#i can't wait for my box set to be here UGH

[bunnakit]

@thebroccolination 's amazing post about Pisaeng and Kawi's relationship had me thinking thoughts and now I'm making it everyone's problem.

[sturniqlo]

Spilled Water- M.S

summary: where pregnant!reader films a video with the triplets and her water breaks and matt is freaking out. BLURB

cw: cursing, panicking(?)

an: lowercase intended

masterlist | mia masterlist | join my taglist

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"no! the cooking oil! that's y/n's coconut oil!" nick, wearing a chef hat and a white apron, snatches the small mason jar from chris' hands. "what is my coconut oil even doing here?" y/n waddles to nick to grab it. "i went to grab it from your bathroom, i thought nick had said coconut oil." chris explains.

"how'd you hear- nevermind." nick sighs and returns to the mixing bowl. "i don't know where their stuff is!" both nick and chris had came over to matt and y/n's apartment as y/n was nearing the end of her pregnancy and matt didn't want her to be alone in case she went into labor.

"the oil is in the kitchen, genius." matt says, and turns to the cabinet where the oil sits behind. "okay, guys, today we are making a cake from scratch!" nick holds up the empty mixing bowl and talks to the camera. "usually we bake boxed cakes, so we decided to switch it up for todays video. and don't worry, we have the expert here, y/n!" she shyly waves to the camera.

she's been in a couple of their videos and the fans adored her. "guys, y/n makes these really good chocolate croissants, but the boss man nick wanted a fucking cake." chris crosses his arms. "hey, what's wrong with cake? we," y/n points to her face and her swollen belly. "also wanted cake." matt laughs. "thank you, y/n and baby. see, chris, i'm not the only one who wanted cake."

"alright, enough about who wanted cake. let's get this show on the road." matt drapes his arm around his pregnant girlfriends shoulders. "okay, chris, pour in two cups of flour." nick reads off of his phone. "where are the measuring cups?" chris looks around. "ugh! motherfucker look around!"

"don't be mean to chris." y/n walks away from matt's hold and opens the drawer to grab the measuring cups. "thank you-" chris starts off. "it's not our fault he's a little bit different." y/n breaks out into a laugh and nick and matt follow her. "okay, okay stop it! i think i peed a little. she's pressing on my bladder."

"alright now that we have all of our dry ingredients mixed together, we're going to add in our wet ingredients." matt says. "how many cups of water do we need?" y/n asks, a bit in discomfort. she's been having a bit of braxton hicks lately, but her doctor said to not worry. however, these were a bit different but, she didn't really pay too much attention to it.

nick tells her how much and she walks towards the sink and pours it. as she walks back nick gasps. "y/n, you spilled the water on yourself." he points to her stained grey sweatpants. "what? no i didn't, look." she holds up the cup that holds the water.

"babe, your water broke!" matt says with widened eyes. "oh my god!" she sets down the cup on the counter and looks down, sure enough her water did break. "i- i don't know how i didn't feel it." she giggles. "chris go- go grab the baby bag it's in the- in the- fuck- the closet by the uh- the door." matt stumbles over his words. chris doesn't do anything but nod and hurry off to get the bag.

"oh my gosh, she's coming? like now?" nick says, y/n laughs as she can't take him seriously with the chef hat on. "y/n, come on, we need to take you to the hospital!" matt places a hand on the small of her back and leads her to the door.

"matt, baby, wait. i need to change my pants." she turns and walks into their shared room. "what? no, you're fine like this! you're in labor." matt says, running a hand through his hair. "hey, calm down, okay." y/n reassures him and holds his face in her hands. "i'm feeling fine as of now, i think we still have some time until i start getting contractions."

"okay, are- are you sure?" she nods. "i'm sure."

"oh!" y/n shrieks, putting a hand on her back as she stands in front of the bathroom counter. she was brushing her hair until she got her very first contraction. "matt, get the car ready!" she take a deep breath and tries to ignore the pain. "come on, come on! chris has the bag, is it okay if they come?"

"i don't care if- fuck." she gets a strong one. "it's okay, you're okay." he kisses her forehead and walks her out the room. "chris lock the door. her keys are on the table." matt tells chris as nick now holds her and walks her out the door. "how are you feeling?" nick says. "like im about to give birth."

"wait! what about the cake?" chris says.

[onim5]

Portgas D Ace x fem reader

I did my best to make this fluff, fluff. Uh, so this is a special 100 likes request.

Summary: Reader are short-sightedned and losses her glasses. And Ace helps her out.

Modern au

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Y/n stood at the edge of the bed. Her hands reached around and searched for one of the most important things in the world. "Where are my glasses." You mumbled as a feeling of unease made it through your body. After realizing you won't find them in your room, you set a course to the bathroom. Navigating through your own house was easy, but the unease and irritation grew.

After searching around the whole place, you gave up. "Ugh, where is it." You whined, lying down on the table. You hoped you had your normal breakfast on the table, not something else. Squinting with your eyes, you tried to read on the package. This is either milk or yogurt. . . . It's the milk.

Ace stood outside, preparing himself to see you. "Alright, I'm ready." He knocked on the door and waited patiently. After a while, he knocked again. "IT'S NOT LOCKED, OPEN IT ON YOUR OWN!" You yelled as you searched for the butter in the fridge. Ace opened the door carefully. You had never yelled at him before.

He made his way to the kitchen and found you slamming the fridge shut and walking to the table holding the small butter box. You finally looked in his direction, and he nervously prepared to tell you his excuse for coming so early.

Squinting your eyes, you looked at the blurry silhouette of a person. "Who are you?" You asked, pointing a finger at the person who you suspect to be a guy. A heavy and shocked feeling filled Ace. Sure, he had tried to avoid you when he realized his feelings and got scared cause of it. But just yesterday, you had been at his place working on a project with Sabo. Had he avoided you so much that you forgot about him?

"Dude! I wanna eat my breakfast in peace, and I can't do that unless I know who the flip it is standing in my kitchen." You mutter out a clear irritation in your voice. "Sorry, it's me, Ace. You know Sabo's and Luffy's brother." He said, hiding his disappointment. "Ace? I knew you before both Luffy and Sabo. Why would you tell me something so obvious." You asked as you began to eat.

"Well, you don't seem to recognize me." He answered as he reached into his pocket for the keys you forgot yesterday. "Ace, I lost my glasses. You need to help me find them." You whined, taking another bite of your most likely failed sandwich. "Why are you here anyway?" You asked, knowing Ace had been distant to you now and then.

"Oh, well I, I mean, Luffy found your keys after you left yesterday, and I came to bring them back." He answered doing his best not to stutter. "Oh, yeah. I had to use my reserve, just put them on the table, I might not find them anywhere else."

"Sure, so, can you like, not see me, now?" Ace asked as he annoyingly swung his hand in front of your eyes. "I'm not blind. I can still see, but everything is blurry." Upon hearing your explanation, Ace sat down at the table. "That must be quite hard and annoying. I see if I can find them." Ace declared. "That would be great."

Ace smiled and blushed as he had an excuse to hold your hand. "So today you're supposed to buy food at the store, right?" Ace asked, remembering your routine. "Yup, can you take me to ________? It's the best food store." You smiled, holding Ace a little harder. If I pretend that I suck at navigating the town, he and I can hold hands.

"I need quite a lot, but are you sure you're not busy?" You asked as you felt on the fruit wanting to find a fresh and good one. "Don't worry, I'm free until tomorrow." He laughed as he too, began looking at the fruit. "Do you need some refill on snacks?" He asked as he looked at the aisle. "I think I do."

"Can you make out the bench over there?" He asked, making sure it was in your line of sight. "Yeah, I see it. Kinda, at least." You answered. "Wait, there with the food, while I run to the restroom for a second." You did as he said and then sat there feeling bad for making him do all this. He had saved you from stubbing your toes into a lot of stuff. And from having to spend hours in the store.

"Hey, little lady, are you waiting for your boyfriend?" A voice asked from behind. You recognized Ace's voice easily, even though he used another tone. Deciding to spare Ace the embarrassment, the answer became. "What if I do?" You heard the man move around a little, like a happy dance. I'm not deaf, you adorable strawberry. You thought, knowing Ace most likely had a crush on you.

"Then I won't bother you." The man, aka Ace, said, walking away. You focused on the footsteps and listened as he walked around. "Hey, Y/n, did I make you wait?" Ace called out, failing to hide his excitement. "Not at all." You answered a smile growing upon hearing how happy he was.

Walking hand in hand through the center of the town, the two of you got closer to the stairs. Ace didn't realize the problem until you let his hand leave yours as he stepped down. "I can't make out where the steps start nor end." If it was something you hated while not having glasses, it would be stairs. Ace flung the food bag up on his shoulder. "I can carry you down." He offered, sounding smug, but you could make out a quite red face.

"Won't that make it hard for you to get down?" You asked as that weird warmth filled your body. "No." He answered, picking you up bridal style. Ace easily carried you down the stairs. He was gonna put you down, but---- "Ace? We're down the stairs now." You said as you lightened the grip around him. "And?"

"You can let me down." You said, trying to hide the blush. "Nah, we're soon at your house anyway." Ace took a better grip around you and then walked comfortably, completely ignoring the people watching. "Ace, there must be people staring at us." You whispered, feeling embarrassed. "There's no one staring." He declared. Though that was a lie, and you knew it since peoples silhouette seemed to stop in your direction. You gave up with a sigh and got yourself comfortable.

"This is more comfortable than I thought it be." You mumbled to Ace delight. "Ace, we should be at my place by now." You stated, looking around from his arms, only to see the blurry world. "Well, I tried to take a shortcut. But, eh, I guess I took the wrong way, and it became a longer shortcut." You translated his sentence to, 'I loved seeing you in my arms so much I skipped going to your place and just walked around in circles.'

"You're really obvious, you know." You said, leaning into his chest. "Obvious? With, with what?" He stuttered. "You like me, don't you?" You asked, taking a good grip on him, waiting nervously for his answer. He stooped in his tracks and sighed. "I've fallen a bit harder, so like, isn't really strong enough." He confessed, beginning to walk again. "Well then, I love you back." You also confessed snuggling into him. Ace looked down at you. A smile grew on his features.

Ace put the food in the fridge and then poured some of the snacks into a bowl. He settled down on the caugh, and then you two snuggled for the rest of the day.

"Ace, I found my glasses in the laundry." .:.:.

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And the end.

- I'm sorry for making it quite diffrent from how you wanted it. But, uh I'm going away on a trip and thought it be best to post it before that, since I won't have wifi there.

[lizzieislife94x]

Road Trip (e.o)

Lizzie x G!P reader

If you want any requests just message me

Lizzies POV:

"Let's go hoooooe" I beep my horn over and over waiting for my bestfriend y/n she takes so fucking long this bitch she literally said I'm ready come pick me up and she's not ready I love her but sometimes I wanna strangle her "ugh finally I've been waiting 10 minutes" I huff turning to her as she laughs "calm your panties lizzies let's get this show on the road I'm so excited" she leans over to hug me as I pretend I don't want her too she's so fucking beautiful I love to spend as much time with her as possible so 16 hours on the road alone in the car is perfect, she's had my heart for the last 5 years I've never had the courage to do anything about I don't wanna ruin our friendship I love her to much but I can't help but constantly check her out "ok I forgive you loser let's go, I'll drive the first few hours then we can find somewhere to chill and sleep then you take the next few hours tomorrow and so on" I explain we could easily do the 16 hours in one go but this trip is about us spending a few days together because we don't get to see each other often "that sounds perfect lizzie" she smiles sweetly god her smile, we start our drive talking and enjoying each other company laughing like mad men

 Y/ns POV:

"No way your boss said that??" She asks in complete shock I can't help but giggle "yeah he did can you believe he thought I wanted to sleep with him I've worked there for 3 years and the idiot hasn't realised I'm into women" I say smirking at lizzie "yeah no offence y/n all anyone has to do is spent 20 minutes with you to know your a lady lover" she says in a flirty tone I laugh and sigh leaning my head back against the head rest, yes lizzie I'm completely for the ladies but I only want you, I think as I would never tell her that I don't want to lose her and if I let my stupid feelings get in the way I'd lose her she'd never speak to me again "hey give me your phone I wanna put music on" I say as I rest my hand on hers andshe smiles "its right there y/n" she says pointing down to where the drinks sit, I grab her phone and unlock it "awh we are so fucking cute" I say referring to the photo of us as her lockscreen and I think she's blushing "we still have 2 hours to go wanna stop and get some food and blankets and pillows" she smiles at me "yessssss babes sounds like a plan to me" I jump excitedly in my seat and she giggles at my antics we pull in to Mcdonalds and get some food after half an hour we walk over to target to get blankets and pillows "ohhh lizzie we should get snacks for watching Netflix" I suggest "that's actually a great idea" we grab lots of snacks and drinks and I grab a box of tissues incase lizzie needs to pee "let's go find the perfect spot to set up by the time we get there the sun should just be setting " I say in a calm tone "mmh I love the sunset its so beautiful " lizzie says as I pack the stuff into the car

we spend the remaining 2 hours in a comfortable silence occasionally chatting about stuff that we could watch, we've settled for big momma and big momma 2 she always gets her way but fuck she's so precious I could never say no to her, we find the perfect spot and park up with a perfect view of the sunset I grab her hand as we sit and watch it until it disappears "let's get the car all cosy and we can set up the movie" I whisper as I get out and open the back doors and put the back seats down and fix a few blankets down so we're comfortable I then fix the pillows and grab a few blankets to cover us "everything's ready ma'am just need your laptop" I say smiling as lizzie gets into the back smiling "this is beautiful y/n" I blush and look down "I'm going to get stripped I normally sleep naked but obvs I'm not over the next few days so is it OK if I wear my boxers and sports bra?" I question shyly and she giggles "of course that's fine y/n same here as long as you don't mind me in my bra and panties" I gulp and blush at the thought "no uh thats fine" I whisper nervously and strip my clothes off leaving me in my boxers and sports bra I climb into the back and get under the covers after a few minutes lizzie joins me as I set the laptop up and play the movie.

