#i miss my hair so much why’d i ever cut it off ugh

[artificialbreezy]

i’m feeling IMPULSIVE. someone tell me right now not to go buy box dye and color my hair black again. this shit was a look™️

[rencesworld]

How the Haikyuu boys would react to you getting a different lace frontal wig color that’s out of your comfort zone. Pt.2

Warning- NSFW, cuss words

Bokuto

I’m going to say this once and that’s it, THAT BOY IS YOUR HYPE MAN‼️🤣

You had invited him to your house so you can show him the new hairstyle you gotten the day before. You were excited b/c everytime you’ve gotten a lace front it was always black or burgundy red, so getting gray hair was all new and shocking to you.

The only reason you’ve gotten gray, is b/c bokuto kept asking you to get gray so y’all can twin. At first you were thinking of half black and half gray to really match with him, but that was way more expensive and too much work so, you just stuck with all gray.

When you opened the door the very first thing the boy notice was your hair ( I mean who wouldn’t🤣). This boy screamed with joy, which startled you a little but laughed after.

“BABY YOU LOOK SO FREAKING AMAZING!” He yelled on top of his lungs which you had to rush/pull him inside so he wouldn’t bother your neighbors next door with his yelling.

“YOUR SKIN IS GLOWING 10X MORE!” He kept throwing more and more compliments towards without even letting you thank him, he just couldn’t help it.

You literally had to shut him up with a kiss.

Akaashi

Akaashi was shook asf🧍🏻

The whole entire wig shook him. He’s just used to seeing your in box braids, faux locs , and your natural hair.

So, when he saw you in the hallways walking towards him since he was waiting for you by your locker. He was shocked but in a very good way.

He couldn’t keep his eyes off of you. “Hey kakashi” you said leaning giving him a kiss on the cheek.

He started blushing which made you giggle because you knew you looked good and it was flustering him. “I-I love your hair, blossom. You looking very beautiful. N-not that you don’t always look beautiful- it’s just shocking to see you in this hair.”

When you had gotten the hair you were scared bc you didn’t think it will come out good, But you made it work and you loved it. You just hoped Akaashi loved it too. After seeing his reaction, you know for a fact that he loved it and that boosted your confidence.

Akaashi just wouldn’t keep his eyes off of you the whole day🥺.

Oikawa

You didn’t show up at school bc you had to get your hair done(y’all know yall all skipped school or work to get yall hair done before🤣). This big baby was kind of mad that you left him all alone to fend for himself from getting beat up by Iwaziumi. But he knows getting your hair done was important to you so he wasn’t really bummed out.

You had told him that you were going to try something new this time so he was very excited to see which hairstyle or hair color you will be picking.

During his practice, he saw from the corner of his eyes was a brown skin girl with hot pink hair. At first he didn’t think much but after a couple of minutes it hit him, well iwaziumi had punched him in the arm telling him how rude of him to ignore his girlfriend.

At first he was confused then he looked at where his team mates were looking at and saw y/n sitting on the bench waving at him.

This boy let out the loudest gasp EVER! “Baby is that you!” He asked while speed walking towards her.

“Nah, it’s Ushijima.” Y/n said playfully. Tooru scoffed.

“You like the hair babes?” You asked kind of nervous. “Like? I fucking love it. The hair is slayed sis. It’s the hair color for me. You look so freaking beautiful!” He was just rambling on a little bit b/c he didn’t expect that hairstyle, I mean you did say that were going to try something new but he didn’t expect this kind of new.

“Thank you flattykawa! I knew you were going to love it.” You said happily. Tooru decided to let that name you just called him slide only b/c you looked really good.

“Aye, Shittykawa! We still have practice.” Iwaizumi said.

“Y’all know it’s not hard to call me by my name and I’m admiring my beautiful, gorgeous, sexy, divine, eleg-” “Okay, they get it Tooru-baby.” Y/n cuts him off knowing he wasn’t going to stop🤣.

Tooru could not keep his eyes off of you during practice. His teammates threw a couple of compliments towards you.🥺

Iwaizumi

My baby died and came back to life.😭

It was so unexpected that he literally felt like his soul left body.

You had to skip school to get your hair done unlike Oikawa, he wasn’t mad. He understands how much your hair means to you and how you will always make sure it’s looking right.

Before practice, he got a text from you telling him that you would be in the gym waiting for him. He kind of starts to rush a little but not too much for anybody to notice. He hasn’t seen you all day so he missed you(also excited to see how your new hairstyle looks).

He goes inside the gym to search for you and all he sees is Oikawa talking to a girl with bright blue hair. He couldn’t see the face since their back was facing him. But he’s memorized y/n’s body sex drive crazy

He wasn’t sure if that was you or maybe one of Oikawa’s fan girls. He started walking towards Oikawa but stopped when you turned to face him. You gave him huge grin and flipped your hair a little.

“Iwa-Chan doesn’t y/n look gorgeous. Ugh! Iwa-Chan how were you able to pull a such beautiful girl like y/n-” before he could talk so more nonsense Iwaizumi had already shoved Oikawa away.

Oikawa walked off smirking knowing he pushed Iwaizumi buttons.

After Oikawa left he turned back to you and just stood there 🧍🏻. “I know I’m sexy but sheesh, say something” y/n said smirking.

“Y-y-you look fucking g-good” he says stuttering which surprised you so, you decided to tease him a bit.

“What did you say Iwa-Chan, I couldn’t hear you that well.” Knowing damn well you heard him well. He hates when you call him Iwa-Chan.

“Y/n stop it. I said you look fucking gorgeous.” He said a little irritated. You laughed and leaned in and gave a him kiss on the lips. He isn’t much of a pda but he was only letting it slide bc you looked good asf.

“Can I pull it when I’m fucking you from behind?” He asked during the kiss. Which shocked you. 😅

“Boy this damn wig done cost me way too much money. Hell no.”

Tsukishima

This boy acted like he wasn’t all that interested in your hair but we all know that boy was in love with your hair. It’s the same color as his.

He’s reaction was so him🤣.

He saw you at your locker and your hair from afar. He was in love with the way the color popped your skin tone so well. Your skin was literally glowing.

But knowing him he’s goin act like he doesn’t care.

“Not you copying my hair now.” Tsuki says next to you. Which startled you a little.

“Boy getcho skinny ass out my face. I’m not copying you and never wil.” You said with a playful tone but also serious.

“Mhmm. You want me to walk you to class?” He says not even complimenting your hair, which kind of pissed you off.

“So, you’re not going to compliment my hair or anything?” You said with hands on your hips. Tsuki smirked

“No, let’s go” he said walking off. You followed behind irritated with the fact that he didn’t even compliment you and has the audacity to walk you to class after being rude to you.

Once you guys were reaching to your class, Kei stops which made you turn around to face his tall ass.

“What’s wrong? Why’d you’d stopped?” Y/n asked kind of worried but still mad at him.

“You look very beautiful in blond hair, it makes your skin glow more.” He says then walks away fast before you can even process what just happened. 🚶🏼‍♂️🧍🏾‍♀️

[somerpmemes]

Disenchantment S3 Starters

Change as needed

“Who can resist a creepy mom hug?”

“She’s not an ugly, evil bitch. But she is sluttier than I imagined.”

“When I last saw you, you were a lot more dead.”

“Is your life so awful you have to keep wrecking mine?”

“You were a model of regal barbarism.”

“Something’s going on.”

“Like any two numbers, this don’t add up.”

“You’re a bloodthirsty bastard.”

“I’m no decision-maker, I’m an action-taker.”

“Oh, I wanted to gloat directly over our victim’s corpse.”

“Hand me a murder stick.”

“For a dying man, he’s making a lot of noise.”

“World domination can wait.”

“I’m allergic to pandering.”

“Trust me, I’m not playing mind games with you.”

“Just promise you’ll think about giving me another chance.”

“Hallelujah, amen, and ka-ching.”

“You realize you’re all I have.”

“I know you’re lying but I hope one day you’ll mean that.”

“Is it still true love if your wallet is missing?”

“I just figured out this is a bad idea.”

“Oh, this ruins so many fantasies.. but opens up so many new ones.”

“Actually, pretending to care about your feelings was exhausting.”

“___, do what you do best. Take your mommy issues out on somebody else.”

“This is the sinister plot that just keeps giving.”

“Souls are meant for damnation, not soup.”

“Fooling foolish fools is so satisfying.”

“Oh, that’s delightfully craven.”

“Okay I get it, I have a hot mom.”

“It’s not even good cake.”

“Aww, he spelt it ‘yer’.”

“I believe it’s pronounced ‘skedaddle’.”

“I always wanted to get lost in a labyrinth. It's like a puzzle you solve with your feet.”

“If someone else is plotting without us, I will be really miffed.”

“Aren’t boots supposed to bend at the knees?”

“They’re just being really hurtful.”

“I’ll never fall for one of your tricks again.”

“I won’t say that doesn’t hurt.”

“And now, I just wanna lie down.”

“I think we’re getting away with it.”

“Ugh, I swear these tight, sexy clothes were designed to cut off cognitive thinking.”

“Disappointment’s a form of caring.”

“Who you are is a nobody and what you are ain’t nothing.”

“Stop being so agreeable!”

“I dreamed of this moment for so long, but I’m more worried than validated.”

“He looks so different with his head sliced off.”

“You have the worst luck I’ve ever seen.”

“I don’t know how this could get any more degrading.”

“Don’t ever walk barefoot around here. And never eat at the strip clubs.”

“But often the craziest thoughts are the most true, you nutloaf!”

“This is a classy affair, more cleavage.”

“This means so much to whoever I am.”

“I’ve got a nice thing going. I don’t wanna mess it up by opening up my big mouth.”

“I would love to have you as one of my exes but I think it’s best if you think of me as your slutty grandma.”

“The faster you run the more beer you get.”

“Sorry, I’m a little damp and cranky.”

“I’m addicted to stealing wallets now.”

“A veritable sandwich of danger.”

“Neither of us are cats.”

“Yeah, well, I’m gonna knife you in your throat.”

“Now swim for it before the crabs swarm over you.”

“Wow! You can really taste the rage.”

“So it’s agreed, we don’t get caught.”

“Man, after-work drinks taste so much better than instead-of-work drinks.”

“If I were afraid I wouldn’t be here.”

“I know a lot of psychos.”

“Pretend like we planned on meeting here so no one yells at me for cutting in line.”

“It’s as educational as it is moisturizing.”

“Ha! That’s what you get for believing in love!”

“You were always good at sticking to things.”

“I know you don’t trust me, but whatever you do, do not trust him.”

“If I can’t trust you, how can I trust you to tell me who to trust?”

“What are you offering here?”

“This is big, I really need some time to drink about this.”

“Who is interrupting my insomnia!?”

“You act angry on the outside but deep down you’re lonely and inadequate.”

“I look like a macho flowerpot.”

“Like, I’ve hear of fashion disasters but you, sir, are a genocide.”

“Now to blend invisibly into the crowd.”

“I’m your knight in rusty armor.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way but, shut up ___.”

“Oh my god, I’m insulting myself.”

“We’re all ashamed of some flaw we can’t change.”

“Nature is full of green.”

“I bring good old-fashioned psychological torture to the party, okay? Just like your grandmother made.”

“Wow! This malnutrition is really slimming.”

“Oh my god, enough with the romantic fantasies.”

“That hot trash is with me.”

“I will never find that boot again.”

“Love is risky. That's what makes it so great, it pays off!”

“All I have is nightmares now.”

“How do you want to die? Slowly or extra slowly?”

“We’re one step away from happily ever after.”

“___, who have you pissed off this time?”

“Everything is either trying to kill me or kiss me.”

“From what I’ve heard, I’m both obnoxious and amazing.”

“Chalk one up for ignorance!”

“Here, drink this coffee. It’s been boiling for hours.”

“I’ve got so much love and nobody to give it to.”

“Apparently I’m not film friendly… or friendly.”

“Tell me what drugs you’re on so I know what to do when you pass out.”

“I got a lot of experience with relationships coming to a grinding halt.”

“Wait sorry, what were we talking about? Oh, wait, yeah, your pathetic love life.”

“Stop looking at me like that! I’m so vulnerable and you’re so mean.”

“Why’d you come back for me?”

“I left because I didn’t want to get hurt again and I came back because... I’ll never learn.”

“I’m not gonna ask where you pulled that from.”

“___, I tried to get help but nobody wanted to.”

“I would say it’s good to be back but I can’t shake the fact that life is meaningless and I’m gonna die alone.”

“I’ve got a lot to do now. Like go to my room and cry in the fetal position.”

“Don’t say “wink, wink”. Just wink.”

“You can bother me again when I grow a new heart.”

“Wallowing is underrated. People no longer expect things from you and you get to stop showering.”

“Sweetie, you’re young and beautiful and sandy.”

“Someday the right man or woman or creature will mate with you. Then you must eat them.”

“Oh my god, I want to shower again. That means I’ve regained the will to live!”

“Love the homicidal impulse but no.”

“But I only like gratification when it’s instant!”

“Oh, this ain’t good.”

“Oh god, they’re getting uglier.”

“Hey ___, who do you think I should punch first?”

“Sorry, I tend not to notice things that aren’t me.”

“I’m crestfallen and I can’t get up.”

“Don’t you know you can’t trust anyone but yourself?”

“I’m not kneeling, I’m dying.”

“Yeah, you’re gonna die soon.”

“You know, you have an impressive number of enemies for a girl your age.”

“Don’t be a drama queen. That is my job.”

“Well those are mixed messages.”

“My needs outweigh your scorn.”

“It’ll either cure him or kill him.”

“You do not wanna go in there unless you’re a fan of, like, dying.”

“Any operating instructions or ominous warnings?”

“You’re afraid to let people in and you hide behind sarcasm.”

“___, work on your issues.”

“So, this isn’t gonna get more normal anytime soon, is it?”

“You don’t have to die at home but you can’t die here.”

“I’ve had a lot of people leave me in my life but I’ve never ever ever not had you before.”

“I always thought you’d be dead in a ditch by now.”

“Why is it, ___, that every time you’re braiding my hair you tell me I’m going to die?”

“Braids hurt my brain.”

“Oh, you’re so going to die.”

“The key to getting dumped is not knowing how to take a hint.”

“Stop tempting fate.”

“I have resting sinister face.”

“I don’t know who to disobey.”

“Haven’t you ever seen an enchanted broom before?”

“Wow. Brutal honesty, that’s true friendship.”

“She blindsided me. While I was looking right at her!”

“I don’t know why you always bring the good half out in me, ___.”

[thewickedkings]

Between the Two of Us ~ Chapter 10

Masterlist || AO3 ||  Previous Chapter || Next Chapter

Summary:  Jurdan High school AU. Rivals Jude and Cardan are forced to partner up  for a history project, and drama ensues. Filled with banter, pranks, an unhealthy amount of pining, and Jude being clueless as usual.

Trigger Warnings: Mild cursing. Please let me know if there’s anything I missed!

~~~

A/N: This chapter is even longer than the last one, at 4k words. Also, you’re welcome in advance.

That Sunday was one of the busiest at the café. Students were streaming in to work on all their assignments before Thanksgiving break, and by the time they caught a break, Jude was out of breath.

“Damn, I don’t think it’s ever been this busy,” Lili said, wiping her forehead.

“No wonder no one else wanted this shift.”

Lili groaned. “I have to go home and write not two, but three essays. I know I shouldn’t have procrastinated, but it was my birthday week.”

“I’ll help you edit them if you want,” Jude offered. For some reason, she actually enjoyed editing essays, and Lili had definitely taken advantage of that in the past. “And you know it’s called birthday, not birth week,” Jude snarked.

“Shut up, Ms. I-made-googly-eyes-with-Cardan-all-night.”

“I did not.”

“Yes you did. Now please tell me what happened, because I know something did. The sexual tension when you guys came back down was disgusting.”

Thankfully, Jude was saved by a customer who had walked in. But Lili was stubborn, and after Jude took her order, she pressed, “Nope. Spill.”

Jude grimaced before recounting the incident, which she now referred to in her head as ‘the bathroom incident.’

Lili gasped comically. “Oh my God. Cardan has more game than I expected. Kissing your thumb after band aiding it? Hold on.” She called out the customer’s name, leaving the drink on the counter, before returning. “Damn, that’s smooth.”

Jude groaned. “I know.”

“Wait, did anything happen when he drove you home?”

“No.”

“Liar.”

Jude blushed even more as she remembered the drive. They had been bickering as usual, as if that could stop them both from thinking about the increasing tension between them.      

And then the silence they’d both been avoiding like cowards descended. The painful, awkward as hell silence.

By the time they got to her house, Jude was anxious to get out of the car. She reached for the door handle right as Cardan spoke, staring straight ahead. “So we’re really not going to talk about it?”

She froze, not expecting them to address it. “Talk about what?”

“Jude.”

“Cardan,” she mimicked, and he rolled his eyes.

“Fine then.” He pushed his door open at the same time as Jude.

“What are you doing?” “Walking you to your door.”

“I can walk to my door by myself.” Her foot caught on the edge of the sidewalk, and she’d stumbled before righting herself.

“Righttt,” Cardan drawled and followed her up the sidewalk.

She ignored him, pulling out her keys and unlocking the front door. “Okay, you can go now, loser.”

“Weirdo,” Cardan said.

“You’re a weirdo.”

Cardan snickered. “Nice comeback.”

“Shut up.” She felt his gaze on her back and was thankful for the dark, because she was blushing for no reason.

“You shut up.”

They both snickered like the immature idiots they were, and Jude knew she had steered clear of the conversation for now.

When Cardan reached his car, he hollered. “We’re going to talk about it.”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” she hollered right back.

Cardan just grinned. “See you tomorrow, Duarte.”

Her expression must have been doing something weird at the memory, because Lili snorted. “You’re in deep shit.”

“What am I supposed to do?”

“Um, maybe first off, actually admit you like him?”

“I do not.”

The Bomb raised her eyebrows.

Jude groaned. “I can’t like him. Not him of all people.”

“But you doooo,” the Bomb sing songed. “You and Cardan are in-”

“Lili, I will not help you edit your essay if you don’t shut up right now.”

She went silent immediately. “That’s just cruel.”

Jude grinned. “So… how’s Van?”

Lili glared. “You’re not subtle at all.”

“I wasn’t trying to be.”

She wiped down the counter, silent for a beat before she sighed. “Fine. He’s just- I think I need to move on.” Jude opened her mouth to interrupt, but the Bomb continued. “I know what you’re thinking. Yeah, I think he likes me like that, but I don’t know… he’s always so skittish when I try to take things further. And I don’t want to ruin things between us.”

Jude knew there was more to the story, but before she could say anything, a group of girls entered the café, and Jude had to take their orders. She dismissed it, figuring she’d bring it up later.

 ~~~

Jude didn’t see Cardan at school the next two days. Meeting her college application deadlines took up most of her time, and before she knew it, it was Thanksgiving Break. Vivi came home from college, and suddenly their house was much more lively than usual.

Before Thanksgiving dinner, Vivi stomped into Jude’s room and shut the door behind her. “I know I haven’t visited much, but what’s going on between you and Taryn?”

Jude pulled out her headphones from her ears. “Why don’t you ask her?”

“That’s what she said too!”

“Viv, just leave it.”

“Well, you’re going to have to figure it out, because even Oak’s annoyed at this point.”

“He is?”

“You are all idiots,” Vivi mumbled on her way out of the room, before popping back in. “Oh, by the way, I think your mac n cheese is burning.”

“Shit! Why didn’t you say that first?”

Throughout dinner, Vivi proceeded to force Jude and Taryn into conversation. The ease at which Vivi slipped back into their dynamic was uncanny after so many months away, but Jude supposed that was the way with family.

Madoc and Oriana carried the turkey to the table while Jude prepared for the grand reveal. Oak bounced in his seat in anticipation of what had becomes Jude Thanksgiving tradition. When Jude pulled back the foil to reveal her mac n cheese, it looked perfectly fine. Except for unmistakably charred edges

Taryn snorted. “It’s definitely better than last year’s.”

Jude cracked a grin. Maybe there was something to say about Thanksgiving in bringing the family together.

 ~~~

Jude spent the end of the break hanging out with Lili, Van, and Garrett. The weird energy between Lili and Van was palpable, and Jude instinctively looked for Cardan to raise her eyebrows at before realizing he wasn’t there. Cardan had texted that he was busy with family stuff on the group chat, and Jude couldn’t help but wonder if he was avoiding her. Logically, she knew she was being self-centered and he probably was busy, but the thought stung more than it should have.

Monday came far too quickly, and Jude rubbed her eyes as she walked to her first class, bumping into the last person she expected to see: Locke. For the past few weeks, she’d been messing with him, but not too obviously that he would suspect she knew about what he did. Her revenge plan was still brewing, but until then, she could have some fun.

She and Lili made a game out of replying to his texts with the weirdest responses, just to see how much he could take. Her favorite was when she had ‘accidentally’ sent him a picture of two tampon boxes, asking which one she should get. When he had responded with a ‘whichever one fits??’ Jude had exploded with laughter before clarifying that it wasn’t meant for him, except that it definitely was.

When she’d asked him if he wanted to come to dinner to meet her sister and her parents, with an emphasis on her dad, he had avoided her for the next two weeks.

Which made it even harder to control her laugh when his face paled when he saw her. “Sorry, I’d better get going. I’m going to be late.”

“Right. Let me know if you can make it to dinner. My dad really wants to meet you.”

Locke practically tripped as he ran away from her.

“Damn, Duarte, what did you say to scare him?” Cardan’s familiar voice drawled out from behind her, and a grin escaped her lips, a small part of her relieved that he sought her out. She hadn’t realized how ingrained he was into her routine until she hadn’t seen him for a week.

His pace matched with hers until they were walking side by side, falling into their familiar groove.

“Just mentioned how much my dad wanted to meet him for dinner.”

Cardan grinned and handed her a cup full of coffee.

“What’s this for?”

He rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry. It’s black. I don’t know why you would willingly drink that, but you do you.”

“Yes, okay, but why’d you get me coffee?”

“Consider it me paying you back for accidentally spilling your coffee that one time.”

“Accidentally, my ass.” She frowned at her cup. “It’s not poisoned is it?”

“Fine. If you don’t want it, I’ll find some other psychopath who likes black coffee.”

Jude hugged her coffee protectively to her chest. “No. Mine.”

“I figured. Also, we need to finish our project. It’s due…“

“Next week, I know,” Jude cut off. “We still haven’t bought a poster.”

Cardan groaned. “We should have gotten one from Dollar Tree.”

“Well maybe you could’ve gotten that instead of a tiara,” she said, grinning up at him as they stopped in front of her class.

Cardan rolled his eyes. “So are you free Thursday night?”

“Yeah. Text me when later.”

“Good. We’ll talk then,” he said, with an extra emphasis on the word talk. His eyes dropped shamelessly to her lips, long enough that it was anything but unintentional, before he smirked and strode away.

Jude called after him, unwilling to let him get the last word. “About the project!”

“Of course. What did you think I was talking about?” He disappeared before she could respond.

Kissing. She was thinking about kissing him. Ugh.

She grumbled angrily to herself as she placed her bag next to her desk. When she caught Taryn staring at her, she snapped, “What?”

Taryn opened her mouth to speak, but the bell interrupted her. “Nothing.”

