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randomfoggytiger · 1 year ago

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X-Files Collector's Edition: Requiem AUs (Poll Results 4th)-- Mulder Didn't Leave

Part 2 of the Requiem AUs (from this poll): Mulder returns in Requiem whether before, during, or after he finds out about his and Scully's miracle.

Loose chronological order below~

Requiem AUs

@mihosayuri/neytirijade’s This was in response to a prompt

""“I, uh… I’m actually here—we’re here—because I’m about two months late, and um… I took two at home pregnancy tests, and I know those things aren’t always 100%–""

Pre-Requiem Mulder and Scully are back in the IVF office, waiting with bated breath to see if they have surprise, miraculous, positive news.

@drbedeliadumaurier/heartsfilthylesson‘s

isolated systems - Chapter 2 (Tumblr)

""In Bellefleur, shock and dread give way to anticipation, to delight almost. She holds Theresa Nemman’s baby and remembers the one growing inside her, wonders.... She needs to tell him.""

Pre-Requiem Scully finds out about her pregnancy before she and Mulder leave for Oregon. She mulls over the news during their investigation; finally tells when they end up back where it all started: his motel room.

@starbuck09256‘s (Ao3) Back to the Beginning to find the Truth

""Everything in his search had just been leading him back to her. She whimpers in his arms and he feels a sudden gush on his chest[.] [L]ooking down as he gently strokes her bare back he see bright crimson.""

Scully's nose bleeds in Bellefleur; and Mulder zips her to the ER to get a checkup. Both are overjoyed.

@gilliansanderson/spensierata's Strange Trails (Tumblr)

""It was quiet in the car. It was a comfortable quiet. They were comfortable being quiet, it was how they processed the inevitable. The radio crackled and screeched in search of a signal, it reminded Mulder of when they’d lost nine minutes, they’d gotten soaked, he’d marked the ground with an X. We Were Here. He’d screamed it at the sky. Mulder turned it off in frustration so all that was left to fill the silence was the rhythmic pounding of the rain against the roof.... It was nine minutes to the hospital. He reached over to thread his fingers through hers. She only barely squeezed back.""

Mulder and Scully sit in the waiting room in Bellefleur, their absorptive silence morphing into peaceful joy at the good news.

@lokisgame’s (Ao3) Late

""Mulder,” she whispered..., calling him back from the edge of sleep, “I’m late.” “For what?” He mumbled, half conscious, “we just got back.""

Mulder and Scully return from Oregon, dozing on the couch... until Scully drops the gentle "I'm late" bombshell. (I adore this fic.)

a_steady_wish's Alternative Ending to Requiem - Chapter 1

""It’s only three minutes later but seems like an hour when the lines appear, clear as day, and you exhale loudly. You close your eyes for long moments, open them again: it hasn’t changed. You begin to pad back out to the bed, suddenly think you were mistaken, and go back to the bathroom to check again. You were not mistaken: two pink lines. You check the box a fourth time. Making sure you have read the results properly: You have. You are. You are pregnant.""

Scully takes a pregnancy test after their return from Oregon, unable to sleep with her suspicions. Mulder notices her mood when she comes back, teary and happy. (I adore this fic, too.)

TheAddict4Dramatics's Untitled Requiem Ficlet

""The banging continued until it was starting to echo inside her skull. She wiped her eyes and checked her face in the mirror before opening the door. Clearly she did not do a good enough cover-up job and he frowned as soon as he saw her.

“What’s the matter?” There was such sincere worry in his face as he stepped into the bathroom and relocked the door behind him.

“I’m…” But the fine died on her lips and to her utter horror she felt her face begin to crumble in on itself.""

Requiem Scully leaves the conference room where Mulder, TLG, Skinner, Krycek, Marita, and Diana all game plan about Oregon. Mulder insists on joining her, reiterating his loyalty; and is there to catch her when she faints.

@frogsmulder/Brynstein‘s 1. “I love you, please don’t go.”

""I love you,” she murmurs from a distance.

He looks up at her with wide, mossy eyes, flecked golden in the orange light of the lamp. In earnest, his innocent gaze captures her heart in a fist of fiery iron, melting her final resolve. “I love you too,” he answers simply, letting the weight of his affection carry his words.""

Requiem Mulder only wants Scully; and Scully finally admits to wanting him to stay. both are happy to be together for the news.

@mldrgrl’s (Ao3)

MSR 38

""Skinner was already on the phone calling for an ambulance. The gunmen hovered, giving orders to each other to give her air, get her water, find a pillow. Marita knelt down next to Mulder and put a hand on Scully’s ankle.

“Alex,” she said. “Find a blanket.""

Requiem Scully passes out at the Bureau; and Mulder, TLG, Skinner, and Marita all jump into action to take care of her until the ambulance arrives. (I adore this fic, too.) Mulder's intent doesn't end there, dropping a bombshell of his own.

Resignation

""He’d never been so glad about trusting his instincts as he was in that moment.""

Requiem Mulder resigns on the plane (to Skinner's own resigned frustration), returning to Scully's side and happily soaking in her announcement.

Not Again: Part 1 - Gone (Tumblr)

"" The Scully imposter cocks her head to the side and then almost with a shrug, turns and steps off the edge of the cliff.

“No!” Mulder screams, knowing full well it isn’t Scully who’s just fallen, but it looks like her, and he knows it’s an image he’ll never be able to shake. He stands rooted to his spot while Agent Doggett runs to the drop site and peers over the edge.""

AU-- Requiem Scully is abducted instead of Mulder. He carries on through the events of S8, trying his best to find her and finally accepting the help of Doggett and Reyes as well as Skinner and TLG.

XScribe/Red's (Ao3, Gossamer) The End of Time

""He is silent. The echo of her words dies away into the walls. His eyes open wide and he draws his bottom lip between his teeth, biting on it. He releases her from his grasp to run a hand over his face as he closes his eyes. She waits patiently for him, feeling suddenly very peaceful and calm, all panic draining out of her. She listens to the ticking of his watch in the quiet hallway, second by second dragging past them both.""

Requiem Scully tells Mulder in the FBI hallway. He wants to stay, but she insists he go.

Lapsed_Scholar’s Variations

""Mulder had sounded giddy and distracted over the phone.... This, though, was in an entirely different category. Mulder, of all people, Mulder was having obvious difficulty paying attention to a case full of shady conspiracies, paranormal phenomena, abductions, and UFOs. If Skinner had been forced to classify the look on his face, it would have been lovedrunk.

Scully was better at hiding it, but she was also remarkably non-productive and was prone to gazing off into space...at her partner. She would periodically come back to herself, whereupon she at least had the decency to blush and look back down at the papers before her.""

The best-- the best-- collection of Requiem unfolding in many more satisfying ways. The humor is unparalleled, the characterization exquisite, and the different stories gripping and heartwarming. Perfection. (I adore this, too.)

@allyinthekeyofx’s (Ao3) Finding Miracles

""And as I led her to the bed to properly take a look at her, I had to face the fact that she looked sick. Not sick like she looks when she has a cold or the flu or a stomach bug. The way she looked radiated from somewhere deep inside her, reflecting from those limitless blue eyes, the way her expression had faded, chasing away the essence that was Dana Scully as she battled with unfamiliar territory that had laid her emotions bare. Right there for me to see.

Because this woman, my perfect other and centre of my world was afraid...""

Requiem Mulder is called by Byers in the airport; and Skinner has to steady him as he sways from the potentially bad news.

Forte's (The Basement Office) Half an Hour

""He is breathing heavily himself, probably more from panic than from the four-block run, and slaps his palm against the wall as though that will make the elevator rise faster. He is too manic, even for him, and I remember all the caffeine he's ingested in the last several hours. I wonder if I should take his weapon away from him.""

Requiem Mulder creates havoc and mayhem after panicking in the airport; and Skinner corrals him (and later TLG) into orderly behavior all the way to the hospital.

@moonprincess92's (Ao3)

Are you up for writing some season 7 fluff?

""He’d agreed to swing by her apartment and collect the things she’d scribbled down for him on a hospital note pad. The only comforting thought he’d had on his drive was that she’d asked him to go ‘home’, rather than to ‘her apartment ’.

At least any news would be broken by her, and not another faceless doctor.""

Requiem Mulder leaves the airport, afraid Scully's cancer is back. Her joy and muddled responses comedically further this thought.

xphilernj's (Ao3, Two Close for Comfort) Find the Future - Chapter 1

""And, Scully, I wanted the IVFs to work. I truly *did* have those hopes and dreams ... but with you. Only with you. You ... you never knew it, but I grieved with you, for you, for us..." Mulder squeezed her fingers lightly, and reached up to wipe a stray tear away...""

Requiem Mulder rushes back to Scully's side; and Skinner leaves them both happily bantering about monkey babies.

HumphreyWrites/sure-fine-skullz/spookysadsophie/s-humphrey/sophie-writes-things/sophiewrites/SophieRobbins’s (Alt. Tumblr , Ao3, WBM)

Requiem Redux

""Her breath hitches, and she smiles. “I’m fine, Mulder.”

He raises an eyebrow, “You know what’s wrong?”

She bites her lip. “In a manner of speaking,” she begins, as he looks at her curiously.""

Requiem Mulder left the airport, too worried about Scully to leave with Skinner.

@tatooedlaura-blog/tatooedlaura/Laura Sprys’s Oregon

""...I will punch you if you do not take your hand off that door right now.”

“Then drive faster.”

“I drive any faster and we’re both going to die long before we reach the airport.""

Requiem Mulder chooses not to leave with the ship, stepping out of the woods to a flood of texts from TLG. Skinner gets him back ASAP; Scully assures him over the phone that everyone has prematurely panicked.

@cutelilcurtain/cutelilscully/cutelilwanda's (Ao3)

For the headcanons prompt: Mulder isn't abducted?

""He cannot process or read the expression on her face, and nothing could have prepared him for the softness of her voice, the hope that filled her watery gaze.

“Mulder, I’m pregnant.”

He freezes and she has to pull him into a sitting position on the bed for fear that he’ll collapse right there.""

Requiem Mulder finds nothing in Oregon but everything back home with Scully (who forgot to ask him about his trip until months later, wrapped up as they both were in their baby.)

Erin Blair/Erin M. Blair’s The Blessing

""Mulder sat stunned for a moment, certain he had misunderstood her words. This was *not* possible.

"You're what?!" he asked.""

Requiem Mulder is shell-shocked by Scully's good news in the hospital.

bellefleur's Arms Wide Open

""I open my eyes and for the first time take in the speckled gray linoleum at my feet. The lifeless tones are such a contrast to my spirits that I can't help but laugh to myself, and with the laughter comes a fresh round of tears. It seems I just can't stop them from streaming down my face, and right now, I don't care. With my head bowed, my hands buried in my hair, and my elbows propped on my knees, no one can really see my face anyway. I need what privacy I can muster, here in this public hallway, to come to terms with this all.

I still can't believe this is happening. I'm going to be a father.""

Requiem Mulder bolts after he and Scully are told she's pregnant. Maggie finds him in the hospital hallway, relieved he is just overwhelmed with happy, anticipatory nerves.

isamariposa's Bullfrogs and Jello

""He feels like throwing up when he steps into the hospital. Maybe he's allergic to the smell, whatever. He walks to the reception and swallows hard not to choke when he asks for Dana Scully. How many times has this happened, how many near-misses? She's on the third floor, they say. Mulder punches the button on the elevator, startles a child holding a balloon shaped like a bunny. He still thinks he's going to throw up. At least the ward is not the one for the terminally ill. He remembers that pain. It had toppled him in half.""

Requiem Mulder is replaced at the airport by Doggett, getting back to Scully as fast as he can. He, however, does not react positively to the pregnancy news, afraid it might be caused by CSM tampering.

@all-these-ghosts/all_these_ghosts’s Say Yes (Tumblr)

""I told you I love you,” he points out.

A smile flirts with the corners of her mouth. “Once,” she says.

“Now it’s twice. You haven’t even said it once.”

The smile fades, and her eyes are dark and trained right on him. Scully says, “I love you”, and his heart does this thing that makes him feel like he’s sixteen years old, even though of course he’s known all along.""

Post Requiem Mulder is not abducted in Oregon; but he does almost scare Scully to death, barging in gun drawn and frightening her into dropping her beloved watermelon.

@frangipanidownunder’s (Ao3) Already Special

""Scully’s news is a thunderbolt. That the impossible truth of their quest is revealed as a collection of growing cells in her uterus. It is both absurd and entirely right. The tears he cries with her are hard to quantify....

So, when Diana makes an appearance at the basement, it’s like the door to their secret world is blown off, leaving them exposed.""

Per Manum Mulder was never abducted; and he and Scully tackle the Lizzie Gill saga with a special addition... Diana Fowley.

@rationalcashew/RationalCashew's

Dark is the Way; Light is the Place - Chapter 26 (Ao3)

""As though it had a mind of its own, his hand reached out to cover her flat stomach. Her eyes, however, never left him; her smile didn’t wane.

“You okay over there?” She asked, after allowing him his moment. Her voice jolted him back into the room.

“Yeah,” he said, awkwardly removing his hand from her body. He let out a breath that he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. In disbelief, he said, “We’re having a baby.""

AU-- Mulder and Scully are sinking into domestic bliss when a serial killer case pulls them out of town. Mulder's paranoia for Scully and their baby's safety begins to put a wedge in their relationship, finally driving Scully back to D.C., trying to give them space while he gets into deeper and deeper trouble.

@cecilysass/cecily_sass/Cecily Sasserbaum's Pause

""Home pregnancy test. 99% Accurate. Results in minutes.

For thirty seconds the box sits there in Scully’s hands. She stares at it.

This box that her mother bought. This box that she put in her daughter’s bag. Her daughter whom she knows is infertile.

Somewhere in the apartment is the sharp sudden sound of Mulder turning off the shower.

Like a ghost, Scully stands up.

She takes the box and holds it under her arm, crosses the room, and steals Mulder’s keys from the entry table.

Without a sound she leaves the apartment.""

AU-- Scully wakes in her car, amnesic and unknowingly pregnant. Mulder at first doesn't believe it's her; and it's not until Maggie verifies and Diana Fowley leaves evidence for the duo to find that he can fully accept that his partner, who was "dead" for a year, is back.

DKSculder's Sweetest Devotion

""I, I had hoped you would be here, when the baby was born. So I put these in my hospital bag, to give to you here.” She took a deep breath, staring at the frayed pages in her hands. “These are my notes, on the x-files, on you. This is a documentation of every case we’ve worked, before I typed them up in reports. It’s mostly shorthand, just my own jotted down notations...."

“What’s the other one?”

“These, are my personal notes. More of a diary, if that’s how you want to look at it. The dates all coincide with the other.” She said softly, handing him the second binding of tattered pages.

He stared at them for longer than he probably should, she had just handed him the truth, her truth.""

AU-- Scully has been a spy since the Pilot; and she finally confesses it to Mulder after she gets pregnant with their child. Mulder MIA, Mulder returning for a case then ghosting, Mulder arriving in time for the birth of their son, and Mulder crawling back to a form of trust in Scully unfolds painfully slowly.

Thank you for reading~

Enjoy!

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mokonahapuuuuuu · 1 year ago

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Beastly

Looking good, as always.

The mirrors were around him as usual.

Oh, yes. He had it. And that’s how it was always going to be.

All of a sudden, he saw a chuck of his hair in his hand.

No. He took another hand to comb through his hair and more hair was coming off. He touched his skin, and it felt rough.

He looked in the mirror.

He wasn’t beautiful anymore.

———

A scream echoed throughout the Brownstone.

Belle, his new girlfriend was the first to enter. Followed by Theresa, and the rest of the gang were at his door.

“Neil, are you alright?”

Neil swallowed. With her everything was better. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

He smiled, placed a hand on her face and hugged her.

“Was it the fight with the hydra this week? I know after facing Cronus, I have a few scary dreams after I fight him as well.”

Sleep was still in his eyes. “Maybe some other time…”

“Alright…” She kissed his forehead. “Sleep well.”

——

Morning came, and Neil looked into his cup of tea.

He always worried and fret about his looks and clothes. Belle thought he screamed over the big fight with Cronus’s hydra.

But then if he told Belle that, she’d dismiss him. Just like everyone else about his looks.

That he was always vain. Shallow. Vapid.

That he was never meant to be a hero in the first place.

When the Phantom was around, maybe Theresa had a point. Maybe teenagers weren’t suppose to be fighting evil on a daily basis and be placed in tough situations.

Even though the hydra wasn’t his main problem, it was still pretty scary.

Belle was in the kitchen. She nodded. “Feeling better?”

“Yeah, I am…”

Her arms were around him, and she sat beside him, carrying her bagel and tea.

“Belle? If somehow I weren’t as attractive anymore… would you leave me?”

She looked at him, mouth full of bagel, and laugh. She swallowed, no more food in her mouth. “Neil, whatever makes you say that?”

Perhaps it wasn’t just facing the hydra and the nightmare he had about his looks he was afraid of.

It was also his fears about Belle when they became a couple.

“My looks are all I have,” he began. “People tell me I’m beautiful all the time, but once it’s gone, it’ll all go away. My modelling career, the fans…”

He looked at the girl who loved every part of him, even the ugly bits. It did took a long time for them to sort out what was on their minds before they decided to officially date.

“Maybe I was afraid of love. Once I’m not beautiful anymore… they’d leave me.”

Their hands intertwined.

“I love you, okay. Yeah, sure you’re stuck up and high maintenance, but you’re my high maintenance.”

She made sure he was listening. “You’re beautiful because of who you are, not because of what I see.”

She looked away, then turned to look at him. “The reasons I love you, it’s not something you can see in a mirror.”

Belle was true to Disney Princess’s Belle. ‘Beauty and the Beast’. When they officially got together and decided who should be ‘beauty’ and who should be ‘beast’, Belle didn’t mind being ‘beast’. Beauty suited him better, for reasons that didn’t need to be mentioned.

Then again, maybe there’s a little bit of beauty and a little bit of beast in everyone.

#class of the titans

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arrthurpendragon · 1 year ago

Note

⌨ + rule 14 + tag you're it

The lecture hall had finally managed to quiet down enough for Professor Ash to finally call the class to order. “Good morning! Good morning!” He pushed his thick glasses up the bridge of his nose with his pudgy thumb. “Thank you to those of you who bothered to show up this time. Let me remind you that according to the syllabus you received at the beginning of the semester that attending this lecture is worth 25% of your final grade. And for some of you it’s a graduation requirement.”

A few groans echoed across the hall as did a sea of whispers. Professor Ash clapped his hands calling their attention back to him once more. “For those of you in need of a good deed for the day and you see someone who should be in this lecture - I’d pull out those cellphones and tell them to get their lazy asses out of bed.”

Laughter erupted across the hall. Some people even pulled out their cellphones to text their missing classmates. Emma just sipped her coffee, waiting the for lecture to finally begin. How much showboating did it require to actually start this thing? But when the talking finally seemed to die down, Professor Ash addressed them once more. “Without further ado, it gives me great pleasure to introduce our guest speakers from the prestigious Behavioral Analysis unit at the FBI, SSA Jason Gideon and Dr. Spencer Reid.”

“Have you met either of them?” Emma asked Theresa, whispered in her friend’s ear as the audience applauded their guests onto the stage.

Theresa shook her head.

Send me ⌨ + title to one of my fics and I’ll write a sentence for that fic!

#oc: emma gibbs #fic: rule 14 #fd: criminal minds #fd: ncis #send me a fic and i'll write a sentence fic #oc: theresa morgan #danie📚

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originalhybridloverfics-backup · 1 year ago

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Ch28 Good To You

A/N: It's been ages. I've been working on this awhile. I've rewritten this chapter over and over and over and I'm still not happy with it but then again I am rarely happy with any of my chapters.

The saying 'you are your own worse critic' is very true in my case.

Anyway, I finished this chapter about a month ago and was in the middle of editing when two weeks ago I broke my laptop but I got a new one today and finally finished editing this chapter. I may not like it but I hope you guys do.

Thank you to everyone still reading even though I am the world's slowest fanfic writer.

P.S. Mistakes are all my own.

Rebekah lies on an old mattress in a poor state suffering from the werewolf bites she received previously. There is a dripping sound by her bedside as she is coming into a conscious state. She shot awake, gasping, only to look around and see a very familiar hospital in full swing; the sound of screaming patients in agony and bustling nurses and doctors attending to them; all dying from Spanish Influenza.

She is hallucinating. Somewhere in the deep recesses of her mind, she knows this. She knows she’s in an abandoned hospital in New Orleans; antique hospital beds, wheelchairs, and equipment left behind and forgotten.

She breathes heavily and gasps with fear as she looks around, lost in her hallucination.

Blood dripping on the floor; a man drops a bloody rag; another man sits up in bed and coughs out blood. She gasps as two doctors drop another patient onto a cot and wheel him toward the morgue.

She slowly rolls out of the bed, weakened by the werewolf venom in her system.

A woman’s laughter is heard echoing through the corridors.

“Who’s there?” Rebekah called out, but there was no answer. She struggles to get out of that room as quickly as possible. As she reaches the door, she plunges through it, escaping outside.

“How the hell did I get here?” Rebekah asked herself. None of this made sense. She was at the plantation house.

She stumbles toward the steps but before she can go any further; she is stabbed in the heart with a wooden stake. She gasps and falls to the ground, only to look into the eyes of the familiar face that stabbed her.