Lizzies POV:

Fuck I'm trying to focus on the movie but I can't y/n is half naked laying right against me thank god she fell asleep because I'm panicking here "mmh there fuck.." wait a minute is she moaning Holy fucking shit I notice the blanket poking up and instantly lift it to look under fuck she has a hard on yep she was definitely moaning "fuck lizzie..take it ju..st like that" I instantly freeze was she moaning my name fuck I feel the wetness instantly pooling in my panties "lizzie..uhhh god yy..es" the sound of her moaning my name alone is enough to make me cum fuck, I need to wake her up "hey y/n wake up babe y/n" I whisper shaking her as she wakes up and opens her eyes wide as she sees me "oh hey lizzie is everything ok what time is it " god  even her saying my name now I'm only gonna think of her moaning it 

Y/ns POV:

I woke up and instantly knew I had a hard on shit I hope she doesn't see it I had a sex dream about lizzie it's nothing new but I freaked out inside when she woke me up because I've never had a sex dream about her while she's laying beside me I move a little and try to hide my dick "where you dreaming about me" I freeze as the words leave her mouth how does she know "you where moaning alot and you moaned my name" she says as if she read my mind "I'm so sorry liz I had no control over my dream please don't hate me" she giggles and pulls the blankets off and climbs ontop of me oh god what is happening "oh shut up and do something about it" I smirk and unclip her bra letting her perfect tits fall out I automatically latch my mouth around her nipple as she grinds into my raging hard on "fuck lizzie that feels amazing" i moan against her nipple as she continues "lizzie you are fucking soaked I groan" she blushes and looks into my eyes "how do you know y/n" I smirk and bite my lip "your pussy is that wet its soaked my boxers I can feel it on my cock " i tease kissing her neck "ugggh just fuck me y/n I've waited to long for this" she moans as I flip us and take my boxers off and slide her panties off fuck the sight of her soaked core is making me harder "mmh fuck you look fucking amazing "I moan as I run my fingers through her wet folds earning a moan for my best friend "put it in y/n fuck me" I moan at her assertion and do as I'm told I line my cock up to her entrance and slide in slowly "fuckkk lizzie you feel so fucking good" I moan pushing my entire length inside the moaning blonde under me "yessss fuck y/n youre so big sh..it" I gave her a minute to adjust before I start thrusting my hips slowly making sure to hit the right spots as I thrust, fuck I never knew my best friend sounded so fucking sexy moaning my name "yes yes yes y/n right...there fuck dont fucking stooop" she screams as I pick up my pace fucking her harder and faster "I'm cummmmming oh holy fucking shit im cumming" she screams out like a pornstar I feel her pussy walls squeeze my cock as I hold back my orgasm and she cums all over my cock "good girl" I moan slowling my thrusts letting her ride out her orgasm "fuck y/n you feel amazing inside me" she pants out her hands gripping my biceps as she tries to steady her breathing, I keep my dick inside her and move her legs over my shoulder "do you have one more lizzie" I moan thrusting slowly leaning down to place a gently kiss on on her lips "mmmh yes definitely baby" she moans "fuck me fuck me please" I start snapping my hips hard and fast as the car shakes like crazy and my best friend screams under me fuck her pussy feels amazing I continue thrusting feeling the orgasm fast approaching "fuck lizzie cum for me I want you to cum for me before I fill your tight little cunt with my seed " I pant out staring into my best friends eyes and all I see is lust and desire "fuck fuck I'm cumming daddyyy" she screams arching her back as I continue to slam my cock deep inside her After one final thrust I start shooting my load deep inside my best friend and it feels amazing I've wanted this for the longest time, I lay beside her panting as I grab her hand "that was amazing lizzie are you on the pill?" I moan looking at her as she turns to me "yes it was amazing no one has ever made me cum that hard and nope im not" she smirks running her finger down my nose biting her lip. 

Well I guess there's a chance I just impregnated my best fried the thought has me biting my lip this woman is something else and god i love her.

AN: just to keep the book up to date if you like it let me know if you want a request message me I do them all right away babes word Count is 1.8k

[mamawasatesttube]

"Your hands are freezing." or "I brought you something." ?

The lights in Tim's apartment are on.

Given that Tim himself is standing on a rooftop across the way, and he's pretty sure he turned everything off before he left for patrol, that's a little odd. Normally, he'd suspect it's just Cass inviting herself over for a post-patrol sabbatical in his shower, but it can't be her because she didn't patrol tonight; she and Dick took tonight off to go across the bay to see the Metropolis ballet do the Firebird or whatever it's called.

It's three in the morning. Tim glares at the innocent, brightly-outlined curtains. Who's in his apartment? He's cold and tired, and he wants to go to bed.

Ugh.

There's nothing for it, though, and none of his alarms have been tripped, so it's probably fine. (Unless it's like, a capital-S Situation instead, but he would really rather it not be. He's sleepy, and it's bitterly cold out here.) So he huffs again, then fires his grapple line.

The scent of fresh-baked cookies greets him the moment he slips inside, and he balks beside the window, blinking. Aw, beans, now he's hungry, too—

"Finally! There you are!" Kon appears in a rush of color, grabbing Tim's shoulders with a bright grin. "I've been waiting for ages. You took forever! I got bored enough to make cookies, and they're getting cold!"

Forget the cookies. Tim tackles him.

Kon sweeps him off his feet and twirls him around, laughing. His arms fold around Tim's waist snugly, and Tim beams as he tucks his face into the warm skin of Kon's neck, exhaustion forgotten. Kon's been off in space with Kara for three weeks, and Tim missed him so much it ached.

"Your nose is cold," Kon complains. Tim pushes his nose further against his neck in response, and Kon huffs. "Hey."

Tim lifts his head to look up at him fondly. Kon bumps their foreheads together, then reaches up with a gentle hand to peel Tim's mask away. Tim wrinkles his nose—Kon's TTK working between his skin and the sealant always makes him want to sneeze.

"Took you long enough to come back," Tim teases, chest full of warmth. He gets to look at Kon without the lenses of his mask now. He's radiant. "Did you get lost or something?"

Kon kisses him lightly. He wants more immediately.

"No, we just accidentally started a revolution on the fourth moon of Tallon, out in the Alpha quadrant?" Kon grins ruefully, rubbing the back of his neck. Tim needs to kiss him again. "In our defense, we didn't mean to, but there was this whole thing with this guy called Kossak who miiiight have a vendetta against me, and... anywhoozies, that's beside the point. See, I brought you something!"

He sets Tim down and hurries across the room to dig through the backpack slung lazily onto Tim's favorite armchair. While he's at it, Tim strips off the outer layers of his costume—the gloves, belts, body armor, overshirt, and outer pants—and leaves them in a heap on the floor for the moment. Now clad in just an undershirt and thermal leggings, he pads over to see what Kon's got.

As he slips his arms around Kon's waist, leaning into his back, Kon hisses. Tim innocently kisses the back of his shoulder and tucks his fingers more securely under Kon's shirt, against bare skin.

"Your hands are freezing," Kon complains. "You ice gremlin."

"Yeah, it's winter and I haven't had my favorite handwarmer for weeks." Tim hooks his chin over Kon's shoulder with a hum. "What'd you get me?"

Kon grins. He twists about in Tim's arms to present him with a glowing box about the size of a Rubik's cube. Its faces are translucent; the light comes from somewhere within. It's not blindingly bright, but Tim's attention is drawn to the socket-looking port in one of the sides.

"It's a power pod for Kossak's spaceship," Kon explains, beaming. "I don't think it's got enough oomph on its own for space travel—Kossak's ship had ten of 'em, but Kara kiiinda exploded the other nine?—but I thought you might have fun building something out of it anyways!"

Oh, that's fucking rad. Tim lights up just like the little box. It's heavier than it looks; he turns it over in his hands appreciatively. He's not sure what exactly its power output looks like, but that'll be fun to play with. He can take it over to the Cave tomorrow; that way, if anything explodes, it's Bruce's problem and not his.

"You're the best." He carefully sets the cube on the coffee table and tucks himself back into Kon's chest. Kon hugs him again, squeezing him tight enough to lift his feet off the ground, and Tim hums. "...I missed you."

"Missed you too, sunshine," Kon says, and presses his lips to Tim's temple. "I'm glad to be back."

"Yeah." Tim smiles, content. "I'm glad, too."

[sailorsenshishitposter]

WHO, IS THE FATHER

⚠️ Spoilers for chapter 236

"Happy birthday, Yuji!"

Nobara and Megumi had knocked on his door, causing the boy to get up and answer it.

"It's my birthday? Huh? I guess getting hit by Mahito all those times must have given me some brain damage."

"Just what are you wearing exactly?"

Itadori was dressed head to toe in a earthworm onesie.

"Nevermind, we have gifts for you!"

Nobara pushed Yuji aside and then got a box out of her bag.

"Here, open it!"

Yuji unwrapped the gift only to be greeted by a game case.

"Punch out for the Wii. Kugisaki, I think you bought this for yourself since you're the only one here with that console..."

Megumi snorted.

"I told you he would notice."

Nobara then grabbed the game back.

"Fine, if you don't want it, then I'm keeping it!"

"Wasn't this supposed to be my birthday?"

Megumi then handed Yuji some tickets.

"Thanks Fushiguro! What kind of event are these for?"

"We're taking you to see Jennifer Laurence."

Yuji then jumped and gave a fist bump to the air.

"Wait, how did you afford these?"

"They aren't from him dummy! Fushiguro doesn't have a job!"

"...It was Gojo sensei's idea..."

That explained a lot.

"So... are you going to wear that to the event?"

___________

After a change of clothes, they met Ijichi. It was in fact, not Itadori's birthday but a plan created by none other than Satoru Gojo.

"Does anyone think Ijichi seems more nervous than usual?"

It turns out that their teacher had threatened the man if he were to accidentally ruin the surprise. The threat being that Gojo would replace all of the man's shoes with pairs a size smaller when he wasn't expecting it.

"I-it's no-nothing! Please step inside the vehicle so I may escort the three of you!"

___________

He eventually dropped them outside of an abandoned studio set.

"I don't see why she would come to a place like this... Something's fishy..."

"HE'S FIGURING IT OUT, FUSHIGURO! TIME FOR PLAN B!"

"Right!"

Suddenly Yuji was thrown into a garbage bag.

"Let me out, it's dark in here!"

"Sorry but we're doing this for your own good Itadori!"

"Why can't I break through the bag!? Did you guys infuse it with cursed energy!?"

"Don't get mad, get GLAD Yuji!"

___________

The two then dropped Itadori on to a chair.

"Ugh... What's going on here?"

"Let me answer that for you!"

Suddenly the lights turned on and Yuji was next to a familiar face.

"Gojo sensei? I didn't know you knew Jennifer Laurence!"

Nobara was then heard laughing in the crowd (which consisted of her, Megumi, the year two and three students plus the Kyoto group. Todo being the only one absent)."

Let me explain, my dear Yuji. You are here to see the results of our paternity test!"

"I'll tell you what I told grandpa. Unless it's Goku, then I'm not interested. Why couldn't my dad give me cool powers like rasengan or bankai?"

"THOSE AREN'T EVEN FROM DRAGON BALL!"

"Will the audience please refrain from interrupting? We received this letter Yuji, and it's from your late grandfather."

The screen then played a video showing the contents in the envelope.

"I don't know if you are reading this but Yuji, for the love of god, listen to your elders for once! There's something you should know about your mother. She-"

The screen then cut out.

"Who's on technical staff? Can we get a fix on this?"

A minute later and the footage returned.

"I just thought that you should know that. P.S., please get me out of here! The nurses are evil! They keep-"

"And then it just ends there."

"That's gramps for you, always such a joker."

Then a single "YO, WHAT THE FUCK!?" could be heard.

"Settle down everyone! Now for our first guest, Kenjaku!"

Boos immediately starting springing from the crowd.

"Lets be civilized everyone! Now Kenjaku, you claim to be the father of Yuji?"

"Mother actually."

Everyone was now silent.

"HOW CAN HE BE MY MOTHER!?"

"Now calm down son, I merely took over your mother's corpse."

"WHAT!?"

"You are my only successful child, the others having been aborted."

"BOOOOOOOO!!!!"

"Why are they booing, they know I'm right!"

"..How many siblings of mine did you kill...?"

"About nine. But don't worry, they were only your half brothers."

"YOU SAY THAT LIKE IT'S NORMAL!"

"Alright, this is getting out of hand. Yuji, your siblings are backstage if you would like the chance to meet them."

" Huh!?"

"Will everyone please give a round of applause for Choso, Eso and Kechizu!"

As the screen showed them enter, everyone could see the rage on the eldest brothers face. Choso then ran up to Kenjaku and began to punch him in the face.

"GOJO! GOJO! GOJO! GOJO!"

Eso then had to restrain him.

"LET ME GO! I NEED TO KILL HIM!"

Kenjaku just smirked and then stuck his tongue out.

"Will everyone please have a seat! Now Choso, you say that Yuji is your younger brother?"

"Yes but first let me say that Noranso, Sho-oso, Tanso, Sanso, Kotsuso and Shoso are deeply saddened that they could not be here. Sadly they are still hidden in your schools warehouse... That bastard of a man over there has been switching bodies for countless years! He kidnapped our mother and did unspeakable things to her!"

"Mama..."

Kechizu began to sob, Eso then going to comfort him.

"BOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

"PUT HIM ON DEATH ROW!"

"Now, now everyone, you know as well as I do that Japan doesn't have those rules. I'm sure the last thing you want is some boring law speech from Higuruma. Kenjaku, would you like to tell us your side of the story?"

"Thank you Gojo. I would just like to say that I regret my actions but only because my son's turned out to be such failures!"

"WHY COULDN'T YOU LOVE US LIKE YUJI!?"

"Because he's my special. Anyway, let's talk about something else."

"Hmm. Yuji, what are your thoughts?"

The boy was catatonic. Gojo then waived a hand in front of his face.

"I think I might have broke him..."

"YOU BETTER FIX MY BABY BROTHER!"

Just then another person came into the spotlight.

"DID SOMEONE SAY BROTHER!?"

Gojo then motioned for the security.

"Who let him in!?"

"MY BEST FRIEND, WAKE UP!"

Todo then slapped Itadori.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING TO OUR BROTHER!?"

"CUT TO THE COMMERCIAL BREAK!"

___________

"Aaaaannd we're back!"

The screen now showed a conscious Yuji stuck in between Todo and Choso (who were very badly beaten up and bruised).

"Todo, we have the results and Yuji is not your brother."

"HE MAY NOT BE MY BROTHER BY BLOOD, BUT HE IS IN SPIRIT! WE EVEN WENT TO THE SAME ELEMENTARY SCHOOL-"

"I told you that never happened!"

"May I please remind everyone that I, Satoru Gojo am the incredibly talented and handsome host? Now, let's meet the father everyone! Get him in here!"

Out came a very distressed Sukuna and Uraume.

"NO FUCKING WAY! YOU'VE TAKEN THIS TO FAR, SENSEI!"

"For once I have to agree with the brat. We don't even look alike! Where are his second set of arms and eyes! He's too much of a pathetic weakling to have come from me!"

Just then a second voice made itself known.

"Hello son!"

Everyone was now staring at Sukuna's second stomach.

"KENJAKU, DID YOU HAVE SEX WITH MY BROTHER!?"

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. A thousand years is a long time to keep a guy waiting you know!"

