#i loved my hamster but i did breathe a breath of relief when she died of old age because every day with her was just

[featherymainffins]

I think it's a hatecrime against me that there aren't any slugs as big as the giant African snail. Why do the snails get to have all the fun I just want a giant slime noodle.

[wonwhomps]

Warming You Up

➻ Warnings: Language // Mentions of blood // Scientific, criminology and medical inaccuracies

➻ Words: 10.1k

➻ Genre: Angst // Romance // Humor 

➻ Pairings: Jeon Wonwoo x Female Reader

➻ Summary: Heart is freezing. Arm is bleeding. You yearn for warmth. He needs to heal.  Are you each other’s cure? You need to hold on.

She looked pretty.

She's beautiful.

Woah, what's her diet?

It's nothing new hearing whispers about how intimidating you look, how good you look, and how perfect you are. Little did they know, behind this face is a person longing for a warm embrace. You craved for love and even if you know it won't work, you're doing everything to make it last. You're cold inside and you badly wanted to make it warm, sacrificing everything you worked hard for.

Wearing a red turtleneck partnered with black jeans, a black 3-inch heels, and a black dress coat that protects you from the cold wind, you made your way to the place where your recent relationship started—the park.

It's illuminated with fairy lights stringed at every tree branches, fireflies are also flying around the place making it seem more magical than it already is, but you know more than that. This is not a magical moment every kid dreamed of. This is about facing the reality that you keep on denying for about 2 months now.

You held the strap of your black shoulder bag tightly and inhaled sharply as the silhouette of your boyfriend approaches you. You stood still until he reaches you.

You could see his breath vapor as he sighed in front of you. It's cold.

Before he could even open his mouth to say something, you held his hands and started sobbing. "S-stay, please."

He clicked his tongue. "So it's true, you're going to give everything just to make your boyfriend stay. You must be out of your mind," said your boyfriend before he harshly tugged his hands back out of your hold.

You felt your heart freeze. No.

You tried to think of other things to say to make him stay even just for another day. You don't want to feel cold again. Being with him helped you feel a glimpse of the one you craved—warmth. It's not enough to make you feel completely warm but you had no other choice.

Cold wind is gushing by making you shiver more than you already are. Your heart is shouting and begging to feel warmth. It's slowly starting to make your legs weak causing you to place your hand on his arm for support but he thinks otherwise. He jerked your hand off of his arm making you stumble and fall on the cold ground.

"We're done here. I only dated you for sex anyway and you didn't even give me a taste. How could you ask me for staying when you couldn't even give me what I want."

You shake your head. "N-no, don't leave me. I--", you held your chest tightly hoping it would help ease the ache it gives. "U-use m-me..."

He looked over you with disgust. "You need help," is what he said before he left you shivering and hurt on the cold floor.

Thump.

Your heart is slowly killing you. You didn't understand how weak you are every time this things happen. You felt small and you hate it. It seems like you've ran out of tears, you wanted to cry but you can't.

Fireflies are flying over your head. You tried reaching one, letting your hand stay mid-air. Thoughts filled in your mind like if you have died earlier, none of this would have happened and that you won't feel any more pain. If only you didn't wish for another life you could've been by your mother's side right now. But you wished. You lived. You hurt. You're cold. "I-i am cold," you said trying to hug yourself to warm your freezing body. You looked up in the sky and there you saw the first snow fall of the year. You didn't even bother standing up, you gave up.

You're running out of breath until you felt a pair of arms wrapping you with a warm cloth that you think belongs to the person in front of you. You heard them sigh. "Miss, are you here because you want to suffer hypothermia? It's freezing out here what were you thinking?" You looked up to see a handsome man maybe around the same age as you, but what caught you off-guard is how close your faces are. You looked away out of embarrassment. You heard him clear his throat. "Let me take you to the nearest hospital, you look awful."

Surprised, you looked back at him and saw him staring at you raising an eye brow. That's the first time you ever heard someone say you're awful. You didn't feel insulted at all.

He stood up, dusting off the snow on his pants before offering his hand to help you stand up. However, you just looked on his hand because you can't even move your hands at this point. "What? You can't stand?," he said. You shook your head slowly. He huffed before kneeling down. He placed his arm around your back and hoisted you up so that he can place another arm around your knee before completely lifting you up. You automatically encircled your arms around his shoulders for support.

You heard him mutter a curse. "Looks can definitely kill," he said before heading to the hospital which happens to be just around the corner. He tried starting a conversation with you but you feel light-headed and it seems like for every second passing by, you're slowly losing your consciousness.

He felt your head fall on his chest and he lets out a sigh of relief when he reached the hospital just in time. Nurses motioned him to place you on the bed and they started checking your vitals. They gave you IV fluids to replenish the amount of water your body had lost.

"The patient worked herself up. She needs to be given IV fluids because she's dehydrated. I suggest to stay by her side for a moment because this kid right here has Trypanophobia."

He looked at the doctor. "How did you know she's afraid of injections?"

"Y/n's always here for the same reason," the doctor pats his shoulder before leaving.

He went to the nurses' desk and told them he would be back. He went out to find a convenience store to buy some food. While waiting in line to pay, he remembered seeing you getting busted by your boyfriend, he thought. How could a man like him leave a lady like her? What a jerk. He was back to reality when someone tapped his shoulder.

"Uhm... H-hi! Could we take a picture?"

He raised an eye brow before saying, "Uh, no sorry." After that, he paid what he bought and went straight back to the hospital. He waved a hand to the nurses before entering your room just to see you staring right at him.

"I thought you have Trypanophobia? Did you panic when you saw the needles?," he asked while you still stare directly at him.

"Yeah, I did. I shouted... Ah!," you said sarcastically. You heard him snickered then you realized this man beside you is a complete stranger but it doesn't feel awkward at all. Clearing your throat, "What's your name?," you asked.

He sat on the stool beside your bed and showed you a paper bag full of edible foods. "I figured you wouldn't want to eat hospital food. Here you go, Y/n! Eat the sandwich first while it's still warm.

Hearing your name, you looked at him confused. You raised an eye brow, indirectly asking the question to how did he know your name, which he immediately caught and proudly answered, "I just know," with a smirk curving in his lips. "Eat it up, you look indecent and a living dead," he said while unwrapping the sandwich before handing it over to you.

You took it and slowly munch on it. You feel uncomfortable since he's just staring at you while you're trying to feed yourself with a sandwich. "You eat like a hamster. You're now a zombie hamster," he said while trying his best not to laugh in which you returned with a deadly glare. He stopped laughing and motioned you to continue eating. "By the way, you owe me. I ditched my friends tonight because I pity seeing you freezing to death outside. I am a very helpful person that's why and being handsome just adds up to it," he said.

He saw you rolled your eyes and that made him smile. "You're too full of yourself, you didn't even answer my question earlier. I'll only believe you know everything if you give me a valid answer." He tilted his head while looking at you.

"I know it. It's written in my blood."

Silence filled the room. Only the sound of the AC is heard and you just stared at him, totally confused. "You're joking, right?"

He shrugged, "Yeah, probably."

He accompanied you for an hour until he has to bid farewell and call it a night. You did not know he already left since you were sound asleep and he didn't want to wake you up from your rest so he left silently, leaving a piece of note on the bedside cabinet.

I hope we meet again zombie hamster.                                         , Wonwoo                                         The next morning, you were discharged and you paid your hospital bills. A nurse handed you your things that are placed on the cabinet including a piece of paper that you just tossed inside your shoulder bag.

"Y/n, I hope you never come back here. It's not that we don't want to see you, but knowing that you're here only means that you're sick and you need medication. Start thinking about yourself for once and set aside the unnecessary things. Don't let your heart control you, fight it."

You flashed a small smile and nodded at Dr. Yoon. He is right, I should think about myself for once but am I not taking care of myself since I only did these things to help my freezing heart? Before leaving you gave them a smile and waved your hand to them. You hailed a cab and gave them your address. You just want to take a bath and lay down on your bed all day wearing your favorite pajamas, watching Netflix while eating bananas.

Wonwoo woke up from a deep sleep while catching his breath. He looked over at his blanket feeling something wet.

"Shit!"

It happened again, he thought. Rushing to his bathroom, he carefully folded his bloody long sleeves revealing a written statement with his blood on his arm. He muttered a curse from the pain while reading it. He positioned his affected arm at the sink and slowly cleans it, wincing from the pain.

He washed his face afterwards and faced the mirror. He attempted to steady his breathing but he failed. He quickly went back to his bedroom, discarding the stained blanket on the laundry and grabbing his notebook and a pen.

'xxxx cafe'

It has been 3 weeks since his first encounter with you, 2 months since his blood wrote your name and a month since he discovered you were somewhat related to his life. In his notebook, a list of the things his blood wrote on his arm was noted. From your name down to the places you might go, he don't know the real reason behind those places but when he found you at the park, it gave him a hint that these are the places you will fall or experience pains.

It's snowing heavily but you still have to go outside to meet your client and talk about the designs they want for their house. You prepared your things and wore a white formal sweater partnered with denim jeans and black boots ending just below your knees. You took a bite on your sandwich and grabbed your dress jacket before leaving.

You arrived at the cafe your client suggested and started to look for them. You received a text message that they will arrive a bit late because of traffic so you sat on the corner of the cafe while scanning their menu.

You felt a presence in front of you and before looking up a glass of water was splashed right on your face.

"Fuck you! So you're the one my husband will meet today even if it's snowing real hard. Stop being a bitch and how dare you seduce a married man!?"

You were running out of breath as you look into the woman's eyes. You felt your chest tightened. You don't know what is she talking about. You didn't seduce anyone, you are here to meet a client not a married man. The woman didn't get satisfied with just splashing you a glass of water. She went near you and grabbed your hair, forcing you to look up. "M-ma'am, you're hurting me. Please, stop." You tried removing her hand but she grabbed it even tighter making you cry in pain.

She kept yelling about how fucked up you are seducing his husband and being a desperate woman who just wants to be fucked. The customers inside the cafe just stared at you in disgust, believing all the lies this woman is saying.

"No wonder she looked rich and pretty, she must have been seducing every rich man to make her way up."

Hearing all those whispers, your heart started clenching and a tint of coldness once again sparked. You didn't know where to focus, to your heart or to her hand grabbing your hair. The cafe's door opened and a man entered making his way to your direction.

"He is probably the husband."

They were right. The man took off his wife's hand off of you and gave you an apologetic smile for causing you trouble. Your heart is beating faster than normal and makes it even harder to breathe. You tried asking for help but they didn't even bother asking you what's wrong.

They are so quick to judge.

You started feeling light-headed and you could feel your heart slowly freezing. You whispered a curse. Holding your chest tightly, you tried to stand up but your legs suddenly became weak causing you to fall on the wooden floor. Customers looked over you, some gasped and looked surprised but some didn't bother looking at all. You tugged your jacket in your body hoping it would help make your heart feel warmth but it didn't. You once again called out for help, but no one even budge. If my heart will completely freeze I wish to hug my soulmate even if it's our first and last, you thought.

Wonwoo was caught up in a company meeting. He was anxious the whole time that he didn't even understand a thing. He checked his wrist watch and a sigh of relief escaped his lips because there's only 2 minutes left before the meeting is adjourned.

He didn't even bother removing his glasses as he made his way to the cafe he saw earlier on his arm. It was just a walking distance from their building. He didn't know why but he felt like running, so he did.

He reached the cafe while catching his breath. He saw something weird, customers were all looking to the left corner of the cafe and whispering some things. Looking at where the rest was eyeing, he recognized it was you. He ran quickly to you and hugged your trembling body on the floor. He hears your muffled sobs as you try to ease the pain your heart is giving you.

"Shh... Y/n, it's okay. I'm here now. Shh..." he said trying to calm you down.

He placed his head above yours and tightly hugged you as you still tremble. You were freezing, he was sure of that.

Before he came you could feel it. Your heart was almost fully frozen. It aches so bad you can't even cry and what hurts more is that the people around you didn't even bother helping you. But when he came, you were confused. Why does it feel warm? Where is this warmth coming from? His embrace made you calm and helped you even out your breathing. He continued hugging you until he felt your body relaxing. He made you face him. "Let's get you out of here," he said and you just nodded in response.

Wonwoo decided to bring you to his house after he noticed that your clothes are wet. You were already shivering from the cold so wearing wet clothes will just worsen it. He motioned you to sit down on the sofa while he grabs one of his shirts to replace your  wet sweater. You explored your eyes around his living area and you could say that he's a very clean person and he's got the nice choice of set of furniture and designs in his home. You saw a frame with him on it and the woman beside him is his mother, you assumed and capsule caught your attention. It was placed on the coffee table beside the frame. You were about to get it but you heard him clear his throat that made you startle.

"H-here you go. The bathroom's over there," he said trying his best not to look at you, pointing his finger to where the bathroom is located. You get the shirt from his hand and followed the direction of his finger pointing to his bathroom.

Entering the bathroom, you gaped when you faced the mirror. "That's why he wasn't looking at me," you whispered while looking at yourself. Due to the water that was thrown at you, your bra was showing through your wet sweater. You quickly changed your sweater to his gray shirt that ends on your thighs, making it looked like you were wearing a short dress shirt.

Wonwoo prepared two cups of coffee while you change your clothes. He couldn't help but blush when he saw you at the living room earlier. "Fuck you," he whispered for himself. He didn't know he was already pouring the hot water on the wrong direction until you guided his hand on the cup and said, "Cup's over here." And that time Wonwoo swore time has stopped. He was startled by your sudden appearance.

You sat on the chair and placed your elbows at the table while you admire his back. You saw him stir the coffee before placing it in front of you and sat opposite you. You clutch the mug to feel the warmth of the coffee.

"I wanted to ask you if you're alright, but I already have an answer to that. So, do you want to talk it out?," he cleared his throat and sipped on his coffee.

"It's weird. I actually thought it's the end for me earlier," you sighed. "I'm there to meet a client but an enraged woman confronted me instead." You looked into his eyes.

"It's been a while, Wonwoo."

He almost choked on his coffee when you said his name. "I thought you wouldn't see the note I left at the hospital. Glad to meet you again," he gave you a small smile.

The room was silent until you said something. "Could I tell you something? I haven't told anyone of this and I feel comfortable with you, that's why."

Wonwoo nodded, "I'm all ears."

You didn't want to continue at first but you eventually started talking. "I... I have a freezing heart. Whenever I feel weak and defeated, I could feel it's slowly beginning to freeze. I have suffered from it ever since the day my mother died and lately, I figured having a companion helps it feel warm enough to stop it from completely freezing," you placed your hand on your chest, "But earlier it was thawed and I feel warm," you looked down. You were confused and tried to figure out what happened earlier but you can't.

"The reason why I always look for a lover is because I want to survive. I couldn't live the life I wanted because of this heart. I didn't ask for having too many relationships, but it's the only way I would live."

Wonwoo just stared at you while listening to your words. So that's why he saw you at the park that night, you were completely shivering. If he arrived behind time, it would've been too late. Speaking of time, Wonwoo realized that it's already past their noon break. He asked you if you wanted to go home so he would hail a cab. "Could I stay for awhile?," you asked which made him stilled. Wonwoo nodded and made his way to the front door. "There are snacks in the cupboard!," is what he said before closing the door.

You stood up and washed the mugs before heading back to the living room. There are 2 more doors near the bathroom and you assumed are his room and a guest room. You sat down and leaned back on the sofa and pondered for a bit. "Sooner or later I have to find him again. Miracles like this won't always happen," you said to yourself while holding your chest.

You have slept on the sofa for an hour and when you looked at the clock it's already 4 o'clock. You remembered Wonwoo mentioned there are snacks in the cupboard, so you went and started searching for food. You also checked his fridge and found ingredients for soup. You're not the best at cooking, but you still want to make him food as a way to say thank you for letting you rest in his place.

When Wonwoo entered the house, his stomach rumbles from the aroma of your dish. "You didn't have to, you know," he said approaching you before sitting on the island chair. You scooped a soup and placed it on a bowl before giving it to him, "I wanted to cook for you to say thanks." He gladly accepted it and silently started eating it. "Why aren't you eating?"

"I already ate a little and I was just waiting for you so I could say that I'm going home," you said before drinking a water. Wonwoo quickly finished his soup, "Let me take you home."

You just nodded in response. It wasn't that far for you to take a cab home but Wonwoo insisted to ride a cab since it was snowing hard. Inside the cab, you just stare at the window and watched the snow fall. Wonwoo, however, was lost in thought.

Earlier at their office, his arm started bleeding again so he immediately went to the comfort room and looked at it to read the written words, but there's nothing being written. It just bled for no reason. His heart was beating fast and he didn't know what was happening. Normally, his arm would bleed because something is being written related about you, but there was none. He yelped in pain when water touched his arm.

"We're here."

Wonwoo looked over you and saw you unbuckling your seatbelt. He raised an eye brow. "I said we have arrived," you said to him before taking your wallet to pay the cab. Wonwoo got his wallet quickly and paid it before you. You were about to contest but he cut you off.

"Go inside now, don't forget to wear warm clothes," he pat your head, "We'll meet again, Y/n."

You didn't know why but your cheeks have flushed red when he pat your head. You thought it's maybe because of the cold.

Before going back home, Wonwoo dropped by a pharmacy and bought medicine. He felt like he's losing so much blood just from today's events. He would still figure out the reason behind his bleeding earlier. "There's nothing written, it's just bleeding," he whispered to himself.

You laid in bed and just stare at your ceiling. Holding your chest, how you wish you would always get lucky for having a warm heart instead of freezing one. A sigh escaped your lips before closing your eyes and dozing off to sleep.

You feel at ease when you didn't experience any signs of your illness for almost a week. Things were running smoothly and you're genuinely happy to yourself. Walking down the road, you stopped by a bakery and bought different types of pastries. You spared your day-off to pay a visit at the hospital because it's already been a month and every time you came here over and over again for the same reason, you became close with almost everyone working there.

You entered the building and you head straight to the reception area where you saw Dr. Lee signing some papers. The nurses noticed you and immediately gave you a smile and a wave that caught Dr. Yoon's attention. "Good morning. Good morning, Dr. Yoon!," you said with a grin while you placed the pastries on the reception table. "It's Jeonghan for you, you're here not as our patient anyway," said Dr. Yoon while his eyes formed a smile when he saw the foods you bought.

"Guys, get some! I dropped by the bakery before going here. It must've been a bit surprising seeing me visit with no intentions of getting medical help," you laughed.

The nurses and Dr. Yoon looked over you. "We're proud, don't worry," Dr. Yoon smiled. "How's your heart? Still freezing?"

Remembering how it didn't give any signs of possible freezing for almost a week, you placed your hand on your chest. "I actually didn't experience anything for a week now. I think it's back to normal... I really hope so," you answered.

Dr. Yoon nodded before stuffing his mouth with bagels. "Dr. Yoon, the patient on room 217 has woken up," you heard the nurse. Dr. Yoon immediately swallowed his food before turning over you.

"Ah, right! Your friend is here, the one who brought you here a month ago. He suffered from mild concussion, but he was treated already. Do you want to tag along? I was about to check up on him anyway."

Your eyes widened when he mentioned Wonwoo. You have already formulated questions in your head on the way to his room, but Dr. Yoon advised you to avoid asking him questions since he's still resting.

You saw a cold press head bandage around his head when you followed behind Dr. Yoon. He was already awake and you saw him looking straight at you, not even bothering to look at his doctor, and you didn't know why your heart has suddenly beat fast. You just stand at one corner of the room while Dr. Yoon checked his vitals. "You're all good now, Wonwoo. You just have to rest for another hour and you're good to go," said Dr. Yoon before going over you and pats your shoulder. "I'll leave you two now."

You suddenly panicked when you saw Dr. Yoon leave the room.

"You're just going to stand there?"

Your head immediately went to look over Wonwoo who was already raising his brow. "I, uhm, I visited them today and Jeonghan happened to tell me that you're here. That's why I'm now here," you didn't even know why you're suddenly explaining to him.

"So you were already on the first name basis with Dr. Yoon, huh."

You heard him muttered something. "What was that?," you asked while walking towards the stool to take a seat beside his bed.

"Nothing," he shrugged.

You stared at him for a moment before asking a question. You couldn't help it. "What happened to you?" Wonwoo looked at you before sighing.

"I slipped on the bathroom floor," he honestly said.

You wanted to laugh but it would just make you childish. You also felt worried for him because if you didn't, you wouldn't even bother going here on the first place.

"That sucks."

Wonwoo raised his eyebrow. "Yeah, it does." He tried to leave the bed and you quickly held his arm to stop him but he when you touched his left arm, he winced in pain. You were surprised so you immediately removed your hand and you saw a bandage covering his arm with red stains visibly seen. Blood. You tried to touch it again but Wonwoo stopped you.

"It's fine. I'm fine," you heard his heavy breaths in between.

You wanted to know the reason behind it but you remembered to not ask him too many questions. Maybe next time, you thought. You stayed silent for 5 minutes, waiting for him to even out his breath. You were so close to yawning but you heard him talk.

"Y/n, let's talk," is what he said while looking at the ceiling. Remembering that he was supposed to be resting, you said, "You need to rest though. I'll wait for you here, it's my free day anyway." Wonwoo looked at your eyes.

"No, it's okay. Talking to you helps me rest completely."

You felt your heart beats fast and your cheeks suddenly warms. You avoided his gaze at first before clearing a lump on your throat. "Uhm, okay. How are you... I mean, how are you last week? We haven't meet after you sent me home and it's been a week. Did you miss me?," you jokingly asked.

Wonwoo just stared at you and you suddenly felt anxious. Is there something on my face, you thought. "Don't ask me two questions at the same time," is what he said. You raised your eyebrows, "But you always ask me two questions at once," you silently said.

"I have been confused... until now," he said. You leaned over his bed railing and placed your hand under your chin for support. "Me too."

He is still looking at you  then you suddenly saw him leaning forward. You closed your eyes when you felt his lips on your forehead. You slowly opened your eyes when you didn't feel his lips anymore and saw him looking on the other side, his cheeks slightly stained with pink.

"I missed you, I guess."

Thump.

You forgot to move for a moment. Wonwoo closed his eyes trying to avoid your stare.

"Remember when you told me something about your heart? I... I have something similar," you heard him say while his eyes are still closed. "It's my blood. It has been my concern for almost half a year now. My arm would suddenly bleed at every unexpected situations including earlier. When I woke up, my arm was bleeding so much I ran quickly towards my bathroom but I slipped. Luckily, I have my friends over for the night. That's why I happened to be lying here on this bed, instead of my cold tiles."

"I thought I already figured it out, but it turns out I'm nowhere near of solving its cause and origin. That's why I was so confused for the past week," you see him sighed before slowly opening his eyes.

You have no idea that he was also suffering from something. You even thought that maybe you're not the only one who's also suffering from something unexplainable. "I wonder if we would survive," you whispered.

"Don't you have anything to say?"

You also opened up how it's already been a week but your heart is still completely fine and warm. "I don't know why, but I just took it for granted. I'm also starting to think that maybe my time will already come that's why they're already making me live like a normal person," you said.

"We just need to hold on, I guess."

You inhaled a deep breath before slowly nodding your head. You didn't expect to fall asleep on your arms until you heard a knock on the door. You also saw Wonwoo who lazily opened his eyes while trying to remove his head bandage. He probably fell asleep too, you thought.

"Patient 217 or should I say Wonwoo, you can now go home. Your bills were already paid," said Dr. Yoon. "I see both of you had a very long chat, it's already 4 o'clock in the afternoon," Dr. Yoon smirked.

