#i do think the explosion threw him onto her rather than him staying standing with him then just sort of body blocking rubble from there

[brodorokihousuke]

When thinking of Apollo's injuries, I always try to compare him to Juniper. Juniper and Apollo were both still in the courtroom when the blast occurred, but Juniper left relatively unscathed. Seeing as Apollo protected her from falling debris, that implies that most if not all of Apollo's injuries came from the immediate aftermath of the explosion. NOT that explosion itself.

HOWEVER, it is also important to compare outfits. Juniper is almost completely covered, with only the tips of her fingers and the short area between the end of her gloves and the start of her sleeves left uncovered. On top of that, she's wearing gardening clothes, which appear to be made from heavier materials designed to hold up to the wear and tear of working in the dirt. Meaning they're likely better at protecting her body from injury. This is likely why she was not really injured during the blast and didn't get hurt by the heat. It likely wouldn't have made much of a difference if she had gotten crushed by a giant slab of falling ceiling, but Apollo took that blow for her so she got out unscathed.

In contrast, Apollo's sleeves are rolled up to just below the elbow, leaving the rest of his arms exposed. On top of that, he's wearing a white button-up shirt, which tends to be made from light material and is not designed to hold up to damage. This likely resulted in him getting hurt during the initial blast. Depending on how high quality is vest and dress slacks are, they may or may not have helped protect at least a little. But, overall, his outfit puts him at a disadvantage.

I think the problem I encounter from this thought experiment of sorts is that I would assume that falling debris would give him more so blunt force injuries + contusions as compared to more, like... skin + flesh wounds. Which, I don't doubt he was hit by some rubble (as the game explicitly states that he was), but it would've left him with at best bad bruising and at worst fractures/broken bones. I've even thought about the prospect of him getting pinned under rubble and losing a leg as an alternate situation.

I do agree though that Apollo's outfit did affect how well he was protected, as I usually portray him with an increased amount of injuries on his lower arm + the back of his neck as compared to anywhere else. Take the convenient if not a bit eyestrain-y recent drawing I did, you can see that thought in mind.

(also note the lack of injuries where his bracelet is supposed to be)

I can, through further thought, see more burns happening on the back of his legs since his pants are only a single layer (presumably). The vest plus the button-up probably protects most of his torso, at least from the hot air, though only that (after all I do give him the shrapnel injury right on his side). The button-up alone (as in his upper arms) likely doesn't do a great job protecting, as you say, but it's better than bare skin.

I think my adherence to most of his injuries being burns comes from the fact that his arms are entirely wrapped, rather than having haphazardly placed bandages. It implies that it's a continuous injury that didn't cripple him enough to fully prevent movement. There does need to be at least one flesh wound, as one opens back up during the beginning of 5-1, but that's it.

Additionally, they should also have hearing damage, but as someone with little knowledge on the subject I don't focus on that too much, aside from them both being unable to hear anything immediately following the explosion.

[goodday-goodmorn]

Not used to posting things so fast- But the brain worms have infected me and @auspicioustidings concepts give me life. Once again- another from them, i felt contractually obligated to write this because my auntie is in Vegas for her birthday right now.

The concept in question

Not the after effects of waking up- but rather the proposal itself. This one’s short cause i pumped it out real quick. Just a little dabble.

————————

Ah Vegas. City of love. Wait no that was Paris- city of… sin? Well that sounded too much like a trashy YA romance novel for your tastes so- Vegas, City of…

Vegas: City!

God maybe you should lay off the M and M’s. Lavender and Bright cyan blue little things from the M and M factory are making you really taste the rainbow. Shit that was skittles catchphrase wasn’t it? Actually- did M and M’s even have a catchphrase other than the sexy brown M and M? Though that was less a phrase more a person. Er- candy. Chocolate.

Pah! You should have never gone to the M and M factory. Stupid little chocolate candy is making you think far more than you can handle right now.

Seriously it’s messing with your head. You’d better get rid of them.

You throw your M and M factory bag onto the floor, watching all the candies scatter the pavement in an explosion of color. That's why the pretty colors are so dangerous and not sold in the normal packs. They make people all loopy. Cause there’s no other reason you would be so outta sorts.

Except maybe the daiquiri you’d had. And the Manhattan. And those shots. And whatever that weird drink in a glowing lightbulb was.

Okay maybe it wasn’t the M and M’s.

Which means you just threw them out for nothing oh no! 20 dollars down the drain. And your M and M’s!

You whine mournfully over the loss, sinking to the ground dramatically and cradling one of the cyan shelled candies close.

“Is everything all… right?”

You barely register the voice- British and a bit rugged- before you are drunkenly rambling out-

“No- i thought my M and M’s were evil but they weren’t and i killed them for nothing!” You cry out, the words making you even more emotional, you pathetically sob, holding the cyan candy in your palms to your chest.

“Come back! Liveee please. Papa didn’t mean it i swear, i didn’t know what i was saying- you got me all tongue tied!”

“Hey-“

Oh british man has a very nice voice, so smooth and gentle, more than you were expecting.

“It’s alright love. We can get you some more candies.”

You sniffle.

“R-really?”

He smiles like some sort of teddy bear. Gentle and soft.

“Yes really. Just gotta get you back to wherever you’re stayin at first. It’s dangerous for a pretty girl to be on the street like this.”

You nod sollumly. “For the m and m’s yeah. Hard shells- but thin. Can’t be carrying em’ out in the cold. Poor little fellows can’t stand it.”

“Think you should be worrying about yourself first love.”

He really does look a teddy bear when he smiles. A very warm and cuddly teddy bear. Very warm. And you are oh so cold. Maybe…

“…maybe i’m and M and M.”

You mumble with a little frown, looking away from his oh so pretty eyes to instead stare at the cracked M and M in your hand.

He chuckles, it’s a nice sound.

“Com’re lovely. You’re shiverin.”

He held you up and you cling to him naturally. To your disappointment and utter display he is not as soft as a Teddy bear. Such false advertising. When you burry your head in his chest, while warm and soothing- it is firm with muscle. Hard just like his arms and co-

“Not exactly what i meant by that sweetheart.”

He’s pushing you away! Away from the warmth.

“No, I'm an M and M- gotta be warm or else I'll crack! Do you want me to die?”You whine out trying to stay close but he’s very strong, holding you firmly away from his toned chest.

(And raging boner. Not that you noticed it.)

“I know, I know- here. I’ll give you my coat.”

He wraps you up in his thick but soft coat and you relax immediately, snuggling into the fabric. With your eyes closed you hear the rumble of his chuckle.

“There’s a girl. Nice and warm now?”

You nod, making a drowsy and soft little “Yup.”

“Good. Now come’on. You know where's your hotel at?”

“Huh? We can’t go there! We gotta get more M and M’s first. Silly.”

“Right, course. Silly me.”

You giggle a bit hysterical. He agrees with you so easily, letting you link arms with him and walking you to the M and M factory. He’s so silly. With his cozy coat and koala-esc smile and pretty eyes and rumbly voice and-

“I think m’ in love with you.” You slur out, gazing at him with half lidded eyes.

“Shouldn’t say stuff like that sweetheart. Might give a guy ideas.”

Ah Ideas, you’ve got a lot of ideas. So many fun ones- but mostly one that you blurt out after he gently pushed your hand away when you tried to pay for your new M and M’s.

“I think I wanna kiss you.”

Price pauses as he tugs you outside the shop. Looks down at you, clinging to his arm, wrapped up in his coat; with the sweetest face and clearly wasted out of your mind. Price isn’t a good man. A good man would have called you a cab to get you back to your hotel. Would have asked if you had any friends to get you there. Would have gently told you to go to the stupid M and M factory another time.

He’s not a good man but even Price isn’t fucked up enough to take advantage of a pretty drunk girl. Even if his self control is wilting the more time he spends around the mess that is you.

He shakes his head with a little sigh, leaning down close to you and mumbling.

“S’ not a good idea to kiss strangers love.”

“So then marry me and we won’t be strangers.”

…Self control John. Self control.

“Will you marry me please?”

You plead with the teddy bear man, he’s just so cozy and pretty you can’t help it. You wanna kiss him soooo bad but he’s right you can’t kiss a stranger! But if he was your husband then it would be perfectly acceptable. And you are an ordained minister technically so it all works out!

Price looks at you, your pleading eyes, your softness, you wrapped up in his coat and clinging to his arm. Pretty little thing.

…He deserves to let his self control slip just this once right?

[weeb-writor]

Do you still love me?

Hello lovelies! Today I am back with a angst piece but a happy ending don't fret too much! I was really thinking about making it end horribly or leaving it up to the readers imagination but I decided nahh i couldn't do that to my heart. So here Bakugou and his s/o who fell out of love??(or did they??) when then have a large family in the mix. I have also decided im kind of obsessed with domestic pieces lol, they are like more than half of all my posts. Anywho, reader is neutral hope you guys enjoy!

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

Bakugou Katsuki x Reader

You and Bakugou call its quits not thinking of what it would do to your 5 kids who are stuck in the middle

Words:  3606

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“Are we going to dad’s today?” Hiroyuki asked softly.

“Yeah, your going to spend the weekend with him, all of you.” You smiled at him.

“Can I bring Tokki?” He said looking at the ground already knowing your answer.

“We went over this last time baby, Daddy can't have pets at his new place and Tokki is a cat, he likes staying at home.” You said with a sigh. It really sucks that it came down to this, spend a week with you then a weekend with dad, then rinse repeat. Sometimes you even wondered if it was better. That’s what you and Bakugou told each other, I mean what else can you do when you fall out of love? You approached your car where all of your other children were waiting. You and Hiroyuki sat down and signaled the diver to go.

“We going to daddy’s right?” Kohana said as she bounced around in her seat. You booped her nose and nodded at her.

“Yay, daddy’s home!” Yoko said, clapping.

“Don't get excited Yoko, Dad’s probably busy. Were probably gonna be with Grandpa and Grandma.” Hiroyuki said playing with your fingers.

“You're so dramatic Yuki! Of course dad is busy! He is a Hero but he always makes time for us.” Your oldest said little explosion going off around her.

“Kaori.” You warned her with a stern voice. The little sparks calmed and she went back to quietly gazing out the window. 

“Your dad is a hero and therefore busy but I know he is very excited to see you all and will spend all the time he has with you.” You smiled at them. They all smiled back before going back into relative silence. When you and Bakugou decided to have a big family you were ecstatic and so was he. This, however, wasn't what you imagined. A tiny rift right threw your family and it was growing bigger everyday. When you told the kids about the spilt they didnt say much and the youngest ones didnt even really understand but as they lived through it, they changed. They formed their own opinions about who’s fault it is and why it happened. And now they were splitting up, there was Kaori the eldest who didn't care too much, Yoko, and Kohana. At the opposite end was Hiroyuki, just him. Your fragile little boy who was so sure it was his dad’s fault. Saiyuri was too young to choose a side but all the change wasn't really helping the 11th month old baby.

“We have arrived.” The diver announced. You thanked him while getting everyone out of the seats and exiting the car. Bakugou lived in an apartment now at the tippy top of course. It was a long and loud elevator ride as your kids were antsy to see their dad. When it opened Bakugou was standing there waiting for them and was immediately met with an armful of girls.

“Daddy! I missed you so much!” Kohana said almost in tears.

“Misses Daddy.” Yoko echoed her sister.

“Yeah, I missed all you brats too, you better have been on your best behavior! You have to keep up the Bakugou reputation.” He teased them

“Of course we have! I'm still number one in my quirk development classes. Yuki has the best grades in all of his grade. Kohana is reading at a 3rd grade level already and Yoko and Saiyuri are everyone's favorite at the Daycare!” Kaori said with vigor.

“Yeah, your all Bakugou’s for sure.” He chuckled at them. He turned to talk to Hiroyuki but he was gone. You heard a door shut, he was probably already in his room.

“I've got homework to do dad and them we should do something all together!” Kaori said kissing his check before taking off. Her sisters followed her as usual.

“How long do you think he’ll be like that?” Bakugou asked you with a sigh.

“Honestly I don't know, it's not like I tell him awful things about you. Maybe it would have been better if we did cause then he would have one thing to be angry about, one event, It would be easier than him just being angry at you.” You said placing Saiyuri onto the ground to walk around.

“They’re so mature and smart I forget they’re so young. Hell we don't understand why it happened, you can't just pinpoint a time where you fell outta love, it’s gradual. So how can we expect them too.” Bakugou said, sounding in pain.

“Yeah, sucks they had to witness it. I’ve got to go meet up with someone but just… He thinks you’re going to call your parents and abandon them to do Hero work. I know you can't put off everything but I think he just wants to know that for once he can come first to you.” You said as you kissed Saiyoui’s forehead. You were about to enter the elevator when a weight crashed into you. You didn't have to look down too far to see Hiroyuki hugging you.

“Take care of Tokki, please.”

“Yes and you make sure you and your sisters behave for your dad.” He sighed but nodded at you. You gave him one last hair ruffle before leaving. You couldn't help but think this wasn't ever gonna get any easier. You sighed before heading to the next destination, a café to meet with a few of your friends.

“Y/N!” You heard a voice call to you as soon as you opened the door. You identified the voice as Mina.

“Mina! Long time no see!” You said giving her a hug.

“Y/n, dear come sit down.” Momo said smiling at you, you sat down with the group.

“How are you doing.” Mina asked you cautiously

“I’m surprisingly doing awful, I see Bakugou too much to truly get over him. The kids are still adjusting to us being apart and Hiroyuki has been really upset and distant. I thought breaking up would fix a lot but it just made everything worse.” You sighed out.

“Well of course it did!!!” Urakara whisper yelled.

“You and Bakugou called it quits way too soon! I've never seen someone handle Bakugou the way you do. I’ve never seen anyone love him like you. Hell Bakugou loves you so much it’s ridiculous! Do you remember when he was gonna put his hero work on hold because of Kaori! I’m sorry y/n but I’m not buying this fell out of love thing.” Deku rushed out.

“Mm I’d have to agree. If there is anything I’ve learned from being friends with Bakugou it’s that he never half ass anything and if he put time into it he’s gonna see it through till the end so, logically it doesn’t make sense.” Todoroki said quietly.

“Yeah so what’s your side of the story?” Mina asked carefully.

“I… loved him, you know and when we had kids it only intensified but now it’s different. Bakugou is a great dad don’t get me wrong but he’s absent and that was fine when it was just me, Kaori, Hiroyuki, and Kohana but now there is Yoko and Saiyuri. It’s hard when they all have different school times and different needs cause of their ages. It’s hard because I had to put part of my life on hold, I went to UA too and I was supposed to be one of the greatest support people out there, every agency would want me. But it was Bakugou’s dream first so I sacrificed it all in a heartbeat. Over the years he just got more busy and I got more left behind. I’m tired of waiting up till 3am to make sure he’s alright knowing I have to be up at 7 to get the kids ready for school. I… love him and I don’t want to argue with him and I could feel myself growing angry at him, feel myself growing resentful. So I brought it up under the disguise of “do you still love me” and he said No… so that was that and we were done the next week.” You said not meeting their eyes. They just looked at you with wide eyes.

“Y/n I’m sorry, I didn’t know you felt like this.” Momo said softly.

“It’s fine, he is the love of my life and our kids are my everything so I would do it all again, just for them.” You smiled with a few tears cascading down your face.

“You haven’t tried to talk to him about this, you still love him, you guys can fix this.” Deku said almost mumbling.

“But he doesn’t love me and so there is nothing to talk about. Now come on let’s talk about something else. You can hear sob stories like mine anytime.” You waved them off. They were hesitant but the conversation did pick up about their lives and your time at UA, at least the happy parts. The rest of your two days without your kids were a blur. You just remember waking up with your phone going off a Monday.

“Hello is this Bakugou Y/n?” A women’s said. The title hurt just a bit.

“Yes it is.” You responded drowsily.

“I am very sorry you have to receive a call like this but your son Bakugou Hiroyuki has been rushed to the hospital, his sister did refuse to leave his side so she is there as well.” You were silent before hanging up and immediately calling Bakugou.

“What’s up?” He rushed out. He sounded panicked so he must have gotten a call too.

“I need you to pick up Yoko and Saiyuri.” You said rushing to put in on your clothes.

“What? But yuki is in the hospital, we’ve got to be there.” He said 

“Yes but they are done with daycare in.” You paused to look at the clock on your way out the door. “A hour. If we don’t get them now we’ll have to leave him to get them.” You said finally in your car.

“Yeah and he would rather be with you than me…” he trailed off.

“I didn’t say that.” You rushed out

“You didn’t need to, I'll get them and be there as soon as I can.” He said hanging up. You sighed and continued your drive to the hospital. When you got there you rushed to the room where you looked in and saw your son unconscious and Kaori laying next to him.

“So he is going to be okay, we do want him to remain here for another day or two.” The doctor said to you, smiling.

“Okay but what’s wrong with him.” 

“Well he hasn’t been eating or drinking or sleeping enough, especially for a boy experiencing his growth spurt. Pair that with how much he has been using his quirk in class and you have a pretty bad situation.” She said as if it was nothing to worry about.

“Uhhh okay so we just need to make sure he is eating and drinking right?” You said pacing a little.

“Yeah and I would figure out what made him stop. Your daughter was very adamant about it not being abuse just that there was something going on at home and he is trying to deal with it.” The doctor said as you froze thinking you did this to him.

“Just a divorce…” you trailed off.

“Yeah that will do it but I don’t need to know about it. It's your business just make sure to talk to him so you don’t end up back here.” She said before leaving, you let out a few tears before heading into the room. Noticing you, Kaori got up and was hugging you tighter than she ever had.

“Did you know he wasn’t taking care of himself?” You asked, stroking her hair. She shook her head no.

“I didn’t either, I didn’t know it was hitting him so hard… you know you can ask me about anything, tell me anything… me and your dad will always be in your corner.” You said lifting her chin so you gazed into her eyes.

“But you're both not in our corner anymore. You guys are in to different corners and it’s hard to keep up with two different houses and two different.. well everything’s.” She said looking away from you.

“I never meant to you guys to feel like this, I just…” You trailed off but before you could finish Hiroyuki tossed and turned in his bed.

“Yuki sweetie, can you hear me?” You said as you rushed to his side.

“Mmm.” He said, he’s eyes still shut in pain.

“Oh baby, i'm so sorry I didn't notice you were in pain. It’s never gonna happen again, okay? Do you need something?” You said stroking his hair, he hummed before falling back to sleep. You sighed and kissed his forehead.

“So whats up with him?” Bakugou rushed into the room with the girls in his arms.

“He hasn’t been eating, or drinking, or sleeping. So when he used his quirk it drained his body and he’s here for 1 or 2 more days.” You said eyes never leaving his.

“That's impossible, he was just with me… he… didn't eat very much.” He trailed off. You hummed at him understanding how he was felling as you missed the signs too.

“Hey, girls I texted Grandma and Grandpa and they said they miss you so much. So while we take care of Yuki how about you guys go see them, yeah? Mr. Yuri is waiting to take you.” You smiled at them. You see a fire rise in Kaori but it goes out quick as Bakugou ruffles her hair.

“Okay then, be good for them and don't cause too much trouble. Mr. Yuri will pick up Kohana, Kaori please explain what's happening to her. And don't worry, we’ll see you real soon.” You said waving the girls out of the room. When they were out of sight you and Bakugou visually deflated. 

“Katsuki, how does this keep happening?” You asked him

“What?”

“How do things keep getting worse, first the break up, then the kids being mad at each other, Yuki’s anger at you, and now this.” You cried out.

“The break up was bad to you?” He asked voice cracking.

“Why wouldn't it be, Katsuki I know you don't love me anymore but I…” You trailed off

“Would you just spit it out dumbass! This is why we didn't work out because you never say shit. You just bottle it up and never lean on me or depend on me the way I do to you. You used to say “we're a team” all the time but in the last 2 years you haven't said it once. It was you who fell out of love with me so don't pretend like it was so hard for you.” He yelled at you.

“This is why we don't talk Katsuki, all you wanna do is yell and project all the feelings you bottle up from working so goddamn much. Of course it was hard on me and you would know why if you could drop your ego and talk to me like you can tolerate being around me or love me!” You yelled back at him but before the argument could turn into a big screaming match your sons voice rang out.

“Would you two just stop it…” He said weakly.

“Yuki, im sorry we shouldn't have been yelling even if you were asleep.” Bakugou said caressing his check. At the touch Hiroyuki let out the tears he’s been holding in.

“Its us isn't it?” He paused to look at you. “Me and my sisters… You had Kaori and me pretty young and you didn't really get to be young. You had all of us before you really got to live together just the two of you.. And Uncle Izuku and Auntie Urakara's relationship is doing fine even though they started to date around the same time as you, difference is they just started having kids like 4 years ago… Im 12 and Kaori is 13. So its us isnt?…” He said curling into himself.

“Kid, I'm not gonna lie to you, having you and Kaori at the ages we did was a nightmare. We were barely out of school, we lived with my parents for a while cause we didn't have jobs or a place of our own and even we did get one it was a shitty hole in the wall place but even at the young age of 19 we pulled our shit together and made it work so when you came a year later we were a lot more prepared. Yes we did miss out on a lot of things people our age did but we had you and Kaori and that was so much better than party’s and hangovers. Then we decided to have Kohana, Yoko, and Saiyuri and you all make us so happy. You all have nothing, not a damn thing to do with what's going on between me and y/n. If we ever made you feel like you did we didn't mean to. We love you so much and I am so sorry if we ever made it seem like it was your fault.” Bakugou said, eyes boring into Hiroyuki’s. Hiroyuki looked at you and you nodded to show you agreed with Bakugou.

“Don't ever forget how much we love you, okay? Now you should eat, we’ll get you anything you want.” You said wiping your tears with a smile.

“If it's not too much trouble, I want you and dad’s spicy pork curry and you guys should take some to the girls.” He said drowsily.

“But in order to make that we both would have to leave since it's a meal we make together… we couldn't leave you here alone.” You said mostly to yourself before any could say anything else a new voice was heard entering the room.

“You guys go talk and make him some food, ill stay with him. I didn't watch you guys terribly flirt and kiss everywhere just for it to end over some miscommunications.” Aizawa said as he took the seat next to Hiroyuki. Aizawa had remained close with a lot of students from 1A, becoming like a second dad but he had been extra close with you and Bakugou. When Kaori came into the equation he was like a nanny to her and it only increased when Hiroyuki was born, the two having a really strong bond so neither you or Bakugou was shocked he showed up.

“Okay, then old man. Watch my kid.” Bakugou said, grabbing your hand and pulling you away. You almost forgot what his calloused hand felt like. He drug you to his car and the car ride was mostly silent. The talking began when you began to cook in the house you used to share.

“Do you love me?” You asked as you cut pork

“Yes, I love you. I never stopped, I am in love with you y/n. Today I love you more than yesterday but less than tomorrow.” He said slicing onions.

“Then why did you say that, say that you didn't love me.”

“Because I could see it, you don't look at me the same. We don't talk the way we used to. I don't want to string you along and make you hate being with me, because I love you more than life itself. And I was scared that one day you would wake up and you wouldn't need me and realize how easy it would be to leave me. That it would be my fault we ended because I was so focused on me I didn't see your pain. Scared that I would wake up and gaze into your eyes and find no love or joy in them. So I decided to let you go… I was thinking we just needed a break but you suggested a divorce and I agreed because I would do anything to make sure you keep that beautiful smile of yours. Even if you weren't smiling at me anymore… do you..” He said calmly, growing more emotional with each word.

“Yea, I never ever stopped. I was just tired, I am tired. But I want nothing more than for us to work… we can get through this, can't we?” You asked cautiously.

“Of course we can, we are Bakugous, we can do whatever the hell we want. And it will be different this time, we’ll talk about things and communicate better, I swear. I aint seeing a shrink though.” He said flicking water at you to make his last point more effective.

“Yes we are.” You giggled at him.

“No we aren't, you shitty dumbass. We don't need help, I can talk about my feelings without some dumb wanna be life coach.” He yelled as he began to wash the rice.

“Well we don't have to but I guess that means Zuku and Urakara have a better relationship than us since they go to counseling…” you trailed off with a shrug.

“Oh fuck you!” He roared at you, you giggled knowing he would now go. This was the most normal you felt in months, the happiest for sure. Just maybe things would be okay, and who were you kidding you could never fall out of love with the spiky haired explosion boy no matter what he did. It was toxic in a way but you could unpack that in the therapy sessions you were gonna force him to attend.

[potato-an0n]

Hi, so I came across Escapism from Steven Universe and this question came up "what if this was what Hange was thinking throughout s4 as commander that lead to her fate in ch 132?" (or at least, that's what she convinces herself to think). Especially when Hange would say "I'm tired."

AO3 link here

I guess I have to face

That in this awful place

I shouldn't show a trace

Of doubt

"I'm saying the next commander of the Survey Corps, will be you, Hange Zoe," Erwin announces.

Hange looked at him shocked and a bit unsure.

"Eh? Me? But I don't understand.....do I even have the qualifications to even lead a whole military branch? Is there anyone else you could've picked? Like Armin!" Hange says, feeling unsure if he made the right choice choosing her for this role.

Erwin shook his head and gave her a serious look.

"Hange, you are more than capable of taking on this role. You have a brilliant mind, the experience of leadership, you're calm under pressure, you trained with the Scouts the longest therefore our soldiers know and respect you. I have great faith and confidence you'll lead humanity to victory."

"Oi, Hange."

Hange snaps out of her thoughts and looks around her office to see Levi standing at the doorway, making his way towards her desk.

"Oh Levi hi. Sorry, I've been caught up with all this paperwork. It's a lot more work than being a mad titan scientist researcher," Hange says letting out an exhausted chuckle. Levi knows that look all too well, so he lets out sigh, went in front of where she was sitting and leaned back against her desk.

"When was the last time you slept? Or bathed? You smell like shit, not like that's new," Levi commented. Hange chuckled a bit at his usual sarcasm. "Good to know you're still your usual grumpy, clean freak self," she says as she lets out a sad smile but then returned to a frown when she felt the stress get to her.

"Hey Levi, do you think....maybe Erwin made a mistake? That maybe-"

Hange felt him grab onto her shoulders and looked into his eyes in shock.

"Listen here four eyes and listen well, if anyone can take Erwin's place it's you. I don't know who told you or if someone said anything, but the Scouts need you! Paradis needs you! We need you...." As Levi finished his little speech, he felt Hange face planting into his chest. He sighs and rub his hand over her greasy head.

