#i think if i get to play one new game this year is going to be a miracle

[princesseilish]

NOBODY GETS ME

Paige bueckers x Singer!Reader

Warnings: Heavy angst, breakup aftermath, unresolved feelings, social media speculation, slow burn.

Synopsis: heavily based of “Nobody gets me” by SZA, because we love her, i know i do

Paige wasn’t sure why she even still checked. Muscle memory, probably.

She’d deleted every trace of Y/n from her social media. Unfollowed, untagged, erased. That should’ve been enough. That should’ve been closure. But somehow, against all logic, her thumb still hovered over Y/n’s name when she searched it up, heart sinking at the absence of the “Follow” button.

Gone.

That was the point.

And yet, no matter how many times she told herself she was over it, over her, the world wasn’t done shoving reminders in her face.

Y/n had been on tour for three weeks now. A massive success, sold-out venues, screaming fans—everywhere Paige turned, there was another clip, another article, another moment she tried to ignore.

But nothing hit harder than the song.

Nobody Gets Me.

The first time she heard about it, Azzi was the one who showed her. Of course it was Azzi.

They were in the locker room after practice, cooling down from a brutal session, when her best friend plopped down beside her, phone already in hand.

“Dude,” Azzi started, like she was trying to keep her voice casual, but Paige knew better. “You seen this yet?”

Paige barely spared the screen a glance. “Don’t care.”

“Yeah, you do.”

Azzi pressed play before she could stop it, and suddenly, Y/n’s voice filled the space between them.

“i don’t want to see you with anyone but me,”

Paige’s stomach twisted.

The video showed Y/n standing center stage, bathed in soft lighting, her fingers wrapped around a microphone. She looked different—hollow in a way that wasn’t just the stage design. Her eyes were closed, brows furrowed like the words physically hurt coming out.

“Nobody gets me like you”

Paige inhaled sharply, forcing herself to look away, but it was too late. The damage was done.

The crowd in the video sang the words back to her ex, voices full of emotion, but all Paige could focus on was the way Y/n’s voice cracked on the final chorus. The way she turned away from the mic for half a second, as if she was breaking right there in front of them all.

Azzi’s phone screen dimmed, but the silence between them stretched.

Paige clenched her jaw, shoving her water bottle back into her bag. “It’s just a song.”

Azzi hummed. “Sure.”

Paige tried not to think about it. Really, she did.

But it was impossible when the whole world seemed obsessed with connecting the dots for her.

“Y/n’s new song… definitely about her ex. But WHO??”

“Okay but be fr, Nobody Gets Me SCREAMS Paige Bueckers.”

“They were together for YEARS and just broke up. This song HURTS.”

Paige could ignore Twitter. She could ignore the fan edits, the TikToks, the thousands of comments dissecting every lyric.

But she couldn’t ignore the way it made her feel.

Because if she was being honest—painfully, brutally honest—Y/n was right.

Nobody did get her like Y/n.

Nobody understood the pressure she carried, the way basketball wasn’t just a game to her—it was everything. Nobody had been there from the start, back when she was just a kid with big dreams and shaky hands.

Nobody knew what it was like to fall asleep tangled together in the middle of winter, or to sit in the nosebleeds of an empty arena after a loss because Paige didn’t want to go home yet.

Nobody knew how Y/n used to trace circles on the inside of her wrist when she was anxious.

Nobody knew that Paige still reached for a body that wasn’t there when she woke up in the middle of the night.

So yeah.

She wasn’t stupid. She knew exactly who the song was about.

And that was the problem.

Y/n knew what she was doing.

She knew from the moment she stepped onto that stage, from the second she let the first note slip past her lips.

She knew when she whispered, “This one’s personal,” into the mic before the first verse.

She knew.

And so did Paige.

That was the point.

Paige sat on her couch, wrapped in the dim glow of the streetlights filtering through her cracked blinds. The city outside felt like a constant hum, a reminder that nothing ever stopped, even though it felt like her whole world had.

She hadn’t expected this. Not today. But the number flashing on her screen was all too familiar.

3 AM.

Y/n.

She wasn’t sure why it had taken so long for the message to come through. So much time had passed since their breakup, and now here Y/n was again, calling her at an ungodly hour like it was the only time they could have a conversation that wasn’t filled with too many memories.

Her thumb hovered over the green button for a long moment, thoughts swirling in her head. She should ignore it. She shouldn’t even think about picking up. The last thing she needed was another conversation full of words they couldn’t take back. But that was always the thing about Y/n, wasn’t it? Even when she shouldn’t, even when it hurt, Paige still wanted to hear her voice.

She pressed the button.

“Hello?” Paige’s voice was hoarse, thicker than she meant it to be. She felt the weight of the past couple of months sitting on her chest.

“Paige…” The sound of Y/n’s voice, soft and unsure, made the space between them feel endless. “I—uh, I didn’t know who else to call.”

That was nothing new. Y/n had always been the one who knew exactly how to find Paige when she was at her lowest, when things felt unfixable.

But this wasn’t the same.

“I’m not… I’m not sure what you want from me,” Paige replied, not angry, just tired. “I thought we agreed this was it.”

“Yeah. I know,” Y/n whispered. “But this song—”

Paige clenched her jaw. She already knew where this was going. The song. Nobody Gets Me. The one that had followed her through every city on tour, through every game, through every article written about her and Y/n.

“You don’t get to play that card now,” Paige bit out, the anger bubbling just beneath the surface. She regretted the words the moment they left her lips, but it didn’t change how she felt. “You can’t just come back into my life whenever you want because you wrote a song about me. You left.”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. Paige could hear Y/n breathing, slow and measured. “I didn’t mean to leave you,” she said quietly. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“I know you didn’t,” Paige muttered. “But you still did.”

The silence between them felt like a void, a space neither of them knew how to fill anymore.

“I’ve been reading what people are saying…” Y/n started, hesitating, as if she didn’t want to continue. “They know it’s about you.”

“Great,” Paige said flatly. “Everyone’s got something to say about it, huh?”

Y/n laughed, but it was soft, almost bitter. “I don’t care about what they think, Pa—I mean, Paige.” She stumbled over her words like it hurt. “I didn’t do it for them. I did it for you. I don’t know how else to say this, but… I’m sorry for how everything ended. I don’t know how to fix this. I don’t even know if it can be fixed.”

Paige closed her eyes, the exhaustion of everything weighing her down. “I don’t know either,” she whispered. “I don’t even know if I want it fixed.”

Y/n let out a shaky breath. “I didn’t want to be the one to walk away, but I couldn’t stay either. I couldn’t be what you needed anymore.”

Paige could feel the tension in her chest tighten. So this is what it was, then. This is how they would end. With nothing left but the words that were said too late.

“You were always what I needed,” Paige said softly, before she even realized she had said it aloud. She cleared her throat. “It’s just not the same anymore.”

Y/n didn’t respond at first, and the silence felt heavy. She could hear the faint hum of a car passing outside, the far-off sounds of the city that never truly slept.

“I didn’t want to leave,” Y/n finally said. “But I couldn’t stay in something that was breaking me, too.”

Paige swallowed, the lump in her throat thick. “You should’ve told me that. I would’ve understood. But you didn’t. You just… disappeared. And now I’m left here, not knowing what happened. Not knowing where we went wrong.”

The honesty in Y/n’s voice hit like a punch to the gut. “I didn’t know how to say it.”

And just like that, the door they had slammed shut months ago creaked open again, just a little.

“I don’t want this to be over,” Y/n continued, and it was like the words were a plea. “I don’t want it to feel like… like we’re strangers.”

The vulnerability in her voice cracked through the anger and the hurt, and for the first time in a long time, Paige wasn’t sure what she wanted anymore.

She didn’t know if she could go back, if they could really make it work. But hearing Y/n’s voice, hearing the pain, the regret, made her feel like there was a possibility that maybe they could find their way through this mess, no matter how long it took.

“I don’t know how to start over with you, Y/n,” Paige said softly. “But I guess… I guess I don’t want to lose you either.”

Another long silence stretched between them. Neither of them knew what came next.

“I’ll see you when I see you,” Y/n whispered, her voice thick, breaking just slightly as if she was trying to hold back the tears she couldn’t let fall.

And with that, the line went quiet.

Paige stared at her phone in the dark, her heart pounding in her chest.

They were far from any kind of resolution, but for the first time in months, she wasn’t sure if that was a bad thing.

[captain-huggy-bear]

The Puck-cident

Pairing: Clayton Keller x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Blood, vomit, injury, hurt/comfort

Summary: You are the unfortunate soul that takes a puck to the face during one of Utah's games, Clayton sees whole thing and demands to be let off the ice.

Notes: By popular demand I have finally gotten around to this fic ☺️This turned out to be like 5.5k so...enjoy?

Totally happy to take requests/ideas/prompts at the moment in my ask box :)

Writing Masterlist

Everyone always knows there's a risk involved with sitting in the audience at an ice hockey game. The announcers at every game never fail to remind people that pucks can travel at well over 80mph and can go into the audience. Always reminding people to keep their eyes on the puck. But, no one actually ever thinks it'll hit them. You've seen your fair share of pucks caught in the crowds, you've never seen someone get injured.

You've been to so many ice hockey games that maybe you've been lulled into a false sense of security, a sense that nothing bad could possible happen to you, not when you're sat in the stands to watch your boyfriend play. Not when you're wearing his jersey, Keller plastered across the back, number 9 bold and clear. Not when you feel so at home in that space, so secure. Turns out you're terribly wrong.

Normally Clayton's eyes wouldn't have followed the puck as it went out of bounds, normally he'd have sighed and moved to the new faceoff circle, caring very little for what fan had managed to catch it. Normally, he'd be more concerned with the fact that they were in a two goal deficit. But, something made him stop on the ice today, something made him follow the puck with his eyes to its end destination. Eyes widening in horror as the scene started to play in slow motion while he was utterly helpless on the ice, stood there with his grip slacking on his stick.

Clayton never imagined that it would be dangerous for you to come to one of his games because fans getting hit by pucks? Getting genuinely hurt? That seemed like such a fluke incident and you'd never been hurt before, not in all the years you'd been coming to his games. Even before you were with him you'd gone to ice hockey games, not once had you had an issue. But, it sinks in, the reality of it, that it does happen and can happen to you. That it's happening to you right now and he can't do anything to stop it.

The piece of vulcanised rubber that had flown off the stick of the opposing team flies over the glass into the stands and he watches like some sort car crash, a sick slow motion view as the puck finds you, like your name was written on it. It's hard to tell from this distance how hurt you are, or where you were hit, but he can see the crowd writhing around you, the panicked yells telling him enough.

Enough that Clayton's skating towards the bench as fast as he can, shrugging off teammates and referees who try to insist he stays, who keep asking him what's wrong and where he's going. His coach tries the same, stepping in his path, confused as to where Clay's off to in the middle of a game as the captain of the team.

"Keller, what do you think you're doing?"

"Respectfully, Bear, my girlfriend just got hit by a puck going nearly 90mph. I'm going to see if she's alright." His tone is short, clipped, trying to be respectful of his coach, a man he does respect and admire. But he's made up his mind and nothing and no one is going to stop him from going to you right now. He'd sooner quite hockey entirely than play a whole game unsure if you're alright after being injured.

"Keller, the game..."

"Fuck the game, you've got enough players. I need to see her, coach." Maybe it's the wild look in his eyes, the way panic stands out stark and clear. Maybe it's the tense set of his shoulders or the fact that his stick creaks so hard under his grip that it sounds like it may crack. Whatever it is, he isn't yelled at like he expects, no one tells him to go back out on the ice.

Instead Tourigny steps aside letting him past as Clayton storms down the tunnel, passing his stick off to someone. He's barely aware of the fact he takes off his skates, shoving them in someone's arms before he's running out towards the entrance to the stands in just his socks, the only thought on his mind being you and whether you were okay right now.

It's hard to describe what goes through your head when you see the puck coming straight for you, a blind sort of panic that has you freezing in your seat, not that you had anywhere to go to avoid it, not at the speed it had come at you. You're in such shock that you don't really feel much after the initial impact, head buzzing and dazed, neck hurting from the snap of your head backwards, ears ringing as people around you start fussing over you. Someone has you up out of your seat, your arm around their shoulders helping you out of the stands. The feeling of wetness glides down your temple and you raise a hand to your face that comes away red, noticing almost numbly that you're bleeding, blood running down the side of your face, upset because it starts to drip on Clay's jersey, the white one he'd lent you. The fabric being stained, ruined.

"Keller has left the ice, rather abruptly, we're unsure if it's related to the fan in the crowd who's taken a puck to the head or not." Someone has the game station on, clearly enjoying having the commentators speak during the game, the crowd is so loud as you're all but hauled up the stairs to the exit of the stands. You have just enough awareness to wonder if Clayton had seen you get hit or whether he'd been hurt on the ice himself or wasn't feeling well.

You feel like you're going to be sick as you're helped into the main entrance of the arena, lights blinding you, head pounding, the numbness starting to fade in favour of such blistering, aching pain in your head that you can't help but start crying. You feel pathetic, scared, panicked and in pain. You just want Clayton but he should be playing a game right now and the realisation that you couldn't have him with you only makes you cry harder.

It turned into full on sobs when your dizzy, double vision locks on to Clay who's running in just a pair of socks towards you, frantic, helmet being tossed behind him to someone. There's two of him, your vision going in and out but you're so happy to see him that it doesn't matter. So happy that he's here that you can almost ignore the pain, the nausea, and the blood.

He's got you in his arms before you can even comprehend reaching for him, whoever had helped you this far taking a step back to let him take over. He's petrified, you look horrific, blood coating the side of your face and neck, red clotting around your temple. Your eyes unfocused, the white of his jersey bloodstained, tears streaming down your face and he knows someone's calling the first aid team, but it doesn't reassure him when you look like that.

Clay's hands cup the sides your face, your blood is sticky against his palm and he knows he shouldn't be, knows its not anyone's real fault, but he's irrationally angry. Angry at the other team for sending the puck off into the stands, angry at you for always insisting you sit like a normal fan rather than in the box for family and friends, angry at himself for not insisting, angry at Tourigny for trying to stop him from coming to find you, angry that he wasn't with you when it happened. Angry because the alternative is fear and he's not sure he's ready to feel that right now, not sure he can, needing to keep it together for you because you're still crying, clutching onto him like he's the only thing that can bring you comfort right now. He can't help the way he grips you back tightly, trying to reassure himself that you're okay, even as blood keeps flowing from the split skin of your temple.

"You're going to be okay, baby, I've got you...It's okay." It's not, fuck, it's not, but he's trying to stay calm for you, a blank mask on his face rather than blind panic as he watches a stretcher be wheeled towards you. Runs his fingers through your hair in an attempt to soothe you and himself at the same time, he knows his hands are shaking so fucking badly and he hopes you don't notice, hope you feel reassured by him, feel like he's steady, stable.

"We need her on the stretcher, Keller, so we can have a look at her." Clay's attention goes to the first aiders behind you, the stretcher pulled close enough that all you have to do is step back and jump up.

"It hurts, Clay..." You're sniffling into his shoulder, blood getting on the jersey he's wearing, not that he cares. The equipment team are used to getting blood out of things. Two bloody jerseys is nothing in the grand scheme of things.

