mean, the writing in this show is very smart. They use every scene they have very well. Look at S1, we only got one (1) SanFran flashback but it's very impactful. They have a lot of things they need to cover and prioritize before DM (IWTV book plot, cracking the memory is a monster thing, more Lestat appearances, segueing to S3 etc). So, just say they'll only have like 3 flashbacks on DM in S2, but I'm sure they'll be strong enough foundation to elaborate the relationship further.

There's this reply where OP tried to "map out" DM's progression in the future, and I second that. That's how it is in my mind as well.

After all AMC Daniel is AMC Louis' character foil and vice versa. We want Louis' character progressing during the TVL-adjacent season, which barely exists in the book 😬. So, even though we don't know yet how big Louis' involvement with DM (either, I assume, they were indeed a throuple or Louis involved himself when DM's relationship getting out out control or smth), I could see the Dubai trio progressing together in S3 through the AMC DM storyline, while we'll also get to know Armand more through Lestat's backstory. So, at the end of the day, all The Big 4 will move forward narrative-wise and we'll all happy 🥳

[spacefinch]

Okay, I have a thought: What if Ms. Frizzle’s class goes on a field trip to San Francisco?

Cable car ride (the bus is the cable car)

They go to the California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium

Other notes:

Tim's artist aunt Joanne makes an appearance in this episode/story.

Wanda and Carlos are the best at navigating the city (since they have been there many times on vacation).

Crossing over with the Marvel universe: Scott Lang (Ant Man), Hope Van Dyne (Wasp) and Hank Pym are there. Insect/shrinkage shenanigans ensue.

They spend some time watching the sea lions on the pier.

While it doesn't have the most diverse avifauna, San Francisco does still have birds. Phoebe and D.A. take the trip as an opportunity to study the behavior of rock pigeons. (And a peregrine falcon!)

The class would also visit some restaurants, other museums, arcades, and Golden Gate Park.

Mikey is there. He tries to help Scott, Hank, and Hope with some inventions. It does not go well, but it goes better than it would have if Carlos was the one helping.

Flashback to all of Carlos's terrible ant puns.

[thebreakfastgenie]

Ok ok now I have to ramble about Trapper John MD bc it’s actually surprisingly good if you give it a chance (I never really gave it any thought bc “oh yeah, stupid spin-off trying to capitalize on a show/character’s popularity” until my dad decided to look for it on YouTube for laughs)

Show Trapper will always be my Trapper bc I’ve been watching it since I was like. 6 so I really wasn’t expecting to get into the show, it was just cheap entertainment. We expected something set immediately after Trapper left Korea (we thought it was the same actor and that’s why he got pulled off the show) but honestly? I kinda like what we got better

The first half of the pilot was lowkey rough (flashback to dad and I making fun of how OoC Trapper was) but once Gonzo shows up everything starts making sense. Essentially Trapper now works at a San Francisco hospital and has grown old and curmudgeonly (he’s in his 60s at this point I think) but then Gonzo (young Vietnam vet with an RV and a dream) shows up and just kinda. inserts himself into the main cast and reminds Trapper of what he was like at his age. They kinda become the Trapper/Hawkeye duo of this series

Trapper is long since divorced but he’s on relatively friendly terms with his ex? She occasionally shows up and his son later joins the main cast working at the hospital

But Stan? Stan is my favorite. I still don’t know why

He’s kinda the equivalent of Frank if Frank actually had positive character development. He starts out as a stick in the mud, constantly telling the other main characters off for bending/breaking the rules. He’s not super well liked but not exactly hated either (again, unlike Frank he actually does have his moments)

As time passes he learns to chill out and actually becomes a pretty fun character in his own right. There’s an episode where they’re trying to stage a circus inside the pediatrics wing for the kids who can’t go outside, even though they tried to get permission and we’re vehemently denied. Early series Stan would have immediately reported this but instead he’s actively helping try to hide an entire elephant. It’s great

It varies between just fun, lighthearted (if somewhat more adult oriented) comedy (like the above Circus episode) to dark stuff like the adoptive daughter of one of the main characters having a chronic illness that consistently puts her in the hospital or Stan straight up getting kidnapped

I apologize for the really long post I just have. Thoughts

And I will propagandize the stupid spin-off if given the chance. I never expected this obsession would happen either

It sounds like a perfectly good medical drama if I think of it on its ow term, I just have to get past another actor as Trapper.

[briamichellewrites]

56

2014. Bria. For the past who knows how long, Mike had been having flashbacks to what he considered a previous life. Every time he tried talking about it, nobody believed him. No, he wasn’t crazy and he didn’t have schizophrenia. He knew the difference between reality and fantasy. After a while, he stopped talking about it. You need help. No. No, he didn’t. He felt isolated from his band and family members. Even his boyfriend, Ken didn’t believe him.

They had been together for six months and were getting serious. The band had yet to meet him. Yes, he was real. They had seen pictures of them together that were not photoshopped. He knew graphic design, but he wasn’t going to start manipulating pictures to create a fake boyfriend.

Where did he meet him? It was at the local Whole Foods. They were in line during a very busy Saturday afternoon. They got to talking. After checking out, he bagged his groceries before putting them back into his cart. Ken was right behind him. He didn’t have as much as he did, so he got through quickly. Outside, he was bold enough to catch him. Mike thought he was cute. He was bisexual, but he hadn’t had much luck with men.

“I don’t usually ask guys out in the parking lot of Whole Foods.”

He laughed. “Neither do I. You want to get a beer or something?”

“Yeah. Let me give you my phone number.”

That one beer turned into them hooking up after finishing the night at his place. It was the best night he had in a long time. After three months, Ken asked him to be his boyfriend. He accepted right away. The band was interested in meeting him but they were waiting for the right time. During one of their dates, he found out he worked with children with mental health problems.

They were usually kids who had anger problems because everyone gave up on them. Their parents, the school, and other mental health professionals. They came to him because their parents didn’t want them to go to juvenile court. They were usually angry because they didn’t have stability in their lives and they thought it was better to push people away, so they didn’t get hurt. He worked to gain their trust before helping them talk about what was going on in their lives and how to handle it.

What kind of situations? Anything. Their parents getting divorced, a parent going to jail, a parent walking out of their lives, or witnessing a parent’s addiction. Because of the stress at home, they were often bullied and had zero friends at school. Maybe someone in their family is sick. They picked fights with the other children or staff because they didn’t know how to express themselves.

It took months of hard work and patience but the differences were amazing. They became happy kids because they could handle their negativity in positive ways.

Rob wanted to bring a girl he met at the Grammys after-party. Her name was Bria Lavigne. She was the orphan daughter of a multi-billionaire hedge fund manager. He thought the band would like her. She was very privileged, having attended French American International School in San Francisco, California. The school was for international students aged three to eighteen years old. She spent the winter holidays in the city. During the weekends, she stayed with a host family and then spent the week on campus.

Her father came to visit her during breaks, though his job was in Los Angeles. She was able to go shopping on her weekends after completing her schoolwork. When she was seventeen, she learned her father died in a plane accident. He had been returning from a skiing holiday when the plane crashed during takeoff. The runway had been too icy. He died instantly.

He left her money to continue her studies until her graduation. She then returned home to Los Angeles, which was where Rob met her. He thought she was gorgeous. She could be a model. That was how beautiful she was. She had long brown hair and adorable brown eyes. Why was she at the Grammys after-party? Boredom. She was able to secure tickets to get in. Eighteen. She was borderline between a teenager and an adult.

She lived by herself, though she had a housekeeper who came in and did all of her chores for her. Her days usually consisted of sleeping in, eating out, and shopping. She also liked going on vacations around the world. They were booked for her by her assistant. She could go anywhere she wanted whenever she wanted. Yes, she acknowledged how privileged she was.

She was very well educated and was able to travel to Paris, Malaysia, Chile, Kenya, Morocco, India, and Cambodia. Just to name a few. She was fluent in French, but she also learned Arabic, Chinese, and Spanish. She was fluent in Arabic? No, she just knew the basics. It was one of the hardest languages to learn, so she was nowhere near fluent. They were impressed! Where did she go to school? She went to an international boarding school in San Francisco.

“I lived with a host family on weekends because my father stayed here in LA. During the week, I stayed in a dorm with a roommate.”

“How is boarding school different from college?”

“In boarding school, you have to check in with adults or administrators. They make sure you have a charged cell phone whenever you leave the campus. It’s like living with your parents. You also have a curfew for when you need to be back. You can lose privileges if you’re late, especially if it’s your fault. Something like the trolley breaking down is forgivable because it’s out of your control.”

That made sense. Did she ever go to Alcatraz? She did! It was creepy, though also fascinating. She went there with her history class. The school also had classes for film, theatre, and music. She took all three because they sounded fun. They put on a highly censored version of Rent. They had to remove the swearing. There was also a song called, Contact they had to get rid of because of its sexuality. But they kept the themes of the musical.

Which character was she? She was a side character, Pam in the life support scene. Although she auditioned for Maureen, the role went to someone else. She was initially disappointed but she realized that it would have been too stressful for her because of the amount of things she had to memorize. The girl who got the role had more experience with acting.

She even helped her with what to do on stage. They would also feel disappointed if they didn’t get the role they wanted. So, they were happy she was able to learn from the experience. Did she do any other acting? She did Seussical the Musical, Grease, Les Misérables, and Footloose. Her roles were always minor characters, but she was okay with that. It was a very fun experience. Would she consider acting in Hollywood? No, that was too much pressure for her.

Her father visited her when he could. He flew in to watch her plays a couple of times. What about her mother? She died when she was six months old. Because she was so sick, she was unable to take care of her. So, she never met her. What did she die from? She had breast cancer. They stopped the treatments during the pregnancy, instead of choosing to abort.

Did she have a close relationship with her father? Yes, she did. He was an immigrant from France, so he sent her to an international school to learn about other cultures. It was the best experience she ever had, even though she missed her father.

After she left, they looked her up on Google. She was the daughter of Jean Lavigne, a multi-billionaire. He was killed in a plane accident the year before while returning from a ski vacation in Switzerland. Everyone else was injured but he was the only person who died. That seemed a little suspicious. Why was he the only one who didn’t survive?

It’s Mike. I know this is out of the blue, but can I talk to you? – Mike

She gave him her address. It was the same address as the one in his memory. She let him in after he rang the doorbell. He expected to see two or three cats roaming around, but there wasn’t. They went into her living room. She asked him who he was. He was going to ask her the same question. They sat down together on her couch.

“I know you but I don’t know you. What happened?”

It was Lou Gehrig’s disease. She contracted pneumonia in the hospital. He held her hand while she died. She remembered dying. It was a strange feeling of death and then being born again. He just wanted one thing and that was a second chance. She promised to give him that. Thank you.

@zoeykaytesmom @feelingsofaithless @alina-dixon @fiickle-nia

[bitimdrake]

Could I ask for a timeline for Jason Todd's Red Hood actions? Like when did UtRH, Seeing Red, Brothers in Blood, Attack on Titan's Tower all take place compared to each other/ other comic events?

Oh absolutely! Jason's timeline after coming back post-crisis is actually pretty straight forward. Here is every single issue he has a significant appearance in:

Red Hood: Lost Days was published later, but recounts the time between Jason coming back from the dead and returning to Gotham. (Batman Annual #25 also does this, but that one goes all the way through Hush and is included in Under the Hood, so for best reading order it should be later.)

Then Jason shows up in Batman: Hush specifically in Batman #617-618. At the time this is revealed to actually be Clayface, but later it will be revealed to actually actually be Jason.

A lot happens in between this and his next appearance. Dick's struggles in Bludhaven hit their peak. Young Justice and the Titans both split up, and the 2003 Teen Titans and Outsiders form. Tim is forced to quit Robin by his dad; Stephanie becomes Robin and then Bruce fires her. And then finally War Games and Identity Crisis happen right before Jason's return, leaving Stephanie and Jack Drake dead, every vigilante except Bruce leaving Gotham (Cass and Tim to Bludhaven; Dick initially to Detroit; Babs and the Birds of Prey initially to Metropolis), and Black Mask getting massive control over Gotham's underbelly.

Then Under the Hood begins with Batman #635-641, #645-647. At some point in here, insert Batman Annual #25, explaining Jason's past. In the middle of UtRH--after he's revealed his identity to Bruce, but before the dramatic end--Jason heads over to San Francisco to beat up Tim in Teen Titans vol 3 #29. At this point, Infinite Crisis has begun. Bruce is going from one earth shattering crisis to the next when UtRH hits its final confrontation in Batman #648-650. This occurs at literally the same time Bludhaven is destroyed.

At the end of this story, Jason either dies just before the universe is rewritten, or is seriously injured and flees. Either way, he is gone for awhile. Infinite Crisis ends; the day is saved; Bruce, Dick, and Tim go on a trip around the world; and the DC universe jumps forward with One Year Later.

Here's the only part where things get a little contradictory. Flashbacks in Outsiders vol 3 #44-46, Annual #1 show Jason helping Dick and the Outsiders with some information back during that skipped year. This was retroactively inserted though, and Outsider's timeline is pretty at odds with all the Bat-books/52's claims on what Dick did over that year--not to mention the emotional arcs conflicting wildly with what comes next:

At the end of the year jump, some cameos from Jason in World War II #1, #4 lead into Brothers in Blood, Nightwing #118-122, part of the One Year Later event, where Jason dons the Nightwing suit to commit murder and ruin Dick's life. (Meanwhile, Cass is in the terrible evil!Cass arc, and Tim is adopted.)

Again, Jason vanishes for a while, next popping up in Seeing Red, Green Arrow vol 3 #69-72, with Bruce, Ollie, and Mia. (At some point around here, could be before or after, Damian is first introduced, though he doesn't stick around.)

At this point is when DC tried to make him a main character in Countdown. This was intended to be the dramatic lead in to Final Crisis, only it wasn't that at all and nothing here matters ever again. But to be thorough, Jason witnesses Duela Dent's death in Countdown #51-48 [note: issue numbers run backwards], gets questioned about it in Teen Titans vol 3 #47 (the first time he, Dick, and Tim all appear together!), then Countdown #47, and Amazons Attack #2 where he starts to join up with Donna. He remains a major player from Countdown #46-1, plus a bunch of tie-ins I never read, as he, Donna, Kyle Rayner, and Bob the Monitor go on a trip through the multiverse.

Most of this matters not in the slightest. There is only one exception: one of the earths they visit has a similar history, but with a Bruce who did kill the Joker after Jason's death, and then promptly went off the deep end. (Which I desperately wish we could have had more follow-up on.) Said alt!Batman gives Jason the Red Robin suit, which he uses all the way back to the normal earth, before dropping in a dumpster. This is the suit Tim will eventually wear.

Events that occurred while he was gone include The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul, Steph's return, Cass's return to the good side, and the formation of a new Titans team with Dick. Shortly after is Batman RIP, where Bruce vanishes. After RIP is also when Damian stays in Gotham.

(TIMELINE NOTE: the official timeline of Batman and Final Crisis says that FC happened immediately after RIP, meaning Bruce was missing for less than one night before he went off to die. This contradicts every other Bat-book there is, all of which heavily implied or else outright stated that Bruce was mysteriously missing for a significant period before he was known to be dead. I use the latter version, and sort accordingly. If you prefer the former, then Final Crisis should be placed here.)

While Batman is missing, Jason pops up again, this time with Tim in Robin #177, #182, where he gets sent to jail, and then Tim breaks him out. This will turn out to be an incredibly horrible idea. After this is when I place Final Crisis and Bruce's actual "death." Following which, Tim brings Jason to the cave to see Bruce's final message to him in Robin #183.

