#i want to be able to try different outfits without planning my day around dodging my parents so they won't see and laugh at me

[depresseddepot]

god I cannot fucking wait to get out of here !

[writer-freak]

Birthday Celebration | Lucifer x Gn reader

Summary: Charlie throws a birthday party for you with everyone from the hotel there. After everyone left Lucifer had a sweet little surprise for you.

Warnings: gn reader, fluff, readers birthday, first time writing for hazbin hotel, english isn't my first language

A/n: So this is the second fic I wrote for my birthday and I decided to go into a new fandom. I actually wanted to do a after the party part for different characters but got a little lazy and just did Lucifer. Maybe I will one day come back to this but enjoy.

Comments, likes and reblogs are always appreciated and really motivate me to write more

It was just another day in hell, or so you thought. The same old routine of dodging demons and trying to survive the chaos outside of the hotel. Little did you know, your friends had something special planned for you. It all started with Charlie, the princess of Hell, who had a heart as big as her smile. She had been secretly organizing a birthday party for you, determined to make your special day something very memorable. With the help of her father and friends, including Vaggie, Angel Dust, Husk, and even Alastor, Charlie managed to set up a surprise party in the lobby of the Hazbin Hotel. As you entered the lobby, you were met with the sight of colorful decorations, balloons, and a banner that read "Happy Birthday!" in your favorite color. "Surprise!" Charlie exclaimed, her excitement contagious as she bounced up to you and pulled you into a bone-crushing hug. You couldn't help but smile at the sight of your friends gathered around, each wearing party hats and holding presents. Angel Dust winked at you playfully, while Husk grumbled something about needing a drink already. Alastor, the radio demon himself, smirked from his corner, clearly pleased with what he helped to orchestrate. Even Vaggie, though initially skeptical of the idea, couldn't help but be swept up by the atmosphere especially seeing how happy it made her girlfriend. As the party got into full swing, your friends took turns presenting you with their gifts. Angel Dust gave you a flashy new outfit, completed with some very revealing cutouts, while Husk offered you a nice bottle of whiskey. Nifty of course gifted you with some bugs saying that she found them in your room and made sure to kill them for you. Even Lucifer gave you a little handmade ducky though you could tell he was a bit embarrassed about presenting it to you. Charlie, of course, the ever-thoughtful hostess, presented you with a homemade cake adorned with candles. "Make a wish!" she urged, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. You closed your eyes and made a silent wish, blowing out the candles in one breath. As you opened your eyes, you were met with cheers and applause from your friends, their genuine happiness warming your heart. The rest of the evening was spent laughing, dancing, and enjoying each other's company. Despite being in hell, you couldn't imagine a better way to celebrate your birthday than surrounded by your friends in the Hazbin Hotel. As the party drew to a close you and your friends began to disperse, you felt so grateful to have met them in hell. They bring joy into your life that you would never have been able to imagine before. You found a sense of belonging amidst the chaos and this hotel felt like your home.

As the last guest departed you found yourself alone in the lobby of the Hazbin Hotel. Well, almost alone. A soft chuckle from the shadows caught your attention, and you turned to see Lucifer emerging from the darkness, a small smirk playing on his lips. "Quite the celebration, wouldn't you say?" he remarked, his crimson eyes glinting with amusement. You nodded, a warm smile tugging at your lips. "It was incredible. I never expected anything like this." Lucifer stepped closer, his gaze locking with yours. "Well, you deserve it, my dear" he said softly, his voice low and velvety. "But I couldn't let the night end without giving you something special." With a flourish, he produced a small box from the pocket of his suit and extended it toward you. "Happy birthday, my dear." Curious, you accepted the box and opened it to reveal a delicate necklace, adorned with a single ruby pendant. Your breath caught in your throat as you marveled at the exquisite craftsmanship. "It's beautiful, but you really didn't have to. You already gave me that little ducky earlier." you looked up at him not knowing how you could accept such a precious gift. Lucifer smiled, an expression that made your chest feel warm. "But it still can't compare to you" he said softly, before adding "And I would shower you with gifts but I know that you wouldn't want that so please just accept it." He said so much fondness in his eyes as he reached out to hold your cheek. Leaning forward, you pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. "Thank you," you murmured, your voice barely audible. As you pulled back, you met Lucifer's gaze, finding warmth and understanding reflected in his eyes. In that fleeting moment, you knew that despite the darkness of hell, you had found something truly precious—a connection that transcended time and space, a love that burned brighter than any flame in the depths of the abyss.

Divider by: @saradika-graphics

[yoshibb]

Hi! Little something different from usual. I saw the @shepherds-of-haven summer prompt list and I decided to give it a try. Shepherds of Haven is a WIP interactive fiction and it has been such a huge comfort read for me, I highly recommend it! While I'm in love with all the characters, my favorite RO is Chase, so this story is for the prompt sleep with my F!MCAerynXChase. I did my best to keep everything as accurate as possible character and lore wise >.< Thanks for reading! Blinding Light Chase can't sleep. The concept itself isn't disturbing. He's gone plenty a night without a wink of shut-eye. But to not be able to, to have his thoughts jumbled, his leg bouncing, it's unusual. He stretches his fingers in front of him, flexing them soundlessly in the dark like he can find the answer in the lines of his palms.

Something is wrong.

He sits up, not bothering to find a light, his eyes long adjusted to the dark. There are still sounds coming from the Shepherds' Compound, but it's clear that the majority of the occupants have turned in. He doesn't always stay on grounds, but he's been making more exceptions recently for whatever reason.

There's no point in trying to join them in their well deserved rest. He rolls out of bed, slipping into an outfit suitable for traversing the city's rooftops. If his mind refuses to be silent then he might as well occupy it before it decides to turn to more... uncomfortable subjects.

He climbs out onto the rooftop and pauses. An irresistible urge to check on Aeryn tugs at him. For a moment he considers ignoring it. It's late, she needs her rest more than anyone and despite his stealth there is always the small chance he could wake her. But like most forces involving Aeryn, it's less of a tug and more of a compulsion. He spins around, lightly stepping to her bedroom window. He starts to undo the lock but finds it already open. He smiles to himself, forgetting that she'd stopped bothering to latch it after he'd picked it so many times.

She never asks him 'why he never uses the door' like a normal person would or scolds him for invading her privacy outside a brief huff of annoyance. It is strangely difficult to get under her skin, but a challenge he's taken to whole-heartedly.

However, though the space inside is dark, the bed is empty. His heart trembles with an ominous thump. He shakes his head, scolding himself. There are plenty of explanations for this. His eyes drift about the room to take in what's missing. Most notably her sword that usually rests against her nightstand. She normally leaves it close enough to grab in case of danger. The bed is made and her uniform is gone.

He should check the patrol schedule.

What are you doing?

He stutter steps when he reaches the low lights of the hallway. What is he doing? He should be picking the lock on some unsuspecting noble's balcony by now. And yet nothing stopped him from progressing towards the large board downstairs.

The lamps provide just enough light for him to read. Letters which were once incomprehensible now make perfect sense thanks to Aeryn's tutoring. His smile lengthens as her name jumps out at him. He even knows the route she's covering. Not the best part of Haven, but not the worst. He has nothing to worry about.

He blinks and looks down. He plants his hand on his disobedient limb, physically stopping his right leg from bouncing. He studies it like it's a mystical object rather than a part of his body. His eyes slide up to Aeryn's name again, the discontent tug now like a rope around his wrist, dragging him to where she should be.

He was going to do a little sightseeing anyway, what would the harm be in 'bumping' into her?

Soon enough he is outside, climbing the walls and out into the streets of Haven. Darting into the first alley, he bounces off the wall and uses his momentum to reach the ledge, pulling himself up onto the roof without any trouble. The air is cool, comfortably so. The wind barely provides any resistance as he leaps from rooftop to rooftop.

Normally, he'd take in the sights, watch for a potential target, enjoy the rush of adrenaline. It's the perfect night for a sprint, but his mind is clouded by the hunt. He scans the streets below, empty besides the rare drunkard or overworked laborer.

Until he finally sees her, long golden honey hair that somehow still shimmers under insufficient light. A presence that always seems to blind him the minute she catches his gaze.

His heart beats against its cage, his smile stretching until his cheeks hurt. His sunshine, his Aeryn.

He catches himself, pressing a hand against his mouth as a cold shiver courses through him. No, not his. Free to come and go as she pleased. In and out of his bed, to be with whoever she wanted. Just as he is.

Regaining control of himself he looks down again, studying the sway of her hips and the grace of her walk. It's enough to ignite a flame inside his core that he's eager to chase. A smirk smooths its way across his lips. It would be a matter of convincing her to abandon her post, but she's never turned him down before.

He skips over one more roof and leaps down silently, a building's distance between them. The first time he'd snuck up on her like this, she'd nearly taken his head from his shoulders. He had the reflexes to dodge her if he needed to, but she stopped her stroke before it nicked his throat. She'd sighed and asked him not to do it again. He'd simply smiled and stepped closer to her, promising nothing.

He'd repeated his stunt again with similar results but never in the dead of night. A thrill weaves through him as he approaches her, his tongue dancing out over his lower lip.

And then she turns.

Sharply, west, down a dark alley. The move startles him and unlike his normal marks, he trails her blindly.

An arm shoots out and cuts off his progress, causing him to stumble to a stop. Her other arm grazes against his back, effectively caging him in.

"Chase," Aeryn says in a scolding yet fond manner.

"It appears you've caught me, Captain," he reclines against the brick wall between the barrier of her arms, a lazy smile painting his lips. "So what do you plan to do with me?" Aeryn shakes her head.

"That's it? No tricks? You're just giving up? I don't believe it." Her eyes dance across his form and he's more than happy to allow it.

"I'm finding this position more than agreeable at the moment, but we'll see how things play out, sunshine." He propels himself forward from his lounging position. He pauses, their similar heights allowing him to nearly brush his lips against hers. To her credit she doesn't flinch, keeping her arms fixed on either side of him. He tilts his head in playful innocence. "I can offer a bribe, but I've heard you are an honest sort."

Aeryn hums unable to stop her own smile from echoing his, "I may be open to a different sort of bribe."

He chuckles low in his throat, the flicker of heat growing into a furnace. He nearly closes the distance, but he manages to draw back. He wants to see the thirst in her eyes first. The inescapable longing he's felt all night.

Instead, he's met with her concern. It catches him off guard, and he struggles to keep his nonchalant grin in place. "Aeryn?"

She catches his chin in her fingers and ignites a magelight with her other hand. He swallows tightly as she examines his face like a healer would.

"Your skin is pale," she says.

"Just a trick of the light. Nothing worth worrying yourself over." He gently tries to push her hand away. But she's insistent, thumb tracing his bottom lip, faintly cracked beneath her touch.

"You have dark circles under your eyes. Have you been sleeping?" She chides him. He tries to defend himself, but he's too distracted by the way her fingers glide across his cheek and lightly stroking his eyelashes. His eyelids flutter, and his body shivers under her featherlight caresses. Soft and caring and so completely foreign. He leans into her palm, lowering his guard for just a moment.

And she doesn't waste it.

She leans in and presses a tender kiss to the curve of his jaw. Wrapping her arms around him, she folds their bodies together until the two of them become intimately one. He turns his head into the crook of her neck, deeply inhaling the heady scent of sage. He cards his fingers into her long hair, enjoying the feel of it as it slides through the gaps of his fingers.

And it's enough. He allows himself to sink further until he's drowning in her embrace. Where no one can touch him, nothing can ever hurt him again, as long as she has him. She lays butterfly kisses on his forehead and each of his eyelids before releasing him. He very nearly clings to her but forces himself to let go, knees weak as he falls against the wall. She holds his hand for a moment longer, squeezing it tightly.

"Go to bed, please. For me? I'll be back soon." She promises, her grip slipping from his.

Instead of letting him disagree, she kisses him softly good night, her lips offering no more than a caress. He stands frozen for a moment, watching her disappear around the corner. As if leaving is so simple.

Confusion muddles his mind as he slides down the wall, hitting the ground with a thud. He stares at his hand, still tingling from her touch. Her scent still lingering on his clothes.  

He starts to get up, ready to continue on with his plans for the night only for his limbs to betray him. He stumbles against the tidal wave of exhaustion. It suddenly feels as if he could sleep for days. He searches for the cure for his insomnia and finds her further down the road. His heart soars to life again. And then a deep fear creeps up his spine.

What's come over me?

[silvia7272]

ML Salt ~ The Cardigan Story

This is based on a true story.

Honestly, I always remembered this story because it constantly made my Sister and Mum laugh when I told them I outed a liar at school by wearing a cardigan, they were so proud of me because what I did wasn’t mean and I wasn’t even doing it out maliciousness so I thought, hey why not put it in the ML universe?

This isn’t canon to my main series so no Rosina since there isn’t any need for her, sorry sweetie.

And since I doubt Mlle Bustier would never out Lila, I’m changing the teacher to someone who actually has a backbone.

Word Count: 2303

Tags: @queenmj10, @fangirl39, @animegirlweeb, @northernbluetongue, @maribat-is-lifeblood, @raisuke06, @indecisive-mess-named-me, @luleck, @themotherofhogwarts, @more-or-less-human-i-guess, if you wish to be tagged all you have to do is say. Also, if you change your name please tell me, I don’t want to leave you out since you’ve asked to be tagged.

I know you may not wish to be tagged for one-shots, but I thought you might enjoy some salt I was able to come up with.

Also, I wrote this in one day so I’m extremely proud of myself.

***

If you told Marinette that Lila’s reign over the school would end over a cardigan, she would tell you you’re as crazy as she was about Adrien.

A lot.

But, she did just that.

She had to thank Adrien really, the ‘advice’ he gave her was what really pushed her.

She wouldn’t outright expose her, no, she had tried that before and look where that got her, near expulsion that’s what. And not one of her friends tried to stick up for her. She always remembered that glare Alix gave her, and since then she had been ignored, turned away by them.

Even after Lila came out with ‘the truth’ she was still seen as an overly jealous girl.

“Lila’s promised she hasn’t lied about anything else she’s said to us, it only acts up around people she doesn’t know as well, maybe next time, instead of being jealous you should give her a chance and stop being a baby. Girl this all could’ve easily been avoided if you weren’t so Adrien crazy”

Really? They actually believed that load of crap?

Whatever, Marinette was done, done with everyone.

If they wanted to show her how wrong she was then she’d let them wait until hell would frost over, because fat chance that would ever happen.

If Marinette was proud of one thing about her then it would have to be her stubbornness to get to the truth.

And she could be extremely patient.

***

It was just an average day at Collège Françoise Dupont. There weren’t any Akuma’s caused by anyone the previous day so Marinette was finally able to have a good night’s rest, something the exhausted teenager really missed.

She felt so re-energised she danced in the kitchen as she made breakfast without a care in the world.

.

Before she fell over that was.

“…Owww”

“Careful dear, you wouldn’t want to be hurt before school hours, now just sit tight and I’ll get you something to eat,” Her Maman said. Marinette felt grateful. After breakfast, she gave her Parents a kiss before leaving.

She had loving parents that supported her every beck and call.

…Well most of the time, but that didn’t matter, she would never let Lila manipulate them ever, her Parents were off-limits.

By the time she arrived at school she was one of the first ones there, Nathaniel in the back drawing his comics, texting Marc as well, it seemed like he was in his own ‘do not disturb’ bubble. Max was talking to Markov about some new type of game, and Rose and Juleka were just cuddling.

She made her way to the back feeling a positive emotion before exhaling.

Because it was about to be ruined.

Lila walked in with Alya, Nino and Adrien by her side.

She was telling a story about her ‘one of a kind cardigan-

Wait-

“My Grandmother made this cardigan especially for me carving her signature on as well, it’s the only one in existence because shortly after she made this, she ended up being in a terrible accident that left her bedridden.” They pandered to her of course. But for once she wasn’t focusing on the lie but the cardigan.

Oh, Lila’s only gone and done it now.

“I’ve always wanted to wear it, but I didn’t want it to end up ruined by someone” Her gaze casually went up to a lone bluenette, but she really wasn’t bothered.

“Don’t worry girl, I’ll keep a watchful eye on your cardigan for you. Ain't nothing gonna come between me and my besties property” They hugged before sitting down in their spaces.

‘Oh my god, I have a plan’ Marinette had that thought circled around her head until break. It was all she thought of.

Mind you, she wasn’t trying to expose everything she’d done, just that one lie. And that would be enough.

As soon as the bell rang, she was ready, she gathered her stuff and rushed home.

And thank god as well, Lila would not shut up about that cardigan, through Literature, Science and PE, it was constantly my Grandmother made it for me this, it’s the only one of its kind that.

Ugh, she wanted to rip her ears out at some point but had to endure it. No one else was bothered since they all believed her, even the teachers!

Yeah, you don’t really need any proof if it was handmade, some of Marinette’s earlier stuff didn’t have her signature on, but still, it was the principle of the matter!

And she could right that wrong.

In her room she was frantically searching for that item as Tikki dodged different articles of clothing, one hit her as she wasn’t looking, and she was down for the count.

“Marinette what are you looking for?” Marinette paused to look back at Tikki before continuing a bit calmer.

“Lila’s been lying about that cardigan and this time I can prove it.” Her eyes lit up as she lifted a cardigan up from her cupboard.

“One of Maman’s friends gave this to me a few years back, it was one of the reasons I got into fashion because of how soft it is and I wanted to replicate that. Don’t you think it looks familiar?” As Tikki looked over it her eyes widened, she knew Lila was lying anyway but she had no idea Marinette had definitive proof of it.

“That’s the same cardigan Lila has!” Marinette nodded before wearing it.

At least it still fit.

“But Marinette I thought we were gonna take the high ground?”

“Tikki it's tiring having to listen to them being lied too. I may not want them to be my friends anymore, but I just want the lying to stop. If I go and tell them that she’s lying with this as evidence they’ll clearly see she’s lying”

“But outing her like that won’t make it better!” Marinette wished she could respond with ‘are you sure’ but didn’t want to piss the mini-god off.

“Fine, what if I just wear it until someone notices, that way I’m not actively looking to publicly shame her? Better?” Tikki gave a reluctant nod, she knew her chosen wouldn’t let up about the situation, besides this whole thing was really just pettiness, nothing too serious. If no one noticed nothing bad would happen.

“Bye Maman, bye Papa” As she began walking back, she grew a bit nervous with her plan.

What if Lila made a whole other lie about her cardigan? What if she lied that Marinette had stolen it out of jealousy and everyone would try to take hers? She’d have to run away and live with a secret identity, all before getting caught and going to prison, and she’d never have her three kids and her hamster named-

“Ahem Marinette, is thou there?” A hand brought her out of her trance

“Ahhh!” She waved her arms before composing herself and seeing D’Argencourt in front of her.

“Ah, yes Monsieur?” How long had he been standing there? How long had she been rambling in her head?

“As I was saying, these new garments of yours, where did they originate from?” It took her a while before realising he was talking about her cardigan, she was so used to wearing her jacket it felt strange she had changed.

“Ohh this, well it was a present from Maman’s friend. They were on sale a few years back, so I thought I’d wear it again” He furrowed his brow before telling her to carry on with whatever she was doing.

“Well, that was weird. Do you think he liked the jacket?” Tikki ponded as her head ever so slightly popped out the small handbag.

“He’s always been weird Tikki. But whatever, let's just get back to the classroom.” All she had to do was wait.

***

‘How the hell hasn’t anyone noticed yet?’ Marinette was secretly fuming in her mind right now. None of her classmates noticed the change in her outfit.

Not one.

Bustier did however, the bluenette was sure because she’d see her teacher quickly glance from Marinette to Lila but never said a word. Probably thinking of that whole, ‘be the bigger person’ crap.

And not even the excuse of maybe Bustier didn’t know, bs. By the time break happened everyone in the school knew about that damn cardigan so don’t get her started.

‘Oh well, looks like that’s it. My petty revenge came flat… At least Lila didn’t pull a Marinette ruined my belongings stunt’ That would’ve been the last thing she needed.

Knock Knock Knock

The door opened before Bustier could reply, a teacher would reprimand a student for this type of rudeness, but it wasn’t a student.

It was a teacher.

And it was Monsieur D’Argencourt.

‘What the-’ Marinette didn’t remember this part of the plan.

“Excuse me Caline, but I need to interrupt the class for an announcement.” Bustier was about to deny but D’Argencourt the stubborn teacher as he was, walked straight on through ignoring whatever Bustier would’ve said.

“Lila Rossi, may you please step in front of the classroom?” Lila looking completely confused let go off Adrien, much to the relief of the boy, and walked in front of her desk.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” He didn’t need to repeat the command.

Yes, command not a request.

“Can I ask you where you got your cardigans from?”

“Armand, I don’t think this is appropriate-” He shot a glare back at the teacher.

“I can assure you this won’t take long if I’m not interrupted”

Lila looked over to Marinette and realised with a sinking feeling what was happening. But she would win this time. Just like all the others.

“My Grandmother made this specifically, you see-”

He held a hand up to silence her.

“Yes, that’s quite alright, and Marinette would you like to repeat what you said before?” As Marinette did just that Lila was seething, he cut her off. How dare that simpleton cut off Lila Rossi!

He would pay.

“Well, it appears one of you is lying, and I expect that person to own up to it now” The class gasped as they all looked expectedly at Marinette, they knew she was petty but to do this was so low.

Lila looked at her smugly, she had tried to play with fire but got burned in the process. How could she even think she’d get away with this?

“I was talking about you, Lila Rossi”

“Eh, what?” The class gasped as they tried to say of course Lila was innocent, Marinette was the one lying. Or that Marinette must’ve tricked him.

He shot a glare towards all the class members as they instantly shut up.

“I don’t remember this being a class discussion, if I want your opinion, I will ask for it. Understood?” They nodded before giving sympathetic glances towards the brunette, D’Argencourt almost had the urge to shout at their incompetence but alas they were kids.

“I can tell you why you are lying Lila, with a photo. But as I’m feeling generous, I will give you one more chance to reveal yourself.” The class was silent as they all looked on in anticipation.

But Lila stood her ground defiantly, as if he actually had proof-

Oh…

Oh no she’s doomed…

“Then I don’t suppose this looks familiar? Hmm?” On his phone was a picture. Lila immediately lowered her head, too ashamed to look him in the eye.

3 guesses of what it is?

No.

.

.

No one?

.

.

Too easy?

.

.

Ok, it was the cardigan.

And at a fairly cheap price. No wonder she had it in brand new condition.

“I first knew you were lying once I saw Marinette wear the exact same one, however, hers was clearly worn out, evidently she has worn it for several amount of years. You had already messed up when you said it was the only one made. So please…” Lila looked up to see D’Argencourt giving one of the most frightening glares of the century.

“Don’t ever lie about anything to my face or anyone ever again, you will be court out and I will be keeping an eye on you. Is that final?” She meekly nodded her head, trying to give a frightened appearance to make him have sympathy but he was immune.

“That will be all. I hope your class has learned a valuable lesson of not taking things at face value” And with that, he left. Leaving Marinette with a different impression of her PE teacher, it seemed he didn’t like liars all that much.

Marinette smiled, her plan worked, and she didn’t even out her herself. Tikki surely can’t be mad at her now.

Bustier tried to get the class to go back to normal but she couldn’t. The class erupted into a screaming fit, asking how Lila could lie about that sort of thing?

It wasn’t until someone unexpected said the next few words she wondered if this was a dream.