“Genevieve!” she exclaimed, alarmed.

Genevieve was dead. She regretfully killed her friend long ago.

“Rebekah, tell me you’re not leaving already. I thought we might reminisce.” said Genevieve with Malice.

Rebekah falls unconscious. The wolf venom and hallucinations overcoming her once more.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Meanwhile, inside, Celeste looks over the body of Klaus, who is shirtless and lying on a steel bed tied down by restraints. Papa Tunde’s blade, which has disappeared inside of him, too weakens him.

He groans and starts to stir.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

The witches have gathered together. They were trying to break free and release Monique from the hold the Originals had.

Monique stands in the center of the witches, commanding authority.

Elijah appears and quickly takes out three people at vampire speed. Monique is not phased but others gasp.

“Katherine, my siblings have been taken…where are they?” Elijah demanded.

“You’re interrupting witch business..” Monique accused.

“I don’t care.” Elijah moved to crowd her in an attempt at intimidation.

Monique, however, stood her ground unflinchingly.

“Monique, I recommend you give me what I want unless, of course, you’d like me to level this place and everything in it.” Elijah threatened.

“That won’t be necessary. I have a message for you from Celeste.” She puts her hand out in front of her, performing a spell.

Elijah pulls at the collar of his dress shirt uncomfortable, he rips open the top button of his shirt to see the name ‘Theresa’ in italics tattooed on his chest.

Monique continues as two more names appear; he rolls up his sleeve to see the familiar name Sabine.

“To find what you’re looking for, follow the path she left behind.” Monique advised. “Fleur-de-Lis.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rebekah lay on a hospital bed with the wooden stake still buried in her chest. She was awake, gasping in pain as Genevieve is humming and making an herb potion mixed with her blood.

“What the hell are you doing, you ruthless bitch?” Rebekah gasped.

“Poor Rebekah, you should rest. You’re looking a little peaked.” Genevieve said with mock sympathy. She pulls the stake out of Rebekah’s chest and lets her blood drip into her potion. “Of course, that’s to be expected, given the impressive amount of werewolf venom in your system.”

“If I weren’t so bloody sick, I’d rip your head off!” Rebekah threatened.

“But you are sick and comforting the sick always was a talent of mine. I take care of my friends. We were friends, weren’t we?” Genevieve asked. “Of course we were.” She applies a cold cloth to Rebekah’s forehead.

Rebekah pulled away, not wanting to feel her touch.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

New Orleans, 1919

“There, there... “ Rebekah soothed a sick man.

The man coughs blood on to her apron.

“Oh... that can’t be good. You! Red!” Rebekah called out.

Genevieve, in nursing uniform, turns to face her. Rebekah nods her over.

“Here, try to take a sip of this.” Genevieve gives the patient a small glass of herbal remedies. The man drinks it and quiets down.

“Mmm... just like magic.” Rebekah touches her so that she realizes what Rebekah was. “But then again, what would you expect from a practicing witch?”

“It’s a simple herbal remedy. It won’t stop the inevitable, but it should ease his pain and quiet his lungs. For a while, at least,” Genevieve told her.

“You are quite good at this Miss... what was your name again?” Rebekah inquired.

“Genevieve.” she answered.

“Lovely…” Rebekah complimented. “Perhaps you could give me some pointers.”

“Certainly, though it is a bit odd,” Genevieve commented. “A vampire serving as a nurse.”

“Please, darling, I’m an Original Vampire. If my city is under attack from this nasty influenza, it is my duty to lend a hand. Besides, if this entire lot dies, who’d be left to eat?” Rebekah reasoned.

“You’re wicked!” Genevieve grinned. Enjoying Rebekah’s candid humor.

“You know, I think you and I are going to be fast friends…” Rebekah replies. “What do you say you join me at this swell little jazz joint I’ve discovered on Basin Street tonight? We can toast to the health of New Orleans.”

Genevieve is about to say something but she catches the eye of a brunette nurse just behind them, attending to a patient. The nurse stares at her with a concerned glance.

“Oh, I don’t know,” said Genevieve.

Rebekah turns around to face the brunette nurse. “You, you should come, too. After playing angels of mercy all day, I’d say we all deserve some fun.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rebekah gasps in the hospital bed. She’s alone. She rolls over and falls off the bed, landing on her feet; groaning.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Katherine opened her eyes. It was difficult. The magic induced on her made her dying human body feel weak.

She was strapped to a med table. The room was small and dark, and the place had the smell of an empty warehouse.

She tried to listen for sounds, but there were none.

“Great.” she muttered. She pulled at her restraints, but they didn’t so much as budge.

The last thing she wanted to do was call out to her captors, but if she was going to figure a way out of here, she needed the full scope of the situation.

Who she was dealing with? Why she was taken? What their endgame was?

And ultimately, if they were willing to make a deal.

“Hello?” she called out, rolling her eyes at herself. She sounded just like those stupid girls in the horror fics of today.

The girl calls out for the killer and then gets killed.

She was not looking to speed up her already approaching death, thanks to the vampire cure that wreaked havoc on her body.

When no one came at first, despite her reservations, she called out louder and louder, but no one ever came.

She was either being completely ignored or completely forgotten about.

Neither set well with her. It was a hit to her pride.

She was Katherine Pierce. That used to mean something. But not anymore. Not since becoming human. She detested her situation just that bit more.

If they were going to be so dismissive of her, why bother with taking her?

What was the point?

What was the point of anything anymore?

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Elijah walks into the Abattoir quickly as Marcel is sending out more troops to search the city.

“Anything?” Asked Elijah.

“They’re putting eyes and ears out everywhere; day walkers are working every contact we’ve got. Cops, dock workers, guys in the Treme. Word is out anyone trying to earn favor with me gets a lifetime of it if they find them.” Marcel answered.

“Good. I need a pen and paper,” said Elijah and walks away.

Marcel followed after him. “Hey, am I taking orders from you now, or are we in this together?”

“Pen and paper, Marcellus. Now!” Elijah snapped as he removed his jacket.

“I want her back just as much as you do, you know... The both of them.” Marcel turns to fetch the pen and paper from the desk drawer.

Elijah removes his shirt and calls out. “Caroline!”

“Did you find any–” Caroline trailed off, taking in his appearance – shirtless and covered in tattoos. ”–thing? What is happening? What are you doing?” It appalled her that he seemed to think now was a time to take off his clothes.

“I need you to make a list of these names.” Elijah told her.

“Sabine? Elijah, what is this?” Caroline questioned. “Isn’t that the name of Sophie’s friend?”

“I believe they represent the names of the women Celeste inhabited for the past two centuries.” Said Elijah.

Marcel rejoins them and hands the paper and pen to Caroline. “It’s called a Devinette. It’s old school. Kind of a riddle. Witches use them to teach their kids. Solve it and it disappears.”

“Why?” asked Caroline. “What’s the point?”

“Celeste forced me to make a choice between yourself, Katerina and my siblings, and now she means to mock that choice, taunting me with a childish game. The longer the game, the more they suffer. To find Klaus, Katerina and Rebekah, we need to solve this riddle.” Elijah explained. “The solution lies somewhere in these names.”

“The name next to Sabine... Annie La Fleur. She’s the witch that was shunned from her coven just over a year ago.” said Marcel. “Never knew why, but I can find out.”

Caroline reluctantly began writing the names down, when she much rather Elijah put his clothes back on.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Klaus still lies on the bed in an abandoned room inside the sanatorium of Fleur-de-lis as Genevieve enters; he appears to be unconscious as she touches his stomach where a nasty scar protrudes from where Papa Tunde’s blade disappeared inside of him. He opens his eyes, still in a weak state, sweating with circles under his eyes.

His eyes were filled with hate as he looks at her with contempt.

“You poor thing.” She speaks to him gently and goes over to the hospital cart and picks up a scalpel off the tray. His eyes watch her. “Don’t worry, I’m here to help.”

She speaks as she cuts open his stomach along the line of the red scar. She pushes up her sleeve and digs her hand into his stomach; he screams and thrashes against the restraints as she pulls out Papa Tunde’s blade; he growls at her and writhes in pain.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Elijah and Marcel go to the village where Annie lived after she was shunned; Annie La Fleur village. They are able to speak to someone who knew her.

“Annie was a good girl. The witches did her wrong, shunning her like that; claiming she was doing dark magic; there’s no way, but they had proof,” said the man. “So she just quit and I can’t really blame her for that cause once you’ve been shunned, what’s the point in going on, you know?”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Elijah is walking down a busy street in the Quarter on his cell phone with Caroline, explaining what happened to Annie La Fleur.

“She killed herself?” asked Caroline.

“Yes, drowned herself in the Mississippi, to be precise; Celeste was clearly tired of the body and ready to take Sabine’s,” Elijah answered.

“How do you know that?” Caroline questioned.

“Because she leapt to her death from the very location Celeste and I had our first kiss,” said Elijah.

“Poetic, I guess... in a creepy vendetta sort of way,” said Caroline.

“All these names, these lives, stolen that Celeste might take her revenge,” said Elijah. “I suppose we have no choice but to see where they take us. Caroline, I have to go. I’ll call you back when I know more.”

“Elijah, wait!” Caroline said. .

“What is it?” asked Elijah.

“Ask Marcel if he knows anything about a name on that list, Brynne Deveraux.” Caroline told him. “Sophie said that it was her family’s bloodline that put the curse on the crescent wolves, but Celeste said that she was the only one that could break it. If Brynne Deveraux was actually Celeste when she cast the spell, then maybe Celeste can still break it. Or at least we can find a loophole that will allow Davina to break it”

“I’ll see what he knows.” Elijah told her.

“Elijah, what do you think is happening to him?” Caroline's voice was pained. “You should have chosen him. Not me.”

“You were going to die in that fire, Caroline, along with my brother’s children. I know we don’t always get along, but there was no choice.” Elijah hangs up before she can respond.

Of course, Elijah wished he would have chosen Katerina, Rebekah, or Klaus instead of Caroline, but despite that, he knew he had made the right choice. Caroline was his family, too.

He made the right choice. He was sure of it.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Caroline could not sit around and do nothing. Not while Klaus was in the hands of the enemy, not when Rebekah and Katherine were facing the same fate.

Every cell in her body was screaming that she had to get Klaus back. There was no other option.

His life meant more than she knew was possible.

Caroline knew her feelings for Klaus had changed. They were real and deep, but it wasn’t until they took him that she realized just how deep they were.

She loved Klaus. She was in love with him.

She would not rest until he knew the depth of her feelings. She wasn’t here because of the witches or because of their children. She was still here because of him. He buried himself so deep in her heart, there was no going back. He was it for her. Until the day she died, she would love Niklaus Mikaelson, the most feared, the most destructive, the most misunderstood being that has ever walked this earth.

Caroline, needing to take action, assembled the wolves, the vampires, Davina and Stefan. All came before her. Waiting.

“The enemies have made their move, its time to make ours.” Caroline was holding court in the compound, standing in a circle among everyone. “We can’t take this lying down. We are not push overs and we will not be victims, casualties in this war the witches are staging. Together we will put an to end to it, take back everything that belongs to us. The witches will be the first example of what happens when you underestimate an enemy with the potential to rise higher than what they believed to be possible.”

Everyone stared at Caroline.

Stefan was surprised by how much she reminded him of Klaus at that moment, yet still sound like the girl who had become his best friend.

The vampires and wolves cheered and chanted in agreement, her words of taking the fight to the witches and fighting back ringing true in their hearts.

This was their city and they would defend it from anyone trying to take it from them.

“Davina and I,” Caroline held out her hand to the younger girl and Davina took it, coming to stand beside her in the center of the circle. “Have been working together to locate the witches, Klaus, Rebekah and Katherine. We are narrowing it down. We are also working together to end the curse placed upon the Crescent wolves in the bayou.”

The vampires broke out in an uproar.

“Enough,” Caroline shouted, her voice thunderous. “This is no time for petty squabbles and mistrust. If we show disruption among one another, our enemies will not hesitate to cease upon and use it to their advantage. We mustn’t give them the opportunity. Unless you want to be the one to lose the battle?”

The vampires fell silent.

“The wolves in the Bayou are now our allies and we will work with them. You don’t have to like it, but you will accept it.” Caroline continued. “Now, I need you all to work together. If not for the sake of taking down an enemy, then do it for yourselves.”

Zach joined Caroline and Davina and addressed the wolves. “There was a time I hated vampires, didn’t trust them until Caroline. I am willing to give other vampires the benefit of the doubt because of her, and you should be willing to do the same. The witches have challenge all of us again and again. They take what doesn’t belong to them and challenge anyone who threatens their balance of power and tradition. They want to take this town for themselves and kill every other supernatural being and look at what they are capable of. They have taken two originals. If they can do that to the Mikaelsons, just think what they can do to any one of us. Aligning ourselves is the only way to put an end to their madness and end their threat.”

The vampires were reluctant to agree with a wolf, but could see his reasoning.

A vampire stepped forward. “What do you want us to do?”

“I want you to share the Quarter. I want you to bury the stupid feud the wolves and vampires have against each other. I want you to forget about your prejudice and do what’s best for your loved ones and for your home. I want you to come together to facedown a common enemy and you might just find we’re not that different after all. The wolves are ready to do whatever it takes for each other, and I want you to do the same. Can you do that?” asked Caroline, passionately.

“Can you look at the wolves and welcome them? Can you put the wellbeing of others before yourself?” Caroline stepped forward, challenging. “The witches have been playing chess. It’s time we up our game and show them they won’t be taking over the Quarter if anything, they’re going to leave and the first step to achieving that is getting Klaus back and weakening them. Are you willing to put aside your differences? Will you extend your hands, call a truce, and join in a common cause?”

Stefan watched on bated breath as the vampires stared down the wolves until slowly, each vampire took a step forward extending their hands to the wolves in the room.

Caroline shared a smile with Davina. It might not seem like much, but this was a start. A start to a new beginning. For the wolves and the vampires and hopefully New Orleans as a whole.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Klaus is now in a sitting position as Genevieve has put his black long sleeve shirt back on him; he is still weakened, sweating and in a poor state. He glares at her. “My wound isn’t healing.”

”The amount of dark magic contained in that blade? It’s gonna take a little while,” Genevieve told him.

“You’re one of them, aren’t you?” Klaus asked. “The witches back from the dead; seeking vengeance. Why show me kindness?”

She strokes his face. “You never did anything to me. And the truth is, seeing you like this, I can’t help but pity you.”

“Then betray the others and stand with me. I will reward you in ways you cannot possibly fathom.” Klaus told her, resisting the urge to pull back from her touch.

“Klaus Mikaelson, offering a deal to little ol’ me? I should be flattered,” said Genevieve. “But first we need to have a talk about your sister.”

His facial expression changes as she walks away from him. “Rebekah is of no concern to you,” he growls out, his voice rising. “If you mean to harm her—”

“Ah, the protective brother.” Genevieve interrupts. “A shame that loyalty isn’t reciprocated. But then, I’m no stranger to Rebekah’s treachery. Something you and I have in common. Here.” She holds out the bowl that she made earlier in the company of Rebekah. “Drink. I’m just trying to help you. Heal you. Get you to see the truth that’s been right in front of you for almost a century.”

Klaus drinks with every intention of spitting it back in her face, but Genevieve puts her hand over his mouth, tipping his head back and forcing him to swallow it; he chokes it down.

“Your sister had an unfortunate run-in with some wolves last night. I imagine you’re tasting the venom in her blood. It’s the only way I can show you what you need to see. In her weakened state, I’ll be able to guide her down memory lane. That’s how I’m going to have my revenge. By showing you her betrayal.” Genevieve put her hand on his forehead, linking their minds.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rebekah, in her hallucinatory state, stops in the corridor as she looks up to see Klaus standing at the other end staring at her. “Niklaus!”

She runs toward him, passing rooms on the way; in the first room there is a young boy sitting on a table; his eyes darkened with purplish bruises holding a cloth to his mouth, coughing up blood. In the next room, a teen girl in a pink nightgown sitting in a bathtub staring at her, blood dripping down her mouth and onto her grown. In the next room, an old man hitting his chest and spurting up blood; she cringes as she passes the sign on the wall that reads ‘Crematorium’. She pushes the door open.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

1919

Rebekah walks into the Crematorium with a smile on her face to greet Marcel; the two embrace and begin to make out. He pushed her up against the wall and put his hand on her leg. She laughs and pulls away. “Marcel have some respect.”

“Yeah, I don’t think they mind.” He looks around briefly, indicating the bodies in the morgue they’re in, all lost to Influenza. “Did you ask Genevieve about doing the spell?”

“I will when the time is right.” answered Rebekah.

“Rebekah, you’ve been hanging around that witch for weeks, waiting for the time to be right. She wasn’t supposed to become your sidekick,” said Marcel. “One little spell and we can finally be together for real. What are you waiting for?”

“She’s a sweet girl, is all. If you must know, I feel badly for using her.” Rebekah admitted. The truth was she was fond of Genevieve.

“Then we’ll find another witch; one you don’t have to fake a friendship with. Unless you’ve changed your mind?” Said Marcel.

“I want to wake up with you in our home, in the bed that we share.” Rebekah said, not wanting him to have any doubts about her feelings. “I want to walk down the street with you by my side so everyone knows that you are mine and I am yours. I don’t want to be afraid of what my brother will do to me for loving you. If this is the only way to get it, then no, my mind hasn’t changed.”

They kiss again as Genevieve walks into the room.

“O-oh!” Genevieve made a sound of surprise.

They break apart to look at her as she stands there holding bloody sheets.

“I didn’t know anyone was in here. I’m so sorry.” Genevieve hurries out.

Rebekah follows after her. “Genevieve!”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rebekah opened the door leading back into the corridor to follow Genevieve. “Genevieve, wait!”

Genevieve disappears and Rebekah is left alone in the abandoned hall.

“I’m sorry.” Rebekah apologized.

Klaus is pulled out of Rebekah’s mind to face Genevieve. He seems amused and bored. “So this is your great betrayal? Rebekah and Marcel have been sneaking around behind my back for the better half of two centuries.”

“Yes, against all your warnings, you’ve disciplined them for it before, had you now? Harshly from what I understand,” said Genevieve.

“Well, I had my reasons,” said Klaus.

“Oh, you don’t have to convince me as far as I’m concerned, you only needed one. That it suited you. Have you ever read the Old Testament, Nik?” asked Genevieve. “You see, God wasn’t powerful because he was right, he was right because he was powerful.”

“I don’t know what you’re playing at, but if the sum total of your plan was to turn me against my sister with this revelation, this will have been a wholly ineffective endeavor.” Klaus informed her.

“You poor thing,” said Genevieve. “After a thousand years, dishonesty from your family has come to be expected. I wish that was the sum total of their treachery. Unfortunately, it’s not.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Marcel’s vampires are casually relaxing at the bar called the pit when suddenly the doors fly open and a man is thrown onto the floor. Elijah and Marcel follow in behind him.

“Wh-what do you want from me?” the man asked.

Marcel throws him into a chair.

“Well, I assume you’re familiar with this pigsty, quite appropriately known as the Pit. See, awkwardly enough, only weeks ago a group of human beings just like yourself slaughtered many of the companions of the vampires that you see assembled before you here,” Elijah explained in answer.

“You run the records room at city hall,” said Marcel. “We’re told the former Mayor kept a detailed record of the supernatural community. A ledger of names of witches, werewolves and vampires, specifically their death records. We need it.”

“I-I don’t know where it is,” the man said.

“I think we both know that’s a fib. Anyone feeling hungry?” Elijah closes the door a little so that the sunlight is not there and the vampires can come forward.

“Oh! Ok w-wait, they moved the records after the Mayor died. They’re at the sacristy of St. Anne’s Church.” the man blurted, fear coursing through his veins.

“See? There, wasn’t so difficult, now, was it?” asked Elijah.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rebekah is running through the abandoned corridors when she comes around the corner to face two small children. They stand before her quietly, then suddenly they let out a piercing, deafening scream.

“Ah!” Rebekah stumbles backward.

“Rough day?” asked Genevieve. “Oh, Becks! Those bites are looking nasty.”

“Why make me relive the past?” asked Rebekah. “We both know how it ends.”

“You and I both know, but I thought your brother might like to hear our story, so I linked your mind to his,” Genevieve replies. “You’re gonna show him everything.”

“NO! NO! Please don’t do that to me. I’ll do anything.” Rebekah begged in fear.

“It’s too late, friend,” Genevieve told her.

Rebekah tries to attack her, but Genevieve is too strong; Rebekah grabs her head and screams in pain until she falls unconscious; Genevieve walks away, leaving Rebekah alone in the hall.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“Marcel, here’s another name from our list: Brynne Deveraux. Says here she drowned herself some twenty years ago.” Elijah read off. He and Marcel were back at the Abattoir. “Do you recognize the name?”

“Brynne?” Marcel repeated with recognition. “Yeah, yeah, we used to hang out, knock around a bit.”

“You can spare me the details, please,” said Elijah, not wanting the hear the intimate details of Marcel’s past.

“She used to do some spells for me now and then. Girl had power, cursed a whole pack of werewolves just because they were pissing me off.” Marcel told him. “Speaking of, what do you think Klaus is gonna do when he finds out that you left him to suffer?”

“I think Klaus would be more than understandable, seeing as I chose to save Caroline. Furthermore, let’s avoid discussing matters that are not your concern, shall we, Marcellus?” replies Elijah.