Uraume sighed.

"If only I had known, for I would have poked your brain with an icicle!"

The stomach then began to frown.

"May I please have a moment with my son?"

"Dad?"

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you Yuji. Gege said I was only allowed to make a cameo in Jujutsu Kaisen."

"Did that thing just break the fourth wall?"

"What I'm trying to say is, I love you son-"

Sukuna then took Gojo and split him in half, putting the upper portion of the man into his stomach. All that was left was the lower body still standing in place. Sukuna then took the microphone.

"That's why I loooooove, Nestle crunch!"

"SPIT HIM OUT!"

"Fine brat."

Jin Itadori then vomited back up half of a skeleton.

Inside the crowd, Hakari's bag began to rumble.

"You sure?"

"There's no better time, do it now!"

"Alright but if you die, it's game over!"

Hakari then threw a ball at the stage.

"Kashimo, I choose you! Use thunderbolt!"

Out popped the god of thunder, decked out in his Lightning McQueen merch. He was about to attack but then stopped. It seems like Sukuna had unintentionally used attract. Uraume then pushed their way forward.

"Enough of this, we shall see the results!"

They opened the envelope and their face began to pale.

"This cannot be!"

"Let me see that!"

In bold letters wrote

'JIN ITADORI IS THE FATHER'

"I REFUSE TO BE APART OF THIS! KENJAKU, YOU TAKE HIM! JUST KNOW THAT I REFUSE TO PAY CHILD SUPPORT!"

Sukuna then went off to destroy whatever was in arms reach.

Suddenly another man entered the stage.

"Which one of you ordered entertainment for the birthday party?"

It was Toji dressed in a monkey costume."

Dad?"

"Oh, Megumi? Is it your birthday, I can't remember."

"What are you doing here!?"

"Hey I'm just trying to make some money!"

A fire had broken out and now Kechizu was petting his worm.

"Looks like I'm not getting paid. Oh well, back to my OnlyFans."

[jinlizz-dragondrama]

The Rise of a Demon

"Thank you for this amazing turnout!" The mayor says

"Woohoo!" I shout

"Let's hear it for Monkie Kid! Hero of the city!" Mei exclaims while excitedly destroying furniture in the restaurant

The mayor hands MK the key and explains that it is a key that can open anything. As soon as MK touches it the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I get the slight sense of danger. It doesn't help that the mayor laughs like a maniac and quickly says something some ancient artifacts then poofs out of existence.

"Wow, a key that can open anything," MK says

We immediately go out and try the key on different things. We hit the arcade, helped set free some puppies, bought shoes, partied up at a DJ booth, went swimming in the weather room, raced our vehicles, got all the toys out of the claw machines, ate a bunch of ice cream and so much more.

*Gasps* "Mei! Nuwa! OK hear me out! We knew the key could magically unlock anything. But maybe...it can also magically lock anything too!"

"You described all keys... " Mei says And I nod in agreement

We end up locking Pigsy's restaurant and we laugh watching Pigsy trying to break into his restaurant.

"I've never missed a day of work, since I was 13... *fourth wall break* "No guys this isn't child labor stuff I like sweeping and helping make the noodles. I took my job very seriously back then....and still do...moving on. *End of the fourth wall break*

As we are too distracted laughing, we get pushed over the edge of MK's fire escape porch. I land on top of some boxes with a grunt and pained moan I look up to see what or who did this.

"Noodle Boy finally" Red Son sneers

"Ugh it's you, why are you so obsessed with us? Get a hobby!" I say while angrily shaking my fist at him

"What are you doing in MK's house?" Mei asks

"Your house is depressing, I almost feel bad for stealing stuff from you. But I'm gonna need that magic key....oh and you girl your apartment is trashed too" Red Son says nonchalantly

"You big ole....wait...how did you know I lived above MK? You better not have touched my stuff!"

Red Son uses his powers to nab the key and he zooms into his Bull Tank. Mei whistles for her bike and goes after him on her bike. I get into my quad and follow suit. We end up leaving MK behind...oops. Mei and I catch up with Red Son rather quickly.

"Can't you little Peasants let me plot in peace? Just one time!" Red Son shouts as he explodes into flames

"Easy there hothead don't want you to break anything, I think you need to cool off!" I pull out a fire extinguisher and spray the foamy mixture at him.

He disengages from the main tank and descends into his race car. Catapulting the tank at us we scramble to get out of the way.

"Not cool man!" I growl

"So long 'Dragon Horse Girl' and 'weak little nobody'! Here's a tip! Next time, pick one animal, -and...." Red Son gets cut off by the huge Monkie King staff and gets flung a few feet down the raceway.

MK grabs the key and looks at Red Son.

"What do you want with this key anyway?" He asks

"Why spoil the surprise? Now hand that key over and quit wasting my time" PIF coos

"Not a chance," I say as I pull out two hairpins from my hair that elongate to the length of a small dagger and we jump to attack her.

She knocks us away with her magic fan, knocking us into a wall and MK ends up dropping the key which Red Son quickly grabs.

"Come, Red Son. We have things to do" PIF says

"Thanks for the key losers!" Red Son teases and they both vanish.

"What could they want with that key?" I ask

"Whatever the reason is, we have to keep our guard up" Mei states

The hairs on the back of my neck stand up once more and the feeling of danger comes back again. But this time it's harder to shake off the feeling.

A disembodied voice whispers in my ear "Freedom"

Mk and I pile onto my quad and Mei rides her bike back to Pigsy's.

A few days go by and MK and I are in Monkey King's cave.

"You know when I found I was going to be trained by The Monkey King, Great Sage, equal to heaven. I had no idea...that I'd be stuck here hammering walls 12 hours a day!" MK shouts while throwing the hammer

"Or that I'd be helping!" I shout as I pick up heavy rocks that had fallen onto the ground while MK hammered away.

"That's what happens when you go snoring around in places where you don't belong," Monkey King says while he relaxes on his cloud.

I groan and wipe swear from my brow

*Flashback*

"Monkey King, where are you?" MK? Where are those two?" I sigh as I shout for them.

I shrug my shoulders and go looking for that shrine again. I find it once again, pushing the vines out of the way, I make my way down to it, fresh offerings and incense are lit once more. I kneel before it and sigh.

"Ugh next time Monkey King asks me to come train I'm gonna say no" I fold my arms with a hmph

But I can't get Red Son's voice out of my head "Weak little nobody"

"Am I a weak nobody?" I say quietly while clenching my fists

"Hey, what are you doing down her kid?"

I jump and turn around awkwardly laughing

"Hey Wukong, um you see...I was..uh...you know...exploring....since you guys were nowhere to be found and I stumbled upon this shrine....." I shift from side to side

Wukong lifts a brow at me not convinced by my lie.

"Woah what's this Monkey King? Who's she?" MK asks while pointing at the picture

"No one, let's go it's training time," Wukong says

*End of Flashback*

"Was she your girlfriend?" I ask teasingly

Wukong sputters, blushes, and falls off his cloud.

"No, and it's none of your business!"

"Yeah that's not convincing at all, give us the deets!" MK says

"You're supposed to be training, Now get back to it" He summons the cloud again and hops back on.

"Ugh, how am I supposed to do the hero stuff if I don't know the fighting stuff? Mk whines

"Yeah, and I can't protect anyone by lifting rocks. I'll get more muscles but not get better at fighting" I say while flexing my nonexistent arm muscles

"Ooohoooh. So you want to know the 'fighting stuff, huh?' Like this?" Wukong throws the staff at the wall that MK was hammering at, both of us ducking out of the way and it leaves a giant hole.

We both have star eyes and we shout together "YES!"

"Exactly like that! I am ready for some awesome!" MK says determined

Wukong laughs at us and tells MK he needs practice and then points at me

"And you, you just..." wukong gets cut off by MK's phone ringing

"MK we really need your help!" Mei says on the FaceTime call.

Looking at the monster causes me to have a memory flash, but it causes me to have a slight headache thinking about it. I'm soon dragged out of the cave screeching while MK wildly runs out of it.

Making it to the city we see how big it is. A sweat drop rolls down the side of my face.

"Uh MK I think we should...and there he goes" I sigh

"Yep," Mei says

"Here comes Monkey-" MK shouts

He's thrown back down to the ground creating a crater next to Pigsy and Sandy.

"Yeah we already tried that MK" Mei says embarrassed

"Wait is that?" I squint at the figure that comes zooming towards the creature and easily defeats it.

"Is that Monkie King?" MK asks and rushes off to see if it is him.

Groaning and chasing after him, I get to where I saw him run off and see it isn't Monkie King but an unknown monkey.

"Um, I'm sorry who are you?"

"Macaque. Actually 'The uh...Siz-Eared Macaque' is, you know, my full name. Well.. see you around, MK"

Mk starts to fan girl so hard and I roll my eyes a bit but also had to admit that it was pretty cool what he did. So many questions start to pop into my head.

Why is this guy showing up now? Is he just as powerful as Wukong? Why is he so hot? Um, forget that last bit. But it is odd, the again Monkie King was hiding away til he found a successor so maybe the same kind of thing was happening with this guy. Something seems a bit off about him.

It was decided that against my better judgment would take Macaque as a new mentor. He practiced long and hard with this Six-Eared Macaque until he finally proved what he learned by doing the same move Wukong did to another part of the wall.

"Woah....How'd you learn to do that?" He gasps "Have you been running around with other mentors?" He questions 

While they argue I'm just being nosy and sweeping the air, moping the walls you know how it is. Mk storms off and I see Wukong's expression to one of concern.

I tailed MK to the location of the "demon".

"So many stairs..." *inhales deeply and chugs water* "Oh my God, I'm outta shape. MK imma comin'"

I reach the top just in time for Monkie King to appear, I see Wukong stare down at MK and turn his attention back to Macaque.

"Hey so Monkie King it would have been nice if you had given me a ride up here you jerk, ugh I need to lie down," I say while breathing heavily and falling to the ground.

Macaque and Wukong start an epic battle, while Macaque is distracted I go over to MK and try to pull the staff off of him.

"This is stuck on good I can't get it!" I grunt and try using all my strength to pull it

"Sorry guys nothing personal," Macaque says while summoning the shadow demon

We both scream and I use my body to protect him

"Kid, Nuwa I'm coming" Wukong yells

When the pain from the punch doesn't come, I turn around to see that he came just in time to block a punch from the Shadow Demon.

"Kid we're definitely gonna have words later, but it's time for the hero stuff!" Monkey King grunts

MK and I get the staff off him, I step back and let him swing the staff.

"Patience. Focus. Step into the strike" We all shout

The staff hits the shadow demon which causes an explosion. Wukong rushes to protectively block the rock debris from hurting us. It felt oddly familiar and I smiled to myself. Later on, we are back in the cave, and MK is busy cleaning up a storm. I'm busy meditating and balancing books on my outstretched arms and my leg up in the air.

"This is totally gonna be a do the boring chores and learn awesome Kung fu...right?" MK says

"Ummm, sure," Wukong says hesitantly

After several days of training, we return to the city and it's a lot more blue than usual. All of a sudden some bull clones surround us and their eyes and mouths glow a very bright icy blue color. We start to panic, I start running but I realize my legs are moving but my body is not going anywhere, they start to ounce on us but Pigsy's food truck plows through them.

Out steps the gang in full apocalyptic gear.

"Guys! You look so awesome!" Mk says

"Yeah. So, uh...some stuff happened while you two were away and got kind of intense." Mei says awkwardly

"But I left you with one of my boys!" Mk says

"Oh he's been super useful," Tang says

The clone shrugs his shoulders and poofs out of existence

"Tang!" I shout while rushing over to hug him

"So what happened?" Mk asks

Tang puts a hand out which makes contact with my head, I still try to plow through to hug him but the hand isn't budging. He cleared his throat and pushed his glasses close to his face.

"Well after you left, the bull clones attacked. But they were different, more powerful than before. We believe it's all tied back to the Demon Bull King himself. MK....Nuwa...He's conquered everything." Tang finishes solemnly.

I groan and Sandy points to the mountain where they hear a strange noise. We pile into the food truck and head straight for it.

"All right, what's the plan?" Sandy asks

"Uh, I don't know. I was just gonna wing it" MK says unsure

"Sounds great let's go," Sandy says all hyped up

Pigsy revs the engine of the food truck and we all give MK a thumbs-up signaling that we will help him no matter what. Pigsy hits the gas and we start zooming toward to entrance of the town room, Sandy tosses MK, Mei, and me to the giant hole in the ground. We fall a good distance until Mei pulls out her sword and jams it into the wall slowing our descent down to a halt.

"Now what?" MK asks

"Uh guys," I say while looking around us and we spot Bull clones all over the walls like bats seemingly in a resting state. But it didn't last long Mei's phone began to ring and soon woke up the clones.

She scrambles to grab it and accidentally lets go of her sword, MK quickly grabs onto the sword, but I lose my grip and start to fall.

"Nuwa!" They both shout panicked

I close my eyes feeling the wind rush against my face then it stops, I slowly open my eyes and see I'm floating.

"No way!" MK says shocked

"What, what WHAT!?" I shout

"You've got wings," Mei says excitedly with star eyes

"Huh?" I say confused and look at my back and sure enough black leathery wings protrude from my back and are flapping.

"Geez I ruined my favorite hoodie.....but I can fly" I start to zoom around and giggle.

Mei's phone continues to ring as it was an update for Monkey Mech. They both look at each other and grin.

"Here comes Monkie Kid" we all shout while MK jams the staff into the nearby wall and creates the Monkie Kid Mech.

"You hold off the zombie bull clones. I'll get down and finish this" MK tells Mei from inside the Mech.

I'm flying around the outside of it and notice the bull clones are plummeting towards us, I then hear MK being thrown from the Mech and screaming his way down. I start flying after him, catching him and not being able to stop, wrapping my wings around us and crashing into the ground. While above us Mei is holding her own fighting the bull clones like the boss she is.

We crashed and landed in between DBK, Red Son, and PIF.

"Noodle boy and...?" Red Son says surprised

"Littke thieves," DBK says annoyed

Standing up, stretching our backs, and groaning

"Yeah I totally saved us" I shout

"You?!" Red Son shouts as he points at me and his eyes look at my wings

Following his line of sight I blush out of embarrassment

"One crisis at a time Red Son!" I sigh

Red Son still has the surprised Pikachu face and DBK starts charging after us. We dodge out of the way of every throw he makes until PIF uses her fans to move us out of the range of his attacks and directs us to the canisters on DBK's back.

"OK, time for round two" MK exclaims

I stretch my wings out and get into a fighting position.

"No! This time, we fight with you." Red Son says while sprinting off

"You two will have one shot. Make it count" PIF says darting after her son.

