#he's already got the puns this is the logical next step for him

[toast-in-a-cowboy-hat]

The reason Ty wants to be part of taking care of the Sammies isn't for the ability to mold them into good little employees nor is it for the simple joys of parenthood

No, he's doing it for one reason and one reason only.

And that reason is: So he can start making Dad Jokes

[blade-liger-4ever]

About the X-Men's Place in Marvel

So I saw a post or two about how people say you have to read/watch the X-Men as if they were a separate entity from the wider Marvel Universe. These posts also brought up how it "doesn't make sense" to have the mutants discriminated and hunted by the powers that be in every telling of the story.

I have some solutions to that - all of which won't be accepted by the companies in charge of Marvel/the X-Men for some years.

Step 1: Establish that mutant discrimination is rampant primarily/only in the cities.

Have snippets throughout the Marvel Universe where the big cities like NYC, Chicago, Seattle, and all those types have various reports demanding laws against mutants, or restrictions placed upon mutants solely because they're "inherently violent", or "studies show mutants are naturally volatile and a danger to society", or what have you. Furthermore, with how these cities are renowned for broken families, domestic abuse, and high crime rates, the likelihood of a mutant kid falling in with a gang or other bad apples is through the roof. They'd be proving these narratives right, as well as fueling the "studies" done by those in power in the cities.

The reason you could and should do this with the X-Men is how mutants, as the "next step of humanity", prove the notion of transgender to be folly by their sheer existence. Follow the science, gender is a construct, etc, right? Well then, why were these kids born with powers and not the other half over here? Logically, some biological factor is at play.

But that means the "experts" would have to acknowledge biology as fact. So, to keep up the smokescreen of "there is no definition of a woman", they'd have to throw the mutants under the bus and label them as an aberration in the gene pool. Heck, you could go to town with Trask if you went that route.

Step 2: Have the rural parts of America at most wary of mutants, and indifferent at least.

Anyone who has lived in the American South or even the Midwest knows that you've got all manner of people there: whites, blacks, Indians, Asians, mixed race - the list goes on. Those same people also all tend to be part of a community that sees past the skin color and accepts them as family, so long as the individual - regardless of race - is an upstanding citizen and doesn't have a severe criminal record (i.e. hasn't raped or abused others). However, while it's a welcoming environment and open to all manner of community activities, these locations are still full of abuse victims, drug dealings, and trafficking.

So, when mutants are discovered in the South or Midwest, the parents and others in the community have to make sure that Johnny across the street isn't a mutant because 1 his father is an alcoholic who beats him, 2 his mother is a drug addict and has been in jail so long no one remembers what she looks like, and 3 he's a known delinquent. If he has powers, who's to say he won't use that to take his anger and pain out on the town? And then there's little Suzy down by the courthouse. She's got loving parents, good family and friends, but can be pretty arrogant. If she gets or already has powers, what's to stop her from trying to go out and be a hero? Or worse, if she picks a fight with the wrong guy, will she be used as another example of "the Mutant Menace"? And my own kids, they're bein' taught right, but what if they get the same idea if they turn out to be mutants? Or what if they have a temper tantrum, and the cops come and take them away?

There's a lot more to think about when you put mutants in that perspective, now isn't there?

Step 3: Have there be a clear line between anti-mutant sentiment and pro-mutant sentiment.

Think of the pro-life and pro-abortion policies for a moment. We all know there's two sides, one saying "life doesn't begin until X time" (pun not intended), and the other saying "life begins at the moment of conception."

Now, throw mutants into the mix.

Imagine a woman who has been raped. She's traumatized, and aware that she's now pregnant with her rapist's child. Add on to the factors of her life - single, full or part-time job, on her own in a city - and not only would the doctors tell her to abort the child, but add, "Besides, what if it's a mutant? You're already at risk, and studies show how dangerous and erratic mutants are. If you don't abort the child, you'll be at risk just as much as your neighbors."

That could be a separate plot line entirely on its own in the Marvel Universe. Imagine the X-Men fighting not just for mutant rights, acceptance, etc, but for the ones without a voice. You could get so much more out of that, and everyone is sleeping on the potential!

Conclusion

There are many routes to show that the X-Men can coexist not only in the wider Marvel Universe, but doing so without making them metaphors for the gay and trans community. Doing that to the X-Men is an insult to not just the characters and the morals they uphold, but to Stan Lee himself. Many times he said that the X-Men were not representative of that community; the only reason that lens was applied to them was because of the perverted Chris Claremont, who wanted everyone gay, and only because of Jim Shooter did we not have guys kissing each other - or girls kissing each other - for a couple of decades.

I know this will get me much hate, but I don't think I care at this point. I love the X-Men, I love the morals for which they stand/stood, and I love the stories that have been and could be told with them. And I'm tired of seeing everyone demand they be gay, or be in a separate universe from the now streamlined Marvel characters.

Please, just think about the true, good elements of a story you could tell with them, without taking them away from the rest of the Marvel cast.

[field--guide]

Scarien

Lauryn and I feel like a couple of snails in the July heat as we walk the five minutes from our soon-to-be-old apartment over to Darrien’s place. He opens the front door covered head to toe in skate merch: a black Palace tee with pink font, and HUF Worldwide flip-flops with pink sweatpants, and gives us both a big hug. We feel instantly welcomed—a quality that makes this speaker geek from Virginia a natural leader in Denver’s underground. At Dem Deya Sound System gatherings, attendees often approach him to chat while he’s taking breaks from fine-tuning the party, and he’s proud to hold space for them. In keeping with the sound system tradition he operates from, community doesn’t merely come first, it’s the message.

"Reggae is just so hard, depending on what area you're doing it at. Like, if you're playing towards a Caribbean crowd, or playing towards a bunch of Roots peoples, Rastas, or just playing for people who like the word ‘dub,’ which is a completely different world almost...”

Darrien guides us to his studio apartment couch and apologizes for the temperature, then steps away to grab some cans of lemon sparkling water. I notice the various Lego car builds displayed on his desk next to a few pieces of MIDI gear—looks like he doesn’t just build speakers. After taking a few sips to cool down and chatting about the futuristic car on his TV (he's been playing Final Fantasy XV), we jump into the interview. He wants to talk about genre variety; for him, it’s a prerequisite for getting people tuned in to what he’s actually doing out here. He’s a natural storyteller and shrewd conversationalist, speaking candidly about the mission while maintaining a low key demeanor and cracking plenty of jokes. Lauryn and I quickly start to feel like a couple of buddies just kicking back and catching up.

Darrien is grateful for Denver’s “built-in” electronic music scene, and feels strongly about platforming original sound system styles. But he’s also blazing his own trail—pun intended! Traditionally, sound systems don’t showcase the non-reggae styles that Dem Deya does, at least not with such regularity. But Darrien understands that dubstep, drum n’ bass, jungle, hip-hop, and even garage aren’t just logical entry points for many of Denver's scenesters—they’re a solid foundation for a sound system community. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s got outstanding taste in these styles. “There's already a community here,” he says, “and we got to throw some of these [non-dub/non-reggae] events to get some of these people to understand that this is the role of the sound system.” This part of the mission is front-of-mind for Dem Deya. It’s been simmering on their proverbial cooktop for a time, and putting in the work to get people there has been an easy choice. But the work itself is not easy—it’s almost like threading a needle. On one side, the inherent pressure of genre ‘purity’ from the cultural giants whose shoulders they stand on. And on the other, a whitewashed bass music scene generally not prone to dub and reggae unless it’s worked into 140 BPM dubstep. Darrien doesn’t harp on cultural appropriation during our interview—his work isn’t concerned with drawing lines in the sand, in fact, just the opposite. But the context in which he’s operating is important to understanding the immensity of what he’s doing in Colorado. Darrien is an educator through and through, passionate about increasing awareness of true sound system culture and the roles it can play in society. He talks at length about sound system’s inherently political nature, referencing systems in Jamaica being stolen or destroyed by the government, and Rastafarians being tortured and killed by police on Bad Friday. The message of sound system, at its core, is “unity, community, peace, love, respect, and self-liberation," says Darrien. He’s dedicated his life to spreading this message in the states, where just a handful of traditional sound systems operate.

Darrien (left) with his grandfather and little brother, circa 1999

Before Darrien became entwined with sound system, family and community sparked his love for music. When he was just seven or eight years old, his dad let him pick out some CDs from a massive home collection. He opted for “Toxicity” by System of a Down, and “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” by Wu-Tang Clan. “[My dad] was like, ‘Yo, pick anything you want, I think you’re old enough. Here’s a Walkman CD player. This is how it works. Don't scratch it, don't drop it.’ That's when I kind of started seeing the value of it all, but, over time, y’know?” He thoughtfully observes how songs and albums used to carry so much power, and points out that in order to really make an impact on people these days, you have to throw an entire event.

As a teen, Darrien was particularly inspired by the music he heard in skate videos. His takeaway as a youngster was that it “was easy to understand,” because it “all came from an area of self-expression,” whether the style was heavy metal, hip-hop, country, or even folk. In high school, one of his skateboarding buddies turned him on to “FabricLive.37” by Caspa & Rusko. Along with artists like Pretty Lights and an introductory festival experience at Identity, this formed the “surface level” of his foray into electronic music. But joining the Air Force at age 18 to serve as an airplane technician was what truly pulled him in deep, into contact with the UK’s diverse electronic music scene.

“I didn't want my parents to pay for my college; I wanted to see some new shit. [So I joined the Air Force] and I was like, send me wherever. So they obviously sent me to the rave capital of the world.” [laughs]

Darrien was keen to check out London’s musical underground. First, through free parties in the midlands, then Outlook festival, and eventually, weekly visits to raves and sound system events in the city.

“Next thing you know, three years passed by and me and Ky [co-founder Kyler Coates] were going to parties every week, just buying tickets left and right. … We would drive an hour to our friend Rosa’s house in London who we met at this festival Outlook. Shout out Rosa, man. Her spot would just be poppin’ every single weekend. So it was never a question of 'if', we just had to hit her up and let her know, and then we would have our own space to sleep. Afterwards, we could just drive an hour back to town.”

This kind of exposure to underground music culture instilled excitement in the pair, and their eventual involvement with local sound system culture inspired a deep sense of purpose. They proceeded to buy a short speaker stack from a high schooler in town who built custom boxes, and planned a move back to the states to spread that purpose. Initially, choosing Denver as a home base was for little reason other than weed’s legality there.

“I don't really have to explain much about the reasons I would leave the military, but it was clearly not the fucking vibe, y’know? So we decided, alright, well, let’s go here [to Denver]. See what we can do [with our own] sound system, and yeah, it's worked out, it's become like nothing I could ever really imagine. This was something where we were just trying to dedicate ourselves to this message."

And dedicate themselves, they have. Dem Deya have developed a strong presence in Denver’s sprawling music scene in just a couple of years, going on to fly out staple reggae & dub artists while platforming the local DJ community, getting the sound system to a place where, in Darrien’s words, “all two thousand of the Instagram followers are trying to buy tickets to go see Joe Schmo play, because they just know the stack is coming out, and they know they’re accepted there.” But this run hasn’t been without its challenges. Darrien isn’t shy about the pushback they’ve received from certain parts of the scene in Denver. Unfortunately, as is the case in many other cities, clubs and greedy promoters have been a particular source of frustration. He pulls no punches discussing industry commodification and monopolization, illustrating how sound system has a unique ability to disrupt that chain.

“Man, it really gets goofy sometimes. I remember the first event when we brought our sound system here. At this point, it’s a half stack. We've got a bunch of dub records, and we’re literally just looking for a space to bring it in and press play on it. And this dude was trying to charge us $600. I'm like, bro, what is.....what do you mean? And this person is an industry person and they’re like ‘Oh, I know about dub and reggae sound.’ They see the potential of charging at the door, you know, such and such. We're like cowboys with speakers, to where it does expose a lot of the fluff. What does he want $600 for? And then, it's like, y’know, tell him to go fuck himself!”

We erupt in laughter for the hundredth time that day. If Darrien hadn’t gotten into curating events and building speaker boxes, he would have made a splash in stand-up. He goes on:

“People always talkin’ ‘bout, ‘oh, this is for the community, I'm throwing this event for the community, but I'm charging $40 at 3am.’ It's like, uhhhh....that's not community! … If you want to rent some speakers and throw an event to make 30% on the dollar, then you can go ahead and do that. There's no foul play in that. … Just don’t call yourself an underground entity. ... With sound system, there's accountability. That's the best way to put it. There's accountability, and a responsibility behind it. It’s a gift just to be able to do this.”

‘Exposing the fluff’ hits the nail on the head, but Darrien doesn’t stop there. He talks about clubs in Denver turning local promoters’ communities into a product, then turning around and buying artist bookings right out from under them. He references the recent Deadbeats controversy, where the label marketed an anonymous 'underground' artist using messaging about the 'roots of the culture,' only for it to come out later that the artist was a side-project of a mainstream bass music producer. Darrien is “not bound by the music industry to be quiet about” or “turn a blind eye” to the “funny business” he perceives in how it operates and sustains itself. But absolutely none of his opinions come off as moaning or complaining. They’re principled, passionate accounts of his lived experience as a promoter, which serve to counterpoint and help define the role of the sound system to an outsider. When it comes right down to it, the message and the method are what matter most to him and Dem Deya.

“We know what we gotta do. We know what's important to us. So we just gotta do that."

The self-assurance is palpable. And you can feel it when the crew conjures a vibe at an event, keeping their focus on the sound and attendees. Their events transform into more relaxed, community-oriented experiences, where being there becomes more important than being seen. The deejay is still viewed as a guide, artist, and essential piece of the puzzle, but they’re part of the experience, rather than being the experience itself. The attention economy is replaced by groups of people, coming together to form a whole and enjoy good music on good speakers. This space is easy to exist in: intensely creative and expressive, but still low key and uniquely intent on togetherness. Being sober at their Dubamine event felt like second nature to me, rather than some sort of quest, despite the party atmosphere and weed smoke lingering in the air. Speaker stack in the back, people at the front, and Subjet spinning vinyl, gracefully moving from dub tunes into dubstep over time to an enthusiastic crowd.

Dem Deya parties are refreshing, but Darrien isn’t one to toot his own horn about that. He’s humble through and through, refusing to take full credit for events, and when he does perform at something he’s helped curate, he prefers to play early so he can “put the homies on.” This collaborative spirit is embodied in the name of the sound system (often mispronounced ‘dem daiya’ – no vegan cheese here, just tunes!), which he stumbled upon during an acid trip with co-founder Kyler:

“We're like, man, what the fuck we gon’ call this thing, and so, like any couple homies looking for creative inspiration would do, we dropped some acid.......and come up with the name in the first ten minutes! [laughs] But the name Dem Deya is just a play on words: Dem Deya, like, dem over deya, ‘them over there.’ If you’re from the culture in which all of this is talking about, it's easy, it's not even a name. It's almost stupid, kind of silly. But then when you look at it on paper and you're not from that at all, and you say the name Dem Deya, it just sounds like a thing. … I can’t do this by myself—it’s just no longer ‘dem.’ Then it’s just him deya, right? And that’s fucking wack.” His solo deejay gigs, he explains, in addition to the ‘too many styles’ events, are important to him, but ultimately, secondary—done in order to spread awareness about the sound system’s primary offering. “No one's gonna really listen to Darrien Williamson. But people will listen to Scarien, the DJ. … Getting it to that level [where people will listen to you] takes that sort of celebrity-ism, that status, y’know? Otherwise, people don't want to hear what we got to say—they wanna hear Rick Ross say it!” Perhaps this wasn’t clear to him when he moved to Denver, but through trial-and-error, he’s come to understand how to effectively spread this message and get people to show up to events focused on reggae, dub, and dancehall. In fact, Dem Deya recently collaborated to bring international dub heavyweights O.B.F. Sound System and Iration Steppas to the Aztlan Theater in Denver.

Dem Deya Sound System + Zion Souljahz Sound + Headway HiFi present O.B.F. Sound System & Iration Steppas

Listening to Darrien talk about this milestone event is just about the cutest thing ever. His old soul is completely wrapped up in the joy and validation that came from bringing together all the different people from his journey in music, for an event of this scale, and having it be received so well in the Mile High City. This was a full circle, leveling up moment for him and the crew. Since that show back in March, they’ve sustained the momentum, increasing the resonance of Caribbean and UK sound system culture for people in the West through productions, bookings, and collabs.

“This is what we've been working towards, being able to create the space for people to listen when the music speaks. … Doing all this music stuff within a genuine light and having a peace of mind to do it is one of the biggest..it's the most important thing. Because independence within the music industry is important, independence in your own life is important. I feel like sound system reflects and touches on all these things and that's why I've dedicated my..I guess, life to it, at this point. Because it just does so much for people.”

It’s enough to demonstrate this level of wisdom at such a young age, but to have such dedication to this calling, and to so patiently usher people from overlapping scenes into the rich culture of sound system makes Darrien one of a kind. His ethos of serving the sound system—not the self—is his north star, but it doesn’t just guide his way. It shines a light that allows others to see what he sees in the music, and the people that congregate around it: a great power for good that comes with a great responsibility. [Published October 22nd, 2023]

[randowriters]

Kiss

D&F: Hope you all like this! More to come!

This is it.

They’ve been together for a good while, and both of them have confessed their feelings to one another. It’s time…that they take the relationship to the next logical step:

Their first kiss.

The thought of it always makes Freddy blush. He had been preparing for the moment for some time. How he was going to approach DJ, what he was going to say…The glamrock bear even tried practicing for the kiss. Keyword being TRIED. With no DJ Music Man plush dolls being sold in the megaplex, Freddy had to…improvise.

He thought drawing a picture of the disc jockey's face and taping it to the large Freddy plushie would work. However, all it did was made the lead singer horribly embarrassed with every failed attempt. Plus, the paper kept falling off, so Freddy had to give up on that part of the plan. He'll just…have to wing it. When the day comes, just say a few simple words and that's it.

Act natural.

===========================

Freddy and DJ hung out the next day, laughing about a particular subject. “…and that is why I get so nervous around confetti cannons.” The music man concluded. The robotic bear shakes his head. “I cannot believe you swallowed a whole canon like that! I did not even know that had happened!” another chuckle escapes him, “I simply thought you shooting confetti out of your mouth was a built-in feature!” The giant animatronic sheepishly scratches his cheek, “Yeah well, I was nervous about my first day here, I wanted to make sure impressed everyone, and one of the confetti cannons was already there so…” The orange glamrock smiles up at the disc jockey.

“DJ, you did not need to put yourself in such a predicament to impress anyone. Your music alone does an amazing job on that.”

“Yeah, I know that NOW, but the me back then didn’t.” DJ smirks, “I just…wanted to cover my basis, that’s all.” Freddy leans against the robotic spider. “Well, I can definitely say that it was a blast to see it.” He tells the music man. The animatronic spider immediately picks up on the pun and laughs. The lead singer’s ears twitched as the lovely tunes filled the room around them. Even when the disc jockey laughs, he creates the most wonderful music. It’s then something that the glamrock remembers something.

The kiss!

He quickly sits up. That’s right, this is the perfect time to try it! “Everything okay down there?” Freddy jumps and turns around. “Ah-yes! E-everything is fine!” He lets out a nervous laugh. Oh no, he’s making it awkward! Relax! Relax! Unfortunately, the more the bear animatronic tries to calm down the more anxious he gets. Just KNOWING that he wants his muzzle on ANY part of DJ is making him blush! Augh, that sounds so inappropriate to even say in his own head! The confuse stare from the robotic spider makes it very obvious how UNnatrual the glamrock bear is being right now!

Build up to it! Try and talk about something that can help bridge towards the kiss!

Freddy deeply inhales. “Have you ever seen the movie about the sleeping princess?!” He asked…rather loudly. The music man blinks. “You mean the one where the princess got pricked by a sewing needle, right?” he pondered aloud. Yes, they’re getting somewhere! The glamrock bear’s eyes sparkle with enthusiasm, “Yes, that one! Have you seen it?!” A sad smile forms on DJ’s lips as he shakes his head. “Afraid not, kind of been stuck here, you know?” He stated. Everything comes to a crashing halt in the robotic bear’s mind.

Of course, Freddy forgets about the fact that the disc jockey is too big for the theater! Why did he bring up the movie in the first place?! The glamrock leader should have gone with something else! The deflated feeling sinks in as his gaze falls. “Ah…right.” He muttered. And Sleeping Beauty?! Why that movie?! That just makes it TOO obvious to the animatronic giant what he wants to do! Freddy covers his face with his hands to hide the deep blush.

Something’s off with Freddy. Everything was fine and dandy for a moment, but now the glamrock bear is acting strange and won’t even look at DJ. Is…is the animatronic bear sad that the music man didn’t see the movie? He glances back down at the smaller animatronic. No, that can’t be it. The disc jockey begins recalling the events prior. It started with the robotic bear sitting up so suddenly. Almost like he had just been alerted to something urgent. Then, he stuttered and kept darting his eyes to the spider animatronic. That’s when the question about the movie came.

…Wait.

DJ’s eyes squinted. The movie…Sleeping Beauty…He replays the way the lead singer kept staring at him. Or rather, the orange glamrock was staring at his…lips. The giant animatronic’s eyes grew. The weird behavior…the question…the staring…

Freddy wants to kiss DJ.

The music man can feel his cheeks heat up. Has he ever considered the action? Of course, but the robotic spider had to stop himself because this was his first relationship! He didn’t want to do anything like that without Freddy being ready! It just felt…personal! The disc jockey looks down at the embarrassed glamrock. He smirks, at least he now knows that the bear animatronic is ready. Although now that DJ thinks about it, their size difference would make the action difficult. He leans down, “Hey Freddy?”

Freddy’s head shoots up. “Yes?!” He asked. Suddenly, he felt something…soft touch the side of his head. It isn’t the music man’s finger or his cheek, the texture is far too different to be either of them. His ears pick up a soft sound, a musical note so gentle yet quiet. The spider animatronic pulls away and rests his hand in his hands. “I heard about it, though.” He winks, “And I think it’s pretty cute how she was saved.” The glamrock leader didn’t say anything. His CPU is still processing what just happened. Slowly, it begins to piece together the series of events that transpired. Adding in the little comment that DJ made, and the orange glamrock is redder than Mars.

…DJ kissed him.

DJ kissed Freddy, he ACTUALLY kissed the robotic bear. This repeats as the wide-eyed glamrock sits there, immobilized. Meanwhile, the disc jockey couldn’t help but enjoy the adorable reaction beside him. Hopefully, it doesn’t cause the glamrock bear to short circuit. He will never live with himself with that happens, even if it is funny to think about. “A-a-ah…DJ?” Freddy spoke. His wide eyes too stun to look up at the animatronic giant. The disc jockey leans down again, “Yeah?” He felt something touch his bottom lip. It was sudden, but the smooth feeling that the music man managed to identify left his entire face turning a dark shade of red.

“I…I…” The glamrock leader stares back in shock. His hands frantically wave as he stutters an explanation, “I-I-I meant to kiss you on the cheek! I did not mean to kiss you-” DJ’s mouth presses against his muzzle, silencing the orange glamrock instantly. While their contrasting sizes made the action a bit tricky, they still managed. Freddy's surprise vanishes as he eases into it, returning the gesture. The world around them didn’t matter, not for that brief moment. The kiss…felt incredible, indescribable. He wishes they could stay like this forever.

Sadly, all good things must come to an end. The music man slowly pulls away, letting the sensation linger just a bit longer when their lip's part. Neither of them needs air to breathe. However, it is past time for Freddy to leave. The animatronic bear’s eyes fluttered open. DJ’s warm grin greeting him, along with tender touch to his cheek. “It’s okay, Sleeping Beauty, it was…nice.” says the spider animatronic. The lead singer’s ears wiggle wildly as a bubbling feeling grew. “DJ…” He giggled.

When the glamrock leader exits Fazcade, he was far more joyful and whimsical than he ever did in his existence. However, by the time he made it to his green room, he realized what DJ had called him. Too say that the orange glamrock became a red glamrock that day would be understatement.

[high-functioning-lokipath]

All About Eavesdropping - Loki x Reader - Words: 1,835

“You want us to what?” You yelled. 

“I need you and Elsa here to go to Greenland for about a month,” Tony said. You stared at him from across his worktable in his lab. 

“Why in Valhalla would we need to do that, Stark?” Loki retorted. “And don’t call me Elsa.” Tony had called the two of you in there right after breakfast saying that he had a very important job for you. This, however, did not seem to be all that special.

“For purely scientific purposes, of course,” He replied, mouthful of blueberries.

“And those would be?” You sighed, facedesking. 

“The new winter stealth suits I designed. I need them tested in the field. I’ve run as many lab tests as possible but,” Tony shrugged. “Field tests are absolutely necessary. Everything you’ll need is either in these boxes or in the house in Greenland. If you want to take any other personal stuff you’ll want to grab it before you leave.”

“And you think we’re the best for the job?” You asked.

“He’s already a popsicle so if it gets too cold he can deal with it and you can heal yourself or him anyway,” Tony said like it was the most logical thing in the world. Loki tensed at his words but didn’t say anything about it.

“Fine,” Loki grunted. He grabbed the box Tony had marked for him and headed for the doors. 

“You leave at 6! Don’t be late!” 

“I wouldn’t dare disappoint you, Stark,” Loki sassed before finally stalking out. 

“Have fun!” Tony grinned at you, wiggling his eyebrows. 

“First of all, perv. Second of all, ain’t gonna happen!” You replied. “Why are you doing this? This whole thing is a direct attack on a part of him he doesn’t like to address!” 

“Well I figured he has to grow up one day and deal with it. We all have inner demons to fight. I figured I’d help him.”

“A bit not good there, Sherlock.” Tony snorted in laughter and shook his head. 

“Would you rather I send him with Steve?” Your eyes widened comically.

“Nope!” You exclaimed, popping the p. “I think we’ll do just fine.” You grabbed your box and headed out as well.   

By 6 o'clock, the two of you were flying out on one of Tony's jets. "So, what do you think of the new suits?" You asked Loki, trying to make some conversation.

"They are no match for true Asgardian leather and would be greatly improved by at least a cape," He replied sounding rather bored. 

"Oh," You said. "How exactly are we to be testing the suits again? I forget what Tony said."

"He said nothing, darling. It was all in his infernal little packet." You blushed lightly at the pet name and nodded. 

"Alright, well, I guess I'm just going to," You paused, unsure of what to do. It was obvious Loki was not interested in conversation but there wasn't much to do on the jet. "I'm just going to sit over there," You said, getting up quickly and moving to the other side of the jet. The rest of the flight was quiet, Loki only speaking up to alert you that you were about to land. 

"Surely the man of iron could not possibly want us to stay here," Loki said, getting out and seeing the small house.

"Maybe it's bigger on the inside," You said hopefully. Gathering your few things, you both headed in. "Oh this is so much worse," You groaned. The large main room consisted of the dining and living rooms and the kitchen. However, it was very sparsely decorated. You could see a stack of groceries in the kitchen along with a note. Loki wandered off to explore the bathroom and bedrooms, you assumed, while you read the note. 

"Find anything of interest?" Loki called out, surprising you.

"Just that Tony said if we didn't like the food or somehow ran out there's a grocery store about 10 miles away."

"And just how does he expect us to go there?" Loki yelled, getting increasingly frustrated. 

"The note says our transportation is out back." You walked down the small hallway to the back door and looked outside. Stifling a laugh you called out, "Hey, Loki! I think your ex is here!"

"My who?" Loki replied, very confused. "I have no 'exes', as you call them, on Midgard." You smirked and moved aside so Loki could look. When he saw what was in the backyard, a strange look crossed over his face. "Run," He said in a dangerously calm voice. 

"I beg your pardon?" You replied.

"Run if you don't want to lose your phone," He smirked back. You laughed but you did take off running. He chased you back out to the main room but you ran out the front door. "Don't think you can escape me!" He called out. 

"Wanna bet?" You called back, running to the backyard. You quickly jumped on one of the two horses you had seen and took off. 

"Oh, you'll regret saying that, my dear," Loki grinned, getting on the other horse and taking off after you. 

The next few days continued in a similar pattern. There wasn't much to do so you and Loki would often spend your time exploring the woods behind the house or riding the horses or just talking. Loki had warmed up to you quite a bit, pun intended, and you were quite happy. Of course, you recorded the events of each day in your diary. Well, it was less of a diary and more of a collection of special moments you wanted to remember and sketches you'd made. You had just finished writing today's events when you heard a loud clatter and Loki call you from the kitchen.

"Y/N!" He said. "Can you come here please?" You quickly put your notebook in the nightstand drawer and hurried out to the kitchen.

"What in the world happened, Loki?" You exclaimed, holding back a laugh. Loki was laying on the floor, covered in a mixture of flour and eggs it seemed, with various cups and bowls around him. 

"I was attempting to reach a mixing bowl on the top shelf when I slipped on an egg and pulled the shelf down," He admitted.

"You're telling the truth!" You gasped, openly chuckling at the situation now.

"Of course, love! I couldn't lie to you." You blushed brightly, as he often made you do with those pet names. 

"Uh, well," You stuttered. "Why don't you go wash up and I'll finish," You paused, glancing around. "Whatever you were making."

"I was attempting to make breakfast," He grinned. "But I think I should make myself clean instead, hm?" 

"Yes, you should," You smirked. "Wouldn't want anyone thinking you were greying early."

"You-" He exclaimed, standing quickly. For a moment you thought he was truly angry, but his eyes sparkled with mischief. He reached onto the counter and threw a handful of flour at you before running off to the bathroom. You laughed, dusted yourself off, and got to work on breakfast.

About an hour later, he came back out and sat across you at the counter. "Your breakfast, my prince," You smiled, presenting him his plate. He smiled and you ate in silence for a time. 

"I've been reading a lot lately," He commented. 

"Mhm," You replied, mouthful of syrupy pancakes. 

"The last book I read had some rather interesting sketches in it too."

"Really?" You asked, truly interested. "I love art. Can you show it to me?" You took a large gulp of milk as he replied.

"My dear," He said, setting down his fork. "I read your diary." You coughed, almost choking on your ill-timed drink. 

"You what?" You screeched. "How dare you invade my privacy like that and-"

"Don't you care to know what I thought?" He interrupted.

"Why? So you can laugh at me, oh Mr. High-and-" He cut you off by leaning over the counter and kissing you earnestly. "Oh, that's nice," You said once you pulled away. 

"Just nice?" He smirked. "I guess I'll have to work on that." He kissed you once more before you pulled away, cheeks flushed and eyes wide.

"I just remembered something!" You gasped. 

"What's wrong?" You quickly pulled out the pamphlet Tony had made you about the suit testing. You then gestured to a paragraph under a subheading of RECORDING ANY AND ALL TEST RESULTS

ALL TEST RESULTS MUST BE RECORDED BY THE TESTERS USING THE STEPS LISTED. TO ENSURE NOTHING IS MISSED, HOWEVER, THE HOUSE WILL ALSO BE UNDER 24/7 SURVEILLANCE TO TRACK ANY UNRECORDED RESULTS.

OUTSIDE - AUDIO/VIDEO

INSIDE - AUDIO ONLY

Loki grinned and leaned into you, lips brushing against your ear. He whispered something and you giggled. "Loki!" You gasped. "We can’t do that here!"

"Oh, yes," He purred. "We can do it anywhere we want if we're creative enough." 

"But outside is so much more exciting," You grinned. "So," you paused, struggling to find the right word. "Freeing!"

"Please do not do anything outdoors where I can see!" You heard a loud voice yell. You both quickly realized it was coming from the monitoring system.

"Steve? Is that you?" You called back with a chuckle. 

"Yeah, Tony insisted I take a turn on guard duty," He grumbled. "Look, I'm sorry I interrupted," He paused awkwardly. "Whatever you were doing but could you please not do it outside? Outside has cameras." Loki laughed loudly and you did too. 

"We really didn't mean to prank you, Cap. I thought Tony was on the other end of that mic."

"I however have no objections to how this turned out," Loki added. You whacked him arm lightly and shook your head. "Truthfully, though, we were only speaking of testing another aspect of the suit. I whispered to Y/N my idea and-"

"I get it," Cap replied quickly. You couldn't see him but you could tell he was embarrassed. "I'll make you two a deal. Behave yourselves, finish the tests, and get home early and I'll help you prank Tony here in the tower. Ok?"

"You have yourself a deal, Captain," Loki grinned. 

"Alright. I'm going to take a nap now. Don't do anything stupid."

"Oh we won't," Loki smirked, wrapping his arms around you and planting light kisses on your neck.

"Loki!" You squealed.

"Do you want to prank Tony or not?" Steve yelled. "I can't see you but I can hear you! And that didn't sound like suit testing. Get to work! If you do as you're supposed to, you'll be done in a week."

"Yes, sir," You both grumbled. Loki, ever the mischief maker, wasn't about to let up. He grabbed a towel and twirled it, smacking your backside with it as you walked away. 

"What was that for?" You asked.

"Loki, did you just-"

"For purely scientific purposes, I assure you," He replied. Steve groaned in frustration.

"This is gonna be a long week."

Loki Taglist

@lucywrites02

@delightfulheartdream

@serpentargo

@khena

@nyx2021

@kaz11283

@weasley-main-lover

@up-to-mischief

@lokislittlesigyn

​Marvel (all characters) Taglist

@bartv21

@another-crazy-fangirl

@whatafuckingdumbass

@ladylulu143

@lokislittlesigyn

[aster-aspera]

One place to fall

@badthingshappenbingo

Prompt: Can’t go home

Relationship: Jon/Martin/Tim/Sasha

Warnings: food, Jon just generally being a bit sad? Idk, if there’s something you want tagged, feel free to tell me

Masterlist

If you liked it, please reblog

Jon woke up that morning with a strangled gasp, the afterimage of his dreams still burned into the back of his eyelids, keeping him from falling back to sleep. He rolled over, expecting to find the comforting warmth of one of his partners to keep him company in the lonely hours of an early day. Instead, what greeted him was the cold grey wall of Georgie’s guest room. It didn’t take long after that for the memories to flow back.

Three days. He really should stop expecting them to be here at this point.

They’re not here, they can’t be here, and he can’t go home, not for a long while, not till the police stop suspecting him for a murder he didn’t commit.

He sighed, rolling over onto his back when aches started running up his side. He stared up at the off-white popcorn ceiling, trying not to think of how Tim was probably sprawled out over Martin and Sasha, stealing most of the blankets and driving his sharp elbows into their sides. He tried not to miss Sasha’s warmth against his side and the sound of Martin’s soft snores. He always used to complain about their sleeping arrangements, but now he would do anything to be back in that bed.

He groaned and rolled over a few more times, trying in vain to find a position that was comfortable enough to attempt sleep again, not that that would go very well, with the nightmares plaguing him as soon as he closed his eyes.

Eventually, he conceded and got out of bed, grabbing his cane from the wall and taking a moment to work the stiffness out of his limbs. He limped into the kitchen and smiled at the Admiral when he raised his head sleepily. He wondered if he could convince the others to get a cat when he got home. If he ever got home.

The smile slipped off his face and he turned to open the curtains, letting in the greyish light of an early dawn. The Admiral mewled plaintively at his feet, pushing against him. He bent down carefully to run his fingers along the cat’s back, closing his eyes for a moment and just letting the feeling ground him.

He straightened and made his way over to the cramped kitchen, intent on making himself a small breakfast to keep him company whilst he waited for the world to wake up. He reached towards the cabinet over the sink, and for a moment expected their mismatched collection of mugs with ridiculous quotes and terrible puns. He shouldn’t have felt the disappointment he did when instead it was just a shelf of plain white cups.

He shut the cabinet door a little more forcefully than strictly necessary, breathing deeply against the sudden swell of emotion in his throat.