 ~~~

After soccer practice on Thursday, Jude went home to take a shower. While blow drying her hair she texted Cardan to figure out when they were meeting up. He immediately responded with ‘can’t do my place,” and Jude frowned. After a couple messages, they ended up deciding to go to the library at Cardan’s suggestion.

Oak was throwing a fit over something or another as she headed out the door, and Oriana paused their argument to place a hand on Jude’s shoulder. “Heading out?” It wasn’t in an overbearing tone, just gentle.

“Yeah. To the library.” Jude hesitated, battling the urge to say something more. Oriana might not have been her real mother, but Jude realized what a blessing it was to have someone that checked up on her and cared the way Oriana did. She swallowed and said, “I’ll be back soon,” and headed out.

By the time she got to the library, Cardan had already texted that he was there. Seconds after she turned off her car, a knock sounded on her window, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. Cardan grinned sheepishly when she opened her door. “Sorry.”

She shrugged it off and handed him the poster she from the passenger seat. She glanced around the parking lot for his car. “Where’s your car?”

“I walked.” At the shock on her face, Cardan added, “Don’t look at me like that. Just because we live in a suburb doesn’t mean I have to drive everywhere. Plus, it’s only a fifteen minute walk.”

“Okay, but… car. Fast. Walk. Slow.”

Cardan rolled his eyes and tugged her wrist impatiently. “Come on, let’s go inside.”

They walked through the archway that opened up into the entry area of the library, ‘welcome’ inscribed into the stone. The wall behind the front desk was patterned with hexagons of different pastel colors, and the librarian behind the desk gave them a friendly smile. Her dark brown hair was tied up into a ponytail, strands of gray beginning to appear.

“Cardan, nice to see you. I see you’ve brought a friend,” she said to Cardan. Her honey-colored eyes glanced at Jude with curiosity.

“Um, yeah. Mel, this is Jude. We’re doing a project together.”

Jude introduced herself, trying to hide her own curiosity.

Mel smiled at Jude warmly. “It’s nice to meet one of Cardan’s friends.” Turning to Cardan, she added, “The back room is empty, if you two want to head there.”

Cardan thanked her and gestured Jude to follow him. They passed the kid’s section, which was littered with bright signs and seating, and when they were out of hearing distance, Jude asked. “So… you come here a lot?”

“Um, I guess. I came a lot when I was a kid, so sometimes I stop by.” The tips of his ears turned pink, and damn, Jude felt something squeeze in her chest at the sight.

“Cool.”

His head jerked up at her response, and whatever he saw in her expression had him reaching for her hand and twining their fingers together. He tugged her hand, and she followed him through the stacks, the only sound their footsteps and the comforting hum of the library.

She grinned at the floor. This boy never ceased to surprise her.

They stopped in front of a room divided from the rest of the library by a wall of glass, and Cardan pushed open the door. The opposite end of the room was also completely glass, and the window looked out over the lake behind the library. A table with four chairs was on the left, and a cozy armchair sat on the right.

Cardan let go of her hand, and she ached to pull it back to hers, feel the warm callouses of his palm against hers. Instead she put the poster on the table and pulled out her laptop. “This is nice. I’m surprised no one else took it.”

“Mel saves it for me sometimes.”

Jude snorted. “You really do charm everyone, don’t you?”

Cardan sat down across her, humming in agreement. “It’s only a matter of time before I charm you too.”

“Keep waiting.”

Cardan kicked her leg under the table, and she bit back a smile. If his leg stayed there, pressed against the side of hers while they worked, neither of them mentioned it.

 ~~~

“Not bad, if I do say so myself,” Jude said, as she looked down at their poster. Yes, it did feel like a fifth grade science fair project, but Jude was still proud of it. Something about cutting and gluing things together made it seem so much more satisfying.

“Not bad? This is fucking gorgeous.” Cardan pushed his curls off his forehead, his silver rings catching the light. Jude’s brain automatically snagged on how unfair it was that guys could have such attractive hands. Like how did that even make sense?

Her gaze caught on them now, eyes tracing the veins and the flex of his fingers where they tapped against the edge of the table. She’d noticed that Cardan always seemed to fidget with his hands, unable to keep them unoccupied.

“Jude?”

“Hm?” She pushed her thoughts away and tried to focus. “Yes, gorgeous,” she agreed.

He gave her a strange look, and she felt a flush creeping up her neck. She started hastily picking up the scraps of paper and tidying up the table. When she dared to meet his gaze, he looked like he was battling himself with something.

“What’s up with you and Locke?” Cardan blurted a few seconds later.

“What do you mean?”

This time, his words were a little more deliberate. “I know you’re messing with him, but does he think you’re… dating?”

“I don’t know. We only went on one date, and I pretty much scared him off when I mentioned my dad.” She shrugged, confused as to why he was bringing up Locke. “Does it matter?”

His hand stilled. “I guess not.”

Silently, the two of them worked until they had finished gluing on all the information. They cleared up the excess papers and started cleaning up.

“So when are you going to break it off with him?”

“Well, I was planning to do a whole revenge prank thing, but I haven’t fully planned it out yet,” she said contemplatively, scraping off the dried glue from her fingers.

When she looked up, Cardan was looking at her with a devious smile. “What?”

“I have an idea.”

 ~~~

The sky was dark when they arrived at the grocery store. As they placed their items on the counter to check out, the cashier gave them a strange look. Jude simply smiled and said, “Isn’t it such a wonderful night?”

At Cardan’s direction, Jude drove to a neighborhood a few minutes from Cardan’s, and they parked in a darkened spot on the side of the street.

Jude’s nerves thrummed in anticipation. She hadn’t been this excited in so long, probably since the last time she had pranked Cardan. She had to admit that scheming with someone made it all the more fun.

Cardan pulled on a black sweatshirt, and his eyes met hers as he pulled up the hood to cover his curls. The wicked grin he sent her made her stomach squeeze.

“You take the right, and I’ll cover the left?”

She nodded, and silently opened the door and stepped out as Cardan did the same.

They crouched on the sidewalk next to some trees and silently made their way towards the lone house at the end of the street. Thankfully, Locke’s car was parked out front. They hadn’t exactly planned for it if his car had been in the garage.

A car door slammed across the street and Jude looked at Cardan. “Where-”

He clapped his hand over her mouth before she could finish, and he pointed across the street. A car was reversing out of the house next to Locke’s, its headlights nearly passing over them. Her heart beat furiously against her chest.

The car drove away, and Cardan suddenly dropped his hand from her mouth. Her lips burned from the ghost of his hand, and her heart sped up for a completely different reason.

“That was close,” she whispered breathlessly, and Cardan nodded, his eyes darting away from hers.

They crept up his driveway, and Cardan passed her three rolls of plastic wrap from his backpack. Slowly, Jude unfurled the plastic wrap, and pushed it over the top of his car until Cardan caught it. He wrapped it over his side before rolling it under the car back to Jude. She hadn’t realized how painstaking the process would be, but they kept at it. The sound of the unfurling wrap seemed too loud against the silent night.

Twenty long minutes later, Jude passed the last of the last of the final roll of wrap to Cardan. She waited for Cardan to secure it into place, shifting impatiently on the balls of her feet.

A gentle whirring sound cut through the night, and Jude’s eyes flew to Cardan, who was tip-toeing back towards her from around the car.

“Run,” he whispered urgently.

She grabbed Cardan’s backpack from the ground right as a spray of water hit her arm, drenching her and the side of the car. She glanced behind her and almost laughed, realizing the sprinklers had turned on, not some sort of security device like she had thought in her panic.  

Cardan looked at her, his eyes glinting with laughter. “Come on, let’s go.”

She grabbed his hand and pulled him with her.

They ran across the sidewalk like criminals fleeing from a crime scene, narrowly avoiding the sprinklers, and Jude felt giggles breaking out of her chest. Her heart pounded against her chest, her breath coming out in pants. The cold water pressed into the skin of her arm, a sharp contrast to the warmth of Cardan’s hand in hers.

They ran all the way back to her car, and they finally stopped to catch their breath. Jude leaned back into the car, panting, her hands braced on her chest to hold her heart in.

Her eyes met Cardan’s, who was panting as if he had just been in a police chase, and a giggle escaped her mouth. And then another. And then both of them were laughing like maniacs.

“Who the fuck-” she laughed, “turns on their sprinklers-” another fit of giggles overtook her. “-at midnight?”

Cardan laughed harder, leaning into her, a palm bracing himself on the car behind her. “Your face,” he wheezed, “when the sprinklers turned on-”

She could barely breathe in. “The way you said run, oh my god.” She broke into another fit of uncontrollable laughter, clutching her stomach. Cardan wiped tears from his eyes as he tried to regain his composure.

Eventually, Jude’s laughter slowed. The sound of crickets chirping and cars whizzing by on the street behind the neighborhood settled into the air as they caught their breaths. Jude leaned back against the car, tipping her head back up to the night sky.

Cardan was still leaning into her, the moonlight casting a faint glow over his face. When she met his eyes, his lips tipped up in a little smile that sent warmth to her stomach.

With a will of its own, her hand reached up to push back his hoodie, cradling his jaw, and he swallowed, his expression sobering.

A breeze blew over them, lifted a strand of her hair from her face. Her heartbeat thudded against her chest, a different type of adrenaline shooting through her body as his eyes darted to her lips.

In an unspoken agreement, Jude leaned up, and Cardan’s head bent down to reach hers.

Their lips brushed hesitantly, a barely-there kiss, before Cardan pulled back slightly.

Oh. Oh.

“Jude.” His voice was hoarse, a question, a plea exhaled across her lips, and she silenced it with her mouth.

Their resolve snapped, and Cardan’s hand slipped to cradle the back of her head as his head dipped and his lips pressed into hers, again and again and again, warm and soft and desperate. Jude buried her hands in his hair, pulling him closer, until she was pressed against the car, his forearms caging her in.

She had never been kissed like this.

It felt as though they were running past the sprinklers again, a rush of adrenaline running through her body. Her lips parted under his, and he made a noise in the back of his throat that set her blood on fire. Her thoughts fizzled into nothing, everything except the two of them fading away.

When they pulled back for air, Cardan’s lips were swollen, and both of them were panting. He rested his forehead against hers, one hand still tangled in her hair, and Jude‘s eyes finally fluttered open.

“That,” Cardan rasped, “was worth waiting for.”

“Shut up.” Her voice was a little too breathless for her liking.

“Jude, Jude, Jude,” he murmured as he nuzzled the side of her face, and she felt goosebumps erupt on her arm. “Now you know exactly how to make me shut up.”

“Oh?” She tilted her head, barely close enough for another kiss, before shoving him back, hoping distance would help her regain her composure. “You wish. There are other ways to shut you up.”

He stumbled back with a breathless laugh. “I do wish.” He glanced around at the street, as if just remembering where they were. “We should probably go.”

“We should. Wouldn’t want to get caught.”

“Okay, right.” His hands spazzed at his side for a moment before he spurred into motion, opening her door for her with a roguish grin.