Both mother and son attack together, but they are pushed back by DBK's immense newfound power. DBK storms menacingly towards his family. I fly in front of DBK's view of the two and MK throws rocks to distract him. But DBK smashed his hand onto MK and pinned him to the rock wall. Thankfully while I was in DBK's view for a brief few seconds MK made a copy of himself and sent clones of himself to attack at once.

"Here comes Monkey Kid!" MK shouts as I fly to him grabbing him, spinning and tossing him towards DBK for the finishing blows.

The canister is knocked off of him and it explodes sending icy blue energy dispersing everywhere. The DBK family throne room starts to collapse. They make their quick escape and I make one last eye contact with Red Son before he disappears.

"You can't just! Ugh again" MK shouts and dodges rocks that are falling. I grab him and start flying and dodging the rocks. But a huge rock starts its descent toward us and I can't move out of the way in time thankfully Mei comes to the rescue with the Monkie Mech and stops the rock.

"Let's get out of here you Monkie Kids," she says.

After all was said and done, we sat on the Mech's shoulder and ate celebratory noodles.

"You did it guys, you defeated DBK again!" Sandy says

"I don't know if we did, whatever was powering him up it made him...different.

"On another note...where did those wings come from?!" Tang says while pointing at them

I flap them a few times and shrug

"I don't know they just appeared when I was in danger. I kind of don't want to think too hard about it...." I say a bit awkwardly while swirling my noodles around

*sigh* "Who would have thought that adopting these two little orphans would cause our lives to be so adventure-filled" Pigsy says while ruffling my hair

We all share a laugh, finishing our noodles and putting a pin on the "wings" conversation. I decide to go for a walk, I walk past an alleyway and see a little girl reaching for her kitty. I tuck my wings into my hoodie and walk over to her.

"Here let me help you," I say startling her

"Oh thank you," she says gratefully

Handing her the kitty and smiling at her, I see a puff of blue smoke bouncing its way toward us, pushing her out of the way. Before I know it my line of vision blurs, and I feel ice-cold, my head is swimming with unintelligible voices, and pain courses through my body as I become pospassed. I open my eyes to see myself floating in pitch-blackness and a blue skull floating in front of me. Then my consciousness was pushed forward, I could see my surroundings but I couldn't move my body. My mouth moves but I hear an evil laugh that wasn't my own.

"Oh no..."

[mafiasliege]

I dare you to let me go

(this is part 2 of my fic. Enjoy reading!)

Part 1 ↓

JAMESON

Jameson was standing in a maze. Green bushes everywhere. And whichever way he went, the end was green too. Except now. Now, a 5"6' hazel-eyed brunette was standing there.

"Heiress." He tried taking a step toward her, but the distence seemed to stay the same, maybe it was getting bigger. "Where are we?"

"Not we. You. You seem… stuck."

"I'm not stuck. I'm-"

"-fine? Is that your latest lie? Then why am I here, Jameson? again?"

Where was he? And why did Avery seem younger?

"It's not a lie, heiress." Jameson was starting to get angry now, he turned around and started walking away. Avery- or the girl who at least looked like her- spoke louder.

"I'm not her, you know. Maybe the real one doesn't even exist anymore."

"Shut up."

"Maybe she just-"

"Shut up!-"

"Jamie, I'm gonna start yoddling loudly until you get your ass out here!" That was Xander, but Jameson had no regard for a yoddling threat between his gasping for air like a drowning man. Apparently, the things that plagued him during the day had started following him into his sleep now.

He pushed away the sheets and picked up his shirt from the night before. Under it was that box. They same green box. How long had he had it now? An year? Two? And did it matter, really?

You're fine. Just get this done.

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

Jameson got dressed and got to the room. He was surprisingly on time, the only reason being Xander making good on his threat to yoddle. He was actually decent at it, but annoying, nonetheless.

"Do you believe you're being paid to arrange a funeral?" Grayson's tone walked the line between a question and an accusation.

"I need this entire-"

"That's enough! Thank you" Lyra inserted herself in the conversation and dragged Grayson away by his arm from the event planners, who went back to doing their thing.

The dinner last night may have been non-existent the last straw a disaster, but this party's going to be epic. Besides, Avery would at least be home for at least a while on her own birthday, right? She'd promised.

Jameson helped himself to one of the appetizers on the long table covered in platinum and shades of violet. He hadn't had breakfast. After everything was set, he excused himself to the garage and tried calling Avery.

"Your call has been-"

"You're call has-"

"You're ca-"

He plunked his phone down with force. Luckily, it landed on the soft leather of the Valkyrie's seat.

"You alright there?" Nash. It was Nash. Why was everyone so concerned all of a sudden? Avery had just missed her own birthday that he'd planned for days. Not a big deal. At all. Janeson rolled down the car's window glass.

"I am fine."

"You're staying to sound more like Gray than Gray used to himself," Nash took that as his cue to get in the passanger seat.

"Whatever you and Avery have going on, just talk to-"

"Do you think I haven't tried?" It came out slow with a hint of frustration. They were face to face now. "There's always another call, there's always another problem, there's always another person expecting the most from her and she's trying to live up to them more and more."

To that, Nash had no answer. They just say like that for a while.

"Try talking to her today. She might just listen." He patted Jamie on the shoulder and got out.

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

"I can't feel my faxing legs," Max whispered, sitting in a crouch. After a long day of planning Avery's party, everyone was sitting in a crouch waiting for her to come and surprise her.

"Sit on me, then," Xander whispered back to her.

"Oh, get a room you two!" Libby whisper-yelled at them, just as the door rattled.

"SURPRISE!!"

"Oh, my God!" Said… Mrs. Laughlin, who almost dropped the tray of crab cakes in her hands.

"Ugh. I can't crouch for much longer! Where is this beach?" Max whimpered, kicking her feet.

After two hours, all the dishes were half-empty, the wine half-drunk, and half the people previously in the room had dispersed.

"So-"

"Before you say what your about to say, Gray, just like everyone else in this house, I'm okay, and so is Avery."

Grayson frowned. "I've been where you are, Jamie. If you have to keep telling yourself you're okay, you definitely aren't."

Jameson felt Grayson call out to him as he stormed out walked away.

He was done. He was so done. With his brothers' concern, with Lyra's unnecessary inputs.

With Avery.

The floodgates were open now, just like the door of his bathroom as he slammed it back shut. He was angry, no, frustrated. He was frustrated at the dinner, he was frustrated as he threw the green box from his pocket at the sink, he was frustrated as he felt the mirror shatter beneath his knuckles. He could suddenly see a thousand reflections of himself. But every reflection in every piece of the shattered mirror was a shell of what Jameson Hawthorne used to be. How he used to be.

He staggered back, still staring at his reflections until his back hit the door as he slowly sunk to the floor. And just like that, the tears and the memories came rushing out to the surface.

"Maybe the real one doesn't even exist anymore."

"She told me she's going to make it up to you"

"If you have to keep telling yourself you're okay, you definitely aren't."

"How many times have you had your heart broken over the last five years?"

And with the painful memories and the exploding bottled up feelings came crystal clarity, for the first time in a long time.

I can't do this anymore.

Loving Avery had made him love himself too, it made him realise his self-worth. He got to see what he deserved. But this, right now? He didn't deserve this. He didn't deserve to pretend to be happy. He didn't deserve to settle for a shell of what him and Avery used to be. He always says he can't imagine a life without Avery, maybe that was never a good thing. He had to start living for himself.

And there was only one way to do that.

[dcfanfictioncatalogue]

barbara gordon APR 2024 fic awards

BOO. apparently I can actually post twice in a row it's a miracle !!!! also if anyone would like me to do consistent monthly fics for any other characters please just send me a link otherwise I'm going to keep bulldozing my way through all of 2024's barbara gordon fics THIS is cherry's fic awards HERE are my favorite babs fics from april. lot of unfinished chaptered fics here but please give them a shot anyway!!

through the noise and static and the call, by shipyrds (@burins). 4k, E, dinahbabs, 1/2. summary: dinah doesn't even know what the woman looks like. my notes: OHHHHHHHHHHH MY GOD!!!!!!! early bop pre-identity reveal dinahbabs is like my mortal weakness and OH MY FUCKING GODDDDDD. I left a comment on this fic already and like ...... I love this so much. read it right now there isn't much more I can say.

&&

By a Thread (Hanging On), by BingDragon. 1.4k, G, gen. summary: it’s winter in gotham, during the most dangerous time in the city’s history, and cass hasn’t been home for several days. my notes: NML FIC!!!!!! always such an underutilized in fandom event and by god this delivers!!! the babs and cass mother daughter dynamic UGH they make me so sick.... pun not intended lmaoo

&&

Oracle of Jersey, by metroidspeedrun. 3k, T, gen, 2/?, graphic depictions of violence. summary: barbara gordon runs a podcast that results in six teenagers standing over a dead body. my notes: love!! the whole bop cast is here -- charlie, lori, ted! -- and that is always important to me. I can't wait to see how the plot develops!!! I think it's really interesting making a casefic out of a "civilian" au. babs will be babs no matter the setting <3

ask box is open for requests ++ find my fic rec libraries organized here

[lunathebee]

Pairing: Steven Grant x fem!reader

Warning: none just cheesy fluff

A/n: I love lego flowers so much but its so heckin expensive in my country ugh, i changed the plot a tiny bit if u dont mind @spicydonut25

Summary: Y/n brings the perfect gift for Steven on their date.

Meeting Steven was strange, and dating him is even stranger. The British man seems to drive Y/n crazy (in the best way possible) because he doesn't fit in any male category that the internet offers.

Y/n's eyes are starting to get tired from looking at the laptop's screen, scrolling mindlessly through the lists of gifts that everyone thinks are good ideals for a man. But they're all wrong! This is not any man; this is Steven! For God's sake, he doesn't need perfume or a pair of sneakers.

Y/n cursed under her breath. She wants to get the perfect gift for Steven; the poor guy should keep a random trinket she found at his table like a lucky charm.

*ting*

The sound catches Y/n's attention. Quickly tossing the laptop aside, she reaches for the phone to see what's up.

*Hi Im just texting to make sure our date are on Friday 7pm this week yea?*

It seems to be a text from Steven himself; he always wants to double check everything and tries his best to be on time. Y/n can't help smiling while tapping the screen and typing back a reply.

*Yep, im looking forward to meet u soon <3*

Steven replied almost immediately after, but instead of making Y/n happy, it made her stomach churn with anxiety.

*Me too, got a small surprise for you*

Y/n sighed tiredly; she can't believe Steven had already gotten her a present, and here she is, on her bed, with a blank mind. Would a new jacket do the trick? or a bag? or maybe something for little Gus.

Y/n returns to scrolling on her laptop, looking at the many items that flash on the shopping website. And just when she thinks her luck has run out, she notices something. 

Lego.

Not only Lego, but Lego's flowers! The store even had the flowers that Steven gifted Y/n on their first date, the type of flowers that Steven was so determined to get that he ran to five different stores to find them and almost missed the date.

Y/n smiles to herself while thinking back on the memories. This sure would be a very thoughtful gift for Steven, and plus, his desk will look better with it as a decoration (not a random trinket).

Feeling satisfied, Y/n added the lego set to her cart and completed the payment, thinking about how happy her lover would be.

===☾︎ ☾︎ ☾︎===

"You're early!" Y/n exclaimed when she arrived at the spot and already saw Steven sitting there, waiting for her. "Traffic is terrible; I should have left the house earlier."

"No, no, it's alright, you're right on time." Steven smiled and stood up to hug Y/n, sneaking in a quick kiss on her cheek too.

"Oh and here," Steven said, letting go of his lover and reaching into the pocket, pulling something out to show. "A present, as promised."

It was a beige box with silk ribbon wrapped around it, forming a bow. Y/n's face lit up when she eagerly took the box from Steven's hand, quickly unwrapping it. "A keychain! of my favorite animal!" Y/n said out loud before holding it near her eyes, seeing how the glitter sparkled under the street light.

Steven swears it's the most beautiful sight ever, seeing how excited Y/n is over his small gift. It's not very exaggerated to say he is a bar of ice cream and Y/n is the sun, the way he melted for her but still wants to admire her forever.

"Oh, I've got something for you too!" Y/n held up a paper bag and smiled shyly. "It arrived a bit late, so I don't have time to wrap it properly, sorry."

Steven mumbled a quick "it's okay" before saying thank you and taking the bag from Y/n's hand. The moment he looks inside to see what it is, his eyes widen with shock.

"A..No way! Is this for me, darling? Lego?! Oh, hang on now, let me take a better look...Lego's flower! Oh...wow.." Steven can't help his excitement upon seeing the gift; he had seen some kids bring some sort of blocky toy like this to the museum but never dared ask what it is.

"So this is... popular among kids, right?" He asked, fingers trading the display picture of the box.

"Hmm, I would say so, but this one is for adults; it contains a lot of pieces."

"Oh geez, I appreciate it, but why don't you just buy something cheaper? Like...real flowers? I love anything, as long as it's from you." Steven blushed while saying this and looked down at his lap; he has this bad habit of avoiding eye contact whenever he is nervous and can't seem to quit it.

But Y/n never mind; instead of getting mad, she put her hand on Steven's cheek, slowly guiding his head so that he looked at her.

"Real flowers will wither, but this one won't; it will stay forever, like my love for you."

[ssahotchnerr]

so i’m writing dadsbestfriend!hotch x reader (but christmas edition) and it’s everything i ever needed - are you kidding me? mistletoe and secret santa and aaron looking so goddamn fine in a red button down, sleeves rolled up to his elbows so that when he’s shrugged off his suit jacket you can see every chord of muscle right down to the veins on his arms !!

and because it’s not even thanksgiving yet and i’m impatient, i’m leaving this here because little details like this have me giggling and kicking my feet

“i come bearing gifts.” he holds up a tupperware container. “dessert. jack and i made sugar cookies. granted, they might not be recognizable - jack was a bit overzealous with the frosting - but they are delicious, and,” he offers you a neatly wrapped present, complete with a red bow, “for the now not-so-secret santa.”

he chuckles at his own joke, a warm and light sound that rumbles low in his chest, and considering that aaron's laughs are a rarity, few and far in between - and reserved for altogether special company - it's that knowledge that has you, despite the cold, feeling such warmth; straight out from your heart to the tips of your fingers and toes.

pls hit me with ur holiday hotch thoughts 🥺💗

STOPPPPP the way that is so incredibly and absolutely perfect i am MELTING 😭🥰 if you're comfy with it, pls tag me once you've finished i would love to read it fully 🫶🏻

cw; mentions of food, quick reference to haley's death

UGH but holidays with the hotchners 🥺🥺🥺 i have many many thoughts hehe i hope you're ready!!!!

i can see aaron being the type to wait until after it's thanksgiving to really begin prepping or whatnot, BUT you, along with jack's help, are pulling all the christmas boxes out of storage within the first week of november.