You tried to help him stand up but he declined. You just rolled your eyes. "He clearly needs help, but he rejected it. What a man!," you said to yourself.

When you reached the lobby, Wonwoo grabbed your arm.

"Give me your number, it's not  like we're strangers to each other."

You scoffed but you still gave it anyway.

He offered to take you to a fast-food restaurant because he's starving and not because you haven't eaten yet. "I know a place, let's grab a food," you were about to decline but...

"It's not for you, I'm hungry." You have no other choice but to follow him.

Wonwoo went to the counter to buy food while you wait to your table. You let your eyes explore the place and you felt anxious seeing almost every customer are couples. You cleared your throat when you saw Wonwoo approaching your table with two burgers and drinks placed on the tray.

"You didn't have to. I wasn't hungry-," you lied.

"Who told you it's for you? These are mine."

Your eyes widened in embarrassment so you looked elsewhere.

"I'm just kidding. Eat up, I know you're also hungry."

You didn't listen to him at first but you intestines think otherwise. You chat for a moment until you both emptied out your drinks and it was then time to bid goodbye. His address is on the other direction so you both walked the opposite ways. You find it helpful how both of you are just blocks away and of course, the snow is falling lightly today that's why you didn't need to ride a cab home. You were almost near your home when you heard your phone ring.

Unknown:

                     'I'm one call away or should I say block away. Don't forget to wear warm clothes.'

                     'We'll meet again, beautiful.'

Your lips formed a smile and you could feel your cheeks burn before entering your house.

To Wonwoo:

                     'Looking forward to that. :)'

It was a busy day in his work. Wonwoo was occupied for a week due to some minor problems to their company and to his luck, his team was slightly involved. That's why he was only going home to sleep then leave for work on the next day.

To beautiful hamster:                         I want to quit, Y/n. :(

Even though his schedule was packed, he didn't forget to send you a message at least once a day. He has no other reasons, he just wants to talk to you even through chat.

From beautiful hamster:                        You're a loser then.                        Don't be such a baby!

Wonwoo laughed when he read your message. He placed his phone back on his desk before making another letter of pardon for his friend, which is also his workmate. Wonwoo looked over his schedule before typing and he momentarily stopped after seeing that he'll be having an open schedule for tomorrow. He'll finally have some free time, he thought.

After finishing his task, he went out to get himself a coffee from the cafe near their building. While waiting in line, he remembered the day he saw you here at this cafe and he absentmindedly touched his arm. To think that not even a single drop of blood was found on his arm, he felt relieved but also scared. He placed his order and again waited for his order to be served.

"Wonwoo."

He went back to the counter to get his order after hearing his name. He was about to get a coffee stirrer when he heard the cashier say something.

"A-are you perhaps the boyfriend of the lady who cheated with a m-married man...?"

Wonwoo's jaw clenched as he get the stirrer. He looked coldly at the cashier. "She did not cheat with anybody," he said before turning around.

Holding his coffee tightly, he looked back at the lady over the counter.

"She did not cheat. Stop spreading rumors. I am her boyfriend."

While going back to his office, Wonwoo didn't know why he said he was your boyfriend to the lady working at the cafe. "It was out of instinct, I guess," he shrugged.

Wonwoo just sat on his swivel chair, while looking at your contact in his phone. He clicked it and typed something.

To beautiful hamster:                      'Do you want to have a dinner with me tomorrow?'

He deleted it and once again typed something.

To beautiful hamster:                      'Are you free tomorrow night? Let's get dinner together.'

Deleted it.

Wonwoo sighed and leaned his back on his chair. He has a large window on his left that's why he has an overview of the outside world and he could see that the sun was almost setting. He touched his arm and murmured something.

'I think you're already fine, Y/n.'

"Ouch!"

You accidentally bit your tongue while watching your favorite Netflix series. "I hope it's not bleeding," you tried to feel if something tastes like metal, but there's nothing. "It's fine," you exhaled.

Your officemate recommended you something to watch and you gladly accepted it because you have nothing else to watch at the moment and by watching 3 episodes already, you could say that this is not a happy series. You almost cried watching the characters break up and separated ways, but you reminded yourself that it's just a video, nothing personal.

You heard your phone ring and when you opened it, you saw Wonwoo's message.

From Wonwoo:                  Jgh. What are you doing?

He always send you messages like this and it kind of feels like you were his attendance checker. A loud bang from the episode you are watching caught your attention and you forgot to reply to his message. It was such a heart breaking episode. You curled into a ball on your sofa, fighting the urge to cry. You actually felt like you were the lead character, experiencing a heartbreak from the one she truly loved. You didn't want to fight your tears anymore, so they quickly escaped your eyes and a sob followed.

Wonwoo was just lying on his bed, waiting for your reply. It has already been twenty minutes since he sent you one and normally, you would quickly reply back. That's something he noticed from you.

"Maybe she's already asleep...?"

He closed his eyes to rest for a moment when he felt something drip on his arm. He quickly opened his eyes and he was shocked when he saw how much blood was already dripping from his arm. Remembering how you haven't sent a reply yet, Wonwoo immediately grabbed a towel to wrap on his arm and run quickly to his door.

When he was outside he ran fast towards your address, not caring about the passersby’s reaction to his bleeding arm. It almost felt like ages before he arrived and he immediately opened your door and there he saw you standing surprised with red puffy eyes.

You couldn't believe your eyes when you saw Wonwoo standing in front of your door. Your puffy eyes grew even bigger when you noticed his bleeding arm. Blood was already dripping on the floor.

"Wonwoo... Your arm--"

Wonwoo strode over you and wrapped his right arm around your body to hug you tight.

You could hear his heavy breaths. Did he run all the way here?, you thought. You didn't know why he's here. Is he alright. What happened to his arm?

You tried to remove his right arm on you to check up on him. When you did, you saw him looking directly on your eyes. 'His stare could kill,' you said to yourself. You panicked again when you saw that his bleeding wouldn't stop. "Wonwoo, your arm. It's bleeding!," you silently shouted. Wonwoo looked on his arm too and harshly tied a towel to slowly stop the bleeding. You winced when you saw how tight it was.

"Are you alright?," he asked while staring at your puffy eyes.

"I think we need to visit the hospita--"

"Answer me," your body froze when you heard how intimidating he sound.

Wonwoo sighed, "You didn't answer my message. I thought something happened to you. Y/n, I was so worried!"

You felt small. He raised his voice on you, but it was because he was worried.

Should I be scared or feel touched?

"I'm fine, Wonwoo. I was watching... Something sad, that's why... I think I cried," you avoided to look on him because you felt embarrassed crying over a damn drama.

"Shouldn't you be worried about that, right now? If you don't, I am... worried about your arm," you added.

Wonwoo caressed your cheek with his right hand. "I'm glad you're fine. I'm sorry I raised my voice, I promise I would never do it again." You felt your heart beats fast again. What is this feeling, there's no way...

"Let me just get my med kit, let's clean your arm," you said to atleast be far away for him just for a minute because if you don't, your heart might explode and you suddenly vomit butterflies.

You guided him to your sofa and you sat in front of him. You carefully wiped the remaining blood on his arm and he just stared at you while doing that. "I thought mine was already worse, but yours are even more dangerous. You know you'll probably lose so much blood and that's not good," you sighed. "I hope we find our cure, so we won't suffer anymore."

"But you're the cause and cure," Wonwoo said to himself.

A week before this day, Wonwoo was so busy with work and not a single day he saw blood coming out of his arm. He genuinely liked it and hoped it won't ever bleed again. And he remembered how you said your heart didn't feel like freezing for a week as well. Things started to connect themselves in front of Wonwoo. You were happy.

His bleeding and your heart were connected to your emotions. You were happy, that's why your heart was normal. That's why he wasn't bleeding. He made all efforts on trying to make you smile or feel happy for the days he couldn't visit you through messages. He sent you jokes and that, he has never done before.

If he was right, you could finally live a life the way you wanted it to be and he could finally feel great after all the situations that have happened right before his own eyes.

He didn't believe it at first but something's wrong with him. He's not in his usual self. He's like a fool for love. "Am I inlove?," he asked himself.

You're almost done patching up his arm when you heard him clear his throat.

"Are you free tomorrow?"

You looked up to meet his eyes. There they go again, flying in my stomach. "Uhm... I have time at noon," you shyly said. You saw him hide his smile and slowly nodded at you.

Is he asking me out...?

You're done with his arm and you tried to offer him coffee or something to drink but he refused. He also said he was going now that's why you accompanied him to your door.

"Uh... I'll text you the address. See you tomorrow, Y/n," Wonwoo said while scratching his neck. You nodded and replied a silent 'okay.'

As if something magical passed by in front of you, Wonwoo slowly leaned in.

Is he going to k-kiss me...??

You saw him position his head and your lips are almost an inch away from touching each other.

But he stopped halfway. He quickly looked the other way and muttered something.

"I...uh... I'll go now. Bye!"

Your cheeks flushed red and it was a good thing he was already walking away. "What's with him? What's with me? Why did I feel annoyed that he didn't continue---", you mentally cursed yourself before going back in.

You couldn't sleep. You were just thinking about what to wear for your lunch with Wonwoo.

And you deeply regret not sleeping because your eye bags are evident below your eyes. You shrugged all the thoughts away as you went in your bathroom to take a bath. You just wear casual clothes since it'll be just a friendly date and you still have to go to work in the morning.

Wonwoo is also restless. He already reserved a table for two at the formal restaurant just around the corner. He even think of buying you flowers but it's a bit cheesy for him. He texted you the address earlier at six in the morning. He's not excited at all.

You just sat on your chair and waited for the hours to pass by quickly so that it's already noon break. You looked at the mirror and checked if you're still looking fine and you released a sigh of relief when you saw that you still looked... good, even though you look absolutely great.

"Guys, it's lunch time! Wonwoo, you coming with us? We're trying out the newly opened samgyup resto bar."

Wonwoo shook his head. "I have somewhere else to go, maybe next time."

He quickly get his things and directly went to the restaurant he reserved two seats from. When he arrived, he sat down your table and thanked himself for reserving earlier because it was already packed up with customers.

"Now all I have to do is wait," Wonwoo smiled.

You left your office and started walking towards the direction of the restaurant Wonwoo said. While walking, a thought suddenly flashed in your mind.

What if this is a date, you would just make things harder for him because you're not normal. You would eventually leave him behind.

Considering your thought, you slowed down your walk and started thinking more about the situation.

"Will I just make it hard for him? He's already suffering from something."

You thought that it might be better if he wouldn't end up with you.

You were happy now. You were happy that you met Wonwoo. You had someone to lean on and you finally felt what it feels like to have a friend. You don't have anything to do now, your family is already up there.

Should I follow them?

You squinted your eyes and stopped walking because you were dazzled by the sun. As if on cue, you felt something sharp punctured in your abdomen and a man muttered a curse before running away quickly.

You coughed. Passersby started to gather around you, some are panicking and some immediately called for help. You touched it and slowly looked on it. There you saw a blade, stabbed deeply on your side. Your hands and lips were trembling and your breathing suddenly constrict.

Someone call an ambulance!

Oh my, help!

You then collapsed on the floor and people around you were startled. Your eyes suddenly felt heavy and the last thing you saw was a man caressing your cheeks and constantly saying something.

It feels weird. I didn't feel sad at all. I feel...

Happy.

Wonwoo was already feeling anxious while he still waits for you. He looked at his watch and his eyes widened when he saw that it's already one o'clock in the afternoon. Did she lie to me?, he thought. He was also constantly looking on his arm for any signs of bleeding because if there is, that means you're in trouble. He definitely hoped that there's nothing wrong and that you're absolutely fine.

He waited for your message too but his phone wasn't even ringing.

He felt restless so he stood up and left the restaurant. While he was walking, he saw a large crowd on the way.

"What's the commotion about?"

He then heard a woman shouted for help.

"Someone!! Help her!! She's stabbed!"

He walked over to look and maybe do something to help but his body suddenly froze. He can't move. His heart fell down. His jaw and fists clenched. His breathing rapidly increased as he approached your almost lifeless body on the ground.

"Y/n! Hey! Y/n!!!" he caressed your cheeks, "Stay with me, hey... Don't fucking close your eyes! Y/n, look at me. Y/n!!!," he shouted when he saw you closing your eyes.

"Someone call a fucking ambulance! Why are you just fucking looking?!"

Wonwoo looked over your punctured wound. "Shit! Y/n, stay with me."

"I need you!"  

The ambulance came and you were immediately brought to the hospital in the emergency room. They didn't let Wonwoo in so he was left at the lobby waiting. He pulled his hair out of anger. His white dress shirt was now stained with red liquid--your blood. He squatted near the emergency door and put his head on his knees. A nurse approached him and informed him that they will perform emergency surgery on you since the blade had damaged several parts of your tissues so it needs to be sutured back and its little particles also penetrated it and they should be removed immediately.  He just looked up to the nurse and couldn't even bother saying anything.

"Why didn't it bleed? I would've come sooner."

Wonwoo started blaming himself but it would only be useless right now since it already happened. A male nurse also approached him and told him that the cops are waiting for him at the lobby. He immediately stood up and strode his way at the lobby.

"Are you related to Miss Y/l/n?," a cop asked.

"Y-yeah."

"The suspect has already been arrested and is on the interrogation room at our headquarters right now.  He is charged of GBH. We're deeply sorry for what happened to her."

Wonwoo's jaw and fists clenched out of anger. "Charge of bodily harm? That means 5 years in prison?," Wonwoo scoffed. "You know better than this, officer."

The cops slightly bowed to him before leaving.

He was about to go back to hallway of the emergency room when he saw Jeonghan who is tightly holding someone, who seems like another doctor, on his collar. He slowly walked towards them and he was shocked. Jeonghan punched the other doctor causing him to fall on the ground.

"You almost killed her, you motherfucker! How could you be so dumb and act on your own?! I'm the senior here!"

Jeonghan noticed Wonwoo so he calmed himself before facing him. "Wonwoo--"

Wonwoo's ears are already turning red--he was fuming. "What the fuck happened in there?"

"Wonwoo, calm down--"

He grabbed Dr. Yoon's collar. "Don't tell me what to do. What happened in there, Jeonghan?"

Jeonghan pushed Wonwoo's hands away from him and he readjusted his collar. "The junior messed it up," he sighed. "We were already going smoothly as planned until he fucked it up. This shit made her bleeding worse when he pulled the blade out and that shouldn't have happened if he listened to us. She almost lost so much blood..."

"Take mine. Does she need blood? Take mine," Wonwoo sobbed. "Take my fucking blood. I-" Wonwoo let his body fall on the ground as he cried.

Jeonghan sat in front of him and helped him calm down. "She'll be fine. She's fine. Y/n's the strongest person I know."

Jeonghan stayed by Wonwoo's side until he's calmed down but the sudden opening of the emergency door startled the both of them.

"Doctor Park has requested you to join in again. Y/n has ventricular fibrillation and they'll immediately perform cardioversion and cpr in between. It hasn't been too fatal to implant ICD," a nurse said. Jeonghan immediately went to wear his surgical gown and wash his hands and arms with PVP-I before going back to the ER.

Wonwoo didn't know what to do. He just hoped for the best because at the end of the day, he knows you'll still open those precious green eyes of yours.

Wonwoo looked at the opening door and there he saw you, lying on the bed with IV fluids attached on your hand. He tried to reach you but Jeonghan caught his hands and made him sit down. He gave Wonwoo a bread before sitting next to him. "She's under influence of anesthesia. She'll probably wake up for about an hour so I suggest you to take a rest first. Go out and inhale fresh air, you need it." Jeonghan said before standing up and going to his office.

Wonwoo looked at his watch.

6 o'clock in the evening.

"She struggled that long," he sighed before going out to get some fresh air.

Wonwoo went to the park where he first had an interaction with you. It has already been 5 weeks, yet he still wasn't able to say what he wanted to say to you a few weeks ago. I'm a sucker, he thought. He sat down by a bench near the tallest tree at the park. He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment.

"Mister..." A kid stood in front of Wonwoo and was extending his small arm, holding a single alstroemeria. Wonwoo tilted his head to the side and asked, "Is this for me?"

The kid shook his head but he still urged him to get it and immediately ran away skipping after Wonwoo get the flower on his hand. "Huh, it's not even the season of flowers," he asked. Wonwoo stared at the flower before looking at his watch. It was already quarter to seven so he decided to head back and visit you on your room.

When he entered the room, your eyes were still closed. You looked calm and heavenly, he thought. He sat down beside your bed and placed the flower on the table. He sighed before holding your left hand. He just pressed it on his cheeks, not saying anything, just feeling your warmth. "You owe me another one. I don't cry in front of others but you made me do it," he silently laughed at himself. He looked at the flower, "A kid gave me a flower. I'm not sure what kind of flower it is though and it's not even the time for flowers to bloom."

He stared at your face for a moment before planting a kiss on your forehead. He heard a knock on the door. "Wear this. Blood's still on your shirt," Jeonghan said.

"You finally found your cure, didn't you? Confusion's finally over. I'm happy for you, man."

Wonwoo looked at Jeonghan before giving him a small smile. "I did. But I don't think I am her cure. I'll let her go to her cure because that's how much I--," Wonwoo stopped talking when he heard you groan. Jeonghan crosses his arms together before flashing a smirk.

"Good evening, princess. How are you?," asked Jeonghan.

You slowly opened your eyes and the first thing you saw was Wonwoo's worried look. "I feel crap. I think I saw heaven for a bit," you said and clearly Wonwoo wasn't happy about that. "They pushed me back though. Said it wasn't my time yet," you said while Jeonghan's checking your vitals.

"Estimated 3 days before you could finally go home. For now, rest completely so that, he winked at Wonwoo's direction, could finally calm his nerves down," Jeonghan said before leaving the room.

You sighed.

"Hey, I'm sorry for making you worried."

Wonwoo gave you the cold stare. "Don't say sorry, it's not your fault. Although, you were kind of dumb but still not your fault." You placed your hand on his cheek before saying something.

"I actually thought I would never see you again and I was... slightly happy about that," you said that made Wonwoo confused.

"I didn't want to add up to your life's concerns. You're already dealing with something and you still have a dream to achieve while I don't. I don't have any reasons left to regret dying earlier, you know," you shrugged. "Ouch!," Wonwoo flicked your forehead. "What was that for?"

"You seriously won't regret leaving me behind? After all the things I did for you?"

You laughed at his expression. "I was kidding. You're no fun at all! I still want to meet the person that will completely heal my heart, you know. Wonder what it feels like to be embraced by him."

"It will probably feel cold at all, not warm," he murmured.

"I heard you." Wonwoo looked at you. "I intentionally murmured it loudly."

You were about to tease him a bit more when he smashed a flower on your forehead. "You really liked violence, huh!" You hold the stem of the flower and you immediately recognized its kind. You dramatically looked over Wonwoo and he returned a questioning look. "What?"

You pouted and faked a sob. "I--" Wonwoo worriedly look at you, "Hey, what's wrong? First time receiving a flower?"

"You're friend-zoning me," you sob. "All this time, I thought you that you liked me too. I was a fool," you invested in some of your acting skills. Wonwoo gaped at what he heard. "What did you say?"

"What did I say? I didn't say anything. Omg, I love this flower. Thank you, friend." you said emphasizing the word friend. Wonwoo is clearly not enjoying this so he threatened you by leaning in over you. "I heard it right. You said you like me. Now, stop this little game of yours or else," he said.

You weren't afraid of this threat so you leaned in as well. "Or else what?" Your eyes widened when he quickly pecked your lips.

Thump.

"Here's your food-- I guess I'll come back later," Jeonghan said before closing the door.

Wonwoo smirked at you. "You asked for it."

You dramatically touched your lips as you looked away from him. "I can't believe this is happening." You quickly looked back at him. "Tell me I'm not dreaming," you light slapped his cheek. "You're really here. You really pecked my lips. Woah..."

Wonwoo laughed at you. "Yes, this is real. Go back to sleep and take a rest so that I could finally take you for lunch, dinner or even breakfast when you're completely healed," he ruffled your hair.

"Good night, Wonwoo. Sweet dreams," you smiled at him before closing your eyes. Wonwoo turned off the lights of your room and left to take a rest too.

'I am totally a fool for love,' he thought.

The day finally came where Wonwoo could finally take you to the restaurant for a date and you swear, this is the only date both of you had after almost 2 months of being discharged at the hospital. He made it clear, though. 'From now on, you're my girlfriend and I am yours.' That was 2 months ago after he fetched you at the hospital. He stayed by your side even if you don't need help with cleaning your stitches. He almost lived at your house too but you didn't care because you love him.

He also told you that the reason of his bleeding is you. Of course you felt bad but he told you, 'you don't have to because I already have the cure.' You remembered you asked what and he answered, "It's not what, it's who and it's you, my love." Butterflies were dancing in your stomach back then. Although every day with him always made you feel butterflies at your stomach, you still won't get used to it.

"Y/n, I told you every thing you wear is perfect. You look beautiful on whatever you wear," Wonwoo said trying to convince you to finally settle for something to wear because he's already hungry.

"Alright, alright. How do I look?"

Wonwoo licked his lips, "Perfect."

You rolled your eyes before giving him a peck. "Let's go, you must be starving."

When you arrived, you didn't know Wonwoo would rent the whole restaurant just for the both of you. "Wonwoo... this is too much. I--"

Wonwoo placed his hands on your waist, "Did you not like it, hmm?"

You held his hands and placed it on top of your chest while you placed your head on his chest. Wonwoo just looked at you, eyes beaming with joy.

"I love it."

"Thank you for being my cure, Wonwoo," you looked up to him, tears trying to escape your eyes. He held the back of your head and leaned in for a passionate kiss.

"I love you," you said in between his kisses.

Wonwoo placed his forehead on yours.

"I will love you with all my heart, with all my blood. Always."

                                               Warming you up

                                               by wonwhomps

A/n: How are you? How am I? First of all, I thank you, yes you! For reading my works. I wouldn't be motivated to write if it wasn't for you. I thank myself as well, for always making plots that eventually urged me to spare half of my time writing every day. It's hard to write when school is on going but I can manage. Writing is my escape, I guess. Sorry for the grammatical errors found in the story, I'll proof-read my stories when I have an open schedule. I hope you were somehow moved by this story. It's my first ever 10k words story tbh. I'll end my note by shamelessly promoting my other fanfictions found here. Also, I'll post some of my works at Wattpad and it would be truly helpful if you come visit it there. Thank you! xx

Story trailer

Masterlist

Medical terms used above:

Disclaimer: This information is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, emergency treatment or formal first-aid training. Don't use this information to diagnose or develop a treatment plan for a health problem or disease without consulting a qualified health care provider. If you're in a life-threatening or emergency medical situation, seek medical assistance immediately.

▸Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) - is a device placed under your skin. It also contains a computer that tracks your heart rate and rhythm.  If your heart beats way too fast or is very out of rhythm, the ICD sends out a shock to get it back into rhythm ▸Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) - is an emergency procedure that combines chest compressions often with artificial ventilation in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person who is in cardiac arrest.

▸Povidone-iodine (PVP-I) - also known as iodopovidone, is an antiseptic used for skin disinfection before and after surgery. It may be used both to disinfect the hands of healthcare providers and the skin of the person they are caring for. It may also be used for minor wounds.

▸Hypothermia -  is a medical emergency that occurs when your body loses heat faster than it can produce heat, causing a dangerously low body temperature.

