#i need to stop babbling in these notes before i start gushing about being excited to be an ichthyologist whoops

[narelleart]

Cladistics vs “Fish”

I got an ask related to the cladistics thing that probably didn’t need this much detail, but I got excited to talk about this and whoops its a whole big explanation no one asked for. So rather than bombarding the asker with the whole deal here, I figured I’d publish this bit as its own post and just respond to their related question privately.

What I was trying to address with all this is a breakdown of how “fish” is not a valid taxonomic grouping - for it to be accurate, all vertebrates would have to be fish. I tend to just go with that because I think that’s pretty fun, but its probably more correct to say that they way we lump organisms into the group “fishes” is entirely artificial and does not reflect nature. See below for why!

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So cladistics tries to chart evolutionary relationships by shared derived characteristics - unique traits in a group's evolutionary history that can be used to define where they have branched off. A grouping is only taxonomically valid according to cladistics if you pick a branching point and include every organism that would have shared some ancestor where that branch forms. You can't exclude any group that shares that ancestor. (Why birds are reptiles - see below.)

Here's a visual I threw together:

(I made this based on notes from an old class. Apparently the graphic that my notes come from was from “Pough et al. 2013.” May need to open it for best viewing.)

So the thing with "fishes" is that all vertebrates evolved from a common ancestor with what we would call a "fish." Cladistics only considers traits that newly evolve in a lineage to group organisms together, not how many traits are retained from ancestors - but a new trait can be the loss of an old one (why "snakes" fall within the broader group of "lizards" despite perhaps feeling more intuitively primitive - they lost their limbs in more recent evolutionary history).

This is the case with everything that is a vertebrate that we don't consider to be a "fish" - we lost the traits that allowed us to live in the water, which opened up a wider array of body shapes when limbs moved from something to fan around to move forward to something that needed to bear weight.

Up to this point things make sense, but might feel a bit arbitrary, right?

The real problem with "fish" is that, following cladistics, a coelacanth is more related to us than a tuna. And a tuna related more to us than a shark. And a shark more to us than a lamprey.

Let's revisit that graphic.

To really put things in perspective, its important to understand how time is displayed here. Time here travels from left to right, never in the vertical direction. Evolution doesn't stop, and we all evolved from the same original eukaryote, so everything alive today is just as "evolved" as everything else, even if genetic progress isn't apparent. "Living fossils" like horseshoe crabs are just as evolutionarily advanced as humans, they have just evolved differently than us. All currently living organisms’ lineages have spent the same amount of time evolving as every other one. Even though the “fishes” have earlier branches, this isn’t saying our ancestor is a shark, it’s saying what are known as sharks today most recently shared an ancestor with us a very very long time ago - a much longer time ago than our common ancestor with reptiles.

So we can rearrange this graphic like this and it will still be valid:

It looks messier, sure, but it is no less valid because there was no actual hierarchy to the organisms that gave it the previous order. Doing it that way just made it easy to add labels, and over-represented the importance of mammals.

So where does that leave all the "fish"?

They got scattered around the tree. Because they aren't actually very closely related - they share a life strategy that makes certain forms more advantageous, so to us, superficially, they seem very similar. Many traits have independently evolved in multiple lineages because the selection for them in aquatic environments is so strong (convergent evolution), which makes them seem even more similar. But they aren't actually strongly related to each other, which I’ve tried to distinguish in this version by giving each a distinct color group. Each lineage of “fishes” I have listed here has been evolving independently from one another for longer than mammals have even existed.

[Side note, they're so alien! So different from us! This is why fish are so cool!!!]

Calling lungfish, stingrays, and trout all “fish” but not using the same term for koalas and ostriches suggests those first three have a greater degree of similarity to one another than they do. Sure, superficially, they all live in the water and might have some other traits that are vaguely similar. But those traits aren’t exclusive to fish and aren’t inclusive of all “fish”.

Cetaceans are very “fish shaped” and live in water, but they are not fish. Neotenic salamanders live their entire lives in water and retain their gills, but are not fish. Sea snakes live in water and have scales but are not fish.

What makes a fish?

In my ichthyology course, I was taught that there are 5 traits that make an animal a fish, and that each one of them has exceptions:

Aquatic ....except there are fishes that can walk around on land, like mudskippers and walking catfish.

Free-Living ....except there are parasitic species that rely on hosts, such as male angler fish, sea lampreys, and the Candiru

Gill Breathing ....except there are fish that have rudimentary lungs, such as lungfish and walking catfish

Cold-blooded ....except tuna and some sharks are warm-blooded

Have fins, not pentadactyl limbs ....except coelacanths have pentadactyl lobe-fins

So our best definition of what makes a fish isn’t even valid because its full of holes from all the exceptions that exist in nature. The label “fish” ultimately falls to pieces no matter what angle you tackle it from. It is, truly, a superficial similarity that we base the designation on.

Does this invalidate the science of ichthyology, my personal love for “fishes,” or any level of the value of their study?

Nah. It all really doesn’t matter.

What we call the science has no bearing on the studies we do, which aren’t dictated by organisms being “fish” or not in modern science. We have much more specific taxonomic groupings we can use, and so many more species to compare to within them. Would it be more accurate to say I’m studying to become an “Actinopterygii Biologist”? Maybe, but that’s lame and discards the history of the profession.

“Fishes” are the most diverse group of vertebrates, yet they are incredibly understudied. There are so many fish out there for us to discover - and not just in the deep sea! We are still finding fish in shallow freshwater systems, easily accessible habitats. There aren’t enough people studying this massive group to scratch the surface of the knowledge we lack about them.

So who cares if we lump a sparse group of researchers tackling a vast array of organisms together under a label based on an outdated name? The proportion of people studying “fish” to the abundance of these organisms is ridiculous, especially compared to charismatic species like large mammals. So why not use the same term rather than try to divide up an already small group?

Actually, I think few use the label “Ichthyologist” nowadays, but I intend to. Whether a “fish” is a valid group or not, I became a scientist to study fishes. No other taxa were compelling enough for me to dedicate my life to science. I am not going to be just a biologist. I’m going to be an ichthyologist.

[tteokdoroki]

baby, you’re tiny | k.bakugou.

⇝ pairing: katsuki bakugou x fem!reader.

⇝ word count: 2.3K

⇝ rating: mature, 18+.

⇝ genre: first time!au, smut.

⇝ summary: there were many things katsuki loved about his girlfriend, the main being how tiny she was compared to him; more specifically, how tiny she looked when they were in the bedroom.

⇝ warning(s): please read ! heavy smut, pwp ( characters aged up to 18 ), size!kink, protected sex, fingering ( female recieving ), virginity loss, sub!reader + dom!bakugou,spitting?? y’all idk its just smut ok!! katsuki is soft <33

⇝ author’s note(s): hello hello hello!! it’s been a while since i posted my lastr request so i hope you enjoy this!! this was a request by anon, apologies for the delay. also :( my blog has grown so much so i want to thank you all for 1K, ilysm <3

⇝ masterlist | requests

you were tiny.

and if there was one thing katsuki bakugou loved most about you, his girlfriend, his how tiny you were.

at least compared to him.

most of class A had been shocked when you started dating at the start of second year; since in first year, all katsuki had done was pick on you for your height ( or lack thereof ) and nag you for your quirk— lullaby hadn’t been quite so powerful back then. but your fondness for him grew that summer, having spent time with he and eijirou over the break.

bakugou was sweet when he wanted to be, soft and attentive to you and you only. his teasing gradually let up, turning into sweet gestures or whispered praises and then finally stolen kisses under the night sky.

that’s what lead you both to date, in the end; but everyone supported you nonetheless. it was quite funny to see the great katsuki bakugou help fix your uniform in the morning or make you breakfast in the dorms and even if he yelled at the others for mentioning it— he loved the weight of your barely-there palm in his and the way you pouted up him with faux anger when he rested his elbow on your head.

you were short enough for him to tower over you and twirl you in his arms, small enough to look like you drowning in his hoodies that he gave you. even if he stopped mocking you for your height, over a year ago— even now, in your third year he still loved it.

you were so tiny and he loved it.

he especially loved the way you looked under him right now.

“ka-katsuki-!”

your moan fills his ears, overloading each one of his senses and he thinks it’s the prettiest sound he’s ever heard in his life. pulling his fingers from your slick heat, bakugou’s eyes stay trained on yours as he brings them up to his lips and sucks the remainders of your orgasm away. he lives for the way your face twists with a fresh wave of pleasure and your eyes plead him for more through the dimmed light of his dorm room.

he pinches your thighs, the ones that quiver from your second release of the night, and leans above you to pry your arm away from your heated face. “feel good, sweetheart?” the blonde asks softly, now that he can see you, fingers weaving between your bodies to draw shapes into your swollen clit. you nod once and screw your eyes shut, bare chest arching into katsuki’s at his simple touch. “need another?”

peeking up at him, your boyfriend can see the internal debate dancing in your lust filled eyes. bakugou had fingered you twice to orgasm already and asked if you needed another only to prepare you. for weeks now; you’d both entertained the idea of being one another’s first’s— of course you’d done more than just makeouts and heavy petting but after a year of dating, you finally wanted to be together as one ( bakugou’s words not your own ).

finally, you answer him with a soft ‘no, think i’m ready now,’ and the hot headed boy can barely contain his excitement. he presses a searing kiss to your lips— tongues sliding together while bakugou swallows your helpless whimpers from where you taste yourself on him. your own hand slips between you both now, curling around your boyfriend’s hardening length to palm him.

meanwhile, with a breathless groan, katsuki’s lips slip down to suck love bites into the column of your throat, but only gently. he knows you hate marks but’ll get a kick out of the others fawning over them the next day. the speed of your hand picks up, jerking him off as if for revenge— you knew how easy bakugou could come undone with just your touch and he revels in the way your tiny hands wrap around his thick girth, barely grazing the circumference of it.

just like how you could barely fit his cock in your mouth when you sucked him off—

“baby— fuck,” the blonde’s breath stutters, mind becoming foggy with thoughts of your lips on his girth egging him on.  he should stop you before he cums; stop himself from rutting into your small fingers and the thumb that brushes over the glands on his head. bakugou doesn’t want to cum before he’s got a chance to take you for the first time— even if he’d given you plenty of chances to. “slow down little bear, gotta fuck you before— before i cum…”

you grin at him from behind the warmth beneath your skin. “then get to it, katsu…”

the explosive third year gives you one last pinch to your clit and leans back on his thighs ever so slightly to reach for a condom. he quickly rolls it on, tapping his latex covered length against your dripping entrance as he prepares to make you his. you squirm underneath bakugou, fingers reaching up to weave their way into his blonde glossed hair— yanking him closer to you while he finally makes an effort to push into your needy heat.

crimson gaze fluttering down, katsuki looks to where your bodies begin to become joined, your tiny cunt fluttering around the head of his cock as he slides himself inside of you. he feels thick drool pool on his tongue at the very sight, he’s not even half the way in and your gushing pussy is already struggling to take his cock. “would’ya look at that little one,” his words are slurred around the saliva building up in his mouth. you’re so fucking small it’s driving him insane. you follow your boyfriend’s gaze, spasming at how he begins to stretch you out. “seems like your little pussy’s too tight, too small to take your man’s fat cock, huh?”

a strangled whimper sounds in the back of your throat, making katsuki smirk as he taps your cheek with a freehand. he feels a sense of pride lurch in his, how good it feels to be so big that his pretty little princess can’t take him all but he wants a verbal answer from you, wants to hear you struggle just like your glistening heat does.

“yes, ’s too small…” you sigh, chewing on your bottom lip as you meat his eye again—moving to wrap your thighs around his waist.

“should i fuck you open, baby?” you moan lowly at his words, hips bucking up and pussy clenching around his girth involuntarily. “yeah? your greedy little cunt likes the sounda that…” bakugou tries again, leaning over you as he slowly drives his hips forward to push more of his cock into you.

his head drops to your neck, puffs of his breath warm against your skin while he uses all of his willpower to hold back. katsuki knows he’s big, that he can make you feel good because of it too, but he doesn’t want to hurt you. he never wants to. when his dribbling length is half plunged inside you, the ash blonde’s fingers drop to your clit once more— soothing the burn of his weighty dick to help you suck in more of him.

your head thrashes in the sheets while he whispers praises against your bruised and bitten flesh. “you can take it baby, i know you can…”

and you do.

the pair of you groan in unison once katsuki is fully sheathed inside of you, twitching at the feeling of your soft velvety walls finally engulfing him. you can feel the leaking head of his cock prodding at your cervix, stimulating you without your boyfriend having to even move and sending shivers down your spine.

“p-please, katsuki…move.” you growl hungrily, pulling him down to smack a wet, passionate kiss against his awaiting lips. although your teeth and tongue clash messily in your liplock, bakugou doesn’t need to be told twice, drawing back his hips from the comfort of your warmth to thrust into you. the pace is slow at first, sensual grinds against each other as he stretches you out, moulding your walls into the shape of his cock.

it’s not until bakugou’s hips reach a certain angle, prodding against your sweet spot that things take a turn. a high pitched squeal dances through the room, mingling with the sound of your lover’s harsh thrusts as he claims your insides over and over. he revels in the way you suck him in and squeeze around him, painting his cock with your sweet nectar and earlier releases. “taking me so fucking well little one,” bakugou spits out through gritted teeth, barely hanging onto his last thread of sanity, the way you look right now, so flustered and messy with arousal almost pushing him over the edge. “look at you taking such a big fat cock in this tiny fucking hole, you love how big i am don’t you?”

you can barely form an answer when your eyes are rolling to the back of your head at the sheer amount of pleasure, incoherent babbles filling the little space between you both, only urging katsuki on. he already knows how much you love the size difference between you. outside of the bedroom, bakugou uses his height to tease you— putting things on the top shelf to watch you struggle to reach them but inside; he’s absolutely relentless.

he knows you adore the way he uses his larger size to dominate you, stuff your mouth full of his cock or fingers and he adores the way you take him contentedly no matter what.

“mmf— fuck, right there katsuki, feels so good!” you sigh, eyes still closed but your tongue now lolls out of your mouth— creating the perfect lewd picture that your lover will commit to memory. while his large hands sear bruises into your hips he holds still, a free hand comes up to pull down your bottom lip before he spits sweetly into your open mouth. your eyes slowly open to look at him, locking on his ruby stare as you blissfully smile up at him. katsuki swears he almost creams on the spot. “thank you katsu…”

“that’s fuckin’ right princess, thank me for my spit. thank me for making you feel good.” bakugou’s guttural moans dip into low growls, his pace picking up as your iron hot cunt clamps down on him which causes the head of his cock to drag against the spongy spot inside of you— making you see stars and your hips jump to meet the blonde’s erratic thrusts.

hot slick gushes down the your thighs from the sinful way he moves and absused your tightness, evidence of your arousals shining under the moon that slips through his drawn curtains. you can feel his balls slap feverntly against your ass that katsuki spreads apart to plow into you, latex covered length going as far to brush against your womb. each grind, each thrust has your moans rising an octave to the point where your lover has his hands clamped over your mouth to keep you from being too loud.

bakugou sits back on his haunches, pulling you up into his chest with him. you rest weakly in his lap as the explosive boy angles his thrusts upwards and straight into your oozing heat. a broken whimper breaks free from his lips as katsuki catches sight of the slight tummy bulge his fat cock gives you and you see it too, your own whines mingling with his to form a lovers tune.

he knows you’re close by the way you suddenly become tighter and he fucks into you, deeper, harder, faster.

“close katsu, ‘m getting close…” you slur into his shoulder, biting at his skin to keep control of your hazy, lust filled mind. you paint love bites in shades of blues and indigos across the canvas of his shoulders and neck while katsuki uses his pure strength to lift you up and down onto his cock. he groans every time your heat welcomes him again, drawing you closer and closer to the edge. your nails dig into his back, forming sweet creasent moons and making him moan loudly. “gimme it little one, gimme your fuckin’ cum, gonna cream on my cock? yeah? oh fuck yeah…”

his lewd words are what push you off the edge, the coil of desire that had been building up inside you finally snapping. your third release of the night gushes all over your lover’s thick girth, which he still pushes into you, helping you ride out your high. black spots paint your vision as you cum, cunt clamping down on bakugou while he chases his own release.

“cum for me bakugou, please…” you breath gently against his skin, pressing small kisses over his sore love bites. “love you so much, please…”

that’s all he needs to hear from you before spilling his seed into the condom with a shout, twitching as he collapses onto the soiled sheets of his bed with you. the pair of you lay together, still locked together  while bakugou calms down from his high in slow grinds, fingers searching for yours to intertwine your tiny hands with his. “love you more dumbass,” he says eventually, smile on his face betraying him against the harsh petname.

you smile at him even as he pulls away to throw away the condom, returning with a wash cloth to clean you both up. “not true, katsuki, i love you most!” you exclaim, tail end of your words falling into a stream of giggles as bakugou presses a flurry of kisses to your face. “with every inch of my body!”

“must not be a lotta love then, y’know, since you’re so fuckin’ tiny.” the blonde hums into your hands  when they reach up to cup his face lovingly.

you huff and pinch his cheek after that, calling him a meanie.

but katsuki bakugou doesn’t care, he’ll always love you, no matter how tiny you are.

[emeren]

speed racer pt.2 - eren jaeger

pairing: eren jaeger x fem!reader

word count: 4.3 k 

content warnings: 18+, smut, car sex, possessiveness, choking, dangerous driving idk LMAO

notes: it’s my birthday today! my gift to you all is speed racer pt. 2!!!! pt. 1 is not necessary to enjoy this oneshot, but may help with some context. here is that! 

SUMMARY: eren takes the reader for a drive where he decides to clear some things up about their relationship in his own special way. 

“it’ll be quick; i promise,” eren’s voice brought you from your daydream, head shifting against the cold window to look at him in the driver’s seat. his hair was up, brows furrowed in guilt as he waited for your response. 

you let out a dramatic sigh, reaching to unbuckle your seatbelt. “fine, but i’m not going to wait in the car.” 

“once it’s over i’ll buy you some food,” he rationed, unbuckling his seatbelt the same. you eyed him suspiciously, waiting for the inevitable sexual innuendo to leave his lips. “n’then i’ll take you back to mine and fuck you, just like you want.”

your unspoken agreement with eren had become routine at this point. after your mutually discovered attraction a couple weeks prior, the two of you had spent many a night in his bed, unashamedly basking in your sexual tension. 

the concept of sex buddies hadn’t been one you’d previously dived into, and you would’ve been lying if you’d said you didn’t want to be exclusive. it only made matters worse that eren insisted on doing everything with you at this point, including dragging you to his board meetings for his sponsorship. he was a pain in the ass, but he was a pain in the ass that treated you like his girlfriend. 

you wanted to make it official, but were too scared of embarrassing yourself, so you resorted to enjoying things the way they were. frienemies with benefits, as eren would say. 

“c’mon, don’t be so vulgar,” you responded, slipping out of the car as eren snickered to himself quietly. you hated the fact that his comments made your face heat up. you were beginning to act like a schoolgirl around him, infatuated by your little crush. 

“you know you love it,” eren smirked over the top of the car as he joined you, locking the vehicle. it was dark outside, the stadium brightly illuminated against the navy sky. “what was it you said again? ‘i want this just as much as you do’?”

you scowled, giving his arm a hard shove. he would not let you forget the things you’d said in the heat of the moment. “oh, fuck off.” you snipped. 

eren laughed again, jokingly rubbing his arm as the two of you walked up to the stadium. it was around eight, the building being nearly vacant save for the members of eren’s sponsorship board inside. 

“what’s the meeting about?” you asked as he held the door open for you, a gush of air conditioning making you shudder. 

“if i’m being honest, i don’t know,” eren replied, his eyes settling past you. as you turned your head, you saw a group of exhausted looking men in worn grey suits talking quietly amongst themselves. they stopped whispering at the sound of the door opening; a short, balding man making his way over. 

“mr. jaeger, thank you for coming on such short notice,” his voice was thick as he spoke, obviously a smoker. eren reached out to shake his hand, the man’s beady eyes settling on your face as he did so. “i’m sorry, but we won’t be allowing any unauthorized people in this meeting.” 

startled, you looked to eren, whose face did all but curse at the short man. “do you mind waiting out here?” 

“oh, yeah, no biggie,” you smiled reassuringly. he shot you a look of gratitude, mouthing the words “i’m sorry” as he walked off with the group. it was funny to watch him go; surrounded by serious men in suits while he wore jeans, a sweatshirt, and a pair of sneakers. not to mention he was about a foot taller than the rest of them. 

a sigh escaped your lips as they disappeared around the corner. the building was ominous when you were alone; large and vacant, normally filled with people excitedly bustling to watch a race. without the energy, it was downright creepy. 

you decided to stand against the wall while you waited, anxiously toying with the hem of your skirt and counting the number of fluorescent bulbs that flickered in the ceiling. 

the distant rumble of talking suddenly hit your ears, head snapping in the direction of the sound. it was getting louder, obviously two people approaching. you readied yourself to launch into an explanation as to why you were sitting alone in the stadium, after hours, only to be pleasantly surprised at who rounded the corner. 

“yo, what’re you doing here?” connie cried out in excitement, a smile splitting across his face. he was with jean, the two of them spattered with engine oil and dirt. 

you grinned back, pushing yourself off the wall to meet them halfway. “eren had a sponsorship meeting and dragged me along. what about you guys?” 

jean smirked at your response, sharing a look with connie that went unnoticed by you. “well, connie accidentally told the boss that we don’t know jack-shit about car mechanics, so now we have to go to a stupid workshop five days a week.” 

“hey, it’s not my fault he was eavesdropping on our conversation with armin,” connie retorted, coming to stand beside you. you smiled at your friends, happy they were there. “we’ll wait with you, if you want?” he proposed. 

“that’d be great,” you sighed. “eren said they’re usually only like thirty minutes long, so we won’t be here all night.” 

“about that,” jean started, uncomfortably bringing a hand up to scratch the back of his neck. you frowned, wondering where he was going with this. “are you and him, like, y’know...” 

you paused for a moment, deciding to play dumb. “huh?” 

“are you and jaeger-meister dating?” connie interjected, wiggling his brows. despite knowing that this is where the conversation was going, you couldn’t help the wave of embarrassment that washed over you. you shifted uncomfortably in place, looking between your friends. 

“i don’t know,” you answered honestly. “i can’t tell if he likes me or not. god, this is so high school.” you muttered. 

jean gave you an apologetic smile, opening his mouth to speak before connie decided to give his own advice. “huh? why wouldn’t he like you? you’re a hot piece of ass!” 

a laugh escaped your mouth at his idiocy, jean dishing him a scowl. “don’t listen to him. personally, i can’t see why you’d want to date that little shit.” 

“yeah, it’s pretty embarrassing,” you replied demurely. 

“well, if you like him that much, i say go for it,” connie shrugged. you eyed him warily, waiting for the ‘but’. the three of you stood in silence for a moment longer, considering what to say next. 

“do you want my help?” jean asked apprehensively. he looked put-off by something, but you couldn’t tell exactly what. connie gave him an incredulous look. 

“sure, i guess,” you responded. in some ways, you felt bad for jean. your friendship had been built off of a mutual distaste of eren, and now that you two were sleeping together, the playful mockery with jean had died down. he motioned his head back towards the wall, indicating that you and connie should follow. 

“alright, here’s my plan,” he whispered dramatically. connie nodded his head, the two of you leaning in as if it were some grand escapade. “eren is a dumbass. in fact, i think he still has the brain of an ape.” 

you rolled your eyes, suppressing a laugh as connie nodded once again in agreement. “get to the point, he’ll be out here any minute now.” 

“alright, alright!” jean held his hands up defensively. “i genuinely don’t think he’s capable of intelligent thought. that being said, i believe the right way to gage his feelings are to activate his instincts.” 

“dude, how long have you been planning this?” connie snorted. you couldn’t help but smile at just how funny the two of them were. 

 “never mind that,” jean shooed him back in annoyance. you raised your brow impatiently. “we need to make him jealous. if my assumptions are correct, it’ll piss him off and then you can tell him that he’s the only one you’re interested in.” 

you pulled back from the huddle, unsure about his grand plan. “i dunno, jean. this sounds kinda stupid, if i’m being honest.” 

“oh, c’mon,” jean begged, a devious smile on his features. “this’ll be our last chance to taunt him together.” 

connie grinned as you contemplated it. “i think this is a great plan!” 

you groaned, the small side of you that liked to make fun of eren starting to grow once again. “okay, fine. how’re we gonna do this?” 

“leave that to me,” jean smirked. as if on cue, you could hear the bustle of the sponsorship men coming down the hallway. your tall friend was quick to step behind you, wrapping his arms around your torso and placing his chin on your shoulder, effectively pulling you to his chest. “follow my lead.” he whispered into your ear. 

you couldn’t help the heat that rose to your cheeks at the action. jean was respectfully keeping a distance between your ass and his groin, but he was close enough that it wasn’t very obvious. 

connie started to babble about a new korean barbecue restaurant that he and sasha were planning on going to, you rocking in jean’s arms to make the sight believable. 

your heartbeat was drumming in your chest as eren rounded the corner, his professional smile plastered on his angular face. he was in the middle of talking with the balding man from earlier, eyes fixed on him. jean gave your waist a squeeze in reassurance. 

eren’s gaze peeled from the short man, teal eyes landing on you and jean all cozy. it was as if a flip was switched; the professional smile he’d been wearing slid off his features with ease, face hardening. 

you held his angry stare for a moment before turning to connie, laughing at whatever had been said, the feeling of jean’s breath against the shell of your ear as he let out a light chuckle. “it’s working.” 

you heaved out a deep breath, focusing on connie instead of eren. you could feel his eyes practically burning holes in your head, shifting your neck so that yours fell back on jean’s opposite shoulder. 