In the scope of all that had happened to him, this should have been minor, this should have been fine. It was just Georgie, the person he had used to love, the person he still cared for. And his partners were really just a phone call away.

So why then, did it feel like he was breaking? Why did every little reminder this wasn’t his home tear something apart deep in his gut?

Home had always been his safety net, and now, he had nowhere to fall.

And now he just had to sit here, stare at the blank walls and hope the police would finally realise he hadn’t been the one to kill jurgen Leitner. Every day that hope felt a bit further away.

He opened the group chat he shared with the others. There were no new messages, of course not, none of them were awake yet. Six am was a bit early even for Tim. He scrolled back to their conversation from last night.

A picture of Tim grinning into the camera while a pot bubbles over behind him.

Sasha: Tim’s cooking tonight, send help

Martin: If the house burns down or he poisons us, I want you to know I love you

Jon: I’m sure it won’t come to that.

He scrolls back down to the bottom of the chat, a small smile on his face at the easy conversation of last night. It wasn’t the same as being there with them, but it was a small comfort.

The three dots that signalled someone was typing popped up on his screen and he noted with surprise Sasha was already online.

Sasha: Youre up early

Jon: I could say the same for you.

Sasha: Needed to pee

Jon: Yes, I suppose that makes sense.

Sasha: So what’s your excuse

Jon: My back hurts again.

Sasha: :(

Sasha: And is that the only reason?

Jon: No

Jon: I miss you.

Sasha: Darling

Jon: I’m alright, I just wish I could see you

Jon: In person that is.

Sasha: We could come over?

Jon: I don’t think that’s wise.

Sasha: Yeah, i guess

Sasha: We miss you too

A swarm of emotions bubbled up in Jon’s throat at the words, threatening to spill over in a mess of heartache and sorrow and fear. They press against the bounds of his throat, choking him, filling him with so many feelings he could not even begin to parse them out. He just wanted to go home.

He swallows it down, tucks the whole mess into a corner of his mind and puts down his phone. He doesn’t want to bother Sasha, or any of the others. He’s already put so much on them, dragged them into the fear and confusion that was the archives, he had no right to bother them with more.

And he knew he was just being dramatic, he was a grown man, he should be able to handle being away from home for a while. He just needed to get himself together, focus on the next step.

He picked up a stack of statements from the coffee table, slipping on his glasses and burying himself in the comforting rhythm of paper and pen. At least this was something he still controlled, still knew how to do.

Georgie appeared at some point, giving him a disapproving glance to find him working so early and coraling him into eating breakfast with her. She can’t stay long after that, and both Jon and the Admiral watch her leave with the same forlorn air.

Jon looked up from his work as a heavy knock resounded from the front door. His first thought was that it was Georgie, back from her errands early. But she would just have let herself in, and Jon knew for certain she had her key with her when she left.

And who did that leave? The police? Some avatar coming to settle a score? Gertrude's killer finally come to finish the job?

Every option was bad, and every option would not let a flimsy door stop them. He stood up, walked into the kitchen as calmly as he could with dread and paranoia hanging over him like a dark cloud and grabbed the largest knife he could find. The knock came again, and he could hear indistinct whispering from behind the door.

Multiple people then. That wasn’t good for his chances. He gripped the knife just a little bit tighter.

“Hey boss, open up,” came a familiar voice, one he used to hear rough and sleepy in the mornings and soft and loving in the evenings. His heart brightened in a momentary thrill at the thought of his partners, or at least, one of them, being on the other side of that door, so close to him again after all those days without them. And all he had to do was open up that door and pull them into his arms once more.

That thrill was almost immediately dampened again as he realized they should not be here. It was why he had left in the first place. They were too connected to him, too wrapped up in his messy web of conspiracy and paranoia. If the police saw them here, if Elias saw them here, they would be leading all of it right to Georgie’s doorstep.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” He told the door and tried not to think of the warm hands behind it.

“We’re not supposed to do a lot of things,” Came Sasha’s amused voice.

“Like date each other,” Tim filled in, “But here we are, so you going to let us in now?”

“No, the police could find out, and you might get Georgie in trouble and there’s just so many reasons this is a bad idea.”

“Jon please, we’re worried about you, Georgie said you weren’t doing well,” Martin said softly

Jon sat down on the couch heavily, knees protesting from standing up too long. He stared at the door.

“And standing out here is probably a lot more risky than being in the apartment, so best let us in.”

He sighed. You never could argue with Sasha’s logic. The others looked up victoriously when he finally unlocked the door.

“There he is!” Tim crowed, as Sasha and Martin offered him a warm smile while bustling into the apartment, both laden with grocery bags. Sasha pressed a light kiss to his forehead as she passed and he tried not to start crying at the feeling.

“You have to leave,” He said as he shut the door, “You’re not supposed to be here.”

Martin and Sasha didn’t look up from where they were unloading piles of vegetables and snacks from their bags.

“What? No, hey guys, I missed you, happy to see you all?” Tim complained as he draped himself over Jon’s back. Jon scowled at him.

“Jon, stop being stubborn, we’ve all been through hell the past few weeks, and right now we just want to be here to keep you company,” Martin said in that firm yet gentle voice of his.

“You really shouldn’t be alone after all that,” Sasha said as she dumped out a tupperware container into a pot.

“I’m not alone,” Jon said grumpily, “I have the Admiral.” Though he had apparently decided to make himself scarce for the time being. Jon cursed him for the betrayal.

“Are you saying you prefer the company of a cat to ours?” Tim asked, pulling them both back onto the couch and settling a blanket over them.

“Maybe,” Jon pouted, burrowing into Tim’s chest despite the fact that he was still upset with them, “He doesn’t uselessly endanger everyone to come give me cuddles.”

“Well we’re here now, and we’re not leaving till you feel better.”

“And admit it, you’re happy we’re here,” Martin said, apparently finishing up with his preparations in the kitchen and curling up next to Jon on the couch.

Jon did not want to admit it, but something warm and content curled up in his stomach, the warm feeling of home returning to his bones. A warm and savoury smell drifted through the room, clearly coming from whatever Sasha was warming up on the stove.

This apartement did not look like home in the slightest, the walls and ceiling all wrong, the furniture hard and uncomfortable and unfamiliar. But with all of them here, and that familiar smell of soup and Tim’s conditioner surrounding him, it wasn’t all that bad.

Sasha sat down on his other side, handing everyone a bowl of soup and giving Jon a gentle kiss on his knuckles. Martin pressed one to his temple and Tim just ruffled his hair fondly.

A few words were exchanged between them, but Jon didn’t bother paying too much attention. He knew he should still be angry, or at least have a firm conversation with them on what they had agreed on. But not now, not when they were here and he was home and for a moment he could forget all about Leitner and the institute and just be safe.

[confusednarcissistwrites]

Could you write a jealous timmy fic pls?

AHHH so this is pretty much pure fluff lol I feel like there’s a lot of angsty jealousy fics out there so I wanted to try and do something a little different. hope you guys like it!! ☺️💛

Jealous? (T.C.)

(cursing, smut, flufffff)

“Baby, I’m late! I gotta run,” you giggled, pressing the puckered lips of your doting boyfriend away as you pulled on your shoes.

“Ughhh fineeeee,” Timothée whined, following you to the door like a puppy. “Have a good day, baby doll.”

You grinned, pecking his lips. “You too, cutie.”

You’d been filming intermittently for the past few months on a local indie project. It was hard not to be daunted by Timothée’s big name films, but your heart was in dinky, little indie projects with weird motifs, and you were perfectly content to stay in your niche acting there in New York. It kept you close to him.

You’d only been together for about six months, but you could tell that this wasn’t a short term type thing. This was your first project since you and Timothée had gotten together, and he’d already been incredibly supportive every step of the way. It was almost like you had your own personal cheerleader every day.

Once you made it to the studio, you realized you had missed a text from Timmy.

T💕: “u forgot ur lunch :(“

You: “dang it :/ I’m sure I can find something around here tho”

You slipped your phone back into your pocket, heading into your dressing room to get your hair and makeup done for the day. About halfway through, your director knocked on the door and popped his head inside. He was all smiles, eager to get into the scenes for the day. “Hey, Y/N! Just wanted to let you know we are starting with 32 today!”

“Great, thank you, Derek!” you responded, grabbing up your script in between your makeup artist’s brush strokes. You flipped through the marked up pages, landing on the scene.

“Ooh, you’ll need some extra setting spray today!” sang Marrissa, giving you a playful wink as she finished up the avant-garde paint job on your face and began setting it with powder.

After getting dressed, you strode out to the set, feeling excited and confident for the day’s shoot. The schedule was packed, but you were ready for it.

•••

It was less than an hour after you had left that Timothée became bored. You’d left him a grocery list, but he couldn’t imagine how dreary the supermarket aisles would be without your puns and odd-ball fun facts about preservatives. He smiled to himself, feeling a bit silly for missing you so much.

He decided that he’d go pick up lunch from your favorite restaurant and bring it to you since you’d left your lunch at home; he knew how rough catered lunches could be at times.

It was about noon when he arrived at the studio, entering quietly as he knew they were likely filming somewhere nearby. He greeted the staff he passed, some looking at him with wide eyes and making him chuckle to himself a bit, but most had seen him with you before. He was instructed to the set and eventually found his way to you. What he was greeted with, however, stopped him dead in his tracks.

You were practically naked, your body only draped in a sheer, flowy gown that left little to the imagination. An actor circled you, his eyes hungry and predatory. In a snap of movement, he was on you. Timothée watched in shock as he gripped your throat, feverishly kissing you. You, completely immersed in character, reciprocated, releasing a soft whine audible to the crew.

And Timothée.

He, of course, logically knew you were simply acting in a role, but to see such a thing made his stomach twist and ache. Half of him was astounded by your talent and beauty, but it was nearly completely overshadowed by his jealousy.

An abrupt call of “CUT!” pulled him from the trance, both you and the actor stepping away from each other. It took you a few moments to notice him, but, the moment you did, your face lit up, and you hurried over to him.

“Oh my goodness! What are you doing here, mon amour,” you grinned, pulling him into a quick kiss. He smiled back, but you instantly could see it was a bit forced. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

Timothée shook his head, presenting your lunch to you. “I just brought you food! I was worried you wouldn’t find anything around here, and I wanted to see you,” he confessed, blushing a bit.

You tilted your head. “Thank you, Timo. That’s very sweet, but what’s wrong?”

“What? Nothing. Nothing’s wrong!”

“Mm, never play poker,” you teased, continuing to press his buttons.

He sighed, scratching the back of his neck. “It’s- honestly, it’s stupid. Can we go to your room?”

Suddenly, it clicked. “Oh my god, it was the scene, wasn’t it?” you gasped, leading him to your room and closing the door behind you.

“Y/N…” he warned.

“It totally was!! Babe, you kiss other actors all the time; you know how it is!”

“Okay, yeah, but- I just, ya know, haven’t seen you do it before!! It was just a little.. startling I guess,” he stuttered, clearly flustered and defensive, his arms crossed over his chest. “I mean, you don’t dress like this at home!”

You set your lunch down, letting out a snort. “Darling, I’m also not typically the damned ghost of a duke’s daughter at home either,” you deadpanned, wrapping your arms around his neck. His arms wrapped instinctually around your waist, pulling you close. “Are you jealous, Timothée?” You wore a cocky grin, finding him incredibly endearing.

“I just don’t like seeing other guys all over my girl; is that a crime?” he whined, making pouty faces at you and making you giggle. He wasn’t one to be upset over much for very long.

“Mm, I love when you call me that,” you sighed, biting your lip at him.

He very promptly reacted to your shift in tone, raising a brow at you. “Don’t start anything you can’t finish, doll.” His voice was quiet and low, making you grin.

“Oh, you’ll finish, alright.” His eyes went wide as you pushed him back onto the couch with a giggle, placing yourself in his lap and tugging his bottom lip between your teeth.

“You’re so baadddd,” he sang, giving your ass a playful squeeze. You rocked against his growing bulge, pulling him into a hungry kiss. Your costume pooled around you both as you continued to grind against him; the thrill of the possibility of getting caught spurred you on, much to Timothée’s delight. His lips latched onto your throat eagerly. He wished he could leave a little sign to remind your scene partner of his place but decided against it in fear of you getting scolded.

“Only for you, babe,” you hummed. In a flurry of fabrics, you slipped down the floor, kneeling between his spread legs.

Timmy was pleasantly surprised, chewing on his lip as you made quick work of his belt and fly. He was already incredibly turned on. You removed his length from his jeans, pumping him up and down while gazing up at him. “Fuck, Y/N,” he gasped, sliding down in his seat. You took him into your mouth, knowing you didn’t have as much time as you’d like. You circled your tongue around his sensitive head, relishing the soft groan he let out. You licked a wide stripe along the underside, feeling him twitch in your hand. The gratification of watching him feel so good was nearly enough to get you off all on its own.

He gently gathered your hair, holding it out of your face as you began to bob your head up and down his length. “Holy shit, baby. Ugh, your mouth..” he babbled mindlessly, hips twitching up toward you every so often. You weren’t able to fit all of him into your mouth, so your hands aided in the effort, one following your lips while the other squeezed his thigh or roamed over his stomach occasionally. Feeling warmed up, you pressed yourself further, taking him down your throat until you managed to reach his base. You held for as long as you could before pulling back, gasping for air; he was no easy fit. He cursed, his slick cock twitching against his stomach while you caught your breath. He bit the back of his hand to keep from getting too loud. You quickly went back to work, sensing he was getting closer.

You watched his pretty, hazel eyes roll back as you sped up. “Fu-fuck, Y/N, don’t stop,” he whimpered, his free hand tugging at his own hair as he tumbled toward his climax. Suddenly, his whole body went tense, his head falling back in a silent shout as he spilled his lust into your waiting mouth. You did you best to swallow all he had to give, not wanting to make a mess. He trembled softly and let out sighs as he came down from his high. You pulled off of him with a little pop, biting your lip up at him while he tucked himself back into his jeans. You pulled yourself back up onto the couch next to him, grabbing his chin and pulling him into a lustful kiss.

“See? No reason to be jealous,” you purred, bumping his nose with your own.

“Jesus…” he panted, laughing and running his hands over his face as he soaked in what had just happened. “You’re something else.”

You giggled and hopped up, wiping away your watery eyes in the mirror, readjusting your costume, and drinking some water; you hoped your voice wouldn’t be too hoarse for your next scenes.

Timmy followed after you like a little puppy, wrapping himself around you from behind. He was always so cuddly after an orgasm. “Mmmm, I’d love to return the favor,” he hummed, pressing kisses to your neck and shoulders.

You grinned, leaning back into him. “Ugh, I wish. But I have to get back to set now, my love.” He stuck out his bottom lip, pouting at you through the mirror. “You’ll have to make it up to me later.”

He walked you back to set, his fingers tangled with yours and a little smug smile on his face; anyone could have guessed he just got some.

“I’ll see you later tonight,” he hummed, smiling like a fool. You stood on your toes to peck his lips, but the moment you pulled away, he pulled you right back again, locking lips with you heatedly for a few seconds more. You blushed hotly, hearing a few whistles coming from the cast and crew. It was only after he pulled away and headed for the door that you saw your scene mate standing a few feet away.

[witchiswriting]

A Not So Merry Christmas Chapter 4

Summary: Another plan is made up for Negan

Warnings: Language, Angst

Pairings: Negan x Lucille (OC)

Author’s Note:  This is really short but consider this as a bottle chapter. You won't know what is going to hit you in the next one.

‘’You really fucked him up.’’ Simon sighed, looking directly at the woman in front of him.

‘’Don’t worry, he’ll be fine. He just needed this wake-up call.’’ The woman said with a calm tone. Despite the cold weather she was wearing a little sun dress without shivering at all.

Simon chuckled slightly, ‘’ Do you really think this is going to make him realize what he does have in front of him? He seemed pretty destroyed when I told him the news. What if he just gives up?’’ He asked with a serious undertone. He was scared for his friend. It was too much for Negan to handle.

The woman with dark hair wasn’t pleased with that question. Of course, that was a possibility that could very much happen, but she chose to dread this thought. ‘’If he fails this time then that’s it. I can’t always pick up after him.’’ She said nonchalantly.

Simon regarded the woman. She almost tricked him to believe that she doesn’t give a fuck but the light in her eyes whenever she mentioned Negan was enough to convince him otherwise.

‘’You still love him, don’t you? That’s why you’re trying this hard.’’ Simon questioned.

‘’ I guess I never stopped loving him but you’re wrong.’’ The woman spoke with mischief in her voice. Clearly, she was enjoying herself.

‘’ Then what is it? Why are you trying this hard? And don’t get me wrong but I think Negan will always be Negan and won’t learn from his mistakes. Plus, the death of the woman he loves is going to make him more miserable than he already is, and we all know how Negan deals with his problems.’’ Simon sighed. It was no lie that whenever he has an emotional trouble, Negan chooses to drown himself with women and booze. Sex is the only way for him to feel nothing. He has always liked to use people for his own benefit. This time, the woman stood up angrily. The flames were almost visible in her eyes.

‘’ If he refuses to change and learn from his mistakes then it’s his choice and he’s going to live in this hell I’ve created for him for the rest of his life. I’m not trying to protect him nor save him. My mission is something you can’t even guess, Simon and no, there’s no way I’m explaining this to you.’’ She said with a determined undertone. The danger was obvious in her voice.

Simon thought, did he ever know this woman? He used to be friends with her, and she was full of love and kindness back then but now she’s nothing but thorns and poison. ‘’ You got to go back to him. I bet he’s not doing very well right now.’’ The woman ordered.

Without saying anything else Simon stood and descended to Negan’s room.

He could hear the glass shattering and Negan roaring loudly. He really was in pain, Simon let himself in without knocking. Negan was a mess, his hair was tousled, eyes were bloodshot, and he was standing in the middle of the room with a photograph of him and Lilith together in his hands. He was caressing the picture. ‘’ Did I cause this, Simon?’’ He asked with a hoarse tone. His tears were running down on his cheeks. Simon looked at his best friend. He wanted to be there for him and say that it wasn’t his fault but if he does this, he knows that she’d be furious with him and her being furious is not a good thing.

‘’ I hate to say that but— ‘’ he got interrupted by a roaring Negan.

‘’ Goddamn it! Just tell me already! I fucking caused this, right?! She’s gone because of me!’’ He started crying loudly. This pain was unbearable for him. There’s no reason for him to be alive if his girl is dead because of him.

Simon took a step closer to Negan, touching his shoulder to calm him down. ‘’I’m sorry, but yes boss you partially caused it.’’

Simon couldn’t find the courage in him to tell his friend how he caused his lover’s death. It was too cruel for his taste. Sure, Negan was an asshole, everyone knows it but even he wouldn’t deserve this mess.

He’s been watching Negan tearing apart in front of him for days and wondered how much longer he could bear to see his friend like this, but he also knows if he tries to make things better for Negan Lucille would be furious. Honestly, Simon doesn’t want to face that woman’s wrath. Somehow, she became crueller after she died.

Negan’s whole world crumbled down, not only he destroyed the person he loved most in his real life he also caused her death in this fucked up dimension. He lost everything but also knows he couldn’t go back and make things right. He’s trapped in this hell hole for eternity.

Though this was just the beginning. Negan won’t know what’s going to hit him once it’s done. Lucille hoped this is going to make him realize he can be happy, and he has value even if he has fucked up, pun intended. She knew this was probably the cruellest thing she has ever done, and most would say she hates the man’s gut, on the contrary she still cared for him, but she also cared for someone else. When she’s signed to be that person’s guardian angel, she didn’t think things would come to this. At first, she didn’t understand why she’s chosen as some girl’s guardian angel. In her logic guardian angels must be attached to the person they protect. Little did she know it’s going to be related with the only person she loved deeply.

When Negan fucked the redhead in that bar’s bathroom Lucille was furious. Her fury became visible in her eyes. She thought Negan would try to be better, her death must have taught him that, she was naïve.

After that particular event Lucille started holding a grudge against Negan, of course she still had feelings for him, but she was also accustomed to like Lilith. That girl was something else, she wouldn’t stick around like Lucille did.

Lilith won’t be the only agony Negan is going to go through. There is someone else he also needs to deal with, and Simon knew that his friend will totally lose it if he didn’t before.

‘’ Boss, I know this is not the perfect time, but you must visit the cells. The prick doesn’t listen to us and tried to escape again.’’

There we go again.

@negans-network​ @buttercandy16​

[love-musicheart]

NoirBug - Chapter Four - Episode 4

(AO3)

Summary:

Things are NOT perfect. Ladybug has disappeared. The future is disappearing. And... wait, did you just say Cat Noir's identity is-

“Paris is under attack by an akuma! I repeat, Paris is under attack by an akuma!”

Wang Fu cast a glance at his small TV, then, setting down the tablet he was working on, shuffled over to turn up the volume.

“It appears to be some type of plant akuma...”

That much certainly was obvious. Roots curled up from cracks in the pavement wherever the akuma stepped. The view appeared to be taken from a helicopter - safely out of range of the attack.

Fu made his way back over to his desk, picking up his tablet again. Translating the grimoire took time - but as he liked to keep an eye on the superheroes of Paris, he’d gotten pretty good at multitasking.

“How annoying,” Fu mentioned in a conversational tone to his kwami, Wayzz, who was floating closer to the TV. “I thought I would at least have several hours to work without interruption.”

“Hawkmoth doesn’t usually attack this early in the morning,” Wayzz agreed. “Do you think he might have something bigger planned for today?”

Fu chuckled. “I think that, whoever Hawkmoth is, he just likes to sleep in. But who could stay in bed on a day like this?”

Wayzz chuckled as well, zipping back over to the desk to munch on their shared breakfast - a fruit salad.

Fu got back to work, carefully translating the old text into French. He glanced between the text on the tablet, his paper, and the TV. This akuma was no plain gardener; it seemed to have control over nature itself, employing all four elements. Its very presence made plants grow and water start to rise in the Seine.

“I wonder…” Fu mused out loud, trailing off.

“Master?” Wayzz asked, glancing up, cherry stained across his lips.

Wang Fu shrugged. “Just a passing thought.” He paused, then admitted, “But… I cannot help but be curious as to whether Ladybug will come for a miraculous to assist her and Cat Noir in this fight.” He couldn’t help himself, and smiled. “It would quite interesting to see the dragon miraculous pitted against this akuma; the holder of that one in particular seems to be quite dependable.”

“Master,” Wayzz warned, “your rules…”

“Well, I’m the one who made them, am I not?” Fu shrugged, a little defensively. “I can speculate who I believe the ladybug would choose, seeing as I am the one providing her the miraculouses for the fights.”

Wayzz just shook his head, smiling - though the wisdom hidden behind it was ruined a little by the cherry still smeared across his face.

“Cat Noir is here, on the scene at the Seine!”

Master Fu glanced at the TV. “I think both of us can agree, based on what we’ve seen from the dragon holder in action, that they have a steady dependability that would be quite the asset for this fight.”

“Yes,” Wayzz conceded. “We can agree on that point, at least.”

As Cat Noir took on the akuma with cocky fearlessness and puns, Fu went back to his translations. Wayzz casually floated over. “Are you sure that you should be writing those down on paper, Master? Couldn’t someone steal them?”

“Firstly, Wayzz,” Fu said, “could you please take you and your cherry a little further away? You know you’re not allowed to know these recipes.”

Wayzz sighed, but obeyed.

“Secondly,” Fu continued, “while I agree… it is a danger we must risk. The next guardian will need them.”

“You already know who that is going to be?”

“Yes,” Fu said, not hesitating even a moment. “I know exactly who should be the next guardian. And this…” he tapped his paper, “will help them immensely, especially as it means they will not have to translate it on their own.”

The two old friends fell silent, Wayzz enjoying the food and Master Fu slowly working on the grimoire. There was a peacefulness in the small house, and, paired with the wonderful fresh air that the morning had provided, it was altogether perfect.

Besides that akuma attack, of course.

Fu glanced at the TV again. Cat Noir was holding off the akuma, keeping it occupied while saving civilians. But Ladybug herself had yet to show up.

Slowly, Fu found himself drawn more and more to watching the TV and less and less to actually working on translating the grimoire. The peace he’d enjoyed just minutes before was rapidly dissipating, replaced by a feeling he hadn’t had for many years; it was one that gathered in the pit of his stomach, curling in on itself.

One that said that something was very, very wrong.

“Master?” Wayzz floated over to the TV, joining Fu. “Is something wrong?”

“Hopefully nothing other than an old man’s worries,” Fu murmured - though the feeling in his stomach told him otherwise. “Ladybug may have been deterred in some way in her civilian life.”

The akuma made a vicious shoving motion with its arms, stretching to its very fingertips, and vines covered in thorns burst from the ground. They slammed in Cat Noir, rocketing into him so quickly and driving him back with such force that the camera couldn’t even turn fast enough to keep up with where he landed.

Far off in the distance, Fu could hear the slam of the cat hero hitting something - ground or building, he wasn’t sure.

Fu winced, then, with sudden determination flooding through him, stood. “Ladybug would never let her partner go this long getting injured,” he said decisively. “I must enter the fight myself.”

“But Master,” Wayzz protested, “you may get injured! You can’t risk that happening! You’re the guardian!”

“Cat Noir needs help,” Fu insisted.

“Just wait a little longer,” Wayzz begged, floating straight up into Fu’s face, as if invading his personal space would somehow stop him from leaving. “Ladybug will surely arrive any minute now!”

Fu looked back at the TV. Several seconds stretched out, filled only with the sound of Cat Noir beginning to struggle against the akuma.

Finally, Fu sighed. “All right. Just a few more minutes.”

However, by the time a few more minutes had passed - without Ladybug showing up - Fu had to admit within himself that there wasn’t much he’d even be able to do to help. He was just an old man, after all, and couldn’t be completely sure who Ladybug had chosen as the other holders of the miraculouses.

Fu sat down at his desk again, the remnants of the fruit salad now left untouched by both him and Wayzz.

Surely Ladybug will come.

Cat Noir leapt, narrowly avoiding getting slammed into with a thick vine again.

Surely she wouldn’t leave Cat Noir to this fate.

The camera lost sight of Cat Noir for several tense minutes - but at last found him again, gasping in the Seine as a whirlpool developed around him.

I must hold onto hope.

Yet hope slowly faded away like an evening glow into twilight. Cat Noir was holding his own for now - barely - but was obviously becoming more and more battered.

“I’m sure Ladybug will come,” Wayzz said aloud. “Cat Noir won’t have to fight this one on his own.”

Fu said nothing. He just watched the TV.

The feeling in his stomach whispered that it was right.

And, by the time night fell, Master Fu had to agree.

He had been right.

Because something must be very, very wrong if Ladybug wasn’t showing up.

-

3 Weeks Later

“Parisians are currently being evacuated,” the TV blared.

Fu stared into his cup, watching the way the surface of his tea was rippling, set off by the motion of his shaking hands.

He had stopped to take a short break - or, more accurately, had been ordered by Wayzz to stop and take a short rest. But rest wasn’t possible at this time. Calm wasn’t something he could feel anymore.

Parisians were… scared. Scared for their families, for their futures, and for their lives - to the point that some of them had begun to leave.

The departures had begun as a trickle that slowly strengthened into a roar - and now, Mayor Bourgeois had ordered a full-scale evacuation.

For the past three weeks, Master Fu had scoured Paris ceaselessly for Marinette Dupain-Cheng, searching for her among those departing. If her parents left, would Marinette follow? Fu knew she loved her family beyond words; she’d do anything to protect them.

But she also loved Paris; she would do anything to protect it, too.

Fu’s hands shook slightly as he slowly raised the cup to his lips, attempting to take a sip of the tea. The hot liquid burned the roof of his mouth, however, and he hurriedly put it back down.

Attempting to find Marinette was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. As more people began leaving at the same time, it became even more difficult for him to try and find her among the crowds.

“Master.”

Master Fu looked up. Wayzz was floating in front of him.

“Don’t torture yourself like that,” the green kwami said gently.

“But what if I missed her, Wayzz?” Fu asked - and, despite what the kwami had just said, his voice was tortured. “What if she was behind me, or beside me in a crowd, and I didn’t turn? What if she cannot be found because she’s already gone?”

“You chose her to be Ladybug,” Wayzz reminded him. “You know that she wouldn’t have run from this. She would never leave Cat Noir behind.”

Fu fell silent. All logic pointed toward abandonment by the ladybug hero… but Wayzz was right. Fu had chosen her, and it was for a reason. Deep down, he still trusted her, despite all reason.

But he also had to try and think logically.

Either Marinette had left, was hiding, or was somehow in deep, deep trouble. Perhaps Hawkmoth had discovered her identity and taken her prisoner. Or maybe there had been a different akuma attack that none of them had heard of, and it had kidnapped Ladybug when she took it on. Or maybe she’d been injured in some way and was unable to help… or get help.

Fu sighed; there was just no way to know.

“Quake is currently at the Louvre; Parisians, do not approach the area. All those within, if you can hear me, head to the nearest exit and run.”

The news channels had become less and less formal over the past few weeks; the anchors were more concerned with keeping people safe than actually sounding professional.

Things had only gotten worse since the first akuma attack Ladybug hadn’t come to. That akuma had been, on its own, one of the most powerful Fu had ever seen Hawkmoth create.

But then another akuma had joined it.

And then another.

Now, akumatized civilians were running rampant across Paris. Nowhere was safe.

“I am not doing enough, Wayzz,” Fu murmured, staring in exhaustion at his television.

“You are not in this fight alone, Master,” Wayzz said, drifting closer. “There are other heroes fighting these akumas alongside you - magical and everyday.”

“We need the ladybug, Wayzz,” Fu shook his head. “She is the only one who can heal this mess. Paris can rebuild after the dust has settled, but we need her miraculous cure to purify the akumas first.”

“This is, admittedly, a bleak situation,” Wayzz agreed. “However, you must remember that you are not alone in this. People from very different walks of life have stepped up during this time of crisis.”

“That is true,” Fu admitted.

Seeming to be encouraged by this, Wayzz smiled and continued. “Cat Noir is holding out, for one. He has surely realized by now that Ladybug will not be joining him, yet he continues to fight on his own. You chose a good holder for Plagg.”

Fu couldn’t help but give a faint smile at the thought of Cat Noir. “I will admit, he is one of the best Cat Noirs we have ever had.”

“He even defeated one of the akumatized civilians!”

“Yes, but he had to destroy the akuma to do so.” Fu’s face deepened back into a frown. “Adrien Agreste is a boy with a big heart. He loves life. Even though they are just butterflies, I know he doesn’t want to cataclysm them.”

Wayzz sighed. “You’re right. His hand was forced during that fight; it was a desperate situation. But it’s not worth it for him to continue doing so. It would change him if he did. After all, if it’s all right to take life from butterflies, then what next? Where would the destruction end?”

Fu nodded. “You are correct; destruction needs a firm hand on the reins that won’t ever let up, and Adrien Agreste is one of the few people in all of Paris who understands, and therefore respects the power of destruction and the effects it can have.”

“If only the akuma he’d defeated was one of the bigger ones…”

“You just said that it was a desperate situation.”

“Yes! It was! But, in comparison to some other akumas…”

Fu sighed yet again. “That is true; smaller is only relative in this situation.”

There was silence for a beat. Then, as if trying to lighten the mood, Wayzz added, “At least he’s keeping Parisians safe as they evacuate.”

“Yes,” Fu murmured. “Without him, I’m sure all of Paris would be in dire trouble indeed. The akumas are becoming more and more violent.”

“Which is why you need to rest,” Wayzz added. “Save you strength.”

As if on cue, there was a rumble in the distance, shaking the floor. A crash rang out from the kitchen - likely a teacup dropping due to the quakes.

Both Fu and Wayzz winced. “Quake,” they both chorused.

“Obviously, he isn’t keeping his effects to just the Louvre,” Wayzz noted.

“Think of what it must be doing to it,” Fu shook his head sadly. “The building is made of glass.”

“Cat Noir is on the scene. He is - oh, I’ve lost sight of him. Crap. Oh holy crap. Heavens above, where did he go? Alec, get your eyes on him! If Cat Noir is dead, all of Paris is lost- oh, wait. There he is. Cat Noir is battling it out with Quake at the Louvre, and- and he’s gone again.” Nadja’s voice was strained, cracking, and when her face appeared on screen again, there were deep bags under her eyes. “Apparently, he’s playing a game of cat and mouse with this akuma. I’m not sure - oh! The civilians are escaping. He’s using himself as a distraction.”

“That is very dangerous,” Wayzz observed.

“True,” Fu agreed, then couldn’t help but crack a smile. “Imagine how his father would react to knowing it was his son keeping Paris safe.”

“Probably would use it for media purposes,” Wayzz shrugged his tiny shoulders. “His next fashion line would be inspired by Cat Noir and modeled by him.”

“Is Gabriel Agreste even a fan of the heroes?” Fu pointed out. “I don’t think we’ve ever heard him speak on them.”

Both paused, considering this. Then, together they shrugged. “Na-a-ah. Everyone loves heroes.”

“According to the Ladyblogger, Steam is also on the move. Please stay out of the South side of Paris, citizens.”

Fu glanced toward the tablet with the grimoire on it, still at his desk. He had no phone, but could access internet through the tablet - and the Ladyblog had saved him from wandering into akuma territory during his search for Marinette more than once.

The Ladyblogger was keeping a 24/7 update going on her blog, doing her best to report where akumas were at any given moment. People who spotted any sent in footage to her. A certain DJ was apparently helping her with it. The blog was the only reason civilians were able to avoid akumas even somewhat.

“Wait. It appears that the Couffaines have returned to Paris! Parisians in the immediate area, please go to the Seine now!”

Fu looked back at the TV screen. A certain family who lived on a boat had been offering their services to the city these past weeks, ferrying civilians away from Paris. They’d even been involved in helping people being chased by akuams several times. Their boat had taken some hits thanks to this, but it was holding up surprisingly well.

“Cat Noir is no longer in sight at the Louvre, but Quake is staying there searching for him. Either Cat Noir is hiding - and doing a good job at it - or he has left. Parisians are now streaming out of the area.” There was a beat of silence. “This just in: the next group of evacuees are being chosen. Please, civilians, keep your phones on you at all times. You may be called for next.”

“Chloe has been busy as well,” Wayzz noted.

“She makes a much better everyday hero than a super one,” Fu agreed.

Those who had stepped up to help were intensely varied, yet the most surprising of the bunch was Chloe Bourgeois. She, the source of many akumas herself, was one of the few people who was staying level-headed in the situation. With everything going down around her, Chloe had dropped her own drama and risen up. She was now helping her father make decisions in the best interests of all of Paris - and she was actually surprisingly good at knowing which countries to contact at which times for assistance.

“Just yesterday, the government decided to finally reach out to the kingdom of Achu,” Wayzz nodded. “You were busy searching at the time.”

“That has Chloe’s influence written all over it,” Master Fu noted.

“Evacuees are now being welcomed there,” Wayzz explained. “I suppose London is too close for comfort for some of them.”

“Yes, well, Hawkmoth surely won’t just stop with Paris,” Fu said grimly. “Where to but the next city of consequence?”

It was a closed loop of terror. No one was safe any longer in the world, and it was in desperate need of more heroes.

Which was why Fu had been working so tirelessly - or, at least working while suppressing his exhaustion as best he could. Fu was an old man, secretly the guardian of the miraculouses, and if he perished, all might truly be lost. And yet, he had risked that, walking the streets of the city and searching desperately for the one girl who might be able to save them all.

But to no avail.

“Citizens, I repeat, please keep your phones on you at all times. The Paris police force is sending out alerts to sections of the city with instructions when you are to be evacuated - but only at the moment you are to be. There seems to be a new akuma who can hear phone signals, so the city is attempting to time things as closely as possible to the actual action.”