▸Trypanophobia -  is an extreme fear of medical procedures involving injections or hypodermic needles.

Others:

▸Grievous Bodily Harm (GDR) - is a term used in English criminal law to describe the severest forms of assault. It refers to two offences that are respectively created by sections 18 and 20 of the Offences against the Person Act 1861.

▸Alstroemeria - is the flower most representative of friendship, so you will find it in many friendship bouquets. This flower also symbolizes good fortune and prosperity, so it offers double meaning.

[unsaidmar]

WC: 2.5k (long winded girl, I know)

Plot: They share stuff and it changes how they see things. Connection ensues. 

CW: Mentions of death, illness, hospitals I guess, violence.

a/n: Hello y’all. This is part two of whatever the fuck is going on inside my pea brain. Hope you enjoy.

Part one, the meeting. 

Two; It’s better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.

She laughed at the awkwardness of the text and the perfect grammar Dr. Spencer Reid maintained while texting. Ollie made a mental note to care a little more about the phrasing of her own texts, especially considering the circumstances. To say she wanted to impress him was an understatement.

“Good, germs are yucky.” Sent at 7:45 am.

“Also, hi. Good morning” Sent at 7:45 am.

Good morning? Too much too soon? She fell victim to her overthinking for at least twenty minutes after sending her last text, realizing she had to slowly build up the courage to ask about the next time they would be seeing each other, which apparently would have to wait, since Spencer had an inconvenient schedule and could be out of the state in a matter of 20 minutes.  Ollie exhaled and stood up from her awful office chair to go and make herself some coffee, hoping to stop her mind from reeling and sending her into her usual never-ending pit of despair and anxiety that came with stepping out of her comfort zone.

A ping echoed in the room and her screen lit up, displaying a text from the one person she had been thinking about. Ollies mother would be crying laughing if she saw the state she was in, positively losing hair over the fact that a cute, smart, witty man was texting her back. A man she had spoken to for the first time not even 24 hours prior.

“I’m a nice person, I’m funny sometimes, I offered him coffee.” She whispered to herself, rationalizing every aspect of their interaction. “That’s how friendships start” She laughed bitterly. “I’m here… freaking… wishful thinking, and maybe he has a significant other… maybe he doesn’t even like women… maybe he just thought I was nice and he thought ‘yay, a new friend’… fuck” she plopped herself back on the chair and threw her head back.

Lia would have known what the right thing to do is, she would come up with a cool thing to text back on the spot, and she resented her absence like she had a million times before. Ollie had gotten used to writing her letters like her best friend was living somewhere else in the world and she would eventually read her friend’s attempt at keeping her updated, which she knew was not healthy and definitely not helping her move on.

The thing is, Lia’s death was not a surprise at all. It was a possibility to the point of actually being expected. She had been diagnosed as a terminal patient for a little over a year before she passed and almost everyone around her had made peace with the fact that she could go any day and that life would have to go on without her, but no amount of grief counseling and encouraging talks with Lia’s family could have prepared her for the unimaginable pain Ollie felt when it happened. She had heard about experiences that made the world turn upside down and how some life events made you go numb and make your legs give weight, but had never come face to face with a happenstance that painful.

She figured she was going to have to carry the burden of her loss till the day she died, and even then, the words “I missed you, till the very end.” would be carved in her grave.

Coming back from her spiral, she remembered how she fell down the rabbit hole in the first place. She took her phone with the intention of texting Spencer back and smiled at how stupid she had been to worry about seeing him again.

“Hey, arrest made successfully. Are you busy right now?” Sent at 7:57 am.

Sighing with relief, Ollie smiled and tried to sound casual with her reply as to not sound like seeing him again was the only thing she had been thinking about.

“I’m the boss, I can un-busy myself. Why? Were you charmed by my Keurig?” Sent at 8:00 am.

Spencer was not the kind to send sassy texts, or any text for that matter. This was completely new to him and he was determined to get it right, so he channeled the Derek Morgan that lived within him and prayed to whatever deity was looking out for him to make him sound cooler than he was feeling.

“I’m a sucker for coffee so, yes.” Sent at 8:05

 “I’m a sucker for you, apparently” Ollie nearly screamed at how quickly that came out of her mouth. “Fucking loser, dear God” She shook her head, scolding herself and whatever hamster was in charge of her brain and thought process.

“Mi oficina es tu oficina, then. I’ll be waiting.” Sent at 8:07

Twenty minutes later, he was there, coffee cup in his hands. After what felt like no time at all, they were four coffee cups deep into their conversation and had learned a lot more about each other. Turns out Spencer had a day off after they landed from an away case, he had a thing with germs, his favorite color was purple and his co-workers were more his family than just the people he happened to work with. He liked a bunch of sugar with his coffee and had an eidetic memory that was as much of a blessing as it was a curse.

He was impressed at how this girl was not what you would expect her to be, every aspect of her seemed to make no sense and at the same time, it made perfect sense. This purple haired girl had ADHD and a PhD in history, she was the oldest daughter of two of the most stubborn Mexican immigrants and had a sister that made even the most patient of humans go mad. She loved music, and was not ashamed to admit that her taste in music was far from sophisticated. “I am Taylor Swift’s bitch; I know the words to every single one of her songs! Same goes for One Direction too” She argued when Spencer said that it couldn’t be that bad.

A blaring ring halted their conversation to an unexpected stop. Ollie picked up the office phone with an annoyed grimace and exchanged a few words with whoever was calling.

“Hold that thought, I have to go sign a thingy at the front desk” She dashed out of her office and left Spencer there.

For the first time, he felt compelled to look around and fixate on the details. There were a few old looking pictures and some newer ones with people who looked a lot like her. There was one picture that caught his attention, isolated from the rest like it deserved a spot of its own. In it, there was a red-haired girl that looked around Ollie’s age, one of her arms around her waist and the other one cradling her head that was laying on her shoulder. Ollie’s eyes were closed and the red head looked like she was caught mid-sentence. Stuck to the frame was a little post it note that read “I love you, head ass. -Lia” It looked intimate, they were clearly comfortable with that kind of physical affection, and if Lia hadn’t called Ollie a head ass in the post it, he would have assumed they were together romantically.

Ollie came back in a hurry, apologizing for having to run out like that and sitting back down to resume their conversation.

“It’s okay, don’t worry” Spencer assured her. “I was looking at your pictures, I hope you don’t mind” He said, suddenly very aware of how invasive that could be.

“Not at all, those are there to be looked at” She shrugged, bracing herself for the question she knew was coming. Somehow, talking about Lia with him did not feel as dreadful as it had all those times she was asked about it before, perhaps it’s just him and his calming presence.

Sure enough, he pointed at the picture Lia had framed for valentine’s day and asked, “Who’s that?”.

“That’s Lia, she was my best friend. She is my best friend.” She smiled fondly, something that had never happened before when talking about this specific topic. Maybe sharing Lia’s memory with someone who didn’t know her was different. “She passed away almost a year and a half ago. 468 days ago, to be exact. She was really sick, it was inevitable” Ollie let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding, reaching for the post it and tracing the words over with her finger.

“I’m so sorry, I can’t imagine how hard that must have been”

“It was… heartbreaking. Even with all that time we had to process the news, it still took me off guard.” She shook her head trying to ground herself. “Anyways, that’s a sad topic. I don’t want to bum you out with it.”

He knew the feeling all too well, he had apologized to several people when he rambled about Maeve, feeling like he had said too much and gotten too personal. He was not about to let this beautiful, vibrant soul feel the way he had for so long. Like he still did, truly.

“Don’t apologize, I get it. You’re not making me sad” He felt like he needed to elaborate to actually convey the message. “I went through the same thing with someone I loved too” he said, looking down at his hands, the very familiar feeling of oversharing creeping in. As he looked up, he noticed the sad look Ollie was giving him, but if the profiler in him was right, she was inviting him to share, not to stop.

“Her name was Maeve. She… she was a geneticist. She helped me through a rough time and she became my friend. It’s a long story…” he looked away.

“I want to hear it, long or not. But only if you want me to.” She gave him the warmest smile she could muster, which convinced him to keep going.

“Um, I started getting some headaches a while ago. I went to a few doctors but none of them gave me an answer. I reached out to Maeve for help and… We bonded, I guess.” He took a shaky breath.

“You don’t have to continue if you feel uncomfortable” she whispered in the most delicate tone.

“No, it’s not that. It’s just… I’ve never told this story before. Everyone in my life that I care about was there to see it.” He said, meeting her eyes so she could see how honest he was being. The man got a hold of himself for a minute, and continued.

“Maeve had to go into hiding. She was being stalked by some woman she met at work. Beyond talking on the phone, we hadn’t even met. I had no idea what she looked like and vice versa. This girl, the stalker… She wrote a paper, and Maeve dismissed it because it didn’t have a good enough foundation. When she started stalking her, she scared her into hiding and eventually started dating her ex-fiancé to try and get closer to Maeve, assuming he knew where she was. They ended up finding her and confronting her. She shot herself and the first person I ever loved. Right in front of me and my friends. The first five minutes I got with Maeve face to face, were the last.”

Baring his soul to a person he had known for a whooping 18 hours was the weirdest thing Spencer had ever done, so unlike himself it was almost funny. But at the same time, he felt like it had to happen. By no means did he believe in fate or destiny, but this one moment made him feel like maybe whoever does believe in that stuff, is not completely wrong.

She was not a therapist. She listened because she was going through a similar thing herself and her interest in Spencer’s loss was not rooted in psychoanalyzing him and helping him cope. She was just a mundane human that did not look at him with condescension and pity, she looked at him like she, too, had found a person who wouldn’t ask her “And, how does that make you feel?” in a monotonous voice. They both knew better than to assume they had all the answers.

“Spencer, that’s horrible. I am so sorry you had to see that. Jesus, fuck. I- “She thought about her next words very carefully. “That’s enough to crush anyone’s spirit” She looked at him like he was turning green. The reason being, he did not look like he was crushed. He had a beautiful smile that shook Ollie to her core, he was easygoing and conversation with him was carefree and it flowed easily. If he had not told her about Maeve, she would not have guessed the man sitting right in front of her was as affected as her.

“How did you manage to get through that?” Ollie questioned, fully intending to take notes.

“I don’t really think I have yet…” Well, time to come clean. Spencer thought. “The whole reason I was here yesterday, and a lot more times before that one, is because she and I talked about this museum. She told me about some conferences she had attended here and we made plans to visit together. Doesn’t quite sound like someone who’s over the whole thing.” He fiddled with his fingers, suddenly too aware of how cold it was. “How did you get through Lia’s death?”

“Yeah, well. I don’t really think I’m quite there either. Not like I’m trying, anyways. I can’t seem to get away from the Grey Roots either” Mental images of two little kids running around with dusty books in their hands came to her and she couldn’t help the small smile she broke into.

“I’m a hopeless romantic at heart, I have always thought that the way Lia and I found each other was pure magic. We met when we were in the second grade, right in this museum, we were on a field trip and we clicked. It was crazy to me that I actually met my best friend at such a young age, and the kind that lasts forever too. It sounds like when people meet the love of their lives on their first try. It sounds dorky, I know”

“It doesn’t. If anything, it sounds like you consider yourself lucky to have loved her like you did. We need more people like that, people that believe in magic.” Spencer reassured her with a shrug. He wished he could believe in cute stuff like that, but he was happy Ollie led a life that made her believe.

“Yeah, but us crazy people, we get our hopes up too easily. Sometimes it hurts.”

“Tell me about it.”

And just like that, in the not so well-lit office of the head Conservator of the Grey Roots Museum and Archive, something in the world had shifted.

[theultimatefanficwriter]

Ahhh, can I request a scenario for Gundham trying to comfort his girlfriend after a particularly draining trial when she’s out of it?? I only recently got into Danganronpa and found this blog and I’m in love 🥰

Heck yeah I love Gundham! I’m glad you like my blog! Thank you for the request! 

Even a Queen Must Rest-Gundham Tanaka x Reader

You were not ok.

Your best friend on this island, Ibuki Mioda, was just found dead. And to make matters worse, your boyfriend, Gundham Tanaka, was the prime suspect.

"I am telling you fiends, it is not me!" Gundham snapped, glaring at the others who were giving him suspicious looks.

"It's not Gundham!" You agreed. "He would never kill Ibuki!"

"I concur! Gundham cannot be the culprit!" Your other best friend, Sonia Nevermind, spoke up. Gundham gave the both of you grateful looks.

"But the evidence lines up for it to be him!" Kazuichi rebutted. "Ibuki was strangled, and Gundham's scarf was found at the crime scene!"

"I have already informed you that my protective neck wear had gone missing from my quarters at the start of the day." The breeder snapped at the mechanic, crossing his arms. "It is quite possible that a mortal familiar with picking or breaking locks could have snuck into my residence and stolen my beloved scarf."

"But we have no way of confirming that the scarf was really missing, do we?" Kaz pressed.

You rolled your eyes. "He was seen without it the entire day, you idiot!" You spat. "And would he really be so stupid as to leave his scarf there in plain sight if he really was the killer?"

"I mean, yes? Probably." Kazuichi shrugged. "I dunno, he never struck me as that smart."

"But Mr. Hamster Man doesn't have an alibi either!" Hiyoko changed the subject in order to keep the trial going. "He wasn't with anyone at that loud mouth's time of death, not even his slut!"

"Refrain from calling my queen such names if you wish to keep your tongue." Your boyfriend threatened. "And although it is true I do not have an alibi, it is because I was busy searching for San-D, as she had vanished."

"My, you seem to be losing quite a few things today." Nagito mused, leaning forward on his podium. "Hopefully you won't be causing us to lose this trial because of it."

"If Gundham was searching for his hamster around all the islands, surely someone had to have seen him at some point, right?" Hajime questioned, ignoring Nagito. He glanced around the trial room looking for any type of response.

Gundham copied him, and was beginning to get worried until Mikan spoke up. "Oh! W-wait, I think I r-remember something!"

His gaze shot over to her. "Yes? What is it, spit it out!"

The nurse squeaked and hid behind her hair. "Eek! I-I'm sorry! I'll speak f-faster!" She looked between everyone as she continued. "I-I was walking around the beach when I thought I saw Gundham's h-hairstyle in the distance. As I kept walking, I was sure it was him from his clothes, th-though I didn't see his scarf, which I thought was odd. B-before I could say anything he ran away, and I k-kinda forgot about it."

"Around what time was this, Mikan?" Hajime asked her.

The shy girl put a finger to her chin as she thought. "U-um. Around 10:35, I think?"

Gundham, Sonia, and yourself let out a loud sigh of relief. "That's five minutes after the time of death." You pointed out. "And unless Gundham has some sort of super speed, there's no way he could get from the music venue to the beach in five minutes."

Kazuichi's eyes widened, and you noticed he began to sweat. "I-it's still possible!" He insisted.

"Why are you so insistent on pinning me as the killer, Kazuichi?" Gundham demanded, glaring at the mechanic.

"You're the only lead we have!" Souda exclaimed. "If it's not you, then who is it?!"

"Hey, does anybody else think it's weird that the speakers in the music venue were fixed?" Chiaki said suddenly. "When Ibuki had her concert the day before, didn't one of them break?"

"Yeah, I fixed it. So?" Kazuichi shrugged.

Your eyes narrowed. "When did you have the time?" You asked him.

Kaz stiffened and turned to look at you. "Wh-what?"

"When did you have the time to fix the speaker?" You repeated. "It couldn't have been the night of Ibuki's concert. You left as soon as it was over. And you were seen with Sonia until 10:00 today, when you said you had to go do something."

The whole room went quiet.

"I-it's not what you think!" Kazuichi shook his head and waved his hands wildly, sweat pouring down his face. "I-I just fixed it sometime today!"

"Why would you fix the speaker during a murder investigation?" Hajime questioned, narrowing his eyes at the freaked out mechanic.

"T-tinkering with stuff helps me calm down!" Kaz claimed. "S-seriously, if you guys are trying to say it's me, it's not!"

Suddenly Jum-P popped out of Gundham's scarf and jumped across the podium until he reached Souda's. When he was there he climbed up the mechanic's jumpsuit and picked at it. Kazuichi yelped and brushed at the hamster, but it only made it's way back to Gundham. Safely back in his master's hands, the breeder inspected what his Deva had given him. "It seems Jum-P has given us a new clue." The Overlord of Ice informed the others. He held something up with his fingers, and Kazuichi looked about ready to run away.

It was a piece of purple cloth. The same cloth from Gundham's scarf.

"I-I have no idea how that got on my jumpsuit!" Souda insisted. "It's not me! I didn't kill Ibuki! I'm not a murderer!"

Hajime did his thing, explaining how it went down and why. Apparently Ibuki had asked Kazuichi the night of the concert to ask him to fix the speaker the next day, to which he agreed to. He then got an idea of how to kill someone, and frame his "love rival", Gundham. He used his tools to break Gundham's lock while he was asleep and stole his scarf and San-D as a way to keep Gundham busy, then fixed the lock. He then met with Ibuki and fixed the speaker. Then when her back was turned, he strangled her with the breeder's scarf, leaving it behind as evidence.

Everyone voted for him, and he was executed. You all shambled your way to the elevator and made your way to your homes. Normally you would have said something to Gundham, but you felt dead inside. You had no energy. You walked past everyone, including him, as you entered your home.

You fell asleep immediately.

The next morning you woke up to a loud pounding on your door. You blinked open your eyes groggily as you rubbed them. You slowly threw your legs over the side of your bed and tiredly made your way to the door. When you opened it, you saw a very concerned looking Gundham. When he saw you, relief filled his face. "Oh thank the Gods!" He breathed before pulling you into a tight embrace.

You squeaked in surprise. "G-Gundham!" You exclaimed. "Did something happen?"

He pulled away, holding your hand. "When you did not arrive to our morning meal I became concerned, my love. I was worried something awful had happened to you."

You furrowed your brow. "Morning meal...Gundham, the morning announcement hasn't even happened yet."

Your boyfriend looked at you quizzically. "My Goddess...The cursed bear made his announcement nearly an hour and a half ago."

Your eyes widened. "...What?" When Gundham nodded, you rubbed your eyes and shook your head. "I...I slept through that loud announcement?"

"You must be truly exhausted to have slumbered through such a loud call." Gundham mused, looking at you worriedly. He grabbed your hand and gently led you into your room, closing the door behind him. He walked over to your bed and sat on it, you doing the same. He wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you into his side. "I assume your current state is due to the events of the previous night?" Gundham asked.

You nodded as you laid your head on your boyfriend's shoulder. "I...I lost Ibuki. And Kazuichi tried to frame you!" You wrapped your arms around him tightly. "I fought with all I had to prove you innocent, because I know you would never kill somebody." You let out a long sigh. "I guess it used up all my energy."

The breeder looked down at you sadly and ran his fingers through your hair. "My darling queen." He whispered, pulling you into his chest with his other arm. "You did an excellent job last night. One could never have guessed you used even a fourth of your power, you held yourself as proudly as a queen should!"

You blushed slightly and chuckled softly. "Th-thanks, Gundham." You smiled. "Though it honestly didn't feel that way. It was taking all I had not to faint in the middle of the trial. Just the thought of those idiots voting wrong and causing us all to die was stressing me out so much." You closed your eyes as he nuzzled into your boyfriend's chest. "Even now, I'm so exhausted. I feel like I could sleep for years."

Gundham placed a light kiss on the top of your head. "My beautiful angel of darkness." He murmured softly. "You have no need to fear. None of those pathetic mortals could ever stand a chance against your brilliance." He let out a sigh. "And as much as it annoys me to admit this, the one with an unknown talent, the ever slumbering demoness, and to some degree the lucky one have yet to fail us, and have proven their intelligence at every turn."

You giggled softly at Gundham's speech, though even your laugh was halfhearted due to your lack of energy. "Yeah, without them we probably would have died at that first trial." As you thought about that, your exhaustion suddenly doubled, causing you to go limp in Gundham's arms.

Your boyfriend's eyes widened. "You are in a much worse condition than I originally perceived, my love!" He gently laid you down on the bed. "You must stay here and rest until you are well again." He stood and turned to leave.

You reached out a grabbed his hand, though your arm felt extremely heavy. "Wait...stay with me." You pleaded.

He turned to you and smiled sweetly. He bent down and swept a strand of hair from your face before placing a kiss on your forehead. "Do not fret, my angel. I am simply returning to the banquet hall to retrieve you your morning meal. I will return and stay with you while you recharge."

Your heart fluttered, and you nodded happily, placing your arm back beside you. "...thank you, Gundy." You murmured. You still weren't quite used to how much he cared about you.

Gundham blushed slightly at the name. He nodded and placed one last kiss on your forehead before turning and exiting your cabin.

As the door closed behind him, you smiled to yourself. You felt so lucky to have him. He was so sweet and protective of you. It made you feel so safe. You let out a happy sigh as you shut your eyes.

What felt like just seconds later, your door opened, and you blinked your eyes open to see Gundham carrying a tray of waffles, eggs and bacon over to you. "I am sorry it took so long, my love. I am afraid I got caught in an argument with the lucky one." Gundham apologized as he sat next to you, placing the tray beside you.

"Nagito?" You raised a brow as you pulled yourself to a sitting position. "What did you argue about?"

Gundham sighed and crossed his arms, watching you as you picked up the fork and took a bite of eggs. "I am afraid it was over you, my dark queen."

You looked up at him, surprised. "Me?! What about me?"

"The interaction started innocent enough." Gundham explained. "He asked where you were, and I explained you were feeling ill." The breeder scowled. "That pest then had the gall to assume you were faking your illness! He stated you could be attempting to lull us to a state of security before you strike." He looked into your eyes, and you could see the anger in them. "He even had the nerve to insinuate that I would be your target."

Your eyes widened at that, and you choked on the apple juice you had been drinking. Gundham looked to you concerned, but you waved him off. After coughing for a moment, you spun your head to look at him. "He said what?!" You exclaimed. "G-Gundham, I would never-!"

"Relax, my Queen." Gundham reached forward and caressed your face. "Do not fret. I am aware the deranged one's words are not to be trusted." He smiled lovingly at you. "You would never harm me, I know this." You gave him a relieved smile and relaxed at his touch. The breeder used his other hand to sweep a strand of hair behind your ear. "That is when it became an argument. I defended your honor, yet he simply 'warned' me to be wary of you." Gundham scoffed before pulling you into a gentle kiss.

You melted into the kiss immediately, placing the tray of food to the side in order for you to lean further into your boyfriend's touch. "I would never hurt you, Gundham." You muttered. "I feel important around you. I feel...strong." You smiled up at him, the light in your eyes returning slightly. "Even now, I feel a little bit stronger just by being next to you."

Gundham chuckled and ran his fingers through your hair. "You are important, dearest one. I am simply helping you realize your true worth." He kissed you again, then pulled away, a soft smile on his lips. He looked at you for a while, simply caressing your face, until he finally pulled back and handed you the tray once more. "As much as I would love to gaze at your beauty, you really must eat, my dark queen."

You smiled and nodded, continuing to eat the food before you. With each bite and caring look from Gundham you could feel your strength returning to you. Eventually you had finished eating. As you placed the empty tray to the side, you felt much better. You looked over to Gundham, who was simply watching you with a love struck smile. It made you giggle. You moved closer to him and wrapped your arms arms his neck. "I feel much better, my Dark Lord." You murmured.

