#i had hoped to meet deanna

[multi-fandom-geek-blog]

So sad about Deanna and Max :-( I mean I would only have seen them at the gala but I love them so that would have been enough for me. I'm just glad it's not an injury, they should be back on track soon.

[dixons-sunshine]

Love your work it’s amazing and helps me with so much shit in my life🎀 been feeling so down insecure lately .could you write something about female reader being really insecure about her appearance and her mind and intelligence ,looking at herself in mirror and Daryl catching her do it. just pure fluff him feeling bad because he wants her to see herself the way he does

That's What Makes You Beautiful | Daryl Dixon x Fem!Reader

Summary: While getting ready for the party at Deanna Monroe's house with the other women, old insecurities crept up again after being dormant for a while. However, Daryl won't have his beautiful girl thinking bad things about herself.

Genre: Kinda angsty to fluff.

Era: Alexandria, pre Saviour arc.

Warnings: Swearing, insecurities.

Word count: 1.6k

A/n: This was heavily self-indulgent. I struggle with body image issues, so this was easy and yet extremely hard to picture and write. But darling, even though I don't know you personally, please know that I think you're amazing and beautiful! I hope this fic portrays how much I love you, even if I don't know you personally. Daryl in this is me reassuring you that you are enough, and that you are worthy. 💜

(Also, Michonne is your hype woman in this because she is my queen and I need her to hype me up when I feel down.)

➳༻❀✿❀༺➳

Laughter filled the small room that you had found yourself in with Michonne, Rosita, Sasha, Tara, Maggie and Carol. All the women were having a mini fashion show as they tried on different dresses and shoes, having the time of their lives as they did something that everyone missed from the world before the dead started walking. However, the same couldn't be said for you.

You smiled weakly at Rosita as she showed off the dress she was wearing, eyeing the way the dress fit her curves perfectly. In fact, all the women looked amazingly beautiful in their dresses. Even Carol, who wasn't wearing a dress and instead opted for a flower shirt and a pair of jeans, looked gorgeous. You couldn't deny that they all looked like princesses, and that made you feel bad about yourself—your old insecurities crept up into your mind again.

The dress that Michonne had picked out for you was splayed across your lap. You had no intention of putting it on anytime soon, preferring to want to do so without any of these stunning women in the room. You wanted to be sure of how you looked before allowing anyone to see you in the dress, and when you more than likely looked terrible in it, you wanted to be able to handle your emotions without everyone present. You didn't need to see their disgusted faces when you wore it.

“Hey, you gonna get dressed and join us downstairs or just sit there and look pretty?” Michonne asked playfully, snapping you from your thoughts.

You winced at her words, but plastered on a small smile. “You guys go on ahead. There's something I need to do before getting changed,” you lied.

Michonne frowned slightly, seeing right through your lie but choosing not to address it in front of everyone. She'd pull you aside later and ask what was wrong. For now, however, she understood that you wanted everyone to leave, and she nodded at you.

“Okay, we'll see you when you come downstairs,” she replied, ushering the other women out of the room. She turned back to you before she left, giving you a questioning look. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, why wouldn't I be?” you told her, not missing the way she sent you a disapproving look. You sighed and looked down, toying with the dress in your lap. “I'm fine. I'll meet you downstairs, okay?”

Michonne reluctantly nodded. “Okay,” she agreed, pulling the door closed behind her and leaving you alone in the room.

Sighing, you hesitantly got up and started undressing, refusing to meet your reflection in the mirror in front of you. You slowly slipped the dress on, the fabric covering your skin from your chest to your mid thighs. You adjusted the straps over your shoulders, not even trying to zip up the dress from behind. You reluctantly turned towards the mirror and physically recoiled at the sight in front of you.

You continued staring at your reflection in disgust, hating the way you looked. You started getting lost in your own self deprecating thoughts, so much so that you didn't hear the door open behind you, or the footsteps that abruptly stopped in their tracks.

“Wow.”

You flinched and spun around, locking eyes with your partner. Daryl stood by the bed, staring at you with wide eyes. He took a tentative step forward, his eyes trailing over your body.

Mistaking his wide eyes for disgust rather than awe, you crossed your arms over your chest. You tried to shield your body from his view, but Daryl walked over to you and held your arms in his hands, sending you a questioning look.

“Nah, why are ya doin' tha'?” he inquired, rubbing your arms with his hands. “Ya dun' need to hide yerself from me, 'specially not when yer lookin' so pretty all dolled up.”

Without meaning to, you let out a choked sob, tears starting to fall from your eyes. Instinctively, Daryl pulled you into his arms, hugging you tightly to his chest. He didn't know why you were crying, but he didn't care. He would comfort you through it, just like you had comforted him through so many things, ranging from his inability to track down Sophia all the way to the guilt he felt over Beth's death.

“I look ridiculous,” you choked out, your cries muffled into his chest. “Everyone looks so beautiful in their dresses and I look like this. I can't—”

“Shh, s'okay,” Daryl whispered into you ear, rocking you from side to side. “S'okay. I got ya.”

He simply held you in his arms, allowing you to cry all your negative emotions into his shirt. When you finally managed to calm down, you pulled back and tearfully looked up at him.

“I'm sorry,” you mumbled. “It's so stupid.”

“Nah, it ain't stupid,” Daryl disagreed, taking your face into his hands. “But where's this all comin' from? Why do ya think tha' 'bout yerself?”

“I can't—I don't—”

“Please, peach,” he pleaded, caressing your cheeks with his thumbs. “Talk to me.”

You shook your head, casting your eyes down towards the floor. “I don't know. I just... I grew up being bullied for my looks, about my intelligence, for just about everything. When everything went to shit, I guess those insecurities got buried, but now, wearing this dress, I—”

Daryl cut you off by pressing his lips against yours, but quickly pulled away again. He looked deeply into your eyes, keeping your face in place to ensure that you kept your eyes locked on him.

“Do ya trust me?” he asked.

You nodded your head. “Of course I do.”

“Then listen real close, sunshine,” he began softly yet sternly. “M'not sure wha' fuckin' assholes talked this shit into yer head, but yer not wha' ya think ya are. Yer so unbelievably smart, and ya've proved it a lot of times. S'cause of ya tha' we were able to save Hershel way back when. S'cause of ya tha' we found tha' store with all those supplies while we were on the run fer eight months. Yer such a badass, and yer so unbelievably beautiful. I wish ya could see yerself the way I see ya. Yeah, ya have yer flaws, but they're part of wha' makes ya beautiful. Nobody's perfect, but yer the nearest damn thing there is to it.”

You were flabbergasted. You felt like crying all over again, but from pure happiness this time. “You really think so?”

“I dun' think, I know,” Daryl confirmed. “I love ya so much, bunny.”

“I love you too,” you replied with a small smile on your face. You turned around and faced the mirror again, giving him a full view of the back of your unzipped dress. “Zip me up?”

“'Course,” Daryl nodded, gripping the zipper and slowly zipping up the dress.

You shivered slightly at the feeling of his fingers slowly brushing along your spine. When your dress was zipped up, he wrapped his arms around your waist from behind and rested his chin on your shoulder. He looked at your reflection with a small smile, staring in awe at how beautiful he found you.

“Damn, woman,” he muttered with a small chuckle. “Yer gon' be the death of me, lookin' all pretty in this damn dress. Pair it with heels and we ain't makin' it outta this room tonigh'.”

You giggled and shyly ducked your head. “That's too bad. I promised Michonne that I'd go to this damn party.”

Daryl groaned and buried his head into your shoulder. “Fuck,” he mumbled, successfully coaxing another laugh from you. “Now I gotta wait? S'fuckin' ridiculous.”

Before you could respond, Rosita and Michonne walked into the room, making you and Daryl withdraw from each other's hold. Michonne and Rosita looked at you, smiles on each of their faces.

Michonne let out a playful wolf whistle. “Look at you! You're putting us all to shame.”

“She's right,” Rosita agreed. “You're looking real stunning. Daryl will have to fight of the other men. They're all going to want your attention.”

“Hell, some ladies, too. Daryl might have to fight me off,” Michonne joked.

Daryl rolled his eyes. “Nah, I ain't lettin' anyone take her from me. 'Specially not ya, Michonne.”

Michonne laughed lightly. “Can't blame a girl for trying.”

As Michonne and Daryl bickered back and forth, with Rosita adding her own playful input, you couldn't help but feel happy. In a matter of minutes, your partner and two of your closest friends had managed to cheer you up. You doubted that your insecurities would ever fully go away, but with people you love there to remind you of your worth, you would be more than okay.

And, just to tease Daryl a bit that night, you did end up wearing the heels with the dress, and Daryl made sure you knew just how beautiful you were to him that night—by worshipping your body like the goddess you were.

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 118 (The Calm Before)

Life continued for Heather and Conrad after their eventful trip to the city. Conrad couldn't be the one to canvas his old apartment building in San Myshuno, but he made arrangements with his partner, Detective Spangler, before he, Heather, and Ash had even returned to Brindleton Bay.

He believed they would find Ximena there, but they had to be discreet, and his team worked with San Myshuno PD to watch the Arts Quarter and confirm their suspicions.

They felt life at home might soon return to normal, so Heather started to think about that wedding and kept up her workouts. Spring would come soon enough, and she'd be able to go for jogs with Gord once the weather warmed, too. Gord couldn't wait for that, either.

Conrad would be able to turn his focus to Rafa and George Brindleton without the threat of Ximena breathing down their necks. While officers worked behind the scenes, the Nesbitt-Gordon household buzzed with contentment.

With the family always happy to see him, River paid a visit to talk with Hazel about her break up. Heather wanted to help, but she had to admit to herself that she was disappointed in Hazel for cheating.

Only 'Old Man River' could find the right words to express disappointment without a hint of judgment, and when he walked into the bedroom, Heather got up to make herself scarce.

River glanced at his younger sister with concern. He could see she was beating herself up and wanted to hear her side of things.

"Why didn't you leave your wife before you called Suri again?"

"I think a part of me wanted to hurt Nicola for how she treated me," admitted Hazel. "I know how terrible that is, but she made me dread coming home some nights, and we kept talking about trying to make it work, but we never did. She was too high maintenance and trying to meet her needs was costing my sanity. I think, more than anything, I was just mad at her, but I feel sick about how much I hurt her. I left town, but she's stuck there trying not to hear everyone whispering about her."

"I wouldn't worry about Nic," River said. "I ran into her mother at the Crumpleclones' flower stall yesterday. She took a sabbatical from the school and Mike's class will have a substitute teacher until she's back. If she comes back. I guess she's going on a show called Dating Deanna that starts filming in Tartosa soon."

Hazel reeled. "Nicola?! On a dating show? Does she know they usually put contestants through their paces and people...people cheat?"

"Maybe she thought her usual ways weren't really working for her anymore."

Hazel considered this with a nod. It was suddenly all too clear why he'd come to see her. "I hope Nic finds someone who makes her happy."

"And is Suri a rebound? Or are you really interested in her?"

"I don't know. I really like her and we have more in common than Nic and I did." Hazel shrugged. "I hope it's real, but we're giving each other space right now, after everything fell apart so publicly."

"That might not be the worst idea, but don't punish yourself and miss out on something that might be really good. You made a mistake and you have to learn from it; it's really that simple, but you're not a horrible person." River offered his little sister a hug, and Hazel accepted it willingly. "Maybe one day you and Nic can get closure for the way everything broke down, but you're on different journeys now, and you both have a chance to find happiness and really discover who you are. That's what really matters."

"Thanks, big bro. I know I'd deserve it if you were all mad at me."

He shook his head with a warm smile. "No you wouldn't. You didn't do anything to us. Just Nic. Maybe Suri, if you dragged her into this for nothing."

He stayed for dinner before heading home, leaving Heather dancing to the aerobics channel on his way out.

Lavender loved to be outside, and if her mom focused too long on her exercising, she'd usually sneak outside with her coat on to play around in the snow. One evening, she found a snowman Ash had built and promptly destroyed it - much to Ash's chagrin.

"I worked hard on that snowman!" he cried, pulling a frightening face to try to scare his little sister. Lavender peeled back in surprise.

"I sowwy, Ashy."

Ash scowled, but he couldn't stay mad at her, and immediately pulled her in for an autonomous hug. "It's okay, Lava. Just try not to do it anymore."

"I'll twy."

The next day, Ash invited his friend Arron Kalani over after school, excited to show off his brilliant new invention. "It's a remote control that will melt the snow!"

He pressed a button. Arron glanced outside the sliding patio doors in the living room and frowned at the white powder that had coated the town since the start of winter. "I don't think it works."

"It's solar powered. When the sun returns in the spring it should power up easier."

Arron turned up his nose in confusion. "What's the point of it working in the spring when the snow will be melted already?"

Lavender sat on the couch and giggled happily. "Ashy took ice-chippy!" she tattled.

Arron chuckled as Ash laughed at his oversight. "It's still pretty cool," Arron insisted. "I bet your next model will work better."

Life was always good, but the Nesbitt-Gordons couldn't help but feel as though things had never been better. For once, they weren't afraid to be hopeful. Heather kept working hard at Buttercup Pet Clinic, and Conrad focused on some other cases at work.

He had just finished looking over Officer Adler's notes on the recent Mercury Gratz assault case when the text they'd all been waiting for came in from Detective Spangler.

"We got her, Lieutenant. She was booked at San Myshuno PD first thing this morning." ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 2.1 Summary

Gen 1 Start | Gen 1 Summary

NOTE: Arron is the son of Zoe Patel and Mitchell Kalani, and he has younger twin siblings Isabelle and Xavier.

Thought I'd end the year on a high note with Ximena behind bars! The second batch of year-end favourite screenies comes tomorrow before the story continues on New Year's Day, but the last one could rival any of the last 25, in my opinion.

[misguidedasgardian]

Wildcats (Part XVIII)

XVIII. For survival purposes

MASTERLIST

Summary: Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis, that’s how it worked. 

Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Zombie apocalypse AU, living dead, zombies, guts, blood, guns, injures, kissing, longing, angst, fluff, reader is horny, girl talk, might miss some important warnings, but you know what this is about

+18, MINORS DNI

You did not have more time to put Daryl up to speed, you both ran towards the place they were holding the meeting, the palace from where you had heard the gunshot. And what you saw when you got there was heartbreaking.

Pete was dead on the floor, headshot, Rick was still holding the gun. Deanna was crying, and in her arms, on the floor, stood Reg, bathed in blood.

Reg! you whimpered when you saw him.

He was the builder of all of Alexandria’s dreams, and there he was, dead, his throat slit open, blood still pouring from it. A katana on the floor, Deanna was weeping, as many others were too. In frightened moans. Jesse was there, watching her dead husband with eyes filled with tears.

You came back home after everything was sorted, you were shaken, but so was Daryl.