Jude didn’t exactly know what she was getting herself into, but she couldn’t bring herself to put an end to it.

~~~

A/N:  And there you have it, the scene that inspired this whole thing. It’s the first scene I even wrote, and everything else was just fun to write to lead up to it. I was about to cut this chapter off before the last scene, but I decided to keep it in because it takes me forever to update. Like I said at the beginning, you’re welcome 😌  I hope it’s as good as it was in my head 😭

Okay, but the fact that this is the tenth chapter and people are still reading?!! Thank you all so much for reading this and supporting this!! I probably would have abandoned this if not for you <3

As usual, let me know what you think in the comments!! Reblogs are appreciated :)

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[isbus]

The House Of Villains Chapter 1

Tags: (insert the prologue tags), slice of life, Walmart, card games, Kars doesn’t know things, not so subtle foreshadowing, references to later chapters, card games, board games,

Chapter 1: Game Night

They were all doing their thing- Diavolo and Doppio chatted together, Dio sat on the couch watching an animal documentary with Kars, Santana was still in the attic, Esidisi and Wamuu talked at the table, and Pucci dusted. They didn't do much else until Kira opened the door when coming home from work. 

Dio turned off the TV, bringing Kars back to reality. Everyone turned to Kira when they heard the television shut off. "Kars, could you get Santana?" Dio asked politely. Kars immediately went up to the attic. 

.

.. 

...

"Put me down!" Santana shouted. Kars went down the stairs, holding Santana on his shoulder. Kars put the younger of the four pillar men on the couch, then sat on his bean bag. 

"Now that Kira is home, I have an idea to share." Dio began. Kira had an idea about what Dio was going to say. It was going to be something outrageous. "We are not normal, and if we continue our ways, our neighbors are going to see it. What we need to do is act normal, and what better way than a family tradition? We are going to try something called 'Family Game Night'." 

Silence... Was it from awe? Or disgust? Or even- 

"Okay. It's simple, all you have to do is play board games." Kira stepped towards the stairs before being stopped by Pucci's question. 

"Do we even have board games? The closest thing we have to a game is tarot cards but we don't have a full deck." Enrico asked simply. 

Kira didn't think about that. He wasn't the type to play games, he was the type to do work, so he sold his board games. "Well, we can always get some. It's not like we're too poor for it. Let's go to the store. Besides, I have things to pick up for me and my girlfriend." 

"Ooh, I didn't know you had a girlfriend!" Dio exclaimed. 

"Congratulations, you finally got one!" Doppio smiled from ear to ear. 

"Don't tell me it's the cat." Wamuu closed his eyes disapprovingly. 

Kira scoffed. "You all are so rude." Yoshikage began to put his work stuff back in his room then stopped. "She's human by the way." 

- Time Skip brought to you By: Disrespecting Businessmen -

Getting dressed like normal people, which they obviously were not, and a few getting their parasols, led them out the door. Kira began to lead before Dio rushed to the front. "Let me." He smiled. As the leader of this group, Dio just HAD to lead. Dio started to walk in front of the Joestar house before he stopped. 

"Why'd you stop?" Kira spoken quietly, partially glaring at the captain. 

Dio smirked sweetly, as if he was in front of a lover of his. He appeared bold to the others, but to the cat lover, he looked like his title was "Super Stupid". "Where's the store?" The blonde vampire fluttered his eyelashes, holding the parasol between his jaw and shoulder while his hands held his knees as he crouched to be at eye level.

Kira sighed. "Just follow me." They continued, this time with Kira in the lead and Dio right behind. The villainous cast spoke to each other as they walked behind Kira. Dio started to strike up a conversation with Pucci, but Pucci immediately dismissed him. 

They looked around at their neighborhood, several houses and people were around the area. The homes on one side of the street had a bunch of friendly people- like that kid in a baseball player outfit around house number 1506, or the teen with a mostly shaved head and pompadour with the older blonde boy that has the braid. 

All that friendliness was enough to make some of the villains question this neighborhood. With those happy faces, it was hard to be in a bad mood. It's like the happiness was rubbing off on them while rubbing them the wrong way. Dio thought about it then shrugged. Kars was glancing around for squirrels that he saw on TV. Kira stayed serious, and continued leading. Doppio and Diavolo spoke back and forth with each other. Pucci strutted as if he wasn't a sucker for God. 

It was taking five-ever. Everyone, excluding Kira, wished it was right around the corner. Past the "For Sale!" homes, and past the other blocks, it took at least three minutes. Well, it would've taken three minutes but Kars found a squirrel and a hawk started following Dio. The hawk presumably got the chain holding it broke and flew away, looking for a new owner since it had a collar and purple scarf. What a fancy bird. 

But the bird may or may not be important. The hawk followed them all the way to the store, then waited by the door. The villain group stepped inside, Kars and the two older pillar men struggled a bit (especially Kars) Santana fit through perfectly though. 

The part of the group that was foreign to this place (that is totally not Wal-Mart) looked around in awe. They put away their parasols and held them by their sides. "Hi welcome to Wal-Mart!" A lady at the front said with a smile. 

As if the woman smashed a bottle and yelled "scatter!", they began walking around. Dio read the sign that said "woman's" and just HAD to see the panty section. Pucci joined him, hoping he wasn't doing what he thought he was doing. Diavolo and Doppio went to the technology section. Kars and Wamuu gone to the pet area. Esidisi and Santana went to the toy section. Leaving Kira alone. Yoshikage looked behind him and saw nobody. 

"This is just great. Everyone left faster than me saying 'Bite the Dust'." Kira spoke to himself. "Come on darling. Let's find them." He looked in his jacket pocket to speak to his girlfriend. 

- Time Skip Brought to you By: Bite Za Dusto

Since Kira was going to the game area and it was right next to the toy section, Kira grabbed a few games and put it in the cart that he grabbed off screen. He heard the angsty teen's voice. "I don't want dolls, I want- wait that one is actually kinda cute... Can I have him?" Santana nearly shouted at first but his voice died down after he found the most handsome doll. 

Kira gone to the doll isle and saw the two- Esidisi was explaining how Kira would get it for him as Santana held a doll with blonde hair and blue eyes. The blonde cat lover coughed. "Come on you two, let's find the others." Santana slightly pouted like he REALLY wanted the doll. "Put it in the cart." The redhead thanked Yoshikage and put the doll in there.

The three gone past the technology section but paused when seeing the pink haired boys looking at phones. They seemed to be agreeing on something, when Kira got closer, the men saw a figure of a manga character in Doppio's hands. 

"I could always get it for you. But I forgot my wallet." Diavolo explained before Doppio started looking glum. 

"How much is it?" Yoshikage's serious voice cut through to their ears. Doppio's face lit up from the darkness of the other's words. 

Doppio checked the price on the bottom and read it aloud. "Twenty dollars." Kira nodded to the cart, signaling him to put the figure in the cart. The pink haired boy done as he was "told", and set the manga character in the cart. 

"Now, where are those last few?" Kira asked himself. Suddenly, he remembered Kars' love for animals. To the pet section! 

The pink haired boys joined the party! 

They all moved forward to the pet section. Moving in different walks, past the fabric and sewing area, to that isle with supplies for small animals, reptiles, and fish. To their avail, they saw the long purple hair and short blonde hair of Kars and Wamuu. The isle also had Jolyne and Jotaro, looking at fish. 

Wamuu and Kars looked at the group, holding a play pen for small animals. "Put it in." Kira sighed. They done just that. "Now, where's the last two?" 

"No! I refuse to wear female underwear!" The group heard none other than Pucci, shouting about panties. "I am clearly a man!" 

"Why is a man shouting about underwear, dad?" Jolyne tried to contain her laughter. 

Jotaro smirked. "Good grief." 

Oh no. The villains thought and rushed to the feminine area. Once they got there, Esidisi covered Santana's eyes so that he couldn't see the- um- interesting area. But everyone else there could see, clear as day, Dio grinning while holding a thong and bra and Enrico blushing with wide eyes. 

"It would look great on you..." Dio spoke in a sing-song voice. 

"No it would not! Besides, that kind of underwear is so sinful!" 

"Would you prefer cheeky?" Pucci's blush darkened at the words that spilled from the blonde's mouth. 

Kira groaned. "Shut it. If he doesn't want it, leave it be. We have to buy this stuff, so let's go to check out." 

"Alright~" Dio sang. Enrico moved towards the check out. "Let's get it anyway." He whispered. 

"Fine but if I wake up to screams of terror, I'm throwing you out." Yoshikage threatened. Dio shrugged and followed Enrico after putting the underwear in the cart. Esidisi removed his hand from over Santana's eyes, and walked with the group. 

- Time Skip brought to you By: I can see your panties... (SICK JOJO REFERENCE) -

As the cashier scanned items, Kira couldn't keep his eyes off of her hands. The lady tried handing the bags to him, but he was too focused on her lovely, dainty hands. "Sir?" She asked, snapping him back to the real world. "Your bags." 

"Oh, thanks." He felt awkward but took the bags and paid up. "Have a nice day, Adrian." He took back his card then speed-walked to the door. 

"Ugh, Kira wait up!" Dio nearly stood for to long until realizing Kira was nearly out the door. The cashier giggled and smiled. 

Kars and the other pillar men followed. Enrico was close behind. "Thank you so much!" Doppio blushed. 

"Here's our number." Diavolo held out a piece of paper with numbers written on it for the lady to take. Before she could take it, Doppio snatched it away, then ran away. "Doppio, don't try to leave me!" He shouted and ran to the exit. 

The cashier sighed. "Cute, aren't they?" A Burger King worker spoke to the cashier. 

"Yeah, Aimi. They sure are." She responded. 

"Miss? Do you know where this address is? I'm not from around here." 

- Time skip Brought to you by: An Unnamed Man asking a cashier for directions! -

Once they got home, they immediately looked at the games Yoshikage got. Monopoly, Uno, The Game Of Life, etc. But one definitely caught their eyes. A game called Villainous. But (to avoid copyright) they played Uno. 

"Ok. We are not allowed to use our stands to cheat. That's the only rule I have." Kira set up the game by handing out seven cards to those who were playing. Santana played video games in the attic, Esidisi watched Santana play those games, Wamuu and Doppio cheered on their leaders, as the other five played Uno. "And to make sure we aren't cheating, they will be watching us play." 

Dio already knew what he would do. "The World!" The World came out of the card and stopped time. "Will you help me? All you have to do is stop time when I give you a signal." 

The World stared, then shook his head. "I refuse." 

"What?! No! I have to win!" The World resumes time after Dio exclaims. 

Kira put the collar on the pink housecat and Killer Queen appears. "Let's win this Kira!" 

Diavolo rubbed the gem and King Crimson stands behind him. "We got this." Diavolo and King Crimson both say in unison. 

Pucci puts the disc in the portable DVD player and crawling out of the screen was Whitesnake. Once he gets out, he sighs. "It sure was cramped in there..." 

Everyone looked at the cards that were handed out and the game was decided. A green nine. Dio was first, and he played a green seven. "Easy as that." He said cockily. 

"So, we have to match colors?" Kars asked. 

"You can match colors, or numbers. If you don't have a cards that match the number or color, then you draw from the deck until you get something to play or until you reach four cards." Kira explained.

Kars nodded. "What does this card do?" He pulled out a plus four. Kira's eyes widened, knowing he was next. 

Dio burst out laughing. "If you play that card then the next person gets four cards and you change the color." He tried to stop the laughter by talking but he nearly coughed when doing so. "So, what are you going to do?" 

Kars hummed in thought, then he took a card. Before placing it down, or even where the others could see, he looked at Wamuu. "Of course, sir." Dio felt he knew what card he was going to place, so he smirked and crossed his arms. He would have the upper hand against the ever-so-lucky Yoshikage Kira. 

Kars soon placed the card after Wamuu gave the signal of approval. Or what I, the Narrator, like to call "The F*ck Yes Do it!" signal. Only be- oh sh*t. 

Dio, I'm sorry, but your prediction was incorrect. 

A blue seven. 

Dio looked at the card Kars placed, then at Kars, then back at the card, Kars, card- this could go on. 

But before you continue... 

Try saying "Kars Card" ten times fast. 

Ready? Cool. 

Dio saw what was going on. Kars was trying to get the turns reversed so he could play the plus four on Dio. But Kars didn't understand much about human culture, right? He only really understood animals. Dio thought to himself about how HE'S the ultimate being and how Kars shouldn't be called that. 

When he smirked, Kira knew what was going through the vampire's mind. I don't need to repeat. 

Kira's turn was a simple blue three. Killer Queen pouted. I know. I could've done worse. Kira thought to him and the Queen. 

"Oh! That one!" The younger pink haired boy pointed at a card and the older of the two placed it. The game continued and rage ensued until a winner was decided. The winner was Kira. Who wouldn't have guessed that the ever-so-lucky Yoshikage Kira would win? 

[mammon-money]

(Obey Me x Fem!MC)

(Hello 😈 I've written slight unfinished stories before but this is my first time actually finishing one to post, so I hope you like it! )

You're unable to sleep as you toss and turn around your bed, still not use to Devildom. Mammon runs in trying to hide from Lucifer and ends up staying :)

Word count: 2250

Mammon × MC

“Ugh...” she groaned as she tossed in her bed for what felt like, and probably was, the hundredth time that night. It was now the middle of the night and she still had a hard time adapting to the Devildom atmosphere, even though she had already been here for about a month now.

As she lays there, facing the door, she hears it quickly and abruptly swing open. her eyes widen as it closes quickly, yet quietly. She sees a dark figure leaning against the door, grabbing his chest and gasping for air as he’s slowly sliding down.

“Mammon..?” she hesitantly sat up in her bed, staring at him.

“Oh MC...” he freezes, shooting his eyes open, “I was hopin’ ya weren’t gonna be awake...”

“Mammon, it's three in the morning, what happened?” she throws the covers off of herself and rushes to Mammon’s side, kneeling next to his defeated body and placing one hand on his shoulder and one on the lower part of the arm holding his chest.

He slowly calms at her touch, catching his breath and lowering his arm to his lap. “Well, haha... ya see,” after staring ahead oh himself for what seemed like forever, he began to answer her question. “I just got home and Lucifer was waitin’ for me.” he laughs to himself as he scratches the back of his neck with an awkward gesture.

She let go of his arm when he raised it up and moved back a little. “Why were you out so late? You know we have school tomorrow.” She realized that it was already past midnight, “Well, later today I guess.”

“Right, right. Sorry if I woke ya MC.” He looked down.

“No, no, it’s okay! I haven’t been able to get any sleep.” Now she was the one awkwardly laughing.

“Uh, MC?” Mammon broke her away from her awkward state and looked her in the eyes. “I, uh... can you maybe put some pants on or somethin'?” Mammon shot his gaze away and began to blush even more than before. The room was so dark that he hoped she hadn’t noticed.

She shocked and threw her hands over her mouth. She was so worried about Mammon that she had completely forgotten that she didn't have any pants on. She was wearing a large black t-shirt that Beelzebub had given to her to wear as pajamas since she came here with nothing but the clothes she was wearing.

"I- I'm- aaah!" She was a blushing mess, stammering as she rushed to her dresser and then to her bathroom to put on the gray and white pinstriped pajama shorts she had grabbed.

Mammon was giggling to himself, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he blushed while watching her run around her room like a chicken with it's head cut off.

She walked out of the bathroom, crossing her arms and glaring at Mammon. "What's so funny??"

"You can calm down, I didn't see anythin'. I was just makin' sure ya knew..." Mammon sat up straight.

She shot her head towards the ringing D.D.D. she had left on her nightstand. Mammon immediately stood up, curious as to who was calling her at this hour.

"Hey, what's up?" she answered quickly

"What's up with me? What's up with you! Are you okay? I heard you scream along with some rustling around in your room when I walked by on the way to the kitchen." It was Beel on the other line.

"haha yeah, I'm good. Thanks for checking up on me Beel." Mammon perked up at the sound of his brother's name coming out of her mouth.

"Are you sure? I can stop by your room on the way back up if you'd like." Mammon was now practically circling around her as the conversation continued on.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Goodnight Beel." She was about to hang up when Beelzebub spoke up once again.

"Oh, Mammon's not with you by any chance, is he? I just ran into Lucifer in the hallway and he said Mammon got home late but ran and hid from him."

She looked up a Mammon, who was still trying to get her attention away from the phone; not succeeding at the least.

"No, I haven't seen Mammon all night. He's not here." Mammon paused at the sound of his name in their conversation. That means now Beel was looking for him along with Lucifer.

"Oh, alright," Beel continued, "Lucifer says if he finds out Mammon is hiding out in there you'll both be in big trouble. and he also wants you to get back to sleep. Night." Beelzebub hung up the phone and she threw her phone on the bed.

She looked right up at mammon, who looked almost guilty now for getting her involved. "How come you didn't go straight to your own room?"

"If I went to my own room Lucifer would kill me! And it's not like he'd ever think to look in here for me anyway... right?"

"Mammon you idiot, you're in here 24/7! Not to mention that the two of us are practically glued together at the sides!" Mammon began to blush at the thought of always spending time with her.

"Anyway," she continued, "Luc said that we'll both be dead if he catches you hiding out in here. We need to get up for school in a couple of hours anyway so... why don't you just chill out in here for the rest of the night?" She was blushing so bright that she thought she looked like a red glowstick in the dark room. She had just hoped Mammon didn't see the image she portrayed of herself in her head, especially since he was just staring her down now.

"Wh- what? I mean, sure, yeah... Sure I'll stay." Mammon was blushing just as much as she was, blank-minded and speechless at the fact that she even asked him to stay.

After a while of just taking, it got silent. She was hanging upside down off the side of her bed to face Mammon, while he was sitting on the sofa not that far.

"Ya know, I really hope Lucifer went to bed." they both laughed.

"Mammon it's time to get ready now, your uniform is in your room, right?" she sat up on the bed.

"Shit! I completely forgot about that! Aaaahhgg!" Mammon threw his head back on the sofa and covered his eyes with one hand. "Lucifer better be sleepin' by now 'cause I gotta go get that."

"You can stay here while I get ready and then when I leave the room for breakfast you can make a break for it." Mammon started to blush again.

"Really? I can stay until then?" his eyes widened as she got up and walked over to him.

"Of course silly," she let out a slight giggle as she cupped his face. "That's what I said you could do in the first place" she planted a small kiss to his forehead.

Both of them paused. They were blushing for the hundredth time that night.

"Alright, well," she let go and began to nervously back away and collect her things. "I'm gonna take a quick bath and start to get ready"

"Yeah, o-okay" Mammon sat there baffled. He couldn't believe what just happened. He also didn't know what to do.

On the other hand, she bent over the bathroom counter and stared at her flushed self in the mirror. "What were you THINKING!" She had just kissed Mammon out of impulse and he did nothing about it! She didn't know whether to freak out over the fact that she had done it in the first place or the fact that he didn't even respond.

She sighed as she got into the bath, trying not to think about anything at all.

Mammon pulled out his D.D.D. in order to distract himself when he noticed a few missed messages and calls. One from Beel asking where he is, and all the rest from Lucifer.

Lucifer: Mammon where are you?

Lucifer: You are aware that you cannot hide forever, correct?

Lucifer: Once I find you you know there will be hell to pay

Lucifer: And if I find out you're in MC's room they'll be hell to pay for both.

Mammon felt a shiver down his spine. He didn't understand why it was even that big of a deal how late he got home. It's not like he was bothering anyone.

"What's your problem?" He looked up and saw her standing there. She was fresh out of the bath in her uniform, towel-drying her hair.

"Oh, it's nothin'. Just checked my phone for the first time in a while and there's a ton of missed calls and messages from Lucifer."

"Ah, well, "she sat down at her vanity and began to do her makeup. "don't let ol' Luc ruin your fun." He smiled at her through the reflection of the vanity mirror.

"Hey..." Mammon's voice trailed off. "Why'd ya kiss me?"

She slowly turned to him "what do you mean why?"

He was even more confused. Mammon was trying to keep his hopes low but she was making it harder than ever.

"Mammon, I don't know if you're aware, but I like you."

"Y-you wh-what?" Mammon jumped up off the sofa.

She laughed at his reaction. "Yes, I like you!"

Mammon ran over the vanity where she was now standing, picking her up and spinning her around. "I can't believe this!"

"Shh!" she giggled as he spun her, "Don't be so loud! Luc will hear you!"

He paused his tracks and set her down. "I like you too, MC! I have for a while..." He began to blush.

"I've liked you too Mammon, I was kinda hoping you'd make the first move though." she chuckled to herself, continuing her makeup.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Sorry 'bout that." he rubbed the back of his neck as he sat back down.

"MC?" He chirped up again.

"Yeah?" she was now curling the ends of her long hair.

"Would you, uh- wanna be my girlfriend?" he was blushing yet again, but staring right at her reflection.

"of course Mammon," she turned in her chair and faced him, smiling, "I would love to be your girlfriend."

Mammon had now slipped into his room to get ready while she waited in the hallway.

"Oh, MC," Satan had come out of his room to go down for breakfast early. "What are you doing out in the hallway- and so early at that..?" A look of confusion covered her face.

"Oh, I'm waiting for mammon since we usually walk down together." she smiled.

"I see. Although I was under the impression that he never came home last night."

"He must've come home, he told me to meet me outside his room this morning for him like always." she felt Satan's gaze looking straight through her, as if trying to pick out the truth.

"Well then, carry on." he smiled and continued on his way to the dining table.

she felt a load of pressure lift off her chest. Soon after, Mammon came out. He had rushed to get ready and his tie was barely even considered a tie at that point.

She laughed and began to re-tie his tie.

"Well, you two seem awfully close this morning." Lucifer's voice had startled them.

"Oh, h-hey Lucifer," they both stood straight up and faced him.

"Good morning, Mammon. I presume you got some sleep last night? Considering you got back so late..." They knew he was pressuring them.

"Yep, of course."

"And good morning, MC. I would like to believe the same of you?" He looked her up and down.

"Good morning Lucifer," she took a small bow at the mention of his name. "It's been a little had to sleep since I've been living in Devildom, but I'll get used to it." she smiled at him.

Lucifer nodded, seemingly pleased with that answer. "Well then, I'll see you at breakfast." He continued on his way to the table. The others had passed during the conversation.

After Lucifer was out of sight, she grabbed Mammon's tie, pulling him down to her level. "H-hey, whaddya doin'?"

She smiled and gave him a little peck on the lips. "C'mon, let's get down to breakfast before we're in even more trouble."

"Ooo, MC! You're dressed up today!" Asmodeus drew attention to the two of them as they sat down in their seats.

"Haha, Thank you Asmo, you're too kind." she gave him a little wink as she served herself her food."

"So, what's the occasion?" Asmo wouldn't stop pestering until he got his deserved answer.

"Nothing in particular, just woke up early and had time. You know how it is."

"Uh-huh, sure." he rolled his eyes.

"You and Mammon are super close today too." Leviathan now inserted himself into the conversation.

"No, we're not, Levi!" Mammon yelled across the table.

"Deny it all you want Mammon, We all see it!" Asmo shot back

The morning brotherly squabbles made her happy. she began to laugh, and all the brothers slowly hushed while they turned and look towards her.

"Whaddya laughing at!?" Mammon blushed and the other boys began to giggle.

"I'm just happy to have you guys." Everyone smiled at her and she felt like she belonged there.

It was definitely best to tell them about Mammon and her another day.

Thank you for reading! Please let me know if it's too wordy or jumpy! I'd like to improve my writing so I can hopefully write another fic for you guys! 😈💕

[petri808]

Do You Believe Me Now?

The original post & Reblogs.  Since I added more to the original post including smut and it’s at 4k words, I cleaned it up and posted the story to AO3. @bmarvels enjoy lol. 

Hakyona, modern AU setting. NSFW

“Psst, Yona?”

I sit up, shielding my eyes to the sunlight. “What is it Lili?”

“You’re missing out on all the hot studs walking around, that’s what!”

“Lili, I told you I came to the beach to relax before finals, not gawk.”

I lie back down on my towel and close my eyes again. It didn’t matter to me what kind of eye candy I was missing out on. Books, studying are all I have time to focus on and besides, there already was one person who’d stolen my heart. Too bad he didn’t seem to notice it. Or at least I wasn’t sure. It was so damn hard to tell with him! He was such a sarcastic ass that I couldn’t tell if he was flirting or just being a punk to me. A groan fires off in my head, and yet through all that, I still fell in love.

But I couldn’t help it! I swear! We’ve known each other since we were kids and once I’d realized I cared more for him then as a friend, I fear that’s all he sees me as. Like a little sister. He is two years older than me after all, and both his guardian and my parents told him to always protect me. Pfft. A frown shadows my expression. Well I’m not that little girl anymore!

“Yona get up, get up, get up!”

“Lili, for the last time...”

“Isn’t that Hak over there?”

Quickly, I sit up and look over to where she’s pointing. My heart skips or more like takes a dive. Heaven help me that is Hak! He stood out in the throng of beach goers not just in height but presence.

“I think he’s gotten even cuter,” she snickers. “Damn, all his friends are hot too! Why didn’t you tell me he’s got such cute friends?!”

“I-I never noticed.”

“Are you blind? Oh, wait, I get it.” She pokes my side, “just blind to him, right?”

“Ugh!” I cover my face as I feel it heating up. “Lili stop trying to embarrass me, please?!”

“Oh look, he’s heading this way. Hey Hak?!”

I grab her waving hands. “Lili!!”

“Oh hey,” Hak waves back.

I see him grin and his group starts walking in our direction. Can I die, like right now? It was hard enough seeing him normally, but since he’s at the beach, his attire consists of board shorts and no shirt. I don’t know how he keeps his body in such condition, but I swear it’s like it was sculpted by a master artist.

He runs a hand through his wet hair as he chats with the other males, laughing, and smiling. His blue eyes twinkling against the sunlight. I squeeze my thighs together at the sight. All the girls they pass by ogle him, and I don’t blame them. The man was just too handsome for his own good. Before he reaches us, the group shake hands or fist bumps and the rest take off towards the snack stand.

“Hey Lili, Yona,” he grins, “didn’t know you two would be here today.”

“Well, neither did we, unless Yona was hiding that information from me.”

“I was not! I just came to relax.”

“So, relax,” he teases. “What’s stopping you?”

A six-foot hottie, I mumble in my head. “Shouldn’t you go hang out with your friends?”

“Nah.” He stands his surfboard up and sits down right beside me. “We’re finished surfing and was about to leave, but I’d rather hang out with a pretty girl.”

I feel the blush blooming on my face, but I try not to react. Not exactly easy with Lili grinning like a crazy person egging me on. I narrow my eyes at her. If they could shoot daggers, they would.

“You should stop teasing me like that,” I cross my arms, “it’s not funny.”

“But I’m not teasing you, I’m serious.”

Right... “Hak, you always say stuff like that, but I know you just see me as a friend. It’s getting old.”

“Or maybe it’s you who doesn’t want to believe it.” He forces my face to look at him. “What am I supposed to do make you believe me?”

My throat seizes up into a sputter. “I-I don’t know!”

He rolls his eyes. “Lili what do you think I should do to prove it?”

“I think you should just kiss her,” the girl smirks.

“Now that’s a good idea!”

“Don’t you dare Hak!”

“Oh, but I dare.”

He grabs me before I can scramble away. I squeal, but he quickly cuts off my defenses and plants his lips against mine. My eyes widen. Oh my god he did it! He actually kissed me?!

In a blink it was over and as my brain comes back into focus, all I see is a cocky grin and a softened smile. “Do you believe me now?”

Oof! I cross my arms and turn my head away in a huff. “No, I don’t. You’re just putting on a show for Lili and once we leave, it’ll go right back to you treating me like a little sister again, picking on me and teasing me.”

He gasps, feigning indignation, then turns to Lili. “Will you excuse us? I think I need to make this stick.”

“Wait? What?!”

“No, not at all,” the girl snickers. She quickly shoves my belongings into my bag and into my lap. “Here’s your things Yona.”

“Come on,” he drags me to my feet, “my red-haired little princess. We need some privacy.”

“Whoa, Wait!” I tug at his hold. Damn it he’s too strong for me. “Where are you taking me?!”

Hak holds his surfboard under one arm and keeps his other hand gripped to mine. “You don’t believe me, so I need to prove it, right? Don’t make me throw you over my shoulder cause you know I will.”

“Ugh! Hak you’re so cruel to me!” I whine but give in to avoid any more embarrassment. “At least tell me where we’re going.”

“My place so I can shower and,” he grins down in a side-eye, “so we can have a private conversation.”

I gulp hard. Alone with Hak?!