A few minutes has passed and Hange wasn't saying anything. Levi was starting to get concerned.

"Oi, you better not be asleep!"

Hange grumbled a bit," but I feel so comfortable right now, just a few more minutes please."

Levi pushed Hange's shoulders back away from his chest, "tch, not with your hair all gross and filthy, go take a shower."

"But the paperwork-"

"Will still be there when you're done, plus you need a break."

Hange pouts but gives in, "fine." However, an idea sparked in her head as she got up, so she gave Levi a mischievous grin and he knew exactly what that meant.

Before she could say anything, Levi found a towel and threw at her.

"Don't even think about it!"

Hange bursted out laughing as she took the towel off her head and left. She didn't notice Levi softly smiling to himself when he heard her genuinely laugh for the first time in a while.

--

But pulled against the grain

I feel a little pain

With Eren grabbing her by the collar screaming if she has a plan, the whole island doubting her leadership, trying to figure out Eren and Zeke's true plan, Levi being away technically babysitting Zeke, and the sudden rise of the Yeagarists, it was all too much for her handle, not to mention, she’s still grieving over the loss of Moblie and Erwin, but here she is, locked up in a jail cell with the remaining 104th squad, Niccolo and Onyonkapon.

After hearing more about the Yeagar brothers' plan to enable the rumbling, she was furious! 'Are you fucking kidding me?! Mass genocide?!!!’

After all the sacrifices, all the countless lives risked just to keep him safe, it all leads up to this. She needs to get out of here and come up with a plan to stop this.

Luckily, she and everyone else were able to get out of jail, only for her to stumble upon a lying body in the grass, who happens to be Levi.

Panicked, she ran straight to him and felt his pulse, praying to God she’ll feel a pulse, but she did and allowed herself to relax a bit.

“I have no idea what happened, but we’re lucky, our number one threat here is all bloodied up,” Hange heard Floch said.

“Lets shoot him in the head!” a Yeagarist exclaimed.

“He’s dead,” Hange announces after hearing the Yeagarists wanting to kill Levi. ‘Like hell they’ll lay one finger on him.’

“He got caught in the explosion of a thunder-spear point blank range. I’ve seen similar accidents during training, but beyond external wounds. Internal organs would be ripped into shreds and death would be instant,” Hange tries her best to convince Floch, but he doesn’t buy it.

“I can also take his pulse. Let me check,” he says eyeing her suspiciously.

Hange looked at him in panic and had to think quick. She spotted the river next to her and quickly dove in.

That I would rather do without

She emerges from the water with Levi in her arms. She laid him down and began the CPR procedures.

“Come on Levi! Don’t die on me please!” She screams as she continues giving him CPR. Tears were falling down her face and when she felt hopeless, Levi started coughing up water and Hange flipped him to his side as he catches his breath.

When he was able to breathe a little bit easier, Hange wraps her arms around his neck and starts bawling her eyes out. “Thank god you’re alive!”

Levi turned to look at her, caressing her hair as he laid back on the ground to allow his body to relax a bit, despite the pain he feels on his face and hands. As he feels Hange’s sobs die down, he felt her head get heavier on his chest. He smiles and quietly whispers to her “thank you” as they both slip into unconsciousness.

I’d rather be free

“I’d rather the two of us just live here, right Levi?”

Free

“If we keep running and hiding.....where will that get us?”

“Oh, so you heard me talking to myself?”

Free

“I know you four eyes. You won’t be able to stay out of the action.”

‘Fuck, he’s right. Looks like that dream has to wait I guess’

“You’re right.....I can’t.”

Hange’s voice cracked a bit as a tear slides down her cheek.

I’d rather be free

There’s no way the plane will take off in time, and the colossal titans are close!

"The plane! It won't take off!" Onyonkapon exclaims.

"We don't have much time left! The rumbling is getting closer! We need to hurry!" Hange hears someone yell.

"I'm doing the best I can!"

More panicking ensues as Hange is thinking of a plan.

"Your death is the only way the Alliance will survive and save the world."

'My death?'

"You've been suffering for so long Hange. The sudden responsibilities of being commander, while on top of that, grieving the loss of Moblit and Erwin. Don't you want that all to disappear?"

"Wouldn't you rather be free?"

'I can't....'

"It's either you die or everyone else dies."

"What will it be Hange? You have until then to decide."

Hange gripped her hair and gritted her teeth, frustrated with the stressful situation situation she's placed in. The voices in her head, everyone panicking outside, and the sound of the rumbling, it's driving her crazy, she feels her head is about to explode.

'Wouldn't you rather be free?'

'Sacrifice.....myself.....'

Hange takes a look at the colossal titans coming closer, and the plane is still struggling to take off. 'This is the only way huh?'

She thinks about whether she should go through this or not, knowing she'll be leaving the Alliance behind, leaving Levi behind.

They only had each other left. She wanted them to live together when this was all over, but looks like that won't be happening, after all, he did say they couldn't.

"What's the point if we just run and hide?"

"I know you, you won't be able to stay out of the action."

'You're right, Levi. I can't.......we can't....I'll do it.'

After Hange formed her suicide plan, she went to the deck to find the Alliance. She appoints Armin as the 15th commander of the Scouts and headed towards the colossal titans, until she heard footsteps following after. She didn't need to turn around to know it was Levi.

“You understand. It’s finally here, you know? I want to look as cool as possible right now, so please, just let me go will you?”

'I'm sorry Levi."

She waited for his response, scared of what he might say. She saw Levi coming close to her, eyes loosing his color. They look so cold and dead. He raised his right fist and bumped it onto her chest, where her heart is.

“Devote....your heart.”

Hange felt herself about to cry with the way her lips are quivering. Before she could think about changing her mind, she took off, but not without saying one last thing to him.

"Wow, I never heard you say something like that before!" she says as she tries to maintain her positive aura, but who was she kidding?

She ran towards the colossal titans, and flew up in the air with her ODM gear.

She looked below her, feeling their heat.

‘Is this what you wanted right?’

She took a deep breath and smile sadly.

“Titans.....are truly wonderful.”

'I hope you'll forgive me.'

Free

All the emotions she was feeling right now, all that anger, pain, sadness and despair, she let all out as she knocks down every colossal titan one by one.

"What are you really doing this for? To save the alliance or yourself?"

Hange paused for a minute to look at the plane that looks like it's about to take off.

'Am I?'

"Are you?"

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt her cape catch on fire and spreading throughout her body. 'Fuck....well, there's no stopping now.'

With what little strength she had left, she kept fighting, screaming out her emotions with angry yet sad tears spilling out of her eyes as she slices as many colossal titans as she could until she couldn't anymore, falling to her death.

Free

She wakes up to a plane noise, and sees it flying in the sky.

“The plane!” she exclaims to herself.

“It took off,” a deep voice said.

Hange turned around and saw Erwin, Moblit, Mike, Nanaba, the rest of the veterans, and even Marco and Sasha was there to greet her.

“You did your duty well,” Erwin says with a proud smile.

Hange was still in shock to see everyone again, but lets out a soft smile as Erwin helped her up.

‘But, I just got crushed by-‘ she pauses herself and decides to meet up with her comrades to tell them everything, only for the moment to pass by in a blink.

"There's so much to talk about...I don't know where to start..."

"We have all the time in the world," Erwin says as he reached out his hand and helped her off the ground.

From here

(If you want to stop here, you can, but I'm a sucker for happy endings and I also have my own speculations with how love is perceived in AOT that I want to write about or why Ymir chose Mikasa to be the one to decide the fate of the world pretty much, and i was think 'how about both eremika and levihan both be living proof that love isn't a like shackle or something to be a slave to?' and this whole thing I wrote is basically like a test for Hange, if she genuinely wanted to kill herself or actually did die not just for humanity, but for the Alliance to survive, also I kind of wanted Hange to have a bit of a conflict with what she really wants. Anyways, this got a lot complicated to write than I thought so hopefully, it's not too messy)

--

“So this is it then. This is how the great 14th commander of the Survey Corps Hange Zoë dies.”

Hange opens her eyes and sat up, only to see nothing but darkness. She swore a moment ago she was telling her fallen comrades about what happened after the battle to take back Shiganshina.

She stands up and walks around trying to find anything that can help her figure out what’s happening, but it’s no use.

“What’s going on?! What’s happening?! Where am I?! What are you?!”

Suddenly, she’s no longer stuck in what looks to be a dark void. There’s somewhat of a galactic sky above her, sand beneath her feet and in a distance this light that’s in a form of a giant tree. 'Am I in paths?'

She turns around and sees a little girl with blonde hair, eyes closed and a frown staring at her.

"I assume you must be Ymir Fritz. The original founder of the titans."

“Indeed I am. And as I stated earlier, you're Hange Zoë, 14th commander of what's left of the Scouts and leader of the Alliance. Everyone views your death as a noble sacrifice for humanity, but is it really a sacrifice for humanity or was it something more personal? Perhaps, even a little selfish?”

Hange gritted her teeth and clenched her fist. She did not want to deal with this right now, but deep down, what she's implying might be true.

"What are you trying to say? I had no other choice. They all would've been dead! This was the only way!"

"Even if it meant leaving that Ackerman behind? You did say you wanted to live with him when all of this was over. I envied what the both of you had for each other. You both could've been something more if you stayed. You say you sacrificed yourself for humanity's sake, but I sense there's a more selfish intent. I could tell in the look of your eyes you didn't truly want to die, perhaps because you had strong feelings for that Ackerman. But he wasn't enough....wasn't he? Your desire to free yourself from your responsibilities as commander and grief were much stronger."

Hange felt anger surge into her veins, so she grabbed Ymir by the collar and looked her in her closed eyes as she gritted her teeth in anger. However, in the back of her mind, Hange knew Ymir was kind of right about her. She did had a selfish reason, she was tired, and frustrated. She couldn't handle the responsibilities that just kept on coming, along with learning the politics and general information of every new country discovered and having to rely information from the Marlayans that showed up, along with the books Grisha left in the basement.

The more paperwork and planning she had to do, the more she started loosing herself. Everyone saw it but didn't say anything, that included Levi, but she couldn't blame him, she was too far gone. There were so many times she wanted to die, but stopped herself every time.

'Not the right time. They still need me,' she would tell herself. It wasn't until Eren started getting rebellious and the rise of the Yeagarists that really pushed her on edge. She felt so hopeless, and was lost. When Eren started provoking her in the cell, it was a sign to her that she wasn't meant for this position. She lost control of the situation and felt it was her fault. Hange felt that she wasn't useful anymore, even if they've managed to save the world and prevent Marlay from attacking Paradis.

However, without her sacrifice, the Alliance would have died with her. She didn't want to drag them down with her when they had a chance of saving humanity and living a peaceful life after the war. Even if it meant abandoning her dream of living a peaceful life with Levi.

She calms herself down and lets go of Ymir.

"You're right about one thing, I did have a selfish motive. I wanted to be free from the responsibilities and the grief I've been feeling while I was still alive. I know I'm a coward for wanting to die, but that's not the sole reason why I sacrificed myself. Not only me, but the Alliance and the rest of humanity would've been killed because of the rumbling the Yeagar brothers started! As much as I wanted to stay for Levi, I wanted him to experience a life of peace, same with the Alliance. And even if that means sacrificing myself, and giving up my future with him just so he and everyone else can live a better life after this war, then so be it." As Hange finishes her long speech, she started feeling tears streaming down her eyes.

Ymir just stood there, looking at Hange with her eyes still closed. It was silent for a bit, and then Ymir spoke up, "Very well then."

In a blink of an eye, the two appeared on what happens to be the top of Eren's spine in his founder titan form.

Hange looked below them to see the Alliance fighting past titan shifters and more titans forming. She already picked up that it was probably Ymir's doing. 'Looks like my sacrfice was worth something.'

"Why are you showing me this?" Hange asks suspiciously.

"Your friends succeeded into coming here to stop Eren from flatting the Earth with the rumbling. Everything is all going according to Eren's plan," Ymir explained.

"Why are you willing to help Eren? What is his plan really? And why is he doing this in the first place?" Hange asks, super confused on what's going on.

"You'll see if he succeeds or not. It's all up to what Mikasa decides."

"What does Mikasa have to do with any of this?"

Ymir doesn't respond and turned into some sort of a pig creature. Hange looked at her shocked and is really confused of what's happening. 'What the hell?!'

The pig creature took off and went to search for Armin. Hange sighs, knowing she can't do anything, but watch it all unfold.

'What's your true motive, Eren? And how does this connect to Mikasa?'

She winced a bit when the Alliance were struggling to keep up with the fight, and was itching to go in there and help, until, she saw something fly by. ‘What is that?’

Her eyes widened with joy when she saw Falco’s titan.

"Oh my god! HE HAS WINGS?!!! HE CAN FLY!!!! OH MY GOD THAT'S SO COOL! I CAN'T TOO- oh right.....I'm dead....." Hange sighs and continues watching over the Alliance.

Eventually, the events played out as it should and as Mikasa took the final blow (cutting Eren's head off), suddenly Hange ends up in front of Levi who's slumped against a giant rock and behind are their fallen comrades. 'Where did they come from? Ymir has to stop doing this...'

She takes a good look at Levi and can't help but feel sorrow. She regrets not being mentally strong enough, and not being a part of the fight, even if she did her part, but she doesn't regret doing what she had to do in order for everyone to survive.

It still hurt her that she couldn't be there for him physically, and experience what life would be like at the end of the war. She wasn't ready to move on, but she had no choice, this is the last time she'll see him again. She put on a sad smile, and saluted him as she and their comrades slowly faded away.

--

It was dark again and Hange couldn't see a thing. 'Not again.'

"Hello?!" she calls out to into the void. No response.

"Anyone here?!" she calls out again. Still no response.

'Am I in hell?'

"You should know by now this is not hell," a familiar voice says in a distance.

'That voice.....it sounds....familiar.....'

"Hange, it's me, Eren."

Hange's eyes widened in shock. "Eren?! What the hell is this? What's going on? Why are you doing this?!" Hange responds in anger.

The dark void suddenly transformed into some sort of starry night, galactic scenery. She's back in paths except, Eren is standing in front of her.

"I know you're upset. You remember our conversation back in the forest right? Where you and Levi settled for the time being."

Suddenly, the conversation started playing like a film in her head and she shouldn't have listened to him.

"In order for the Alliance to succeed in stopping me, you must sacrifice yourself by fighting the colossal titans."

"You've been suffering for so long Hange. The sudden responsibilities of being commander, while on top of that, grieving the loss of Moblit and Erwin. Don't you want that all to disappear?"

Hange grits her teeth as anger flows through her veins and punched Eren in the face.

"YOU FUCKING BASTARD! This was your plan all along?! All of these deaths I've experienced throughout my years in the Scouts.... my death......it was your doing all along?! OUR COMRADES EREN! AND 80% OF HUMANITY!!! I hope you're fucking happy because your plan fucking worked!"

"I know, I don't expect you to understand, but I brought you to apologize for the things I've said to you when you locked me up in the cell and in paths while you were in the forest was uncalled for, so I'm sorry about that and I haven't really given you a proper thank you either. For teaching me how to use my titan powers, and being like our second parent...same with the captain."

"Thank you? Seriously? What the fuck Eren?! You just destroyed 80% of humanity and committed mass genocide! This will take more than a mere 'thank you' and sweet talk to make up for all the cruel things you've done!" Hange says with anger in her tone.

"I understand you're angry, but I did this in order to free the world from titans. For the Marlayans to stop seeing us as 'devils' rather, I set them up to be heroes. Actually, it was more thanks to Mikasa's decision to kill me that convinced Ymir to left the curse of the titans."

Hange calmed a bit, but is still fuming with anger, 'what the fuck is wrong with this guy?!' However, she is curious about something, "I have a question though. What does Mikasa have to do with this? Why her?"

"That's something I'm not so sure either. The only person who knows is Ymir Fritz herself, however I do have a theory." Before Eren can continue, he walked towards the tree and motioned Hange to follow.

She hesitantly followed him into the tree only to end up in what looks to be a snowy mountain with these greenish blue light waves in the sky.

"The Northern Lights," Hange whispers in awe. She's read about them before, but seeing it in person was an experience, but she's starting to get distracted. "What's this theory of yours?" Hange asks getting straight to the point.

"I assume you know the true story of Ymir right?" Eren asks.

"Yes, you told me in paths back when Levi and I were camping out in the forest. Ymir was not actually the goddess cults worshipped her to be, she was a slave to the Eldian king. 2000 years ago, Ymir Fritz set a pig free and was caught. As punishment, the king set her free, but was hunted by his soldiers. One day, she stumbled upon this tree for shelter, but fell and gained the powers of the titans, thus she becomes the founding titan. She then went running back to the king despite him doing the cruelest things to her, and bore his daughters, Maria, Rose and Sina. She then sacrificed herself for him when a surviving Marlayan soldier threw a spear at him, and the king forced his daughters to eat Ymir in order to gain her powers and here we are now. Am I missing something?" Hange sarcastically asks.

"No, and good to know you remembered. I encountered this in paths when I met her, that her submission to the king, must be because she was in love with him, as hard as it is to believe in, but that's the true reason why after all this time, she continues to submit to him. For 2000 years, she's been in pain, a slave to love wishing for someone to set her free from it. She kept waiting, and waiting until finally the person arrived. And that person, was Mikasa." Eren finished explaining, but Hange was still confused.

"Hold on, so you're telling me it was all because Ymir was in love with her abuser? You've got to be kidding me....but after listening to that, I'm guessing that Mikasa killing you, despite having feelings for you is the result needed in order for Ymir to lift the curse am I right? Ymir needed to see proof that you just because you love someone doesn't mean you're a slave to them, and Mikasa killing you but still loving you was proof of that," Hange said and paused for a moment before asking a question that's been on her mind for a bit, "just wondering, did you love her too?"

"I still do. As much as I want her to be happy and be happy with someone who truly deserves her, I don't want her to move on from me," Eren says as he's tearing up. "I didn't mean anything I said to her, nor Armin. I told Mikasa that I've always hated her when that was the biggest lie I ever said in my life, but I needed her to hate me so she can kill me. I remember when you said you wanted to run away with Captain Levi and live together in the forest, I wanted to do that with Mikasa. I wanted to abandon everything and spend the remaining years I had left with her in the mountains."

"Well that makes two of us. Those Ackermans are strong aren't they? Then again, they don't call them humanity's strongest soldiers for nothing," Hange coldly chuckled a bit.

"Yeah, they really are," Eren agreed. "By the way, were you and the captain dating? What's your story with him?"

Hange sighs, she really doesn't want to talk about it, especially to Eren of all people at the moment, but since she's technically stuck in here, might as well entertain him.

"Our relationship is......complicated to say the least. We don't have a label, and we didn't need one. We knew we love and cared for each other, why do we need a label for it? At the end of the day, we're just Hange and Levi. However, I believed after that night in the forest together, I started thinking about our future. I thought to myself, 'what would life be like for me and Levi if we decided to settle down here?' I wondered if Levi ever felt the same way. Instead, he snapped me out of reality, reminding ourselves that we're soldiers first, and he was right." Hange paused a bit to wipe her tears only for Eren speak up.

"How did you first meet?' he asked.

Hange started reminiscing the moments and memories she had with Levi. She told Eren how Levi, Farlan and Isabel joined the scouts and how he almost stabbed her when she first approached him because he thought Hange about their plan to kill Erwin at the time. She went into some detail about how the deaths of Farlan and Isabel impacted him, how Hange handled it and how their relationship with one another grew. 'I miss him so much.'

"Do you still love him?" Eren asks.

"I never stopped loving him, even if it meant parting ways with him just to save humanity from the destruction you caused and also freeing myself from my personal baggage. It hurts that we can't be together, but I don't regret my decision. As long as he's alive and not alone, even if it meant I'm not there, then I fulfilled my duty. That's all I ever wanted, " Hange answers.

"I see. That's all we needed to hear."

"We?"

Suddenly, the atmosphere changed, they were back in paths. Hange was now faced directly at the tree with Eren and Ymir standing on both sides of the tree.

"Mikasa isn't the only Ymir chose. It's obvious both you and Levi have something special that could blossom into something more, and you both could've ran away together, but you didn't, instead, you gave that up to ensure him and the Alliance would save humanity and finally live in peace, while Levi gave you up because he knew you wanted to be free, so he let you go. We can't bring back someone from the dead, but there is something I can do."

Suddenly, the light from the tree grew even brighter and before she could react, the light engulfed her body as she felt herself fading away from paths.

--

"Hange"

"Hange!"

"HANGE!"

Hange's eyes instantly opened as she woke up in a cold sweat and heavily panting. She looked around the room she ended up in and saw that she's in a bedroom.

"Oi, four eyes, how long will you be staring at the wall for?" a familiar grumpy voice asks.

Hange turned to her left and saw it was Levi sitting next to her. The right side of his face was scarred and his right eye turned white. She looked down at his hand to see it was holding hers and his two fingers were still missing. Suddenly she felt tears coming down her right eye, leaving Levi confused and worried.

"Hange? What's going on-"

Before Levi could finish his question, Hange instantly wrapped her arms around him and buried her head onto his shoulders, sobbing her heart out. Levi, despite being confused, stayed silent and held her close, comforting her as she cries.

A few minutes passed and he felt Hange's cries die down to sniffles.

"So, you want to tell me what was that all about?" Levi says.

Hange pushed herself back up to wipe the tears from her face.

"I missed you so much Levi! I'm so sorry I left you behind. The truth is, I did want to kill myself back there, at least, that's what I thought I wanted. I guess what I really wanted was for you and the Alliance to survive and live in peace once the war was finally over, but when I saw you against the rock, I couldn't help but feel sad. I wanted to be with you and we were so close, only for me to die at the last second. But where am I? What is this? I thought I died, did I die? Are you dead as well? I swear to god please tell we're-"

"Ok, one thing at a time four eyes. First off what do you mean died?" Levi asks. Hange was genuinely confused, "Didn't you see me die when I was fighting off the colossal titans? There was no way I was going to make it."

"Hange, did you hit your head or something? Or just somehow forgot 3 years worth of memories?"

"THREE YEARS?!!" Hange exclaims. 'Have I been asleep for three years?'

"Hange what has gotten into you? Was your nightmare that bad?"

Hange was so confused at what's happening, was she dreaming this whole time? Or sent to another universe of some sort- wait a minute.

"Hey Levi, where are we?" Hange asks attempting to stay calm.

Levi looked at her concerned and a bit nervous that she might be going crazy.

"Our bedroom? In the house we've living in ever since the war ended. We found an unused cabin near Odiha. Hange, are you sure you didn't hit your head last night?" Levi nervously asks as he grabs her head to examine it, seeing if there's any bruises.

"No I didn't! It's just that, one moment I was watching you guys fighting titans on top of Eren's spine, and then I was with our comrades seeing you for one final time, only to end up in paths with Eren and Ymir standing next to a tree and then suddenly, a bright light appeared....wait a minute," Hange mumbled to herself.

"We can't bring back someone from the dead, but there is something I can do."

'Is this some sort of dream or am I actually in an alternate universe... wait, did they send me into an alternate universe where I didn't die?'

"Oi, four eyes!"

Hange snapped out of her thoughts, theories still developing in her mind.

"Levi, what happened back when the plane couldn't take off in Odiha 3 years ago?"

Levi gave her a really confused look, but answered anyways.

"I saw you running out of the deck and overheard you appointing Armin to be the 15th commander of the Scouts. Those brats knew about your suicide plan so they convinced you into letting them help you take down as many colossal titans as they can to buy time, and you caved in. Luckily the plane took off in time before you and those brats started getting exhausted. I assume you know the rest."

'So, they did send me to an alternate universe. The one where I didn't die....'

"Sorry Levi, it's just that, in my 'nightmare' I fought those colossal titans alone. I burned to death and got trampled on. To be honest, back then, I did want to die. I thought being free from my responsibilities as commander was what I really wanted, that death would set me free, but it didn't. Instead, I started feeling more regret that I left everyone I care about behind, that includes you Levi, but even if I realize that now, my death was inevitable. Either I go, or you guys die with me, and if my sacrifice was the price, then so be it."

Hange felt Levi pull her close and felt his hand caress her hair.

"We're here now Hange. It's all over, we can finally rest and live the life we've always dreamed of. And for the record, you were a great commander, without you, the world would've been flattened."

Hange eyes glistened with tears when heard that. She leaned in closer to Levi's embrace, taking it all in.

They stayed in each other's arms for a few minutes until they heard knocking on the door.

"Must be Gabi, Falco and Onyonkapon, maybe you can explain to them your dream. Can you get my wheelchair?" Levi asks as looks for his shirt and pants on the ground.

"You're in a wheelchair now? Awee Levi, is age catching up to you?" Hange asks teasingly.

"Just get the goddamn wheelchair Hange! And for the record, I permanently broke my left leg saving your guys' ass three years ago," Levi grunted.

Hange went to get his wheelchair that was lying against the wall in front of their bed, and helps him sit.

"You should change or at least fix your hair," Levi suggests.

"Do I have to?" Hange whines.

Levi glares at her and Hange rolls her eyes and pouted.

"Ugh, fine," Hange grunted.

As she made her to way the bathroom to get dressed, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and she felt genuinely happy to see her reflection. A reminder that she's alive, and she can finally experience a peaceful life with Levi and the Alliance, not to mention, traveling around the world.

"Hey Levi!" Hange calls out.

Levi was about to wheel his way out of the bedroom to answer the front door, but paused when he heard Hange calling him.

"What?"

"I'm so glad to be alive."

Levi was kind of stunned with the sudden out burst, but he found it endearing and didn't care, as long as she's happy.

"Me too, four eyes."

[kaistarus]

UA’s Freaky Friday

Pairings: Bakugou X Reader

Words: 3.4K

Summary: You and Bakugou switch bodies because of a quirk. Antics ensue and feelings make it awkward

Notes: This idea has been haunting me for months, so I just needed to get it out. I hope somebody enjoys it lol

Masterlist // Ko-fi

At first, when Bakugou made the offer for you to join him on his morning workouts you flat out denied him. It didn’t matter how much your heart fluttered when he walked into the room, you were not built to walk up before 7 am. However, after some coercion from Mina—endless lectures and threats of ending weekly movie nights—you found yourself agreeing to his awful proposal. Which was why you were now curled into a fetal position on uncomfortably dewy grass beside a track.