“I know he meant a lot for ya”, he said softly as you were walking back to the house

“He was going to teach me how to build real houses”, you whimpered, “meaning, structures and others… things we are going to need in the near future….”, you mumbled. Like the freaking wall around Alexandria. 

“You’ll figure it out”, he said softly, leading you with his hand on the small of your back. 

You stood on the porch, both of you, like two normal people, who after a normal date, the normal guy would accompany the normal girl back to her normal house and walk her to the normal door. And they were normally nervous, does she invite him in? Does she invite him back to her room?

He took a step forward leaving no space between the both of you.

He placed his hands on your hips, as he sighed. 

“Hey”, he muttered

“Hey”, you greeted back, looking at his beautiful eyes.

“I kiss ya”, he said

“Aren’t you sharp, Dixon? nothing scapes ya”, he snorted as you chuckled, “I enjoyed it, and I kissed you too, pretty aggressively, I might add”, you said with a wide smile

“Ya’ wanna to keep kissin’ me?”, he asked again, he seemed unsure, his eyes shone with what looked to be hope, and you hoped you could transmit how much you wanted it with your eyes as he was doing it himself. 

“Yes”, you said, hoping not to sound too eager. 

“Why?”

“Why?”, you echoed his question, how could he not get it?

“Why would ya? keep kissin’ someone like me?”

“Someone like you”, what does that even mean?”, you asked, incredulously, “someone kind? strong and compassionate? loyal? generous?, someone who would give his life for his family? Someone who can spend days hunting to make sure we don’t starve? someone who can survive in this fucked up world? someone devastatingly handsome? with arms for days?”, you kept going until he was blushing mess

“I’m way older than ya”, he said then. 

“I don’t care”, you said with a soft smile, “but I do care that all you’re doing is looking for excuses”, she chided softly, “we are going to find a lot, you too… my only question is why would YOU like to keep kissing me?” 

“Ya are the most beautiful person I have ever seen”, he drawled. “You’re badass, protective…”, he said, you smiled warmly at him, “Would ya like me to… keep kissin’ ya’?”, he asked softly. 

“I would enjoy that, yes”, you said, nodding excitedly, “and if you get tired I can always… kiss you”

“Soun’ fair”, he said, with a little smile. 

“Like this”, you said, leaning in and kissing him softly. He grabbed onto you, returning the kiss passionately. 

You released his lips again, because you believed you were never going to let him go if you didn’t, you shared looks, as he placed his forehead against yours. You breathed each other, enjoying eachother’s warmth

“Are you alright?”, you didn’t know what else to ask him, you wanted to know what happened in that trip

“Yeah”, he whispered softly against your lips. “Now I am”, you smiled warmly at him

“Want to talk about it?”, he shook his head. You weren’t gonna lie, you were disappointed but, you were not going to press him. Something happened on his run with Aaron, something that led him to realize something that led him to kiss you. 

But if he didn’t want to talk about it, the important part is that he was ok, he was back home, and he had kissed you.

He leaned in and kissed you now, and you enjoyed it even more…

Should you invite him to your room? Should you… screw him good like you wanted to for a while now? since the very first time you saw his naked arms, you believed.

Someone cleared their throats, making you split.

Michonne, Rick, Rosita and Abraham were looking at you, all of them with smiles on their faces. Rick looked at the two of you and he looked positively surprised. Like he just found his teenage daughter with a boy

“Well! about time!”, said Abraham. 

Daryl seemed completely uncomfortable, as he cleared his throat, looking everywhere but at the people there, including you

“Let’s leave them alone”, said Rosita, taking Abraham with her.

Only Rick, Michonne, Daryl and you entered the house. The silence that ensued turned awkward, really awkward. Rick didn’t seem to be in the mood to deal with any of it, he disappeared quickly.

Michonne winked at you before she disappeared as well, leaving the both of you alone.

“Do you want us to… go down to your room?”, you asked him, you believed he was going to be more comfortable in his domains. He smiled at you, but he leaned in and kissed you on your forehead.

“Let’s go to yours”, he said. Not only for having… intimacy of any kind with him, but you needed to talk. You were a bit disappointed that he had not let you go down there, since you had never seen his room, but again you were more comfortable in yours.

You closed the door when he entered the room behind you. 

“Wha’ happen?”, he asked, “when I was gone?”, you looked back at him with a conflicted look in your eyes. You were for certain nobody was going to hear you, so you could speak freely. 

“Everything happened quickly”, you said softly, “Rick and Pete started fighting in the street in broad daylight”, you started telling him everything that happened, “And when Deanna stopped him, he had a gun and started pointing it at people”, he didn’t seem impressed at all, “he started saying, that Deanna’s ways were over, that they needed to change… then Michonne herself knocked him out…”, you explained, “where did he get the gun? then I learned that he stole it from the armory…”, you said, “he told Glenn, Michonne, Carol, Abraham and me that he intended on a hostile takeover of Alexandria… but it didn’t came to it…”, you saw the guilt in his eyes as soon as you saw him, “you knew”, you said

“I did”, he said

“I thought of Carol…”

“She was in it too”, he said, “she stole guns from the armory…”

“Why?”, you asked him

“I didn’t take one”, he said lowly. You took a long breath

“Did you want to participate in a hostile takeover?”, you asked him

“If it was necessary”, he said, “but I wanted to try first”, you believed him.

“What was on Rick’s mind?”, you asked him

“I dunno”, well, definitively imposing his own vision of things on this place. A violent, but more realistic approach, “he wants to save this place, whatever it takes”, that whatever it takes being slashing some throats, for example. 

“What do you want to do?”, you asked him, he looked back at you. Both standing in the middle of the room. 

“I wanna us to be safe ‘ere”, he said, “Carl, Judith, ya��� ya’ deserve it”. You only looked at him

“At any cost?”, you asked him

“It won’ come to it”, he said, “not after tonight”, Deanna had ordered Rick to execute Pete, Deanna had seen the “light”, so, he was right… You nodded at him. 

“So, can we finally call this place home?”, you asked him. He smiled

“Guess so”, he said finally. There was an awkward silence

“Do you wanna stay?”, you asked him. He moved where he stood, uncomfortably

“I reek”, he mumbled

“I don’t care”, you said

“M’gonna ruin yer sheets”, he whispered

“I don’t care”, you echoed, looking at him intensely, “we slept together on the road many times… I think… we should stick together, you know, for surviving purposes”, you said quickly, cheeks heated.

“G’night”, he drawled, kissing you int he forehead, and he left you there. mouth wide open as you saw him disappeared through the door.

He rejected you?

Is anybody else going to block your metaphorical cock? First Rick, then the entire group, and now the very man that was kissing you. You grunted, about to throw a fit like a kid.

You were a woman, a relatively healthy woman, and as such, you had needs.

And now you had a kissing buddy who could meet those needs… but that kissing buddy as much as ran away from you.

But you had just kissed, you couldn’t pressure him, you need to take it slow… a bit hard to take it slow when you had already literally sleeping with him

This meant nothing, right? that he as well as ran away from your room didn’t mean he didn’t want to be with you… in that way… right?

. . .

“so….”, you looked up from the blueprint at Rosita and Maggie, both looking at you with mischievous looks in their eyes. They had found you, the gazebo in the small park had become your sanctuary, is where Reg, Noah and you met, before they both died horribly. 

“So?”, you asked, even though you already knew what this might be about

“You had been… kissing… Daryl for a week now…”, teased Maggie, “soo… how is he?”

“Kissing?”, you asked, wanting to throw yourself into the lagoon and never resurface. Because kissing is all you have been doing…

It was… odd, to say the least, he would look for you, place his hand on your hip or waist when he was by your side… he would look for you every morning, to greet you and before he went on runs… 

But kissing is all you had been doing, a soft peck on the lips when he said good morning, or good night, or goodbye.

Everybody caught on by now, Daryl made sure to… make his presence known by your side in front of everybody by now, but then, when you were alone, he would just leave, especially when you invited him to your room, or tried to go with him to his.

“No!”, exclaimed Rosita, “you haven’t screwed yet?”

“Hey!”, said Maggie, slapping her shoulder playfully, but then she turned to you, “well… have you?”. you had been on edge, to say the least, you were about to start humping his leg like some horny dog, you were about to start climbing walls like a woman possessed by hornyness. 

“Come on! spill girl!”, encouraged Rosita. So you looked at the both of them and sighed loudly

“He won’t fuck me”, you admitted, “he won’t do it, I don’t know what I’m doing wrong”, they shared concerned looks

“It’s not you…”, said Maggie

“I haven’t been sutil”, you warned, “I have invited him to sleep with me, almost every night, on my room, and he won’t do it, I think I scared him, and now he won’t even go to the second floor in fear of me”

“He is special…”, said Maggie

“You know him the longest”, you said, closing your notebook and looking at her, “is he regretting ever kissing me?”, you asked her

“No”

“Have you spoken to him?”, you asked her

“No”, she echoed, “but I’m sure he doesn’t regret it, I mean… he made sure everybody knew you two are together, he might as well pee on you”, she giggled. 

You lowered your head, he hasn't even invited you out of the walls, like that day, you had such a good time, and if you suggested it… he shut it down quite quickly.

“Are we even together?”, you asked out loud

“He kissed you”, said Maggie, “he wants to be with you”

“It’s only been a week”, you whispered, “and I already feel like this is not advancing, we aren’t even speaking”

“So weird”, muttered Rosita, “Dixon looks like he would rail the shit out of you”, she said, you both laughed. It was tragi-comic at this point. 

Maybe you were getting ahead of yourself, maybe he was the one who wanted to take it slow… but he didn’t even want to hang out with you… 

From the gazebo you actually saw Daryl, jumping off of his bike with something in his hand and going into the pantry 

He had gone out of the walls everyday since that day… and even though you never needed him here, because Rick had been weirdly calm… you couldn’t help but actually feel trapped in here, you haven't gone out there like he had, He wouldn’t take you anywhere either, so…. you wanted to get out there, maybe, put some distance between you… maybe that’ll do you both some good, to help him figure out what he wanted.

You wanted to be with him, hang out with him, have talks with him, you wanted him to pin you to your bed and…you shook your head… What did he want?

But not only because of him… this place was making you weak, you needed to get out there, you enjoyed it, besides the walkers of course, you liked scavenging, not with the Alexandria team though.

You left the girls behind as you almost ran to the man, who was coming out, empty handed, out of the pantry/garage

“Daryl!”, you said excitedly, he seemed startled, “how did the run go?”

“Found the damn’ pasta maker!”, he said, excited, like he had found the cure. You laughed as you wrapped your arms around him, he placed his hands on your waist, smiling at you.

“I want to go out there”, you said, and yes, you were testing him, trying for the last time

“Wha’ for?”, he asked, frowning, “ya should stay ‘ere”, he said softly, learning in and giving you a peck on the lips, “need to go”, he mumbled, releasing you and walking away like you were the plague incarnate.

You walked back to Maggie and Rosita with your tail between your legs.

You wanted to get out there again, and you knew Daryl wasn’t going to take you.

Also, you wanted to be useful, to your family, and to put your piece into the new community. You wanted to get out there. 

And suddenly, you realized where you had to go. And you turned to Rosita. 

“I need to ask you something”, you said with a short smile. 

. . .

“I want to go to DC”, you said to Abraham, Eugene, Rosita and RIck, you had trouble setting this up, every time you had one, the other was somewhere else, but alas, here they were, besides Rosit helped. 

“Why?”, asked Rick

“Those three wanted to go for a reason”, you said, signaling to the trio

“It was a lie”, said Abraham

“Not completely, you said you were talking to people there, and Eugene wanted to go for a reason, and he was right, if there is someone left, is probably there”

“Deanna said they evacuated them all”, muttered Rick

“So it’s gonna be empty, either way”, you said simply

“Are you planning on sightseeing?”, mocked Rosita, you smiled

“I always wanted to see the Lincoln monument, but yeah… I think it’s a good idea, Atlanta was still… lively”, you muttered, but nobody looked convinced, “look, I will go, I just gathered you here to hear your opinions and if you wanted to join me, it's just a couple of hours from here”, you said surely, “I can go for a couple of days''

“You are not going alone”, commanded Rick. You took a long sigh

“I will not make anybody come with me, I get it's very dangerous”, you said with a convincing look, “but I feel like at least one of us has to see what’s up there, for closure or whatever”, you assured him. 

“I want to go with you”, said Rosita, and you smiled

“So do I”, said Abraham, “i want to see what all the fuss is about”

“I think its best if I stay put…”, Eugene kept mumbling objections, so you tuned him out. 

“Right!”, you said with a wide smile, “we are a team”, Rick looked a you

“Are you sure you want to do this?”, he asked

“Damn right”, you said

“I’ll need to talk to Deanna”

“Why?”, you asked that so quickly you earned a look of disapproval from Rick, “Sorry I forgot”

“Yeah, I don’t like it either”, said Abraham, “since when do we ask for permission?”

“I think it would be best”, he said simply, “let her know”

“But if she insists that one of those idiots has to go with us, I will cancel the whole thing”, you warned, he smiled and shook his head

“Right”, he said, “are you all sure?”

“We need to score a big run”, said Rosita, “DC is out safest bet”

“Fine”, he said, nodding, “I’ll tell Deanna tonight”

“No others”, you said

“You didn’t tell Daryl?”, all eyes were on you when Rick asked you that.

“No”, yous aid shortly, “he is out with Aaron, didn’t want to concern him

“Fine”, said Rick

@crazyunsexycool @capricxnt

[naazaif327]

Honestly? I will straight up say it, I think that whole conversation with Melora was fucked up and deeply manipulative on Her part. Allowing only Orym to enter, not Ashton or Dorian or anyone who might have any questions or critiques for Her, isolating him from his friends, pulling away when he brings up Aeor or anything She might be held accountable for, giving him a a traumatizing psychological horror vision that almost broke his mind to make him as afraid as She is, dangling his husband as a prize he might win if he manages to beat Predathos, and offering him a shiny new weapon to fight with. He literally said after coming down from the trip that it was so much that he didn’t really have the wherewithal to talk about Aeor with Her.

The new vestige was nice I guess, but right now before this final assault on Ruidus is the fucking time for accountability, for the Gods to prove that things won’t just return to the status quo when Predathos is stopped/killed/banished. What would’ve happened if Orym had asked about Opal, about Cyrus, about all the people harmed by the Betrayers in these last thousand years because the Primes couldn’t pull the trigger? What might happen if one of the Bell’s Hells asks the Dawnfather about Hearthdell like Deanna did? What might the Gods say to Evoroa and the Reilorans, what words would they have for the mortals they balled up and chucked into space to save themselves?

We didn’t get even a start to those answers tonight because of how the Wildmother played this encounter, and it doesn’t give me hope of them changing their ways at all. I’m curious as to how a potential meeting with the Stormlord or the Everlight might go next episode, but we’ll have to wait and see.