Then he loses it. Cue Battle for the Cowl. Jason's major appearances here are in the central three issues, but he shows up briefly in a few of the tie-ins. In order, Battle for the Cowl #1 and Azrael: Death’s Dark Knight #3, then Battle for the Cowl #2, BftC: The Underground #1, concluding in Battle for the Cowl #3. Once again, Jason ends the arc by seemingly dying, but of course will reappear later.

In the meantime, Dick becomes Batman, Damian becomes Robin, Tim becomes Red Robin and leaves the country, Cass also leaves the country, and Steph becomes Batgirl. We are in the Batman Reborn era.

Jason's final appearances are with Batman!Dick and Robin!Damian, in Batman and Robin #4-6, where he is again sent to prison, before breaking out in Batman and Robin #23-25, and flying off into the sunset with his new sidekick, Scarlet.

[krinsbez]

The Heroes, A Pulp Hero Crossover Series Concept: Attempt Two

So, last year, the the idea popped into my head of a Prestige TV Series about Pulp Heroes. It would be called The Heroes, and it would be an anthology, which each season focusing on three-four Pulp Heroes, at least one of whom would be less high profile. The plot would connect different heroes, but they would not, necessarily, intersect.

The game then would be to come up with various seasons of this show. Ideally, we’d develop it thoroughly, envision the title and plot of each episode, fancasting, etc. 

With the assistance of @jcogginsa, @maxwell-grant, and @skjam we managed to do quite a bit of work on the first few seasons, though we didn’t complete any of them. The project then moved to discord (although @skjam didn’t come along for reasons unclear to me) after awhile, as such projects do it eventually ran out of steam and was abandoned. With the permission of the first two...belatedly I realized I should’ve asked @skjam also, sorry about that buddy!

Anyways, I plan on trying to revive the project.

First, what we came up with so far: we can uses these or discard them as anyone joining the project desires. If you’d like you can trawl through the tag and look at all the old tumblr convo here: https://krinsbez.tumblr.com/tagged/The%20Heroes

In the meantime, some summaries (made by @maxwell-grant):

(note: we decided to have a running gag of having every season include a stinger or cameo involving the greatest villain of the Pulps, and one of the greatest villains of all time; The Insidious Dr Fu Manchu. For obvious reasons, I understand if folks wanna drop this)

SEASON ONE: California Scheming

THE PLOT: Newly installed San Francisco Police Commissioner James “Wildcat“ Gordon (secretly the vigilante known as The Whisperer) is being pressured by the Mayor (and the political bosses who back him) to capture the notorious thief known as the Domino Lady. Meanwhile, the woman herself visits a friend in LA, where they attend a performance of Bigelow’s Air Circus, and is taken by the star of the show, a handsome pilot named Cliff Secord, much to the dismay of his girlfriend Betty. All three soon become involved in the machinations of the fiendish Doctor Satan, who plots to poison the entire city with a disease only he has the cure to, assisted by the giant Lothar who has a personal grudge against Cliff. 

-THE ERA: The ‘30s

-THE LOCATION: Los Angeles and San Franciso

-THE HEROES: The Rocketeer. The Domino Lady. The Whisperer

-THE VILLAINS: Doctor Satan. Lothar.

CAST

-Hayden Panettiere (sp?) as Ellen Patrick/The Domino Lady

-John Mulaney as Cliff Secord/The Rocketeer

-Christian Bale as “Wildcat” Gordon/The Whisperer

 -Dan Stevens as Doctor Satan

-Jenna Coleman as Betty

-Carel Struycken as Lothar

1. Introduction to Cliff Secord, establishing his status quo, doing some daring do. Ellen takes in a performance of Bigelow’s Air Circus while visiting a friend in LA, and uses it to start flirting with Cliff, who’s currently in the doghouse with Betty. There are references to San Francisco’s reformist mayor having appointed Great War hero James Gordon as Police Commissioner (whom the audience will expect to be a mature and reasonable authority figure) to crack down on corruption. Cliff’s backstory is lightly discussed, but there are no Flashbacks. Episode ends with the introduction of Wildcat Gordon being the hotshot unruly jackass he is. He shows up while Cliff and Ellen are at at a nightclub, to arrest an obnoxious gangster after punching out his bodyguard, while flirting with his moll. Might get into a fight with Cliff as the episode ends.

2. We open in San Francicso, where the Mayor tries to browbeat Wildcat into going after the Whisperer and the Domino Lady. Wildcat agrees to do the latter, making lots of double entendres about how he’d like to get his hands on DL, etc. suggesting he isn’t taking this seriously. Because he’s not. Focuses on Wildcat’s character, including flashbacks to his backstory. Episode ends with a planned sting. 

3. Introduction to the Domino Lady character, with her undertaking a heist. She knows of Cliff and Gordon's alter-egos and is manipulating them. Gordon is forced to put on an effort to catch her. We see her escape from the sting, using the fight as a distraction. Betty attempts to seduce Wildcat and fails at it. Has the scene where Quick Trigger and Peevy commiserate. Ends with one of the police officers reporting to a mysterious boss that he failed in capturing the Domino Lady, and dying as tree branches burst out of his skull, revealing Doctor Satan. Ascott Keane could be introduced in this episode.

4. Characters begin to investigate Doctor Satan. The Mayor refuses to believe something so outlandish as Doctor Satan exists and assumes Wildcat is screwing with him, until he shows up with proof. Keane is called in by Wildcat to help with the Domino Lady case. Ascott Keane seems to have it all figured out, and then Lothar makes his debut by murdering him. 

5. Cliff and Lothar’s backstories are shown in Flashbacks, as the action ramps up in the present. Ends with Domino Lady being brought to Doctor Satan, who pressures her into stealing the Rocketeer's rocket pack. He wants the rocket pack since he plans to spread a plague across the city by aerial means, to hold it in a grip of terror as he’s inevitably the only one who has a cure, and he wishes to take Domino Lady as his bride in order to protect her.

 6. Ellen’s backstory shown through Flashbacks. She succeeds in stealing the rocket pack, and Doc Satan imprisons her in his lair. She has a moment of kindness with Lothar that results in him freeing her, as she reminds him of his lost friend Teena. After he lets Domino Lady escape, Doc Satan activates the plague inside Lothar and leaves him to die. He doesn't.

------------------------ASSORTED PLOT POINTS---------------------------

 -Primary focus is on Cliff and Ellen, with Wildcat or his alter ego mostly showing up to wreck things.

-Important people, crooked and not, have been putting pressure on the Mayor of San Francisco to Do Something about the Domino Lady. He, in turn has been putting pressure on Wildcat. Wildcat decides to pretend to give into said pressure so he has an excuse to pull resources from the hunt for his own alter ego, and because it gives him an excuse to play up his playboy bonafides in the press

-Ellen is aiming for a threesome with Cliff and Betty, and to help Cliff and Betty get over some of their drama.

-Ascott Keane is set up as some sort of invincible hero at first, the guy who has figured everything out and has the best chance of stopping Doctor Satan by himself and securing the jetpack and stopping the criminal Whisperer and Domino Lady, because he is the Great Detective and yadda yadda, cue him being killed off abruptly just when it seems he’s gonna close the caper.

-At some point, testosterone-poisoned meatheads that they are, Cliff and Wildcat get into a fistfight, at one point laying punches on each other at the exact same moment, which leads to male-bonding. Later, the Rocketeer and the Whisperer get into a fistfight, and do the exact same thing, which leads to them realizing each other’s secret identities.

-At some point Peevy and Quick Trigger commiserate over the young maniacs they’re mentoring.

-By the end of the story, Doc Satan has henchmen on standby dressed in a version of Cliff’s outfit, complete with a crude version of his jetpack. They are the ones meant to fly over the city and administer the plague. Doc Satan had them on standby while he distracted the heroes. Just as the henchman prepare to take off, Lothar enters their base, dragging himself to their location, mutated by whatever it is that Doc Satan injected him with. And then he finds a small army of Cliff Secords before him.

-After the great off screen carnage, the heroes find Lothar, who drags himself towards Cliff to kill him again. Domino Lady puts him out of his misery while Cliff somberly reacts to a death he knows he carries blame for.

-There will be a stinger as one of the few remaining minions reports to his true master.. the Insidious Doctor Fu Manchu, who is pleased that Satan’s mad plan was foiled before it could interfere with his own operations in San Francisco, and that the fruits of his research are now in his own hands.

SEASON TWO: The Deadliest Game

THE PLOT: General Zaroff, the antagonist of The Most Dangerous Game, has acquired a new beast to hunt: Larry Talbot, the Wolfman. Zaroff sinks a cruise ship, which he believes Doc Savage is aboard, believing that Savage will survive and make it to Zaroff’s island, where Doc can help him in taking out the horrible beast that's been terrorizing the island, with Zaroff intending to later hunt Savage after he's proved himself. Unfortunately, he’s misinformed, because the Savage aboard the ship is actually Patricia Savage, not Clark. And she's brought along a friend in Jane Porter, whose loved one may be far too much of a beast for Zaroff to deal with. 

-THE ERA: The ‘30s.

 -THE LOCATION: A jungle island in the Caribbean

-THE HEROES: Pat Savage. Jane Porter Clayton, Lady Greystoke. Laurence “Larry” Talbot

-THE VILLAINS: General Zaroff. The Wolf Man

CAST:

-Jemaine Clement as Gen. Zaroff

-Adrienne Palicki as Pat Savage

-Ginnifer Goodwin as Jane Porter Clayton, Lady Greystoke

-Bryan Cranston as Larry Talbot/The Wolf Man

-Braun Storwman as Ivan

-Jason Momoa as Tarzan

--------------------------------------THE STORY SO FAR-------------------------

 -Zaroff has let the Wolfman loose on his island, with the intent of passing him off as a beast terrorizing the local populace. The reason he does this is because he quite admires Doc Savage, and before he hunts the man, he’d like to hunt alongside him. Pat and Jane are initially a disappointment to him, as he figures that women aren’t really good enough to make for an entertaining hunt. However, when Pat and Jane hear about the ‘beast’, they insist on helping the hunt.

 -We might want to have other shipwreck survivors around, whom Zaroff is using as hostages to force Pat and Jane to participate in the hunt. Possibly some natives (or a colony descended from escaped slaves, or both) whom Zaroff leaves alone because he doesn’t think of non-white people as being worthy prey? There needs to be people around for the Wolfman to threaten as part of Zaroff’s scheme.

 -The climax of the first hunt sees Pat, and Jane work together to ‘kill’ it. Pat and Jane don’t know that it is a person at this point  I’m imagining that first Zaroff manages to lure it into a lethal trap, possibly a spike pit, only for it to survive. Then Pat and Jane working together manage to ‘kill’ it, by Pat setting it on fire, which creates an opening for Jane to decapitate it with a machete, the head falling into a river while the body burns. This is what makes them worth the hunt. As for the Wolfman, it’s head is still alive, and the next time he appears, it’d be as Larry, with his full body back. So the Wolfman is thus established as something that can slaughter anyone in a one on one fight, and who is unkillable (by any means available on the island, at least)

-In the process of hunting the Wolfman and (seemingly) killing him, Zaroff becomes impressed enough with them that he decides they’re good prey after all. Jane and Pat eventually meet up with Lawrence, who tells him of Zaroff’s original plan of hunting Doc. They figure that if Zaroff’s goal was just to hunt Doc, he could have simply sent Pat to inform him of the ‘threat’ so as to lure him to the island, and that the only reason why he wouldn’t have done so would be because it would draw Tarzan to the island as well. That’s when they put together the Tarzan fake out plan

-Tarzan does not appear, physically, until after the series ends. He instead becomes essentially the Crocodile to Zaroff's Captain Hook, as Zaroff is both unreasonably excited at the prospect of hunting Tarzan, and scared shitless as he comes to realize that, not only Tarzan is WAY out of his league, and will inflict unimaginable horrors on him if he ever finds out Jane was in danger, but the prospect of Tarzan becoming a werewolf starts tormenting the Count's dreams, causing him to be more desperate to kill Jane quickly and get out of the island. For our heroes, the time is ticking until Zaroff finds them. And for Zaroff, the time is ticking until Tarzan finds him. Will our heroes defeat Zaroff and escape? Will Zaroff kill one or more of them before Tarzan arrives? Will Tarzan arrive in time?

-We have a good spectrum of attitudes towards adventuring; Pat is all for it, Jane has no strong feelings one way or the other, but accepts that they’re an inevitable result of being married to Tarzan, Larry hates it. Jane has been sleeping next to a ruthless, savage killer with a sadistic streak for decades, so she’d probably be less freaked out by the contrast between Larry and his unwanted alter ego than Pat. Subplot of Pat trying to convince Larry not to despair because she’s (justifiably) confident Doc can find a way to fix him.

 -The Wolf Man tears Ivan to shreds.

 -The girls and Talbot defeat Zaroff on their own. At some point within the season, Zaroff begins receiving updates from his servants, regarding the approach of Tarzan, eventually getting to the point where Tarzan is actively on the island, and Zaroff has to move quickly so as to simultaneously hunt the girls while avoiding him. Then in the climax, the truth comes out: Tarzan was never there. The updates on his approach were orchestrated by the girls, as a form of psychological warfare to throw Zaroff off his game.

-The Fu Manchu cameo for this season takes place in a Flashback. He’s the one who procured The Wolfman for Zaroff. He did so by simply tracking down Larry and talking him into it. Fu might have even convinced Talbot to serve him by convincing him that he could cure him. Maybe Fu wants to test Zaroff’s strength by pitting him against the Wolf Man, and to that end, he told Talbot that he would help him if he could defeat the rogue Count, so that, whoever wins, it’s a win for him as well. Zaroff offered to let him join the hunt, but Fu declined. Fu did lure Jane into the island with the specific intend of turning Tarzan into a wolfman, in the hopes of chaining his power. He does not succeed, but he does appear after it's all over, to collect a new prize.

-In the end, Zaroff is turned into a werewolf, locked into the form of a wretched man-beast for the rest of his life. The monster in his dreams was himself all along, and now he's not even a hunter anymore. Just another pet belonging to Fu Manchu's animal collection.

SEASON THREE: Detectives Dead & Dying

THE PLOT: The Great Detective Sherlock Holmes has died of old age. His funeral is attended by his best friend, the elderly Dr. John H. Watson, as well as a veritable Who’s Who of those who have followed in his footsteps. Among them, the Occult Detective Sar Dubnotal, who surprisingly, is contacted by the ghost of the deceased Holmes, who warns that something untoward is afoot in the afterlife, preventing him from moving on until it is dealt with… 

THE ERA: The early ‘40s.

THE PLACE: The South Downs.

THE CHARACTERS: Sar Dubnotal, John Watson, Nita Van Sloan, The Ghost of Sherlock Holmes, Other Great Detectives.