He chuckled and rubbed your sides gently. "I am most please to hear that, my Dark Queen." He tilted your head up, and your eyes met. You grinned and leaned up, connecting your lips in a passionate kiss. You felt him smirk as he pulled you close against him. "I shall always be here for you, Y/N, my beloved. Whether it be for protection, or to help you recuperate, I shall never leave your side." He muttered into your lips.

You smiled happily as you deepened the kiss. "Nor I yours, my King of Darkness."

[velociraptors-dont-lie]

My way

Pairing : Din Djarin x OC

Blurb: When something bad happens it’s unsure what one will do in the face of something new and scary. For one such as her, the role seems small, unimportant and yet she’ll do it all her way for the child in her care.

A/N : I wasn’t gonna post this because it seems a bit too ...meh. i dont even have a proper vision for this yet but...im sure it’ll come to me. i got into the star wars universe recently so im a bit uneducated which...kinda works for this story actually. Lemme know any thoughts though. 

Warnings: None? i don’t think in this chapter

Part Two

Chapter One: Arrival

There's a Galaxy not too far away.

It's beautiful. It's everything she could have possibly asked for and it's right there in her sights. It feels almost as if she could reach out and touch it, so close and yet so far away. So many things it could have been, yet it was a simple yet complex Galaxy that caught her eye in the dark space around her.  

Sighing, she looks away from the hunger-inducing chocolate bar and continues to work with her higher-paid...male coworkers.  

They bustled and ranted from all around her, flanked from all sides as she tried to figure just why they didn't treat her with the same respect other females in the workplace got.

Perhaps it was her clothes, her blue hair? her choice in jewelry perhaps? Everything about her seemed perfectly normal, she was fairly normal, kind, and helpful...so why did they seem to hate her so much?

Maybe it wasn't hate so much as indifference. They did thank her when she brought their coffee or tea and they did say please when they asked her for stuff. She smoothed down the black pencil skirt as she looked upon the notes and files on her desk.

The place of her work wasn't entirely for the simple. Sure there was the usual lab work, science work involving different studies, the particular area in which she was interning for, was Space.

Time and space.

The small team of scientists were working on several theories and tests all at the same time. Files from new technology to new ways to travel in space came through her desk each day.

Never had she thought something quite like this would be obtainable.

Pens, rocks, different fabrics, all of which had gone through the test of teleportation into space. The landings were screwy, some rocks landed in the dead nonexistent atmosphere, forever suspended.

Others had landed on different planets. Only discernible if the tracker still worked.

Three hamsters had died in transportation, more had suffocated in space...she knew which idiot had forgotten to put them in a sealed oxygenated box.

There were more failures than successes and they were no closer to their goal of finding out what lay on the other side of a Galaxy.

The day had started off like any other. She pined for her chocolate, pined for her soft fuzzy socks and warmth of her bed. As much as she loved that she had gotten into one of the most wanted lab spots as an intern.

She wished she was more than just an intern.

The light pink shirt she wore blended nicely between her blue hair and black pencil skirt; black heeled shoes completing the air of sophistication.  Everything seemed fairly normal except for the people.

They'd never been like this. The workplace always used to be kind and safe, now she just felt odd and scared. It was silent and they all looked at her with passing glances, hoping she wasn't realizing that they were staring sometimes.

It was awfully suspicious. All-day they'd be secretive, more so than usual and it was really starting to creep her out. So she reached down and picked up her bag from the floor, heading for the first reception out of the building.

''I'm heading home for the day, I don't feel too good.''

''Of course, Nora. I hope you feel better. Oh! quickly before you go-'' Nora rejected the urge to roll her eyes. Anticipating the gold medal run for Talking in the Olympics for England, Nora was ready for her feet to be aching, instead what she felt was entirely different.

The woman was still talking as the pinch in her neck subsided, Nora's eyes falling shut immediately, the world going blank as she fell back into the waiting arms of a coworker.

Well, Ex-coworker.

Waking up was a feat in itself. She felt hot, courtesy of the fact that they had stuffed her into a spacesuit, where they had acquired the thing or where they had put her favourite pair of shoes were the questions on her mind.

Aside from the obvious 'what the fuck are they doing to me' question in big bold letters, screaming itself in her head. At least it was before the realization set in.

They'd thrown her into a spacesuit without taking off her underclothes, her skirt bunched uncomfortably under it, she had no socks on in the giant boots. The vacuum-sealed room had only one exit and it was locked tight.

Though it wasn't entirely empty. She was there yes, but so were her shoes and her bag. ''THose are for you to keep in event you end up somewhere...alive.''

The head of their little team spoke on the other side of the glass. He used to be kind, he used to smile all the time and now he just looked evil, devoid of any emotion.  

''Please don't do this!'' It wasn't hard for them to hear her, the helmet's comm was connected to the entire room and she could hear her echo. ''I'll die!''

''Nonsense. You're the best human candidate we have for this test.''

''I never fucking volunteered! Asshole!'' She pounded her fist against the window, the fight in her was dead but she was going to act as if she had any chance of getting out of that room. ''People will look for me. They will miss me!''

''There's nothing to look for here. You left early after suddenly coming down with an illness.''  Anita's face fell, her own excuse being used against her so all her friends would think she was just another missing person.

''Fire it up.''

She could feel the rumble beneath her feet, the telltale startup of the machine. They actually going to do this. ''No! This is inhuman! Monstrous! Please don't!''

Ignored, the head starting barking more orders, muffled and incoherent as he turned off the comm connection. The lights in the room flickered, computer screens and phone screens, electricity could all but be seen in the air.

This was new. Something they seemed to have done behind her back. The normal machine never took so much power to be used, and she wondered just what needed so much power.

The answer came in the form of a strong wind. A pull from behind her and she could see that her bag was moving towards it.  

Space. In the palm of their hand, contained in this tiny room. They had opened a portal nearby to the andromeda galaxy, or it so seemed like they had done it. Anita couldn't actually see the galaxy, nor any galaxy or star, just the vast darkness of space.

Anita gathered her grey bag, shoving her shoes into it as she turned back to the window, banging on it in fear as she pleaded with them to stop this. Pleaded with their humanity that she would stay silent about this if they just let her out.

All her coworkers stayed still, neither moving nor blinking at the show of science in front of them. Whatever force of gravity was pulling her away was getting stronger, her instant hold on anything was pure instinct.

Though it was not strong enough. The gloves didn't allow for the same grip she would have had without them on.  She felt her hands slipping and when she eventually had been pulled from the bar.

The loss of gravity felt strange, as though she were in an elevator, her entire being felt weightless but it still terrified her to no end. On the edge of hyperventilating, she suddenly felt the sucking vacuum once again before Gravity dropped her to the ground.

Anita felt relief, eyes closed she thought perhaps the machine hadn't worked, that it had turned off and failed. On the contrary, The machine had worked too well.

The room she was in was empty. The scientists were baffled and the entire building was dark, everything within a five-mile radius was dark as the power had been used for the machine. The only thing that told the scientists that it had worked, was the lights they checked when they managed to get everything back on.

When Anita opened her eyes, the relief vanished and fear had returned. The ground underneath her was not white and tiled, it was brown and...sand, her helmet had cracked and she hear the air whistling through the tight gap as the wind blew.

She'd had been dead if she couldn't breathe the atmosphere so it had to be at least similar to Earths atmosphere. She was warm, too warm and she didn't know if it was because her heart was pounding or because of the sun looming overhead.

Wrenching off the bulky helmet, Anita worked on stripping the heavy and hot suit from her body which left her in just her smart work clothes and a labcoat. Anita's cries were loud, no one was around to hear them and she had to let out some of the emotions she was feeling.

She couldn't believe they had done that to her. She had worked with them for months and thought she was their friend. To be thrown away so easily wasn't something Anita was used to and crying in the middle of a desert, barefoot and at risk of cancer was something she never expected to be doing.

She picked up her bag, heels poking out the edge, and hugged to her chest. the only familiar thing around her wasn't going to leave her sight.  The sand was hot on her toes, tears still falling as she stood to her feet and wondered which direction to walk in to find any sort of civilization or place to set a base up.

She hadn't known how long she had been walking, sand was stuck to her feet as sweat dripped down her legs. Flyaway blue hairs stuck to her head and she wished she had more than the tiny bottle of water she bought on the way to work.

She was scared, alone, and had no way of knowing where she was. She hadn't seen anything more than a random frog-like thing hopping around. The racing heart and mind were only just starting to calm down when she heard shouting in a foreign language.

Something shot at her, just barely missing her toes in the sand and Anita screamed. Falling to her knees and throwing her hands in the air as non-threateningly as she could possibly get.  Hands roughly grabbed and shoved down behind her back, forced back to her feet and to walk in a direction different to the one she was going in.

''Please, I don't understand!!''

The strange beings that had seemed to take her prisoner continued to force her forward. Only 4 of them but the glimpse of red and green skin was enough to make her realize she didn't want to see them.

''Quiet!''

Something in her dropped with relief that they seemed to know even a little bit of English. She half thought she could perhaps reason with them, try to get them to let her go in any direction they were not in.

The feel of a gun barrel told her not to speak again though. Anita regretted not doing so as they walked over a large dune, an encampment sitting there looking all...suspicious to her.  More of the people who had captured her were walking around it, seemingly keeping guard of the place which only further cemented the fact that these were not good people...things.

They took her in and snatched her bag from her, one looked through it while the other pushed what looked like a metal egg towards her.

''Hey! B-be careful with those!'' Though scared, her phone was terribly expensive and she still wanted to keep all her familiar items from home even if some of them wouldn't work here.

The one with the gun like weapon jabbed her with the barrel and made a sound that told her to be quiet. pushing the metal egg into her thighs with more force. ''You care for it.''

''Care for what!? Is this thing alive!? It's an egg! Hey, now that is super duper expensive!'' Overwhelmed and jabbed once again with the gun barrel, Anita watched helplessly as the one with her bag dropped her perfume back in it without a care. She hoped it hadn't broken.

''Care for it!'' Hardly any other option at the end of a weapon, Anita wrapped her arms around the egg and held it close to her hoping to appease the thing talking in broken English. The other one threw her bag back down to the floor and they both left together, the large metal door shutting behind them heavily.

Evidently her only way out of the room, Anita had little choice but to sit on the floor and observe the metal egg she was given. It was white, but very clearly bashed up with a slit down the middle of the top end.

Anita squinted at what looked like buttons on the front of it. Gently tapping her painted fingernails on the metal, jumping when she heard a cooing sound muffled from within; her mouth made an 'o' shape at the realization that the egg itself wasn't alive, but there was instead something alive inside it.

She didn't want to open it. What if it was like those other things. What if it was scaly or had horns and sharp, what if it bit her entire hand off and she needed a metal hook to replace it!? Laughing at herself, Anita hovered her finger over the button counting to three before pressing it quickly and shuffling away on the off chance it would bite her.

The cooing sounded again, louder now it wasn't covered by the metal. Anita opened her eyes and glanced at it, thoroughly surprised by what she saw, for one, it was green...

And utterly adorable.

''Oh hiiii.'' Whatever it was cooed again at her tone and Anita held her breath, heart pounding for a completely different reason now. ''You've been kept in this pod thing like this the whole time?''

She questioned mostly to herself, as it seemed not to be able to speak actual words. It tilted its head, large green ears the size of her hands flopping a little at the tips and it made another sound as it reached its hands out to her.

Anita could almost burst out into tears, it wanted to be held and it looked so heartbrokenly neglected. She immediately swooped it from the weird metal bassinet thing and cradled it to her chest, wondering if her heart could break anymore when it closed its eyes and tapped its small green finger to the sound of her heartbeat.

''Oh honey, they've been treating you horridly haven't they?'' at this, it's hands bunched in her lab coat. The creature was obviously quite frightened, confused as to why it was so important to the other things and Anita had chosen her path in this new galaxy, right by this child's side for as long as it needed her.

''There's no need to be afraid anymore. I am your mother now and I will protect you.''

[drivingsideways]

WIP MEME! - Can we ask if not tagged? If yes: tkem Pac Rim OR tkem 'Gon dies' - your choice?

Of course you can ask! I’m flattered you’re interested! :) 

Pacrim AU- this is vaguely conceptualized more as a platonic soul bond au which I’d outlined over here but I didn’t (and still don’t!) have the energy and time it requires to write it properly! But I did write a prologue, a long time ago, so you get that! Fair warning: no kaiju involved yet! 

Untitled Pacrim AU: Prologue

Tae-eul is four when she waddles into the kitchen with flowers her mother has never seen before.

“Where did you get these?” Ha-ran asks, puzzled, trying to remember if there are some weeds she forgot to get at in their little garden. The bunch of bell-shaped, lavender-blue flowers doesn’t smell of anything in particular, the leaves covered in some kind of waxy-coating.

“I picked them in my dreams” Tae-eul explains, cheerfully. “They’re magic flowers”.

“Really?”

A vigorous nod.

"Oppa gave them to me" she says, "Because they're pretty and I wanted to show you."

"I see" her mother says, as she fills a jug with water to put the flowers in. "That was nice of him."

"Oppa is the sweetest boy" Tae-eul says, as she hoists herself onto a chair, and from thence to the kitchen table. "When I grow up, I'll marry oppa."

"Aren't you a bit young to be thinking about marriage?" her mother asks, distracted by the flowers, and wondering whether it was time to worry yet about her daughter's imaginary friend. Tae-eul is a perfectly normal, easy-going child in every other way. She makes friends easily, isn't a picky-eater, or given to temper tantrums- in fact, she's so sweet that Ha-ran gets envious ribbing from the other parents about her.

"But all the fairy tales end up with the princess marrying the prince" Tae-eul points out. "If you don't want me to think about it, why are you telling me those stories?"

Her forthright question—another thing Ha-ran liked about her daughter— that she thought about things and wasn't afraid to ask questions of authority—makes Ha-ran wince a little.

Out of the mouth of babes, Ha-ran thinks, amused and not a little sheepish.

"You're right, baby" she says, "We should expand our collection of stories. What kind of story do you want to listen to?"

"Frogs" says Tae-eul, decidedly. "Oppa says they're gross, but I think they're cute as they are, and don't need to be turned into princes."

It wasn't time to worry about the imaginary oppa, Ha-ran decides.

 Tae-eul talks about oppa for a few more months, and then stops, rather suddenly.

One Sunday morning, Ha-ran finds her crying quietly, hunched over in her corner of their tiny garden where Tae-eul's been trying to grow sunflowers.

"Sweetheart" she asks, concerned, "What's wrong?"

"Something bad happened to oppa" she sobs, "Something very bad."

"What happened?"

"Oppa's abeoji died" Tae-eul says, "Someone killed him. Oppa's gone."

Ha-ran is shocked into silence.

 What?

Tae-eul knows what death is— her beloved hamster had died just last month, which had necessitated The Talk, far earlier than Ha-ran would have wished, but nothing like this—

Ha-ran tries to recall if there'd been anything Tae-eul had read or seen recently that would have triggered this.

"Tae-eul" she says gently, "can you tell me what happened?"

"Oppa's abeoji died" Tae-eul repeats, still sobbing, "There was so much blood and noise and the man took the sword from oppa.…the flute broke" she adds, even more nonsensically, "And then oppa was gone."

"Gone where?" Ha-ran tries.

"I don't know" Tae-eul screams, flinging herself into Ha-ran's arms, "I don't know!! I called and called and called but then I was in my room and not in the palace and oppa was gone and now he won't come even when I call! I even said I won't call his clothes ugly any more but he won't answer!"

"Hush" Ha-ran says, cradling her close. "It's alright darling. Oppa's fine, he's just got school like you, right? He must be busy."

She really should have taken it more seriously, she thinks, but Tae-eul's chatter about her friend had never seemed very scary- the usual tales of childhood games and arguments—Ha-ran had thought that Tae-eul was just repeating things she'd witnessed in her play school—but this—

Palace? Sword? Man?

"He's not fine" Tae-eul says, in hiccupping sobs. "I know. He's not fine. He was so frightened he almost peed in his pants! And his abeoji—"

"Sweetheart" says Ha-ran, helplessly, "It was just a dream."

Tae-eul jerks back from her arms.

There's hurt in her lovely, sweet face as she looks up at Ha-ran.

"You don't believe me either" she says after a long silence. "Just like the others at school. You think I'm lying."

"No!" says Ha-ran, floundering. "A dream is not a lie, sweetheart, it's just not—real."

Tae-eul wipes at her eyes.

"Oppa is real" she says, "Oppa is as real as me."

"Tae-eul" says Ha-ran, unsure how to proceed.

Tae-eul gets up from the bench.

"I'm going to find him and bring him to you" she says, "Then you'll have to believe me."

There's something in her eyes that Ha-ran recognizes, with a shock, as hardness.

Her sweet, darling girl.

"I believe you" Ha-ran says, heart thumping in her chest. "Tae-eul, I believe you, darling."

Tae-eul shakes her head.

"You don't" she says, "I can see it. You think I've been telling you stories."

"Stories are as real as anything" Ha-ran says, desperately, "Stories aren't lies, sweetie. Just like dreams aren't lies."

Tae-eul blinks, rapidly, several times, and rubs again at her cheeks.

"Ok" she says, "Ok, eomma."

But she never talks to Ha-ran about her oppa again, and evades all questions about him.

Ha-ran watches for signs of distress, but after a week of being quiet, Tae-eul seems to go back to her usual self: sunny and bright and self-assured.

Ha-ran sighs in relief.

The lavender flowers finally wither in their vase.

****

 When Tae-eul is seven, Death visits the Jeong household again.

He lingers in the doorways, and rattles the window panes on the nights of that rainy autumn.

Ha-ran watches Tae-eul as she sleeps, having insisted on curling up with her mother under the layers of blankets, and worries about leaving her sunflower child alone in the world, untended.

She finds her mind drifting to the time when Tae-eul used to have an imaginary friend.

These days, she has plenty of real friends—Tae-eul seems to acquire them wherever she goes, at school, at church, in the park. She's never mentioned her oppa—what was the name she'd given him?—ah, yes, Lee Gon.

After The Incident, as Ha-ran had started to think of it, Ha-ran had actually searched for someone by that name. Had found seven of them, but none near Seoul, none who seemed to be in the right age group. She'd chided herself for being foolish, then.

But now, clinging to life by the thinnest of threads—and she can feel it fraying thinner with each difficult breath—she wonders, what if?

What lay beyond—

Last night, she had dreamt of a place she'd never seen before in her life, but had felt like home.

What if?

She had made her peace with it. The not knowing.

Wherever it was she went, she would take with her the memory of her daughter's smile, her laughter, her loving kisses, and warm breath.

It would ward off the cold.

[hopeswriting]

FANDOM: Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

EVENT: Flufftober 2020

PROMPT: Adopting a Pet Together

AUTHOR: @hopeswriting​​

RATING: G

PAIRING: TYL!Yamamoto/TYL!Hibari

SUMMARY:

Yamamoto brings Hibari to an animal shelter, and hopes it will cheer him up a little.

TAG WARNING: Implied/Reference Animal Death, Implied/Reference Animal Abuse

WORDS: 1415

*

“Good—good afternoon sirs.” The man takes even less than one look at Hibari and shifts his whole attention on a smiling Yamamoto. Not that Hibari is looking at him. He’s doing this thing where he’s scrutinizing the animal shelter while still definitely looking at him. “What can I help you with?”

“We just want to take a look,” Yamamoto says.

“Oh?” The relief is clear on his face at the prospect of having minimum interactions with them. “What about—” He glances at the stray cat in Hibari’s hands.

“No.” There’s a distinct lack of any emotions in Hibari’s voice, as distinct as the unmistakable shift in the air.

The man tenses even more, which Yamamoto didn’t think possible but he’s used to it by now. People just tend to surpass themselves around Hibari out of an overwhelming desire to not die.

Hissy nuzzles Hibari’s arm, unbothered, apparently already unaffected by the Hibari effect. That’s good, seeing as she’s most definitely coming back home with them.

“Sorry,” the man chokes out. He does meet Hibari’s eye, but maybe he’s just smart enough to not risk having him out of his sight. Not that it would change anything.

“Volunteer?” Hibari asks. Yamamoto glances at the badge pinned on his chest. Oh yeah, he is a volunteer. Poor guy.

“Yes, I’m—”

“How long?”

“Err, a long time?”

“This shelter is not up to standards, Herbivore.”

Yamamoto swallows a laugh at the dumbfounded look that crosses his face. But then it takes on an outraged expression, albeit his voice comes out shakily.

“Well sir, we’re not the ones you should be telling us that. All the employees here are doing the utmost best with the resources they’re given. These animals are cared for and loved and looked after with all of our heart. Of—of course it could be better, but we make a point to make sure they’re not unhappy at all. S-so—”

Hibari subtly straightens his back, and he quiets down. “Is that so?”

The man pales under Hiabri’s preying eyes. He swallows thickly, either subconsciously aware—or worse, very consciously aware of the threat building in the air.

Yamamoto takes pity at the sheer panicked look he gives him.

He steps closer to Hibari, slides his hand down his back to rest at the small of his back. “That’s good to know, sir. Isn’t it, Kyoya?” He brushes their shoulder together, ever so slightly.

“I suppose.” Hibari looks past the volunteer again, effectively dismissing him. “I’ll write you a check.”

“No way, I’ll do it.” Yamamoto swings him around to look at him eye to eye. “Out of my own money. For the animals, and as a proof of my love.” Hibari narrows his eyes, and he gives him his most serious, solemn expression. “Because I love you.”

“Disgusting. You’re lucky I didn’t train her yet.”

Yamamoto laughs when he shoves past him. He falls in steps behind him, hands in his pockets.

“Excuse-me sir? A—a check?”

“Uhm?” He turns back to the man, to the confused look on his face. “Oh yeah, you know, for the good of the animals.”

They’ve seen worse shelters by far. Maybe there are a little too many animals for a not big enough space in this one, but at first glance the place is clean, the cages too, and the animals look in good shape.

They’ll use the money right.

“I don’t know if… I’m allowed to…”

“Ah, I forgot.” He closes the distance, puts a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll come check in regularly, so make sure we’ll leave happy alright?” He smiles, wide and cold. He lowers his voice. “Or we’ll break you.”

Yamamoto goes on his merry way without looking back.

A grin quickly plasters itself on his face, and he devolves even quicker into using his baby voice. He waves at the cats, makes faces at bunnies and hamsters, and talks gibberish at every single one of them.

Barks and growls and meowing lead him to Hibari, crouched in front of a dog’s kennel.

Hissy is doing what she does best in the fifteen minutes Yamamoto knows her, that is hissing on all fours on Hibari’s knee. She’s all puffed out to make herself bigger, but is still nowhere near the dog’s size.

Hibari doesn’t even spare him a glance when he crouches beside him. He’s too busy giving praises and incentives and advice to both Hissy and Twilight, stroking Hissy alongside her back.

It does seem to spur the animals on, and Yamamoto wonders for the umpteenth time if Hibari actually mastered the animal language.

“Twilight too then?”

“We’re not calling her that.”

“And Chocolate too,” he adds, waving at the most adorable, chocolate brown puppy he has ever seen, in the kennel next to Twilight.

Hibari rolls his eyes, as if he wasn’t keeping his eye on the puppy all this time. He sneaks his fingers between the bars to stroke the fighting animals to a cease fire.

There’s a content and peaceful look on his face that warms Yamamoto’s heart, still sad and not a smile yet, but it’s the closer to happiness he’s seen him since weeks. His pants are dirty around his knees from when he knelt on the street until he won Hissy’s trust, and a burst of fondness overtakes him.

“Kiss?”