The entire ride in his car, I sit there in the passenger seat running scenarios in my head. How was he going to prove anything to me? I’ve got years of dealing with his sarcasm under my belt, so it’ll take some effort to convince me I’m not just a friend. Though friends don’t normally go around kissing each other unless there’s more to it... Oh please, I scoff in my head. This is Hak, and to prove a point he just might. I’ve convinced myself of that notion.

“Tell me Yona, have you ever seen me with a girlfriend? Don’t answer, just think about it.”

“Because...”

He covers my mouth. “Just think about it until we get to my place.”

When he releases me, I stare out the window fuming. I know that answer! It’s because he’s always just focused on his martial arts and sports. When does he have time for one? I mean there’s nothing wrong with that, but don’t use it as an excuse to trick me. Ugh! And if he really wanted a girlfriend, nothing was stopping him from making a move.

He leaves the surfboard in the foyer and prompts me into the studio apartment. “Are you thirsty? There’s drinks in the fridge, help yourself.” I shake my head no. “Then come on, let’s take a shower.”

My jaw drops and cheeks flush the color of my hair. “S-Shower? With you?!”

“Why not? Gramps used to bathe us together when we were younger.”

“We’re not little kids anymore Hak,” I sputter out, “it’s inappropriate for us to do that now.”

He walks up and kisses the back of my hand. “Not, if I’m trying to seduce you.”

I roll my eyes. “You can drop the rouse now that we’re alone.”

He sighs and runs a hand down his face. “Yona, it’s not a rouse. I’ve always loved you. That’s why I’ve never had a girlfriend.” He turns to his bathroom with his head hung down. “You know what? I give up. Stay till I get out and I’ll take you home or you’re free to leave. It’s up to you.” He pauses his walk. “And for the record, I wouldn’t take advantage of you. I just wanted to see your reaction... guess I got it, huh?”

I watch the door close behind him and drop onto the edge of his bed. My mind is spinning, confused, this was the first time I truly felt like... I believed every word he said. The water turns on in the room, and the sounds of the shower curtain closing was like a nail being hammered into my coffin. Oh god, what have I done? No, no, no! I shake my cradled head. I hadn’t meant to push him away! But that’s exactly what I’ve done. The poor guy looked completely dejected now and here I am sitting on his bed alone.

The tears gather in my eyes and I no longer hold them back from falling free. This man really loves me? “Oh, Hak...” I’m such a fool. I curl up on his bed uncaring of being found this way as the tears stain the bedding. He deserves someone who trusts him, not questions what he does. I should know this man better by now. Hak would never do anything to truly hurt me, and yet here I just broke his heart.

Maybe I should just leave and take my shame with me. But I can’t bring myself to move nor get off his bed. So, I curl in tighter, clinging to the blanket, and covering my head with my arm. I want nothing more than to be with him...

The bathroom door opening doesn’t stir me. I don’t want to show my face. I want to hide, yet I’m too scared to lose him.

“Yona? Yona, why are you crying?!”

The concern in his voice make me sob harder. I feel the bed shift as he’s no doubt taken a place beside me. It makes me feel even worse to know I’d hurt him and yet he still cares too much to see me in pain. I don’t fight back as he gathers me into his lap. His warm body felt wonderful against my barely clothed skin, and his arms, so strong... I always feel safe within their confines.

“Please don’t cry Yona, you know I can’t take it when you cry.” He strokes along my back, soothing and gentle, with his voice soft near my ear. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, princess you know that’s the last thing I ever wanna do.”

“I‘m sorry,” I whimper through the tears. “But you really do love me, don’t you? Why’d I never realize this? I’m such an idiot.”

“No, you were right. I shouldn’t have teased you and just told you long ago,” he tips my chin up and softens his gaze, “how much you really mean to me.”

I reach up and cradle his cheek as he gently wipes away my drying tears. We gaze into each other’s eyes while time passes unnoticed. I have no idea for how long, but all I can think is how beautiful his eyes are... windows to the soul, and his is bared naked for me to see. I pull his head down and place a second kiss upon his lips. “And Hak, I’ve always loved you too. How could I not, even when you drive me crazy... in the end you’re the only one that’s ever made me feel happy.”

“It’s my body, right? You just love me because of my body.”

I smack his chest hard, “do you always have to ruin the moment and make a joke!”

As I move to hit him a second time, he grabs my wrist, laughing at my weak attempt. “I’m sorry, it’s just too easy to tease you. I’ll stop for now.” He kisses my fingers before releasing them. “I should get dressed.”

It was in that moment that I realize Hak only had a towel on leaving very little between us. My eyes widen, “o-oh!” One wrong move and the fabric would easily unravel.

“Are you gonna get off my lap?”

I take a deep breath, ready to make a move of my own. My eyes blink slowly, rising to meet his in a coy but stern flutter. “No.”

He chuckles, “no? Come on princess, let me get dressed.”

“Maybe... I’d rather you be undressed.”

Hak’s eyes shrink to pinpoints, with his mouth slightly agape in shock that I would say such a bravely seductive suggestion. I giggle, oh how quickly this bad boy crumbles. My hands weave around his neck, fingers ghosting along the skin.

This man has haunted my dreams and my loins for far too long, and now that I know he loves me, I’m not going to waste the opportunity. I shift my position to straddle his thighs comfortably, and lift my body pulling him to me, kissing, caressing, showing him, this was no fairy tale.

“Yona, wh-what are you doing?!”

“Showing you, I believe. Now shh...” placing a finger on his lips, “no talk, just drive.” I move his frozen hands from my waist to my ass where it’s bare warmth seems to revive them, for they squeeze gently and provide support. “Mmm,” I murmur against his lips; this was better than any dream.

“You’ll be the death of me my princess,” his lips press forward against mine. “But one I’ll gladly face.”

“Don’t worry Hak, we’ll slay the dragon together.”

He growls low, “careful. Do you have any idea how much I’ve pent up over the years?”

I narrow my gaze, “yes, I do.” Then unroll the portion of towel keeping it from unraveling in retort. “Now stop treating me like a kid.”

His blue eyes flashing wild are the last thing I register before finding myself flipped onto my back. I gasp, pinned below him, so small compared to his larger frame. He reaches behind my back and pulls the strings securing my bikini top free. I move to cover my chest on instinct, blushing fiercely from his lustful gaze.

“Now coy?” He teases lightly. So, I drop my hands slowly to the sides, baring myself to him. But I can’t bring myself to look him in the eyes just yet. “You know we can stop at any time, right? I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to.”

“No, no, I know... this is just new and a little scary.”

“Then allow me to make those fears melt away princess.”

I nod my head, “yes, please don’t stop Hak. I do want this too.”

My top is tossed to the side as he lowers himself further, kissing at the nape of my neck. His lips burn trails along my skin in a ring of fire, suckling, in pressured kisses. I want to tell him no hickeys please, but the words die away in my throat when I feel his hands begin to massage my breasts.

The temperature of the room rises along with my moans muffled to the roar in my eardrums. I hear little, but the rest of my senses are on overdrive. Every touch like electrical charges and the smell of sex quickly enveloping my nose. I can still taste a bit of sea salt from his lips.

“I still can’t believe it’s not a dream,” he mumbles against the swell of my breasts. Me neither, I purr back.

I gasp loudly and my body reacts when his mouth covets a nipple, arching and pressing into his oral kisses. He sucks and pulses against the sensitive button, teasing with both tongue and teeth in a twin assault, playing with one breast then switching to the other. His hands mold and caress, guiding my body where he wants it to go, while mine react based on his movements. They run through his hair or trail his back and neck. My fingers squeezing, nails digging into his flesh when he hits a sensitive area.

As he moves lower down my stomach, my breathing hitches. He’d left my breasts swollen and tender and now there’s a sinister glint in his eyes. He watches me watching him as he places the softest kisses in a trail.

Down he goes, yanking my bottoms off as his body slides off the end of bed. I squeak loudly as he yanks me to the edge of the bed but before I can grasp what he’s doing my legs are over his shoulders and his mouth clamps down on my sex. A gasping moan cuts through the air and my body freaks out with a jolt. “Hak!”

His hands grip my pelvis, keeping them in his clutches. I see the wide grin on his face as his tongue sweeps slow and steady from bottom to top parting my folds. When it comes center with my clit, he sucks hard and I see stars. My hands flail, grabbing and holding tight to the bedding around me. I bite my lip to stifle my moans but it’s a fruitless effort when he’s eating me out like a lollipop.

How is he so good at this?! Every pass of his tongue, swirling, sucking on my bud sends delicious shivers rolling through my body. I can’t think, I can’t see, my mind is consumed by his ministrations like a puppet on a string.

“Look at me Yona.” His deep voice commands and I do as if under a spell to follow his beck and call. My eyes gaze back, moist and glistened, half-lidded in the throes of lust. “Time for the next level,” he smirks.

Next level? What d... “Ha—kaaaa!” I cry out as his finger slips into my entrance. My thighs clench against his head, squeezing it like a cantaloupe. But he doesn’t stop there, sliding it in and out a couple times, then adding a second. His hand moves and holds me down by my stomach as my body begins to writhe.

His tongue continues to suck on my clit, but his fingers add to the heat roiling in my core like a rubber band being stretched to its breaking point. I’ve given myself little orgasms before but nothing like the explosion evident on the horizon. I can feel the friction they’re creating against my entrance. How the palm of his hand bumps when he pushes them as deep as they’ll reach.

His fingers scissor and curl in a come-hither motion pressing along the inside walls. I jolt and squeak when they hit upon a spot. I hear him chuckle. What the hell is he—oh, oh!!! “Hak—u!” The fiery friction his fingers create coupled with the sucking on my clit are too much, snapping the final coil. His garbled name sputters out in waves like the orgasm rocking my body, but he holds me down easily, relentlessly to make sure my orgasm has me seeing white.

It feels so good it hurts! “S-St-Stop—“ I push on his head as tears of joy cloud my vision. The area was on fire, sensitive to even the slightest touch.

Hak sits up on his knees licking off the clear juices coating his fingers with the biggest grin of accomplishment I’ve ever seen him sporting. “You’re so beautiful all flushed and out of breath.” His smile makes be blush again.

He crawls back on, helping me to scoot over to the center of the bed. I swallow hard when I see the size of his erection. Being a tiny girl with a big guy... you do the math. ‘Don’t freak yourself out now Yona,’ I calm my racing mind. Already my imagination is running wild at how it will finally feel to go all the way with Hak.

Seeing a worried tremble in my lip, Hak cradles me close against his body. He tips my chin, running his thumb against my cheek. “It’s up to you Yona if you want to continue. It was my pleasure simply satisfying you.”

“I’ve wanted this w-with you, to have you be the first Hak. I-I wanna make you feel good too. Please, let me?”

“Okay, whatever makes you happy.” He sits up with his legs bent at the knee and rotated to the sides. Then he pat his thighs. “I’ve heard this position is easier for the first time,” he explains, “you get to control things, especially in the beginning and stuff.”

I nod my head nervously. Hak doesn’t need to elaborate for I understand exactly what he’s talking about. Girls talk, and sometimes there’s pain if it’s too fast or rough. The fact Hak cared enough to know that relaxes me a little and makes me feel relieved.

He rolls on the condom I grab from his nightstand. “Just go-slow princess. There’s no need to rush. And you tell me if there’s something you want me to do.”

“Okay,” releases out in a long exhale. I position myself, saddling his lap and raised, poised over him. He holds his dick steady for me as I lower myself. A shiver ripples through my frame when it barely makes contact; my sex still swollen and tender to touch.

I nibble my lip and close my eyes, pushing myself onto him, gasping when the head pushes through. The instant heat also takes me by surprise. Guess all that blood flow served a second purpose. But it wasn’t just me who’d gasped. I look up and see Hak’s head tilted back slightly and his eyes closed. Even his fingers are curled against my hips. I press on, slowly sinking lower until it’s all the way inside. This wasn’t so bad after all. No, it felt freaking amazing! I bring his face back to focus and kiss his lips. “Are you okay Hak? You look shocked.”

He groans and presses deeper into the kiss. “If I’d known sex felt this good, I would’ve seduced you sooner.”

“This is your first time?!”

“Of course, it is!”

“But you seemed so skilled...” I blush, “you know earlier, I just assumed.”

“Jaeha’s been schooling me,” he blushes too. “I wanted to be ready if this ever happened. But don’t tell him I told you that!”

I giggle, “my lips are sealed, but...” I look down shyly, “I don’t know what to do next.”

“Oh!” He chuckles and starts directing my hips with his hands, “rock from you waist, use your thighs to help you. Just go by how it feels, and I’ll help you too.”

So that’s what I do. “Like this?” My hips start rocking forward and back. His hands drop down and cradle my ass and I feel them squeezing as he groans yes’s and his eyes roll back. It feels so good I join his moans. Wow it’s hard to focus at the same time!

His forehead falls onto my shoulder and his breathing grows haggard as I press longer, harder into my strides. I almost giggle out loud when my brain equates this to riding a stallion. Yup a stallion named Hak.

My breathing shortens as I pace myself. The heat building up in my core is aching again. This grind is causing a delectable friction that if I don’t slow down, I’ll lose myself too quickly.

“Fuck, Yona you feel so good,” he moans and kisses at the nape of my neck. “It’s settled, I’m marrying you and I won’t take no for an answer.”

I pull his face back up, “I accept,” kissing him on the lips. But as I hold the kiss, I lift my frame, sliding up his shaft and stopping when I feel the head pressured at the entrance. A muffled groan is trapped in his throat, redoubled when I slide down again. Oh, I like how this feels!

Over and over I do it, allowing the length to rub against the pressured walls, before pushing back down again. “Fuck,” he moans. “Yona, don’t stop, don’t... stop...”

As amazing as it feels my legs are growing tired. “I’m sorry,” I whimper, “ I can’t keep this up Hak.”

He lifts me up and rolls us over until I’m on my back and he’s nestled between my thighs. Then he maneuvers my legs over his hips, and I comply by hooking my ankles into his thighs. Hak starts pumping; I gasp and arch my back pressing my chest to his. Wow it’s deeper!

His head is rested on the bed next to mine as he uses his elbows to keep his weight off me. But his hands are glued to my pelvis and applying a downward force on them and his hips press upward.

“Hak,” I whine. He’s gonna make me cum a second time! His thrusts outpace my ability to keep up and I give in to the heat waves of my orgasm.

“Fuck,” he groans too as his breathing falters and voice grows strained.

Hak pumps his hips a few more times and I can feel a pulsing sensation inside coming from his dick that I assume is from an orgasm. Finally, after one last thrust, he buries himself to the hilt inside me and collapses in a panting mess.

After several minutes, he bundles me in his arms and rolls us to a side position while our breathing calms down. He kisses my forehead. “I love you so much Yona. That was more than I could have ever dreamed of.”

“Mmhmm,” I agree and nestle close to his warm chest. “I love you too Hak.”

“I meant what I said earlier, you know. I’m gonna marry you Yona.”

I lift my head and pull his lips against mine. “I believe you.”

[myriadimagines]

Tease

Deadly Class One Shot

Pairing: Reader x Lex Miller

Other Characters: Petra Yolga, Billy Bennet, Marcus Lopez Arguello

Warnings: smoking, swearing, alcohol consumption

Request: @jordsie​ — “My oneshot idea was for a Lex Miller x reader piece where him and the reader have had a bit of a friends with benefits thing going for a while but, when she admits to having real feelings, he freaks out and calls everything off even though he does have some of those feelings himself. Mutual angst ensues, and then eventually (maybe after someone else tries with Y/N?) they get together.”

Word Count: 2,367

A/N: i miss deadly class hgnhgnghnggggg which i say like at least once a day. anyway, thank you so so much to @jordsie for donating to Reclaim The Block, you’re amazing! if you would like to request a one shot of your own, please read this post!

please reblog/leave comments, they’re very much appreciated!

Your name: submit What is this?

“And now the party’s officially started!”

You let out a loud groan as Petra rolls her eyes beside you, and the two of you look over your shoulders as you see Lex burst through the door to the rooftop, arms thrown up in the air as Billy and Marcus trail behind him, shaking their heads with teasing smiles on their faces. Lex jokingly wrinkles his nose as his eyes land on you, and Lex asks, “What are you boring lot doing up ’ere?”

“Trying to mentally hype ourselves up to go to Shabnam’s party.” Petra responds through a puff of smoke, and she passes her cigarette to you as you watch Billy sidle up to Petra. He eagerly nods along to what she’s saying as she continues, “I don’t understand why you idiots want to go. Shabnam’s nothing but a try hard.”

“Yeah, ugh, Shabnam.” Billy pulls a face, trying his best to impress Petra. “We hate him. Right?”

You and Marcus can’t help but exchange a knowing glance, and Marcus chuckles as the both of you know that Billy’s crush on Petra is more evident than ever as Petra shoots him a confused look. Shrugging, Marcus gives you a little nudge as he responds, “Whatever. A party’s a party. It’s about time we blow off some steam.”

“And I take it you’re going to be there?” you turn to look at Lex, putting on a nonchalant tone as you raise an eyebrow at him. Lex’s goofy grin creates a smile on your own face, and you try your best to keep a straight face as Lex slings an arm around your shoulders, giving you a little shake.

“Well, of course! I’m not one to miss a party.” Lex responds, pulling you close to him despite your attempts to shove him away. He laughs, and teases, “Come on, don’t be like that, love. I know you want me at that party.” 

You pointedly roll your eyes, finally managing to shove his body off yours as you tell him, “Fuck off.” 

Lex throws his head back in laughter, and you duck your head, hoping you don’t look as flustered as you feel. You avoid Petra’s suspicious gaze that falls upon you as you hand the cigarette back to her, and you divert your attention to the view from the rooftop. None of your friends are aware of the little arrangement you have with Lex, secretly hooking up in the dead of the night, dragging each other into empty classrooms for desperate kisses. You know you’ve come close to getting caught, but perhaps that’s what you love most about it. The adrenaline and the rush of sneaking around week after week.

But that’s not the only thing you love. You may or may not have feelings for Lex himself, too.

“We gonna get a move on or what?” Lex asks, jostling Petra as she drops her cigarette, putting it out from under her boot. “Come on, lads, let’s go!”

Lex spins on his heel, leading the way as he makes his way off the roof, and you bite back a smile before reaching for Petra’s arm, tugging her along with you as you all make your way to the party. 

—

You flop against the couch, taking a sip from your cup as you watch the party unfold before you. There’s a mix of everyone from King’s, Rats and Legacies alike, and you flip off a member of the Dixie Mob as you notice one of them scowling at you. Scoffing into her drink beside you, Petra shakes her head as she mutters under her breath, “Remind me why we’re here again?”

You open your mouth to respond, when you suddenly notice Lex in the corner of the room, lingering in the doorway as your eyes meet. He raises an eyebrow at you, a signal you’ve become all too familiar with, and he nods his head down the hallway of Shabnam’s house before he disappears. You gulp down the rest of your drink, straightening your top as you abruptly get up, and Petra looks up at you with wide eyes as she protests, “Where the hell are you going?”

“Come on, you’re a big girl, you can survive without me for a bit.” you tease, avoiding her question as you notice Billy walking over. Perking up, you beckon for him to come over as you continue, “Here, Billy will keep you company.” 

Before Petra can protest, you’ve already darted away, leaving her with Billy as you weave your way through your drunken classmates. You duck into the hallway, tucking your hair behind your ears as you open the first door you come across. You quickly slam the door shut as you see a group of Kuroki Syndicate kids inside, who glare at you as you interrupt whatever discussion they’re having, and you shake your head as you head to the next room.

You peer inside, yelping as you feel a hand reach out to grab yours, and Lex shuts the door behind you before quickly pushing you up against the wall, crashing his lips against yours as you immediately kiss him back. You push his leather jacket off his shoulders as he quickly shrugs it off, and he mumbles, “Kept me waiting long enough, didn’t you, love?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” you feign innocence, pulling away from him so you can smile at him, and Lex chuckles as he shakes his head.

“You’re such a tease,” he replies, before leaning forward to kiss you again, his hands roaming up your body as you stifle a gasp. You can taste the alcohol on his lips, which soon trail away from yours, and he presses kisses to your cheek, your jaw, and down your neck, and you tilt your head up as you run your fingers through his spiked hair. 

“Fuck,” you breath out, and you swear you can feel Lex smirking against your skin as his hands pull your hips closer to his body. “I love you.”

The words slip past your tongue so fast you don’t even have time to think about stopping them. For a moment, time seems to stand still, and you feel Lex stiffen as he slowly pulls away, eyebrows furrowing as he asks, “What?”

You gulp, eyes wide as you feel your heart hammering in your chest. “I—”

“Shit.” Lex jerks back away from you, as if your skin is burning against his, and he fumbles to pick his jacket off the ground. “You… you don’t mean that, right?”

You open your mouth, yet no words come out. You can’t even deny it, can’t even pretend for his  sake that you’re not in love with him, but you can’t take back the words now. You can’t deny your feelings any longer. You only wish you had been confronted with a different reaction.

“I do.” you finally blurt, and Lex’s face falls. “I…  fuck, I do mean it! I… I love you.”

“No, no,” Lex paces through the room, his thoughts jumbling together as he doesn’t even know how to process everything. “This was supposed to be casual, yeah? Why’d you have to go and fuck it up?” 

Your breaths become shallow as your vision becomes blurry with tears. Weakly, you try to reason with him, “Lex…”

“I’m leaving.” Lex abruptly interrupts you, pushing past you, and you try to lunge after him.

“Lex, wait!” you desperately try to reach out to grab him, but he slips past your fingers, rushing out the door as you defeatedly watch him run off, not having the energy within you to run after him. Covering your face in your hands, you spin around, falling against the bed inside the room. Tears prickle your eyes as regret and embarrassment washes over you, and you reach for one of the pillows. Burying your face into it, you let out a frustrated scream.

—

Lex drags his feet through the hallway, head hung low as he shuffles back to his room. It’s been weeks since Shabnam’s party, weeks since you confessed to being in love with him, and he’s managed to avoid you since. Despite your overlapping friend groups, he’s managed to pointedly never be left alone with you, no matter how hard you try to talk to him. Figuring that cutting you out of his life completely is the only way to solve the issue, Lex is doing just that. 

But the more he thinks about it, the more he realises he doesn’t even know what the issue is. Is that fact that you’re in love with him really a problem? Does he feel the same way about you, despite the fact the two of you initially agreed everything would be casual between the both of you? The questions swarm Lex’s mind to the point where he can barely think straight, and he shakes his head, as if trying to shake the questions out of his head. 

He looks up momentarily as he turns the corner, and his eyes go wide as he sees you further down the hallway, shoving books into your locker. He freezes on the spot, and he flinches as you look up and spot him. You blink in shock, but just as you open your mouth to call his name, Lex quickly sprints away, disappearing back where he came from before you can stop him. Your shoulders slump, and you gulp as you slam your locker shut, feeling humiliated and rejected as you try to hold back tears. 

“Hey, y/n.” a voice greets you, and you look up to see Marcus approaching you before he leans up against the lockers. He holds up a pack of cigarettes which he digs out from his blazer pocket, and he asks, “Want a smoke?”

You let out a sigh. Perhaps this’ll help you keep your mind off Lex. Nodding at Marcus, you respond, “Let’s go.”

—

You dump your bag on the floor as you and Marcus sit down on the rooftop, soaking in the orange glow of the sunset. You lean forward as Marcus offers you a lighter, and you can feel his eyes on you as he lights your cigarette up for you. You lean away, watching as Marcus lights up his own cigarette, and after a moment of silence, he asks, “So, you and Lex, huh?”

You tense up, and Marcus stifles a laugh at your reaction. “Come on. It was obvious.”

“Whatever.” you roll your eyes. “It’s over, anyway. Whatever it is that we had.”

The words sting you, but you try to ignore the pain, pretending that your heart isn’t splitting inside your chest. Marcus awkwardly rubs the back of his neck, and he quietly responds, “Yeah, I kind of figured.”

“He’s such an asshole.” you suddenly blurt, anger bubbling in your chest. “He doesn’t even have the decency to talk to me.” 

Marcus shrugs. “You deserve better.”

It’s only then do you notice how close Marcus is sitting beside you, and you suck in a sharp breath as you slowly look up at him. He’s already looking at you, studying your expression, and your voice barely comes out as a whisper as you say, “Marcus…” 

Maybe this isn’t so bad, you try to reason with yourself. Marcus is one of your friends, and maybe this’ll be a good distraction to get Lex off your mind. Marcus leans closer to you, his gaze momentarily falling to your lips before back up to your eyes, and you feel frozen in place before the sound of the rooftop door opening jolts the two of you apart. You both look up, alarmed, as you see Lex standing in the doorway, and you can’t quite decipher the look of hurt and betrayal that mixes in his expression as he sees you and Marcus. Jealousy swirls in his chest, as Lex wants nothing more than you to himself, and he can’t help but feel slightly crazy seeing you with someone else.

“Oi, Marcus. Fuck off, will ya?” Lex finally speaks, and Marcus’ eyebrows furrow as he opens his mouth to protest. He turns to look at you, shrug at him apologetically, and Marcus rolls his eyes as he collects his belongings and walks off, making a point of shoving past Lex’s shoulder as he does so. Lex approaches you, and you defensively fold your arms as you turn to look away, and Lex says, “Aw, come on, y/n.”

“Fuck you, Lex,” you spit, turning to glare at him. “You don’t talk to me for weeks, and now you’re just going to show up and interrupt me while I’m hanging out with other people?”

“Looked like a bit more than a hangout.” Lex points out, raising an eyebrow at you. “Didn’t know Marcus had a thing for you.”

“Well, it’s none of your business, first of all,” you scowl. “And secondly, why do you care? Since you’ve made it pretty clear you want nothing to do with me.”

“It’s not like that.” Lex tries to defend himself, and you let out a loud scoff.

“Are you serious?” you splutter. “I was the one who fucked everything up according to you, remember? Right before you stormed out an—”

Before you can continue, Lex suddenly grabs your face in his hands, kissing you. Despite how badly you want to push him away, you immediately melt into his touch, his touch you’ve been craving ever since the night of the party. You hate how quickly you soften into him, but as he pulls away, you feel as if all the air has been knocked out of you.

“I’m the one who fucked things up, alright?” Lex admits. “I love you too, okay? I was a bloody idiot not to realise it earlier, but I do love you, and I want you.”

You blink, in shock at his words. “Don’t be a tease. Do you really mean all that?”

“Yes.” Lex reaffirms, cupping your face in his hands. “I mean it, y/n.”

Your lips quirk into a smile, and you lean forward to kiss him again. And this time, it’s no longer desperate, but soft, and tender, and loving. 

tag list: @mockingjaygirl1221​ / @cnco-babes​ / @asix122747483​ / @lotsoffandomimagines​ / @uhohscarlett​ / @bored-green​ / @ietss​

[lu-undy]

Chapter 45 - SBT

Here it is!

"So tell me, Spook… Why did you come out here in the middle of the bloody night?" 

Lucien raised his fair eyes to Mundy. The flames were still dancing in the fire, a warm, orange dot over the dark blue forest that spread around them for kilometres on end.

"To apologise." 

"What for?"

"Mentioning your father was not something that you appreciated. I understand that I have overstepped the mark. My apologies." 

"Nah, it's just me." 

Lucien raised his eyes to Mundy. The fire was providing enough warmth and light for them to stay outside and see each other. 

"I just… Each time I think about him, it's hard." Mundy said and he took a sip of his water. "I miss him. Even with all the fighting and arguing and everything… He's just not there at all and I miss him." Mundy lowered his head. "To think that I can't talk to him, I can't ask for advice on anything… And when I think of him, I think of my mum too… Mate… I-I loved my mum… She's everythin'... She… She knew everythin', whenever I had a problem, she'd tell me what to do and now, I don't know. I just don't know."

Mundy put a hand on his eyes to hide his tears, or stop them. He felt a hand on his shoulder. 

"I wish I could talk to them…"

"Pardon my asking but, can't you visit their graves?"

"Mate, they… I could but… No, the truth is I can't. Since the day they put them there, I can't." 

"Why?" 

"I just can't, ok? When they found them, after the fire, there… There just wasn't much left and to think that - Gosh…"

Mundy's voice broke. He cleared his throat and gulped down hard.

"I just can't visit them and I can't talk to them." 

"Mundy, your parents were more than just some flesh and bones. We are all so much more. If you know where their graves are, you should go and talk to them when you feel like you need them."

"What will it change? It's not like they're gonna answer me." 

"Non, it won't change much for them, but it will make a world of a difference to you."