"I know, baby, oh, I know...I'm just going to give you a little boost up, okay? We're going to get you sat up here, okay?" He talks you through each step as his hands find your waist, helping you jump up onto the stretcher. The movement makes you dizzy, nausea filling you to the point where you know you're going to be sick, desperately trying to keep it in, being unable to. You can't help it when you're sick...all over Clay, head leaning forward between your legs as you vomit over his legs, whimpering as you do so.

"I'm sorry...I've got blood on your jersey and now..." You're crying harder now, embarrassment and shame added to the whole issue because you've just vomited over your boyfriend's expensive hockey gear after bleeding over 2 different jerseys. But, Clay doesn't flinch, hands stroking your hair as you lean forward to quell the dizziness. Is it gross? Oh, totally, does he actually care? Not really. It's testament to how much he loves you that the grossness doesn't matter, he'd let you vomit on him a million times so long as he can look after you in the process.

"It's okay, baby, I need you to lay back, okay? They're going to check on your head..." His hands are gentle on your shoulders, pushing you back while helping you swing your legs straight on the stretcher. Clay's fingers brush back your hair as he looks down at your hazy gaze, "I need to go change real quick and I'll be right back, sweet girl."

When he goes to step back you're grabbing his hand with the precision of a star goalie, even with the double vision and haziness you manage to find his hand. The grip you have on him is so tight, scared for him to leave you, scared you'll be alone like this. Even as you know he's covered in blood and vomit and needs to change, deserves to change.

He's right back to stroking your cheek, backs of his fingers gentle on your skin like he's afraid you might break, "I'll be right back, you're not going anywhere without me."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

He tells the medical staff not to go anywhere with you without him. The fear of coming back to find you gone roiling in his stomach, not really wanting to leave you alone but knowing he can't stand here covered in sick. He's so quick, running down the corridors to the locker room to limit how long he's gone. The speed with which he takes off the vomit soaked clothes and sweat stained uniform is probably record breaking and despite the smell of sick he doesn't even contemplate a shower, just throws on some old sweats and a t-shirt, shoving his feet into a pair of sneakers before bolting back to where he left you. He can take a shower later, once he knows you're okay, once you're both back home.

You're lying back on the stretcher with one of the first aiders, Clay thinks his name is John, leaning over you, shining a torch in your eyes to check for a concussion when Clay returns. He can tell already that you have one between the dizziness, vomiting and the way you seem to wince at any and all light. It doesn't take a genius to realise the puck to the face has rocked your brain a little too hard.

The middle age first aid looks up at Clayton as he finishes checking you over, Clay coming up on your other side to grab your hand again. The way you look at him, so trusting, so happy to just have him back makes his heart skip a little even as it breaks at how tired and in pain you look.

"She has a concussion and needs stitches, we're not allowed to do them here as she's a member of the public, she needs to go to hospital. It might also be a good idea to get an x-ray, make sure she's not got a fracture or anything like that." John turns to Clayton, pocketing the flashlight. It's not what he wants to hear, Clay would rather hear that you're perfectly fine, but it's obvious you're not. Still panic closes his throat at the thought that you might have something even more seriously like a fracture or worse.

"Does she need an ambulance or can I drive her?" Either way Clayton's coming with you, whether in the back of an ambulance or in the driver's seat of his car. He'll deal with the aftermath of leaving the game later, but right now? You're his priority and he's not leaving you.

"Probably quicker for you to take her yourself, Keller. I can help you wheel her to your car?"

"Thanks, that'd be great, John."

"No problem."

Clay has your hand in his, walking alongside the stretcher as John wheels it down to the parking lot. You're dazed and slightly giddy, laughing at each bump despite the pain and that's more concerning to Clay than the crying. A cloth has been put to your head, held there by your free hand, knuckles tight like you're working off instinct just to keep it there. He's not sure you'd be able to release it with how tight your grip is. He knows head wounds bleed a lot, but that doesn't make seeing the cloth already red with blood, any easier or less worrying.

Clayton's decided he has a new appreciation for how you feel whenever he gets injured on the ice. It's...God, it might be one of the worst things he's ever had to go through.

He's proven right, that you can't seem to let that cloth go when he helps you down from the stretcher and to his car, your hand doesn't move, cloth pressed to stem the flow of blood even when you stumble. He has you in the passenger seat and buckled in as quickly as possible and maybe he breaks a few traffic laws on the way to the hospital, but anyone would. The way you're barely there next to him, so dazed that he's worried the concussion might be something more has him pressing a little harder on the accelerator.

The blood is enough in the emergency room for you to be fast tracked to a doctor and a bed, struggling to sit upright he makes the decision to get up on the bed with you. You rest between his legs, leaning back on him heavily, Clayton the only thing keep you sat upright as the doctor, Dr Pandya, pries the cloth from your hand and assesses the wound.

You shy back into him when the doctor wipes away at the large cut with antiseptic to clean away the blood, only for more to come spilling forth. Clay's arms wrapping tight around your waist, linking your hands with his to give you something to grip onto.

"You need stitches, it's not going to close on its own."

"Okay..." He can tell you're trying to be brave, breathing suddenly heavier, fingers tightening around his until his own start to go numb, but he doesn't complain. Just lets you lean on him, seek support from him.

You're brave throughout the 14 stitches it takes to close up the cut on your temple, more stitches than you've ever had to have in your life. But, you don't complain, don't ask to stop, don't hiss, just let it happen as you grip onto Clay with everything you have. The warmth of his back behind you, his chin resting on your shoulder, pressing kisses to your neck, helps. Having him with you helps.

"All done. You have a concussion and need to rest for at least 2 days before you do anything. Avoid bright lights, loud areas. Keep those stitches dry for at least a day, so no washing your hair just yet unfortunately. If it starts to bruise, ice it."

The doctors turns to Clay this time, "If she starts to seem confused, keeps vomiting or just doesn't seem to be getting any better then bring her back in. But she should be tired for the next few days but start to feel better soon."

"Thank you," You're quiet but polite, not wanting to be rude when someone has taken the time to help you even if it is the doctor's job to do so.

"Thanks, Doc."

There's a quick sort of turn around in which Clay fills out the necessary paper work, financial details, insurance and the like before he's helping you up and out of emergency room.

All you want is to sleep, curl up in bed with Clayton and hide from the pounding in your head, the bright lights and loud sounds of the outside world only making it worse.

He's calmer on the drive home, no more traffic laws being broken even if he grips the steering wheel a little tight and keeps glancing at you out of the corner of his eye, assessing. Some of the panic has eased, but not all. You're still hurt. Concussed, stitched up, definitely going to bruise and swell, and in need of rest. Rest he can't be there for the entire time because of his job. He might have gotten away with leaving the game tonight, but he knows he'll be expected at practice tomorrow, knows he'll be expected at the home game the day after and that means hours of time in which you're alone. He hates the idea of it, already running through a mental list of people he could call.

"I got blood on your jersey..." You're sniffling again when he pulls the car into the driveway, putting it in park. He turns in his seat, leaning an arm on the headrest to watch you. You're staring at the blood stains on the jersey you're wearing, tears dripping down your cheeks and it's...it's so silly and so sweet that some of that panic eases further.

"It's okay, baby, the equipment guys can get the blood out."

"Really?" You look at him so hopefully, so innocently happy. He hates that your reaction is like that because of your injury, at the same time finding it amusing, a small smile reaching his lips for the first time since he saw you take a puck to the face.

"Yeah, baby, they're great at that..."

"Oh..."

There's a beat of silence where you just blink at him, sighing out each breath like even that's too tiring right now. There's blood crusted around your stitches that he knows you're going to get annoyed with while you can't get water near them, bruising starting to pop up around that side of your face, swelling beginning to show and make you look a little lopsided.

"Let's get you inside and into some comfy clothes, yeah? You tired?"

"Really tired..." You blink all slow at him, eyelids feeling supremely heavy and he knows you're going to be out like a light the moment he gets you into the bed. That's reassuring in a way, that you'll find it easy to rest, at least tonight, before the aches fully settle in.

He's tries to be quick getting round to your side of the car but he's starting to feel just as tired. A combination of playing half a game of pro-hockey, the anxiety, panic and worry over your wellbeing, being thrown up on, going all the way to hospital and back, all working to make Clayton feel like dropping where he stands. But, like always you're his priority.

His hands reach for yours, tugging gently to pull you from the car, "Okay, out you get, baby." You go willingly, letting him guide you from the car and through the house. Letting your brain shut off because he's got you. You trust him to guide you around obstacles, through doorways, a level of trust that Clayton can't help but feel honoured by as you let him sit you on the edge of your shared bed.

You blink up at him all slow and sleepy, shoulders slumping and he's certain if you laid down you'd be out in seconds.

"Arms up, baby." You don't question him, don't hesitate, arms straight in the air with the sort of sluggishness that tells him even doing that feels hard right now.

Clay's careful of your hair and your stitches as he pulls the bloodstained jersey over your head, throwing it in a corner to take back to the rink to salvage. You leave your hands up as he helps you out of your undershirt and replaces it with one of your favourite big comfy t-shirts. You don't drop your arms until he tells you to, the sort of obedience you fall into around him because he takes care of you so well that you trust him more than you trust yourself.

"Wanna shower..."

"You can't get your stitches wet yet, sweet girl, tomorrow night I'll help you shower, but not tonight, okay?"

"Okay..." He knows you hate it, your routine is like clockwork. Every evening you shower, washing the dirt and grime of the day away, and breaking that is upsetting to you. But, you trust him. You listen without protest and let him lay you back so he can wriggle your jeans down over your hips and off your ankles, socks coming with.

"Up for me, baby." You reach for him from the first word, arms around his neck, fingers tangling in his chains as he lifts you to your feet, keeping an arm wrapped around your waist as he pulls the covers back.

He settles you in against your pillow, swinging your legs up and pulling the covers up to your waist as you cling to him. Your fingers don't detach from his chains, holding tight to him so that he can't pull away, hovering over you.

He's so handsome, maybe it's the concussion talking, but he's always so handsome. Your free hand reaches for his cheek, tracing the skin beneath his eyes and he can't help but smile at you, at the soft way you're gazing up at him. Still dazed, but oh so loving.

"You okay, baby?" He huffs a laugh down at you, teeth peeking out and you love that smile, god it makes him so pretty. So, so pretty. Even prettier when one of his hands cups your cheek like that, long finger stroking the skin gently where your cheek lifts from grinning up at him all dozy.

"Mmm, you're really pretty."

"I think that's your concussion talking, sweet girl." His fingers graze the swollen skin by your stitches lightly, not hard enough to hurt or sting, but a reminder to himself that you've got 14 stitches right now. That right now you're brain is a little scrambled.

"Nuh uh...you're always pretty...I got really lucky." You might be concussed but you know it's true. Clayton's so handsome you spend half your time wondering how you managed to bag him because he could have any woman he wanted and instead he chose you. This handsome, beautiful, kind, caring man, a pro-athlete, and he chose you. Normal, little old you.

"Wrong way around, I'm the lucky one. You took a puck to the face for me, that's pretty hardcore, baby." The blood around your stitches is dry and flaky, proof that today wasn't just a dream or imaginary. Proof that his girlfriend had taken a puck to the face, survived and only vomited once, pretty hardcore.

"Didn't mean to..."

"I know...it worried me though, just glad you're okay."

His fingers caress your skin as silence over takes the two of you, just gazing at each other as each of you feel the other under your fingers. To feel the way you graze the tip of his nose, how you tug a little on his chains to bring him just an inch closer. It's grounding to have you in his hands like that, to feel your warmth, to know you're going to be fine even if he'd been scared today. The whole thing has just solidified in his mind how much he loves you, how much he'd be willing to do for you, to give up for you. That you're it for him whether you realise that or not.

You take a shuddering breath, eyes shifting away from his like you're embarrassed by what you're going to say next even as your fingers tighten around his chains and keep him close. His blue eyes fixed on you, attention unwavering and loyal.

"I was...I was scared I'd be alone...just wanted you..." Your head isn't quite as fuzzy as earlier, but you can remember it clearly. Feeling the panic at the thought that you wanted Clay but he wouldn't be there...then the joy at seeing him, the relief as he ran out in full gear except skates, socks only on his feet.

"You thought I wouldn't be there?"

"You had a game...a-and I didn't know if you'd seen it happen...thought you'd still be playing." It's like you're ashamed for thinking he wouldn't be there, and while he hates that you did, he understands why. There was no guarantee he'd have even know you were hurt, it was just by some fluke of luck, by sheer chance that he'd actually watched the puck fly into the crowd for once. Even then, in some arenas would he have even been able to tell it was you?

"They'd have had to chain me to Schmaltz to keep me on the ice, baby. Always going to be there for you, no matter what. You first. Hockey second." He means it. Hockey has been his life since he could put on a pair of skates, and he'd worked hard for it, always having to do 10 times what the bigger guys did and do it 10 times better. But, you? You're it for him you'll be it for him when he retires from hockey, when he can no longer play and that? That's worth more than a game, even a game he loves. It's practically a proposal in itself, a promise to you because he never wants you to think he'd pick the game over you, especially not when you're hurt.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." The smile you give him is blinding, so full of love that he wants to bottle it, memorise it to keep for those bad days. For the days when they've lost a game, for the times when he needs a reminder to keep pushing, to keep going.

"Come to bed?" You try to tug him again by his chains but he unfurls your fingers gentle, one by one, smoothing over your knuckles in reassurance.

"I've got to shower baby, but I don't want to leave you alone..." The idea of taking his eyes off you, of not being able to see that you're okay for even a minute makes him feel sick.

"You smell like vomit..." You wrinkle up your nose, scrunching your face like you've only just realise that he smells. Your hands pushing on his shoulders a little, moving him away rather than closer and he can't say he blames you. Even he's over the smell now.

"That's your fault, baby."

"'m sorry..." You mumble, warmth flooding your face at the memory of throwing up on him, his hockey gear taking the brunt of it rather than the floor.

"It's okay, I'll go shower, but you'll okay if I leave you for a few minutes?"

You nod your head gently, carefully because nodding too much hurts right now. Clayton presses a quick kiss to your forehead, avoiding the swollen areas of your face before leaving you.

He's no nonsense about it all, washing with a precision and speed that would make the army consider recruiting him. He's thorough, however, skin scrubbed down until he smells like your vanilla body wash and not vomit.

Clay doesn't faff with clothes, just shoves a pair of boxers on and curls up next to you, you're already asleep, mouth open slightly, the tiniest hint of drool at the corners. Endearing. He wraps an arm around your waist, dragging you gently closer until he can curl around you like that might keep you safe from any further puck based incidents.

Clay doesn't sleep...not well at least. He spends half the night just watching you breathe, scared that if he closes his eyes something might happen. A total of 3 hours all he gets, so when the doorbell rings shrill and loud at 7am all he can do is groan loudly and burrow his face into your shoulder.

The doorbell rings again and he's swearing under his breath because if it's a sales person or a cold caller he might actually commit a crime. All he wants it to stay curled up with you, maybe get some more sleep now you seem a little perkier, eyes blinking open and more coherent than they were yesterday.

"Clay...the door." It's your worry about ignoring it that has him groaning, stretching and shoulders popping as he stumbles out of bed.

"I know, baby...stay here."