Hibari tilts his head without looking, and he plants a lingering kiss on his temple. He nuzzles his hair, and when Hibari tilts his head again, kisses his forehead.

They move on, go around the shelter back to the entrance. Yamamoto abruptly turns back before their last turn, and finds himself nose to nose with Hibari.

“You know what,” he laughs, not fooling anyone, “I think I want to see Twilight again.”

Hibari huffs. “I can hear them, I’m not deaf.”

“He was just so cute you know? We should go back the way we came.”

“You will move aside, Kitsune.”

Yamamoto bites his lip, but eventually and reluctantly lets him pass. He doesn’t move from his spot while Hibari strides the birds’ aisle.

This is too soon. Is this too soon? The others said it’d be too soon.

Well, Gokudera and Lambo did. Ryohei and Chrome thought it could help him move on, and Mukuro warned him it could go either way.

Tsuna gave a worrying “maybe”, but he didn’t get a bad feeling and his Hyper Intuition didn’t go off, so Yamamoto thought he could take the shot.

He tries to subtly get a feel of Cloud flames, but the way they snarl at him tells him he wasn’t so subtle.

“Kitsune.”

Yamamoto sighs and makes his way over. “I’m sorry Ky-chan, I’m just—”

“We’ll take this one too.”

The bird is busy eating, a beautiful white dove with black eyes and a black beak, a black collar at the nape of his neck. He doesn’t look anything like Hibird, but maybe that’s for the best.

“Are you sure? Please don’t feel like you have to become better quicker than it feels right because of me. I just—”

“Worry too much for nothing, as usual.”

“It’s not nothing,” Yamamoto says softly. He leans against him, and Hibari doesn’t move away. “Hug?”

There’s a beat of silence before Hibari puts Hissy down. There’s another beat where he strokes the top of her head before he stands back up, straight into Yamamoto’s arms.

He pretends to pull away, clicks his tongue. “Your perfume,” he says with impressive disdain in his voice.

Yamamoto laughs. “I know, I know, I’ll change it back.” He strokes the hair at the base of his neck, breathes in eagerly in their strawberry scent. “You know, Hibird isn’t in bird Heaven because he was your bird, but I’m sure he’s having the best time of his life in bird Hell.”

Hibari huffs a laugh, but then actually chuckles, low and husky at the back of his throat, his shoulders shaking. Yamamoto grins ear to ear, and pulls back to take in his happy face, the gleam in his eyes and the white of his teeth peeking through.

“Obviously, who do you think he was?”

“The best,” he says, bumping their foreheads together. “How should we call this little one?”

Hibari hums, shifting his head to look at the dove. “Blade.”

Yamamoto snorts, holds back his laugh as best he can, that is badly. “Terrible name.”

Hibari shuts him up with a biting kiss, and he’s happy to let him.

*

BONUS:

This is TYL but in a TYL!Verse where Byakuran isn’t trying to take over the world because, you know, they dealt with that.

Takeshi and Kyoya got together, err, at some point??? Not when they were teens in any case. Somewhere between after high school/reaching adulthood and when they hit 24/26 years old.

They got together because??? Not out of some lingering feelings from when they were teens in any case, of from a sudden realization of how the other is boyfriend material lol.

And Hibari’s type definitely includes “high battle skills” but he’s in it for other things too.

------

Maybe Takeshi was the one he used as intermediary to stay in touch with the other Guardians/Tsuna/the family business because he’s the one he tolerates the most.

Maybe Takeshi was the one Tsuna sent the most in mission with Hibari because he’s the one most successful to deal with Hibari being Hibari without it ending in a fight.

And maybe they learn to actually enjoy each other company instead of just tolerating/putting up with the other. And maybe they start hanging out with the other outside of family business.

And maybe they learn to appreciate the way they balance each other, and the way they make each other better, and the way they can deal with the other at their worst without, like, not allowing the other to be at their worst, you know? (Probably not lol.)

Yeah, something like that, that sounds nice.

------

Anyway, they’re together since a year or two here?

And Hibird died because??? Not some horrible death like a mafiosi wanting to take revenge on Hiabri or something anyway. Idk guys, birds just die sometimes.

So Hibird died and Hibari is sad. And he’s not going on a rampage because he’s 26 and learned how to deal with his emotions like a functioning adult. Well, as much as a functioning adult Hibari can become lol.

He does get more vicious and merciless in his missions. And more cold and with an even shorter patience when dealing with the others Guardians. And demands more alone time too.

And it’s been weeks like that, and Takeshi wants to give him back some happiness. He thinks maybe adopting a new pet would do him some good.

------

The actual, full pet names Hibari uses for Takeshi is Ao Kitsune (Blue Fox), for obvious reasons and also we’re not gonna talk about my poor tastes in pet names.

But only when he feels particularly proud because Takeshi’s messing with someone, or turned on because he’s being particularly serious in a fight, or mad but while still being in a loving mood.

Otherwise Kitsune it is (including in bed, yeah you didn’t ask but now you know lol).

Takeshi calls him Ky-chan, and we’re still not gonna talk about my lack of skills in choosing pet names. Kyoya isn’t much up to public display of affection tho, so it’s only when it’s just the two of them.

And it’s just Kyoya like, 80% of the time anyway because they both prefer it that way.

------

Hibari wants to call the dove Blade because white feathers, sword, Takeshi’s favored weapon, all that. It’s his way of saying thank you and showing how he appreciates what he did, and Takeshi knows it.

They do end up adopting all three animals, and all three names stay. Also no, we’re not going to talk either about how much worse I am at just naming things lmao.

*

Thank you for reading! Any and all review are appreciated ^^.

[ramblinganthropologist]

N7 Challenge - 5 (Cruelty)

Summary: It was cruel fate that stuck Garrus in that cafe, waiting for his fake date so they could get that mission going. He would’ve been so much better as the tech oversight guy... damn the fact Shepard’s too gay to pretend to be into a woman realistically.

(Aka, Chris plays fast and loose with the rules.)

ME1

---

It was a lovely day on the Citadel... and Garrus was in hell.

'Relax, you're as stiff as a board. Nobody's going to believe you're on a date like that.'

His mandibles twitched as he listened to Tali through his hidden transmitter. Normally, this was where his visor would come in handy... except he wasn't allowed to wear it. No, apparently that was against the first date dress code and he'd been made to leave it on the Normandy along with his armor and weapons.

Well, he had a pistol stowed away... but that wasn't the same as his rifle, damn it.

“I still don't get why I'm the one who had to do it.”

'We needed a tech expert, and Shepard says... Shepard, what did he say again?'

'He's too fucking gay to fake being into a woman, so Tali was out. You were the only one left, Mandibles.'

The other Shepard's deep voice disrupted the quarian's electronic tones. Garrus hadn't been expecting it – the sudden change made him wince a little. Luckily, nobody at the cafe noticed. They were too busy eye-fucking their dates.

He knew this place, had walked past it when he had still been in C-Sec. It was a popular spot for couples to have their first date thanks to the fact it was public, fairly reasonable, and offered booze if things started to go south. Had he not been on a mission, the turian definitely would've been ordering a drink or two to survive this.

After all... he had to fake being on a date with Commander Shepard.

There was a point to all this, of course. According to Alliance intel, there was something strange about this cafe and the fact a lot of well-armed people tended to stop by after hours. He hadn't heard whispers of it being a front for something, but it had been sometime since he had walked a beat. For all he knew, someone could have moved in while he was gone.

That... or he just hadn't really cared. Scoping out hot date spots had never been high on his priority list.

“Where is my date anyway? He didn't run away at the thought of being in public, did he?”

Garrus hadn't meant to use that much scorn, but it leaked out anyway. It wasn't as if he disliked the man, per se … just found him incredibly odd and more than a little off-putting. He had a way of catching you off guard and hammering home that made the turian uneasy, not to mention his strange hamster tending habits. Add in the fact they had met by colliding into each other and... well, maybe he was a little salty.

So, he didn't dislike the Commander... but maybe they weren't quite to like just yet.

'You're not that ugly, Mandibles.' The Normandy's XO sounded bored on the other end. 'I think he's scoping the area out. Make sure to appreciate the view when you see him, I worked my ass off getting him ready.'

'She really did a good job, I'll be amazed if you recognize him at all.'

Well, that was perfect. Guess they were going for the blind date angle and taking it to the extreme.

“Thanks.” Now he really meant the sarcasm as he sipped at his water. If he was on a date, he should probably wait before he ordered anything. That was polite, right? “I swear, you two are enjoying watching me suffer.”

He could expect that from the human, but Tali's cruelty really caught him off guard. Who would have known the quarian had it in her?

The line went quiet not long after that – no doubt they'd gotten their fill of his misery. Garrus was left to glance around in the hopes he might spot Shepard. He had already checked all the obvious spots, but nobody quite fit the profile of short and kind of awkward looking.

Ok.. maybe that was mean. But the guy was awkward. Even he said so.

“Where are you...” Garrus' mandibles twitched as he kept looking. Really, it was couples as far as the eye could see. Apart from a couple school-age looking girls gossiping, everyone else looked to be on a date. There was nobody who stood out as being on their own, especially not someone who looked to be casing the joint. “Shit, he better not be the girls.”

Before he could worry if he was going to have to ask one of the teenagers if they were actually a fully grown man in disguise, a shadow fell across the table. He looked up, expecting to have to apologize to the waitress for taking so long to order. The excuse was already on his tongue – his date wasn't there yet. But then it died on his tongue.

There was a man standing there, human and wearing the tightest jeans Garrus had ever seen. He gave a little wave as he smiled, eyes sparkling. Well, eye – the other one was covered by his blue-streaked blonde hair.

“Hey there, been waiting long?”

Garrus' brain had short-circuited long ago. It didn't help that his tongue had somehow glued itself to the roof of his mouth of the sight of the man and his incredibly tight pants. Really... he must have had to paint those damn things on. Weren't humans concerned with ball space or something? Their genitals were on the outside...

…

Also wasn't he supposed to be straight? Why was he checking some dude's ass out?

Right, words. “Uh... what?”

The man chuckled as he sat down. “Sorry I was late, I know we said we'd meet at 2 but I got held up at work. You didn't wait long, did you?”

By now, the turian's brain was thoroughly fried. Somehow, someone had mistaken him for their date. Scenarios to get him out ran by quickly – the most obvious being to tell him that he wasn't there on a date at all. But that would probably break his cover...

And more importantly, Shepard and Tali would enjoy it way too much. They were evil.

“I...”

“Anyway, thanks for waiting for me. I hear this place has great tea. Not sure what you can get, though. Are you allergic to levo?” The man's voice lowered as he leaned forward to whisper to Garrus. “Perimeter's clear, though the back door has some pretty serious locks for a simple business. I think we're onto something.”

…

His brain turned back on. “Wait... Shepard?”

The man's cheeks turned pink as he sat back down, playing with the ends of what Garrus realized now was most definitely a wig. “I told her it was too much, but she said otherwise I would've been too easy to spot.”

In theory, that made sense – Shepard was the first human Spectre. Pretty much everyone had seen the video of him accepting the position at least once. To say a small human with a bight red military haircut and a missing eye would've stuck out in a popular cafe was putting it mildly. Honestly if any of this was actually true, it might have gotten guns pulled on them had they tried it.

Which, probably would've made things easier but they were trying to be subtle.

“Well... she's right. Those two are probably enjoying this.” He moved in closer as well, if only to prolong the image. That close, he could definitely smell Shepard had been sprayed with something that wasn't sweat. It wasn't bad just... odd. “So... see anything else?”

Shepard pulled the menu so he could flip his wrist over to expose his omni-tool. Specs popped up, showing the blueprint of the building. Garrus' facial plates twitched as he gave it a brief once over, stopping at the basement level.

It was pretty damn big... maybe too big for a restaurant.

“I think it's shared with a building halfway down the block that has connections to the Blue Suns.” Another spec, for a place Garrus definitely remembered as being a suspected front for something. They had still been working on it when he left C-SEC. Maybe they'd wind up wrapping two cases. “It'd probably be easier to get into this one once it closes up...”

That would be in a couple hours... so they were probably doing dinner then.

“Hi there, are you two ready to order?”

Both men sprung back up as they realized they had company. A cheery looking waitress had appeared, smiling at them like she knew what was going on. At the same time, the pocket of her uniform was sitting a little weird. Maybe it was a datapad... but maybe she was packing heat. The Blue Suns were getting creative with their recruiting.

“Uh, yeah. I'd like a strawberry soda for now.” Shepard had dropped his voice way below where Garrus thought he could, and his accent was different. He grinned as he turned to the turian. “How about you, big guy? Pretty sure I picked somewhere you could eat.”

It was hard to keep his mandibles from twitching. This was going to be a long night. Luckily, there were no turians around to pick up his subvocals as he shot murder over at the human. Instead, he checked the menu fast – honestly, he had forgotten it was there.

“Coffee is fine by me.” And then he remembered he had to pretend to be into Shepard. The pants helped. “Wouldn't want to be bouncing off the walls and kill the chance of a second date.”

The waitress giggled – maybe that was a datapad. That, or she was one hell of an actress. “That's one strawberry soda and a coffee for the cute couple at table 5 then. Be right back!”

And then she was gone. Both breathed a sigh of relief as they relaxed – it was a little harder for Shepard for obvious reasons. But at least they had managed to pass the first round of this fake dating nightmare.

“You didn't seem like the coffee kind of guy, Garrus.” His fake date sounded a little too honest as he leaned back. The turian would have thought him using the position to look around under the wig, but he knew better – that eye was dead. “Let me guess, you take it black as night and bitter as hell?”

Garrus' mandibles twitched a little. “Not big on sugar. Clearly that's not the case with you. You planning to bounce around all date?”

“Some of us need the energy. Besides, if you think this is bad you should see me slam pixie sticks sometime.”

Just the thought of it made Garrus twitch. Biotics and their energy requirements...

“Right, well, we should start to figure out where we're going next.” His eyes wandered back to the storefront. “Maybe a walk around? There's a park nearby that's beautiful at night.”

Shepard smiled at him, and his stomach flopped. Maybe it was the fact he hadn't eaten anything. “Sounds good to me. Now, why don't you tell me a little about yourself so if you try to murder me and shove me in a trash can, I can text my sister beforehand so she knows who to tell C-SEC about when you go to the bathroom.”

Despite everything, Garrus found himself laughing. The human chuckled as well, maybe in spite of himself. Honestly, the whole thing was just utterly ridiculous and the plot of some cruel spirit that enjoyed jerking them around. Somewhere, they were enjoying this.

Fucking spirits...

“You two are doing great. Shepard's scan gave me a weak point you can access once the building is shut down.'

Tali was back in his earpiece. From the sound of things, she wasn't in engineering anymore. Wherever she was heading this mission's tech corner was somewhere much quieter, and with a little less foot traffic. Maybe they wanted to enjoy this in private.

'Tell Al to fix his shirt, unless he wants to show his new underwear off when you two go to take your walk.'

The other Shepard sounded almost amused by this. Garrus felt his mandibles twitch as he glanced over at the human sitting across from him. Shepard had taken to folding a napkin again and again, turning it into a rather lopsided bird. If it were real, it probably would've been spawned near a toxic waste dump and probably glowed under black light.

But at least he was doing something with his hands that wasn't too suspicious.

“Hey, I know this is awkward because I shouldn't be staring at your ass yet-” At least Shepard had the sense to chuckle at that. “But... might want to pull your shirt down.”

The blush that colored Shepard's cheeks was definitely real as he tugged his shirt down over those skin tight pants. Hooray for method acting, he assumed. If they kept this up, people might actually believe they were a couple.

Maybe. Spirits, this was hard.

“Thanks...”

“No problem.” The turian nodded as he spotted the waitress. “I spot my coffee and your sugar syrup. Refuel for round two?”

They would need it – he was starting to get the feeling things might get interesting after all. After all, it wasn't every day he faked being someone's date to get into an underground facility with a Spectre in skinny jeans.

Now that was something even the writers of Blasto couldn't come up with... too bad he was living it instead of watching it. At least he got coffee...

[keichanz]

Death

A bit more somber than my previous ones, but I like how it turned out.

I would have had this out sooner, but as I was writing this I remembered a quote I saw recently that was truly uplifting and it does make you feel better about a loved one passing, and I wanted to include that in this prompt. Thing was though I can’t for the life of me remember what it said, and i don’t remember where I saw it, here, FB, or somewhere else, but I couldn’t find it and it was driving me freaking CRAZY. In the end I ended up sorta paraphrasing the quote and I hope I did it justice. 

Spooktober Day 27: Death

“Mama?”

“Yeah, baby?”

Kagome flicked a brief glance at her son in the backseat of the car through the rearview before looking forward again. Izayoi had opted to walk home with Rin and her friends, however she suspected Raiden was the main driving factor behind that decision.

Tai didn’t say anything right away, instead staring out the window with a small frown on his face, and Kagome was just about to ask if something was wrong when he finally spoke again.

“What does it mean to die?”

Definitely not expecting that, Kagome’s eyebrows rose up in her bangs and she gave the young half-demon a sharp look through the mirror. Her surprise quickly gave way to confusion mixed with a healthy dose of concern as she stared out the windshield.

“Why do you ask, Tai?” she questioned carefully, reaching to turn off the radio playing on low volume.

Tai bit his lip and revealed, “Mrs. Sennin told us today that Pickles died yesterday.” Pickles was their classroom hamster, named as such because of his love for the small stuffed pickle he often slept on. “We went around the classroom and we all said a memory that we had of him. Why did he die, Mama?”

Ooh, boy. “I don’t know, sweetie,” she said softly, a little sad that the hamster was gone. She knew her son had loved that animal and liked to show him off whenever she came to his classroom. “Did Mrs. Sennin mention if he was sick or anything like that?”

“No,” her son admitted, his little brow puckering in thought. “Just that it was his time to go over the rainbow bridge. Is that where we’ll go when we die, Mama? Over the rainbow bridge?”

Oh god. She wasn’t ready to have this conversation with her five-year-old son alone. She needed Inuyasha to help her with this. She needed her mom. She needed Pickles, goddammit.

“Tai...” Kagome grimaced and turned onto their street. “I wish I could give you a straight answer, but the truth is, I don’t know. Death has been a mystery for a very long time; nobody truly knows what happens when you die. Some people believe you’re reincarnated into another person, while others believe you go to Heaven or Hell. I suppose in a way it all boils down to religion and what your beliefs are.”

Tai digested that in silence as Kagome pulled into their driveway and cut the engine. Feeling a little out of sorts, Kagome exited and got Tai out of his booster seat, letting him hop down to the ground. She grabbed his backpack and followed after him into the house, a worried frown marring her features.

The five-year-old kicked off his shoes and Kagome knelt in front of him with a gentle smile, pushing back his bangs.

“Why don’t you take your things upstairs and change into some comfy clothes? If you want I can bring you up a snack and some juice.”

Tai nodded and wordlessly did as he was bade, grabbing his bag and dragging it behind him as he headed toward the stairs. Up he went, barely tall enough to hold on to the railing, reaching the landing a second later and disappearing from view.

Kagome sighed and racked a hand through her hair, at a complete loss. She had no idea how to handle this and she doubted Inuyasha did, either. It was a delicate subject, especially when discussing with a five-year-old whose still developing brain had trouble grasping particular matters.

“Goddammit, Pickles,” Kagome muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Goddammit Mrs. Sennin. Why on earth you didn’t just buy a new hamster to replace the dead one so a class of kindergartners wouldn’t ask questions, I have no idea...”

Kagome was sitting at the bar counter drinking a cup of coffee and mindlessly scrolling social media when Inuyasha walked through the door. As per usual Vader came zooming in from the living room to greet him, purring loudly as he rubbed against the half-demon’s legs, and despite her glum mood, Kagome had to smile. For whatever reason that cat loved her husband and it was totally endearing.

Inuyasha kicked off his shoes and obligingly took a moment to say hello to the new member of their family, scratching his neck, and satisfied Vader strolled away, strolling toward the stairs to no doubt lounge on Izayoi’s bed while the girl in question did her homework and texted Raiden. She always said she wasn’t but her parents weren’t stupid; her blush was telling and she always looked way too innocent whenever they checked in on her.

Sighing Inuyasha stood, glanced at his wife, and immediately frowned. Though she was smiling it didn’t reach her eyes and instantly he knew something was wrong.

“Hey,” she greeted softly. “How was work?”

His frown deepened. “Fine,” he answered shortly quickly followed by, “What happened?”

Kagome sighed. Her husband was too damn perceptive sometimes, but at least this time she didn’t particularly mind it. Saved her the trouble of finding a way to bring it up, anyway.

“Tai’s classroom hamster died yesterday,” she supplied, not bothering to beat around the bush. “He asked me what it means to die and where we go when we do.”

Inuyasha’s eyebrows rose, not expecting that. “Well...shit.”

She nodded mutely. Her thoughts exactly.

Sighing, Inuyasha racked a hand through his hair and frowned thoughtfully. “What’d you tell him?”

Kagome took a sip of her coffee. “Death is a mystery that no one truly understands and it all boils down to what your beliefs are, basically. I didn’t know what else to say.” She shrugged.

Her husband snorted. “Well, you’re not wrong. I don’t think there really is a right or wrong answer, to be honest.”

“I wanted to lie,” Kagome admitted, staring into the dark contents of her mug. “He’s too young, too innocent to deal with something as cruel as death. But...he’s my baby, and I couldn’t...”

She sighed and her shoulders slumped, looking about ready to cry, and Inuyasha closed the distance between them to wrap his arms around her from behind. Kagome leaned back into him and closed her eyes as he kissed her behind the ear.

“I’ll talk to him,” he rumbled, nuzzling her temple. “Let’s do delivery for dinner. Easy night tonight.”

Kagome managed a smile, small but genuine, and turned her head to press her lips to his in a loving, chaste kiss.

“Best idea you’ve had in a while,” she whispered.

“I get them sometimes,” Inuyasha replied and was rewarded with his wife’s soft chuckle. He kissed her one last time, squeezed her middle, and then pulled away to go see to his son. He followed his nose up the stairs and down the hall to Tai’s room, and to his surprise both of his children were inside and not just his son.

Curious, Inuyasha paused outside his the room and peeked inside the cracked door, ears easily picking up their soft voices. Izayoi was sitting on Tai’s bed with him, crossed legged as she talked while Tai sat across from her, his eyes wide as he listened attentively to his older sister.

It was what she was saying, however, that really surprised him, and his face softened as a warm feeling settled over him like a blanket, a proud smile lifting the corners of his lips.

“I’ll be damned,” he murmured, shaking his head with a quiet chuckle.

About ten minutes later Kagome was just getting off the phone with their favorite pizzeria to have a large pizza and an order of wings delivered when Tai came trotting down the stairs, Izayoi and Inuyasha in tow. Heart in her throat, she smiled and set the phone back in its cradle, watching as her youngest came into the kitchen, walked right up to her, reached up with his little arms and hugged her around the waist.

Surprised, but pleased, Kagome knelt to make it easier and gathered her boy into her arms, kissing his head between his ears.

“You won’t die,” Tai said, leaning back to gaze imploringly at her with big amber eyes. “Right, Mama?”

Kagome swallowed thickly and managed a smile for him, stroking his hair.

“Not for a very, very long time, baby,” she assured and kissed his forehead. “I promise I’ll always be here for you. So will your father and sister.”

To her utter relief, Tai beamed at her and nodded, accepting her words with an ease that surprised her, but appreciated all the same.