EDIT: knowing now after the talk with The Arch Heart that it’ll probably be a Calamity if they fight it, but Melora didn’t tell him that is just icing on this awful cake, like no wonder Orym said “I don’t have a God” in 107

[hellfireswhore]

Insomniac

Carl Grimes x GN! Reader

Summary: Carl grows concerned about you since you guys arrived in Alexandria.

Warnings: language

Pronouns: they/them

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────»

Getting adjusted to new environments wasn’t easy, especially for you. Ever since the prison fell apart, your group has been placed to place every night. You’re exhausted. Then, you were invited to a community called Alexandria

After Rick told the group we’re settling here, you were relieved but uneasy. You didn’t completely trust anyone that wasn’t your family. You held all of your trust in your loving boyfriend, Carl Grimes.

“Hey,” a hand waved in front of your face, pulling you out of your thoughts. “Are you alright?” Carl questioned.

“Oh yeah sorry, I’m good.” Reassuring him. He nods and he turns his direction back to his dad, Rick Grimes, who was holding a meeting for a scavenge.

“Glenn, I’m gonna have you be a getaway driver, you’re good with a wheel.” Rick began looking at Glenn who responded with a nod. “Daryl, I want you to keep watch for anyone or anything who is a threat.” Daryl hummed toward Rick. “And Carl, you’re with me. I’m gonna need help gathering supplies and taking out walkers.” Rick finished and started to wrap up the meeting, leaving you confused.

“Wait, what about me?” You sat up from the table gaining his attention. “I don’t know, Y/N. You’ve been-“ “C'mon, Dad. y/n is one of the best at runs. They barely leave with a mark. Plus, they say you have bad luck without them there.” Carl cut him off. You looked at Rick hoping he’d have you tag along. Carl was right, you were the best at getting in and out at scavenged fast. He signed in defeat. “Alright, fine, you’re with me and Carl.” After that, everyone got ready and headed out of the Alexandrian walls.

———————————

After driving out for what felt like forever, you arrived at an abandoned Pharmacy that didn’t look like it had been touched. Me, Carl, and Rick stepped out of the car while Glenn stayed. Daryl helped us clear out the walkers outside the building while Carl and Rick took care of the ones inside. While they did that, I scanned the area to make sure no one else was there.

“We’re clear,” I spoke towards the Grimes. With that, we went around the store looking for supplies we needed. Deanna gave you the list earlier. You were walking around the isles and suddenly stepped on glass, it was a mirror. “Shit.” You whispered to yourself then you saw yourself in the mirror. Your eyes were red.

The state you were desperate to hide is now noticeable: Exhaustion.

“Hey, are you okay?” Carl questioned. You looked up at him, not thinking about him seeing your eyes. “Yeah I just stepped on glass and it startled me, that’s all.” You walked past him continuing your hunting for the supplies, leaving Carl concerned. “Carl, did you find- what’s going on?” Rick asked putting a hand on Carl’s shoulder making the boy turn to the man. “Nothing, Y/N is just acting a little strange today.”

“How so?” Rick asked. “Well, I caught them spacing out during the meeting and just now, they brushed off my question and I noticed their eyes.” After Carl stated that, Rick started to walk towards you, “Y/N,” you turned towards the grown man. “I want you to sit in the car with Glenn.”

“What?! Why?!” You said with an angered tone. “Because I said so, now go.” Rick pointed towards the car. You scoffed and left the store.

“What was that for? They didn’t do anything!” Carl shouted making Rick turn and walk towards him. “Don’t yell. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves. Let’s just finish up in here and get home.” Carl sighed, continuing to help out his dad.

———————————

“Carl, let’s go, the sun is going down and we still have a long drive ahead of us,” Rick said grabbing the bag of all of the supplies they found. Daryl came out of hiding once Rick announced they were done. “Ya got what we need?” Daryl spoke. “Let’s hope. Deanna wasn’t too specific. Let’s head out.” Daryl hummed in response and hopped onto his motorcycle and started the engine waiting for Carl and Rick to get into the car behind him.

Carl hopped into the back seat and saw you. Your head was leaning against the window. He slightly shook your shoulder and noticed you were asleep. Rick got into the passenger seat and turned his head looking at you and back at Carl. “Thank god. Alright, Glenn, let’s get the hell out of here.” With that, Glenn started the car and drove off with Daryl leading.

After a few minutes on the road, Carl broke the silence. “Dad, why did you look at Y/N and said, “thank god?” He spoke. “Don’t worry, it’s nothing,” Rick responded, looking ahead. With that, Carl started to get angry.

“Worry?! I’m concerned! Y/N has been acting weird all day and you’ve been a complete dick to them for no reason!” Yelling at his dad, making Rick turn toward him. “If you’re concerned, maybe you shouldn’t raise your voice while they're sleeping right next to you!” Rick whispered yelling at his son. “Just cut the shit! Tell me! What is wrong with MY partner?!” silence filled the air, so quiet Carl could hear your breathing. “Rick,” Glenn interrupted. “Carl needs to know. He is Y/N’s boyfriend.”

Here’s the thing, Rick sees you as family, especially since you are dating his son and are still a kid to him. He’s secretive for the right reasons, and that’s to protect his loved ones. But, he knew Carl would be able to help you in this situation.

“Y/N…hasn’t been sleeping, at all,” Rick admitted. Carl sat there, waiting for context. “I don’t know why, but I’ve noticed them taking night watch hours on end and even taking others' places. Anything to avoid sleep, they’d do it.” Rick took a breath. “And, when you mentioned their eyes, I knew it had gone on for too long.” He finished.

Carl signed. How could he not have noticed his own lover was struggling?

“Thank you for telling me,” Carl responded after a minute of silence. Carl looked over at you, who was still sleeping. He moved your head to lay it on his shoulder, hoping it would make you relax more than the car window. Relief fell over him when he felt your breathing against his neck, you were finally getting some rest. Then, you started to snore.

“Woah! Didn’t know they snored!” Glenn giggled. Making Rick cackle as well. Carl smiled, “Hey! It’s never this bad!” He jokingly defended. “Just be happy they haven’t heard you. Their usually a light sleeper.” With that response, the grown men quickly shut up. Before this, if anyone would wake you up, hell broke loose.

———————————

You guys arrived back in Alexandria, it was around 11 p.m. Daryl parked his motorcycle and waited for you, Rick, and Carl. Glenn said his good nights to everyone and headed towards his shared house with his wife, Maggie. Everyone was out of the car, except you.

“I’ll wake them up-“ “hell no, man. Are you asking for an ass beatin’?” Daryl intruded on Rick stopping his hand from touching you. “Well, what do you want me to do? Let them sleep in a car that’ll grow humid?” Rick spoke with sarcasm. “I got it,” Carl spoke up.

He then started to lift you up from the back seat and started to carry you, supporting your back and knees. Your body began to adjust to the position and you rested your head on his shoulder. Carl then started to walk towards the front door. “Strong kid,” Daryl spoke to Rick once Carl took you into the house. “like father like son.”

After carrying you up the stairs, he walked into your room and settled you in bed. He removed your socks and shoes and pulled the blanket over you. Once you were settled, he kissed your forehead goodnight and started to leave.

“Carl..?” He turned around and saw you half awake. He thought you looked so cute in that state but he knew you needed sleep. “Hey, it’s okay, just go back to sleep.” He whispered softly putting a hand on your cheek. “Sleepover? Please?” You muffled, holding his hand on your cheek, looking at him with sleepy eyes. He grinned, “How could I ever say no to that face?”

Carl got comfortable and stepped into bed with you. He put his arm over you, spooning you. “I’m sorry…” you whispered. “Don’t apologize, hun. We’ll talk in the morning, okay? Just go to sleep.” You hummed in response and you fell asleep. He kissed your cheek, “Goodnight, my Y/N”

————————————

“Here you go. Got what you needed.” Rick handed the bag of supplies in front of Deanna. She went through the bag and looked at Rick with confusion. “How did you manage to get nothing on the list?” Rick also got confused. “Wait, what list?” “The list I gave to Y/N. They said you shouldn’t have the list because you have bad luck.” Deena chuckled at the end. “I guess you could say that.”

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────»

[setyourfireonme]

fic recs that feature sex worker dean for free space @spnficrecfest

✨💖✨

trade by chinablue (John/Dean, Dean/OMCs, 771, E) (part 1 of tradeverse)

You'll hide from mirrors until the marks fade away.

quiet room by chinablue (John/Dean, Dean/OMCs, 1.9k, E) (part 2 of tradeverse)

This is what love looks like.

love is by chinablue (Sam/Dean, John/Dean, Dean/OMCs, 2.3k, E, Rape/Non-Con)

Love is all you are.

halo (in reverse) by poisontaster (Dean/OMCs, Dean/OFCs, 4.9k, E, Underage)

Adulthood has a taste.

the black line below me by smilla (Dean/OMC, 4.1k, M, Underage)

It's not about money

march madness in carson city by egipci (John/Dean, 1.5k, Not Rated)

Dad just saw him, he’s pretty sure.

pragmatics by deadlybride (Sam/Dean, Dean/Others, 4.3k, E, Underage)

Dean tells Sam about the work he used to do; he hopes Sam understands why he did it.

it's a mile from here to glory by ivyfic (Dean/Others, 7.6k, M, Underage) (part 1 of after school special)

John found it when he was doing laundry. When John dug into the bottom of Dean's duffel to get the last of the dirty socks that had been sitting in there, probably, since the last time John had caved and done the laundry, he found a roll of bills. Tens and twenties, mostly, held together with a black binder clip. It was close to five hundred dollars.

dear lovey hart by ivyfic (Sam/Dean, 5k, M, Underage) (part 2 of after school special)

"People I've fucked," Sam said nonchalantly. Dean almost did a spit-take. "I have had sex with eight people. Lifetime total." He waved his hand in the air over his head, probably trying to show the number eight on his fingers, then gave up and let his arm drop like a rock back to his side. He scrunched up his face like he was thinking hard. "Make that nine…no…eight and a half." Dean rolled his eyes. "Your turn," Sam said.

hitchhikers by glorious_spoon (795, T, Underage)

Some ugly facts about life on the road.

monsters are out there by connivingophelia (Dean/OMCs, 4.6k, E, Rape/Non-Con, Underage)

When Dean is ten-and-a-half, he learns men will fall for his pretty mouth, his fuck-me eyes. When Dean is twelve-and-a-half, he discovers how to use this information. Dean longs to be a hunter like Dad, to bring monsters to their knees. This isn't what he had in mind.

feel like i should have said something by karaokeburial (John/Dean, 1.3k, E)

John's come home exhausted from a long hunt, and they're broke. Dean, thankfully, is always good for making a little bit of money down at the hunter dive.

so goes the song by aeli_kindara (Dean/Lee, 21.7k, E) (+ jackalopes)

The first time Lee meets Dean Winchester, it’s courtesy of a chokehold.

the landscape after cruelty by hearthouses (Sam/Dean, Dean/Others, 16k, Rape/Non-Con, Underage)

Dean leans into Sam's touch, instinctive, too exhausted to fight the part of him that enjoys the attention Sam gives him, a shameful dirty secret, how much he loves letting Sam do this, when it should be the other way around. No one else would ever take care of him like this. OR Five Times Sam Took Care Of Dean In The Aftermath + 1 Time He Got Revenge On Those Who Hurt Dean.

there are worse things i could do by amiwritesthings (John/Deanna, 5.2k, E)

It’s cold and windy, the bite of first snow in the air, a strange yellow glow in the sky that tells Deanna winter is coming and it’s coming soon. Her breath billows in a cloud of white, and she pulls the thin leather jacket tighter around herself, rocks on her heels to keep the blood flowing. It’s a little past midnight, and the streets are quiet—too quiet—for all of them to get to the other end of the night with some cash in their pockets. It’s not the first time and it won’t be the last, but she needs the money tonight, for a hot meal and a fix and maybe a new jacket that isn’t more holes than fabric.

discovery by reapertownusa (John/Dean, 1.1k, E)

After a hunt John is looking for a release and finds it an unlikely place.

+ the rest of the past is a foreign country verse (John/Dean, Dean/OMCs, 13.1k in total, E, Rape/Non-Con)

as if we'd never met by thatotherperv (John/Dean, Dean/OMCs, 6.7k, E, Underage)

AU. Dean Winchester was kicked into the foster system when he was 4 years old…when he was 14, he kicked himself out of it. Bottom line is, men enjoy fucking little boys all across this great nation. Dean figures if he's gonna spend the rest of his life with sick fuckers staring at his mouth, he'd better be making some cash.

sharp teeth of the one you love by vintagedean (John/Dean, Dean/Others, 2.3k, E)

The ogre at the corner table right by the door has been eyeing Dean all night. John watches the way the beast’s eyes track Dean as he works different patrons at the bar with no luck. Dean tries for a shifter and a vampire before he starts flirting with a human man playing pool by himself, but John knows there’s no way his boy is unaware of the behemoth of a creature tucked into the shadows behind him. He’s been moving slowly in his direction, never engaging or tossing a smile, but angling his body with every interaction with someone else so that his ass faces the monster. Dean’s a professional, and he’s good at what he does. John keeps to himself and lets his son work as he nurses his beer and thinks through what he’ll need to have ready for after Dean’s done his job. Ogres have relatively small dicks for their size, but they’re usually barbed at the tip. It means Dean’s going to have some internal damage when he’s through, but not too much if they use enough of the right kind of lube. It also means they can charge a small fortune. Dean knows this, so John’s not worried about needing to intervene. His kid can handle it. He is, after all, a professional. 

first night as the prince of hearts by karaokeburial (John/Dean, Dean/Jean Renault, 1.9k, E)

John's made the drive all the way across the border from Twin Peaks into Canada, coming to visit his eldest on his first night at his new job.

[pedrito-friskito]

strawberry wine - joel miller x fem!reader

during - part eight

series masterlist | main masterlist | read on ao3

hope is a dangerous thing.

a/n: it’s heeeeeeeeere. full disclosure - it might be a few days until part 9 goes up; as far as I know, tonight’s ep shows some flashbacks which means I might have to do a bit of revamping! plus I really don’t wanna burn myself out with this one, there’s still so much ground to cover!!

word count: 4.5k

warnings: MY BLOG IS 18+, MINORS DNI, angst, canon-typical violence and injuries, death, blood, yearning, nightmares, mentions/allusions to sex, if I missed something let me know.

✨follow @friskito-library for updates on new works/chapters!✨

The days bleed into months, and before you know it, the snow comes. Winter.

You haven’t left the mall. Or, haven’t been allowed to leave the mall. Every time you cross paths with Cowan, it’s the same conversation.

“Let me through the gate.”

“No.”

“Please?”

“No.”

You’re nothing if not persistent, but you try your best to make yourself useful. You and Deanna have formed some kind of friendship, and you help her out as much as you can. At first, you don’t know much about treating injuries besides the bit you remember from an old first aid course, so you pay close attention to her movements, handing her supplies when she needs it, taking her orders in stride.