“Oh, come on, Elijah. I got guys all over this city. You honestly think that I don’t know that Caroline had a wolf gathering with Klaus’s pack and the Crescent wolves at the plantation last night?” Marcle questioned. “Thanks for letting the house burn, by the way. Good riddance! But my question is, what does Caroline think she is going to accomplish with the wolves?”

“Marcel, I’m aware of your history with the city’s wolves, and I assume you understand that if you lay a finger upon Caroline or any of the wolves under her protection, it will be the last thing you do on this earth.” Elijah threatened.

“Caroline’s protection?” Marcel repeated.

“Yes, and if you interfere with her, you will be dealt with accordingly.” Elijah warned.

“I see I hit a nerve,” said Marcel. “And just when we were getting along.”

“We were right!” Elijah declared suddenly. “Every name upon my flesh signifies a witch who died by her own hand. All but one. Clara Summerlin.”

“Ring any bells?” Marcel asked.

“None.” Elijah answered.

“Okay, well, if she didn’t off herself, then how did she die?” Marcel questioned.

“Influenza Epidemic of 1919.” Elijah answers and his tattoos disappear. “I suppose we have our answer, though I have no idea what it means.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Celeste heeded the warnings of the witches. She moved through the city streets, careful to blend in; she had been watching since taking her hostages, wanting to know how far Caroline, Elijah and Marcel would be willing to go for Klaus, Katherine and Rebekah.

She had her answer. Seeing Caroline successfully leading the Quarter wolves and vampire alike in a move against the witches was eye opening.

The blonde vampire was more of a threat than she gave her credit for.

But more so, what really caught Celeste’s attention was Caroline’s single-minded determinedness to find Klaus.

Celeste wanted the Mikaelson’s to suffer. She wanted to break the unbreakable bond, but more than that, she wanted Klaus to suffer.

And she knew just how to make the man wish for death.

Klaus Mikaelson, after a thousand years, finally cared about someone more than himself. What better revenge than to rip that person from him?

How would he handle knowing it was all his fault, and he was the reason for every ounce of pain he had brought onto his family and himself?

How would he live with himself when his hands were soaked with the blood of the woman who managed to make him feel in a thousand years?

Who was Klaus Mikaelson when Caroline Forbes is killed to punish him?

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Genevieve has an old record player sitting in a vintage wheelchair. She plays an old jazz tune. It echoes throughout the hospital corridors; Rebekah wakes to the sound. She remembers a time when it played through the jazz club she frequented in 1919.

“NO! NO! Please!” Rebekah begged.

Klaus hears the music as well; Genevieve enters the room.

“Your sister’s tryst with Marcel was only the beginning.” Genevieve informed him. “You see, the burden of your condemnation was too great, and as a result, your deepest fear came to pass: that their love for each other would overshadow their love for you and turn it into hate. Nik, they conspired to rid themselves of you for good.”

Rebekah runs down the hall until she finds the record player and smashes it against the ground, but the music still plays as she holds her head flashing back to that night in the Jazz club, bringing her memories to life in her mind.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Clara, Rebekah and Genevieve walk through the club.

“Okay, next round’s on me,” said Clara.

“Clara Summerlin, no!” said Genevieve. “I’ll be soused.”

“Get it while you can – it’s the last real gin in the city!” said Rebekah.

Clara heads to the bar. “Bartender?”

Rebekah and Genevieve sit down at a table.

“You’re nothing like I thought you’d be when I first met you.” Genevieve told Rebekah. “I was brought up to think your kind were, well…”

“An abomination of nature?” Rebekah finished for her.

“You’re anything but!” said Genevieve. “Not just you, your whole family is so... elegant.”

Rebekah looked over to where Elijah was.

“Yes, I agree. Elijah is quite peerless.” said Rebekah.

“I don’t know... I mean, he’s nice and all, but if I had to go for one Mikaelson boy…” Genevieve trailed off.

“Klaus?” said Rebekah, her eyes shining with mirth. “Genevieve, who’d have thought a saintly little witch like you would go for the bad boys? I knew we were destined to be friends!”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“More gin, please,” said Clara, leaning into the bar.

A man next to her spills his drink on her.

“Oh!” she gasped.

Elijah appears by her side, handing his handkerchief to her. “Please, allow me. Keep it, it’s yours.” He walks off.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“Well, there’s a load of us Mikaelsons. If you like bad boys, you’d love my brother, Kol.” Rebekah told Genevieve at their table.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Klaus appears, observing this conversation intently within his mind.

“And where is this mystery brother of yours?” Genevieve inquired.

“It’s complicated.” Rebekah answered. “Like all siblings, we’ve had our ups and downs. Family feuds. In fact, I was thinking of reaching out to someone we haven’t seen in a very long while. I was hoping that maybe you could help me contact them. But it would have to be a surprise. No one could know.”

“Of course. Do you want me to find your brother, Kol?” Genevieve asked.

“Actually, I’d like you to find Mikael... our father.” Rebekah told her.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“ENOUGH OF YOUR LIES!” Klaus shouted, refusing to believe what she was showing him.

“Don’t dismember the messenger,” said Genevieve. “Part of you must have known, suspected at least. Your father came to New Orleans in 1919 to kill you, did he not? And as the city burned, he nearly succeeded.”

“My family and I have done some terrible things to each other over the years, but Rebekah would not call my father!” Klaus argued. “No matter how angry she was.”

He refused to believe that Rebekah would have ever wanted to hurt him to the point she would summon Mikael, of all people.

“It’s sweet of you to believe that, to believe in her, but by the time we’re done, you’ll know just how wrong you are,” said Genevieve grimly, looking at him with a mixture of pity and sympathy.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Caroline is typing on the computer in the Abattoir study as Elijah enters. Zach and Stefan stood behind her, looking over her shoulder. She was trying to narrow down properties owned by the witches and possible locations where the witches could be holding them.

‘Hey, look, I found–’’

Elijah stops her with a gesture, indicating silence. “You were right about the Deveraux witch.”

Before she can say anything, Marcel enters.

“Find anything about Clara, the mystery witch?” Marcel asked.

“Not much.” Caroline answered. “She was a nurse at the Fleur De Lis Sanatorium.”

Marcel freezes, the name a douse of cold water.

“Recognize her?” Caroline clicks on a picture and points to her. “Top row, second from the right.”

“No, I don’t. Marcel?” Elijah looks up and recognizes the odd behavior. “Marcel? Do I need to remind you that Niklaus, Rebekah and Katerina are somewhere suffering horribly? If you know something, talk.”

“The Sanatorium.” said Marcel. “That’s where you’ll find them.”

“Are you sure? How do you know?” Caroline questioned.

“I just know.” Marcel answered.

“How do you know?” inquired Elijah.

“If I’m right, you need to know exactly what we’re walking into. We did something, Rebekah and I... I think the witches are trying to use it against her. It was, uh... something that you’re not gonna like.” Marcel warned.

“Caroline,” Davina burst into the room before Marcel could say more. “This came for you.” She held an envelope in her hand. “It just appeared. Magic.”

Caroline rushed forward and tore the letter opened, reading over the contents. She felt like her heart was being pulled from her chest.

Caroline, you have made quite the nuisance of yourself in the Quarter. Your control of the city grows stronger with the more loyal following you gain, but that also makes you much more valuable than I first thought.

I offer you a deal. An exchanged if you will, Klaus’s freedom for yours.

If you choose not to agree to those terms, I will make sure Katherine suffers in her last moments and that Klaus kills his own sister once he learns her secrets she shares with Marcel.

You have exactly two hours to decide. I will be waiting at the cemetery. Come alone.

Celeste.

Caroline looked up at the others, who watched her expectantly. “Celeste is offering a trade. She’ll let Klaus go.”

“What about Rebekah and Katerina?” asked Elijah.

Caroline’s silence was answer enough.

“In exchange for what?” Ask Marcel. “She’s not just going to let Klaus go. She has to want something in return. So what is it?”

“Me.” Caroline answered.

There was an immediate protest from Stefan, Zach, and Davina.

Elijah shook his head firmly. “Absolutely not. Niklaus would kill every single one of us. He will see it as sacrificing you. It would be the biggest betrayal in his eyes.”

“This can’t be about me,” Caroline protested. She looked at Marcel. “Because whatever secret you and Rebekah have may very well get her killed by her own brother.”

Elijah glared at Marcel before returning his focus back to Caroline.

“And what of the twins?” Elijah demanded. “I want my family back, but not at the cost of other members of my family. There has to be another way.”

“I’m sure there is.” Caroline agreed. “But we’re running out of time and if this is the way we save the people we care about, then it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.”

“What about you?” Zach protested. “We need you Caroline.”

Caroline took his hand and squeezed it in her own. “Do you trust me?”

“With my life and with my pack.” He answered without hesitation.

“Then trust me now,” Caroline said.

Zach nodded slowly.

“Caroline..” Stefan shook his head. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Caroline silently agreed with him. She didn’t like any of this, but if it got Klaus back, that was all that mattered.

“Are you sure about this, Caroline?” Davina asked, her own eyes unsure.

“No, she’s not.” Elijah answered before Caroline could. “She’s letting her emotions lead her.”

Caroline glared at him. “Do not speak for me. Yes, my emotions factor into this, but I am not stupid. I am not going to walk into this blind.”

“That’s exactly what you’re doing, Caroline.” Stefan stressed. “You’re handing yourself over to psychotic witches with a grudge who will do anything to get their revenge on the Mikaelson’s.”

“You think I don’t know that?!” Caroline snapped. “Everything that has happened to me the last couple of months is because of them. I know what they are capable of! They stole my children and used them as nothing more than a pawn. To Celeste, we are nothing, just chess pieces on a board. worthless casualties in a war. A war she’s been waging against the Mikaelson’s for decades. I know what I am getting myself into. However, this isn’t just about Klaus, it’s about all of us.” she looked at Zach. “It’s about the wolves.” She looked at Marcel. “It’s about the vampires.” She looked at Davina. “Its about young influential witches.” She looked around at them all. “It’s about everyone who calls New Orleans home.” Her eyes finally landed on Elijah. “It is about the Mikaelson’s. Klaus’s family, and now my family.”

“You’re right.” Elijah said. “You are family now and I will do anything to protect my family. That includes you.”

“Family fight for each other. This family fights for each other and that is what I am going to do.” Caroline declared. “I have a plan and you have to trust me. People have a tendency to underestimate me. Don’t make that same mistake.”

Elijah was quiet for a long time. “Your just as frustrating as my brother. Stubborn but determined.”

Caroline's lips ticked up into a faint smile. “Trust me, I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t know what I was doing. I need you to trust me to protect our family and keep my children and myself safe.”

“What’s your plan?” Zach asked, speaking for the first time.

“You’ll know it when the time comes.” Caroline promised.

Zach nodded, accepting her answer, but it wasn’t enough for everyone else in the room.

Debates and arguments continued until they were going around in circles.

Caroline shared a look with Davina and Zach and after a moment, the latter of the three slipped from the room unnoticed by everyone but Caroline as the bickering continued.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Davina got word to Celeste that they needed to meet. She slipped out of the house with Zach and Josh. Josh kept close by while Zach was further back.

The witches were aware that Klaus had a pack of wolves following him. What they weren’t aware of were the wolves’ loyalty to Caroline and their attachment to her as one of their own.

If they could keep that from them for longer, they had the potential to use it to their advantage and gained the upper hand on the witches.

“Pretty ballsy of you to come alone.” Celeste greeted, sitting next to Davina on a bench in the heart of the French Quarter.

The streets are filled with tourist, musicians, artists, traders selling trinkets.

“But I didn’t come alone.” She waved her hand at Josh on her other side.

“Hi. I’m Josh.” he waved his hand in that awkward way he had, not the least bit intimidating.

“You might as well have.” Celeste didn’t even bother looking at him. “He’s nothing but a newborn baby. Cannon fodder, really.”

“I protest against that,” said Josh. “I am more than Canon fodder. I have talents and skills.”

“Josh.” Davina fought a smile and placed her hand on his shoulder, silently advising him to let her do the talking.

Josh fell silent, instead leveling Celeste with his best intimidation look, which only made him look petulant.

“I can handle myself.” Davina declared. “I don’t need protection anymore.”

“Then why are you still with Marcel? Why do you choose vampires over your coven?” Celeste challenged.

“I didn’t choose the vampires. I chose myself.” Davina defended. “I chose my friends. I chose Caroline.”

“Caroline?” Celeste repeated. “What could she have possibly done for you to earn such loyalty?”

Davina smiled. The fact that Celeste had to ask showed, she knew nothing of Caroline, of the person she was, of the loyalty and sense of friendship, family, belonging that Caroline embodied.

“She saw me.” Davina answered.

Celeste scoffed. “Everyone sees you.”

“No, they see Davina, the Harvest girl. Davina Clarie, the witch. Caroline sees me, Davina, the teenage girl who just wants to be free and live her life without the threat of death looming over her.” Davina argued passionately. “She sees me for me and that’s enough for her. She had no expectations, nothing more than I am willing to give. She cares because that’s who she is. She is the reason why I am here.”

“Did she ask you to meet with me? Why didn’t she come herself?” Celeste argued. “She’s using you. Can’t you see that?”

“Caroline doesn’t use people. She couldn’t get away. I chose to come here on my own and speak for her on her behalf. Now do you want to quit trying to turn me against someone I will never betray, or do you want to hear her response to your letter?” Davina challenged.

Celeste eyed her for a moment before finally speaking. “Very well.”

“Caroline will agree to your terms, but she wants something in return.”

“She will be getting Klaus back.” Celeste glared. “What more could she want?”

“Rebekah and Katherine.” Davina answered.

“Absolutely not.” Celeste shook her head. “Why would I agree to that?”

“Why would Caroline agree to your terms when she is the one who will be in danger, when she will be putting her life and the lives of her unborn children in your hands?” Davina argued. “The way Caroline sees it, when she hands herself over, you are getting three lives. It is only reasonable for you to hand Rebekah and Katherine over, as well.”

Celeste's eyes darkened. “If I say no?”

“Good luck getting to Caroline then to hurt Klaus,” Davina responded. “She’s being heavily guarded. If you want to hurt Klaus through her, this is your one and only chance.”

“Caroline knows she’s not going to make it out of this?” Celeste asked. “She’s putting the Mikealson’s before the wellbeing of her unborn children? Of herself?”

“Do we have a deal or not?” Davina demanded. She hated the idea that Caroline’s life will be in Celeste’s hands, but she was choosing to trust that Caroline knew what she was doing.

Celeste said nothing, looking out at the busy streets.

Davina stood, prepared to walk away and tell Caroline that the deal didn’t work out.

“Tell Caroline she has herself a deal.” Celeste said finally.

Davina looked back over her shoulder at her.

“She’s to come alone. I want no tricks. Or things will get out of hand very quickly,” Celeste warned.

Davina nodded and turned back around, tugging Josh with her, walking away without another word.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“Are you ready to see more proof?” Genevieve asked.

Klaus doesn’t say anything, so Genevieve links their minds again.

“Stop.” Celeste walked into the room. “You’ve had your fun, but it ends now. There’s been a change of plans.” She smiled at Klaus. “You’re going to love this.”

Klaus felt apprehensive.

What exactly had this witch acting like she won?

“It is my understanding that you spent 1000 years feeling unloved and wanting to be loved and now that you have it, I’m going to rip it away.” Celeste picked Papa Tunde’s blade back up. “After a thousand years Klaus Mikaelson finally found someone who loved him enough to give up everything for him. Caroline Forbes really is your greatest weakness.”

Klaus’ eyes filled with rage, flashing amber. “If you go near her-”

“We are well past your threats.” she stabbed Klaus through the chest with the blade. “You will know true pain with her death.”

Klaus groaned, consumed by the pain caused by the blade imbedding beneath his skin, coursing its cursed magic through his veins, everything falling away, her words haunting him, striking fear in his heart like nothing has before. Not even the threat of Mikael.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“What more do you want from me? I took Klaus out of the equation.” Nadia spat out, her eyes flaring as she stood across from Sophie. “If Klaus gets free, he will kill me. My mother spent her entire vampire life running from him and now I will have to do the same, except I can’t do that because my mother is here and I need to make sure she is going to be okay.”

Nadia knew she was screwed. She let her emotions, her need, her desperation lead her to make a reckless and rash decision. A choice that will change the course of her life.

She would be lucky if she made it out of New Orleans alive. Nadia was realistic. She knew the likely hood of that was very low.

If Klaus didn’t kill her for what she did, his family would, or one of the many wolves that were loyal to him because of Caroline.

“We made a deal. You help me and I’ll help you.” Sophie told her. “I will make sure Katherine pulls through this-“

“How can you when she’s not even here? The witches have her!” Nadia argued.

“Listen to me, Nadia. She is going to be fine. I know how they think, how they work. Katherine is going to be fine. She is just a small piece on a larger board.”

Her words were not reassuring, but Nadia steeled herself. She couldn’t change what she did. She started down this road and now she had to go down it, regardless of the consequences.

“What do you need me to do?” she asked.

“I need you to free Hayley and kidnapped Davina.” Sophie said.

Nadia looked at her, voice quiet, her eyes a storm. She turned to walk away.

“Nadia!” Sophie called after her in alarm.

“Have you lost your damn mind!” Nadia whirled around. “Hayley is under constant guard. Davina is never alone, not to mention she is one of the most powerful witches I have ever come across!”

“I know that. Look, nothing about the path we are on is easy.” Sophie argued. “Do you think I wanted to start all of this? That I wanted to wage a war against the Mikaelson’s, against Marcel? Of course, I didn’t. Contrary to popular belief, I do not have a death wish. I knew that when I took Klaus and Caroline’s baby, that when I started a war with the vampires and witches that I was setting things in motion that couldn’t be undone. Moves that would more than likely end in my death when all is said in done and you know what, I don’t care. If all this means, my niece is alive, that she is breathing and okay. Then it will all be worth it. There is nothing I will not do for my family.” Sophie stepped forward, staring into Nadia’s eyes challengingly. “Now tell me, Nadia, can you say the same? How badly you want to save your mother?”

Nadia steeled herself. “You better save her.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Caroline walked through the cemetery, her steps certain and true.

She didn’t so much as flinch as Celeste stepped out from a mausoleum. “You actually came alone.”

“We had a deal. I plan to keep to it. Do you?” Caroline folded her arms across her chest, arching an eyebrow at her challengingly.

Celeste's eyes narrowed. “Are you even aware of what you are doing? The sacrifice you are making.”

“When it’s to save someone you love, there is no price too high.” Caroline said. “A price I am happy to pay for Klaus’s freedom.”

“Do you really love him?” Celeste’s eyes narrowed.

“Would I be here if I didn’t?” Caroline replied, the truth in her words shining brightly in her eyes.

“He’s a monster.” Celeste accused.

“He’s your monster. Not mine.” Caroline said passionately. “He’s the person who made me realize I was worth more than I believed, then other people thought, that I was everything and in return he became that for me.”

Celeste smirked. “This will wreck him. Losing you.”

“He’ll survive.” Caroline said with certainty. “He’s a survivor.”

“Could you, if your roles were reversed?” Celeste challenged, and Caroline scowled darkly.

Celeste brought two fingers to her mouth and whistled.

Rebekah was dragged out between two witches, not conscious, Katherine was carried out unconscious in a male witch’s arms, and Klaus’ unconscious body was carried out.

“Take them to the Quarter and leave them. I’m sure Elijah will collect his loved ones.” Celeste said. She reached for Caroline, jerking her forward by the arm.

Caroline fought the urge to throw her off. She clenched her jaw but allowed Celeste to tug her along.

She threw one last look at Klaus. She wanted to touch him, assure herself he was okay, but she couldn’t.

She steps forward with Celeste and further away from Klaus.

Praying silently.

Not for herself, but for him.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Davina moved down the hall. Since the wolves had moved in, they had taken up one half of the abator and she had rarely ventured into their area.

Other than Caroline, the wolves tended to stick to themselves, but she was looking for one wolf in particular.

She turned into a room. It looked like an entertainment den. There was a pool, table, couch, tv, a nook off in the corner with a bookshelf close by.

It was filled with the wolves, all keeping themselves occupied in some way.

However, she didn’t see the wolf she was looking for.

“Davina, looking for something?”

Davina turned to a female wolf, her hair was cut in a pixie cut and she was a little on the short side, with a tattoo of vines going down her neck and arm.

Rosaline.

“Someone, actually.” Davina answered. “I was looking for Zach.”

“He went to the Bayou, he trying to keep an eye on the wolves there. Look out for them.” Rosaline answered. “He took a few other wolves with him. We’re supposed to switch off in a few hours.”

Davina frowned. “Can you call him back here? I need to talk to him. It’s important.”

“I can take you there,” Rosaline said. “C’mon.” she moved past Davina, not stopping to see if the younger girl was following.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Davina trudges behind Rosaline with some difficulty. Three more wolves followed behind her.

Nathan, a wolf her age, offered his help when she needed, and she offered him a soft smile.

They came to a small clearing in the bayou, Zach stood there, two more men beside him, and further out she could see the form of wolves, moving through the edges of the trees.

Zach turned, catching their scent in the light breeze blowing in the wind. “Davina,” his eyes widened in alarm. “Is Caro-“

“She’s fine.” Davina assured him, sensing his worry. “But I need to discuss something with you on her behalf.”