“alright, that should be it for tonight,” you heard one of the men say, glancing back over to them. you didn’t look for long though, quickly noticing that eren’s stare was intently focused on you and jean. 

the men shuffled past the three of you, leaving the building. “hey, jaeger. we ran into y/n as we were leaving.” jean hummed against your shoulder. 

you looked back at eren, who was standing in front of you with his eyebrows furrowed. jean must’ve been right, judging by eren’s face. 

“we’re leaving.” eren deadpanned, taking a step forward. he wasn’t looking at jean, rather staring directly at you. you could feel a slight amount of guilt creep up your spine, jean sighing exceptionally loud as he pulled away from you.

“do you guys wanna come to the korean barbecue place with us? it’s gonna be real good,” connie asked innocently. eren didn’t look away from you, his jaw clenching. 

“no. we’ve got other plans.” he said seriously, reaching forward to grab your hand and tug you the opposite way from the doors. 

“woah, eren, you’re going the wrong way,” you huffed in confusion, trying not to trip as he yanked you away from your friends. he continued forward, not looking back. 

“uh, bye i guess?” jean yelled. you looked over your shoulder to see the two of them giving you a thumbs up. you dished them an appreciative smile as you rounded the corner. 

“eren, where are we going?” 

eren stayed silent for a moment, not letting go of your wrist. “for a drive.” 

“huh? but your car is in the lot out front?” you mumbled, absolutely dumbfounded. the tall man didn’t respond, large hand still wrapped around your wrist. 

it wasn’t until you came to a familiar large door, eren giving it an unnecessarily hard shove. the lights flicked on, revealing ten shiny race cars, all perfectly lined up. 

eren let go of your wrist, making his way over to his own car. it was a sleek black with white checker decals, much like the rest of the vehicles in the garage. you’d seen it before, as it was quite literally one of eren’s most prized possessions. 

you stood in the doorway, eyeing him warily. “your race car? you never take it out on regular roads.”

eren’s jaw clenched as he unlocked the car, pieces of hair falling in his face. he looked upset, muscular arm propped on the roof and brows laced with annoyance. 

he walked around to the other side, opening the passenger door for you. it was strange, seeing him dressed in his regular clothes next to his race car. something about the nonchalance was attractive, teal eyes looking at you expectantly. “c’mon. be a good girl and get in the car.” 

at his choice of words you swallowed, inwardly cursing jean for his plan. you knew you were in for it, judging by the fact that eren only referred to you as good girl when he had his most sinful plans in mind. maybe you should’ve just talked to eren about making things official rather than making him jealous, you thought. too late now. 

“okay,” you sighed, resolutely deciding to accept whatever fate it was that jean had painted for you. you crossed your arms, slowly approaching eren. you stopped right as you were about to slip into the car, looking up at him through your lashes. he stared down at you, eyes serious. 

you slipped into the dark interior of the car without further discussion, the cold leather making you shiver as eren shut the door. you observed him through the windshield as he pressed a button to open the garage before getting in the car himself. 

the smell of his cologne filled the car, your teeth nervously nibbling at the skin on the inside of your lip as he turned the vehicle on. you’d never been inside the car before, only seeing it on the track and in the garage when you came to pester your friends before a race. 

it rode impossibly smooth, eren bringing his hand to the back of your seat as he backed out of the garage. you tried not to stare at the way his arm flexed, jawline enhanced as he strained his neck, but you couldn’t help yourself. he was just so hot. 

eren must’ve felt your eyes, glancing down at you momentarily with an expressionless look. you quickly shifted in your seat to stare out the window, heat burning in your cheeks. god, why was this suddenly so awkward?

it was silent as he drove out of the arena, the dark city glittering against the sky. it was beautiful at night, skyscrapers lit up all pretty. you quickly found yourself distracted by the view, leaning your head against the cool glass. you were so consumed that you didn’t notice eren merging onto the freeway. 

you were brought out of your trance at the feeling of his large hand resting on your upper thigh, grip tight and possessive. you glanced to him again, lifting your head from the window. 

he was staring straight forward, foot slowly increasing the gas. you felt your chest tighten, seeing how he was riding the tail of a minivan in front of you. 

“eren,” you warned, insinuating that he slow down. his index finger tapped tauntingly on your bare thigh, slowly rising up the skin. the fabric of your skirt rode up, eren weaving past the minivan with one hand on the wheel. 

“i have a question for you,” he said lowly, eyes not leaving the road. you gulped, a strange mix of arousal and anxiety pitting itself in your stomach as his hand reached the apex of your thigh. the side of his pinky brushed against your pelvis. “hm, no underwear?” 

you felt a pang of embarrassment. in your defense, you’d thought tonight was just going to be spent hooking up with the man, not going to the arena. “i, uh-”

“so, jean had his dick pressed against your ass and you didn’t have underwear on?” his voice was deep, jealously dripping from every word. your breath hitched as his middle and ring finger slid against your clit with ease, already soaking wet. 

eren’s shoe pressed down on the gas again, the car zipping in and out between other vehicles on the freeway. his fingers rubbed against your clit slowly, your legs subconsciously spreading to give him better access. it felt so good, the way he was circling the nerves with desirable pressure. 

“mmm, eren slow down, you’re going to crash the car,” you mumbled, watching as he sped up, whipping past the other vehicles. he was easily approaching 100 mph, your anxiety beginning to outweigh the pleasure. as if sensing this, eren sped up his fingers as well, a whimper leaving your mouth. 

“i know it’s bad for me to be so jealous,” eren said flatly, his middle finger deviating from the ring finger to slowly insert itself into your tight cunt. he pumped it slowly, still not looking at you. he was pushing 110 at this point, doing so with ease. “but something about jean touching you. being so close to you like that.” 

his ring finger joined the middle, the two sliding in and out of you, curling slightly. it was hard to stay focused on his reckless driving when he was fucking you with his fingers like that, your mind feeling fuzzy as a passing car laid on its horn. 

“eren,” you breathed out in worry, his fingers hitting your sweet spot in order to make you shut up. “you gotta slo-” 

an involuntary whimper left your lips as he curled his fingers particularly deep, the tingling sensation at your core beginning to build. you looked over to him, and boy what a mistake that was. 

his one arm was flexed, hand gripping the wheel so tightly his knuckles were turning white. he was entirely focused on the road, eyebrows furrowed intently as his other hand purposefully increased its speed. he was so so hot.

you stifled another moan as your eyes looked forward again, the sight of eren nearly clipping a subaru outback making you sit forward.

“you’re going to crash!” you gasped. 

“i’ll slow down if you answer my question,” eren growled, his thumb coming to rub your clit rapidly as his fingers continued to pump in and out of your cunt. you hissed at the newfound pleasure, your head coming back to rest against the seat. 

“yes, yes, okay,” you agreed, screwing your eyes shut to avoid looking at how fast he was driving. 

eren took a deep breath, giving you a sideways glance. he’d never done this before, but he’d also never felt this way about someone. the way you clenched so good around his fingers making his chest tighten. he made you feel this good, not jean. the thought brought a smirk to his face as you let out a strangled moan. 

“i’ll stop speeding if you agree to be my girlfriend,” eren’s words shocked you right out of your pleasure coma, eyes widening as you jolted upright in your seat. did he really just say that? did jean’s plan actually work?

his hand jerked the steering wheel to the side, your mind too preoccupied with his statement to even notice his fingers had stilled inside of you, anxious for your answer. he wasn’t looking at you, eyes still locked on the road. 

you held your breath as you noticed how fast your heart was beating. “i thought you’d never ask.” you responded, cheeks burning. 

eren’s lips curled upwards, pulling his fingers from inside of you. your eyes followed his long digits as he popped the middle two into his mouth, sucking your bitter sheen from his knuckles. he was your boyfriend. he wanted you to be his girlfriend. “good girl.” he mumbled. 

you glanced back at the freeway, surprised as eren jerked the steering wheel, making an abrupt exit. it appeared to deviate into the woods, your eyes flitting nervously to the man beside you. “um, where are you taking me?” 

“i’m just fulfilling my promise,” he answered, bringing his hand back to grip your thigh. his fingers were wet with his saliva, the sight bringing a strong throb to your core. oh yeah, i never finished. “’member? i said once we were done with my meeting i was going to fuck you.” 

you suppressed an excited smile at his vulgar words, pressing your thighs together for some form of relief. you were painfully aroused, the burning sensation almost too much to bear. 

“plus, it seems like you never learn,” eren’s words were suddenly serious as he pulled the car up a gravel road. there was a sharp drop off to the side, the city skyline sparkling in the distance. you cocked a brow at him. “you’re my girlfriend now, but i’m still pissed about that stunt you pulled with jean. gonna have to punish you, of course.” 

you swallowed as he shut the car off, the city sitting innocently in view. the spot between your legs was aching, desperate for some form of release. you couldn’t help the swell in your chest at the fact that eren was your boyfriend now, anxiously awaiting whatever he had in mind. 

eren leaned over you, maintaining a deep stare as he shifted your seat into a flat position. his fingers lightly danced across your skin as he unbuckled your belt, face hovering above the hem of your skirt. he glanced back up to you, teal eyes glinting in the darkness. 

“can’t wait to fuck my new girlfriend,” eren growled, wasting no time in climbing on top of you. he shifted your legs so that your knees were bent by your head, wet cunt on full display in front of him. he stared down at you, a hand on each knee. “shit, you’re so hot like this.” 

he slowly brought a finger to your center, the feeling of his cold digit gliding against you bringing slight relief to the deep ache. his eyes were focused below your waist, lazily flitting upwards as he brought his finger to your lips. “taste.” 

you happily accepted, wrapping your lips around his finger. your tongue swirled around his knuckle, the saccharin taste filling your mouth. he pulled it from your lips, a devilish grin on his features. 

“i can’t wait any longer,” he breathed, leaning forward to press his lips against yours. the kiss was deep and heated, however it felt different from all the others you’d shared in the past. it was meaningful and tender, slow and deliberate. his tongue swiped your lip, slipping into your mouth with a sigh. 

his hands undid his pants as you kissed, the sound of his belt being undone filling the small space. you could feel him positioning the tip of his cock at your entrance, sliding it against your slick. 

eren pulled back to look at you, breaths mingled for a moment before he pushed past your entrance, burying himself deep within you. the stretch was slightly uncomfortable and you were convinced you’d never get accustomed to the sheer size of his dick.

eren didn’t wait for you to adjust, flexing his hips back to give you another purposeful thrust. a whimper slipped past your lips at the feeling, his hand leaving your leg and lightly wrapping around your neck. 

“fuck,” he hissed, speeding up his pace. your walls clenched around him, climax fast approaching with every deep thrust of his cock within your cunt. “feels so good fucking you when you’re all mine.” 

his hand tightened around your throat, the combined pressure at both ends of your body only adding to the pleasure as he rammed into you. he grunted as his other hand pressed your legs forward, getting a better angle so that he could fill you to the hilt. 

a strangled cry ripped from your throat as he hit particularly deep, bringing his face down to roughly kiss your lips. he was breathing heavily, the car shaking as he bucked his hips into yours.

eren craned his neck down to look at where his length disappeared inside of you, a small smile toying at his features. the sight caused his cock to twitch, relishing in just how nicely he filled you up. you were his, and he was yours. 

just the thought of you being his girlfriend was enough; a loud groan leaving his chest as he pressed his hips against yours. you could feel him release himself inside of you, the thick sensation bringing on a much anticipated orgasm. your limbs grew cold, the pleasure reaching the tips of your fingers. 

eren placed a chaste kiss to your forehead, gazing down at you. “my girlfriend is so fucking hot.” he grinned. 

you rolled your eyes at his cheesy comment, swatting his chest playfully. he carefully removed himself from you, trying not to drip onto the car seat. 

“here, pretty. you’ll have to keep your legs up,” he instructed as he pulled his pants back up. you frowned, the thought of holding this position the whole way back somewhat daunting. 

“huh? but how am i supposed to keep this stuff from coming out?” you whined, still trying to regain your composure. eren’s face was flushed as he smirked at you. 

“that’ll be your punishment, m’kay?” he said smugly. you scoffed, holding your knees in each hand. 

“but that’ll be impossible!” 

“don’t worry,” he leaned forward to kiss your lips once again. “i’ll drive slow.” 

<3 <3 <3

[elfwoodfae]

“Nightcall” Harrison Eo Wells x reader.

Chapter 4

Summary: Dreaming about a certain speedster will leave you on edge, complications were coming your way if you didn’t control yourself soon enough.

Warning: Explicit scenes, please don’t read if you are under 18.

Author’s note: Let me know what you think so far! Suggestions are always welcome. I hope you enjoy it! Let me know in the comments if you want to be tagged in the story. Big thank you to @twilightlover2007 for giving me suggestions and ideas for this chapter!!

Gif credits to the owner, I found this one on google.

That night you didn’t sleep, or at least your brain didn’t sleep. As your body rested after such an intense day, your mind took you to a land of dreams. Where you dreamt of him.

You dreamt of him at night, crawling through your window, cradle in yellow, big, powerful and hard. He was a sigh to behold.

You dreamt of him walking over to you, grabbing your leg and pulling you to him and in a second he was over you. Looking at you with those red glowing eyes that lighted your soul on fire. Burning you from the inside out.

He grabbed your face, softly but showing the dominance a man like him possessed. He tangled a hand in your hair and kissed you hard, licking your mouth open and praying inside as if it was a home he was always welcome to.

You ran a hand through his hair, pulling at the nape and he growled in your mouth, bitting at your bottom lip and pulling it until you moaned for him to stop. He moved the hand on your face to your thigh, running it up, feeling your skin as he murmured how soft you were. How much he needed you. Your eyes snapped open as you felt him vibrate on top of you, hitting all the right spots to make you yearn for him, to make you feel all of him.

All the lighting in the world came to give his eyes life, and when he looked down at you right into your soul, you felt yourself breath out and moan his name trying to move closer to him, to bury him so deep into your skin you wouldn’t know where you ended and he began.

“Harrison,” you murmured over his lips, touching his face softly.

“Y/n” he growled.

“Harrison”

“Y/n” he shook you by your shoulders.

“Y/n” he shook you again. Why was such a bright light being pointed at your eyes?

“Y/n!” You woke up with a start to Caitlin’s face hovering over yours. Concern on her features.

“You were dreaming” she told you as you took a deep breath. Remembering exactly what that dream had been.

“Did… did I say something on my sleep?” You nervously asked her, hands shaking as you ran them through your forehead.

“No, but you were turning and tossing around, I couldn’t get you to react.” She responded.

“I think I was having a nightmare I can’t remember.” Liar, liar, liar, liar. Of course you remembered it.

“I would like to go home and shower and get a fresh pair of clothes. I will come back in a little.” You added.

“Okay. I will let the rest of the team know you are feeling better.” Caitlin said as she moved to the side to let you move through.

Once in your apartment a cold shower was exactly what you needed. As the water ran down your body you recalled your dream. Every moment of it burned into your memory.

You were losing your mind. That was the only explanation. You had lost your mind. Why would you dream that? If you had dreamed of him as he was before you found out his identity that would be understandable because you had developed more than a crush for the man. But to dream of him in his full glory was something else. And you wished you could dream it again.

God he was corrupting you.

In a fresh pair of clothing you made it back to Star labs. Caitlin and Iris were in the cortex while the rest were no where to be seen. Wells was probably in his hole in the wall.

“Y/n, how are you feeling?” Iris questioned you, concern in her voice.

“I’m feeling fine, I feel fine really, it was more a scare than anything.”

“Yes indeed, Miss y/n gave us quite a fright” You almost jumped up in your sit at hearing his voice, you hadn’t heard him roll in and when you looked at him to reply and keep up the appearances , the moment your eyes met, you felt your face turn red, blushing as he only started at you, almost telling you with his eyes that he knew your little dirty secret. But he didn’t. There was no way he could.

Iris and Caitlin noticed right away of course. The way you tensed up and blushed. Evading his gaze and nodding shyly. You had never been the shy kind around the team.

Exchanging glances in between them with a knowing smirk that said we will talk later, Iris excused herself and left with the excuse of being late for work. Caitlin caught on to her hints and excused herself too.

Wells was not a fool. He knew something was up.

“A word please?” He asked you as he motioned with his fingers for you to get closer and follow him to his office.

Once inside he turned to you.

“What was that about?” He said as his eyes bore into yours.

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” You said as you looked to the floor avoiding him.

“I will ask you once again, and I want an answer better than I don’t know what you are talking about. ” he said as he got up from the chair and closed the distance between you two.

“I promise you is nothing.” You tried to convince him in vain.

In a second his eyes ignited red and his face came close to yours, so close you could feel his breathing over your lips.

“I am hoping for your own good that you haven’t spoken about our agreement.” Oh God flashbacks from your dream played behind your eyes. He was so far off track and he didn’t even know it. He was adding fuel to the fire.

When you didn’t reply he grabbed your face to make you look up.

“Don’t think that because I can’t kill you doesn’t mean I won’t make you wish I had.” He threatened you.

“I swear is nothing, is a stupid thing between Iris, Caitlin and me that doesn’t involve you.”

“Can…” you had to stop and clear your throat, moving your eyes to the floor again.

“Can you please move so I can leave?” You asked him avoiding his gaze.

Lowering his hand and walking to his chair he moved to the side to let you go free.

Letting a sigh of relief and with speed impressive even for a speeder, you left the room.

Something was different. You were suddenly so shy around him. You had never showed shyness or fear around him. Rubbing two fingers over his lips in thought he made his way out to the cortex too.

Once he made it over, he could see from the corner of his eyes at Caitlin gushing over you and trying to discreetly look at him.

“What happened out there?” She asked with a gentle smile.

“What? What do you mean what happened? Nothing happened.” You replied defensively.

“Mmm, okay if you say so.” She replied knowing better than to push the issue right away.

“By the way, Iris and I were saying that it would do us some good to go out and have a few drinks, us girls only. What do you say?” She continued.

A distraction would be nice, but a distraction involving alcohol was a risky risky move. You had two very important secrets you couldn’t let out and alcohol was known to make you a babble mouth.

“I am not drinking too much lately but I’ll go with you both. It would be fun to get out and change the view for once.” You told her not completely sure of yourself.

“Great! We will go after work. We can carpool if you want.” Caitlin offered she was not a heavy drinker she was fine with driving.

“Sounds perfect, thank you very much.” You told her as you touched her arm in appreciation.

Being honest with yourself you were actually getting excited about going out, it had been a while and who knew, the night could bring a lot of surprises.

@mintchipcupcake

@saltykidcreation

@twilightlover2007

@austarus

@reallystressedcollegestudent

[fallen-in-dreams]

Rumours

Also on AO3. Pairing: Gaara/Sakura. Summary: Sakura overhears a spicy rumour about her relationship with Gaara and their friendship will never be the same again. GaaSaku. Canonish. Prompt: Week 1: Dating. Rated: T. Words: 4,433. Status: Complete.

Author note: My first of the weekly prompts for the tumblr GaaSaku Events. *Cross your fingers that I can do all of the ones I'm trying to finish.* Enjoy. ^_^

Warnings/tags: Just some mild angst and mentions of ShikaTema.

This is for the 2021 GaaSaku Event @gaasaku-fanfests​. I seem to be posting for events late or barely on time this year. Sorry. :)

.

  .:.

“Sometimes your heart sees what your eyes can’t.”

.

  It was supposed to be just another harmless outing. Sakura often took Gaara with her when she went shopping for presents. He was so hopeless at remembering birthdays and holidays like Christmas that she was doing him a favour by dragging him around with her.

And picking out gifts from both of them.

She hadn’t really thought there was anything wrong with that. Or that anyone would read more into it than it really was. Of course, the Kazekage spending time with a foreign kunoichi would get everyone’s attention, but like all exciting new things it would get old, and they’d soon move onto other things.

This was why, all these months on from their first public shopping outing, Sakura was still brushing off the curious glances as she pulled Gaara along, by the sleeve of his work robes. Twelve months she’d been in Suna. Six were spent aiding in a joint training of medical personnel as a part of a healing exchange program to further relations, and then eight weeks as the head of the hospital because Gaara was adamant nobody was doing it better. The last four months had been her lazy months, which consisted of her usual physical training regimen but also acting like a tourist and dragging Gaara along for the ride. So just what she’d been doing before, minus the teaching and hospital visits. Sakura had already achieved what she’d set out to do in this mission, but it hadn’t even crossed her mind to cut her time here short.

And she was finally used to being a constant source of scrutiny for the people of Wind. So here she was, for the second time this week, dragging Gaara out of his office on the rare occasion that he didn’t have either a shit load of paperwork or overdue training of his own to do.

The retailer looked up at them as they stepped into her shop, then smiled and bowed lightly.

“Welcome, Lord Kazekage. Haruno-san.”

“Kitana-san,” Sakura addressed her quickly before tugging on Gaara. He obediently followed and as usual, she did not notice the knowing smile of the elderly woman as she led the redhead around. Her eyes perused the rows of trinkets instead. They were supposed to be getting an engagement present for Temari and Shikamaru. It had been three weeks since the date for their party had been announced and nothing seemed to be good enough.

“Maybe we should get them each a present,” she thought out loud. “What do you think, Gaara?”

His eyes widened slightly. “One from each of us?”

“No, I mean one each from both of us.” He still looked confused. “A total of two presents,” she added, and he nodded. She didn’t remark on how he had stiffened and then relaxed at her words. Gaara was just weird like that.

“Ino got them a weird sex toy,” she said, rubbing her cheek with her finger as Gaara’s face turned pink. “Uh, and I think Hinata said she wanted to get her some wind scrolls.” Her friends’ letters had been all over the place. Everyone was excited that Temari and Shikamaru had finally gotten official and were moving their relationship forward.

“I…uh.” He crossed his arms over his chest, which was actually more of a nervous habit for him these days. “Well… we can do better.”

She giggled and locked arms with him. “Of course. I was thinking,” she said as they moved through the shop slowly. “Temari’s always gotta pretend to be this tough, warrior woman. But I’ve smelled the candles coming from her room. I was thinking of bath salts, but it isn’t a good gift for Shikamaru. But that was before this whole individual gift idea.”

Gaara thought that Shikamaru could use a decent salt bath. They could use it together. The idea of it made him blush and he pointedly avoided eye contact with Sakura as she babbled on about clothes accessories. Apparently, Shikamaru had once confessed to her that he thought belts were interesting.

“Maybe bath salts and candles.” Gaara said, interrupted her gushing about the embroidery on a handmade belt. “His & Hers style.”

Sakura squeezed his arm affectionately. “Brilliant idea.”

She pulled him along gently, not needing to tug too hard because he was fine with following her lead. This shop was mostly popular among young women and older couples. Their wares ranged from scented candles to antique dolls and handmade clothes.

“What do you think about this one?” Sakura asked, taking a strange bust off a shelf. Maybe his mind just went to stationery too quickly, but it just looked like an oversized paper weight to him.

“No good?” She asked when Gaara didn’t respond. He sighed and she tossed it aside. “Okay, next odd little smelly thing.”

He let out a light chuckle at that. Gaara pointed out a few more ideas and they half-heartedly argued over them. They picked up a few bath salts anyway, since Sakura was interested in some for herself, before leaving the story without a present for his sister and future brother-in-law.

“We’ll just have to keep looking,” Sakura said, nodding to herself as they made their way through the crowds of the downtown market. She was oblivious to the interested stares and giggling children.

Truth be told, Gaara was fine with letting Sakura make the decision for him. He hadn’t had to worry about choosing gifts for almost a year and he was happy with that. Growing up with no childhood had ensured he had little experience in the matter, but she was a good teacher when it came to social situations.

They agreed their last chance for a good gift would be the ninja resource store on the edge of the market. Such a place would normally not be in the civilian district, but the proprietors were very good at preventing civilians from buying shinobi utensils. Gaara bought an ornate spear from them two years ago that had been imported from the Land of Iron. He’d started collecting special weapons and suggested to Sakura that they have something ordered in.

It would solve the problem and save time. Not that he wasn’t enjoying himself. Gaara looked forward to these outings more than he was willing to admit out loud.

“Geez.” She hip-butted him. “You’re full of great suggestions today.”

Sakura watched as he blushed and mumbled about looking for something for himself in the shop and as he wandered away, this gave her the perfect time to sneak away. She knew full well he was collecting unique weapons and had one in mind for him. It wasn’t a gift for any special occasion, and she didn’t bother guying things for his siblings unless it was for something in particular, but Sakura couldn’t help herself with Gaara. Her friendship with him was on another level compared with Kankuro and Temari.