Fu finally reached for his tea again. Despite Wayzz’s attempts to boost his spirits, now that they had both quieted down, he only felt more nervous. What would happen if any of the everyday heroes were told to evacuate? The Ladyblogger, Chloe, himself - or, worst of all, Adrien? What if Cat Noir was told in his civilian form to leave? What would he do? Would he reveal his identity just so he could stay? Would his father truly make a fashion line based on him?

Slam!

“Master Fu!”

Fu whipped his head around, almost dropping his tea cup.

There, standing in his doorway, was Cat Noir himself.

The cat hero was panting, a bag slung over his shoulder as if he were about to go to school. He was dusted with fine particles of glass, which didn’t bode too well for the Louvre.

And then, as if determined to make this already surprising situation even more so, Cat Noir met his eyes and blurted out, “I know who Ladybug is.”

Fu stared. “Pardon me?”

“I know who Ladybug is,” Cat Noir stressed, shutting the door behind him and hurrying over, kneeling down in front of the old man. “I know her civilian identity.”

“Then please, do enlighten me,” Master Fu said drily, setting down his tea cup and attempting to appear composed. If Cat Noir was wrong, then-

“Her name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She’s the daughter of Tom and Sabine, who run a bakery. They make the best croissants there, and she’s the best person to exist on planet earth - or anywhere, actually. She wants a hamster, loves to design, and-”

“I believe you,” Fu interrupted. The information was too exact to easily dismiss, and after a moment, he sighed. “That is to say… you are correct.” He paused. “How did you find out?”

As if he’d expected this question, Cat Noir pulled his bag forward and, reaching inside, produced a beret. “She gave me this gift. It was signed as being from Marinette, but I walked into my room and saw Ladybug leaving. It was easy to put two and two together after that.” He let out a pent-up breath. “I mean, I’d suspected she might be Ladybug before, like when we fought Kwami-Buster. But Plagg always told me that I was wrong.”

Fu nodded. Cat Noir was no fool; he was much more straightforward than Marinette, making him the perfect candidate to stumble upon their true identities by accident. “I see. However, I must know how you discovered my location.” Fu indicated the room. “It’s supposed to be secret, and we’ve never met here before; how did you know you’d find me here?”

“You run a business,” Cat Noir said bluntly. “It was easy to look you up on the internet, and I knew what I was looking for, seeing as I met you after we defeated Syren.”

“I knew that I shouldn’t have set up that website,” Master Fu grumbled, shooting an accusing look at Wayzz.

“Don’t look at me!” the kwami protested.

“It was your idea to set it up!”

“Master Fu,” Cat Noir cut in. “Please, I don’t have much time. I need to get back out there to help protect the next wave of evacuees from akumas.”

“You’re involved in that?” Fu asked, taken off guard.

“Chloe is helping me plan it. We’ve worked together before, seeing as she was Queen Bee. She knows a lot about government that I don’t.” Cat Noir began twisting his ring about his finger - obviously a nervous habit of his. “She acts like she doesn’t care about anything, but she really is a tough nut to crack. Nothing gets past her. If it weren’t for her, I’m not sure what would’ve happened to Paris by this point.”

“So… if you’re so busy helping Paris, why visit me?” Fu asked, studying the cat hero. “Clearly this is an important matter.”

“I need help,” Cat Noir said miserably. “I’ve tried to find Marinette in her civilian form. The last time I saw her was when she was going out my window. But her parents don’t know where she is, and none of our class knows where she’s gone - not even her best friend, Alya, and she’s the Ladyblogger to boot. I’ve looked everywhere for Marinette! But I can’t cover ground very fast on my own. I need your help to find her. Something must be wrong.”

“The Ladyblogger is Alya?” Fu asked, his attention caught by that detail.

“Yeah, but we need to find Marinette,” Cat Noir said, dismissing the fact.

“Very true,” Fu murmured - but his mind was racing.

He himself, of course, was never told the true identities of the heroes that Ladybug had chosen to give a miraculous - but as soon as he’d heard Cat Noir describe this Alya, he had the sudden feeling that she must have been Rena Rogue.

But he had to be careful with this new information; he might be wrong, for one. For another, if Cat Noir had guessed out Ladybug’s identity even before he was given definite proof, he might be able to figure this one out as well. Fu had to act as if nothing had just happened.

“Can you help me?” Cat Noir asked, misery evident in his voice. “Please?”

Shaking himself, Fu focused on the problem at hand. “I’ve been searching for Ladybug myself. I haven’t found her.”

Cat Noir drooped. “Then there’s nothing we can do?”

“I will continue searching,” Master Fu assured him. “I believe the only thing we can do is continue evacuating citizens and trying to protect them. There are others helping us, such as that family on their ship.”

“The Couffaines?” Cat Noir asked. “Yeah, I know them. Juleka’s in my class. Luka and Marinette are pretty close. Or… were pretty close?” He growled in frustration, digging the heels of his palms in his eyes. “I don’t know anymore.”

“They were close?” Fu repeated. Perhaps this Luka was Viperion or Carapace? Ladybug would only have given a miraculous to those she trusted most.

“Yeah, he’s a musician.”

Perhaps Viperion, then; he’d played the lute very well.

“I should go,” Cat Noir said abruptly, standing. “I need to get to the next evacuation point.”

“One more thing,” Fu said, just as Cat Noir reached the door. “Do you know who it is who is helping the Ladyblogger with her uploads? The DJ.”

“Nino Lahiffe,” Cat Noir replied. “He’s Alya’s boyfriend. They’re taking turns going through footage being sent to Alya while the other rests.”

“Was Marinette close with him as well?”

“They’ve been in class together for years,” Cat Noir recalled, hand hovering over the doorknob. “I think they might have been.”

“He is trustworthy?” Fu checked.

“He’s one of the most trustworthy people you’ll find,” Cat Noir vouched. “He’d do anything to keep others safe; that’s why he’s helping Alya.”

That fit the description of a good turtle hero, then.

“But also maybe because he likes her.”

All these people that loved Marinette, yet no Marinette to be found.

“Master Fu?”

Fu looked up. Cat Noir was still waiting at the door.

“Thank you for coming,” Master Fu inclined his head to him. “I’m not sure if I should say that I’m relieved or not that you knew who our dear Ladybug was.”

Was.

The word hung in the air between them for a few moments, horrible and empty of life.

“She was sitting behind me in class for months,” Cat Noir mumbled, his voice tortured.

Fu tried to think of some reassurance, but all he could come up with was, “We’ll find her.”

Yet the was was still ringing in his ears, and Fu found he couldn’t bring himself to entirely believe it anymore.

Cat Noir studied him for several moments, and as Fu locked eyes with him, he had the feeling that the young hero could see that lack of hope in his eyes.

At last, the black cat simply nodded at him and slipped out the door.

For several minutes, Fu stared at the closed door, sipping his tea. It had grown cold, but the gears in his mind turning too fast for him to pay much heed to that.

“Master?” Wayzz finally asked. “What are you thinking?”

“I’m not quite sure myself,” Master Fu admitted. He glanced over at the green kwami. “I’m starting to doubt that we’ll ever find Ladybug.”

“Don’t give up hope!” Wayzz encouraged.

“I’ll try not to,” Fu sighed, putting his tea down. “I wish that there was at least some guidance that I could be given.”

Whomp!

In the air right in front of Fu, there was a brilliant flash of white light. For a single moment, he thought it was some vehicle passing by outside and reflecting the sun through his window.

Except the light didn’t disappear.

Instead, it became a white circle, hanging suspended midair.

And then, for the second time that day, a hero suddenly burst through a door - except, it was an entirely different kind of door this time.

“Master Fu!” Bunnyx exclaimed.

Master Fu leapt to his feet - no small feat for him at his age - overturning his tea as he did so. “Bunnyx? What are you doing here?”

The bunny hero bowed to him hurriedly. “I need your help.”

“Does this have to do with Ladybug?” Fu said urgently. “She has gone missing.”

“Yes,” Bunnyx said. Her face crumpled. “It… it’s all my fault. I brought her to the future - about three weeks ago from this point in time - to stop a possible future. Cat Noir had found out her civilian identity. They…” She hesitated, as if suddenly remembering how she wasn’t supposed to share the future, even with Master Fu. “How much can I tell you?”

“Everything,” Fu said firmly. “This is an emergency of the highest order. Paris has descended into chaos during the time that Ladybug has been gone. The entire city is being evacuated. Without the cure, there’s no stopping Hawkmoth. There’s even been talk of trying to ask American heroes to come help Paris.” He took a step closer to the blue and white hero. “I think that it’s all or nothing now. We can’t afford to lose.”

“Okay,” Bunnyx said decisively, tapping her umbrella against her hand in a quick rhythm, as if to let out nervous energy. “Okay.” She hesitated for one more second, then blurted out, “They dated as civilians.”

“At last!” Wayzz cried, flipping in the air. “My ship has sailed!”

Fu and Bunnyx stared at him.

Wayzz coughed. “I mean… yes. Very nice. Carry on, Bunnyx.”

“As I was saying,” Bunnyx said, side-eyeing Wayzz, as if daring him to try and interrupt her again, “they were living their best lives until Hawkmoth discovered their identities. Or at least Cat Noir’s. He targeted Cat Noir and akumatized him into a villain called Chat Blanc.”

“So you brought Ladybug to stop him?” Fu’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Why could the Ladybug in the future not save him on her own?”

“It’s a possible future,” Bunnyx explained. “I had to try and fix it from the root of the problem by using the Mini-bug that had caused it.” She paused, then quietly admitted, “Also, the Ladybug from that time is… dead.”

Fear dumped over Fu in an icy stream. “Is our Ladybug still there? Right now? Is she still… alive?”

“I… I can’t answer that.” Bunnyx rapped her umbrella against her hand more forcefully. She obviously had been under a lot of stress, and it was taking its toll on her. “Look, in the future, Hawkmoth tried to force Chat Blanc to destroy Ladybug - their Ladybug, I mean. But, rather than her, he destroyed the world - and still killed her in the process.” Bunnyx began to pace, tapping her closed umbrella aggressively against her leg as she did so. “He shot the moon, Fu. He’s more powerful than any akuma that’s outside right now; I don’t have to see them to tell you that.”

“He destroyed the world?” Fu stared at her. “Surely you are exaggerating.”

“Nothing was left,” Bunnyx shook her head. “Just water, ruins, and corpses.”

Fu winced. “So you brought our Ladybug to save him.”

“The plan was for Mini-bug to purify the akuma and come back to the present,” Bunnyx explained. “She’d change how she accidentally revealed her identity to Cat Noir, and that future would never happen.”

“The plan was?” Fu said, noting the way the word had just come back again. “What happened?”

Bunnyx squeezed her eyes shut, as if in pain. After several tense seconds of silence, she whispered, “He won.”

“Who?” Fu demanded. “Hawkmoth?”

“Chat Blanc. He took her earrings. And… that’s all I could see. I don’t know what happened.”

“What do you mean?” Fu asked.

“Come with me into my burrow,” Bunnyx said urgently. “I’ll show you.”

Fu exchanged an uncertain glance with Wayzz.

As if worried that he were considering not coming, Bunnyx took another step closer to him. “Please. The future of the world depends on this. You’re the only one I can trust to know what to do. With Ladybug having been ripped from time and beaten in the future, there’s no older version of her for me to turn to.”

“All right,” Fu said decisively. “Wayzz, shell on!”

There was a flash of green light, and a moment later, Jade Turtle followed Bunnyx into her burrow.

The first thing Jade Turtle noticed was how white it was. Circles speckled the air, playing footage of some kind.

The second thing Jade Turtle noticed was the small clump of circles that only showed white.

“What is this?” he breathed, approaching the cluster. He had never been in the burrow before, but he already could tell that this was an anomaly.

“That’s where the future is supposed to be,” Bunnyx explained, trailing after him. “It’s where I saw what happened to Cat Noir and Marinette: him figuring out her identity, the dating, and then the akumatization. But, after he got the earrings… it turned white.” She gestured to one in the center of the cluster. “That was the original. But, not long after it turned white, the ones around it started to as well.”

“What can that possibly mean?” Jade Turtle frowned.

“I don’t know!” Bunnyx growled in frustration. “I brought you here to see if you’d know.”

“I can’t tell from the outside,” Jade Turtle said decisively. “I need to go in.”

“What?” Bunnyx stared at him. “Are you crazy?”

“That’s the only way to find out,” Jade Turtle insisted. “It’ll just be a reconnaissance mission. I’ll try to locate Ladybug without getting involved with… you said his name was Chat Blanc?”

“Yes,” Bunnyx nodded, worry apparent on her face. “I’m going to be straight with you, Fu: that’s a horrible plan. If it were good, then I would have gone in already myself.”

“You are the only one with access to the future,” Jade Turtle shook his head. “I, on the other hand, know how to blend in and stay hidden in plain sight. I’m the guardian of the miraculous; I’ve kept myself hidden from anyone who might want to use them for years.”

“For the wish?”

“Exactly,” Jade Turtle nodded. “I’m the best option for this. Actually,” he gave a joyless smile, “I’m likely your only option.”

“How will you get back?” Bunnyx asked.

“With Ladybug’s help,” Jade Turtle said simply.

Bunnyx stared at him before giving a bark of laughter. “You mean you’re going in there blind, will maybe find Mini-bug - wherever she might be in whatever that is, if she’s still even alive - and then trust that she will find a way out?”

“Yes,” Jade Turtle said simply.

Bunnyx shook her head. “Maybe an older version of herself could, but Mini-bug…? She’s still crazy about Adrien Agreste right now!”

“Is there ever a time she isn’t?” Jade Turtle pointed out.

“Well, there was this possible future this one time where she fell in love with Cat Noir instead, but then you managed to contact me and insisted that we change it since you like Adrinette better-”

“Bunnyx,” Jade Turtle interrupted, “I know she can do it.”

Bunnyx went quiet, studying him. Finally, she quietly said, “You really have that much faith in Mini-bug?”

“I chose her, didn’t I?”

“Then why hasn’t she come back herself?” Bunnyx challenged.

“There is no way of knowing for sure,” Jade Turtle glanced at the burrow hole. “But the holder of the ladybug miraculous is naturally drawn towards healing and curing situations. She should be able to sense the right way - or at least discover the path. Besides,” he added, “if we stick to the original plan and purify the akuma, then you might be able to get me out yourself.”

“Fair enough,” Bunnyx reluctantly admitted. “But… be careful, Fu; the white is spreading to the past for some reason. I… I don’t know what it is. But I can’t seem to stop it.”

“It’s affecting only the future for now?” Jade Turtle checked. “Not the time period I was just in?”

“Yes.”

“Then it’s within a safe limit.”

“For now,” Bunnyx muttered.

“We’ll find her,” Jade Turtle promised.

He’d said the exact same words not ten minutes ago to Chat Noir, but now… he actually believed them.

However, before stepping forward, he paused. “Bunnyx? Do you know the identities of the heroes that Ladybug chose?”

“Their civilian identities? Yes; why?”

“Just wondering,” Jade Turtle shrugged, then, hope rising, stepped into the center white circle.

He was instantly swallowed up by the white. It was blindingly bright, just like when Bunnyx’s burrow first burst forth into existence in his house. Jade Turtle squinted against it.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, a feeling like static electricity suddenly washed over his whole body.

Traveling through a burrow could be disconcerting, though Jade Turtle obviously didn’t have much to compare this to; just the single trip into the burrow he’d gone through just now with Bunnyx.

Yet, despite that, he knew instinctively that it didn’t feel like this. It was like an entire force of energy gathering its strength, a tidal wave about to crash over him - and right now he was only feeling the winds.

Whatever this energy was, it didn’t want him here.

He had to get to the other side before it could stop him.

Jade Turtle pushed back against the energy, gritting his teeth.

The energy seemed to push back against him, trying to stop him.

But he was old, not weak.

For several moments, he struggled, an invisible battle of wills with this pure whiteness. It seemed to whisper about him, static filling his ears, and bright spots of colour bursting and popping before his eyes. His head went dizzy, filled with the static feeling.

For a moment, nothing happened. He hung, suspended.

Trapped.

The wave was about to crash.

Jade Turtle gave one last, desperate push against the energy, and-

Without any warning, he burst out of the burrow, falling to his knees and almost braining himself on a plant pot.

For several moments, all Jade Turtle could do was pant on his hands and knees. Whatever the white was, it had notwanted him to get through.

But… get through to where?

He looked up, and was greeted by…

His house.

“What?” he murmured, straightening. He’d only just left here. How could he possibly be back?

Jade Turtle went to take a step forward, but his foot bumped against something. He glanced down, then paused.

There was an aquarium on the floor.

Filled with turtles.

And, now that he was looking down, he could see that he was no longer in his superhero form of Jade Turtle. Instead, he was in his normal clothes - except for his shirt, which had a turtle pattern playing across it.

“What is this?” Fu murmured, fear beginning to grow within him. He hurried over to the window, peering outside. His body ached with the movement, as if he’d just undergone a strenuous physical activity, but he ignored the pain, trying to get a good look at the outside world.

He was greeted by… Paris.

Except…

It was black and white.

“What?” Fu breathed, confusion flooding through him. “How can this be?”

His house was coloured, and so was he.

So why did the outside world look like this?

Fu’s hands began to shake, and he sat down on the floor. He needed to think.

Bunnyx had described a world destroyed by Chat Blanc, filled with water and ruins. But there was no water in sight, and all the buildings appeared intact.

Fu rubbed his forehead. He had next to nothing to go off to make a guess of any sort; the only thing he could think of that could explain what made the world turn… well, retro, was that it was somehow an effect of Chat Blanc destroying the world.

Yet, at the same time, that made no sense. If Chat Blanc had destroyed the world, wouldn’t nothing be here?

I must investigate further, Fu decided. He went to walk to the door, but was jerked to a halt, as if he was tied to something. Twisting about, Fu’s gaze instantly fell on the aquarium.

It only took a second before the realization hit him.

Turtles.

His shirt.

His miraculous.

For some reason, he couldn’t leave the aquarium behind. Bringing the turtle miraculous with him seemed to have created these turtle-related items, and he couldn’t go anywhere without them.

Or maybe he wasn’t allowed to go anywhere without them.

If he had to bring the aquarium with him, then, he wouldn’t be able to cover ground very quickly. He was old and slow as it was, much less while carrying around an aquarium of all things.

Fu hurriedly shuffled about the room. Everything was where he always kept it. He quickly located what he was looking for, and within minutes, he’d constructed some new additions to the aquarium: wheels, and a handle for him to push it about with.

“Time to find Ladybug,” he murmured, straightening and nodding at his handiwork.

This time, while pushing the aquarium, Fu made it to the door and outside.

As soon as he closed it behind him, he noticed the difference:

He was no longer in colour.

Feeling a slightly frazzled, Fu began to push the aquarium down the street, starting his search for Ladybug.

-

Bunnyx paced her burrow, eyes locked on the cluster of white circles.

This place, created by her miraculous, was supposed to be beyond the touch of time. Usually, when she sent a hero into the future or the past, she could view what happened to them.

But this time…

She was blind.

Bunnyx swung her umbrella, popping it open and closed, trying to keep her hands busy. She glanced at the circles again, as if in some half-hearted hope that Fu would already be stepping out with Mini-bug at his side.

Bunnyx liked to think of herself as the protector of time. The burrow was the one place where the bunny miraculous couldn’t be in the same place at the same time. Holders of it over the centuries never entered it at the same time. Maybe because of that, it was actually the only place where time really did have any true meaning. She could be in any place more than once, and could end up with multiple copies of herself running around in any time period - except for the burrow.

Bunnyx raked a hand through her hair, sending her already spiky hair shooting out in all directions. Without her ability to see what was going on, she wasn’t sure what to do.

She glanced at the cluster again - and was just in time to see another circle fizzle, as if being overtaken by static, then blip out into pure white.

Another one gone.

Bunnyx approached one of the few circles close to the white group that still showed images. She set her hand upon it, playing it back.

It didn’t help her. All it revealed was Cat Noir and Ladybug in the middle of fighting an akuma. It was after they’d revealed identities to one another, and the knowledge seemed to have further empowered them, letting them work in a tandem that they’d never before enjoyed until they had this absolute trust in one another.

Out of the corner of her eye, Bunnyx noticed movement. That wasn’t unusual in the burrow, seeing as all around her were circles portraying movement of some kind. But this one was out of the ordinary enough that she turned to look.

Across the burrow, a circle was fizzing, going static-ey - and then turned white.

But it was nowhere near the cluster.

“What? No!” Bunnyx shot to it, slamming her palm against the circle, as if trying to turn it back so she could watch what happened, the way she could with any of the normal circles.

But nothing happened.

That one had nothing to do with the future! Bunnyx thought, backing up, fear roaring in her ears. Why did it go out?

The white was obviously spreading - but the fact that the future affected something so out of the way, something that was so far into the past… it was not just disturbing, but downright terrifying.

Bunnyx stood before the circle, her hand hovering just over it it. What if she tried to step in, the way Master Fu had? What if she touched this circle, not just with the intention of playing it back, but of entering? What if she tried to find out what was beyond this white?

But what if it destroyed her entirely? What if it had already done so to Master Fu, to Mini-bug, and all hope was lost?

Bunnyx let her hand drop. She didn’t dare go in; like Master Fu had said, she was the only one who could access the future. If the white cut her off from the time period she’d picked Fu up from…

Bunnyx actually wasn’t sure what would happen if that occurred, but she knew in her gut that it wouldn’t be good.

“I think that it’s all or nothing now. We can’t afford to lose.”

Fu was the wisest person that Bunnyx knew - and she’d traveled through time and spoken to some of the brightest minds in history. If Master Fu had believed that this situation was truly that dire… then this was a very desperate situation indeed.

“All or nothing,” Bunnyx whispered, trying to rein her fear in.

Her gaze fell on the circle that led back to the past, back to the time period she’d first retrieved Mini-bug from and then Master Fu.

It was still holding steady - for now. But the hand of time was slow slipping its fingers about her burrow, and now, it was starting to squeeze, to choke and kill it. She was inside a time bomb, but she couldn’t see the clock ticking down to the explosion.

She didn’t have a choice.

She couldn’t afford to wait.

With sudden determination, Bunnyx rallied herself and marched over to the hole - and

stepped

through.

It was utter chaos. People were running from something, screaming. The sun went dark, as if something huge was blocking it out, and a dull roar filled her ears.

Bunnyx turned, alarmed - but it was no akuma blocking the sun.

A building was falling, creaking and groaning as it descended straight toward her.

Bunnyx didn’t even have time to gasp before someone jumped in front of her, baton twirling, the speed of it cutting straight through the stone as the building crashed down. The hole created was barely big enough for the two of them to stand in.

Dust exploded all around them, and Bunnyx burst into a fit of coughing, trying to wave it out of her face. “Th-thanks for the save.”

“Bunnyx?”

For the first time, Bunnyx looked down at the person who had saved her.

He was a little taller than the last time she’d visited him in the past, but his green eyes were still as keen as ever.

“Cat Noir,” Bunnyx greeted, then gave a few more final coughs, as if for good measure.

“What are you doing here?” Cat Noir asked, waving dust away. “If you’re going to help me evacuate Parisians, I certainly would appreciate it-”

“No,” Bunnyx interrupted. “You need to come with me.” She grabbed him by the bell, opening up an entrance back to her burrow and dragging him through even as he yelped.

“Bunnyx, what are you doing? Paris needs its heroes-”

“-here,” Bunnyx interrupted. “It needs all its heroes here. Look, I asked Master Fu for help, but he’s gone, and I’ll be cut off soon enough from the past - the place you’re from - so I have to bring you and all your fellow heroes here.”

With that, she turned and re-entered the circle again, willing herself to exit in a different location.

Bunnyx had watched Fu open up the miraculous box many times in alternate futures.

It was a simple enough matter when she walked into his room once again to stride over and pop it open.

Bunnyx glanced over the miraculouses. The turtle one was gone, taken by Master Fu. She didn’t dare waste time trying to locate it in another time; she’d have to find a situation where Mini-bug didn’t need the miraculous, and she couldn’t afford to leisurely flip through past akuma attacks as if she were reading a magazine in a waiting room. The past and future were disappearing for some reason. She had to act, now.

Bunnyx snatched up all the miraculouses she needed, then opened up a way back into her burrow.

“First off, rude,” Cat Noir complained as soon as she re-entered - though she knew that it wouldn’t seem to him like any time had passed. “Second off, what are you even talking about?”

“I’m talking about those,” Bunnyx tossed over her shoulder, inclining her head toward the cluster of white circles. Then, she hopped back out of her burrow.

It took her several precious minutes of going in and out of her burrow to reach each hero, give them their miraculous, and drag them back through. She had to make them transform before going back in, which took time. The kwamis were very talkative. But Master Fu didn’t want any of them knowing each other’s identities, so Bunnyx had to abide by his rules.

“This is ridiculous,” Queen Bee was complaining when Bunnyx finished off by bringing Ryuko through. “We’re leaving Paris completely unguarded! And I don’t even know where we are!”

“We’re going to lose Paris if we don’t save the future,” Bunnyx replied shortly. She got straight to the point. “The future is disappearing - and it’s starting to affect the past. I don’t know why.” She pointed at the cluster of white circles. “Master Fu went in there to try and find Mini-bug.”

“Excuse you, but where are we?!” Queen Bee demanded, stamping her high-heeled foot. “I’m busy right now, so I don’t care about Master Wu or whatever his name was.”

Bunnyx didn’t even try to resist the urge to glare at Queen Bee; Chloe was just as annoying as she remembered. “This is my burrow. I have the miraculous of time. These circles allow me to access time - and some of them are going out.”

“Did you say that Ladybug is in there?” Cat Noir asked, his attention still obviously caught on that point. His entire body seemed to practically be vibrating, as if he’d just downed an entire energy drink.

“Hold your horses,” Bunnyx warned. “We can’t just go jumping in there.”

“Why not?” all the heroes demanded at once.

“Your Master Yu did,” Queen Bee added.

“And look where that got him!” Bunnyx yelled. “He’s not here! I need backup, not to babysit! Quiet down so I can explain!”

“Paris is being left completely unguarded right now!” Queen Bee yelled back. “We need to go back! Without us, everyone is doomed!”

Bunnyx forced herself to draw in a long breath - it was through her teeth, making a hissing noise, but she attempted it anyway. “Look. You don’t need to worry about Paris. I have the ability to let you out at the exact moment you left.” She tried to not think too hard about the fact that the past might just get cut off by the white. “Paris isn’t losing any time by you being in my burrow. Here, though, we are on a time limit.”

“That makes no sense,” Viperion frowned.

“Shouldn’t this be the one place outside of the reach of time?” Ryuko agreed. “If you access time here, that would logically make this the only place time stands still.”

“It should be,” Bunnyx replied shortly. She surveyed the heroes in front of her.

During the time leading up to her becoming the holder of the bunny miraculous, she’d seen many other heroes given a miraculous. She would have loved to grab all of them.  But now that the timeline had been changed, Mini-bug had technically never had a chance to give those people their miraculouses.

Instead, all she had were Cat Noir, Rena Rogue, Carapace, Viperion, Pegasus, King Monkey, and Ryuko.

Not exactly the most inspiring group ever. But at least they had her. She at least was somewhat inspiring.

“So…” Rena Rogue broke the silence. “At the risk of sounding totally dumb… who is Master Fu again?”

“Wu,” Queen Bee corrected.

“Fu,” Bunnyx, Cat Noir, and Rena Rogue all said at once.

“Master Fu,” Bunnyx said, casting a glance at Queen Bee before looking back at Rena, “is the guardian of the miraculous.”

“Wait, I thought Ladybug kept the miraculouses,” Rena Rogue frowned.

“No, she didn’t,” Bunnyx replied. She glanced over at the cluster of circles; they were holding steady, for now, but she hated wasting time that could end in them being cut off from more parts of time. “Under normal circumstances, I would not tell any of you anything about the future. But…” She walked over to the cluster. “This is where the future used to be. Master Fu went in it, but I have no idea if there even is another side that he could exit out of. I usually can see the future, but now…”

“Just white?” Pegasus observed, adjusting a bag he had over his shoulder. There had been no time for him to drop it off when Bunnyx grabbed him, and now Bunnyx had to hope that no one would recognize the bag as belonging to Max Kanté.

Bunnyx nodded, turning back toward the group of heroes staring at her. “It’s spreading. I don’t know what it is, but eventually, it’ll hit your current time period as well.”

“So… the world is ending?” Nino asked.

Bunnyx gave a short nod. “Essentially.”

“Wow,” Viperion blinked.

Rena Rogue gave a small fist pump. “Add that to the list of things we get to defeat!”

“Why is he here?” Queen Bee complained, pointing at Nino.

“Now’s not the time to celebrate, Rena,” Bunnyx said, simultaneously shooting her a withering look and ignoring Queen Bee’s question. She’d been hoping none of the other heroes would notice that Nino was there, which would obviously make him a holder - and, based on the fact that only Carapace was missing, it would be easy to conclude that he was Carapace.

The only reason she’d brought him in - even though he was in his civilian form - was because he was a holder. But as long as Master Fu was in the future, Bunnyx wasn’t going to try diving around in the past to find the turtle miraculous when her burrow could potentially lock her out.

“I brought Mini-bug here,” Bunnyx explained, jerking a thumb at the white circles. “I needed her help to try and save the future, but she wasn’t able to.”

“Wait. You mean she went into the white?” Cat Noir bristled, the hair on his head practically standing on end. “By herself? Why didn’t you grab me?! I’m her partner!”

“Because she was saving the future from you.” Bunnyx folded her arms across her chest. “And it wasn’t even white, yet.”

“Is that supposed to make this better?” Cat Noir glared.

“It was a more stable situation at the time,” Bunnyx snapped. Her nerves were frayed. She’d been trying to save the world from a teenager who had enough power to destroy everyone and mess with her own miraculous’s powers, and she was either alone, worrying about someone else who had stepped up to help, or else babysitting. She was too far gone to let some little version of Cat Noir snap at her without retaliation. “You found out her identity, Cat Noir. That action was the source of a chain reaction that resulted in Hawkmoth discovering your identity because you transformed out in the open to save Mini-bug as a civilian, Hawkmoth akumatizing you…” She glared fiercely at him. “…and you destroying the world.”

All the heroes stared at her, and Bunnyx realized a little too late that she may have come across too strongly on the point that it was somehow all Cat Noir’s fault.

Ugh. She’d leapt before she looked. She did that quite a bit.

“Come again?” Viperion finally said.

“I destroy the world?” Cat Noir whispered, twisting his ring.

“Did they date?” Rena Rogue and Nino chorused.

“That is completely irrelevant,” Bunnyx attempted to wave it off.

“So, yes, then?” Rena Rogue noted hopefully.

“Wait, what?” Cat Noir froze. “I-I mean… she would never… we… there’s someone else… I mean, I d-destroy the world?” He froze, panic, confusion, and a strange balking mixing in his expression. “What?”

“Priorities, Cat Noir,” Bunnyx chided - forcing herself to make her voice a little more gentle this time. She needed to keep this conversation on track, and these teenagers were making that very difficult. “Yes, you destroyed the world. That’s what I was trying to fix when I brought Mini-bug here. It was her fault that you found out her identity.” She shot Cat Noir an apologetic look. “It wasn’t all your fault. But because she was the source of that action, I needed her to fix it. If you stepped in, you might end up remembering it, anyway, and I had to change that.”

“Why is it so important that they do not know one another’s identities?”

Everyone looked up.

Ryuko was standing at one of the still-clear circles, watching the footage play out.

“Hey, that’s the future!” Bunnyx yelped. “You’re not allowed to see that!”

“We’re trying to change this,” Ryuko replied, not even glancing away. “It won’t be here when we’re done.”

“Well… I guess,” Bunnyx grumbled grumpily.

“There is an incredible level of teamwork displayed between Cat Noir and Ladybug here,” Ryuko observed. “Knowing her identity seems to only have made them stronger. If only one having been revealed does that…”

“Well, I mean, he transformed out in the open to save her,” Bunny reminded Ryuko. “She knew his after that.”

“They have skill,” Ryuko insisted. “Knowing their identities only made them stronger - maybe strong enough to defeat HawkMoth. I don’t see how this is a negative thing.”

“It’s Master Fu’s rules,” Cat Noir said quietly. “If anyone knew our identities, that could put them at risk.”

“Aren’t you both already at risk by being heroes?” Viperion pointed out. “Heck, aren’t all of us?”

“Now is not the time for an existential crisis,” Bunnyx shook her head.

“I’m not sure that means what you think it means,” Queen Bee began, but Bunnyx shot her a look.

“Not now, Queenie.”

“Only Cat Noir gets to call me that.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s the only one who doesn’t say it like it’s an insult.”

Bunnyx paused, then let out a huff. “Fair enough. But Cat Noir and Ladybug aren’t allowed to know each other’s identities because, simply put, once they did, the world was destroyed. Which was HawkMoth’s fault, by the way. Not Cat Noir’s.”

“He really destroyed the whole world?” King Monkey shot a look of admiration at Cat Noir, which Bunnyx felt may have been the wrong response to the situation.

“Yeah, he did, and Mini-bug was supposed to purify his akuma,” Bunnyx said. Trying to keep the conversation on track, take two. “You were called Chat Blanc, Cat Noir. But you were incredibly strong - stronger than any of the akumas currently in your time of Paris. She lost to you.”

“Why couldn’t Ladybug have brought one of us with her?” Queen Bee asked, studying her nails. “I mean, obviously we aren’t Cat Noir, so obviously we could have been involved.”

“Yeah, if he wasn’t literally yelling her civilian name during their fight,” Bunnyx rolled her eyes. “Stay focused! Mini-bug tried to fight him, lost, and then…” She rapped the center white circle with her knuckles. It gave where she touched it, but sprung back easily, as if it were a truly physical mass. “The future disappeared.”

“You can’t access it at all?” Pegasus checked.

“I haven’t gone through,” Bunnyx shook her head, “but Master Fu managed to step through earlier. You can at least enter it, if not exit.”

“What do you mean, if not exit?” Cat Noir stared. “Did you send the guardian in to that when we might never get him back?”

“I don’t know!” Bunnyx rubbed her eyes roughly with the heel of her palm. “It was his idea! I don’t know if there’s anything left.  Maybe something. Maybe nothing. Maybe Mini-bug. But I can’t see anything, which is the whole problem!”

“So… we need to find a way through?” Nino surmised.

Bunnyx strode to the other side of her burrow to the white circle that had cropped up earlier. “The fact that the future is no longer accessible is starting to affect the past. It’s disappearing as well, for some reason. Once these go white, I can’t access them. I can’t see through them, and I don’t know if anything is even past them. So, yes, we need to find a way through.” She met the eyes of the heroes. “To save all time.”

“To… save the world?” Rena Rogue casually checked, sounding a little too hopeful on that point.

Bunnyx sighed. “Yes, Rena, to save the world.”

Rena Rogue gave a small celebratory fist pump.

Pegasus raised a hand. “I have an idea.”

“All ideas are welcome,” Bunnyx nodded.

“I have one,” Queen Bee said.

“Except your’s,” Bunnyx amended. “You were saying, Pegasus?”

“I have a robot with me,” Pegasus explained. “I built him myself. If I sent him in, we might be able to see what’s in there through him.”

“That… might work,” Bunnyx said slowly, hope fluttering in her chest. She wouldn’t trust just anyone with a mission of this importance - especially a robot built by a teenager - but Pegasus was Max; that meant he was probably referring to Markov. For a robot, Markov was pretty sentient, proven by the fact that he’d once been akumatized.

Not to mention, Max himself was pretty smart. Not as smart as Bunnyx, of course, but smart.

Bunnyx gave a determined nod. “Pegasus, send him in.”