               “Are you just going to fucking lay there all morning?” Bakugou asked, seated on the asphalt to stretch out his legs. “Get up and start stretching.”

               You whined pathetically and rolled into a half-assed sitting position, laying on your leg and flimsily holding your foot, imagining yourself tucked into the warmth of your bed. You were definitely going to get back at Mina for convincing you this was worth alone time with Bakugou.

               Bakugou started a lecture about the importance of building endurance and running or something you were trying to tune out when you heard what sounded like a kid crying nearby. You were the only two outside this early, and there shouldn’t be any children near the dorms.

               “Do you hear that?”

               Bakugou furrowed his brows, crossing his arms in irritation at being interrupted. “What?”

               You spotted a young boy walking towards the end of the track and you stood quickly. “That.”

               You weren’t sure if Bakugou was behind you, your focus was on the child wandering around UA’s school grounds—a place that’s impossible for anyone to enter besides staff and students. You leaned before the sniffling boy with a wide smile.

               “Hello,” you said soothingly. “You look like your lost?”

               The boy shrunk away, eyeing you cautiously before nodding his head.

               “Well, this is an awfully strange place for you to end up.” You laughed and outstretched your hand. “How about we find someone who can help?”

               The young boy, who appeared no older than six, sniffled once more before reaching to grab your hand.

               “What the fuck is a brat like this doing in the middle of the schoolyard?”

               The little boy’s eyes welled up and he pulled his hand away from you, once again curling up onto himself. You whipped around and glared daggers at Bakugou standing defiantly above you.

               “You’re scaring him.”

               “I didn’t do shit.” Bakugou rolled his eyes and you puffed your cheeks in frustration.

               “I’m trying to get him inside,” you said through gritted teeth. “I was calming him down.”

               “Well, you did a piss poor job. He’s fucking crying.”

               “I was doing just fine until you came and—"

                A bright light illuminated behind you and you spun to see the boy had begun to glow a neon orange. You put your hand out, but before you could try to calm the child you were surrounded by a strange static. A buzz coursed through you for several seconds before the weird sensation was lifted and the boy returned to normal. The momentary response without pain made you think it was just an uncontrollable reaction from a kid who didn’t have a grasp on their quirk yet, so you just smiled in relief.

               That was, until you looked beside you to check on Bakugou and your jaw dropped.

                ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

               “There has to be something you can do,” you paced around the infirmary, gripping the spiky ash-blonde locks that shouldn’t be on your head. Your now scarlet eyes flickered around the room as if an answer would come from the various medicinal materials lying about. “I can’t stay like this.”

               “You can’t stay like this?” Bakugou shouted, his voice several pitches higher than normal, making you cringe. “You should be so fucking lucky to look like that. Look at me!”

You stomped the combat boot you now adorned offended as he gestured wildly towards himself. His new appearance was familiar in the worst way. It wasn’t what you were used to seeing on him, but features you’d memorized since a child, years of looking in mirrors.

“As if looks are my main concern. You’ll ruin my reputation,” You groaned, palming your eyes before pulling your hands back with a gag. “Why are my hands so gross?”

“’Cause your cutesy ass won’t ruin my reputation?” Bakugou growled, attempting a lackluster version of his usual sneer that was hardly intimidating with your softer features. “And it’s from my fucking quirk, dumb ass.”

“Well, I didn’t realize your quirk made you so gross.” You snorted, waving your obnoxiously sweaty hands in Bakugou’s face snootily. Bakugou opened his—your—mouth to yell, but you were interrupted by Aizawa clearing his throat.

“Well… sorry to interrupt, but I have both good and bad news.” Recovery Girl walked to her desk and hopped onto her chair. “It appears that there is nothing I can do to reverse the effects of the quirk; however, the quirk is rather weak considering it’s from a child. It should last no longer than 24 hours.”

               “24 hours?” Bakugou shouted, mumbling strings of curses as he stomped around the room. You just stared blankly at an eye chart against the wall, unable to process the information as you watched Bakugou continue to throw a fit in your body. You were getting nauseous.

               “Unfortunately, the child wandered off this morning. We were studying his quirk, but we weren’t aware of how early he’d wake up.” Aizawa rubbed the back of his neck. “The school takes full responsibility for the situation.”

               “If you’re lucky, the earliest it could be done is the end of the day.” Recovery Girl smiled.

               You narrowed your eyes at Aizawa. You had a sneaking suspicion that there was more to just the boy sneaking off, and it probably had something to do with the huge cup of coffee in his hands. The way Bakugou was glaring at him made you think he was on a similar thought process.

               “Well, as unfortunate as this situation is there is nothing we can do.” Recovery Girl hopped off her stool easily ignoring Bakugou’s threats as she sauntered to the door with the assistance of her needle-like cane. “I suggest you both set some boundaries while you’re together.”

               You felt your face begin to burn and your stomach drop as the situation began to sort itself out. A lot would happen in 24 hours. Bakugou was eyeing daggers through the door Recovery Girl and Aizawa exited, and you were just hoping for the sweet release of death.

               “Okay,” you looked away when Bakugou turned to you. It was too freaky seeing yourself sneer at you. “Obviously there should be no unnecessary clothes changing. And if you have to go to the bathroom just hold it as long as possible.”

               The room fell deafeningly silent and you glanced up to see if he had even heard you. He was turned toward the door, but you saw the tinted red ears. You were glad because it meant Bakugou heard you but frustrated because it meant people could easily notice when you were embarrassed.

               “I think… we’ll be fine.” You mumbled, staring at his shoes that were fitted to you. “I trust you.”

               He glanced back to you with wide eyes, but quickly turned away. “Same. Or whatever.”

               You bit your—his—lip and nodded to yourself as he walked out of the room. This wouldn’t be terrible, you told yourself. It was just one day. All you had to do was survive it.

               ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

                 “No way!” Kaminari snickered, leaning into Bakugou’s face as he growled in your smaller body. Bakugou pushed Kaminari’s face away, and instead of it striking its usual fear with the help of explosions Kaminari just swatted the hand away and giggled. “This is so great!”

               “Fuck you!” Bakugou shouted, raising his hand to strike again. A mist of light blue began to form around Bakugou’s hand and panic shot through you. You leaped over a desk and grabbed his smaller wrist, forcing it downwards. “What the hell, let go of me!”

               “You were using my quirk!” You pointed out lifting the hand that was still glowing. He blinked a few times then furrowed his brow in concentration until it stopped.

               “This is so weird.” Mina narrowed her eyes at you. “Is that really you in there?”

               “Yep,” you chuckled, gesturing up and down at the gym uniform you couldn’t change out of. “In the gross and sweaty flesh.”

               “I told you that’s my fucking quirk.” Bakugou growled while Kaminari and Kirishima burst into laughter. He tried to swing at them both, but Kirishima easily blocked the strikes.

               “That doesn’t mean it’s not gross.” You shook your hands that were now literally dripping sweat. Bakugou picked one up with a grimace.

               “They haven’t been like this since I was five.”

               “Well, I haven’t had twelve years to learn how to not be sweaty.” You wiped your hands on Bakugou’s pants.

               “Better not light those up.” Bakugou warned and you froze mid-action before holding your hands out as far as possible.

               “What?” You said weakly as Aizawa walked into the room. “Your clothes explode?”

               “My sweat explodes, idiot. And now it’s on my clothes, so watch where you set off my explosions.” Bakugou rolled his eyes.

               “You don’t make your clothes, like, explosion-proof?”

               “Oh sure, let me just walk down to the fucking explosive-sweat-proof clothing store for some quality apparel. I hope they have compression shorts.” You puffed up your cheeks in frustration and heard half the room choke. “Get that look off my face!”

               “I can’t change how I make faces!” You threw your hands up. “I’m not going to scowl all day.”

               Bakugou crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat annoyed. It’s not like you enjoyed seeing yourself look so pissed off, at this rate Bakugou was going to give you premature wrinkles after just one day. You leaned your forehead onto your desk as Aizawa started his first lecture.

   This was the worst day ever.

               ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

                This was the best day ever.

               “Say it again,” Kaminari said, leaning over the lunch table with pleading eyes. You smirked evilly.

               “Kaminari, I think you’re a hilarious meme god and I respect you.” You said while placing a hand on Kaminari’s head. His eyes started to well up and he sniffled.

               “I think I’m going to cry.” Kaminari clutched his chest at the spot over his heart and smacked his forehead against the lunch table. Bakugou went off with Midoriya somewhere after the bell rang, which gave you and Mina ample time for scheming. When Kaminari first asked you to give him a compliment it made you laugh, then you and Mina gave each other an evil look at the same time and five minutes later you were in business.

               The current deal was $5 dollars per Bakugou statement. Mina was collecting the cash and all you had to do was speak a sentence or two. The best part, Bakugou was none the wiser. You two would make off with a shit ton of cash and spend it before he even knows what hit him. You two were true geniuses.

               You made $20 off Kaminari alone.

               “Don’t you think it’s a little… morally wrong to do this?” Kirishima asked as you collected $5 from Iida to say you respected him as a class rep.

               “I mean, maybe, but it would be a crime to not use this opportunity at all, right?” You narrowed your eyes. “My best friend Kirishima whose hair I think is awesome as fuck.”

               Kirishima’s eyes widened. “If he asks, I saw nothing.”

               You saluted the boy in acknowledgment and was a little surprised when Todoroki walked up to your table, handing you a slip of paper on top of $5. You read it a couple times and raised an eyebrow at him.

               “Todoroki you are my friend.”

               Todoroki nodded with a straight face before walking back to his usual table without ever speaking a word. You and Mina gave each other confused looks but shrugged it off. Somebody tapped your shoulder and without looking back you stuck your hand out.

               “You know the drill. $5, buddy.”

               “Fucking what?”

               You blinked at the sound of your voice and slowly turned around. Apparently, Bakugou had gotten pretty good at sneers throughout the day because you were almost too impressed to be nervous. Almost.

               “Hey, there.” You chuckled awkwardly. “To what do I owe the honor?”

               “What the fuck are you doing?”

               “Making serious bank.” Mina started fanning out the obnoxious amount of cash you’d collected so far.

               “I was planning on giving you half.” You lied while Mina gasped beside you. You tried signaling her to shush in hopes she wouldn’t blow the cover, but Bakugou seemingly didn’t care either way.

               “You’re dead.”

               “On the contrary, I’ve never felt more alive.” You winked. Uraraka skipped up to the table completely ignoring Bakugou staring her down, and she gave Mina $5 and you a slip of paper. You read it several times, glancing between Bakugou and Uraraka’s mischievous smile as she stared directly at him.

               “I am a big bitch baby. The biggest little whiny bitch baby. I could never beat Uraraka in a fight cause I’m just that much of a big… stupid… bitch…” You looked up at Bakugou who was absolutely fuming. “…baby.”

               Uraraka was flipping Bakugou off and he lunged at her before she ran away giggling. They started a chase around the cafeteria, and you watched amazed at how fast you could apparently run. After that, you and Mina decided it was, unfortunately, time to shut down the business. Lunch was almost over anyway.

              ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

               You tapped your foot on the ceramic floor of the locker room and sighed dramatically. You were trying to be a decent human being and get Bakugou’s things from his locker, but the asshole wasn’t texting you back his combination. He also had school shoes in there, and if this did continue until tomorrow you both needed those.

               You were typing out another dramatic text when someone came barreling into the locker area.

               “Bakugou! You’re still here.”

               You’re tilted your head at Tetsutetsu leaning against the lockers out of breath. Since when were these two friends?

               “Well, I’m actually not—”

               “Look, Kirishima let it slip that you have a crush on (Y/N), so I just wanted to check if that was true.” Tetsutetsu was standing defensively as if expecting an attack at any moment, but you were frozen. Your jaw had gone slack, and your phone that started to vibrate slid out of your hands.

               “What?”

               “Before you kill him it was completely my fault, so you can fight me later.” Tetsutetsu continued. “I was planning on asking her out this weekend, but if you like her, I don’t stand a chance since I think she’s kind of into you.”

               Your eyes widened and you felt a weird tickling sensation on your palms. You glanced down and realized that they were beginning to spark, so you held them out at an awkward distance. “I—I don’t know.”

               “So, it’s fine that I ask her out?”

               “What? No.” You shook your hands trying to snuff out the explosions. Tetsutetsu raised an eyebrow at you. “I just—go away. I’ll do… something. Don’t ask her out.”

               “Okay…” Tetsutetsu’s shoulders sunk. If it wasn’t for the fact that your hands were literal bombs, you’d feel more guilty about whatever had just happened. When the sparks died down you picked your phone back up and saw the three grumpy texts from Bakugou and several missed calls from Kirishima. You ran a sweaty hand through spiked hair.

               Tetsutetsu had a crush on you? Except Kirishima told him Bakugou had a crush on you? And he thought you had a crush on Bakugou? Well, you kind of did… so that wasn’t new information, but the rest of it? You took a deep breath and left for the dorms.

               Could Bakugou really have a crush on you? Sure, Mina and the others always made jokes about him looking at you during class or treating you differently than the rest of them. You guys bicker a lot, but you know it’s playful and you’re usually laughing at the end of it. He offers to train with you when you don’t need it or walk you into town when there’s no reasonable threat. If you were being honest, it wasn’t an unreasonable idea.

               You just never wanted to get your hopes up.

               Without realizing it you had arrived at the building and were mindlessly standing outside the entrance.

               “What are you doing?”

               Speak of the devil and he shall appear.

               You looked over your shoulder to see yourself slouching with hands deep in your pockets. It was so bizarre to see someone identical to you, but with mannerisms so unlike yourself. It made you dizzy. Or maybe it was all the life processing you’ve been doing in the last few minutes.

               “I don’t know.”

               He raised a brow. “Did you grab my stuff?”

               You looked down at your empty hands realizing that after making a big deal over the combination you didn’t even use it. You glanced back up at him. It was probably because he adorned the face you were so used to giving you pep talks in the mirror that instead of an apology your mouth leaked out.

               “Do you like me?”

               His shoulders shot to his ears. “What the fuck?”

               You chewed your lip and dug the toe of his boot into the concrete. “Apparently, Kirishima let it slip that you have a crush on me…” You figured the least you could do was cut Tetsutetsu some slack since you basically shut him down without him realizing it. Bakugou would go easy on Kirishima, but he’d destroy Tetsutetsu.

               “Fucking Shitty Hair….” Bakugou growled, clenching his fists and scowling at the overcast sky. You glanced upwards, finding nothing of importance. “I… maybe.”

               “Maybe?”

               “Yes. Okay? Fuck, this isn’t—” He threw his hands up and stomped in a small circle. “This is fucking weird. You’re supposed to be you and I’m supposed to be me. This isn’t what I wanted.”

               You bit your cheek, trying to hold back laughter. “Honestly, I kind of figured this might turn you on.”

               “Fuck off.” He stated, but you saw the smile creeping onto his face.

               “I like you too,” you muttered, barely above a whisper. “The me you. Not you me.”

               Bakugou sighed exasperated and palmed at his—your—eyes. You stared at him with a fond smile. “Stop looking at me like that.” He scowled, pointing a finger accusingly.

               “I can’t I’m happy.” You said, cupping your cheeks with sweaty hands.

               “Well, stop being happy as me.”

               “But you’re happy too!” You sing-songed leaning over to poke his cheek. He swatted your hand away and pouted.

               “No, I’m fucking not…” He rolled his eyes, but the soft smile proved otherwise. “We’re doing this over. When things go back to normal.”

               “A redo?”

               He nodded his head. He scolded you for skipping after him into the dorm building, and again for humming happy tunes during dinner. You couldn’t help it though. You were excited. It wasn’t until you were both going your separate ways for the night that you felt the tingle spread throughout you again. When you looked down to see your own body, your dry hands you could touch things with, and your own voice that, although a bit scratchy from Bakugou’s yelling, was familiar and comforting. You’ve never been happier to be you.

               Bakugou was quick to appear in your hallway to check that you made it back okay and your heart skyrocketed at seeing him across from you. Before he could get a word out you flung your arms around him in a celebratory hug, unable to contain your excitement and giggles. In that moment, you weren’t sure things could get any better. Until you pulled back and Bakugou was leaning down to press his lips against yours did you realize just how much greater things could become.

               “That’s more how I pictured it.” He said, leaning back with a smirk.

               “That… that was nice.” You nodded, a smile spreading across your face. He snorted at your response and pulled you closer.

               You couldn’t say you were grateful for the experience you had to go through today, but without it, you wouldn’t be kissing Bakugou goodnight now. So, maybe you’d have to figure out who that little boy was and thank him. The risk had definitely been worth the reward.

[spookypalace]

something borrowed - chapter one

After one drink too many at her  30th-birthday celebration, Jo unexpectedly falls into bed with her  longtime crush and best friend, Alex -- who happens to be engaged to her best friend, Izzie. Ramifications of the liaison threaten to destroy  the women's lifelong friendship, while Jackson, Jo's  confidant, harbors a potentially explosive secret of his own.

—

Or the one where everyone is a little messy but you still root for them anyway.

June 2010

“Oh! Wow, I had no idea! This is amazing.” The small brunette whispers to herself as she paces the dark littered sidewalk of ninth street in the East Village, the wind briskly wafting through her freshly curled hair as her high-heeled clad feet clicked against the gravel. “No, that sounds so obvious,” She continues to mumble to herself, using a manicured finger to flick away the bang which had stuck to the lip-gloss which painted her plump pink lips. With a deep sigh, she threw her hands back to her sides, shaking them furiously as she felt the familiar clammy feeling begin to settle in her palms due to her nervousness.

As her entire body began to heat up, she was thankful that it was the little black dress that had caught her eye earlier that evening whilst she was examining her wardrobe in search of something to wear. It wasn’t a dress she had chosen for herself; short little pieces of clothing had never been her thing—her style was usually casual, ripped jeans and relaxed t-shirts. But her best friend, Izzie Stevens, had picked it out specifically for her during a shopping trip back when they were college freshman. It was Izzie’s style; figure hugging, clinging to every curve and a deep square neckline which showed off her perky assets.

She didn’t believe she had any of that, never had. Her shoulders were a little wider than her hips, her legs much shorter, barely standing at five foot four and her chest substantially lacked what Izzie’s had. With luscious blonde hair which flowed down her back, blinding white teeth and skin smoother than butter, Izzie really was perfect. Izzie was always the lucky one, always had been—since they were in fifth grade. Her skin tanned more quickly, her hair feathered more easily, and she didn't need braces. Her cartwheels were superior, as were her front handsprings (she couldn't do a handspring at all). She had double-pierced ears and the trendiest clothing from her rich and caring parents.

But at least Jo would always be a few months younger than Izzie, six months, and four days to be exact. Izzie, as obsessed with clear and smooth skin as she was, constantly worried about growing old and the aging effects that was brought with old age. Izzie’s age was the one thing that Jo didn’t quite mind never catching up to.

“Oh my god!” Jo plasters a fake wide grin on her face and throws her hands into the air in mock surprise, white teeth illuminating the small corner of the street she continued to pace up and down. She brings her dainty hands to her chest and widens her eyes as not to blink, willing herself not to blink in an effort to fake cry. Something which she was usually very skilled at. But not tonight it seemed.

With a groan, Jo gives up, “I suck!” She shouts into the empty street before sitting down onto the concrete steps which lead up to the apartment building, she was currently having a small breakdown outside of. Huffing, she removes the black heel from her right foot, resting for a moment in hopes she’ll finally calm down.

The feeling Jo currently had reminded her of New Year's Eve when the countdown is coming and she’s not quite sure whether to grab my camera or just live in the moment. New Year’s Eve never goes how you plan. Then you’re left feeling enormously let down and think to yourself that the night would have been more fun if it didn't mean quite so much, if you weren't forced to analyse where you’ve been and where you’re going.

Like New Year's Eve, tonight is an ending and a beginning. She didn't like endings and beginnings. She would always prefer to churn about in the middle. The worst thing about this particular end (of her youth) and beginning (of middle age) is that for the first time in her life, Jo realises that she has no idea where she’s going. Her wants are simple: a job that she enjoys and a guy whom she loves. And on the eve of her thirtieth birthday, Jo had come to the realisation that she wasn’t anywhere near getting what she wanted.

First, she’s an attorney at a large New York firm. By definition this means that she’s miserable. Being a lawyer just isn't what she thought it was cracked up to be—it's nothing like L.A. Law, the show that caused applications to law schools to skyrocket in the early nineties. She works excruciating hours for a mean-spirited, anal-retentive partner, doing mostly tedious tasks, and that sort of hatred for what you do for a living begins to chip away at you. So, Jo had memorised the mantra of the law-firm associate: I hate my job and will quit soon. Just as soon as I pay off my loans. Just as soon as I make next year's bonus. Just as soon as I think of something else to do that will pay the rent. Or find someone who will pay it for me.

Which brings Jo to her second point: she feels desperately alone in a city of millions.

Whilst visually she knows for a fact she’s not alone, because if she were then she wouldn’t currently be stressing out about how to fake shock to all of her friends once she enters the club in which her ‘surprise’ birthday party is being hosted in five minutes. She had friends to summer within the Hamptons, friends to meet on a Thursday night after work for a drink or two or three, friends to gossip with and rant to. And she had Izzie, her best friend from home, who is all of the above.

For a while, friends were all she needed—when you’re in your twenties, settling down with the man of your dreams can wait. There’s still so much living to do when you’re twenty-three and then twenty-seven, but by the time you’re twenty-nine … the cold empty side of your double bed begins to get a little old.

“Right.” Jackson Avery’s voice booms from the now open door which leads to his apartment, shaking Jo from her thoughts of loneliness, “I’m ready, you good?” He asks with a smirk when he notices her perched on his steps, face bored and disinterested.

Big doe eyes, decorated with mascara and dark eyeshadow, glance up at him as her lips turn into a pout involuntarily. “I don’t wanna’ go,” she knows he thinks she sounds like a toddler, she can tell by the way he chuckles and continues to look down at her with raised eyebrows, “I don’t want to be thirty.”

Jackson jogs down the few steps, straightening the lapels of his suit jacket as he does so, until he’s standing directly in front of the small woman. “Come on,” he extends a handout to her, hoping she’ll take it without much of a fight. Jo only pushes her bottom lip out further as she places her foot back into the uncomfortable heel and places her hand into his, groaning as Jackson pulls her up with force. “If it makes you feel any better then honestly, you don’t look a day over twenty-five.”

Jo scoffs, letting him lead her towards the club only two streets away from his place, “right.”

She had met Jackson in college, during orientation their freshman year. Whilst they weren’t fast friends, both of them were rather reserved. After a while they began to grow closer; during study sessions and group projects—they always seemed to be on the same page. It wasn’t until they finished college and realised that they were only living a few blocks from one another that they really started to spend time outside of class together, Jackson was always available for a morning coffee or an afternoon stroll during a stressful day.

Izzie had always been adamant that Jackson was crushing hard on Jo, but she never saw it. When it came to men, Izzie had a one-track mind—according to the blonde, no male and female could ever just be friends. She believed this so strongly that she took it upon herself to try and set the pair up during every night out at the bar or weekend lunch. Something which got old and obnoxious on Izzie’s part fast. Due to this, Jo had chosen to keep her friendships with the two fairly separate. Except for the times it was unavoidable, like birthdays and engagement parties and whatnot. Like tonight.

They arrive at the club far too quickly for Jo’s liking, she comes to a stand still once they’re outside, dragging Jackson back by the clasp of their hands as she firmly stays put. He sighs, his eyes subtly giving her the once over now Jo’s directly stood in the bright lights of the nightclub’s neon sign. Jo doesn’t notice, pays no mind to the man in front of her as she thinks about what’s on the other side of that door.

“What’s up?” He asks, frowning with concern, “you love an excuse to get drunk—your thirtieth birthday is as good an excuse as any,”

Jo takes a deep breath, “I told you, I’m getting old.”

“Keep going with that and I’m going to get offended,” he steps closer to her with a smirk, eyes gazing down at hers, “you remember I turned thirty, like, ten months ago, right?”

At Jackson’s comment, a sincere smile finally spreads across Jo’s glossy lips, “barely, I woke up passed out in your bed with a pink wig on and roller skates hanging off my feet.” Jackson’s smirk turns into full-fledged laughter as he recalls the memory.

“If we’re lucky then maybe tonight will end similar.”

Jo’s eyes glimmer as she teases, “no way, I’m thirty tomorrow—it’s socially unacceptable for me to wake up in some random guys bed.”

Jacksons face turns into a mock frown, “random?” As they both continue to laugh with one another, Jo shoves a dainty hand into his chest and walks past him with a bump to his shoulder. Her heels click towards the large black door with the shiny brass handle, pulling it open as she throws an eye roll at him and finally gets over her nerves and steps into the room her friends had piled into to celebrate her birth.

She wasn’t alone, she knows that—she felt that when she stood with Jackson, laughing and smiling so effortlessly.

But she was lonely.

One hour later, once everyone has gotten over how atrociously Jo’s fake shock was, the party is in full swing. People were dancing and laughing and singing along to the sound of Jo and Izzie’s nineties playlist as it blared through the speakers.

She never enjoyed being the centre of attention, which is why she specifically asked Izzie months ago not to throw her any kind of party—before Jackson informed Jo that actually, Izzie had ignored her completely, Jo’s plan was to enjoy a chilled night at their favourite bar. Just Jo, Jackson, Stephanie, Izzie and Alex.

Alex. The one saving grace of this party—his face was the first she spotted when she walked through the club doors, the first voice she heard and the first person who brought a smile onto her face. He’d sent her a wink, one which reminded her of way back when they were barely twenty, and it sent butterflies swirling in her stomach. She won’t lie and say she wasn’t disappointed when Izzie ran through the crowd of people, arms swinging and lips screaming, to engulf Jo into a tight hug, spinning the shorter woman around, and cutting through the moment.

Jo’s current personal situation seems all the more dismal as she sat with her oldest and bestest friend in the corner booth of the club, the blonde had a glamorous PR job and was now freshly engaged. After all this time, Izzie is still the lucky one. Jo watches her, telling a story to the group which had gathered into the booth, including her fiancé.