“Hey if Lila lied about this what else did she lie about? She even said herself she doesn’t lie to her friends but that was a lie” That made the class tick as they soon realised and soon torn into her about it.

Leaving Lila, a ‘sobbing mess’ on the floor. All before she stopped that fake display and arguing back.

But the one who said that…

Was Adrien.

He was able to slip by the crowd and stand next to Marinette.

No words were said, she knew what he would’ve said even without the noise.

‘I’m sorry’

It was a start, and maybe through time, she could start trusting again.

But for now, she just wanted to enjoy this chaos…

.

.

Before there was an Akuma alert.

***

I want more D’Argencourt I want more D’Argencourt I want more D’Argencourt. I probably screwed his speech but oh well this is salt, doesn’t have to be accurate.

Phew, hope you enjoyed it, sorry its shorter than the others but this happened when I was in Year 5 and I was 9/10 years old. Woo 10 years ago, god that makes me feel old. Also, not everything was exactly this way, the teacher did out the person in front of the whole class, but she admitted it and went back to her class, we had two classes for maths. Anyway, I actually have to give Lila credit compared to the liar we had at our school, this person actually knew I had that cardigan and actually complimented me on it like months earlier and still had the audacity to say that. I think that’s the reason why I think if I was in their world I wouldn’t believe Lila because I already had a Lila at my school who would always say they’ve done the exact same thing as we had (They even said they had the same Aunt as me living on the same street, crazy right). Mind you they never said anything to me, I think they were too embarrassed plus, I was a goody little two-shoes there.

Anyway I really hope you enjoy it and if you like real-life stories so much I can always try to ask my friends for more ideas, I did have like some slightly toxic friends there that I may be able to tell you about but I’ll try to think how later.

Cya next time.

[elizabeethan]

Spaces Between Us- 1/12

The hardships of real life separated them six years ago, and Emma has been struggling to put that fact behind her ever since. But then, only after she’s convinced herself that she’s moved on and that her new life is enough, Killian Jones comes back.

A Captain Swan Modern AU

A/N: first, the chapter count is a big fat probably, definitely not definite! I’m  really really excited to share this story! i’ve got four chapter pre-written so far, so i’m planning on posting on a consistent weekly basis. 

More tags will apply to later chapters and i’ll put warnings where they're necessary, but if you have any concerns or questions feel free to message me!

Thank you, as usual, to my beta and friend @the-darkdragonfly, and to @donteattheappleshook and @xhookswenchx for listening to my ramblings and helping me figure out the plot to this <3

(also bonus points if you can guess what the title is based on :) it’s a hint)

This story will be rated M

This chapter: ~3200 words

Read on Ao3

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~~~~

She wakes before the sun as she does most mornings, with a start and a jump as she springs her head from her pillow and clutches her hand to her pounding chest. Glancing to her right, she sees her still sleeping husband and breathes a sigh of relief, letting her shoulders sag and her eyes flutter shut slightly. He’s fast asleep, just like he is each time she has one of her horrifying nightmares, never noticing her fearful thrashing. Rolling her eyes, she removes the blankets and lets her bare feet hit the hardwood floor and stands to make her way to the bathroom. After her shower, Emma dresses silently, applies minimal makeup, and sneaks out of their bedroom, still successful in not disturbing her husband. 

 Her son is already on the couch downstairs waiting for her, of course. If there’s one thing the two of them are equally bad at, it’s sleeping. She smiles when she sees him curled up with his picture book, his orange tabby, Abby, purring away beside him. “Morning, bub,” she greets once she’s downstairs, and he grins up at her happily. 

 “Hi, mommy.” 

 Crossing the room to the couch, she leans down and presses a kiss to his cheek and asks, “do you want some breakfast? We’ve got to get you ready for the library soon.” 

 “Is dad coming?”

She shakes her head. “No, bub. Dad has to work today, so it’s just you and mommy. I’m sorry.”

 “Okay!” he says happily, jumping from the couch and disturbing Abby. “Me and mommy day!”

 She giggles softly and grins, following as he bounds for the kitchen and trying to ignore the ache in her chest that accompanies his complete lack of concern over his father being absent for something he enjoys, again. 

“What do you want for breakfast, bub? Eggs?”

 “Eggies!” he calls, crawling up onto his dining chair. “Scrambied.” 

 “Scrambled,” she corrects gently. “With cheese?”

 “Yes! Cheese please!”

 “Very good manners, Henry,” she praises happily as she takes out a bowl, a whisk, and a pan before heading towards the fridge. “Aren’t you going to help me crack the eggs?” 

 His eyes widen and he drops his jaw dramatically, jumping off the chair with enthusiasm and running towards her. “I can crack the eggies?!”

 She smiles down at him, taken by his excitement and his refusal to say real words, and says, “yes, my love.” 

 Choking on her words, she wants to kick herself. Six year and she still finds herself using his stupid phrasing. It sends a jolt of discomfort and a twinge of longing pain through her entire being, the ability to remember small details at the most inopportune times having always haunted her. It tells her how she feels. It tells her she’ll never forget. It tells her how she’ll never feel again. 

 Her husband grumbles as he enters the kitchen, grabbing a banana from the fruit bowl and grabbing Emma’s ass in full view of her son, which makes her stiffen and glare ahead out the window, grinding her teeth. “Morning,” he says. 

 “Do you have to do that, Walsh?” she asks quietly through clenched teeth. 

 She doesn’t need to be facing him to know that he rolls his eyes. 

 Taking a deep, grounding breath in, she bends towards Henry and scoops him up easily, placing him on the counter and handing him an egg. “Remember how I showed you?” 

 “What are you doing, teaching him to cook?” Walsh asks in an incredulous tone. 

 “I don’t know, giving him life skills? Just tap gently against the counter, bub,” she instructs, and he does just that. Well, almost that. 

 He smashes the egg against the counter and she quickly helps him to drag it over the bowl, splitting it open messily and letting the yoke fall in. “I did it!”

 “No shells; excellent job!” 

 “Dad, look!” 

 Walsh makes no effort to turn from his damn phone, instead nodding once and grunting in false acknowledgment. 

 He cracks another egg, this time getting a bit of shell in the bowl but able to fish it out with help, and Emma begins beating them with just a bit too much force. “What exactly are we doing today?” she asks. 

 “Swearing in ceremony. The new sheriff starts.”

 She nods. The new sheriff was appointed by the state, so no one but Walsh knows who they are or what their deal is. Why they’re in Storybrooke to begin with. What kind of town they think they’re going to be protecting and serving. It shouldn’t be as exciting as it is, greeting a new citizen, but Storybrooke is a sleepy little town with very little excitement. 

 She has no idea how she got here. 

 “That’s why you can’t come to the library, dad?” Henry asks sadly, and his father nods without making eye contact. 

 “Yeah,” he confirms. “I have important work to do.”

 Emma rolls her eyes, then smiles softly at Henry and says, “it’s alright. It’s just Henry and mommy day, remember?”

 His face lights up again and he nods, grabbing for the cheese and stealing a slice for himself. She glares at him playfully and he giggles, squirming to the edge of the counter before she assists him down and he runs for the living room. “Food in the kitchen!” Emma calls after him. Walsh looks up from his phone for a moment, then straight back down. 

 Henry returns quickly, holding a small piece of cheese down towards the floor and taunting poor Abby with it as she chases after him. “She wants some!”

 “Henry, we don’t give Abby human food, remember? Why don’t you eat your cheese and give her some of her food?”

 He nods, gobbling his snack and then tossing a small piece onto the floor for the cat when he thinks she’s stopped paying attention. God dammit. 

 “Hey, dress nice today,” Walsh commands from behind his emails. “After the library, come to the town hall. There’ll be photo ops for the paper.”

 “Okay,” she mumbles. 

 “Make sure he doesn’t make a mess of himself.”

 She can’t respond with words without shouting, so she stays quiet. God forbid a child have a little fun and get a little dirty. “Henry, come get your breakfast. Did you feed Abby?”

 “Okay!”

 “Did you?”

 “Coming!”

 She signs and rolls her eyes, plating his eggies and tossing the pan into the sink too loudly before feeding the cat and heading upstairs, hoping her child’s father can watch him for the five minutes it will take for her to pick out a newspaper-worthy outfit for the two of them. 

 ~~~~

 “There it is!” Henry calls as he runs into the children’s section of the library, dodging other kids and parents and beelining towards his favorite. “Mommy! Come on!”

 She apologizes to the people he bumped into and finds him with his book already open to his favorite page. “Henry,” she says seriously. “Bub, you’ve got to slow down. You ran into some people and you have to be careful.”

 “Sorry,” he says, not looking up from the dog in the illustration. 

 She sighs and sits beside him, nudging him over and taking a spot on the oversized bean bag chair. “What is Mudge getting up to today?” she asks him, using the skills Belle taught her to get him to engage with the words and the pictures. 

 He’s quiet for a while, pointing out details to her and trying his hand at a few words. He’s starting to get good at reading since starting kindergarten, and she couldn’t be prouder when he sounds out family without much help, beaming at him and stroking her fingers through his chestnut hair. 

 “Mommy?” he asks after taking in an illustration of Henry and Mudge going up a hill. She hums in response to urge him to go on and he asks, “why doesn’t dad like to read with me?” 

 She can feel her heart plunging to her stomach, dropping like an anvil and sending a cold sweat across her body. Walsh has always been distant. When they first met, he seemed so sweet, and when he proposed as soon as they found out she was pregnant, she thought she had hit the jackpot. But as soon as their son was born, she saw a change in him. He became a different person, never around, never helping much, never showing either of them any affection. She blamed it on his new role as the Mayor of Storybrooke; he couldn’t have had a scandalous extramarital pregnancy on his docket and being a family man helped his chances for election. But knowing that doesn’t make it any easier to know that the man she’s stuck spending the rest of her life with isn’t shy about how little he regards her. 

 She can deal with a lack of love from her husband. What she can’t deal with is his lack of love for his son.

 Through her anger, she responds calmly, telling Henry, “dad’s just so busy, bub. He has an important job and it’s hard for him to focus on other things sometimes, because he’s so tired.” 

 Henry nods softly and turns the page. “So he doesn’t like me?” 

 The tears that spring to her eyes are instant and unstoppable, and she’s grateful that they're sitting side by side so that he can’t see her reaction. Clearing her throat, she says, “no, Henry, of course he does. I think sometimes he’s just… stressed.”

 “You’re stressed, but you love me,” he points out. 

 With a gulp, she says, “and I always will, more than anything. But your dad… he… Well, he just isn’t the type of person to say that like mommy is. That’s why I say it so much,” she smiles. 

 Her son looks up at her and smiles, his enigmatic gray eyes shining despite the sunlight not reaching this secluded back corner of the library. “I love you, mommy,” he tells her, and he gives her a hug that makes her feel more love than she’s ever felt with her husband. 

 She’s always been able to compartmentalize the fact that her husband doesn’t love her. That he never once told her that he does. That he married her out of obligation after knocking her up. But she can’t ignore the fact that he shows no love for their son, either. 

 What’s worse, is that he’s noticed. 

 ~~~~

 The town hall is nothing special, the cinderblock walls and the tile floors enough to keep the cold, fall air inside and make Emma shiver when she takes her coat off. Her husband, miserable as he is, gives her a quick smile and a curt nod that tells her she’s only welcome here because of the cameras and their need to portray a happy, loving family. It’s true, he’s always provided for them and made sure that they want for nothing, but it’s limited only to basic needs and material things. 

 “Hi,” he greets quickly, leaning in to press a kiss to her cheek as a camera flashes. She forces herself to smile. “Hi, son.” 

 Henry grunts up at his father, not making eye contact and not letting go of Emma’s hand. “Hi,” he mumbles. 

 Emma knows, as much as she hates to admit it, that Henry should give his dad a hug so that Sydney Glass can snap a photo of the wholesome moment. But after their conversation earlier, she isn’t inclined to make him. So, she bends at the knees and gives him a smile, asking, “bub, do you want to give your dad a hug hello?” 

 He shrugs, looking down at his feet, and reluctantly reaches for Walsh. He laughs happily as he picks Henry up, giving him a squeeze and successfully tricking the few townsfolk here into believing his show. “How was the library, buddy?” 

 Henry says nothing in return, shrugging and then squirming until Walsh puts him down. He runs back to Emma and takes her hand again, holding on tight, and she paints on a smile and runs her fingers through his hair. “Let’s find a seat, Henry,” she suggests. 

 “There's seats here for you,” Walsh tells her, gesturing for the first row where there are three folding chairs, each with a placard on them. Mayor Walsh Oswald is first, with Mrs. Walsh Oswald to the right and Mr. Henry Oswald in the center of the two. 

 Emma takes a seat and has Henry do the same, and after a few more handshakes and photo ops, Walsh sits as well and the ceremony begins. Sydney Glass continues to snap pictures of the crows and of the stage, until the lights dim and the state’s police chief walks on stage. 

 A speech is made, as if this event is anything more than mundane, and then the mayor is called on stage to complete the induction of the town’s new sheriff. Walsh graces the stage excitedly, earning applause from the small crowd as he waves, and takes the microphone. He says a few words about the town’s safety being the number one priority, and assures everyone that the state police chief surely couldn't have made a better decision when he hired their new sheriff. 

 And then he calls him onto the stage. 

 And Emma’s world goes dark. 

 Killian Jones. 

 Her eyes must be three times their normal size as he walks onto the stage, and she’s grateful for the dramatic lights because they mean he likely can’t see her. But she can see him. 

 For the first time in six years, she can see him. 

 Her breathing quickens and her vision feels blurry, and she realizes that in her haste to get ready this morning, she had barely anything but coffee. She takes a deep breath and clings to the seat of her folding chair with white knuckles, gnawing on her bottom lip until it bleeds as she watches the one that got away place his hand on the bible and repeat a vow of servitude to her husband. She wants to die. 

 “Mommy?” Henry whispers in the darkness. “Are you okay?” 

 She swallows against her bone dry throat and nods, giving him a shaky smile, which only serves to worry him some more, likely due to her sudden paleness. “Yes,” she whispers. “Hush, bub. It’s almost done.” 

 The heart in her chest, the one she gave away to the man on the stage years ago, slams against her ribs almost painfully, until Walsh announces the new sheriff and the crowd begins to cheer. Through panting breaths, she claps, and then grabs Henry’s hand and pulls him as subtly as she can towards the exit and into the chilly November air. “Where are we going?” he asks in confusion. 

 “Mommy just needs some air,” she explains, gulping in a breath as she throws herself through the double doors. 

 She squats down and presses her back to the brick wall, burying her face in her hands and trying to steady her breathing before she feels Henry's small hand on her head. He does what she always does to him when he’s upset and begins scratching his fingers against her scalp, and the thoughtful notion brings tears to her eyes. “It’s okay, mommy,” he consoles, and she’s sure he has no idea what’s going on, although he shows her endless compassion either way. She wonders how she got so lucky with such a thoughtful son when he was basically doomed by genetics. 

 “I’m sorry, bub,” she says softly. “I’m fine, really.” 

 She hears the doors open to her right and assumes the ceremony must be over, so she turns her head away from the crowd. She hears someone ask Henry if he’s alright and starts wiping at her tears, intent on interrupting the exchange, but when Henry says, “my mommy is sick,” she laughs and shakes her head. 

 “Shall we get her some help, lad?” he asks, and Emma’s certain that if she had eaten breakfast, she would lose it. 

 “I don’t need help,” she mumbles, breathing heavily and hiding her face in her hands. 

 “It’s no problem,” he insists. Then he makes a joke, his tone light and flirty and exactly like she remembers it. “I don't know if you noticed, but I'm here to protect and serve.” 

 It’s impossible for her to hold in a soft chuckle, cut off by a surprising and breathless sob, and she can’t help but to look up at him. She watches as his jaw drops and his eyes widen; he falters backwards as he takes in the sight of her, denial and shock ever present on his face. He looks like he wants to say something, but words die on his lips and he remains still before he snaps his mouth shut. 

 “Aren’t you gonna help my mom?” Henry asks in disgust, staring up at Killian in a way that makes Emma want to throw up. She never did think that these two worlds would collide, as much as she may have wanted them to. 

 He hasn’t broken his gaze from her until he looks at her son and gulps before staring back down at her. “Uh, aye,” he says to Henry. “Do you need some help, miss?” 

 Without waiting for her answer, he offers her his hand and she takes it. There’s a shock that rushes through her entire body at the feeling of his skin touching hers, and it feels like she’s coming home and losing her sanity all at once. The pains in her chest are overwhelming and she can feel more tears stinging her eyes as he pulls her up from the ground. She nearly topples into his chest once she’s finally standing, because she’s so unsteady that her legs feel like they’re made of the noodles Henry likes in his soup, and he catches her before she can stumble. 

 He asks, “alright?” with such soft concern that she thinks she would smoothe out his brow and kiss him if not for Henry standing beside them. 

 She’s about to answer before she hears, “sheriff,” coming from her husband to her right. Her husband. Right. 

 They spring apart and she looks down at Henry, who is staring up at her with his brows drawn close together and his lips set in a straight, thin line. She gives him a small smile before looking at Walsh and blinking rapidly. “Hi, honey,” she greets. “I just met the sheriff; he was just helping me up. What a great addition to the town.” 

 Walsh glares at her with a look on his face that tells her she’ll be hearing about this later and then turns to Killian and offers his hand. “I look forward to meeting with you, Mr. Jones,” he says as they shake hands stiffly. 

 “Pleasure,” he responds. “It was nice to meet you and your family. I’ll see you next week.” 

 Her husband places a stiff hand on her back, calling for Henry to follow them without bothering to make sure that he actually is, before hissing, “let’s go,” into her ear. 

 Her heart races for an entirely different reason than it had when she saw Killian Jones. 

~~~~

~~~~

[ka-za-ri]

Prize Pt 1

Hello! Comin’ at you hot with some commission work I received from a lovely client on Ao3. The request was for breeding centric fic, so if you’re not into that, please avert ye eyes. This is a three part series and will end up being Satan centric, but the first part will be dedicated to the lovely Asmo~

°˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°  Please enjoy!

Chapter Index and Obey Me! Masterlist: here Ao3 Mirror: Here Pairing: Asmodeus x Reader Genre: smut Wordcount: 4,200 ish   Tags: Hand job, demon sex  Summary: There’s a game afoot and it’s up to you to figure out the rules before you’re taken by surprise by the brothers.

Game

There was an unspoken game afoot, one that only the brothers were in on. You didn’t need to confront them on what they were hiding though, it wasn’t hard to figure out. None of the demons seemed to be well versed in the art of being subtle. At least it meant you were able to catch onto what they were doing much sooner than they anticipated. You would play along with them; and in the end, it would benefit all parties involved. The most important question was how to make them play by your rules without them knowing.

It was a careful dance around their flirtatious advances. It was a precise push and pull that you needed to become adept at if you wanted to win their game. For some, material bribes distracted them enough. A different approach was needed for the others who were more persistent. From Leviathan’s obvious attempts to usurp your time by asking you to raid with him until the wee hours of the morning to Beelzebub constantly asking you if you wanted some of his favorite snacks, they clearly wanted more personal time with you than they let on.

It wasn’t hard to push away Beelzebub. You could claim to have an upset stomach or were too full from your most recent meal to accept his idea to raid the fridge and retreat to his room to enjoy the spoils. Leviathan was similar. Most of the time you got away with complaining about how much homework was put upon you. On the few occasions you did end up joining him for a dungeon run or two, you may or may not have purposefully provoked the enmity of the boss to frustrate him enough to kick you out of his room early.

It was difficult to keep up appearances. Trying to find the balance of spending time with the brothers while also keeping up an innocent and unaware facade was more tiring than you anticipated. You knew that their intentions weren’t bad, but they were up to something that definitely revolved around getting you alone and probably naked. Some of the plans they executed were more obvious than others, and you needed to pick your battles accordingly.

Mammon was particularly difficult to deal with at times. He liked to spend most of his time hanging off you. He had the distinct advantage of being chosen to be your caretaker and guardian thanks to Lucifer. One of the few favors the first born had ever done for Mammon was allowing him to have as much contact as he needed with you. Though he was great with showing you the ropes of Devildom, it was problematic when it came to you wanting your own space. Though his words were brash, you could tell how much he adored being the default person that you had to turn to for help.

Luckily for you, it seemed as though his past made it hard for him to ever have enough time to be properly intimate with you. At any moment, he was liable to completely disappear from the current plane of existence due to his debt with a few powerful witches. You never found out who they were; but secretly, you thanked them for giving you just enough leeway to dodge out of his advances.

The game continued, and the tactics the brothers used became bolder with every attempt you managed to escape. Eventually, you realized that if you didn’t give at some point, the tension between them would only mount and create chaos among them.

Unsurprisingly, it was the Avatar of Lust that took it upon himself to break the ice and blow the game wide open for them all.

“Are you free after classes?” Asmodeus asked over breakfast. There was a brief moment of apprehension that passed through the other brothers when they heard his question. With all eyes on him, Asmodeus played off any nervousness he had by flaunting the attention he was receiving. He carried on with the conversation as if he wasn’t getting barely hidden glares from the others. “I just got the cutest outfit in the mail, and I want to show it to you if you’ve got time. You have a good eye for fashion, right?”

You checked your calendar, mumbling incoherently while you contemplated his offer. The Avatar of Lust truly lived up to his name, being ostentatious with his suggestions and leaving nothing to the imagination. There was no doubting his ulterior motive, but it didn’t stop you from gently trying to push him away. “There’s a test at the end of the week I need to study for,” you said while scrolling through all your tasks for the week.

“Oh please, with how quickly you pick everything up, it’ll be a breeze for you to pass it,” Asmodeus dismissed your excuse with a nonchalant wave of his hand. He could tell you weren’t convinced and quickly tried to strike up a deal with you to keep the advantage he had over his brothers. “How about I help you study after you take a look? What subject is it on?”

You double checked your schedule, realizing you weren’t going to get out of his offer so easily. He was being much more persistent than his brothers had been. To do it so publicly almost felt like he was trying to send a message to the others. After putting off answering as long as you could, scrutinizing your schedule over and over again, you gave in and just went with the first class on your schedule. “Demon Biology.”

Asmodeus’ grinned from ear to ear. “Oh, I have the best notes for that class, and they can be all yours for just coming over and having a looksie. Sounds like a good deal, right?”

Beside you, you could feel Satan physically bristle at his brother’s thinly veiled intentions. Asmodeus didn’t have to say it, but everyone at the table seemed to know what his ultimate plan was. Sure, he was afforded some slack due to his general nature; but he was pushing the unwritten limits that had been set. You weren’t even sure if you should continue to play dumb; but the less they knew about what you surmised about their game, the better. In the end, the choice was yours; and you couldn’t afford to be too conspicuous when it came to how much you had gathered.

“Well, if that’s all I have to do for some notes to pass this test, how can I deny your generous offer?” You smiled sweetly, noticing the tension in the room grow as the agreement was made. The balance of power had been tipped in Asmodeus’ favor within the span of a few minutes.

“Great! I’ll see you after class then. You know where my room is.” He blew you a quick kiss and skipped off to get ready for his day.

You expected a great upheaval between the brothers after such a proposal from Asmodeus. Surprisingly enough, there was minimal fuss over it, further proving to you that there was a plot brewing among them where cooperation on all sides was necessary. The most dissent came from Mammon who was adamant about walking you to your classes and would spend the whole time grumbling about his brother’s audacity to pull such a stunt in front of everyone. Despite all the complaining, he didn’t try to stop you from visiting Asmodeus after your classes as promised.