AHHH imagine aaron getting home from work, and as he opens the door he is immediately greeted by the blasting of christmas music and boxes piled in the living room. at first, he freezes and is like what in the world ????? but then jackers runs up to him all excited that he's finally home so the three of you can finally start decorating because he's been waiting way way too long 🥹🥹🥹 you join the two of them, just as excited as jack, and aaron looks at you amusingly and is like "wasn't it halloween not even a week ago?? what happened to thanksgiving?" but hehe nonetheless, that night aaron sets up the tree and you all decorate the apartment together <3333

and that's just the beginning of all the festivities 🥹 the first day it actually snows a decent amount, you and aaron take jack sledding <3 UGHGHGN aaron all bundled up in a puffy coat with a hat and scarf 😭😭 he's also very adamant that you and jack are equally as bundled up, there will be no frostbite on his watch >:( but the three of you all race one another down the hill, and take turns going down with jack 🥹 speaking of aaron gets so <3333 seeing you and jack sliding down the hill together. on several occasions the sled topples over, throws you both into the snow and the two of you are just laughing and laughing 🥺 and despite the cold aaron is just feeling so so so warm because he feels so happy and what more could he want in the world than his two favorite people 😭 and afterwards!!! it only makes sense to indulge in hot chocolate and watch a christmas movie <3 the three of you cozy up on the couch (and yes, you did talk aaron into matching christmas jammies) with blankets and your hot chocolate and have a sweet night in <3 this year, jack can't seemingly get enough of elf but he barely makes it twenty minutes, falling asleep from the super fun day he had <3 hehe that leaves you and aaron 🥺 you're curled up at his side and he has an arm around you <3 AH he just keeps giving you kisses and his eyes are so so full of love when he looks at you 🥰😣

and the week of christmas!!!!!! full of making cookies, last minute shopping, the three of you work on a gingerbread house together, and jack is nearly bouncing off the walls with excitement from the second he wakes up until he's tucked into bed that night <3 and just the thought of aaron in cozy sweaters or crewnecks <3333 omg

on christmas eve, dave has his big get-together at his mansion, for dinner and gifts with the team. and then christmas day is just a day for you and your boys 🥺<3 jack is in your room right at dawn, jumping onto the bed to wake you and aaron up because you've been asleep for far too long and he needs to see if santa stopped by!!!!!! hehe aaron gets up first much to jack's dismay, because he has to wait just five more minutes, solely just to put some coffee on <333 but that gives you an opportunity to give jack some quick snuggles and tell him merry christmas 🥹 and finally when aaron is ready hehe, jack runs out and is completely enamored by what he sees 🥹 you and aaron watch him open his gifts, and then jack surprises you with gifts of his own!!!! it's different crafts he made at school, but you can easily tell how hard he worked on them and jack is also very proud of himself that he managed to keep this a lil secret without letting it spill🥺 and then it's the rest of the family gifts!!! heheh you and jack got aaron a gift, and aaron and jack got you one <3333 ughbgh there is just so much love in the air and everything is absolutely perfect <3 the three of you also stay in your pajamas all day long 🥺

ALSO!!! it wasn't until after you entered aaron's life that his holiday season became more festive 😭 while he was with haley, they did the per usual; decorating, presents, christmas cookies, made it as fun as they could for jack- all that. but after the divorce, everything changed since it was just him. he would still have a tree, he would decorate cookies with jack, but the season just didn't feel as magical anymore :( and it didn't help that he had such a busy work schedule. plus before haley died, he only spent a few hours with jack on christmas, meaning he spent most of the day alone :((((( but now, he has you and will never feel sad or alone during the holiday season as well, which now quickly become his favorite time of year 🥹 plus let's not forget how you are driven to make sure jack has an amazing holiday season after everything he went through too :( you just want to supply your boys with the most love possible 🥺

so even decorating earlier works in aaron's favor then, because since you never know when he'll be dragged away by serial killers, you have a more open window of time to make sure aaron is included and doesn't miss out on anything <33333

[mj-iza-writer]

Whumptober Day 31. The last one.

"I thought that I was getting better" / emptiness / setbacks / "Take it easy"

"Stop trying to get out of those shackles, you're going to hurt yourself", Villain slapped Whumpee's hands down.

"Then release me. You can't hold me here, I need to get back to Hero's team", Whumpee shook the shackles at Villain.

Villain frowned, "your 'team' doesn't want you, just trust me on that. It will all make sense soon... I hope."

Whumpee laughed, "trust you? How do I trust someone who has tried to kill me several times?"

"That was before I knew your team's secret regarding you", Villain paced, "I don't have everything straightened out yet, and your escape attempts are really starting to get on my nerves."

Whumpee frowned, "let me go."

"No, just sit still and behave", Villain sighed, "please."

Whumpee crossed their arms and pouted. They tugged on the shackles a bit more, but gave up.

"Um Villain?", Whumpee looked up a few minutes later.

"Ugh, what?", they groaned.

"Sorry", Whumpee looked down, "is there any rule against me sleeping, are you going to force me into sleep deprivation?"

"No, by all means, go to sleep. Maybe then I can have some silence to work", Villain threw a pillow at Whumpee.

"Ooph!"

"Sorry, I wasn't aiming for your face", Villain balled up a blanket and threw it.

The blanket opened up mid-air and fully covered Whumpee.

Later Whumpee woke up and realized Villain wasn't around. They had picked the locks to the shackles and had finally gotten them undone before falling asleep. They were happy Villain didn't check.

They snuck up the stairwell, careful to insure Villain wouldn't hear or see them. They finally were able to see the exit.

Whumpee ran for it, accidentally tripping an alarm.

Villain ran out of a room when the alarm sounded.

"Whumpee wait", they yelled as Whumpee escaped.

"Great", Villain squeezed the bridge of their nose, "they got out, I have to wait for fifteen minutes while lockdown clears up, all the while they are getting away. Villain ran to their computer and logged in.

"Glad they didn't feel me put the tracking device on them while they slept", Villain watched the computer set up the tracking. They looked back at where Whumpee was sleeping, "of course you can pick locks", they sighed.

Whumpee had already gotten pretty far, they darted around a corner and leaned against a building to catch their breath.

Whumpee looked around, getting their barring.

"Hero should be off today. They will probably be at Headquarters", Whumpee started to walk, "wait until I tell them what happened. They will feel bad, not realizing I was kidnapped", Whumpee told themself.

Finally at Headquarters, Whumpee pressed the code to get in.

"Huh, maybe they did know I was kidnapped and had to change the code. Smart just in case I did give that information. I wouldn't have though, no matter the what."

"Whumpee is that you?", the speaker box on the side started.

"Oh hey Hero, yeah, I was captured by villain, but escaped", Whumpee grinned, "can I come in."

The door opened, and Whumpee entered.

Hero waited for them near the entrance, Whumpee could see a fake smile plastered on their face.

"Is everything okay?", Whumpee stopped.

"No, not really, I thought I got rid of you. You've caused me so many problems", Hero frowned.

"But I", Whumpee took a step back in shock, "what do you mean?"

"Heck Whumpee, you have no idea still? You are a bargaining chip in this city. You remember supervillain, they died two years ago? You are their child. The city forced you to forget through memory deletion and made me and the team keep you so the villains wouldn't turn you to their side. They would have an advantage if that happened", Hero started to walk to Whumpee.

Whumpee stepped back, "they were right."

Hero smiled, "I'm glad you know, now we can just put you in protective custody."

"No", Whumpee started to run.

Hero jumped forward and caught them, "I don't think so."

Whumpee turned and bit Hero, then ran when Hero pulled back.

"You little....", Hero yelled, "I'll get you, and when I do, you'll rot in jail in your parents' place.

Whumpee escaped and ran down the street. They found a hiding place behind a dumpster in an alley.

Whumpee pulled their knees to their chest, buried their face in their arms, and started to cry.

They sighed when the sky opened up, and it started to rain.

"How could I have been so stupid, I'm a pathetic pawn for this city. Just a throw away", Whumpee spoke out loud.

A sudden stop of rain made them look up, an umbrella was being hovered over them.

"Villain?", Whumpee sobbed, "how did you find me?"

"Tracking device", they smiled and knelt down, "I take it you found out the hard way."

Whumpee sighed and sadly nodded.

"I will say this once, and only once, but I told you so. I told you to wait and be patient, but no", Villain frowned, "Supervillain was my closet friend. You've unfortunately changed quite a bit to where I didn't recognize you at first, and I was doing a DNA test."

Whumpee looked down, "what now?"

"I would dishonor Supervillain if I didn't take care of their child. So if you'd like to come back with me to my base, and take an easy, you are welcome to do so", Villain smiled, "you can stay there as long as you need."

"Are you going to shackle me again", Whumpee grinned.

"Not unless you want me to, I'm still curious how you picked the lock", Villain stood and reached a hand down to help Whumpee up, "if you run away again that's on you, my base is your home so you can always come and go, but I'm not chasing you down again like this."

Whumpee took the hand and stood, "are you sure, Hero may target me now", Whumpee frowned.

"I count on it", Villain smiled as they started to go back to their base together, "Hero has a lot of things they've been hiding from the public, I can't wait to tear down those walls they've built. Once the public sees their precious Hero for who they really are, chaos will break free. The age of the villains will begin."

Whumpee stopped walking.

Villain turned and looked at them, "don't worry, you don't have to be involved if you don't want to be, you will have my protection to keep you safe."

"No, it's not that, this sounds so familiar. Like a dream", Whumpee frowned.

"It was Supervillain's plan, I'm only completing it for them. There is no way I would have come up with this on my own", Villain smiled, "your parent loved you by the way, that was the last thing they said when they died in my arms."

"How did they die? Hero says the government whiped my memory", Whumpee walked under the umbrella again.

"Hero and Superhero worked together to defeat them, it was an unfair fight", Villain started to lead them again, "your parent fought hard knowing you would be targeted. Superhero grabbed you before I could get to you. They definitely changed your appearance, I don't even want to know everything they did to you."

Villain looked around, "we should get back to base, we'll be safe there, let's hurry."

As Villain ushered Whumpee inside of the base, they looked back towards the street. They knew Hero was watching.

"What's wrong Villain?", Whumpee watched.

"Nothing, I thought I saw something", Villain took another look and saw Hero standing on the street, "just an imposter hiding under a cape", they grinned as they closed the door, and set the alarms.

"Hero is out there?", Whumpee took a few steps back.

"Yep", Villain turned to them, "no worries", some banging happened at the door, Villain pressed a button, "they aren't getting in. This base is indestructible."

"Whumpee come on, I'm sorry. Come back with me. I was having a hard day, and you caught me at a bad moment, I'm sorry. I should have never said that to you", Hero yelled, "I'll keep you safe, you don't know what you are doing."

Villain smiled, "they are realizing they made a mistake and told you too much, they want you back so they can erase your memory again."

The banging kept up.

"Well that's annoying", Villain pressed another button, "come here."

They watched a video feed of hero banging on the door, then a gun pointed at Hero. Hero jumped back and realized the gun was following them. They ran off after a few minutes of dodging bullets.

"Unfortunately I don't think you're leaving the base any time soon, they may wait for you to come out. We have to be smart about this", Villain watched Whumpee sit down, "you should lay low, and take it easy for a while."

Whumpee nodded.

Whumpee found Villain a bit later. They quietly walked closer.

"They're relentless", Whumpee heard a guard whisper to a different guard, while Villain worked nearby.

Whumpee caught Villain's eye.

"Hey, is everything alright?", Villain gave them their full attention.

"Yes thankyou, and thankyou for dinner", Whumpee looked at the monitors the guards were watching.

"Is-is that Superhero?", Whumpee watched as they attacked the base.

"Yep", Villain sighed less than amused, "they've been punching that spot for an hour now."

"They scare me, thay always have", Whumpee looked down, "whenever they came over to Headquarters I would hide in my room until they left."

Villain went over to the monitor and grabbed a mic.

"You're not getting in here. You can keep banging all you want, but your just wasting time. You know Supervillain built this base to protect their family and friends", Villain yelled.

"Give me back Whumpee or else", Superhero punched again.

Villain could see the blood oozing from Superhero's hand.

"Whumpee is back where they belong, safe from those who used them", Villain reached for a button, "if you don't stop punching that wall with your bloody fist, I'll paint the rest of that side with my guns."

Superhero looked down at their hand, "I will get them back, watch me."

Whumpee and Villain watched Superhero fly off.

Villain turned towards Whumpee, "are you okay?"

Whumpee nodded, shaken up at the thought of Superhero getting them.

"I won't let them", Villain seemed to read Whumpee's mind, "I lost my friend, I'm no going to fail them by losing their child. You trust me, right?"

"Yes", Whumpee turned to Villain, "I have some information I think might help."

"Great", Villain smiled, "let's get dessert and we can talk about it."

Taglist. As always please let me know if you want to be added or taken off of the list. It's not a problem at all. @villainsandheroes @the-beasts-have-arrived @sacredwrath @porschethemermaid @monarchthefirst @generic-whumperz @bloodyandfrightened

[ethereousdelirious]

I'm BACK

Here's (nearly) 3k of sickly rat man E.lias B.ouchard

With special guest appearances by J.onah M.agnus and B.arnabas Be.nnett 👀

Set in S2 with heavy spoilers for S4

Peter had a bloodhound’s nose for suffering— Elias’ suffering. If he wasn't the one to cause it, he was sure to be the one to make it worse, to revel in it. Oh, yes, he'd dote and smother, fret and fuss, all of it with that insufferable grin on his face.

“Ih'tshuh!” Elias kept his eyes shut, scrubbing away the itch from strands of pomaded hair that had long since broken loose.

And, as though Elias’ misery had reached a threshold that had summoned him, Peter answered: “Bless you, dearest.”

“Ugh.” Keeping his face buried in his hands, Elias leaned forward until his forehead touched his laptop. The edge of his desk dug into his stomach, the newest entry in a list of discomforts that had begun with a sore throat that morning and lengthened gradually throughout the day.

Peter's shuffling footsteps made the floor creak and when he spoke again, his voice came closer. “Not feeling well, are we?”

Elias peered through a gap in his fingers to give the Beholder some quarter. Peter, of course, had no immediate designs on his life, but it never hurt to be thorough.

When he failed to answer, Peter rested a hand on his back and gave a low whistle. “You know what you've got?”

“One person too many in my office,” Elias said into his palms, peering over the tips of his fingers to better glare at Peter. The light from his laptop stabbed into his eyes, sending a spike of nausea downward from his temples.

“A fever,” Peter replied. The thin gloss of concern in his voice only put a shine on the sadistic glee beneath it.