Pegasus joined her at the circles. “It is the center one, correct? I assume that the white is spreading out in a ripple effect from it, but I want to make sure I’m not sending my friend into the wrong one.”

“Friend?” Queen Bee snorted. “It’s a robot. You sound exactly like one of the idiots I know.”

“How many idiots do you know?” Viperion glanced at her.

“Too many,” Queen Bee sniffed.

“Yes, it’s the center one,” Bunnyx confirmed.

“Why are you carrying a robot around with you, dude?” Nino asked curiously. “Paris has been going crazy; not exactly the best time to be dragging a robot around.”

“I was heading to the next evacuation,” Pegasus said distractedly as he dug into his bag. “I was bringing him with me.”

Queen Bee frowned - and Bunnyx realized a beat too late that Chloe probably had decided who to send out next herself; she might be able to figure out who Pegasus was.

And then Pegasus pulled Markov out of his bag, and Bunnyx realized a beat that was very much too late that the majority of the heroes here were very familiar with Markov.

Everyone stared at the robot as Pegasus whispered instructions to him. Ryuko and Viperion were the only ones who still seemed somewhat calm - they didn’t know Markov, and therefore couldn’t make the connection to Max. Cat Noir also seemed unaffected, seeing as he’d been there when Ladybug gave Max the horse miraculous.

But, as for everyone else…

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Queen Bee muttered.

Ah, yes, Chloe was just as annoying as Bunnyx remembered.

Unaware of how he’d just exposed his secret identity to almost every hero present, Pegasus turned on his phone and began tapping on it quickly, fingers flying across the screen.

“What are you doing?” Cat Noir asked. His voice was weary. Bunnyx felt a small stab of guilt at pegging the problem on his future self so hard; the poor guy had been singlehandedly attempting to take on all the akumas in Paris by himself.

“When I made Ma- erm, my robot, that is, I also created an app where I can link up to him. If I turn it on and send him through, we should be able to see what is going on inside, hypothetically speaking.” Pegasus punched a few commands into his phone, quietly gave several more instructions to Markov, then stepped back.

The little robot flew straight into the white circle, disappearing.

Pegasus sucked in a sharp breath.

“What is it?” Bunnyx demanded, by his side in an instant, peering at his phone. “Where’s the feed? It’s just white.”

“I’ve… I’ve lost all connection with him,” Pegasus said, his voice faltering.

The heroes fell silent.

Bunnyx began tapping her umbrella against her thigh again. Pegasus - Max - wouldn’t take this loss lightly, but she couldn’t help but be more worried about Master Fu than Markov.

What did it all mean? Was the white just interfering with the connection? Or was there no other side for Markov to even get through?

If the was the case…

That meant Bunnyx really had sent the guardian of the miraculous to his doom.

That meant they’d never get Mini-bug back.

And that meant they’d never be able to fix this.

“That’s not good,” Bunnyx finally rasped, the silence too oppressing.

“What can we do if we can’t retrieve any intel?” Rena Rogue asked, rolling her flute between her hands nervously. “We need to know the facts before we can draw any conclusions.”

“There has to be some way we can check on this dude - uh, Master Fu, I mean,” Nino said.

“For goodness sake, why is he here?” Queen Bee demanded to know yet again.

“It’s not important-” Bunnyx tried to glaze over Nino’s presence once again, but Pegasus was already talking.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Pegasus said distractedly, fingers flying across his phone as he attempted to re-establish a connection with Markov. “He’s the hero Carapace. Master Fu must have taken the turtle miraculous with him, or else Bunnyx would have given it to Nino.”

“Pegasus!” Bunnyx hissed, resisting the sudden and strong urge to smack him upside the head with her umbrella. “Identities are supposed to remain a secret!”

Pegasus paused only long enough to glance up, a look only slightly guilty playing across his face. “Oh. Sorry. I thought that it was so obvious that everyone else knew as well.”

“No need to insult their intelligence,” Bunnyx reprimanded, though she couldn’t bring herself to be too mad about the jab. These mini versions of the heroes were pretty slow on the uptake, sometimes. And she couldn’t really blame Max for it; she herself had already done more than her fair share of jabs. Nerves were frayed, and everyone was on edge.

“Should we send someone in?” King Monkey asked, scratching his head. “I mean, that Food guy-“

“Fu,” Bunnyx corrected.

“Fu,” King Monkey continued, “is in there. But we can’t see him. If one of us could reach him, then we’d be able to help him find Ladybug faster so we can fix this whole mess.”

“We don’t even know if he got through,” Viperion shook his head, folding his arms across his chest. “For all we know he might be…” He paused, glancing somewhat guiltily over at Bunnyx.

Bunnyx’s chest tightened. She knew exactly where Viperion had been going with that.

For a moment, they were all silent.

Then, from behind Bunnyx, someone said, “I’ll go.”

-

Everything about this was ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous.

Chloe had only just begun initiating another group of evacuations when this bunny hero had burst out of a glowing white hole in the middle of the air, shoved the bee miraculous at her, and ordered her to follow.

Chloe had done so. She was Queen Bee, after all, a hero. She’d done her best for the past 3 weeks, despite not having a miraculous, settling for trying to help her utterly helpless father. He wasn’t good at dealing with a crisis.

They’d been in the middle of a particularly tense evacuation - a building had literally just fallen over, and no one had eyes on Cat Noir - but Chloe had followed the bunny hero into the glowing hole anyway. She’d been hoping they would be getting Ladybug from wherever she was, and that she’d be able to fix everything.

But here, no one seemed to have a plan! It was chaos, utter chaos. Even Chloe had been able to develop one in an unprecedented crisis, okay? It wasn’t that hard. Unless you were an idiot. In which case, it might be somewhat challenging.

“Should we send someone in?” the monkey hero was asking.

Queen Bee pursed her lips. She’d already tried to give them a plan to work with, but Bunnyx had rejected her idea before she’d even heard it.

Rude.

But…

These fools need a lot of help, Queen Bee observed, and a queen must step up.

It had become her mantra during the past couple of weeks. Because of it, she’d found that she made a great leader under pressure, and that she was clearly the only one in Paris that had any sense whatsoever. Besides Cat Noir, of course. He was the reason anything had even gone through; he’d backed her up when she’d tried to help at first, and apparently the word of a superhero carried a lot of weight.

But, besides him, no one else in this… whatever it was called… burrow? Tunnel? Yeah, whatever. Close enough. Everyone else in this tunnel was stupid. First off, that Pegasus guy was obviously Max, and he’d been dumb enough to reveal very incriminating evidence about his identity to all of them. She’d recognize that robot anywhere; it was so annoying. And Nino? He’d always been such a pain; she couldn’t imagine him as a hero. The only person Ladybug had chosen that showed she had any good taste was Chloe herself - and Chloe hadn’t been exactly chosen.

“We don’t even know if he got through,” the hot green guy shook his head, folding his arms across his chest. “For all we know he might be…” He paused, glancing somewhat guiltily over at Bunnyx.

Dead, Queen Bee mentally filled in.

For a moment, they were all silent.

Now was a good a time as any to propose her plan without any interruptions; hopefully Cat Noir would be willing to back her up again.

Queen Bee straightened. “I’ll go.”

Everyone turned to stare at her.

“What?” Queen Bee demanded. “I tried to tell you it like, five minutes ago! Someone has to go in, and I’m obviously the best choice.”

“What makes you say that?” Rena Rogue retorted.

“I trust her,” Cat Noir interrupted. “I’ve been working with Chloe for the past couple weeks to help Paris; she’s really good at planning things and acting like she belongs when she doesn’t.”

Queen Bee glared at him; it was exactly the backup she’d been hoping for. “That was both compliment and insult, and I don’t appreciate that.”

“I’d prefer if we could just send you, Cat Noir,” Bunnyx sighed, “seeing as you already know Ladybug’s identity.”

“He WHAT now?” Queen Bee demanded. “Ladybug and I are besties! I should have been the first to know!”

Cat Noir seemed to draw in on himself. “I… only found out on accident,” he mumbled. “She didn’t know that I knew - and then she disappeared.” He glanced up. “Or, I guess she was brought here by Bunnyx, and then got trapped in the future.”

Oh, so he playing the blame-game now, was he? Queen Bee didn’t blame him, though; Bunnyx had been extremely rude earlier to him about it when Bunnyx had been the one to bring Ladybug through.

“If the future still exists through that white,” Bunnyx was saying to Cat Noir, “then your future self will likely still be there. You’re my first choice for who I’d send in, but we can’t risk that; if you ever met your future self, it would be too obvious that you don’t belong there.”

“I’m sure I could blend in,” Queen Bee declared, trying to get the conversation back to the topic of her plan. “Let me go. Besides,” she added, “I’m probably the most expendable, seeing as Hawkmoth already knows my identity.”

Everyone stared at her. “Wow, Chloe,” Rena Rogue finally said. “That was almost selfless.”

“You’re not expendable,” Cat Noir said gently, laying a hand on her shoulder. “And we’re not even up against Hawkmoth, here.”

“If Queen Bee goes, she needs to know what Ladybug’s identity is,” Bunnyx warned.

“I can keep a secret,” Chloe reassured Bunnyx. “You have no idea how many government ones I already know.”

“Before we tell you,” Cat Noir interjected, “you have to promise me that knowing her identity as a civilian won’t compromise your loyalty to her. We have to be 100% committed if we’re going to beat… whatever this is. You can’t do anything to undermine her.”

Queen Bee shot him a quizzical look. “Why would I do that to Lady-bae?”

Bunnyx began tapping her umbrella against her leg - something she seemed to do a lot of. “Because you already know her.”

“Should all of us know it?” Ryuko asked. “We might need that information, but if it’s best to keep her identity a secret…”

“I’ll tell Chloe,” Cat Noir offered quietly. “I’ll just… I don’t know. Tell her on the other side of the burrow.”

“It’s not that wide,” Bunnyx pointed out, seeming agitated.

“Then plug your ears,” Cat Noir said drily, taking Queen Bee by the elbow and leading her away to the other side.

“Okay,” Queen Bee said, turning to face Cat Noir head on as soon as they were as far as they could go, “who is she?”

Cat Noir lowered his voice, saying quietly, “She’s… Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Queen Bee blinked. Then blinked again. “All right.”

“All right?” Cat Noir repeated. “Don’t you two have like, a feud or something?”

“Please,” Queen Bee rolled her eyes, “I may be rude sometimes, but the only reason I targeted Dupain-Cheng was because I had to assert dominance. She’s always been my biggest rival because she posed the biggest threat.” She began to count off on her fingers. “She’s class rep, has designed things that have impressed Gabriel Agreste, and every boy in the school probably has had a crush on her at some point. I suppose it only makes sense that she’s Ladybug.”

A small flicker of amusement went through Cat Noir’s eyes. “Does that still mean that you’ll refer to her as Lady-bae-“

“Don’t push it, kitty cat,” Queen Bee interrupted.

Cat Noir just shrugged. “It’s a valid question.”

“I think you and I have very different ideas of what a valid question is.”

“Are you sure you want to go through?” Cat Noir asked, his smile fading. “We need to find her, but we don’t know what’s beyond that circle.”

The unspoken words of if there’s even anything beyond it hung in the air.

“Enough dramatics,” Queen Bee grumbled, trying to put up her uncaring facade again after having just opened up. She hated feelings. They were so icky and… feely. “Just let me go already.”

Together, they walked over to the others again.

“Ready?” Bunnyx asked, eyeing Queen Bee.

“I always was ready, “ Queen Bee sniffed. “If you had let me talk-”

“Try to find anything you can on Fu,” Bunnyx interrupted. “If he’s in there, we want to know where.”

Queen Bee rolled her eyes, sarcastically saying, “Copy that.”

Without waiting for a reply, Queen Bee strode over to the circles and stepping through the one she’d seen Markov go through.

Everything went white. For a moment, nothing happened.

And then suddenly tingles fizzed all over Queen Bee’s body, as if the white was attempting to push her back.

What was this stuff?

Despite how strange it was, though, Queen Bee wasn’t deterred in the least. She knew that there were only three things that could match her in stubbornness: her mother, Adrikins, and Marinette. This white stuff stood no chance.

Queen Bee pushed back - though pushed back was a strange way to describe it. She couldn’t really see anything. It was like a battle of wills, and they were fencing it out the way Adrikins liked to in competitions.

And, just like her Adrikins, she was going to win.

But for several moments, nothing happened.

An inkling of doubt trickled into Queen Bee’s mind. What if she was wrong? What if it wasn’t a battle of wills? What if she was going to be stuck here forever?

With the sudden strength of desperation behind her, Queen Bee threw her will against the white, grappling with it, and-

Without warning, she stumbled into daylight.

At least, she was pretty sure it was daylight.

Chloe stood there, blinking, trying to get her eyes to adjust. But the sight before her would not go away.

It was… Paris. Sort of. People were walking up and down the sidewalks, paying no attention to her whatsoever. That alone was odd, seeing as she was Chloe Bourgeois, daughter of the mayor.

However, unlike the Paris she had left just minutes before, this one was completely intact. There was no sign of destruction anywhere.

But there was something much, much more wrong with it.

Everything was black and white. And there was an odd net pattern across all of it.

Had the white stuff taken away her ability to see colour?

Buzzzzzzz.

Chloe took a fighting stance instantly, ready to venom her way out of whatever threat there might be.

Yet no threat came into sight.

After a beat, a bee flew in front of her, still buzzing.

But it was yellow.

Colour.

Chloe relaxed her stance only slightly, twisting her head to look about. There were bees, all of them yellow, floating about her head. They were all humming slightly.

What were they doing here?

Chloe made to shoo them off - but upon lifting up her arm, she froze.

“What am I wearing?!” she whisper-shrieked.

Her sleeve alone was hideous. Upon looking down, though, things got even worse: it was a full-body costume! At least, she assumed it was a costume; there was no other explanation for it.

Chloe reached quickly up to her head, trying to check on her hair - and her hands instantly bumped into something.

Was she wearing a helmet?

“Stay calm,” Chloe whispered, trying to not hyperventilate. This trip into the white was already much more panic-inducing than she’d expected. “A queen must step up.”

Right. She was a queen. She wouldn’t let a temporary costume stop her. At least, she hoped it was temporary.

Look on the bright side, she tried to assure herself. At least that explains the net pattern I’m seeing.

Looking on the bright side didn’t come very naturally do her.

But where had this monstrosity even come from? And, more importantly, where had her epic superhero suit gone?

“This is so wrong,” Chloe muttered, crossing her arms. She wanted to pout, to yell and scream at the black and white sky about how ridiculous, utterly ridiculous this was - but she had to find Ladybug. And the You guy.

But where did she even start?

What would Ladybug do? Chloe wondered. Ladybug - ugh, Marinette, too - always seemed to know exactly what to do in every situation. If Chloe had to choose one person to emulate… it might as well be her.

She would take stock of the situation, Chloe decided, then develop a plan of attack.

Chloe was halfway hoping that her plan of attack would somehow have a very necessary step in it of removing her ugly suit, but she started by taking stock of the surrounding area.

Okay. She had made it through the white. Or forced her way past it. Whatever.

She hadn’t seen the Wu guy inside of the white - not that she could even see much in there, it had been so bright - so she could probably assume he’d also made it through. That would mean that both of them were now here to search for Ladybug - Marinette - at the same time.

Right. Searching. She had to search.

So… Chloe would try and find Lady- Marinette. She would try and find Marinette.

Knowing Ladybug’s identity was going to take a little getting used to.

But Paris needed Ladybug back. Chloe was prepared to set aside any bad blood between her and Dupain-Cheng, as well as her intense loathing for her new… outfit in order to find her and set things right.

First things first: where did she even begin? Paris was huge.

Maybe someone has seen her? Chloe wondering, glancing around. Surely they’d remember seeing Ladybug - but that only works if Dupain-Cheng has transformed during her time here to fight akumas.

Ugh. She doubted that Marinette could bring herself to be that helpful.

But if she was also Ladybug, the smartest person Chloe knew, then maybe she could-

Quiet! Chloe ordered herself; she didn’t have time for internal debates. If this is the future, then I could try and find someone that Marinette might be with. Like me; I’m famous. Or Cat Noir. Chat Blanc. Whatever.

But did she dare ask for help to find someone who had destroyed the whole future?

More importantly… did she really want to deign to ask for help?

Ugh. The thought alone was horrid and slimy. Chloe didn’t ask for help; if she needed someone to do something for her, she just ordered them to do it. That’s how friendship worked! And being the daughter of the mayor!

Chloe let out a peeved sigh, then began taking a closer look at passers by; she might as well peg down someone who looked weak.

But the more she looked at them, the more uncomfortable Chloe became. It wasn’t just the fact that she wasn’t sure whether she even wanted to ask someone for help, or that all these people were black-and-white; it was the expressions people were wearing. Everyone looked… happy. Or at least not sad. But also not truly happy. Like they were glad to be there but were dead inside.

It was disconcerting.

Chloe gave up on the idea of asking someone for help; she’d just rely on herself for this job.

It might be a little tricky, though; there weren’t any signs anywhere that could help lead her to where Ladybug might be. There was no destruction, no akumas, and no Chat Blanc. Everything appeared to be, well… perfect.

But there was something very off about this place. No one was noticing her, or freaking out that everything was black and white.

Or over her. She was standing in the middle of the road, surrounded by bees, but no one had given her a second look.

Chloe waved a wayward bee out of her face that was obstructing her view. She cast an annoyed look at them; where had they even come from? And why were they still hanging out around her? She was Queen Bee, but still-

Wait.

Bees.

This place must be affecting my miraculous, she realized, staring at the bees. I hope that’s not Pollen. Changing outfits was bad enough; she couldn’t imagine being split up into multiple tiny hers. Though the rest of the world would probably love having more than one Chloe.

So… essentially, she couldn’t trust anyone because they all seemed to be stupid, she had no idea where Fu was, meaning she was alone, and she didn’t even know where she currently was or where Dupain-Cheng lived in just normal-Paris, much less this one.

Really, she was alone in the big city with no way to know where to go.

Letting out an annoyed sigh, Chloe began walking along the streets at a brisk pace. Maybe she’d get lucky and just bump into Dupain-Cheng.

And then she couldn’t help but snort at the thought of considering bumping into Marinette lucky.

Chloe quickly began noticing more differences as she made her way down the streets, choosing her path at random. For one, not only was she dressed differently, but so was everyone else. They were wearing a totally different style entirely, as if they had walked straight out of a 1960s movie. Dupain-Cheng wasn’t the only one who knew fashion; Chloe had grown up around fashion moguls. Her mother had practically invented fashion itself. If Chloe couldn’t tell what time period a piece was from, then someone would have been seriously wrong with her. More than she already was by wearing this horrible outfit, of course.

Chloe went up and down sidewalks, peering into stores and houses, unable to recognize anything she was passing by. At first, it was somewhat interesting.

But after a while, it became stiflingly hot in her suit, and her feet began to ache.

Where was a limousine when you needed one?

The sun reached its peak, hovering in a black and white haze above Chloe. She was sweltering in her suit, but didn’t dare try to take it off; there was something very right about it in a very wrong way, as if she couldn’t remove it even if she tried.

She hated how everything here was right and wrong; it wasn’t… right. Or wrong, either. But certainly not right!

UGH.

Several hours in, Chloe was more lost than ever, her feet were blistering, and the sun was starting to go down. At one point, she thought she heard cheering - something about children? - but ignored it. Marinette wasn’t a child - well, not technically speaking. Emotionally, Chloe had always considered her as vulnerable as a toddler, and even easier to read and manipulate.

Unlike these street signs. Chloe’s eyes hurt from seeing just black and white all day, and with the light lessening, it was becoming even more difficult to read anything.

Grumbling, Chloe took to just walking in the middle of the road so she could check out both sides of the street more easily. It turned out to be a bad idea, however; before long, in the dark, her foot caught on something and sent her crashing to the ground.

“Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!” Chloe hissed, twisting to see what she’d tripped on. It was just a pot hole covering. She kicked it back into place before standing, brushing herself off.

The sound of a door opening rang out across the street - but Chloe would have ignored it completely and moved on had it not been for a very familiar voice saying, “Be careful.”

Chloe’s pulse instantly kicked up a notch. Was that who she thought it was?

As if feeling her quickening pulse for her, the bees around Chloe began to buzz in earnest, fluttering around her head. “Hush!” Chloe ordered, trying to peer into the darkness toward where the words had come from. She twisted her head from left to right, not wanting to miss anything.

“What’s that?” the same voice gasped - yes, that was definitely Marinette. But… at the same time, Chloe could now also hear how she also was definitely Ladybug. How had she not noticed that before?

Where is she? Chloe thought in frustration, peering into the darkness.

But then, as she twisted her head again, she came to a stop.

There.

Marinette was staring at her, eyes wide. Her hand was clutching the shoulder of the person standing beside her.

And then Chloe noticed who the other person was.

His hair was the same blond that it had been when they were kids, and his physique was unmistakable; even the way he stood at attention. Yet… it seemed almost looser than normal, as if he were more relaxed around Marinette.

Adrien Agreste. Chloe’s childhood best friend.

But what arrested her attention the most were his eyes.

They weren’t green.

Instead, they were a bright, icy blue that showed up like a shock of lightning in the dark.

And he was looking straight. at. her.

“No,” he whispered. The word practically rumbled in the air; there was an innate feeling of power behind it. Chloe had grown up around politicians; she could have recognized it from a mile away, but in this case, it actually was like a physical presence backing it up - as if his word were the wind in front of a tsunami that rose up only a few moments behind it, towering above everything, ready to destroy everything in its path.

Adrien closed his fist, fingers curling in on themselves. There was a distinct clink and then-

-

“Pegasus, status update?” Rena Rogue asked, glancing over at the superhero that was obviously Max Kanté. Bunnyx had asked him to start looking at the holes in her burrow; Bunnyx might be the holder of the miraculous, but Max was still a genius.

“Nothing yet,” Pegasus reported. “If I had Ma- I mean, my robot here, then he might be able to help me…”

Rena winced; Max was not taking the loss of Markov lightly, yet was stoically attempting to not mention the robot too much. He had no idea that she already had figured out his identity.

“Actually…”

Rena looked up along with everyone else.

Pegasus was staring at the white circles, rubbing his chin, deep in thought. “It pushes back when I try to place my hand against it. This circle is unlike the one that I entered by. It’s as if it’s a solid mass.” He reached up, adjusting his sunglasses, the same way Max usually would adjust his glasses while thinking. “Newton’s third law of motion states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. But… what if we could somehow bypass the wall that we are acting on?”

“Excuse me?” Bunnyx stared.

But Rena was catching on. “Like… through one of your portals?”

“Precisely,” Pegasus nodded. “However, it would need some way to link up to the circle itself; I doubt I could create a portal through time. My miraculous is not intended to work in such a fashion.”

“Whoah, everyone hold up,” Viperion held up his hands. “I only caught about half of that, but we can’t go in there!”

“Why not?” Pegasus and Rena asked in unison.

“First off, Fu and Chloe both already went in,” Viperion counted off the reasons on his fingers. “They haven’t come back. We have no idea if they even made it through in the first place. And, if they did, they’re undercover. Even if we could find an easier way to get through, by going in, we’d be blowing their cover.”

“By that logic, Chloe going in blew Fu’s,” Rena pointed out, crossing her arms.

“If we could just see what’s going on, that would help everything!” Bunnyx growled in frustration. “We need to know if they made it through or not!”

“And where they are now if they did,” Ryuko murmured in agreement.

Rena looked down at her flute and suddenly smirked. “I have an idea.”

-

“Are you sure about this?” Bunnyx checked one final time. “Giving me your miraculouses will reveal your identity to everyone present. That could endanger those you love if Hawkmoth-”

“Yeah, well, I don’t see Hawkmoth present,” Rena Rogue waved her hand dismissively. “Besides, who cares about him right now? We’re up against Cat Noir - or Chat Blanc - and, honestly, I’d be way more scared of getting in a fight with him than Hawkmoth. Besides,” she added, “all cards on the table, right? We’re your hand, and you’re playing us to your best tactical advantage.”

Bunnyx chewed her lip. Rena was right - she always had been logical that way. “Okay,” she finally relented - though she couldn’t deny a part of her was relieved. Rena’s idea was a good one, and Bunnyx was desperate to try and get eyes on the future. “You may remove your miraculouses.”

There was silence as Pegasus and Rena Rogue faced one another. It felt like a solemn moment; a last second of anonymity before being thrown into the spotlight.

They both took in a deep breath. There was a bright flash of light as both of them detransformed.

And then Alya Cesaire and Max Kanté were standing there instead.

“Wait, Alya?” Cat Noir gaped.

“Do you two know one another?” Max asked, glancing between them.

“Well, I mean,” Cat Noir stumbled over his words, “she’s the Ladyblogger. And I’ve saved her several times.”

Bunnyx could have facepalmed herself at the clumsy save.

“Here you go, Bunnyx,” Alya said as she and Max handed over their miraculouses to her.

Bunnyx slipped the sunglasses and the necklace on. The horse and fox kwamis instantly appeared in front of her. Bunnyx pulled out carrots, quickly feeding the tired kwamis. “You guys up for round two?”

Kaalki looked at her curiously. “Are you glorious and famous?”

Bunnyx gave her a look.

“Glorious,” Kaalki decided, popping the rest of the carrot in her mouth. “I’m ready!”

“Fluff, Kaalki, Trixx, unify!” Bunnyx declared.

It was a risky idea to act on. The more miraculouses a holder wore, the more dangerous it was for them - much less one being the miraculous of time.

But she was strong; Bunnyx didn’t doubt that she could handle it. After all, if Mini-bug could wear all of them, then this should be a cinch.

There was a burst of light, and a moment later, she stood in her new form. A wave of dizziness crashed over her, and for a breathless moment, Bunnyx thought she was about to faint. She stumbled, leaning heavily on Alya and Max for support.

“You good?” Alya grunted.

“Just peachy,” Bunnyx mumbled, the dizziness slowly fading. She took in a deep breath, steadying herself, then pushed up. “All right. Let’s do this.”

“What should we call you now?” Alya asked, trotting beside her as Bunnyx strode over to the white circles, the rest of the heroes tailing them. “If I ever get to talk about this on my blog, I need a name.”

“There’s no time to decide,” Bunnyx replied. “Just continue calling me Bunnyx.” She stopped before the white circles. “I hope your idea works.”

Everyone leaned closer, watching intently.

Bunnyx took her umbrella, sliding the flute along up it and lodging it in place with the horseshoe. Then, slowly, she began sliding it into the white circle.

For several tense seconds, she felt the whiteness push back, as if it were a truly physical force.

Gritting her teeth and sending up a prayer that this would work, Bunnyx said, “Burrow, Voyage, Mirage!”

It was probably the longest shot of shots that she’d ever attempted. Reaching through time, bypassing a force keeping them locked out, and…

The white circle flickered.

Bunnyx caught her breath. Had the mirage really reached through?

The other heroes gathered around, peering at the white, crackling… whatever it was. It honestly reminded Bunnyx a little of an old TV.

And then, the static cleared up, leaving them with a black and white image instead.

{Audience laughs}

Bunnyx jumped at the sound, almost losing her grip on her umbrella. “Holy hopping dust bunnies! What is that?”

“So… because we’re doing this dinner for us… you thought we should make the whole thing?”

“That can’t be right,” Alya squinted, leaning in a little closer. “That’s Adrien Agreste. Chat Blanc is nowhere in sight.”

“Basically.”

“And that’s Marinette,” Max pointed. “What is she doing here?”

“Hands off, dude; I can’t see!” Nino complained.

“Quiet!” Bunnyx ordered, her voice strained. They were finally able to see through, and these teenagers were yelling over it!

“Have you at all considered the fact that you usually bake, and I don’t really cook?”

{Audience laughs}

At the sound of the canned laughter, Bunnyx flinched again. What was this, a movie from the 50’s?

“That’s why we have a recipe, Adrien. It’s the kind of thing people use when they’re cooking.”

{Audience laughs}

“What do you need help with?”

“Could you grab out the knives?”

“Planning a murder, my dear?”

{Audience laughs}

“What…?” Bunnyx breathed.

“What are we looking at?” Viperion asked. “What is this? Where’s it coming from?”

“Out there,” Bunnyx murmured, hoping that the answer would make these kids be quiet already. Her eyes were locked on the… well, for lack of a better word, she had to admit that it now looked almost like a screen.

“Now, we’re going to need some spices…”

“Is it authentic?” Alya frowned. “Is it happening in real time? Is it recorded, fabricated?”

Would these kids just be quiet already?

“I don’t know,” Bunnyx cast a glance at Alya, her voice tense. “We’re reaching through space and time. It could have reached some kind of alternate reality for all we know.”

“So you’re saying that the universe created a sitcom staring… a model and a fashion designer,” Viperion said drily.

“I’m not saying that! I’m just theorizing!” Bunnyx waved him off, trying to pay attention to the feed. Possible alternate reality or not, this was the first time she’d seen something through the circle since she’d sent Mini-bug in there.

The scene played out, Marinette panicking over how much they had left to do - and then suggested they use their miraculouses.

“Their… miraculouses?” King Monkey blinked.

Bunnyx thought fast. “Oh, Marinette once used the mouse miraculous against Kwami Buster, and Ladybug originally gave the snake miraculous to Adrien Agreste; they must be referring to those.”

“She gave it to Adrien first?” Viperion stared.

Cat Noir shifted a couple steps away from Viperion.

“Green is not a good colour on you, Viperion,” Bunnyx said. “I mean… jealousy. You’re already in green.” She let out a tense sigh. “Would you all please be quiet now? I’m trying to hear what’s going on.”

She was desperate to hear what was going on; Minibug would never suggest that they use their miraculouses for personal gain; never.

But, almost more concerning was the fact that she was acting as if Adrien had her miraculous. If Adrien was Cat Noir, and in this world had been akumatized into Chat Blanc, that could only spell trouble.

“What the heck?” Nino yelped in the back of the group as… well, as he walked in through the door. “That’s me!”

“Nino!” Marinette exclaimed, confirming the fact that it really was Nino Lahiffe there for them.

“What’s up?” Nino asked, smiling widely, showing all his teeth. “Do I smell chicken?”

“I don’t actually smile like that, right?” Nino whispered from behind Bunnyx to Alya.

Bunnyx shushed him.

The three did the dishes, and then Nino left - only to be quickly replaced by the Dupain-Chengs, and…

“That’s Emilie Agreste!” Alya gasped.

Cat Noir made a strangled sound in the back of his throat.

Adrien on the screen didn’t appear phased by her appearance, however. Instead, they all ate dinner today, and then Adrien and Emilie left.

And then… credits began rolling.

“Is this a TV show?” Ryuko frowned. “Did you access a channel by accident, Bunnyx?”

“No way,” Bunnyx shook her head desperately. “I… I couldn’t have.” Of course, she’d never tried doing what she’d done before, so she didn’t know that for a fact.

“What would a channel featuring us be named?” King Monkey pondered. “The Family Channel? Gloob? Zag?”

“Stop making stuff up, King Monkey,” Max chided. “Now is not the time.”

Now certainly wasn’t the time for anything these kids were talking about. Bunnyx needed to be able to think. Mini-bug appeared to be fine; it was as if she didn’t know anything was even wrong.

“Marinette seemed a little… off, don’t you think?” Nino frowned. “I’ve never seen her greet me like that before.”

“But she’s dating Adrien,” Alya pointed out. “That’s a pretty good thing, right?”

“Why would she want to date Adrien Agreste?” Cat Noir mumbled. He was standing in the back of the group, his arms folded tightly across his chest, as if distancing himself from the mess that his future self had caused.

“She’s had the biggest crush on him since the first day they met,” Alya shrugged. “After she gave him heck when she thought he’d stuck gum on her seat, of course. But that was just Chloe.”

Cat Noir jerked his head up and stared at her. “She liked… Adrien?”

“Yep,” Alya confirmed.

Cat Noir’s eyes practically dilated, and Bunnyx could just see him connecting the dots in his head. If Marinette is Ladybug… and Ladybug always told me that there was another boy… that other boy was Adrien Agreste… and if Adrien Agreste was me the whole time…

“Enough!” Bunnyx exclaimed. These teens got sidetracked way too easily. Though she was willing to forgive Cat Noir at least a little; this was all probably starting to get a little too overwhelming for him. Just not in entirely all the ways that the others thought.

The credits finished rolling, and Bunnyx stared at the screen for a few moments. That episode hadn’t revealed anything helpful; only more questions… and no sign of Fu.

That couldn’t be it… could it?

“Now what?” Nino finally asked.

As if in response, the screen flickered back to life.

For a moment, Bunnyx thought it was about to replay the same thing they’d just watched, the way her burrows would replay when she touched them.

But then a theme song began blaring.

And it was different.

“Is this a new… episode?” Alya stared.

Bunnyx squinted at it. The theme song was still in black and white, but looked less like it was from the 50’s and more like it was from the 60’s.

The new… well, like Alya had said, episode began to play. It appeared to be the middle of the night, and Emilie was telling Adrien that something was outside.

Bunnyx’s heart leapt; could it possibly be Master Fu?

“Chloe?” Viperion blinked. “That was fast.”

Obviously Bunnyx and Viperion had very different ideas as to who the more capable searcher was in there.

They watched Adrien head towards of the door of the apartment, moving to go check on something. He was doing something with his hands, but the camera angle only showed him from the back.

And then… he switched direction, heading for the window instead.

Bunnyx realized what he was about to do a second too late. “Wait-!”

Before she could order the other heroes to turn around, Adrien whispered, “Plagg, claws out.”

There was a flash of white, and a moment later, Chat Blanc opened up the window began climbing the outside wall.

Everybody froze, staring.

And then slowly turned to look at Cat Noir, who was still standing in the back of the group.

“Adrien?” Ryuko stared, looking the most shocked she had during this whole situation.

“Bro?” Nino gaped.

“You’re Chat Blanc?” Viperion asked.

Cat Noir winced. “Uh… hi?”

“Wait…” Nino clutched at his head. “So all those times you disappeared during attacks…? And wait, during the past 3 weeks, you’ve been fighting akumas on your own?!”

“Maybe?” Cat Noir said it like it was a question, as if there was still some way for him to plausibly deny it.

“Wait!” Alya exclaimed, her fingers twitching, as if she was resisting the strong urge to grab out her phone. “If you, Cat Noir, are Adrien, and that makes you Chat Blanc, and Ladybug is stuck in the future with future you, and this show is featuring Adrien and Marinette…”

The blood slowly drained from Bunnyx’s face as everyone fell silent, the obvious conclusion lying in plain sight. Bunnyx might not agree with Fu’s rules, but if there were two identities she had wanted to keep secret above all others, they were Mini-bug’s and Cat Noir’s.

“Marinette is Ladybug?” Alya choked when nobody contradicted her. “Like… for real?”

“You all weren’t supposed to know,” Bunnyx groaned. “I thought we could keep it secret…”

Tap. Tap. Tap tap tap.

Bunnyx gave the screen a cursory glance, unsure as to where her attention should even be focused any longer. Chat Blanc was still on the wall, and it was now revealed that it had only been a tree branch that had scared Emilie.

Still no sign of Fu, then.

“My best friend has been fighting akumas all school year?!” Alya looked like she was either about to have a panic attack or faint.

Bunnyx rallied herself; she needed to get control of this situation. “Everyone, calm down!”

The heroes instantly quieted down, looking at her with varying degrees of shock and panic displayed on their faces. It wasn’t exactly calm, but at least it was slightly more quiet.

Bunnyx decided to just grab the bull by the horns. “Yes, Cat Noir is Adrien Agreste, and Marinette is Mini-bug. I’m sorry, Cat Noir, I didn’t mean for them all to find out your identity.”