You expected to be a little nervous, but you didn’t think your hands would be shaking as you knocked tentatively on Asmodeus’ door. The Avatar of Lust warmly welcomed you in, already dressed and waiting for your arrival. A large fluffy robe covered his newest precious outfit, but you could see bits of lace peeking out from under the collar. Oh boy, this will be good. You raised a brow, eyeing what might be hidden. He caught your glance and chuckled, pulling the robe tighter around him before beckoning you into his room.

Even if he tried to be stealthy about it, it was very difficult to ignore how he locked the door behind him while you got comfortable.

“I’m so glad you could make it. I wanted you to be the first person I showed this to,” he pitched his voice a bit lower, adding the slightest hint of a seductive purr at the end of his words. You sat at the edge of his bed and set your things down. Asmodeus was being quite the tease, twirling around and letting just hints of his ensemble show. You caught glimpses of shiny black leather trimmed with plenty of fine black lace. He was being a showoff, and he knew it.

“Well, I might be the only person you get to show this to if you’re going to make me wait three weeks before the great reveal.”

Asmodeus let out a laugh before he finally let the robe drop, showing off the new ensemble in its entire glory. It was quite the sight seeing him decked in all that leather and lace. The outfit clung to him like a second skin, flattering his figure in the best way possible. You had an idea it was going to be risque, but no amount of mental preparation was enough for you to be ready for the sight before you. The accenting jewels he chose to wear in champagne and pink complimented the black if only because they matched his hair and eyes.

“Well, what do you think?”

“I don’t think anyone but you could pull that off, Asmodeus,” you replied truthfully.

He laughed, his eyes glittering with mirth at your compliment. “Oh please, you know you can just call me Asmo. I’d like to think we’re familiar enough for nicknames.” He twirled again, and there was a brief flash of light accompanied by a rustling sound. Once you blinked away the bleariness from the sudden bright light, you saw that he had changed into his true form.

The low back of the dress allowed for his wings to freely move making you wonder if this was a custom piece or if it was something he found on a whim. His wings peeking out past his shoulders only added to the aesthetic appeal of the ensemble as a whole. Asmodeus relished in the attention you gave him, posing and giving you his best angles. “It looks so much better like this, right?”

You nodded dumbly. There was no denying the Avatar of Lust was stunning, even in his human form. However, seeing him in his full glory, his horns and wings on full display, only seemed to elevate his look to a whole different level. His hand traveled down his abdomen, tracing the intricate lacework. He could tell your gaze was following his fingers; and he looked over at you, a playful smirk on his lips. “I take it as you like what you see?”

“It’s hard not to like something so… aesthetically pleasing,” you tried to sound nonchalant, but there was a definite waver in your voice. You knew his charms were useless against you. That had been established when you first met. However, the heated gazes he gave you and the lowered pitch of his voice was awakening things in you that you had tried to avoid thinking about since your arrival at Devildom.

You tried to look anywhere around you but at Asmo, the outfit he had on really was doing things to your libido you hadn’t expected. Furtively glancing over to the clock on the dresser, you noticed just how long you had been there and decided a change of subject was in order. If you could get out of this, you would have dodged yet another attempt from one of them. “Oh, so about those notes...” you started.

“Oh, yes. I was wondering when you would ask me,” Asmodeus giggled, a playful smirk spread across his delicate features as he continued to prance around his room. Eventually he stopped teasing you and pulled out a notebook to hand to you. While you flipped through, he lounged in bed next to you, the smirk never quite leaving his face.

“Wait. Uh… are you sure this is the right book?”

“Oh of course, I wouldn’t dream of giving you the wrong one.”

“Asmo, the pages are blank.”

“Oh, I know,” he giggled, his eyes crinkling up with mirth as you stared at him in confusion. He coyly lifted the skirt to his outfit to reveal he hadn’t bothered to wear any undergarments. “It’s better if you got some hands-on experience, right? The upcoming test is on anatomy after all,” he gave you a sly wink and giggled.

You couldn’t avert your eyes fast enough before getting an eyeful of what Asmo was packing as a demon. Even if you covered your eyes, you couldn’t avoid hearing him giggle gleefully at your reaction as you felt your cheeks heat up in embarrassment. “Aww come on now, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. This is natural,” he cooed, petting your hair softly.

He guided your hand to feel him, letting you feel every curve and ridge of his dick. You didn’t want to look. It was too awkward for you to do so; but with a little coaxing, you eventually cracked open your eyes to take in just what you were feeling. It was a little odd to admit it, but his cock was pretty. Slim and tapered, your hand could easily wrap itself around his length. With a little more vocal encouragement, your fingers did eventually find their way round his cock. You gave him an experimental little pump partially to feel how his skin shifted and felt under your hand and partially to see his reaction. He let out a soft mewl of appreciation at the friction and rolled his hips up to meet your hand. “Feel free to ah…take as many notes as you’d like.”

His eyes were lidded, the irises blown out and darkening his light colored eyes. It only added to the sensuality of the moment as he laid next to you, letting you explore every inch of him for the sake of ‘studying.’ You could hardly believe it was happening yourself. His hand held onto your wrist firmly and continued to guide your hand to stroke him at a slow, lazy pace.

As your attention was occupied with what was in between his legs, he pulled you in with his free hand to press soft kisses at the corner of your mouth. They were quick, soft and a little hesitant at first; but when you didn’t immediately pull away from him, he became bolder, gliding his lips over your own and nipping at your lower lip, hoping to gain access to go deeper. With your mind short circuiting from all the sensations you were experiencing all at once, you gasped for breath; and that was all the permission he needed to deepen the kiss. His tongue swiped over your lips just once before delving into your mouth.

Kisses with the Avatar of Lust were unlike any you experienced before. Perhaps it was the centuries of practice he had with other partners, or perhaps it was his innate charm as the Avatar of Lust that made his kisses feel like a full body experience. You didn’t even feel embarrassed about feeling him up any longer as his kisses were what ultimately made you feel overwhelmed. The scent of new leather laced through the smell of his citrusy cologne and made for an absolutely intoxicating combination.

His hips jerked into your hand as he really got into it with you, the ridged texture under your fingers was firm yet pliant at the same time. His soft whimpers in your ears only emboldened you to explore more of his length. You traced the tapered tip carefully, watching his reactions. It seemed to be a rather sensitive spot considering he stopped kissing you just to let out a lewd moan and grind his length into your hand. His kisses trailed away from your lips to your jaw and to your ear where he licked and nipped right at your pulse point, enjoying the salt of your sweat as the room was quickly becoming warm.

Asmo let out soft whimpers almost akin to a coo every time you stroked him just right. His vocal appreciation egged you on, allowing you to stroke him with more confidence once you figured out just what he liked. He simply looked ravishing in that dress; and you needed to make sure you properly thanked him for not only the extensive notes he was giving you, but also the lovely little show as well.

Eventually, he pulled away from you if only to roll you onto your back and give your body as much attention as your hand had given him. Asmo gently put your arms at your side, murmured reassurances that he would take care of you while he slowly undid every layer of your uniform. If there was one thing he excelled at, it was making you anticipate his next move. He was slow and methodical, admiring every inch of skin he revealed; and he always had a compliment at the ready to make you blush even more under his watchful gaze.

“Beautiful. Just beautiful. Every bit of you,” he murmured before taking a nipple into his mouth and sucking on it.

You wailed, feeling his tongue lave at your sensitive skin. In fear of the others hearing your lewd exchange with Asmodeus, you quickly clasped your hands over your mouth to muffle your noises. He looked up at you from his place at your chest and laughed softly, putting your hands back at your sides. “No, no. Please be as loud as you wish. I want everyone to know exactly what’s going on here.”

You bit your lip, not sure if you could follow his demands; but the heat simmering in his eyes convinced you to comply. Once he was sure your hands would remain at your side, he went right back to what had been doing, redoubling his efforts on your nipple and making you whimper in need from his ministrations. He loved hearing every one of the sounds that came from your lips, and he was sure the others could hear just what he could do to you on the other side of his door. After the stunt he pulled at the table earlier that day, there was no way his brothers wouldn’t eavesdrop.

You surprisingly still had your panties on, but Asmodeus made quick work of them, peeling them off of you once he was sure your body was willing to accept him. Seeing you completely bare beneath him was absolutely breathtaking. He stared for a moment in awe, making you feel entirely too self conscious; and you curled up a bit to shy away from his heated gaze. “No,” he stated firmly, once again placing your arms at your side. “I want to see all of you.”

“Okay, you’ve seen it now, how about evening the playing field? You’ve got a lot more on than I do.”

“Oh, I do. How rude of me. Let me fix that.”

You felt his weight leave the bed momentarily. Looking up at where he went, you realized he had given you front row seats to a most sensual strip tease.

The only real garment he wore was that leather and lace dress. However, he somehow made taking it off feel like an eternity. From showing off his assets whenever he bent over to the slow pull of the zipper at the side of the dress, you felt like every second he wasn’t spending on top of you was another second that made your arousal reach the unbearable breaking point.

“Asmo, please…” you whined, “Stop teasing…this isn’t fair.”

He liked it when you were whiny. The way you pitched your voice in that desperate whimper broke the last bit of control he had. Whatever other teasing he had planned was thrown out the window in favor of shucking the dress right off so he could settle himself between your legs. His cock pressed at your soaking entrance. “You say please so prettily, I can’t resist.”

He pushed into you, and your hands almost flew to your mouth again to cover the lewd moan that came from your lips. He stretched you just right, fitting into your warm heat as if he was meant to be there. Your moan faded into a satisfied sigh as you felt him fill you. He smiled softly, memorizing the way your eyelids fluttered and the blissful look on your face when he bottomed out inside of you. “That’s a good look,” he purred, giving you a moment to adjust to his cock.

The time he gave you really wasn’t needed, he filled you but didn’t stretch you out in a way that made it painful. You wrapped your arms around the back of his neck and pulled him in for a hot kiss, your hips flexing as a wordless command for him to move.

He complied eagerly, moaning into your kisses and starting a pace that wasn’t unlike the one he guided your hand into earlier. It let you feel every ridge and bump of his cock slide in and out of you. He knew your first experience with a demon would be unlike any other coupling you had before. He wanted to make it special; and with all his experience as the Avatar of Lust, he sure was able to make you see stars and feel like you were drowning in pleasure.

It was an entirely new type of euphoria you were feeling, and you were quickly beginning to crave more of it. Your legs wrapped around his hips, and you desperately met every one of his slow thrusts in an attempt to get him to give you more. He quickly got the message and picked up the pace once he was confident you were well accustomed to his unique shape.

The change in speed and intensity was just what you needed to satiate your desires. He knew exactly what his cock could do, and he took advantage of it as he fucked you in earnest. The lewd sounds of skin slapping against skin echoed off his walls, your breathy moans mingled with his grunts of pleasure as you both lost yourselves in the throes of ecstasy while chasing your release.

He could make you see stars and the ends of the universe with his cock and it wasn’t long before the building pressure in your abdomen of your oncoming orgasm was reaching its breaking point. You called for him, encouraging him with your jilted moans every time he buried himself inside of you. His skin glistened with a thin sheen of sweat from the exertion which only seemed to add to your overwhelming arousal.

“Oh fuck,” you choked back a sob as your orgasm washed over you like a wave. Intense and all consuming, your body convulsed as you reached your peak long before he was ready for his own release.

“You’re even more beautiful when you cum,” he panted, starry eyed and amazed at how tightly your inner walls were hugging his cock. “Makes me wish I was rutting right now so I could breed you over and over again. We would make the cutest babies.”

The primal, almost feral way his words sounded only made your walls clench around him even more. For as sensitive as they were, they reacted to him and craved more. He wasn’t done yet, and it seemed like he would continue until he reached his own blissful peak within you.

You weren’t able to keep up with the sensations of his cock still sliding in and out of your swollen walls. Everything became a blur of lust and desire. Your throat felt hoarse from screaming so much; you didn’t want anymore despite what your trembling body craved.

Eventually you could feel a change in Asmodeus’ pace as the even thrusts became erratic, and the volume of his moans matched the pitch of your screams. He gratefully unloaded himself, spilling his seed into you in hot spurts. Your name mixed with a variety of curses in a language you could only imagine was demonic in nature. He groaned, burrowing his head in the crook of your neck as he rode out his climax.

As soon as the brunt of his orgasm was over, he was kissing you deeply, wordlessly thanking you for the intimate moment the two of you had just shared. There was a fair bit of passion in his kisses though the needy heat from before had dissipated now that both of you had found the release you craved. He pulled away with a content sigh, rolling to your side and pulling out of you.

“So, do you think you got some good notes in?” he asked while he gazed lovingly into your eyes, brushing away a stray strand of hair away from your face. “Or do you need some more studying?”

You giggled, your skin still sensitive from such an intense session. “I think I’ll be able to pass with flying colors,” you reassured, rolling closer to him to get some much needed post coital cuddles.

[singledarkshade]

Stuck Together

Summary: When a mission goes wrong, Rip and John need some help to break a curse leading them to Miranda. But will Rip's newly re-established relationship with her survive. Author’s Note: Rip Week Day 2: “Have you two considered couples counselling?” – Who should Rip be with and do they need counselling to stay together? Or it’s not romantic help he needs but a different kind of counselling. Over to you. Enjoy.                                ********************************************* “Have you two considered couples counselling?”

The two men standing in her living room stopped arguing at the question and turned to where Miranda stood watching them with an amused smile.

“Okay,” she said, as silence had finally descended, “Now I have your attention one of you, and only one,” she cut them off sharply, “Tell me exactly what happened?”

Rip and John shared a look with John finally conceding to let the other man speak. They were here to get his girlfriend’s help after all.

“I was sent to retrieve a book that went missing when it wasn’t supposed to,” Rip explained, “It needs to be returned to the Cairo Museum so that it can be stolen at the correct time.”

Miranda nodded, “Since John Constantine is here, I’m assuming this book has a supernatural connection.”

“It’s a text for summoning creatures from the underworld, amongst other things,” John explained, “I heard it was being sold so thought I would see if I could pick it up and get it out of the hands of anyone who could use it for ‘nefarious purposes’.”

“Okay,” Miranda said, “So, how did it go from a simple retrieval to what happened?”

The two men looked at one another and Rip sighed, “There was an unforeseen complication.”

Rip checked his weapons before asking, “Anything?”

“I’m afraid not, Captain,” Gideon replied, “Mr Constantine isn’t answering his phone.”

“Honestly,” Rip shook his head frustrated, “The one time I actually need his help and I can’t get a hold of him.”

“It is possible that Mr Constantine will be at the sale,” Gideon reminded him, “Considering the item is something he would be interested in.”

Rip nodded, “You’re right. Okay, I am ready. Are you detecting anything I should know about?”

“Not currently,” Gideon replied, “However magic is not always something my sensors can detect.”

“I can always hope,” Rip noted as he headed to the cargo bay.

“Captain,” Gideon said softly, “Please do not rush this mission in your haste to return to Lieutenant Coburn. She will understand if you are not able to spend her birthday with her.”

Grimacing Rip patted the bulkhead, “I know, Gideon but we only found one another again three months ago and I want to spend the day with her.”

“Then you should go now and finish your mission.”

Smiling, Rip patted the bulkhead once more before starting out to find where the book was going to be sold. Heading away from the wasteland he’d parked the Waverider on, Rip walked towards the warehouse that was being used for a marketplace for those in the sorcery/magic business. The place was dank, dirty, and smelled absolutely disgusting.

“And to think I could be having dinner with Miranda,” Rip muttered to himself as he slid into the marketplace.

Looking around he spotted the auction he was looking for, along with a familiar face.

“What the bloody hell are you doing here?” John Constantine demanded when Rip arrived at his side.

“Hello to you too, John,” Rip replied dryly.

Rolling his eyes, John asked again, “What are you doing here, Hunter?”

“I’m here to collect a book called ‘De Spirituum Summoing’,” Rip told him.

John frowned, “What do the Time Masters want with a book of summoning spells?”

“To put it back in its rightful place,” Rip replied, “And if you ever answered your phone, you’d know this.”

John grimaced slightly, “Yeah too many people I’m trying to avoid know that number.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t put it on your business cards,” Rip reminded him.

Before the sorcerer could retort, the auction began and both men focussed on it.

“Is there anything specific you’re after,” Rip murmured softly as they watched several different items bought by the group around them.

John sighed, “I’m after the book too. It needs to be taken out of circulation.”

“Here it comes,” Rip said.

“How much money do you have on you?” John asked.

Rip smiled slightly, “More than enough.”

“Good,” John replied, “Because there is someone I recognise over there who might be after the book and can outbid me a hundred times over.”

 “Did you win the auction?” Miranda demanded when Rip stopped talking.

John and Rip swapped glances before John replied, “Yes.”

“So, what happened?” she sighed.

Rip grimaced, “Well…”

 “Where’s my book?” Rip demanded angrily after the auction as the dealer looked at him dumbly.

John sighed, waving his hand in front of the man’s glazed eyes, “He has no idea. It’s a spell. He probably doesn’t remember his own name right now, never mind who took the book. But I have an idea who has it.”

Rip followed John through the maze of the marketplace, dodging around people as he tried not to notice the strange objects being sold. They headed out the warehouse and saw the man who had been bidding against Rip heading towards a van.

“Oi,” John yelled, “Magor, you disgusting bastard. Where’s my mate’s book?”

Rip frowned as he got a good look at the other man, he was thin almost skeletal with yellowing skin and nicotine yellow thinning greasy hair. He gripped the bag he was holding tightly to him as he pressed back against the side of the van.

Rip drew his gun while John readied himself to fight, small ripples of fire flickering from his fingers. Magor stuck his free hand into his pocket and pulled out a small bundle, throwing it at John who automatically went to catch it, the flames from his fingers set it alight covering them in smoke.

“Bollocks,” John snapped, he ran towards the van only to be yanked backwards to where Rip stood.

Rip let out a cry of shock when John’s entire body slammed into him sending them both into the fence behind them. They heard the van speed away as they untangled themselves from one another.

“What happened?” Rip demanded as he tried to catch his breath, managing to stand he brushed the dirt off himself.

“Not sure,” John replied, smelling the air around them.

Rip shook his head and started walking the direction the van had gone, surprise filling him when he was yanked back into John, sending them both to the ground in another heap.

John grimaced after they untangled themselves once again, “He cursed us. The bastard.”

“Cursed?” Rip blinked in surprise before demanding, “How do we break it?”

Sighing John replied, “I’m pretty sure I know which spell he used, I just need to find how to remove it and…”

“And?” Rip demanded worriedly when John trailed off.

“Another person, who we trust, to help with breaking the spell,” John told him, “Do you know anyone because right now my list is pretty small.”

Rip hesitated before he nodded, “There’s one person I can think of.”

 “I’m honoured you trust me so much,” Miranda smiled as they finished the story.

Rip shrugged, “Who else would I ask?”

Miranda took his face in her hands and pulled him down to her, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

John coughed getting their attention, “Sorry but I can’t exactly go anywhere while you two have a quickie.”

Rip blushed, while Miranda chuckled, “Alright, do we have a plan of any kind or is this a wing it and see what happens kind of mission?”

“A bit of both,” Rip shrugged, “Our best idea is to head back to John’s place so we can lift the curse and then we track down the man who stole the book.”

She nodded, “Give me a few minutes to collect some things and we’ll head to the Waverider.”

Miranda headed to her bedroom and quickly packed a few essentials for the journey, adding her weapons because, knowing her Rip, things would not be as easy as he hoped. Pulling a coat on, Miranda grabbed the bag and rejoined the two men in the living room, rolling her eyes as they were bickering again.

“Alright,” she cut them off, “Let’s go.”

 “Welcome back, Lieutenant Coburn it is wonderful to have you here once more,” Gideon greeted as they walked onboard the Waverider, before adding, “Please remember not to smoke whilst onboard, Mr Constantine.”

John rolled his eyes, “Well, that’s nice. She gets how wonderful it is to see you and I get an order not to smoke.”

“Because you ignore Gideon’s rules,” Rip reminded his friend, “Whereas Miranda is the favourite.”

Miranda chuckled, “I will drop my bag in a room and join you on the bridge.”

Rip caught her hand, “My room.”

“Okay,” she kissed him quickly before diverting off to the living quarters while Rip and John continued to the bridge.

Rip slid into the pilot’s chair and readying the ship for flight, John taking the hastily erected seat at his side as they couldn’t get more than a few feet apart without being pulled together once more.

“Gideon,” Rip called, “Has there been any indications that the book has been used?”

“Not currently,” she replied.

Rip nodded, “That’s good. We are going to head to John’s place to review some research material and hopefully find the spell to break this curse.”

“A wise plan,” Gideon replied, “I do not think the Time Masters would be happy to have Mr Constantine as a permanent resident of the Waverider.”

“Neither would you,” John noted.

At Gideon’s silence, Rip chuckled, “Is Miranda on her way?”

“Yes, Captain,” Gideon told him.

The doors opened and Miranda walked onto the bridge, she’d changed into a much more practical outfit than the summer dress she’d been wearing before, and her hair was pinned up the way she used to wear it for missions. Taking one of the seats, she pulled the restraint down and nodded.

“Let’s go.”

 John released the protection spells on the door to the Mill House before he motioned the couple to follow him inside. Miranda had a smile on her face as she looked around. At least someone was enjoying themselves.

Leading them into the main room, John gave a wave, “Welcome. Be careful what you touch.”

“I’m going to assume that includes the dust,” Miranda noted pointedly as she studied some of the items around the room.

He grabbed a few of the books he thought might help them and placed them on the coffee table, “Start with these.”

Miranda instantly grabbed one and her eyes lit up with interest as she took a seat on the couch. Rip took a book as well and sat at her side. John could see both the hormones and awkwardness between the couple.

He’d been stunned when Rip had taken them to see Miranda for help, having had no idea that the annoying Time Master had a social life, never mind a gorgeous smart girlfriend who clearly had him wrapped around her finger.

It was odd watching their relationship as it seemed in some ways to be still in the early stages, Rip especially didn’t seem comfortable being intimate with her in front of John but then there were times it was like they’d been a couple for long time as they had an awareness of each other that only came from years together.

“Okay,” Miranda spoke up after about an hour of studying, “I think I’ve found something. John, what do you think?”

Taking the book, he scanned the spell and nodded, “This is perfect, love. But…”

“But?” Rip demanded.

“I have everything needed to create it,” John told them, “The problem is because of the nature of the anti-curse, Miranda has to do everything.”

Miranda’s eyes lit up, “You mean I get to do actual magic?”

John nodded and Rip frowned.

“Are you sure?” Rip asked, “Isn’t that dangerous?”

“If she was doing it without supervision then yes,” John told him, “But I’ll be walking her through the entire thing.”

Miranda moved to Rip’s side and took his hand, “I’ll be fine.”

Rip turned them slightly in the hopes of some privacy, “Magic is volatile, Miranda. We’re already cursed, I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“You do remember that I received the exact same training as you,” Miranda replied sharply, “Don’t you?”

“Yes, but…”

“But?”

John coughed before they started arguing properly and spoke up, “Rip, it’s a relatively simple spell and with me watching over her, Miranda will be fine.”