When it came to birthdays, Christmas, or just her wanting him to have something special, she’d long ago stopped agonising over the “what does one even buy a kage who doesn’t seem to want anything?” question. Personal gifts that showed she knew him were always well-received. He still had the katana shaped candlestick ornament that she’d bought him for his birthday, sitting in his study. Temari said he never lit it up, which to anyone who knew him, meant he loved it. It would never get used and therefore last.

Sakura kept one eye on where Gaara was in the shop at all times, and the other on the aisle of antique weapons as she perused. That was how she ended up standing in an aisle listening to two gossiping kunoichi. She’d just been minding her own business, looking over a row of ornamental kunai, when the voices carried over to her from the other side of the shelf she was leaning toward.

When she heard her own name being uttered, Sakura peered through the gaps in the shelf. They were a couple of chunin and either had below average sensory skills and didn’t notice her or didn’t care that she was eavesdropping. Sakura didn’t recognise them, so they definitely weren’t a part of the medical units she’d trained, nor did they frequent the hospital. They were also both staring off in the direction that Sakura knew Gaara to be.

The blonde giggled. "Lord Kazekage dotes on Sakura-san, it’s so cute! They just have to be dating!"

The brunette nodded. “Of course. But why haven’t they announced it?”

“Because they’re shy, silly.”

“Yeah right.”

“I’m serious. Minamo said everyone’s talking about it.”

“He’s probably still innocent I bet.”

Sakura rolled her eyes. It was so weird to hear people claiming she had a romantic relationship with Gaara while discussing whether or not he had sexual experience. But it was just a couple of awe struck chunin (and the claim of some random friend of theirs). She decided to turn away but stilled at the next line out of the blonde’s mouth.

“Maybe Sakura-san took his v-card,” the girl snickered, much to the appreciation of the other chunin. “Can you just imagine?”

Sakura flushed from head to toe, struggling to hold her composure. She didn’t want to imagine that. Her heart might just explode. Sure, Gaara was… attractive. But would she have sex with him? He was her friend. They’d never been anything other than friends.

Not that I would want more, she told herself, holding a hand to her chest.

“I bet he’d be a tender lover,” the other girl said, sighing deeply. “Haruno-san is so lucky.”

“Oh, I don’t know,” the blonde said, a devious look on her face. “I think Lord Gaara’s hit the jackpot too. Sakura-san has all that medical knowledge about the body. Imagine what she could do with it.”

“Like what?”

“Get his blood pumping. Warm him up. You know,” the blonde waggled her eyebrows and they both giggled. “She’d have him hard in no time!”

They giggled again and the brunette snorted before covering her mouth, mortified at herself.

Sakura stood there like a stunned mullet as they turned away from watching Gaara and started giggling and whispering among themselves. What the hell had she just heard?

“Sakura.”

She spun on the spot, startled. She hadn’t noticed his approaching chakra, engrossed in the conversation she was overhearing. Sakura turned beet red. He looked concerned when she opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. When he made to move toward her, Sakura went into panic mode, charging at him and grabbing his arm. She ushered Gaara away, hoping he hadn’t heard any of that conversation. Knowing him, he wouldn’t even realise what they were talking about.

Gaara leaned in to whisper in her ear, “I found something special for you” and Sakura let out an involuntary sound she’d never heard before.

“Are you okay?”

Am I okay?

Two random chunin had just inserted mental images of her having sex with Gaara into her head. She was not okay. But she nodded anyway, not wanting to explain why her heart was now thumping. Blood rushing to her head. His hand fell to the small of her back. The warmth of his touch had never been more prominent than it was right now as he added a slight pressure to steer her toward the front counter. He wasn’t pushing her. Gaara never pushed her. He was always kind to her. It was so stimulating when he did that.

Feelings she’d kept buried for almost twelve months started bubbling to the surface and Sakura wasn’t prepared for the onslaught. How could she have forgotten this? Suddenly, she remembered the first time his touch had affected her. They’d known each other for years and two weeks into her long-term mission to Suna, she’d been lonely and exhausted when quite suddenly, Sakura realised those warm and fuzzies she’d been feeling were directed at a certain Kazekage. Her twenty-first birthday had come and gone, and she didn’t have any life goals other than revolutionising the medical world. It was a great goal. Professionally.

But after an innocent comment from Hinata about her love life, her birthday had gone from celebrations of “I have my whole life ahead of me” to morose “I’m going to die alone” thoughts, which were reflected in her spending the rest of the night drunk and being shadowed by Ino who was worried she might bring down a building or two, in her destructive angst.

Gaara continued to watch her as she worked through her mental problems but said nothing. He didn’t need to tell her he was concerned. It was written all over his face. It was just another thing she loved about him.

“Let me take you home,” he said. That deep voice of his made her shiver. Sakura felt her body flush again when she heard giggling behind her. (Were those girls following them now?) There was no way they hadn’t heard that.

After a few moments, he started rubbing her back in what he obviously thought was a soothing manner and she blinked heavily at him. Right. She needed to get out of here.

She cleared her throat. “Sure,” she said, her voice a little strained. Out of habit, she wrapped her arm around his. He was a lifeline as she tried to sort out her dysfunctional thoughts. The chunin girls’ conversation had opened a can of worms and she didn’t know how to put them back in.

Sakura glanced backwards in time to catch the women whispering behind their hands and staring at her and Gaara unabashedly. When had her outings with Gaara started such salacious rumours?

And more importantly: why did these people think they were dating?

  .:.

  “Gimme a screaming orgasm!”

Kankuro took the seat next to Sakura as she made her order to the bartender and chuckled.

“You might want to tone that drink down a little,” Kankuro said with a wink. “Gaara might get jealous.”

“Ugh!” Sakura groaned. “Not you too!”

“Whatever do you mean?”

She pointed a finger at him. “You all are talking about me behind my back. Starting rumours and talking about my sex.”

Kankuro snorted. “Your what?”

“I’m a joke, Kankuro-chan.”

“Please don’t call me that.” He grimaced.

She sighed. “What are you doing here?”

Kankuro waved a hand at the bartender. “Another screaming orgasm, please.”

Sakura snorted. “You’re getting more than I am, then.”

He chuckled. “Never delved into the local cuisine since you got here?”

Well, there was this one guy she danced and flirted with the first weekend after she started this mission, but her burgeoning feelings for the Kazekage wouldn’t let her do anything more. She wasn’t a slut and she appreciated that Gaara wasn’t one of those guys that slept around and used their testosterone to excuse it, either. So, she’d been able to settle into routine with him. Friends who gravitated toward each other. Friends who had dinner with each other (alone) quite often. Friends who decided important decisions together instead of alone. Friends who rarely had eyes for anyone else. Friends who didn’t have lives outside of each other...

She groaned and dropped her head on the bar. The awareness of her situation was painful. She wished she could go back to being oblivious. Because it was clear now that Sakura had been accidentally dating Gaara for almost twelve months. Did he know? Or was he as oblivious as her? Everyone had noticed apparently, according to two chunin and their friend. Did Kankuro and Temari know.

“I’m secretly but not secretly dating Gaara,” she mumbled. “And I didn’t know.”

Apparently, even though her face was pressed into the bar, Kankuro had heard her.

“I didn’t know it was supposed to be a secret.”

Sakura groaned again. “We’re not dating!”

“Uh-huh.” He clearly didn’t believe her. “Going back and forth then. You’re in denial.”

“Why are you here?” He didn’t respond and Sakura lifted her head up slowly. “Kankuro?”

“He’s lonely,” he said, staring into his drink thoughtfully. “I know everyone thinks Gaara’s put together and doesn’t need anything more in life than family and friends. But I know that under that oblivious and calm exterior that he’s a romantic at heart. He wants what you two have. But he just doesn’t know how to go about getting it.”

She frowned at him. His seriousness was giving her a bad feeling. Everything had come together so quickly, and she wasn’t even sure what to do with her feelings yet, let alone whatever Gaara might be feeling.

“He’s a bit clueless.”

That was an understatement. Sakura used to think he wasn’t clueless, since he often said things with such confidence that she believed he was more aware than he let on. But then moments like that day in the shop with the chunin girls and Gaara seemed completely oblivious to what was going on. She had no idea what to think of him anymore.

It was why she’d been ignoring him. She couldn’t handle the idea that he might actually return her feelings. She was a coward.

Kankuro put his drink down and patted her on the back. “Just… don’t hurt him, okay?”

Right. Easier said than done.

  .:.

  There were many things Gaara was good at. And so many things he sucked at.

He was proficient with multiple types of weapons and political nuances. But in matters of the heart, he found that he still hadn’t learned anything. He had no idea why Sakura was avoiding him and why his siblings were being more careful about how they talk to him. It felt like it had been back when he housed Shukaku and went on rampages.

The knock on his door startled him and Gaara debated ignoring that chakra signature out of spite but gave in and called her in.

“Gaara?”

He looked up and the slight drop in her smile told him that she’d seen the hurt in his eyes. She’d been avoiding him, and they both knew it.

“I need to tell you something.”

Gaara swallowed heavily and braced himself. Her contract in Suna had only a few weeks left but since the particulars of the mission had already been fulfilled, she was free to leave at any time, if she wanted to. This made his hear race. More than anything he didn’t want her to go. He enjoyed her company and valued her friendship. What he truly wanted from her was more than that and it had taken him months of going along with her intrusion into his life for him to realise what that “more than that” meant for him.

Gaara wanted to date her. He wanted to be doing all the things with her that Temari did with Shikamaru and that Kankuro was currently trying to do with Matsuri. And for that to happen, she had to stay in Suna.

Temari and Shikamaru are dating and he’s still living in Konoha, he begrudgingly reminded himself.

But he didn’t care.

Gaara sat back in his office chair as Sakura closed the door behind herself and shuffled her feet, twiddling her thumbs. She was nervous. And worried about his reaction. He attempted to smile and shift his body language to put her at ease. It seemed to work and before he knew it, she was approaching him with a sad smile and sitting down across the table from him.

“Gaara…”

“Does this have something to do with why you’ve been avoiding me?”

She nodded, biting her bottom lip. “I, uh… found out something. And kind of overreacted to it, got drunk, and took it out on Kankuro.”

Gaara couldn’t help the snort that accompanied a chuckle. “Story of my life.”

She smiled a little wider now. “It does seem easy to do that.”

“Did you hit him?”

“A little. In the training grounds,” she added quickly. “He’ll be fine.”

“Okay.”

She went back to twiddling her thumbs.

“You wanted to tell me something.”

Sakura nodded. “There’s no easy way to say this so I’ll just come right out and say it. The whole village thinks we’re dating.” She paused to see his reaction, but he just stared, stone faced at her. “And uh… we kind of have been.”

“All the outings and joint gift giving.” Not to mention how he treated her so preciously in public.

Sakura frowned. There was no question in his voice, just his usual factual tone. He wasn’t surprised. “You knew?”

Slowly, he nodded.

“Why… why didn’t you say anything?”

He blinked heavily and lowered his gaze to the table. Parchments were lined neatly across it as he rarely let them fall out of place. The only matter in his life that Gaara let get messy were his relationships. They were inherently messy, so he had no problem dealing with them as such. Which was why he was so anal about everything else.

“Gaara?”

Gaara didn't seem to want to explain himself.

He didn’t want to deny or confirm that he may or may not be dating the Fifth Hokage's protégé, to the public. He let the rumours spread and did nothing to quell them. Gaara had even played up to them which he’d known was wrong but couldn’t help himself. There was no way that admitting this to Sakura would go well for him. Perhaps he could inform her over time, but right now the realisation of what had been going on was too raw for her.

And she could see his hesitation for what it was. Avoidance of setting the record straight. Sakura frowned. Was it because of appearances? Or something more personal? It could be embarrassment. She knew he’d grown up with little human contact, none of which would’ve prepared him for adult relationships. It left him in the lurch for so many important social interactions.

But why wouldn’t he want to fix this? It would look bad for the village if the Kazekage was pretending to date someone. Especially since she was going home in a few weeks. Her heart clenched at that, and she had to close her eyes to stop herself from losing control. Sakura had only just allowed herself to remember and acknowledge that she’d developed feelings for Gaara months ago, she didn’t want to break down in front of him now.

Why didn’t he tell me?

What was he playing at?

Maybe it was because he liked her? Sakura felt her skin flush at that. No. It was probably pride or indolence. Likely, he didn’t fully understand the ramifications.

“He’s a bit clueless.”

Had Kankuro meant that romantically? Or sexually? Or perhaps socially? She bit her bottom lip as Gaara turned his head away. The skin along his neck was tinged pink and his face looked slightly flushed.

All of the above, then.

Maybe he really was too embarrassed to push back at the rumours. Gossip was a poison though. In order to successfully rebuke it, you had to do so fast. And with the truth, not silence or denial on their own. Sakura knew this from experience back when she was still listening to Ino’s ramblings about Sasuke. This rumour had run its full course and nothing short of a very public breakup would get them out of it.

“Is it…” he started slowly, breaking her out of her thoughts. Gaara looked up to catch her gaze. “Is it really so bad?”

Is the idea of us really so horrible?

She heard that unsaid question loud and clear.

Sakura stood up and circled the table to stand in front of him as he swivelled on his chair to face her. “No.”

Gaara smiled. But it didn’t reach his eyes.

“You want this?” She asked.

This was the moment of truth. He could lie and revert their relationship to the way it was before, except with them being more conscious about not appearing to be a couple. Or he could take a hold of her and ask for the one thing that had been plaguing him for months. He swallowed heavily and she watched the way his Adam’s apple bobbed. Was it weird to be turned on by that?

“Yes,” he said huskily.

Desperately, yes.

She didn’t react for a moment, just scanning his face. He held his breath, waiting. Then Sakura leant forward, closing her eyes as his widened. But he didn’t pull away as she pressed her lips to his gently. His hands went to her hips as she rested hers on the arms of his chair, caging him in.

Gaara deepened the kiss, making her gasp and then plundered her mouth. He’d never done this before, that much was obvious to her. So, she took control, slowing their pace and sucking on his lips gently when he tried to hasten her. Sakura fell into his lap, her hands tugging at his hair as he wrapped his arms around her waist. As she straddled him, she lost herself to the feel of his body beneath hers and Sakura moaned.

The sound broke their reverie and the Kazekage bit her lip. Without pulling out of their kiss, he sent his sand out to lock the door and knocked everything from his desk with no concern for their wellbeing. Fuck caring about that right now.

Sakura grinned into their kiss as he pushed her back onto the table. This had been the right choice after all.

  .:.

  Sometime later, Sakura emerged from the Kazekage's office to find his siblings nearby, like they’d been waiting to find out the result of her talk with Gaara. She knew she needed to reprimand them, but she was too happy right now to care.

Kankuro raised an eyebrow at her. She looked dishevelled. Like someone had snogged the crap out of her. He fought to keep himself from grinning like an idiot.

“Sakura?”

She cleared her throat and stared down at him. “You’ll be interested to know that Gaara is no longer clueless.”

Temari groaned as the Leaf kunoichi sauntered out of hallway. Kankuro waited until Sakura was out of earshot and gave his sister a shit eating grin then stuck his hand out expectantly.

“I won,” he said.

She scoffed. “No, you didn’t.”

“Hey! I said they’d end up dating!”

Temari shook her head and took a sip of her drink to hide her smirk, then said, “you said they’d sleep together within an hour of resolving this. They clearly just made out.”

“Temari!” Kankuro pouted.

“Not paying up,” she sung, before following Sakura’s lead and sauntering off.

He huffed. Siblings were evil.

  .:.

[mypoisonedvine]

Dark!bucky not letting you cum for a week??? 🥺🥺🥺🥺

ohhhh lord... how did this go from headcanons to an entire ficlet????? oops

you’ve gotta fuck up BAD to earn this one

this is the sort of thing that requires more than one insurrection in a row, like making him jealous and then coming without permission

say you’re talking to sam one day and he makes you laugh and bucky is just watching you two talk.

you throw your head back with another overdramatic laugh at one of his stupid jokes and you put your hand on his arm for a second like you’re trying to feel his bicep.

if looks could kill you’d both be dead by bucky’s glare omllll he is pissed.

i think you need to remember who you belong to he growls at you as he pulls you back into his room and slams the door

you’re adamant that it was just a friendly conversation but he shuts you up by shoving his cock in your mouth.

if you want me to fuck you you’re gonna have to earn it.  if he’s just a friend then show me.  suck my cock like you understand that you’re mine.

you really do give him your best, twisting your spit-slick hand as you jerk off the parts of him you can’t reach with your mouth, doing nothing to suppress the gurgling noises of your throat.

you talk like an innocent little angel, but you suck cock like a whore.  which is it?

you don’t get a chance to answer because he pulls you up by your hair and tosses you onto the bed, pushing your dress up and slapping your ass

bite down on the pillow, baby.  if somebody out there hears you i swear i’ll blow a gasket.  only i get to hear you like this.

you nod and obey, and it proves important because he enters you with such brutal force that you nearly scream into the down as he takes you.

you wishin’ it was sam instead of me?  think he would treat you better?

you shake your head but he just spanks you again.

you’re clenching around me, sweetheart.  do you like when i get angry, is that it?

you’re just trying to apologize between whimpers and sobs and he isn’t having any of it

stop fucking whining and take my cock.  don’t act like i’m so awful, I know you can take it.  

it hurts but he’s right, you’ve endured worse.  the frustrating thing is that he knows exactly how much pleasure to mix with the pain to make you unable to stop yourself from barreling towards an orgasm.

you wanna come?  you better earn it.  you’re not gonna come until i’m convinced that you know your place

you’re babbling about how you belong to him and how you’d never even think about anybody else but he has this way of getting inside your head whenever he’s inside you-- makes sense, really, but it’s spooky sometimes.

i dont believe you baby, you’re going to have to be more convincing

you’re halfway into another string of incoherent begs when he realizes you’re about to come and suddenly pulls out, leaving you with no stimulation and clenching around nothing.

not yet, he hisses, smacking you on the ass.  not until im ready.  not until i tell you to.

and you really really try but you’ve never been good at holding yourself back, so when he fucks you again and his cock is pressing so perfectly against your g-spot and you can hear his sexy grunts and moans you start to lose it

you try to warn him but you’re so lost in it that it just comes out as nonsense

he pulls out to keep you from coming but it’s too late, you’re coming on nothing, your walls are flexing, a gush of wetness is leaking out of you and you’re just laying there on the bed coming without him.

did you just fuckin’ come? he growls and you’re done for.  

you get the spanking of a lifetime, all while he scolds you

you are such a goddamn slut for my cock, you need it so bad you come even after i’ve pulled out.  and now you’re getting wet from your punishment.  what am i going to do with you?

you assume it’s rhetorical but he pinches the raw skin where he’d just hit you and you realize he wants an answer

you’re going to give me whatever i deserve you tell him.  he smiles.

looks like you’re learning, slowly but surely. 

he decides that since you clearly need to learn some restraint when it comes to both other men and your orgasms, he thinks that a week without coming is the perfect punishment.

but as we know, you come so easily when he fucks you, being the filthy slut you are.

and it’s not fair to bucky that he should be punished too, not being able to fuck you just because you can’t keep it together

so he finds a few compromises

at first he just has you suck him off but he loves coming inside you too much to just come on your face or down your throat all week

plus, he thinks you like giving the blowjobs a little too much

so instead he jerks himself off, making you watch and loving how jealous you look that you can’t get your hands on him, and then just a few strokes before he’s gonna come, he sticks it in and pumps a few times before coating your walls

he makes you beg for it too, even though you both know you aren’t getting much out of it, only being able to feel him for a few seconds and then just being left there horny beyond all reason and full of come

he ends up fucking you, if you could really call it that, way more often than normal since it’s so brief and not very tiring for him

six, seven times a day he’s giving you his come and nothing else, and making you thank him for it every time

and you’re so goddamn horny that you can barely function.  you’re so sensitive that the slightest touch gets you riled up, and you’re so delirious that you can’t stop yourself from rubbing your thighs together or taking a little extra time when you wash yourself in the shower.

the result is that you end up edging yourself a hundred times a day and it just makes it so much worse

but no amount of crying or begging can convince him to end your punishment early.  in fact, when you try to appeal to his appetite and remind him how good it feels for him when you come while he’s inside you, you get another spanking and a night in a chastity belt since he no longer trusts you to stay good when you’re alone.

on the last day of the week, sam tries to talk to you again and you dash away so fast you could’ve left a cloud of smoke in your shape like a cartoon because you’re not about to throw this whole week away and start over just for a few stupid jokes

once you’ve survived your punishment and begged relentlessly to be allowed to come, bucky finally keeps his promise and lets you come every way he can.  fingers, mouth, cock, vibrators... he seems determined to make up for lost time and then some

you come so many times you lose all sense of time and space and he has to carry you to bed and let you sleep for a good 12 hours

you wake up the next morning to find a note from bucky saying he’s gone to lunch but you did so well and he’s so proud of you.  he promises to buy you something nice, and that you can wear it and remember how strong you are.  but you get the feeling he wants the gift to remind you of what he can do to you if you piss him off again

you’re excited when he gets back but then you realize he was at lunch with sam.  and both of them have this look in their eyes as you ask them how it was.

oh shit.  he’s up to something, isn’t he?

[erikavixin2006]

Where Lila knows not to mess with the cat's princess.

A seemingly innocent smile appeared on Lila's lips as the girl walked down the streets to her "supposed" self-proclaimed kingdom, her mind swirled with thoughts and plans of taking down a certain half-Asian. Ever since the pig-tailed girl responded confidently to her threat, she began to find certain ways to tarnish the goody-two-shoes reputation. Marinette didn't seem to call her out of her lies anymore, frequently avoiding her. Whenever she got closer to the bluenette, said girl would either walk away, or stand there quietly while she babbled on her lies towards her clueless friends.

Even the mention of the students of Francoise Dupont made her lips twitch into a smirk. How clueless and mindless they are, believing whatever they want to hear, if she cared she would've felt sorry for Marinette, but she didn't. When framing her for theft and bully, most of her friends felt betrayed and hurt, angry even. She would've succeeded in getting rid of a love-rival if it weren't for a certain Agreste.

Adrien Agreste is a famous model, kind and handsome, qualities every woman wants in a man, and also, loved by almost half the population of teenage girls in Paris. Lila knew there were 3 girls after him apart from herself. Chloe Bourgeois, the mayor's daughter, which Lila considered not much of a threat since the girl seemed to show little romantic interest in him, confirming both of them to be just best friends. Next is Kagami Tsurugi, a big threat, the Japanese girl is beautiful and confident, and her mother is good friends with his father, Adrien had dated the girl for a while, only for both of them to break it up, thinking it's best if they stay friends, even so, Kagami had proved to still be very protective of Adrien, disliking Lila once taking a good look at her. Finally, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the biggest threat, the girl is hopelessly in love with Adrien, always stuttering and stumbling around him, though after a while, she stopped, her confidence increasing rapidly, a trait Lila soon found to be annoying, the half-Asian was supposed to be out of Lila's way when she started going out with Luka, but for some reason the two decided to stay friends, making Marinette a nuisance in Lila's eyes. Lila isn't blind, she could see the obvious love and adoration in Adrien's eyes whenever the bluenette is in his line of sight. The blond was obviously in love with her, and that made Lila's blood boil in anger, she tried to bad-mouthed her in front of Gabriel, but the middle-aged man shrugged it off, already meeting Marinette a few times, deeming her a worthy friend of Adrien once seeing her devotion towards Adrien and her exceptional talent in fashion. And that is when Lila knew she couldn't simply manipulate the man that easily, giving up on that idea, continuing to get on Agreste's Senior's good side, spying on Adrien.

Speaking of the blond boy, her lips turned into a lovesick grin when thinking of him. He is everything she ever dreamed of, rich, handsome, and kind. His name will bring her fame and fortune from all over the world. Just the thought of her hanging off the clueless man's arms while attending worldwide events made her feel giddy. Now that she is on his father's good side, it's only a matter of time before Adrien comes crawling to her feet, worshiping her just like the others. Though she admit the boy isn't as dumb as he seems, already knowing the girl's exceptional talent in lying, as the good-for-nothing superhero called her out in front of him. She hated the spotted hero, finding her a threat to her well-formed lies. But, the hero isn't in her way this time, her plan was to take down Dupain-Cheng, though the girl's friends still think of Marinette as the sweet, kind girl they loved, Lila is going to make sure they think her of the opposite by the end of the day, after all, no one can resist what they want to hear, she will be getting her fame soon. Plastering on a sweet smile, the girl walked into the school, fully unaware of what lies ahead of her.

__________

Adrien Agreste had a feeling that something will happen today, and his suspicions lie on the sausage-haired girl that just walked in the class, her face planted with an all to sweet smile that disgusts him. His first reaction was to look behind, as if fearing something had happened to the girl that he called "Everyday Ladybug" , she's not here, late as usual, sighing in relief, he turned back to the front, lips stretching into a thin smile as Lila practically latched onto his arm after waving to the classmates, her nails digging into his flesh a little too deep, the man quickly shrug her off, uncomfortable. Lila looked a bit disappointed, but quickly put up her act.