CAST

-Roshan Seth as Sar Dubnotal

-Peter Capaldi as Sherlock Holmes

-Eva Green as Nita van Sloan

-Vincent D’Onofrio as Dr. John H. Watson

(this one is rather lacking in development, also don’t really remember what we did come up with)

SEASON FOUR: The Hounds of Hell

THE PLOT: New York City, the 1980s. The underworld of NYC (and the rest of the East Coast, for that matter) rest firmly under the heels of Grendel…with one notable exception. The local branch of the Si Fan stubbornly refuses to kowtow to Hunter Rose, and he’s making them pay for it…and Fu Manchu, who has largely been outside America for the past decades and faded into urban legend, has decided he’s going to have to deal with this interloper personally. One of the daughters of Fu Manchu, in an attempt to break away from her father's control, teams up with her lover, a vampire named Varney, who claims to have been enslaved into servitude by Count Dracula himself. The two go to Grendel wishing to make a deal with him, so they may be free from their masters. Grendel does not believe in the rumors of Fu Manchu, and he does not take the idea of Count Dracula seriously, but he sees great utility in having a vampire around, especially when Argent the Wolf begins intruding more and more on his operations. No one suspects that Varney is, in fact, the infamous Count Dracula, returned and worse than ever before. Coincidentally, throwing over a century of Fu Manchu carefully avoiding crossing paths with The Lord of the Undead into the trash. It’s a threeway melee between the greatest of archfiends, the past, present and future of evil, and God have mercy on the souls that get caught in the way. Who will win, who will be broken, and what spoils of war will befall on the last one standing? 

THE ERA: The 80s.

THE PLACE: New York City

THE CHARACTERS (”heroes” and “villains” don’t really apply here): Grendel (Hunter Rose). Fu Manchu. Varney/Count Dracula. The Daughters of Fu Manchu. Argent the Wolf. Stacy Palumbo. Assorted POV characters.

CAST

-Grendel: Timothée Chalamet / Aramis Knight

 -Fu Manchu: Andy Lau / Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

-Dracula: Sebastian Stan

-Argent the Wolf: Daniel Luján / Keith David

-Stacy Palumbo: Daphne Keen

(again, not as well developed, and again I don’t remember it as well)

SEASON FIVE: News of The Underworld

THE PLOT: Boy reporter Tintin, accompanied by Snowy the Dog and Captain Haddock, has arrived in America having somehow finagled a ridealong with The Avenger and Justice, Inc. Their current mission? An unknown gang has been knocking over museums all over the country and making off with artifacts, but not the most valuable. Our Heroes discover the leader of the gang is the infamous Tony “Scarface“ Camonte...who famously died in a shootout with police years ago. Turns out, before that he obtained a ring that once belonged to the Hyborian Age sorcerer Thoth-Amon, which is haunted by Thoth’s ghost, and brought Tony back ot life as an undead lich, intending to steal his body. But Scarface will was too strong, and the two have formed a weird partnership, and are gathering artifacts containing magical power. Since magic is something The Avenger and Co. have limited experience with, they recruit the assistance of one Dr. Henry Jones, Jr....

THE ERA: The late ‘30s (we’re fudging things quite a bit, I know)

THE PLACE: The United States (this one will be traveling around a bit)

THE HEROES: The Avenger. Tintin. Indiana Jones

THE VILLAINS: Tony “Scarface” Camonte. Thoth-Amon

(this is the season we were working on when the project ended, and is probably the least developed of all)

[npdclaraoswald]

Book recs with Percy Jackson Vibes

If you, like me, loved Percy Jackson but struggle to reread it and the spin offs because you feel like you've aged out of target audience, these are some books with higher age ranges that gave me similar vibes. And all of them are queer! Obviously, the Rick Riordan Presents imprint books should also have the same vibes, but I haven't read any of those yet, so I can't recommend them.

Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire

A school for children who have come back to Earth after living through portal fantasies like Narnia to readjust to life and have a place where other people understand them. Follows a different character every book and switches perspectives so odd numbered books take place at the school and even numbered ones are flashbacks showing the kids' adventures in their fantasy worlds.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Yadriel is a young brujo whose family won't let him perform the ceremony to come into his full power because they have a gendered magic system and think Yadriel won't be able to summon and guide ghosts to the afterlife- a brujo's duty- because he's trans. Determined to prove himself both as a man and a brujo, he tries to summon the ghost of his recently disappeared cousin only to accidentally summon Julian, his school's bad boy who appears to have been murdered the same night. They must work together to solve Julian's murder and figure out what happened to Yadriel's cousin while growing closer to each other, making the prospect of guiding Julian on more and more daunting.

Hell's Library series by AJ Hackwith

The Library holds records of all of humanity's stories, with its different wings spread across different afterlives. When one of Hell's wings of The Library- the Unwritten Wing, housing every story never written- has a sentient character escape to Earth to try to inspire his author to actually write him, their trip to Earth after him alerts them to the reemergence of a book written by Lucifer- an artifact with untold power- and the fact that Heaven is after it. To prevent a celestial war the librarians must work together across afterlives to find the book and preserve it in a neutral wing of The Library. The autistic coded gay angel who wears a trenchcoat definitely isn't a Castiel ripoff.

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

The beginning of a trilogy, but the other two aren't out yet. Inspired by cultures from the Pre-Columbian Americas, this book follows three characters: a man raised from birth to be inhabited by the Crow god, whose worshippers are oppressed in their holy city, and who must journey to the city in time to awaken the Crow god; the captain of the ship transporting him and who is of a people outcast from the rest of society but have a magical connection with the sea; and a Sun priestess in the holy city who rose through strict class barriers to this position and wants to heal the divide among her people.

Ths Wrath & Athenaeum series by Na'amen Gobert Tilahun

Erik, a former child star living in San Francisco, learns he is descended from gods after manifesting superpowers. He's drawn into an organization for people like him that's rife with history and politics. Meanwhile, in a parallel world, Lil, an apprentice librarian and witch, is drawn into the incredibly complex and deadly world of her alien society's royal court. When they learn of a dark and destructive force that will tear both their worlds apart, Erik and Lil will have to work across worlds and struggle with the few allies they can find to preserve their worlds.

Don't read this one if you're squeamish- Lil's world is a truly alien one with buildings made of living flesh being the most mundane thing about it.

[phoenixrisesoncemore]

Anything Goes: "You think I don't dance?"

Updated Version for linking to the fic Masterpost

This is a newly-edited version of a piece that was originally written and posted here on Tumblr as a response to a writing prompt. Instead of being a one-off, it ballooned into a scene from an entire Jazz Age/Prohibition AU which is in the very, very slow process of being written. I am reposting this newly edited version of this chapter to link to in the Anything Goes Masterpost.

This chapter takes place about ⅔ of the way through this fic, and this portion of this chapter begins about ¼ of the way into the full chapter (I know: could I be any more confusing if I tried?). I’ve included some context notes below.

Follow the tag #WangXian 1929 for updates. If you would like to be pinged with an @ when new chapters go live, let me know.

The first half of this fic is written entirely from Lan Wangji’s perspective, and that’s whose perspective you are in when you fall into this scene.

This scene takes place inside Wei Wuxian’s dance club speakeasy, The Rabble, in August of 1929 in Los Angeles. Flashbacks take place in San Francisco in 1906 and 1917.

Mianmian is a relation of the Jin family who routinely sings here and has several times now made (apparent) passes at Lan Wangji.

The Jins are involved in all kinds of organized crime. The Wens (supposedly) were, too, until they were nearly wiped out.

Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji first met each other briefly as children and then met again later as teens, but until three months ago, they had not seen or heard from each other since 1917, and LWJ had believed (except perhaps for the tiniest hope) Wei Ying to be dead. Each remembers the other from before very, very, very clearly. Both have doubts that the other remembers them from before at all, and neither has said anything to suggest they have known each other for more than three months, partly for reasons Not Fully Examined in this Scene, but also partly because Wangxian struggles at first to communicate in all universes. 

“Wei Wuxian” is a name LWJ had never heard until the day he accepted this assignment. Imagine his shock when he finally meets the person attached to that name. But how much has Wei Ying changed to become Wei Wuxian? Why does he seem different in ways twelve years can’t account for? That’s a question Lan Wangji is desperate to find an answer to.

In the first part of this chapter Lan Wangji spies (at WWX’s request) on a meeting between Wei Wuxian and bigwig bootlegger Jin Guangshan in a backroom of The Rabble. After JGS and his entourage as well as the band and patrons leave for the night, WWX and LWJ are supposed to debrief, but WWX is getting in over his head in more ways than one and starts hitting the gin. Mianmian, he insists, is totally into LWJ (who wouldn’t be: LWJ is gorgeous) and LWJ, tragically unattached, deserves to find himself a good girl. If he’d just let WWX teach him how to dance, he could easily sweep her off her feet…

“You think I don’t dance?”

Wei Wuxian nearly chokes on his drink. “To this? Please, tell me, Lan Zhan, tell me: who would assume you do?”

It’s not a jab worth responding to, especially since the three fingers of gin is partly to blame for it, to say nothing of it being 3:00am and—

“Luckily,” Wei Wuxian leans in dangerously, each glazed eye reflecting a half dozen electric lights, “you have me!” He grins a feral grin, hops off the railing, and downs the remainder of his glass. He makes a show of closing his eyes and laying his free hand solemnly over his chest: “I’m both extremely knowledgeable and extremely skilled in these things.”

This can’t be good.

Lan Wangji is about to protest, but Wei Wuxian is off and rummaging behind the bandstand before he can get a word out. There’s a muffled thud, something indistinguishable rolls haphazardly out and under the piano, and Wei Wuxian emerges seconds later clutching a smallish suitcase in one hand and a single record in the other.

Oh, no. There is chaos coming. Dominoes are about to fall, and not the good kind that line up tidy—the kind that clatter about and make a mess. Say goodnight and bow out quietly, Lan Wangji thinks. But there’s something in Wei Wuxian’s face as he deposits his payload on one of the tables across the dancefloor that makes him pause. There’s energy swelling in him, and he seems desperate to catch it before it can float away. It’s burning out through his fingers as he opens the suitcase to reveal a portable gramophone, as he gently slides the record out of its sleeve, as he seats it on the turntable and turns the hand crank a good two dozen times. There’s a moment when he pauses, as if second guessing—and Lan Wangji can see those fingers trembling—before he recovers and plunges ahead, lifting the tone arm.

He looks genuinely happy. That’s what it is. The sardonic cant of his head is nowhere to be found; the lopsided smile of the man Lan Wangji has spent the last three months working with has been replaced with the unspoiled grin of the boy he knew twelve years before, beaming in the burnished sunset light of the last lantern festival before the Great War.

And that’s simply too much, especially at 3:00am.

Escape is the best course of action. They can continue their discussion tomorrow when Wei Wuxian is sober and... slightly more professional.

Lan Wangji is up and grabbing his coat and hat from where he’d tossed them as music crackles into life. It drifts, thin and watery, across the wide and empty dance floor, a pale, quivering thread imitating the deep, swooping rhythm of the exact same music that was playing live no more than two hours before. Yet it brings things altogether unbidden to his mind: the rush of pure adrenaline that saturated him the moment he walked through the door and saw the face of the man that was meant to be his contact—the man he’d been warned about in no uncertain terms, the man believed to be responsible for all manner of crimes—and knew instantly and without doubt that despite the gaunt cheeks and old scars and pale lips and darkened eyes, he was the boy he had been told had died somewhere far off in the mud and muck a decade past.

He crushes his hat in the rush to put it on his head.

He’s halfway to the door and trying to put his coat on when that same man is running towards him, the beginnings of a flush blooming across his cheeks. “Lan Zhan!? Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan? Where’re you going?”

“Go upstairs and go to bed. We’ll talk more about this tomorrow when you’re sober.”

“Nothing’s worth talking about sober—take that off!”

“Goodnight, Wei Ying.”

“Lan Zhan!” He grabs the hat right off his head. Despite the growing signs of inebriation, he’s still agile enough to keep it out of Lan Wangji’s reach. Dangling the hat like bait, he starts backing towards the center of the dancefloor. 

Lan Wangji does not follow. 

This development seems to disappoint him. “Lan Zhan, how are you going to get Mianmian to open up if you’re not willing to dance with her?”

“That’s not part of my job description.”

“...Dancing?”

“Se...” he tries again. “Seduction. There are protocols—”

“Oh, come on! Forget what she knows about Jin Guangshan. She’s asked you twice!”

Lan Wangji is stone. He is stone, and the hand he reaches towards Wei Wuxian is stone. “Give me my hat.”

Wei Wuxian smirks that satin smirk and plops it on his own head. “No.”

There will be sirens. There will be klaxons. There will be paperwork in triplicate. “It is three in the morning.”

Wei Wuxian’s slow steps melt into a backwards sashay. “What’re you going to do? Arrest me? Is there a curfew I don’t know about? Wait! Is that your department, too? They really expect you to do everything, don’t they!? And I hear they pay you so poorly; not that anyone would know that from looking at you.” He flashes another, showier smile. “So, what is under your jurisdiction then? Whose vices might invoke your long arm?” He giggles for a moment then starts counting it out on his fingers, “Bootleggers, we know. Drunkards as well, surely. Curfew Breakers? Troublemakers? Non-conformists? and... wait...”

Lan Wangji takes a calming breath and closes his eyes. He is stone. “You’re drunk.”

“No, I’m just forgetting something…. Smoke-eaters?!” He pulls his own silver cigarette case out of his pants pocket by way of illustration. “Lan Zhan, you already know I’m guilty of every vice under your jurisdiction and then quite a few I imagine you would frown upon. If a little foxtrot at three in the morning really is a vice, well then grant me just one more—just this one more, Lan Zhan—and after that you can take me in, hmm?” He holds his wrists together out in front of himself and actually has the audacity to pout.

Wei Wuxian has come to rest in the middle of the dancefloor, the stolen hat still askew on his head, but Lan Wangji does not answer him, so he drops his arms, sighs, and seems to consider things for a moment. At last he plants himself squarely and clasps his hands behind his back, taking on a serious and didactic air, head held high. “Lan Zhan. Lan Wangji. Do you know what I read not more than three weeks ago?”

Lan Wangji shakes his head.

“It was an astronomy paper, written by an astronomer working up at the Mount Wilson observatory.” That energy is still burning hot and his hands clearly need to work; he unclasps them and opens his cigarette case. “Did you know that there are whole other galaxies outside our Milky Way, so far away the distances are just unimaginable, and we can see them from here? Right here!? Just north of Pasadena you can look at other galaxies, all full of stars.” He takes out a cigarette and returns the case to his pocket where he retrieves a small lighter. “‘More things in heaven and earth,’ eh? Or at least in heaven. Not so sure about earth anymore.” He lights his cigarette and then takes a long drag. Lan Wangji can see the mechanism slowing, the concrete concepts abstracting, their edges blurring, and Wei Wuxian struggling to pull them back into focus as the buzz kicks in. Lan Wangji starts to protest again and Wei Wuxian holds up a hand to stop him. “No, now just bear with me for a minute. Do you follow astronomy?”

Lan Wangji does not, and rocks his head back and forth exactly once to say so.

“Hm. Well, the thing is, we now know that these other galaxies are hurtling away from us at incredible speeds, and the farther away they are, the faster they’re hurtling! Now, there’s a lot of math in there, and I won’t bore you with that. Who wants that at three in the morning, right?” He takes another long drag on his cigarette, likely for the dramatic pause as much as anything. “But it’s not that these galaxies are moving, but that—and this is the important part—the space between them is growing!” It’s clear by the expression on his face that he finds this deliciously absurd. “Isn’t that outrageous? Have you ever heard anything like that?”

Lan Wangji has not.

“Well one day, you see, these galaxies are going to be moving away from us so quickly that even light from them won’t be able to reach us any longer. They’ll just—poof!—be gone.” He punctuates the sound with a snap of his fingers. “Completely and forever out of our sight and reach. And that holds true for everything! Absolutely everything not gravitationally locked to something else will end absolutely unreachable, solitary and untouched by anything else.” He stands quiet for a minute, a slender exclamation point. “So, Lan Zhan, doesn’t all that fatalism put things into perspective? Even a bit? If that’s how things are going to end, wouldn’t it be worth the risk or of one dance? If nothing else, it would make m... it would make Mianmian very happy; I know it would.”