“It’s not your fault,” Cat Noir shook his head wearily.

“So in the future, Marinette is Ladybug… and she’s dating you… who is…” Alya’s brow was scrunched up, trying to put the pieces together in her mind.

“Chat Blanc,” Bunnyx finished, glancing at the screen as Chat Blanc made his way back along the wall to the window. “And Mini-bug seems to know that he is, yet isn’t concerned in the least. Which is extremely puzzling.”

“Is this a love triangle or square?” Alya asked.

“Square,” Nino supplied.

“Marinette would never willingly assist a villain,” Viperion shook his head, then cast an uncomfortable glance at Cat Noir. “No offence.”

“Do you know her?” Alya asked, casting a curious glance at the snake hero.

“And then end with a backflip going into the splits.”

They all turned back to the screen at the sound of Marinette’s voice. Bunnyx drew in a sharp breath, just as Chat Blanc did a backflip going into the splits.

Because Mini-bug was there on screen with him in her own superhero outfit.

“They seem a little tired,” Marinette was saying when Bunnyx finally got her brain to pay attention to what they were actually saying again. “Are you sure we should be using these for our routine?”

“Routine?” Max repeated, confusion obvious in his voce.

“It’s fine,” Adrien replied on screen. “Everyone will just think we’re wearing costumes of their favourite superheroes, Ladybug and Chat Blanc!”

And with that, the pieces finally began to click into place in Bunnyx’s head.

“Superheroes,” she whispered. “Mini-bug thinks that they’re both superheroes, the way she and Cat Noir are! But now…”

“It’s with Chat Blanc,” Cat Noir finished quietly from the back.

“She doesn’t realize that anything’s wrong,” Bunnyx nodded.

Marinette headed on out of the apartment, joining Emilie Agreste. They began heading down the street chatting about some committee meeting and Lila Rossi.

But as the pair of them went around a corner, the camera panned out and around them to get a better view of them from the other side - and that’s when Bunnyx saw him.

She gasped. “Master Fu!”

There he was: he was barely even in the shot, narrowly making it in at this new angle, shuffling along down the sidewalk behind Marinette and Emilie, as if heading in the same direction as them.

But it was him.

“Does he seem okay to you?” Cat Noir, leaning around King Monkey’s shoulder to see better. The monkey superhero leaned a little further to give him a better look; everyone seemed to understand that, while knowing Cat Noir’s identity was huge, they had to wait to truly process it until later.

“He doesn’t appear to be harmed in any way,” Bunny said, relieved, “but that’s definitely not the outfit that he went in there with. And those turtles! What’s up with that?”

“So, what, deep cover?” Alya suggested, her reporter gears clearly already turning. “Fu has to play along?”

“With whom?” Viperion shook his head. “Or else, what?” He frowned, studying the screen even as Marinette and Emilie continued talking. “What are we looking at here? Because things have obviously changed; is it an alternate reality? Just time travel?”

“For all we know, it could be a cockamamie social experiment,” Max pointed out.

“It’s a sitcom,” Bunnyx said. “A 1950s sitcom - or, at least, the first episode was. This one might be in the 60’s.”

“But why?” Viperion insisted.

“Hey, man, we’re working with the same scarcity of intel,” Bunnyx held up her free hand as if to shield herself. She glanced back at the screen. “But I think I’m starting to get an idea for something we can try.”

She finally had seen Fu. Just knowing that he was all right, that he had made it through, made Bunnyx feel as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. New courage flooded through her.

If it was possible to get through the white that was overtaking her burrow, that meant…

They might actually be able to beat it.

The screen changed back to Adrien, who was heading out of the apartment.

“An idea? What is it?” Alya asked excitedly. “A way to break my best friend out from… whatever this is?”

“Not entirely,” Bunnyx shook her head. “More of… a way of possibly contacting Mini-bug and Adrien.”

“Both of them?” Viperion noted.

“Cut it out,” Bunnyx said cuttingly. “She liked Adrien who’s Cat Noir and is now with an akumatized version of him in the future. Get over it. And, yes, both of them. We don’t know exactly what happened, but it was centered on Mini-bug and Chat Blanc. They’re both good options to try and contact.”

“Markov!” Max suddenly yelled, surging forward.

Everybody whipped their heads about to look back again.

On screen, Adrien was holding… something. It was an odd ball of sorts, a bright blue oval decorating the front of it and a cone attached to the bottom sticking out form it. It was the first sign of colour they’d seen so far.

“That looks like a retro version of my robot,” Max said, practically blocking the entire screen with how closely he was leaning in.

“But how did it change, and why?” Ryuko said as Bunnyx pulled Max back.

“Uh… to go with production design?” Nino suggested. He’d directed stuff before, so he would probably knew about those sort of things.

But Bunnyx found she didn’t entirely agree with that theory.

“Or render it useless,” she murmured, watching Adrien study it.

“Why’d you colourize it?” Alya asked. “How did you even do that?”

“I didn’t.” Bunnyx shook her head.

Adrien turned, marching back to the apartment and closing the door behind him. When he emerged again, only moments later, Markov was gone.

“Where did he go?!” Max exclaimed, his voice panicked, and rushed at the screen.

“Don’t touch it!” Bunnyx yelled, letting go of her umbrella to tackle Max. She landed hard, and grunted. “If we interfere with the feed we have coming through, we might never be able to get it again!”

“But Markov…!” Max struggled weakly beneath her strong grip.

“Calm down, Max,” Bunnyx ordered. She began to raise herself off of him, still using her hands to keep him pinned down in case he tried anything again. “Adrien may have just hidden him somewhere; he was colourized, after all. That would have made him stand out.”

“I wouldn’t destroy Markov, if that makes you feel any better,” Cat Noir volunteered.

Max stopped struggling, panting. “Yeah… yeah, that helps.”

Bunnyx let go of Max, glancing over to make sure her umbrella was still good. It was leaning, but its tip was still inside the circle, the handle resting on the base of her burrow. “What did we miss?”

“Marinette is talking with Fu,” Ryuko recounted, the only who had thought to continue watching, “and her kwami fell into his aquarium.”

“Tikki what?” Bunnyx yelped. “That’s bad. If she gets a cold…”

“Master Fu has an aquarium?” Cat Noir asked. “I didn’t see that when I visited him.”

“Well, he certainly didn’t have that shirt when I last saw him either,” Bunnyx grunted, brushing herself off as she stood.

“You’ve visited him before?” King Monkey asked.

“Can Master Fu help if her kwami gets a cold?” Max asked.

“Wait, is he part of the committee now?” Alya stared.

“It appears so,” Ryuko shrugged, even as the screen switched on them again.

“He found her,” Bunnyx realized, barely paying attention to the new environment being panned around on the screen, or anything the heroes were saying, “and now he’s tailing her. Master Fu had nothing but utter faith in Mini-bug; he’s probably waiting to try and help in some way, or maybe is trying to gain her trust!”

“They’re talking!” Nino told her. “Or… that is,  we are.”

Bunnyx looked at the screen, paying attention to the new scene for the first time - and blinked.

It was back to Adrien.

But he was sitting at a table… with most of her old classmates.

“I could help you with some melodies to go along with it, if you want,” Luka Couffaine offered onscreen.

Viperion drew in a breath.

“What?” Alya asked, glancing at him.

But, just then, Bunnyx’s eyes fell on something. “Radio!” she exclaimed.

“What?” Alya yelped the word this time, almost falling over from the force of Bunnyx’s exclamation.

“There was a radio in the kitchen in the first episode,” Bunnyx said, scrambling forward to grip her umbrella, “and now there’s one on that table. We can try and reach you, Adrien!”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Cat Noir asked uncertainly.

Bunnyx paused, glancing over her shoulder at him. Clearly, they were the only two to have developed a new theory about Chat Blanc - one that was likely right.

But when all they did was silently observed each other, Bunnyx knew that Cat Noir was just as interested as she was in sharing it with the others - as in, not at all.

“We have to try,” Bunnyx said instead, finally breaking eye contact and looking back at her umbrella. “If Mini-bug doesn’t know what’s going on, he might. He could help us.” She doubted that, actually, but was still interested in testing out her theory.

Bunnyx twisted her umbrella about, as if tuning it to the perfect signal. She focused, the powers of space and time colliding within her and honing in on their target: the radio.

On screen, the boys were still talking about Ivan’s song for Mylene. Now was as good a time as any to do this - not to mention, Bunnyx didn’t know when the scene might change; for all she knew, she only had a couple of seconds to try this.

“Adrien,” Bunnyx said into the handle of her umbrella, not entirely sure where else to speak.

She stared hard at the Adrien on screen. There didn’t seem to be any reaction from him, so she tried again. “Adrien, can you read me, over?”

“I knew it was bad!” Ivan exclaimed on screen.

Bunnyx tried to focus despite the yelling. “Adrien?”

There was a blip on screen, and beat later, it had cut to Marinette, who was nervously clutching Tikki in her hands.

Everyone stared.

“Well that didn’t work,” Cat Noir finally said.

“Just wait,” Bunnyx said, her voice brittle. “Once it switches back to you, I’ll try again.”

She couldn’t afford for it to not work.

“I might have left the radio behind by then,” Cat Noir pointed out.

“Or maybe not,” Bunnyx countered.

A beat later, it switched back.

Still Adrien. Still at the table.

Still close to the radio.

Instantly, Bunnyx was trying to tune in to the radio again. This time, however, the camera kept switching angles, making it difficult to focus on the radio. She gritted her teeth, sweat dripping down her forehead.

“I need to go,” Adrien said.

Bunnyx focused harder.

Adrien stopped.

Bunnyx’s breath caught; was she getting through?

Just as she went to speak into her umbrella again, however, a jolt went through her body.

“Ack!” she exclaimed, dropping her umbrella.

“What is it?” Cat Noir was by her side in an instant.

Bunnyx shook out her hands, frazzled. “I… I’m not sure. It was like a shock or something.”

“Sit down for a minute,” Ryuko suggested - although it sounded a little bit like an order, coming from her.

Bunnyx sat down obediently. Past or future, one did not simply ignore Ryuko unless they were interested in getting their butt kicked. And her head was kind of dizzy, anyway. Bunnyx focused on breathing, and tried to pay at least some attention to the screen.

The episode played out, Marinette and Adrien doing their act without their miraculouses due to Tikki’s illness. Bunnyx watched with increasing worry over the little pink kwami - until, at last, Fu approached and offered to heal her ‘cat’.

“Is the episode ending?” Viperion asked as Marinette and Adrien headed back to Adrien’s apartment.

“It looks like it,” Bunnyx frowned.

Marinette and Adrien entered the apartment, Marinette talking about a surprise - and food.

There was a sudden blip, and then-

Zwoosh!

Everybody involuntarily screamed, scattering as a body burst out of the burrow hole and slammed into the ground right where they’d been.

The person groaned.

“Chloe!” Cat Noir exclaimed, dropping to his knees beside her.

Chloe - Queen Bee - let out a shallow gasp, as if her lungs were unable to get any air. Her eyes fluttered open - but as soon as they landed upon Cat Noir, they widened, fear obvious in them as she lurched away from him. “N-no…!”

“It’s okay!” Viperion was in front of her in an instant, placing calming hands on her shoulders. “Just breathe, Queen Bee. You’re okay.” He paused. “I mean, I think you are? What happened?”

“Adrien,” Queen Bee gasped out, one of her desperate hands clawing at Viperion’s, her other one wrapping around herself.

“Wait, you saw him?” Bunnyx jumped in, not waiting for Queen Bee to pull herself together. “We didn’t even see you through the feed!”

“See…?” Queen Bee twisted, her other hand still clutching her stomach, only to freeze when she saw the screen. “There- there! Adrien!” Here voice rose to a shriek at the end, and everyone winced.

“What happened, Queenie?” Cat Noir asked, staying several paces back.

Queen Bee stood there, panting, for several moments. Slowly, her shoulders relaxed slightly, and she blinked, as if her mind was just returning to reality. “S… sorry,” Queen Bee muttered, stepping away from Viperion, wrapping both her arms around herself. “You sounded so much like Adrikins for a moment that I panicked. He just… I don’t know, ejected me or something.”

“What are you talking about?” Cat Noir said at the same time that Alya said, “He is Adrien.”

“He’s what?” Queen Bee stared. Then, she stormed over to Cat Noir. “Adrien Agreste, are you telling me you’ve been risking your life these past 3 weeks by yourself?”

“That’s what I said!” Nino exclaimed.

“Everybody, shut up!” Bunnyx yelled. The heroes fell silent, and Bunnyx roughly shoved hair out of her eyes, letting out a pent up breath. “Queen Bee, tell us what happened.”

Queen Bee shot another venomous glare at Cat Noir, as if promising their conversation would continue later. “It was… wrong. Yet right. It was Paris, but in black and white. And I was in a disgusting outfit with bees flying around.” She shuddered.

“Queen Bee, please,” Bunnyx said, desperate for information.

“Fine, okay!” Queen Bee shook her head, as if trying to clear it. She wrapped her arms around herself again. “I saw Adrien - well, Chat Blanc, I suppose.” She shot a glance at Cat Noir. “But… he had blue eyes.”

“Blue?” Bunnyx repeated, simultaneously confused and wondering how this was important.

Queen Bee shuddered. “It was horrible. They were ice. Marinette was there with him. I’d wandered around all day, trying to find her. But then… Adrikins clenched his hand, and…. then I was here.”

“A suit with bees?” Bunnyx repeated, her mind unable to let go of that piece of information. “Wait. Fu has turtles.” She blinked, the pieces clicking together. “This future doesn’t seem to want us to reach it. It has been fighting us since we first began trying to get in. Maybe it’s revealing who we really are!” She began to pace. “And Markov - it must’ve turned him into something to match the time period the show was set in at the time.”

“Show?” Queen Bee repeated weakly, sitting down.

As if on cue, the credits began to roll.

“Wait, was that in colour?” Viperion asked. “I wasn’t even watching.”

“Yes,” Ryuko confirmed simply.

Everyone sat down at once, as if all this was too much to process. Bunnyx stopped her pacing to stare at the screen, hard, as the third episode began.

It was in colour.

Cat Noir drew in a sharp breath at the sight of Adrien on screen - and Bunnyx had to resist doing the same thing herself. Chloe had been right; his eyes were piercing blue.

They silently watched it play out. Marinette was planning a surprise, going around doing errands for it. Adrien disappeared for a short time, heading outside before the screen switched back to Marinette. When it finally showed him again, he was heading back to the apartment.

After the excitement of the last episode, it seemed almost like… a let down. Overall, the whole episode appeared to be harmless enough. There was no new information; Fu was still there, still helping Marinette and gaining her trust. Kim also made an appearance, as did Bunnyx’s old teacher, Ms. Bustier, but nothing truly serious happened.

As the episode wound down, however, Adrien was left alone with Fu in the apartment.

There was a sudden blip on the TV, and-

Adrien was alone.

Bunnyx leapt forward, alarmed. “Fu’s gone!”

As if summoned by her words, a body rocketed out of the burrow, white light flashing brilliantly as they exploded from the burrow. Queen Bee screamed as it narrowly missed slamming into Bunnyx, shooting out past her and flying into their midst.

As soon as it had crashed down, however, they all instantly recognized who it was.

“Master Fu!” Alya exclaimed.

“Are you okay?” Nino’s jaw dropped.

“What happened?” Queen Bee demanded, already seeming to have recovered from her shock, struggling to push herself up.

“Where’s Ladybug?” Cat Noir asked, desperation clear in his tone.

Master Fu slowly opened his eyes, letting out a groan and closing them again.

“Fu,” Bunnyx knelt down beside him, relief at seeing him back and yet fear for the same reason colliding within her. “What happened?”

Slowly, Fu opened his eyes again.

“Fu?” Bunnyx hated to rush him, but her nerves were grating incessantly that the show was still running right now.

Master Fu’s gaze locked on her. With obvious effort, he whispered, “I…”

“Fu?” Bunnyx frowned, worried. There was a pale pallor to the old man that wasn’t normal.

Master Fu closed his eyes, as if pained. “Bunnyx… I don’t know if we can rescue her.”

-

Feet pounded on the stairs, someone obviously taking them two at a time.

Someone burst into the apartment behind Adrien. “Wang Fu!” Marrinette’s voice called. “Your turtles… I’m sorry but they’re…”

She stopped short. Adrien could hear the way her breath was coming in short gasps.

After several tense moments, she finally asked, “Adrien? Where… where’s Wang Fu?”

For a moment, Adrien tried to figure out how to answer that. At last, though, he settled on simply saying, “Oh, he left, Marinette. He had to rush home.”

He turned around-

And gasped.

“What?” Marinette asked, concerned. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Except… she wasn’t Marinette.

Not really.

Not anymore.

Her body was grey, as if she were a statue. Despite not wearing the earrings, she appeared to be in her superhero suit, staring at Adrien with dull, lifeless eyes.

Adrien turned his face away. “I…”

He could hear the way Marinette was taking a few hesitant steps forward. “You’ve always worked so hard for others; maybe we should take a trip out of the city or something.” She was beside him now, slipping her arm through his. “We’re superheroes, kitty. We can go wherever we want, once we put the suits on.”

She was suggesting using the miraculouses for their own gain - out of her own free will.

For him.

Adrien steadied himself with a breath, then looked at her.

Marinette was back to normal.

“No, we can’t,” he finally whispered. “This is our home. Paris is the reason that we donned these suits, so… in Paris we shall remain.”

Marinette’s brow crinkled in concern. “Are you sure?”

Adrien’s face relaxed into a smile at her. It was amazing having her back - but even better to feel her love. He’d missed her so much. “Don’t worry, buginette. I have everything under control.”

-

“Master Fu…” Bunnyx hesitated. “Are you all right?”

What she hoped he was about to say was that he wasn’t, he’d hit his head on the way out, and what he’d just said wasn’t true.

But she knew just from the way he looked at her that her hope was in vain.

Rallying himself once more, Fu locked eyes with her and gasped out, “It’s Adrien. It’s all Adrien.”

-

“I’m back!” Emilie announced.

Marinette twisted about, looking at her. “Oh, so soon?”

“I realized I didn’t need to go out after all,” Emilie replied cheerfully. She came around the couch to them, laying a quick kiss on Adrien’s forehead.

Adrien smiled at them both. “Well, what should we watch tonight?”

First / Previous / Next {Coming Soon!}

[iloveitwhen]

Detective/Rival au

Ok so this is based off of this post by @mysnis but like, detectives. Also robin and ladybug are their codenames. Daminette.

first fic hope the few people who read this enjoy(:

“Al Ghul!”

The police officers and detectives in the breakroom all turned to see Detective Dupain-Cheng in her iconic deep red biker jacket storm in with a file clutched in her hand.

Although she was relatively new she quickly proved herself and was an exceptional detective and surprisingly very kind. The only one that didn’t get along with her was, well, the one that got along with no one, save Jon, the beat cop. Detective Damian al Ghul was definitely not well liked, it was no secret he was easily the best but his title was being threatened by none other than Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the current furious french woman glaring at the man sitting at the table. She had gained the respect of the whole precinct and everyone was well aware of the chaos her anger could bring, so the only logical thing everyone could do was take a step back and clear a path to the one she was staring daggers at.

The room had gone silent upon her arrival and everyone stared between al Ghul and Dupain-Cheng.

“Yes?” he replied from the table, not bothering to look up from his book.

“I’m going to kill you.”

He merely hummed as if considering a business proposal which only furthered her anger.

“So. What’d you do this time?” Rosa, this isn’t a brooklyn 99 au i just need her in here cause i love her back off the only one other than Damian not afraid of the sunshine-turned-hellspawn, asked. She reveled in the chaos those two brought.

Damian stood up and placed his book down, only for the purpose to look down at Marinette he refused to be looked down on. With a malicious glint in his eye and a smirk he said, “I didn’t do anything-”

“Yeah right, you, di-argghh-”

The man scoffs. “Still won’t curse? Pity.”

“Shut up!” she snapped back. “I wouldn’t have the need to if you MINDED YOUR OWN BUSINESS!”

This had Jon raise an eyebrow, he did not take angering sweet Marinette lightly, it was dangerous business to do so.

“Damian,” he began at the man who still wouldn’t tear his eyes away from the woman in front of him, “what did you do?”

“He invaded my stakeout, got what he came for then left so I had to deal with the FBI and post operations. If you had the decency of a normal human being then you could have at LEAST helped me! But no! You got in my way then left it a bigger mess than when you came! And made me deal with the aftermath! And guess what Birdbrain? Now I have another month at least to tie up the loose ends because of your interference!” al Ghul didn’t step down, instead his smirk grew wider.

“Well if I hadn’t you would’ve missed your opportunity, they were about to initiate their plan and that would have been an even bigger headache for both of us. So,” he crossed his arms, “you're welcome.”

The only one to not take a step back from the red clad woman’s anger after that was Damian, which in hindsight was very foolish as he was the only one in danger. Her hand twitch, eager to wring his neck.

“Detective Dupain-Cheng,” the captain warned after stepping into the breakroom from all the commotion, “stand down.” She growled in response and stormed off while Damian’s smirk only grew.

Rosa only rolled her eyes and muttered, “wow, not even a single punch. Losers.”

---

Marinette sat at her desk with several people gathered around, laughing at something on her screen when Damian stormed into the precinct. No one took notice of him until he barked out a “HEY!” and everyone's laughter died out. Everyone’s smiles left their faces at the sight of Detective al Ghul, well, everyone except for Marinette who ignored him and started typing something else up on the computer. The group of eyes flickered between the two as Damian’s clear target was Marinette and he was practically burning holes in her head.

She merely glanced at him and said, “hey Damian,” as if nothing was wrong. The only tell giving her away was the devilish smirk growing on her face.

He stomped over to her and spun the chair to face him, placing his hands on the armrests and leaning inches away from her face, but she didn’t budge.

“Don’t "hey Damian" me,” he seethed.

“Ok, bye Damian.”

A deep growl escaped him. “Stay out of my way, Bug. You might get squashed.” With that he stood up, looked down at her with a snarl, and left, leaving his threat hanging in the air.

As he left Marinette caught everyone’s attention again with a “hey look what I made everyone,” and clicked on something she had pulled up during the man’s entrance. The group once again howled in laughter at the compilation video labeled: “Our “Greatest” Detective Being a Brat for 5 Minutes”

---

Marinette and Damian were currently sparring in the underground workout room, it was mostly empty except for Detective Diaz who liked to follow them around and add to their chaos or just watch for her amusement and the thorn in her side, Jon Kent, the beat cop.

“Damn,” Jon commented, munching on popcorn he brought from the breakroom. They had been going for ten minutes trading hits and kicks without a breather.

“Yeah. They’re crazy.” Rosa cackled, throwing popcorn in her mouth.

Marinette’s eyes shone with determination as well as Damian’s, both refusing to back down and admit defeat but they were also running out of stamina. They had taken their work clothes off and wore simple shorts and tank tops, running shorts for Marinette and basketball shorts for Damian. They had fought each other so much that they knew each other too well, each unable to surprise the other.

“When do you think they’ll just go for it and have like, a really aggressive make-out sesh?” Jon asked, glancing at the woman beside him before turning his eyes back on the fight. Rosa grinned maliciously, eyes sparkling at the thought of the chaos that could bring.

“Two weeks. Tops.”

“Nah, no more than five days.”

The captain appeared next to Jon who flinched and flung the half the bowl of popcorn on himself and Diaz. “I think within the month but after two weeks, they have no idea what they’re feeling.”

Jon and Rosa looked at each other, then at their captain with growing grins.

“Deal.”

---

Marinette was fuming in her anger.

How? How did this happen? She asked herself, screaming in her mind since she wasn’t in her bed and couldn’t do it into her pillow. She unintentionally let out a growl and felt Damian al Ghul’s chuckle through his chest.

They had been compromised, Ladybug’s informant had been bugged, pun not intended and they weren’t aware until their informant arrived at the pickup and was immediately taken hostage, they were forced to hide in the rafters and there were more thugs than expected as they had come prepared for the two detectives.

Which led to Robin covering her under his stupid long cape in the rafters of the warehouse and waiting for her to come up with a plan as they hid in the shadows.

“See, this is why I bring this ‘dumb black cape’ with me.” Robin whispered in her ear to which she growled again in response. She hated when he was right about anything, especially about something so dumb. And it definitely wasn’t helping that she could his breath on her neck or his arm wrapped around her waist. It wasn’t her fault she couldn’t think of a plan to escape.

She internally cursed herself for letting her thoughts carry away and focused solely on her breathing for a few moments then to the commotion below them.

---

“I am never working with him again.” Marinette complained to the captain, both her and Detective al Ghul had been brought into the Captain’s office to discuss their distracting relationship.

“Why not? You two are better together, your strengths weigh out the other’s weaknesses.”

“He’s a brat!”

Damian scoffed, “At least I’m not naive, you imbecile.”

“Detectives!” the Captain dragged his hand across his face in despair. “You two will get over your differences, one way or another, and do it quickly if you want to work another case.”

“WHAT?” they both shouted in unison.

“You will not work another case until you figure out how to be civil with each other.”

Immediately they both started yelling over each other at their captain, protesting the terrible idea and gesturing to each other as proof of the terrible idea.

“Enough!” He shouted over them and just as quickly as they started, they stopped and glared. “I know you two love your jobs and are unhealthy in your obsession with them so I can and will hold this over your head until you get over your differences. No cases. You are dismissed.”

The two detectives glared at their captain, no doubt thinking of petty ways to get back at him for doing this to them and they stormed out.

---

One week later, Jon lost the bet Detectives al Ghul and Dupain-Cheng were sitting in the captain's office again.

“How was your time off?”

“Fun.”

“Lier.”

“Shut up, Robin.”

The captain sighed. “So I see that you two are not civil.”

“What? No we are, right Damian?”

“... yes me and miss Dupain-Cheng get along rather well. We had a discussion earlier this week and have agreed to be civil with one another.”

“It’s just banter.” Marinette chuckled, waving the notion away.

The captain looked between the two, his two best detectives, one sat in stoic, perfect posture with an unreadable, emotionless face and the other was beaming at him with a blinding smile.

“Ok perfect. Here’s your next case,” he slid a thin file over to them, “I went over it already and you will have to begin with a stake-out to gather more information.” With that Damian’s ever present scowl deepened and Marinette’s smile became strained and her eye twitched.

That’s what they get for lying to me, thought the captain. Hopefully they won’t mess up this investigation.

As they left he heard Damian mutter “way to go imbecile,” to Marinette who growled back a “you started it,” before the door clicked shut behind them.

---

There was a knock on Damian’s door. He sighed in annoyance, he was stuck with Dupain-Cheng so the person on the other side of the door could only be her.

“What do you want?”

“I’m bored Damian, let’s spar.”

“No, go away.”

“Please?”

Ugh, stupid cute voi- what? No. No no no. Stupid annoying voice. “We sparred yesterday. And the day before. And the day before that.”

“Well you won’t do anything else with me.” her muffled voice complained. It was true, he didn’t want to be in her presence because for some reason he enjoyed it because she was a nuisance.

“Fine!” he got off of his uncomfortable mat and swung the door open to find a hopeful expression on Marinette’s face and twinkle in her beautiful blue eyes. “What is it you want to do?”

---

This investigation was not fun nor was it enjoyable. They had a measly little refrigerator and constantly ordered take out to not be seen by the goons across the street. Marinette, however, snuck out in broad daylight to go grocery shopping because “it’s more obvious to go at night than during the day, besides, do you really want them to see a pretty girl in the middle of the night and kidnap me?” Damian had to agree with her and let her treat her childish needs while he stayed and kept watch. He was thinking about these things, rereading the same sentence of his book without grasping what it actually said when his partner burst open his door.

“DAMIAN!” Marinette glared at him from his most likely broken door with focused fury.

“What?” he asked without looking up from his book.

“What is wrong with you? I've tried so hard to be civil, to be friends with you, but no! You want to be a brat. You're not better than anyone and you’re a fool to think so!”

“Well too bad I guess.”

“Damian look at me.” he glanced up for a moment then back down to his book which only heightened Marinette’s anger. “How could you eat the ice cream from the bottom up just to trick me into thinking there was more! You piece of sh--monster! You monster! You are coming with me right now. I need to take my anger out on you, I want to punch you in the face so bad right now.”

“No, I'm good.”

Marinette smirked. “So you’d rather admit defeat now? Knowing you can’t beat an angry Marinette?”

“No, I know I can beat you, I don't need to test out my abilities.”

Marinette barked out a laugh. “You’ve never beaten angry Marinette and you know it,” she snapped.

Damian closed his book with a snap and replied “fine” before following her to the mat.

“You’re going down.”

“I beg to differ, Dupain-Cheng.”

They took opposite sides of the mat and took their stances. Circling one another Marinette sized up her  opponent, she knew that he was a little more reckless and aggressive when he was angry and of course she wanted an excuse to pummel him so she needed to rile him up. She took a jab which he easily grabbed her wrist instead of swatting it away and pulled her to him. She ran at him gaining extra momentum and twisting her wrist to grab his, she jumped on top of him and the imbalance toppled them to the floor. With his right wrist trapped in her grip she got one good punch in his face before his left hand pulled her off him. She released his right wrist only to trap it again under her leg as she shot her left hand out and grabbed his other before falling to the mat, quickly maneuvering her legs to pin him. As he tried to wiggle out she tightened her grip till he relaxed and he tapped her cheek with his fingers in defeat. She let him go and they restarted.

Each time only lasting for a few minutes, every time Marinette won Damian’s anger rose and every time Damian won Marinette’s determination grew. Soon both were breathing hard and glaring at each other, circling the mat like two alphas in a battle for dominance.

Damian attacked, throwing a punch which she easily ducked under and tried to counter with an uppercut but he backed away only to attack again just as quickly. She dodged and weaved around his advances barely having time to think until she swatted one punch only to be little too slow to dodge his second punch. Pain struck her cheekbone and he faltered, not expecting to actually land a punch, even if it only skimmed her face. She took his surprise to her advantage and took a step back and kicked into his stomach, sending him to stumble backwards. Before he could recover she gave him a flurry of punches until he threw on of his own, forcing her to step back. As she did he quickly swiped his foot under her, catching one heel, forcing her off balance. Before she could save herself he was on her, pushing her back onto the mat with a heavy thump.

He straddled her with the weight of his body trapping her and his hands clamped around her wrists. She squirmed under his weight but she knew she was stuck so she gave up the struggle.

She glared up at him, both breathing heavily and completely exhausted, not that either would admit it of course.

“Looks like I pinned a bug.” he said to her, smirking, only inches away from her face

Marinette glared at him, pushing the thought out that he was so attractive with that smirk.

She couldn’t help her eyes flicker to his lips, he was so close.

“Fine you win this round, just get off.”

His grin slipped away and licked his lips but didn’t move, only loosening his hold on her, she watched his own eyes flicker to her lips then back again, only to find her eyes on his lips. She didn’t know what she was doing, he was so close. He was slowly moving his head down until she lifted her head off the ground to meet his, finally crashed their lips together.

Marinette slipped her hands out of his grip wrapping her fingers through his hair and around his neck, pulling down. Damian let himself fall on his elbow using his other hand to snake around her waist to pull her up into him. He lifted his leg and slid it between her thighs before doing the same with his other to comfortably press their bodies together.

Damian could feel the adrenaline pumping through his body, he didn’t know how badly he wanted to kiss her, to touch her, until now, and he didn’t want to stop.

Marinette heard a groan escape Damian, or was it her? She didn’t know, he tasted so good....

Damian pulled away, both were breathing heavier than before and they locked eyes.

“Holy shit.” Marinette said, not believing what was happening was real and lifted her head again, capturing Damian's lips, each giving each other softer, more gentle kisses than before.

“You cursed,” he said, pulling back again.

“Yeah well you taste like my fuckin ice-cream.”

---

BONUS:

I’m a Wayne.

*gasp* oh wow.

You knew?

Wow you must really think i’m dumb.

Wha-no i do not!

I found out the second day I was here.

… wow I guess that makes me the dumb one

It’s ok i still love you

You love me?

Shit. Rosa! Save me!

Hell no get away from me, how dare you break my trust like that.

Hope y’all enjoyed, please let me know if i misspelled or have bad grammar or anything like that or if you like it. or not thats fine too. 

Thank you for reading!!!😁

[weepingvoidpenguin]

The Gods’ Blessing (Pt. 2)

Part 1 , Part 3 , Part 4 , Part 5

Summary: In your world, everyone had a soulmate. That’s just how things went. Everyone had some sort of Indicator that their other half was out there, be it telepathy or a red string that connected these two strangers. Yours was one unspoken of, in fact, you’d never heard anyone say that they had the same Indicator as you. And because of this rarity, you longed to meet the person who could gift you with what you lacked, maybe not so much so to be with the person but more so to finally see what others took for granted. Yet, you held onto the hope that one of your best friends was your Meant-To-Be but he has his eyes on another girls and the little green monster slowly engulfs you at the deterioration of your hope.

Warnings: Light swearing, some spelling errors or reader insert errors

Word Count: 4,554

Author’s Note: Heya! Thank you all for the love on the first chapter! I love all the comments made, they all warmed my heart! lol. I tagged those that wished to be tagged so if you don’t see your name and would like to be tagged in the next part please let me know! Again, thank you so much!

  The rest of the weekend flew by uneventfully. There was lots of studying, lots of waiting, lots of Spider-Man not showing up. You couldn’t say you were surprised, only mildly disappointed. You knew he was busy, of course he was, he stops muggings and villains all the time. So then why couldn’t you shake the feeling of hoping he would make time to see you?

  You were being ridiculous, you knew that. But all the logic in the world couldn’t subside the pull in your chest at the thought of seeing him again. It was the same pull you had when you first met Peter. Overtime you’d learned to ignore it, though that didn’t make it any less there or painful. 

  For the second time that night you looked away from your window, deciding he wasn’t going to show up and locked the escape shut before turning off your light.

  Maybe tomorrow, you thought and shook away the silly intrusion before falling asleep with your anticipation hidden cunningly behind your fatigue.

  ~

  “So how do you think you did on the Bio exam?” Ned asked, following you to the lunch room and taking his normal seat beside you.

  “I think I did pretty well, there were only a few instances that I wanted to implode but all the other instances I just wanted to leave so that’s good,” you joked and thanked Ned for helping you study last week.

  “So how was the exam?” MJ asked once she sat down at the table and pocketed her phone, no doubt just having gotten off the phone with her soulmate.

  “Good,” you simply said, throwing Ned a wink and chuckling amongst yourselves.

  “How was your weekend?” Ned asked MJ and she immediately went on a spiel recounting the events that unfolded over the weekend for her.

  Peter and Liz soon took their seats at the table together and they greeted everyone but the only thing you could center in on was their intertwined fingers. MJ saw you staring at where their bodies connected and she kicked you under the table, pulling you out of your daze. Your panicked eyes landed on hers and you saw the pity in them. She wanted to comfort you, to tell you that you would eventually meet the person you were destined to meet and all the heartache for Peter would pass like a dream but she couldn’t say anything. Not with them sitting right there.

  The lunch period couldn’t pass quickly enough, your twisted heart made the seconds seem like hours and the minutes like decades. It was all you could do to pry yourself away from the table and head to your next class seconds before the dismissal bell rang. As if that would help though, you had the next two classes with Peter.

  “(Y/N), wait up!” Peter shouted behind you, getting lost in the crowd of teenagers.

  “Go away, Peter,” You whispered to yourself, hating the envy you felt towards Liz and the betrayal you felt from Peter. But he had never betrayed you, he never made any promises to you. It was clear practically from the get-go that his interest lied in Liz and only Liz so you should be happy that he finally landed his dream girl. One that he’d been working so hard towards, almost as hard as you tried with him.

  “(Y/N), hold on a second I have to – woah, wait, are you okay?” Peter asked once he caught up with you and saw the red of your eyes.