Zach nodded. “Rosa, could you take over for me?”

Rosaline moved to do as he asked with a single nod of confirmation.

Zach moved through the trees and Davina followed him, noticing the other wolves stayed behind with Rosaline.

Zach stopped at a small cabin and sat down on the porch. Davina joined him.

Zach was quiet as he waited for her to begin.

“Caroline has a plan for when she hands herself over to the witches.” Davina began.

“I figured. It’s the only reason I’m going along with it.” Zach said. “Caroline, she’s one of us. We protect our own.”

“She’s counting on that.” Davina said.

Zach looked at her. “What’s the plan?”

“We are the plan.” Davina told him. “We will be the ones to get Caroline back.”

Zach turned toward her. “Why isn’t Caroline telling me this?”

“She didn’t want anyone talking her out of it. She was worried you would and she can’t risk it.” Davina paused. “You see Caroline, as a member of your pack. She sees you as her family. A brother. You have the power, the influence to change her mind, and she doesn’t want that. This is something she has to do, and she is trusting us to make sure she makes it back alive.”

Zach felt the emotion swell in his chest with the confirmation of what he meant to someone he saw as a close member of his pack, his family and, knowing Caroline was depending on him, lit a protective fire inside him.

“Tell me everything.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rebekah stood with Stefan’s arm around her, supporting her as Elijah and Marcel settled Klaus into his bed.

Davina was looking Katherine over, her daughter at her bedside.

Zach was in the doorway, shifting impatiently. “What are we waiting for?”

“How much does he know, Rebekah?” Marcel asked, ignoring Zach.

“Enough.” Rebekah answered, still feeling weak as the wolf venom was slowly dissolving in her system. “What are we going to do when he comes to? If he finds out we let Caroline sacrifice herself for him, there’s no telling what he will do.”

“We go and get her back before it’s too late.” Zach growled.

“No,” Davina stepped into the room. “Caroline had a plan and we have to follow it and trust she knows what she’s doing.”

“I know but.”

“Zach.” Davina sent him a look.

Zach fell silent, his jaw clenching. He knew Caroline’s plan, but not acting now was killing him.

“Then we wait,” said Elijah.

“And then what?” asked Stefan. “Caroline is in over her head. Look what Celeste has done so far. I imagine she will do far worse to Caroline, especially considering she is fully aware of Klaus’s obsession with Caroline. And what about the twins? If she really saw them as a threat, she could do something that would stop them from ever being born. If we wait, I see no good outcomes for either Caroline or the twins.”

Everyone shared varying looks of concern.

Nothing about this was right, but what choice did they have right now? Their hands were tied.

“What was her plan?” Elijah finally asked, looking straight at Davina.

Davina pursed her lips, expression grim.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Elijah pulled up the sleeves of his shirt after asking everyone to leave the room, preparing to pull Papa Tunde's blade away.

Rebekah, however, refused to, the guilt of her actions and what Caroline had done eating away at her.

She was done running and the first step was facing Klaus head on and owning up to her actions. No matter the consequences. She owed Caroline that much.

Klaus laid in the bed, unmoving, shirtless. It was convenient as Elijah plunged his hand inside his chest cavity where Papa Tunde’s blade was buried.

Klaus gasped in pain, his back arching as Elijah gripped the blade and slowly removed it.

It only took moments for the wound in Klaus’s chest to heal and his eyes to open.

He looked at Elijah and then Rebekah, and then continued to look around the room, searching for one person. The witch’s words echoing in his head about Caroline.

“Where’s Caroline?” his voice was raspy as he sat up, swinging his legs around the bed.

“Perhaps you should take it easy, brother.” Elijah suggested, taking a step back until he was next to Rebekah.

“Caroline?” Klaus called out, pushing to his feet. His throat burned with hunger, but it was the least of his concerns. “Caroline?”

“Nik,” Rebekah took a step forward, but Elijah threw his arm out in front of her, halting any further movement.

Klaus looked between them. “Where is she?”

“Nikla-”

“WHERE IS SHE?!” Klaus shouted, taking a step forward, his body chorusing with anger and unease.

“She gave herself over to the witches in exchange for our freedom,” Rebekah answered, dreading his reaction.

“You have better be lying, Rebekah.” Klaus’s eyes changed to dark amber, black veins rising underneath his skin. “Get me, Caroline.”

“Nik,” Rebekah shook her head. “I’m sorry.”

Klaus’ hand shot out, wrapping around her throat. “Don’t tell me you are sorry.”

Rebekah reached her hand up to pry his hand off, but his grip was stronger and his anger was only fueling his strength further. “Nik-”

“Let her go, Niklaus!” Elijah pulled at Klaus’s arm, but Klaus did not budge.

“Stay out of this!” Klaus snapped, his grip tightening.

Rebekah winced, feeling the bones of her neck start to crack. “Nik, please.”

“Let her go!”

Stefan and Marcel were there, helping Elijah force him back, breaking his grip on Rebekah.

“Get off me.” Klaus shoved them all back.

“Caroline being gone is not Rebekah’s fault.” Marcel said.

“It’s all of yours.” Klaus growled out. “How could any of you let this happen?!”

“Caroline did this for you. For our family,” Elijah interjected.

“And you should have stopped her!” Klaus thundered.

“And you should know just as well as I do that no one can stop Caroline once she set her mind to something,” Stefan told him. “She is a force of nature.”

“Then it shouldn’t surprise any of you that she had a plan.” Zach stood in the doorway with Davina.

Klaus moved past everyone, stopping in front of him. “Tell me everything,” he ordered.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“How much did Genevieve tell you?” Marcel asked Klaus cautiously.

Rebekah shifted next to him, watching Klaus, waiting for the explosion, waiting for him to punish her.

Marcel reached for her hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

Whatever happened, they were in this together.

“Enough.” Klaus answered, his back to him.

Elijah stood in the door, ready to intervene on Rebekah’s behalf. He did not get his sister back just to watch Niklaus punish her further.

Rebekah was already wracked with guilt for Caroline, sacrificing herself for her freedom.

“Nik, I never meant-”

“I don’t have time to address your betrayal,” Klaus turned around, his eyes a storm of anger. “Or that you wanted me dead.”

“I didn’t.” Rebekah protested. “Nik, I-”

“I’ve heard enough of your lies.” Klaus looked at her with disdain.

Rebekah felt like the bug beneath his shoe with that one look. He had never looked at her like that before. It was heartbreaking.

“None of this even matters until we get Caroline back.” Klaus growled.

Zach stepped into the room. “Davina is working on her part. We’ll be ready to go when she is.”

“You’re all willing to put yourself in danger for Caroline?” Klaus asked, his eyes going to the figures standing just behind him.

Zach looked behind him as every member of his pack filed into the room behind him. Over twenty wolves stood in a line, ready and waiting. Zach turned his eyes back to Klaus. “It’s Caroline. She has done nothing but help us in any way she could. We would die for her. She is a part of this pack.”

Klaus felt a wave of gratitude, but he wouldn’t voice it not until Caroline was back where she belonged. With him. “She would never ask that of you,” he said instead. “But I will.” he looked around the room from Elijah and Rebekah to Marcel and Stefan to Zach and every wolf standing in the room. “No price is too high for Caroline’s life and make no mistake, I won’t hesitate to do whatever it takes to bring her home.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“You should really hate Klaus for your predicament. You wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him.”

Caroline glared from her spot strapped to a table. “I care less about your opinion, Sabine.”

“I prefer Celeste, actually.” Celeste corrected. “All these names I’ve had over the years and I still prefer the first. Perhaps it was the way it sounded on Elijah’s lips, like a declaration of love. Oh, he was a good liar. They all are. In a lot of ways, were are a lot alike.”

“We are nothing alike.” Caroline responded passionately.

“Aren’t we? You love Klaus so much that you willingly traded your life and the life of your unborn babies. You trust Klaus to choose you over his family. I trusted Elijah to do the same, but he betrayed that trust. Like Elijah, Klaus will always choose his family. The Mikaelson’s will always choose their unbreakable vow of Always and Forever.”

“You’re wrong.” Caroline said. “Say what you want about Elijah or Rebekah, but you know nothing about Klaus. He has chosen me again and again and he always will choose me.”

“I hope you’re right,” said Celeste. “I’m counting on Klaus’s love for you. It’ll be the ruin of you all. Klaus will learn that Rebekah and Marcel tried to kill him and he’ll never stop until he’s had his revenge. He’ll kill Marcel. Do something horrible to Rebekah, and he’ll blame Elijah for your death when I deliver you to his doorstep after I’ve killed you. Elijah will never forgive him for Rebekah, and Klaus will never forgive him for you. Your sacrifice will ultimately pit brother against brother. And the fabled Mikaelson bond will crumble.”

Caroline smiled. “You’re underestimating them, and more importantly, you are underestimating me.”

“I don’t think I am,” Celeste responded.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Caroline glared at Celeste and the red-haired witch, Genevieve, who joined her.

“What’s the plan?” asked Caroline.

“I would love nothing more than to kill you and deliver you to Klaus’s door, grey and decayed. Dead.” Celeste said.

“Then why don’t you?” Caroline challenged.

“Do you remember when I told you about the fate of the babies when Hayley was carrying them?” asked Celeste.

Caroline’s eyes darkened with the reminder of Hayley’s treachery. “I remember.”

“I wasn’t blowing smoke. One of your children will be the hope for the witches, and one will be their downfall. Obviously, we want to root out the danger.” Celeste said. “Kill the poisonous weed, but we don’t wish to do the same to the hidden flower in the grass.”

Caroline hated Celeste’s analogy, but she loathe that she was talking about killing one of her children.

“It’s a shame then that you’ll have to wait and see which one will be your saviour and the other your reaper.” Caroline drawled. “I hope by the time you figure it out, you would have failed because you’ll be dead.”

Celeste chuckled. “Well, we’ll have to see about that. Let me introduce you to my friend, Genevieve. With any luck, she can determine which child we need to kill. With magic, we can control which child doesn’t make it to term and when you finally give birth, we will take the one that lives and raise it to be the weapon for the witches it was born to be.”

“Stay the hell away from my children.” Caroline threatened, ice flooding her veins at the thought of anyone hurting her babies or taking them from her.

She would not let that happen again. She would do anything to protect them.

“Or what?” Celeste challenged.

“Or I will rip you apart. I will scatter your pieces in the Quarter. I’ll make sure you can never be consecrated and join your beloved ancestors. Or worse. I will turn you into the very thing you hate. A vampire. Torture you repeatedly until you're begging for release, and even then, I won’t grant you the reprieve. Your life would be nothing but a series of moments of torture and true agony.” Caroline's eyes shifted, her veins protruding with the anger running through her veins.

“Do you know who you sound like?” Celeste asked. “Like Klaus Mikaelson. He has already begun to corrupt you. When I kill you after you give birth, I will be doing you a favor. Saving you from yourself and from Klaus.”

“Go to Hell.” Caroline spat. “I rather be like Klaus than you.”

Celeste nodded and walked away. “See you soon, Caroline.”

Genevieve stepped forward. “I have to say I am sorry for the unfortunate part you have to play in all this. I don’t wish to harm a baby or you. You have done me no wrong, but we all have our parts to play and this just happens to be yours and mine.”

Genevieve wheeled a table over. It has a mixing bowl and a mix of ingredient bags along with a syringe and needle.

“It’s such a shame that you are nothing but a pawn. I’m sure it takes someone truly special to earn the affection of the most feared Mikaelson.”

Caroline glared at her. “Don’t talk like you know him. You don’t.”

Caroline couldn't care less if the red head witch thought her nothing more than a pawn.

She knew she was not a pawn.

No, she was a Queen and her Knights, Davina, Zach, her King Klaus, would come for her.

It was all a matter of time. She just had to play her part. She had to delay them until Klaus came for her.

She knew with every fiber of her being that he would come for her, she always would, but more than that, she was capable of saving herself. She had a plan, and she was going to see it through.

“Then tell me about him.” Genevieve said. “Tell me what makes him worth the sacrifice you made for him.”

Caroline's eyes narrowed. The red head seemed genuine, like she really wanted to know.

“He’s capable of love, but when he does, it’s everything. It’s all consuming, it’s deep, it’s uncontrollable. It’s terrifying and overwhelming. It’s obsessive. He’s protective, he’s rash. He’s a monster and a villain, but not to me. For me, he’s the monster who protected me from other monsters. He’s the villain whose loved me unconditionally, without expectations. He’s the oil to my fire. He’s my other half.”

“He makes you complete,” said Genevieve. She grabbed the syringe.

“No,” Caroline watched her movements closely. “I don’t need a man to complete me. He understands me, he gets me, he encourages me to be who I am, and he loves me for exactly that person. He doesn’t try to change me. He’s my pillar, my person, and I am his.”

Genevieve looked at her in a new light. “Would you change him if you could?”

“No,” Caroline answered. “He wouldn’t be Klaus. He’s complicated, complex and difficult and I accept him, faults and all.”

Genevieve stepped forward with the syringe. Caroline jerked back against her restraints as the witch lifted her shirt, exposing her stomach, raising the syringe.

“No, don’t.” the panic was instantaneous, a rush of fear surging through Caroline.

“Hold still or this could be disastrous for all three of you,” Genevieve advised, settling her hand on Caroline’s slightly rounded abdomen.

“Stop!!” Caroline was desperate to stop her.

She felt the needle against her stomach.

“NO!!’

A surge of magic collided with Genevieve. Her head and back slammed against the wall.

Caroline stared wide eyed.

“What did you do?” asked Genevieve, pushing back to her feet.

“Nothing.” Caroline defended.

“You protected yourself from me with magic? How?!” Genevieve demanded.

“I don’t know.” Caroline shook her head. “I don’t have magic.”

“You don’t, but your children do. How is it possible that you, a vampire, can use their magic?”

Caroline stared. She didn’t use magic. She was certain it wasn’t her, but then how?

What the hell just happened?

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Elijah, Rebekah, Klaus, Zach, Marcel, Stefan and a couple of the wolves from the pack arrived outside the Sanatorium,

“We should divide the building. I’ll start at one end, you at the other.” Elijah directed, addressing Klaus.

“No need.” Zach said. “The spell Davina did has made me like a Caroline compass. I can feel her.”

“Then we’ll follow you.” Said Rebekah. She looked at Klaus, who was eerily silent. “Nik?”

“I just need to get to her.” Klaus said, his eyes a dark amber, a rumble echoing from deep in his chest.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Outside, Celeste walks out the front of the Sanatorium. Davina and Josh were there. Waiting.

Josh tossed her back into the building before she could react, her head slamming against the stone. She crumpled to the ground in a heap, groaning.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Genevieve barely got back to her feet before the Sanatorium began to shake.

Caroline edged the knife from her sleeve down to her wrist and began cutting herself loose. “I hope you didn’t have more of your coven with you.”

“What’s happening?” Genevie asked, alarmed.

“You didn’t honestly think I would hand myself over, put my children in jeopardy without a plan, did you?” Caroline asked, freeing herself and jumping down from the table she had been strapped to.

“I don’t-” Genevieve shook her head.

“If you live through this, you should tell your coven to stop underestimating me.” Caroline said just as the door to the room was thrown open.

Klaus stood there. Blood dripped down from his mouth, blood coated his hands. “Caroline.”

Caroline couldn’t care that he was covered in blood. In all this, she had been afraid that she would never get the chance to see him again.

She sped over, her body colliding with his.

Klaus gripped her tightly, his bloody hands moving to cup her face as he looked her over. “Are you hurt?”

“No,” Caroline shook her head. “I’m fine.”

Klaus’s hand settled on her stomach, staining her shirt with blood.

“We’re all fine.” Caroline pulled him back down, her mouth covering his in a heated kiss.

A kiss Klaus gladly returned.

Genevieve made a disgruntled sound a few feet away and Caroline could hear her moving behind her, but she didn’t care.

“I love you.” She breathed against Klaus’s lips, shocking him.

Klaus stilled, pulling back to look into Caroline’s eyes certain, he hadn’t heard her correctly.

“I love you.” Caroline repeated. Needing him to hear her, believe it.

It was stupid, and it was utterly ridiculous, but hearing those words from Caroline, words before Caroline he didn’t care about, but now, hearing her say them. Knowing she meant it, it made everything he had experienced in his thousands years worth it.

Because this, Caroline saying she loved him was everything he wanted.

He wanted to be angry with her for trading herself; he wanted to yell and scream. He wanted to rage, but right then he couldn’t, not when all he felt was relief to have her standing in front of him.

He pulled Caroline back against his chest, holding onto her tightly, his body curling around hers protectively.

This was all he needed.

Well, and his revenged but that would come in due time. For now, he was content to have Caroline in his arms again.

Nothing had ever felt more right.

#fanfic #klaroline #klaroline fic #klaus x caroline #klaus mikaelson #caroline forbes #fanfic: good to you

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princessbettina · 2 years ago

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Beautiful Lady: A Liam Shawcross x Female OC Reader: Episode 2 Part 3

The night was dark and the atmosphere in the city was filled with the constant echos of people's chatter and cars zooming down the roads.

Lizzie and I met up with each other down at a corner, just down the street from the building where Liam's performing.

"Hey girlfriend! Are you ready to go in?" Lizzie squealed with delight.

I chuckled and nodded my head. "Girlfriend! I'm totally ready. Let's kick it" The two of us walked down the street and noticed the crowd of people waiting in line to get inside to see Liam.

The chatter of people walking around and waiting to get in grew louder and louder as we arrived.

Thank goodness Lizzie and I got to skip the long line that was basically out the door a little bit.

One of the groovy things about being Liam's girlfriend haha.

Lizzie and I walked up to the front where we were greeted by this woman who had a clipboard in her hands, which meant she was checking in vip people and people who had backstage passes, which Lizzie and I did.

"Hello! May I see your passes?" The lady kindly asked and Lizzie and I held out our passes as the lady checked and let us in.

"Thank you! Enjoy the show" She smiled as Lizzie and I waved to her and then proceeded to enter the building.

"Ooh woah! This is it! Being backstage! I've never been backstage before and this is like a dream come true. I'm backstage! We're backstage, girl!" Lizzie buzzed with excitement as she jumped up and down while holding onto my arm.

I couldn't help but giggle.

As promised, I pulled out my phone and sent Liam a text, letting him know that I was in the building.

The atmosphere backstage was a lot louder and interactive than how it was outside a few minutes ago.

Random people were seen either moving tech equipment around different places or just standing around talking to the people who they were with.

Chatter grew louder and louder by the minute and I loved it honestly.

I smiled at a few people who Lizzie and I passed.

"Oh my gosh they have concessions here! Theresa I'm going to grab a few things at the stand right over here. Would you like anything? I could also get something for your lover too if you want?"

I closed my eyes while laughing softly at what Lizzie asked.

I waved my hand out to her.

"Hahaha you're too funny and yeah! You can get us whatever you want but no pressure. It's cool"

Lizzie gave me a thumbs up and then proceeded to walk and wait in the small line for concessions.

I, on the other hand, got a text message and it was from Liam.

Ooh hey my love! So happy you're here. I'm down the hall a little bit. You can find me in a room with a few other people at the end of the hall. Please text me if you need help. I love you-Liam

I smiled and blushed as I read his message.

I then nodded my head and then told Lizzie that I would go find Liam.

She agreed and told me that we'd meet up after finding Liam and getting the stuff from the concisons.

I turned around and walked off to find the room that Liam was waiting for me in.

Finally!

I found the room successfully and I could feel my stomach begin to fill up with butterflies when I saw my scottish singer boyfriend standing there talking to another friend of his.

I took a few steps in and waited for Liam to see me.

Thankfully he did which brought my smile back to me.

I waved to him as he politely excused himself from his friend who he was talking to as he quickly made his way over to me.

"Hey love! There you are!" Liam chirped as we both hugged each other.

As we were hugging, he whispered,

"I'm so glad you made it, darling. It was starting to get boring without you."

I smiled brightly and blushed after hearing what he said to me.

"Aww, you're too cute, bae! I missed you too" I smiled which made him smile too.

Liam then pulled me a little closer to him as the two of us kissed and infront of everyone else in the room.

Thank goodness no one really noticed.

Liam then let me sit down in a chair in the room and get comfortable as he sat down next to me.

"Is all of this real, my love?" Liam asked curiously which caused me to giggle and then raise my eyebrow because I didn’t know what he was talking about at first.

"Real? What do you mean, bae?" I asked curiously in response.

"I mean, all of this!" Liam motioned the whole room in the air which made me understand what he was talking about.

"Ohh! I got it now. And yeah, I think it's real. We're both here right now in this moment." I replied with a smile which made Liam smile too.

"It feels like I'm living the dream. A dream I've always had but never fully knew or realized that I did until this very moment. I'm loving every second of it, especially being with you, darling" Liam winked at me as I smiled more and gently pushed his shoulder.

"You're such a sappy goofball, bae hahaha! Jokes aside, I'm really happy and proud of you for how far you've come. You deserve it all and I think it's time you go out there tonight and show everyone else that you deserve this"

I could see the blush appearing on his face again as Liam smiled brightly.

He proceeded to kiss my forehead which my heart fluttered rapidly after.

Liam sighed softly and looked down at me while taking hold of my hands gently.

I looked back up at him and could tell that there was something he wanted to say, so I allowed him to.