She was an army nurse, you learn, and lost her husband long before the outbreak. “Just as well,” she told you, a sad smile on her face. “He barely came back to me after Vietnam. I don’t think he could have survived this.”

They never had kids, but she tells you her niece and nephew may as well have been her own. “They live in Cape Cod, on the coast.” Her face went dark. “Lived.” Then she looked at you. “You remind me of my niece, you know. Fierce little thing.”

She teaches you how to dress wounds and clean them, when something needs stitches and when glue will do, how to stretch the materials you have left as far as possible. When injured soldiers show up after the first snow, she puts you to work.

Cowan’s among them, a ricochet bullet in his shoulder. Deanna hasn’t shown you anything like that yet, and you balk a little as he pulls off his gear, blood pouring down his arm. “Wait here.”

You sprint across the floor to where Deanna is literally elbow-deep in another soldier who clearly hadn’t been as lucky as Cowan. “What d’you need, kid?”

“Nothing,” you say quickly, spying a pair of forceps on the table nearby and grabbing them. “Just these. I’ll come help you after—”

“You go take care of Nicky,” she orders, her voice almost stern. “You don’t leave his side until you know he’s all right, you understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

You sprint back to Cowan, finding him hunched over, hand pressed to his arm, blood staining his knuckles. You grab a pair of scissors from the tray beside you, hooking your arm under his shoulder and getting him upright. “Fuck!” he shouts, and you grit your teeth.

“Sorry.” You cut away his t-shirt, pulling the fabric from where it’s wedged between his fingers, and his other hand curls into a fist on the table. “What happened?”

“Bunch of runners,” he breathes out, and you yank his hand away from the wound quickly, replacing it with a thick scrap of towel, pressing your hand into his shoulder. He winces, tipping his head back. “Came right up over the fence.”

The corner of your mouth twitches. “I told you that chain link wouldn’t hold forever.”

“Yeah, yeah, you should run the world.” He meets your gaze, holds it. “You ask me to let you through the gate again, and I swear to god—”

“I wasn’t going to,” you say quickly. It’s not entirely the truth, but it’s not a lie either. “But I want to help, if I can.”

The towel has already soaked through with his blood, and it makes your gut twist. “Help?”

“Teach me to shoot,” you say. You’re trying to distract him, and grab his hand, pressing it against the towel. “Hold this.”

“Bat’s not enough for you?”

“No, but the rifle I found in the sporting goods shop upstairs will definitely help,” you reply, grabbing the forceps and wiping them down with a bit of antiseptic. “Especially once I get out of here.”

Cowan stares at you, that hard gaze he’s become famous for. “Why d’you wanna get out of here so bad? You’re—”

“If you tell me I’m safe here, Corporal, I’m leaving that bullet in your shoulder.”

He actually laughs. “God, you are something else, you know that?” 

You freeze, for a moment. Suddenly, you’re standing in your kitchen, in Austin. Joel Miller is handing you a bouquet of daisies and telling you you’re beautiful and kissing your cheek. The memory catches you off-guard, and you only come back down to earth when Cowan squeezes your wrist, peering at you.

“You good?”

“Yeah,” you reply instantly, shaking your head. “We need to get that bullet out.”

You hold up the forceps, bracing your hand on his collar. “This isn’t gonna feel great, is it?”

“Well, it sure as hell won’t tickle,” you admit. “Is this the first time you’ve taken a bullet?”

“No. Second.”

“Pull this away, when I say,” you instruct, tapping the back of his hand. “I gotta be quick.”

“Have you done this before?”

You lift a shoulder, a nervous little laugh falling out of your mouth. “I watched Deanna do it a couple weeks back. It was in the guy’s gut though, not his shoulder.”

“Did he live?”

You go quiet. “Move your hand.” He hesitates. “Now, Cowan.”

He moves his hand, pulling the towel away, and you push the forceps in. The air seems to go completely still as you fish for the bullet. Cowan’s face is screwed up in pain, both hands curled around the edge of the cot, white-knuckled. “Did the guy live?”

“No,” you admit finally, feeling the soft clink of metal hitting metal. Bingo. “But we found a bite on his leg after, so the internal bleeding was probably the better way to go.” You twist the forceps, and he hisses in pain. “Tell me about the first time you got shot.”

“Are you trying to distract me?”

“Is it working?” you quip, and he actually smiles.

“It was basic training,” he starts, and you nod, focusing on his shoulder. The forceps pinch around the bullet, and you pull ever so slightly. “My buddy and I were just fucking around. He didn’t know the thing was loaded.”

“He shot you on purpose?” you ask, brows raised. You pull a little more, making sure the grip holds.

“Not on purpose,” Cowan replies, and you can feel his eyes on your face. “We were just kids, then. Just screwing around, trying to fill the time. And now…”

“He still around?” you ask, prompting him further. “Your buddy.”

“I hope so,” he replies. “He moved to California, after we finished basic. I really hope he—motherfucker!”

You pull the bullet all the way out with a flourish, dropping the forceps onto the tray and grabbing a fresh piece of gauze. He hisses again when you press the new gauze to his shoulder, and you scoff. “Baby.”

“You just pulled a bullet out of me.”

“I’m aware,” you throw back, pressing a little harder. “I still think you’re a baby.”

He gives you the signature Stare before glancing down at his shoulder, taking over the pressure you’re holding, and you step away to get an actual roll of gauze. “Meet me at the south entrance tomorrow, and I’ll teach you.” You turn back, your brows raised. “To shoot, I mean. Bring the rifle. You have ammo?”

Your jaw nearly drops. “Yeah, managed to find a few boxes.”

“Good.”

You nod, unable to hide the grin that pulls your lips. “Good.”

+

They’re somewhere near Nashville. He thinks; Tommy’s been navigating, Joel’s just been following his brother. The weather has held up mostly, but now they’re holed up in some shack Tommy found in the woods, hiding from the rain. It’s been constant, nearly three days now, and Joel can’t fucking sleep.

He hasn’t slept well since they left Austin, not that he expected to. The few beds they’ve found have been heaven, but every time he closes his eyes, the dreams come, and he’s reliving that night all over again. Doesn’t matter how many days go by, and he knows it doesn’t matter at all how much time passes. He’s never gonna forget.

He took first watch, told Tommy to get some shuteye and parked himself on the front porch, watching the rain slide of the metal roof, pooling in front of the shack, running downhill like a river. There’s mud caked on his boots, and he feels dirty down to his bones. It’s been a few days since they had real shelter, though, and he revels in the silence, being away from the main roads.

But the silence lets his mind wander, and when that happens, it lands on you, more often than not. Sarah is always there, in the back of his head, the sound of her voice forcing him further, but when he gets a moment alone — a rarity now — he lets himself remember you.

Your last conversation still haunts him. The fear in your voice, the way you’d sounded so out of it when you first picked up, and he’d brought you back down, focused you. Patch yourself up. Take what you can and go. Get the hell out of Boston.

I’ll find you, baby.

Sometimes, the hope invades his heart like a disease, branching through his limbs and making his chest ache with it. He has to hope that you made it out, that you’re alive somewhere, that your paths are leading straight towards each other. Every time they come over a hill or turn a corner, he feels that tug in his gut, a quiet promise that this time, you’ll be heading straight towards him, a big smile on your face.

But Joel knows that hope is a dangerous thing to let in, to nurture. As hard as he wishes you alive, he knows the opposite is more than likely. He sees it when he does manage to get some sleep, nightmares infiltrating his brain until he wakes up panting, the phantom feeling of his daughter’s blood on his skin melting away far too slowly.

Right now, he’s forcing himself to remember the good.

That last week, before you’d left for Boston. He took you to that open field every night, almost, held you in his arms, kept you close and never let your mouth get too far from his. He’d buried his face in your neck and memorized the smell of you, the feel of you, the taste.

You pulled on his hand, led him away from the truck and into the open field. You laid down in the grass side by side, the sound of crickets and the soft wind the only thing you could hear. He’d leaned over you, cupped your cheek in his palm, rubbed his thumb over your bottom lip. You kissed his fingers, giggling when he rolled himself on top of you a moment later, his mouth chasing yours.

He planted his hands either side of your head and you reached for his belt, dragging your hands down his chest. He could feel your heartbeat, when he pressed himself against you, the twitch of your knees along his ribs as you held him closer. That’s how it always was between you two, who could get the other closer, how much could you pull until the space between no longer existed?

Joel still remembers the noise you made when he pushed into you, right there in the grass. The way you’d dug your nails into his back so fucking hard it made him moan louder, the sound echoing through the night. The blissful smile on your face as the pleasure ripped through you, and Joel felt it, the tightness of your body, the way he could taste it on your tongue.

God, he loved you so goddamned much.

A clap of thunder yanks him out of his head, and he flinches hard, the gun in his lap sliding onto the wooden porch. He’s on his feet in a moment, shoving both hands through his hair, and without another thought, he steps out from under the shelter of the roof. The rain pelts him instantly, soaking through his clothes, making goosebumps rise on his arms.

It feels good. He tilts his face towards the sky, feels the water drip down his arms.

He hears your voice, in his head. What you said that night, under the stars, laid out on his chest, your eyes glassy. “I won’t ever stop thinking about you, Joel Miller. Not for a million years.”

He never should have let you leave Austin. Not in a million years.

+

Cowan stays true to his word. He teaches you to shoot, not just the rifle you’d stolen from the mall, but other guns, too. Shows you some tricks with the hunting knife you’d found in Dean’s bag, even teaches you how to build a fire. You stop asking him to let you through the gate, and he stops giving you the Stare. After a few lessons, he starts bringing you along on patrols. You carry the rifle and the bat, the hunting knife strapped to your thigh. The temperature is dropping, the snow sticking consistently, and the UPS jacket you’d stolen months back comes in handy, keeping you warmer than you expect.

There’s not much conversation to be had between you two, and when you do talk, it’s light shit. You avoid the subject of families, partners and the like. You mostly talk about music, and you laugh the hardest you have in a long time when Cowan admits to you that he’s seen the Backstreet Boys in concert three separate times. You’re bent in half with laughter, tears in your eyes, and he starts laughing along with you.

The laughter stops, however, when you circle back to the mall. There are four trucks outside, and the hair on the back of your neck stands up when you see Deanna step through the doors. Everyone else who’d been inside, faces you recognize, people you’ve met, they’re all coming out of the mall. Deanna has blood on her scrubs, a strange look in her eye.

“McCoy!” Cowan calls once you’re close enough, and a soldier turns. “What’s going on?”

Both the soldiers step to the side, and you make a bee-line for Deanna, swinging your rifle onto your back. “What happened?”

The older woman looks shaken, and she grabs you once you’re close enough, her hands digging into the sleeves of your coat. “T-Tim,” she stutters, and your brow hardens. You know who she’s talking about;  Tim, his wife Marcy, their two kids. Their cots weren’t far from yours in the department store. You’d helped their youngest son, Henry, when he’d cracked his forehead on the tile, tripped on his own feet chasing his little sister, Emily, around the mall. Hell, you’d had dinner with them just the night prior, you and Tim had made the kids giggle slurping your noodles. “He just…” Deanna trails off, and fear twists your stomach in an iron vice.

“Are the kids okay?”

She nods furiously, still holding onto you tightly. “But…but Marcy, she…he just…” She looks back towards the mall, gestures for a moment before clapping her hand over her mouth. “I’d never seen one up close before.”

Deanna collapses into your arms, and you hug her tightly, half worried she’s passed out, but the worry passes when you feel her hands fist in the back of your jacket. Over her shoulder, you see a soldier leading Henry and Emily outside. Henry still has a bandaid on his forehead, and Emily is clutching his hand, tear tracks on her face. Your heart aches.

“I’m gonna go with them,” Deanna tells you, pulling away after a moment, and you just nod. She jogs after the kids, and you turn back to where Cowan and McCoy are still talking. Cowan has a hard look on his face, and his jaw tightens as you approach.

“What the hell is going on?” you ask, crossing your arms over your chest. “We’re supposed to be safe in the mall, Corporal. That’s what you said. I could have been halfway to Texas by now. Hell, I could have been in Texas by now.”

“I know what I said,” he bites back before heaving a sigh. “We got an update, from FEDRA HQ.”

You lift a brow. “And?”

He glances at the stream of people still filing out of the mall. “The fungus, the thing that’s causing this, it’s in the food. We need to check everything that was in the mall, everything that was handed out. Production dates, expiry dates, it’ll give us an idea of what needs to be destroyed, but—”

“But there’s a chance everyone in there ate something contaminated,” you finish, swallowing back the bile that rises in your mouth. “There’s a chance we’re all already infected.”

Cowan’s throat bobs. “Yes.”

“What do we do now, then?” you ask, jutting your chin towards the people filling the street outside the mall. “Where do we go? Standing around here like this, it’s just gonna attract them.”

“There are buildings that have been deemed safe,” McCoy tells you, and Cowan just nods. “The quarantine zone has been marked off. We take everyone there, separate you for now, keep an eye out for anyone changing.”

Cowan nods. “Check everyone for bites, again.” He meets your eyes for a moment before calling for two other soldiers. He starts barking orders, and you turn to McCoy.

“I thought the city was the quarantine zone.”

He shakes his head. “Too much space. FEDRA gave us the borders, showed us where to go. The walls’ll go up soon, and we’ll be that much safer.”

You balk. “More chain link bullshit?”

McCoy shakes his head again. “No, ma’am. Bricks. Guard towers, barbed wire. The whole kit and caboodle.”

You swallow hard. Shit.

+

The chain link stays up. The walls of the quarantine zone press deeper into the city, and as promised, you’re shuffled into apartment buildings. There’s still blood everywhere you look, damaged ceilings, broken windows. It’s not perfect by any stretch, but the building itself is intact, and that’s apparently good enough for FEDRA.

They put you in separate units, the number of survivors taking up less than half the building. You stay with Deanna and the kids. Emily clings to your side, her arms wrapped around your leg more often than not. She hasn’t said a word since you left the mall.

The soldiers patrol the streets and the hallways, and after a week, six more people turn. They’re put down without a second thought, their bodies carried out of the building. The food supplies are carted from the mall to a warehouse within the new zone limits, and everything that was given to you is taken back for inspection. It’s a lot of waiting, of pacing the floor of your new home, of trying to come up with ways to distract the kids from what’s happening.

Shortly after you’d been evacuated from the mall, they’d brought out Tim and Marcy’s bodies, and your hands had started to shake violently when you saw the blood on Tim’s face, the deep gouge in his wife’s throat. Bullets in both their skulls. It had all happened so fast.

And you’d been eating the same things they had.

The worry gnaws at your stomach. You’d protested, at first, when Deanna insisted you come with them. You couldn’t explain it, couldn’t bear to see the pain on the older woman’s face deepen when you admitted you feared the worst. She still managed to pull it out of you, later that night, after you’d put the kids to sleep in the only bedroom, the pair of you sitting at the kitchen table.