'Oh Adrien, I was just wondering if you would help me with yesterday's Physics homework, you know my cousin is a great Engineer in Japan, she promised to teach me all about her research but due to me having short-term memory loss I couldn't remember a lot of the equations,' she spoke in a sickeningly sweet voice. Adrien wanted confront her again, but it's been weeks since he did, and she never listened, he soon gave up, only ignoring her brags and answering her questions half-heartedly. 'I'm sorry Lila, but maybe you could ask Max about it, I'm having some troubles on Physics myself too,' Adrien just spoke a lie, though not a bad one, he was just trying to dismiss Lila, as he wasn't really in the mood this morning. Lila definitely got the message, replacing her frown with a smile, gushing on how polite he is and moving towards her seat at the back.

Adrien's annoyed frown softened once he saw the pig-tailed girl stumbling into the class, dropping her stuff in the process. The girl quickly stood up and ran towards her seat, greeting her classmates on the way. Adrien saw the twitch of Lila's left eye as all of the classmates greeted the girl, smiling all the way. The certain rustle in his over-shirt pocket reminded Adrien to keep an eye on the liar. Plagg, due to certain reasons, had been a little attached to the baker girl, unbeknownst to Adrien that the angel sitting behind him is the love of his life as well as the guardian of the Miraculous Box, but Plagg knew, and he had a certain soft spot for the Ladybug Miraculous holder, if he could he would've cataclysm the terrorist they call Lila already. He kept calm though, the god of destruction knew that a certain goddess of creation would give him a scolding if he did anything to disrupt their holders lives'.

__________

The day had gone well, but once lunch arrives, Adrien knew Lila will strike. He saw Lila planting Chloe's expensive necklace into Marinette's bag. The mayor's daughter is known for her unforgiving behavior, if she found her necklace in Marinette's bag, she will accuse without explanation. His blood boiled as he hid behind the door, he had given Lila many chances, his mother taught him to always be forgiving, and he had done just that, only for his princess to be hurt time and time again, now, he's had it, fuck the high road, he's not Gabriel's Agreste's son for nothing. He watched as Lila smirked in triumph, flipping her brown hair and sashaying away.

Adrien waited until the coast is clear, before quietly walking in the classroom, now wondering why doesn't the school provide any security cameras in the classrooms at all. Plagg merely peeked out from his over-shirt pocket, 'Defending your precious girlfriend aren't you? and you still call her a friend,' he muttered the last part. Months of being Chat Noir had strengthen his senses, hearing Plagg spoke the last part brought a small blush to his cheeks, he didn't deny, only muttering a small, ' I still love Ladybug,' . Plagg merely rolled his eyes, 'Yeah yeah loverboy just go help your princess,' before tucking himself back into his over-shirt.

Gabriel taught his son a little, but he still remembered one of the lectures he gotten, is that to never show mercy to someone who is a threat to you. And Marinette is his sunshine, picturing her unhappy broke his heart, he will not let that happen, ever. Lila needs to learn her lesson, and he will make sure she does.

With a flick of his wrist, the expensive jewelry was fished out of the girl's bag, and without a flicker of remorse in his eyes, Adrien swiftly dropped the necklace into Lila's bag behind. Standing up, he glanced around, making sure no one saw it. Plastering a model smile, he walked out of the classroom, muttering a few words for Plagg to keep his cackling down.

_________

'Hey my dude, where have you been?' Nino questioned, his arm draped around his girlfriend's shoulder. They were in the cafeteria, with Marinette, the girl smiled brightly at the model. Adrien's eyes softened at the sight, as he took a seat beside Nino, replying, 'Oh I was caught up in the class, apparently I mixed up my Physics and Chemistry notes together,' . He glanced to the center, where Lila is surrounded by many students, as she spoke about her "latest" story, one about how she and Ladybug had been hanging out together. Alya would've gone to her side, but when that one time Lila purposely let slip that she knew Rena Rouge and Carapace personally, the reporter then knew that Lila Rossi is a liar. Alya then apologized to Marinette. The four best friends chatted through the lunch hour, and a side Adrien never knew he had is excited for class to be in session again.

__________

Adrien knew Chloe will find out eventually, as her shrieks disrupted everyone in the class. Ms, Bustier isn't in yet, and that gives plenty of time for the drama to be unfold. 'My necklace is gone!' the blond screeched. Sabrina beside her was frantic, searching around the floor for it, and even going as far as going through other's desks to find it. Everyone was silent as she screamed, searching through her purse for it. As predicted by Adrien, Lila spoke up in a timid voice, 'Uhm Chloe? Maybe you could tell us what it looks like so we could help you look for it,' she smiled.

Adrien silently chuckled went Marinette grumbled under her breath cutely. Chloe huffed, ignoring Lila, Sabrina spoke up, 'It's this beautiful Bee pendant, it has the shape of a bee, it's really shiny so I think finding it wouldn't be much of a problem, if you guys could help search for it, it would be great, please?' she clapped both hands together. The class, shrugged and merely started to look around, ignoring Chloe's useless protests of accusations towards everyone in the class.

Adrien's eyes flickered towards Lila, the girl pretended to look around, only for her to put up a fake act. her eyes pretended to lit up, as she spoke up in a small voice, 'I remember seeing that necklace Chloe,'. Chloe placed her hands on her hips, 'Well? Where is it?!' . Lila then pretended to be confused, 'Though I'm not sure why Marinette was holding it earlier,' she then clasped her hands to her mouth in surprised, pretending to have said the wrong thing. The classmates had gasped in horror, and Chloe had screamed towards Marinette, demanding for her to empty her bag. Adrien had to hold in the pain as he watched Marinette's eyes flashed hurt ,confusion and anger. Sabrina walked over to Marinette, muttering a soft apology before opening her bag, dumping the contents out.

The class watched, most of them not believing that their kind Marinette would do such a thing. The search went on for a few moments, as Sabrina shook her head towards Chloe. The blonde girl huffed, 'I knew it, Dupain-Cheng wouldn't have the guts to pull of something like that, so Sabrina, check that girl's bag, or whatever her name is, judging at her tacky clothing she definitely seems like someone who would want to get her peasant hands on my priceless necklace,' she accused, and Adrien had to hide his smile of satisfaction as he watched Lila turned pale, quickly finding up excuses, 'You're accusing me? I...I just want to help Chloe,' she said, her voice trembled a little.

Everyone was either too shocked or too perplexed to step in. Lila is loss at words now, she was sure she slipped the necklace into the bluenette's bag, but Marinette seem surprised too, Lila didn't have time to suspect anyone, as she could feel cold sweat dripping down the back of her neck. Sabrina is walking towards her, and began to reach for her bag. Everyone except the four friends gasped in surprise, as Sabrina pulled out a necklace, to be specific, Chloe's necklace, from the side pocket of Lila's bag. Chloe scowled at Lila, as she snapped her fingers for Sabrina to come forward with her necklace. Most of the students were hurt, while some were even glaring at her. Lila thought fast, she had no time to be panicking now, 'I.. I didn't know how it ended up in my bag, someone must have framed me, please guys you have to believe me,' she sobbed, another act that Adrien and Marinette saw through.

Sweet Rose spoke up, 'Let's give Lila another chance guys? The necklace probably dropped into her bag, and maybe Lila saw wrongly of Marinette, maybe they were both framed?' she spoke softly, and Lila had to sigh through her hands, sweet gullible Rose, so clueless. The rest didn't have a chance to speak up as Ms. Bustier walked in the class, telling everyone to settle down and opening her book to start the lesson. Adrien was satisfied, but he knew Lila wouldn't go down after that, so he decided to keep an eye on her for now. Seeing his princess smile in relief, he knew it was worth it.

Lila simply didn't know what went wrong, she was really sure no one had saw her do it, or did she merely forgot it all? A million questions swirled through her mind. Most of the students still shot her suspicious glances. The girl had no time to ponder on the miscalculations she made, she had to gain back their trust, and she knew just what to do the next day.

__________

'Tikki, what do you think happened today?' Marinette had her chin propped up with one hand, the other holding onto a pen, as she wrote halfway in her diary. Tikki giggled quietly, knowing full well what happened. The Miraculous of the ladybug and the black cat represented yin and yang, meaning that they're one. Both of the Miraculous complete the other. Creation may seem powerful and incredible, when really it's vulnerable in many ways, that's why Destruction is there, to make sure nothing happens to Creation. With Creation comes Destruction, it's been like that ever since the beginning.'I'm not sure Marinette, but I do know Lila finally deserved what she got,', Marinette nodded her head, as kind as she may be, she is thrilled to see the shock look on Lila's face. Tikki float towards Marinette front, 'But you really should be more careful Marinette, Lila may have slipped up today, but we'll never know when she will frame you again,' she warned. Marinette giggled, 'Alright Tikki, I'll be more careful,' she kissed the top of the kwami's head.

__________

Lila was sure, today she will ruin Marinette once and for all, she spent all of last night devising a new plan, but first, she had to earn back the trust of the class. She went for Mylene first, knowing full well that she is just as vulnerable as Rose. Stepping up to her in the locker room, she spoke in her best "sweet" voice, 'Mylene, I just want to say, I really didn't know how Chloe's necklace got into my bag, and I'm really sorry if I broke your trust, I really didn't know what happened,' she pleaded. Mylene, being the sweet girl she is, smiled, 'Of course Lila, we were pretty shocked yesterday, and might have judged you too quickly, I want to apologize too,' she smiled, which Lila inwardly sneered at. She flashed her a sweet smile, grabbing both of her hands, she questioned in an innocent tone, 'So are we still friends?'.

Mylene softly grabbed onto her hands, 'Of course Lila, we're friends,' . Lila scoffed, Who does she think she is? Grabbing my hands like that, these peasants aren't worth near my delicate ones. She hid her disgust as she embraced the shorter girl. Meanwhile, Marinette and Alya were at the half-Chinese's locker, Alya scoffed, covering her mouth with her tablet to speak to Marinette, 'Can you believer her? I can't believe I used to worship her, poor Mylene,' . Marinette rolled her eyes at Lila, she was glad somebody was on her side. 'They'll find out she's lying one day Alya,' the bluenette assured. Alya looked at Marinette and embraced her, 'Girl, I'm so sorry I didn't believe you before, now I know how you feel,' . Marinette smiled sweetly, the opposite of Lila's own smile.

'Hey! How my favourite dudettes hangin?' Nino waved towards them, as the two girls exited the locker room, heading to class. The upcoming DJ slung an arm around Alya, Adrien tailing behind, waving at them softly. Marinette waved back at the two. As the four were about to head up, Marinette halted, 'I left my bag in the locker room again!' she sulked. Alya chuckled, 'You're too cute Mari, go get it, we'll wait for you here,', Marinette nodded and ran, almost tripping over her own feet. Adrien had to ignore the flutter in his heard upon seeing their "Everyday Ladybug" so vulnerable and adorable.

Alya turned towards Adrien, Nino's arm still slung around her, 'So, Sunshine boy, what happened yesterday?' she questioned, Nino looking at the both of them questioningly. Adrien cocked a teasing brow, his Chat Noir side showing a little, 'Whatever do you mean, Alya?' he smiled. Alya jabbed a finger to his chest, 'Don't play dumb with me, Golden Boy, I saw your expression when Lila got exposed, that was your doing wasn't it?' she demanded. Poor Nino didn't understand what's going on, but soon caught up when he recalled yesterday's event, 'Dude? That was you? How?'. Adrien sighed, 'I couldn't let Lila bully Marinette, and I think it's time she learned her lesson, I'm done playing the high road, I won't let anything happen to Marinette,' he spoke in a low voice, not wanting to gain the attention of the students around them. With that he caught up towards Marinette, who is making her way towards them, both of them engaging in a conversation seconds later.

Nino and Alya looked at Adrien shocked, as the two walked up the stairs. The turtle hero and the fox hero following soon after. Nino could then make out a string of words that his girlfriend muttered, 'Just a friend my butt,'.

__________

It's Art class for their first period, and their work is painting. Lila is finding it hard to get to Marinette, Alya and Nino were always with her, and so is Adrien, she fumed as she eyed Adrien leaning towards Marinette to compliment her art, the girl flashing him a grateful smile, a pink hue dusted her cheeks. Adrien is supposed to be fawning over her! Not that good for nothing baker girl! Lila was blinded by anger and jealousy, and the plan she so carefully devised last night was dumped to the side of her brain. The spotted hero in civilian form now began to stand up, and walked out the class to wash her cup filled with dirtied paint water. The moment she passed by Lila, the olive-eyed girl forgot all about staying calm and composed, sticking her foot out, to which Marinette is unaware of (focused on the part where she might accidentally spill the water) and tripped her. Marinette fell, her cup knocked out of her hands, and drenched her body from head to chest.

Students turned their focus from their painting to the fallen girl on the floor, soaking wet at this point. Most of them came to aid her, while some of them chuckled and turned back towards their work, dismissing this as another one of Marinette's clumsiness. Adrien was not convinced, he saw Lila's foot stuck out when his princess tripped. Meanwhile Marinette sneezed from the cold air hitting her drenched body, her hands flew to wrap around herself, shivering. Alya rushed to aid her best friend, but Adrien beat her to it, taking off his white over-shirt and wrapping it around the girl, supporting the girl as he excused both of them to get Marinette cleaned up, despite the pig-tailed girl's flustered state.

Before they left, Adrien shot Lila a look, his usual kind green eyes turned acid-green as he glared at her, a warning glare. Lila flinched a little, but quickly masked it, as she gushed on how clumsy Marinette is, inside she is burning with rage towards the blue-haired girl, What does Adrien see in her?!  She cursed at herself for letting rage blind her. The class isn't much help either, instead they're adding fuel to Lila's fire, gushing on the "Adrienette" moment that just happened. They were all supposed to be shipping her and Adrien! They would make a much better pair than Adrienette!

_________

'I could've sworn I tripped over something,' Marinette spoke from the inside of the girls bathroom, while Adrien stood outside, waiting for her. He had handed her his spare black shirt in his locker, his white over-shirt now fitted to his body once again. The man sighed, 'I saw Lila trip you, are you hurt anywhere?' he spoke with concern. 'I'm fine Adrien, thanks for caring, I have to be careful from where I'm walking now,' she giggled. The door opened as Marinette stepped out, in one of Adrien's shirt, her black jacket sealed in a bag. Marinette rinsed her dirtied hair with clean water to wash the paint off, letting her hair down for ti to dry quicker. Despite sounding normal, the girl is still in a rather flustered state, 'Are you sure about your shirt? I don't think your father would do well with his son's shirt on some random girl,' she tugged on the hem of the large shirt nervously. Despite Adrien's lanky frame, he is still a lot taller and broader than Marinette, and the half-Asian is a petite girl. Adrien fought back the blush, covering his face with his hands, the girl looked so adorable and small he had the urge to just embrace her and never let go. 'It's fine Marinette, besides, my father wouldn't mind, if I explain the situation to him I'm sure he'll understand,' he straightened up. Marinette stammered, flushing red, 'I....B..but I didn't want you to get in trouble because of me! I...I promised to give it back tomorrow!' she squeaked the last part.

The blonde swallowed dryly, muttering something that went unheard by Marinette, 'She's going to be the death of me one day,', staring down at the fidgety girl, he placed a hand on her shoulder, smiling, 'It's okay Marinette, really, keep the shirt, I have more at home, you need it more than I do, now come on, let's get back to class,', he grabbed her hand and led her out, ignoring the slight rustle of movement in his shirt pocket. Marinette is a blushing mess right about now, just when she thought she is moving on, she managed to fall in love with him again, and it's more complicated now as she was just starting to feel butterflies around her kitty too. Tikki peeked out from her holder's purse, giggling quietly at her owner, if only she knew.

__________

Squeals were heard in the art room, which were identified as Alya's and Rose's. The entire class is welcomed by a flushed Marinette and a slightly pink Adrien. The art teacher merely smiled at them as he watched the scene. The blond made sure his pig-tailed princess was back to his seat then went back to his own, where Nino nudged him in the ribs coyly. Alya and the rest of the girls, excluding Lila, Chloe and Sabrina, the brunette is raging at this point (surprisingly there's still no akuma) at her seat, rushed to the bluenette, demanding details. 'Girl explain to us why are you in Adrien Agreste's shirt?!' Alya shook the girl hard. Rose squealed, 'Oh my gosh It's so romantic! He lent you his shirt!' she sighed dreamily, leaning against Juleka, who merely gave a nod of approval towards Marinette. Alix placed both hands behind her head, whistling, 'I do hope you both didn't do anything more~' she teased. Adrien peeked and chuckled to himself when Marinette buried her red face in her hands, and let out a muffled scream, avoiding eye contact from everyone. The black cat in civilian form had to finally admit that Marinette isn't just a friend after all, though he still has feelings for his bugaboo. Mylene gushed, 'You're so adorable Marinette, relax, Alix's just teasing you,' . Marinette tucked half of her face into the large shirt, breathing deeply into the boy's scent, all the while hiding her flushed face from the others.

Lila is fuming, her neatly detailed plan was all ruin, all because of her jealousy. Putting up her fake act, she can't afford to receive anymore of the accusing glances, and strutted off to gush at Marinette, biting her tongue in disgust.

__________

It's P.E. The teacher had decided with dodgeball, the most feared yet celebrated sport among the students. What's worse is that she announced the rules to be different. Where one boy and girl were teamed together. But, alas, exceptions were made. The rules were simple, the boys can get hit by the balls, while the girls are to throw the balls, but if the girls do get hit, then the pair is out. Lila, once again lied about her Arthritis acting up again.

The P.E. teacher was, well, you could say a romantic that loves shipping students together. She paired up, of course, the heroes of Paris, Adrien and Marinette, followed by Alya and Nino, Kim and Alix, Max and Sabrina, Mylene and Ivan, Juleka and Rose (the teacher made an exception, Juleka took up the role of the boy, protecting sweet Rose from the rage of dodgeballs.). Poor Nathaniel got paired with Chloe, much to his dismay. Lila's head snapped up, once hearing Adrien and Marinette's name together. She couldn't do anything but just watch as Adrien pulled Marinette to their spot, with Marinette beginning her self-conscious rambles on how she would be slowing Adrien down.

Marinette knew she was clumsy, as the game started, her guilt built up as Adrien shielded her from the incoming balls, with most of them knowing Marinette's high chance of slipping up and tumbling over her own feet. Adrien, with his cat-like reflexes worked perfectly to prevent the balls from hitting his princess.

Lila watched in jealousy, as Adrien grabbed the bluenette's hips, twirling her behind him, not even her anger towards Ladybug can suppress the rage for Marinette inside Lila. Soon, a few pairs were out. Poor Nathaniel had to kneel down to apologize to Chloe when failing to protect her from the incoming ball fired by Alya. Juleka and Rose were soon out, Rose squealing many apologies for not being able to throw the balls correctly, Juleka silencing her with a cheek kiss. Alix and Kim were on fire, aiming to destroy every last one of the pairs. Their latest victims were Max and Sabrina, both laughed a little at their defeat, joining the others to the benches.

Alya and Nino, and Adrien and Marinette, engaged in a little war, where they keep firing balls at each other. Alya mocked the poor clumsy girl poking behind form Adrien's shoulder. 'Come on Mari, look at poor Adrien, he looks bruised all over, are you going to just stand behind him and let him take all the hits by himself?' she high-fived Nino, who just merely chuckled as Adrien shot them an annoyed glance. Marinete grumbled, deciding to let her Ladybug confidence take over her for just this once.

Mylene and Ivan were out soon, when the shorter girl tripped over a ball, causing her to fall, the ball rolling over to Lila's foot. Once Ivan and Mylene were settled on the bench, Alix called out from the center, 'Lila! Could you throw the ball over here?! Me and Kim are going to pulverized those two!' she slammed her palm with her fist, as Kim gathered up the scattered balls. Lila smiled, an idea popping up in her twisted, evil mind. Grabbing the ball, she threw it as hard as she could, but not aiming at the sporty pair, instead, at Marinette, who is wide open for the ball to hit her. Lila made it seem like she missed her aim, as the class watched in horror, the ball merely a few seconds away from Marinette's head.

Adrien's cat senses picked up the ball coming towards Marinette. Reaching one hand to push Marinette behind him by the waist, he blocked the ball with his arm, his glare fixated on Lila. Marinette barely knew what was going on, she stared at the man before her with wide eyes. Lila gritted her teeth, harming Marinette isn't as easy as she thought it would be, as Adrien seems to have appointed himself Marinette's knight in shining armor (knight in shining black leather, to be more precise), but Lila didn't seem to learn her lesson just yet, Adrien had confirmed so himself, the evil glint in Lila's eyes showed that she is stubborn, and not the kind he sees in his lady and Marinette's eyes. Lila smiled apologetically, 'Oops! My Arthritis is acting up again! I hope you're alright Adrien and Marinette!'.

Adrien put on his model facade, 'It's all good Lila, thanks for the ball, now we have extras to defeat the remaining pairs!' he smiled. Kim and Alix scoffed from the center, 'As if!'. The three pairs went through war, Marinette beginning to feel more and more confident during their battle, laughing and throwing balls more frequently. Adrien saw as Marinette giggled, one of her balls hitting Alya's elbow, to which both of them yelled out words of frustration. The sight of her sweaty and laughing reminded him so much of his lady he couldn't help but fall deeper in her spell, he knew he was screwed once he stared into her bluebell eyes that seem to resemble Ladybug so much.

Kim's shout broke Adrien out of his trance, as he looked toward Alix, who is armed and ready to attack them, determined to remain superior in the battlefield of sports. What she didn't know, (but will soon find out when she gets her Miraculous) is that she's facing Paris's beloved badass duo.

As if their Ladybug and Chat Noir senses kicked in, Adrien blocked the ball, Marinette coming out from behind, holding one of the balls. The adrenaline flowing through her veins as she momentarily forgot about everything, focusing only on the target in front of them. Tossing up the ball, she jumped up, her form of hitting the ball reflected through Adrien's pupils. He had forgotten all about everything, admiring the beautiful sight of the girl he had called his "Everyday Ladybug". Marinette drew her right arm back, spiking the ball towards Alix, who her and Kim never expected to see it coming. The entire moments was so fast, the class was in awe. They had seldom gotten to see this side of Marinette, and they had cherished it.

The ball hit Alix's hip, which Kim failed to shield her from the shock he had just received. When Marinette dropped to the ground, Adrien had lifted her up and spun her around, both laughing in victory. The entire class, excluding Lila again, had rushed towards them, celebrating their success, thought Kim and Alix began a playful argument on who wasn't fast enough.

Lila gritted her teeth in anger, her olive eyes squinted in jealousy. The saying of "Jealousy is an ugly thing" is proven to be right. Lila had lost all sense of logic, blinded by jealousy, she wanted Marinette done.

_________

'Still a friend to you kid?' Plagg teased, holding onto his daily dose of camembert, Adrien grumbled into his pillow, muttering 'Are her eyes always this blue? Am i falling in love? What happened to Ladybug? Can you be in love with two at the same time? What's happening to me?' the question flowed out of his mouth. Plagg laughed hysterically, 'Kid, maybe you should try going for pig-tails this time, imagine, all the good bread to go with cheese!'. he gobbled down the smelly cheese. Adrien lift his head to face Plagg, 'You always think with your stomach,'. Plagg shrugged, 'So what are you doing with the sausage girl?' the god of destruction started calling her  that after getting a good look at her hair, he really thought it was sausages hanging from her hair.

'She seems pretty angry today, I think it's only a matter of time before she completely loses it, we'll take the high road for now, I never thought annoying someone could be this fun,' he chuckled. Plagg settled himself onto the boy's bed, 'I guess they can strip off your title as Sunshine Boy,'. Adrien merely chuckled and settled down, staring at the ceiling, sorting out his feelings.

__________

Adrien was right, Lila had lost her temper days after, all her built up lies and threats fall into the ditch. She let her emotions take over and lost everything she once had.

It was during school when some students had extra classes, the Akuma Class had one extra period in Chemistry, as they went to their locker to gather their things for the class.

Lila has had it, she spent the whole day tripping Marinette, even going as far as spreading rumors, and framing her. But it always didn't go her way, if anything it made Marinette more loved, and she had to control herself from pouncing on her when having to watch the class gush on how close the bluenette and blond had gotten. She knew Adrien is preventing everything she is planning, constantly in the right place at the right time, she was furious at Adrien for stopping her. He was suppose to be fawning over her like the other mindless idiots! Seeing the two of them so close together at Marinette's locker, with Marinette leaning back a little to show Adrien something form her sketchbook, the man leaning in a little, his chin almost touching the girl's shoulder. It was such a sickeningly sweet posture that it practically radiates diabetes. Alya had her phone out while the girls gushed over it.

Deciding it was the last straw, and momentarily forgetting the presence of practically the whole class in the locker room. Stomping over to them, she screeched like a spoiled child, or in most people's case, a banshee. 'I have had it with you Dupain-Cheng! You were supposed to be an outcast! Alone! I was supposed to be there next to Adrien! Not you! I didn't plan all of this just for you to get closer to him! Ughh! I hate you!' she screamed it all at a stunned Marinette.