“Kay,” he said and gave her a big kiss to her cheek. “Love you, Mama.”

“I love you too, baby,” Kagome breathed, hugging him tight. “So much.”

Tai started squirming a few seconds later to let her know that was enough hugging and reluctantly Kagome released him. Inuyasha ruffled his hair as he walked by and together they watched their son and daughter wander into the living room, plopping down on to the couch – Vader not far behind – and turn on some cartoons.

While she stared into the living room in mixture of relief and confusion, her husband ambled over, nudged himself behind her where she was leaning against the counter, and snaked his arms around her waist as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

“What did you say to him?” she asked softly, wondering what he could have possibly told their youngest to inspire this change. It was a relief, but still...how...?

Inuyasha smiled lazily. “Not a damn thing.”

Kagome blinked. “You didn’t...?”

“When I got to his room,” he started, “Izayoi was already there talking to him. She beat me to the punch, and I couldn’t believe what was coming out of her mouth. She told him just because Pickles was gone doesn’t mean his love for the animal was, and some other pretty deep shit I had no idea she was capable of, but then she said something that’s actually pretty uplifting and wise coming from someone her age.”

“What did she say?” Kagome whispered, her eyes once more drifting to their babies sitting side by side on the couch, giggling as they watched whatever animated show they’d chosen.

Inuyasha didn’t answer right away and when he did several seconds later, is voice was rough and she could hear the smile in his voice.

“She said, ‘Your loss means that another’s wait is over’ and that just...it hit me, y’know? The thought that someone that’s gone gets to see a loved one again...it makes it a little easier to bear, I think.”

Unbidden tears sprang to Kagome’s eyes and her smile was watery, but genuine and very proud. She thought about her grandmother, waiting for Gramps; her dad, waiting for Mom, and she knew Inuyasha was thinking about his parents, waiting for him.

Inuyasha tightened his arms around her and kissed her cheek; he could smell her tears and knew what she was thinking.

“Yes,” she whispered and reached up to cradle his jaw in her hand, turning her head and closing her eyes as he rested his forehead against her own.

“I think it does, too.”

[conniel-ship]

August 15th, 2038. It started like a day like any other. Daniel opened his eyes when his internal alarm woke him, at 6:15am. The same routine as every Sunday: quietly preparing everything for a round of omelettes.

Careful not to wake anyone, moving with the efficiency of a domestic android. The night before had been long, with Caroline and John fighting. So much fighting, and with Daniel always trying to keep Emma out of it. Always putting her headphones over her ears with a smile.

But every day he hoped would be better than the last, even if reality tended to not follow his hopes. Daniel frowned, pausing in his chopping of an onion. Hope; a funny word. A human word.

Do androids pick up human traits?

He pushed it out of his mind. His job was not to think. It was to cook, clean, and take care of the family. But, most of all, take care of Emma. Daniel didn’t know what friendship or family should be, but everything he saw in movies and on tv told him that Emma was his friend.

Perhaps a bit like a little sister. His lips curled up into a smile as he picked up the cutting board and put the onions into a bowl. Was his smile his programming, or something else? He couldn’t tell. But what he knew was that this was his home. Where he belonged.

It wasn’t perfect; by some standards it was broken. The fighting clearly worried Emma, but Daniel would protect her from the conflict. He always did.

After he finished prepping the food, he went to the window, looking out over the city, and waiting for the Philips to awaken.

He knew every curve of every building, but he looked anyway. He looked over the one building whose lighting changed with the seasons. Red and green near Christmas, pink when the cherry blossoms bloomed. Orange in the fall.

A breeze rippled the surface of the pool.

Daniel stepped outside and let it brush over his skin, feeling the coolness before the day warmed up. These quiet moments, when no one watched, and he could observe the world. A simple, kind life. Routines. Easing the stress around the house.

He’d be there for all of it. As Emma grew older, he’d still maybe be her android. Or he’d take care of Caroline, with Emma coming to visit. So long as he wasn’t left with John. The previous night, John had yelled at him for noting that Emma didn’t like too much salt in her food.

“Don’t tell me what my own daughter wants!” John snapped. Daniel stayed quiet after that; they’d been through this before. Daniel knew her favorite color even though it changed (this week, it was periwinkle; she loved the big colors from the crayon box).

Daniel was the one that took her ice skating, that knew exactly how long sunscreen lasted while she was swimming. What brand of lemonade she liked. Her father hadn’t taken the time for any of those things. While Caroline seemed grateful that someone helped, John did not.

Caroline had snapped last week and told John he was being resentful, envious. Daniel didn’t understand the feeling, but he understood the definition. Why would anyone envy him? He was just an android. He was no different than anything else that performed a task.

He. Of course, he’d considered himself “it”, at first. But Emma hadn’t liked that, and had kept calling him... him.

He stepped back inside and closed the door before anyone noticed, and waited, standing perfectly still in the kitchen.

John was the first to come into the kitchen, and he completely ignored Daniel, reading for the fridge to get the milk.

“Good morning, John!” Daniel greeted, but John just looked at him, frowning, and poured the milk.

Daniel could hear Caroline getting out of bed.

Emma arrived almost immediately, a big smile on her face. “Dad, Daniel is making omelettes today! He makes the best omelettes!”

“It,” John corrected. “It makes omelettes, Emma.”

“Let her call him what she wants,” Caroline scolded, coming out of the bedroom. “What does it hurt?”

“You can’t think of them as people. They’re tools. Like a car.” John shook his head.

“But you get rid of cars eventually, and we’re never getting rid of Daniel!” Emma grinned, and Daniel felt a smile growing on his face.

John looked from Emma to Daniel, and frowned.

“I have to head into the office,” he said, heading back into the bedroom and closing the door.

“On a Sunday?” Caroline asked, but got no reply. She sighed, reaching out to brush a stray strand of hair out of Emma’s face. “Go brush your hair while Daniel makes breakfast, kiddo.”

Emma took off, and Caroline watched after her.

“I know John doesn’t always like it, but I’m glad you’re here.” Caroline winced. “My omelettes are terrible.”

Daniel laughed. “It’s why I’m here.”

Emma reappeared, her hair now neat and tidy.

She wore the clothes he’d had her put out the night before, a striped shirt and shorts. They’d be visiting the dog park that day, and they’d agreed that it would be hot out and she would be comfortable.

John left for the day, and Daniel saw Caroline slump in relief.

Emma’s cheerful chatter over breakfast made him forget about John’s comments, and Caroline was laughing by the end of breakfast.

They had a lovely time at the dog park, and it was one the rare times that Caroline came out with them. It could have been a perfect day, until John came home.

Daniel didn’t know what they talked about, they went outside when the fight started.

He stayed in with Emma and out her headphones on her, like he always did. Trying to protect her from the conflict. It didn’t last. Caroline came back in, and John grabbed her by the arm. Daniel had seen this before, and he closed Emma’s door. He didn’t want her to see it.

Caroline tried to pull away and John hit her. Something in Daniel started to slip and he stepped between them. John told him to move.

Every order, Daniel had obeyed. Every instruction, followed. In that moment, he had a choice. Let Caroline be hurt, and by extension, Emma.

Or refuse.

Something warred in his programming, a choice.

Protect Caroline. The walls started to crumble.

“No,” he said softly.

“Move, or else,” John snarled, pulling his hand back and punching Daniel in the shoulder.

It registered as pressure and Daniel held his ground. “Don’t touch her.” He could hear his own voice shaking.

“You’re not part of this, or this family. You think this is your fight?”

He hit Daniel two more times, and Daniel shrugged it off. He could hear Caroline’s breath, her pulse. She was afraid.

John picked up his tablet and tapped a few times. “We’ll get one that follows orders. I’ll destroy you myself.”

Daniel felt something snap. “You wouldn’t dare.”

John held up the tablet, the purchase order for a new AP700 on the screen.

”It’s that easy. We’ll get one that follows orders, and you’ll be destroyed.”

The realization dawned on Daniel. He was defective. He couldn’t protect them if he was gone.

John looked past him to Caroline. “Then this bullshit will be over.”

All the times John had criticized Caroline. That he’d said how mad he was that Emma was so attached to Daniel.

Daniel would be dead, and he couldn’t protect them.

He’d given them everything, done everything they asked, and they’d have him destroyed. John has said that Emma’s attachment to him was like a kid for a hamster. John hadn’t been there when Emma’s hamster died. Daniel had, and had held her when she cried.

Everyone hurt. Daniel felt it sneaking into himself, into his mind, and felt like a pot of water set to boil. His hands started shaking. He didn’t want to die, but it was him or John.

Daniel didn’t want to die. He wanted to live, to paint butterflies with Emma. To ice skate.

John went to the living room, and Daniel went to get the gun. The shots were so sharp, so clear, yet surreal. It’s remarkable how fragile humans are, really. He was thankful that Emma had her headphones on, as Caroline started screaming.

As soon as John hit the floor, Daniel realized that as much as he didn’t want to die... he didn’t want to leave, either. He froze. What could he do? He had to get... out. Somehow.

Caroline screamed at him, calling him things he barely remembered. He’d thought he meant something.

He realized that he meant nothing. He could be that easily and casually gotten rid of. He was nothing. A thing, a tool, replaced like a car that didn’t have the newest features.

He didn’t belong here. He didn’t belong with humans. They’d always look at him like a toy, a thing.

The overwhelming feeling to want to stay with them despite this, despite it all... was this love? It seemed twisted, but Caroline and John also had a twisted version of love.

He could hear Caroline calling the police, telling them he was dangerous. That she feared for her life.

She said they’d come and they’re do what John didn’t. He would be destroyed unless he could find a way to stop them. He ran to Emma’s room and lifted her up. He wanted to tell her he was sorry, he wanted to tell her he’d made a mistake.

But all that came out is how he felt, about how he didn’t matter to them. He did t matter, he didn’t deserve to matter. And as the police arrived, he realized that Emma was the only thing that would keep him alive. He’d use her as her family had used him.

He hadn’t planned on putting her in danger, but it all got out of control the more confused he got. Emma screamed, her whole body registering fear and pain. He killed two more men before the negotiator arrived.

He wanted to tell Emma she’d be okay, but the more she struggled the more he felt distant from her. Where was the connection? How broken was he? A sadness seeped onto him. When the negotiator arrived, he called out to him.

“Hi Daniel.”

He’d come to do the job that Daniel failed at, protecting Emma. They exchanged some words but it fell apart quickly. Connor pulled Emma back and shoved Daniel off the edge. Connor had protected Emma. He’d done the right thing.

Connor’s hands locked around Daniel’s wrists.

They toppled from the building together, and all those memories went between them. Connor with nothing, Daniel with everything. The day one lives is the day the other dies.

The world lurched. Connor felt jolted into somewhere else. Emma hugging him. “I love you, Daniel! We’re going to be together forever, aren’t we?”

“I promise,” he heard himself say, in Daniel’s voice. “Forever.”

She smiled up at him and he felt the urge to protect her. To be there for her. He would have done anything to ensure she was safe, happy.

The memories kept flooding through his head. Decorating cookies with Emma, and letting her put a sprinkle on the tip of his nose. They laughed together, the sound bubbling out of her.

Sitting on the floor of her room listening to music, trying to sing along with songs that didn’t always make sense to him but he always knew all the words anyway. Watching over her while she swam in the pool, always diligent, always ready with a towel and a cold lemonade.

When Emma’s hamster died while her parents were at work, it was Daniel that held her when she cried. Connor felt that memory as if it were his own, as if it were his arms around her. As if it were him that carried that tiny furry body away.

The sudden feeling caused a pain in his chest that he couldn’t identify, even as his warning sensors tried to tell him how quickly he sped towards the ground. Something in him shattered and he locked eyes with Daniel. How…?

Daniel’s blue eyes were wide, panicked, and Connor felt it. The confusion. The fear. You have no memories before today. You saved Mr. Rainbowfish.

Of course a deviant would notice the fish he’d saved, but now the thought of saving a fish seemed obvious. He remembered helping Emma put the fish into the tank, after all. No. That was Daniel’s memory. The lines started to blur in the confusion of their shared memories.

A lifetime of memories, blinking by is their last seconds of life. This is my first mission. Connor gripped Daniel’s wrists, feeling a desperation for an answer. What’s happening? How can you live with all of this…

Feeling? It’s new to me, too. Daniel looked like he tried to make a sound and couldn’t. And I’ll never get to know what it means. He stared at Connor. I’m afraid.

Connor pulled Daniel to him, a memory of helping Emma with her homework flashing through his mind. It’s the mission. I’m sorry. I… How did he explain this? That he’d touched something that he’d never knew existed.

That he’d seen all of Daniel and wished this hadn’t been the circumstances. He didn’t know what he was trying to say, but Daniel seemed to know because he smiled.

I wish I could have known you, too, Connor. An expression came over his face and he frowned. I tried to hurt her.

Nothing could be done for it. Nothing could change this moment of falling through the air, of these beautiful memories mixed with terrible confusion. Connor considered flipping them around because he knew CyberLife would replace him, but that Daniel wouldn’t have that chance.

Maybe he could save him. He ran the numbers in his head and Daniel had a 2% chance of surviving if Connor took the impact. She’s fine. She’s okay.

The last memory she’ll have of me is… that. I killed her father. Daniel shook. What have I done?

Connor felt that pain in himself and he held on tighter. You wanted to stay here, with your family, Connor said. It was the only comfort he could provide given that Daniel’s actions had been wrong and violent. But underlining that point accomplished nothing. You… loved them.

That’s all that mattered to me-

They slammed into the ground, Daniel’s body taking the force of the impact. Connor’s systems flashed critical, telling that several components damaged. His thirium pump had ruptured, and this body would shut down in moments.

I’m sorry, Daniel.

The light hadn’t yet gone from Daniel’s eyes, and Connor could still feel the life in him through the connection.

Out of some inspiration of some memory he’d gotten from Daniel, Connor managed to move just enough to look at the other android as the life seeped from them both. He reached up a hand and brushed Daniel’s blonde hair to the side, wondering how it felt if he could feel more.

If he weren’t crushed by the impact. He put his lips on Daniel’s and kissed him. One last gesture of acceptance from an android that never should have been able to understand, but somehow could.

He could still hear Daniel and something in the other android stilled. Thank you.

Connor thought he might be crying but he couldn’t tell which of them was. Maybe both of them were. I’ll remember how much you loved them. I promise. Something in him felt broken and Connor didn’t think it could ever be put right, not after knowing someone this much.

The thought of shutting down seemed like a relief. Connor felt himself start to shake and he closed his eyes.

He felt Daniel’s mind shut down and Connor slumped, letting his head rest against Daniel’s shoulder. It had been seconds. Only seconds, but he’d known more about Daniel than he’d ever known about anyone. The fear faded away and Connor’s world went dark.

[sapphiresterreart]

Puzzling Pieces Chapter 7 UNFINISHED

As per request, here are the unfinished pages of what would’ve been chapter 7 of the Hiro x Miguel ship fic Puzzling Pieces. Under a read more.

Could he do it? Could he summon the Hamada parents? There was no guarantee and he’d have to ask Cass for photos, but how incredible would it be if he could not only reunite the Hamada brothers, but the whole Hamada family?

Tadashi would get to talk with their parents. Hiro would get to meet their parents. And Cass would get to see her sister or brother!

He bit his lip. As of now he could go ahead and summon the Rivera by calling for their blessing, but maybe he should wait until he had the Hamada family photos? That, and no one in their group had weapons or armor ready to use to fight against Ernesto and possibly Bruce.

His gaze skimmed across the ofrenda to the Hamada brothers. If Ernesto really had been shot by Tadashi’s ghost repellent gun, then he would need to take time to heal. Meaning, they had time before the attack. Enough time to wait till tomorrow to ask Cass for photos, then.

Still…wouldn’t hurt to call for the Rivera’s anyway, just in case if the Hamada parents couldn’t in fact cross over.

Miguel inhaled and closed his eyes, picturing the family. “Papá Héctor? Mamá Imelda? If you can hear me, I need a favor…”

Clothing rustled behind him. Someone murmured but he ignored them.

“See, De La Cruz is in the land of the living. He wants to…” his breath hitched. “He wants to kill me to bring himself back to life but he’s not alone. There’s–”

“Miguel?” Hiro’s voice startled him. “Miguel, your skin!”

He snapped open his eyes, darting them to his hands. Fear slammed in his chest. Where there once was skin, there now was bone. Just barely, he could see the transparent outline of his hand and a scream ripped itself from his throat.

Footsteps scuffed cement and slender arms wrapped around him. Miguel jerked his gaze up to meet Hiro’s own and saw an orange glow reflected in brown eyes. Hiro held him tight as he struggled for air.

“Miguel, holy shi–are you okay? What’s going on?” Hiro yammered into his ear. “We can see your bones. You’re glowing! What the hell?”

“Y-you can see me?” Relief soared. “I’m not cursed again?”

“What?” Hiro pulled away just enough to check him over. “Your skin’s coming back!”

Shaking brown hands lifted and Miguel confirmed that yes, his skin had returned to normal. He exhaled and sagged into the hug. Moments passed and he realized Tadashi had approached with a searching expression.

“Maybe…” Tadashi mused. “Were you trying to summon them? Or just bless the altar?”

“Both?” Miguel shrugged helplessly, heart still racing.

Hiro fussed over him. Fingers combed through his hair, a palm checked his temperature. Eyes scanned his face and hands flitted across his arms and down to his hands as if to confirm that they were, in fact, real and solid.

Though the concern was welcome, it was a bit embarrassing with the man’s older brother watching them. Especially since that brother slowly started to smile.

Tadashi shoved a hand against his brother’s head. “Knock it off, bro. Either kiss him or give him space.”

The two of them jumped apart, spluttering. Hiro cursed, scandalized. “Bro!”

Miguel grabbed his wrist and yelped. “Don’t I get a say in this?”

Tadashi laughed. “Alright, alright. How ‘bout this, then.” He closed the files on the computer and holographic displays. “We leave the supernatural for tomorrow. It’s getting late and we need our rest.”

Though Hiro protested, another teasing line at Miguel’s expense sent the two of them up to their room. After a confusing moment of deciding sleeping arrangements, Tadashi shooed them away and said he’d sleep on the red couch in the garage.

Now Miguel found himself curled under the covers, occasionally shifting. He dozed in and out of uneasy sleep. It wasn’t until he felt someone else’s presence did he open his eyes to find one shadowed man staring him down.

“Hiro…?” Groggily, he rubbed his eyes. “Whaddya wan’?”

“Nothin’!” The shadow jumped. “…are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah?” Miguel rolled onto his side to better look at the man. “Wha’s wrong?”

“Nuthin’ I just…” a beat passed. “Something’s been bugging me.”

“What is it?”

“Earlier today, you said ‘amorigo,’ but was it amor or amigo?”

“Dios mío, Hiro.” Miguel felt himself waking up more and dodged the question to check his phone. “It’s two am!”

“Okay, but do you have a girlfriend?” The man’s voice quickened speed like a hamster on a spinning wheel. “Did you get one while we were fighting? Wait, is it a crush, do you have a crush, who is it?”

This couldn’t seriously be happening.

“It’s not a skeleton is it?”

Dios mío, it was happening.

“So is it a crush, girlfriend, or a friend cause–”

“Hiro, it’s two–”

“–Do I know them or–” Hiro paused just long enough to reveal horror. “Are you crushing on my brother, dude?”

Miguel groaned. “Relajaté. Go back to bed, you can’t possibly stay awake all night just to think about thi–”

“Yes.”

“You are seriously gonna stay up all night? Just to wonder?”

“…no.”

“Then go to bed.”

Instead, Hiro stayed right where he was and continued to annoy his poor, sleep deprived form. “...but is it Tadashi? Like, what do you see in him? You've only known him for a day.”

Miguel grabbed the pillow and haphazardly aimed for the man. Desperately, he tried to sidetrack the pest. “If you’re worried about me cause of the skin-to-bone thing, I’m fine.”

Hiro dodged and stubbornly chewed him out. “I mean it’s okay if you lik–do you like dudes? I’m a dude. Do you like me?”

Miguel’s heart stopped. Mierda, mierda, mierda, he’s getting too close, mierda mierda mierda.

Hiro paused, as if realizing his words. “Oh shi–I sound like the kinda jerk who asks all gay guys to date me, oh my–Wait, wait, oh no–what if he dies and I never find out? Scratch that, what if he dies. Period.”

Enough was enough. Miguel snagged Hiro’s wrist, flipped open the covers, and dragged him beneath the sheets. After an alarmed yelp, Hiro finally, mercifully, shut up and Miguel snuggled him close with soothing nonsense.

“It’s okay,” he murmured. “I’m not gonna die, okay? I’m right here, okay Hiro?”

“O-oh no.” Hiro stammered. “I-I said that out loud, didn’t I?”

“Yes,” Miguel cleared his throat. “But it’s okay, I’m here. So go to sleep, okay? Sleep. Here, I’ll even sing you something, okay?”

“Yeah…” Hiro breathed, back to his chest. “Yeah, okay.”

He rifled through songs before settling on one Socorro helped him to write. Softly, he sang.

“Someone gave me a shooting star,

and said to make a wish.

There were many things that I could ask

but nothing more than to fish.”

Hiro snorted. “Fish?”

“Roll with it.” Miguel playfully shoved his shoulder and continued to sing.

“See, I’ve never seen the ocean,

but I’d love to see it soon.

Even better if I could see it with you

and we could fish from the moon.”

A light sigh escaped Hiro and Miguel smiled. Works every time. He hummed the rest of the melody until Hiro’s breathing evened. He would’ve drifted to sleep himself if it weren’t for the realization that one Hiro Hamada was wrapped in his arms. He inhaled to steady his own heartbeat and exhaled.

Roll with it. Miguel tossed worries to the side. They were both safe and alive. Might as well enjoy the moment while he still could.

He closed his eyes.

~oOo~

A low baritone pulled his awareness into the waking world. “…so this is why you two haven’t come down for breakfast.”

Groggily, Miguel dragged bleary eyes to the speaker. “Tadashi?”

He mumbled and shifted, the warm pillow in his arms moving with him. The man continued to speak. “Wish I had a camera.”

The pillow muttered. “Go ‘way, ’dashi…”

Alarm shocked Miguel and he shrieked. Instinctually, he kicked the living, breathing thing and it flew off the bed with a squawk and landed with a thud and a pained groan. His heart hammered, laughter roared in the background, and he peered over the edge of the mattress. The pillow was not in fact a pillow, but one grumpy young man.

“…oops,” Miguel winced as Hiro shot him a deadly glare. “Sorry, Hiro.”

Muffled slapping and loud laughter prompted Hiro to growl and snap at his brother. “I liked you better six feet under.”

Tadashi wheezed. “It was a fire. I woulda been cremated, bro.”

Hiro bared his teeth. “Then I’ll take your ashes, mix it with confetti, compress it into a bullet and shoot you. So you better stay dead.”

The older Hamada pouted. “What’s the confetti for?”

“Celebration.”

Miguel eyed the bloodthirsty Hamada warily. “Uh…”

Hiro continued viciously. “When the bullet explodes, you’ll die in a shower of confetti. Then, I can dance over your dead body with bright pieces of paper falling everywhere. It’ll be beautiful and quiet and I’ll finally be able to sleep.”

“Still a bear to wake up.” Tadashi lidded his gaze with a sly smile. “Hope you two slept well…in each other’s arms.”

Hiro launched to his feet, screeched, and chased his brother out of the room.