“If it happens, it happens, kid,” she said, gripping your hand tightly. “And we deal with it. That’s all we can do.” You’d nodded, and she’d reached into her bad, producing a bottle of gin. “Something to take the edge off.” You nodded again.

A week passed, the six were put down, and you were safe. Your mind started to wander. Trucks filled with construction material arrived at the edges of the quarantine zone every day; you could see them from the apartment. More FEDRA soldiers, some venturing into the city to find usable materials. Soon enough, the wall was starting to take shape.

And if the wall went all the way up, that meant you were never getting out of Boston. Never getting the opportunity to find your family, or Joel.

But, the wall has only just begun, which means there are still holes in the boundary, and with more soldiers assigned to the quarantine zone itself, that means the chain link is left unguarded, for the most part.

They announce curfew hours and the consequences for breaking those hours, and you start planning. Collecting things, weapons and food that won’t spoil, refilling your first aid kit. You take what ammo you can find, nicking a few boxes from the FEDRA tents when no one’s paying attention. You still have the maps from the bookstore, your hastily-drawn path still marked on the pages.

You wait for nightfall, and you run.

You leave Deanna a note, tell her you’re sorry, tell her you’ll try to send a message that you’re safe, once you are. The kids are fast asleep, and you kiss their heads before you go.

Your path through the city leads you right past your apartment, and your heart nearly stops. The entire front of the building has been exploded inward, no doubt a result of the bombings. If you look hard, you can see the edge of your living room, behind the twisted rebar and broken bricks. You want to linger, but you don’t, the shout of an Infected pushing you forward, gripping the bat tightly.

The construction of the wall left a lot of tools laying around, and it was all too easy to find a pair of large wire cutters. You found a piece of chain link in an alley within the quarantine zone, and tested it out. Sure enough, a clean cut.

There are still patrols along the chain link, but they’re more sporadic. The guard posts have been dismantled, dragged further inwards, set up again along the new walls. You see a soldier pass by the spot you’re aiming for, and wait until he’s completely out of sight before bolting across the pavement to the fence, pulling out the wire cutters.

You have one foot through when you hear a familiar voice.

“You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me.”

Cowan’s kept his distance, since you moved into the building. It bothers you and doesn’t at the same time. But in a way, you got what you wanted from him; you’re more confident that you could make it beyond the fence now. Especially with the rifle strapped to your back.

Your head drops, and you pull your leg back out, straightening and turning on your heel towards him. “You really thought I wouldn’t try it?”

“I really didn’t think you were this stupid,” he shoots back, and you scoff, rolling your eyes. “I’m serious. You will die out there, why don’t you get that?”

You grip the chain link, the metal rattling beneath your shaking fingers. “I can’t just sit around here for the rest of my life, Cowan.”

“So you’d rather waste it, out there?” He gestures towards the fence with his rifle, to what lays beyond. “What good will that do? You’re smart, you know there’s a good chance your family is dead.”

“But until I know—” you start, and your voice betrays you, cracking on the word. You swallow hard. “Why can’t you just let me go? What difference does it make?”

His strange dark eyes narrow at you. They’re blue, you’ve come to learn, but a dark shade that sometimes looks black. “Come with me. There’s something I want you to see.” You open your mouth to protest, and he lifts a hand. “Come with me first; if you still want to leave afterward, then I’ll take you through myself.”

You stare at him for a long moment before slinging your bag from your shoulders, pulling out a length of rope. You thread it through the split fence, yanking the metal back into place and tying it off. Once you’re done, you get back to your feet, and when Cowan turns to leave, you follow.

He takes you back to the quarantine zone. A few soldiers shoot you looks, since you’re out past curfew, but Cowan waves them all off. “She’s with me.”

You keep following him, heart hammering in your throat as he leads you into one of the buildings they’ve cleared out. Down a long hallway, a few more soldiers giving you looks, before Cowan ducks through a doorway, waving at you to follow.

“What is this?”

There are tables everywhere, cords spilling out of boxes, hooked along the walls. On the walls, all sorts of maps and notices, FEDRA orders staring back at you. A soldier sits in the middle of it all, headphones hooked over her ears, twisting the knobs on a gigantic radio, adjusting the antenna. When she sees you and Cowan standing there, she pulls off the headphones, a grin on her face. “Hey, Nick.”

“Melissa,” he nods, and juts his thumb towards you. “Can you set it for the Austin base? And give us a sec?”

She just nods, her face falling slightly, and twists more of the knobs. Her brow furrows a bit until she gets the right frequency, and then she gets up out of her chair, holds the headphones towards you. “Hit the red button to talk, and let go once you’re done, or else they can’t talk back.”

“Thank you,” you say, taking the headset from her. You look at Cowan. “What is…?”

“It’ll connect you with the FEDRA base in Austin. You can give them the names, of the people you’re looking for. They’ll be able to tell you if they’re in the shelters there. If they’re not there, there’s no telling if they’re alive or dead, but at least you’ll know if they’re safe or not.”

Your brow furrows. “Is that supposed to be reassuring?”

“I can’t reassure you,” Cowan says bluntly, and as you sink into the chair, he perches on the desk beside you. “No one can. The world is a fucking minefield, and while yes, I’ll admit you’re a good shot and you clearly know what you’re doing with that bat, you will die out there. If your family isn’t still in Austin, I can almost guarantee you, they are dead.”

You rip your eyes from his face, turning your gaze to the radio, the little flashing lights and the knobs. “You don’t know that.”

There’s a hand under your chin a second later, and Cowan turns your face towards him again, drags your eyes back to his. “I meant what I said. If you still want to leave, I will take you through the gate myself, no more bullshit. But talk to the base first. Find out if they’re still there before you throw your life away on hope.”

PREV | NEXT

[paintyoureyeswithavividmind]

close to home | chapter thirty eight

close to home | chapter thirty eight

plot: Alexandria steps up to move a herd of walkers, and then the community is attacked

series masterlist

Pairing: Eventual Daryl Dixon x f!reader Word Count: 2,387 Warnings: violence, blood, typical twd A/N: thank you for reading!!!

You couldn’t sleep that night. After the meeting about Rick, and everything that happened during it, you couldn’t close your eyes long enough without thinking about all that happened. Reg was dead, who you didn’t really talk to. And Rick had killed Pete. You hoped that meant Deanna would let Rick stay. That meant you all could stay. 

Michonne was sleeping in the bed on the other side of the room, and you had enough of tossing and turning. You quietly left the room and headed downstairs, hoping to find something small to eat. 

Carol had made her acorn cookies earlier today--a part of this act she was putting on--so you helped yourself to two of them and a glass of water. The clock on the microwave read it was nearing two in the morning. Your eyes were heavy, and your body was tired, but your mind wouldn’t let you sleep. 

Out the front window, you saw the light from a cigarette, and you knew exactly who it was. You hadn’t gotten a chance to speak with Daryl since he got back tonight. You weren’t sure if he knew about Rick’s outburst yesterday or if Noah was alive. He’d only been back a few hours, most of which was the meeting and everyone leaving. 

When you stepped outside, the air was warm, and you immediately caught his attention. You started to feel nervous; he pushed you away when you kissed him the first time. Now that you had sex, you were worried about the same. 

“Hi,” You said quietly as you sat down. 

Daryl nodded with a grunt before taking a long drag of his cigarette. 

“How are you?” You asked, wrapping your arms around your middle and looking at him. “How was recruiting with Aaron?”

“Was okay. Nothin’ happen’,” He said. 

You nodded and looked out at the neighborhood. All of the lights were off except a few porch lights. It looked so ordinary. It even smelt normal. You couldn’t smell walkers. Instead, you smelt grass and the night air. You could even hear crickets chirping. 

“Did you hear about Noah?” You asked.

Daryl nodded and flicked the ash off the cigarette. “Yeah,”

You were silent after that. You weren’t sure exactly what to say. It felt a bit awkward, and you didn’t want to embarrass yourself by saying something stupid. Maybe he was just adjusting to the news. Coming home and hearing about Noah’s death couldn't have been easy. And all the drama with Rick didn’t help either. 

You glanced at him again, taking in his strong side profile and messy hair. You knew you wouldn’t get anything out of him tonight, and that was okay. He needed to process a lot of things in his own way. 

“Alright, well,” You said, standing up and heading back inside. As you approached the door, you stopped and turned around momentarily, “I’m glad you’re home safe, Daryl.” 

***

Two days later, a new enemy threatened Alexandria. You sat next to Maggie on the couch as Rick told everyone about the quarry and how the group needed to eliminate it. At first, you were as unsure as everyone else, but as Rick explained his plan, you immediately agreed. You had to. If you didn’t, and the walkers got out, they’d head straight for Alexandria. 

Of course, you were the first to volunteer, and soon others followed suit. After the meeting, everyone dispersed, and you and Maggie walked home together.

“Aren’t you going to ask me why I didn’t volunteer?” Maggie asked you quietly. 

You glanced at her, “I figured you just weren’t up to it. Honestly, I wasn’t paying much attention. I’ve been preoccupied the last few days.”

“With Daryl? How is that?”

You shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s so reserved. I think us having sex freaked him out because he hasn’t really talked to me. But I left his room the next morning and thought he was happy. I’m just giving him space right now. He’ll talk to me eventually. I can wait.”

“What else is it then?”

“Just everything. Accepting where we are, how we got here. I’m still wrapping my head around it.”

“Yeah, I can relate to that.”

“So what about you? Why didn’t you volunteer?” You asked.

Maggie grabbed your arm and stopped you a few feet from your house’s porch steps. She looked around and then smiled at you. “I’m pregnant.”

Your eyes widened, and you tried to speak but stuttered over your own words. “You’re… what? Like a baby?”

Your cousin laughed, and she nodded. “I wanted you to be the first to know. I’m not quite sure how far along I am, but I am.”

“You look so happy about it, Mags,” You said with a smile. “I’m happy for you and Glenn.”

***

After dinner that night, you decided to go for a run around the neighborhood. You used to love jogging before the end of the world, and then life was always spent on the run. So now that you had a safe place to do it and had food in your stomach consistently over the past week or so, you had the energy to do it. You actually missed it. 

You ended up doing laps around the neighborhood until the sunset, and then you walked back to your house all sweaty and out of breath. But you felt alive. You felt happy and healthy for the first time before the world ended. 

Daryl was sitting on the porch, smoking another damn cigarette. You grew nervous as you approached him. The two of you spoke casually the past few days but nothing with actual subsistence. And you didn’t talk about what you wanted to talk about. 

You gave Daryl a smile and a nod as you walked past him but paused when he said your name. So anxiety filled your stomach, and you sat next to him. 

“Needa ask you a favor,” He said, chewing on his thumbnail and looking at you every few seconds. 

“What?”

“The quarry and shit. Was thinkin’ maybe you stay here instead. Keep an eye on things.” 

Your eyebrows furrowed together, and you looked at him. “What? Why?”

“Lot of us are goin’ out. There ain’ gonna be a lot of us here to defend the place case somethin’ happens.”

“Nothing is going to happen. And I already told Rick I’m going.” 

Daryl looked at you then, rubbing his jaw. “Can ya please just stay?” He stressed. 

You looked away from him as you realized why he was asking. He was worried about you. Your heart fluttered, and you clasped your hands together. “If you tell me why you want me to stay, I will.” 

He nodded and took a long drag of the cigarette, almost like he needed it to speak his mind. He didn’t look at you as he said, “Don’t want ya out there anymore.”

Again, your heart fluttered. It wasn’t a declaration of his feelings, but it was enough, especially from Daryl. So you nodded and reached over, taking the cigarette from his hand and crushing it under your show. “Fine. I’ll stay. But you gotta stop smoking so much. The world’s already trying to kill you, don’t help it out.” 

You stood up, and in an act of bravery, you leaned down and kissed the top of his head. He didn’t move away fast enough, and you chuckled. “Goodnight, Daryl.”

***

You and Carol stood together as you watched the teams head out of Alexandria. You could hear Daryl’s new motorcycle leading the charge. You wrapped your arm around Carol’s and sighed. 

“It’s just a dry run,” Carol reminded you. “And it’s us. They’ll be fine.”

You shook your head, “It’s not us I’m worried about. Building the fences, you saw what they were like; they could barely take down a walker.”

“Rick’s plan will work. I know it will.” Carol said, and you both turned after the gates were shut. “What are your plans today?”

“Carl wants to show me a comic book he thinks I’ll like, and I’m helping him babysit Judith” You smiled, “And I’ll be covering watch duty later tonight too.” 

The two of you split ways, and you met up with Carl while she went to grab things from Olivia. He was excited to show you the comic--which you didn’t exactly care for, but you’d never tell him that. Judith was peaceful as ever, and Tora napped right alongside her. 

It was peaceful until it wasn’t. 

“(Y/N)!” Carol screamed from downstairs, and you were on your feet in seconds. They thudded as you ran down the stairs.

You heard screaming from outside, and you grabbed your weapons, thanking God you’d left them in the kitchen when you came back. The two of you told Carl to stay with Judith and that you’d be back soon. And, of course, not to leave. 

“Plan?” You asked as you holstered your gun and gripped your knife tightly. 

“Try and stay together,” Carol said before you both left the house together. 

Of course, that plan didn’t work out. Strangers were running around with weapons, attacking anyone that moved. You lost track of where Carol went as you crept around a house, spotting a man tying up one of the Alexandrians you didn’t know that well. 

You steadied your breathing and started approaching the man slowly, with your machete raised. When you got close enough, you jumped on his back and dug your weapon into his neck. He died without making a sound, and you untied the man. “Get somewhere safe,”

Then you moved on to your next target, who had just brutally beat your neighbor to death. You used the gun this time, with a clean shot to the head. Then you put down your neighbor with your machete and kept moving. 

A horn started blasting, and you froze for a moment, trying to determine what it was and where it was coming from. In your second of hesitation, a figure darted from behind a house and jumped at you. 

Your head hit the ground hard as you struggled against the woman. She had the advantage; she was taller and stronger and seemed twice as crazy. 

“You crazy fuck,” You cursed loudly, blocking her hand that had gotten close to stabbing you. You thrashed underneath her, fighting for your life. She attacked again, and you did your best to block her when the knife came down. It just missed your chest, the blade running against your collarbones. You felt the blood start to pool immediately and thrashed harder, using your legs to kick her off you. 

Acting quickly, you jumped over her and slammed her head against the ground before spotting a rock a foot away. You slammed her again harder and then grabbed the rock in her daze. 

The sickening crunch of the rock caving in her head was enough to tell you she wasn’t dead, and you beat her until portions of her skull had fractured off. 

“(Y/N)!”

You dropped the rock and fell backward when you heard Maggie, and she was over to you instantly. 