Elias’ sinuses burned. He took a tremulous breath through his mouth to no avail. “Aht'sch! Eh'kscuh!”

He had to curl in on himself to keep from slamming his forehead into his laptop (oh, Peter would have just loved to witness that), and the subsequent ache ran around his ribs and down his back and made him shudder. No, he didn't need Peter's insight, nor the Beholding's, to know that he was running a temperature. The body aches and chills were proof enough.

Peter cocked his head as Elias reached for the box of tissues Rosie had discreetly delivered him earlier in the day. “Don't tell me you've lost your voice now?” he asked hopefully, and then laughed. “Wait, you couldn't!”

“Do you need something?” Elias asked finally, satisfying himself with the social faux pas of blowing his nose without leaving the room. His voice came thin and pinched, exhausted despite his best attempt at some bravado.

“Yes,” Peter said, smiling broadly, “but it appears I'm so overcome with concern for you, my dear friend, that I've entirely forgotten what it was.”

“I don't have time for this.” Elias turned his blurry gaze back to his laptop, where a disordered spreadsheet awaited him.

Peter was quiet for a few blessed moments, allowing Elias to paw through a pile of receipts and expense reports, most of which bore Tim's handwriting— deliberately messy, oftentimes completely incomprehensible.

But Peter's presence, quiet though he was, kept Elias' shoulders tense, his brow furrowed. Whatever Peter's game was, he had no patience for it, and yet, there was no escape.

“Ehk'tSCH!”

“And I suppose reimbursements can't wait a few days,” Peter said mildly, handing Elias a tissue.

“No, Peter, they can't.” Elias scrubbed his nose without any regard for the irritated skin above his lip. “If I submit these late, then Tim will know his efforts to delay me have succeeded, and I simply can't reward his childish outbursts with even a hint of success or he'll— Ah.” A burn ran through Elias’ nose, breaths teasing the back of his throat.

“Oh, don't leave me in suspense now.”

“EHT'SCHUH!”

“Bl—”

“Don't.” Elias fixed Peter with a watery glare, shoving the tissue so hard to his nose that it hurt. “He’ll devote all his efforts to annoying me, and I can't have that.”

Peter leaned in, wrinkling his greatcoat against the edge of Elias’ heavy wooden desk, and pressed the back of his hand to Elias’ forehead. His pale eyes glimmered with some faint amusement. “You're missing something rather obvious, you know.”

Jonah Magnus, James Wright, Elias Bouchard. All the sort of cool-blooded men who paled when they got angry, who trembled with it and spoke very softly.

Normally.

All the blood rushed into Elias’ face, supplementing the fever pressing insistently against Peter's hand. “Do forgive me,” he said with venom, scowling at his spreadsheet, “Rosie neglected to inform me I hired you as an advisor.”

“Oh, don't be like that.” Peter withdrew his hand and Elias’ whole body shivered at the loss of contact and it hurt, ached in all his joints and made his head throb. “I'll even tell you what it is… for a price.”

“Peter— hh'ekSCHUH!” Hot tears streamed down Elias’ cheeks, irritating his feverish skin. Worse than the discomfort, he hadn't managed to duck away, and now a wash of droplets made rainbows on his laptop monitor. Disgusting… “What is it?” he asked stiffly. The lack of Beholding buzzed somewhere deep inside himself, teaming up with his headache and congestion to make his head spin. Feed and be fed… And Elias bore witness to only his own display of misery. Such paltry melodramas were of no interest to the Eye.

Peter laughed. “I hope that wasn't an attempt to compel me! I didn't feel a thing.”

Whether it was, Elias couldn't say. “Peter.”

He was a man who could eat a loss no matter how bad it tasted, who knew the value of biding his time. Still, it stung, somewhere deep beneath the misery and feverish confusion, beneath the headache and the burn in his sinuses.

He reached out with a shaking hand and shut his laptop, dirtied screen and all. His eyes watered, spilling yet more tears down his cheeks. “What's your condition?” he asked, face pressed to his handkerchief.

He'd rendered himself all but powerless for the moment, burying mouth, nose, and eyes into the gray cotton. A shudder ran through him at the emptiness and he forced himself to peer over the top of the handkerchief. Unlikely as it was that Peter had wanted him dead (at the moment), there was no point being careless.

Peter, for his part, stood as benignly as ever. Anyone would have thought him a kindly old fisherman, save for the uncanny hunger evident in that smiling mouth. “Isn't it obvious?” he asked, and chuckled gently, as though Elias’ sniveling was as endearing as the antics of a beloved grandchild. “I am terribly worried about you, my friend. But I know, I know—” here, he raised his hands in apparent surrender— “you have such a hard time accepting help. But I insist, you simply must let me look after you in this time of weakness.”

“Eager to play the voyeur, are we?” Elias said into his handkerchief. It had already grown damp and clammy with fever-sweat and the run-off from his tortured nose, and he couldn't help the shivers that ran down his spine.

And Peter smiled.

Elias made a last effort to claim the information from Peter's psyche, but all he earned for his efforts was a wave of giddiness. Peter gave no indication that he'd even felt the attempt. “Well?”

“If you're so eager to p-play nursemaid—” A tickle flared in his sinuses and retreated, eliciting a gasp. “Oh, for God's s— AHK'KSTCH! Dammit…” Sweat ran freely down his temples and hair hung in his face and his tie pressed on the base of his neck and his suit clung to him— yes, he was in a real fever now, perhaps the worst he'd ever had away from the comparative safety of a sickbed. “Nnh— just… tell me.” He couldn't draw a full breath; his heart raced. “Please.”

“You are in a bad way.” Peter laughed quietly. “Just call out sick.”

A large chunk of Elias’ psyche crashed to the floor, sending spiderweb cracks running through a few of the pillars holding up his self-control. He stared dully at Peter as the fever worked its way through him and his thoughts struggled to move through the oppressive heat.

Strategically… it wasn't the worst move. It was generally better to be underestimated than overestimated. Although, he'd have to find a way to keep tabs on Jon.

Well, when all the paths forward were excruciating, he might as well choose the one that allowed him to go to bed in the foreseeable future.

—

The chill air of the Archive bit into his skin, drawing shivers down the length of his body. Still, he kept his arms by his sides, clinging to his last scrap of dignity. Peter had helpfully angled him toward a mirror before steering him toward the Archives, and there had been nothing for Elias to do but slick his hair back (though his pomade had long since lost its grip) and carry on.

He could do nothing to mitigate his pallor or the deep, irritated pink of his nostrils, nothing to correct the dark circles under his eyes or the seams of blood on his chapped lips.

But he could keep from curling in on himself like some defeated, helpless little mortal. And so he strode down the hallway, with the fluorescents burning his eyes and shivers rippling the muscles of his back.

Rounding a corner, he found Tim and Jon staring at each other like alley cats, both of them stiff, defensive.

When he came within earshot, something struck him hard across the back, forcing an expulsion of air from his lungs that turned into a coughing fit.

The distinctive buzz, sticky salt on his skin, foreign-foreign-foreign skimmed across his psyche— No doubt Peter thought he was being clever.

“Er…” Jon's voice. But what was he… Dammit, why couldn't he just see? “Elias?”

“Jon…” Elias choked. Somehow his forearm had found the wall. He straightened up with a pang of discomfort that echoed through his entire body. “Tim.”

“Did you need something?” Tim asked, unimpressed as ever. “Or did you just come down to give us all the spooky flu?”

Slipping into the dimwitted persona of Elias Bouchard took less effort than he'd feared. “I just came down to tell you…” Ah, and just when he thought he couldn't possibly feel any worse, a wave of dizziness passed over him: not vertigo, but the dangerous, stomach-turning giddiness that always accompanied a fainting spell. “I'm not feeling well. I've come down with something and I'm going home for the day.”

“Really?” Jon asked.

“You don't have to sound so surprised, Jon.”

“Just… didn't think that was something that could happen to you.”

“Well, it is and it has,” Elias said stiffly. Frantic breaths washed over his cracked lips and the world began to gray at the edges. He stumbled back and hit something solid, and Peter’s fingertips dug into his shoulders.

“Huh!” Tim snickered, making no effort to keep his amusement hidden. “Best wishes for the recovery you deserve.” He turned to go, leaving Jon staring down Elias in apparent fascination.

Peter's hands burned on his shoulders, contrasted by the damp chill of the Lonely on his back. Sweat or condensation stuck to the back of his neck and a few icy droplets snaked beneath his collar.

Beneath it all, the strength of Elias’ patron kept him upright. He hadn't been abandoned, no, but he couldn't reach it, either. All he had was his foundation, and the feverish tremors running through him threatened the stability of even that small comfort with every passing moment.

“Jon.” Elias sighed, projecting stuffed-shirt exasperation as well as he could. “I haven't lied to you yet. This would be an awfully stupid place to start.”

“Right.” Jon straightened, still examining Elias curiously. “Well, ah. I hope you feel better soon. I suppose.”

The image of him faded as he walked away and the Lonely’s rushing waves grew louder and louder in his ears…

“My dear Jonah…” Barnabas. Fingers in his damp curls. “I came as fast as I could when I heard of your condition.”

Jonah opened his eyes. Barnabas’ blurry face greeted him, dark at the edges except for where the candlelight lit his features in shades of yellow. “You…” was all he could manage before he started to cough.

“Oh, don't speak, Jonah. Just rest, please.” Barnabas reached for him again, ran his fingers down the side of Jonah's face.

With his eyes slipping shut, Jonah forced his hand up from under the covers, intertwined his fingers with Barnabas’.

If he had to be ill, at least he was in good company.

When Elias opened his eyes (Jonah's eyes), it was Peter who greeted him. He sat a few feet away from the bedside with an ear-to-ear smile that spelled nothing but misfortune. Whatever had kept him from killing Elias, be it fondness or pragmatism, contained no hint of Barnabas’ tender concern all those years ago.

He hadn't propped Elias’ head up, either, and pain spread out through his tortured sinuses, culminating inevitably: “ik'STCH! HK'TSCHUH! HH'ETSCH!” He curled in on himself, driving himself upward, out of bed, knees buckling.

“Elias, Elias.” Peter caught him and sat him on the edge of the bed, leaving him to nurse a running nose by sniffling and hoping for the best. “Stay in bed. You're very ill, you know.”

Peter—”

“Just tell me what you need and I'll fetch it for you.”

“Anything you desire, Jonah, I'll get it for you. Any book, any diversion. Anything.”

Elias sniffled and fixed him with a baleful look, but there was no getting around it. Even just sitting here, his head spun and his heart pounded. “...tissues.”

“Oh.” Peter’s smile sharpened, his eyes turning colder. “You can do better than that.”

Elias sniffed. “Will the great and magnanimous Peter Lukas please fetch me some tissues?”

“I'm not sure I like ‘magnanimous,’” Peter said thoughtfully, but he got up anyway. From outside the room, he shouted, “Maybe ‘his Loneliness’.”

Slowly, painfully, Elias got back in bed. His head throbbed with every slight motion. He stacked the pillows clumsily and fell back against them.

“Look at this, Jonah.” Barnabas opened his handkerchief to reveal an orange, peeled and sliced. “Please share it with me. You know they're terribly tart; I can never eat the whole thing by myself.”

Jonah’s fever had only just broken that morning, but he managed to sit himself up without assistance.

His hands shook, though, and Barnabas pressed an orange slice to his lips for him. Sweet liquid trickled down Barnabas’ fingertips and Jonah chased it with his tongue.

“Here we are!” Peter's bulk filled the doorway. He'd taken off his greatcoat to reveal a thick sweater mottled with oil stains. Of more interest was the tissue box in his hand, which he flung carelessly in Elias’ direction.

“Thank you,” Elias said drily, promptly burying his nose in a handful. He blew his nose, propriety be damned, and fell back against the pillows. “What happened?”

“You fainted.”

“I gathered that.”

Peter sat on the edge of the bed and rested his palm on Elias’ forehead, clearly enjoying the mockery of domesticity. “That little Archivist of yours rounded the corner and your legs went out. I caught you of course, and I took you home. But, you know, it was the funniest thing. I got turned around on my way to the front door, and I'm afraid a fair few of your employees saw me carrying you.” Peter ruffled Elias' hair, smiling down at him.

He could have shifted his hand a few inches, wrapped it around Elias’ exposed throat, pinned him there.

He could have taken a pillow, held it against Elias’ face.

He could have done any number of things and might at any moment, and for all Elias knew, the only thing keeping him at bay was the promise of mutually assured destruction.

“I'm going to try to sleep now,” Elias said primly. “I suggest you leave me to it.”

If Peter was disappointed at Elias’ lack of reaction, he didn't show it. He nodded shortly and stood up. “I'm sure I'll find a way to occupy myself.”

Barnabas’ hair stood up at odd angles, the obvious product of many a long night awake at Jonah's bedside. But his weary smile was as genuine as any Jonah had ever known, and tears glimmered in his eyes despite it. “I was terribly worried about you, my dear Jonah. When I received word that you'd collapsed, I nearly wept.”

Jonah was already slipping back toward sleep, but he offered Barnabas a smile even as his eyes slipped shut. “...glad you're here.”

That kind of naive trust was far behind him now. He’d shed all that childishness in pursuit of greater things. There was no point in missing it.

In missing him.

Jonah Magnus had made his bed. All he could do now was lie in it.

[pink-tonic]

A New Week and a New Teacher📰

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All Chapters

Warnings: Mentions of Rana being a creep to the girls (flirting with underaged female students + with the reader)

The weekend comes and go, and I'm left with my thoughts about Kana. The article that was published on Friday hasn't been updated, and everywhere I check there doesn't seem to he a mention of the nurse from other news outlets.

I hope that this was all just a misunderstanding and that he will be here today. If he really did go missing, then it's another problem that the school will have to deal with.

When I make it school this morning, I go to the nurse's office after I switch out my shoes. There is hope in my heart that Kana is there walking around, waiting for me.

I tell both of the siblings that'll be back soon, and I quickly turn around and make my way to the nurse's office.

When I make it to the white doors, I slide it to the side and I step inside.

Inside I'm met with... someone else.

It's a different nurse. It's not Kankoshi or Kana. The nurse has short black hair, and she's wearing glasses. She turns around from what she's doing and looks at me.

"What might you need?" She asks me. Her tone feels cold, unlike Kana. She pushes up her glasses and walks over to me.

"I was just wondering if Mr. Kana was here," I tell her, ready to turn around and leave.

"Oh, him. I'm not sure when he'll come back. What might be your name? Is it (Y/N) by any chance?" She asks me as she places her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, that's me. Why?" I ask her, wondering what she might want from me.

"I was told you were helping him out. I was told to tell you that the uniform needs to be returned. Orders of the headmaster when I first got here."