He doesn't even bother putting on clothes, just walks to the door in his boxers. Your head might still be fuzzy but you can't help the way your eyes trail over his back, the way his arse looks in his boxes, the thick set of his thighs. You're almost certain he puts an extra little saunter in his step because you're watching.

He kind of hopes whoever has disturbed his rest with his injured girlfriend gets the shock of their life seeing him open the door in just his boxers. Unfortunately, it's just Kesselring, who has seen him in his boxers more times than he can count, completely unphased.

"What're you doing here, Kess?"

"Came to check on Mrs Keller and brought a gift," The taller man holds up a little gift bag and as much as Clayton wants to slam the door in his face he doesn't, just stepping aside to let Kess in.

He leads him to you, where you're wrapped up in all the bed blankets, making yourself a little cocoon and your face brightens at seeing one of your favourite members of his team. Kess is only your favourite because he lets you go round to see the cats whenever you want, whether he's there or not. Or that's what Clayton says to ease any of that ugly little jealous side he has that occasionally rears it's head. Even knowing that Kess treats you more like a sister than anything else.

"For you Mrs Keller," Kess hands you the gift bag even as you swat at him weakly. He'd been calling you that ever since Clayton announced you were dating...the alternative wasn't much better, referring to you as the team mom because Clayton was the team dad.

"Thank you, Michael," You pull out a wad of tissue paper, unfurling it to reveal the last thing Clayton ever wanted to see.

"You brought the thing that nearly killed my girlfriend into the house?" He's actually irrationally angry at the rubber. The black has been cleaned, not a speak of your blood on it and the edge has been covered in white stick tape. In black sharpie, 'the puck-cident March 2025' has been written in Kess' chicken scratch handwriting.

"Kells, it's a puck."

"It nearly killed my girlfriend. It's evil." He sneers at the inanimate object in your hands.

"Clay," you're laughing at him, giggling at the way he glares at a piece of rubber, "It's sweet...Michael, it's very sweet." You turn to the taller man, smiling up at him because it is thoughtful in a weird sort of hockey logic way. To bring you the puck that gave you 14 stitches, like it was some gaming winning puck you scored with.

"Well, figured you might want a souvenir from your puck-cident," Kess grins at both you, the pun so bad that Clayton and yourself are both groaning at him.

Clayton pointing to the door, this time with humour in voice, head shaking, "Out! That was so fucking bad, man!"

"I'm going, cap, Jesus! A guy can't do anything nice these days! What a pucking crime!"

"Kess!"

[thissying]

Max Verstappen is starting a Formula 1 season in which he has to mind his words. The FIA ​​has tightened the screws with sky-high fines for swearing. "I'm not going to say very much anymore, that's for sure."

Rally driver Adrien Fourmaux was the first victim of the stricter rules. The Hyundai driver said "We fucked up", during the Swedish Rally, in a live interview on TV. The result was a 30,000 euro fine, although 20,000 euros of that was eventually made conditional.

Verstappen got into trouble with the FIA ​​last year because he used a similar term in the press conference for the Singapore Grand Prix. He had read the statement about Fourmaux.

"When you see what it says and what that rally driver said, I think you better keep your mouth shut from now on. But then there won't be many interviews anymore, that's true," Verstappen predicted on Tuesday in the run-up to the F175 event in London.

"You have to be very careful what you say, that much is clear," Verstappen replied when asked if he can still be himself. "And you can give your opinion, but you have to be careful with that too. Then you can also get a penalty, because it can be insulting," he said about the rules tightened by FIA president Mohamed Ben Sulayem.

It is of course a topic of discussion among the drivers' guild. Drivers' union GPDA already issued a statement last year. "People are now looking at what we can do about this," Verstappen explained.

Although a number of drivers stated in London on Tuesday that they understand that swearing is being restricted here and there, according to Verstappen the drivers are on the same page; his page.

"I think that the majority of what I read, and not everyone responds of course, finds it abnormal, those kinds of fines," said Verstappen, who was keen to emphasise that despite a salary of millions, no one likes to pay tens of thousands of euros in fines. For Formula 1 drivers, the amounts can amount to 80,000 euros.

"You lose money anyway. It is of course never nice to pay. I have had it a few times, that I had to transfer those kinds of amounts. But I am not going to suddenly change because of that," he pointed out the lack of an effect.

"There is emotion and passion in it," he described his regular swearing over the radio. "Of course I understand that swearing is not okay. But if you use the example that young children are watching, then I think: what did you do yourself at school, or while gaming or when you played football on the street? Everyone does it."

"And of course you have to be careful at certain times, I understand all that too," he added. "But I don't think it has to be described so clearly. It can also be a bit of common sense."

At least that is not the case with the FIA. Violations of the swearing rules can ultimately lead to exclusion from races. It is theoretically possible that a driver misses races due to swearing penalties and therefore misses out on the title. "That would be something, yes," Verstappen stated.

The Limburger had a playful solution to the problem "Maybe I should just swear in Dutch, or in Limburgish. Almost nobody understands that." Verstappen has mastered his regional language quite well. "Although I don't speak it that often anymore." Which Limburgish swear word he would use, he kept to himself with a laugh. "Of course I'm not going to say that now."

Verstappen is therefore starting the Formula 1 season with the handbrake on his language use and fines hanging over his head. "It still depends a bit on what you say and who it is aimed at. But I'd rather spend that money on something else," he pointed out, referring to the pregnancy with girlfriend Kelly Piquet. "A nursery, for example, new paint."

- nu.nl

[fairwrite]

ITS ALWAYS BEEN YOU | QH43

| pairing: Quinn Hughes x fem!reader

| summary: just neighbors who stopped being in denial

| warnings: use of y/n, kissing, romance, older brothers best friend trope

| a/n: this is my first tumblr post!! Yayyyy

Main master list

𓆉

I don’t remember a time in my life where me and Quinn Hughes weren’t neighbors.

Me and Quinn Hughes have been neighbors for what felt like a lifetime

He was always in my life I was always in his.

It wasn’t any better that both of our dads were pretty good friends either

From the moment I met Quinn Hughes I knew he would be the death of me

But some of my earliest memories of him - messy haired and wild running wild through the grass while my older brother chased after him

Did I mention that he and my older brother were best friends- like stuck to the hip

Well that just makes it 10 times worst for me, I can’t like my older brothers best friend that’s just wrong in so many ways

Quinn wasn’t just Quinn he never had been I tried to see him as just Quinn but I couldn’t I saw him in a different way but I could never tell my brother or him NEVER

𓆉

“You’re late”, my older brother grumbled as I slid my way through the party that my dads girlfriend had organized

I rolled my eyes and looked around “it looks like I didn’t miss much”

My brother sighed “that’s not the point, none of my friends are here and my sister wasn’t here, I got pretty bored”

I chuckled “wow my brother admitting he loves my company”

he groaned “I never said that, I rather be annoying you than talking to all these old people who I don’t even remember meeting when I was like 4 years old”

I laughed than I got a good look at the crowd and I see Ellen Hughes

She’s been like a mom to me ever since I could remember, since my mom left when I was a little girl.

I had to go talk to her it’s felt like ages since we’ve talked

I turned back to my brother “I’m gonna go talk to Ellen, see ya” I turned to walk towards Ellen’s direction before my brother tried to bribe to stay with him

Ellen saw me before I could say hi, she excused herself from the conversation she was having and met me half way and gave me the biggest hug ever

“Y/N it’s so nice to see you, it’s felt like ages” Ellen said with the biggest smile on her face

I smiled “ I know I’ve just been so busy with college and hockey”

Ellen smiled and nodded with understanding “oh yes if heard going number 1, in the PWHL draft next year after you graduate college”

I smiled “oh stop I don’t even think I’ll be drafted”

Ellen shook her head “of course you will, I’ve seen the way you’ve played all these years and I know you’re gonna do a lot of great things for women in sports”

Ellen always knew what to say to make me believe in myself, I mean she did raise 3 successful NHL players she had to know what to say and she never failed to make me smile

“Thank you Ellen that means a lot to me, I hope I could just encourage girls to pick up that stick and play a damn game”

Ellen chucked and we started talking about all sorts of things

𓆉

As the party continued it had gotten more and more packed, my dads girlfriend really did invite a lot of People

I was in my own thoughts until saw a certain someone enter the room with his brothers

Quinn Hughes

God he looked so good, why did he have to look this good especially today when I’m here

Then I see my best friend Gabriela and all the thoughts about Quinn go away

“Is that Y/N L/N the PWHL Number one prospect” my best friends gasps

I chucked Gabriela always knew how to make me laugh especially when Quinn was around

“Omg is that famous New York Times author Gabriela Robert’s” I copied her enthusiasm

We both laughed and we hugged deeply

“God I’ve missed you so much Y/N, you don’t even know I really wish we went to the same college”

I sighed, it’s true I should of just went to university of Michigan I mean it’s a good school, but I just needed to get away from Michigan I’ve lived here my whole life I needed a change and that’s what drew me to commit to University of Wisconsin

“I know gabs and I’m sorry, I just couldn’t stay stuck here for the rest of my life” I sighed sadly

“Of course I’m not mad or blaming you, you do you I just miss you but hey if you did attend u of m you might not have the opportunity’s you have now, so it’s for the better” Gabriela smiled at me

She always knew what to say and I loved her for it.

Me and Gabriela continued to talk but I still felt myself looking for him and Gabriela noticed this

“So when are going to tell Quinn how you feel” Gabriela looked at me with those concerning eyes

“Gabriela come on, we both know he doesn’t and will never see me like that” I’m sad but it’s the truth

Quinn only will ever see me as his best friends annoying little sister who hasn’t even graduated college yet

“Oh my god Y/N if only you could see the way he’s looking at you right now” i blinked what, i thought as I looked in her eye direction

And then I saw him staring right at me with so much love in his eyes and then he saw me where my eyes were looking and looked away

“He was probably staring at someone behind me or something” I try to convince myself that what I said was true

“Sure Y/N keep telling yourself that, I just hope you guys can stop being in denial and just admit your feelings to each other one day” Gabriela was right I had to tell him I just didn’t know how.

𓆉

I found myself thinking while outside at the end of the dock of my dads lake house he bought a couple summers ago

The sum was just setting, the lake looked beautiful and the smell of tree and nature was just amazing

My thoughts were interrupted my someone taping my shoulder and it was him, Quinn

My palms got sweaty and my feet stoped dangling and we’re just straight

“Mind if I sit with you?” He asked, he didn’t even need to ask

“Sure, I always enjoy the company” I shakily replied, my hands gesturing to the spot beside me

He sat down and our legs touched just for a second and I felt my heart beating so fast

“So how’ve you been” I asked first to get rid of this tension we had

“I’ve been good, you know just focusing on hockey and my captaincy” he replied while looking at me for a second

“Oh yeah I heard congrats on becoming the captain, how’s that been” I replied

“It’s tough and has its ups and downs but I’m managing” Quinn sighs and looked down

“So what have you been up too?” He asked to get the tension off of him

“ you know, hockey and trying to keep up my academics at the same time” I replied as I chuckled a little

He laughed “hey I heard your the top prospect for the PWHL that’s huge, congrats” he nudged my shoulder

Oh my god.

“Yeah trying to keep myself humble instead of bragging about it” I replied while laughing

He laughed and looked at me for a couple seconds before I looked at him

“What?” I asked first

“N-nothing, you’re just beautiful” did he really just say that

I didn’t know what to say, we just kept on looking at each other and he moved first

He connected our lips together I put my hand on his check while as he put his left hand around my shoulder to deepen the kiss

I pulled away first and looked up at him in the eyes

He spoke first “I think it’s always been you Y/N, ever since we were kids I think apart of me was in-love with you and I just didn’t want to admit it” he spoke softly with so much love in his eyes

“Will you do me the honor and letting me be your boyfriend?” I could cry but I didn’t I just pulled him into another kiss

As I pulled away “is that a yes” got he’s such a idiot but he’s my idiot

I laughed “yes Quinn Hughes, you can do me the honor of being my boyfriend” he looked down at me and kissed me and we pulled away we were wrapped in each others arms as we looked at the sunset

Thank you for making the first move Quinn Hughes, it’s was nothing less than I imagined.

[moonybelgug]

warnings: fem!reader, children lmao, not much really, being referred to as 'mother', no smut, no romance, we're world building guys. setting up the plot. i've always envisioned the tsaritsa to play matchmaker with her friends(?) so thats what this is based off of lmao

Arlecchino didn’t want a “motherly figure,” and the children didn’t need a “motherly figure” to raise them as soldiers, either. And yet, here we are. Arlecchino sits in the main room of the House of The Hearth, waiting to greet the new “mother” and can’t help but be reminded of the last one the house had. Even the older children seem apprehensive about welcoming someone under that name back to their ranks.

“I’m only assigning you a helper, someone more motherly to perhaps guide the children into being more obedient,” the Tsaritsa smiled. “You yourself have said that this latest batch of kids have been especially hard to keep in line.”

“No offence, my lady, but I hope you are not questioning my abilities…” Arlecchino replied, setting her tea cup down after taking a sip. “I assure you, I am capable of handling my kids.”

The Tsaritsa smiles again, too sweetly. “Yes, dear… just humor me. If she hinders more than she helps, by all means, send her back.” And that was the end of all conversation about the new mother. 

Arlecchino shook from her day dream when a knock sounded through the sleeping hearth. The kids had all been put to bed and only the servants remained awake, tending to the chores left until it was lights out. Arlecchino stood and brushed off her suit, walking to meet the woman at the door. A servant had already welcomed her inside, taking her coat and laying it over her arm. To Arlecchino’s surprise, this was… not what she was expecting. It was you. A girl from her past that she had not only thought she’d never see again but someone she hadn’t thought about in many years. When you lift your eyes and meet Arlecchino’s dark ones, she suddenly feels weak. This is just another bomb for the already radioactive battlefield of her mind. The Tsaritsa is playing games, she realizes. 

“Peruere!” You say way too loudly as you run to her, throwing your arms around her neck as you hug your long lost friend. “It’s been so long! I can’t believe we’re working together, can you? I like your hair, it’s short now- oh wait! No it’s not!” You go on like this until she silences you with a hand raised. 

“The children are sleeping,” she says softly, though her voice is cold. “I did not expect you to see you.” 

Perhaps you are a new maid, there have been some that retired recently, maybe that’s why you’re here and she won’t have to deal with this much enthusiasm everyday. 

“I know right? But I had been offered a job that pays way more than the old babysitting gig I had, so I thought- hey why not?” You beam at her and then take a step back to examine what she’s wearing, making Arlecchino smirk a little as she holds her head high. 

“Ground rules. Follow me to your room and I’ll explain.”

”You can call me “Father,” or Arlecchino, but do not call me Peruere.” You nod, wishing you had something to write these down as she speaks them. 

“No leaving the grounds without somebody knowing where you’re going. This is for your safety and ours, as the Fatui has a reputation.” You nod, thinking about how fun it will be working with an old friend. 

“You cannot invite people over. Do you have any close family members or friends who may want to visit? Make sure you let them know that they cannot simply drop by for tea.” You nod once again, thinking about tea. 