Before Marinette could respond, Lila continued, letting her rage completely take over, 'And you! You're supposed to be fawning over me! Like the mindless idiots in the class! Not going over to her! She's a nobody! What's so great about her anyway! I'm a model! I worked with the famous Gabriel! All she ever does is doodle some ugly designs and bake bread! I'm the one who's worthy of the Agreste name! Me! If you have gotten together with me I would've actually met Jagged Stone and Prince Ali, then I wouldn't  have to lie about this! I wouldn't have to lie about all these stupid diseases and everyone would be flocking over to me! Not this girl you called your "Everyday Ladybug" !' she finished, panting, challenging Adrien, who suddenly had his arm around Marinette, both of them glaring at the brunette.

Lila froze, she looked around her, the entire Akuma class stared at her, shock. Alya had her phone out. Oh no, she messed up, it was all going so well, and she let her anger control her. She now wished for an akuma to take over her already. Quickly thinking of a new excuse, she spoke with a paled face, 'Oh no! I let my disease take over me again! I'm sorry, I swear I didn't mean what I said to Marinette and Adrien! My lying disease had acted up again. Please understand!' she cried out, fake tears streaming down her face.

Alix broke the silence, screaming, 'So Marinette was right all along! You are a liar! I can't believe you!'.

'So uncool Lila!'

'You've been lying all this time! And we thought Marinette was jealous! Oh Poor Marinette!'

'There is a 99.97% chance that there is no such disease Lila,'

'How could you Lila! We would've accepted you just fine when you don't lie!'

Lila's eyes widened, 'N...no guys! It really is a disease! Please! You have to believe me!' she cried out, her face turning as white as a sheet of paper. Nino called out, 'I don't think the word "believe" would suit this conversation right now Lila, you just lied to all of us, and you even framed our dudette Marinette for all those horrible things! That's low!' the DJ shook his head in disappointment.

Lila's shocked expression morphed into something uglier, anger, turning around, she screamed at Marinette, 'It's all your fault! If you weren't in the way! I would've been in the spotlight! I hate you! You're nothing but a nuisance in our lives! I wish you were gone! I don't get what Adrien sees in you!' she was about to scream more when she flinched at the sound of a fist against the locker door. Looking to wards the source, she was greeted by the hovering figure of one Adrien Agreste, his fist still remaining against the metal material of the locker, his eyes, acid-green, glinting dangerously at her, 'Shut up Lila,' he growled, something that the others were not aware that he could create.

'W..what?' Lila was speechless. Adrien spoke up in a low voice, 'I said shut up, you don't get to talk about our "Everyday Ladybug" like that, nor do you have the privilege. I like her, you want to know why? Because unlike you, Marinette doesn't go lying about everything, and she actually works hard to achieve her dreams. She actually met Jagged Stone, but she didn't brag it all out like you, she's humble, she's kind, and she puts other's needs before herself, and, Rossi, that is why Marinette would always be a thousand times more better than you. I'm not stupid Rossi, I know you've been spying on my on behalf of my dad, you manipulated him to get closer to him, so don't go spouting all that nonsense of you wanting the best for me, you don''t care about me, you just want my last name, and I despise people like you. So don't talk about my princess like that, is that clear?' he finished. Marinette's eyes lit up at the mention of her nickname. Only one person has ever called me princess, she flushed red at the realization.

Adrien is Chat Noir!

I've been rejecting him for him!

And he just openly confessed to me, if this is a dream don't wake me up?

Lila's eyes were wide, she didn't seem to hear the "Since when did you call Marinette princess?!" from Alya behind her, all she could focus was the fact that her future would be ruin, all the fame and fortune she ever dreamed off, gritting her teeth, she pointed towards him, showing her true colors at last, 'Really?! You don't know what I'm capable of Agreste, I could get you out of school with just a few of my words! Your father wouldn't even know what's coming! Ha! Do you think I really liked you?! You're just a stepping stone towards my popularity! And here I thought you were perfect?! If it weren't for your last name then I would've just turn you into one of my minions!'

Adrien's eyes reflected hurt, he hated being recognized only for his name, it makes him think that all he's ever good for is his name, not what he truly is. Lila noticed this, sneering, she mocked, 'What Agreste, you're going to hurt me? Slap me? Think before you act blondie, I can tarnish your reputation by reporting that you, a boy, hit me, a delicate woman, imagine what would the press think of you?' she cackled.

Marinette has had it, no one, and she means no one, talks to her precious kitty like that! Drawing her hand back, she slapped the girl across her face cleanly. Lila stumbled back, while everyone widened their eyes at the force coming from the petite girl. The Italian touched her now red cheek, anger rising quickly, how dare that peasant slap her! Before she could take it out, Marinette beat her to it, and the force of her voice caused everyone to silence themselves immediately.

'Adrien can't hit you, but I can! How dare you! You witch! Using Adrien and my friends like that as your pawns! They're not some dolls you can control! Can't you see you're hurting them! I would've tolerate you if you target me only! But you're the kind that thinks of yourself as some goddess or ruler, that you're above us all! Manipulating us, lying to us! You really are the worst of the worst! Adrien knew you were lying, but being the sweet and kind person he is he gave you chance for you to change, but what did you do?! You used this kindness to your advantage! Adrien isn't some kind of trophy for you to hang around your arm! He's a real person who just wants to live a normal life, instead people like you used him, turned him into some kind of eye candy! Can't you see he needs emotional support?! He needs someone there for him, his father is always busy and he just lost his mother! He's hurting inside, and you don't even acknowledge that fact! Well let me tell you this Lila, we are not minions who you can control! You will either apologize to them or stay an outcast! Unlike Adrien, I am not that kind to let you off the hook!' Marinette finished, out of breath.

Adrien stared at the girl, the sight of her standing up to him almost made his eyes water, she's simply the most amazing girl he met besides Ladybug, he wondered to himself on how he didn't notice this goddess of a woman before.The confidence, the voice, the posture, it reminded him so much of his lady, he had never fallen more harder than ever for a girl, not even Ladybug crossed his mind as his eyes only ever saw Marinette Dupain-Cheng right now.

Lila had her eyes wide open once again, she was pale, and everyone could almost hear a whimper escaping her lips. The class stared at Marinette, their class president is incredible! The liar had to mutter a small apology half-heartedly and ran out, ashamed and embarrassed.

The situation was so tense they were surprise an akuma didn't appear already. Alix cut it off with a wolf-whistle, Alya shoved her phone towards Nino and ran towards Marinette, 'Girl that was so awesome! You're so amazing! Just like Ladybug!' she hugged the half-Asian. Soon after the rest of the girls joined, thanking Marinette. Everyone just stood there thanking their beloved class president, well, almost everyone, Adrien still had that lovesick gaze on her, which did not go unnoticed by Alya.

The Ladyblogger placed her hands on her hips, smirking teasingly, 'So, Sunshine Boy, what's all this about liking my girl Marinette and calling her princess? Isn't she "just a friend"?' she quoted. Adrien snapped out of his trance, face burning red as he stammered some quiet words out, covering his face. Rose squealed, 'You do like Marinette! Oh it's so romantic on how you defended each other! You're just like Ladybug and Chat Noir!'. The rest of the class nodded in approval. 'It's like they're the civilian versions of Paris's superheroes!' Mylene giggled.

Both Marinette and Adrien took this as a suspicion on their superhero identities, flushing red, they held their hands up and denied everything in panic. Their friends laughed at the two's reaction, 'You two really are made for each other! Just kiss already!' Alix called out, fist bumping Kim in the process. They flushed red again, as Chloe called out, 'Ugh! As if I'm seeing those two lock lips! Sabrina! Let's go! We're late for Chemistry!'  she snapped her fingers, beckoning the girl to follow her. The class gasped in surprise, they were approximately 15 minutes late for their class! Yells of surprise were heard and within seconds the locker room was empty, except for the bluenette and blond.

'Adrien? Did you really mean what you said earlier?' Marinette bit her lip, looking down at the ground shyly. The blonde lifted the girl's chin up slowly, in a soft voice, he spoke, 'Yes, I really like you Marinette, and I realized I had been for awhile, you're the most amazing girl I've ever met, and I have been pretty blind for not noticing such a wonderful girl in front of me, I'll be delighted if you'll return my feelings,' he gave her a shy smile. Marinette would've exploded, but she bear the thought that the man in front of her was her partner, the one that had been in love with her alter-ego for so long, confessed to her twice, and her heart swelled at the feeling. 'Of course Adrien, you have no idea how long I've been in love with you, and yes, you have been pretty blind to not notice,' she giggled at the last part. 'We'll talk about this later, okay? We're both really late for class,' Marinette began to leave, but Adrien stopped her to thank her once again.

'Marinette, i just want to thank you for standing up to me, it really means a lot to me, You're really amazing you know that?' he added the last part with a soft smile, one that the spotter-hero had seen frequently on a certain feline-hero. Adrien rubbed the back of his neck shyly, Marinette smiled, 'It's alright Adrien, plus,' she leaned towards his ear, whispering the last part clearly, 'I couldn't let her bad-mouthed my chaton that way, could I?' giggled quietly to herself, she walked out, not before shooting a quick wink towards the model.

Adrien stood there, frozen. Did she just call me? Only one person calls me that. No, it cant be. I can't be that lucky. Then, if she says she's been in love with me for awhile, then that means, she rejected me, for me?  Piecing the puzzles together, he came to a conclusion: Marinette is Ladybug. Why wouldn't she be? they're both brave, courageous, kind and Adrien had to say, extremely gorgeous. Hearing Plagg stifle a laughter inside his pocket, his suspicions were correct. He's the holder of the black cat Miraculous, the literal owner of the God of destruction and bad luck, how could he be this lucky?

Smiling in a lovesick way, he promised to himself that once the pig-tailed girl was his, he would never let her go, not ever again.

(This is just a one-shot to giving our heroes some justice, absolutely no Lila hate)

[writeofmind]

what could’ve been

Genre: fluff, angst :(

Pairing: Jisoo x Reader

anon: Also, please write up some Jisoo angst 🥺 thank you

A/N: this is a somewhat short and sweet angst, but it hurts my feelings so i ~respectfully~ hope that it hurts yours too. lol, enjoy <3

-

When you thought of Kim Jisoo, you thought of innocence, excited little dogs that looked a lot like cotton balls, sunshine, and heart shaped smiles. You thought of hang outs after school, when the two of you would excitedly make your way to her house, only to spend hours hanging upside down on her bed talking and giggling about nothing. You thought about your weekend outings, full of delicious food and even more delicious desserts after because she was always so curious about the shops that lined the streets.

You thought about your best friend. 

Your best friend that you told everything to, the person that you spent every waking moment with, the person that you grew to love more than life itself.

Having grown up as neighbors since you were children, it wasn’t a surprise that you two had grown to become practically inseparable even in your teenage years. 

In elementary school, you two would always play together during recess, pretending to be an audience and a star, always cheering her on her mini performances and being her #1 fan. 

“I want to be an idol someday, y/n!” she would say. You were always there as her support, always encouraging her that would be the biggest idol there would ever be. You had no doubts about it.

In your middle school days, the two of you only grew more invested in the entertainment industry, and Jisoo only grew ambitious as years passed by. You would go to each other’s houses with news of a new group, always watching and studying the way they danced, learning all sorts of choreography to see if you had what it took.

Jisoo always did. Whenever you watched her dance, you couldn’t stop the sparkles in your eyes as you gazed at her every movement, wondering how anyone could dance in a way that she did.

You two shared your first kiss when you were 14 years old.

It was unexpected, really. You two were just sitting in your room with your laptop open in front of you, watching yet another music video from a big entertainment. Nothing prompted it. You were simply shoulder to shoulder, and you looked at her to see if she had been paying attention to the way the group danced— then there she was, lips pressed against yours, hands cradling each other’s faces.

You shared many more after that. Virtually nothing was different between you two, so you never felt the need to address if you two were anything. You were still best friends— all that changed was that now you held hands as you walked along the shops on the street. You kissed between commercials of the videos you were watching, you stroked each other’s cheeks as you laid together.

The two of you had rings together. Nothing serious, just a matching set, and you would always kiss the ring that was on her finger as you stroked her hand with your thumb.

You were 16 years old when your heart sank to your stomach.

I’m going to audition, y/n! Jisoo came to you with papers in her hands, and she jumped as she spoke. I’m going to audition for YG entertainment!

You jumped along with her. It was the start of her career, and you were so excited for her. During this time, though, she needed to dedicate her time to practicing and rehearsing. Your hangouts became less and less, and late night facetime calls became more frequent. You didn’t mind, though, as long as you could see the smiles of excitement on her face before you went to sleep. 

It always warmed your heart when you saw her playing with the ring on her finger through the screen. Jisoo always made sure to thank you for being patient with her, always expressing how much she appreciated that you would stay up until the sky was a light blue just to talk to her. 

Weeks passed until it was finally her time to audition, and you were sure to stay awake until she was able to tell you the news. You waited anxiously, pacing back and forth beside your phone until her familiar ringtone went off, and you practically dove to answer it.

Y/n, I passed!!

Your mouth fell open before the two of you began jumping and screaming together over the phone.

No way!! What happens now!

Jisoo explained what the upcoming events would entail. You smiled as she spoke with such emotion, practically near tears the entire time she gushed about the audition.

But, you couldn’t help but notice that her ring wasn’t on her finger anymore.

Hey, did you lose your ring?

Jisoo looked surprised that you even noticed. She simply smiled though, and shook her head. 

No, I didn’t, y/n. I just took it off just in case I did.

You nodded, though didn’t quite understand what she meant. Jisoo continued talking, but as you were lost in your thoughts, you heard —can’t have outside communication.

Wait, what? So we won’t be able to talk? What does that mean for us? You were so happy, so so proud of her, but you couldn’t help the little voice at the back of your head, selfish and sad. Jisoo gave you a reassuring smile and dug the ring out of her pocket to show you, giving it a little kiss.

Let’s just see where this takes us, okay? We’ll figure it out.

And, for the most part, you two did. The calls may not have been every night, but she found ways to talk to you through a very old ipod touch. She would recount her days of training to you, telling you what she ate in full detail, what she had to practice, what they asked of her.

She would call you crying, telling you how hard it was, how much she missed you, missed home, and how sometimes, she wanted to quit altogether. 

You didn’t want that to happen. She had worked too hard to get to where she was. As much as you did want her to come home and back to you, you always pushed aside your selfish thoughts, and you encouraged her.

As time went on, Jisoo began popping up in commercials on T.V, music videos, advertisements, even a drama. Your heart beat with excitement every single time you saw her and always made sure to keep a mental note to tell her where and when you did.

You were 21 when your heart was broken.

You remember, it was early August when you received her call. You haven’t been able to take to her in weeks, and you quickly answered the incoming call.

Jisoo? Hey! Your voice was as cheerful as it always was, I’ve been seeing you everywhere lately. I’m so proud of you!

Jisoo was giggling as she thanked you, but she soon went silent. You ticked your head to the side and asked what was wrong.

Then, a smile crossed her face, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes the way it always did. That was when she told you that she would finally be debuting, and in only a few days, no less.

Your eyebrows shot up to your hairline and you wondered why she didn’t seem more ecstatic. You congratulated her nonstop, babbling on about how much you knew she could do it, how she was just that much closer to being the world’s top idol and just how much you were proud of her. 

You paused when you saw the solemn look on her face. 

What’s wrong?

Y/n... after today, we can’t contact each other anymore.

Your heart was caught in your throat, your stomach felt as if it flipped upside down. You stared at her through the phone and hoped she would say that you two would find a way, just like you had all these years. You hoped that she’d say she’d stay, she’d fight for it. 

The call ended hours later.

When you thought of Kim Jisoo, you thought of your best friend. You thought of your late night calls, the hushed whispers of love declarations you shared, the comforting sounds of her breathing as you fell asleep on the phone. 

When you saw Kim Jisoo in all her glory on the big screen, you could only see the world’s biggest idol, with an all too familiar ring still sitting on her finger.

[hailbop1701]

25 Days of FicMas

December 5th prompt: Stuck in a room with someone you hate on Christmas

Word Count: 3,077

Lockdown

I know this late! I'm so sorry but my laptop decided it wanted to start a stupidly long update that took the entire day! 🤦‍♀️ I don't really like what I wrote but here it is anyway! Not my best work but someday I'll make it up by writing a detailed chapter Enemies to lovers fic. I promise

-H❤🖖

It was holiday time on the Enterprise, everyone seemed to be in a mood to celebrate. Well almost everyone, the Enterprises infamous grouchy CMO was in anything but a cheerful mood. He scowled and barked at everyone, from ensign to the Captain, so most just kept out of his way. Nurse Chapel clucked her tongue disapprovingly, “I know that this is his least favorite time of year but honestly!” she said resisting the strong urge to stomp her foot in frustration. She watched as another young ensign tearfully left the medbay; the girl quickly rushed past the Captain as he entered the room. He watched as the ensign left with a look of shocked concern, “he in his office?” Jim asked almost casually. Chapel huffed, “Yes, that was his last appointment of the night. He has officially locked himself away in his office,” she said dryly. Kirk smiled his thousand-watt grin. “Good I need your help,” he said bouncing on the balls of his feet like an excited child. Christine Chapel looked at the man skeptically, “and why would I do such a thing Captain?” she asked as she cleaned up the nurse’s station. Kirk leaned in as if what he was about to tell her was top secret, “It’s about Bones...and a certain engineer,” he said in a sing-song voice. 

Christine perked up and smiled wickedly, “Oh please tell me we fix what’s between them!” she groaned slapping down a padd scaring a nearby orderly. Kirk smirked, “Oh I guarantee it will fix things! They say that they hate each other, but everyone - even Spock can see that it’s a bunch of bull,” he said keeping his voice low. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the CMO’s office door open, “I’ll send you the details later,” he whispered winking. “Jim stop harassing my nurses!” McCoy snapped stalking towards them deep scowl on his face. Holding up his hand in a placating gesture Jim grinned, “Just looking for you Bones!” he said giving his friend a smile. 

Over the next few days, Jim Kirk and Christine Chapel exchanged messages and met in quiet rec rooms and corridors to finalize their plan. On the day that they were to execute, “Operation:  Lockdown,”. Christine sat at the nurse’s station, keeping a casual eye on the CMO’s office waiting for McCoy to leave for his usual lunch break. When he left she quickly sent a message to Kirk telling him to “get a move on,”  she watched as Kirk quickly jogged through Medbay’s doors into Leonard’s office; Christine watched the clock anxiously. Kirk swiftly left the office and up to the desk grinning wickedly, “part two,” he whispered before leaving to the mess hall to catch a quick meal. Christine smiled to herself as she tapped away at the most recent crew physicals. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

It had been a hellish day for you from the moment you woke up that morning, first you slept in making you twenty minutes late for your shift. Scotty wasn’t pleased but he let it slide due to the Holiday, and as a passive-aggressive punishment he gave you grunt work. A sudden shock brought you back to the present, cursing you shook your hand hoping to rid it of the tingling pain. A chirp from your belt made you want to cry in exasperation, flipping open your communicator you grimaced at the possible next project. “(Y/L/N) here,” you sighed pinching the bridge of your nose. “Lassie I need you to head to medical, McCoy’s replicator is on the fritz. The staff would love for you to make it hasty if ye can,” Scotty said sounding almost amused. Suppressing a groan you nodded to no one in particular, “Yeah Scotty I got it,” you muttered clearly unhappy with the prospect of going to Medbay; not that going to Medbay was a problem it was just the possibility of seeing the CMO. Putting away your tools, you close up the now functioning console. Waving goodbye to the people in security you nervously scurried to the Medical Bay. Clutching your toolkit in a white knuckle grasp your mind drifted remembering exactly how you came to be on bad terms with Doctor Leonard McCoy. 

It was after the Enterprise was rebuilt; being stationed on Yorktown already, you were offered a position on her crew. Montgomery Scott came to you with the Captain in tow to ask if you personally. Surprised at first you couldn’t help but beam and be excited at the opportunity. Sometime after accepting the position as Mr. Scotts second you were informed that you had to get a general physical done; sighing at the prospect of having to deal with Yorktown medical you kept a constant mantra in your head, “Enterprise, Enterprise, Enterprise,” as if you could click your heels and you’d be right at home. Squaring your shoulders you checked in at the front desk; the receptionist smiled trying to hide a sympathetic cringe, she indicated that you should go to the twelfth floor where the Enterprises primary physician would see you. Hesitantly you said your thanks put off by the woman's attitude and moved to the elevators with a new nervousness. 

A kind nurse (who turned out to be the one and only Christine Chapel) waited for you by the elevators. Looking up from her padd she had smiled at you warmly; most likely to put you at ease. “Lieutenant, lovely to see you,” she said, tone ringing like a bell; you smiled back before following her to an empty exam room. After weighing you and taking your height she gestured for you to hop up on the exam bed, smiling she looked up from her padd, “Alright, just wait here and Doctor McCoy will be in shortly,” and you were left alone to your thoughts. You had of course heard of the infamous Doctor of the Enterprise; the stories had to be exaggerated. At least you hoped they were. The sound of a door opening made you jump slightly; turning enough to see a dark-haired man wearing medical whites reading a padd. He was quite handsome if you were being honest with yourself. The only thing that threw you off was the deep scowl darkening his face. “Lieutenant (Y/L/N), I see that you had your yearly physical last month and that you’ve recently been here for...a broken arm,” he said in a rather nice southern drawl. You nodded, “Yes sir, broke it while fixing the wiring between...nevermind,” you laughed nervously at your babbling. McCoy raised a single eyebrow and managed to keep his scowl in place, “Engineer, huh?” he asked plucking a medical tricorder from it’s charging station across the room. You nodded sitting up straighter as he came back twiddling with the controls, he ran the scanner over your body and quickly took note of what it told him. “You idiot engineers are almost in my Medbay more than security,” he said gruffly. The statement made you bristle slightly a scowl now adorning your face, “We do what we need to, to keep things running.” you muttered sitting ramrod straight.  Doctor McCoy snorted, “ you’re all reckless and have the self-preservation instincts of a rock,” he said, not caring at all if you were insulted. Gritting your teeth you fully glared at the man now, “Yeah well Doctors can be pompous egotistical assholes but you don’t see me complaining,” you said cocking your head to the side as if you were daring him to retaliate. The Doctor glared sticking a hypo sharply into your neck. You refused to flinch or complain. Doctor McCoy tossed away what seemed to be a vaccination and dismissed you with a simple, “You’re clear,” 

You stopped before you hit the Medbay doors; blinking the memory away, you square your shoulders and headed in. You’ve been on the Enterprise for a year and you still argued with the CMO. You did your best to avoid him but something about him keeps bringing you back. The verbal sparring matches were fun and pretty legendary if you paid attention to crew gossip. He wasn’t bad to look at either, but for the life of you, you couldn’t stand the man. Literally. You couldn’t really stand in his presence, your knees would go weak and you constantly felt like you needed to throw up. Uhura and Christine laughed when you told them, they would declare that “You like him!” but you refused to admit anything of the sort. Walking into Medbay, you saw Christine puttering around checking off various things on her padd; upon seeing you, she glided over with a smile on her face. “Thank you so much for making this a priority!” she said giving you a gentle hug. Hugging her back you looked around noticing that Medbay was pretty much empty. “Where is everyone?” you asked walking with Christine to McCoy’s office, “The Holiday party,” she said giving you a look; as if you were supposed to know that. And she would be right, you winced at the reminder, “Kinda glad for my punishment now,” you muttered dryly. 

You breathed a sigh of relief when you saw that it was empty. “Doctor McCoy is a terror this time of year and a broken replicator means no coffee, which means my life is hell until it’s fixed,” Christine said grumpily with a roll of her eyes. You snickered at the prospect of seeing the Doctor suffer through caffeine withdrawals, “I’ll do my best,” you said after taking a quick look at the machine. Christine grinned, “I’ll leave you to it,” she gushed before rushing back out into the ward. You shook your head, ‘she’s acting weirder than she usually does,’ 

Prying open the maintenance hatch you waved a hand back and forth at the smoke that emitted from the wiring. “Great,” you muttered as you pulled a little flashlight from your kit. Turning it on you peered inside careful of the now exposed wires, “what in the freaking hell,” you said mystified. Putting the flashlight between your teeth so you could use both hands you started to painstakingly pick through the circuitry. At the end of your first hour, you had almost taken apart the replicator entirely, “I’m gonna need all new parts,” you mumbled around the end of the flashlight. “I swear I’m not going to help him when he comes crawling to me tomorrow with a hangover,” a distinct southern voice grumbled from outside the door; of course you didn’t hear him until he was already in the room cursing up a storm startled by your appearance. Yelping at the sudden noise you dropped the flashlight from your mouth and wrenched your arm free of the replicator’s insides. Yelping a second time you hold your now heavily bleeding arm, “damn it!” you cursed irritated. You heard McCoy rush towards you, he quickly placed a hand towel from the nearby sink and placed it over the deep laceration. “Keep pressure on it,” he whispered sounding almost apologetic. You replaced his hand with yours wincing only a little at the burning sensation running up your arm into your shoulder. You watched as Doctor McCoy moved quickly for the door but slammed into it because it didn’t open for him. “What the hell?” he whispered and continuously hit the door control only for it to keep denying him. He looked over at you and you shrugged, “don’t look at me,” you said butt hitting the floor feeling light-headed.