“Not. Your. Choice,” Miranda stated, enunciating every word as she poked Rip’s chest with each word and Rip backed down.

John grimaced at the tension and clapped his hands, “Okay, let’s get this sorted so we can separate us then find the bastard who stole the book.”

 Rip didn’t like that Miranda had to work the spell to separate him from John, but Miranda refused to even consider looking for another option. He’d forgotten how much she could frustrate him, how headstrong she was, and how much she liked to argue with him.

“Oh, this is incredible,” Miranda said as John sorted out the ingredients for the spell.

“The good thing about this spell,” John told her, speaking in a way to ensure Rip would listen, “Is that it’s not taking any life energy from you, it just needs the intentions. I’ll be the one who sets it alight to activate the spell, so it’s my energy. What it needs is that you care for, well I’d say both of us would be best, but at least one helps.”

“I care about what happens to you, John,” Miranda said, and Rip felt a small spike of jealousy go through him which eased when she added cheekily, “I need you to make sure Rip doesn’t get himself killed trying to retrieve this book.”

John caught Rip’s eye with an amused smirk before turning back to Miranda.

“Okay,” John said, returning their attention to the spell, “In the order I tell you, and during each step try to focus on whatever good points you believe Rip has.”

Laughter bubbled from Miranda, she tilted her head to Rip, who frowned at her for a second before giving in and pressing a quick kiss to her lips.

John chuckled murmuring, “So well trained,” before letting out a cry of pain when Miranda kicked his ankle.

“Watch it, buddy,” Miranda warned John.

Rip smiled at her defence of him, while John rolled his eyes, continuing to tell Miranda each step. Rip rested his hand on his girlfriend’s shoulder, when John advised it would help with the spell.

“I feel like I’m tingling,” Miranda said as she added the final few ingredients.

John nodded, “That means it’s working.”

“What now?” Rip demanded.

“Miranda,” John ignored him, “Take each corner and bring them together in the centre, twisting the ends then wrap the twine around and tie it in a knot so it holds together.”

She followed the instructions and a few minutes later, sitting on the bench was a small bundle.

“That’s it?” Rip asked.

John nodded, “That’s it.”

Miranda laughed in surprise before asking, “So what do we do now?”

“John?” Rip turned to the other man.

Grabbing the bundle, John handed it to Miranda and motioned Rip to join him, “Miranda when I tell you, throw it at us.”

Miranda picked it up and nodded, “Whenever you’re ready.”

“Just toss it gently,” Rip spoke up, “It’s not a bomb.”

John chuckled as Miranda rolled her eyes, he took a slow breath and allowed his magic to come forth. Flames danced across his fingers and John nodded, “Now.”

When Miranda threw the small bundle, it instantly ignited when John caught it, smoke covering him and Rip making them both cough.

The smoke cleared and Rip looked at John, “Did it work?”

“You walk that way and I’ll walk this way.”

 Miranda watched the two men slowly walk in opposite directions both waiting to be yanked back together. Finally, they were standing on opposite sides of the room, well past the limit they’d previously had.

“I’d say it worked,” Miranda smiled.

John nodded to her, “Nice job for your first spell.”

“Only spell,” Rip added.

“Spoilsport,” Miranda said as John chuckled.

Rip frowned at her, “Now we’re separated, you should take the Jumpship home. I’ll pick it up once we’ve retrieved the book.”

Miranda stared at him before stating, “No.”

“Miranda…”

“I’m not leaving,” she replied, “There is still a mission to complete and it’s clear the two of you need adult supervision.”

Rip grimaced, “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Miranda stared at him for a moment before grabbing his arm, “Excuse us a minute,” she said to John pulling Rip into the other room.

Once they were alone, Miranda folded her arms and glared at him.

“What?” Rip asked worriedly.

“Do you remember how we met?” Miranda demanded.

Rip frowned confused, “What?”

“Do. You. Remember. How. We. Met?” she enunciated every word sharply.

“Of course I do,” Rip replied, bemusement on his face.

“Then you remember that I was not only trained the same as you, but my scores were always higher,” she stated.

“I just…” he hesitated at her glare before whispering, “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Miranda sighed shaking her head, “Rip, I am more than capable of looking after myself. I can’t believe you of all people are treating me like I can’t.”

“It’s been a few years though since you left,” Rip reminded her, “And I have been working as a Time Master for almost five years.”

Anger filled her, and Miranda forced herself not to yell, “I am staying to help but after this…” she paused, hating the next words out of her mouth, “But after this, since you obviously don’t respect me, perhaps we should just part for good this time.”

Sadness and confusion covered his face, “Miranda?”

Without another word she left him standing alone.

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

 John’s location spell had led them to a rundown house on the outskirts of a housing estate and Miranda wrinkled her nose, “Lovely place. Do you think they’d sell?”

John chuckled, rolling his eyes as Rip remained silent. They’d not spoken to one another since leaving the Mill House and John was getting to the point where he was going to bang their heads together.

“Well?” John turned to the Time Master.

“The scans are showing one life sign,” Rip replied, “Presumably our friend.”

Miranda leaned over and checked the scanner, “Do you think he has any more of those tricks up his sleeve? Because as much fun as this has been, John I don’t want to be stuck to either of you.”

John saw a look of hurt flicker across Rip’s face before it became impassive.

“He has power,” John replied, “I should be able to pull together a quick protection spell for all of us to ward off any possible traps in the house, but it won’t help against him.”

Miranda frowned, “So we draw him out to us before we go inside.”

“Good idea,” John noted.

“Miranda is an expert tactician,” Rip noted softly.

John watched a smile touch Miranda’s lips briefly before she remembered she was mad at Rip.

“Okay,” John said quickly, “What’s the plan?”

Miranda chewed her lip for a moment as Rip mused.

“Do you…” they started together both grimacing and Rip motioned Miranda to continue.

“Do you have any way to draw him out of the house?” Miranda asked John who nodded, “Once out here we set up a trap. Either magical or technical. Once he’s trapped, we retrieve the book and get the hell out of here.”

John frowned in thought, “It’ll need to be a tech trap. I’d need more time to make a magical trap powerful enough.”

Miranda turned to Rip, “What do you have with you?”

Emptying his pockets, Miranda smiled at the bits and pieces he produced, “We can set up a grid easily using these,” she shook her head, “I cannot believe you carry this stuff in your pockets.”

Rip shrugged slightly, “You never know when you might need it.”

Miranda turned away, smiling slightly and John rolled his eyes again, he did not have time for this.

“I’m going to check the perimeter,” Rip told them, “Just to ensure there’s nothing unexpected.”

John waited until Rip left before turning to the woman putting together their trap.

“I know he’s an idiot,” John said, not sure how he had ended up in the middle of this and not believing he was actually getting involved, “But he does love you.”

Miranda sighed, “I know. And I love him too.”

“But?”

“But I’m not some damsel in distress that needs protecting,” Miranda noted annoyed, “I can take care of myself. He used to know this but since he came back into my life…”

John grimaced when she trailed off, “He’s scared he’ll lose you. Even I can see that.”

“I’m the one who stays put,” Miranda sighed, “I have a normal life while he could be hurt anywhere in time, and I would never know because the Time Masters don’t know we’re together and would never tell me. I’ve more to fear than he does.”

John shrugged, “The man is a moron but maybe give him another chance.”

Miranda rolled her eyes, “If we get out of this in one piece, I’ll think about it.”

 Rip knew he had to focus on the mission, but his mind kept wandering back to Miranda’s words that they should end their relationship. He couldn’t lose her again, he’d spent so long looking for her, missing her and now…

“Gideon,” he called softly, “Have you detected anything from this location?”

“No, Captain,” she replied.

Sighing in relief, he hadn’t noticed anything either and hoped to get through this mission fast so he could persuade Miranda to give him another chance.

“Are you still in Lieutenant Coburn’s bad graces?” Gideon asked, making him frown.

“Why do you…”

“Because I have observed you on all the occasions that she has been onboard,” Gideon cut him off, “And she does not normally look so irritated with you, Captain.”

Rip sighed, “I just want her to be safe, so I suggested she take the jumpship home.”

“Ahh.”

“What does that mean?”

There was silence for several moments before Gideon replied, “It means you have apparently forgotten how capable Lieutenant Coburn is.”

Rip sighed again, “I know she’s capable, but she shouldn’t have to be here.”

“Has it occurred to you that she wishes to ensure you are safe?” Gideon suggested, “Your relationship is not sanctioned and if something happens to you then she may never know. Perhaps you should stop trying to protect her and look at things from her point of view.”

 Miranda glanced round to as Rip returned from his walk around the area, “Anything?”

He shook his head, “No. Gideon has detected nothing.”

“Good,” Miranda said, “And we have a trap.”

Rip smiled, “Nice work.”

Glancing up at him Miranda gave him the smirk Rip knew so well, the one that always reminded him that she was not only better than he was but that he knew it. It was one of the reasons he’d fallen for her.

“Alright,” John interrupted, “Are we ready?”

Miranda nodded, “Get him out here and once he’s in the trap you two retrieve the book.”

“Just like that,” John grimaced before closing his eyes and calling forth his power, “Let’s knock.”

Rip and Miranda watched John release the spell to get Magor’s attention and didn’t have to wait long as the man appeared before them.

He was even thinner than before and looked as though a strong wind would break him in two, but his eyes were glowing with power.

“Don’t move,” John told them, “He needs to move closer. His magic isn’t strong enough to get us.”

“Are you sure?” Miranda asked.

John glanced sideways with a shrug, and she rolled her eyes.

Magor walked towards them, each step bringing him closer to the trap they’d set. Miranda’s fingers brushed the button to activate the trap, but they needed him to move just slightly closer.

“You have something that belongs to my mate,” John called, “And he wants it back.”

“Or what?” the other man spat at him, “Because the last time we met, you and your friend lost.”

As he took one more step, Miranda smirked, “That’s because they didn’t have me.”

She hit the button and an energy field sprung up around him. Magor looked around angrily trying to escape the shield.

“Okay,” she said, “Go get what we’re here for.”

 John and Rip entered the house, they could hear Magor swearing at Miranda, but she had Rip’s pistol in case he managed to escape.

“Got the cloth?” John asked as he slowly eased his way across the floor into the centre of the room, ensuring he didn’t set off any traps.

Rip nodded, “Just need you to find the book.”

John released the location spell watching it move around the room until it stopped at a cupboard. Before he opened it, John held out his hand and Rip gave him the red material that had been warded to allow them to carry the book. Carefully John lifted the book using the silken cloth then wrapped it, making sure the cloth was secure around the book.

“Let’s get out of here,” John told him.

Leaving the house Rip was about to let Miranda know they had retrieved the book when Magor’s continued attempts to release himself bore fruit. As the shield dropped, the man stepped forward to attack Miranda, falling to the ground when Miranda coolly shot him.

John stared at her for a moment before turning to Rip, “Marry her.” Before Rip could reply John walked over to Miranda, “Is he dead?”

“Unconscious,” Miranda replied, sliding the pistol back into the holster on Rip’s hip the moment he reached her, “Stun setting only. Did we get it?”

Rip held up the book, “Mission accomplished.”

“Good,” Miranda patted his shoulder, “See what you can do when you have supervision.”

With an amused smile she started back to the ship leaving the two men to follow her.

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

 “So, Miranda,” John said as they reached the ship, “This is where I have to say goodbye. It has been an absolute pleasure working with you,” taking her hand he pressed a kiss to the back of it.

Miranda chuckled and hugged him.

“Give the idiot another chance,” John murmured before winking at her, “But give me a call if you get sick of him.”

Laughing Miranda replied, “Look after yourself, John. I don’t want to have to rescue you again.”

Shaking his head, John turned to Rip, “Try to lose my number.”

“Where would the fun be in that?” Rip replied offering his hand.

John shook it quickly before turning and walking away. They watched him leave before turning and walked into the ship. Rip instantly headed to the parlour and placed the book in the safe activating a security shield around it so that it was safe until he could return it to the museum.

Turning he found Miranda standing there and he sighed.

“I’m sorry,” Rip whispered, “I know you are not incapable of looking after yourself.”

“Rip…” she started stopping when he held his hand up.

“Please let me finish,” he said softly, “I know you’re not incapable, but I lost you once, and it took me five years to find you again. I’m afraid that I’m going to open my eyes and you’ll be gone again. I love you, Miranda and the thought of not having you in my life scares me more than I can say.”

Shaking her head, Miranda grabbed him by the lapels of his coat and pulled him close, “You’re an idiot,” she laughed before kissing him.

They parted and a relieved Rip smiled, “I’m guessing you’ve forgiven me.”

“For now,” Miranda replied, wrapping her arms around his neck, “So, Captain Hunter it is still my birthday, and we have a timeship. After we return the book to its proper place, let’s do something fun.”

Kissing her once more, Rip murmured, “As you wish.”

[writtenonreceipts]

The fanfic no one asked for, not even me.  Based on characters from the Throne of Glass Series.

When Aelin and Elide have their car impounded by police, they turn to their boyfriends for help.  Modern AU.  Lorcan and Rowan are idiots together, bromance at its finest, I hope.

Boys Night Out

Despite the fact that he without a doubt loved his girlfriend and the fact that he would do anything for her—Rowan Whitethorn questioned her sanity more often than not.

“All I need is the cellphone charger,” Aelin assured him.  Her slim fingers straightened the collar of his shirt before slowly running down his chest.  A pert smile rested on her sinful mouth as she leaned into him.  “And when you get back, I promise to make it up to you.”

Rowan groaned tilting his head back when she pulled away.  She was going to be the death of him.

Humming to herself, Aelin flashed a dazzling smile as she delved deeper into the apartment she shared with her cousin.  Without saying anything else, she began putting away the dishes that he had washed just a few hours ago.  

“Aelin,” Rowan began, trying desperately to come up with excuses to get out her request.

“Charger, Whitethorn,” Aelin said.  She pointed a knife at him before sliding it into the wooden block holder beside the sink.

“And silver pumps!” Elide, Aelin’s cousin, sashayed into the kitchen from her room down the hall.  Her long, dark hair hung around her shoulders. She smiled pleasantly at Rowan. “I borrowed Manon’s shoes without her permission.  I need them back.”

Rowan looked between the two girls.  Between Aelin’s deft ability to throw a punch and sever a carotid artery and Elide’s charm and manipulation, Rowan knew he was cornered.

“I already called back up,” Elide said when Rowan hesitated.  She flashed a brilliant smile before winking at a cackling Aelin. “He’ll be here—”

A knock thudded against the front door of the apartment.  Without waiting for anyone to answer, the door swung open and Lorcan Salvaterre stood in the hall.  His ever-present scowl was carved deep into the sharp lines of his face, though his eyes softened when they landed on Elide.

“See,” Elide chirped glancing back to Rowan, “back-up.”

The two men glared at each other.  They’d been close friends, up until Rowan started seriously dating Aelin.  Since, they’d only seen brief spurts of each other. Thing improved, barely, when Lorcan and Elide began seeing each other.  Still, there was unresolved tension between the friends that Rowan had no idea how to fix.

“Great,” Rowan said.

#

“So, you’re saying that Aeilin’s car got impounded and she can’t live eight hours without her charger?” Lorcan asked as the two stalked around the outer fence of the Adarlan impound lot.

It was barely one o’clock in the morning making everything take on a dull stillness.  Gratefully there was an almost full moon over head making the yellow streetlights a little less eerie.  

“And Elide’s shoes,” Rowan added.  He stared at the chain-link fence topped with barbed wire.  “You think there are cameras?”

Lorcan grunted from beside him and hefted a large black bag from off his shoulder.  “I came prepared.”

Tying his black hair out of the way, Lorcan opened the bag and pulled out a sleek black weapon.

“You brought your paintball gun?” Rowan asked, quirking a brow. “Seriously?”

“Always be prepared,” Lorcan said.  He glanced over his shoulder at Rowan. “We were in boy scouts together, remember?”

“You hated boy scouts.”

“Doesn’t mean I didn’t pay attention.”

Rowan didn’t even want to know why Lorcan had a paintball gun ready and able in his car.  

Kneeling next to the fence, Lorcan readied the gun.  It was outfitted with a scope and everything.  This was a bad idea.  But Rowan had no room to protest as Lorcan took aim and shot out the camera perched on a tall post in the middle of the yard.  It was a direct hit.

“Scouts?” Rowan asked unable to help the grin.

“You try playing paintball with Elide,” Lorcan replied.  A ghost of a smile flashed across his mouth.  “Ruthless.”

As would be expected of the petite girl.  An old injury left her with a slight limp, but Elide never let that stop her.  And while Rowan hadn’t spoken with Lorcan much in the past few months, he knew that a girl like Elide was just what his friend needed in his life.  

“I’d say we have twenty minutes before security notices us,” Rowan said as Lorcan put the gun away. He put a hand on the fence and rattled it gently.  There was a padlock and chains keeping it in place, obviously, but Rowan wondered if there was a way to slip between the two fence parts.  

“You think there’s dogs?” Lorcan asked.  He peered through the fence only slightly wary.

“You’re not afraid are you Salvaterre?” Rowan mocked.

“Dogs don’t like me.”

“I thought I heard Elide say you were going to adopt one?”

“She,” Lorcan emphasized, “she is going to adopt one.”

Rowan snorted back a laugh and examined the fence again.  “I don’t hear anything.  You know Mayor Havilliard’s cut police funding, there’s no dogs.  Now start climbing.”

Lorcan cursed, but indeed began to climb.  It was only when the two men reached the top of the fence, face to face with the barbed wire that they paused.

“My jacket’s leather,” Lorcan said.  He glanced at Rowan.

“So, I’ll just sacrifice my shirt then?” Rowan looked down at his button up.  It had been a hot day and the night had contained that heat leaving it unnecessary for more than a long-sleeved shirt.

They examined the barbed wire.

“Oh hell,” Lorcan said. With surprising ease, he slipped out of his jacket and slung it over the barbed wire.  As he hefted himself as best he could over the top of the fence, he tried to remember why he’d agreed to this plan. “Because you love her, because you love her.”

“What?” Rowan hissed as Lorcan descended the other side of the fence.

“Reminding myself why the hell I’m here!” Lorcan snapped back.  He dropped down the last five feet, landing in a crouch. “Don’t rip my jacket.”

“You sound like Aelin talking about her nightgowns,” Rowan said.

“I did not need to hear that.”

Rowan barked out a laugh and pulled himself and Lorcan’s jacket over the fence.  He received no scratched himself, but there was no mistaking the soft rip of one of the sharp barbs on the jacket.  

Cursing thoroughly, Lorcan snatched the jacket from Rowan after he’d landed.  In the dim light of a few overhead lamps, he examined the rip at the left shoulder.

“Think of it this way,” Rowan said bumping into him lightly, “you can put some more of your boy scouting days to use.  Wasn’t there a sewing badge?”

“Shut-up,” Lorcan said. He yanked the jacket back on and stared mournfully at the rip.

Rowan didn’t wait.  He had a sinking feeling that they weren’t going to get out of this alive.  Well, alive yes.  But completely free?  Unlikely. Especially if Chaol was an on-duty cop tonight.  He was a good buy but had too much damn honor to let things go sometimes.

“Silver Lexus,” Rowan said. He looked over the lot and saw mostly beat up trucks or Toyota Corollas composed of ten different car parts.  Was this the impound lot or the junkyard? Hell, it was going to be a long night.

“Of course the bitch-queen has a Lexus,” Lorcan muttered.

Rowan was certain his friend hadn’t meant to say it so he could hear, but Rowan had hearing better than most.  He stooped over and grabbed a piece of plastic that had fallen off the bumper of the car next to him.  He tossed it at Lorcan.  The other man dodged the attack with ease and cast Rowan a vulgar gesture.

“Don’t talk about my girlfriend like that,” Rowan said.  He glowered in Lorcan’s direction.  Jaw setting, Lorcan shrugged and continued the search.

In all honesty, Rowan wasn’t certain what had transpired between the two.  But in all the time Lorcan and Aelin had known each other, which was nearing on two years, there was little diplomacy or kindness shared.

Lorcan turned away from Rowan so he couldn’t see his reaction, but something told him it involved eye rolling.

“She’s a good person,” Rowan called out as the search continued.  He glanced over to see Lorcan had launched himself onto the hood of a red corvette.  Given that Lorcan was practically a giant, the action seemed a bit overkill to Rowan. “If you’d give her the chance you might actually like her.”

He heard a dark chuckle echo across the distance between them, but no answer beyond that.

“Sure, be all broody, is that what Elide calls it?  Silent and broody.”  Rowan said. He mostly just wanted to get a rise out of Lorcan, see how far he could push his friend.  And of course, try and get to the bottom of the hostility that always seemed to be brewing. “Broody, broody, broody.”

“Whitethorn would ya shut-up?”

Rowan grinned and ducked down to peer through a car window, maybe he was missing something in the other row.  If this was some wild goose chase Aelin had constructed, Rowan was going to murder her. Even if it meant facing Elide. And Aedion.  And Lysandra.  He’d need to think the murder through.

The two searched in silence for another few minutes before Lorcan let out a sharp whistle.  “Over here.”

Rowan wove through the rows of cars until he reached Lorcan’s side.  They stared at the sleek Lexus where it nestled between a Ford and a conglomerate contraption of at least four different cars.  Aelin would have a fit if she could see her car now.

“Let’s get the stuff and get out,” Rowan said.  Thankfully, Aelin had given him the spare keys to the car.  As he unlocked the doors, Lorcan stiffened.

“Did you hear that?” Lorcan asked.  His eyes narrowed and he looked around the lot.  

Rowan threw open the driver side door and paused.  He glanced toward the old guard station, but it was black, looking distinctly empty. Whatever Lorcan had heard didn’t sound again.  Slumping into the car, Rowan poked around for Aelin’s charger.  The car, miraculously was kept clean.  A miracle considering how much chocolate cake Aelin ate on a regular basis and how often her snacking occurred in her car.  The lingering scent of her perfume wafted from the seats and despite how annoyed he was at this lucrative situation; Rowan made a note that he should buy Aelin both chocolate cake and another bottle of perfume.

He found the charger in the glove box.  “Found the charger.  I don’t see the shoes.”

Rowan straightened to see Lorcan was still examining every inch of the lot.  His brow furrowed in concentration.  Rowan was about to ask what was the matter when he heard the distinct howl of a dog.

“Crap,” Rowan said. He and Lorcan met gazes, neither moving. “Someone could be walking by?”

Lorcan shot him a withering look when the bark came again.  Louder and definitely closer.  “Oh hell,” Lorcan hissed.  The bark was joined by another dog.  “Oh hell, oh hell.”

“Lorcan get the damn shoes!” Rowan yelled already spinning away from the car.

Lorcan dove into the front door, half splayed over the front seat as he dug around the back of the car. He flung one sliver pump over his shoulder to where it settled on the front seat.  The other soon followed.  Wiggling and cursing, Lorcan dragged himself out of the car, shoes in hand.  He looked half-wild with his hair splayed over his face, dark eyes wide.

“Run you idiot!” Lorcan said.  He clutched the shoes to his chest and dashed past Rowan as the barking took up in earnest.

“I’m not wearing the right shoes for this.”  Rowan stuffed Aelin’s charger in his pocket and launched himself atop the closest car. His shoes, indeed were not conducive to jumping on top of cars and sprinting passed pissed off guard dogs. For some stupid reason he was still in his sleek office shoes that had no traction whatsoever.  This is what he got for getting a 401K and benefits.