“If you get sick, this is the in house hospital,” Arlecchino gestures to a door with a window. You stop to peer inside and you can see two boys sleeping soundly in separate cots. They look comfortable… for being in a hospital. “Broken leg and a fever,” says the Father beside you as she gazes in at the two for a moment before continuing her tour, gesturing you along. She has only taken you down the east wing and you’ve passed mostly just sleeping quarters and the hospital. Suddenly the lights turn off and you gasp at the surprise, running into Arlecchino’s back as you adjust to the darkness. 

“The maids must have finished their work,” she murmurs, reaching for a candle on a high (higher than the children,) shelf and lit it with a set of matches beside it. Arlecchino led the way with candlelight, staring straight ahead as if looking at you would cause her to turn to stone.

Eventually she stops at a room, nearly at the end of the hall. “This is yours,” she says, unlocking the door with a key from her pocket she must have had in preparation for your arrival. She hands you the key after unlocking and opens the door. You step inside, looking around the dark room. You can’t make out much, but as Arlecchino begins lighting the candles with her own, you can see that the place is very plainly decorated but still homey at the same time. There is a large, plush bed, windows, even a little study area and lots of doilies. 

“Can I decorate?” You ask, sitting on the bed, placing your suitcase beside you on the floor.

Arlecchino smirks again, but nods. “However you wish. I’ll show you my room another time, but I trust you are tired and would like to rest after such a long commute,” she turns and shuts the door behind her, but as she walks down the empty, dark hallway, she hears you unlatch the door behind her and call out “Goodnight!” 

The next morning you awaken to your alarm, set for six. The sun shines through your window and you can’t help but feel cozy in bed, warm, finely crafted sheets bunched around your body and the large windows of the highest floor allowing sunlight to peek through and embrace you as you blink away the stupor of sleep. Then you remember where you are, and the duties laid out for you. You are to be Peruere- no, Arlecchino’s right hand. Her partner, if you will. Support her decisions and help her to raise the children with dignity and fighting spirits. Or that’s what you remember being told, anyway. You dress yourself and then begin your descent down the long hallways and steep stairs of The House, seeing more open doors than last night. Some of the children are still in their rooms, talking to roommates, some are playing with toys, and some stare at you as you walk by with wary eyes. You try to smile as sweetly as you can, but they only shrink further into their rooms. It will take time, you suppose…

Arlecchino is in the kitchen, sitting at a little table with a mug in one hand, the paper in the other. Beside her sits a little boy, holding a little penguin toy on the table as it bounces mechanically. 

“Father,” you say, taking the first step in conversation and starting it yourself. The cooks look up at you, staring before continuing their job when Arlecchino snaps her fingers. “My night was very comfortable. Thank you for showing such hospitality.”

She hums into her mug as she takes a sip. The boy looks up at you, his head cocked in a curious way. You tilt your head back at him and he smiles shyly. 

“Who is this?” You ask as you sit beside him. He glanced nervously at Arlecchino, who watched silently before sitting up to turn the penguin toward you. 

“His name is Pers,” he says softly, twisting the wind on his back to make him jump around. The penguin is so lively and loud, unlike this boy before you.

“He’s so cute. I’ve never seen anybody like him before, is he unique?” 

“I made him,” says the boy bashfully, tugging the penguin back into his arms, hugging the mechanical bird to his chest. 

“And what would your name be?” You ask, resisting the urge to overwhelm the boy with affection. He was too sweet. You couldn’t imagine a boy like him being a part of the Fatui, but he’s clearly very skilled if he could make Pers at such a young age. It’s likely he’s just as skilled with more dubious hobbies as well...

“Freminet,” he murmurs softly. Freminet looks up at Arlecchino, who seems to silently answer his own silent question and then hops off the chair and runs into the other room. Arlecchino chuckles into her mug, gazing at you over her paper.

“He will need time to warm to you. If you wish for immediate friendship, I can show you some others who will take to you.”

“Well, I don’t expect that of the children,” you say, leaning to look at the paper she’s reading. She watches you with intrigue, how you effortlessly lean into her personal space like it means nothing at all. “I would like it if you introduced me to them, though. Maybe if it came from you, they would feel more comfortable around me.”

She hums noncommittally and sets her mug down. “Do you have any idea what your job is here?”

You blink at her, then smile ever so slightly. “Be a mother?”

Arlecchino laughs, a low raspy sound. “Neither do I…”

[fancyfeathers]

Hello Fancy!

This is my first time requesting something and tour work is so amazing! I saw that you were still taking requests for the Villian AU and I had a few things I was wondering if you could do/anwser.

The first one is how or what would happen to Dick's darling if Dick were to escape from Arkham Asylum? Would he be able to get his darling back and keep them from Bruce forever? I was wondering how that situation would go down.

The second is basically the same as the first, but with Damian's darling. How would he react if his darling was not only was able to get away from him, the heir to the League of Assassins, but goes straight back into being Robin (or working with Barbara in the paralyzed case)? If he were to get his darling back, just how crazy and possibly violent would he get with his threats and actions after the running away?

The last one is say Bruce died or didn't, but how would life for each of the darlings look like in the future? Kids? Married? No legs to run away with?

I loved the Pomegranate story for Damian. It was written so well and don't worry about the content being different then normal, I think it added to the story in that case.

So sorry that this is so much, but as I said above, your writing is literally so amazing! ❤️

Yandere!Batboys as Villains with Robin!Darlings AU

Honestly it is not a matter if Dick would escape from Arkham it is when he escapes from Arkham Asylum, when he does it is a whole mess, half of the patients dead because Dick knew what they have done and deemed them not worthy of simply living, they gave up their chance for life.

But the answer is no, maybe he manages to kidnap her for a few days and he has come close to killing Bruce once or twice over the years and getting to keep her, but either time one of her sisters were there to save them.

But after a while he would really succeed when he got Tim’s help, because the circus Dick took over is known to have worked with the Court of Owls in the past. I imagine that in this AU his darling’s day job would be something like a ballerina since her persona of Dove is the equivalent of Nightwing in this universe.

So with the help of Tim there would be a silent purchase and chance of management at the theater she works at and after months of no one meeting or even seeing the new owner she gets suspicious. So after a late rehearsal one night and she is about to go to her locker where she has her suit in her duffle bag, she finds that it is gone…

“Looking for something, baby?”

She turns around and sees Dick standing there holding her suit in one hand and the tracker that Bruce had on it in the other. She isn’t so strong without her gear, not when the playing ground isn’t in her favor. It really doesn’t take that long for him to subdue her and knock her out along with throwing the tracker into the river so it would at least slow Batman down if not loose his only lead. He keeps her in the attic of the theater and for those who have never worked in a really old theater, those things are so hard to access and so hard to get out of, you could scream at the top of your lungs and no one would hear you. So when she’s locked up and high on drugs to keep her not fully aware it’s impossible to get out, but then again she is nice and safe up there, away from anyone who would want to hurt her…

She most I could see her up there is maybe a year, a year and a half, because in the Arkham Knight game, Bruce couldn’t find Jason at all for the two years he was tortured. So by the time Bruce finds her, she just starts crying, because while for a captive, she was treated incredibly well, she hadn’t seen anyone besides Dick for over a year and even then she wasn’t even lucid enough most of the time to know what was happening.

(I also love the idea of in her vigilante costume, Dick’s darling wears ballet shoes, kinda like Spidergwen)

Now with Damian, he is absolutely enraged because the moment he turns his back, one of her sisters and or Batman shows up and rescues his darling, so he just comes back to a compound of unconscious assassins and hearing that his darling has been spotted back in Gotham again.

Now if his darling goes back to being Robin then he decides just to grab her while she is still getting back on her feet, but little does he know that she is a visual learner, so all the training he did with the League of Assassins that she saw, she knows, so she actually manages to hold him off until Batwoman, Kate Kane, comes to rescue her. So he is absolutely pissed off, so when he gets his hands on her again he is far from gentle, achilles tendons are slashed and he makes good on his first promise to her, cutting out her tongue. So when she is taken back by him, she is completely reliant on him to survive, if she needs something she just has to wait for him to give it to her, if she wants something then oh well, she lost the right to what she wants when she ran away.

Now after awhile, and I mean around a few months of good behavior, he may find it in his heart to lay his darling in a Lazarus Pit so her injuries will completely heal, but that’s only because he misses the sound of her voice and he has deemed that her punishment has gone on long enough…

Well he says that, but the truth is he was lonely without the person she once was.

“Don’t pretend that you were actually useful to them, I have seen the way he looks at you after you messed up, but that is one thing we both have in common, we are the Batman’s biggest mistakes.”

Now if his darling is paralyzed from the waist down, he is far more forgiving if you can call it that. At least she is not pretending to be a hero and like she is actually useful, Damian just knocks out Barbara when they are in the clocktower one night before knocking her out and wrapping his darling up in a blanket he brought like a little baby, then when she wakes up she is back at square one.

Now I don’t know exactly where each darling will end up, but I do think that if Bruce died then Batwoman, Huntress, Spoiler, Orphan, Signal, and all the other vigilantes on Gotham would look after the girls a bit more…

Like I imagine that Dick’s darling is very good friends with the Huntress, so those two team up together more and Helena is always looking over the first Robin. Dick’s darling may get more reckless without Bruce and that will probably end up with her getting kidnapped and no one hearing from her again and without Batman they can’t find her…

Jason’s darling would decide to put up the suit for good and just focus on school and she would almost graduate, but being in the wrong place at the same time has sort of become her thing and she gets kidnapped with the intention of being organ trafficked if it wasn’t Jason recognizing her unconscious body. It’s really a shame, she would have made such a good lawyer.

Tim’s darling is able to go on as normal for a while, after all it is what Bruce would have wanted, but then one day she literally just vanishes into thin air, she was sitting in her room at the manor, working on an art piece and Alfred checked up on her one minute and when he went back she was gone and the window was left open. Everyone searched for her all over the city, but no one could find her, little do they know that she is stuck wandering the Court of Owl’s labyrinth until her mind gives out and she is left broken and ready for Tim to piece back together how ever he would like.

Damian’s darling is the one I probably thought about the most, when Bruce dies, she goes and becomes Batgirl and becomes the sidekick of Kate Kane. Then if by some miracle she manages to avoid the League of Assassins with what she learned then one day, Kate sits her down and hands her a box with the Batwoman suit inside. She is now the new Batwoman.

I imagine with that she not only picks up the mantle of Batwoman but the empty space Bruce left behind in Gotham, becoming the city’s main protector. With all of her sisters missing she is alone and more closed off than when she was younger.

But she never did cut off the head of her own snake.

Her conflicts with Damian on grow more and more when he takes his grandfather’s place as the leader of the League of Assassins. She wasn’t as strong as Bruce was and she knows that, so even though she is able to hold her own in against against Damian, she never will be able to win…

Someone would be surprised how little pressure it takes to break someone’s spine.

[elliesglock]

okay so i had to change my timeline after further research and discussion into pazzi. this one's going to be a little bit more detailed than my other wise pretty vague original one. some things will stay the same because they're pretty obvious but i wanted to cover the little grey area that's 2020-2022 more in depth.

2016

there is proof paige met azzi before their official meeting at team usa. paige and azzi had an aau tournament that overlapped during summer in 2016. azzi is 14 and paige is 15. azzi is playing 2 grades above her age group in her aau league against paige's aau team but she's not playing paige. there's a part in the full game video where it cuts to the sideline and we see big grinning cheesy paige watching the game. from what we know about paige and how she is with azzi, i think she had her eye on azzi. i mean in the part of the video paige is in azzi makes a play and it cuts to paige grinning and looking away all shy. the way her expression is makes her look like she's just seen her crush. and i think she literally did. she's picking at her face and having some nervous ticks in that portion of the video. so i said in my original timeline paige had a secret admirer thing going on. and i 100% stand by that. paige brings up in the slam interview that she knew azzi for 3 years (in 2019) so that timeline lines up with her first seeing azzi. now azzi doesn't remember obviously because she didn't have an eye for paige like p did for her. also she was playing a game. but i find it so interesting that paige remembers it enough to associate their first meeting being a different time than azzi's. it literally gives love at first sight. paige obviously doesn't talk to azzi i don't think until they meet officially in 2017 in the usa trials. do i think paige found her instagram and started stalking it? 100%. i just don't think she followed or liked any of azzi's photos until 2017 when azzi most likely gave her, her instagram. so essentially paige has been plotting on azzi for a total of 9 years since they were literally fetuses. no surprise there from p honestly we're not broaching new territory. imo pazzi have always been soulmates and meant to find each other. so it's no surprise to me paige saw her for the first time and was drawn to her. i don't think either of them had a choice 😭.

2017

they officially meet. this is the time azzi remembers lol. i think paige initiated everything due to what they both have said. and if we think about how she already had a crush on azzi prior, it's not crazy to say she wanted to initiate conversation because azzi was literally her crush or at least someone she admired. i think p saw her again and was like oh yes that pretty girl that was at my aau tournament i've been watching her for a bit let's go make friends with her. plotting p yet again. this is just the first peg in her multi-step generational bag scheme 😭. azzi being azzi is a little shy and standoffish around such a big personality that is paige. i think paige really did try talking to her which is why i don't believe p when she said that they "didn't talk very much off the court". i think they did and there was some flirting probably from paige. anyways either i don't think they really started talking until the plane ride home. they get sat together and ofc p sees her opportunity and thinks yapping azzi's ear off is the way she'll get her. they get home to minnesota and i think this is where they start messing or crossing lines. i'm among the many believers in pazzi nation that p and a were never strictly platonic friends or that they started getting together in college. no they have been getting with each other for a VERY long time. now do i think a relationship was started as soon as they got home in 2017? not dating no. very much fwb. they were young so it's not surprise that they weren't dating, especially considering azzi would have to go back home eventually and they would be separated. also i think it was wayyyyy too complicated for them to label what they had. again they were really young. 15 and 16. nobody knows what they're doing at that age.