For reasons Lan Wangji doesn’t fully understand, his mother’s voice bubbles up from the silent past, clear and musical. 

“Don’t be frightened. It won’t hurt you.” 

In his memory her ruqun is blue like the heavens. The silk clouds woven across the collar glitter in the sunlight and the rabbit is soft and white in her hand. He realizes, looking back, that he hadn’t recognized yet what the sadness behind her eyes was for.

In his memory it is spring and the magnolia tree is in bloom, powdered magenta against the sky. From the direction of Du Pon Gai, where it cuts a line through tangrenjie, he can hear the whir of an engine, but within the walls of their courtyard this other world persists, slow and steady.

“You’re so gentle, Zhanzhan. Don’t worry.” In his memory she takes his hand in hers and lays it on the rabbit’s back. “You won’t hurt it either.” 

He strokes the fur, amazed at how soft it is. “Uncle won’t let you keep it,” he warns.

“No. Let’s enjoy it while we have it, then, hm?”

Things can be taken away so quickly. A surge of adrenaline soaked fear brings him back to the present, where Wei Wuxian looks at him with an intensity that passes almost into pleading. 

“Humor me?” Wei Wuxian, hand outstretched, smiles thinly. “Please?”

Lan Wangji does not believe in hypnotism; he was a child when he mastered compulsion; but something makes him take that first step towards the whirlpool at the center of the dancefloor, where the finish has been mostly worn off with use, tracing the paths of thousands of courtships. Wei Wuxian watches with widening eyes, slowly blossoming into a smile as rare and delicate as the vulnerable unfolding of a magnolia flower, pure and achingly ephemeral. That smile is as close as anything has ever come to what he would describe as irresistible, and that is not a concept that has troubled Lan Wangji for a very long time.

It’s as if a latch is released. Wei Wuxian springs into motion, taking Lan Wangji’s coat and retiring it with the hat to the table next to the gramophone. He resets the needle—the song having ended minutes before—and bounds back as if flying. He’s quiet for a second as if suddenly unsure how to begin, then takes up a position a surprisingly respectable distance away, almost shyly; Lan Wangji might almost believe he was not expecting to have to come through on his offer. 

“Really, this one is easy because it’s all a foxtrot,” he says. “Now, I’ll be you. We’ll start with just the basic steps.” He orders his hands in space, cradling an imaginary partner... presumably Mianmian. His posture is unexpectedly formal, considering; his back is strong and his head proud. Whether that’s in imitation of or mockery of himself Lan Wangji doesn’t know.

“The steps are really simple, you’re really just striding, see? Just flowing across the floor.” He speaks the rhythm as he walks it—slow, slow, quick, quick; slow, slow, quick, quick. “But you can embellish it all you like. Lan Zhan, do you know Rudolph Valentino? The movie star? Would you believe he was here once? Not long before he died. In fact—“

The words fade into a cheerful background hum as the dynamic grace of Wei Wuxian’s movements command all Lan Wangji’s attention: for such simple steps Wei Wuxian can’t seem to help but fill them with his own sense of character. This is not a man who is a professional dancer. His steps are not that precise, his form occasionally goes a touch sloppy before he reigns it back in (the slow and relentless assault of the gin is partly to blame, Lan Wangji is sure), and every few steps he can see the slight favoring of the left leg. But… it’s 3:00am... and he’s beautiful when he moves.

As Wei Wuxian spins about in angular figures, cresting on the “quick, quick,” something catches Lan Wangji’s attention out of the corner of his eye. It’s Wei Wuxian. And another Wei Wuxian. And another—winking in and out of existence in the many mirrors that line the opposing walls. One Wei Wuxian becomes three, becomes five, becomes seven, and each duplicates recessively backwards into a green-tinted nowhere.

As if sinking into fetid water. His skin prickles for a moment, just barely, and he wonders if he should take it as a warning. He has come to know of many Wei Wuxians now: the brilliant boy and the charming man, but also the callous man and once even the cruel one. And of course, the ruthless criminal he was warned about. He wonders if he really knows which one this is, but also... if it would make any difference. Wei Wuxian is a comet that’s come flying in for the second time, disrupting once more the careful gravity of everything in his life, and he has spent the last three months suppressing the overwhelming urge to reach out and catch him. 

Collision at such speeds is dangerous, of course, but…. 

What would be the harm in only a daydream? A daydream about a couple of lonely satellites finding each other and dancing in each other’s orbits? Hidden by the dim light, shrouded in the haze of a decade of cigarette smoke left suspended in the air, protected by the secret agreement made by everyone who walked through that door that in this space the rules of the world did not apply… could his uncle’s eyes and their ossifying crows feet find him here?

“Now you try.”

Wei Wuxian has retreated to the gramophone to restart the music. When he returns he positions himself halfway to the proper form for the following partner, stopping just short of touch. Which is very out of character.

“Come on, come on. We’ll start slow. I’ll be Mianmian. Left foot first.” He looks down at their feet as if waiting for Lan Wangji to make a move. He’s swaying slightly and doesn’t seem to realize it; flush has spread from his cheeks to his nose, but the music is rolling past them now, and he looks so expectant.

So happy. So carefree.

And that’s simply too much.

So Wangji connects, his right hand firmly but respectfully below Wuxian’s shoulder blade, his left gently cupping the fingers of Wuxian’s right, in one fluid motion guiding him backwards along the floor as decades old muscle memory takes over.

Wei Wuxian lights up with surprise, and it’s honest surprise, Lan Wangji is pretty sure. “Wha...?”

“I had to learn when I was young; social engagements demanded it. You’re the one who assumed.”

Wei Wuxian laughs as if he’s delighted by an unexpected joke. They flow through several bars of basic steps, a promenade, a couple of underarm turns. “Lan Zhan, you’re really good. Really, Lan Zhan but….” Wei Wuxian trails off but shows no signs of disengaging; instead his focus seems to have turned inwards. 

They take several turns around the floor, and the passage of movement-to-movement is smooth like sleight-of-hand. There’s no collision, no sudden and violent tumbling out of orbit, and even if being this close is secretly thrilling, the scripted framework balances it with calm and familiarity.

The past decade of Lan Wangji’s life has been a continuous pattern. In the foreground: routine, an unfolding caseload, paper and ink and weak yellow lamplight. Investigate. Determine. Judge. Resolve. Slow, slow, quick, quick. But in the background: the ghost passage of memory and desire. It had been visible only out of the corner of his eye or audible only as a soft tapping, a tangle of thoughts that would drift uncomfortably close in the dark reminding him he should have made himself clear when he had the chance because now Wei Ying was dead.

Except suddenly he wasn’t. Suddenly he wasn’t! And the tapping had become a hammering that beat in time with Lan Wangji’s increasingly harried heart. 

“Ooooh,” Wei Wuxian laughs suddenly and playfully slaps at his shoulder, “You don’t know what to say to her, do you?” The gin is starting to win and Wei Wuxian is drooping towards him now. “Alright. Practice on me.”

Practice on him? What could he possibly say? He thought he had said everything a long time ago.

“You have to say something, you know. Let me tell you something: she likes you. I happen to know that direct from her, but she won’t put up with your silent treatment like I will. I like it,” again he smiles, “if you’re silent it gives me more room to talk.”

Lan Wangji has no intention of following through on any of this, of course. He has nothing against Luo Qingyang, who, unlike most of her extended family, has always seemed kind and noble and uncompromising, even if he is, most assuredly, not “interested” in her. But the thought of disappointing Wei Wuxian now is too much to bear. “Then... what would you say?” he asks, as Lan Wangji leads him through another turn.

Wei Wuxian practically snorts. “Oh, I don’t know, don’t ask me, please.”

“...Why?”

Wei Wuxian suddenly tilts his head against Lan Wangji’s shoulder. Muffled against his suit jacket Lan Wangji can just make out the words as Wei Wuxian starts to giggle, “I’m too drunk. How would I know how to speak to a lady when I’m like this?”

He makes no sign that he intends to move. In fact he melts closer, bringing with him the juniper scent of gin and something else, a familiar sweet fragrance Lan Wangji can’t yet place. He’s quickly becoming more acutely aware of the silken softness of Wei Wuxian’s shirt, the way the lavender cambric with the tiny carmine pinstripe catches the light across the bridge of his shoulder, how it flows down the plane of his shoulder blade. As their frames gradually contract, Lan Wangji’s right hand shifts unconsciously downwards, collapsing the folds of cotton one by one as his fingertips trace a slow line down Wei Wuxian’s spine, savoring the little undulations below the skin, vertebrae like a path of stones breaking through a shallow river, until they come to rest against the hollow of his back. 

There the smooth fabric is marred by a single ridge of stitches patching a tear. It stands out loudly in the field of his senses, incongruous. He runs his finger up and down it slowly and replays in his mind all the details that haven’t made sense since he first set foot in this place: Wei Wuxian’s shirt is torn and mended, his pants are a couple years out of style, the apartment upstairs is small and poorly furnished. He’s seen the books. With as much money as Wei Wuxian is making he could have at the least a new suit made each season and as many new shirts as he wanted. What was he hiding? And what made this man out of the boy he knew?

Wei Wuxian turns his head just enough for his breath to register on Lan Wangji’s neck “Just... what’s the first thing that comes to mind?” His voice is drowsy and slack and silken.

But the things that come to mind are a litany of questions he should not, cannot ask, but which keep surging behind his teeth, primed to erupt: Wei Ying, do you really not know me? Why did you leave when you did? What happened to you? How did you get here? Did you really not know back then? Did you really not understand? How can you—you—be the kind of person they say you are?

“You know... this isn’t making me very confident.” Wei Wuxian’s smile is audible. “Does your mouth cease to function at night?”

“No, I prefer the night,” Lan Wangji says, entirely without thinking, and realizes that it’s both true and not something that he’s ever said to anyone before.

“Really? I don’t. Too still.” He chuckles deep in his chest, and a whisper of breath tickles Lan Wangji’s jugular. “And here I am every night into the wee hours. Really, I prefer the day.”

“Mm. We don’t often get what we prefer.”

Wei Wuxian is quiet for quite a long time after that. 

The music is rounding towards the last few notes. When the song is over Lan Wangji will stop, he thinks, say goodnight, see Wei Wuxian up the steps to the apartment so he doesn’t fall, like he’s done a half dozen times already when he was surely too inebriated to remember. He’s decided. He has indulged this as long as he should. But then he turns his head just a few degrees, planning to ask Wei Wuxian if he is able to walk without assistance, and suddenly that encroaching fragrance springs to the foreground. It’s perfume: dark, sweet, and heavy, like ripe peaches at the peak of summer. It invades Wangji’s senses, and he realizes he’s smelled it before.

———

Lan Zhan had been searching the streets for three hours, an unlit lantern dangling from the stick in his hand. He’d bypassed two dozen stalls, most more than once, as their owners—those whose names he knew and those he didn't—tried and failed to garner his attention and his cash with food and drink and gifts painted with snakes to commemorate the new year, none of which held any interest for him. One was selling brightly-tinted tangyuan in sweet syrup and another a miniature forest of pastel fairy floss, but the colors were dull and unappealing. The knot in his stomach had kept him from eating much at all for the last two days.

Music converged from three different directions, a mixture of the old and the new, and sometimes the melodies complemented each other, but most often they did not. Up and down the street lanterns were being lit and hung, staining walls and faces with red light. It was sunset, and the air was becoming chill.

He was starting to consider going back to the Jiang residence and asking after Wei Ying again, more forcefully this time, when two children ran past, escaping the glittering explosion of a firecracker they set off in the middle of the street. He turned his gaze to follow them, watched them laughing—envied them laughing—as they ran down a quiet and darkening alleyway past a man with a long pole hanging a newly lit lantern on a wire stretched over the thoroughfare. As it rose its soft red-orange glow Illuminated the figure of Wei Ying.

The world stopped for a moment. Suddenly, there was no festival, there was no music, there were no vendors, no crackling firecrackers. There was only a dim pool of light with Wei Ying in it.

He was sitting on top of a tall wall that enclosed a rare, small yard, letting one leg dangle carelessly and swinging it in rhythm, staring eastward toward the bay as he took a drink from the jug in his hand.

Lan Zhan tried to force himself forward, to do what he came here to do and say what he came here to say, consequences be damned. On the third try he succeeded, crossing into that solitary pool of lantern light which may have been the only real place on Earth.

“Wei Ying?” he called.

Wei Ying looked down. An expression Lan Zhan couldn’t quite place passed quickly across his face then disappeared. Uncharacteristically, he nodded in acknowledgement but didn't say anything.

“I was looking for you,” Lan Zhan said.

It took Wei Ying a moment to respond, and the hesitation made a part of Lan Zhan’s insides tense. “Are you coming up here or should I come down there?” he finally asked.

Lan Zhan held up his left hand by way of illustration, displaying the simple but beautifully made red paper lantern with two silver butterflies painted on the side: he was not in a position to climb walls.

Wei Ying nodded, swung his leg over, and hopped down. He managed, rather impressively, to avoid spilling whatever was left in his jug, and seeing this he took a triumphant drink.

“I was looking for you.” Lan Zhan said again, hoping maybe that that alone conveyed everything he meant.

Wei Ying seemed to consider this for a moment. “Not that I’m not flattered… but why’re you looking for me?”

There was something distant in his voice, the kind of thing Lan Zhan had never heard from him before in the conversations they’d shared, the ones that Lan Zhan had replayed far more times than he could count, so that he knew the many varieties of Wei Ying’s pitch and rhythm. Lan Zhan glanced around them: they seemed to be safely nestled in a quiet pocket away from the turbulence. He lifted up the lantern again. From the bottom hung a slip of paper with several lines of writing on it. It took him a moment to form the words: “I was hoping you could help me.”

“Riddles? You’re the one with the fancy education. Why would you need my help?”

“You shouldn’t disparage your intelligence. I don’t know anyone as clever as you.”

Wei Ying was already turning the lantern around, twisting it on its wire and admiring its craftsmanship. “Where’d you get this? I didn’t see anyone selling any this nice.”

“...I made it.”

Wei Ying smiled at him instantly and that alone made the work worth it. “Really? It’s so good! I didn’t know you could do this. You should light it!” He reached into his pocket and began to dig, as if searching for matches.

“Wei Ying… I’d like to solve the riddle first.”

At that Wei Ying shrugged, taking no note of the pauses in Lan Zhan’s speech, “If you insist.” He went to take another drink but stopped, looked at Lan Zhan with some embarrassment, and then held out the jug to him. “You should join me, Lan Zhan. It’s the last bottle. Come on! It’s barely even alcohol.”

The quivering in his abdomen was what finally drove him to accept the offer. He took the jug and brought it to his nose. The deeply sweet, fruity scent of osmanthus wine rose to meet him, and when he tilted it just right he could make out the faded yellow petals at the bottom of the jug drifting across the amber surface like tiny boats.

Satisfied, Wei Ying turned his attention to the slip of paper.

Lan Zhan quickly downed the jug’s contents.

“Long for a riddle isn’t it? Wait, did your brother write this for you?” Wei Ying asked as his eyes roamed across the characters. “You two are the only people I know with perfect handwriting.