Leonard cursed again; giving up on the door he pulled open multiple desk drawers looking for his mission first aid kit. After he found it he rushed to your side again, “How are you feeling?” he asked even though he was running a tricorder over you. “Today has been shitty,” you grunted tossing your wire cutters back into your tool bag. Leonard hummed in agreement as he bandaged your arm and giving you a hypo to help staunch the bleeding even further and another for the pain. “Thanks,” you sighed holding your arm protectively to your chest, Doctor McCoy huffed and sat back so he was facing you. You both looked up when the lights flickered off and into emergency lighting. “Typical,” McCoy muttered pinching the bridge of his nose, “The room is in Lockdown,” you observed mildly. Leonard scowled at your detachment, “Do you have a communicator on you?” he asked holding back his insults and sarcasm. Rolling your eyes you pulled the device from it's hiding place on your belt, flipping it open you hoped to reach Scotty. Nothing. Gritting your teeth you tried Uhura. Nothing again. Taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly you tried one more time; to whoever was on comm tonight. Nothing for briefest of moments before the voice of Kevin Riley filtered through, “Kevin!” you gasped relieved, “hey I have a problem. I’m stuck in the CMO’s office can you send someone to help?” you asked sweetly. There was a pause over the line and the sound different voices whispering, “Yeah sure (Y/N) but it might take a while, we’re on a skeleton crew tonight. I’ll see what I can do!” Kevin said, his voice going pitchy at the end. 

“He just lied through his teeth,” McCoy hissed irritation showing on his face and you offered your comm so he could try. “Nothing I can do; Jim is already too far gone and is probably the one who did all of this. And he most likely has an order out preventing anyone from helping us.”  you pulled out your padd, hitting a few commands you pulled up to what looks to be a timer. You bit your lip, “yeah looks like we’re in timeout,” you said carefully leaning back so you were against the wall by the broken replicator. “Means he broke your caffeine provider,” you joked half-heartedly making the doctor shake his head ruefully. “Of all the stupid things…” he sighed. You observed him for a moment wanting to say something. Deciding against it you looked down at your scuffed up boots, “This has to be a great Christmas, stuck in a room with someone you hate,” 

McCoy’s head snapped in you up at your statement, his green eyes flickered between so many emotions you couldn’t keep track. He settled on regret and shame, “I don’t hate you,” he whispered looking down at his clasped hands. You were about to laugh but he continued cautiously as if he were choosing his words with great care. “Though you are a pain in my ass, I don’t hate you. On the day we met, I got some bad news and I took it out on you. I am sorry for that.” he said taking a breath he looked up into your eyes again. “I Found out that I can’t see my daughter unless my ex allows it,” he said hoping the explanation would ease your mind as to why he had been such an ass to you. Thinning your lips you felt sympathy wash through you, knowing that’s not what he’s after you slowly crawled to sit next to him, “I’m sorry that happened, I guess that first impression made it hard for us to get along,” you said thinking about all the times you riled the man up over the past year. There was a tense silence for the next few minutes as you both tried to figure out how to mend the bridges you had burned. “I’m sorry,” you both said at the same time creating more awkwardness. Chuckling you picked at the bandages on your arm, the blood had already seeped through creating a giant red splotch, McCoy batted your hand away and gently tightened them again. “How about we start over?” he suggested after he was done. A smile crossed your lips, “Nice to meet you, I’m Lieutenant (Y/N) (Y/L/N)” you said holding out your hand. 

McCoy smiled back taking your much smaller hand into his, “Leonard McCoy,” he whispered. “You know I’m going to need help dealing with the Captain after this, you in?” Leonard’s smile turned into a grin, “Darlin’ it would be my pleasure,” he drawled. The sudden pet name made your cheeks go red, Leonard didn’t seem to mind in the slightest. He loved it when you blushed, whether it was from anger or embarrassment. He listened amused as you muttered about programming an alarm to play Klingon death metal loudly in Kirk’s quarters at three in the morning. You trailed off after trying to explain how you would do it, sheepishly you looked up through your lashes seeing Leonard looking down at you with complete wonderment. “What?” you laughed and he shook his head like he was trying to shake himself out of a daze, “nothin’ I-” he broke off the sentence and looked away embarrassed. The tops of his ears turned red; at that point, you only just noticed that neither of you let go of each other’s hands. He didn’t say anything so you didn’t either. Feeling the day hit you, you yawned tiredly and rested your head on McCoy's shoulder; “(Y/N)” the sound of Leonards’s voice made you hum, eyes closing. “After we thoroughly take care of Jim, do you…” he trailed off losing courage. Leonard growled in frustration, it made you smile. “Yeah, I’ll have a drink with you,” you murmur sleepily. The doctor snorted a laugh, “typical, you couldn’t have let me finish,” he muttered referencing past arguments where he could rarely get a word in edgewise. “It’s all part of my charm,” you yawned and moved closer as Leonard pulled his arm away so he could wrap it around you. He felt warm despite the chill in his office, he was actually happy to be stuck there with you “I don’t know darlin’ I think we need to get the Captain a bottle of bourbon,” you snorted and shook your head, “No his ego will be the size of Europa,” you mumbled drifting off. It was another hour before the lights flickered back to normal and the office door became unsealed, “not a word Christine,” McCoy hissed when the head nurse peaked in mischievously. The woman chuckled, “of course not sir,” she whispered watching as her boss gently lifted you off the floor with ease.

Tags:

@thottiewithashotgun

@lauraaan182

@writerdee1701

@dw-writes

@marvelouslytrekking

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[dani-lam]

Slipstitch

Slipstitch

This was written for the @newsiesgiftexchange !  

The fic was written for @queenofbrooklyn and the prompt was ‘Sarah/Spot fic. any situation, modern or canon era (1992).’

It was a lot of fun to write and I hope you like it!

Find it on AO3 under ‘Slipstitch’ by Dani

Also, Thanks for the fanfic!  I loved it.

              Sarah had never heard of Spot Conlon. She wasn’t a newsie, she wasn’t from Brooklyn, there really was never any reason for her to have come across the name before. The first she had ever heard of him was when Les came running home just after lunch babbling about strikes and Pulitzer and how David was going to meet the ‘biggest, toughest, and scariest newsie that ever was.’

              “You shoulda seen them! All the Newsies were scared, all of them. Not Jack though, Jack just said that he would go to Brooklyn with Boots and David. He was so brave,” Les gushed at a mile a minute.

              Sarah couldn’t help but chuckle a bit at his enthusiasm.  She was sure Jack wouldn’t actually put David in any danger. “So, who is this big, tough, scary newsie?” She asked, ruffling his hair.

              “Spot Conlon.”

              When she actually met Spot at the rally…she wasn’t sure what she had been expecting. She hadn’t really thought she had been expecting anything…but when she saw him, she realized that he wasn’t it.

              He wasn’t big, for one thing.  There were definitely a lot of boys in the building who were a lot bigger.  He was about the same height as Jack and David, maybe a bit shorter …he was thinner too, giving the impression of being even smaller.

              Tough and scary really seemed to fit, though. As he prowled around the stage, posturing and glaring around him, his eyes were cold as ice. Sarah felt a nervous shiver go up her spine, and could see why the Newsies were afraid him.

              Unlike the rest of the audience, however, Sarah was the only one who knew that it was all an act. David and Jack had planned it all in the days leading up to the event. They needed to get everyone working together as quickly as possible and they needed to get them to stop beating up the other kids quickly. It was detracting from their overall message, as David kept insisting.

              Seeing them play out the scene though, even Sarah was convinced.

              It worked beautifully. When the three of them came off the stage to join her and Les at the table, they were all grinning, flushed from their success.

              Jack sank into the seat beside her and took a big drink from the glass he had left on the table.  He was breathless and happy.  It was infectious.

              It took Sarah a while to realize that David hadn’t taken back the seat on her other side but was one chair further. She only had eyes for Jack, at least until Jack left her to go dance on stage with the ‘Swedish meadow-lark’. Turning to make a snippy comment to her twin, she was stunned to find the other boy, this ‘Spot Conlon’, there instead.  She sent David a questioning glance, only to get a shrug in response.

              “What’s a fancy Dame like you doing hanging out in a dump like this?” Spot asked, something like amusement dancing over his face.

              Sarah looked at him curiously, not really sure how to react to this strange new arrival.  “David invited me. I don’t usually get out in the evening, so it seemed like fun.” After a beat, she clarified,  “David’s my brother.”

              “An ugly mug like his has no right having a sister as beautiful as you.” He sent a quick smirk at David before turning his attention back to her. “So, what do you do? You’re way too fair to be a newsie.”

              Bemused, Sarah smiled.  “No, you’re right. I leave the newspapers to these two. I’ve started taking in laundry. There’s decent money in it, if you know what you’re doing.”

              Spot’s eyes immediately went to her hands, and he slowly reached over to pick one up, watching her face and giving her time to express her displeasure at his forwardness. When she only looked curious, he picked one up. “Your hands are remarkably soft for laundry.  My mother used to do that work, it’s definitely not easy.” He lightly traced a thumb over her knuckles.  “So, do you have a name?  Or should I just call you ‘David’s sister’ for the rest of the night?”

              Laughing at her own forgetfulness, Sarah gave him her name.

              “Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Sarah Jacobs,” Spot said, leaning over his hand and breathing a gallant kiss onto her skin.

              Sarah could feel a blush creeping over her cheeks.

              She was saved from answering because a moment later, everyone was moving. Spot had dropped her hand and started organizing the smaller kids, quietly moving them towards to exit while David went to warn Jack. Then, it was chaos.

              When Sarah talked to Spot next, it was all over. Kids from all over New York had come in support, there were more people than Sarah had ever seen in her life, and she was exhausted. It had been an incredibly long couple of days. She was going on about 30 hours without sleep at this point and knew that as soon as the adrenaline wore off, she was probably going to collapse. She just hoped that she could make it to a bed before that happened.

              Then Jack was gone, and it was like everything that had been keeping her going just drained out of her. She leaned against the wall outside the circulation building and strongly considered just leaving David and Les there and making her own way home.

              Spot sidled up beside her, and mirrored her pose against the wall.  “So, looks like we won.”

              “Looks like,” Sarah answered, too tired and spent to even care if she sounded rude or not.

              They stood in silence for a long moment. “I hear you punched out one of the Delancy brothers.”

              That startled a laugh out of her. “Hardly! I mean, I tried, but it barely phased him. Honestly, if anything, I tried punching out a wall….” She held up her scrapped and bruised hand to show him. “And the wall won.”

              Gently, he took her injured hand.  Testing her fingers and examining the wounds. “It’ll hurt for a while, but you should heal up pretty good. Might have a bit of scarring on your knuckles but it shouldn’t be too bad.” He didn’t drop her hand.

              “I guess my hand isn’t very soft anymore,” she said, embarrassed. She extracted her hand from his to hide it in the folds of her dress.

              Spot shrugged but let her take her hand back. “I don’t know, I think I like it better with a bit of character. Means you’re a fighter.”

              Sarah had no idea how he could make her blush so easily.

              Looking out over the Newsies lining up to get their papers, Spot started speaking again. “Do you think you might want to get lunch sometime?” He asked, keeping his tone casual.  There was a current of nervousness in how he held himself, and kept looking anywhere but at her.

              And Jack had left, without a word or a glance, without even saying goodbye. She didn’t owe him a thing. “I think I’d like-“

              She was cut off by a flurry of excitement that had burst through the crowd. Jack had come back.

              Things were moving so quickly. All of a sudden, she was there with him and they were kissing.  People were cheering. Sarah couldn’t even remember how things were left with Spot or how she got to where she was standing, surrounded on all sides by her brothers and Jack.

              As people started drifting away, making their way to their selling spots and getting to work, Sarah found herself with Jack on one side and Les on the other, making their way out of the circulation centre.

              She finally had a moment to get her bearings, and quickly scanned the crowd to see where Spot had gone. She didn’t want to leave things on a bad note with him.

              When she did find him, he was climbing into the carriage that Jack had just vacated.

              Their eyes met when he settled into the seat.  They held for a long moment, and Sarah suddenly felt incredibly aware of how she looked with Jack’s arm slung over her shoulder.

              After what felt like an eternity, Spot gave her a small smile and a shrug. As the carriage started to pull out, he tipped his head with his cane as he passed them by.

              Her cheeks warmed again.  “Goodbye, Spot,” she shouted after him, wanting one last piece of connection as he pulled away.

              Jack shot her a confused look and then his eyes quickly fell onto the carriage. His arm tightened possessively on her shoulder.  “yeah, go back to Brooklyn,” Jack shouted in follow-up.

              Maybe it was because she was so tired, and she just desperately needed to sleep, but she found his arm very heavy all of a sudden, and for a moment, she kind of wished he had gone to Santa Fe.

[kingreywrites]

Oblivious

Fandom: Tangled

Words Count: 1781

New Dream Appreciation Week Day Six: We’re Having A Baby

Summary: Announcing her pregnancy to Eugene was, to Rapunzel's surprise, the hardest part of the process. Not because he was against it - it was the contrary, really, Eugene was like an excited puppy when they talked about starting a family - but because her husband, as sweet and loving as he could be, was the most oblivious man she had ever met.

Read on ao3

Note: Thank you so much @dreaming-in-seams for giving me the inspiration, I wouldn’t have been able to write this without your quote! (go see their art, it’s AMAZING)

@our-newdream

Announcing her pregnancy to Eugene was, to Rapunzel's surprise, the hardest part of the process. Not because he was against it - it was the contrary, really, Eugene was like an excited puppy when they talked about starting a family - but because her husband, as sweet and loving as he could be, was the most oblivious man she had ever met.

Her first attempt had been perfectly planned to be the most beautiful pregnancy reveal ever. She had waited until Eugene's Captain duties were low, had invited him to one of their classical boat date and, with Pascal's help, had bought the cutest little pair of baby shoes that she would give to Eugene as a gift - she thought the gesture adorable, and hoped he would like it too.

"Ah, Sunshine, for me?" Eugene grinned when she handed him the gift, his eyes shining under the moonlight. "You shouldn't have, really!"

He shook the box, trying to guess what was inside it and frowned when he didn't recognise the sound. Rapunzel winked at Pascal when Eugene wasn't looking, giddy and excited for the big reveal. Finally, her husband opened the box and froze, eyes comically wide as he took the little shoes in his hands.

Rapunzel held her breath, letting him time to process, and nearly started to cry when he beamed because finally, he-

"That is such a good idea!" he exclaimed, startling her. "Pascal come here!"

Before the poor chameleon could flee, Eugene grabbed him and struggled against his outraged squeaks to put on the shoes, while Rapunzel could only gap in consternation. She felt like she ought to intervene, to explain the situation but, first, then it wouldn't be the perfect reveal she had planned, and second, Eugene was laughing so hard at Pascal that a tear escaped him.

"That is the greatest gift ever Sunshine!" Eugene cracked up again, so oblivious to Pascal's glare that Rapunzel had to laugh too. "I mean look at him!"

Well. She had to admit Pascal was really cute with the little shoes on, and between her gushing over him and Eugene laughing hard enough for it to hurt, she might have forgotten her original reason for being here.

Her second attempt was more to the point. The shoes had been a cute idea but, obviously, Eugene needed a clear and unmistakable announcement of her pregnancy. She had consulted with Pascal again (once he stopped pouting at her for drawing him in shoes on her mural) and they decided that a banner would be the easiest way.

A huge banner. Spelling "WE'RE HAVING A BABY" in huge letters. There, no mistakes possible.

Maybe it wasn't as cute as the shoes, but Rapunzel painted each letter separately with love and care, and she still imagined Eugene's reaction to be the best. The way he would smile, and probably cry, and certainly hug her… She couldn't wait. She knew he was the sweetest husband and would - soon - be the best father ever, and she couldn't wait to live this new adventure with him.

She only needed to announce it first.

"This is… Perfect!" she nodded, giving Pascal a big thumbs up as she watched over the banner they hung in their room. Eugene would be coming here soon, because she had asked if they could have lunch alone in their room, and he would see the banner and they'll laugh and be happy and-

Someone knocked on the door.

"Rapunzel?" Lance called before she could even begin to frown. "Hope you're decent, I'm coming in!"

Rapunzel froze, sharing an horrified look with Pascal before throwing herself across the room, literally somersaulting above her bed to close the barely opened door on Lance's face.

"You can't!" she yelled, pushing against the door while Pascal was squeaking in panic behind her.

"What? But Rapunzel, this is important!" Lance whined dramatically. "Why won't you let me come in?"

The thing was, Rapunzel wanted Eugene to be the first person to learn about her pregnancy. (Pascal was, technically, the first one to know about it, but Eugene had to be the first person.) Honestly, she wouldn't have to announce it to him at all if she hadn't done the test while he was away on a two days mission with the Guard, because he would have been right there with her otherwise. There wasn't anyone as supportive of her as Eugene was, and she wanted to make this reveal special because she knew they would remember it all their lives. He deserved to be the first to know.

Which was why Lance, of all people, couldn't know now. Rapunzel loved him, really, but he wouldn't be able to keep this a secret for more than two minutes. At best.

"You can't Lance," Rapunzel blubbered, waving her hand in Pascal's direction to indicate that he needed to hide the banner as best as he could. "You can't because- because- Pascal's naked!"

Said Pascal squeaked indignantly as she whispered an apology but, at least, that shocked Lance silent for approximately five seconds - a personal record.

"I- I think I can bear the view, Princess," Lance said, pushing the door open right as Pascal finally managed to loosen the banner enough for each letters to fall to the ground in a heap.

She grinned nervously. Pascal grinned nervously. Lance cocked his head and thankfully decided he didn't want to ask. Instead, he asked her about the colour of the shirt he should wear for his next bro date with Eugene, the very important business he absolutely had to consult her about.

"Come on Rapunzel," he pleaded when she threw him out of her room, "you know his tastes, help a friend out! Oh, hi Eugene," he exclaimed, his voice muffled behind the door.

Rapunzel glanced at Pascal in horror, the banner still in a heap on the floor. The chameleon put on his game face, telling her that he would put it all back up if she could distract Eugene long enough.

Thankfully, she knew just the way to do that.

When he opened the door, a smile on his lips, she grabbed his Captain uniform and pulled him in a deep kiss. After a muffled yelp, Eugene melted into it, closing his eyes and his hands going to her hair as he opened his mouth to let her in. She deepened the kiss with a moan, losing herself in the softness of his lips and the warmth of his skin, nearly forgetting her original goal. Gosh, she loved him so much.

Sadly, they had to breathe at some point - but his eyes never left hers, the blush on his cheeks telling her just how much he enjoyed it.

"Well, that's a 'hello' alright Sunshine," he exhaled softly, his hand cupping her cheek. "What gives?"

"I've got a surprise for you," she smiled, and watched as he raised his gaze to the banner she knew was behind her.

She didn't turn around, wanting to see every emotions play up on his face up close. Like in her daydream, his eyes widened and, with the light of the sun, it seemed like they were glowing gold. That, and his still red lips from their kiss, and his mussed up hair - Rapunzel knew she was lucky to have the prettiest husband ever.

Then, he frowned. That wasn't in her daydreams. He glanced at her, then back at the banner, then back at her again, a puzzled look on his face.

"Gain brava… why bee?"

"What?" Rapunzel asked dumbly, before turning around and, sure enough, the banner was reading in brightly painted letters "GAIN BRAVA, WHY BEE".

Pascal was (smartly) trying to hide on the wall and Rapunzel feebly thought that maybe she should have thought that he didn't know how to read.

"I mean, that's a… uhm, good question?" Eugene added awkwardly, putting his hands on her shoulders to comfort her, even if he wasn't truly sure about what it all meant. "Why bees indeed!"

Instead of trying to salvage this, Rapunzel automatically started to sprout bee facts to try and hide her embarrassment. Eugene played along gracefully, and they still ate lunch so, all in all, it wasn't that bad she guessed.

Okay, so maybe when she said he was oblivious, she forgot she also had her bad luck to thank for the failed reveals.

Her third attempt ended up with Eugene eating the picture she put on a cake, and nearly choking on it. No, she did not want to expand on that. Nor on the fire incident of try five. And especially not on try six. They do not talk about the sixth attempt. Ever.

Maybe she just wasn't made for grand reveals.

"Hey, Eugene?" she said one night, right before they went to sleep.

"Yeah?" he hummed, slipping into the bed next to her, both of them sitting up and illuminated by the moonlight.

"We're having a baby."

Eugene was going to touch her face with a smile, until the words reached him and he froze. "We- what?"

"We're going to have a baby," Rapunzel repeated gently.

"Together?" 

"I'd hope so," she laughed.

"We- you're pregnant? With a baby?" His voice cracked on the word, and his eyes were shining. "You're- We're- Sunshine!" he beamed, before hugging her so hard she lost her breath - it was okay though, she felt choked up with emotion anyway.

She knew he would be happy, but it felt even better than she imagined. Her heart was fluttering from sheer joy.

Eugene broke the hug and put his hands on her shoulders, his smile so big it probably hurt.

"We're having a baby!" he repeated, delighted. "We're gonna be Moms! No wait, Dads! No wait-!"

Rapunzel interrupted his babblings with a kiss, that he was more than eager to return. His hand went to touch her stomach and she smiled in the kiss, before covering it with her own.

"Are you freaking out?" she whispered, pressing their foreheads together.

"Maybe a little?" he exhaled with a laugh. "This is just… incredible. I love you so much, Rapunzel."

"I love you too, Eugene."

"We're gonna be," he said between kisses, both of them under their sheets now, "the best parents ever."

"Hmm the best moms you mean… or was it dads?" Rapunzel smirked.

He groaned, blushing, and she took the opportunity to push him down on the bed and get above him, revelling in the slightly flustered but definitely interested look in her husband's eyes. They had a great night ahead of them.

(Thankfully, Eugene was here in person to freak out with her the day she learnt they were expecting twins. No grand reveal needed.)

[smellssharpies]

For the Dancing and the Dreaming [Hardcase x Reader]

Pairing: Hardcase x Jedi!Reader

Prompt/Inspiration/Request: Sort of inspired by the song ‘For the dancing and the Dreaming’ from HTTYD 2

Warning(s): none

Word count: ~2.2k

Summary: After a planet-side break on Coruscant from the war, you and Anakin decide to to teach the boys how to dance. (I’m really bad at summaries)

a/n: This was originally from my Wattpad, but I wanted to post it here as well, enjoy!

The mess hall of the Resolute was nothing out of the ordinary, at least if you didn't listen to some of their conversations. Right now, Hardcase was sitting at a table with some of his brothers, gushing about their last visit to Coruscant.

"Did you see how she spun around on her toes?" Hardcase asked over-excitedly to Echo's face.

"Yes, I did Hardcase, we all did. We were all there," the ARC explained, yet again. But there was nothing stopping Hardcase once he got started ranting about something, nothing except being shot at or discovering something even more exciting.

"Oooo, and do you remember how he picked her up by the waist and tossed her in the air?!" Hardcase exclaimed to Kix's face this time. The medic looked as if he wanted to break one of his brother's bones for annoying him to no end.

"Yeah, that was really cool," Fives cut in, trying to save Hardcase from Kix's wrath, "I think that dance style was called ballet or something like that."

"And that other one where that guy was doing those crazy moves on the floor!?" most of his brothers at that table silently sighed at Hardcase's excited babbling. On their last visit to Coruscant, you and Anakin had bought some of the 501st who were interested tickets to a nearby dance competition where the men saw many different styles of dance. They didn't even know people could dance or move like that, the only thing that was even close to dancing that they knew was the drunken discos at 79's.

You and Anakin were heading over to the mess hall after filling out a bunch of mission reports. The mess hall was completely empty except for a large table at the back, but even from where you were standing you could hear Hardcase's voice loud and clear, "Can you dance, Tup?"

Tup took a deep breath and tried to reason with his brother, "Hardcase, if I go with you to blow up some clankers in the practice room, will you please stop talking about the dance competition?" he asked desperately.

"You didn't like it? But the competition was so cool," Hardcase responded in an amazingly cute voice. Anakin noticed your expression soften at Hardcase's voice, you couldn't help it, it just sounded too adorable. He looked at you with a huge smirk and nudged you with his elbow. He knew all about your huge crush on a specific trooper, though you never told him explicitly, he somehow found out and has shipped you two ever since.

You shot him a well practiced glare which had no effect at all, and started to make your way over to the boys.

"I wish I we could dance like that~," Hardcase said with a wistful look in his eyes. His back was to you and Anakin, so he was oblivious that you were heading towards his direction. Echo was the first one to spot the two of you, shooting you both a desperate look, silently asking you to help Hardcase stop rambling.

"Hey, Generals!" Fives greeted as Hardcase froze at the plural tense, which earned him a nudge from Jesse.

"Hey, boys! I heard you liked the performance," you said as you tried you hardest to not notice Hardcase's eyes on you.

"Yeah, and Hardcase here wants to know how to dance as well now," Jesse teased.

You thought over it for a moment, then silently asked Anakin for his opinion, to which he gave a small nod, "If you guys want to," you paused, unsure of their reactions, "Anakin and I could teach you some."

Hardcase lit up at your suggestion, "You know how to dance, General?! How did I not know this?"

You chuckled, blushing slightly at his adorable enthusiasm, "Well, only the dance styles that Obi-Wan deemed 'civilized enough'," you explained, putting quotation marks at the words 'civilized enough', "So, ballet, waltz, that sort of stuff."