2018

i argued before that they started dating here. but i don't think so. the way i see it they were still a situationship pretty much all throughout high school. i felt before like how p was a little possessive and showy of azzi gave dating but i genuinely just think she was talking to azzi and she claimed her as her girl and wanted everybody to know that. does that mean they were in a relationship? no. i don't think they labeled it dating. so situationship is the best descriptor for them. paige and azzi spent a lot of time in 2018. they had usa events, aau tournaments, and many games where they either played against each other or their teams were in the same tournament. there was a lot of flying back and forth from the dmv to minnesota for azzi. i still believe they were seeing each other in between these tournaments and messing around. at this time it was still very dl and they kept it that way. i can see them kinda sneaking around during or after tournaments seeing each other and getting together. all in all, they spent a ton of time together in 2018 and tons of traveling. not necessarily were they flying to specifically see each other but i think they're so involved with basketball they knew they would see each other eventually. and they were def talking in between visits as well. so atp i think it's a talking stage/ situationship. all very casual. kinda like oh i see the girl im talking to every so often and we do stuff. but i dont think they were trying to pursue anything else with anybody. they were still very much only exclusively with one another. i still think they loved each other very platonically here though, love is a big word for each other at such a young age especially with how confusing they're relationship might've been. i think yes definitely they were attracted to one another but not love romantically if that makes sense. but i do think they really liked each other and loved to see each other and talk. they were still best friends at the end of the day and they still are yk. they're just girlfriends now too 😭

2019

this is a big shift. instead of relying on tournaments to see each other azzi and paige start flying to specifically see one another. i think the feelings start to rev up here and even though they are still fwb here imo, they become attached to each other. and they want to see each other a lot. i can see the beginning little blossoms of love here. i still think they view each other as bsfs and they are attracted to one another and do things with each other. but the feelings factor starts to come in. they fly multiple times to come support each other at different events. paige wins at the state championship her junior year and azzi flies down to support her. azzi's team goes to the geico nationals and paige flies down to see her. 2019 is very much a big shift in regards with how they feel about one another all in all. i think it becomes for them a little more complicated than fwb and they really start to like each other in more than just wanting a relationship as friends. in the summer they spend A BUNCH of time together at the cabins, at azzi's house, and also is when they made their joint tik tok account. definitely a lot of messing around with no label this summer. especially with all the time they spent together. i definitely do think they were exclusive at this time as well. just with how they literally had no opportunity to see any other people with the amount of time they were together 😭. and i think they liked it that way. i don't think they really had any interest in pursuing anything else because they had what they wanted really in each other. (that's very soulmate coded and they really tried to ignore it 😒 these idiots). i don't think they mentioned feelings for each other however. kinda just kept it secret and continued taking what they got being together physically iykwim. azzi tears her acl and paige is heartbroken for her. she prays over her knee and carries her to the table and everything. paige has always loved her so much i could literally die right here. the only time away from each other pretty much is when paige goes to usa basketball 3x3 tournament in qatar. and yes they were definitely acting like they were in a talking stage. it's just what teenagers do a lot of the time they're going to for a talking stage rather than a relationship. especially at this time you know.

2020

holy dependency. paige is so obsessed and misses "her" girl (def how paige viewed azzi) so bad she comes and stays with her family during quarantine after her school year ends due to covid. i know this is a little delusional but i think p was really sad and just wanted to go stay with azzi and feel better cause that's the only way she knew how :(. and that was her comfort person and comfort family. i think that's really special to have at 17. azzi also flew down early in the year and watched paige's state tournament games before they were cut short. this is also when we get the "team paige" shirts and her being in the crowd and everything. one thing about pazzi they gonna go watch each other play. it's one of the things they first fell in love with with one another. it's a huge part of their lives so obviously they're gonna go support each other in those times. i think spending all that time together again nurtured a lot of feelings between them and a lot of unspoken love. i truly have always believed this is when they became as in love with each other as they are today. i think they've always had feelings for each other but being with essentially your person for that period of time would cause anyone to fall head over heels. and they certainly did. however, they probably admitted to their feelings but were scared to take it to the next level because of college coming up and the distance and how hard it is to make those work when you're young. so i don't think they took it to the next step. i think they decided to remain friends and possibly wanted to stay intimate with each other but not label it yet again. paige goes to college in the fall and azzi comes and visits her a few times. even on her birthday to tell her she's committing to uconn after paige has been WORKING on those videos to get her to come. to me i think that's very intimate and sweet and it really shows how much they feel for one another. here i think they probably do things when azzi comes to campus and have a dependency on each other but try to stay firm on their no labels kinda deal.

2021

oh 2021 how i hate you. soooo fucking confusing. that's all i can say. they're together pretty consistently in the beginning of the year and azzi even goes to paige's final four game in march. i still think they're staying strong in whatever situationship they cooked up and still have those feelings and that love for each other. they hang out in the summer a lot and mess around 100% and then eventually they go to uconn together to spend even more time together. they literally can't catch a breath that's not around each other i love it so bad. when i think of 2021-2022 pazzi i think dependency. i think around this time having to basically live with one another, go to the same school, and also play on the same team together it creates a big problem for their just fwb situation. i don't know if there were conversations that geared towards maybe labeling what they had but it's a possibility. i think they still try to stay really cemented in their boundaries and i think they're scared of fucking up a relationship and messing up their ability to be teammates. and i don't think they could resist getting with one another in this time and that also made the pushing to be more labeled worse. a lot of feelings and emotions and most likely arguments and i think 2021-2022 is a hard time for pazzi. they're 18 and 19 btw. like that shits difficult to navigate at a young age not even mentioning all the eyes and pressure that were on them at this time.

2022

we're still in that weird idiotic time where they just won't admit they should be together. i know the whole team was so tired of them. i do think they were having riffs and arguments and problems based on what azzi was posting on tik tok and also how aaliyah was hyping her up 😭 there are some tricky comments and reposts around this time however. but i do think they clean up their act a bit and they really are sick of constantly being confused so they decided to casually date and test the waters. one of azzi's friends comments "chill people girlfriends are on this app" on azzi's post i believe and azzi likes it. also paige reposts a video that says "when you have a girlfriend that cries seeing old people sitting alone." now i like how they immediately jump to calling each other girlfriends because they knew they were already doing that before 😭 p seems like def the type to be like yeah my girl i love my girl this is my girl while they're literally just fwb. everybody at this time that matters already knows the trials and tribulations those bitches have been through so i think it's a sigh of relief for everyone to be able to know that pazzi were not doing their weird situationship anymore. hence azzi's friend commenting that.

2023-2024

the casual dating and testing the waters works out for them and they realize how much they like being with one another and how they really were never gonna be able to stop it. it's probably an inside joke between them now to make fun of themselves for thinking with their soulmate ass bond they were going to make it just being a situationship. i think they are officially locked in by mid to late 2023 but at that point they had been pretty much in a exclusive relationship for a year just testing everything. now we are eating good and they're getting married and everything's fine. kids on the way and everything.

so that's my updated timeline! thank for reading 💕 please send any of your thoughts i'd love to read them!

for the anon that asked for the shady tik toks:

aaliyah tik tok where azzi sings "one good girl is worth a thousand bitches." and comments "what i said 🗣️" under it that aaliyah likes

azzi tik tok where she says she's outside and captions it #howboutdat. aaliyah comments "slayed 😏😏". they are so messy yall. i think azzi was pissed cause paige did the same audio a week prior and they might've had an argument or sum. and she did her signature like eat that post 😭.

paige post where she used a city girl song that says "i'm a mf city girl ain't shi free bout me." i don't know if this one's messy but p is so sassy like shit

[mullermilkshake]

Hide and seek

Satoru is bored, Suguru decides to join him. It all starts off with one bet, then snowballs out of control.

Frontman!Satoru Gojo x Fem!Reader x Frontman!Suguru Geto (Squid game au) Request by @vampir-queen Tags- MINORS DNI,fem!reader,no use of Y/N,Squid game AU,Mentions of Sukuna, Manipulation,Coercion,Betting,Gambling,Mentions of violence,Guns

Part one

“So, you wanna make bets this year?” Satoru watched through the glass down into the player room.

Suguru joined him, placing his arms behind his back watching the same view, only his expression was more impassive than Satoru’s. “Four hundred players… the odds are too low for anything entertaining. You can go join the VIP’s in their games, but I’d rather just watch how it plays out than putting money on one particular person.”

“I dunno, I reckon this year will be different. Sukuna’s already given me clearance to go in there myself. Though I’m pretty sure he agreed just to get rid of me.”

“He did?” Suguru’s head spun towards him in his periphery.

“Mhm. So, do you still want to keep the bets off the table?” Satoru was pretty pleased with himself, he took one glance at Suguru to gauge his mood.

He was smiling. “Alright then, let’s make one bet.”

“Great.” Satoru noticed a worker enter the room with the player uniform. “Name it.”

“Who wins? You, or me.”

“You’re coming in too?” He pulled the zip of his jumpsuit down, never caring that the worker had not left yet.

“Why not? I think it’ll prove to be entertaining. Let’s wait for this game to play out and sneak in afterwards. Sound fair?”

“Last one to the final round wins, huh?” 

The only advantage Satoru and Suguru had was knowing the games already. That being said, they had no information for what order they were going to be played which made it just as entertaining.

“No safety nets. No second chances.”

“You got a deal, let the best man win, right?”

Suguru took his hand and shook on it, Satoru was amused by the idea and stepped into the player's uniform with enthusiasm. The first game being red light, green light, as per usual like every other year, Satoru could play this game with his eyes closed going backwards.

Boring. 

But the other games were new, exciting and he prayed that they would at least make his heart race so he could get a sense of what the other players felt. Even only for a second, he wanted to gain a scrap of fear for his life just to feel alive.

Because Satoru was never scared. He’d never experienced anything close, his life wasn’t as in danger as someone might think. But where was the fun in that?

With four hundred players in the beginning, two hundred and twelve made it through the first game. Not bad, but the number could be lower. The next game would be a pinnacle turning point for the game if the vote was in favour of staying.

Satoru and Suguru slipped in when the others trudged back to the player room, unknowing of the additional two men following them. He first noticed the depressive atmosphere along the winding staircase, where he was excited, glowing in fact.

Sukuna had never let Satoru join in, not once, let alone two people from high lines of management. That didn’t go to say he had not been down here before, Satoru remembered his ownership of a triangle mask and the perks that came with it.

Though the possession of a square mask had more perks, enough to get him going with the amount of control and power he could abuse. Satoru was the type of man who, unlike Suguru, took pleasure in seeing people beg and squirm. He adored seeing the weak at his feet, screaming and praying to live.

The rules of the game were simple, though Satoru enjoyed killing people just because he could.

The square mask approached the bunk room surrounded by triangles. “The vote will now commence. Press the ‘O’ to stay, and the ‘X’ to leave. If you decide to leave now, the prize money will be equally distributed between the remaining players.” 

Each player went to vote and stand on the corresponding side, Satoru and Suguru stayed way back and awaited their numbers to be called.

Satoru rested his elbow against Suguru’s shoulder, talking in whispers. “Do you think they’ll vote to leave? Hope not.” 

“The scared have a way of jumping ship, but the amount is so low. I doubt it. I don’t think they’ll be a landslide, it’ll be pretty close.” 

“Ugh… this is so boring.” Satoru stretched his arms up and flexed his back, the waiting around made his eyes droop.

Suguru stifled a chuckle and watched the next player vote ‘O’. How can you be yawning already? We only just came in.” 

“Because they take ages decidin’. It’s a yes or no, it doesn’t take long-”

The Square masked man called Suguru’s number. “Player ninety please step forward and cast your vote.” 

“See you on the blue side, Satoru.”

He watched him stroll forward down the middle of the separated groups and pressed ‘O’ immediately. Then, Satoru’s number came up, ‘eighty nine’ , he had to stop himself from making a scene and grinning the entire way down. He watched the bright blue light shine in his face and collected the blue badge for his suit, wandering over to the side to stay.

“There’s more on this side than I thought, maybe this will be a landslide.” Satoru noticed the blue light go off again at the podium.

“Player forty two, please cast your vote.” 

Suguru slyly shook his head to avoid attention, “It’ll slow down now, I think the majority of the rest of the players will vote to leave… Take her for example.” He nodded over in the direction of the next player. A frail minded looking little thing. “I bet she’ll vote to leave.” 

“She’s cute. Want to bet on it?” Satoru watched you stand there, staring up at the giant money pig slowly blocking out more light the fuller it got.

“Easy. A million says she votes to leave.” 

“One mil says she stays.” Satoru kept his eyes on you, silently speaking a mantra to telepathically tell you to press the blue button again.

“Deal.” 

You looked down at the buttons, head flitting between the two in an undecided back and forth. Your hand hovered over the red ‘X’ and hesitated before taking one more look at the money.

“Come one… press the ‘O’.” 

“Please!” A man's voice echoed through the bunk room. “Please consider leaving! Nearly half of us just died, and you want to play again?!”

Everyone’s head moved to face him, number ‘one hundred and sixty four’. “We have to get home and leave this all behind, we’re already going home with money we didn't have in the first place, so let’s just call it a day, yeah?!”

No one seemed to acknowledge his words, you turned back and looked at the money pig one last time, counting on your fingers before pressing the blue button without further hesitation.

“Oof, you owe me one mil, Suguru.” 

After you received the blue badge, you turned and noticed how the man had stepped out of the red side in the aisle to face you. “I-I’m sorry, but this won’t even cover a quarter of my debt. My friend is ill and if she doesn’t get the medicine she needs, she’ll die.”

Suguru shrugged and remained indifferent. “Fair and square, I guess I misjudged her.”  

The man stomped towards you with a scowl across his face. “What happens to your friend if you die here, huh?! Then she’ll die anyway!”

You paid him no mind and kept your head down, making your way from the podium. Satoru watched you with curiosity, a friend was not family and by your words, you meant that you had purposefully put yourself in debt to help them. An odd sentiment, but that might be why he took a sudden interest.

“Hey! I’m talking to you-” A triangle pulled the trigger of the assault rifle and shot three rounds over the crowd, the man along with the majority of the player’s cowered in fear.

 The square mask stepped forward and moved his head to watch the crowd, including Satoru and Suguru who never moved or flinched. “May I remind you, this is a voting system. Any attempts to sway the vote in your favour will not be tolerated and will be met with consequences... Please, continue. Player thirty three, please cast your vote.” 

Satoru watched you study your badge and stand next to him once the other player’s had composed themselves, you included. He decided to break the ice, seeing as you were there all on your own.

So he nudged you with his elbow. “You did great voting how you wanted, don’t let assholes like that try and scare you.” 

You glanced up at him, your fingers still fiddling with the badge. “He’s just worried. I don’t blame him. But I can’t leave without more money, or the loan sharks will take more than just my kidneys.” 

“Player number nineteen, please step forward-” 

Satoru got in closer, interested in how the other half lived. “How much are you in deep for then?” 

You cleared your throat, embarrassingly turning away to avoid eye contact. “Twenty million Yen.” 

Twenty million... Being in the position Satoru was in, yeah it was a lot of money, but it was nothing crippling to him and he could pay it off in a heartbeat. A measly twenty mil wound you up in here with loan sharks after your body and here you were, calm and somewhat collected.

He bet deep down you were terrified.

“What about you?” 

“Hm?” 

“How much are you in debt?” You looked back at him with sad eyes, glassy and innocent.

“Player four, please step forward to cast your vote.” 

How much should he say? He had no idea. The same? No, it could look like he was suspicious, but it had to be something memorable so he didn’t forget. “Er, I’m about-” 

Suguru poked his head out with a warm smile and spoke for him. “He’s in it for thirty, I’m around the same. We like taking bets, so our need for money isn't as honourable as yours. We hope your friend makes a recovery after this.” 

“Yeah, well that’s if I make it out alive.” 

Satoru wanted to play around with you a little bit, really get inside your brain to see that fear complex. He was curious to see how you’d break, how you’d bend to adhere to the rules and cope with the drenched colour red that was already beginning to stain your uniform.

“I think you will, just stick with us and you’ll be fine.” As far as he was concerned, you were safe with him. For now.

“Thank you. I appreciate that.”

Suguru’s smile was as sweet as ever. The charming bastard. “I think it’s a good idea to form an alliance for now until we know what the next few games are at least.”  

You nodded and smoothed your badge down, facing front and watching the rest of the players vote. It was a close call just as Suguru predicted. But the blue vote still won. 

The next game was on.

Satoru didn’t find out much about you that night before lights out, only that you were Suguru’s age and lived close by in the city.

He still hadn’t even gotten your name yet, you were elusive about it though he put it down to fear and lack of trust just yet.

But he’d earn that trust in the next game.