"Now this mini tour. It's apparently happening. I would be gone for a week doing shows in a few select cities. The distance will not split us up and we will remain together forever, I promise you, lass. This won't come between us"

I smiled and squeezed his hands softly as he gently swiped his thumbs against the top of my hands.

A few seconds later, Lizzie stepped through the room and greeted both Liam and I as she handed me the drinks as she did with Liam.

"Hey girlfriend and boyfriend! Lovely seeing you two here. It's good to see you again, Liam."

Liam and I smiled and thanked her for the drinks.

Lizzie proceeded to go on a mini rant which made Liam and I giggle.

"You wouldn't believe the prices of these drinks but they were definitely worth it because of how gosh dang delicious they are!" Lizzie announced with a loud giggle.

Liam got up and walked over to Lizzie and gave her hug which she hugged him back.

"It's amazing to see you again, Lizzie. Thank you so much for coming tonight with Theresa" Liam smiled brightly and Lizzie nodded her head in agreement.

"Of course, anything to support my friend and her new boyfriend" Lizzie replied as Liam and I chuckled more.

"That's very sweet. I'm extremely honored and excited that you both are here, girls!" Liam winked.

Time skip to a few more minutes because I'm lazy to write more as a space filler.

Brad then walked into the room where Liam and everyone else were and greeted all of us with a smile.

"Hey everyone! Theresa, right?" Brad asked while raising his eyebrow.

I nodded my head and chuckled. "Yes, that's me. Lovely to see you again, Brad"

"Likewise, Theresa" Brad smiled and then walked over to Liam as he and I continued to stand up.

"Liam! They need to set you up with a microphone now" He then turned around and exited the room as Liam agreed and told Brad that he'd be right there.

"Would you like to come with me, darling?" Liam asked me which I of course gladly said yes.

He smiled brightly and grabbed hold of my hand softly as I proceeded to walk behind him.

"I'll see you after the show" Liam pointed at Lizzie as she nodded her head in agreement and smiled.

"Yes! Absolutely! That sounds fantastic. I can't wait"

-end of episode 2 part 3

This is the second to last part of this story. I can't believe that the story is almost at it's finale. I really enjoyed writing this story and I really hope that you all enjoyed reading it. As always, your positive feedback, suggestions, and comments are always appreciated and welcomed. I'll see you in the next one <3

#thomas doherty #high fidelity #highfidelityfanfiction #hulu #liamshawcross #liamshawcrossxreader #oc fanfiction #fanfiction

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journeydb · 2 years ago

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May 14 2022 Boulder

The staff of the YWCA of Boulder County organized a GREAT rally for reproductive rights today on the Pearl Street Mall. I made a sign that says it all. Can you see that the Greedy Old Patriarchy has the acronym of the GOP, meaning Republicans, of course? This Women’s March for Reproductive Freedom was happening all over the country today in cities and towns everywhere.

I met up with Theresa, Wendy, Millie, and other friends from the BVUU Fellowship, who were all there because our faith calls for action for social justice. Many of us have been at many protests and rallies over the years and, unfortunately, it looks like this isn’t the last.

Robyn is also a member of BVUUF and a member of the covenant women’s group I attend. We are both about to become grandmothers, too! We take the rights of the current and future generations of women of child-bearing age seriously and are working to ensure that these women AGAIN have the right to control their own bodies EVERYWHERE.

Many of us at this rally had been down this road before and thought that Roe v Wade was the solution and that we could turn our attention to other important issues. The truth is that women will never be safe and free until the right to abortion is codified at the federal level.

Many are calling for action on the part of the federal government to FINALLY pass the Equal Rights Amendment, which has been languishing for YEARS during both Democratic and Republican administrations. NOW, while Democrats have the majority in the House and nearly a majority in the Senate, except for the “Republicans in Democratic clothing” Manchin and Sinema, would be the ideal time to do it! We don’t know what will happen in the upcoming midterm elections in November and that chance might slip away AGAIN.

I ran into our friend, Carolyn, with whom I’ve marched several times for different causes, and her friend. Their signs echoed everybody else’s thoughts and feelings.

There were SO many wonderful signs and the resolve of women and their families in Boulder County was obvious. It turned out to be a very good crowd and the speakers were amazing!

Women and some men from many generations joined together to demand that women have the right to control their own bodies and destinies.

What this fellow’s sign said was prophetic. Women have ALWAYS been expected to be the ones who sacrificed for their families and controlled the reproduction while the men acted either as if it had nothing to do with them or as though they had the right to tell women what to do. If men TRULY took responsibility for procreation it would be a VERY DIFFERENT story. Until that time, they have no right to tell women what to do. We all know that this isn’t about saving babies because if the GOP fascists cared about babies they would be funding programs to help families and children. They do exactly the opposite. This is about CONTROLLING WOMEN, and the only way it will change is to change the structure of the system, dismantle the patriarchy, and allow feminine vales to permeate ALL levels of society.

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warpedlegacy · 2 years ago

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WIP Wednesday

Thanks for the tag @a11sha11fade! I’ve been making a great deal of progress on my post-Trespasser fic and having a ball figuring out the characters of Cullen’s siblings. Mia was the first to become fleshed out, so here is a little bit from the end of my most recent chapter from While Time Remains:

“The Inquisition is over,” he confesses flatly. “Disbanded by official decree. Tess is no longer Inquisitor, and I am no longer the Commander of her army.”

“Maker’s breath…” Mia raises a hand to her mouth as she contemplates all this could mean. “Start at the beginning.”

He does. The full story takes most of the night to tell, and for once Cullen leaves nothing out. Not even the worst of it. Not even Kinloch Hold or the disasters of Kirkwall. Though it tears old wounds open afresh and leaves his heart bleeding on the table between them, he tells her. He owes Mia this much, for all her years of patient impatience. He’s finished dodging, finished running. He shares burdens heretofore only ever confessed to Tess, in the darkest recesses of their private sanctuaries of Skyhold.

When at last he has finished, they’ve gone through most of the kettle of tea and a second bowl of stew each. Cullen waits quietly for Mia to collect her thoughts, and the house creaks around them. He feels wrung out, like day-old laundry. Turned inside out and left to dry. He wipes unshed tears away and takes in deep, steadying breaths. It smells of rosemary and root vegetables and lavender in the kitchen, and pine wafts in through the open windows.

She’s shaken and pale by what he has told her, but where he’d feared pity or anger, he sees only love. Sadness too, yes, but mostly love.

“I knew it was bad, the way you always dodged my questions, but…” She cuts herself off, leaning back to stare out the window. Crickets chirp and the house creaks. This has been home for her ever since their flight out of Honnleath, he recalls. That’s over a decade ago now. And all that time, what homes Cullen had managed to scrape out of his circumstances have been stripped away, one after the other.

It will be good to feel settled again. Or… for the first time.

“So what happens now?” she asks finally.

He rubs his hands over his face, through his hair, then tilts his head up to the ceiling. “I wish I knew.”

“Well, I hope it goes without saying, but you can both take your ease here for as long as you need.”

“Thank you.” It means so much to him, this easy hospitality, and he wonders at how foreign a concept it’s become since first leaving home.

But something has Theresa quietly terrified, he can tell. And he strongly suspects it has to do with the reason she's lost the Anchor. And the person behind it. He swallows the name like a bitter drink, before its taint can poison this moment. But it echoes through his mind anyway. The same question that’s been plaguing him since Halamshiral.

Solas… What have you done to her?

Tagging @dreadfutures and @kantrips, but as always no pressure! <3

#wip wednesday #dai fanfic #cullen rutherford #mia rutherford #theresa trevelyan #while time remains #post-trespasser

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young-dumb-and-vaccinated · 3 years ago

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The Cult Girl (Hannibal x Female!Reader) pt. 7

Sorry this took so long y'all. This chapter was difficult to write. Hannibal invites Theresa for dinner and y/n finally confronts her.

Trigger warning: mentions of suicide, child sex abuse; graphic descriptions of violence; confronting an abuser; body-shaming

The stitches in your cut hadn't even dissolved before Theresa intruded on your life again. Before you stormed out, Hannibal did in fact invite her to dinner. Polite society would rule the invitation null and void after that confrontation, but Theresa felt herself exempt from the laws of politeness. Like Evangelicals or craisins, Theresa loved to insert herself where she was clearly not wanted.

Of course, you were peeved at Hannibal for upholding the invitation when she called. But you could tell he had something planned. He was intrigued by her audacity and wanted to see how far it would take her. You couldn't begrudge him professional curiosity, as you too wondered what the fuck her problem was.

In truth, you saw what he did to your grandma, and you wanted to see him do it to Theresa. You wanted her subject to the same psychological torment that she put you through. And that, you realized, was why he honored that invitation. He wanted to vindicate you. And that was the sexiest damn thing you could possibly imagine.

Theresa showed up alone. That was her first mistake.

"Thank you for having me, Dr. Lecter." Theresa greeted, shedding her long coat and dropping it to the ground. "Will [F/N] be joining us?"

"[F/N] will most certainly be joining us." Hannibal said, his voice hardening. He noticed her coat in a pile on the floor and something in his head clicked.

"I hope I'm not overdressed." Theresa tossed her hair over her shoulders.

She was. And you knew even before she showed up that she'd wear that green evening dress with the plunging neckline. It was the same one she wore to prom. She kept it as a memento all these years to memorialize the day she completely fucked you over.

She was here to make history repeat itself.

"Not all, Ms. [L/N]," Hannibal grinned, glancing at the staircase. "[F/N] is just touching up her makeup.”

“That sounds like [F/N].” Theresa laughed. “She always took the most time getting ready in the morning. And she was always the ugliest. It was quite sad, really.”

Hannibal reminded himself what he had in store for Theresa before letting himself get angry. “If you could join me in the kitchen, I could use a little help with the appetizers.”

Theresa took the bait and followed him through the threshold into the massive kitchen.

“Could I trouble you for some psychological advice, Doctor Lecter?” She said, leaning against the island.

“That depends.” He answered, though the tone of his voice connoted a firm ‘no’. “Are you going to be honest with me?”

Theresa mounted herself on top of the island and crossed her legs. “I’ve just been having quite a bit of trouble in my marriage.”

"Please get off my counter." Hannibal politely demanded. "I just sterilized it this morning."

“My husband just isn’t so excited by me anymore.” She pouted like a child. “He just doesn’t seem interested in... well, any of the things I have to offer him.”

“Have you considered the possibility that you have nothing to offer?” You said. You approached them with purpose, the skirt of your purple dress fluttering behind you. Your favorite pair of strappy heels clacked against the tile and echoed through the room with every step.

“[F/N] makes a valid point.” Hannibal agreed, taking you under his arm. “You’re an abusive narcissist, a serial adulterer, and you’re quite horrible at flirting. I certainly don’t understand what you could possibly have to offer.”

“Nice to see you again, [F/N].” Theresa said, resigned to her defeat. “I didn’t want to say anything at the wedding, but you look like you’ve gained a few pounds.”

You almost laughed. Growing up, Grandma had subjected you to every form of body-shaming known to man. Nothing Theresa could say would have any effect on you.

“Really? Because I’ve never felt better in my life.” You smiled, knowing it to be true. “Hannibal is an amazing cook. You’d probably gain weight too if you were eating so well.”

"Well, I have appearances to keep up." She refuted. "Gideon and I both have very busy schedules. Besides, he finds the kitchen more of a woman's domain."

"Unfortunate for you." Hannibal threw a dish towel over his shoulder and picked up a wine bottle by the neck. He kept his hands busy by pouring three glasses of wine. "That Gideon does not put in the time to keep you well-fed and fulfilled. Might I suggest not molesting children as a remedy?"

You snickered as he handed you a glass. You migrated to the dining table, where the trial was set to take place.

"Did you invite me here just to gang up on me?" Theresa leaned back in her chair. "Because if so, that's really mature."

"Of course not." You said, Hannibal pulling your chair out for you. You placed your napkin in your lap. "Well, maybe a little."

Theresa took a long sip of wine. "You're not going to get an apology if that's what you're after."

"Oh no." You shook your head. "I've stopped expecting basic human decency from you years ago."

"Good." Theresa huffed. "Since that's clearly what you want me to be, that's what I'll be."

"Don't give me that shit." You sighed. "I know what gaslighting is and you're not as good at it as you think."

"Y'know I never asked to be a parent figure to you and Anna." She crossed her arms.

"You may not have asked for it but you sure as hell enjoyed it." You countered, furrowing your brow. "Don't act like you weren't the dictator's right-hand man. You sucked up to grandma and always got preferential treatment."

"I was a kid." She shrugged. "You're really gonna blame me for the shit I did before my skull fully hardened?"

"Well, it exposes a way larger pattern of behavior." You explained. "You're a megalomaniac that wants power without responsibility. So you attach yourself to someone with power, probably another narcissist who's too self-involved to see what a leech you really are. It's what you did with grandma and it's what you're doing with Gideon."

Dressing Theresa down like that gave you a rush. It made you feel alive. But more importantly, it made her look small. It stripped her of her power.

"Well done, Sherlock." Theresa taunted. "But you're forgetting one thing. If I were a megalomaniac, why would I waste my time beating up on you? Some nobody with no power to speak of?"

"Because I'm a living reminder of your past." You narrowed your eyes. "I remind you that you can't just beat everyone into submission."

"Ladies," Hannibal interrupted, holding three bowls. He placed one in front of you, the savory broth enticing your nose. "This is pot-au-feu. It is a simple French stew made from beef, vegetables and potatoes. I added a marrow-bone for extra richness. It's the perfect combination of simplicity and substance."

You couldn't even wait for Hannibal to sit down. You'd been so hungry all day. Smelling the meat slowly braise over the course of the day was torturous. You went straight for the marrow, which was a recent favorite of yours.

Theresa picked the bone up between two fingers and dropped it onto the table, her face wrapped with disgust. "I think I'll pass. I'm not a dog."

"You are not." Hannibal said, spearing a piece of meat on his fork. "I find dogs much better company."

Theresa tented her fingers and glared at Hannibal. "So you're just going to let her rip into me? Aren't you supposed to be the professional here?"

"Don't discount [F/N]'s analysis just because she is a student." Hannibal glared back at her. "From what I know about you, she's dead on."

"Isn't this entire interaction a professional conflict of interest?" Theresa folded her arms. "I don't trust her to analyze me because she hates me."

Hannibal put his utensils down. Anger flashed across his face. "I don't think you quite understand what this interaction is. You are not owed an unbiased psychological profile, especially not from me. You are not my patient. You are [F/N]'s abuser."

Theresa narrowed her eyes and leaned over the table. "So if you understand that, why am I here?"

"You think very highly of your intelligence, Theresa." Hannibal glanced down at his dish. "Perhaps you can figure that one out yourself."

You coughed, narrowly avoiding choking on your food.

"Darling, please pace yourself." Hannibal instructed, though he seemed pleased with how enthusiastically you inhaled your meal. "You're going to make yourself sick if you eat too fast."

"I'm sorry." You said after taking a long sip of water. "I don't know why, I'm just so hungry today."

Hannibal dropped his eyebrows, looking worried. "Did you take your medicine this morning?"

"I think so." You nodded.

Theresa smiled and reached for her phone. The movement caught Hannibal's attention, and he could tell what she was up to right away.

"Theresa, it's very rude to text at the dinner table." He scolded, taking a sip of wine. "Surely, anything you're saying to your grandmother and Anna, you can say to us."

Theresa, too proud to back down, slipped her phone into her purse and met your eyes. "You're pregnant."

"Brilliant fucking deductive reasoning." You rolled your eyes. "A woman gains a little weight and has a healthy appetite? That's the only logical conclusion I would draw."

"Well, aren’t we defensive?" Theresa taunted. "Congratulations, by the way."

"Theresa, stop it." You gritted your teeth, trying not to convey how pissed you were.

"You're going to need to drop out of school to take care of the baby full time." Theresa sneered.

You knew exactly where she was taking this and you wanted more than anything to just disappear. You reached for the wine bottle and refilled your glass. "Shut up, Theresa. Shut the fuck up before you say something you'll regret."

Her face lit up from the satisfaction of finally making you angry. "And someday you'll blow your brains out just like your mother!"

This time, she would regret it. You chucked the empty wine bottle across the table. It hit her directly in the face with a deafening crunch before ricocheting off the table and shattering on the ground.

Theresa brought her finger to her nose, noticing the stream of blood trickling from her nostril. She stood up, stabilizing herself with the back of the chair.

"I didn't think you had it in you." She jabbed before collapsing to the ground.

You went silent, too afraid to look at Hannibal.

"For what it's worth, darling." Hannibal piped up. "I always knew that you did."

#hannibal x reader #hannibal nbc #hannibal lecter #hannibal x you #tw violence #tw blood #cult girl #tw csa mention #tw suidice

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celestialholz · 3 years ago

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Celestial Live-Reacts: STP 2.9, 'Hide and Seek'

... Oh go on, STP. Give me some more homosexuality, even though we can't possibly have Q here this week. There just hasn't been enough recently. 😂

Let's kill some fucking Borg!

This storm bodes well...

Oh dear god, SO many Borg... 😅

... The ex is here, awkward

Creepy tech vines from episode one, loooovely... great drip though 😍

... Are those future guns, Estonia? Where the bloody hell did you get those from 😆

Ah fuck, RIP you guys...

Titles! The higher the stakes get, the more this theme straight-up slaps. ❤ It's so goddamn good.

Today in Deeply Unsurprising News: no John in the credits. Valid - you assimilate Q, you destroy this franchise. Let's see how much indirect Q there is in this episode...

... There's no Q in this episode - which leaves us exactly one place to put that 'whisper' John mentioned in a pre-series interview as his favourite moment of the series. I always knew where it was going, but dear god, AGT 2.0 - I'm going to fucking die 😂😭

So many laser sights, dear christ

"I won't let you take this ship" - me @ Qcard 😆

"Do you know what it feels like to put my hands around my friend's throat and not be able to do a goddamn thing about it?" Fight on, Agnes 👏

"I had to know why - millions of planets and species, and still you needed more." "Perfection takes time, dear." "It was never enough, because you're just like me - lonely." ... Is this a bloody mirror, three minutes in? Because it sounds very Q...

"Time is on our side..." we can but HOPE that's a Qcard mirror 😆

Go on, Agnes with the stall!

Emergency Combat Hologram Elnor, dear god. Murder son: activate 😂

"They aren't people out there, they're BORG." Poor, traumatised Seven 😔 But she was the one that Picard ultimately listened to, and that ended with him dismissing Queen Agnes... let's see if she grows, too ❤

Sun flashback! Here we fucking go, sun's out folks 😂

"Can we play a game?" God, this man's always loved the thrill of a challenge, hasn't he...

"Curmudgeon." 😆

Maurice and Yvette are very sweet ❤

"Cover your eyes, count to five, and come find me." ... Is that you, season three?

Rios honey nooooo 😭

"... Now turn it off." LOOK AT HIM, SAVING HIS SPACE SON 😍

"He'll only get himself killed trying to help us" - seems familiar 😂😔

Oh fuck you Adam 😡

"The enemy of every experiment is the rogue variable - that is what you are to me." Look at that glossy, glossy dark!Q mirror - in all the wonders of the cosmos, Picard is his rogue variable, and he adores him for it ❤

Tunnels! Knew they'd be using these

Spiner-Stewart sparkle 😍

War wives 😍

Girls who shank together, stay together 😂

Past home was so very bright...

The fleur-du-lis, the 'flower of light'. Wow.

And speaking of which... "You're my light, Jean-Luc - the light that always draws me out. Guide your own way. Find me." ... Sorry, did they miss the part in editing where they stuck John de Lancie's voice over that, my god

House is bright, tunnels are dark...

So, Jean-Luc lived in a house made from war. Yeah, sounds about right 😔

Maurice really was a good man, bless him ❤

"Janeway went to bat for me"? And they said no? My god, the balls on these guys 😂

"You really would make a great captain. When we get out of this -" "We're not getting out of this." "... No, probably not." Captain Seven WHEN 👏

Murder son has a sword now

Theresa be like "uhm no"

"A miracle cure, surrounded by miracles - knowing, win or lose, we'll have to let them go." ... Oh, beautiful. ❤

Adam, get away from there or so help me

... I'm probably reaching, but these lanterns are a bit sun-esque...

"You've won... but I'm lost." Oh, how very evocative. 😔

"Did you know that space is so vast, so infinite, it takes billions of years for that tiny pinprick to make that... lonely journey from its star to our eyes? The brilliance you see in the night sky, Jean-Luc, that exquisite light... it's just an echo of a star that's long since faded. Like me."

...

... Well, apparently Yvette Picard was a Borg, because she's got me in her cross-sight and I have been executed. Direct hit, woman's an assassin. What the fuck is THIS

... Really, guys? After Q compared himself to a 'dying star' last week, and we know he's the fucking sun? ARE WE REALLY DOING THIS RIGHT NOW, are we really implying that Q had zero sense of purpose before Jean-Luc, jesus christ 😭😭😭

I mean, we knew he was hopeless now, but sweet heavens...

"When you remember me, Jean-Luc, promise, promise me, that you will ignore the coldness of a dying star, and remember instead her light." ... Yes okay great, I'm already dead, you can stop now...

"... And the infinite love she so very much had for you."

...

... I am ruined. What in god's name am I experiencing here 😭😭

... So, just to summarise: 'I had nothing of value, before you, for billions of years. And I'll have nothing again without you, so I'll sacrifice myself happily if you get to survive. Just make sure you remember me as more than this, this 'fading away'... and how much I loved you, always and forever.' We just HAD to put the 'infinite' in there for maximum angst didn't we...