Lan Zhan watched, trying to ground himself by concentrating on the sweet-soft warmth in his mouth and throat. Wei Ying was uncharacteristically quiet as he worked. He would read the riddle, look at the lantern, and then back at the riddle; his lips at first working silently and then pressing very tightly together. Once for the briefest moment his eyes even flickered upwards, catching Lan Zhan’s own, and then darted back. Lan Zhan thought he could have stayed that way forever, Wei Ying like a butterfly that had at last landed on a choice bloom, no longer fluttering about but beautifully displayed in its languid contemplation of a particularly fine nectar. But of course that contemplation ended, as it had to, when Wei Ying took a long breath and looked up, letting the slip of paper fall out of his grasp.

The next 15 seconds were the longest in Lan Zhan’s life.

Wei Ying’s face could chart an entire language's worth of expressions in just a moment, and its variety has been the singular source of color in Lan Zhan’s world for some time. During those 15 seconds Lan Zhan witnessed a private performance of what might be the sum total of human emotion dancing across Wei Ying’s face, moods fleeting and uncatchable. It was breathtaking, but it quickly settled into what Lan Zhan was sure was fondness as Wei Ying reached out tenderly, his thumb making contact with the skin of Lan Zhan’s lips at the corner of his mouth, wiping away a stray osmanthus petal. Then two things happened: Wei Ying smiled—a wide, brilliant, effervescent smile—and the last of the day’s sunlight broke down the alley, crystallizing that smile in amber, and with it the sudden daydream of a whole potential life, vibrant and bright, spreading out before them. But then...

Wei Ying laughed apologetically and shrugged his shoulders. “I’m sorry. I really don’t know. Like I said, I’m not so good at these things. You’ll have to ask someone else.”

The golden moment ended, the sunlight faded, and the floor dropped out of Lan Zhan’s stomach.

Wei Ying went quiet again for a moment then seemed to gather himself and turned serious. “I’m glad you found me, though. I didn’t know if I’d get to say goodbye.”

Goodbye? A single, wholly insufficient, stuttering question is all Lan Zhan could form: “Where are you going?”

“Oh, anywhere and everywhere!” Wei Ying puffed himself up. “This place is so small—way too small for me. There’s a whole world out there. I have big plans for my life. How can a few square miles contain me?”

He smiled again, or tried to smile, though it didn't come out quite right, it was lopsided and tense and his eyes flickered up and down the street.

“Anyway, long goodbyes just make things harder, don’t you think?” Wei Ying looked him right in the eyes. “Lan Wangji… find a good girl, have a brood of kids, huh? Don’t keep that pretty face all for yourself.”

With that and a wave, Wei Ying turned and walked away. He never once looked back as he strolled down the sidewalk, away from the festivities and into the dark. Three blocks away he turned the corner and disappeared from view and from Lan Zhan’s life.

Lan Zhan had no memory of it, but that night his brother told him, concern etched on his face, that he must have stood there for an hour, unmoving, staring down the street with the lantern hanging at his side. Lan Huan had heard from someone–who had heard from someone else–that it was only when someone touched Lan Zhan’s shoulder gently and asked if he needed help, breaking him from his daze, that Lan Zhan had turned around and walked silently home without even bothering to answer.

The next morning Lan Zhan walked to the Jiang house, but when the door opened it was Jiang Cheng with an even darker scowl than usual. He told Lan Zhan that Wei Ying had left, would not be coming back, and to not ask after him again. No further information was given before Jiang Cheng shut the door in his face, but in the time it was open, Lan Zhan heard what sounded like a woman crying.

Lan Zhan spent the next two years in those 15 amber-tinted seconds, the happiest he had ever known, analyzing his perfect recall of every expression that passed Wei Ying’s face, but finding no discernible solutions to what exactly had transpired. Had Wei Ying really not understood what he was trying to say? Had he understood but felt he could not overtly reject him? Had he understood but was so repulsed at the idea that he chose to not even acknowledge it? Or was there something else? Something Lan Zhan hadn't seen? And why had Wei Ying left so suddenly? 

Lan Zhan spent those two years looking for information on where Wei Ying might have gone–without success. That uncertainty was almost as hard as the rejection. Both the Jiang children seemed to avoid him and from the other families most likely to deal in rumor plenty was said, but little was trustworthy. Only the Jins seemed suspiciously quiet, but if they knew anything, they were keeping it to themselves.

Then one fall morning…

It was the day after parades had filled Market street to celebrate the end of the Great War when his brother found him at work in his study and said there was something he needed to hear from him before he heard it from anyone else: Jin Zixuan was going to pay his respects to Jiang Yanli and her family because they had just received word that Wei Ying was dead.

There was very little color in the world after that.

———

The music had stopped some time ago, and their steps have contracted to fit within a tight patch of dance floor. Against all hope and Lan Wangji’s better judgment, Wei Ying is a warm, living presence against him, breathing so softly, like an endangered creature at last safely at rest. The tactile exposure to so much vitality and vulnerability soothes and terrifies in equal measure; eyes closed, Lan Wangji wraps his arms fully around his dance partner in some fuzzy entanglement of protectiveness and careless desire.

Wei Wuxian tucks his head further into Lan Wangji’s shoulder: having fully succumbed to the effects of the alcohol, Wangji is surely the only thing keeping him upright. “Lan Zhan,” he whispers from where he’s submerged, and the edges of the syllables nibble at Wangji’s skin. “Lan Wangji... Agent Lan,” he titters that last one and presses his lips close to Lan Wangji’s ear. “Let me tell you the truth.”

Lan Wangji stops and opens his eyes. A quiver of excitement and dread runs through him.

“The truth is you don’t need to say anything. Just let your pretty face do the work.” A desperate edge cuts through the sweetness of Wei Wuxian’s voice. “She’s... a very modern woman. She’ll know what she wants… maybe she’ll just say....” He tilts his head back and looks Lan Wangji in the eye. His lips are pink with drunken blush now, no longer pale and deathly, and his curling smile seems to keep shifting, slipping quickly past any attempt at definition. With those lips just the barest second away from Wangji’s own, he whispers through shuddering breath, “Kiss me.”

The universe extends into forever with wonders and possibilities unimaginable. 

It is trillions upon trillions of miles to the closest star.

But here in the dark and empty dancehall of an LA speakeasy, the longest distance in the world…

May be that last 

shallow 

span 

of fractious breath. 

All it takes is a last leap.

Just the pull of a trigger, Lan Wangji thinks.

What’s an inch compared to a decade? 

What’s an inch compared to the space between stars? 

What’s propriety when the world has showered mercy on you, and given you the chance to try again?

It’s nothing. It’s nothing, he thinks.

But just as he feels himself closing that last distance, Wei Ying mutters a single sentence.

“I know the answer, Lan Zhan.”

Lan Wangji’s spine goes cold.

A thousand assumptions reorient themselves, and the man in his arms becomes instantly alien, the smell of osmanthus becomes a rush of cloying sweetness.

Lan Wangji doesn’t know if he’s holding the boy he knew, or the dangerous man he was warned about.

So he lets go. 

Wei Wuxian slides to the floor in front of him, landing in a lanky jumble, and for a second he looks at him with surprise.

And then he laughs.

He laughs.

As if the whole thing were hysterical.

To his absolute horror Lan Wangji does not know if it’s genuine mirth or cruelty, cannot tell if that sound is directed at him or at Wei Wuxian himself. He stands there staring down at him. Why would he pretend for so long only to tell him now all he ever wanted to hear? The boy he was holding was so close, so temptingly close, and the man on the floor in front of him is a million miles away.

Wei Wuxian stops laughing and stares up at him in drunken confusion, a pitiful, drooping sight. 

Was I a joke to you then? Lan Wangji thinks. Am I joke to you now? I meant every word. Have you ever meant anything you’ve said? 

But as always Lan Wangji holds his tongue.

Silently, he goes to collect his coat and hat and then stops in front of Wei Wuxian one last time. He hates himself for it, but it is all he can do to fight the urge to help him up. “Go to bed,” he says. “Goodnight… Wei Wuxian.”

He leaves all seven of him disappearing in the silver-green glass. He doesn’t say he’ll be back, but he knows by now he will be.

———

The senses come back one-by-one. 

Wei Wuxian wakes with what feels like the weight of an upright piano on his head. He doesn’t know how much is from the hangover and how much is from the crying. 

Opening his eyes is more painful than he anticipates. Afternoon light is filtering rudely through the curtain and onto the sofa back, overlaying an interference pattern on faded paisley. His mouth tastes absolutely foul, and his automatic response to this, for whatever reason, is to wiggle his toes, as if to shake off the sensation, and that’s how he realizes he never took his shoes off. His left arm is twisted under and behind him, nearly numb from the hours of his unmoving stupor, the awareness of which begins the inexorable recall of the finer details of the cause of said stupor. There’s a lot he doesn’t remember, but the hurt on Lan Zhan’s face as he told him goodnight was horribly, uncharacteristically clear. Awakening is, as he feared, nothing but compounding confrontations with a string of unpleasant conditions.

Still, beneath and behind it all there is something else his half-unconscious mind instinctually latches onto and derives comfort from, the sound of something soothing and pleasant: the soft bubbling of water.

“I’m making you some tea.”

He looks over his shoulder to see Mianmian sitting in the little armchair, her attention on the magazine open in her lap, the 3 p.m. light illuminating the soft waves of her precisely permed hair. Behind her the kettle is on and his old gaiwan and matching cup—the one with the lotuses and the chip out of the rim—is sitting at the ready.

He’s still bleary-eyed as he starts to sit up, and he must look at least a little confused as he notices the blanket draped over him.

“It was Qing-jie. She thought you might be cold so—“

“You look terrible.” Wen Qing sweeps out of the second bedroom like a heavy wind, carrying the scent of strong coffee with her, and disappears into the little bathroom where he can hear her rummaging around. As loud as her voice seems, she might as well have dropped a boulder on him.

Mianmian looks at him apologetically and sets her magazine aside. As she places it on the side table, it bumps against her bottle of osmanthus perfume, and he’s pretty sure she notices. He can tell she wants to say something.

Of course she does. Maybe if he looks away she won’t ask, but when he glances down all he sees is a nearly empty bottle of gin and an overturned tumbler tucked against the sofa leg, which, he suspects, half-answers her question anyway. Still, he can’t help but delay the inevitable. “I thought you weren’t coming back for the rest of the week?”

“Qing-jie needed some things. When we got here the door wasn’t even locked.” She makes a point to catch eye contact before continuing. “We were worried.” 

“I don’t need anyone’s worry.” That was harsher than he intended, but it doesn’t seem to phase Mianmian, who leans forward and puts a hand lightly on his knee. 

“No luck?”

He snickers at that. Oh well. “What do you think?”

She’s quiet for a moment. “Maybe if—”

“—Look, I appreciate your help, but you shouldn’t ask him any more, alright? It’s not safe for him. It was a mistake. I made a terrible mistake. The most recent in a really very exceptionally long series of terrible mistakes.” He leans his head back in hopes the change in angle might relieve some pressure. “I think he maybe hates me anyway. I wouldn’t blame him.”

He can hear Wen Qing snort a room away. “His safety? What about our safety? Does this mean you’re done making a fool out of yourself?

“I’ll make a fool out of myself if I want to! I’m 31 years old; I’m an old, grizzled man and it’s my dignity to dispose of.”

“Will you risk our safety if you want to?” Wen Qing emerges with her cheeks nearly as red as the sun pattern on her qipao. “If so, maybe we should find somewhere else to live. This isn’t a game. You—”

He lays back down and rolls over and doesn’t hear the end of the sentence. Behind him the kettle whistles.

The clink of china is followed by the round and brilliant trickle of water, the subtle aroma of brewing tea, and soft footsteps. He can hear Mianmian setting things on the side table and can smell the vegetal scent rising as she sits down behind him on the edge of the sofa. Her voice is low.

“Yanli would love to see you. Please, tell her what’s going on. Jin Ling will be eight years old in a few months. Eight years old! He’d love to have another uncle in his life. You know how Jiang Cheng can be with him.” He does not respond so she lays a hand on his shoulder. “Wuxian?”

“You know your family is dangerous.” He turns back to look at her so as to make his point. “You know I’m dangerous.”

“I’m ready.” Wen Qing steps out into the common room, an old rumpled and oddly-bulging carpet-bag in one hand. “A-Ning is waiting.”

Mianmian clearly wants to say more but instead stands up and retrieves her bag, gloves, and hat.

There’s something bittersweet in the look Wen Qing gives him.

“Be careful,” he tells her. “Don’t let anyone follow you.”

“I’m not worried about us; we’ll be fine. But please... please! Wei Wuxian, take care of yourself? We need you, none of this works without you, and you’re...”

He does manage to look ever so slightly contrite, he thinks. He certainly feels more than ever so slightly contrite.

“Do you have everything you need until we get back?” Mianmian asks. “Remember, Wen Ning won’t be here to run errands for you.”

“I can take care of myself. Cross my heart.”

She returns him a sad smile, then both of them disappear out the door. The latch clicks softly into place and footsteps retreat down the stairwell, but as they leave he can hear Mianmian’s fading voice: “Why are you so hard on him? How would you feel if it was us?”

Her words dissolve into nothing and Wei Wuxian is left alone with his tea and his thoughts. He does not drink. Instead he lays back down, wraps his arms around himself, and imagines it’s his sister.

Notes:

The paper Wei Wuxian read is Edwin Hubble’s “A relation between distance and radial velocity among extra-galactic nebulae” which was published on March 15th of that year in PNAS and which you can still read online. He’s also familiar with Georges Lemaître’s "Un Univers homogène de masse constante et de rayon croissant rendant compte de la vitesse radiale des nébuleuses extragalactiques" as published in Annales de la Société Scientifique de Bruxelles in 1927 and which he read in the original French, as well as the mathematical work of Willem de Sitter.

Wei Wuxian is synthesizing a lot of astronomical observations and mathematical theories here and is making an anachronistic cosmological leap toward the possibility of The Big Rip (caused by the hypothetical accelerating expansion of spacetime). He is an expert lateral thinker, however, and I can’t stop him; he’s also got a leg up by having an equally anachronistically early understanding of Dark Energy (a concept not otherwise explored until the very end of the 20th century) for Reasons Not Explored in this Scene.

Last I read, current projections suggest we are looking at a “Big Freeze” rather than a “Big Rip” or a “Big Crunch” and, frankly, I think the “Big Freeze” is the most horrifying possibility, so kudos to the universe for picking the worst option.

I’m really not trying to reference the “universe is expanding” scene from Annie Hall but... *shrug* (Alvy is also, coincidentally, theorizing The Big Rip).

Magnolia X soulangeana—a French-bred hybrid of two magnolia trees native to China—is my favorite flowering tree. An old, healthy tree in bloom is just about the single most magnificent marker of springtime, but the bloom period is extremely short (at least where I live).

Wei Wuxian was not raised to learn styles of Western dance, but is clever enough to have picked it up from watching his own patrons and is more than capable of improvising on it.

The piece they’re dancing to is “Ain’t Misbehavin’” as performed by Louis Armstrong. He first performed it at Connie’s Inn in Harlem in the early summer of 1929. It was so popular that within a few weeks—on July 19th—a recording had been made. Wei Wuxian was one of the first to get a copy and has been daydreaming about dancing to it with Lan Wangji since the first time he heard it both because he likes the swooping beat and because the irony amuses him. You can listen to it HERE.

There actually was an extremely popular nightclub called “The Cotton Club” in Culver City, CA in the 20s and 30s (no connection to the famous Cotton Club in Harlem beyond sharing a name and some performers, including, in 1930, Louis Armstrong). It was the first Prohibition-era nightclub to feature all Black bands.