Satoru turned in his bed and saw that Suguru was laying awake in his bunk, staring up at the ceiling with his eyes wide open.

“You okay man?”

He huffed and turned too, adjusting his pillow under his head. “How do these people sleep with that light on?” He was referring to the chorus of snores and whistles from the other players, suddenly dead to the world for the night.

“I dunno, blood and guts sorta takes it out of you I guess. Hey, what do you think about her then?” Satoru nodded in your direction just three beds down.

Suguru adjusted himself and leant on his elbow. “She might last, but her will seems strong.”

“Exactly what I thought.” Satoru got that tingle in his stomach. “I can’t wait to break her.”

He heard a soft chuckle from his friend before he turned over for the night, placing the pillow over his face. “Now get some sleep, I know what you’re like without your beauty sleep, Satoru.” 

The next morning, the regular music that Satoru loathed rang through the bunk room. Players climbed out of bed and transfer on towards the square masked man and the triangle shooters.

“The next game will begin shortly. Please line up.” 

Walking towards the game hall was solemn and quiet, though Satoru was ecstatic to finally be playing instead of spectating.

“See you on the flip side, huh man?”

Suguru nodded and shook his hand. “Remember our deal, I'll see you after this.” Then, he disappeared into the crowd as the large doors opened.

You stuck close to Satoru, your eyes darting about the pitch where red light, green light took place.

Ugh… so boring. 

Satoru hoped for a change of pace, something more… interactive.

Well, he did until the game was announced as every player filtered onto the pitch so that the doors could shut behind them.

“Welcome to the second game. The game will be played individually. The game is Bulldog. All players will line up in the marked area on the side of the playing field and you will all run from one side the the other and avoid the five bulldogs, there will be six rounds. Those who are captured or touched by the bulldogs will be eliminated.”

Five circled masks strolled out onto the pitch and stood out across it evenly before the voice over the speaker continued.

The game was on.

DISCLAIMER - I do not own any of the characters of Jujutsu Kaisen, or anything from Squid game. This is a work of fan fiction and is absolutely not representative of the views or intentions of the original creator(s).

Also please don’t post any of my work without permission thank you!

[jupiters-starchild]

After the First Kiss

A little Rook x Harding piece I wrote about the scene where you lock in your romance with Lace. Some aftermath and fluff from that scene. Rook uses they/them pronouns

*

"Rook I said stop! I told you not to touch me!" Lace shouts annoyed as a wobbly Rook chases after her, earning laughs from the other lords of Fortune who are there to witness this ridiculousness.

Lace runs past Taash and Davrin who had accompanied Rook to the hall of valor. Taash sniffs the air and grabs Rook as they almost faceplant chasing after Lace.

"Hey, she said stop." Taash says firmly, scolding Rook who just reaches out after Lace with uncoordinated hands. "Why do you smell weird? Rook do something to upset you Lace?" The Qunari asks.

Lace groans and lets out a frustrated sigh and shakes her head.

"No no it's not.....uhg! No Taash, Rook didn't do anything wrong." She groans.

Davrin glances at Rook who squirms trying to get out of Taash's grasp and back to Lace.

"Uh Harding, how did Rook get drunk in like....five minutes?" He asks.

"They aren't drunk." Taash says, "they smell weird but they don't smell like booze"

"Put...me down....I need to....she's right there... Laaaaaace....!" Rook whines, slurring a bit.

"No you idiot! I could hurt you! No touching untill we figure this out! You don't even like being touched anyway!" Lace groans.

"Only by you...." Rook says sadly, still reaching out to her. Lace's heart skips a beat, and she realizes it's true. While Rook would often flinch at the slightest touch no matter how casual or brief, they had never been like that with her.

"It's....it's not safe...."

"someone please explain what's happening....Im lost here" Davrin sighs.

"It's .... complicated....I....kissed them...and I think my new powers gave them...lyrium poisoning" Lace says, embarrassingly covering her face with her hands.

"You kissed Rook--"

"Lyrium poisoning--"

Taash and Davrin say in unison. Lace looks down at her hands, which are still crackling with energy.

"I think....when I touched that dagger...not only was I given those stone powers but...my body was like....infused with lyrium....it doesn't affect me but when I kissed Rook...they collapsed...like I sucked out all their energy." Lace's mind was reeling, she and Rook had being playing this game for months of will they won't they, and now that she finally had an answer to her feelings, and a positive one at that, she can't even hold them.

"I...I need to go back to the lighthouse...to think...Taash can you...make sure Rook is okay for me...?" She asks the dragon slayer. Taash looks down at her seriously and nods. Lace sighs and starts to head back to the Eluvian, glancing back at Rook who seems uncomfortable in Taash's clutch.

Once Lace was out of sight Taash and Davrin looked at Rook who seemed to have started coming back to their senses.

"Taash... you're hurting me..." Rook winces.

"Can you stand?" Taash asks slightly loosening their grip on Rook. Rook nods bracing themselves against a wood beam.

"How you hanging in there boss?" Davrin scoffs, earning him a middle finger from Rook.

"Well, the girl I've been pining after for over half a year kissed me, so that was nice, on the other hand it nearly killed me and I doubt I'm going to get a second....uhg....second chance...any time soon...I'm.... going to sit down a bit..." Rook groans lowering themselves onto the floor of the Hall of Valor.

"You look like shit." Taash says kneeling beside them.

"Thanks Taash..."

As Rook expected Lace seemed to keep her distance from them over the next few days, running or backing off whenever they got too close. After a few days Rook finally manages to corner the dwarf in the kitchen, closing the door behind them.

Lace jumps as she hears the door shut and tries to act nonchalant as she sees Rook leaning back against it with their arms crossed.

"Found you~"

"Whaaat...? I have ...no idea what you mean!" Lace stutters.

"Lace...you know that running from me really hurts my feelings." Rook sighs, "can we talk? Please Lace?"

Lace groans, seeing that look on Rooks face was not making this easier, she felt a itching sensation run along under her skin, maybe more of a prickle.

"Not fair....don't....look at me like that!" She whines, Rook cock's an eyebrow,

"This is just my face."

"Yeah...! Your cute face that....I can never say no to.... damnit Rook...I hurt you! I could have killed you! You knew the whole time and you just let me do that! You just let me kiss you!?" She's shouting, but she's more annoyed than angry.

"You have a face I can't say no to." Rook says with a smirk making Lace groan, and blush simultaneously.

"Would you just sit down? Maybe we can talk about this? Because I don't want to pretend that what happened at the hall of valor never happened. I don't want to pretend like those feelings weren't there, like you didn't kiss me." Rook pleads, sitting down at the table and gesturing for Lace to do the same. She eyes them wearily, but sits down nonetheless, fidgeting and avoiding their gaze.

"So...mind tell me what you're thinking right now?"

Lace gulps, "I'm thinking I wanna curl up into a little ball and disappear."

Rook frowns.

"I'm not scared of you. And I'm not sorry I kissed you back. Lace, we've been going through this back and forth for almost...a year, and now I know you feel the same way I feel about you. I'm not suggesting we rush into things, but I want this. I want you." At their words, the prickling sensation under Lace's skin grew more intense, "you were never imagining things."

Lace pouts, it's nice to hear that Rook still sees her the same way, that they still want her regardless, but the idea that she could hurt them with something as sweet an gentle as a kiss was terrifying.

"Lace, I'm not giving up on you. Whatever this is we can get through it, together. Maybe Emmerich has some answers, he's a well versed mage and a scholar at that maybe we start there." Rook says with a soft smile.

"I did.... mention it to him....he said he'd take a look at me." Lace tells them.

"Good," Rook says with tender smile,"let's start there."

[goldenseresinretriever]

False Confidence: Chapter 17

Pairing: Javy “Coyote” Machado x Reader

Part of the San Diego Dogfighters universe

Summary: The Athletic named Javy Machado the fifth sluttiest player in the NHL last year. He’s a known playboy who leaves every game with a different girl. As far as he’s concerned he’s living the dream, playing his dream job with the dream lifestyle. Unfortunately his friends and bosses don’t agree. At 33, they think it’s time for him to settle down. You’re a kindergarten teacher at an esteemed private school. You don't expect much when you finally accept your colleague’s invitation to attend her husband’s hockey game but when you accidentally get separated in the post-game rush, you find yourself in a compromising situation with the last person you’d ever expected to meet. When his PR rep suggests a mutually beneficial agreement, your hands are tied. How long will you have to keep up the act? And how long will you be able to?

Series CW: 18+ ONLY, swearing, angst, fluff, fake relationship, suggestive language, anxiety, school system inaccuracies, hockey inaccuracies etc. There will be individual chapter warnings. No use of Y/N.

Word Count: 4.9k

Previous Chapter // Series Masterlist // Next Chapter

The boys are officially out of town. Every time they leave you think it’ll get easier, but it doesn’t. Your stupid heart is getting more used to having Javy around and now every road trip feels like you’ve had a vital organ ripped out. It’s not even just Javy, you miss all of them. You’ve started falling into an easy rhythm. You leave work and drive to the stadium, grading papers and making lesson plans in the stands while you wait for practice to wrap up. Then you usually end up going out afterward, whether it’s to karaoke, game night at Casa Floydcia, or dinner at Jake’s house. Slowly, you’re getting more and more integrated into this little family. It’s barely been a few weeks and yet you already feel like you’ve been a part of this world for your whole life. Everyone is so welcoming and eager to have you around, and now you’re wondering what you’ll do after work tonight. You’ll most likely end up at the Fitch’s house, helping Josie with the kids and seeking the company you’re sorely missing. It’s not even like you’ve had to go cold turkey, your phone has been buzzing almost nonstop this morning between Javy’s “good morning” texts and the two new group chats you've been added to, one for the whole group, and one with all the girls.

You chuckle to yourself as you put your phone on Do Not Disturb before checking what’s going on. Jake’s sent a photo that must have been taken on the team jet of Mickey and Bob sleeping on each other’s shoulders, mouths slack with drool oozing out of the corner of Mickey’s mouth. Zam’s devious grin can be spotted in the row behind them where she’s holding up her own phone. You can’t help but be jealous of her, Bugs, Nat, and Dragon who get to travel with the boys full-time since they work on staff. You laugh react the message and almost immediately your phone starts ringing, Javy’s face popping up on your screen. You answer the FaceTime call and your heart flutters as Javy comes into focus. You can see the hotel room behind him and you wave in response to his gesture.

“Hey, Meep! I know you probably can’t talk long, but I figured if you were texting then you weren’t in class so I just wanted to check in and say hi! I hope you have a great day, beautiful!” Your cheeks warm under his sweet words but you don’t have long to swoon as a voice pipes up in the background.

“Who’s on the phone? Is that Roadie? Hi Roadie!” Jake’s figure crashes into frame as he tackles Javy and grins into the camera.

You laugh at his antics. The more you get to know Jake, the more you’re convinced that he’s a human golden retriever. “Hi, Jake! How was the flight?” Jake grins deviously.

“You saw the picture?” You nod and Jake laughs, throwing an arm around Javy. “Same old, same old. I wish you were here with us!” He pouts. “I’m so used to the girls being around all the time, it feels weird not having you here.”

“Josie never comes,” Javy points out and Jake waves him off.

“I know, I know, but she’s got mom stuff,” you snort at that. “I guess Roadie’s got ‘professional’ mom stuff. Just think, she could be teaching a future Dogfighter!” Jake falls backward dramatically onto the bed that he and Javy are sitting on. “Take care of our youth, Roadie, you’re our only hope!” He throws a hand over his forehead and you roll your eyes.

“See what I have to put up with?” Javy jabs and Jake kicks a foot in his direction that Javy catches, yanking on it. Jake tries to shake him off, and the phone wobbles in Javy’s grasp.

“Alright boys, I need to finish setting up for class, but it’s good to hear from you. Have a great day and stay safe!”

“You planning to watch the game tonight?” Javy asks and you nod.

“Definitely, I’ll have it on while I’m grading, though I might go over to Josie’s tonight and watch it with her.

“Sounds good, have a good day too, Meep.”

“Good luck! Pass it on to the rest of the guys! Bye!” The boys salute and then your screen goes dark. You heave a deep sigh. You wish you were there too. The idea of teaching a lesson today feels exhausting. You open your laptop to check if you have any new emails and pause as you spot the most recent one. It’s from the principal. Your stomach drops as you open it, and nerves kick up in your gut as you read its content. Principal Jackson wants to meet with you after school today. You wrack your brain, trying to think of what he might want to discuss. Perhaps he’s finally gotten to your field trip proposal to have the kids visit Hard Deck Arena? Your heart stops. Suddenly, you have a very good idea of what he wants to talk about. Nausea fills your stomach and you close your laptop as you do your best to steady your breath. You can’t do this now, your class will be here soon. You squeeze your eyes shut, your heartbeat speeding up as your breath gets more shallow. Your eyes snap back open, and you look at the clock. You don’t have time for this. It’s getting harder for you to breathe. You reach out for your phone, your hand clutching it tightly, trying to let the pain of your case digging into your hand ground you. You need a distraction. You turn your phone on, tapping a number and you try to time your breaths with the ringing tone as you wait for the other person to pick up.

“Hey Roadie, what’s up?” Nat’s voice is cheerful on the line and you try to focus on that.

“I need you to talk to me. About anything, please. I just need to hear you talk.”

“What’s going on?” You hear the concern seep into her voice.

“I’m about to have a panic attack, and I really don’t have time for that right now. My students will be here soon, I need to get this under control. So I need a distraction, something I can focus on.”

“Okay, okay. Let me think, you just need me to talk? I can talk.”

“Tell me about Charlie.” The words come out quickly. “You promised me we’d talk about it after Family Day.” You need something you can focus on so you pick something that you’ll actually care about, that you can force yourself to listen to and process.

“Charlie?! Right now? Fine, fine, okay.” Nat sounds flustered but she takes it in stride. “Well he’s a lawyer, and he’s grumpy and broody, but unfortunately he’s built like a dream boat. Sure he hasn’t played competitive hockey in years, but he looks like he works out at athlete levels. Bugs talks about him a lot, I think they're pretty close, but he’s never come around before, even though he works in LA. Which is ridiculous, by the way. He’s literally so close to San Diego and he never comes to his sister’s games? Like I know Bugs doesn’t actually play, but it would be nice to have him around. He’s been talking with Jake about the possibility of starting a lawsuit against the Dallas Stars over the mistreatment of his leg injury last season, so I think that’s the real reason he showed up at Family Day, to begin with. Bugs said he used to play hockey, like all three of them did, and he played all through college but then he didn’t get drafted and I guess he didn’t get a professional contract he felt good about so he quit hockey and went to law school. But hey, I guess it worked out because now he’s a big-shot sports lawyer and gets to represent all kinds of athletes. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not the same as playing, but, at least in my case, I love at least being involved in the game even if I can’t play, you know? I just love hockey and the thought of doing anything else is impossible.” You’re nodding along silently as Nat’s voice does the trick. Your breathing has evened out and while you’re slumped across your desk, exhausted, you’re as close to normal as you can get right now.

“Roadie, you okay over there?” Nat pauses concern back in her voice.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Thank you,” you say, closing your eyes as you start to collect yourself. Your students will be here any minute. “I need to go, it’s almost eight, but thank you, really. I appreciate it.”