  “Peachy, Parker,” you responded and pulled your sleeve out of Peter’s hold.

  “Parker?” He asked, caught off guard by the name you addressed him by. You only called him Parker when you were upset with him. He’d heard that name a handful of times in the past few years and every single time it made his gut wrench. “Why are you mad at me?”

  “Mad?” You scoffed, walking through the door of your Math class, “I’m not mad, what gave you that impression?”

  Peter took his usual seat next to you and leaned over the rail on the desk, “(Y/N), please just talk to me. I'm sorry for whatever I did, I just hate it when you’re mad at me,” he reached out to grab your hand in his but you stuck it in your backpack to grab a pencil instead.

  “You’re not sorry, though.” You shook your head and glued your eyes to the blank whiteboard at the head of the room. You were acting irrationally, you knew that. He didn’t have a clue as to what was upsetting you and rightfully so. He’d been oblivious to your feelings for years now so you didn’t know why you expected him to just randomly figure it out. 

   You sighed and rested your head on your hand, “It’s nothing, Peter,” you spoke much softer now, “Please, just drop it,”

  Peter opened his mouth as if to continue arguing but decided against it and faced the front of the class. Usually, you and Peter filled the classroom with your laughs and jokes but this period passed in silence as did the next one you had with him.

  You wanted to ask him how long he and Liz were an item but he’s too smart for his own good and he’d connect the dots. But then again, maybe he wouldn’t. He hasn’t connected them thus far. You figured it had to be over the weekend. They’d been so cuddled up against each other while watching the movie that it made sense that they would come back to school the next week feeling even more comfortable with each other.

  You figured you could casually ask Liz later in the day but you didn’t even think you wanted to. You mean, did you really want that answer? Did you want to know when they started dating and how it began and who asked who on the date? No. You didn’t. So you remained quiet the rest of the day, afraid your voice would betray you if you spoke.

  ~

  “Mr. Stark, why am I here?” Peter asked the billionaire in front of him.

  Once the final bell rang signaling the end of the school day, Peter walked out the front of the building as he always did but was shocked to see Happy front and center waiting for him. Apparently, Mr. Stark had wanted Peter to come over and meet the team since everyone was together again for the first time in years.

  Normally, Peter would be ecstatic to go. He loved seeing Mr. Stark and he’d been urging to meet the team for so long now but all he wanted to do was swing (no pun intended) over to your place and talk to you. He figured if you wouldn’t talk to him as Peter then maybe you’d talk to him as Spider-Man.

  But he knew he couldn’t decline so he hopped in like a good boy and let Happy drive him to the Stark compound.

  “Nice to see you too, kid,” Tony shot back, a little offended that Peter wasn’t happier to see him.

  “Sorry,” Peter apologized, “I didn’t mean for it to come off that way I just have a lot of homework to do,”

  Tony eyed him suspiciously but nodded and threw an arm around Peter, “Usually, I’d leave you in misery on the weekdays but I wanted you to meet the team since everyone is here and I don’t know how long before that happens again. So, we’re taking the opportunity now,”

  Peter nodded, a bit of excitement in his step though his mind was elsewhere. Tony opened the door for Peter and everyone’s eyes landed on him, causing Peter to feel smaller than he was. There was a silence as everyone took you in but thankfully someone had the decency to break the ice.

  “He’s a kid,” Mr. Banner spoke up after a short while.

  Tony scoffed, “You should’ve seen the things I was doing at his age, you could hardly call me a kid,”

  Bucky eyed you with sadness in his eyes, Peter was so young, too young, to be exposed to the horrors that they all had to face. But he knew Tony wouldn’t make him do something he didn’t want to do. In fact, you’d heard Tony explicitly order Happy to keep Peter under watch and make sure he wasn’t recklessly throwing himself into danger. Whenever a big fight came up, Tony wanted Peter as far away from the battle as possible. That was about the only thing Bucky could appreciate about Tony.

  Once the awkward stillness of the ambiance subsided, Peter actually had a pretty good time with the team. They joked about missions they had and recounted everyday life events. When they weren’t out there fighting for the world, they were almost normal.

  It wasn’t until a few hours later that Tony had forced Peter to say his good-byes to the team that Thor had said something that encased his mind for the rest of the night.

  “Young Parker!” Thor boomed, his arms outstretched for him, “I cannot wait to see what the world makes of you!”

  Peter smiled at Thor, “Thank you!” He beamed at the compliment.

  “We spent much time deciding what to do for you and your other half. Your lady and you will do wonderous things!” Thor chuckled with a gleam in his eye.

  Peter raised an eyebrow, “Deciding? What do you mean?”

  Thor’s happy demeanor changed quickly to one of panic, “Nothing! I speak foolishness,” he tried to cover up but his curiosity got the better of him, “Have you not figured out who your partner is yet?”

  Peter shook his head, “Uh, no. Not yet,”

  Thor’s head lightly cocked to the side, “How could you not? You’ve been together for so long already,”

  “You know who my Soulmate is?” Peter asked, surprise evident in his tone.

  “Well, of course! We wouldn’t have spent a millennium creating you just to forget who you are,” Thor boasted, pride on his shoulders.

  “Creating?” Peter repeated, his mind not being able to wrap around Thor’s words.

  “All right, buddy.” Tony patted Thor’s chest and tried to pull him away, “You’ve screwed up enough as it is,”

  Thor’s joyous mood was not dwindled by Tony’s interruption, “You have great things ahead of you, Peter Parker. Great things ahead for both of you,”

  “Come on, Thor.” Natasha intercepted, dragging him away from a bewildered Peter.

  Peter looked up at Tony with an eyebrow raised, “What was that?” he merely asked, pointing lazily at the thundering God.

  “Don’t worry about it, Kid. You’ll understand soon enough,” Tony half explained and called for Happy to come over. “Drop him off, will ya, Happy? And maybe pick him up some food on the way, he’s too skinny,”

  Peter shook his head and walked out the door with Happy knowing Tony wasn’t going to tell him what he wanted to know.

~

  You had just managed to finish your homework by the time the sun set outside so you grabbed a mug of warm liquid and perched on your fire escape, hoping that a certain someone would join you. An hour had passed and still nothing so you went back inside to grab a blanket and wrapped yourself in it and turned on your favorite show to begin watching it outside, hoping the distraction would make the time go by faster.

  You had eventually become so immersed in the characters on your screen that the shaking of the fire escape caught you by surprise and you grabbed your phone from midair to prevent it from crashing onto the floor.

  “Jesus!” You said, resting your hand on your heart to calm its pace.

  “Nope, just me,” Spider-Man joked and cocked his head to the side, “What are you doing out here?”

  You cleared your throat and took a sip from the warm mug in your hand, “Thinking,” you twisted the truth a bit.

  “About?” He asked, taking his normal seat next to your window and stretching his hand out to have a drink.

  You handed him the mug and wrapped yourself deeper in the thick blanket, “Everything. I’ve just been thinking a lot recently,”

  “As opposed to other times?” He asked, pulling his mask up ever so slightly to drink.

  You chuckled and elbowed him, “Quit being a jerk,”

  He chuckled too and lifted his hands, “Sorry, it’s just kind of sad seeing you out here,” he admitted, setting the cup down in the little space between the both of you.

  “So you visit me because you think I’m sad?” You asked, a hint of irritation in your voice.

  “No! Not at all!” Spider-Man tried to defend, waving his hands in front of him before sighing, “It’s just, I like spending time with you and knowing that you’re upset makes me want to make you not upset, ya know?”

  You eyed him suspiciously but then giggled at his lame explanation, “Yeah, I guess so. I don’t think I’d like to see you upset either,”

  “No?” He asked, a visible raise in his eyebrow area through his mask.

  “No,” you confirmed and looked away from him, afraid he would see the blush on your cheeks.

  “So, then what’s upsetting you?”

  You sighed and rested your head against your window, “Remember how I told you that my crush on this guy was unrequited?” You asked, still looking away from him, “Well, I’d always hoped that maybe I had a chance with him but after today I know there isn’t one,”

  “How come?” He asked, scooting closer to you so your shoulders were touching despite you being wrapped in the blanket.

  “He’s with someone,” you said, resting your head on his shoulder, “Someone I can’t compete with,”

  He didn’t say anything for a while, just let you stay there on his shoulder while he tried to connect the dots in his mind but he couldn’t come to a resolution. “Why do you have to compete? Why not just tell him and see what he says?”

  You snorted, “Would you tell the person you liked for three years that you had feelings for them?”

  Spider-Man sat quietly for a moment, looking straight at you before shaking his head, “No, I guess not. Not if I thought she didn’t like me back,”

  “Exactly,” you said, crossing your arms, “I’m hoping I just get over him soon but it’s been three years and everyday it gets harder to keep it a secret from him,”

  “Maybe it gets harder because you’re supposed to tell him,” he offered.

  “I thought we went through this,” you said, “Besides, I’m not even sure we have the same Indication anyway,”

  “I get it. I’ve never met anyone with the same Indicator I have either,” he said.

  “You have a weird Indicator too?” You asked, sitting up a little bit straighter.

  He nodded, looking up at the sky above you and the little hope you had dwindled as he seemed to be able to see the glistening lights. “Yeah, that’s why I was so curious about yours,”

  “Well, what is it?” You asked, tensing around the warm mug in your hands.

  He looked down from the sky and faced you, “Yeah right! I asked you first,” he teased and was rewarded with a huff from you.

  “So?” You persisted.

  “You tell me yours and I’ll tell you mine,” he offered.

  You grumbled and sat back against the window, “Forget I asked.” You waved your hand as if dismissing the subject then looked over at him, “You cold?” You asked, noting that the air had been chilly tonight.

  You opened up the blanket and offered him the available sheet. He looked at you for a moment, not wanting to say that his suit kept him comfortable despite the temperature outside. So he shrugged and scooted closer to you, wrapping the sheet around his shoulder and connecting it back in the middle.

  You two stayed like that, mumbling about how your weekend went and you’d let it slip that you’d waited for him both Saturday and Sunday. He teased you for waiting for him but it strangely warmed his heart that you had wanted to see him again so soon. He always thought Peter Parker was never good enough for you but now that you were here, resting your head on his shoulder and falling asleep in the safety he offered, he thought Spider-Man just might be.

  Peter picked up your sleeping body and crawled back into your room, placing you gently on the bed before tucking you in. He wanted to do something more, to kiss you goodnight, to lay beside you, anything really. But Peter and Liz had just become a thing and in truth he’d been dating her to attempt to get over you. It wasn’t fair to Liz to have Peter and for you to have Spider-Man. They were one and the same. Or maybe they weren’t?

  Peter walked around your room, admiring the pictures you’d had hung up on your wall of all of them. He loved how much you cared for them and for that reason he was too terrified to tell you that for as long as he’s known you, he’s wanted more than a simple friendship. He wanted all of you and everything you had to offer but he didn’t think you wanted him. You didn’t want Peter Parker. But your interest in Spider-Man was something he could work with.

  He looked back at your sleeping figure one last time before shutting the window behind him and taking his normal patrol for the night.

~

  You awoke to a panicked tapping at your window and you sat up in your bed, your hair sprawled all over the place. You turned towards the source of the noise and saw the masked boy tapping against the glass, leaving a red liquid in its wake.

  Blood.

  You shot out of bed, making sure to land softly as your mother had been in the next room over sleeping. You hurried to the window after locking your bedroom door and caught Spider-Man as he fumbled over. You did your best to place him on your bed, not worried about the stains that were bound to show up.

  “What happened?” You asked, panic coursing through your veins.

  “Robber. Bank. Machete.” He wheezed out, toppling over onto you and your hands were now soaked from the warm liquid.

  “We can’t do this here,” you said, afraid your mom would wake up and kick him out. “Let’s get you to the roof.” You grabbed your blanket and rushed to get the emergency kit your mom had in the bathroom. Luckily, she was a doctor so she has almost everything you needed. The only problem was that she was a doctor, not you so your stitching would be a lousy job.

  You threw Spider-Man’s arm over your shoulder and fumbled out of the window, closing it behind you and walking up the two flights until you reached the roof. He collapsed on the edge and you sprawled out your, thankfully, red sheets so the gravel wouldn’t dig into his back. You placed him as gently as you could on the blanket and began taking out the supplies you needed, placing them beside his open wound.

  You almost threw up at the sight. The gash was deep and went from the front of his torso to the back.

  “All right, hold still,” you said, dowsing your hands in rubbing alcohol and soaking the wound with it as well.

  He hissed in pain and your shaky hands pressed sterile cloth against the wound to soak up the extra blood. You turned the light on from your phone and rested it on the ledge to hold it in place. You threw the dirty cloth aside and barely managed to get the thread through the hole of the needle as adrenaline ran through you.

  “Got it!” you whispered, immediately making a thick knot and placing down the needle. “We have to take this off.” You reached around, looking for the opening of his suit but his weak hands kept yours at bay.

  “No! Just work around it,” he ordered, barely managing to get the words out.

  “Spidey, I can’t do this without seeing the gash!” You tried to argue, keeping your voice as low as possible.

  “No, (Y/N),” he somehow fought back and you internally screamed at him, knowing you had no choice.

  “Fine!” You shouted and grabbed the area that was already torn and ripped it apart even more to get a better look at the wound.

  “Okay, this’ll hurt a little,” you warned and placed your hand against his ribcage to steady yourself while you stitched him up.

  The lights from the city disappeared all at once and you were surrounded by nothing but darkness, even your phone was gone. The only thing you could see was Spider-Man laying in front of you, the pain that was evident through his mask no longer there and he stared up at you in confusion as the place where you pressed against him radiated with a cooling touch. You looked down at your bare skin touching his torso and how it glowed with a yellowish hue.

  “What the hell is happening?” You asked, not being able to pry your hand from his body until all the blood had disappeared and the gash had closed. “What the fuck?” You asked incredulously, finally managing to get your hand back.

  “What are you doing?” You asked him but he gripped onto your wrist and looked around just as confused as you were.

  “This isn’t me,” he defended and stood up immediately to place you behind him in a defensive stance.

  Pitch black was all that surrounded you, you couldn’t even see the outline of the building around you nor the streetlights glowing. All you could see was the masked hero in front of you and you clung onto him in fear.

  Come find us.

  A voice echoed all around you, causing Spider-Man to turn in multiple directions, looking for the source of the noise. Your panic subsided as the voice lulled you, calling you forward. You stepped out behind Spider-Man and walked forward, somehow knowing that whoever was calling out to you meant no harm.

  Spider-Man grabbed at your wrist, his fingertips peeking through the tears on his suit and causing the same cooling sensation to erupt from your point of contact. He looked down at where he held onto you then back up to your eyes, realization dawning on him as to what was happening.

  “It’s you,” he said, his grip on your wrist tightening ever so slightly, “It’s always been you,”

  And your chest burst with emotions galore. That strong pull you’d felt whenever you’d hung out with him intensified by 3000 and it took all your strength not to throw yourself in his arms. Your body called for him, demanded him but you couldn’t just give yourself to him despite how desperately you wanted to.

  His grip loosed on your wrist but he pulled on your arm and you did exactly what you were trying to prevent from happening. You pressed your chest against his, loving how firm it felt on your own, and his hands rested on your waist, bringing you as close to him as possible. Your hands went up on their own accord and you found the hem of his mask, bringing it up just enough to expose his lips and he leaned in, holding you as tightly as he was holding on to this moment. A moment he’d waited so long for. And a moment you’d fantasized about over and over again, you just didn’t know it.

  His lips pressed against yours and you melted into the feeling. You wrapped your arms around his neck, shifting your head to mold your lips exactly to his and when you say that they fit together perfectly, you meant it. His lips danced against yours, moving in unison as heat radiated through your body to be replaced with the equivalent of a cooling breeze.

  Wind whipped violently around you, flailing your hair (unless you have short or curly hair then dismiss this) and smacking you in the face but you didn’t care. You immersed yourself in him, feeling his body flush against yours, his hands pressing your hips against his and then moving one hand up your back to grab your neck, making sure you couldn’t pull away.

  Memories flashed before your eyes, memories that weren’t your own. You saw you through his eyes. The affection and call he felt before you’d touched for the first time. You witnessed him get bitten by a radioactive spider and the first time Tony approached him. You lived his most important memories, all without ever seeing a face behind the mask. That was a decision the Gods’ wanted him to make.

  Come find us.

  The voice called again and both you and Spider-Man pulled away, out of breath from the overflow of magic upon meeting that made you both lunge at each other moments ago.

  He scanned your face over and over again, his arms still holding you to him desperately and the smile that sprawled onto his face made you want to see it for the rest of your life. When he finally managed to look away from you, he gasped at the sight above him.

  “Look,” he said, twisting you around and holding you from behind.

  Your heartrate accelerated as you brought your gaze up at the sky you’d waited so long to see. Your body shook in fear and anticipation and all the other wonderful things building up inside of you. You held your breath and looked up and the sight made your draw drop.

  It wasn’t like the stars you’d seen in pictures or movies. They didn’t look how anyone had described. They were so much more. The sky had an abundance of stars, with little empty space between them. You could see hundreds of thousands of balls of light and yet you could differentiate every single one of them. You instinctively knew which balls were planets and which were suns. There was a cloudy streak across the sky illuminated in blue and purple that looked like a vortex into another galaxy. You could see the belt clear as day with no strain or telescope required. Everything was accessible to you. Everything was known to you. You weren’t just seeing the stars you were perfectly and clearly seeing your galaxy.  You’d only seen photos like this once or twice in your lifetime and you figured they had to have been created by someone who could see everything that you could because this was magic at its finest. At its most raw and beautiful. And you fell in love with what the Gods had gifted you as it was truly a blessing.

  You somehow managed to pry your eyes from the sky and admire the man behind you who hadn’t yet built up the strength to pull his gaze away from the sight above.

  Spider-Man was your soulmate. The Spider-Man. Now all you needed to do was find out who the hell he was.

~

Tags : @wherewecomealive​ @theolwebshooter​ @watson-emma​ @le-yona​ @alainabooks143​ @dark-night-sky-99​ @myr5heart​ @the-ducks-umbrella​ @shameless-danni​ @powerstrangerdacre​ @whutisthus 

[kyber-kisses]

Hymn (Part 4)

Winchester Brothers x Sister!reader

Wanna start from the beginning? Here is the Masterlist!

Warnings: a good amount of feels and angst. . but there is fluff!

Summary: Y/N Winchester has wrestled with demons ever since her mother died, but when her younger brothers lives are in danger it’s their souls she fights to save, because isn’t that what a big sister should do? (Based on the song Hymn by Joel Porter) 

A/n: *Throws chapter at you and runs away* Have fun! (gif created by the lovely ellen-reincarnated1967)

“What do you think your doing?” Your voice slightly raising as you stepped back into the motel room, shutting the door softly behind you with a loud click.

“Definitely . . . Not jumping on the bed?” Dean tried, both him and Sam staring down at you from their perch on the nearest bed.

“Wow. I’m convinced.”

“It was Deans idea!” Sam quickly pointed, his little hand lightly smacking against Deans face as he did.

“I leave for three minutes and you guys go crazy? Now I know I can never leave you guys again, which is disappointing-“ you sighed. “Seeing as I was gonna give you guys this extra bag of funyuns.” You slowly pulled the bag out of your hoodie pocket, instantly making Dean freeze.

“Okay, wait we’re sorry.”

“Oh are you? I said no funny business while I was gone.”

“Yes! I’m sorry! Can we have them?” Dean was practically vibrating at this point, teetering on the edge of the mattress.

Narrowing your eyes, you let a silence fall between you before giving in and toss the bag onto the other bed. “Fine, go to town. No crumbs on the bed.” It didn't even take a second before the middle child was vaulting over the space between the beds and ripping the bag open.

Sam grimaced, not making a move from his spot at all. “Funyuns are gross.”

“Yeah, well that’s why I got you this-“ being a subtle as you could, you passed Sam the candy bar you had grabbed from the vending machine with a quick wink, his eyes lighting up as he grabbed it.

“Thanks, Y/N.”

“Yeah, don’t tell Dean.”

“I won’t.”

“Pinkie promise?”

He linked his small finger with yours. “I pinkie promise.”

*. *. *. *. *. *.

“Sam? . . . Sam!”

Suddenly snapping back into reality, Sam whipped his head around took at his brother. “What?”

“I’ve been talkin to you for the past five minutes, have you even heard a word that I’ve said?”

“. . .yes?”

“Wow, you are a terrible liar. What the hell were you even thinking about?”

Pressing his lips together the younger Winchester contemplated whether or not to say anything. You were always a risky topic . . . Especially to Dean, and seeing as his brother had been in a decent mood most of the drive he really didn’t want to take that away.

“Dude, seriously. Tell me what’s going on in that weird head of yours.” Flexing his hands on the steering wheel, Deans eyes bounced back between the road and Sam.

“Y/N. . . What else do you think I would be thinking about right now?”

Dean sucked in a breath before he nodded his head in understanding. “Wanna talk about it?”

“Not really. She’s gone. What’s it matter?”

He expected Dean to snap, lash out- like he did when they were younger and the wound still fresh, but instead he was silent. . . Only because he was trying to remember everything he could about his sister, both good and bad. He needed something to keep him grounded. For instance, You had been good at making people laugh, you’d take things in directions people wouldn’t expect- lewder, darker, more absurd— then ambush them into responding. Some of Deans humor stemmed from your own, he liked to think it was his way of keeping you close. Along with a love for old western movies and a passion for classic rock.

Happy thoughts. Just keep thinking happy thoughts, Dean. Just because Sam brought up Y/N does not mean you need to get bitter.

Turning his attention towards the radio, the hunter played with the volume until it was a soft hum that could easily be spoken over.

“You remember when Y/N used to play music in the mornings while Dad was gone on hunts?”

Sam let out a soft chuckle as confirmation. “You mean with that dinky old radio she got at a yard sale for like three bucks?”

“Yes! That’s the one!” Dean snapped his fingers, a grin tugging on his lips. “And it wasn’t even the good music we usually listened to in the car. . . It’s was like shitty upbeat soul and R&B.”

“You know she would probably smack you on top of the head if she heard you say that, right?”

“Yeah, probably-“ Dean chuckled, flicking on the turn signal as he turned onto a narrow two lane street. “Anyways you know how’d she dance around to it too? For like the soul purpose of embarrassing is even though there was no one else around?”

“Yeah, and she couldn’t dance worth a shit.” Sam added, smiling as he slowly began to remember.You were always doing stuff to get them to smile or laugh because you knew that in a lifestyle as dark as your families, you needed to keep something lit.

The rest of the drive felt lighter. . . Easier after that small conversation. Even after decades of absence you somehow still managed to put smiles on their faces.Still working hard even in death.

And then Dean pulled into the cemetery and that light and happy feeling he had had moments ago flickered and faded like a dying candle and he could feel his insides slowly beginning to twist as his face dropped. He turned off the engine and barely got two steps from the car before the feeling was too much and it felt like he was being crushed.

“Dean?”

“You know what? On second though this was a terrible idea. Why did we do this? We shouldn’t have done this. Why the fuck did I suggest this?” He quickly rambled, backing towards the car and reaching for the keys again. “Let’s- lets just go home and forget I ever suggested visiting this place-“

The older Winchester didn’t get very far before his brother was letting out a sigh and pushing him forward again. “We drove all this way. You’re not backing out now.”

“Sam-“

“Dude, we both agreed we would do this. Let’s start with just a minute and go from there.”

There was silence for a moment before Dean huffed and stopped resisting his brothers pushing. He felt like a kid again coming back here. Hell the last time he had been here he still was one. Even though they never found a body, their dad was decent enough to pay for a headstone, a place to come back to.

And then they never did.

The cemetery was cool, dew still on the grass as the morning sun began to peak through the trees and light haze. The place was empty except for them. . . Because who visits a cemetery at 6:30 in the morning? Dean sucked in another breath of fresh air, jamming his hands into his pockets despite it growing warmer out as the sun began to rise.

“You know, we probably should have brought mom with us. It’s kinda a dick move on our part to do this and not tell her.” Dean grumbled, eyes already glued on the headstone ahead.

“She’s still on that hunt with Jody. I didn’t really want to bother her.”

“Oh yeah, you’re totally right.” Dean snarked. “Would hate to remind good ol’ mom that her first born has a headstone right next to hers.”

“Why are you being such a dick? You suggested we visit.”

“It’s nothing, Sam. Just drop it.”

Gripping his brothers shoulder suddenly, Sam halted Dean in his tracks. “Nice try. Tell me what’s going on. You were fine ten minutes ago.”

Dean gnawed on the inside of his cheek for a moment before letting another sigh sleep through his lips. “Do you remember that case we worked a few weeks ago with the psycho spirit that caught us?”

“You mean reverend Johnson? Yeah, why?”

“I keep thinking about what he said-“

“Dean, he was a vengeful spirit. He was crazy.” Sam shook his head, dropping his hand from his shoulder. But Dean squeezes his eyes shut as if trying to forget. The words from the reverend still banging around inside his skull. Bad guys really needed to stop it with their monologues.

“What I’ve seen is that the lord provides for those who need it. If you don’t have something, that generally means you don’t need it, or you don’t deserve it.”

At first it had made perfect sense and Dean had just gone with it. He didn’t have his sister because he didn’t deserve to have one.

But then again, by that logic, they didn’t deserve a home when they were younger, and they didn’t deserve to love their sister and be safe. Y/N didn’t deserve her life.

“You’re right.” Dean nodded, in hopes of getting Sam to back off. “You’re right. Dude was crazy. Just hard to get those fuckin words out of my head.” He mumbled, the two of them somehow turning in unison to look at your headstone a few yards away.

It was like the granite slab was staring them both down. The two brothers both afraid to get closer. . . Because to Dean it was like having to face the truth all over again. You were gone. Here reality was set in stone (Pun intended). But then his legs were moving before his brain was and he was kneeling down the wipe the dirt and dust away from your name, calloused fingers smoothing over the engraved letters.

“Why’d you have to go be a hero, huh?” He whispered under his breath, feeling the sudden and familiar sting of on oncoming tears.

He could remember it all so clearly still, how you had thrust your rifle into his hands and quickly tugged on your oversized canvas jacket. How the wind had whipped at your partially pulled up hair when you swung the door to the motel room open. How you told them you’d be back and then never were. Dean wondered if you would still be the same now. Back then he was still too small for his flannels and still wasn’t sure how to aim a gun properly. If you were still alive what would you have looked like now? Would you be taller? Would your hair be longer? . . . And would you have recognized what he and Sam had become?

Would you recognize them at all?

“We shoulda brought flowers or something.” He mumbled, picking the few stray weeds that had grown around the base of the stone. He was fidgeting. He did that when he was uncomfortable.

“We can always go get some. We ain’t too far outside of town.”

Dean mumbled a soft I guess as he rested his chin on his knee, arms looping tightly around his leg as if trying to mimic a hug.

“I think I’m gonna call mom. She would want to be with us for the next stop we make. . . We can always come back here too if she really wants.” Sam spoke up, extending a hand to help pull his brother up.

“Do what you think is right or whatever. I’ll be in the car.” rising to his feet, Dean wiped the dirt from his hands onto the front of his jeans. If he stayed here another minute he was bound to start crying. As He began the trek back through the maze of headstones, his fingers absentmindedly tugged on the piece of fabric on his wrist. The bit of flannel gave him a sense of comfort, because sometimes a bit of cloth could feel like love, and that was all he really wanted right now. It was one of those moments in which he realized how many things he had lost that mattered. Dad. Bobby. Y/N. Sure he had lost mom, but she was back. The rest were still gone.

All he wanted was the chance to see Y/N again, to hear her say I missed you, and I've come home.

SPN Taglist:

@familybusinesswritingbro​​​​​​​​@a–1–1–3 @awesome-badass-cafeteria-sauce​​​​​​​​ @music-is-all-i-need @agusdoti​​​​​​​ @callmekda​​​​​​​​ @jordangdelacruz​​​​​​​ @orphiceseum​​​​​​​ @andthatsmyworld​​​​​​​ @marvelfangirllll​​​​​​​​ @fandomnerdespressourself​​​​​​​​ @gladiosamicitias​​​​​​​ @castielsangelsx​​​​​​​ @lxstgxrl-ck​​​​​​​ @tis-i-the-wayward-idgit @amendoise @phoenixuprisingsstuff​​​​​​​ @ericalynne007 @kaitlaitlaitl​​​​​​​​  @totallyluciferr​​​​​​​​ @supernaturalenchanted​​​​​​​​ @dolanfivsosxox​​​​​​​@supernatural-ocs @emptycanvasposts​​​​​​​ @akshi8278​ @defenderrosetyler​​​​​​​​ @heyyy-hey-babyyy​​​​​​​ @idksupernatural​​​​​​​​ @vicmc624 @all-will-be-well-love@busy-bee-angel-misska @starsandmidnightblue​​​​​​​​ @lilulo-12fanfiction​ @beanie-beebo​​​​​​​​ @xoxoaudreymarie​​​​​​​​ @greenarrowhead​​​​​​​​ @mrsjenniferwinchester​​​​​​​​  @mysticalfuncollectorus​​​​​​​ @brebolin​​​​​​​ @biahblue​​​​​​​ @noahandthegiraffe​​​​

HYMN Taglist:

@biahblue​​​ @brebolin​​​ @noahandthegiraffe​​​ @psych0crybaby​ @beetears​​​ @supernaturalenchanted​​​ @skyelikestowrite @leej2468​ @vicmc624​ @let-me-luve-you​​ @lilwinchester67​

[1-800-roflmao]

Wash Day Delight Pt. 3

Rating:  General Audiences

WARNINGS:  None

Fandom:  Undertale (Video Game)

Relationships:  Papyrus (Undertale)/Reader, Papyrus (Undertale) & Reader,  Papyrus (Underfell) & Reader

Characters:  Papyrus (Undertale), Reader, Edge (UF Pap), and Mentions of Other AU Skeletons

Additional Tags:  Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Reader Is Not Chara (Undertale), reader is poc, Reader has curly hair,  Undertale Monsters on the Surface, Friendship, Wholesome, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, I'm Bad At Summaries, Not Beta Read, Romance if you squint, Subtext, Let Papyrus be Sassy, Edge Is The Unwilling Dad Friend, Idiots in Love, Fluff and Humor, Slice of Life

*I was vague with reader's scent on purpose. Some of use love coconut milk or oil or Shea butter, but it's not universal. I like Manuka honey blends~

And it's always the bra that get ditched first!

PREVIOUS || FIRST || NEXT

“So, what took so long with Mrs. Ida?” She had just finished locking up the house and they were now descending the back staircase.  It had been a mad dash to get finished and out the door since she flustered Papyrus in the bathroom.  If it was petty vengeance for teasing him, she didn’t know, but he had threatened to carry her out in a much similar way to how he does with Sans if she didn’t “MAKE HASTE.”  Needless to say, she hadn’t been given a moment until now to inquire what had happened earlier that evening.  “I was startin’ ta wonder if you’d gotten lost…” she mumbled, her tone giving away just how worried she had been despite trying to joke it off now.  She could hear him lightly click his teeth in acknowledgement.  

“Mrs. Ida Had Not Driven Here,” he started and she arched a brow before chuckling as it clicked.  How had she not considered a woman of Ida’s age might not drive?  Would it have been presumptuous to have asked though?  “She Had Said She ‘Caught’ A Cab, But Not Literally,” he was rambling a bit, but she wasn't complaining.  She lifted her gaze from the paved pathway they were walking along and up to her friend.  She could hear an edge of bashfulness to his voice as he admitted the old woman taught him about “euphemisms.”  His retelling was quickly veering off into a tangent, ranging from complaining and praising the many different facets of language to pondering if it was worth getting his brother some study materials.  He griped it was a fifty-fifty chance to either improve his jokes and puns, or make them so much worse.  

“Oh, I think it’d be worth it!” she piped up, looking away as he cut off his rant and directed his gaze down at her.  She didn’t need to look at him right now.  She could very easily guess his expression and just knew those sockets of his were narrowing as he sent her a suspicious look.  

A beat of silence then “THEN I WILL LEAVE SANS ALONE.” 

She fought back a giggle, “Aw, c’mon!  Don’t you want his puns to be up to your standards?”  She tipped her head back as she directed a cheeky grin his way.  

Papyrus just huffed, crossing his arms over his chest which was now missing the pastel sweater from earlier.  He had taken it off before they left the house to reveal his “Jog Boy” top.  “IT IS OBVIOUS YOU ARE HOPING FOR THE OPPOSITE!” he rebuked, “AND DON’T EVEN TRY TO ARGUE. I KNOW YOU TOO WELL! BEST. FRIEND.”  He emphasized those last two words like it was the most solid evidence to ever exist.  

With a little defeated shrug of her shoulders, she blew a raspberry his way.  “Fiiiine,” she drug out the word, “But you know you love his jokes and puns anyways.”  A frustrated noise hissed past his teeth as he shamefully agreed.  “Soooo, going off that logic…” she started, a devious curl to her lips and twinkle in her eyes as she moved in front the skeleton.  “Wouldn’t you love his jokes EVEN MORE if they got WORSE?” she pushed, brows waggling as she watched Papyrus freeze, his mind working through what she just said.  Once his mind finally wrapped around her hypothesis, he gripped his skull, falling to his knees, and let out possibly the most anguished, dramatic scream.  Apparently, he couldn't find fault with his human friend’s absurd logic.

○●○●○●○●○

     The temperature outside had dropped once again in such little time and despite the slight chill, she couldn’t feel any of it.  It would be a miracle at this point if she could.  No, she’d be thankful to as it would mean she wouldn’t be having the workout from hell right now.   Maybe she had teased him a wee bit too much.  

“Paaaapiiiii!” she griped, surprised she could even get out a whine that long considering she could barely catch her breath, “I said! I was-!”  What was supposed to be an easy jog had turned a into suicide run.  “SORRY!”  Papyrus was behind her setting the pace and any time she slowed too much, he would pinch or smack whatever part of her he could reach at that moment.  So far, her left butt cheek had felt the brunt of it along with her upper thighs.  

“FOCUS!  CONTROL YOUR BREATHING, HUMAN!” he snapped, ignoring her plea,  and she wondered briefly if maybe Edge had snuck up and taken her normally gentle friend’s place.  A pinch on her elbow had her picking up her pace and focusing on the now.  She had already learned she wasn’t allowed to look back, plus it didn’t help any with balance or keeping pace.  “LOOK!  THERE IS YOUR GOAL ONLY A FEW MORE STEPS UP AHEAD!”  Curse him for not even sounding out of breath.  She knew these skeletons don’t technically need to breathe, but at least huff a bit or something in sympathy here.  

Papyrus had not been lying though.  Just one more block down was the gym, or as she thought of it: her salvation.  Zeroing in on the building that was getting closer and closer, she focused on her breathing to bring it down from frantic pants to something more disciplined: slower and deeper.  It was a strange feeling as her mind calmed.  Heh, maybe her old coach had a point when he said the human body can do a lot more than the mind thinks.  

“START SLOWING DOWN,” she gratefully followed the order and began easing her pace, but aware of him behind her still setting the pace.  She supposed one day she would be grateful to him for not letting her come to a dead stop.  Today, in this moment, she wasn’t as the slow ease of the pace was almost as tortuous as the marathon she had been forced to run.  “WE’VE ARRIVED.  YOU CAN REST NOW.” He didn’t need to say it twice as the young woman nearly crumpled before the doors of the gym.  Bent over with hands on splayed knees as she sucked in air like it was going to get away.  She could feel a large hand rubbing her back and was aware that Papyrus was saying something, possibly praises or encouragements, but she could barely hear over the rush of blood, her pounding heart that seemed so much louder and next to her ears, and her puffs that were thankfully slowing as she caught her breath.  