"Pff…"

"Mundy, I weigh my words. You at least have the chance to do it. So please, don't waste it. Some of us don't even know where our parents' graves lie, if they have any."

Lucien paused to give Mundy a cigarette, and lit it. He then took one for himself.

"Lucien…"

"Oui?"

Both exhaled long clouds of sad smoke that the night captured. 

"My parents, they… Gosh, I don't know how to say this…" Mundy rubbed his temples.

"Please, you don't have to tell me anything." Lucien said. "I have the feeling that you shared a lot already."

"Mate, I'm gonna be honest with you." Mundy took a long drag off of his cigarette and scratched his brow. "If someone's gonna die at the end of all this, it's gonna be me. You got Perle to take care of, I have nothing and no one. So I might as well tell you."

"Non, Mundy, I shall not allow it. Neither you or me will die after all this. We need to live. You are still young and have more to live than I have left."

"Nonsense. I'm not that younger than you." 

"That is not the point, Mundy. Even if you were older than me, I would not let anyone kill you."

"Pfff…" Mundy shook his head. "Anyway… My point was that uh… My parents…" He put a hand at the nape of his neck. "They - they weren't really my parents."

"What do you mean?" 

Mundy removed his hand from his neck. 

"They found me, a baby, abandoned in a basket." 

"Mon Dieu…" Lucien's eyes snapped wide. 

"They found me one morning as they were off to collect the eggs from the hens. They wanted to call the police and stuff but then, they looked at me and decided that they'd rather keep me. God knows where I'd have ended up if they had given me away."

"So they raised you?"

Mundy nodded as he wiped his eyes. 

"Yeah… Mum used to tell me that I was the best son she could ever have hoped for…" Lucien smiled, albeit sadly. "Mate, it's… It's hard…"

Lucien pulled Mundy towards him and the Aussie dived in his chest. He was breathing fast and screwing his eyes shut hard. 

"Sometimes…" He said with his muffled voice, his face against the expensive white shirt and the soft vest. "Sometimes I want to talk to them, I want to ask them, y'know… I want to ask them stuff that I can't ask anyone else cause… Cause no one would understand. But they're not here anymore… And I have no one. I'm just, I'm just alone, I'm so alone…" 

Lucien removed Mundy's hat and hugged him better, pulling his head against his chest. His long hair was still damp, but Lucien didn't care.

"I'm so alone… It kills me more than anything else, mate… I… I just wish sometimes there would be someone left for me, y'know, someone I could talk to, someone I could look at and feel like it's home…" 

Mundy pulled his head away from Lucien's embrace and looked up at his grey eyes.

"And you made it worse." 

"What? Me? How so?" Lucien asked, confused and feeling a surge of guilt for whatever the reason could be.

"Whenever I go to watch you sing, you make me feel so much more alone…" Mundy put his face in his hands. "I want to have someone next to me, I want to look at them, I want to - ugh…" He clenched his fists on his knees and lowered his head. "Mate, I'm alone and when I die… No one will care… No one will… No one will come…"

"Non." Lucien wrapped his hand around Mundy's clenched fist. "You will not die. Not on my watch, not during this and not at the end of it either."

"Yeah, well, we'll see." Mundy answered, unconvinced.

"Mundy, I did not travel all the way from the city, leave Perle alone in the middle of the night to hear nonsense like this."

Mundy relaxed his hand and Lucien slid his fingers between his. The Aussie froze and boiled up at the same time. He didn't expect any contact like that, so suddenly. And he felt like all his veins exploded at the same time.

"I will say it again and you have to understand that these are not words that I am throwing in the air. These are the words of the person who tracked the most Nazis in all of Europe, the one who freed entire cities, overthrew governments on his own and brought peace to some colonies by freeing them too, against France itself." Lucien clenched his fingers through Mundy's, tightening his grip on his hand. He frowned. "I will make sure that you live after all this." 

"Why'd you care…?" Mundy sighed. 

"Because I do." Lucien rested his head on Mundy's shoulder and closed his eyes. He could feel himself relax on the Aussie...

There was a pause. 

"Lucien?"

"Oui?" His eyes snapped open.

"Please…" Mundy's voice was shaky.

"What?" Lucien asked, knowing fully well that Mundy would ask him to back off. He had pushed his luck well beyond what he dreamt he could share with the Aussie. He relaxed his grip on his hand, realising with sadness that his moment of bliss had come to an end.

"Please, never stop carin'." Mundy leaned his head on top of Lucien's, who froze when he felt Mundy close his fingers on his. "Please…" His long hair was cold and stuck to both of them. Lucien's heart pounded in his chest as if he had been twenty years younger.

"On one condition." 

"Hm?" 

"You don't give up either."

"I won't give up on you." The Aussie said seriously.

"Neither will I on you." Lucien answered, brushing the back of Mundy's hand with his thumb.

"But how will we make it?"

"Together. And by surviving it." 

They both stared at the flames dancing in the fire. Their crackling was perfect. It was loud enough to not drown them in an awkward silence, and not too loud either.

"Okay." 

"Mundy?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Promise me."

"I promise." Mundy was serious.

"Très bien."

[Very well.]

"You promise now."

"Je te le promets."

[I promise you.]

"That'd better mean that you promise, you posh snob." 

Lucien smiled and raised his eyes up, as if he could see Mundy resting his head on his own.

"It does, you ignorant caveman. Also, don't you have anything to dry your hair with, or better still, cut it?" 

"Why? Is my hair annoyin' ya? Well here…" Mundy took his wet hair and put it on Lucien's head, all around his face. Now it looked like the Frenchman had a mix of salt and pepper short hair mixed with long, brown, wet locks.

"Bushman!" 

Both burst out laughing as Lucien pushed the sticky locks away from his face. 

"C'mon, I'm sure you look pretty and it goes marvelously with yer bloody suit…!"

"Pff, ridiculous! Stop it, your hair is cold and sticky!" 

They ended their laughter with Lucien wrapped up in Mundy's arms.

"I'm sorry, mate." Mundy finally said with a smile, as he hugged Lucien. He pushed his hair back and away. "It'll dry with time. I don't have a hair dryer or anything."

"I know, I know." Lucien looked up at him and smiled back. 

"By the way," Mundy looked around. "How did you come all the way here? I take it Maurice told you I'd be here?"

"Oui. I was looking for you and inevitably asked the only person who might have a clue where the natural habitat of the Bushman is. As to how I got here, I used a little bit of what we call in our jargon 'spy's magic'."

"Uh huh, spooky magic now?" 

"Oui, look." Lucien got up and went a few meters away from the fire. "What do you see here?" 

"Well, not much, it's pitch dark." 

"Do you see the sign of any vehicle I could use to travel to you?"

"No… Apart from those skinny legs of yours." Mundy pointed at Lucien's legs and the French lowered his head to look at them.

"My legs are not skinny, they are slim. But watch here…" Lucien tapped the air twice and Mundy's jaw dropped when out of thin air, the Frenchman's motorcycle appeared. "This is how I drove all the way here."

"Bloody hell… How did you do that?!"

Lucien smirked.

"I told you, spy's magic." He crossed his arms on his chest proudly.

"Can you make anythin' disappear like that?" Mundy got off of his chair and walked to the Frenchman. 

"You clearly have no knowledge of how spy's magic operates, Bushman." 

"Is it like in the James Bond movies?"

"Sometimes, oui. Why? Are you interested in becoming a spy now?" Lucien joked.

"Well if I did, I'd steal your job, cause I'd be better at it." Mundy teased. 

"I beg to differ. Obviously I am the better spy here. For starters, I look like one." 

"I don't see your tie and jacket, mate." 

"Would you rather I put them back on?" 

Mundy blushed and nervously put his hands in his pockets. 

"Yeah, no, I mean… Anyway, I shouldn't have said that…" 

Lucien tapped his friend's chest lightly. Mundy looked away. 

"And I am more confident in myself than you are, Bushman and we cannot have a shy spy, this simply doesn't work." 

"Why?" Mundy finally made eye contact, even though for a brief moment. 

"A spy is a fool who faces the dangers that no one else ever will." 

"So, you're admitting you're a fool now, eh?"

Lucien raised his ice drop-like eyes to Mundy and the Aussie's pupils dilated like a cat in the dark. Gosh, those eyes…

"Right now, I am the most foolish of them all, Mundy."

The first swam in the lagoon blue eyes of the second while the second skated on icy irises so clear that he didn't know what that colour was named anymore.

"Someone thought I was crazy when they saw me use my jars, eh?" 

"Not foolish enough, Mundy, not foolish enough." Lucien said, waving his index finger at him. Mundy took that finger and moved it aside. 

"You challengin' me?" 

Lucien cocked an eyebrow up. 

"I would. But Perle is home alone."

"Oh, sure, o'course. But, Spook?"

"Hm?"

"Talking about spy stuff, can I ask you something?"

"Anything for you."

"How does it work…? I mean… Can your car fire bullets or something?" 

"Well, I am afraid my answer will disappoint you."

"Yeah well, add that to the list of disappointments then, eh?"

"Bushman! When have I ever disappointed you?!" 

"Pff, it's so easy to piss you off…" Mundy chuckled low, from the bottom of his throat, and looked down at Lucien, who raised his eyes to meet his gaze. The Frenchman splayed a hand on Mundy's chest. 

"Maybe, but it is as easy as you enjoy it."

"Maybe."

"Clearly."

Their eyes locked for a few seconds that both tried to stretch. But out of fear that it would make the other uncomfortable, they both ended up looking away. 

"Alright, now that you have a smile back on that hideous face of yours, I will go back home. Perle must be waiting." Lucien said as he grabbed his helmet from the motorcycle and slipped it on. 

"Oi, my face is alright. You have the scars and stuff still."

Lucien opened the visor to see Mundy better.

"And I can but thank you for these cosmetic enhancements." He straddled the motorcycle.

"Well, you're bloody welcome, mate." 

They both chuckled. 

"Right, you be careful on the road, ok?" Mundy said. 

"Oui. And you take care of yourself, d'accord?" 

[Alright?]

"Yeah, don't worry." Mundy gave him an earnest smile.

Lucien started the motorcycle's engine. 

"Hey, Spook?" 

"Hm?" 

"What's next?" 

"I do not know. But hopefully, we will soon. See you, Mundy." 

"Yeah, see ya…"

Lucien closed his visor with a nod and drove off. 

"...Lu'."

-- A few days later -- 

Perle opened her eyes. Ah, Papa Lulu had the awful habit of staying sat there on his black seat for hours on end, meowing in sync with the sound of the buttons he pressed… 

His meows were however quite soothing to him, Perle knew that. She could feel it. Each time he would sit there and play with the black and white buttons, she could feel his mood change. Even his heartbeat would slow down. 

She was lying on top of the piano and looked at him while bathing, licking herself clean. His eyes were fully closed now so her nap must have been quite long. Before she fell asleep, she remembered him still looking down at his big paws, but now, he didn't need it anymore. 

Hm, her legs were now clean, she could take a break and just watch him play and meow. He looked so relaxed and much better than a week before. All his nasty scars had disappeared now, and he could thank her for it! Each morning when she woke up next to his head on his pillow, she would spend some time licking his wounds clean, just to make sure he would heal up nicely. Obviously, Papa Lulu didn't like it. But eh, now, thanks to her stubborn efforts, he looked good and healthy! 

"Hm." 

Lucien stopped rehearsing and opened his eyes. 

"Ah, je t'ai réveillée?"

[Ah, have I woken you up?]

"Meow…" Perle extended her head towards him and he met her with a kiss between her eyes. 

"Pardon mon bébé, mais si tu veux vraiment dormir, tu ne devrai pas rester si près du piano."

[My apologies, my baby, but if you really wanted to sleep, you shouldn't stay so close to the piano.]

"Meow…" She put her paws out to him and he took her in his hands. He carried her close to his face and she rubbed her fluffy cheeks on his. He chuckled and kissed her fur again. 

"Je vais devoir me préparer pour aller travailler, Perle. Tu restes sage?" 

[I will have to get ready to work, Perle. Will you behave while I'm away?]

"Meeow…?"

"Oui, j'ai bien peur de ne pas pouvoir rester, mais ne t'inquiète pas, je ne devrai pas rentrer trop tard."

[Yes, I am afraid I cannot stay, but don't worry, I should not come back home too late.]

He scratched below her jaw, as he saw Mundy do before him and Perle purred, closing her eyes. He smiled. There was definitely a lot he had learnt from the Aussie.

Lucien dropped Perle to the floor and went to his bedroom to get changed. She trotted happily after him and climbed on the bed. She sat there and watched him put on yet another few layers of unusually short fur. He took quite a bit of time, hm. Perle then followed him to the bathroom where Papa Lulu arranged his longer fur on his head before putting his shiny, dark collar around his neck. His was very different from her collar or even her harness. 

"Meow…?"

Perle pulled on Papa Lulu's trousers leg and he carried her up. He kissed her fur and put her on the sink. She sat down and stared at him preparing himself. He took a bottle and some very strong smell splashed out of it, that made her sneeze. 

"Oh, pardon, ma chérie…"

[Oh, my apologies, sweetheart…] 

He chuckled at her cute, high-pitched sneezes and how her face contorted each time she did. Perle relaxed when the strength of the smell went down. She sat back down and looked up at Papa Lulu. He was smiling. 

"Et voilà. Je suis prêt. Comment me trouves-tu?"

[Here we are. I am ready. How do you find me?]

Perle tilted her head left and right.

"Meow!" She raised her paws to him. 

"Tu veux toucher? Viens… Voilà… Tu peux toucher mais pas avec tes griffes. Voilà… C'est doux? Tu aimes bien?"

[You want to touch? Come here… There… You may touch but not with your claws. There… Do you find it soft? Do you like it?]

Perle was in Lucien's hands. She touched his bowtie, his shirt and his vest. She rubbed herself on everything she could reach. Lucien smiled to himself. That little cat loved him an awful lot… 

"Je vais y aller maintenant. Tu restes sage pour Papa?"

[I will have to go now. Will you behave for Papa?]

"Meow." 

He carried her to the living room and dropped her in the cardboard box that she loved, the one that used to contain the letters. As soon as he left her there, Perle peeked her head out and gave a mewl. 

"Ah, oui, pardon." 

[Ah, yes, sorry.]

Lucien knelt down and kissed her head. 

"Voilà. Ne vas pas te coucher trop tard, d'accord?"

[Here. And don't go to sleep too late, alright?]

"Meow." She simply answered and he gave her a sweet smile. 

"Bonne soirée, ma chérie."

[Have a good evening, my sweetheart.]

Lucien put on his jacket, his shoes, and exited the suite. He went out of the hotel and straddled his motorcycle, before dashing through the night. 

He arrived at the Queen Victoria on time, which was early on, as the first customers sat in the room. But he didn't have much time to lounge and relax. Andy, the conductor, found him early on and with the rest of the musicians, they all gathered backstage to make some last minute adjustments on the songs of the nights. 

About an hour later, the dining area was full of customers and Lucien was still backstage, as his song was the last of the night's show. This time, he had asked for a few innovations for the customers. Maybe even Mundy would appreciate…?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the man you have been waiting for, Lulu!" 

Lucien pushed the curtain and was welcomed by a thunder of applause from the crowd. He went to the microphone proudly and smiled.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for the warm welcome. I would like to dedicate this song to someone special, who hopefully won't recognise themselves."

The crowd frowned, not understanding why Lulu wouldn't want the person that song was destined to to know it. 

"After all, love is better lived a secret."

He sat at the piano and took a deep breath before starting playing. He let the notes come to him and met them without much effort. He looked at his fingers briefly but didn't see them. All he saw was the man he was about to sing that song to. 

{To the reader, the song is "Hymne à l'Amour" by Johnny Hallyday, [Anthem of love]}

"Le ciel bleu sur nous peut s'effondrer

[The blue sky can collapse on us]

Et la terre y peut bien s'écrouler

[And the Earth, can crumble and fall]

Peu m'importe, si tu m'aimes

[I don't mind, for if you love me]

Je me fous du monde entier

[I don't care about anything in the entire world]

Et tant qu'l'amour inondera mes matins

[As long as love drowns my mornings]

Et tant que mon corps frémira sous tes mains

[And as long as my body trembles under your hands]

Peu m'importent, oui, les problèmes

[I don't care about any problems]

Mon amour, puisque tu m'aimes"

[My love, because you love me.]

Lucien now closed his eyes and focused on what he was about to admit. He felt nothing in his body but his heart drumming, beating against his ribcage, threatening to burst.

"J'irais jusqu'au bout du monde

[I would go to the end of the world]

J'oublierais brunes et blondes

[I would forget the brunettes and blondes]

Oui, si tu me le demandais

[If you just asked me]

Oui, j'irais décrocher la lune

[Yes, I would steal the moon]

J'irais voler la fortune

[I would steal luck itself]

Si tu me le demandais

[If you just asked me]

Oh, je renierais ma patrie

[Oh I would deny my motherland]

Je renierais mes amis

[I would deny my friends]

Si tu me le demandais

[If you just asked me]

On peut bien rire de moi

[People may laugh at me]

Oh, je ferais n'importe quoi

[Oh, I would do whatever you told me to]

Si tu me le demandais"

[If you just asked me.]

Lucien held on to that last note delicately. Yes, he would do all of that and so much more, if Mundy did as much as ask him to. He would simply do the impossible for him, because if there was one reason the Frenchman wanted to stay alive for now, it was to see him again, to lean his head on the Aussie's shoulder, to see in his lagoon blue eyes...

"Et si un jour, la vie t'arrache à moi

[And if one day, life tears you off of me]

Si tu meurs, que tu sois loin de moi

[If you die, if you are far from me]

Peu m'importe

[No matter]

Si tu m'aimes

[For if you love me]

Car moi je mourrais aussi

[I would die too]

Et nous aurons pour nous l'éternité

[And we will have eternity for ourselves]

Dans le bleu de toute l'immensité

[In the endless, immense blue]

Dans le ciel, plus de problèmes!"

[In the sky, no more problems!"

Lucien turned his head to the crowd, where he knew the man with the ponytail was sitting. He nodded and the lights turned on in the dining area. Oui, he was there! That special man. The one who woke things up in Lucien that he thought had died when he buried the only woman he ever loved. That man, mon Dieu, that man… His jaw had dropped and he hung from the Frenchman's lips, drinking his words as he would water in a desert. Lucien looked straight through the aviator glasses and asked, with arched eyebrows, his eyes glistening with tears he could not afford to shed. He asked a question that Lulu wanted an answer to, but Lucien could not even ask.

"Mon amour, crois-tu qu'on s'aime?"

[My love, do you think that we love each other?]

And he held that note powerfully, so strongly in fact that he closed his eyes and as he did so, the tears snapped out of his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. The orchestra powerfully woke up and a drum roll with the metallic cymbals washed the piano away, as the trumpets resounded powerfully. 

Anthem of Love, the song that Lucien never really understood until then, now made so much sense that it hurt and he wiped his cheeks with a handkerchief. 

The Frenchman stood up under the thunderous applause of the crowd. He wasn't Lucien anymore, he was Lulu again, the sentimental fool, the man who cried just because of nonsensical romance, because of words he would never otherwise say. Only Lulu could say the "I love yous" and such. Lucien couldn't. 

After bowing to his audience, Lucien went straight to his backstage room and locked himself in. He sat on his chair in front of the mirrors that were circled by bulbs of yellow light. He regretted not having Perle with him because he felt it. He needed to curl in his bed under the duvet with her, he needed to be in a fetal position, miserable and pathetic as he was, and he needed to burst in tears. 

Lucien lowered his face in his hands and just did. He burst out in sobs, not holding back anything, the distraught, disgusted sounds, the strangled sobs, the misery of it all. He cried his lungs out, he emptied himself. The waters of his distress flowed in his hands and his face, painting his skin with the bitter colour of heartbreak. He needed to cry so much, because everything was so unfair. 

It was unfair that he had lost his fiancée and his son. It was unfair that the man who took them away from him was alive and well. It was unfair that even after all that, Lucien's own heart was still beating. And worst of all, it was unfair that his heart now beat for someone; someone he could not tell that he loved him, someone he could not afford to love anyway. Why? Because what good would it be to love him if it was only to die a few weeks later?

Oui, Perle will live happily with Mundy. 

Lucien had long made up his mind. If someone had to die at the end of all this, it would be himself. He had accepted it. He would die for Mundy to live. Oui, he would make sure his death would be a satisfactory enough payback to Duchemin's goons that they wouldn't go after Mundy. He didn't deserve to die, he did nothing wrong in his life, he never killed anyone. Non. Lucien was the horrible monster who tortured, shredded and killed more than any monster has ever done. He would pay for it now but please, please, may God ever protect Mundy.

[bittywitches]

Come Over (Ethan Dolan Fanfic)

A/N: Ethan’s stories abt him being sick made me soft so I wanted to write something abt it :)) Basically Y/N and Ethan have been going out for a while but Ethan isn’t the most expressive when it comes to showing his affection for his gf and he starts to realize that it might acc be a problem...

Ly guys hope you enjoy it <3

Used Tissues were strewn across the bed, falling off onto the floor. Tissue boxes were stacked carelessly on the night table, most of them half empty. Ethan’s almost dead phone was plugged into his wall, and he aimlessly scrolled through his insta feed, his hood over his head and the drawstrings pulled tight. The covers were draped all the way up to his chin. He groaned, his head burning up even more than the day before. being sick was bad enough, but Grayson leaving him to go to the beach just made it that little bit worse. He spent the entire day eating food and lying in bed doing nothing, and it drove him insane. He ached for any sort of human interaction. He even started making conversation with the Halloween decorations.

He went to his contacts and scrolled down until he found the person he was looking for. He pressed call and put the phone on speaker.

“Hey, hon.”

“Hi, cutie.”

His girlfriend laughed. “I think your medicine is making you loopy.”

“Course not, sweetness.”

“Right, sure. What’s up? You feeling any better?”

“No. Grayson abandoned me. I’m so bored. Come over.”

“Babe, I’m in a lecture hall right now.”

“Yea? Why’d you answer your phone?”

“Because it’s not currently going on.”

“Then come over!”

“It’s going to start soon, you dumbass.”

“Ugggghhhh.”

“Shut up, people will hear you.”

“When’s your lecture over?”

“In an hour.”

“Do you have to stay?”

“I’ll come over when it’s finished.”

“Ugh. Fine. BYEEE SUGAR MUFFIN!”

“Oh my god people are staring at me now you’re such an asshole k bye”

She cut the phone, and he laughed out loud. Embarrassing his girlfriend was one of his favourite things to do. He chuckled to himself again, then went back to scrolling through his feed, and finally stopped when his eye caught the familiar face of his favourite girl.

It was a picture she had posted a few hours before, of her and Ethan sitting in front of the campfire they had made the weekend before. They’d gone camping with a few of their friends, and they had an amazing time. Y/N and Ethan were sitting on a log in front of the fire, roasting marshmallows. Ethan’s was already burnt, and Y/N was laughing in the photo while she had her arm linked around his. He looked at how happy she looked, and how dang good she looked with her messy hair and face smeared with the ashes from the fire, and he smiled to himself. He really was the luckiest guy in the world, to have such an amazing girlfriend. He swiped to see the next photo she’d posted, and it was of her kissing him on the cheek while Ethan made the fakest annoyed expression in the world. He cringed, looking at his dumb face next to hers. Her arms were carelessly thrown over him, wrapped around his neck, and her eyes were scrunched tight. One of his arms was wrapped around her, and the other one was still holding his now on fire marshmallow. She had posted it with a caption: 

Firstname.Lastname Eww he tastes like sweat and ashes 😣

He snorted.

She was absolutely adorable.

He started typing up a comment:

that’s what you get for kissing me 😈

He read it over, shook his head, then cleared it to write something else:

Your kisses are still the sweetest 😉

He liked that better, and smiled when his phone dinged just a few minutes later:

Firstname.Lastname liked your comment: Your kisses are still the sweetest 😉Firstname.Lastname mentioned you in a comment: @ethandolan 😊❤️

Ethan wished that he didn’t have to look so stupid in the picture. He loved it when Y/N kissed him, he was just too awkward to ever voice that out loud, or show it for that matter. She was just so amazing, and sometimes it seemed like he had no idea how to show her that. 

“Why does she have to have her stupid lecture...”

Two hours later, Ethan finally perked up at the sound of the front door opening. He heard the thud of her shoes hitting the floor, the rattle of her keys being thrown onto the table, and then her soft footsteps racing up the stairs. The click of her turning the doorknob, and the creak of his door opening to reveal her, in his old sweatshirt and tights, her hair pulled back into a ponytail, holding some grocery bags.

“Oh my god, you look like hell.”

“Thanks, gorgeous.”

She laughed, walking up to his bed and plopping down beside him. She felt his forehead, and her eyebrows scrunched up.

“What did you do to get yourself this sick in the first place?”

“I ran outside in the middle of the night in nothing but my birthday suit then dived into the pool.” His nasal voice made his sarcastic remark sound funnier than it should have.

“Haha.” She grabbed her bags and began pulling out various assortments of items.

“What’s all this?”

“Just stuff to make you feel better.” She pulled out some hot soup (that Ethan had no idea how she had the time to make), cough drops, more cold medicine, a huge bag of chips, and a small, purple teddy bear, which she placed in front of him.

“Who’s this little guy?”

She grinned. “Just someone to keep you company when you get bored during one of my lectures again.”

He rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t deny that he loved the little thing. It was adorable. Like her.

“You know you didn’t have to go to all the trouble of getting this stuff.”

“Well, when you called me you sounded pretty bad.”

“I just missed you.”

She looked at him weirdly for a moment, but then shook her head and began to put the items onto his night table.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Dude.”

“Nothing.”

He shoved her shoulder gently, and she rolled her eyes.

“Do you want soup?”

“Uhuh.”

She opened the container and handed it to him, along with a plastic spoon. He gratefully took it, slurping it down a bit obnoxiously, but she smiled at him nonetheless.

“You know, you’d think that someone with such a nice house and so much storage place would have quick-to-make soup around.”

“Come on, you know soup is like the most boring dish ever.”

She gave him an annoyed look.

“Ah ah ah Babe I need a tish!” He hastily put the bowl onto his night table while trying to hold in his sneeze, while Y/N grabbed the nearest tissue box and handed him one. He sneezed loudly.

“Jesus, that gets really annoying.”

“Yea, I can tell.” She gestured to all of the crumpled up tissues. “This is so nasty, how do you just sleep with all of these surrounding you?”

She grabbed his trash can and began tossing the tissues into the basket. 

“Oh babe no that’s gross! You don’t have to-“

“Oh my god just shut up and let me take care of you!”

She gave him a heavy sigh and continued to clean up. Ethan gave her a blank stare, unsure of what to say. 

“..Thank you.” He decided on that.

He looked over at him, looking a bit pissed off. “Hey, if you think I was fishing for a-“

“No! Jeez, I’m being serious. You didn’t have to do any of this or even come here at all since I’m assuming you’ve got a lot of work to do, and I’m really thankful for that. For you.”

She blinked. “Seriously, is there something in your medicine?”

“Oh my fucking god!” He flopped back onto his pillow. 

“I’m sorry, I’m just not used to..” she waved her hands vaguely. “All this from you.”

“Yeah, I know.”

She finally finished picking up all the tissues, then sat down next to E on the bed. She grabbed the bag of chips and popped it open, then tossed one into her mouth. 

“You wanna watch a movie or something?”

“Are you saying I have to get up?”

“Wow okay bye then-“

“No!” He laughed, grabbing her arm to prevent her from getting off the end without him. “I’m kidding. Yes, a movie sounds great.”

Y/N sat cross-legged on the couch, idly scrolling through the movies on Netflix. Ethan sat across on the other side of the couch, eating more of the chips. 

“What about this one?”

“Seen it already.”

She groaned, clicking the remote louder than usual as if to display her annoyance. “You’ve already seen like every movie ever.”

“Well there isn’t much else to do when you're sick.”

“Blegh.”

Y/N rested her chin on her hand. Her ponytail was falling apart a little bit, and little strands fell to float against her cheek. Ethan loved to play with her hair. He’d do it a lot without ever thinking about it. They’d be hanging out with their friends, and he’d just begin fiddling with ends. At one point Y/N had gotten so annoyed by it that she had told him he might as well just braid it instead. But surprisingly to her, Ethan actually liked that idea. And so, she taught him how to do it, and from then on whenever she came over she would end up leaving with her hair braided. She’d always say it annoyed her, but Ethan knew she secretly loved it from the way he saw her smile whenever he did it.

Ethan found himself zoning out, just staring at her as she was looking for a movie for them to watch. Her face, her eyes, her mouth, her nose, her hands, her arms, her back...

“Oh oh! How about this one?”

Y/N startled him back to reality. “Hm? Yea. Sure.”

“God finally.”

To be honest, Ethan wasn’t even sure what they were going to watch.

“Hey, hold on. I’m gonna go get something.” He got up to go head towards his bedroom.

“Get what?”

“A blanket.”

“What? Why?”

“So we can cuddle.”

Y/N’s eyes widened. “What?”

Ethan shrugged. “I’m cold. And I wanna cuddle.”

Y/N’s mouth hung open for a second, having no idea what to do in this situation. 

He wanted to what?

Yea, of course, they’d cuddled before, but he’d never been so bluntly said that he wanted it. She was always so sure that he was embarrassed by it. “Really?”

“Well, Yea.”

She blushed hard, looking away from him and smiling to herself, then looked back