“Of course, I’m glad I could help. I know you need to go, but we’re talking about this later. I won’t tell Javy because I know if you wanted him to know, you would have called him instead, but I’m not letting you just brush this under the rug. Don’t think you’re getting away that easily.” You smile tiredly, nodding even if Nat can’t see it.

“Fine, okay.”

“Good stuff. Hope your day goes by quickly so you can go home and rest. And do rest, do you hear me?”

“Yes, Mom,” you mutter and Nat chuckles.

“Damn right. See you later, Roadie.” You wish her goodbye before you sit up straight, mentally preparing yourself to shift back into work mode. It’s going to be a long day, but now you’re dreading the end of it with the meeting with Principal Jackson capping it off.

***

By the time you reach Principal Jackson’s office not long after the final bell rings, you’ve made your peace with whatever you’re about to be told. You have little doubt that this has something to do with the conversation you had with Allison last week. You’ve spent the last week trying to forget it happened, but unfortunately, life has other plans. You knock on the closed wooden door and are immediately ushered in. Dan Jackson sits behind a heavy wooden desk that’s probably as old as the school. The surface is covered with stacks of various paperwork dotted with picture frames and the odd tchotchke. He gestures at you to sit in a chair across from him and you do.

“Ms. Roadie, thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. I know it’s last minute, but I thought it would be best to have this conversation as soon as possible. Over the last week I’ve received several emails from various parents in your class expressing concern over your professionalism lately, particularly regarding a recent overlap of your personal and professional lives.” So your suspicions were correct. What surprised you, however, was the mention of multiple parents expressing concern. Throughout the rest of your parent-teacher conferences, not a single other parent than Allison had brought up your relationship with Javy.

“Excuse me, Principal Jackson, did you say multiple parents? Because I’ve only had one parent express concern to me directly and I assured her that I would consider my actions more carefully in the future. I consider the issue closed.” The words feel sticky in your mouth but you try to deliver them with confidence and poise, hoping to make it clear that you have the situation under control. Principal Jackson frowns and you feel like the floor is about to open up underneath you and swallow you whole.

“Well, whether they came to you or not, I’ve had several parents contact me, both electronically and in person. Between me and you, most of these parents are prone to cry wolf over the littlest thing, so most of the time I just humor their complaints, assure them we’ll deal with them internally, and go on with my day.” You feel the nerves in your stomach start to ease until he speaks up again. “However, Allison Jennings, the president of the PTA, brought up an important point during her meeting with me, and that’s the reflection your relationship with such a public figure casts on the school. While thankfully, the Dogfighters’ PR team has been able to keep the details of your employment from the media up until now, should you continue your relationship with Mr. Machado, it's likely to come out eventually. Acacia Academy is a prestigious institution and the last thing we need is paparazzi invading our premises and disturbing the students’ learning environment.”

You clench your jaw as you realize exactly what Principal Jackson is insinuating even as he tiptoes around blatantly saying it aloud. Unfortunately, you’re exhausted, physically, mentally, and emotionally, and you’re tired of his games. “What exactly are you saying, Principal Jackson?” You can barely keep the hardness out of your voice even as your hands shake uncontrollably in your lap.

He sighs, lips tightening into a firm line. “I was hoping you could pick this up without things getting uncomfortable, Ms. Roadie, but clearly you need me to be blunt. You need to cease your relationship with Mr. Machado if you intend to continue working here at Acacia Academy.” He sits back in his chair as your world falls apart around you.

“Y-you, you can’t do that.” The shake of your hands travels up to your voice even as you clench your fists in an attempt to stop your trembling. “That’s illegal.”

Principal Jackson barks out a laugh that makes you flinch. “Well, obviously, it won’t seem as cut and dry on the surface. The school year is mostly over, however, and we have yet to discuss your contract for next year. So should you fail to terminate your relationship with Mr. Machado, I would consider looking elsewhere for employment next year. ‘Acacia Academy will be moving in a different direction next year and we didn’t find your methods complementary to our new focus, so we simply had to let you go.’ Tragic.”

You can’t believe this. When you’d walked into the office, you’d expected a similar conversation to the one you had with Allison, and now here you were facing an ultimatum that put your very job on the line. This can’t be happening. It's almost laughable, really, how you’d agreed to a relationship with Javy to save the very job that’s now being threatened because of that relationship. A dry laugh of disbelief escapes your lips and you shake your head at the irony.

It’s all ridiculous, really. More than a few of the students at Acacia are the children of government office employees, professional athletes, and even a few low-level celebrities. The school’s legal and security team works to give them the closest possible experience to a regular school. Hell, Josie’s married to a hockey player, her kids are his kids too. Reuben comes to Career Day, visits Josie at lunch, picks up his kids, and even attends school events. And yet here you are staring down the barrel of a metaphorical gun because you’ve invited Javy to school a few times.

You love your job. You love your kids. You love being the one who gets to show them the world at such a young age. You wouldn’t trade it for anything. But you also love Javy. Your stomach twists in a different way as you think the words for the first time. You expect a new wave of panic as you turn that four-letter word over in your head, sounding it out, but you don’t feel anything. If anything you feel solid, sure, it’s like the word itself grounds you even as your brain spirals out over the situation at hand. You love Javy. The world sees the worst of him, and it’s what’s landed you here today, but you’ve seen the real him. He’s still messy, but all people are. Under all that mess he’s a talented teammate, a thoughtful friend, a caring partner, and a good man.

“I have another meeting, Ms. Roadie, but if I were you, I would think long and hard on what we’ve discussed today.” Principal Jackson dismisses with a long look before he turns to his computer, leaving you sitting numbly across the table.

Pangs of physical pain cramp at your stomach even as your face twists into a weary but hopeful smile. “Thank you, Principal Jackson, I will.” When you stand up, your legs tremble, but they gain strength with every step you take away from his office. You're not going to give Javy up, but you’re not going to go down without a fight. You fought for your kids once before, and you’ll fight for them again. You work hard, and you care about your kids more than you do yourself most days. You love them and they love you. You’re not the scared little roadrunner anymore. Javy deserves to have someone fight for him for once. He’s fought for you time and time again, and now it’s your turn. You search up an address on your phone as you turn your car on, your heart set on making things right.

***

The sleek office building is cold and foreboding and you’re thankful that you’re wearing a slightly nicer dress today and not something less formal like your beloved overalls. Even still, you feel grossly underdressed as you fidget in place as the elevator climbs higher and higher. Your stomach drops with nerves as the floors increase and you start to doubt your decision to come here. Maybe you should have just called Zam. She would probably know what to do, but the boys have a game tonight and she probably has her hands full. The elevator dings signaling that you’ve reached your floor and you step out into a fancy lobby filled with sleek furniture that matches the general vibe of the building. A receptionist looks up from her computer and you try to ignore the confused once-over she gives you as you approach her desk. Your hands are clutched together to keep them from shaking and you will your voice not to tremble as you give her a nervous smile.

“Hi, I’m here to see Attorney Wallace.” She arches a skeptical eyebrow.

“Do you have an appointment?” Your stomach sinks and you hesitate. Truth be told, you hadn’t thought this far ahead. What would Josie do?

“He’s expecting me.” The lie feels dirty on your tongue but you can’t give up now. You told yourself that you would fight for Javy and you’re not about to fail before you even get a chance to try. The receptionist doesn’t look convinced. You give her your name. “I’m a friend of his sister’s.” She simply stares at you for a long moment before she sighs and picks up a phone, dialing what you assume must be Charlie’s extension. You listen to the sound of the ring before an unintelligible voice on the other line.

“Attorney Wallace, I have a lady here who says you're expecting her, claims she’s a friend of your sister’s or something?” She gives your name and you wonder if the jig is up and you’ll be sent away with your tail between your legs. You wait with bated breath until she nods. “Yes, of course.” She hangs up the receiver before sighing and giving you a tired look that tells you she truly can’t be bothered to care whichever way this turns out. “Corner office,” you blink in surprise. She turns back to her computer, leaving you to contemplate the fact that your ruse just worked.

You stumble as you speed walk down the hallway next to the reception desk. Most of the doors are shut and you repress the desire to sneak down the hall rather than walking as if you belong. When you finally reach the last door, you hesitate. You’ve made it this far by some miracle. You can’t give up now. And yet your heart is in your throat. It takes all your remaining nerve to knock on the door. It opens almost as soon as your knuckles hit the wood.

“Well, well, this is definitely a surprise.” Charlie Wallace smirks down at you and you swallow, hard. “Come on in, let’s chat.” You follow behind him nervously, as he leans half-perched on a large wooden desk. Its surface is neat as a pin but his suit jacket is awkwardly strewn across the back of his chair, and his tie hangs off one of the arms. You sit down in the chair across from his desk. “So, what brings you here, Roadie?” You start in surprise. You haven’t had a single conversation with Charlie, since he’d lingered apart from the main group during family day aside from Nat chatting with him. “You’re not a professional athlete as far as I know,” he delivers the line dryly but you see the faint twinkle of something like curiosity in his eyes.

“I, uh,” you hesitate, “I need legal advice, and you’re the only lawyer I know, or at least know of. I know this isn’t your area of business but I also know you have to study all the general areas in law school, so I thought you could help.” Charlie considers this, nodding slowly before he fixes his intense gaze on you again.

“So should we discuss the consultation fee upfront or afterward?” Your eyes widen in surprise, hands clenching the fabric of your skirt.

“I…” you’re not exactly low on funds per se but a teacher’s salary isn’t going to be enough to pay for a lawyer, especially not one in an office as nice as this. But you promised yourself that you’d fight, and you can’t let money get in the way of that. You’ll find a way to make it work. “We can do it afterward,” you say with a hard swallow and the edge of Charlie’s mouth tilts upward.

“I’m kidding,” he says and you release a breath you didn’t know you were holding. “I’m not in the habit of exploiting friends of friends, and I’m sure if I even tried to charge you, my sister would put me in an early grave. She’s quite fond of you.” Your cheeks heat at that information as he continues. “She told me about you back when you first got involved with the team. She wanted me on standby in case things got hairy in the legal department. Honestly, I’m surprised you didn’t decide to press charges, you could have gotten a sizable settlement.” He gives you a pointed look and you shake your head.

“I didn’t want to make any more of a scene, not to mention that I can’t afford a lawyer.” You snap your mouth shut the moment the words leave your mouth as your cheeks flame with mortified embarrassment.

To his credit, Charlie doesn’t bat an eye even when you’re sure none of his clients suffer from this kind of problem, he just nods and steers the conversation back on track. “So, Roadie, what can I help you with?”

“Oh, uh, I’m having issues with my boss at the school where I work.” You explain Principal Jackson’s relationship ‘suggestion’ from a few months ago, explaining how things with you and Javy had started, then the instances when he’d visited the school, your conversation with Allison, and ending with the meeting you’d had with Principal Jackson this afternoon.

Charlie listens raptly, shifting so he’s perched on the edge of his desk as you talk and you’re struck by how much he reminds you of the guys on the team. Sure, he’s dressed sharply in a tailored suit, and he clearly puts a great deal of care into how he looks, but the rumpled jacket and strewn tie tell you that he’s not always so straight-laced and it reminds you of how you’ve seen the boys squirm in their game-day suits. They look great, but a more critical eye can tell they’d be much more comfortable in their jerseys and pads. You think back to what Nat mentioned about how Charlie seems to be in athlete shape regardless of his ‘retired’ status. Seeing this subtle side of him makes you feel more at ease than you did when you first got here.

When you finish explaining your situation, Charlie is silent for a long moment before he speaks up. “Well, you’re right, that is highly illegal, but it sounds like this isn’t Jackson’s first rodeo. He knows what he’s doing, and he knows how to make it all look above board. It definitely doesn’t help that Acacia is a private school and an extremely well-funded one at that. I think a few of my clients have children who attend there. But before I give you any advice, what do you want? What’s your objective? I need to understand your perfect outcome so I can figure out how to proceed.”

You nod in understanding. “I’d love to keep my job. I love working at Acacia even if the politics are exhausting. The kids have always been my first priority and it doesn’t matter who their parents are or how wealthy they are, they still deserve to be loved. I love my students, and I know I could teach anywhere and there are lots of kids that need good teachers, but Acacia fits well into my personal workplace needs and I’m comfortable there. Well, as comfortable as I can be. But I also want to keep my relationship with Javy. I know they’re married so there are different standards, but Josie and Reuben are allowed to keep their relationship and their jobs while Reuben’s allowed and even celebrated for participating in the school’s activities. I’d love to have that too.”

Charlie nods, thoughtful. “Well, like you said, Principal Jackson probably won’t fire you before the end of the year, so you have some time. If you’re serious about keeping your relationship with Javy, then stand your ground and keep dating him. Don’t change anything in that department. But I think you’re right in saying that maybe he shouldn’t come around the school for a bit. Present your best image. Keep doing your job and show them that you’re more than capable of having both your job and your relationship. I’d try to keep any scandal out of the news, but from what I see, Javy’s public image is cleaner than it's been in years. I’d talk to Zam, see what she can do about pushing the narrative in the right direction.“ He swipes his hand in the air mimicking a newspaper headline. “‘Javy Machado’s finally found the one. Non-celebrity girlfriend tames the tiger.’ It feels cheesy and fake but that’s what the public wants. Make yourself a saint and they’ll think twice about making you a martyr.”

You nod even as your stomach curdles in disgust. You hate getting any kind of attention from the press and the idea of playing into the angelic girlfriend image makes you feel dirty. Charlie must notice your discomfort because his expression softens slightly and he gives you a tired half-smile. “I know it’s probably not the answer you wanted, and hey sometimes actions speak louder than words. I’m just giving you advice, it’s up to you whether you decide to follow it.” He shrugs. “I can’t promise you that it’ll work and you’ll get to keep your job, but as long as you keep fighting for it, there’s always a chance.”

You nod in understanding, “thank you, Charlie. I really appreciate it. I wasn’t sure I was even going to make it through the door.” You admit and Charlie gives you a rueful look that makes him look especially boyish.

“In my opinion, there’s nothing more admirable than when someone really wants something and doesn’t let the fear of failure stop them. From what my sister told me about you, I know it wasn’t easy for you to come here today, especially when we haven’t really talked before. Call me curious, even if my receptionist is probably going to ensure this becomes the talk of the office for the next week.” He shakes his head with a low laugh and you smile.

You’re struck by the fact that behind his brooding and grumpy demeanor, as Nat would call it, he’s more like his sister than he looks. That’s what gives you the confidence to ask, “Do you have a piece of paper and a pen?” Charlie looks slightly confused but finds a sticky note and pen for you and you pull out your phone before scribbling onto the paper, folding it, and handing it to him. He takes it, arching a questioning eyebrow at you and you smile as you stand up.

“I may not be able to afford a lawyer, but that doesn’t mean I can’t thank you for the consultation.” He glances down at the paper, still folded in his hand as you make your way to the door. “Thanks again for your time, Charlie, and good luck.” He returns the sentiment and you see yourself out of the office, texting Nat as you head back to your car.

“Thanks again for this morning, I’m sending a little ‘thank you’ present your way.”

A/N: Things are definitely escalating…

[aloysarrow]

I think what bothers me about the new ZZZ skins is that two out of the three are less quality than the original skins. One shouldn't even be a skin for sale, like it should be a skin you can obtain for free if you have the unit (which I don't, I skipped Ellen and I don't especially want her anyway).