... You know, there are many things in this world that are okay. This is comprehensively not one of those. This is stunningly awful, excuse me a moment...

*screams into the endless void for ten minutes* Goddammit. Bless his heart, give him his little FRENCHMAN. 😍😭

... There's no actual chance they're not doing canon Qcard after that. Absolutely zero. 😭 And I am going to be SO HAPPY when Q finally gets what he so richly deserves. ❤❤ He has been nothing but a wonderful and supportive and respectful entity for thirty-five bloody years, he deserves EVERYTHING.

... I'm wrecked, how am I supposed to watch the rest of this after THAT 😂

"My father took her and locked her in that room." The 'curmudgeon'. The stoic. The grumpy. He taught him not to feel, and all the feeling in the cosmos is behind that door... 😔

"Let me out, Jean-Luc. Only you can save me." Only you can save me, dear god. He's literally the only thing that can. Who allowed this episode, I didn't come here asking for death 😂

Keyhole. Opening credits. Q. Sun door. Braindead 😂

He opened it, and he's going to do it again, one last time...

Jean-Luc Picard with a gun! Finally, I'm straight for someone who isn't John de Lancie!

Samurai Elnor, my favoured son 😍

Reuniiiiited and it feels so gooooood...

Seven be like "yes this is very wholesome BUT WE'RE DYING" 😆

"I didn't keep you with me because I was afraid of you being by yourself - I kept you back because I was frightened for me, of being alone." - A key difference. Q allows Picard the freedom of choice and faces his fear alone, because he's unselfish. ❤😭

"His last thoughts of you were not of blame, but of love." Oh, I bet they will be. 😭😭

Freeing Raffi of some guilt... Picard, too?

His mother is wearing white

Phased the Borg into a wall 🤣

Oh FUCK, Seven 😭

"Set course for the Delta Quadrant." *distant sounds of maniacal coffee brewing*

... Oh dear god Agnes

"I'm no stranger to lost lab rats," you bastard you

Oh dear, dear Picard...

Good girl Agnes, beautifully done 😍

Sadness, loss, despair - basically, what happens when you hurt my friends." 😔

"Do the math - in this and any other universe, you always lose." Mmmm, the mirror. Picard always wins, whatever the timeline, and this time, they both lose. 😭

"You live with the death knell of your own across species across infinite timelines" - the Continuum????? 🤔

"You long for what we all long for - connection, longevity, discovery... only you offer it without choice." Could not be Q 🙃

Agnes, out here changing Borg philosophy. 😍 And this is why they had to join the Federation...

"To men like us, love and fear... same thing." Dark!Q again - love will stop Q being so afraid. 😔

"Not assimilation, but salvation." ... Oh, Jean-Luc. If only you'd heard this... if only you'd known. "Shall we see what else has been lost in the wake of your fear?" 😔

"Someone who used their Borg half to serve as the best of humanity" - STP out here really making the Borg vaguely wholesome, what the fuck 😂

"Let's build a universe of Sevens." ❤ I'm down.

"In another future, we might have become friends." What you did there, I see it. 😆 He really is dark!Q though, god - the killer vs. the saviour...

This whole thing about Rios 'going', and Theresa hating that and being very worried, after 2.8's Spanish madness...

"What if your future was here, and it was always supposed to be?" ❤

Rios Q kissing her him? *cue Celestial's mind boggling in the middle distance*

"Theresa, I -" Wow. Just wow.

Nice save, Rios... who mirrors Q... error 404, brainwaves not found on this reviewer 😂

Key... wouldn't be TO A WHITE DOOR, would it, Jean-Luc?

Is she assimilating Seven, or nanoprobing her?

Rios is fucking amazing, what a hero 😍

... And then he outsmarts Soong. Mirror, thy name is Cristobal 😆

"She'll live, but there's a cost in saving her" - Borg 2: Electric Boogaloo? 🤔

Seven is emotionally wrecked, bless her 😔

"I have to get to the ship. You're welcome, by the way." 😆

She hung herself. In white. God...

"Those moments, tragic endings, might rewind into joyful beginnings" - oh look, it's the plot of series three 😆

"Moments of loss, into those of gains" - white door's your destiny, petal. It'll be better, this time. So much better. ❤

"For all I've seen and done, this is the moment I've kept myself from remembering." Bless him. 😭

"This moment I'm so powerless to reverse... I'm told my mother was ill, but I only ever thought she was inspired." 😭

"... For her own safety, for mine as well - but she begged me to help her, told me how much she needed me, how much she needed my help... and this is the part I've spent my whole life trying not to remember. I thought I was saving her, so after he fell asleep... I let her out, you see. If only I had left that door closed, she might have become an old woman..." Good sweet gods above. 😔😔

... And this is why he's not paying attention to Q. This is why Q won't just tell him the solution, traumatise him further. Dear hell.

"I used to imagine seeing her older, offering me a cup of tea, and asking for a chat. This skeleton key migrates its way all over the house... I wish that day that it hadn't ended up in my hand."

... Oh fucking hell. And it will. You're going to be the one that kills him, because you didn't learn. You didn't listen, again. This is what's being lost in the wake of your fear, dear... 😭😭 Bless these hopeless idiots both, it's going to be wondrous when they find each other next year...

Also, 'I used to imagine seeing her older...' Silver Fox Q with the cup of earl grey in 2.5, I'm just saying 😍

"I loved her. Desperately." Mmm, did you now...

"No reason to run from ourselves, or away from each other. Love can be a curse, but always and completely, a gift." Thank you, Estonia. That's absolutely gorgeous, and has a lovely half-hug of trauma recovery to top it off. ❤ He'll remember that. He shatters the glass, he lets the sunlight in...

... And nothing remotely romantic about that. One good friend, supporting another good friend, where they could have shoved a desperately awkward kiss in there. Really appreciate you for not doing that, writers. You've learned from series one. ❤

He's slowly letting go, bless him ❤

"Well, that's impossible, because no matter how you come, Borg or human, you are the most extraordinary person I know." 😍 Most supportive wife ever.

That's GROWTH, Seven. 👏

Agnes @ Picard: "Save me this time, space dad"

"There must be two Renees," excuse me?

... Ship's gone. That's Q getting them home, then...

"She took my ship" 😆

Bless him and his concern for Seven ❤

"Well, we've lost a friend" - oh, you're going to lose a lot more than that shortly, darling...

"I refuse to accept an outcome that has not yet occurred." Fair enough, could not be me - Q is so gone. Oh my god, entity is toast. 😭

... So when I said I hoped Q was symbolically here, THIS IS NOT WHAT I FUCKING MEANT CBS 😂 Oh my god...

Celestial Rating: 10/10.

Doesn't miss a single emotional beat, tells an excellent and awful tale, and has comprehensively destroyed me in the process. God, there is not going to be enough wine in all of the damn Chateau for next week, is there... *advanced sobbing* 😭

#star trek picard 2.9 #star trek picard spoilers #jean-luc picard (traumatised)#q of the continuum (has murdered me without John even needing to show his face)#cristobal rios (hero of the day)#theresa (best wife)#seven of nine (re-borged)#raffi musiker (Mumsy)#elnor (back! and with a sword!)#agnes jurati (redefining the Borg <3)#qcard #next week on picard: space john de lancie and celestial die in absolute tandem #*gross sobbing*#celestial live reacts #celestial reviews

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londonalozzy · 4 years ago

Text

Don’t Tell Bucky 1/2

Fandom: Marvel

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama

Summary: The reader arrives home one night after drowning her sorrows, thinking she doesn't stand a chance with the guy she loves most, Bucky Barnes. She is so out of it that she ends up revealing all of her feelings to the first person she sees. The man himself.

Masterlist

I've been teased my whole adult life about what an old fashioned, hopeless romantic I am.

Yes, I'm an Avenger. Yes, I can kick ass when the occasion arises. But the rest of the time, the usual place to find me, is curled up on the couch with my head buried in a Jane Austen novel.

A couple of years ago someone came into my life that I thought was the key to it all. He was destined to be the Darcy to my Elizabeth, the Edward to my Elinor, the Mr Knightly to my Emma. Oh, how wrong I was!

When Steve first brought Bucky to Avengers HQ it was like a modern day version of when Bingley introduced Mr Darcy to the people of Meryton at the ball in Pride and Prejudice.

He was the archetype of the aloof romantic hero. Tall, dark, handsome, brooding and quiet. He kept himself to himself, observed everyone with eyes of an eagle, and only spoke when spoken to. I was well and truly hooked.

As weeks turned into months, Bucky and I came to an understanding, a friendship that only got more complicated as time went on. After everything he had been through, it was hard for him to open up to people, to let his guard down. What he did yearn for though, was companionship, someone to sit beside, someone to just be there if and when he needed them. I became that person for him.

Every time I decided to sit silently with a book in hand, it wouldn't be long before I had a certain super soldier at my side, just embracing the company, not having to worry about putting on a show for people he didn't feel comfortable with.

The complication in our relationship came when I realised how much I had come to depend on him being there for me.

My aching for him first made itself known when he started going out on missions that I wasn't apart of, when he went on all day training sessions away with the guys, and whole nights out when his confidence finally got a boost. I missed him. I missed him with every fiber of my being.

"So, I'm guessing you've heard the latest gossip on Barnes?" Nat asked me one morning over breakfast, her eyes not leaving her plate of blueberry pancakes as she spoke.

"Gossip? What are you talking about?" Any news on what Bucky was up to was music to my ears. I'd barely seen him these last few weeks, and it was seriously messing me up in more ways than I'd like to admit.

"You mean he's not told you? You? Princess Y/N?"

To say Nat was surprised by my ignorance was an understatement. This must be something big if she is shocked about it. When did it change to others knowing more about Bucky than I did? I thought we were best friends. He calls me Princess for Christ's sake.

"Maybe you should ask him yourself," Nat suggested, reaching across the table and rubbing my forearm. "I just assumed he would have told you first."

Now I'm seriously freaking out. "Nat, please just tell me what the hell is going on."

"You know Theresa down in medical?" Oh, shit. I've got a bad feeling about this.

"Yeah. What about her?"

"They're dating." Oh no!

It felt like my heart had leapt into my throat. I couldn't think, never mind know what to respond with. I knew it would happen eventually. I knew he'd end up with someone. I just assumed it would me. How stupid could I be?

"Y/N, you need to tell him how you feel." Why does Nat always have to be so good at this observation stuff?

"I don't know what you're talking about," I choked with a traitor tear in my eye, and a jump up from my chair when I suddenly felt the need to escape.

Nat followed me down the hall to my room, putting herself in front of me as I tried to change into my running gear. I had to get out of there. "You can't pretend this isn't happening Y/N. This is Bucky we're talking about. Your Bucky. You'll regret it if you don't tell him."

"Yeah, well I'll regret it a hell of a lot more if I do tell him and then lose him completely."

Nat grabbed my arms, stopping me in my tracks. She was one of my closest friends for a reason. She knew what made me tick, what scared me, what mattered the most to me. It's just not a risk I can take though.

"If you don't talk to him, all of this will get bottled up inside and it will ruin your friendship anyway. Y/N you need to get this out."

She was right. This was Nat. She was always right. My head and heart couldn't handle all of this new information. I didn't know how to deal with it, how to react.

So much for that epic romance I thought I was destined for. Looks like, for me, I'm only meant to be the friend, the side character in someone else's love story. I'm Eponine and not Cosette.

Deciding to lay off of me for the rest of the day, Nat rounded up Wanda and a few others and we headed out for a few drinks. Well, what started out as a few drinks anyway.

By the early morning I had at least 10 too many tequila shots in my bloodstream, partnered with a sore throat from overly emotional karaoke renditions of some of the best known heartbreak songs. I was a mess. A mess that could barely remember her own name.

"Are you drunk?" A random voice echoed through the hall as I stumbled around, trying and failing to get into what I hoped was my room at 2am.

"Why would you think that?" I replied to the swaying figure as they moved closer to steady my feet.

"Probably because you're trying to unlock your bedroom door with a lip stick. Plus the fact that the door doesn't have a lock on it anyway. What's up?"

Ignoring the nosy stranger, and giving up on getting into my room because the handle kept moving all over the place, I went in search of the nearest soft thing I could find to park myself on. Standing up was over rated anyway.

"You don't normally drink like this Princess," the randomer observed, leaning over me as I started making rug angels on the shag pile in the common room.

Why is this guy talking like he knows me? Who the hell does he think he is calling me that? "I've just got a lot on my mind. And don't Princess me. Only Bucky gets to call me that."

"Noted," the randomer laughed with a shake of the head, then joining me by laying at my side.

Staring at the ceiling as the silence engulfed us, I decided to confide in this handsome newbie. "If I tell you something, can you promise you won't tell anybody?"

"I promise," he responded without hesitation.

"I mean it, nobody can know. Especially Bucky. He can never find out." I pulled him into a sitting position and put my hands on either side of his face, trying to stress how important it was that he keeps this to himself. He really was pretty.

"I swear, Bucky will hear none of this from me."

"Ok. Here goes," I jumped up, frantic all of a sudden. "I want him to break up with his girlfriend, and it's seriously stressing me out."

"Why would you want him to do that? She's a nice girl isn't she?," pretty boy questioned in confusion, getting to his feet as well. Why did he care so much? Where the heck did he come from anyway? I swear, if this is one of Tony's robo experiments again I'm gonna flip.

"I'm sure they're perfect for each other," I groaned. "I just know that I don't want him with her. At first I had no idea why. He's one of my closest friends. I should want him to be happy right?"

"Of course," Mr Blue eyes confirmed with a furrowed brow and by gripping onto my now clammy hands.

"Then I started thinking about it. Why was I feeling like this? Why was it bothering me so much? I realised, it wasn't just this one girl I have a problem with. It's all girls. All except one."

"Who?"

"Me."

"Wait? What?" He bellowed, leaping backwards and pacing the floor. "You want m...I mean Bucky to go out with you?"

"Yeah. I mean, I think so."

"Y/N, you can't just come out with something like that and respond with I think so," he screeched out in loud exasperation, so much so that I burst into flood of tears.

"Why are you shouting at me?" This guy is such a meanie.

When he saw how upset I was he immediately calmed down, placing his palms on my face and wiping the salty drops away. "Y/N please don't cry. This is just a lot to process."

It took me a while to calm myself down, hiccups escaping my lips as the crying finally subsided. Slowly, the angel man, stranger, person, thing walked me over to the couch and sat us both down. His eyes were boring into me, beautiful azure pools that looked slightly familiar. Maybe it was those bath bombs Steve keeps buying from Lush. I don't know.

"Why do you even care about all this? It's not like you know him or something?" I enquired, now looking at anything other than in those beautiful bath fizzer eyes.

"Just try to explain to me what's going on in that crazy little head of yours," he pressed.

Oh well. I may as well carry on now I've started.

"I've been with the Avengers for a long time. They're my family, my home. And don't get me wrong, I know they care about me, love me even. It's just easy to be sidelined, you know? To become an after thought when you're part of something so big. Bucky changed that. When I met him, it was like everything shifted. He became the reason I smiled every day, why I looked forward to getting out of bed. For the first time in my life I felt like I was at the top of someone's priority list."

"So are all of these feelings because you think you're gonna lose that? You think you're gonna lose him? I swear to you it won't happen." If it only it were that easy.

"I wish it was that," the tears building up once more as I eventually decided to look at him properly. "It would make all of this way less complicated."

"What is it then?," he pressed in urgency.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm head over heels in love with the guy."

#bucky #Bucky Barnes #bucky x reader #reader #james barnes #Winter Soldier #Sebastian Stan #marvel #Avengers #captain america #falcon #fanfiction #fanfic #imagine #oc #romance #comedy #drama

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ink-herrscher · 3 years ago

Text

yearning, in my bones, in my skin

— herrscher of sentience x fu hua

genre : hurt/comfort

warnings : none

wordcount : 2,615

summary : it didn't feel right, to just relax and leave everything to everyone else. but, humanity, hua learned, could help itself move on without her.

it's too late to follow her now, though.

all she can do is to wait until her xiǎo shí comes back.

The Huangshan pine tree is growing majestically.

Fu Hua steps over the dancing leaves, and touches the trunk of the tree. From here, in the middle of its golden shade, its branches seem to extend to forever, billowing gradient leaves like a sienna sunset, burning and glowing embers of the autumn skyline.

She raises a hand, and catches a wilting leaf in the middle of her palm. It's so small, shrinking, littered with decayed holes and insect bites along the edges. Hua sighs.

It will be winter again, soon. In a few more months, two whole years will have passed since she left.

The breeze blows the leaf in her hand away, stirring the fallen autumn leaves into a quiet dance that steals her dreams like a magic carpet. She catches sight of the leaf she held, falling far away from the rest, and keeps her eyes on it until it falls down the mountain cliff, and drifts into the river and debris below.

It will be winter, soon. She wonders what gift Senti will bring this time.

It was spring when she left, just a few months after the wintry death of the Herrscher of the End, somewhere far away on the moon. There were talks of the world healing, echoing outside of Hua's hospital room, but the outside world was void of anything but the thin snowflakes that fluttered across the windowsill and erased everything that ever existed.

"Old timer," Senti said, messily slicing an apple on a plate. There was already what was effectively a fruit salad on the bedside table, a bowl full of apples and oranges, pears, and everything she could loot from the kitchen. Hua could barely eat them all, but Senti only insisted on cutting them even smaller so she could eat and get better soon.

"Hm?"

The last slice fell to the bowl. Hua made a face at the amount of fruits she had to eat.

"I've decided to travel the world."

"Travel . . . ?" But she couldn't finish the thought, not with Senti shoving a slice of watermelon down her throat. She grunted in protest, and Senti eased up, allowing Hua to chew slower and take it easy.

"Yeah," she said, a half-smile on her lips as she watched Hua struggle to eat more. She had already been eating fruits non-stop since the day she woke up — and it had been at least a month since then. "Travel. I've been thinking a lot 'bout it, and yeah. I'm gonna travel around the world. See stuff for myself and . . . stuff."

Her hair fell to her side, and she shrank slightly into herself, as if suddenly shy. She twirled the fork in her hands, eyes sliding to the corner of the room.

There was a growing knot in her chest. Hua couldn't pinpoint the source, but it was there, like a gaping hole in between her ribs. Like choking on air. She cleared her throat, and tried to smile.

Her cheeks hurt. "That sounds good, xiǎo shí. Do you have a plan on where to go yet?"

"Not really." She raised the fork, and Hua bit off the rest of the watermelon. It spilled into her mouth as she sank her teeth into it, fresh and juicy. There was a seed still stuck inside. "I was thinking of just taking the next plane off and see where it lands me, y'know? I'll grab some cash from Theresa and survive on my own."

On my own. There was some irony there, she thought. Once upon a time, on my own was Hua's worst fear. And this time, it was Senti's greatest dream.

"That . . ." Sounded bad, really. Hua couldn't imagine not having a plan. But this was Senti, and Senti was always so carefree and spirited. She didn't need plans — she was someone that always felt like the wind would blow away if Hua didn't hold her hand at all times. So she forced herself to smile again. "Sounds nice. When are you going to go?"

"Soon," Senti said, offhandedly, and then glanced at her. "I was . . . I was wondering if you'd like to come with me?"

Her heart skipped a beat. "Come with you?"

"Yeah." A slice of banana this time. Hua chewed slowly, and Senti tapped her boots against the floor anxiously. It rang through the empty room, across the empty hall outside. "You know. When you get better, we can go. You haven't seen much of the world, either, right? You barely ever travelled."

No, Hua didn't. Travelling was a luxury; it was something a soldier like her could not afford. She only left her home when it was vital for a mission, and even then, she rarely stayed.

"We could see the world," Senti said, looking straight at Hua now. "Actually live life now that we don't have to fight. Besides, you don't really have anything now that your mission's done, right?"

Right. Hua has nothing without her mission.

The pale sky is slowly turning into gold. For a moment, the way the sunset hit her profile was so perfect that it was almost magical. Her golden irises constricted in the light, leaving an expanse of crimson like the sky in a painting of a dawn.

For a moment, Hua was almost going to say yes.

But there was still too much to do here, too many things to take care of. She had to help Theresa organize the new Shicksal, support her friends in whatever they will be pursuing after the war. Help humanity recover from the Honkai.

She didn't really know. Maybe her mission ended with the Honkai, but it didn't feel right to just leave everything to everyone else, either.

So Hua sighed, and shook her head. "I can't. Sorry. There's too much left to do here."

For a moment, Senti looked as if she was going to argue. Her brows scrunched, and she opened her mouth to speak — and then she sighed too, and looked away. Her fork stabbed a piece of apple. Hua obediently ate it up.

"Fine," she said, and pursed her lips. The sunset on her skin was so radiant that Hua almost felt guilty looking at someone so exquisite. "You never change, old timer."

Truly. Fu Hua never changes.

It was spring when she left.

True to her word, Senti stayed until Hua had recovered fully, dutifully looking after her and feeding her a bowl of fruits every day until she was finally let out of the hospital.

It was almost bitter, her day of departure. Senti had picked a place at random on Theresa's globe and excitedly told Hua that she would go there first — and then the next day, she was already all packed up, ready to go.

And now here they were.

"Are you sure you have everything?"