Wei Wuxian stole a few drops of Mianmian’s (very expensive) osmanthus perfume especially for this night.

Osmanthus fragrans is hardy in all but a few patches of CA (theoretically I mean: I’ve never tried to grow one there). Therefore: the Jiang family has at least one on their property, from which the wine Wei Wuxian is drinking was made.

[fayemarvels]

time makes the heart grow fonder

Hey, so I'm back after a little break I had from writing, hope you like this one.

~~~~~~~~

Bucky x fem!reader

Summary: Bucky wants to finish his list of amends. The problem? The last name on the list belongs to a woman whit whom he had a more romantic relationship during his time in Hydra.

Warnings: little sad, attempted murder, bad writing, doesn't follow the events of movies or series whatsoever,

Word count: 3,3k

! Please don't repost my work anywhere without my permission. Thank you!

My masterlist *******

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

“Just wanted to let you know that I’m not the winter soldier anymore, my name is James, and I have to make amends,” Bucky told to the terrified man in front of him, in a monotone voice. The man didn’t say anything; he only squished his back closer to the wall behind him.

“So, I didn’t want to kill your family, I was just a puppet to Hydra. They made me do it.” He said the words, which he told many times. He squatted in front of the man and he closed his eyes in fear. Bucky sighed and moved his hand towards his pocket. The man in front of him flinched and whimpered in fear.

“Just my note book, don’t worry,” Bucky mumbled and pulled it out of his pocket, opened it, and crossed over the man’s name. He looked over the page for a few moments, when his eyes landed the last uncrossed name, (Y/L/N). He shook his head and nodded his head towards the man.

“Good talk, man thanks for listening.” He slapped the man’s shoulder and he squeaked quietly. “Would talk more but I have to get to therapy,” Bucky said, stood up, and left the abandoned warehouse, where he cornered the poor scared man. As he walked away, the only thing he could hear were the fast footsteps of the man and his labored breathing.

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

“So, you crossed another name off your list, that’s great.” His therapist said in a monotone voice and Bucky nodded awkwardly. The room went silent and she started to write something in her little notepad, which he hated so much.

“Okay, I don’t have much to tell you. You have been making progress.” She looked back down to her notepad.

“No nightmares?” she asked and Bucky shook his head.

“No, only some flashbacks but I’ve been sleeping peacefully for the last 3 weeks.” He answered truthfully. The doctor only nodded and continued writing in her notepad.

“I want you to finish the list of amends by the time of our next session.” The doctor announced and Bucky’s heart skipped a beat.

“Then we can move on to other stuff.” She continued and Bucky shook his head quickly.

“No, I can’t do it that quickly, give me some time before I can face her family.” He pleaded and she looked up at him surprised.

“So, you had some connection with the victim? Other than your…” she stopped to think “unfortunate encounter?” she questioned and Bucky looked to the floor in shame.

“I managed to escape in 2009.” He whispered quietly and the doctor furrowed her eyebrows. “Pardon?”

“When I was with Hydra. I managed to escape and hide for about 3 years. The woman I killed, she helped me hide.” He confessed and her eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“This wasn’t in the files, I would’ve known.” She mumbled to herself as she shuffled through her notes and files.

“It isn’t,” Bucky said and ended her useless search. “Nobody knows about it. Except you.” He confessed and she calmed down.

“Alright, tell me what happened James.” She said and got her stupid notebook ready. Bucky took a few deep breathes to calm himself down and wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans.

“So, a few years back, the winter soldier was sent on a mission to the outskirts of San Francisco. It was supposed to be easy, just a takedown of some S.H.I.E.L.D. officials who were visiting one of the newer bases in the area. But then I realized it was a trap. Long story short, I got shot into the stomach, and left shoulder.” He started explaining.

He didn’t remember many injuries from his time as the winter soldier, but he could remember this one very clearly. The pain, the metallic taste of his own blood. His head started spinning just thinking about that and he decided to move on.

“I got away, but the bullet damaged the chip I had in my left shoulder and it got disconnected from Hydra’s systems. I ran a few blocks before collapsed from exhaustion in an ally way behind some bar.” He stopped to wait so the doctor could finish her writing and then continued.

“I think I laid there for about 3 hours before she came out of the bar. She worked her part-time job there because she was in college. She studied psychology.” Bucky’s voice cracked a bit and he took a deep breath because he could feel tears stinging his eyes.

“Take your time James.” She reminded and handed him a paper tissue. He thanked her and dabbed his eyes with it a few times.

“She wanted to take me to the hospital but I told her she can’t. I was so out of it because of the pain but I knew that this was maybe the only chance I would get at escaping Hydra. So she drove me to her dorm room about 20 minutes away from the bar.” He paused to collect his thoughts before he continued.

“She then took care of my injuries, made me some food, and let me sleep in her bed. My wounds wouldn’t heal for a long time so she decided to take me to a house she got from her grandparents. She even apologized for getting me out of the dorm room so quickly, but she explained that her roommate would come soon and she didn’t want to be questioned.” He chuckled as he felt the hot tears tumble down his cheeks.

“She drove me there and spent the whole weekend with me. In the meantime, I snapped out of my winter soldier mindset. So I explained everything to her and she wasn’t scared of me. Can you believe that?” he smiled fondly at the memory. The doctor only nodded at him with a smile on her face. It was unusual to see her smile.

“She then had to go back to her dorm on Sunday, but she left me with a lot of food, books, and clothes, so I would be okay. She visited every weekend and sometimes even throughout the week. And after a few months, we fell in love. When her semester finished, we stayed in the house together. It was like this for about three years, before Hydra found out where I was hiding.” He shivered at the memory and continued.

“Then, they made me kill her. And you know the rest.” He finished quickly and wiped his tears with the backs of his hands. The tissue that the doctor gave him laying on the table crumbled into a little ball.

“I miss her you know,” he sniffled and the doctor nodded with sympathy in her eyes.

“Only thing I got left is a photo I managed to hide in my boot.” He laughed and took out the polaroid to look at her. The doctor put out her hand.

“Can I see?” she asked softly and Bucky put the photo in her hand hesitantly. She thanked him quietly and turned the photo to look at it properly.

Her eyes first landed on Bucky’s smiling face. She could see he was holding the camera with one hand, and his other hand was wrapped around the shoulders of the girl on his left. She was squishing her cheek to Bucky’s and laughed into the camera, with her arms wrapped loosely around Bucky’s neck. Just from the first look, you could see that they were happy.

“What was her name? If you don’t mind me asking.” The doctor asked cautiously and Bucky smiled softly.

“Her name was (Y/N).”

“Thank you for sharing with me James, this was progress as well, you opening up.” She explained to him and he nodded his head, still looking to the ground.

“But you are taking a very long time with the list of amends so I can’t give you more time. You have time until the end of the month, which is 2 weeks. Not more.” She announced and he gulped loudly.

“I understand, why you were pushing this away, and I think you know you can’t do that any longer. This is the way to forgive yourself.” She explained.

“You can go, we are finished for today.” She dismissed him and he shook his head.

“The problem is doctor; I don’t think I can forgive myself,” Bucky answered and left the room.

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

A week later, tired-looking Bucky stumbled into his apartment. It was around 3 a.m. and he couldn’t sleep. Ever since he opened up to his therapist about his years on the run, he didn’t get much sleep. His nightmares were plagued with the images of his lover laying lifelessly on the floor under the bridge.

His sleep was haunted with the flashbacks of the horrible actions he had done, while under the influence of Hydra. Every time he closed his eyes, he could see her. He tried every single nightmare exercise the doctor taught him. Nothing helped. So he tried the second option. Get drunk and pass out from exhaustion.

But even that was hard. With the serum running through his veins, his alcohol tolerance was very high and getting drunk was nearly impossible. But after nearly 7 hours of constant drinking, he was plastered.

He drunkenly stumbled into his apartment, threw his keys and jacket on the floor, and took off his gloves and shoes. After nearly falling over the table, he finally got into his bedroom. He stripped down, put on his pajamas, and moved into the bathroom to do his nighttime routine.

He fell into the bed about 10 minutes later and fell asleep immediately. He just hoped no nightmares would haunt him this night.

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

“Come on Bucky, you know me, please!” The woman in front of him begged as she backed away from him slowly.

“Who is Bucky?” He asked confused and she shook her head.

“It’s you, you are Bucky, My Bucky. You don’t have to go back. I know it’s very hard to resist but you have to try, then you can be free.” She tried to get into his head with her words but he only mumbled.

“You are my mission, I have to kill you.” He said in a monotone voice and she knew Hydra finally got into his head and she couldn’t do anything anymore. So she ran. She pushed a table in front of him to gain some time and ran out of the house, towards her car. She quickly sat inside and put the keys into the ignition.

“Come on, come on,” she mumbled as she tried to put the keys inside with her shaky hands.

“You can’t run from meeee.” The winter soldier shouted and (Y/N) whimpered in fear. The car finally started and she stepped on the gas and drove away.

She knew he would probably catch up to her, but trying wouldn’t hurt. Honestly, she didn’t have anything to lose and at this point, she was just stalling her own death.

She got into the city and slowed down a bit. There were quite a lot of cars and she didn’t want to cause an accident. But just a few minutes later, a car rammed into the passenger’s side of her car. Her head hit her steering wheel and her ears started ringing.

She looked to see the car that rammed into her, and she could see the winter soldier sitting in the driver’s seat. She saw her chance to flee when he couldn’t open his door and struggled with it for a few moments.

“Not today, bitch.” She mumbled and quickly opened her door and ran in a random direction as fast as she could. She later regretted that decision, because she got lost.

She ended up hiding under some random bridge. She sat down behind some concrete cubes and finally breathed for a bit. She couldn’t run anymore, her legs were burning and she couldn’t breathe anymore. She was also quite sure she had a concussion.

She just stared off into the distance and she could feel the tears running down her cheeks. (Y/N) missed her Bucky so much. She missed his pretty laugh and his unfunny jokes.

She shivered as she felt the cold January air seep into her bones. She didn’t even have a jacket.

“Now, as much as I love a good chase, this is where we end it.” She heard a cold voice behind her and she froze up. This was the end.

She got ready to run when he grabbed her by the neck and pushed her against a pillar behind him. The woman tried to fight him and get out of his grasp, but it didn’t do anything. He pressed against her windpipe and she whimpered.

“Please no,” she whispered as she tried to breathe. She sniffled softly and touched his wrist lightly. She knew she was going to die. She decided to let Bucky know she didn’t hate him. She knew he would blame himself when he snapped out of it.

“I love you.” She whispered and he cocked an eyebrow. “I just want you to know that I don’t hate you now, and I never will.” She could feel her eyes closing and she stretched her hand towards his face. But it didn’t get there. Her hand fell limp on his shoulder and he breathed out.

“At least your beautiful face is the last thing I get to see before I die.” She chuckled before her eyes closed and her body went limp.

The winter soldier then let go of her neck and her body tumbled towards the ground. He looked around and saw a van parked just 0.2 miles away from them. He looked at the girl one last time before moving towards the van. He opened the back door and slid in.

“Mission report?”

“Gone”

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

Bucky woke up with a gasp and tears running down his cheek. He looked at his alarm clock. It was 6 a.m. which meant, he only slept for about 3 hours, which was better than every single night prior.

He breathed in and out slowly before he stood up and moved towards his closet. He pulled out 2 pillows and a blanket. He tied the pillows together with the blanket and created something like a pillow snake.

“Okay, let’s try this.” He mumbled to himself as he got back into the bed. He put the pillow snake on the empty side of the bed and hesitantly cuddled up to it, seeking just a tiny bit of comfort. He wrapped his arms around it and pushed his face into it, and fell asleep slowly. He slept until 9 a.m.

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

“So the nightmares are back.” The doctor asked and Bucky nodded looking very tired.

“And you still haven’t finished your amends.” She said, sounding a bit disappointed. He only shook his head as he yawned.

“I think it would put your mind at ease you know,” she started slowly and Bucky shook his head again.

“I’m guessing you didn’t meet her family when you were together.”

“No, I met her friend Eliot by mistake but other than that, no.” The doctor nodded slowly and scribbled something into her notepad.

“I really think you should go and see her family. The sooner, the better.” She stated firmly and Bucky nodded.

“You are right.” He mumbled and looked at her.

“We can end the session sooner and you can go and catch a flight. You can see them the first thing in the morning.” She proposed and Bucky sighed sadly.

“Okay, thanks.” He mumbled, stood up, and left the room.

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

He got a hotel room in San Francisco later that night. He was quite tired from the flight and prayed, the nightmares would leave him alone.

He walked into his hotel room, checked if everything was as it should be, and flopped onto the bed. He put out a photo of (Y/N) and stroked it slowly.

“I hope your family understands, and they don’t hate me. Hope they are just as kind as you are.” He whispered and smiled sadly.

“I miss you so much my love, so so much.” He kissed the photo softly, put it inside of his bedside table, and rolled onto his left side. He fell asleep quite quickly that night.

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

He has been standing in front of the house for the last 40 minutes. He just couldn’t bring himself to ring the bell.

“Okay Barnes, you got this.” He whispered to himself as he walked towards the front door through the front garden. He wiped his sweaty hands in his jeans and rang the doorbell with a shaky finger.

It was quiet for a bit before the door rattled and an elderly woman opened the door.

“Hello, can I help you?” she asked happily and Bucky nodded.

“I wanted to talk about your daughter (Y/N),” he said slowly and the woman only laughed.

“What did the girl get herself into again?” the woman laughed and Bucky looked at her with wide eyes.

“She is alive?” he gasped and the woman nodded.

“Of course, nearly died in 2012, and disappeared during the blip, but yeah. She is.” Who’s asking?

“My name is James, I’m an old friend.” He stuttered out and the woman narrowed her eyes.

“You want her address?” she asked and Bucky quickly nodded his head.

“Give me the note book, I’ll give it to you.” She motioned towards his little book and he handed it to her.

“It’s not that far, you can walk there actually.” She informed and Bucky thanked her.

“Thank you so much, I have to go and see her, see you later.” He shouted as he ran away from the door.

“This should be it.” He mumbled to himself as he walked around the neighborhood. He stopped in front of a big house, with a beautiful front garden. It looked like the house, they talked about when they were together.

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

“And it should have a big front garden, so our dogs can run in it” she imagined and Bucky nodded.

“Yeah, and a big pool so we don’t have to go swimming in a lake.” He proposed and she laughed.

“Yeah” she trailed off and the smile on her face fell slowly.

“Hey, what’s wrong dove?” Bucky asked seriously and she only shook her head.

“Just hope we’ll get what we want.” She said sadly and Bucky took her face in his hands.

“Hey, we just have to believe, one day, I’ll be free and we’ll travel the world together okay?” he reassured her and she smiled up at him.

She kissed him slowly in agreement and he hummed into the kiss.

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

He got back into reality when he stopped in front of the front door. He didn’t want to wait any longer. He pressed it and stepped away from the door. The door rattled and she opened it up.

“Bucky?” she asked softly and he nodded with his eyes full of tears.