at him. “Okay.”

He smiled at her. “Okay.”

“you are so fucking comfy.” Y/N nestled up closer to Ethan, burying her face into his sweatshirt. Her legs were carelessly thrown on top of him, and Ethan rubbed her thigh under the blanket.

“That is the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“And you should be grateful, mister.”

He chuckled and planted a kiss on Y/N’s forehead. He heard her sigh in content.

“Aren’t you afraid of getting sick from me?”

“Oh, this is definitely worth it.”

“God, you are so cute.”

She blushed. “Babe, what is up with you today?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know...” he stroked his fingers along her back. “Guess I just realized that I don’t appreciate you enough.”

Y/N snorted. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Ethan repositioned himself so he was facing Y/N, her lying on his arm with her hands pressed up against his chest. “You know, you’re just...”

“I’m what?”

“Amazing.”

Her face turned even more red than before, and Ethan grinned. “Man, I didn’t know I could do that to you so easily.”

“Yea well, you’d know if you tried once and a while.”

As soon as the words left her mouth Y/N covered her mouth with her hands, wishing she could take those words back.

Ethan’s face fell. “Ouch. Guess that was a jab at me, huh?”

“It just came out, I didn’t mean to-“

“No, Y/N. you did.”

“I did not!”

“You did.”

Y/N tried to say something, but the words got caught in her throat. She sighed, pushing the loose strands of hair up and out of her face. “Babe..”

“No, you don’t have to explain yourself. It makes sense, I’m not the greatest with that kind of stuff. I just didn’t know it ever bothered you that much.”

She let her head fall onto the side of the couch. “It doesn’t, not really..” She paused. “I don’t know. It’s just nice when you hear those kinds of things from the person you love, yknow?”

Ethan tucked another peaking strand behind her ear. “I may not say it all the time, but you know that’s how I feel, don’t you?”

“Yea...” she started playing with his drawstrings. “I just... You know how you said you missed me? Well that... it just makes my heart-“ she pressed her hand on top of the place where Ethan’s heart would be, then made an exploding motion with her hands along with a little sound effect. “You know?”

He took her hand and pressed it against his heart again. “Well, if it makes it any better...” he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “You make my heart feel like that every day.”

Y/N beamed at him. She reached up and grabbed his face, then kissed him. Ethan couldn’t help but moan a bit, kissing her back stronger than he ever had. When they finally pulled apart, Y/N looked just as bewildered as he did.

“Where did that come from?”

“I have no clue.”

“Well-“

Before he knew it Y/N was kissing him again, cradling his jaw in her hands. Her eyebrows were furrowed, lost in the feeling of Ethan’s lips against hers. It was like nothing mattered but the two of them, underneath their little blanket.

Ethan pulled away suddenly in some sort of urgency and caught his breath. 

“I love you.” He rubbed her cheek. “And I’m sorry that I don’t say it enough.”

Y/N breathed out, smiling at him wide.

“I’m probably definitely going to get sick.”

“Y/N!”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” She pecked him on the lips.

 “I love you too.”

[kumeko]

A/N: For the Persona @wegotyourbackzine! I decided to write about Mitsuru and her changing the relationship throughout the game. I also couldn’t resist putting some Akihiko/Mitsuru hints. XD

Summary: Friendship. That had a nice ring to it. Mitsuru stared at the group of people living in the dorm and realized she wasn’t as alone as she thought.

…

…

…

…

Summer

 The hot summer sun beat down with no reprieve and Mitsuru shielded her eyes with a hand as she walked home. Not escorted, not driven, but walked. She didn’t even have a bodyguard behind her, trailing her inconspicuously from five feet away. And while that was all strange enough, it was not as strange as the two boys walking slightly ahead of her. Her associates. The word didn’t sound right but Mitsuru wasn’t sure what else to call them. Certainly not friends or even classmates—neither Akihiko nor Shinjiro were in her school, let alone her class.

 Holding his jacket over his shoulder, Akihiko looked over his shoulder. The bandage on his face looked like it was glued there, she couldn’t remember seeing him without one. “What did you call those monster things again?”

 “Shadows,” Mitsuru answered quickly. “What you summon with the Evokers are—”

“Personas, right?” Shinjiro filled in, his hands in his pockets. Mitsuru resisted the urge to correct his posture, to straighten his slouched back. Like this, he seemed as tall as Akihiko instead of towering over him. “I can’t believe this is real. It sounds something out of a fantasy book.”

“Or a video game.” Akihiko grinned cockily, swiftly jabbing the air in front of him. “Secret identities, fighting at night, saving the world—we’re like superheroes.”

 “Superheroes?” Shinjiro raised a brow, his expression wry. “Can’t think of one that has to shoot themselves in the head to use their powers.”

 Mitsuru rubbed her forearm uncomfortably. It was mildly disturbing how easy it was to press the cold metal to her head, to pull the trigger. To watch them do the same. Maybe she had something in common with her grandfather after all. “It does sound…silly, when you put it like that. Unfortunately, the design is required. It has to be stress-inducing.”

 “More stress-inducing than fighting monsters in the middle of the night while surrounded by coffins?” Shinjiro asked. She couldn’t tell if he was serious or just rhetorical. His dry tone didn’t help.

 “Quit complaining.” Akihiko cracked his knuckles. “At least we can fight them.”

 “Fighting addict.” Shinjiro rolled his eyes before turning his attention back to her. “Where’d you say the dorms were?”

 Mitsuru looked up at him. “They’re…”

 She stared. Just when had Shinjiro gotten so close? Even Akihiko was, for that matter. At some point, they’d started walking abreast one another, the two boys flanking her, and she didn’t know what to make of it. Of the sound of her footsteps being echoed by two others. Of her voice being answered by another. A dog barked nearby, breaking her from her thoughts, and Mitsuru masked her unease with a polite smile. “Just past this temple.”

 -x-

Fall

 The sound of laughter echoed through the halls and Mitsuru paused as she closed her bedroom door. From the third floor, she couldn’t clearly make out their voices, only a messy cacophony as her companions teased one another. It was a sound she’d been hearing more often these days. Involuntarily, her lips curled into a smile and she locked her room.

 Heading toward the stairs, she glanced at the nameplates as she passed them: Aigis, Yukari, Fuuka. The floor below was equally occupied, and her feet felt light as she descended to the ground floor. When they’d first arrived here, it had felt almost ridiculous to have three people in such a big building. Now they were nine strong and the building was more full than empty. Though it seemed the majority of residents were all crowding around the lobby. “What’s happening?”

 “Mitsuru-senpai!” Crouching next to Koromaru, Junpei waved eagerly as she stepped onto the landing. “You gotta see what Yukari bought Koromaru.” He slowly rose, his shoulders shaking with laughter. “Have you ever seen anything so stupid?”

 “It’s not stupid!” Yukari flushed a bright red and swatted Junpei with a rolled-up paper. “Aigis said he likes it!”

 “Of course he would, he’s a dog.” Junpei cracked up again, undeterred. He covered his head with a hand, blocking her attacks. “Like he knows what’s cool or not.”

 “Is that relevant?” Aigis asked, bemused. She cocked her head. “He is a dog.”

 “What are you…” Mitsuru glanced at Koromaru and blinked. Then she blinked again. Perched on his head was a white headband with a pair of fluffy, white, distinctly not dog-ears. “Are those cat ears?”

 “The pet shop put out their Halloween costumes,” Yukari defended weakly, averting her gaze. Quietly, she mumbled, “And I…never had a pet before…”

 “I think they’re cute,” Fuuka agreed, squeezing Yukari’s shoulder. She gave a sympathetic smile. “Even Koromaru should get to dress up for Halloween.”

 Mitsuru glanced at the plastic bag by Yukari’s feet. The overly stuffed plastic bag. Just how many costumes did she buy? Koromaru cocked his head, the headband staying on firmly. It was a little cute, she had to admit. Just a little. “I suppose so.”

 “Ugh, is this a girl thing?” Junpei turned to Makoto with a grimace. “You don’t like them too, do you?”

 Makoto crossed his arms, studying Koromaru seriously. As usual, he took his time, scrutinizing the whole affair with more gravity than needed. “They—”

 Cutting him off before he could finish, Junpei groaned. “Why’d I even ask you, Mr. Popularity. Where’s Akihiko when you need him? Wait…” He stared at Koromaru and a wide smile spread across his face. “Hey, Koromaru, I’ll take you for a walk today.”

 “…huh?” Taken aback, Yukari snapped her head toward him. “You hate taking him for a walk.”

 “What lies! As though I could ever hate walking Koromaru. He’s saved my life so many times. Besides, I should do my part to help out.” Already heading toward the door, he whistled lightly as he picked up Koromaru’s leash. “Come on boy! And keep those ears on!”

 Fuuka started at his receding back for a long moment before she leaned closer to Yukari and whispered, “You don’t think he’s—”

 “Picking up girls?” Yukari sighed, crossing her arms as she glared at his departing figure. “Oh, he definitely is going to try.”

 -x-

Winter

 “It’s cold.” Mitsuru adjusted the scarf around her neck. Even layered up as she was, winter’s chilly bite clung to her bones and refused to let go.

 Trotting quickly on the sidewalk in front of her, Koromaru yipped softly, his tail low. Not a single part of him resembled the dog Mitsuru was used to, the excited canine who lived for his evening walks. Then again, with everything that happened in the past year, she couldn’t blame him. Between the numerous sacrifices to stop Nyx, Mitsuru wasn’t sure she could smile anymore either.

 “He says…” Aigis stared blankly at Koromaru. The wind picked up. She blinked. “He says…”

 “It’s okay, I can guess.” Rubbing her hands in front of her mouth, she tried to warm them with her breath. “It’s been a while since anyone took him out for a walk. Everyone’s too busy, I guess.”

 Aigis softly added, “The dorms are really quiet now.”

 “I suppose now that we no longer have to fight, there isn’t really a reason to stay.” Mitsuru forced a crooked smile and patted Aigis on the arm. “I’m glad you came. I can’t remember the last time you left the dorms.”

 “Yeah.” Aigis stared straight ahead. “Normally, he…”

 A long beat passed. Mitsuru lowered her gaze, blinking back tears. It wasn’t too hard to picture a quiet boy with headphones strolling next to them, a sympathetic ear ready for their problems. Loss was a waterfall, ever pouring, and it leaked into every aspect of her life. She had a company she wasn’t ready to manage. Friends whose deaths she couldn’t explain. Everyone would remember Shinjiro as a delinquent. And no one would remember Makoto.

 Even now, she hadn’t managed to remove their nameplates from their doors, the finality of it all too much. She’d peaked in once, just once, the rooms left as though their owners would return at any moment. Shinjiro’s cookbooks stacked messily on desk. A CD case left open on Makoto’s desk.

 Koromaru whined, pressing his body against her leg and Mitsuru crouched down to pet him. “I miss him too,” Mitsuru murmured, burying her hand in his fur. “All of them. My father…” Her voice cracked and despite it all, it was still too hard to talk about him.

 “Miss,” Aigis repeated, stretching out the word. She gripped her chest and looked down at Mitsuru. “Is that what this pain is? Missing? Longing?”

 It was sometimes too easy to forget how new Aigis was to emotions. To being human. Standing up, Mitsuru embraced her gently. “Yeah. That is exactly what it is.”

 -x-

Spring

 The key turned with a soft click. There. It was done. The dorms were closed. Everyone had moved out and they had even managed to clean out every room, including the chairman’s. Somehow, his loss hurt more than anyone else’s, even her father’s. Despite what he did, her feelings toward him couldn’t settle, rage and loss warring with every thought. She wished it was more clear-cut, that it was easier to hate him.

 “Are you done?” Akihiko asked, pulling her out of her thoughts. “Or did you forget something inside?”

 “No, nothing.” Reluctantly, Mitsuru pulled the key out of the lock. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and down the steps. “It’s finally over.”

 “Yeah. The dungeon, that time loop, everything.” Akihiko stuffed his hands in his pockets, walking on her left as they headed to where she’d parked her bike. “Can’t say I won’t miss it; it’s been, what, three years since we moved in?”

 “A little more than that.” Mitsuru brushed her hair off her shoulder. It was longer now than when they’d first met. The distance between them was shorter than was back then too. If she wanted to, she could reach out and touch him. “I always thought it was too big for us.”

 “Too big?” Akihiko snorted, amused. “More like too small—do you know how hard it was to find food when Junpei scavenged the kitchen?”

 “Yes, because I’m the one who had to stock the fridge.” Mitsuru laughed and that also was something that changed. “But it served it’s purpose.”

 “Yeah, I guess it did.” He rubbed the back of his neck, a thoughtful expression crossing his face. “You know, when we first came here, I didn’t really think much of it. But now…it’s home.”

 “Home,” Mitsuru echoed. Yeah, that was the word for it. Home. A bittersweet feeling bloomed in her chest. “I’ll miss it. How close we were to everyone.”

 “Me too.” He patted her shoulder comfortingly. “But my college is just ten minutes from your university, and well…we’re all still friends, right?”

 She reached up and squeezed his hand. It had been scary, after Makoto died, when everyone was drifting apart. Now Aigis and Yukari were roommates, now Fuuka was organizing monthly meetups, now Ken was getting ready to join them in high school. They were still connected, despite everything. “Yes.”

 They were all still friends and the future didn’t look as dark and scary as it used to.

 Reassured, she smiled teasingly. “So, what was that about you becoming a cop?”

[five0mcdanno]

Spoilers!!!

This is a big dump of some of my thoughts while I watched the finale. I have a lot so I thought it might be better to just write it all down incoherently in one post. 

I’m keeping this 90% positive because I really did LOVE the finale!! It was so good! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I laughed, I cried a lot, a smiled so much. It was great and I wanna talk about it. 

For the most part I loved the finale. There are only a few things I’d change. 

1. I’d cut out the last 5 minutes. There’s no appearance by Catherine. Steve said his goodbyes, left, boarded the plane and got the text from Danny. He smiles looks out of the window and that’s it. No Catherine.

2. I’d give that extra time to the Danny and Steve goodbye but I felt a bit disappointed by it.  I think if there was more “I’ll be back before you notice I’m gone” type of banter and some heartfelt hugging between both of them and Danny wishing Steve well and telling him he’d better come back soon then I’d be 100% content. Maybe even Danny coming back inside the house with Steve cause he knows the team is coming next and his boy is gonna need some support. I can picture him just sorta of hanging off to the side while Steve has his moments with the team. Then they ALL say goodbye as he leaves. That would have been perfect.

3. I also didn’t like that Steve left only a week after Danny almost died. That’s crap. He’d leave while Danny is still healing? Yeah right. Could have at least made it a month. I could have been happier at that.

With that said, here’s my live reactions as I watched:

Flashback with Victor and Wo Fat planning the pilot!! WHAT!

Oh shit Daiyu Mei is watching them at the cemetery from last episode. Ahh yes see Steve did drive to the cemetery. It's like people forgot he has a truck and doesn’t always drive Danny’s camero.

LINCOLNS CONTACT ISN’T CATHERINE OH THANK FUCK!!!! I was so sure she’d pop up and be in the whole episode. Phew!

Okay Steve looks kinda nostalgic but not quite wistful over her. Good, good.

HAHAHA!! Steve immediately said bye and pulled out of there to go save Danny, not even telling the contact anything. Gotta go save Danno. Sorry dude.

Also, love that Danny was in trouble with the tail and thought "I need my husband. He'll take these guys out" and calls him.

Oh fuck! Steve's face!! Hes so worried! The gunshots and Danny not answering! Ahh!

STEVE RUNNING STRAIGHT INTO THE FIRE BECAUSE HE THINKS DANNO IS IN THERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Steve: "Danny Williams. You know who he is. My partner."

Even kidnapped and tortured Danny makes a joke about his car and exchanging insurance information 🤣

STEVE IS PUTTING THE ENTIRE POLICE ON FINDING DANNY INCLUDING EVERYONE WITH A BADGE AND EVERY HELICOPTER!! IM DYING!!!

I LOVE THIS TROPE!!!!! The bad guy calling the loved one and showing them a video of whumpee in chains covered in blood. So fucking good

"I HAVE THE ONE PERSON THAT YOU CARE ABOUT MOST IN THE WORLD”    AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

“Don't make the same mistake as you did with your father”  !!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!

Dammit Adam of course Steve is going to follow her directions and go alone. He'll do anything to save danny.

No messing around. Get the address, confirm hes alive, give the cypher and hes out

Danny telling the bad guys he better call his family and say goodbye because he has no idea what's coming for him is AMAZING! 

OH FUCK DANNO YOU FUCKING BADASS!!!! LOOK AT YOU!!! HOT DAMN!!! Climbing up the chains like spiderman and breaking them off and then killing nearly every bad guy!? Fuck!

Oh shit!!!! Theres the shot!!! Danny’s down!!!

Ahhhh everyone's here now!!

STEVE IS CARRYING DANNO OUT!!! AND SPEAKING TO HIM SO SOFTLY AND GENTLY! "You gotta crawl in there buddy"

HES CRADLING HIM IN HIS FUCKING LAP!!!!!! IM NOW OFFICIALLY DEAD!!!!!

IM CRYING!!!! He wants so desperately to go in the room with him 😭😭😭

MY HEART!!! IM SCREAMING!!!

Oh my god hes praying. Steve is literally asking God to not take Danny. "You want someone you take me. Not him. You take me"

FUCK ME

Steve’s heartbroken. He doesn't care about the cypher. Not with danny in the hospital

Oh I love lincoln. Hes a good egg.

"That was very mcgarrett of you" HA! 

Ohhh here’s the doctor. “Hes not out of the woods yet” “Can I see him”

MY HEART CAN’T TAKE THIS!

OH MY GOD YOU’RE KILLING ME WITH THE INA PAHA SONG RIGHT AS STEVE GOES IN TO SEE DANNY!! AS HE SITS DOWN AND TAKES HOLD OF HIS HAND

I CANT TAKE IT

Oh no Lincoln’s contact is dead. That means Catherine right? Well fuck. Shit. No. Dammit I don’t want to see her.

Yay! Danny's awake!! Did he just say something along the lines of “why’d you stop holding my hand?” CAUSE IF I HEARD THAT RIGHT I’M SERIOUSLY GONNA EXPLODE

“If I had a dollar for every time you've saved my life I'd have like 20 bucks” DANNY!

“Reminds me of what I went through with my dad” Oh Steven you’re making me cry babe.

NO CATHERINE SO FAR!! YES!!! They cracked the cypher and still no her!! Woo!!!

Ugh. Of course something was hidden in Doris' crypt. Keeping her bullshit secrets until the end. I hate her so much.

The is the most romantic McDanno episode I've ever watched. 

I’m always here for a badass ohana shootout scene and this did not disappoint. I screamed when Lincoln took down that guy. So fucking badass.

Ugggghhhhh fuck doris. Wo Fat really is her son. So dumb!!!

These flashbacks are awesome. Wow. John talking to wo fat was crazy.

That goodbye with Danny was shit. Super shit. I do love Danny saying that he loves hawaii now and blaming Steve for it but the rest was bleh. Danny was so angry and sad that Steve is leaving that they didn’t properly say goodbye. At least Steve said it's not forever and that Danny has a phone.

The goodbyes with everyone else made me sob like a baby. That was 100% the cast saying goodbye to Alex wasn’t it. Cause that shit hurted. Started sobbing at Lou’s goodbye and I’m still sobbing now as I type this.

"Missing you already" MY HEART!!! THAT’S SO CUTE. LOOK AT STEVE’S SMILE. It’s like Danno went “shit I can’t let him go thinking I’m mad at him. I know. Let me send this true but kinda funny text.”

Fuck its Catherine. Fuck. That sucks. SO MUCH! WHYYYYYYYY!!! WHY IS SHE HERE!!! At least Steve didn’t expect her or call her or something. She wasn’t on his mind. She just wormed her way back into his life like always. God I hate her. And I hate Lenkov for having a hard on for this ship.

I generally thought that Danny was gonna sit down next to Steve on that plane up until we saw Catherine’s hair. Even when he got the text from Danny I still thought maybe cause that’s something Danno would pull but nope. I’m a clown. 🤡

Just gonna pretend those last few minutes didn’t happen. The show ended with Danno’s text. 

Annnnd I’M A FUCKING MESS OF TEARS!

[funkymeihem-fiction]

A Hairy Situation

Commission fic for ObsidianRose- Thank you so much for your support!

***

“Jamie, can you even see?”

“Huh? See wot?”

“Anything?”

Mei scurried in from the open doorway, holding his prosthetic arm and peg. Jamison grumbled from the plastic folding stool in the tub, scooting to the very edge and sullenly patting the stump of his arm with his ragged towel before going to re-attach his limb. Waiting until he felt the familiar little sting of the archaic nerve-receptors digging into his skin, he clicked the joints of his fingers before he leaned to start on the leg as well, ignoring Mei’s fussing at where he was dripping all over the floor.

“Whaddaya mean, can I see? Did I miss a spot? I used soap and everything just how you like, that’s gotta pass muster! Grab me another towel, darl? Ugh, why’s water gotta be so wet—” He blinked as the wet yellow curtains in front of his vision were suddenly parted. “Oh, there you are. Yeah, ‘nother towel?”

Mei scrunched her nose, trying to slick back the mess of blond locks that were draped all over his head. They stuck to his crooked features and did nothing to help his ‘freshly drowned rodent’ look. “I thought your hair was looking a lot thicker now. Look at this, your bald spots are—”

“Oi!”

“I mean, um, your…follically-challenged areas, they’re getting better! See! Dr. Ziegler was right about the vitamins and everything.” She leaned to kiss away a droplet of water from the tip of his freckled nose. “And I was right about using the soap, Mr. Stinky.”

“Yeah, well!” His expression melted at the touch of her lips, eyes going gooey before he drew himself up to look affronted once more. “Tch! Yeah, well…Only reason I was taking those horse pills was because you threatened me. Blech. Does it look good, though? Hey, you think I should grow a beard? Oh, I bet I could stick so many explosives in a great long beard!”

“Let’s not get carried away. Actually, your hair is getting really long too. When was the last time you had it cut?”

“Why would I ever cut my hair? You know how hard it is to grow luscious locks such as these?” He reached up and tugged at a handful of blond, then blinked down at his palm. “Oh, uh…Usually they kind of fall out when I do that. Blimey, that’s pretty thick.”

Mei smiled, grabbing a nearby towel and starting to twist it around his head for him, the way she did for her own long hair. “You’re healing from all that radiation, then! This is good news! But you’re getting all shaggy, so it’s time for a haircut.”

His yellow eyes swerved upward at the makeshift turban sitting atop his head, sniffling water from one nostril. “Not so sure I like the idear of some stranger going at me with a pair of scissors, darl. What if they cut my head and then go for the throat next? You can’t spell ‘barber’ without ‘butcher’.”

“That’s…not how—”

“Asides, best way to get rid of hair is to burn it off! Here, help me out of the tub, I got the perfect stuff!”

She pushed him down where he started to get up. “Oh no you do not! You sit here and dry the rest of the way off, I’m going to go look up a video on how to give you a quick haircut. I cut my own hair sometimes, so I’ll just give you a little trim.”

“You’re no fun at all, love.”

Mei beamed back at him. “I know. Okay, let me go do a quick tutorial and I’ll be right back with the scissors!”

***

“Oops.”

“Wait, why’d you oops? You’re not supposed to oops!”

“No, it’s fine! Stop trying to move your head, I just have to fix this part!”

Junkrat jerked his head back into place, fingers twitching madly on the armrests. He sat in the kitchen with a damp towel still draped around his shoulders, trying to ignore the fact that there was a pair of sharp cutters buzzing around him. Even if it was Mei wielding them, he couldn’t help but be nervous. Especially with her audible ‘oops’.

“It’s fine, really,” she assured him, pausing to press rewind on the video tutorial. It had turned out that cutting another person’s hair was a lot more different than she’d thought, compared to cutting her own. “You have longer hair than the man in the tutorial, but we’re just doing a trim, so all I have to do is watch the length and make sure it’s even on both sides. Um. Okay. Hold still, I’ll just cut the other side just a tiny bit more.”

He heard the snip of the scissors, trying his very best not to fidget. Click click. Snip snap. The metal was dangerously close to his ears, and even his poor hearing could trace its every movement. Cold, sharp scissors next to his ears, just like that time back when he’d run his mouth in Junkertown, and they’d put him on the chair and made a list of what pieces he could spare…

“Is it done?! Are we done yet?” He couldn’t keep the screech out of his voice. “Looks great, darl, I think it’s done!”

“What? You haven’t even seen it yet. And you still can barely see through it. Just hold still a little longer, okay? I think I have it just about even…”

Snip snip. Click click. Hiss hiss. The scissors were moving around his head again, towards his eyes, and his neck…

He flinched.

Then Mei flinched.

A large chunk of yellow hair slowly drifted down onto the floor. Behind him, Mei froze up with the scissors still closed, before she backed up and put one hand over her mouth. “Mmm! No no no! Y-you moved and…I’m sorry, I’m so sorry! Here, I can fix it!”

He tried to stay still, he really did. But his shot nerves were now mirrored by his girl, and her attempts to try and even out the absent chunk were only resulting in more chops and more chunks as little bits of hair continued to scatter around his chair. And when Mei uttered a little whimper, he chanced a glance to her and found her chin thrust out and her eyes watering like she was about to cry.

She put aside the scissors, voice warbling as she hesitantly took the mirror from the counter and turned it towards him.

“I-I didn’t mean to…I don’t think I fixed it. Sorry. Sorry, I’m sorry.”

Junkrat blinked owlishly at his reflection. Frankly, ‘disaster’ was the normal state of his hair in the first place. But this? This was a kind of disaster he simply wasn’t familiar with. The burnt and scorched black bits in his hair were gone…but then again, so was a lot of his hair too. And now it couldn’t just be blamed on his old bald spots. It was jagged on the edges, hanging in uneven rags around his head or sticking out in odd places where it hadn’t been before. Setting his entire head on fire, which had been his plan in the first place, probably would have been doing his hair a kindness.

But Mei was ready to burst into tears at any second, so he put on his biggest smile instead. “Aw, darl! It ain’t all bad! Now this is a sort of new junker look, this is!”

“Y-you’re just saying that to make me feel better,” she sniffled.

“C’mon, Snowflake, it’s just hair! How about I take some more of those vitamins, make it grow back real fast so we can try again!”

“I ruined it!”

“Nah, nah, it’s always ruined anyway. No need to get crook. Junkrat’s always got a Plan B!”

She wiped at one cheek with her knuckles, shaking her head. “Jamie, I am not letting you set your head on fire. But I’m not sure I should be cutting it anymore, either. I think I need some help.”

“Er…From?”

***

He wasn’t entirely sure how it had happened or why he’d agreed to it, but now he was sitting on a chair in the middle of Overwatch’s main common room, surrounded by agents who were whispering and occasionally chuckling over the state of his hair. He growled and crossed his arms petulantly, pondering if it would be worth it to just blast his way out of this whole situation. But Mei was still looking awfully weepy, head down and cheeks red in shame from where she had turned his head into such a monstrosity.

It wasn’t helped by the stupid fucking face that Hanzo was making, with his dumb little pursed lips where he was clearly trying not to smirk at someone else’s misfortune. Catching Junkrat’s eye, the archer seemed to purposefully run his hands through his own silken black locks, voice dripping with disdain. “Honestly, I am not sure if any of this can be salvaged. Yet somehow, it manages to be an improvement from before.”

Junkrat heard Mei make a despairing little sound of shame at Hanzo’s words, and it took all his willpower not to jump up and double-grenade the archer right in his stupid handsome face. Maybe he’d be able to set someone’s head on fire today after all. It was only the distraction of Lucio and Hana that ended up saving Hanzo from having his very own hair emergency.

Hana squinted, circling around him. “Wow. Wow. Okay. No offense, Mei, but this looks like a chainsaw accident and calls for a serious salon intervention. I know some really good guys who might be able to salvage this. Maybe.”

Junkrat waved a hand to shoo her away from her phone. “Nah! I’m not going to go to some stranger. Can’t trust ‘em. I keep telling you, Mei can fix it! Just lop off a little more and she’ll be right!”

Lucio lingered forward from behind Mei was furiously shaking her head, prodding at a strange yellow curl that was sticking out from Junkrat’s left side where it hadn’t been before. “I dunno, J-Man. I know you don’t like strangers but Hana might be right on this one.”

“Well why don’t you just cut it then! Mei, give him the things!”

“Hey man, my hair takes care of itself, I never cut it at all. Maybe someone else here knows how to cut hair?”

Mei shyly lifted a hand. “Ms. Vaswani? I’ve seen her do it before. So careful and meticulous, she’s very good at it!”

Lucio half-lidded his eyes at the woman who was leaning by the counter with her arms folded and a sour expression on her face. Clearing his throat, he turned to look at the rest of the crowd. “Hm. Yeah. Maybe someone else?”

Satya gave both Lucio and the raggedy-haired junker an unimpressed look before lifting her nose in the air and pointedly turning away. “Absolutely not. I mean no offense, Dr. Zhao, but that is an unacceptable proposal. The state of Mr. Fawkes is regrettable, but I find that is very often the case. I have utterly no inclination to…”

Junkrat snorted aloud. “Touch me? What, because of the dirt? Just was in the tub, I’ll have you know. Still got a squeaky clean donger and everything. Oi, you’re not still sore about the prototypes what got blown up, are you? And after that lab incident with the dynamite umbrellas? Okay, not one of my most winning plans, I can admit it! Tch. Dunno why you always gets so worked up, lady. It was just a bit of soot. And some bricks. And fire. It builds character!”

Hanzo was unable to stifle a cold chuckle, only to have McCree sock him hard in the arm.

Mei winced a little, waving both hands as Satya narrowed her eyes. Strategically placing herself between the two, she interrupted them both before another argument could break up, trying to focus on the haircut disaster already at hand. “Th-that’s fine, Ms. Vaswani! Thank you! Um…Mr. Roadhog? Have you dealt with something like this before?”

Roadhog grunted.