“Come on, we gotta go,” She said, helping you stand. 

Rosita and Aaron were there, and they both looked like they had a good fight. You knew the look Rosita gave you, and you nodded, letting her know you were okay. 

“The dead are rising,” Aaron said as he spotted a walker that was once a friend. 

You breathed out and twirled your machete. “We still got work to do.”

***

“Denise!” Maggie yelled as she pushed you through the infirmary door. “She got knicked on her collarbone; it won’t stop bleeding,” 

The new doctor approached you immediately and led you to a chair. Across the room, a blanket was covering a body. A part of you didn’t want to know who it was. 

Denise worked quickly, having Maggie put pressure on the wound before she quickly stitched it up. It only needed a few, but you knew that before getting there. 

“I gotta go to Deanna; you okay here?” Maggie asked you. 

You nodded because you were too tired to speak. Your cousin left, and Denise gave you some water and food to help with the blood loss. 

“Who were they?” Tara asked you. 

“Some freaks with W’s on their forehead. I don’t know.”

***

After Denise cleared you to go, you headed toward the gate. With so many people now dead, you figured someone should be on lookout. The survivors had already begun cleaning up the mess, and you knew it would take hours to get everyone buried. If they even had the space for it in the cemetery. 

You were already standing guard when Michonne, Heath, and Scott returned. You couldn’t hear what they were saying but couldn’t focus on anything except making sure no one was trying to climb the walls. 

Deanna had climbed up there with you and thanked you quietly for helping protect the community. She tried not to look at your blood-soaked clothes, and you realized how jarring it must’ve been. And how messed up it was that it didn’t even affect you anymore. You weren't even sure how many people you killed in the attack.

“Open the gate!”

You both turned at Rick’s voice, and your mouth dropped as you saw what was heading right to you. Through the trees, hundreds of walkers chased Rick down the street. While Deanna froze, you rushed to climb the ladder and get to the gate, where Michonne pulled it open. 

“Rick!” You yelled, grabbing your gun at firing at a few walkers who were too close for your liking. As soon as he crossed through, Michonne shut the gate, and you grabbed Rick’s arm. 

He desperately tried to catch his breath as you searched his arms and then grabbed his face, inspecting for anything that could’ve been fatal. His hand had a gash, and many wounds were across his arms and face. As he breathed deeply, he gave you a nod, and you knew he was okay, for the most part. 

But with the sounds of walkers banging against the wall, you weren’t sure if anything was going to be okay.

[carlsangel]

MATCH UP #1

@idekraeven, your match is glenn rhee!

✦ first of all lemme tell you this man is so nervous around you because of how GORGEOUS you are. he’s absolutely in love straight off the bat. he’d be so awkward when talking to you, he’d stumble over his words a bit and say a lot of “uhhh”

✦ you never EVER have to worry about him being disrespectful he practically worships the ground you walk on. he’s literally your biggest fan and would never do anything to jeopardize your relationship, he’d also never give you a reason to believe you’d done anything wrong. you guys are the same when it comes to overthinking so he makes sure to communicate really well.

✦ he loves his alone time with you. during parties like Deanna’s at Alexandria, he liked being off to the side and talking to you quietly while you observed others. But when Noah was feeling discouraged and was ready to leave, you started to be a bit more outgoing to make him comfortable which made him love you so much more.

✦ since your love language is physical touch, he does provide a lot of that for you, in simple and harsher situations he comforts you by wrapping an arm around you or holding your thigh or hand. however, his love language is gift giving. he goes on runs often and every single time he comes home with a gift for you.

─── ⋆⋅ 𐚁 ⋅⋆ ───

You’d have a walkie-talkie with you so he’d be able to check in and let you know when he’d arrive back at Alexandria’s gates to meet him. One day, you’d receive the message and you make your way out of your house and down alexandria’s roads. He’d exit his car and spot you which puts an immediate smile on his face. He’d walk over and place a kiss on your cheek rather than give you a hug as he had a good amount of walker blood all over his shirt.

Glenn takes your hand and walks you back to the house. He takes a shower so he could actually give you some form of affection that is more than just a simple kiss on the cheek. He gets in some comfy clothes and once he’s out, he’ll walk over to you and give you the largest bear hug. His hugs are just amazing so after a long day of him being absent it’s just perfect.

He sits you down in bed and takes your hand in his, making sure your palm is flat out. He places something cold against it and when he moves his hand, it’s revealed to be a necklace with a locket. “I found it on the run today.” He subtly places his hand on your knee, moving his thumb back and forth over your skin. “I thought, maybe we could figure out a way to get a picture of us in there. I suppose Aaron could help.” He explains, a gentle smile on his face.

You’d obviously lean in for a hug which he happily reciprocated. That would in fact end in cuddles until you both fall asleep.

msg from rina: your req reference image was so cute! i hope u like it!

[deancasbigbang]

Title: A Hard Place

Author: Deanna

Artist: parhelion_ava

Rating: Explicit

Pairings: Dean Winchester/Castiel Novak; Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore; Dean/Meg (one time); Castiel/Mick (one time); Dean/Robin (one time)

Length: 90000

Warnings: undefined

Tags: Professor Castiel Novak; student/rockstar Dean Winchester; BDSM AU; dom Cas; sub Dean; flogging; rough sex; fluff; dom/sub drop; happy ending

Posting Date: October 19, 2023

Summary: Castiel Novak is a college Professor, who values education beyond all else. That is, until a certain rockstar enrolls in his class. As a Dom at the BDSM club “A Hard Place”, Castiel thinks he’ll never find his perfect, permanent sub. When rockstar Dean Winchester needs to go back to college, he’s reluctant to do so. That is, until he meets his smoking hot Professor. Dean is torn between his Professor and a wing-masked Angel he meets at a BDSM club.

Excerpt: Towards the end of class, Castiel notices that some of the students have lost focus. A few girls have even attempted to take selfies with the rockstar. If there had been more time left in their session, Castiel might have said something. Instead, he decides to assign a prompt for the students to work on over the weekend, asking them what they hope to gain out of this class. To wrap things up, Castiel writes his name on the whiteboard behind his desk, along with his phone number. “All my contact information is on the syllabus, but I like my students to be able to reach me anytime, so feel free to write down this number as well. You may address me as Castiel, Mr. Novak, or any variation of the word ‘professor’.” Castiel uses actual air quotes, eliciting a laugh from the class. Nearly all the students are writing down the information, while Mr. Famous takes out his phone and snaps a picture of the whiteboard. Dean then leans over to the girl next to him, nudges her with his elbow and whispers, “Scored the teacher’s number on day one, huh?” He wiggles his eyebrows at her and she blushes, giggling to her peers. Castiel, however, is not so amused. He dismisses the class, but stops Dean when he reaches the front of the classroom. “Mr. Winchester. Please stay behind for a moment.” “Ugh, man, please stop calling me that…” Dean groans as he leans on Castiel’s desk. Castiel stands from where he was seated, hoping to loom over the man, but finds that he is in fact shorter than Dean. Regardless, Castiel isn’t going to let a height difference interfere with their dynamic. This is Castiel’s classroom and he expects his students to respect that. “Of course, Mr. Winchester. As soon as you stop referring to me as ‘dude’ or ‘man’.” Dean huffs out a laugh. “Ha! Good one, professor. That better?” “Lose the attitude and we’re golden.” “Dude, I don’t -” “Dean.” Castiel drops his voice slightly to grab Dean’s attention and Castiel is very interested to know what the man is thinking when he sees Dean’s jaw tighten. “You may be famous amongst your peers, but to me you are just another student. While in this classroom, you are here to learn. You will show respect to myself and your peers, or else face the consequences.” “Consequences, huh?” Dean smirks. “What kinda consequences we talkin’ here?” “The kind where you fail my class.” Castiel replies shortly. He’s not taking anymore of this man’s crap. Dean’s face falls slightly and Castiel is glad to have put his foot down. “Man, you’re no fun.” Dean whines as he pushes off the desk. “I’m here to teach, Mr. Winchester. Not to have fun.” “Suit yourself, handsome.” Dean punctuates his sentence with a wink, then turns to leave the classroom. Castiel sighs. This is going to be a long semester, he grimaces.

DCBB 2023 Posting Schedule

[cawthorntales]

Traits: Clumsy, Family Oriented and Cat Lover.

CC free and slider free. Base game and Seasons things.

Orientation: Lesbian

Has an outfit for every category, but feel free to change any you do not like.

~

Age: 26

@changingplumbob

~

Hello my name is Harmony Golden. My parents wanted to give me a fun and bubbly name and felt Harmony was perfect since they've always told me I brought that to their lives. Family is super important to me and even though I no longer live in my hometown of Willow Creek I still visit my parents and little brother every holiday season. I also hope to have a big loving family of my own someday.

I've always been a bit clumsy and growing up I almost always had a band aid somewhere on me from falling on something or into something. Like when I was nine and fell into my dad's rosebush. But I've never let my lack of coordination stop me from doing things.

I'm a huge cat lover and have always had one in my life. I grew up with my childhood cat Token. My parents got him as a kitten the day I was born. For twenty two years he was always by my side. I was devastated when he passed three years ago. I then brought my current cat Lemon into my life and I adore having her with me.

Growing up I've always loved to draw a create characters and stories. So becoming an animater was always my goal and a dream I achieved. I worked on several cartoons before getting to create my own. The Adventures of Skunkbert is my pride and joy. It is on its fourth season.

I've not been so lucky in the love department though. Many failed dates and relationships. I'd all but given up on love, but then my little brother Daz found out about this show and insisted I sign up. Normally I'd never do something like this, but maybe this is my chance at love and a happily ever after. I look forward to meeting you Deanna

[the-name-is-z]

SKELETONS | ch. 60

daryl dixon x f!oc

masterlist

a03 link

Summary: The group begins to settle into Alexandria, getting used to the community. Something strange appears in the forest outside. Warnings/Information: AMC's The Walking Dead OC Insert | 18+ Advised | strangers to lovers; the slowest of slow burns; gore; angst; horror; humour; m/f; domestic bliss; performative participation; creepy corpse mutilation

Chapter 60 - Alexandria

Iris walked down the street with the others, somewhat spread like walkers in a small swarm. Deanna advised them to explore, say hello to their new neighbours and companions get to know people. Daryl refused, sitting on the front porch with his crossbow, knees hugged to his chest. He watched Iris go, feeling the stabbing pain in his chest. It felt like something between hope and regret. 

Iris walked with Carl, smiling softly as he pushed his sister in a stroller they were given. Judith was smiling and happy, even giggling at the faces Iris was making at her.

“Oh my goodness, well look at you.” An older woman cooed from her front porch. 

“What’d you find, Nat?” An old man asked, walking up and putting a hand at her back. Their faces depicted their shock at the sight of the baby, and Iris smiled and waved.

“Hello.” She called. “I’m Iris, this is Carl and Judith.”

“Well, hello dear! Please, come up into the shade, its so hot outside.” The woman beckoned, taking a seat on their porch. Carl parked the stroller at their steps, walking over and allowing the elderly couple to fawn over his little sister.

“I’m Natalie Miller, and this is my husband Bob.” The woman introduced. Iris smiled warmly. “Its been so long since we’ve seen such a little one.” She cooed, playing with Judith’s toes. Iris nodded in understanding. “You must have been so young when you had him. Such a handsome young man.” She patted Carl on the shoulder.

“Iris is our godmother.” Carl explained. “My mother died when Judy was born. My dad is… over there.” Carl pointed, and Iris turned to see a frantic Rick half-jogging down the street behind Jessie. Iris waved calmly and he raised a hand back, taking a deep breath. He came over, urging Carl to go meet with Ron, Jessie’s son. Iris dutifully passed Judith back to her father, bid the Miller’s goodbye and made her way down the street once more.

-

The second night, Rick still hadn’t slept. The adjustment was hard for all of them. Painful, even. These people were weak, and they couldn’t lose their edge and get comfortable. They had everything, but what happens when someone tries to take it away? Iris got a few hours of shut eye, but it was still pretty hard to rest.

Daryl hissed as he cut his thumb open on the edge of his crossbow. Iris raised an eyebrow as he sucked the blood off and continued messing with it. She looked up as the door closed, her eyebrows shooting up at the sight of Carol. She wore long khaki pants and a button down with a blue cardigan over top. She reminded Iris of the old Carol, the one who was deathly afraid of her fuck-face of a husband. That made Iris scared.

“Time to punch the clock and make the casseroles!” Carol said cheerfully.

“What?” Daryl asked, frowning at her getup.

“Make dinner for the older people— moms who need a break, people who can’t cook. Get to meet a lot of the neighbours that way.” She explained.

“Alright.” Daryl scoffed loudly. Iris pursed her lips, frowning at him before turning to her.

“What’s your angle here?” She asked.

“What? Someone’s gotta do it, be part of the community. Meet the neighbours, play with the kids.” Carol said innocently, shrugging. Iris narrowed her eyes but nodded anyways. Carol turned to Daryl, raising an eyebrow. “Have you taken a shower yet?”

“Uh-huh.” Daryl grunted. Carol narrowed her eyes and shook her head.

“Take a shower. I’m gonna wash that vest. We need to keep up appearances, even you.” Carol insisted. 

“I ain’t starting now.” Daryl called as she started down the stairs.

“I’m gonna hose you down in your sleep!” Carol shot back, practically skipping down the sidewalk. 

“You look ridiculous!” He yelled. Carol grinned, shooting Iris a wink before making her way to wherever it was she was going. Iris chuckled, shaking her head.

The two of them looked up as a man walked up the steps, turning to look at them sheepishly.

“Hey, uh, is there an Iris around here?” He asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. He wore dark jeans and a wife-beater, a red flannel shirt over top. 

“That’d be me.” Iris replied, raising a hand as she pushed to her feet. The man nodded, extending his own hand.

“I’m Preston. I work the garage.” He introduced. “Deanna told me you were a mechanic.”

“Yeah.” Iris nodded. He nodded back.

“Well, I’ll show you the digs, then.” He offered a half grin and Iris nodded, following him down the steps. She looked back, and Daryl offered her a nod of reassurance. They were about fifteen feet down the sidewalk before they heard shouting. Iris recognized Glenn’s voice and took off running, meeting up with Daryl on their way to the gate. Preston brought up the rear.

“It killed our friend!” Aiden, Deanna’s son yelled. He was supposed to be taking Noah, Glenn and Tara on a run today, with Nicholas, the man from the gate. “Look, I’m not having this conversation. You obey my orders out there.”

“Oh, well, then we’re just as screwed as your last run crew.” Glenn snapped in response. Nicholas’ face contorted in anger. Iris and Daryl stepped up slowly, ready to back up Glenn at a moment’s notice.

“Say that again.” Aiden warned softly, close enough to Glenn that they could kiss. 

“Back off, Aiden.” Tara huffed. Aiden’s response was to shove Glenn backward with his hand.