The uniform... I forgot about it.

"Yes, I'll return as soon as possible. Thank you for telling me," I give her a short nod, and I turn around and leave.

So Mr. Kana is really gone. I wish I could know where he went, but maybe that type of case would be too large for me to handle.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

"Ugh, I can't stand that guy," Taeko blurts out as the three of us set down on the rooftop to eat our lunch. She pops open her bento box and starts eating quickly.

"Why? What happened?" Her brother asks her as he starts to eat too. His voice holds a tone of worry, wondering what made his older sister so angry.

"We have this new teacher. He's just a substitute, but he is so annoying. I don't know how they hired that guy!" Taeko complains to the both of us.

"Well, what did he do?" I ask, curiosity getting the best of me.

"What didn't he do?" She replies back, "He was flirting with all the girls, even me. And it was just so... so weird! You shouldn't be doing that to us!" Taeko continues on, hoping that we will understand.

"Why don't you tell another teacher?" Taro suggests, hoping that his idea could make her calm down.

"They would probably want evidence of what he does," Taeko says with a sad tone, playing with her food with her chopsticks.

"How about recording him?" I now suggest, hoping that could help her.

"Okay, sounds good. But how do I do that?" She asks me back.

"Oh..."

"Exactly," she quickly says back, "I can't just take my phone out and record him during the middle of class. He'll kick me out and tell me to go to the guidance counselor. I'm about to graduate, and I don't want that happening."

"I forgot that you're graduating," Taro tells her with a slight smile, "But we still have a three months or so before it happens."

"Yeah, but this stupid teacher is getting in the way. He shouldn't even be called a teacher. They should take his teaching license away," complains further about the man.

I want to help her, but I can't. I doubt that the teacher would be interested in me in the first place, and it would be hard to record him. I don't have the needed items to bug his classroom and get evidence about what he is doing to the girls.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

The bell rings, and Taro meets up with me. Our classes are just down the hallway from each other, but we usually meet up on the first floor.

"I'm curious, (Y/N)," he starts off as we approach the stairs, "I wonder how the teacher looks like. I can't be the only one wondering, right?"

"Yeah, I wonder too. From what I'm hearing, it seems that Taeko is the only one complaining about him," he informs him about what I heard throughout the day from the third year girls.

"How about we go check before everyone leaves?" Taro asks, hoping that I'll agree to his suggestion.

"Let's just make it quick," I tell him as I we start going up the stairs.

We quickly make it to the third floor, and we walk over to class 3-2. We make sure we aren't seen by anyone inside of the room. We peek our heads into the classroom and take a look inside.

"That's him? Taro asks, dumbfounded by how the substitute teacher looks. I'm sure he had his own thoughts about how the teacher looked like, but nothing could have prepared him for what he really looks like.

His clothing looks normal for the most part. It's just that his half of his chest is exposed.

I couldn't lie and say I guessed right. I was just as stunned as Taro. I was expecting someone older, not a young teacher doing all this.

"Crap! He's coming over!" Taro tells me, snapping me out of my thoughts.

Taro rushes off and down the hallway. He must have thought that I ran too, but I'm still standing in place.

I see the teacher walk over to me with a smirk on his face. I can't form any words, and I only stare at his approaching figure.

He eventually makes it over to me and leans against the doorframe. He crosses his arms over his chest and looks at me. I can feel uneasy as I feel his sharp, red eyes looking over my smaller figure.

"What brings you here, little thing?" He asks me with another smirk forming on his face.

"I was just... I...," I cursed myself in my head. Why was I stuttering? I knew why I was here, but at the same time I didn't want to admit it to the teacher. I felt it was too embarrassing.

"How cute. You can barely form any words," he teases me, his smirk only growing bigger from my stuttering.

I start to feel myself get flustered at his comment and at my own actions. I want to run away and go with Taro. I secretly hoped that Taro would come back up and take me away.

"I usually have the girls come over to me. You're the first boy to come here. How interesting," he continues on, knowing that I won't be able to respond to him.

He tilts his head and asks me a question, "You're not a first year, right?"

I shake my head, "No, I'm a second year."

"That's cute. A second year student has even fallen for me. How about I let you come inside, and I can teach you what the third year students are doing. Think of it as a head start," he moves aside to let me in.

"No!" I blurt out loudly. My words take him aback, and he gives me a smile in return.

He turns around, "Well, my door will always be open for you."

He closes the door, and I'm left standing alone. I blink, and I look around, hoping no one say what transpired.

I quickly leave and met up with Taro. When I make it to the first floor, I'm met with Taro and Taeko.

"There you are!" Taro calls out to me as he sees him go into the locker area, "What happened? I'm sorry I left you there by yourself."

"I'm fine. He just scolded me, that's all," I lie to Taro, not wanting to worry him about what happened.

"Okay. What happened?" Taeko asks, wondering what we got ourselves into.

"We just went to your classroom to see how the substitute looked like, and he caught us...," Taro tells his sister with a little bit of shame seeping into his words.

A look of surprise takes over Taeko's face, "Really?"

We both nod. We expect her to scold us or even laugh at us getting caught.

"Just don't do it again, but do you see what I mean?" She asks us.

"Yeah, I can't believe they let him walk in like that," I tell her.

"I know, right? He should just be fired at that point," Taeko rolls her eyes as she speaks.

"Let's go to the clubroom. Maybe writing will help you?" Taro asks her as he points to the stairs.

"Yeah. I think that would help me," she answers happily. She seemed ready to start writing agian after a week of the club being closed.

All three of us start to make our way to the stairs and into the clubroom.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

"You gotta be kidding! It's raining?" Taeko complains as we stand a few feet away from the entrance.

"None of us brought an umbrella," Taro adds on, as he watches the rain to continue to pour down to the ground.

"We can't just stay here. We have to leave eventually," I tell the siblings. I would hate to get wet, but it's the only thing we can do.

Taeko lets out a sigh and nods her head. "You'll just have to run through the rain then," Taeko tells us before letting out a sigh of disappointment.

We step closer to the doors, and we put our bags on top of our heads, in hopes that our heads will be spared from the rain droplets.

Once we're all ready, we start to run. I can almost feel myself slipping, but I am able to retain my balance. The three of us keep running under the dark sky.

Taro and Taeko make it home, and I'm all alone. I only have to run a little more before I'm finally home.

I make it home without trouble, and I slam the door behind me. I take off my shoes and I drop my drenched bag to the ground.

I'm finally home.

[funtomfactory]

A Kuroshitsuji Christmas

A little Black Butler Christmas thing I threw together, enjoy!

Sebastian: *narrates* It was Boxing Day, late 19th century. Just outside of London, UK, lay the grand Phantomhive manor. Its rooftops were decorated with a sheet of white snow, and its windows shimmered with light coming from within. All of the household was in high spirits; the maid, Mey-Rin, was donning some wreath in her hair. Finny, the gardener, had helped to set up real trees inside. They were decorated with candles and ornaments, and proven to be capable of taking a blow, which was proven by the cook Bardroy when he tried to set the Christmas pudding alight. Old man Tanaka was resting near the fireplace and the footman Snake was handing out hot chocolate to everyone. The season had everyone in its grasp. Everyone, safe for the young master, who was sitting cross-legged in a chair near a tree ladened with presents.

Ciel: *shifts in his chair and grumbles* Ugh, I can't believe how much time I've wasted on social frivolities these last few days, I'm horribly behind schedule on my paperwork....

Sebastian: *whispering, while smirking mischievously* Come now young master, this is a special day for us servants. You owe it to us for all our hard work.

Ciel: *sighs* I suppose you're right. Well then... *turns around towards Finny* Finny, would you be so kind to hand out the first box?

Finny: With pleasure, young master! *Finny jumps up and grabs the nearest box* This one is for... S-Snake... Hey! It's from Lady Elizabeth!

Snake: *takes the box from Finny* From Smile's fiancée? How nice, says Webster.

Ciel: Yes, she was pretty thorough with buying presents this year...

Snake unwrapped the box and looked inside. He pulled out a handful of what appeared to be tiny scarfs and hats.

Bard: Are those...

Ciel: Lizzy insisted that she wanted Snake's snakes to wear matching clothing. She insisted it would make them... *twitches his fingers* That much cuter.

Snake: That's a lovely idea! We'll wear them with pride, says Emily.

As Snake tried to fit his snakes with their new ensemble, the young master guestured Finny to hand out the next gift.

Finny: Here you go, Mey-Rin!

Mey: M-My turn?! Thank you Finny!

Mey-Rin unwraps her gift to reveal a lavishly decorated hair clip.

Mey: Oh my! It's stunning yes it is! Thank you young master!

Ciel nods in approval as Mey-Rin tries to put the clip in her hair. Meanwhile, Finny reads the tag on the third present.

Finny: This one is yours, Bard!

Bard: Alright! Let's see what we've got here! *tears off the wrapping paper* A metal cigarette case!

Sebastian: Since you're prone to... Flammable accidents we thought it suitable to buy you something to at least keep your cigarettes safe from anything catching on fire. It would be a waste if you didn't get to smoke them.

Bard: I don't know if that's a compliment... But I'll take it. Thank you very much!

Finny: *frowns at the next present* This one is for... All of us?

Bard: Well then what are you waiting for?

Ciel: Go ahead Finny, open it up.

Finny rips open the box to reveal a stack of Chirstmas hats. The hats are covered in glitter and ribbons. Ciel moans.

Ciel: Lizzy... What have you done?

Sebastian: It would be an insult not to wear them.... *takes one from the stack and puts in on his young master's head, then puts one on himself* Now we're actually dressed for the occasion.

The other servants cheer as they put on their hats. Ciel slumps in his chair, looking miserable.

Finny: Ah, this box is if you, mister Sebastian!

Sebastian: *looks surprised* For me?

Ciel: *smirks* Did you really think you would be spared?

Sebastian: *takes the box from Finny* I... Well thank you!

Ciel: I wouldn't be so quick with the gratitude...

Sebastian unwraps the present. Inside is a calendar for the new year, each month containing a drawing of cats.

Sebastian: Aah... How adorable...

Ciel: *annoyed* And here I was thinking Lizzy would give you something more...

Sebastian: Unsuitable? That thought hardly fits with the Christmas spirit, young master...

Sebastian hugs the calendar to his chest as Finny hands the next gift to Takana.

Tanaka: Ho ho ho...

Finny helps Tanaka open his present. Tanaka got an expensive looking set of tea cups.

Tanaka: Hoh!

Finny: One for you, young master! *hands Ciel a box*

Mey: Oh! That's from all of us!

Bard: Please enjoy it, young master!

Snake: And a Merry Chirstmas to you! Says Oscar.

Ciel has a quizzical look on his face as he opens the package. The servants got him a set of eyepatches.

Ciel: Wha-... Thank you...

Bard: There's no need to be embarassed about receiving a gift young master!

Finny: Now you can match them with your outfits!

Mey: Me and mister Snake picked them especially for you, yes we did!

Sebastian: *has a look of malice in his eyes as he takes out a bright, crimson eyepatch* How about you try this one, young master? It matches the hat....

There was no room for protest as Sebastian swapped the regular, black eyepatch for the coloured one. Ciel's face was barely a shade away from matching the new ensemble.

Finny: Ah, this package is for Mey-Rin again!

Ciel: Wouldn't you want to unwrap a gift yourself first?

Mey: You can't skip yourself, no you can't!

Finny: O-Okay!

Snake: Here's one with your name on it, says Wordsworth.

Finny took the box Snake pointed at from the stack.

Finny: I wonder what it is... *unwraps his gift* ... It's a book!

Bard: *reads the title over Finny's shoulder* "20 Christmas stories and carols, bundled".... With this, you'll be an expert on Christmas before the next year rolls around!

Finny: Thank you young master!

Ciel smiles as Finny stares at the cover, tears in his eyes.

Ciel: I hope you've been practising your reading skills.

Finny: I have! I'm still not that fast, though... Hey... Here's an idea... Could you read us one of these stories tonight, young master?

Ciel: Wha-

Mey: What a splendid idea that is!

Bard: Hey yeah! That would be fun! We've never heard you read something aloud like that.

Ciel: *blushes* And you never will...

Sebastian: Come now, young master, don't be a spoilsport...

Ciel: Why you... *sighs* ... Fine. But only one, and you'll have to work extra hard to do all the cleaning up in the morning.

Servants: Will do!

Ciel: *flips through the book* Hmm... Ah, here's one. A visit from St. Nicholas.

The servants leaned in closer as Ciel cleared his throat.

Ciel: 'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care-

Finny: Stockings?

Bard: Yeah some people put the presents in socks above the chimney.

Mey: Really?!

Finny: That sounds fun! Let's hang our socks above the chimney too!

The servants scrambled on thier feet and ran out of the room.

Ciel: Hey! Wait!

After a while, the servants returned, each carrying a sock. Snake's sock looked wrinkled, and Bard's contained a hole. Ciel blinked in surprise, then shook his head in annoyance. The servants hung their socks on the chimney mantle, then settled down again.

Ciel: Could I please continue the story without any interruptions? ... Here we are... The children were nestled all snug in their beds, while visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads, and mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap, had just settled down for a long winter's nap, when out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, tore open the shutters and threw up the sash. The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow, gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below, when, what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer.

Finny: Wow! Santa really has that many reindeers?!

Snake: Do they all have names?

Ciel: *sighs* I'll get to that in a minute... Now... With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, and he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name; "Now, DASHER! now, DANCER! now, PRANCER and VIXEN! On, COMET! on CUPID! on, DONNER and BLITZEN! To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall! Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

Finny: They can climb walls?!

Mey: Hush Finny, or we'll never hear the end of the story!

Ciel: As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky, So up to the house-top the coursers they flew, With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too. And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my head, and was turning around, Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

Finny: *rushes to the fireplace, knocking over Tanaka* Santa! Santa are you in the chimney?! But the fire is on! It's hot!

Tanaka: Hoooh!

Bard: Finny! Would you please calm down?!

Snake: You know he's not real, right? Says Webster.

As Bard and Snake tugged Finny back to his place and Sebastian helped Tanaka upright again, Ciel continued.

Ciel: He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot, And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot; A bundle of toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack. His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry! His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry! His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow, And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow; The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath; He had a broad face and a little round belly, That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf, And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself; A wink of his eye and a twist of his head, Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

Finny: *sighs dreamily* With a description like that... How could he not be real?

Bard: You can't be serious, right?!

Ciel: This is indeed a rather joyful version of Father Christmas. He has also seen other iterations, though... *smirks impishly*

Finny: *a little scared* R-Really?!