Alex and Izzie were an exquisite couple, lean and tall with ridiculous good look and great jobs. They are among New York's beautiful people. The well-groomed couple registering for fine china and crystal on the sixth floor at Bloomingdale's. You hate their smugness but can't resist staring at them when you're on the same floor searching for a not-too-expensive gift for the umpteenth wedding you've been invited to without a date. You strain to glimpse her ring and are instantly sorry you did. She catches you staring and gives you a disdainful once-over. You wish you hadn't worn your tennis shoes to Bloomingdale's. She is probably thinking that the footwear may be part of your problem. You buy your Waterford vase and get the hell out of there.

“So, the lesson here is: if you ask for a Brazilian bikini wax, make sure you specify.” Izzie finishes her obscene tale, and the whole group laughs. Except for Alex, who shakes his head, as if to say, what a piece of work my fiancée is. “OK!” Izzie shouts obnoxiously, hands slapping together as she claps, “I’ll be right back, tequila shots for us all!”

Jo watches as she moves away from the group and towards the bar, leaning over the sticky surface to flirt with the young bartender, who she already told Jo she would ‘totally fuck’ if she was still single. As if Izzie would ever be single. She said once in high school, "I don't break up, I trade up." She kept her word on that, and she always did the dumping. Throughout our teenage years, college, and every day of our twenties, she has been attached to someone. Often, she has more than one guy hanging around, hoping.

It occurs to Jo that she could hook up with the bartender. She’s completely and totally unencumbered—hasn't even been on a date in nearly two months, it was an utter disaster and she decided she needed to give herself a break. But it doesn't seem like something one should do at age thirty. One-night stands are for girls in their twenties, and as of tomorrow morning she would no longer be in her twenties.

Plus, she thinks she’d had her fair share of one-night stands and after every single time she always found that she ended up thinking to herself that she was a relationship person. She preferred to know the person, nothing competed with the feeling of being familiar with someone’s body. Knowing exactly how to make them moan, their toes curl, and their skin tingle—that’s what she wanted. And there was the feeling of comfort, being so comfortable that there was no awkwardness and you never felt too shy to try something new. She missed that. She really really missed that.

She hadn’t experienced that since her last boyfriend, two years ago.

“You look great,” Alex whispers into her ear as the rest of the group continue to chatter, his hushed voice breaking Jo out of her sad sad thoughts.

Jo rolls her eyes, tilting her head so it falls against the side of his, “you have to say that I’m your fiancé’s best friend.” As comfortable as the position was, Jo lifts her head up quickly so she can turn to look Alex in the eyes—eyes which were wide, gazing down at her. His lips were parted, as if there was something he wanted to say but as he opens and closes his mouth repeatedly, Jo decides to relieve them of the thick tension and shakes her head with a small girlish girl.

“No, I don’t,” he finally adds, eyes continuing to watch her every movement. The way she picks up her full glass of vodka with dainty hands, the way her eyelashes flutter against her cheeks and her curls frame her face—small things he’s always noticed.

The tension is cut once Izzie returns with the shots, but Alex refuses his, so Izzie insists that Jo does the two. Before Jo knows it, the night starts to take on that blurry quality, when you cross over from being buzzed to drunk, losing track of time and the precise order of things. Apparently, Izzie had reached that point even sooner because she’s now dancing on the bar. Spinning and gyrating in a little red halter dress and three-inch heels.

"Stealing the show at your party," Stephanie, Jo’s closest friend from work, says under her breath. "She's shameless."

Jo giggles, not really caring—it was something she had come accustomed to. “She’s just a little drunk.” She’s not sure when she became the person who constantly made excused for Izzie’s behaviour, probably way back when they were fifteen … maybe twelve, who knows.

Everyone waits for her next move, which is to swivel her hips in perfect time to the music, bend over slowly, and then whip her body upright again, her long hair spilling every which way. Jo turns her head away from the woman up on the bar to glance at Alex, who in these moments can never quite decide whether to be amused or annoyed. To say that the man has patience is an understatement. Alex and Jo had that in common.

"Happy birthday, Jol!" Izzie yells. "Let's all raise a glass to Jo Wilson!" Which everyone does. Without taking their eyes off the blonde.

A minute later, Alex whisks her down from the bar, slings her over his shoulder, and deposits her on the floor next to Jo in one fluid motion. Clearly, this was something he had done before. "All right," he announces, glancing over to Jo apologetically. "I'm taking our little party-planner home."

Izzie plucks her drink off the bar and stamps her foot. "You're not the boss of me, Alex! Is he, Jo?" As she asserts her independence, she stumbles and sloshes her martini all over Alex's shoe. In usuall circumstances Jo would agree with Izzie—Alex wasn’t the boss of the woman. But at this very moment, as she continues to cause a scene with her temper tantrum, Jo had to agree with him.

Alex grimaces. "You're wasted, Iz. This isn't fun for anyone but you."

"Okay. Okay. I'll go... I'm feeling kind of sick anyway," she says, looking queasy.

"Are you going to be okay?" Jo asks, concern dripping from her voice despite the fact she felt incredibly drunk herself.

"I'll be fine. Don't you worry," she says, now playing the role of brave little sick girl.

Jo thanks her for the party, tells her that it was a total surprise—which is a lie, because she knew Izzie would capitalize on my thirtieth to buy a new outfit, throw a big bash, and invite as many of her friends as Jo’s own. Still, it was nice of her to have the party, and Jo’s finally glad that she did. Izzie’s the kind of friend who always makes things feel special. Izzie hugs Jo hard and tells her she'd do anything for her, and what would she do without Jo, her maid of honour, the sister she never had. She is gushing, as she always does when she drinks too much.

Alex cuts her off, "happy birthday, princess. We'll talk to you tomorrow." He gives Jo a kiss on the cheek as she grimaces at the old nickname he had coined all the way back when they were freshman in college. Before he exits, he turns back one last time, “you’ll be OK?”

"Thanks, Alex," Jo smiles. "I’ll be fine, good night."

Jo watches him usher Izzie outside, holding her elbow after she nearly trips on the curb. Oh, to have such a caretaker. To be able to drink with reckless abandon and know that there will be someone to get you home safely—so you didn’t end the night passed out on your male friend’s bed with absolutely no idea if anything happened between the pair of you.

Sometime later, Alex reappears in the bar—much to Jo’s drunken delight.

"Izzie lost her purse. She thinks she left it here.” He huffs with a roll of his eyes, “it's small, silver," he continues, using his hands to show them the size. "Have you seen it?""

“She lost her new Chanel bag?" Jo shakes her head and laughs, a little louder than she anticipated thanks to the alcohol coursing through her system, because it is just like Izzie to lose her things. Usually Jo would try her best to keep track of them for her, but as it was her birthday, she decided to go off duty—albeit unintentionally. Still, Jo helps Alex search for the purse, finally spotting it under a bar stool.

“Oh my god!” Jo hears Jackson’s mocking tone from behind her, “the Chanel purse, Jo!” She grabs the purse from the floor, accidentally knocking her head against the bar, before turning around to shove a laughing Jackson in the chest.

Alex grins, lifting a hand to ruffle her now slightly messy hair playfully, “what would I do without you?” He asks rhetorically, but there’s a glint in his eyes as he watches her glance up at the ceiling with a smug shrug, full of confidence.

As he turns to leave, Alex's friend Andrew, one of his groomsmen, convinces him to stay.

"C'mon, man. Hang out for a minute." With that, Alex calls Izzie at home and she slurs her consent, tells him to have fun without her. Although she is probably thinking that such a thing is not possible.

Gradually Jo’s friends peel away, Jackson included, saying their final happy birthdays. Alex and Jo outlast everyone, even Jackson. Something which wasn’t uncommon, it had become a regular occurrence since college. The pair sit at the bar making conversation with the young bartender from earlier who has an "Amy" tattoo and zero interest in the aging brunette lawyer.

It’s just after three when they decide that it's time to go. The night feels more like midsummer than spring, and the warm air infuses Jo with sudden hope: maybe this will be the summer she finds what she wants to do, where she’s going and all that crap.

Alex hails me a cab, but as it pulls over, he says, "how about one more bar?” His voice is hopeful and there’s that familiar crooked smirk on his lips, “one more drink?"

"Fine," Jo groans with a roll of her eyes, a smile on her face that tells Alex she’s joking—she’s more than happy to stop at one more bar with him. "Why not?" Jo grins as they both get into the can and he tells the cab driver to just drive, that he has to think about where to next.

They end up in Alphabet City at a bar on Seventh and Avenue B, aptly named 7B. It’s not an upbeat scene—7B is dingy and smoke-filled. They both like it anyway—it's not sleek and it's not a dive, it’s more up to their speed, more them.

Alex points to a booth, “sit down, this ones on me." Then he’s turning around, "what shall I get you, still partial to a vodka cranberry or beer?" He asks, that smirk still on his lips as he’s proud to think of how well he knows the woman in front of him.

Jo tells him she’ll have whatever he's having, and then she sits and waits for him in the dark red booth, patiently as the vodka and tequila and rum swills around her head. Jo watches as Alex says something to a girl who’s stood at the bar wearing army-green cargo pants and a tank top that says "Fallen Angel." Jo almost scoffs. Jo smiles and shakes her head, ignoring the familiar pang of jealousy running through her veins. 

A moment later Alex slides in across from Jo in the old booth, pushing a beer her way. "Newcastle," he says before he smiles, crinkly lines appearing around his eyes. "You like?" Jo nods and smiles back at him.

From the corner of her eye, Jo see’s Fallen Angel turn on her bar stool and survey Alex, absorbing his chiselled features, wavy hair, full lips. Izzie complained once that Alex garners more stares and double takes than she does. Yet, unlike his female counterpart, Alex seems not to notice the attention. Fallen Angel now casts her eyes Jo’s way, likely wondering what Alex is doing with someone so average. Even if the little black dress did wonders for her usually non-existent cleavage, Jo didn’t see herself as anything special. She finds herself silently hoping that the girl thinks they're a couple. Tonight, nobody has to know that she is only a member of the wedding party.

“That’s the dress you wore to our celebratory drinks the night we took the bar.” Alex notices, tilting his beer in her direction.

“Oh wow,” Jo let’s out a breathy laugh, “you remember that?”

Alex smirks before letting out a sigh and shaking his head in almost disbelief, “Of course I do. You threw up all over my bathroom floor whilst wearing it.”

Jo’s jaw drops to the floor at the mention of the old memory, her eyes scanning over Alex as he sets his beer down and lets out a hearty laugh. “Noooo,” she drags the word out, cringing, “I was such a disaster.”

Alex scoffs, “no you were not, you were a college student.”

And for the third time that night, their eyes are glued to one another’s, both having so much to say but having no idea how to say it. But this is how it had always been with Alex, even when they could feel the tension between them—they were still nothing but completely comfortable with one another. Although, in this instance, her cheeks began to heat up.

Jo clears her throat, shaking her head, hoping the waft of her hair would cool down the heat that was rising at the back of her neck. “Do you remember that apartment,” she reminisces, “it barely fit the two of us.”

“How could I forget,” Alex mumbles with a grin, “I spent half the time I lived there sleeping on the floor ‘cause your place was always flooding.”

“I don’t know why you always let me crash in your bed.” Jo thinks out loud. He doesn’t answer, just shakes his head and takes another long swig of his beer, hoping the conversation will change. “You know, I had a huge thing for you back in college.” The words tumble from her lips, so fast he barely catches them but after a second he’s certain of what he’s heard. And she wants to say it’s the drink talking—the alcohol running through her system. But it’s not. And he knows its not. She can tell by the way he awkwardly bows his head, hiding his smile and shaking his head.

Eventually, the conversation changes and it’s as if she never made the slip up. But she did. But then Alex is talking about his job and their Hamptons share that begins in another week and a lot of things. It’s always been this way, easy and comfortable. But Izzie doesn’t come up and neither does their September wedding, not once.

After the pair finish their beers they move over to the jukebox, fill it with dollar bills, searching for good songs as they giggle and tease one another about their song choices. Jo pushes the code for "Thunder Road" twice because she knows it’s his favourite song.

"Yes, Springsteen's got to be at the top of the list. Ever seen him in concert?" Alex’s eyes glimmer, as they glance down to Jo—a tipsy smile gracing his lips.

"Nope," Jo answers with a laugh, “grew up homeless, remember. Concerts were a luxury I couldn’t afford." Jo almost tell him that Izzie offered to take her back in high school, well, Izzie would have been dragged along out of pity even though she much preferred groups like the Backstreet Boys. But Jo decides it’s best not to bring this up. Because then he’ll remember that it’s probably time to go home to Izzie and she doesn't want to be alone in her dwindling moments of twenty-somethingness.

Alex chuckles, never being one to skirt around Jo’s tough upbringing, it was actually one of the reasons they became such good friends. “You’ve had a zip code for over ten years now, I’m not letting that excuse slide anymore.”

Jo mocks shock, slapping a hand against the back of his upper arm, “not an excuse, jerk.”

Not too long later, it’s last call at 7B. They get a couple more beers and return to their booth.

Sometime later they are back in a cab once again, going north on First Avenue. "Two stops," Alex tells the cab driver, as they both live on opposite sides of Central Park. Alex is holding Izzie's Chanel purse, which looks small and out of place in his large hands. Jo glances over at the silver dial of his Rolex, a gift from Izzie. It is just shy of five o'clock. They sit almost silently for a stretch of ten or fifteen blocks, besides for a few comments mixed with tipsy laughter, both of them looking out of their respective side windows, until the cab hits a pothole and Jo finds herself lurched into the middle of the backseat, her bare leg grazing his.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, Alex’s lips are on Jo’s. He’s kissing her. Or maybe she’s the one kissing him. But, somehow, no matter who was the one that initiated it, they’re kissing. And Jo’s mind has gone blank as she listens to the soft sound of their lips meeting again and again. Their tongues tangle, fighting for dominance which Alex eventually wins over and Jo can’t complain … because this is what she’s wanted for so so long.

Ever since freshman year.

At some point, Alex taps on the Plexiglas partition and tells the driver, between kisses, that it will just be one stop after all.

They arrive on the corner of seventy-third and third, near Jo’s apartment. Alex hands the driver a twenty and doesn’t bother to wait for change. They spill out of the taxi, kissing more on the sidewalk and then in front of Jose, Jo’s doorman. It makes her giggle and not because she’s still a little tipsy and high from the feeling of Alex’s lips on hers but because who would’ve thought—Hobo Jo has a doorman.

Their lips don’t part the whole way up in the elevator, their hands grabby and desperate as they try to fight the urge to rip off one another’s clothing. Alex has Jo pressed against the elevator wall, her hands moving to the back of his head.

Once their up, she fumbles with her key, turning it the wrong way in the lock as Alex keeps his arms around her waist, his soft lips nipping and biting against her neck and the side of her face. Finally, the door is open, and they’re no longer just kissing and touching. They’re in the middle of her studio, and he’s slowly pulling down the thin straps of her dress, kissing the soft skin where his hands graze—savouring the moment.

Just as Alex is about to pull down the tight dress the rest of the way. His hands stop their descent, placing them on either side of her head and forcing her to look at him. Her pink plump lips swollen, hair messy from him running his fingers through the long tendrils—she looked perfect, he’s never thought she looked more perfect than she did in this very moment.

“Are you drunk?" His voice is a whisper in the dark.

"No," Jo says. Because you always say no when you're drunk. And even though she is a little, she seems to have a lucid instant where she can consider this whole thing clearly. It strikes her that, in a sense, she can have both a momentous birthday night and the one thing she’s wanted for as long as she can remember.

One thought of Izzie is in her mind, but she’s being pushed to the back, overwhelmed by a force stronger than their friendship and her own conscience.

Within seconds, Alex’s lips are back on hers and he’s hurriedly removing her dress ad she makes quick work of snapping open the buttons of his crisp white shirt. Jo doesn’t even realise they’re moving backwards until he’s throwing her down onto the soft bed and Alex crawls on top of her. Jo’s eyes flutter closed, then open, then closed again as a swarm of pleasure sweeps over her as Alex’s hand continue to roam over her body.

“Me too.”

“Hmm?”

“I had a huge thing for you, too. Still do.”

And then, somehow, she’s having sex with her best friend's fiancé.

[diaryofabeautyfiend]

Officially Nowhere

“Sam! Where are we going?”

“Trust me, Cap. I know a place. We’re going somewhere safe.”

“Nat, you still with us?!”

“I’m good.” she said. Her breathing was ragged but she was holding on.

“She needs a medic. Fast.”

“I know. We’re 2 minutes out.”

They pulled up to a gate. Sam sped up to drive through. He silently thanked heaven that it wasn’t rigged with explosives. He’d keep that to himself. He knew you wouldn’t be pleased to have all of this commotion dropped in your lap but you’d help anyway. Steve jumped out of the car and grabbed Nat rushing her to your door. He went to go kick it in thinking the place was abandoned. Sam shouted, “WAIT!!” but it was too late. Steve had a gun to his head faster than he was able to release his leg. He froze in place looking to Sam who was running to his side.

“Y/N! It’s me! Don’t shoot!” Sam said putting up his hands.

“Wilson? What the fuck is this?”

“I’m sorry. We need your help. Romanoff is hurt. Please.”

“Lower your weapon, soldier” Steve said in a rather commanding way. You laughed. “I will as soon as she does” pointing to Nat with your chin. Nat had her weapon pointed at you.

“Everyone lets calm down. Y/N they are friendly. I trust them.” Your face softened a bit as Nat raised her hands. You holstered your weapon and stepped aside. “ Put her on the kitchen table. I’ll get my bag.” “Where are we?” asked Steve. “Officially? I am no one. You are nowhere. I’m not helping you. Unofficially I’m Y/N. I’m a former combat medic and this is my house. Nice to meet you. Now please. The table.”

You grabbed some supplies from a hall closet. Nat was talking so she seemed to be breathing ok. “Let’s see.” Steve hovered at her side. “Captain you’ll have to move so I can evaluate her injuries.” He moved out of the way and you got to work. “You know who I am?” He asked still watching you work. “Of course. Everyone does. Romanoff was it?” Nat nodded. “You were hit. Through and through by the looks of it. I can patch you up but you’ll need surgery to see if you’re bleeding internally. She needs to get to a hospital, Sam.”

“No. No hospital.” Nat said through gritted teeth. You gave her something for the pain. She started to drift off. “What did you give her?!” Steve shouted reaching for his gun. “Relax. It’s for pain. I don’t think your girlfriend wants to feel me rooting around inside a bullet wound.” He relaxed a little. Sam went to the fridge to get some water for Steve and a beer for himself. You finished sewing up the wound and swabbed her skin with disinfectant. “That will do for now. I have a spare bedroom in the back. We need to get her there to rest.” Steve picked up Nat and got her to the room. You started an IV and hooked her up to a few machines to monitor her. “She’ll be out for a while, Captain.” You patted him on the shoulder and pulled a chair to her bedside. “She’s lucky to have you.” As you stepped into the doorway he looked back and said, “Thank you, Y/N. I really can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate all you’ve done....and she’s not my girlfriend.”

You went back into the kitchen where Sam was already cleaning up. You opened a beer and got him another. “So. Wanna tell me what’s going on?” “Yeah. We’re fugitives. Hiding out from SHIELD, Hydra the US government. And, if that wasn’t enough, a brain washed super soldier who happens to be Cap’s best friend.” He sunk down onto the couch sighing heavily. You sat next to him laughing quietly to yourself. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. Just you. You always get mixed up in stupid ass shit. You’re like a trouble magnet.” He laughed half heartedly lying his head back.

“You have no idea. I’m glad I get to see you you know but not under these circumstances. How have you been doing?”

“You know me, Sam. I manage.”

“Have you been going out on jobs?”

“A few. Mild stuff. Search and rescues...assassinations. Nothing too strenuous.”

“What about the nightmares?”

“They are still around.”

You heard shuffling and saw Steve standing in the doorway. “Sorry. Nat’s awake.”

“Oh great. Let me go see about her.” Steve sat down in a big chair and let out a long tired sigh. “You hungry, man? Y/N has a big grill outside. I can throw something on.” With his eyes still closed he nodded and tried to will himself out of the chair to help. You came back with Nat at your side saying, “Look who’s back from the dead” Nat pressed her hand into her bandage stifling a laugh.

Sam jumped up to help her get situated. “Hey Y/N Steve and I are gonna get the grill going. What can I cook?”

“Oh I got it.”

“No, ma’am. You’ve done enough today. Put your feet up. We got it.” Sam said while he pushed you back down on the couch.

“Check the fridge. I have all kinds of meat in there. Grab what looks good.”

While they were rummaging through the kitchen you checked ok Nat again. “Y/N please. I’m fine. Take a load off.” And so you did. You sat quietly for several minutes watching the men out of the window. They seemed a little more at ease now chatting and laughing. You focused in on Steve. You wondered what he was really like when he wasn’t Captain America. He seemed worn out..worried. Nat was watching you watch him. You didn’t know it but you were biting your bottom lip. You did that when you were really thinking.

“He’s not bad to look at” she finally said. You startled at sound of her voice.

“No, he’s not. What’s his story? Girlfriend? Wife?”

Nat laughed, “he doesn’t date much. Kind of keeps to himself. You should see him on a mission though. The guy is a beast”

“I’ll bet he is.”

“What’s your story, Y/N? How many tours did you serve?”

“Three. Combat medic.”

“Is that how you know Sam?”

“Yeah. I saved his life a few times. Then he saved mine.”

“Can I ask why the Army thinks you were KIA?”

“Because they assumed that, when they left me on the side of the road to die, I actually did die. Thank goodness for Sam. He spotted me when he was out on patrol and took care of me. I owe him everything.”

“Whoa whoa whoa. Your own unit?!”

You chuckled “Yep. My own unit. I was the only woman. I had a nonconsensual run in with one of the guys. Asked to be transferred and swore I wouldn’t report. My last night on the base they took me out for a send off dinner. We never made it. A couple of them pulled me out of the Jeep. They took turns brutalizing and beating me. Pushed me down an embankment. I swear I have no idea how Sam saw me.” Nat’s mouth hung open and closed several times trying to find words. She was at a loss.

“I’m so sorry that happened to you. So you’re just hiding out here? All by yourself? What do you do for money? Physical contact with people?”

“I tend to avoid physical contact unless I have needs to fulfill.” You smiled to yourself. “As far as cash goes, when I was in the hospital I met some of the royal family from Wakanda. They were there on a good will visit meeting wounded civilians. They listened to my story and took me in. Put me to work. That’s why I can afford to stay in the lap of luxury.” You both laughed. She held your hand and squeezed. Giving you a shy half smile she said, “I’m so glad Sam found you.” You had tears in your eyes. You choked them back not wanting to give them any satisfaction. You don’t cry over that night anymore.

“Hey ladies! Soup’s on!” Sam shouted from the door.

You helped Nat out onto the patio. The four of you spent the evening talking and laughing like old friends. You and Steve were definitely flirting. You excused yourself to pick up the dishes. As soon as you were inside Sam an Nat pounced.

“Dude! You are totally flirting with her.” Sam said playfully. Steve waved him off.

“Come on, Cap. She’s flirting back. It’s adorable.” Nat teased.

Steve blushed. “She is isn’t she?”

“Get in there, man. Make a move.” said Sam as he nudged Steve’s arm. He shook his head “no” “GO!” they said in unison. He flushed crimson and sweat started to bead on his forehead. He went into the kitchen to help with the dishes. Steve kept looking out the window at the two of them who smiled like proud parents.

“Christ she’s going to eat him alive” Nat said still smiling.

“It’s hard to watch” Sam replied. The two of them went to bed leaving you two on your own.

“I’ll wash you dry?” You said as you threw Steve a towel.

“Yes, ma’am. So how do you manage to live off the grid like this? Must be lonely.”

“It can be. I work when I am asked. When I have needs to meet I take care of it.”

“I was under the impression that no one knew you existed.”

“I work for the Royal Family of Wakanda. It’s a long story. They’re the only ones.”

“What kind of work do you do for them?”

“I am a War Dog. Part of the central intelligence service of Wakanda.”

“So can you tell me what kinds of missions you go on?”

“Need to know, Captain.”

“I see. I hope you stay safe. And please call me Steve.” He rested his hands on the kitchen island watching you bend over to put away a pan. You could feel his eyes on you. You giggled to yourself.

“I’m the safest.” you say with a wink “And I rather like calling you Captain.” He cleared his throat and adjusted his pants to hide his arousal.

“Well I guess I’ll turn in.”

“Or you can stay up with me for a little bit. I don’t get much company I’m sure you can imagine. Let’s go out to the deck.”

You lit the fire pit and grabbed a couple of blankets. The air was crisp. The slight breeze felt good against your neck. You didn’t realize how warm you were. You pulled the blanket higher around your shoulders your skin shivering into goosebumps. You had a bottle of wine and a glass for each of you. “Red ok?” You poured way too much in his glass. “Red is fine. That’s plenty. Are you trying to get me drunk?” He laughed a little making your cheeks warm. “Me? Never.” “You do know I can’t get drunk? My metabolism is too fast. Alcohol burns right off. “ You plopped down next to him with an exaggerated hmph. “Well that puts a hitch in my plans.”

He smiled at you. This was not his Captain America smile. This smile spread on his lips very slowly like a cat that ate the canary. He rested his hand on your knee and said, “You don’t need to get me drunk.” You let out a small sigh and your eyes fluttered closed. You set your glass down and put your hand on top of his. You stared at each other for what felt like an eternity and you leaned in to kiss him. He was timid at first only softly pressing his lips against yours. “Is this ok?” you whispered. “Hell yes” he replied.

He bent his neck so you didn’t have to strain to meet him. You pressed your lips together slowly snaking your tongue inside his mouth. Your tongues met dancing together exploring each other. His fingers ran the length of your spine before settling at your hips. He pulled you on top of him without having to separate from you. You could feel how hard he was and you pressed down on him making him moan in your mouth. Your hands moved to his belt buckle removing his belt in one fluid motion. He unbuttoned your shirt pushing over your shoulders. You slipped your hand into his underwear stroking his impressive length the tip already dripping. Steve was horny to the point of pain. He moved his hips fucking your hand and was almost ready to cum then. “Wait....I don’t want to cum yet.” he said breathless dropping his head back. “Oh no, Captain, not yet.” Your voice was low and husky. Still straddling him you kissed the stubble on his jaw line down to the spot just below his ear. You felt his pulse racing against your lips. His skin was salty with sweat and smelled delicious. He was panting now. His hands were a vice grip on your hips silently begging you press down to give him release. You sat back on your heels taking off your shirt and bra giving him a little show. You stood up pulling your pants and panties down. He felt like you were moving in slow motion. You were back on him taking off his shirt. You trailed a finger over his abs marveling at the definition. The hair on his belly was sticky with his own juices. His cock looked like it was going to explode. You fisted the waistband of his pants and underwear in your hands and tugged them down. He lifted up a little to make it easier. Your eyes were locked on each other’s, Steve’s mouth open slightly breathing heavy. You slipped two fingers into his mouth and leaned down to whisper in his ear, “suck”. He obliged. Once they were wet enough you removed them and brought them down to your pussy. You leaned back so he could have an uninhibited view of your fingers dipping in. Your other hand was on your clit rubbing furiously. He steadied you with one arm at the small of your back. He wanted to touch you but you slapped his hand away. When you were almost to the point of orgasm you stopped sitting up abruptly. You lowered yourself onto his cock and rode him until you both exploded.