"Yeah, yeah. I do." Senti gave her the side-eye, and clicked her tongue. The airport was full of people, buzzing and humming. It was so early in the morning, but the place was already so awake. "Didn't you pack up with me?"

She did. She did. Hua knows the contents of her bag like the back of her palm, but looking at her single suitcase, it really felt like Senti was bringing far too little on her trip.

Then again, Senti never owned much.

But still.

Hua sighed again, and worried her elbow. Someone bumped into her shoulder — she turned to apologize, but the person had already left. Senti wore an annoyed expression on her face, one that faded into softness as they met eyes again.

"Hey, old timer," she said, and flicked her forehead lightly. "Stop being such a worrywart. You're gonna get wrinkles."

"I know."

"I'll be fine."

"I know."

"Besides, what's the worst that can happen, anyway? I'll get lost? As if that's a problem."

Her smile was half-hearted. "I know. I know, you'll be fine. I just can't help it."

Senti rolled her eyes again. "If you're so worried, just come with me, idiot."

But she couldn't. She knew she couldn't. Hua pursed her lips, and rested her hands on Senti's shoulder. "Xiǎo shí, if you ever need help or anything, remember to just contact me, okay? Keep your phone on you at all times."

"Yeah." Her eyes softened. "I'll remember. Don't worry too much, old timer."

A lady started reminding passengers to head to their gates. Senti looked over for a moment, and sighed. Her hands laid on top of Hua's, and she felt so warm against Hua's cold skin.

It's quiet between them, for a while.

"I gotta go now."

"Yeah."

Senti took her hands off her shoulders, and squeezed tight, before letting go. She wore a half-smile on her lips, and Hua would never forget the way she looked that day. The messy strands of her hair that fell off her ponytail, the one-half of a pair of earrings that she stole from Hua, the way her smile was equally lovely and heart-wrenching.

It was almost bitter, her day of departure. It felt like Hua was the only one who felt like that but, as she swallowed through the boulder in her throat, Senti ruffled her hair, and it almost looked as if she was holding back tears.

"Hey, hey, hey," she said. "I'm not gonna be gone forever. What's with that look?"

Hua really didn't know. She took Senti's presence beside her for granted, she guessed, and now, even a temporary separation stabbed through her heart like a sharp glass shard. She didn't really think for one second that Senti would want to leave her side like this.

Although, she thought, she should have expected this. Senti was too much of a free bird to keep trapped.

"Don't forget to take care of yourself, all right, old timer?" Senti said, frowning. "Don't skip meals, eat your fruits. And, uh. Sleep on time. And stop spending so much time training! You need to rest, too!"

Hua let out a choked laugh. "I will."

"Good."

Senti stared at her for a while, and Hua took the opportunity to memorize her, and the way her eyes were more amber and honey today, the way her lips pinch into a thin line when she's trying to hold back a sob and show a smile instead.

"Old timer," she started. "I . . ."

The lady on the microphone repeated her reminder. Senti glanced impatiently at the kiosk, as Hua leans over, and wraps her arms tightly around her neck.

Senti stiffened in shock in her arms. But before she could return the hug, Hua pulled away, and gently pushed her to her gate.

"Take care," Hua said, as Senti reluctantly took her suitcase, and walked away. She looked back, once, and Hua waved at her goodbye until she couldn't see her in the waves of people anymore.

It was almost bitter, her day of departure.

Her first gift came just weeks after she left.

It was a little trinket from one of her destination spots, a few bookmarks with pressed flowers and leaves that fell from an envelope with a letter and a few photos in it. They were badly taken, blurry and shaky, terribly unaesthetic views of rolling hills and a field of flowers, and Senti herself, grinning happily at the camera.

It was at that point, she thought, that the loneliness that Senti's absence brought was worth it. She looked so happy, and the letters she wrote were so full of life, rambling and nonsensical, almost like diary pages ripped out of her notebook.

Reading her letters in between work shifts became a pastime, and then a habit, and then, when there was nothing left to do, they became her only sense of comfort.

Humanity, Hua learned, could help itself move on without her. But by the time she realized that, she couldn't go to accompany Senti anymore. The letters had no return address, and whenever she asked where these packages came from, the postal service could only shrug and give her no answer.

She could go and follow the trail of Senti's pictures, but it almost felt impossible to meet with her when she seemed to be in a new place every week.

This was fine, too. There was a lingering sense of loneliness that wouldn't leave her, a sense of emptiness despite being in her friends' presence, but it was okay. Senti was enjoying herself, and there was only so much travelling an adventurer could do before she felt homesick, and came back home.

Maybe, then, Hua could join her to see the world, too.

But it will be winter, soon. In a few more months, two whole years will have passed since she left.

It's a little cooler today, compared to yesterday. Hua draws her coat tight to her chest, and follows the golden trail back to her house. It's lonely here, up in Taixuan, but it holds a sense of familiarity that she could never find in her cold sheets, alone in the Shicksal Headquarters or the Salt Lake Base.

This is familiar. This is comforting. It's almost nice, and the smoke filtering out from the hearth makes the temple look as if it were a house made for two.

It's almost nice. It's almost warm.

The box of Senti's letters is still on the table. She had been in the middle of rereading her letter about her trip to the cold, snowy depths of the North when she came out to watch the sunset outside. She catches Senti's smiling face in her photograph, and smiles back.

Maybe tonight, she'll brew one of the tea Senti sent her last week. It's already cold, after all, and Hua needs all the warmth she can get.

She tucks the letter and picture back into the box, and sighs.

She wonders what gift Senti will bring this time.

But winter has come, and all the leaves of the ancient tree have already wilted and buried beneath the pale snow. Its branches are cold, shivering with every gust of wind, and Hua feels her soul shiver alongside.

There is no sign of her letters today, as well. She should go to the nearest postal office tomorrow. Maybe it got stuck in the rush of deliveries. Maybe the mountain is too steep to climb in this winterfall.

Maybe she should have stayed in Shicksal. But Theresa already promised to deliver any letters from Senti that gets delivered to them to Taixuan, and staying there only makes Hua feel even more antsy, alone.

The wind blows again. She bites her lip against the cold, and sighs, patting the old tree as she trudges back inside again.

The snow ceunches behind her. Hua turns around, and finds red eyes staring right at her.

Hua blinks. And blinks again.

"Xiǎo shí . . . ?" she says tentatively, into the falling indigo evening.

Senti smiles. She's holding onto the tree, leaning against her knee for support as she pants slightly, but the sweat on her brow only highlights the way the dimming sunset turns her eyes into rubied gold.

"Hey," she says, and stands up on wobbly knees. "Miss me, old timer?"

Oh.

Stumbling, almost falling, Hua manages to shamble over to where she is. Hesitating, because what if this is just another dream — what if she is just daydreaming again?

But Senti wraps her arms around her neck tightly, laughing, and when Hua returns her hug, she does not disappear like a dream. She's here. Senti's here.

"I'm home," she says.

"Xiǎo shí," Hua says. Her heart feels warm, like the prick of tears in her eyes. She buries her face in her shoulder, and laughs, too. "Welcome home. Welcome back home."

#fu hua #herrscher of sentience #sentihua

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sgtbradfords · 4 years ago

Note

Could you write a Chenford prompt with this “You’re always number one.” ? Thank you!

Ok anon, this one was so much fun to write! Thank you for sending me this prompt! I hope you enjoy :) Send me a prompt from this list!

The sounds of car doors slamming filled the parking lot, the hot California sun bearing down onto the asphalt. “Someone please remind me why we’re doing this again?” said Nyla Harper as she and Lila met the growing crowd in front of the building.

“Because Nolan said it’d be fun and none of us disagreed.”

“It’s also a bonding experience.” Piped in John Nolan.

Tim Bradford rolled his eyes. “As if we don’t spend enough time out of work as it is.”

“Alright,” said Angela Lopez, gathering the groups attention as she walked out of the building. “We’ve got 2 hours booked for us to play as many rounds as possible with a twenty-minute break after an hour. Wesley and I took the liberty last night of dividing everyone into teams already. Should someone feel as though it’s unfair after the first game then we will redo the teams. Alpha squad will be Wesley, Jackson, Tim, Lila and John. Bravo squad will be Sterling, Lucy, Nyla, Henry and myself.”

“Question, can we change our team names?”

“No.”

“What are the rules?” asked Jackson.

Wesley raised an eyebrow. “Their rules or our rules?”

“Ours of course.”

“No removing your sensor to avoid being shot. Keep physical contact to a minimum. Climbing is allowed as long as you don’t get shot. If you are shot, then your vest will reset after thirty seconds. We have the room to ourselves so no worries about outsiders. An alarm will go off in an hour to signal the break. Most importantly, have fun. Everyone ready?” Angela told the group before moving towards the building.

“You’re going down Bradford.” Lucy gloated as they walked through the door.

“Is that what you think boot?”

Lucy scoffed “Think? I know. Remind me again who was Mid-Wilshire’s shooting champ this year?”

“There was a scuba diver!” Cried John.

“We know.” Voiced the group.

The group divided up into their teams, going into separate rooms to get their gear.

“Game starts in five.” Nyla said as she slipped back into her teams’ room after helping Lila into her gear. “The amount of trash talk coming from them… Don’t be shocked to see Lila and Nolan team up.” She told them as she began gearing up herself.

An alarm through their room, giving off the one-minute warning. Both teams lining up outside of their doors that led to the complex.

The next alarm sounded as the doors opened, the lights off and blacklight’s on making the place glow.

“Yippie ki yay Mother-“

“NOLAN SO HELP ME, DON’T YOU DARE FINISH THAT SENTENCE.” Nyla yelled as she entered the room.

“-theresa!”

Each person began strategizing, Sterling being the first shot as Wesley rounded a corner.

Lucy was able to shoot John, who was helping Lila sneak under a platform, “Not fair Lucy!” he yelled as she ran away.

The first round went quick, the score almost even as the alarm blared, signaling their break, they congregated in one room, huddled around the TV screen showing points.

“How are they winning?” Cried Angela. “I know I shot Nolan at least five times!”

“It’s only by a few points honey.” Wesley smirked as he told his wife, taking a sip of water.

Angela glared, covertly flipping her husband the middle finger as Sterling wondered aloud. “How does a nine-year-old have more kills than me?”

Jackson laughed. “Because you play a cop on TV, Ster. Where as her mother probably gave her the good aim in her genes.”

“Wait, this says Tim and Lucy are tied as the top shooters.” Henry pointed out. “How is that possible?”

Everyone turned staring at the two as Lucy shrugged. “I told you, champion. Besides, I rarely win anything. Now Tim on the other hand, you’re always number one.” She said pointing a finger.

“Come on boot, Antonio won that one time!” he defended before explaining. “We do paintball once a month. Besides, Chen practically lives at the shooting range.”

“Only because you make me!” Lucy snorted before defending herself. “And I do have a life outside of work I’ll have you know.”

“Is that what you’re calling him? Because if I remember correctly, I had to buzz you in the other day at six in the morning wearing yesterday’s clothes because you ‘lost’ your keys.” Jackson pointed out causing her to blush. “And it wasn’t the first time either.”

Nolan propped his head on the fist of the elbow leaning on the table. “Tell me more tell me more did you get very far.” He sung.

“Shut up Nolan.” The group voiced as he raised his hands in defense.

The five-minute bell rang, half the group standing to head back to their room, Angela and Nyla moving to Lucy’s side as she began to put her device back on, shooting the test target in the room to check her gun.

“Is he a decent guy?” asked Angela.

Lucy smiled. “He is.”

“Have you done a background check on him?”

“I haven’t but I don't need to, he’s told me a lot.”

Nyla watched Lucy, her arms crossed over her chest. “You love him.”

“I do.”

Angela looked at Nyla before looking back at Lucy “Does he make you happy?”

Lucy looked at the two, her smile growing. “He does.”

“Then that’s all that matters.” Angela said. “If he hurts you, I hope he knows your family will help you kill him.”

Lucy laughed, “Not if I kill him first.”

The one-minute alarm sounded as each team re-assumed their entry positions.

Team Bravo was the first to strike in round two, Nyla taking Lila and Jackson down ten seconds apart.

Lucy quickly made her way to the second floor, finding the perfect corner that was dark enough to stay hidden with the help of her jacket hiding the glow of her target. She crouched down, keeping an eye out, watching the walkway that ran across the second floor, she knew Jackson was up here, having seen his white shirt go by in a blur as she made her way up from the first floor.

“Boo.” A voice whispered in her ear.

Lucy jumped to her feet, startled as she whipped around, pointing her gun at the person that was crouched beside her on the floor. “Didn’t your T.O ever teach you not to sneak up on someone with a gun?”

“It’s fake. And didn’t your T.O teach you to always stay aware of your surroundings boot?” retorted Tim as he stood, backing her further into the corner.

“How did you get there and how long have you been there?”

“Army crawled.” He said shrugging. “And not that long. So, who’s the guys ass I need to be kicking?”

“None of your business. But,” She told him, her tone playful as Tim stepped closer. “he’s about six foot four, blond hair, killer eyes.”

“Yeah? He sounds like a loser.”

“Well, someone has to counter his inner nerdiness.”

“Wanna play dirty?” he asked, as he moved closer, each hand grabbing for the belt loops of her pants as Lucy’s back hit the wall.

“Looks like we already are.”

“We are but,” he dragged out. “what if we teamed up to take down both sides?” he asked, leaning his body into hers.

Lucy bit her lip as she tilted her head back. “Conspiring to commit treason are we Sergeant Bradford?”

Tim moved his head down, his lips grazing hers as he whispered. "Conspiring to do something Officer Chen.” He said as he acted first, his lips capturing hers harshly, eliciting a moan from deep within as her body reacted to his touch. His fingers let go of the denim loops, hands slowly grazing the exposed skin where her shirt was riding up, causing her to shiver as she moved a leg, wrapping it around his backside.

“We’re going to get caught.” She said as someone yelled from the first floor. Tim moved his lips down her neck, his nose pushing her hair back as he sucked on the skin, a gasp escaping her lips.

“They won’t even know we’re missing.” He mumbled against her neck as his hands slid into the back pockets of her jeans, lifting her, pressing her harder into the wall as she wrapped her other leg around him.

“They’ll know when they see neither of us getting points.”

“We’re getting points.” He smirked, pulling back. “Just none they need to know about.”

Lucy fisted his shirt, pulling him into her in a hungry kiss, returning his earlier kiss with equal fervor before letting go, running her nails over his scalp as she grinded into him.

“Lucy!” Jackson yelled from the first floor, causing them to break apart. “I know you’re waiting for me!”

Lucy dropped down as Tim let her go. “How the hell did he get down there?” she asked, catching her breath as she grabbed her gun that was swinging by its tether.

“I guess you were distracted.” He told her, his tone light and playful.

Lucy moved around him, making the move to go after her friend.

“Wait.” he said as he pulled her back by the arm, twirling her into him as his lips found hers in the darkness, leaving her breathless.

Lucy moaned as she forced herself to pull away. “Later, we will finish this later.” She promised, retracting his hands from his waist as she stepped back. “And babe?”

“Yeah?” he asked stepping closer to her.

“Payback’s a bitch.” She told him as she pressed the trigger on her gun, the laser hitting the target on Tim’s chest.

Tim stood shocked as Lucy ran away. “What the hell Chen!”

Lucy’s laugh echoed off the walls as she ran down the stairs, taking out Wesley who was running up the steps “Oh Jackson.” She sung. “Wanna play a game?”

Fifteen minutes later the final alarm blared, signaling the end of the game.

“Alright, which team is ready to buy the brews?” Angela asked the group who stood waiting outside. “Drum roll please!” Lucy, Nyla and Lila, began beating their hands on their thighs.

“With 3400 points the winner is… Team Bravo!”

“In your face Bradford! Break out the money clip old man!”

Tim rolled his eyes at his girlfriend’s antics before stepping closer, “Twenty bucks says Jackson will be wasted by the end of the night.”

Lucy looked at Jackson who was pouting. “Make it loser pays for ice cream after paintball next week and you’ve got a deal.” She told him sticking out her hand.

“Deal.” He told her accepting her hand, lingering for what was probably too long for ‘coworkers.’

The next week Lucy smiled, handing a twenty-dollar bill over to the cashier before glancing back at Tim who was trying to stop the topping avalanche that was sliding down his double scope of Oreo ice cream. “You ready?” she asked as she pocketed her change, holding out the hand that held no ice cream.

Tim smiled, hints of ice cream on his lips as he took her hand, walking out the door. “With you? Always.

#the rookie fic #tim bradford x lucy chen #chenford fic #chenford fanfic #fanfic #chenford

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johannstutt413 · 4 years ago

Text

(requested by anonymous)

The Doctor didn’t enjoy dealing with her bullshit even on the best days, admittedly; she came into his office, talking shit about other Operators and the past and wasting his time. It was enough to drive him up a wall, but he’d kept things bottled up until now because, as the head of HR, it’d be a nightmare trying to find a high-ranking enough third party to adjudicate the paperwork.

There were two problems with this afternoon. First, it was not a ‘best day,’ or even a ‘good day’. No, today was a terrible day, all things considered - all his usual outlets were on missions, his unusual outlets were also on missions or otherwise occupied, and the Doctor hadn’t eaten lunch. Second, she was coming home, and she’d have Doctor-pestering high on her list of priorities, and despite his best efforts, he had no way of getting her on another mission to keep her away from him.

So, at fifteen minutes before he’d be free to go home, the Sarkaz stepped into his office, threw her boots off in front of the threshold, and closed the door behind her as she posted up on the couch. “Business as usual?”

“I’m leaving in fifteen minutes,” he replied, not looking up from his computer. “What do you want?”

“Feisty today? A little pent-up aggression, always nice to see.”

He felt his blood pressure physically rising. “W-”

“I just wanted to say hi.” She flattened out, lying on her stomach, tail swishing back and forth. “You get so soft when I leave for too long.”

“You didn’t leave for long enough,” the Doctor bit back, fingers hitting the keys harder than strictly necessary now. Twelve minutes, twelve minutes-

-W had unplugged his computer to charge her phone. “This go to anything important?” She held the cord up.

“I’m done. I’m fucking done.” From beneath his hood, purple smoke began trailing out from where his eyes would be as he turned towards her. “Plug my computer back in, disconnect your charger, and get the fuck out of my office.”

“Oooh. This is new.” The Sarkaz hadn’t move to do anything he’d just said. All that’d changed was the width of her smile.

Something snapped - literally, as a pen in the Doctor’s pencil holder cracked in half. “Get. OUT.”

“And miss the sho-” This was around the point her throat stopped working properly. “Wha...Doc...”

“If I’d thought this would shut you up, I would have started doing this sooner. Now leave.” A mental flick-of-the-wrist, and she was thrown from the couch to the door.

She dusted herself off, stood up, and walked back towards the couch. “So you are still there, after all.”

“You didn’t get the message.” He tossed her back, along with her charger and phone. “LEAVE.”

“...You first.” W was behind him, gun at his neck.

He twisted it into scrap metal before sending her back where she came. “LEAVE.”

“While you’re still alive? Fat chance.” Oh, a grenade? This was getting to her. “You killed her.”

“I haven’t killed anyone...yet.” There was no more smoke in his eyes. Only fire.

The Sarkaz pulled the pin and tossed it - no, make that about six grenades, to be safe - directly onto his desk. “You killed Theresa.”

“I don’t know who you’re talking about, now LEAVE you dumb bitch!” The door opened behind her as the force of six grenades blasted her through the other side. He sighed heavily as he closed the door again; this was far too taxing on hi-

“Don’t play dumb.” W’s knife was at his throat. “Say it. Say you killed her.”

He twisted her wrist, knife falling from her hand, but his power was fading fast. “I’ve only thought about killing one person, and that’s you! Who the hell was Theresa?”

“Who was-” And with speed that the Doctor simply could not account for, she slashed at his face with her untwisted hand.

“Who was Theresa?” She’d knocked him back, so he followed him to the floor, knee against his chest. “She was a saint.”

Feeling his ribs threatening to crack, he played his last card. “Then you’ll never see her again.”

“No-” Before finishing her line, the world blurred for a moment, and the Sarkaz was floating in a void. A very familiar void.

“The medics will find us soon enough; I pressed the button to call for them. Killing you isn’t worth the paperwork.” The Doctor’s voice, from everywhere and nowhere at once. “The feeling’s mutual, that’s plain to see. You annoy me to death because you wanted proof I was the same man you hated before, then? I can understand that, at least. When we eventually wake up, I might even let you have another shot. I’m at my limit - can’t finish the job - so you’ll have the perfect chance. Let’s go over what that would accomplish, though.”

“This Theresa person worked for us? Oh...she led Rhodes Island originally? Under the name Babel? Ah, it’s been awhile since I indexed someone else’s memori- oh...Oh...OH...Fuck, I...That’s...I understand now.”

Her voice, but in a tone she’d lost some years ago, echoed into her own ear. “Understand what, Doctor?”

“I had a hand to play in this you’s brokenness after all, then. Doing that to, to her was never...oh God, what did he do?”

“He?” A more familiar variation of herself. “Don’t you mean ‘you,’ queen-slayer?”

“That creature wears my face but isn’t me, I promise you that. His genuine contempt for the world is plain, and I don’t...I’m sorry, W.”

“...” Another person’s voice, one that brought tears to the Sarkaz’s immobilized eyes. “You’re forgiven.”