"Wait wait wait, General Kenobi knows how to dance?!"

"Of course he does, he's Obi-Wan, what do you expect?" Anakin responded.

You continued with a fond smile, "Yeah, during our Padawan years, he insisted on teaching us how to dance. He practically pleaded with my master to teach me as well," you paused, "So, do you boys want us to teach you?"

"Yes, Please!" Hardcase exclaimed. Jesse and Fives soon followed, Rex and Tup agreed slightly more reluctantly, Kix claimed that he was only coming to watch his brothers make a fool of themselves, and Echo finally caved in when Fives flashed him his well practiced puppy eyes.

You and Anakin organized meetings with them, dubbing one of the spare practice rooms as your 'dance studio', you'd also reminded them to only come in their blacks, as that would help them move around more efficiently.

When the time of the first meeting came along, you and Anakin stood in the makeshift dance studio in your ballet attire, setting up the barres for warn up. The doors slid open and the boys started to make their way in. You bit the inside of your cheek when you saw Hardcase, the blacks accentuating his handsome form. You'd forgotten that you were wearing quite the revealing outfit, skin toned tights on your legs instead of your normal Jedi trousers and a black leotard which left the upper part of your back completely bare.

Hardcase flushed and looked away when he saw your exposed back, which earned him another nudge and wink from Jesse.

Your started the "class" with some barre warm-ups, then showed off a bit with Anakin, the two of you knowing exactly what the other's limits were as you had been dancing together ever since you were 11 or 12. You enjoyed watching the boys try dancing for the first time, but as time went on, they became more confident and started to learn new styles. You were slightly surprised by Hardcase's grace on the dance floor, but it made you warm inside whenever he pulled off a difficult move or started showing off in front of his brothers.

Little did you know, Anakin organised "secret" practices with the boys, teaching them one of your favourite songs to surprise you with. It was a pretty romantic one, which he chose because he wanted it to be the push you and Hardcase needed.

You two had first learned the song during the last year of your Padawan training, not long before the start of the war. Anakin wanted to learn it to impress Padmé, so you agreed to practice with him. The thing was, the more you listened to the song, the more you fell in love with it. You loved how it was more like a dialogue than a duet, and the emotions that were packed in the song. He had even pretended to memorize the dance slower just so you could dance and sing to it more.

You were just finishing the warm-ups in one of your meetings when you heard the opening notes of 'For the Dancing and the Dreaming', and you saw all the boys get into pairs, standing in a circle with an empty space next to you. Your face visibly lit up at the song, it was one you hadn't heard in quite some time because of the war. You saw Hardcase shyly make eye contact with you as he walked over. Anakin stepped to the side, watching his plan fall into place. Hardcase put his arm into a sort of flexed position, and you didn't know if it was possible, but your face lit up even more. You quickly put yours into the same position, and touched the back of your forearm to his.

You hadn't expected him to start singing, or to even know the words, but he did, "I'll swim and sail on savage seas, with never a fear of drowning. And gladly ride the waves of life, if you will marry me," he sang softly, looking into your eyes once in a while to catch your reaction. But it wasn't just him singing, it was all of his brothers who had the same part as him, Echo, Jesse and Tup, but you focused on his voice and his voice only, "No scorching sun nor freezing cold, will stop me on my journey. If you will promise me your heart~"

"And love me for eternity," you shyly sang the response, still not sure of singing such a romantic song with him in front of everyone else. But your nerves were quickly put down when you heard three other voices sing the same part, Fives', Kix's and Rex's, "My dearest one, my darling dear, your mighty words astound me. But I've no need of mighty deeds when I feel your arms around me," you sang with more confidence as you fell into a state of familiarity.

You saw Hardcase's bright smile at your more relaxed state, "But I would bring you rings of gold, I'd even sing you poetry. And I would keep you from all harm, if you would stay beside me."

"I have no use for rings of gold, I care not for your poetry, I only want your hand hold~"

"I only want you near me."

You both danced around and sang with bright smiles, and Anakin was wearing a similar smile, content at seeing you so happy during a time of war, "To love and kiss to sweetly hold, for the dancing and the dreaming. Through all life's sorrows and delights, I'll keep your laugh inside me," you sang together, "I'll swim and sail on savage seas, with never a fear of drowning. I'd gladly ride the waves of life, if you will marry me!" You and Hardcase finished, though as you sang the last line, he carefully put a hand on your back and dipped you.

You put a hand on his shoulders for balance as you looked into his eyes, and you felt your breath hitch in your throat. He slowly moved to close the gap between you, though moving so that you could play it off as a joke if you didn't want this, perfect gentleman. The room was dead silent and you could hear your heart pounding at his intimate touch. You responded by placing your other arm around his neck and pulled him into you, your lips meeting his. He stiffened slightly in surprise, but quickly wrapped his other arm around your waist, holding you tight.

The room was quiet for a few seconds, then the cheers and whistles erupted.

"That's my girl!"

"Go get her, Hardcase!"

You quickly pulled away and stood up, flushing from embarrassment. Hardcase chuckled slightly, and what you would give to hear that amazing sound again, "Oh, cyar'ika," Hardcase breathed as he tucked a piece of stray hair behind your ear. He placed both his hands over your ears, muffling out the cheers, "Better?"

"Much," you responded with a smile and pulled him into another kiss. The moment was interrupted by Anakin grabbing yours and Hardcase's wrists and dragged you two out of the makeshift dance studio. You were both laughing when he dragged you down the halls, coming to a stop outside your quarters. He had a huge smirk on his face as he entered the code and shooed the two of you inside, "Have fun~" he teased as he left the two of you alone.

You were smiling to yourself about the day's antics when you felt a familiar arm wrap around your waist, pulling you close. A hand reached towards you cheek, caressing it until he tilted your chin up to look at him. He made you flush when he looked at you with loving eyes, "He did tell us to have fun. Did he not?" he asked with a smile before quickly adding, "Unless you don't want to."

Consent was always sexy.

"Of course I do," you responded before resting your head on his chest, the two of you just stayed there, soaking in the feeling of each other. That is until a thought crossed your mind, "What does cyar'ika mean?" you asked, "The thing you called me earlier."

He turned slightly red before responding, "One of the lines you sang, actually," he said with a smile, but at your raised eyebrow he continued, "'My dearest one, my darling dear'."

If you had thought him just singing was hot as hell, him singing your lines was just on a whole other level, "Your mighty words astound me," you continued.

"But I've no need of mighty deeds,"

"When I feel your arms around me," you finished as he pressed his lips against yours again, and you never wanted this moment to end.

Needless to say, you both had plenty of fun that night.

*********************

[saintrickolasthethiccolas]

This is my @atlawinterfest2020 gift for @kor-ra

I hope you enjoy it. It is posted on FanFiction.net and AO3

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13785385/1/Atla-Winterfest-2020-A-Gift-for-Kor-ra

A clock rang out in the small studio apartment in Republic City, it shrill chirp chirp chirp echoing throughout the small, cramped space. The apartment was adorned with little furniture, two pieces to be exact. Tucked into the corner farthest from the door was a bed big enough for two and positioned against the back wall was a couch so old the cushions had permanently molded to the shape of a person. Upon this couch lay a woman, half asleep as she tried to untangle herself from the mess of blankets surrounding her.

Roused by the sounding of the alarm clock Korra rubbed at her eyes, clearing her vision so she could better see the time. Damn. It’s five already? Dinner is in an hour and I look like I just woke up after hibernating all winter. With a reluctant sigh Korra heaved herself up off the well-worn couch, and made her way to the tiny bathroom, and into the even smaller shower.

Forty-five minutes later Korra was idly pacing through the kitchen, counting down the minutes until Asami arrived to take her to dinner. She glanced down at her dress, feeling a little self-conscious about how she looked in it. The pale blue dress fell to just above her knees, its soft fabric hugging her waist and hips, accentuating the many curves of her body. She was beginning to feel more and more self-conscious about the dress, and had nearly convinced herself to go change, when the doorbell rang.

“Coming!” Korra yelled as she stopped her pacing and walked over to the door. Korra pulled the door open to reveal a raven-haired woman in a dress of ruby that stretched from her shoulders down to just above her ankles. Korra froze as she saw her girlfriend standing in her doorway, her mind momentarily short-circuiting as she tried to process the gorgeous woman in front of her.

“Korra. Korra. Korra!” Asami said, increasing the volume each time she tried to get her girlfriend’s attention

“Huh? Oh uh… you look…” Korra stammered.

“Thank you,” Asami laughed as Korra continued to babble incoherently, “and you look dazzling yourself. Now come on, we’re going to be late. Bolin and Opal are probably already at the restaurant,”. Asami grabbed Korra’s hand and led her out the door.

******

Halfway across Republic City, in a similar apartment, another couple was getting ready for dinner. Bolin bounced slightly as he waited for Opal to put on her finishing touches. He walked aimlessly around the cramped space he and Opal called home, his mind wandering off into dreams and memories. Most of them were about Opal. Lost within his daydreams Bolin didn’t notice as she walked out of their tiny bedroom, adorned in a short dress the color of pine needles.

“Ready to go?” Opal asked, startling Bolin, his daydream coming to an abrupt halt as her voice brought him back to reality.

“Not just yet,” Bolin said, a lopsided grin emerging on his face. “I need a minute or two to take in the beauty that stands before me,”.

“Shut up,” Opal replied, her cheeks reddening at his flirtatious comment.

“Why?” Bolin whined sarcastically, “I can’t help but comment on how amazing my girlfriend looks,”.

Opal’s face became two shades redder upon hearing this. Trying to keep her composure she said, “Come on Bolin, we have to get going. Besides you can complement me as much as you would like on the ride to the restaurant.”

******

Both couples arrived at the restaurant without much delay and were quickly moved to be seated at their table. As they made their way through the maze of tables Korra took in the sights of the restaurant. People sat together in little pods around their individual tables, families, couples, and friends spread across the vast dining area. She also picked up on little bits of conversation as they moved past these different groups, their contents meaningless to anyone but those participating.

Soon they were at the semi-secluded table tucked away against the back wall of the restaurant. They sat and began speaking of small things. The conversation continued like this for a long while, every so often being interrupted by their waiter. After a short while their food arrived, and the conversation lulled as they all focused on the plates in front of them. Bolin and Korra attacked their food with the vicious ferocity known only to a starved animal, while Asami and Opal approached their meals in a more methodical manner.

“It’s so nice to see you guys,” Opal said, putting down her fork in order to resume the conversation. “It’s been so long since we’ve been able to get together and have a night to relax with you guys. With Korra busy with her Avatar duties, Asami running her company, Bolin helping Zhu Li, and my work with the Air Nomads we barely have any down time.”

“I know! I’ve been needing a night out for a while now,” replied Korra, her plate nearly empty. “By the way, didn’t you said there was a special reason why you were inviting us out tonight?”.

“Uh… Yeah. Yeah, we did,” Bolin said nervously.

“What is it?” Korra and Asami said in unison. “Is it exciting?” Korra followed.

“You could say that,” Opal said as she raised her left hand showing off a silver ring, a small opal set into it. The iridescent stone glittered slightly in the artificial illumination of the restaurant.

“Oh, my spirits!” Asami said, her face erupting into an expression usually reserved for children when they receive a new toy.

“When did it happen?” Korra shrieked, an expression similar to her girlfriend’s rapidly emerging onto her face.

“Two days ago,” Bolin said, excitement leaking out of him with every word.

“It was really romantic,” Opal said as she looked over at Bolin, her love for him as clear as water fresh from a mountain stream. “I was walking around Air Temple Island when Pabu comes running up to me with a note in his mouth. The letter read something along the lines of ‘Dear Opal, I am very hurt. Please come get me. Love, Your Bolin’. I start sprinting after Pabu, and after five minutes of running we finally come to as stop at a small bluff overlooking the harbor. When I get there, to my surprise, I do not see a injure Bolin, but instead him sitting on a blanket with a picnic basket next to him,” she said exuberantly. Turning to look at Bolin she said, “Would you like to tell them what you said to me when I found you there?”

“I said, ‘We never did get to have that picnic I planned. I’d like to do it right this time.’ And then I got down on one knee and said, ‘Opal you are the most amazing girl I have ever met. I love you more than anything else in this world, and I want to continue to show my love to you for the rest of our lives. Will you, Opal Beifong, marry me?”.

Everyone one gushed over the news they had just now learned. Their dinner continued, though it was frequently interrupted by Korra or Asami making a comment about their newly engaged friends. The content of these comments ranged from admiration of the ring, to when the wedding would be, to who else they had told.

“Mako is the only one who knows,” Bolin said in response to this last comment.

“We wanted everyone in the group to know before we told everyone else,” Opal explained, a little giddy due to all the attention she was receiving.

Soon dinner came to an end and the couples said their long goodbyes, sending each other off in their own directions.

******

Bolin and Opal soon arrived at their apartment; their breathing slightly heavy due to the seven flights of stair they had just climbed in order to reach their floor. They made their way into the small space and moved directly to the couch that they both loved, even if it was a little ragged along the edges. Reaching over Opal’s shoulder, Bolin grabbed a blanket, which he proceeded to wrap around himself and his new fiancé. Opal leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder as he pulled her closer, wrapping one arm around her as he intertwined their fingers. They sat like this for an eternity, admiring the view of Air Temple Island just past their window.

“I love you,” Opal said, her voice barely a whisper.

“I love you too,” Bolin said, the truth of his words showing itself in his expression as he bent down to kiss his beautiful fiancé.

Not long after this short, but intimate, exchange of words they both fell in a calm sleep, still wrapped in each other’s arms.

******

Across Republic City, inside a similar apartment, stood another couple locked in a gentle embrace. Near them stood a fireplace made of grey river stones, the fire within it the only thing lighting the small space that surrounded the two women.

Korra gazed lovingly at her girlfriends as she ran her hand through her thick black hair. Slowly she moved her and Asami onto the well-loved couch, positioning them so Asami sat in her lap, head resting upon Korra’s chest. They sat like this for a awhile, Korra playing with Asami’s hair as they both watched the fire.

Time seemed to slow when they were like this. Asami laid there thinking about how at peace she was, how comfortable she was, when Korra leaned her head out so it was above Asami’s and bent down to lay a soft, tender kiss on her girlfriend’s lips. Their kiss continued for a short while, but soon, and prematurely Korra felt, they pulled apart.

“I love you,” Asami said, looking up at the person she cherished most in this world.

“I love you too,” Korra said as she leaned down to initiate another kiss.

[ohwereusingourmadeupnames]

Go Play Your Video Games

Pairing: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Rating: Teen (T) Word Count: ~5k Notes: This came from the prompt “You beat my high score? You... beat my high score?” from my anonymous pal. I went the high school au route - it turned into something a little more interesting than I anticipated. Might follow this one up if you guys are interested! Warnings: Steve Rogers is kind of a tool & there’s a bit of “violence”. Summary:

Tony grew up in a small town where everyone knows everyone and nothing ever changes. Then a new kid comes to town and flips everything upside down. Peter is everything Tony’s usual is not and he’s a big fan of that.

do the thing - send in all the prompts.

In Littleton, things still moved pretty slow. Not that progression didn’t happen – it was 2020, after all. Yet, there were many things that existed from the “past”; drive-in theaters, record stores, and most importantly – an arcade. For most of the youth in the town, nightly hangouts met up at the record store and finished the night off at the arcade. At least, that’s how things were for Tony.

Spending time at home really wasn’t an option – despite being insanely intelligent and successful in his athletic endeavors, Tony’s father hated him. He wasn’t sure of the reason, it felt innate from the time Tony could remember trying to gain his approval. The older he got, the easier it was to ignore it – not being in the house was one of the best ways to do that.

Because of that, the arcade quickly became a place that Tony could disappear into for hours on end. Whether he was meeting the guys there later in the evening or only had a couple of hours between school and football, Tony spent all of his free time there. It astounded him, how long he could play on one quarter – how each of the games on his row had AES in the high scorer column. Regardless of the way his father felt about him, the arcade never let him down.

Then, Peter Parker moved to town.

The fact that a new family was moving into Littleton had the rumor mill running. In all of the years of Tony’s life, he only saw a couple of new additions to the small town. Most of the families within it, including his own, were old and had rich roots in the businesses that kept the small community running. Stark Industries was over 100 years old and stood as a looming reminder of the next disappointment he planned to add to the pile of shit his family already disliked about him.

When Tony first heard about it, they were starting football training camp. They were a small 2A school, but the team and the 5 straight state titles the school brought home were important – so, most of the parents and friends of the people on the field were crowded around the sidelines. Ever since Tony could remember, practice was a social affair just as much as the athletic gathering that it should have been.

He and Clint were doing running drills when Steve ran over, a new sort of look on his face. “Have you guys heard about the new kid coming to town? Peggy told me that he was a senior just like us and smart as hell,” Steve babbled, excitement and a certain kind of fear lacing his voice. Tony knew that Steve hated changed the most out of them all – always had.

Stopping himself, Tony turned his full attention to the conversation, his aversion to change not anywhere close to Steve’s. The small-town life wasn’t for him, he secretly had a calendar that he crossed off the days left until graduation (only 297 to go!) A new person brought something different and that was more intriguing than anything else – even the football being chucked at his head.

Tony turned just in time, his hands coming up to stop the ball from hitting him square in the face. “Hey, fuck off, Barnes. Your boyfriend is telling us about the new blood coming to town,” Tony hollered across the field, a smirk slipping across his face at the blush that immediately pooled in Bucky’s cheeks. Things between him and Steve were still newer, and Tony loved to give them shit for it.

A throat clearing had Tony turning back to Clint and Steve, both of them looking a little worse for wear. “As I was saying – this new kid is supposed to not only be smart, but good at sports, too – “

Try as he might, Tony couldn’t get the thought of newness and what came from that out of his head. Last year, he started to get chatters from several different universities wanting to sign him to play football. Though his father wanted nothing to do with it, Maria took Tony to a couple of different overnight stays to see what the college athletics thing was all about; he fell in love with it instantly.

The thought of getting to appreciate something shiny and new before heading off to whatever school he could convince to take him made his heart beat a little faster. Littleton needed something to spark a little fire in the mundaneness of scheduled and unmoving life.

Steve’s pointed look and the repeated question of “what do you think about this, Tony?” brought him away from the daydreams, his eyes blinking for a second.

Running a hand through his sweaty hair, Tony shrugged his shoulders. It wouldn’t do him any good to go gushing or anything. “I haven’t thought about it,” he decided to reply, instead. “It’ll be nice to have some uniqueness in this godforsaken place.” Tony shot Steve a wink and reached across the way, his hand giving his friend’s shoulder a squeeze. “Just keep your fingers crossed he doesn’t have a better arm than you.”

Practice went off without a hitch after that – Fury called them in for a huddle and they got to work. Luckily, Tony spent a bunch of time with the rest of the guys working out, so the drills and running felt like a piece of cake. It was good to be back to some semblance of a routine, even if that meant spending less time surrounded by his beloved video games. They’d still be there when he was done sweating for the day.

And they were – still standing there when he walked into Munchies later that day. It took him a while to shower and get away from the rest of the group, which meant he hit the games when the floor wasn’t busy. Changing in $5 for quarters, Tony headed to his most favorite game – Galaga. Most of his attention was usually spent on the dark screen with ships and missiles flying across it.

Tony set down the lot of quarters on the ledge of the game by the player 2 joystick, one of them already in his hand to slip into the coin slot. Yet, he stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed the top score screen flash in front of him. Instead of AES as usual, the initials PBP were sitting above his, the score more than a 1000 points better than his. Sucking in a breath, Tony felt his hand clench into a fist. 2 things ran across his mind in that instant – how the fuck was he going to score another 1000 points and who the hell was PBP?

----

He didn’t have to wait long to put a face to the initials.

The very next day at practice, the collective was staring over at the far end of the field – the bespoken new kid was putting his cleats on; it was obvious that everyone was staring, so it looked like he was trying not to stare back. When he looked up, Tony got the air knocked out of him. Whatever shit the other guys were saying completely blew past him. Getting up, Tony started over in his direction.

Not only did he look well built, which would come in handy on the field, this new kid had pale skin that seemed to go on for miles. His sleeveless shirt did nothing to hide the tight bundles of muscle covering his arms and upper chest. As if the long, lean limbs weren’t enough, Tony noticed that the stranger wore his hair longer, the curls at the back of his neck barely grazing the surface of his shirt. The longer bits in the front were pulled back by a gray headband to complete the look.

More than anything, Tony instantly wanted to know more about the beautiful person confidently striding over to him. Since things ended between him and Beck the year before, Tony hadn’t even thought about going after someone new. Yet, his eyes glazed over a little bit when the guy started to jog, his muscles clenched with every step and the sway of his hair was slightly hypnotic.

Tony forced himself to suck in a couple of gulps of air before the new guy was standing right in front of him, a smile on his face. “Hey man, I’m Pete.” He spoke without preamble and stuck his hand out between them like there wasn’t a group of 50 dudes staring the two of them down.

Thinking fast, Tony grabbed his hand and squeeze, the gentle up and down of their shake just as distracting as the movement of Peter’s hair in the wind. He probably held on much longer than necessary before reining himself in. “You must be the coveted new kid. Nice to meet you, Pete. I’m Tony,” he replied lightly, his head turning a bit. “I’m not sure you’re going to get anything other than that from those guys. Want to warm up with me?”

The ease in which Peter accepted brought a grin to his face – Tony caught Steve staring at him as the moved further onto the field, but he simply shot him the middle finger, put his head down, and jogged after Peter.

Leather flew across the air at him with a sharp snap – his warmup toss seemed to be more accurate than any of Tony’s best throws. Tony caught the ball a couple more times before turning his focus back to Peter. “So, where are you from, Pete? We don’t get a lot of transplants.” Though Tony didn’t really give a shit, the rest of the guys would be breathing down his neck for answers later on.

“I’m from Queens, actually. My aunt got a job at SI, so here we are,” Peter replied, his throwing mechanics never faltering as he spoke. “You can tell them my last name is Parker and I’ll be trying to play quarterback.” Peter smirked at him; the ball still held tightly in his hands. Tony watched his eyes move passed his shoulder to the group that was still looking at the two of them intently.

A laugh fell from his lips before he could stop it. Tony rested his hands on his hips and let the feeling wash over him. It was refreshing, to be around someone that didn’t have to think for 2 days before putting all of the pieces together. “I think I’d rather let them find out by themselves.” Then, because it also took Tony a second to piece things together, he realized he was talking to PBP – the Galaga genius.

“Have you been to Munchies?” Tony asked, his smile growing a bit wider when a look of recognition rolled across Peter’s face.

Peter threw the ball at Tony before responding – his hands were quick, the whole vision of it almost distracting enough to not put his own hands up in time. “You mean the arcade? Yeah, I went when we got in last night. I love all of those old games.”

Shaking his head, Tony let his fingers curl over the laces of the ball, the feeling comforting. “You beat my high score? You… beat my high score? You’re PBP! How the hell did you get to be so good?” Tony let the surprise roll off of him, the soft look on his face hopefully enough to make Peter understand the sarcasm of the words.

“Ah, so you’re AES. I wondered who had the top dog spot. Don’t worry – I’ll only beat your high score on a couple of those games. My real talent is skee-ball. Coney Island isn’t too far from where I grew up – I learned everything I know there,” Peter remarked, his eyes shining brightly at the exchange.

Chucking the ball back, Tony forced himself not to beam – this new kid was already an interesting addition to the masses, and he knew him for less than 20 minutes. “You’ll have to show me some time,” Tony said right before the whistle blew. He caught the ball one last time and closed the distance between them. “You’re going to be a good addition around here, Peter Parker.”

----

Despite how enamored Tony felt with Peter and his presence, the rest of his friend group did not share the same opinion. For one thing, Peter was gunning for Steve’s spot and that didn’t sit well with either him or Bucky. Peter didn’t help himself when he came out and blew them all away in sprints – he was fast and strong; a combination that not a lot of people could cop to. His knowledge of the game became apparent when he took to the plays like he ran them constantly, not just once before. Like everyone else feared – the new kid brought change, and not a single person around Littleton liked change.

A few weeks after Peter’s arrival, Tony convinced him to head to Munchies with him – they talked frequently about it and like he predicted, Peter took over his highest score spot on a couple more games. It was about time Tony saw the master in his element. After practice, Tony opened Peter’s door for him as they climbed into the black Mustang Tony restored himself the previous summer.

“The customization you did to this thing is incredible, Tony,” Peter mentioned when Tony climbed in and started to get settled. “You said you did a lot of work, but I didn’t think you meant – this much.” His eyes widened a little as he took in all the shiny things Tony added around the car.

His favorite thing, the new sound system in the dash, pulled his Spotify up and started to play the more recent Kings of Leon album – the deep sounds of Caleb Followill’s voice swarming around them. Smiling, he turned the volume down a bit; his father didn’t understand his obsession with creating things, but it felt good to sit in something he brought back from the dead. The car was just the first step in a long journey of creation – Tony wouldn’t settle for anything less.

Shaking his head, he turned his attention to getting the car on and into traffic before he thought to respond. “It was basically just a rusty frame and a couple of axels when I bought it. I redid the engine, transmission, brake system – all the fun stuff under the hood. Steve, Bucky, and I did the exterior – Buck’s an artist, so the paint job is all him.”