After a few minutes you rolled off of his lap onto the couch. You slapped your hand down on his thigh and said, “ What do you say, Captain? Up for round two?” His lips split into a devastating grin, “I can do this all day.” And so you did twice more. Once was in the shower where you scrubbed each other clean. He pressed your back against the cold tile driving himself into you while he held your legs. The last time was bent over the foot of your bed. When you finished he collapsed his full weight on top of you. Your breathing mirrored his both sated and exhausted. He trailed kisses on the back of your neck slapping your ass as he stood up. You crawled towards your pillow. He stretched out next to you. You didn’t speak. He pulled you onto his chest and held you. As you drifted off to sleep he kissed the top of your head. That was the first night in ages that you were nightmare free.

The next morning Sam was the first one up. He walked to the living room glancing out of the door going out to the deck. Your clothes were scattered on the ground. He chuckled to himself. Alright, Steve. He made his way to the kitchen to make coffee. Nat wandered in next, “Did I see underwear on the deck?” Sam looked over his shoulder, “Our little boy is growing up, Nat.”

You woke up feeling way too hot. Steve was sleeping with his body curled around you. You freed yourself and slid out of the bed trying not to wake him. He didn’t stir. You got dressed and snuck out of the room. When you got to the kitchen Nat and Sam were at the table chatting. “Morning. Ooh thanks for making coffee.”

“Y/N, wanna tell us what happened last night?” asked Sam

“A lady doesn’t kiss and tell.”

“Is Steve still sleeping?”

“Yep. Or I killed him. Not sure.”

Nat’s phone rang. She stepped outside to answer. She came back in interrupting your conversation. “We have to go. That was Hill. We know what Pierce is planning for Project Insight. I’ll fill you in on the ride. On the road in 10.” Sam was on his feet gathering his things. You grabbed Steve’s clothes. Back in your bedroom Steve was awake but still lying on the pillow. He was thinking about Bucky. You opened the door peeking in. “Hey. Time for you to go to work, Captain. Nat just got a phone call. She said on the road in 10.” You sat on the bed next to him. He held your hand and brought it up to his lips to kiss your finger tips. “I don’t want to go.”

“Ah well. You have a job to do.” He kissed your palm and rested it on his cheek. His eyes closed and he sighed deeply. “Can I see you again?” “You know where to find me.” You smiled and got off the bed, “Now March, soldier”

You said your goodbyes. You told them to come back to visit. You couldn’t help but feel a little pang of sadness. Sam wrapped you in a bear hug. “Be safe, man.” “Thanks for everything, Y/N.”

“Cap. We have to go” Nat shouted.

“Be there in a sec. I’ll come back soon.”

“You’d better. Be safe, Captain.” He kissed you deeply. You hugged him around his neck. Nat beeped the horn. He kissed you again and then he was gone.

Later you saw on the news three Helicarriers were destroyed and crashed into the Potomac. The report said Steve was shot. You grabbed your phone and called Sam. It rang once, “He’s ok.” You hung up. You hadn’t realized you were holding your breath.

Once Steve was out of the hospital he said his goodbyes to Nat and Fury. He looked down at Bucky’s file. “You’re going after him.” “You don’t have to come with me. I have to make a pit stop though.” Sam smiled, “Where to?” Steve smiled back. “Officially? Nowhere.”

[buckyodinson]

Stay Here (Mandalorian x Reader)

Request from @aestheticallywinchester​ : I’d like to request a Mando x Reader where he tells the reader to stay on the ship but later he can’t find the reader anywhere.He starts to lose his temper and is worried something happened to her. Once he finds her not too far from the ship -wounded. “I told you to stay put damn it” “Well you can’t control me” I thought I lost you”  

A/N: I had fun writing this one, so thank you for requesting it! :) there’s no real gender to the reader of this one, so anyone can read it!

Word count: 1.9k

Din couldn’t have made it clearer. You and the Child were to stay on the Razor Crest until he returned. There were a lot of Imperial sympathisers in this city, and if they saw you and the child hanging around a Mandalorian’s ship, they would have struck gold in terms of leverage against the Beskar-clad warrior. His tone while he spoke to the pair of you was irritating - you knew the tone he used was mostly aimed at the Child, but you couldn’t help but feel like he was treating you like a child yourself. You could handle yourself, and Din knew this, but he worries about you nonetheless.

He set off early in the morning and told you the bounty shouldn’t take long, and to expect him back by the evening. Evening came and there was no sign of Din. You stayed up all night waiting but he didn’t return. The next morning, you weighed up your options. The rational train of thought told you that Din was fine, and this bounty probably put up more of a fight than most usually do when cornered by a Mandalorian, and that Din would be back momentarily. The irrational train of thought told you that Din was badly hurt, and he needed your help. Only problem is, you had no idea how to find him.

You made sure the child was asleep and secure in Din’s quarters, before grabbing a few little blasters and placing them in their various holsters across your body, and venturing out of the Crest. You sighed as you took in your surroundings. Din had landed the Crest at the edge of a forest rather than nearer to the city itself, in an attempt to maintain the element of surprise when he turned up to catch his bounty. 

You venture into the forest, trying to be as aware of your surroundings as possible, every noise you hear has you reaching for one of your blasters, but your fears dissipate when you see a small animal scarper away. You get further into the forest, and the trees become much more dense, and you’re losing your sense of direction the further you go. Staring through the deep foliage now, you realise maybe it would be better to heed Din’s advice and stay put on the Crest.

You slowly walk backwards, making the final decision to head back to the Crest and just wait for Din, but as you turn around, you walk straight into a hard surface. You stumble and fall on your back, and look up at the familiar shape of an IG droid. Panic sets in and you fumble for whichever blaster you can get a hold of, but the IG unit points a blaster directly at your head and you halt all movements.

“Where is the bounty?” It’s monotonous voice commanded.

“I-I-I don’t know. D- The Mandalorian went out to the city yesterday to look for it, he hasn’t come b-back yet.” You stuttered.

“That is not the bounty I speak of.” The IG unit clarifies, and it dawns on you. It’s looking for the Child. Your face falls, and it’s all the confirmation the droid needs that he’s asking the right person.

The droid leans closer as if inspecting your features, the blaster inches away from your face, and all you can do is look down the barrel, as you lay helpless on the ground.

“Tell me where it is, and maybe I will spare you.” The droid counters and leans away again, standing up straight.

“I know how you’re programmed. That’s not an option in your manufacturing. Whether or not you get it’s location from me, you’ll kill me. I’ll take this secret to the grave.” You put on a brave front, for the Child’s sake. The IG unit recoiled slightly, as if it wasn’t used to this type of resistance. In it’s recoil, the blaster was aimed away from you for a split second. You took this opportunity to kick at one of it’s legs and run. 

The droid folded, and as you ran, you grabbed a blaster, turned back and shot where you knew it held it’s self-destruct mechanism. The red light began to flash, and you started to sprint away from the blast radius. In it’s last seconds of existence, the IG unit shot it’s blaster wildly, and one shot caught you in the back. Your dropped to your knees, and the IG unit exploded, shrapnel shooting out in all directions. Several pieces of metal clipped you as you tried to stand, and you managed to crawl a little way away from the remnants of the explosion before passing out.

As this fight was occurring, Din was making his way back to the Crest. This bounty had tried to evade capture, and did a pretty good job of it, which is why it took him so long. He hadn’t come back through the forest on his way back to the Crest, however, as the bounty had tried to flee to a nearby town, so Din was currently coming through the very edge of the forest, almost on the plains where the Crest was situated. The bounty was unconscious, and Din was dragging the body back to the ship when he noticed some smoke coming from somewhere deep in the foliage. He didn’t think much of it, knowing there were folk who lived in this forest who would mean no harm to you or the Child if they happened upon the ship. But when he neared the Crest, and saw the ramp down, he wondered if that smoke had anything to do with you.

He picked the bounty up and sprinted the rest of the way to the ship. He threw the bounty into the carbonite freezer, and immediately made his way to the cockpit, which he found empty. He went to your quarters, which were also empty, and lastly his own quarters, where he found the Child sleeping peacefully in it’s crib. He breathed a small sigh of relief but his concern grew again, when he realised you weren’t here with the child. “Maker, y/n.” he sighed, “All you had to do was stay put, was that really so difficult?”.

He shut his quarters again, and ran back out of the ship, closed the ramp, and headed out into the forest.

“Y/N?!?” he screamed, with no reply, except a few animals bolting at the loud noise.

He shouted your name repeatedly, to no avail. Every time he shouted and received no reply, the hammering in his heart would get louder and louder. He was panicking now. He turned on his tracking lens in his helmet, and he quickly found your footprints, but after a minute of following them, his heart dropped when he saw the unmistakable footprints of an IG droid. He ran faster now, and stopped to a halt when he reached the burnt out remains of the IG unit. He looked frantically around for you, but could see nothing. 

“Y/N!?!” he screamed once more, and the faintest of whimpers caught his attention. He whipped his head around and followed the noise, coming across your form laying in the grass. He dropped to his knees at once, and saw several pieces of metal sticking out of your back, as well as a nasty looking shot from a blaster. He slowly reached his hand out to touch your back, and you yelped. While he hated the sound, it was a relief to know you were still conscious.

“Y/n, this is going to hurt, but I’m going to lift you up, okay?” He moved his arms under yours and lifted you to a sitting position, and you grimaced as he did so, letting out a groan of agony. He finally caught a look at your face, and it broke his heart. Tears were streaming down your face, and you had a slight cut on your forehead, likely from the impact of your head hitting the ground after the explosion.

Din’s face fell behind his helmet, he hated seeing you this way, “I told you to stay on the ship, cyar’ika. Why didn’t you listen?”

Your breathing is ragged, but you manage out a croaky “You can’t control me, tin can.” making yourself laugh, and inadvertently starting a coughing fit. He tried to see the funny side, as you did, but he was too worried about your well-being to give into it. He lifted you up as carefully as he could, and let you lean your weight on him, as he walked you back to the Crest. The walk back was quiet, apart from your heavy breaths. 

You reached the Crest, and once safely inside with the ramp closed, Din walked you into his quarters and laid you down in his cot on your stomach. You melted into the soft sheets, letting out a deep sigh. Din grabbed the med-kit, and got all the supplies he needed from it before starting to tend to your back. He took his gloves off, knowing they’d only get in the way. He offered you one to bite down on while he removed the pieces of shrapnel from your flesh. You gladly accepted it, and it worked surprisingly well. Din’s adept fingers worked quickly at removing the metal, cleaning the wound, applying bacta spray and attaching a bandage before moving onto the next wound, using the cauteriser for the deepest ones. Lastly, he came to the blaster injury, which was the largest, and required the most bacta spray. He’d soon finished with cleaning you up, and as he reached for the glove in your mouth, he noticed the fresh tears lining your cheeks.

“I’m sorry, cyar’ika. But it had to be done.” he knelt next to the cot and ran a glove-less hand through your hair. You smiled into the touch, and it calmed him immensely. 

Your soft eyes bore into the slit in his helmet, and he felt like you were looking into his soul. “I thought I lost you, mesh’la, my heart stopped when I saw you laying there. I didn’t know what to do. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” he rambles as he continues to run his fingers through your hair. He’s looking anywhere but in your eyes as he speaks, and when he finally finds your eyes, you’re crying again.

“I’m sorry, Din. For causing you so much pain, I truly am.” you spoke softly before smiling, “But you can’t get rid of me this easily. You’re stuck with me now.”

You hear a crackle through his modulator and wonder if it was a chuckle you’d roused from the depths of that Beskar. He slowly leans into you and rests his helmet against your forehead, and you close your eyes, knowing this is a very intimate gesture for Mandalorians.

“Get some rest” he whispers before standing up, covering you with a blanket and leaving you to sleep.

He sits in the cockpit and starts the Crest’s engine, lifting off the ground. This planet isn’t safe anymore. More bounty hunters will come, he’s sure, but he has you and the Child with him now, and he’ll do anything to keep you both safe. This life is a dangerous one, and you’ll likely never be free while you still have the Child with you, but he’s okay with that, because he has you. He smiles to himself underneath his helmet as he pulls the Crest out of this planet’s atmosphere... he has you.

[ericsonclan]

Never Again

Summary: Mitch and Violet process their guilt in the aftermath of the fight with the Delta where Violet and Clementine were permanently injured.

Word Count: 2645

Read on AO3:

“Shit, looks like it’ll rain soon,” Mitch’s expression was sour as he led Violet onto the upper decks then his eyes widened in apology. “Fuck, I didn’t mean to-”

“Remind me you can see? Chill, Mitch,” Violet waved her free hand dismissively, the other clinging tightly to her friend’s arm. “Stuff like that doesn’t bug me. It’s the actual blindness that fucking sucks,”

“Ruby said you were seeing some things thought, right? That’s a good sign,”

Violet shrugged. “There’s some light, vague colors, blurry shapes. She told me I’d pretty much have to re-memorize where everything was. I just hope it’s not too long till I can actually find the head on my own. I’m sick of being escorted to the bathroom, especially by Prisha. It’s fucking embarrassing,”

“Prisha doesn’t mind. Hell, she probably enjoys helping you find the bathroom,”

“That’s fucking weird, Mitch,”

“Shut up,” Mitch’s brow furrowed as he looked out on the sea once more. It was a sickly green. There would definitely be a storm tonight, probably a rough one too. But for now the upper decks were empty, the ship anchored in place. Louis had arranged for the rest of the crew to be occupied with other tasks so that Violet could get in her exercise without being overwhelmed by the sounds of others at work around her. Ever since the injury, Violet had been especially sensitive to noise. Giving her space to relearn the ship wasn’t much, but it was all most of them could do for now.

Cautiously, Mitch stepped over toward the center of the ship. “We’re approaching the main mast if you want to touch it and shit. Heard that helps,”

“Yeah,” Violet’s voice was soft. It had always been that way but now it seemed as though she rarely spoke above a whisper. She reached out hesitantly, her fingers tracing the wood that was smooth from years of being weathered by the winds and waves. “It feels like it always did: like a mast,” Her hand moved upward, tracing one of the ropes that dangled alongside the mast. Mitch wondered if she was remembering all the times she used to climb the mast with ease and head along the main boom, sitting amongst the sails in her own private world. Someday she would get that back. She had to. Violet wouldn’t be Violet without somewhere to hide all by herself.

“You’re doing it again,”

“Doing what?”

“Pitying me. I know I make it easy, but you could at least do a better job of hiding it,” Violet’s hand dropped, and she waited silently for Mitch to take her arm and guide her once more. Mitch acquiesced, guiding her step by step toward the fore mast. Violet’s grip on his arm was tense. Gently he placed his hand on top of hers on his arm, hoping the gesture would help center her. He glanced over at her face, still covered in bandages. It had been a few weeks since the explosion. Hopefully with time her eyes would grow strong enough to handle sunlight once more but who knew when that would be.

“For what it’s worth, I wasn’t pitying you,”

“Mhm,”

“I’m serious! I wasn’t thinking of you at all! Well I was, but I was mainly thinking about what an idiot I was for staying on the ship that day. I should have jumped over to help you and Clem,”

“That’s fucking stupid. You were busy protecting Willy and helping Brody. Everybody was swamped. Besides, it’s not like having you on the Delta ship would have changed anything. A fucking cannon exploded. Nobody could have stopped that,”

She was right. Still, it did little to ease the guilt. Violet had been blinded, perhaps for the rest of her life, and Clementine had lost a leg because of that Delta attack. Meanwhile Mitch had escaped relatively unscathed. That wasn’t right. No matter how much logic there was in Violet’s words, Mitch had found his thoughts trapped in an unending loop these past weeks, caught in a replay of the day’s events again and again, wondering what he could have done differently. Perhaps if he’d coordinated better with the others, they would have been able to spare him on Ol’ Kickass and he could have jumped over onto the Delta pirates’ ship. Thoughts of spotting the faulty cannon and pushing it out of the way were fantastical at best but still if he had been over there then perhaps he could have shielded Violet from that blast, covered her and Prisha and taken the brunt against his own back. For his back to be covered in scars was nothing compared to what had happened to Violet’s eyes.

“We’ve taken fifty steps, right?” Violet’s words cut through the haze of his thoughts.

“Uh, yes?”

Violet sighed in annoyance. “You’re supposed to be counting with me, dumbass! How am I gonna remember where everything is if I can’t get my steps right!”

“Let’s take a break,” Mitch muttered, pulling Violet toward the bannister of the ship.

“I don’t need one!”

“Well I do!” Mitch immediately regretted his tone. “Shit, Vi-”

“No, I get it,” Violet’s tone was bitter, cold. “It’s a lot of work being with somebody who can’t fucking see,”

“That’s not what I-”

“I want to go back to the room now,” Violet was trying to hide it, but Mitch caught the tremor in her voice.

“Vi, if we go in there, we’ll wake up Prisha from her nap. We barely got her to take one in the first place. You know as well as I do if we head in there before we said we would, Prisha will never let herself take a break again,”

“…I know,” Violet’s voice was quieter than ever as her head bowed.

Shit. All he had done was make her feel like even more of a burden. “Vi, you know what I meant by that. Prisha loves you. So much that she doesn’t rest like she should sometimes. That’s why I said that. It’s not your fault,”

“If me telling you it wasn’t your fault doesn’t work on you, what makes you think turning it the other way around will work on me?”

Mitch looked over at his lifelong friend. Her body looked so frail now, thin as a pile of kindling and battleworn with cuts and burns littered all over her neck and arms. A tear had slipped from below her bandages and was slowly making its way down her chin. Yet she stood as resolute as ever, the same fire still burning within her that he’d seen each day she fought to keep them alive on the streets. Violet was battered and bruised, but as low as her spirit had fallen it was not yet broken. He would make sure it never did. Taking her hand again, he led her back towards the main mast. “Come with me,”

“Where are we going?”

“Where you want to be. And since nobody else is on deck they can’t fucking stop us,”

“And where is that?”

“Just… stay here, OK? Wait a minute,” With that Mitch began climbing up the mast, stopping only once he had reached the boom. Violet was standing below looking lost but still waiting to see what he could do. Reaching for the nearest rope, Mitch pulled it up, looped it with a stopper knot to close the loop then threw it over the boom and lowered it toward Violet. The wind that had picked up slightly made the rope swing back and forth, hitting Violet’s cheek as it drifted down.

“What the fuck?” Violet exclaimed, backstepping in shock.

“It’s just a rope!” Mitch called down. “Find the loop and step through it! I’m gonna use it to hoist you up!”

Violet seemed unsure of the plan. Her hands ran across the rope cautiously and when she found the knot she tugged it, testing its strength. Of course it held. Mitch’s knots always did. She stepped through it one foot at a time, positioning the loop snugly before nodding. “Ready,”

Slowly, placing one hand over the other, Mitch pulled on the rope. Violet lifted a few inches off the ground. Inch by inch he pulled her up, taking his time to make sure that the ride up was as steady as possible. As soon as Violet was within reach, he tied off the rope and took her hand, pulling her up the rest of the way. “Careful. We don’t want you stepping anywhere you shouldn’t,”

“This is fucking insane,” Violet’s voice was tight; clearly she was worried to be up so high.

“C’mon,” Mitch cajoled, trying to ease her fears. “You know the walkways of this ship better than anybody,”

“That was when I could fucking see, Mitch! Shit… take me down,”

“Are you sure?” Mitch’s hands held Violet’s, feeling the tension that froze her in place. “If you’re sure, I will. But I promise I won’t let you fall,”

The tears on Violet’s face had dried in the wind, now faint traces upon her cheeks. Her face turned into the wind, the rough locks of hers blew waving this way and that with the gusts. She was considering her choice. Finally, she spoke. “I want to be sitting. My back against the mast,”

“We can do that,” Mitch shifted to position Violet at the point where the boom was thickest, angling her so her back rested against the security of the mast. Helping guide her to sit, Mitch took his seat beside her, his hand in hers. “The rope’s still around your waist. Nothing’s gonna knock you over that I can’t stop,”

“There’s a storm coming,”

“We’ve still got a few minutes before we need to head inside,”

They were quiet as they sat up there together, their feet gently dangling beneath them off the edge of the boom, kicking the air as they took in the salty sea breeze and the calm, steadfast presence that was the sea. Violet remained silent, but Mitch could tell that she had relaxed a bit, her form no longer as tense as it had been not long before. Instead her shoulders slouched forward by her neck, her back curving with the same terrible posture that Ruby always scolded her on ever since they’d met.  

“What color is it today? The sea,”

Mitch looked over, rather surprised Violet had spoken. He cleared his throat. “It’s that gross green color that it gets before a storm, like snot,”

“And the clouds?”

“Really dark, grey. I bet you can picture the shade they are from how the thunder has started rumbling,”

Violet nodded. “That’s what I guessed. I just hope I can remember it later on, once…”

“Once what?”

“Once I’ve had these bandages for years,”

“Violet. That’s not gonna fucking happen. Ruby said it herself: the fact you’re seeing colors and shit means you’re not gonna need those bandages forever. You’re gonna see again,”

Violet shook her head. “It’ll never be the same. My eyes will be shit for the rest of my life and the longer they’re like that…” her voice broke. “The more I’ll forget,”

The tears were coming faster now. Mitch was unsure what to do. He didn’t want to shift much for fear of putting Violet in danger. Swapping the hand that held hers, he used his free one to take her shoulder and guide her head to rest against his shoulder. Her tears dampened his shirt as the rain began to fall in a light drizzle. Mitch remained silent. All those years on the streets when they were starving and beaten and cold he’d never seen Violet cry. Perhaps that was because she was never alone; Tenn and Willy were always around, needing guidance and protection. Needing her to be strong. But now they weren’t here to see her cry and for the first time in his life Mitch saw Violet cry. All he could do was stay beside her and let it come out.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, his eyes downcast. “I know it’s not worth shit, but I am. We were always there for each other, no matter what. Finding food, looking out for danger - we had each other’s backs. That didn’t change when we became pirates. It’s still my job to look out for you, to protect all of you. I failed that day. But it won’t happen again, not ever,”

“You’re not the only one,” Violet murmured. “Our family’s grown since the days on the streets. We all look out for each other. And Clem got hurt on my watch. I was right there, on the same fucking ship, and I couldn’t do anything to stop Minnie. Clem lost her leg; it’s gone. Maybe if I’d been able to get Minnie to listen…”

“That’s what you’re blaming yourself for? Vi, whatever happened to Minnie all those years she was gone changed her. Changed her in a way there’s no coming back from. She wouldn’t listen, not to any of us,”

“I could have tried harder,”

“You gave it your fucking all, Vi. We all saw that. Nothing was gonna get through to Minnie. Her head’s too fucked up for that now,” Mitch looked to Violet, seeing the uncertainty in the uncovered portion of her face. “Vi, you can’t see what happened to Clem as your fault. That was all Minnie,”

“And my wrecked face is a cannon’s fault, not yours,” Violet turned to Mitch as if hoping to get some confirmation her words had touched him even through his silence. “Guess it’s not that easy to accept, huh?”

“Not easy at all,” Mitch kicked out his leg, the toe of his boot scuffing the mast.

“Then what do we do?”

“Make sure nothing like this ever happens again,”

“And if we can’t do that?” The fear in the question was palpable.

Mitch squeezed her hand, gripping it all the firmer. “We get stronger. We give it everything we’ve fucking got. Just like we’ve always done,”

A small smile crossed Violet’s lips. “Should’ve known you’d give an answer like that,”

Mitch shrugged. “It’s all I’m good for. Put me in front of an enemy, I won’t stop till I obliterate them,”

Nah,” Violet shook her head, “You’re worth more than that. You’re the only one to have the guts to get me up here again. That’s worth something,”

A rueful smile tugged at Mitch’s face. “It made you feel a bit better?”

Violet nodded. “A bit more like myself. We should probably get down though. Rain’s getting harder,”

“Right. You OK up here on your own for a minute?”

“I can manage,”

Climbing down from the mast, Mitch kept a careful eye on Violet, ready to catch her if need be. Once his feet touched the deck he grabbed the rope, giving it a tug to signal he was about to start before slowly letting Violet down inch by inch. Her feet had scarcely reached the deck when the rain truly began to pour. They both ran hand in hand toward the steps to the lower decks.

“I’ll tell the others we gotta get ready for the storm!” Mitch called over the sound of the rain. “You think you can get back to the sleeping quarters on your own?”

“I’ve got this!” Violet called back. Letting go, she traced a hand along the wall of the corridor leading toward the rooms. “Go get the others!”

Giving Violet one final glance, Mitch turned toward the kitchen where he knew Omar had most of the crew busy at work peeling this week’s potatoes. Violet was gonna be alright. Not all the way better, but she wasn’t giving up. She’d continue her own internal fight and he’d do his best to keep her safe. He’d keep all of them safe. It was time to weather a storm.

[oficytheft]

Finding His Way Out of the Time Stream: < Chapter 8 >

It had been a couple of days since they had left 1967, after they had gotten back onto the ship he'd nicely asked Amaya to bring Mick some burn cream and bandages for him and since then he had been vaguely avoiding the other man. He didn't walk out of a room when he came in but he didn't exactly acknowledge that he was there either, he was sitting on the ground in his room now tossing a ball at the doors to his room and catching it in an even pattern. The motion was repetitive enough that he felt like he'd been sitting there forever but in reality?