“You’re worried about your shoes?” Lorcan yelled back.  He was already halfway back to the front fence intermittently jumping onto the hood of various cars and back down to avoid raging Cujo’s.

“You have your jacket, I have my shoes,” Rowan called.  

The dog leaping toward him was a Doberman with sharp ears and sharper teeth.  It snarled at him chomping its jaws wildly.  With dexterity he’d forgotten he had, Rowan launched himself over the hood of the car behind Aelin’s and over the top towards a beat-up truck that was massive enough it should prevent the dog from getting to close.

“Rowan, get your ass over here!” Lorcan bellowed.

Launching himself on top of the truck, Rowan ran over the tops of the row of cars toward Lorcan.  The dark-haired man was already out of his leather jacket and climbing the barbed fence. Despite his bulk, Lorcan could move damn fast if he wanted.

From somewhere behind Rowan the dogs gave chase.  He could hear the heavy breathing, the nails on pavement, the growls.  And then came the human shouts.

“Hey!  Adarlan Police!” The voice, thankfully didn’t sound like Chaol’s.  Though maybe Chaol would have been more pliable to let Rowan and Lorcan off with a warning.

In three long lunges, Rowan made it the final distance to the fence and began climbing.  Lorcan was already up and over the fence, the bag with the paintball gun slung on his shoulder.  

Rowan hauled himself unceremoniously over the top of the fence, grabbing Lorcan’s jacket in one fist and scrambling down the other side.  He dropped too high off the ground, but managed to stick the landing. He looked over his shoulder in time to see the Doberman launch at the fence, claws rattling against the metal and slobber flecking out from it’s mouth.

“Hell,” Rowan gasped.

Lorcan grabbed his arm and began pulling him down the side walk in a brisk walk that quickly turned into a run.  The two didn’t stop until they were as far from the impound lot they could get. Rowan’s car left forgotten along the street.  They’d been so desperate to get away and avoid any sort of detection that the car seemed to scream trouble.  

Nearly ten blocks later, after several pauses to curse Aelin for parking in an illegal zone, Rowan and Lorcan sagged against a the side of a building near a popular club.  Music pulsed around them as well as the thick stench of smoke, alcohol, and vomit.  

Lorcan spat before looking at Rowan. “So remind me, what is it about her you like so much?  Her wilds schemes that land her into trouble?  Or her wild schemes that land others into trouble?”

“You’re one to talk,” Rowan fired back.  He brushed his hair out of his eyes. “You and Elide are polar opposites.”

“She sends you out at two o’clock in the morning to get a phone charger,” Lorcan continued.

“You’re holding onto those shoes like they’re gonna save your life.”

“Have you met Manon?”

Rowan snorted and shook his head.  He paused as the bass from the club behind them rumbled.  Whatever he said wasn’t going to help Lorcan see Aelin in a different light.  But he could hope that it would mend whatever bridge had been broken between him and one of his oldest friends.

“Aelin makes me want to be a better person,” Rowan finally said.  He shrugged glancing Lorcan over.  “And I have a feeling the same could be said for Elide about you.”

Lorcan said nothing. He merely leaned his head against the brick behind them.

“Plus, I know I can do this,” Rowan added.  He pulled his phone from his pocket and made a phone call.  When the line connected, he grinned.  “Hey Fireheart.  We need a ride.”

[feminaexlux]

Chartreux

This is from Lukanette February 2020 (which feels like years ago at this point, doesn't it?). I wanted to repost it as a whole story because I went back and re-read some of my old stuff that I posted separately and I'd like to share it again :)

Enjoy! AO3 chapter link

⁂

Note

Plagg floated in front of Adrien. "Kid, you're sick. How are you gonna be Chat Noir if you're delirious?"

"Ladybug needs me," Adrien groaned. Last time he checked his temperature it was around 39c. "She… she shouldn't handle the akuma on her own!"

"She'll be fine," Plagg sighed. "Get some rest! Take a nap, you'll feel better after."

Adrien frowned. "No, I need to help her. Plagg, claws ou-!" He coughed. It was a hoarse, lung-bruising cough. "Oww."

"Eww, gross," Plagg complained. "Humans are so disgusting."

"Ladybug needs backup…" Adrien sighed. "If she gets caught it's game over, Plagg. Hawkmoth wins and everyone loses!"

"She's got plenty of other helpers, Adrien! You gotta relax."

"No, it's dangerous because Hawkmoth knows who they are! She needs Chat Noir."

"Ugh, fiiiine. Leave it to me, again, to save the day," Plagg griped.

Adrien smiled. "I knew you'd come around. Plagg, claws-!" Plagg threw a pillow at Adrien and knocked him backward into his bed. Adrien immediately passed out.

"Knocked over by a feather. You sure woulda been useful to Ladybug like that." Plagg huffed and floated over to Adrien's hand, gingerly pulling off the Miraculous. "I gotta find Ladybug's other boyfriend," the little kwami sighed.

⁂

Luka Couffaine was watching the livestream of the latest akuma through his phone. For some reason Ladybug was fighting the twin gorgons by herself and Chat Noir was nowhere to be seen, which worried everyone. Hopefully Chat Noir was alright… it wasn't like him to let Ladybug handle everything by herself.

Suddenly a wide silver ring dropped into his lap. Luka's immediate impulse was to look up and find who dropped it, but he wasn't able to see anyone or anything that might have possibly done it. There was a voice in his head that told him to put it on, but he wasn't going to start wearing someone else's prized just put it on you blockhead

What?

for gouda's sake just put the darn ring on kid

Okay. The ring was talking to him. Luka reluctantly put it on. Plagg appeared before him. "Finally. I'm Plagg, kwami of Destruction, you're gonna be using me today to help Ladybug. Your power is Cataclysm and after you use it you only got 5 minutes to wrap it up. Once you guys have won hand me over to Ladybug and it'll alllll be done and I can finally get a nap. You got it?"

Luka breathed out the breath he hadn't known he held in. "You're Chat's kwami. That's why he's not dealing with the akuma right now."

"Smart kid, you've already figured it out. You get to be Chat Noir today. But maybe you should call yourself something else. How about Chartreux? Transformation phrase is Claws Out, detransformation is Claws In. Got it? Let's go already."

⁂

Ladybug had already used her Lucky Charm and… she wasn't able to figure out which of the two gorgons had the akumatized object in time. She kept having to dodge the petrification beams from two akumas (though she was sure one was a sentimonster clone), and her Lucky Charm had been a guitar pick! She had no idea what to do with it. Actually, scratch that, she knew Tikki or the Lucky Charm wanted her to reach out to Viperion, but… that was dangerous. Hawkmoth knew Luka was Viperion, so she'd try her best without his help right now. But where the heck was that cat?! "Chaaaat, I really could use your help right now!" She yelled out to no one in particular.

A dark figure landed nearby. "Sorry, Ladybug," said a familiar voice that was not Chat Noir's. "Chat's out of commission today, but… I'm his substitute." A tall figure in Chat's outfit - no, it was kind of… spikier? and dark gray? - spoke to Ladybug, spinning the baton to create a shield to block the petrification beams. Oh no. What happened? "I'm… Chartreux."

"Ummmm, hi," Ladybug said. "Well, if you're on my side then I'm glad to have you." She looked him over more closely when she had a chance. Taller, black fluffy hair with green tips instead of all blond, and he had black earrings? Earrings? Oh no. She knew his voice sounded familiar. Oh no. She'd know those lips and that jawline from anywhere since she spent so long staring at them as Marinette. Oh no.

"I got some explanation of things, so… I'll try my best."

Ladybug had to make a mental note that Chat!Luka was going to be very, very distracting.

Teddy Bear

Ladybug sighed heavily as her earrings kept beeping. She gave Chartreux a rundown of everything she saw with Madusa (times two, ugh) and what she was attacking (seemed like mostly other girls? Yikes). Ladybug gave her thoughts on how she might have been a jilted girl(friend) with Valentine's Day coming around the corner and Chartreux gave a lopsided smirk.

Dang it stop doing that Luka, she thought, staring at his lips again. She shook her head to focus. "Chat… I mean Chartreux, I'm so sorry but I have to recharge. I really hate to leave you alone like this but…"

"It's alright, Ladybug. I understand. I'll try to distract them and lead them away from civilians."

She put a hand on his arm and squeezed. For encouragement. "Good plan, thank you. I'll be back as soon as I can. Alright, bug out!"

⁂

Marinette detransformed behind a building and watched Chat!Luka leap away surprisingly gracefully from the building they had just been on top of. She was fascinated at how… fluid everything looked with him. He was kind of a natural at strategically using his baton as an impromptu high-bar to swing himself between spaces and levels while keeping buildings between him and the Madusas for cover.

"MARINETTE!" Tikki yelled, apparently not for the first time. "Marinette?"

"Oh! Oh gosh, Tikki! I'm sorry."

"We have to figure out which one is the sentimonster first. I think we need to separate them and find out where the amok is."

"Alright, good idea, Tikki! Let me see if I can find a safe place." Marinette ran toward the end of the alleyway and ducked her head out to take a quick scan and nearly got hit by a beam. "Whoa!!!"

Unfortunately, it appeared that while Chat!Luka was able to get the attention of one of the Madusas and lead her away, the other one kept circling back to the apparent epicenter of the akumatization. That gave Marinette an idea. She was looking around for cover when she felt an arm around her waist and yelped as she was pulled sideways.

"Marinette, what are you doing here?!" Chartreux yelled, stumbling a little but recovering when she turned to face him and threw her arms around him reflexively.

"Ch-Chat?! Wait, what?!" While Chat!Luka was making an abrupt quarter turn, Marinette got further pressed into him as he made a braking maneuver against a wall and then launched them into an adjoining alleyway. It happened so fast she got slightly dizzy. "Whoa," she moaned.

"Marinette?! Sorry, I'm much faster than I thought I'd be," Chartreux said apologetically.

"It's okay, L–CHAT–I mean! Wh-who are you?"

Chartreux snickered a little. "Just a friend," he winked. "Let's get you somewhere safe."

That was what Marinette had been trying to do… She noticed something in the corner of her eye and turned her head, spotting the wax museum. "Um! Can you drop me off there?" She pointed her arm and directed his line of sight. Chat!Luka slowed down and pulled her in tight against him, weaving around the two streams of the petrifying lasers from both Madusas when they spotted the hero running across the street.

⁂

Adrien woke up a bit less headachey than when he went to sleep, and he groaned sitting up on his bed. He rubbed his eyes and yawned. There was something… different about things, but he shrugged and assumed it felt off because he was sick. He sighed and got to his couch, turning on the television. He was hardly paying attention until he heard Nadja Chamack talking about Chat Noir rescuing a civilian and how Ladybug was missing.

He blinked his bleary eyes. "Plagg?" There wasn't a response. "PLAGG?!" He was suddenly wide awake and stood up a bit too quickly, getting lightheaded and dizzy. He fell back to his couch and looked at a close-up shot of "Chat Noir" and the civilian. That "Chat Noir" was… taller? And That "Chat Noir" was holding Adrien's favorite civilian Marinette Dupain-Cheng up against himself (pretty intimately, Adrien thought irritably) while heading away from the akumas. Maybe Adrien was hallucinating. Yeah, that was it, this was all just a bad fever dream.

The Real Chat Noir needed to go help Ladybug right away.

Adrien stumbled back to his bed in his exhausted state and pulled off the covers off of a lump on his bed, assuming he'd find the kwami settled in like the lazy cat he was. Instead Adrien found a teddy bear with a heart pillow, inscribed with a "Feel Better Soon ❤️".

Letters

If the Madusas were turning people into stone, then running through the wax museum where the "people" there were already immobile seemed to be a good plan. That had been the thought process running through Marinette's mind before she realized that she and Chartreux needed to evacuate the real people inside. Luckily Chartreux was already on that as soon as they opened the doors, directing people to go down to the subway, goodness bless that boy.

Marinette helped him as much as she could while she kept trying to lose him in the evacuating crowd to duck out and transform back into Ladybug. Of course of all the people the black cat Miraculous could have gone to, it went to Luka Couffaine, who ten times out of ten could find Marinette in the chaos. Marinette had counted.

"Chat-um-whatever, could you let me go? Don't I need to go hide?!" Marinette yelled at Chartreux, who had unabashedly let his tail wrap around her ankle to keep tabs on her.

"I know you're brave, Marinette, but you don't hide, you keep throwing yourself into danger as soon as I turn my back so I'm going to personally drop you off at home. Good idea on using the wax museum, though."

"But I can get Ladybug!" Marinette groaned.

Chartreux's ears twitched with irritation as he glared at her. "Ladybug's going to get here on her own, you don't need to-" Marinette saw one ear rotate backward and Chartreux ran, pulling Marinette along with him after taking her hand. The twin gorgons burst into the museum and started using their beams on the wax figures. They were temporarily confused when no one turned into stone.

Once they got their bearings, the twin gorgons ran in the same direction they saw Chartreux and Marinette run. The hero and civilian pair had hidden behind a relatively large dupe of Horrificator and were able to sneak past the Madusas into a staff locker room. "Well, I think I can hide here, at least," Marinette sighed.

"Can't say it's too comfortable, but it's better than nothing," Chartreux reluctantly agreed, opening a large locker for Marinette. "Sorry. I guess I should have taken you home first." Both Marinette and Chartreux heard one of the Madusas walk closer and try to open the door. Marinette made a split second decision and pulled Chartreux in the locker with her and closed it behind them.

The Madusa broke down the door and prowled in, scanning the room. She sniffed, annoyed at finding nothing of value, and left. When Chartreux heard the gorgon's footsteps fade away he burst out of the locker, red-faced and stammering out a hasty "S-sorry!"

He was about a full head taller than she was, so when they crammed into the locker he ended up occupying way more of her personal space than either of them expected. He pressed himself into the furthest corner away from her but his head still ended up on her shoulder and his arm braced against her and her legs in between his. He kept thinking how he was getting kind of hungry because she smelled like freshly baked bread and warm apple pie and man was he ever getting distracted by the fact that Marinette Dupain-Cheng had pulled him in by the collar and now her hands were in his hair because they had nowhere else to go?

He stayed hidden with Marinette for several long seconds after the Madusa had left, ostensibly to make sure the akuma/sentimonster was far enough away, but maybe some part of him just kinda liked being held by Marinette.

"I'm sorry! I just pulled you in i-i-it was my fault so, so sorry," Marinette apologized back, also pretty embarrassed but fighting back a smirk at finding Chat!Luka so flustered. "I'll s-stay here and be out of your way, promise!"

Chartreux blew out a breath, composing himself, and nodded. "Stay safe. I mean it, Marinette, no heroics. That's my job."

She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "Good luck," she giggled, closing the locker. Chartreux went red again, slightly taken aback, but then he chuckled to himself and turned to leave.

"Marinette, you're teasing the poor boy," Tikki giggled.

"I think we're both enjoying it," Marinette giggled back. "Are you ready, Tikki?" The little kwami nodded. "Alright, Spots On!"

Ladybug stepped out of the locker and called her Lucky Charm. She got a pack of fridge magnet alphabet letters? What was she going to do with that?

Composition

It was actually a pretty straightforward plan. Chartreux and Ladybug ran in opposite directions and the twin gorgons split up to chase the both of them. The heroes lead them into the same room at opposite ends, Ladybug tied them up together with her yoyo, Chartreux Cataclysm'd the floor and the Madusas got caught hanging upside down. The magnets caught the Madusa's dislodged necklace and pen before they fell into the molten hot wax.

Amok and akuma were dealt with, the akuma victim reassured, and the Miraculous Ladybugs deployed. The heroes bumped fists and called out "Bien Joué!"

Ladybug's earrings beeped and Chartreux stopped her from running off. "Wait! Plagg said I needed to give you the ring."

"Plagg said what?!"

Chartreux raised an eyebrow. "I'm supposed to give you Chat Noir's ring back."

"I… I-I don't know who Chat Noir is, actually," Ladybug laughed uneasily. "I'm not sure who to give it back to! How did you get the ring?"

"Really?" Both of Luka's eyebrows rose. "It… just dropped into my lap. What should I do?"

Ladybug's earrings beeped again. "Umm. I-I guess keep it? For now? I'll ask my kwami what I should do. Anyway, thank you for your help! I gotta run!"

⁂

Marinette yelped as Chartreux opened the locker she was hiding in. "Wow," he laughed. "You actually stayed safe."

"I-is it over?" Marinette asked.

"Yeah. I wanted to make sure you were alright." Chartreux extended a hand and helped Marinette get out of the locker and onto her feet. "I also said I was going to personally drop you off at home."

"You did!" Marinette giggled. "That would be great!"

⁂

Chartreux landed softly on Marinette's balcony with her in a bridal carry.

"You definitely know who I am because I definitely didn't tell you where my house is, and I still don't have your name," Marinette laughed.

Chartreux hummed. "I don't know if I'll be coming back as a hero so I don't think it matters if you know my name. I promise I am a friend though." He let Marinette down and she kissed him on the cheek. "Careful, you don't know if Alya's nearby taking pictures and you don't want to give the boy you like the wrong idea."

Marinette blinked. "The boy I like?"

"Adri-" "Luka?" Chat!Luka and Marinette said respectively, at the same time.

Chartreux was taken aback and flushed. "I think I'm giving him the right idea," Marinette giggled. "Your ring is beeping, by the way."

"Oh. Really? I mean. Right. Thanks. I'm… gonna go." He turned away awkwardly, still flushed.

"Chartreux?" Chat!Luka spun back in surprise. Marinette went up on her toes and kissed him. "Thanks for helping out today. You did a great job."

⁂

Chartreux detransformed in a quiet alleyway and Luka made his way home in a daze. Luka barely heard Plagg complain the lack of camembert and about how the Guardian should know who Chat Noir was and how the kwami apparently needed to do things himself and to haul the ring back across all of Paris and how much of a pain it was.

Luka got back onto the houseboat and went to his room and sat on his bed. Plagg had noticed that the boy was more or less unresponsive and sighed, deciding to hide in Luka's jacket pocket. Luka finally shook his head to get his bearings and looked around him, pulling out a blank sheet of music staff paper.

He was pretty sure Marinette knew he was Chartreux. He was pretty sure Marinette just let him know she was Ladybug.

He had some brand new music to compose.

Noir & Gris

"I hear that you're a big fan of Chat Gris," Adrien smirked as he leaned into his right hand, silver ring glinting off the sunlight that streamed into their classroom. "You and the Chat Noir from last week had a moment it seems!" He gave Marinette a sly wink.

"A-Adrien!" Marinette squeaked, turning red. "Shhh!!!" Marinette had already had to tamp down all the rumors around her and "Chat Gris" as they called him. Alya had been nearby and she did take pictures and of course one of the pictures was of Marinette when she kissed Chat!Luka. (How did that girl even get that angle?!) Alya thankfully had only shared it with Marinette… and then the rest of the girls, after Marinette had been too embarrassed to deny anything about it.

"I think you may be a cat person after all, Marinette," Adrien laughed.

"How did you find out?!" Marinette stage-whispered. "Alya promised not to show anyone else!"

"It wasn't Alya, I promise. I had my very own informant. But interesting detail, you have a picture?"

"I'm sure not showing you!" Marinette huffed.

"That's alright!" Adrien laughed. "Well, since you seemed to be so familiar with Chat Gris and Chat Noir, I was wondering what you thought of Gris versus Noir?" Adrien had leaned in further, intensely focused on Marinette.

Marinette blinked at him. "Uh… they were both… good."

"Really? You didn't miss anything about Chat Noir?"

"Well, I mean, both Chats were very… nice. They saved me from the akumas. I guess Chat Noir is… um. More of a jokester?"

"I'm hearing Chat Noir is more fun," Adrien smiled. "But go on."

"You have some weird selective hearing there," Marinette said. "Anyway I mean, I don't really have anything else to say?"

"Aww, too bad. I'm jealous, Marinette. You got to hang out with two different versions of the same hero!" And kissed both, but she wasn't going to mention that.

"Getting caught up in the akuma attacks is not something I'd call ‘hanging out', Adrien." Marinette rolled her eyes. "But they were cool."

"Do you think you'd wanna see Chat Gris again? Instead of Chat Noir?" Adrien asked, way softer than he spoke before.

"Hmm, I like Chat Noir. I think Chat Noir is great at being Chat Noir. Ladybug and Paris would miss him terribly if he wasn't going to show up anymore. I liked Gris and he helped everyone out really well, but I think Chat Noir is who Paris loves."

Adrien blushed. "Well, it's nice of you to say that. Chat Noir seems like a great guy, whoever he is under the mask."

Marinette smiled. "I think so too."

[writesandfights]

#97 “don’t touch me” JJ x Reader, where reader got raped by Barry and Rafe at a kegger, she hasn’t told JJ but he knows she’s been acting different. When JJ tries to be sexual she snaps at him and breaks down.

PROMPT # : 97

WORD COUNT: 1911

WARNINGS: RAPE MENTIONS

PAIRING: JJ X READER

PAROXYSM

The thought never left you, that feeling kept your head to the ground no matter what happened. You couldn't scrub away what happened, no matter how hard you used the sponge the feelings wouldn’t leave, they were still there. You stood in the mirror looking to your body as you couldn’t erase it, it was not gonna be going anywhere. There were bruises on your wrist, they were in the shapes of hands, a bright purple that didn’t seem to fade no matter how long or how much foundation you put on, which was a lot.

You tried to make sure JJ didn’t see them , he would panic and that made you nervous, he would kill Barry and Rafe without even thinking twice, using the little gun he had gotten. You rubbed at the bruises but the pain was no longer there anymore , you pushed it down and hoped to keep it there. There were marks spreading all up and down your chest, having been when they were gonna hold you down and force you to be silent. They had used their strength over you, pushing you down into the sand bed behind a large pile of trees and kept you silenced when they committed the deed, the familiar sound of the buttons on the pants along with the breathing into the side of your chest. It was always the same, it never changed no matter how much help you tried to get.

JJ was your boyfriend of three months, it wasn't long but considering how close the two of you were, it felt like it had been so much longer than that just because the two of you have been friends for over three years, a constant friendship until it happened to turn into much more than that.. You loved him with all of your heart and wished you could have told him what would have happened but he wouldn’t want you after that.. He wouldn’t want you, you knew that, he wouldn’t want seconds, right?

But JJ noticed it, he saw the change in your eyes, the way you couldn't look up anymore or even into the eyes of others without swallowing or the look on your face, you became scared of everything. You started to wear more clothes and you completely shut him out of everything, never letting him into your secrets or even your room. But he had to find out what was happening and he was going to make sure you stayed safe along with telling him what was on your mind, maybe it was depression coming back but at this moment he didn’t know, he wanted to..

He stood outside of your house and held onto the little bag of chocolates, along with your favorite movie and flowers, he wanted to surprise you. JJ walked into your house, he had a key and even if he didn’t he knew your mother would have welcomed him without even thinking twice. You backed away from the mirror with your hair up in a messy bun, your eyes having dripped with tears but you rubbed them away, trying to stay away from the pain. You dodged it, like a giant ball having been thrown at you, you made it work.

Your boyfriend made his way up the stairs, knocking on the door when it gave you enough time to put on a large sweater and the pants, his favorite outfit on you by chance. He had loved the way it looked on you, when you didn;t have to put any effort into your look, the way your hair fell around your cheeks and when he could hold you closer to him, he loved your lazy look over anything else on you. He adored it. “ Hey baby girl..” he spoke softly when he opened the door and stared softly into those eyes of yours, he felt so blessed to have you, just happy to see you again, it had been three weeks after all. “ you look so beautiful, you know that?”