#arknights #arknights fic #w (arknights)#i would telekinetically blast her into walls if I could #but anyways #probably not what anon thought of when they said sees through her mask #but it's the more likely truth than her being interested in him #that's for sure

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peachyunjinnie · 5 years ago

Text

❝there’s always a first time❞ hjs ― m.

― summary:

your brother seungmin is very protective over you, but one day your best friend gave you a stick and poke tattoo and you get an infection. fortunately seungmin’s friend jisung as a hobby tattoo fanatic helps you take care of it and when seungmin wasn’t there you two decide to run away.

badboy!jisung/goodgirl!reader | fluff, smut | 5.3k ↬ content warnings: swear words, the mention of alcohol and drugs. drunk/high sex, with a little size and corruption kink.

a/n: i had this idea a couple of days ago and i tried my best to get this idea into a fic, i hope you enjoy it !!

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The relationship between me and my cousin Seungmin is better than with anyone else, you could say that we could consider ourselves as siblings and even best friends. We had the same taste in humor and even better lived in the same house after my mother died right after she gave birth to me. My father ended up bringing me to my aunt and uncle at the age of 2.

Seungmin is 1 year older and has ‘BBPI’ as he calls it which means Big Brother Protection Instinct. I know, complete nonsense and as a 16-year old I don’t get why I have to be protected. Well, as Seungmin said I am still ‘his small sister’. Pathetic. As said before Seungmin is 1 year older to be exact 11 months and 28 days and has friends, for whatever reason, he has a whole group. Well, he warned me about one of them, the walking trouble: Han Jisung. He basically is the opposite of me, a 180 if you want to say it.

He stole the car of his stepfather numerous of times and I remember seeing him drunk and completely stoned in school, that I will never forget. Last year he was stumbling through the hallways of our school. His hair messy and his smile never leaving his lips. He had the hardest time trying to keep his eyes open, or even just keeping his legs moving. And the best part, he puked on his teacher's chest. It was the highlight of the whole day, no the whole semester. His stepfather thank god is very wealthy and managed to keep him in school, somehow.

I heard a lot of rumors about this Jisung and I really do not want to believe that he was in the Russian mafia boss nor do I want to believe that he killed his father and is living with his mother who helped him. It was really funny though to hear how unique and ridiculous the fantasies and the gossip was at our school, I mean a Russian mafia boss, seriously?

I hung out with my own friends, but sometimes I would get to talk and just meet my brother’s friends. In conclusion, we even had the same taste in friends. They were really nice. I really have the best friendship with Felix and Changbin. Felix firstly has an excellent taste in music and humor, secondly, he is by far one of the most concentrated gamer I’ve ever met. Changbin is just Changbin. He is kind of annoying and clingy with his friends. Which you would’ve never expected from this buff hulk. And to be completely honest with you, Changbin and Lix...are kind of cute together.

Well, with Seungmin being as protective as he is, he has told me clearly that dating is already a picky topic but dating one of his group members. I think he would be as angry as he was when I asked him what a ‘Day6′ was. He really ignored me for 3 weeks straight, with a text message saying ‘if you know who wonpil is then you are allowed to talk to me’. (stan day6, cowards.)

“Stop moving so much, I’ve done it before and you’re overreacting.” She whisper-screamed. She was nearly done with her K on my thigh, It was way bigger than I thought it would be, but it looked good.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m just getting poked by a hot needle on my thigh over and over again.” My sarcasm was louder than the thoughts in my head that were shouting lines of ‘you’re so in trouble’ or ‘you will never be able to get this off your skin’.

“So.. Here we go. Done.” She said as she was looking at her masterpiece of a K on my thigh of the size of a thumb. But it looked even and nice. She has done a (The first letter of y/n) on her thigh. I cannot believe how red it was though, and swollen. Extremely swollen

“Kim, when will it be ‘okay’?” I asked her with a slight nervous undertone. I really am the biggest chicken on earth. She opened her bag and got saran wrap. She took some out and wrapped it over her creation with such a soft touch. I still cringed and squinched.

“Maybe a week or two. It doesn’t take too long.” She smiled at our bond. I smiled with her. We ended up in a big hug and stayed like this for some time before she packed her stuff and headed out.

I admired her work on my thigh and stood up, with an overwhelming pain spreading across my thigh. I couldn’t stand up on my own feet, my thigh stung extremely and harshly.

Panic rising through me, what the heck should I do now? Should I call my mom and tell her about it? Should I tell Seungmin and ask him for help? Should I just emigrate to Brazil and start my new life as a Silvia Theresa Rodriguez?

I crawled to my bed and tried my best to let the 2 years drama club pay off. I called my mom and asked for a painkiller. She came up to my room and sat on the edge of my bed.

“Honey, is everything okay?” Her concerned eyes scanned my body and noticed my messy hair and my pale face. I coughed.

“Mom, I-I’m sick.” She sat there and looked at me and gave me the painkiller with a glass of water.

I snatched it out of her hand and gulped the pill down as if it were the only banana in the jungle. Her concern grew faster and she shook her head.

“I’m going to call your teacher. You’re not going to school.” She said as she got off my bed and walked off with her phone in her hand, dialing the number.

After the longest 8 hours, Seungmin came home, and thank god came into my room. With a bag of McDonald's and a big smile, he went to my bed and sat down.

“Why didn’t you come to school?” He gave me the bag and with a breathtaking smell of fat and fast food filling my nose and getting the best of me.

“Oh, I am sick my head hurt a little, and mom overreacted.” I said with a huge load of fries in my mouth.

With a small pat on my thigh, he hit the right spot of the K and a shriek came out, my whole body tensing up and Seungmin looking at my covered thigh. He took the blanket off. My shorts relieving the now swollen and slightly scabbing spot.

A moment of silence filled the room and Seungmins face has gotten from a healthy color to a concerning red and then to a frightening purple.

“Surprise...” I smiled awkwardly.

“Y/N, you got a fucking tattoo...” His voice was a low growl, but still, you could clearly hear the pure panic in his voice.

“Uhm, haha yea. So I made it myself, you like it?” My shaking voice showing the state of mine. My thigh looked pretty bad and as painful as it would’ve been, without the painkillers.

“Did you disinfect it?” My whole head went blank. Of course, it was so swollen and scabbing, Kim didn’t disinfect it. My face went paler than pale and I rethought the consequences of an infection.

“Okay, I’ll take that as a no. Get your shoes and we will get to my friend he will help you.” He really was very serious about the infection so I stood up with a numb pain, but not as overwhelming as it was yesterday. I searched for my shoes and directly followed him.

A quick bus ride and a small foot-march later there was a big but still small and cozy house. Red and white, reminding me of a red velvet cupcake. Looks fancy but is cute at the same time. The grass and the dwarfs decorating the beautiful view. A middle-aged lady working in the garden, planting in seeds and watering the red tulips.

“Hello, Mrs. Han is Jisung home?” He grinned at her.

“Oh hello, Seungmin. Nice to see you again!” She smiled at him with a motherly aura surrounding her. She hugged him and I could see that she liked Seungmin a lot. He didn’t really know what to do awkwardly stood there and let her do. She noticed me standing there and hiding behind Seungmin's tall figure and met with her warm brown eyes.

“Hello, and who are you?” she asked with a bigger smile.

“Uh, I am Seungmins sister.” I immediately trusted her and her warm embrace.

“Ah yes, I can see the model genes going in the family. You seem like you’re in a big rush to see Jisung, he’s in his room.” She told us and saw my embarrassed blush across my face as Seungmin took my hand and yanked me downstairs to where Jisung was.

The basement as a room, interesting. It was colored black and had a lot of posters of some bands that I have never heard of. There he was on his bed smoking a cigarette and admiring his newest addition to his arm, a slightly red and in saran wrapped tattoo. A small skull drinking from a glass bottle, very precise and well made. He sat there and continued to smoke.

“Seungmin, what’s up.” he took a puff. Not giving anyone a single look. His hand tapping over his forearm and keep admiring his skull.

“I need your help. My sister made a tattoo and now it’s infected. Do you know what to do?” Seungmin seemed very concerned and worried. Jisung stood up and chuckled a little.

“The little Y/N, has a tattoo?” He asked me and looked down at me.

His eyes have the same warm brown as his mothers and I weirdly trusted him regardless of his reputation. His hair was dyed a very light blonde and his face was very chubby, unlike his body which was athletic: muscular but slim. He had two tears on his face and my thoughts went crazy. Who in the actual hell did he kill and the rumors of Jisung being a Russian mafia boss came into my mind and I reconsidered if I should be worried to be in a room with him?

“Seungmin, I have some lemonade for you.” Mrs. Han's voice echoed through the basement and he looked at Jisung.

“Go for it, I will take care of her.” He gave him green light and Seungmin looked at him with a look in his eyes. Which could be translated into ‘If you hit on my sister, I will drag your corpse to the nearest forest and let you get eaten by the birds’. Jisung nodded and Seungmin went upstairs.

“So tell me, how did you do that?” He said with a smile as he pointed to my infected K. His hair falling on his face, a little messy but still perfectly proportional.

“Uhm, a long story...” He went to his desk and took out a liquid and a cotton pad. He pushed the chair next to the bed and patted the bed. I quickly sat down. Him in front of me.

“I have time, come on.” He looked up and gave me a simper. I felt a small tickle again and wanted to trust him with it.

“Well uh, my friend Kim wanted to get us bonded. She took a needle and poked my skin for some time until it was done.” He laughed a little, letting me see his whites.

“You stick and poked and didn’t disinfect it?” His eyes still on mine and not leaving the look they had, of the warm and soft chocolate brown.

“No, we didn’t and stop making fun of me- Ah-” His cold hand touching my thigh. My body stiffened and it was hard to relax.

“Calm down, relax. You wanna listen to music? disinfecting this will be a little uncomfortable.” He stood up and walked to his stereo. He took out a cassette and stuck one in. A prehistoric cassette, I haven’t seen this since I listened to Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban one years ago. After some seconds of silence, ‘All The Small Things’ by blink-182 boosted through the speakers.

He turned around and sat down again and wet the pad with this liquid. He took off the wrap and the air hit the wound. It was a stinging soreness, that leads me to look away and bite my lower lip, hard.

He took the wet pad and started to clean up the wound as careful and gentle as possible, the stinging and burning pain was a very harsh rush of pain. I whined and groaned loudly.

“Does it hurt?” He asked as he was still cleaning up.

“Well, yes,” I said with a small whine.

“Good. If I see you with a new tattoo I will get you punished.” his voice getting raspier and raspier. But he still cleaned the wound up and was done with the disinfecting. He stood up again and got some of the saran wraps and pointed his finger, signaling me to stand up.

I stood up from his bed and he kneeled down to wrap it up. His hands still very cold and tickling my thigh.

“So Kim, is your friend?” His voice a little absent.

“Yes, my best.” I had to automatically smile.

“Tell me about her, how is she like?” I was surprised at his interest in my personal life but answered him.

“Oh, um she is reckless and she never thinks about her actions. She makes out stupid things that I have to box her out of. But she also has a nice and gentle side that not many know. I love her a lot.” I smiled at our memories and how easy it was to be myself around her.

As I was in my thoughts, Jisung took out a bottle of Jack Daniels and takes a glass. He gets him a good amount and gets another glass after seeing my big eyes. After a long friendship with Kim who was known for drinking, I have never drunk any alcohol, well until today. He gave me a glass full of brown fluid.

“I- I can’t believe we did that.” I laughed as Jisung was holding my hand walking on an abandoned street in the middle of nowhere. He had given me a big sip of the whiskey, it was a burning sensation of my taste buds being confused and curious for more.

“It’s better, not being sober right?” He asked stumbling into the sunset.The bitter taste of the alcohol and the adrenaline of me running away with a friend of my brother without his permission. I felt every single touch of his hand tightening and holding my hand in his clutches not letting go.

“Come on drink it, Y/N. The painkillers are not going to help you any better than Jackie will.” He smiled and waved the glass in front of my nose. I mean I never was drunk and I want to know what it’s like. My curiosity and stupidity have gotten control of me and I accepted with a shaky hand.

I took a small sip of the whiskey and the bitter and stinging sensation was so disgusting. I couldn’t swallow it and started to look around for somewhere to spit it at. But with Jisung forcing me to look up at him with his fingers, pushing my head upwards.

“Swallow it, now.” his eyes burning holes into mine and letting me breathless with no other choice other than swallow. I gulped the fluid down and the burn in my throat was unbelievably harsh.

“Good girl, now. If Seungmin sees your ass drunk this will be very dangerous for both us. Do you have any other clothes or is this everything you’ve got?” He already searched in his closet and gave me a black hoodie with some jeans.

“Here you go. Hurry up, my mom is not going to keep him for any longer.” He went upstairs and left me with there a little tipsy and with some clothes from this boy that I barely knew.

After getting them on I noticed the size difference, Jisung has it in L. On me it was XXL. The size was really funny and the jeans that should hug his waist like they are on the ones he is wearing, are now hanging from my pelvic bone. I saw my reflection of the mirror and busted out in laughter.

Jisung came down and looked at my new outfit, and laughed as well. He came in front of me and squished my cheeks. He played with them and ruffled my hair into a mess, I officially am looking like I just woke up with my PJ’s.

“You look so cute, this stuff is the tightest clothing that I have and your body is just sliding through.” He smiled and looked into my eyes, his hands still cupping my cheeks. A strong smell of alcohol and cigarettes leaving him, mixing with his cologne.

He stepped back and admired this baggy look. He had a hand on his chin, thinking about what can make it look even better than it already does. With an idea in his mind he sought for.... a belt.

He took the of course black belt and put it over my waist. I almost wanted to remind him that I am not a toddler and can put on a belt myself, but the sudden closeness of him and his firm grip on his jeans on me. My heart did a small tap dance, but he continued to put it on with no sign of hesitation.

“This looks better. Take your shoes and let’s get out of here.” Trouble, that was what I am going to get after this. Am I out of my mind going with Jisung with no other thought? Am I dumb for trusting this dude that threw up on his teacher's chest in the hallway last year?

He packed his bag with a shit ton of bottles and some other stuff that I don’t even want to know what it is, the curiosity of what is in this bag now really bugged me. What did he have in this bag? He started to notice my glare on his black backpack.

“You ever had drugs, little one?” He asked as if it was the most normal thing to ask a 16-year-old. If I ever had drugs, the small sips of this weird and burning stuff and the coffee I had in the morning.

“N-No.” My stutter surprised me and the sudden tension started to get harder and intense. My subconscious shouted in my head to get out and go home with Seungmin, but this Jisung really had something and I wanted to explore that.

“There’s always a first time and I needed to go out anyway. You wanna meet my friends?” His smirk was absolutely precious and there was no way in hell that I could say no to this face. After my agreement, he smiled even brighter than before. He took some of his rings and gave those to me and some chains. I looked so different from what I daily wear and with a hat my appearance was complete.

“I-It’s so much better. Not having this pressure.” After another big gulp of the whiskey, he threw the bottle to the road and opened his bag. A see-through water like a bottle. He gave it to me and I opened it after some seconds of struggle. We stumbled through the sunset of the lonely and empty roads of a beautiful panorama.

“Le-Let’s sit down for a while. I am so ti-tired.” I laughed and sat down on the empty road. He joined me and took the opened vodka bottle from me and took a small sip after gasping dramatically and getting a green bag out of his pocket. It looked like leaves and after a long time of finding out what it was, I knew it when he started to build a joint.

I took the bottle and drank the alcohol. I couldn’t believe this scenario, I am drunk and I am about to get high. I will get so much damage for this one night, but it still felt like it was a Bonnie and Clyde after play. Such a euphoric moment, and a moment I would’ve never have dreamed of.

So deep in my own thoughts and my own actions and with this alcohol in my hands, I didn’t see that Jisung was already done with his work. He saw my lazy eyes and pointed out to his bag.

“Hey, listen to music on my phone the code is 0325.” I crawled over to his bag and searched for the perfect song and here it was. New Flesh by the Current Joys, a carefree and a lighthearted song. The song started playing and Jisung snickered.

“I start to really learn a new si-side of you. Little miss Y/N.” He finished his joint and licked it clean. He grabbed in his bag and pulled out speakers. This bag really is a survival kit. He connected them to his phone and the music blasted out with such an enormous volume.

He took out his lighter and the fire sneaked it’s way through the marijuana and gives out a really unique smell. He seemed relaxed and fell on his back. He now was lying on the hard and cold cement road, his little relaxing tool between his fingers.

“So you never smoked before, like ever?”He has gotten up again and let his arm over my shoulder, giving me a really focused look.

“N-Nah.” I giggled for no reason. My head felt dizzy and my vision getting blurry after breathing in second-hand smoke.

“So I’m gonna show you, ho-how to do it the right way.” He smiled and almost closing his eyes completely.

He took my face into his hand and held the joint on the other hand. He gave it to me and I held it the best way I could, trying to let it fall down. I took a big hit and coughed all of the smoke out in a matter of 3 seconds.

He laughed uncontrollably and as he was laughing my head started to turn, my stomach started to growl and my mouth was getting dry. I honestly did not expect it to work that easily but I felt the difference in my body. I took another puff of it and another.

With a little time it has gotten easier and better to not cough. Jisung after not talking for what seemed like a whole eternity, started to notice that the sky is getting darker. He saw a whole field next to the road and threw his stuff in there and threw himself as well.

“Come here! The field is soft.” He shouted from his new spot and I giggled and jumped on top of him. His laugh resounded through the emptiness surrounding us and my giggle became a little quieter when I felt his hand on my hip. As before, when he put on the belt for me, my face grew hot and my eyes stayed on him and I played with his hair. He stroked my body with his fingertips, it feeling like electric wires rushing through my hot body.

I leaned down and then kissed his soft lips. Right at this moment I didn’t care about anyone. My brother, my parents, my friends not even my own thoughts that screamed in my head to cut it off and go home. I wanted to live and wanted to enjoy, feel this moment. Exactly live in this moment right here and there. In a field in the middle of nowhere with the music still blasting somewhere near us and the taste of alcohol still running through my mouth and most importantly, Jisung being right here and there.

“I d-don’t want to pressure you to anything, Y/N.-” I shushed him up with another kiss and his smile making the butterflies in my tummy explode into a mess. He tucked on his hoodie and leaned into my ear.

“I am sure you look even better without my hoodie on.”

I giggled loudly, his hand getting lost on the inside of my hoodie. Grasping on my bra and massaging it softly. My world turning in circles and the music still playing on the highest volume from the speakers, somewhere in the grass.

“I want you, now.” I said, looking down to him. I took off my hoodie and threw it next to Jisung beneath me. His hands still on me, my hair falling down to the side of his face. I was needy and what could feed this hunger was him.

“If your brother could see his little girl…” he smiled at my face being some small inches in front of his. the taste of the marijuana in my mouth mixed with the strong vodka and whiskey was driving me into the dumbest things.

I kissed his soft lips, touching them a little and his tongue rolling with mine. He tasted like danger and everything forbidden for me, giving me a thrill of my life. I continued to go down his neck, sucking the best I could making it hard due to the lack of energy.

“You’re doing great, little one.” He moaned when I once reached his hard and perky abs, leaving a trail of bruises and hickeys all the way down here. He groaned once I unlocked his belt and pushed his jeans down to his boxers. The outline of his dick was hardly poking out, getting me to an idea of my first blowjob ever.

I pulled the off and there he was, poking at me. The hard and red tip, cum dripping on them slightly. I took him in my hands, carefully pumping him. His eyes following my actions his whines and stares telling me to put him in my mouth, I couldn’t get him all in, him laughing at me trying my hardest to deepthroat.

“Your little mouth is amazing.” He mumbled with his eyes closed tightly, his hands getting lost in my hair. Moans and grunts getting me wetter and wetter. I couldn’t breathe and with my mouth being filled up completely, my eyes turning to the back of my head.

I backed up and took some time to breathe, a string of saliva connecting my lips with his wet and throbbing dick. He pushed his hair back, his hand still on my head, grabbing and pulling at it hardly. I choked lightly on his pressure on my head, pushing me down and forcefully getting me down. After some seconds of complete silence he let go and a broken groan echoed through my dizzy head.

“Uh fuck, how can this small mouth get all that in?” He smiled looking down at me with his lazy eyes on the string of saliva connecting his tip to my lips. I started to laugh out, the feeling of a dick in my mouth reminding me of a Popsicle. He laughed as well, this whole scenario being unbelievable. It was deep dark outside, the only light being the lanterns of the side street and the moon, shining out heavily. The wheat among us, the music that still played beside us.

He suddenly stopped giggling immediately and closed his eyes. His head was thrown to the ground and he held my head in his hands, still thrusting into my mouth hardly.

“Wh-Where can I c-cum?” He stuttered and I just continued to bop my head down his length, feeling every inch in my mouth, I choked a little on the twitch of his cock. “Fuuuck.” He groaned loud through the hard beats of the music. I felt his dick twitch again in my throat and as I moaned the vibrations got him to spill his load into my mouth. The warm liquid running through my throat, I choked once again and the shivers went down my spine mercilessly.

“Ah fuck.” He tried to collect his breath, moaning more curse words. I still sucked at the tip and popped him out of my mouth, his seeds running down my lips. I looked up at his brown eyes, stars above us reflecting in them. He had the warmest and softest expression on his face, starring down at my cum filled mouth, trying my hardest to swallow everything.

“Now it’s your turn, princess.”

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