It had only been maybe 20 minutes since he'd finished doing maintenance on his gun and sat down there, he rolled his head back in annoyance when his doors slid open and said. "Gideon, I thought I said I didn't want to be bothered." The response he got didn't come from the AI however but instead from the sound of familiar footsteps that caused him to practically roll away from where he was to avoid a sharp kick to the ankle, he looked up at his sister with a glare on his face. "What the hell, Lisa."

"What? I think it's only fair I get a hit in for thinking you were dead, jerk." He scowled at her for a second as he got up, entirely anticipating the punch to the arm that he received once he was up but deciding that he'd just get it over with now rather than waiting and letting her plan something worse as her payback for thinking that he had died. After though she took another step towards him for a hug and he felt her shoulders noticeably relax when he returned it. "I'm glad your not dead, Lenny." Leonard let out a sigh and squeezed his sister a little tighter as he glanced over to check that his door was in fact closed, he did not need his teammates seeing him right now.

"Yeah, I'm glad I ain't dead too. But what are you doing here?" He asked as he pulled out of the hug, going to retrieve his ball from just outside the door before letting them slide shut again. When he turned back around Lisa was sitting on his bed with her back against the wall and her feet outstretched over the edge where she was sliding her shoes off to flop down onto the floor. He simply let out an exasperated sigh that Lisa always swore he saved just for her and went over to pick the boots up and stand them against the wall off to the side of where the bed was, he slipped his own shoes off well he was at it so he could sit on the other end of the bed.

"Well your Captain said Mick suggested they go tell me you were alive, apparently none of them realized he had even told me. Next thing I know I'm hunted down by Flash's team so some old guy named Martain and his...what, assistant? Jax could tell me you were alive. I guess they had made a stop in for the day so the guy could see his grandkid or whatever, they thought that would be the end of it but jokes on them because I wouldn't let em leave without bringing me to." Leonard seated himself on the bed as he listened to her talk, stretching his legs out in front of him for a moment before crossing them and leaning back against the wall as she finished. He could only imagine that the reason they'd agreed to bring her was that she'd mentioned that hitting him being part of the plan. "I'm surprised I found you alone though, usually you and Mick are inseparable for weeks after you make up from a break. Which-" He felt a jab of her toes into his leg before she finished. "-he told me all the garbage that went down when he told me you died. What the fuck, Lenny?"

"Lisa I swear to god, if you keep assaulting me I am going to leave you in here and lock this damn room." He reached down to rub his leg where she had jabbed him as he spoke before actually responding to what she said. "Mick and I had a little disagreement on our last mission." He contemplated ignoring her expectant stare, deciding that he preferred to not tempt her into kicking him again so kept talking. "Our latest mission ended up with us in 1967 Vietnam, and we ran into Dick Rory 3 years before Mick was even conceived. You could say that neither one of us reacted the best when he fell back into a certain old habit."

If it wasn't for the fact that this wasn't the first time around with them talking about a subject like this? Leonard wouldn't have bothered telling her; not only did he not want to make her worry about Mick, but he also didn't want that look she was giving him now either. The look of understanding was almost worse than pity. "It couldn't have been too bad though, he's the one who showed me where your room was and he seemed fine...you haven't had any problems sleeping since then have you?" and there it was, exactly what he assumed she was going to think. The night terrors had been bad after the fire, and she probably assumed that Mick doing that to himself might trigger them again.

"No, Gideon's been giving me some my own personal prescription of knock-out pills the last couple of nights just encase." "Lenny." "Not a long-term solution. But it works, for now, not too keen on the idea of having her call Mick to my room because of one." He watched as she let out a sigh of annoyance and slid herself to the edge of the bed, raising a brow when she slipped on her shoes before raising his hands up to catch his own when she threw them at him with nearly no warning. "What are you doing, and what are you gonna do if I say no?" He'd already pushed himself to the edge of the bed and started slipping on his shoes as he started talking though, not exactly keen on the idea of her wandering around the ship on her own.

"Well since I seem to be the only one of the three of us with any kind of emotional competence, we're gonna go find Mick and you two are gonna sit down and have a conversation like adults. You'd think at nearly 50 years old the two of you would have figured out that communication is better than-" Leonard was just a second to dodge her hand when she turned towards him to smack him in the arm with the back of her hand. "-stranding your husband in the middle of nowhere in a random time period Leonard."

He just narrowed his eyes in annoyance at his sister and pushed her hand away from him and said with a hard tone. "You weren't there Lisa, you don't know everything that happened." 

She didn't even miss a beat as she turned away and responded without looking at him as she opened the door and started out with him following after her, knowing that was the best way to avoid her causing a scene in front of his teammates. "And who's fault is that Lenny? You leave me a voice mail and just fly off on an adventure before I can even get back to you, then you go and act like an idiot before getting yourself killed." She stopped walking and turned to look at him, he felt a pit in his stomach in anticipation before he could even see her face. He swore she'd been practicing that look since she was just a kid, it had never worked on Lewis but then that wasn't saying much. Depending on the situation it usually made Leonard either compliment with what she was asking for or made him feel guilty like it was right now. "You're the only family I have left, you and Mick. And you just up and left me behind without a second thought."

"That's not true." His eyes narrowed less in annoyance and more to hide the guilt that he felt, they weren't in his room any more and one of the Legends could come across them and he wasn't quite comfortable enough around them to let them see this side of him. "I knew it would be dangerous, going against The Flash is one thing Lis. At least Allen has a code of honor. But I did digging on Vandel Savage before I came on this trip, he would have killed you without hesitation if he got the chance. I wouldn't put you in danger like that. Thought of Mick dying? That's heartbreaking, I don't know what I would do with myself. But losing you would end up with me dead sooner or later." He hadn't planned on being gone so long though, he'd figured 'hey, time machine. I'll be back in a week either way' the same way he had when he left Mick behind, but then he'd had to go and put himself in the middle of an explosion. 'I was coming back' seemed to be his mantra with people he cared about lately and as lame an excuse it was that didn't mean it wasn't true. Finally, he relented. "I am sorry Lisa."

"Good, because if you die on me again I'm gonna make your life hell." And with that, she turned away and started down the hallway again and stopping in front of Mick's door. "He showed me where his room was on the way to yours." She said before opening the door and lightly pushing him reluctantly into the room, which earned her a look from Leonard and a grumble of annoyance from Mick from the other side of the room when he realized what was going on. "Now, you two stay in here and talk about your feelings, and don't come out until your done. And that doesn't mean the first thought that came to your heads, now talk to each other and stop being idiots."

[princessjungeun]

7:30 Backstories: Hyejoo

because this is an AU they obviously aren’t idols hence why there will be more in depth about the relationships between characters

Hyejoo

It was a normal Tuesday night when the city of Seoul was attacked. Hyejoo and her brother were up late doing homework when a loud boom sounded shaking the whole house. Hyejoo looked up at her older brother and he immediately ushered her into the family’s basement.

Their parents rushed to be with them before another boom sounded, definitely closer. Hyejoo’s dad locked eyes with her, pulling his daughter and wife into his arms. Her older brother huddling around wrapping his arms around the two females.

Hyejoo held onto her mother’s hand, squeezing it for dear life. The older woman kissing her daughter’s hand gently, “be strong Hyejoo, I love you.” Before the young teenager could respond a louder boom sounded, this time caving the roof of the house.

A crushing weight fell over the huddled family, soft groans from Hyejoo’s parents filled her ears. The young teenager rubbed her eyes, her ears ringing and vision blurry.

“Eomma? Appa? Oppa?” She looked around for her family members, layers of cement and rocks crushing her body. Hyejoo saw her mother, eyes closed, her skin covered in dust. Looking further she realized her father was further underneath the rubble. Her older brother trying to push himself out.

“OPPA! Help me!” She yelled for her older brother, tears starting to run down her cheeks. The older boy managed to dig himself fairly quickly. Running over to her, he stepped over his mother knowing there was no use in trying to help her, she was gone.

With all his strength he pulled Hyejoo from under the pile of cement and metal. He brushed tears from her cheeks and hugged her “Are you ok? Anything hurt?” She scanned her arms and legs before shaking her head no.

“I need to get you to safety....i’m taking you to the university, there’s dorm rooms underground.” He tugged her arm but she didn’t move.

Hyejoo insisted “ I want to bring Chaewon, let me go get her. Please.” She looked at her brother with pleading eyes. He knew he could say no, especially after they just lost their parents.

He sighed “Fine. Go to Chaewon’s house, if she’s not there come right back. I’m going to find Henry. If you’re not here when I get back I’m going to come get you ok?” She hugged him and sprinted down the street to her girlfriend’s house.

When she arrived she found Chaewon’s house in slightly better condition than her own. Half of the house was completely demolished, part the roof caved in on the standing half.

“CHAEWON-AH! Chaewon!” Hyejoo shouted standing in front of her house. Police sirens drowning out her shouts. Scanning the exterior of the house she searched for where her girlfriend’s window would be. Her heart sank when she realized it was on the demolished side of the house.

Running over to the pile of rubble she saw Chaewon’s parents, limp and lifeless. Hyejoo checked for a pulse on the two adults, tears starting to sting when she didn’t feel one. Looking for the blonde’s hair or a pale hand she started digging through the pile of brick and mortar.

Blood starting to draw from her hands as she aggressively dug faster to find her girlfriend’s body. Tears flowed down her face as she dug, starting to lose hope that she was even here. Until she noticed a small hand stuck underneath a cement panel, Chaewon.

Hyejoo tore apart everything that was separating her from her girlfriend. Pushing the large cement panel off from the small blonde, she sighed of relief seeing Chaewon’s chest slowly moving up and down.

“Chaewon-ah? Can you hear me?” The black haired girl held the blonde’s hand in hers. A soft groan escaped Chaewon’s lips, Hyejoo crying harder knowing that her girlfriend was going to be fine. Carefully she pulled Chaewon from the ground and pulled her onto her back.

Halfway back to her house she found her brother running with his boyfriend Henry. The four ran to the university, quickly finding Hyejoo’s older brother’s dorm.

•

•

•

The four stayed in the safety of the underground dorms for weeks. In this time Hyejoo’s older brother taught Hyejoo about bombs, grenades, and gases obtained by enemy forces.

Late one night Hyejoo woke up, Chaewon’s head resting on her chest, an arm wrapped around her waist. The black haired girl gently kissed Chaewon on the lips before slipping out of bed.

This was a common habit of hers when she couldn’t sleep. Sneaking back above ground to throw whatever she could get her hands on. This was her sort of therapy, not only did it help get her anger out, it also helped with increasing her arm strength.

When she returned to the dorms she expected to see Chaewon in bed, Henry and her older brother across the room. However they were gone. The whole floor was empty, the few other university students that sheltered there were gone. She was alone this time.

Running above ground she shouted for her girlfriend and brother, only to be met with silence. She walked day and night through the city, sleeping in random alleyways hoping she’d be lucky enough to open her eyes the next morning.

The streets were littered with the bodies of fallen soldiers. Sometimes she would just take what she needed from the bodies, not like they had use for it anymore.

Over time she’d gathered a bag of explosives, gas bombs, a bulletproof vest, and a small amount of food and water. The young teenager wandered for weeks, meeting people here and there, but nobody could be trusted anymore. She just wanted to find her brother, Henry, and of course Chaewon.

As dawn fell, the sky was still dark, the sound of bombs exploding in the distance. Her body felt heavy and weak, she dragged her feet along the ground lazily. A loud shout echoed from behind her, “HEY LITTLE GIRL STOP WALKING!” Hyejoo looked around in confusion, slowly reaching for a grenade on her vest.

The deep voice yelled again for her to stop, but Hyejoo didn’t. The language they spoke wasn’t Korean, it wasn’t one Hyejoo could put her finger on, but it definitely sounded East-Slavic. She looked around trying to find where the voice was coming from, until she felt her eyes burning.

A white cloud swallowed her, the fumes burning her throat and eyes. This was a gas she didn’t recognize, this burned more than anything she’d ever felt. She pulled the pin from her grenade and threw it in the direction she thought was correct. Adrenaline coursed through her veins as she sprinted the other way, she didn’t stop running. Tears running down her face, her eyes burning. Everything hurt, she wanted help, she needed someone, anyone.

She turned around, although she couldn’t see much, she could still tell she was outside. Hyejoo smacked into something, rather someone full force. Getting up from the ground she kept her eyes closed.

“HEY WATCH IT PUT YOUR HANDS UP!” A girl yelled in Korean. Immediately she did as she was told, feeling more vulnerable because she couldn’t see. Not being able to take the pain she rubbed at her eyes.

“I SAID HANDS UP!” The girl yelled again, Hyejoo kept her hands on her eyes. “I’m sorry I was gassed I can’t see... it hurts. I won’t hurt you and I’m not the enemy help me please!” Before she could continue a familiar voice called out “Ryujin what’s the problem?”

Hyejoo moved her hands from her eyes, “Henry. That’s Henry. Henry Lau. 25. Graduate Biochemical Engineering student at Seoul National. My brother’s boyfriend. I know him.”

The girl Hyejoo was assuming to be Ryujin grabbed her arm and walked her to the squad. “This girl says she knows Henry. Is she lying?”

Hyejoo felt someone wrap strong arms around her, “she’s not lying- what’s on you? It’s burning my eyes.” Henry realized the problem and helped Hyejoo flush her eyes. Her vision was long gone but that didn’t take away from the fact that she had found one of the three people she needed most.

“Where’s my brother? Where’s Chaewon? Do you all know her?” Hyejoo flooded the group with questions but Henry quickly hushed her. “They don’t know them Hyejoo. I- Your brother is gone. I woke up and he was there, but no pulse...Chaewon I don’t know. I saw her run, I think she went to find you I don’t know. But I haven’t seen her since. I’m sorry.”

Hyejoo wiped a single tear that fell from her now blind eyes. She sighed and asked “well can I join you all? I can throw grenades and bombs, I don’t miss.”

“You’re in.”

[duskandstarlight]

Embers and Light (Chapter Five / Nessian)

Let me know if you’d like to be added to the tag list! :)

Ao3

Chapter Five Cassian

Cassian had put a shivering Nesta to bed, piling blankets upon blankets on top of her to warm her up. Her skin had been so pale it had taken on a blueish hue, and he had watched her as she slipped in and out of consciousness for the next hour, unable to leave. She had murmured when she fell under that final time; an incomprehensible string of words falling from her lips that were only silenced when he clasped her hand, as if his warmth soothed whatever images haunted her. He didn’t let go, after that.

Nesta had been lucid enough to tell him what he suspected after the incident; as she begged no, no, no when he started to pile the logs onto the hearth — she was scared of fire. And if her full-blown flashbacks in the camp were anything to go by, Nesta was suffering from an extreme case of suppressed battle fatigue. It was no wonder that she had hidden herself from her sisters… from them all. Her power rose to her fear and if he hadn’t flung up a shield… Well, he didn’t want to contemplate the bodies that he may have had to place on the pyre.

Battle fatigue — or organorum as it was called in Illyrian — was an unfortunate side effect of war that plagued fae and human alike. It was less of a problem for Illyrian’s, where the fighting instinct was so strong that warriors flung themselves back into battle with a stubbornness that defied usual fae, but that didn’t mean it wasn't a problem.

Even a year later, Cassian’s nightmares were proof enough that he himself was still reeling from the war, so there was no excuse for his failure to contemplate the full extent of Nesta’s suffering. Cassian had sat in the armchair by her bed, watching Nesta’s too-still body under the heaps of blankets as he spiralled further and further into a pit of self-loathing at the failure of he, his friends and his family for letting it all get this far.

Although Nesta was skilled at hiding her monsters, they should have pushed — they should have done more — to understand the root of her icy coldness. Nesta had spent a lifetime honing her skill at masking her emotions and protecting herself at all costs, that none of them had even stopped to think that her behaviour may have been to protect them rather than simply push them away.

But today that impenetrable wall had come down, and in its wake that wild power of hers had risen to the surface. Cassian had felt her unleashed terror before he’d even heard her whimper, and then before he’d had time to dissect what was happening, that ice from within her had exploded with such force he’d had to test his own power as he threw up a shield to protect the females, the children…

Cassian had known about the bathtub. Feyre had mentioned it to him prior to Nesta’s arrival in Illyria, and he had installed the spout above the bath because of it, but he had never contemplated the gravity of the other battles she might be facing.

After the war with Hybern, he had been so angry at her for sending him away and so broken himself as he informed family after family that their loved ones wouldn’t be coming home, that emotion had clouded logic. He’d been too distracted by Nesta’s destructive behaviour to look that bit deeper — to see past the excessive drinking and the sleazy males she used to warm her bed.

Because Cassian had felt everything in that moment when she’d lain over his broken body, as if there were a bridge between their souls. It had been overwhelming — the pain, the anguish, the heartbreak she felt — he could hardly bare the unfiltered rawness of it. And in that moment he understood why Nesta was the way she was, because that mask of indifference was the only thing protecting her from the harshness of the world.

By the time his leg and wings were mended, that bridge felt constricted. Rather than fluid it was stiff and muffled, as if he were wading under water. He had seen enough to know it was still there. Snippets of her life as her walls failed, like today, when all he could feel was pure terror at her magic as it swirled around her, readying itself to strike.

He had heard every one of his bones snap and his agonised screams. He had seen her father’s dead eyes as his body crumpled to the floor, and Elain’s blood-coated hands as she pulled Truth-Teller out of the King of Hybern’s neck…

But even though Nesta had pushed him cruelly away, he still wanted her. Cassian had never been so angry at someone in his entire life — had never thought anyone more barbed and merciless when they wished to be — yet there was also a part of him that understood her. She was fire and ice with the sharp and assessing intelligence of a warrior. He had witnessed first-hand as Nesta read a room in seconds and used it to her advantage with that silver tongue of hers.

In all honesty, he had never ever, been more magnetised by someone in his five hundred years of living, and he knew that nobody else would ever come close.

So Cassian had waited until Nesta’s breathing became even before he had left the house. He was desperate for fresh air, to get lost in the monotonous rhythm of feet on mud so he could play their conversations over and over in his mind. He looped them on repeat and when he really started to look, they began to make sense. Because Nesta couldn’t voice her demons like others could. No, instead she had left him clues. He just hadn’t been clever enough to see it and to ask for an explanation why.

Stop following me. Stop trying to haul me into your happy little circle. Stop doing all of it.

I told you to stay away. You know nothing about me.

I don’t like fires. You’ll soon change your mind living here. I won’t.

It was all so obvious now. When Cassian cast his mind back to Solstice, Nesta had left the town house after he had added more wood to the fire. She had even deliberately chosen the armchair furthest away form the hearth, even though he knew it wasn’t her favourite spot. At the time, Cassian had thought it because she didn’t want to sit with all of them, but now… Had she left because the sound had become too much? To think he had berated her for not talking to him, when she had probably spent the entire evening trying to ignore the crackling fire and hold herself together.

Dragging a hand over his face, Cassian cast a look around. He had already found the closest messenger and sent word to Rhys, letting him know that he needed to speak with his brother face-to-face. He had also visited the spot of the incident, checking in on the females and children to make sure they weren’t hurt. He had been certain his protective shield had contained the explosion but he had wanted to double check. Now, he found himself in the craftsman centre of the camp. In front of him stood the small wooden building of Emerie’s clothing shop, the glass of the large lead windows shining brilliantly in the sun.

Emerie was standing with her back straight and her chin held high — a perfect rendition of Nesta’s I Will Slay My Enemies pose — as he entered the shop, the bell above the door heralding his arrival. Her sharp eyes flickered in recognition as he closed the door behind him, but she only dropped her chin in acknowledgement. The action was defiant yet subservient and so unusual for an Illyrian female that respect flared within him.

“Emerie,” Cassian said, trying to instil some warmth into his greeting, even if the thought of Nesta small and vulnerable back home was still making his blood run cold.

“Lord Cassian,” she replied, her voice low and modulated. “What can I help you with?”

Fingering the thick woollen scarves that hung on some hooks driven into the wall, Cassian swept an assessing eye around the shop. It was a force of habit from years of training, and a quick glance told him everything he needed to know: it was impeccably tidy and despite a few empty hangers, it looked as if she was still fighting the same losing battle when it came to customers.

“I see you have gotten more popular,” he lied, for lack of something better to say.

Emerie’s dark eyes bore into his. “The clothing shop across the street ran out of coats because of the snow storms. Some had no choice but to buy here.”

The corner of Cassian’s mouth tugged upwards at Emerie’s blunt honesty and the image she had conjured. Cassian would have paid good money to see those proud Illyrian’s faced with the dilemma of buying from a female or facing an early death from the bitter cold.

“That must have been quite the picture,” he said after a moment.

“Yes,” Emerie said slowly with a frown. “Can I help you with something?”

“I need blankets and some of these scarves,” Cassian told her, gesturing to the rack in front of him.

His words prompted Emerie into movement and she floated over to the shelf piled high with an assortment of thick, knitted blankets. “How many?”

“Twelve of each,” Cassian instructed, as he strolled over to a rack of soft earmuffs. His fingers immediately found purchase in the dappled grey fur of a headband. It was surprisingly perfect; it was wide enough to sit snugly over pointed ears, and whilst it was more fashionable than something Illyrian’s usually wore, it was ideal for muffling noise.

Plucking it off the rack, Cassian placed it on the counter. “And this, too.”

Emerie’s eyebrows rose but she didn’t say a word as she began to ring the items up on the till.

Leaning against the counter, Cassian watched her work. When he noticed how her posture straightened uncomfortably at his attention, he tapped a large finger against the pine and cast a look around in an attempt to make her more at ease.

“I don’t suppose you can you order in some books for me, can you?” he asked suddenly, an idea blooming within him.

Despite the unexpected question, Emerie didn’t miss a beat. Unfortunately for her, it meant her well formed responses fell to the wayside. “For Lady Nesta?”

The subsequent, awkward pause had Cassian’s lips twitching again in amusement.

Wings rustling uncomfortably, Emerie dared a look at him. It was a look that Cassian knew no other Illyrian female in this camp would have risked and for that, he admired her.

Her tan cheeks were stained with the faintest red and her eyes were apologetic, as she murmured in explanation, “It’s the talk of the camp…”

“Naturally,” Cassian said, with a wave of his hand. Illyrian’s always were nosy bastards. “Nesta is a keen reader and is in need of some more books.”

Emerie started to neatly fold the different colour fabrics. Her cheeks had faded to a dusky pink. “What genre?”

“Romance usually, but she reads anything and everything. I’d stay clear of horror and war.”

Emerie should definitely steer clear or war, but Cassian didn’t want to stress the importance of it. He had a feeling that Emerie didn’t need telling twice, anyway. She was as sharp as a well-honed blade, from what he had gleaned of her.

“I can look into it,” Emerie said finally, as she finished carefully placing his purchases into bags. “I won’t be able to get any in until next week.”

Cassian nodded to indicate he understood. “A small selection will do.”

Handing her the money, he took the packaged bags. “I’ll see you next week. Send word when the books have arrived. In fact,” he put a gold coin down pointedly on the counter. “For delivery. You know where I live?”

Emerie jerked her chin upwards, her dark hair swaying at the movement.

“Until then,” Cassian said with a bow of his head.

He shot straight into the skies as soon as he was outside, forgoing the steep walk to the widow’s camp halfway up the craggy mountain. The snow was far thicker than in the mountain pass and the ice was treacherous at points. It had only been in irritation that he had suggested walking up it this morning. Nesta’s venomous comment about his inability to read had struck a deep insecurity he’d never been able to shake. So he had fought back in his own way, knowing deep in his gut that she wouldn’t take the easy way out, because he had an inkling Nesta was a stickler for self-punishment.

That childish behaviour had only gotten him what he deserved: females and children nearly dead, and Nesta passed out, her skin so wan that he felt sick to his stomach.

Cassian was well in the air when he felt the familiar claw raking down the ring of fire protecting his mind. He let the fire part and his flames licked at the forthcoming darkness in greeting. It was not the sort of pitch black that was full of haunting promises, but the soothing calm that came with the midnight sky.

His brother’s voice sounded in his head only a second later. I can be late afternoon or does it need to be sooner?

Late afternoon is fine.

A pause followed. Cassian rarely called Rhys to Illyria. It was only when he truly needed the power of a High Lord did he relent and ask Rhys to winnow in, so he wasn’t surprised by the next question.

Need I be worried?

Cassian couldn’t hold back the tightness in his voice, as he said silently, We had an incident this morning.

I don’t doubt that by ‘we’ you mean yourself and the eldest Archeron sister?

Something like that, Cassian replied vaguely. He didn’t want to get into it now — not like this.

Show me?

It was a request not a command and one that Cassian didn’t hesitate to refuse. He shook his head — an instinctual habit even though Rhys couldn’t see him. I’d rather not.

His brother’s reply was delayed but understanding. I’ll winnow into the camp in a few hours. I’m in a meeting with Amren and I like my balls where they are.

Good. That left Cassian with plenty of time to check on Mas and fly them back to the house.

Making sure his brother could detect the amusement in his voice, Cassian said, I didn’t know you had any balls.

A dark chuckle as smooth as silk sounded in his head. Meet you at the top of the mountain?

An immediate understanding that Cassian wanted privacy without having to ask. Sometimes having known somebody for centuries had its perks.

See you there.

Snow crunched beneath Cassian’s heavy boots as he landed at the edge of the widow’s camp. Cassian had set himself down at the crest of the sloping path, which led up the mountain in a steady ascent to the widow’s base. Ahead of him, in the middle of the camp, Cassian could make out the towering mass of grey stone, which hunched over to create what he had always sombrely thought looked like a jagged tombstone: an omen of death waiting to claim the outcast females of the Windhaven camp.

When it came to the deep-rooted sexism in Illyrian culture, Cassian was hard done by for choosing the greatest atrocity. Yet one of the worst by far was their treatment of widows. Just a brief stock of his surroundings told Cassian everything he had expected — their numbers had grown exponentially since the war, a direct result of the Illyrian males who had not made it back.

The conditions down in the mountain pass might be harsh, but the exposure to the elements halfway up the mountain were nothing less than brutal. It was a heinous way-of-life to be relegated to the widow’s camp, but for many husbandless females, they had no choice. There was nowhere else for them to go.

Every day at the crack of dawn when Cassian left the house, he saw the lines of females as they trudged down the perilous, convoluted path to the heart of the Windhaven camp. There, they would work themselves to the bone, just to afford the clothes on their back and to buy enough food to survive.