“Come on, man, just take a step back.” Noah added. Aiden shoved Glenn back again.

“Come on, tough guy.” Aiden urged.

“No one’s impressed, man. Walk away.” Glenn warned, his voice lethally low.

“Aiden! What is going on?” Deanna yelled.

“This guy’s got a problem with the way we do things.” Aiden replied confidently. He turned around to face his mother. “Why did you let these people in?”

“Because we actually know what we’re doing out there.” Glenn replied. Aiden reared back to strike Glenn across the face, but he was angry and slow. Glenn ducked effortlessly, jabbing him in the nose, hard.

“Aiden, no! That’s enough!” Deanna yelled. Nicholas surged into action, lunging for Glenn as he sent Aiden to the ground. Daryl tackled him before he could move a foot. Rick and Carl appeared at the gate, immediately running forward. “I said that’s enough!”

“Let’s not do this now.” Rick hissed as he pried Daryl up, keeping him from throttling Nicholas completely.

“You wanna end up on your ass again?” Iris asked with a shit-eating grin as Aiden staggered to his feet. She faced off with him, her hand hovering over a concealed knife, just waiting for him to make the next wrong move.

“I’m cool, alright?” He muttered as he took a step back.

“Daryl.” Rick huffed, yanking him upward and pushing him away. Nicholas coughed, clutching his neck as he hid behind Deanna.

“I want everyone to hear me, okay?” Deanna called loudly as everyone stepped to their sides. It was very us-versus-them and Iris was very conscious of it. “Rick and his people are part of this community now. In all ways, as equals. Understood?” She looked pointedly at Aiden as she said this, and he halfheartedly agreed. Iris yearned to throw him on his ass. “All of you turn in your weapons. Then you two come talk to me.” She ordered, jabbing a finger at Aiden and Nicholas.

Daryl paced in a small circle as the community members dispersed, leaving just their group in a small circle near the gates. Plus Deanna and Preston. Daryl stared daggers after Nicholas.

“I told you I had a job for you.” Deanna said, looking up at Rick. Well, she looked up at everyone. She was a very short lady. “I want you to be our constable. That’s what you were and that’s what you are. And you, too.” She looked to Michonne. “Will you accept?”

“Okay.” Rick agreed after a moment, nodding slowly. Iris raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, I’m in.” Michonne agreed, smiling softly. She was downright excited. Daryl scoffed loudly, picking up his crossbow and storming away from the group. Iris made to go after him, but Preston stepped in between them, smiling nervously.

“So, uh, the garage?” He asked. Iris sighed, glancing after Daryl before nodding. She had to let him cool off anyways, so the garage it is. 

"Thank you.” Deanna said softly, looking over to Glenn.

“For what?” He asked.

“For knocking him on his ass.” She replied. Maggie smiled at her husband, but Glenn just shook his head and wandered off. 

“Iris?” Preston asked. She blinked, and realized he was waiting for her.

“Right. Sorry.” She shook her head, trying to get out of it. Preston led the way.

-

“This place is fucking mint.” Iris said with wide eyes, looking around at the brand-new garage. Stocked with every kind of tool you could think of, oil, lifts, everything.

“Yeah, it was brand new, opened about a week before it all happened.” Preston explained with a grin as he led her around. “I’ve been managing the supplies, tools and cars we have to fix as it piles up. Had no one that really knows how to use them.”

“No one around here can do an oil change?” Iris asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, sure, but sometimes there are bigger issues. And if you’re thinking it might be easier to just get new cars, wait till you see our inventory.” He led her to a field where they had parked all of their cars, still inside the walls. They had trucks, pickups, military vehicles, sports cars, and motorcycles, plural. 

“Goddamn.” Iris mumbled. She covered her mouth. “Sorry, I might, uh… have trouble holding my tongue.”

“Don’t worry.” Preston chuckled with a wink. “These aren’t virgin ears.” He perked up, as if remembering something. “Oh, speaking of which. Aiden found this a few weeks back and I managed to convince him to keep it here. Most of these places have CD players and whatnot, but I figured this was a good place for it.” He brought her back inside, hauling an old school boombox with a tape deck onto the counter. He then pulled out an old milk crate full of tapes. “Music was kind of my thing, before… yeah.”

“Cool! Definitely better than listening to static while working.” Iris said with a laugh. “Damn, this place might not be so bad.” Preston smiled.

-

“Hey, you’re playing the part, too.” Carol noted, pointing at the already-grease-covered wife-beater and coveralls Iris had donned. It felt so natural it was almost scary.

“Elbow deep in an engine is where I belong.” Iris said with a grin. Daryl scoffed, shaking his head. The three of them stood on the porch, sharing a cigarette. Well, Carol didn’t, but she chatted idly with them. The door opened soon enough, Rick stepping through with his brand new uniform on. He looked… like he did at the beginning.

“We good?” He asked Daryl quietly.

“Yeah.” Daryl grunted. “You a cop now?”

“I’m trying it on for size.” Rick sighed.

“So we’re staying?” Carol asked. Rick sighed again, nodding.

“I think we can start sleeping in our own homes. Settle in.” He explained.

“If we get comfortable here, let our guard down, this place is gonna make us weak.” Carol said, voicing all of their concerns. Everyone in the group had said something similar at this point.

“Carl said that.” Rick agreed, nodding. “But it’s not gonna happen. We won’t get weak. That’s not in us anymore. We’ll make it work. And if they can’t make it… then we’ll just take this place.”

-

“I don’t see it, but it’s close. Just one of ‘em.” Daryl stated. They were outside the walls in the woods, in each of their respective uniforms, standing at an abandoned house beside the junk pile someone left in the yard and died before they could burn.

“So what do you think?” Rick asked.

“We can go in when it’s empty.” Carol stated.

“How is that? It’s locked up at night.” Rick replied.

“The window, it’s just a latch, I can leave it open.”

“A latch?”

“Yeah.”

“What if one of those pricks shuts it?” Daryl asked.

“It’s not as if Olivia’s an ex-marine. It wouldn’t be hard to… you know.” Iris muttered. “In the case of an emergency or otherwise.”

“Can’t just take her out. We could wait a couple of days and leave the latch open again.” Carol shrugged. Iris pursed her lips.

“It’s getting closer.” Daryl stated, pointing out the walker again.

“We need to do it sooner than later.” Rick decided. “Right now, they’re not watching us. Not worrying about meetings like this. We may need the guns, we may not.”

“We will.” Carol assured. “Whatever way it goes.”

“I don’t like this.” Iris mumbled to herself, feeling that deep uneasy feeling in her stomach again.

“It’s necessary.” Daryl replied quietly, his hand hovering between her shoulder blades.

“They’re the luckiest damn people I’ve ever met.” Rick chuckled in disbelief. “And they just keep getting luckier.”

“How’s that?” Daryl asked. Rick shrugged.

“We’re here now.” He said simply. Daryl made a face of approval. 

“They’ve got a couple of foot lockers just full of 9 millimetre autos, Rugers, Kel-Tecs. Just tossed in there. They don’t use them, never gonna know they’re gone.” Carol explained. Iris whistled, shaking her head.

“Someone’s got one now, right?” Daryl stated, looking over at the junk pile. Rick had previously admitted he stashed a pistol in a blender there, only to return later to find it empty.

“Carl said he saw Enid climbing the walls to get outside. It might have been her. He’s been watching her.” Iris explained slowly.

“You sure he’s not watching her for… the other reason?” Carol asked slowly. Rick raised his eyebrow as Iris smirked.

“It’s a little of both.” She replied.

“He tells you this stuff and not me.” Rick complained, shaking his head. “Anyways, the others, we want them to try.”

“You too.” Carol said, pointedly looking at Daryl. 

“So we keep it quiet. Just us.” Rick nodded. He jerked his chin behind Daryl at the walker approaching. “Here it comes.”

“I got it.” Daryl turned, pulling out a thick hunting knife.

“Hey, wait.” Carol called. She brought up her pistol, a silencer screwed onto the end. She closed one eye, firing seven bullets into its chest before one in the forehead. When she turned back to Rick and Daryl’s confused expressions, she rolled her eyes. “We said you were taking me out shooting. I couldn’t go back with a full mag.”

“Lucky he came by.” Daryl replied. Iris grinned happily while Rick shook his head.

“We should get back.” Iris said, glancing down at her watch. Rick nodded.

“You’ll pull the latch, we’ll pick our moment. Us, we don’t need to be lucky.” He said to Carol as they rounded their house, making their way back to the walls. Daryl stopped dead over a fallen walker, kneeling down beside the body. 

“What the hell is that?” He murmured.

“Hm?” Iris asked, stopping beside him. The walker was laid face up, a large ‘W’ carved into its forehead.

“Is that a ‘W’?” Daryl asked.

“Looks like it.” Iris said with a frown. Rick knelt down to get a good look, scowling at it. He stood up and they moved on, but Iris stayed, looking at the carving. It was done postmortem, for sure. And the slice across his stomach, where he had been visibly disembowelled… pre-mortem cause of death. She’d seen enough gang killings to distinguish it. It also seemed an awful lot like Gareth’s hunters and their habits, though perhaps not cannibalistic, considering this man still had all his limbs.

“Iris?” Daryl called.

“Coming.” She replied, pushing to her feet and following after them.

-

TAGLIST:

@heidiland05

@ryoujoking

@catlalice

@maxinehufflepuffprincess

@lowkeyhottho

@fadingpalacebonkpsychic

@hayley1998

@negansbestie

@lizey-thornberry

[paperglader]

Some imodna thoughts about the reunion:

This might be coming off from the high of watching them get back together and all, but I really don’t think they’re going to retract into themselves or regress in any big ways when it comes to their relationship (or at least, these are just the vibes that I’m getting at the moment)

I just have the feeling that because Imogen has just gotten really good influences in the form of FRIDA and Deanna, which helped her improve her confidence and in a way also sort of shined a light on how companionship can look like through romantic lenses (basically, I just think that watching everyone else couple up turned her yearning up to like 100, and I’m hoping that she’ll maybe become inspired by them, mayhaps). We know that meeting laudna and the rest of the hells, now FRIDA and Deanna too, has worked wonders on Imogen’s confidence… So, who knows? But I don’t think that she’s regressing in that sense.

Laudna, well, I think that because of what she’s been through recently she has been left feeling very scared and very small. Control is one huge thing for her, as a recurring theme throughout her life, but specially now that she’s been just separated from her friends and betrayed all in the same week. All this to say that I don’t think she’s going to want to be too far from Imogen at the moment (she believed she might’ve been dead for a whole week, which would’ve been just one more thing out of her control- now she has her close). I think she probably still is very worried about what might have happened to her whilst she was gone (she knows that Imogen had a dream when she wasn’t present) I bet that she’s really looking forward to a one on one with her to just check in and make sure that she truly is alright.

Imogen and laudna ground each other, and I just don’t think that laudna went through all that to get back to Imogen for now that she’s got her to not lean in on her fully, specially because of how beaten up she got. It’s just not the vibe I’m getting from where they’re at at their relationship… the whole reunion they just gave me the vibes that they wanted to catch up with each other privately as soon as they could and talk things through, fuss about each other (they kept whispering things to each other and motioning things to each other that they probably will want to expand on when they have more chance)

And Imogen has just missed that woman like crazy, her crush has been exposed a little bit, and honestly everything’s going to shit real quick, so I just don’t think she’s not going to lean on laudna as much as she can. When it comes to her addressing her feelings… idk Laura might be cooking something, who knows? The pot has been stirred yet again by each of the guest stars 😂 I truly think that Imogen might just blurt it out at any given moment, she’s chaotic like that.

LAUDNA’S REACTION TO THOSE FEELINGS? NOW THAT’S THE REAL QUESTION HERE (girlie has no clue, poor thing)

In summary: I think this whole arc has been another step forward when it comes to the development of their relationship!!

[ohmystaxk]

Goodbye, My Dear Stranger (2)

[PREVIOUS] | [NEXT]

Pairing(s): (Jake Lockley x Reader) (Steven Grant x Reader, Marc Spector x Reader later on) [Pre-Moon Knight show]

Chapter Character(s): Steven Grant.

Content/Tags: Reader having creep tendencies, somewhat of a date (?).

Word Count: 3.3k

Summary: After meeting Jake, you decided to go to the Museum with a friend. There you meet someone that looks like Jake, but isn't him?

Two days had passed since the night you had met Jake at the café. Unfortunately for you, he had not come back again. Truthfully, you didn’t expect him to. Yes, you had hoped he would come by, order himself the same coffee he had last time and ask how your day was. Perhaps he would check up on you and ask if you had encountered the same guys from last night again. You hadn’t. Perhaps Jake’s little play pretend had worked.

Even when you wanted an interaction with the man, something told you it would not happen again. At least not anytime soon. He seemed rather reserved, since he had barely spoken to you. But then again, he seemed like a lonesome kind of guy. Yet another thing he seemed to share with your elusive neighbor. 

That night, when you got home, you noticed no lamps were on at your neighbor’s apartment. The following days had been just the same. You started to think that perhaps he had pieced the puzzle together and realized it wasn’t the first time you were a creep that spied on him. Just the thought made your insides turn and your palms sweaty. Young adult spies on their older neighbor. You could see the headlines in your head. 

“You there?” You blinked a couple of times. A face appeared in your field of view, accompanied by a waving hand. It was Deanna.

“Sorry, what?” You asked her and she tilted her head to the side.

“You were gone for a second there. You alright?” She placed her bag on the bench next to you. Deanna turned her body towards you as she sat down on your left.

“I was just thinking. Did you say something?” Deanna nodded with a short sigh.

“Sure did. I’d like to go down to the gift shop if you don’t mind. We can also go down to The Green Wall, see if Martha will get us something to eat after we are done here, yeah?”

Today you hadn’t worked at The Green Wall, the name of the coffee shop. And so, Deanna had asked to go to the Museum down the street from the shop. Neither of you had even been there and wanted to check out the new exhibit they’d been advertising with massive banners outside the building. The concept seemed fun and it wasn’t like you often went to those kinds of places.

The two of you wandered and looked around for about an hour and half. The place was beautiful, tall white walls, some ceilings had skylights allowing for better visibility, and the floor had polished marble tile on the main area. They had a lot of Egyptian artifacts and replicas, paintings, and displays that showed videos of reconstruction of what Egypt could possibly have looked like back in its glory days. It was nice to go out and do something differently than going home and working on your laptop, or watching shows for hours.

“Yeah, sounds good.” You answered. “I might get something from the gift shop too.” Deanna nodded with a smile. 

“I saw some cute plushies on our way in. Come on.” She stood up and you followed.

The two of you made your way to the gift shop as Deanna showed you some of the pictures she’d taken when exploring the place. They all looked good and she was trying to decide which ones to post on social media, debating between two pictures that looked the exact same.