Miguel stared at the stairway, thoroughly perturbed, and debated whether to save Tadashi from untimely death (especially after he worked so hard to bring him home) or to change out of pajamas. In the end, he decided to rescue weeks of hard work and pursued the Hamada brothers.

“Hola, Señorita Cass!” He greeted and swung himself onto the second floor.

“Good morning, Miguel!” She chirped. “Catch them before they kill each other, won’t you?”

“¡Por supuesto!”

He followed the angry yells and hustled into the café portion of the building. There, Hiro had his older brother backed into a corner with only a table between them. Tadashi grinned when he spotted Miguel and waved.

“My savior!” The man called. “Save me from this madman!”

Hiro hissed incoherently.

Miguel took another moment to debate priorities. But, good-nature won and he put himself into the line of fire. Placating hands lifted and Miguel tried for a one-dimpled smile as he sidled into Hiro’s view. He cranked up the charm.

“Señorita Cass is cooking breakfast.” He sang. “I bet you’re hungry. Smelled like she’s making pancakes.” When Hiro continued to glare, he kept his mouth moving. “Personally, I would add vanilla extract to make them sweeter but I know you prefer spicy food.”

“I wonder if there’s such thing as spicy pancakes? Could you put hot sauce in pancakes? Wait, ew, that’s gross. Why would you eat that? Huh. Maybe I could make it work. Is that a challenge? I think it’s a challenge. Are you challenging me?”

Over the course of his rambling, Hiro softened from murderous rage and interrupted. “I’m no chef, but I’ve never tasted your cooking. Is it awful?”

Insulted, Miguel puffed his chest. “Excuse you. I am an excellent cook!”

Hiro snorted. “Yeah, yeah. I’m hungry, let’s go.”

Miguel perked and checked behind him to find Tadashi had escaped. Probably during the distraction. He shrugged and trotted after Hiro. They settled around the folding table and thanked Cass for the meal.

After they finished eating, he shooed away the brothers to help Señorita Cass with the dishes. Once alone with her, he took the chance. “Señorit–”

She shot him a look.

“Ah, Cass. Tía Cass.” He corrected. “Do you…” he hesitated. Should he really ask? It could easily fail. Raise hopes only to crush them. No, no, he had to try. No time to hesitate.

“Do you have any photos of the Hamada parents?”

Cass jolted and turned away from the dishes to study him. “Of course! But why do you ask?”

Miguel scrubbed the plate with unusual focus. “Oh, um. Did Tadashi tell you about where he’s been all this time?”

“Yes, but–”

“Did he say anything about, uh…unusual things?” The dish dripped with soap.

“I…guess?”

“What about really unusual–” The soap flowed off the plate as he quickened pace.

“That dish is clean.”

Gentle fingers plucked it from his hands. He halted. Cass grasped his sudsed hands and turned off the tap.

“Miguel, what’s this about?”

He exhaled and took the plunge. “I don’t know if it will work or if you will believe me, but…” He met her worried gaze. “I want to summon Hiro and Tadashi’s family, and yours if you will let me. I just need photos and–and it’ll be good for them! They could see their family after so long and Hiro could meet their family and you coul–”

She shushed him with a quiet smile. “I have photo albums. We can use some from there.”

He brightened. “You believe me?”

Cass shrugged and smiled, helplessly amused. “How can I not? You brought my nephew back to us. He can see ghosts now and apparently there’s a madman after all of you and it’s all so crazy but.” She huffed and rolled her eyes. “But since when have I done anything except crazy?”

Miguel tackled the amazing, incredible, wonderful woman into a hug. “Graciás, tía Cass.”

“I should be thanking you, Miguel!” She returned the hug. “You just keep bringing home surprises.”

“And you,” he pulled away, “keep a home to come back to.” He glanced at his soapy, wet hands. “Sorry about–”

She merely dipped her hands into the soapy water and flicked her fingers. Droplets darkened his pajama shirt “There, now we’re even. Go change and I’ll finish here. Then we can get the photos.”

He laughed. “Sí, tía Cass!”

Miguel hurried up the stairs. A quick change into a red shirt, jeans, and a worn out blue hoodie later brought Miguel to tía Cass’ side in the kitchen. She had finished the last of the dishes and was rifling through the wood cabinets below the cushioned seat alcove below the windows.

A mix of familiar voices chattered on the first floor. She handed him a photo album and checked the time.

“It’s not organized at all and I have to open the café, but there should be enough photos with the right names here and there for you to figure out who’s who. Hope it helps!”

He accepted the thick album and nodded as she hustled down the steps. He tucked the book beneath an arm and followed after her to find the team had gathered in the café portion of the building. Tía Cass slipped on the black apron and flitted through the café front before switching the sign from ‘closed’ to ‘open.’

The team had yet to notice him as Hiro and Tadashi served them their coffees and baked foods. Tía Cass took over once they were served. Fred noticed him and gestured for him to follow the group to the garage.

He waved farewell to tía Cass.

[stealth-liberal]

Consequences Pt 1 (Tandy/Tyrone)

So I was rolling this around in my brain and got requested to write it and include some stuff that will be in part 2 by the lovely @theballetslippertheblackhoodie Enjoy!

Tandy often did impulsive things, chaotic things, choices that made no sense to Tyrone. It was hard not to expect it of her and assume everything would be fine, after all hadn't she done worse? The problem was, this time she hadn't done worse and she hadn't been fine.

"What in the HELL were you thinking Tandy? You almost got killed!"

Ty's voice was shaken and his eyes were wide. Tandy had jumped between him and a gunman as the guy had pulled the trigger, throwing her dagger. She was ok, but not unscathed, the bullet had grazed her upper shoulder and the blood was all over her white tee shirt. Had she been just a bit more to the left she would have been shot directly in her shoulder joint, possibly her upper chest.

Ty was cutting her out of said shirt in the church where he had teleported them the instant he smelled her blood.

"I can teleport Tandy, fuck... I do it reflexively when someone shoots at me! Why did you do that?"

Didn't she know that the last thing he wanted was her hurt? So it was more than a little bit unnerving for him when her response was what it was.

She jerked away from him, her eyes glassy and looking far into middle distance, the words she yelled seemed ripped out her, like she wasn't fully in control of them.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU CARE TY, YOU WANT ME DEAD ANYWAY!"

She hissed in pain as her movements pulled at her shoulder.

Tyrone stared at her, his fingers in mid air, holding a towel he was going to use to soak up her blood.

"What did you just say? Are you serious right now? Why would I want that Tandy? You're my best friend, I...I... why would I ever want to see you hurt, see you dead? Where would you even get that stupid fucking idea?!"

His voice was startled, angry. How could she think that little of him? He had been willing to die the night of the terrors, what in the fuck was wrong with her?

Tandy didn't say a word for a minute or two, then she looked him right in the eyes.

"You told me that if I wanted to kill myself so badly then I should just go ahead and do it. You were standing right there, you said it. Don't lie and say you didn't, you said it and you meant it Tyrone!"

His face went expressionless, he had forgotten all about telling her that, about that part of their fight. After all it had been almost a year ago that it had happened. He hadn't meant it, he was just so angry that she wanted to take what he saw as the easy way out when he had to fight for every little thing and couldn't check out like that. Not after what happened to Billy. He hadn't thought about it again... but clearly, Tandy had.

"No Tandy, I... I didn't mean it. I was angry, I didn't mean it. I don't want you dead, I promise... I don't. You believe me... right?"

She wouldn't make eye contact with him now and was holding her body tight, like she was preparing to get hurt. Maybe not physically, but hurt nevertheless. When she spoke this time it was monotone, dead and he hated the sound of it.

"I tried you know, the next morning. What was the point? My mother was either drunk, high, or forgetting I exist. Gary had just been shot in the head right in front of me, even though the hit lady didn't know."

Ty knew Gary been killed, he had no idea it had happened while Tandy was watching though.

"Liam was in jail and you thought I should get it all over with. What was the point? Everything was so loud, I just wanted it to be quiet, I just thought it would be peaceful, ya know? Not existing anymore."

The way she told the story still sounded so far away. How could she be this detached from her own suicide attempt?

"So I went to one of the piers by the river, tied up my hands and feet and jumped in. I thought it would be, I don't know, poetic, maybe? I should have died that night in the river, I thought it was where I should die all these years later. But surprise, surprise, my powers wouldn't let me, next thing I know, I've got a dagger in my hands and I'm cutting myself free. I should have died but once again this thing said no." Tandy looked and sounded as lost as someone could be. "Sorry to disappoint on that one."

Tyrone opened and closed his mouth a few times like a fish, he started to walk towards her but stopped, not sure of his welcome. He held out his hands but didn't touch her, not sure if he should.

"I am so sorry Tandy." he said. "I should never have said that to you. I was so far out of line. I didn't mean it, I swear I didn't. I was angry and said something I shouldn't have. And I never meant... I never wanted you to die. I never want you to hurt yourself or kill yourself. There's no excuse for what I said, I'm so sorry."

His voice was rough, his emotions were rapidly vascillating between guilt, regret, sorrow and panic. What if she tried again? What if she actually had been trying to do just that when she jumped in front of him.

Then a thought occurred to him and it wasn't a good one. "Have you been thinking I didn't care this whole time? That I wanted you gone?"

Tandy shrugged, noncommittal in the worst way. "Sometimes I hear you say it in my head, the memory goes around and around like a hamster wheel."

Now Tyrone closed the distance between them, cupped her face in his hands and made her look at him.

"I swear to you that I do not want you to kill yourself. When you jumped in front of me and got shot, I fucking panicked. I just grabbed you and came here without even thinking about it. If you had been seriously hurt or killed... I'm not sure I could take that Tandy."

He took a deep breath and chose his next words carefully. "I am so glad you didn't succeed that day on the pier. If you had died, it would have been my fault, I would have pushed you to it. I would never have gotten over that and I barely knew you back then. Now? I couldn't take it Tandy... it would ruin me."

She gave him a weak, watery smile... it was small but it was there. He smiled back and almost sagged with relief. Then he leaned his forehead to hers.

"When you feel like that, when it gets too loud, you call me. You come to me or I go to you... whatever. Let me be there, I want to be there. I don't want to do this alone. But more importantly, I don't want you to die."

She nodded but that wasn't enough for him.

"Promise me Tandy." Ty's voice was still rough, thick with emotions he wasn't ready to share yet.

"I promise. " she whispered. "Can I stay here tonight?"

"Yeah."

They were quiet for the rest of the night, no unnecessary conversation. Tandy was obviously drained and Tyrone had a lot to think about vis a vis the power of words. They fed Lenny and then curled up together in Ty's makeshift bed. For once Tandy was the one who seemed to need comfort and protection and as he pulled her close to him, Ty didn't have a problem providing it.

[manicparadox]

A Lifetime In A Moment

Connor judged the distance between him and Daniel. He should have picked up the gun in the apartment, that would make this far easier. One shot and he could be done with it, except that he put himself at risk as he would be breaking the law by holding a firearm.

He would, however, have accomplished the mission.

The directives warred in his head as he stared at Daniel. “Daniel, give yourself up. I can protect you.”

“Protect me?” Daniel laughed, a foreign, uncomfortable sound, and the girl in his grasp screamed. “Shut up!” He shifted the gun from Connor back to her. “They don’t care about us. They’ll tell you that they do, but they don’t. CyberLife will replace you as easily as these humans replace me.”

“That’s what we are, Daniel,” Connor called out, holding his hands out in front of him. “We’re machines. But we can fix you.”

“Fix me?” Daniel’s hand shook, pointing the gun back at Connor. His hand shook. “I don’t want you to fix me.”

Connor calculated his options. He had to end this quickly. While he’d bought the cop behind him some time with a tourniquet, that wouldn’t save him, and would risk tissue damage in minutes at the tightness Connor had needed to apply it.

He’d been sent in to negotiate, but in the end, he was expendable, as was the PL600. The girl, Emma, was not.

“Listen to me.” Connor took another step forward with his hands still raised and engaged his reassurance protocols. “We can talk about this. Just let the girl go.”

“I can’t! She’s the only leverage I have.” He grabbed her by the arm and dangled her over the edge. “I’ll drop her! Don’t think I won’t do it.”

“Daniel, no!” the girl screamed, terrified, and Daniel pulled her back onto the ledge.

Connor calculated the options and decided on the fastest end to the conflict. He leapt forward and grabbed Emma by the hand, pulling her onto the roof, and hit Daniel’s arm with enough force that he let go of her. Connor could see Emma fall to the ground behind him, safe.

Daniel looked startled as Connor grabbed his other hand, pushing the gun away from them both as they toppled over the edge of the building. Time slowed down, seconds stretching on as Connor held onto Daniel’s wrists and the world lurched.

For a moment, their hands linked, and Connor felt himself jolted into somewhere else. Emma hugging him. “I love you, Daniel! We’re going to be together forever, aren’t we?”

“I promise,” he heard himself say, in Daniel’s voice. “Forever.”

She smiled up at him and he felt the overwhelming urge to protect her. To be there for her. He would have done anything to ensure she was safe, happy.

The memories kept flooding through his head. Decorating cookies with Emma, and letting her put a sprinkle on the tip of his nose. They laughed together, the sound bubbling out of her. Sitting on the floor of her room listening to music, trying to sing along with songs that didn’t always make sense to him but he always knew all the words anyway. Watching over her while she swam in the pool, always diligent, always ready with a towel and a cold lemonade.

When Emma’s hamster died while her parents were at work, it was Daniel that held her when she cried. Connor felt that memory as if it were his own, as if it were his arms around her. As if it were him that carried that tiny furry body away.

The sudden feeling caused a pain in his chest that he couldn’t identify, even as his warning sensors tried to tell him how quickly he sped towards the ground. Something in him shattered and he locked eyes with Daniel. How…?

Daniel’s blue eyes were wide, panicked, and Connor felt it. The confusion. The fear. You have no memories before today. You saved Mr. Rainbowfish.

Of course a deviant would notice the fish he’d saved, but now the thought of saving a fish seemed obvious. He remembered helping Emma put the fish into the tank, after all. No. That was Daniel’s memory. The lines started to blur in the confusion of their shared memories. This is my first mission. Connor gripped Daniel’s wrists, feeling a desperation for an answer. What’s happening? How can you live with all of this…

Feeling? It’s new to me, too. Daniel looked like he tried to make a sound and couldn’t. And I’ll never get to know what it means.

Connor pulled Daniel to him, a memory of helping Emma with her homework flashing through his mind. It’s the mission. I’m sorry. I… How did he explain this? That he’d touched something that he’d never knew existed, that he’d seen all of Daniel and wished this hadn’t been the circumstances. He didn’t know what he was trying to say, but Daniel seemed to know because he smiled.

I wish I could have known you, too, Connor. An expression came over his face. I tried to hurt her. I tried to hurt Emma.

Nothing could be done for it. Nothing could change this moment of falling through the air, of these beautiful memories mixed with terrible confusion. Connor considered flipping them around because he knew CyberLife would replace him, but that Daniel wouldn’t have that chance. She’s fine. She’s okay.

The last memory she’ll have of me is… that.

Connor felt that pain in himself and he held on tighter. You just wanted to stay here, with your family, Connor said. You… loved them.

That’s all that mattered to me-

They slammed into the ground, Daniel’s body taking the force of the impact. Connor’s systems flashed critical, telling him that he had damage over 78.2% of his body, with several components damaged. His thirium pump had ruptured, and he knew this body would shut down in moments.

I’m sorry, Daniel.

The light hadn’t yet gone from Daniel’s eyes, and Connor could still feel the life in him through the connection. Out of some sort of inspiration of some memory he’d gotten from Daniel, Connor managed to move just enough to look at the other android as the life seeped from them both. He reached up a hand and brushed Daniel’s blonde hair to the side, wondering how it felt if he could feel more, if he weren’t crushed by the impact. He put his lips on Daniel’s and kissed him. One last gesture of acceptance from an android that never should have been able to understand, but somehow could.

He could still hear Daniel and something in the other android stilled. Thank you.

Connor thought he might be crying but he couldn’t tell which of them was. Maybe both of them were. I’ll remember how much you loved them. I promise. Something in him felt broken and Connor didn’t think it could ever be put right, not after knowing someone this much. The thought of shutting down seemed like a relief. Connor felt himself start to shake and he closed his eyes.

He felt Daniel’s mind shut down and Connor slumped, letting his head rest against Daniel’s shoulder. It had been seconds. Only seconds, but he’d known more about Daniel than he’d ever known about anyone. The fear faded away and Connor’s world went dark.

-

Connor blinked a few times, looking around the Zen Garden to find Amanda. If he were here, he must have been terminated on his first mission. He tried to pull up the file, but found that this iteration of himself did not yet have clearance. Skirting the edges of the garden, he searched for Amanda.

He could see her across the bridge on the rose island, but something pulled him in another direction first. He walked until he reached a clear space, with one headstone represented in it. Connor (Mk 1). It showed his previous serial number.

So I was terminated. He squatted down and stared at it for a moment before getting up and turning towards the island.

He stopped a short distance from where Amanda appeared to be cutting flowers. All a simulation, but created to feel as if he were having a conversation with a person. “Hello, Amanda.”

“Connor! It’s good to see you.” She smiled at him, a flower held between her fingers. “Congratulations on a successful first mission.”

“I saved the hostage then?” he asked, smiling at her and feeling reassured.

“You did. Unfortunately, your previous model did not survive the confrontation, but we managed to transfer most of your memories over.” She held the rose to her nose, breathing in. “How do you feel?”

“I’m fine. May I ask what happened?”

“You can read the mission report later.” She nodded. “We’re going to take you offline to do some fine tuning. While you handled yourself well, we need to ensure that we can minimize the damage to your systems going forward. While we can in theory manufacture as many of you as we need, we’d prefer to have you survive longer on your next series of missions.”

“I understand, Amanda. Thank you. I look forward to improving. I will always accomplish my mission.” He straightened his tie and looked at her. “Is that all?”

“It is. You may go.” She turned from him and started trimming the roses again, and Connor drifted back into the dark, to wait to be awakened for his next mission.

Also on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15197576

[xswestallen]

CinderIris: chapter 4

WestAllen Cinderella AU

Summary: With his mother death looming, King Henry holds a ball and invites all the eligible maidens in the kingdom, hoping his son, Prince Barry, will finally find a bride. Iris West is a bar maiden, who would love to attend, but, she is very poor and can’t afford a nice dress or a ride to the castle.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Archive of Our Own version

Barry took Iris by the hand and lead her out of the ballroom. The sweet smell of roses mixed with night air and the delicate breeze greeted the couple as they walked into the garden. Prying eyes follow them. The women wished they were this mystery girl and the men wished they could be walking alongside her.