“It’s me dove.” He said tearfully and she moved towards him. She quickly wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. He only wrapped his arms around her waist and put his face into her neck, to breathe in her wonderful smell.

“I missed you so much,” she sobbed out and tightened her arms around him.

“I didn’t think I would ever see you again.” He mumbled and she shook her head.

“I made it out with a mild concussion.” She snorted and he looked at her with wide eyes.

“It’s funny to you?” he asked baffled and she nodded.

“No one gets away from the winter soldier and I did it.” She laughed and his smile fell.

“If you are wondering, I’m no longer him, I got rid of him.” He clarified and (Y/N) shushed him.

“Let’s talk about this later, just kiss me now.” He begged and Bucky nodded. He quickly put his lips on hers and she pulled him even closer by his neck.

“I love you” she mumbled.

“I love you too, I’m never letting you go ever again.”

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

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[because-i-can-stuff]

Life will always find a way

Dick Grayson x Y/N Roth

A/N: I haven’t written something like this in a long time and I just started watching Titans on Netflix (been a year since then) and been reading a bunch of fics and I kind of had this one stuck in my head. So tell me what you think and enjoy.

I forgot this even existed and was just sitting in my drafts so I guess I am posting this now

 -Flashback-

It was one of those rare rainy days in San Francisco, you were just closing the small café you were working at. It was a busy day and the shop closed a little later than usual, meaning it was already beginning to get dark outside.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, you pulled the hood over your head trying to protect yourself from the weather. Today was just a day that couldn’t get any worse you thought to yourself.

It started with an alarm that didn’t go off, making you late for the first lecture of the day, the day at USF seemingly lasting forever and instead of heading home, you still needed to work. Life was dull and the universe was testing you, first your best friend passed away, then essays and other projects piling up and the excessive amount of work hours, happiness just wasn’t an option at the moment.

And now this, the rain, the darkness and the constant feeling of being followed.

Picking up your speed in hopes of getting home faster you took a shortcut not really thinking of the consequences but being reminded in a second, as somebody slammed you into a wall from behind, shocking you for a moment before regaining your composure and getting ready to defend yourself.

When suddenly a figure appeared behind your nightly attacker and ripped him off of you and started beating the crap out of him.

Your nightly saviour appeared to be some kind of masked vigilante , at least that’s what you guessed from the costume adorning a cape and the mask covering his eyes. Watching the fight scene unfold before you, the vigilante overpowering your attacker with ease, resulting with the stranger running away, yelling profanities.

The vigilante focussed his attention onto you, looking you up and down and you doing the same, noticing the wet mop of brunette hair framing his face and the chocolate brown eyes peaking from behind the mask., as well as the well-toned body adorned by the costume.

“Are you alright? Did he hurt you?” he asked sincerely.

“I’m alright, maybe a bruise or two but nothing I can’t handle. Thank you by the way”

“Robin” he interrupted

“Well, thank you, Robin. But it was nothing I couldn’t handle. I’m sure you have more pressing matters at hand so why don’t you take care of these and let me take care of myself.” You stated rather annoyed, not only annoyed by him but this whole day.

“Oh, well, okay… then I guess I will just leave you be” Robin stated quite unsure and disappeared within a moment.

Sure, you felt kind of bad about your behaviour, but you just wanted to get home, get cosy and cry yourself to sleep, the usual routine since your best friend passed away.

The next day promised to be a better one, with the alarm actually going of, the sun peaking from behind the clouds and you being on time for the lectures that day with the prospect of not having to work today and finally getting started on some essays.

Making your way to your favourite coffee shop, ordering a cappuccino and sitting down in a quiet corner, you unpacked your notebook and started typing, tuning out the world around you, therefore not noticing that somebody joined you at your table.

Only noticing your company after a small cough, looking up a young man around your age sat in front of you, with deep chocolate brown eyes, well styled brunette hair and a smile to match his handsome face.

“Can I help you?” you ask the mysterious stranger

“Hi” he answers with a charming smile “I just noticed you sitting by yourself and I don’t know… Obviously you are doing work or something, but I don’t know… there is something about that I just thought I really want to get to know the beautiful woman behind the notebook”

Normally you would turn down such advances, but today, you were feeling a little bit better about yourself than the last weeks and he wasn’t that bad looking, charming on top of that. And maybe he was just what you needed to distract you from the grieving and the stress.

“Well, thank you for the compliment, you are not so bad looking yourself.” You tried to flirt “My name’s Y/N, by the way.”

“A beautiful name for a beautiful lady” he charmed “It’s very nice to meet you Y/N. I’m Dick Grayson”

“Finally, a name and a full face to the alias. I didn’t think I was so intriguing that a vigilante had to get to know me, but I am flattered, Robin” I whispered making sure nobody heard what I was telling him.

Dick looked shocked and started stammering, before asking “What are you talking about? You are making no sense.”

“Look, I am not going to tell anyone, but I’m quite good with remembering faces and I got a good look at yours and the only difference between yours and Robins is the fact that you are not having a black mask over your eyes. Same hair, same eyes, same smile, same face structure. Just face it, I figured it out and that pretty fast.”

Thus, began a fast forming friendship which evolved into friends with benefits really quick and after some time even into lovers pursuing a serious relationship, finding an abrupt end with no explanation, just a last night filled with love and a morning after with an empty bed and a note saying

Goodbyes are never easy, but this is one of the hardest. I knew I couldn’t tell you face to face and I know it’s cowardly to tell you this way, but I just know that you would’ve somehow changed my mind. By the time you’ve read this, I will already be on my way out of this city on the way towards a new destination. I am really sorry. I love you and I’ll miss you and hope you somehow understand.

-       Dick

-Flashback end-

“And you tell me all of this now, Rachel?! I knew I should’ve just taken with me as soon as Mom died. I can’t believe I let you do all this to find your real parents just because I thought going with a detective would be a good idea. You could’ve gotten yourself killed, I could’ve somehow helped you. And I am furious that you lied to me, that everything was fine and just now you’re telling me the whole truth. I don’t know what to say Rachel…” you told your sister agitated over the phone.

“Y/N… I was fine and I am fine. I made new friends and they protected me just fine. And I didn’t tell you because I knew you would’ve been there in a second to protect me but you also have a child to think about and I rather know you and Ricky are safe…”

“And I rather know that you are safe, Rachel. I would’ve figured something out.” You interrupted your little sister

“I know, I know… but there is nothing we can do about that now. Everything is fine. Well, anyway… What I originally wanted to tell you was that we are actually on the way to San Francisco. Apparently, there is some safe house where the Titans used to stay and we get to live at. So, I finally get to see my big sister and my cute little nephew” Rachel told you excitedly

“I am so happy to finally see you again and so is Ricky. But are you sure you don’t want to move in with us?” you were still being vary of Rachel living with a bunch of guys

“Yes, I am sure, it’s safest for me and also for you two, I don’t want to get you in danger because of me. I have done that a lot these past few weeks and I really don’t want to risk it. She assured you

“Okay, I understand. Even though we both know that I could handle it.” You told her with a smile “Come visit us as soon as possible. We miss you”

After your phone call with Rachel you went into your 3-year-old sons’ room to tell him, that his aunt would come visit soon. Ricky sat contently in the middle of the room surrounded by a bunch of toys playing with his favourite car. You admired your little angel with his brunette locks and chocolate brown eyes, reminding you so much of his father. Ricky looked so much like him, but he still got your gorgeous smile and good-natured spirit.

[hailbop1701]

Thank you @stardustednerd for picking this weeks prompt! 🥰 Prompt #25

Fandom: Star Trek AOS

Type: X Reader (Friendship)

Word Count: 1,077

Lunch Break

McCoy X Reader (Platonic)

Kirk X Reader (Platonic)

So when writing this I couldn't help but flashback to high school and sitting with my friends at lunch. We would talk about everything and nothing. I wanted to convey that here 😁. No beta so typos all day long. Love you all.

-H❤🖖

The mess was crowded and a bit more rowdy than usual. Finals time was upon Starfleet academy and the end of the academic year. Your first year at the academy was about over and you were looking forward to what’s going to come next. 

Bobbing and weaving through the mass of bodies balancing your tray of food above your head. Stopping you danced a little on your tippy-toes looking for your two idiots. Those two idiots happen to be James T “I’m going to charm you until I get the shit beat out of me” Kirk and Leonard H “Bones the scowly adorable hot mess” McCoy. 

You grin when you spot them in a secluded corner guarding a seat for you like their lives depended on it; they bantered back and forth about something or other. Striding over you slam your tray down on the table making both of them jump at least two feet into the air. 

“Jesus (Y/N), one of these days you’re gonna give me coronary!” McCoy barked holding a hand over his heart, eyes wide. You giggled and winked at your friend, 

“Aw, Leo I wouldn’t do that to you! I just try to give you heart palpitations,” 

Jim chuckled at your words, “She is good at that,” he murmured munching on a french fry. Leonard rolled his eyes and examined your lunch, after a moment he looked away pleased by your choice of chicken caesar wrap and potato wedges. Smirking you sat down and bounced in your seat, 

“How’s your day going?” Jim asked, popping another fry in his mouth eyeing your wicked grin with mild apprehension. You shrugged and picked up your wrap. “Well, no one died.” 

Leonard snorted into his pasta, “Those are your standards?” he asked, shaking his head. You chuckled, “I am in security, so I should be so lucky,” 

“Very true,” Jim agreed with a grimace. “You need to be more careful,” Leonard said pointing his fork at you before spearing it into his lunch. Taking a bite he chewed thoughtfully and continued after he was done, “I patch you up more than I do Jim and that’s sayin’ something sweetheart,” 

You gave them a reassuring smile, “I’m pretty sure I aced my close-quarters combat training course, I just finished the written portion of the exam. The physical part is after this,” you smiled and took a bite of your lunch. 

“I’ll keep that in mind when we meet up later to study.” Leonard grumped making you furrow your brows, ‘We’re meeting up later?” you asked yourself trying to remember making that plan. Upon seeing your confused expression Leonard shook his head again letting out an exasperated sigh, 

“I’m helping you study for your field first aid final,” he reminded you patiently with a raised eyebrow. You opened your mouth and suddenly remember the conversation you had with him early yesterday morning. 

“Come on Bones you know not to make plans with (Y/N) that early in the day, I told you yesterday that she would forget,” Jim grinned picking up his chicken sandwich. 

“She’s impossible in the morning,” Leonard agreed, both men staring at you like you were something truly fascinating. You rolled your eyes as you took the last bite of your wrap. “SHE is right here,” you grumbled. 

Both of the men across from you laughed their smiling faces lighting up the room, “Dorks,” 

“So at the end of all of this finals madness, we should go out and celebrate. First-round is on me,”  Jim proposed leaning forward in his chair. You and Leonard looked at each other, “Fine but I swear to god if you start another bar fight...” you scolded, remembering the last time you all went out together. Jim flirted with a girl who so happened to have a very protective boyfriend, the whole bar interrupted into a brawl after the first punch. 

You had dragged Jim off the floor and shoved him toward Leonard before defending both of them as they tried to escape. All three of you managed to get out with minor injuries and a wicked story to tell the next day. 

Jim cackled remembering it well, “You know for such a tiny person you sure did make that guy cry,” he snorted his shoulders shaking in laughter. Leonard chuckled quietly a crooked smile on his face, “He wasn’t that big,” you muttered, picking at your potatoes. 

Leonard scoffed, “ He was three times your size and you still had him on the ground in record time,” he praised. Jim gave you a toothy grin, “Our hero,” he teased batting his eyelashes. 

You snorted, “Well, someone has to pull you out of the fire Jim,” you said pushing your empty tray away and then pointedly looked at Leonard, “oh don’t look all superior Leo, I’ve had to help you out too,” 

McCoy half-heartedly scowled at you, “What did I-” 

“The whole Captain Jackson incident?” you reminded, with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. Leonard cleared his throat looking away with a blush creeping up his neck. Jim looked curious, “What Captain Jackson incident?” he asked looking between you and McCoy. You smirked saying nothing as Leonard spluttered and tried to redirect Kirk’s attention to another topic. 

Looking at your chron you hissed, “Damn, I gotta go,” you stood up quickly grabbing your bag. “Go I got your tray,” Jim said with a smile that says ‘we are so talking about that incident later,’ snickering you blew them a kiss and left. 

“Good luck and be careful!” Leonard called out at your retreating back. Waving a hand you rushed out of the emptying mess into the warm San Francisco sun. 

“She’s not going to be careful,” Leonard sighed standing picking up the mess they made. Jim chuckled, “Nope,” he said popping the ‘P’ childishly. 

“Wonderful,” 

“Come on Bones, we got her back. What are best friends for?” 

“Pulling asses out of fires apparently,” 

“That’s the spirit!” 

“God help me,” 

BONUS: (Almost Deleted this)

 

Jim pushed open the mess hall doors with a flourish. “Hey Bones, what’s the Captain Jackson incident?” 

McCoy flushed, “Nothin’ you need to know about!” he ground out stomping away toward the xenobiology building. Jim tilted his head back and laughed at his friend’s expense. “I will find out,” he promised, speaking to no one in particular. Ogling a couple of female cadets walking by Kirk set out for the library. 

Tags:

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Prompt Wednesday:

@stardustednerd

Star Trek XReaders: @lumar014ad

[thebreakfastgenie]

📓 If you're still doing them because I missed you reblogging this (I blame time zones)

This one is kind of on hold as an actual fic because airports in the 50s were so different I have to do some research to figure out how to make it actually work. It thrives on some self-indulgent contrivances but hey, daydreams, right?

In March, 1954, Hawkeye is flying to San Francisco to visit BJ. He has to change planes in New York, and maybe again after that. Things start fine on the first leg. The enclosed space makes him nervous, and he thought he'd be fine as long as he could see out the window, but he's in an aisle seat, and the man next to him keeps the shade down (I would have put him in a middle seat to increase his suffering but very few planes had rows of three back then). He's already on edge, and then several rows behind him a baby starts crying.

The man next to him starts making comments about how someone needs to shut that baby up, and Hawkeye begins to lose his cool. He tells his seat mate the baby is fine and just to leave it alone, but the comments don't stop. Eventually, the crying does. Panicking, Hawkeye get up and runs toward the back of the plane. He tries to snatch the baby from its mother, insisting he's a doctor and he can fix it. The baby, which was asleep, wakes up and starts crying again. When he realizes the baby is very much alive, he gives it back to the startled mother. He allows the stewardesses to escort him back to his seat, but he's non-responsive for the rest of the flight. His seat mate cusses him out for his behavior and waking the baby, but he doesn't react.

They land in New York, and he's still not responsive, which frustrates his seat mate who has to get past him to get out. The stewardess convinces him to leave the plane with her, and fines something in his luggage that makes her realize he's a veteran. She takes him to some kind of little office in the airport (I was envisioning like a mall security office but I'm not sure they even had those back then) and tries to figure out who to call. She doesn't want to turn him over to the police, and ends up contacting the VA. They agree to send someone over to talk to him.