Like look at this shit lol:

These are the new skins. In my humble woman opinion (because yall know that women gacha players get no say in the aesthetics of gacha /s), only Nicole's actually is worth going for, and it's the fucking free skin you can get by just playing the game.

Astra's original skin:

vs Astra's premium skin? The premium skin's only crime is that it's a loss in color, but it's still less dynamic than her original and there's nothing really new about it. As great as ZZZ has been with their some of their character models and how they move and some of the women's different body sizes (it's hoyo, tho, they don't do size thats not slimthic or straight up child), what? Astra couldn't even get a new hair design? Lol. Lame and lazy.

You know what's even more lame and fucking lazy?

Ellen Joe's alt "premium" skin you can pay for vs her original:

I'm actually so glad I don't have Ellen, but even if I don't, wtf is this shit? It's her npc skin, yall.

I'd be mad as HELL if I liked Ellen, snd then saw that the MULTI. BILLION. DOLLARS. COMPANY. didn't give even a single fuck to give her something, anything, other than her npc skin.

I just can't believe that this is what we have to look forward to. Like, seriously, at least Nicole's (the free 4 star with the currently free skin) is actually really nice looking. But if all the premium 5 star skins are this thoughtless, then I'm guaranteeing right now that ZZZ won't even last the hypothesized two years before it turns to shit - it has started now.

[haunted-garden-of-stories]

I honestly agree for the most part on this. We know that due to Carnie(the refurbished Lefty bot Henry made that the company reused), they are trying to reuse older technologies and trying to integrate them. Probably to learn and grow but more so to save money. I do have one issue with this theory I have not read the books but I don't think Edwin "created" the mimic fully the software yes- but the body if I remember hearing he used left over robot parts from around the building. I believe the robot he originally used was jackie or a random endo and reprogrammed it to entertain his son (David, I think he name was) before the accident. We know the mimic has been altered physically due to some of the info from the books and also if we take a look at the mimic in the game- they repaired themselves with parts around them also We can tell due to the limp running that either they are damaged or using improper parts. We know the mimic due to all the evidence given was made (physically before Edwin reworked them) around the same times as sun and moon due to their teeth. I heard that Edwin purchased the Factory and the Carnival house from a buyer that seemed eager to get rid of it.

So we know Edwin purchased the property with the structures and likely any remnants attached. The seller was eager to tell and was selling for a cheap price. Which means a few things. Either something happened to that property and someone was trying to get rid of it fast, the orginal owner was trying to get rid of it and run away as fast as they could, or the owner was waiting for the right person to sell it too(I suspect that Fazbear entrainment owned the property and they were waiting for a "brilliant new genius" to take over there work(because i beleive the company has been seeking out geniuses and luring them to the company) or they were just another contractor that worked directly with the company and went "missing". The house has Sun and moon motifs in the windows and obviously have carnival themes in the building. We have repeated call backs to Fallfest and carnivals so this building is likely connected to it prior to Fazbears involvement as we know it. Also if we look at sun and moons design it's very clear they seem to be some sort of entainer likely a theater animatronic due to sun having the dramatic flair of a actor and the "daycare theater" in secuirty breach and the ruin theater masks. So it is proof taht Sun and Moon were refurbished into daycare attendants.

As it stands I don't believe we have any full details on animatronics that solely Edwin(please correct me if im wrong) have created aside from vacuums(due to the books- he was a rising genius that made a successful vacuum robot and purchased the factory and house with his wife before she passed in child birth). We also know that there was likely human made costumes of sun and moon due to the timeliness placements as we can likely estimate the purchase of the property by edwin to be around the early 1970s due to him buying the location around the time his wife was pregnant- then passing- then there son roughly at least 4 or oldest i dare say 9 for the fazbear company to come and collect the mimic as Edwin left after his son passed in 1979 based off the trailer. As it did not seem he was in possession of the property for long prior to his wife passing and I don't believe there was a mention of Edwin going to school so I say they were roughly 4 to 6 years old as Edwin made the mimic to entertain and play with his son as he ran around. So I say Edwin purchased the factory around 1974.

Edwin also was mentioned in the books that he wnated to create robots that did the jobs humans didn't wish to do. And I don't feel that sun and moon would fall under that. There entertainers- originally. So either the fazbear company after being in contract with Edwin made sun and moon which is possible.- or they were already there at the factory/house. What bothers me is the design differences the other other naimtronic that reminds me of them is the older DJ music man we see in the trailer when sun and moon talk there teeth movie like those metal pieces on a music box like how dj is designed.

I feel that sun and moon could have been a design of the previous owner and made prior or Edwin came in and finished them. Though I don't think so. At a event there was some voice lines of Jackie's played for people- and a few of those lines sound nearly identical to sun and moons voice lines. One of they says "happy birthday" and I don't remember the rest but you xould also hear the interference of people I beleive like there was crowd of children. So that means sun and moon as well as jackie/mimic were active at the same time in the public most likely at a fallfest or as a traveling carnival.

I will probably coming back to edit this post but I'm more so just getting out all the info that comes to mind as of this moment and I will most likely be revisting this to reorganize it. Please also correct me at all if any if this info is incorrect or if you have anything to add.

(EDIT) I just remembered in security breach we fine a ticket for Fredbear's Singin' show for I think 5 cents or 50 cents or 10 cents- I don't remember for the exact price but I know based off the design and pricing and due to a game theory they they company or a version of it existed since the 1930's roughly.

The Daycare Attendant might be in Secret Of The Mimic!! (Theory)

I remember Matpat saying that he thinks Edwin, the man who created the Mimic, is also responsible for the creation of the Daycare Attendant. I think he's right. He even mentioned the jester costumes that were shown in the books and spoke about how they matched up with the theme of the Daycare Attendant being a jester. Well, we've already seen a freaky jester cutout in the trailer of Secret Of The Mimic. He also mentioned the teeth of the Mimic being the same as the Daycare Attendant's endo teeth.

But I have even more evidence now that points toward Edwin making the Daycare Attendant. This might possibly mean he has a chance of showing up in SOTM!

First, I want to point out what I believe to be the BIGGEST indicator of the Daycare Attendant being made in Edwin's factory: The Faz-Wrench.

In the trailer of SOTM, we see an item called a "data diver" getting plugged into some sort of computer. This causes the screen to pull up HELPER, which seems to be the earliest version of Helpy. This "data diver" device has two prongs on it just like the Faz-Wrench.

In Ruin, this device mostly works on the MXES security nodes that keep the Mimic from escaping. I'm assuming it does something similar here. However, it also works on the Daycare Attendant. He is the ONLY animatronic that it would naturally work on (Roxanne is a Security node due to her mask, which was put on only between the events of Security Breach and Ruin).

Sun himself was aware that the Faz-Wrench worked on him and that it would reboot him. He has seen this wrench before. He remembers it. It's clearly important to him and was used to reboot him in the past, only to have probably been forgotten about and not used by Fazbear Employees for years till one brings one to the Pizzaplex to set up the nodes. If the Daycare Attendant was made in Edwin's factory, this early version was probably used on him and was something he recognized immediately.

Another thing I want to discuss is the fact that the Daycare Attendant himself has some neat unique mechanics that Fazbear probably thought were cool. Since the player is going to retrieve the Mimic due to his unique technology in SOTM, it wouldn't surprise me if they also wanted the technology the Daycare Attendant has. We can also note that they were never able to use the Mimic's technology and, while they did use Sun/Moon, they clearly didn't know how to properly use them and were unable to fix Moon when he started acting up. But I think they were probably fascinated by an animatronic that could switch personas based on the lighting it was in.

One last thing is we can see evidence of past versions of characters that we know Fazbear owns by this point such as HELPY and Music Man, along with cutouts of what appears to be an older version of the Mediocre Melodies and possibly Montgomery Gator. It looks like Fazbear may have claimed more than just the Mimic when they sent employees to the factory...and that included the beloved Daycare Attendant!

Now, will we see him in the game? I'm unsure. I think it's possible. If we do see him in the game, I really, really would like to see Eclipse again. This would be the perfect place to see him again!!

Since it looks like the Mimic isn't the only threat (judging by the Music Man thing), I'm guessing we might have to use the data diver to reboot some rowdy animatronics. This could possibly include our boy Moon having to be rebooted into Eclipse! We know that Steel Wool is very much aware of how much fans love him. I think they'd put him in the game again if they could!!

At the very least, I think it's safe to think they were both made by Edwin.

(Also, when I was writing this, I noticed the Mimic's/Jackie's laugh in the trailer sounds so much like Moon!!)

[icewindandboringhorror]

I've referenced before how I have a big google document to keep track of every media I've ever seen in my entire life (just for reference because I like to track everything possible lol… I am the Data Collector), but recently as I was updating it, I thought of actually evaluating them to find out random percentages (like for example, out of Total Shows Watched, what percentage did I finish vs. stop watching, what percentage did I like or dislike, etc.)...

Evaluating these things is made easier by the fact that I already place everything on each subsection of the list into 6 broad ranking categories, so I don't have to go back and guess to figure out how I feel about them or anything. The categories are: Ranking 5 - overall best* (despite some criticisms of course because I'm too much of an Analyzer to ever find anything Perfect lol) Ranking 4 - more positive than neutral, but not good enough to be 5 Ranking 3 - either the good + bad negate each other, OR it's just not memorable/interesting in any way enough to be ranked higher or lower (this is the Default category ALL things are placed in if no other rank applies) Ranking 2 - maybe a few redeemable elements but largely more negatives than positives Ranking 1 - So bad that it circles around to being fascinating to observe in some way (not necessarily Funny, or Good, but just interesting somehow) Ranking 0 - Bad in a genuinely frustrating or obnoxious manner

*("best" primarily defined here as most interesting, rather than most good in a technical sense, or some other measure. I tend to value more highly whether there's something novel or thoughtful about the worldbuilding, tone, writing, base premise, etc - than about whether it's actually executed perfectly.)

And here's the amount of shows that have so far been placed into each category -

TV shows ~ Rank 5 (highest) - 20 shows ~ Rank 4 (mid-high) - 28 shows ~ Rank 3 (neutral/default/meh) - 114 shows ~ Rank 2 (mid low) -33 shows ~ Rank 1 (low low but intriguingly so) - 14 shows ~ Rank 0 (iredeemably low) - 2 shows

This would make for a total of 211 TV shows overall. However, there are 57 shows within these list marked as "didn't finish" (typically meaning I quit on the very first or second episode - but log them still to keep a record that I at least had a brief view of them).

So my total of genuinely fully watched shows would be more 154. 211 Total, but a More Accurate Total of 154.

Counting them all and using the Total Number Of The List (211) -- that means roughly 9.5% of all total shows I have ever watched (or at least attempted to watch) have been Mostly Good, 13% have been Moderately Okay, 54% have been either entirely Forgettable or some mix of good + bad that lands them right in the Neutral Middle, 15.6% have been Mostly Bad, 6.6% have been Bad (but in an interesting way), and 0.9% have been Terribly Bad.

Additionally, I didn't even get past the first two episodes of about 27% of the total.

Sooo, discounting ones I didn't finish, my total TV shows ever watched in my life would be about 154 (maybe give or take a few, assuming I might have forgotten some from very long ago).

But instead of entire life, let's just say this is the total for 'About 20 Years' (so, not counting very early childhood when I likely wouldn't remember things I saw/have no detailed recollection of them (like for example, I'm sure at some point when I was like 4yrs old I must have seen an episode of Spongebob or something, but I have zero distinct memories of it, can't quote anything of it, and barely recall the premise - so I don't count it on the list, etc.)).

In that case, 154 divided by 20 would be roughly 7.7 shows a year.

Which is actually surprisingly low considering that I often have stuff on in the background for hours whilst I make sculptures and do costumes and stuff (maybe I should have also marked some distinction between 'things I fully paid attention to' and 'things I kind of half listened to whilst sculpting', but that would further split the categories too much probably lol), but I guess a lot of that is youtube videos or random documentaries, so .. eh.. maybe I get it being lower.

Now, doing the same thing for movies-

Movies ~ Rank 5 (highest) - 4 movies (3.4% of total) ~ Rank 4 (mid-high) - 12 movies (10.3% of total) ~ Rank 3 (neutral/default/meh) - 91 movies (78.4% of total) ~ Rank 2 (mid low) - 8 movies (6.8% of total) ~ Rank 1 (low but interesting) - 1 movie (0.8% of total) ~ Rank 0 (irredeemably low) - none in this category (0%)

That makes 116 for a Total (Actually Remembered) Movies Watched In Lifetime (Or At Least In 20 Years).

116 divided by 20 is roughly 5 or 6 movies a year (I feel this has probably been skewed though by adding everything since like elementary school onwards, as I remember a lot more movies from child/teen years.. Whereas, the past 3 years I feel like I've barely seen maybe even 5 movies?? lol). I also have "Didn't Finish" marked on 18 of them. Which means I quit halfway through about 15% of the total movies.

So, a for broader summary stuff..

I seem to be less forgiving to movies than tv shows, by far. Which makes sense to me, I guess, because I love elaboration and details, so "short form" things that only last an hour or two are often lost on me a bit. My biggest complaint with movies is indeed usually walking away just wishing there had been more exposition, more scenes where characters are doing nothing, more "mindless bantering" conversations, more Quiet Downtime and Lore Elaboration and so on lol, so... of course most 1-2hr films end up feeling a bit Not Enough To Draw My Interest/Nothingy to me.

If you count 5 and 4 as "like" and rankings 2 to 0 as "dislike", then for TV shows I at least somewhat liked 48 of them, and at least somewhat disliked 47 of them.. So it's almost exactly the same lol. I'm just about equally as likely to find something bad as I am to find something redeeming about it. But overall, the largest chance is that I just won't really care much for it at all and it will be tossed into the 'neutral' pile, forgotten forever. Movies have a bit better of a balance, "liking" 16 of them, and "disliking" only 9 of them. So I'm slightly more likely to enjoy a movie than to find it annoying - though still VASTLY more likely to just not find it anything in particular, possibly not even finishing it.

ANYWAY.. this is vague and literally pointless, but like I said, I just really find information fun. Like my document where I've rated every apple flavor I've ever tried (like 40 of them now?), or reviewed every oreo flavor (32?), or ranking data from my entire 10 years of Trying To Make Friends process (out of 100 people, roughly 8% chance of a moderate compatibility, 3% chance of high), or etc. etc.. I love to have random pointless things to analyze I suppose lol.

I doubt anyone tracks things in their life in this same exact way, but I'd be interested in hearing any at least somewhat similar data !!! (like, how many TV shows you watch a year on average, and what percentage of those you like vs. dislike (if you keep track of that sort of thing), etc.)). I guess it might be easier with movies, since I think some people use those websites where you curate a list of movies you've seen and you can rate them or something, so maybe the numbers are already available on those places. :0

[depresseddepot]

literally the only thing my dad does is hurt his back and yell. how am I supposed to buy a gift for someone like that

[xxplastic-cubexx]

i hope they add charles to rivals soon i need to have an aneurysm over what to make my desktop wallpaper and i know his MVP intros are gonna add to my problem

[keeps-ache]

sigh. i think i just do not like dogs very much lol