A wavering smile came over your lips, seeing as you looked away, you didn’t look into his eyes and only sat down on the bed. He walked closer when he set down the little baggie of treats along with the movie, sitting down on the edge of the bed when he held your hand but you pulled back instantly. Touch. That's what seemed to set you over the edge in the moment, you didn’t like to be touched and you couldn’t see your body for more than five minutes, it was causing your anxiety to swell up and sometimes seemed to push you into a fit of fear.

“Y/N , what's going on? You're pushing me away.. You haven’t really talked to me in two weeks.. Your mother told me that you haven't even left your room..” He watched you again, seeing as you were hollow and didn’t want to talk but he would always seem to break your walls down in a matter of moments, he moved his hand up your thigh and you instantly panicked. You saw the memories all over again, everything from the sand to those damn eyes that wouldn't stop staring down at you, it was breaking you from the inside out, each second, each glance. You pulled back and stood up when you didn’t know what to say to him, only a few words, “ dont- dont touch me. “

JJ felt his heart shatter when he heard those words, he didn’t know what he did or what happened but he knew he had to get to the bottom of it, he had to try and help you. “ bY/N, what happened, I- I don't know what happened but I need to know… I need you to tell me..”

You stood your ground when he tried to move closer and cup your cheeks but you backed away from him and shook your head, you pulled away from him and stood there, looking through those eyes of his. “ don't touch me. Do you need me to repeat myself, I don't need you to touch me or tell me anything- i know the reality of the world now, don't you know, nothings going to be okay, DON'T YOU KNOW. “

He took a step back and shook his head when you yelled much louder than before and he just watched you, he heard what you had to sa, he was seriously kind and couldn’t control the tears that ran down his cheeks, he was gonna break down, just because he couldn’t help you, he couldn’t help. “ Y/N, what are you talking about, what happened, if you want me to stop, I’ll stop.. Okay?”

He was watching you with soft eyes and couldn’t help that fear that he did something. What if he had been the one to ruin you, but he wasn’t, not even close, it was Rafe and barry. Those damn men who caused you nothing more than pain, but you knew you couldn’t go to the cops, what would they say, that you needed to bring it up to the family? That would cause you to become some freakshow with a false show with the richest family in town, someone who could afford to get you off of their back. “He - he pinned me down and covered my mouth-”

JJ heard those words when he shook his head weakly, he didn’t want to listen but he needed to do so to be able to help you, he had to help you. “ He held his hand over my mouth when - when I couldn’t scream- he pulled my shirt off and started to leave hickies all over my body, putting his- his hand between my legs and he forced me to open them, then - then Barry had his way with me until I was- was unable to move my legs…”

“ Baby.. are- are you talking about Rafe and Barry.. They- they raped you?” JJ asked when he stood closer to you and held onto your hands, he pulled your sleeves up and saw the giant bruises in the shapes of hands now, which were purple and set over your skin. “ did - did he do that..” You took a deep breath and nodded in agreement, your eyes swelling up with tears, now dropping down your already stained cheeks. “ I cried for you.. I cried for your - help but you never came…”

Those words broke his heart, he heard them echo in his soul, you cried out for him and yet he had never been there for you and you got hurt because he was way too drunk to defend you, he couldn;t save you.” I- I’m gonna kill him.. I swear to god.. I-” He was trying so hard to make sure you were okay, but you shook your head and stared into his eyes with such a soft look now, “ JJ.. what happened is already done, he did it- he took what wasn't his, and I can’t get his mark off of my body, I can't even breathe anymore without feeling the suffocation running through my body. “

“Baby.. I need you to look into my eyes, you are not who- who he made you feel like you were. You're not. You're gonna be okay, I just need you to calm down and breathe for me, okay?” He suggested when staring into your eyes and held onto your cheeks, he kissed your forehead and pulled you into a hug when he hoped to calm those thoughts that set over your brain and wouldn’t leave. Your breathing became shallow when you fell into his arms and buried your head into his chest, he hugged you closer than before and made sure you were still breathing, your voice was fragile and weak.

You shook your head and tried to pull away but he held you closer than before, hugging your body and hoped it would calm you. Over a few moments you finally stopped panicking and just broke down, you cried into his chest and he rubbed the back of your head, already planning on what he would do if he heard the chance. He was gonna kill that man and hurt him until he was crying for help and then he would do even worse to Barry, kill him if he had to. “I’m staining your shirt..”

“I do love you, but i'm not really concerned about my shirt.. Come on baby..” he picked you up when he set you down on the bed and cuddled into your side, he kissed your forehead weakly, he saw your eyes slowly opening and closing. He knew you well enough, you didn’t sleep for maybe a week and he could tell, he knew you way too well but you were thankful for that. He held you that day until you fell asleep and made sure to stay awake for when you woke up, JJ spent the whole day playing with your hair and even running his fingers up and down your back, if he saw you move, he stopped. He didn’t want to hurt you or make anything worse, he wanted you to be okay and to be happy, and he was gonna get you back to your bubbly self, no matter how long or how hard it would be. He would do the best he could.

[liitlesunshiine]

Little Sidekick

(Bakugo x Reader)

Warnings: Cursing, sfw

Prompt: Y/N takes up an internship at the Ground Zero agency. With her luck, she ends up a sidekick to the Pro hero himself- Bakugo.

Prelude: While this chapter is smutty free I can guarantee you the future ones wont be ;) Now I haven’t written anything in a FAT minute so forgive ya girl for the grammar errors you see. I’m a marketing major not a literature one. Just horny and motivated enough to write a full-blown fic on a fictional character, that I am currently obsessing over. Hope ya sluts enjoy :*

Y/LN= Your Last Name

| Chapter 1

In a desperate last-minute attempt to leave your toxic home, you took up a hero exchange program in Japan that you found online. While this wasn’t exactly the smartest thing you’ve done, it definitely didn’t stop you from applying to a sidekick position in an agency called “Ground Zero,” not aware that you’re getting more than what you had originally bargained for; you secretly packed a bag with a few necessities and slipped out of the prison you called home.

~

“Good morning Ms. Y/LN, to start you off we’re going to be putting you in a training simulation to better analyze your quirk and combat skills. This is to see which hero you’d be most compatible with as a sidekick.”

It was your second day at the agency. You spent a week settling in the apartment that the agency offered you for the internship program. It was a humble setting, nothing flashy which you had preferred anyways. You finally step foot in the agency yesterday mainly going over the basics and signing paperwork, today you assumed was going to be a bit more hands on.

You were used to this type of routine, being top class in your high school years meant a lot of colleges were constantly throwing themselves at you. Which in turn led to a lot of situations with you in training and battling on other heroes. Especially with your father owning and running multiple agencies, you were constantly being forced to get stronger, it was practically expected of you to become a high-ranking hero in America and take over his business. Something you honestly didn’t care much for. Maybe it was the constant pressure being put on your shoulders to become a hero but after so many years of being subjected to that, you’ve come to secretly dislike the hero industry in your own twisted way. You only took this internship program because you were unknown here, there were no expectations of you, no one constantly breathing down your shoulder; here you were nothing but a nameless sidekick and that thought alone brought you some peace.

You stepped into the training simulation. It was an all-white room but seemed endless. On one wall there was a glass window where you supposed they watched you from but couldn’t see through from your side. You were wearing a one-piece track suit with lines running all throughout the outfit. The suit was ingrained with tech that would monitor your breathing and usage of your quirk.

“Hello Y/LN” you heard through the speaker phone “if the training gets too intense for you or if you want to take a break just yell out STOP and we will immediately halt everything. I also forgot to ask since I didn’t see it on your application: what is your hero name?”

That question lingered in your head for a minute or so. In America you were forced into living a persona behind the title of a false name. Everything in the hero industry was so theatrical, from the costumes, to even the name you represented yourself with. It was all so scripted and fake. You refused to take any part in that this time, here in Japan you’re starting with a clean slate.  So, with that in mind you sternly responded:

‘Y/N. it’s just Y/N.” and thus the training began.

About 15 minutes went by with no trouble or fuss. Your air quirk allowed you to move fast and efficiently. You’ve dodged every attack thrown at you by the fake automated dummies and even destroyed a handful with such ease and precision. You were taught a variety of attack and defense forms, all with and without the use of your quirk. You also knew how to dual sword fight; but since the training has been so pathetically easy you haven’t even found the need to use your swords yet. Picking up on this attitude, the speaker came on once again.

“It seems like the simulation is a bit too easy on you Y/N, were going to be skipping up a few levels and see how you do on level 7: which is where most of the pro heroes train at.

You only responded with a nod. A smirk slowly creeping in your face. About time they got serious. You were hoping for a challenge, you couldn’t deny the bit of pride you felt effortlessly blowing through this training. With that, more mindless dummies appeared, all in different shapes and sizes this time, some even carrying weapons and shields. There was one dummy in particular that caught your attention. It had four arms all holding a sword. You immediately drew your swords out and instantly ran over to it; all while you smoothly cut and sliced through all the others in your way.

Once you reached the four handed dummy, it instantly became a dance among swords hashing and daggering at one other. Even though you were outnumbered by two swords you kept the upper hand by being faster. But with every given slice the dummy was beginning to match your pace and speed, it was becoming slightly more difficult to stop every single hit; so, you cartwheeled back to give yourself some space.

You jumped to one of the corners of the walls staying off the ground to think of plan. You figured if you kept going back and forth with the dummy it would get you nowhere and eventually just tire you out. Frustrated by how the dummy was able to match your speed you prioritized cutting off two of its arms. That way it be more manageable than trying to defend yourself against four swords attacking you simultaneously. You instantly retreated back once you had given your failed plan an attempt. Back on the corner of the wall, you were losing more patience.

Maybe I should wait for an opening and cut its head off, maybe with my quirk I can push it back and have it fall, you thought to yourself. Maybe I’m just overthinking this, it’s a fucking lifeless dummy.

With that you activated your quirk and blew air towards the dummy with such force it rolled back. You took this opportunity to jump on it, but it immediately drew out one of its swords to defend itself; it forced you to quickly rotate midair and land it behind it. This gave you about 3 seconds to rack your sword across its neck before it was able to even register you were behind it. Its lifeless head fell onto to the floor and about a minute or so its body just disappeared altogether. The room was slowly returning to its white appearance and all the evidence of a battle scene was replaced shiny tiles. The lady walked through the door “wow Y/N that was great! You don’t even seem to be worn out. I’m sure you could’ve even reached level 8 easily but we gathered enough data already. Why don’t you come into my office so we can go over the details of who you’ll be paired up with”

You’ve trained tirelessly for years on end, of course this simulation was going to be a breeze. At least compared to what you’ve faced in the past. You shuttered at the thought, quickly trying to think of something else. You thoughtlessly followed her as she led the way, you looked around the impressive building with curiosity; it wasn’t the fanciest one you’ve seen but it must have been one of the biggest. After heading up in an elevator and making a few more turns you ended up in the speaker’s office taking a seat across her. A bit of guilt creeping up since you had completely forgotten her name.

She pulled out some papers giving you more things to sign and fill out. She briefly reminded you of the benefits that the agency was going to be offering you: an apartment complex 5 minutes away from here, a flexible schedule and fixed meet up times, and a small allowance for food and necessities.

“Do remember this program is for a year, while we can’t guarantee you a permanent position after that, if you do show promising resolve, we can offer you a contract making you an official member of the agency. This program is highly competitive though, we have about 8 other exchange heroes that we will be working with this year. And out of the 8 only one or possibly two, candidates will be accepted.”

“yeah that’s fine,” you casually responded.

You weren’t planning on staying here forever, regardless you were hoping by the end of the year you would land a spot in Shoto’s agency. You’ve always secretly admired the half and half hero after watching an interview of him speaking about his father. You couldn’t help but relate to him and what he felt; on top of it he seemed like a genuine and down to earth person. The opposite of what you’ve usually seen among heroes. You were absolutely intrigued and fascinated by the icyhot hero-

You were pulled away from your thoughts when the door behind you was slammed open. You jumped slightly from the noise and sharply turned with an irritated look on your face to see which asshole would just barge in like that. When you did, your eyes met with a pair of red curious ones. The man who barged in had spiky blonde hair protruding out in every angle, that would’ve been his most noticeable feature if it weren’t for the fact that he was fucking huge. His presence alone held such intimidation and power and that tight black shirt with a red X on it did little to no job in hiding every curve and muscle from his body. From the sharp V line on his lower abdomen, to his biceps which made your head look small in comparison, you were certainly caught off guard but pulled back into reality when the woman broke the silence.

“Y/N, this is Bakugo, Katsuki, also known as Ground Zero. You will be his sidekick from this moment forth.”

.

.

.

There was a moment or so of awkward silence that made the air around you feel heavy.

“tsk. Like hell I need a sidekick. I don’t need dead weight on my fucking shoulders, set her up with shitty hair, or dunce face.”

“Now, now Bakugo. We discussed this with the PR team already, don’t be difficult. We need to bring up your ratings. Having a pretty sidekick can distract the audience from that explosive personality of yours. We’re already in a rough spot from your last meltdown.” Speaker lady said with the calmest tone you’ve heard her use since you’ve met her.

“I was in the middle of a fucking battle how else would you have liked for me to get the public out of the way eh?”

“threating them with an explosion and cursing them off definitely wouldn’t have been my first choice.”

“tsk. Whatever. I’ll have to train her then. Wouldn’t want a liability on my hands now.” He looked over to you “Ya heard me freakshow?”  

You bit your inner lip, drawing a tiny ounce of blood. There was a lot of information to digest here but fuck this, you thought. You ignored him for a few seconds, unraveling everything you’ve just heard. The balls on this guy. Who the hell did he think he was? Last thing you needed was to deal with some asshole trying to down talk you. You stood up and pushed your chair back. You looked up at him with unsettling coldness. You weren’t having any of this shit today.

“My name is fucking Y/N.”

His mouth slightly gaped, it almost looked like he wanted to respond but couldn’t form any words. You assumed he wasn’t used to people talking back? You could careless at the moment, you took his delayed reaction to walk out and slam the door closed. You felt offended and belittled. So, they partnered me up with that punk not based off of my skill or anything but because I’m simply a pretty face that can distract the crowd from his unhinged personality? The fuck. A wind whirl of emotions went through you. Wasn’t this in some way demeaning, maybe even sexist? I’m being reduced to my looks now; this was definitely a first for you. His words rang in your head “dead weight” “liability,” “shitty hair,” “dunce face;” he not only spat on you but on his coworkers as well? Man, if that’s how he talks about his peers you could only imagine what he had in store for you, seems like “freakshow” was your new nickname already. A chill ran down your spine, maybe coming here was a bad idea.

No. no. no.  You quickly stopped your train of thought. I’m not going to have this wannabe scare me off on the first day. I left America for a reason, I can deal with this, I can deal with him-

Your thoughts were interrupted once again.

“Oi, I wasn’t finished talking!” he stomped his way behind you and pulled your arm back, forcing you to face him.

“well I am.” You responded sharply with an attitude rolling off your tongue.

“Like hell you are.” He growled, gripping your arm tighter this time, tugging you closer to him. The muscles on his biceps becoming veiny from how tight his grip was. The air stiffened and everyone outside the office walked slowly pretending not to notice you both. This time with more courage and vigor you pushed his shoulder, which to your embarrassment did little to nothing considering he didn’t even move an inch.

“What’s your problem?” you asked genuinely confused from why he was acting out, the pain on your arm becoming harder to ignore. He held an intense gaze with you, it was now registering how small you were in comparison to him. With his free hand he pushed the hair on your shoulder to the side gently, throwing you off completely. He leaned into you, insanely and uncomfortably close with his hot breath hitting your ear. Chills were running all throughout your body and you couldn’t bring yourself to move way this time. It was if you were completely frozen.

“Don’t go thinking you’re hot shit just cause you reached level 7. I’d hate to put you in your place so soon on your first week here little sidekick.” The pet name rolling off his tongue. You practically choked on air, not sure with what to respond with, still frozen. Slightly terrified, now slightly turned on; you made a feeble attempt in creating some space only to be pulled in closer. Now he had both of your arms pinned to the side.

“Not so brave now eh?” He pushed his body onto you, you practically felt like you were sinking into him. A light unintentional blush crept in on your face and he smirked at the sight. He pulled your chin up forcing you to meet his eyes, glaring down at you with a smug look on his face. He was taunting you.  

“Our training sessions will be every Thursday and Friday after 4. Make sure you’re on time little sidekick, I’d hate to have to go look for you and trust me, the last thing you’d want is to play a game of hide and seek with me.”

With that he let go of you and shoved you off to the side. You regained your balance by grabbing on to the table near you, trying to register what the fuck just happened. Everyone was looking at you. While Bakugo walked out of the room, you stood there absolutely floored. It was until a tap on the shoulder brought you back to your senses.

“You good? I wouldn’t worry much about Bakubro, he’s just like that.” A rather handsome red head stood in front of you. He was slightly bigger than Bakugo but around the same height. There was this energy radiating off of him that felt really comforting and soothing. He smiled at you and you caught sight of his sharp teeth, but gentle look on his eyes.

“I’m Kirishima. Welcome to the agency.”

~

[yamithediaperdork]

Midnight Stroll (Soul eater)

Midnight stroll

It was a bright star and moon filled night out, something that a certain weapon wasn't all that happy with as he made his way toward the park in death city. When he'd originally planned this all out it had been with the understanding of a cloudy night to help him hide a little better and now that plan had gone to hell. Of course the fact he was even going to enact his plan outside meant that our hero wanted to be seen but still. who's our hero and whats the plan you may be asking? The Hero of course was Soul, weapon extorinair and always hungry for well, souls.And his plan was to engage in his bi monthly diaper waddle of shame. You see Soul wasn't like most boys his age who were off chasing girls and being all manly. his idea of a ideal date would be getting spanked silly, diapered and teased till he pooped himself and then being put to bed in a crib without a diaper change.  As you might expect, this made his dating options slim to none so he just handled his babying himself. Granted there had been a close call or two when his roommate Black Star had walked in while he was diapered but Soul had manged to get under his blankets before being seen.

It was that close call that had soul decide to take his diaper games public, though he really only went out around midnight, and only did a quick little walk (or waddle if you prefer) in a area where not many people were up/knew him. before he had done massive diapers under shorts, and a diaper and t-shirt but tonight's main event so to speak would be his most daring outfit yet, and this time he wasn't going to carry his big boy clothes in a back pack with him. This time he was going to leave them in the public bathroom at the park so he'd have no real way of wussing out and hiding in a alley, scrambling to get pants on over his diapers. Just the thought of how MUCH of a big dumb stupid baby he was going to be had him almost skipping as he made his way into the park and made a B line for the bathrooms.

In the bathroom stall Soul paused and caught his breath, mentally psyching himself up for what he was going to do  There was no two ways about it, while the THOUGHT of what he was going to do had him rock hard and squirming like crazy as he leaked into his Garfield briefs, he KNEW just how bad this could be if he was caught. Just picturing Maka or Death or really ANY of his friends finding out what a big baby he was had him whimpering even if he was totally ready to have a 'accident' if he kept it up. Still, he hadn't blown a ton of money to order these items in and NOT use them, and nothing ventured nothing gained. or some bullshit like that. In any case, he started to strip.

Walking out of the bathroom with a waddle in his step, Soul was crimson faced but grinning like a fool as he checked out his reflection in the mirror. looking back at him was a young man, in thick massive nursery print diapers that forced his legs apart and would be more then up for the challenge of holding ANY messes the so called big boy could make. On his feet gone were the sneakers and instead was a pair of white baby booties in his size with little silver stars decorating them. His scrawny chest was covered with a plastic bib, white with a silver trim and in silver letters proclaimed soul to be a 'messy eater.' In his mouth bobbing in and out, and attached to a string around Soul's neck was a white and silver Pacifier, with a extra large nipple on it so his whole mouth was filled and it was already making him drool like the big baby he was. the final piece of his new look was a oversized white and silver baby bonnet to A) help him look even more silly and B) help help his identity. 'You, are SUCH a baby!' he thought to himself, squirming and crinkling as he wiggled his hips. Giggling like crazy he waddled back over to the stall and zipped up the book bag with all his big boy stuff in it and hung it on the inside door hook, the closed the stalls from the outside. Sure anyone who pushed on the door would see no one was in there buttt it wasn't like the place was exactly hopping with a bunch of people so Soul was sure it would be ok.

the first few steps into the wide open area of the park was the most nerve wracking, there was NO where to dodge and try and hide once he walked more then five steps away from the bathroom and Soul felt like at any second everyone and their uncle was going to pop outta nowhere and point and laugh at him. 'Mental note..next time toke up first.' he thought, squirming and his belly full of butterflies as he waddle over toward the play structure. Plopping his butt down in one of the swings (and barley fitting) he looked over at the baby seat swing with want in his eyes but if his fat diaper butt could barely fit in a normal swing, they'd have to call someone to cut him free out of one of those. Swinging back and forth a little he closed his eyes and pretended that it was the middle of the day, and a group of kids were all gathered around pointing and laughing at him. 'oh nooo! they're all being sooo mean to widdle meee! where my mommy and da-' Soul was thinking , but with his eyes closed and getting carried away he didn't notice that the slick plastic of his diapers had been sliding on the seat and suddenly he fell off the back of the swing. '...owwwwww..' he whined mentally, looking up at the sky. Since clearly swings and his diapers were going to work out on this fine evening, Soul after picking himself up moved on towards the slide. Climbing on the metal ladder with it being somewhat narrow and his diaper so bulky was a little trickier then he'd thought it would be and his foot slipped more then once as he made his way up. 'I swear, if I hurt myself AGAIN on playground equipment I'm just gonna bring a bucket and sand shovel next time and play in the sand box.' Soul thought dryly. the fact that he was apparently too much of a baby to use this stuff meant for little kids though DID make him feel nice and babyish and he was all grins as he got to the top of the slide and started to come down..At least till the static cling and the bulk of the diaper and the smallish sides of the slide meant while he didn't get stuck, he got one hell of a diaper wedgie. 'Anddd I think I'm done with the playground.' Soul thought sheepishly, trying to pick his diapers out of his ass crack.