Peter shifted a little in his seat, Tony caught the movement out of the corner of his eye as he stopped at the light. When he looked over, he was facing Tony. “So, you’re into engineering and stuff, then? Engine restoration isn’t rookie work,” Peter said softly, the cutest smile on his face. He seemed relaxed, which made Tony feel at ease, too.

The comfortability that existed in the small space between them was unlike anything Tony ever experienced.

“I am, yeah. The family business is so far outside of that scope that I kind of keep it to myself. I’m almost done with an Associate’s of Science so I can start into a Mechanical Engineering program wherever I decide to go to college. Littleton Community College does this degree transfer thing with the high school, so I’ve been using the garage there since my freshman year.” Tony blinked, the thought of saying that much in one breath pulling a blush to the surface of his skin.

“You’re smart, too?” Peter questioned, a hand coming up to his chest in fake exasperation. In the days since getting to know each other, Tony brought up many topics of conversation that were well beyond his other friends, but not Peter – it was clear that as intellectuals, there was a mutual appreciation of the other’s mind.

“Jokes aside, that’s really cool. Seems like we’re going to be competing for highest scorer in school, too.” As he spoke, he reached a hand out and grazed Tony’s extended arm, the touch like a scorch of fire against his skin. It lingered, the heat of it. Then, Peter dropped his hand and let it rest lightly on the edge of Tony’s thigh.

Before Tony could stop it, a hearty laugh left his lips – Peter brought competition into everything and set out challenges for them both to overcome; even in the few short weeks of knowing him, Tony understood that. It felt a different kind of good, being with him – he loved his friends, but like all things about Peter, his feelings towards him were completely unique. It felt easy to reach down and wrap his fingers around Peter’s – their hands resting on his leg.

“I feel like there’s no competition, though. I’ve never gotten anything less than an A in my life,” Tony remarked proudly, his fingers giving Peter’s a squeeze.

The snort he heard on the other side of the car made his heart pang – another point in the bank of things he liked about Peter. It was getting rather full, between his smarts and the quippy shit he had to say to any of the guys that ragged on him – it was hard to not be adding things to it on a daily basis. So when they drove by the arcade, Tony kept driving; Peter’s nod as they met eyes for a second made it easy to do.

Instead, Tony drove them out of Littleton and across the miles of empty space between there and the next town over. They talked about everything – Peter’s want to do Biomedical Engineering and the multiple sport talents he’d be showing off throughout the year. Tony learned about his uncle Ben and the unfortunate death that brought Peter and his aunt there to begin with.

In return, Tony told him a little bit about growing up in a small town and the immense pressure that came with being a Stark when he wanted absolutely nothing to do with the name or anything that came with it. When he talked about his dad, Peter let their fingers tangle together, the anchor of his touch making it a little easier to gush some of the details that he never thought to tell another soul.

It was so easy to lean across the center console and press his lips to Peter’s when they pulled up outside of the small house the Parker’s now lived in. The hand that was tangled with Peter’s all night reached up to cup his cheek lightly, the skin there soft and smooth under his fingertips. Tony let himself linger for a couple of minutes before pulling back, a shy smile slipping across his lips as he did.

“I had a good time, Tony,” Peter mumbled, his cheeks just as flushed as Tony’s felt. “Let’s actually go to the arcade sometime – I’ll cash out the first round.” With that, he leaned over and gave Tony a kiss on the cheek, then got out – all of it happening before Tony could even think to reply or give back or even say goodbye.

Blinking, Tony shook his head – the haze of being with Peter overwhelming him, making him lose himself for a second. The sound of On Call hit his ears when he resurfaced – the music pulling him back down to where gravity had ahold of him again. Before pulling away from the curb, Tony ducked down to see Peter leaned up against the door frame, eyes on Tony.

He didn’t look away until Peter was no longer in his sight. A goofy smile settled on his lips, the feeling of happiness settling in and taking hold.

----

The inevitable blow up Tony expected from day one finally happened right after the 1st game of the season.

Despite Steve being the starting quarterback for 3 years, Fury trusted his gut and put Peter in. It paid off, too – between his throwing abilities and the collective talent of the offense, Littleton was up by 30 at the end of the first half. It was obvious that a few people were upset by the change, but the juice the team got from the squeeze of Peter’s efforts was more important than hurt feelings (so was a win by 50 points, but who was counting?)

Tony met Peter at the edge of the field when the last seconds of the 4th quarter trickled down, his arms wrapping around the large pads that covered both their shoulders. The chemistry between them extended to the field, Tony went for 4 touchdowns that night.

Excitement was not the feeling that Tony walked into the locker room to, however – after Fury gave his post-game speech and hyped them up for post-game walk through the next day, the tangible tension came to a head. Tony got out of his gear, into the shower, and changed as fast as he possibly could. Grabbing Peter when he noticed he was ready, Tony directed them out of the locker room and into fresh air that wasn’t tainted with misplaced anger.

“Me playing is really that big of a deal? We won – the team played great. I don’t see what the issue is,” Peter said as they walked towards Tony’s Mustang. During the last couple of weeks of practice, the reality of Peter starting started to sink in for everyone – including Steve, who already felt the need to keep the grudge he formed before ever even meeting Peter.

“You know the answer to that question, Pete. This is a small town. Steve and his family and all of the people that know his family have seen him play all game every game for the past 3 years. There’s no getting around that dynamic, Pete – that’s why I want out so bad. It’s toxic and leaves no room for new or change or anything other than the usual. You have to understand that, at least,” Tony replied.

Peter sighed deeply, his shoulder bumping into Tony’s in silent agreement. “Okay, I do get that. I do – it’s just nothing personal. I know that’s not the fucking point, but it seems like it should be.”

Getting to the car, Tony dropped his bag by the passenger side door and let his arm trap Peter between himself and the car. He let a palm drift to Peter’s cheek, Tony’s thumb brushing over the seam of plush lips. “It should be, Pete. It doesn’t mean that it is.” Tony said truthfully, his own knowledge of being stuck in the box of the people around him fresh in his mind. “You just keep doing what you’re doing. I like it, at least.”

Their lips met in a soft kiss, Peter leaning forward to seal their lips together. Tony smiled into it and let his hand move into the still wet locks of Peter’s hair. The idea of getting away quickly vaguely registered – Tony broke the kiss and took a step away from him to break the spell Peter’s presence put him under. “Want to actually go to Munchies?”

It didn’t take anything other than Peter’s slight nod to have Tony opening his door, and walking around to his own side of the car, his bag getting tossed in the backseat as he got in. Tony made quick work of backing out and getting them on the road towards the arcade. It was a little more crowded than usual, but it was a Friday night – the crowds were inevitable.

As promised, Peter cashed out a $10 bill and split the quarters between them. Tony directed them towards the skee-ball immediately, his curiosity in Peter’s talent wining out over the need to kick some ass in Street Fighter. The way Peter’s eyes lit up said he made the right choice and for a solid 20 minutes, Tony watched in awe.

“The trick is to aim the ball high on the side so that when it banks, it catches the lip of the double bonus,” Peter muttered, his arm swinging gracefully, the ball doing exactly what he described. Ticket after ticket came barreling out of the game. The thought of having the skee-ball machines turned off because of too much prize distribution was quickly becoming a reality.

Unable to contain himself after Peter’s 8th game and the smiles that came with every play, Tony placed a hand on the other’s hip. The touch was enough for him to turn around, Peter’s hands wrapping around his shoulders tightly. They didn’t need to be making out in the arcade, but a kiss or two wouldn’t hurt anyone. Meeting in the middle, their lips met in a soft kiss – the shockingly familiar feeling of Peter against his front overtaking him.

The sudden shout of his name had him pulling back – the sound of Steve’s voice unmistakable. Tony thought about letting his lips linger, the forceful tone of his friend’s shriek one he didn’t like very much. Deciding against that, Tony detached from Peter completely, his hands drifting to settle into the depths of his pockets.

“Stevie – surprised to see you here,” Tony answered, his eyebrows quirking. Since he started to hang out with Peter, the rest of his friend group didn’t go out of their way to spend too much time with him. The usual nights of hanging out with a big group were reduced to Peter and Tony – something he actually wasn’t upset about at all.

Steve settled in front of him, Bucky and Clint on his flanks. “What did he do to gain your loyalty like this? Everyone else is pissed about tonight and you’re here making out with the person wreaking havoc.” Steve’s voice sounded petulant, the cross of his arms adding to the effect.

“Wreaking havoc? Steve, can you hear yourself? Peter is here living his life – which happens to include playing football on the same team that you do. What’s happening here has nothing to do with loyalty. He’s better than you, that’s all there is to it,” Tony stated bluntly – his heart pounding in his chest. He wasn’t sure if that was the right approach to take – but there wasn’t much to be done about it now.

His friend looked taken aback for a second, the blue of his eyes darkening. “How could you choose him over us? We’ve been your friends since birth, Tony.” The words were cutting and by the barely withheld smile on his face, Steve knew it, too.

“The fact that you’re playing that card is exactly why I’ll gladly stand by Peter. You’re too wrapped up in your own shit to realize that the team did well tonight – no matter how bad you felt about standing on the sideline, you should know how important that is. My friendship with you should not depend on my relationship with Peter. You’re my best friend, Steve – but I’m not going to let you make that sort of decision for me.”

In retrospect, he should have seen the punch coming – Steve got angrier with every one of Tony’s words. Throughout their life, Steve had been known to speak with his hands before thinking it through. It still stung, though – the throb of the punch and the fact that Steve delivered it at all. His hand shot up to cradle his cheek, a bruise already starting to form there.

It looked like Peter was going to try and retaliate, so Tony moved in front of him quickly. “It’s not worth it,” Tony whispered before Peter could protest or try and move him out of the way. He could do it, they both knew that; the sound of his voice must have reached something in him – Peter stopped in his tracks.

“I think you’re going to really regret doing that, Steve. Not because I’m going to hold it against you, but because you’re going to feel like a total asshole when I don’t.” Tony flashed him a smirk, his cheek smarting at the movement. Softening his voice, Tony spoke again. “Please get the fuck out of here, man. I think we’re done for the night.”

Despite the stupidity he just showed, Steve nodded stiffly and turned around to walk out the door. He shot a remorseful look over his shoulder, but Tony ignored it, his attention shifting back to Peter, instead. He let out a soft moan when the coolness of Peter’s hand touched his cheek, the other’s grip there locking their gazes. “Thanks for not letting me beat the shit out of him,” Peter whispered, his nose brushing against Tony’s.

Soaking up the touch, Tony felt himself smiling. “That’d make him right. The key is to always be one step ahead.”

Peter let him go then, his eyes drifting towards the entrance. “Want to get out of here?” he asked, the adrenaline of the situation obviously sucking the fun out of the great time they were having right before it.

Without thought, Tony nodded, his eye throbbing as he did. Grinning, he grabbed for Peter’s hand and twined their fingers together, his grip tight. “Yeah, I really do,” Tony answered, the feeling of how right that was on so many levels washing over him.

Between the contentment and the big grin Peter kept on shooting his way, Tony figured a punch in the face wasn’t the worst thing to take in the name of love.

[starshinewriter]

Chapters: 1/2 Fandom: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Dewey Duck & Huey Duck & Scrooge McDuck, Donald Duck & Louie Duck, Donald Duck & Fethry Duck & Gladstone Gander & Scrooge McDuck, Dewey Duck & Fethry Duck & Huey Duck & Louie Duck & Gladstone Gander, Daisy Duck & Donald Duck & Goofy & Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse, José Carioca & Donald Duck & Panchito Pistoles, Daisy Duck & Louie Duck & Goofy & Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse, José Caricoa & Louie Duck & Panchito Pistoles Characters: Scrooge McDuck, Donald Duck, Huey Duck, Dewey Duck, Louie Duck, Gladstone Gander, Fethry Duck, Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Daisy Duck, Goofy (Disney), Panchito Pistoles, José Carioca Additional Tags: TBA - Freeform Series: Part 4 of A Bigger, Different Family Dynamic Summary:

The boys meet their extended family.

Notes: Set between Hatching and First Words...

Alternative to ao3:

The day Gladstone and Fethry got to meet their cousins was finally here, Fethry was finally able to come up from the lab which meant Gladstone was coming as well. Scrooge and Donald were both nervous and excited for this. Nervous because they wanted it to go well and Fethry and Gladstone were, Fethry and Gladstone; excited cause despite their eccentricities they really did want to see them again. It had been a while, even before Della disappeared, and though they wouldn't readily admit it, they missed them.

The four of them had a lot they needed to talk about, but this wasn't about that. It was about the boys, who didn't know what was going on but could feel the tension in the air. Llewellyn, being quick to upset when he was confused, started crying. Donald's attention was immediately on him; he set to soothe him as he rocked him back and forth, giving a look to Scrooge as he did so. They had to calm down, the boys had to be in a good mood for this to go well.

Once Donald got his son calm he placed him down next to his cousins, who had been watching the whole thing worriedly. They comforted him in their own ways -mainly soft pats and quiet babbling- which made the adults smile.

Scrooge ran a hand through his hair- his hat currently on Dewey's head, and sighed, "When are those ta gonna get here?"

Donald rolled his eyes, "You know how Gladstone is." He tended to take his time getting to places, even when he knew it was important. It got on Donald's nerves to no end, which was definitely why he did it. Honestly, if he hadn't been family Donald would've stopped talking to him years ago. "And Feth's probably with him, and those two being together never ends well."

"Why didnae ane o' us go pick them up again?" Donald was about to respond when the doorbell rang. "Finally," Scrooge said going to answer it. He opened it up and sure enough, there they were. Two hours late. "Do ae want ta know why yer so late?"

"No." Fethry replied honestly; Scrooge chose to drop it, they were here now, that was what mattered. The two of them walked in and Donald shared a quick hug with Fethry then gave Gladstone a stiff handshake. "Can we meet the boys now?" Fethry asked, bouncing on his toes excitedly.  

"We need ta go over a few rules first." Scrooge closed the door and led the party to the den, "Firstly, ye have ta be gentle with them, they're wee babes and can get hurt easily. Second, ye have ta be quiet, their ears are very sensitive. Third-"

"Yeah yeah we got it, Uncle McD, can we see them now?" Gladstone interrupted making Scrooge glare at him but gave them the go-ahead anyway.

"Be careful, they don't know who you are and they've never meet strangers before." Donald added warningly.

And sure enough, as soon as the two of them stepped into the room the boys got confused. Scrooge quickly took control of the situation, "Boys, these are yer Uncles, Gladstone and Fethry." He said pointing at them when he spoke their names. "They're here ta meet yew, isnae that excitin'?" Dewey, who loved any kind of attention, immediately brightened up and waved, which made Fethry coo and pick him up.

"Oh, aren't you adorable! You're like a little Scrooge!" He continued to coo, messing with the hat which made Dewey start giggling. Meanwhile, the other two were apprehensive, they didn't know who these people were, they weren't sure they wanted anything to do with them. And Gladstone sure wasn't helping the situation, he was just standing at the edge of the den, like he didn't know what to do with himself. Donald scoffed and nudged him in. He slowly went in and stood next to Scrooge, who looked at him puzzled.

"Why are yew all nervous now?"

Gladstone stumbled, "I don't know, man, just actually seeing them. What if I mess this up?"

"Fethry's doing fine." Donald pointed out, the three of them looked to Fethry, who was still gushing over Dewey. Not that he was complaining at all.

"He's Fethry." Scrooge let out a thoughtful noise then bent down to pick Hubert up.

"Hubert, this is Gladstone, wanna wave hello?" Hubert frightenedly curled into his Uncle's embrace and turned his head away from the stranger. Llewellyn, not liking the fact that no attention was on him, started crying again. Donald quickly picked him up which made him stop almost immediately and brought him over to Gladstone.

"What about you, Llewellyn, do you want to?" His son looked at Gladstone for a few seconds before breaking out in a small smile and gave a tiny wave. Gladstone smiled back at him then looked at Donald questioningly. "Can he hold you?" Donald asked Llewellyn, who nodded and made stretchy arms toward his Uncle.  

Gladstone gently took him, "Hi, Llewellyn, you look like a little green bean." He said softly and Llewellyn laughed, which made Donald break out in a grin. He loved that sound. His laugh got the attention of Hubert who unburied himself from the tall person holding him and saw that both of his playmates liked the strangers. He offered a wave, still not sure if he liked them but trusting his playmates and the tall people who looked after the three of them. They wouldn't let bad people around them, Hubert knew that they wouldn't.

And that was when Fethry came over to them, holding a still giggling Dewey. "Thanks for letting us come meet them, this is a lot of fun!" He got quieter. "And it really means a lot." Scrooge and Donald smiled at him and Gladstone nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it does. We'll have to come by more often, if you'll have us of course." Fethry looked at them pleadingly and the two of them found themselves having a silent conversation. It wasn't like they didn't want them around, and it would be good for the boys to be around more people.

"O' course we'll have yew. Yer family." And this family needed each other right now, more than ever. They just lost one of their own, it's wasn't right for them to be separated, and it wasn't what they wanted either. It was true the four of them still had a lot to talk about, things to apologize and make up for, but knowing they had each other was enough for the moment. Knowing they would all be there for the boys was more than enough, and it always would be.

[pazithi-gallifreya]

The Hourglass Garden (An Unus Annus-inspired short story)

*Author’s note: Firstly, this is NOT a fan-fiction, nor does it contain Mark or Ethan in any way, so apologies to anyone looking for that type of content. Rather, it’s a story centered around some of the motifs that crop up throughout the Unus Annus channel as a whole - an homage, if you will. These two guys got me to write again for the first time in years, especially when it comes to writing for myself. I’m just happy I was able to create something for the guys, and I’m so thankful to them for getting those wheels turning in my head again, even if they’re a bit slow. As much of a meme it may be on the channel at this point, I think the overall theme of running out of time is super important, and one I think too many of us dismiss a majority of the time, myself included.I even kept putting the writing of this story off, but I finally came up with enough of a concrete plot to put it together. Mark is always talking about how if you want to do something, you gotta grab the bull by the horns and just do it, so this is me doing that. We need to remember that we often don’t have as much time as we think we do, and the clock is constantly ticking. It only stops for us when we die, but us dying has no effect on time for everyone else. It moves forward without us. That’s not to say we have to rush to get everything done all the time. We still need to stop and appreciate the things and people around us. We just need to find a healthy balance, find what we enjoy, and also work hard, not only for others, but also ourselves. All of that is what this story is about.

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          “Shit!” Aria gasped as the freezing wind nearly yanked the front door right out of her gloved hands. She reigned it back in, locked it, and pulled her beanie lower over her ears as she headed down the stairs towards her complex’s parking lot. She cranked the heat to max, sitting in her red 2007 Honda, cupping her still gloved hands and blowing into them before adjusting her rearview mirror. The crystals formed on the back windshield looked like little ice people. She smiled.

           It had been far too long since she had done something like this for herself. Her boss had recently quit at her editing company, making her schedule a living nightmare over the past month. The added pressure and stress hadn’t gone unnoticed by her best friend Beth, who, after much pushback on Aria’s part, finally convinced her to take a day off. “There’s this beautiful woodland garden about 40 miles out of town. There’s not as much to look at in the winter, so it’s not as pretty, but it’s still open. There’s also less people because of it, so if you’re looking for some solitude, as well as some fresh air, it’s the perfect place.”

          “In 30 miles, turn right on Hourglass Road,” chimed the robotic voice from her phone as she turned onto the highway. Any other day, she’d be blasting music and singing her lungs out, but not today. Today was a quiet day. She kept occasional watch over the crystal people slowly being sliced in half by the defroster, reminding her of her own temporary state as they dripped down the back window.

          Half an hour later, she turned onto Hourglass – a narrow gravel road that opened into a gravel parking lot surrounded by a short log fence, with an ornate sign that read Hourglass Gardens. She pulled in next to the only other car in the lot and pulled her coat tightly around her as she took in her surroundings. The fence opened onto a dirt path that forked in two directions. One led to the large old house that served as a local historical museum. The other traveled down to the woodland gardens. Aria turned off her phone so as to not be tempted, shoved her hands in her pockets, and sauntered down the longer path.

          A short way into the woods was a circular wooden bench surrounding a large, stone fountain  that was currently turned off, probably due to the season. The centerpiece was a huge hourglass surrounded by a stone circle with the phrase “Unus Annus” written repeatedly around the outside. The hourglass was filled with pure white sand, which had all sunk to the bottom. Tippy-toed, she reach up to turn it, but couldn’t get it to budge. She sighed as she took a seat and stared up into the bare branches that surrounded her overhead, silently thanking the powers that be for the seclusion. Beth was right, she thought. Not much to look at, but it’s pretty well-maintained... She stared into murky film at the bottom of the fountain. Mostly. At least it’s quiet.

          After several moments of taking in the stillness, she decided to move deeper into the barren woods. Every so often, she would run into little plastic markers with blurbs about the plants and wildlife people often encounter there. About 2 miles in, about every 20 steps or so, she began to notice little wooden markers close to the ground, almost hidden. They seemed to have arrows carved into them. They started along the path, then slowly got farther into the woods, away from the path. With time to kill, she figured she might as well go with it. There were no barriers, and having read many fantasy novels, she was always amused by the cheesiness of the “forbidden path” trope. Besides, she did come here to get away, after all, and what could be more detached from reality than following mysterious arrows in the woods into who knows where, even if the mystery was pretend. It was still the most excitement she had felt about anything in a while.

          She walked over another mile, and at one point resisted the brief temptation to turn back to the trail. She cleared through one final patch of dead shrubbery next to another arrow before stumbling into a clearing rivaling even the ones in her books – it’s like all the colorful butterflies and animals had congregated in this one spot, encompassed by rainbow assortments of flowers and dense foliage in full bloom, despite the fact it was January. In front of it all was a babbling brook, with an assortment of brightly-colored fish, complete with a little bridge nestled neatly over it. Funny, I didn’t even hear any running water before now. She knelt down to touch it, but something prevented her hand from penetrating the water; some invisible barrier.

          “I see you’ve made it.”

          Aria jumped at the sudden break in the silence. The voice was calm, yet loud somehow. A man in a white, hooded cloak stood on the opposite side of the brook, but still sounded as if he were standing right next to her. A strange mist spiraled around him.

          “What do you mean? Did you know I was coming? What is this place?” Aria asked, reaching her hand out in front of her, only to be forced back once again.

          The man pulled down his hood. “This is the end.”

          “The end of what? Who are you?”

          “I am the inevitable. This is where all of time resides. Everything begins here, and everything ends here.”

          “Are you saying you’re God, or something? Or Death? In the middle of a man-made sanctuary?”

          “I am neither. I am the in between. I am Time Itself. I do not reside on this plane, but I am wherever you need me at any given moment.”

          “So you’re saying you’re not really here?”

          “I am, and I am not.”

          “Am I the only one that can see or hear you?” Aria looked back to where she had entered. It was as brown and desolate as before.

          “Yes.”

          “Why? Why are you here? Why am I here?”

          “This is your turning point – the point where you decide whether to take back control of your own destiny or succumb to the darkness, the point where you decide to live a prosperous life or a waking death.”

          “How do I do that?”

          “Make the decision. Only you know which path you will walk down. When you truly have your answer and have confirmed it to yourself, return here before time runs out. You have one year. I will be waiting. Memento mori.” The man turned, slowly walking away as the mist swelled around him until in encompassed the entire meadow. A frog made a loud plop into the brook, and with that, it was gone.

          In front of Aria stood the looming hourglass fountain, now gushing with water. She pinched herself to make sure she hadn’t fallen asleep on the bench. What just happened, and why was she willing to believe and accept it so easily? She walked closer to examine the intricate stonework. The hourglass had been turned over. A few grains of sand had already trickled their way to the bottom. She read the phrase again. “Unus Annus.” She turned her phone back on and typed the words into the search bar. “One year,” she said softly to herself. “Okay,” she affirmed. “Looks like I’ve got a decision to make.”

          She walked determinedly back to her car, feeling refreshed and invigorated, despite the mind trip she had just been on. As she turned the key in the ignition, she remembered something. “What was the other thing that guy said?” she mumbled to herself. “Memento mori?” She pulled her phone back out and searched the phrase. The translation read, “Remember you must die.”

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Thank you to anyone who read this. Thank you to Mark, Ethan, and Amy for being such a positive and encouraging force in my life for so many years and all the experiences I’ve had because of you. Thank you for giving me some inspiration to start creating again. There have been a lot of hard times going on with my family that I haven’t been able to properly focus on myself, and I’m still working on a lot of things, but this is another small step to help me towards my goals, and I’m glad to have you both be a part of it (even if it ended up sounding like a cheap YA novel). Being a perfectionist, I may not particularly like the final product myself, and think it's weak in every aspect, but that wasn't what this was about for me. I just wanted to show some appreciation for some amazing people. It’s been hard for me to keep up with you guys’ videos as of late, but this channel has been a way for me to stay up-to-date with both of you in a small way, and it’s such a cool concept. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the channel.

(Unus Annus is right on the verge of 2 million right now! Let’s get them there! They deserve it so much!)

- Anne