When the person from the VA arrives, Hawkeye recognizes him, and the first thing he's said for over an hour is "Sidney?" The stewardess asks "You know him?" and Sidney says "Are you kidding? This man ran the best poker game in South Korea. He probably bought his ticket with my money." Hawkeye and Sidney talk in private. Sidney explains he's in private practice, but he treats a lot of veterans because of his experience, so he has a relationship with the VA. They talk about what happened. Hawkeye was so sure there was something wrong with the baby, he thinks he was seeing things, and that scared him even more. He says "I saw it." Sidney says "You did see it, eight months ago in Korea," and explains a 1950s (or perhaps just beyond in keeping with how Sidney was written in the show) understanding of what we now call flashbacks. Sidney invites Hawkeye to his house, and reassures him that his wife took their toddler son to her parents' for the evening.

Hawkeye and Sidney hang out at Sidney's house for a while as Hawkeye calms down, and eventually Sidney asks where he was going. Hawkeye suddenly remembers that the fight he was supposed to take to San Francisco will have landed already, and BJ was expecting him to be on it. He quickly explains, and then calls BJ's house (promising to pay Sidney back for the long distance fee) where Peg answers. Peg tells him BJ called her from the airport a few minutes ago in a panic and is refusing to leave until he finds out what happened to Hawkeye. He tells her he missed his connection but not why. Either BJ or Peg also called Daniel to confirm Hawkeye got on the first flight, so after he hangs up with Peg (who's going to fill BJ in) Hawkeye has to call Daniel to tell him he's okay.

Hawkeye tells Sidney "Sometimes I wish you hadn't made me remember." Sidney says "If you hadn't, you'd still be in that small room, or one like it. That's not much of a life." Hawkeye says "Some life I have now." Sidney asks what he'd like to do, and Hawkeye says "Practice medicine. Visit my friend. Sleep through the night."

Hawkeye eventually falls asleep in Sidney's guest room, and Sidney calls BJ back. The next day, BJ shows up at Sidney's door, and tells Hawkeye they can fly to San Francisco together. Hawkeye is nervous about the return trip, but he decides he'll figure something out.

[moldisgoodforyou]

Um that baby fic was everything I didn’t know I needed. Thanks for brightening my day with that! Saw that you’d be willing to write more domestic fluff and all I can think about is jj feeding the kid for the first time and having flashbacks to the food poisoning incident!

okay this is totally going against my rule of post mainly in order because I haven’t even mentioned the baby’s birth yet (will I write a post about it? maybe maybe not). but I thought this was cute and liked it so enjoy 

also kind of ignored the prompt but also kind of followed it so

wordcount: 1.4k

_

Charlie and JJ had been trying to get their baby to eat real food for a solid two weeks now, and she was having none of it. After a poorly timed joke of ‘well, I wouldn’t want to leave your boobs alone either,’ JJ decided to take it upon himself to try again when Charlie was taking a nap. Once he finally wrestled baby Caroline into the high chair, having to take her out at least twice to rock her so she wouldn’t cry, he found the food and tried his best. 

“C’mon baby, it’s good, I promise. I wouldn’t lie to you.” He took the baby spoon and pressed it to Caroline’s lips, but she just blinked up at him, resolute.

JJ groaned. “If you’re going to be as stubborn as your mother we’re going to have a problem on our hands.”

More blinking.

“You’ll be more fun when you can talk.” He lowered his voice, just slightly. “I promise I’ll teach you the good words.”

He swore Caroline’s eyes seemed to light up at that and he grinned, tickling her tummy a little. At her giggles he laughed, shaking his head. “I love you, little human. You gotta eat though or mommy will be mad at me.”

He sniffed the baby food on the spoon and recoiled at the smell. “Okay, fine, I see your point.” He scanned his eyes around the kitchen and grabbed a banana and a fork, then started mashing it up onto her plate. “I dunno if you’re supposed to have this yet, but don’t choke and we’ll be fine. Got it?” JJ asked, ruffling her feathery hair. She slammed her tiny hands on the high chair and he nodded. “Good.”

He loaded up some banana on to the spoon and hummed, making airplane noises as he brought it to her face. She opened her mouth, hesitantly, but seemed thoughtful as she accepted the food. “It’s good, right? That’s banana. Ba-na-na.” He told her.

Caroline hummed in what JJ took as agreement. “You know, this is going a lot better than the first time I made food for your mama. I fucked that one up - wait, shit - shoot.” He corrected himself, then put his finger to his lips. “You didn’t hear that, right baby?” 

“Fa.” She somewhat repeated and he winced, shaking his head. “You’re not supposed to actually talk for three months, so I’ll work on that one and you just forget what I said, deal?” He fed more banana to her and Caroline grabbed for the spoon. “Okay, deal. Your mama’s gonna have my head if she heard that. But I’m pretty sure she’s said her fair share around you, so if you say a bad word, it’s not my fault.” 

Charlie had woken up a few minutes ago and came out from the bedroom, quietly. She leaned up against the doorframe and watched, amused, until she realized what was going on with the banana peel on the counter. “JJ!”

He whipped around, dropping the spoon to the high chair. “What?!”

“Did you give her real banana?” Caroline grinned a gummy smile upon seeing Charlie, making grabby hands toward her. Charlie came forward and pressed a kiss to her head, murmuring “hi, baby” as she went.

“I - well - uh, yeah? I thought that was fine, she has banana in her little packets!”

“Not if it’s not - oh.” She stopped mid sentence upon seeing the clearly mashed banana in a bowl JJ was feeding her from, and as Caroline stuck her hand in the bowl and shoved her tiny fist toward her mouth. “I thought you were giving it to her whole.”

JJ rolled his eyes, addressing their daughter. “Mommy doesn’t trust daddy.”

“That’s not true.”

“It’s partially true.”

Charlie just smiled and kissed his cheek, then leaned into his side. “I trust you. Just not completely sure if that’s the best idea if the doctor said we should wait...” 

“Your dad said I should just parent off instinct.” He replied but wrapped his arm around her shoulders anyway, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. She laughed. “My dad also dropped me on my head as a child, so.” 

He grinned and flicked Charlie’s head. “Ahhh. Everything makes sense now.” 

“JJ!” She flicked him back, mock-offended. 

“A little mashed banana won’t kill her. Right, Caroline?” He asked, addressing their baby directly. 

Caroline answered with another slamming of her fists on the high chair and JJ grinned. “See? She’s fine. She loves it.” 

“Yeah? She’s gonna love repeating your curse words too, right?” 

He winced. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Uh huh.” Charlie wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning into him fully. “She’s getting so big. I hate it.” 

“Yeah, but think about how much more fun she’ll be once she can talk and play games and stuff.” JJ grinned. 

“When do you think we could teach her to surf?” She mused with her face buried in his chest, sounding hesitant. 

“We’re not teaching our baby to surf in San Francisco, sweetheart, don’t be ridiculous.” He resisted rolling his eyes at the notion, then caught her chin and nudged it up to give her a kiss. “Hey. What’s up?” 

“Well. You know how I was talking about how I wish we were closer to my mom and dad?”  

“Yeah. I miss them too.” His face twisted for a moment. “I wish Caroline could grow up seeing her grandparents. Knowing they love her. But you still have a couple months on your PhD, and you love it here.” 

Charlie didn’t miss the way he didn’t say “and I love it too.” She knew JJ liked San Francisco, enough, but as soon as she got pregnant, he kept talking about how kids need to grow up with space to play, out in nature. He loved her parents, too. Once they had the baby, he called her dad at least once a week asking for advice, ranging from how do I button up this stupid onesie to why is she getting so old so fast? 

She bit her lip and JJ frowned, tugging it out with his thumb. “What’s wrong, Charlie, talk to me.” 

“I got a job offer for when I finish my doctorate.” She paused. “With the Carolina Panthers.” 

He thought for a moment, then his eyebrows shot up. “Wait, like. The Carolina Panthers? In Charlotte?” He grinned. “John B and Sarah are there. And Pope’s only a bit away in Raleigh.” 

Charlie nodded, trying to hold back a smile. “I know it’s a lot, you’d have to find a new job, but it’s closer to my parents, and it’s more money, and we wouldn’t be bleeding rent -” 

JJ cut her off with a kiss, hands on both sides of her face. “You’re incredible, you know that? I love you so damn much. I’m so fucking proud of you.” 

She was grinning by now and butted her head against his gently. “Hey! No cursing in front of the baby.” 

“She wasn’t listening.” He was beaming as he turned to their baby, bending down to get on eye level. “What do you think about moving to Charlotte, sweet Caroline?” He tickled her feet and she giggled, grinning wide. “Yes! She’s in.” 

“JJ, we can actually talk about this. I don’t want to just spring this on you.” 

“Nope. I’m all in.” He paused, smiling, and pressed another proud kiss to Charlie’s temple. “You do understand the irony of this, right?” 

“Hm?” 

“Everyone’s gonna think we named our baby after your team. And Charlotte’s going to be living in Charlotte.” 

She rolled her eyes. “If they’re respectful, they’ll address me as Dr. Walker.” 

“I still think Dr. Maybank just sounds so much better -” 

“JJ, once you can pass all my exams of your own accord, I will gladly change my name -” 

“Fine, fine, I get it.” He picked her up around the waist and spun her in a circle, beaming. “Caroline’s gonna grow up with John B and Sarah’s baby. Oh my god, it’s perfect.” Charlie laughed, meeting him with a quick kiss. “It’s not for a few months, but still.” 

“What��s their slogan again? Pound something?” 

“Keep pounding, and I don’t even want to hear whatever’s gonna come out of your mouth next.” 

He grinned, sheepish, and kissed her again, long and slow. “So proud of you.” 

[mlm-writer]

Malgon (Crossover)

Pairing: Peter Parker (T.H. ver) x Dick Grayson (Titans ver.) and John Constantine (LoT ver.) x Gender Neutral Reader Rating: Mature Words: 1352 POV: Second Summary: The multiverse is in danger as two demons got destroyed at the same time and joining forces. Only you, the protector of the multiverse, could hope to make an end to them, but you won’t be able to do it alone.  Notes: For those that didn’t know, today is Sci-Fi Day! This is the first work in the crossover event and hooo did I get carried away. For now, I decided to just make an outline with bulletpoints, but if many people are interested, I’ll turn this into a full novel lol. Tags: action, swearing, mentioned smut, fluff, drama, angst, little bit of comedy and I now ship Dick Grayson and Peter Parker???? 

After the battle with Trigon, the Titans settled in San Francisco. Suddenly there were sightings of a Spiderman with actual spider powers and the Titans were like: wtf Spiderman isn’t real. They tried to ignore it, until they saw Spiderman getting his ass kicked on the local news. Dick coordinated a rescue for Spiderman, because he assumed it was just a kid trying to be like his favourite comic book hero. 

When the Titans brought back Spiderman, Peter finally took his mask off. He’d been teleported a while back to this alternate universe. When New York was not like the New York he knew, he tried to find anyone he knew in different cities, eventually ending up in San Francisco. Peter was definitely smart enough to figure out on his own that he was in an alternate universe or a parallel universe or whatever. Either way this was not the world he knew. 

Dick obviously believed jackshit about it, even when Peter showed him his ID card, which clearly said Peter Parker. Nonetheless, Peter was a young man with powers and he had no place to stay. Staying with them it was. 

Flashback to when Rachel banished Trigon. At that same time, in a different universe, the Legends got rid of Mallus, combining them into one being that lurked between universes. When this happened, Constantine received a vision from Y/N, also known as Elegate, the janitor of the multiverse. 

Your job was to just keep the interdimensional space clean and also ensure people stayed in their own universe, otherwise it messed up the balance. Yes, the Flash and friends were not your favourite people. 

When your space got invaded by Siamese twin Malgon (Mallus + Trigon, for those who don’t get it), you knew it would take more than you to clean up the mess. They caused quite the havoc, flinging people from one universe to the other, hence Peter’s predicament, but also making it too unsafe for you to take people back across the interdimensional space to their respective universes. You knew you needed both John Constantine and Rachel Roth to destroy both demons for good. 

You took John to see Rachel Roth, finding Peter Parker there too. Dick tried to kill both of you, but you managed to convince him that you were speaking the truth. Rachel finally then told Dick the truth about her feeling different. You explained that was the pull of Malgon trying to get her to pull them back into a universe. She was the only thing keeping them alive. Were she to lose the connection between them, Malgon would just disappear, unable to exist without being tied to at least one universe. 

While John made an assessment of the situation with Rachel, you explained to Peter how he got here. Peter asked you to bring him back, but you explained he was stuck here until Malgon was mal-gone (ba dum tss). Dick promised you to look after him. “Just make sure Rachel is gonna be all right.” Dumb Dick, that was what you were there for in the first place. 

John returned with good and bad news. Good news was that he could probably break the bond with a spell. Bad news was that this was a unique case, so he did not know which spell. Luckily, you knew the exact occasion of the biggest occult library in the universe. While you and John went off together to find the spell John needed for the exorcism, Peter needed to get out, because he felt jittery and nervous in this new universe with apparently an interdimensional demon lurking around. Dick decided to go with him to make sure he did not get into too much trouble. 

Dick watched Peter from a distance as Peter went around San Francisco, stopping petty crimes. They had a talk on a rooftop, where Peter told Dick about home and Dick wondered why Peter bothered himself with petty crimes.

“Everyone matters, Dick, and I just want to help people. That’s why I’m doing this.” 

Que Dick staring at Peter with dem heart eyes. 

Meanwhile you and John had to come to the realisation that more books was not always better. You did not know which book you were looking for, but at least you could summon all the books that had to do with Mallus, Trigon or the multiverse. That narrowed it down to a couple hundred books. You stayed day after day in the library, even getting in after closing time, because you could just portal the both of you inside. You could sense John’s frustration reaching new heights. 

Guys this is John Constantine, of course you two had sex in the library, multiple times. What else was “lunch break” for? 

A couple of days into you and John taking forever, Dick started doing more than just watching Peter patrol San Francisco. Peter’s kindness was rubbing off on him and they patrolled together at night. They were having cute banter too of course.

 One night, as they were out together, Rachel got a strong call from Malgon, demanding she opened the veil between interdimensional space and her universe. Gar and Jason both tried to stop her from leaving, but with no luck.

Meanwhile Peter was taking Dick swinging for the first time. They had fun and as the adrenaline filled his body, Dick kissed Peter when they were on solid ground again. Things got heated, but they got cock-blocked by an explosion. They saw Rachel leave through the windows, lights flickering in her wake, leaving a cold shiver along the spines of anyone she passed as she flew across the sky. 

Dick and Peter got back to find Jason and Gar near death. Just then, you and John returned. You saved Jason and Gar, but it drained most of your power. There was only so much that could fit into the mortal body you had to assume when entering a universe. You used what you had left to locate Rachel and form a portal. As you, Dick, Peter and John passed through, you were basically leaning on John. 

It left Peter and Dick to pin Rachel down, so John could perform the spell. After an epic battle, John performed the spell, but he was not powerful enough. Not knowing what would happen to you, you gave the last of your power to John to help and destroy both demons for good, freeing the multiverse of both Mallus and Trigon. 

You woke up later, John half-lying on top of you, asleep. Feeling good, you woke John up. He smiled as he saw you were alive and well. You had a sweet morning, before leaving the room together. You found Peter and Dick in the kitchen, happily making breakfast together as Jason and Gar sat pretty beaten up at the table already. You asked what happened to Rachel and Dick informed you with a smile that she was ok and sleeping in her room. 

After breakfast you offered to bring John home first, so Peter and Dick could say goodbye. Of course you knew what was going on with them, you were an interdimensional being and protector of the multiverse after all. 

You dropped John off at his home. John basically asked for one more fuck, but you refused, afraid you’d stay too long. There was a lot of cleaning up to do and you had duties to attend to. You kissed him goodbye, lips lingering and fading away, leaving John to his life. 

Meanwhile, Peter suggested staying there, Dick reasoned he shouldn’t. Peter then suggested they’d make the most of the time they had left. 

*insert very cute sex where they try to memorise each other’s body or whatever*

You arrived while Dick and Peter were still at it and so you decided to check up on Rachel. You assured her Trigon was gone for real now. When Peter and Dick were done, you went to get Peter, made a comment on how they took long and then ushered  Peter to get up and get going. 

*insert very angsty last goodbye*