Mei paused, but no more information was forthcoming. So she tried again. “Maybe you’ve cut Jamie’s hair for him?” She wondered aloud, trying to imagine the old biker’s huge spike-gloved fists holding something as delicate as a pair of beauty trimmers. “How did you deal with haircuts out in the Outback?”

Roadhog stepped forward, one enormous hand enveloping a fistful of Junkrat’s hair…and he pulled.

Junkrat, understandably, began caterwauling in response, punching up at Roadhog’s arm. “Owowowow! GETTOFF! What’re you doin’, ya drongo?! It’s attached this time! OW!”

Roadhog released his grip, looked down, and seemed mildly surprised that Junkrat’s hair was indeed still stuck to his skull. With a shrug, he stepped back with a ‘negative’ sort of a grunt, and didn’t try again.

Soldier 76 spoke up from the sidelines. “I was in the army. For a time. Could get some trimmers and give it a buzz.”

Junkrat covered his head with both arms protectively. “Don’t cut it all off! I worked hard for it, you know! Ugh, Mei darl, let’s forget this whole thing, just grab the snippers and let’s go back t—”

The door slammed open and all eyes turned to Zarya, who strode in with great purpose in her stride and a toolbox under one arm. The little crowd parted before her, and she slammed the box down on the table and glared down at the messy-haired junker down in his chair. Junkrat glared right back at her, jaw setting, a growl rattling in his throat as the two faced each other down.

“Rat Man.”

“Russki.”

“Mei has called me to fix you. I said to her ‘Oh Mei, there is too much to fix!’ but she said it is just your hair. That, I can do,” Zarya said, before turning and opening the toolbox.

Rat was going to snap something back at her, but his reply was cut off when he looked past her, into the open box. Inside was a vast assortment of combs, scissors, trimmers, hair dyes, elastics, and more hair accessories than he had ever seen in his entire life. A whole beauty shop had been crammed into that box. And Mei was looking so, so hopeful at it all. His insults died in his throat, and he merely grumbled something inaudible as he slumped down into his chair.

Mei seemed far happier about the situation, clasping both hands as she fluttered around them. “I thought you might know what to do! I really messed it up, but I’m sure you can fix it. Thank you so much for your help.”

The much taller woman looked flustered, pretending to stare into her toolbox a little harder. “Ah…Hmph, it is fine. You are welcome. This is for you, Mei.”

She descended on Junkrat’s mangled scalp, and he could only sit there with a shellshocked expression as she worked. Combs worked at tangles, little delicate clippers snipped at uneven edges, and there was a buzzing in his ears as the trimmer went sliding smoothly across his bristled skull. Zarya squinted, focused, sweated, and worked in stalwart and disapproving silence. The rest of Overwatch stood in silence as well, with occasional little whispers as she worked. Slowly, bit by bit, Junkrat’s hair began to recover from its grisly state.

By the time she was done, the junker was sitting there with a haircut that…actually suited him far more than Mei or anyone else would have assumed. The sides has been buzzed, cut off into fading edges, and he was left with a loose mohawk of yellow locks that draped to one side of his head: just rebellious enough for his wild nature, but neat enough for Mei’s approval. And when she finally stepped back, lifting up her arms in triumph as she unveiled the baffled Junkrat below her, a cheer went up from her audience.

“Oh wow, that’s so much better!”

“He actually looks kind of…good, now?”

“Woooo, J-Man, that looks sharp!”

A mirror was thrust into Rat’s hands, and he ran his metal fingers through his newly trimmed locks. Even he had to admit that it looked good. It looked pretty damn good. He could admit that. He just wouldn’t admit it aloud, that was all. So he turned away from the gloating Zarya, to the one person whose opinion actually mattered.

“D’you like it, Snowflake?”

“You look amazing!” Mei’s arms wound around him from behind, resting her cheek against his new ‘do. “Thank you so much, Zarya, this really means a lot. And Jamison, I’m sorry but I’m never going to try cutting your hair again. Unless I get proper training. Zarya, would you mind teaching me how to do all that?”

“Of course, pingvin. I will even teach you how to cut hair with hazmat suit and gloves, for the rat man.”

“Be nice. He looks so much better now!”

Junkrat didn’t even hear the insult, nor did he offer a reply. He was busy grinning stupidly, features flushed while Mei’s chest all but enveloped his entire head where she was leaning into him. “Huh? Yeah, okay. Heh. Yeah. Cut. Okay.”

Maybe he should get his hair cut more often after all.

[poloniumt]

I decided to try my hand at angst. I hope it is sufficient.

Red belongs to @theguardiansofredland . I’m planning on writing a shorter sequel to this that doesn’t have a bloody fight and this much angst.

Warning: There is a bloody fight scene in this fic. DO NOT READ IF BLOOD OR VIOLENCE IS UNCOMFORTABLE FOR YOU.

—————————————

[[MORE]]

The day was bright as Red stepped out from the light blue and white swirling portal, staring into the communication device thoughtfully. It was a quarter to eight in the morning. She was an hour early, despite getting lost for most of her trip to Taiga Town. The road was directly in front of the fountain in the square, beyond which was the decently large castle.

Red read the map sent to her by Polonium, not watching her front. She only stopped walking when a large mass stopped her rather forcefully. She looked up in confusion, before she squeaked in fear.

The man was huge, easily the size of Endi plus a couple inches. His arms were thick, almost the size of her torso. He was built like an iron golem. He huffed as he breathed, as if his large muscles impeded his ability to do so. He looked at Red, one bushy eyebrow raised. “Leetle feesh boy, are you alrigh?” His thick accent was hard to understand for Red.

Red nodded vigorously. “Uh, y-yes sir, just looking for Taigan Castle, sir..” Red stuttered the words out, trying to avoid looking at him. She hid her fins behind her hair.

He thought for a moment, huffing out a breath. “Polo princess may be sleeping, so is a leetle hard to get in righ now. I work in guard, can help.” He extended a boulder sized hand out. “ Genral Firok, at service.” Firok grinned as Red gently shook his hand.

He led her to the gate, where two armored guards protected the door. They looked at Firok and instantly stood at attention. “Firok, sir! What brings you here on your day off?” The taller one squawked out.

Firok held a hand up, gesturing loosely to Red. “Leetle fish looks for Polo princess. Meeting is soon.”

The guard nodded, motioning for the gate to open. The large spruce and dark oak doors opened silently and smoothly. Red thanked Firok for his help before jogging into the castle grounds, looking for the path that led to Polo’s chambers.

Red didn’t notice the slim figure of someone watching from one of the taller spires, a small pair of binoculars pointed at their fins, a sickening smirk on their face.

—

Polo paced back and forth in her bedchamber, frost formations outlining her steps. Her head was hung in nervousness, her voice slightly shaky and quiet. He squire opened the door silently, letting themselves in.

“Princess Polonium? I’m so sorry to bother you when you’re brooding, but miss Red of the ocean kingdom is here.”

Polonium stopped, turning to face them. “It’s the Southern Ocean Monument, not a kingdom. Let them in, Squire.” She returned to pacing, rubbing the soft material of her sleeves. The nerves had been on edge since dawn, she had been awake even longer. The door was left ajar, letting Red quietly slip through.

“Polo! P-Lo!” Red called out happily, practically leaping into Polo’s back, and taking her down.

“Ah! Ugh, hello...” Polo groaned into the carpet, lifting her head up. “As energetic as ever...” she slowly lifted her body off the ground, Red giggling as she held onto the white vest. “Don’t get comfy, now. We still have your tour to do.”

“Speaking of, how much of the city will we see today?” Red asked as they climbed down. “It’s a huge city, and I’m sure one day isn’t enough!”

Polonium thought for a moment. “We can pace ourselves and do sections of the town. You get to choose the first part of the tour.” She grabbed the rolled map and unfurled it. “We are in the apex of town, and there are four other sections of the town. Do you want to save the castle for last?”

Red looked at the colorful map, and pointed at the blue section, which surrounded the castle walls and the river. “I like the idea of doing this part first!”

Polonium nodded, responding with a hum. “Solid Idea. We shall begin in a moment. I’m going to change into my common clothes, then we shall go.” She turned to face her rather small wardrobe, and picked out a black vest with a fur-lined hood, a grey undershirt, and basic jeans. She retreated to a screen for only a moment, and after some shuffling and annoyed growls, emerged from the screen in the same attire she had worn when she first met Red. “Let’s go before it gets too crowded, now. Lots of markets are in today, but it’s mostly Netherite and Ice Spike Kingdom wares. I think a Desert Kingdom ship will arrive later...”

——————-

The market street was just as busy as Polonium had thought: almost no room to walk and even move. She squeezed past all the larger stalls, Red in tow. She managed to get through most of the tour without an issue, but it didn’t last.

Red had ducked into a midroad, one connecting two districts between the houses. She stood against the brick, having lost Polonium in the crowd, and having her nerves act up. She sat against the wall rigidly, like a life-like statue.

The bustle of the crowd was already enough, losing Polonium in it was worse. The noise created a sort of cocoon, effectively trapping Red to the alleyway. She sighed, tucking a piece of hair behind her head fin. A sudden cough drew her attention to the front of the alley.

The person was silhouetted by the sun, only a dark shape forming their base. They looked rather bulky, however. “Good evening.” They bowed deeply.

Red swallowed their nerves and bowed back. “He..hello. Have you seen princess Polonium..?” She asked hopefully, only to have a sudden force knock the wind out of her.

“Apologies, fish, but you’re just a target. Best to stay quiet-“

“RED! There you-“ Polonium’s voice cut through the stranger’s words. She stopped short of them as she saw the stranger and a hunched over Red. “Oh, no...” the breath had been taken out of her lungs as she began to shake.

“You. What did you do.” She began to march forward, blue magic swirled around her for arms and eyes. “What. Did. You. DO?” She called to the now paralyzed form, anger and venom laced in her question.

“Ah, of course. Haha..” the form revealed a knife hidden in the folds of their cloak, grinning madly. “I’ll get top dollar for both Kipling meat AND a princess..Have at thee!” They lurched forward, only to be impeded by a large block of ice. “Grr...Fight me, weakling!” They growled, chipping away at the wall.

Polonium removed the wall, causing the figure to stumble, and threw a heavy hit to their cloak. Shattered glass shards fell out, along with a sickening green liquid. The stranger growled, and retaliated, swinging the knife around. The knife eventually struck its target, slicing Polonium on the arm and part of her elbow.

Polonium cried out in pain and anger. She hit again, making contact with the stranger’s face. The hood fell, revealing a disheveled individual. Polo faltered, but struck again, this time with the blade.

“Foolish magic wielder! You really think you’ll win?!” The stranger cackled, slicing up, then stabbing at Polonium. Polonium dodged, grabbed the foe’s wrist, and kicked them hard, sending them flying.

“I’m not trying to beat you, now..” Polonium advanced on them. “I’m trying to protect her from YOU, Jiroh.” She growled.

Jiroh looked up at Polonium, wild eyes staring at cold fury. “You remember me NOW, princess. Soon everyone will.” They advanced again, thrusted the knife, and trapped their arm again, this time in the wall.

Polonium threw a ball of ice magic, and began aiming for the knife, which had been trapped in a crack deep in the wall.

Jiroh cackled, advancing on Polonium and stabbed her in the shoulder. Polonium screamed as the knife tore through the muscle, red hot pain coursed through her. “You can’t beat me! YOU COULD NEVER BEAT ME!” Jiroh stabbed again, only for Polonium to dodge the attack, flinging another ice ball. The ball exploded against the wall, trapping Jiroh.

“I’m done...Playing your shitty game, Jiroh.” Polonium growled, clenching her jaw in pain. “I’m not...your live game. Neither is...Red.” Red looked up finally, holding her stomach. She shakily stood, walking towards Polonium slowly.

“Po-Po...please..you’re hurt..” Red sniffled.

Polonium looked at her apologetically, but stood firm. Blood dropped from the wounds, a deep crimson dying the shirt and vest. “Jiroh, you’re under arrest. It’s best for the kingdom to be safe from you.” Polonium whistled, and an echoing vwoop was heard mere seconds later.

Endi stood tall, ripping Jiroh from the ice and teleporting away. Polonium sighed and fell to her knees. Sobs echoed through her body, as did pain.

Red moved her to the clean wall, monitoring her wounded friend fearfully. “Are you dying, Po?” She asked nervously, voice thick in fear.

“No, Red....Just hurting.” Polo coughed, a bit of blood leaked out of her mouth. “Maybe I am. Endi will come for us soon.” She rested her head on the cool stone wall, frost formed on her cheek and near her wounds. “This heat is unbearable.” She groaned.

Red sniffled again, blood staining her unkempt hair and sleeve. “Please do...don’t die..” she hugged the battle-scarred princess, nuzzling against her undamaged shoulder. “I c...cant lose you, too..”

Polonium scoffed, looked at Red, and smiled. “I’m not dying on you, Red. But damn it hurts.” She looked towards the still loud, still bustling crowd. “I’d do this again if it meant stopping a chronic crime problem.”

Red sniffed, smearing blood on her cheek as she tried and failed to wipe her tears. “You coulda l..left me for dead, you know...why’d you fight for me..?” Tentative words left before Red could controls herself.

Polonium slowly turned her head, pain shooting through her dulled nerves. “You mean a lot to me. Of course I would.” She sighed, lungs surprisingly rigid. “You’re precious to me. Even with only a couple of months of friendship.”

That answer seemed to be acceptable for Red, since Red and Polo sat in silence until Endi arrived with a paramedic and Firok in tow, and removed the two friends from the scene of the bloody scuffle.

[mithrasisgay]

The Rise of the Dread Fleet - Chapter 3: Siren’s Call

New chapter, yo! Currently, we’re kind of assembling the full cast, but i do hope you enjoy my scribbles regardless <3

@tyrias-library

On AO3

„What we need right now is support.” Snezz says. “There’s only three of us, which is no basis to build a crew out of. Which leads me to my next point.”

Him, Asha and Aurelia Sharpwit are sitting in the darkest, most remote part of the tavern, conspiring over ale and cheap food. A week has passed since Asha’s recruitment of both him and Aurelia, and he’d taken the time to get the kid washed and dressed in something that didn’t smell like death. Now that Asha vaguely resembles a human again, he can see a glint in her eyes he hadn’t quite noticed until now. By all means, she is still a scrawny teenager, but there’s a hidden fury, as well as an unexpected degree of intelligence behind her immediate first impression that leads him to take this whole endeavor seriously. She has her hands wrapped around her mug and listens intently to him, nodding occasionally.

“I didn’t come to Lion’s Arch alone.” He continues. “I brought a friend with me. We both left Rata Sum post graduation due to a lack of direction, but I believe that, if you let me do the talking, I can rally her to our cause.” “One additional Asura won’t make this a viable crew.” Aurelia comments. “That is true. However, my friend is kind of a… package deal.” Snezz smirks involuntarily, unable to conceal his pride. “She’s a necromancer.” “Minions, hm? Could definitely solve the issue of actually sailing a ship in terms of manpower.” Asha says. “I’m down. Let’s get your friend on board.” “Um, before we do this -…” Snezz pauses to take a long swig of ale. “She’s, uh… a little bit eccentric. Trust me on this matter. She’s worth it.” “I’ve agreed to follow a random human girl and a guy that comes up to my kneecaps into battle. I don’t think eccentricity is going to scare me off now.” Aurelia says, with a low growl in her voice. “When do we go?” “Tomorrow morning, first thing. She’s probably asleep by now.” Snezz states and looks up at Asha by his side. She’s staring into her half-empty mug, brows furrowed. He elects not to ask for her approval in addition to Aurelia’s, and waved to the barmaid instead, to get a refill for his own drink.

 Morning rolls around much too early for Snezz. Him and Aurelia had spent a long time in each other’s silent company last night, but regardless, both of them meet Asha in front of the tavern they’re staying in – on Snezz’s bill, of course.

“Ready to go?” he asks them and only gets mumbled responses; Asha simply takes a few insistent strides forward, and Snezz clicks his tongue. “Right. This way.”

The unlikely trio weasels their way through narrow alleys into one of the cheaper residential areas of the city. Snezz stops them in front of a small, worn looking shack in the corner of the street, steps forward and knocks on the door, the entirety of which rattles under his fist. He sees Asha tilt her head curiously before the door opens a crack.

He holds his breath, as the horrid smell of putrefaction assaults his senses and leans in to peek into the dark interior. “You brought friends.” States the occupants matter-of-factly. “I did.” Snezz replies, speaking fast to avoid inhaling too much of the stench. “This is Asha, aspiring pirate Captain, and our friend, Miss Sharpwit. Can we come in-… or can you come out?” The door slams shut, Snezz hears a few nondescript clattering noises, then the door opens again, wider this time. Out steps a tiny Asura, even smaller than him. She’s completely black in complexion and hair, her vibrant green eyes and lighter, freckled rodent nose being the only features to be immediately discerned. She’s dressed in simple, rather dirty clothing, her apron stained with several fluids Snezz doesn’t even want to attempt to identify. She blinks up at his companions. “Why’d you bring them?” she asks, staring intensely at the two. Asha and Aurelia exchange a glance.

“We need your help.” Snezz tells her. “I’ve joined them and we want to steal a ship, then go out and make our living on the Seas. But we’re critically understaffed. I know that you can amend that.” Her gaze flickers back to him. “Piracy?” “Yes.”

She steps forward to face Asha, who immediately takes a step back, due to the woman’s rather fragrant presence. “I want a private laboratory below decks and access to any dead matter we encounter.” She demands. “Uh, I mean, sure? I can arrange that.” Asha fumbles, quite taken aback by the demand. “Good. I am joining. Call on me when you need me.” With that said, the steps back into her shack and slams the door shut.

A good ten seconds of baffled silence pass before Aurelia speaks up. “Well. You weren’t kidding.” “I wasn’t.” Snezz agrees. “She’s a good person. She just doesn’t do well with, uh… living people.” “What even is her name?” Asha asks, as the group turns to leave. “She left so abruptly.” “It’s Liamu. Don’t worry about her. I’ve known her all my life. I can vouch for her.” Snezz draws a deep breath. “With her help, we can crew a ship, but more help is always a good thing. We should all hit the road and see what we can organize.”

Asha stops in her tracks and taps her chin. “Actually, you two go do what you want. I have an idea.”

 --

 Asha looks over her shoulder, making sure she isn’t being followed, before kneeling down by the water. “Raya?” she calls out, in a hushed whisper-shout. It takes a moment before she sees the salmon pink shimmer of scales passing under the surface of the harbor basin, then Raya’s pale face becomes visible in the water, not breaking the surface, but close enough to speak.

“I need you to find somebody for me.” Asha leans down, her nose almost touches the water, and she whispers to Raya, who blinks slowly at her, then vanishes back into the depths. Asha rises back to her feet and dusts off her coat. It’s probably better not to tell her developing crew about Raya just yet. There needs to be more trust, more bonding before she can safely let them in on her secret little friend, without scaring them off.

--

 Cariyen’s exit from Vaixx and Raxxi has been rather undramatic. Both had been very understanding of her decision to leave, and even given her a rowboat to get back to Lion’s Arch shortly after their departure, so she can find her own path without them.

It shouldn’t take longer than a few hours to make it from Bloodtide Bay to Sanctum Harbor, according to Cariyen’s predictions. And then… what then? Cariyen doesn’t exactly have anywhere to go home to. She wouldn’t have joined a pirate crew if she had been able to return to the Grove, not after her brother had gone missing. She’d attached herself to this little girl after years of living half-alive, only functioning as her role on the ship. And then, even that little girl was taken from her, killed right before her eyes.

It’s a heavy mixture of guilt and grief in Cariyen’s heart, as she rows her little boat toward the city, almost on autopilot, reflecting upon the events that transpired. She knew the entire time. How Asha had suffered under her father. And while she did support her, she did not do enough. Asha was just a child, it had been just a matter of time until she’d snap and something horrible would happen. Cariyen can’t shake the thought that she could have prevented it, done something, anything, taken the girl somewhere safe, away from this environment…

Her thoughts are cut short by a heavy rock going through her boat. She pauses, heart skipping a beat, gaze flickering around to seek the source of the turbulence. Cariyen sits frozen, her hands gripping her oars tight as she listens for any telltale sign of an attack. Krait, Risen, hostile Hylek, marine predators-… no, she’s too close to shore for that.

She has no time to consider her options, as another heavy hit against the boat’s rump instantly capsizes it. Cariyen barely has time to hold her breath before she is plunged into the water. Her years of sailing experience immediately tell her to swim upward and surface, but she feels and iron grip around her ankle, preventing her from moving. Panic sets in, and she begins channeling magic in her left hand, only to be interrupted by something that is clearly a humanoid hand gripping her wrist and dragging her to the depths. Asha’s desperate thrashing in the water is the last image before her inner eye, then her consciousness fades.

 Cariyen had not expected to survive this mysterious attack, much less to hear the voice she hears when she eventually awakens. “Grenth’s grace, Raya, I told you to find her, not almost drown and kidnap her!” “I apologize. I am not good at convincing people to follow me. I thought this to be the easiest option.” “You could’ve-… ugh. Whatever, she’s here and she’s alive. Did anybody see you?” “I took the long way around. I was quick.”

Cariyen groans and rouses, forcing her eyes open. She’s in a room, laid out on a cheap bed, next to a small firepit crackling to her left. “Ah, you’re up.!” Asha Gaets says and sits down by her side. “Sorry about the… journey. Raya has no, uh… social skills.” Cariyen’s head spins, but she forces herself to sit up and face the girl. “How-...?” she croaks, throat raw with seawater. “Long story. Raya saved me and I made my way to town.” She explains, which clarifies very little to Cariyen, and gestures to a nude woman, crouched like a lurking tiger in the corner of the room.

The Sylvari looks from the strange woman to Asha, then lurches forward and embraces the girl. “Hey, hey.” Asha soothes her, helplessly patting her back. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, I should’ve-.. I could’ve done something, I-…” “Hush, it’s fine. It’s okay.” Asha struggles and Cariyen releases her from the hug. “It’s not your fault. You were the only one who ever helped me on that rotten ship.” Asha puts her hands on Cariyen’s shoulders. “I’m just glad to see you again.”

Cariyen wipes the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand and nods slowly. “I am too.” She whispers. “Asha, I… I can’t believe you survived.” “Trust me, it took me a while to realize too.” Asha grins from ear to ear, nothing like the broken soul Cariyen remembers her to be. “I told my friend Raya to find you, because I didn’t think you’d stay in the fleet after my death. Sorry about her methods. She’s used to drowning people.”

Raya makes eye contact with Cariyen, who feels her blood run cold when she glares into those empty eyes. “Siren.” She gasps. “I apologize.” Raya says. “I did not believe you would agree to come with me if I had asked.” “Don’t worry about her. She’s a friend. She saved my life.” Asha assures her and Raya nods. “She speaks the truth. I mean you no harm.” She confirms and Cariyen rubs her temples, trying to process all of this.

“I’m actually assembling a crew myself. Got a few people already.” She conchalantly states. “I’d like to have you on board, too.” “I-… yes, of course, but…” “Awesome. I’ll let you rest here. Don’t worry about the room, my new friend Snezz pays for it.” Asha gets up and gestures to Raya, who promptly rises and climbs out the window. “They don’t know about her yet, so if you could keep that little secret, that’d be great.”

“I... doubt anyone would believe in anyways.” Cariyen manages to articulate in her confused and weakened state. Asha grins at her. “I’ll organize you some food. Sit tight, will ya?”

[lousimusician]

You've Changed

Peter Parker x Merc!Reader

Summary: Peter had broken up with the reader to protect her and after months of not speaking he finds out she's not the same.

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

F/N L/N had first met Peter Parker freshmen year. The moment their eyes landed on each other they knew they were both goners. They had instantly become friends and it didn't take too long after that for the two to start dating. The relationship had went well for them and they were both happy. So when Peter started acting weird and distant, F/N naturally got worried. But it seemed that she could do nothing as all her attempts to get her boyfriend back went unnoticed. So... she stopped trying. It didn't come much as a surprise when Peter broke up with her in the beginning of Sophomore year, but she couldn't help herself from breaking down in front of him. F/N quickly left his apartment after he did and walked down the streets of Queens.

Now Peter Parker didn't want to break up with his girlfriend. Actually it was the last thing he wanted to do. But after he was bitten by that spider he had to do a lot of things he wouldn't have done otherwise. He had to keep you safe. If you ever got hurt from him being Spider-Man, he wouldn't know how to live with himself. So he had to break up with her even though he felt just as broken as she looked. 

~

Peter trudged into school the next day with bags under his eyes as he walked to his locker, being greeted by Ned.

"Hey, Peter, you look terrible."

Peter sighed, "Thanks."

"What happened?"

"I broke up with F/N last night."

"Seriously!?" Ned gasped, "I thought you loved her or something?"

Peter sighed once again, "I do."

"Then why'd you do it?"

"Because with me being... y'know, it's just too dangerous to be with her. I don't know what I'd do if she got hurt."

"Oh, that sucks man. How'd she take it?"

Peter closed his eyes and leaned his head against his locker, like it was almost painful to speak, "She..she broke down in tears and-and she said it was okay and that she was kind of expecting it with how distant I've been. God, I didn't even realize what I put her through these past few months."

Ned frowned, trying to think of something comforting to say to his heartbroken friend, "It's okay, maybe that's better than you just breaking up with her when she thinks you two were doing great."

"I guess.. let's just get to class." 

~

Peter hadn't seen F/N that day which both relieved and hurt him. He couldn't bear to think about what she was going through if she hadn't shown up to school, since she rarely missed it. He was relieved though, because he knew if he saw her he'd probably start to cry. As soon as the final bell rang, Peter had ran out of the school building to become Spider-Man so he could take his mind off of her.

Days had passed and F/N hadn't shown up to school, which made Peter worry some more. She never missed school and now she hadn't shown up for two weeks. He made the decision to check up on her as his alter-ego one day, but it seemed he didn't have to as she came to school that day.

Peter breathed a sigh of relief when he spotted F/N sitting at a table in the cafeteria all alone. His heart breaking once again at the sight. Her only friends had been him and Ned and now since he broke up with her, she had lost her only friends. 

He studied F/N. She looked awful. Dark circles were under her eyes, her hair was a mess, and she looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders.

He tore his gaze away from her.

'I'm protecting her.' 

~

Months had passed and Peter forced himself to move on from F/N. Although he never really could he did the best he can. He focused more on his work as Spider-Man and kept Queens safe. Junior year was starting and Peter found himself trying to find a new criminal that had just shown up a few months prior. This criminal was murdering people. It was getting frustrating to the least, everytime he had shown up to find this person they were gone. But unfortunately as the school year started, Peter couldn't keep himself occupied 24/7 with finding this murderer.

Peter sat with Ned in physics which they were glad to find out they had together. The rest of the class had filed in, but he stopped breathing when he saw his ex-girlfriend walk into class. Peter had heard Ned gasp quietly beside him.

"Whoah, is that F/N."

F/N was absolutely stunning. Peter had always thought she was the most beautiful girl he's ever seen but she was somehow even more beautiful. F/N walked into the classroom with a confidence he's never seen her with before and everyone's eyes had landed on her. She held and dressed herself completely different than she had last year. She no longer wore her simple t-shirt's, jeans, and sneakers, but instead wore clothes that showed her curves and exactly how attractive she was. Peter was in complete awe of her.

Her eyes landed on Peter and he turned red. All she did was flash a beautiful smile that took his breath away before taking her seat next to some girl.

The teacher had walked in after the last student. "Alright, let's begin."

Peter tried to pay attention to the teacher, he really did. But he couldn't help it when his gaze would drift over to F/N. He would become entranced just by watching her run her fingers through her hair. Peter couldn't believe that this was the same girl he dated for so many months.

"....er... ter... Peter...Peter Parker!." Peter snapped out of the trance he was in and gave his teacher his attention.

"Good, now that you seem to be done ogling L/N, I can finish explaining the details to your first project." Peter's cheeks turned red at his teachers statement and when you turned to look at him. "So this will be due next Friday and I already gave you partners." The classroom groaned, "Oh, quiet, here are your partners..." Peter had zoned out again when he saw you pull out your phone and hide it from the teacher's view. He knew it was wrong to look at someone else's text's but he couldn't help but squint at the lit screen. His eyebrows furrowed when he saw the person you were texting was named "$Hooded Guy$". "Why isn't it Parker's lucky day." Peter looked back at his teacher, "You're working with L/N." His eyes widened. 