So when you walked in, you both were staring at her phone. You pointed at one that had a replica of The Great Pyramid of Giza, the angle and the lighting worked great. When Deanna got herself entranced by her phone, you decided to take a look around, the first thing in front of you was a rotating metal display with postcards.

Most of the pictures were of Egypt, others of the Museum, and a couple of London. You took one in your hands, the photo had the pyramids with a low sunset in the background. It was beautiful. You looked at the rest of the photocards that might catch your attention, it was a voice that caught it instead. You looked through the display and towards the check-out counter.

At the register was none other than Jake. No hat and no low lighting to obstruct his face from the world. You felt your gut flutter with sudden surprise, and reached for Deanna who was still on her phone.

“What?” She looked at you when you tapped her arm.

“It’s him.” You simply said, your eyes wide. You felt your cheeks flush as you looked towards Jake who was with another client at the moment.

“Who is it? Is it the guy from the bad date?” She asked with interest.

“No, the guy from Green Wall.” Deanna’s eyes widened with disbelief.

“One of the fucking dickheads?” You looked at her with a frown.

“What? No. The one that helped me. His name is Jake.” Her expression softened.

“Oh so that’s the lad, yeah? He seems pretty nice and all. Won’t you go and say hello, then?” Deanna shoved you gently, an encouraging smile on her face.

“You know I can’t.”

“Of course you can, love. The man over there doesn’t look like he bites, go on then.” You sighed and tightened your grip on the postcard.

You started walking towards the counter once the clients had left. Your hands grabbed three things at random and made your way towards him.

Once in front of him, he looked up at you. He had a friendly smile on, it seemed genuine and that eased your nerves. In reality, he had a rather pretty smile; warm and inviting.

“Hello there, you found everything?” He said and then you frowned. You remembered him having an accent, just not an English one.

“Y-yeah.” You then placed the items on the counter, not looking at them. 

He nodded and started scanning. He looked at you through his lashes. His eyes were soft, not deep or distant like last time. There were eyebags under his eyes, his hair was disheveled, and he had a shadow of a beard. He looked completely different from that night. A hot mess you would dare to say. 

“Did you enjoy the tour?” He spoke and you blinked.

“We didn’t take the tour, we just explored by ourselves.” He nodded and placed your items in a bag.

“What were your thoughts? Having, well, not much to go on from.” He then leaned forward just a little, like he was about to hear a secret.

“I liked it. I’d rather do things at my own pace. That way I get to enjoy things and take the moment all in.” He seemed to light up as you said that, a smile formed on his lips again. He had very nice lips.

“That’s good to hear. I hadn’t thought about it that way, you know, the whole no-tour thing.” Yes, Jake didn’t have an English accent. It was then that your eyes fell on his name tag, ‘Steven’.

“You should try it, it’s always nice if you enjoy doing things by yourself.” He nodded again, and he stared at you for a couple of seconds.

“I will. It seems fun. Not like I don’t already do it.” He smiled, he liked to smile, and not forcefully. It was something different. Steven was different. And you liked that. The man was attractive despite his current state.

“Would you like to go out for coffee or something later?” You felt the air leave your lungs the second you uttered those words.

This wasn’t like you. You would never ask a complete stranger out for coffee, or for anything really.

“Sorry?” He seemed just as shocked as you were with a slight tint on his cheek. You opened and closed your mouth like a goldfish.

“I’m sorry, I don't know why I said that. That was so inappropriate, I’m really sorry.” You pull out your wallet and look at the register, the total displayed for you. You placed the amount on the counter.

“No, it’s just. I wasn’t expecting that. Has never happened to me before.” He confessed to you, he seemed genuinely surprised and that made you feel less guilty of pretty much having thrown yourself at him.

“I have never done that, if that helps.” You gave him your name, he smiled and said it out loud. It sounded nice coming from him, you realized.

“Steven.” He pointed at his name tag. “I would love coffee. Tea preferably, I have to admit.”

“Right, well, there’s a coffee shop right down the street by the plaza on main. It’s called The Green Wall.”

“Oh, I know that place! I go there sometimes before work, their tea is truly something else.” His smile got bigger, showing his teeth.

“Well, what about tomorrow? Seven p.m.?” When you asked he nodded enthusiastically.

“It’s a date.” He said and then his smile dropped. “Is it?”

“Sure.” You gave him a smile and he handed you the bag.

“Well then, see you tomorrow night, yeah?”

“Yeah.” You offered him one last smile before slowly turning away. He had smiled before, yet it didn’t seem to compete with how giddy he looked as he smiled at you. 

You waited outside the gift shop for Deanna to finish browsing. Every so often, you would stare back into the place to see Steven, taking the time into paying attention to his mannerisms, the way he would emote. You felt like a freaking stalker, but it was impossible for two people to look that alike, right? Your only interaction with Jake had been brief. But, even then, you could tell he was nothing like Steven, and Steven seemed nothing like Jake. Two polar opposites in the same city, in very close proximity to each other. 

Jake had mentioned going back to work. You recalled his attire. Either the man liked dressing like somebody's old grandfather who drove cabs for a living, or he actually was a cab driver and dressed as such. Then, there was Steven, a very tired-looking gift shop employee at a Museum. Neither of them seem like the owners of a big flat in downtown London. Unless they had other jobs, just like you did in order to provide for your way-too-small flat. Perhaps, the two were twins and were raised differently, Jake coming from overseas and staying at Steven’s.

Once you and Deanna had made it to Green Wall, it was already night time. You had been shopping around the plaza and getting coffee was the last stop for the night. The two of you said hello to Martha and Rose, the ones working today’s closing shift. The Green Wall ended up getting busy today, people came and went as there weren't many empty seats. Luckily Deanna had snatched a table the second a couple had left.

The door swung after a few minutes and eyes shifted towards the noise it made, more of a reflex than sheer curiosity. Steven had wandered in, his eyes looked at the busy place as he tried to make his way inside. He stood by the register as Martha was taking another order, he fidgeted with the strap of his bag, his shoulders  were upwards and closer to his jaw, and his eyes gazed around, as if to busy himself. Steven looked nervous, perhaps even overwhelmed.

“Isn’t that tomorrow’s date?” Deanna spoke from beside you.

“Yeah. His name is Steven.” She frowned at your response.

“Wasn't it  Jake?” You shook your head.

“I think Jake and Steven are brothers.” 

“Then why ask him out?” You shrugged.

“He seems nice enough. That, and he’s cute.” Deanna shoved you playfully as she pointed at Steven with her chin. You got the message and stood up, making your way towards the man.

Once the two of you were at a good distance, she spoke up gently, not wanting to startle him. 

“Hey there, stranger.” Steven turned to look around, his gaze landed on you.

“Hey, a bit busy, innit?” You nodded.

“More than usual. Probably has to do with that new exhibit of yours.” He frowned, tilting his head in confusion. “The museum.”

“Oh, right! Yeah, of course.” He slapped his forehead playfully, looking around. “At least there’s good business today. Place deserves it.” Steven looked back at you.

“Thanks. We work very hard to make everything as good and fresh as possible.”

“Do you own the place?” His eyes widened. You laughed, slapping his shoulder gently.

“No, no. I work here, just not today as you can see.” Steven nodded slowly as you spoke, his mouth forming an ‘O’ as he let out a quick laugh. “Do you want to sit down with me? While you wait, in case you have somewhere else to be.”

“Only place would be my flat, I think Gus can wait a bit.” Steven said and you raised an eyebrow. “My goldfish, he has one fin.”

“Like Nemo?” Steven laughed at that. A hearty laugh that showed you his teeth.

“Just like him, little fella is very special to me.” You couldn’t help but laugh back.

“I bet he’s one lucky little guy.” Steven stared at you again, he seemed to do that a lot. You were not used to it. Then, his eyes softened and creased at the corners as he smiled. He had pretty lashes, long and thick, his eyes doe-like as the warm lighting shined on them.

The sound from the music on the speakers faintly seeped through your ears as time went by.

Take me out tonight

Where there’s music and there’s people

And they’re young and alive

“Yeah, he is.”

Driving in your car

I never, never want to go home

“Are you two ready to order?” Rose spoke suddenly. The two of you turned towards her. From the way she grinned at the two of you, you knew she was having a laugh. You rolled your eyes at her.

Because I haven’t got one

Anymore

“I’ll go and sit down.” You placed a hand on his back gently before walking towards the table you were sharing with Deanna. 

Deanna eyed you with a smirk once you sat down. “What was that?”

Driving in your car

Oh, please don’t drop me home

“Rose decided to interrupt us.” You responded.

“I know she did. Poor lad had heart eyes and all of that.” Deanna started gathering her things. You raised an eyebrow at her and she scoffed. “You’ll need another chair, unless the man offers his lap for you.”

“Thank you, Deanna. Let me know when you get home.” The woman bent down gave you a quick hug. You hugged her back.

Because it’s not my home, it’s their home

And I’m welcome no more

“Sure thing. Don’t forget to tell me how things go, yeah?” You nodded at her, she waved at you as she left your table. She walked through the dining area, waved goodbye at Martha and Rose, then she left the shop.

Steven came back a few minutes later. He smiled nervously as he gestured at the now empty seat. You nodded at him.

“Did your friend leave already?” He asked as he sat down, placing his bag on his lap. He looked around one more time.

“Do crowded spaces make you anxious?” You asked him with curiosity as you took a sip of your drink.

“No. It’s just that I’ve never stayed long enough to take a good look at the place.” He was still looking around, his eyes filled with awe.

“You seem to like it.” You placed your drink down. Once again, his eyes found yours.

“I do. It’s rather pretty here, and it feels cozy.” He admitted to you with a sheepish smile.

“I think so too, but this isn’t better than the museum.” When you said that, you had said it in a playful way. However, he shook his head with a frown.

To die by your side

Well, the pleasure, the privilege is mine

“The museum? No, no. I love the museum, yes. But the employees are much nicer here, I have to admit.” When he said that last sentence, he grinned at you and you rolled your eyes with a smile.

“Don’t think that’ll get you a free drink, sir. Are your coworkers not nice?”

“Most are, some barely notice me. Then there’s my boss Donna who makes me stay overnight almost every night, she also calls me Stephen.” He gave you a tight smile, his eyes shifted to your hands when your fingers rubbed the side of your drink in a distracted manner.

“You can always stop by and fill out a job application.” You offered. 

“No, no, it would be a mistake to hire me here. I would end up setting the place on fire somehow.” The two of you laughed. The conversations around you seemed to dissipate as you both kept on talking.

Take me anywhere, I don’t care

I don’t care, I don’t care

“Well, I think you would make a great barista, you just haven’t tried.” As soon as you said that, you heard Martha call out an order, to which Steven turned around immediately.

“That’s mine. I’ll be right back” Steven got up from his chair, placing his bag down on the chair and walked towards the counter.

Steven behaved like he was dreading something would inconvenience him along the way. His shoulders held tension while he dug around one of his front pockets. As he received his drink, you saw Martha smile at him and he gave her a quick nod. You didn’t know if he smiled back, but the slight quirk on his lip as he turned around to walk back towards you, told you he might’ve.

And in the darkened underpass

I thought oh, God, my chance has come at last

The soft light of the café showered him. Brown skin glowing a honey gold, soft messy curls that seemed chocolate brown instead of black, and full lips with a hint of pink. His clothes, loose and big, hid his frame under layers of funky prints and fabric. 

By the time he returned, the tension on his body was gone. His long lashes shined under the light and his eyes seemed to twinkle when he smiled nervously at you.

“Everything alright?” He spoke, taking his seat once again.

But then a strange fear gripped me

And I just couldn’t ask

Then it hit you. 

This was the man who you’d been spying on for the past month. The man who you would unconsciously await to see turn on his light at night, and then you’d watch him read by the table. Unbeknownst to him, you had formed a routine around his schedule, a parasocial behavior with a man you’d never met before. Something a creep would do. Something you did.

You couldn’t talk to him. You couldn’t get to know him. 

“Yeah, sorry.” You grabbed your bag. “It was nice having a little chat, Steven. I have to go now. I was out all day and I have to work tomorrow.”

“No worries. Do you want me to walk you to the tube, or to a cab maybe?” He was about to stand up, but you shook your head.

“It 's alright. The stop is not that far from here. And you just got here. Enjoy your night, Steven.” You stood up and felt your heart tighten when Steven spoke.

“Thank you, love. Be safe on your way home, yeah? I’ll see you tomorrow?” He was smiling so warmly at you.

“I’m afraid tomorrow will be just as busy. Maybe another day. I’m sorry.” Steven shook his head this time.

“Don’t be. I understand now that I see how packed it gets in here. I hope we get to know each other more another day. Stay safe.”

Oh, there is a light that never goes out

There is a light that never goes out

“Goodbye, Steven.”

That night when you got home, you moved your workspace away from the window and back to your bedroom. From the gap between the drapes, you saw a light turn on from his apartment. You pulled the fabric shut.

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[tangent101]

Imagine for a moment...

Imagine for a moment if Deanna had not tried Scrying on Team Issylra. Or if the Scrying failed because she didn't have a font of power enhancing her Scrying efforts like the lady helping Team Issylra had. They return home to Jrusar. And they are desperately hoping that they will find the others. But they also don't know where to start.

And then our four hardened saddened heroes, Team Issylra with Prism in tow, come through the door... and Imogen is just in tears in Laudna's arms. She had no idea she was even alive. She hoped. She begged whatever Gods would listen for just shy of two weeks that Laudna... that her friends were alive.

Of course you also have Fearne and Deanna and Chetney having had their threesome and they're all still having warm fuzzies off of that while still being so overjoyed their friends are alive, and FCG and FRIDA are now a thing but FCG is also overjoyed that his friends are here now...

I have to wonder how things would have changed. Would Laudna have been so angry? Knowing that for 13 days, Imogen had no idea if Laudna was alive, that she was desperate, and that the only reason they even went into the Savalirwood was to do something while waiting for someone with teleportation abilities to return? Seeing her best friend who loves her, who she loves in turn... in tears because she didn't know?

More... can you imagine them counting on their fingers and being "wait... it's only been six days for us. How was it 13 for you?" (Would Laudna and the others admit it was only six days? Would they even admit they knew Team Wildemount was alive after just two days?)

Sure, Team Wildemount has fancy new clothes. Sure, they had fun relationships. But the tears of Imogen who outright stated "I had no idea..." how would that have changed things? And might it have muted the response of Team Issylra? Knowing their friends went this extra time just not knowing what happened? Not knowing if their other friends were even alive? Desperately hoping but being in the dark?

Honestly... for all I love @quiddie roleplaying Deanna... the use of Scrying at that last moment just... pulled the tension out of the air. It was a happy (initially) reunion that turned into massive guilt. But the tears and angst of Team Wildemount meeting their friends, learning at the end that Scrying was once again an option, one they didn't utilize... the angst of these four suddenly seeing friends they didn't know for certain were alive... it's a sadly missed opportunity.