The next part of his little planned fun was a little bit more risky then just playing on the playground. the playground had been close enough to the bathroom that he could of dashed back in as needed, but now as he tapped his chin and looked in different direction, he was going to go and walk for a block in the city on one of those directions. He wasn't too worried about being jumped or attack since well, diapers or no diapers he was a fucking weapon, but still people seeing him, pointing and laughing, maybe even taking pictures.... It was everything he dreaded and everything he wanted and it didn't take long for any common sense to be drowned out and he picked the southern route, meaning a good 6 minutes of waddling just in the park before even hitting the streets. His nipples stiff under his baby bib, Soul took one last look back at the park, then waddled out into the city.

as fate would have it, the path that Soul took actually went by a new all night gay bar, something he didn't realize till he turned a corner and there was a group of 5 well muscled men out having a smoke. The sight made him freeze in his tracks which was bad because he was under a street lamp at the time and while he to unfreeze and back track, he got noticed. "What the hell.." Came a drunken voice. "Oh my god! Tell me I'm actually seeing this and it's not just the phantom blast shots I've been pounding!" "Pffftt..it's a little diaper boy!" "You lost little boy? come sit with uncle." Anther one called and patted his lap. "Heh, think they'd wipe our bar tab clean if we brought him inside?" The last one asked. Soul's paci was moving in and out of his mouth BIG time now as he unfroze, but was squirming like crazy as a deep red blush covered his face. the men got up and started to walk over, smirking, smiling and one of them was pulling his cell phone out! "A-Ah! N-No pictures please!" Soul squeaked out, letting the paci fall out of his mouth and trying to cover his face. "heh..Cutie offer cutie. turn around and wiggle that cute butt of yours for us and there will be no FACE pictures." Cell phone said. A huge whine came out of soul, but he had to admit this was exactly that kind of attention he had humped stuffies into oblivion thinking about. It wasn't like he was going to be able to outrun the guys even if they were clearly wasted with the massive diaper between his legs and he briefly thought about maybe just switching to pull ups for next time so he could take off easier if this sorta thing happened again. Banishing THAT thought from his mind he did a half turn so his pampered butt was facing the drunks and then he started to shake it back and forth and getting into it, reached back and slapped it a couple of times. "Oh, somebodies a naughty baby huh? Does your daddy and mommy know where you are?" "hehehe Nope~! And.." Soul paused, the attention and the feeling of all of this short circuiting any restraint. "And it's just my daddy. We live together but he doesn't know what a dumb diaper bitch I am and How much I love being a pamper filling humiliation junkie~" "..well I'm hard." came a voice he recognized as cell phones. Soul giggled and wagged a finger back and forth. "ah ah ah, Sorry Uncles..This diaper boy is a official virgin for life so I can't help you with that! No sex for me ever, just poopie diapers and lots of teasing!" Soul giggled, then swatted his butt again and rubbed the front of his diapers. "Oh man.. no one is ever going to believe this..even with the pictures." "I'm seeing it with my own two eyes and -I- can't." Soul giggled again but then his tummy gurgled and grumbled, apparently his greasy supper wanted to make a appearance. "..wait..is he going to.." One of the guys asked. Not having to look at them, Soul found himself more daring then ever and popped a squat, rubbing his tummy. "Ohhh nooo! the big dumb BABY has to go boom boom!" he whined in babyish tone, and dared a look over his shoulder. and then paled. the original five had turned into 15 men watching him and smirking and suddenly the idea of loading his diapers in front of such a big crowd didn't seem like such a good idea. "A-Ah on second thought.." He squeaked. "Aww come on, don't be a cock tease! you promised us a show!" a guy wearing a bandana and sunglasses at night protested. "I..But..This is too many..and.." Soul whined and squirmed, his guts churning and a muffled fart coming out of him. "...Ok guys we're scaring the baby. phones away, no one record little soul's accident." Came the voice of one of the original five and Soul relaxed for a second..then turned around, letting out a massive poot and eyes wide. "W-Wait you know m-my name!?!" He practically shrieked. "uh..Yeah. wasssss I not suppose to? you're kinda famous in town." the guy said rubbing the back of his head. "..I'm going to run away now." Soul said, voice going faint. He made it all of five steps in his effort to get away, over the protest of his crowd of 'fans' when he was forced to hunch over and pop a squat again. Those who watched the show would later on agree while the visual effect of watching a deadly weapon helplessly blort out his diaper so it was sagging and discolored was hawt..they could of done without the smell. Still when Soul had dropped to his knees and pounded a fist on the street, while crying out that he was making cum cums, that helped them put up with the stink.

The waddle back to the park took much longer, though with the heavy load in his diaper making him waddle worse then before and his legs weak from the force of his orgasm it wasn't that shocking. Several times he had to pause and rest against a lamppost, and just suck on his paci, having semi orgasmic after shocks as he thought about what he had just done. 'Well, Ones thing for sure. that's to sure fuel my stuffie humping for at least half a year.' He thought and giggled a little. Finally making his way back to the bathroom, and having to wave away flies now, soul had let the paci fall from his mouth as he was holding his nose. "guh, I'm fucking rotten. no more greasy joeys fried chili-dogs for me." He muttered softly and spotted his stall. and froze. because it was wide open. "Ohhh no. no no no.." Soul said, gulping and a shaky smile on his face. "M-My Book bag is GOING to be there. it's going to be there. it's going to be there." it became a mantra as he took one step at a time, a feeling of weakness washing over him. "it's going to be there. it's..it's.." Soul mewed as he made it and looked, tears welling up in his eyes. "It's..Not here..But..my house key was in there...I..I have to waddle home..In..In a poopie diaper..and..And get Black star to let me in.." the big baby went silent as it sunk in and then feel to his knees crying out and sobbing even as a second powerful orgasm wracked though his body.

Black star was less then pleased as the doorbell wouldn't stop. he'd had more then a few drinks before going to bed and shouted for soul to get the fucking door, but of course the white haired bastard was ignoring him. 'I swear..after I answer the door if he's still asleep it's hand in warm water time.' Black thought. in just his white boxers with little black stars all over it (Yes, he was THAT vain) he made his way down to the front door. Modesty wasn't really a big thing for him and to be fair with how late it was fuck whoever was knocking on the door and ringing the door bell, they could see him in his undies. Not bothering to use the peephole first to see who it was, Black Star just opened the door and started to snarl. "What do you fucking..want..Uh..soul?" he roared, then went from a pissed off face, to a confused one, then smirking. "Oh. My. God." Soul whined and blushed, squirming back and forth. "C-Can you just move and let me in already?" the big baby whined. "Bwhahahaha! I knew it! Maka and everyone else said I was crazy But I fucking knew it! I know that was a diaper I saw you in the other day!" Black star crowed, then paused and wrinkled his nose. "wait..is that smell coming from you?" "N-No! I mean..yes, but uh..I just..stepped in some dog crap! yeah! that's it an-" Soul tried to say, but Black star not only tugged him into the house, but turned him around and planted his palm on the massive mess in the back of soul's diapered, making the big babies eyes roll in his head. "You did! you totally fudged yourself! Oh man!" Black star laughed, and then kept patting the poor weapons droopy pampers. "I think we need to have a nice long talk about how things are going to change around here, don't you?" Black Star asked and smirked. "I..I Uh..Ohh.." the weapon mewed and spread his legs to allow Star a easier time of smushing his mush tush. "though first and foremost, the first thing that needs to be changed is your stinky diaper butt..little boy." Black star said and then kissed soul's cheek. As his third orgasm in under a hour wracked his body, soul couldn't help but think that maybe he should of just stayed in tonight and streamed a movie.

The end

[phantasmofimagination]

The Split

Morality couldn’t stand the thoughts spewing from the Kings mouth. Sometimes the Kings ideas were beautiful and enchanting and other times they were vulgar and gorey. It was the horrific thoughts that he couldn’t handle. Hurting butterflies and pushing other children off the swing set. That was wrong! And those kids had done nothing to Thomas. And if The King was talking about things that were wrong... wasn’t he himself wrong?

Self-Preservation enjoyed his time with The King, even laughing at some of the more taboo thoughts that spewed from his mouth sometime without thinking. They had there ups and downs, with both of there egos having plenty fuel. However they got along for the most part. The King was interesting... And the duality of The King made him so intriguingly Charming.

However, over time The King became difficult to manage. His ego swelled too high and he wouldn’t listen to anyone, sometimes resorting to violence to shut anyone up who dared to question him. He was becoming a detriment to Thomas. The young child spewing things from his mouth without thinking and thinking far too highly of himself.

Morality was appalled by how Thomas was acting, and knew he had to do something! He had been far too lenient, he would have to be stricter. For the greater good of Thomas

Self-preservation could see how this was effecting Thomas, how his once good friend had lost control of himself. How it was causing chaos in the mind palace. He knew that he had to do something to keep the peace. No matter the cost, He had to protect Thomas.

Morality and Self-preservation met in the common area. Self-preservation had been pacing a hole in the carpet, trying to figure out a way to manipulate The King into hacking down. Morality run into him on accident. He had been heading to Logics room to ask him for ideas. (Though he wouldn’t tell him what exactly for, to protect him.) When Self-preservation asked Morality directly what he was doing Morality couldn’t lie to him, and he told him what he was doing. Self-preservation told him that he had been having similar thoughts. And the two hatched a plan.

They would take the good part of King and separate the bad. Though, neither could decide which was truly bad. Morality disliked the unfiltered part of the King, while Self-preservation hated the egotistical, selfish part of the King.

Self-preservation was at his wits end. And so was Morality. They couldn’t decide what part of the King to be rid of, but they couldn’t destroy all of him! In the middle of there argument the King came back from the imagination and demanded to know what was going on. Self-preservation kept his mouth shut, while Morality fought to explain. The King was enraged, and drew his sword at Morality.

Though before he could harm the moral side, Self-preservation struck at him, telling him off for all the things he’d done. The King seeing this as a sign of betrayal cursed his old friend for if he wished to slither around his emotions and lie through his teeth, Than he could do so permanently, as a snake! Self-preservation almost had no time to dodge the magic and he wasn’t able to dodge it completely. It hit one side of his body, making the skin fester and boil until scales took its place.

Morality, seeing this as his opportunity started the process of removing the “evil” part of the King. Self-preservation though blind in one eye and in searing pain was not going to let the “detrimental“ part of his friend be put in the spotlight and so he did the same.

With both of there goals different and conflicting interests all around, neither part of the King was destroyed. But he was torn apart.

Most of the values Self-preservation despised and the characteristics Morality adored were put into the side that had a red outfit.

While most of the values Morality Despised and some that Self-preservation adored were put into the side with a Green outfit. However, this new side wasn’t breathing.

Self-preservation made his way over there and tried to save him, he ended up using the last of his energy to do so, however he lost a part of himself as he did and Morality watched with tear filled eyes as a section of the Green King’s hair turned silver. Then he started breathing again.

Morality tried not to show his fear of the side of the face that Self-preservation was cursed on, but it was hard, however Self-preservation showed no filters on how disappointed he was in Morality. They were supposed to work together! And all morality had been was Selfish!

Morality, with tears streaming down his face took the Red side of King to the the common area and Self-preservation took the Green side of King, and took him deeper into the mind where neither of them could be hurt again.

Self-preservation lost most of his ability to speak the truth, and was only able to do so if he focused, but it left him drained and his throat sore if he did it for too long.

Morality lost his confidence, choosing to bottle up his emotions and fears so that he wouldn’t be selfish and tear apart something again.

The Red side didn’t remember much, only to not trust the words of a Slimey Snake.

The Green side remembered Most of it, and knew never to trust Morality, he tried to kill him after all!

The “Twins” met for a few months when they could get away. But overtime the Red side declared that the Green was bad for him, he was too unfiltered and had horrible ideas, while The Green side thought his brother was far to egotistical and his ideas were cliché. The two went there separate ways.

Overtime it became noticeable that the two still had traits of the other, The Green having a large Ego at times, and The Red having ideas that were taboo in someway.

You can never shatter a mirror directly down the middle.

Several things were lost that day, all for the good and wellbeing of Thomas. 

-

This is just an idea that popped in my head of how several things happened in Sanders Sides, all occurring from the split. I hope you enjoyed! Have a wonderful night/day! And remember to be the You that You want to be!

[thepancakeboi]

53. “Were you ever going to tell me?”

Divergence AU Part V

Previous | Next (coming...soon) | AU list | Prompt source

Fanfic under cut

12/10

“Do you really think the others will be okay on their own?”

My question, although probably unnecessary, is a valid one. Queen, Noir, Panther, and Fox are going to deal with the IT president, while Mona, Skull, Joker, and I are going to find the third Will Seed that Mona sensed was nearby. I know that we only have a week left to secure the infiltration route, but the idea of us splitting into two different groups is a little concerning.

“Don’t worry, Crow,” Skull replies. “They got this.”

“They aren’t weak,” Mona adds. “That letter is as good as ours!”

“My apologies,” I say, adjusting my white gloves out of habit. Even if they know who I am and what I’ve done, Joker is the only one who has seen my other outfit. I shouldn’t care what they think of me, but I’ve kept it a well-guarded secret for so long. Force of habit, I suppose. “Shall we continue?”

Joker nods, taking my hand in his as he leads the way. He’s been doing this ever since that night in Leblanc. I’ve stopped questioning it after the first fifty times. It’s...nice. The rest of the thieves haven’t commented on it yet, nor do they seem confused. Maybe they already knew of Joker’s feelings.

The fight to get into the room is all too simple, largely in part due to Joker’s damn Shiki-Ouji, a Persona that I have come to despise. It, alongside Arsène and Jack Frost, is one of his main Personas. Shiki-Ouji, though, nullifies nearly all of Robin Hood’s attacks...as I found out the hard way during our duel last month. Not even Loki would have been much more help against it. That thing has become the bane of my existence.

I’m just glad Joker doesn’t see me as an enemy.

He leads the way back to the large double doors, slashing the rose vines with unerring grace before pushing the doors open. With this task done, the four of us enter the room. We’re greeted by harsh, indeterminate whispers. Their content means nothing to me-

“I trust no one but myself.”

I recognize that voice. Shido. I grit my teeth as his voice rings and echoes off the walls. The others don’t seem to notice, but it’s as clear as day to me. I tune the others’ voices out as Joker takes the Will Seed from its pedestal, straining to hear the inner thoughts of that bastard. For a few seconds, it remains incoherent whispers, until...

“The enemy is coming...in more ways than one.”

It takes nearly all of my willpower to not react to this. These are his inner thoughts, aren’t they? If that’s the case...could he know? Is Shido starting to realize the suicide-murder shtick was faked, that Ren is still alive and currently traversing his Palace? And...oh no.

In more ways than one.

That can only mean one thing...

Shido knows.

He knows I’m not on his side.

Or maybe it’s his normal paranoia? I can’t be certain. It isn’t like I can ask Shido himself. He’d lie and say he trusts me, the action almost as natural to him as breathing. If he does know, what am I supposed to do...?

“Hey, you okay?”

Mona’s query snaps me out of my thoughts. “I’m fine,” I easily lie. “Just a little nervous, I suppose.”

Skull, the dense idiot that he is sometimes, buys it. “Man, you looked like you’d just seen a ghost! Warn us next time, will ya?”

“I will,” I respond, looking at the others to gauge their reactions. Mona doesn’t seem entirely convinced, but it doesn’t seem like he’s going to probe further. And Joker...I can’t read him. All I get is the feeling that he sees through my lie. “Anyway, we have the Will Seed. What’s our next move, Joker?”

Joker thinks for a few moments before answering, “There’s nothing else here. Let’s meet up with everyone in the safe room.”

His hand slips back into mine as we leave the room behind us. This close to him, I can finally see that he wasn’t convinced in the slightest. I know he’d try to get me to open up to him if it weren’t for Mona and Skull. Despite this, his eyes plead with me under his mask, trying to get me to tell him what’s wrong. I refuse to look at him as the last statement I hear from that cursed room echoes in my ears:

“The only thing you have to do is follow my order.”

We arrive at the safe room to find the others already there. “How did it go?” Queen asks as Skull and Mona sit down. I choose to stand a little way back from the group, side-eyeing Joker as he rests his head against my shoulder. What does he think he’s doing? Judging by the cheeky smirk on his face, he’s trying to be as distracting as possible.

“Joker got the last Will Seed!” Mona replies, simultaneously answering Queen’s question and taking my attention away from the menace next to me.

“Aw yeah, and we got the fourth letter!” Oracle says. She is beaming as she holds up the envelope for everyone to see, apparently proud of her group’s accomplishments.

“Sweet!” Skull exclaims. “All that’s left is the cleaner dude! Let’s go find him and kick his ass!”

“Wait!” Panther interjects. “We don’t even know where he’d be.”

“Who cares? Can’t we just cause some trouble again?”

“We could, but...”

“Then-”

“As much as I would like to take the cleaner down now, we should wait,” I say before Skull can get another word in edgewise. “He’s stronger than any of the VIP’s we have fought so far.”

“How about tomorrow?” Noir chimes in. “It’s Sunday, so we won’t have school.”

“I agree,” Queen adds before looking at me. “Will you be joining us?”

I wish I had more time to think things through. If only we could wait a few more days. Time, however, is in short supply. “I should be able to, though if anything comes up, I’ll let Joker know,” I say while gently pushing Joker’s face away.

That smirk from before fades away, replaced with a carefully crafted neutral expression. His voice rings with authority as he says, “Sounds like a plan. We’ll meet up tomorrow afternoon.”

Tomorrow afternoon. That’s when the deed will be done. If my revenge plan is going to work, I’m going to have to kill him, for real this time. There’s no going around it. My mind is so preoccupied with planning how to accomplish this that I don’t even notice everyone else has left until I’m startled out of my thoughts by the kiss Joker plants on my cheek. He looks concerned. “Is everything okay?”

“What makes you think it isn’t?” I ask back, dodging his question.

“You seemed tense earlier. And a little scared. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’ll be fine. Soon, this will all be over.”

Over in ways neither of us would want, yet it’s the only way this could ever end. This is how it was meant to be from the beginning: with one of us dead.

12/11

I tap my fingers idly against my leg as I wait on one of the catwalks in the engine room. Earlier, I had texted Ren saying that I would be running late and to go on without me. He must have bought it because when I had entered Shido’s Palace, the Phantom Thieves were nowhere to be found. I had told them the cleaner would likely be in the engine room. They must be farther inside.

My suspicions are confirmed a moment later when the group comes walking out, celebrating their recent victory. How delighted they must be now that they have the final letter. That happiness is about to be destroyed. Joker is the one to notice me, of course. He halts, looking up at me. “Crow?” he asks. “What are you doing up there?”

I leap down, doing a flip before landing effortlessly in front of the thieves. Damn Joker’s habits rubbing off on me. I expect to feel some level of anticipation, or maybe regret, but I feel...nothing. I don’t see Ren or Joker in front of me. All I see is another obstacle, blocking my plans from coming to fruition. “Did you really think I would let you leave this place alive?”

“Huh?”

My gun is out, pointed at him in an instant. I won’t give Joker the chance to say another word. Time to pull the trigger.

...except I don’t.

What’s stopping me from firing, from killing this menace? My hesitation wastes valuable time, time that the rest of the thieves use to prepare themselves to fight if necessary. I no longer have the advantage of surprise. Why didn’t I just kill him first? “Keeping you alive was a terrible decision.”

“What’s gotten into you, Akechi?” Queen asks. I don’t miss the dropping of codenames. “You were the one who suggested this plan.”

She’s not wrong. I had been the one to plan most of this heist, due to my knowledge of Shido’s Palace. “Nothing has changed. This camaraderie between us has all been an act.” The lies slip so easily off my tongue, and I find that I’m starting to believe myself. “When Joker started to piece things together, I knew I would have to change my plans, and in order to do that, I had to make him aware of my original plan. I’ve been planning this from the start. You all were simply so foolish as to trust me.”

“All an act...?” Joker asks, hesitant. It’s as if he’s trying to deny the words I’m saying.

I refuse to answer his question, instead deciding to say, “I’ve never shown you my true power, have I? Here, I’ll show you...while you die. Persona!”

I can feel Loki’s presence as two Shadows materialize from thin air. A Cerberus and a Cu Chulainn. Perfect. I direct Loki to use his signature Call of Chaos on the two Shadows. Their complexion turns black and red as their true destructive potential is unleashed. I can hear Cerberus growl as it paws at the ground in anticipation, waiting for my command to kill these wretched thieves.

“What was that?” Oracle asks, voicing everyone’s surprise at Loki’s brief appearance. “That wasn’t Robin Hood.”

“You’re right,” I confirm with a grin, “but that’s the least of your concern. You better not underestimate these two.” I leap back, putting the berserk Shadows between me and the Phantom Thieves. In a mad rush, the two Shadows launch themselves at their foes. I don’t expect the Shadows to win; they’re just meant to wear the enemy down.

Mona’s voice rings over the din of the fight. “Go, Joker! If anyone has a chance of getting through to him, it’s you.”

I see Joker nod, and, before I can even react, he’s using his grappling hook, sailing over the Shadows and landing a few feet away from me. The absolute fool. “You just made a grievous mistake,” I snarl. “You’ll need your teammates if you have any hopes of defeating me.”

He shakes his head. Cocky little shit- “I don’t need to defeat you.”

That catches me off guard. Just what the hell is he planning? “Then what is it? Are you going to abandon your teammates, just like you wanted before when I suggested leaving them to work with me?”

“I’m not abandoning anyone.”

“Oh, is that so? Then maybe we should put an end to our duel, striking and striking again and again until one of us is dead! Unless you’re so spineless that you’ll run away with your tail between your legs. Is that your master plan?”

“No,” he replies, his voice firm. “I love you, and I’m not leaving you.”

I laugh. He’s more foolish than I gave him credit for. “Then tell me, Joker. Will you love me for this?” His eyes widen ever so slightly as I point my gun at his face, aiming right between his eyes. It’s a pale comparison to the terror Sae’s cognition of Ren expressed. He’s too naive to be afraid. “There’s no cognitive double to save you this time.”

Joker, the absolute idiot that he is, doesn’t have the common sense to back down. Why is he just standing there? Move, damnit! It’s as if he’s deaf to my silent pleas. He refuses to move. He even has the gall to smile a little as he replies, “Hey, I’ll always love you no matter what. I’ll take a bullet for you, even if you’re shooting.”

I could do it. I could shoot him right now. But now, in this critical moment, I find myself hesitating once again.

Do it.

But he’s the only good thing in my life-

Do it! Watch as the light leaves his eyes!

I don’t...I don’t know if I can do it again...

What about your revenge? He’s in the way!

I tighten my grip on the gun...but I still can’t pull the trigger. Why...why can’t I kill him!? “How stupid are you? Would you really let your irrational feelings get in the way of your goal?” I have no idea if I’m asking him the questions...or myself.

“It seems you let your ‘irrational’ feelings get in the way of your goal. Aren’t you going to shoot?” he adds, almost sounding a little cocky at the end.

How dare he...

“Don’t lecture me!” I yell, whipping the gun away from his face. It clangs against the floor, the sound echoing in my ears. It’s clear I’m not going to shoot him point-blank anyway. “You think you know me, that you’ve got me pinned down. You don’t know anything about me! All you are is some criminal trash living in an attic who thinks he’s in love with an ace detective, a celebrity! You’ve deluded yourself and refuse to see the truth. How foolish you were to think that you meant anything to me, Joker!”

“You’re wrong!” He grabs my hand, the same hand that a few moments prior had been pointing a gun at his face. “I love you, and I’ll always love you. And...I know you love me too. We don’t have to fight-”

“I will get my revenge,” I interrupt as I pull my hand out of his grasp, refusing to listen to another word of his, “against Masayoshi Shido...my father. And you’re in my way.”

That makes him stop. The shock on his face is undeniable. “Shido’s...your father? Were you ever going to tell me?”

“What would’ve been the point?”

“Goro,” he starts; he must be taking this seriously if he’s using my first name, “we can still change his heart. Just let me hel-”

“I’m warning you. Stand. Down.”

“Please. I love y-”

Something inside me snaps. “NO! Just shut up, and die, Joker!”

There is only one way I can think of that’ll make me able to kill Joker. I welcome it with open arms. Loki’s mad power washes over me, my outfit changing in an instant. The world is tinted red, though I’m not sure whether it’s from the intense desire to murder or the lenses in the black mask. Maybe both.