~~~

It was the next day and Peter stared at F/N while she worked on her half of the physics project on his bedroom floor.

"You're staring again Parker."

He quickly averted his gaze, "S-sorry."

She put down her pencil and looked up, "Just so you know, I'm not mad or upset that you broke up with me."

"Y-You're not?"

"Nope." She said popping the 'P'. "I moved on, it's okay now."

Peter couldn't help but feel sad at that. The girl he still loved and admired was over him.

"O-oh, okay then."

F/N furrowed her brows, but before she could say anything she was cut off by her phone vibrating. She picked it up and sighed after reading the screen. "Ugh, I gotta go. I'll finish the rest of this at home. See ya later Parker." 

"Oh, uh bye." Peter said awkwardly as he watched her pack up her stuff and leave the bedroom.

He stood up and fell on his bed, groaning into the pillow. He laid there a few minutes before he felt the hairs on his arm stand up straight. This seemed to brighten his mood as he knew what that meant. Peter quickly undressed and put on his suit and stealthily climbed out his bedroom window. 

"Ah, thank God." Spider-Man began swinging from building to building to find the problem.

He started to hear shouting from an alleyway and headed towards it. Peter made sure to be extremely quiet when he finally reached the alleyway. He poked his head around the building and a quiet gasp left his lips. 

'It's them, the criminal, I caught him.... her?' For some reason it didn't cross Peter's mind that the murderer would be a girl, but nevertheless he had to stop them. He saw that her suit was similar to his except it had a hood and their mask only covered her eyes. His eyes widened as she raised a gun and pointed it at some man's head. 

Peter shot a web at the gun knocking it out of her hands. She turned towards him.

"Oh god damnit, and I was doing so well avoiding you too." She said exasperatedly, the man beside her tried to make a run for it, "Ah, ah, ah, Where do you think you're going." She grabbed the collar of his shirt.

Peter paused when he recognized the voice, "....F/N?"

The girl squinted her eyes, "Peter?"

Realization rushed over Peter and so many questions began running through his head. "W-wait, WHAT! H-HOW!? HOW ARE YOU THE MURDERER!?"

"Okay, no need to get hysterical. Geez your loud. Just give me a second." F/N bent down to pick up her gun.

"Ah! No that's bad F/N." Peter quickly shot another web at the gun sticking it to the ground.

"For the love of God, Peter!" F/N grabbed a knife that was strapped to her ankle and sliced the man's throat before Peter could even think.

"Holy shit, F/N! You just- oh my God!" He started pacing back and forth.

"Ugh, I hate knives, guns are so much more efficent. Come on Pete." She grabbed his wrist and the next thing Peter knew he was on top of some building, beside F/N.

"What-how?"

"Okay you seriously need to calm down." She said letting go of him. He took off his mask.

"Calm down?! Y-you're a killer, F/N! How can I calm down?"

F/N rubbed her temples, "Ugh, alright fine. It's story time Parker. Remember the night you broke up with me." Peter nodded, feeling a little guilty at the reminder. "Okay, well I went home feeling like shit blah blah blah, found out my father's a complete psycho, turns out mad scientist's are really a thing. I'm not too sure what happened but he did some tests on me and voila, I can teleport."

"B-but why are you a murderer. You don't have to do that, you could be a hero."

F/N scoffed, "Pfft, ha, me, a hero, you're funny Parker. Nah, I'm not interested in that lifestyle. I'm a merc."

"Merc?"

"Short for mercenary. I kill people for money. Now that's more my style."

"H-how did that happen?"

"Couple months ago. I ran into some guy, I thought he was some superhero, well that is until he opened his mouth. The guy was a mercenary and a complete idiot. Saw what I can do and told me about his job, decided it wasn't a bad idea. And guess what Peter."

"What?"

"I love it. I'm set for life. I make so much money doing this, it's pretty awesome."

Peter looked down, "You've changed."

"Eh, maybe a little. But quite frankly, I don't care." Peter looked upset. "Aw, don't be sad, Pete. I haven't completely changed." She walked closer, their faces inches apart making Peter's breath hitch. "And it seems you haven't either." She said in a whisper. 

F/N leaned up and placed a quick kiss on the corner of Peter's mouth. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow."

F/N had disappeared in a flash leaving Peter by himself.

'Congratulations Peter, you're in love with a murderer.'