○●○●○●○●○

Papyrus felt just a little guilty as he watched his friend recover from their run, but not enough to apologize.  He kept rubbing soothing circles onto her hunched back.  “AMAZING WHAT WE CAN ACCOMPLISH WHEN WE PUSH OURSELVES,” he gently pushed at her spine, encouraging her to straighten it rather than bowing.  He had a feeling she wasn’t hearing a word he was saying, but continued to sing her praises as he opened his dimensional box and took out a bottle of water.  “LOOK AT THE BRIGHT SIDE! YOU ALREADY HIT YOUR HEART RATE GOAL FOR TONIGHT AND WE CAN WALK BACK,” he cracked the cap on the bottle.  He couldn’t hear her gasping for breath anymore, but she was still hunched over.  “COME ON,  WE STILL-”

“I THOUGHT I RECOGNIZED THAT UNCEASING CHEER,” a new voice cut in, one he recognized as well.  Looking up from his friend, he spotted the pricklier version of himself leaning out the doors of the gym.  Edge’s narrow sockets stared the two of them down, but he felt no ire from the other, just curiosity and some irritation.  

“OH, WELL HELLO, EDGE,” he greeted as cheerfully as he could despite the mounting confusion he was feeling.  He could feel his friend tense for a moment beneath his hand before relaxing again.  Her heart rate had slowed to normal by now, but had picked up just a bit at the mention of Edge.  “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” If he remembered correctly, his fell counterpart usually didn’t work out this particular day, or at least not at night.  

Edge only huffed as he finally stepped fully outside and marched up to his doppelganger.  “WHAT DO YOU THINK?” he snipped, arms crossed as he came to a stop just a few feet from the two.  

Oh, how hard Papyrus’s eyelights would have rolled if he had them.  “OH, I DON’T KNOW, BUT SINCE YOU ASKED SO NICELY!” he started, hand lifting to tap a phalange against his chin in feigned thought.  “AHA!  YOU HAVE FINALLY DECIDED TO VISIT THE CHIROPRACTOR WHO WORKS TONIGHT AND GET THAT ATTITUDE STRAIGHTENED UP!” he declared with utmost confidence, somehow managing to sound sincerely elated in a way only Papyrus could.

 A silent staredown ensued as Papyrus just kept smiling brightly in feigned innocence.  He could see that Edge wanted to be mad at him, but couldn’t hide that little proud quirk of his sharp fangs.  The moment was broken as his friend brought attention back to herself with a poorly smothered laugh.  

○●○●○●○●○

She had been quiet through the entire encounter.  Hearing Edge’s voice after just wondering about him during that hellish run had her wondering if she had somehow summoned him with just a single thought.  She took a moment to pray to whatever gods or deities were out there to take mercy on her.  She would hold back on the teasing and being a little shit, just no more torture tonight.  Maybe if she stays real quiet, she could avoid getting Edge’s attention and lessen her chances of irreparable damage.

That all went out the window as a little snort pushed past her lips.  Leave it to Papyrus to sass one of the pointiest, scary-looking monsters around.  “I need to know where you get that audacity from,” she didn’t bother trying to contain the laugh anymore as she straightened up with a roll of her shoulders, “I could use some of it.”

Both skeletons huffed at that, but it was Edge who spoke up first, “YOU HAVE PLENTY OF IT ALREADY, BRAT.”  

Papyrus nodded along, “ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING YOUR BEHAVIOR TONIGHT.”

She pouted, parting her lips to argue, but froze as Edge had uncrossed his arms with an appraising look sent her way.  

“OH?  AND JUST WHAT HAS SHE DONE?” Edge questioned, voice full of amusement as he watched the human between them shake her head and send a pleading look to Papyrus.  She was begging with just her eyes for him to not throw her under the bus. No such luck as he began filling Edge in on all her teasing and poking fun that night.  He decided to add on that she had been running late at that.  

Throughout it all, Edge was prowling closer and closer until he was practically invading her space.  He must have already been working out when they came since she could smell something spicy, like cinnamon, with just a little musk wafting from him once he was close enough.  Usually he was very keen on making sure his scent was barely noticeable, especially after the first time she commented on it.  It hadn’t been a bad comment.  It smelled quite nice, just like now, but since then she only got lucky to get a whiff here and there.  As much as she wanted to take a step back, she stubbornly kept eye contact and straightened up even more.  

“BUT SHE DID RUN ALL THE WAY HERE. NONSTOP,” Papyrus had finished his recount with her most recent accomplishment.  She let herself feel proud as she watched Edge’s cruel smile soften just a bit with awe and pride.  With how close he was though, she could practically feel the rumble as he hummed thoughtfully.  

“Then I Guess She Has Earned Forgiveness,” his voice should not be allowed to be at that volume.  It still had that scratchy quality to it, but the low volume just increased that damnable rumbling that was causing warmth to bloom in her chest and hopefully not on her face.  “BUT,” she gulped as that cruel lilt returned and he leaned in, “WHY STOP THERE?” No.  “I THINK IT’S TIME WE HELP OUR FRIEND LEARN WHAT HER NEW LIMITS ARE.  AREN’T YOU CURIOUS, BRAT?” No, no she was not.  

In a last ditch effort to get out this, she leaned to look pleadingly at Papyrus, but he wasn’t even paying her any mind as he seemed to be pondering something.  One foot was tapping as he rested an elbow in the palm of his opposing arm’s hand.  A water bottle was pinned between his arm and chest.  A distal phalange tapped away at his temple as he hummed.  Sockets squinted for the few moments he took to think it over.  Hope bloomed as he finally looked to them with that signature toothy grin of his.  “GREAT IDEA, EDGE!”  How quickly hope shattered.     

○●○●○●○●○

~THREE HOURS LATER~

○●○●○●○●○

“I hate you both…” the words lacked energy and any true vitriol.  She couldn’t even muster the energy to feel any shame or shyness pertaining to her current predicament.  She was now aware of muscles she never knew she had and she was sure the next morning would be hell.  Would she even be able to move tomorrow?  These two had done just what they promised and pushed her to find new limits, but the cost was her ability to pretty much function on her own.  Her legs were like jelly and her arms were just barely listening to her.  Her core wasn’t putting up a fuss right now, but she knew it was coming.  Hopefully it wouldn’t be too bad as the two had made sure she drank water, stretched, and did cool downs.   

Papyrus had taken pity on her when he saw her physical state and insisted he carry her.  He had won despite her stubborn efforts to stand and walk in the locker room afterwards.  Edge had even chided her, telling her to quit being fussy, and just accept the help or crawl.  She doubted he would have actually let her crawl out the gym. 

“We Know You Don’t Mean That,” one of her tormentors answered with a far too jovial tone.  The other just snickered off to her left and feeling contrary, she turned her face the opposite way, which ended up with her pretty much nuzzling into Papyrus’s neck as he was currently carrying her piggyback.  Rather than looping his arms under her knees and holding her that way, he had gone with braiding his fingers behind his back and letting her pretty much sit on his palms.   His arms kept her legs pinned to his sides.  He was bent forward slightly which kept her from having to hold on as tightly and instead just lay against his back.  

An indignant huff was the only answer she graced them with.   She could feel Papyrus’s little laugh more than hear it as it caused her to bounce gently on his back.  Meanwhile, the smell of sweet mint and citrus invaded her senses from where her face was tucked.  It was honestly a little unfair how these skeletons could smell so good after a hard workout.  She hoped she didn’t stink… 

A sharp distal poked her shoulder and stubbornly she ignored its owner.  The pokes continued until finally it was just stabbing into her already sore flesh and she gave in, rolling to face the sharp skeleton once more.  To her surprise, a banana was currently being held right in front of her face.  It had already been partially peeled.  She blinked and it was still there.  “A banana?” she mumbled, mentally slapping herself for stating the obvious.

Edge snickered, “AT LEAST THAT MUSCLE IN YOUR HEAD IS STILL SOMEWHAT VIABLE.”  His humor had always been drier than the Sahara and now was no exception.  Any witness would have thought he was beating a dog that was already down.

“If you’re talking about my brain, it’s actually made of fat,” she replied, just as dry and resting her cheek against Papyrus’s shoulder.  For a skeleton, he was surprisingly comfy and his easy pace was gradually rocking her to sleep.  Said skeleton made a noise best described as a “SNRK!” not long after what she said.  Edge had only released a drawn out sigh.  At least one of them appreciated her humor.  

“JUST EAT THE DAMN BANANA, YOU BRAT,” he moved it closer insistently, looking and sounding very much like a tired mom trying to get her child to eat the last piece of broccoli on their plate.  

A pause then, “No.”  

“NO?” 

“No.”

“WHY?”

“Where did you even get a banana from?”

“I HAD IT.”

“So, you just carry around a banana all the time?”

“NO, YOU DISCOUNT KAOLA.”

“Awww, and here I thought I was an upgrade.”

“QUIT TRYING TO DIVERT THE CONVERSATION AND EAT IT.”

“Fine… but only if you tell me why I should.”

Edge sucked in an unneeded breath as he nearly vibrated in irritation.  He took a moment to calm before gritting out, "FINE."  She was just a little impressed he had an answer.  “POTASSIUM IS SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD FOR EASING AND PREVENTING CRAMPS.  BANANAS, I READ, APPARENTLY CONTAIN IT.  THUS EATING IT SHOULD HELP YOU BE LESS OF A USELESS LUMP TOMORROW,” he explained, concise and leaving no room for argument, “AND QUIT YOUR LAUGHING, CREAMPUFF.  YOU’RE NOT HELPING THE MATTER.”  Her sleepy, tired brain processed the information and found no fault.  A memory of an old movie where the parents were shrunk and the kids were left on their own came to mind as she remembered it mentioning something about bananas and potassium as well.   

“Okay, you win,” she conceded, chuckling quietly as the scarred skeleton sighed in relief.  Edge had far more patience than most give him credit for.  At one point in the past, he would have just shoved the fruit in her mouth or just stormed off, but now he was willing to put up with the back and forth.  Maybe he actually enjoyed banter?  Earlier, he seemed to be proud of Papyrus’s sass.  

Sleepy and not thinking, she leaned forward and took a bite of the banana.  It was just at the right ripeness she noted as she chewed contentedly.  She didn’t notice how quiet either skeleton was or that they had come to stop before a black classic Ford Mustang.

○●○●○●○●○

Edge’s mind had blanked as he watched the scene play out.  This human, rather than simply taking the fruit from his hand and eating it normally, had instead leaned forward slowly and carefully.  There was a little sway to her movement, a little shake in her arms as she curled her fingers tighter in to the Creampuff’s shirt to steady herself, and he instinctively brought up his free hand to hover near her just in case.  “WATCH WH-what you...” his words faded out as she finally reached the fruit and took a small bite.  To top it off, she was doing that absurdly cute little wiggle and hum that human women seemed to commonly do when they ate something they liked.  

“I Can Just Feel The Cavities Forming…” he grumbled under his breath, diverting his eyes from her and her adorable display before a blush could rise.  Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his doppelganger sending him a sly look and he didn’t bother suppressing a growl.  It was cut off as he felt her taking another bite.  “WOULD YOU JUST HOLD IT?” he snapped.  

“But I’ve got to hold on,” she had mumbled in reply after swallowing her last bite, “And you told me to eat it.  You didn’t tell me how.”  He resisted the urge to pinch her nose for that smart remark and just sucked in a deep breath before slowly releasing.  

“She Makes A Good Point,” his softer counterpart imputted.

Edge could only level a deadpan stare on his duplicate, “NOT. HELPING.”  Papyrus had the nerve to laugh and the woman resting against his back giggled as she bounced due to it.  Shaking his head, he fished his keys from his black joggers’ pockets and unlocked the driver’s side door.  Before he got too far, he pushed the banana into the young woman’s hand with a quick order to hold on to it since he needed both his hands.  He swiftly put down the seat so the back seat could be accessed.  While he was sure Papyrus wouldn’t mind her riding in his lap on the way home, he didn’t think he could take anymore public displays of affection tonight.  No matter how platonic they are.  

“Alright, Get In The Backseat,” he ordered as he moved to the side.  He pinched at his nose ridge as he watched Papyrus move to get in the back with her, “NOT YOU. HER. JUST HER.”  There was no room for argument and no matter how much the Creampuff looked like a puppy that just had its treat stolen, he wasn’t giving in.  Thankfully, the woman’s little head pats she placed on his skull seemed to appease him.  Wait, how was she- oh.  He held in a snicker at the ridiculous image she presented.  She had freed up one of her hands by holding the banana in her mouth, while her other still gripped at his shirt.  A good sign she had some of her strength back at least.

○●○●○●○●○

Papyrus had at first been annoyed at the thought of Edge butting in on their hang out time, but had warmed up to it rather quickly.  Plus, Edge had informed them that he had missed his usual work time session the day before due to an emergency at his restaraunt.  It truly was coincidence.  It had been fun and having Edge there kept him from going soft on her tonight.  It was honestly amusing how she’d gripe and moan and beg, but would push through through the sets and exercises anyway.  He’d seen a new side to her as Edge decided to poke at her pride during weight lifting and she had lifted more in that deadlift than he could have ever expected.  She’d said it had been fueled by “pure spite” at that moment and not to expect it as the norm.  They had new bars set and she’d be less peeved at them when she saw how far she had come along.

Afterwards, it had been decided they would take Edge’s car back to her house, rather than parting ways.  While he wasn’t feeling it nearly as intensely as his companion currently resting on his back, he had been pushing himself as well to be fair.  Edge, being as observant as ever, had noticed.   He couldn’t argue against the logic that it wasn’t a good or safe idea for an exhausted monster and person of color to walk home this late.  By now, Sixth Street should be bustling with life and sometimes a few strays wander down teh other streets.  They’re not always trouble, but why risk it?  

With her this close, he was surrounded by her scent.  Mostly her hair products, but he could smell the musk of her sweat as well and sweet lotion.  It wasn’t bad, but he knew not to comment on it either way.  He was sure she could smell him and he just hoped she didn’t mind.   She hadn’t pulled away at any point or complained so maybe he was safe.  He kept one gripe to himself about tonight.  At this moment, if she had kept her hair down, those curls would be touching his face and neck.  A sorely missed opportunity.

Her and Edge had bickered most the way and he had valiantly tried not laugh, only to fail in the end.  It was just such ridiculous little diatribes.  It was all so cute, Edge included, but now they had reached his car and he’d have to put her down. 

She was currently petting his skull in an effort to comfort and it was working.  Her cheek still rested against his shoulder with her lips wrapped around the banana, just holding it in her mouth.  Her free hand that wasn’t gripped his shirt had stopped the gentle petting motion and now just rested her palm against the top of his skull.  He could feel one of her fingers just rubbing in a slow circle.  Now, that just isn’t fair-

“I WILL HAVE DUSTED BY TIME YOU TWO DECIDE TO FINISH WITH THIS,” his doppelganger snipped with an irritated huff and jerk of his hand to the back seat once again.  “EITHER PUT HER DOWN OR I WILL CONFISCATE HER MYSELF,” he threatened, his already sharp sockets narrowing further as his sharp teeth tipped up at the edges.  

Papyrus didn’t know if he should be impressed the other had not threatened to just leave them or flustered at his counterpart's subtext.  He would leave those thoughts for later.  For now, he crouched down carefully and with Edge’s help, they helped their companion off his back and into the seat.  By the time he made it around the vehicle and settled into the passenger’s seat, Edge was already seated in the driver’s side and in the rear view he could his friend eating with ease.  He called her name and she looked up curiously, still chewing her last bite, “Do You Need Require Any Water At The Moment?”  

She just shook her head and swallowed her mouthfull, “Not unless that water is part of a shower.”  

“A Shower Does Sound Nice Right Now,” he agreed.  He could hear Edge grunting in agreement as he turned the key in the ignition and put the car into gear.  The engine roared to life and the dash board lit up, showing off the upgrades Edge had done to the classic model.  It wasn’t long before they pulling out the spot and onto the road, heading back to her little abode on Eighth Street.  

“Human,” the sharper of the two skeletons called and glanced into the mirror to check if she was paying attention, “Hopefully, You Do Not Plan To Work Tomorrow After Tonight.”  It should have been a question, but it sounded more like a command.  

“I Have To Agree With My Cousin On This,” Papyrus piped in as he saw her looking like she wanted to argue.  She pursed her lips as he kept talking, “You’ll Be Dreadfully Sore Tomorrow Most Likely.”  

“And I wonder whose fault that is,” she didn’t hesitate with a little click of her tongue.  Papyrus atleast had the shame to wince, but beat down the guilt as their driver sent him a sharp look.  A look that said don’t back down.  

“No Matter Who's At Fault Here,” Edge started, coming to a stop at a four way and putting on his blinker.  Sharp red eyelights lit in his sockets and locked with the young woman’s gaze in the mirror.  “Your Body Still Needs Rest.  Doing Anything Other That Tomorrow Would Only Be Punishing Yourself For No Good Reason,” he scolded and gave her a moment to nod and voice her understanding before extinguishing his eyelights.  

The rest of the car ride was void of chatter as Edge put on some soft music and his passengers fought off sleep.  One because the trip was too short to provide a decent nap and would just result him being groggy.  The other because she was now responsible for an empty banana peel and she’d rather not drop it on any part of this vehicle that felt far too expensive for her to be sitting in. 

○●○●○●○●○

Finally, Edge was pulling the black Mustang over and parking just infront Papyrus’s red Ferrari.  She swears these two just visiting the area raised property values.  She scooted closer to Edge’s side as he got out and started putting down the seat.  Once it was down, she took Edge’s offered hand and let him help her out.  She was happy to see she could stand again, but that didn’t say anything about the stairs she needed to climb.  Even ground was one thing, but an incline… she may be crawling to bed after all. 

“Do You Think You Can Make It OR-?” her sharp friend started to question, but let the rest hang for her to fill in.  Despite how prickly he could be, he was honestly a sweetheart once you earned his trust.  

“Well…” she trailed off as Papyrus cleared his nonexistent throat and made his presence known once again.  One glance at him and she felt like smacking herself for almost forgetting.  “Oh right, Papi, you left your sweater inside,” she laughed, “You’re lucky, I could use another comfy sweater to add to my collection.”   There were a few of the skeletons whose sweaters she’d love to steal; namely, the lazier of the brothers had the prime specimens.

Papyrus just shook his head, “Maybe Asking Nicely Would Get You Better Results,” he adminished.  

Is that so? “Pretty please, can I keep your sweater?” she went for it with a hopeful smile, which was quickly dashed as he cackled softly with a dry “NO.”  She could even hear Edge snorting as he stifled a laugh behind his fist.  If she had the energy, she’d whine a bit, but her bed was calling her.  Turning her attention back to Edge, she nodded, “Thanks for joining us tonight.  It was fun.”  After a moment, she added one last thought, “You should join us more often.”  She meant it.  Even if the workout had been harder than she was used to, it was nice to have someone who knew how to push her buttons and get her to push herself.  

Edge’s sharp visage softened just slightly and he sent her an appreciative smile, nodding.  “Maybe I Will.”

○●○●○●○●○

It had been a blessing that Papyrus needed to get his sweater from the apartment as she had nearly crumpled going up the stairs.  The poor skeleton had been fretting about her something fierce and ended up just carrying her up the stairs as watching her struggle had apparently been too stressful.  It had taken plenty coaxing and reassuring that she would be fine and wouldn’t be completely helpless on her own.  He’d made her pinky promise to not shower or bathe tonight as he didn’t trust her to not slip and fall or fall asleep and drown.  He’d ordered her to bed immediately and she wasn’t arguing.  That had been an order from the heavens.  

She’d wasted no time after sharing a hug goodbye and he was on his way down the stairs to lock up and draw her curtains.  She’d shed her clothes like a snake once she had stepped foot in her room.  A trail of clothes, starting with her bra and ending with her socks and shoes now stretched across her floor.  She didn’t bother finding a night shirt and simply face planted on her bed with relieved sigh as the cool sheets and comforter kissed her bare skin.  

She wasn’t too worried about going to bed sweaty.  She’d decided on the way home to have a  wash day tomorrow.  It’s been due, but now with this workout, it was definitely needed.   She could just enjoy pampering her body, hair, and scalp.  A nice little spa day.  She could change and wash her sheets then as well, so no harm done.  

Her phone buzzing from somewhere in her room barely registered with her.  It wasn’t until it buzzed a few more times that she forced herself to sit up and look around her dark room for the infernal device.  It needed to be plugged up anyway now that she remembers.  Spotting the phone on the floor near her abandoned clothes, she slid off her bed and scooped it up.  Tapping the screen, she winced as it lit up and quickly lowered the brightness.  

No longer in danger of being blinded, she saw the notifications from earlier that she had forgotten to check and a few new ones.  Some were junk, but most were messages from friends, family, and one for work.  She would reply to the work one tomorrow when she has a fresh mind and it was a decent hour.  She rolled her eyes good naturedly as she opened a message from Papyrus.  

 

Papaya:  REMEMBER TO REST TOMORROW.  GOOD NIGHT!

Papaya:  WHY ARE YOU NOT SLEEPING?!  

Papaya:  PUT DOWN THE PHONE AND GO TO BED!

Papaya:  I KNOW IT’S A DIFFICULT THING TO DO WHEN YOU HAVE A TXTING BUDDY AS GREAT AS ME!!

Papaya:  BUT YOU MUST. 

 

    A little snort burst past her lips as the messages kept coming in, all along the same note.  She tapped the little text box and sent him a quick little message:

 

Flooffie:  Pot calling the kettle black

Flooffie:  XP

 

    Closing the convo as she saw him typing, she breezed through the rest of her texts.  She sent quick little replies where needed, but most turned out to be bad puns and one liners from the jokesters of the family.  Coffee had sent her a cute little doodle he had made her with a note saying he’d like to see that hairstyle on her.  It was cute.  She sent him a couple heart emojis and a thumbs up.  She could type a thought out reply tomorrow.  Switching her phone to silent, she plugged it up and crawled back into bed.  It seemed her head had barely hit her pillows before sleep swept her under.  

[thelittlesttimelord]

The Littlest Timelord: The New Doctor Chapter 6

TITLE: The Littlest Timelord: The New Doctor Chapter 6 PAIRING: No Pairing RATING: T CHAPTER: 6/? SUMMARY: With the Doctor newly regenerated, he and Elise must now navigate their new relationship. The Doctor is an old man and Elise is a headstrong young woman. She is no longer the scared little girl the Doctor saved all those years ago. Will Clara be able to keep them from killing each other?

“That was weird,” Clara said as they walked down the eyestalk.

“You've seen nothing yet,” the Doctor told her.

“What are the lights?”

“Visual impulses travelling towards the brain.”

“Beautiful.”

“Welcome to the most dangerous place in the universe.”

“Entering the cranial ledge now,” Journey said.

They stepped out of the eyestalk.

“Oh, my God,” Clara breathed.

Below them was the body of the Dalek.

Elise had never seen the inside of a Dalek before, but it didn’t change her thoughts on them.

“Behold, the belly of the beast,” the Doctor said.

“It's amazing.”

“It's huge,” one of the soldiers said.

“No, Ross. We're tiny,” another corrected them.

“So how big is it, that living part, compared to me and you, right now?” Clara asked.

“You see all those cables?” the Doctor asked her.

“Yeah.”

“They're not all cables.” The Doctor made a gesture with his hands like tentacles shooting out, making Clara and Elise laugh. Maybe her father was still in there somewhere. Maybe.

“Does it know we're here?” Ross asked.

“It's what invited us in,” Journey said.

The Doctor started walking around explaining things. “Now, this is the cortex vault, a supplementary electronic brain. Memory banks, but more than that. This is what keeps the Dalek pure.”

“How are Daleks pure?” the female soldier asked.

“Dalek mutants are born hating. This is what stokes the fire, extinguishes even the tiniest glimmer of kindness or compassion. Imagine the worst possible thing in the universe, then don't bother, because you're looking at it right now. This is evil refined as engineering.”

“Doctor?” the Dalek asked.

“Oh, hello, Rusty. You don't mind if I call you Rusty? We're going to need to come down there with you. Medical examination, and all that.”

“What, with those tentacles and things?” the female soldier asked.

“How close do we have to get?” Journey asked.

“Well, you know, we're never going to insert a thermometer from up here,” the Doctor said.

Journey nodded and Ross fired a harpoon into the Dalek’s ledge.

There was a horrible screeching noise.

“No. No, no, no, no! Stop, stop, stop, you idiot!” the Doctor yelled.

Ross fired another harpoon.

The Doctor rushed at Ross, but Journey stopped him.

“We need a way down, the only way…” Journey told him.

“This is a Dalek, not a machine. It's a perfect analogue of a living being, and you just hurt it. So what's going to happen now?”

“Oh, God,” Clara said, grabbing onto Elise’s hand.

The redhead squeezed her hand.

“What? What is it?” the female soldier asked.

“Antibodies?”

“Dalek antibodies,” the Doctor confirmed.

Round objects floated towards them.

“Nobody move Any attempt to help him, or attack those things, will identify you as a secondary source of infection. Stay still!” the Doctor told them.

The antibodies opened up to reveal a big blue eye, exactly like a Dalek. They surrounded Ross.

“But the Dalek wants us in here,” Clara said, “Why is it attacking?”

“Can you control your antibodies?”

“Ross, stay calm. We're going to get you out of this,” Journey told him.

“Can you?” Clara asked the Doctor.

The Doctor pulled something from the wall and tossed it to Ross. “Ross, swallow that.”

“What is it?”

“Trust me.”

Ross swallowed it. “Now what?”

An antibody aimed a beam at him.

“Ross!” Journey yelled as Ross disintegrated.

“Oh, my God. What's it doing?!” Clara shrieked.

The antibody sucked up the remains. The blue eye turned red.

“The hoovering,” the Doctor said. The antibody flew off and the Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver. “Gotcha.”

“What did you give him?” Clara asked.

“Oh, just a spare power cell, but I can track the radiation signature. I need to know where they dump the bodies.”

“You sacrificed him? How could you do that! You were supposed to save him!” Elise yelled.

“He was dead already. I was saving us. Now shut-up. Follow me and run.”

Elise hit him on the chest, shoving him back a few steps. “You are such a heartless bastard! He…he would have never done that. He would have saved him.”

How could this be the same man who had joked around with her and Clara to make them feel better? How could he be this uncaring the next second? It was like a switch inside him was flipped.

“Elise! I am him!”

“No you’re not! You may call yourself the Doctor, but you will never be him!”

The Doctor didn’t let it show, but Elise’s words had wounded him. But why couldn’t she see that everything he did was to protect herself and Clara?

The Doctor turned away from her and started running.

Clara grabbed Elise’s hand and pulled her after the Doctor.

The anti-bodies were following them.

The Doctor stopped at a hole in the ledge. “They've dumped him in here. Organic refuse disposal. We need to get in there.”

“Why?” Clara asked.

The female soldier and Journey shot at the antibodies.

“Those antibodies won't give up until we're inside there. I'd rather go in alive than dead,” the Doctor told them.

“You don't know where it goes,” Journey said.

“Yes, I do. Away from here. Now in. In! In!”

Clara jumped into the hole.

“I can hold them off!” the female soldier yelled.

“No, you can't.” The Doctor tried sonicing the antibodies. “Pull back. Down. Jump, everyone, jump.”

Journey and the female soldier jumped, leaving the Doctor and Elise.

“Come on, Elise. You can do this.”

Elise nodded and took a deep breath before jumping.

The Doctor jumped in after her.

She could him laughing behind her as they slide down. Elise cracked a smile until they landed in some type of liquid.

Clara groaned. “What is this stuff?”

“People. The Daleks need protein. Occasionally, they harvest from their victims. This is a feeding tube,” the Doctor explained.

Elise tried her hardest not to be sick.

“Is Ross here?” Journey asked.

“Yeah. Top layer, if you want to say a few words.”

Journey shoved the Doctor against the wall.

Clara grabbed Elise’s arm to keep her from attacking the young woman.

“A man has just died. You will not talk like that.”

“A lot of people have died. Everything in here is dead, and do you know why that's good?”

“There is nothing good about that.”

“Nothing is alive in here, so logically this is the weakest spot in the Dalek's internal security. Nobody guards the dead. Mortuaries and larders, always the easiest to break out of. Oh, I've lived a life! Tell Uncle Stupid that we're in. Ah ha! A bolt hole.”

They climbed out of the gunk as the Doctor unscrewed a large bolt with his sonic screwdriver.

“Oh look. It’s actually doing what it was designed to do,” Elise quipped. She saw the Doctor’s lips twitch and she prided herself on almost getting a smile out of him.

“He'll get us out of here. The difficult part is not killing him before he can,” Clara told the others.

“Bolt hole. Actually, a hole for a bolt. Does nobody get that?” the Doctor asked.

“Also, there's the puns.”

“Watch it, decontamination tubes are hot.”

They climbed into the decontamination tube.

“Rescue One to Mission Control,” Journey said.

“This is Blue, Rescue One. Report,” her uncle said.

“The Dalek has an internal defense mechanism. We've lost Ross.”

“What kind of defense mechanism? That thing knows you're in there to help it.”

“Yeah, well, who knows? It's a Dalek. We're going to continue the mission.”

“Are you all right back there? It's a bit narrow, isn't it?” the Doctor asked.

“Any remarks about my hips will not be appreciated,” Clara said.

“Ach, your hips are fine. You're built like a man. Elise is the one we should worry about.”

“Thanks,” Clara muttered.

“Oi!” Elise snapped.

“We both know you’re built like your mother,” the Doctor said.

Elise’s hearts stopped at the mention of River. This was the first time she’d heard this body mention her.

They climbed out of the decontamination tube.

The Doctor helped Elise and Clara down.

“What's that noise? Are you wearing a Geiger counter?” the Doctor asked as the female soldier climbed out.

“Standard battle equipment. That's just low level radiation.”

“But stronger down here, for some reason. Give me it.”

The female soldier handed him the Geiger counter and he walked over to the large circuit boards. “I've got it. I know what's wrong with Rusty.”

“Okay, that's good. Is that good?” Clara asked.

“Well, you know how I said this was the most dangerous place in the universe? I was wrong. It's way more dangerous than that.”

“Colonel, we have radiation indicators red-lining in here. Could be that the Dalek is badly damaged than we thought,” Journey told her uncle.

“Copy that.”

“Old Rusty here is suffering a trionic radiation leak. It's poisoning the Dalek and us. Just as well we're here.”

“Really? Perhaps we should get out while we can. Why should we trust a Dalek? Why would it change?” Journey asked.

“Because there’s something serious wrong with it,” Elise said.

“Rusty? What changed you?” the Doctor asked.

“I saw beauty,” the Dalek answered.

“You saw what?”

“In the silence and the cold, I saw worlds burning.”

“That's not beauty, that's destruction,” Journey told the Dalek.

“I saw more.”

“What? What did you see?” the Doctor asked.

“The birth of a star.”

“Stars are born every day. You've seen a million stars born. So what?”

“Daleks have destroyed a million stars.”

“Oh, millions and millions. Trust me, I keep count.”

“And yet, new stars are born.”

“Every time.”

“Resistance is futile.”

“Resistance to what?”

“Life returns. Life prevails. Resistance is futile.”

“So you saw a star being born, and you learned something. Oh, Dalek, do not be lying to me. Come on.”

“Heading for the Trionic power cells, Colonel,” Journey said.

“Radiation approxing two hundred Rads. Danger levels.”

They stepped into the power cell.

“We're at the heart of the Dalek,” the Doctor said.

“It's incredible,” Clara said, looking around.

“Yeah, it’s great. Being inside your greatest enemy,” Elise said sarcastically.

Electricity crackled above them.

“Geiger counter's off the scale. Looks like it's about to blow,” Journey told them.

“Good,” the Doctor said.

“How is that good?”

“Well, Elise and I like a bit of pressure. Rusty, can you hear me?”

“Doctor?” the Dalek asked.

“Rusty, we've found the damage. I'm sealing up the breach in your power cell.” He welded the crack shut with his screwdriver. “No more radiation poisoning. Good as new. There. Job done.”

“That's it? Just like that?” Clara asked.

“An anti-climax once in a while is good for my hearts. Rusty? How do you feel?” The Dalek didn’t answer. Rusty? Rusty? Rusty.”

“The malfunction is corrected,” the Dalek said.

“What's happened?” Journey asked.

“Not entirely sure,” the Doctor said.

Lights came on.

“It's like it's waking up.”

“Rusty, come on, talk to me. What's going on?”

“The malfunction is corrected. All systems are functioning. Weapons charged.”

“Oh, no, no, no.”

Elise looked at the Doctor and glared. “I told you this was a bad idea!”

[sanderssides-springfling]

To Woo A Snake

for @ionlyeatcomfortfood

Synopsis: a DLAMP hogwarts au! Roman, Virgil, Logan, and Patton all find themselves crushing on a certain snake. As they’re already dating each other, they make it their personal mission to see if one more might be added to their relationship.

This was super fun to write, and I’m sorry I’m not the best at Hogwarts au’s but I hope you like this!

This is really fluffy so there’s not really any warnings, besides the mention of cults in general a few times in passing and also my horrific attempt at writing something that resembles flirting.

Logan, Roman, Patton, and Virgil had a problem and it was one they intended to solve. They sat in the quietest corner of the surprisingly busy library, a small bit of privacy created by a wall of books. Logan had control of a large piece of parchment, scribbling down notes with his quill as fast as he could. Between Roman, Virgil, and him the suggestions were rapid fire with only Patton to keep them calm.

“What if we tried using big signs with an accompanied song and dance? We could do a Disney medley!” Roman suggested, waving his arms around to mimic the proposed song and dance. Logan and Virgil looked confused, with Virgil looking almost disgusted. Patton attempted a supportive glance, but Virgil spoke up.

“Ignoring whatever the hell a Disney is, no. Obviously not. We agreed no public humiliation and this is public humiliation to a tee, just imagine the looks! The taunts! We won’t be able to go to the great hall for weeks!” Virgil said, attempting to scribble out Roman’s idea. Roman retaliated by muttering something about purebloods being “uncultured” before Virgil continued his point, “Besides, how does that even solve anything? That’s just an excuse for you to sing, when we should be focusing on the problem!”

The problem in question was called Janus, or Deceit if you were one of their crueler classmates. He was a Slytherin in their year and good friends with all of them. He stood out to most for two things. The first being scales that covered half his face, bleeding into snake-like eyes and -if you were paying close enough attention- an almost-forked tongue. The second was the fact that he wore a bowler hat and long yellow rubber gloves over their uniform robes. Most people found him weird, however those four all found him ridiculously attractive. Not only that, but they decided that, if he agreed, they would want him as a part of their relationship. Now, all there was to do was decide on how to go about asking him.

The worst part is that they barely had any experience to work with. What they had, really, just kind of happened. By the time they were third years it was just universally acknowledged that they loved each other. Without even speaking the words, it was just a fact. It was made official that year, sure, but there was no question of if, only of when. This was different. They didn’t even know if he liked them in that way or not. Trying to figure out how not to get horribly rejected made them start to understand the hordes of people confused about how they managed to pull their four person relationship off. Heck, it made them start to wonder how they did it.

It was completely new territory for the past almost-year. More days than not one of them would end up a blushing and flustered mess over Janus and they’d all end up gushing about him.

Logan spoke up in an attempt to calm down his boyfriends, “Think about this logically, all four of us at once would likely overwhelm him, so it would be better for us to approach him one at a time, possibly doing small tests to see if our attraction is reciprocated.”

“Logan, do you mean flirting? Do you want us to flirt with him?” Virgil laughed, more amused than making fun of.

Logan cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses, “Yes, I suppose “flirting” is what I am suggesting we attempt, although I would normally be against a less direct method I believe as we are uncertain of his interest level, running an experiment would make the most logical sense. He may be polyamourous, however making an uneducated assumption could result in the loss of his friendship-something I assume none of use are keen to.”