But that doesn’t matter.

Nothing matters.

The only thing I want is to kill!

Destroy!

Massacre anything that stands in my way!

...starting...with...Joker.

A lopsided grin creeps on my face. Oh, this will be fun! I wonder how far I can go with this...

Let’s find out.

With little abandon, I rush straight at Joker with my serrated blade. It’ll tear him into pieces!

My sword clashes against his signature dagger. Somehow, he stands firm. How? How can he...?

Oh, so what!? He can’t possibly last for long! I go for another slash, but he yet again blocks it with that damn dagger of his. Our blades continue to strike against each other, neither of us able to land a hit on the other.

Again.

And again.

And again!

But then, as I throw all my strength into another frenzied slash, he weaves out of the way, kicking the sword right out of my hand as I start to stumble.

No way. How could this attic trash possibly be stronger than me!?

Joker lunges at me, the dagger no longer in his hand. Somehow, he manages to knock me off balance. He tries to restrain me as I thrash while screaming insults at his face.

One of my hands reaches my mask. Perfect.

I don’t even think.

I just act.

Only one thought rages in my mind.

I will kill Joker!

I command Loki to use Maragion. He won’t be able to block this attack. Screw his Shiki-Ouji!

For a brief moment, the flames surround Joker...but suddenly, they turn on me. I grit my teeth at the searing agony radiating through my body. Damnit...of all the times he wasn’t using that Persona-

My mask reforms, but is quickly pulled away from my face. Joker tosses it to the side, once again trying to hold me down. He flinches as my claws rake across his face, but he doesn’t budge.

He’s saying something to me, but I can’t hear him.

I don’t care what he’s saying! He should be dead!

I almost manage to hit him a second time, but now he’s able to use his hands to pin mine down. I try desperately to claw at his hands, but they’re just out of reach.

Damnit!

Joker’s still talking. Now I can make out his words. “...love y...please...it’ll be...”

What is he thinking!?

Even now...

As the seconds slowly tick by, the psychotic rage that overtook me starts to dissipate. Joker keeps on saying the same thing over and over: “I love you, Goro. Please, calm down. It’ll be okay.”

Over.

And over.

He sounds so distraught as I continue to fight against him. Repeating those same words. It’s no use. Joker’s determined to stop me.

Eventually, I stop struggling, panting as I try to catch my breath. I finally manage to gasp out, “What are you doing?”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

“I...I didn’t want this.”

“I know. You didn’t want to shoot me.”

“I-”

Our conversation is interrupted by a pained scream. We both look over as Cu Chulainn falls to the ground. Cerberus must have fallen earlier in the fight, as it’s nowhere to be seen. The rest of the thieves look a little tired but otherwise no worse for wear. I turn my attention back to Joker, frowning as I see blood dripping from the thin slashes marring his beautiful face. “It’s fine,” Joker says, noticing where my attention is. “It doesn’t hurt. But are you okay?”

My laughter is strained, forced. “That’s what you’re concerned about?”

“But you got hurt.” He moves his hand to gently caress my face. “If I had known you were going to use that move, I would’ve used a different Persona.”

“Why would you even care? I just tried to kill you, damnit!”

“Because I love you, Goro. And I always will. You could’ve shot me, and I still would have loved you just the same.” Is it just me, or did his voice crack just a little there? “Goro, no matter what happens, I just want you to know I love you dearly, and-”

“Ugh, can we save the cheesy romance for later?” Oracle butts in.

Oh. That’s right. We’re not alone here. And with how things currently look... “Joker?” I start.

“Yeah?”

“Get off me.”

“Aww, I was enjoying this,” he says with a chuckle. He waits a second before moving so that I can push myself into a sitting position. The sudden movement causes me to hiss in pain. “You didn’t answer me earlier. Are you okay?”

“I have been through worse.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“I’ll be alright. Any other questions before we leave this wretched place?”

“Just one. Why did you do this? Did something happen yesterday?”

I almost tell him. My lips part, about to answer, but I realize it might take too much time. “How about we save that question for Leblanc? It...might take some time to answer.”

“Okay. We should head back to the central hall,” he adds, addressing everyone with that. He then turns back to me and, with a smirk, kneels down and puts one arm behind my back and the other under my knees. I realize what he’s doing just as he proceeds to pick me up bridal style with little regard for if he gets jabbed by the pointy parts of my true outfit. The rest of the thieves seem just as surprised and shocked as I am. Meanwhile, Joker grins at me as he says, “Hi, Akeppi.”

“Joker, what are you doing?”

“Showing you how much I love you.”

“You stupid, insufferable-” The rest of what I was going to say is cut off by the soft little kiss Joker gives me. He looks like he would love to kiss me more, but he’s not about to test his luck when I have so many ways to potentially harm him right now. It takes me a few seconds of mulling my response in my head before I begrudgingly finish, “...lovable menace.”

“I know. But I’m your menace.”

That alone gets me to smile. He’s right. It only took me trying to kill him to see it. “Yes, you’re my menace, and nothing is going to ever change that.”

[elmidol]

Error: Program Not Found - Five

Summary:  You are in charge of programming the droids that work most closely with both General Hux and Kylo Ren. Unbeknownst to you, each of these two men have it in their heads that your relationship extends beyond the workplace. This causes things to escalate quickly when your two apparently secret boyfriends compare notes on their respective partner who is far too similar for their liking.

Read on AO3

“Fall seven times, stand up eight.” - Japanese proverb

 Five: Morale

 TeeArr’s new arm was not a different color than the old one, however it offered that impression due to its newness. Light reflected off its surface more freely than the dulled exterior of the droid’s other limbs. You made a note to have the protocol droid properly bathed. Had the maintenance lead not been so caught up in admonishing and berating you for TeeArr’s constant critiques on his work, the man would have done his job more thoroughly and the task would have already been completed. Listening to him had been exasperating enough that you had failed to take into account that TeeArr would not have been bathed. Rolling your eyes, you let yourself remember the expression on the man’s face. He had been ticked. Riled up. Stating what TeeArr had been doing only to be corrected by the protocol droid over one of the finer details of the situation they had shared. You snorted at that.

 “I see nothing funny here,” TeeArr said. His head turned one way then the next, no doubt in an attempt to discover your source of amusement. There was nothing in the hallway for him to discover aside from the normal closed doors, mouse droids, and First Order personnel.

 You waved your hand, wagging it back and forth after bending your elbow to raise the limb partway towards your face. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll tell you later.” TeeArr gave the droid equivalent of an exasperated sigh. He had charged while you had slept a few hours after you had retrieved him from the maintenance lead. A new shift was set to start in under an hour, and your plan was to arrive first to continue repairing the training droids. The team would be no different than the previous cycle. Kylo Ren was present again as well, you noticed upon entering the training area.

 Droids that were in later stages of repair had been placed into a separate section in the room than the ones you had yet to work on. Kylo Ren, wearing his full outfit to include hood and mask, stood beside the pile. His back was to you, but that did not stop you from realizing that he was inspecting the droids. You were unsure if it was due to impatience or if he was merely curious as to what modifications had been made. Superior materials had been brought in; that had been one area that you and the maintenance lead had not clashed.

 TeeArr was not oblivious to Kylo Ren’s attendance. He was, however, thankfully more tactful when addressing him. “Ah! Commander Ren. You will be pleased to know that my arm has been fully restored. I can now assist in repairing these droids.” Kylo Ren slowly turned around. The action felt delayed enough that you blinked to ensure you weren’t imagining movement. As your eyelids lifted, Kylo pointed his mask in your direction. You gave an awkward wave. “And it is just as well. Did you know that some of your First Order employees utilize their work datapads for unprofessional functions?”

 Kylo Ren offered his full attention to TeeArr. Your eyes started to widen, and you recognized that you were growing nervous when you felt your leg muscles tensing. This was not a time to have a repeat of the previous day.

 “Indeed, sir. Despite the limited memory on their datapads, some of the technicians and mechanics stash a sealed folder of holovids that add nothing to the furtherment of the First Order’s goals.”

 “Oh,” you said though you had not been the one TeeArr had been addressing. “Humor helps keep morale up.”

 TeeArr turned its head to look at you. “I will never understand humans. Nakedness as--”

 “Wait!” You held up your hands, waving both of them back and forth to silence TeeArr, who for once listened immediately.

 Kylo Ren took a step in your direction. You dropped your hands, began to sputter out an apology for the inappropriate conversation, and found that your tongue did not want to work. Clearing your throat, you were ready to try again when Kylo Ren paused only a foot away from you. Sometimes you forgot just how tall he was.

 “Your droid has such filthy preoccupations.” You swallowed hard. There was no anger in his tone, and his hands were not clenched. In terms of Kylo Ren body language, he was approachable. You repeated what he had said, specifically his choice of words, in your head. As when General Hux had caught you off guard, you found your face growing warm. “Is that what you discuss with it?” You did not discuss sex with droids.

 Before you could properly respond to his question, the door to the training room slid open and Kylo Ren took a step away from you. Only a single step, yet the distance felt greater. Your mind took a moment to register why this was. His fingers had curled towards his palms into loose fists. Less approachable now. He did not wish to speak so freely, or be spoken to quite openly, when there were others besides you in the room. This struck you as odd. You had never before allowed yourself time to consider that Kylo Ren might view you as anything other than a programmer. His actions, subtle as they were, could not slip your notice now.

 It rang true that familiarity could allow one to naturally lower their defenses. You did not consider yourself to be friends with Kylo Ren. On that same note, you did not fear him quite as much as others did, and you were aware that he respected your work. This easily translated into personal respect. More when you thought of the limited social contact he appeared to have.

 Looking away from Kylo Ren, you greeted the female mechanic that walked into the room. Her eyes darted from Kylo to you. You assumed that, like you, she had arrived with the intention of starting work a little early. Which meant that she had not expected anyone else to be in the room, not to mention Kylo Ren of all people. TeeArr, despite being a droid, could sometimes read a room. This rang true when he realized that the woman had not moved any closer to the droids that she had come to repair. TeeArr grabbed hold of one of the badly damaged pieces and walked over to her. She startled at that, offered her gratitude, and took the droid to begin work.

 You lowered yourself into a comfortable sitting position to do likewise. Several of the programs that you had altered for the droids were more to the copy/paste stage once you deleted lines of coding that they currently possessed. What was most time consuming with this was that you had to link your datapad to each droid individually. This was not something that TeeArr would have been able to assist you with, and so you found yourself suddenly grateful that the mechanic had arrived to keep the droid occupied. Otherwise who knows what conversation TeeArr might have ventured to have with Kylo Ren.

 Connecting the first training droid with your datapad, you were reminded that some of them had different programming than others. Their systems were bogged down with erroneous codes and unnecessary data.

 Kylo Ren picked up one of the droids from the pile on the opposite side of the room. You divided your attention between your work and what he was doing. None of the droids had been given a proper test to check if their functions had improved. It was technically not quite safe for someone to conduct such a test with the method that Kylo Ren had chosen to use. That is, turning them on and drawing the hilt of his lightsaber from off his belt. The nearest exit was too far from your position to correctly dart out of it before the training droid fired its first blast. You jumped in place. The hiss of the lightsaber igniting was practically drowned out by the way its plasma blade deflected the blast. Such speed was not natural, you thought.

 Perhaps that’s the allure of the Force, you reminded yourself.

 A second then third bolt were sent away without hitting their target as Kylo Ren flexed his wrist. The small strokes caught your eye. Training droids were programmed to learn from those they trained. The most basic of programming was no match for one of Kylo Ren’s skill. Which had you considering doing research into newer attack methods to offer a better variety. It would be much the same as how you hoped to handle the physical therapy droids should they be approved. Geared towards the individual, in this case programmed with increased speed and more feints. There were rumors that Jedi, and perhaps Sith, had once used modified droids. Yet it was also said that the Jedi and Sith had never existed. It all depended upon who you spoke with.

 You did believe that they had once existed, and Kylo Ren’s presence reaffirmed this belief. The red plasma blade arced through the air at a leisurely pace. The droid did not dodge in time. Wincing, you were already mouthing a swear before Kylo Ren looked in your direction.

 “Does it recognize that its casing is heavier?”

 Thicker, you thought in correction. Then found yourself pursing your lips when he sliced through the droid like butter with his blade. “That is not helpful.” TeeArr’s voice mingled with your own, which produced an echo effect that gave you pause. When you continued speaking three seconds later, it was only your voice that sounded. “Not to be disrespectful.”

 “Do you keep a hidden folder on your datapad?” Kylo Ren said by way of countering. Your eyes darted to the mechanic only for you to discover that she had put on headgear to help her focus on her work. You should have realized by the change in his behavior that your interactions were not being so readily observed by the other party. “That isn’t quite helpful either...not for your job.”

 “It-it-it’s for morale!”

 “Oh?”

 The heat that had enveloped your face grew in intensity. “Funny holovids. Not...not that.” TeeArr, ever helpful, decided to elaborate on the fact that the content was largely animal-based. As though disappointed by this revelation, Kylo Ren returned his focus on the pile of partially repaired droids. You narrowed your eyes and bristled while observing him lift up another. He was your superior, you reminded yourself, much to your displeasure. You did not frequently dislike working for him. And, in many ways, the droids were for more than just him. That did not change the fact that you were presently displeased with being involved in this project.

 To take a page out of the other woman’s book, you grabbed hold of headgear that had been left by one of the other workers and slid it over your ears. That drowned out the sound of whatever training Kylo Ren had decided to participate in. Training and destruction, predominately the latter. Your fingers began to fly across the keys as you input the instructions for the programming change in the droids. TeeArr walked to and from the two piles of droids. He was following the commands of the other female, and you did not take offense to the fact that she had failed to ask you permission to use your droid. It was better she use him than Kylo Ren.

 Three more of the training droids were quick to have corrections on their programming, while the fourth that you encountered had encryptions that most definitely should not have been there. Your thoughts flashed briefly to the folders that TeeArr had mentioned in regards to pornographic holovids then to your own critter shorts. Other hidden files could be program-based. Spyware. This was not something that you recalled encountering on your previous inspections of the droids, and you distinctly remembered going over each droid one by one. It was tedious work to be certain, but you were not one to allow these flaws to slip through the cracks.

 And the droid that Kylo Ren destroyed should not have behaved as poorly as it did. You drummed four fingers on your leg in thought. “Commander?” There was no response. You repeated the title, looking up to find that he was already standing in front of you. You grabbed hold of the headgear to remove it and set the item to your right. “What channels must I go through to have security feed reviewed?”

 “There is no need. You’ve passed the test.”

 What the kriff did that mean? The question would have been apparent on your face given how a low chuckle escaped the vocoder.

 “It was requested that your performance be reviewed given how poorly these droids functioned.” You wanted to scream at the top of your lungs that you had been pulled off the assignment prematurely. That would have done you no good, and would have served only to have given Kylo Ren either a laugh or a headache. “I know that you are thorough.” He squatted down in front of you, prompting you to sit straighter. “Perhaps you should be rewarded.”

 By your next inhalation, he had already pulled away from you and was standing to his full height. You glanced past him. As you had expected, the other female was wrapping up work on the droid that she had been preoccupied with. Kylo Ren’s guard was up again. Her headgear, however, had not been removed.

 “Perhaps more holovids for your morale.”

 His teasing was flirtatious, that much you were beginning to recognize.

 “Uhm… That isn’t necessary.” His stare lingered on you for another moment before Kylo Ren turned away and walked towards the exit of the room. You watched him. Wondered if this behavior was something that you should address then wondered if all the droids had been compromised for this test to take place. You should have stayed in bed longer.

 Except then I’d have had more witnesses to this ridiculous test. Rolling your eyes, you grabbed for one of the other droids to see how much of a mess you were in.

[the-wordsmiths-fabrications]

Adrinette April Day 6 - Aspik and Marinette

Day 6- Aspik and Marinette 

Word Count - 1468

A/N- If you squint, Aspik and Marinette are there, I promise.   

“Adrien Agreste, here is the Miraculous of the snake, which grants the power of a second chance. You will use it for the greater good. Once we defeat the supervillain, you will return the Miraculous to me,” Ladybug stated to Adrien, holding out a small wooden box with intricate red detailing on the top. 

Adrien smiled and held out his hand. “You can count on me Ladybug. I’ll always have your back,” he promised. 

That conversation happened less than five minutes ago. Adrien, or rather Aspik, felt like it happened a century ago.  

The first attack from Desperada came from the Eiffel Tower. The second and third attacks came from the top of a car. The fourth attack happened as Aspik and Ladybug were running out from between two buildings. After that, the rest were all a blur. The moment Aspik thought he had come up with a new idea, Desperada was two steps ahead of him. It was getting impossible to come up with different ways to defeat Desperada and Aspik was giving up hope. I didn’t help watching Ladybug get captured over and over again without being able to do anything to help her. 

Aspik used his second chance and brought himself and Ladybug back into the sewers. “Sass, scales rest.” he said, transforming back to Adrien. 

“Adrien, what’s going on?” Ladybug asked, putting her right hand on Adrien’s shoulder. 

Adrien looked down at the ground and held back tears. “I’m sorry Ladybug, but I’m not the right person for this job,” he said quietly. 

“What are you talki-” 

“We’ve tried 25,913 times. I can’t protect you any longer. Desperada is always two steps ahead of us. She’s been two steps ahead of us for months. Three-quarters of Paris have been captured by now. At this rate, it’ll only be us and her left within a few days. I’ve never managed to save anyone but myself,” Adrien interrupted tears falling down his cheeks. 

“Adrien, that’s not true. You’ve brought us back to the sewer together every time without fail. I still have my Lucky Charm, the saddle. If we work together, we can come up with a plan to stop her once and for all and save all of Paris,” Ladybug comforted, wiping Adrien’s tears away. “Maybe we should rest for a moment,” she suggested. Adrien nodded in response, so Ladybug took his hand and led him down the sewers until they reached a locker room. Ladybug checked every locker in the locker room to make sure Desperada wasn’t hiding, and found a pad of paper and a pen. She sat down on the bench in the middle of the room with Adrien after she closed the door. “Are you okay, Adrien?” she asked. 

“I’m better, Ladybug. I’m sorry for freaking out before,” Adrien apologized. 

“It’s ok. I understand. After a particularly hard mission, when I felt as though everything went wrong, I break down sometimes myself. It can be hard being one of Paris’s best defenders. I imagine Cat Noir feels the same way sometimes,” Ladybug admitted, looking away from Adrien.  

Adrien gasped and almost said something out loud he shouldn’t have about being Cat Noir. “You have no idea how badly I want to tell you I’m Cat Noir right now.” he thought instead.

Ladybug cleared her throat, “Well, enough about that. Let’s focus on how we can defeat Desperada. What have you tried so far?” 

Adrien began to list off all the ways he remembered to try to defeat Desperada as Ladybug wrote them down in the notebook. Methods that worked were circled and what didn’t work was crossed off. Soon, the pair found themselves finalizing a plan that would hopefully overpower the supervillain. 

“Okay, so we are going to sneak to Montparnasse Tower and broadcast a message to the rest of Paris to help us out by throwing belongings out onto the streets. Then, we are going to lure her to the Eiffel Tower. Desperada can only fit a certain amount of stuff on her guitar case, so once it’s filled up, we can get her akuma. Once we get to the Eiffel Tower, I’ll trap her with the yo-yo and use the Lucky Charm” Ladybug explained, putting the notebook and the pen into her yo-yo. 

“This sounds kind of complicated, don’t you think?” Adrien asked, concerned. 

“It is, but this is the last chance we have of defeating Desperada,” Ladybug explained, “Let’s get going.” 

****** 

Getting to Montparnasse Tower and convincing the citizens of Paris to help was the easy part. Now it was time for the hard part - fighting Desperada. Ladybug and Aspik were running through the streets of Paris, dodging the objects Parisians were throwing out their windows and doors. Desperada wasn’t far behind them, having no choice but to use her instruments to defend herself, collecting small pieces of furniture and decor on her guitar case. Ladybug and Aspik made it to the final stretch before the Eiffel Tower- a bridge with nothing on it to defend themselves with. Desperada saw their weakness and ran faster, getting closer to the superheroes with every stride. 

“We’ll stand a better chance of getting to the Eiffel Tower if we split up!” Aspik shouted, running towards the right side of the bridge. 

“Good idea!” Ladybug shouted back, running to the left. She started to weave between the light poles and benches in an attempt to confuse Desperada, while Aspik ran ahead. The plan failed as Desperada leaped ahead and jumped on top of the bench Ladybug was about to weave around. 

“I’ve got you now, Ladybug,” Desperada threatened, lunging towards Ladybug. Ladybug cried out and stumbled backwards, only to find herself trapped between Desperada and a lamp post. 

“No!” Aspik cried out, turning around at the sound of Ladybug’s cry. He was at the base of the Eiffel Tower, but he started to run towards his partner and the supervillain and tried to come up with a plan. 

“Give me your Miraculous, Ladybug, and this will all be over,” Desperada ordered, holding out her hand. 

“Never!” Ladybug shouted, as she pulled out her yo-yo in an attempt to fly away. Desperada whipped out her guitar and hit Ladybug’s yo-yo, causing it to disappear into her guitar case.  

“No!” Ladybug wailed. Her Lucky Charm was her only hope of getting out of this situation. Ladybug went to go unbuckle it from her waist, but Desperada had read her mind and hit it with her guitar as well. 

Aspik, now a few feet away from Desperada, needed to come up with a distraction, fast. He started to play off-key on his harp. Desperada pulled out her trumpet and shot a blast of energy at it, zapping it into her guitar case.  

“Nice try, snake,” she sneered, before turning back to Ladybug. Desperada trapped Ladybug with her body between herself and the lamp post. With her left hand trapping Ladybug, Desperada reached for one of Ladybug’s earrings with her right hand. A glowing purple butterfly mask appeared around Desperada’s eyes. 

“Yes! Nice work Desperada!” a male-voice cheered. 

“Anything for you, Hawkmoth,” Desperada growled. With that, she grabbed onto Ladybug’s earring and pulled. Despite Ladybug’s pleas to stop, Desperada kept pulling on the earring. Ladybug’s mask and outfit started to shimmer away. Aspik could only watch, frozen in horror. When the first earring was pulled off, Desperada put it in her pocket and moved on to the second earring. By this point, half of Ladybug’s mask and costume had been shimmered away. Aspik thought that he recognized the person underneath the mask, but it wasn’t until the second earring had been pulled off completely that he recognized who it was. 

“Marinette,” Aspik gasped softly. After putting Ladybug’s second earring into her pocket, Desperada shrieked in laughter and ran off, probably towards Hawkmoth’s evil lair. Marinette was now slumped against the lamp post, sobbing into her hands. Aspik walked up to her and hugged her. 

“I failed, Aspik,” Marinette sobbed, “I failed you, I failed myself, but more importantly, I failed all of Paris. This was supposed to be my second chance and I blew it.” Aspik pulled her closer into his chest and rubbed her back. 

“It’s going to be okay, Marinette,” Aspik said after a moment. He adjusted himself so that he could adjust his bracelet and yell, “Second chance.” 

Aspik and Ladybug were brought back to the sewers. 

“Sass, scales rest,” Aspik yelled, transforming into Adrien. Adrien sighed and handed the miraculous to Ladybug, “We tried 25,914 times and it wasn’t enough. I think this miraculous belongs to someone else.” Adrien turned around and walked away from Ladybug before she could say anything.  

@adrinetteapril