Despite the laws that Rhys had put into motion, widow’s found it hard to find their place amongst Illyrian society. Once a husband died, the financial strain of a childless widow was often seen as too much on the surviving family, and if their childbearing years were behind them, there was often only one place for them to go. It was rarely — if ever — out of choice to live up the mountain. It meant a hard and difficult existence at the bottom of the social ladder with no opportunity to climb.

Swallowing thickly, Cassian took in the rusting steel drums of fire and the huddled figures desperate for any sense of warmth. Females looked up in alarm as he passed, recoiling in fear of the male — of the General — who had travelled all the way up the mountain to their exiled spot.

Nodding at the weathered faces, Cassian headed towards the East side of the camp. He was unsurprised when all of the females quickly looked away from him and trained their eyes dutifully to the floor. Some of them were too preoccupied with tugging their worn clothing tighter around themselves to ward off the bitter chill, than to look at him at all. The action made Cassian wish he’d brought more blankets, but he knew if they had an inkling that he was bringing them clothing, they would never accept it. Instead, he’d been giving Mas supplies for years, leaving it to her — a respected elder amongst the widow community — to distribute the clothing to those who needed it the most.

Cassian drew up beside Mas’s tent just as she was stepping out. Her tent was less battered than the others — he had brought her a new one a few years prior as a Solstice gift — and whilst she had tutted at him, he knew it brought her comfort and protection from the elements.

She looked alarmed when she saw him, those dark eyes widening exponentially. It was incredibly rare for him to set foot in the camp. In fact, he could count on two hands how many times he had visited. It wasn’t because he didn’t care but because of the reaction he got . Many of the females here had been abused by males at some point in their lives and so a male in the camp was a threat to their safety. And even though Cassian meant no harm, he could sense how tense the females were because of his presence.

“General Cassian… I am late?” Mas asked, even though they both knew she wasn’t expected for a few hours yet.

“Are you — ” he started. But then he stilled, because what he saw had red, hot anger washing over him. The temperature of it was so intense it felt like waves of heat rolling across a desert plain and Mas flinched, as if she too could feel it despite the icy bite to the air. Cassian suspected the ferocity of it still had something to do with the female back at the house. He wasn't sure he'd ever get Nesta's broken expression out of his head as she begged him to stay away.

“Who did this to you?” Cassian demanded, because around Mas’ wrist was a thick bandage, and in her gait… she was limping.

He stepped quickly towards her. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw females scuttle into tents, his voice clearly too male and full of rage.

It took the restraint of a warrior to dampen his fire.

He lowered his voice. “Tell me what happened.”

Reaching up, Mas patted his cheek tenderly with her palm. She smiled sadly at him. He knew his concern caught her off guard, even after all these years. Cassian suspected it stemmed from never having anyone that truly cared for her well-being. Her poor wings were testament to that.

“Hush, sinta,” she soothed, with a last pat to his face. “I slipped over in the snow yesterday. I was climbing the mountain in the storm and sprained my wrist. Come, you are scaring the females.”

She gestured for him to follow inside the tent and he relented, if only to save the females from hiding away.

“Will you now listen to me and move into the outhouse?” he muttered irritably, as he ducked through the canvas flap. “Then you wouldn’t have to walk up the mountain at all.”

Mas made a tsk sound between her teeth. “And what of the other widow’s, sinta? The orphans? I can’t up and leave them, you know this.”

Grumbling at the truth of her words, Cassian attempted to straighten up. His head just barely missed a lantern hanging from the primary wooden beam that ran across the roof of the tent as it swayed in a gust of wind. He ducked again, before finding a space where he had no fear of being clobbered in the temple, and stood tall.

Mas’s tent was large in comparison to the other females. Although Mas technically had a tent to herself, she usually offered a spare bed to one of the new recruits until they could get themselves on their own two feet.

Today was no different. In the corner, on a makeshift camp bed was a little girl who could be no older than five. She was curled up on the very corner of the thin mattress, her dark eyes watching him warily. Her little wings rustled as he took another step inside the tent, unsettled by his movement, and his heart squeezed with sadness as he watched her too-thin body shrink into itself as she tried to make herself even smaller.

Cassian took a last look at that dirty, haunted face — the face that should be innocent but was already marred by cruel reality of the world — before he worked a kind smile onto his own. “And who is this?”

“We had some orphans join us last night,” Mas explained, with an air that told him that the amount of female orphans joining the camp was far too frequent, too. “This little one is staying with me for the time being.”

Cassian bit back a grimace as he looked back at the scared youngling. Sadly, circumstances like hers was also a recurring addition to the widow’s camp. Unlike male orphans and bastards, whose use would be found in the sparring rings when they came of age, young girls who had lost their families were often taken in by the widow’s. It meant more mouths to feed and more bodies to clothe, but Mas and the other elders who had already lived unforgiving lives, took female younglings under their wings despite the financial difficulties. Unfortunately, many of the orphans had no option but to start working from a young age, often finding jobs in the kitchens or doing laundry, where they were often required to stamp and wring cloth for long durations of time until their feet and fingers blistered from the friction.

“Don’t bother to find her a job,” Cassian said immediately. “Bring her along with you every day. I’ll pay her a salary.”

Mas’ expression softened and she bowed her head gratefully. “You are too kind, General Cassian.”

Cassian nodded tightly. “It’s the least I can do. Bring her with you later so she can have a hot bath and a good meal. You know the clothing store that used to be owned by Proteus? It’s owned by his daughter Emerie now. Drop by there and pick up some clothing for her on the way. Not the store opposite.” He pressed some coins into her hand. “Whilst you’re at it, get a salve for that wrist. If it’s still sore tomorrow, i’ll call the healer. ”

He nodded to the camp bed. “Does this little one have a name?”

Mas sent him a sad smile, glancing at the small figure in the corner. “She’s not spoken yet.”

Cassian nodded in understanding. He knew what it was like to have your life uprooted and be cast out on your own from a young age. Those memories would never leave him, no matter how many wars he fought or how many Siphons he had.

“Let me know if she needs anything else. Do you want me to fly you both down?”

Mas shook her head. “I need to check on the other girls before I leave.”

“Fine,” he replied, his thoughts already running away with him as he tried to figure out how he could help the other orphans, too. Finding them new homes would be tricky — if not near impossible — but he would try…

“General Cassian,” Mas called after him as he went to leave. “You never said why you were here.”

Cassian held up the bags of supplies in his hands.

“I was just dropping off some warm clothing for the females,” he lied, not wanting to mention Nesta’s foresight. “Will you distribute these to the most needy?”

“Of course,” Mas said obediently, but her look was shrewd and piercing. He had already seen her gaze flit to his forehead, where the large gash was still healing. He wasn’t in the mood to tell her what had happened and he knew she wouldn’t push. No doubt she’d learn about it as soon as she reached the mountain pass, anyway.

It was going to be the talk of the camp — if it wasn’t already.

Setting the bags down by a small chest of drawers to his right, Cassian started to head towards the tent entrance, before hesitating. Now was as good a time as any to speak to Mas about Nesta — about what he’d discovered this morning.

Mas was already looking at him expectantly.

“Nesta is feeling unwell today and has taken to her bed,” he started slowly. “I’ve discovered she doesn’t like fire. The log burner in the living room is fine to use as long as the door is closed, but you mustn’t light a fire in her room.”

Mas’s eyes widened as she followed him out of the tent.

“Yes, General Cassian,” she said obediently. “Of course.”

“Good,” he replied and stretched his wings out wide. “I’ll see you in a few hours, then.”

TAGSS @superspiritfestival​

[mischiefandspirits]

Doppelgänger (4/?)

Previously on Doppelgänger ~ Masterlist ~ Next time on Doppelgänger

Danny, Sam, and Tucker were just 14 when they took a look inside the portal Danny’s parents had built. From there, everything changed. They woke up with white hair, green skin, and powers they could learn to control. They were hybrids, halfas.

They were the hero Doppelgänger.

{Shades of Gray}

“Thanks, but I'll pass,” Valerie scoffed.

The trio’s ghost senses went off and Sam turned away from the popular girl. I got it. “Same.”

Danny opened his Space Fold while Tucker distracted Valerie, dropping the thermos into Sam’s waiting hand before she climbed onto her scooter to ride off.

“Are you sure you don’t want an-”

“I’m sure,” she scoffed, shoving Tucker away. “Get lost.”

Suddenly the ground began to shake and the ghost dog burst from the ground.

Danny gasped and ducked to the side as Valerie’s dresser was knocked over. His eyes flickered red as he used a bit of ghost strength to catch it before it could fall into the street.

“Wow, nice catch, loser.”

Danny quickly pushed the dresser upright and let go of his ghost power before Valerie came into view. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Thanks, I think.”

“No, thank you.” She looked over the dresser, sighing with relief. She turned to him with a critical eye. “You’re stronger than you look.”

Danny didn’t get a chance to answer before he was plowed over by a ghost puppy.

“Danny!”

As Danny groaned and rubbed his head, the puppy yapped and licked his cheek. He looked up to see it prancing on his chest with its little flame tail wagging. He turned to Tucker and Valerie, who were staring. “Uh, help?”

“Got it,” Sam said, appearing at his side to scoop up the dog by its collar.

The dog immediately started growling and Sam dropped it as it grew into its giant form. Danny scrambled away, but it kept its eyes on the ghost girl.

She flew back as it snapped at her, holding her hands up. “Easy there!”

It crouched down, hackles raised and Sam prepared her ecto blasts.

Without thinking, Danny opened his Space Fold and the dog disappeared inside.

Sam hesitated, glanced at Danny, then shook her fist. “And stay gone!”

“You!” Valerie growled. “Whatever you are, get out of here! You and you're stupid dog have done enough!”

Sam scowled back. “The dog’s not ours. We’re a cat person.”

Danny frowned. I object.

Overruled, Tucker and Sam both said.

“We?” Valerie asked.

Sam gestured to herself. “We.”

“You’re referring to yourself as we? What a weirdo.”

“And here we were about to apologize for what happened to the lab,” Sam snorted and turned invisible. “Nevermind. Have a nice life.”

“You little freak!”

Danny and Tucker shared a look as Danny got up. “Well, I gotta go. Uh, my parents. They’ll want to know about the, uh, ghost sighting.”

“Ghosts?” Valerie asked as he went to his scooter. “Oh my gosh! Those were ghosts?”

“Yeah, hence the whole flying and invisibility and stuff,” Danny said before riding off.

“Why does he need to tell his parents?”

“Oh, Danny’s parents are professional ghost hunters. Kind of,” Tucker said awkwardly. “Didn’t you know?”

“No.” She watched the paler boy turn the corner then turned to Tucker with a flirtatious smile. “Is that offer of help still good?”

“Y-yeah, absolutely!”

“Where’s Tucker?” Sam asked as she met Danny in human form.

He shrugged. Tuck?

I’ll catch up!

The two rolled their eyes.

“How long do you think he’s going to be hanging around her until he realizes she’s not interested?”

“Too long,” Sam said and the two sent off. “Now, why’d you send the dog to the fold? I could have taken it.”

Danny shrugged. “You were going to blast it. You can’t blast a dog.”

“It’s not a dog, it’s a ghost.” She looked over at him with narrowed eyes. “We can’t keep him, Danny.”

“I don’t want to keep him. He’s a menace. I just don’t want to see him blasted.”

“Is that why you didn’t send him to the ghost zone?”

“I did,” Danny huffed. “He just got back out.”

“And now he’s trashing the fold.”

Danny tilted his head. “I don’t think he is. It’s quiet inside.”

“Whatever. You better not have anything of mine in there.”

Danny bit his lip. Did he return that spider plushy he’d borrowed from Sam to use as a pillow last week? “Maybe I should check on him.”

He ignored her glare as he slipped into an alley. After being sure no one could see him, he poked his head into the fold. Thankfully it hadn’t found the plushie, though it was chewing on the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick in its puppy form.

The dog looked up at him and started wagging its tail, so he quickly pulled his head out. “He’s good.”

Sam shook her head. “You’re lucky Audrey II’s not in there anymore.”

“Oh yeah, how’re the Fenton Shears working?”

“Perfect. Strangely enough, she actually likes to be pruned.”

“Yap!”

The two turned to see the ghost dog’s head sticking out of empty air. It gave a dog-smile before its head was replaced by paws making digging motions. Slowly a hole in the air formed, revealing the Space Fold. The dog jumped through the hole and into Danny’s arms.

“Woah!”

“I guess we know how it’s getting out of the Ghost Zone now,” Sam said, looking between the hole and the dog.

“Bad Cujo, no digging,” Danny said, shifting the dog into one arm and waving a finger in its face.

“Don’t name it!” Sam snapped. Then flinched back when the dog started to growl at her.

“No, no, it’s okay. Sam’s a friend.” Danny scratched the dog under its chin and it relaxed.

“You’re getting attached.”

“Am not.” Danny grabbed the edge of the hole and pulled it closed. “I’m just trying to keep it from hulking out.”

Sam made a disbelieving sound and knelt so she could see the dog better without getting closer. “It’s got the Axion Labs logo on its collar.”

“What? Oh yeah, I saw that earlier. It must have slipped my mind after the rampage.”

She transformed and lifted off the ground. “That’s the first place he hit. Maybe there’s something there that could help us get rid of him. He could be an old guard dog. We’ll check it out. Keep him calm.”

“Why me?”

Sam stuck her hand towards him and the dog started growling.

“Alright, fair. But what do I do with him?”

“Train him? Play with him? Take him for a walk? Ghost dog or not, he's still a dog… We think. Good luck!”

Danny glared as she flew off, then looked down at the dog. “Guess it’s just you and me… Wanna take a walk through the ghost zone?”

Cujo gave a yap and wiggled in his arms excitedly.

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

“I think I’m actually going to miss him. The look on Skulker’s face when he stole his leg was priceless.”

“What did I say about getting attached?”

Tucker rolled his eyes as he walked invisibly across the outside of a warehouse. “We still can’t believe this was all over a squeaky toy.”

“Just be glad I took care of it before something really bad happened,” Sam said.

An explosion just missed Tucker, who darted away with a yelp.

“TUCKER?”

He turned to see a woman in full-body red hazmat standing on a hoverboard holding a grenade launcher. He took off, but she followed. “We might need some help. There’s a girl here with a really big gun and she’s not setting off our ghost sense.”

“I’m not far. I’ll be there in a second,” Danny said and hung up.

“A human hunter? And it’s not Danny’s mom?” Sam asked.

“Nope. And she can see us while we’re invisible.”

A blast flew past him.

“Her aim isn’t good though. Can’t be our mom then, her aim is scary,” Danny and Tucker said as Danny came near.

Tucker turned a corner and Danny was there, raising a shield as the hunter threw a handful of throwing stars. Only a few made it to them, and even then they bounced off the shield.

“What? There’s two of you?” the hunter said, pulling to a stop.

“Duplication,” they said, shrugging.

“Wait? Is that Valerie?” Sam asked.

“Valerie?” they said, surprised.

The hunter flinched back. “How did y- It doesn’t matter. I’m ending you.”

The two shared a look, then Tucker held out his hand toward the hoverboard.

Nothing happened.

“Ugh, technokinesis proof,” they groaned.

She fired the grenade launcher at them and the shield shattered.

The two groaned as they pulled themselves out of their shared crater. “We can’t fight her, we’ll hurt her. She doesn’t seem to care about hurting us. Don’t we have a crush on her? Not anymore. We hate technokinesis proof tech. Well, at least some good came out of this. Now go.”

Tucker glared, but dove into the ground while Danny flew past the girl.

She took the bait and chased after the faster of the halfas, letting Tucker slip away.

As soon as his partner was safe, Danny waved at Valerie then began flying through buildings until the hunter, unable to go intangible, lost him.

{Fanning the Flames}

“I think we’re the only ones in the whole school who aren’t obsessed with Ember,” Tucker said as they passed yet another of their classmates wearing the rocker’s swag.

“I don’t get it!” Danny said with a frown. “She comes outta nowhere and suddenly she’s the biggest thing since iPhones! It’s so -”

“Infuriating how mindless pre-packaged corporate bubble gum is preventing true musical artists from being heard?” Sam interrupted.

“I was gonna say weird, but, uh, okay.”

“I’m with Sam. She’s okay, but there are way better groups out there who don’t get anywhere near enough spotlight.”

“We’re not listening to your Swedish pop-techno music,” Sam said. “I’d rather listen to -”

The trio stopped as they came to a school hallway that had been vandalized with posters, stickers, and banners for Ember McLain.

“Ember.”

Paulina came up to them wearing an Ember shirt with matching pants. She looked at Sam and scoffed. “Nice earrings. Sale at the 89 cent store?”

Sam’s hand came up to the Fenton Phones she was wearing. Danny’s parents had invented them to filter out spectral noise, but they also worked as wireless headphones and long-range communicators. The trio had taken to using them during lone patrols and ghost fights that separated them enough that their link couldn’t reach. While the boys only really wore them then, Sam wore them often since she thought they made great techno-goth earrings.

She dropped her hand and gave the popular girl an annoyed look as she stepped closer to Danny. “For your information, Paulina. They’re a gift. Danny gave them to me.”

“Really? He gave you earrings?” Paulina pointed between the two with a smirk. “I always knew you two losers would end up together.”

“We’re not losers!” Sam shouted and Danny added, “We’re not together.”

“Well now I feel left out,” Tucker joked as Paulina swaggered off.

“Shut up, Tucker,” the two snapped.

“Hey, check it out! The lovebirds are ganging up on Foley!” Dash snickered to Kwan.

“They can deny it all they want, but I saw Fenton kissing her when they snuck out at lunch yesterday,” Kwan snickered back.

Danny blushed and Sam jumped for the jocks while Tucker tried to hold her back. “It’s called QPR, you neanderthals! Welcome to the twenty-first century! A guy can kiss a girl on the cheek without it being romantic or se-”

“And we’re done here!” Danny squeaked and grabbed Sam to unsuccessfully help Tucker drag her away.

“Calm down, Sam. It’s not like any of us go around talking about our relationship,” Tucker said. “Of course everyone’s going to think you’re dating if they see you two kissing.”

“People shouldn’t assume things like that just because Danny likes to kiss us or the three of us hug!”

“It’s high school. Assumptions and gossip are the lifeblood of this place,” Danny said. “No need to kill Dash over it. Now stow the soapbox and let’s get to class before we’re late.”

Sam gave the two jocks one last death glare, but let her partners lead her off.

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

“This is insane,” Danny said as he, Sam, and Tucker stood in the school’s front doors, staring out at the crowd that had gathered around the truck Ember McClain had arrived on for an impromptu performance. “It looks like the entire school’s out here.”

He walked out and his breath misted in front of him. He glanced over to see his partners’ ghost senses going off as well. “Uh-oh.”

The trio looked around, but their eyes quickly locked onto Mr. Lancer, who was standing atop a fire hydrant with a megaphone to yell at the rocker.

“Attention, freakishly dressed teen idol! I order you to cease and desist!”

“Desist this, grandpa!” Ember yelled, fiddling with her guitar. She strummed it and a purple energy wave washed over the crowd.

The crowd turned to Lancer, eyes glowing red.

“Pride and Prejudice!”

“Ember’s the ghost? Oh my gosh!” Danny gasped.

“Another blow against mainstream media,” Sam said and the three transformed.

They took off, Danny saving Lancer from the horde and Sam and Tucker shooting towards the rocker.

It was rather easy to get her and her band into a thermos, especially when one of them could shut down her guitar and speakers with a wave of his hand and the other could wrap her in plants when she tried to teleport away.

{Teacher of the Year}

“Why were we up so late last night? We were playing Doomed. We were trying to beat… WE’RE CHAOS! HOW COULD WE HIDE THAT FROM US?”

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

Tucker’s eyes widened as he realized the noob he’d been helping play Doomed was Technus. “Oh, man, I could have been using my powers to cheat! Why didn’t I think of that?” He grabbed his phone and called Sam. “Sam! Did you realize I could be the ultimate cheat code?”

“Obviously. I’m surprised it took you this long to figure it out. What happened? Did you get pwned again? Wasn’t me this time.”

“No, Technus showed up in Doomed.”

“What? Where are you? I’ll meet you there!”

“Level three. Should we call Danny?”

“No, just let him study. Between my grab bag of secret power-ups and your ultimate cheat code, we’ll be fine. He needs to make up that test if we don’t want his parents to come sniffing around.”

“I still don’t get it,” Tucker said as he waited for Sam to reach his character. “Danny’s had straight A’s for years. Why would his parents be mad about one F? It’ll only take him down to a C at worst. My parents are just glad that I’m not failing.”

“The curse of being a family of geniuses I guess. All I know is that if I have to hear him complain about his grades almost falling to a B one more time, I'm decking him.”

[merinnan]

DMBJ Ep 6

I’ve been a bit behind putting these up on Tumblr, so I’m afraid you’re about to get a dump of the remainder of Season 1, plus the first two eps of Explore with the Note! (not all in one post, of course - 1 ep per post as usual)

So! Episode 6!

The Xiaoge Rescue Count at the start of ep 6 stands at 9 for Wu Xie, 12 for the protagonists, 13 for everyone.

- And we start back with Chengcheng and High Jr. I DON'T CARE ABOUT THIS SUBPLOT, MAKE IT GO AWAY AND BRING BACK XIAOGE AND WU XIE. 

- Why is Chengcheng calling her kidnapper dage? I don't like her or trust her. She is annoying and shady

- Oh, good, now we are back to Wu Xie being a good boy 

- That is a lot of guns and explosives Sanshu has recovered

- I am annoyed at how they all seem to think that A-Ning needs to be shielded from everything unpleasant because she's a girl. She's a goddamn mercenary leader. I think she can take knowing these things - and it's better to let her know as it's found out so that she can adjust to the news properly, instead of springing it on her when it can't be concealed anymore, like what happened when the blood zombie showed up.

- On a completely different tangent, Wu Xie's neck dressing has stayed astonishingly clear for running around in a tomb, crawling through tight tunnels, falling off of ledges and being dramatically rescued, fighting bugs, and fainting all over floors.

- Wu Xie is so sweetly optimistic 

 - LOL, sure Pangzi, you're here for archeological study 

- ....Wu Xie, you are disturbingly knowledgeable about guns for a college student

- Now that I've read the first novel between having watched ep 5 and now, my mind is slightly reeling from how innocent and babie drama Wu Xie is compared to novel Wu Xie 

- Awww. Doesn't matter which Wu Xie it is, babie with gun always looks kinda adorable.

- Also, I appreciate Wu Xie's trigger discipline. So often shows have such terrible trigger discipline. 

- Oooh, it's like a carved thing on the dais that got his attention. I thought it was like a computer drive or something at first, because it looked kinda like that.

- OH NO, THE LIVING VINES ARE HERE AND SNEAKING UP ON THEM 

- ...and pushing the button made them retreat 

- ...phew? 

- I am still concerned 

- The music signifies that something creepy is coming 

- lol, babie. Looking so innocent even though He Knows What He Did

- I don't know what that sound is, but that's not a good sound 

- ...earthquake? That's a bad thing to happen when you're in the middle of an evil cave. 

- WU FAMILY, WHY ARE YOU THE ONLY ONES TRYING TO STAY ON YOUR FEET WITHOUT HOLDING ONTO ANYTHING?! 

- So fucking stubborn

- This is where Wu Xie gets it from, if Erbai is wondering 

- A-Ning is the smartest one, staying sitting down 

- The tree opens up like a fucking security vault and ejects a coffin. Because of course if fucking does. 

- Oooh, yeah, that's that shot from the opening credits 

- "I can't read any of this, but it says this is the guy we're looking for" 

- "His story recorded here is the same as what we know" WU XIE YOU JUST SAID YOU CAN'T READ IT

- Come on. Earlier in the show you said "yes I can read this" and read it. And in the novel, you puzzle it out from being able to read bits. This part, you flat out said he couldn't read it, and now are telling everyone what it says 

 - I love continuity, but dramas really don't

- The music now is similar enough to the Harry Potter music that I almost expect an owl to go flying past 

- The owner of a coffin wanting the coffin to be opened hundreds or thousands of years later seems like it should be something more worrying than how everyone is reacting

- I wanna know how Sanshu knows the coffin has been there for 3000 years. Wu Xie can't read the dates on it, and the Warring States Period was 1500 years ago, not 3000 

- JESUS CHRIST, SANSHU, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE SENSIBLE ONE!

- Why are you suggesting you open the chained shut coffin in order to see if there's somehow something alive (or alive-ish) in there? 

- Awwww! Wu Xie going "no, don't do that, Pokerface told us not to touch anything"

- Like. Not, "no uncle, that seems like a bad idea" 

- But "Xiaoge told us not to, and we should do what he says" 

- I have the feeling that if this Pangzi is agreeing with something, then you all should not be doing that thing. Because this version of Pangzi is an idiot

- HOW THE FUCK IS THE MOVING COFFIN GOING TO SECRETLY HAVE THE EXIT INSIDE IT, PANGZI 

- THAT MAKES THE LEAST SENSE OUT OF EVERYTHING SO FAR 

- Pan Zi's "WTF do you think you're doing" look

- This Pangzi is so bad 

- I even like Chengcheng better than him. And I wish they had taken her into the tomb and used her as bait. 

- I'm glad he's better in other adaptations. Like, I love the Pangzi in Chongqi. I am so glad that he was my intro to Pangzi, not this one

- DON'T MAKE THE BABIE SAD BY BEING DUMB

- A-Ning really should not be just standing there with her leg injury. I've had a muscle biopsy before where they took it from the thigh, which is a similar 'injury' to what she's got, and you do not get on your feet unless you absolutely have to for days afterwards.

- At least they have her limp when she's walking, and it's kinda sad that I'm glad they do that! 