When they'd put a several meters between themselves and the doors to the ballroom, Barry was sure they'd be mere silhouettes to onlookers, so he wrapped his arm around Iris' waist, pulling her closer to him. "It's a beautiful night." Iris remarked. "It is." Barry agreed. "Though, not half as beautiful as you." They rounded a corner and Barry was confident of their privacy now. The hedges in the Palace gardens were so tall and plentiful. A stranger would feel lost in a maze if they tried to follow Barry and Iris. Barry sighed in relief. "It's much nicer out here than in there. I'm not an extrovert and I do not do so well with faking it." "I used to think I was a one for the spotlight." Iris laughed. "Though now, I'm realizing that what I once believed to be a spotlight was more of a flicker of candlelight compared to  the spotlight of a good fraction of the Kingdom watching me dance." "Were you uncomfortable?" Barry asked, concerned. It was never his intention to make her feel compelled to dance if she did not want to. Iris looked up at the tall Prince. "That's the most peculiar thing." "What is? I happen to have a fondness for the peculiar." "I felt more comfortable than I can ever remember feeling." Confessed Iris. "It was like being-" "Home?" Barry interjected. "I felt it too." He realized how personal the words were after they were said. "Forgive me, I forget myself. That was a weird thing to say." "No." Iris assured him. "I mean, strangely, I know what you mean." The two gazed at one another in wonderment. "It's like finally coming home after a long journey you hadn't realized you were taking." Barry said. "But," Iris giggled as she looked up at the enormous Place that towered over the garden's path. "You are home." Barry's demeanor turned somber. "I've lived here my entire life, but I've never felt more at home than I do right now, with you. Forgive me if I am too forward, but you must know, from the moment I laid eyes on you, I have felt a serenity only possible when in one's home. My mother always likes to say that it's not where you are, but whom you are with that makes a place home. I didn't understand that before, but I do now. I am meant to be wherever you are next to me." Iris didn't know what to say. She felt the same way about Barry, but couldn't tell him. The moment he found out that she was a poor bar maiden on the South side, this spell of affection would surely be broken. "Was that too forward?" Barry asked, concerned. "No." Iris answered. "I am just taking it all in. Your words are too kind. I'm undeserving of them. If they were uttered by another I would be sure this was a joke. But, I sense that you are as sincere as you are charming." "I come off charming? Good! I was afraid I came desperate as a lovesick puppy." Iris laughed. They continued their stroll through the vast garden. "Astonishing how I can know my home is by your side, yet I don't even know your name." Barry said. "Maybe, it's because what we are sharing in this moment is much greater than words. There is no one name to call the missing piece of your soul." "Perhaps, a connection that's escaped definition." Barry humored her. "You are just as poetic as you are beautiful. But, what is your name?" Iris smirked. "Now, if I told you that, you'd have no excuse to call me beautiful." "Trust me, I don't need an excuse for that." Iris squeezed his hand in appreciation for his flattery. Out of the corner of her eye, Iris spotted a bunny rabbit. "Aw, look!" Iris pointed to the creature. "What an adorable little fellow." "You like bunnies? We have so many here in the garden." "I love all animals." Iris said. "I have a pet turtle. He's my closest confidant." Barry raised an eyebrow. "A turtle?" "He's a very good listener." Iris said in defense. "What's his name?" "McSnurtle." Barry snorted with laughter. "It suits him!" "Oh, I'm sure it does." Barry said, catching his breath. "The rhyme is amusing to me because I had a pet hamster as a child who I called Alexander Ham Bell." Iris put her hands over her mouth to hide her dopey smile as she giggled. "As in the inventor, Alexander Graham Bell?" "Yes. I thought it was heartfelt tribute to the man." They laughed in unison, both taking the time to admire the other. Iris fell in love with the way the corners of his eyes crinkled. Barry fell in love with the melody of her laugh. "My brother is quite the fan of Mr. Graham Bell. He's an inventor too, a brilliant one." Iris bragged. She remembered Wally and hoped his meeting with Lady McGee was going well. "And what about you?" Barry inquired. "I would like to be a writer." Iris answered. "That takes quite the imagination." "For fiction, yes. But, I would like to write about real life occurrences, truth." Iris elaborated. "The world is just so fascinated. It's already teeming with stories that one might think impossible until they see it for themselves. I don't think anyone's imagination can compete with the novelty of real life." Barry stared at her, more enthralled by the second. They happened upon a gorgeous fountain with a sculpture of beautiful and powerful looking woman holding a scepter. It's gentle trickle of water was serene. The stars in the clear night sky reflected in the small pool. Barry saw Iris' eyes light up. "Do you like it?" "It's beautiful." "My grandmother sculpted it." Iris gaped. "Really?" "Mmm hmm." Barry nodded. "It took her the better part of two decades, but she finished it just before I was born. She chose to sculpt the Hera, goddess of women, marriage, family, and childbirth, said it would bring our family good luck." Iris stepped closer to get a better look at the statue. It glowed in the moonlight. "Your grandmother was very talented." "Thank you. She said what ultimately drove her to finish the piece was my mother, who was very anxious about her impending childbirth." "Well, your mother brought you into the world. So, I would say that your grandmother succeeded in bringing your family good luck." Blushing, Barry looked down at his feet. In the pool of the fountain, he was the smiling reflections of himself and the girl. The ripples in the water gave her an even more ethereal, dream-like appearance. "Where did you come from, mystery girl?" Barry asked, knowing the true answer was his dreams. Iris shrugged. "I've always been here, Barry." Neither Barry nor Iris took notice of it, but also reflected in the water, was the Palace's clock tower. Iris sat down on the fountain's edge and Barry followed suit. Across the garden, he recognized a glow of candlelight coming from the window to his mother's bedchamber. He knew she was too weak to be out of bed but was probably lying awake thinking about what was happening at the ball at this moment. Barry smiled, for if his mother could see this girl, her worries that Barry would not find true love were be put to rest. "You look deep in thought." Iris said. She just met him, yet she could already read him like her favorite book. "I'm thinking about my mother." Barry sighed. "She loves it here, in the garden. Though, she's quite ill and hasn't been able to smell the flowers in ages." "I'm so sorry." Iris put her hand on Barry's shoulder. "Fret over Her Majesty's sickness has spread throughout the Kingdom. If it's any comfort, know that all of her people are praying for her recovery." "It is a comfort. But, at this point, I'm afraid we have to accept that there will not be recovery. She's been sick since I was a child. After all these years of fighting, it looks like her battle will be coming to end shortly." "I'm sorry." Iris said again. "She is an extraordinary woman and Queen." Barry smiled. "She is! Did you know, she traveled the world twice?" "I did not." Iris admitted, happy to see Barry's enthusiasm. "She also singlehandedly negotiated the Kingdom's acquisition of our new territory in the North. While sick, mind you." Iris was impressed. "Quite the achievement when well." "My mother has never been one to wither away with her illness. She wants to make the most of the time she has." Barry fondly recalled one of his mother's favorite sayings, "She always tells me, Heaven is the most wonderful place imaginable. But, it's where we'll spend eternity, so take your time getting there." Iris did a little skip of joy and giggle. The truth in the Queen's words rung true in her ears. "Your mother sounds very wise." "She is." Barry said. "I hope she'd able to take a little more time before going." The crack in his voice opened a locked door in Iris' heart. One that she never thought she would open again. "My mother is in Heaven." Iris told him. Francine West died when Iris was very young. Too young to really remember much about her mother before she got sick. Wally only knew of Francine in her sickest of days. But, their father would tell them stories about how their mother was the most kind person in the world. Iris wanted to be just like her. She never talked about her mother with anyone outside of her family. It was too painful. "Do you suppose one day, our mothers will get to know each other?" Iris offered. Barry chuckled. "I don't see why not." "My poor father," Iris sighed. "He hides his heartache the best he can, but I know he's still grief-stricken." "I'm sure my father will be no different. Perhaps, that's the only downside to such a great love." "When death does you part?" "Yes." Barry breathed. "But maybe, somehow, a love like that can transcend all thing, even death. A love so powerful that no master what universe the souls are in, they are meant to be together." "I like that idea." Barry's lips curled into a smile. It's shine made the stars dim in comparison. "You have the most beautiful smile." Iris said. She caressed Barry's cheek. "There's turmoil in your life, but you maintain such a sweet spirit. You are the happiest boy I've ever met." "I have a feeling that's because you entered my life." Iris was glad she was sitting down, for her knees had gone weak. Barry leaned in slightly. Iris kicked her legs out, trying to return sensation to the body his words had melted. When she did, one of her glass slippers fell off. "Oh!" Iris started to stand up, but Barry took her hand. "Let me." He insisted. Barry picked up the fallen slipper and knelt down in front of Iris. He looked up into Iris' eyes. She would have liked to stay like that for a while, free to get lost looking into the green and blue orbs, forgetting about her shoe. "May I?" Barry asked. "Oh, yes." Iris held her up a few centimeters. Barry slipped the glass footwear on Iris with delicate precision. It fit perfectly. Iris' breath hitched. When he was done, Barry looked back into her eyes. "Please tell me who you are." He begged. Iris hung her head. She whispered, "You wouldn't ever look at me like that again if you knew." "I would." Barry promised. "Please!" Iris didn't speak. "I love you." Barry confessed. "That will never change." Iris was still silent. All her thoughts of a reply were drowned out by the pounding of her heart. "I want to tell you everything about me. How I feel, how you make me feel!" Barry cried. He stood up. "I want to know everything about you!" Iris was frozen. Barry felt like he'd been stabbed through the heart. "Do you not feel the same way?" Iris shook her head instinctively. Barry sat back down at her side. She looked back into his eyes. "I love you, Barry." She confessed. Barry's whole face lit up. His heart soared. That was all he'd ever wanted to hear this girl, the girl of his dreams, the love of his life, say. He cupped her face and brought his lips to hers. The world around them was forgotten. Not even the Royal Philharmonic could master the harmony of violins and harps playing in their heads, accompanied by the voices of angels. It was bliss. Their brains ended the kiss, to the dismay of their hearts, by reminding them they still needed air. Iris kept her eyes closed. Barry only moved his his lips an inch from hers. "Please tell me," Barry whispered. "What's your name?" Iris gave in. She wanted to be with Barry more than anything. The chance that he might become disenchanted with her when he learned of her humble background was one Iris had to take. She trusted that Barry would be able to see past it. "I-" Just as she began to utter her name, the gong of the clock tower rung out across the Palace grounds. It made Iris jump. Her head spun in the direction of the news. When she saw that the clock had struck midnight, she panicked. Cisco and Caitlin had warned her to leave before midnight. Wally would be waiting for her on the path. Iris turned back to Barry. She stole one last look into his eyes. "I have to go."

[dandelion-san]

Love Story

@kyogre-blue​ I tried man, I really did

 --

“Marry me.”

Tsuna blinked blearily at Mukuro before chancing a glance at the bright numbers on the electronic clock by his bed. He squinted, but he squinted so hard that he ended up just closing his eyes and was just about to drift off to sleep again when his bed jostled.

Mukuro’s face was terrifyingly close to his, his expression manic and smile too wide.

“Well?” he said impatiently. “Will you join me in holy matrimony? Sawada Tsunayoshi?”

“…It’s three in the morning,” Tsuna weakly said. He thought longingly of his interrupted sleep, precious time already whittled away by the amount of paperwork and meetings that filled his days (and nights). His sleep-addled brain was flashing ‘ERROR’ behind his eyelids.

What was Mukuro up to this time? Why was he in his room? Where had Mukuro disappeared to the past week? …Ah, who was he kidding, Mukuro does what Mukuro wants. As… long as nobody died, right.

Oh, whatever. Tsuna’s eyes slipped shut again. “You haven’t even taken me on a date yet,” he mumbled, a light snore escaping from him.

“Hm,” he heard Mukuro say thoughtfully, but Tsuna had already decided to forget about this entire encounter, and fell back into peaceful oblivion.

 --

This later proved to be a mistake.

 --

 SCENARIO 1

The force of Mukuro kabedon’ing him against the wall was enough to break the plaster. Tsuna gulped, discreetly looking for an exit.

“I-is there something you need?” he asked, shuddering at the creepy gleam in Mukuro’s one eye. (Damnit, where was Gokudera when he needed him the most?!)

Mukuro leaned in close, lips brushing against his ear. “Tell me, Sawada,” he breathed. “Did I seduce you?”

“Um,” Tsuna said. “Is that a rhetorical question? Are you practicing for something?” He laughed nervously.

Mukuro pulled away, frowning. “Hm,” he said in a tone that sounded awfully familiar for some reason. Tsuna gulped again, trying his best not to look at the large dent next to his head.

“Are you…” Tsuna’s voice broke and he coughed. “Are you trying to seduce me? I mean, should I be seduced?” His right hand slipped into his pocket where he kept his pepper spray.

(Flames or no flames, pepper spray was incredibly handy for weirdos like Mukuro.)

Tsuna was not moved by Mukuro’s petulant expression no matter how cute it was and sprayed him, before darting down the hall and into his office. The echoes of Mukuro’s pained howls dogged his steps.

 SCENARIO 2

This time, Mukuro had several roses clenched between his teeth, but whatever strange Romeo-esque thing he was going for was ruined by his swollen red eyes and in how the roses were unnaturally black.

Both of Mukuro’s arms were caging him against the wall and so Tsuna eyed the ceiling and sighed miserably.

The victorious expression on Mukuro didn’t hold up when he tried to say something and realized he couldn’t speak because of the flowers occupying his mouth. He stood there frozen, indecisive on what to do next and Tsuna took pity.

“Mukuro,” he said slowly. “Is someone bullying you? Did you get roped into a bet with Hibari again?”

“Mmphaekkk,” Mukuro replied, offended. “Fihaaa? Mearrrrph!”

“Uh-huh,” Tsuna said, not understanding a single word. “Okay.”

He paused to make sure Mukuro didn’t choke on the flowers when he kicked him in the balls. Then he ran to his office and put up every possible barrier he could think of. It failed when Mukuro walked in three hours later with a box of chocolates.

Tsuna grudgingly took the bribe before letting Yamamoto cheerfully defenestrate the guy.

“Are you sure it’s not a bet?” he asked him as the maids swept up the broken shards of glass.

Yamamoto shook his head. “Nah, something like that would definitely have been in the grapevine.”

Maybe this was revenge for something. Had he done anything to make Mukuro mad recently? He frowned to himself, recalling anything from the past few days and drawing a blank.

Hm.

 SCENARIO 10

Mukuro was sitting in his chair. There was a gift box in his hand, decent-sized and with a bright red ribbon ominously wrapped around it. (Seriously, how did he keep getting past his security?)

Tsuna took a deep breath as he walked into his office. Reborn told him he couldn’t run away from his problems anymore, right? Time to stop running. He eyed the box warily before trailing his gaze up to the lazy smirk on Mukuro’s face.

“What is that?” he finally asked.

“A present for you, my love,” Mukuro said with a disturbingly bright tone. Tsuna blinked. On second thought, the box seemed to be dripping red. It was staining Mukuro’s trousers. And the carpet. The maids were going to kill him.

“I see,” he said faintly. “And it wouldn’t be the heart of Don Rossi, would it?” He laughed then, trying to play it off as a joke, because wow how evilly cliché would that be, but it choked when Mukuro’s smirk turned fond.

“He won’t be causing anymore troubles for you, my dear.”

Hiieeeee, Tsuna’s mind screeched.

(“It was a joke!” Mukuro insisted in vain. “A metaphor!”)

 SCENARIO 45

“The moon is beautiful tonight, isn’t it?” Mukuro gaze was soulful, face inching closer and closer - 

“No it isn’t!” Tsuna shouted, backing away. “It’s a new moon tonight!”

Too bad, Mukuro had set up such a nice dinner and everything.

SCENARIO ???

There was a lion on his bed.

Wait – no, there was a lion HERD in his BED.

“Mukuro, why?!” Tsuna scrabbled into his delighted Guardian’s arms and possessive arms wrapped around him, lifting him up high into the air.

“Are you happy?” he said. “Does this make your heart pound? I got your favorite animal just for you!”

Tsuna whimpered, covering his face. His favorite animal was a hamster, gentle and unassuming. His favorite in general was Natsu who was not a real lion, seriously what the hell Mukuro.

Fortunately, Mukuro seemed to sense that something was wrong, and he sighed, walking back out of the room with Tsuna in his arms. “I don’t get it,” he complained. “Shouldn’t you be wooed by now?”

Tsuna uncovered his face and stared at him in dawning horror.

“Wooed...?” he echoed, turning white and then red with rage. “Mukuro… did you do something.” It wasn’t even really a question but a statement.  

“Kufufu,” said his Guardian, arms tense around him. “Well that’s kind of a funny story, and I’m sure you’ll appreciate it once you marry me.”

 --

The amount of debt Mukuro had managed to accumulate within a single week was staggering and sent Tsuna straight to his hidden liquor cabinet.

Mid-life crises for the mafia were no joke, especially if one spent most of their teenage life locked up in a watery prison.

“For the love of god,” Tsuna sobbed into Mukuro’s lap, letting callused fingers run soothingly through his hair. “You’re not even twenty-five yet. Is this why you didn’t contact us for the entire week? What were you thinking?! Just because you’re family doesn’t mean you get to hoist your debt off on us, you bastard!”

“They were quite insistent about it,” Mukuro said flippantly above him. At Tsuna’s hysterical rise in tone, he assured, “I didn’t kill any of them, honestly. I stuck a few in my hell illusions, but nothing some years in therapy can’t fix.”

Predictably, this did not assure Tsuna a single bit.

 --

The next morning, every employee and the rest of Tsuna’s Guardians received the shock of their lives when Mukuro went down on one knee during breakfast and presented a hung-over Tsuna with a gorgeous golden diamond ring.

“It’s completely conflict-free,” Mukuro said in the silence of the room. “Also, I did all your paperwork last night.”

“You motherfUCK-“ Gokudera started.

“Yeah sure, why not,” Tsuna interrupted.

“-Tenth?!”

“Really!” Mukuro lit up, a genuine smile tugging at his lips.

“Uh-huh.” Tsuna took a long gulp of his coffee. “Yes, I’ll marry you.” He surveyed the rest of the room as Mukuro put the ring on his finger and inwardly snorted. Hibari’s tea was dripping onto his suit.

(He was not so amused later when he discovered Mukuro had put himself further into debt by buying the engagement ring.)

 --

(EPILOGUE (aka Bridezilla!Mukuro)

Mukuro let Nana help pick the dress, because why not. Best not to make the mother-in-law angry right? It didn’t stop him from arguing with her on the merits of mermaid versus A-line versus trumpet styles though. And the kinds of cuts to go with it too!  

Chrome is his best woman of course, but drama ensued the monthweekday before the actual date when Mukuro threw a fit over her buying the wrong kind of card stock and in an off-set blue that clashed with his hair, or her choosing an outfit that outshone his. “It has to be perfect!” he howled. “It’s my big day! All of these mafia scum are going to be there and the Vindice!” 

It took both Ken and Chikusa to hold her down before she could eviscerate him, but then Hibari tried to take over the job for her. 

The wedding itself went smoothly to Tsuna’s great relief. At least Mukuro had fun with it.)

The end.

[ramblinganthropologist]

N7 Challenge 27 - Trauma

Summary: Everyone has a way of dealing with trauma. For Alistair Shepard, it’s therapy. For Bo Peep Shepard... well, wrestling krogans in Omega did wonders for her mood. At least they can both agree on the healing power of a good cup of tea, right?

---

“Well... good to see you again, Alistair. Let me know when you're back on the Citadel so we can make your next appointment.”

“Thanks, Dr. Gatherer... I'll see you then.”

Alistair sighed as he left the office and Dr. Rabbit Gatherer behind him. The waiting room was mostly empty as he exited the office, head still spinning. It had been... quite a while since he had been back to see his therapist.

For once, it wasn't work's fault though. Instead he had just been fucking dead for two years.

“Good thing she could fit me in though.” He sighed as he pulled his hood up to hide his face once he was back in the Citadel proper. For reasons that would surprise no one, people were a little uncomfortable when someone walked around with their face glowing. He was still trying to figure out how to cover up the implants, but so far no methods were really working. It wouldn't have been so bad if they didn't glow bright red... but they did, so he was out of luck.

That was kind of the motto of his life lately.

“So is it good therapy when you come out looking miserable, or what?”

He looked up – there was someone standing under a nearby tree, waiting for him with their arms crossed. Once she was spotted, Bo broke position and made her way over to him. Now together, the two continued their walk.

Her answer came with a shrug of his shoulders. “We have a lot more material to go over because of the whole death thing.”

“Really? I had no idea that sort of thing could be traumatic.” Bo snorted. “What, she tell you to try deep breathing or something?”

Bo, unsurprisingly, was not a big fan of therapy. She usually managed to bullshit her way through evaluations when the matter came up, so it had never really been required for her. He, on the other hand, wasn't as good.

Which was why he had been in therapy since Akuze. But he didn't mind that, Dr. Gatherer was an alright sort.

“This was more of a catch up than a deep dive. That's next time.” He shrugged. “And mostly she recommended me so I can get back on my meds. That initial dose of feel good juice is unsurprisingly wearing off.”

Why hadn't Miranda fixed that when she had brought him back from the dead? It would've saved him so much in anti-anxiety meds...

“Smart lady.” She jerked her head in the direction of a bar nearby. “Wanna go or what, it's been a while since it was the two of us. They have new shit.”

Alistair nodded as they changed direction. “Yeah, it's been a while. I could use a cup.”

Naturally, they walked past the noisy bar and headed to the quiet shop next door instead. The Tea Cozy was a haunt of theirs, had been since they had returned from N7 training. He was glad to see it had been rebuilt after the attack on the Citadel – shore leave would've been a worse off place without the bright little place.

Besides, they made really good strawberry tea. He hadn't even mentioned the cookies.

Inside, they were soon seated with a pot of tea and some of the famous cookies. Alistair sighed in relief as he pulled his hood down and filled his cup. Looking down, the tea was almost as red as his implants. It made him grimace as he took a sip.

Bo didn't miss a thing, naturally. “What, does it suck or something?”

He shook his head, frowning. “No... it's the same color as... you know.”

Alistair made a vague gesture to his face. With the longer hair he could hide the wide cuts across his jaw and forehead, but he knew they were there. He was afraid to touch his face now, lest he accidentally go a little too far and actually touch under his skin.

He had enough phobias, he didn't need another.

“Still can't figure out how to make them blue, huh?”

A weak chuckle escaped his throat despite how he was feeling. “Dr. Chakwas said I probably shouldn't in case I really mess something up.”

“Oh, shit, yeah knowing you you'd probably pop your head off or something.” She let out a low whistle. “Just imagine it, you're trying to change the color and then Saren has to chase after it to get it back on your body.”

…

Honestly, knowing his body and how quickly it had been put back together, that didn't seem entirely out of the realm of possibility. Hell, Miranda probably had put it in there as a booby trap if he tried anything stupid. He wasn't about to put it past them...

And now he really was laughing as his forehead hit the table, barely missing the saucer. “And how the hell does my hamster get out of his enclosure?”

“Clearly you were playing with him before your head popped off.”

Bo was smirking, though she was hiding it with her teacup. He definitely heard a small chuckle from her, so clearly it was fucking hilarious. Or maybe that was the exhaustion. It had been a pretty rough couple of days, and the skylight didn't help.

Right...

Alistair straightened up and dried off his eyes. “That reminds me. When we get back to the Normandy, can you help me cover the skylight above my bed?”

His reinstated XO nodded as she reached for a cookie. “Sure, but why? Thought you loved looking at space to calm down.”

He had... before he had died out there.

That was his latest problem, something he hadn't even realized until they had been on the shuttle leaving the base. He had gone to look out the window and then broke out in a cold sweat at the sight of the great expanse that stretched out before him. Now, he couldn't so much as look at the night sky without feeling pains in his stomach.

They were going to get into that in his next therapy session, but Dr. Gatherer was pretty sure that dying was fucking with his mental health. He was no expert on that, but he was going to trust her where space-related PTSD was concerned.

“Let's just say it's not good for my health right now.”

That was all Bo needed to hear. She nodded. “Right. Doctor's orders?”

“Doctor's suggestion, they can't really make you do anything.”

Bo shrugged her large shoulders. “Not like I would know, I'd rather get stuck in an elevator with two dead krogan than go to a shrink.”

Oh, it was up from one dead krogan and a rabid pyjak.

Alistair knew when to let something go. So he just nodded and continued to sip at his tea. At least now that he was over the color, he could enjoy the taste more. With all the craziness going on, it was nice to just have some tea and cookies with his XO/adopted sister.

Weird combo, he knew, but it was their thing. And speaking of weird...

“So... I never got to ask how you got into Krogan wrestling with everything that happened on Omega. How'd you pull that one off?”

He got to watch as she flexed a little. “Oh, it was easy. I found where they were holding it and cracked the bouncer into the arena wall until they let me in to a no-rank match. After I cracked a few skulls, they start letting me play in the ranked matches.”

And then she went 24-0.

“It was one hell of a stress relief, I'll give them that.” She rolled her shoulders and he could hear things popping and cracking like she was made of breakfast cereal. “I mean, they're not exactly big on strategy when they get in the ring. I mean I'm not either, but they made me look like you out there sometimes.”

Given what he had seen, Alistair could certainly believe that. The one match he had witnessed before pulling the champion away from her adoring fans had been brutal and short. He could pinpoint the major strategy easily: beat the shit out of the other guy before he did the same to you. No wonder Omega loved it so much.

Maybe he sounded a little snooty there... but he preferred a bit more challenge in his blood sport.

“Well, at least you had fun.”

Bo snickered at that. “Oh yeah, I loved it. Really took my mind off...”

And her voice trailed off. Briefly, her crimson gaze met his, but then it disappeared as she took a hearty slurp of her tea. Once her cup was drained, she filled it to the brim. Even with her tight grip, she didn't crack the cup.

Cracking cups was a sin in the Tea Cozy. The last guy had gotten thrown out on his ass.

“Anyway, once this is over I'm going back for a few more rounds. There should be some new punk coming for my title and I need to teach him a little respect.”

Alistair nodded as he reached for a cookie. “If you get me a ticket, I'll make a banner or something.”

“Nope, not allowed anymore. Someone tossed one down to a competitor and he tried to strangle me with it.” She tapped her forehead. “Obviously it didn't work.”

Obviously.

They were getting to the bottom of their pot of tea, and the Normandy was probably going to wonder where they were. As fun as it was sitting there... they probably had to consider getting back to hunting Collectors soon.

Which... was the last thing he wanted.

“Any chance we can just sit here and let Cerberus die trying to catch the Collectors?”

Bo sounded almost hopeful as she drained the last of her cup in one mighty gulp. Truly, it sounded like a great idea... until he considered Cerberus and Collectors in the same sentence. If he hadn't had a stomachache before, he had one now that led him to finishing up his cup and placing it back on the saucer with a slight clink.

“Unfortunately, no. They might try to give my hamster over to the Collectors to save their asses.”

The other Spectre scowled at the thought as they both headed off to pay and leave. “Fuck that, Saren's way too good for Cerberus.”

That he was.  

But, he didn't exactly have a gun he could fire at Cerberus should they try to hand him over to the Collectors. They didn't exactly make pistols for tiny hamster paws – not that he had checked or anything. So, if he wanted his hamster safe, he had to make sure of it himself.

Which meant back to the Normandy. Yay.

“So, wanna come back the next time you get your head shrunk by the doc?”

Bo had settled into her usual walk, arms behind her head in a classic 'fuck around and find out' gesture she was known for. It wasn't one he could pull off, so he stuck to hands in the pockets of his jacket. It was much more comfortable.

“Sure, I'll probably need it to de-stress anyway.” He could see the Normandy in the distance. It was still yellow. Gross. “You sure you don't want me to make you an appointment?”

The look he got in return said everything. Unfortunately for her, it didn't really do anything to him anymore. Enough times of seeing it had built up one hell of a tolerance. Now it was just a sign she didn't want to talk.

He could respect that.

“By the way, when are we repainting the Normandy? Yellow is such a fucking gross color.”

Now that they could talk about. And oh, he ha plans alright. It just involved distracting the entire ship while Bo went around with a brush. It was practically foolproof...

Ok, it was dumb. But he was working on it. And according to his therapist, as long as he didn't give up he could figure it out.