Patton smiled, more genuine than his earlier false support. Roman and Virgil seemed to look content as well. It was a vague enough compromise, and let Virgil’s worries of “public humiliation” be postponed for another day. There began their attempt to woo a snake.

******

Patton sat impatiently, grinning as he waited for Janus to arrive at Potions class. Yes, he was excited every day for Janus to arrive as they were good friends, however today was special. He was going to let his feelings be known, at least a little bit more. Honestly, he was bad at keeping his adoration hidden, but at least this time it would (hopefully) be more clearly romantic.

He sat behind his cauldron, all the ingredients for that day’s potion layed out in front of him. He tried not to think about this going badly, swinging his feet around under the desk. He took a look at the confusing potion recipe and immediately knew his time would be more spent on Janus than on this.

The teacher didn’t care if he was paying attention or not, having given up on him after his horrible cooking skills seemed to translate to potion making. Not to mention he was a Hufflepuff, who were notorious for having no collective understanding of potions, in a class with Slytherins, the recipients of blatant favoritism. He never stood a chance.

As he was poking the materials, looking for good puns, he felt a familiar presence take the seat next to him. He looked the same as usual. Taller than him, with bright yellow gloves that happened to match Patton’s tie, multicolored eyes. Suddenly, a sense of panic washed over him.

 Oh god. What was he even doing? He was so nice and smart and caring! Patton was just Patton! He was already running his luck with his four amazing boyfriends, he was bound to run out eventually! What could he possibly want with him! aaaaaAAAAA-

“Patton? Are you doing okay?” Janus asked, trying to meet his eyes. Patton probably looked terrified, his internal panic bleeding all over his face. Janus hesitantly put his hand on Patton’s shoulder, and he almost died. No matter how many times it happened, he would never get over the emotional roller-coaster of a crush.

“Yeah, Jay, I’m doing good!” Patton said, trying his best to cover his panic with a smile. Janus looked him over, as if he didn’t buy the quick change from panic to his usual bubbly self.

“Very believable Patton, honestly you should win one of those muggle Oscars,” Janus said, in an over-dramatic tone that called Patton’s bluff. When Patton made no moves to actually explain, Janus got more serious, “Fine. If you don’t want to tell me, I’m not going to make you, but you need to take care of yourself. If there’s something bothering you, please don’t overwork yourself.”

There he went again, making sure Patton wasn’t pushing down his own needs. This was a conversation that happened more often than it probably should have. It may have been a generally platonic gesture, however it did nothing to help the crush brewing in his stomach.

“Yeah! I’m fine, really this time. Promise, kiddo!” Patton said, letting the bubbly feeling override the nerves. He was fine, if not a little nervous. How could he not be fine, with one of the people he loved the most right next to him!

“Patton, I am 6 months older than you.”

“Age is just a number the government pays attention to and also affects our day to day life!”

Janus gave out a light snort and turned back to the potion recipe. He went quickly to the work, letting Patton help more or less whenever he wanted to. Janus was definitely more adept at potion-making than he was so their agreement to let Janus handle most of the work was both unspoken and sturdy.

Suddenly, a small part of Patton wished he had made a plan like Logan and Virgil suggested, though he knew that was never something he was ever going to do. He loved all his boyfriends very much, but he and Roman were most alike when it came to romance. It should be spontaneous! Speaking from the heart!

Sadly, the heart was hard to hear over the rising levels of panic.

Janus made quick work of the first few steps, before handing a piece of wormwood to him. Patton was apparently responsible for the small chopping board. He was ready to slice, dice, and crush whatever they would need! Hopefully not his hand, though.

“Patton, could you cut that up for me?” Janus asked casually, before turning to his dramatic tone, “After all, you are so adept in this class, especially with sharp objects. I totally don’t need you to worry about being careful and am definitely not trying to let you be included. You’re just the best man for the job!”

It fell in between insult and concern, but twisted his heart nonetheless. He chopped up the wormwood as quickly as possible, like on the muggle cooking shows he loved back home. He came very close to losing a few digits, yes, however it was for the most part a success. In the moments he spent trying to slice up the ingredient, he came up with a genius strategy. Puns.

“Here you go Jay! But before that, I have to ask,” Patton said, moving to reveal the completely expertly chopped plant, “worm-would you be mine?”

Janus took the wormwood with his eyes widened and a more-than-subtle blush on his face. For a second, Patton worried that he freaked Jay out. Fortunately, Janus resumed his usual focused, if not smug, expression. The blush didn’t seem to make any effort at leaving, though. It was all the invitation Patton needed to push down his worry and keep going.

“Do newt go breaking my heart!” 

“You’ve flobberworm-ed your way into my heart!”

“You make me weak in the peo-knees!”

Some were better than others, yes, but over the course of the whole class Jay never once spoke out to complain. His face maintained its blush, but it didn’t seem to be in embarrassment. He seemed almost… happy? After every pun he could see a surprised smile cross him for just a moment before resuming his usual expression.

Patton decided to consider that a successful “experiment trial”, as Logan would call it. Maybe their efforts wouldn’t be disastrous after all.

****

Roman was, for all intents and purposes, hyped about the quidditch game he would be playing in less than ten minutes. He was jogging around the pitch in anticipation, doubling it as extended warm ups. He would need it, his future courtship might hinge on the success of this game.

Okay, so maybe Roman didn’t have a “plan”. Whatever. What would he need a plan for when he had pure unadulterated romance? He already knew the only two things he needed to know: 1) It was going to be awesome 2) refer to thing one. So what if Virgil said that it might be a bad idea? His boyfriend was an absolute cynic and this would be great.

He finished his jogging, which could have been seen as pointless considering that quidditch was a sport played in the air, and mounted his broom. The team captain gave a little speech, the same one she gave before every game. Blah blah blah, Ravenclaw would be hard to beat, they needed teamwork blah blah blah. She knew they all knew this stuff but claimed it was good for morale, so they listened anyways. By the time she finished, he was more than ready to begin his position as Gryffindor Seeker Extraordinaire.

Step one, besides getting in position and staring down the opposing seeker (who of course just HAD to be his brother, Remus), was locating Janus. This wasn’t hard.

 Janus, while thoroughly disgusted with the incredibly dangerous and injury-riddled sport that was quidditch, he had no problem voicing these disgusts to the whole school. He had been the commentator ever since first year, when he refused to get on a broom during flying class. He claimed it wasn’t out of fear, although Roman could remember the look in his eyes suggesting otherwise. Either way, he agreed to be the commentator in exchange for never so much as looking at a quaffle or a snitch ever again.

He could barely see Janus, but his voice rang out loud and clear throughout the stadium, his slightly amused commentary voice preparing the crowd for the match. Speaking of the crowd, his boyfriends were there to support him like always. They weren’t hard to spot, sitting in the same seats as always.

Patton had a hyper level of support as per usual, face painted in red and gold despite being a Hufflepuff. Logan was holding a small “Go Ravenclaw!” flag and waved it a little as he caught Roman’s eye. Sure he talked big talk about being completely rational and logical, but he was just as petty and contrarian as Roman was. He loved it. Virgil looked very supportive, and gave a soft smile as Roman looked over at him. This quickly transformed into a look of “Please, Roman, don’t cause a scene this time”. It was a look he was well acquainted with. He waved over at them, grinning wide. He even threw in a wink to Virgil, letting him know that he would be sorely disappointed.

He regained his focus and the whistle blew, signaling the start of the match. The snitch zipped to the edge of the pitch at the speed of light as Roman chased after it. It moved like a scared rabbit, twitchy and fast as lightning. He raced Remus around, neck in neck every second of the way. He paid attention to Janus as he raced, using his words to pay attention to the surrounding pitch. Turns out Gryffindor managed to score two points in the first five minutes. Ravenclaw scored four, but that’s besides the point.

All of a sudden, an object came hurtling from the corner of his eye. He did a downwards corkscrew maneuver, spinning with a small nosedive. The sound of swishing air went over his head, before the crack of a beater’s bat sounded the offending bludger flying in the opposite direction. As soon as he got back upright, Janus noted his return. Taking a brief pause, he moved one hand from the broom and blew Janus a kiss. Janus’ voice seemed to take a brief stutter, catching on his next words. Roman hoped he was the cause.

The chase began again as Roman looked for the snitch. Luckily Remus seemed just as lost as he was, because he was not losing his big moment to his gremlin of a younger twin brother. Another bludger flew right at Roman, making him scramble to dodge. Seriously, he was starting to think they were aiming for him. This time, as he regained balance, he threw an exaggerated wink at Janus. His voice seemed to catch again, letting Roman know that he had to be the cause. It couldn’t be that much of a coincidence.

The rest of the match seemed to follow suit. He would desperately chase after the snitch, occasionally swerving to dodge bludgers and even his own teammates when he was at his most focused. Every time he had a moment to pause, he’d give Janus a wink or a smile or blow a kiss. This included the time that Janus, slightly reluctantly, complemented Roman’s seeking skills and Roman mimed out being struck by cupid’s bow. Nothing too outrageous, nothing that would cause Virgil and Logan to be baffled by his utter lack of self preservation when it came to public humiliation. 

Roman and Remus were on each other’s tails, like they had been the majority of the hour they had been playing. The downfall of having twin seekers was that they almost seemed to move in sync sometimes. Every push forward was met with the other striking back just as hard. They were in a scrambled chase as the golden snitch pulled them from place to place, changing pace and direction at a whim.

The snitch dove down, twenty or so feet from where they were both flying. Janus restated the scores, voice bored and bitter but still attentive, and Roman saw his chance. If he caught it now, they’d win. He dove down a little bit deeper than the snitch did, hoping to guess where it was going. He guessed wrong, and the snitch flew away from his hands, leaving him grasping at air. He could hear Janus laugh just a little bit, not maliciously but amused.

It was Remus’ turn to attempt at the snitch while Roman momentarily turned around. Fortunately the snitch blazed right past him, and they both went zooming. Pressing forward as fast as they could, it was like Remus realized that Roman intended to end the match then and there. Maybe twins really did have a psychic connection.

They went faster and faster, getting as close as they could, reaching out desperately for the cold metal. They were so close he could practically reach out and touch Remus’ hand. He reached out as the snitch came to an abrupt stop. It happened in the blink of an eye, but he was ever so slightly faster. He grabbed the snitch and grasped it firmly in his fist, refusing to let it go. He did it. They won.

Catching the snitch made Roman want to do something impulsive. Fortunately, Roman had very poor impulse control skills, so this was easy. He took the small metal ball out of his tight grip and took it tenderly between his fingers. The rest of the team was starting to wonder what on earth he was doing, but there was no stopping him. He, as carefully as he could, stepped on top of his broom. Yes, any wrong move would send him plummeting to many many broken bones and possibly certain doom, but this was the awesome thing he was waiting for.

He held up the snitch, letting it reflect against the sun as he stared right through it and at Janus. His hand outstretched, he began to speak.

“But soft! What light through yonder window breaks! ‘Tis the east, and Janus is the sun. Arise, fair sun and kill the envious moon, who is already sick and pale with grief that thou, her knave, art more fair than she!” Roman recited, suddenly wishing Hogwarts had a theater club. Every person there was staring holes into him, including his team and boyfriends. No one knew what exactly just happened, including Roman.

Janus hadn’t quite turned off the microphone, so he heard a second of sputtering before going silent. He got back on his broom and flew down, handing over the snitch to a confused Coach. The exhilaration and the exercise had his face still flushed by the time he walked off the quidditch pitch, to be approached by his boyfriends.

“Dude. Woah,” Virgil said, and he couldn’t quite tell if he was impressed, shocked, confused, or all three. Before anyone else could get a word in, the four enveloped themselves in a group hug.

“You did so good Ro!” Patton complimented, almost vibrating in excitement. Patton possibly loved quidditch even more than Roman did, although he was still a beginner. Roman offered to teach him, but Patton swore he felt best behind in the crowd.

“I have to agree with Patton, Roman your performance was indeed exemplary,” Logan said, tone even and objective. The legitimate pride and love did of course seep through. 

“Yeah, Princey, I forget how good you are at that,” Virgil said, thoroughly impressed. “Though we have to discuss the elephant in the room here: How are you not dying of embarrassment? I was practically shaking just looking at you.”

“It’s about the gusto! The romance of it all!” Roman said, lifting out his hands in a flourish, “No need to shake, my chemical romance, because I think that went unbelievably well!”

Logan nodded along as if that made sense enough, Virgil snorted, and Patton smiled.

“Ro, if it is any consolation you definitely would have woo’d my socks right off!” Patton said, moving to press a quick kiss to Roman’s cheek.

Roman left with his boyfriends, absolutely confident about his flirting mastery, even after Logan questioned why he chose a quote from “the muggle play with the excessive amounts of death”. Roman then spent the next hour explaining Romeo and Juliet to Logan, with Virgil attempting to undermine him at every step, despite having no real knowledge of muggle literature. *****

Transfiguration was where Virgil and Logan decided they’d proceed with their experiment. Based on the results of Roman and Patton, it seemed like they would probably be at least semi-successful, however they didn’t want to leave room for error. Hence, doing it at the same time. They would likely work more confidently together, and the other person would be able to gauge the reaction more accurately.

They read some of Roman’s muggle romance novels for inspiration the previous nights. They obviously couldn’t go into it unprepared and admittedly neither of them were romantic experts. Virgil didn’t mind them too much, besides the clearly disturbing elements of certain stories that were being passed off as romantic. Did muggles think stalkers were attractive? Logan on the other hand flat out didn’t understand half the stories. How anyone could behave so illogically towards a near stranger, he would never comprehend.

The two of them sat at their desks, staring at the assignment in front of them. It was mostly instructions on how to turn the dead beetles in front of them into buttons and, as always, Virgil was near convinced it was impossible. Ok, he knew it wasn’t impossible- his two magical parents made a big deal of trying to teach him this sort of stuff from as long as he could remember. They wanted him to be their magical genius trophy kid. He was not their magical genius trophy kid.

Due to his magical abilities being really mediocre and transfiguration being really hard, Virgil just stared at his wand and his bugs and sighed. Doubt and worry snuck in, about all of it. He was almost certain he couldn’t do it, any of it, and that it would be a huge disaster. The weight of the anxiety he had been trying to ignore pressed down on him like his own personal gravity.

“Great, can’t wait to not only ruin the whole flirting thing for the rest of you, but also completely tank this assignment. Fantastic,” Virgil said, burying his face in his hands, dreading even picking up the wand. Logan turned to him, a comforting smile on his face, and pulled Virgil’s hands from his face.

“Virgil, you’re going to be fine. As far as this class goes you are doing just fine and if you begin to struggle, I’m here to help you. As far as Janus goes, however he reacts isn’t up to you. You cannot assume anything. I do know, from experience, that you are an amazing individual and he would be lucky to have you. Objectively,” Logan adjusted his glasses as he said the last word. He always did get uncomfortable with his emotions. It made Virgil chuckle just a little, the weight lifting just a little.

As their conversation drifted to other things, such as which teachers were most likely to start a cult, Janus walked in and took the seat next to Logan. They made sure not to pay too much attention to him as he walked in, something from Roman’s books about “playing hard to get”. Still, a wave of nervousness went through Virgil, as if their trial had finally begun.

“Anyways, I think you could honestly make the argument that care of magical creatures is already a cult, if an inhuman one,” Logan argued as Janus looked at their assignment for the day, already turning over to be let into the conversation, “Janus, you’re finally here. What professor would lead the best cult?”

Janus pretended to think it over, before giving a fake earnest look, “Magical History, easily. The professor’s boring, long yarns really adds to the charisma. The way he puts people to sleep really has the command of a real leader.”

Virgil snorted, shaking his head, “You’re both so wrong, it’s easily the coach. You’ve seen the quidditch teams- they’re already halfway to cult status.”

“Coach does not count as a real professor, but fine,” Logan said, turning his attention to their actual classwork. The teacher wasn’t going to actually try and teach them anything, seeing as Ravenclaws had a fifty percent chance of blowing it off and a fifty percent chance of doing it faster than he could teach, Slytherins would very loudly race each other to do it the fastest and the best, and both together created a very uniquely bad teaching environment.

The assignment went by fairly quickly and painlessly. Despite frustratingly worded instructions, they got through it easily enough. Virgil did eventually have a difficult time trying to get the transformation right, but with Janus and Logan’s attempts at teaching him, he got through it with time to spare. They then did what they did most days, had in depth conversations about subjects that didn’t particularly matter all that much. Logan decided this was the perfect place to try flirting.

“Hey Janus,” Logan said, diverting the conversation from Janus, who had experience with muggle culture, quizzing Virgil, who had no experience with muggle culture, about what exactly he thought Pokemon was, “are you, in any capacity, attracted to me?”

Janus blushed and choked on air while Virgil looked somewhere between shock and disbelief. Logan saw nothing inherently wrong with what he said, it was direct and to the point, something many of Roman’s protagonists could benefit from. It would hopefully avoid any “hijinks” built on miscommunication.

Janus cleared his throat, forcing the look of panic down. He put on his most performative smile, using the dramatic gestures he usually donned while lying, “Of course Logan, why- can’t you tell? I’m completely in love with you!” He even batted his eyelashes a few times for good measure. Despite all of the obvious signs, Logan could tell this wasn’t quite a lie. Exaggerated and dramatized, but not completely wrong.

Virgil seemed to pick up on this too, however he did not look any less baffled by the situation as a whole. Virgil chose to stay silent for now, figuring he didn’t want to make a weird situation even weirder. Then, Logan decided to speak up.

“Okay. Would you say you have a willingness and/or a want to be in a relationship with multiple people? Including myself and Virgil?” Logan somehow managed to say this in the same flat tone he always spoke, as if this were some commonplace obvious question.

Janus dropped his act, becoming momentarily serious, “Logan if this is some roundabout way of asking if I’m polyamorous, I already told you I was a few weeks ago, and yes, I would be open to a relationship right now, potentially with you and Virgil.”

Virgil, in his nervous bafflement, carefully reached towards Janus, gently placing his hand on his shoulder. “Are you sure?” he asked, less sure of whether or not this was just another, more discreet, act.

“No, Virgil. In fact, I’ve been playing the long con with you. My name is Jacob, I’m straight and am getting engaged to my long-time girlfriend Kayleigh,” Janus said, tone becoming performative once again. The obvious lie lightened the conversation and made the incessant drumming of Virgil’s heartbeat chill out momentarily.

The three of them tried to take the awkward conversation in stride, moving on to topics like how useful was divination, really and which muggle philosophers were totally secret muggleborns. It was surprisingly easy getting back into their normal conversations, but once class was over Logan and Virgil both felt some level of relief.

“Did that actually work? Like, was that a fever dream or did that happen?” Virgil said as they walked out of the classroom.

“I’ve always told you: the best way to do everything is to be direct and leave no room for guessing,” Logan said simply, as if he, too wasn’t internally freaking out.

“I think Roman might disagree with you on that one, but I am too amazed to care, oh my god.”

The two walked away, to reconvene with their boyfriends and tell them about the amazingly weird conversation they just had.

****

Janus also had a problem, but his was more recent in nature. See, he happened to have a crush on not one, but four boys. Who were all in a relationship- with each other. He had known for months that it was never going to happen, trying to crush any hope of even one of them returning his affections. Them being poly like him helped his odds, but not by much. Their relationship was something he respected and accepted that being a part of it just wasn’t going to be an option. Being friends was something he was perfectly fine with too, something he genuinely enjoyed. He was okay with his situation the way it was.

But then the weirdest thing happened.

Over the past few days, the four of them seemed to be doing… something. He didn’t really know what was going on, at first. One day in Potions, Patton just started making romantically-themed puns at him while they were supposed to be working. It affected him more than he would like to admit, but it also just confused him. He didn’t bring it up any other time. Then, a few days later, when he almost forgot the incident in Potions, Roman started winking at him and blowing kisses during the quidditch match. The behavior, while very effective at flustering him, wasn’t all that uncommon. Roman was just one of those people who could be like that sometimes. It didn’t mean anything. Until, however, the match ended and his stupidly brave self stood up on his broom and recited Romeo and Juliet to him. It was confusingly romantic.

He was really truly baffled, because it seemed like the weird type of flirting those two would actually use, but he had to be the one who was wrong. That simply could not be the case, he was just reading too much into some totally normal friendship things, right?

He was bordering the line between “convincing himself” and “lying to himself” when he finally got some sense of what was going on. Virgil and Logan acted normally during their Transfiguration class the Monday after the game, until right in the middle of an engaging conversation where he lied to Virgil about what Pokemon were. Logan asked, in the most Logan-y possible way, if he was attracted to him.

Janus obviously tried to deflect, taking his real feelings and making them as dramatic as possible. He hoped they would assume he was joking. He hoped wrong. He seemed to forget that he was dealing with Logan, who takes everything literally, as Logan seemed to take it at face value. Despite the complete embarrassment of it all, it did let Janus know that, yes, they were probably trying to flirt with him. It was awkward and unpracticed, but that seemed to be what their goal was.

Still, he didn’t know for sure. He didn’t have confirmation, which he was slightly desperate to get as soon as possible.

He waited till they had a break in classes to try and find them all together. It shouldn’t have been hard, considering they were practically attached at the hip at all times. Wandering around, he ran into Remus, one of his best friends and Roman’s twin. He was dubiously trustworthy at best, but it was worth a shot.

“Remus, do you know where Roman is? I need to talk with him and his boyfriends,” Janus asked, watching Remus shake around a jar full of half-formed beetle-buttons. Remus thought for a moment, although whether or not it was actually about his question was a different matter altogether.

“Finally shooting your shot Jay-Jay?” Remus asked, wiggling his eyebrows, dyed highlighter pink, “Well I haven’t seen my dear darling brother in a long time, but I’m pretty sure he’s in the library. He hangs out with a bunch of nerds, so I wouldn’t be surprised.”

He decided to leave instead of furthering the conversation, lest he find out what Remus was planning on doing with those beetles. It couldn’t be anything good and he wanted at least plausible deniability.

It didn’t take him long to find them in the library, in some corner poorly guarded by bookshelves. Janus could have sworn they were in a meeting by the way they were seated, even with a pad of paper in front of Logan, who was taking a few notes. He could hear them talking, but he didn’t quite understand it.

“Okay, so maybe your method was “most effective” and “got results” but where was the flair? The panache? It’s about the drama of it all, Logan-” Roman said, heavily using air quotes. Janus tried to get just a little bit closer, but because Hogwarts was an ancient building, the floorboard he stepped on creaked loud enough to alert half the school. All four of them turned to look at him with varying degrees of embarrassment when they registered who it was.

Janus quietly entered the little nook, standing at the end of the table where they were seated. They were all staring at him, waiting for him to say something.

“Hello everyone, I just figured I’d pop by, see how you were doing,” he said, trying to smooth out his tone, “also to perhaps inquire if and why you all seemed to be flirting with me.”

This did not make anyone any less nervous, including and especially Patton and Virgil, who both looked on the verge of hyperventilation. Logan however still seemed to be less fazed by all of it.

“Janus, you’re here, good. Yes, we were “flirting” with you to gauge your romantic interest. I assume based on our results, you are in fact romantically interested in us?” Logan said, casual as ever. Janus didn’t expect the bluntness and as it seemed, neither did Patton, Virgil, and Roman.

He paused for a moment, practically forgetting to breathe. This wasn’t how he imagined this going, and he imagined it a lot. Everyone was staring at him, waiting for an answer and he was thoroughly tongue-tied. He swallowed his nerves and tried to speak, “Yes, I- yes. I like you all. Romantically, that is. A lot.”

The four of them seemed to calm down just a bit after hearing that, the tension clearing ever so slightly. It was then Roman’s turn to speak, getting up from the table and approaching Janus.

“This isn’t quite the spectacle I was hoping for,” Roman said, side-eyeing Logan, “but I guess if the time is right, would you go out with us?”

“Please!” added Patton, still sitting down. They all looked so unbelievably hopeful, Janus could barely believe it. He paused, not because he was hesitant but to make sure it was real. That this wouldn’t disappear if he blinked.

“Yes, of course yes. I would love to go out with all of you. Maybe, if I’m allowed, I’d even be your boyfriend,” He said, the words practically falling out of his mouth.

Virgil spoke up next, hesitantly, “Really? You would really want that?”

“Yes Virgil, really. I really want to date all of you.”

“Sounds fake but… okay.”

Patton sprung up out of his seat, rushing to hug Janus. It was a comfortable weight, one he was used to, but now the meaning was slightly different. It was… nice. Roman then joined Patton in hugging Janus, squeezing slightly tighter. Virgil walked up too, wrapping his arms around them all and relaxing his head against them. Logan was the last to join their group hug, but although stiff, his hug carried just as much care. 

They stayed like that for a minute or two, perfectly comfortable. In that moment, they were happy, and they knew they would be happy for many more moments to come, truly feeling happier together.

[autoplaysdigimon]

Top Five Villains

HERE WE GO, THE FUN LIST.

#5 Gatomon

Controversial, maybe, to have her be on the Villains list as well, but she was a villainous character for a while.

I’m a real sucker for a good redemption storyline; failing that, at least a turncoat character. While Gatomon didn’t really commit any real atrocities onscreen to atone for later in the story, she still proved a fun villain while she was one. She was no nonsense, efficient, knew exactly what she was doing... if she’d stayed on Myotismon’s side, she could have been a real force to be reckoned with. One of the things that I’d have really liked to have seen explored more in this series was Gatomon’s time with Myotismon, and how much she’s changed since then.

Plus there’s something so weirdly entertaining about a group of creepy, ominous, obviously evil monsters and then a small white kitty cat who’s just as dangerous as them.

#4 Myotismon

This guy.

When this guy came onto the scene, the entire show changed. Devimon’s arc was fun, if a little generic; Etemon’s was very similar with a different villain, and then Demidevimon’s arc came along and we got a fun, goofy villain who can’t Evil properly. Even so, we knew he was following orders from a higher power, and Myotismon’s eventual appearance changed the dynamic from “Team Rocket Fools Children Repeatedly” to “oh shit an actual vampire is going to kill us”. And then the whole Eighth Digidestined thing happened... Plus, that #aesthetic, amirite? 

To tie into Gatomon’s thing up there, the Eighth Digidestined arc was one of the best of the season, if not the best. Taking the fight to the Real World made it more, well, real. It was fun as hell watching the parents interact with the Digimon, both good and bad, and finding out exactly what the kids had been up to lately. The kids watching their families getting dragged into the fight was TOP. NOTCH. Plus Myotismon actually knew what he was doing as a villain so.

He knew to go after the one kid without protection. He knew how to cut everything off effectively. He did take a shot at some of the kids when they were on their own, instead of thinking only of killing Kari. Death didn’t stop him the first time. Even when he pulled the classic villain “You Have Outlived Your Use” thing and killed his own minions, it was on Digimon who had already turned against him, like Wizardmon, Pumpkinmon, Gotsumon and (arguably) Darktyrannomon.

(No, wait, they’re still alive because he sent them to his Dungeon, isn’t that RIGHT DUB TEAM.)

(Even though pieces of them were left behind and dissolved on their own.)

(No, I’m still not over that.)

#3 Ogremon

Another redeemed villain! I just like them, okay

Maybe it’s just me, but just the act of Ogremon turning good at the end made me like him. He was a little bit generic in the Devimon arc, though at least he had the feud with Leomon to make him interesting. (Any logical reason to that, by the way? Was it just that we had these two Digimon who could fill in the character roles we’d set out for them? Nothing mythological about lions and ogres hating each other or anything? No? Okay then.)

All Ogremon really did in that first arc was serve as the henchman. He made some... interesting choices, and then he was absorbed into Devimon for power. And then he came out of the back of Devimon’s knee. Sure. When Devimon was defeated, he ran screaming off into the distance, shaking his fist and yelling “NEXT TIME, GADGET. NEXT TIIIIME.” The very act of bringing him back when he wasn’t employed by the Big Bad of the moment made him an interesting character, who had to atone for what he did. I’m a sucker for redemption, like I said, and the best part of it is watching them go soft.

Plus, how great is it to have multiple conflicting alliances within a group? When Leomon returned, even though Ogremon was firmly on the Digidestined side now, he had absolutely no problems with trying to immediately murder Leomon. There’s nothing wrong with that, right? They’re rivals, it’s just natural! He’s also kind of a shithead in general, even still.

Also, Ogremon is incredibly hard to draw. I’d just like to bring that up.

Okay, next!

#2 Etemon

HE’S A MONKEY WHO TALKS LIKE ELVIS, NEXT QUESTION.

But for real, Etemon is such a fucking great villain. Great character all around, I’d love a version where he was an ally or something, but how else would we get the trademark Elvis-laugh-turns-into-villainous-laugh thing that Etemon has going?! Come on, that’s great.

Devimon’s villainous style was one of corruption; he wasn’t all that powerful on his own, but by using the Black Gears he could build his own damn forces and control small areas. He only managed to control a handful of Digimon in the end. He was also taken out by a single Digimon in a single one-on-one, though you could argue that the others had weakened him by that point, they hadn’t really.

Etemon’s style was drastically different - he was far more comical, but far more dangerous. His introduction scene involved him panicking over the Digidestined already being in the area. He sang a lot, he cracked jokes, he threw childish tantrums, and again, he was a monkey who sounded like Elvis. There is nothing not awesome about this guy. And yes, he was deadlier - his main attack can undo Digivolutions and leave the Digimon vulnerable as hell. He ended up taking a couple of episodes to take out, only losing because another villain tried to sabotage him in the end.

And coming back partway through the Dark Masters arc as Metaletemon?! FUCK YEAH. Every pun he made, I laughed at and I don’t apologise for that. Even starting a series-wide tradition, he was stylish until the end.

Also he called Ikkakumon a goat that one time.

#1 Demidevimon

T H E  B A S T A R D  O R B

Nobody is surprised that he’s my #1, right? It was a close call between him and Etemon, but ultimately I just like Demidevimon’s arc more. We have Devimon and Etemon, as I discussed above. After that wave of villains who are dangerous because they’re powerful, we have one who is dangerous because he’s just a little bastard.

Demidevimon wasn’t strong. Most villains had their huge beatdown happen in the form of a Digimon Digivolving to Champion, Ultimate or Mega for the first time, Demidevimon had his when Patamon reached Rookie level again. In his debut episode. He was never a threat physically once the kids realised that he was not to be trusted. His arc came right after two arcs of the kids being stranded in this strange world together, only briefly separated - and then everyone was torn apart, and he could manipulate them individually. 

I’ve argued in the past that Demidevimon was a more effective manipulator than even Puppetmon, one of the Dark Masters, and I stand by it. Puppetmon managed to physically manipulate them with the dolls, sure, and he had Cherrymon convince Matt to attack Tai. But, uh, he didn’t exactly have to twist his arm very hard to get that to happen, and that was Cherrymon’s doing anyway. Plus you could argue that physically manipulating someone isn’t much of a social power as it is more a matter of strength. (also Puppetmon is more of a “play with them like toys” type, but still, being a literal puppetmaster, you’d think that manipulation was more of his domain than a BAT.) Demidevimon, however, managed to:

convince TK that Matt didn’t want him as a brother anymore and to ditch Tokomon

 nearly have TK, Tai and Agumon eat poisonous mind-wiping mushrooms

convince Digitamamon to keep Joe and Matt in the restaurant, simultaneously threatening Joe to help keep Matt there and sabotaged them constantly to manipulate them all further

trick Izzy and Tentomon into Vademon’s trap

tell the Gekomon and Otamamon about Mimi’s singing voice, somehow knowing that they’d end up hindering her progress somehow(???)

And, even after knowing that he’s an evil manipulating Digimon, he managed to convince Sora that she’d never manage to activate her crest, causing her to believe it in a self-fulfilling prophecy, even as she worked to sabotage his efforts otherwise.

I mean, apart from all that, I just like Demidevimon as a Digimon. He’s a tiny flying motherfucker and that’s great! He had some of my favourite lines, even his death was kind of tragically funny, and I have a clear bias when it comes to his voice acting, because I just like Derek Stephen Prince. He does it well! I don’t know how Demidevimon closes his eyes like that, though, those appear to be his pupils closing. I don’t even know.

Really, I just find great nostalgia in comical villains. They were all the rage back in the day, especially in children’s media. They’re still around sometimes - Doctor Doofenshmirtz from Phineas and Ferb, the Rubies from Steven Universe, the Ice King from Adventure Time, even Team Rocket from Pokemon are thriving still. Good, menacing villains are great and all, but where’s the fun?

Honourable Mentions

Scorpiomon, who probably benefited the most from the dub’s style - his constant cried of “hey, stop it, come baaaack” while chasing Joe and Mimi are more remnicient of a kid trying to get his toy back from the bully who just took it away from him than someone trying to murder children, and that’s just fucking hilarious.

Mimi, when she was briefly an antagonist in that one episode. Just as I really like Heel-Face turns, I really like Face-Heel turns, even temporarily, and even as petty as this whole thing was. It was the perfect trap for her, who just craved the comfort of home, and who could be easily confinced to go for more. And it was the perfect trap because she was the jailor and the jailed at the same time, trapped as long as her own selfishness would allow. It was one of my favourite episodes.

Datamon, who had his own agenda and didn’t care that he was stepping on Etemon’s toes to get what he wanted. Just like Leomon and Ogremon had conflicting alliances on the protagonist’s side, Datamon and Etemon were opposing forces on the antagonist’s side, and multiple villains fighting each other are always fun to see.

Actually, Etemon later fought Puppetmon as Metaletemon, didn’t he? Wow, dude just doesn’t get along with other villains.

Gizamon. Give them more lines, you cowards.

The Dark Masters, as a whole. Just as Myotismon changed the entire tone of the show, these guys took the entire first half of the show and murdered every safe thing about it. They immediately started playing with the Digidestined, fully intending to off them all right then and there as a team. They were competent, for the most part - only failing when they were forced to split up, and their dirty tricks could be dismantled one by one. I’ve never seen a more co-operative group of antagonists, who never tried to dethrone each other and take everything for themselves.

And okay, sure, Kokatorimon. Purely for this.

Dishonourable Mention

Apocalymon.

Look, dude, I’m sorry, you’re cool and everything, but where the fuck did you come from? We killed Piedmon, it’s over, no, wait, here’s one last guy, no wait he’s dead, nevermind. What?

The fact that Apocalymon didn’t get any fanfare before being dropped on the Digidestined without warning made him seem like an afterthought, like the writers forgot their own endgame until they got there. Even if there had been a mention of the effect that caused his existence before he showed up - a “hey, did you know that not every Digimon survives Digivolution? Their data just gets deleted or something,” really would have helped, but even then. 

Apocalymon’s existence in the show really highlights how disjointed the series as a whole is - Devimon has no relation to Etemon, who has no relation to Myotismon, who has no relation to the Dark Masters, who have no relation to Apocalymon. The kids face a constant load of “okay, so we beat this guy and we can go home, right? ...no, maybe this guy??” where every new villain is dropped on the like a hot potato, making their first appearance in less time after their existence is revealed in less time than it takes to heat up said hot potato. Myotismon is the only one who gets any decent buildup before his first appearance before the children, and he’s often said to be the best villain of the show, so see how that works?

Digimon Adventure is the story of a bunch of kids who were brought to the Digital World to take care of one guy, and hey, while you’re here, we’ve also got some sort of demon on this island causing trouble, and there’s this monkey threatening us, and also a vampire, and then these four have joined together... It was a fun adventure, and I love that it could be part of my childhood and my life, but wow it really needed a more cohesive throughline for the story.

I hate to leave this post on a negative note, because it was full of mostly nice things, so here’s another picture of the bastard orb.

Hahahaha, oh you silly little man.