- And Pan Zi should not be doing hard physical labour with a fucking gut wound

- But I think I'm more annoyed by A-Ning, because I have personal experience with her kind of injury so know first-hand what kind of pain she's causing herself by standing and walking 

- HUMAN BRAIN LOGIC GO

- Pangzi you fucking dick, just standing there watching. You should be pushing instead of Pan Zi 

- Hahahah, after all his shittalk and boasting, and he can't do it 

- Oh, there, finally

- I know that inside lid is supposed to be jade, but it looks so terribly fake. Oh my god. It's awful 

- It looks like a bad Photoshop of one of those Windows 98 default backgrounds

- I love the looks everyone gives Pangzi every time he slips up and talks about getting money from the stuff in the tomb 

- LOL, that's not a carving, that's a couple of translucent green plastic discs stuck on top of Windows Background Photoshop cover

- ...I'm kinda waiting for someone to suddenly shout BOO! really loudly while they're all carefully trying to listen for any sounds in the coffin

- They're almost at the end of the first novel in terms of plot, and there's still 4 and a half eps to go

- Wow, I think that's the first time I've seen Sanshu actually worried 

- lol, and now Pangzi says he believes him, rather than get his ear that close to the coffin himself 

- PANGZI DON'T STARTLE SOMEONE WHO HAS THEIR FINGER ON THE TRIGGER OF A GUN & DEFINITELY DON'T SMACK THE GUN

- Wu Xie has a lot of control to have not accidentally shot right then

- LOL, after all their declarations how they're archaeologists, not tomb robbers, & how they're here to protect cultural artefacts from robbers, etc - they go make references to the northern and southern schools of tomb raiding

- Just without actually saying exactly what the 'Southern School' being referred to actually is. 

- ....and now Pangzi jumps in front of the pointed gun as he grabs it. Do you have a fucking death wish, dude? 

 - And now we see the infamous bronze armour! Jade armour. Whatever

- You'd think they'd have learned to fucking take all of A-Ning's guns away from her after last time she held one of them at gunpoint 

- OMG, the face on the helmet is so fucking ridiculous, I can't - It's not even properly positioned over his face

- Aaaaah, Sanshu called him tianzhen  I'm so happy at being able to identify that word now it's ridiclous 

- That...that is not what peeled skin looks like 

- Pangzi comes right out and admits he's a tomb robber 

- And for the first time, no-one calls him on it

- Or correct him for calling them tomb robbers 

- Ah, there you are, Xiaoge. I was wondering how long it would take for you to be back 

- I see looking for people in a tomb requires no shirt XD

- Better shots of shirtless Xiaoge

- Like, same, Wu Xie. Same.

- Look, I have two braincells, and one is for Xiaoge and one is for pingxie

- YOU ACTING LIKE THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T HAVE ANY FRIENDS, PANGZI

 - Oooh, this is a goood shot of the tattoo. And of who the tattoo is on

- I don't have a Xiaoge problem. It's the opposite of a problem.

- Seriously, Pangzi is so fucking lucky that Xiaoge didn't kill him a dozen times over during their first meetings here

- Also, now that Xiaoge has explained why he threw a knife at Pangzi, I believe it's time to update the Xiaoge Rescue Count to 9 for Wu Xie, 13 for the protagonists, 14 for everyone.

- Although maybe I should have also been keeping a People Eyerolling At Pangzi Count given how often it's been happening

- More Xiaoge pics, feat. emotions that are not 'worrying about Wu Xie'

- Also, did he throw the corpse off the platform after he broke it's neck, or did it yeet itself off somehow? 

- I mean, I too wanna know how Xiaoge knows all this stuff if this was all put here 3000 years ago

- I do love that Wu Xie is already about the only person who Xiaoge will actually look at instead of staring down or straight ahead

- LOL, Wu Xie won't even let Pangzi so much as touch this. 

- I honestly appreciate that Xiaoge appears to travel lightly enough that he doesn't have a spare shirt

- EVERYTHING makes Wu Xie better than everyone else (except Xiaoge), Pangzi

- lol, Sanshu, yes. You tell him. 

- Hahahah, and Wu Xie playing along with Sanshu, the little adorable shit 

 - THE LOOK ON HIS FACE 

- KJFDHKJDAFHFKASDJHFKJASDLHGFSKLJ 

- AND DON'T THINK I DON'T SEE THAT SMIRK, WU XIE 

- There is absolutely not enough of little shit!Wu Xie in S1

- Loooool, his little nod at Sanshu now that they got their way and made Pangzi promise to stfu for the time being 

- And that is the first time I've seen that style of carriage roll like a car 

- Those skull ballistae were a cool aesthetic, though

- THAT CARRIAGE WAS ROLLING LIKE A FUCKING CAR, HOW IS IT BACK UPRIGHT AND ROLLING ALONG THE GROUND TO THE CLIFF 

- HOW TF IS IT ROLLING ANYWHERE WITH A SMASHED WHEEL 

- HOW TF IS HE ABLE TO HOLD IT FOR EVEN A SECOND, ESPECIALLY WITH ONE HAND

- A thin as fuck flagpole is going to give you jack shit in terms of something to brace with when it comes to that much weight 

- THE SCRIPTWRITER OF THIS SCENE IS BAD AND SHOULD FEEL BAD 

- *cries in physics minor*

- I can suspend disbelief for aliens, zombies, everything about Xiaoge, logic holes, and plot pits. Apparently my line is a non-cultivator breaking the laws of physics. 

- Aaaah, here come the zombies 

- So this dude is not the zombie dude 

- He is the emperor, I think?

- OH MY GOD THAT GREENSCREEN IS JUST THE WORST 

- I thought the one on the river was bad. The one of her falling as he dives off the cliff to save her is actively painful 

- Oh, now it looks like we're gonna have a dumb love triangle in the flashback. Yay. *waves tiny flag*

- Bitch, be a bit more grateful. Yes, your ex-lover caught you as you were falling & did so by basically flying, but that's just standard wuxia defiance of physics. Your husband held a FUCKING CARRIAGE with ONE HAND for AT LEAST TWO WHOLE MINUTES to keep you alive before your ex finally showed up

- "Were you really frightened?" Your majesty, what kind of a stupid question is that? 

- The emperor's armour is really pretty, I gotta say 

- Uuuugh, this stupid love story hurts in a bad way 

- I'm just gonna fast forward through it 

- ...and there's the end of the episode.

- That love triangle is going to make me scream, I know it 

- But that does explain how they're going to pad out the episodes a bit more with how far through the plot they are already 

- None of them are even really that pretty to make up for the boring, trite, love triangle plot

- How do they expect to keep my attention through it if I don't even have eye candy?!?! 

- I will be seriously headdesking if this flashback goes on for more than the next ep! 

- Oh well, there we are. The end of ep 6

The Xiaoge Rescue Count at the end of ep 6 stands at 9 for Wu Xie, 13 for the protagonists, 14 for everyone. 

[the--highlanders]

About a Burnt Mess

Jamie finds himself responsible for making a mess in the TARDIS kitchen, and the Doctor tries to help. 

on ao3.

“Och – no -” Jamie waved the plumes of steam wafting out of the oven away from his face, blinking and spluttering as the heat of it stung at his hands. “No, no -” He grabbed at the baking tray inside, but quickly whisked his hand back when he touched it, nursing his fingertips ruefully.

“I don’t suppose I could help with that?”

Half-blinded by the greasy orange light of the oven, Jamie cast around helplessly for the source of the voice until his eyes settled on the Doctor. He was leaning nonchalantly against the doorframe, watching Jamie’s struggles with an air of fond amusement, and Jamie was sure his own heat-reddened cheeks were flushing darker.

“Nice of ye tae stand there watchin’ an’ not helping,’ he mumbled around the burnt finger he had stuck in his mouth.

“You seemed to be getting on quite well without me.” Ambling further into the kitchen, the Doctor fished a tea-towel out of a drawer, holding it out like a peace offering. Jamie took it gratefully, bending to pull the tray out of the oven and deposit it on the counter with a clunk. He stood back, crossing his arms and tilting his head to examine the contents.

“It’s not too bad,” he said hopefully.

A blackened flake cracked away from its surface, tumbling down to tuck itself against the edge of the tray.

“Of course it’s not,” the Doctor said. “A little crisp around the edges, perhaps.” He poked at its surface experimentally. “Ah – what is it?”

Jamie tapped at the edge of the tray, turning it a little. The change of angle did nothing to make its contents seem more appetising. “Black pudding. Or it’s meant tae be.”

“Ah.” The Doctor cast a pointed look around the kitchen, and Jamie followed his gaze, wondering what the room looked like to him. Something dark red and dripping was plastered over the cabinets, coating most of the bowls and cutlery that lay scattered over the counters and spilling onto the floor in places. A smudge of it marred Jamie’s cheek, halfway between red and rusty brown, and he reached up to scrub at it when he realised the Doctor’s scrutiny had come full circle back to him. “That would explain the… the blood.”

“Aye, it would.”

The dark, lumpy mass coiled in the tray sat there between them awkwardly, its presence almost as stifling as the cloying metallic smell that filled the kitchen. “Not Victoria’s choice of dish, I assume,” the Doctor said.

“It was, actually.” Jamie grinned. “She had it for breakfast one time – ye remember that big hotel we stayed in? The one with the mantises that acted like they were English.”

“Oh, yes. The Thicyans.” The Doctor chuckled. “I do wonder if they’ll ever find out that England isn’t a tropical country.”

“Aye, them. Well, she ordered some English breakfast, an’ it had – well, it had a wee bit of black puddin’ in it. Then she found out I knew how tae make it, an’ -” He gestured towards the tray. “It’s no’ exactly my best.”

Bending over, the Doctor scrunched up his face to peer at the knobs on the oven. “I still think you set it too hot, you know.”

“If it’s hotter it’ll cook faster.” Jamie swiped the back of his hand over his forehead, leaving another streak of red. “Anyway, when was the last time ye cooked without burnin’ something?” When the Doctor opened his mouth to argue, Jamie held up his hand to silence him. “An’ fiddling around with the wee dials on the food machine doesnae count.”

“Oh, hush. I’ll have you know that I’ve been considered quite talented at working fabricated food technology.”

“It’s still no’ as good as a proper meal.”

“Oh, I see.” Tapping his finger against his chin, the Doctor frowned down at the pudding. “Proper meals like this one, eh?”

“Normally,” Jamie protested. “Normally no’ as good as a proper meal.” He threw a despairing look at the charred pudding before him. “It looks like it’s starin’ at us.”

The Doctor twisted his head back and forth. “Mm. There is something of a face in the middle, isn’t there?”

They stared down at the pudding in silent contemplation for a moment before bursting into laughter. “What am I gonnae do?” Jamie raised his hands to pull at his hair, but caught sight of the blood stuck to his palms and thought better of it. “It took us ages to make that, an’ Victoria was lookin’ forward to it. I dinnae want tae tell her I’ve ruined it.”

“I don’t suppose...” The Doctor frowned at the explosion of bowls and baking tins around them. “I don’t suppose she’d notice if you made a new one.” He was watching Jamie out of the corner of his eye, his smile half-concealed behind his hand. “Even if you had to set the oven to the highest heat we could, to cook it fast enough.”

Jamie shook his head. “No’ enough time. But I ‘spose we can make a start on a new one.”

“Mm.” The Doctor tapped his fingers together, opened his mouth, then closed it again abruptly. “Ah – what do you mean, we?”

“It’ll be easier with two.”

“Oh.” The Doctor glanced around himself, then sighed, shoulders slumping. “I suppose Victoria really did want a black pudding.”

‘Aye, she did.”

“And it would cheer her up immensely to get one sooner rather than later.”

‘Aye, it would.”

“Oh, very well.” Skipping over to the food machine, the Doctor spread his hands over the controls, bracing himself to punch in a code. “Ah – what do you need first?”

“I’ll do it.” Jamie ushered him aside, tapping a few keys and bending down to pull out a fresh bowl of blood. He shoved it towards the Doctor, wincing as it almost slopped over the rim. “Stir those oats in with that. I’ll get everythin’ else.” He busied himself with typing in the next code, his fingers clumsy with haste. The low, constant hum of the TARDIS rose into a whine as he stumbled over it, and he scowled down at the machine until it let out the tell-tale ding of a new ingredient. “Here ye go -” Only when he turned did he realise that the Doctor had somehow managed to spatter more blood than ever onto the bench, speckling the front of his shirt and Jamie’s own sleeve with red. “I’m gonnae have tae clean the kitchen, but I’m no’ gonnae be the one to clean you.”

The sound of someone pointedly clearing their throat drew their attention away from the mess the Doctor had made and towards the doorway. Victoria stood there, her mouth tugged into a slightly resigned smile. “Am I interrupting something?” she asked.

“No!” The word emerged strangled and too-loud, and Jamie swallowed nervously, as if he could drag it back inside himself. “No,” he repeated, his voice full of awkward laughter. “Everything’s fine.” Beside him, the Doctor shoved aside the tray with the burnt pudding. It scraped against the countertop, letting out a soft screech as it went. “We’re just – er -”

“I could smell it from my room,” Victoria said. “I supposed you must’ve burnt it.”

“Oh.” Jamie hung his head, but found himself face-to-face with the failed pudding, and quickly turned away from it. “We were just starting on another one.”

When it came, Victoria’s laughter did not fill him with nearly as much embarrassment as he had feared. “You should have waited for me,” she said. “I would have helped you.”

“We wanted to give you a head-start,” the Doctor said, clapping his hands together. “But seeing as you’re here now – why don’t you come and stir this, Victoria, dear, I’m sure you two are quite capable on your own -”

“I couldn’t possibly,” Victoria interrupted him, exchanging a grin with Jamie. “After all, I made such a mess last time.”

The Doctor cast a desperate look towards Jamie. “I don’t suppose -”

“Och, go on, then.” Ushering him out of the way, Jamie edged over to pick up the spoon. “Ye can get the rest of the things we need from the food machine. Seein’ as you’re so good with it, an’ all.”

“But what’s left for me to do?” Victoria asked.

Jamie grinned. “Ye can mind the oven this time.”

[legedsrebornamyheroacademiastory]

Legends Reborn Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Full Cowl! Deku’s Last Stand!

(Disclaimer!! I own nothing of My Hero Academia)

Deku was in deep pain.

“I admire your courage to stand up against me,” Quirk Monger said, “But after I achieve my goal, I’m taking your place as the new hero. Anyone who survives, I hope they remember you.”

The wounds from his body started to repair themselves.

“Had you not been so selfish your little girlfriend’s death would’ve been quick and painless, but now that you and your friends managed to piss me off, I think I’m gonna finish her, nice and slow.”

He made a big mistake threatening Deku’s crush.

“Ochako and I………. We’re gonna have a hell of a time.”

Deku stopped him by grabbing his leg.

“Nobody……….. threatens……… my……… URARAKA!!!!”  

When Legends Rise by Godsmack

Legs are tied, these hands are broken

Alone I try with words unspoken

Silent cry, my breath is frozen

With blinded eyes, I fear myself

He spun him around and threw him at a wall.

Deku then went into his super form, Full Cowling 100%. 

His hair started to glow, and power was flowing through his body.

Thanks to the suit’s modifications, he was able to still move despite using this much power.

“This ends here, and it ends now!” He said.

It's burning down, it's burning high

When ashes fall the legends rise

We burned it out oh my oh why

When ashes fall the legends rise

He charged at Quirk Monger.

“Remember what Torodoki taught me,” he thought to himself.

He did a pose looking like he was about to do a Detroit smash.

“Predictable….”

Deku then faked out and did the Columbus Smash knocking him into the air.

He then dashed at him again and did a barrage of punches.

Quirk Monger tried to dodge but Deku was too quick.

Deku then forced Quirk Monger to a wall and started pounding on him.

Throat is dry, my vision's fading

I'm paralyzed and left here waiting

Taking time just one step forward

Won't lose my mind, I'm here to stay

Quirk Monger used Uraraka’s quirk to force him away.

“You know, after Chiaski, this is the second time I had to use this quirk,” Deku said.

Quirk Monger got back up.

“I will admit you are stronger than I realized, but even so, I have more quirks than you could ever hope to have,” he said, “With this power, I will become the hero that history cannot ignore!”

It's burning down, it's burning high

When ashes fall the legends rise

We burned it out oh my oh why

When ashes fall the legends rise

Whoa (legends rise)

Whoa (legends rise)

(Legends rise)

Using a special quirk he stole from someone, he made a hologram showing Deku his plan.

“Once I defeat you, I will ahnilalate all quirk users who would dare challenge me, and I will reign supreme,” he said, “I shall surpass all heroes, including All Might!”

They kept clashing at each other, each person refusing to back down. 

Thanks to the accelerated healing, Deku didn’t feel as much pain using his arms and legs.

Uraraka was watching him.

“You got this Deku-Kun!” She said.

It's burning down, it's burning high

When ashes fall the legends rise

We burned it out oh my oh why

When ashes fall the legends rise

Whoa (legends rise)

Whoa (legends rise)

“Columbus……..” He said faking out again.

He then went for the Delaware Smash forcing him back.

Quirk Monger got back up losing his mask.

Deku started to remember something.

When he first had All Might’s quirk, he had to learn to control it. 

He then had an idea.

“You’re mistaken if you think you can surpass All Might, even if you have a lifetime supply of quirks,” Deku said.

“Excuse me?”

“All Might has more power than you’ll ever hope to have! And also, there’s one thing you don’t know. He passed his quirk onto me.”

“What?”

“So if anyone would surpass All Might, it would be me. I have his quirk, and compared to me, you’re just second best!”

Quirk Monger thought for a moment. 

“That’s true….. because you have All Might’s quirk, your power exceeds mine…….. but not for long.”

He took out his hand.

“Give me your quirk Deku,” he said, “If you comply I just might spare your friends!”

Deku thought for a moment.

“Very well,” he said.

He took his hand and Quirk Monger begun to glow green.

Uraraka was worried.

“Oh no….” She said, “We have to…..”

She was about to run after him but Aizawa stopped her.

“If you care about him, you’ll trust what he’s doing.”

Quirk Monger chuckled finally having achieved his goal.

“Most powerful quirk user on earth, second to nobody at long last!” He said, “And I thought I had power before.”

He turned to Deku.

“You should be fortunate, as you and your friends shall live while I lay waste to all the other fools who dream to be heroes!”

He channeled up 100% power, and suddenly he started to feel pain.

“My body…….. it won’t move…..”

He turned back to Deku.

“What did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything to you?”

“WHAT DID YOU DO?!” He screamed in pain.

“You’re the one using the quirk, not me,” Deku said, “You wanted my quirk, you got it. And everything that goes with it.”

Quirk Monger was infuriated.

“The thing about the quirk, if you don’t train your body enough, you’ll end up damaging it.”

The power was too much for Quirk Monger.

He started glowing different colors and one by one he begun to lose his quirks. 

There was then an explosion.

Deku was unharmed and Quirk Monger laid there defenseless.

“Just go ahead and finish me off,” he said, “I can’t go on….. like this….”

Deku put his fists down.

“That’s not the answer,” he said, “You think you have it hard? There are dozens of people who are quirkless, but the only difference is they don’t have your special ability. But you have something great, and now you have to decide whether or not you’ll use it for others rather than for your own personal gain.”

He started to walk away as the authorities came to arrest Quirk Monger

“A great hero taught me that.”

Quirk Monger wasn’t going to let Deku win.

He saw a crowbar and grabbed it.

“If anyone’s gonna be the ultimate quirk user, ITS GONNA BE ME!!!!!” He said.

He charged at him but was frozen in place.

That was caused by Todoroki.

“He had a mouth,” he said.

Deku was walking down the building, his clothes ripped up, and a few bruises on his body that started to heal up.

Uraraka saw him.

“Deku?” She asked.

Deku looked up and saw her.

They both ran into each other and embraced one another.

“Are you ok?” Deku asked.

“I’m fine, are you?” 

“I’m good, a few bruises but thanks to my accelerated healing they’re all gone.”

Uraraka was overjoyed to see that Deku was safe and sound.

“Where’s the Quirk Monger?” Iida asked.

“The police got to him,” Deku said, “He’s going to prison for quite a bit.”

“Well, I guess I didn’t need this,” Uraraka said holding a mace.

They all chuckled.

“Well, alls well that ends well,” Uraraka said.

Mina bumped her shoulder.

“Ahem,” she said.

She finally gave in.

“Deku……. So I’ve been wanting to tell you something for a while, but….. I mean its not that big of a deal,” she said.

“What is it?” Deku asked.

“Well, you’re really amazing, and I’m really happy that we’re great friends and all,” she continued, “And I like all of the things that you do and you’ve always been such a good friend to me….. wow I just said friend twice…”

Mina squealed silently while Jiro nodded her head approvingly.

“You’ve always encouraged me to keep going, you’ve always been there for me when I needed someone, you’re helpful, gental, kind, supportive and……. Ugh this isn’t coming out how I want it to!” She said blushing.

She turned to Deku.

“Deku…. no, Izuku what I’m trying to say is…… I….. I really really like you,” she said, “And I hope it doesn’t make things weird.”

“Uraraka….”

“Please don’t let it make things weird,” Uraraka said, “I understand if you don’t feel the same way, but I just had to….”

Deku kissed her cheek.

Uraraka’s face was as red as a tomato.

He then checked his pockets to make sure his gift was unharmed.

“Aww thank goodness,” he said.

Uraraka was confused.

He pulled out the necklace he got back in Brooklyn.

“I knew this was gonna be your favorite city, and I wanted to give you something special,” he said.

It was a necklace with a picture of both of them.

“I had this big plan, I was gonna buy you this, then give it to you on top of a building, and then tell you how I feel, but then all of this happened,” he said.

“Izuku….” She said, “Its beautiful.”

“As a matter of fact Uraraka….. no, Ochako, I….. really like you too,” Deku said, “I was just scared you didn’t feel the same way. As it turns out you do and I’m happy.”

Uraraka was surprised.

“This…. This can’t be real,” she said.

She looked down and saw Deku’s hand holding hers.

“But…. It is.”

They got close and pecked each other on the lips.

The two of them smiled but wanted something more.

The got close again had a real kiss.

Bakugo was looking.

“FINALLY!!!!” He shouted.

Eraserhead was watching.

“Finally what?”

“Oh…. One of my gauntlets was acting finicky and I fixed it,” he said.

Deku and Uraraka finished their kiss.

“About freakin’ time,” Kirishima said. 

Iida patted Deku on the shoulder.

“Congrats you two,” he said.

Kaminari and Jirou congratulated them as well.

“This calls for a celebration!” Mina said, “The it couple finally comes to pass.”

Everyone headed back to the bus.

Deku and Uraraka walked by holding hands.

Yagi was watching Deku.

“You never cease to amuse me kid,” he said grinning.

Back at UA High School there was a celebration going on over the victory of Deku and friends.

Uraraka told her parents about Deku.

“Mom, Dad, I’d like you to meet Izuku “Deku” Midoriya,” she said, “My boyfriend.”

Deku smiled at the sound of that word.

Mr. Uraraka embraced Deku.

“My little girl has finally found her special soulmate,” he said, “In any case, its good to meet you son.”

“Likewise, our little girl has told us so much about you,” Uraraka’s mother said, “You’re even more handsome in person.”

“Mom,” Uraraka said embarrassed.

Deku was surprised at first but also happy. 

“You know, you two aren’t getting any younger,” Mr. Uraraka said, “Have you ever thought about marriage?”

Deku blushed.

“Well I’m…. I’m sure we have many years til that happens!”

He chuckled and said, “You never know.”

Everyone saw a car flying. 

“What was that?” Deku asked.

They all looked to see a piece of weaponized armor wreaking havoc.

“Dinner afterwards?” He asked Uraraka.

“You know it,” she said, “Let’s go.”

A man in a suit calling himself The Bulldozer was walking towards the police ready to fight. 

HE pulled out machine guns that shot out small rocks and fired.

“I’m here live where it is complete chaos,” said a news reporter, “A man in a strange weaponized armor is wreaking havoc on Musutafu. 

The man chuckled.

“I am the Bull-Dozer,” he said, “I told you I’d have my regenge!”

The cops started firing but nothing worked. 

The armor was too strong.

A kid in a Deku costume rushed into the fray.

Some officers stopped firing.

“There’s a kid in the way!!”

Bull-Dozer stopped.

“Kid you have to run,” the officer said.

The boy refused to step down.

“Look people, Deku has returned from vacation!” Bull-Dozer said mockingly. 

The little boy was ready to fight and got into a pose.

“Very brave boy,” Bull-Dozer said, “Are you scared?”

He started walking forward.

Suddenly he stopped.

The boy thought he had intimidated him.

“Hey Deku.”

He turned around to see Deku in his armor. 

“I knew you’d return,” he said.

“Yeah, but I appreciate you filling in my shoes while I was away,” Deku said, “I’ll take care of this punk, you take care of your parents.”

The boy ran back to his mother and father.

Deku and Gravity were ready to face the villain.

“You ready to fight?” Bull-Dozer said.

“On behalf of the fine people of Musutafu and real bulls everywhere, I kindly ask you to put your mechanized hands in the air,” Uraraka said.

“NEVER!!!!” Bull-Dozer said, “I crush you, I kill you. I destroy you!”

“You want us to come down there so you can kill us?” Deku asked.

“Yes!”

“I’ll be right there,” Deku said, “There’s no place like home.”

Bull-Dozer started running and changed to bull formation.

He then fired rockets.

Uraraka touched each of them and made them fly into the river while Deku jumped up.

“Columbus……. SMASH!!!!!”

The End…..

Someone was watching Deku and his friends from a hidden spaceship.

“Intriguing,” he said.

He also saw his friends at UA High School.

“For years, I have searched from planet to planet for subjects to test my skills,” he said, “But these humans, they seem, stronger than I anticipated.”

He turned to his subjects.

“The search, is over!”

A group of ships were heading towards Planet Earth.

Hero Too

What am I to be?

What is my calling?

I gave up giving up, I'm ready to go

The futures left unseen

It all depends on me

Put it on the line to follow my dream

Yeah

Tried all my life I've tried to find

Something that makes me hold on and never let go

Ohhhh

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down

Hero too strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe

So wait and see

So wait and see

What do they think of me?

Who do they think I'll be?

I could not care less, I don't wanna know

Am I doing right?

Am I satisfied?

I wanna live my life like it's meant to be

Yeah

Tried all my life I've tried to find

Something that makes me hold on and never let go

Ohhhh

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down

Hero too strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe

So wait and see

People will judge for no reason at all

Yeah they might try

To say your dreams dumb, don't listen

They may look down on me and count me out

I'm going my own way

They may look down on me and count me out

I'm a hero, I've got music

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set and I won't back down

Hero too strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes stand up for what they believe

Yeah I'll be

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set and I won't back down

Hero too strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes stand up for what they believe

So wait and see

I have met so many heroes in my life

Gave me the strength and courage to survive

Gave me the power to smile everyday

Now it's my turn to be the one to make you smile Don’t think the adventures of young Midoriya stop here...... As there are multiple realities. For all we know, there could be........ Another Deku across The Multiverse.........