Ciel: Read the rest of the book and find out for yourself... Now where was I... Ah... He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work, and filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk, and laying his finger aside of his nose, and giving a nod, up the chimney he rose-

There was the sound of something clattering. Looking around with a jerk, the household saw Finny laying on his back on the floor, blissfully asleep, his cup of hot cocoa rolling on the carpet.

Mey: Oh dear...

Bard: He couldn't even finish the story...

Ciel: *snaps the book shut* Well I guess that's the end of it for now then... Sebastian, Bard, bring Finny to his bed. Mey-Rin, Snake, clean away the cups and then it's off to bed. We'll finish the rest of the presents tomorrow.

Servants: *nod* Yes sir!

And so, Sebastian carried Finny downstairs, with Bardroy in tow. They entered thier room and lay Finny down on his bed. As Sebastian pulled him under the covers, Bardroy put on his nightwear.

Bard: I swear he's still just a kid, despite his ridiculous strength.

Sebastian: Kid or not, I'll expect him to work hard tomorrow to mkae up for the ruckus he caused.

Bard: *slides into his bed* Geez, lighten up a bit, it's the one time a year we servants get to taste a bit of magic... Who's the spoilsport now... *turns around and starts snoring*

Sebastian: Magic, hm? *grabs the red duvet from Finny's bed and swings open the window, jumping on the windowsill and climbing towards the roof, the duvet draped over his shoulders*

The cold draft from the open window made its way to Finny, who stirred, searching for his covers.

Finny: Hm? Ah! *spots the open window and scurries over, looking around over the landscape, and spots something crimson* Santa Claus?

Meanwhile upstairs, Snake and Mey-Rin just finished their tasks.

Mey: I know I shouldn't ask, young master, but just how does the story end?

Ciel: *reopens the book and points at the last few lines of the poem* He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, and away they all flew like the down of a thistle. But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight-

At that moment, Sebastian soared from the rooftop towards the trees, guised under a blur of red. Ciel looked in disbelief as the jaws of Snake and Mey-Rin dropped to the floor. A few flors below, Finny cheered with delight.

Finny: Santa! Santa! Bard! Look!

Bard: *Sleepy* huh...? Wha-!

As he flew by the windows, Sebastian shouted.

Sebastian: Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

[sofiaispunk]

The Space Cowboy and his Ladybug - CHAPTER 3

Javier Peña x reader

Summary: You find your old diary in your childhood home and are confronted with the ghosts of your past.

Words: 2,7K

Warnings: angst, trust issues, violence, mentions of past domestic abuse (mentally and physically), insecurity, references to suicide attempt, smut (in later chapter), TRAUMA, throwbacks

On Moday, a particular humid day in Laredo, you decided to throw on your grey matching gym set and start decluttering your old childhood home. As you were cleaning out one of the closets in the old house, you stumbled upon an old dusty box. You carefully took it out and placed it on the floor. As you opened it, you found something that sent shivers down your spine – your old diary.

It was a brown leather-bound book that you used to carry everywhere with you during your teenage years. You carefully opened the book and the familiar smell of the old pages filled your nostrils. As you started to read through the entries, it felt like you was transported back in time.

Dear diary,                                                                        15th October 1974

I can't believe how irritating it is to watch those girls flirting with Javier. I mean, I don't have feelings for him or anything, but it's just so obvious and annoying. Like, can't they see how he's just playing along with them? Ugh, it makes me want to scream.

And today in school, he was laughing and chatting with that new girl, Lorraine or something. Stupid name, right? I don't know why it bothers me so much, but it does. I guess it's just because he's my friend, and I don't want him to get hurt by these girls who are obviously just using him for attention.

But whatever, it's not like it's any of my business. I'll just keep my distance and focus on my own life. Maybe I'll even try to find someone to flirt with too.

Anyway, I have to go now. Homework to do and all that. Until next time, diary.

You are sitting on the ground, flipping through the pages. Some pages are stuck together and the ink is smudged or faded through the years.

Dear diary,                                                                21st October 1974

It’s me again. I can't believe Javier forgot to pick me up from school today. He said he was going to take me to the arcade, but he never showed up. I waited for him for an hour and then walked home alone. I'm so mad at him right now!

To make things worse, I saw him at the new burger place with Lorraine. They were laughing and having a good time, while I was sitting in the school yard feeling completely forgotten. It's not fair. I thought I was his best friend, but now he's spending all his time with her.

Lorraine is pretty and popular, and all the guys seem to like her. I don't understand what's so great about her. Why does Javier want to be friends with her instead of me? I know I'm not the prettiest or the most popular girl in school, but I thought we had a special bond. He is my best friend not hers. Anyways I will never forgive him. I will go over to Chucho’s and tell him that I don’t want to be his friend anymore. Done and over.

See you in a bit diary.

You starred down at the pages. You remember the day as if it was yesterday. You were banging on the old farm house relentlessy. 

“Hola mija, what’s wrong?” Chucho opened the door, concern clearly laced in his features. “Is Javier here?” you pushed right through him, not quiet too concerned how rude your being and looking around to find Javier. Javier was sitting on the couch, watching some cartoon and eating his favorite cereal, captn crunch. “JAVIER, where were you?” you stalked over at him, looming over his sitting figure.

As you were venting your frustration to Javier, he seemed more annoyed than apologetic. It was as if he didn't understand why you were so upset about being left alone for so long.

"Come on, bug" he said, rolling his eyes. "It was just a burger with Lorraine. I didn't think you'd care that much."

"Just a burger?" you repeated, your voice raising in anger. "You promised to pick me up, and you ditched me for some girl you barely even know."

He looked at you like you were being unreasonable, and that just made you even more angrier. You hated feeling like a child in front of him, like he couldn't take your emotions seriously.

"It's not like I did it on purpose," he said defensively. "Things just got carried away, and I lost track of time." He continue slurping on his cereal.

"That's not the point," you snapped back. "You made me feel like I wasn't important enough to remember. And now you're acting like it's not a big deal."

He opened his mouth to respond, but you cut him off and stormed off with no where to go. You didn’t feel like going home, knowing that your father was probably back home from work. But you sure as hell wouldn’t going to keep staying listening to Javier’s bullshit excuse any longer.

Dear Diary,                                                                       1st December 1974

Today was supposed to be a fun day out with Javier and his girlfriend Lorraine, but it ended up being a the most horrible experience of my life. avi insisted that I come with them. I think to make up for the fact that he has neglected me lately. We were shopping in the mall when Lorraine made a snarky comment about my outfit, and then started giggling with her friends. I tried to ignore it and just went along with the day, but it's really been bothering me.

Later, when we were alone, I tried to tell Javier about it, but he didn't seem to take me seriously. He just brushed it off and said that Lorraine was probably just joking. But I know what I heard and saw, and it really hurt my feelings.

It's not the first time I've felt like Lorraine doesn't like me. She always seems to be making snide comments or giving me dirty looks, and I can't help but wonder if Javier notices it too. But every time I try to talk to him about it, he just tells me I'm being paranoid or oversensitive.

I don't know what to do. I really care about Javier, but I don't want to be around Lorraine if she's just going to make me feel bad all the time. And it hurts that Javier doesn't seem to believe me or understand how I'm feeling. I think I will talk to him tomorrow about it again. What better way to confront him than our weekly movie night, right? We are watching Titanic, yayyy

bye bye diary.

You and Javier were sitting on the couch at Javier's house, watching a movie together. However, the tension between you was palpable, and you had been ignoring each other for a while.

"I'm telling you, Javier, Lorraine doesn't like me," you said, frustration clear in your voice.

"I think you're being a little dramatic, don't you?" Javier replied, rolling his eyes. "I mean, why wouldn't she like you? You're great."

"I don't know, maybe because she knows we used to be close and she's jealous," you said, crossing your arms.

"I highly doubt that," Javier said, shaking his head. "You're making a big deal out of nothing."

"Well, I'm sorry if I don't trust your new girlfriend," you said, your voice rising.

"Look, I understand that you're feeling insecure, but you don't have to take it out on me or Lorraine," Javier said, his tone turning sharp.

"I'm not taking anything out on you! I just don't want to be around Lorraine if she doesn't like me," you said, feeling your anger boiling over.

"You know what? Fine. If you can't handle being around my girlfriend, then maybe we shouldn't hang out anymore! You are being childish," Javier said, standing up from the couch.

You felt hurt and betrayed by Javier's words, and tears prickled at the corners of your eyes. "Fine," you said, your voice barely above a whisper.

Javier stormed out of the room, leaving you alone on the couch. You sat there for a few moments, feeling lost and alone, before finally gathering your things and leaving the house without looking back.

Skipping through these pages you felt your heart breaking all over again. You felt bad for your teenage self and relived everything again. You realized that despite all the years that had passed, some things never really change. The fear, the pain, and the longing - it was all still there, buried deep within you. No amount of time in the big city could change you, no matter how much you tried to be someone else, these memories were a part of you. You obviously knew what kind of heartbreak was hidden in those pages but for some reason you couldn’t tear your eyes away.

Dear diary, 2nd March 1975

I am going to the barn today to see the horses. I need to escape from everything that's been going on in my life. I feel so lost and alone right now. Javier hasn't spoken to me since the fight we had, and I don't know if we can ever go back to the way things were.

It hurts so much to see him with Lorraine. I can't help but feel jealous of her. She has everything I don't have - his attention, his love, he even gave her his favourite sweater .It's like I never mattered to him at all. I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I can't help it.

Being around the horses helps me forget about everything else. They're so beautiful and majestic, and they don't judge me for being a mess. They just want to be loved and taken care of.Kinda like me. I feel calm when I am around them.

I wish I could just stay here forever and forget about everything else. 

See you soon, diary!

You finished writing your diary entry and rushed down the stairs eager to spend some time with the horses. But when you got downstairs, you found your dad already back from work and drinking beer at the kitchen table.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked, eyeing you suspiciously.

"To the farm," you said flatly, trying to hide your excitement.

"You're not going anywhere," he slurred. "You're staying here with me."

"But I promised Mr. Pena that I would help him with the horses," you pleaded.

"I don't care about Mr. Pena," he snapped. "You're staying here with me."

You knew you had to get out of there. You couldn't stay trapped in that house with your drunken dad any longer. So you made a run for it, grabbing your backpack on the way out. You were almost out the door when you felt a sharp tug on your hair that made you fall down and cry out in pain. Your dad was standing over you, eyes bloodshot with rage.

“ Why don’t you listen to me, you pathetic little girl?” he spat. “You. Are. Staying. Here. With. Me.” You felt a sharp kick to your stomach after each word. Breathlessly you could just nod, not trusting your own voice. You wouldn’t cry again. You were strong. So you crawled over to door and slid up the door so you could stand properly, away from his heavy boots. “Yes, father. I’m staying.” You said mechanically, while clutching your stomach and right rip.

As you made your way up you couldn’t help but feel helpless and alone. And quietly wonder if there’s any way out for you.

The next day you knew your dad was at work, so you got dressed and headed straight out. You rushed out, eager to finally spend your day on the farm with the horses. Your safe space. Y ou put on your old denim jeans and a faded red t-shirt, knowing that you needed something comfortable and practical for the work ahead. The air was cool and fresh as you stepped outside, and you could smell the sweet scent of freshly cut hay in the distance. All your pain and sorrows from the precious day almost forgotten.

You made your way to the stables, where Chucho was already busy tending to the horses. The sound of their neighs filled the air, and you could feel the excitement building inside me. As you approached, Chucho turned to greet me with a warm smile.

"Good morning, mi hija, I missed you yesterday. Where have you been?" Chucho asked. 

“Ah well you know me.. I was out with someone and forgot the time?” you answered unsure, feeling like he could see right through your lies. 

“So we're ditching this old man for a hot date, are we?” he laughed at his own joke. "Ready for a day with the horses?" 

You nodded, feeling the familiar thrill of anticipation. Chucho handed you a brush, and you began grooming the horses together. The soft bristles of the brush felt soothing against your skin as you worked, and you took your time, enjoying the peace and quiet of the farm.

As you finished grooming, Chucho led the horses outside, and you followed behind, taking in the beauty of the farm. The sun was just beginning to rise, casting a warm golden glow over the fields. The horses trotted playfully beside you, their hooves kicking up dust with each step.

The rest of the day was spent working with the horses, feeding them, cleaning their stalls, and tending to their needs. You couldn’t help but feel a sense of purpose and fulfillment as you worked, knowing that you was helping to care for these magnificent creatures.

As the day drew to a close, Chucho and you sat outside the stables, watching the sunset. The sky was ablaze with shades of orange and pink, and the air was still warm from the heat of the day. Chucho was nursing his beer while you drank your favourite strawberry soda, he knew you loved since you were a little girl.

You took a deep breath, feeling grateful for the peace and tranquility of the farm. It was a welcome escape from the chaos and turmoil of your life. For a moment, you allowed yourself to forget about the pain of your right rips and hurt that Javier caused you by ignoring you, and simply enjoy the beauty of the moment.

As you looked out over the fields, you knew that you had found a safe haven at Chucho's farm, a place where you could heal and find peace. And for that, you were truly forever grateful.

"Hey, qué pasa?" he asked, using the Spanish phrase for "what's up?"

“Oh nothing. Just thinking of something.” You gave him a weak smile, which wasn’t too convincing.

He took a big sip from his beer and looked at you with concern. "Is it about Javier?"

You simply shrugged your shoulder not wanting to look him in the eyes. You knew he could read every thought, every emotion by simply looking at you.

Chucho put a comforting hand on your shoulder. "Listen, Javi cares about you, okay? He's just going through some stuff with Lorraine right now. But he'll come around. He always does."

You wiped away a tear and sniffled. "I hope you're right. It just hurts to be replaced."

Chucho gave you a sympathetic smile. "You haven't been replaced, mija. You're still an important part of Javi's life. And you always will be.  He's just lost right now, and he's making some bad choices."

You  nodded slowly, taking in Chucho's words. He was always so kind and understanding, and it was one of the reasons you felt comfortable opening up to him. In a way he was your only fatherfigure. "But what if he never comes around?" you asked, your eyes filling with tears. "What if he really does choose Lorraine over me and our friendship?"

Chucho sighed. "I can guarantee you that he won't ever do that, I believe in Javi. He's been through a lot lately, and he's just trying to find his way. But deep down, he knows how much you mean to him. You've been there for him since the beginning, and he won't forget that."

You let out a deep breath and leaned your head against his shoulder. "Thanks, Chucho. But I think this time you are wrong."

“I’m never wrong, mija. Javi is an idiot but he loves you more than you know.” He wrapped his arm around you and you sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the sun set over the fields. The only sounds were the chirping of crickets and the occasional neighing of the horses in the distance.

You closed the diary, wiped away your tears and took a deep breath continuing to clean out the closet. You knew what memories were written on the last pages and you weren’t ready to uncover and relive them just yet.

Part 4